I'm so glad you've decided to continue this story. You have a good handle on the characters - their voice, their motivation. Please keep the chaps coming!

I loved it, the emotion is simple yet effective. I have tears in my eyes as I write this. This is how season five should have gone. Hope to read more soon.

just read this story from the beginning to ch. 11 for the first time, and I like it alot. Its not a sappy romantic reunion tale (although those are always nice), your attempting a story with depth and realness and your doing quite well. I hope you update soon cause this is a very interesting and intriging and I can't wait to see what happens next.

Just starting to wonder...then I find a nice & long new chapter...oh goody! Thanks for pointing out several things in the last chapter that I missed. Did not pick up that the dead girl looked like Buffy at the end of S5...that was important & spooky...neither I did notice that Spike never said a word...which was incredible because I felt his sadness. How lucky that I have the author available to me to enrich my reading experience. I definitely need to slow down when I read. All of your character voices have rung true to me so far...that is a huge reason why I like your story so much. There is no problem with original characters until it seems that all the focus is on the original characters & they begin to dominate the action. I have noticed that when that happens I tend to get bored unless the story is amazing which is often not the case. You have maintained a good balance between all of the many characters in your story so far. Good to know that you like my extremely wordy & too long feedbacks. OK this chapter: I have such conflicting feelings about Xander...have loved him so much & disliked him so intensely. He was beginning to show some signs that he was beginning to think about & to understand (not just react to) all that he was suppose to be seeing & have seen by the end of S7...whew...hope that makes some sense. I would hope that all that he had experienced lately would make him wiser. This Xander did come across as a wiser version of S7 Xander. I did love the way his showed up in this chapter...a great visual. Gwen Raiden has never been too subtle. Seems like she may set into motion something that could really stir up trouble between Angel's camp & Buffy's camp...not that Angel & Gunn just being all sneaky won't so the trick. Can imagine that Angel's "team" would start to get desperate with Buffy's camp always being one step ahead. Things are really starting to roll so I am looking forward to the next chapter even more.

Author's Response: I was wondering how many people would actually catch that that was Gwen. I intentionally didn't use her first name there and I didn't know how many people would hear the last name Raiden and make the connection. I struggled with this chapter quite a bit, which was why it took so long, and the unfamiliarity of the characters was a big part of that. Xander had some really tough dialogue that I needed to get down perfect. I do really good with Spike, 'cause I understand Spike. Spike, in many ways, even a few of the worst of them, is alot like me. Awkward. Obsessive. Caring but emotionally fragile. I 'get' Spike. Xander is harder because in many ways I think Xander is an asshole. No two ways about it. I don't understand him at all. Him throwing away his relationship with Anya was one of the stupidest things I've ever seen. I just don't get how someone could be that obtuse. He's an ass, and I could write that, but unfortunately Xander the asshole wouldn't work here. I needed something else. I was forced to take what I knew of Xander and shape it into something noble, and that was hard for me. I spent days trying to figure out how to shape the conversation around that. One of my worries writing this was that I'd dragged this particular storyline out too long. I introduced Xander and the two Wolfram & Hart soldiers in Kenya back in chapter four and you haven't seen anything of them since. I had other things I needed to get out of the way first. I've tried to work this story so that each chapter works in some way on its own but all of them are little puzzle pieces that tie into the greater whole. There are links that I've tried to hide that won't pay off until much later in the story. If this story goes over fifty chapters I won't be surprised, which is a really scary thought. I hope people would be willing to hang around that long. Don't expect to wait quite that long for Buffy & Spike to meet up but the rest of the elements will keep on playing well after that. Welcome to my nightmare. I think I created a monster.

Waiting for the Spuffy.

Author's Response: Soon!

You little tease...my eyes were racing through the lines in an effort to get to the part where Buffy finds out about Spike...which did not happen in this chapter as you well know...I say again...you evil tease. I just laughed when I realized that I had been had. Oh but I am so very happy to get a new chapter so quickly that you made it all better. Your Andrew & Giles make a great comedy team...I love to laugh about them. Good to see that things were not just automatically good between Buffy & Giles because a lot happened back in Sunnyhell between them. I am in deep denial about Angel's cancelation...I am hoping that the Powers that Be will intercede on our behalf. Going back to read the chapter again more slooooowly.

This is so good, that I thought I'd try to write something like this. I can't wait to read more!

Since my last review was so effulgent that it placed your soul endanger...I will just say thanks for the quick update. Oh & for some reason intel reporting Gunn telling Angel that Buffy drives a really nice car amused me greatly. & Oh...It is good to see Buffy almost carefreely happy but for how long? Cause...well...Angel is just being a bad bad boy...then there is that tiny issue of Spike. OH...glimpses of Willow & Xander....of the good. Can't seem to keep this review short...still loving the story.

Author's Response: Oh, don't worry about me. I've been soulless for a while now ... just ask anyone who has read "Endlessly...". Other issues or no I think carefree Buffy will hang around for a little while. I like her.

I'm afraid to say that I liked it since you might have Buffy sleeping with someone that isn't Spike

Author's Response: Um . . . no, that's my other fic "Endlessly..." Believe me on this one there is absolutely no chance of any non-Spuffy action in this fic. In regards to the Buffy/Spike stuff it will be almost fluffy. No worries. Have faith.

Author's Response: Man you must hate me. I just realized you double-spiked me with reviews here and at Buffy & Spike Central judging this fic by what I did in my other one "Endlessly..." I say again this is a Spuffy fic. There will be no non-Spuffy action so to speak. In regards to Buffy/Spike it will be quite fluffy. My other fic "Endlessly..." had a very large capitalized disclaimer warning that that would happen. It starts in a dark place and the pairing that happened happened in a very non-romantic sense. I mean Buffy woke up crying afterwards. I more or less expected hate mail and bad reviews but that is only the beginning. Don't judge this fic because of another I have written. I regards to that other fic are you this harsh to fics that begin with Buffy/Riley or Buffy/Angel only to end up Spuffy along the way. I hope each of the stories will speak for me because I have nothing else to say.

Gotta tell you that I am loving this story very much. It is very smartly written which is a rare find. The Buffy Bot quote coming from Dawn was priceless. I laughed over that for a good long time. The Harmony phone scene was really funny too. You have been dead on with all of the character's voices. Angel's reaction feels right cause of his control issues. Andrew & Giles have been very touchingly amusing. Buffy & Dawn are the way that I would imagine them. You have blended all of the new scenes seemlessly with the scenes from the actual show. Spike's frustration with the slow healing of his hands which in turn blows the cap of his pent up emotions feels so right...like it was a needed scene in the actual show. Wes & Spike do seem like they would have a lot in common if they ever actually talked. Liked seeing the two of them do it in your story. Curious...what does your Wes think split him from the AI gang with Conner being erased from his memory? I can wait for the Spuffy easily cause I think the payoff will be worth it...I kinda like the slow build up so far...plus it has been a great read so far. Looking forward to your next update. Thank you so much for your time spent creating this wonderful world where my BTVS characters can live.

Author's Response: Um, thank you . . . and you're welcome!! I'm just gonna bask in the warm glow of your oh so nice review. If I had a soul cursed on me it would be gone now. As far as Wes goes I've wondered quite a bit about what it is that he remembers. He's not the one in charge so obviously he has to remember something. His obvious pain at that estrangement is one of the reasons I ended the third chapter the way I did. He has lived with the false memories for a while now, and the weight of the estrangement has to weigh heavily on him. With his right memories he at least had the knowledge that he was trying to save Connor to justify himself. Without them, and the memory of Connor I can't imagine whatever he remembers would seem enough to justify the estrangement from his friends. It must just seem like a mistake, a mistake that hurt him, and made his friends turn on him, leaving him reluctant to make that kind of mistake again.

I'm really liking this story pleas update soon.