Willow had reclaimed her spot at the dining room table and was hard at work the next morning when Tara came downstairs. She paused on her way to the kitchen to press a kiss to the back of Willow's neck, smirking as the redhead shivered.
"Apparently I didn't do a great job of wearing you out if you're awake and on the computer before I get up," Tara commented, her voice low as she moved her kisses toward Willow's ear.
The redhead swallowed, shaking her head against Tara's lips. "Oh, no way, baby. I would much rather be upstairs in bed with you, I just want to make some progress on this. These geeks are pissing me off," she explained, her pride offended by her difficulties with dealing with the nerds.
"I'll just have to try again tonight," Tara sighed, but Willow could feel her lover's smile pressed against her skin. "I'll make you some more coffee, baby," the blonde offered, seeing Willow's empty mug beside the laptop.
Willow snagged her hand before she could take two steps, pulling the surprised witch into her lap and kissing her soundly. Tara recovered quickly from her surprise, reacting happily to the kiss.
"Good morning," Willow breathed as they separated.
"It is now," Tara agreed, wiggling on Willow's lap and the redhead groaned, her eyes sliding closed. "Coffee?" Tara asked cheerfully as Willow's eyes opened slowly a minute later.
"Can't we just go upstairs?" Willow asked.
Tara grinned, laughing. "I was upstairs. You're the one who left me to wake up all alone," Tara reminded her. "And I have class in thirty minutes, remember?"
Willow pouted but let her go reluctantly. "I forgot," she confessed, rubbing sleepily at her hair.
Tara eyed her protectively as she stood up, leaning over again to press a kiss to her temple while her fingers slid soothingly through Willow's hair. "How about when I get home this afternoon we can take a nap?" she offered. "You're not sleeping enough."
Willow could plainly hear the concerned tenderness in her lover's voice and she nodded. "Okay," she yawned widely, giggling when Tara covered her mouth with one hand for her. "Love you," she murmured as her girlfriend took her coffee cup into the kitchen with her to refill it.
Tara returned after a few minutes with hot coffee made exactly how Willow liked it. Willow gave her a grateful smile and a quick kiss before she was distracted by a beeping summons from her computer. Her next smile was apologetic but distracted, and Tara gave her a final kiss on the top of her head before she moved upstairs to get ready for class.
Willow remembered hearing Tara leave for school, but that had been hours ago and she was dimly aware that her stomach was growling, but she was in the middle of a battle with the latest encrypted disc and she was determined to win before she got up from her chair. Dawn was at school, but Buffy had the day off and the Slayer had been halfheartedly cleaning, her strength making scrubbing the bathtub a much less frustrating task for her than for any of the others so it frequently went unclean until Buffy had the spare time to clean.
Willow got excited as she watched the information whip across her screen as she broke through the final layer of protection. "Buffy!" she called loudly up the stairs.
It took the Slayer only a few seconds to get downstairs, seeing the witch reading quickly and she leaned over to read over Willow's shoulder. It all looked like gibberish to her, but Willow was scrolling the words too quickly for her to read them properly.
"What does it mean?" she asked, smirking as Willow jumped in surprise at her proximity.
"It means we can catch them," she said, one finger pointing at the screen. "All the other discs were old jobs, but this one is happening today. They're robbing an armored car."
Buffy straightened up, rolling her shoulders and yanking off the bright green rubber gloves she'd forgotten that she'd been wearing. "Okay, sounds good," she said as she slapped the gloves onto the table, already moving toward her weapons chest in the living room.
"I'll come with you," Willow declared as she stood up, making quick notes on a scrap piece of paper. "Better to be prepared," she reasoned as Buffy started to protest and the Slayer nodded finally.
Their preparations were interrupted as the front door opened, Tara and Dawn walking in together. Dawn went straight for the kitchen while Tara looked surprised to see Willow up from the computer.
"Hey, baby," Willow greeted her, snagging a quick kiss. "We're going on a nerd patrol. They're going to rob an armored car, and since one of them is obsessive about details, we know exactly where they're going to be, so we're going to stop them," she announced cheerfully.
Tara glanced over her shoulder as Buffy joined them in the dining room, her favorite axe over one shoulder. "You ready to go, Will?" she asked, handing a wicked looking knife to the witch.
"Sure thing, Buffy," Willow answered, tucking the knife in the back of her belt. "Baby, can you watch Dawn for a while? We shouldn't be out too long."
Tara nodded, frowning, but didn't argue. Buffy spoke up quickly, putting a hand on her friend's elbow. "Call Spike if we're not home by dark though, okay?"
Tara nodded again, letting out a deep breath. "You two be careful. And call me if you need any help," she offered.
Willow nodded distractedly and Tara caught her attention with a kiss. It was a minute before Tara let her go and Willow blinked as she caught her breath. "Yes ma'am, call if we need help, got it," she said breathily.
"And be careful," Tara reiterated, pressing another kiss to Willow's forehead.
Buffy slung an arm around Willow's shoulders, grinning as she pulled the witch away. "I'll take care of her, Tara. You just have to keep Dawn from wrecking the house," she said with a wink. "I think my job will be easier," she commented as she and Willow went out the front door, hearing a crash in the kitchen and her sister's voice yelling out an apology behind her.
Willow had written out the armored car's route carefully and they rushed through town to the ending point where the geeks were planning on hijacking the truck. They made use of their frequent forays through town, using every shortcut they knew of to get across town in a hurry.
They slowed down as they got close, hearing the geeks before they could see them. They had obviously already taken the truck, and the Slayer and the witch could hear the crashes and rumbles as the geeks broke into the armored vehicle.
"You ready?" Buffy whispered. Willow nodded, taking a deep breath. "Stay close to me and stick with magic, okay? Tara will kill me if I let you get hurt."
Willow smirked, but nodded. "I'll be careful," she agreed quietly. "You too."
The girls nodded, meeting each other's eyes before they moved together around the corner. Willow stayed cautiously behind Buffy, already gathering magic. She could feel something surrounding one of the nerds and she felt Buffy stiffen as they both recognized Jonathan and one of the other boys. They were all three wearing long black trench coats and she had to stop herself from laughing at the over-the-top cliché they were presenting.
It took her a second to place a name with the face, the encounter from the year before caught up in the haze of panic and frenzy of activity surrounding their struggle with Glory. "Warren?" Willow asked incredulously.
Buffy shot her a thankful look over her shoulder. "Thanks Will, that would have been driving me crazy," she said sarcastically, winking.
Willow grinned, knowing that her friend was trying to knock the geeks back on their heels by acting nonchalant. "No problem, Buffy."
"So, you're the bitch who's been tracking us," Warren responded bitterly, glaring at them from his position on top of the overturned truck. He stared at them for a long moment, leaning over sharply to wrench the door off the back of the truck, ripping it off single handedly, and slinging it at the pair of women.
It collided with the concrete in front of Buffy's feet, the Slayer taking a step back as she caught the heavy steel door, keeping it off of herself and Willow with an effort. She pushed it to the side, hearing the heavy thud as it crashed to the ground.
"That's all you got?" she challenged brashly, swinging her axe into one hand, letting the weapon's handle spin against her palm.
Jonathan and the other guy slunk back as the Slayer took a long pace forward. Warren jumped down from the truck, shaking his head at her.
"You couldn't handle what I've got, baby," he shot back crudely and Buffy wrinkled her nose in distaste.
They faced off for a long moment, Buffy lunging with her axe suddenly. Warren didn't move, merely bringing his arm up in defense. A blow that should have taken his arm off was deflected, the blade of the axe vibrating as it stopped dead against his forearm, leaving no scratch on him.
Buffy gaped in surprise, the tremors of the blow rocking up her arm, but she kept the strikes coming. Warren didn't move, just idly blocking her attacks. His arm snapped up suddenly, delivering a backhand that sent her crashing into a wall.
Willow tensed as Buffy pushed herself to her feet, spitting out a mouthful of blood and throwing herself back into the fight without a pause. Willow moved forward, the other two boys shrinking back from her. Jonathan was whispering to the other boy, pointing to Willow. She saw him give her another long look and her fingers flexed unconsciously. "Jonathan," she said quietly, hearing Buffy's continuing scuffle behind her, another crash as Warren swatted Buffy into the side of the truck. "What's going on with Warren? How come Buffy can't touch him?" she asked, keeping her voice level.
"Nothing!" the boy she didn't know answered for him. "The Slayer can't stop us!" he declared.
Willow shrugged as if it didn't make a difference to her. "I'm not the Slayer," she said easily. Jonathan was tugging the other boy back from her and Willow shook her head slowly, wagging one finger back and forth at him. "Not so fast, Jonathan," she chided, pointing her finger up and biting back a smile as both of the young men shrieked and clung to each other as they were lifted off their feet.
A flick of the wrist had them crashing into the same brick wall Buffy had smashed into. They both let out cries of pain, and Willow hit them a little harder against the wall next time.
"Tell me," she said simply, faking nonchalance as she ran them into the wall again.
It only took a few minutes before Jonathan cracked, yelping, "His belt. Break the orbs on his belt!"
Willow spun quickly from the pair, her other hand already raised. "Buffy, down!" she called loudly, gathered energy shooting from her palm as the Slayer dropped instantly to the ground. The blow hit the pouch at Warren's belt, two orbs falling to the ground. Buffy snatched them as they rolled in front of her eyes and Warren took several quick steps back as the Slayer crushed the spheres in her grip, fine dust falling from her hands.
The suddenly desperate villain ripped his long coat off, revealing the apparatus strapped to his back. Neither Willow nor Buffy had time to move before he was shooting off into the air, leaving his partners behind without a second glance.
Buffy met Willow's eyes, the Slayer looking much worse for the wear from her one-sided battle with Warren.
"You okay?" Willow asked, concerned.
Buffy shrugged gingerly, one hand holding her shoulder and she jerked it back into socket with a sickening crunch. "I'll be fine. I'm calling first dibs on the bathroom when we get home. I feel the need for a long, hot bath tonight."
Willow nodded with a smile. "I'll hold onto these two if you can go call the cops," she offered, watching Buffy anxiously as the Slayer limped toward the nearest payphone.
She returned after a few minutes, gesturing for Willow to let the erstwhile bank robbers down. It was the work of a minute for Buffy to secure them with cuffs she found in the truck, compliments of the unconscious guard and truck driver. Willow checked them to make sure they were going to be okay, while Buffy amused herself spinning Jonathan and the other boy around the post of the stop sign she'd chained them to.
It took the cops a few minutes to arrive on the scene, and longer for them to allow that Willow and Buffy were free to go home after they got statements from the girls, carefully worded statements that hid the magical interference Willow had provided, and a description of Warren.
The sun was going down as they started home, Willow pulling Buffy's arm around her shoulder as they walked, coaxing her old friend to lean on her. It was almost fully dark as they reached the house and Willow was grateful that the front door was unlocked, her hands too full of Buffy to search her pockets for her keys.
Dawn was in the living room as they came through the door and Willow could hear Tara talking in the kitchen. The blonde witch came into the dining room as the door shut behind them and Willow heard her girlfriend take a breath of relief.
"Never mind, they just walked in," Tara said into the phone. "Thanks, Spike," she said as she hung up and moved to support Buffy's other side, taking some of the pressure off of Willow. "Whose blood is all of this?"
"Hers. I think she might have passed out," Willow said, adjusting her grip on Buffy as Tara helped her. "Maybe we should call an ambulance."
"I'm awake," Buffy groaned through bloody lips, her bruised eyes closed. "No ambulance. Bathtub."
"Let's get her upstairs," Willow prompted and Tara helped her move her burden towards the stairs. Dawn followed them in silence. Willow led them to the bathroom, coaxing Buffy to take a seat on the closed toilet while she leaned over to start filling the bathtub.
Buffy smiled gratefully as she leaned back against the tank of the toilet, letting her body relax. "Thanks, Will," she said, her voice hoarse in her own ears. "I can take it from here."
Willow smiled, nodding up at her friend from where she was crouched next to the tub. They both turned to look at Tara as the blonde witch spoke from the doorway. "We saved you both some dinner. I'll leave yours in the oven Buffy, for whenever you feel up for it." She smiled encouragingly. "And Spike said he would cover patrol tonight."
"Thanks, Tara," Buffy said, smiling weakly. "I'll be good as new by morning, I'm just a little achy right now. Willow can fill you guys in on how it went," she added, seeing the questions in her sister's face.
They nodded, leaving the Slayer to enjoy her reward. They were silent as they went back down the stairs. Tara went straight into the kitchen while Willow and Dawn took seats at the dining room table. Tara returned after a few minutes with a plate for Willow and a dish of ice cream for Dawn. She slid into the chair next to Willow, accepting her lover's kiss to the cheek as a thank you.
"Where's your dessert?" Willow asked as she took a bite of her dinner.
Tara shrugged, smiling. "You'll share some of yours with me, won't you?" she asked teasingly, one hand sliding over the top of Willow's thigh and coming to rest over her knee.
Willow nodded quickly, swallowing the bite she had in her mouth. "Of course, honey," she answered, smiling peacefully.
"How did it go?" Tara asked, her thumb making idle circles over Willow's knee. "Buffy is okay, right?"
Willow nodded, taking a bite of her potatoes. "She's banged up, but she'll be alright. Warren had some jewels, or stones, or something that made him invincible. He was knocking Buffy around pretty good."
"How'd you stop them?" Dawn asked, slurping ice cream off her spoon.
"Jonathan, the little weasel, told me what was making him invincible after I rammed him into the wall a couple of times," Willow answered, shrugging. She took another bite of her dinner and Tara stood up as the redhead finished her drink, getting her girlfriend a refill before Willow could ask.
"Are they in jail?" Tara asked as she came back with the drink.
Willow nodded as she smiled gratefully. "Warren got away, but Jonathan and the other guy are in custody. The cops are out looking for Warren though. We gave them a description, but Buffy's more likely to catch him than the Sunnydale PD," she said with a laugh.
"So we still need to be careful?" Dawn asked, pouting.
"You always need to be careful, Dawnie," Tara said before Willow could. "We'll all be careful, and Buffy will catch him."
"What about our shake date?" the teen asked, pouting.
Tara laughed. "We'll still go," she answered. "We'll just be careful, that's all."
Dawn nodded, satisfied, and Willow smirked, shaking her head. "You'll be very careful," she agreed, taking a long sip of her drink.
"Always, baby," Tara assured her with a smile. "Are you okay? Warren didn't hurt you, did he?"
Willow shook her head. "He didn't lay a finger on me," she promised. "And I used magic to run the other two geeks into the wall. No permanent damage done to anybody."
"That's good," Dawn chimed in, cheerful now that she knew everyone was okay. "Do you guys want to do something after Willow finishes eating?" she asked, swallowing another bite of her ice cream.
"Is your homework done?" Willow asked, raising an eyebrow at her.
The younger girl sent her a good natured glare, but shook her head. Willow sent Tara a surprised look. Normally the blonde was relentless about everyone finishing their homework before doing anything else except Scooby duties.
Tara shrugged apologetically. "I was sort of distracted."
"Aww baby, were you worried about me?" Willow asked teasingly.
Tara nodded. "Every time you patrol," she said, the hand on Willow's knee squeezing gently.
Dawn was smirking at them and she clanged her spoon noisily into her empty ice cream dish, drawing their attention. "You guys are cute," she declared. "I'll go up to my room and finish my homework."
The witches exchanged amused glances as the youngest Scooby took her dirty dish into the kitchen. Their eyes moved to the door as there was a sudden knock, and Dawn skipped past them before either of them could move to answer the door.
"I'll get it," she said cheerfully, peeking through the window before she opened it. "Xander and Anya are back!" she cheered over her shoulder as she yanked the door open hurriedly. She hugged the carpenter as the newlyweds moved into the house, Anya accepting a hug from Tara. As soon as Dawn was free, she yelled up the stairs for Buffy.
Willow hugged Xander before switching places with Tara and exchanging a shorter hug with Anya. Buffy came down the stairs in her pajamas and with bare feet. Xander swept the tired Slayer up in a hug, careful to be gentle at the sight of the bruises.
"You okay, Buff?" he asked, leaning down slightly to meet the Slayer's eyes.
She nodded, covering her mouth as she yawned. "I'm fine. We caught two of the three geeks tonight, but Warren is on the loose," she answered.
"We just got home a little while ago," Willow said in explanation. "How was the honeymoon?" she asked.
Anya's mouth opened to start her explicit answer and Tara clapped both hands over Dawn's ears in precaution. Xander coughed quickly to cover anything she started to say, giving his wife a look.
"Remember how we talked about answering that question, Ahn?" Xander asked, curling one arm around her shoulders.
The former demon shot him a look, but nodded. "It was very nice," she intoned dryly. "We had a wonderful time."
Xander grinned, leaning over to press a kiss to his wife's temple. "We're glad to be home though."
"I can't bear to think of the money I lost letting the store sit closed for a week, but the many orgasms I received were satisfactory compensation," Anya announced, smiling happily as she patted Xander on the chest.
The others had smiles frozen on their faces and Xander sighed. "Well, we'll head back to the apartment now, I think. Let me know if there's anything I can help with."
"I think we'll sleep in tomorrow, but maybe we could all meet at the shop in the afternoon and swap non-explicit stories," Willow offered, grinning.
The carpenter nodded, smiling. "Thanks, Will. You guys sleep good."
Buffy nodded, hugging him again as she yawned. "You too," she responded, opening the door for them. Xander waved as they walked down off the porch and Buffy shut the door, leaning wearily against it. "So, what are you guys up to tonight?" she asked with another yawn.
"Dawnie is going up to do her homework, and Willow is going to rest with some ice cream," Tara answered, smiling affectionately at her girlfriend.
Buffy nodded, smirking. "Ice cream sounds good," she commented.
Tara nodded. "You two go get settled in the living room and I'll bring you some," she encouraged them, giving Willow's butt a gentle push toward the living room. Willow shot her a smile over her shoulder and looped an arm through Buffy's, leading the weary Slayer toward the couch.
Dawn went reluctantly upstairs while Tara went into the kitchen. Buffy looked almost asleep when Tara came in only a few minutes later, but she sat up gamely and took her dish with a sleepy smile.
Willow was sitting on the ottoman of the armchair and Tara gave her a confused look. Willow didn't speak, just took her hand and pulled her into the space between the chair and the footrest. Tara took the hint and sat down, guiding Willow into the chair between her knees. She let one hand curl around Willow's waist, letting the redhead's hands take the dish of ice cream from her.
Tara nuzzled her face into the side of Willow's neck as the redhead squirmed closer. Willow took a bite of their dessert and then offered the next spoonful to Tara. The television was on quietly, but none of them were really watching it. Buffy perked up when a news report about the attempted armored car robbery came on, but she was slouching on the couch, fighting sleep.
The next time the witches looked, the Slayer was fast asleep. They had finished their ice cream, and Willow collected Buffy's quickly melting dish from its precarious position on the edge of the sofa cushion. When she returned from the kitchen, Tara had covered the sleeping Slayer with a blanket from the cabinet and was turning down the lights.
Willow took her hand, pulling her up the stairs quietly. There was no light from under Dawn's door, and Tara took a second to peek into the younger girl's room, making sure that all was well before she returned to her room. Willow was already under the covers, her eyes half closed in the dim light. Tara was quick to join her, curling herself around Willow under the light blankets of their bed.
"Sleepy, baby?" Willow asked softly.
Tara blinked, surprised. "Not if you aren't," she said, leaving the choice about their evening's activities up to Willow and her exhaustion.
Willow rolled over quickly, leaning in for a kiss. "You should know the answer to that, baby," she said against Tara's lips as she kissed her again.
