A/N thanks for the reviews, this chap is still short but longer than the first one. I hope this clears up any confusion I left in the first chap. R&R please
Chapter Two
Buffy got settled into Tara's country-style house early that next evening. She liked the feel of the home, which was decorated with a few pretty but inexpensive paintings of Wicca related events. There were pictures of the Scooby gang on the walls also, which made Buffy smile inwardly. It comforted her to know that Tara hadn't forgotten them when she decided to move on. She wasn't even certain as to why it was such a comfort to her. There was a glass cabinet that contained various jars of ointments and some crystals. Buffy assumed that those were for Tara's herbal healing practice. There was also a small dog running about the, house which made Buffy smile. This place sure felt like home, a place that Buffy had long yearned to feel again. "This is nice and cozy," Buffy said and sat down in the plush recliner chair. "I really like this town, the shops and stuff are so, um, quaint and it just gives me a peaceful feeling."
Tara smiled at the slayer and handed her a cup of hot chocolate. "I love it here so far. I don't think I'd ever move back to the city." Tara said softly and stepped into the kitchen to check on dinner.
The two ate a small meal of salad, roast and veggies in virtual silence. Both women were content to relax with their meal while the TV displayed the evening news. "How long are you staying here for?" Tara asked Buffy in a casual tone.
"Until someone calls and forces me to go back to work." Buffy's features dropped at the mention of going back to work.
"Is something wrong at work?" Tara asked having seen the sudden change in Buffy.
"Probably so," Buffy said and tried to think of a way around the subject. She had not meant to go into this with Tara so quickly but knew that the blonde had a way of getting information out of her from past experiences. "On my 25th birthday, I started to feel different and tried to shuck it off as growing older blues. Well, I'd guess that my powers are well over half way diminished. They have stayed the same for the last two weeks now and so I'm guessing it's not a total loss of power but enough to make me not a full slayer." Buffy frowned at her admission. The truth was, she didn't feel complete and hadn't since the slow power drainage. "There is nothing in the diaries about it and I guess there won't be. When Willow did that spell to give power to all the slayers, I think it sorta threw out all the prior slayer rules."
Tara looked at Buffy's frustrated face and felt for her. She knew that Willow's main problem was doing spells before researching the consequences. Granted, what Willow did helped save the world from the first at that particular time, but what would the long-term fall out be? "If you give me some more to go on I might be able to find out what's going on." Tara offered trying not to sound real hopeful. The fact was, this all happened a long time ago and reversing any damage was, most likely, too late.
Buffy withdrew a long shallow breath and began to detail her story. She told Tara how she had found the Scythe in this cave that was lit with torches and how the woman said that it was created to aid the slayer in her battle against the first. Willow then had taken the Scythe and used it to perform a spell to release slayer powers to all the slayers around the world. Buffy concluded her story by telling Tara how well it worked and that Willow looked like a Goddess with white hair and all when she did the spell. She told Tara that Giles had said Willow is an earth Goddess but that, after the battle, Willow went right back to her struggle with power. "So that's it in a nutshell." Buffy looked at Tara's features and noticed that they were recovering from a look of horror. "So what's the problem? Is it the Scythe?"
Tara shook her head no and withdrew a small sheet of paper. On it were dates that she was hospitalized for passing out with the time of her being unconscious coinciding with the time in which Willow performed the spell. "There's more," Tara said and withdrew a small notepad. She had gone to therapy a few times after having vivid dreams. The dreams were of carnage, death and sorrow and there was a drawing of the Scythe that Buffy had described. The therapist, of course, was a Wiccan therapist and so it was easier for Tara to discuss things. "Diane put me under hypnosis and couldn't get anything pertaining to the time of my black out but the dreams that I'd been having."
"So, what's the big picture then?" Buffy asked with her full attention given to Tara.
"That I don't know but maybe because of my past connection with Willow or you all in general, I was seeing this and blacked out. Maybe I might have saw something that could help you more with this power problem that you are having." Tara said with a look of frustration on her own face.
"Well, Faith turns 25 in three months and I'd hate to wait till then to find out if this is a fluke for me only or if it deals with all the slayers." Buffy said dejectedly.
Tara leaned over and pulled Buffy into a hug, "don't get so down on yourself Buffy. We have a possible lead and that's more than you had before you ran into me." She felt bad for her friend who had gone through so much over the last few years. She was pulled out of heaven and expected to resume her duties without any ramification. This was yet another spell that Willow performed without thinking of the outcome and it hurt Tara to know that they not only allowed her to do it, but also took part in it.
Buffy felt calm and relaxed the instant Tara put her arms around her. She had always been the one having to run the show, even after all of the slayers were called. With Tara, she felt that she could let her guard down a little and even relax. She felt comfortable with not having to be strong and a leader all the time and it made her wish more strongly that Tara never left Sunnydale. "I just don't understand what's happening to me and everything else really. The possibilities are endless," Buffy made a sweeping gesture around the room with her hand as she spoke. "What if all the slayers go through this transformation and the power dries up as a result of the spell that we did to stop the first?" Buffy finally let out the question that had nagged her since the onset of her power reduction and felt a huge weight lifted from her chest upon doing so.
Tara wanted to give the slayer words of assurance that these things would not come to pass but could not. She didn't have the answers and was never one to pretend that she had something that she did not. "We just have to dig around and find the answers before we speculate Buffy. You remember where speculation got us in those Scooby meetings," Tara shrugged at remembrance of their many failed plans. "We'd get lucky and come up with the right answer in the end but often went through a lot of headaches as result of our half-baked plans."
Buffy sighed a breath of air and looked at Tara with a small smile. "You're right about that for sure," She returned the blonde's hug and then leaned back in the recliner. "I've missed you so much Tara; the voice of reason mixed in with a crazy bunch of demon fighters."
Tara simply smiled at the slayer and began to take their plates to the kitchen. "Just relax and I'll get this cleaned up," she said, as Buffy quickly got to her feet and followed after Tara. "I can get it Buffy," the blonde replied with a smile but knew that Buffy would not allow Tara to wait on her. She would pull her weight as long as she was staying with Tara and Tara knew this.
"I wanted to ask you something," Buffy ventured cautiously. "Did you ever miss us?" Buffy posed the question in such a way that Tara knew she was asking about Willow and not the rest of the Scoobies.
"Buffy," Tara's features saddened slightly as she began to speak. "I loved Willow with all my heart and I know that she did love me. I couldn't stay there and allow her to run a muck with my mind, feelings or her powers because of me any longer. I've often wondered if I made the right decision but I believe that I did."
"The first ran a muck with her mind some time after you left," Buffy took in a sharp breath and shivered before she continued. "It tricked us all Tara and made us think that you came back to Willow. Then it made us think that you were shot and killed by Warren Mears. The only thing that stopped Willow from ending the world was Xander finding a phone message that you had left that day for Dawnie. She was about to destroy us all and was doing a nice job of it because she thought that you had died. So Xander rushed to her with that message to Dawn saying that you couldn't make it to some fictitious party that she had invited you to. Apparently it was a last-ditch effort on her part to get you back to Sunnydale but now I thank God that she did it and that you returned the call."
Tara's heart ached for Willow when Buffy had finished telling the story of what happened. "Why didn't anyone call me?" Tara asked in a concerned and slightly hurt tone of voice. "I would have came Buffy; I would not have let her go through that on her own." Tara's eyes teared up and Buffy knew that she did love Willow with all her heart.
"Well it was then that we all realized what a terrible shape that Willow really was in. We didn't realize, at that time, that the first was the one doing all of these things. Giles took her to England for some Wicca healing thing and she's had problems ever since but is doing much better. I think I knew then that she loved you too much. I mean, you were good for her but could also be her downfall if something were to happen to you. I decided that I didn't want to put you through that and allowed Giles to handle things as he saw fit." Buffy shrugged and hoped that Tara would not be angry with her for the decision that she had made but knew that she understood if Tara were angry.
"So, she's basically all right now?" Tara asked tentatively with hope and fear mixed together in her tone of voice. She knew that if Willow hadn't really recovered and weren't all right, she'd never forgive herself for abandoning her former lover.
"Yes she's doing well Tara and don't you dare try to find a way to blame that on yourself. Willow hurt you badly and you just couldn't handle it anymore. I know what it's like to watch someone you love become something that you can't live with." Buffy shuddered briefly at the thought of Spike but recovered quickly. He truly did try to change with the soul and he did it as penance for what he did wrong to her.
"I know but it's just sad Buffy. I still miss the Willow that I loved with every ounce of energy I had but she left way before I left Sunnydale." It was Tara's turn to let a tear fall and Buffy's turn to comfort her friend.
"You know what," Buffy stood and pulled Tara up with her. "We should get some rest so that you can do your day's work tomorrow and then we can start trying to fix me again. You were good at fixing me Tara." Buffy smiled up at the blonde and felt warm inside when Tara returned the smile.