Soul Mates

Author's Note: First, I apologize for the long delay between parts. I'm hoping it won't take so long next time.

Second, thanks to everyone who's sent feedback and suggestions. Kate, I appreciated your email, but when I tried to reply, it didn't work for some reason. Could you email again please?

The rest of the notes and disclaimers and such are in part 1. Thanks to Spellbound for looking this part over for me.

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Triad, part 2


Willow opened her eyes and let out a breath of air. Blinking, she focused her gaze on Tara, who looked back at her and smiled. Willow returned the gesture as she felt the last traces of the magic they'd been practicing leave her body.

She and Tara were sitting together on the floor of the spare bedroom in their apartment, facing each other. They'd pushed the table back against the wall, next to the desk with Willow's computer, to clear space for them to sit and set out a few herbs for them to use. Willow looked down at their hands, clasped together between them, and squeezed Tara's hands gently before releasing them. She folded her hands in her lap as she met Tara's eyes again.

"That went well, I think," Willow said.

"I think so too," Tara replied. "We're getting a lot better at calling up the power of the Earth. I mean, we still have to be careful, but we can do it a lot faster now then we could when we first started."

Willow nodded. Besides practicing specific spells, she and Tara also practiced calling up and dismissing their magic every day, and it was paying off. Willow was happy about that, and with good reason. It was important - if they needed to cast spells in an emergency, a few seconds could make all the difference, and the faster they could call upon their powers, the better.

"So, do you think we should try one more spell?" Willow asked.

"I think that's plenty for today, sweetie," Tara replied. "If we try any more, I'm going to end up all worn out."

Willow frowned, but didn't protest. They *had* been at this for a while - well over an hour, as she discovered when she looked at the clock. This was probably a good time to stop.

"Okay," she said. "Let's clean up, then."

Picking up some of the herbs around them, Willow stood and walked over to the cabinet where they kept their magical supplies. Tara followed after her with the rest of the herbs and the bowl they'd used. Once they had everything stored, they stepped over to the table together.

"I really love doing this with you," Willow said as they moved the table back to its original location.

"What, moving furniture?" Tara asked, grinning.

Willow laughed. "I mean magic," she said as the two of them stepped out of the spare bedroom and walked into the living room together. "Before I met you, I practiced on my own, and a little bit with a couple of other people, but it wasn't like it is with you. Not even close."

They sat down on the couch together, and Willow turned slightly to face Tara as she continued. "It's not just that we're more powerful together," she said. "It's that, when we do magic together, it just feels... easier. More comfortable, you know? Like it was meant to be this way."

Tara smiled. "I feel the same way, honey," she said. "I practiced magic on my own too, when I could, and it just.... It doesn't even compare to doing it with you."

Smiling back at her, Willow kissed Tara deeply, moving forward and embracing her as best she could with the way they were sitting. Tara lifted one hand to Willow's face, caressing her cheek, then ran her fingers through Willow's hair. Willow sighed softly into her girlfriend's mouth, and they held their embrace for a long moment.

Finally, they broke their kiss, and Willow snuggled against Tara. Tara wrapped one arm around her, and they relaxed on the couch together, stretching their legs out in front of them.

"So.... How are you doing?" Willow asked after a moment.

"How am I doing?" Tara said, clearly a little confused by the question. She shifted next to Willow, and Willow pulled away from her a little so they could face each other.

"Yeah," Willow said, "you know, with Xander all moved in now, I was just wondering... if you're okay with it all."

"We talked about this back before he moved in," Tara replied. "And anyway, isn't it a little late for these kinds of questions?"

"I know," Willow said. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't be asking things like this, especially now. I just...." She trailed off, sighing. "I worry. I always do. I can't help it."

Tara took her hand, lightly running her thumb over the back of it. "Sweetie, I'm glad that you're concerned about my feelings," she said gently. "But believe me when I tell you I am *more* than okay with everything that's happened. I would never have agreed to us getting together with Xander if I wasn't." She smiled at Willow, warm and reassuring.

"I know," Willow said, smiling back at her. She moved back toward Tara, settling in next to her once more. "I just want us all to be happy, you know?"

"Well, you make me happy," Tara said, raising Willow's hand to her mouth and kissing it softly. "And Xander makes me happy. So don't worry so much, okay?"

"I'll do my best," Willow replied, chuckling. She knew Tara was right - it was one thing to want Tara and Xander to be happy, but worrying obsessively about it was something else entirely. That wouldn't accomplish anything except piling on a lot of stress. Willow really wanted their relationship to work, but she knew she couldn't afford to keep worrying like this.

*Just relax, and deal with problems as they come,* she told herself. It was easier said than done for her, but she needed to try nonetheless.

"Good," Tara said affectionately. She kissed Willow's cheek, then smiled at her. "So, do you want to try the sunlight spell again tomorrow?"

"Yeah," Willow said. "We should try it again. There are a few things we could do differently that might help, I think."

Their conversation turned toward magic, and they talked about various spells they wanted to try and the different ways they could go about perfecting them until they heard a key in the lock of their front door several minutes later.

Willow and Tara stood up, walking over to greet Xander as he stepped into their apartment and closed the door behind him. "Hey," he said when he saw them, a big smile making its way onto his face. He was really happy, Willow could tell - his talk with Giles must have gone well.

"Hey yourself," Willow said, stepping in to give him a hug and a kiss. She held their embrace briefly, then moved back to let Tara kiss him as well. After they separated, Xander pulled off his shoes and the three of them walked over to the couch together.

"So how'd it go? With Mr. Giles, I mean," Tara said as they sat down together. Willow sat near the middle of the couch, and Tara and Xander took the places on either side of her.

"Yeah," Willow said. She reached for Tara and Xander's hands, clasping them and pulling them into her lap. "You guys talked, right? Tell us about it."

"It went well," Xander replied, flashing them both a smile. "I told Giles about us, and he was a little surprised at first, but we talked about it for a little bit, and he's fine with it. He says he hopes we'll be happy together."

Tara smiled happily at that. "That's great," she said.

"Yeah," Willow agreed, smiling back at Xander as well. "I'm really glad he accepted us so easily." Truthfully, she hadn't thought that Giles would have any problem with their relationship - she'd never believed that he was as stuffy as Xander did - but it was still nice to hear that confirmed.

"Me too," Xander said. "And it's nice to have this taken care of. You know, not hanging over us anymore." He turned slightly on the couch, and Willow watched as he fixed her and Tara with a serious look. "And.... Thanks for trusting me to take care of this myself."

"Well, it made sense," Tara said. "I mean, Buffy wanted to talk to Willow alone, so it's probably easier to talk about things like this when you aren't facing three other people."

"You're probably right," Willow said. "Anyway, I'm just glad it all worked out."

Xander nodded. "So, what were you guys talking about when I came in?" he asked.

"Magic," Willow replied. "There are a few spells we're still working on, and we're trying to think of different ways we could practice them."

Xander tensed a little at her reply. "Ah," he said. "Well, I hope you can work it out."

Tara frowned. Obviously, she'd noticed Xander's reaction too. "Xander... can I ask you something?" she said gently.

"Sure," Xander replied after only a second's hesitation.

"How come.... How come you're so nervous about magic?" Tara asked. "I mean, you said you didn't want to be involved when Willow and I were doing spells, and that's fine, but.... It seems like you get anxious when we even talk about magic."

Xander didn't relax; if anything, Tara's question made him even more uneasy. Willow knew it was probably bringing back bad memories for him, and honestly, it was for her too. She'd forgiven Xander a long time ago for what had happened in high school, but still, it wasn't a fun time to think back on.

Sighing, Xander let go of Willow's hand and moved back on the couch. "I guess I should explain that to you," he said. "I just hope...." He shook his head, cutting off the rest of what he'd been about to say. His whole demeanor was troubled, and Willow could tell that he was worried about what Tara was going to think of what he'd done. Next to her, Willow could feel Tara tense, and she squeezed her hand in what she hoped was a reassuring gesture.

"Well. I've had a few bad experiences with spells, actually, but the big one happened back in high school." Xander focused mainly on Tara as he spoke, but he cast occasional glances at Willow, and she could see the guilt written all over his face. "It was a spell I made someone cast for me - not Willow, it was someone else - and it hurt a lot of people. Including Willow."

Xander shifted uncomfortably on the couch as he continued. "Back in high school, I was dating this girl, Cordelia. Well, okay, dating is kind of a stretch - back then, we were mainly just making out a lot. Anyway, she dumped me. On Valentine's day. As you might imagine, I was hurt, and angry, and I wanted to get back at her."

Xander sighed again. "So I blackmailed a witch named Amy into casting a love spell for me. I wanted her to make Cordelia fall in love with me so *I* could break up with *her.* I wanted to hurt her the same way she'd hurt me. But something went wrong with the spell. Instead of making Cordelia fall in love with me, it made every other woman fall in love with me except for her."

"I'm not surprised," Tara interrupted. "That something went wrong, I mean." Her tone was soft and thoughtful; she was clearly still taking in everything what Xander was telling her. "With love spells, especially, your heart and your intentions have to be pure."

"I know," Xander said. "Amy told me the same thing. But I didn't listen. My intentions were anything but pure." He chuckled, but there was no humor in it. "Anyway, women everywhere were fighting over me, chasing me everywhere, and doing a lot of things I'm sure they'd all like to forget until Giles managed to break the spell."

Willow turned toward Tara. "I went to Xander's room and waited for him half-naked in his bed." It was nice of Xander not to mention that part, but Willow figured that since they were talking about this, it was best to get this all out in the open now. "When he got back, I came on to him, but he ran away before much of anything happened."

"And there was more badness after that," Xander said.

Willow nodded. "I ended up as part of a mob, chasing him with a fire axe."

"That's right," Xander said, turning to meet Willow's eyes. "I'm still amazed you could forgive me for that." He directed his attention back toward Tara as he continued. "Anyway, that's pretty much the story. Giles broke the spell and everyone went back to normal. Luckily, no one was hurt - at least, not physically. I don't imagine that having their feelings messed around with like that was a lot of fun for anyone." He fell silent, looking down at the floor in front of him, and Willow didn't have any trouble reading how tense he was from his posture.

"Well," Tara said after a moment. "I'd say that definitely counts as a bad experience with magic."

"Yeah," Xander said, looking up at her again. "I just.... I mean, I hope you...." He trailed off, clearly not sure what to say, and Willow glanced at Tara, trying to gauge her reaction to what Xander had just told her.

Tara obviously sensed Xander's nervousness, too. She stood up and walked over to him, sitting down on the coffee table in front of him. "Xander... you can relax," she said, reaching out to take his hands in hers. "I'm not upset with you over this."

Xander hesitated a moment before speaking, clearly surprised. "You're not?" he asked. "But... I know you take magic really seriously."

"I do," Tara said gently. "But, Xander.... You made a mistake. Sure, it was a pretty big mistake, but we all make them. Don't you remember that demon-masking spell I did?"

Xander opened his mouth to protest, but Tara continued before he could speak. "The point is, it looks to me like you learned from your mistake. I mean, did you ever do anything like that love spell again?"

Xander shook his head. "No. No, never."

Tara smiled. "So I don't think there's any reason I should be upset with you over something that happened before I even knew you." She paused, looking Xander in the eye, and her smile faded as her expression turned serious again. "What I'm wondering is, is this going to affect our relationship now?"

Willow quickly realized what Tara was getting at. "Yeah, Xander," she said. "We're witches. Magic is an important part of our lives. I want... I mean, I hope that's not going to be a problem for you."

A moment passed in silence as Xander considered what they'd said. "No," he finally replied. "It won't." He smiled and reached toward Willow with one hand, keeping Tara's hand clasped with the other, and Willow shifted toward him on the couch, taking his hand as he continued.

"I don't have any problem with the fact that you're witches," he said. "In fact, I'm happy about it. And not just because it means you can help Buffy deal with the nasty stuff we run into, but because... I know magic is really important to you. And I'm glad you have something like this that makes you happy."

"Well, magic does make us happy," Willow said. "But you make us happy too. And I don't want you to be uncomfortable at all, you know?"

Xander gave her a reassuring smile. "Hey, don't worry," he said. "I can deal. I'll be fine, really."

Willow could see Tara relax a little at that. "Well, good," she said. "And, Xander.... If you don't want to be involved at all when we do magic, that's fine and we'll respect that." She glanced at Willow, and Willow nodded her agreement.

"But.... You should know that you don't need to be afraid of magic," Tara continued. "If you're not casting spells for petty and selfish reasons, if your intentions are pure, and if you're careful about the powers you're accessing.... Well, it can be really amazing."

"So if you ever want to join us, when we're practicing or something...." Xander tensed at Tara's words and opened his mouth to speak, but she continued quickly, forestalling his reply. "You don't have to," she said. "I'm just saying you can."

"Yeah," Willow said. "No pressure, or anything. We just want you to know that you're welcome."

Her words put Xander at ease, and he smiled again. "Thanks," he said. "That really means a lot to me."

Tara rose from the coffee table and sat down next to Xander on the couch. Willow snuggled against his other side, and Xander wrapped his arms around them as they settled in together. "I know you still probably want to stay away from the magic," Willow said. "But if you ever change your mind, just let us know, okay?"

"I will," Xander said. He gave her a quick kiss, then turned and kissed Tara as well. "So I have to say, I'm feeling pretty good right now," he added after a moment.

"Oh? Why's that?" Willow asked. "Besides the obvious, I mean." She giggled and poked Xander lightly in the ribs, glancing meaningfully at his position between her and Tara.

"Well, I just got another big worry off my chest," he replied. "First, my talk with Giles, and now this. Pretty good for one day, I think."

"I know what you mean," Willow said. "I had some worries of my own earlier. But it's okay now," she finished quickly as Xander gave her a concerned look.

"We need to learn to be more like Tara," Xander said, turning and grinning at her. "She's so calm about these things."

"Yeah," Willow agreed. "She's positively serene."

Tara laughed. "Hey, I worry about stuff too, you know," she protested.

"I know," Willow said. "But you handle it so well. I get all jittery, but you always stay grounded - stay focused on fixing whatever's wrong."

Tara blushed and ducked her head a little, and Willow had to smile at how cute she looked. What she'd said was true, though, even if Tara was uncomfortable hearing it. It was one of the things Willow really admired about her - one of so many things.

Willow didn't say anything, she simply watched her in silence, and after taking a few seconds to regain her composure, Tara looked up at her and Xander and smiled. "Well, the main thing I want to fix right now is dinner," she said. "I'm hungry. How about you guys?"

"Sounds good to me," Xander said, accepting her change of subject. The message had gotten across, so there was no need to keep pressing the point. "What were you planning on making?"

And just like that, their conversation turned to lighter subjects, and Willow let herself relax. She was happy - content in a way she never could have imagined just a short time ago. And that, she realized - the way Tara and Xander made her feel - that was much more important than any worries she might have.

THE END (of this installment; there's still more to come)