CHAPTER THREE: BREAKFAST

The Scoobies, minus Dawn, Tara and Buffy sat outside on the lawn chairs of the Summers' backyard.  Dawn had managed to get off to school after a long argument about wanting to stay with Buffy for the day.  Tara had gently told her that Buffy needed time to get back into the swing of things before she was bombarded by too many things at once.

Now, Tara was making cups of coffee for the Scoobies as Willow, Xander and Anya sat outside discussing the demon that had attacked them all the evening before.  Tara could feel within herself that something was going to make them pay for bringing Buffy back.  She just didn't know what the price of it was going to be.

She sighed and reached for the coffee that had finished brewing.  She grabbed four mugs and set them on the counter before remembering that they now needed five mugs, not four. 

A soft coughing startled her slightly and she barely stopped herself from dropping the fifth mug.

She turned to see Buffy standing in the doorway, looking more unsure of herself than Tara had ever seen her.

"Buffy," Tara said softly, a smile lifting the corners of her mouth.  "I thought you were sleeping."

Buffy shrugged and made her way to the island counter, hoisting herself onto one of the stools, watching as Tara made coffee.

"Couldn't sleep," Buffy replied somewhat flippantly. 

Tara poured the coffee into all five cups and expertly made the different combinations for each of the Scoobies.  When she came to the fifth mug she stopped, and looked up at the Slayer.

"Uh.Buffy.I've f-forgotten how you take your c-coffee," Tara said.

Buffy snapped out of her semi-trance and looked up at the witch, surprised to see only gentle concern, rather than the pointed stares that the other Scoobies had given her the previous night.

"Oh uh.milk and three sugars," Buffy replied.

"Three?" Tara asked incredulously.  "That can't be good for you."

For a moment it was almost as though the five months hadn't happened.  Buffy's lips quirked up into a half-smile and the spark in her eyes was back.

"Too much sugar is never a bad thing," Buffy replied.

Tara laughed a little and complied to Buffy's request.  When she handed the Slayer her coffee, she noticed that the spark that had momentarily been there had once again died down.  She felt a pang in her heart and wondered what she could do to get that spark back into Buffy's eyes.  She wanted to see the Slayer laugh and smile again. 

"So that's how you made it through those late night Slaying trips," Tara commented.  "Caffeine and s-sugar highs.  Tsk.shame on you."

Tara's smile was gentle and teasing, and Buffy couldn't help but grin at it.  It wasn't that Tara was ignoring the fact that Buffy had been dead and gone, it was that Tara was making a genuine effort to get Buffy to feel comfortable in her own skin again. 

"Something like that," Buffy replied.

She took a sip of the hot drink and closed her eyes as it travelled down her throat, heating her up from the inside.  She moaned softly in pleasure and opened her eyes to see Tara looking at her with a slight smile on her face.

"S'good," Buffy said, lifting the cup to indicate that she was talking about the coffee.  "I think I may have missed caffeine more than anything."

"More t-than chocolate?" Tara asked, a teasing grin on her face.

Buffy paused for a moment.  "I stand corrected."

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DKG.