All I Know Is That I Need Just One - Chapter 1

Harmony crossed her arms over her chest and stared up into the indigo sky as the sun began to rise just beyond the horizon over Sunnydale. She smirked at its flaming face, turning to walk away. Normally, an aching sadness would have clenched her unbeating heart as she parted to find darkness while the sun rose, but all she felt was a round of laughter rising in her chest. If things went as planned, this would be the last time she would have to hide from the light.

The mansion was only a couple minutes from the hill where she had been standing and as she entered it, Harmony ran her hands through her blonde hair; she had never liked this place due to its resemblance to a crypt, but she couldn't expect anything more from vampires.

Vampires. She still loathed the word and meaning. They were so evil and dirty and...Disgusting. She had never asked to be a monster and had never done anything to deserve it so why was she being punished with this agonizing immortality?

It had come to Harmony in a matter of seconds as she lounged in her old, basement-like house, waiting for the sun to set. She had been remembering her high school years before she had changed into a monster, and when a memory of Buffy Summers joined her train of thoughts, a picture of her friend Willow Rosenberg had soon followed. Willow had been the biggest nerd in Sunnydale High and also...a witch.

She had shot from her position on her chair straight to her stiletto feet. Willow was a witch! Who did spells! Spells that could change things!

A sly smile painted her full lips. If she could get her hands on Willow, everything could change back to how it was. She could return to being a queen bee, instead of a C-list vampire. She could get her posse back and rein over all wannabes once and for all. She would be human...

Now, Harmony flopped against the bed that sat lonely in the corner of the room and heard the door to the mansion creek open. "Angel?" she called out, closing her eyes.

"Yeah," growled a nearing voice. "It's me."

"Where have you been?" Harmony asked, twisting her hair with her delicate fingertips.

"Out," Angel replied stiffly.

Harmony rose up onto her feet, crossing her arms and stomping over to Angel. "Why are you always grumpy?" she sulked. "You're never any fun! I'm starting to think you're worse than Spike!"

Angel remained quiet, pulling aside the heavy curtain to gaze outside. His mind screamed for him to run – Harmony was the most annoying and ditzy girl he had ever encountered and all night had dreaded coming home to her. But the manners that had come with his soul got the best of him – she had given him a ride here and the least he could do was let her stay here during the day.

The truth was Harmony was the only company he had had in half a year. Angel had spent his time in his dark home in LA, only leaving if his supply of blood had gone dry. In the six months, he had felt no need to leave his bed. His mind had constantly been replaying heartbreaking memories of when he used to live in Sunnydale, happy. As for his heart, it had been suffering more pain then, than it had since he had first left his home and the girl he loved...

"The first thing I'm going to do when I'm human is go to the beach," Harmony's shrill voice interrupted his train of thought, "and get a tan. I am so pale!"

"That sounds great," Angel replied absent-mindedly.

"You're lucky," she added in, lounging on the couch close to him, "you're naturally tan and don't have to worry. Ugh, I hate you!"

"Sorry."

Harmony cocked her head playfully, smiling a scandalous smile. She stood, wrapping her arms around Angel's neck, forcing him to look into her green eyes. "Cheer up," she whispered, brushing her lips against his neck. "Everything will be better by nightfall."

Angel felt a wave of discomfort at the feel of Harmony on his skin; like an army of ants crawling against his face, but did not let it shine through and instead played along. "I know, Harmony," he murmured. "I know it will." He kissed the top of her head and pulled away from her grasp to retrieve his book to pass the time until sunset.

Harmony watched him go with sad eyes. Over the past three a half days she had grown strange, sudden feelings for Angel. But since the moment he had told her why he was coming to Sunnydale with her, she had known that it could never be.

She leaned against the windowsill, and then thought better of it as she heard a faint sizzling when her elbow touched sunlight. She let out a hiss and jumped away; Harmony couldn't wait to be human once again, because the sunlight brought out the highlights in her hair.

--

It happened before she could blink her eye; before she could take another breath in. It happened before she could take a step forward, or even understand what was happening. In the fraction of a moment that it happened, she went from a world of bright light and peace to the opposing world of sombre fear. Tara had returned home.

At first, her mind was clouded with misty confusion; she was not used to the chirping of crickets, or the heat radiating off of the pavement beneath her bare feet, or the towering buildings along the streets around her. She was not used to the blinding light from the sun in front of her, or the pain that it caused to her eyes. It had been over four years since Tara had sensed any kind of earthly beings and she felt strange standing there in front of an extremely familiar shop among the busy main street. She shivered – Heaven was never this cold.

Tara took a dizzy step forward with her arms out to try to steady herself. It was like she was a toddler again, learning how to walk for the first time. The bottoms of her feet burned as if the ground were made of steaming coals. She shivered once again, her ragged mauve t-shirt and matching, flowing skirt gave almost no protection to the cool morning breeze and helped to form strange bumps along her skin.

She took another step, which brought her closer towards the familiar shop. Artificial lights shone through the windows, indicating that it was open. Through her somewhat blurred vision, she read the words 'The Magic Box' above the shop's door. The second word in the title, magic, trailed in her brain. Magic, magic, magic...

And then, like somebody had knocked down the steel dam in her head, everything came rushing back.

The first thing that hit her was an image of a person; a beautiful woman with a million-watt smile and fire-engine red hair. Her eyes glowed with such a warm passion, that Tara could not mistaken it for anything but pure love.

Tara let out an uncontrolled whimper, stretching out her hand in front of her as if reaching out to touch something or someone. But all she felt was icy, invisible air blowing through her fingertips.

Go to her, whispered an unseen figure. The voice was lighter than the wind, surfing into her ears. Go to her.

"G-Go to who?" she stammered, whipping her head around in search of answers. But it came to her before she could even ask again.

Willow.

--

"Dawn? Did you leave the milk out?" Willow called up into the house, tucking a stray piece of orange hair behind her ear. "It's all warm and stuff," she added more quietly, mostly to herself. The clock above the doorway read 8:19AM, and she groaned, wishing she had slept in.

"No, it wasn't me," replied a nineteen-year-old Dawn as she appeared suddenly in the kitchen. "What's for breakfast?" She slid into a stool, propping herself up on her elbows.

"Well then who was—"

"That would be me," interjected a new voice. "Sorry Will."

Willow turned to see Oz standing beside Dawn, a small, sly smile on his face. She approached him, planting a kiss on his lips. "You're silly." She pressed her forehead against his and returned the smile.

Oz's happiness grew and he leaned in for a longer kiss. "You know I'm only here to ruin your life," he whispered breathlessly between kisses.

"Uh, EW, gross! Get a room!" shrieked Dawn playfully, raising her hands to her eyes to block her vision.

Willow and Oz laughed in unison and separated; Oz taking the stool beside Dawn and Willow to the stove where she prepared to make pancakes. As she reached up in the cupboards above, plucking the box of pancake mix from the shelf, she felt a sharp pang of sadness in the bottom corner of her heart. Only a couple years ago, Tara had been in her exact spot, making deformed pancakes for the entire Summers house. Everybody knew that nobody's pancakes could mount up to Tara's, though nobody mentioned anything; nobody ever mentioned her much in the first place.

"Mmm, pancakes, Will?" came Buffy's cheerful voice. She slid in on Dawn's other side, completing the small, present family.

"Yup." Willow's voice came out strangely groggy due to the reminiscing.

"Yummy." Buffy grinned, showing all of her straight, pearl-white teeth.

"So, what are the plans for today?" Dawn began casually, twirling a long, brown strand of hair in her fingers.

"Giles said she wants us at the shop," Buffy replied, stifling a yawn.

"Just like every other day," Dawn groaned.

"How eventful," Oz put in with his mysterious, sarcastic voice.

"Right," Dawn agreed, challenging Oz's sarcastic tone. "But let me put one thing straight; does Giles need us for the shop, or for research?"

"There's a new big bad in town, I've heard," Buffy said quietly, "and I need the whole team on it."

Willow shivered.

"What kind of big bad?" the brunette asked her sister, her interest growing.

Buffy shrugged. "When I was patrolling last night I met up with Clem." She looked to each of them, her eyes glossed with worry. "He told me he heard from another demon that there's something – or someone – coming, and soon. Nothing good of course, it never is. The only thing he said was that we should be prepared, no other details really..."

The kitchen grew silent save from the sizzling of the cooking pancakes on the pan. Willow mindlessly flipped them over and then started three more. The soundless room gave her too much time to think...

What did Tara think about while cooking breakfast for the Scoobies?

Willow dropped the spatula with a loud bang and brought her hands to her temples as if a migraine had just erupted around her brain.

What was Tara thinking this very moment?

She fell to her knees, eyes shut tight.

Why couldn't she mount up to Tara?

Her whole body began to shake uncontrollably. Tara...

Buffy, Oz and Dawn were all at her side in mere moments. She could feel Oz's big, warm hands on the back of her neck, Buffy's arms around her back and Dawn's face right next to her. They all spurted out words of comfort, but Willow could not bring herself to open her eyes or tell her friends that she really was okay; because that would be a lie.

"Will? Explain to us what's happening," Oz's gentle voice drifted into her ears like a sweet melody. His lips met the top of her head, and lingered there for a few extra seconds.

Willow let loose a sigh, opening her eyes and leaning against the oven. She pushed her hair away from her face. "I'm okay," she said softly. "I'm all good with the okay-ness!"

Buffy, Dawn and Oz stared at her fake smile, and then exchanged doubtful glances, but nodded at her words, not necessarily believing them. They slowly broke away from her, returning back to their places at the breakfast bar.

"Good thing you're okay," Dawn added. "We've already spent enough time in the hospital with Anya. I'd hate to go back there."

Willow nodded, getting back onto her sock feet. She hated remembering the long month Anya had been in the hospital after her brutal stab to the stomach while they together defeated the First. She was still getting the smell of hospital out of her clothes...

"What's happening in here?" Xander's voice drifted from the kitchen's doorway. A smile stretched from one ear to the other, eyes shining. He took a seat beside Buffy.

Willow suddenly felt happiness swirl inside of her like mist. While all her friends made her happy, Xander made her warm. Every time she saw all five feet nine inches of dark-haired, dark-eyed boyness, she just about melted with glee.

"Where's Anya?" Dawn asked, getting up from her spot to look in the cupboard for cereal, obviously giving up on Willow's pancakes. Willow turned off the stove and gave up too.

"She's at the shop already with Giles," he stated. "That's my girl, always working."

The room agreed with a breakout of murmurs. Willow joined the others around the breakfast bar, pouring cereal into their plastic bowls.

"A feast fit for a king!" Xander proclaimed, and then laughed.

Willow smiled weakly, still remembering her slight break down. Traces of Tara's beautiful face still haunted her mind, and no matter how hard she tried to sweep it away, it stuck like bubble gum. But what really panged her heart was that while Tara was in her brain's spotlight, dancing, singing, entertaining her attention, Oz was seated near the back, alone in the dark.