Author: watson
Rating: PG-13 to R
Disclaimer: This story is inspired by and adapted from a Korean film called Il Mare. The story premise, of 2 people who connect across time, belongs to Lee Hyun-Seung, although I have deviated from the story somewhat. BtVS characters belong to Mutant Enemy, Fox, The WB, UPN and others. I own nothing. I am nothing.

"This is so easy," Willow remarked as they walked back from the diner.

"What is?" Tara asked under her breath, she was busy nuzzling Willow's neck, having thrown one arm round the redhead's shoulders and buried her head in her love's scent.

"Us. It's only been a couple of hours and here we are, like an old couple," Willow smiled.

"There's a few old couply things we haven't done yet," Tara's voice hummed from Willow's neck, sending some very nice tingles throughout Willow.

"Like what," Willow asked, feinting innocence.

"Oh you know, long walks on the beach, picnics in the park, movie nights, and me kissing the back of your ear like this," Tara leant in and blew softly at the back of Willow's ear before taking the exposed top half of the ear and gently sucking, delighted at watching a blush slowly build up across the redhead's features.

Willow swallowed several times. This woman, whose first touch she enjoyed only earlier in the day, was causing her stomach to do flip flops, her body to heat up considerably and she did not even want to think about her heart rate.

"You're, um, a little more forward than I thought," she squeaked, trying to suppress a moan at the sensation of soft lips sucking on a very sensitive spot.

"Anticipation and frustration. You don't like?" Tara purred. Then suddenly she jerked away. "Oh god, how can I be so self-centered. I've just been thinking about nothing else, but it must be too fast for you, I'm sorry."

Willow whimpered at the loss of Tara's touch, but by now she was slowly beginning to appreciate the small nuances of their situation. This was a Tara she had never lost, who had escaped a terrible fate, only to have to endure the anguish of having to patiently wait years to know what came next. If it were her, she would have probably lost her mind with the frustration.

As far as she knew, her memories were intact, not having been affected by the change in history, how long that would last, she had no idea.

The burning question was, how did they stand with each other? Theirs was a relationship that was old and new, strong and tenuous, familiar and alien. It was all too easy to misunderstand a word, a gesture, a sigh. Tara must have thought she was rejecting her, when all she wanted was to tease her a little. They would have to learn to read these little signs correctly. But they had time. Thankfully they had time.

"No, no, that's not what I mean," Willow protested, placing her hands in Tara's. Tara's momentary hesitation dissolved as Willow gave her a reassuring squeeze. "I guess it's taking me a little bit more time to process all this," she indicated as she saved her arms in a big circle about them. "About us. Like you said, it's all you've been thinking about-"

"You. You are all I've been thinking about," Tara murmured.

"See? That's what I mean. You've had time to think, but this morning I woke up and it was a nice sunny day and all I was concerned about was visiting an art gallery by myself and not coming across as a complete dork. I never thought it's possible to fit so much in a day, seeing your drawings, almost losing you," Willow had to stifle a rapidly building sob. "Then you, beautiful you ... you're here, and it hasn't sunk in yet."

"Are we going to fast? I can't stop touching you or kissing you, but it's kinda inappropriate really," Tara said.

"I don't want to slow down. It's just slightly busy up here," Willow pointed to her head. "But not more so than normal, it'll catch up quickly. Actually, I should let my brain do its processing in the background and concentrate on catching up with other things." She sealed her declaration with another kiss. A small one, but one that finally cemented her intentions.

By the time they reached Willow's apartment their desire for each other had ignited to levels neither witch had experienced before. They had not stopped kissing, except to breathe, or to negotiate obstacles such as gates and doors.

Willow had Tara pinned to the doorframe, one hand buried in long blonde hair while the other was desperately trying to retrieve her keys from her pocket and aiming for the keyhole, unsuccessfully as she was too distracted to marshal sufficient hand-eye coordination to complete the task at hand.

Tara did not help matters one bit. Trapped between Willow and the door, her hands nevertheless roamed freely along Willow's back and was slowly pulling Willow's shirt up away from the waistband of her jeans.

When she shifted her hips and it ground into Willow's center, Willow felt like her legs would collapse with the contact.

"Baby, just let me get the door open, please," she groaned.

The fog in Tara's brain cleared somewhat and she found enough sense to pull back, although she was panting and her eyes sparkled a deep shade of blue from the lust radiating from a spot just below her navel. She rested her head on Willow's shoulder and took a deep breath.

"Okay, I'll behave. Otherwise we'll never get the spell done," she grinned.

Willow sighed as her arousal subsided a little, and finally got the door open. They entered the place of their first meeting and savored the moment as their connection strengthened.

"Are you sure we should do the spell now?" she asked.

"Why not, since you've mentioned it already? I think we need some sort of meditative centering, it'll do us good. After everything's that happened today, I want some sort of blessing," Tara countered. "You have the ingredients?"

"Not many people can nonchalantly reach into their drawer and find vervain leaves gathered under the full moon and blessed by a druid priestess. But you're in luck, I'm one of those rare finds," Willow smirked.

"A rarity indeed. The more reason why I'm keeping you," Tara smiled, and gave Willow a peck on the lips.

"Trying to distract me again?" Willow giggled.

"I'm evil, but alright, let's get ready," Tara replied in her most serious tone under the circumstances, trying very hard to keep a straight face.

Willow looked around in her cupboard and took out a small jar of the infusion she had made a few months earlier, when they first talked about doing the spell. She had soaked the vervain leaves in freshly boiled water for 10 minutes. Then she strained, dried and added the leaves to a mixture of rose otto, sandalwood and sweet almond oils. Rose otto to calm the mind and sandalwood to promote meditation and to energize the mind and spirit. Almond to provide a base.

"So how are we gonna do the ritual bath?" she asked. A fraction of her mind had been mulling over this problem while walking back. She would love to share the bath with a Tara that's completely naked and glistening with oil and sliding up her own equally naked body, oh wow. But no, she was not sure if they were ready for something this powerful yet.

"I know what I want and I think I know what you want. But I also know it's far too intense for us, we've both been through a lot today. Why don't we have the bath separately then do the final anointing together," Tara suggested sensibly. I don't want to be sensible but it's better this way. Sigh.

"I guess," Willow sighed in agreement. "I'll get the bath and stuff ready, but you're the guest, so you go first. No arguments."

"Okay," Tara consented.

It was like old times. Each prepared their own bath carefully, with blessings to the goddess and emptied their minds and spirits while they soaked in the scented water surrounded by candles, as stipulated in the spell. It was tantalizing to know their love was just outside, it was easy to pretend they were doing this together, just like when they were separated by time.

After the bath, they dried themselves thoroughly with the fluffy towels from Willow's collection, and massaged the oil carefully from the ankle to thigh and then up their bodies and to their arms and hands.

When Willow had finished with her bath and returned to the living room tightly wrapped in a robe, she was pleasantly surprised to find that Tara had prepared a circle for the anointing ritual. Dried herbs and a quintet of blue candles marking the space.

Tara extended her hands and wordlessly invited Willow into the circle, where they sat with legs crossed and facing each other.

Willow placed the oil between them and dipped her fingers inside the jar, careful not to spill any of the precious infusion. She touched Tara's neck, then jaw, then worked slowly up to the blonde's cheeks, nose, eyes and forehead.

Tara in the meantime was mimicking Willow's action, with the same devotion and at the same pace. At first, their gaze never left the other, but as their mutual caresses traveled up to the eyes both closed them at the same time. Yet their hands never stopped.

They finished at the crown of the head, and with eyes still closed, breathed deeply as they felt the full effect of the blessing. They allowed the scent of their joining to wash over them, until they were immersed in the sensation. The soothing scent of the herb, the calming tranquility of the oil, and the impending sense of a sacred union: the unmistakable musk of intense arousal.

As the awareness grew and even before the spell dissipated fully Willow had peeled her own robe off with one hand and with the other ripped Tara's shirt down the middle exposing her breasts for the first time. Feeling a warm gush from her center at the sight, she immediately descended upon them feasting on one nipple after another.

Tara's shock at how fast Willow had pounced on her was rapidly compensated by wave after wave of pleasure as Willow touched and nibbled on her skin. Skin that felt like thousands and millions of nerve endings had decided to come alive at the same moment. She threw her head back against the couch and arched her body upwards, increasing the contact between her breast and Willow's mouth.

Willow moved down Tara's body, placing soft kisses at every inch of skin she came into contact with. Her hands had moved underneath Tara's pants and she brought her eyes up to ask the question.

Tara answered by lifting her hips and allowing Willow to pull her pants and underwear off in one swift action. Willow then happily stripped the torn shirt from Tara's shoulders and shook her own robe off completely, Tara as delighted as Willow when she saw the other's naked form.

Tara straightened her legs and physically lifted Willow so the redhead sat on her lap, legs spread either side and they finally made contact, skin against skin. She took a long, passionate look at her lover, and seeing the excitement mirrored in deep green eyes, drove their lips together in a hungry kiss.

Willow wriggled her hips and slid down between her legs, opening her completely, though all so willingly. And for a brief moment, their wetness mingled as Willow's pussy slid along her opening, causing a exhilarating tremor to pass through from their clits up to the tip of their fingers and toes.

Then before she knew it Willow had two fingers inside her and was pumping away insistently. Her hips moved in an urgent rhythm as she urged Willow to take her deeper and faster. Her fingers reached for Willow but were guided away, she groaned in frustration.

"Shh, honey, shh," Willow soothed. "Just relax and let me."

"But want together," Tara growled, not too coherently.

"Plenty of time for that later," Willow assured her.

"Promise?" Tara whimpered.

"Promise," Willow sealed her promise by increasing the tempo, by then Tara was reduced to impassioned begging as her climax grew into a crescendo.

"Don't stop, don't stop, right ther-ahhhhh!" she let out a blood-curdling scream that tagged on the end of her pleas as she came hard, faster than she thought ever possible.

Willow's thumb brushed against her clit with an almost feather-like touch and she screamed again, arching her body up and almost throwing her lover off, her fingernails leaving scratch marks all over the redhead's back and shoulders. Willow ignored the pain and guided Tara down from her peak tenderly, both overcome with emotion, marveling at how seamless their union was.

Tara still felt limp but she was all too aware of her own need for Willow, to take her, to consume her, to bask in her essence. She reached up and cupped her lover's face with her hands and brought their lips together, seeking and was immediately granted entry. She traced her hands over Willow's arms, down the sides of her breasts, and round to her ass. She brought her fingers close over Willow's sex and was rewarded by a sensuous moan and tell-tale flood over her hands.

But just as Tara was about to slide inside, Willow captured her wrists, pulled them above her head and rested them on the couch. She trapped them together with her hand, tightening her grip as Tara initially struggled. She stroked her lover's hair and kissed her hard, letting her love permeate through the kiss. Tara had this totally adorable crinkle on her forehead when she frowned and she kissed her there too.

Tara stopped fighting against Willow's hold and looked up at the redhead with large, questioning eyes. Willow shifted slightly into a semi-kneeling position astride Tara and lowered her drenched pussy onto the blonde's thigh. Squelchy, she thought amusedly. Tara smiled, having instantly understood what she wanted, stiffened her thigh to give more friction and she rode it, bouncing and rubbing and pressing down and leaving a pool of desire dripping down Tara's inner thighs.

In no time at all she felt her insides clench and her clit throb as she approached orgasm. She let go and climaxed with a piercing roar, Tara holding her tightly in a loving embrace as she shook and writhed for several very long, utterly blissful, moments.

Finally she was spent and she collapsed on Tara, completed sated and tingly all over.

They met in another kiss, this one relaxed and leisurely, quietly murmuring words of affection that only they could hear.

Somehow they made the move to the bed and as Willow flipped the duvet over, their bodies automatically became entwined and it was hard to know which witch began and which one ended. Sleepy with the endorphin rush, they snuggled up even closer and fell asleep in each other's arms, for the first time in the rest of their lives.

The big words had yet to make an appearance. Words like Love and Commitment and Forever. Yet they already knew deep within their souls what the answers were, it was just a matter of verbalizing them. They had been on a journey of discovery, but the real journey, the one they would make together, was only just starting.