FIC: REPOST: Militat omnis amans (Every lover is a warrior) Part 7e/?

["Beckett, Kevin" <kevin.beckett@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Militat omnis amans (Every lover is a warrior) Part 7e/?
K. Beckett (c) 2000 

Disclaimers:
Buffy, Willow and all of the other characters and places from the show
belong to Joss Whedon, WB and Mutant Enemy etal. Everyone and everything
else is mine. None of my characters are meant to resemble anyone living,
dead or un-dead, if you see yourself you are looking way too hard.

This story contains sexual acts between consenting adult women, and was
written in a jurisdiction where it was legal to do so. If this offends you,
don't read.

Rating: 
R

Other: 
The Latin and Gaelic are mine; I take the responsibility for any
translations of them. In addition, the descriptions of the rituals, spells
and other craft work come from my traditions, so please don't take offence
if something described here does not match your traditions or what you think
it should.

Archiving etc.: 
Ask and I will say yes.

Spoilers and other ramblings:
Everything up to the middle of season four - I diverge then.

Please note that things perceived by characters other than by the five
acknowledge senses have been enclosed in < >.

mailto:kevin.beckett@xxxxxxxxxxxxx

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Later that morning, four exhausted women presented themselves to breakfast.
They had stumbled out of bed at dawn, only at the insistence of Buffy.
After completing their exercises, Willow once again complaining that they
had exercised enough in the night, they had bathed and dressed before
heading to the inn for breakfast. There had been one other event of note in
the early morning. When both Buffy and Willow had woken up, they had both
immediately headed to the bathroom, were they were violently ill.

"I guess this just confirms we're pregnant," Willow said as she finished
ejecting the remains of her stomach.
"Joy. Bliss. Happiness," replied Buffy, as she too finished being sick,
"I'd heard about morning sickness, but the reality is far more dreadful."

Aiofe and Bridie were concerned when told of the morning sickness, and
offered numerous contradictory suggestions for helping to ease the symptoms.
Amana was equally worried about the morning sickness, however, her
suggestions were a bit more helpful, "always keep something in your
stomach," she advised, "and avoid the high fat content foods. In time you
will learn which foods you can eat, and when you can eat them. It will also
pass once your body adapts to the changes that are happening to it, in about
three months or so."
"I'll be dead in three months if this keeps up," replied Buffy
sarcastically.

They were once again eating in the same room, which they had had dinner the
night before. It was the inn's common room and served as both a dinning
area and as a bar. It was furnished with simple wooden benches and tables.
A large oak bar dominated the side of the room away from the door to the
stable-yard, and doors to the kitchens were beside it. On one wall was a
large fireplace, and the stairs to the inn's rooms were on the fourth wall.
It was a cheery room with several large windows and numerous lanterns for
lighting. The room was about half-full, most of the inn's guest having left
earlier in the day.

Both women ate in moderation at breakfast, confining themselves to fruit and
dried toast.
"Bagels," remarked Willow, "we have got to find somebody who can make
bagels."

During their breakfast the party conversed quietly on several, innocuous,
subjects. Just as they were finishing up, Willow turned to Daithi, who had
gone into town earlier that morning, and asked, "Ok, what is our situation,
and what news do you have for us?"

"First of all," began Daithi, "the herald network of message riders appears
to be still functioning, so they have been able to get some news here.
However, the news from the capital is spotty and incomplete, but this is
what we know." He paused to take a sip of juice before continuing, "it
looks like the demon leadership in this area jumped the gun."
"How's that," asked Grael.
"There have been no other reports of demon attacks anywhere else," replied
the guards' captain. "Activity in this area has been light, with only
sporadic incidents of demons attacking the outlying farmsteads."
"Consequences," asked Frankel.
"Basically the farmers have fled to town," Daithi replied, "thinking that
this will be over soon."
"But," asked Buffy as she idly toyed with the remains of her breakfast.
"But," he replied, "if they don't get back to the farms soon, the crops
won't get in, and we will face starvation next winter."

"That won't really matter," commented Amana, "if this goes on till next
winter, they've won."
"Enough about far future speculation," Willow said, "we may not survive the
next week, let alone the next year." Willow suddenly received images from
Shadow-cat and thought "what is that cat doing now, letting me know how she
is hunting?" But the images were not the usual ones of the cat stalking and
killing its prey, or of it checking out the various new territories and
scents it had been exposed to. This time the images were of the kitchen,
and a number of scruffy looking people who appeared to be harassing the
cooks.
<Buff, we have trouble in the kitchen.>
<Again? What is it with kitchens.>
<Don't know, but I'm going to check it out, you keep things going here.>

Willow proceeded to move quietly towards the kitchen door, while Buffy took
up the conversation, answering Grael's questioning look with a shake of her
head and a whispered, "later, Willow is checking out a problem in the
kitchen."

Willow continued her stealthy approach to the kitchen door, noticing for the
first time that all of the serving staff was missing from the dinning room.
Thinking, "this has the look of a robbery," she paused by the door and
extended her awareness to link with her familiar. Quickly making sense of
the cat's jumbled images, she concentrated on hearing what was being said in
the kitchen.

"Alright then," said one particularly large and scruffy man who appeared to
be the leader of the eight or so robbers, "give us all your cash and horses,
or we start cutting up your staff."
<Buffy, get Daithi and yourself over here. We have a robbery in progress.>

Buffy motioned to Daithi to follow her and soon the three of them were
standing by the kitchen door conversing in whispers.
"What do we do," asked Buffy to Daithi.
"If they've got the staff as hostages," replied Daithi, "we have to be very
careful. Remember, you are not allowed to use your magic against humans."
"But can we use it to protect the staff, while we use conventional methods
against the robbers," asked Willow.
"Yes," he replied, "what are you thinking?"
"That I'll use a variation of my shield spell to protect the staff, while
you and Buff kick the robber's butts right to jail."
"Sounds good to me," replied the slayer, "shall we?"

Buffy kicked the kitchen door open and yelled as she leapt halfway across
the kitchen, "Everyone stand still or I'll kick your butt."

Willow and Daithi followed Buffy into the kitchen. They saw the inn's owner
being held by two men, while a third held a knife to his neck. Three other
men, all armed with short swords and knives, had the remaining cooks and
serving staff at one end of the kitchen, while two other armed men were
keeping watch at the kitchen door. With Buffy's dramatic entrance everyone
in the kitchen paused, for just a second.

Willow had been prepared as she entered the kitchen. As soon as she saw the
situation she called out, "Fuar bhalla!" With that spell, a shield wall
appeared between the hostages and the three men who had been menacing them.
She then yelled, "all but one safe, take them out Buff!"

Buffy had brought with her the sharp knife that she had been using at
breakfast. As soon as she gained her bearings, she threw the knife at the
hand of the leader, piercing his wrist. He screamed out in pain and turned
to Buffy saying, "Bitch, I'm going to chop you into pieces for that."

"I seriously doubt that," Buffy replied as she closed the distance between
them and delivered a roundhouse kick to his head. The kick propelled the
bandit across the kitchen, into one of the sinks. "Let's see what you're
saying if you ever get out of the sink."

With that, the kitchen exploded into general melee, with Daithi and Buffy
taking the fight to the seven remaining bandits. Buffy concentrated on the
two still holding the innkeeper, while Daithi went after the ones who were
menacing the serving staff. Willow gestured to the cooks and serving staff
that they should leave the area, since they were now protected by her shield
spell. This would give more room in the kitchen for Buffy and Daithi.
Buffy had by this point had almost finished disarming and disabling the two
men who had been holding the innkeeper. 

<Buffy, two of them are making a break for it,> Willow commented as she
noticed one of the remaining men gesture to the other that they should
leave.
<Keep them around love,> Buffy asked, <I'm still a little busy with these
two.>
<No problemo,> Willow replied thinking to herself, "a variation on my shield
should keep them inside the room. I'll just block off the door."

Buffy punched one of the men she was faced with in the chest, which caused
him to double over in pain. Just as he was about to raise his head she
grabbed a frying pan from a kitchen table and smashed it over his head,
knocking him out for the count, and joining his other comrade who was
already unconscious on the floor.
"That's three down," she commented turning towards the remaining two, "now
for the others."

"Let's get out of here," yelled one of the men turning towards the kitchen
door. He ran towards the open door, and as soon as he crossed the threshold
he immediately bounced back into the kitchen, colliding with the other
bandit who was following him, since he could not see the shield wall that
Willow had cast in the open doorway. Both men ended up in a heap on the
floor, looking up at a very angry slayer.
"Stay," she ordered, "or you'll get hurt."
"We'll stay," replied both simultaneously.

"Willow, keep an eye on these two. If they move, kick their butts," said
Buffy as she turned back to the kitchen to see how Daithi was doing. "Need
a hand," she asked the guards captain.
"No," Daithi replied as he finished disarming the last of the three men that
he had been initially faced with, "this scum is used to beating on un-armed
opponents, when faced with skill they crumple."

"Well, not bad for a morning's work," commented the slayer, "Daithi can you
keep watch over this rabble until the town's guard gets here?"
"Yes," he replied, "I assume that someone has already gone for them."
"That wasn't what I was thinking though you are probably right."
"What were you thinking," asked Willow.
"I'm hungry, let's eat," Buffy replied as she left the kitchen to go back to
finish her breakfast.

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