A/N: You thought I was dead.
Disclaimer: I do not own Buffy.
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Tara screamed and clutched at her burning face. A small hand encircled her wrist and pulled, another waterfall of fire cascading down her back. Tara twisted out with ease, blinking the pain away, and seized Willow by the arm. She flew like a paper airplane onto her bed, screaming like a banshee.
She wiped at the last remnants of the fire ant colony before closing in on the witch, hissing furiously. "What the fuck!" she screamed, straddling her.
Willow kicked and flailed aimlessly, beating her fists against Tara. "Let me go!"
Tara seized another nail file from Willow's bedside table. She examined her nails closely, finding a bit of a squared edge on her thumb. She whittled it down to a soft crescent before digging her nails into Willow's chest. She dragged the short claws down slowly, reveling in her screams. "Answer me!"
Another pathetic squeal echoed from her throat before she twisted away futilely. Tara stared down at her prey. Her mouth turned into a sneer. "What the hell was that for, you maggot?"
Minutes passed before Willow finally calmed down, a track of tears drying on her face. Her lip was quivering and she breathed in hiccups. Tara just watched from her perch, raising an eyebrow. It wasn't like she had taken a chunk from her neck. She jumped when the small chest beneath her jolted upward. She twisted her face into a mask of confusion when another ensued moments later. "You've got the hiccups. Mega-hiccups."
"I don't care," Willow mumbled. "You're just going to kill me and make me into a vampire and I'll never have to breathe again so I might as well hiccup while I can," she spat out, trembling like a mouse.
Tara blinked stupidly. "Who said anything about killing you?" she asked more to herself. She had hardly thought about turning her, like actually doing it.
Willow whimpered. "You didn't need to say it. I can just tell you're going to do it."
"That's being a little judgmental, don't you think?" Tara asked, moving a wet, red lock from her forehead. She stroked at her cheek, watching in slight hurt as she squirmed away from her touch. "Come on, little Willow," she crooned. "Open your eyes, sweet thing."
Her heart jumped back to life for a moment as Willow looked at her through tear-filled eyes. "Then why are you here?"
The question caught her off-guard. She blinked, then blinked again, focusing her gaze on the green eyes before her. "I don't know," she breathed.
She felt the heart beneath her swell and heard the gushing blood pump like mad. The hunger in her stomach suddenly came back from its dull existence, her stomach growling. There was a moment of complete silence, through the whirling blood and her raging stomach and Willow's maniacal breathing. Tara flushed at the intensity and jumped up, landing gracelessly at the foot of the bed. "I-I don't know," she stated again. She hardly understood the concept in her head and it felt so wrong coming from her mouth. The stutter was back and everything.
She shook her head and turned for the door, her heart racing for the first time in years. Hearts of vampires never beat, they never had souls, and they never needed them. In extreme fear, they might get a slight jolt, just from instinct. Seeing the full moon was enough. "I-I do know. But you aren't going to like it."
Willow shuffled around on the bed behind her, scrambling to rest against the headrest. "Tara?" she asked, her voice filled with fear. "Tara, what's wrong?"
Tara looked at the moon again, glowing in its brilliance. "T-that boy. Y-your b-b-boyfriend, I'm guessing," she said, finally understanding that this girl was straight. She admitted it, the whole endeavor was hopeless. Vampirism changed a person, but orientation was part of the soul, part that even losing it wouldn't break. "He's dangerous, and you need to stay away from him."
"Tara, you aren't serious," she whispered. "Is he like you?"
The blonde shook her head. "No. He's worse. So much worse. Us vampires, we can be ruthless and cruel, but the unusually evil choose to do so. But there's no difference with him. Willow, he's a werewolf. When he gets mad, he'll turn, or on any full moon, and the day before and after. And when he turns, there's no difference between moral and meal."
Willow shook her head. "You can't be serious. You came to tell me that? You saw that he wasn't turning. In full exposure and everything."
A needle jabbed itself into her heart and she felt it deflate. Tara sighed. "I thought you didn't know."
"Of course I knew, he's my boyfriend!" Willow shouted with unnecessary force.
She flinched. "I-I don't like being yelled at," Tara whispered.
Willow sank away almost instantly. "Well, that's a little strange. I mean, you're a vampire. You've got super strength. And you could just, you know, like break my neck or something if you got too mad."
"I wouldn't do that," Tara said, feeling slightly shocked. The feeling faded away and she quirked a lopsided smile. "I think I like you."
She saw Willow's face flush. She mirrored the smirk, her eyes shining charmingly. "Thank you."
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"And you just let them do that to you?" she asked incredulously. "I don't believe that. I mean, you're so beautiful. And certainly not fat. And you might be a little clumsy, but that's kinda cute. And, and, you're a vampire, for Hecate's sake!"
Tara felt a small surge of confidence. "I wasn't a vampire at the time, sweety," she corrected. "I was just little Tara. Or big Tara. They always told me I was fat. Since it was all I heard, I kinda had to believe it."
Willow frowned. "You've got a feminine figure. You know, actual hips. And a definite chest."
Another warm feeling fluttered in her stomach. "It gets a little embarrassing at times, how big I am. It doesn't do as much as you'd think."
"You could always flash the bartenders. Free drinks and all," Willow added.
Tara shrugged.
Another moment passed by. Tara smiled again, tracing circles on the warm blankets. They had been talking, just casually talking, for the day. She had finally had a chance to open up about her life. She hardly understood the concept of private, since she had the opportunity to just converse with someone, but there was still that nagging feeling she didn't like. And there were a few things Donny went out and did that she wasn't comfortable with. "So what're you like?" she asked, hoping that she could avoid the subject of plain old Tara.
Willow, who had been resting her head on her splayed arm, smiled for a split-second before the expression faded. "I don't know. There's not much to tell. Life's been all weird lately. This weirdo alternate-universe me comes over and really screws with my head. A few hours ago, I was going to try to kill you, and I feel terrible about it. Not really much I can do to make it up. Except sit here and talk, it seems, because you really like talking. You're so sweet, you know it? Anyway, I guess… with me, I don't have much to talk about. I mean, I'm a witch, woo-hoo. Who's not these days? And I'm always in Buffy's shadow, it feels. My boyfriend's a werewolf, and I don't even think I can call him my boyfriend anymore…"
"Why not?" Tara asked after she trailed off.
The redhead shrugged. "I don't know… We just, you know, haven't done anything. He's real nice and all, but I odn't think that exciting little spark is there anymore. You've had boyfriends before, right?"
Tara felt like getting sick. She had never really said it to anyone else before. "I'm a lesbian," she said before thinking about it.
"Oh." Willow said, very off-handedly. "No biggie. That's really cool, actually. Never really had a friend my parents wouldn't approve of. I feel so rebellious," Willow said, moving closer, giggling.
She knit her eyebrows together. "They don't like gay people? They sound even worse now."
"Oh! No, no no no! So totally not! I-I mean, you just came out to me, and that officially constitutes you as a friend, and and, you're a vampire, and they wouldn't have approved before but now we're really friends and–"
Tara grinned. "I get it," she said. Willow cut off mid-ramble, just smirking.
"But, going on about my life. I live on a Hellmouth and all, so things can really get interesting. Like, we fought the Master! And Buffy killed him! And we took care of Angelus, and you were here with the Mayor, weren't you!" she breathed, the entire night coming back to her. "Yeah! You were that girl!"
Great. "Possibly." Her voice took on a snarky tone.
Willow raised her eyebrows again. "Why do you do that?"
"Do what?" Tara asked. "Save your life?"
"No, no, I'm like really in-debt with you there, thanks so much, but but, I mean go from like super-sweet to badass couldn't-care-less?" Willow asked. "You're not bipolar, I don't think… I try to study psychology, little me, but I can't even diagnose–"
Tara pressed a finger to Willow's mouth, grinning wickedly. "Trade secret, baby-doll."
The tiny girl smiled. "Baby-doll?"
Baby-doll. Don't know where that came from. "Yes."
Flecks of red erupted on the witch's face, slowly spotting her face until she looked like a freckled, sunburnt Dalmatian. Tara thought it was the cutest thing since demonic puppies. "You're blushing," she stated.
Her eyes went wide. "Is it that noticeable?"
Tara gave a half-nod. "It's charming."
Willow cut her off with a yawn. "I'm getting sleepy," she whispered. "Do you need me to drive you home?"
"You can drive?" Tara asked, a slight tone to her voice.
"Well, Ms. Doubty-ness, I cannot. But I've got a friend," she trailed off.
Moonlight spilled into the room and Tara's eyes growled with a primeval light. "You know, I've been hiding in your closet all day. The sunlight still burned. It's almost nine and I've been stuck like a rat, but not in a bad way. I think I'd like to just walk home. Move around a bit, you know."
"Can't blame you. It's a nice, beautiful night, wouldn't you say?" Willow asked, a coy quirk to her eyebrow.
She nodded. "Yeah. It's a short night, I better get going. Find some dinner."
The moment the statement left her mouth, she knew she made a mistake. Willow visibly paled. Tara was about to correct herself, but Willow cut her off. "No, no, no. It's fine. Not 'no, don't eat', but no, you're a vampire. It's totally okay. It's natural, you know? Just, try to make it quick and painless. And try to make it some drunk chink who survives and thinks it's all a dream."
Humans freaked out when they learned they were cattle. This tiny little witch, who strived to kill most vampires because they tended to be pretty damn evil, just waved it off. Tara got up, sitting on the edge of the bed. "You didn't flip out. That's something very different, you know. Thank you."
"You're welcome," Willow said, resting her head against the pillow. Her eyes had fluttered shut, and Tara, soundless, had slipped out before they cracked to check for her.
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A/N: So sorry for the long update, peoples. Family crises.