Chapter 8

The taller girl replaced the shirt into the box, then turned that half-smile on. "So I guess it's time for me to give you your gift now. But we … we need to go to your room. The, the windows face the right direction. It's um, well, there's a story first."

Willow seemed slightly confused, but nodded and led the way into her room. Both young women sat on the bed, facing Willow's French doors, which Tara looked out, seeming to search for something as the sun dipped down behind the treetops. She finally took a deep breath and began her story.

"When I was a little girl, my mother and I were really close. Things were better then, when she was still … here. She used to show me all the different kinds of trees and plants, and told me all the old stories and myths about the area I grew up in. And she used to show me the constellations, and tell me the legends about them. And I listened to them, and I liked the stories, but I never really saw the pictures she talked about. I always saw different ones, so I made up stories about them and told her about my own star-pictures.

"By the time I turned seventeen, Momma was really sick. The doctors were telling us she didn't have very long, but she was so strong she didn't w-want to give in. For my birthday, she wanted to go outside to look at the stars with me like we used to. I didn't think she should go because she was so f-frail by that time, but she insisted we had to. We bundled her up in warm clothes and blankets, and went out by the oldest tree in the yard. Then, we looked up to the sky, and she told me that today I would hear a new story.

"She pointed out a star to me before she started talking, and told me to watch the star as she spoke. 'Tara,' she said, 'I've watched you grow over the years, and I couldn't be more proud of the young woman you've become. For your birthday this year, I don't have anything good enough to give you, because you are so special that nothing I could ever buy in a store could say how much I love you. I want to give you something that will last forever.'"

Willow watched Tara as she spoke, at times haltingly, emotions plain on her expressive face. Tara looked over at Willow, pausing for a moment in the narrative. She blinked, two tears slowly rolling down her smooth cheeks. "I'm okay," she said quietly, and Willow shared her bittersweet smile, reaching up to brush away one of the tears. "I n-need to show you the star now."

The sun had set completely, stars popping up one by one. "Where is it?" Willow whispered, putting her head close to Tara's so she could see better which one her friend would be pointing out.

Tara pointed to a tiny star, not nearly the brightest in the western sky, but it held a light blue color when compared closely to the sparkling white ones in the sky. "She told me that it's mine. That little one there that's almost blue? She said it's for me, not because it's really big or really bright, 'cause it isn't the biggest or brightest one out there, but that it's special. It's blue like she said my eyes are, and it's a calm star, it reminded her of a cool forest stream. That one little star. Just for me. And it'll always be there. She said after she's g-gone, even when it's really hard, I can look up and I'll always know that she loves me just the way I am, that I'm stronger than I look and brighter than anyone would think."

Willow nodded in awe, looking at the star, surprised when it began to swim and blur a little. Blinking back tears, she looked over to Tara. "That must have been the best present ever. Your mom … I would have loved to meet her."

"She would have loved you, too, Willow, I know it." Tara wiped at her eyes to clear them. "But I still have your present, if you're ready. Look back at the star." Both girls turned their attention to the sky once more, leaning together on Willow's bed. "Now look a little bit to the left of it. See the brighter one that's kinda red?" Feeling Willow nod, Tara smiled. "That one's yours." She felt Willow start to turn towards her, but Tara said gently, "No, Willow, look at the star, okay? I have to tell you why it's yours.

"It's yours because it's small, like you are, but bright and fiery. It would guide you around the whole world if you followed it, and make you even more wise than you already are. It makes me think of how strong you are too, because you live here, on a Hellmouth, but you fight bravely for your friends, a-and the world. You protect us all just as much as Buffy and Faith do, you know that?" Tara smiled and whispered into Willow's ear, "And it's right next to my star, so like I promised you, you'll always have me, no matter what."

"Can I look at you now?" Willow breathed back.

Tara nodded. "Yes, i-if you want to. It's a really good star, so I'll understand if you want to-"

Willow interrupted by impulsively catching Tara's hand in her own. "I don't know what to say, so I'm probably gonna say a lot of stuff all at once. First – um, that's probably the nicest gift I've ever gotten, by a long shot. I mean, no one gives people stars." A bright grin lit up her face as she said that, showing Tara how absolutely happy she was to have her very own star. "And you put so much into it, way more than any fancy trinket in a store. How long did you have it planned?"

"Um, just over a w-week, I think," the golden-haired girl answered. "I wanted something perfect for you, because…" she searched for the right words, finally deciding to go with, "because you're Willow. Something to show you just how unique and wonderful you are." She was a bit startled to hear herself saying these things, but she knew she meant each word.

"It is perfect," Willow agreed. "Know what's the best part?" She leaned close to whisper, "It's right next to yours. I think that's the best place to be." She gently squeezed the taller girl's hand, then laced her fingers with Tara's, finding the softness of Tara's fingers wonderful, especially when she could only compare them to Oz's rough and callused guitar player's hands. This was much nicer. Completely new, but not as scary as when she'd thought about it. Being with Tara was totally comfortable and this … this just seemed right and natural.

This was turning out to be Tara's best Christmas Eve ever. She and Willow sat side by side and hand in hand. How could this possibly be better? She looked up to see their stars sparkling together in the sky, and her expression turned curious. "Willow, it that … is that what I think it is?" Tiny white flakes drifted leisurely down from the sky.

"Oh my gosh. Is it snowing?" Willow squeaked, giving Tara's hand a quick squeeze before letting go to open the doors. She stepped out into the back yard, holding her hands up as the flakes got larger and more numerous. "It's SNOW! Tara, it's really snowing!"

Tara quickly joined her outside, the two laughing and dancing together in the falling snow. Their breath came in visible clouds of white, and snow slowly began to accumulate in the yard. Snowflakes landed in their hair, at first melting but then beginning to stick as the flurry gained strength.

Tara carefully brushed snow out of Willow's hair, and Willow wrapped her arms around Tara's waist. Tara in turn held Willow, and they pulled together, Tara leaning slightly down as their lips met in a sweet and gentle kiss. High above them, a pair of small stars twinkled in the falling snow.