<see
Part 1 for
disclaimers>
************************
Willow was more than a little grumpy when they finally wheeled her into her room for the afternoon. It felt like someone had scrambled her brains and added a major dose of pain to the confusion.
Seeing Tara waiting impatiently helped put a smile
on the red haired witch’s face. The
blonde whimpered slightly at the look of pain on Willow’s face when they
transferred from the gurney onto the hospital bed and helped her settle
in. Finally they were alone and Willow
noticed Tara standing off near the wall, hesitating.
Willow managed to smile and held out her hand in invitation and need. Tara smiled and moved quickly to Willow’s side and was very surprised when the other witch pulled the blonde into her arms.
“Goddess, I don’t want to go through that again!”
Willow muttered. “I feel like I was
split apart and tossed into a blender and thrown into a new mold.”
Tara couldn’t help but grin at the weird description
as she pulled back and sat on the edge of the bed, Willow keeping her hand
firmly gripped on Tara’s.
“I asked Giles if there was anything I should watch
out for while you were in surgery,” Tara said softly, brushing a strand of hair
behind her ear.
“What do you mean?”
“If witches react differently to surgery and if I
should be aware of anything,” Tara answered.
“Very smart,” Willow commented and smiled when Tara
blushed under the compliment. “Did he
tell you anything? Like why I feel so weird and out of synch and any word about
Buffy?”
“Yes,” Tara tried to keep smiling but Willow could
sense the blonde’s mood. “There’s not
much change in Buffy, she’s still sick and fighting the poison.”
“What time is it?” Willow also lost her smile.
“Three in the afternoon,” Tara nodded at Willow’s
puzzled expression. “They said you had
trouble coming out of the anesthesia and they kept you in Recovery longer than
usual. Giles insisted I call your
parents but they’re out of town according to their answering machine.”
“I’ve got to get to Buffy,” Willow said firmly.
“They are not going to let you out of here until
tomorrow morning at the earliest.
They’re concerned about the recovery thing,” Tara informed her fellow
Wiccan.
“What is up with that anyway?” Willow frowned.
“Giles did some research while Mrs. Summers is
watching Buffy,” Tara began explaining.
“Seems that there are some things about witches and sensitive people,
those close to the earth and the psychic energies have problems going through
surgery. The anesthesia works on the
body and the mind in strange ways. You
know how the spirit can separate from the body during sleep and astral
projection, right?”
“Of course, we do it frequently during meditation
and lucid dreaming,” Willow nodded, trying to focus through the throbbing pain
of her hand.
“Well, somehow some anesthesia can do that as
well. The spirit separates from the
body and goes traveling, just like dreaming or astral traveling,” Tara
continued.
“Okay, so what’s the problem?”
“Unfortunately, when the spirit is under anesthesia
we don’t remember the travel, we don’t dream and the mind doesn’t absorb the
passage of time,” Tara tried explaining, hoping that she was getting what Giles
had said right.
“Yes!” Willow’s eyes cleared a little. “That’s part of the problem, I remember
someone saying they were going to give me some meds and then someone was waking
me up. No time difference.”
“Messes with the mind and the spirit. Unlike dreaming, there’s no gentle returning
back to the body, under anesthesia the spirit is brought back abruptly, without
warning,” Tara continued, unconsciously stroking Willow’s hand. “Sometimes the spirit doesn’t come back.”
“People who die under anesthesia,” Willow surmised.
“Yes, I was worried,” Tara admitted, her eyes
dropping to the sheet and blanket covering Willow.
The blonde witch was surprised when Willow pulled
Tara’s hand, bringing the other witch close to her and wrapped her injured arm
around Tara. Both witches moaned when
their lips met once more.
The kiss was soft, tender and loving. Tara pulled back reluctantly. Willow looked into Tara’s blue eyes and saw
hope, sadness, and confusion.
Willow dropped her head and cradled her wounded
hand.
She felt tears beginning to build up in her eyes.
“Tara, I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I shouldn’t have done that.”
“Willow, I… I know you’re in l-love with Buffy,”
Tara said softly, fighting back her own tears.
“You always have been and I think she loves you. I won’t come between that.”
The tears finally escaped Willow’s eyes and she
began to cry as Tara drew the witch into her arms.
“I don’t know what I’m feeling,” Willow
complained. “I know I love Buffy,
finally admitting that. It’s not fair
though, I’m also falling head over heels in love with you. How can that happen? I mean, can I love both of you? I can’t hurt either of you; I don’t know
what to do…”
“Shhhh,” Tara whispered, gently rocking Willow as
the young woman sobbed.
“Oz tried to hurt me!” Willow continued to cry, the emotional
overload as well as the physical pain getting to her. “He didn’t only want to bite me, he tried to rape me!”
“I know,” Tara cried with her friend and potential
lover.
“How could he do that?” Willow sobbed. “Then he hurt Buffy! Bit her, threw you
through a window and hurt Giles!”
“It gets worse, Willow,” Tara said softly and Willow
pulled back.
“How? Is Buffy worse?” she demanded.
“A little,” Tara admitted and pushed Willow back
down onto the bed. “The poison is
spreading and she’s not coming out of it.”
“I’ve got to get to her,” Willow mumbled and fell
back onto the bed trying to keep her eyes open. “What’s wrong with me?”
“The pain is getting to you and they gave you pain
meds when they brought you back in,” Tara explained, gently brushing Willow’s
hair off her forehead. “Oz called
Giles, he and his pack have Xander and Anya.”
Willow began to cry softly and Tara moved to lay
alongside Willow and took the witch into her arms.
“He wants me in exchange for them, doesn’t he?”
Willow asked softly.
“Yes,” Tara admitted.
“What do I do?
Everyone I know is getting hurt because of me,” Willow mumbled.
“Not because of you!” Tara said forcefully. “Because Oz has turned into a bastard! He’s the one hurting everyone, not you!”
“That’s my girl,” Willow managed to smile, unable to
keep her eyes open. “You lose that
stutter when you’re passionate,” she mumbled.
“Wonder if you stutter in….”
Tara’s eyes opened wide and she felt herself
blushing as Willow drifted into a drugged sleep. What was Willow about to
say?
What did all this mean for
the both of them? Tara felt complete whenever
Willow was around and didn’t want to lose that but she also knew that Willow
had been in love with Buffy for years, even if the witch hadn’t admitted it to
anyone, including herself.
This was going to get
complicated,
she complained while running her fingers lightly through Willow’s hair.
************************
Giles removed his glassed and rubbed his hand across
his eyes. Joyce refused to move from
Buffy’s side and the Slayer hadn’t gotten any better. She still tossed as if she had a fever and the streaks had grown
darker and more pronounced.
Joyce’s eyes widened in surprise and confusion when
the Watcher entered the bedroom carrying something that clanked. Then her eyes narrowed in anger when she
realized what Giles was carrying and why.
Chains and shackles for a suspected werewolf. A suspected werewolf who happened to be her
daughter.
Giles looked guilty and began blushing as Joyce
stood up, her face as angry as her eyes.
“Rupert!” Joyce snapped.
“Joyce, please!” he begged quietly. “We don’t know; she could turn at any
moment.”
“She’s so sick she won’t even wake up!” Joyce
protested.
“I’m sorry, Joyce,” Giles choked on his own words as
he watched Buffy thrash weakly. He
didn’t know how much longer she could go on; she was getting weaker by the
hour. “I know she’s sick and I’m hoping
if she does turn into a werewolf she won’t be strong enough to break the
chains.”
“Giles, do you seriously think that I’m going to let
you chain my daughter up?” Joyce demanded.
“I know none of this has been easy,” Giles said
softly. “You’re going to have to trust
me in this, Joyce. I know I’ve failed
Buffy in the past but this is what’s best.
She would never forgive herself if she turned into a werewolf and hurt
someone and I would never forgive myself either.”
Joyce Summers sat down on the bed beside her
daughter and cried softly.
“This isn’t fair, Rupert!” she complained. “Your damned Council took my daughter when
she was barely fifteen and turned her into a killer. This damned destiny of hers! It robbed her of her teenage years
and now possibly her adult life.”
Giles couldn’t meet her eyes, everything she said
was true and he knew it. He was also
aware that she knew he didn’t have a choice in his role either. The choice to leave the Council of Watchers
hadn’t been the hardest decision he had ever made, they’re betrayal of Buffy
had made it easy. Living with the
decision had been difficult, the Council had saved him from the darkness he had
fallen into and their resources had saved Buffy and the world several
times. On the other hand, they merely
saw Buffy as a tool and condemned his closeness to the Slayer.
“I’m sorry, Joyce,” he muttered and moved to attach
one of the leg shackles to Buffy’s ankle and the other end to the metal frame
of his heavy wrought iron bed. “We only
have to get through tonight. There’s
only one more night of the full moon.
Look, I don’t know what Oz will do but he might show up looking for
Willow. Do you know how to use a gun?”
“No, but I’m about to learn, that little bastard had
better not show up in my sights,” Joyce Summers growled and Rupert Giles had a
flash of where Buffy got her stubborn streak.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Tara looked up when the door to Willow’s room
opened; she was expecting to see another nurse or doctor and was surprised when
a man in a suit stepped into the room.
Tara’s hand moved under Willow’s pillow and she realized the man had
noticed the movement. He put up his
hands in a peaceful gesture and slowly reached inside his coat.
“Easy, I’m detective Brad Santiago,” he introduced
himself, pulling out his badge and identification.
Tara relaxed a little and sat up, quickly looking
down and sighing with relief when Willow kept on sleeping.
“Is she up to answering some questions?” he asked
softly, taking note of how young and frail the red head looked lying in a
hospital bed.
“I don’t think so,” Tara frowned. “They just gave her some more drugs for the
pain.”
“You were around most of last night, weren’t you?”
he asked, keeping his voice low.
“Yes,” Tara responded, moving carefully off the bed.
“Would you answer some questions?” he asked,
motioning to the door.
Tara’s frown deepened and she glanced back at
Willow.
“I have two police officers right outside the door,
she’ll be safe,” he informed the young witch.
“Okay,” Tara finally agreed.
Brad Santiago’s sharp eyes noticed the weariness in
the young woman as well as the red-rimmed eyes and nodded to himself. He had read the initial report from the
police officer about the attack on Willow Rosenburg and knew that this was
something more than just a simple domestic fight. The police officer had been very detailed in his description of
Ms. Rosenburg’s injuries and how serious they were.
When the report came in that two of Ms. Rosenburg’s
friends were missing and no one had seen them since the night of her attack,
Brad Santiago became concerned and involved.
His first planned stop was to the hospital, then he
planned on stopping to see Ms. Rosenburg’s friend who had reported the young
couple missing, Mr. Rupert Giles.
He led the young woman to the cafeteria and forced
her to pick something more solid than just the coke she first reached for. She finally settled on a large salad, and
baked potato to go along with the coke.
Brad chose a cheeseburger, fries and a coke.
The detective encouraged the young college student
to eat before asking her any questions.
He wolfed down his food, mostly from the long habit of having to eat on
the run but also from wanting to observe the student before asking her any
questions.
“I take it that you’re Tara, Ms. Rosenburg’s
friend,” he began gently.
“Yes,” Tara answered, her hair almost concealing her
face.
Brad smiled slightly. “You remind me of my daughter,” he mused. “She’s a lot younger, though. She’s only fourteen going on thirty.”
Tara glanced up at the detective, trying to
relax.
“She’s awfully shy around strangers,” he continued,
focusing on his fries. “I’m sort of
glad; better than a rebellious teenager staying out all night and worrying me
to death.”
Tara smiled slightly and sat back in her seat and
rubbed her eyes.
“When was the last time you slept?” Brad asked.
“I got a couple of hours last night,” Tara pondered
for a moment.
“Can you tell me about Ms. Rosenburg and her
relationship with her ex-boyfriend?”
“Oz,” Tara responded. “They had broken up before I met her this semester. She was still hurting a lot over it.”
“He broke up with her?” Brad questioned with a
frown.
“Yeah, she caught him with someone else and he left
town, he barely said goodbye,” Tara looked puzzled.
“That’s unusual for a stalker relationship,” Brad
commented. “The stalker usually doesn’t
break up with the victim.”
Tara shrugged.
“He told her he needed to get his act together and left. She was getting over him,” Tara
continued. “Willow began to focus on
class and… other things, her friends, research, me. Then Oz showed up yesterday looking for her.”
“When was this?” Brad asked, pulling out a notebook.
“I don’t know,” Tara answered. “Buffy, her roommate, showed up at my room
looking for Willow and they talked. It
was about an hour before sundown when Willow was pounding on my door, screaming
for help.”
Brad noted Tara’s voice catching and her shaking
hands.
“I got her inside my room and locked the door,” Tara
continued, her voice droppingg even lower.
“We barricaded the door. He…he
was pounding and screaming for Willow to open the door. I called Campus Security and heard him
running down the hall. Then I saw she
was hurt.”
“Why didn’t you go to the hospital right then, or
the police?” he questioned.
“I guess we weren’t thinking,” Tara responded,
sticking to the original story of an abusive boyfriend while leaving out the
part of him changing into a werewolf and wanting to change his ex-girlfriend
into a werewolf too. “Willow wanted to
get to Giles place, she was worried about everyone and we all planned to meet
there.”
“Giles is?”
“He used to be the librarian at the high school and
they are close friends,” Tara tried explaining. How could you explain the
relationship that Giles had with the kids without it sounding weird, a
voice inside Tara demanded. “He’s like
a father to Willow and Buffy.”
“How did you get there?”
“I called Buffy, Willow’s best friend and roommate,
and then we caught a cab,” Tara answered.
“Did you get there first or did Buffy? What’s
Buffy’s last name?”
“Buffy Summers,” Tara answered. “We got there before Buffy did. She didn’t think Oz would be looking for her
so she ran over.”
“What happened next?”
“We told Giles what was happening and he wrapped
Willow’s hand,” Tara felt tears falling down her cheeks as she remembered the
redhead’s pain. “He was about to call
the police when Oz broke into the condo and attacked everyone.”
Brad Santiago’s eyebrows raised in surprise. That wasn’t in the police report but Brad
knew he was hearing the truth; the girl in front of him was too tired to be too
evasive.
“You didn’t report this?”
“He cut the phone lines before breaking in, we
couldn’t call out. He slammed Giles
into the wall, threw me out the window,” Tara continued and lifted her arms to
show him the numerous scratches and cuts along her arms. “He then tried to… he wanted…”
Brad pulled out a handkerchief as Tara began to cry
a little harder.
“Willow said he tried to attack her, he tried to…”
Tara stuttered. “He grabbed her hand
and hurt her again. He ripped her shirt
off and… he tried…”
Brad leaned forward and placed a hand on top of
Tara’s.
“I understand,” he said gently. Outwardly, the detective was calm and
gentle; inside he was enraged. He knew
what Oz had tried on the young woman and he felt a familiar anger hitting
him. The detective despised anyone who
could hurt another person and he especially hated anyone who would use sex to
hurt someone else.
“Buffy showed up and they fought, she was hurt but
he ran off,” Tara continued. “Oz said
he wasn’t alone and we were afraid to leave the condo until morning. The rest I told the police officer.”
“I read the report,” Brad confirmed. “The doctor says that Ms. Rosenburg’s hand
was brutally broken in many places and that it’ll be a long time before she has
full use of it again.”
“That’s what they told us,” Tara agreed, nodding
slightly.
“There wasn’t anything in the report about Buffy’s
injuries or Mr. Giles,” he commented.
“Giles and Buffy’s Mom are watching her, she got
really sick and Giles was a little shook up but okay,” Tara explained.
“Do you know that your friends Xander Harris and
Anya Smith are missing?” he questioned, watching her reactions carefully.
“Giles told me last time I called him,” Tara nodded,
“he said Oz has them.”
“Yes, that’s what he reported to us, that’s why I’m
here,” Brad Santiago responded.
“Of course, it wouldn’t be just because Willow was
attacked by her ex-boyfriend, had to be something more serious,” Tara’s voice
held more than just a touch of bitterness.
“I’m sorry, we do our best but Sunnydale can be a
busy place for the police,” Brad tried to explain.
“I know, it’s just that he… he hurt her so badly,”
Tara felt fresh tears beginning to flow down her face.
“Do you have any idea where he might have them?”
“No, none,” Tara shook her head. “I only met Oz last night when he threw me
through a window.”
“We have officers looking for both Oz and your
friends, why don’t you go back to your friend,” Brad suggested. “The police officers outside her door have
orders not to let anyone in not on the list Mr. Giles gave us.”
“Who did he say?”
The detective flipped a page back in his notebook
and consulted it. “You, Joyce Summers,
and Rupert Giles. Buffy Summers, Xander
Harris and Anya Smith if they are accompanied by either you or Mr. Giles.”
“Why the stipulation?” Tara wondered aloud.
“He said that they might upset Ms. Rosenburg without
someone with them,” Brad Santiago answered.
“Okay,” Tara nodded. She suddenly realized that Giles wanted someone known to be safe
with any of the three in case they had been turned into a member of Oz's pack.
“Why don’t you go back to your friend,” Brad
suggested. “Try and get some
sleep. I know that hospital chairs
aren’t comfortable but I have the feeling you won’t leave her side, will you?”
Tara knew she was blushing a bright red. “No, I won’t leave her alone.”
“We’ll do our best to find your friends,” he
promised.
“I know,” Tara mumbled and began to work her way
back to Willow’s room. The police
officers nodded as she opened the door.
The young witch pulled the chair next to Willow’s
bed and gently took the redhead’s healthy hand in hers and leaned her head on
the bed, closing her eyes.
************************
It was the longest night of everyone’s life up to
that point.
************************
Giles blinked and ran a hand through his hair as he
sat up. He tried to think, his face
reflecting his confusion.
The former Watcher grabbed the pistol off the coffee
table and stumbled to his feet and padded down the hallway to his bedroom. It had been a rough night for both Giles and
Joyce; they had taken turns watching over the Slayer while Buffy grew weaker
and weaker until she was no longer thrashing just before dawn.
He stopped in the doorway in surprise as he looked
at Joyce’s smiling face and Buffy’s blue eyes looking at him. Giles groaned faintly and quickly moved to
the side of his Slayer, his friend, and the girl he thought of as a
daughter. She smiled slightly as he
knelt beside the bed and examined her arm, eyes and forehead.
The streaks were gone and her arm was showing the
typical signs of a Slayer’s advanced healing abilities.
“Oh thank God,” he muttered, leaning his head on the
bed next to her arm.
“Hey, I take it I scared you,” Buffy whispered.
“She just woke up,” Joyce explained.
Giles smiled as he raised his head. “Yes, quite a scare, young lady,” he agreed
softly. “You’ve been awfully sick
fighting off that werewolf bite and, quite frankly, we didn’t know if you’d
make it.”
“Where’s Willow and Tara?” Buffy asked, accepting
Giles’ help in sitting up while her mother held a glass of water to her lips.
“Now don’t panic,” Giles began, keeping a firm grip
on her shoulders. “Willow is in
hospital,” he tightened his grip as Buffy quickly attempted to sit up. “Oz broke her hand in several places and
they had to operate yesterday. They’re
going to release her this morning.”
“She’s okay though?” Buffy demanded. “And Tara, she
was pretty shaken up?”
“Tara is doing alright, she hasn’t left Willow’s
side at hospital,” Giles continued.
“Willow’s hand will need a lot of therapy and she’s going to be in a
great deal of pain. The injury was
quite severe.”
“And she doesn’t have my healing abilities,” Buffy
said ruefully.
“Exactly,” Giles agreed.
“I’m sorry, Mom,” Buffy said, reaching out to hug
her mom tightly as Giles sat behind her.
“I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Are you okay?
It’s not everyday my daughter gets bit by a werewolf,” Joyce asked.
“I don’t know, I feel okay,” Buffy frowned. “My arm hurts but I don’t feel fuzzy or
furry,” she tried to smile. “Maybe in
desperate need of a shower but not a collar.”
Joyce and Giles both shook their heads at her
attempt at humor.
“When’s Willow getting out and where’s Xan and
Anya?”
“Willow will be released this morning, probably
late,” Giles answered and then hesitated.
Buffy caught the hesitation and turned to stare him in the eyes, her
probing eyes making him uncomfortable.
“Oz has Xander and Anya and wants to trade Willow for them. He also thinks you’ll now turn into a
werewolf and be on his side.”
“What does that mean? Do werewolves work together?
I thought they were just pretty much mindless, like,” Buffy asked.
“I don’t know,” Giles admitted. “I need to do some research and make some
calls. Oz wasn’t acting like a normal
werewolf and he mentioned a pack helping him.”
“Well, he had a pack of vampires who tried to ambush
me on the way over here,” Buffy mentioned.
They hadn’t had a chance to talk about the fight or anything before Buffy
had fallen sick to the werewolf bite.
“Vampires and werewolves normally don’t work
together,” Giles muttered and then his eyes filled with tears and brightened
with emotion. “And you, young lady!
Intentionally taking a werewolf bite!
What were you thinking?”
“I couldn’t let him bite Wills,” Buffy’s eyes also
began shining with intensity. “I
grabbed him from behind but he had a firm hold on her. I had to stop his bite.”
“With your arm?” Giles snapped, getting up from the
bed and beginning to pace. “Why
couldn’t you shove a stake down his throat?”
“I would have if I could!” Buffy growled back. “Giles, I would have done it differently if
I had time and if I could have. I
couldn’t let him bite Willow.”
“Buffy, he didn’t intend to kill her, only bite
her,” Giles argued, hating himself for his line of thought but unable to stop
his own argument. “Willow, we could
probably control as a werewolf, I don’t know what we’d do with a Slayer
werewolf.”
Joyce recognized the anger and stubbornness coming
over her daughter’s face and moved back to the foot of the bed. The emotions were almost radiating off the
young Slayer as she glared at her former teacher, mentor, friend and father
figure.
“Nothing can hurt Willow! If it’s a choice between Willow’s life and mine, then there’s no
contest!” Buffy said quietly but firmly.
“I’d rather you keep this goddamn chain on my ankle for the rest of my
life than see her go through one night of hell as a werewolf if I can help it!”
Giles began blushing, remembering the chain and
shackle still on the young woman’s ankle and moved to unlock it, refusing to
meet her eyes for the moment.
“Buffy,” he began quietly. “How long have you been in love with Willow?”
“Oh God,” she whispered, her anger dissipating in
the face of the question. Her blue eyes
quickly sought out her mother’s face, fear and hope both flashing across the
Slayer’s face.
“It’s okay Buffy,” Joyce said softly. “I realized it when you kept calling for
Willow and no one else and you took the bite to keep her safe.”
“I called for her?” Buffy whispered.
“Over and over again,” Giles confirmed.
Buffy’s head dropped and Joyce moved up to the head
of the bed once more to hold her daughter close.
“I love her, Mom,” Buffy felt herself begin to
cry. “I think she’s in love with Tara
but I realized I’m like in love with her.”
“How does Willow feel about you?” Joyce asked.
“I haven’t told her,” Buffy said softly.
“Gods, this is going to be complicated,” Giles
complained. “I know Willow loves you
and has been IN love with you for years.
She’s also very attracted to Tara and Tara is very much in love with
her. We don’t need a love triangle
interfering with things right now.”
“I know that, Giles!” Buffy snapped. “That’s why I haven’t said anything to her.”
“I don’t think you’ll have to,” Giles mumbled. “I’ve seen the way she looks at you as
well.”
“Can we sort this out later?” Buffy argued. “Don’t you think I should have food, regain
energy, find Xander and Anya and kill Oz today?”
Joyce shook her head with a small smile at her
daughter’s resilience.
“And we have a month to find out if that werewolf
bite infected you or not,” Giles mumbled.
Everyone jumped when the phone on the nightstand
rang. Giles reached down and picked up
the receiver, expecting the police or Tara from the hospital.
“Hello?” he answered.
“Hey, old man,” Oz’s voice cut through any
confusion. “I know that Willow isn’t at
your place but I’m betting that you know where she is. Deal is still good until tonight, she trades
herself or Xander and his girlfriend won’t see daylight. They’re already a little worse for wear.”
“Don’t you dare harm them!” Giles shouted as Buffy
swung her legs off the bed and her feet hit the floor.
"Or what?" Oz laughed. "Just tell her to come alone."
"She doesn't know where you are," Giles
protested, hoping to get some kind of clue out of the insane young werewolf.
"Willow can figure it out," Oz said
confidently and hung up.
“What’d he say?” Buffy demanded.
“He’s hurt Xander and Anya,” Giles said softly. “Says he still will trade them for Willow
and she’ll know where he is.”
“That doesn’t make sense,” Joyce complained.
“Nothing makes sense any more,” Giles agreed.
************************
Willow moaned, her hand hurt and she was
uncomfortable. Instantly, Tara was
awake and was still holding Willow’s uninjured hand. She tried to smile as Willow opened her green eyes and smiled at
the other witch.
“Hey, have you been there all night?” she asked
softly and knew the answer when Tara began blushing and Willow noticed Tara was
in the same clothes as the day before.
“Did you eat at all?”
“Yeah, Giles came down yesterday and gave me money
for food, he figured we hadn’t thought to grab money when we left the dorm,”
Tara explained. “I had dinner while
talking with a detective.”
“Detective?” Willow questioned.
“Yeah, a Brad Santiago,” Tara continued. “He’ll want to talk to you. Xander and Anya
are still missing and Giles told the police Oz has them.”
“What did you tell him?” Willow asked anxiously, “And
what about Buffy?”
“I told him that Oz was your boyfriend and you
caught him with someone else and broke up.
He came back and hurt you when you went to talk with him. He asked why we didn’t call the police from
the dorm and I admitted that we weren’t thinking and only thought about getting
to Giles’ place. Then I told him that
Oz ripped out the phone and we couldn’t call and Oz attacked us, hurting you again,
throwing the rest of us around.”
Willow nodded.
“Nothing about him getting furry and… what he tried… with me?”
Tara blushed a brighter red. “I told him that Oz tried to h-hurt you like
that.”
“Oh,” Willow’s eyes dropped to the blanket and the
cast on her forearm and hand. She
understood that it was probably best to tell the police about that part of the
attack but it was still an icky feeling.
The young college student tried to mentally shake herself, she was acting like a typical victim,
she knew. She snapped at herself that she had nothing to be ashamed of; he
was the one trying to hurt her, damnit.
Willow looked up after a moment and moved her hand
to gently touch Tara’s cheek.
“I dreamed of you and Buffy,” the redhaired witch
said softly.
“I dreamed of both of you,” Tara said, her eyes
widening in surprise.
“Wow,” Willow whispered. “What does this mean?”
“I don’t know,” Tara admitted. “I spent a lot of time thinking last night,
watching you sleep. I know what you and
B-Buffy do is dangerous and living in Sunnydale is risky every day. I don’t want to lose either of you.”
Willow pulled Tara into a one-armed embrace and held
the blonde witch close. “I don’t want
to lose you or Buffy either.”
“So what does that mean for us?” Tara asked.
Willow felt tears filling her eyes again. “I don’t know,” she admitted.
Tara sat up rapidly when the door opened, her hand
reaching under Willow’s pillow again until they realized it was the doctor from
the day before and so relaxed.
“Well, how are you feeling, Ms. Rosenburg?”
“Call me Willow, please,” the green-eyed young woman
smiled. “I’m okay.”
“Willow, you should be getting breakfast in a few
minutes. I wanted to say that the
operation went well,” he said, pulling up Tara’s chair and looking closely at
Willow’s fingers sticking out of the cast.
“I’m not saying things are going to be easy, the bone specialist would
like to get his hands on your boyfriend.”
“What is the prognosis?” Willow asked frankly.
“A long and painful road to recovery,” Doctor
O’Connor admitted with a kind look.
“Your fingers were broken in several places and at several different
angles. Like I explained yesterday, a
couple of months in that cast, another operation to remove the pins, time in
another cast and then therapy.”
“What can go wrong?” Willow asked.
“You push too hard and too soon and undo the work
the pins will provide under that cast.
There might be some nerve damage, some of the fingers might feel a
little numb,” Dr. O’Connor explained.
“You might have some muscle spasms occasionally and definitely arthritis
when you’re older.”
“I thought I might when I got older because of the
computer work,” Willow said thoughtfully.
“Count on it now,” Dr. O’Connor nodded.
“The numb thing,” Willow hesitated. “how bad could it get? I’m a computer type person.”
“It could be a problem typing,” the doctor
admitted. “Good thing you’re right
handed, though.”
“That bad?” Tara asked.
“Ever try to zip up a pair of jeans with one hand?”
Dr. O’Connor smiled slightly. “Or tie
your shoes? Cut up a steak?”
Willow’s face went a little pale, realizing what she
was facing just being in the cast and Dr. O’Connor nodded.
“You’ll need a lot of help just with everyday stuff
until you adapt,” he continued.
“There’s going to be pain, almost constantly and it’ll be worse when you
start therapy.”
“Terrific!” Willow muttered.
“I know, I’m going to write your follow up and
prescriptions while they feed you and you’ll probably be out of here in an
hour,” Dr. O’Connor smiled and stood up.
“We’ll set you up for a follow-up appointment.”
“Thanks, Dr. O’Connor,” Willow said softly.
“Terrific, we’ll get you out of here, we see Giles
who has answers and Buffy,” Tara smiled.
Willow waited until the door was totally shut and
reached under her pillow. Tara began
blushing when the student pulled out a silver dagger. Willow raised her eyebrows and Tara shrugged.
“Giles brought it for me,” Tara explained.
“Good idea,” Willow said softly and reached behind
Tara’s neck and pulled the witch’s lips to hers.
Tara wanted to pull back, she didn’t want this to
get complicated until Willow was sure what and who she wanted but she felt
herself melting into Willow and moaned softly.
She wasn’t sure how long they kissed but it felt as if it was forever
though not long enough.
“Willow,” Tara tried after they broke apart, resting
her head against Willow’s. “That was…,”
“Nice?” Willow asked softly, her hand playing
through Tara’s hair, her breathing faster than normal.
“More than nice,” Tara admitted. “Goddess, what are we going to do? I like
Buffy and I know that you’re in love with her too. I don’t want to hurt either of you but I don’t want to let this
go either.”
“I don’t know, I really don’t know,” Willow tried to
not break into tears again.
“I’m going to call Giles and find out what’s going
on while they feed you.”
“Okay, then maybe help me get dressed?” Willow said
softly and began blushing, hating to ask for help but realizing that she was
going to need it to even get her jeans back on.
Tara smiled a shy smile and nodded.