Finding Her Way Home
by rebelrsr
Chapter 16
[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.: "Dopplegangland," "Something Blue" and everything after "The Gift."
A/N: Character thoughts are enclosed by **. Flashbacks are enclosed by //. Thanks to Zenithar and Zigpal for the beta and encouragement! I couldn't do it without you.
Archiving: By permission only.
The redhead's lips tasted sweet, and Buffy urgently ran her tongue along the flesh. Willow hesitantly granted the impatient Slayer access to her mouth. Plunging heatedly into the witch's mouth, the blonde stroked her tongue along Willow's and groaned. She'd waited too long for this.
Panting, she finally moved back just enough to rest her forehead on the other girl's. Voice shaking, the Slayer said, "Oh, God, Will. I missed you so much."
Giggling, Willow commented, "You never missed me like that before."
"I wanted to, does that count?" Buffy dropped her eyes, afraid of her friend's response. She flinched when a small hand brushed her face.
"Hey, what's got you so spooked?" Willow brushed her lips over Buffy's. "Did you think I'd smack you 'cause you kissed me?" A smile quirked her lips. "I'm bisexual, Buffy. I've spent a lot of time looking at you and wondering."
"So, does that mean you think I'm hot?" Despite the blush staining her cheeks, the Slayer was giddy with relief.
"At the risk of giving you a big head, yeah. You're hot." The witch kissed the blonde again, keeping control of the action despite Buffy's attempt at dominance. Willow pushed her companion back on the bed and straddled her waist. Breaking the kiss, she grinned at the blatant desire in the Slayer's hazel eyes. "Mmmm. This is a nice way to wake up. Can we do it again?"
"Sure." Buffy lapsed into silence.
"Hey, beautiful, where did you go? I was hoping for a little more kissage." Willow watched the Slayer, noting the frown tilting her mouth. Wanting to get Buffy's mind off her troubles, the witch ran a teasing finger over the blonde's nipples. They hardened immediately. "Wow! Look at those." She pulled Buffy's shirt out of her pants and stroked the warm flesh of her stomach.
The Slayer arched at the contact. "Please, Will. I need you so much." Smiling, the redhead answered the plea.
Pushing Buffy's shirt up and uncovering the blonde's bra, the witch laved the hard peaks through the material. Panting, the Slayer ignored the little voice in her mind and grabbed Willow's head, pressing it roughly into her chest.
"Buffy, the barrier's still up and I can see everything. Do you think you can stop necking with my daughter and open the door?" the little voice sounded amused.
"Oh, fuck!" Buffy catapulted off the bed, knocking Willow to the floor. "Your mom's in my head."
Staring at the blonde in confusion, Willow scrambled to her feet. "My mom's in your head?"
"Yeah, she helped me through the shield and she's kind of sitting in my head watching everything."
Willow turned beet red. "My mother is in your head watching me...us...Oh, goddess."
Jennifer snickered inside Buffy's mind. "Tell her to stop babbling and let us in. The rest of the family is here now, and they aren't going to leave until they can see for themselves Willow's alright."
"Jennifer says the whole family is in the hallway, and they won't leave until you open the door," the Slayer relayed.
Face still an alarming shade of red, the young witch shuffled to the shield enclosing the room. Mumbling a few words in Latin and waving a hand at the magical barrier, Willow released the energy safely into the ground. Immediately, the door swung open, revealing a glowering Kirstan and a horde of redheads. They swarmed into the room, surrounding Willow, firing questions at the young witch.
Knowing the family was worried about their newest member, the Slayer drifted away. Her body still hummed with arousal, and she couldn't keep her eyes off her best friend. For five years, she'd hidden her love for the shy redhead. Now that she'd admitted her feelings, Buffy fought with the need to throw the Hirsches out and finish what they'd started.
"Give them a few minutes. Once they know she's OK, we can herd them back downstairs." Kirstan stood next to Buffy, eyes on the group by the door.
Flicking a glance at the tall brunette, the blonde asked, "You really don't care that we're together?"
"Hell, no. In fact, when we first met Willow, Jenny and I didn't understand why you weren't with her." She frowned. "I really don't get why your Watcher wasn't training both of you."
Remembering Giles and the debacle of the Cruciamento, Buffy knew he would not have hidden something this important. "I don't think Giles knew, Kirstan." She paused, something tickling her memory. "How do you know about all of this? Are you a Watcher?"
The question made Kirstan look directly at the shorter girl. "Buffy, we really need to sit down and talk at some point. There is so much you obviously don't know. I'm not a Watcher. I was a Slayer, and Jenny is my witch."
"What?" The blonde spun to face Willow's parent. "How can you...Slayers don't get to retire. We die, and we get replaced."
"Well, the chances of actually making it to retirement are bad, but there are several of us in California and more in other parts of the world." Kirstan laid a hand on Buffy's shoulder. "Like I said, we need to talk. But this isn't the best time."
"Is there ever a good time? Come on, Kirstan. My life is a never ending round of demons, vamps, and Hell Gods." The younger Slayer struggled to reign in her anger. In a softer voice, she said, "Why didn't Giles ever say anything?" She needed to believe her surrogate father had not betrayed her a second time. He was a cornerstone in her freakish life.
Sensing another breakdown in progress, the tall brunette pulled her soon-to-be daughter-in-law into a fierce hug. "Hey, you just told me your Watcher didn't know. When he calls us back, you can ask him."
Nodding into the other woman's shoulder, Buffy agreed. "Yeah, OK. But he'll have to tell me face to face. He's supposed to be back in Sunnydale tomorrow afternoon."
"Good. Invite him out to the ranch. Jenny and I have plenty of room, and we all need to figure out what's going on." She squeezed the tiny blonde a final time and then stepped back. "Now, I think Jenny has gotten the rest of the family out of the way. Why don't you go get Willow and the two of you can set up in the guest house for the night."
"I can't stay," Buffy lamented. At Kirstan's confused look, she explained, "I left my little sister in Sunnydale. There's no way she should be on her own all night." The Slayer shuddered at the thought of what Dawn might do without a chaperone.
"You and Willow need to be together." She caught Buffy's shocked and embarrassed look and laughed. "Well, I don't think you'll be crocheting, little girl. But beyond the physical, the two of you need to connect emotionally as well. Now that you've both acknowledged the bond, you have to strengthen it. The best way to do that is to hide out and just be together."
"You can't begin to imagine how much I want that to happen." Buffy lost focus as images of quality time with Willow danced in her mind. Then she sighed. "But I can't stay. If Giles were in town, maybe. But, there's..." her voice trailed off. "I am such an idiot. Can I borrow your phone?"
A little stunned at the rapid change in the blonde's moods, Kirstan nodded. "Sure. You can use the one in here." The older Slayer watched, mystified, as Buffy almost ran to the phone and punched in a string of numbers.
***
"Hey, Cordy. It's Buffy. Did Tara make it there OK?" Buffy asked.
"Yeah. In fact, she and Faith took off for Sunnydale a couple of hours ago." The ex-Prom Queen sounded tired, but happy. "Thanks for sending her, Buffy. She got Angel's soul restored, and things are back to normal."
Smiling in relief, the Slayer replied, "Hey, we're all on the same side these days. It's about time we remember that." She sighed. "I was really hoping to talk with Tara before she left."
"Are you still working under the Giles' ban on technology, Buffy?" Cordelia was amused. "Cause even Angel has a cell phone these days."
"Cell phone?" The blonde groaned. "So I'm blonde, sue me." Laughter vibrated against her ear. "Faith has a phone?"
"She does. And, since you sent Tara to help us out, I won't even make you beg for the number." The former Scooby rattled off a string of numbers. Luckily, Buffy located a pencil and paper in the nightstand drawer. She scribbled it down and smiled.
"Thanks, Cordy. You're the best."
"I know. Too bad everyone else doesn't realize it," the AI member joked.
Buffy smiled. Queen C sure had changed. "Thanks again, Cordy. Tell everyone 'Hi.'" The Slayer disconnected and immediately dialed the number scrawled on the paper in front of her.
As she waited for Faith to answer, the Slayer wondered if she could actually do this. The last time she'd talked to her sister Slayer, the blonde had been brutal. However, the stakes were too high to back down. She'd just have to deal with whatever attitude the gruff Bostonian copped.
"Hello?" Road noise muffled the voice, but it was definitely the brunette Slayer on the phone.
Palm damp against the handset, Buffy responded. "Hey, Faith. It's Buffy. Just wanted to see how you and Tara were doing?"
There was a long pause. When she spoke again, Faith sounded tense. "We're good, B."
"Good. Good." Buffy sucked in a calming breath. "Thanks for coming to help. I know you probably wanted to be anywhere than back in Sunnydale. There's some weird shit going on...we need to talk. But I've got another big favor to ask Tara. Could I talk to her for a minute?"
There was a long pause, and Buffy worried she might have lost the connection. Then a husky voice responded. "Yeah. I'll give her the phone." The blonde waited. "Actually, B, I needed to come back. We do need to talk, just the two of us, maybe. Here's Blondie."
"Buffy? Is everything OK?" Tara sounded worried.
"Yeah. I'm good. I'm actually with Willow right now." Her speech picked up speed. "I know you said to wait, but, well...anyway. Willow's fine. Her magic is back under control. It's been a rough day, and I was going to crash here. Do you think you and Faith could spend the night at the house with Dawn?"
The blonde witch sighed over the phone. "Somehow, I know there's a story behind your trip out of town. But, we should be back in Sunnydale soon. I don't know about Faith, but I'll be happy to have a girls' night with Dawnie."