Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters. Everything BTVS belongs to Joss Whedon. I'm just playing with his universe.
Chapter 7
Kara had another mug of 'restorative tea' before they left, and was starting to feel more energetic by the time they stopped for lunch. They stopped back at the house in the evening just long enough to drop off their numerous bags and change for dinner, then were off again in a cab for a chic restaurant reservation Yavanna had made. Kara was feeling like herself again after two good meals, but her powers still hadn't returned.
They got back, feet sore, but in high spirits after a day of re-connecting. Yavanna sprawled on a couch, while Kara took the over-stuffed chair.
"See, I was right. You had fun today."
"Yes, you were, but you don't have to rub it in. I'm just glad we got this time together after so many years," Kara replied.
"Me, too. I didn't realize how much I'd missed you until the PTBs told me Kalari had a body again. And it turned out I had already met you. The world sometimes turns out to be very small. Go up to bed. I ran you all over town today, so it's only fair."
"Thanks, Vana, for everything," Kara said. She went upstairs, leaving her old friend thinking down in the living room.
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Another day with her friend, and Kara felt she had delayed enough. She hadn't seen Spike since early Sunday morning, and she missed him. They teleported together, Yavanna carrying bags for Kara. She was curious about the house her friend loved so much.
"Wow, big place."
"Yeah, I guess. No cars in the driveway, so I don't think anyone is here."
"I thought you live alone?" Yavanna asked.
"I do, but my sister, Tara, and Spike have keys. I have pets here that need to be fed when I'm gone."
"Where do you want these bags?"
"Entryway is fine."
"About time you came home." That was a voice that could only belong to one person, or in this case, vampire. Spike stood at the top of the stairs, arms crossed in front of his chest. His pose appeared to be casual, but Kara could tell that he was poised to spring after her if she bolted.
"Spike!" she squeaked. "I didn't expect to see you. Your car's not in the driveway," she said weakly.
"'S in the garage. Vana, nice to see you again."
"And you, William. Kara…" Yavanna turned to her friend to say goodbye, but the look in Kara's eyes begged her not to leave yet. "I'll just put these upstairs," she said instead, gesturing to the bags from their shopping trip.
"Thank you. It's the door at the end of the hall." Yavanna gave her a sympathetic smile before heading up the stairs. Spike came down slowly, aware that he could easily spook Kara into disappearing right now. She was drawn up tense, obviously expecting a fight.
"Care to explain why I woke up alone in my own bed two days ago?"
"I…left a note." She didn't meet his eyes.
"Yes, you did, but it was very vague, pet. I don't typically think of 'soon' as you disappearing for two days. And now, you show up with Vana, when I last saw you in Ossiriand, so color me confused." His voice was low and even. To someone who didn't know him, they would think Spike wasn't upset. Kara knew better. He was mad enough to be beyond yelling. This was bad.
"I called her. She was Kalari's best friend, once upon a time. The affection still exists," she said quietly. "Can we…not do this now? I'm very tired."
He stepped forward, grabbing her shoulders. "YOU, are mine, and I deserve some answers, Kara. This doesn't make sense! I've been waiting for two bloody days for an explanation, not being able to even sense you! You disappeared and I couldn't even tell if you were dead, so, yes, we are doing this now!"
She flinched, both from the intensity of his voice, and his increasing grip on her shoulders.
"You're hurting me," she whispered. Spike released her as if he'd been burned, running his hands through his hair in frustration, instead.
"Is this your way of ending this? 'Cause if you want out, just bleedin' say so, Kara," he said raggedly.
"No! No, of course not. I love you, Spike. Nothing's changed about that," she exclaimed, close to tears.
"Then tell me what's going on! You're my mate, luv. We're supposed to go through things together." His expressive eyes begged to understand.
Kara walked over to the sofa and collapsed onto it. She didn't have the energy to stand through this whole conversation. Spike sat down at the other end, concerned. He was starting to see that she wasn't lying about being tired. She looked like she'd hardly slept in the past few days.
"I'm sorry," she said quietly, staring at her hands. "I freaked, and hid, and it wasn't fair to you. I realized, when I was awake Sunday morning, that we haven't discussed some things. Claiming each other like that was impulsive, really impulsive. This isn't as simple as you claiming another vampire, Spike, or even a human. Sarina reminded me of the aspects between Ossirian mates, and…"
He had a sinking feeling, as some of the pieces started to fit together. "You did something."
Kara nodded, tears starting to form. "I hadn't just returned your claim, I intensified it, saying the words before thinking about it. It was an eternity claim, binding us beyond death, and it is a mistake to complete one without knowing what will happen ahead of time. I…needed to fix it," she said hoarsely.
"Fix it?" he asked, fearing the answer.
"I took back my part. Your claim stands, but mine has been erased. There is an Ossirian ritual that exists to negate a claim that was entered into without the proper consideration. It has to be done in the first 24 hours. You see, binding us like I did, means that a whole lot of things become possible that weren't before. Ossirian mates can share each other's powers, for one thing. The claim can even enable the impossible, if the love is strong enough."
"You took back your claim because we might share powers?" he asked in disbelief.
"No, not just because of that! My tattoo changed after we mated. I don't know why. I showed it to the Elder, and he still wouldn't tell me what the old symbols meant, let alone the new ones. It bothered me, since I have no clue how the two are related. After the ritual, the tattoo was gone. It was supposed to be a blessing of protection, but even Yavanna couldn't sense what it had been protecting me from. She says I'm perfectly healthy with a normal aura reading. I felt like we were being played. Every time I've adjusted to things, the 'universe' throws in something new to prove I'm not in control. Being mated should have been just between us. If greater mystical consequences were going to be involved, I wanted us to both be aware of it, and make the decision with open eyes."
"You could have told me what you suspected, Kara," he said, the hurt clear in his voice.
"You're right, I should have. It just snowballed on me once I realized what was going on, and I reacted. You can ask anyone in the palace. I was all over the place until after the ritual. Which I don't ever want to go through again. It's horribly painful, as a reminder to choose wisely."
"Are you alright now?"
She looked up, smiling a little at his concern. "Yeah, just tired still. It drains your powers away for a day. I haven't slept very well, either." Her gaze dropped to her hands again. "I missed you."
"Come 'ere, kitten." Kara scrambled across the sofa to curl up on his lap in a ball, her face buried in his chest. He stroked her hair soothingly while rubbing her back with the other hand, feeling his tee become wet with the tears she had tried to hold back. "Oh, luv, when are you going to figure out that you don't have to do everything by yourself? There isn't anything I wouldn't do for you."
"You're too good to me," she mumbled into his shirt.
"Yeah, you're probably right," he teased. "But I've always been love's bitch. I get the feeling that we have more to talk about?"
He knew her so well. Kara raised her head. "Yeah, but it can wait a bit." She yawned, exhausted.
"You need sleep."
"Will you stay with me?"
"Sure, luv." He stood up, carrying her, gaining his own comfort from the warmth of her body he had missed. He set Kara on her feet once they were up the stairs. Yavanna was waiting in Kara's bedroom, reading a magazine.
"All straightened out?"
"For now," Kara replied.
"Good. Well, I'll be off, kids. I have a party to attend. Take care, hon. I put your bags in the closet."
"Thanks."
"I'll walk Vana out while you get changed, pet."
"Okay." Kara walked around the corner to her bathroom, leaving the two old friends to have parting words.
They were at the front door before Spike spoke. "Is she really alright? I haven't seen her this tired since before her elevation."
"Everything was normal, William. A good night's sleep, and she'll be right as rain. I'm sure you'll take good care of her."
"Of course. You'll let me know if you get a vision." His statement wasn't a request, letting her know how worried he still was. She patted his shoulder comfortingly.
"You'll be the first to know if I get anything concerning you. Goodnight, William."
"Safe trip, pet."
Yavanna teleported away. He was relieved to be in the loop now, but he still felt unsettled. His instincts suggested that life wasn't going to be easy for a while. Spike hurried back up the stairs.
He found Kara already in bed and asleep, her body relaxed, now that the tension had been resolved, and eager for rest. He stripped off his clothes and slid under the cool sheets, pulling her close. It would be hours before he fell asleep, but Spike was content to just lay there snuggled with his mate. His demon was calm for the first time since he had awakened alone. Spike nuzzled his mark on her neck, purring when she moaned softly in her sleep. All was right in the world as long as she was here in his arms. Tomorrow would take care of itself.
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May 2002
Friday the 10th…
"How did you do, Buffy?" Willow asked.
It was the last day of finals. They were officially on summer break once they had taken their last tests.
"Okay, I think. Actually, I felt pretty good. I am so beyond happy to be done! Can you believe we just finished our third year of college?" She and Willow were lounging on Willow and Tara's bed, eating ice cream and waiting for Tara to get back from her last class.
"Speak for yourself! I'm taking two classes this summer so we can stay in the dorm still."
"Yeah, but they're easy electives, and you like school. Everybody knows you're going to end up valedictorian, Wills."
"You don't know that! I could develop senioritis and go all flaky. It could happen!"
Buffy giggled at her best friend. "I'd give it a week before you were itching to study again. There's nothing wrong with being an over-achiever, Willow. Your kind of people cure cancer, and stuff. You know how many times I've wished for school to come that easy to me? Mom still gets surprised when I bring home a good report card. It doesn't help that my little sister is breezing through high school. Do you think it would help if I dyed my hair brown?"
"You mean, back again?"
"Hey! My color looks very natural these days."
"Yeah, but we've all seen the pre-high school albums," Willow teased.
"Oh, bite me. You've gotten sassy in your old age, and it's no fun," Buffy pouted.
"Okay, okay. I'll go easy on you. How was your anniversary dinner with Will?"
"Besides a week late? It was…awkward. We ended up talking about stuff…"
"And?"
"And, I told him how I feel, that I'm not ready for plans past college yet."
"Oh, well, good for you. You've been complaining about him sounding…pushy? What did he say?"
"Not much, really. He was like, "Oh. Okay," and got up to get dessert from the kitchen. He said that it's understandable, because I'm young, but I don't think he's really okay about it. Sometimes – we mesh so well, that I forget that he lived what I'm living now years ago. I don't know…"
"Hey, is Sebastian still around? You should invite him to celebrate Final Finals Day with us." Willow blurted out the first thing she could think of to lighten Buffy's mood.
"Um, I think he is. I don't think he'd leave without saying goodbye."
"Good. Do you know where he's staying?"
"Yeah, he finally let me in on the 'secret' after our last tutor session. He's at the bed and breakfast. Did you know Sunnydale has one? I'll leave a message for him later."
Tara opened the door. "Hey, leave any ice cream for me?"
"Of course, baby. We can never have too much Chunky Monkey. How was your final final?" Willow crossed the room to kiss her girlfriend hello.
"Fine." She looked over at Buffy. "'Final final'?"
"She's been saying it all day. I think it's her version of 'Pizza, pizza!'."
"I like how it sounds," Willow said.
"Is it just the three of us tonight?" Tara asked.
"Well, Xander and Anya aren't coming up this weekend, but I suggested to Buffy that she invite Sebastian, since he helped make her week so much easier. Do you want your mom and Giles at The Bronze?"
"God, no! Last time was bad enough. They're either complaining about the music, or making out in a dark corner. What about Kara?"
"I have no idea," Tara responded. "She hasn't been here in weeks."
"Yeah, what's up with that? I've seen Spike around on patrol, but Kara never comes anymore. Did we do something to drive her away?" Buffy asked.
"I doubt it's anything like that. Kara would just say so if we made her mad. She's probably just busy with the whole goddess gig," Willow suggested.
"I'll try calling again and leave her a message," Tara said.
They finished the carton of ice cream and decided to go shopping for the rest of the after noon.
