The Power of Three by DragonWriter17

Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: All of the materials borrowed from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel belong to Joss Whedon and to the entities and companies associated with their creation. I have borrowed them for creative and entertainment purposes only. No compensation has been or ever shall be received for the writing below. No copyright infringement is intended.
Distribution: The Mystic Muse: http://mysticmuse.net
Cyber Lair: http://www.geocities.com/dragonwriter17/
If you are interested in posting my story on your site, please contact me first for permission.
Feedback: Yes, but only if it's of the non-flamey variety.
Spoilers: The end of Season 4's "Wild At Heart" and beyond.
Author's Notes: I have kept to the BtVS/Angel canon in some ways, borrowing directly from aired episodes; however, I have also made significant changes: deleting certain storylines, moving some, changing others, as well as adding some completely original plots.
Pairing: Willow/Buffy/Tara

Summary: After Oz leaves Sunnydale, Willow turns to best friend, Buffy, and new friend, Tara, for comfort, resulting in a remarkable new relationship for all three. Amidst the daily dangers of life on the Hellmouth, the three women forge bravely ahead, unaware that their relationship has been predestined.

Giles and Buffy sat in Giles' apartment as Buffy related the previous night's events: how Veruca had attacked Willow, how Oz had killed Veruca and then rushed Willow, how Buffy had been delayed by some kind of commando in the woods.

"Yes," Buffy replied. "And he was toting some serious weaponry. The thing is, I saw some guys dressed exactly like him on Halloween night. I just assumed they were in costume. But maybe they were working. I wanna know what's up. The guy got in my way. I almost didn't catch up with Oz in time. And as it was, I was too late to – "

"Right now she wishes I hadn't. Giles, I've never seen her like this. It's like it hurts too much to form words."

"You've...you've felt that way yourself, and you got through it," Giles pointed out.

"Yeah. I ran away and went to hell and then got through it," Buffy said disgustedly. "I'm kind of hoping she doesn't use me as a model."

"They'll manage. And we'll be there to help them," Giles said reassuringly. "I…um…I don't want to add to your burdens, Buffy," Giles said, removing his glasses in his typical worry gesture. "But…ummm…I think you should know that I've gotten reports that…well – "

Buffy rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Great. Just what I need, a big bothersome bleach-blonde burden." Buffy closed her eyes and shook her head. Then she looked at Giles. "I don't have time for him right now. I need to get back to the room, for when Willow comes back."

Buffy rose from her seat. Giles stood and gave Buffy's shoulder a good squeeze. Then Buffy left the apartment.

Buffy paced nervously around the dorm room she shared with Willow. For the umpteenth time, she replayed the previous day's events in her mind. She always ended up at the same place: a distraught and sobbing Willow collapsed on the science lab floor.

Oz, I swear to God I wanna kill you! Buffy thought to herself as she slammed her fist into the wall. Buffy blinked and looked at her hand embedded in the wall. Damn! There goes that deposit. Buffy pulled her out hand and examined it. It was fine. Sometimes being the Slayer did have its advantages. Buffy's perusal of her fist was interrupted by the sound of the door opening. Buffy turned quickly to face her roommate.

Buffy's heart stopped when she saw Willow enter the room. Willow's shoulders were slumped in utter defeat. Her eyes were red from crying. She stood nearly motionless as she met Buffy's eyes.

"He left me, Buffy, he's gone." Willow barely got out the last word before the sobs hit her. She wrapped her arms about her chest and sank to the floor.

Buffy was instantly at Willow's side. She pulled Willow into her arms and held her tightly as the redhead cried her heart out. Buffy stroked Willow's hair, trying to comfort her.

After a while, Willow's tears stopped, and she was able to sit up. She didn't meet Buffy's eyes. A few snivels made their final exit, and Willow was able to breathe normally. She looked at Buffy and smiled weakly in gratitude.

Willow felt Buffy push the hair out of her face. Then she felt Buffy cup her cheek and wipe away the tears with her thumb. Willow lifted her eyes to Buffy's. She saw the unconditional love and support that was there; it brought new tears to her eyes.

"It'll be okay, I promise," Buffy said. "Not today, and not tomorrow, maybe not even next month. But one day it will be. And until then, I'll be right here for you."

"Oh god, I am so lucky to have you as a friend," Willow cried, hugging Buffy even tighter. "I love you so much!"

"I love you, too," Buffy said, as she hugged Willow back, closing her eyes and nuzzling her nose into Willow's hair. This feels so good, I love the way her hair smells, Buffy mused before clamping down on her inappropriate thoughts and turning her attention to caring for Willow. Buffy pulled out of the hug and held Willow's arms.

"I think the best thing for you right now is to get some rest," Buffy stated in a motherly tone, "so it's bed time for you. I'll even tuck you in."

Willow nodded solemnly. Then Buffy helped Willow to her feet. Willow went to her chest of drawers and pulled out her pink pajamas. She took off her shoes and started to pull off her shirt, but then she abruptly stopped and turned to Buffy.

Buffy squeezed Willow's shoulder and then walked around to stand in front of Willow. She lifted Willow's chin, forcing Willow to look at her.

"You don't have to," Buffy said firmly. "Just let me change, and I'll be right over."

Buffy returned to her side of the room. She dug her sushi pajamas out of the drawer. Then she pulled off her shoes and clothes and put on her pajamas. As she changed, she watched Willow as she donned her pink pajamas. She looks so cute in those, Buffy thought, smiling involuntarily. Then she chastised herself. Stop it! What is the matter with you?

When Buffy looked up from her musing, she found Willow already in bed, looking at her with a nervous and vulnerable curiosity. Buffy cleared her throat and turned off all the lights. Then she came to Willow's bed and slipped in beside her.

Willow gladly obliged, snuggling into a comfortable position with her head on Buffy's chest and her arm wrapped around Buffy's waist. Buffy put one hand on Willow's arm and used the other to stroke Willow's hair.

Buffy could feel Willow's hand on her stomach, just inches below her breasts. She imagined what it would be like if Willow just happened to move her hand up and just accidentally started tweaking her nipples. Buffy felt her heart start to race.

"Boy, your heart's goin' ninety miles an hour in there," Willow stated. "Is it always like that?"

Oh, god, I am so busted, Buffy thought. "Yeah, it is," she lied. "It's a Slayer thing. A super heroine's gotta have a super heart, right?"

"Hmmm. I had no idea. I learned something new about you today," Willow said, pleased with this tidbit of information about her roommate and best friend. She leaned up for a moment to look at Buffy. "I wonder what else I'll learn about you this year?"

"Ohhh, there's sooo…little left to learn about me. You already know everything there is," Buffy said nervously.

"Yeah, right," Willow replied, putting her head back down and snuggling back into place.

The two women were silent for a moment, both of them staring off into space, eyes wide open, sleep the farthest thing from their minds.

Xander sat in Giles' living room, perusing a book while Giles worked on his sketch. Giles made a few more marks on his drawing of the mystery commando Buffy had seen while rushing to save Willow.

"Well, based on Buffy's description," Giles said, "I believe the men that we're after look something like, ummm...like this." Giles held up the drawing for Xander to see.

"The latest in fall fascism," Xander joked. "I like it. A bit full in the hips for my taste, but – "

"I think we can safely assume they're human, so, um, no research needed," Giles said, clearly disappointed.

"No studying? Damn!" Xander said, slamming his book shut. "Next thing they'll tell me is I'll have to eat jelly doughnuts or sleep with a supermodel to get things done around here. I ask you, how much can one man give?"

"Not too much, I'm afraid. Ummm…once again I'd say that you and I will not be needed to help Buffy."

"Well, how about this?" Xander said slyly. "We whip out the Ouija board, light a few candles, summon some ancient, unstoppable evil. Mayhem, mayhem, mayhem. Then we show up and kick its ass."

"Wee bit unethical," Giles said quickly to Xander before Buffy made her way over.

"Hello, people!" Buffy said as she came to stand beside Giles. He held the drawing up for Buffy to see. She looked closely at the sketch. "Look, it's my late-night storm-trooper pal," Buffy said.

"It's – it's just for reference, you know, but fairly accurate you'd say?" Giles asked.

"Nope, I am going to a party tonight," Buffy replied. "Hopefully, a no-fighting, no-biting kind of deal."

"Buffy, somebody's got to find out who these people are," Giles warned. "And there's Spike to consider."

"Giles, I live in a dorm now, and the girls in my hall want to party," Buffy insisted. "Besides, Willow needs some cheering up, so I'm going to take her."

"With the black hole of despair she's been living in since Oz left?" Buffy finished for him. "She's dealing. I'm helping. It's hard. Ergo, party. You two can take patrol. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go find something slutty to wear tonight."

Professor Walsh's psychology class had just ended, but Buffy was still warring with her ballpoint pen. Ink covered her hands and her notebook.

"Stupid pen," Buffy mumbled before noticing that her notes were now covered with black smudges. "My notes!"

"Bargain ballpoints can be tricky," Willow teased, a smile touching her lips for a moment before disappearing into a frown.

Buffy and Willow collected their things and made their way down the lectorium stairs. Instead of exiting the classroom, Willow went up to Professor Walsh's teaching assistant, Riley.

"Riley, I noticed you left off a name today in roll call. Osbourne, Daniel Osbourne, Oz?" Willow said nervously.

"He's not in this class anymore. I hear he dropped out," Riley responded matter-of-factly.

"Oh, well, you heard way wrong then," Willow said. "I mean, he's not gone. H-H-He left temporarily to work out a few things. I know that sounds lame in its vagueness, but I assure you, Oz will be back."

"Not to my class, he won't," Professor Walsh interjected. "An educated guess. You know the rules, you know I hate exceptions, and yet somehow you feel your exception is exceptional."

"It is. To you," Walsh continued, cutting Willow off. "But since I'm neither a freshman nor a narcissist, I have to consider the whole class. If your friend can't respect my schedule, I think it's best he not come back."

Willow was crushed by Professor Walsh's speech. It was just one more nail in the coffin, one more reality check that said, Oz isn't coming back. Willow didn't say another word, but simply walked off.

Buffy couldn't believe what she had just seen. That Walsh woman was a monster, a cold-hearted, unfeeling monster. And Buffy knew how to deal with monsters. She walked straight up to her professor and confronted her.

"You know, for someone who teaches human behavior, you might try showing some," Buffy said hotly.

"You're right. A human being in pain has nothing to do with your job!" Buffy said before stomping out of the room.

Riley looked on in shock, but Professor Walsh merely lifted her eyebrows, unfazed.

Xander added another stack to his growing pile of military gear that sat on the table in his basement apartment. Giles poked curiously through the stack.

"Here we go," Xander said, picking up a pistol. "Gear for tonight. If some commando squads are out there, fully loaded, these babies might give us the edge we'll need."

Xander was attempting to open the chamber of the pistol, but wasn't having much luck. "Uh, I requisitioned it. Back when I was military guy."

"Are you kidding?" Xander replied, still struggling with the pistol. "I put the 'semper' in 'semper fi.' I might not be able to assemble an M-16 blindfolded like I used to or pass weapons drill from the mobile infantry – "

"Might as well face it," Xander said sadly, "Right now, I don't have the technical skills to join the Swiss army. And all those guys ask you to do is uncork a couple of sassy cabernets."

"Oh, fear not. Hand to hand? I'm still the man. Whoever these guys trained with, I'm sure they're not ready to deal with – "

Xander froze momentarily at the sound of his mother's voice calling from upstairs. Then he answered. "Yes, mom?"

"I made up a nice fruit punch for you and your friend," Mrs. Harris called. "Would you boys like some?"

Giles looked up, his interest now piqued. He called up to Xander's mother, "Is it, uhhh, raspberry fruit punch?"

Buffy hurried out of the building and then stood on the steps. She scanned the campus grounds until she saw the familiar red hair of her best friend. Buffy dashed in her direction. Moments later, Buffy caught up to Willow.

"Willow! Wait up!" Buffy called out as she made the last few steps to Willow's side.

Buffy grabbed Willow's arm and forced her to stop. Then she moved to stand in front of Willow.

Willow didn't look up, but just stared at her feet. Buffy lifted Willow's chin. Tears were coming down Willow's face.

"You don't look okay to me. Why don't we go back to the room and talk?" Buffy offered.

Willow wanted so much to accept Buffy's offer. She longed to let Buffy hold her as she had done before. She wanted to feel those strong Slayer arms wrapped around her. But she couldn't. She pulled away from Buffy's touch.

"Buffy, I know you have class now. I'm just going to go back to the room and lie down for a while. Okay?"

Buffy tried to hide her disappointment and her hurt at Willow's brush-off. She stepped away.

Willow nodded and then moved past Buffy to continue making her way toward Stevenson Hall.

Willow lay on her bed, her face creased with a frown. Depressing music oozed out of the stereo, making her melancholy even worse.

Damn you, Oz! How could you do this to me? Willow thought to herself. Willow pulled her green afghan from the end of the bed and wrapped it around her legs. She grabbed a nearby throw pillow and hugged it to her chest, trying not to cry. I mean, you screw around with Veruca, and then you just up and leave. Like we couldn't've worked this out. How could you abandon me like this?

Riley opened the door and walked in. Willow was not happy with this development. Riley was the last person she wanted to see right now. No, actually, Professor Walsh might be the last person. Riley would have to settle to for next to last.

Riley took in the sight before him: a clearly upset Willow, wallowing in her own depression. He decided to try and lighten the mood.

Willow wasn't in the mood for joking. She punched the button on the stereo. "What's up?" Willow asked, even though she was thinking, What do you want?

"Right to the point," Riley said, looking nervous as he sat near Willow. "Okay. I was thinking of asking out Buffy."

God, what a doofus, Willow thought. If you want to ask out Buffy, then why are you here with me? "She's not here," Willow said, pointedly stating the obvious.

"I know," Riley explained. "See, I don't know that much about Buffy. But I'm interested in what she likes, and so far, well, the only thing that I know she likes is you."

"Just tell me something. Anything. Just give me something that will start us talking, you know?" Riley suggested. "I'm thinking that 'how about them Broncos' won't really cut it."

Willow eyed Riley with suspicion. "Ok, say that I help, and you start a conversation. It goes great. You like Buffy, she likes you. You spend time together, feelings grow deeper, and one day, without even realizing it, you find you're in love. Time stops. And it feels like the whole world's made for you two, and you two alone. Until the day one of you leaves and rips the still-beating heart from the other, who's now a broken, hollow, mockery of the human condition."

"Look, if you want to tell me to go to hell, that's okay," Riley said. "Maybe this is the last thing you want to talk about. I just feel that, well, I've never courted anyone like Buffy before. I don't think I've ever met anyone like Buffy before."

"I was just sort of hoping you'd think I have an honest face," Riley said, putting on an innocent smile.

"I've seen honest faces before. They usually come attached to liars," Willow stated.

"All right. I guess I'm not gonna win, here. And I appreciate you wanting to protect your friend," Riley said as he got up to leave.

"Well, I'm not saying it's the key to her heart," Willow explained. "But Buffy…she likes cheese."

"She has a stuffed piggy named Mr. Gordo, she loves Ice Capades without the irony, and she's dragging me to this party tonight at Lowell House."

"Oh, you're going? That's my house. I live there," Riley said, excited about the prospect of seeing Buffy there.

"Well, it'll give you a chance to interact," Willow admitted. Then she added a warning: "But don't get fresh!"

"Fresh? I don't even know if we like each other yet," Riley said. Then he asked, "Hey, does Buffy ever talk about me? Like, has she ever said..."

"That's discouraging. Still, I feel like I have a fighting chance with my new accomplice."

With Riley gone, Willow was alone again. Her conversation with him had unnerved her. She had a bad feeling about all of this. Not bad in the sense of impending doom, but bad as in, This isn't right.

Willow wondered why she felt this way. Riley seemed like a nice enough guy, but so had Parker, and look how he turned out. Above all, Willow didn't want to see Buffy hurt. But she also didn't want her own situation with Oz making her unfairly biased against Riley. Riley might be just what Buffy needed.

Willow felt a sharp pain hit her heart. Why does that thought hurt so much? Willow asked herself.

Giles and Xander staked out a patch in the woods, watching for Spike and other ne'er-do-wells. Xander scanned their surroundings with his binoculars.

"Every man faces this moment," Xander said in a low and dramatic narrative voice. "Here. Now. Watching. Waiting for an unseen enemy that has no face. Nerve endings screaming in silence. Never knowing which thought might be your last."

Buffy and Willow entered Lowell House, where the party was already in full swing. Buffy looked around the room to scope out the place.

Buffy looked at Willow. She knew Willow was acting strangely, but she couldn't see past the walls Willow had put up.

Willow left Buffy and sneaked over to where Riley was standing. Willow stood nearby facing away from Riley.

"Okay," Willow called over her shoulder in secret agent mode. "She's wearing the halter top with sensible shoes. That means mostly dancing, light contact. But don't push your luck. Heavy conversation's out of the question."

"Right. Dance," Riley said as he started to move toward Buffy. Then he stopped dead in his tracks with a look of terror on his face. "Wait! No."

"Then talk. Keep eye contact. Funny is good, but don't be glib," Willow said. Then she added: "And remember, if you hurt her, I will beat you to death with a shovel."

Riley looked at Willow in shock, while she simply returned his gaze. The girl clearly meant every word.

"A vague disclaimer is nobody's friend," Willow explained. Then she smiled and patted Riley on the shoulder. "Have fun!"

Riley took a deep breath and set his shoulders and headed straight for Buffy. She was standing in a small group. Riley made his way through the crowd until he was right next to her.

Riley paused, completely lost. "Ummm…Buffy…You do the reading on Chapter 9?"

Buffy looked at Riley like he was crazy for bringing up homework at a party. "Uh-huh," she answered.

"Wow. Some theories, huh?" he said. When Buffy didn't jump on the topic, Riley held up a cube of cheddar on a toothpick. "Cheese?"

"You don't understand," Riley said. "I'm good at things. That's what I do. Work hard, apply myself, get it done."

"That's a great comfort to me," Riley said as his eyes fell on Buffy across the room, dancing with another guy.

"You need to relax," Willow suggested. "I mean, you're not proposing. You're just making contact, getting a reaction. Any reaction is okay, well, except projectile vomiting. But, what are the chances of that – "

Willow stopped mid-sentence as the party music changed to a 'Dingoes Ate My Baby' song. Willow's face fell. She looked close to tears.

When Willow nodded, Riley turned to the D.J. and gestured for him to cut the song. The D.J. complied, and the crowd mumbled in complaint, but only until the next song came on.

"Thank you," Willow said as she rose from the couch. "Now go find Buffy," she ordered.

"There's no hurry," Riley said gently as he got up, "I mean, if you want to talk."

"No, I…I want you to find Buffy and tell her that I went home and not to worry about me," Willow said firmly. Then she shrugged her shoulders. "That will at least give you something to say."

Willow watched as Riley slowly made his way across the room toward Buffy. Willow sighed and frowned and then walked out of the party.

"Well…ummm…yeah," Riley stammered. "I mean, she seemed fine. Kind of blue, but otherwise okay. She said not to worry."

"Of course, she said not to worry. She said not to worry because she didn't want us to worry," Buffy stated plainly.

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Because she knew there was something to worry about," Buffy explained. "And you call yourself a psychology major!"

Buffy ran along the sidewalk towards Stevenson. About halfway there in a secluded grove of trees, Buffy stopped suddenly, directed by her Slayer senses to do so. She felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up. She looked around and settled on a large tree to her left.

"I know you're there. Come on out," Buffy warned. "Come on out, or I'll come get you and drag you out by your – "

"Now, now, Slayer," Spike said, his voice trickling from the darkness. "I don't think you ought to be throwing threats around."

Spike stepped from behind the tree. He held Willow tightly in his grip, his hand covering her mouth.

Buffy's expression changed from annoyance to alarm as she saw her best friend in Spike's clutches. There was blood on Willow's neck, and terror was in her eyes. With one look, she begged Buffy to save her. Buffy turned her attention back to Spike.

"Let her go, Spike. This is between you and me. Leave her out of it!" Buffy warned.

"Damn right it's between you and me! I just took Red here to get your attention."

But instead of releasing Willow, Spike picked her up and threw her violently into the side of the tree. Willow hit the tree hard and crumpled to the ground, unconscious.

Spike took advantage of Buffy's change in attention and rushed her, tackling her to the ground. Buffy kicked Spike off and rolled to her feet. Soon they were in a flurry of punches, jumps, and kicks, and hits, blocks, and misses. After a particularly tricky tangle, Spike pushed Buffy away. Somehow, Buffy came away with his pack of cigarettes. She paused and looked at the pack in her hand.

"You know I'm glad these can't kill you," she said as she crumpled the package and threw it to the ground, "because I wanna be the one to do that!"

They flew into the fight again, Vampire and Slayer going full tilt. Suddenly, Spike got in a good hit and sent Buffy flying into a nearby park bench. She hit the bench hard, her ribs cracking from the blow. Before she could recover, Spike was on top of her, straddling her, holding down her arms. When Buffy tried to struggle, he just laughed. Buffy looked truly afraid.

"Finally got you right where I want you," Spike taunted, as he morphed into vampire face. "And you know what? As soon as I'm done with you, I'm gonna finish what I started with Red over there. I think she'll look great in fangs."

Spike roared and dove for Buffy's neck – only to have his head suddenly snapped back by Buffy's now-freed fist. Buffy quickly turned the tables and straddled Spike, punching him violently in the face over and over.

"You will not…touch Willow…ever!" Buffy yelled, punctuating each phrase with a punch.

With great effort, Spike managed to throw the maniacal Slayer off his body. Buffy was slow to get up. Spike took his chance and stumbled away, putting a safe distance between himself and Buffy.

"This isn't over, Slayer!" Spike bellowed. "I'll see you dead if it's the last thing I do!"

Spike ran until he couldn't run any more. Then he stopped and roared in frustration. He turned and looked back in Buffy's direction, his eyes full of rage and hatred.

"You just wait, bitch," Spike said venomously. "When you least expect it, I'm gonna be there, and when I do…urggghhh….gackkk!"

Spike's threat was cut off as electrodes embedded into his back, sending a massive shock through his body. He dropped to the ground, immobilized.

Green-clad commandoes inched out of the brush, training their weapons in Spike's direction. When they were sure he was neutralized, they dragged him away.

Buffy cringed in pain as her broken ribs made themselves known. She struggled to her feet and then stumbled to where Willow lay motionless beside the tree. Oh, god, Willow! Buffy thought frantically. She fell to her knees beside Willow.

"Willow?" Buffy said, touching Willow's arm gently. Willow didn't respond. Tears welled in Buffy's eyes, and her expression became desperate. "Willow!" she cried, this time grabbing Willow's arms and giving her a small shake.

When Willow's eyes began fluttering open, Buffy began to cry in earnest, this time with joy and not fear. She thanked all the gods and the powers-that-be and pulled Willow into a fierce hug.

Willow lay limply in Buffy's arms, not yet able to make her body obey her commands.

"Willow, thank god! Are you okay?" Buffy asked as she laid Willow back on the ground. She ran her fingers through Willow's hair to push it out of the way, carefully avoiding the new gash on her forehead. She cupped Willow's cheek. Willow leaned her face into Buffy's hand.

"I think so," Willow said, trying to sit up. She swayed a little until Buffy steadied her. "I'm kinda woozy."

"You've lost blood, and you hit your head pretty hard," Buffy said. "You've probably got a concussion. I need to get you to the hospital."

Buffy helped Willow to her feet. When Willow swayed again, Buffy wrapped her arm around her and held her up. A hiss of pain escaped Buffy's lips.

"Buffy, put me down. You're hurt," Willow insisted, trying unsuccessfully to pull away.

"But you're not fine now," Willow countered. "You can't carry me and yourself. Leave me here and go get help. I'll only slow you down."

"No. End of discussion." Buffy held Willow in front of her and looked into her eyes. "We'll go slow. We'll help each other. Together we'll make it."

Willow's eyes filled with tears, and she pulled Buffy into a hug. After a moment, she released Buffy, and the two women started limping away.

Buffy thanked the emergency room doctor when he finished wrapping her ribs. When he had gone, Buffy gingerly jumped down from her hospital bed. She put her shirt back on and left her room. She moved slowly down the hall and went into Willow's room. Buffy walked to Willow's bed and stood beside it.

Willow had a bandage on her forehead and another on her neck. A pulse monitor was attached to her finger; it beeped softly in the background. Willow's eyes were closed.

Buffy glanced down at Willow's free hand. She took it into her own and stroked it gently. Then she lifted her eyes to look at Willow's face.

"Thank god, you're all right, Will," Buffy whispered. "If anything ever happened to you…" Buffy didn't complete that sentence; she couldn't bear to think of it. She looked away for a moment before returning her gaze to Willow. "I love you," Buffy said softly.

Buffy had said those words to Willow many times, but this time was different, and she knew it. She wasn't sure when her friendship-love for Willow had turned into something else, but she was certain that it had. Now it was something so much more than friendship.

Oh, god, Buffy thought, as she released Willow's hand and turned away. What am I gonna do?

Nothing, that's what, her logical self replied. Willow isn't gay, in case you hadn't noticed. She's heartbroken over a guy, not a girl.

And you see how well that all turned out, her logical self chided. You went from one impossible relationship with a killer to another one. So, don't do it. Don't…or you'll ruin your friendship.

You're right, Buffy reluctantly agreed. Then she nodded her head firmly to seal the deal.

She turned back around and returned to Willow's bedside. She once again took Willow's hand in her own and began to stroke it, trying desperately but unsuccessfully to keep the tears from falling.

"Yes! She's going to be fine!" Buffy assured Riley. "Like I said before, it's just a concussion. A few days of bed rest, and she'll be back in the swing of things."

"I feel so guilty," Riley said. "I mean, I let her go, I let her leave the party. I should have known better, with all the vam – ah – very bad people out there."

"It's not your fault," Buffy countered. "Unfortunately, Sunnydale's full of…muggers…and like you say, very bad people. It was just Willow's unlucky day."

"I'm sorry I kinda went off on you last night," Buffy said. "I was just worried about Willow. She's had a hard time lately."

Buffy nodded. "He's her…He used to be her boyfriend. They had a bad breakup, and he pretty much bailed overnight."

Buffy looked at Riley intently. He seems really concerned about Willow, she thought. Maybe he's not so bad after all.

"Say, last night, at the party, you wanted to ask me something?" Buffy prompted.

"Oh yeah. Very important stuff," Riley said. "I don't remember any of it now. But you would have been fascinated, possibly even moved. Did Willow tell you I like cheese?

Willow stood inside Oz's room and looked around. She walked to his bed and sat down. Then she noticed one of his t-shirts on the bed. She picked it up and lifted it to her face. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. It still smells like him, she thought. She looked sadly about the room and held the t-shirt to her chest. Oz, I miss you, she thought.

Buffy walked into the UC Sunnydale Student Lounge, on a break between classes. She stopped when she spied Riley on a ladder helping a group of girls put up a lavender banner. He made one final adjustment and then flipped the banner over into place. Buffy smiled when she saw the wording: 'Lesbian Alliance.'

Buffy nodded at the banner and raised her eyebrows inquisitively. Riley followed her eyes.

"Oh," he said, realizing what Buffy was getting at. Then with mock sincerity, he said, "Yes, I am a lesbian."

"Oh, hey, you know how we were talking about having a picnic?" Riley said as he went for his backpack in a nearby chair. "I was thinkin', do you ever hang out at Rhode's field? It's beautiful there. Usually not that crowded, either. I thought maybe we could have a little spread – some sandwiches, maybe some ants? It'll be fun."

"We were talking about having a picnic?" Buffy asked, trying to remember when they'd had this conversation.

"So, was that a conversation I actually had, or one I was just practicing?" Riley admitted.

"Okay, yes. I have been known to do a little prep work before our conversations. It's not easy, you know, talking to you sometimes. It's like an oral exam."

"I never know how you're going to react to something," Riley explained. "I guess that's why I like you so much. You're a mystery." Riley shook his head at his incredibly stupid line. "Probably every beautiful girl in the world has some jerk telling her she's a mystery, but I swear. You really are. There's a lot about you that needs puzzling out."

As Riley spoke, Buffy began to stare at him with wistful look in her eyes. Riley noticed Buffy staring.

Riley returned Buffy's smile, then blurted, "Hey, don't you just love a picnic?"

Buffy and Willow walked slowly along the road inside the cemetery, finishing one leg of their patrol for the night. So far, they'd seen no sign of Spike. Buffy was telling Willow about Riley's invitation to a picnic.

"It's just, different, you know?" Buffy said, with more than a little nervousness in her voice. "A picnic. First of all, daylight. Kind of a new venue, Buffywise." She looked down for a moment and then began again, this time with more enthusiasm. "And the best part, he said he would bring all the food, so all I have to do is show up and eat. Those are two things I'm really good at."

Willow looked away. She didn't want to ask the next question. Riley already had an A in the nice category, she thought, if there was chemistry too… Willow shook away the thought and forced the question out: "And there's sparkage?"

"Yeah, I mean, I think so. He's got…" Buffy struggled to think of an appropriate praise-worthy comment. "Have you seen his arms? Those are good arms to have."

"Yeah, I guess I do," Buffy said. It wasn't a lie, she told herself. She did like him. She just didn't like-like him, not yet anyways. But she had to try. As much as Buffy wished otherwise, she knew that Willow was a dead-end. It was time for her to turn around and move on.

Willow could sense that Buffy wasn't completely comfortable with this new development. She decided to push a little more. "But…" she prompted.

"I don't know," Buffy whined. "I really like being around him, you know? And I think he cares about me. But, I just feel like something's missing."

Like he's not you, Buffy thought. Then she sighed and said, "Like he's not making me miserable? Riley seems so solid. Like he wouldn't cause me heartache."

She's right, Willow thought. Riley would be so good for her. No hopeless situation like she had with Angel. No jerk-wad user like Parker. No – Willow stopped that last thought before it went any further.

"Get out!" Willow joked, nudging Buffy with her elbow. "Get out while there's still time!"

"I know," Buffy said. "I have to get away from the boy thing, I mean, the bad boy thing. There's nothing but pain there."

"But I can't help thinking," Buffy added. "Isn't that where the fire comes from? Can a nice, safe relationship be that intense? I know it's nuts, but part of me believes that real love and passion have to go hand in hand with pain and fighting."

As if on cue, a vampire vaulted over a bush and landed in front of the two women. Buffy staked him nonchalantly, dusting him instantly.

Willow sat on Giles' couch, pouring over a stack of books. Buffy stood nearby talking with Giles.

Giles and Buffy both turned to Willow and looked at her with a yeah-right frown.

"We have got to find him, Giles," Buffy complained. "I can't stand this constant looking over my shoulder. I mean, I have to do that anyway, all the time, but now I have to do it extra. It's giving me neck cramps."

"Hmmm," Willow said, looking more intently at a particular passage in one of her books.

"What is it? Have you found something? A find-the-undead-creep spell perhaps?" Buffy asked as she and Giles joined Willow on the couch.

"Maybe. It's a special kind of locator spell," Willow explained. "It was used by the gypsies to find a person who had wronged the tribe and then disappeared."

Willow passed the book to Giles and pointed out the passage. Giles read the text that Willow had indicated.

"I-I-It looks pretty simple," Willow said. "We can probably get everything we need at the Magic Box."

"Hold on a moment," Giles interjected. "It says here that we'll need something that belongs to the wrong-doer. It won't work otherwise."

"Wait!" Buffy interrupted. "Spike's cigarettes! W-W-When we were fighting, in the woods, he dropped them. If I can find them again…"

Buffy and Willow looked at Giles expectantly as he considered this new information.

"Yes, I think that will work," Giles announced. "Buffy, you look for Spike's cigarettes, and Willow, if you don't mind going by the Magic Box…"

Willow smiled, pleased to be helping out. "Like I'd mind going there!" Willow joked as she took the book from Giles. "I'll pick up what we need and be back in the morning with donuts and..." Willow looked down at the passage. "…motherwort! Among other things."

Willow closed the book, put it in her pack, and swung her bag over her shoulder. "Bye, Buffy! I'll see you at home. Bye, Giles!"

"Bye!" Buffy called to Willow as she exited Giles' apartment. Then she turned back to Giles.

"Ummm, Willow may have had a very helpful idea," Giles said. "She seems to be coping better with Oz's departure, don't you think?"

"I don't know," Buffy said warily. "She's dealing, but she still has a way to go. Sometimes, she seems like her old self again. Other times, it's like she's hanging on by a thread. I'm still worried about her, Giles."

Willow walked into Oz's room, as she had every night since he had left, hoping he would somehow be there, but always being disappointed. More than disappointment awaited her this time. She found Oz's room cleared out, all of his stuff completely gone. She looked on in shock, then ran to find Oz's roommate, Devon.

Willow lay on her bed, crying, trying to tell Buffy what had happened. Buffy sat on the bed across, her own heart breaking at seeing Willow's pain.

"Devon said that he sent for his stuff," Willow explained in a choked voice. "I guess that means he's planning on settling down somewhere…else. Not here."

"I feel like I've been split down the center and half of me is lost," Willow said.

As if realizing it for the first time, Willow said in a strangled sob: "Oz is gone."

Willow's tears began to flow in earnest. Buffy leapt from her bed and pulled Willow into her arms. She held her sobbing friend, wishing that there was something she could do to ease her pain.

Giles paced about his apartment. Willow was more than an hour late for their appointment, and he knew that Willow was notoriously punctual. After considering his conversation with Buffy the night before, Giles became deeply concerned. He picked up the phone and dialed their dorm room.

When the call was answered, Giles heard Buffy's recorded voice: "This is Buffy and Willow. We're not in right now, so please leave a message."

When he heard the beep, Giles spoke into the phone: "Oh, uhhh, Willow. It's Giles. I…ummm…I thought you were coming by this morning, you know, to help me with the spell we discussed. I-I-I'll try and catch you later, then."

Buffy and Riley sat comfortably on a blanket at Rhode's field. Buffy was currently looking at Riley with disbelief.

"It's just because you haven't had a good experience yet," Riley explained. "You can have the best time in a car. It's not about getting somewhere. You have to take your time." Riley's words slowed as he felt the energy between them shift. "Forget about everything. Just relax. Let it wash over you. The air…the motion. Just…let it roll."

Buffy was momentarily caught up in Riley's words and in the energy shift that came with them. But then she caught herself. "We are talking about driving, right?" she teased.

Buffy smiled, unable to prevent the pleasant lift she was getting from Riley's attentions. She didn't know if she and Riley would go anywhere relationship-wise, but it could be a nice diversion.

"I'm taking you," Riley said matter-of-factly. "Some night when it's warm. Up past the vineyards – it's going to change everything for you."

Willow plodded slowly across Rhode's field. Her shoulders were slumped, and she clasped her hands loosely before her as she made her way toward her dorm. Her eyes were downcast. When she looked up, she saw Riley and Buffy in the distance. She started walking towards them.

When Willow got close, she stopped. She saw Buffy and Riley move closer and look into each other's eyes. She saw them smile and duck their heads shyly, only to quickly make eye contact again.

Willow's face creased into a deep frown. A tear rolled down her cheek. She changed direction and walked away.

What's the matter with me? Willow asked herself as she hurried towards her dorm. I should be happy for her! Just because I'm sad doesn't mean she has to be.

Buffy sat at a table with Anya and Xander at the Bronze. Buffy had just filled them in on the latest development in the Willow and Oz Saga.

"Geez, you mean Oz just sent for his stuff and didn't even call her? That's pretty harsh," Xander said.

"I only wish I had my powers back," Anya said firmly and quite sincerely. "I'd liquefy his entrails for her."

"That's sweet," Xander said to Anya before turning back to Buffy. "God, poor Will. No wonder she's – "

Xander's mouth dropped open as he caught a glimpse of Willow on the dance floor, seemingly having the time of her life.

Buffy turned to see what Xander was looking at. There was Willow, dancing with energy and enthusiasm.

"Yeah," Willow replied. "I-I-I know I've been sort of a party-poop lately, so I said to myself, 'Self!' I said, 'It's time to shake and shimmy it off.' "

Wanting to encourage Willow's effort to pull out of her depression, Buffy said, "Sounds

"Yeah! And it works, too," Willow explained. "You know, I figure, in the grand scheme of things, we're all just – "

As Willow grabbed her jacket, a bottle of beer slipped out and tipped over. As the beer spilled out onto the floor, Willow looked up at her friends, knowing they had seen it.

Willow laughed and picked up the beer bottle, trying to act nonchalant about the whole thing.

"Pfff. Drunk. Heh, heh. I mean, that's such a-a-a strong word. Kind of a guttural Anglo-Saxon word. Drunk."

"Not drowning," Willow corrected. "Wading. A-A-And see?" Willow pointed to the beer bottle. "Light beer. No big."

"No big?" Buffy disagreed. "Anyone remember when Buffy had the fun beer-fest and went one-million years B.C.?"

Xander looked at Buffy with a smirk on his face. "Sadly without the fuzzy bikini."

Xander immediately turned to his girlfriend. "Right. Helping now," he assured her. Xander got up and moved around the table towards Willow. "Will, how about you give me that beer?"

Willow pulled the beer back firmly against her chest, refusing to relinquish it. "No! Why should I? I've got pain, here! Big-time legitimate pain."

"Oh, like what?" Willow taunted. " 'Oh, poor me, I live in a basement.' Yeah, that's dire."

Xander couldn't believe what Willow had just said. He looked at her once, shook his head, and then walked away. Anya glared at Willow, then went after Xander.

Buffy stood up, grabbed Willow's coat, and then took Willow's arm. "Okay, you know what? That's it. I'm taking you home."

"Will, you'll thank me when you still have a friend in the morning," Buffy insisted.

Willow's face fell, the anger giving way to tired frustration. "I just can't stand feeling this way. I want it to be over."

"I know," Buffy said sympathetically. "It's just how it is. You have to go through the pain."

"Well, isn't there some way I can just make it go away? Just 'cause I say so? Can't I just make it go 'poof ' ?" Willow asked desperately.

Buffy looked at Willow sadly. She wished there was a way, but she knew better, having gone through it herself with Angel. She pulled Willow into a hug. Willow was stiff at first, but then she softened and reached around Buffy to hug her back.

She took the beer bottle from Willow's grasp and set it on the table. Then she linked her arm with Willow's and led her from the Bronze.

Willow glanced over at Buffy's side of the room. Buffy appeared to be sleeping soundly. Quietly, Willow slipped out of bed and opened her trunk. She pulled out a bag of magical items and a spell book. Then she tiptoed out of the room.

She went into the restroom and locked the door. Then she quickly drew out her materials. She put out four white candles at the compass points and lit them. She sat down within the circle. She laid out a square white cloth. Then she set several items on it: an empty cauldron in the center, a dish of sand containing several rose quartz crystals at the top, an empty goblet to her left, a bowl of basil to her right, and a brazier at the bottom. She set the spell book on the floor in front of her. She filled the goblet with water from a bottle in her bag, lit the brazier, and opened the book to the passage she had marked.

Willow paused and drew a deep breath to center herself. Then she took a pinch of the basil and threw it onto the brazier. Then she picked up the empty cauldron and held it high over the altar.

Willow opened her eyes and turned the cauldron over and returned it to its place on the altar upside down.

Then she paused, waiting expectantly for the intended result. She glanced around the altar. Nothing was happening.

"So mote it be!" Willow added firmly as if that would make the spell kick in. Again, nothing happened.

Willow groaned and picked up the spell book. She read through the passage again.

"If the spell is done correctly," Willow read, "a clear signification should appear."

Willow looked up and glanced around the altar again. Then she slammed the book shut.

As the sun shined on her cage, Amy the rat went round and round in her spin wheel. Willow lay on her bed, staring off into space. Willow knew she had homework to do, but she couldn't seem to get motivated. She kept thinking about the spell she had tried the night before. Why didn't it work? she thought. I did everything right. A knock on the door interrupted Willow's thoughts.

"Come in," Willow called to the door. Then she looked surprised as a worried Giles stepped in. "Giles, what are you doing here?"

"Happily," Giles replied before getting to his point. "I came because we had an appointment the other day."

"Yes, ummm…Willow, I know that you're going through a very difficult time, but shirking your responsibilities – "

"But, I didn't shirk," Willow insisted. She picked up the bag from the Magic Shop and held it out for Giles. "I did the research, and I picked up the ingredients. I just forgot the actual doing the spell part."

"That isn't like you at all," Giles said, taking the bag from Willow and setting it at his feet.

"I know. I-I-I've been off," Willow said, disgustedly. "I even tried to do a spell last night. But it just went nowhere."

"A spell?" Giles said. "I don't think it's wise for you to be doing that alone right now. Your energy's too unfocused."

"I only meant that you're grieving, and it might be wise if you took a break from doing spells without supervision."

"It's not punishment," Giles tried to explain. "I'm only saying this because I – "

"Oh, you care. Yeah. Everybody cares," Willow said sarcastically. "But nobody wants to be inconvenienced. You all want me to take the time and go through the pain, as long as you don't have to hear about it anymore."

"Isn't it?" Willow accused. " 'Cause I'm doing the best I can, and it doesn't seem to be enough for you guys."

Giles pulled off his glasses and rubbed his forehead before looking back at Willow.

"Look," he said as gently as he could. "I can see that you're upset. Why don't we talk about this later?"

Giles looked at Willow with a mixture of pain and concern in his face. Then he put his glasses back on, picked up the bag, and left the room.

Buffy worked on packing her weapons bag for the night's patrol as Willow stomped around the room, ranting.

"I mean, I'm going through something," Willow complained. "I just don't see why he was getting down on me."

"Giles just worries 'cause he knows spells can be dangerous. It doesn't mean he thinks you're a bad witch."

"I'm not kidding anyone. If I had any real power, I could've made Oz stay with me."

"And I didn't have the guts to do the spell on Veruca! The only real witch here is fuzzy little Amy," Willow added, pointing at Amy in her rat cage.

The phone ringing interrupted Willow's ranting. Buffy went to the phone and picked it up.

"Hello? Oh, hey, Giles." Buffy listened intently for a moment and then frowned. "Yeah. I'm going right now. Okay."

"Well, I mean, what's the rush?" Willow needled. "Spike won't be out and about until after sunset. Besides, I figured since I'm kinda grievey, we could, you know, have a girl's night. We could eat sundaes and watch 'Steel Magnolias' and you can tell me how, at least I don't have diabetes."

"Will, I have to go, you know that. But hey, why don't you go to Wicca Group?" Buffy suggested, pointing at the flyer on Willow's night stand. "Isn't it tonight? You haven't been in a while."

"See, you think I'm a bad witch too, so bad that I have to go to Wicca Group to get straightened out," Willow whined. "Well, I don't need straightening out. They're nothing but a buncha wanna-blessed-be's anyway."

"Okay. I think this is my cue to leave," Buffy said as she swung her bag over her shoulder. "I'll be back as soon as I can. I promise."

Buffy walked out of the room, leaving Willow alone. Willow frowned and sighed. Then she opened Amy's cage and took her out. She laid Amy in her lap and stroked her fur.

"I'm sorry I haven't been able to change you back, Amy," Willow said sadly. "I've tried everything I can think of."

Willow petted on Amy for a while and then held her up to her face, nose to nose. She looked at the Wicca flyer.

"What do you think, Amy? Should I go?" Willow tilted her head as if listening. "I should? Because I can teach them a thing or two?"

Willow laughed at her little joke, but then quickly sobered. She put Amy back in her cage and walked to her night stand. She picked up the flyer and looked at it, thinking hard. Then she picked up a marker and wrote on it in large letters: 'I went. Okay?' Then she pointedly placed the flyer on Buffy's bed.

Buffy made her way across campus and back through the wooded trail. She scouted the area, cursing herself for not doing this earlier when it was lighter outside. Then she remembered the park bench. She ran over to it.

There it was: the pack of cigarettes that she had taken from Spike and thrown to the ground. She picked up the crumpled pack and smiled.

"Gotcha," she said. Then she tucked the pack into her pants pocket and headed for Giles' apartment.

Tara hurried into the Student Lounge, hoping that the new girl, Willow, would be there tonight. The cute redhead hadn't been at the last few meetings, and Tara had been berating herself for not speaking to her the first time she'd seen her. What if I never see her again? Tara thought.

When Tara arrived, her heart leapt. Oh goddess, there she is! she thought, as she spied Willow sitting in the circle of chairs. Suddenly, all of Tara's courage went flying out the door. She slipped in the circle, several chairs away from Willow.

Willow was staring at her hands when Tara sat down in the circle. She looked up at Tara, smiled at her briefly, and then turned her attention back to her hands.

Tara sighed and hung her head, letting her hair fall over her face. After a moment, she looked up and watched Willow. Anytime Willow shifted her body, Tara quickly looked down, hiding once more.

You big chicken! Tara thought to herself. You've been waiting for her to show back up, and when she finally does, you can't even go over and speak!

Tara looked up at Willow again. She looks sad, Tara thought. Maybe I should go talk to her.

Taking a deep breath and summoning the last vestiges of her courage, Tara rose from her seat and walked in Willow's direction.

With her heart beating madly, Tara sat down next to Willow and waited for her to look up. When she did, Tara spoke.

God, what a dork, you are, Tara! she thought to herself before explaining. "To the m-m-meetings. I h-h-haven't seen you in a while." She inwardly cursed her tongue for its stupid stuttering.

"Yeah, I kinda…had some other stuff going on," Willow said, as a pained look came over her face.

Great, now you've reminded her of whatever is making her so sad. Leave now before you make things worse! "Well, I'm g-g-glad you came back," Tara said as she got up from her chair, intending to return to her former position.

"Wait," Willow called, touching Tara's arm and pulling her back into the chair beside her. "You're Tara, right?"

She remembered my name! Tara thought with joy as she nodded in affirmation. "And you're – "

The two women paused and looked down at their hands, neither aware that they were making the exact same gesture at the exact same time. Willow was the first to break the nervous silence.

Willow turned in her seat to face Tara. "Lemme ask you something then. The meetings I've been at, were they…typical?"

Willow leaned a little closer and lowered her voice. "Well, to be honest, I was hoping that after a while we might actually get into something deeper. You know, do some real magic."

Tara could barely contain her excitement. She had been right about Willow; she was different from the others. "Me too!" Tara whispered excitedly. "I-I-I was hoping that too."

"Sisters!" the group leader called out, interrupting Willow and Tara's conversation. Willow and Tara immediately sat up straight in their seats as the remaining women sat down and the group leader continued. "Let us take our places in the sacred circle and begin to focus our energies." Willow and Tara and the women around them closed their eyes and started meditating.

Willow sneaked a peek in Tara's direction. Then she leaned over the arm of the chair to whisper to her.

"Hey!" she said, slightly startling Tara, who looked up and met her eyes. "After the meeting, you wanna get some coffee or something and maybe talk magic?"

Tara grinned widely and then nodded enthusiastically. Willow smiled broadly as well. Then they reluctantly closed their eyes again as the group leader began the ritual invocation.

Willow and Tara walked to a small table at the Grotto and sat down, putting their coffees on the table.

"Look, I hope I don't offend you or anything," Willow said to Tara, "but I'm not really getting a lot out of these Wicca meetings."

"Yeah," Tara agreed. "They're nice and everything, but they don't seem to know – "

"I think if they saw a r-r-real witch, they would run the other way," Tara added, giggling.

"Always. I mean, since I was little. My mom used to," Tara said, ducking her head behind her hair for a moment. "She…ummm…she had a lot of power. Like you." Tara lifted her eyes to Willow's as she spoke those last two words.

Willow was awed and embarrassed by Tara's words. She immediately went into denial mode.

"Oh…I'm not…I don't have much in the way of power," she said, "I mean, really, most of my potions come out…soup. I've only been practicing for a couple of years. I'm definitely nothing special."

Willow and Tara smiled genuinely at each other, clearly attracted, before succumbing once again to the blush-and-duck.

"I can just tell," Tara explained. "I-I-I can see things…in p-p-people's auras. I could tell there was something special about you the first time I saw you. Something very special."

Buffy lounged on her bed, reading a textbook, the Wicca flyer now on her night stand. When she heard the door, Buffy looked up to see Willow come in. She noticed that Willow was wearing a smile, a for-real smile.

"Hey. You're coming in kinda late," Buffy said. "The Wicca thing must've been pretty good."

"Oh, no, it was a bust," Willow said, waving in dismissal. "Same ole, same ole, bunch a pseudo sisters to the dark ones."

"Okay, what happened?" Buffy inquired. "There is definite glowage going on here, and I wanna know what caused it."

"What?" Willow asked in surprise. "There's no…glowage. But something did happen. One of the girls in the group is an actual practicing witch. We talked after, and we're gonna do some spells together."

"I just want to be able to float something bigger than a pencil one day. And I think Tara can help me do that."

"Yeah. She's really cool," Willow said, smiling again. "She's kinda shy, though. Hey, maybe we could get together and have lunch one day soon. I'd really like you to meet her."

Then she looked at Willow intently. I don't care what she says, Buffy thought. She is glowing. Dammit. Buffy hung her head at the thought.

Buffy laid out the map of UC Sunnydale on the floor of Giles' living room. She smoothed out the edges and then stood up and out of the way.

"Okay, we've narrowed it down to the campus," Buffy said. "Let's see if we can pin it down a little more."

Buffy nodded at Willow and Giles, who began again the ritual that they had just performed. Willow picked up the pack of cigarettes and a handful of colored sand. Giles took up a candle and another handful of sand. They set their eyes on the spell book, which lay on a small metal music stand before them. Then they started the incantation.

Buffy didn't have a clue what Willow and Giles were saying, since they were speaking in Romanian. For all she knew, they were saying 'Abracadabra, shazzam!'

When they finished the incantation, Willow and Giles simultaneously cast their magic sands toward the map. The three of them watched in wonder as the sands floated in the air and then lit up before swirling around the map. The tiny floating lights twirled into a tight tornado-like funnel and hovered over a particular spot on the map. Then suddenly they all shot toward the spot with great speed, as if they were being sucked into that very point. And then they disappeared.

The three observers let out their breath as they watched the spell end. Buffy immediately knelt beside the map to look at the spot now marked on its surface. Her brow creased in confusion.

"According to this, he's standing in the middle of the quad, in broad daylight!" Buffy exclaimed.

Buffy and Willow and Giles stood on the quad at UC Sunnydale. The sun was shining brightly. They looked around the grassy area currently populated by various clumps of students. Then they looked again at the map which Willow held.

"I don't think so, Giles," Willow insisted. "We triple-checked everything before we did it."

"Wait! I know!" Willow interjected excitedly. "The sewers! Maybe Spike is in the sewer tunnels underneath here. I mean, they do go all over town."

Buffy froze in place when she heard Riley's voice behind her. She turned slowly to face him.

"Ummm…to the…Grotto," Buffy answered quickly. "For coffee. I'm feeling caffeine deprived."

"No, sure, feel free," Buffy said. Then she realized that introductions were in order. "Oh. Ummm…Giles, this is Riley. Riley, this is Giles. He's...ummm…"

"A long time friend of the family," Giles said, offering his hand to Riley. Riley took Giles' hand and shook it firmly.

"Oh, yes, I see," Giles said. "Buffy and Willow have mentioned their psychology class on numerous occasions. They seem to be enjoying it very much."

"Well, you two better move along, if you want to get that coffee before class starts," Willow nudged.

"Yeah, we better," Buffy said. "I'll see you guys later?" Buffy said to Willow and Giles.

"Oh. Yeah. Right. Must be the psychology major in me," Riley admitted. "Anyway, I was thinking that we could take that drive I promised you, maybe this afternoon?"

"Sure," Buffy agreed. "I have some…errands to take care of first, but after that, I'm free."

Back at the quad, Giles watched Buffy as she walked away with Riley. Then he turned to Willow.

"I don't mean to…to pry into Buffy's affairs," Giles said nervously, "but are she and Riley…ummm…seeing one another?"

"Yes," Willow replied. Then she turned and looked at Buffy and Riley in the distance. "Yes, they are," she said sadly.

Spike lay dreaming on the floor of a sterile white chamber. He tossed and turned as his consciousness slowly came back.

Spike opened his eyes. Then he got up and looked around the empty cell. He went to the glass wall in the front of the room and touched it. He immediately received a substantial electric shock, causing him to jump back in pain and surprise.

After a moment, he inched back toward the glass wall, this time being careful not to touch it. He craned his neck, trying to see what lay beyond the confines of his cell. What Spike could not see was the line of cells just like his, each containing an inhabitant of the demon-persuasion.

As Riley drove along the curvy road through the hills, Buffy looked at the beautiful countryside. She smiled as the wind blew through her hair.

Yeah, right, Buffy's logical self said. Like when? Somewhere between Ass-Kicking and Apocalypse-Stopping?

Buffy looked over at Riley. He smiled at her. Buffy smiled weakly and turned away. She knew that Riley liked her, but she wasn't sure quite what to think about that.

On the one hand, Riley was handsome and smart and nice, definitely nice, and unlike her previous paramours, he was so normal.

Ack! What's the matter with me? Buffy thought. Why are you so stuck on this with-love-must-come-pain thing?

Maybe because that's all love has ever brought me, she answered herself. First Angel, then Faith. It was bad enough when Angel went bad, but when Faith did too…

Buffy opened her eyes. No, wait, that's not true. Not everyone. Willow isn't bad.

Auugghhh! Buffy screamed in her mind. Will you stop thinking about her? There is no future there! Willow doesn't even –

Buffy stopped and thought of Willow's expression the night before when she had spoken of meeting Tara at the Wicca group. Buffy shook her head.

I'm wasting entirely too much energy on this, Buffy thought as she looked Riley's way. I've got a perfectly normal, studly yet sensitive guy sitting next to me who actually likes me. It's time to shift focus.

Riley pulled the convertible up into the parking lot beside the scenic overlook. After switching off the ignition, he turned to Buffy.

"I think you've made a convert," Buffy said certainly. "As long as I'm not the one doing the driving."

He and Buffy climbed out of the car and walked to the railing. The view from the overlook was indeed impressive: craggy canyons, beautiful trees, a gorgeous sun-filled sky.

Buffy turned to Riley, surprised at his words. She blushed and ducked her head. Then she looked up and met his eyes.

Kiss him back, you idiot, she answered herself, just as Riley's lips touched hers.

It was a nice kiss, as kisses go, and Buffy reached out for Riley's arm as she returned the favor, kissing Riley back.

Suddenly, an unbidden image popped into Buffy's mind. She imagined herself kissing, not Riley, but Willow.

Buffy pulled out of the kiss and gently pushed Riley from her. Then she looked away.

"Sure, no problem," he said nervously as they left the overlook and headed for the car.

The old Sunnydale High School lay in ruins, having been destroyed when Buffy vanquished the newly-ascended Mayor Wilkins on graduation day. Many of the structures were still standing, but none of them were safe. The site had been condemned until the city council determined what they wanted to do with the property. There was talk of building an entirely new state-of-the art facility on the same location, but nothing had been decided and probably wouldn't be for several years to come. In the meantime, the halls remained empty and unused.

As sunlight shined in the occasional holes in the walls and ceiling, three dark and hooded figures moved about what had once been the high school library. The center of the room had been exploded down to the very foundation. At the bottom of the ruins, the figures were standing around a large fissure. They were chanting in a guttural language. Suddenly, they threw off their hooded robes.

They were demons – green demons with red eyes and quill-like horns coming out of the back of their heads.

The three demons moved closer to the fissure. One of the demons pulled out a dagger and cut the palm of his clawed hand. Then he slapped his bloody palm onto the chest of the demon next to him and smeared the blood. The second demon took the dagger, cut his palm in the same manner, turned to the third demon, and smeared the blood on his chest. The third demon took the dagger and repeated the process, anointing the first demon. All three gripped the dagger and held it over the fissure. They spoke an incantation loudly and then dropped the dagger into the hole.

Willow sat on the floor in Tara's room. She held a single, long-stemmed red rose in her hands. She looked around the room, taking in its unusual décor. Its walls were painted black and covered with mystical posters. The room was dimly lit by a string of white Christmas lights draped across the walls. Magical artifacts such as candles, crystals, and spell books lay about. She turned her eyes to Tara, who was kneeling on the floor across from her. Tara was preparing the altar for a spell. She poured white sand onto a dark cloth, forming a circular design.

"I'm glad you wanted to get together," Willow said, smiling. "I know it's short notice."

"Thanks," Tara replied, returning Willow's smile. "I was happy you called." Ecstatic is more like it, Tara thought to herself.

When Tara finished the design, Willow placed the rose on top of the circle of sand.

Tara felt an immediate buzz of energy as she and Willow linked hands. She wondered if Willow felt it. She saw Willow close her eyes, so she did the same. They sat in silence for a moment.

"Oh," Willow said, embarrassed that she hadn't explained the spell to Tara yet. "We're gonna float the rose, then use the magicks to pluck the petals off one at a time."

"It's a test of synchronicity," Willow explained. "Our minds have to be perfectly attuned to work as a single delicate implement."

Tara nodded, and she and Willow joined hands again. They concentrated deeply. The circle of sand glowed with a bright light. A soft breeze swept through the room. The rose shuddered. Slowly, the rose began to rise into the air between the two witches. When it reached chin level, Willow and Tara opened their eyes and looked at the rose. They unlinked their hands.

Before Willow and Tara could start again, the rose suddenly shot straight up to the ceiling. Willow and Tara jumped to their feet in surprise. They watched as the rose flew into one wall, ricocheted off, and slammed into another. Then it passed directly over them, forcing them to duck. Finally, it shot straight down and landed in the center of the sandy circle. Willow and Tara stared wide-eyed at the smoking and now-petal-less rose.

Willow and Tara's laughing was cut off as the room began to shake. Items fell off shelves and tables, and pictures came off the walls. Willow and Tara struggled to stay on their feet.

The room made a big lurch, forcing Willow and Tara back against the wicker hutch that contained Tara's stereo. The shelf started to fall forward onto Tara, but Willow pulled her away in time. As the shelf crashed to the floor, so did Willow and Tara, Willow landing on her back with Tara on top of her. Tara covered Willow's body with her own as the quake made its final rumbles.

When the earthquake was over, Willow and Tara were both breathing heavily, terror having taken the breath from them. Tara leaned up on her elbow.

Tara nodded. Then she looked at Willow's face. She got lost in the gorgeous green that was Willow's eyes. She knew she should get up, but she couldn't seem to break away from Willow's gaze.

Tara's internal rantings were stopped when she felt Willow reach up and tuck a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear. By the time Willow had rested her hand on the back of Tara's neck, Tara's resolve was gone. She returned her eyes to Willow's face. Then she leaned down slowly…

Willow and Tara jumped, startled by the knock on the door. They looked at each other briefly then moved apart.

"We should…we should…ummm…go see if anyone needs help," Tara said nervously.

Riley and Buffy were both leaning against the car in the UC Sunnydale parking lot, riding out the last wave of the earthquake. When the quake ended, they stood up.

"Sorry," Riley said, shrugging his shoulders. "I didn't mean to get so excited. It's my first earthquake."

Giles sat at a table in the courtyard of his apartment. He was pouring over a map that was spread over the top of the table. Buffy paced nearby.

"It was an earthquake, Buffy. A not uncommon occurrence in southern California," Giles tried to reassure Buffy. "There's no reason to think it was anything more."

"Oh, I so have a reason," Buffy insisted. "A damn good reason. The last time we had an earthquake, I died."

"Yes, I know that…and, therefore, I completely understand your anxiety," Giles said.

"Oh, good. Because I'd hate for my little untimely horrible death worry to be ambiguous," Buffy said sarcastically, annoyed at Giles' lack of concern.

"But unless evidence suggests otherwise," Giles said, ignoring Buffy's sarcasm, "I think that we can assume that it's shifting landmasses and not a portent of some imminent doom."

Giles lifted up the map he had been working on. It had several red pins stuck in it at various locations.

"Now, in the meantime, I've got a few theories about our mysterious commando friends."

"Oh," Buffy responded flatly, not the least bit interested in commandoes at the moment.

"Now based on the locations of our various sightings – " Giles started to say.

"What if the quake was a sign?" Buffy interrupted suddenly. "What if it's a-a-a bad omen, and we just ignore it? There's going to be a lot of red faces when the world comes to an end."

Giles sighed and stood to join his Slayer. "Buffy, if the quake heralds some such catastrophe, I'm sure there will be other signs to follow, which will afford us plenty of time to avert it. Now, I believe that the commando installation is very close to your school. If that is the case, I'm convinced that one or more of them may be in your very midst."

"What if the end of the world is coming in the form of a plague?" Buffy said. "Then too many people may be infected by the time we actually – "

"Buffy!" Giles yelled. "Will you stop worrying about what may be and concentrate on what is!"

"Vigilance is all very well and good," Giles lectured, "but as I feel we are getting close, there is a much more pressing question."

Where is she? Buffy thought nervously. What if she's trapped somewhere? What if she's seen Spike? What if she's trapped somewhere with Spike? Oh, god!

Buffy ran to Willow and touched her arm. "Where have you been?" Buffy asked, a little more harshly than she intended.

"No. No. Nothing wrong," Buffy said. "I was just worried. You know, with the quake and all."

"Well, I did almost get buried under Tara's stereo, but other than that, I'm fine. What about you?"

"I guess we're lucky. Porter Dorm is completely blacked out," Willow reported. "So naturally, they are dealing with the crisis the only way they know how: 'Aftershock' Party."

Buffy grinned as she thought about Porter. "Ah, this from the dorm that brought us the 'Somebody Sneezed' Party and the 'Day That Ends in Y' Party."

"Yeah, they do seem to be pretty generous with the milestones. Hey, do you wanna go over there? Much carousing by candle light, I'm sure."

"No, I…ummm…I don't think I'm in a party mood right now. The earthquake kinda has me all…frazzled." Buffy paused and looked down at her hands. "The last time we had an earthquake…"

"I went over there right after the quake," Buffy said, "but Giles didn't think it was anything to worry about. He said if it was a portent of doom, there would be other signs, and I guess there aren't any, so…"

"Well, there you go!" Willow said cheerfully, trying to ease Buffy's mind. "It was just an ordinary run-of-the-mill, garden-variety earthquake. No doom intended."

Buffy smiled weakly, trying to accept Willow's statement, hoping it was true. She decided to change the subject.

"Oh, we were working on a spell, that's all. I still need to introduce you two, by the way," Willow answered.

"It was a levitation spell," Willow explained. "You know, the wanting-to-float-more-than-a-pencil thing."

Willow thought about what had happened when the rose spell went haywire. She wondered whether or not to tell Buffy about it. She decided against it, not wanting to give Buffy any more ammunition in her 'portents of doom' theory. Willow then thought of the events that had followed the earthquake, the closeness between her and Tara that had nearly resulted in a kiss. She turned the conversation away from Tara.

"Good. It was good," Buffy said, trying to sound positive. "We went up by the vineyards and then ended up at the overlook near Kingman's Bluff."

Willow looked at Buffy worriedly. Buffy seems really down. I need to cheer her up somehow, Willow thought. She nudged Buffy playfully.

"Heyyy, are you sure you don't wanna go to the 'Aftershock' Party? It could be fun."

Buffy stood up and walked to her closet to get her weapons bag. She put her hand on the door, then stopped, and turned back to Willow.

Buffy couldn't hide the disappointment that crept into her face, a fact not unnoticed by Willow.

"But, it's not like our plans are set in stone or anything," Willow said hopefully. "I'm sure we can work something out. Count me in!"

Buffy smiled, comforted by the idea that she and Willow were going to spend some time together.

After several hours of patrolling, Buffy paused in front of her house. She didn't know how she got there. She just did somehow.

Mom's probably watching some sappy old romance, Buffy thought. Like I need that right now.

Buffy turned to walk away. But then she paused and gazed at her front door once again. For a moment, Buffy looked like a little girl lost in a store. Then she swallowed and changed direction, heading for the door. She got out her key and opened the door.

Yes, everything, Buffy thought. "No, nothing's wrong," Buffy said nonchalantly. "I was just patrolling. I saw the light on, figured you were up, so here I am."

"Well, I'm glad you stopped by," Joyce said. "I've missed you. I never get to see you anymore."

"Good. It's great," Buffy answered, moving so that she could see the TV screen. "Whatcha watchin' ?" she asked her mother.

"Well, sit and watch it with me. It'll be like old times." Joyce held up a big bowl and shook it. "I've got popcorn," she said enticingly.

Joyce pulled Buffy into a hug. Buffy nuzzled against her, basking in the warmth of her mother's love.

The 'Aftershock' Party was in full swing at Porter Dorm. The music was blaring; students danced and milled about, drinking beer and waving their glow-in-the-dark party favors. A congo line wound through the crowd.

In a room down the hall, a guy without a shirt worked on a set of mixed drinks. He looked back at the open door as a group went by.

When he finished his drinks, he gathered them into his arms and turned to leave the room.

His eyes grew wide when he saw the monster in front of him. Before he could even react, the demon, one of those who had been anointed in blood at the old high school, swiped a clawed hand across the boy's throat, cutting it instantly. The boy dropped the drinks on the floor. Soon the cups were covered with his blood.

Forrest lounged in a chair while Riley sat on the corner of his bed. Riley shot a small foam ball toward the hoop fastened on the back of the dorm room door. He missed.

"Okay, that makes zero for a billion," Forrest kidded Riley. "You don't got game, son. What's going on in that head of yours?"

Forrest went to shoot the foam ball he was holding. Just as he got ready to shoot, Riley suddenly interrupted.

Forrest sighed. "Yes, already," he said with irritation. "She's cool, she's hot, she's tepid, she's all-temperature Buffy! Now can we concentrate on the game here?"

Forrest returned to his shooting stance and released the ball. Just as the ball was about to arrive, the door opened, and Graham came in. The ball bounced off his head.

"Cannot confirm that," Graham explained. "I couldn't get close without drawing attention to myself."

"No, I'll go," Riley said. "Do a little recon. See if it falls in our domain. You alert command. Tell them we have a casualty of an indeterminate nature. Let's not make a move until we get the whole story."

The next morning, Willow entered the dorm room a little breathless. She dropped her toiletries bag on her desk and went immediately to Buffy, who was just getting out of bed.

"Will, I just got up. How could I possibly have heard anything yet?" Buffy said wearily.

"Oh, right," Willow admitted. "Well, anyway, there was a murder! On campus. At the 'Aftershock' Party."

Willow sat at Giles' desk, typing on her laptop. Giles stood nearby, looking nervously through the morning paper. Xander and Anya sat on the couch while Buffy paced about the room.

"Well, there's nothing here in the newspaper," Giles said, putting the paper away. "It probably happened after the paper had already gone to press."

"There's nothing in the police department's database either, or the coroner's," Willow said. "It's probably too early in the investigation. It usually takes them about twenty-four hours to get anything posted. I can check tomorrow."

"In the meantime, I think we should see what we can find out," Giles said. "I'll go to the newspaper office downtown, determine if the reporters have heard anything specific."

"Anya and I can do the donut-bonding thing with the campus cops," Xander offered.

"I can check with the administrative offices, see if they're issuing any information," Willow said.

"And I'll hit the demons in the demon bars, and see what comes up," Buffy said. Then she made a face when she realized how gross that sounded. "Sorry."

Willow was at the pay phone in the student lounge. She punched the last number and listened while the phone rang and was then picked up.

"No, I'm afraid not," Giles said. "Whatever information the paper has, they're not parting with."

"Yeah, the administration isn't talking either. I guess the last thing 'Hellmouth University' wants to advertise is another unusual murder on its campus," Willow stated. "I think I'll go see if the Porter residents are talking. If I learn anything, I'll let you know."

Willow looked up and saw Tara across the room. Willow smiled broadly and joined Tara in the sitting area.

"You haven't…by any chance…heard anything…specific about the murder, have you?"

"Sorry, I should know better. Curiosity killed the cat!" Willow said, lightly. Then she sobered again. "I just…it makes me uneasy…not knowing, ya know?"

Tara nodded sympathetically. "I get it. It's like if we just knew that it was some stupid drunken fight, we wouldn't have to worry. We wouldn't have to wonder if some monster, some homicidal lunatic, was out there."

Willow looked at Tara intently, surprised at her ability to know what Willow was thinking. It was like they were always on the same wave length. Willow smiled at Tara, and Tara smiled back. They both blushed and ducked their heads. Then Tara spoke up again.

Tara reached into the outer pocket of her book bag and pulled out a fist-sized purple crystal. She held it gently in the palm of her hands.

Tara nodded in affirmation. When Willow held out her hand, Tara carefully placed the crystal in it.

"Wow, this is so cool," Willow gushed. "I've been trying to find a doll's-eye crystal my entire life. Well, since June, anyway. Where did you get it?"

"I-I-It was grandma's, I think. I found it a long time ago in my attic," Tara explained. She paused and looked down at her hands. "I-I-I want you to have it," she said.

Willow was awed. She couldn't believe that Tara would make such a sacrifice…for her.

"Oh, no…Tara…" Willow said, shaking her head and handing back the crystal. "Th-Th-That's really sweet. But I can't. It's like a family heirloom. I-I-I just wouldn't feel comfortable.

Tara looked hurt as she put the crystal away. Willow couldn't stand to see the sadness in Tara's eyes.

"But, i-i-if you wanted to try out some spells with it some time, I wouldn't say no," Willow offered cheerfully.

Tara seemed pleased with that idea. "Maybe we could try one out tonight…w-w-when you come over," she suggested.

Willow's hopeful face quickly fell. "Yeah…about tonight…" Willow said apologetically, "I kinda remembered that I was doing something with Buffy tonight, so I'm not sure if I can come over."

Tara was crushed. She looked down at her hands. "Oh. Ummm…that's okay. Another time, maybe."

Tara didn't cheer up this time. She sat quietly for a moment, before standing and gathering her book bag.

Willow's face was pained. She had hurt Tara's feelings, and it hurt so badly to know that she had done that. I'll make it up to her, Willow thought.

Spike paced back and forth in his cell, fueled by hunger, anger, and frustration. A sound stopped his pacing, and he looked at the ceiling. A small motorized flap in the ceiling opened, and a blood packet fell out of it and to the floor.

Spike ran to the packet and scooped it up. He greedily began to bite into it when a voice stopped him.

Spike looked at the pack and then threw it down. Then he moved to the front and stood beside the wall between his cell and the next one.

"I'm a rat. I'm a lab rat, just like the others. Just like you. They're gonna kill us, you know," the vampire answered.

"They starve you," the vampire explained. "And then, when you're ready to bite your own arm, they shoot out one of those packets. You drink it, and the next thing, you're gone. That's when they do the experiments."

"And…uhhh…they are…who?" Spike asked. "The government? Nazis? A major cosmetics company?"

"Who cares?" the vampire said. "All I know is, one minute I'm running from the Slayer, and the next thing, I'm here."

"Yeah, she took apart my crew and led me straight to these guys," the vampire said.

"She set me up, too," Spike lamented. "I always worried what would happen when that bitch got some funding."

"She's wised up a bit. Fine!" Spike yelled. "I'll take her apart! I don't care how brilliant she is!"

Willow walked into her dorm room, still down about what had happened between her and Tara. Willow plopped onto her bed.

"No. Couldn't get a thing out of them," Buffy said before grimacing as she thought of her earlier faux pas. "How about you? Any luck?"

"Nope, nobody saw nothing, nobody heard nothing, and nobody's saying nothing," Willow reported.

"But I'm sure I'll be able to find out something tomorrow," Willow said encouragingly. "Once all the reports get posted in the police department's mainframe, I'll do a little computer magic and zappo! I'll have all the information you need."

Buffy walked slowly around the room, thinking, as Willow watched her. Buffy seemed to come to some decision and headed for the door.

"To the tunnels to look for Spike," Buffy answered. "I haven't had time to do that yet."

Willow looked at the door, with a frown on her face. Something's up with her, Willow thought. I wonder if it's Riley.

Buffy made her way across campus, intending to enter the sewer tunnels near the quad where Willow's spell had indicated Spike was supposed to have been.

"Just on my way to Dr. Walsh's office. We've got some student papers to go over," Riley explained. "What about you?"

"I'm glad I ran into you. I was wondering if maybe you wanted to go out tonight," Riley said hopefully.

"Oh. Okay," Riley said, trying to hide his disappointment. "Well, maybe some other time."

Buffy turned and watched Riley as he walked away, wondering what the hell she was going to do about the handsome young teaching assistant.

Buffy flailed about, twirled around, and continued to squeal before finally flinging the rat several feet away. She shook her arm in disgust.

Buffy looked down the tunnel and then groaned in frustration. "This is a waste of time. Spike isn't down here."

Later that day, Tara sat in her room. She sighed and looked at her clock. I guess she's out with Buffy, Tara thought. Tara hung her head. Then she picked up the doll's-eye crystal that was sitting on her night stand.

That was so stupid earlier! Tara chided herself. You hardly know each other, and you're giving her a priceless family heirloom? God, no wonder she bailed on you!

Tara looked up when she heard a light tapping on the door. She got up and walked to the door and opened it. She was surprised to find Willow standing there.

"Sure," Tara said. She stepped aside to let Willow enter her room. Once inside, Tara shut the door and turned to Willow.

"I am," Willow replied. "But I was kinda hoping you would come with me. I've been wanting to introduce you, and I thought now's as good a time as any."

"Y-Y-You want me to come with you?" Tara asked in disbelief. "W-W-Where are you going?"

"It's great, you'll love it. I used to hang out there all the time when I was in high school," Willow explained. "So…you wanna come?"

Why am I so nervous? Buffy thought. It's just Willow, for goodness' sake. It's not like we're on a date!

Buffy looked at her watch again and then glanced at the entrance. She saw a familiar flash of red hair and smiled. Her smile quickly fell when she saw that Willow wasn't alone.

Willow scanned the room until she found Buffy. She smiled, released Tara's hand, and waved at Buffy. Buffy waved back.

"Hey Buffy," Willow said as she and the blonde arrived at Buffy's table. "I-I-I hope you don't mind, but I invited Tara along. I've been wanting to introduce you, and this seemed like a good time since you weren't busy and all."

All three sat in silence for a moment until Buffy lifted her eyebrow at Willow, hinting that the actual introductions should take place now.

"Oh! Sorry," Willow said apologetically. "Tara, this is my roommate, Buffy. Buffy, this is Tara."

"But she'll have enough hours after this semester to be a sophomore," Willow bragged. "She started early, in summer school."

"So, I hear there's been a lot of magic goin' on at your place," Buffy commented, not realizing how her comment sounded.

Willow watched Tara until she was a safe distance away. Then she turned to Buffy.

"Oh, she is. Super nice. A-A-And very powerful. She would never say that about herself, but she really is…"

Buffy watched Willow as she continued to rattle on about Tara. Yep, Buffy sighed. There is definite Willow glowage here. I don't think Willow even knows she's doing it.

Tara does seem nice, Buffy admitted. And she's pretty. And smart, too, apparently. Buffy sighed. Great. Two beautiful and brainy witches. Match made in heaven.

In her return from the bar, Tara paused to watch Willow and Buffy as they talked. She concentrated and focused her inner eye until she could clearly see their auras.

She was surprised to see their auras so discombobulated. Their energies were darting about, moving towards each other and back, touching and then not. It was very unsettling to watch.

Buffy's probably mad that Willow brought me along, Tara thought. She looked kinda disappointed when she saw me with Willow. I should probably go and leave them alone.

"Oh, Tara," Willow said excitedly, "I was just telling Buffy about the spell we were doing yesterday and how it went all ka-blewy, you know, right before the earthquake?"

"Almost like it was disrupted somehow, like something else set it off," Tara finished.

"Could be," Tara said. "Or it could've just been the energies released by the earthquake itself. We might've been feeling the quake magically before we were even able to feel it physically."

"Hmmm, that makes sense," Willow said. "So much of the magic's power is harnessed from the earth, so…"

God, look at them, Buffy thought. Two peas in a pod. Could this night get any worse?

"Hello, all!" Anya said cheerfully as she and Xander pulled up chairs and sat down, Anya next to Buffy and Xander next to Willow.

"Oh, hey!" Willow said excitedly. "Tara, this is Xander and Anya. Guys, this is Tara. I met her at Wicca group. She's a really powerful witch."

"And any friend of Xander's is a friend of mine," Anya chimed in. "Because we are a couple and we share things," Anya added matter-of-factly before smiling at Xander.

"Will, I thought you said your Wicca group was turning out to be witch-less," Xander said.

Buffy was beginning to feel nauseated, and her head was starting to pound. She was just about to excuse herself when she heard Riley's voice.

"Hey, Buffy!" Riley said cheerfully. "I didn't know you were coming here tonight."

"Hey, Riley, I want you to meet someone," Willow said. "This is Tara. She's in my – "

"Oh, I love this song, let's dance!" Buffy interrupted rudely, before grabbing Riley by the hand and dragging him to the dance floor.

Luckily for Riley, it was a slow song, and he didn't have to worry about his lack of dancing skills. As he wrapped his arms around Buffy, he couldn't help thinking that the day had turned out good after all.

As Buffy led Riley away, Willow looked on in hurt shock. Then she turned away and picked up her drink. Tara looked at Willow briefly, wondering what exactly had just happened.

Xander laughed in an effort to smooth the moment. "I think somebody's got a little crush," Xander said pointedly.

Willow choked on her drink. As Tara began patting Willow on the back, Xander hung his head. Then he looked up and forced a smile at his girlfriend.

"You'll have to excuse Anya, she…" Willow paused, not knowing how to safely describe the ex-demon to a non-Scooby. "She…ummm…she's weird."

Willow looked over at Buffy on the dance floor. What is up with her? Willow thought. She is acting so strange.

Buffy blocked Willow and the others from her mind. She focused on the strong, warm arms wrapped around her.

I can do this, I can make this work, she thought. If I can just get Willow out of my system.

"M-M-My place? Now?" Riley stammered, flabbergasted by Buffy's complete turn-around from this afternoon.

"What about your friends?" Riley asked, as the music picked up its tempo into a fast and loud number.

Tara saw Willow's eyes shift. She turned to see what drew Willow's glance. It was Buffy and Riley leaving the Bronze together.

"Well, it looks like Buffy has made other plans," Willow said, with more than a little hurt in her voice.

"Well, we could stay here, or… we could go back to your place and hang out?" Willow suggested.

Tara had tried to stay non-committal on the first option, but she couldn't contain her enthusiasm for the second; she grinned widely.

Willow matched Tara's grin. "The latter it is then," Willow said, rising from her chair. "Let me go say bye to Xander and Anya first, and then we can go."

As Willow and Tara made their way from the Bronze back to campus, they walked quietly side by side.

"I…ummm…I like your friends," Tara said. "I think they're…ummm…n-n-neat."

"Thanks," Willow said. "I think so too. Buffy's usually not so…abrupt. I don't know what's the matter with her lately. She just hasn't been herself."

"Maybe she's got something on her mind," Tara suggested. "M-M-Maybe she was hoping to talk to you about it tonight, and then I showed up."

"Oh, no, I-I-I don't think so," Willow said, wanting to reassure Tara. "If she really wanted to talk, she probably wouldn't have planned to do it at the Bronze. It's just too loud and crazy in there."

Willow looked away for a moment, considering Tara's comment. Maybe Buffy does need to talk, Willow thought. She and Riley seem to be getting close. Maybe she's got doubts. Maybe she's got fears – big, scary, gut-wrenching fears – and I haven't been there for her. I'm being a bad friend! I –

"We didn't. You just didn't notice because you were thinking so hard," Tara said, poking Willow playfully. "I swear, I could hear the wheels and cogs turning."

"It's okay. I didn't mind," Tara said. Tara moved up to the first step to her dorm entrance. "Are you still coming up?" she asked.

At that, Willow smiled, her thoughts happily diverted. "You bet!" she exclaimed, joining Tara on the steps.

"Well, this is it," Riley said nervously as he and Buffy entered his room in Lowell House.

Buffy moved closer to Riley. "But not as nice as the man that lives here," she said, tip-toeing the fingertips of her right hand up Riley's chest.

Buffy tilted her head back and looked into Riley's eyes. That was the only invitation Riley needed. He moved in for a smoldering kiss. As Riley wrapped his arms around Buffy, she threw herself into the moment.

This is good, Buffy thought. One dose of Riley, and Willow will be off my mind for good. Besides, he's nice and handsome and –

Buffy's thoughts were interrupted as Riley began kissing down her neck. Oh god…he knows what he's doing. Thank goodness.

Okay, I can do this, Buffy assured herself as she felt Riley guide her to his bed.

As Willow followed Tara through the dorm to her room, Willow's initial cheer gave way to a bad case of nerves.

We're going to be alone, together, in her room, just like yesterday! Willow thought frantically. What if we – ? Oh, god, I have got to get a grip here!

Maybe I was just imagining things, she thought. I probably was. It was just post-earthquake disaster-bonding, that's all.

But what if I wasn't imagining things? What if – ? Willow didn't complete that thought for fear of where it would take her.

I should talk to her about it, Willow finally told herself. Just get it out in the open, one way or the other. Otherwise, I'll just worry myself sill –

"Are you coming in?" Tara asked, breaking up Willow's mental debate with herself.

Once inside Tara's room, Willow took off her coat and placed it on the chair. Then she sat down on the side of Tara's bed.

"Actually, I was hoping we could talk," Willow said seriously. Then she scooted toward the head of the bed to make room for Tara to sit.

"Oh," Tara said, expecting the worst. "Sure. We can do that," she said as she sat on the bed next to Willow.

Willow folded one leg onto the bed so that she could face Tara. Tara duplicated her position.

"No, I don't mean the spell," Willow replied. "I mean what happened after the spell, after the earthquake."

"W-W-What do you mean?" Tara asked, not wanting to be the one to bring up the subject.

Willow fidgeted a moment, then began: "When we were on the floor and you were…I got the distinct impression that…" Willow searched Tara's face then stopped. "Never mind," Willow said abruptly before standing and walking toward her coat. "I'm sorry. I was obviously wrong, so I'm just gonna leave before – "

Tara stopped Willow from putting on her coat. "Don't," Tara said. "Don't go. Please."

Willow allowed Tara to take her coat from her and put it back on the chair, but she still wouldn't meet Tara's eyes.

Tara took Willow's hands into hers. Then she leaned her forehead against Willow's. "You were right," Tara whispered.

The kiss started sweetly, chastely, but it quickly grew into much more as both women unlinked their hands so that they could wrap their arms around each other. They pulled each other close, squeezing tightly, hands roaming, unable to get enough of each other. Finally, breathless, they pulled apart, still touching, still holding each other.

The Power of Three

by DragonWriter17

Copyright © 2004

DragonWriter17@aol.com