Fic: Triskelion (5/5) B/W/T NC-17

["TheBear" <thebear@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Title: Triskelion

Author: The Bear!

Spoilers: up through season 5: This begins to diverge from Checkpoint
episode canon

Pairing: B/W/T

Summary: Second in the Triad Trilogy- Sequel to the Please Trilogy. The
new Triad deals with an angry Hellgod, an Insane Vampire, and a
vengeance demon.

Warnings: NC17 Ahoy! I love Sex! I Love BDSM. I Love chains and
whips. If any of these gives you the wiggins, then so will this story.


Disclaimer: If I owned 'em, they'd have to show it on the Ecstasy
Network.

Author's Note: Part two of the Juggernaut is finally complete 

Part 5

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Buffy watched Xander leave the building and then turned to Willow, "Do
you think we teased him too much?"

Willow grinned and said, "I bet he wasn't thinking about Anya tonight."

Buffy laughed, "You're probably right." Her laughter died off as she
said, "But now, we have to deal with the idea that Xander's probably
gonna fantasize about us tonight." She wasn't sure how she felt about
that- knowing her best friend was going to be thinking about her and her
girlfriend while he touched himself.

"It's only fair, I guess," Willow said.

Buffy's eyes widened, "What do you mean by that?"

"Well, let's just say I spent many an evening with thoughts of Xander,
and my shower-massage." Willow admitted.

Buffy was stunned, "Willow Rosenberg!"

Willow teased, "Don't worry, Buffy. I spent a lot of quality
shower-time thinking about you too. Sometimes both you and Xander!"

Buffy blushed, "Better not let Tara hear you say that."

Willow laughed. "I haven't needed much time with the shower massage
since I started dating Tara, Buffy. Plus, I told her about past crushes
and stuff."

Buffy said, mock sternly, "Just so long at they're in the past."

Willow said, "Well, if I were in the market for a guy- which I'm so not-
I might go after Xander again. He's grown up nicely," she said with a
wistful smile.

Buffy recognized that there would be a little bit of Willow that would
always have a crush on her childhood best friend. To be honest, she
agreed; "yeah, he has filled out well."

Willow snapped, "Hey, you better not be thinking about heading back to
boy's-town!" Her voice became sultry as she continued. "Cause, ya'
know, witch here and all. I'd have to do something nasty to ya'!" she
teased.

Buffy shook her head, "No, no trips to boy's-town in my future." She got
a sly smile on her face and said, "However, I do have a different trip
in mind right now."

Willow felt a shiver run up her spine at the sultry tone Buffy employed,
"Yeah? W- where did you wanna go?" she asked in her little-girl voice.

Buffy stood up from her stool, walked around the table until she was
standing pressed against her girlfriend. She put one hand on Willow's
knee and began to slowly slide it up her thigh, moving down between her
legs as she reached the hem of her skirt, and continuing slowly toward
her goal. She leaned in and whispered into Willow's ear, "Someplace
warm. and humid."

Willow was doing her best to stifle the moan that wanted to pour out of
her. A strangled whimper squeezed out when Buffy captured her earlobe
between her lips and sucked on it for a moment before gently biting it.

Buffy released the earlobe and whispered, "Are your parents still in
Greece?"

"Y- y- y- yes." Willow managed to finally say. Buffy's hand had reached
her wet panties and was stroking, feather light, over them, giving
Willow just barely enough sensation to feel.

"Then let's get going, pet! You've got a lot of work to do," Buffy said,
grinning in anticipation.

"Yes Mistress!" Willow breathed out heavily, climbing unsteadily to her
feet when Buffy withdrew her hand. "Thank you Mistress!" she said, both
dreading and anticipating what was in store for her. From Buffy's look,
she knew she was gonna be on her knees begging before Buffy'd let her
cum. 

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS
========== BtVS ==========

Xander was trying to figure out something. Why hadn't Buffy staked
Spike already? He knew that the reason she gave was because he was
unable to hurt humans, and because he was useful against demonic
threats. Xander didn't buy that.

"He's hurt us time and again despite being 'chipped'," he thought. The
time when he had been working for Adam was the most obvious; but he was
always trying to come between them, and now he seemed to have developed
an unhealthy obsession with Buffy. "He's a freaking stalker!" he
thought angrily.

Xander also didn't really believe that Spike was necessary to 'help'
them. Not against Glory, not against anybody. "We didn't need his help
to beat the Mayor, or the Master, or Adam!" he thought as he came to a
park alongside the cemetery where Spike's crypt was located.

Xander looked in the direction where Spike's crypt was and whispered,
"He's a blood sucking vampire." There it was; that was the real reason
Xander wanted to kill Spike. Everything else was just rationalization.
Spike was an evil, murdering, sadistic vampire. If he had his chip out
he'd kill them all, how many times had he said that himself?

With that, he loaded up his vampire kit and set off for the crypt, stake
in one hand, cross in the other, and the kit slung over one shoulder.
After all, Spike wasn't the only vampire he might find out here.

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS
========== BtVS ==========

"You turned your hair Green?!" Joyce said as tears ran down her face
from laughing so hard.

They'd made their way through the second bottle of wine while telling
stories about their past. 

"I was trying to make it red like a strawberry!" Tara lamented as she
couldn't help but chuckle along with the elder Summers woman.

"W- w- what happened?" Joyce said, trying to catch her breath from the
laughter.

Tara ducked her head, embarrassed by her mistake to this day. "I
misunderstood the Latin, and when I cast the spell, I used the name of
the plant, instead of the fruit."

Joyce pictured Tara with bright leaf-green hair, and couldn't help
breaking out into giggles again. 

Tara said, "It wasn't funny!" even though she too was giggling about it.

"I can just see you. walking into High School on your very first day.
with. with." she was trying to get the words out but was breathless with
laughter again.

Tara said, "It didn't help that I was really shy. I could see someone
really outgoing pulling off that look. maybe, but not me." She waited
until Joyce had calmed down slightly and then asked, "What about you?"

Joyce was still wiping the tears from her eyes. "My most embarrassing
moment?" Joyce closed her eyes, thinking a moment. "Did Willow or
Buffy ever tell you about the band-candy incident when they were in High
School?"

"Willow told me all the adults reverted to teenagers." Tara said, not
sure exactly to what she might be referring.

Joyce blushed as she remembered the events of that night. Only
partially was the blushing in embarrassment; that was also the last time
she'd had sex. Two years was a long time to go without.

Tara saw Joyce's blush, but also noticed her eyes dilating; and the
smirk on her face told Tara that this was going to be a good story.

Joyce began, "There was something in the candy. it made us act like
teenagers, it. it removed our inhibitions. I was with Rupert when it
started to take effect. at first we just sat around listening to his old
records, drinking wine. He changed out of his tweed and put on a pair
of worn old jeans and a t-shirt."

Tara grinned madly at the look of desire on 'mom's' face. "He's not bad
looking, for a man I mean," she offered.

"Are you kidding? God! He looked sooo sexy dressed like that," Joyce
responded, her voice thick with desire.

Tara thought she could see where this was heading, "You and Mr. Giles.
had sex?"

Joyce chuckled, "Oh, not yet. It gets far worse." She resumed her
story, "Ripper- he had me call him Ripper instead of Rupert; I guess he
was a real ruffian in his youth. Anyway, Ripper got restless and wanted
to go out. We were walking downtown when I saw this feather-trimmed,
knee length top in one of the store windows. Ripper asked me if I liked
it, and I said, yes, but the store's closed. So he picked up a trash
can and smashed the window! I just thought it was so romantic."

Tara's eyes bugged practically out of her head as she tried to picture
Mr. Giles acting like that.

Joyce took in Tara's look and laughed. "Oh, it gets worse- Ripper
grabbed the top and put it on me, and just then the police showed up and
this cop gets out of his car and draws his gun, pointing it right at
Ripper!"

Tara gasped, "This just gets more and more shocking!" she thought.

"So I shouted 'look out Ripper, he's got a gun!' but he didn't care."
Joyce recounted. "He took the gun from him and knocked him out just
like that," She said, snapping her fingers on the 'that'.

Joyce had had enough wine that she was only mildly embarrassed to be
telling Tara this. Mostly, she was getting horny, remembering it. How
hot it had been- thrilling and dangerous.

Tara thought she couldn't get more shocked. She just waited, knowing
there must be more. She just couldn't picture the Mr. Giles she knew
acting this way.

"He sort of nonchalantly strolled over to where I was sitting on the
hood of the police car. I could tell what he was thinking by the look in
his eye. I. I was so turned on."

Tara was wrong. She could get more shocked. "Right there?" she
squeaked.

Joyce nodded. "Yep, right there on the hood of the police car. Twice."

Tara sat stunned for a moment, and then the wine's effect on her made
her verbalize her question. "How was it." she blushed.

Joyce smiled, "Have you ever been with a man, Tara?"

"Nope; I've always been a girl's girl." Tara said, completely unashamed.

"Well, that's fair, I guess. I've never been with a girl," Joyce said.
"Let's just say that Rupert Giles is a definite ladies' man- or at least
Ripper sure is," her voice trailed off as she once again relived that
relatively short time- not more than half an hour, though at the time it
felt like it lasted forever. "He knew just what to do, how to move,
when to be tender, how to be rough without being brutal. It was
wonderful."

Tara smiled at the wonder in Joyce's voice. "That was your most
embarrassing moment?" she asked, confused.

Joyce laughed, "Oh, no. My most embarrassing moment was when Buffy was
able to read minds."

Tara had heard that story, "Aspect of the demon?" she asked.

Joyce nodded, "Yeah, that was it. It was all I could think about. I
kept trying to think of other things, but. She read my mind." She
blushed at that memory. "That was definitely my most embarrassing
moment- when my daughter found out I screwed her watcher on the hood of
a police car, twice."

Tara laughed out loud, picturing the outrage on Buffy's face, the
mortification on Joyce's. "Oh, yeah. I can see how that would be
embarrassing."

"After she got over the whole mind reading thing, she never mentioned it
to me again, but every once in a while I would catch her looking at me.
and I could tell she was thinking about it." Joyce trailed off.

"If you don't mind me asking, why didn't you two ever. get together
after that?" Tara asked. "It's just, sometimes you seem. lonely. And,
I know Giles feels that way too sometimes; lonely I mean." After no
immediate response she asked, "Weren't you attracted to him anymore once
the candy wore off?"

"That wasn't it. It was just. too weird, I guess. I mean, the way we
are now, we would never do any of those things- not in a million years."
She answered. "And then, there was Buffy- He was her teacher and her
watcher, and I don't think either of us was brave enough to press that
issue."

"And now?" Tara asked. 

"Now. I'm not sure there is a good reason."

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========== BtVS ==========

Xander slowly opened the door to Spike's crypt, listening intently for
any movement inside. He cursed himself for his nervousness. He'd
waltzed in here several times when he needed to speak to the bleached
wonder- and he'd never been nervous then. "You weren't coming to kill
him those times," he thought. 

As Xander went across the empty crypt towards the access to the lower
level, he was asking himself, "Can you really do this?" Sure, he'd
killed vampires in fights before, but this was pretty much going to be
in cold blood. "Vampire; remember, he's a vampire," he told himself.
Sure he might be helpless now, but he was still a soulless vampire that
would kill them all if given the chance.

Xander climbed down the ladder into the lower part of the crypt, his
heart racing as adrenaline pumped through his veins. He turned around
and saw Spike curled up on his side on the bed; the sheets were soaked
with blood. Xander almost felt sorry for him. He had to stiffen his
resolve just to walk over to the bed.

"Oh lovely, it's the moron. Come to gloat, have you?" Spike rasped as
he saw Xander approaching the bed. "Your little friend tell you how she
cast a spell on me? You must have gotten quite a laugh."

"Your psycho girlfriend came after Willow," Xander said.

Spike's eyes lit up just a little bit and he said, "Yeah? Good for her.
Little redheaded bint had it coming for this." He groaned as he tried
to move, and then gave up. He said, "But, wait, let me guess; the
Slayer got there before Dru could finish the job, right? Just in the
nick of time to keep her lover from being drained dry, I'll bet."

Xander frowned, confused. Then after a moment he got it. He laughed as
he said, "You think Drusilla actually managed to hurt Willow? Guess
again, Deadboy jr. Willow's fine, we're all fine." 

Xander walked around the bed as he spoke when he saw two bodies on the
floor. "What the hell is this?" he demanded angrily. "I thought you
couldn't kill humans anymore!"

Spike managed a raspy chuckle, "Dru brought 'em as a present. She broke
the girl's neck and drained the bloke." In answer to Xander's
questioning glare, he said, "I can feed off 'em if they're dead
already."

Any sympathy Xander ever felt for Spike went right out the window. He
felt a coldness fill him as he grinned at the debilitated vampire. "You
know, you and Drusilla deserve to be together."

Spike thought he'd never seen this look on the moron before.

"So it'll probably upset you when I tell you that she's presently
filling an ashtray at the Bronze." He took a moment to bask in the warm
glow he got from the look of shock and dismay on Spike's face, then
continued, "But don't worry, Spike. You'll be together in a minute."

Spike's eyes widened when he saw Xander raise the stake. He had never
really believed any of the Scoobies had it in them to kill him as long
as he had the chip in his head.

Xander felt nothing but pure satisfaction as he plunged the wood into
Spike's cold, dead heart.

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS
========== BtVS ==========

Willow stopped short as Buffy came to a halt two houses down from her
Childhood home. Willow tugged on her hand, eager to get inside with her
Mistress and begin whatever service or punishment she had in mind. She
was undecided on which she would prefer more.

Buffy said, "Shh, Will." and began looking behind them as if searching
for something.

Willow caught the look on the Slayer's face and began to look also. 

After several moments, Buffy shook her head, and muttered, "I was sure."

"What, Buffy?" Willow asked, concerned. "Did you hear something?"

Buffy shook her head, "No more like my spidey sense was tingling, but it
didn't feel like a vamp. I'm not sure what it was, whatever it was, I
don't feel it now." She took Willow's hand again and started towards
the house. "Come on, I've got plans for you pet!"

Willow smiled widely, "Yes, Mistress!" she said, her mind running wild
with possibilities.

They just made it into the house when Buffy pressed Willow up against
the door and began fiercely kissing her, while cupping and gently
kneading the redheads breasts through her top. She kept her pelvis
pressed up against Willow's, locking her in place against the door.

Willow was, of course, in heaven. She so loved it when Buffy took
charge. She groaned when Buffy moved her mouth down from her own,
kissing and sucking on the flesh of her neck on her way down. 

Buffy left a trail of love bites down the pale flesh of Willow's neck
and attacked the upper slopes of her breasts where they were set on
display by the tight, stiff material of her top. She took great delight
in the girl's moans and groans as she assaulted her flesh with lips,
teeth and tongue.

Willow cried out as Buffy began stroking her lust dampened panties,
pressing the silky material into the soft, wet flesh.

"Who do you belong to?" Buffy growled after she finished marking the
milky skin of her pet's breast with little red bitemarks.

"You Mistress; I belong to you!" Willow sighed, having to concentrate to
respond in the face of the sensations coming from Buffy's hand under her
skirt.

Buffy looked Willow in the eyes and said, "Look at me, pet." She waited
until her pet met her eyes, and then started rubbing the redhead's clit
through her panties as she said, "Are you going to cum?"

Willow felt on fire- she knew she could come at any moment, if Mistress
would permit it. "N- not. not till you say, Mistress," she managed to
groan out.

Buffy smiled at Willow's acknowledgement of her dominance. God she
loved this girl! She felt so amazingly powerful- and in a way
completely unlike her Slayer powers; this was an intensity that was pure
Buffy and Willow. Being the Slayer had nothing to do with it. It made
feel joyful- almost giddy.

Buffy stopped her ministrations and pulled her hand out from under
Willow's skirt. She brought her slick fingers up to Willow's mouth and
smeared her lips with the sticky secretions. She then leaned in and
licked those shiny lips clean, transitioning into a slow, hot kiss.
When she was finished, she sucked the remainder off of her fingers and
then said, "Such a good pet. you deserve a reward; but I cum first. You
do a good job on me and I won't make you wait too long before I let you
cum."

Willow managed not to whine in disappointment when Mistress stopped
rubbing her pussy- barely. "Th- thank you, M- Mistress," she said. Her
whole body was vibrating from being on the edge of orgasm. 

Buffy stepped back and observed her pet, she was almost shivering with
arousal and desire; her skin was flushed pink, her hair was tousled, her
lips were swollen and glistening from her kisses, and her eyes were
glassy as she stared at Buffy with an overwhelming hunger. "Pet, you
are so beautiful. you make me so hot!" She reached out and trailed a
single finger down from Willow's nose, over her lips, chin, neck, down
between her breasts, and down to the waistline of her skirt. "Every
time I'm with you, I want you."

Willow was panting, every nerve ending in her body felt like it was
buzzing with pleasure and anticipation as she took in her Mistress'
words.

Buffy had followed her finger with her eyes, and now brought them back
up to meet her pet's ravenous stare, "When you kneeled next to me
tonight at the bronze, I almost got up and dragged you behind the stage
to ravish you!"

Willow whimpered loudly and couldn't bite back a harshly whispered
"Please!"

Buffy smiled at her pet, "Please what, pet?"

"Please, Mistress! Let me serve you, let me pleasure you!" Willow
begged.

Buffy smiled in delight. "Take off your clothes and then kneel in front
of the couch, pet."

Willow quickly stripped off her clothes and assumed the proper position.

Buffy felt a lassitude overcome her as she slowly disrobed and sat down
on the edge of the couch, leaning back and moving her feet up onto the
couch next to her.

Willow looked up through her lashes at her Mistress, spread open before
her and her mouth watered in anticipation of what was to come. She
loved pleasuring her Mistress almost more than she enjoyed being
pleasured herself. She always felt fulfilled when she could make
Mistress scream in pleasure.

Buffy smiled at her pet, seeing her eagerness, but appreciating the fact
that she was waiting for permission. "I'm in the mood for slow and
gentle pet. Just use your mouth, and draw it out a little bit," she
instructed.

Willow was just happy to be able to begin. "Yes, Mistress. Thank you
for letting me serve you Mistress," she said as she moved in, hands on
her knees to help support her.

Buffy's eyes automatically closed at the first warm touch. 

Willow began by gently kissing the insides of Buffy's thighs, tasting
and very gently sucking on the tender flesh as she worked up each leg
bit by bit toward her heavenly goal.

Buffy sighed with pleasure as her pet followed her commands perfectly,
making this a languid and unhurried experience. She knew Willow was on
edge and virtually chomping at the bit to charge full steam ahead, but
she was forcing herself to fulfill her Mistress' instructions.

Willow felt a weird disparity; her body was buzzing with arousal,
virtually bouncing with energy seeking to release itself, yet she found
herself slowly and gently teasing her way up her Mistress' thighs,
licking and suckling the soft, satiny flesh, grazing her teeth across it
with little 'almost-bites'. It was as though she was two beings in one
body- one seeking furious action and immediate release, the other was
stuck in low gear, unable to speed up despite the pressure from her
body. This dissonance was only serving to heighten the arousal in her,
like a feedback loop; the pressure got higher and higher as she went.

Buffy moaned low and long as her pet finally made it to her extremely
hot, wet center. Even though she was obeying- making it slow and
gentle, Buffy could feel that it wouldn't take long for her to cum- she
was so incredibly excited. 

Willow began laving her Mistress' swollen labia with her tongue and
lips- no teeth here! She couldn't contain her own groan of delight as
she took in that rich, musky syrup; Goddess! she loved going down on her
Mistress! Sure, she enjoyed games and toys and being tied up, but there
was something so amazingly intimate and sensual about this act; both the
way it made her Mistress feel- the overwhelming pleasure- and the way it
made her feel- so special, so wanted. 

Buffy had degenerated into continuous moans and groans as her pet laved
and suckled- following her instructions, avoiding her clit and drawing
it out. Something told Buffy that her pet would keep her on the cusp
until instructed otherwise. When she couldn't take it any more, when
the need to cum overwhelmed her she gasped out, "Now pet! Make me cum
now!"

Though she didn't think about it, she nevertheless felt pleasure wash
through her as her Mistress, in essence, begged for release. Willow
immediately paid attention to Mistress' swollen clit, grinding small,
fast circles over it with the tip of her tongue.

Buffy began to feel the muscles in her stomach and legs tighten as her
pet finally moved onto her clit. Her groan transitioned into a
high-pitched whine as the orgasm finally washed through her in long hard
waves. 

She finally had to gasp out, "Stop, pet! Stop!" as the attention to her
over-stimulated flesh became almost painful in its intensity.

Willow backed off, nuzzling Mistress' thigh as she trembled through the
aftershocks of her release. Willow felt her own body still buzzing on
the cusp of orgasm. 

Buffy was enjoying the pleasant buzz of post-orgasmic bliss. "Come up
here, pet," she said, guiding the redhead so she was straddling Buffy's
lap and laying up against her, skin to skin from the waist up. Buffy
could feel her pet vibrating with anticipation and excitement; but she
wasn't ready to do more than snuggle yet. 

Willow was lost in subspace, her body responding to her Mistress'
commands, but her mind was washed away but the desire coursing through
her. She needed to cum before she would be able to think again- the
only coherent thought in her head was the words 'please, Mistress
please!' over and over again.

Buffy took advantage of their positioning, and her pet's greater height;
burying her face in the redhead's neck and nuzzling the soft flesh of
her throat. Her hands ran up and down the redhead's back, stroking from
neck to ass.

Willow was getting more and more turned on, until she was almost crying
at the intensity of the energy flowing through her.

Neither girl noticed that some of that pent-up energy was translating
into magical power- the air was almost crackling with it, like the
ionized charge in the atmosphere before a lightning bolt appeared.

When Buffy was ready to reward her pet, she moved her hands around to
the sides of her body, stroking up, briefly caressing her breasts on the
way up to her face. She put both hands into the wild mass of red hair
and grabbed on, pulling her pet slightly away from her so she could look
into her eyes.

Buffy marveled to see Willow's pupils dilated so far that there was
almost no iris visible at all. Just as she was about to speak, her
sensitive hearing caught the sound of her pet's voice- almost too quiet
even for her to hear- as she chanted, "Please, Mistress, please!" over
and over again. The Slayer decided to reward her pet by allowing her to
cum as often as she wished, knowing the first orgasm would be only
moments after she touched the redhead's dripping sex- as keyed up as she
was.

"Pet, you have my permission to cum."

That was as far as she got when Willow's eyes suddenly crackled with
blue arcs of energy and the redhead screamed her release. Buffy didn't
even have time to marvel at it before she was blinded by incredible
brightness; it seemed the very air in the room itself was on fire. She
saw a brilliant white flash and then nothing, as her body convulsed with
pleasure- an orgasm rippling through her unexpectedly.

Willow didn't know what happened, all she knew is Mistress permitted her
to cum and she did- powerfully. Her body was shaking like she was
having a seizure as she writhed and quaked on Buffy's lap.

Buffy was rapidly blinking her eyes, trying to regain her sight. She
felt like she was looking into a dark room through a bright purple fog.
Her pet was draped on top of her, completely slack- as though she were
unconscious- but Buffy could hear her as she groaningly whispered,
"Thank you, Mistress," with each exhaled breath. "Oh My God!" she
thought. She let go of the death grip she had on the girl's hair and
pushed her away from herself enough to see her face, now tinged the same
bright purple as everything else in the room. "Willow? What the hell
just happened??" she asked, incredulous.

Willow smiled lazily, her eyes for some reason not impacted by the
brilliant flash- indeed she was unaware that anything out of the
ordinary had happened, beyond the intense orgasm her Mistress had just
given her. "Mmmm, you just made your pet cum really, really hard!
That's what happened, Mistress," She said lethargically as she still
felt spent and boneless.

Buffy was seriously wigged out. "Willow! What was that flash? And how
did you cum? I didn't even touch you! And me too. How?!" she trailed
off, seriously confused and still trying to get her eyes to clear. Now
the color had faded from bright purple to bright blue.

Willow heard the panic in Buffy's voice and pulled herself together.
"What do you mean? I didn't see a flash. Well, beyond the normal. I
mean I came really hard. What do you mean, you didn't touch me?"

Buffy tried to explain, "Willow, I was just about to, I was going to
tell you you could cum as often as you wanted, but I didn't get it out,
and then, Boom! big white light and, oh! your eyes had blue sparks, and
then you were cumming, and I was cumming and." Buffy's babbling ended
as they both heard a muffled curse, and then what sounded like something
fighting with a large leafy bush outside the living room window.

Buffy had Willow placed next to her and was up like a shot, not even
bothering to dress as she ran across the room, opened the window, and
jumped out.

Willow scrambled to put on at least her bra and panties before rushing
to the window. She heard the sound of someone getting their ass kicked,
and then had to swerve to avoid a body flying through the window. She
was taken aback to see what looked like a scabby, gnarly miniature troll
landing, unconscious, on the floor of her parent's living room.

A moment later the very naked body of the Slayer flew through the
window, landing in a tuck and roll, popping up to her feet and taking on
her defensive stance; fists up and ready, feet shoulder width apart and
one slightly in front of the other.

Despite the demon laying on the floor in front of her, Willow had a hard
time not laughing. Buffy didn't quite carry off the look of kick-ass
warrior so well when she was butt naked.

Buffy was distracted by the quiet snicker of her lover. She looked over
at Willow. "What?!" she said, slightly outraged.

Willow just gestured toward Buffy's body, still fighting the outright
laughter threatening to spill forth.

Buffy looked down and saw her nakedness. "Oh," she said, sheepishly.
Then she realized she'd just given everyone in the neighborhood that
might have been looking out the window a free show. "OH! Oops!" She
quickly found and pulled on her skirt and top, ignoring undergarments
for the moment.

"What do we do now?" Willow asked as she started looking for the rest of
her clothes, the question of what had happened between them just a
little while ago was forgotten for the moment. 

Her voice cold, Buffy said, "We tie this thing up, and then wake it up
and ask it a few questions."

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS
========== BtVS ==========

The ringing phone interrupted Tara and Joyce as they were laughing
together over another childhood exploit of Buffy's- the one when a
precocious eight year-old Buffy had come home from her first day of
third grade complaining that boy's were gross and demanding to know why
they were allowed to exist.

Joyce had laughed extra hard when Tara illuminated the double entendre
by waggling her eyebrows and saying, "All the way back in third grade,
Huh?"

Tara left the older woman cackling on the couch while she got the phone.

Joyce's laughter died down as she saw the serious look on Tara's face
when she hung up the phone. "What is it?" she asked worriedly.

Tara gestured for the elder Summers to follow her into the kitchen. She
leaned close to her ear and whispered, "Buffy and Willow found one of
Glory's minions spying on them. It told them Glory was having all of
the Slayer's friends watched."

Joyce didn't bother to wonder why the spy had volunteered the
information, and from Tara's saying 'it' rather than 'he or she', she
deduced that the spy was not human. "What do we do?" she whispered
back, suddenly afraid.

Tara smiled, no longer nervous or shy around 'mom'. "I'm going to scry
and see if there's one here," she said, getting a bowl from the cupboard
and filling it with water.

Joyce watched, fascinated as Tara set the bowl of water on the kitchen
counter and began to softly chant in some foreign language. Fascination
only grew as the reflection of Tara's face in the surface of the water
faded and she saw another image take shape. It was an ugly, scabby
humanoid, but Joyce didn't mistake it for human.

Tara concentrated, having found a demonic signature in the immediate
surroundings of the house, she pulled the view away, as if reducing the
zoom in a camera, so that she could see where it was, exactly. 

Joyce couldn't hold back a gasp as the image in the bowl resolved and
she could see that the creature was making its way around the house from
where it had been apparently watching them through the living room
window, back to the side of the house and the kitchen where they were
now.

Using the view in the water to focus, Tara cast the spell she had used
twice now on spike, sweeping the demon off of it's feet and smashing
it's head against the ground. This didn't quite render the creature
unconscious, but it was enough to stun it while Tara cast a different
spell, leaving the creature tightly bound in a cocoon of garden hose.

Joyce felt amazement as she watched the scene unfold in the surface of
the water. She could hear the muffled sounds through the open kitchen
window, but the images in the bowl were silent. 

Tara smiled, saying, "That'll hold him till Willow and Buffy get back."

Joyce asked, "Then what?"

Tara blinked, nonplussed for a moment by the question. "I- I suppose
Buffy will ask it some questions, and maybe keep it for Giles to look
at."

"But then what?" Joyce insisted, imagining she knew the answer and not
sure how she felt about it.

Tara realized where she was going with this and blushed. It was easy to
forget that, though she knew her daughter was the Slayer, Joyce hadn't
really been involved in Scooby activities. "Uh, well. it is a demon."

Joyce felt just the tiniest tendril of fear creep up her spine. It was
one thing to know intellectually what her daughter did every night- to
live with the fear that her daughter could be hurt or killed at any
time, but it was something else entirely to be faced with the fact that
her daughter killed things. Not just her daughter, but both the witches
that she called lovers. Even Xander, the boy who she loved to watch eat
her cooking with such relish, who joked incessantly about everything;
even he went out at night and killed things. Not people, no- but still.
Her 'children' were hunters. Their prey weren't animals, they walked
and talked. They were intelligent beings. Evil, yes, but.

"Sorry, it's just." Joyce said, her voice a bit strained.

Tara understood Joyce's feelings. She had felt them herself when she
had first become involved with the Scooby gang. She leaned up against
the sink and crossed her arms below her breasts, looking at her feet as
she said, "The first time I went on a patrol with Willow and Buffy, we
were waiting for a new vampire to rise from the grave. It came out,
Buffy staked it, and it exploded into dust. I thought, "Wow, that's
incredible!" I was a little scared, but it all seemed so unreal. About
the fourth time I went, there was some kind of demon; I- I don't know
exactly what kind, but it looked like a normal guy, except for a big
head and two little horns."

Joyce just stared at her as she paused in her narrative and blushed,
looking embarrassed.

"Buffy killed it with an axe. it's blood was like purple slime and it
got all over all of us."

Joyce felt her gorge rise a bit as she pictured the events Tara was
describing.

"Willow and Buffy both complained, but acted like it wasn't that big of
a deal. Buffy even kicked the b- body. she was mad because. she said
'do you know how hard it is to clean demon slime off of suede?!' I- I
got really sick." Tara paused again before saying, "They both thought
it. it was because the slime was really gross and smelly."

"But that wasn't it, was it?" Joyce asked.

"Buffy cut it's head off. I saw something get it's head cut off.
This... it walked and talked just like. it looked like a guy in
Halloween makeup, and she cut off it's head like it was nothing."

Only her sympathetic concern for the girl in the story kept Joyce from
loosing the contents of her stomach. She realized that the girl in the
story wasn't the same girl standing before her now.

Tara shook off the memories, looking at Joyce's sad/horrified
expression. "They might look sort of like people, Joyce. But don't let
that fool you. The evil ones would think nothing of doing the most
unspeakable horrors to you, just for a laugh. They aren't people, they
aren't human. They exist only to destroy life."

"All of them?" Joyce asked, still trying to wrap her mind around the
concept.

"Oh, no!" Tara said. "There are lots of supernatural creatures that
just want to live and get by, just like us. Some of them look really
scary too- lots worse than some of the more evil ones. That's why
research is so important."

Joyce still looked upset, so Tara said, "Just remember," pointing to the
wall where the demon was secured on the other side, "that works for
Glory. And Glory wants the Key."

That worked. Joyce's resolve stiffened when she realized that the thing
outside her back door wanted to take her daughter away from her. It
didn't know her daughter was the Key, but if it ever found out, it would
take her away. 

Tara saw as Joyce 'got it'. It was a hard thing, but once they had
realized the stakes, realized that this was a war with the Scooby gang
on one side, and literally the forces of hell on the other, it made it
possible to take the risks they took, to do the things they had to do,
and still maintain their humanity.

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS
========== BtVS ==========

The next morning saw the whole gang, plus Joyce and Dawn, but minus
Anya, gathered at the magic box. Everyone was tired. Giles was tired
because he'd been up most of the night, researching. Buffy, Willow and
Tara were tired because they had spent the night going to Xander's,
Giles, and Janice's houses looking for more of Glory's minions. Joyce
was tired because she'd spent the night lying awake in her bed, thinking
about the three girls and what they were out doing. Dawn was tired
because, duh- slumber party; teenage girls do not have sleepovers to
sleep. Xander had gotten more sleep than any of the others. They
hadn't even woken him up when they took out the minion spying on him.
His sleep, however had been restless with nightmares. One didn't kill
in cold blood- not even when the target was a demon like Spike- without
one's conscience prodding one. He was also feeling trepidation about
telling Buffy and the rest of the gang.

Before beginning the meeting, Willow and Tara cast a spell to determine
if there was any demonic power in their area- they wanted to make sure
there were no spies for their meeting. Tara blushed as they cast the
spell, calling on the goddess Thespia. It was the same spell she had
sabotaged the first time she and Willow had cast it, back when she still
believed that she was part demon, and was trying to hide that fact.

Willow caught the blush and realized what was causing it. She gave her
lover a wink and a smile, letting her know all was forgiven.

Tara once again thought how lucky she was to have Willow and Buffy's
love.

The spell showed that they were, for the moment at least, free from any
demonic presence in and around the shop. It also showed what they all
thought must be Glory's stronghold.

"Makes sense," Buffy said, once the witches had oriented her to their
mystical 'map' of Sunnydale. "The park where I killed that cobra-thing
is pretty much in a straight line between here and there."

Tara and Willow sat down at the table, while Buffy began to pace,
telling everyone what they had discovered from the minions, which wasn't
much. "Basically, they were supposed to watch me and everyone that I
hang around."

Willow added, They pretty much all said the same thing- Glorificus
instructed them to, 'watch the Slayer, watch her friends, and find out
where the Slayer was hiding her Key'."

Dawn paled and Joyce stiffened at the thought.

"That's good, though; right?" Xander spoke up, seeing the other two
Summers' reactions. "That means she doesn't know about." he gestured
towards Dawn- circumspect even though they were supposed to be 'demon
free'.

"Right," Buffy nodded. "We can't count on that to last, though. We
need more information about how and especially when she plans to use the
key." She walked over and sat down in Tara's lap, completely
unselfconscious about it, and needing her Mistress' comfort right now.

"Did the excerpts from the book of Tarnis that the council sent you have
anything Giles?" Tara asked as she absentmindedly rubbed the Slayer's
back.

Giles looked up from the sheaf of papers he had been scanning. "There
is reference made to a ritual th- that may be the one Glory will need to
use. I'm trying to see if there is anything to cross-reference and
confirm that," he started to explain.

Buffy perked up at the idea of having some information, any information
that might help them. "If that is the one. where, when, and how?"

Giles, as was customary for him- and despite the fact that it always
fell on deaf ears- counseled caution; "W- while it does seem likely,
that this is the ritual she would need."

"Giles, Spill! Cross-reference later- details now!"

With a resigned sigh, and ignoring the smiles of everyone else who
wasn't Buffy, Giles, or Dawn, he said, "If, and again I must emphasize."
he broke off his disclaimer at Buffy's low growl and steely glare. "If
this is correct, the ritual may only take place once in a century- when
the stellar alignment matches."

It was Willow's turn to interrupt, "Giles! When?!" she demanded,
irritably.

Giles dropped the sheaf of papers and took off his glasses. He pinched
the bridge of his nose and said, "Two weeks from tomorrow night." He
emphasized, "*If* this is correct- which I cannot be sure of until."

"How?" Dawn asked in a quiet voice. "How would she do it?"

Everyone's attention was immediately drawn to the youngest Summers.

Giles felt sympathy for the girl. Certainly this must be hardest on
her, knowing only that some evil force wanted you for something- not
knowing what, or how, or even why she was singled out for such a fate.

Giles picked up the sheet on top, put his glasses back on and summarized
as he read, "Hmm, it requires the. living energy of. the Key. it is to
be. flowed? Or perhaps poured. into a particular point in space and
time. then the portal will open. and remain until the energy flows no
more."

"Living energy?" Dawn asked, "What does that mean."

Giles once again set down the paper and took off his glasses, meeting
the young girl's gaze sadly. "In most all living creatures, life energy
is. blood." 

========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS ========== BtVS
========== BtVS ==========

End of Triskelion



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