FIC: Militat Omnis Amans (Every Lover is a Warrior) Part 9/?

["KPB/LCMB" <kevin.beckett@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Militat Omnis Amans (Every Lover is a Warrior) Part 9/?
K. Beckett © 2000, with the exception of musical lyrics which are © the
individual artists / labels.

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 descriptions of 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.:
On "Stake and Chakram Library"
http://members.spree.com/entertainment/kerrison29
<http://members.spree.com/entertainment/kerrison29>
Which is maintained by Bill LaBarbera
Anyone else, just ask and I will say yes.

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

Thanks to all who have commented, I appreciate everything that was said. As
before, all meaningful criticism, support and suggestions are welcome.
Please be patient, it takes me awhile to get everything down, as I have very
little free time for writing.

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

mailto:kevin.beckett@xxxxxxxxxxxxx

----------------------------------
A priori:

Willow?s strike force has been driven into the Rockies to find refuge in one
of the more isolated villages. The demon offensive has laid siege to the
Capital and the outlying towns and villages have been put to the torch.
While making their break for freedom the strike force was required to cross
a deep gorge, with only a fragile rope and wood bridge. Everyone but Buffy
had crossed successfully when two demons who were trying to get away from
the slayer attempted to cross the bridge and destroyed it. Buffy faced with
overwhelming odds against her, since an army of demons is quickly heading
for her position, has just attempted to leap across the gorge.

Synopsis for part IX:

An interlude, of sorts, as Willow?s strike force rests and re-groups before
continuing their mission. They will begin to make plans for continuing that
mission by creating for themselves a secure base of operations in the
mountains. They will also participate in a very significant, and life
changing, event in the lives of some members of the strike force. In
addition, they will receive some very unexpected help.

----------------------------------
Part IX - Forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabit. (Perhaps one day
remembering even this will be pleasant)

I?m coming, I?m coming home to you
I?m alive, I?m a mess
I can?t wait to get home to you
To get warm and undressed

There?ve been changes beyond my dreams
Everybody wants me to sing
There?ve been changes beyond my grasp
Things I?m sinking in
So keep me, keep me in your bed all day, all day

Nothing heals me like you do
Nothing heals me like you do

London Rain (Nothing Heals Me Like You Do)
Heather Nova, Siren
© 1998, V2 Records

The young blond woman looked around at the forces arrayed against her, and
at the chasm before her, and decided. She paused for a moment, asking her
Goddess for assistance, ran to the edge and leaped. Just as she thought she
would make it across the ten meter distance she realized she wouldn?t and
began to fall the two hundred meters to the floor of the gorge.

?No!? She screamed aloud as she suddenly sat up in bed, half-awake
half-dreaming, covered in sweat, even though the ambient temperature in the
room was barely above freezing.

?Buffy,? said the concerned red-haired woman sharing the large king-sized
bed, ?wake-up love. You?re having the dream again.? Willow, due to the
shared link between them, had been instantly aware of Buffy?s dream, and
just as instantly awakened, but as had happened before, it hadn?t affected
her in the same way.
Willow quickly embraced her lover and began to softly stroke her face, neck,
and shoulders trying to both comfort and reassure her. In addition to
comforting Buffy, she was also trying to insure that they did not disturb
the two other women who shared their bed, and who were, thankfully, still
cocooned asleep deep under the multiple duvets and comforters which nearly
smothered both them and the bed.

?Shush love,? Willow said softly, almost crooning, ?you?re safe; you?re
alive and ok.?

Willow continued her reassurance efforts as Buffy slowly regained awareness
of her surroundings. It was the wee hours of the night, with over two hours
of dark remaining before the early summer dawn.

?Water,? Buffy finally croaked, and looked around the large room which was
lit only by a small lantern, as if to reassure herself that she was in fact
safe, ?my mouth feels like it?s in the desert.?

Willow reached across her soul-mate to the night-table and poured a glass of
water from the pitcher that was now a permanent feature of their bedroom,
?here you go Buff,? she said as she passed over the water; Buffy immediately
began to gulp the water, rapidly draining the glass, then passing it back
for a re-fill.

Buffy had been periodically having the dream of falling into the gorge ever
since the day, four months ago, when she had made the Herculean effort of
leaping it. She had nearly not made it across. Just as she thought she
would fail, and plummet to her death, she reached out in desperation and
managed to snag the edge of the cliff with one hand. She had hung on in
desperation, for what felt to her to be hours, but in reality had been only
seconds, until Daithi had reached down and pulled her to safety. Willow?s
strike force had immediately remounted their horses and had headed up into
the foothills of the Rocky Mountains where Padrick led them on what had
turned out to be a two week journey to one of the more isolated villages in
the area. It had taken longer than expected since they had been required to
dodge roving patrols of demons most of the way.

The village of Morning Breeze was more than isolated. It was remote and
hidden in a small valley up in the high Rockies, at well over 1,300 meters
in altitude, far from the main roads and trails that criss-crossed the
mountains. It had once been a small silver mining town, which had almost
become a ghost town when the mine was depleted over forty years previously.
It had survived, barely, on supporting the small sheepherders and
homesteaders that dotted the mountains on the slopes of the valley. As a
result of this isolation, it was unknown outside of the small area
immediately surrounding it, and therefore a perfect hiding location, more
than suitable for Willow?s needs. The only reason that Padrick even knew
about it was due to his grandparents having been born in the town, while the
mine had still been in operation. The town, with its population of less
than fifty, had only one small general store, no working inn and limited
amenities for the weary travellers. The one thing it had was seclusion and
a large number of abandoned homes.

Willow had instructed Daithi and Amana to liase with the villagers and to
make arrangements for the use of three of the abandoned buildings. In
particular, she was looking for two homes and a third building that they
could adapt to become their command and research centre. After some quick
negotiating Amana had settled on one building, or rather complex of
buildings, that she felt would be perfect for their needs, the old abandoned
inn. It was large, had ample working area in the old tavern, and had ten
usable bedrooms located on the three upper floors. It had also been the
towns gambling centre and therefore had a number of additional large and
small rooms on the ground floor, which could be modified by the group for
their own purposes. In addition to the main structure, several outbuildings
included stables, a laundry in addition to an extensive bath works. It was
located just outside of the village proper and was surrounded by an old
fence, which, once repaired, would provide privacy and some defence against
potential attackers. When Amana had presented her reasons for choosing the
inn Willow had quickly agreed to its use.

When they had acquired the inn it had required extensive rehabilitation,
having been abandoned for over thirty years. The group had worked steadily
over the first few weeks that they had been in the town cleaning it up and
by repairing the windows and roof to generally make the place habitable,
before they worried about making it suitable for their research and work.
They used the barter system to acquire both the property and the materials
they needed in their renovations, by trading the protection of the guardsmen
and the services of the mages for what they required in material and general
labour. They had also arranged for a number of the villagers to work in the
reconstituted inn as cooks and serving help. This provided a desperately
needed source of employment for the village, and in return, Willow had
agreed to re-open the tavern portion of the inn for the use of the villagers
and the surrounding farmsteads. This arrangement was agreeable to all,
since even in their remoteness the villagers were aware of the troubles in
the greater world and this arrangement gave them employment, greater
security and protection.

Over the last few months they had discovered that the town had acquired its
name in part due to its weather. The prevailing northern wind was bitter
and very cold as it roared down over the snow-capped peaks before it shot
through the valley. Due to the height of the surrounding peaks the sun rose
late and set early, however, they had used the good weather available in the
late spring and early summer to the best advantage, trying to get as much of
the exterior work completed as soon as possible before the return of the
long mountain winter, and its promised deep snow drifts. They had also
taken the time to repair the covered walkways, which linked all of the
buildings, that provided shelter from that snow and the harsh elements as
people travelled from one part of the complex to another. Even with the
current relatively good weather, the altitude, combined with the already
cold temperatures on this earth, resulted in barely temperate days and
incredibly cold nights. Everyone dressed in multiple layers of clothing to
shield themselves from the climate.

<You ok love,> asked Willow, shivering in her warm woollen nightshirt, after
Buffy had downed the two glasses of water.
<Fine,> replied the slayer quietly, and in answer to her lover?s unvoiced
concern, <honest love, I?ll be ok.>

Buffy once again looked around the room that she and Willow shared with
Aiofe and Bridie, as if to finally banish the thoughts of the dream, and to
think over what it all might mean. Befitting Willow?s status as the leader
of the group, and the fact that it housed four people, it was the largest
bedroom in the inn, fully five meters by four and it occupied one corner of
the second floor. Embers glowed weakly from the fireplace on one wall and
it along with the lantern on the bedside table and a ceiling lantern
completed the sources of the room?s illumination. Several dressers, tables
and chairs completed the furnishings.

<I want to know why I?m having this dream,> she continued after her
reflection, <and why its happing more often.> After another pause she
continued, <maybe it is time to talk to Amana about this,> realizing that
there might be some things that it was better to talk to an impartial person
about.

Willow sighed inwardly with relief, using all of her considerable mental
abilities to hide that relief from her lover. For the last three months,
ever since the dreams began to be a regular fixture of their nights, she,
and the other young women who shared her bed and their love, had been
trying, without success, to get Buffy to talk to the older mage about the
dream and what it might foretell. Now it looked like her soul-mate might
actually try to get some help.

<You sure about this,> she asked tentatively.
<Positive,> replied the slayer with some confidence, reaching over to the
nightstand to get another nightshirt to replace the one that she had
drenched in sweat, <I?ll go see her after breakfast.> Buffy proceeded to
quickly remove her sodden shift and replaced it with the new one.

<You sure you are ok,> Willow continued gently, as she softly caressed the
other woman, <what can I do to help?>
<Just hold me,> replied Buffy, <and let me fall asleep in your arms.>
<You only have to ask,> replied the arch-mage, as she carefully enveloped
her lover and gently stroked her arms and belly, until she fell back to a
dreamless sleep.

----------------------------------
At breakfast the next morning, four young women sat and discussed their
plans for the day. They had not changed, outwardly, with the obvious
exception of Buffy and Willow?s pregnancies, in the months since their
flight from the demon forces that were chasing them. However, inwardly, all
had undergone profound transformations. Gone was any sign of nervousness
and self-doubt. The women had become assured in themselves, their abilities
and, most importantly, their love for each other. Their status as
quasi-refugees, and the lack of any other support, had required them to
develop a reliance on each other that would normally have taken years to
accomplish. However, undercutting this reliance and self-confidence was a
growing stress level, due in no small part to the same forces that had
contributed to that self-confidence; a situation which had the potential for
disaster.

?So,? commented Aiofe, ?you are actually going to look for some answers??
?About time,? injected her long time companion, ?I mean we?ve been after you
for weeks now.?
?I know Bridie,? replied Buffy, ?it just took me a while to realize it.?
?Stubborn slayer syndrome,? quipped Willow.
?Enough already,? replied an exasperated Buffy, ?I said I?m going to talk to
Amana, end of discussion. Now, what have the rest of you got planned for
the day??

?Well,? replied Aiofe, ?Bridie and I will continue to work with the senior
mages in converting one of the old gaming rooms into another workroom. This
one for Bridie and me.?
?Sounds good,? replied Willow, ?I?m planning on spending my day searching
the surrounding area for herbs and other components we need.?
?As far as I know,? added Bridie, ?Daithi and the other guardsmen are going
to continue searching the surrounding area for signs of that demon force
looking for us.?
?Sounds like a productive day all around,? said Buffy. ?After I finish my
little talk with Amana, I?ll continue working on the siding of the main
building with some of the townspeople. How about we all meet back here for
lunch??
?No problemo,? replied the other women.

Buffy remained sitting at the breakfast table as the other three women stood
up to attend to their daily plans. Just as she was leaving Willow turned to
her lover and asked, <do you want me to stay?>
<It?s ok love,> replied Buffy, <I?ll be alright.>
<Don?t get any splinters in any sensitive spots.>
<If I do, I?ll just have to get you to take care of me,> said Buffy, <now
scat, and get to your collecting.>
<Yes boss,> answered Willow as she gave her lover a mock salute. <Love
you.>
<Ditto.>

Just as Willow was buttoning up her coat in preparation to leave, Amana
entered the old common room of the inn, which the group had converted into
their dining room. It was a large room with a high ceiling and several
fireplaces, which provided both heat and illumination. After wishing Willow
a good day, and good luck, she saw that Buffy was sitting alone, and came
over and asked, ?Good Morning Buffy, how are you today??

?Oh,? replied the pensive slayer, who uncharacteristically had not even
noticed her entering the room, ?Good morning Amana; not so good I?m afraid.?
?How?s that,? replied the older woman. She had been aware for some time
that something was bothering Buffy, but had not been willing to pry, hoping
that in time the younger woman would come to confide in her. ?Are you
having problems with your pregnancy,? she asked as an opening to the
conversation.

?No,? replied Buffy, ?nothing to do with the baby.?
?Then what??

?It?s just that I?ve been having this recurring dream,? began Buffy. With
that, she let loose all of the pent-up worries and frustrations she had been
feeling over the past few months. Not only about the dream, but also how
she was beginning to feel superfluous.

?But,? replied Amana, who had started to eat her own breakfast during Buffy?
s monologue, ?you?ve been keeping up with your training, and your magical
studies. Haven?t they been keeping you busy enough??
?Yes I have,? continued Buffy, ?but after the excitement of our first month
here things have calmed down.?
?Only here,? said Amana softly, ?outside of our little haven things are
grim.?

Amana was not exaggerating. While the news that they were able to receive
deep in the mountains was limited, it was without exception all bad. The
demons had continued, and expanded, their offensive and more of the human
towns and cities had fallen to them. The Capital was still under siege, and
it was not expected to last much longer. Even in the mountains, they had
had demon troubles. There was at least one group still looking for Willow?s
strike force and there had been a steady flood of refugees into the
mountains, looking for security and safety.

Amana was certain however, that Buffy was still not being completely candid
about her fears and feelings, and continued, ?that?s not everything that?s
worrying you is it??

?No,? replied Buffy softly.
?Can you tell me,? asked Amana.

Buffy starred into nothing for a moment then said softly, ?I?m scared.?
?We all get scared sometimes,? replied the older mage, ?its just part of
being human.?

?You don?t understand,? said Buffy plaintively, ?I?m the slayer. I?m not
supposed to have any fear, and to this point in my life as a slayer I haven?
t been afraid of anything. Not demons, or vampires, or monsters, or
anything; well maybe my grades in English class, but that?s it, nothing that
I?ve faced has scared me, pissed me off maybe, but not scared me.?
?And what is frightening you now,? asked Amana, having determined some of
the grounds for the fear, but knowing that the young woman would have to
articulate them for herself.
?Willow, me - the babies,? began Buffy slowly, ?and??
?And,? prompted Amana.
?And,? continued the slayer, ?and I nearly died, again.?
?How does this scare you??
?I?ve never had anyone who meant so much to me before,? replied Buffy, ?I
love her, and I want to make it possible for us to be together, forever. I?m
terrified that I?m going to leave her alone.?

Amana thought this through for a moment. She knew that the two young
travellers were incredibly, and now due to the psychic link that they
shared, permanently bonded together. She also knew that as a result of
these bonds both Buffy and Willow would remain together forever, and that in
fact their bond would even survive their deaths in the material world. She
knew that subconsciously Buffy was aware of this, however, she had still not
made the conscious deduction. She decided that Buffy, having a hands-on
type of personality, would need to take concrete action to put substance to
the reality of the relationship that the two women shared.

?Buffy,? she started, ?do you really think that with the link, and bonds
that the two of you now share, that she would ever leave you, or you her??
?Not really,? replied the slayer, not that convincingly.
?But even though you know,? continued Amana, ?you still have doubts.?
?Yeah,? commented Buffy, ?I guess that?s it.?
?Welcome to adulthood,? said Amana with a smile on her face, ?contrary to
what you may have thought while growing up, things do not get easier, they
get far more complicated.?
?Thanks worlds,? answered Buffy with more than a trace of sarcasm in her
voice.

?For you its even harder,? continued Amana, ?you have a very dangerous
calling, in which you regularly face creatures which would gladly destroy
you without a thought; you have skills and talents that you have only
recently become aware of, and are only beginning to learn to use
effectively; you are expecting a baby in twenty weeks or so, which is
causing your body, and its chemistry, to undergo massive changes; and, you
are involved in a war on a world far from your own, away from your normal
support group.? Amana paused for a moment to take a sip of her cider and
then continued, ?I think that your dream reflects these conflicts. You
subconsciously know the burdens upon you and it becomes reflected in this
dream.? Amana, seeing that Buffy was sitting quietly, digesting her words,
and not looking like she was about to comment, continued, ?You and Willow
love each other, and are meant for each other. That is obvious to everyone
you have met on this world, and most likely everyone on your home world.?
Amana paused once again, trying to think of a careful way of approaching the
possible solution she was thinking of. After a minute or so, in which she
busied herself by finishing her cider, she continued, ?have you thought
about making a more visible and symbolic gesture of the bond between you??

?What do you mean,? asked a slightly confused slayer.
?It?s just that nothing is stopping you, on this world at least,? replied
Amana, ?from making your bond with each other a more public one.?
?You mean like marry Willow or something??

?Exactly,? pleased that Buffy had deduced the solution that she had been
contemplating, ?as I?ve told you before, in our society a person?s sexual
orientation is their own business, and we long ago realized that it was
important for us to recognize that two women, or two men for that matter,
needed the same societal recognition of their love for each other that a
heterosexual couple would receive. I think that this would also help with
your internal conflicts. You would be, in your concrete eyes, as ?bonded?
to your lover as you are in your emotional eyes. This would allow your
subconscious fears to rest, particularly the fear that you will lose
Willow.?

?Cool,? replied the slayer with a slightly impish smile, ?Willow will just
love a ?real? wedding. We were going to be hand-fasted back home, but it
wouldn?t have had the same recognition and legitimacy as it will have here.?
?Well,? replied Amana, ?you do have to ask. After all that is the
traditional approach, in both of our worlds, I assume.?
?Oh,? responded Buffy, ?I know that, and have already asked her once. I?m
going to ask her again, and I would like your help in orchestrating the
appropriate ambiance tonight.?
?I?d be delighted to help,? answered Amana, once again pleased to see the
resilience of youth in action.

With that, the two women began to make their plans for the evening. During
the rest of the morning, the other members of the group observed the two of
them engaging in various mysterious activities. First, they watched as the
two of them cleaned the accumulated junk out a small back room of the inn,
and then watched as they turned the room into a small dinning room, complete
with candles and fine linen. They then proceeded to thoroughly scrub and
clean the room until it was immaculate. The two of them skipped lunch, with
Buffy telling a very confused Willow to go back to her collecting and
promising that she would see her at dinner. They then proceeded to evict
everyone from the kitchen and spent the rest of the day locked up in it. In
addition to being a mage, Amana was also an excellent cook; and in Buffy she
had a more than willing cook?s helper for the day.

Just before Willow was due to return from her afternoon of extended herb
collecting everything was ready. Amana went to find Grael, to have him
arrange to collect everyone, under the pretext of the mayor giving them a
thank-you dinner for the energy that they had brought to the small village.
Meanwhile Buffy headed to the baths in order to wash the day?s grime away,
and to prepare herself for the return of her lover.

They had timed everything perfectly. Buffy was just re-entering the inn
after her bath when Willow returned from her herb collecting.

?Hi Will,? said Buffy as she sat in a long white wool shift nonchalantly
towelling her hair dry in the large common room of the inn, ?how was your
day??
?Hi Buff,? replied the arch-mage sitting down across from Buffy and
stretching her legs out before her, ?productive, how was your talk with
Amana??
?Instructive,? replied Buffy as she finished drying her hair, ?I?ve had my
bath, why don?t I help you have yours before dinner.?
?Sounds like an excellent idea,? replied Willow, with a little smile
crossing her face, as the two women stood up from the table to head to the
baths.

----------------------------------
They headed to the back of the common room, where the door leading to the
baths was located. They walked the short distance along the covered
passageway until they reached the four buildings that made up the bath
complex. The baths had been severely damaged over the years, and only
recently had the group been able to restore all of them to working
condition. However, Amana had insisted that both Buffy and Willow restrain
themselves to the warm water, indicating that the extremes of the cold and
hot bathes might not be good for their babies.

Upon their entry into the dressing room, Buffy immediately began to undress
her lover. She slowly removed each piece of clothing, gently massaging
Willow as she did so.

?Mmmm,? sighed the arch-mage, ?that feels so nice.?
?Happy to oblige,? replied the slayer as she picked up Willow and carried
her to her bath.

A short time later Willow was lounging in the warm water while Buffy gently
washed her hair. Both women had begun to notice that with the advance of
their pregnancies the buoyant effects of a bath were becoming more and more
relaxing. They had begun to use any excuse to jump into the relaxing
waters.

As she inwardly sighed with pleasure and relief at the reduced muscular
tension in her legs and back, Willow noticed for the first time that
afternoon that the inn was practically deserted.
<Buff?>
<Yes love?>
<Where is everyone?>
Buffy immediately shielded her thoughts and replied carefully, <they?ve
taken off for the night. A party at the Mayor?s.>
<Why?s that, and why didn?t we go?>
<It?s a pretext by Amana in order to get everyone out of here,> replied the
slayer, continuing to carefully shield her thoughts in order to maintain the
surprise, while she busied herself rinsing Willow?s hair, <she thought it
would be a good idea for us to spend some time alone.>
<Alone,> replied Willow in amazement, <you mean for the first time in nearly
five months we are going to be alone for a while?>
<Yup,> answered her lover, <Amana and I even arranged a nice supper for when
you finish your bath.>
<What?s for dinner?>
<It?s a surprise, have a little patience.>
<Want to know now,> replied the red-haired woman, as she tried to read her
lover?s memories, <hey, that?s not fair,> she exclaimed, <you?re shielding!>
<Only to maintain the surprise,> commented Buffy, <after all, you don?t want
to rune the evening now do you?>
<Pout!>

?You?ll get over it,? continued the slayer aloud, ?now, let?s get you out of
this bath and into some clean clothes for supper.?
?Sounds yummy,? replied Willow as she proceeded to exit the bath and wrap
herself in a large towel, which had been held by Buffy.

The two women entered the inn; as Willow proceeded to head back to their
room to get dressed she was stopped by Buffy who said, ?It?s ok Will. I?ve
got some clothes for you already.?

Buffy held Willow?s hand as she led her to the room that she and Amana had
worked on all day. Willow was amazed at the transformation of the former
storage area. The floors and walls had been scrubbed till the old oak
panels shone with the soft candlelight, which had been used to illuminate
the room. The room also had a fireplace with a cherry fire already blazing
in it, to add additional light and heat. An old worktable had been
transformed into a dining table, complete with linen tablecloths and
burnished copper tableware. Two comfortable chairs completed the table
setting. A sideboard was loaded with several dishes that were being kept
warm in chafing dishes in addition to several decanters of wine and spirits.
Amana had used a process to de-alcoholise the wine, which retained the
flavours of the spirits, while eliminating the risk to the young women?s
pregnancies. Draped over one of the chairs was a long bleached wool shift,
similar to the one that Buffy was wearing.

Buffy proceeded to pull the shift over Willow saying, ?here you go love,
this will keep you nice and comfy while we eat.?

Willow noticed that the shift had been lined with what felt like silk, and
was sinfully cool next to her bare skin. The fine hairs on her body became
electrified by the touch of the material and she experienced a quiver that
ran through her body. She also noticed that even with the lining the shift
was so sheer that it was almost translucent in the candlelight. She
commented softly, ?Buff, I?m not wearing anything under this, and you can
practically see right through this material.?

?Its ok love,? replied the slayer, ?neither am I. Its not as if anyone else
can see us now is it??
?I guess not,? replied Willow, ?now what?s for dinner??
?You just set those pretty buns down in a chair,? replied her lover, ?and I?
ll show you.?

The two young women then proceeded to sit down to a marvellous feast.
First, they had a mouth-watering leek and potato soup garnished with celery
leaves and lightly spiced with rosemary, so creamy that it practically
dissolved in their mouths. This was followed by a fresh spinach salad,
which was served with a sunflower oil and pine nut dressing. Buffy served a
light fruity white wine for these two dishes which complemented, rather than
distracted from the food.

?Where did you learn so much about food,? Willow commented when they had
finished the salad, ?everything is so tasty.?
?I plead ignorance,? replied the slayer with a mischievous smile on her
face, ?Amana is the source of the food and potables, I was simply the cooks
helper today. You might say I was the number one person on the chop and
stir brigade.?

?Well everything has been yummy so far,? said the red-haired witch licking
her lips, ?what?s next?? The heat from the fire was beginning to provide a
deep flush on Willow, perhaps aided by the intimacy of the occasion.

?You?ll like this,? replied Buffy as she rose from the table and went over
to the fireplace. Using a pair of fire-tongs she proceeded to remove a
large piece of slate that had been warming in the fire and placed it on a
fireproof mat in the centre of the table. She then collected several bowls
from the sideboard and retuned to her seat.

?This is we-cook stuff,? she said as she showed Willow the bowls, which
contained thinly sliced beef, chicken and spicy sausage, all of which had
been marinated in a sauce containing spices, oil and garlic.
?Cool,? replied Willow, ?do we have dip and stuff for it??
?You bet,? replied Buffy as she proceeded to show more bowls with condiments
such as spiced yoghurt, rice, dates, pine nuts in addition to the more
traditional chopped vegetables and sour cream that the young women were used
to.

?This is great,? gushed Willow, ?we get to experiment.?
?Not to mention feed each other,? replied Buffy as she proceeded to quickly
grill a piece of beef, then dip it in the yoghurt before offering it to her
soul-mate, ?have a taste lover??

Willow leaned over the table, and reached out for the beef with her
outstretched tongue. As she chewed and swallowed her lover?s food offering,
she tasted a combination of flavours, which caused her to close her eyes and
moan in satisfaction. After a moment she reopened her eyes and commented,
?that was too good for words.?

The two young women then proceeded to spend a delightful time cooking and
feeding each another, washing the food down with a hearty red wine, which
had been infused with verbena.

Before long, they had finished the meat portion of the meal Amana had
prepared and were ready for the next course. By this time, both young women
were beginning to feel a deepening sexual tension in the small room. The
food, combined with the intense emotions that each was experiencing was
causing a predictable reaction. As Buffy cleared away the dishes Willow
thought to herself, ?Goddess, I?m beginning to become aroused. If this
keeps up I?ll soon be sitting in a pool of my own juices.?

Buffy then brought the next, and final savoury, dish. This time Amana had
prepared for them a traditional Celtic dish of trout that had been de-boned
and filleted, before being poached in white wine and herbs. The older mage
had suggested a dry white wine for this dish, which Buffy also brought over
to the table.

?Last one before desert,? she commented as she arranged the dishes on the
table. ?Amana told me that this was her best dish.?

The cuisine lived up to its billing. The fish was light and dissolved in
their mouths. The sauce was full of flavour, and provided a subtle balance
to the trout, almost cleansing the palate after every bite. The wine?s high
notes perfectly drew out the nuances of Amana?s spicing. The two women were
stunned by the food, and ate in silence, each trying to imprint the emotions
and sensations of the meal permanently in their minds.

They finished, and after a few minutes to compose herself Willow summed up
her thoughts with a simple, ?Wow!?

?Ditto,? replied an equally expressive Buffy.

Buffy shook herself together and began to slowly clear the dishes from the
table. Willow watched in admiration as her friend and lover performed this
simple domestic task, thinking that she was incredibly lucky to have found
the one person with whom she was completely comfortable. She quietly stood
up and came up behind Buffy, who was stacking dishes on the sideboard,
reaching around to give her a hug. She softly kissed Buffy on the neck and
whispered, ?Thank-you for a wonderful evening.?

?Not over yet,? replied Buffy, ?still have dessert to go.?

Willow perked up, ?sweet stuff,? she exclaimed, ?got to have some sweet
stuff.?

Buffy realized that Amana had been correct. She now realized that she needn
?t fear losing Willow. That, they would be together no matter what
happened, and that they both had difficult and dangerous jobs to do and that
by working together they would be able to solve any problems that arose.
She turned within Willow?s hug, softly kissed her, and asked, <have I told
you recently that I love you?>
<Oh, not in the last fifteen minutes or so,> replied Willow.
<Shameful. I?ve got to improve. Forgive me?>
<Hum,> replied the arch-mage, <maybe.>
<Maybe what?>
<Maybe, if you tell me what?s up.>

Buffy thought for a moment, then replied, <I?ll tell all, I promise. But
lets finish our dessert, and over a special treat that Amana is letting us
get away with, I?ll spill.>
<Okey, dokey. What?s for desert?>

Buffy uncovered the last serving dish on the sideboard to revel their
dessert.
?Warm ginger cake with hot honey and cardamom sauce. Also, Amana said that
as a treat we could each have a glass of brandy.?
?Yummy!!?

They proceeded to draw the two chairs together up before the fire, pushing
the dining table out of the way to do so. They extinguished the candles and
sat hand-in-hand eating their cake and sipping on their brandies by the
flickering light of the fire. Finally, they finished, and after a few
minutes of sitting quietly each contemplating their own thoughts, and secure
in the knowledge that their love for each other was complete. This reverie
was interrupted by the arrival of Shadow-cat who, after jumping up on the
sideboard to check out the various empty dishes, proceeded to take up her
accustomed place on Willow?s lap. She absently stroked the cat for a few
minutes then turned to Buffy and said, ?ok, spill.?

Buffy paused, thought for a moment, turned to face her lover and stared deep
into the bottomless pools of her eyes before replying, ?Willow, you are the
centre of my existence. Everything I do and think about revolves around
you. I need you, love you and constantly want to be with you. I would be
lost without you. I know we had planned for this before, but now, with all
of the changes that have happened, and in the knowledge that it would be on
this world legally binding, I would be forever grateful and honoured if you
would, once again, consent to marry me??

Willow sat speechless for a moment, before squeaking, ?yes,? she dry
swallowed a couple of times before repeating, ?yes, by the Goddess yes, I?ll
be more than happy, and honoured to marry you!?

Buffy proceeded to embrace Willow in a bone-crushing hug saying, evicting
Shadow-cat in the process, ?thank-you, you have just made me the happiest
person alive.?

The two women?s emotions then took over, with each nearly collapsing in
tears. When she was finally able to control her voice again, Willow said
softly, ?how is it possible??
?Amana,? replied the slayer succinctly, ?she let me know this morning that
part of the problem I was having with the dream was due, in part, to my
subconscious desire for a ?visible? bond with you, and that on this world
there was no problem with two women getting married.?

?I?d never even thought about a hand-fasting on this world,? commented
Willow.
?Me neither,? replied her soon to be spouse, ?I guess with the taint of
prejudice back home we never thought it would be possible, here. We were
going to take the hit back home, knowing that it wouldn?t be ?legal? but in
this society it will be both acknowledged and legal.?

?Now,? continued Willow, ?the important question, when??
?Well,? replied Buffy, ?everyone who can be here, is here, so there is no
need to delay too long.?
?I know,? interjected Willow, ?next Friday the moon will be full, perfect.?
?Perfect??
?You know, moon light?, candles?, loved-one?, romance stuff.?
?Ok,? replied Buffy with a small laugh, ?next Friday it is. Now??
?Now,? interrupted Willow as she stood up, and pulled Buffy up from her
chair, before she started to softly caress the other woman?s breasts
beginning to trace circular patters around her areole, ?now, you take this
incredibly horny woman to bed.?

<Not that I?m complaining,> replied Buffy, her breath catching in her throat
as her nipples became erect from Willow?s stimulation, <but what exactly has
gotten into you?>
<Just the ?extra? ingredients that you and Amana added to the food,>
commented Willow as she began to kiss, lick and suck on Buffy?s neck, <don?t
act, or for that matter even think, shocked. Did you think that you could
hide that many aphrodisiacs in the food?>
<Not really,> Buffy replied moaning, and feeling moisture accumulating
between her legs, as Willow?s lips, teeth and tongue continued to work there
special magic on her neck.

Buffy slowly slid her hands down Willow?s sides and reached down, beneath
the edge of her shift. She then gradually moved her hands up along the
other woman?s legs, steadily raising the fabric with her hands. Soon she
was lifting the material over Willow?s hips, and the swell of her expanding
uterus, and she bent down to softly kiss the now visible evidence of her
lover?s pregnancy. She noticed that Willow had begun to show the
characteristic development of a dark line running from her navel, down
through her pubic hair. Seeing this, Buffy softly licked along the line,
resulting in a quickening of Willow?s breath and heartbeat.

?That feels so good,? gasped Willow, ?don?t stop.?
Buffy stopped her ministrations, whispering softly, ?too much clothing. Got
to do something about the clothing.? She quickly stripped off her own shift
and then proceeded to strip off Willow?s. ?Much better,? she whispered as
she examined her lover, the sweat on her body glowing in the firelight, ?now
I can see and attend to you properly.?

Buffy trailed her fingers through the sweat on Willow?s side before sucking
on them. ?My, you taste yummy,? she commented as she reached down, snagging
a nipple in her teeth. She rolled the nipple between her teeth as she
assaulted its tip with her tongue.

Willow was herself busy using the fingers on one hand to cup Buffy?s left
breast while the thumb made circular motions, stimulating the nipple. She
used her other hand to support Buffy?s head, while running her fingers in
her silken blond hair. She continued her stimulation of Buffy?s breast even
as she approached her own peak. Both women were already in a heightened
state of excitement, even before they began their manual manipulations, and
within minutes, they climaxed in a mutual orgasm.

Their climaxes did nothing to take the edge off. They immediately began to
caress, kiss and taste each other as love, hormones and the effects of the
aphrodisiacs took over. After an hour of loving, the exhausted women
decided that, before bed it would be best to have a bath. Each took a
second glass of brandy, reasoning that just this once it couldn?t hurt - too
much, as they retired to the baths.

As they walked naked and hand-in-hand through the inn to the baths Buffy
looked down at her lover and commented, ?have I told you how sexy pregnant
women are??
?You?re pretty sexy yourself,? commented the arch-mage.
?That?s it,? replied the slayer, ?here we are, two naked, pregnant women
stuck on a world far from their own.?
?Your point??
?Just that I?ve never been happier,? replied Buffy laughing as they entered
the bath complex.

With that, the two women proceeded to immerse themselves in the warm water
and to gently soap the sweat from each other and to bathe before returning
to their room for a night of worry free dreams.

Soon after they had fallen asleep the stillness of the night was broken by
Shadow-Cat as she reappeared in the room. Seeing that everything was calm,
and that her human was deep in sleep she padded silently to the bed and
leapt up on the pillows behind Willow. She proceeded to create a small
hollow, and then to fall asleep purring contentedly, ?my human is happy.
Very happy.?

----------------------------------
The next morning Buffy awoke, as was her usual practice, just before dawn.
As she remembered the events of the previous evening, she was filled with a
sense of completeness and rightness to her world. Looking across her lover,
she saw that Aiofe and Bridie had returned from their evening out, and that
both they and Willow were still in a deep slumber. She decided to let them
all sleep and after gently kissing Willow on the forehead, she slipped out
of bed to begin her morning routine.

One hour latter Willow awoke to find herself entangled with Aiofe and
Bridie. ?Oh, goodie,? she thought to herself, ?bed warmers. And cuddly
ones at that.?

She too thought about the previous night and realised that a marriage to
Buffy, even if it would never be recognized back home, was somehow ?right?
and the next step in their relationship. She thought, ?wedding, plans,
dresses, stuff, got to get a bunch of stuff done.? Realising that she was
babbling to herself she suddenly had an idea, <Buff,> she asked, <good
morning love, what?s up?>
<Hi sleepyhead, and a good morning to you. Just downstairs eating and
talking with Amana and Grael.>
<Got an idea.>
<Spill.>
<Aiofe - Bridie - Bridesmaids?>
<Excellent,> replied Buffy, <you?ll ask them?>
<Okay.>
<I?ve an idea. Let?s have Grael and Amana officiate.>
<Also excellent. Obviously, my brilliance is rubbing off on you. You?ll
ask?>
<Yep. Now get your collective buns out of bed and get going on your
exercises. I?ll have your breakfast ready in an hour, love you.>
<Love you too.>

Willow slowly sat up in bed and in doing so was successful in rousing the
other two women awake. Turning to one of the women she said, ?morning
Aiofe, how are you this bright and cheery day??
?Cold,? mumbled the other woman, still half asleep, ?its way too early to
get up.?
?You can say that again,? commented Bridie as she yawned and stretched her
arms above her head, ?What time is it anyway??
?Its an hour past dawn,? replied Willow, ?and time to get the day underway.?
?Groan,? replied the other two women simultaneously, ?do we have to??
?Yes you do,? replied the arch-mage as she jumped out of bed and pulled all
of the covers off with her, ?besides, I?ve something to ask you two.?

?You witch,? squealed Aiofe as she leapt out of bed, ?what do you want to
ask??
?Yes I am a witch,? replied Willow who then paused for a moment before
continuing, ?but a good one. Besides, I think you two already know what?s
going on, or didn?t Amana spill the beans last night??

?All she would tell us,? said Bridie, ?is that the two of you needed some
time alone.?
?So Buffy could work out some problems,? added Aiofe.

?Well?? said Willow slyly, ?Buffy and I are going to get hand-fasted next
Friday.?
?Excellent,? said Aiofe, ?congratulations to the two of you.?
?About time,? added Bridie, ?if there was ever two people intended for each
other its you two.?

?Thank-you,? replied Willow, ?But there is one thing that the two of us
would like you two to do.?
?And that is,? said Bridie.
?We would be more than pleased if you would be our witnesses and support in
the circle,? said Willow. ?The two of you have become over the last few
months the closest thing Buffy and I have to family on this world. If our
real family isn?t going to be able to be in attendance, we can think of no
finer people to stand in their stead.?

?Yes,? both women said. Bridie then continued, ?we are honoured that you
asked, and would like you to know that you have become part of our family.?
?But what about Grael and Amana,? asked Aiofe, ?I would have thought that
you would have considered them to be family too.?
?We do think of them as family,? answered Willow, ?and that is why Buffy is
now asking them to officiate in the circle for us.?

?Way cool,? said Aiofe, having picked up way too many of Buffy and Willow?s
sayings.
<Lover, they said yes.>
<Cool,> replied Buffy, <so did Amana and Grael.>

?Ok ladies,? said Willow, ?lets get our butts downstairs and get with the
exercise and bathing. Buffy has promised a breakfast of some kind in an
hour.?

The three young women left their room and proceeded to get their day
started. Once they had settled into the village they, along with Buffy and
the guardsmen, had resumed their daily exercise routines. It provided a
routine to their exile, in addition to the obvious benefits to Buffy and
Willow?s pregnancies. In spite of their daily grumbling, none of the women
would have willingly given up the exercise, for, as had happened to others,
the daily routine had become a habit that was very hard to break. After
their exercise and bath they were returning to the inn in a very relaxed
mood, laughing and chatting, wondering just what Buffy was going to put
together for breakfast.

?Juice and fruit,? was Bridie?s opinion, ?she would be far too dangerous
using a stove.?
?Not fair,? interjected Willow, ?she?s very capable in the kitchen,
usually.?
?Usually,? asked Aiofe, ?what do you mean by ?usually?.?
?If she isn?t preoccupied or worried about something,? replied the
arch-mage.

Just as they entered the common room the three women heard a boom, as the
building shook around them. They then saw a cloud of dark smoke billow out
of the kitchen and rise to the high ceiling of the room.

?Buffy,? they all said together as they broke into a run towards the
kitchen, to see just what damage had been done by the slayer.

As they entered the kitchen they could see Buffy standing over the stove,
holding a pot, which was still belching acrid smoke. There other evidence
of damage, Buffy?s singed hair, her soot streaked clothing and droplets of
blackened porridge that had been scattered throughout the kitchen. Buffy
was looking, with a vexed expression, at the pot, as if it had deliberately
caused the explosion. Meanwhile the usual occupants of the kitchen, the
cook and her three assistants, were trying, with various degrees of success,
to keep from doubling over in laughter.

?Buffy,? said Willow as she came up to her lover, ?what happened??
?Oh, hi Will,? replied Buffy, ?guess I had too much pressure.?

At that everyone, Willow included, broke out in laughter over the unintended
double meaning in Buffy?s words. They were unable to bring themselves under
control, every time someone stopped laughing, they would either see Buffy,
or remember her words, and start to laugh again.

?This is so not funny,? commented Buffy when everyone had finally started to
calm down, ?I mean it,? she continued, ?here I am, trying to do something
good and?? at that point even Buffy lost it as she too broke down, seeing
the humour in the situation.
?Anyone for crispy porridge,? she asked through her giggles, tears streaming
down her face, ?got lots, with extra burnt flavour, more than enough for
everyone.?

Later that morning the four women were sitting around a kitchen table, still
giggling about the ?porridge? incident. Buffy had taken the time to clean
up and had had Amana trim her hair removing the worst of the singeing. They
were sitting, eating a breakfast of meat, eggs, fruit and baked goods, all
of which had been prepared by the experts in the kitchen.

?No porridge,? commented Aiofe, ?not for a long time.?
?I don?t think that I?ll ever look at it the same way ever again,? added
Willow.
?Me neither,? said Buffy, not at all upset at the events. She was able to
look at the humour in the situation, and realized that the kitchen accident
had given them all a much-needed cathartic release. They had all been so
wound up by the events of the last few months, combined with the pressures
of rehabilitating the inn that they were beginning to become stressed out.

?Well,? said Willow, ?now that we are all gathered together, lets discuss
the upcoming nuptials.?
?Yes. Lets,? added Buffy, ?after all it is in five days.?
?How can we help,? asked Aiofe, ?we are ready to be your dogsbodies.?
?List, have a list,? replied Willow, ?I?m sure I have to have a list.?
?Easy lover,? commented Buffy, ?deep breath and take it one step at a time.?
?Right,? replied Willow as she took a sharp intake of breath and continued,
?ok, I don?t think we need to worry about things such as invites and such.?
?Nope,? interjected Buffy, ?that?s easy. Everyone in the town is invited.?
?So,? continued the arch-mage, ?we?ll need you two to make sure everyone
knows about the events.?
?No problemo,? replied Bridie, ?what else??

?Well,? continued Willow, ?there?s flowers and other stuff for the circle. I
guess your best bet would be to work with Amana on that. No need to worry
about dresses at least, since we?ll be using our ritual robes.?
?Ok,? said Aiofe.

?Rings,? injected Buffy suddenly, ?we need to do something about rings.?
?That?s ok love,? replied Willow, ?I?ve an idea about that.?

?Well then,? said Buffy, ?carpe diem.?

----------------------------------
The four women left the table to start their various activities. Aiofe and
Bridie went off to find Amana and Grael, to start the required work on
collecting the necessary items for the hand fasting. Meanwhile, Willow lead
Buffy to one of the smaller rooms of the inn, which she and Buffy had
earlier appropriated as their own personal workroom, to put into action her
plan for the rings.

Willow was going to try to combine each of their essences into the molecular
structure of the rings. In order to do this she was going to create pure
gold, since it was one of the most magically reactive substances that could
be used for rings. She was then going to forge the rings, and in their
making incorporate both the biological and magical essences of both of them
into the rings. It was going to be a long, and exhausting day for the both
of them.

Willow explained the basics of her plan to Buffy as they gathered the
material they needed together.

?Ok, Buff,? she said, ?first we?re going to purify some gold.?
?What gold??
?We have a little ore that Grael found in the mountains a few weeks ago,?
replied the arch-mage, ?it should provide enough for two rings.?
?Sounds good,? said Buffy, ?how do we purify it??
?Well,? replied Willow, ?we are going to have to work together on this.
First, you are going to use your ability to manipulate air to create a small
vacuum around the ore.?
?Sounds ok, so far.?
?Then I?ll use my ability to manipulate earth to extract all of the
impurities out of the ore, leaving us with pure gold.?

They proceeded as Willow had outlined. They used a previously created box
into which they placed the ore. Buffy concentrated on the air located
within the box, and then gradually reduced the air content until she had
been successful in creating the desired vacuum. At the same time Willow
used her abilities to seal the box, so that no air would leak back into it.
Once the vacuum had been created Willow looked within to the see the ore
sample. Using her inner eye she looked deep within the sample until she was
able to identify its molecular makeup. She identified the parts of the ore
that was gold, and then forced it to gather together and leave the ore
sample. Once they opened the box, they were left with a lump of pure gold,
and another lump of various trace elements.

This had been an exhausting and lengthily process that took over four hours
to complete. At the end, Willow was exhausted, and there was still a lot of
work yet to be done. After wolfing down a quick lunch of cheese and bread,
which had been brought to them by Amana, Willow set out to complete the
first part of the ring forging.

?That was harder than I thought it would be,? commented Willow as she
finished her lunch.
?What?s next,? asked Buffy?

?Oh,? replied Willow, ?not too much. Just forge the rings and incorporate
our essences into them.?
?Curb the sarcasm,? said Buffy, ?how am I going to help??
?After I create the rings,? answered Willow, ?you are going to collect some
blood from each of us, in addition to some of our magical essence, and then
we will both work together to combine them into the rings.?

?Let?s do it,? said Buffy.

Willow concentrated on the pure gold that she had extracted. Using her
ability to manipulate the essence of earth, she split the gold into three
equal portions. With Buffy?s assistance, she created a pocket of heat,
surrounding the gold. Once the gold had been heated to the correct
temperature she levitated, and then she started to rotate the gold, spinning
it out into three long strands. As soon as she was satisfied with the
length and consistency of the strands of gold, she then braided the strands
together. Finally, she split the braid in two before joining the ends of
each portion, thereby creating the basis of the rings. The rings were still
glowing with heat, since Willow had not yet quenched the rings.

?Ok love,? said Willow, the sweat dripping off her body and the exhaustion
evident in her voice, ?your turn.?

?Right you are,? replied Buffy who then began her portion of the ritual.
First, she used a scalpel to collect from each of them a small amount of
blood, which she then placed in a crucible. Looking deep within herself,
she translated her sight so that she could see into the magical realm.
Finding the ties that bound her permanently to Willow, she used some of her
biofeedback ability to direct a small amount of the essence and energy from
the ties into the crucible. She then forced the biological and magical
elements to combine to form a single tincture.

Both women then worked together to force the tincture of their essences into
the still reactive rings. Finally, once Willow was convinced that the
molecular structure of the gold had been bonded to their essences, she used
her ability to manipulate water to create a small pool of pure water, in a
copper basin which had been placed under the rings, in which to quench them.
Steam rose from the surface of the water as she released her hold on the
rings and they dropped into the basin. After several minutes both women
leaned over the basin and saw on the bottom the two rings, glowing with both
reflected light and somehow with their own luminescence.

?Wow,? commented Buffy as she retrieved the rings from the basin, ?that was
amazing.?
?No kidding,? replied the exhausted arch-mage, ?I need a bath, food and a
cuddle. Not necessarily in that order.?
?Your wish is my command,? said Buffy, ?will you need me to carry you to the
bath??
?I don?t think that will be necessary,? answered her lover with a smile,
?but you may have to support me on the way.?

As they were leaving their workroom and heading back through the common room
to the baths, the women noticed that there was a gathering of people near
the entrance of the inn. Looking over and seeing that Amana, Grael, Aiofe
and Bridie were all standing near the door Willow called out, ?what?s up
folks??

Amana turned around and seeing the two women replied, ?Buffy, Willow are you
finished??
?Just now,? answered Buffy.
?Good,? replied the older woman, ?please come over. We have guests. Daithi
has brought in another group of refugees.?

<Guests,> asked Willow, <we?ve had refugees before, but what does she mean
by calling this group guests?> Previously when they had come across groups
of fleeing humans they had offered some sanctuary before sending them across
the mountains to safer locations. Never before had they invited any of them
to stay longer than a week or so.
<Don?t know love,> replied Buffy, <let?s go see.>

They went over to the entrance to find a group of about ten young women,
surrounded by most of Willow?s task force. They were all in their late
teens or early twenties, and in very good physical shape. In their soiled
and ripped clothing and exhausted expressions, they bore the evidence of
days of hard travel. Standing just in front of the group, and giving the
appearance of being its leader was one blond haired woman staring at the
floor of the inn. Sensing Willow and Buffy?s approach she slowly raised her
head until she was looking directly at them.

Both young women were stunned. Standing facing Buffy was her identical
twin. She wasn?t pregnant, nor was she in the superb physical shape that
Buffy was in, but the face was identical.

As Buffy and Willow stood in disbelief with the others, she addressed Willow
in a voice that was tired beyond belief, ?Lady, we have been called to
help.?

----------------------------------
To be continued?