Good morning again! I'm back with another chapter! If you are reading this, even if you don't think it's very good, just put down what you liked in a review and submit it. I could do with a good bit of feedback, you know.

I know it really has been a while, but I have no Microsoft Word at home, and the site doesn't let me use Appleworks. So school is the only place for me. I try to update every other day I'm here.

And now, back to the show!

Restoration

Chapter5- Acccepting What Is

Cass found Willow downstairs at the kitchen counter, making a creamy
peanut butter and strawberry jelly sandwich. She plopped herself down
on the nearest stool, licking her lips in anticipation.

"Ooh," Cassandra cooed, making Willow jump, "Can I get one of those?"

Willow caught her breath. "Sure," She answered, "I'll make you one." As
Willow went and prepared another sandwich, Cass delved into her
cousin's mind. She knew it was wrong, but something in her told her
that it would be the only way she'd know what was bothering her best
friend.

In the first, outermost level of her conscious mind, there was a
desperate need to stay busy, coupled with a restless sort of panic. The
reason fopr that was just a layer in. As Cass dug, she found that
Willow was just barely concealing a deep sense of loss, pain, and
longing. Under that, the young girl found a trapped feeling, with the
terror of impounding doom, as though in a cage that is in the way of a
volcano. Fear of what may happen when the beast is released. Below
that, a struggle was taking place between two opposing sides of the
same person. And lower still, one singular word reverberated through
the voice of Willow's soul. 'Tara! Tara,' it screamed, hopelessly
entangled in finding the one it sought.

Cassandra almost gasped at all the injury her dear cousin's psyche had
wrought upon itself. It nearly seemed as though she was the only person
in the world who could help Willow with her mounting problems. Which
was entirely not true, for Willow had Buffy, and Xander, and Dawn, and
the entire gang to help her out, but none of them had. So, it stood to
reason that Cassandra was the one who would have to jump-start the
healing process. But first, she needed answers.

Cass withdrew from Willow's mind, and fiddled silently with a pile of
mail in front of her. She moved the pile aside when Willow gave her the
requested sandwich. After a few bites, Cassandra swallowed and posed a
question.

"Who's Tara, Will?"

Metal clattered to the floor. Willow was frozen, a look of fear and
sadness plastered on her face. Then, the gears in her mind cranked,
almost visibly, and the taller redhead got a bit more angry. "You
probed! What have I told you about entering other people's minds
unless you ask them? You never know what you'll find!"

"You do realize I could just ask Dawn, and i'd get a very detailed
answer, don't you?"

Willow scoffed. "And she'll just repeat what I've said."

Cassandra smiled. "No, she won't."

"Why won't she," asked the older female in the room. Then Willow
answered her own question. "They don't know about you. What, you didn't
remember to tell them?"

"They don't need to know! It's mine, not theirs. Why should I tell them
about it?"

"Because it affects them, Cassandra! You can't just go around using it
and expect no repercussions!"

Cass laughed, rolling her eyes. "You're one to talk. I see it, Willow,
hanging around you like a plague. Made from you, by you, and for you.
You're choking yourself."

Willow frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You've been overusing magic, Willow. Which is probably why Tara left.
She was scared for you, but she couldn't stop you." Willow knew that
her cousin was right. "Oh, I've hit the spot, haven't I? I can just
hear the entire story coming from you. You and Tara had an argument,
but you didn't want her to leave, so you made her forget. 'Tabula
Rasa', right? How pitiful. She still found out, and then she really did
leave you. You've been broken ever since. And Tara won't come back
until you're fixed. We're going to need to take you off of magic for a
while, Willow. Detoxify you a bit."

Willow was taken aback at Cass's boldness. "I don't need to be fixed.
I'm fine. Peachy-keen. Couldn't be better. And I think I'm going to go
for a walk now." So she grabbed her coat off the rack and left.
Cassandra hung her head.

Break

Buffy looked at her sleeping sister. Dawn really was best when she
wasn't jabbering or getting herself into trouble. And, naturally, nap
time was almost the only time when she wasn't doing either.

Buffy detangled herself from her sister's hug and went downstairs. It
Seemed as though Willow and Cass were having a fight, so Buffy grabbed
her coat, deciding to take a walk.

Out the door, down the street, passing by the graveyard. The petite
blonde soon found herself outside of a familiar mausoleum. Spike's
crypt, as a matter of fact. Buffy shook her head and made as though to
turn away, but instead she found herself suddenly inside of the stone
structure.

It was pretty much the same as the last time she had been there. Sort
of worn out cushy chairs, TV, granite coffins, hole in the ground
between them. Buffy didn't know what she'd expected to be different.
Maybe the heavy scent of cologne. Of course, Spike had never been one
to dress to impress. Or really dress at all. She'd only ever seen him
in tight black jeans, tight black shirt, combat boots, and his precious
duster. Or nothing at all. Buffy cringed at the thought, then
remembered where she was. She had no idea why she was there, no matter
why she just didn't feel like leaving. Although insanity was definitely
a likely choice of reasons.

So, she sat down in one of the chairs, then leapt up as soon as she
realized that she was sitting on something. It turned out to be a
liquor flask. Of course.

"How charming," She mused. She tossed it aside, then sat down again.
"It'll be getting dark soon." Buffy was talking to no one in
particular. It didn't make her get up, even though she knew that it
meant that Spike would find her when he decided to go out. She just
didn't care. Let him find her, it meant nothing. Nothing...

Buffy started awake, noticing three things. One, she was covered by a
warm and rather heavy blanket. Two, it was dark, almost pitch black
outside. Three, and this was, by far, the doozie, Spike was staring at
her. With a sort of sweet smile on his face. It seemed rather odd in
her mind, considering who it was that was smiling.

"Morning, Slayer Beauty," he chuckled.

Buffy sighed. "I'm surprised," was her answer.

The vampire opposite her cocked and eyebrow. "At what?"

She gave a patronizing smile. "At your restraint. In case you didn't
think I'd noticed, my clothes are still on." He stopped smiling.

"What, you'd thought I'd stoop that low? I still have some class, girl.
Which is apparently more than you'll manage."

"Aww," Buffy cooed. "Looks like Spikey's getting a bit cranky. That'd
be my cue to exit, stage left." She got up and made for the door. Spike
grabbed her arm, swinging her around for his lips to press upon hers.
She pushed him away. "Okay, surely you didn't get it into your head
that this was why I came here, 'cause once was way more than enough for
me." And Buffy went to the door, grabbing the handle.

"Then why did you come here," said a voice behind her, and she froze.
His breath was cool on her neck, giving her goose bumps and a pleasant
twinge in her stomach. Nevertheless, she showed none of it.

"Like I'm gonna tell you that," she retorted.

Suddenly, a hand was on her stomach, tickling her mercilessly. Buffy
screamed with laughter and then ran to the hole in the ground and
through it, Spike hot on her heels. She managed to make it to the back
of the hole, near the bed, when Spike got her. She couldn't stop
giggling, and then his eyes were in line with hers, and her brain
ceased functioning. She was kissing him, tearing at his shirt. She
pulled it off, and he got hers onto the floor. Then off came both their
pants, and soon all remnants of clothing had been thrown aside.

Buffy woke once during the rest of the night to a feeling of pure
bliss. She didn't even register in her mind that she was safely tucked
into the embrace of a man who, less than two years ago, had been the
most dangerous vampire on earth. No, she proceeded to snuggle in even
deeper and fall right back to sleep.

Hikari- Thank you for reading! If there was any misunderstanding about what happened at the end of last chapter, when Kyoko was here, I just want to clear it up. I was not saying that you the readers couldn't come back, I was telling my muse that she wasn't allowed to visit here anymore. So please, readers, return and once you finish reading this- review!