Reviews:

Dee - Just make sure it's thumb up and not a particular finger!

Word - Intrigued in a good way?

Gina - You will get your wish - more or less!

Sunshine - I like different - hence my hooking Tara up with different characters. (Especially like B/T hook-ups. Hence a lot of them will have some kind of variation of that!)

CB - Gotta love fanfic - where else can you take someone elses creation, and play with the characters? Hmmmm. play...Ooops went to a different place in my mind for a minute, sorry!

Dilvish - YEPPER - One of my biggest pet peeves - just because she's the 'Slayer', she's ultimately responsible for everything that happens - NOT NOT NOT - Okay, mini-rant over.

Chapter 4

Buffy swings her sword, beheading the demon. Wiping the green blood off on the grass, she tucks it back away, working her way through the rest of Sunnydale. Having no luck in coming across the blonde vampire, Buffy wonders what, exactly, the witch had done while she was gone. What other little things no one knows about to help and take care of the people she considers family. Frowning, Buffy looks up at the night sky. "I don't know what we did to deserve you coming into our lives, but I have a feeling you've made everything a hell of a lot easier on us since you showed up."

Buffy slowly works her way back home, not coming across any more demons. Opening the door silently, she eases in and locks it behind her. Hanging her jacket up, she walks over to the chest and puts her weapons away. Turning off the light before walking into the kitchen, grabbing a water and checking the back door before heading upstairs. Peeking into Dawn's room, she smiles at the sleeping teen. Looking towards the witch's room, she notices the light coming from under the door. Wondering why she's still awake, Buffy quietly walks to the door and taps lightly.

"Come in." Tara quietly calls out, looking up as Buffy opens the door. "You can come on in, you don't have to stand in the doorway." Tara smiles before looking back down, finishing her notes and closing her book.

"You weren't able to do your studying tonight, were you?" Buffy grumbles.

"Its okay, Buffy." Tara stands up, placing her books in her bag. "You better not be thinking of taking the blame for it." Tara looks up with a twinkle in her eye.

Buffy rolls her eyes before sitting down on the end of the bed.

"So, did you run into him?" Tara questions softly, sitting down beside the slayer.

"No." Buffy shakes her head looking down at her hands. "It'll happen, though. He doesn't take 'no' for an answer very easily." Buffy stands and looks at the witch for a moment. "I should let you get to sleep. Is Dawn going to come to the Magic Box after school?"

"Yes." Tara whispers, letting Buffy retreat for the moment. "If you need me, I'm here."

Buffy nods her head before slipping out the door, closing it behind her.

AAAAAAAAAAAA

Tara bites her lip to keep from laughing as Anya irritates Buffy.

All the Scoobies are gathered at the Summers' residence celebrating Dawn's birthday. Anya and Xander brought a guy with them, hoping to hook Richard and Buffy up. Shaking her head, Tara chuckles at the embarrassed look coming over the new man's face. Standing up, she walks into the kitchen to grab some more punch. Hearing a knock on the back door, she glances up, frowning when she realizes its Spike.

"Evening." Tara nods her head at Spike, as she leans against the doorframe.

"Thought I'd see how Bit's birthday was goin'." Spike tries to walk in, bouncing back off the invisible barrier. "What the fuck?" He growls.

"I'm sorry, but your invite has been revoked." Tara looks at the vampire with cool blue eyes. "If you want to wish Dawn a happy birthday, I'll go get her for you." Tara raises an eyebrow questioningly at the vampire.

"Don't fuckin' bother." Spike snarls his lip up. "The slayer ain't goin' to like you taking things upon yourself like this."

"I asked her to do it." Buffy growls quietly. "You are not welcome here, Spike." Buffy lays a gentle hand on Tara's shoulder. "I got it, if you want to head back to the living room."

"If you need me…" Tara turns serious blue eyes to the slayer, smiling briefly at the nod and grin she gets in return. Looking back at the vampire with a deadly stare, Tara narrows her eyes. "I suggest you take whatever you're told to heart, Spike." Tara growls roughly, making the vampire blink and unconsciously back up a step.

Buffy watches Tara walk into the living room, surprise on her face. Turning back to Spike, she raises an eyebrow. "We're through, Spike. I would appreciate you not following me anymore, or showing up unannounced. Understood?"

"What, you trying the other side of the fence now, slayer?" Spike growls, blue eyes flashing to yellow.

Buffy chuckles and shakes her head. "That's not any of your business, now is it?" Buffy feels the laughter bubbling up inside her at the thought of Tara and herself being together. Hesitating a moment, she stops laughing tilting her head to the side, thinking about it momentarily. Shaking her head, she dismisses the thought. "Goodbye, Spike. Leave well enough alone." Buffy calmly shuts the door in the vampires face before joining the rest of the group in the living room.

AAAAAAAAAA

"How are you doing?" Tara quietly questions the redhead, as she hands her some more punch.

"Okay." Willow glances up briefly with sad green eyes. "How about you?"

"I'm fine." Tara smiles, watching Dawn and Buffy dancing to the music, as Xander and Anya make out in the corner. Glancing over at Richard, she grins. "Do you think he has a chance?"

Willow looks around before her gaze lights on Richard. "I don't know. It's kind of hard to bring a new person into the group."

Tara nods in agreement as she leans against the wall looking back at Willow. "How's living at home?"

"The same." Willow smiles, biting her lip. "Mom's already gone again. I'll probably have the house to myself most of the time, like when I was in high school. It's kind of nice, you know, the peace and quiet."

"It helps." Tara nods her head, running a finger over the top of her cup.

"How's it feel being home again? I bet Dawn was ecstatic." Willow glances over to Dawn, smiling as she bumps her hips with Buffy.

"She was sad you left." Tara watches the Summers' also. "And yes, she was happy I came home."

"You're good for her. She'll listen to you." Willow murmurs.

"Xander, I want to go home and have orgasms." Anya declares loudly pulling on his arm, making him groan and blush.

Tara smirks at the ex-demon, her eyes twinkling as Anya glances at her, grinning.

"Jeeze, Anya!" Dawn whines. "I could have gone without hearing that on my birthday!"

"Sorry, Dawn-patrol." Xander mutters as he's pulled out of the Summers' residence. "See you guys later."

"'Bye Xander, Anya." Tara laughs, watching the two.

"I guess I should probably head out, also. I need to get up early for work tomorrow." Richard stands quickly, grabbing his jacket as he heads towards the door.

"Thanks for coming. It was nice to meet you." Buffy smiles softly at Richard.

"Umm, would you, maybe, want to go out for lunch sometime?" Richard makes the offer as he pulls his jacket on, smiling down at the petite blonde.

"My work schedule is all over the place, but if you want to try." Buffy looks down. "You can get my number from Xander, or it's in the book." Buffy glances up smiling at the obviously nice guy.

"I'll call." Richard smiles genuinely, before heading out the door to his vehicle.

"I guess I should head out, also." Willow murmurs, setting her cup down before walking towards the door.

"Hold up, Willow." Buffy calls out before Willow leaves. Quickly heading over to her chest, she grabs her gear. "I'll walk you home then go on patrol."

"Thanks." Willow grins and nods her head. "Happy Birthday, Dawnie." She hugs the teen tightly.

"Thanks." Dawn hugs Willow, kissing her cheek before pulling back. "It's good to see you. Please don't be a stranger." Dawn whispers quietly, looking at the hacker seriously.

"I won't." Willow smiles a little bigger.

Buffy smiles and winks at Dawn. "I'm going to make a good patrol tonight. It'll probably be after 2:00 before I get back home." Buffy let's Tara know, so she won't worry.

"Be careful." Tara calls out as Buffy and Willow walk down the steps. Slowly shutting the door, she turns to the teen. "So, good birthday?"

"Best birthday!" Dawn grins hugely, hugging the witch. "Thanks, so much, for those CD's I wanted!"

"I wish I could have done more." Tara whispers, hugging her back.

"It's great. I know that money's tight. So don't worry about it." Dawn looks serious for a moment. "Buffy seems to be getting better, since you moved back in."

"She just needs time, Dawn." Tara glances at the teen as she works on gathering up the trash.

"Yeah." Dawn agrees quietly. "I'm gonna take my goodies upstairs." She grins grabbing an armful of presents, running up the stairs.

Tara smiles gathering the last of the dirty cups, as she hears music coming from the teen's room. Throwing the cups in the trash, she turns and runs dish water to wash what few dishes there are, silently contemplating the evening. Happy everything had pretty much ran smoothly, even Spike didn't cause too much of a problem. Letting the water out of the sink, Tara quickly wipes down the counters before heading to the living room. Curling up in the corner of the sofa, waiting for the slayer to get home, to make sure she's alright.

AAAAAAAAA

"So… How were things?" Buffy hesitates momentarily before finishing.

Willow glances at Buffy before looking back down at the sidewalk. "Okay, I guess. It just seems kind of weird, you know."

Buffy nods, her senses alert. "Is it getting better, you know… Thinking about you two?"

Willow sighs, tucking her hands in her jacket pockets. "It hurts. It'll probably always hurt. But I'm not crying all the time now." Willow hunches her shoulders. "I don't think I'll ever not love her, you know?"

Buffy wraps a comforting arm around the hacker's shoulder. "I know. Kind of like Angel. I'll always love him, but our time has passed, and it's probably for the best." Buffy admits.

"It'll take me a while to get to that point." Willow leans into the slayer. "But, every day I feel a little better." Willow admits.

"That's the important thing." Buffy squeezes her shoulders gently. "Take it day by day. Get a little better as time passes. Then, before you know it, you'll be out flirting with other girls, and going on dates…" Buffy trails off smiling.

Willow giggles quietly. "It's hard imagining that, even though I know you're right. There's actually this girl in my Physics class." Blushing, Willow glances at Buffy.

"Ooooh! You so have to spill." Buffy laughs.

"There's nothing to spill, yet." Willow grins. "But there was some flirting going on."

"See, there you go." Buffy nods her head as they walk up to the front of the Rosenberg's home.

"Thanks, Buffy." Willow hugs her quickly before opening the door. "Be careful tonight."

"You're welcome. And I will be. Don't want to make Tara yell at me." Buffy smirks.

"She won't yell at you. She's like, the non-yelling-est person I know." Willow watches Buffy.

Buffy chuckles. "I don't know. I kind of pissed her off last weekend. She said the F word and everything."

Willow laughs. "She says that word more often than you realize, Buffy. Depending on the circumstances." Willow blushes a deep red, realizing what she's saying.

Buffy quirks an eyebrow questioningly at the hacker. "I don't think I'm going to ask. But, she got kind of pissed at me for trying to take the blame for everything." Buffy admits quietly.

"You're not to blame for everything." Willow shakes her head. "You need to realize that."

"I'm getting there." Buffy smiles before backing down the stairs. "You have a good night, Wills."

"I will, Buff." Willow grins as she watches Buffy stride away before closing the door.

AAAAAAAAAA

As Buffy finally stakes the fourth vampire she's found, she tucks the stake away, continuing on her patrol when she feels another vampire. "Damn, must be a convention in town." She mutters waiting for the vamp to make itself known.

"Looking for me, slayer?" Spike lights a cigarette stepping out from behind a tree.

"No. I told you we were through." Buffy starts walking again, frowning as the vampire falls in step beside her.

"Ain't that easy to get rid of, luv." Spike snarks as he takes a deep drag off his cigarette. "So, you and Glinda getting it on now? I never took you for the mousy type."

Buffy backhands him hard enough to send him flying back ten feet. "Not that it's any of your business, but there isn't anything going on between myself and Tara. And for someone that probably kept you in cigarettes and blood the whole time I was dead, you'd think you would be a little nicer to the woman."

"Bloody hell! Where'd you find that information out at?" Spike snarls as he stands up.

Buffy stands in shock, hoping that Tara had just done it a couple times, but with his admission, realizing the witch had obviously spent a lot of money taking care of the bleached wonder. Narrowing her gaze on the vampire, she slowly closes the distance between them. "How often did she buy you blood and cigarettes?" Buffy questions in an extremely deadly voice.

Spike backs up, seeing a level of violence in the slayer's eyes, that he couldn't even remember seeing when he first came to Sunnydale. "A couple times a week." Spike admits.

"She bought you a carton of cigarettes and what four or five pints of blood twice a week?" Buffy states dangerously.

"Yeah, somethin' like that." Spike realizes he's been backing away from the slayer, stopping, he stands his ground and stiffens his back. "What's it to you? Was between the witch and me, it was."

"You took advantage of her. What did you do? Did you tell her you wouldn't help out with slaying? That maybe, you'd find a friend to make a snack out of the rest of the group?" Buffy watches as Spike's jaw clenches tightly and he looks away. Growling deeply, Buffy slams her fist into the side of his face. "Stay the fuck away from us, understand?"

"You fuckin' cunt!" Spike growls, coming back at the slayer, tackling her to the ground. "I'm gonna suck you dry. I've had it with you!" Spike roars, game face at the fore.

Buffy keeps rolling until he's under her, slamming her fists in a flurry against his face. As he bucks her off, she rolls, popping back up in a fighting stance as the bloodied vampire turns on her, stalking towards her with hatred in his yellow gaze.

As he comes in swinging, Buffy jumps up, kicking him hard in the chin, making him fall back. As he quickly comes in again, she does a back spin kick, connecting with his temple, stunning him temporarily. Growling as she lands on top of him with a stake pressing against his chest, she looks into the yellow eyes. "You have a choice. You leave this town and never come back, or the next time I see you, I'll stake you. No more chances, understand?" Buffy growls deeply, pressing the stake in hard enough to break the skin and sink in, slowly edging closer to his heart.

Spike screams in pain as the stake works its way slowly into his chest.

"Understand?" Buffy uses her free hand to smack him upside the head.

"Understood." Spike cries out.

Buffy jumps back off the vampire, to stand a few yards away from him. Watching him stand up, holding his hand against his bleeding chest, she unemotionally wipes the blood off the stake before tucking it away. "Out of here tonight, Spike. Or you're going to be so much dust blowing in the wind." Buffy watches as he nods and turns away, heading towards his crypt. Spinning on her heel, she works on finishing patrol, taking the anger still boiling inside her, out on the demons she comes across.

AAAAAAA

Buffy silently enters the house. Hanging her jacket up, she walks into the living room, smiling softly at the witch, curled up asleep in the corner of the couch. Shaking her head, Buffy puts away her stakes, knife and short sword. Kneeling beside Tara, Buffy considers the woman for a moment, realizing for the first time that she's very beautiful. Shaking the thought out of her head, Buffy reaches out shaking her shoulder gently. "Tara?"

Tara jerks awake, blinking her eyes as the slayer's features come into focus. "Sorry, I tried to stay awake." Tara mumbles rubbing her eyes. "How was patrol?"

"Patrol was fine. You should be in bed, asleep." Buffy stands, holding her hand out to Tara, helping her up.

"No, I like to try and make sure you get home okay." Tara admits. "That way, if you need any doctoring, I can help you."

Buffy frowns, realizing that in the last week, Tara was awake every night when she came home. "I don't like you staying up so late. How about if I'm hurt and need help, I promise to wake you?"

"Maybe." Tara hedges around agreeing. As the two women walk slowly up the stairs, Tara yawns. "Sorry."

"No sorrys. It's late. And you and I are going to have a little heart to heart tomorrow, after Dawn goes to the mall." Buffy states quietly.

"What?" Tara looks with confused eyes at the slayer. "About what?"

"Tomorrow. Get a good nights rest." Buffy smiles softly at the witch, clasping her shoulder gently before heading into her bedroom.

Tara blinks, staring after the slayer for a moment, wondering what she might have done. "Guess I'll find out tomorrow." Tara murmurs to herself before heading into her bedroom and going to bed.