I completely agree, and thank you for everything you said. I tried to read a couple of Tara/Spike stories and, while well-written, it just didn't make sense. I can absolutely envision friendship fics between the two, but a sexual relationship is more difficult for me to accept, not only because of Tara's lesbianism, but because I have difficulty divorcing the idea of Spike being in a sexual relationship which is nonviolent. His encounters with Drusilla and Buffy are well-chronicled, and not healthy. For Tara to suddenly pop up and say, "Yes! I want a man! And it has to be a vampire!" is a little jarring. Not that I'm saying I can't see the possibility, but not outside the context of a careful dissection of how Tara arrived at that conclusion. And I could never picture Tara willingly participating in a relationship with a partner so unstable. Once she cottoned on to Willow complete descent into magic, she called it off.

You are totally right with regard to Xander. I'm not sure if it was the writing or NB's infusion into his character, but almost every interaction between Xander and ANY character was, on some level, flirtatious. Therefore I can buy him paired with just about anybody, even lesser characters like Harmony, Jenny, or Larry. And he's so slashable. I'm an unabashed Xander fan! As long as he's there, everything else is okay.

I've read a few Xander/Drusilla fics, as well, and it's a pairing I'd like to see more of. Drusilla, vampire or not, is somewhat broken, and it's quite easy to see Xander stepping up to take care of her. Whether that turns to romance is really a nonissue for, as we agree, Xander makes sense with almost anyone.

::scampers off to read Our House:: Thanks for the link! I love Tara! I'll happily read almost anything with her. ^__^