Chapter 20 – Confrontational Requiem

(“She matters when everything is meaningless” Nine Inch Nails – Fragile)

 

                Willow grimaced as she watched Alex hover close to Tara, and then quickly forced her face into placid calmness.  Walking up to the two in the corner, Willow gave the most reassuring smile that she could muster while looking into her friend’s eyes, attempting avoiding Alex’s gaze.

                “Hey Tara, you ready to head out?” the redhead asked.

                “Yeah,” Tara said softly as she reached her hand out to grab a hold of her boyfriend’s.  “Alex wants to come along too if that is ok?”  Willow looked at Alex then back at Tara.

                “Um, I was kinda hoping to keep this ‘in the family’, if you know what I mean?” Willow said trying to keep the pleading she felt out of her voice.

                “It, it’s ok, I told him about the Scoobies,” Tara said with a smile.  Willow forced a look back as her mind started to race through thoughts of finding someway to get her friend distanced from Alex with out causing a scene.

                “If it’s all the same Tara, I just want you there; I don’t think Dawn wants to be around strangers right now.”  ‘Please Tara, don’t make this hard,’ Willow felt herself thinking.

                “Dawn’s met Alex and she doesn’t mind him around I think.  I really want him to come along Willow,” Tara said in a firm voice.  The Slayer felt herself floundering in her mind, reaching for something but repeatedly coming up empty.  Finally Willow decided that standing around wasn’t going to solve anything.

                “Ok,” the redhead smiled.  “Let’s head out then, I’ve got the car still running.”

                “I’ll ride with Alex, he drove me here.  We’ll follow you.”  Willow balled her left hand into a fist briefly, and then loosened her hand muscles up.

                “Alright, let me walk with you, there’s some stuff I need to talk to you about.”  As the three headed out the front lobby doors Willow’s mind began to race through what she was going to say, what she was going to do, then her mind settled on one course of action.

                “Hey Tara, I’ve been wanting to tell you something for a while now and I guess this isn’t the best time, but then again, maybe it is too,” Willow said as she turned her gaze to her own footsteps as they walked along the asphalt, shiny from the reflection of the lamp lights against the moister.  Willow felt an uneasiness settle in deeper as Alex kept the same quite demeanor he had had since Willow had arrived at the theater.

                “What is it?” Tara asked with a concerned look.

                “I think that I—“ Willow felt her cell phone vibrate in her pocket before she could get the rest of the sentence out.   “Hold on for a minute, I’m expecting this call,” Willow said.  The Slayer brought the phone to her ear as she continued walking towards Alex’s car, keeping close to the blonde.  “Hello?...  Hey Giles…  You’re sure?...  Yeah…  As soon as possible please…  I don’t know…  Ok, bye.”  Willow slid her phone back into her coat pocket and didn’t bother to hide her frown.

                “Is everything ok Willow?” Tara asked as everyone stopped at a red four door car that Willow assumed was Alex’s.  The three stood near the passenger’s side of the car as Tara’s question hung in the air.

                “No,” Willow said as she opened the door for her friend.  “We’re just going to have to hurry.”  Tara nodded in understanding as she got into the car.  Willow closed the door firmly.  As Alex turned to round the front of the car to the driver’s side Willow yanked down on the passenger’s handle as hard as she could, breaking it off the door.

                “Oh dear,” Willow said as she looked at the door handle.  For the first time that night she heard Alex speak.

                “What’s wrong?” the young man asked.  Willow walked around to Alex and gave an apologetic look as she presented the broken handle for him to see.  “What happened?” Alex asked in a confused tone.

                “I broke this off but don’t worry,” Willow said as her face turned placid.  “You can have it back.”  The Slayer jabbed the handle as hard as she could into the young boy’s right eye, shoving it as far into his head as she could.  As Willow let go of the metal object and stepped back she watched as Alex’s face began to frown.

                “Bitch,” the young man said as he took a step forward, moving closer to Willow.  ‘Not good,’ Willow heard in her mind as she felt Alex’s fist back hand her, her body being thrown back.  The redhead could faintly count the five cars she flew over as she slammed into the sixth’s car’s hood, sliding into it’s windshield.  Willow thought she heard Tara yelling something as she watched Alex hop up on the hood of a car farther back, slowly making his way over the parked vehicles towards the Slayer.  Willow let out a breath as she got back onto her feet.  She watched the shadows from the lamp posts play across Tara’s boyfriend’s face as he pulled the door handle out of his face and let it drop to the ground.  The Slayer dropped into a dead run, finishing up the gap between her and Alex across the car hoods, aiming her right shoulder towards Alex’s midsection, bringing her weight full bore into the young man throwing them both from the blue Honda they were on onto the wet pavement.  As they rolled she felt a punch from Alex connect to her chest, breaking bones and taking the wind out of her.  Willow reached back and throat punched Alex as hard as she could with the small amount of energy she could muster.  The young man paused for a brief moment from the strike, just long enough for Willow to slide away from him and stumble in between another row of cars.  The redhead hunched over as her gut started pull at her attention with pain, but looked up again as she started moving backwards, seeing Alex tipping the car that she was using as a barrier between him and her on to it’s side.

                “This is really not good,” Willow said in a choked voice.

                “No, it really isn’t,” Alex said with a toothy grin, made even more monstrous from the blood that was dripping into it from the injured eye socket.  Willow looked around the empty parking lot as she backed up away from Alex, desperately looking for anything that could help, only seeing cars, empty buildings, and trashcans.

                “Hey Alex, you think we could talk about this?” Willow said distractedly as she ran scenarios through her head on different actions she could take.

                “Too late Slayer,” the young man said as he slowly started walking toward the redhead.  Willow felt her mind stumble through thought after thought, each one leading to her death in one gruesome form or another.  Willow shook her head slightly, jarring her thought process back to the present as she stumbled backwards into another parked car hood, preventing her movement for a moment.  As Willow looked forward she could see her best friend running up from behind her boyfriend.

                “Alex, What’s going on?!” Tara asked in a frightened tone, pulling on his shoulder so he would face her.  As the young man’s blood streaked face turned to face Tara, the young blonde let out a wide mouthed silent gasped then quickly turned to Willow.

                “Willow, what did you do!?” Tara demanded as she moved in between Alex and the Slayer.  Willow tensed her muscles in spite of the pain she was in.

                “Tara I--,” Willow tried to get out as Alex batted his girlfriend aside, throwing her like a limp rag doll.  Willow let out a low growl as she took a step forward to Tara’s boyfriend.  “You forgot one thing Alex,” Willow said firmly.

                “Oh, and what is that?” Alex asked grinning.

                “Knee to the man-junk,” the redhead said in a matter of fact voice as she brought her knee up into the demon’s groin.  Alex’s eyes dilated as he fell backwards onto the pavement, lying sprawled out.  Willow drew her sword out as she stepped over the young man.

                “I doubt your weapon can even hurt me Slayer.  My skin is a great deal stronger than my eye is,” the demon said in a choked voice.  Willow brought her sword back and began her chant.  Half way through the downward arc of the blade the red tracers began to show bright against the night from the gleaming red color the metal had taken.  Willow felt the sword effortlessly cut through the creature’s neck as well as the pavement below him, the demons head rolling back slightly on the ground.  The Slayer put her weapon back into it’s scabbard underneath her coat as she walked over to her friend who was getting up from where she had been thrown too.

                “You ok?” Willow asked in a hesitant voice.  Tara steadied herself on a car she was next too as she gave a puzzled look to her friend.  Willow walked and over brushed away some stray hair strands that were hanging down on Tara’s face and watched the blonde’s eyes follow her fingers with an intensity she was confused by and brought her hand back down to her side.  “Come on,” Willow said as reassuringly as possible.  “Let’s get you home.”  Tara let out a half smile at the comment.  As Willow started leading her friend back to their car she turned to watch Alex’s body start to bubble and turn into a thick dark purple liquid, emptying into the storm drain near by. 

                When the two arrived at Tara’s car, Willow let out a grunt as she opened up the passenger door for Tara.

                “Willow?” Tara said, breaking her silence that had been so thick on the short walk to the car that it had made Willow feel awkward.  Willow gave a soft grin as she lightly rubbed her wounded belly.  “I, I’ll drive us back,” the blonde said.  Tara helped Willow into the passenger’s seat and closed the door softly, careful not to jar her passenger, then proceeded to get into the drivers side and start the car.  “Where is Dawn at?” Tara asked as she began driving towards the parking lot exit.

                “She’s at home, she’s fine.  There isn’t anything wrong with her.”  Willow paused a moment and took a breath carefully.   “I just needed an excuse to get you away from Alex for a little while,” Willow said.

                “Wha, what was Alex?  I don’t understand what happened, I…  I thought I was in love with him,” Tara said in a hesitant voice.

                “He was a Qwerlfy demon.  They have this sorta internal love spell they can cast on their targets.  They tend to look for single, magically endowed people, lure them in, date them for a while, then trap them and regurgitate on their victims, eventually dissolving their love struck prey into a liquid and then drink them.  If their victim has any sort of magic, it makes the meal apparently sweeter for them.”  Willow turned to look at Tara’s profile as the blonde began pulling the car out onto the road, heading back to the house.

                “Oh,” Tara said in an almost whisper.  The rest of the car ride home was spent in silence as Willow tried desperately to look for something to say but she kept finding herself tripping over how to articulate what was in her.

                Tara pulled the car up and got out to help Willow up her door.  The redhead smiled at her friend as the blonde helped the Slayer up the porch steps.  As the two entered the house, they saw their friend’s all carrying relieved faces, happy that the two were still alive.

                “We’re fine,” Willow said to everyone in the living room while leaning on Tara for support.  Anya was the first one to respond.

                “Well that’s good, I’m going to bed now.  Come Xander,” the ex-demon said in her normal tone.  Willow caught Tara give a brief grin as Xander walked up to them.

                “You sure you guys are alright?” Xander asked in a concerned voice.

                “Yeah,” Willow responded warmly.

                “Ok,” Xander replied and then quickly headed towards the room Anya was waiting impatiently in.  Dawn walked over and grabbed both Tara in Willow in one giant hug, to which Willow let out a sharp gasp.  Dawn gave a shocked look as she let go and took a step back.

                “It’s ok Dawny, I’m just a little banged up is all,” the Slayer said as she ran a hand through her little sister’s hair.  “It’s bedtime so hurry up before I feel a lecture coming on,” Willow added.  She watched as Dawn gave out a slight eek and hurried up to her bedroom.  Giles walked over and looked down at the two.

                “Take it easy for a while ok?” Giles asked.  Willow simply nodded and smiled.  As Giles headed out, Tara began helping Willow up the stairs.

                “I guess it’s bedtime for us as well hu?” Willow said softly.  She turned to look at Tara as the two walked down the hallway to blonde’s room and saw Tara carrying a far-off preoccupied look deep in her face, completely oblivious to Willow’s comment.  As the two entered Tara’s room Willow could feel their silence fill up the space. Causing Willow to want to say something, anything, but she too was afraid to break the quiet between her and her friend.  Grabbing her PJ’s, the redhead walked to the bathroom and began washing up and when she came back, Tara was already changed and in bed, either asleep or pretending to be.  Willow slipped gently under the sheets and turned the lamp next to her off.  For a brief moment the redhead began sliding her foot next to Tara’s leg, then stopped, fear sinking into her spine.  Slowly the night dragged on for Willow as she laid in bed until finally, after what seemed like hours, she drifted off into a fitful slumber.

                The next morning Willow lazily woke up to a 11:12am digital readout on her alarm clock and smiled at the ability to sleep in on days off.  Turning over, the redhead noticed that Tara was already gone.  Eager to meet up and talk to her friend, Willow hurridly got out of bed and rushed through her morning shower finally ending up downstairs, searching for her friend.

                “Hey Dawn, you seen Tara?”  Willow asked to her sister whom was entrenched in TV.  Dawn muted the television and paused for a moment.

                “She’s gone,” Dawn said without turning her head back to look at Willow.

                “She say where she was going or when she’d be back?  I need to talk to her.”  The Slayer felt her heart start to pick up it’s pace as she thought about what she was going to say to the blonde.  Dawn turned the TV off and stood up.

                “She left a note for you on the table,” the younger sister said as Willow, for the first time, saw the brunette’s puffy red cheeks and blood shot eyes.

                “Dawn honey, what’s wrong,” Willow asked.  The teen merely turned and walked upstairs, filling Willow with confusion as she picked up her friends note.

 

 

 

 

 

                Dear Willow,

               

                I’m sorry to leave like this, please know I’m not angry or upset with you or anyone.  I just need some time alone to sort things out.  What I had with Alex may have not been real but it reminded me of the unrequited feelings that I have felt for others and how I’m missing someone in my life still.  I’ll be back soon.  I just need a little time to figure out the feelings inside of me.

 

                Your friend, love,

                                Tara

 

The Beatles

Yesterday

 

Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away

Now it looks as though they’re here to stay

Oh I believe in yesterday

Suddenly I’m not half the man I used to be

There’s a shadow hanging over me

Oh yesterday came suddenly

Why she had to go I don’t know she wouldn’t say

I said something wrong now I long for yesterday

Yesterday love was such an easy game to play

Now I need a place to hide away

Oh I believe in yesterday

Why she had to go I don’t know she wouldn’t say

I said something wrong now I long for yesterday

Yesterday love was such an easy game to play

Now I need a place to hide away

Oh I believe in yesterday

 

(Xander asked if Willow was going to listen to the song the whole night.  Willow said yes as she took another sip from her cup coffee.)

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