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The vampire crouched where Buffy had left him, his eyes fixed on her. If he could see her, he was sure that everything would be OK.

The women grouped around him began to chant and suddenly all the hairs on his body were standing on end. He heard a crackling, hissing sound and when he tore his eyes from Buffy’s and looked down at his hands, he saw that they were covered in tiny sparking blue flames. He snarled in surprise and, taking a deep breath to howl, found he could make no sound. He began to pant, trying to calm himself as everything faded away. Then he had the sensation of falling and he closed his eyes waiting for the impact of his landing.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Buffy shifted uneasily under the vampire’s steady gaze. He trusted her completely and she had no idea what was about to happen to him. Hilda smiled at them encouragingly and linked hands with the other three witches, before taking a deep breath and beginning to chant.

When the tiny blue flames smothered him, Buffy started forward only to be stopped by Giles.

“Buffy, you can’t break the circle now – it may interfere with the spell.”

She bit her lip as she saw Spike’s growing terror and when he slumped to the floor she cried out,

“What’s happening? You’re hurting him!”

Giles wrapped his arms around his slayer and hugged her to him.

“Keep calm; they know what they are doing.” Well, he hoped they knew what they were doing.


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Spike slowly opened his eyes when the falling sensation stopped. He was standing in a darkened room, its opulence a startling contrast to the underground office that he had just left. Plush red velvet curtains hung at the windows and the furniture was over ornate. He heard a noise behind him.

“Ah, sweet William, do you want to share my delicious dinner?”

He swung round. A beautiful dark-haired dark-eyed woman stood before him in a magnificent tight waisted long dress, blood trickling down her chin. She was negligently holding out to him the slumped figure of an unconscious man. Lowering her head and looking at him through her eyelashes, she grinned and then giggled.

“Oooh are you still cross with me? I know you saw him first, but princess was so very hungry.” She pouted.

“Who the hell?”

She swayed and then, throwing the man aside, approached him seductively.

“What game are we playing now my Spike?”

Suddenly he knew who this was.

“Drusilla.”

She was his sire. She meant pain and suffering and torment – he knew he should want to be with her – but he felt nothing, other than a faint regret. He shook his head in confusion and started to back away from her. He turned and found himself in another room, which looked a lot like a cell with moisture running down rough stone walls. He couldn’t move, his arms were suspended above his head and a tall, dark, thickset vampire brandishing a whip was grinning at him evilly.

“So, Willy me boy. I’m going to have to chastise you again. You are such a slow learner.”

Spike looked down at his chest and saw that it was covered in weals and his head felt as though it was on fire.

“Angelus”

The name came to him without effort, as hatred surged through his mind. He squeezed his eyes shut and immediately he was falling again.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Hilda completed the spell and there was a flash of blinding light. They
drew forward and looked expectantly at the prone body of the vampire. When he stayed motionless, they all started to talk at once.

“Hasn’t it worked?”

“Nothing’s happened!”

“Is he OK?”

“Is he dead? Well, I know he’s already dead, but is he deader than he ought to be?” At a glare from Buffy, Willow made a zipping motion across her lips. “And shutting up now.”

When Spike suddenly started thrashing and moaning, it took them by surprise and they all took a step back.

“Oh my god, Spike. Spike!”

Buffy pushed through them, crouched down, pulled him into her arms and sat rocking him back and forward. Spike slowly opened his eyes and his face gradually transformed into human as he gazed up at her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Giles watched them, his suspicions realised. Not again, he groaned inwardly. Not another vampire – please! He took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. He would have to nip this in the bud – perhaps it hadn’t gone too far yet. Maybe it was just Buffy’s tender heart reacting to a wounded creature. Yes, that must be it he thought with relief. When the vampire is up and about and back to normal, she will come to her senses.

“They make a magnificent couple, don’t they?” Hilda’s voice interrupted his musings and he started in surprise.

“Not quite how I’d describe them.” He answered acerbically. “I was rather going for slayer taking pity on a harmless vampire, myself.”

Hilda interrupted again apparently not having heard him, “do you think she deserves him?”

Giles was speechless for a moment and then managed, “Surely you’ve got that the wrong way around, haven’t you?”

But she wasn’t listening to him; she was staring at the couple, an unreadable expression on her face. Then she seemed to shake herself.

“Come on, we’ve lots of clearing up to do before we leave.”



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



Buffy held the shaking vampire closely.

“I thought I’d lost you”

He looked up at her and she could see comprehension filling his eyes.

“Do you remember what happened?”

“I’m starting to.” He grimaced as he tried to sit up and then his expression changed.

“Bloody hell,” he whispered, “you bit me!”

Not hearing, she smiled at him, “how are you feeling? Any nasty after effects?”

“You bit me!” He said in a louder voice.

“Well, yeah, it was all I could think of to do at the time.” Her smile faltered, “What’s wrong?”

“Do you know what you’ve done?”

“Oh, come on – it’s all healed up now. You can’t even see a mark.”

“No, Buffy, I mean do you know the significance of what you’ve done?”

He sounded so serious. She looked at his anxious face and her heart lurched.

“What are you talking about? I did what I did to save your life and the lives of everyone here.” Suddenly Buffy felt defensive. “You would’ve attacked them otherwise and I couldn’t allow that.”

He closed his eyes and swallowed hard. “We went through a kind of mating ritual, but the meaning is much deeper than that. It means that we’re now joined.”

“Oooh, Mr and Mrs Vampire! I like the sound of that.” She grinned at him.

“Don’t make fun of what you don’t understand.” He felt rage and despair fill him and he struggled to his feet, pushing her away.

“You’re right – I don’t understand. Why don’t you explain it to me?” Buffy looked around suddenly aware that everyone was looking at them. “Come on, we need to talk about this.”

She grasped his arm and pulled him towards the door. She was furious with him, having so looked forward to getting the “real” Spike back so much and now all he could do was argue.

The vampire staggered and nearly fell, he was so weak from pain and loss of blood. Buffy’s arm snaked round his waist and she supported him until they reached the dormitory. Once there, he slumped down on one of the bunk beds and put his head in his hands.

“Come on; explain to me why what I did was so wrong.”

“Not wrong luv, just a hell of a lot more meaningful than you realise. I don’t know whether I can explain it properly, it’s all to do with vampire lore and such like.”

He took a deep breath, this was going to be the most difficult and important thing that he would ever talk to her about.

“You know that vampires don’t have friends – you are either a leader or a follower – master or minion. When a vampire is made, if he is lucky, his sire takes an interest in him and teaches him how to survive. Most of the vampires you deal with are those that are sired and left to take care of themselves.

Very rarely two vamps – usually a male and a female, but not always – decide that they want to take the relationship further. They then go through a ritual and are joined -forever.”

He looked up at her despairingly, she was so beautiful and desirable but she had no notion of what she had done.

“Do you understand Buffy? Forever. That means till the end of their existence. There is no get out clause, no separation, no divorce. I am now bound to you and you to me, until one of us dies.”



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TBC





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