FIC: Right In Front of You Part 20

["Callistosdarkside" <callistosdarkside@xxxxxxxx>]

Warning: Some scenes may be disturbing, but there's nothing graphic.

As always. Read here or here:
http://www.geocities.com/callistosdarkside/RightInFrontOfYou.html

-CDS

. Title: Right In Front of You
. Author: Callisto's Dark Side
. Email: callistosdarkside@xxxxxxxx
. Feedback: The more I get, the faster I write.
. Distribution: Can be found at
http://www.geocities.com/callistosdarkside/RightInFrontOfYou.html (My Site),
http://www.geocities.com/last_days_of_pern, and
http://www.peccath.com/extraflamey/mainframe.htm
. Spoilers: All of Season 5, but events take place before some events in
Tough Love.
. Rating: R
. Pairing: W/T & B/W
. Disclaimer: All characters from Angel & Buffy the Vampire Slayer are
copyright Joss Whedon & 20th Century Fox.
. Summary: Willow/Tara fic in which the two love birds must manage to deal
with the consequences of a spell that threatens to tear them apart forever.

Chapter 20


Lilah licked her lips, her gun smoking, and Buffy's best friend laying limp
on the floor below.

"I thought we were supposed to give them the Eye?" An associate complained,
watching as the Slayer ran to her fallen friend.

"Ben said to give the Slayer the Eye, he never said anything about the
redhead," Lilah smirked, as she tossed the Eye of Venus down to a startled
Anya.

Lilah quickly made her way to the elevator, hit the button for the top
floor, and escaped via helicopter.

******

"I'm so sorry Will," Buffy cried in the backseat, clasping Willow's hand in
the car as Cordelia drove top speed to the nearest hospital.

"The Eye." Willow breathed between ragged breaths, "Do we have it?"

"We do," Buffy said, grabbing the Eye from Anya and bringing it to touch
Willow's cheek, "see, we have it Will, all because of you."

Willow managed a smile, before grunting in pain again from the bullet wound
to the ribs.

"Faster!" Buffy yelled, as Cordelia turned the car sharply through an
intersection, causing a police cruiser to turn on it's lights and begin
chasing.

"Shit!" Cordelia and Buffy shouted in unison.

"Keep driving!" Buffy ordered.

"Don't have to tell me twice," Cordelia said, as she barrelled down the
roadway.

Buffy waved her arm high in the air and shouted to the police car that
someone was shot and wounded, and needed to be taken to the hospital.
Unfortunately, the cop couldn't hear through the sirens and traffic noise,
and continued his pursuit.

"Damn it!" Buffy screamed, "She's shot! She's Shot! She's Shot!" Buffy
cried, as she crumpled down and covered Willow's body with her own, careful
not to touch the bullet wound.

"Don't worry," Buffy soothed, cupping Willow's cheek, "I won't let anything
happen to you."

The Slayer softly kissed the half-conscious Willow on the forehead, and then
moved to kiss the Wiccan on the lips, not caring that Anya's jaw had just
hit the floor.

******

Willow drifted in and out of consciousness as her body lost more and more
blood. The bumps in the road agitated the bullet inside, increasing the
pain, and forcing her to shut her eyes.

All the while, she could hear Buffy's comforting voice, screaming, soothing,
screaming, and finally soothing again. She felt the cold ivory of the Eye
of Venus against her cheek, as she had asked if they had gotten what they'd
come for.

She heard the sound of a siren or sirens blasting through her eardrums, and
heard the shouts of angry motorists and pedestrians as the car weaved it's
way through traffic.

The last thing she remembered though, were the soft lips of her best friend
on her own, as she fell into a deep sleep.

******

Tara woke up on the couch in a sweat, shouting out Willow's name.

"What is it?" Dawn asked, rubbing her eyes as she sat up on the rug floor.

"It's Willow, something's wrong," Tara cried, shaking her head.

"How do you know?"

"I just do, it was so real."

Dawn got up and sat down on the couch, placing her hand on Tara's forehead.
"You're burning up."

"It was real. I'm not crazy!"

"You're sick. You should drink some water," Dawn said, about to get up and
go to the kitchen, but Tara grabbed her arm.

"I'm not crazy, I heard her cry," Tara sobbed.

"I believe you," Dawn soothed, but you need something to drink.

Tara let go of her hand, as Leanna came rushing into the house.

"What's wrong?" Leanna questioned, seeing the distraught Tara lying on the
couch.

"Willow, she's hurt."

"You mean your girlfriend?"

"Yes, I had a dream."

"But how?"

"I don't know, but it was so real," Tara explained, before breaking into
sobs, as Leanna wrapped her arms around the grief-stricken Wiccan.

******

"Cordy should've told you I was coming!" Angel shouted angrily at Buffy in
the stairwell.

"She did," Buffy sniffled.

"Then why didn't you wait?"

"Because." Buffy sobbed, "I was stupid."

"You should've waited," Angel lowered his voice.

"I know, it's all my fault," Buffy cried, pounding Angel's chest with her
fists, until he drew her into his arms.

"It's nobody's fault," Angel soothed.

******

"Only family is allowed to see her," The Doctor explained to the anxious
group.

"I'm family," Buffy lied, as she wiped her eyes on her sleeve.

"Come with me then," The Doctor said sombrely as he led the way to Willow's
recovery room. "I should warn you that she's still not conscious, but we're
hopeful that she will be within the next 48 to 96 hours."

"96 hours?"

"We can't be certain considering the amount of blood loss and her slight
frame, but you did a good job at getting her here quickly to minimise the
damage."

"Yeah, damage," Buffy laughed, "Damage I caused."

"You shouldn't blame yourself for what happened."

"That's what everyone keeps telling me," Buffy sniffled.

"They're right. This was caused by the person who shot her, and I'm sure
the police are on the case right now to apprehend the person responsible."

"They better be," Buffy clenched her fist as she stopped just outside the
door to Willow's room.

******

"We have to find a way back, now!" Tara insisted.

"But the merchant won't be back for a few more weeks," Leanna reminded her.

"It doesn't matter, I need to see her, besides, there's no guarantee he'll
have anything useful anyway."

Dawn turned to Leanna, "Are there any other ways to get spell books?"

"I'm not sure." Leanna shook her head, "Every book I have here, I've either
got from Balon, or I took from my childhood home when I ran away."

"But there's got to be another source of books, schools, libraries?" Tara
asked desperately.

"It's like I told you before, the only real schools or libraries are in the
Capitol."

"Then that's where I'm going," Tara stated, clenching her fist.

"But you're weak, you're sick with the flu and it's too far away," Leanna
argued.

"Doesn't matter, I have to go there."

"Are you sure you don't want to wait a day or two for the flu to pass?"

"I'm sure," Tara breathed, "Dawn, pack our bags, we're going to the
Capitol."


To be continued.