Chapter Forty-Five

You can't see me

A/N I'm sorry that last one was um, a tad sad but just where my brain went, serious apologies.

Sunnydale, the world without shrimp 2003 The next day

Dawn was sat at her computer, fingers running along the mouse for the umpteenth time, the long list of possible demons was endless and tiring. But she still had a smile on her face and just an edge of excitement whizzing through her, since Willow'd been gone she'd totally stepped up as junior researcher, and Giles was too busy with training and big old books that she had the job all to herself. None of the potentials sat still long enough to research so it was reserved as Dawn's special job. She still missed Willow though, and Tara slightly - gradually they'd seen less of her as Willow had begun to retreat into herself. And now she felt oddly alone.

Buffy and Xander were whispering behind her in a hushed tone enough so that she didn't overhear them. "I need to do something, I just, I have this- feeling, that we know she did this." Xander had to think for a second about who she was but he stumbled out the word when he remembered.

"W-Willow? You think Willow did this." He said, staring pointedly at her for an answer. Buffy just scoffed and pointed at his still acast arm. "I know what I said, but it's Willow, she wouldn't do this." Xander continued, his gaze lowering as he tried not to catch Buffy's eyeline. He knew that she wouldn't hold Willow to it, wouldn't trust anyone too much anymore. The betrayal Buffy'd already had in her life and need to protect whatever she had left was just too much for her to care. It was sad, it made Xander reap for her but somehow there had to be a way out somewhere.

"Tara can't be with her all the time, and she's been looking super exhausted lately." Xander'd had enough of the doubt and gripped Buffy's arm in his free wrist. He pushed his chocolate eyes into hers and warned her not to go further, Buffy backed off, she knew he would do anything to protect Willow and by extension, Tara. But in Buffy's mind there was a very real possibility Willow was behind this.

"Ohh guys, here look I think it's this one." Dawn's voice came out of the blue causing them to turn and stare down at her computer screen; but not before Xander released a heavy breath and warmed his dark eyes. "A demon called Gnarl. He's a parasite with these nasty long fingernails and he- ewww. That is so gross." Dawn said, covering her mouth with her palm.

"What is it?" Buffy asked leaning over so she could read it. "Oh it says here that he peels the skin off his victims in strips and eats it."

"But look, he laps up the blood so that's why you guys didn't find any at the scene. It's his natural beverage." Dawn interrupted and finished, pointing at the gnarly image presented on the screen. This; this was seriously creepy.

Willow had had a slow start all that morning; Tara had helped her get through most of the daily routine stuff but she was still shaky. After a quick phone call from Xander about the Gnarl demon they were now tracking, Tara was setting up to do the demon locator spell her and Willow had attempted years before. As she sat on the floor - cross legged with her eyes shut and bottle of sand beside her - she feigned quickly from starting and glanced over at Willow. She looked sombre, and yet there was an excited curiosity sweeping across her irises. Her chin was loosely resting on her hands as she lounged across the bedspread. She was fine when they were alone, it was their own space - their own energy, she was comfortable in her own Tara bubble but her friends were a new obstacle that needed to be accepted back in.

"Can I help?" The redhead asked from her place in the high ground of the room. Tara looked up and over at her with a weak tired smile, the energy of keeping Willow from losing it completely was draining her. And she really could do with Willow's help, but she worried it might be a step too far. She let Willow stride over and sit down next to her, their knees knocking slightly as they looked down at the map between them. Looking at that square of crystals on the floor brought back memories - it was one of the very first spells they'd attempted and Tara had sabotaged it, she'd never told Willow what happened, she'd always allowed her to believe it was her magic at fault. Maybe now was the time?

"Sweetie before we start, I need to tell you something. Please don't be mad at me but-" The redhead sat perplexed, what could be important as so to interrupt magic? She didn't reply in words, just gave Tara's knee a quick squeeze and peered forlorn into her big blue eyes. Tara looked down, pulling away from Willow's gaze, pressing her thumbs together, she needed a hand on her somewhere to keep some heat circling her body - otherwise she'd go cold with worry. "I-I" She kicked herself that her stutter always reemerged at irritating moments. "I, when w-we tried the spell - you know the last time, well I, I sort of. Maybe, might've messed it up, on purpose."

Willow let out a squealish giggle, cupping her hands over her mouth. Before taking a more serious tone and cupped Tara's face in her palm. "Oh, baby, I didn't know but that was so long ago, I guess you were trying to stop me from seeing you on the map 'cause you thought you were a demon." A shy nod from Tara confirmed this. "I understand, and of course I'm not mad, what you went through - I can't even imagine." This was accompanied by an understanding smile between the two of them and Willow eventually nuzzling into the blonde's shoulder.

The spell went through them quickly, the magic reawakening Tara from her tired state and bringing them closer - they felt like a 'we' again, instead of just two 'I's. Little sparks began to emerge all over the map, burning through the paper and through to singe the edges of the carpet. The two witches jumped up off the floor and grabbed onto each other as Willow grabbed for the map before it set the whole place alight. Blowing lightly on the burns until the flicker flames died down. They were still gripping onto each other and with the heat from the room and the way their eyes were desperately gazing into each other's... Their lips connecting for bare seconds as fire still flamed inside of them, their crashing breaths eventually winning out as they panted for cold relief.

"I guess it got a little sexy, didn't it?" Willow suggested with a flicker of her eyebrows before leaning in to peck Tara's lips again.

Dawn was posed lifelessly on the couch, her eyes flicking across their openings and around the room as she sat in the most awkward position. Her mind recounted the events in sequence as they'd happened, moment after moment. She remembered the research - about the Gnarl, and Buffy finding a series of caves where it would probably lurking. They talked Spike into helping them trace the scent of the blood back to where the caves were. All four of them; her, Spike, Buffy and Xander. Heading towards the cave system, Buffy slowly losing her belief Willow was responsible for this when she saw the blood trails thicken.

They headed inside the dark crevice and Buffy swung an axe at the hideous creature - it was creepy, all covered in blood and hovering over something missing with skin strips in its tangled spiny mouth. Its voice shrieking through the violence before it hit her. Dawn had bent over herself, doubled in pain and then a nothingness as the creature swiped her across the stomach with a dark claw, instantly sealing her skin into a hold so firm her body dropped to the ground like a weight through water. Xander'd rushed to her side and tried to fend the creature off as suddenly Tara appeared in her eyeline, crouching over nothing in the corner of the space. Tucked into the cave wall but looking down at something, touching something, caring for something.

There was a look of grave terror strewn upon her face, worry present when there shouldn't be. A fear as she clearly cradled something that wasn't there. Dawn tried to look around to see what was going on but it seemed like chaos etched around them, Buffy was swinging an axe in all directions and Xander was holding in down. With one final swish of the axe Buffy brought the harsh metal through the foot of the creature and it howled in pain before descending in death to the floor. There was calm, a peace and Dawn laid back and let the coldness of the floor take the ache in her muscles as the others hauled her back onto her feet.

Buffy on her left and Xander on the right they carried her over to where Tara was clinging to the cave wall. She was stroking the invisible something with her palm and whispering kindly. The trio looked perplexed, and from somewhere outside the cave Spike was poking rocks with a stick waiting for someone to tell him it was ok to go home. To the homey basement. As Buffy let Xander take Dawn's deadweight, she knelt down next to Tara and put her hand on the blonde's shoulder, comforting her and letting her know she was here for whatever was going on.

"I-It's Willow." Tara kicked herself again for the stutter. But now she was pointing clearly so Buffy could see the nothing. She should've let herself off - a stutter for watching your girlfriend's stomach leaking blood and her body completely still without movement. There was a deathly chill in the caves and the wind on her back wasn't going to help the situation.

"What? Where's Willow? Is she with you, around here somewhere?" Buffy returned, looking evermore perplexed than before. But finally pushing all her resentment and tiredness at Willow to one side, she knew this was going to be bad whatever it was and Tara had done nothing but help them. She didn't deserve the grief or guilt Buffy was feeling to be put on her.

Tara looked oddly up at her through lidded eyes, "she's here, Buffy like right here." She pointed. Looking sturdy but like the tears would burst out of her at any moment, like she was holding up the flood gates. To Tara she was stroking Willow's pale forehead trying to keep her awake as more blood seeped out of her, she hadn't the thought at that moment to try and stop it. She leaned down and kissed Willow's brow softly, trying to remind her she was near. Buffy didn't quite understand what was happening in front of her, she saw the nothing, then the something - as the battered body of Willow flickered into view in front of her.

The wall Willow'd put up was draining as she started to believe it would all be ok. The invisibility she'd bestowed upon herself had left her and she felt better. Tara's mind had told her Buffy was near even though she couldn't see her. That through Tara's lips she knew her friends forgave her, that it really would all be ok, that she wasn't dark anymore and they could move on. "Buffy?" She said as her best friends came into view all of a sudden. Only it was muffled by the residual paralysis and sounded more like 'uhm-uff-y.'

"I'm so sorry Will, I'll never doubt you again." Buffy said in total spontaneous relief, her muscles pushing them together into a hug, followed by an 'ow' sound from Willow as Buffy's jacket pressed into her stomach. "Oh, sorry." At the second part of Buffy's sentence Xander and Dawn both gave her a look of doubt about the doubting of Willow. Tara was too busy checking on Willow to give her own scowl, but unconsciously was there. They knew she'd do it again at some point, but for now, all seemed ok again. "Ok, maybe not never but at least for a while." Buffy replied to the scoffs and scowls as she looked back down at Willow.

"Thanks Buff." Willow replied, groaning again as she tried to move her body upwards. It seemed not to comply and she had to press into Tara's knees to try and clamber onto her feet, but the pain was too great.

"Yeah, ok we really need to get you to a hospital." Buffy replied, grabbing an arm and hauling her up, Willow knew she'd heal quickly - with magic and all that but she'd still need multiple stitches and dressings but for now they needed to get her up off the floor.