Out of the Ashes

Summary: What if it wasn't Angel who left S3?

Parings: Oodles of them. But Spuffy is the catch of the day.

Warnings: NC-17,

Continuity: Mostly cannon for Buffy/Angel a tiny change here. Who am I kidding I love twisting the cannon for my muses, so take everything with a grain of salt and expect any big changes to be denied completely or explained in the story...

Disclaimer: Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel the Series don't belong to me, they belong to a whole bunch of talented people like Joss Whedon. So if you don't like what you read, blame me.

---

Chapter 1
_______________

Flames were burning bright against the night sky like they would never fade yet all Buffy could do was stare at the ashes at her feet. Their plan to stop the Mayor had went off without a hitch, they had saved the world but without Angel in her life she didn't exactly think it was a world worth saving. He was the only thing in her life that she had allowed herself to depend on, even after facing his demon her love never faltered but his had. He couldn't even say goodbye and didn’t deny that he loved her but if he could leave like he promised to do, then it would mean breaking his other promise to her.

Forever.

For normal people forever wasn't possible and for Slayers forever could mean less than ten years. Most were called at fifteen, like she had been and very few lived to see twenty-five because like her, they were meant to die young. But for her, forever was a very real possibility because she was the first Slayer chosen for a different destiny. But with everything that had happened, she had never had the time to tell Angel that, let alone her friends and in the end he couldn't even stick around for the ten measly years they all assumed she had left, even though they never talked about it.


He just rolled out his reasons in that dank sewer and while her mind was so busy trying to come to the terms with the fact he was breaking up with her, she forgot all those reasons no longer applied to her anyway. Her immortality was still new, having only heard the truth and details from Whistler the day she sent Angel to hell. Just like that bit of news, Angel had taken her so completely off guard, that she responded just like any other eighteen year old girl would have in the situation. But when she had said that all she saw in her future was him, it was nothing less than the absolute truth.

Whistler had told her that because she had defied the prophecy she was given the gift of immortality and freed of her duties as the Slayer. The power was a part of her and it would always be but unlike all the Slayers that had come before her or the ones that would come after, she had the power to control her own life. Which is why she took off to LA to deal with her grief, it wasn't her job anymore and she needed time to decide if she wanted to go back to that life or begin a new one.

But once Angel had returned, she made her choice and vowed to fight beside him while he earned his own freedom from the burden he carried. But instead of fighting for their love, their right to a life together he had cut her heart into jagged little pieces with a few words before he ever knew the whole story that was her.

Children, which like him she couldn't have anyway because becoming immortal meant giving up her chance to create new life. Sunlight which was more important to him than it had ever been to her because her slaying duties had he keeping the same hours as the undead. Mortality, which if he had taken the time to really look at her, he could see that although her body had slimmed down and her hair had grew she hadn't aged a single day since her first death at the hands of the Master. And his coup de grace, he wanted her to be with someone who could make love to her knowing full well that if it wasn't with him, the one she loved, it would just be sex, a meaningless act like what had happened between Faith and Xander.

She could see the emptiness and bitterness that had filled her friends after that single act of release and that was the dark and dismal future her beloved Angel was condemning her to; all the while patting himself on the back for his selfless and loving sacrifice. Part of her wanted to wrap her arms around him and tell him that all those things he thought were keeping them apart weren't but the tiny sliver of self-respect she still possessed refused to allow her to give him another chance to hurt her.

He was the one who wanted to walk away shortly after she discovered what he was but she had fought to prove to him that she didn't care. Then he had left her again as Angelus and while her mind told her that she shouldn't blame him for that, her heart saw the love Spike had showered on Drucilla without a soul to guide him. If Spike, also a soulless killer could remain devoted to his mate in his demon state, why couldn't Angel? Angelus may have gone through all the rituals of his warped form of courtship but once she had been destroyed or possibly even sired she had no doubt that she'd be another of his castoffs.

Which had been the one reason she had remained so strong against his mental assault a deliciously tempting lies of forever at his side. With all her heart she believed that if she could bring back Angel, he would never abandon her again yet here she was a year later and he was walking away.

She had offered him her heart, her soul and her blood and it wasn't enough for him. But when the situation had been reversed, she had chosen a life with Angel, one that wouldn't be easy over a relatively trouble free existence where all she had to do was make sure she wasn‘t behead, had her heart ripped out or burned to ash, because those two organs were essential for her new existence and she couldn‘t exactly heal if she didn‘t have a body to work with. Anything that lived could be killed even immortals.

Yet even now with her whole body aching, she didn't regret coming back because it had given her a chance to see Angel again. He had returned out of nowhere once before and maybe, just maybe hope wasn't lost yet, she thought. Unable to help herself, she glanced up at the life she had returned to hoping that with this battle won, Angel would change his mind and be with her in the next.

Through the smoke she could see them looking for her and a few feet away, she saw Angel standing by himself; once again reinforcing the fact that he had chosen to go on alone than accept the life she and her friends had offered him. She had no doubt that even Xander wouldn't have protested Angel joining them as they waited for her to emerge triumphant from the destruction they had wrought but Angel wanted to be able to escape without having to say goodbye.

Saying the words would make it real and if they remained unsaid he could leave with the hope that someday he'd come back to find it all as he had left it. Find her where he had left her.

Well screw that, Buffy thought turning around to head off in the other direction. Their love had consumed her in it's flames until nothing but ash remained and she'd be damned before she struggled to rise from the ashes just in time for him to show back up and burn her all over again. She still loved and wanted him but he'd made his choice and since he lacked the strength to do it, she'd set them both free.

If they couldn't be together now, then the someday he was waiting for had already come and gone. As hard as it was to be the one to walk away, atleast this way they both had a chance to find what they were looking for without looking back on what might have been.

Even if his grand plan to disappear without a word had happened, he'd always be able to find her. So the only way to save them both from a life of emptiness and pain was for her to leave and stay gone. Running now, knowing that they wouldn't wait for her long before searching for her, she hurried to her house with her mind furiously racing with plans.

Flinging open the door she slammed it shut and headed towards the stairs only to be stopped by the sound of a cup clattering down to the floor.

"Did something go wrong?" Joyce asked, her hand resting at the hollow of her throat as she tried to deal with her nerves.

"I thought you were leaving?"

"I couldn't...I felt so guilty for what I said to Angel that I had to stay and somehow make it right." Joyce admitted unable to meet her daughters eyes as she confessed her part in bringing more pain into her already difficult life.

Suddenly realizing why Angel had decided to leave, Buffy felt angrier than she ever thought possible. Even her mother, who must have tried to break them up thinking it would be for her own good, had a change of heart but Angel wasn't as understanding. Joyce could apologize until she was blue in the face and Angel would still leave and that was just another wound on her heart. How could the person she loved so much be so blind, she asked herself, idly wondering if she Angel knew her at all. "I don't have much time mom so I really need you to listen to me. I'm not the one who needs you now. You have always been there for me. Sure we've both made some mistakes but your love has always been my foundation. I've become a stronger person because I had the best of role models and it's time for me to become something other than the Slayer. That's not my destiny anymore, it's Faith's and she is going to need you to be there for her; the way you always were for me. She never had a mother's love to ease away the pains of her life and she will need someone who is always willing to put her first. You're the only person I know whose heart is strong enough to accept her as Faith and not as a Buffy substitute but in time the others will see her the way you and I do. She's made a few mistakes but since she came through in the end and helped us fight the Mayor, it's clear that while her head was in the wrong place for awhile, her heart never wavered from what was right."

"You're running away again aren't you Buffy?" Joyce said even though she was seeing the answer painfully clear in her child‘s eyes. "You're leaving because of what I said to Angel."

"Mom, if all it took was one talk to send him running out of town he's not the kind of man I want in my life. My life is never going to be normal because I'm not normal and I need someone in my life who understands that it might not be easy to love me but still thinks I'm worth fighting for. I love Angel with all that I am and he'll probably always have a piece of my heart but he made his choice and now I have to accept that. So does he and if I stay here neither one of us will ever find any peace because what we have isn't something that ever truly goes away. We'll get back together dozens of times and in the end all well have is a bunch of broken dreams. I'd rather my first love become bittersweet memories than watch what we shared become a bitter and resentful relationship like the one you have with Hank." Buffy walked over to give her mom a quick hug, hoping to soften the blow from her words. "Just like me, you loved him and he let you down. So can you really blame me for wanting to start over again while my heart is still capable of loving someone else, trusting someone else? This is about me wanting to find my own life, one where I find out what I want without my friends or lover telling me what I need."

Joyce hated this, hated the idea of losing Buffy again but she was more afraid of losing her if she remained here. It wasn't until she had mentioned her friends that Joyce finally realized how much pressure they all placed on Buffy. She wanted the perfect daughter, Giles the perfect Slayer, Willow and Xander the perfect friend and hero come to life but when was the last time any of them bothered to ask Buffy what she wanted, Joyce asked herself. She hadn't liked the idea of Buffy being with a vampire so she had gone behind her back and did what she thought was right and she couldn't help wondering how many times her well meaning friends had done the same thing. With the same result of making Buffy miserable.

Joyce had seen Buffy face when she came home from the prom and the blindingly bright pain in her eyes that night, had been the reason she stayed in town despite the danger.

Her daughter wasn’t a child who needed protecting, she had a good head on her shoulders and have saved lives before she was even old enough for a drivers permit. Yet she had thought she knew what she needed and just lacked the strength to do and seeing the proud defiant woman standing in front of her now, it was clear to Joyce, that Buffy was more than capable of deciding what she needed all on her own.

She held onto her precious girl a moment longer and then pulled away to walk over to where her purse sat. Reaching in, she grabbed her wallet and pulled out her bank card. “If this is what you want to do, I won’t try to stop you. You are old enough to make your own choices and a great deal more responsible than many of the adults I know. Every parent wants their child to have the perfect dream life they envisioned for them but I should have asked you what you wanted. It was always my dream to see you graduate from a great college and going off to do great things with your life but you have been doing great things since High School and I couldn’t be more proud. So take this and go chase your own dreams. I’ll move all your college fund to this account and while you are always welcome back here, I understand why you want to leave.”

“Mom, I can’t take your money.” Buffy said taking a step back. “I have to learn how to do things for myself.”

“Buffy Anne Summers you are one of the most capable people I have ever met but that doesn’t mean you can’t let people help you along the way. This money was always for your future so you’ll take it, end of discussion.” Joyce said thrusting the card into her hand. “I may understand why you’re doing this but that doesn’t mean I don’t expect phone calls or emails young lady.”

“Yes mom.” Buffy said eighteen years of living with her mother told her this wasn’t a fight she would win. “But I don’t want the others to know where I am, they should move on with their lives without me.”

“We both know they’re going to come here, so is there anything else you want me to tell them?” Joyce asked gently.

“Goodbye.” Buffy said firmly, before turning around and going up the stairs to back her bags.

Chapter 2

___________________

Since she had saved the day, Buffy felt like she was due a reward in the form of an extended vacation. Thanks to her college fund, money wasn’t a problem as long as she didn’t splurge all that often and since she had never been anywhere but LA and Sunnydale, there was a whole wide world full of things she had once thought she never live long enough to see. She knew she’d eventually have to settle down somewhere, atleast for awhile but she wasn’t ready to take that step yet.

How could she when her heart was still in Sunnydale, but as the weeks became months, the pain eased a little more each day. It helped that everywhere she had been in Europe was amazingly beautiful.

Her first stop had been Ireland, to lay her love to rest in the land of his birth and there in the city of his death she had found her own peace. It had taken four months but she had managed to cherish the love they had experienced and could now look back on it without bitterness. It hurt, it probably always would because he was a big part of her life but it was no longer a raw wound; more like an old battle injury that would throb every once in a while as a reminder of what you had survived.

That wasn’t the most romantic of thoughts, relegating their star-crossed love to a battle scar but that’s exactly what loving Angel had always been...a battle they were destined to lose. They both had made mistakes and while she would always love him, she wasn’t in love with him anymore. Even though they had both lost in the small battles, in the end by being able to save atleast the memories of what they shared, she liked to believe they had both won the war.

Angel might not see it that way yet but someday she hoped he could look back on what they shared with fondness and that would be enough to make all the pain they endured worthwhile.

From Galway she had headed to Rome, losing herself in the grand magnificence of the empire that had fallen but would never be forgotten. Everywhere you looked, you could see the ruins that had managed to remain standing through the ages and it gave her hope for her own future.

Then it was off to the land of tweed, which wasn’t as tweedy as she had always imagined but it had it’s own charm. It was a place that didn’t just hold onto the ancient traditions of the past it clung to them with dignity and grace while still managing to move forward. Everything changes there but enough remained the same to give it a sense of consistency the states just didn’t have. Here the old buildings weren’t destroyed in the name of progress, they were lovingly restored until they simply appeared fresh and new.

So within a year she’d shopped on Portobello Road, had drunk a pint in a real Irish pub and traveled the waterways of Italy under a night sky filled with stars. Making new memories as she continued on in her journey of self-discovery but also bringing pieces of the places she visited along with her. She had never thought of herself as bright, her grades in High School were proof of that, but seeing something first hand, experiencing it for herself had caused her to learn more than she ever though possible.

In Ireland she had been adopted by the kindly old widow who ran the inn she was staying at. She had been stunned to learn a woman her age couldn’t cook so much as an egg, so she took it upon herself to teach her how to make soda bread and several other traditional dishes, as well as the rapidly fading language of her people. In that lovely lilting voice of hers, Brenna had told her she may have been born a yank but her heart was as Irish as the faeries themselves, so it was only fitting that she learned the language of the fey.

In return for all her kindness Buffy had helped her around the inn, weeding the gardens and even getting down on her hands and knees to polish the well tended hardwood floor with beeswax and lemon so Brenna wouldn’t have to do it herself. When it was time to move on again, it had hurt to leave another friendship behind but since Brenna was part of her new life, she still sent her letters and postcards from her travels.

In Italy she had saved a lovely young couple on their honeymoon from vampires, only to discover they were part of the same clan that had vowed to punish Angelus for his crimes. That had been more than a little awkward, especially since she had only learned that fact when she had been invited to attend a clan bonfire so that their people could show her their gratitude for saving the young lovers.

But since they were storytellers themselves, she had shared with them her own past life, ending the tragic tale with a plea for true forgiveness on Angel’s behalf. The Elders had listened, weighing each word and decided that their vengeance would be better served if the demon was forever banished never to be free to roam the lands again. They promised to contact Giles to tell him how to remove the happiness clause and anchor Angel’s soul permanently but since their own shortsightedness had punished an innocent man it was necessary to make amends to him, for all that he had suffered at their hands. So by making his soul permanent they were erasing the debt they owed Angel but they still wanted to thank her from saving their children.

In the end they taught her how to tap into her powers as the Slayer so that she could cast magicks that would aid her in her quest to help others. She spent three months learning their ways as well as learning to respect the magicks they had showed her how to harness. She wasn’t super witch and probably never would be, because the source of her powers wasn’t meant to be used as a mystical outlet, but she had definitely picked up a few useful spells.

Her favorite being the clocking spell that not only hid her from people looking for her by mystical means, like Joyce suspected her friends were, but also hiding her presence from the vampires and demons looking to take on a Slayer. Even though she was technically freed from being the Slayer, she still gave vampires the tingles because they hadn’t gotten the memo and it was nice to be able to hide from all the beings who wanted her dead. It would be wrong of her to use the ability to hunt, so when she did patrol she only altered the spell so that the vamps could still feel her. True, vamps and other nasties weren’t known for their sense of honor or fair play but magick was a gift and to use it in such a way would be against all she had been taught.

When the plane skidded to a stop on the tarmac Buffy pulled herself out of her thoughts and looked at the window. She had always wanted to see Paris in the winter and now she had her chance.

Chapter 3

_______________

“OOOH, I hate Paris!” Buffy said loudly as she crossed her arms over her chest and flopped down on a bench, despite the evening chill.

Unable to help himself, Spike watched the lovely blonde, who was his mortal enemy, while she struggled to rein in her obviously raging anger. Until his final break with Dru he had never realized how much he had just enjoyed watching Buffy and now that he had cast Dru out of his heart, for what he hoped would be for good, maybe it was time to see if her words about him being covered in the Slayer were more than just insane ramblings. “Paris is too full of Parisians, pet. Even the French don't like Paris, so you are in good company.”

If she hadn’t been so pissed off she wouldn’t have missed the big throbbing roll of power that was her blond nemesis but since it had been a while since she‘d seen a familiar face, she didn’t treat him like a threat. “What is it with this place?” She asked, motioning for him to sit down and doing her best not to laugh at his look of complete and utter shock. “Everyone acts like they’re the superior fucking species just because they speak the language and I don’t. Hello, I’ve been all over Europe and everyone else were really nice and friendly despite the language barrier, but all the people I’ve met since I got off the plane have been complete and total assholes. The guy at the hotel gave me crap because I didn’t have a reservation but when I asked if they had any rooms available he said yes. So since they have rooms to rent, why in the hell does it matter if I didn’t reserve one in advance, as long as my money is good? Then the waiter nearly had a stroke when I asked for ketchup during my dinner and spent five minutes lecturing me about why one does not put ketchup on Steak Diane. But all of that I could deal with, I simply smiled and let it go but then the sales bitch from hell went to damn far!”

Knowing she wouldn’t be amused if he chuckled he schooled his face into serious lines and asked her calmly. “What exactly did the clerk do to convince you to hate such a lovely city?”

Buffy turned to him, her face completely serious. “I found a pair of strappy stilettos I absolutely fell head over heels in love with but when I asked how much they were, she very snottily informed me that if I had to ask I couldn’t afford them. Then she had the nerve to ask me to leave! I may not be a fricking billionaire but I can afford to splurge on a damn pair of heels that looked like they were created with me in mind, especially since I already bought the perfect dress in Milan to go with them!”

Acting on instinct, Spike took her hand and pulled her to her feet. He had no idea why she was treating him like this but he wasn’t about to question it. Not when his entire body hummed just sitting beside her. “I can’t have you thinking that my one of my favorite places is such a cruel city, so I think I show you the real Paris in all it‘s splendor.”

“Just what do you have in mind?” Buffy asked cautiously but not bothering to pull her hand away. There were worse things than being shown Paris by a devastatingly attractive man, but since said man was also a very powerful vampire who had tried to kill her a few times, a girl couldn’t be to careful.

“First of all we go back to the shop and get those shoes; while at the same time you learn how to deal with all the arrogance you will encounter in this fair city. The trick to making it here, is to act like royalty luv, even if your lineage says otherwise.” Spike told her with a devilish smile. “This is the city of love but also one built on pretences and vanity. So to conquer this city and force it to expose its secrets and treasures, you have to show no fear in the face of adversity. Seein’ as how you‘re the sodden Slayer, that should be easy enough.”

“Is this some plot to led me into a trap?” Buffy asked pulling her hand away. “If you just want to hang out, I’d really like that but I’m not in the mood for Slayer/vampire games.”

That had Spike stopping in his tracks. He could hear the yearning, bittersweet and poignant in her voice and that was something he’d never heard before. “What happened to you luv, why aren‘t you riskin’ your pretty neck on the hellmouth and snogging with my pouf of a grandsire?”


“Why aren‘t you being Dru‘s boy-toy?” Buffy shot back, wanting to make it clear she didn’t want to talk about Sunnydale and Angel.

Understanding what she was trying to tell him, he decided to just live in the moment. After all, it wasn’t like he was getting any older. “Right then luv, let’s just pretend we just met and that you’re not the Slayer and I’m not William the Bloody, slayer of Slayers.”

“Alright, my name is Buffy Summers nice to meet you.” She said giving him a gentle smile as she offered him her hand.

“Pleased to meet you Buffy, you can call me William.” Spike said playing his part to the hilt by gentling his purposely roughed accent. “I happen to be taking a holiday but I have always loved it here. I’d be pleased to show you around if you’re looking for a new acquaintance to pass the time with?”

“I’d like that William. I just wanted to get away for awhile and part of that means making new friends.” Buffy said giving him a warm smile. If anyone back home saw her acting like this, they’d rush for the straight jackets but she could see pieces of herself inside Spike...er...William. They were natural enemies but they had both been badly scarred by love and that kind of pain was universal and able to transcend all other differences between them. Besides a big part of this trip was taking control of her own life without having to worry about what her friends would think and since she wasn’t technically the Slayer anymore, that meant there was no rule in some handbook saying they couldn’t be around each other unless it was a fight to the death.

He could see the innocence all but shimmering around her like a golden cloud but he saw something else, something even more enticing within her deep green eyes. The Buffy he knew always had a warriness in her eyes, a persona of constant alertness and a burden that weighed heavily on her soul but this woman before him was free. More than that, it was clear she had proved him wrong and parted from Angel while still finding some measure of peace. He believed what they had, just like what he had with Dru, would be apart of them until it drove them all insane but somehow Buffy had broken the bonds of her love and her destiny and emerged a wholly different being. This woman knew the absolute freedom that Dru had promised; the reality of that choice had damned him forever while Buffy was still untainted. More than anything he wished he could say the same thing about himself, because despite his bluster and deeds, the man he had once been was still inside him, still yearning for the confidence he could see in every line of Buffy’s classically beautiful face.

“I could always use a new American friend since I travel there often.” He said giving her a genuine smile as he decided to see where this unexpected path led. For all their acts of abandon, vampires imposed just as many rules and restrictions on their kind just like humans did. You weren’t a real vampire if you weren’t painting the town red with blood and drinking deeply from the innocent but even as a vampire Spike had never cared to much for the darker aspects of his demons desires. But because of his love for Dru, he had embraced her way and submitted himself to Angelus’s cruel tutelage burying William and his humanity, to make his demon become worthy for his dark Princess. Now he’d live for himself first...he’d earned that much after letting himself be molded into what was expected of him. He was a vampire after all, they were suppose to defy the rules.

“That’s something we have in common. I’m taking a extended tour of Europe and I find myself making friends all over. It helps me remember I’m not as alone as I think.” Buffy said softly as she saw some unreadable emotion fill his eyes. Assuming he was thinking of Dru and whatever reason he was here without her, she wanted to stick to the plan of pretending they were without shadows of the past hanging over them. “I’ve been traveling for a year now and while I have met tons of not so nice people, I’ve also made friends with some wonderful ones.”

Picking up on the sadness in her words, he couldn’t help wondering why such an alluring young woman would think she was alone in a world that revered beauty. “Where is home luv?” He asked, knowing that the question fit the rules to this new game they were playing but also knowing that it wasn’t Sunnydale any longer.

“I don’t know yet, I guess you could say I’m a wandering spirit trying to find where I can rest.” Buffy said with a wistful smile. “Life has a way of changing unexpectedly and the only thing that anyone can fall back on is themselves. So I’m kinda relearning how to be me and when I figure myself out, maybe I’ll find my way home.”

“If you don’t mind me saying this Buffy, you look like you‘re already found yourself.” Spike said lightly as he realized she hadn‘t even noticed the changes in herself. Changes that pulled at him like a siren’s song so that he was helplessly lost in it’s thrall.

“Some people lose their childhood before they’re ready, others cling to it long after it’s time to put away childish things. While a precious few somehow manage to keep the same childlike naivety that allows them to believe the world is a wonderful place and always will be.” Buffy paused for a moment to pull her thick wool coat tighter around her tiny frame, while the gentle evening breeze sent the snowflakes swirling around her like she was in the center of a snow-globe. “But then there’s people like me that had no other choice but to grow up and face the darkness of this world. I’ve had to face the things others would fear or hide from and while I can still see the beauty of this world, I also know what’s beneath the shining surface. I‘ve learned to accept the good and bad, because I have both those things inside me and while it‘s a bitch to balance it all out, I‘ve made my peace with what and who I am. That‘s not something many people can say in this day and age of mass confusion so I consider myself pretty lucky in the grand scheme of things. So in a way you’re right William, I found myself but I still want to grow into who I’ve become. ”

“In a city full of lauded trendsetters, you’ve an incomparable original.” Spike said giving her a saucy wink as he found her words applied to himself as well. “I guess we both are pet, besides normal is overrated. Which is why I chose to come here. No matter how jaded and cynical I become, something always comes along and surprises me. Take our meeting for example, definitely an unexpected surprise but a good one.”

“You’re a nice surprise too William. The last time an obviously older man in a billowy coat walked into my life, I was the one who became jaded a cynical but unlike him, I can tell that you still know how to dream.” Buffy said pulling open the door to the shop before he could reply.

________________

“Come to dinner with me tonight.” Spike more or less demanded over the phone a week later. He had spent the night showing Buffy the city only to have her disappear from his life just as quickly as she had entered. She had placed a chaste kiss on his check and headed into the hotel with his number in her hand but she had never called. It wasn’t the first time he had been blown off, he had been dating for several centuries, but this time he couldn’t get the lady in question out of his mind. All through the night they spent exploring the city, every time he thought he had her figured out she would do or say something that sent him back to square one.

Most of the time it was easy to believe how the world could see her nothing more than the nineteen year old girl she appeared to be and at others her eyes would darken with some unknown emotion. In those moments she would appear nearly decades older and more than a little dangerous with almost feral light turning her soft green eyes to a blazing emerald. He knew it had something to do with her life in Sunnydale but also it was because she was a predator in her own way. It didn’t matter that she seemed to have surrendered her place as the Slayer to the other bird because when she had come across a pair of vamps feeding, she had never hesitated to leap into the fray. Not sure of what such a blatant reminder of his nature would do to their comfortable truce, he had held back neither helping or hindering and merely waited for her to turn back around and issue the final verdict.

Half expecting her to look at him with disgust, he was surprised to see her looking at him with genuine concern. For several long moments they had looked into each others eyes, speaking without words and he had nodded his head. After his silent promise not to feed from the living while he was William, their night had continued without any interruption.

He had no doubt she stake him in a moment if she caught him feeding but the fact she had accepted his word without hesitation meant more to him than the kill. Since Europe was part of the old world, it had it’s fair share of established demon areas and many bars catered to his kind as well as blood banks that bought human blood and sold it just like the butcher in Sunnydale sold animal blood. Vampires on this side of the globe were slightly more refined than those in the states and many of the master vampires used such a service or sent their minions out to hunt for live prey but there was also a great deal of peaceful demons who needed fresh blood to survive but had no desire to take life. It was just the way things were done and visiting demons adapted accordingly.

Just like Buffy had adapted before his very eyes. By turns she was an innocent American tourist, sophisticated woman, a philosopher, an airhead and a practiced seductress who could turn even the simplest gesture into a erotic art form.

She was a mystery hidden behind a blindingly beautiful and utterly unforgettable smile. So in the most simplest of terms, it was safe to say he wasn’t only attracted to her but also driven by some inscrutable need to uncover everything about her. It looked like Dru had been right after all, he had been drowning in Buffy all this time and never even realized it but now that he knew, he had no plan to come up for air anytime soon.

Which was why he had finally broken down and called her hotel and requested to be connected to her room.

“I gotta say William, the whole caveman routine you’ve got going right now doesn’t exactly fit the image of the suave and sophisticated man I met the other night.” Buffy chided him with a light laugh, relieved that he had called her. She had spent the last seven days going over all the reasons why she should avoid him. Not a single one of them had to do with the fact he was an incredibly powerful vampire but a great deal to do with the fact that he was the first man she had been attracted to this strongly since Angel.

She had engaged in a few harmless flirtations during the past year but other than a few kisses almost forgotten the second they ended no one had managed to get under her skin the way Spike had in a single night, with nothing but a few looks and some slow smiles. Which was bad because after the way her last relationship had gone, she wasn’t sure if she was ready to take the leap again.

“Well you little minx, if you had bothered to ring me this past week you would have found my disposition much more pleasant.” He shot back, resisting the urge to flop back onto his bed like a love sick teenager.

“Sorry, I was afraid that if I called, you’d only think I liked spending time with you because you bought me a pair of three hundred dollar shoes just to impress a bitchy sales clerk.”

“No I bought the damn shoes because of the way you looked at them like a cat staring at the canary.” Spike said repressing a slight shiver of desire as he recalled the hungry look in her eyes, she had worn in the shop. “I was afraid you’d simply attack the clerk if she continued to keep you away from your heart’s desire and I didn’t want to spend the night in jail.”

“You know me to well William. I was seriously considering that but then you pulled out the plastic and all was right in my world again.” Buffy admitted a little guiltily. She had been moments away from slapping the rude, vapid woman as she attacked not only her but her entire country with comment after sarcastic comment but when she started on her mother things got ugly. She didn’t know Spike had a credit card and at the time she didn’t care, he had saved the day and she was too grateful to ask to many questions. Questions that could shatter the illusion they had created for them to live in together.

“Actually pet I don’t, which is why I wanted to have dinner with you.”

Deciding to take a chance, she rolled the dice and prayed it didn’t come up snake-eyes. “Well since you did buy the shoes, the least I can do is let you see me wearing them. So give me an hour and I‘ll meet you in the lobby.”

Saying a quick goodbye before she could change her mind, Spike called to make reservations and hurried off to take a shower. Exactly fifty-eight minutes later he was standing in the lobby flicking his gaze over to the elevators every so often.

He had expected her to keep him waiting, it was a trait all women seemed to have so when she stepped out of the elevator seconds before the one hour mark arrived he was more than a little surprised. Before he had gotten over that, his mind processed the way she looked and the ability to think, let alone speak escaped him. Her long golden hair was pulled up in an a simple twist, with a few tendrils escaping to frame the perfection that was her face. Instead of a very Parisian black dress that left little to the imagination, she was wearing a simple silk gown the color a finely aged red wine.

It fell down to a point just above her knees and seemed to trace across the soft curves of her body with the skill of a reverent lover. He had to admit the black stilettos that added a good three inches to her 5’5 frame were the perfect compliment to the dress simply because they way her made her toned legs look like they went on forever. It didn’t help matters that those were his favorite colors, a fact he had casually mentioned and the idea that she might have dressed with him in mind was enough to make his unbeating heart quiver within his breast.

He nearly protested as she slipped on the thick black coat she had worn the other night, because it was as long as the dress itself and covered what he had been coveting only moments ago. “You look stunning tonight.” He said meeting her eyes for the first time and taking her hand to bring it to his lips. He had planned to seduce her, using his many years of courtship to bring her around to his way of thinking, only to find himself wanting to take things slow and savor their journey together.

Buffy took in the way his lean body looked in a pair of black slacks and how his rust red oxford complemented his pale alabaster skin and warmed his Nordic blue eyes. “You’re looking pretty amazing yourself William, if a girl didn’t know better she’d think this was an actual date and not just a friendly get together.”

“Would that be such an impossible dream, pet?” Spike asked misreading the anxiety in her eyes as uncertainty. He had done a lot of bad and unconscionable things in his life but the idea of pushing her before she was ready was a thought he wouldn’t consider. He knew that sooner or later they’d have to return to reality, to say all the unspoken thing they went out of their way to not talk about but if she needed to linger in their fantasy a little longer, he had all the time in the world.

“I was recently divorced.” Buffy said mustering up a smile. In Ireland she had learned the real story behind the Cladaugh rings she and Angel had worn and while hand-fasting was part of the old ways it was still recognized as a marriage by the local people, even if the laws still said it wasn’t. No one thought twice about couples who had for some reason forgone the formal ceremony and simply exchanged the rings as a sign of their devotion. And since she and Angel had consummated the relationship the same night, it was possibly the only kind of marriage a vampire and Slayer would ever get. In her heart she knew Angel had known that; meant for it to bind them together in the way of his people but she also couldn’t blame him for not telling her considering the fact it was the same night they unleashed Angelus. “But he didn’t feel as strongly as I did and chose to abandon me. So I don’t have anyone waiting for me somewhere and I‘d really like to chase after an impossible dream with someone willing to chase it with me.”

Understanding that she had taken the first trembling step out of their idyllic bubble he gave her a gentle smile to let her know he could see what she was trying to tell him. He knew by talking about her past with Angel that she was letting him know that’s exactly what it was, the past. It was clear to read between the lines!and see that Angel had planned on leaving her and she’d beat him to the punch and he couldn’t help being grateful that Peaches was such an idiot. Soul or not he was used to seeing Angel cast aside the women he claimed to love, leaving them yearning for his return but if that was his grand plan for Buffy he had misjudged her completely. She’d fight for what she wanted with her dying breath, just like she’d forced her mates and Watcher to accept Angel as part of her life but if he wasn’t willing to fight just as hard, she’d pick up the pieces and go on alone. Well she wasn’t alone anymore Spike decided, raising her hand to his lips and if she was going to give him the chance, he‘d bloody well take it. “You have me and I am waiting to escort you to our dinner date.”


“What about you William, do you have a wife or girlfriend waiting for you back at home?” Buffy asked anxiously as they headed towards the doors, needing to know she wasn’t just a stand-in for the one he’d lost.

“I spent more than a century with a woman I thought loved me but I was never what she wanted and I‘m not willing to give all myself to someone whose not willing to give me everything she is back.” Spike said passionately, vowing to never settle in the game of hearts again. It was all or nothing, loves bitch or not he’d not play the part of the fool again. “Sometimes time is not enough to fix everything and I finally realized that.”

“Ahh one of the results of being immortal...wisdom. I gotta admit right now I am just totally loving this not aging thing but I guess I’ll grow out of my superficial and vain stage eventually.” Buffy said easily, having to stifle a laugh as Spike ran into the door at her announcement.

Chapter 4

______________________

Grabbing her arm none to gently, Spike led her into the alley beside the hotel. “I know we’re dancing to a particular tune here pet, but I really need to hear the story behind that comment.”

“I’m immortal just like you, except for the vampire thing but I can be killed pretty much the same way. ” Buffy said with an deceptively innocent smile. “Now that you know, let’s go eat.”

Caging her against the wall with his body, he gave her a knowing smirk. “Not until you explain luv, because something tells me I’m the first to hear this little tidbit.”

“When I was sixteen the Codex prophesized that I’d die at the hands of the Master. I did but by coming back I got an unexpected bonus gift for defying fate or whatever. I was freed from my role as a Slayer and given immortality as a reward for saving the world. Being the Powers they took their sweet time filling me in on that little detail and decided it was exactly the motivation I’d need to take out Angelus.” Buffy gave him a half-hearted smile. It didn’t matter if she and Angel weren’t together or that she had moved on, that time in her life was never going to be something she could talk about without feeling some pain. “They understood I wasn’t happy about not knowing about the curse and they were afraid I’d tuck tail and run, leaving someone else to deal with Angelus. So they sent down this annoying balance demon named Whistler, to tell me what I just told you, making it clear that once I handled Angelus they’d let me retire. I had been immortal since my death, so I could have just skipped out but they told me what needed to be done and promised to see that another Slayer came to take over the hellmouth.”

“So let me get this straight luv, not only are you an immortal but you’re not the Slayer anymore, even though you got to keep your abilities?” Spike asked needing to be perfectly clear about this. Knowing that she’d age and die had worried him enough to consider asking her to let him turn her, provided he could arrange for a happiness clause free curse. He didn’t want a demonic version of her, he wanted her forever which wasn’t the same thing. Now it seemed that all the hasty plans he had made on his way to see her tonight hadn’t been necessary and the fact that she wasn’t the active Slayer was just a bonus.

He knew she’d never give it up entirely, it was a part of her but he didn’t fancy the thought of her forced to live a life where the needs of others would have to come before her own wants and desires. He had no doubt she’d show up if things got bad but atleast now it seemed like she had a choice, which was more than she’d ever had before.

“Yep, which is why I didn’t feel the slightest bit guilty taking off.” Buffy admitted with a smile. “Faith nearly went evil because she was forced to share the one thing she thought made her special. I only stuck around to help Angel fight for his atonement and since he was willing to just leave while Faith gathered the strength to fight, I just disappeared after we beat the Mayor and let her take that was rightfully hers.”

He liked the fact she hadn’t told the others she was leaving, cause he had no doubt they’d never let her go, but he had always liked Buffy’s mum and the thought of her being worried didn’t sit well with him. “What about you’re mum? She’s a decent lady and she must be worried about you luv.”

Touched by the sincerity in his eyes, she gave him a warm smile. “Mom is the only person who knows, she was at the house that night and she understood why I needed to do this. She even turned over my collage fund to finance my great escape. I talk to her once a week and she’s mothering Faith, who in turn is watching over her and they’re both happy with the arrangement. So much Faith is now my legally adopted sister, which is kinda fitting cause of the whole Slayer thing.”

“Are you alright with that luv, having her take over your life and mum like that?” Spike asked gently, trying to discover her long range plans.

“Believe me Spike, she’s welcome to my life and all it entails. Being the Slayer’s rough and if anyone deserves a chance at a little happiness it’s Faith.” Buffy admitted trying to convey with her eyes that she was being completely honest. “I grew up being loved and no matter where I am, my mom will always love and support me but Faith never had that. She didn’t talk about her life much but I know the reason she joined the Mayor was because she felt like it was her only way to compete with me. For her being chosen was like a sign she mattered, that she was better than she had always thought and then she meets me and finds out that I not only have everything she doesn’t but that I was also a Slayer. So if she couldn’t beat me at being good, she’d decided to be better at being bad.”

“You mean she’s noticed you were a better Slayer.” Spike said giving her a pointed look. He could relate to Faith, hell he’d lived in Angelus’s shadow long enough to know what it could do to a person and he didn’t blame her for doing what she thought she had to. But he didn’t know everything about the deal with the Mayor and he was guessing Faith had done some damage during her stint as a rogue Slayer. “What happened between you two luv?”

“She shot Angel with an poisoned arrow that only Slayer’s blood could cure, hoping to lead to a showdown between us.” Ashamed, Buffy found herself unable to meet his eyes as she talked about her own almost fall from grace. “I went to her place, fully prepared to drag her back to feed to Angel but the whole time we were fighting, I felt like she wanted me to take her out. Don’t get me wrong, she was fighting me with all that she had, but her eyes couldn’t lie and every time I looked in them, I knew she was asking me to save her...to put her out of her misery. Because of the way my dad suddenly forgot he had a kid and the way I had reacted when Kendra came to town, I knew what it felt like to not feel good enough and I saw myself in her that night. Without my mom’s steadfast love and devotion I could have easily become her, so instead of killing her, I told her that I believed in her and that she could still be the Slayer, a Champion, if she wanted it badly enough. Then I knocked her out and cured Angel myself...but in the end Faith came through. She battled her own demons and won and stood beside us as we took down the Mayor.”

Spike eased down the strap of her dress to see for himself the mark and the second his fingers brushed over it, he found himself cursing Angel to perdition. “Buffy, did he tell you he was leaving before or after he drank from you?”

“Before and after, just in case I was hoping things had changed.” She said unable to sound anything but bitter. “It wasn’t like I’d nearly become a murder for him and risked my life to prove how much he mattered to me, I can’t imagine why he’d think I still loved him.”

Hearing the shame in her voice, he tilted up her face and forced her to meet his eyes. “Listen to me pet and listen to me good. I've been alive a bit longer than you, and dead a lot longer than that. I've seen things you couldn't imagine, and done things I prefer you didn't. I don't exactly have a reputation for being a thinker. I follow my blood, which doesn't exactly rush in the direction of my brain. So I make a lot of mistakes, a lot of wrong bloody calls. In a hundred plus years there's only one thing I've ever been sure of: you. I'm not asking you for anything. It has nothing to do with me. I love what you are, what you do, how you try. I've seen your kindness and your strength. I've seen the best and the worst of you. And I understand with perfect clarity exactly what you are. You're a hell of a woman.”

He stroked his thumb across her cheek and gave her a soft smile. “You loved him pet, surrendered yourself to it entirely and when he was threatened you were willing to do what it took to save him. There’s no shame in that. Its his fault for not treating you as you deserve to be treated. He marked you pet, claimed you as his but he was never willing to give you himself.”

Claims, she’d heard of them of course, because she was a Slayer dating a vampire but she couldn’t believe Angel would had given her some spiel about wanting her to move on, only to save a piece of her for himself. “Could it have happened unintentionally?” She asked softly, hoping against hope that it was just some horrible mistake.

More than anything he wanted to lie to her, just to erase the raw look of betrayal in her eyes but the way he saw it, she’d already been lied to enough. The Powers used lies of omission, Angel used lies designed to manipulate and her father lied to make her doubt her worth, to cover his own failings. He wouldn’t became like them. “Sorry pet, it takes blood magicks to lay a claim and once he said the word…”

“Mine.” Buffy finished for him, recalling the way that single word had followed her into the darkness that stole away her vision, giving her hope that when she opened her eyes again it would be the truth. “He nearly drained me but I remember him saying that…just after he pulled away. What kind claim did he make, what connection did he force on me with yet another promise he had no intention of keeping?”

Promising to thrash Angel for every ounce of pain he had brought this amazing woman, Spike couldn’t keep the anger out of his eyes. “He marked you as his childe but not his mate. Other vampires would sense his presence in your blood, giving you his protection and he’d sense your death.”

Spike expected a lot of things, tears and the fact she might possibly kill the messenger but he never expected the dazzlingly and more than a little chilling smile, that crossed her lips.

“I’ll tell you what William, why don’t I take you to dinner tonight?”

____________________________________


Spike was looking at her like she’d lost her mind and she didn’t blame him in the slightest. She had just asked him to kill her, so naturally that caused people to doubt your sanity. Tonight he wasn’t her new friend William, he was Spike slayer of Slayers…or atleast she was trying to convince him to be. The dry facts didn’t seem to be working so she had no choice but to lay her heart and soul bare and hope he could see it from her point of view. “Spike I can sit here and tell you that I’ll come back without needing to be sired but I’m asking a lot of you so I should atleast tell you why. I feel like a victim and I’m tired of being his victim. You know this isn’t the first time he bound me to him in secret.”

She let out a bitter laugh and shook her head. “The first time was when he gave me the ring, sign of devotion my ass, it was a wedding he wanted and he even deflowered his virgin bride. I didn’t learn the truth until I was in Ireland and I explained it away thinking that he would have told me if it hadn’t happen the same night he lost his soul. But I can't keep making excuses so I pretend what we had was special. It's clear that what he did had nothing to do with love and everything to do control.”

“You don’t know that pet.” Spike said despite the fact he agreed with her.

“We both know that if it was about love, he would have taken me as his mate.” Buffy gave a pointed look all but daring him to deny it again. When he didn’t she carried on. “He dumped me and if it was what he wanted, for whatever reason it was his choice. Just like it was my choice to leave instead of being left, but he didn’t give me a choice in this. If he had only asked me, even knowing he would leave I would have said yes but he took it from me without permission. He metaphysically violated me and after dealing with Angelus I know that having a soul isn’t enough, if the man it was given to is weak. He’s weak and instead of fighting when it gets to hard he just gives in and I can’t do that. I have to fight, have to stay strong or else everything I have started to build in my life will come crashing down.”

“What…what if you don’t come back luv?” Spike asked softly, moved by her impassioned plea. He crossed the room and sat beside her on the long divan, pulling her hand into his own. “I feel something for you Buffy and I’m afraid I’ll lose you before I ever find out what we might have between us.”

Buffy gripped his hand tightly and tried to keep the tremble out of her voice as she talked about her second death. “I’ve seen proof of my immortality, I was mugged in Italy and the guy had a gun. He shot me in the chest, took my purse and the tiny diamond studs my grandmother left me and as my heart slowed, I was terrified. I couldn’t help wondering if the Powers were wrong and that I was still just a mortal but before the night had passed, I died and woke back up. I was covered in dried blood but the wound was completely healed and the spent bullet was laying on the ground beside me.”

“What happened to him luv.” Spike asked, unaware that his eyes were a bright gold instead of their human blue. The thought of her dying alone in some alley, killed by the very people she once gave her life to save, had his demon surging inside him with the need to hunt the man down and destroy him.

Buffy looked into his eyes, trying to think over all she had come to know about Spike and his human side William. As Spike he had kept his word about their truce to stop Angelus and she had seen how devoted he had been to Dru on several occasions. Now during the one night they had spent together as friends instead of allies or enemies he had shown her a side of himself, she didn’t think very few beings got to see. He was still charming, still witty but softer, not weak just like the demon’s rough edges were smoothed down. With Angel and Angelus they were like night and day, evil and good but William and Spike were more like partners. The man and demon merge together to fill the missing pieces in the other and it made him an incredible person…a stronger person.

When it came down to it, she felt like she knew him, all of him and in turn she felt safe letting him see all of her. Trusting her instinct, she told him about meeting the gypsies and how they had taught her how to harness the magicks inside her. “So I did a spell on the bullet, one that caused all his bad acts to haunt his dreams and wouldn’t stop until he confessed to his crimes. Just before I left, I saw he had turned himself in and justice was done.”

“Bloody hell pet, you’re full of surprises tonight.” Spike said with a light laugh, more than a little amused how she had appeased her morality with her need for justice. It was also a little sadistic, that she had more or less done the same thing to her killer that had been done to Angel. Letting the guilt make him suffer more than any kind of physical torture ever would since there was no way to escape what is inside you. The girl had a perverse streak in her and he loved it. “Blighter got what he deserved luv, I’m right proud of you on that bit of magick.”

Grinning, she arched her eyebrow knowing exactly why he liked her actions. It wasn‘t exactly the kindest thing she‘d ever done but he had killed her and two other helpless people, so he was particularly low on her deserving of mercy scale. But Spike had inadvertently, given her the key to convincing him to do this. “Then you're going to love this part. My magicks are why the others can’t find me. I’ve used a spell that diffuses my presence and anchors it all to my immortality instead of my Slayerness. So since they don’t know I’m immortal, they’re trying to find a Slayer, just like the way the Council found me after I was called. They haven’t show up in Europe looking for me yet so that can only mean their spells keeps honing in on Faith. But sooner or later Angel’s going to fess up about marking me and it’s not something my spell can scatter. It isn’t a part of me I’ve embraced, it was something done to me and the only way to break the blood magicks is to be drained dry, because apparently the claim didn‘t break with my other death. If it had my mom would have been frantic during my next call to her. They may be trying to hide the fact they're looking for me from her but if they were sure I was dead, they'd tell her.”


For a moment he believed that she had been planning this all along, played nice so that he’d help her hide but the look in her eyes when he told her about the claim wasn’t something anyone could fake. It was to stark, to pained to be false and even though he didn’t cast a reflection he knew that look of betrayal had haunted his eyes throughout his unnaturally long life.

But while her plan would work, there was one thing she hadn’t considered and if he didn’t tell her, she would feel betrayed once again. “Retired or not Buffy, your blood is still Slayer blood and if I drink you down, I’ll get stronger just like I did after killing the other two. You’re blood is special, it doesn’t just feed our kind it alters us. We don’t just take power we take you inside us, which is why I recon the Master drowned you instead of finishing you off with his fangs. Vamps like Angelus and the Master think human emotions weaken them and when you drain a Slayer you get power but also a whole bunch of humanity to go along with it. I was always a bit more human than normal vampires and that made my demon less powerful but once I bagged my first Slayer the human part of me may have increased but so did my demon, because by then it was used to my humanity. Dru got a good dose of it from drinking from me all those years, which is why the Judge said we stank of humanity while Angelus couldn‘t be burned. So if I help you pet, I‘ll recon I‘ll be as powerful as Angelus because I wasn‘t that far behind before this.”


“I always figured it would make you stronger if we did this Spike but I believe in you.” Buffy admitted honestly, his words only confirming everything she thought about him. “I know you haven’t fed on the living since we met up here, not because I’ve been following you around or anything, but because I know you don’t break your promises. You may have never given me the words but I read them in your eyes that night and you gave me your word and that‘s enough for me. But I‘m glad to know that doing this will help you as well because even though Angelus can‘t come back, I doubt you and Angel will ever be friends. He‘ll never see you as anything but his grand-childe and if this will give you the power to be your own man, then you deserve that.”


Spike loved the way that sounded and he couldn’t resist placing a soft kiss on the hand wrapped around his own. He knew she wouldn’t be considering this is her feelings for him hadn’t changed but he was touched that she was already treating him like a equal. By doing this it would help her but she also wanted to help him, which was more than Dru had ever done. He’d been crippled after doing the ritual needed to restore her strength and even before Angelus showed back up, she’d turned his care over to the minions while she sought out her own pleasures elsewhere. More than anything it was becoming crystal clear that the woman at his side was the one he wanted to remain there. “If this is what you want Buffy, I’ll help you.”

Chapter 5

______________________


“So how do we…uhh…do this?” Buffy asked, flushing slightly. The situation was different that any other time she had been bit but the time with Angel had been highly erotic. Having his fangs piece her flesh was as intimate as taking his cock inside her body and since just sitting this close to Spike had caused her flesh to tingle, she didn’t want to use the situation to clarify how she felt about him. They were doing this as friends and it would be wrong to lead him on, just to see if the spark she felt every time he was around would burn out of flame up.


Spike caught the barest hint of her arousal and tried to keep his face unaffected. “I’ve got feeling for you pet, so anyway we do this is, it’s going to feel intimate…it doesn’t help that biting is a part of foreplay for my kind.”


Startled that his feeling might be like her own, she tried to remain calm. “What kind of feelings do you have Spike? Are we just good pals helping each other out or do you have…uhh…feely type feelings?”


Unable to help it he smirked at her. “Feely, feelings eh?”


Blushing, she couldn’t help laughing at how ridiculous she must sound. Just like the old adage said, if you couldn’t talk about sex you shouldn’t be having it…“I’m thinking about sex?”


“Are you now pet?” Spike asked cockily, hoping she hadn't notice he had taken a deep unneeded breath at her words.


Feeling even more heat rush to her face as she realized she must have said that aloud, she took a minute to think over her options. She could play the naïve schoolgirl or she could honestly discuss how she was feeling without shame. “I didn’t mean to say that aloud but let’s just say you’ve been doing guest spots in my dreams since that night.”


“Bloody hell, why didn’t you just call me then?“ Spike asked wondering how tonight seemed destined to change everything between them. The other night was a charade based on truth but this was them being honest with each other and about their needs. “I’ve been going out of my mind wanting to touch you.”


“I didn’t call because I feel the exact same way.” Buffy said softly, looking up to meet his eyes. “We’ve been enemies for so long and after being just us for a single night, I suddenly can’t get you out of my mind. I want you, want to explore the way you make me feel and I haven’t felt like that since…”


“Since Angel.” Spike said finally beginning to understand. “Just like him I am vampire and you’re afraid if we do this I’ll hurt you, like he did.”


“I’m afraid we‘ll hurt each other and neither one of us need anymore relationship based pain.” Buffy corrected him firmly as her insides becoming a wriggling mass of self-doubt. “Like me you’re the kind of person that loves with all they are and doesn’t let go until all hope is gone. I not a fool Spike, I know that the second we cross the line of our friendship we won’t just be dating…we’ll be together entirely. My Slayer and your demon are animalistic, primitive and its part of our nature to seek out a mate. There won’t be a slow fall; I wanted him the night we met before I even understood what I wanted and it was the same with you, only this time I know exactly what it means. Angel and I dated but that was just because he was trying to deny what we both felt and not because we wanted time to get to know each other better. The moment we looked into each other’s eyes that part of our being recognized one another, the same way you and I understand one another. I didn’t need to try out our friendship and let it grow like I did with Willow and Xander because I saw everything I needed to know when you smiled at me. It will be the same thing if we become lovers…the feelings will come hard and fast and they’re won’t be time to back off before someone gets hurts.”


He didn’t like hearing about her and Angel but once again he couldn’t deny what she was saying. Buffy had a way of getting right to the heart of the matter, cutting through all the bullshit that usually came with relationships. Human’s dated to build a connection but Slayers and Vampires weren’t human, they were predators inside human shells. It didn’t matter if they both embraced their humanity; that primal link back to the beginning of time connected them. “Buffy I can’t promise that neither one of us will never hurt the other but I can tell you that if we don’t take a risk, a chance, we’ll never know if we’ve found the one person that we’ve been searching for…the person who makes us whole.”


“Spike, I need another promise…one I’ll gladly give you in return.” Buffy said shifting in her seat so that they were now facing one another. “No lies, I want whatever we have to be based on the truth and I don’t want us to hide what we truly are from one another. I know you’ve got more than a few bodies in your past just like you know I’ll continue slaying your kind and if you can accept that, I have no problem with the fact you’re a vampire. Actually…it’s kind of one of the things I like about you.”


Arching his eyebrow he gave her an amused look. “So the girl likes a bit of a monster in her man, eh.”


Rolling her eyes she got to her feet and began to furiously pace around the room. “Why is that such a damn surprise to everyone? Hell, I have super strength, hearing and senses, so why does everyone act so shocked that I am attracted to people that also have those qualities? So what, you happen to be a vampire and sure as a Slayer I’m only suppose to see you as an enemy but then again Slayers aren’t suppose to have significant others; so that more or less shows I don’t really sweat the rules much. Not to mention the whole not aging thing, I’m not so superficial that I’d dump someone because they aged and I didn’t, but I can’t see myself loving someone who won’t be around as long as I am going to be. Knowing that I’d wake up some morning after fifty or so years and he’d be gone, doesn’t really work for me. Sure you can get dusted tomorrow but then again, you could live to be a thousand. So…”


The smell of her arousal and anger were a potent combination and he’d heard more than enough. Getting to his feet he jerked her around mid-rant before crushing his lips to hers. She let out a small gasp but her strong arms wrapped around him pulling him closer.


Surrendering to the fire that flared to life between them, clothes were shoved to the floor as their hands sought out flesh and neither one particularly cared about what state their clothing ended in as long as it was off.


In an tangle of limbs, they sank down to the floor, their mouths fused together as their kiss continued. When she pulled away to gather air into her burning lungs, he took a second to take in the sight of her flushed body laid out under him. “So fucking beautiful.” He mumbled reverently as he lowered his mouth to taste her pale dusky nipple. Swirling his tongue around the pebbled bud, he reached down to trace his hand down to trace the lips of her pussy. Growling when he felt the moisture already gathered there, he knew that this first time wouldn’t be gentle but they’d both be sated entirely before it was over. It was fitting in a way, their first joining should be as powerful as the feelings pulsing inside them.


Writhing as his thumb glided over her clit continuously, she arched her back off the floor when she felt his fingers slid inside her, stretching her for what was to come. Speech had failed her, as body smoldered every where he touched her and as she felt her climax building inside her, she didn’t bother to hold back the low guttural moans his ministrations brought to her throat.


Fuck she’s responsive, he thought as she enjoyed herself in complete abandon. He doubted she even realized her nails had left long weeping furrows down his back, rising his own arousal to a point that his throbbing cock had become painful. “That’s it baby, cum for me…gonna make you feel so fucking good luv.” He promised her, before capturing her nipple between his blunt human teeth and biting down lightly.


The result was almost instantaneous, that small bite of pain sent her sweet juices flooding over his fingers and before she could even take a single breath, he’d pulled out his fingers and rammed his cock inside her. Their eyes met for a moment as her muscles continued to clench around him and both of them realized that from that moment on there would be no other.


Joined together, holding nothing back they knew they were with the one person that could destroy them utterly or make this life worth living. It didn’t matter that his soul was lost, because it had gone to her and she had carried inside her all this time, warming it with her own. She was his mate, his beginning and end and he’d remake hell itself before anyone or anything came between them.


Fuelled by almost an insane desire to possess her he surged into her at a punishing pace and his girl met him trust for thrust. Her legs wrapped around him, holding him as her willing captive as they lost themselves in one another entirely. It was as if every fevered touch erased all the hands that had touched them in the past, reclaiming what was theirs and when Spike felt his own peak drawing near, he met her eyes once more.


Even in this wild state, he wouldn’t take anything that wasn’t freely offered and that made the choice for her. Rising herself up, she honed in on his sire’s scar and bit into it with her human teeth, tearing through the flesh as if she had fangs. Drinking deeply of his blood, she let his essence fill her and as if she had been borne to them, the ancient magick of his kindred filled her body. The incantation floated through her mind, burning his presence within her skin and she pulled away to meet his eyes. “Mine.” She said firmly, her voice thick with unspent passion and need.


“Yours.” He agreed before lowering his mouth to the Master and Angel’s mark. He hadn’t just offered to belong to her, he had silently asked if she would be his and now all that remained was for him to compete the magicks she had began. Once his fangs pieced her and the elixir of her blood spilled into his mouth, his release overtook him and at the first pull of her blood, she shattered around him. Drinking all that she was inside him as the clinching walls of her pussy milked his cock for every drop of his cum, he felt all that she was, contained with him.


Moments before her heart stopped entirely he pulled his mouth away and stared down at her with his true face. “Mine.” He said with a deep resounding growl.


“Yours.” She promised, brining him down for the softest of kisses, before closing her eyes as death overtook her.


When her eyes closed, Spike couldn’t help but wonder what would happen when they opened again. He had led her into an emotional land-mine tonight and he was more than a little afraid that she’d think he’d used that to get what he wanted. They had their own history and while it wasn’t the typical type of thing to build a relationship on, being enemies had had given them insights into one another that a friend or lover might never see. In life and death battles the best and worst parts of a persons character surfaced and at that time a person is their most honest. You can’t hold back or else it could mean your death and it was the same thing when you made love the first time. Despite the urgency and wildness of the moment, they hadn’t been fucking, they had opened themselves to one another to explore the spark between them. It wasn’t about flesh meeting flesh, it was about reaching out for the one thing that seemed just beyond their reach and finally taking it.


Now all that there was left to do was wait and see if she’d feel the same way once the haze of need had cleared, Spike decided scooping her into his arms and carrying her to bed.

Chapter 6

______________________________

Slowly Buffy opened her eyes and the first thing she noticed was a pair of blue eyes filled with questions staring through her and into her very soul with an almost physical intensity. Smiling she wrapped the sheet around her and scooted over, patting the space beside her.

Taking it as a good sign, Spike quickly left the uncomfortable chair he had pulled beside the bed and climbed in next to her. When she instantly curled up against him and laid her head against his chest, he felt a great deal of the weight he had been carrying slip off his shoulders. “Are you alright luv?”

“Peachy, dying is a really restful.” Buffy admitted, relieved about how comfortable this all felt. She had spent a week thinking about whether to move closer to Spike and instead of slowly building into it, she had jumped in with both feet without ever knowing if she’d be getting in over or head or not. It was by far the most impulsive thing she had ever done in her life but she didn’t regret it. How could she was being with him like this seemed so incredibly right. “How long was I gone?”

“Couple of hours…they were the longest hours of my unlife pet.” Spike admitted in an almost whisper. He was terrified of saying the wrong thing or worse, hearing her say that what happened between them was a mistake made in the heat of the moment.

“Because you were afraid I wouldn’t come back or because you were afraid of what I’d say when I did?” Buffy asked tilting her face up so she could look at him. She could feel the tension inside him as if it was her own and she wanted to do what ever it took to make this work. As crazy as it sounded, she couldn’t help thinking that fate had finally done her a favor. What were the odds that she and Spike would both be finding themselves at the same time they found each other?

“A bit of both pet.” He admitted with a light laugh.

“Spike we could sit here trying to rationalize things or analyze how we ended up here but to be honest I don’t care how it happened, I’m just glad it did.” Buffy reached over and took his hand in her own, trying to think of the words that explained the unexplainable. When in doubt, it’s always a good idea to go with the truth and start at the begining, she decided when the words refused to reveal themselves. “Last year I was lost and confused, not sure of anything anymore, least of all myself. The farther I got away, the more I started second guessing myself and by the time the plane landed, I realized I had been doing that a lot. I never considered myself the type of person to hesitate, to evaluate every single choice I made from every possible angle and I thought it was because of becoming the Slayer. I never got a choice in that but as the Slayer I never doubted myself. I was confident and in control in that role but when it came to my personal life I faltered every step of the way. I was constantly looking to the past for answers to my current situation and after that thing with Angelus I told myself I would always look before I leaped. Then I slowly walked away from everything that I knew and found you along the way. The girl that left Sunnydale would have never invited you to sit down, would have never seen you as anything but a killer, but I’m not that girl anymore. She grew up and realized that not everything is in black and white and that sometimes you can look at something a hundred times and never really see it for what it is. Then if you take a few steps forward or back, you can see it differently and the picture finally becomes clear. Now that I have done that, I can see I was never really happy there…not because of my life as the Slayer but just because of my life in general. I knew my part in the group, my role in their lives but I didn’t know me…didn’t know what I wanted.”

“So when everything seemed to change, things got worse?” Spike said gently.

“I was always afraid that they’d leave me behind ya know.” Buffy admitted with a slight shake of her head. “They spent hours talking about life after high school, about getting out into the real world and embracing their futures and I didn’t know where I’d fit in. I wasn’t going to age like they did and eventually they’d all have families of their own. Families that would take them out of my world of demons and monsters and into a world of PTA meetings and soccer practices. Responsible parents can’t risk their lives fighting the forces of darkness with little ones waiting for their mommy and daddy to come home safe and sound, which is why I was glad I had Angel. I could share the future with him because he was on the same path I was, there weren’t kids in his future or wrinkles and we both would always have the fight…the mission. Being a Champion, having a grand purpose is such a lonely path to walk and I wanted more than that. I wanted someone I could just be with between the apocalypses and the big fights that were going to come. I couldn’t have a normal life but that didn’t mean I couldn’t come home and fall asleep in the arms of my loved one or just go out and live in the world we both fought so hard to save.”

“Then he said he was leaving.” Spike asked finally understanding why she had walked away and just kept going.

“Bingo.” She admitted ruefully. “He was the person I was counting on to anchor myself in this world when it changed with time. He knew my past, knew the same people I knew and like me he was a super strong and immortal. I loved him before I knew I was going to live a really, really long time but knowing that we had the forever he promised made it all that much more powerful. Then suddenly, in a fricking sewer of all places, he tells me it’s over, that I don’t know what I want and that he’s only gonna stick around until we stop the Mayor. That made it worse, he wasn’t staying because he wanted to be around me, even if it was only a few moments longer, he was just there for his atonement. So then the fight happens, the day’s saved and I’m staring at the rubble wondering why I even bothered. That pissed me off, I just defeated the big bad and I was wondering what I had to live for. He was my everything and suddenly I realized how sad that was. So I decided to leave and find out who I am without him and the others and after a while I began to have faith in myself again. I trust my instincts again and when our eyes met, I wanted everything I could see there. I wanted the laughter, the love and the devotion and I wanted to share it with you. That was the greatest thing Faith taught me, want, take, have and damn the consequences. Of course we we‘re in the middle of a crime spree at the time, which wasn’t soo good, but you gotta admit as far as relationships go, it‘s good advice.”

Chuckling, he wrapped his arms around her and just took a moment to appreciate the irony of fate. He’d spent centuries trying to generate this kind of intimacy with Dru and when he least expected it, all that he ever dreamed of having, in either of his lives, was suddenly here in his arms.

He knew of course that there would be times when they drove each other bleeding insane, what with his sarcastic nature and her blistering temper but that only made what they had more real. This wasn’t some fairy tale romance that ended with happily ever after it was them living together in the real world, a world where couples fought and loved in equal measure. “So you’re my girl, damn the consequences but what happens now?”

“What do you mean?” Buffy asked, liking the way his rich voice had sounded when he called her his girl. It gave her all those delicious tickles across her skin, that every girl dreamed of having with her significant other. That bliss of knowing that you belonged to someone, someone you loved and that you were theirs. She couldn’t give him the words yet, despite the rapid progression of their relationship but then again it would mean more to them both if they waited. Then when the feelings inside them had become to much to contain, the words were slip across their lips like a vow. Yep, that was definitely worth waiting for, she decided, brushing her hand down his impossibly defined chest.

“Well luv, we’re mated and normally when something like that happens the happy couple doesn’t live in a hotel...even a posh one like this.” He said, doing his best to concentrate with her clever hands stroking over his body like a virtuoso who had played his senses so often that they had mastered them.

“Okay, so we’re newlyweds, with no home and no idea of what happens next...” Buffy scrunched up her face for a moment. “I left home with twenty-five grand and I have around twenty left, so if we can live off five thou a year, we don’t have to worry about money for atleast four years. Unless you know, we want a house and little luxuries like food and stuff.”

“How in the bloody hell did you travel across Europe for an entire year and only spend five thousand dollars?” Spike asked, genuinely impressed.

“Easy, I made friends.” Buffy admitted laying back in his arms so she could look up at him without getting a crick in her neck. “In Ireland, I made friends with the lady who owned the inn I stayed at and she liked me a lot, so she refused to let me pay when I left. So I used that money to buy my ticket out. In Rome I made friends with the gypsies and they’re good friends with this wickedly powerful guy called the Immortal...”

“YOU MET THE IMMORTAL!” Spike asked, his eyes flashing yellow as he thought about his girl around that vilest creature hell spat out.

“Yeah, he’s a little arrogant but he’s a pretty good guy to have on your side because he’s got that whole place wired.” Buffy said, guessing their was a long bitter story behind Spike’s outburst. “We actually got to be pretty good friends, so if we run into him again please be nice.”

“Nice?” Spike sputtered out before quickly telling her about how the last time he had run into the bastard. “Concurrently Buffy, he violated our women at the same bloody time and wouldn’t even face us himself. So there is no bloody way I‘m letting my mate anywhere near the black hearted bastard.”

“First of all ewww.” Buffy said knowing that a threesome between those particular people was a mental picture she could have lived without. “And secondly, Gabe and I are just friends. I knew right off he was this big time player and I made it pretty clear I wasn’t interested. Which now that I know that story, I am really glad I passed but he’s all with the demon hunting...or actually the demon regulating. He more or less makes sure the demons behave themselves in whatever city he’s in and I took care of a few bloodthirsty pests for him. In return he made sure I was taken care of and every time I tried to pay for something, I was informed it was already taken care of by him.”

“Sounds like the git was trying to buy your charms luv, it was a good thing you left.” Spike said, silently promising himself they would never return to that bastard's accursed lands.

“I guess it’s not a good time to tell you he gave me my very own villa, then huh.” Buffy said trying to be completely honest but still just wanting to rile Spike up. He was actually really sexy all growly and jealous, she thought smiling innocently into his flashing eyes.

“He did what?” Spike asked in a low and dangerous voice.

“Gave me a villa, it’s really beautiful there; it even has a small vineyard and a big ass swimming pool.” Buffy said deliberately egging him on for the big finale. “But since I did save him from a demon that figured out how to kill him, it seemed so important to him that he show his appreciation and I felt like I couldn’t refuse.”

“You saved his life?” Spike said in a high strangled voice like he had all the air forced out of him from a crushing blow. Angel and he didn’t agree on much but on the subject of the Immortal they were both of a like mind; he deserved to be die as painfully as possible.

“Yep, but honey I don’t think you’re seeing the big picture here.” Buffy said giving him a wickedly sinful smile. “He didn’t even get smoochies but I got a house, a house that you and I can visit.”

Liking the way that sounded, he rethought his view on taking a trip that way. He’d show up with the girl Angel had lost and the bloody Immortal couldn‘t get, as his claimed mate and that was the best kind of revenge their was. “I recon we could spend our honeymoon there luv...I always did fancy Rome in the winter.”

“Sure you did sweetheart.” Buffy said with a roll of her eyes. She was a hundred percent certain that if she got those two in a room together they’d become fast friends now that Dru was out of the picture, because they were a lot alike. Despite Gabriel’s airs, he was a troublemaker by nature, not vicious but more of the naughty prankster variety and he could give both Spike and Cordy lessons in sarcasm. “Anyway, I want to go somewhere sunny and tropical for our honeymoon.”

“Vampire luv, sunny and I, equal big pile of dust.” Spike reminded her, finally realizing he had played into the chit’s hand. She had it in her head to get him and the Immortal together and she used his own arrogant nature against him. He wanted to be pissed but it was so damn endearing he couldn’t muster up any anger about being played like a damn fiddle.

“Duh, retired Slayer here but as much as I loved England I just can’t do gloomy and damp anytime soon.” Buffy said with a deep sigh. “Besides England was where I spent most of my cash but since there was tons of cheap ways to pass the time, I only had to pay for my room and food. Well that and Portabello road just is not a safe place for a shopaholic like myself.”

“I’m not exactly a pauper luv, I’ve been alive for more than a century and since I never paid unless I felt like it, I have more than enough money to indulge my girl.” Spike said hoping that he would be the one to shock her for once. He had almost not mentioned the part about him killing instead of paying but she knew his past and asked him to not pretend with her, which was exactly what he planned on doing.

“How much money are you talking about?” Buffy asked, deciding it was better not to dwell on where he had gotten it to begin with. It was not only possible but very likely that people had been killed in the process but since he couldn’t unmake the past, all he could do is not massacre or kill anymore. Besides, if Spike was a part of her life that meant fighting the good fight and while they hadn’t talked about it, she didn’t see him staying home while she marched off to stop the end of the world.

So if Angel could make amends for his past by helping the innocent, then so could Spike. Actually it was better because Spike was doing it of his own free will and since he’d already helped save the world once, it had to mean more on the karmic scale. Buffy was idealistic enough to believe that he’d ever feel guilty about his past or help out for any reason other than the fact he was doing it for her but he was a demon and if he could love, they’re was always hope for him.

“Liquid or do you want to go over my investments?” Spike asked arching his eyebrow expectantly.

“Ball park figure.” Buffy asked, idly wondering if all demons of a certain age played the stock market or if it was just a Spike thing. Angel certainly hadn’t talked about where he got his money for apartments and leather jackets, so maybe he spent his free time reading the papers and predicting financial trends.

“Well luv, using your formula I think that as long as we don’t buy a private island, we could safely live the rest of our lives without having to worry about our next meal.” Spike said suddenly adapting the wisdom of all new husbands when their wives asked questions like that. They were mates but seein’ as she was human he could understand her being more comfortable classifying their relationship as a marriage, one where they were bound even beyond death, but basically the same principal. So like an husband whose wife just admitted she had a penchant for shopping, he wasn’t about to tell her exactly how much money she had to spend because she’d use that knowledge to rationalize buying something she wasn’t sure about. Beside, it wasn’t as if he didn’t plan on giving her everything she could ever want...spoiling her was going to be part of the fun.

“Okay but just so you know, I only claimed you because you’re sexy as hell and not because I thought you were an undead Bill Gates.” Buffy teased, deciding that she’d really rather not know after all. It as enough knowing money wasn’t an issue, because they were going to have enough worries as it was. It wasn’t like the vamps were going to congratulate him and she knew that none of her friends would leap for joy if they heard the news.

But her mom...jumping up Buffy looked at him in complete and utter shock. “My mom, I gotta call my mom!”
A little confused by her suddenly shift in topic, it took him a few seconds to understand why she was so frantic. “Bloody hell, the claim.”

“Right I’m dead.” Buffy said already reaching over to grab the phone. “Or I’m gonna be if they talk to her before I do.”

“Lady always was dangerous with an axe.” Spike teased, hoping to soothe her nerves but inside he was wondering how she’d take the news of her only child being mated to a vampire.

“Mom!” Buffy cried out anxiously the moment she picked up the phone. “I’m not dead!”

“Yes, I figured that out since you are talking to me.” Joyce said gently, her voice laced with confusion.

“Oh...well see there’s this thing.” Buffy took a deep breath and quickly told her mother about Angel’s claim and how the other’s would all think she was dead.

“That asshole, when I get my hands on him I’m...”

Startled by the venom of her mother’s tone, Buffy suddenly started laughing mid-rant.

“It’s not funny, he had no right to trap you in such a way Elizabeth.” Joyce said crisply.

Buffy was used to being called her legal name, it was their way of talking all sly like but it always reminded her of being in trouble. Joyce only used it when she was burning down the school upset, which is why none of her friends had any idea but since she had told them about going by Anne in LA, it was the only other option. “It’s alright mom, it actually works in our favor because now they’ll all think I’m dead. So when they tell you act all upset okay, not at Angel, just you know, grieving mother like.”

“How is it possible that your life is even more complicated now, than it used to be.” Joyce asked, shaking her head in dismay. It was amazing what a person could get used to, demons, immortals and frantic phone calls from your daughter telling you she had died...again. “You know you could try to live a bit more, this is getting a bit exhausting.”

“Speaking of living life to the fullest.” Buffy said seizing the opening her mom had just given her. “I married a very wealthy man who adores me as much as I adore him.”

Joyce blinked and took a moment to remember how to breathe. Buffy was married? “Do you love him?”

“Not yet but I’m getting there.” Buffy admitted, giving Spike a gentle smile because she knew he could hear both sides of the conversation clearly. “I have very deep feelings for him but I know without a doubt that he’s the one Mom. We just have this amazing connection that seems to overtake us when were together and things like common sense and time, just don’t seem all that important. With him I just feel complete, like I had all these missing pieces inside me that I never realized were gone until I began to spend time with him. It caught us both by surprise but it’s real and it’s powerful and I know that both of us don’t regret taking this step together. Sometimes you walk away and sometimes you just leap and that‘s what we chose to do.”


Joyce could hear the sincerity in her voice but also the pure unbridled happiness that had been noticeably absent since Buffy had been a little girl. She knew that if she could see her right now, her eyes would be filled with life and there would be a bright smile on her face and that’s all any mother could ask for when it came to her child’s happiness. “So tell me about him.”


“Well he’s gorgeous with these absolutely amazing cheekbones and bluer than blue eyes. Plus, his body...wow, he’s like one of those lust worthy statues that you just want to spend hours staring at.” Buffy said trying to slowly lead her mother in to the shocking part of the news. “He’s a blonde like me, which means it comes from a bottle and he’s got this really deep sensitive side, that he tries to hide behind this bad boy exterior.”


“Does this bad boy, with a sensitive side understand your...uh...situation?” Joyce asked, as Faith walked into the kitchen to raid the fridge.


“Yep, he’s long lived like me but he’s way older.” Buffy said still not ready to come out and say it yet.


“How much older?” Joyce asked, finally beginning to see that Buffy was stalling.


“Well he’s not as old as Angel but he has a century and some change on me.” Buffy said suddenly wondering if she should just hand the phone to Spike and let him tell her the rest.


“I see and is he like your ex in any other ways?” Joyce asked getting a sinking suspicion as her daughter’s description began to form a face in her memory.


“Yep, it’s Spike.” Buffy said closing her eyes and pulling the phone away from her ear just incase their was yelling.

“I see, has he changed drastically since I last met him?” Joyce asked, suddenly wondering if she wanted to know anymore.

“No he’s not cursed or anything but he’s not killing anymore.” Buffy said calmly, bringing the phone back to her ear. “We met up shortly after I got here and now that we didn’t have to be mortal enemies, we just kinda clicked. Then one thing led to another and well we claimed each other, he’s my mate and I’m his. Unlike the Angel‘s claim this one is a forever kind of deal...so you didn‘t miss a wedding or anything but it‘s still the same thing.”

“Are you alright Mom, you’re looking a little freaked.” Faith asked with the juice carton half-way to her lips. Since Joyce had adopted her and made her a Summers, Faith had come to depend on her. She was her foundation and it was the first time anyone in her life, other than Buffy, actually gave a damn about her. But while Buffy had disappeared into thin air, she tried to do her best by the other Summers woman who cared about her.

“A good friend of mine Elizabeth just got married and it took me by surprise honey.” Joyce said giving her other daughter a wan smile.

“So is it a good thing or what?” Faith asked, thinking it wasn’t a good news.

Thinking that over for a second, Joyce tried to remember the time she had spent with Spike and she had to admit she had always liked him. He was very loyal to that Dru person and very respectful, which could be the sensitive side Buffy was talking about. “Are you happy?”

“Yes.” Buffy said softly but the truth of that single word was clear.

“Then I’m happy for you, so where can I send your gift.” Joyce said deciding to once again place her faith in Buffy’s judgment.

“Let me get back to you on that, we were talking over honeymoon places, so I don’t know how long we’re gonna be in Paris.” Buffy said letting out a relieved breath. “Thank you though, it means a lot to us both that you’re okay with this.”

“Is he there with you now, I’d love to say hi.” Joyce said with a chilling smile that had Faith blinking like an owl on cocaine.

Buffy handed over the phone and crawled into his lap so she could hear it all. Slayer hearing was damn good but nowhere as good as vampire hearing.

“Hello Joyce.” Spike said, his voice clear and refined.

“Elizabeth has been though a great deal and she is very important to me. So if you hurt her I swear I will take you apart with my bare hands, are we clear?” Joyce said calmly, as though she wasn’t threatening him at all.

“If I hurt her, I wouldn’t expect anything less.” Spike said sincerely. “I care for her very much and I plan to spend the rest of my days making sure that she is happy and cared for. She’s my entire world now Joyce and I willing to do what it takes to be worthy of her and you.”

“Good.” Joyce said deciding to give him the benefit of the doubt. She had often worried about what would happen to her daughter when everyone she knew died and while Spike had an unsavory past he atleast would be there for her child long after the others were gone. It looked like her son in law was a vampire but if he took care of Buffy and made her happy, she couldn’t hold it against him. It was Buffy’s life after all and if she was happy, which she clearly was, who was she to tell her who she could spend it with. “Take care of each other.”

“We will.” Spike said handing the phone back to Buffy while he struggled to rein in his emotions. He could tell Joyce wasn’t exactly thrilled but she’d more or less given them her approval if not her acceptance and that was more than he had dared to ask for.

“Mom, you’re the best you know that.” Buffy said ith a smile as she was sure she caught the tell-tale sign of happy tears in Spike’s eyes.

“I try.” Joyce said with a sigh of her own.

“So now that you’ve threatened William and welcomed him to the family, I better let you go while we figure out our next destination.” Buffy said never feeling father away from her mother than she did at this moment. She had always dreamed of her mom and her sharing this day and now she was an ocean away. It didn’t matter that it wasn’t a normal wedding with a white dress and all that, it was the sentiment of the thing that counted and more than anything she wished she could share that with her. “I miss you mommy.”

“Me to.” Joyce said wishing she could say more but knowing that with Faith in the room she couldn’t. “Call me as soon as you can, since Buffy’s been gone it’s nice to keep in touch with everyone else.”

“Sure thing mom, take care of Faith for me okay.” Buffy said easily, sniffling back her own tears.

“Faith and I are both just fine and you take care of that new husband of yours.” Joyce said with a soft smile as her own tears filled her eyes.

“Count on it...call you soon. I love you.” Buffy hung up, without saying goodbye or waiting for a response and the second she did she found herself wrapped up in a pair of strong arms.

“You know luv, I hear California is the place to be this time of year...sunny and such.” Spike said gently, understanding how hard this all must be for his precious mate. Fate had cheated her out of so many things, he didn’t have the heart to deny giving her what he could. “LA is a big town, only a couple hours drive away from just about everywhere and a young couple such as ourselves would blend in there just fine. You know if anyone was looking for us.”

“Do you mean it Spike?” Buffy asked, looking up at him. “You know that if we go back there, they could find us.”

“Let them come luv, they can’t hurt us now.” Spike said firmly. They would try of course but he wasn’t about to let anyone take her from him.

A few short hours later, Joyce pulled open her from door. “Giles what brings you by?”

“Can I come in for a few moments?” Giles asked trying to keep his face carefully blank despite the fact his own grief was like a raw weeping wound inside his heart.

“Sure.” Joyce stepped back to let them in, making sure her face looked suitably wary. “Should I call Faith down?”

“I think that would be for the best.” Giles said trying to give her an encouraging smile only to find out his mouth refused to cooperate.

Once Faith had joined them and everyone was seated, Giles filled Joyce in on vampire claims and the one Angel had placed on Buffy.

“Listen to me, I’ve told you Buffy doesn’t want to be found and you all should respect that. I don’t care what sort of claim Angel has on her, it’s clear that she wants a life away from here and I don’t blame her.” Joyce said calmly, with just the right amount of heat in her voice. “Faith has made it clear that she wants to continue being the Slayer, that she is happy here and I accept that because she is now just as much my daughter as Buffy is but Buffy doesn’t want that life anymore and I’m not about to let anyone force her back into it.”

“Joyce, no matter how I say this it won’t be easy for you to hear but we are confident that Buffy is...deceased.” Giles said trying to hold onto his emotions as he told them the news. “Angel felt her die through the claim and had she been resuscitated like before or even sired as a vampire the claim would have reasserted itself. It did not so that can mean only one thing, Buffy is no longer alive in any form. I am terribly sorry, we did every spell we could think of to search her out, to give us some measure of hope to cling to but once again they all failed. The claim was our last tangible connection to her and now that it is gone, there is no other choice but to accept that she is gone as well.”

Joyce thought about missing her daughter’s wedding and the tears came to her eyes, like a faucet being turned on. Sobbing openly, she blindly reached out for Faith’s hand and felt guilty for the tears streaking down her own face. “She loved us both Faith, don’t let her leaving make you think any different. The night she left she asked me to look after you because she realized we needed each other and she was right. I couldn’t love you anymore than if I had given birth to you myself but don’t think, even for a moment that I took you in as some sort of obligation to her or that you are nothing more than her replacement. As far as I am concerned you are both my daughters and I love you for you, just like I loved her for just being Buffy.”

“Do you...do you think she forgave me?” Faith asked in a trembling voice.

“I’m certain of it baby, she loved you as a sister and I heard how proud of you she was that night.” Joyce said pulling her into her arms for a fierce hug. “You fought beside her when she need you and that meant more to her than you can ever imagine.”

Giles allowed the women a few moments to grieve before bringing up the other matters surrounding Buffy’s death. “The children and I were wondering what kind of service you wished to hold for her? None of us wish to allow her passing to go unmarked and all of us would gladly help you out in any way. Naturally the Watcher‘s Council will cover all the expenses.”

Joyce thought it over for a few seconds, knowing this kind of details had to be dealt with. “I don’t want a funeral or a grave. Buffy spent more than enough time in cemeteries during her life as it was. I think she was happiest at the Bronze with the others, so perhaps they will allow us to place some sort of memorial there. A plaque of some kind and instead of a wake, which we both always found depressing, I want to hold a celebration in honor of her life instead of one to mark her death.”

Giles thought her ideas were odd to say the least but when he thought of his Slayer, the daughter of his heart, he had to admit it seemed to suit her. “I have no doubt that we can convince the owner, Buffy responded to trouble there enough times to merit such treatment.” If not, I’m sure a visit from Angel would convince him of that, Giles thought grimly. The vampire was a emotionless shell, barely alive and he knew he would find some measure of comfort by playing some part in the arrangements.

“If you don’t mind Giles, I’d really rather deal with the rest later.” Joyce said getting to her feet. “I just want to come to terms with everything.”

Giles instantly got to his feet. “Of course, Buffy was truly a remarkable young woman and she will be sorely missed.”

“She loved you like a father Giles and she wouldn’t want you or anyone for that matter to blame yourselves.” Joyce said, tearfully. “She may have left but she wanted you all to be happy, so try to remember that. At times like these that’s all any of us have left, the memories.”

Chapter 7

___________________


“Alright sweet, what do you want to do first?” Spike asked as the wondered around downtown Los Angeles. They had arrived the night before, in a private jet chartered for them by the bloody immortal no less and now they had a list of real estate to check out. He wasn’t about to admit it, but the git had actually been very personable over their phone conversations. “I say since the Immortal’s paying, we check out the most expensive places first.”


Buffy rolled her eyes and squeezed Spike’s hand tightly to let him know he wasn't fooling her a bit. Gabe had insisted he be allowed to purchase their LA home, as a wedding gift to her and an apology to Spike for their past. He was sure they’d still summer in Europe and Buffy could tell that both men had taken a liking to one another during the phone calls they had shared. Spike had insisted she call to tell Gabe the news about their marriage, just like she had called Brenna and from there everything seemed to just happen at once.


Before she realized what had happened, they were packing up to get on a private flight back to the states and once they got on the plane there was a list of available real estate and a blank check. Which led to another phone call, one in which Spike accused Gabe of thinking he couldn’t tend to his mate and while she wasn’t really sure how it happened, Spike seemed to think the Immortal was so bad after all. Men…she thought shaking her head as she glanced down the list. “Here’s my question Spike, why is there a fricking hotel on this list? I mean what in the hell would we do with all that room?”


“Easy luv, the git plans on visiting and I doubt he travels without a sodden entourage.” Spike said with a shrug before he realized something else. “Might not be such a bad idea to check it out though, plenty of room to move around during the day.”


Since she could only imagine what it must be like for him to spend all day inside, that definitely went in the plus column. She scanned over the sheet, noting the large basement an indoor pool as well as an enclosed courtyard and suddenly it didn’t seem like such a crazy idea after all. They could swim together or she could go outside and sun while he was just a few feet away. It seemed perfect for their uncommon situation. “Maybe if we like it, we could spring for some of that necro-glass that was on the plane. You know, get you hours of non-flamey goodness.”


Excited now, he gave her an almost giddy smile. “Let’s go take a look see then. It's just west of here in what used to be the heart of Hollywood.”


Deciding to walk, they strolled down the sidewalks hand in hand as Spike read the details of the place aloud. “Sixty-eight rooms, California Spanish Deco influence, built sometime in the late 1920’s. The Hyperion closed in in 79’ but this bit of paper doesn’t say why, so it’s probably going to need a bit of repairs.”


“OOhh, does that mean I’ll get to see you with a big old tool belt doing fixy things?” Buffy asked, leaning over to nip his earlobe as the mental picture of that little scene caused her to feel very warm.


“Not bloody likely, that’s why I always kept a few minions around.” Spike said, seconds before the scent of her arousal reached his nostrils.


“Well we’re a minion free couple now, so I guess we’ll hire a contractor and he’ll bring in handy-man goodness.” She said giving him her most innocent expression.


Stopping, her pulled her against his chest and kissed her breathless, before giving her ass a fond squeeze. “What was that again luv?”


“Okay.” Buffy said after catching her breath. “We can hire non-eye-candy demons but they can’t be slay worthy. Plus you can’t keep them; if you want a pet I’ll get you a puppy or something.”


Spike considered her compromise and figured it was workable. “Alright luv, I’m sure I can find one of the non-lethal crews about. Bracken’s are good with their hands but they’re green, spikey little blighters.”


“Spikey as in?” Buffy asked, arching her eyebrow.


“As in covered in spikes, like a sodden porcupine luv.” Spike said wrapped his arm around her shoulders as they drew closer to the address.


“Our life is a little weird, ya know that?” Buffy asked cuddling against him. “I mean other couples fight about getting foreign or domestic maids and we debate about human or non-human crews.”


“Yeah, we’re just lucky I guess.” Spike said, finding their banter amusing. Dru wasn’t much for talking, what with her being out of her gourd most of the time and he hadn’t realized how much he missed having actual conversations.


“We really are.” Buffy agreed with a dazzling smile that had several men on the sidewalk glancing her way. Not seeing them she continued. “Sure we’re a little, okay a lot with the non-conventional but that just makes what we have more special.”


Spike noticed the looks she was getting and let his eyes flash yellow. When the blighters decided the ground was more interesting than his beautiful mate, Spike leaned over and pressed a gentle kiss against her hair. When his girl was happy she seemed to glow brighter than all the stars in the heavens and it was easy to believe she was the very personification of true beauty. He couldn’t blame the gits for looking, hell he’d devoured her with his eyes when he was supposed to be killing her but he was jealous by nature and if anyone did more than look he’d rip off their arms and beat them to death with their bloodied appendages.


Buffy sensed his less than pristine thoughts through their bond and elbowed him in the ribs sharply. “No killing, you’re retired remember.”


Mentally cursing because he’d forgotten that the claim allowed them to feel each others thoughts, he gave her his most innocent smile. “Just a harmless daydream pet, think nothing of it.”


Taking a few moments, she tried to put herself in his place and since violence was just as much a part of his nature as it was hers, she could see how hard it must be to give up the kill. So if he wanted to indulge a few bloody fantasies, who was she to complain. “I’m not worried but if you’re after a little bloodshed we could patrol later.”


“Sounds good pet.” He admitted honestly as the pulled to a stop in front of the building. It had been a while since he’d had a spot of violence and with all the power of her blood coursing inside him he needed a bit of a release.


They both just looked at it a few seconds before turning back to look at each other. “You feel that right.” Buffy asked, her eyes going dark with an almost primal power.


“Yeah, some nasty is inside.” Spike said with a smirk. They had already decided they wanted the place during the walk over, it was an impulsive choice just like their mating but that attitude seemed to work for them. “Don’t know about you pet but I think it’s time we take what’s ours.”


“Oh, yeah.” Buffy agreed kicking open the door with a flourish. “You can carry me over the threshold when there are not things to kill.” She said with a wry grin before they made their way inside.


She had taken only a few steps when Spike laid his hand on her arm. “There’s a human around luv and judging by the smell they're a bit antsy. So watch yourself.”


She nodded before silently slipping into the shadows of the large spacious lobby in a way only a true hunter could accomplish.


Taking a deep breath Spike let his face shift as he began to track the scent and on silent feet he made his way through the room. A few minutes later he smirked as he came up behind a tall men decked in leather, clutching a cross bow. It would have made Spike more cautious if the man didn’t reek of fear but since he did, Spike decided to play with him a bit. “Look at you mate, trembling like a lost little lamb…just waitin’ to be gobbled up by the big bad wolf.” Ignoring his high, almost girlish scream Spike easily knocked the weapon out of his trembling hands before slowly advancing on him.


On the other side of the building near the back of the stairs Buffy recognized that scream and blindly ran towards the source. In less than two minutes she was inside the small office. Spike had him cowering against the wall in the corner of the room, snarling in full game face and Buffy couldn’t help the tiny sliver of excitement that danced down her spine. It was twisted but she had to admit, Spike was incredibly sexy in his big bad mode. Walking up behind him, she slipped her arm around his waist and when his golden yellow eyes landed on her, she gave him a saucy wink. “Is that any way to treat an old friend of mine Spike?”


Recognizing the voice, Wes looked up and gaped at the sight of the lost Slayer with her arm around the thing that had trapped him; suddenly realizing he wasn’t going to make it out of this alive. “You’ve been turned.” He said trying to remain calm and atleast go out with some semblance of dignity.


“Nope, I’m still me.” Buffy said, deciding to put Wes out of his misery. She wanted him to be scared so he wouldn’t run off and tell the others she was still among the living but to let this go any longer would be cruel. “Lose the bumpies Spike; this is my other Watcher Wes.”


Doing as she asked, Spike sent her a questioning look. “I thought Rupes was your Watcher.”


“He was, but Giles was fired after the Council’s let’s see if we can kill Buffy test failed.” She explained, gently easing him back to give Wes a little more room. “So Wes showed up and although we didn’t get along, he still helped us fight the Mayor.”


“So what you’re saying is I can’t eat him.” Spike said his voice thick with regret. He didn’t think Buffy would care if he ate evil people trying to kill them but apparently this blighter didn’t fit in that category.


“No, Wes is a good guy.” Buffy said hoping to reassure the obviously petrified Watcher. “But I don’t know why he’s here…or why he’s all rugged looking.”


Wes flushed slightly, recalling the pompous prick she must remember and mustered up a wan smile. “After your disappearance I became a rogue demon hunter. In the library archives, I discovered this place's unsavory past and thought it merited some checking out. Is that why you and…Spike was it, are here?” The second he said the name he paled as the vampires history flashed before his eyes in grim detail. “Good lord, he’s William the Bloody!”


“He doesn’t kill anymore.” Buffy said quickly, not wanting him to scream again or worse pass out. “He’s not cursed, he’s still all grr but now he helps me.”


“Why?” Wes asked, sincerely confused. Even in the dim light he could see the bite mark on her neck, dark red against the golden peach color of her skin but since he could also see the tiny silver crucifix nestled in the hollow of her throat, it was clear she wasn’t a vampire herself.


“It’s a really long story but he’s my mate.” Buffy said giving Spike a sweet smile before turning back to the ex-watcher. “We are moving here and decided to buy this place, so what’s the beastie making with the bad vibes around here?”


Wesley considered his options for a moment, before deciding that this could be his second chance to work beside her. As a Slayer she had been remarkable but due to his own narrow minded views he had failed to recognize that. Which was a mistake he didn’t plan on repeating. “I’m not sure yet, it is a non-corporeal entity which makes it harder to identify but I will assist you in this matter, in exchange for hearing what you’ve been up to this last year.”


Now it was Buffy’s turn to consider her options. She didn’t want to go back to being a Slayer full time but that didn’t mean she was going to just let the demons run around causing trouble, so it couldn’t hurt having a Watcher around being all Watcher-like. “How bout this, we tell you everything and in return for keeping it to yourself and not calling Sunnydale, we let you move in here and do the book thing when we run into trouble?”


Wes nearly nodded before catching himself at the last moment. “What is your agenda?”


“I’m retired as a Slayer but both Spike and I plan on keeping our hand in the fighting. So I guess we’re rogue demon hunters as well, or atleast I am. Spike is more or less just in it, for the Slayer approved killing and maiming.” Buffy suddenly had an idea and looked at Spike for a moment, using their link to silently ask him his opinion. They were slowly learning how to communicate with one another telepathically through the connection they shared but with everything happening so quickly they hadn’t spent a lot of time learning what kind of abilities the bond had given them yet.


But to her surprise it seemed to come to her almost naturally and after a few short seconds he nodded. “I guess we can set up some sort of demon detection agency and let you run the show to help hide our involvement but we’d pay you for your services.”


“You mean you want to charge people for helping them?” Wes asked, unable to keep the shock out of his voice.


“No, I mean you can charge normal people to do normal detective things but as far as helping the helpless, that’s something we’ll do for free.” Buffy said crisply, disliking the idea of asking people to pay for being helped with things they couldn’t possibly face on their own. “The only reason I suggested it, is because this town is way bigger than Sunnydale and we can’t just stumble over the big bads here. We could patrol all night and still not cover the entire city so; it would be nice to know where we’re needed threat wise. It also explains why someone bought this place but has no plans to re-open it. I’ve got a friend who can make it all legit on paper and since we’re going by Elizabeth and William, if it looks like we work for you, it won’t be that easy to connect us to Buffy and Spike. This is all just off the top of my head so there‘s gonna be tons of little details to work out but it seems believable.”


“You both are very recognizable in the demon world, so it won’t be that simple.” Wes said after a moment. It sounded like they were planning on settling down here and while he could see a few other problems with her plan, it definitely had potential.


“Like I said, we have a lot of details to work out and I could always cut and dye my hair or something.” Buffy said with a shrug, earning a deep growl from her mate.


“The hell you will my lil‘ Goldilocks, I love the way it bounces around you when…”


Flushing furiously, she stepped on his foot, causing him to trail off. “We’re…uh…newly mated, so we‘re, big with the…”


“Mating?” Spike added helpfully, finding her unbearably adorable when she was all flustered.


Knowing it was pointless; Buffy just let out a deep breath and shook her head. “What he said, which really covers it all. So let’s get out of here, grab some takeout and head back to our hotel, so we can figure out what in the hell is going on here and some way to evict it or kill it.”

Chapter 8

___________________




“The hotel officially closed its doors on December 16th 1979. On that morning the concierge, Roland Meeks, made his morning wake-up calls with a twelve gauge shotgun, room to room. It's been empty ever since.” Wes took a quick bite of his lo-mein before gesturing with his chopsticks towards the large pile of papers he had retrieved from his apartment. “According to city records it was declared a protected historical landmark. The Property Management Company that owns it has been trying to unload it for ten years. No buyers, which is not that much of a surprise. Even a cursory inspection of these records indicates a storied legacy of murder of mayhem dating back to the hotel's construction in '28, when a roofer leapt to his death taking two coworkers with him."

“Okay our dream home has a Steven King vibe, figures.” Buffy said spearing a piece of broccoli with her chopstick, only to have it fall back into the container. Pouting, she looked at Spike, giving him the wide puppy eyed look that she already knew made him melt. “Help, I don’t get this eating with sticks thing.”


Chuckling, he walked over to the side table and dug around in the drawer before he found the pocket sewing kit. Pulling out a good bit of thread he walked back over to Buffy and plucked the sticks out of her hand. Tying them together, he placed them back in her hand and with his hand over hers, showed her how to use them properly.

Wes watched them, completely fascinated at how they interacted with one another. It was like everything else in the world faded away and they became the only two people in the room. He had thought that she and Angel had that same sort of connection but everything he had seen between them in Sunnydale paled to what he was witnessing now. Buffy and Angel had been devoted to one another, of that he had no doubt, but Spike and Buffy moved and flowed together as a single being instead of two separate entities. He could almost imagine the way they would look fighting along side one another; it would be akin to watching a force of nature unleash its wrath.



“It’s a mite funny to be teaching a Slayer how to use pointy sticks.” Spike said as the humor of the moment dawned on him.

“If I was trying to kill the veggies this would be easy.” Buffy muttered darkly, as she tried to repeat what Spike had just shown her. “Go on Wes, you chopstick master you.” Buffy said giving him an encouraging smile. She liked this new improved version of Wes and he was getting bonus points for taking her relationship with Spike in stride. Not once had he been rude to Spike or acted outraged or disgusted by their relationship, which they both appreciated. It was clear he was curious but as long as he was neutral, she could see him becoming a part of their lives.

“Yes, well it’s not often I am better skilled than you Buffy.” Wes said and it would have had a bigger impact if he hadn’t knocked the files off the coffee table with his knee.

Without comment, they all bent down to gather up the papers and photos when Spike let out a low whistle. “What do we have here?”

Taking the photo he held Buffy looked at it a moment before handing it back. “All I see is a bunch of old guys and gals, so if that means something to you, feel free to share.”

Inwardly thrilled that she hadn’t noticed, he smirked at her. “Actually luv, I was talking about one ‘old guy’ in particular whose standing near the back, skulking in the shadows like usual. Don‘t know how you two missed that enormous forehead of his.”

Both Buffy and Wes leaned over and stared at the photo, finally seeing an all too familiar figure in the background. “Okay, that answers that.” Buffy said with a deep sigh.

“Feel free to share luv.” Spike said tossing her earlier words back at her.

“There was probably a girl, naturally one in trouble and he tried to play a mysterious hero only to once again run out when things got rough, leaving some big nasty to cause trouble over the next couple of decades.” Buffy said with a wry grin, without any real heat. “Actually I always wondered if you could take a photo of a vampire and apparently you can.”

“You’re first theory might actually be accurate.” Wes said handing her a news clipping he himself had looked over several times in his own research. “That photo was taken in 52’ and coupled with that clipping it might give us something to go on.”

Buffy read the headline about the search being called off of a wanted fugitive before scanning the brief article detailing the robbery. Buffy looked at the picture of the woman and recognized the same grim reality that she had seen in her own eyes on several occasions. “So let’s say Angel meets this girl, she’s either innocent or she has a really good reason for doing what she did. So since they never found her, he either helped her escape or she’s got something to do with our unwanted house guest.”

“How do you figure that luv?” Spike asked smiling at her like a besotted fool but unable to help himself. It was clear she still cared about Angel, seeing as how she was giving him the benefit of the doubt about this bint but she certainly wasn’t acting like a forlorn lover. She was at ease, even making a snide little joke, which meant that she really had put Angel firmly in the past. Sure she had told him that herself but even though he believed her there was still that tiny thread of doubt and now that he’d seen the truth with his own eyes that last worry was gone.


“I was by the stairs when you and Wes were getting acquainted and I swear I smelt perfume. It was faint but it was there.” Buffy said easily, absently using her chopsticks perfectly as she brought a crisp carrot to her mouth.


“I didn’t notice that and I have been there several times.” Wes said, trying to gather his own impressions of the place. “I can sense whatever it is, because every time I walk inside I feel all the joy and confidence being leached out of me. Which supports the pattern I found in my research. Some force was residing at the Hyperion over the last decades, affecting staff and residents. I just fear there is no real way to..."


“It’s probably a Thesulac.” When they both just looked at him, Spike elaborated. “Paranoia demon. It whispers to its victims, feeds on their innate insecurities until they pick up some homicidal tendencies. Dru and I ran across one in Prague, nasty little blighter, it‘s the reason that sodden mob came after us. They take over places and you have to force it into its corporeal form to kill it. Dru figured it out but before we could do anything, the mob attacked and it we were running to save our skins.”


Wes looked at Buffy to see how she was taking the mention of Spike’s old consort but to his surprise, she didn’t seem concerned at all. It was possible that she didn’t know about their relationship but for some reason he didn’t think that was the case. From what he had seen, they seemed to have a completely open relationship that seemed to suit them both to perfection. He was glad to see Buffy looking so completely at ease; she had always seemed tense, even when there wasn’t a threat to be faced. Yes, he definitely preferred the more relaxed yet mature Buffy Summers, especially since she was treating him with the kind of respect he had all but demanded in Sunnydale. It bolstered his own sense of self worth to have her offer it to him freely, instead of just giving it to him because it was expected. More than ever he longed to know what she had been through this past year. “I’ll research the ritual; I have a contact at an Occult shop in downtown Hollywood so if they have the needed ingredients we can possibly deal with this matter as soon as tomorrow night. So since there is nothing more we can do tonight, perhaps you can tell me about what you‘ve done since leaving Sunnydale?”


“Alright but first tell me what you know.” Buffy asked just as curious about Wes, as he was about her.


“After you failed to resurface, the others went to your home where Joyce told them that you had departed. I was in injured in the attack and was at the hospital at the time and by the time I was released, I checked in with the others. I offered to assist training Faith to which they made it clear my help was not needed or wanted. So I left.” Wes said, doing his best not to sound bitter.


Deciding she’d rather not know if he had offered to help her, she told her own story, staring with Whistler and ending with their trip back to the states. “So, that’s why I’m not obligated to fight the good fight but since it’s something I’m good at, I figured why not.”


Neither man believed that, knowing full well that released from her fealty or not she was still very much the Slayer. Wes could understand how it could mean more to her now that she was the one choosing this path and more than anything he was thankful that she had offered him a place at her side. They wouldn’t be doing it because it was a job they would simply be doing the right thing because they wanted to use their skills to help others. “Thank you for trusting me with this Buffy, I won’t let you down again.”


“Sure you will Wes.” Buffy said with a bright smile. “Just like I’ll let you down a time or two but don’t worry, I won’t kick you out this time around. Just like Spike and I, you look like you're trying to have a fresh start, so we’ll just have to help each other along the way.”


“I rather like the way that sounds.” Wes said returning her smile.

Chapter 9

___________________




Buffy dutifully sprinkled the foul smelling powder on the stairs leading back down to the landing before walking over to join the guys. “Okay, stinky stuff is a go.”

Wesley nodded, before beginning the ritual. "We call thee forth, Thesulac of the netherworld, we command you, leave our minds and join us on this, the physical plane." He paused and held out his hand to where Spike is standing with the rest of the supplies. "Orb of Ramjerin."

Spike handed it over, before giving the Watcher a smug smirk. “Careful mate, glowy orb things like that, tend to be fragile.”

Used to Spike after spending all of the night with him and Buffy as they planned out the details for the Hotel, Wes didn’t take his comment personally. It was just Spike being Spike. “We invoke the, by the power of the orb of priests of Ramjerin. What was once in our thoughts, be now in our midst."


The air itself above the stairs where the powder had been spread, began to undulate as though something was trying to force its way out of some invisible place.

“I’m guessing this is a good thing?” Buffy asked as Spike tossed her an axe.

“Careful of the tentacles luv.” Spike cautioned her, raising his own axe as a form started to become visible.

“There’s gonna be tentacles and you’re just telling me now?” She asked placing her free hand on her hip, but not talking her eyes off the shape taking form in front of them. “You are soo gonna pay for that mister.”

“Let me help you with that.” A low screeching voice called out, seconds before several tentacles appeared out of nowhere to wrap around Spike and Wesley. It dragged them to opposite sides of the wall, pinning them in place, as a deformed figure in a black cloak smiled down at her. “These two have been feeding me their worst since they’ve walked in here. I can’t wait to serve it right back to them until the fear and self-doubt turns to certainty and hate. They will be so delicious, mmm-mmm-mmm! But you, something tells me you’re going to be the real treat little girl…little witch.”

“Actually, I’m the Slayer so you wanna fight or are you just going to wait until I start chopping?” Buffy asked, giving him her most sinister smile.

“Tsk, Tsk, I can feel it you know, his doubt in you.” It said slowly going towards her. “Just like the other one, he stuck out his neck and they threw a rope around it. So the other vampire was nice enough to keep me fed these last fifty years but something tells me, you will keep me sated for the next fifty.”

“Judy, you‘re still feeding off her.” Buffy asked, suddenly realizing the Judy must have never been found because she’d never left. Instead of jail she must have been trapped here feeding this thing and that filled Buffy with a cold sense of purpose.

“She’s delicious, but as the years began to past she’s grown stale.” The thing said with a twisted smile gracing its lips. “Now your lover here, his own guilt and doubt is both old and new…it’s a very unique taste. Killed his mommy, not once but twice and now he wonders if he can keep you...make you stay. Everyone he loves turns away from him because he‘s never enough for them. Not strong enough, not smart enough and now he‘s worried he won‘t be good enough for you, without having a soul.”

“Souls don‘t make the man, I mean Angel had one and he left some poor girl here, so I‘ll take my chances with Spike.” Buffy said slowly shifting her weight so she could attack.

“Will you take your chances with me, pretty girl?” It asked, flicking its tongue out like a snake. “I can’t get through you’re shields, can’t taste you, which means inside there is something worth hiding…worth tasting. So if you let me in, I’ll let these two go and you can see if you’re as strong without your spells and incantations, witch Slayer.”


“NO!” Both Wes and Spike shouted as they renewed their struggles against the thick bulbous tentacles holding them.

“Oh trust me, I’m delicious alright.” Buffy said with a seductive purr in her voice as she mentally began an incantation. “Betrayal, loss, death, doubt, all of that is just swirling inside me. But if you want a taste of my darkness, you gotta let them, as well as the woman go, or else we‘ll just do this the old fashioned way.”

“Give me a hint, just a peek inside so I know if it’s worth it.” The thing asked, the interest in its voice unmistakable.

Nodding, Buffy concentrated on the way she had felt the moment Spike told her about Angel’s claim and dropped her metaphysical shields down just enough to expose that pain. When it sucked in a sharp breath and let out a long contented sigh she closed herself back down and sent him a cocky look. “Do we have a deal?”

Another tentacle snaked up the stairs and they heard the sound of a door being thrown open. After a few short seconds, it carried an elderly woman with steel gray hair and haunted brown eyes to the front door. Quickly, Spike and Wesley were moved beside her, before it looked back at her. “Drop you’re shield and I’ll let them go.”

“Let them go and I’ll drop my shield.” Buffy shot back, throwing her axe to the floor to give him more incentive.

“Buffy NO!” Wes screamed out, wondering why Spike was just silently watching the exchange. Th fear in his eyes was clearly evident but so was a dull sheen of resignation.

Doing as she asked, it pushed them outside the double doors of the lobby before wrapping all it tentacles around her in its hungry embrace.

The last thing Wes saw before the doors snapped shut behind him, crackling with some blue sort of energy field, was Buffy's tiny form being lifted into the air, her head tilted back so that her long golden hair was unnaturally bright against the thick ink colored tentacles.

Pounding on the door as a high piercing scream reached his ears, Wes turned back to Spike. “Help me damnit, we can’t just leave her there!”

“Buffy’s not the one screaming.” Spike told him calmly, half his focus monitoring his girl through the claim and the rest honed in on the woman clinging to his arm. Buffy had told him her plans through the link they shared, so all they could do was wait. “She’s the one that needs us now Wes, her heart’s weak. Use your cell and call 911.”

Inside, Buffy poured all her pain into the thing holding her, the spell giving it a physical presence so that it was like thousands of razor sharp blades tearing into the thing holding her. “Hurts doesn’t it, feeling the way you’ve made, who knows how many people feel over the years. How does it feel knowing I manipulated you, just like you had played all of them?”

“Stop!” It hissed, dropping her to the floor with a bone jarring thud. But the pain didn’t stop; it just kept coming, filling his body like a toxin and tearing into his insides, strangling them. Pain upon pain washed over him and left with no other choice it screamed, high and long.

“I killed him, he was gonna help me and I killed him.” Judy said softly from her place down on the sidewalk, feeling the need to confess her sins.

“Angel’s still alive, you didn’t kill the ponce.” Spike said gently, not sure of what to do but unable to step away and let Wes handle it. She had told them about what happened between them and how it had ended with Angel being hanged but it was clear she’d paid the price for her fear a hundred times over. “You’re free now, no-ones huntin’ you anymore. Everything’s gonna be alright now.”

Judy raised her hand up to his handsome face and hoping to do one final thing to make amends. “Lord I’m tired; just want to rest a spell. In the basement there’s a bag full of the money I took and now I want you to take it. Make a nice life for yourself young man; I won’t be needing it now.”

“Don’t talk like that pet, we’ll get you to the Doctor’s and you’ll be walking in the sunshine in no time.” Spike said, knowing it was a lie the moment it left his lips. He could smell the death slipping inside her veins, draining away her life. “You’ll wake up tomorrow, bright and early, feeling like a young girl again and we’ll have us a nice little picnic.”

She already felt like a young girl again with this handsome young man, paying such attention to her and she found herself smiling up at him. “I’d like that, tell me about the park…what it will feel like being out in the fresh air with the sun streaming down around us, warming my old bones.”

Unaware of the moisture gathering in his eyes, Spike tried to remember his last day in the sun. “It glorious pet, it'll dance across your skin, sinking deep down inside you, chasing away all the shadows. It’ll be like walking in heaven, all the light turning everything golden and such, as the sweet air fills your lungs until you believe you can fly.”

Wesley laid his hand on Spike’s shoulder as the woman’s eyes fluttered closed, seconds after the familiar wail of the approaching ambulance pierced the night. “Is she…”

“She’s at rest.” Spike said gently, using his free hand to ease off his beloved duster. Laying it beneath her head, he placed her arms on her chest, before rising to his own feet. “Stay with her, till they come, I need to check on Buffy.”

Stepping inside he saw her crumbled in the center of the lobby her face buried in her hands as she sobbed like her very heart had broken. Running to her, he pulled her into his arms without saying a word, just rocking her. Using they're link, they let all the pain they had been holding in, flow into one another, finally letting themselves heal.

Neither one noticed Wes walking into the room, Spike’s duster hanging over his arm, several minutes after the ambulance had taken Judy away. Not wanting to intrude on their moment, he turned to walk away when he heard a soft voice call out his name.

Catching his breath as the beauty of Buffy’s tear-streaked face tore at his heart he gave her a gentle smile. “I was just about to head off.”

“Stay. The pity party is officially over and it was long overdue.” Buffy said firmly, as she allowed Spike to help her back to her feet. “So, you ready to move into a house of pure evil, filled with unpleasant vibes of evilness?”

“It’s not that place anymore, in risk of sounding trite or clichéd, this place is now cleared of negative energies.” Wes said with a knowing smile.

“Bloody hell, that’s the reason we liked it.” Spike said in mock outrage. “We’ll just have to make a habit of killing things here then, fill it right back up.”

“Yeah, put up a few gruesome trophies maybe spill a little blood, it’ll be cozy.” Buffy shot back before giving him a pointed look. “But when my mother comes for a visit, you have to take full credit for the choice of décor.”

“Right then, throw a few throw pillows around get a bunch of those scented candles you fancy and take away the rest of my manhood while you’re at it.” Spike muttered darkly. “It’s not doing me much good, I‘m completely Slayer whipped.”

“Don’t worry baby, you’re definitely still the big bad.” Buffy said snaking her arm around his waist. “As soon as we get this place cleaned up and livable, I’ll let you chain me up to prove it.”

Spike’s brain went straight to fantasy mode at the idea of his girl, naked and flushed as she struggled against the chains holding her will he whispered all sorts of nasties in her ears. Being Slayer whipped had its advantages; he decided pulling her towards him for a heated kiss.

Chapter 10

___________________


A month later, Buffy was on her knees polishing the floor just like she had done in Ireland, with a mix of beeswax and lemon, when she heard the front door open. Looking over her shoulder, she sent a warm smile to the man standing there, before getting to her feet. “Hi can I help ya?”


“Well you see lass, I was told you help the hopeless here.” He said, giving the fetching young girl in front of him, what he hoped was a charming smile.


Pegging his accent, her smile grew. “Are you looking to be saved or are you hoping to atone?” She asked in Gaelic, the language pouring out of her like she’d been born to it.


“Bit of both lass.” He replied, also in Gaelic, surprised that she knew his mother’s tongue. “If you don’t mind me saying it, you don’t look Irish.”


Buffy laughed, a bright cheerful sound that seemed to hang in the air adding life to the room. “I was born here but the lady that taught me, believed I had the heart of her people.”


Several minutes later Spike and Wesley emerged from the basement, where they had spent most of the morning building a training room, to find Buffy and a strange man sitting on sofa, conversing in an almost musical language that was pleasing to their ears. Both recognized it but neither knew Buffy could speak it but since they hadn't known she could cook either,they were used to being surprised. “Care to introduce us to your new friend luv?” Spike asked, glaring at the man until he began to shift uncomfortably.


“Guys this is Allen Francis Doyle and he gets these visions from the PTB of people in need of saving.” Buffy said walking over to hug her mate, seeing he was a bit jealous. “Doyle this is William and the boss, Wesley Wyndam-Pryce.”


“You’re a little more than human aren’t you mate?” Spike asked, smelling the man’s demon blood, while he wrapped his arms around Buffy possessively.


“Doyle’s half-Bracken…that’s how he heard about us honey.” Buffy said while at the same time mentally reassuring Spike through their claim that Doyle had been a perfect gentleman. “He has a few friends who worked here and they mentioned the fact Wes was opening a place to help the innocent.”


“Yes well we aren’t open for business yet, the bulk of the work on the hotel has been completed but we haven’t had a chance to set up shop yet.” Wesley said, assuming the role of leader. All of the rooms had been restored and furnished with the basic necessities and the necro-glass had been installed so that Spike could move about freely but other than getting the necessary paperwork, they hadn’t done anything about the business. All the documents the Immortal had arranged named him as the official owner but everyone in the room, except for Doyle knew it was an equal partnership. “But if you’d like to come into the office, I’d be interested in hearing about these visions of yours.”


“He’s the real deal Wes.” Buffy said, hearing the note of doubt in his voice. “I sorta checked out his essence and he’s definitely plugged into a higher power.”


“Oh.” Wes said, mulling that over a few seconds. “And you’re certain it’s the PTB?”


“Yep, I don’t make a habit of hanging out with evil guys.” When Spike cleared his throat, Buffy quickly amended that statement. “Well except that sometimes I do, but only with William.”


“He’s evil?” Doyle asked, a little confused.


“Oh, William’s a vamp but not the bitey kind…well he still bites but he chooses not too. It’s a long story.” Buffy said with a casual wave of her hand. “One that I’m sure Wes or even Will would love to explain while I go check out the progress they made downstairs.”


With that she pulled out of Spike’s arms and headed towards the basement leaving the three men standing there, not sure of what to say or do.


Deciding to take the initiative, Doyle took a deep breath. “If Elizabeth says you’re not a threat, I’ll take her word for it, without needing to hear the story for meself.”


“Why is that mate?” Spike asked, shifting in to game face.


“That girl’s as innocent as they come friend, even a sinner such as meself knows an angel when I see one.” Doyle said calmly, hoping he wasn’t about to go one on, with a temperamental vamp. “She’s head over heels for you, you’re a lucky man.”


Deciding that this man wasn’t after his woman Spike slipped back into his human visage. “Don’t I know it mate.”


Understanding that they had reached some sort of truce, Wes once again assumed the lead. “Why don’t you tell us about you’re visions, so we can see if there is a place on the team for you?”


“They aren’t something I control, they slam into my head out of the blue and give me a picture of someone in need of saving. Because I’m half demon, I’m stronger than a normal human but I’m not a hero by any means. I’m good in a brawl but other than that, I’m not up to the job so when I heard about what you were planning on doing here, I thought I’d drop by an offer you my services.” Doyle took a second to decide if he trusted them and going on instinct, he shrugged. “Little more than a year ago I was told by a demon named Whistler, that a vampire with a soul would come to LA looking for atonement. Knowing I didn’t have much choice I waited and when the guys told me about installing the vampire friendly glass, I thought maybe he‘d finally showed up.”


Wes looked at Spike for a split second before asking. “Did this demon give you a name?”


“No, but how many vampires with a soul can there be?” Doyle asked jokingly.


“Only one, just like there is only one Whistler.” Buffy said from the doorway. She had sensed Spike’s sudden unease and made it up the stairs just in time to hear Doyle’s story. “His name is Angel and he’s guarding the hellmouth in Sunnydale.”


“Why am I getting the impression that there’s a story behind that as well?” Doyle asked, unable to miss that stark and haunted look in her eyes. Only moments ago those same eyes had sparkled like priceless emeralds and now they were flat and dead like the eyes of a doll.


“Because there is but I don’t know you well enough to share it yet.” Buffy said allowing a ghost of a smile to cross her lips.


“You know lass, I’ve waited this long I don’t see the harm in waiting a bit longer.” Doyle said willing to do anything just to make her laugh or smile again. Buffy didn’t look like his baby sister physically but she still had the same zest for life and while his own cowardice had been part of the reason his sweet Becky hadn’t survived the Scourge, it would mean more to him to help someone like the one he’d failed the worst. “If you all need another demon hanging around the place to have brain numbing visions at odd times, that is?”

Buffy looked at the boys for a moment and when they each nodded subtly, She gave Doyle a bright smile. “Welcome to Phoenix Investigations. The hours suck and it‘s likely you’ll end up getting bitten, stabbed or burned but you get room and board, plus a few new pals to hang out with when we‘re not fighting the good fight.”

“Yes but be that as it may, from now on I think you should allow me to talk with the potential clients.” Wes said giving her an indulgent smile at her lackluster pitch. He had become faithfully devoted to her and Spike during the month they had lived together but it was clear that both of them adored her. She mothered them, making sure they all sat down to a nice dinner each night while at other times she was a cruel taskmaster who gave them chore after chore to complete before allowing them to turn in for the night. She was their guiding light, their not-so perfect angel and she was also their purpose. He knew she’d always be Giles’s Slayer but he had no doubt that she and Spike were both his friends and that was enough for him.

“Oh come on, it was way better than what Will would have said.” Buffy protested, shoving Wes lightly.

Nipping his mark on her neck teasingly, Spike growled against her neck, causing her to laugh. “Mock me all you want luv but this silver tongue of mine, got a certain young woman to spend a memorable day with me in Paris.”

Rolling his eyes as they once again forgot they weren’t alone and became completely wrapped up in one another, Wes grinned at Doyle apologetically. “They’re newly mated, so if you join up with us, this sort of behavior occurs often. If you chose to move in here, I’d suggest stomping everywhere you go in hopes that they will hear your approach and make themselves presentable.”

“Wes, you walked in on us once…ONCE.” Buffy said blushing furiously. “And we were in our bedroom at the time, so you can’t get all prissy about it!”

“The door was open, it was just after 2 P.M and I should have known that you two would have been taking in a bit of afternoon delight, how very foolish of me.” Wes said dryly, elated to see Buffy’s cheeks turn the color of a ripe cherry tomato. His record was a light scarlet while Spike could make her flame up like a forest fire.

“Don’t blame me luv, it’s not my fault you can’t keep your hands off my tight, hot body.” Spike said when she looked at him to say something.

Buffy mumbled something unintelligible to even the keenest of ears before a evil glint appeared in her eyes. Without a single word she walked away with a soft swing in her step and a carefree tune escaping her lips.

Doyle watched her go and barely managed to hold back a smile when the other two men looked alarmed. “I may be new around here but that can’t be a good thing, her walking off like that.”

Wes and Spike shared a look of pure dread before gulping audibly. “I think it’s safe to say, we are both about to suffer.” Wes said trying to keep his voice from trembling.

Spike tried to get a little peak into her twisted plot, only to find her completely closed off. “You got that right mate.”

____________________________________

Two days later, Buffy still hadn’t made her move but it was clear from the look in her eyes that she had something going on in that mind of hers…something devious. Both men had tried to win their way back onto her good side, Wes had bought flowers, Spike jewelry and they both had apologized for going to far but she hadn’t budged. Which is why they were holding a secret meeting in the office while she was out shopping.

“Have you been able to find out anything through your link to her?” Wesley asked, taking a fortifying sip of his tea.

“No the bint’s locked up tighter than a drum and even when she’s sleeping I can’t get a look.” Spike admitted brushing back the lose curls hanging over his face. Buffy had mentioned that she liked his hair loose, so in an effort to please her, he had stopped gelling it back but even that hadn’t softened her towards him.

Like Wes he was at his wits end and Doyle refused to get involved, not that they could blame him. Spike would willingly travel through all nine circles of hell than face his woman’s wrath and judging by the sour look on Wes’s face, it was clear he agreed.

“We can’t go on like this!” Wes said slamming his hand down on the table. “I wish she’d just enact her revenge and get it over and done with, this waiting is pure agony.”

Spike had to agree but that didn’t change things. “We could rile her up and force it out of her but since she’s waited this long, I don’t know if I want to make it worse.”

“So what do we do?”

“Well mate, seems like our only option is to throw ourselves at her feet and beg for mercy.” Spike said seriously.

“Oh that won’t be necessary lads.” Doyle said walking into the room with a wide smile lighting up his entire face. “I believe your punishment is waiting for you in the lobby as we speak.”

Gulping audibly, Wes got to his feet. “And pray tell what is our punishment?”

“Sorry lads but she’d peel every inch of my skin off of my body with a spork if I ruined this for her.” Doyle said, his face sympathetic but his eyes dancing with unshed mirth.

“Lets get this over with Watcher, I’d rather go willingly than have her drag us both out by the ears.” Spike said getting to his own feet, his face heavily lined like a man about to walk towards the gallows.

Following behind Doyle they headed into the lobby and saw two stuffed pig sitting on the counter. Confused Spike picked up the one with a tuft of bleached blonde hair and a long leather jacket. “I am a rude pig!” It snorted out suddenly, causing him to drop it in shock.

“Dear lord is that thing made out of what I think it is?” Wesley asked, picking up the pig wearing a pair of leather pants. “I am a tweedy pig!” It said loudly before oinking. Sure enough the moment Wesley touched it, he could tell that other than the leather pants, it was made entirely of pink tweed.

“I don’t get it?” Spike admitted, never noticing that his own piggy had righted itself and was now furiously humping his scuffed Doc’s like a dog on Viagra.

“For the next twenty-four hours these little guys will be following you around in an effort to teach you some manners.” Doyle said trying to keep a straight face as Spike’s piggy continued it’s obscene movements. “Buffy enchanted them, so no matter what you do they will come back and follow you. So I suggest you just take your lumps, before she does something worse. She was trained in magicks by vengeance loving gypsies, after all.”

“I’m a big show offy pig!” Wes’s piggy squealed out before burying it’s rough nose in the crook of his arm.

“I’m a bad piggy!” Spike’s called out from the floor finally alerting it’s owner to his peccadillo.

Kicking it away, it let out a high pitched squeal as it zoomed across the room. “Bloody hell that thing was…was shagging my boots!”

Wes was about to laugh at the look of outrage covering Spike’s face when his own piggy decided to get amorous. “I’m an afternoon delight piggy!” It snorted out as it began to grunt and bang against his elbow.

Throwing it off, it snorted as though it was offended. “I’m a churlish pig!”

Spike was so busy laughing at deep burgundy color of Wes’s face when he felt something nip into his leg. Looking down, his jaw dropped in shock as he saw his pig had bright yellow eyes and a small set of fangs. “I’m the big bad piggy!” It said in a low menacing voice, before letting out a deep rumbling growl.

“Oh right, I forgot to mention that part.” Doyle said doing his best to hold back his own laughter. “They’re both vampires and if you mistreat them, they shift into game face.”

“You mean Buffy gave us both cursed vampire pigs?” Wesley asked, deciding to ere on the side of caution and take several steps away from his own animal.

“Yes.” Doyle chocked out before making a hasty exit. Rushing outside, he met Buffy on the front steps before finally letting loose.

After several long minutes and a few short yelps coming from inside, Doyle took a deep breath before giving her a roguish smile. “I think it’s safe to say they’ll both be on their best behavior from now on.”

Smiling, Buffy pulled another pig out of her purse, before tossing it into the hotel. On Doyle’s questioning look, she shrugged. “It’s the vampire pig Slayer…only it’s retired and feeling very unappreciated. It doesn‘t look good for our heroes now does it.”

Chapter 11

___________________


“So lass, what’s a vampire Slayer?” Doyle asked after taking a deep sip of his pint. Elizabeth had decided that they would get to know one another, while the others were dealing with the pigs, so recalling her fondness for Ireland; he’d taken her to O’Malley’s. It was an authentic Irish pub complete with traditional dishes like Colcannon, Boxty Cakes and his personal favorite Crubeens.


He’d gotten a laugh when the waitress pegged her as a yank and took great delight in telling the little blonde girl that she’d ordered fried pig trotters, only to have Elizabeth reply in perfect Gaelic, that one couldn’t live on boiled potatoes and soda bread alone. After that, the waitress had bought her a pint of the Porter and she was welcomed by the crowd with a rousing chorus of ‘Wild Rover.’ They joined in during the chorus and just like that, she was welcomed as one of them, just like how she was going out of her way to welcome him into her odd little group at Phoenix investigations. Her blood may be of this country; she had its independent pride in her veins but her heart and soul were as giving and lyrical as the spring rains of his homeland.


Which was why he was anxious to know more about her. It was true she reminded him of his sister but during the two days he’d gotten to know her, she was as clearly her own person. She’d told him about her magicks and how she’d been trained by Romanian gypsies and he assumed that was her role in the agency. Wesley, with his keen assessing eyes, was the brains, William the vampire, the braun and the delicate Elizabeth they both protected fiercely, was the magick wielder. It worked out to a perfect trinity geared to fight the forces of darkness but when she’d explained the last pig, he’d seen a shadow in her eyes that had him thinking that there was more to her than meets the eye.


She looked like a warrior, one who had seen to many battles and paid a great price but just as quickly as it had filled her eyes it was gone. He’d begun to doubt it was there to begin with, a trick of light nothing more but then he’d asked what a Slayer was and it had returned. There was definitely a story there and since she hadn‘t answered yet, it couldn't be a pleasant one. “You know Elizabeth, me mum used to always say that the Irish tell stories not just to remember the past but to see how far they’d come.”


Buffy nodded, knowing that if he was going to work with them he had a right to know what he was getting into.“Contrary to popular mythology, the world did not begin as a paradise. For untold eons demons walked the Earth, they made it their home, their... their Hell. But in time they lost their purchase on this reality. The way was made for mortal animals, for man. All that remains of the old ones are vestiges, certain magicks, certain creatures, creatures like vampires. The books tell of the last demon to leave this reality fed off a human, mixed their blood. He was a human form possessed, infected by the demon's soul. He bit another, and another, and so they walk the Earth, feeding; killing some, mixing their blood with others to make more of their kind.They're waiting for the animals to die out and for the old ones to return.” Buffy said, recalling how many times in her life she’d been told this story or told it to someone else. “For as long as there have been vampires, there's been the Slayer. One girl in all the world, a Chosen One. The one girl in all the world given the strength and skill needed to fight the vampires and stop the spread of their evil. The one girl dies and then another is called, and another, but one Slayer didn’t just die she came back.”

Knowing she wasn’t finished yet, Doyle gave her all the time in the world to gather herself for the next part, doing his best to keep his face completely neutral. He had a pretty good idea where this was going and who that one Slayer was.

“At sixteen she was prophesized to die but this Slayer had a problem with playing by the rules a bunch of stuffy old pricks in England laid down for them. See the Slayer was suppose to live her life in secret, no friends, no family but this Slayer was intent on having a life outside of her calling. She died at sixteen, drowned in a puddle by a vamp known as the Master, only to be revived by her friend with CPR. But everything changed, she was made immortal by the Powers for defying fate and saving the world, only they didn’t tell her that until they needed her to kill her vampire lover and save the world again.”

“They wanted you to kill William?” Doyle asked, his heart breaking for her.

“No, they wanted me to kill Angelus.”

Doyle listened intently as the rest of the story poured out of her, like a river breaking through the dam holding it back and he could see he’d made the right choice by staying here to help her and the others. Just like him they were looking for a fresh start and trying to escape the ghosts of their pasts. So once her tale was finished he began his own. “I hated what I was, you see. Me mum was human but Da was half-Bracken and it wasn’t until the first time I changed, that any of us knew the truth. By then he’d been gone and me Mum had remarried, giving me a sister. Now Becky loved me unconditionally and while my mum tried to understand, she just couldn’t accept that I wasn’t like other children. So when I turned eighteen I moved out, fully intent on keeping to myself and just living out the rest of my life alone. I went out for a bottle of whiskey and saw the Scourge coming off a boat in the harbor. Now they are a bunch of pure blood demons whose sole mission is to cleanse the demon world of half-breeds, like myself and instead of warning people, I just went back to my apartment and hid. A few days later, I had my first vision and it was of my sweet Becky showing my picture around to a bunch of Bracken’s, seconds before the doors were kicked open and the Scourge marched in. I recognized the place in my vision and I ran there as fast as my feet would carry me but I was too late. Every single person in the building, the demons and a few humans like my sister, were killed and I knew it was all my fault.”

“What did you do?” Buffy asked gently, reaching out across the table to take his hand in her own.

“I fell to my knees and sobbed like a baby, all the while cursing myself for being such a coward. I knew that if I had said something, those people could have hid themselves until the Scourge left but my silence killed them all.” Doyle broke off for a moment and took a deep pull of his porter, no longer able to meet her eyes. “That’s when I met Whistler, he told me that I could atone by willingly submitting myself to getting visions of others in trouble or I could go back to living my life inside a bottle. I chose to accept the visions but I know that nothing I will ever do, will make up from the one thing I didn’t do.”

“We’ve all done things we’re ashamed of Doyle, things we’d give anything to take back but life doesn’t come with a reset button.” Buffy said firmly, wanting him to understand that while he had made a mistake, it didn’t make him a horrible or undeserving person. “You could have walked away but you chose to take the harder path. Just like me, I could have stayed, living a life I wasn’t happy with or I could go out on my own and risk everything to find myself and what I wanted. Sooner or later I know my past is going to intrude on what I have now and I’d like to think that when that happens I’ll make the right choice. But there’s always a chance I could fail, let Spike and Wesley down and go back to what was familiar and easy. See the big moments are going to come and you can’t stop them from happening but you never know what you’re truly capable of until you’re tested. The key is not to give up, to believe in yourself and because of the things I’ve experienced, I do again.”




“Maybe someday Elizabeth, I’ll tell you the same thing.” Doyle said giving her a somewhat shaky smile. Just telling her about his life had taken some of the weight he carried off his shoulders but he knew he still had a long way to go until he got to where she was. But knowing that she had survived all she had been through, made it easier to believe he could as well.


“I’m sure you will Doyle but you can call me Buffy.” She said with a grin. “That’s who I am, Elizabeth is my legal name but I’ll always just be Buffy.”


“Well Buffy, we best be getting back to the others.” Doyle said reaching into his wallet to cover their bill. “I don’t know about you lass but I’m in the mood for a bit of laughter.”


____________________________


The second she and Doyle walked into the doors of the Hyperion she found herself staring at the sight before her. Spike, William the Bloody, Slayer of Slayers and Wesley Wyndam-Pryce, Rogue demon slayer and tarnished Watcher were both standing on the sofa in the center of the lobby, begging the vampire Slayer piggy to save them. It just sat there, whistling a happy tune, while the cursed pigs were snarling at the foot of the sofa, their stubby legs to short to climb with eyes of yellow and fangs at the ready.

“I take it you two have learned your lesson?” Buffy asked, doing her best not to laugh at their situation. She could see that from the knee down both men’s jeans had been ripped and shredded and while she had insured that the piggies couldn’t draw blood, their fangs pinched liked hell.

“Luv, please call them off.” Spike said throwing what remained of his pride to the wind as he stared at his golden salvation. They’d tried everything, stakes, holy water and even fire but each time the little bastards dusted, they came back only moments later. The third pig, was absolutely no help at all, when it wasn’t laughing or mocking them, it lounged about like a bloody Queen. Needless to say they got the point loud and clear; don’t piss off the Slayer, especially when she could be the only thing to save you. “We were asses pet, complete and utter asses and we aren’t deserving of your mercy but please my sweet, my beautiful love, forgive me.”

Buffy waved her hand towards Spike’s pig and it instant became still, once again nothing but a harmless child’s toy. “You’re forgiven Spike, was it really that terrible for you?”

Abandoning Wes without a single glance, Spike leaped off the sofa and crossed the room to pull his woman into his arms. Burying his face in her hair, he mumbled. “My boots will never be the same luv, they’re desecrated beyond repair.”

“Umm, Elizabeth I too want to offer you my most sincere and humble apologies.” Wes said, hoping to be forgiven as well. “It was rude of me to tease you so, in front of our newest team member and I can image how embarrassed you must have felt. I never meant to offend you, so could you possibly find it in your heart to forgive me?”

“Alright, you’re forgiven.” Buffy said, closing the incantation of his own pig. “But maybe next time you all will think before you make me feel bad. You may have the numbers on your side because I’m the only girl around here but I’m no push over.”

“No worries luv, we know whose running things.” Spike said seconds before nipping her earlobe lightly. Despite the situation, he loved this side of her. That slightly dark and dangerous side of her nature, that seemed to call to his demon.

“I’m not running things, sometimes I might take the lead but there will be other times when I fall back and let you guys do your thing.” Buffy pressed a soft kiss against his cheek. “But the pigs are staying…just in case.”

Doyle snickered, only to find a flinty pair of emerald eyes fall on him. “Don’t worry Doyle, you’ll get your very own piggy just as soon as I figure out how to make one go all spikey.” Buffy warned him before pulling away from Spike and heading up the stairs.

“I love that woman.” Spike muttered his voice filled with pure admiration. His girl had grown up and she was simply amazing.

Chapter 12
___________________


It was a normal day for the group of people trying to make the most of the second chance they had all been given. It hadn’t been an easy year, evil law firms, resurrected vampires, zombies and even a trip to another dimension but the team had only bonded closer together during all the trials set before them. They’d made new friends, recovered an old friendship as their family extended and grew but then it happened.

Buffy had always known that some secrets could never be kept forever but as she stared into the faces of her past, she had never imagined that she’d be facing it alone. Since joining with Spike, she had always felt safe and protected and without him standing behind her she suddenly felt lost.

“Elizabeth, you all right girl?” Gunn asked, moving to stand in between his friend and the group of people that had entered the lobby. He’d seen her go into battle after battle without the slightest flicker of fear and suddenly she seemed unbearably fragile. That alone was enough to push his protective instincts into overdrive. Like Doyle, he saw her as a surrogate sister and family looked out for one another.

“I need you to find the others.” Buffy said, never taking her eyes off the grim accusing faces that seemed to have already passed their judgment on her.

“You sure, I don’t feel right leaving you.” Gunn said, ignoring the warning growl coming from the tall, dark haired man at the front of the group.

“Go, I’ll be fine.” Buffy said, silently screaming for Spike to come to her. She didn’t want to do this, not without him and the sooner he was here, she’d feel secure again. Everything she had built up inside her was crumbling down around her and she needed to see him to remind herself that she wasn’t that girl anymore; that weak and broken girl who once believed in everything but herself. “They’re patrolling near Valley View Cemetery.”

Gunn almost protested again but at the last second decided against it. If anyone could snap Elizabeth out of whatever fear that seemed to be paralyzing her, it would be William. He’d never been a fan of the blond vampire but since he’d helped save his crew and was clearly devoted to Elizabeth, an uneasy friendship had formed between them. At Phoenix, Elizabeth was the thread that seemed to tie everyone together and if something happened to her, he didn’t want to know what would happen. “Elizabeth, do what you gotta do alright. If I come back and you’re dead, the others will have my ass.”

“Buffy.” Angel said coldly, devouring her with his eyes the moment the man headed out the door. “You died, I felt it, so imagine my surprise to see you standing here now but also hearing your heart pounding away inside your chest. I think you owe me an explanation.”

That’s exactly what she needed to snap her out of it; Buffy decided regrouping before their very eyes. How dare he come into her home and demand explanations; she didn’t owe him a damn thing. “You haven’t changed a bit have you Angel.” Buffy said with a bitter laugh. “You just walk in and expect me to play by your rules and that’s soo not going to happen. This is my town, my life and my place of business so we‘re going to do things my way. Starting with why you are here.”

Angel opened his mouth to respond but Giles beat him to it. “We needed help and the oracles sent us to the Host, who in turn recommended Phoenix Investigations. We didn’t know you‘d…dear lord Buffy how is this possible?”

Buffy smirked and almost everyone in the room found it somewhat familiar but couldn’t remember why. “It’s a really long story, one I will tell in my own time. I’m sorry if that hurts you but I thought I made it clear when I left Sunnydale that you all were suppose to let me go. I know about your spells to find me when I obviously didn’t want to be found and if you couldn’t respect my decision to leave, then I don’t owe any of you anything.”

“What about you’re mom B.” Faith asked softly. “She thinks you’re dead.”

“Mom knows where I am, she’s even visited me here.” Buffy said giving her sister Slayer a genuine smile. “She understands that I want the life I’ve got going here and I asked her not to tell anyone, especially you.”

Catching the flicker of pain in her warm brown eyes, Buffy quickly walked over to her and stood there until Faith met her eyes. “It wasn’t because I didn’t trust you Faith; it was because I didn’t want to put you in a position of having to lie to the others. I didn’t want you to be blamed if I was ever found.”

Faith searched her eyes, looking for any sign of deception but all she saw was naked truth and concern. “It’s cool B; I get the need to just do your own thing.”

Smiling, Buffy pulled her into a quick hug before pulling away to give her a knowing look. “So I’m guessing tall and tasty is the Riley Finn mom’s been telling me so much about.”

“Whoa B, get your own stud, this one is all mine.” Faith said, seconds before a memory burst to the surface. “YOU’RE MARRIED!”

“Uh, yeah.” Buffy asked, a little confused by the sudden change of topic. “How’d you know?”

“Man, it just clicked, you’re the Elizabeth, mom’s always talking to and I remember going with her to buy a wedding present.” Faith said trying to recall exactly when she had heard the news.

“You’re married?” Angel asked gently, his voice thick with disbelief and bittersweet yearning.

Before she could respond the doors behind them suddenly burst open and Spike swaggered in, his long coat billowing behind him like a moving shadow. “Hello cutie.”

Angel moved to stand in front of Buffy, instinctively seeking to protect her but in a blur to fast for him to follow; she’d stepped around him and ran towards Spike. He opened his mouth to call out a warning,before helplessly watching Spike’s arms wrap around her lithe body.

“I missed you.” Buffy murmured quietly, burying her face in his neck.

He had heard her cries through their bond and he could feel the tension coiled inside her. Rubbing his hands down her back, he ignored the looks of outrage in front of him and called back over his shoulder. “Oi Watcher, come in and greet some old acquaintances of ours.”

Wes hurried forward and the moment he identified the three visitors, he shared a long look with Spike, silently asking it Buffy was alright.

Spike nodded, before glancing around the room. “Luv, where’d Gunn get off to?”

Buffy looked up, already feeling better and more secure. “I sent him out to find you guys.”

Icy blue eyes met and clashed against blazing brown, before Spike brushed back Buffy’s hair and ran his fingers over the mark he’d given her. “I felt you calling me through the claim luv, figured Wes and I better come home to check on our favorite girl.”

“YOU LET HIM CLAIM YOU!” Giles and Angel both yelled out at the same time.

“I understand that you are both shocked.” Wesley said crisply before moving to stand in front of the couple. “But this is our place of business and your outbursts will not be tolerated. What is going on between Buffy and Spike is their business and should they decide to share with you, that is their choice but you will act civilly when in our home.”

Underestimating Wesley, Angel moved forward intent on ripping Spike limb from limb, only to feel the sharp point of a stake pressed against his chest. Snarling, he faced Wesley as he shifted into full game face.

“I did warn you Angel.” Wes said coldly, not fazed by his display in the least. Training with both Spike and Buffy on a daily basis had done wonders for his own skills and his confidence reflected that change.

“Angel.” Buffy said softly, instantly attracting the vampire’s attention. “If you harm Wesley, you will not walk out of this building.”

“Would you really kill me Buffy?” Seeing the answer in her cold emotionless eyes, he shifted back into his human visage and let all the hurt he was feeling reflect in his eyes. “What’s happened to you beloved?”

“I grew up.” She said calmly. “I’m not the same starry-eyed teenager who fell in love with you and I’m not the desperate girl who finally let you go. I forgot that for a moment but I won’t forget again. This is the life I chose for myself and the one I want and if you or anyone else can’t understand that, there is nothing left to say. If you need our help professionally, we’ll do what we can because that’s what we do but if you can’t work with us, then leave. I won’t tolerate you fighting with my team or my mate and since I chose to slay, I don’t have to get involved in whatever battle brought you all here. Are we clear, because I won’t repeat myself?”

Giles couldn’t help being proud of the woman she’d become since the last time he saw her nearly two years ago and while he didn’t understand what was going on, her warning was impossible to miss. She may care for them still but now her loyalty was to the people she had now aligned herself with and if they couldn’t accept that, then she truly was lost to them. “I understand what you are saying Buffy but perhaps it would be easier to accept everything if we had some idea of what transpired since you left Sunnydale.”

“Alright Giles, why don’t you four take a seat and we’ll talk.” Buffy decided after a few moments.

Once they were seated, Buffy leaned back against Spike, unconsciously drawing on his strength to ground her emotions as she talked about the changes in her life. She told them about her immortality, making it clear that she had been released from her role as a Slayer and while she mentioned her magicks, she didn’t go into details. “I ran into Spike in Paris and when he told me about Angel’s claim I realized that you would eventually use that to find me. We had been seeing one another by that point and I asked Spike to help me break the claim. We’ve been together ever since and shortly after we moved here, we ran across Wesley as he investigated this place’s demonic history. Together we forced the demon into its corporeal form and freed the woman it had been feeding on. Judy didn’t make it, according to the coroner her heart gave out.” Buffy said glancing at Angel, to let him know she knew about his part in this places past. “We decided we loved the place and we’ve been living here ever since. Phoenix, is our way of finding those in need of help but another friend of ours Doyle, gets visions of people in trouble as well.”

“So you are being paid for your services?” Giles asked, unable to keep the censure out of his voice.

Un-offended because she felt the exact same way, Buffy gave him a warm smile. “No, we only charge for normal detective stuff. We have a contact at the police station and Kate sends us some freelance work. It’s mostly surveillance stuff and since Gunn knows a lot of people who need a part time job occasionally, we usually have more than enough people to handle helping the hopeless and the actual business part.”

“Just exactly how many people you got working for you B?” Faith asked more than a little impressed by Buffy the business woman.

“Wes is our demon expert, Fred is our resident genius, Spike and I are the muscle and Doyle handles the visions. All of us live here in the hotel but Gunn, Kate and Lorne are also part of the team. Gunn and another friend of mine Anne, devote most their time to a homeless shelter but he often drops by to pitch in during his free time. If we need more fighters, we can call him and his crew will show up as back-up. They’re mostly kids but they’ve been fighting vamps on the street for years. Kate’s a detective at the LAPD and she sends us over any case she thinks demons are involved with as well as recommending the agency to people she comes across on the job. And Lorne, well since he sent you all here I guess you can see his part in all this.” Buffy explained calmly, a slight smile playing on her lips as she talked about her extended family.

“I’ll admit Buffy; I’m quite impressed with what you’ve built here.” Giles said, pride ringing in his voice as well as shining in his eyes like the brightest of beacons. “But I am curious about how and when Spike acquired his soul?”

“I didn’t.” Spike said easily, unconsciously wrapping his arms around Buffy’s waist. “I’m not controlled by my demon Watcher; I haven’t hunted since I ran into Buffy in Paris. I gave the girl my word and since she’s my mate, she’d know if I didn’t keep it.”

“Only if she returned the claim, Spike.” Angel said with a slight smirk.

“She did.” Spike shot back, turning his head slightly to show the bright red mark that she had reopened this morning. “The same night I claimed her, she claimed me back and since then we’ve strengthened the bond by reaffirming it often.”

“I’ll admit Giles, I was shocked myself.” Wes said, recalling his own reaction to that bit of news. “Nothing I had ever been trained in by the Council had prepared me for such a notion but just like Buffy was never a typical Slayer, Spike is anything but a typical vampire.”

Giles pulled off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose as he tried to assimilate everything he was being told. The thought that Spike possessed that much control over his demon was more than a little unbelievable but so was the idea of Buffy allowing him to remain alive if he was taking human lives. Letting out a sigh, he realized that he had no other choice but to take their word for it. “I see.”

“Don’t worry Watcher, I have a hard time believing it myself sometimes.” Spike said, deciding to cut the man some slack.

“Then why do you do it?” Giles asked, thinking he already knew the answer.

“I asked myself that same question once. In the old days taking out a Slayer was my idea of one right good day but now,” he broke off a moment to look into Buffy’s eyes, losing himself in the emotion echoed there.

“Now I get a lifetime of good days.” He said never taking his eyes off her. “I get a woman who knows what I am and accepts me for it. I get a woman who fights and makes love, with the same kind of intense passion that matches my own and I have a woman whose smile can make me feel like I’m standing in the sun again.” Reaching up he cupped her face with his palm, stroking his thumb across her check with aching gentleness. “The silly chit even cries when I get hurt. These large emerald eyes that have seen the worst of life and stared death in the face, fill with tears because a creature like myself is in pain. No fresh kill, no bit of bloodshed can compete with that…can compare to her.”

Lost to everything but each other, the couple moved as one to close the distance between them. It was a graceful ballet of limbs merging and flowing together as one, to a song that only their hearts could hear and the moment their lips met it was almost like the air around them let out a trembling sigh from the beauty of their embrace.

Wes, now immune to such displays watched the others as they witnessed the raw power harnessed by those two when they were together. Faith looked touched by what she was seeing, as though the innocence of the act had cast out the darkness inside her own soul and freed her from the unnatural melancholy that plagued her existence. Her own boyfriend, cradled her hand gently in his own and his eyes were filled with the same wonder and awe. Giles on the other hand looked both embarrassed by the display and soothed by the obvious affection they held for one another. But Angel, had allowed his eyes to fill with the cold viciousness of his demonic namesake Angelus and by the almost starving edge of desperation clearly burning bright within those amber depths, Wes knew that his obsession with Buffy had only been strengthened by the display.

Deciding to allow the lovers their moment, Wes reached behind them and grabbed the notepad resting on the desk. “Why don’t you tell me about what brings you all here today?”

“Shouldn’t we…well break them apart or something?” Faith asked wondering how the once stammering Watcher seemed completely oblivious to the fact his Slayer and a vampire were rounding third base just beside him. Apparently Spike and Buffy weren't the only ones who had changed.

“Not unless you wish to have a cursed vampiric pig sent after you.” Wes said gesturing to the stuffed animals resting behind them on the small table that rested in the center of the lounger they all sat on.

Cautiously, Faith picked up the one with the leather jacket and after a few seconds looked back up at Wes. “I don’t get it.”

“They may not look like much but they have become our standard way of dealing with member transgressions here at Phoenix Investigations. Believe me, you do not want to find yourself on Buffy’s bad side, she has quite a knack for vengeance spells and enchantments. D’hoffryn even offered her a position as one of his wish wielders and while Buffy refused, he still drops by occasionally for a spot of tea or some fresh soda bread.”

Still stung because Wesley had gotten the better of him earlier, Angel couldn’t resist needling him about that statement. Anything that would keep his mind off of his grandchilde taking liberties with his mate was necessary, before he once again lost his composure. “Sorry Wes but it’s hard to be afraid of a stuffed animal when you’ve experienced true vengeance.”

Buffy heard his cold superior boast and before Wesley could respond, she had said the necessary incantation in her head. The moment Wes’s tweedy pig came ’alive’ it was already in full game face and before anyone had noticed, it had pounced on Angel.

Having no idea what had attacked him, Angel leaped to his feet just as the pissed off piggy launched its second assault. “I’m a know it all piggy!” It screamed out as it’s ear piercing battle cry before using the height provided by the sofa to sink it’s fangs into Angel’s crotch.

Everyone in the room watched as Angel furiously battled the seemingly rabid and possessed stuffed animal, while it gnawed at his most delicate areas without mercy.

After watching a few minutes, Buffy nudged Wes in the side expectantly. He took the hint. “Angel, if you wish it to cease its attack, you need to apologize to it. And speaking from my own experience, I will warn you that the nasty little blighter knows when you are being sincere or not.”

Since Spike no-longer felt like he had anything to prove, he too took mercy on Angel. “Do it quick mate, as bad as its bite is; it’s not nearly as bad as when the bastard starts shagging your boots.”

Both men winced when Angel ignored their suggestions and reached down and ripped it apart with his bare hands. It turned into harmless dust that fluttered down to the floor.

“Bad choice mate.” Spike said, hoping on the counter just in case it came back pissed at everyone.

When Wes followed his example without hesitation, Faith carefully pulled Giles back before shooting a questioning look at the leery blond vampire. “What happens now?” She asked, knowing that there was more to come.

“If I was you pet, I’d hop up on the sofa just in case.” Spike warned her completely serious. “The fuckers hate it when you dust them and you don’t want to be caught in the crossfire.”

Faith was sure they were being played but just then a menacing growl flooded into the room and after a quick glance at Angel’s feet revealed the dust was gone, Faith abandoned her pride and leaped onto the sofa, dragging Riley along for the ride. Giles, also seeing the need for caution joined her scant seconds later, leaving only Buffy and Angel on the ground floor. “How do we stop it?” Giles asked, as it once again pounced on Angel, shifting him off balance and knocking him to the ground.

“Don‘t worry Rupes, it may look bad but it‘s not lethal. It just hurts like hell but Peaches won‘t even have a bruise.” Spike said quickly, hoping to stop the older man from having an attack. “The only way to make it stop is to apologize and since its right pissed, it’s gonna take a good one.”

Angel struggled back to his feet, kicking the thing away before turning to Buffy for help. “Do something!”

Buffy crossed her arms and gave him a cool look. “Apologize to it Angel, aren’t you the one that just said it couldn’t be too bad?”

Angel glanced over at Spike and Wesley, fully expecting to see them doubled over in laughter but to his surprise they actually seemed to be sympathetic to his plight. Left with no other choice, he swallowed his pride and looked down at the pig as it stalked towards him. “I’m sorry…err…pig, I was an ass for mocking you. I am also very sorry for, well for dusting you and I sincerely hope you accept my apology.”

The piggy gave a little wiggle as it shifted back into its normal pig face before waddling over to Buffy like an obedient puppy. Laughing at the way its curly little tail started to waggle she picked it up and cuddled it for a moment, before ending the spell. Quickly she crossed over to the sofa and put it back in its place before turning to look at the others. “As you can see, these little guys make sure we treat each other with the utmost respect around here.”

Stunned by the remarkable display of magicks he’d witnessed, Giles looked at Buffy for an explanation. “That was extraordinary, is it your casting?”

“Yep.” Buffy admitted shamelessly with a dazzling smile. “Mostly those little guys are just our mascots but every once in awhile they get called into service. It’s completely white magicks because the purpose of the enchantment is cause a person to reflect on their actions and make amends. It‘s amazing how far a simple apology can go, isn‘t it?”

“Quite.” Giles said highly amused by her sense of justice. “But it’s growing quite late and we’ve all been forced to process a great deal of information tonight. So if it is agreeable to you, do you suppose we could bring the others round first thing in the morning to discuss why we sought you out?”

“You guys are more than welcome to stay here if you like.” Buffy said deciding that if they stayed, they’d be less likely to plot without them or against them. “We have plenty of room and all the glass in the building in vampire friendly. Besides I‘m guessing if you came all this way for help, you‘ll want to head back as soon as possible, so this just saves time all around. We can talk over the details, make some plans and after a good night‘s sleep we can go fight the big bad.”

“Are you quite sure, we don’t want to impose on you.” Giles said doing his best to be courteous, having no desire to experience a pig attack first hand. Yes, it was very clear that that method, however unorthodox was highly effective, he decided casting a wary glance in their general direction.

“Chill Watcher-mine.” Buffy said fondly. “You’ve been really great about everything and you’re all more than welcome to stay. Wes might even be convinced to let you in his library, which is stocked full of smelly old books just bursting with demon facts to know and share. We‘ve got fresh blood in the kitchen, a training room for blowing off steam and all the beds are super comfy, not at all hard and lumpy like what you‘d find at a motel.”

“Yes, well we’ll go back and discuss it with the other so that we can decide as a group.” Giles said, wanting a chance to fill them in on everything, to give them some time to make the necessary adjustments.

Chapter 13


Don’t insult the pigs they said but since they also said Buffy was alive, Xander figured he was taking a lot on faith. The moment he saw her, he rushed over and pulled her into his arms for a hug. Screw the pigs, he would take his chances. “Man Buffy, I’ve missed you so damn much.”

Buffy enjoyed the hug, fully expecting the lectures and harsh words to follow and when he pulled away and turned to Spike, she tensed.

“You’re her mate or vampire husband right?” Xander asked his eyes cold and empty.

“Yeah.”

“As long as she’s happy, I’ve got no problem with that but if you hurt her, you’re dust.” Xander said offering Spike his hand, barely holding back a snicker when his jaw practically hit the floor.

Tentatively, Spike took his hand and nodded somberly. “I’ll take care of her mate, till the end of time.”

Unable to help herself, Buffy couldn’t keep the tears from gathering in her eyes as she watched Xander of all people; accept Spike and his place in her life. “Thank you Xand.”

Smiling, because he knew exactly what she must have been expecting he turned back to her, taking her hand in his own. “I thought you were dead Buff, gone for good and all I could think was that you had died somewhere all alone. At first I blamed you, hated you for taking off again but when I heard the news, I realized we had let you down. After all the things I said to you about your life, it wasn’t all that big of a surprise that you didn’t think you could talk to me about what you were feeling. Will was with Oz and I was seeing Anya but I was riding you, because your boyfriend was a vampire. I was doing a happy dance because Angel was leaving instead of being there for you. You were hurting, I was happy, and that’s not the kind of friend anyone needs. You were always there for me Buffy, through bug lady, mummy girl and Cordelia and I lied to you, making you send the love of your life to hell. So you didn’t owe me anything Buffy, you had every right to walk out without a word but if you’ll let me, I’d like another chance to be the kind of friend you deserve...one like the friend you always were for me.”
Overwhelmed Buffy pulled him into another hug. “Air, Buffy!” Xander said squirming against her as she literally hugged the life out of him. When she pulled away with a slight blush scoring her cheeks he flicked his gaze over to Spike. “I can see where that whole no breathing thing comes in handy.”

Laughing, Spike wrapped his arm around Buffy’s waist as her sense of contentment flowed into him through the bond. It seemed the Whelp had grown up and if he made Buffy happy, Spike figured he could learn to tolerate him. He figure Xander was one of those people who could grow on you. “So who’s the little blonde?”

Xander’s smile grew impossibly large as he turned around to grab her hand, leading her forward. “Spike, I’d like to introduce you to Anya Jenkins, my fiancée.”

Anya lifted up her hand to show-off her ring before narrowing her eyes on Buffy. “He looks like he can give you lots of orgasms, so you can’t have Xander. Xander is mine.”

“Xander is yours, all yours.” Buffy said figuring that was the safest of answers. She remembered Anya and her blunt way of saying things but since Xander had made an effort to accept Spike, it was time to return the favor. “D’hoffryn still speaks fondly about you; I think you were his favorite.”

Delighted, Anya preened slightly before giving her a dazzling smile. “No-one wants to talk about my demon days but they warned us about your vengeance pigs, very original. I can see why Hoffy was interested in you. From the broody one with the enormous forehead’s reaction I could definitely see your potential.”

“I think we are gonna get along just fine pet.” Spike said, charmed by the brazen little chit who was clearly not an Angel fan. “Anytime you want to talk about the good old days, you give me a yell. I think I came across a bloke you cursed, his...”

Buffy and Xander shared a look that said, demons what can you do before moving aside to let them bond like once evils peas in a pod. “So where are the others?” Buffy asked leading him over to the sofa. “Did they...well are they coming back?”

Xander let out a sigh before running his hands through his hair. “Things haven’t been good. Faith and Angel have been doing a great job dealing with things but what were up against now is like nothing any of us have ever faced before. I won’t sugar coat it Buff, all of us are scared shitless and because of that, some old resentments have flared back up. If we’d found you before this all came down, it would be a big party all with the happiness but because of stuff, Will’s mad at you. She blames you Buff, for not being there to stop this thing and all I ask is that you hear the whole story before deciding where you two will go from here. I’m not saying she’s right but I understand why she needs someone to blame.”

“Why don’t you just tell me what’s up, why beat around the bush?” Buffy asked realizing something big must have happened.

“Giles wants to give you the story himself and they’ll all be here once Will calms down. You need to hear it from him Buffy but I think once it all comes out, you’ll understand why I’m asking you to give Willow some slack. A lot‘s changed since you‘ve been gone but jut try to remember who she was and not just judge her on how she acts.”

“Alright Xand but I can’t promise you anything.” Buffy said after a few moments. “I get there are big extenuating circumstance but if she attacks me or mine, I won’t hold back.”

“I wouldn’t ask you to.” Xander said, knowing he would react the same as Buffy in that situation but also understanding how Willow must be feeling. He was stuck in the center and all he could do is wait until his two oldest friends met him in the middle.


___________________________________


Buffy told herself she’d heed Xander’s advice, that she’d be understanding but the moment Willow walked into the lobby, she knew she had wasted her time. The energy around Willow was crackling with magicks just waiting to be unleashed and it was clear that she didn’t come here to talk but to fight. Buffy could feel the darkness in her power, it was dark and thick like spilled ink and it was the last thing she would have expected to find in the shy, sweet girl she’d once known.

Using her link to Spike, she warned him to keep the others back as she crossed the lobby and prepared herself for whatever was to come. “Willow, I can see you’re pissed off and just looking for a reason to let lose but what I don’t see is a lot of control. So if you think there is even a chance you will cause problems you better leave my home now.”

Forgetting all Giles’s warnings and orders to play nice, Willow narrowed her eyes and sneered at Buffy. “So this is where you’ve been living the good life while the people you were suppose to be saving were out there getting hurt.”

“It’s not my job anymore, it’s Faith and that’s direct from the Powers themselves.” Buffy said coolly, mentally running an incantation in her head as she felt the steady rise in Willow powers. She was charging up and when it happened, Buffy knew she had to be ready. “I help people because I want to and I am going to help you all with whatever is going on in Sunnydale. So calm down and let’s figure out how to stop this before anyone gets hurts.”

Willow eyes went as dark as the midnight at her words and without even realizing she had done it, she screamed out a spell and sent a bolt of burning blue energy towards Buffy.

When it slammed into her chest, knocking her back Willow came back to herself but the power inside her suddenly had a mind of its own. Wave after wave of burning energy shot out of her and into Buffy. Bleeding from her nose, she trembled at what she had done and helplessly watched her friend suffer blow after blow. Dimly she heard someone screaming, never even realizing that it was herself until her powers were completely exhausted. Falling to her knees, she pushed aside her own weakness and tried to crawl to Buffy who like her was now on the ground.

Only Buffy wasn’t moving.

“No! I didn’t mean it...god Buffy I didn’t mean it!” She screamed out as strong arms wrapped around her pulling her back. Seeing it was Faith, Willow began to beg. “Please, I need to help her...I need to make sure she’s okay. I didn’t mean it!”

“You’ve done enough.” Spike said coldly, pulling his trembling mate into his arms as Angel moved beside her, protecting them both in case of another attack. With Buffy hurt, it didn’t matter whose girl she was it just mattered that she’d be all right. “Talk to me luv, tell me how you feel.”

She shook her head before pulling out of his arms, so she could throw up all the blood filling her stomach. Taking a second to consider her options, trying to focus through the pain, she knew what needed to be done. “I’m so sorry...it hurts.”

When she started to cough again, he could feel her broken ribs, moving beneath the surface of the skin and knew what she was telling him. Cradling his face in his palms, he placed a quick kiss against her lips before jerking her neck sideways, snapping it with a sickening crunch.

Angel whirled around, knowing that sound intimately but before he could attack Wes and Doyle grabbed his arms, jerking him back. “She’s immortal; it’s not the first time this has happened.”

“Don’t make it worse than it is.” Doyle said gently, his rolling lilt tinged with sadness.

“I don’t understand.” Angel said softly, unable to tear his eyes away from the naked and raw misery on Spike’s face.

“She was fatally injured and in a great deal of pain, he ended it.” Wes explained his own pain painfully close for the surface. “Her body will be completely healed when she awakes.”

“How long will it take?” Faith asked, still holding on to Willow who had continued to sob uncontrollably. “I mean you’ve all done this before right, so she’s definitely going to come back...right?”

“It won’t be long.” Was all Wes could bring himself to say. She had died numerous times, too many times but this was only the second time Spike had been called upon to end her suffering. Nevertheless, it didn’t matter how many times they had witnessed this, they all had the same unspoken fear...what if she didn’t wake up.

Stroking his hands over her face, Spike ignored the conversations going on around him, silently willing her to return to him. They had been through this enough to understand that each time she died was different but they knew that with each new awakening, the next time would be shorter. Wes and Fred even have a theory that one day she’d heal everything but the most serious of wounds instantaneously as her reanimative powers grew and Spike hoped they were right. Waiting for her to open her eyes again was the vilest form of hell.

Slowly, he felt her lungs expand to draw in air as her heart started to beat again and he sent a quick thank-you to the Powers for bringing her back once again. “That’s it luv, time to wake up.”

Her eyes fluttered for a few seconds as she left the ether and returned to this world and like always, the first thing she saw was Spike’s eyes watching over her. “I’m so sorry you had to do that baby...I wasn’t expecting her to take it that far.”

He helped her to her feet, knowing that she always came back a little disoriented. Without an ounce of pity, she looked at Willow, her eyes cold and unforgiving. “As of right now I officially don’t give a damn about your issues. If I was anyone else the first hit would have killed me...”

“I didn’t mean it...I was just soo..”

“Stupid!” Buffy yelled back at her. “You have been building up your power, completely unconcerned about the danger! I bet this isn’t the first time you’re magicks have gone wrong, I’m guessing you have just as many spells go wrong as you have go right.”

“You can say that again.” Anya said dryly. “She turned Xander into a demon magnet on accident and made Faith and Angel think they were engaged. Oh and she made Giles go blind.”

“If you can’t control your magicks, that’s a sure fucking sign that you’re in over you damn head! God Willow you used to be one of the smartest people I knew and suddenly you’re as bright as a kid playing with his daddy’s gun!”

Angry now, Willow jerked away from Faith and stalked over to Buffy. “You’re just jealous that you’re not the only one with power anymore. I heard about your stupid little pigs but that is nothing compared to the things I can do.”

“Can you even hear yourself?” Buffy asked, closing the distance between them so that they were almost nose-to-nose. “You have power Willow, you’re the fucking nuclear bomb of magicks but you’re also just as deadly. Without control, you don’t work the magicks, they work you. I spent months learning discipline from some of the most experienced casters in this world. They didn’t just teach me nifty tricks, they taught me to respect the magick and not abuse it. You taste like strawberries Willow, simple and sweet like summers but you’re power is dark and it’s rotting you from the inside out. Do you really want that coming back on you times three?”

“You ran away again Buffy, you don’t know me so don’t act like you get to tell me what to do and what not to do.” Willow shot back, certain that Buffy was trying to scare her. “You’re the one who decided to be evil’s whore, so who in the hell are you to judge me?”

Spike felt it happen before he saw it, like the first tremble before an earthquake and when Buffy’s golden hair became as black as shadow, he knew Buffy wasn’t just tapping into her magicks she was becoming them.

With nothing more than a flick of her wrist, Buffy sent Willow crashing down to the floor, as the first scream tore its way out of her throat. No one dared to interfere; everything about Buffy seemed to scream danger and death. “What you’re feeling is just a taste of the darkness you shot into me but as you can see I have my own. I am the Slayer, my power comes from the source of all evil and it’s a power older than man. I could drain away you’re life, rip away your skin, or cause your bones to shatter inside your body until they were nothing but dust and I’d never have to move a muscle. I was given this power to hunt, to fight, to kill and right now, it’s whispering to me to punish you, destroy you for attacking me. Anger isn’t what I’m feeling, I’m past that, rage is a living beast inside my blood but I am strong enough to control it. I use the power but it does not use me and that is where we are different.”

Calming herself Buffy willed the power to recede like floodwater drawing back after the storm and before their eyes, her hair returned to its normal color. “I bind you Willow, I bind you from doing harm against others and harm against yourself.” Buffy repeated the phase two more times before ending the spell needed to lock Willow’s magicks away until she could be taught to deal with them. “By the power of three time three as I will it, so mote it be.”

Buffy turned her back on the girl crying on the floor and looked at Xander. “Take her to one of the rooms. Fred, if he needs anything for her, can you please see that she gets it?”

“Sure Eliza...I mean Buffy.” Fred said, her sharp Texas twang even more pounced than usual due to her agitation.

“Buffy, I blame myself for not teaching Willow the correct way to explore her magicks. I should have realized that she was getting out of control.” Giles said as soon as the others led Willow away. “But right now her magicks may be needed and if she is bound...”

“She won’t accidentally kill someone who won’t come back.” Buffy finished firmly, making it clear she wasn’t about to reconsider her actions. “I don’t know what going on but the more charged her emotions get, the less control she has. In school, she mentioned that it was all about emotional control and I am guessing that it’s her foundation. Now that it’s crumbling, the magick will only get harder and harder for her to contain and I am not about to risk my friends lives or hers, she might as well be as much as a threat as the one we’re facing. If I had died and stayed dead, Willow would have taken a human life and unlike Faith, she might not be strong enough to come back from that because of whatever has her so messed up to begin with.”

“I understand your concern but she never meant to kill you.”

“That didn’t make me any less dead now did it? Spike may have ended it but if he hadn’t I would have gotten to experience a long painful death. So whether she meant it or not isn’t the issue, she took a life today.”

Having it put so bluntly, he couldn’t ignore the truth of her words. “You’re right my dear girl but what do you intend to do?”

“The magicks won’t just go away, she’s got to learn how to deal with them and once we’ve dealt with the big bad, I’ll call the clan and see if they can send someone to help her.” Buffy said already planning it all out in her mind.

“Clan?” Giles asked. “Don’t you mean coven?”

“No, I was trained by gypsies...the same ones that cursed Angel.” Buffy said, flushing guilty. “I guess I left that part out earlier huh.”

“I need to sit down.” Angel muttered, suddenly realizing where the idea for the cursed vampire pigs came from. “Just tell me do you have any more surprises?

“No...” Buffy said after thinking it over for a few seconds.

“Why don‘t I believe you sweetheart?” Doyle asked her in Gaelic.

“That’s because you’re a horrible little toad of a man.” Buffy shot back with a grateful smile. Doyle was her like her big brother and as such, he was great about lightening her mood with a good argument.

“Aye, that I am but since you’re a wasp tongued, harpy of a woman I love ye anyways.” He replied with a wink.

They all watched as they insulted one another in perfect Gaelic that sounded like the sweetest of songs despite it bawdy content.

Touched that Buffy spoke his language as though she’d been borne to it, Angel gave her a soft, intimate smile as his heart once more blossomed with hope. “I’ve missed hearing the tongue of my people, it brings back many memories.”

Knowing that he was referring to the one night they spent together, Buffy returned his smile but it was the type of a smile that one bestowed on a friend instead of a lover. “Memories are all I have left to give you Angel. You are my past and Spike is my future, please understand that.”

Angel nodded but in his heart, he believed that all it would take is for her to be around him again for all of those feelings they shared to come back. If you live long enough you learn that the past repeats itself and while all she was offering now was friendship, he had no doubt her heart would once again be his.

Thinking they had reached and understanding, Buffy turned back to Giles. “So tell me what kind of demon we’re going to be up against.”

“It’s not a demon Buffy...it’s a god.”

Chapter 14
___________________


Buffy looked at them expectantly. “Okay, so it’s a god; impressive but still needing a little more info guys.”

Assuming that she had misunderstood, Giles shook his head at her. “Glory isn’t a normal demon with delusions of godliness, she is in fact Glorificus, a once worshiped hell god. Much like the judge it took an entire army to keep her busy so that a coven of witches could bind her but she escaped from her imprisonment. According to the Council they believe she has spent the last twenty years searching for what she needs to open a portal to her home-world.”

“And let me guess, for some reason we can’t just let her leave because it isn’t that simple.” Buffy said absently, waving her hand to clean up the blood she had vomited over her nice clean floor. Damnit, she had just polished it this morning, by hand, and it was a big ass room.

Sensing her distress, Spike walked over to the counter and reached down to gather up her cleaning supplies. He could see that Giles and the others weren’t appreciating her lack of attention but he knew why she was more worried about the floor than this threat. Threats always happen, big things are always going to come but this place, their home was their sanctuary. Every gleaming window, the fresh paint on the walls and the tastefully decorated rooms were proof that all the pain and strife were worth it because they had something worth fighting for. They had a home, their place in this world and while their lives would never be normal, it was their version of the white picket fence.

Carrying the bucket full of supplies over to her, he motioned for Giles to go on. “Go ahead mate, we’re listening.”

Incredulously Giles watched as Buffy took the offered supplies and sank down to her knees to mix the polish. Spike, looking very much like a lord of the manner from centuries ago; sat down in one of the chairs behind her and pulled out a cigarette. Despite his agitation over Buffy’s blasé reaction to what was a very real threat, the idea that his Slayer was reduced to nothing but a servant in what was supposed to be her home, brought Ripper dangerously close to the surface. “If that can’t possibly wait, don’t you suppose you should assist her?”

Everyone from her crew laughed and Buffy looked up at Giles like he’d sprouted a second head. “Waxing the floor the old fashioned way isn’t as easy as squirting so some caustic fake lemony stuff around. It’s a skill that requires patience and a delicate almost reverent touch, which sadly none of the men in my life possess when it comes to cleaning. Sure they’re great at spilling demon guts everywhere and they can whip a mop around like nobodies business but this they’d screw up and I’d just have to clean up, their clean up.” Buffy explained, beginning to move the rag around in slow concentric circles. “I know you’re impatient but this is our home and magick may whisk away the mess but it’s just not the same as taking care of it myself. Besides, this is actually very relaxing and I do some of my best thinking when I’m down here on my knees.”

For a spilt second everything went quiet and then like a sonic boom, laughter filled the entire lobby.

Playing back her words in her mind, she looked back over her shoulder and winked at Spike before once again turning around to focus on her polishing. After living with so many men,
double entendre’s and bawdy comments had lost the ability to make her blush. Pretty much everyone had walked in on one another accidentally or seen something they shouldn’t have, so Buffy wasn’t exactly sure what would make her blush anymore.

No sooner than she thought that, a vividly erotic picture of her on her knees with Spike pushing into her from behind floated through her mind and she felt her cheeks grown almost uncomfortably hot. Not in embarrassment but desire. Knowing he’d deliberately sent her that image just to torment her, she decided two could play that game and wiggled her ass enticingly, knowing full well that was why he’d taken a seat behind her.

When she heard him growling softly and shifted in his chair, she placed an innocent almost angelic expression on her face and looked back up at the others who will still laughing. “Alright children, I believe Giles and I were discussing something relatively important and if you can‘t control yourselves, go somewhere else so us grownups can talk.”


Marveling at how much she’d grown, Giles gave her a pleased smile before once again the serious of the situation, deepened the lines of his face. “Glory hopes to use a mystical key to open the portal between worlds and should that happen, the fabric of this dimension and her home-world will meld together and even after the gateway is closed, everything that slipped through while it was open will remain. The other possibility is that the door could remain open, more or less unleashing hell on earth.”

“So the plan is to find the key, hide it and then kill the hell bitch.” Buffy guessed, wondering why Spike was one of the only demons she’d met who realized that earth was way better without it being all hell like.

“We already have the key in our possession but the problem is that Glory can’t be killed. Faith and Angel, barely survived their first encounter with her and even after Riley shot her, it didn’t slow her down much. It caused her pain but the shot itself should have killed her. Not even Willow’s magicks had any discernable affect on her. We’ve injured her time and time again but according to the Council, she is immortal and un-killable by any means.” Giles said unable to keep his own fear from coloring his words.

She head it but it was the defeated sound in his tone that sent her to her feet looking very much like a general prepared to lead the troops. “Listen to me, everything and I mean everything that lives can be killed. If something can live it can die, it’s that simple but figuring out how to pull it off is the tricky part. So while were doing that, I suggest we focus on making sure the key is safe or possibly finding some way to destroy it. Glory may be the big bad, but the portal opening is the biggest threat.”

“We can’t destroy the key Buffy, because it’s been given human form.” Giles said lightly. “Not long after you left, Willow fell in love with a sweet young witch she met at the college. We have accepted her into our midst, only to find out recently that she is the key Glory need to open the portal. Tara had no idea she was a key, she grew up with a family that loved her but when Faith rescued the monk sent here to warn her, he reveled the truth to her. They gave the key human form in hopes of thwarting Glory and it somehow led to her escape. She simply disappeared and now they have both been drawn to the hellmouth. Glory doesn’t know that the key is now in human form but she does know that the energy is now contained within a vessel of some sort. A vessel she knows we have and are trying to keep from her.”

“Which explains why Will’s so freaked. Glory nearly killed Tara when she attacked us at the Magick Box and even though she’s now healed, she isn’t safe.” Xander said, hoping to explain Willow’s earlier anger.

Nodding but not commenting one way or another Buffy walked over to the phone and dialed a familiar number. “Gabe, I need a favor.” Buffy said in her sweetest voice.

She listened for a few moments, then let out a light trilling laugh. “No I don’t want you to buy me another hotel, I need info.”

Smirking, Spike watched Angel out of the corner of his eye. “Tell the bloody Immortal to quit propositioning you luv, it’s getting really pathetic. Better yet, put him on the speaker phone and I‘ll tell him myself.”

Doing as he asked she pushed down the speaker button and hopped up on the counter.

“Ciao, my most honored rival.” Gabe called out joyfully, after hearing Spike’s demand. “Your lovely mate is in need of my assistance si?”

“Only because you’re older than dirt.” Spike said without any real heat, amused beyond belief at how Angel’s mouth was flopping up and down as he realized who they were talking to.

“To true il mio amico but my body is still warm and full of life like the sweetest of grapes warmed in the sun, while you are but dust waiting to be scattered into some dark night.”

“Only cause my girl saved your sorry hide, mate and I’m too busy with her at night to get scattered to the winds.”

“Ah, it still amazes me that you prefer him to me il bell'angelo di risparmio. Toss him aside and I shall lay this world at your feet.”

“Gabe, we’ve been through this, I like my men without a pulse and you’re kinda a little arrogant.” Buffy teased with a fond smile.

“And William is not arrogant?” He challenged.

“Yeah he really is but in his case, it’s part of his charm. But my old friend, can you help a girl out?”

“After all your refusals, I should return the favor but alas, I can not. I am your faithful servant, ask what you need of me and it shall be done.”

“Now see Gabe that right there is what makes you so charming.” Buffy said swinging her feet back and forth. “But what can you tell me about a hell god that goes by the name Glorificus? I got the basic story but I need to figure out how to kill her.”

“I do not know this for certain but I believe that she is in some way bound to the key she so desperately seeks to return home. It appeared in this realm the same time she was cast out of her home-world by her brothers. I believe the secret of her destruction will be closely mirrored by the key. I do not know what vessel the monks chose but I think that it is safe to assume that Glory can be destroyed the same way.”

“The key’s a human, a witch that’s mortal and Glory is clearly not.” Buffy said, causing the Sunnydale crew to sputter in shock.

“That means nothing my sweet. You and I know better how the face we see is not always the only one they possess. Glory was always a woman, so if the key was given human form with magical abilities, you must assume that Glory’s old form was changed as well. Perhaps her insanity wasn‘t caused from her imprisonment but that change in her being and I believe that she would use her magicks to conceal the face that could mean her death.”

“Angel went a little insane when he got his soul so if Glory was anything like Angelus before the change, it would make sense that if she was given a human half, it would drive her a little crazy. Add magicks and one big ego into the mix and you’ve got one pissed off and insane hell bitch.” Buffy worked through several plans in her head, quickly rejecting the first couple before getting a decent idea. “Can you call the elders for me, have them look up a reveling or summoning spell that might be able to draw out her weaker half…if we’re right about her even having one.”

“Si but rest at ease little one, I think our combined knowledge has pieced together this mystery. Like myself, you lacked some details that could lead you to this conclusion.”

“Yeah but you’re like thousands of years old and even if I had all the details I doubt I could have worked this out so quickly on my own.”

“I have spent years trying to uncover some way of destroying that abomination and in this moment I have made more progress than in the last two centuries. The monastery she decimated in the Czech Republic was under my protection and anything you need to help defeat her, do not hesitate to ask. Not that I wouldn’t help you if it wasn’t about her, but this is a matter of honor.”

“Other than the magicks angle I think we can handle it but I need another favor. A girl I know has lost control of her powers and I had to bind her. She’s incredibly powerful and I would appreciate it if you’d ask the elders if they know of someone they can send to train her in the craft.”

“You saved their beloved children and showed them the error of the judgment against Angel yet never asked for anything in return. While you did accept their offer of training, I think it is safe to say that they will feel indebted to you for many millennia. But nevertheless I will pass on your requests.”

“Thanks Gabe, I owe you big time.”

“You forget my sweet, you saved my life as well, so I too am indebted to you.” Gabe reminded her, knowing she hated to be thanked for her good works. That was one of the things he loved about her, she was downright humble for a Champion.

“You bought me a villa as a thank you and bought us a fricking hotel as a wedding gift; I think we’re more than even Gabriel. Now we’re just friends, I don’t need anything more than that.” Buffy said sternly, glowering at the phone.

“Ah, friendship both a blessing and a curse in your case, my sweet. Other than this pressing matter are things well for you and William?”

“We’re peachy with a side of keen. My friends kinda found us today; they’re actually the ones who brought me in on this Glory thing.”

“How did that go for you? I know you were concerned about their reactions should you meet again.”

“Xander hugged me, Willow killed me and Angel was attacked by one of the pigs but so far it’s been pretty good.” Buffy admitted, smiling at the others.

“What of your Watcher is he well?”

“Giles is still very Gilesy and I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Buffy said, missing the flash of shock that covered Giles face.

Up until that moment, Giles believed he had been replaced by Wesley yet it was clear that Buffy had told this Immortal fellow that he was her Watcher.

“She has never been my Slayer Rupert.” Wes said softly, catching the older man’s surprise from her words. “I am her friend but you have always had her respect and love as her Watcher and father.”

Buffy finished her conversation and looked over to where Giles was standing with Wes. “Gabriel’s totally trust worthy, I wouldn’t have told him about the key if I thought it would put her in any danger. He’s probably the oldest living being any of us will ever met and he couldn’t have helped if he didn’t know everything. He’s more or less neutral on the whole good vs. evil thing but every once in awhile he gets involved for the side of good and both Spike and I trust him implicitly.”

“You trust the Immortal?” Angel asked Spike, his voice rich with shock.

“Thing change Angel.” Spike said knowing Angel would understand he wasn’t just talking about the Immortal. He had no doubt Angel had some inane plan to win back Buffy but even though she’d still never said the words, he knew he had nothing to fear. Every time she looked at him, her eyes and soul screamed out her love for him and he’d place his faith in them.

“Okay so now that’s settled, we might actually have something close to a plan.” Buffy said hopping off the counter. “You all make yourselves at home and go pick out your rooms. While you’re doing that I’ll work out a plan with my crew so they can handle things while we’re gone and then we can all just sorta hang out. I’m guessing you all need a break and since there isn’t anything more that can be done tonight, I say why not.”

Chapter 15

“You alright luv?” Spike asked walking up behind her to run his hands across the knotted muscles in her back. He’d watched her as she’d trained for the last ten minutes and the cold brutality of her attacks was a good gauge of her mood.

“No, I’m really not.” She admitted, leaning back into his touch. “Ya know I always knew that this day would come but did it have to happen when things were so good for us? I mean is there some rule that says when I‘m happy, fate is obligated to throw a wrench in the works?”

Rubbing her down expertly, he felt her calming beneath his hands. “We could just kick the blighters out; let them fight their own battles.”

“Sure, then they’d all get killed and their ghosts would move in to punish us for being selfish.” Buffy closed her eyes and lay back against him. “But then again I already did my selfish phase and I’m just not lucky enough for it to work out for the best again. So I guess we really hafta go play heroes.” She said with a soft whine.

“Don’t listen to Red luv, you didn’t run away; you went to chase your own future. It wasn’t selfish; it was just time to cut yourself loose.” Spike said wrapping his arms around her waist.

“You’re my selfish indulgence Spike and I wouldn’t give you up for the world.” Buffy said softly, turning around in his embrace so she could meet his eyes. “What we have is wrong; death should be our gift to one another, not love. You have no soul and nothing but your word and just by being with you, I am a disgrace to all the Slayers who died before me. But when I’m with you, I don’t care about all the reasons we shouldn’t be together I’m just glad that I was lucky enough to find you. You made me believe in myself again and you taught me how to love again. So no matter how wrong it may seem on the surface, it has never felt wrong inside my heart or soul.”

He ran his fingers through her hair, brushing it back off her face like he had thousands of times before. Through thier bond he could feel her concern fluttering inside her stomach and he wanted to put her at ease again. She had changed so much, relaxed and allowed herself to grow and he wasn't about to let anyone force her back into a mold again. He'd tap dance naked in hell first. “Them coming here doesn’t change what we have Buffy…they can’t touch us.”

She looked up into his eyes, losing herself in the emotions she saw there. “I needed this day to come, I needed to see him and now that I have, I know the truth. My old life made me doubt myself and I couldn’t help wondering if you and I just settled. The ones we wanted didn’t want us, so we found solace in each other. That’s why I wouldn’t give you the words; I wanted to be certain that when I did they would be the truth. I didn’t want what we have to be built on false promises and before I could give you my heart, I had to know it wasn’t still with him. Then he was suddenly standing there and all I could think was how desperately I wanted you there with me. He was just my ex…a guy I once cared deeply about but you Spike…you’re the one. I love you.”

He had imagined this moment hundreds of times in thousands of different way but it was the simple sincerity of her words that left no doubt to the truth of them. Her simple declaration had his beast charging to the surface with the need to take his mate and the man, felt the same need as well. She loved him and she had chosen him…it was all he had ever wanted in his nearly two hundred years of life. With a growl, he wrapped his arms around his waist and tossed her over his shoulder.

Buffy could feel his need to take her through their claim and suddenly she felt very primal. It wasn’t just a need to be with her lover or even the man she loved it was a consuming fire to join with her mate. Mine, mine, mine, her mind screamed and because of their link she knew his entire being was screaming it back at her. Biting into his back and drawling another growl from his throat, she relaxed against him. “Are you just going to stand here or are you going to take me to bed?”

Reaching up, he slapped her on the ass and began to make his way out of the training room and towards the lobby. From the renovated ballroom there was simply no one to avoid going up the main stairs and despite the fact he knew the others were there, he didn’t care.

Wes heard the stifled gasps and looked up to see Spike stalk into the room with a nearly feral look in his eyes and Buffy slung over his shoulder. “Dear lord.” He muttered reaching up to rub his eyes as he mentally worked out how to still get work done when the two of them were in this particular mood.

Getting to his feet, he walked out of the office, grabbing his coat off the rack and pulling it on. Without a word the Fred and Gunn did the same thing, while the others looked at them for an explanation. When Spike gave Buffy a firm swat Wes quickly averted his eyes and cleared his throat loudly as the pair made their way towards the stairs. “I suggest we all go out and get a bite to eat, perhaps even take in a movie.”

Instantly understanding what Wesley was saying, Angel got to his feet and glared at the lovers who were making their way up the stairs as though they were the only two people in the word. “You have got to be kidding me, there isn’t time for them… there‘s work to do.”

“Damn man, if you had what they do, you wouldn’t see it that way.” Gunn said having no idea that once upon a time, Angel had been the one with Buffy. “There ain’t nothing to fight tonight and you can’t blame the man for wanting to cuddle up with his woman.”

“I think it's kinda sweet; two great champions making love before the epic battle.” Fred said shyly, a soft romantic light filling her eyes.

“Spike isn’t a champion.” Angel asserted coolly, barely able to hold back a growl as the first moan from upstairs reached his sensitive ears.

“Perhaps you’re right about him not being a champion for the Powers that Be.” Wes said calmly, an unreadable smile gracing his lips. He’d once been awed by what Angel and Buffy had shared but after seeing Buffy and Spike together he could clearly see how selfish Angel was. “But he is certainly her champion and I doubt he‘d have it any other way. He isn‘t fighting to earn a place in heaven or assuage some past act, he‘s fighting for and beside the woman he loves. I doubt any man or champion would see that as anything less than a noble endeavor.”

Narrowing his eyes, Angel turned on his heel and stormed out of the front door. What did Wesley Whyndam-Whimp know anyways, he asked himself angrily? How could he ever understand what it meant to sacrifice all of your own happiness to ensure the woman you loved found hers? All he wanted was for Buffy to have the kind of life she deserved and if he’d known about her immortality, he’d have never left. She would need someone there to hold her as mortality claimed her friends one by one and that someone needed to be able to help her accept their passing and deal with the pain.

Did all her new little friends really think a soulless thing like Spike could make her happy? Spike was clearly just using her to get at him; he’d probably found her lost and alone and used her confusion to insinuate himself in her life. It was probably his idea of payback because of Drusilla and in her emotional state; Buffy had fallen for his act. He’d probably been waiting for them to find out all this time and now that they had, Angel was sure that Spike would start to reveal his true nature. That’s when I’ll act, he told himself calming down somewhat. Buffy will see, they all would and Spike would be dusted like he so rightly deserved he vowed.

_______________________________

Running his hand down Buffy’s naked back, Spike lowered his mouth to lap at the shallow scratch just above her right shoulder. The moment he’d kicked the door closed behind him, they’d gone at it like wild beasts finally freed. Clothes were ripped and torn away and instead of using words to express they’re love, they allowed their bodies to speak for them. It was violent. Over and over they rolled across their bed in a battle of dominance with neither willing to be the submissive one for long. As a Slayer and a Vampire, fighting was a part of their nature, the need to conquer to consume but it wasn’t any less meaningful than the gentle caresses they now indulged in.

They met each others needs on every possible level and with the haze of passion leaving them; once again they were both awed by how fortunate they were to have found one another…their true equal.

“Again…already?” Buffy asked, not sounding bothered by that at all.

“M’ Always ready for you pet.” Spike said turning her over so he could look into her eyes. “But I just wanna hold you…drown in you for a bit.”

“You always say the sweetest things my beloved warrior poet.” Buffy said softly, laying her head over his still beating heart. They’d learned that after they joined in heart, body and soul, that for a brief while he was technically alive. His skin held warmth, his heart pounded inside his chest and breathing was necessary but since her skin grew cold and her heart stopped, they both understood she was taking his death inside herself and giving him life in return. It was just another physical sign of their devotion to one another, neither held anything back and accepted all they were given. “I wish I had pretty words to give you back.”

“No need luv, when you fight your living poetry for my demon and then you come home and tend our nest, which shows the man how much this all means to you. You’ve been building us a place of our own, showing that what we have is just as important as your need to fight and no one since my mum, has ever been willing to put me first.” Spike brushed a whisper soft kiss against her forehead before drawing her even closer against his chest. “You’re my everything Buffy, the one thing in this world strong enough to make me want to be more than just a monster and even though you held back the words for so long, I know you feel the same way.”

“I do.” Buffy admitted, brushing her cheek against his shoulder. “With you I don’t have to be the Slayer, the hero, I can just be a woman falling asleep in the arms of her lover. I had fire before, I had passion but you give me all of that as well as peace Spike. Like you said, when I'm in your arms I know nothing can touch me. I’m safe and loved and you have never given me a single reason to doubt that it wouldn’t last. Angel and I tossed words like always and forever back and forth and looking back on it now, I think it was our way of trying to convince ourselves that what we had would last. There was always that tiny shred of doubt, the unspoken fears that what we had wasn’t right…that is was wrong and I wouldn’t listen. Angel did and that just goes to show that it wasn’t as real and as lasting as we thought because when this started between us those doubts were there but I always knew you didn't give a damn about whether it was right or not, you just wanted me. Whistler could show up right now and say the world would be sucked into hell if I didn’t let you go and I’d tell him let it come. If he came to you, you'd would tell him to go bugger himself and that's what ever girl wants to know. That you'd be willing to fight for me, stand with me despite the risks or cost and your the first person to give me that. ”

Touched, he bent down to capture her lips and for the rest of the night they re-affirmed their commitment to one another. For them, nothing mattered beyond the person cradled within their embrace. The rest of the world would just have to wait.

Chapter 16


The first thing the Scoobies heard in the morning was the sound of several doors slamming and footsteps running towards the stairs. Still in battle mode, they quickly awoke and ran for their own doors, braced for an attack.

Flinging open her door, with Riley just behind her Faith stopped at the bright almost giddy grins on the Phoenix crew as they moved like children on Christmas morning. They were all still in their pj’s and while they glanced at her, they didn’t say a word. “What’s up?”

Gunn and Doyle easily ignored her question and the others looks, this was what they considered an every man for himself situation.

Wes felt the same way, yet he was about to suck it up and be the mature one. Thankfully his dear sweet Fred, motioned for him to go on. “I love you.” Wes said reverently, placing a quick kiss on her hand before continuing to the stairway at a fast clip.


“If it was quiet you’d hear the singing.” She said bashfully, not meeting anyone’s eyes. Laughing softly, she realized they had no idea what that meant. “When Buffy sings it means there’s gonna be a big breakfast and well…ya’ll have tasted her cookin’ so you know its really good.”


Xander was pretty sure Buffy didn’t cook but now he definitively smelt something delicious. Grabbing Anya’s hand, he decided this was one ‘emergency’ situation that he was qualified to check out. “So Fred what kind of food are we talking about here?” he asked as he and Ahn, reached her by the stairwell.


“We always get a traditional Irish breakfast, eggs, rashers, sausage, potatoes you know the basics.” Fred said, before licking her lips and getting an almost enraptured look on her lovely face. “But if she’s singin’ it means she also made the sweet stuff. Thick and fluffy griddle cakes covered in powdered sugar, caramel sticky buns and raisin scones with clotted cream and jam.”


“And you hung around to fill us in!” Xander said quickening his pace; right away deciding this shy young woman was going to be his newest best friend.


“She always makes more than enough but darn it, it’s just better when its right out of the oven.” Fred confided with a bright grin. “Besides, this way Wesley will owe me one.”


Turning into the large dining area that Buffy had broken up and made more homey by adding several small tables that could be pulled together depending on how many people were there instead of just using one massive and medieval table; Xander could see the heaping plates of food and swallowed thickly. “You all do this every morning?” He asked taking a seat beside Doyle.


“Aye, not always the sticky stuff but Buffy makes sure we eat and its always good.” Doyle said, passing over the plates so the couple could help themselves. “Its rare for one of us to miss a meal.”


“Ah, you’ve figured out my insidious plot.” Buffy said with a wry smile as she carried in another plate of rich golden eggs and the other platter was piled high with pancakes that looked soft enough to use as pillows. “If I didn’t cook, you all would never be around.”


“Damn B…” Faith muttered as she and the others made their way into the room.


With his own plate full, Xander’s first bite was of the bun just oozing with thick caramel and the moment it melted on his tongue, his body signaled pure unadulterated pleasure on an almost carnal level.


“Are you alright?” Riley asked as he sit down in the chair across from him.


“Dear sweet goddess of gooey goodness, thank you.” Xander said like a prayer before closing his eyes and sighing in appreciation. This was a thousand times better than the Scooby tradition of donuts and espresso, he thought wishing he lived here full time.


“Told ya, pretty good huh.” Fred said before taking a huge bite of her own bun.


Outraged, Xander began to sputter like a toddler on a sugar high. “Twinkies are good, apples are good but this…this is the pinnacle of deliciousness.”


“I couldn‘t have said it better myself.” Giles said after nipping into a scone with fresh cream.


“Thanks guys, everyone eat up there‘s plenty.” Buffy said almost absently, as she brought in extra napkins and silverware. Spotting Angel standing in the doorway, despite the fact the others had seated themselves, she waved him inside. “Don’t be shy Angel, there’s goodies for the undead too. So sit down and I’ll bring it out.”


“I don’t want to disturb anyone.” He said, wishing his taste buds could appreciate the spread before him but simply happy to smell the scents from his past. He had no idea how many times he’d woken up as a child to meals like this and even as a drunken lout, he always managed to be up by nine in order to eat.


“Nonsense, Spike always eats with us, so we’re all used to morning bumpies.” Buffy said, walking over to him and more or less dragging him to the table and forcing him to sit. She remembered he’d always been ashamed of his vampiric nature and since she still cared for him as a friend, it was time to teach him to accept himself just as he was. “Besides, I do things with animal blood that could convince the devil to brown bag it.”


“Buffy, you’ve already cooked enough for an army, I don’t want you to go to any trouble on my account.” He said sincerely, taking her special attention as a good sign.


“Ffft, everyone in this building eats and if you keep arguing maybe a piggy could help you change your mind.” She said sweetly, her face the very picture of stubborn innocence.


Wincing, Angel nodded, having no desire for another visit from those things.


“Listen to the lady mate, the girl is Martha Stewart for the dead.” Spike said strolling into the room. Last night he realized that if Angel hadn’t been a complete idiot he’d have never met Buffy in Paris. So in a round about way Angel had given him a precious gift and as long as the blighter minded his manners, he’d return the favor.


“What could she possibly do with blood?” Angel asked easily, sticking to his own plan. Until the real Spike came out, he fully intended to make it appear like he accepted everything. No more cutting remarks, just a graceful concession that was anything but sincere.


Walking back into the room with a large metal carafe that restaurants used to keep coffee hot, Buffy handed each vampire a mug and sit it down between them. “Now you two keep this on this end of the table…we so don’t want to make that mistake again.” She said lightly, before once again heading back into the kitchen.


Playing the part of the genial host, Spike poured Angel’s cup before filling his own. In an effort to be polite but not overly enthusiastic Angel brought the cup to his lips and nearly had the same reaction as Xander.


“Right good isn’t it.” Spike said with a slight smirk. “Almost as good as Slayers blood.”


“What is it?” Angel asked, suddenly wishing he had asked before getting that first taste. Spike could say it was virgin blood and he’d finish drinking it.


“The girls a bloody terror when she gets her mind wrapped around something and she decided to make blood cocktails.” Spike said before grabbing the box of Wheatabix off the table and putting some in his own mug. “The first few were bloody terrible but then she got to thinking about why her blood tasted so good. So after she had me describe it like it was a bleeding sundae, she and Fred got online and started ordering fresh blood from those hunting farms. You know those places where anyone with enough money can show up a bag themselves some big game without any effort. So what you’ve got there is pig, bear and deer. The girls figured the blood from another predator would give it the right amount of kick and that the deer would add in the right amount of wildness then she threw in a bit of burba weed to spice it up.”


Hearing them, Fred leaned back in her chair so she could join their conversation without interrupting the ones going on around her. “Its not even that expensive to make since they have no real use for the blood anyway. Buffy got them to agree to an yearly fee and shipping. Since we have a walk in freezer we save money by ordering in bulk so by the time you break it all down, it’s actually cheaper than cows blood at the butchers.”


Angel was sincerely impressed but he was certainly going to miss it when he got home. Reading his face, Buffy who had returned and sat down beside Spike, gave him a knowing smile. “If you want we can run by the store and pick you up one of those really big ice chests and you can take some home. One bag is enough to satisfy, so you could easily get a few months worth in one trip and since you know where we are, you can always come back for more.”


Giving her a warm smile, Angel nodded his thanks. “But I insist on paying you for it.”


“The hell you will, you’re family.” Spike said not sure who he shocked more with that statement, Buffy or Angel. Lowering his voice so only one with Slayer or vampire hearing would pick it up, he explained. “I won’t say we’ll ever be friends Angel, cause I doubt a few centuries worth of pissing contests can just be forgotten but you’re still family.”


Angel almost came back with a sarcastic retort but the touched look in Buffy’s eyes, had him remembering his plan. “To family then William.” Angel said raising his glass in a toast, one in which the others quickly joined in on.


“To family.” They all repeated, that single gesture of coming together reminding them all why they fought and what they stood to lose.


_____________________________


“You nervous pet.” Spike asked running his hand over Buffy’s as they drove back to Sunnydale. Because of the sun, he, Angel and Buffy were in the back of the large van Phoenix had purchased for situations just like this and even without their physical closeness he would have felt her unease through the claim.


“No, anxious but not exactly nervous.” Buffy admitted with a self-depreciating grin. “Been awhile since I played for all the marbles you know. I’ve gotten fat and lazy.”


Running his hands up and down her sides, hitting all her ticklish spots, he gave her a critical look. “Your still a tiny little bint and since you do more work than ten people, the lazy comment is out as well.”


Ignoring the last half of his comment, she looked down at her body before looking back up at him. “Are you saying I’m too skinny?”


Realizing he’d put his foot in it, he gave her the warm smile that usually had her forgiving him. “Every inch of you is beautiful; I could spend the rest of my life just basking in your warmth.”


It was exactly the right thing to say but since he was really good at that, she rolled her eyes and held back the dopey smile struggling to break free. “You just don’t want to sleep on the sofa.”

“That’s fine with me luv, might be a bit uncomfortable for the two of us but if it’s what you want.” He shot back, knowing from the subtle change in her scent that his first comment had the desired effect.

“You’re impossible.” Buffy said with a light laugh, resting her cheek against his shoulder.

“M’ evil, what do you expect?” He teased, slipping his arm around her out of habit. It was like his entire was programmed to respond to her in any given situation. At her look, he let out a deep sigh. “Or just the kinda naughty…damn it woman might as well get you a leash to lead me about on.”

Getting a wicked gleam in her eyes, the scent of her arousal had both vampires sucking in an unneeded breath. “That’s it, the hell bitch is going down, I got stuff to buy and a big bad to dominate.”

Chapter 17



Like a caged beast Buffy paced the length of the Magick Box, over and over again, never remaining still for a second. It had been awhile since she’d been on the hellmouth and all the evil vibes had her Slayerness on high, high and overdrive. They had been waiting for the others to arrive and while it had only been ten minutes or so, if she didn’t do something soon she was going to explode.

Unfortunately for her, everyone including Spike, was knee deep in battle plans and failed to notice her predicament. With nothing left to do, she continued to pace, dreaming up brutal fight after brutal fight in an effort to take the edge off.

He had picked up every word in the conversations going on around him and even added him own input from time to time but all of his senses were trained on Buffy. The power pouring off of her was like a seductive pheromone to his demon and he’d had to resort to pulling his leather jacket around his body in an effort to conceal the very visible effect she was having on him.

Everything about her fascinated him, the way her eyes flashed with a maelstrom of unspoken words and the play of her muscles beneath her red leather slacks as her muscular body made its way across the room. It was taking all of his concentration to appear focused on the others, but when a low rumble danced across his spine, he couldn’t hold back any longer. “Did you just growl?” Angel asked her, unable to keep the shock out of his voice.

“Yep…deal with it.” She muttered, letting out another deep growl just to be difficult.

Laughing at her, Spike shook his head. “Kitten wants to play does she?”

Finally she thought whirling around with a delighted smile lighting up her entire face. “I’m crawling out of my skin here, can we please go kill something; pretty, pretty please, I promise to be really quick?” She asked, letting her eyes go impossibly wide and letting her bottom lip tremble slightly.

“What’s gotten into you pet? I thought you were just nervous but this is well…neat.” He admitted liking this side of her immensely. She didn’t usually let this side of her being out but when she did, it was a sight to behold. Yet he’d never seen her so in touch with her nature before. No-one looking at her now could deny the fact that she was a predator; a air of danger seemed to shimmer around her like a warning cloud.

“Questions later…lets go fight.” Buffy said walking over and grabbing him by the lapels of his jacket. Giles had given them the ten cent tour after they arrived but she had thought it would be rude to just disappear into the training room. Now she really didn’t care. She could barely think with her blood pounding inside her veins and like a junkie looking for a fix, she needed relief now.

Spike let her drag him along and the second her skin touched his, it finally dawned on him what was going on. “Side-effect of the claim; the girl’s tapped into the hellmouth like a demon and since she’s also a Slayer it’s no wonder she’s climbing the bloody walls.” He called back over his shoulder as an explanation for the others.

Deciding she had been patient long enough, she flung open the training room door and more or less tossed Spike into the room. Kicking the door shut behind them, she locked it, not wanting to be interrupted for any reason.

Left with no choice, Giles continued as though they hadn’t been interrupted until a loud roar followed by the sound of someone being flung into the wall with great force, filled the room.

“Should we go check on them?” Riley asked as the sounds of the fight escalated until it was easy to believe a full out war was going on in the next room.

“Best to leave them be mate.” Doyle decided after a few seconds.

“Aren’t you worried he might hurt her?” Faith asked not really sure how much she trusted an un-souled vamp facing off against a Slayer. Sometimes in the heat of the moment nature and instinct takes over and since Giles had insisted she familiarize herself with Spike’s MO incase he came back around, all she knew was that Buffy was in a room with a vamp that had taken out two Slayers.

“Oh I’ve no doubt they’ll both be bloody by the time they’re through lass.” Doyle said making himself as comfortable as possible in the hard wooden chair. “But my money’s on Buffy and since she’s right fond of Spike, they’ll both live to see another day.”

“I smell blood, a lot of it.” Angel said walking towards the door. “Both his and hers.”

“Surely they wouldn’t injure themselves greatly with Glory out there?” Giles said wondering if they should interrupt after all. He had assumed they were just going to spar but with the noises coming from the room, there was little doubt that they were fighting full out.

“Buffy heals much quicker than normal because of her Immortality. She can heal all but mortal wounds within a hour.” Wesley said, flipping through a volume he didn’t have, completely unconcerned by the situation. “As for Spike, because of their connection drinking from her causes him to heal just as quickly. So I say let them have at it, because I for one have no desire to be faced with an edgy Slayer high off of the energy of this place.”

“He drinks from her?” Giles asked, never even considering that would be a part of their relationship.

“Umm, he’s a vampire…that’s what they do.” Fred said blushing furiously as she recalled the look of absolute pleasure on Buffy’s face the one time she had walked in on Spike drinking from her. It was clear that both of them considered the act highly erotic and since they were in love, she couldn’t see it as offensive. He wasn’t using her like a common animal, they were sharing an experience that meant a great deal to both and that made it okay in her book.

“What Fred is trying to say is that both of them consider it as a sort of foreplay, so if I was you Rupert I would keep my opinion on the matter to yourself. They both are adults after all, so what happens in their relationship is really their business.” Wes said, not rudely just as a friendly warning.

“You drank from her right?” Anya asked, not about to let a topic from one of her favorite subjects drop. “Can a vampire make it more sexual than painful?”

Angel closed his eyes briefly as the memories of the night he marked Buffy flooded his mind, stiffening his already painfully aroused cock. More than anything he just wished he could pretend he hadn’t heard her question but since he knew Anya wasn’t one to just drop it, he simply nodded.

She opened her mouth to ask again but Xander quickly shook his head.

“But a nod doesn’t really tell me anything?” Anya said crossing her arms over her chest.

Since Xander was betting Angel was in the same kind of hell he’d once lived in watching those two together back in high school, he felt inclined to give the guy a break. “Ahn, do you think Buffy’s the kind of woman who would let him bite her if she didn’t enjoy it?” He asked quietly.

“No, she’s very independent and strong.” Anya decided after a few seconds. “I like her much more this way than I did before.”

“What’s that suppose to mean?” Willow asked quietly, instantly rising to her friends defense. All of last night and this morning she was thinking over what she’d done and what Buffy had said and it was clear she owed her several apologies. If anyone would understand what she was going thought it would be Buffy; she had sent Angel to hell after all.

“She used to completely lack self-confidence, which I never understood because she was very intimidating as the Slayer.” Anya explained wondering how they all could have missed the changes in someone they considered to be their good friend. “Even before Angel dumped her it was obvious she was bending over back-wards to ensure you all liked her. It’s very clear she has abandonment issues and I wasn’t surprised when she left; if the man she loved could leave her why not the rest of you? I’ve seen it happen before you know, a woman using her significant other as her foundation and when it turns out he doesn’t think she’s very significant everything she’s built up comes crashing down. That’s the greatest time to work vengeance; given a chance to rant and rebel against the person who hurt them, they suggest things they’d never consider before. In Buffy‘s case, I doubt she ever considered having a life away from here but when she no longer had a reason to stay, it makes since that she would get as far away as possible.”

“Hey, I resent that.” Xander said grouchily. “Even if Angel had left, we would have still been here for her.”

“Yes but as an Immortal she couldn‘t count on you all always being there. Atleast with him around she knew she‘d never be alone and since he was leaving her, it makes sense that she left to learn how to exist wholly independent of the people she had come to depend on.” Anya counted calmly, thinking of her own experience with Olaf. While it was true that behind every great man is a great woman, the male of the species also had a way of keeping a woman from reaching her full potential. All women, even confident ones like herself and Buffy subjugate themselves in an effort to keep their chosen partner happy. Men do the same thing in their own way but because women are part of a penis driven society they are raised to believe that the male of the species is superior. All little girls want to make daddy happy and when they grow up that need to please is transferred to their husband and since Buffy’s dad abandoned her, Anya could clearly see how much Angel’s actions would have pushed Buffy into taking a stand.

“Dear lord, how could we have missed seeing that?” Giles asked sinking down into a chair, finding he suddenly lacked the strength to stand. Listening to Anya’s reasoning he finally understood why Buffy had left the way she had and why she had chosen to remain gone.

“But we didn’t know she was immortal.” Willow protested.

“No, but if she hadn’t been it was very unlikely that her life would still mesh with yours.” Giles said pulling off his glasses and flinging them down onto the table. “If you recall her attitude about the Prom; her overwhelming desire that you all experience the night without the fear of it being interrupted by a demon attack. She told me that she was over the fact that she’d never have the perfect high school moment and if you take Anya‘s words into account, it was clear she was living through you all vicariously to some degree. No matter where she goes in her life she will always be a Slayer and that has to take precedence, so while she may have attended classes with you at the university, it was a future she knew she‘d never have because her destiny had already been decided.”

He glanced at Angel and while he’d never been able to forgive him completely for his actions as Angelus, he’d once again come to respect the man beneath the vampire. “I doubt she left simply because of the ending of her relationship with Angel, more likely it was the catalyst that caused her to want a life that was of her own choice and making. She’d never had much of a choice before, not really and since she’d been released of her fealty and Faith was here to guard the Hellmouth, she finally had other options. Options the rest of us would simply take for granted.”

“I understand that Giles I really do, but she still could have talked with us.” Willow said bitterly, refusing to be comforted by Tara’s soothing strokes against her back. “We were her friends and we’ve always stood by her but once again she just took off without…”

“Asking for your permission?” Buffy asked from the doorway, her face hard and drawn beneath the dark bruises that were already beginning to fade. Her battle with Spike had calmed her somewhat but Willow’s words had angered the leviathan that had been created from the powers inside her. “I’m sure that’s not what you were going to say but it’s what you really mean right?”

“It’s not like that Buffy, you were our friend and you just left without a word!” Willow asked, her own anger rising to the surface as her earlier intentions of apologizing were forgotten. She could feel her magicks inside her, struggling to break free of their mystical bonds but even though they were contained, they were still a living breathing part of her being. The fact that Buffy had so easily separated her from that part of herself without caring about how it would make her feel, just like she’d left them without caring about what they’d think, only further fueled her anger. “We thought you were killed or hurt in the battle and when we went to your house we found out you were just gone again. You bitched about Angel just telling you how things were going to be without talking to you first but then you did the exact same thing to us…only you didn’t even have the nerve to tell us to our faces!”

“Gee Willow, you were my friends not my lover or mother so why in the hell should I have to ask your opinion about how I live MY life?” Buffy said with a chilling smile, twisting her lips. “To be honest I didn’t expect to ever come back here and I knew that if I did, I had no right to expect what we once had to be waiting for me. I talked to my mom and I know she told you that but you all refused to just let me go. I felt like I had no where to turn and nothing to live for and since you all had made it clear you believed Angel’s leaving was for the best, I couldn’t exactly come talk to you now could I?”


“You know what I see, I see a selfish girl who talks about friendship but puts her undead boyfriend above everyone else in her life.” Willow shot back with a cold smile of her own. “Every time you’ve run away it was because of him and you never stopped to think what losing you would mean to us.”


“See Will, that where your wrong.” Buffy said stalking over to where she was sitting and bent down to met her eyes unflinchingly. “I thought about you all but even with me gone you still had each other. You and Xander were friends long before I showed up and since you had Oz and Anya in your lives, I knew you’d have someone to talk to, someone to turn to help you through my leaving. I also knew Faith and Giles would keep you safe but also that he’d have someone to share his knowledge with and she’d have someone in her life to believe in her. As for Angel, I didn’t know if he’d stay or go but since he’d made it clear he didn’t want to be a part of my life anymore, I at least wanted to give us a clean break.”


Willow looked away as Buffy’s words made it clear that while they all still had each other she’d been alone and could no longer meet her eyes as the guilt filled her heart. Buffy was right, she’d never considered what Buffy must have been feeling all this time.


Slamming her hand down on the table, Buffy waited until Willow’s eyes met her own once more. Willow wanted to talk, then by the Powers she hear her side of things. “Yes Angel was a big part of my leaving but he also has a right to live his life and he didn’t want to do it with me. That’s the sad truth about relationships, sometimes they just don’t work out but life has to go on. I could have stuck around here, pretended I was happy or I could go out and figure out who in the hell I was without all of you. I didn’t face the Master to prove something to myself or even to try to defy fate, I went because I didn’t want you to live in a world where you were afraid. I didn’t go down there because I couldn’t look at my own face in the mirror Willow, I went because I couldn’t get your tear streaked face out of my mind. Sadly, you and the others won’t always be there for me to fight for so I needed to learn how to be strong for myself to fight for myself for my own reasons.”


Buffy stepped back and wrapped her arm around Spike’s waist. “I have and before you start saying I just got a new vampire and new friends to fight for, it’s more than that. By the time I ran across Spike I was an entirely different person than the one that left here and I was happy with who I’d become. I had learned so many things about this world but also about myself. I didn’t see Spike and go for the tried and true but clichéd fight to the death, I invited him to sit down and talk. I treated him like a person because he wasn’t treating me like a Slayer.” Smiling at the memory of that day, she turned to look up at Spike, threading her fingers through his. “We were just William and Elizabeth, no destiny, no responsibility or animalistic instinct to fight; we were just two people sitting on a bench in Paris. When was the last time you all every saw me…not Buffy the Vampire Slayer just Elizabeth Anne Summers? When was the last time we all just sat down and talked about non-demony stuff or had fun only because we wanted to and not just because we’d saved the world again.”


“I don’t know.” Willow said softly.


“Yes you do.” Wesley told her kindly, a soft unreadable smile playing at the corner of his lips. “It was at breakfast, we all put about the pressing threat aside and just enjoyed good food and good company.”


“Like I said, I like this Buffy much better.” Anya told them brightly. “This one cooks and it‘s just about lunch time don‘t you think?”

Chapter 18


Several hours later Buffy stood there looking at the crowd around her and had a devilish idea. “Magicks may not be able to affect Glory directly but that doesn’t mean they’re completely useless against her. The protection spell I put on the house will not only keep everyone inside safe but also protect the house itself, so don’t leave it for any reason because she can’t get in or force you out. Faith you’re gonna take the vamps out on a little game of hide and find the psychotic hell bitch. Soldier boy and I will sweep through the cemeteries making sure the other baddies are under control but since Spike and I can communicate through our claims, if either group gets into trouble the Calvary can ride to the rescue.”

“Sounds good to me B.” Faith said with a sly, almost menacing smile. She’d been waiting for a chance to check out Buffy’s vampire and if he was playing with her sister Slayer, she had no doubt Angel would help her get the message across.

“Play nice.” She warned Spike, giving him a brief but heated kiss.

“Have fun pet.” Spike said giving her a firm pat on her leather clad ass. He had a pretty fair idea about why she’d broken the groups off the way she did and judging by the way Finn was wriggling about like a fish, he’d figured it out as well.

“You two be careful alright.” Buffy gave Faith and Angel a warm smile. “No one, two, three crap, be sneaky and stuff and get back in one piece. Tonight isn’t the night this is gonna happen, it’s about finding her lair. Giles made it clear we have a week until the portal can be opened so just remember we can be patient and now is not the time for misplaced heroics.”

Buffy jerked her head towards Riley but paused at the threshold of her house before turning back to give them all one final warning. “If you guys do something stupid and get killed, I’ll bring you back just so I can yell at you.”

Once she left, Xander looked at Doyle uneasily. “She was just joking right?”

Doyle settled back on the sofa beside the very stunning Cordelia Chase and gave them all an easy smile. “Three words mate, vengeance loving gypsies.”

Outside Riley waited until they were several blocks away before he had enough nerve to break the silence that had settled over them as they moved through the city streets. “I guess we’re going to have the hurt-my-sister-and-die-talk.”

“Nope.” Buffy said with a deceptively innocent smile. When she heard his soft sigh of relief, her smile grew darker and she let her eyes become inky black pools of cold nothingness. “Because if you hurt Faith I wouldn’t kill you, I’d do worse than that Riley. I’d make you suffer until you prayed for death or for your mind to break just so you could find a single second of relief in your insanity. But you’re not going to hurt Faith, so there’s really no reason to go into details now is there?”

Swallowing thickly Riley shook his head but forced himself to continued staring into those flinty obsidian pools. “I love Faith but like you said sometimes relationships don’t work so I’m not going to say she won’t ever be hurt by this. I will say that I would never do anything to break her heart or hurt her intentionally.”

Pleased, Buffy let her eyes fade back to their normal color. “Glad to hear it Riley Finn, I’d really hate to have to hurt you.”

“I thought Slayer’s didn’t…well didn’t hurt humans?” Riley said trying to discover just what kind of person Buffy was and if she could be trusted.

“They don’t but I’m not exactly a Slayer anymore either.” Buffy admitted with a shrug. “But don’t worry Ri, I’m not a bad guy. The others wouldn’t understand but something tells me a soldier knows that sometimes the evil we come up against wears the same face as we do. Faith, Willow, Xander all of them need to believe that what they are doing makes a lasting difference to make all the pain and sacrifice worth it, that all the people they’re fighting for are worth saving. Sadly, that’s just not the truth. We could slay every demon on this planet but that wouldn’t be the end of evil, because the things mankind does to one another is just as bad or sometimes worse than what the demons do. I mean at least demons have an excuse, it’s their nature they don’t have souls or any reason to deny their need for blood or to hurt others but humans should know better than that.”

Buffy sighed deeply and gestured to the graves around them. “How many of these people are here because another human, a person who should know it was wrong, killed them? It’s not Faith’s destiny to deal with that kind of monster and to be honest it’s not really mine either because I don’t like the idea of playing judge, jury and executioner. But if it has to be done, I’d rather it be me who faces it because I want the others to keep what’s left of their innocence. They haven’t seen the evil men do and while they all realized that the spell I want to use on Glory will bring her human side to the front, none of them have realized that to defeat Glory, it will come at the price of a human life.”

Since he hadn’t even realized it, he finally understood the real reason why she’d brought him out here and while he wanted to talk about the sanctity of human life, he could understand what she was saying and why. “I’ll keep Faith back but you’re right, they won’t understand why. Are you prepared for that? I mean why not ask Spike or even Angel to take care of it?”

“Angel has enough guilt on his soul and as much as I love Spike I know it wouldn’t bother him to make the kill; which is exactly why it has to be me that does it.” Buffy said sadly but with her voice firm and sure. “Doing something like this shouldn’t be easy, it should hurt because that’s how you know you’re not one of the monsters. I know what Spike is, what he’s capable of and no matter how much he looks like a human I know he is a demon but that doesn’t make him a monster. Nothing is stopping him from having a really bloody massacre except for the fact he chooses not to embrace that side of his nature. Our actions decide what we are and Spike has made it clear he’s chosen to be a demon who acts like a man and he deserves to be treated as one.”

Nodding since he could understand that, he gave her a gentle smile. “What you two have is really something special isn’t it?”

“Yeah, it really is.” Buffy admitted, getting a besotted look in her eyes.

“What are you so happy about Blondie?” Faith asked when Spike began to grin at nothing in particular.

“Buffy must have finished threatening your boy because now they’re talking about me.” He said letting her feelings of love and devotion wash through him.

Faith reached over to shove him playfully since they’d already had their own hurt her and die talk but what she felt had her stopping in absolute shock. “You…you’re warm, hot even.”

“Yeah, Buffy likes to call it a warm fuzzy.” Spike admitted without thinking but once it dawned on him that the big bad Slayer of Slayers had just used the term ‘warm fuzzy’, he instantly thickened his accent and shifted his posture to that of an arrogant alpha male. “Cause of the claim m’ girl can get me all hot and bothered by just thinking of me.”

“No shit.” Faith asked running her hand experimentally over his arm. A warm vampire, who knew.

Buffy growled suddenly and Riley found himself taking a quick step back as she narrowed her eyes at him. “Why is your girlfriend petting my vampire?”

“WHAT?” Faith and Riley called out at the exact some moment from opposite sides of the town.

“You heard me, m’ girl’s the jealous type and she’s a sight pissed that you’re petting my hot, tight body.” Spike said with a smirk, he loved it when she was all jealous and possessive.

“She’s doing what to Spike again?” Riley asked shaking his head, certain that he’d misheard her.

“Petting!” Faith called out holding up her hands and backing away. “There was no petting.”

“Yes there was, because of the claim I know when someone else is touching my mate and since I doubt Angel wants Spike that means she was the one doing the touchy feely stuff.” Buffy assured Riley already stalking in the others direction. “When I find them I am so gonna…”

“Kick both your asses.” Angel repeated not bothering to hide his amusement with the situation. As unfair as it was he’d always blamed Faith for Buffy leaving town because if she hadn’t taken over her life so smoothly, he was certain the others would have been more insistent about finding Buffy and bringing her home. He also blamed her for being one of the things that had divided him and Buffy; her jealousy had played a big part in making the cracks in their relationship even larger.

Rationally he knew that he alone was to blame but he’d never exactly thought clearly where Buffy was involved. “You're using the claim to make Buffy jealous and with her animal instincts so close to the surface, she won‘t be thinking clearly. When she figures out what happened, she‘s going to be pissed.”

Knowing exactly why Angel sounded so pleased, Spike figured out the best way to knock him down a few pegs. “My girl trusts me but you couldn’t say the same when she was yours could you mate. Sure you were only doing what she asked but I doubt she told you to enjoy it so much, eh Angelus?”

Glancing at Faith, Angel narrowed his eyes at Spike’s mention of he and Buffy’s ploy to make Faith think he’d reverted to Angelus. “You shouldn’t talk about things you know nothing about boy.”

Also having picked up what Spike was saying, Faith shifted awkwardly before glaring at Angel. She thought they were past all that shit and since he’d made a few mistakes in his own life, she couldn’t believe he’d so callously turn on her for his own selfish reasons. “I don’t know Angel, seems to me that Spike knows exactly what he was talking about because I remember you being hard and ready before Buffy ever showed up. Sure I know it was all an act and that you never wanted me but you sure kept your hands full when you had the chance.”

“I would never be with a murderous bitch like you Faith; been there, done that.” Angel told her coldly his own issues clouding all sense of reason.

“So what does that make me Angel?” Buffy said quietly, unable to believe how fooled she’d been by Angel’s let’s-be-friends attitude. If he had problems with her that was one thing, she planned on having a long private talk with him anyway but she be damned if she’d let him hurt Faith because of her. “I was going to kill Faith and feed her to you, so I guess I ended up with the right vampire after all huh?”

“Buffy this isn’t, I mean…” Angel sputtered out, unable to meet her accusing glare.

“I know what this is; it’s you taking out your shit on Faith and I won’t stand for it. We’ve all got a few dark shadows in our past so don’t go digging them out unless you want to be confronted with your own.” Buffy said quietly. “This isn’t the time for you to have a tantrum because I picked someone else, not when we should be working together instead of fighting amongst ourselves.”

Buffy walked over to him and patiently stood there until he met her eyes. “This is your last warning Angel, you play by my rules or you won’t be a part of this. I made it clear that if I came here we would do things my way and if you don’t like it, you can leave or I’ll chain your ass up in the basement until we’ve saved the fucking day.”

“Ohhh, I like her she’s feisty!” Glory said casually, calling everyone’s attention to her. She was leaning against a chain link fence just outside a large abandoned building in a black silk dress that was better suited for a night out on the town instead of a stroll through the heart of the warehouse district. “I don’t suppose you brought me my key did you Spunky girl.”

“Gee, I must have left it in my other pants.” Buffy said with an unrepentant smile. “Would you settle for a little girl talk, because seriously honey I love the dress and shoes but your hair is just all wrong.”

Offended, Glory patted her hair. “What’s that suppose to mean?”

“Sorry, I guess you like split ends and bad dye jobs but to each his own right?” Buffy asked moving forward slowly while at the same time telling Spike through the claim to get the others out of striking range. Far, far out of strike range, considering the sheer power she could feel coming from the blonde god. They’d only lately learned how to express complete thoughts but it was a skill she had come to appreciate.

Spike laid a hand on Faith’s arm, silently communicating Buffy’s wishes and while she and Riley immediately fell back Angel, wanker that he was, must have missed it when Buffy said heroics would not be appreciated because he refused to move. Stepping up just behind him, he whispered in a near silent voice as the two blondes in front continued their pre-fight banter. “Buffy needs to know what this bitch is capable of and she can’t concentrate if she has to worry about your ass as well as her own.”

Hating that Spike was right, Angel reluctantly followed the others.

Glory saw them leave and let them, giving the woman in front of her a sympathetic smile. “Don’t look now but all your friends skedaddled right out of here. I guess I was a little to rough on them last time but they are keeping me from my key you know.”

“Blah, blah, blah do you ever stop talking?” Buffy asked rolling her eyes. “I was kinda hoping we’d fight sometime soon.”

“Works for me, maybe I can beat my key out of you.”

“Still with the talking.” Buffy said, striking out with a right cross quickly followed by a solid thrust into her sternum. “See, simple, direct and right to the point.”

Just like that the fight was on, both women abandoning speech and simply going at one another like two legendary titans locked in mortal combat. From a rooftop the others watched as the two of them whirled and spun around each other moving so quickly, it was simpler to follow their bright golden hair than track their attacks and counters.

For what seemed like hours, they battled each gaining and losing the advantage more times than either vampire could count and since they seemed evenly matched, it would come down to who wanted it the most. When Buffy fell to the ground bonelessly, like water being poured out of a cup, Angel moved forward to leap on the building to go to her aid but Spike stopped him a the last second.

“Wait for it mate, you aren’t the only person she’s fooled with that move.” Spike said with a depreciating laugh, which turned to a full out laugh when Glory went to kick Buffy in the ribs only to find her foot captured at the last second.

Wrapping her hands around her ankle, Buffy shifted her center of gravity, using Glory’s own momentum against her to catapult her into the building behind them; hard enough to send her crashing through the solid brick wall. Getting to her feet Buffy rolled her neck as she felt her bones mending beneath her skin. Every inch of her body ached but if Glory came back out, they’d fight again and again and again as many times as it took for the other blonde to get the message that she had something to fear.

Just because she hoped Glory wasn’t a slow learner was really not the point. Buffy stood her ground and when five minutes became ten she continued to stand there.

With a smirk, Spike hopped down to the fire escape and made his way over to her. Confused, the others followed after him wondering what was going on.

“Bloody hell woman, defeat one skanky god with a large ass and you think you deserve a bloody parade.” Spike said wrapping his arm around her waist and easily pulling her up into his arms. She wrapped her hands around his neck and laid her head against his shoulder.

“Sleepy.” She murmured already closing her eyes. She was completely tapped out and since they’d arrived she was finally free of the coursing energies that had her vibrating like a taunt spring ready to snap.

By the time he leaned down to press a gentle kiss against the rapidly closing scratch on her forehead, he could tell by her breathing and heart rate, she was asleep. “I love you Buffy.” He whispered softly, unable to tear his eyes away from her serene face. She was at total peace, which made everything right in his own world.

“Mmm.” She broke off to let out a loud yawn before cuddling against him. “Love you.”

“I know, just get some kip baby.” He told her gently, before noticing the others were looking at them intently.

“Is she alright?” Angel asked, putting his own issues aside as he focused on her well being.

“She’s tapped out, it takes a lot of energy to heal and that was one hell of a fight.” Smiling, Spike cast a look at Faith and Riley. “She was waiting for me to come get her because the vain little chit didn’t want to ruin her imagine by stumbling her way over to us. But if you tell her I told you that, I'll bloody well deny it.”

Chapter 19




“She defeated Glory?” Giles asked for what seemed to be the fifth time.

“Beat yes, defeated no.” Faith said wondering why Giles was suddenly so slow on the uptake. He was English, they were speaking English, so really why did he act like they were speaking in tongues. “She kicked the bitch’s ass and she didn’t come back for round two, so that‘s something right.”

“But I thought she said tonight wasn’t about fighting Glory?” Cordelia asked glancing at Angel innocently. She’d been making progress with the brooding but delicious vampire and she wasn’t exactly thrilled that Buffy was suddenly back in town. Sure she claimed to be in love with Spike but that was the oldest trick in the book. Show back up with another vampire to make the original jealous and since she was jealous of the way Angel had totally forgotten she’d existed, Buffy was so not her favorite person right now. “Wasn’t she all let’s not fight, we’ve got time and then she has to try to be the big show-offy hero. I tell you, she hasn’t changed a bit.”

“Buffy been doing this a sight longer than you and for those of you who missed it, she did buy us time.” Spike said instantly seeing where the wind blew in Sunnydale. Willow was angry in general, Xander understanding, Giles at a loss while Faith and Riley were all about the mission. Angel was on a mission of his own and since it was to get Buffy back, the catty brunette was trying to going to be giving Buffy hell for the foreseeable future in an effort to make herself look better.

Bloody hell and they say LA was a crazy place, this sodden town didn‘t just need Slayers, it needed therapists. “You all haven’t given the woman much to fear but tonight Buffy showed her she wasn’t the biggest bad on the block anymore. It’ll make her less cocky, make the bitch think, but it will also make Buffy the center of her warped little world. Sooner or later she’s gonna figure out the key’s in human form and since Buffy’s new in town and able to fight her…”

“She’ll assume Buffy is the key.” Wesley’s said, seeing where Spike was going. “She’ll be so focused on Buffy that Tara will be safe, at least to some degree. Since she was the latest addition to your group it’s not to hard to see why Glory would hone in on her first but now that Buffy and the rest of us have come to town, she’ll have to wonder if we’re muscle or the key. Like Spike said, Glory has more leads to chase with less time to do it in and since this place is heavily warded, we can make a stand here if necessary.”

“Surely you don’t mean…hide?” Giles asked, despite the fact it sounded like the best option.

“Why the hell not.” Spike challenged. “At least until the big day has passed. The portal is the biggest threat and Glory herself second. Once the portal can no longer be opened, we can do the spell and deal with Glory without having to worry about it coming down to the wire.”

“But what about all the people she’s feeding on?” Tara asked quietly, unable to believe she was the cause for so much pain. “She’s draining their minds and we can’t just let it happen.”

“That which can be taken away can be replaced.” Wes said confident in Buffy’s abilities as well as her mystical connections. “Magicks bend the laws of nature but some absolute truth’s remain. While it’s unfortunate that many people will be affected, they are not in mortal danger but the world itself is in serious jeopardy. It may sound callous but this is a war, with a great many lives counting on a victory and in wars there are always casualties. I believe we can help those people but even if restoring them isn’t possible, this is the wisest course of action.”

“I could…I could hand myself over to her.” Tara said bravely.

“Then you’d die.” Buffy said standing in in entry way. “Glory would win and all the people she’s hurt or killed up to this point would have suffered for nothing. Not to mention you be allowing untold others to suffer in another world because I doubt Glorificus is just going to forgive her brothers for casting her out. According to Gabe, she’s the bad seed of the family and for the sake of their people her brothers tried to banish her, never realizing that she’d find her way out of the ether.”

“I don’t want people to hurt because of me.” Tara said quietly, knowing from Buffy’s aura that she was a good person, a person who’d understand what she was trying to say.

“This wasn’t something you chose Tara and none of this is your fault.” Buffy walked over to her and knelled down beside her chair so she could meet her eyes. “I know giving up sounds like the right thing to do but you can’t just give in and let evil have it’s way. You have to stay strong, keep fighting and believe that when it’s all over and done with things will be better. This is your life now Tara, it doesn’t matter how you came to be or where you came from all that you can do is live it. You’ve got friends and people who love you, people who don’t see you as anything but Tara, not key girl so that sounds like a pretty good deal to me…definitely worth fighting for. I‘m willing to at least, so what about you are you willing to fight for it?”

“Yes.” Tara said firmly, bolstered by Buffy’s confidence. Buffy just made it sound like anything was possible and since she was anything but assertive or self-confident herself, she could see why the others had missed her so much. She was a real leader in every sense of the world but more than that, she cared. “I don’t want to let her win.”

Buffy winked at her before getting to her feet and walking over to Angel. Her brief nap had restored her energy and equilibrium but sooner or later she tap back into the Hellmouth and she wasn’t sure it would be safe to talk to Angel under those conditions. She had a firm policy about not killing unless it was necessary; even stubborn, arrogant idiots who were to old to still act like a spoiled toddler.

Okay, maybe she wasn’t as calm as she’d thought but they had to do this sooner or later. “Angel, do you mind coming to the basement with me for a moment?”

Nodding, he let her lead the way but he couldn’t resist sending a triumphant smirk in Spike’s direction. She’d hadn’t even told him what was going on, he thought completely forgetting about their claim as well as their earlier argument.

Cordelia narrowed her eyes at his gesture and turned to Spike. “Aren‘t you Slayer-whipped.”


“Not lately but m’ girl has a dark side, ya know.” Spike said with a satisfied and supremely male smile.

“B’s into kink?” Faith asked unable to picture Buffy the dominatrix. “I always pegged her as a straight vanilla type of girl.”

“You’d be wrong.” Spike said his eyes flashing amber briefly. “She always belonged in the dark, but Captain forehead never saw that. She walks in the light, fights for it but she’s just as much a creature of the moon as we are. It’s in her nature, your nature but she’s seen to much evil to ever become it. She’s accepted that side of herself and even some of mine because of the claim but because she isn’t afraid of it, it has no power over her. Which is what I reckon she’s going to try to get through Angel’s thick skull. As long as he’s afraid of his demon, Angelus will never truly be gone and he’ll never find any sense of peace.”

“I don’t believe becoming the Slayer gives the girls a dark side.” Giles said smartly, offended at the very idea of it.

“Why else do you think the chits can sense demons? It’s not our unnaturalness that they feel but our darkness calling out to their own.” Spike leaned forward and flicked his ashes into the ashtray Joyce had left out for him. Fifteen minutes after their arrival, Buffy packed her mum’s bags and sent her to the hotel so Gunn and his crew could watch out for her but she’d still made sure he felt welcomed to her family and home. She’d called him her son-in-law right in front of the others to let them know her feelings on the matter. “I know that because I can feel it though her. Just like Buffy’s connected to the Hellmouth, I feel connected to Faith and since I am evil, I bloody well know what it feels like.”

When Faith blanched, Spike gave her a easy smile. “Calm yourself pet, it’s not just you. I can feel it in my girl as well.”

“Why do you do that Spike?” Faith asked.

“Cause your family.”

“No…well yeah, as B’s hubby you’re my family but I was talking about you calling yourself evil.” Faith challenged, noticing that he still seemed very much the big bad she’d read about but knowing that wasn’t who he was anymore. “Your not evil because if B had wanted that, she’d have taken up with Angelus.”

“I’m a white hat sure enough, but I’ve been evil a lot longer.” He admitted with a jerk of his shoulder. “It’s still who I am, I’m still Spike Slayer of Slayers but I’m also a man in love, willin’ to do what it takes to keep my woman happy. We all have it inside us children; that capacity to be evil just waitin’ to be unleashed but like Buffy said, it’s a choice not a given. Angelus loved Buffy the way my demon loves her; even when he was trying to kill and shagging Dru senseless Buffy was all he bloody well thought about. I always knew, used to ride him about not being man enough to finish the job but that was his problem, he didn’t want to be a man. The soul was gone but since he’d been along for the entire ride, his own feelings for the girl remained and the longer he fought her, the stronger they got. The night they were sodden possessed was a bloody revelation for him. I don’t know what happened exactly, but he came back smelling of her and since he spent a good half hour trying to scrub his skin off his hide I think that alone spoke for itself. He got to touch her, hold her in his arms again and after that he was set to end the world. Not because he could but because he couldn’t kill her and he couldn’t live with her. Girl’s to strong to be turned, she’d have fought him until it was to late for him to sire her but if she had nothing left to fight for, I bet he figured she’d go willingly.”

Spike looked at Giles for a moment before continuing on. “That’s why he never hurt the lot of you, even in death she’d never forgive him and he made it clear to his minions that you all weren’t to be touched. Sure he said he wanted to kill you himself but since he wanted her, he couldn’t exactly do that now could he? Didn’t have much of a choice with the gypsy but didn’t you lot ever wonder why you made it out of the library the day Dru took out the other Slayer? If Angelus hadn’t threatened to stake Dru and anyone else who killed you, none of you would have lived but since no-one, least of all Dru would dare defy his orders you were safe as houses.”

“Safe…” Giles sputtered out, half rising off the sofa. “Willow was put in a coma and Kendra was murdered, I hardly call that safe nor do I recall Angelus being concerned for my life when he tortured me for hours. You were the one who convinced him to let me live.”

“Had to, the Slayer threatened to stake Dru if you died and I figured the same would go if Angelus went through with his plans to turn you.” Spike let that sink in for a moment before waving at the others. “As for the raid on the library, since when have you ever seen vampires willingly leave before killing, let alone not taking a taste of the nummy treats they’d beat? These kids were at their mercy and by all rights should be dead but Angelus’s obsession with Buffy kept em’ alive. He planned to let her turn you all herself as a special treat but because Buffy always looked to you for guidance Ripper, Angelus wanted you to be under his control and not hers. No-one ever turned a Slayer before and if she’d kept her soul, he didn’t want you lot to stage a bloody coup. Same goes for the other Slayer, if he couldn’t open the portal, he couldn‘t let her live when his consort would soon be adjusting to the change.”

Spike crushed out his cigarette giving them all a few moments to take in what he’d just told them. One by one he watched as they accepted it as the truth and then he wanted to open their eyes to the one other thing they’d missed. “Since seeing Buffy again, he’s acting a lot like Angelus isn’t he? I’ve no doubt he loved the girl she’d been but he doesn’t know her now but he does know she’s moved on and his demon’s to arrogant to just accept that. It’s whispering all sorts of nasties in his ear, telling him to take what belongs to them and since Angel’s so busy pretendin’ Angelus is gone, he doesn’t even realize he’s being played like a damn fiddle. He’s even more loyal to what he sees as his family, stepping forward to protect her and myself after Willow did her light show, proved that much. His instinct was to protect us and think what you like about Angel, but believe me he wants me dead. Not Angelus, just your precious soulful Angel. Can’t really blame the man, he’s watching the girl he gave up making her new man happy and that’s not something any bloke likes to see.”

“Do you think he could let Angelus take over, even with his soul intact?” Giles asked, finally understanding what Spike was trying to tell them all. Angel’s soul may be bound but he was still a demon and if he gave up or gave in a soul alone wouldn’t stop Angelus from making a bloody return.

“Buffy loves him, not the way she used to of course but he’s still there in her heart the way all of you are so she’s never going to let him give up.” Spike flicked his gaze down to the floor before letting a sad smile overtake his lips as he imagine what Angel must be feeling right now. He knew what she had planned and while he didn’t like it, she had his blessing never the less. A man without hope is truly in hell and that was what Buffy had always been to Angel…hope and salvation and when he finally realizes she can no longer give him that, he was in for a rough time.

Dru hadn’t cared for him enough to let him go but that’s what he loved about Buffy. She didn’t just stop caring about someone once she let them inside her heart and while he hated knowing that she’d smell of Angel when she walked back up those stairs, he had no doubt that she’d still be his in every way. Angel on the other hand didn’t realize he had someone waiting for him somewhere and since Spike knew exactly how painful that was to overcome, he couldn’t begrudge his grandsire a moment of peace in the arms of the woman he still loved. Even if it was his woman, because to do otherwise would be the same as condemning him to death and like he’d told Faith, his family’s welfare always came first. “She’ll find some way to make him want to fight for himself; the bloody chit could make the devil himself fight her fight because she’s got a way of seein’ inside a person and making them realize what they could become. In Red she saw the darkness and not only made her face it but also gave her the control she’d need to fight it back down and keep it there. With Blondie over there she made her realize that she’s was given a chance at life and that she should take it and tonight she showed the lot of you how to hope again. So even as bloody stubborn as Angel is, I’ve no doubt she’ll find a way to keep him on the path to his redemption.”

___________________________

The second they were both on the ground floor of the basement, Buffy moved over to Angel and placed her hand against his cheek. “What do you feel when I touch you Angel?”

Sighing, he leaned into her touch and gave her a soft intimate smile. “Warm Buffy, not just your heat warming my flesh but warm deep down inside where no hand could ever reach.”

“I feel cold.” Buffy said bluntly, closing the distance between them. Laying her forehead against his chest she tried to put her feelings into words he’d be able to understand through his jealousy. “Even this close to you I feel cold and it wasn’t always like that. You used to be able to burn me with a look from across the room but even the hottest and the brightest of fires need to be tended so they will continue to burn.”

Looking up at him, she smiled softly, moving her hand up to brush his hair back off his face. It was an intimate gesture, one she had done to him hundreds of times but it no longer caused her heart stir inside her chest. “You didn’t want that Angel, weren’t willing to fight for me so I had to let you go. I went to Ireland and I carried you with me inside my soul and heart. It was killing me Angel, loving you and knowing you didn’t want me was causing me to die inside and as though I was seeking out your essence I ended up in the same alley you died in. I don’t know how I knew what had happened there centuries before I was born but I could just feel it.”

“What did you do?” Angel asked softly, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her closer against his chest so that he could feel her heart beating.

“I laid down on that filthy street and I cried. I poured out my heart and soul and I mourned you, not only Liam’s passing but the end of our love.” She didn’t bother to keep the emotion out of her voice nor was she ashamed of the tears that had gathered in her eyes as she thought about that time of her life. “I loved you Angel with all that I was but it wasn’t enough…”

“But it was Buffy.” He insisted, tilting up her face so he could see the emotions swirling though her soft green eyes. “You were the first person that made me feel something other than cold, something other than dead inside and because of that, I couldn’t stay with you and keep my soul.”

“You could have if you wanted me badly enough.” Buffy said firmly. “Even my mom finally realized how what we’d found together was special but I knew, I just knew you wouldn’t change your mind about leaving.”

Buffy let him pull her down with him onto the last steps of the stairs and while she still fit in his lap, it didn’t make her feel connected to him. They were two bodies separated by flesh but with Spike they were one being finally made whole…complete. “I saw our future that night when I looked into the flames and it wasn’t a future I wanted to experience. Love turned into pain and pain yielded to bitterness and I didn’t want that for us. I wanted our love to mean more than that and when I finished crying for you, I let you go with love, in love. It was the second most hardest thing I have ever done but I‘d do it again in a heartbeat.”

“Knowing I would be walking away from you was the hardest thing I had ever experienced in either of my lives beloved.” Angel murmured against her hair, relishing her nearness as his body adjusted to all the changes in hers.

She look up at him and met his eyes unflinchingly. “No Angel staying here with me, fighting the temptation and looking for a way to bind your soul would have been a thousand times harder. It would have been pure agony to be so close, knowing how we could have and praying for an answer that might never come but I was willing to do it, willing to believe in us. You weren’t. You never even attempted to find a way around the curse, you just accepted it and decided to move on without letting go or even telling me the truth about what we shared. I had to hear from a stranger that you’d married me that night and then I learned in another alley that you hadn’t even marked me as your mate, just as your childe.”

“I only wanted to protect you.” He said, wishing he had marked her as his mate because then Spike wouldn’t be a part of the picture. No childe would dare trespass against his elders mark.

“Spike would.” Buffy said smugly, completely able to read his eyes in a way she’d never been able to before because she was no longer blinded by her love for him. “He’d have still taken me as his mate and he’d have fought you for me. You had me for two years and I would have gladly given you all that I was but even when you had the chance, you didn’t. You’d already marked me against my permission, which I would have given had you asked, so you have no excuse for not making me yours when you had the chance. Yet two nights with Spike was all it took for us to decide what we wanted."

“What?” Angel asked, physically jolting because he’d assumed Spike had spent weeks wearing down her defenses.

“Two nights Angel and from that we’ve built something that will keep us both warm until the end of time. It burns just as hot as what you and I shared but I know it will last forever because both of us are willing to fight for it until our last moment in this life.”

“If that was true, why are you here with me like this?” He asked, tightening his hold on her. “He’s not the one holding you, touching you now I am and you entered my embrace willingly. I don‘t see him down here fighting to keep you Buffy?”

Buffy shifted slightly so she could place a gentle kiss against his lips. It lasted the barest of moments before she pulled away again...it was a goodbye long overdue. “He knows what I’m doing Angel, he even blocked himself off to me so we could have this time alone. Not because he is afraid that I might still have feelings for you but because he knows that I don’t. He trusts me Angel, knows that he is the only one I want as my mate and husband but he also loves me enough to let me close this final chapter of my life. You will always be in my heart Angel but it’s no longer yours. I know who I belong to and someday you’ll find the one person you’d risk everything for…fight for because a life without them would be worth living.”

“I already have.” Angel whispered hoarsely, knowing in his heart that the day he’d always dreaded had arrived but still unable to let it go...let her go. “I don’t think I can live without you Buffy.”

“Yes you can Angel and you know it.” Buffy said brushing away his tears as they fell. “You thought I was dead but here you are still living, still fighting and while it may not be the life you once dreamed of having it doesn’t mean it has to be a nightmare. Until Spike I never believed anyone could make me feel the way you did and someday you will look into someone eyes and just know that they are truly your soul-mate. You'll know when it happens because from that moment on, nothing will able be able to keep you apart.”

“He doesn’t have a soul Buffy.” Angel said coldly roughly shoving her off of his lap so that he could put as much distance between them as possible in such a small space.

“Yes he does, all this time its been inside me waiting for the moment we’d be reunited.” Buffy said getting to her feet. She tried being gentle but apparently he just felt compelled to make his life as difficult as possible. “You once claimed to be my soul-mate Angel and even now you say everything you felt for me is still there but once again you pushed me away.”

When he froze as her words hit there mark, she seized the opportunity and closed the distance between them in a blink of an eye. Without mercy she brought her palm against his face and the sound was so loud she had no doubt even the humans upstairs had heard it. She'd tried compassion but all he understood or let himself feel anymore was pain. “Listen to me, your life sucks but you are not the only person in this world with issues Angel. You’re not responsible for Angelus’s actions and some part of you knows that because you were the one who fucking told me that the demon doesn’t get your soul. You may remember it all but since you couldn’t fight against the demon, you aren’t responsible for what happened. I think you just use it as an excuse because as long as your brooding and feeling guilty for yourself you don’t have to fight for what you want. You’re afraid your still weak, spoiled Liam underneath and that kind of cowardice in someone who claims to be a Champion is disgusting.”

Growling, he shoved her into the wall and pinned her body in place with his own. “You want me to fight for what I want lover, than you better be prepared for one hell of a fight because I want you.”

Faking a tremble, she let him grope her mercilessly until he was distracted enough to never see her knee as it headed straight up into his groin. And she did it with a smile on her face.

With a loud roar of pain he fell to the stone floor, cupping himself as his demon face rushed to the fore. “Hello Angelus, I gotta admit I wanted to do that ever since you called me a lousy lay.”

“I’m still Angel.” He said gingerly getting to his feet; winching from both the pain and his own actions.

“Errt, you're both a man and a demon or more accurately a spineless human and a heartless monster.” Buffy said mockingly. “Neither one is really appealing to me, so if you like being a living un-breathing vampire I suggest you keep your hands off me. My mate is both an strong man and a fierce and devoted demon, plus he’s an amazing lover.”

Shivering wickedly, she let her eyes fill with heat as she thought of her mate. “The things he can do with just his tongue…let me just say the whole not needing to breathe thing is a definite bonus in the sex department. He can go down on me for hours until I’m begging for him to stop and praying he won’t.”

Stalking over to him she met his eyes and let all her emotions drain away, proving without a doubt that only one man could bring all that she was to the surface and it was no longer him. “Like it or not you are both a man and a demon Angel and I can accept that but you need to as well. You may not be responsible for Angelus’s glory days but you just tried your hand at being evil and I gotta say, that’s something I can’t accept. So here’s the bottom line, just like I told Tara I’m only willing to fight for people that are willing to fight for themselves and if you can’t or won’t do that, then the next time your demon takes control will be the last. I will kill you Angel, I don’t want to but like you said to me back in the day, Angelus is just to damn dangerous to let wander around unchecked. This is both your chances to prove you are strong enough to be a part of this world. I can’t give you what you want but I can give you a family that will always love and accept you for what you are, unsavory past and all. No-one fights alone, no-one has to pretend to be something they’re not and as long as you're willing to never give up, Spike and I won’t give up on you either.”

Buffy wasn’t really sure how it happened but in that moment she felt Spike’s demon slide inside her skin like he’d always been there. Her heart stopped and she could feel the bones in her face re-knitting themselves as her face shifted while upstairs, Spike became completely human for the first time in more than a hundred years. Like she’d been borne to his ways, Buffy looked at Angel though her yellow eyes and pushed her power out in a call to his demon.

Angelus rose to her call, pushing the soul so deep inside that it was only a speck of light in the obsidian pupils of his amber eyes. “Your sire abandoned you Angelus, cast you out of the fold when you needed them the most but both you and your soul Angel are welcome in our family. I offer you a place there if you wish to belong to us. Your pain shall be our pain, our joy yours and never shall you walk the night alone.”

Just like Liam had been unable to resist Darla, Angelus found himself enthralled by the diminutive blonde that offered him a life he’d only dreamed of and while it would come at a high price, he couldn’t turn away. Vampires were not solitary by nature, they sought out their kindred looking for a place to belong and Buffy and Spike could give him that and unlike Darla, they would never forsake him. Closing the distance between them, he offered her his neck. “Your battles are my battles, your pain my pain and by my blood I offer you my loyalty.”

Without hesitation, Buffy located Darla’s mark and sank her fangs into his skin, ripping through the aged scar tissue to leave her own mark upon his flesh. Drinking deeply of his rich, powerful blood she drained him just to the point where he’d combust and when he lacked the strength to stand she held him to her chest as she gracefully slid them down to the floor. Pulling out her fangs, she licked over the wound to close it. “Mine.” She said as she met his eyes before offering him her wrist. “Drink of me childe.”

Obediently he did as she asked, sinking his fangs deep inside her skin and drinking down the elixir of her blood. He could taste her power, but also Spike’s essence and finally understood the connection they shared. They were one, two parts of a whole and in that moment he made his peace with their doomed love vowing that someday he‘d find his own mate and experience the wonder that they possessed for himself. Pulling away as his eyes started to close of their own accord he barely had time to whisper a single word before the changing sleep overtook him. “Sire.”

Chapter 20


After Spike had moved Angel and gotten him settled in, he hurried up the stairs to go find out what in the hell was going on. Buffy, in full game face had walked into the living room and asked Spike to see to Angel and without a word or so much a glance at the others, she’d turned around and headed to the stairs.

“I hate it here.” She said quietly the moment he opened the door. Never taking her eyes off the window, she rubbed at her arms like she was chilled. “I can’t do it Spike, I can’t do this.”

Crossing over to her, he rested his hands on her shoulders and gently eased her back so she was resting against his chest. “You do it at home luv, so what brought this all on?”

“Back home I’m part of a team, I lead but you all know when to step forward and take over but it’s not like that here.” She let out a bitter laugh and shook her head. “Right now Wes is down there laying out the sleeping arrangements and Doyle, bless his heart is doing his best to keep them all relaxed and calm but I can hear them all asking, where’s Buffy, why isn’t she telling us this?”


He could hear the weariness in her voice but thankfully, she’d inadvertently told him how to handle this. “This lot may expect you to handle this all alone but we’re all here doing what needs to be done pet. Wes, Doyle, Fred and myself don’t expect you to handle everything because you’ve already got enough to deal with. So why don’t you get some more rest and let us handle things for a bit?”

“Will you stay with me?” She asked softly, feeling guilty for even asking where there were so many other important things that he could be doing. “Just until I fall asleep?”

He didn’t understand why she was a vampire and he was a human right now but their claim was still unbroken and he refused to let her feel guilty. “Listen to me Buffy and listen to me good; never feel guilty about taking what you need. You've got to save the day again but I won’t let you go about it this way. You are the strongest person I have ever met but that doesn’t mean you can’t let yourself be weak now and again. The world won’t end if I spend the rest of the night holding you but it will make you feel better about waking up tomorrow to fight this blasted battle. Yeah, you’ve got a bunch of people depending on you but sweetheart, if you don’t look after yourself you can’t help anyone.”

“I…”

Knowing she was going to protest, he silenced her with a fierce kiss. As distracted as she was she allowed him to lead her over to the bed and lay her down without so much as a token protest, which was half the battle. Slowly he undressed her and by the time he pulled back to look at her, she was wearing nothing but a very aroused smile. But as badly as he wanted her, he knew she needed sleep more than anything else. “Sleep luv and don’t argue with me about this because I know what‘s what you need right now. After drinking from Angel you should bloody well be a bouncing bundle of energy and because you’re not, it’s clear you exhausted mentally and physically. After that fight you fell asleep in my arms within minutes yet a half hour later you were back to fight a couple more battles. You’ve done enough tonight, hell you’ve done enough for several lifetimes so if anyone in this blasted world has earned a good night’s sleep it’s you.”

“I didn’t just drink from him Spike.” She admitted, slipping her hand under his shirt to stroke over his abdomen.

“Is that soo?” He asked distractedly, trying to keep her clever fingers from causing him to toss aside his noble intentions.

“Mmmhmm, I called out Angelus and took him as my childe.”

In any other circumstances the knowledge that Angelus would willingly surrender his control to anyone would have had Spike demanding to hear the entire story but since she’d somehow managed to unfasten his jeans and slide her hand around his cock, he wasn’t even aware of anything but her movements. “Fuck pet.” He hissed, jerking his hips up as her nail trailed down the underside of his throbbing head.

No longer very sleepy, Buffy slid under the covers in a blink and covered him with her mouth so her hands would be free to slide off his clothes. “Shirt off.” She demanded before taking him deep inside her throat and letting her highly defined muscles ripple around him. It hadn’t taken her long to realize that what she said about Spike and oral sex downstairs to Angel, could be just as pleasurable to him when she was the one who didn’t need to breathe.

It also helped that she and Spike’s demon wanted to obliterate Angel’s scent from her body and since they happened to be sharing the same space, the primal need to possess her mate was overwhelming. Within minutes she had rendered him incapable of speech as she hungrily devoured his warm cock with her cold mouth and each of his desperate pleas and moans only fueled her own desires.

Spike hadn’t just forgotten how to speak, he’d lost the capacity to do anything but feel as she brutally fucked him with her mouth and caused him to near his first climax in a ridiculously short amount of time. At any other time he’d have been embarrassed at how quickly it had arrived but when he felt a fang pierce through his tip with a blindingly sharp wave of pain amidst all the pleasure he’d been experiencing he roared as he came into her mouth in a quick spurting rush that seemed to start at his toes and drain the life out of him one salty drop at a time. Feeling it flow around the tip of her fang, made him feel his release in a way he’d never experienced before and as the pain faded into a highly sensitized tingle of pure adrenaline, he felt himself black out as yet another wave of absolute pleasure engulfed him.

Tasting his cum and blood mingling together on her tongue was a epicurean delight only a vampire could truly appreciate but when he’d gone completely still, she pulled away to look at him in concern. His eyes were closed and his jaw slack but even without her senses telling her he was in no danger she knew the look of a thoroughly sated man when she saw one. Licking at her lips, she couldn’t help giggling at the way the big bad vampire had ’slayed’ the Slayer. Because his blood had told her that’s exactly what he was for the time being and since she rather liked this unexpected reversal of their roles, she wasn’t about to let this opportunity to pass.

Getting up, she crossed over to where their bags sat and pulled out what she needed to set the scene.

_______________________

Spike had no idea how long he was out but where he woke up he immediately realized three things. The first being he was blindfolded, the second being he was on his stomach with his wrist chained to the iron headboard and the third being he was alone on the bed. He opened his mouth to call out to her, but before he could speak her voice stopped him.

“I was wondering when you’d wake up Slayer.” She said menacingly. “Don’t bother trying to break those chains, they’re magically enhanced so you are completely at my mercy.”


Instinctively he shivered at her tone but inside he knew he was in for one unforgettable night. More than willing, he assumed his role. “I‘m the Slayer, I don‘t submit.” The moments the words left his mouth, he felt what he was certain was his own belt rip into his back but he’d barely gotten out the wince before he felt her cool tongue glide over the abraded flesh easing away the sting.

“I don’t think you understand what’s going on here. You’re not going to walk out of this room alive but if you please me until then I’ll make it quick.” She brought the belt down again, only this time across his ass. Not hard enough to break the skin, just enough to sting.

Bloody fucking hell, he thought trembling again but this time with desire. She’d let him dominate her like this but never wanted to try her hand at it but now that she carried his demon, she had left her inhibitions at the door. “Never much cared for doing things the easy way.”

Smiling, she brought the belt down across his ass a few more times in rapid succession, leaving a blending hue of angry reds against his pale luminescent skin. “Mmmm, I can dance with you all night baby, I just hope you can keep up.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll give it to you good luv.” He promised, swallowing thickly as his cock bobbed it’s agreement. His ass burned like hell but when her chilled skin blanketed him, his eyes rolled back in his head from pure bliss. Damn, his girl was a natural at manipulating the fine line between pleasure and pain, he thought with pride.

“Move to your back, pet.” She whispered into his ear, snapping the belt threateningly to let him know the consequences for not obeying. She left the manacles loose enough for him to rotate positions and he did as she commanded, causing her to pout at his submission. Because of the claim she knew he was enjoying this as much as she was but she really wanted to dominate him and it felt like he was simply giving in to easily.

Pausing for a moment to think, she smiled as she realized pain alone wouldn’t be enough to control her lover. Changing tactics she grabbed the chair beside her vanity table and moved in to the front of the bed.

Spike stained his ears to follow her movements and tried to use the claim to see if she was having second thoughts. To his surprise she shut him out, confused he once again started to speak when heard it. He knew the sounds she made when she was aroused and the breathy, near silent moans he could hear gave him a pretty good idea what she was doing. “No fair pet.” He told her crisply.

“You are not the Master here.” She replied coldly, rolling her nipple between her forefinger and thumb.

Ah…so that’s why she stopped, he realized unable to help the smirk from crossing his lips. “Come now princess, you know you’d rather have me touchin’ you.”

Ignoring that, she slid her fingers inside her panties and rubbed her tight bud.

“Luv…” Spike tried again as her sounds of enjoyment grew louder. Keenly missing his heightened sense of smell, he tried the magic word. “Please pet, let me at least see you?”

“Who?” She asked with a pleased smile.

“Master, may I see you please.” He tried again, swallowing his pride.

Pleased, she reached forward and took her time removing the blindfold. “Wanna taste pet?” She asked, tracing her fingers over his lips, pulling them away just as quickly.

“Please Master.” He said, knowing right then and there that he could either keep fighting when he didn’t really to win or he could surrender and let the girl savor her victory. And since he was the spoils of war, it was the sweetest kind of surrender.

Obliging him, she dipped her fingers into his mouth before pulling away and moving back towards her chair at the foot of the bed. Slowly she removed the lacy black bra and matching thong before sitting back down. “You speak without permission and you will be punished pet.”

When she began to pleasure herself, Spike found himself biting his tongue and shifting restlessly. She was a sight to behold, golden skin and hair, emerald eyes blazing with passion but he wanted to touch her, wanted to lave his tongue over her drenched folds and gather her sweet dew into his mouth. The only thing sweeter that her blood was her pussy and his cock wasn’t exactly pleased to be left out of the fun either. The more she writhed and moaned, the harder he got and out of sheer desperation he moved his hand towards his cock, only to discover the chain wasn’t long enough.

With the aftershocks of her first climax still rippling though her, she noticed his predicament and gave him an indulgent smile. “Poor Spikey wants to play.”

“Touch me…”

No sooner than the words were out of his mouth, her foot moved between his legs and using nothing but her toes, she pressed down on his testicles without the slightest hint of mercy. “Tsk, tsk, tsk, I don’t remember giving you permission to speak.”

Swallowing, he held back his pained whimper just incase any sort of vocalization counted as talking. Just as quickly as it had come the pressure released and before he’d had a chance to blink, her mouth closed over them suckling away the pain. Laying back his head, he completely abandoned himself to her ministrations.

Pleased with him, she moved up his body and slowly lowered herself down onto his insistent cock. “How does that feel sweetheart?”

Bloody fucking wonderful, he thought but kept his mouth shut.

“You may answer my questions pet.” She said rotating her hips as she rose back up.

“Amazin’ luv, you’re so fucking tight.” He gasped out as her strong muscles clenched around his dick tantalizing his nerve endings with the almost painful pressure.

Buffy quickly realized the not so fun part of this little game and that was his hands and mouth were not free to roam where they may. With a wave of her hands the manacles snapped open freeing him but to her surprise he didn’t move. “Screw the game, just fuck me Spike.”

“As my Master commands.” He told her cheekily, before ramming into her and drawing a loud strangled cry from her lips. He lowered his mouth to claim hers as she met him thrust for bruising thrust and their fevered kiss was just as violent.

Passion for them wasn’t always a gentle melding of limbs, it was sometimes rough and desperate, pleasure and pain so closely entwined that it was impossible to distinguish one from the other. It wasn’t a fairy tale romance, it was a love that was real and lasting, with an almost primal aspect that made their passion like a living breathing presence inside their skin raging to be released.

It ruled them mercilessly now, howling in wicked delight as they devoured one another and when her fangs pierced his neck, tearing through the claim, re-branding him as hers, he screamed his release up to the heavens as her need for him in body and blood pushed his own pleasure past it’s peak. His skin was hot and slick against her own flesh but as she drank him down in thick greedy gulps, he felt her body come to life once more. It was the nature of the beast, life purchased one sanguine drop at a time and it was an experience that was holy in it’s own dark way.

She licked over the wounds lovingly and surrendered herself through the claim so that his beast could return to him. She took a deep breath, filling her dry lungs and smiled up at him as she saw his beast slide into his eyes once more. “I hear that Slayer’s blood is quite the aphrodisiac.”


He needed no further encouragement and they spent the rest of the night, alternating between delicate love and punishing passion.

Chapter 22

Spike took one last glance at his sleeping mate, before silently heading out of their bedroom. It was a quarter to seven and normally she’d be up by now but after yesterday and their night together, he knew she needed rest. He had no doubt she’d stir soon, his girl wasn’t one to laze in bed when there was work to be done but he wanted her to stay asleep as long as possible.

Moving down the stairs he noticed the various glares aimed in his direction and merely looked at Wes expectantly.

“You and Buffy were…err…quite vocal for most of the night.” Wes explained picking up his teacup. More than once he and Doyle had stopped someone from racing upstairs to ‘rescue’ Buffy and when they finally realized what was going on the situation had gotten even more awkward. But since he and Fred had no trouble falling asleep he focused on the more pressing matter. “I take it that your demon has returned to its rightful place?”

“Yeah but we’ll talk about that later.” Spike said not bothering to apologize for keeping the others awake. They hadn’t been loud on purpose but after living in the hotel they’d fallen out of the habit of keeping their voices down. “We need to have a little talk about the way things are gonna be around here. Buffy’s taking care of the big things but she’s not fighting this battle alone, we work as a team. You all keep expecting her to handle everything, explain everything and she’s got her hands full. So simply put you do what you can and earn your keep or you don’t get kept. Anyone that doesn’t like it can get the hell out right now because she did come here to do everything for you she came to help.”

Once again angry and moody as magick withdraw had set in Willow let out a bitter snort. “She comes back and expects us to be her obedient servants, all with the bowing and scraping huh.”

Narrowing his eyes Spike held back his temper and sent her a challenging smile. “She warded the house, kicked Glory’s ass and straightened out Angel…what did you do yesterday?” She flushed guiltily and he let his smile grow. “That’s right you sat around snippingat her while she’s was out there risking everything to save your bird.”

“Buffy can’t die, so it’s not like she’s risking anything.” Willow shot back.

“She told you herself that everything that lives can be killed, same goes for her and she feels pain, just like we do.” Spike said wishing he could just snap the bitch’s neck and be done with it. “She risking even more because we can only die once but if Glory captured her, she could kill her hundreds of times in an effort to find what she wants. She’d have to because Buffy would die a thousand times, a hundredthousand times to keep others safe and all she’s asking is return for all that she’s willing to do, is for you to help. She doesn’t want minions, she wants the same kind of support she gets back home for our team.”

“I would have been able to help if she hadn’t stolen my magicks!” Willow said viciously.

“She didn’t steal them she bound you so that you wouldn’t kill anyone else!” Spike shot back, reaching the very limit of his patience. “You murdered her and the soulless monster that I am, was the one to give her mercy! So what in the bloody hell does that say about you? Sides, you used to help before you learned your first incantation so that’s no excuse. Buffy saved her mum without her powers, Wes, Fred and Gunn all help out so that proves that you are capable of doing something as well.”

“You..ki..killed her?” Tara asked softly, her musical voice tinged with sadness.

“Tara, baby you don’t understand if she hadn’t run away you wouldn’t have been hurt.” Willow explained quickly, finding her reasoning rational inside her mind. “Her powers were given to her so she could help people so she should have been here to protect you.”

“Willow she has been helping people but she’s only one girl…she can’t always be there.” Tara reached out and took Willow’s hands in her own. “She also had every right to save herself when her life got to be too much. The point is that she came here to help because she wanted to and all Spike is doing is asking us to help her save us. I know you’re worried about me Willow but you can’t blame her for what’s happening because it’s not her fault. She didn’t choose to be a Slayer anymore than I chose to be the key.”

“Knew I liked you.” Spike said giving the shy blonde wicca a wink before turning to Wes. “Alright now you want to tell me how my demon went for a little walk?”

“You connection to one another obviously,” Wes said with a smirk before he reaching up to rub at his temples. “But what you two share is beyond anything that the Council has ever documented.”

“They’re one.” Angel said gruffly from his place in the doorway. He felt like a human experiencing their first hangover but since he could sense his family’s strength flowing around him like a welcoming cocoon, he’d never felt more powerful. “They haven’t just connected; they’ve truly bonded like the legend of old.”

“Legend?” Giles asked his voice ripe with curiosity.

“In the Kindred Grimoire it speaks about a Master vampire taking a human as his mate and partaking in her humanity and in turn she could harness his demon. But their joining was different, they could walk in daylight and she was as strong as a Slayer but they both become mortal.” Angel said trying to recall the legend. Darla had set at the Master side, listening to the words that left his mouth like they were gospel and since she wanted him to stand at the Master’s right hand she’d passed down all that knowledge to him. Needless to say it had been a while since he’d thought about his time with his old sire. “The way it sounded they were both vampire and human at the same time but it seems like Spike and Buffy are the mirror reflection of one another.”

“She’s my match in every way but we don’t share equally through the connection, we either get one side or the other.” Spike said working it out aloud.

“Because she’s the Alpha to your Omega, she is life, the beginning while you are death, the end. But you as you are a man and a vampire she is a woman and the Slayer.” Wesley said as their brainstorming session added their perspectives to his own. “Some Slayer’s are known to keep their souls upon turning but don’t retain their strength, merely get that of the demons. I believe it is because the Slayer presence inside them fights the demonic presence of the vampire, weakening it so that that it can’t cast out their soul. Since the power of the Slayer is a non-corporal entity, it stands to reason that it can’t defeat the corporal demon that is borne of the combined blood. The Slayer energy would be depleted so only a stronger Slayer would be powerful enough to adequately face the demon with any discernable effect. So when your demon went to Buffy her Slayer-ness could not remain but since it was her mate there was no need for a fight so it must have went to you.”

“Yeah, the bint and I figured that out for ourselves.” Spike said grateful he was once again a vampire or he might have blushed at just how they’d figured that out. “But that still doesn’t explain how my demon went to her in the sodden first place.”

“Your bond, you share thoughts and feelings even ones that cause physical reactions so if you two would explore how much you can truly accomplish with your connection perhaps we wouldn’t constantly be surprised.” Wes said with a note of censure in his voice since he’d often told them both that they should experiment and test the limits of their connection so they could learn all it encompasses. An idea they both patently chose to ignore with extreme prejudice.

“You two haven’t been doing that thus far?” Giles asked his voice almost as reproachful as Wesley’s. “Just think of all the potential power and tactical uses for such a connection!”

“No we haven’t, it’s not a bloody merging of superpowers it’s our marriage and the only reason we bothered to learn how to communicate thoughts was so that we could go to each other in times of need.” Spike said curling his upper lip in a sneer that perfectly expressed his disgust at such a notion. “It’s not the fucking mission that matters to her anymore and I’m not driven to make a right terrifying name for myself. It’s about us now. So other than keepin’ our family and each other safe we don’t give a hang about how strong we are or bein’ the most fearsome demon hunters on the block. We aren’t about to take the most amazing thing either of us have ever fucking experienced and strip it down to some cold weapon for us to wield.”

“Damn, that’s real poetic Blondie.” Faith said since his romantic declaration seemed to have temporarily short-circuited the Watcher’s analytic brains. She thought her sister Slayer had hit the jackpot with her vamp, who was quite the hottie but while she was touched by his outpouring she had a rep to maintain. “But now that you’ve got that outta your system and got you some answers, let’s get our heads back on the psycho bitch looking to give us all a one way ticket to hell, yeah?”

Chapter 22

“Buffy?!” Giles asked starting somewhat at not only her entrance but her appearance. Her hair was pushed back in a messy bun and she wore nothing but a long black t-shirt and boxers he had no doubt we’re Spike’s.

“Ughhh.” She grumbled out already moving to the coffee pot. With her eyes closed she reached up to the cabinet and grabbed a mug but when she tried to pour herself some coffee she realized something wasn’t right. Cracking open an eye she simply stared at the empty pot as though she couldn’t understand what she was seeing.

“Uh sweet there isn’t any coffee.” Doyle explained patiently as she shook the pot as though the act alone would be enough to allow her to finish her routine. “It’s after seven, at night.”

“Spike?”

Since it was both a whine and question, Doyle laughed lightly. “He went out to get some supplies with the others so why don’t you sit down while I brew up a pot of coffee.”

Yawning she sat walked away from the counter and to everyone’s surprise she climbed up onto Angel lap, cuddled up against him and promptly fell back asleep. He could see the others confusion, especially that of the PI team but even though he didn’t understand either his arms quickly encircled her to hold her close. When his demon purred in contentment she rubbed her cheek against his chest like a contented cat but never woke.

Not liking the situation one bit, Wesley sent him a piercing look. “Perhaps you should move her into the living room. After a long night she‘s never at her best until she has a few cups of coffee.”

“It’s not a problem to hold her.” Angel said quickly and while he could practically feel the others disapproval he wasn’t about to put her down on the sofa when she’d given him a chance to hold her in his arms once more.

“I’ll bet.” Doyle said dryly as he hurried to get the clearly brain addled Slayer some much needed coffee. “But I recon Spike might have one.”

“Spike?” Buffy asked and while her eyes hadn’t opened she’d lifted her head up slightly.

“Not yet darlin’ but don’t you think you might move to a place a bit less man-shaped until he gets back?” Doyle asked, his only answer being a slight snore to tell him she’d gone back to sleep upon hearing he wasn’t back yet.

Unable to help it Giles had to chuckle. “I don’t know how many times that’s happened to me. I’d be in the middle of telling her something I felt was rather important only to look up and find her fast asleep.”

With not much else to say or do, the two Watchers continued to search through the text they’d gathered with any mention of Glory while Doyle focused on the coffee pot and tried to will it to work faster. As for Angel, he simply stared down at the girl in his arms and tried to figure out what it meant but he did know that it only further expanded the feeling of peace he’d felt since being claimed by her.

At least until Spike and Cordelia walked in with the others. “Just what in the hell do you think you are doing Buffy!” Cordelia screeched causing the others to push forward to see what was happened. And when they saw the reason for her shouts they turned to Spike to see his reaction to the scene before them.

With an slight snort he put the bags he carried down on the bar before moving over to Angel and easily plucking the girl out of his arms. “Thanks mate, she needed that.”

Angel was just as confused as the others but sensing her mates presence she opened her eyes and blinked rapidly. “Spike?”

“That’s right kitten.” He said with a smile as he lowered them both down into an empty chair and held her exactly as Angel had done.

“You were gone.”

“I know pet but I figured your childe could see to you.”

“Cozy.” She agreed before letting out a small yawn and curling against him. “But not you.”

Since she seemed perfectly content, he looked over to Angel but explained for everyone‘s benefit. “She’s always a bit needy because of the claim, we both are but after taking you as her childe you can feed the hunger for her as well. You could feed me too but don’t expect me to be cuddling on your lap anytime soon…not after that time in Russia.”

Angel looked shifted uncomfortably at the memory Spike had just evoked but he nodded to let him show he understood. “I didn’t know your claim gave her the hunger.”

“I never noticed it either Peaches, not since I’m usually there to see to her myself but when I felt her through the claim it was easy enough to send her your way.” He reached down and brushed her hair away from her face before looking back up to Angel. “You might have noticed but the girl isn’t exactly all there when she first wakes up. She goes through the same bloody routine every time but she’s more than willing to be led along until she wakes up a bit.”

“Hunger?” Both Watchers asked at once as Faith and Riley started to unpack the groceries since it seemed the apparent crisis had been adverted.

“It’s standard in vampire clans to routinely share blood but if it is done enough it becomes almost like an addiction.” Angel explained since Spike was busy adding milk and sugar to the steaming cup Doyle had brought over. “That need also creates another hunger, one for contact with their kindred--- family. It’s a way to bond a clan together and that connection allows them to act as a fluid unit. It’s not like the telepathic connection Spike and Buffy share, more like it strengthens our instinctual drives and give us a---”

“A pack mindset.” Xander said surprising everyone. “Hello, I was a piggy-eating hyena remember---”

“But I thought you said you didn’t remember that?” Buffy asked feeling much more awake now that the caffeine was working it’s way through her system.

“I didn’t exactly forget, more like I deliberately repressed.” He said with an apologetic shrug before getting back to what he‘d been saying. “But it was like what Angel was talking about. Uh after what happened I did a little research to figure out some clue to explain why we…I acted the way I did. In the wild the females are the alpha, in our case I think I became the dominate because I was the most aggressive. Anywho, the more time I spent with them the more we all started to think a like which is why we killed at dodge ball. It was like we all knew our part in the pack and just knew the others would act accordingly. But after hanging with them so long I was restless, antsy when we were separated. And I’m not talking like bored or worried, I’m talking like those phantom pains you feel when you lose limb or something. It was like a part of me was just gone suddenly and it didn’t stop hurting till they made with the sniffing and touching.”

“That about sums it up.” Angel agreed with a wry smile. “That connection is why the four of us were so feared, so powerful as a group when we hunted. I was Darla’s childe, just like Spike was Dru’s but we were more powerful them so they often followed our cues without us needing to say---”

He broke off suddenly as he felt an almost overwhelming wave of pride and affection pour through him and it only took a single glance at Spike to know he could feel it too, which meant it was coming from Buffy. But given what he was talking about he found himself once again wondering why.

“Because you said I.” Buffy explained reading his eyes as well as sensing his confusion through their new bond.

Since he could feel it through her as well, Spike clarified a bit since Angel was still not getting it. “I, not Angelus Peaches, which means you’ve finally accepted your demon.”

“No way, his demon is an evil, sick…thing---” Cordelia said breaking off suddenly when she found herself on the receiving end of a death glare from not only the Slayer but one though Spike’s amber eyes as well.

“Angelus is an evil demon but he is still a part of Angel, a part that makes him who he is now.” Buffy said in a cold stern voice that promised a bloody and brutal death if anyone dared to disagree. “He’s his bad side literally but all that badness is still his, only Angel is choosing to be a better man---someone that matters. Accepting that doesn‘t make him evil or sick and it sure as hell doesn‘t make him a thing, it makes him a stronger person!”

“Okay B, I’m sure Queenie gets it so ratchet down alright. Ang is a big boy and can take care of himself.” Faith said when the mug Buffy was holding shattered in her hand at her last word.

“He’s ours.” Spike and Buffy said at once without having to consciously think about it.

“Okay, did I miss something?” Doyle said glancing between the vampires since they hadn’t exactly been getting on because of the little blonde they both loved.

“Buffy claimed Angelus last night but she did it with my demon, so just like Angel can feel the bond so can I because we’re both feeling it through her and our demons.” Spike tossed out as he took the towel Angel passed him and began to clean Buffy up. Thankfully her cup had been nearly empty and lukewarm but he knew that didn’t make it anymore comfortable for her. “But he’s her childe and as you can see she takes her responsibilities seriously.”

“You mean she used some freaky vamp thing to trap him so she could have her cake and eat it too?” Cordelia said tartly.

“Fuck, don’t you ever shut your gob?” Spike asked angrily as he physically had to restrain Buffy from leaping for the catty brunette. “He was part of a clan for more than a century and he spent the next ninety-years alone! I was only apart from Dru for a few weeks before I came across Buffy and just like Xander said it hurt like fucking hell. But I recon over the years Peaches became so bloody numb he couldn’t feel anything until Buffy gave him a place to belong again. That’s what she did last night too, she offered him a family, one that would accept but the soul and the damn demon. Now I know your panting after him like a right bitch in heat but could give him the same or do you only want him as long as he’s playing the part of a man?”

“He is a man!” Cordelia shot back.

“No Cordelia I’m not. I’m a vampire with a soul.” Angel said and for the first time since he’d been cursed not the slightest hint of shame could be heard in his voice at that admission because of the unconditional support he could feel from his family. “And the more I tried to pretend Angelus wasn’t a part of me, the stronger he became. I’ve come to see Faith as a sister and I hurt her last night and then I tried to hurt Buffy, neither of which I would have done if I had made peace with what I am a long time ago. Its like a disease, the longer you ignore it the more it spreads and if Buffy hadn’t forced me to face that Angelus would have taken me over before I even realized it was happening.”

When she flounced out the back door in a huff, Doyle grabbed his jacket off the barstool. “I’ll go make sure she gets home alright.”

Buffy sent him a look that said you-don’t-fool-me. “Go n-ithe an cat thú is go n-ithe an diabhal an cat.” She said in Gaelic and while she so, so didn’t see the attraction, she loved him which meant she wanted him to be happy. Even if he seemed to think that happiness could come from having Cordelia Chase of all people in his life.

Angel managed to hold back his chuckle until she stalked upstairs to take a shower and when the others, including Spike, looked at him expectantly he couldn’t help but smile. “She told him; may the cat eat you and may the devil eat the cat. Which I think she meant as both a blessing and a warning.”

Xander looked around a second. “I think I speak for everyone when I say huh?”

“Doyle’s got a yen for the girl so it sounds like Buffy warned him the girl will probably eat him alive but she wasn’t gonna get involved. I also got a strong feeling that in this case, Buffy’s the devil because if the girl breaks his poor deluded heart there‘s no telling what Buffy would break on her.” Spike said with a pleased smirk. “Just like your solider boy would have come back bruised if he had less than noble intentions towards you Faith.”

“Same goes Blondie, B’s not the only one that knows how to defend her family.” She returned with an easy smile. “But I don’t know about you all but I’m starving so do you know if B’s cooking tonight or if it’s someone else’s turn?”

Chapter 23

“Not that this hasn’t been a much needed reprieve,” Giles began as they moved out of the dining room after a wonderful meal of roast with carrots and potatoes. “But we still need to decide how to handle Glory. Now it seems we have two options. We can remain here for the next six days and began our assault against her once the ritual can no longer be performed or we can attempt the revealing spell and end things now.”

“I ah, I noticed you said attempt. “Xander said reaching over and taking Anya’s hand to calm the bout of nerves he felt at the Watcher’s less than confident announcement.

“That’s because there’s no guarantee that it will work.” Buffy admitted wishing she could say otherwise. “We have a theory and all the evidence seems to support it but we have no guarantee that we’re right. So if it works it could be over and if not we’re back at square one with the clock ticking down.”

“So then we’d just go to plan number two right, the hiding here and not dying part?” Anya asked quickly although it was clear she would rather that be plan number one.

“It’s not that easy Ducks,” Spike idly stroked his hand across Buffy’s back as he tried to think of a way to make the others understand what they were up against. “If the spell fails or even if it works and we can’t finish it, it’ll piss her off good and proper so she’ll come here. Now I trust Buffy when she says the wards won’t fall but---”

“But we will be the only ones safe from her anger.” Wesley said gravely as he quickly caught on to what he was trying to tell them. “And given her mental imbalance I can only imagine what she’d do to this town but we…we would be helpless to stop her. Because if any of us were to leave the safety of the house she would undoubtedly use them against us.”

“And we’d either have to let them die or give her who she thinks is the key.” Faith said unconsciously moving closer against Riley’s side as things just kept sounding worse. “But she’ll probably go ballistic the closer it gets to her big day so even if we do just stay here, she’ll probably do some damage. Not to mention all the people she’ll feed on in the meantime and what the other demons will do when word gets out the town’s wide open.”

“Either way we go, I’ll patrol,” When Faith immediately opened her mouth to speak Buffy raised her hand to stop her. “If I was caught I’d do my best to make her and her minions leave me for dead. And if they did take me hostage I’d let Spike know though our claim before trying the spell so either way I‘d walk out alive. No-one else can say the same thing.”

She didn’t like it but she saw her point. “Alright then B, what do you want to do?”

“Fight,” Buffy admitted with a slight smile. “But I think we should stay put. Right now Glory is focused on us and I think the closer it gets to the wire the more determined she’ll get. I wanna say she won’t do anything to call attention to herself because she hasn’t yet but it’s a possibility because she’s not exactly all there to begin with. But the way I see it the more time we have to plan, the better chance we have of beating her and finding someway to take back what energy she’s taking from people. That’s not something we know how to do yet so if we did fight her tonight or even tomorrow and win, we will probably lose our only chance of helping them.”

“But that still leaves Tara in danger so I think we should go after Glory.” Willow said firmly. “Yeah we aren’t a hundred percent positive the spell will work but it’s as close as we’re gonna get.”

“If we wanted a sure thing we could simply kill Tara.” Buffy said emotionlessly as she deliberately tried to evoke a reaction and Willow didn’t disappoint.

“YOU DON’T HAVE THE RIGHT TO DECIDE THAT!” Willow yelled out as she rose to her feet.

“No I don’t.” Buffy said calmly. “But I also know that the powers I‘ve been given means doing what others can‘t or shouldn‘t have to and if that was the only way to stop hell from coming to earth I‘d do it. Only it‘s not and I‘m willing to do what it takes to keep Tara safe but I also want to help the others Glory has hurt. So if waiting is the only way to do that, then that‘s what I want to do.”

“Me too.” Faith said firmly. “So I vote we wait for as long as we can.”

“I’m with them, it puts less people at risk but also gives us a chance to help those who’ve already been hurt, which isn‘t something we really have right now.” Riley said casting his vote.

When the others agreed as well Willow stormed off in a huff and Tara sent Buffy an apologetic smile. “I agree with you, www…w...we should help the others too.”

“Well that was fun.” Buffy said with a slight snort only to find herself swept onto her mates lap as Tara went off to talk to Willow.

“I could eat her if you like.” Spike offered generously.

Buffy pretended to consider his offer for a few seconds before shaking her head. “Nah, she’d give you a bellyache.”

“Better that than the headache she’s been giving you.”

“Ah but headaches get me backrubs.” Buffy said leaning into his touch as he began to expertly knead her tense shoulders. “So maybe I should thank her.”

“Like that do you kitten?” He asked nipping her earlobe lightly when she let out a soft moan.

“Mmmm…hands of Spike.”

“Are they always like this?” Faith asked when it became obvious the blondes no longer registered the fact they were on the same planet as anyone else.

“Yeah but it’s kinda sweet.” Fred said letting out a soft sigh of her own as she watched the couple. “But it’s also funny sometimes, like when Buffy was pregnant---”

“PREGNANT?” Giles yelped out calling the blondes attention back to the group.

“Whose pregnant?”

“You were apparently.” Giles said starkly.

“Ick, please don’t remind me. I was fat, cranky and there was this evil thing swimming around inside me.” Buffy said with a delicate shudder as her face twisted in revulsion.

“So much for true love conquers all huh.” Cordelia said sending a quick glance to Angel to see if this latest revelation was dimming the image of his precious St. Buffy.

“If by love you mean an enormous Hacksaw beast that could mystically knock you up with his hell-spawn, then no.” Buffy said with a smirk as she realized what Cordelia was trying to insinuate. “See Doyle had this vision so Spike and I went to this club to check stuff out and this guy was trying to run his game and when I brushed him off he landed one.”

“He hit you?” Angel said outraged on her behalf.

“No mate, he jerked her back by her hair and landed a kiss on those pretty lips of hers.” Spike said as his eyes unconsciously shifted amber from his anger.

“Then Spike landed one, right on his jaw.” Buffy said with a smile. “It was all very manly and more than a little hot so since we couldn’t find any danger, we went home.”

“Where Buffy woke up nine month’s pregnant.” Wesley said picking up the story from there. “Now immediately Spike and her both knew it wasn’t hers because despite the rapid gestation, vampires are simply incapable of procreating by sexual reproduction. Not to mention their bond alerted them to the demonic presence that had invaded her.”

“They, because there were seven of them had some sort of freaky mind hold over me that made me all mommy-like.”

“Which was why it was so funny.” Fred said tossing her long hair behind her shoulder. “She was all happy and glowing like any soon to be mom and Spike was going nuts.”

“Oi, and you think Wes wouldn’t have been?” Spike challenged indignantly. “It was my woman all ripe and radiant with new life growing inside her but it wasn’t my little hell-spawn! She was so bloody beautiful, so damn cheerful I couldn‘t help but getting drawn in and---”

“Then he’d get all jealousy and growly.” Fred said with a light laugh. “One second he’d be running his hands over her tummy then the next he’d be stalking around in full game-face promising the thing that did it a very bloody and creative death.”

“Which he did, with a bit of assistance from me.” Wesley said before telling them how they’d defeated the beast with a barrel of liquid nitrogen and a single bullet. “And upon the demon’s death his spawn were removed from Buffy and the other three women that had been selected as hosts.”

“But we probably learned something.” Buffy said brightly as she wrinkled up her forehead slightly as though deep in thought. “Uhm…men are evil? Oh, wait, I knew that. LA is full of self-serving phonies? No, had that one down, too. Uh... sex is bad?”

“We all knew that.” Angel said with a self-depreciating grin.

“Only now it’s bad in a way that means good. But if you need a refresher course I’m sure Spike could help you out or maybe he just picked up his tricks from you because don’t think I didn’t pick up on that, ’not after that time in Russia’ thing.” Buffy said sending a look to her mate that made it perfectly clear he’d be explaining that little comment. As both vampires shifted uncomfortably she couldn’t help feeling delighted that she’d finally made her vampire as embarrassed as he often made her with his wicked innuendoes. “Okay so we didn’t exactly learn anything in an after-school special kind of way but its gotta mean something that such a disturbing memory is actually pretty funny now.”

“Like the Talent Show or Bug-Lady?” Xander said with a smile of his own.

“Ohh or how Giles and my mom getting all freaky on the hood of a police car thanks to some tainted candy.” Buffy said wanting to let her Watcher know she hadn’t forgotten that.

“I don’t know my dear girl, I fondly recall your near maniacal antics as you sought to become a cheerleader while under the influence of a vengeance spell.” Giles shot back deciding two could play that particular game.

“Me, I’m recalling a certain naughty dance.” Xander said causing Angel to let out a short bark of laughter.

Hearing it she sent him a dark look. “Oh like you never had a bad day Angel, ‘is there a problem ma’am‘.”

“How was I supposed to know you’d be so damn spry but you were less than graceful when you walked right into that open grave.”

“Oh...oh, how about when they all got changed into their costumes and we were the only sane ones.” Cordelia said contributing her own memory much to everyone’s surprise, even her own.

“I don’t know Cordy, it was pretty funny when we were in that shack and you wanted to fight the demons hunting us with a spatula.”

Since she could admit that had been one of her less than stellar moments she looked over to Xander. “That’s right up there when I thought you were fish guy but I told you I’d understand if you wanted to see other fish.”

On the top of the stairs Willow listened as the others laughed and teased each other about their past, making the bad times well not so bad but with her mind already made up she walked back to her room where Tara waited and firmly closed the door behind her

Chapter 24

“Talk to me baby.” Spike asked quietly, his words whispering across the bare skin of her neck as he spooned her from behind. Earlier as they’d made love the world had narrowed down until it was only them in the moment and now he could feel it all pressing in on them again.

“It’s just this claim thing is so weird.” Buffy rolled around in his arms so she could face him. “It’s like this constant buzz on my senses and with my Slayerness pinging from the two vampires, a half-demon and the hell mouth it’s a lot to take in.”

“That’s not what’s bothering you pet.” Spike said since he knew she was used to her senses registering the demons and power that would always surround her life.

“It’s Angel.”

“And the claim draws you to him both physically and mentally but that‘s natural sweet.” Spike told her knowing first hand how alluring the bond between sire and childe could be. Dru’s touch had always thrilled his demon, even when it wasn’t a sexual gesture and since he loved her---

“You still love him.”

“Spike no, it’s not like that, not anymore.” Buffy said as she reached out to frame his face in her hands. “You are the one I love, you are my mate.”

“But he will always have a piece of your heart and with the claim that part of you is getting stronger, more tangible. It’s letting you inside him in a way he never did before and you can feel how much he needs and wants you.” When she once again opened her mouth to reassure him of his place in her life he silenced her with a searing kiss. When he pulled away some moments later she was breathless and he used that to his advantage. “I never had that pet, Dru controlled the claim so I’d yearn for her but she never gave me anything back in return--- she couldn’t because she’d already given all she was to Angelus. I knew it even though I convinced myself otherwise, just like you convinced yourself that his love wasn’t as strong as what you felt for him. Hell pet even I can feel that it was and I’m only feeling him through you so I can imagine how powerful it feels to you. And that’s okay---”

“No it’s not, I don’t want him to love me.” Buffy told firmly. “I want him to move on and find what we have and I just want to be his friend. I only did this to help him and if he keeps holding on to what he can feel from me, he‘ll never look for someone else. Someone that can love him the way I love you.”

“You’ll never be friends.” Spike said repeating what he’d told them in the Magick Box that day. “And you can love him pet but because of his fear it was never what you and I have. I know you love me Buffy, I know I’m what you’ve chosen but I also know he can give you things I can’t and that you can complete him in a way no other bird could.”

“That’s not true---”

“Isn’t it?” Spike challenged. “I’m still the vampire I always was pet, my edges are a bit softer but I still rather kill humans than protect them. Doyle, Fred, Wes, Lorne and Gunn are family, clan and I’d die for them but I don’t give a rot about the rest. I want to feed, to stalk the night searching for a right good kill but I don’t because it’s not worth losing what I have. Angel wants that too pet but now it’s an afterthought to him because he stopped seeing humans as food because his soul made him see them as people again. I don’t have that luv, they will always be food to me, sheep for the slaughter---”

“So…I’ve caged you.”

“No Buffy, I’m not telling you this to make you think you aren’t what I want, I’m trying to show you what we bring to each other. You gave me a chance, a reason to remember the man I once was and to accept him then you showed Angel how to embrace his demon. In turn he made you accept your calling and I helped you remember the girl you were before your fate was decided for you.” Spike ran his hand through her hair and smirked at her. “And because of you, what we feel for you Angel and I are family again.”

“Are you talking about that Russia thing, because I soo haven’t forgot that.”

“Vampires are creatures of passion and bloke, bint, dead, alive, willing or unwilling doesn’t much matter.” Spike explained because while his girl had definitely embraced her own sexuality, she was still so innocent about the ways of the world and the ways of immortals. “It’s not uncommon for family groups to trade and share partners. So not only did Dru spend a lot of time in Angelus’s bed, with or without Darla, there were times they were in mine. But before you get the wrong idea it wasn’t always about sex or even just pleasure, it was about making a strong connection. Forever is a long time luv and all it takes is one bad day for it to all end suddenly. You’ve killed enough old ones to know that and I’ve seen you die enough times to know that one day you might not wake back up. And because of our bond, I’ll always feel you but my arms will be empty and---”

“And you’ll have the hunger still.” Buffy finished for him, suddenly thinking she understood why he’d said what he had in the kitchen.

“That’s why Angelus left you that night luv, he wanted you just as much as the soul did but he’d been starving for centuries. You sated his lust and someone else fed his bloodlust but only Dru and I could feed his hunger for kindred.”

“And if I die, you’d need Dru or Angel to feed yours.”

“No pet, Dru wouldn’t have me back after all I’ve done and to be honest I don’t think I’d ever have a moments peace at her side again. I know what love is supposed to be about now something I didn’t when she turned me and I’d never be able to settle for anything less. And Angel won’t settle for anything less than you and he’s not getting any older. But if we lost you, we’d both be able to still feel your essence inside us and each other and it’d be the same for you if he or I were to dust.” Spike let out a stilted breath and met her eyes. “That’s why you gave me a chance in Paris, maybe you wanted to connect to the place you left but with his claim on you, you also wanted to connect to him without knowing it.”

“That…that’s how I found where he died in Galaway, I could sense him there.” Buffy said finally understanding how she’d just known that was where he’d died. “But you broke his claim so when I claimed you it had nothing to do with him and everything to do with us.”

“I know that luv but I don’t, we don’t know what tomorrow might bring.” Pulling her close he settled her against his chest and stroked his hands gently, yet firmly down her back to show them both that what they had was real and just between them. “None of us are the type to play it safe, we don’t run from danger we all seek it out and fight it night after night. He’s over two-hundred, I’m nearly that and while it proves we’re masters, it also means our time is counting down as well as up. And while you’re nearly impossible to truly kill we both know there is a way it can be done and all it takes is one demon to figure out how. So all I’m saying is that it’s okay to love him pet, to let him into your heart again because I know I have my own place there. That’s not something he or anyone could touch, just like a part of he and I will always belong to each other. Dru was my sire but he was the one that taught me how to be a demon and while I hated him more often than not, I still went with Darla to feed on the gypsies that had taken him away from our family. And as much as I love you Buffy, that is a part of my life you‘ll never be able to share with me because it‘s my past.”

“And that what Angel is to me, my past so save your if-I-die-I-give-you-my -blessing speech. It’s sweet you want me to be taken care of in every way normal or otherwise if something happened to you but it’s more than a little insulting that you’ve decided my next-mate for me.” Shoving away from him she gracefully rolled off the bed and moved over to where he’d thrown her clothes earlier. As she continued dressing she continued to decimate him in a cold, razor sharp voice. “Not only did you pick the guy that broke my heart by deciding I wasn’t worth it the first time around only to decide I was when I was happy with someone else but you made it perfectly clear I’d never be enough for any vampire! I’m sorry I haven’t had myself a few massacres and bathed in the blood of the innocent but that doesn’t mean I have no understanding of what it means to be a predator. I know what it’s like to hunt, only unlike vampires who all seem to think they’re at the top of the food chain, my prey is my match or greater! I’m not a fucking wolf that hunts sheep, I hunt other wolves and even though I don’t feed on their blood I get something from every kill. I LIKE IT, I love it when they run and it gives me a happy to break them before I finally drive my stake home! That makes me just as much a killer as you, I mean I’m called the damn Slayer and my line is just as old as yours! So I don’t need you or anyone alive or undead to tell me how in the hell to live my life.”

Quickly she strode over to the window and threw it open hard enough to cause the glass to shatter in the pane but even as it cut into her hands she never flinched. “I thought you already knew that, knew me but apparently I was wrong. Angelus asked me what was left when everything else was taken away, no friends, no family, no hope and I told him I still had myself and now I realize I‘m the only person I can depend on because everyone else will let me down.”

With that she jumped out the window without looking back but before he could follow her the others stormed into the room demanding to know what in the hell was going on. Spike looked at the window then at them and for the first time in his life had no idea what in the hell to say.

Chapter 25

Dimly Spike found himself explaining what had happened but even as he spoke something continued to feel off about the entire thing. It was natural for him to be a bit unsettled since this was by far the worst fight they’d ever had but that wasn’t it. He knew Buffy loved him, hell she proved it with every look and touch. He also knew that Angel would always be a touchy subject for them both because there was lots of pain, anger and yes even love there.

But he knew who Buffy was with perfect clarity and that hadn’t been a side of his girl he’d ever seen. “She’s filled with fire so why was she so cold?”

“Because that wasn’t her.” Angel said with absolute certainty.

“It had to be, we both know if it wasn’t.” Spike argued even though he hadn’t realized he’d spoken his earlier thought aloud.

“It was her body but it sounds like it was her inner slayer that was in charge.” Angel said with a slight shudder. “That’s who drove the sword into me that day. My kiss was still on her lips and tears were drying on her cheeks but when I looked into her eyes to understand what was going on there she simply wasn’t there. The girl I loved was just gone and there was something else looking back at me, something colder and even more ruthless than Angelus. That something was her Slayer and while it has and always will be apart of her she’s too strong willed to surrendered herself to anything so if it’s in charge of her now, there has to be a reason.”

As one both vampires turned their narrowed amber eyes on Willow. “Say something like a need to do her duty and slay the beasty just like you were wantin’ Red? And the full spirit of the Slayer would oh-so conveniently make her close herself off to the vampires connected to her so they wouldn‘t realize something was being done to her.”

“She bound my magick’s, I couldn’t have done anything.” Willow said quickly.

A little too quickly to his mind and since it seemed like it was something she’d planned on saying Giles’s narrowed eyes fell on her as well. “You couldn’t access your own magicks but if one was truly desperate enough its not uncommon for one caster to steal another’s power. Even if that someone is the very person they claim to love.”

“How could you say that to me Giles?”

“Forgive me but I also doubt Buffy would behave as she had without being under some form of coercion. It simply isn’t like her but resorting to magick when things do not go your way has sadly become something we’ve learned to expect of you.” Giles said calmly. “Of course there is a way to prove if you’ve been drawing magick’s from Tara and if our assumption is incorrect I will be the first to apologize.”

“There is no spell to see if someone’s---”

“No there is not.” Giles said sharply, cutting her off. “That isn’t exactly a well known fact so I find it a bit suspicious that you know it‘s untraceable mystically, especially since you’d have no reason to research such matters until recently. But unlike you I know that there are other ways to accomplish ones goal without resorting to magick.”

Backing up slightly from the cold light in the normally kind Watcher’s eyes Willow suddenly found herself pressed up against a hard chest. Before she even had a chance to turn she felt a pair of razor sharp fangs pierce her neck but even as she screamed to the others for help no one moved.

Then just as suddenly as it happened she was flung towards Buffy’s bed. “You‘ll need my blood too.” Tara said quietly as she moved forward to offer Spike her neck as well.

Instead he took her hand and brought it to his lips. After gently pricking her thumb with the tip of his fangs he nursed on it like a kitten and when he pulled away the skin was slightly red but he knew she’d felt very little pain. “Red had it coming for killing my mate but it’s a good thing I did her first because I might be tempted to kill her for this. She’s been sucking off you like a parasite and she used that stolen mojo on Buffy alright.”

“Okay I get that this was what Giles had in mind cause of how he looked at Spike when he was talking but I don’t get what just happened.” Faith admitted.

“It’s always about blood pet, it’s life contained in every single drop which is why we drink it. But there’s all kinds of different flavors and only three ways to mix ‘em together.” Spike said as he moved over to grab Willow so she couldn’t try to run before they knew what she’d done. “And since Willow’s not related to her and I doubt the two of them share blood the only reason she’d have Glinda’s essence is if she found some way to pull out her magicks.”

“I borrowed her power but I---”

“Stole, you stole my power.” Tara said with her voice ripe with betrayal.

“No baby, I just wanted to be able to protect you since Buffy wouldn’t.” Willow said since she was convinced she’d done the right thing. “But I didn’t do anything to Buffy, not really, I just called out her inner Slayer. It’ll make her stronger and she was the one that said that sometime you have to do what others won’t!”

“You are such a little fool.” Giles said gravely. “The essence of the Slayer is a primal power and it took years for the humanity of the Chosen to bind to it so that they would become a protector instead of a predator. Since she didn’t attack Spike physically it appears that Buffy is strong enough to remain some semblance of self but it’s separated her from Spike and Angel. And while I’m certain you thought that would be for the best to hide what you’ve done, they are also the only two people that would have the power to pull her back to herself if necessary.”

“What he’s trying to say is that if she loses control she’ll be an un-killable Slayer with magick gifts, one who won’t blink at killing Glinda to get the job done.” Spike said coldly. “And she’s not the only one in danger, anyone with a demon or darkness inside them will be the enemy. Giles from his Ripper days, Faith from her own brush with evil, Riley from his stint with the Initiative and even Anya and Xander because they’ll always carry the taint of the demon they once carried. Then there’s Doyle, whose a half-demon, Angel and I, as well as you. So that leaves Wesley, Fred and Cordelia but since they’re here with the rest of us, she’ll probably go for them as well.”

“But there’s wards---”

“Wards she set up.” Giles reminded her. “And while she undoubtedly knows how to take them down, it wouldn’t be necessary. The Slayer may be a predator but it isn’t a malevolent force so she could simply walk pass the warding she set up.”

“Then will fight her.”

“I won’t, I‘d bloody well let her kill me first.” Spike said wanting to make the stupid bitch know exactly where they stood. “I’d protect the rest of them as best I could and while I’m the only one who knows how to kill her, I won’t do it--- not for the bloody world. But before I’d go, I’d kill you to save her the trouble.”

“And I won‘t either.” Angel said moving over to stand beside Spike. “This isn’t like when I tried to end the world because the truly innocent have no reason to fear the Slayer. And while Buffy would be gone if it was able to assume total control I’d die if it meant some part of her could live.”

“I out too.” Faith said after weighting her own heart. “Maybe some of us deserve to die for the things we’ve done but not B. But I’d fight because I’m a Slayer, only the last time that happened B proved she was The Slayer so since she can’t die and I can, I don’t really see me walking out of it alive.”

“I’m only human, so I won’t be much help either.” Riley said as he wrapped his arm around Faith’s waist.

“But we can force Spike to tell us how to kill her!” Willow said desperately.

“No, but I can give myself to Glory and let her kill me.” Tara said unable to believe her sweet Willow was saying these things. “You summoned the Slayer to fight Glory and if we let her complete the ritual she’ll be gone and the power you called will retreat beneath the surface once more because it’s purpose has been fulfilled.”

“You can’t do that, I did this for you!” Willow shouted at her.

“No Willow you did this for you.” Tara shouted back, surprising everyone, including herself. “It wasn’t just Buffy that decided to wait, it was all of us, even me. But you did this by yourself and for yourself without a thought to anyone else. The only chance you had to draw out my power without me realizing it was when we were making love. You turned that into something dirty by violating my body and taking more than I wanted to give you. And not just because you wanted to keep me safe from Glory but because you wanted to be the one in power again. But I’d rather die than put everyone else in danger, than use people for my own means and---”

“And it wouldn’t bring Buffy back. We need you alive Glinda because even though Peaches and I can’t reach her, you might be able to. So it looks like my girl needs you to fight for her now.” Spike told her with a slight smile.

“And while we do, we need to make sure you can’t cause anymore damage Willow.” Giles said calling on his own powers since her betrayal justified their use. But before he could Tara waved her hand and Willow slumped down to the floor in an unconscious heap.

“She won’t wake up until I release her but it had to be me that did it Giles.” Tara said softly, even as tears ran down her face. “I just hope the coven can help her.”

“So do I my dear, so do I but right now Buffy is the one who needs us now.”

Chapter 26

Buffy stood before them like the personification of death itself. Her hair and eyes were as black as the night itself and all around her lay the bodies of the dead. “You will be needed, do not fail her.”

“What---”

“They’re human.” Spike explained since it was obvious Angel was looking but not truly seeing what was before them.

“They served the beast.” She corrected in a voice devoid of any remorse. “You are creatures of darkness and light like myself because of our bonds to her as they were mindless harbingers of evil due to their bond with the beast called Glory. It was my duty to destroy them but she was damaged---”

“Damaged how?” Angel demanded angrily.

“Their deaths pain her and she brought even more pain upon herself by trying to cast me out.” The Slayer said turning her back to the vampires so they could see the red ruin that was her back but doing so in such a way that she could still see their every movement. “I am the power that animates her life but we were two defined presences within this skin. I exist to destroy even at the cost of myself and it is her nature to protect at the cost of her own life. She accepts that as she accepts you but she could not accept this and sought to cast me out. But her power is my power and I stopped her before she destroyed us both. I did it so that we could perform our duty but I can feel her pain and it far surpasses the damage done to our corporal form.”

“Why are you still here? You’ve done what the spell called you to do.” Spike asked unaware that he’d shifted to game face. He could barely feel Buffy at all beneath the presence of the Slayer, just a faint pulse of the woman he loved let him know she was alive still and that brought his own demon to the fore.

“I could not fight the witches spell anymore than she but on that our pain is shared. When man was young the first Slayer was chained to the earth and stripped of her will so that the essence of The First could be forged into a weapon for the shadow men to wield. As time passed that power was bound by the humanity that bore it through each passing life and death but never before was it permitted to take form. I was that power but this one, this girl gave me life through her death and when she drew breath once more I willingly bound myself to her. She accepted this without conscious thought because like me she yearned to be free and upon her acceptance of me I vowed to protect her with all the power of my life back to the beginning.”

She moved forward and stood before the vampires knowing from her connection to them through the vessel that they to had made such a vow. “And until three nights ago I had kept that vow. Never before had I rose to the surface without her silent call and as was my instinct I pushed you away but had it not been for her strength I would have taken your life. Never before had we been divided in such a way for we were one body and mind. Since we have been separated into two halves of a whole and had we not been her humanity would have tempered my instinct.”

“And you wouldn’t have killed these people because of the pain it would bring her.” Spike said since he knew that concession intimately.

“Yes I would have spared their lives to spare her this pain just as she was willing to destroy us both to save them. She believed you and the others would stop the beast if we failed and would not live if it came at the cost of all these lives. But as I said her power is my power and without my, her, our humanity I forced her to endure.”

She paused long enough to shake her head as though trying to clear it. “Even now we are merging once more but in her weakened condition it is possible for me to hold enough of myself back so that we can speak for it is important for you to understand what has been done to her. For three days and nights she has been ruled by the darkness and never again will she be the same. Something must be surrendered for everything taken, even if she was forced to accept it against her will. I will help her as I can for our connection will be stronger than before because we both have drank deeply from the quick spring of my creation these days past. Now you must drink deeply of her or your connections to her will be severed and death will claim her.”

“What in the bloody hell does that mean?” Spike demanded since it was obviously important but its meaning wasn’t nearly as obvious.

“You know how she can be killed so you know the answer and if you wish to save her the past must be laid to rest or the future that is yours to claim will be lost.

Before she could say anymore she collapsed, scooping her into his arms before she could hit the ground Spike turned to Angel. “We shouldn’t have waited.”

“We did what we had to do to keep the others safe.”

“I don’t give a rot about them!” Spike yelled at him. “She’s my bloody mate, your sire and we should have thought of her first!”

“We did as bad as this is gonna be for her it would be a thousand times worse if she’d killed her friends.” Angel said calmly forcing down his own anger, also for Buffy’s sake. “She’d never forgive herself if she’d taken their lives or ours and by staying in we spared her the pain both of us will carry the rest of our lives. But right now she needs you to be strong for her Spike and that means burying your hate and rage because it’s the last thing she needs right now.”

Sighing Spike pulled her a little closer against his chest before heading back to her house but even though the words were said in a whisper Angel heard him with perfect clarity. “She needs us to be strong for her.”

___________________________

“See I was right to do the spell, Buffy stopped the ritual--- I did it!” Willow said the second Spike walked through the door with Buffy protectively cradled in his arms.

That was the wrong thing to say.

“You did it alright Red,” Spike said with a sneer. “Remember all those people Buffy wanted to save, well thanks to your little spell they’re all dead!”

“Dead but all I did---”

“Was call the power of the Slayer forth without any humanity to temper it!” Giles said viciously as the full weight of Spike’s words washed over him like a cold rain. “You rank, arrogant amateur even after all we’ve said you still have no idea what you’ve done! You murdered those people by messing with powers you had no comprehension of!”

When she started to sob Giles strode over to her and slapped her across the face. “Don’t you dare cry! You got exactly what you wanted and it will be Buffy that pays the price for your pride! Had you simply listened to her, to all of us those people would still be alive but because you wanted to prove you had the power you killed them all using an innocent girl as your weapon! And every moment of pain and guilt that she feels will be because of you so don’t you dare cry, you haven’t the right!”

“We‘re leaving,” Spike said looking over to where their team, their family was because if he even glanced at Willow he was certain he‘d fucking murder her. “Go upstairs and pack up our things but I’m getting her out of here now. Whatever that bitch did changed her forever and until we find out what in the hell that bloody well means I want her away from the hell mouth.”

“Changed her…what do you mean?” Giles asked also turning away from Willow because he didn’t trust himself.

“Don’t know, her inner Slayer stuck around to tell us what she could but Peaches can give you the details. Since there’s no telling when she’ll come to I want to get her as far away from here as possible before that happens.”

“I’m coming with you.” Angel said firmly.

“Course you are Peaches but tell the Watcher the story first so he can start looking here while Wes looks back home.” Spike said with a slight smile since he’d felt Peaches gearing up to fight him on it. “Remember if you lose your connection to her, I lose her and for that I can put up with you.”

“I…I can go by the mansion and pack you a bag Angel.” Cordelia offered tentatively without any ulterior motive because for the past three days she’d really looked at Angel, saw beyond his handsome face to what he truly was. And while she didn’t think she could handle his demony-blood-sucking-creature-of-the-night status she really, really wanted to know if she could handle Doyle’s green spiky side. “Doyle invited me to come stay with him once this was over with so I could bring it with me when I drove down.”

“You do that but If you so much as look at Buffy wrong I’ll throw you out on your ass.” Spike warned her but for Doyle’s sake he was willing to see if there was more to the bint than he thought. But like he’d told Angel his mate was his first priority so if she even looked like she was thinking something unpleasant about Buffy she’d be out on the street before she could even blink.

“Will you call to let us know she‘s okay?” Faith asked quietly with unshed tears turning her eyes a soft chocolate brown.

“She’ll never be okay, the bloody witch saw to that.” Spike said losing control of his anger but he was able to stop himself from shifting at the last possible second. “When she’s ready you lot can come visit but if I see her near Buffy again I will kill her.”

With that he turned and headed for the door.

“She’s never gonna come back here again is she?” Xander asked filling the strained silence that followed the door closing behind their friend.

“No, I don’t think she will but no matter how hard this is going to be for her we won’t lose her again.” Giles assured them before finally turning back to Willow. “As for you, you’ve done enough and may the Powers have mercy on you if you try to go near her because I have no doubt that Spike won’t.”

“I didn’t want this…” Willow said, his earlier words being the only reason she was able to hold back her sobs. “I promise I’ll change because I never wanted this…I really thought I was doing the right thing.”

Softening slightly since he himself had once done the unforgivable he gave her a sad smile. “Perhaps you did but no matter how good your reasons or intentions might have been like Buffy you will have to live with this the rest of your life. Because this isn‘t the end, it‘s only the beginning of what‘s to come.”