The Power of Three Book Two by DragonWriter17

Rating: R
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. If you haven't read my back history story for Tara, "Out of Shadow into Light," you need to because it is critical to Book 2. Also, Willow's description of her "dog scar" comes straight from Alyson Hannigan's interview in The Watcher's Guide Volume 1.
Pairing: Willow/Buffy/Tara

Summary: With the resident evils at all-time low, Buffy and Willow and Tara have time to focus on themselves – both on their new relationship and on their new powers. As they discuss the prospects of moving in together, an intriguing buy at an estate sale brings an unexpected result.

It was late afternoon, the day after Lindsey had finished giving his full report on the recent events in Sunnydale. Now Lindsey stood before Holland Manners' desk, awaiting news of his fate at Wolfram and Hart. When Holland glared coldly at him, Lindsey fought the panic in his stomach and forced himself to look his superior in the eyes.

"The Senior Partners are not pleased, Lindsey," Holland told the young lawyer. "The Three have Joined and come into their full power. Most of our Sunnydale clients have pulled up their tent stakes and moved on. Plus, N'Faius – a possible ally for the firm – was defeated and destroyed by the Three. All while you watched!"

"Silence!" Holland interrupted angrily. "I'm not finished. The Senior Partners have asked me to deal with you since I'm the one who recruited you."

"I've considered the matter very carefully," Holland said in serious tone. "Although this sort of failure usually results in an immediate termination, I've decided that your potential warrants a second chance."

Lindsey allowed a small smile of relief to crack his stoicism. Thank god, he thought to himself. They aren't going to kill me.

"Don't get smug yet," Holland warned. "You won't be continuing in your present position. Starting next week, you'll be demoted to research assistant. Your associate level clearance will be stripped, and your salary will be adjusted accordingly. Enjoy your last few days as an associate. Use your time to tie up any loose ends with outstanding cases. Perhaps, if you regain our trust and prove yourself worthy, we can revisit the matter at a later date. Otherwise, one slip-up...and I will process your termination."

When Holland turned his eyes to the papers on his desk, Lindsey assumed that their conversation was over. He started for the door. When he got there, he turned back to Holland.

Buffy, Willow, and Tara sat cross-legged on the floor of Buffy and Willow's dorm room. They were perfectly still, facing each other and holding hands, their eyes focused on a trio of crystals before them.

"Good," Tara said when a glowing cloud formed right above the crystals. "Now...focus."

Soon the image of a beautiful rose, red and long-stemmed, appeared in the glowing cloud.

The threesome concentrated once again, and the rose changed color from red to yellow to blue and then back to red again.

Suddenly, the image shifted, and Tara's face was added to the picture. She was smiling as an invisible hand guided the soft petals of the red rose along her cheeks and then her lips.

In the glowing image, the rose's petals were magically pulled off one at a time and dropped away, disappearing as they reached the edge of the glowing cloud.

Once again, the image shifted, this time focusing on the falling petals, following them as they floated down. They fell on a naked Tara, landing softly on her bare breasts.

Tara glared at the two of them, and the image in the cloud returned to the original rose. When Tara turned her eyes back to the cloud, Buffy gave Willow's hand a squeeze. Then they both smirked.

The cloud's picture immediately changed back to Tara's bare chest. This time the rose was being twirled around and across Tara's nipples until the Tara in the image moaned in pleasure. Then the rose started moving down her stomach.

"We're supposed to be practicing with our powers," Tara said as she pulled her hands away and ran them through the image, dispersing the cloud instantly. "I give up!" she said exasperatingly.

Giles leaned back on the sofa in the Summers' home. Joyce soon joined him, setting a tray with tea on the coffee table. Giles took the cup she offered him.

Joyce smiled in response and took up her own tea. She brought the cup to her lips, but didn't drink. Instead, she stared off, deep in thought.

When Giles saw her brow furrow, he spoke. "Something on your mind?" he prompted.

Joyce met Giles' gaze. "Just the usual," she said ruefully before taking a sip of her tea.

"It's bad enough that she's the Slayer, but now she's one third of this 'Power of Three' thing. Won't she be even more of a target now?"

"Well, ummm, yes, I suppose so," Giles admitted. "But the good news is that she's not alone. She has Willow a-a-and Tara, and the three of them will be quite formidable."

"And that's another thing," Joyce continued, setting her cup on the table. "This threesome relationship...it worries me.

"Joyce, you've seen them together," Giles said. "Do you really doubt the depth of their feelings for each other?"

"No, no, not at all," Joyce said. "It's clear they love each other very much. In fact, I've never seen Buffy so happy."

"Right now, their relationship is still new, but after time...well, these things never turn out good. They're just too hard to maintain, with jealousy and –"

Giles interrupted Joyce's worry-rant by taking her hand in his. He waited until she met his eyes. "What they have is very real, and it will last. Of that, I am absolutely certain."

Joyce smiled in gratitude, reassured by Giles' confidence. She touched his cheek. "I don't know what I would do if you weren't here to help me through this."

It was Giles' turn to smile. He leaned in and kissed Joyce gently on the lips. She kissed him back and then snuggled against his shoulder with a sigh. He wrapped his arm around her, holding her tightly.

Willow and Tara and Buffy were naked and piled up in the bed they had improvised by pushing Buffy's single bunk next to Willow's. Willow was against the wall, Tara in the middle, and Buffy on the outside. Willow and Tara were giggling as Buffy pointed to a scar on her side and finished explaining the wacky way she had received it while fighting a demon.

"Well, that certainly beats my story, but I'll tell it anyway," Willow said, shifting her position so that she faced both of her girlfriends. "See this scar on my nose?" she asked. When Buffy and Tara nodded, she continued. "A dog ripped it open when I was two." Buffy and Tara both made alarmed faces. "No, no, it wasn't like that," Willow amended. "See, he was kissing me, and then his tooth got caught in my nose, and he was trying to get it out, and he just ripped my nose apart. Weird, huh?"

"And here I thought you just had a nose-piercing that went horribly wrong," Buffy teased.

"As if!" Willow replied, giving Buffy's leg a playful push. "Like my parents would have allowed that!"

Almost simultaneously, Buffy and Willow looked at Tara as if expecting her to chime in with her own version of the name-that-scar game.

Tara smiled and shook her head. "Oh, I-I-I don't have any scars," Tara insisted.

"Sure you do," Willow said, taking Tara's left hand and turning it over. "You've got the one on your palm."

"Oh, I m-m-mean I don't have any with funny stories attached to them," Tara corrected.

Buffy looked at Tara's hand and ran her finger down the long scar that crossed her palm. "Where did you get that?" she asked.

Tara quickly pulled her hand back. "It was just a stupid accident in the kitchen," she mumbled, hanging her head for a moment. "Look, we should probably go to sleep if we want to make that estate sale before our morning classes."

"Yeah, sure," Buffy replied as Tara fluffed up her pillows and lay down in the bed. Buffy looked at Willow questioningly, but Willow simply shrugged in response. After good-night kisses all around, Buffy turned out the light, and the three settled down to sleep.

At Wolfram and Hart, Lindsey dashed down hallway after hallway, trying desperately to escape. He was breathing hard, running in a panic. When he rounded a corner, he came sliding to a halt as Holland Manners, flanked by a pair of guards, blocked his only exit. Desperate, he turned back the way he had come – only to find the demon lord N'Faius standing right in front of him.

Lindsey watched in horror as his chest was suddenly penetrated by the demon's clawed hand. Lindsey struggled in vain as he felt his life-force being sucked from his body. When N'Faius yanked his hand from the lawyer's chest, Lindsey was faced with the sight of his own bloody heart, held in the claws of N'Faius. His mouth opened in a silent scream.

In his own bed in his own apartment, Lindsey shot up and screamed for real. His hands flew to his sweat-covered chest as he struggled to regain his breath. When he finally realized where he was, he flopped back on the bed and grumbled, laying his arm across his eyes.

The next morning, Tara was the first to awaken. When she tried to sit up, her body complained, and she groaned in discomfort. Both Willow and Buffy heard her groan and opened their eyes.

"Ugh, my back," Tara replied. "Next time, you're sleeping on the gap," she added, tapping Willow on the nose.

"If we get a bigger bed, then we'll need a bigger room," Buffy suggested with a smile.

"You know, I hear there are some off-campus places that are way cool for groups to go in on," Willow said.

After eating a quick breakfast, Buffy and Tara and Willow headed for the estate sale they were hoping to visit before classes. As they entered the decrepit mansion, they saw Giles already there, examining the items on a small table near the stairs. While Buffy went to meet with Giles, Willow and Tara moved toward the tables set up in the living room off the foyer.

"You better be careful what you buy," Buffy said as she walked up behind Giles. "You know what happened with your last purchase." When Giles gave her a confused look, she gave him a reminder: "The Word of Valios?"

"Oh, yes," Giles said with a chuckle. "Well, so far I haven't seen anything like that."

"Have you been able to come up with any additional information on this 'Power of Three' stuff?" Buffy asked, glancing at the items on the table Giles had been looking at.

"No, but the Council is looking into it," he answered. "I've sent copies of the documents you brought back with you from the...ummm...other Sunnydale, and I've sent a report on what this Lindsey fellow shared with us."

"Yes, just last night as a matter of fact," Buffy replied as she passed the stairwell and into a small alcove behind it. "We were...Ooo! Look at that!"

Buffy moved immediately to an old dagger hanging on the wall. It was tarnished but otherwise in good shape. She hefted it in her right palm, switched it to her left, then switched it back. Suddenly, she flipped it so that the blade was in her hand, and then she threw it across the room, sinking into the wall...right in front of the woman conducting the sale for the estate.

The woman jumped in fright then turned her head in Buffy's direction. The woman straightened and placed her hands on her hips. She gave Buffy an icy stare.

Elsewhere, Willow and Tara perused the items on the long tables lining the living room. As Tara scanned the objects in front of her, her eyes settled on what appeared to be a very old paper weight. It was made of heavy glass, multi-colored, with an emblem etched into the surface. The years had rubbed most of the emblem away; only the ghost of an image remained. Tara reached out to pick up the object, but she stopped only inches from it. She moved her hand through the air above it as if sensing something about it. She finally placed her fingers on it.

When she did, she felt an immediate shock, like the pop of a static charge in winter. She jumped and let a small yelp, and Willow was instantly at her side.

Tara was giggling, a little embarrassed at her outburst. "That paper weight, it shocked me," she explained. "I felt something about it and when I reached out to touch it, it shocked me."

When Tara nodded, Willow reached out for the object. Like Tara, she too received a small jolt and yelped in surprise. Tara began giggling again as Willow reached for the glass paper weight a second time. This time, there was no shock, and Willow was able to safely pick up the object.

Tara drew closer and touched the object Willow held. "Do you feel it?" Tara asked.

"Yeah," the redhead replied. "Kinda warm and tingly. It's definitely a charm of some kind. Do you think we should get it?"

"Well, it does have an emblem on it, or part of one, anyway," Tara suggested. "Maybe we can research it, see what it can do."

"Hey, look what I got," Buffy said as she joined her two girlfriends. She held up her dagger for them to see. They nodded appreciatively. "What'd you guys get?"

Willow held out the paper weight in her palm. When Buffy touched it, it gave her an immediate shock, causing her to jump back. Willow and Tara began giggling. Buffy put her hand on her hip and raised an eyebrow in Willow and Tara's direction. The giggling stopped, but the grinning didn't.

Back at Buffy and Willow's dorm room, the three put up their purchases and gathered their books for class. When they were ready to go, the three left together, shutting the door behind them.

Once they had left, the glass paper weight, which Willow had set on her desk, began to glow, pulsing faintly then growing stronger. When the glow became bright, a soft sound started to seep from the glass; it was a high-pitched maniacal cackle that seemed to be increasing in its intensity.

As a result of his demotion, Lindsey was in the process of cleaning out his office. He had already gathered his personal belongings and placed them in a couple of boxes. Now he was sorting his files into stacks according to their status. He sighed as he placed the last folder onto this desk. It was his Power of Three file. He looked at the folder intently, then sat down and pulled it towards him.

He opened the folder and browsed the documents. Then his eyes settled on the surveillance photos he had taken in Sunnydale. He picked up the photo of Buffy and Willow and Tara and brought it closer. He touched the image of the three women and frowned.

Lindsey closed his eyes as he remembered his latest nightmare: Holland waiting for him with guards, N'Faius yanking out his heart, himself crumpling to the floor with a silent scream.

He opened his eyes and then leaned back in his chair, running his hand through his hair.

"What have I gotten myself into?" he asked himself. "And how am I going to get myself out?"

He thought for the longest time, weighing the pros and cons. None of this options were appealing. After each line of self-debate was done, his eyes always returned to the picture of the Three. Finally, he sat up straight and gathered all of the parts to the Power of Three folder. He took up deep breath, stood up, and headed for the copy room.

As the entered the copy room, Lindsey glanced anxiously over his shoulder. An aide was in the room just finishing up a collating job. Lindsey smiled and nodded but didn't speak, and shortly the aide was on her way.

Lindsey set his folder on the table beside the large state-of-the-art copy machine, took out a few sheets, and sent them through the feeder. While those papers were being duplicated, Lindsey sorted through the rest of the folder, deciding which documents were relevant and which were not. As he worked, he paused occasionally to cast a wary eye in the direction of the door. Nervous sweat began beading on his forehead. When he placed the last stack into the feeder, the machine started beeping.

He checked the indicator light. It was out of paper. He groaned again and then bent down to get a ream of paper from the storage area beneath the machine. He ripped open the package and yanked on the paper tray, grumbling angrily as he did so. He loaded the paper and then slapped the tray back into place. Then he pressed the start button.

When he turned back to the table, he discovered Lilah standing right there. Lindsey jumped, momentarily startled. Lilah grinned. Lindsey cleared his throat and tried to recover his poise. Lilah crossed her arms and leaned against the table.

"I understand you'll be working with me," she said with an amused glint in her eye. "For me, actually, I should say."

Lilah grinned again and then glanced at Lindsey's folder on the table. She reached over and tucked her fingers under the corner of a page as if to flip through the documents, but Lindsey quickly shut the folder and pulled it away.

He met her stare and didn't flinch. After an intense moment, Lilah merely smirked and sauntered for the door. After a few steps, she turned and looked back.

"Oh, Lindsey?" she said, in a cold but seductive voice. "When you report for duty, come ready to work. I expect all the men under me to be hard...workers, that is."

With a final flash of a grin, Lilah was out the door. After a few seconds, Lindsey let out his breath. Then he turned back to the copy machine to gather his pages.

Outside, in the alcove across the hallway, Lilah waited. When she saw Lindsey leave the copy room and round the corner, she dashed across the hall and back into the copy room. She quickly scanned the buttons and panels on the machine. She growled when she didn't see what she was looking for.

She opened the storage area below the machine and got out the manual. She flipped through it rapidly. Her eyes lit up. She pressed a sequence of buttons until she saw the menu item she needed.

Lilah entered 25 and pressed the big green start button. Within seconds, the copier was duplicating the last 25 unique scans it had made and saved. She started reading the pages as soon as they came out. A sweet smile of success spread across her face when she realized what Lindsey had been copying.

After the Three were finished with their classes for the day, Buffy and Willow returned to their dorm. Tara hadn't joined them, choosing instead to stay in her own room that night. Although the other two had begged her and even promised her that she wouldn't have to sleep on the gap, Tara had remained firm, reminding them of the term paper she had due the next day. After getting a kiss each from their favorite blonde witch, Buffy and Willow had relented and gone on their way.

When Buffy and Willow reached their room, they heard a commotion down the hallway. They set their book bags inside their door and then headed toward the loud voice. They found their neighbor Nikki throwing a fit.

"I can not believe this!" she complained angrily as she stood in the hallway looking into her room. "I can not fucking believe this!"

When Buffy and Willow looked inside, they saw that every single piece of Nikki's furniture had been stacked haphazardly on top of each other in the corner until there was a precariously-balanced pile from floor to ceiling. Buffy and Willow grinned at each other and suppressed the giggles that were threatening to emerge.

"Methinks that Hershel hath struck again," Willow pronounced to the unhappy Nikki.

Buffy nodded in agreement. "Yep, he did the same thing to Stacey last semester."

Nikki glared down the hallway toward what was presumably Hershel's room. "Hershel!" she screamed as she stomped in that direction. "You are so fucking dead!"

Buffy and Willow turned to go back to their own room, now allowing themselves to giggle freely.

In their own room, Willow and Buffy picked up their book bags that they had left inside the door and set them under their desks. Buffy headed straight for the kitchenette.

"My new paper weight – the one I got at the estate sale – it broke," she explained, pointing at it. The heavy glass object had cracked and split into several pieces.

"That's what it gets for shocking me," Buffy teased, giving Willow a nudge before returning to her tea-making.

"So what'd ya find out at the housing office?" Buffy asked as she filled the electric kettle and plugged it in.

"Oh, they said they didn't have any bigger dorm rooms, but..." Willow dug in her bag and pulled out a pink sheet of paper. "I did pick up a list of off-campus housing, like apartments and duplexes, townhouses and condos."

"I think we can mark off the townhouses and condos," Buffy replied as she got out two cups and dropped a tea bag in each.

"Yeah, but between the three of us, we should be able to afford something decent, right?"

"I hope so, but with off-campus, there's deposits and utilities, not to mention furniture."

As the kettle began to whistle, Buffy unplugged it and poured the hot water into the cups she had prepared. She dunked the bags up and down as they steeped.

"I mean, I can just imagine the look on Mom's face when I ask for money for a king-sized bed," Buffy added.

Buffy walked Willow's cup of tea over to her and then returned to her own. She pulled the sugar bowl over and dumped several teaspoons of sugar into her tea. She stirred and then blew and then took a careful sip.

She set down her cup and pulled the top off the sugar bowl. She moistened her index finger and touched it to the white crystals in the bowl. Then she put the tip of her finger in her mouth. She grimaced.

Willow snickered, then quickly stopped when Buffy directed her angry gaze at the redhead. Willow cleared her throat and put on a serious face, nodding agreeably. "Hershel bad."

At the end of the work day, long after dark, Lindsey tucked a FedEx envelope into his briefcase, shut the case, and locked it. At the doorway, he looked back at his office once, then headed down the hallway. He glanced nervously over his shoulder as he entered the elevator.

When the elevator opened in the lobby, he went straight for the main entrance. He tried to stay calm and walk at a normal pace. His gut was telling him to run like hell, but he fought down his panic and moved at a leisurely pace, even waving to the security guards as he exited.

Once outside, he proceeded immediately down the sidewalk. He walked briskly several blocks away to a shopping forum wedged between two tall towers. On the street out front was a FedEx drop-off box. Lindsey marched to the box, set down his briefcase, and opened it. He pulled out the FedEx envelope and then closed his briefcase. He glanced briefly around him before slipping the envelope inside the drop-box.

Lindsey heaved a sigh of relief, picked up his briefcase, and turned to go. His progress was stopped by a large body dressed in black. He yelped slightly and stepped back.

"I think you and I need to have a little chat," Angel said, grabbing Lindsey by the lapels and dragging him into the small alley between the shopping forum and the tower.

"I'm only gonna say this once, so listen up. If you or your firm tries anything against Buffy, you will regret it. You'll have a war you wish you had never started."

After a few seconds to catch his breath, Lindsey straightened his coat and tie and then walked out of the alley.

The next morning, Buffy and Willow gathered up their bath baskets and towels and headed across the hall. When they got to the bathroom, they were nearly run down by Gayle as she rushed out.

"Hershel!" Gayle screamed as she stomped down the hallway, completely oblivious to the long strip of toilet paper that was stuck to the bottom of her left house shoe.

Willow and Buffy gingerly pushed the bathroom door open and eased inside. They found the bathroom completely covered in toilet paper. It was hung from the light fixtures, wrapped around the sinks and toilets, draped across the shower stalls, and layered on the floor. From the number of empty cardboard rolls cluttering the floor, an entire case of toilet paper must have been consumed in the process.

Deciding to hit the facilities on one of the other floors, Willow and Buffy exited the bathroom. As soon as they left, a small glowing cloud floated down from the ceiling, a soft snicker emerging from it.

After their morning classes, Buffy and Willow met Tara for lunch at the cafeteria. She was already seated and waved at her girlfriends when they entered. When they had filled their trays, Buffy and Willow joined Tara at her table.

"Well, it's a good thing you weren't over in Stevenson with us," Buffy commented. "Hershel, the prankster, is up to his old tricks. He totally TP'ed our bathroom. Willow and I had to go to another wing and shower. It took forever."

"I was wondering where you two were this morning," Tara said. "I missed you last night."

"We missed you too," Willow said, giving Tara's hand a squeeze. "Didn't we, Buffy?"

Buffy didn't hear Willow. Her eyes were focused on a hooded figure slipping quickly through the cafeteria and settling at a remote table.

"Oh, yeah, absolutely," Buffy answered with a sincere smile, meeting Tara's eyes. Almost immediately, though, she looked back at the figure. Tara just grinned at Buffy's distraction.

"What are you looking at?" Willow asked as she tried to look in the direction Buffy had been staring.

"Hershel," Buffy replied. "I'm gonna go have a little chat," she added in decidedly slayer-like tone before rising from her chair.

When Hershel saw Buffy approaching his table, he immediately tried to make a hasty departure. She grabbed him and put him right back in his seat.

"Oh, sure, talk, I can do that," Hershel replied, with a nervous chuckle. Then he leaned back in his chair and draped his arm behind it in an attempt to act nonchalant.

"Oh, don't act all innocent with me. The furniture stacking, the salt in the sugar bowl, the toilet-papering the bathroom...it's all classic Hershel-annigans."

Hershel grew serious and leaned forward in his chair. "Look, I don't know who did all the pranks yesterday and today, but it wasn't me. I swear."

"I am telling you, I did not do this. I wasn't even here. I was out of town...with the basketball team. I was doing a story for the school newspaper. I left yesterday around noon and didn't get back till really late last night. I only just now got up."

Hershel shook his head. "I was over at my girlfriend's room. That's where I went when I got in last night. My roommate called me and gave me a heads-up, though. I've been avoiding the dorm since."

"I think that's a good idea, guilty or not," Buffy warned. "Tempers are gettin' pretty hot, so you'd better lay low."

Later that evening, Willow walked down the sidewalk to the gallery owned and operated by Joyce Summers. A large sign out front said "Closed for New Shipment Setup. Stay Tuned." Willow went up to the door and knocked. Within seconds, Joyce opened the door to let Willow in.

Joyce pointed towards the back of the building, and Willow headed in that direction. When Willow entered the back room, she saw Buffy and Tara surrounded by wooden crates of all sizes. Various items of artwork lined the side wall.

"Hey guys," Willow called out to her two girlfriends. She quickly joined them and gave each one a kiss.

"His story checks out. Hershel was out of town with the basketball team, just like he said."

Tara nodded. "Good. This one's about empty." Tara motioned to Willow. "Help me finish this one?"

Joyce came to the door and leaned against the jamb. She watched as Buffy used her Slayer strength to rip open the top of the crate without so much as a crowbar. Joyce just shook her head. It still amazed her to see what her daughter was capable of. On the one hand, she found it reassuring – knowing that Buffy could take care of herself. But on the other hand, it was frightening – knowing how dangerous Buffy's calling was, what she faced on a daily basis.

Joyce turned to Willow and Tara. She watched as Buffy's two girlfriends carefully unloaded the crate they were working on. Joyce closed her eyes. Buffy's girlfriends, she thought. First of all, girlfriend. Big news there. Secondly, girlfriends, as in plural, as in more than one, at the same time. Once again, Joyce shook her head, lowering it as she continued to think deeply on the matter.

Joyce's head immediately shot up when she heard Buffy cry out in pain. She instantly moved towards her daughter, but stopped when she saw that Willow and Tara were already there. Joyce merely watched quietly.

Buffy gripped her wrist tightly then shook her hand, grimacing in pain. Willow made Buffy sit down on a nearby crate while both Willow and Tara knelt beside her and looked at her bleeding hand.

Tara darted to the restroom and then back. She opened the kit and got out some tweezers and some antiseptic pads.

Tara stood and went behind Buffy. She began massaging Buffy's shoulders. Buffy immediately began to relax.

"Buffy, this is gonna hurt, it's a pretty big splinter and it's jammed in there pretty deep, but just listen to Tara and connect with her, okay?" Willow instructed.

Buffy didn't answer. She just murmured distractedly as Tara continued to massage her neck and shoulders.

Willow went right to work, using the tweezers to grasp the tip of the inch-long splinter and guide it from under Buffy's skin. Occasionally, Buffy's face creased in pain, but she stayed perfectly still. While Willow worked, Tara whispered a calming incantation and sent healing energy into Buffy.

Before Buffy knew it, the procedure was over. She sat up straight and gazed at her now-bandaged palm. Tara knelt beside Willow to examine her work. Buffy looked at the two women at her feet and smiled.

"Mmmm," Buffy said huskily, "remind me to come to this clinic every time I get hurt." Buffy pulled Tara to her and kissed her deeply before doing the same to Willow. "Thank you," she told them both sincerely.

Tara blushed as her lips curved into her characteristic half-smile. Willow grinned and gave Buffy's undamaged hand a squeeze.

Joyce felt a lump form in her throat as she watched this ordinary event take place. It was such a small thing – inconsequential, really, in the great scheme of things – and yet strangely powerful. In its wake, Joyce felt her concern about the girls' relationship fade away. It was replaced by an assurance, a confidence, a simple knowing...that what these Three had was special and that nothing would ever tear them apart.

Joyce cleared her throat, drawing the attention of the Three. "Everything okay?" she asked.

"Oh, yeah, sure, just a splinter," Buffy said, holding up her bandaged hand. "Willow and Tara took care of me."

"How about I order us some take-out and you can let some of that Slayer healing kick in before resuming your duties?"

Buffy clapped her hands together with glee until a sharp pain reminded her of her injury. She revised her technique, bringing her hands together but not letting them touch.

Everyone rolled their eyes, including Joyce, who took that as her cue to leave for the Chinese restaurant.

Shortly after Joyce left, Buffy excused herself and went to the restroom, taking the first aid kit with her. Tara sat on the crate that Buffy had vacated and pulled Willow into a straddling position on her lap.

"You did excellent work, as always, Dr. Rosenberg," Tara teased, kissing Willow warmly on the lips.

"Why thank you, Nurse Maclay," Willow replied, playing along, kissing Tara back.

Tara wrapped her arms around Willow's waist and linked her fingers together, holding the redhead firmly in place. Willow rested one hand on Tara's shoulder and used the other to trail her fingertips along Tara's face, tracing the strong cheekbones. When she got to the blonde's lips, Tara suddenly captured Willow's index finger in her mouth. She suckled it for a moment, then caught it between her teeth and grinned wickedly before releasing it. Willow chuckled and planted a searing kiss on Tara's mouth, which Tara eagerly returned.

When Buffy came back from the restroom and found her girlfriends making out, she grinned. Leave 'em alone for a minute and look what happens, she thought.

Willow pulled out of her kiss with Tara and shifted so that she was sitting sideways in Tara's lap. Tara looked up at Buffy.

"Yes, it was the fertility statue," Willow explained with mock matter-of-fact-ness as she nodded her head at a nearby artifact. "It was a bad influence," Willow insisted.

"Don't even suggest that," Buffy interjected. "The last time one of Mom's gallery items started influencing things, Sunnydale became Zombie City."

After calling it a night at Joyce's gallery, Buffy and Willow and Tara returned to the campus and to Stevenson Dorm. They showered and fell into bed, exhausted. They were awakened early the next morning by a commotion in the hallway.

Then they heard the sounds of punches and a wall-slam and then kicks. The Three jumped out of bed and threw on their robes. When they yanked open their dorm room door, they found three male students violently kicking Hershel.

Buffy immediately leapt into the fray. "Leave him alone!" she shouted as she knocked all three away from Hershel with one tackle.

The three boys got right back up, as did Buffy. Willow joined her, and the two women stood protectively in front of Hershel while Tara checked on the beaten young man. The angry look on the girls' faces slowly changed to confusion as they took in the sight of the three attackers. Every inch of the boys' skin that was showing was blue...completely blue. Even their hair had a bluish tint to it.

"What the hell do you think happened?" the apparent leader of the trio replied. "That asshole put blue dye in the showerheads!"

He tried to move forward and go after Hershel again, but Buffy stopped him in his tracks and grabbed his wrist. He locked eyes with her, daring her to stay in his way. Soon his fury changed to pain as Buffy twisted his wrist nearly to the breaking point. The other two attackers took a step back.

"I am not going to let you hurt him anymore, so get lost, got it?" Buffy warned.

When she released the leader's wrist, he held it gingerly in his other hand and then backed off. The three male students stared angrily for a moment more, then stalked away.

Buffy and Willow bent down to check on Hershel. Tara had his head in her lap, trying to soothe his pain. He held his arm protectively over his abdomen; he was sweating and breathing hard.

Later that day, Buffy and Willow and Tara joined Xander and Anya at Giles' apartment. After the Three told the other Scoobies about the violent events of that morning, Willow and Buffy explained about the rash of pranks that had preceded them.

"Well, it does appear to be a-a vendetta of some kind against this Hershel fellow," Giles commented.

"Yeah, sounds like Hershel pulled one too many pranks in the past," Xander added.

"Oh yeah," Anya confirmed. "They love playing pranks on stupid humans. This kinda stuff is right up their alley."

"Well, they're not really demons, per se, since they don't have physical bodies," Anya explained. "They're just spirit forms."

"Yeah, pretty much. Although they don't have physical form themselves, they can affect the material world around them: move objects, break things, slam doors, hide things...that sort of stuff."

While Anya was talking, Giles went to his bookshelf. He scanned the shelves and pulled out a particular volume. Then he returned to his seat. He skimmed the book until he found the passage he was looking for.

"Well, it says here that you must trap the spirit in a binding crystal, marked with this seal," Giles said, handing the book to Buffy.

Buffy took one look at the symbol, rolled her eyes, and handed the book to Willow and Tara. When they looked at it, their cheeks reddened, and they dropped their heads.

"Willow and Tara's estate sale purchase...the crystal paper weight? Guess what symbol was on the top of it?" Buffy said.

"You mean you bought the prank-playing demon...at an estate sale?" Anya pressed for clarification.

Willow looked sheepishly at the gang. "We just knew it had some kind of power. We felt it, all three of us."

"And then it broke," Buffy interjected. "We must've triggered it somehow, when we touched it."

"W-W-We need to stop it," Tara said in a concerned voice, "before anyone else gets hurt."

"Okay, here's what we're gonna do," Buffy announced. "Willow, Tara, you two head to the magic shop and get what we need to do the spell. The rest of us will handle the evacuation of the dorm. I'll feel a lot better about doing this if I know that no one else is in the building. Once everybody's out, we'll do the spell and bind this thing for good."

With the dorm now empty, the Three headed for Buffy and Willow's room, armed with Giles' book and the ingredients for the spell. Once inside, Buffy and Tara started setting out the items for the spell, including the new crystal that they would use to bind the spirit. Willow gathered the broken pieces of the original paper weight and added them to the altar.

As they worked, a high-pitched cackle began echoing in the hall outside the dorm room. The Three froze and looked at each other, then picked up their pace. Soon they were seated on the floor, holding hands and encircling their altar.

The Three closed their eyes and centered themselves, uniting their minds for the task before them.

Willow and Tara opened their eyes simultaneously and sent a chastising glance in Buffy's direction. She just shrugged sheepishly. Willow and Tara shook their heads.

Suddenly, the high-pitched cackling became screeching, and the dorm room door slammed open with a huge gust of wind. The glowing cloud of the prankster spirit shot around the three women, continuing its rage-filled screeching. The wind it had created quickly became tornadic, sending papers and books flying around the room. The Three grimaced as various objects struck them, but they didn't break their circle.

"Protect us...as we..." Willow yelled as she ducked a large book that was moving toward her head, "...seek your power!"

The prankster spirit demolished the kitchenette next – throwing open the mini-fridge, exploding canned drinks, and pelting the Three with food items.

"A place is prepared!" Buffy shouted over the gale. "Let the evil spirit be bound!"

The prankster spirit's screeching became a desperate wailing as the glowing cloud was pulled towards the new crystal, freshly etched with the binding symbol. The spirit spiraled about the room as if caught in a whirlpool until, with a final cry, it disappeared completely into the crystal.

As soon as the spirit was bound, the wind died down, and all suspended objects fell to the floor with a thud. The Three glanced nervously about the room and then sat up straight once the danger was over. They let out a collective sigh.

The sigh became a giggle when they saw each other. Their hair was nothing but a tangled mess. Their clothes were torn and stained. Tara had what looked like a peach slice plastered to her neck. Willow had pieces of broken tortilla chips sticking out of her hair. Buffy's face was spotted with what appeared to be low-fat strawberry yogurt. They looked like they'd had a food fight with a toddler and the toddler had won. Their giggles quickly gave way to full-bellied hysterical laughter.

Just then, Xander and Anya and Giles burst into room. They found Willow and Tara and Buffy on the floor, laughing uncontrollably.

Giles knelt beside Buffy and touched her on the arm. "Are you all right?" he asked.

Buffy laughed some more and then sat up. "Oh, we're fine," she answered between giggles. "A little bruised maybe, but otherwise okay." Willow and Tara also sat up.

"Signed, sealed, and delivered," Willow said, wrapping up the crystal in one of the altar cloths and handing it to Anya.

Anya peered into the crystal. "That's what you get," she chided it, "you little trouble-maker!"

Anya tried to hand the crystal back to Willow, but the redhead raised her hands defensively and refused to take it.

"Really," Buffy agreed. "We set it off once before, and we don't want a repeat of that."

"I'll take it," Giles offered, accepting the crystal from Anya. "I'll...ummm...make sure it's carefully locked away."

"It looks like your room needs a good spring cleaning if you wanna get that deposit back," Xander commented.

"Ugh," Buffy groaned at the thought. "Next time, we hold the ritual in someone else's room."

"Well, why don't we see about getting the residents back into the dorm while you three get yourselves cleaned up?" Giles suggested.

Buffy and Willow and Tara glanced at each other and nodded in exhaustion. Then Giles and Xander and Anya left.

Willow looked at her two girlfriends. "I don't know about you two, but I'm way too tired to tackle this room right now. Why don't we go to my parents' house instead? We can get cleaned up and just crash."

At her house on Revello Drive, Joyce got home from work at the usual time. When she arrived, she found a FedEx package on the doorstep. She picked it up, tucked it under her arm, and then unlocked her front door.

After she walked inside, she put her keys and purse on the table inside the door and then looked at the package curiously. It was addressed to Buffy Summers. Joyce shrugged and set the package behind her purse. Then she headed for the kitchen.

Once at the Rosenberg home, the Three trudged up the stairs to the second floor and into the master bedroom. Buffy set down their bag of clean clothes they had salvaged from their trashed dorm room. The Three quickly stripped and heaped their soiled clothes in a pile on the bathroom floor.

While Willow started a bath in the large garden tub, Buffy and Tara each took a turn in the shower, rinsing the majority of the food residue from their bodies and washing their hair. Willow added several bath oil beads to the hot water and then set out their towels. As Buffy and Tara finished their showers, they entered the tub. When Willow had showered, she did the same, joining them in the fragrant bath. All Three leaned back and sighed with contentment.

"You know, if I wasn't so darn tired, I'd probably be all over you two," Willow murmured.

After a long and thorough bath, the Three dried off, dragged into the bedroom, and literally collapsed into the bed – Tara nearest the door, Willow in the middle, and Buffy on the far side. With the briefest of kisses and the barest of snuggles, the Three fell fast asleep.

The next morning, Tara was the first to awaken. She extricated herself from Willow's arm and turned over. Then she leaned up in bed. She gazed lovingly at her two girlfriends. With her trademark half-smile, she watched as Willow reversed her position and faced Buffy, snuggling against Buffy's chest. The Slayer stirred slightly then unconsciously wrapped her arms around the redhead. Tara eased out of the bed. She found one of Mrs. Rosenberg's robes in the closet and put it on. Then she quietly left the bedroom and headed downstairs.

After about twenty minutes, she returned, bearing a tray containing a large carafe of coffee, three mugs and spoons, and cream and sugar. She set the tray on the dresser and then left the room again.

Almost simultaneously, Willow and Buffy began to twitch their noses. They sniffed the air and then opened their eyes.

Buffy nodded. Then the two of them sat up. They saw the tray across the room on the dresser.

"Tara," they both said, realizing who was responsible for the caffeine-laden bounty.

They retrieved the tray, and then they each prepared their own cup of coffee. They took a sip and sighed. "Ahhh," they said at the same time.

Just then, Tara re-entered the room, carrying yet another tray, this one covered with a large cloth. She smiled widely when she saw that Willow and Tara were awake.

"Breakfast," Tara replied, setting the tray on the end of the bed. "And more," she added in a husky voice as she removed the robe she had borrowed.

She carried the tray to the head of the bed and put it down in front of Willow. Then she slid back into the bed. She lifted the cloth with a flourish and revealed a huge feast of pancakes with a choice of butter and maple syrup or strawberry glaze and whipped cream. Buffy's and Willow's eyes widened when they took in the sight.

"Well, dig in!" Tara suggested, and the Three did just that, ravenously consuming stack after stack until all of the pancakes were gone.

Willow plopped back against her pillows and groaned happily. "That was awesome, Tara, thank you."

Tara smiled in response. Then her face took on expression of mischief. "Oh, look," she said in mock surprise, "we didn't eat all the strawberries and whipped cream." Tara caught Buffy's eye. "Whatever shall we do with what's left?"

Buffy grinned impishly. "Well, we can't let it go to waste. But we really need something to put it on. Oh, I know!"

Buffy and Tara both looked at Willow, who blushed and started giggling. While Buffy lifted the tray and set it aside on the floor, Tara folded the sheet and covers about halfway down the bed. Buffy picked up the bowl of strawberry glaze and handed it to Tara, keeping the can of whipped cream for herself.

Tara dipped her finger in the strawberry glaze and ran it along Willow's smiling lips. When she was done, Buffy captured Tara's finger in her mouth and sucked the remaining glaze away with a grin. Then Tara kissed Willow's strawberry mouth, running her tongue over her lips and ending with a nibbling pluck at her bottom lip.

When Tara pulled away, she turned back to the bowl of glaze. She dipped her finger once again and ran a line of strawberry goodness down the right side of Willow's neck. Tara held the bowl out to Buffy, who did the same on the left side of Willow's neck. While Tara turned over to set the bowl on the nightstand, Buffy immediately dug in, dragging the tip of her tongue along the line of glaze, starting at Willow's shoulder and moving up towards her ear. With the bowl safely out of the way, Tara started in on her side, just as Buffy began round two. Willow closed her eyes and made a strangled kind of sound deep in her throat. She shuddered when Tara started suckling her earlobe.

When Tara finished her side and sat up, she found Buffy shaking the can of whipped cream. When it was sufficiently shaken, Buffy took her free hand and pulled Tara over for a searing kiss. When Willow was able to open her eyes, she was greeted with the sight of her two girlfriends kissing deeply and passionately.

Oh, god, she thought. That's gotta be the hottest thing I have ever seen! Please don't let this be a dream!

Buffy was so into the kiss that she was sharing with Tara that she gripped the head of the can too tightly and accidentally shot a stream of whipped cream between herself and Tara. They instantly separated, laughing as they wiped at the fluffs of whipped cream that dotted their necks and faces. When they heard Willow giggling, they turned to her.

When Willow nodded enthusiastically, Buffy turned the can upside down and squirted a lopsided circle around Willow's left nipple. She repeated the process for the right nipple. Then she handed the can over to Tara, who ran one then two wavy lines down Willow's chest and stomach before setting the can aside.

While Willow quivered in anticipation, Tara and Buffy looked at each other and grinned, then dove in, attacking Willow's breasts in earnest. They licked and sucked until the whipped cream was gone, then started nibbling on the redhead's nipples. Willow rocked in place, moaning in pleasure...until she heard her name and the attentions to her breasts stopped. She heard her name again, louder, but then realized that it wasn't Buffy's or Tara's voice. Willow's eyes shot open.

At the foot of the bed stood Willow's parents, Drs. Ira and Sheila Rosenberg. They were frozen in place, gaping at their daughter. Then they dropped their luggage to the floor with a thunk.

Lindsey drew a deep breath and entered Lilah's office for his first day on the job as her assistant. Lilah smiled predatorily when he came in. She stood and gestured towards the chair sitting in front of her desk. Lindsey sat down.

Lilah picked up a folder and then walked around her desk to stand in front of Lindsey. She handed him the folder and then leaned against her desk. She folded her arms and waited.

Lindsey opened the folder. When he saw what was inside, he froze. It was a stack of pages from his Power of Three file, the same pages he had photocopied earlier. Lindsey recovered quickly and closed the folder.

"I think that Holland would find such a file very interesting," Lilah said as she set the folder back on her desk. "What do you suppose he'd do if he knew that you'd been copying the Power of Three files?"

Lilah smiled. "Somehow, I doubt he'd see it that way." Lilah stood back up and walked behind Lindsey. She leaned over to whisper into his ear. "Of course, a visit from the one of the mind-readers would settle everything, now wouldn't it?"

As Lilah circled Lindsey, she played with the lapels of Lindsey's coat. "Lindsey, I want our working relationship to be...amiable," she said as she came to a stop directly in front of Lindsey. "And I think that's best achieved by knowing where we stand. Do you understand?"

As Lilah looked down at him, Lindsey clenched his jaw and then said, "Yes, I think you've made that perfectly clear."

Sheila and Ira Rosenberg stared open-mouthed at the sight before them...until propriety dictated that they avert their gaze. Buffy and Tara and Willow instantly grabbed the sheet and pulled it up to cover themselves.

"Mom, Dad...wh-wh-what are you doing here?" Willow said. "Y-Y-You're not supposed to be back until tomorrow."

No one else said anything for the longest moment. Eyes darted about the room, but no one spoke. Finally, Buffy decided to break the silence.

"I think...we'd better...get dressed a-a-and cleaned up," she offered nervously. "O-O-Or maybe that would work better the other way around," she added with a frown.

Ira guided Sheila to the door. "We'll be downstairs," he announced in a cold voice.

When Ira and Sheila had left, Buffy and Tara each laid a hand on Willow's shoulder.

"No," Willow replied in a choked voice. "I mean, could this be any worse?" she said as tears began rolling down her face.

Tara lifted Willow's chin and wiped the tears from her cheeks. "Baby, I know this looks bad, but it'll be okay. Maybe not today, but..."

Buffy took Willow's hand. "Why don't you go get in the shower, and Tara and I will take care of cleaning up the bed, okay?"

Willow nodded numbly and headed for the master bath. Once Willow had shut the door, Buffy and Tara looked at one another, the same expression of worry on their faces.

After the Three had showered and the master bedroom had been returned to its former state, Willow and Buffy and Tara went downstairs. They met beside the front door.

"Willow," Buffy said, "I don't think it's a good idea for us to leave you here by yourself."

Willow shook her head. "No, I think it's best if you go. I need to talk to my parents alone."

"Really, I'll be okay," Willow said with a forced smile. "I'll catch up with you later, back at school."

Buffy and Tara exchanged worried expressions again and then glanced back at Willow. After a long look, they finally nodded, opened the front door, and left.

When she had shut the front door behind her girlfriends, Willow turned toward the living room. She took a deep breath and headed in that direction.

Tara and Buffy walked slowly along the sidewalk on their way back to campus. Buffy looked back once, then twice. After the third time, she just stopped in place.

"I don't like this. I don't like this one bit," Buffy said angrily. "We shouldn't've left her there alone."

"I don't like it either, but we've got to respect her wishes," Tara replied. "Willow wants to do this by herself."

They both looked back down the street toward the Rosenberg house and frowned. They stared for the longest time.

Tara broke off her stare and sighed. "Let's just get back to school. Willow will find us when she's done."

Tara extended her hand to Buffy. After a moment, Buffy took Tara's hand, and the two of them reluctantly went back to their walking.

When Willow entered the living room, she found her parents standing in front of the sofa, heavy into their discussion.

"This is clearly an intensification of her post-adolescent need for separation from her parental figures," Sheila speculated.

Willow slipped in completely unnoticed by her parents and sat down in the chair across from the sofa.

"Yes, she's chosen to state her desire for autonomy in the most dramatic way possible," Ira added.

"Mom, Dad," Willow said in an attempt to get her parents' attention. They didn't even hear her.

"I agree," Sheila said, continuing the debate with her husband. "First it was the 'witchcraft' thing, then dating that musician of hers, thank goodness that's over with..."

"Not to mention her choice of university," Ira complained. "UC Sunnydale? Please!"

Ira cleared his throat and attempted an authoritarian stance. "We'd like an explanation, young lady. We did not raise you to exhibit such...such..."

Ira turned back to his wife. "An obvious case of college experimentation, sexual mores in flux, influenced by high levels of peer pressure."

"SHUT UP!" Willow bellowed. When her parents finally looked in her direction, she pleaded, "Listen to me. For once, will you please listen to me?" Willow took a deep breath and continued. "I am not going through some advanced adolescent rebellion, and I am not engaging in the obligatory college experimentation. And before you suggest it, I'm not on drugs either, and I haven't joined some crazy free-love sex cult."

"What you saw up there was three women making love – three women in love...with each other." Willow paused and put on her resolve face. "Buffy and Tara and I are in love, and we're in a relationship with each other. And we're going to stay that way. Nothing you can say or do will change that. So I suggest you get used to the idea."

Willow got up and left the room, with her parents calling in vain after her. She went upstairs, gathered her things, and came right back down. When she reached the front door, she heard her mother and father arguing in the living room. She could tell that this was no scholarly debate. She went to the doorway and listened.

"Yes, you're the one who took those pills during your pregnancy, though I urged you not to."

"I was studying for my comps, thank you very much, and my doctor assured me they were safe," Sheila stated angrily. "And by the way, you were the one who seduced me that night, knowing I had my last course final the next day."

"Well, it failed, didn't it? And now we've got a lesbian daughter who thinks she's in love with two women at the same time!"

Tears rolled down Willow's face. She moved away from living room entrance and quietly left the house.

Willow forced herself to keep walking, though she could hardly see the sidewalk in front of her because of the tears pouring from her eyes. She also didn't notice Xander as he drove by and honked.

When he saw Willow so distraught, Xander immediately parked his car and ran back to where Willow was still shuffling.

Willow's head shot up. When she saw Xander before her, she threw herself into his arms. "Oh Xander!" she cried, burying her head in his shoulder as new sobs hit her.

Xander wrapped his arms around the weeping redhead. "Hey now, it's okay," he said in a soothing voice. "I've got you. What's wrong?"

"It's awful, Xander, just awful," Willow replied, pulling away to look Xander in the eyes.

"No, no...thank god, it's nothing like that. If it were, I'd..." Willow's face became even more pained at that thought.

"I'm guessin' they didn't immediately call up PFLAG and order a lifetime membership?

"Ah, no," Willow confirmed. "They just gave me their usual psycho-social babble, debating the issue as if I were one of their test subjects." She paused, and when she began again, her voice was choked, and her tears began rolling down again. "When I left, they were arguing...blaming each other..."

Anger entered Xander's expression. "If anyone oughtta be blamed, it's them!" he said, pointing in an accusatory fashion. Then he corrected himself, "Not that you're being a lesbian is anything blamable, 'cause it's not. It's just that..." Xander shrugged and then continued. "Your parents have never really...well...been parents. They're gone more than they're here. You've had more nannies and babysitters than I've had drunken family holidays."

"They never really wanted children. I was just an inconvenience," Willow said sadly. "Except when it was time to play the compare-your-child's-achievements game with other parents."

Xander gave Willow a grin. "Well, as you are well aware, the Harris household isn't about to win any Family of the Year awards either." Willow gave an agreeing nod to that. "So you know what I think?" Xander announced. "I think we make our own families. And you're my family, Will. I love you, and I'm here for you."

Willow's eyes filled with tears once again, this time from happiness and a deep sense of being loved. She hugged Xander tightly. Xander kissed Willow on the top of her head and returned her hug with enthusiasm.

Angel yawned and ran his hand through his hair as he exited his bedroom. He trudged into the kitchen, opened the refrigerator, and pulled out a jar of pig's blood. He removed the top, placed the jar in the microwave, and heated it for a short time. When the device beeped, he retrieved the jar and headed for the den. After a few steps, he stopped in place as he became suddenly aware of another person in the room.

The bleach-blonde vampire grinned as he sat slumped in the chair with his feet propped up on the coffee table.

"What are you doing here?" Angel asked in a dangerous tone as he set his jar of blood on the table.

Spike stood and met his grandsire's eyes. The two vampires stared harshly at one another until Spike finally looked away, smiling and chuckling to himself.

"What?" Angel asked, a confused look on his face. "I knew she was seeing one of those government soldier guys, but –"

"Oh, Mr. Initiative is ancient history," Spike said over his shoulder as he headed for the exit. "Now she's got a new love. Or loves, I should say."

"It seems Buffy's found religion. Now she's worshipping at the temple of Wicca."

Angel's mouth dropped open, and he tried to speak but failed. He tried again. "Willow? Buffy's involved with Willow?"

"Oh...yeah...Tara," Spike corrected. Then he returned to his needling of Angel. "Yep, the Slayer's just up to her eyeballs in witchy goodness. Seemed as happy as a lark. I'm surprised she didn't tell you."

Xander accompanied a somber Willow to her room in Stevenson. When Willow opened her door, she was greeted by an excited Buffy and Tara.

Willow smiled and looked around the room, clearly impressed. As Xander walked inside to admire his handiwork, Buffy and Tara moved closer to Willow. Tara touched Willow's arm, and Buffy leaned over to whisper into Willow's ear.

Willow gave a quick nod of assurance, her expression to both of them indicating that they could discuss the matter of her parents later.

Xander put on a sad expression. "I'm sorry to tell you, though, that the answering machine is…it's dead." He picked up the battered remains of the device. "Despite our best efforts at resuscitation, it just didn't make it."

Willow and Buffy and Tara gave Xander's melodramatic display a collective roll of their eyes.

Xander set down the broken answering machine. "Just so's ya know, we didn't throw anything away…well, except for the obvious. You know, empty food and drink containers, anything that was broken beyond repair," Xander continued. "We just cleaned and heaped as best we could. Hence the many stacks of stuff. Unfortunately, Anya drew the line at washing your clothes for you, although I did personally volunteer to do the whites."

"Yeah, right," Buffy chided, before giving Xander a hug. Soon the other two joined them.

Xander giggled happily and returned the hug. When the foursome separated, Xander headed for the door.

"Well, I'll leave you to it, then," he said. "I know you've got stuff to sort through and put away. I'm gonna go join Anya and crash for the rest of the day."

After Xander had left, Willow turned from the door and hugged herself tightly. She drew in a deep breath and blew it out slowly, trying not to let it catch in her throat.

"So, I guess you guys want the scoop, huh?" Willow said, dropping her arms for a moment.

"Only if you feel like telling us," Tara replied. "A-A-And it's okay if you don't." Tara reached out and touched Willow's arm reassuringly.

Willow nodded and hugged herself again as tears began to spill from her eyes. Buffy put her hand on Willow's back.

The Three sat on the bed with Willow in the middle. Before she had even been seated for a second, Willow burst into sobs. Tara and Buffy quickly sandwiched her into a comforting hug and just the redhead cry.

Meanwhile, at Wolfram and Hart, Lilah was meeting with Holland Manners in his office. As Lilah sat in the chair before Holland's desk, Lindsey stood a respectable distance behind, relegated to taking notes.

"The Senior Partners want the Power of Three destroyed," Holland reported. "Although they haven't impacted any of our operations outside of Sunnydale, it's only a matter of time, especially given the Slayer's connection to Angel."

"If you think Angel's been a thorn in your side before now," Lindsey went on, "try messing with his favorite Slayer."

Lilah turned back to Holland. "It's not Angel I'm worried about. It's the curse."

Holland smiled enigmatically and chuckled. "Oh, I've found a way around the curse."

"Lindsey, why don't you head back to my office and start the research for the Merckson case?" Lilah told her assistant.

Lindsey gave the two executives a curt nod then left the office. Holland watched Lindsey go, a look of deep concern on his face. Lilah watched Holland watching Lindsey and made a decision.

"There's something you should know," she began. When Holland met her eyes, she continued. "I found Lindsey making copies of the Power of Three file." Lilah waited until that information had sunk in, then she went on. "He said he was just closing up his cases as you had asked him to do, but…"

Holland thought deeply for a moment then spoke. "Have Lindsey watched and keep me informed. I sincerely hope your suspicions are unwarranted, but it's best to err on the side of caution."

At lunchtime, Lindsey slipped out of the huge Wolfram and Hart tower and hurried down the sidewalk. He crossed a couple of streets, watching his back as he did so. Seeing no one, he stopped at a pay phone. He pulled out a pre-paid calling card and a slip of paper with a number on it. He punched in the requisite numbers and waited.

In Buffy and Willow's empty dorm room, the phone began to ring. With the demolished answering machine next to it, the phone rang multiple times. But no one was there to hear it.

Lindsey picked up the receiver again, as if considering making another call. Then he put it right back down. He turned around to head back to the office.

Several yards away on a bus bench, a non-descript man in a brown coat lowered his newspaper and watched Lindsey as he walked away. The man spoke discreetly into a cell phone, then nonchalantly folded his paper and headed in the same direction that Lindsey had gone.

After they had gotten out of classes that afternoon, the Three returned to Willow and Buffy's dorm room, determined to get everything back in its place. As Tara hit the books, Willow and Buffy focused on paper sorting.

Willow held up a slightly crumpled stack of sheets from a notebook. The colored writing had been smeared from what looked like a spilled soda.

"Guess your fancy-schmancy pens aren't designed to hold up against poltergeist attacks, huh?" Buffy commented.

Tara grinned at her girlfriend, the notes-neatness-freak, and chuckled, before turning her attention back to the stack of books before her. Once she had separated Willow's magic books from the college textbooks, she began replacing them in the bookshelf. When she had finished, her eyes were drawn to a volume she hadn't seen before. She slid it out and sat down at Willow's desk to peruse it. It didn't take her long to realize that it wasn't like the others. She turned to the section that was marked and read it carefully.

Tara had a serious frown on her face as she joined Willow and Buffy on the bed where they were sorting papers.

Willow looked up but didn't maintain eye contact. "Just some guy that Spike knew. I-I-I guess I forgot about returning it."

Tara continued to glare unhappily at Willow. Buffy looked back and forth between the two witches, still not following.

"That's what I'd like to know," Tara said. "The two spells you have marked…is that what you used to try to bring us home?"

Willow hesitated then finally answered. "The first one, yes," she admitted. "But the second one, no."

Willow stood up and walked a few feet away. "Look, I didn't do the bad one, okay? It turned out I didn't need to."

Willow endured Tara's glare for a moment. Then she straightened and said, "Yes, I would have."

"It was only to bring you back," Willow said, hurrying back to the bed to take Tara's hand in hers. She met Buffy's eyes. "I had tried everything I could think of, everything Giles could think of, a-a-and nothing worked. I was so afraid I'd never see you again."

Tara raised her head. Tears were on her cheeks. "Willow, you can't use black magic like this, no matter how desperate you may be. It's too dangerous!"

"Will, you could lose your soul o-o-or your life," Tara said desperately, as she squeezed Willow's hand. Then she grabbed Buffy's hand too. "And we don't want to lose you, so please promise me you'll get rid of that book and never try anything like that again."

Buffy looked between the two witches again and then looked into Willow's eyes. "Tara's right. No dark stuff, okay?"

Willow reluctantly nodded and said, "Okay. I'll take the book back tomorrow." Willow set the book on the corner of her desk as a reminder.

Late that afternoon, when he had finished his work, Lindsey said goodbye to Lilah then left the office. As he headed downstairs, Lilah made a quick call. As soon as Lindsey left the Wolfram and Hart tower, he was once again trailed by a man in a brown coat.

After taking a circuitous route, Lindsey finally stopped a few blocks from Angel's hotel. He looked in his mirrors and out the side windows before finally getting out and making his way toward the entrance.

The man in the brown coat sat inside a dark gray van. When he saw Lindsey approaching, clearly heading for the hotel, he spoke into his cell phone, listened for a moment, then motioned to two other men in the back. They waited until Lindsey was alongside the van, then burst out the side door, and yanked Lindsey inside. Then the van sped away.

That evening, back in Sunnydale, Buffy took a break from her patrolling and headed down Revello toward her home. When she neared, she saw Giles' car in the drive and grinned. She adjusted the light pack on her back and walked up to the front door.

Buffy used her key and slipped quietly in the front door. She listened intently for a moment then headed for the kitchen. She eased through the dining room, noting that the candlelit table was set for two. She stifled a giggle and peeked inside the kitchen.

Behind the bar, Joyce tended the stove. She was distracted by Giles, who wrapped one arm around her waist and nuzzled her neck. She laughed at something he whispered in her ear then turned around and swatted him lightly. Their playful embrace led to a passionate kiss, which Buffy interrupted with a well-placed throat-clearing.

Instantly, Giles and Joyce split apart, awkwardly assuming hopefully innocuous yet totally unconvincing poses. Giles immediately began cleaning his glasses, and Joyce turned her attention right back to the food cooking on the stove.

"Buffy!" Joyce cried, while keeping her eyes on the food. "What are you doing here? I, um, I wasn't expecting you."

"Mom, Giles," Buffy said, interrupting, "it's okay. You don't have to pretend. I know about you two, and I'm cool with it."

"It was kinda obvious when I was in the hospital. All those times you thought I was asleep…"

Giles and Joyce blushed and dipped their heads a moment before smiling back at Buffy.

"And all this time, we were so worried about how we were going to tell you," Joyce chided her daughter before hugging her. "You are a wicked, wicked child."

Buffy chuckled and hugged her mom back. "Well, I have to admit it did wig me out a little at first. I kept having 'band candy' flashbacks when you two were all over each other."

Joyce and Giles steeled themselves and then nodded their readiness for her question.

Joyce and Giles gave a small laugh then looked at each other, smiling. Then they turned back to Buffy.

"That's all I need to know," Buffy answered. "The rest we'll figure out as we go." She gave her mother a special grin and added, "A very wise woman told me something like that once."

Joyce hugged her daughter tightly. Buffy returned the hug then reached out to bring Giles into the hug.

After a moment, Buffy said, "Since we're talking about being happy, you know what would make me really happy?"

"Being able to move off campus with Willow and Tara," Buffy replied. When Joyce rolled her eyes, Buffy continued. "I know what you're thinking. Too expensive, right? Well, actually, we've checked into it, and some places are very reasonable and not a whole lot more than what the dorm costs."

Joyce shook her head. When she saw Buffy's disappointed expression, she said, "I'll give it a try. No promises, though."

"Thanks, Mom," Buffy said. "Oh…I will need a new answering machine, though. It kinda got trashed in our last adventure."

When Joyce got a confused look on her face, Giles interjected, "I think I can take care of that. After all, it was damaged in the course of your Slayer duties, and I do need to be able to get messages to you."

"Cool. Well, I guess I'll leave you two lovebirds to your romantic dinner and get back to patrolling," Buffy said as she headed for the door. "Oh, one more thing," she said quickly. "Don't forget about the Honors Program thing. Willow and Tara really want both of you to be there."

"And when are we going to see you on the honors list?" Joyce asked pointedly.

Buffy moved toward the table and found the FedEx package. She looked at it curiously for a moment, then pulled off her pack and stuffed inside the outer pocket. She put the pack back on and headed out the door, locking it behind her.

Willow and Tara sat cross-legged on the floor of Tara's dorm room. They were holding hands, and their eyes were closed. Sweat was beading on their foreheads, and they were breathing heavily, apparently concentrating very hard on something.

They combined their strengths and together reached out with their minds, sweeping through Sunnydale until they found the unique energy signature of their Slayer soulmate.

Willow sent Buffy a telepathic groan. "Save the puns for the bad guys, Buffy."

"Oakdale," Tara answered with confidence. "You're sitting on top of an above-ground tomb, the one with the gargoyle and the angel beside it."

"Ex-cell-ent," Buffy said. "This whole getting into each other's brains is kinda fun, huh? "

In the bowels of Wolfram and Hart, in a room from which no sound escaped, Lindsey screamed in agony. He was bound in a medical chair, strong leather straps securing him in place. His face was bruised and battered, his clothes ripped and bloodied. Behind him stood a demon, who held his clawed hands firmly on Lindsey's head, sending jolts of electricity into the young lawyer's skull. Holland and Lilah watched impassively.

"Yes," Holland growled. "But I'm finding this final procedure somewhat…gratifying."

"Why not just kill him?" Lilah asked. "You've learned what he was up to, thanks to the telepaths."

Lilah gave Holland a skeptical look then shrugged and turned her attention back to the screaming Lindsey.

Later that night, Angel parked his long black car in the dead-end alley behind the hotel. He got out and headed for the back entrance. A tiny scuffle drew his attention, and he froze. He listened and then crept silently towards the red dumpster in the corner. He eased over to stand beside it, then suddenly shoved the metal bin away from the wall.

There, in the grimy shadows, was Lindsey. The young lawyer gasped in terror and tried to scramble away on his hands and knees. Angel grabbed him and pulled him back, setting him up straight and holding him firmly in place.

"No! No!" Lindsey cried, nearly hyperventilating in fear. He tossed his head from side to side, refusing to look in the face of his captor.

Lindsey calmed at Angel's name. He stopped struggling and ventured a peek at who was holding him. "Angel?" Lindsey asked with a bewildered expression.

Lindsey relaxed and let out a shaky breath. Then he leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially, "The clowns have eaten all the cotton candy." His face became pained. "And now all the children are crying because the circus is empty."

Angel stared open-mouthed at Lindsey for a moment, blinking in confusion. Then he shook his head and said, "Say what?"

In Angel's apartment, Lindsey sat on the couch with his knees pulled to his chest and a blanket wrapped around his shoulders. He rocked in place, talking to himself in a low voice while Angel and Cordelia stood nearby in the kitchen.

Angel and Cordelia looked at Lindsey sadly then turned back to each other. "It looks like somebody beat the crap out of him," Cordelia said. "We should take him to the hospital. The way he's been talking nonsense, he's probably got a concussion."

"I don't think so," Angel said. "There's more to this than just…" He trailed off and thought some more. "Something's not right," he said finally.

Angel leaned closer, lowering his voice. "When I asked him who did this to him, he wouldn't answer at first. Then he looked at me, like he knew me…I swear, for a second, he looked like he was trying to speak but couldn't. Then he just shook his head and started babbling again."

"Cat's in the cradle, but mom doesn't know," Lindsey said, rocking in place. "Steal your breath away, it will…"

"What are you thinking…that maybe somebody scrambled his brain or something?" Cordelia asked.

"Maybe." Angel thought a moment and then said, "I think we should take him to Sunnydale. See if Willow can figure it out."

Cordelia groaned. "Sunnydale? Do we have to?" Cordelia whined. When Angel glared at her, she rolled her eyes. "Fine, but don't blame me when you come back all moody broody from seeing you-know-who!"

"Sheila, Ira, how good to see you!" Joyce exclaimed in surprise when she saw Willow's parents enter her gallery.

"You just caught me on my way to lunch," Joyce said, "but I can wait if you'd like to see the new exhibit."

Bet I can guess, Joyce thought to herself. "Why don't we go back to my office?" she suggested, gesturing toward the back of the gallery.

Once they had reached the office and the Rosenbergs had seated themselves, Joyce herself sat down behind her desk. "What can I do for you?"

"Yes, I know about Buffy's relationship with Willow and Tara, if that's what you mean," Joyce answered.

"Good, good," Sheila said with a sigh of relief. "I really didn't want to be the bearer of bad news, as it were."

"We certainly wouldn't want you to find out the way we did," Ira grumbled under his breath.

Joyce ignored Ira and looked at Sheila. "Why would I think it was bad news? My daughter's in love. That's a good thing, right?"

"Well, of course it is, of course," Sheila replied. "Under normal circumstances."

"Look, let's cut to the chase here," Ira interjected. "We don't like this so-called relationship that Willow has developed with Buffy and Tara. We want it to stop. Now."

As Sheila confirmed her agreement with a nod, Joyce stared in shock and then anger.

Then she directed a hard gaze at the Rosenbergs. "Buffy and Willow and Tara are mature adults who are capable of making informed, intelligent decisions for themselves," Joyce said. "As a concerned but understanding parent, I refuse to interfere in that."

Sheila and Ira huffed and looked away, so Joyce softened her approach. "They're in love, and they make each other happy," she said with confidence. "Have you even tried to get to know them, watch them together? If you did, you'd see that–"

"You would let your daughter run headlong and thoughtless into danger without making any attempt to save her from herself?" Ira demanded. "And you call yourself a concerned parent!"

"Well, I am certainly more of a concerned parent than you two are!" Joyce retorted, suddenly jumping to her feet. "Traveling six months or more a year, leaving Willow to care for herself…you barely even qualify as parents!"

Sheila gasped and put her hand on her chest. She opened her mouth, but no words came out. Ira grabbed Sheila's hand and pulled her to her feet.

"This conversation is over," Ira stated. "We'll deal with this in our own way."

Before Joyce could say another word, Ira ushered Sheila from the office and out of the gallery.

Late that afternoon, in Stevenson Hall, Buffy and Tara and Willow were busy studying. Willow sat at her desk, typing away on her laptop. Tara and Buffy were propped up on the bed, pillows behind them and books before them.

As Buffy copied a few lines from her textbook into her notebook, she felt soft fingers trail along her right forearm. She looked up and to her left, where Tara sat beside her. Tara smiled–a small but happy smile, her blue eyes beaming with love. She gave Buffy's arm a squeeze.

God, I will never get tired of seeing that face, Buffy thought to herself as she smiled back at Tara.

Buffy put down her pen and pulled Tara's face to hers, kissing her soundly. What had been meant as a brief embrace became more as Tara hungrily returned Buffy's kiss. The two disregarded papers and books alike as they moved into each other's arms.

At her desk, Willow looked up from her laptop and sighed resignedly. She turned slowly around and stared at her girlfriends making out on the bed. She sighed again.

"Sulu, shields up!" Willow said sarcastically as she turned back around and donned a set of headphones that had been lying next to her mouse pad. "Aye, Captain!" Then she resumed her typing.

Less than a minute later, the phone rang. Buffy reluctantly pulled away from Tara and flipped over to reach for the phone.

"Oh, hey Giles," Buffy replied as Willow turned around in her chair and took off her headphones. "What's up?" she asked her watcher.

"I need you and Willow and Tara to come over right away. Something's come up, and well, you just need to see for yourself."

Buffy didn't answer; she just stared at the wall. Willow and Tara looked on worriedly.

"Oh, that was Giles," Buffy answered absently. "He wants us to come over right away."

"What is it? What's happened?" Tara asked as she scooted over to the edge of the bed on Buffy's side.

Willow joined Tara, and the two of them looked at Buffy, waiting for her to continue. Buffy glanced at Willow and Tara, then looked away, moving toward the closet to get her shoes. She came back with them and finally met her girlfriends' eyes.

"It's Angel," she said. "He's here." Buffy paused and took a deep breath. "Him and Cordelia. And that guy from Wolfram and Hart, Lindsey. Something big must be goin' down."

"Angel," Willow whispered softly. After a long and awkward silence, Willow went on. "Have you, um, you know, told Angel about–"

"No," Buffy said instantly. Then she softened and came back to the bed, setting her shoes on the floor. "I know I should have, but it's just…hard. I don't want to hurt his feelings. I mean, I can move on, you know? But he can't and–"

"Buffy, it's okay," Tara said reassuringly, taking Buffy's hand. "We understand. Right, Will?"

Willow nodded and took Buffy's other hand. "Just tell us what you need us to do, and we'll do it, okay?"

Buffy nodded. "Well, during the meeting, until I've had time to talk to Angel, just keep your distance, and you know, keep your digits to yourselves." Buffy pulled her hands away, then she gestured at Willow and Tara. "Well, you two don't have to. With each other, I mean. What I mean is, just do it around me. I mean, don't do it around me. God, I am not making any sense at all."

In Giles' apartment, Angel and Cordelia sat on the couch. Giles sat in a chair nearby. When the front door opened, all turned to look. Willow and Tara came in first, followed by Buffy. Willow and Tara headed immediately for the sitting area, where Willow greeted everyone. Buffy stayed by the bar, setting her backpack on the floor next to the entrance to the hallway. Then she stood by the nearest stool and crossed her arms. Angel glanced at Buffy and then at Willow and Tara.

Tara blushed and ducked her head as she smiled. "Thanks, it's good to meet you too."

Willow guided Tara to another chair and then perched on the armrest next to her. Finally, Angel turned his gaze to Buffy. There was an awkward pause as the two former lovers looked at one another.

"Angel," Buffy replied. After another long moment of silence, Buffy said, "Where's Lindsey? I thought he came with you?"

"He's, um, in the bedroom," Giles answered. "He's actually the reason I called."

"Ah, yeah, you could say that," Cordelia said. "He's had a sudden absence of sanity."

"We think somebody did something to him, maybe cast a spell on him?" Angel told Willow. "I was hoping you could check him out."

Within a few minutes, Cordelia led Lindsey into the room. He had been cleaned up, and his wounds had been treated. His face was still battered and his expression crazed as he murmured to himself. As they came through the hallway, Lindsey's eyes caught sight of Buffy's backpack on the floor, where the FedEx package was sticking up out of the outside pocket.

Lindsey froze, staring in terror at the package. He began to whimper. Cordelia tried to nudge him forward, but he wouldn't move.

Lindsey suddenly went berserk, screaming and shoving Cordelia violently away from himself. Then he plowed over Buffy and headed for the door. Buffy flipped over and grabbed him by the leg, tripping him up. Angel leapt over the couch and ran to the door, blocking it. Lindsey fought frantically for a few moments before finally giving up. Angel held him in a tight grip as Buffy got to her feet.

Buffy retrieved her backpack, and as soon as Lindsey saw it, he became agitated once again. Buffy looked at Lindsey, then the package, and finally pulled the FedEx envelope out of her pack. She came toward Lindsey with it.

"No! No!" Lindsey cried, refusing to look at the package at all and trying unsuccessfully to pull from Angel's grip.

"I don't know," Buffy answered. "I picked it up last night when I stopped by my mom's. I haven't taken the time to open it." Buffy turned to Lindsey and showed him the package. "Lindsey, did you send this? Do you know what's inside?"

Lindsey shook his head back and forth before finally venturing a glance at the package. The veins in his neck and forehead were standing out as he seemingly had to force himself to look at it. He let out a strangled gasp as he clenched his teeth and jaw. For a moment, his gaze seemed lucid as he struggled to speak, but then he shook his head crazily again and started rocking in place.

"Nosy rats get tails cut off, the farmer's wife with a butcher's knife…" Lindsey began repeating.

While Angel and Cordelia got Lindsey settled into the bedroom once again, Buffy went and knelt in front of the coffee table. She set the package on the table and opened it. She pulled a manila folder full of sheets from the package. Giles leaned over to see.

"It looks like documents from Wolfram and Hart," Buffy said, passing a few sheets over to Giles and to Willow and Tara.

An hour or so later, Buffy and Giles, now alone in the living room, continued to pour over the documents.

"This…this is remarkable," Giles commented. "They've got records here I don't think the Council has ever seen."

Willow and Tara came out of the hallway and returned to the living room. Angel and Cordelia remained in the bedroom with Lindsey. Buffy and Giles turned to Willow and Tara expectantly.

"Something's definitely been done to him," Willow answered as she and Tara once again knelt beside Buffy on the floor.

"I think that whole thing with N'Faius freaked him out," Buffy answered. "Maybe he decided he was working for the wrong side."

"But what was he trying to tell us?" Tara asked. "I get the clear impression that he desperately wants to tell us something but can't."

"I don't know, Buffy. There may not be anything to get through to," Willow said. "His brain's pretty fried."

"Would it be dangerous?" Buffy asked, laying her hand on Willow's arm and looking into her girlfriends' eyes. "I don't want you two putting yourselves at–"

Buffy stopped when she saw Angel and Cordelia coming back in to the living room. She pulled away from Willow and Tara and stood up.

"He's sleeping now," Cordelia answered. "We thought it'd be best to sedate him for a little while."

"Good, that's good," Buffy said awkwardly, stuffing her hands into her pants pockets. "Um, Angel, can I, um, talk to you for a minute…alone?"

Buffy led Angel through the alcove outside Giles' apartment to a small bench in the side yard. Once they had sat down, Angel looked at Buffy and waited patiently for her to speak. After several long moments of uncomfortable silence, Buffy finally took a deep breath and began.

"I'm sorry," Buffy said sincerely. "I was going to," she said with conviction. "Eventually… someday…" she finished with a sheepish wince.

"You didn't have any problem telling me about soldier boy," Angel commented with a touch of annoyance in his voice.

"I know, but…" Buffy trailed off then tried again. "I just didn't know how you'd take it. I mean, can my relationship get any different from you and I had?"

"Plus…I just didn't want to rub your nose in it," Buffy added. "Oh, look at all the people I'm dating! I can be happy, but you can't!" she said in a sarcastic tone.

"I appreciate the thought, but I'm okay. I want you to be happy, Buffy. I do. That's why I left, remember?"

"Then I'm happy for you," Angel said, putting his arm around Buffy's shoulders and hugging her.

Buffy sighed and leaned in comfortably against him. "Thank you, Angel. That means a lot to me." After a moment, she added, "Now, if we can just get this whole Power of Three mess straightened out, things'll be–"

"Yeah, that's the other half of what I needed to tell you," Buffy answered. "It seems that me and Willow and Tara are some kind of special guardian trio for the hellmouth."

"I've heard of it, I think," Angel said. "A long time ago. Don't remember much, though."

"There's not a whole lot of information about it," Buffy informed him. "At least not in the Council's library. It looks like Wolfram and Hart has access to sources we don't have. Lindsey was here investigating us for the firm when that whole N'Faius thing went down."

"Sorry. We weren't really that sure of our information when we sent Lindsey on his way, and…well, like I said, I just didn't know how to tell you."

"That package we think Lindsey sent? It contains some documents from Wolfram and Hart, documents dealing with the Power of Three. We're thinking he got caught and they fried his brain."

A few days after Angel had gone back to L.A., Buffy came in from her afternoon class. She dropped her book bag on the floor and went to the phone. She dialed Angel's number and waited.

"Not yet. I've spent the last couple of days pummeling some of the demons known to have associated with the firm, but they don't know anything," Angel said. "I think I'm gonna have to go quite a bit higher in the food chain on this one."

"Do you really think Wolfram and Hart might be planning something against us?" Buffy asked, deep concern in her voice.

"It'd be the smart thing to do," he answered. "Take you guys out before you have a chance to master your powers and get stronger. Have you found anything else in those documents Lindsey sent you?"

"No, not really," Buffy admitted ruefully. "It's mostly historical stuff. Not so much as a how-to anywhere in it." Buffy sighed.

"Yeah, right. 'Take one of three, curséd be.' Oh, that's really scary. Gonna have all those evil doers just a-shakin' in their shoes with that one," Buffy said bitterly. "And that's if any of them even know about the stupid curse."

"At least we know Wolfram and Hart knows about it," Angel said. "That should help, right?"

"Yeah, I guess," Buffy said. "It's just what else they might know that worries me."

Across town, Willow stood outside the front door of her parents' house. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, thinking of Buffy and Tara.

"Call us if you need us," Tara had said. "Are you sure you don't want us to come along?"

"Just remember," Buffy had told her, "you are a bad-ass witch. If they go too far, you can always turn them into slugs."

At the memory of Buffy's line, Willow allowed herself a small laugh. Then she opened her eyes and went inside.

Willow found her parents in the living room sitting on the sofa. She sat in the chair across from them and met their eyes.

"We want to talk to you about this-this thing you have going with those other two women."

Willow's eyes narrowed, and she leaned forward, unfolding her arms. "First of all, 'those women' have names. They're Buffy and Tara. And secondly, this isn't a 'thing' we have going. It's a relationship. An unconventional one, I'll admit, but –"

"Now, now…tempers, tempers," Sheila said in a placating voice. "Let's not –"

"Oh let's," Willow said firmly. "I told you before. Buffy and Tara and I are in love, and we're going to stay that way. Nothing you can say or do is going to change that."

"You stop right there, young lady!" Ira called out to his daughter, causing her to stop in place. "If you walk out that door, you can kiss our financial support good-bye!"

Willow turned around slowly and looked at her parents in shock. "You'd cut me off? Just like that? Because of who I'm dating?"

Willow looked at her father and then her mother, then brought her eyes back to her father. "Fine," she said with conviction. "I'd rather be in the poor house with them than in your good graces without them!"

Willow turned back around and stomped to the front door. She slammed it loudly as she left.

Later that day, Buffy and Joyce sat at the bar in the Summers' home, drinking coffee together.

"They came by the gallery the other day," Joyce replied. "They were hoping for my assistance in breaking up what they considered to be an abnormal and dangerous relationship."

"Yes. I tried to convince them to give it time, to try to get to know you first, but they wouldn't listen."

"No surprise there. They've never listened to Willow, paid her any mind at all, until she did something they didn't like."

Joyce laughed. "I felt a little like the pot calling the kettle black afterwards, but yes, I did."

"Yes!" Buffy assured her. "Finding out you're the mother of the Slayer is way more freak-worthy than finding out your daughter's gay and dating two women at the same time. What you did…it was understandable."

"It hurt, I admit that," she told her mother. "But I get it now. I shouldn't've kept you in the dark all those years. If you had known what was going on, that would've never happened." Buffy made an angry pout. "Stupid Council and its stupid rules."

"She was upset at first, but after we talked, she felt better. We tried to make her feel good about standing up for herself."

"That's good. What about the money situation? Willow won't have to drop out of school, will she?" Joyce asked.

"No, Willow's on a full scholarship, so school's covered. It's just…there's no extra, you know? Nothing to fall back on," Buffy answered. "Plus, it means no off campus housing for us. At least not any time soon."

"Well, I've got good news on that front," Joyce reported. "I've talked to your father, and he's agreed to help with the finances so that you can move off campus."

"I didn't tell him about you and Willow and Tara being in a relationship, of course. That's your job," Joyce told her daughter. "But I did tell him the expenses wouldn't be too bad since you'd be splitting them three ways with your new roommates."

"Just remember that this arrangement is contingent on your grades remaining up," Joyce said. "Is that clear?"

Buffy saluted. "Ma'am, yes ma'am!" Buffy sat back down. "Don't worry. With Willow and Tara as roommates, I won't be allowed to be a slacker."

Meanwhile, back in Sunnydale, Willow and Tara walked through the overgrown yard up to Doc's dilapidated house. They went up the steps and knocked on the door.

Willow smiled back, then knocked on the door again. Within seconds, Doc cracked the door. He peered at the two of them through his thick glasses. When he recognized Willow, he opened the door fully, smiling widely.

Doc led Willow and Tara into the large den. It was still filled with books and papers and various magical items.

"Um, fine," Willow answered. Then she held out the book. "I just came to return this to you."

Doc took the book, running his hand over Willow's as he did so. "You didn't do the second one, did you?"

Willow glanced at Tara then blushed. "No, I didn't," Willow told him, pulling her hand back.

Doc's attention was suddenly drawn to Tara. He looked at her intently, even moved to stand in front of her as he stared.

"My, aren't you the interesting one," Doc said to Tara. "Won't be long now, will it?" He gave the blonde a wink.

"O-O-Okay," Willow said. "Thanks again," she told Doc as they headed for the front door.

"My pleasure," Doc replied as they went out the door and down the steps. "Any time," he added with a friendly wave.

Later that day, after her classes were over, Tara sat in the library alone. Her books lay open before her, but her eyes were not on them. She stared at the wall, a frown on her face. After a moment of tense reflection, she shook her head and looked down at her books. She sighed and shut them. Then she pulled out her journal instead. She opened it and began to write.

"Don't think about it," she whispered to herself, opening her eyes. "There's nothing you can do, so just…be happy for as long as you can."

The next day, Tara did her best to put on a happy face. It was honors day, and both she and Willow were receiving awards. She knew she would have to get on stage to accept her president's list certificate and scholarship renewal, but with all of her friends there to support her, she wasn't worried…not too much anyway.

Once she got past the nervous part of getting up in front of the crowd to accept her awards, Tara relaxed and enjoyed the rest of the ceremony. At the reception that followed, Tara stood near a column in the center of the large foyer of the convocation auditorium, waiting for the rest of the gang to return from the food table. She watched Buffy and Willow, Xander and Anya, and Mr. Giles and Mrs. Summers as they picked their way slowly down the table. It felt good to have people who supported her, who believed in her, who were proud of her achievements. Tara smiled warmly as she thought of them.

"Miss Maclay," Tara heard an official voice say behind her. Tara turned around and found Dean Henderson standing there. "Congratulations," the older woman continued, giving Tara's shoulder a friendly squeeze.

"I was just talking with your father about how excited we all are at having you here at UC Sunnydale," Dean Henderson said.

Tara glanced over at Giles beside the food table. "Oh, he's not my – " Tara stopped when Dean Henderson lifted her eyes to address someone coming up behind Tara.

Tara's eyes filled with fear as she turned slowly around. When she looked up and saw her father's face, she froze.

Mr. Maclay locked eyes with his daughter. "Oh, yes," he said in an even but slightly icy tone. "Very proud."

Across the room, Buffy and Willow stood at the end of the table next to the desserts. They were frowning and sending a deadly stare in Xander's direction. He held his plate close to his body and shielded it with his hands.

"Xander, you took the last one!" Buffy accused while Willow pointed at the now empty tray of cream puffs.

Willow stopped mid-sentence, and both she and Buffy immediately turned to look at Tara. After a moment, they set down their plates right on the food line and hurried in their girlfriend's direction.

Anya came up behind Xander. "They're abandoning their food? Quick, grab their shrimp!"

"Something's up," Xander said, setting his plate down as well and following Buffy and Willow.

Anya watched him go, glanced about to see if anyone was looking, then nabbed the shrimp from all three discarded plates. She made one more look around, then followed Xander.

Nearby, Giles saw the sudden exodus of Scoobies. He whispered into Joyce's ear, and the two of them also headed toward Tara.

Tara broke eye contact with her father and took a step back. "Dad, I…ummm…I d-d-didn't know you were here."

"Your brother and I," he answered. "You didn't tell us about the ceremony. We had to find out by postcard," he added, holding up the official announcement card from UC Sunnydale.

Tara looked at the forwarding sticker on the card and hung her head. You idiot! she thought to herself. You didn't change the false address you gave the school. It must have been sent back and then forwarded to your original permanent address back home. Idiot!

Tara glanced quickly at her father and then hung her head again. "S-S-Sorry…I… ummm…I d-d-didn't want to b-b-bother you. It's s-s-such a long d-d-drive." Tara lifted her eyes.

"When it comes my daughter, I'd do just about anything," he said. "Isn't that right, Tara?

"Y-Y-Yes, sir," she said with a quick nod, her eyes not leaving his. Tara barely registered when Buffy and Willow arrived and took up positions on each side of her and touched her arms.

"It's good to know that Tara has such a supportive family," Dean Henderson said, patting Mr. Maclay's arm before leaving to mingle elsewhere.

Buffy and Willow looked at Tara inquisitively, but she still stared at her father.

At Willow's question, Tara finally blinked and looked away. She met her girlfriends' eyes briefly, then glanced at Xander, Anya, Giles, and Joyce as they arrived. Mr. Maclay straightened and took in the sight of the small crowd around Tara. His eyes narrowed, then he forced a small smile.

The Power of Three

Book Two

by DragonWriter17

Copyright © 2004

DragonWriter17@aol.com