Learning Curve
by rebelrsr
Chapter 25
[reviews]
Disclaimer: All things Buffy belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, and lots of people in expensive suits. I'm not making any money here, just trying to create a happier Buffyverse for my favorite characters.
Spoilers, etc.: I altered the timeline of "The Yoko Factor," "Primeval," and Angel the Series "Sanctuary" with reckless abandon. It's mostly AU from here. Thanks to the best beta crew: Desirata41, Zenithar, and Zigpal I couldn't do it without you.
A/N: Thoughts enclosed by **. Flashbacks enclosed by //.
Archiving: By permission only.
Faith mumbled under her breath as she reentered the Summers' kitchen. The two blondes at the counter looked at her and smiled.
"Something wrong, Faith?" Joyce inquired.
Flushing slightly, the Slayer answered. "No, Mrs. S, I'm good." She grabbed a chair from around the table and straddled it, chin resting on the back.
"If you're so OK, why were you talking to yourself when you came in?" Tara smirked a bit, suspecting what Faith had seen. The borrowed energy of the earlier spell gave her a line into the emotions of the other three girls. She'd been inundated with waves of desire since leaving the living room.
Her Slayer gave her an irritated look. "Man, you know, T, the whole time I was working with B and the Super Friends, I never suspected little Miss Holier Than Thou could relax enough to have fun." Suddenly remembering exactly who was in the room, her eyes widened. "Ummm, sorry, Mrs. Summers."
The older woman smiled. "That's OK, Faith. I've often wondered about Buffy myself."
"Thanks ever so much, Mom," the girl under discussion griped. She and Willow walked into the room, hand in hand. "It's nice to know that my sex life takes up so much of you guys' time. Maybe Will and I should set up a video camera and you could just watch and learn."
Faith couldn't resist. "That'd be wicked cool, B."
The room erupted in laughter when Buffy spun to face her sister Slayer with a look of pure horror.
"Enough, girls. It's been a long day. Eat up and then get some rest." Joyce stood and began carrying bowls of food to the table.
***
Faith dried out the last bowl and stuck it in the cabinet. "All done, T. You ready for bed?" She leaned against the counter and watched her witch wiping down the sink. The blonde tossed the dish rag down and turned to smile at the waiting brunette.
"Ready if you are," she smirked. The older girl held out her hand, inviting her companion to move from her position across the room.
"You even have to ask, Blondie?" The Slayer stalked across the room and picked the witch up, cradling her against her chest. "Let's take this somewhere a bit more private." She started up the stairs, groaning when her cargo nipped and licked a fiery path across her throat. "Damn, T, you should register that mouth. It's freakin' lethal!"
Giggles emanated from the witch. "You're just easy, Slayer." Tara rested her head against Faith's chest, listening to the strong heartbeat as they climbed steadily to the second floor.
"Hey, that wasn't a complaint. Why'd you stop?" Faith inquired.
Snuggling deeper into the brunette, Tara mumbled, "I like listening to your heart." She blushed, hoping the overly romantic sentiment didn't scare Faith off. She was surprised when tender lips brushed the top of her head.
"Nobody's paid much attention to my heart before, Tara," the husky whisper commented. "It isn't worth much. You should look for something that still has value."
They entered the room while the witch tried to find a response to the self deprecating statement. As Faith gently set her on the ground, Tara buried her hands in the curly brown hair and held the Slayer's head in place. "I'm really tired of those kinds of remarks," she growled. "I spent a lot of years letting my family knock me around and tell me I was worthless. I understand where you're coming from, but have I ever done anything to make you feel less than magnificent?"
Rigid with shock, Faith stared into intense blue eyes. "Tara?" she questioned. "I didn't mean to upset you. It's just, you know, I ain't got much to offer."
"You've got everything I need, my Slayer." Knowing the battle with Adam was over and Faith's reason for returning to Sunnydale gone, the blonde witch threw caution to the winds. She pulled Faith's head down, pressing a gentle kiss to the pouting lips. "Show me what you've got, Slayer."
With a wicked grin, Faith accepted the challenge. The last time they'd played together, Tara had done most of the work, driving Faith mad with desire. The Slayer planned to reverse that action this time around. Clamping down on her own needs, she slowly removed the long tie-dyed skirt and T-shirt the witch wore. The older girl stood before her in bra and panties.
Not bothering to remove the white material, the brunette ran warm fingers under the shoulder straps, sliding them down to the witch's elbows. The fabric cupping the blonde's breasts sagged, leaving the nipples exposed. Grinning in anticipation, Faith placed slow, wet kisses on the flesh. Eventually, though, need won out and she increased the intensity of her kisses. Faith maneuvered Tara onto the bed and arranged the panting witch to her liking.
Slowly examining the flushed skin and hazy blue eyes, the Slayer removed her own shirt and bra before kneeling between Tara's legs. She quickly and efficiently removed the cotton underwear. One strong pull placed the blonde's core at the edge of the mattress, her long limbs straddling the brunette's body. Faith wanted to tease and torment before taking Tara over the edge. She avoided the glistening mound, focusing on the witch's silky inner thighs. Licking and nipping at the salty flesh, she smiled to herself when the blonde arched violently into her mouth, hands tangled painfully in her hair. When Tara's moans turned to broken verbal pleas, the Slayer gave in. With gentle fingers, Faith separated the soaked outer lips before her and caressed them with a puff of warm air. Leaning in, she flattened her tongue and blazed a fiery trail along the witch's opening, finishing at the swollen clit. She paused there, tongue pressed hard into the twitching bundle of nerves.
"Please, Faith. Oh, Goddess." Tara's words reached the Slayer seconds before the brunette slid a slim finger inside her. It was enough to send the blonde over the edge. Her release was so intense, the witch felt herself sliding into warm darkness. With a last surge of energy, she whispered the words of a spell.
***
Willow rested her cheek on Buffy's shoulder, waiting for her heart to stop racing. "For a straight girl, you sure do a good job, Baby."
A smirk clear in her voice, the Slayer responded, "Who you calling straight, Rosenberg? I seem to remember you screaming my name just a few minutes ago. A straight girl wouldn't be able to get that reaction."
"True." The redhead snuggled closer. "Buffy?"
Sensing a drastic change in mood, the blonde stiffened. "Yeah, Will?"
"What's next?"
"Well, I kinda thought we'd get some sleep." The smaller girl hoped to avoid any deep conversations.
Unfortunately her witch had other plans. A small hand tugged warningly on a nipple. "Buffy..."
"OK, Will, I get it." The Slayer grimaced. Why did her new girlfriend always want to talk? "Next...well, Adam's dead, but the Initiative is still around. We'll need to — uh, help them leave town." She stroked a lazy hand through Willow's tousled hair. "After that, I guess we wait for the next apocalypse."
"What about Faith?"
"Well, she can't stay here. The police are looking for her." Buffy frowned. It had been nice to have the other Slayer on the team. "We could try talking her into staying, but why would she? I mean, there's a lot of history here."
"I did some checking. The police don't really have much evidence against her." Willow pressed into the hand in her hair, nearly purring. "I'd feel so much the better if you had help with Slaying." She began to tease a finger in and out of the blonde's navel. "Do you think, if we can convince her to stay, that Giles and your mom would help with the legal situation?"
"Wow, I don't know." Fighting to stay focused on the conversation, the Slayer commented hoarsely, "I think the convincing should be aimed at Tara. She seems to hold a bit of sway over my little sister."
"Hmmm, good point." The witch rewarded her lover's magnificent idea with a slow, deep kiss. Pulling away, the redhead grinned at the look in her Slayer's eyes. She was so easy. "OK. We convince Faith to stay and the gang pitches in to get the cops out of the way. We can handle that. What about us?"
"Huh?" Was there some problem she didn't know about? Buffy tried to gather her scattered thoughts.
"I want to know how you want to handle 'us'." Willow pushed for a response.
Nearly whining at the amount of talking going on, the blonde mumbled, "Be glad to handle any part of you, Will."
"Buffy!" The Slayer's head snapped up. "Focus for just a few more minutes, please. Are we going to formally 'come out' or are we going to pretend we're just friends?"
"Will, I honestly don't care who knows what. I mean, I love you. If people have a problem with that, well, I'm the Slayer. I see lots of bruised humans in my future."
Chuckling at the grumpy statement, Willow decided she'd tortured the blonde girl enough for one night. "Sounds perfect, Baby. It makes me hot and wet when you get all Protective Buffy." The witch had enough energy left for one more round of lovemaking. Blinking big green eyes at the Slayer, she rolled on top of the smaller girl. "Let me show you just how hot and wet."