Giles removed his glasses, looking at Buffy like she had gone crazy. “Buffy, I really don’t think this is such a good idea…”
Buffy glared at him, her irritation obvious. “Spike has the right to know what happened. After all, he’s the Slayer now, he needs to understand…”
“I agree. But…” Giles pinched the bridge of his nose before putting his glasses back on. “Really, Buffy, this meeting is not necessary. I’ll be happy to fill Spike in on everything he needs to know. You don’t have to…”
“Oh, please!” Buffy rolled her eyes. “When are you gonna stop treating me like I’m on the edge of having a nervous breakdown? It’s been three years, Giles. I’m okay talking about it.”
“Buffy…” Willow gave her friend a small smile. “We’re your friends, we just…”
“God!” Buffy threw her hands up in frustration. “Willow, stop. I’m sick of you all walking around me like I’m made of glass. I know I didn’t exactly handle things very well before, but that was a long time ago, and I’ve moved on. I promise, I’m not gonna stop talking again, if that’s what you’re afraid of.” She paused. “You guys don’t even mention his name anymore.”
“That’s not true!” Xander shook his head in denial. “We just don’t wanna…”
“Upset me. Fine, I get that.” Buffy looked around the room, a pleading look on her face. “Please, guys? I promised Spike that we would tell him everything, I can’t do it alone.”
“Um, excuse me?” Anya raised her hand.
Buffy nodded towards her. “Anya?”
“When you say ‘everything’…” Anya glanced at the others before turning back to Buffy. “…do you mean… everything?”
Sighing, Buffy nodded again. “Yes, Anya. I mean everything. You wanna start?”
“Sure, but…” Anya suddenly looked a little uncomfortable. “Buffy, are you sure…?”
“Yes.” Buffy gave her a patient look, before she went on. “Anya, why don’t you tell Spike a little about yourself?”
Anya hesitated for a moment, then rolled her eyes. “Fine, what the hell. Okay, Spike, I’m an ex vengeance demon. I’m 1,120 years old, and used to go by the name Anyanka.”
Spike stared at her, eyes widening. “Um, okay…”
Anya went on; “I used to specialize on scorned women, who wanted revenge on their ex boyfriends. In fact, that’s how Xander and I met. You see, he used to date a cheerleader named Cordelia, and it ended badly. So, she made a wish that Xander’s penis would turn into a vagina. Of course, I…” She stopped when she realized that everybody was staring at her. “What?”
Giles cleared his throat. “Um, I don’t believe we have actually heard that part of the… um, the story before.”
Xander suddenly noticed that everyone’s eyes were on him. “Hey! I don’t have a… Oh God, somebody kill me!” He slumped back on the chair, beyond embarrassed.
“Oh, no!” Anya hurried to assure them. “I didn’t do it; Xander’s parts are all male, trust me.”
“And for that, I will always be deeply grateful. Now, let’s move on. Please?” Xander let out a nervous laugh. “Willow, Tara! Tell Spike about the wicca thing!”
Spike, who still had a hard time taking in the vengeance demon thing, now, turned to the two girls with a frown. “Wicca? You two are…?”
Tara blushed. “We-we practice and study magic. Spells and stuff. We’re not really witches, we just…”
Spike raised an eyebrow. “Practice?” Tara nodded. “Right.” He then turned to Xander. “And you?”
Xander looked confused. “Me?”
“What are you?” Spike shrugged. “Demon? Warlock?”
“Carpenter.” Xander put on a goofy grin. “I build things. Oh, and my sister's a Key.”
“Uh huh. No super powers, then?” Xander shook his head, and Spike looked around the room. “You people do realize how crazy all of this sounds, right?” Buffy, Giles, Xander, Anya, Willow and Tara all looked at each other, before nodding. Spike let out a sigh of relief. “Thank God, otherwise I would’ve been worried.”
Buffy turned to Giles. “Tell him about the Cruciamentum.”
Giles inhaled, shakily. “Buffy, that is not relevant…”
She interrupted him. “I think it is, Giles.” Turning to Spike, Buffy took a deep breath before starting. “According to the Watcher’s Council, every Slayer needs to prove that he’s good enough to…”
“All right!” Giles gave her a firm look. “I will tell him.” He sighed. “Spike, you have to understand…” Then he hesitated. “This may sound both cruel and barbaric, but…” He swallowed. “Actually, that is exactly what it is. That is why I refused to go through with it. Unfortunately, it was too late.”
Spike looked at him in confusion. “What are you talking about?”
“The Cruciamentum. It’s a… I suppose you could call it a test, that all Slayers have to endure, one year after they have been called.” Giles looked away, but not before Spike could see the pain in his eyes.
He crossed the arms over his chest. “I have a feeling it’s not a written test.”
“No.” Giles sighed. “The Slayer gets stripped of all his powers, and then has to fight a vicious vampire.”
Spike was confused. “How the bloody hell does a Slayer get stripped of his powers?”
Giles looked down at his hands. “Well, you see…”
“By his Watcher.” Buffy gave Giles an accusing look, then lowered her eyes. “I’m sorry, go on.”
Giles opened his mouth to speak, but Spike beat him to it. “What?! Is that what happened? You…?”
“Listen to me!” Giles glared at him. “It’s complicated. You have to understand that I only did what has always been done. The Council…” He looked away again. “The Council have their rules, and when you work for them…” Then he looked up. “Anyway, I couldn’t go through with it, so I told William everything.”
Buffy nodded. “Yeah. After, you had stripped him of his powers. Right?” Giles closed his eyes, unable to go on, so Buffy took over; “Giles told his boss; Mr Travers, that the whole thing was off. But they couldn’t accept that. So…” She swallowed, looking at the others for help.
Willow spoke up, quietly. “Two of the Watchers - Blair and Hobson?” Xander and Tara nodded, and Willow went on; “…from the Council came to Sunnydale. They had us all followed for days, without us knowing about it. Then one night, William was alone in his apartment. And Buffy…”
“I was on my way home.” Buffy looked directly at Spike. “Then I heard something behind me. I thought it was a vampire, but it was one of the Watchers. When he realized that I’d noticed him, he tried to leave, but he wasn’t fast enough. I ran after him, and, um…”
“You totally kicked his ass!” Anya smiled, then became quiet, giving Buffy an apologetic look.
Buffy ignored her, and went on; “I got him to admit what was going on. They had brought a vampire with them to Sunnydale, drugged and locked up in a coffin. Then they had broken into William’s apartment when he was out, and left the coffin there. When he got home…”
“…he was greeted by a vampire.” Spike nodded in understanding. “And without his powers…”
“Without powers and a weapon, he never had a chance.” Buffy wiped away a tear, desperate to keep her emotions under control. “I ran as fast as I could, but…” She forced back a sob. The room was silent for a couple of minutes. Finally, Buffy let out a shaky breath, and wiped at her eyes. “Sorry, I…” She put on a brave smile. “I’m okay. Anyway, that’s what happened. So, now you know.”
Spike stared at her, suddenly not knowing what to say. “God, pet, I’m so sorry. That’s…” He stopped, realizing how lame it sounded. What could he possibly say in a situation like that? He had no idea.
“Thank you.” Buffy got up from the chair she was sitting in. “If you’ll excuse me, I’m just gonna go get some fresh air.” She headed for the door, and almost bumped into Dawn, who suddenly had appeared in the doorway.
“Um, I’m sorry to interrupt, but…” Dawn glanced over her shoulder. “We have a visitor. He says he’s here to see Spike.”
A dark-haired man in his early thirties, wearing glasses and what looked like a quite expensive suit, stepped past Dawn and looked around the room. “Which one of you is Spike Pratt?”
Spike got up, giving the newly arrived stranger a suspicious look. “Who wants to know?”
The man looked a little taken aback, then walked over to Spike. “So, it’s you, I assume. Pleased to meet you, Spike.” He reached out his hand in greeting, but let it fall when Spike did no attempt of taking it. “Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Wesley Wyndam-Price, and I am your new Watcher.”
TBC
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