Sorry it took so long, but this was a very complicated chapter to write, and it needed some extra-special beta help.
But finally, all that chanting has paid off. There is pain, of course, as Willow finally confronts Tara, and Tara desperately clings to her own resolve to protect Willow. But... I told you to chant "26" for a reason, so I'm removing the Big Honkin' Angst Warning. We have finally reached the payoff for all this angst I've put y'all through, and a major turning point in the story. I hope you like it.
I'll get to replies as soon as I have time. Sorry, but school's keeping me quite busy at the moment. Also, I hope this section will be enough to tide you over for a while, as I've been ordered not to even think about writing Part 27 until after my exam Monday (I don't want to face the wrath of Mel, lol).
Once again, special kudos to my beta. Tulipp, you are in a class all by yourself. Also, thanks to Ruth for her wisdom and insight (though she probably will have no clue what I'm talking about).
-BB
Title: The Truth of Deception - Part 26: Intensity
Author: blameburner
Feedback: Sure… Always a plus
Summary: AU, baby! So you all know by now... Tara is part of the Initiative. Plenty of questions remain, however, and the answers will be revealed... eventually.
Spoiler Warning: S4. Everything up to "Hush" is canon. After that, this story veers off. There will be some similarities to S4, but definite differences. Basically, if it happened after "Hush" on the show, assume it
didn't happen unless I mention it specifically.
Disclaimer: Not my characters, but oh how I wish they were! Joss, blah, blah, ME, blah, blah.
Rating: NC-17
Pairings: W/T, of course. Also B/R.
Angst: Um, beginning sucks, end sucks differently.
I'll say 5.
Previously..."Tara," she cried softly, more quietly than the last time but no less urgently.
Tara met Willow's gaze, feeling herself get lost even as her mind screamed at her to move, to run, to do something - anything - other than stand there as Willow moved closer. She couldn't let herself get lost. She knew the path she had to take, and it wasn't to Willow. It was away.
Lightning flashed in the sky, catching Willow off guard with it's intensity. She looked up for a brief moment, and when she looked back... Tara was walking away.
"Tara!" Willow screamed, but it was no use. Tara kept walking, running now, heading out into the woods and as far from Willow as she could.
Willow stood there, stunned. Tara was running away. Tara was leaving. Tara wouldn't fight. Tara had given up. Willow had lost.
Thunder rolled all around her, shaking her with its ferocity, shaking her from her stupor.
Willow hadn't lost the fight. She hadn't even begun.
"Oh no you don't, Tara MaClay! You are not walking away from me!" she yelled, and then took off running after Tara.
Part 26Wet branches slapped her cheeks and her feet tried to find purchase on the mud-soaked ground as she fled from Willow. Fled from her heart. She couldn't stop, couldn't look back. The sight of Willow from across the quad - beautiful, breathtaking Willow, with such desperation in her eyes and on her lips - and Tara had felt her resolve start to crumble. She could feel the pull, even now, from Willow - to Willow. No force of gravity had a stronger pull, and she had to escape Willow's orbit before she was lost.
"Tara, stop!" Willow shouted, all her pain, all her grief from the last twelve hours pooling within her, heating then hardening to a steely resolve. Had it only been twelve hours? It seemed like she had lived a lifetime in that time, and as it was with the nearing of the end of any life, she felt an intense need to make things right. To make peace with her soul, and there was only one way to do that. She had to get Tara back.
Which was only pissing her off now, as Tara just kept running. Running away. Running away from her.
Damn it Tara! I can't fix this if you keep running! Stop running! Tara's escape attempt was messing with Willow's plans, and Willow hated when her plans got messed with. The need to stop Tara, to make her face the truth, had seemed to push all the emotion from Willow's body, except indignation. Willow would have thought her reaction was quite scientifically interesting, if she had stopped to think about it. But there was no time to stop. Resolve demanded, and Willow was more than happy to abide. Besides, she was gaining on Tara.
"Tara MaClay, you stop right this minute, or I swear by the Goddess-"
Willow let out a startled "oof" as suddenly she wasn't running anymore. Tara had stopped running, spinning and grabbing Willow by the shoulders.
"Are you crazy?" Tara yelled, even though she was right in front of Willow. The storm was overpowering, beating back any sound other than the rain pounding against whatever it touched, but that wasn't why Tara was yelling, either.
Willow's eyes went wide. Okay…not the reaction I expected. She wasn't sure what she had expected, but this wasn't it. And now that they were here - and Tara wasn't running, finally - Willow wasn't actually sure what to do.
"It's dangerous! You can't be seen with me!" Tara shouted, shaking Willow as if that would somehow finally make the redhead understand. So damn stubborn.
Willow frowned, the gears slipping in her mind as she struggled to shift to wherever it was Tara was taking this. "What are you talking about?"
"Damn it, Willow!" Tara yelled, still gripping Willow's shoulders tightly. "I'm trying to protect you! And I can't do that if you're with me!"
Tara blinked once and then froze, her eyes glued to Willow's through the rain that streamed down both of their faces, but not even seeing those emerald orbs. Everything whirled around her, the realization of what had just happened a tornado in her mind. She had just done the unthinkable. She had freed the truth. She had allowed Willow to push past her defenses and tear the words from her lips. She had failed. But she could recover. She could make it right. She had to make it right.
Willow tried to process the words, knowing that there was something there she needed to take hold of, but all the shaking and the yelling was pissing her off. Again. Her temper flared defensively, and she started yelling, too.
"Why are you pushing me away?!" Willow shouted. "Why are you running?!"
Tara wasn't going to win this argument. She knew that. Why are you so damn stubborn? Don't you see? Don't you get it? If I tell you the truth, you'll want to help, and if you help, you'll be in more danger than you are already! Damn it! Tara was angry, angry that Willow was so smart and insightful and stubborn and determined... and standing there, with Willow so close...
She could feel it even stronger now, that pull, sucking her down into Willow. In Willow's eyes there was such pain, but also... hope. Hope for Tara. Hope for them. It called to Tara's heart, and it was too much. She wasn't that strong. But she had to be. Willow was winning, but Tara could not let her. She had slipped before, and now she had to correct her mistake, re-bury the truth inside cruelty. She squeezed her eyes shut for a brief moment, gathering the courage to do what had to be done.
"Don't you understand anything?" Tara said harshly, releasing Willow and pushing away from her almost violently. She laughed belittlingly. "God, you can be so stupid. I don't want you near me. I. Don't. Want. You. Period."
Willow blinked once, then again, trying to clear the sight of Tara - this Tara - from her eyes. Tara's words were beyond hurtful, her tone beyond cruel. Tara was being vicious. Her mouth hung open in surprise.
"I didn't want to have to do it this way," Tara said, almost as if she expected Willow to feel bad for Tara, that Willow should be ashamed that she had pushed Tara to this, that it was Willow's fault Tara had to be mean in her bluntness. Which was exactly what Tara needed Willow to think, but the last thing she wanted. "You're a nice girl for the most part, but you're just so damn stubborn. So fine, have it your way. I don't want you. Happy now? Just go away. Leave me alone."
Tara's words did more than sting. They slashed. They burned. They plunged deep into the heart of Willow's deepest fear, undermining the confidence she had built from Tara's love. If Tara didn't believe Willow was worth her love, then how could Willow love herself? And yet...
Willow's mind was fighting a war, a war with her fragile ego and delicately emotional heart. While the heart took the brunt of Tara's blows, crying out with a pain so intense it threatened to overwhelm Willow completely, her mind clung to the shrapnel, examining them like a forensic scientist, noting how the bullets didn't all fit the gun.
"I'm trying to protect you! And I can't do that if you're with me!"
"So fine, have it your way. I don't want you. Happy now? Just go away. Leave me alone."
It didn't make sense. Something didn't fit. Something wasn't right. It was as if all the hope her heart had been holding had shifted to her mind, and now her heart was the betrayer and her mind was her champion. And something struck a chord within her. Familiar. A ghost of a memory. Something...
It was like one of those movies Willow had cried over as a child. The injured wolf. The young boy who takes the wolf in, shelters it, helps it recover. The boy knows he has to let the wolf go, let it run free in the wild in order to protect it, but when the time comes, the wolf won't go. It loves the boy too much to go. So the boy lashes out, throws rocks, screams... anything to make the wolf go away. And finally, not understanding that the boy is acting out of love, the wolf runs away, never knowing that the boy just saved its life. Never knowing that the boy's heart is broken.
And it hit Willow then. In all that Tara had said, there was one thing she didn't say. One thing she hadn't taken back. She raised her chin and stood tall despite the brunt of the rain and Tara's cruel words.
"Tell me you don't love me," she challenged.
Tara didn't move, didn't breath, afraid of giving herself away. Don't ask me to do that, Willow. Please... don't ask that of me. She just stared at Willow, unblinking.
"Look me in the eye, and tell me you don't love me," Willow said, her resolve strengthening in the face of Tara's silence. You can't do it, can you? You can't say it... because it isn't true.
"Tell me you don't love me, Tara," Willow said one more time, "and I'll walk away right now." Please, baby...
Tara choked back her emotions, bit back the bile rising in her throat. She squared her shoulders and stared Willow down. The rain slashed at her, but she did not shrink from its assault. The storm raged around her, but she did not yield to its will. She was an Amazon, proud and fierce and totally unmoving, a monolith of resolve. And she died all over again.
"I don't love you," she said with steely calm. "I don't love you."
Willow could actually feel her heart break, all her emotions that had been contained within it now flooding her body, a tsunami crashing down on her mind, sweeping her logic out to the sea of her agony.
The tears she felt she had been holding in her eyes forever evaporated without falling. The light forever burning in her eyes dimmed then sparked, the soft glow of love reborn as white hot fire. Her jaw clenched and ticked, her hands balled into fists. Pain swallowed joy, agony destroyed hope, until all that was left was... anger. Anger and a bitter, consuming rage that demanded release. Demanded payment. Pain for pain.
"So it was all a lie!?! Everything!" Willow shouted, a banshee howling from the depths of her soul. "Well I have to tell you, Agent MaClay, you're damn good at your job. Hell, you should get a fucking Academy Award for the performance you've been giving the last few months!"
Willow turned her back on Tara, raising her arms in the air, her palms up in supplication, screaming to anyone who could hear. "Hey! Somebody call Oscar! I've got a new category! Best Performance By a Secret Agent Pretending to Love a Witch!"
"Willow, stop it," Tara said quietly, not even realizing she was speaking aloud as the words slipped from her lips. She air swirled and shifted, the storm seeming to recognize Willow as its master. The wind flew from Willow's lips, the rain fed by Willow's unshed tears, and it all screamed at Tara that this was just not right. Willow wielded pain like a warlock wielded black magic, and it made Tara shudder with the wrongness of it all. The pain was transforming Willow into something else, something not-Willow, and Tara's heart raged against it.
But Willow ignored her and kept her back turned, lashing out at the woman who had destroyed her. "No, wait! Best Performance By a Lesbian in Making a Girl Fall Deeply In Love With Her Just So She Can Break the Girl's Heart!" she screamed, laughing bitterly.
"Willow, stop it," Tara said again, louder this time, taking a step toward Willow. Willow's pain was unbearable. Tara felt it assault her soul, and it nearly drove her to the ground. She couldn't think, couldn't feel anything but Willow's devastation. It was too much. Willow shouldn't have to bear this much agony, it shouldn't be allowed to touch her.
Willow could feel that Tara was closer to her, and her nearness only tore what was left of her heart into shreds. She kept her back turn at first, refusing to see Tara, to hear or even feel her. She let herself be consumed by the storm, by the sheer power of it. She was a force of nature now. She was the icy wind and the driving rain, punishing Tara for betraying her. Punishing herself for having felt love.
Then Willow spun, letting Tara see the completeness of her annihilation for the first time. Willow's face was a mask of wrath, a mocking contortion of the Willow Tara used to know. Willow's eyes blazed, and her fury slammed into Tara with such force that she stumbled backwards. "Oooo, I've got it! Best Performance by a Lying, Scheming, Conniving Little-"
But Willow's words were cut off as Tara charged forward, grabbing Willow's face and crushing her mouth down on the redhead's. Willow stood frozen, her arms limp at her sides, her eyes wide at the sudden move, the urgency of Tara's hands on her face and Tara's lips on her own. She wanted to wrench herself from Tara's grasp, to scream at her and shake her and... kiss her and love her and dive within her and never come back.
It was as if Tara's entire life depended on that kiss, and really, it did, for Tara's life was Willow. Tara knew she shouldn't be kissing her, shouldn't be giving in, shouldn't be letting go... but she wasn't made of stone. No matter how much she wanted to, she couldn't be the fortress around Willow, keeping her safe. The despair in Willow's words had cut Tara to deeply, the grief in Willow's soul was too terrible for Tara to ignore. What good was it to protect Willow if Willow was destroyed in the process?
Tara broke the kiss, still holding tight to Willow's face. They were both breathing raggedly. Willow's eyes were brimming with confusion - the still raw pain of Tara's words warring with the tremendous hope she always felt when Tara kissed her. But the rage and anger had all melted away at the first touch of Tara's lips, unable to exist in the same heart Tara now held in her hands.
"Did that feel like a lie?" Tara asked, her voice breaking in its desperate pleading, searching Willow's eyes frantically for some sign that it wasn't too late to save Willow. To save them both.
Willow stared at her, eyes wide, lower lip trembling. She couldn't move, couldn't let herself move. She stared back at Tara, her heart beating wildly in her chest, the world spinning around her as time itself froze around them both. Her mind shut down, overloaded by the back and forth, the push and pull, the up and down, the beginning and end...
Tara moved on instinct, reaching out to Willow on the most primal level, tasting Willow's fear on her lips and knowing only one way to break through it. She pushed Willow up against a tree, her mouth hovering close enough to Willow's to share the same breath. The whirlwind of emotions that had been spinning so intensely within Tara fused together into passion, passion for Willow, for them.
"Does this feel like a lie?" she asked desperately, searching Willow's eyes. "When I kiss you?"
And Tara kissed her again, her lips moving urgently over Willow's, begging for a response. There was no room for thought, no room for doubt. This was Tara's only chance to make it all just... stop. She broke the kiss and moved one of her hands down Willow's chest, cupping her breast, making Willow moan despite herself.
"When I touch you?" she whispered hotly in Willow's ear, squeezing Willow's breast in punctuation, making Willow moan again.
"When I taste you?" she asked, sucking on Willow's ear, trailing her lips down Willow's neck. She moved back to Willow's lips while her hand slid down between their bodies, between Willow's legs.
There had been so many words, too many words. Words of cruelty, words of anger, lies upon lies... there was no time for words now, no space for words to exist. Tara could not trust words, not when everything was at stake. Words were not enough, couldn't possibly be enough to convey the ultimate truth of what Tara felt. Her longing, her passion, her love, her need, her devotion... all of it melted together and reduced down to one simple thing.
Words failed, but love did not. Could not. So Tara's body demanded to meet Willow's, to succeed where Tara's words had failed, to show Willow the truth. To demand the truth in response. To make Willow feel.
Willow let out a guttural groan, finally opening her mouth to Tara's invasion. She didn't kiss Tara back, only allowed Tara's questing tongue entrance. Tara started rubbing back and forth through the Willow's skirt, pushing deeply between Willow's folds.
"Tara..." Willow said raggedly, panting hard as she broke the kiss. Her mind screamed in protest as her body responded without caring about all the pain that had passed between them. But it wasn't just her body responding, it was her heart remembering. Remembering how much it wanted, how desperately it needed, how completely it loved. And all of it was about Tara. With Tara. For Tara.
"What do you feel, Wil?" Tara pleaded. "Tell me what you feel when I touch you?" she asked, rubbing even harder.
And finally... through the haze of passion and lust, or maybe because of it, Willow could feel all the layers falling away. All the doubt, all the fear, all the pain... they all fell away, until Willow was left with the deepest, fullest, the ultimate truth. Tara loved her. No matter what, Tara loved her. And she loved Tara.
"Love," Willow gasped. "I feel love."
"Yes," she cried as she crushed her mouth back down over Willow's, and Willow responded, meeting Tara's kiss completely. Their mouths were frenzied, their heads moving back and forth as each woman tried to crawl closer, deeper, inside.
Their passion exploded, their anguished separation demanding the fullest expression of their love, their raging emotions demanding total surrender to their senses. There were no thoughts to confuse them, no words to deceive their hearts, no past to fall prey to. There was only touch. And taste. Over and over again.
The rain kept falling, though it had slowed some. The storm seemed to have burned itself out, the way fury often did. Gone was the harsh wind and malicious rain. Now there was only a steady stream of water falling from the heavens, washing away their tears, leaving the world clean and new. It cascaded over them, plastering their soaken bodies together, joining their skin as their love joined their hearts, and as their need joined their passion.
Willow clawed at Tara's back, trying to pull her in closer, always trying to get closer, as Tara moved her lips hungrily across Willow's face, down her neck, to her chest. Tara kissed Willow through the sopping material of her peasant blouse, and when that was not enough, she pulled the blouse off Willow's shoulder and wrapped her lips around a hardened nipple.
Willow gasped, the fire from Tara's lips shooting down her body. She clutched Tara's head to her breast, throwing her head back and screaming silently to the heavens as Tara suckled her breast. There was no teasing, no tantalizing slowness... only hot, hungry need consuming them both.
Tara abandoned Willow's breast and dropped to her knees, the rain-soaked blouse still stuck to Willow's skin below her breast, keeping it bared to the night. Tara pushed the blouse up at the waist, exposing Willow's abdomen. She dove in, nipping and kissing Willow's stomach, loving the way the muscles there contracted with each touch of her mouth.
Willow was quickly losing control. She felt Tara's hands at her waist, bunching her skirt higher and higher on her waist, and she watched unblinking as Tara made love to her stomach. She dug her hands into Tara's hair, intending to pull Tara back up, needing to mesh her lips with the blonde's.
But Tara was not to be deterred. She lifted Willow's skirt the rest of the way, tucking the material into the waistband. She could smell Willow, even through the rain-sweetened air, and it made her moan. She pulled Willow's arousal-soaked panties down her rain-soaked body, drawing the scent into her lungs.
Willow licked her lips. Her mouth was dry. She felt the cool rain on her face, washing over her still bared breast, down her thighs. She felt the panties pulling at her wet legs as Tara pulled them off her body, saw the way Tara's nostrils flared as she inhaled Willow's scent, and then...
Willow screamed as Tara's mouth was upon her, devouring her from the inside out. Her left hand dug into Tara's scalp as her right hand flew behind her, desperately seeking something - anything - to hold on to. To keep her on her feet. Her hand landed on a large branch and she grasped it, clinging to it desperately. Her head arched back, her mouth opened and her eyes closed as she lost herself in the sensation of Tara's mouth and Tara's tongue and Tara's hot breath burning into her, inside of her.
Tara moaned as she lost herself in Willow, savoring the exquisite first taste of the woman she loved. She licked her way between Willow's lips, up and down the velvet channel dripping with Willow's desire. She teased Willow's opening, delighting in the feel of Willow's hand squeezing her head a bit harder when she did. Then she began working her tongue around Willow's clit, around and around the hard little nub until finally flicking it with her tongue.
She felt Willow spasm, the redhead's whole body jumping from that simple flick, so she did it again. And again. Over and over she flicked Willow's clit, spurred on by the now almost rough tugging at her hair, the little grunts coming from Willow in time with Tara's movements. Willow was there, she was so right there, and Tara knew it, could feel it coursing through her like she felt Willow's skin beneath her hands.
So she sucked Willow's clit into her mouth and bit down, causing Willow to scream just a little. So close, so close... Tara slipped her hand around and slipped a single finger between Willow's folds and into Willow. And it was enough. Willow cried out Tara's name, and then just cried out, the orgasm exploding through her and ripping all thought from her head. She rode out the waves Tara extracted from her, grunting with each spasm that overtook her, lost in sensations unlike any she had ever felt before.
Tara lapped at Willow's pussy, drinking up all Willow offered, never wanting it to end. Finally she felt Willow's spasms lessen, felt the shuddering recede. Gently Tara pulled out her finger and placed a soft kiss on Willow's curls, before wrapping her arms around her lover's waist. She buried her head into Willow's stomach, closing her eyes as the sensations Willow felt echoed through Tara.
And as they did, as she felt Willow's passion rush through her blood, it knocked something loose. She had put so much of herself into defending Willow that she had neglected to provide for her own defense. The intense emotions of the day, the turbulent back and forth and back again that had plagued them both finally took its toll, overwhelming Tara and shattering the fragile walls encasing her own pain. And she began to weep.
Willow didn't feel it at first, the subtle difference between the rain and Tara's tears. But then she felt it, a small, silent sob against her belly, and it pulled her eyes down to Tara. The blonde's face was buried against Willow's skin, and her hands clutched at Willow's waist. Willow felt her own tears come at the sight of Tara's, and they trickled down her face and fell down between them, mingling with Tara's and the rain.
Tara's love had banished all the doubt from Willow's mind, so she didn't worry that this was some kind of rejection. Willow knew better now. Her heart knew better. She let go of the branch behind her and brought that hand to caress Tara's cheek as the other hand stroked Tara's hair.
"It's okay, baby," she said with gentle conviction. "Everything's going to be okay now."
But Tara knew that wasn't true. She slipped her hands around the back of Willow's waist, squeezing Willow to her as the heavy emotions took their toll. Regret wormed its way into Tara's heart, not just for the pain she had caused Willow, but for the fact that she hadn't been strong enough to make the pain worth it. Willow was no longer safe because she knew now that Tara loved her, because Tara had failed. She had failed Willow.
Guilt fed Tara's tears, and she sobbed unrestrained against Willow's stomach. Willow could feel Tara breaking down, could feel everything hitting Tara all at once. She dropped to her knees in front of Tara so she could hold her more fully, pulling Tara into her arms. Tara continued to cry, and Willow wanted to let her, but also knew that it could take a while. And they couldn't stay out there, in the rain, forever.
"Tara, we should go, get out of the rain," she whispered softly into Tara's ear.
"No! It's not safe! Nowhere is safe!" Tara panicked, pulling back from Willow and searching her eyes frantically. She had pushed away all rational thought when she had felt the depths of Willow's pain, and now it was all rushing back to her. The Initiative, the cameras, Maggie Walsh... suddenly she felt so inadequate. She had failed Willow, she couldn't protect her, wasn't strong enough to keep her safe. "She's watching everything! I... I... I have to protect you but... I... I don't know what to do... where to go..."
Willow saw the fear in Tara's eyes and knew without even hearing the words that Tara's fear wasn't for herself. Tara's fear was for Willow, and Willow ached with the pain it was causing Tara. Still, she had heard the words, and her brow furrowed slightly.
"Who's watching, baby?" Willow asked, not understanding.
"Walsh," Tara answered, the name like venom on her lips.
Willow's eyes widened slightly at the revelation. Then suddenly, pieces of conversation swirled in her mind, finally coming together to show her what she should have figured out much sooner, what she would have figured out if she hadn't been overwhelmed with grief and anger.
"After the Gentlemen came... after what happened in the laundry room... after the power we shared, Professor Walsh thought you needed to be watched."
"All I could think about was how I wanted to get to know you better, how I wanted to spend time with you... and I wanted to keep you safe-"
"But if nothing else, please believe that I was trying to protect you. There's something going on-"
"I didn't tell her how powerful you are, and I didn't report all the spells we did, how we spent our time. I didn't tell her that I fell in love with you. I told her as little as possible."
"Willow, I didn't tell her about us - the real us - because it's dangerous for you. Walsh-"
"It's dangerous! You can't be seen with me!"
"Damn it, Willow! I'm trying to protect you! And I can't do that if you're with me!"
It all made sense now, why Tara had acted this way, why she had been so cruel, why she was terrified for Willow. Tara was trying to protect her from Walsh, and somehow Tara had believed that she couldn't do that if she and Willow were together, because Walsh was watching. So Tara had tried to push her away.
"How? How can she be watching?" Willow asked.
"Cameras," Tara said, unable to find the strength to explain it all. There was so much to go through, so much to explain, and she just couldn't handle it all yet.
Willow thought about it for a moment, not allowing herself to give in to the contempt she already had for Walsh, which was growing with each passing second. For Buffy. For Riley. For herself. But most of all, for Tara.
She shook her head, focusing on the problem at hand. Without knowing what exactly the cameras were for, Willow couldn't figure out where Walsh would have them. But she could make some logical assumptions of where the cameras would - and wouldn't - be. They needed somewhere safe to go, somewhere Walsh would have no real reason to watch.
"I know a place where we can go," Willow said suddenly, smiling.
But Tara shook her head frantically. "No, Wil.. it's not safe-"
Willow put a finger to Tara's lips, stopping her. She cupped Tara's cheek, noting the way Tara's eyes fluttered momentarily at the touch. She searched her lover's eyes and asked, "Trust me?"
"Yes," Tara answered, without hesitation. Tara was scared, but she always trusted Willow.
Willow stood, pulling Tara up with her. She took Tara's hand and lead her out of the woods. They made their way out of the tree line heading towards town, their hands intertwined. Somewhere along the way, Willow realized that it had stopped raining.
*************************
TBC with Part 27: Passion
"Maybe I'll change my look, or cut class. You don't know! And I'm eating this banana, lunch-time be damned!" - Willow, Dopplegangland
by funkyasian » Wed Dec 04, 2002 10:46 am 
at: 12/8/02 9:26:29 am
. Her mind must be overworked by now, being pushed back and forth like that 
I wonder if she'll ever risk that level of trust again.
. Their love shone through when Willow was comforting Tara, who finally realized her own pain. Desperation was very obvious flowing during most of this chapter.. (hmm.. that doesn't do that justice but I can't write it better at the moment).