Author: JustSkipIt
Rating: G
Disclaimer: Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy own Willow and Tara and the Buffyverse.
Feedback: Please leave feedback on the Menorah Tales thread on the Kitten Board.
Notes - Thanks to Justin, Trom, and Tiggerscorpio for your comments on police graduation. I appreciate it.
I think this piece is pretty.

About a year later

Tara and Willow milled around looking for someone they would recognize. "Look, there's Giles," Willow said as she finally spotted the tall man over the heads of some of the other friends and family. She took her girlfriend's hand and pulled her through the crowd until they reached him and tapped him on the shoulder.

Giles turned around and spotted the two girls. "Willow and Tara," he said happily as he bent to hug both women, "I didn't know you were coming. Faith didn't say."

Tara stepped back from her hug and smiled at her former mentor. "She didn't know. We wanted to surprise her."

"Well, she will certainly be surprised and very pleased." He leaned forward. "I don't think her mother will be here tonight so she will be doubly happy." Giles paused as a man near the hall entrance announced that everyone should begin taking their seats and then motioned with his digital camera for the girls to walk ahead of him. "Are you home for break?"

Willow shook her head regretfully. "I have to be back at school on Monday and final exams start Thursday."

Tara nodded in agreement. "I don't have to be back at class until Tuesday but I have a few papers to write." She looked at Giles intently. "If we didn't know how important this was we wouldn't have been able to make it."

Giles stood at the end of a row of chairs and again held out his hand to allow the two women to file in first. He sat next to them and checked the battery level on the camera. The crowd milled around and visited with each other. "How are your parents, Willow?"

"They're good," she answered. "They're in Brazil or maybe it's Belize but they sent a card and gift."

"There's Jimmy," Tara said and stood to ease her way to the center aisle as he spotted her.

"Tara!" Jimmy said as he wrapped his arms around the blonde. "I didn't know you were coming. Faith didn't say. Is Willow here?" As soon as the words were out of his mouth he spotted the redhead and waved enthusiastically at her. "We're going to go out tonight to celebrate. You two are coming with right?"

Tara smiled at her friend. "Um, I think so. I mean we're here to see Faith." She looked back at Willow. "W-will F-frank be ...? I mean we'll come anyway but I just wondered."

Jimmy smiled warmly at the blonde to let her know that he understood her asking. "He's at school and couldn't get away this weekend. He sent her some flowers."

"That was nice."

The two looked up as a man stepped up to the microphone and then whispered promises to see each other shortly before retaking their seats.

"How was he?" Willow whispered.

Tara couldn't resist the chance to tease her lover. "Adorable as usual. You know he's a dream."

Willow giggled at Tara's impression of their mutual best friend. "I've noticed."

"We're going to go out after ok?"

"Well, I certainly didn't fly 3000 miles to see this thing and then go home and watch cable," Willow whispered out of the side of her mouth.

"Well, your parents do have that garden tub," Tara whispered as Giles coughed and then removed his glasses and began polishing them. Apparently unsatisfied with washing his glasses, the librarian polished the lens on his digital camera as well.

"Is, um, Frank coming?" Willow asked, attempting to keep her voice casual. "I mean it's ok if he is. He's Faith's friend."

Before Tara could answer, their attention was taken by the group on the stage, including the Mayor, the Chief of Police, and the Fire Chief as well as a few instructors from the academy. Willow recognized only the Mayor and that was from his speech at her high school graduation as well as the following tea at which he presented her award as Sunnydale Scholar of the Year. The others she could only identify because they were listed on the program resting in her lap.

Neither woman knew what to expect from the ceremony but they felt pretty sure it would include an array of boring speeches and it didn't disappoint. The Mayor began with a discussion of how these young people had assumed a commitment to public service. Next the individual instructors stood and explained who had truly excelled in that instructor's area. Willow wasn't surprised to see Faith awarded the prize for most outstanding at the physical tests. Next the Chief of Police spoke.

As they spoke, Willow concentrated on watching Faith. She looked stunning surrounded by her nine fellow officers in their gleaming uniforms. The seams starched to within an inch of their lives, single medal shined to a blinding silver, and their shoes buffed a high gloss. Willow shook her head as she thought about this transition. Faith looked like a child among adults but Willow knew that it was only because in her mind the girl was still 13 years old, talking about the cutest boys. She'd done enough crap work for her mother to truly deserve to reach this goal.

The Chief of Police reiterated everything those before him had said but also emphasized how stringent and challenging the training these officers had completed had been. He emphasized it by pointing out that they had begun with 23 officer candidates and were only graduating ten.

Tara could well imagine what was going through Willow's mind as she watched their best friend sit among the other officers. She felt as proud as she had the day Faith had nearly single-handedly won the State Basketball championship, probably more so. "She looks fantastic doesn't she?" She whispered to her lover.

"She looks like a little kid," Willow whispered back, a little of the trepidation she felt about Faith's taking on such a dangerous job sneaking into her tone.

"She's dealt with worse before." Tara pulled Willow's hand into her lap and held it with both of her own. In a way it seemed that Willow's "lost year", as they jokingly referred to it, had frozen her impressions of Faith a year earlier than Tara's. Tara and Faith had lived through their senior years together, seen Faith's relationship with Jimmy blossom, with Giles threatened and then strengthened, and with her mother virtually fall apart. They had survived Tara's father's incensed reaction to discovering Tara's intent to attend college and countless serious threats. Tara had no doubt that if anyone could handle being a police officer, Faith could.

Before Willow could answer, the Chief of Police announced that he would now be presenting the graduating officers. Following a strict and rehearsed pattern, each officer stood, marched to him, shook his hand, and had his or her badge pinned to his shirt. The officer's name was announced and even though the program asked for no clapping or cheering until the process was complete, each name evoked a rousing round of applause and some whistles. The graduated officer then stepped over to shake hands with each of the dignitaries on the stage before retaking his or her seat.

"Well, that was somewhat anticlimactic," Giles deadpanned as the ceremony ended abruptly with an invitation to stay and have tea and cake and enjoy the opportunity to take pictures with the Mayor and Chief of Police.

"Your gift for understatement seems to be intact," Willow returned as they edged down the row and into the aisle. Although all three looked toward the stage for a glimpse of Faith, they were swept toward the doors. They followed the crowd milling toward the adjacent community room and entered the space to see the new officers scattered around, visiting with their proud family and loved ones.

"There they are," Giles said, as he spotted Faith and Jimmy near the center of the room. He led the way and they quickly met the couple.

"Congratulations, Officer Lehane," Tara said with a smile.

Faith reached out to wrap her friend in a hug and lift her off the ground. "You should have told me you were coming." She set down Tara and reached for Willow, repeating the tight hug.

"We didn't want you to send a police escort to the airport or anything," Willow said as Faith set her down.

"Like I have any authority."

"Congratulations, Faith." Giles gave the girl a friendly hug and she smiled back.

"Thanks, G-man." She returned her attention to her boyfriend who had disappeared and then reappeared with five carefully balanced plates of cake and now held them very precariously out toward the rest of the group. "No drinks, sweetie?" Everyone laughed at Faith's teasing.

"Well, you've done it. How does it feel?" Tara asked her friend before taking a bite of cake.

Faith smiled widely. "Man, I'm a cop. I mean how cool is that? To Protect and Serve." She tapped her badge with the clean end of her fork.

One of her fellow graduates came by with her family and the entire group exchanged greetings and introductions. The next thirty minutes were spent in a flurry of warm greetings and group photographs. Tara and Willow allowed themselves to fade into the background and just watch their friend bask in her moment. Finally the celebration began to break up and people left in twos and threes. "Are you girls coming out with us or going home to use that garden tub?" Faith said with a smile and a shrug toward Giles. The youngsters all laughed as he pulled off his glasses angrily and made an exaggerated motion to clean the lenses.

"Definitely out with you," Willow and Tara both enthused.

"And the tub will still be there when we get home," Tara added with a smirk toward Giles.

"Yes, well, I think I'll head over to the library and see if there's any work to do there," Giles said as he looked at his watch.

"I'll go get the car," Jimmy offered before shaking hands with Giles.

"Speaking of work?" Faith left her question unasked.

Giles smiled at the new officer. "Consider the night off your present."

"Who is covering?"

"Believe it or not, Spike," Giles said.

"Who is Spike?" Willow asked, a puzzled look on her face.

"I'll explain later, sweetie," Tara whispered to the redhead. To Giles she said, "How much is that costing?"

"Enough to count as Faith's present." Giles smiled and hugged all three girls again before leaving.

"Jim-boy will be ready." Faith started leading the other girls through the dwindling crowd, waving to others as they went. "Did you drive here?"

"We got a cab from the airport to the house and then drove mom's car here," Willow explained. "Where are we going?"

The group reached Jimmy and all discussed their destination. "We'll get a table," Jimmy said before watching Tara and Willow make it to their car. Willow let Tara in the passenger side and closed the door before walking around to the driver's side. Sunnydale wasn't a very big town and within ten minutes the two couples sat at a table in the Sunnydale Diner.

"I'm starving," Faith announced as she opened the menu.

"When aren't you starving?"

Faith stuck her tongue out at Tara even though everyone at the table knew it was true. They all ordered dinner and then began catching up on each other's news. Tara and Willow had both had very busy semesters and neither was finished yet. They had only managed one visit during the previous three months. "It must be hard being so far away from each other," Faith said around a bite of her double-cheeseburger.

Willow squeezed Tara's hand. "I hate it. Really. I mean it's necessary but it's so hard."

"It's not even the big things," Tara added, "it's little things like forgetting to mention that you got your hair cut or that you got a new roommate."

"So when you finish school, Willow," Jimmy asked, "are you going to go down and join Tara while she's finishing up?"

"No," Tara said at the same time as Willow said, "Yes."

"A unanimous decision." Faith threw up her hands.

"Willow's already accepted for at M.I.T. or her choice of graduate schools. She's not going to give that up to come to North Carolina."

"UNC doesn't suck," Willow argued.

Jimmy's phone rang and he answered it. "I'm going to go meet the guys so you can visit with Will and Tara, ok, babe?" He leaned over and gave his girlfriend a kiss and both Willow and Tara turned their heads.

"Well you two have certainly toned down the PDAs," Tara teased.

Faith reached over to snag a fry off Willow's table. "No one is 17 forever." Willow and Tara laughed and they were interrupted by some of the diner's regulars stopping by to congratulate the new officer. Faith was very well known and well liked in Sunnydale due to her prominence as a basketball star and the fact that she was out in town every night. She had told Tara once that she literally couldn't remember the last time she'd paid for a meal in the diner or any where else in town.

The diner wasn't busy and Scout, the owner, was always happy to let Faith and her friends hang out for as long as they wanted. Tara and Willow both ordered coffee and Faith ordered another chocolate shake. "So who is Spike?" Willow asked.

Tara smiled. "You want to explain?"

"Naw, you go ahead T." Faith took another fry off Tara's plate and the blonde pushed the entire plate at her friend of the boundless appetite.

"Senior year, we had some 'help' in town." Tara held up her hands to put air quotes around the word help. "A government unit wanted to tame some of our more unusual critters."

"You've got to be kidding me." Willow rolled her eyes at such a stupid plan. "Why did they think that was a good idea? I mean did they never hear 'the best laid plans of mice and men so often go astray'?"

"They were idiots," Faith agreed.

"Anyway, Spike's been around, what a hundred, hundred and twenty years?" Faith nodded her head and Tara continued explaining. "According to Giles he was quite v-vicious in his day."

"And he's working for Giles tonight?" Willow said. "Maybe Giles needs to hear about the best laid plans."

Faith and Tara both laughed at Willow's estimation. "He's harmless now. The government put a chip in his head so he can't hurt humans."

"Harmless my ass," Spike said as he loomed over their table.

"Speak of the devil," Faith said.

"You must be Tara's lady?" He leered at Willow for a minute. "I can see why."

"I'm considering asking Faith to beat you up," Tara told the vampire. Willow could see that her lover and Spike had some sort of relationship although it didn't appear to be exactly friendly.

"Right, right, right. Don't get your panties in a wad, blonde."

"Now I'm considering it," Willow added.

Spike turned his attention from the couple and told Faith. "I did the East side already. I'm going to do the last three and then circle back around. Do you think that's worth the $175?"

"It's fine. Now get out of here so I can enjoy visiting with my friends."

Spike left without saying anything. A minute later he was back. "Oh, Clem and some of the other boys said to tell you congratulations." He pulled a small box out of his pocket and handed it to the brunette.

All three girls watched him leave with astonished looks on their faces. "Clem?" Willow looked at her girlfriend with a look that clearly said she wanted to know just how much she didn't know about Sunnydale these days.

"Clem is a g-good guy," Tara assured her girlfriend with a pat on her hand. "What did they get you?"

"I'm still on the part where they got me something," Faith said holding up the box.

Tara playfully reached across and grabbed it from Faith's hand. "Do you want me to open it?"

Faith grabbed it back, laughing as she did so. "It's my night. I'll open it." Willow watched the interactions between her two best friends with a smile but also with mixed feelings. On one hand, she loved the playfulness and love they had for each other but on the other, they had an entire history together that she wasn't a part of. She wondered how many other areas of Tara's life she wasn't part of. And how many of hers was Tara not a part of? How much were they missing out on?

"I'll be right back," she said, sliding from the booth. Reconsidering her exit she quickly leaned down and kissed her girlfriend.

Faith and Tara both watched the redhead go with puzzled looks on their faces. "Is she ok, Tara?"

Tara answered Faith's question still watching the door to the bathroom. "She's had a really hard semester. I mean I think she has. I mean she's out studying late nights and early mornings." She looked back at her best friend. "Sometimes, I feel like she's not even hearing me when we talk because she's so absorbed in a long list of what she needs to do."

"Have you talked to her about it?" Faith reached out and took Tara's hand.

"I try but we've only gotten to visit one time this semester and I don't want to w-waste the time." Tara glanced back toward the bathroom.

Faith studied her best friend closely. "You're upset but you don't want to ruin my big night? Is that it?"

Tara rolled her eyes at the new officer. "You're not supposed to be sensitive you know. Why don't you open your present?" She motioned toward the box.

"This isn't over," Faith said firmly. Then she carefully removed the small bow and opened the box. When she saw the present she smiled and held it up. "It's a Saint Michael's medal. He's the patron saint of police officers." The small medallion was silver and was attached to a strong sliver chain. She handed it to Tara who looked at it closely.

"It's a James Avery piece. Very nice," Tara assessed. "I like the sword."

Willow slid into the booth and reached out to take the medallion. "St. Michael?"

"Patron saint of Police officers," Tara explained. Willow handed back the medallion and Faith quickly fastened it and tucked it inside her uniform.

Faith looked up with a smile on her face. "Since we're celebrating my achievement tonight, I have some questions I want you two to answer."

Tara looked dubious at the request. "Ok, but we reserve the right to refuse to answer."

"And contact a lawyer," Willow joked.

Faith leaned back and playfully cracked her knuckles. "When did you two actually get together?"

"Do you remember the night you won the game against Riverdale" Willow knew she had a goofy look on her face just remembering that first night.

Faith nodded. "After I went out?" Tara nodded and Faith continued her questioning. "Who made the first move?"

Tara playfully raised her hand. "Guilty as charged."

Faith shook her head at the information. "Damn. I had my money on Red here."

"Why?"

"Man," Faith explained, "I was pushing you so hard that night. I mean hell for weeks before that. All that stuff about Frank wanting to go out with Tara and were you ok?" The dark haired girl didn't notice the look on Willow's face as she mentioned Frank.

Willow shook her head as if she wasn't sure she was hearing correctly. "Wait? You were trying to push Tara and I together?"

"Hell, yeah." Faith had a self-satisfied look on her face. "I mean it was obvious that you weren't going to take any action unless you got angry or jealous enough."

Tara started laughing at the thought that Faith not only knew that the girls wanted to be together but that she had been trying to get them together. "When did you know?"

"That you were a couple? I don't know--sometime later that spring. That you would be a couple?" She smiled at the two girls. "Willow was telling me about some book and you sat down at the table with us. I'm not into that stuff but it was like electricity between you two."

Willow laughed too. "You could have told us you know."

"Where's the fun in that?"

"Hey girls." Scout's voice cut into the conversation. "I'm sorry but it's time to get cleaned up."

"That's cool, Scout," Faith said sliding from the booth. Willow and Tara did the same. Scout gave Faith another congratulatory hug and told the other girls that she hoped to see them over break. They assured her they would be in and all left the diner.

Willow drove the girls over to Faith's apartment and they again told her how proud they were of her. They made plans to light the menorah candles the next night together and watched her get into her apartment safely. Tara watched Willow's profile in each streetlight they passed. She lifted the redhead's hand to her lips and whispered, "Now about that garden tub."