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Author's Chapter Notes:
Only one more chapter to go - get your tissues at the ready......
Chapter 12


While Giles watched over the sleeping children, Buffy and Spike went back down into the cellar, taking candles and the torch.

They both heaved and tugged on the small door, and at last its thick leather hinges gave way.

“I feel guilty wrecking that, it must be original!” Spike said as Buffy went to crawl through the low doorway.

“Shine the torch, I can’t see a thing” Spike tried to angle the beam so it shone over her shoulder.

“What can you see?”

“Nothing really, its another room…stinks………pass me the torch a minute please”

Spike did as she requested and Buffy heard the rasp of his lighter as he lit a candle and followed her through the doorway. Standing up, they both held their light source up and looked around.

“What’s that on the wall?” Spike asked

“Ew, don’t want to know, probably some icky fungus or-“

“No, look – they’re symbols…crosses” Spike said. Buffy went to have a closer look, when Spike said,

“Oh my gods look at this! It’s an altar – Buffy…look”

Spike held up his candle, to reveal a raised platform, and behind the altar was a drawing on the wall – one they’d both seen a myriad of times in Giles’ demonology books – the picture of the devil, complete with spiral goats horns…

“Those symbols, they ARE crosses, but they’re all upside down – you know what this means, don’t you?” Spike asked

“Seems it’s a place used by a devil worshipping cult…I…I feel…I feel incredibly sad - oh god Spike, what if – “ She felt a wave of incredible sadness over her and she teared up.

Buffy didn’t get to finish her sentence; they both experienced a strange ‘rushing’ wind sensation blow past them, causing the candle to snuff. Buffy looked down at her feet to see where she was going, and spied symbols on the floor too.

Taking a big sniff and wiping her eyes on the back of her hand Buffy then said,

“Look, Spike…we’re standing in one of those pentangle things” Shifting the dirt with her foot, it was clear to see the point of a star inside a circle. Spike re-lit his candle and said

“Come on, we’ve seen enough, lets get back upstairs to Giles and the children”



****************


“………Drawing of the devil with goat-horns, altar, upside down crosses, pentangle drawn on the floor, the whole kit and caboodle” Spike said, handing Giles a large brandy.

“Devil worship eh? – Well I never – oh cheers” Giles said

Buffy came downstairs carrying a blanket and pillow for Giles and said,

“There you go - I’m going to bed, I don’t want to leave the children up there on their own – night Giles, night love” she felt a little happier knowing that Giles would be just outside in his car all night.

“Night babe, I won’t be long”

Giles sat in the picnic chair thinking………

“You know, I’m not sure if a standard exorcising will do the trick, if it’s devil worship – the exorcising is more for clearing away a spirit – a poltergeist or what have you”

Spike leant against the fireplace on his elbow, sipping his brandy, and said,

“But there IS a spirit – trying to tell us, or rather tell Billy something – I’m sure it’s this Tilly girl he keeps drawing”

Giles nodded his head

“Yes well, I’ll do the exorcism, and we can see what happens from there”

“Giles, are you sure you’ll be alright sleeping in you car – I know you couldn’t sleep in this little picnic chair…oh I can’t wait to get the furniture out of storage and be all straight”

“I’ll be fine, honestly – once I recline the driver’s seat I’ll be away, ‘specially with the wine and the brandy I’ve drank!”

Finishing their nightcaps, Giles took his blanket and pillow and went out to his car, while Spike checked the back door was locked and then he went up to bed.

**********

The night passed relatively uneventful, Buffy hardly slept, she kept jolting awake at every sound, she thought she could hear crying at one stage, but put it down to a fox. So when dawn broke all misty with the promise of a hot day, she felt exhausted.

Spike got up at 8.30, made tea and toast, poured cereal into bowls ready for the children and then went outside to wake Giles.

“Wakey-wakey…how did you sleep?”

Giles stretched as he got out of the car and said,

“Like a log! Really comfy – hey, it’s a good job I got rid of that old Citroen I had!”

Smiling they both walked into the cottage

“Got rid? It fell to bits didn’t it!”

“Well…yes, the door fell off!”

Buffy came downstairs with Izzie and Billy. Spike frowned and looked concernedly at her.

“Are you alright babe – you look shattered, didn’t you sleep?”

Yawning, she urged the children to get on with their breakfast and she flopped into one of the chairs.

“There was a time I could be up 36 hours straight and still go to school or work – now – huh!” she stifled yet another yawn

“Did anything, you know…” Spike mouthed the word ‘happen’ in the night? Buffy shook her head

“No – thought I heard crying – but it could have been a fox”

Spike put a mug of tea in front of her and said,

“Well look, how about I go out when Giles does, and I’ll take the kids, I can do a food shop, and you can get your head down for an hour or two, what do you say?”

“Sounds very tempting – although I really should be putting on the second coat in the study-bedroom”

“Oh, don’t worry about that pet – take us half and hour tops between us – you have a rest”

Buffy smiled and reached for Spike’s hand.


****************

Spike came home and let the children help him put the shopping away, then he made tea.

“Now, I’m just taking this up to mommy, so be good and play nicely in the garden – and DON’T go near the well, okay Billy – be a big boy and look after Izzie, hmm?”

“Yes dad…is mommy okay?”

“Sure, just tired that’s all”

Billy looked up to the bedroom window and nodded, but he didn’t smile

When Spike went upstairs to take Buffy a cuppa, he could hear her whimpering

“Buffy, baby, hey – hey sweetheart…shh…what’s the matter, hmm – come on pet, it’s alright…I’ve got you” Spike put the tea down and sat by her side

Tears streamed down her face, and although she was asleep, she was very agitated and restless, sobbing and whimpering

“N-no…please………not my baby………please, you can’t…I………oh no, no…please…”

“Babe, hey babe…wake up, come on love, come on it’s only a dream, it’s only a-“
Buffy woke with a start, and a huge intake of breath, wide-eyed and seemingly terrified, until she saw it was Spike who was holding her.

She went limp in his arms and started to cry.

Spike held her tight, kissing the top of her head and soothing her

“Shush now baby, it’s okay, it was just a dream baby………just a bad dream…here you go, drink some of this”

Buffy took the tea and drank, when she calmed enough she said

“It was terrible…they took the baby – I tried to stop them but they got her”

“Who love, who got the baby?”

“I-I d-don’t know…they were in black robes with hoods up like monks wear…I knew I’d never see the baby again”

Spike smoothed back her hair and wiped her eyes with a tissue, and then he cuddled her up.

“Well love, it was a nasty dream, and as soon as Giles comes back we’ll get the exorcizing done see what happens” Buffy nodded and finished her tea.

Through the open window they could hear the children laughing, and then the voice of Hepsibar.

“You okay now kitten, hmm?” Spike kissed her forehead and Buffy nodded and said,

“I’ll just wash my face and be down”

So Spike went downstairs.


************************


When Giles arrived back later that afternoon, he wasn’t alone.

“Buffy, Spike – this is Father Dominic – he’s from the Abbey of Benedictine Friar’s in West Launceston – I met him in the library in Exeter – he said he’d help us with the um…you know what” Giles said, spying Billy coming in the kitchen.

Spike and Buffy smiled and nodded at the small monk dressed in a brown robe. He had white hair, cut short and a quiet, pleasant friendly manner.

“Hello – I understand you’ve been experiencing some problems”

“Yes – thankyou for offering to help”

Billy came in and stood before the monk, who smiled and said

“Hello, you’re a fine young man, and who are you then?”

Billy never forgetting his manners held out his hand and said,

“I’m Billy – are you going to help Tilly not be sad anymore?” The monk smiled and squatted down in front of the child, shaking his hand

“Well Billy, I hope so, is that her name, Tilly?”

“Yes…she told me she won’t be frightened – it won’t hurt her will it, this exorcising?” The monk raised his brows in surprise and then smiled

“No Billy – hopefully she’ll be able to move on to a peaceful resting place”

“Good, now I must go and look after Izzie, goodbye” The monk chuckled and put his hand on the child’s head, giving him a silent blessing – and he got a wondrous sensation

“Oh my – what an extraordinary child – you’ve been truly blessed there!”

Both Buffy and Spike smiled and nodded

“Yes we have, now I’m forgetting my manners, can we offer you some refreshment – you’ll stay for dinner of course?” Buffy said, making her way to the kitchen.

He thanked them and said he’d be delighted to.

Holding his arm out towards the sitting room, Spike said,

“Come on through, sorry it’s a just make-shift at the moment furniture wise, our proper stuff is in storage until we have finished the decorating” offering the monk a deckchair to sit on.

“That’s quite alright – I’m used to wooden benches – settles we call them, not the most comfortable of seats! Mr Giles was telling me you moved here from America”





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