Buffy looked around. ‘Where am I?’ she wondered. One second she was… And now, she was back in Sunnydale. Buffy walked down the street, seeing cars on fire everywhere. She saw some demons, and went to fight them. The five were dead within seconds.

Buffy went back to her house, happy that she could still remember the way. She got worried when she saw that the door was left open. ‘What if they got Dawn?’ she thought. Looking around the house, she didn’t see anything else wrong, except that some weapons were missing.

She ran out of the house and towards Spike’s place. Maybe he could find Dawn. On the way, she saw the BuffyBot, who was looking around wildly.

“Hey! It’s me! Have you seen Willow? I need her to fix me,” she said, trying to go to Buffy. Instead, she ran into a wall. “I think my feet are broken.”

Buffy helped her get back to the house, but she wasn’t quite sure why. “You… Stay here. I’ll find Willow after I find Dawn,” she said, deciding it wasn’t a very good idea to mention Spike.

“Okay!” the BuffyBot said cheerfully. Then, she sat on the couch, completely still, making Buffy a little creeped out.

Buffy left and headed back to Spike’s crypt again. She kicked the door down… Oops. Bad habit. “Hello?” she asked to the eerily quiet room. She looked around, but Spike was nowhere to be found. Where was everyone?

Buffy decided to go to the Magic Box, and hoped everyone was there. When she got in, she finally saw Willow, Xander, Anya, Tara, Spike, and Dawn. They all looked tired, and Spike had some of the weapons that had been missing from Buffy’s house. He gasped when he saw her, and so did Dawn. The others just smiled.

“How… What… How?” Dawn asked, happy and scared at the same time. “Oh… Never mind, it’s just the robot.”

“No, Dawn, it’s really me,” Buffy replied as Dawn ran to hug her. Spike stood up, but he stayed away, not sure of what to do.

“Why?” Buffy asked the others. “I was in heaven. Why did you pull me out?”

Willow stood up and took a few steps toward the Slayer. “We… We didn’t know. It wasn’t a normal death, so we thought…” she stopped, at a loss for words.

“You thought what? That I was in hell? Well, I wasn’t!” Buffy yelled. Dawn squeezed her hand, and Spike came over and laid a hand on her shoulder, silently encouraging her. “You had reason to believe that, so I’m not going to hate you for it, but… Why?” Buffy asked, a few tears escaping her eyes.

“I’m so sorry, Buffy. We wanted to save you, and we missed you. Dawn and Spike were the only things keeping each other sane while you were gone, and we were barely staying sane ourselves,” Willow said, going over to hug her best friend.

“Well, I’m here now, so I guess it doesn’t matter anymore… But where’s Giles?” she asked, taking a step back.

Everyone else shared a silent look. Willow nodded, indicating that she would be the one to tell Buffy. “He’s in England. You weren’t here, so he didn’t feel a reason to stay. Oh, that’s probably him now!” she said as the phone started ringing.

“Hello?… Oh, hi, Giles!… Yeah, we have some important news for you, too… That’s a good idea. I think it would be best if you came back to tell us your news and for us to give you our news… Yes, we miss you, too… Bye,” she said before hanging up the phone.

“Well, he’s coming back,” Willow told Buffy. Buffy allowed herself a small smile. Giles was like a father to her, and she got the feeling she still had Slayer duties. She would need some more training.

“I’m gonna go kill the punching bag,” Buffy said as an excuse to get out of the room.

Buffy went back to the training room, motioning for Spike to follow her. He went wordlessly, closing the door behind him. “Yeah?” he asked, wondering why she would want to talk to him instead of one of the others, especially Dawn.

“How long was I gone?” she asked him as they sat down. Somehow, she knew he would have kept the count.

“147 days yesterday,” he answered, without even having to think about it, looking into her eyes. “How long was it… For you?”

Buffy stared at the ground a moment before answering. “Longer,” she said, looking back up at him.

“Are you gonna be okay?” Spike asked her, hoping she would be. If she didn’t feel right back on Earth, she might… He couldn’t even think about it out of fear for it actually happening.

“Yeah, I think so,” she replied. She believed it, too. “You didn’t help them do it, did you?” she asked, already knowing the answer.

“No. Dawn and I didn’t even know about it. If I did…” Spike stopped, knowing he was lying to himself and to her.

“What, you didn’t want me back?” she replied, playfully smacking him on the shoulder.

Spike looked at her, beaming. It was the first time since she had walked into the Magic Box that she had seemed like her old self.

“Let’s go back out there. I think I should go talk to Dawn,” Buffy said, standing up and walking to the door, still holding Spike’s hand. He was surprised, but didn’t object.

***

Nobody knew how long they had stayed there, it could have been hours, maybe days, but Buffy had gotten a chance to talk to everyone, and nobody really wanted to leave.

Suddenly, they heard the bell above the main door jingle. Looking up, Buffy said, “Hello, Giles.”

There was a long silence, with Giles looking like he was dreaming. For all he knew, he easily might have been. He’d had this dream several times over the summer… Or ones like it, anyways.

Everyone was staring between them, and Buffy dropped Spike’s hand. She slowly walked across the room and up the steps, until she was standing just a few feet away from Giles. She gave him a serious look, waiting for him to say something. ‘Does he not want me to be back?’ she thought worriedly.

“Hello, Buffy.”

***

After Giles had gotten over the shock and heard the story of the spell and everything else that had happened, he did some yelling at Willow. After the yelling, there was some talking to Buffy and making sure she was okay. Then, finally, he was ready to tell them his news.

“When I got to England, the Watchers’ Council told me something… There’s another Slayer now, and for some reason, they want me to be her Watcher. The only reason that I can think of is that she’s so terrible or insane, or something along those lines, that the other Watchers are too scared of her. I just can’t figure out why a new Slayer would be called when Buffy has already died once,” he gave Buffy an apologetic glance.

“The point is, I’m going to need help from all of you to get her. We have to go back to England.”

Everyone stared at Giles. They couldn’t believe this was happening. Buffy was the first one to speak. “Okay… Where will we stay?” Giles was surprised that she was taking the news so well. Buffy just wanted to get out of Sunnydale for a while.

“You’ll all be staying at a flat that has already been paid for. Tara and Willow, you two will be sharing a room. The same goes for you, Xander and Anya. Dawn and Spike, we arranged for you each to have your own room.”

Spike looked surprised. “You actually planned for me coming? I figured you would completely ignore the fact that I existed, as usual.”

Giles had the manners to at least look embarrassed. “Yes, well, I knew you wouldn’t let Dawn out of your sight,” he said, looking at his shoes. “We hadn’t… Planned on you being here, so we didn’t make arrangements for you. I’m sorry, but you’ll have to share a room with somebody,” he said, looking back up at Buffy and clearly expecting her to room with Dawn.

Barely even hesitating, Buffy said, “I’ll room with Spike.” Everybody’s eyes widened almost comically, and Xander, who had been drinking some pop, choked on it.

Spike walked over to her. He hated to spoil it, but something just wasn’t right. “Are you okay?” he asked with a quizzical expression on his face. “I thought you hated me.”

Buffy grabbed his hand and gave him an expression that clearly said, ‘Support me, please!’ She was already having trouble with this, if he couldn’t handle it, then she wouldn’t be able to, either. “Well, I realized some things,” she said nervously, knowing he would question what she meant by “some things” later, but hoping it would be when her friends weren’t around. She looked to Giles. He was important to her, and she needed his support, too. Unfortunately, she didn’t find it. Instead, she found him scrubbing his glasses wildly.

Buffy looked down sadly, and Spike put his finger under her chin so he could make her look up at him. It made it harder for her, but she didn’t look down again. Giles saw her expression and nodded at Spike. He knew he had to say that one word, even if it killed him to do it. “Okay,” he said, and instantly knew it was worth it when she looked up and actually smiled at him.

“So, now that that’s settled, I guess we’re going!” she said happily. Remembering something, she said, “After we pack… And Willow, I need to show you something.”

* * * * *

Willow had fixed the BuffyBot and put her in the basement, and everyone had packed. Now, they were on the plane. Actually, it was a private jet, so they could talk about Slayerly things. Not to mention, Spike wouldn’t be dusted by the sun.

Buffy was sitting farther to the back than the others, who were talking about what they thought the new Slayer would be like. She didn’t feel like talking much. She was staring out of her window when she sensed somebody behind her. “Hello, Spike,” she said without looking up. “It’s weird that I can’t see your reflection in the window, but I could still tell you were there,” she said as he slid into the seat beside her.

“Yeah, I guess so… Never really bothered to think about it, though,” he replied softly, feeling a bit awkward. He still couldn’t figure out why she was being so nice to him today. “So… Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’ve been feeling pretty good since I told them. I know it was a little fast, but I needed to do it.” Buffy said, finally looking up at him, and Spike nodded in understanding. “Thank you,” she said.

Spike looked confused. “For what?” he asked. From what he could think of, he really didn’t do anything worth mentioning.

“Just…” Buffy paused, trying to think of how to put it into words. “Just for being there and not pushing me to be perfect,” she said, giving him another small smile.

Spike smiled back. “It was nothing,” he replied. He decided to change the subject. “Are you sure you don’t want to take the room with your sister?”

“I’m positive,” she said firmly, making it clear that she wasn’t going to change her mind.

Spike pinched his arm, trying to figure out if he was dreaming. “Stop it! Do you want me to room with Dawn?” Buffy asked worriedly.

Realizing that she had gotten the wrong idea, he hurriedly said, “No, of course not! I just can’t manage to figure out why you don’t want to.”

“So, what? I’m not allowed to want to spend time with you?” she asked, starting to get mad.

“I’m just not used to it, that’s all.” There really was no getting through to her. “Usually, you’re trying to beat me up, not talk to me.”

Buffy pouted, making it even harder for him. Then, she said something he never would have expected. “I’m sorry,” she said so quietly that he wouldn’t have even heard it if he didn’t have vampire hearing. She looked like she was about to start crying because of everything that had happened lately.

“Oh, Buffy, please don’t,” he said. He couldn’t stand the expression on her face. He tilted her head up, looking into her eyes. “You don’t ever have to be sorry for anything. I love you no matter what.” Knowing it was the truth, she buried her head into his chest and started crying. Everything felt so different, but she realized that he was the one thing that had stayed the same while she was gone.

Suddenly, they heard a voice over an intercom. “Thank you for flying. We have arrived in London.”

Buffy stood up, still holding on to Spike. She gave him a slight smile, noticing that she had cried all her tears out. They walked out together and headed towards the apartments, leaving the others to stare after them, still wondering what was going on.

When they got to the apartments, Giles showed each of them their rooms, saying, “I’m sure you’ll want some sleep before we go chasing after this girl.”

Spike and Buffy’s room was the last one. Giles simply patted her on the back and gave her a smile that he hoped was comforting. To Spike, he gave a warning glare. If he dared hurt Buffy… Spike nodded in understanding. Since they were behind her, Buffy didn’t see anything happening, though.

After Giles had walked away, Buffy looked up at Spike, her expression unreadable. She tugged on his hand until he followed her inside, saying, “I’m tired.”

The moment that they were inside, Spike stopped, an almost angry look on his face for some reason.

“What’s wrong?” Buffy asked worriedly.

“Forgot there would only be one bed,” he said, gesturing towards said bed. “That’s okay, I’ll just sleep on the floor.” Spike started pulling a blanket off so that he could lay on it on the floor, but Buffy’s hand on his arm stopped him.

“No,” she said quietly. “Could you just… Hold me?” she asked, sounding a bit like the small girl in a big world that she really was.

Spike couldn’t ever remember hearing her sound so vulnerable. He just nodded and sat down on the bed next to her. He held her while she put her head on his chest. Spike wanted to protect her from everything that was making her hurt. He knew he couldn’t, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t try as hard as he possible could.

Soon, Buffy was fast asleep. Spike kissed the top of her head, and had soon fallen asleep himself.

*****

When Buffy woke up, she looked around nervously. For a moment, she couldn’t remember where she was. Then she remembered and saw Spike, and she calmed down some. She laid back down and went to sleep again, surprisingly not having nightmares of when she had first come back to life.

Meanwhile, Spike had woken up the second he felt her move, but had pretended to still be sleeping. He smiled when she saw him and calmed down. He thought that this was as close as he would ever get to heaven, and it was perfect.

*****

Buffy was once again startled the next time she woke up. This time, Spike wasn’t even there. Her glance darted left and right before spotting him. He was in the small kitchen that had also been in the room.

“Made you some breakfast,” he explained, figuring that she had to be hungry by now.

Buffy smiled in appreciation, taking the tray from him. It was eggs, toast, and orange juice. She had to say she was surprised that the mini fridge had come stocked with that stuff, but she wasn’t surprised in a bad way.

She pouted again, motioning for him to sit back down. He did, and she cuddled up to him. Buffy sighed contentedly and said, “This is nice,”

It was the exact same thing Spike was thinking. Still, he had to wonder. “Why?” he asked suddenly. Oops, he had said it out loud.

Buffy looked up at him, slightly confused. Didn’t he like this? “I don’t know… Is it not for you?” she asked, exposing her fears yet again. She started to stand up, suddenly feeling very defensive again, but Spike gently grabbed her arm.

“Stop it! You know I love you! How many times do I have to say it before you’ll believe it?” Gentler, he said, “Because even if it’s a million times, I’ll say it until you do believe it.”

Buffy sat back down. “I’m just so confused,” she said, looking down at her hand, which was entwined with Spike’s. “Everything’s so different… My friends, my sister… And my feelings,” she finished softly.

Spike’s face went from one of slight confusion to one of amazement. If she meant what he thought she did…

Buffy continued. “I’m not saying that I’m ready for anything big, but I want to give it a try, if you still want to.”

“Oh, God, Buffy! I love you so much!” Spike repeated as Buffy hugged him, looking as though she were clinging to him for dear life.

After a few minutes like that, she sat up and turned, leaning back against him and smiling, realizing that she had finally made the right choice. She ate the breakfast that had, up until now, remained untouched, while Spike drank some blood. For once, it didn’t seem all that disgusting to her.

A while later, they remembered why they were in London in the first place. “We should probably go down there and meet the others,” she said reluctantly. Spike bobbed his head in agreement, and they stood up and went downstairs together.

*****

The rest of the Scooby Gang looked up as they walked into the room, once again holding hands. Finally, somebody decided to speak up about it, since they were all so curious, and, except for Dawn, a little creeped out.

“Okay, Buffy, what’s going on?” Willow asked. “I know you’re mad, but if you’re trying to get back at us like this…” She trailed off, motioning to Buffy and Spike’s entwined hands.

“I’m not trying to get back at you,” Buffy replied, sharing a secretive smile and wink with Dawn. She knew the other girl could see right through her, and surprisingly, she wasn’t embarrassed. By now, Dawn was beaming up at them, bouncing in her chair and wanting to tell everyone else what was going on. However, she knew that they would want to tell the Scoobies at just the right time, and that wasn’t right now.

Buffy also knew that Tara could tell what was happening. At first, she had worried that she might tell Willow, but now she knew that wouldn’t happen until Buffy wanted it to. Tara was, of course, very close to her girlfriend, but she wouldn’t let anyone down by telling a secret.

Buffy didn’t bother to finish answering Willow’s question. Instead, she turned to Giles and said, “So… Tell us about this new Slayer and how we’re going to find her.”

Giles turned towards Buffy, surprised by how happy she seemed. Watching as Spike and Buffy sat down and deciding to not comment on it, he started answering her question with an answer he had been thinking out all through the last night.

“First of all, I don’t know very much about her, but for all we know, she could be very dangerous. Possibly even more dangerous than Faith.” Pausing and waiting for the expected gasps, Giles was surprised when none of the Scoobies looked surprised. In fact, Anya was sitting, bored, and filing her nails. She barely paid any attention to the ex- Watcher, having already decided that the conversation wasn’t worth it.

Returning his own attention to what he had been saying, Giles continued. “However, I have figured out how we can find her. It’s quite simple, really. We just need to do a locating spell.” As he said that, Anya jerked her head up, interested again.

Buffy frowned, despising the idea of using more magic. Noticing her expression and the way she tensed up, Spike’s eyes turned back to her, and he rested his hand on her shoulder. “Don’t worry, love. We’ll find another way,” he told her, trying to soothe her so that she wouldn’t have another mental breakdown.

Turning to Giles, Spike said firmly, “We aren’t using magic. I won’t let you scare her like that again.” He gritted his teeth, bracing himself for another argument, and possibly pain lancing through his skull if he hit one of them, but other than that, he looked completely relaxed. Inside, he felt like he was going to explode. ‘I’m a master vampire, and just one look from my girl can make me give up killing,’ Spike laughed at the thought, knowing that it was true. Realizing that she really was his girl now, he grinned.

Noticing the odd looks he was getting from the others, Spike returned to his usual scowl. He knew Buffy had seen his smile, though, and was probably wondering what it was about. He shrugged at her, knowing she would start asking questions later.

Giles turned to Spike, finally acknowledging his presence. The corners of his lips curled down a bit, but some tiny part of his brain knew Spike was right. “What do you suggest we do then?” he asked.

Spike shrugged, settling back more comfortably on the couch. “I would say I could find her,” he replied as he pointed to his nose. “But I don’t know her blood scent. For now, I think we should just ask around, maybe beat some demons up for information,” he finished with a glint in his eyes. Even though she would never admit it, Spike saw the love of the hunt reflected in Buffy’s eyes.

Buffy leaned forward, nodding. “That sounds good,” she said eagerly. “No magic required there.” Out of the corner of her eye, Buffy saw Willow shrink back a little bit.

Finally, Dawn said something. “I guess that means I can’t go with you guys,” she said glumly, her own eyes shifting to the floor near her feet.

She stood up and started to walk, but was silenced by Buffy’s voice. “No, you can come. But you have to wait outside with the others if we go to any demon bars or anything like that.”

Dawn turned around, a huge smile taking over her face. She clapped and plopped back onto the couch. Giving Buffy another secret look as she glanced between her and Spike, she quickly turned away when Spike looked towards her.

***

The Scoobies had spent the day researching, making calls to the Council and other things like that, but it hadn’t been any help. Nobody seemed to know anything about this new Slayer. They walked through the park with stakes and crossbows carefully hidden. It was now the middle of the night, but you never know when a random person was just standing around outside. In Sunnydale, everyone instinctively knew not to go out after dark, but this wasn’t Sunnydale.

After passing the park, Buffy led the others around a corner and into a nearby alley. Shrouded in shadows was a dark door. Motioning for her friends to stop and wait outside, she let go of Spike’s hand and walked inside with him right behind her. As soon as they entered, several of the demons inside tried to shrink back into corners and make themselves less noticeable. Even in England, the demons knew about the Slayer. She ignored them and went straight to one who was sitting at the counter and didn’t seem at all afraid of her.

When Buffy got closer to the green demon, who was wearing a biker’s vest, she saw him flinch, but he quickly covered it up. She grimaced as the vest gave her a flashback to right after she had come back to life, but she ignored it, reminding herself that it was over and she had Spike to protect her, and all of her friends were ready to back her up at a moment’s notice.

Buffy put one hand on her hip, trying to look casually dangerous, if that were even possible. In her own mind it was, and she knew that the demon sitting only a foot away from her would understand it, too. “So, you heard about a new Slayer in town?” she asked.

Spike leaned towards her and whispered, “That’s a Pakil demon, love. Nasty temper, very aggressive. You don’t want to get on his bad side.”

Addressing her question, the Pakil stubbornly shook his head. It was clear that he knew something, though, and just wasn’t talking. Buffy ignored Spike’s warning and grabbed his collar, pulling him up so he was only half as far away as he had been a moment ago. “Tell me what you know, now,” she said in a commanding tone, and emphasizing the word ‘now’ by jerking him again.

What Buffy wasn’t prepared for what the Pakil’s punch. It flew straight toward her nose, and when she reached up, she realized that it wasn’t broken, but it was definitely bloody.

“Can’t say I didn’t warn you.” Spike shrugged, jumping into the fight. He punched the demon and dodged his swing. Spike kicked him in the stomach, but it barely phased the Pakil. He took a kick to his upper chest. It was so strong that he flew into the wall behind him. Spike slid to the floor and was knocked unconscious.

Buffy quickly moved back towards the Pakil, suddenly very angry after seeing him kick Spike. She made several rapid punches to his face and kicked downwards so powerfully that it would have gone through most demons’ chests, but all it did to this one was knock him backwards. She leaned over him, her foot still on his chest. “Where is she?” Buffy asked, getting back to the reason they had come here in the first place.

With a disgusting smile, the Pakil shrugged. “How should I know?” he countered. As Buffy sighed in exasperation, he took her momentary distraction to kick upwards. This accomplished to things. It got him back up on his feet, but it also kicked the Slayer into the wall beside Spike. Unlike Spike, though, she wasn’t knocked out.

As the Pakil loomed over her, Buffy started to get scared for the first time in this battle. ‘What if he kills me?’ she thought. Realizing that she didn’t want to die anymore, she became terrified when he gave her that sickening grin again, and it was clear to her that this wasn’t a fight where she was going to get any mercy.