Sooner Than You Think

Birdie

Distribution: If you want to use any part of this fic please mail me first.

Feedback:Please!

Spoilers: Family (minor)

Rating: R

Content:W/T, T/f Disclaimer: Joss Whedon owns the characters of BtVS .

Summary: Tara learns about first love and life. And who is the girl in her sketches?

***

The young girl sat in her usual spot at recess, her back to the school building, her knees drawn up to her chest, supporting a heavy textbook that she was currently deeply involved in. Her long, straw-blonde hair was tied behind her head and her drab blouse and skirt seemed to blend in with the surfaces of the dreary modern high school.Her pack sat beside her, a teddy bear's head poking out from within, as if sentinel, on guard for intruders.

'Hey!' Tara looked up from her book to see three pretty teenage girls regarding her contemptuously.

'Hi,' she said, in what she hoped was a confident and friendly voice. 'I'm T -Tara.'

'T-T-Tara ?' the other girl said mockingly. 'F-f-freak, more like. What are you, Amish or something?' Tara frowned. 'Sorry?' 'I mean, does your mummy dress you?'

'My mom? N-no, it's just, I'm not allowed..'

'Look at the little baby's teddy!' one of the other girls cried gleefully.

'Why don't you just fuck off back to junior high, freak?'

'Why don't you just fuck off back to bitch school?' A new contender had joined the fray. Tall, a mane of died black hair spread out around her pale, oval face. Ruby-red lips and dark piercing eyes. A senior. Karly surveyed the group of juniors coolly. Fashion victim freshmen all, probably fresh from cheer try-outs and hot for a spot of bullying. Their victim was a sweet-looking country girl who clearly had no idea how to deal with these high school vultures.

'Oh look, mommy's arrived.' One of the girls sneered. Karly was quick and violent, grabbing the girl by the throat and smashing her against the wall beside Tara.

'I don't like you and I don't like your friends. Fuck with me again and you won't be dancing till the prom. Got it?' All the girls, Tara included, looked scared now. The three bullies slunk off, mumbling to themselves.

Karly dusted off her leather jacket. 'You okay?'

Tara smiled, a luminous lop-sided grin that lit up her young face.'Thank you.'

Karly looked at the girl curiously. She was actually pretty cute under the dowdy dress and lack of makeup. Karly sat down next to her.

'You know you've got to be able to take care of yourself around here?'

'Oh, I'll be alright. I know the Jedi mind-trick.' Karly laughed.

'Those guys don't have minds. Where are your friends?'

'I don't have any. Except the bear, and he's only interested in one thing.' Tara lowered her eyes and smiled at her own joke. The older girl made her feel strangely comfortable. She wasn't even stuttering.

Karly stroked the bear's head. 'Nothing wrong with that. But he's not my type.' She met Tara's eye. 'If you know what I mean.'

'I do.' Tara murmured. 'I know.'

They sat in silence for a moment, each aware that something immensely personal had passed between them. Tara heart was hammering in her chest. She had never said anything, to anyone.

'Hey. You can trust me. Honestly.' Tara smiled.

'I guess I can'.

'End of recess. Wanna skip?'

'I don't know.it's not really me..'

'What is really you?' Tara looked up at the other girl, her big eyes widening.

'Magic.'

Karly laughed. 'What, sawing people in half?'

'Real magic. I'm a Wiccan.'

'Wow. Cool. Can you turn me into a frog?'

'Maybe later.'

'So what's with the threads?'

'My clothes?'

'Yeah. I mean you're really cute..'

'You think I'm cute?'

'Sure.'

Tara had turned a deep shade of red. 'N-No-one ever said that..'

'Well, I can't speak for anyone else, but I think you're kind of babe-like.'

Tara lowered her head. 'Well, so are you. You're very p-pretty.'

'Oh, I know. So what's with the Farmer George outfit?'

Tara sighed. 'My dad's really strict. He chooses all my clothes. And he won't let me wear makeup or jewellery.'

'Drag. You must introduce us.'

'Would you hang out with me, then?' Tara said eagerly.

'Do you like Hole?'

'Um, I love the second album.'

'Well, we're pals then.' Karly smiled slyly. 'I guess your old man won't let you go out with boys either?'

Tara giggled. 'You're 16 years old, Tara! You're a child until I say otherwise!'

'My darling daddy tried to get in my pants when I was 16.'

'That's awful! What happened?'

'I kicked his ass. He's doing 10 in the state pen for armed robbery now. I live with my mom. She's cool. She digs The Ramones.'

'My mom was great. But she left. My dad won't say what happened to her, but one day I'm going to find her.'

Karly slipped out of her leather biker's jacket and offered it to Tara. 'Try this on.' Once Tara had pulled on Karly's jacket, the older girl reached behind to release her hair. Tara was sharply aware of the other's girl's scent and her tight body brushing against her shoulder. She wasn't used to anyone being that close to her. She shivered. Karly spread Tara's golden hair out over her shoulders.

'There,' she said,

'Slackergirl is born.'

***

It was dusk when Tara finally found herself wandering home from school, her head still very much in the clouds. She had put in a couple of hours in the library to try and make recompense for the dreaming she had done in class all day. But it was no use. Donny hadn't let her alone about how nothing would change in high school, how she would be as unpopular there as she was in her own family. The only time he ever spoke to her was to bait her or order her to perform some menial task. But it seemed Donny was wrong. She had made a friend. Someone who understood who she was and still wanted to know her. Someone who was actually attracted to her. She tried hard not to let her imagination drift any further than that. No-one had shown her any love or affection since her mother had gone. But the craving never went away.

The Maclay residence was a rambling old three-story wooden building on South Street. Tara knew she had an hour before her father and brother returned from their jobs at the mill. Normally she would have rushed through her chores by now, but her time in the library had prevented this today. Nevertheless, she wanted some private time.

Tara's room was a big airy space at the top of the building, truly the only thing she loved in this whole haunted monster of a house. She dropped her pack on the floor, taking Aloycious the bear gently from his space and sitting him in the window where he could watch for the approach of other members of the family. You never knew when George or pious Beth might put in an appearance. She scuffled around in her bureau for a moment before withdrawing a hefty screwdriver. Next, she lifted a ratty rug from the floor, using the screwdriver to prise up a number of loosened floorboards that revealed a large open space beneath the floor. This contained Tara's secret chest. All the special things she owned, that her father and Donny would never dream of letting her keep. She unlocked it eagerly and opened the lid. Her magical supplies spread out below her: potions, powder, orbs, ancient texts and amulets. Much of it donated by her mother before she left, or mail ordered from New Orleans or Sunnydale. Tara lifted the compartment out of the trunk to reveal what she was really looking for. Her beautiful clothes. Pretty dresses, a black ballgown, expensive underwear, cute cut-off T-shirts, Levi's, even. And a small, but well-equipped makeup kit.

Slowly and purposefully, Tara removed her school clothes until she stood before the full-length mirror in just her plain white cotton bra and panties. Her feminine curves were growing out of puppyfat and into womanhood, much the same as her burgeoning emotions. Time to give up childish things. She stripped off her underwear and from the chest took the expensive lacy scraps she had bought in town. She felt the warm glow of arousal just from wearing such illicit lingerie. She felt special. She then put on a wrap-around gypsy skirt and a long diaphanous white blouse and leather tunic. She put The Cocteau Twins on the CD and lost herself in the moment. 'This is me,' she thought. 'THIS IS ME!' She rushed back to chest and routed around until she dug out a large artist's sketchbook. She began to flip through the pages. Images of a girl, the same girl. On every page. Warm, light and pretty, always smiling. Long, red hair, small and slight, big eyes radiating love. Tara stroked her imaginary hair. 'I will find you.' She intoned. A slight tingling behind her eyes. Aloycious had spotted something.

Tara hurried over to the window. Donny's battered old truck was wending its way up the street towards the house. Tara cursed. He was home early. She glanced at the denim overalls hanging from her dresser. Then she thought of the intense glow of pleasure when Karly had given her jacket. And the look in the punk girl's eye when Tara put it on.

When Donny came crashing through the door, Tara was waiting at the foot of the stairs to greet him.

'Woaah! What's this?' He chuckled nastily. 'What the hell are you meant to be?'

'My friend lent me some clothes,' Tara lied, 'I thought it would n-nice, y'know?'

'You look stupid.' Donny decided, throwing his work bag on the floor. 'And since when did you have a friend? What is she, another lazy, no-mark retard like you?' He laughed at his own razor-sharp wit.

Tara was used to this. 'She's beautiful. And she said I was pretty.'

'Blind and dumb. You look like a slut Tara. I'd take those clothes off before dad gets home. He'll throw 'em on the bonfire, then your friend'll drop you pretty quick. Have you done your chores?'

'No.'

'Oh man, you're sure going for it tonight. Daddy's gonna kick your little butt from one side of town to the other!'

'Not if he wants his dinner.'

'Friends ain't good for you.' Donny decided. 'Stay the hell out of my way, Tara. You're gonna bring trouble on this family!'

'I hope so.' Tara said under breath. 'I really do.'

When Tara loped into school the next day, she almost immediately spotted Karly shooting hoops near the school gates. A few other punkers were slouched around nearby, smoking and laughing at the latest gossip. Tara gathered up her courage and walked over to watch the other girl. She admired the tall girl's lithe figure and fluid movements as she bounced around the court. She felt flustered and frustrated by her growing crush. She was just an awkward and confused child to this self confident and sexy young woman. But that was Donny talking again.

Karly spotted Tara out of the corner of her eye. She grinned mischievously. 'Hey, babe, how you doing today?'

'Mmm.I've got kind of a saw ass.' She giggled nervously. 'I brought a cushion.'

Karly stopped fooling around with the ball, looking more serious. 'What happened to your ass? I'd say that way was an ass worthy of some respect.'

Tara broke into a big grin. Karly was doing it again. Making her feel good about herself.

'My dad. Gave me a strapping last night, 'cos I didn't do my chores.'

'Gee, he sounds like a right-on guy. Hey! How about I go give him a slap?'

'He'd die of shock if a woman put him down. Then it would be murder and I'd have to bring you a cake with a file in it.'

'So long as you brought me you.'

'A-are you ever serious?'

'Who says I'm not serious?'

'K-Karly?'

'Uh-huh?'

'Are you making fun of me?'

The other girl halted their slow stroll. 'Tara,' she said sternly, 'Shape up. Your family have fucked with your head, but I'm not your family. I'm me. I like you. That's like in italics. Got it?'

'I got it.' Tara said in a small voice.

Again that confident grin. 'Oh, call me a romantic fool, call me Kevin if you like, but right now I'd like to give you a rose. But all I have is this goddamn ball.'

'You want to give me your basketball?'

'Not mine as such. I took it off some kids earlier. They were bouncing it off some freshie's head..' She put on a bad Irish accent. 'I'm an angel, y'see. Helping those introuble where 'ere I go.'

'Karly?' Tara said, her stomach tying itself in knots.

'Yeah?'

'Would you ever think about kissing me?'

'I've already thought about it. I'll catch you at lunch.'

And she was gone.

When Karly failed to show at lunch, Tara was left kicking herself about 'that' kiss remark. She was so unused to any of this that she couldn't even think straight any more. Oh that this were as simple as a John Hughes movie. She watched high school life revolve around her. Cheerleaders, jocks, webheads, blissed-out young couples. It all seemed so annoyingly easy for them. Not even her most powerful spell could come close to straightening out emotional issues. Not yet, anyway.

Aloysious peered over her left shoulder.. 'What are you looking at?' Tara said gently.

Karly didn't show up at school the next day or the day after that. Tara became increasingly worried after the girl's wellbeing. Maybe she was just sick, but Tara had a feeling that something was wrong. She knew very little of Karly's background, but she made little secret of the fact that she enjoyed living close to the edge. The young witch did all she could to cast protection spells that would alert her friend to potential harm, but if anything was awry, it seemed likely that it had already gone down. School administration were certainly staying tight-lipped, refusing to comment to Tara on the subject of Karly's continued absence.

On Thursday evening Tara sat on her bed, idly sketching in her artpad. She was trying to picture Karly's face, but it seemed increasingly difficult. Instead, she found her pencil marking out a cartoon version of her usual subject, the cute red-haired girl. The girl had an alarmed expression on her face. She drew in a speech bubble with the words 'frog-fear!' written in it.

Tara observed her work. It made no sense, but it made her giggle to herself nonetheless. She was about to embark on another cartoon when she heard a dull rapping on the front door, from downstairs. She glanced at her bedside clock. 8.00pm. She frowned.

She heard her father speaking briefly to the visitor, then, after a few minutes, he was calling for her.

Tara padded down the steps to the ground floor. Her father was waiting for her.

'You have a visitor, Tara.' He said flatly.

When Tara saw who was waiting for her in the family lounge, a flicker of a smile passed across her lips. Witchy self control, she thought proudly. After all, she longed to burst out laughing.

'This young woman says that she's one of your teachers.' Her father announced. 'Is that right?

Tara looked longingly at Karly and tried once more not to laugh. The smart suit and crisp white blouse looked so incongruous on the sexy punk chick.

Tara nodded. 'Um. I think she has a lot she wants to teach me.'

The two girls sat in the rocker in the Maclay back yard and laughed themselves hoarse.

'You maniac! Tara spluttered. 'Gifted student exchange? How the hell am I gonna get out of that?'

'You're smart. You'll think of something.'

'Whatever possessed you?'

'Wanted to see you. Thought it would be a laugh.'

'Where have you been? I've been worried.'

'Got suspended. Sorry. I took off to see a friend for a few days. Time out.'

'Why did you get suspended?'

'Got caught looking up your records in the school office.'

'My records? Why?'

'Wanted your address.'

'Why didn't you just ask me?'

'I wanted to surprise you.'

'Well, I guess you did that.. But it's a nice, nice, surprise.'

'Really?'

'Who's insecure now?' Tara teased. She felt oh-so-warm inside.

'Well look at me!'

'I cast spells for you.' Tara said shyly

'What spells?'

'To protect you from harm.'

'Y'know, a girl like me could fall in love with a girl like you.'

Karly lent across Tara and kissed her softly on the lips.

Tara swam up out of the darkness, a single word on the tip of her tongue.

'Karly?'

The bleating of the alarm clock slowly filtered through and the young girl groaned, resentful of having been dragged from her exotic dreamworld. 5.30am. Clean the house, prepare breakfast, get ready for school. This morning Tara felt a little sick. Sick with excitement, fear and anticipation. Her plan of deception and romance was as far away from her normal world as the thought that she might ever become head of the cheer team.

Tara showered and put on her school clothes before setting about her morning chores. The house was still and quiet; her father and brother would not rise from their slumber for another hour yet.

Later, she cooked their bacon and eggs and the family sat in silence over their breakfast before the two Maclay men set off for work with barely a grunt to Tara. The girl could have cared less. Almost immediately after their departure, Tara hurried up to her room and changed out of her dowdy school ware. From her private collection she selected an attractive blue hooded sweater that she knew accentuated her soft curvy figure. Her spirits soared just at the opportunity to show that she was a young woman and not a child.. She chose a silky wrap-around skirt that felt impossibly soft against her skin. Finally, she slipped on her sneakers. Tara knew that she would never be considered sophisticated, but she felt comfortable and sensual.

She padded back downstairs and turned the TV on, settling down to watch cartoons on Nickelodeon.

Tara nearly jumped out of her skin at the heavy knocking on the front door. She had drifted off in front of the TV, and it was now nearly 10.00am. Her heart in her mouth, she ran to answer the door. Karly stood on the porch, absently playing with a yo-yo. She looked scarily beautiful to Tara at that moment. Her mane of black hair was tied behind her head in a ponytail, lending her moon-shaped face a far softer appearance than Tara was used to. She wore a gorgeous tailored leather jacket over a wild tie-died t-shirt and cut-off Levis. And she had great legs.

Karly shot Tara a cute smile 'Hi Ferris.'

Tara blushed. 'I can't believe it, I fell asleep. I must look awful.'

'If you could bottle how you look, you'd make a fortune. Cute and sexy at the same time. Interesting.'

Tara ushered the other girl in. 'Y'know, when you say stuff like that.it's hard for me..'

'Don't you like it?'

Tara turned to face her. 'I love it.'

'You're a strange one.'

'Don't you like that?'

'I love it.'

Karly brushed her lips across Tara's.

'I never kissed a witch before. I like that, too.

Tara and Karly sat in Tara's room together, drinking coffee and listening to Julee Cruise's unearthly croon.

'I ought to t-tell you,' Tara said nervously, 'I've never had a girlfriend before.'

'Is that what I am?'

'Ah?'

'Your girlfriend?'

Tara looked suddenly mortified. 'Oh, G-Goddess, I'm sorry. I th-thought..'

'Why don't you just come here?'

Tara got up from the floor and went to sit next to Karly on the bed. 'I.'

'Shhh.'

Karly kissed Tara again, this time slowly and gently easing her tongue into the other girl's mouth. She teased Tara's tongue playfully, relaxing the younger girl into the kiss. Tara looked up at her with tender innocence as she broke the kiss. Karly smiled and stroked her straw-blonde hair.

'Nice?'

'Oh, yeah. That w-was..'

Tara fell silent as Karly slowly peeled off her t-shirt. Her pale body was slim but toned, her black bra matching the hair that now flowed around her shoulders.

'You're beautiful.' Tara whispered. She began to nervously take off her own top.

'No, sweet.' Karly reached out to stop her. She took Tara's shaking hand and guided it to one of her small breasts.

'Just touch me, feel what I am.'

Tara gently stroked her cool flesh, reaching down caress her narrow waist.

'Am I what you want?'

'Yes.' Tara's head was lowered.

I want to make love to you, babe, but I want it to be right for you. Just for the moment I think we should just hang out and make out. And we can try on each other's shirts. Is that cool?'

Tara nodded slowly. 'You're just...wow.'

Karly slipped her shirt back on. 'I had a damn good wow teacher.'

Tara noticed the far-away look in the other girl's eye.

'Girlfriend?'

'No, actually. I had some pretty bad problems a while back. Then I met this guy. He was kind of annoying for a while, but he had a way. Anyway, he helped me out.And he kind of taught me how to stop being such a brat.'

'Where is he now?'

'Oh, he'll be somewhere around, I guess. Like a very unfashionable smell. So, do ya want to make out some more?'

'Nah.'

'You little tease!'

'I've got a good teacher!

'C'mere...'

The short man sat in the Expresso Pump nursing a cappuccino and a headache. He wasn't overly keen on the Californian climate and Sunnydale had so far proven to be distinctly underwhelming. He watched the young couple enter, just as he had expected, laughing and talking noisily, as teenagers do.

The girl looked 14 or 15 , though the man knew her to be at high school already, with a sweet, naturally pretty face, and long, red hair. The boy looked older and handsome in a quirky way. Willow Rosenberg and Xander Harris. Two unextraordinary kids. The sort that pass unnoticed throughout their lives. Willow was never going to win a beauty pageant and Xander would probably never get the girl. That's how it appeared anyway. Even five years from now these two wouldn't realise just how important they really were. For this time the Slayer would be different. This time the Slayer would live.

Tara gave Karly a big hug. 'Thanks.'

'For what? Copping a feel?'

'Did you hear me objecting?'

'I rarely receive complaints.'

'Actually, you sucked.'

'Ooh, the mouth on her! Girl, you are spending too much time with that white trash ho!'

Tara smiled happily. 'Seriously. Thanks for wanting me.'

Karly was embarrassed. 'No big. I prey on freshmen. I'm a slave to teenage lust.'

'I know it's not a big deal to you, but the only person who ever had any time for me was my mom. And now she's gone. I have this communication...thing. I mean,people don't seem to get me. I'm not sure that I really get me. I mean, if my folks knew about me being.different.'

'You mean gay?'

'I don't know.I mean, yeah, but I feel different in so many ways. I have this power.'

'You mean the witch thing?'

'Yeah. This probably sounds crazy to you, but I can do stuff that isn't even in the books. My mother had it too.'

Karly was intrigued. 'Like what?'

'Well, I can see things through the bear. It's like what he can see is in my mind's eye. Sometimes, when I'm mad, I can make stuff move.'

The dark girl frowned. 'Tara, you're not messing around with any dark mojo are you?'

'No. Of course not.'

'Cos that shit can get you into big trouble.'

Tara giggled. 'My father thinks that all women are evil. He's always telling me there's a devil in me.'

'Sounds like he's crazy.'

'He drove my mom away. I'll never forgive him for that.'

They fell into silence for a while. 'Wanna go grab some lunch?' Karly suggested.

'Sure. But there's something I'd like to show you first.'

Tara went through the ritual of digging out her secret chest from under the floorboard.

'Ooh, this is like the Goonies!' Karly suggested.

Tara lifted out the tray of magical supplies and started routing around for her artpad. Karly gazed at Tara's witchy bits and bobs in fascination. 'Say, you didn't happento put a love spell on me, didja?'

'Of course not. Love spells are very dangerous. Anyway, I wouldn't.'

She found the pad and handed it over to her friend. Karly began to flick through the pages. 'Cute. Who is she?'

'I wish I knew. I just can't stop drawing her. And I feel her, like I feel the bear. Karly, I'm sure she's real. I want to find her. It's like she can explain everything to me.

Make everything right in my head.'

Karly glared at Tara from behind the pad. 'She looks like kind of a dork, actually.'

'Don't say that.' Tara said darkly. 'She's special. I know it.'

Karly sighed. 'Jeez, first time I ever had to compete with a drawing.'

As Karly strolled away from the Maclay house later that afternoon, she wondered if Aloycious the bear was keeping track of her departure from Tara's window. It had been a strange day, a good day, but Tara's unearthly and ethereal presence left her truly stumped as to what she was letting herself in for. Only one way to find out. She took her cellphone from her jacket pocket and began to cycle through the numbers she rarely used any more. She found what she was looking for and pressed the transmit button.

'Hey, it's Karly, how you doing?'

'You in trouble?'

'Duh, I can see you haven't changed.'

'Did you think I would?'

'Wish. Look, I was wondering if we could meet?'

'What's up?

'Maybe I just wanna share a burger?'

'And the devil does my laundry.'

'Wiseass.'

'Always.'

'So are you up for it?'

'Why not? I got nothing on.'

'Great. Is it okay if I bring a friend?'

'Had to be a catch.'

'Look, I started seeing someone. She's a great kid but she's kind of messed up.'

'Get a counsellor.'

'Get a stylist. She's a witch, and she's one of yours. Don't want her to go the other way, do you?'

'When?'

'I'll get back to you.'

She hung up.

Xander Harris cracked one of his dad's beers a took a sip. He quickly spat it out again. Not a great leap of faith to jump between his old man's foul taste in everythingelse and that of his beer. He returned to contemplating the numerous joys of Kelly Bundy. Homework be damned. A Married With Children double bill was part of any teen's right of passage.

Abruptly, the door buzzer interrupted a classic Al Bundy one-liner. Xander groaned and hauled himself off the couch.

'No Jessie!' he hollered, 'I haven't done it either. Go leech off Willow!'

But it wasn't Jessie. 'Will?'

The small redhead collapsed into Xander's arms in fits of tears.

'Will, what is it? Has someone hurt you?'

'C-Cordy.'

Cordelia Chase. Xander's jaw set in a firm line at the sound of that name. Whatever she had done to Willow to get her in this state he would make sure Cordelia paid for it.

Xander fixed Willow a Kool-Aid and calmed her down. 'What happened.?

'I was down the mall and I ran into Cordy and her cronies. They wouldn't let me alone. Harmony kept calling me a lesbian and then Cordy insisted that I was sleepingwith you because no-one else ever would. Then Harmony pushed me down the escalator. And no-body else helped me, Xander, nobody!' she was getting angry now.

Xander sighed. 'This is Sunnydale, Will. No-one helps no-one in Sunnydale. But there is..revenge.

Willow's tear-streaked face began to glow again. 'Revenge.'

Xander shrugged. 'It'll be pathetic, but we'll get a laugh.'

It was a sunny Saturday afternoon when Karly drove the battered old Nissan Sunny out of town and onto the main highway. This was something of a magical mystery tour for Tara, who had no idea where they were headed. Karly had had Tara bring her artpad with her. About 60 miles west of town, Karly announced that they were nearly there.

'Nearly where?'

Karly swung the car into the parking lot of an unremarkable roadside diner. 'We're meeting a friend of mine.'

The inside of the restaurant was both smoky and dusty, but barely populated with customers. Karly spotted her rendezvous immediately. Still the pork-pie hat, still theill-fitting raincoat..

'Hey, ya little demon!' Karly called out.

Whistler looked up from his coffee. 'Hi beautiful.'

Karly squeezed Tara's hand and lead her over to the booth where the dishevelled young man was playing unenthusiastically with his hotdog. He held up his hand to

Tara in greeting. 'Nice to make your acquaintance. I'm Whistler.'

Tara shyly squeezed his hand. 'Tara.'

Karly squeezed into the booth opposite the man. 'How's tricks?'

'LA Rocks.'

'Saved many souls recently?'

Whistler grinned. 'You know no-one listens to me.'

'That's 'cos you like the sound of your own voice.'

'Are you a minister or something?' Tara asked.

'Dressed like that?' Karly scoffed.

Whistler shot Karly a look, but said nothing..

'Whistler's a demon.' Karly said brightly.

'A what?'

'You know, pointy horns, fiery breath, that kind of thing.'

'You mortals have no imagination. Most demon's oral hygiene is immaculate.'

'I'm lost ' Tara admitted.

'So was I.' Karly confessed. 'That's the trouble with demons. You'd think they'd be all gnarly, but some of them are kind of..sexy.'

'Sexy?' Tara said faintly, looking at Whistler.

'Oh God, not him!' Karly exclaimed. 'Her name was Gabby. I mean, what sort of name is that for an evil Perra-Demon?'

'Typical, actually,' Whistler answered. 'I knew one called Jeremy once. Perra-Demons are always up themselves.'

'Anyway, I fell in love. Pathetic. Should have seen it coming. The next thing I know, I'm up to my neck in the black arts and summoning beetle deities left, right andcentre. I bumped into your man Whistler here, in a bar in Denver. Drunk as a skunk, he was. I thought it would be a giggle to make his head swell up to twice itsnormal size. Of course, he's only working for the Power that Be..'

'Powers That Be?'

'God types. Long story. Whistler's job, y'see, is trying to maintain the balance of good and evil on Earth. Like, you're a good witch and I was an evil bitch. If you like.

That would be a balance.'

'Except Karly was never meant to be bad.' Whistler pointed out. 'I just helped her see the error of her ways. Easy job.'

'What happened to Gabby?'

Karly sighed. 'She was only in it for the beetle-deities. I didn't see her for dust.'

'This is all c-crazy!' Tara giggled.

'That's what my first wife said.' Whistler sighed. 'She had more in common with mud than men.'

'Tara has a problem.' Karly said.

'I do?'

'What's the deal, kid?'

'She can't stop drawing pictures of some girl. Thinks they've got some sort of mental connection going. But we don't actually know who she is.'

'And?'

'I thought you could just take a look?'

Tara passed the pad over to Whistler. He flicked through a few pages before slowly glancing up at Tara. He shook his head and looked back to the pad. Eventually heclosed it and placed it next to the remains of his lunch.

'You ladies have to understand that anything I tell you might interfere with the way things are meant to be. On the other hand, no-one said anything to me about

precognition. Interesting.'

'You always do this!'

'Okay, I know her. Believe me, you never get the hang of the fate game. It's so damn complicated.'

'Who is she?' Tara asked eagerly.

'I guess if I don't tell you, you'll only run off and look for her?'

'Totally.'

'Her name is Willow.'

'Willow. That's beautiful.' Tara murmured.

'She's sixteen years old, very smart and potentially very big in the scheme of things. Aside from that I strongly suggest you leave well alone.'

'But what has she to do with me?' Tara asked desperately.

Whistler cupped her hands with his. 'Kid. Don't grow up too fast. You go looking for something, you might find you missed it somewhere along the way.'

'Thanks, Whistler.' Karly had decided they had heard enough. 'C'mon Tara.'

Outside the diner, Tara stopped before they reached the car. 'He's wrong.'

'Yes,' said Karly.

'I have to see her.'

'I know.'

'How do we find her?'

Karly dangled a napkin in front of Tara. Tara had not even noticed her doodling during their meeting. Now she took a closer look at the sketch. Willow again, this timewearing a campus T-shirt bearing the legend 'Sunnydale High'.

The two girls piled into the front of the Nissan.

'Where the hell is Sunnydale?' Karly asked.

'California.'

Karly jammed the car into gear. 'Do you want be Thelma or Louise?'

Willow flipped a pancake and peered over at Xander, who was deeply engrossed in an episode of Sailor Moon. When she looked back Xander was gazing at her,with an altogether different look in his eye. Willow squirmed in embarrassment. 'What?'

'I dunno. It occurred to me that you bear a weird resemblance to one of these Sailor girls. The big eyes and the long hair and stuff. Ever thought of going to CatholicSchool?

She threw a cloth at him.'Perv!'

Xander chuckled and went back to the TV.

'Xand?'

'Uh?'

'Something's coming.'

'What?'

'I don't know. A storm or something. Something. But I think it's gonna be good.'

Tara lay back into Karly's gentle embrace and closed her eyes. It had been a long, hard day and Karly's relentless, foot-to-the-floor driving had lead to number of near scrapes along the way. Now, at last, they rested.

'Miles to go.' Karly murmured.

'Huh?'

'Before I sleep.'

The dark girl dropped the road map on the bed. 'S'okay. Talking to myself. How did it go with the old man?'

'He shouted at me until I ran out of change.'

'Did you tell him you were on a school trip?'

'He thinks I'm looking for mom.'

'I'm beat. Should've found a place with a spa.' Karly seemed distracted. Tara stroked her shoulder

'Why are you doing this?'

'For you.'

'Really?'

'Truth?'

'Of course.'

'I want you to get this kid out of your system. 'Cos all the time she's there, there isn't really room for me.'
Tara stared at Karly in astonishment. 'Oh, Goddess, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to.'

'Don't sweat it. This ain't the first road trip I've made in the name of lurve.'

Tara nuzzled up close to the older girl. 'I'm n-not very good at this, am I? I do care you know, very much?'

'Sure. I'm just tired.' Karly said coldly.

'P-please, can't we talk?'

Karly sat up abruptly. 'Look, what else do you want from me? I mean, what am I doing stuck out in the Middle of Fucking Nowhere Motel with some love-struck kid who thinks she's a witch?'

Tara stared at Karly in mute dismay.

'Christ, I do this to myself over and over again. Demons, witches, psychos. What next, a fucking vampire?' And then, slowly at first, she began to cry. Big, silver tearsran down her pale cheeks as she gave in to her personal demons.

Tara watched Karly's startlingly sudden disintegration with shock, dismay and finally overwhelming pity and sorrow. Tara had cried herself to sleep more times than she cared to remember, and her heart went out to the suddenly deflated and fragile girl.

The young witch crawled awkwardly up the bed and gingerly placed her arms around the sobbing girl. Karly didn't stop crying, but she hugged Tara fiercely in response.

'Just let it out.' Tara said, as if consoling a child.

When the tears finally subsided, Karly clung tightly and wordlessly to Tara.

'Tell me what's wrong, please!' Tara said eventually.

Karly had taken on the appearance of a panda bear where her make-up had severely smudged during the downpour.

'Me,' she spluttered, 'I'm wrong. You still don't get it, do you? You really are the genuine article.'

'Tell me!'

'Jeez, Tara, I'm eaten up with fuckin' jealousy! All this cool streetgirl stuff is all very good fun. Then I fall hard for someone and lose it. What Whistler didn't mentionwas the two months after Gabby left that he had to stop me from acing myself.'

'I'm sorry.'

'No, I am. You thought you'd found all the perfect answers to all those things that were mashing you up. But real life always catches up in the end.'

'If you stopped wallowing for just a second I'd tell you that I don't care about you covering up your emotional problems. We all do. You've opened up to me, and that has to be good. And I don't really care that you're jealous of Willow because you've trusted me enough to bring me out here, and because I know in my heart how I f-feel about you.'

'Tara.will you make love to me..please?

They knelt facing each other, hands lightly stroking. Then they simply melted into one another.

A gentle glow; spiralling ever upward, growing, spreading to every last extremity, becoming an ecstasy rush of pleasure, a scream of release between two bonded bodies and souls. Karly's hot breath teasing and taunting, before finally unlocking the portals Tara had been shy of for so long. Finding her own new intimacies in the slick dips and crevices of Karly's body. Karly scratching itches that Tara thought could never be eliminated. They eased in and out of one another with both passion and tenderness. It had been a long day. They slept.

Tara woke in the early hours of the morning. Karly was awake and flicking through the cable channels on the TV.

'You okay?'

'Strangely restless. Sunnydale tomorrow.'

'Come back to me.'

She switched off the TV and relaxed back into Tara's arms. To hell with tomorrow.

'Our Celebrity Chef this morning is our own Mayor-Elect, Richard Wilkins III! Good morning Richard!'

'Morning Chuck, nice to be here.'

'So tell me, Dick, what's on your breakfast platter this morning?'

'Well, Chuck, I'll be preparing my own speciality pancake recipe. And please don't call me Dick.'

Xander cracked open an eyelid. The TV was playing away to itself in the corner of his bedroom. Willow and Jesse must have let themselves out last night. Willow and

Jesse?

Nah.

His bleary eye focussed on the TV screen. 8.30am.

'Shit!' Xander leaped out of bed and fell over. He was going to be late for school. Normally he would not have been overly concerned at this prospect, but Flutie had his balls firmly in his grasp over his past record. He showered cursorily and threw on his usual uniform of slackerdom. He then considered his options for a briefmoment.

'Yes!'

He rushed to the closet and began routing through the last ten years of accumulated junk.

'Yes!'

Xander yanked the skateboard from the cupboard and dusted it down in triumph.

'Have you still got it?' he asked himself. Naturally. 'Willow and Jesse? Nah.'

Willow was concerned that Xander had missed the bus. She knew that she worried about him far more than he ever did, but she knew he was on his way to serious trouble at school if he didn't get his act together. And a school without Xander in it was an unbearable thought. Jesse was nice to have around, but he would never be Xander. Willow would never be interested in jocks or cheerleading or any of the other popular ephemera of high school. She accepted that she was the dorky smart kid who would turn into the dorky smart adult, but she was happy enough. Sure, being crazy about the school clown, who was also her best friend, was tough, but she thrived on tough problems.

Lost in thoughts of Xander and their oh-so-complex friendship, Willow was nearly sent flying as the very same individual appeared inexplicably at her feet at the bottom on the steps to Sunnydale High. She looked down at the riderless skateboard lodged between her feet and the prone boy looking up at her.

'Willow!!' Xander exclaimed. 'You're so very much the person I wanted to see!'

Tara and Karly watched the dying group of stragglers disappear into the main hallway of the school building. Another small-town high school in another sunny Californian small town.

'Almost like home.' Karly commented. 'Aside from the weather and the beautiful people.'

Tara was silent. It felt as though her heart was beating twice its normal speed. She was in there somewhere. Willow.

'What do we do now?'

'W-wait, I guess. Until recess?'

'Well I'm going to get some doughnuts. You want anything?'

'A soda?' Tara's mouth was dry beyond belief.

Karly squeezed her shoulder. 'Chill out, okay? I'm gonna get you a large jelly with sprinkles, and you are going to like it.'

'Okay, mom.'

Willow padded down the corridor towards the Fountain Quadrant, her stomach rumbling ominously. Her mom had left the house early this morning and Willow had skipped breakfast as a result. Now she was getting the payoff. She tried to swallow the hurt of the humiliation she had received at the hands of Cordelia Chase that morning, but it was difficult. Willow was a sensitive girl and did not understand why Cordelia took such pleasure in being mean to her. The new girl Cordelia had sunk her fangs into had just looked horribly embarrassed by the whole affair.

Willow had just taken a seat in the quadrant and begun to fish around in her lunch bag when Cordelia's friend from this morning suddenly appeared. Willow flinched, afraid that she was about to face Harmony Mk II.

'Uh, hi, Willow, right?'

'Why, I mean, hi. Do you want me to move?'

The other girl gave her a strange look. 'Why don't we start with, 'Hi, I'm Buffy,' and, uh, then let's segue directly into me asking you for a favor. It doesn't involve moving, but it does involve hanging out with me for a while.'

Willow looked at the other girl more closely. She was pretty and fashionably dressed, but that was where her resemblance to Cordelia ended. She had a kind, honest face and Willow could see at once that she was not trying to trick her.

Tara and Karly watched the two young girls talking from just a few feet away. Even Karly found herself charmed by the little redhead's sweet, nervous smile.

'She's so..' Tara whispered.

'What?'

'Normal.'

Karly squeezed Tara's hand. 'I think she's cute.'

'She's beautiful. But.'

Karly had picked up on the almost tangible magnetism between the two girls talking on the bench.. 'What's her deal?' she wondered about the blonde.

'She's something special. Powerful. I don't know. It's weird.'

They watched as two boys joined the two girls on the bench. The cheery dark boy would be handsome in a few years time. His friend was gawkier and more obvious. Both only had eyes for the beautiful blonde. Even to Tara and Karly it was obvious that Willow was infatuated with the dark boy. Her big eyes flashed longingly at him as he openly lusted after her blonde friend.

'Tara?'

'I know. It's okay.'

Another Californian beauty joined the group. The good-natured bonhomie seemed to shatter with the arrival of the newcomer.

'The darkness is already here.' Tara murmured.

'I think we should leave.' Karly said.

'So do I.'

In the last few seconds before their departure, Willow caught Tara's unflinching gaze out of the corner of her eye. She turned and gave the young blonde a friendly smile. Tara smiled back. She would remember that smile. Hold it in her heart.

The two young women walked slowly away from Sunnydale High, hand in hand.

'Are you okay?' Karly asked Tara.

'I'm g-good. It was so good. To see her y'know? I mean, Whistler was right, it's not the right time yet. But it's in good hands.'

'The blonde chick, y'mean?'

'All of them.'

'Home then?'

'Yeah. I'll see her again one day.'

Karly ruffled Tara's hair affectionately. 'Could be sooner than you think.'

End

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