"Ethan and the rest of the bad guys?" Buffy didn't appear terribly surprised as she asked Tara for clarification.
Still thrumming from the clanging of her internal warning system, Tara said (with more force than she was accustomed to using), "Yes! Ethan's on the way. I can feel him." She had overtaken Faith and Englemann. Needing to get as far as possible from the growing surge of magic behind her, she pushed frantically at the pair. Damn it! Why were they going so slow now? Tara couldn't stop Ethan. Not yet. Maybe not ever.
Unfortunately, no one else seemed to realize that. In fact, Faith smirked. "Don't get your panties in a bunch, T. We're almost outside. Ethan's not gonna toss a fireball where the college kiddies could see. Even the campus cops would notice crispy co-eds on the quad."
Tara thought seriously about stamping her feet and screaming – or grabbing Faith by the arms and shaking her. They were all crazy. Completely crazy. Ethan had already gone after Buffy in a public place and he'd managed to capture Tara, herself, and Willow out in the open with magic. She didn't say any of that, however. Bottling it up, Tara forced herself to stay silent as she trotted alongside the rest of their ragtag group. At least Faith had been correct about one thing: they were near the end of the tunnel.
The sound Tara had heard a minute ago had been the raising of a well-camouflaged metal door. Starlight glimmered ahead. Now the pace picked up. Tara fell back a few steps as the group sprinted for freedom.
As soon as they had cleared the tunnel, Buffy skidded to a halt and scanned the area intently. "OK, folks. Here's the plan," Buffy announced. "We need to get back to the Jeep, but I'm betting the guys with guns are waiting for us. That means we do this the hard way."
***
Despite the fact her voice was steady, Buffy's mind raced. What the hell were they going to do? What if Faith's assertion that the soldiers wouldn't attack with Englemann and Walsh in the firing line was wrong? What if Ethan didn't care if someone saw him doing magic? Pushing those scenarios brutally aside, Buffy continued to pretend things were under control. They didn't have time for her to panic.
That could come later, after they were all home safely.
"Will, there's an emergency alarm by the back entrance to the dorms over in Nine. I need you to pull it." Buffy's smile felt forced. "Let's hope UCS' brochure is right about how fast the cops respond. We need a distraction to keep Riley and his goons out of the way."
"The rest of us headin' to the car?" Faith didn't sound happy about that. Or… was her problem with Buffy's decision to send Willow going off alone?
Buffy didn't let that thought stop her from unveiling the next part of her plan. "No." She gripped the back of Walsh's lab coat with her left hand and held her right in Faith's direction. "Give me the Colonel. I need you to go get the Jeep."
"B…" Faith started to say.
Damn it! Why couldn't she just accept orders for once? Buffy scowled. "Look, Faith, I'm not arguing." Arguing never did any good with Faith so Buffy changed tack. "If I tried to drive over here, there'd be a string of destroyed road signs and dented cars. You don't suffer from Slayer Syndrome behind the wheel. I don't want to have to explain to Mom how the Jeep got banged up."
Her strategy of non-aggression backfired. "T can do it. I'll go with Red," Faith said. She shoved Englemann in Buffy's direction.
"No." If Faith wanted to take this farther, Buffy would have to seriously pull rank – or enlist Willow's help. "Will goes alone. Tara doesn't have Slayer speed. You do." Meeting Faith's eyes, Buffy dared…willed Faith to see reason. "And if you stay here, and Ethan comes tearing out of the tunnel on a magic cloud, we're all dead. Tara's our security blanket."
Buffy pretended not to see Tara's expression of open-mouthed disbelief. She could only hope Faith hadn't noticed; otherwise, she wasn't going to let Willow go without personally escorting her.
Scowl firmly in place, Faith nodded tightly. "Don't know why the fuck you can't learn to drive, B. I been drivin' since I was eight." The implication that Buffy had reached new lows of incompetence was clear. "Red," she added in a softer voice, "be careful."
Despite the inner flinch at Faith's jab at her driving, Buffy almost reconsidered. Faith was right. She should be able to do something as simple as drive. And she was always sending Willow and Faith off in separate and dangerous directions. "We'll be right behind you, Willow. Tara and I will give you a head start." It was going to be a struggle to drag her two uncooperative captives across the meadow, but Buffy vowed to find a way. "Once you have the Jeep, Faith, pick Willow up and meet us as the edge of the meadow by Nine. If you don't see us…"
"If you ain't there, B, I'll come get you. Four wheel drive means hopping over the bushes and shit." Faith didn't bother say anything more. She kissed Willow quickly and sprinted away.
"Don't worry. I'll keep the damage to campus to a minimum," Willow promised. She flashed a bright grin and then took off in the opposite direction. Buffy watched her run down the sidewalk and prayed there were no more of Riley's friends waiting in the shadows. Prayed that her best friend would be safe.
Finally tearing her eyes away from Willow's progress, Buffy took a step in the same direction. Of course, her progress was immediately impeded as Professor Walsh planted both feet against the sidewalk. "I'm not going anywhere with you," Walsh snapped. "Let me go. I have important work to do."
Buffy's teeth ground together. She refused to get into a verbal sparring match. Giving the Slayer a bit more freedom, she continued after Willow – while Walsh staggered and spluttered in her grasp.
It was slow going, as she'd expected. By the time they'd reached the leading edge of grass, Buffy's arms and legs ached. Walsh and Englemann, fighting every step of the way, sapped her energy. Maybe it would be easier if she simply knocked them out…
Her happy thoughts were interrupted. "Buffy, I think Ethan's getting closer." Tara bit at her lip and stared fearfully over her shoulder. "He's… I don't kn-know. The m-magic is so strong."
"Too strong?" Buffy wasn't stupid. She'd seen the signs and heard the stutter. Tara was terrified, and getting more so by the minute. This was way bigger than any amount of shyness could account for.
Tara didn't answer right away. Buffy watched her frown, and her eyes seemed to grow unfocused.
It didn't appear to be a good time for questions so Buffy left Tara alone but picked up the pace and pushed her senses to the limit. God, she missed the days when the only thing she had to worry about was the Master or Angelus. Fighting humans and their magical associates wasn't in the Slayer job description, and Buffy knew she and the Scoobies weren't equipped to deal with the changes.
"He's looking for us." Tara managed to match Buffy's pace thanks to Buffy's prisoners and trotted alongside her. "I c-can't st-stop him."
Looking didn't sound so scary to Buffy. The finding, though… All of her aborted conversations with Willow about magic came back to haunt Buffy as she and Tara did their best to sprint for safety with their reluctant captives in tow. If only she'd taken the time to listen to Willow's rambles about spells and power sources, she might be able to help Tara now.
They'd only made halfway across the Meadow when Buffy realized there might be a new problem. Her Slayer senses spiked. There was a vampire or demon close by. Just what they needed. "Tara…" Buffy started to warn the other girl – and then her internal light bulb suddenly sprang to blinding life. Vampires. Magic. Angel. That was the answer. "I've got it!"
"Wh-what?" Buffy wasn't sure if Tara's staccato speech was caused by her normal stutter or her out of control panting.
***
Tara didn't understand Buffy's excited announcement or her jubilant smile. What did she have?
"I know how to keep Ethan from finding us," Buffy continued, oblivious to Tara's doubts. "Use a mirror."
A mirror? Clearly, all the stress from the evening has affected Buffy. How would a mirror help? "Buffy, I d-don't understand." Nor did she have a mirror. "D-do you w-want me to f-find Wil-low?" Maybe it was a Scooby thing. Maybe Willow or even Faith would know what Buffy meant.
"No. No, we don't need Willow. You can do this." Buffy hadn't slowed her pace, and Tara prayed she could continue to keep up. "Angel explained it to me once. If you use a mirror, a magical mirror, you can hide us from Ethan. We'll still be here; he just won't be able to see us."
The remaining air in Tara's lungs seemed to disappear. Buffy wanted her to build a mirror out of raw energy? That wasn't possible.
As if sensing Tara's doubts, Buffy's tone went from factual to cajoling. "Come on. I know you can do it. You and Will have been big with the magic since the bar. And you helped me come out of the spell Ethan put on me." Even in the dim lighting, Tara saw Buffy's teeth flash in a confident smile.
Tara ignored the encouragement. Buffy was crazy. She wouldn't even know where to start.
A cold chill touched Tara, derailing her mental quandary. Phantom fingers brushed her skin and poked at her shields.
Skidding to a halt, Tara changed her mind. All of a sudden, a mirror didn't sound so bad. At least, not as bad as letting Ethan have free access to her powers. He was close – and getting closer. Tara closed her eyes, blocking out the sight of Buffy, Walsh, and Englemann, who were also coming to a stop. Alone in the faux darkness, she triggered a mantra her mother had used to meditate.
Even the faint sounds of insects and wind in the trees faded.
Tara opened her inner eyes. The Meadow was gone. Or…the normal physical representation of it was no longer there. Only the bright lines and flickering outlines of magical energy remained. Reaching out, Tara grabbed the nearest runnel of power.
Energy trickled through her channels like a warm current. The slow ebb and flow wasn't enough. Maintaining her hold on the ley line, Tara reached for another. And another. With painstaking care, she added the magical power boost of every power source in the area save one.
Her skin felt tight and hot from the influx. Shaking slightly, Tara repeated the mantra again, feeling the magic welling inside her settle.
Tara was as ready as she would ever get. Releasing the floodgates holding the magic within her channels, Tara poured the energy into a convex form. It fought her control, though. There was too much power, too much surface area. The outthrust bowl of the shape wavered and odd bubbles appeared randomly.
Fighting with the unruly magic, Tara reached out again. There had to be a way to tame the wild magic. She needed help. "Buffy," she cried out.
"What? What's wrong?" Tara couldn't see Buffy's face. She could hear the fear, though, along with a grim determination.
There wasn't time for a complete explanation. "C-can I use you? Your mag-gic…" A rapidly growing glow emanated from the tunnel, painfully stabbing at Tara's inner vision. Ethan had found them. It was too late. She was too late.
That last thought spurred Tara to desperate measures. "B-Buffy…" The real world snapped back into focus, overlaying the still-bright sparkle of the ley lines when Tara opened her physical eyes. "I can't d-do this alone. Eth-than's right b-behind us. You're the Slayer. Your power…"
Before she could finish, tell Buffy exactly what she needed, Buffy answered. "Do whatever you need to, Tara. Take what you need."
Tara disregarded all of her training for the second time that night. Reaching for Buffy, the last pure power source in the Meadow, was easier than grasping the ley lines. Her energy radiated through the meadow. However, Tara had fallen prey to fear and hadn't thought the action through. Combining the magic from the ley lines had pushed the edges of her control. Borrowing energy from Buffy was akin to jumping into the Grand Canyon and plunging full speed into the Colorado River. Tara recoiled, ephemeral hands blistered from their brief contact with Buffy's enormous power.
That left only one option. "Run!" Tara snapped.
Buffy hesitated for only a second before dragging Walsh and Englemann across the Meadow again. "Don't worry, Tara. Faith's had time to get to the Jeep. She's probably picking Willow up right now."
If only Buffy knew… Tara didn't move. She couldn't. She had to safely return the energy she'd borrowed. She couldn't do that on the run.
"Come on!" Buffy's voice was shockingly loud as she called out to Tara.
In a minute, Tara wanted to respond. She'd be there in a minute. First, though, Tara concentrated on reversing the flow of energy in her channels, flushing the conduits clear. Caught up in pushing the waves back into their proper and natural pathways, Tara didn't notice the new sound that overshadowed Buffy's continued shouts. A roar. Deep and throaty and teamed with bright lights. Tara ignored it all. The flow of magic in her channels slowly returned to normal as she bled off the excess and watched it flow back into the Earth. The process left her drained and dizzy. Raising a trembling hand, she blinked dazedly into the brilliant white lights lighting up the Meadow.