Walking briskly, the young blonde quickly slipped past the throngs of college students, eager to return to her dorm. Sighing with relief after closing the door, she set her books down and smiled. There it was—that smile again. How long had it been since she last did that? It was still so foreign to her…
It had only been a few days after The Gentlemen appeared in Sunnydale, and now she seemed like an entirely different person. Her mind wandered back to the day of the Wiccan meeting, her mind replaying only a portion of it—when their gaze met. Her heart sped briefly, and for the hundredth time asked herself why that was. Finally, she knew. At least she thought so. It was a magical connection…one that happened maybe only once or twice in a lifetime. She could practically see the redhead's power springing to life. Her mother had a similar halo around her, indicating the inner strength that she had. 'She's really a witch…not a wanna-be like the rest of the group.' After sensing the danger, something had told her to go to Willow. 'She'll know what to do.' Seeing Willow attempting to move the vending machine sparked something within her, remembering something her mother had once told her. 'You have a gift, Tara. You need only touch the person, and their powers will be amplified.' Without thinking, she'd grabbed Willow's hand, and the vending machine slammed against the door, securing them both. There was a spark then…something Tara had never felt before. She wasn't afraid though…if anything, she was excited. Sure, she'd done spells in the past, and she could feel the magic in the air, but it was nothing like this. There was something more to it…but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.
Shaking herself out of her reverie, she looked at the clock. 4:30 already? She told Willow she would meet her in the student lounge at 5:00! Scurrying around, she quickly showered and changed. Standing in the bathroom, she brushed her hair and found that silly flutter in her heart again. She furrowed her brows in confusion, until she realized that she was thinking of just sitting in front of Willow and talking to her. As simple as that idea was, her cheeks tinted pink. 'What are you thinking? Snap out of it Maclay! You think she likes you? You heard Donny…' Taking a deep breath, she forced the butterflies to go away. No sense in getting her hopes up, right? Gathering her wallet and other little things, she threw them in her purse and headed out the door.
She felt weird not bringing her books along…she normally did, more as a sense of protection than anything. She'd already read everything in all her textbooks, but found them to be a nice little wall to throw up. Another thought then occurred to her, wondering if it could possibly be true. Could she be herself around the redheaded witch? The conversation with Willow about Tara needing to find her when the Gentlemen attacked prompted her to become…more confident. Willow had said she wasn't anything special, and before she could retract the words, Tara had said, "No, you are." Without stuttering. She couldn't remember the last she didn't stutter around someone. Though her smile seemed goofy and forced, that was the first true smile Tara had felt in years. It caused such a fright within her that she left soon after. Was this wrong? To be happy to see a friend? To even think of Willow as a friend? What if she became too close to her? Her birthday was only a few months away…so she shouldn't. She couldn't. If she did…Willow would see her become a…a…she didn't even want to think of word, causing her to shudder at just the thought. 'I just won't get that close…' Easier said than done though; that was for damned sure.
Sooner than she would have liked, she reached the lounge, but found no sign of Willow. Looking to left, the clock on the wall told her it was 4:55. Settling herself down on the couch, she scooted as far back as possible, setting her purse on her lap. Feeling uncomfortable again, she moved the purse to her chest, where she hugged it close. She stared at her feet, her mind swimming with different thoughts that she didn't hear the footsteps come closer until they finally approached their destination. "Hi Tara!" Willow greeted cheerfully. Tara was so startled that she flinched before looking up. "H-hi." She smiled sheepishly and waved before Willow seated herself across from the blonde. "So, how's it goin'?" "O-oh..um…good…y-you know…just school and-and stuff." 'Say something better. Ask her something!' "H-how was your d-day?" The whole time she'd been talking, she was staring at her feet, before looking up after asking the question. "Pretty nifty! Nothing unusual over here. Just the same boring routine." 'Same boring routine? She has friends! What's so boring about that?' She suddenly wanted to know more about what the 'same boring routine' was. "Well…what h-happened?" 'What happened? Yeah, great question, Maclay. Now she'll probably think you're prying and leave.' But, instead of that happening, Willow beamed and started to rattle off everything; from the time she got up to meeting up with Tara. She simply sat there, staring at Willow as she babbled happily, and slowly but surely, that smile came back. 'She's sitting here and talking to me…about her day!' The next couple of hours were spent with them talking about different, random things. Some normal, others supernatural. Different crystals that they had, different spells they had tried. It was mind-boggling to Tara; that someone would actually be asking and conversing these things with her. However…it caused something within her—that strength that her mother said she had was finally peeking out, and instead of wringing her hands against her skirt, they simply sat atop her purse. She was becoming comfortable with a discussion. Not worried that Willow would just up and leave, or criticize her for liking something. It was almost like a rebirth for the Wiccan, one that would change her life—definitely for the better.