CHAPTER FIVE: BREAKING
Tara scowled slightly. Spike had been wrong. Buffy hadn't been at Joyce's gravestone, and Tara couldn't help but wonder where else the Slayer would have gone. She looked around the cemetery, and then the painful realisation occurred to her. She broke into a run, unsure of what to expect when she arrived at her destination.
She slowed to a stop only a few feet away from the headstone that she had visited so many times over the last five months.
BUFFY ANNE SUMMERS
1981 – 2001
BELOVED SISTER
DEVOTED FRIEND
SHE SAVED THE WORLD
A LOT
Standing in front of the stone, looking down at it was the person that the stone had been made for in the first place. Tara couldn't even imagine how strange it must have been to be standing at your own grave, staring at the headstone.
Tara hung back, not entirely certain what she was waiting for, but somehow instinctively knowing that something was going to happen.
She watched as Buffy took a few steps back and found a large stone. The Slayer bent to pick it up, hefting it in her hand to test the weight. She took another step back before hurling it viciously at the headstone.
The throw was hard enough to completely crack the headstone. It smashed through Buffy's name, obscuring it enough so that only half of Summers was still visible. Buffy picked up another stone and threw it at the exact same spot, splintering the tombstone completely. She picked up another rock and threw it at the base, the final blow being enough to destroy the beautiful headstone that was no longer needed.
Tara felt tears well once more, and she found herself moving towards the Slayer, just in time to catch Buffy as she fell to her knees. The two girls crumpled to the floor, Tara holding the smaller woman, rocking her back and forth as Buffy began to sob violently.
Tara could only gently rub Buffy's back, whispering soothing words into Buffy's ear. She spoke of love and devotion and friendship and the support that could be found within the Scoobies. She spoke of Giles' arrival, which would be 'any day now' and spoke of the people who loved her.
And through it all, Buffy cried for the warmth that she'd lost and the peace that had been stolen from her. And as the minutes passed by and her sobs slowly softened, she could feel warmth in Tara's arms. She could feel the love and comfort that was being offered to her for no other reason other than Tara wishing to give it to her.
She clung tightly to Tara's waist, burying her face in the other girl's shirt. When Buffy's grip became a little too painful for Tara to bear, she gently grabbed hold of Buffy's wrists and pulled Buffy's hands into her own.
Tara closed her eyes, not wanting to see the scars that still marked Buffy's hands. Scars that Buffy had earned because of her friends' thoughtlessness. Scars that were taking far too long to heal.
The Wiccan didn't know what possessed her towards her next action, but something inside of her was pushing her to do strange things.
She lifted Buffy's right hand, and brought the scarred knuckles up to her lips, gently kissing them. The shock of the action made Buffy tilt her head towards Tara, but the blonde Wiccan kept her lips in place.
After a few moments, she lowered Buffy's right hand and brought up the left one to repeat the action, all the while keeping her eyes locked firmly on Buffy's. Tara lowered Buffy's hand and began stroking the marred flesh and Buffy once again buried her head in Tara's lap. The tears had stopped, and once again, Buffy closed her eyes and felt only comfort.
----
Loving the feedback! Thanks heaps, you guys rock!
DKG.