Willow walked out of the main cafeteria, a happy smile on her face as she headed towards her dorm room. Her afternoon was completely class free, and she was grateful for that small fact. Unfortunately, both Oz and Buffy would be in classes until at least three o'clock, and that meant that she'd have to spend at least the next hour alone.
"Willow, hi," a quiet voice said, startling her out of her afternoon giddiness.
Willow spun and grinned as she saw the gentle blonde girl that she'd met the night before.
"Tara, hey," she greeted cheerfully. "How are you? I mean, after last night and all."
"I'm okay," Tara replied honestly. She was still slightly shaken from the attacks that had happened the night before. "I w-was hoping to run into you though."
"You don't have any classes this afternoon?" Willow asked.
Tara shook her head and murmured that she didn't.
"That works nicely. Neither do I," Willow said. "Wanna head to the Pump?"
"The what?" Tara asked, completely confused.
"Oh, the Espresso Pump," Willow explained. "The coffee shop on Main Street."
Tara wasn't really used to casual invitations for coffee, but she wasn't about to turn down the offer. Especially not the offer of someone who had enormous talent for witchcraft.
"H-how's your ankle?" Tara asked, still feeling guilty about the injury.
"It's fine Tara, honest," Willow replied, smiling. "I wasn't kidding about having had worse injuries. Besides, Oz took good care of me."
Tara smiled at the mention of Willow's boyfriend. There was something so beautiful about the way that Willow and Oz interacted. As though the two were made for each other. It was rare and very special to see between two people who weren't even twenty-years-old yet.
"He seems really n-nice," Tara commented.
"He's the best!" Willow gushed. "He's in a band too! Plays guitar."
Tara laughed slightly, enjoying the enthusiasm coming from the redhead. It was completely endearing, and Tara knew that if she hadn't already been infatuated with a certain blonde Slayer, she would have developed a massive crush on the redheaded Wiccan. Of course, considering her family history, nothing could ever come of her attachment to the short blonde girl with hazel eyes.
"How long have y-you guys been together?"
"Uh…two years in February," Willow replied. "So…what about you? Any special guys in your life?"
Tara flushed bright red. That definitely wasn't a question she was used to being asked. Not just because she didn't have too many close friends, but also because, of the close friends she did have, they wouldn't be asking about her love life with boys.
"Uh…no. No special…guy," Tara replied nervously.
For all of Willow's obliviousness and naiveté when it came to her own dating life, she was surprisingly perceptive when it came to other people and their own lives. After being a Scooby for over three years, she was very good at reading people, and she could tell from the blush on Tara's cheek, and the way she'd hesitated before saying 'guy', that Willow had asked the wrong question.
The redhead hesitated a moment before deciding to just bite the metaphorical bullet.
"Who is she?" Willow asked quietly, as though keeping her voice down would help to take the question back in case she was completely wrong.
Tara stopped short. It wasn't as though she was ashamed of who she was –nervous, shy, timid as a mouse, yes, but not ashamed-. She just hadn't expected Willow to pick up on the subtle note of hesitation. Obviously Willow was far more perceptive than Tara had thought.
"Or, I could be way off base," Willow said quickly.
"You're not," Tara replied, her voice soft and stutter free. She wasn't sure what it was about the gentle redhead, but she felt as though she could tell this girl absolutely anything, and not be judged for it.
Willow smiled, thankful that she hadn't been wrong, and also that Tara had felt that she could confide in her.
"So…what's she like?" Willow asked. "Are you dating or crushing?"
Tara grinned, unable to stop her lips from curling upwards.
"C-crushing," Tara admitted. "And…she's great, y'know. But…we can't…"
Willow's smile disappeared completely. She couldn't help but feel sympathy for the gentle blonde girl. She seemed like a genuinely nice person who just needed some coaxing to come out of her shell.
"Is she straight?" Willow asked.
"No…well, maybe," Tara replied. "I'm not really too s-sure."
"Then what's the problem?"
"Me," Tara confessed. "F-f-family stuff."
"Your family doesn't know?" Willow asked.
"Mama d-did," Tara replied, feeling the pang of pain that always sprang up whenever she thought about or mentioned her mother. "My father though…it uh…it wouldn't be pretty if he ever, y'know, found out."
Willow nodded. She could only guess how hard it would be to try and come out to parents who wouldn't approve of the child's sexual orientation. Willow had enough problem getting her parents to approve of Oz, and he was completely –apart from the werewolf thing- normal.
"My parents are a little weird about me dating as well," Willow said. "Sometimes, anyway. When they notice that I'm not twelve anymore."
Tara gave a shy half-smile and self-consciously tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
"I've never seen you around Sunnydale before," Willow commented.
"No, I, uh, grew up in North Carolina," Tara replied. "I was o-offered a scholarship to UC Sunnydale, so I took the first flight out that I could."
"Not many people would come to Sunnydale voluntarily," Willow said, chuckling slightly. "Most everyone wants to get out of here as fast as they can."
"It seems like an okay place, y'know. At least, during the day it does," Tara said softly.
"Sunnydale at night…definitely not a good place to be," Willow replied. "You uh…haven't been mugged by…gang-members on PCP have you?"
Tara looked slightly bewildered at the question. "Gang-members? Uh, no. Not…not gang-members."
Willow glanced covertly around the Espresso Pump, and saw that no one was paying them any attention.
"But you were attacked by something?" Willow asked.
Tara nodded, wondering whether her new friend would think she was crazy. But it sounded as though Willow had a fair idea of what went on around Sunnydale. Plus, Willow knew magic, which increased the odds of Willow not thinking that she was insane.
"Vampires," Tara whispered.
Willow nodded, having expected that answer. "Not that it's a bad thing or anything, but…how'd you get away?"
"Well, it w-wasn't so much about me getting away, as it was me being s-saved," Tara replied, a small smile coming to her face as she thought of the blonde haired angel had come to her rescue.
Willow couldn't help but notice the little smile that came to Tara's face when she spoke of being saved. It was the same smile that had come to her when Tara had been speaking of her crush. And Willow had a sneaking suspicion of who it was that had rescued her new friend.
"Uh…just out of curiousity, the girl you're crushing on…she wouldn't happen to be about…oh five foot two, blonde hair, hazel eyes…" Willow said.
Tara's jaw dropped slightly and she stared at Willow in shock. "How'd you know that?"
"Buffy Summers, right?" Willow asked.
"You know her?" Tara asked incredulously. She knew that this was a small town, but this just seemed insane.
"You could say that," Willow replied. "Y'know…she did mention that she'd met someone at that Wicca Group I sent her to."
"The r-recon mission?" Tara said with a grin.
Willow laughed a little and nodded. "I asked her to go for me. That was you she met that night."
Tara nodded. She ducked her head a little, remembering how badly she'd reacted that night when she'd discovered that Buffy was the Slayer. It still pained her to think about it.
Willow fell silent for a moment, contemplating this new information. Tara had a crush on Buffy. She couldn't really blame her new friend though. There was something incredibly charismatic about her best friend, and if Willow were prone to having those sorts of thoughts, she probably would have found herself half-smitten with Buffy. The only question that remained was whether or not the Slayer would be interested in the shy blonde witch.
And if Willow was honest with herself, she'd pondered Buffy's sexual preferences when Faith had arrived in Sunnydale. There had been an electric kind of chemistry between the two Slayers before it had all gone to hell in a hand basket, and she was almost fairly certain that Buffy wouldn't be against being with another woman.
"What?" Tara finally asked, seeing the speculative grin on Willow's face.
"Oh, just thinking…"
"About?" Tara asked worriedly.
"Ever heard that Jews make the most annoying matchmakers?" Willow asked with a grin.
Tara paled completely and she looked at Willow in complete shock. "You wouldn't."
Willow just smirked.