“Spike!” Buffy was at his side within mere seconds, dropping to her knees next to him and running her hands over his body to check for any sign of damage. “Sweetie, say something! Are you all right? Did she hurt you?!”
Spike caught one of her hands and pressed a soft kiss to her palm. “I’m fine, luv.” He paused, brushing the dust off of his coat. “Drusilla on the other hand…”
Buffy let out a shaky breath. “She’s gone. You killed her. It’s over.”
He couldn’t help but smirk. “I prefer to use the word ‘slay’. Someone once told me it’s more appropriate.”
Rolling her eyes, Buffy offered him her hand and helped him get to his feet. “I think it’s safe to say that when it comes to Drusilla, there’s no need for appropriate. I’m just glad the evil bitch finally got what she deserved.” Before he could say anything, Buffy quickly took both of his hands in hers. “Spike, about before… I’m so sorry. I wasn’t thinking straight. When I thought I’d lost you…”
Spike let out a sigh. “I know. Look, I realize we have a lot to talk about, but how ‘bout we do that later? I really need to be at the hospital right now.”
Buffy’s eyes widened. “Oh my God, you’re hurt after all! Why didn’t you tell me?!”
He gave her a soft smile and ran his fingers down her cheek in a calming gesture. “No, pet, I’m fine. But I just left without a word, a couple of hours after getting a bloody sword shoved right through my body. The doctors probably never heard of Slayer healing, they might want some sort of explanation.”
She relaxed a little. “Oh. Okay.” Then she seemed to remember something. “Does this mean you forgive me? You’re not mad at me anymore?”
Spike was quiet for a moment. “Was more hurt than angry, I suppose. But I’ve done some thinking, and…” He shrugged. “Guess I can understand you a bit better now. Don’t worry, luv. We’ll be okay.” The happy smile that immediately appeared on her face seemed to light up the entire night sky, and he couldn’t help but smile back. A couple of hours ago, things had seemed so dark. And now, everything had changed. Drusilla was gone. And he and Buffy had gotten a second chance.
They started walking; hand in hand, finally leaving the cemetery. Suddenly Buffy stopped dead in her tracks, grabbing his arm. “Spike, wait!” He gave her a questioning look and she went on; “I just don’t get it. Not that I’m complaining, but why did you come here? I mean, you were at the hospital and then you suddenly showed up at the cemetery, just in time to save my life. It’s almost like you…” She hesitated. “How did you know Drusilla would be here?”
He wasn’t sure how to respond to that. Shrugging helplessly, he gave her an innocent look. “I, um…”
Buffy interrupted him, understanding dawning on her. “Did you have a Slayer dream or something? Is that how you knew?”
Spike wondered how she would react if he told her. Would she even believe him? Only one way of finding out, he thought. “I guess you could say that.” He paused. “But it’s not exactly true, though. About them being dreams, I mean. In fact, they’re not really dreams at all.”
She looked at him in confusion. “What do you mean?”
Smiling a little, Spike went on explaining. “They’re not dreams as much as they’re messages. You know, from The Powers That Be. We just happen to receive them while we’re sleeping.”
Buffy frowned. “How did you know that? I thought you never read the Slayer handbook?”
“I haven’t. Look, it’s been a long night, luv. I guess you could say a lot of things happened after you left the hospital.” He smirked.
Crossing her arms over her chest, Buffy gave him an expectant look. “Like what?”
“Well…” He hesitated for a moment, not sure of how to begin. “Let’s just say I got a visit from a gho…” Spike stopped himself, abruptly, staring at the ground in front of him. The letters seemed to appear from nowhere, quickly being written down in the dirt by invisible fingers. His eyes widened at first, then he couldn’t help but chuckle as he read the words; ‘NOT A BLOODY GHOST’. He smiled as realization hit him; suddenly some of Drusilla’s ramblings before didn’t seem totally crazy after all. Maybe she hadn’t just been talking to the air, like he had thought. Raising his hands in an apologetic gesture, he mouthed a ‘sorry’.
Buffy stared at the words as well, mouth open. Then she turned to Spike with wide eyes. “Did you see that?!”
He nodded. “Yeah. Come on, pet, let’s get out of here. I’m gonna tell you a little story…”
* * *
~epilogue - two days later~
“So, let me see if I got this straight…” Xander waited until he had everybody’s attention before turning back to Spike. “You’re telling me William came back from the dead, and told you that Buffy and Drusilla would be at the cemetery?”
Spike rolled his eyes. They had all been at the Magic Box for hours, and he was starting to get tired of telling the whole story over and over again. But obviously, Xander couldn’t get enough of hearing about it. “That’s right.”
“Wow…” Xander leaned back on the chair, then glanced at Buffy. “And Drusilla really had you in a thrall? Good thing Spike showed up when he did. Otherwise you’d be…” He stopped himself, looking down at his hands. “Sorry. Guess you don’t wanna think about that.”
Buffy shrugged. “Well, it’s true. As much as I hate to admit it, she got me there. I underestimated her; I guess I thought I would be strong enough to resist her. I was stupid.”
Spike cleared his throat. “Yeah, well, I hate to bring it up, but I can’t take the credit for that. I didn’t save Buffy, William did. He was the one who distracted Dru until I got there.”
Giving him a sweet smile, Buffy leaned over to place a kiss on his cheek. “You’re still my hero, baby. You were the one who killed Drusilla in the end.” She shook her head. “I still can’t believe she’s actually gone.” She snuggled closer to Spike, sighing happily when he put his arms around her.
Xander nodded, eagerly. “Just think about it. After dealing with Drusilla, taking out regular vampires should be a piece of cake. From now on, living on the Hellmouth will be like having a vacation!” He got a goofy grin on his face.
Wesley spoke up. “I wouldn’t count on that. Drusilla may be gone, but there are a lot of other vampires out there who are just waiting to take her place. And not just vampires; demons and other beings as well. In fact, there could already be a new, much more dangerous enemy out there, right now, making evil plans as we speak. This could be the end of the world as we know it!”
The room was silent for a moment. Then Willow smiled. “Oh, come on, Wesley; stop being such a party pooper! This is a happy day, don’t ruin it.”
“Yeah, don’t go all ‘watcher’ on us.” Xander nodded in agreement. “We’ll deal with the evil forces again tomorrow. Just let us enjoy the quiet for a while, in the way of not having to do a thing.”
Wesley looked around the room, letting out a defeated sigh. “Of course. I apologize.”
But Anya got a worried expression on her face. “If the world is ending, I wanna have sex one more time before I die.” She turned to her boyfriend. “Xander, don’t just sit there; take me home immediately so you can give me one last orgasm!”
Xander let out a nervous laugh. “Anya, sweetie, the world is not ending. And remember what I told you about private conversations? Not to be had in front of other people!”
“Oh.” Anya looked relieved. Then her face lit up. “Does that mean I won’t have to settle for just one orgasm? I mean, if the world is not ending, there should be plenty of time for multiple…?”
“And with that very inappropriate announcement, we’re leaving!” Xander grabbed Anya’s arm and pulled her up from the chair. “Bye, guys! See you tomorrow.” He hurried towards the door, Anya following.
Giles and Wesley looked most uncomfortable, the others amused. Willow smiled at Tara. “You wanna leave, too, sweetie?”
Tara nodded. “Sure.” She turned to Buffy and Spike. “I’m glad you’re both okay. And I’m so happy you’re back together.” She paused, lowering her voice. “I wish you could see your auras, they’re a perfect match. It’s beautiful.” She smiled and followed her girlfriend out of the room.
“I guess I should go, too. Giles, could you give me a ride home?” Dawn gave the Watcher a hopeful look.
“Um, yes, of course. Let me just…” Giles hesitated. “I would just like to have a word with Spike first. Would you mind waiting for me out in the store? It won’t take long.” Dawn nodded, and left.
Sensing that Giles wanted to speak to Spike in private, Buffy walked over to Wesley. “Can I talk to you for a moment?” When he nodded, she gestured for him to follow her outside. Not sure of how to begin, Buffy was quiet for a moment. Then she took a deep breath. “Look, Wesley, I wanna thank you for what you did the other day. Not just for Spike, but for me as well. I really appreciate it. And I know he does, too.”
Wesley looked a little taken aback, obviously not used to people thanking him. He quickly tried to cover up. “Oh, um, you’re most welcome." Then he lowered his eyes to the floor. "I’m just happy I could finally do something right around here for a change.”
Buffy smiled. “Don’t be so hard on yourself, Wes. You’re a good Watcher. You just have to learn to relax a little sometimes.”
The young Watcher nodded, looking slightly embarrassed. “Ah, yes. I’ll do my best to work on that.”
After Buffy and Wesley had left, the only two remaining people in the research room were Spike and Giles. The former turned to the Watcher, an expectant look on his face. “Well? I know you wanna ask me something, so just go ahead.”
Giles nodded. “Right. Well, the thing is…” He hesitated, suddenly looking nervous.
Spike waited a moment before taking pity on the older man. “I suppose this has something to do with William. What do you wanna know?”
Sighing, Giles closed his eyes, briefly. “You are correct. I was wondering if he said anything about me.”
Thinking about it for a moment, Spike shrugged. “Just said you’ve always been good with a crossbow.”
Nodding again, Giles removed his glasses, wiped them on the edge of his shirt and then put them back on. “I see. He didn’t mention anything about…”
Spike shook his head. “He’s not blaming you for what happened, if that’s what you think. Just stop beating yourself up about it.”
Giles looked relieved. Then he noticed Buffy by the door and cleared his throat. “It’s getting late. I’m going back to the house. You two stay as long as you like, but don’t forget to lock up when you leave, or Anya might feel compelled to take some vengeance on you.”
Spike chuckled. “Right. Will do.”
Giles patted his shoulder and walked over to Buffy. He smiled at her. “Goodnight, dear.” Then he added; “I told you things would work out in the end. I’m very happy for you.” She gave him a bright smile and a hug.
After Giles had closed the door behind him, Buffy stepped right into Spike’s waiting arms. “Finally alone!” She pulled back a little, so she could look him in the eyes. “I love you so much. You know that, right?”
Instead of answering, Spike cupped her cheek and leaned in to kiss her softly on the lips. The kiss started innocently enough, but soon became more intense. Finally, they had to pull back, both smiling as they were gasping for air. Spike tightened his grip around her. “I know, luv. I love you, too.” He paused, raising a brow. “So, wanna head back to my place?”
Buffy nodded, eagerly. “A world of yes!” A pause. “I think I’ve figured it out now, by the way.”
He smiled, but looked a little confused. “Figured what out, luv?”
She rested her head against his chest, smiling when he started stroking her hair. “What William said when you asked him how dying for me could be weak. He said you’d figure it out eventually, right?” Spike nodded. “Well, I think I know what he meant.”
Spike pulled back with a frown. “Yeah? Care to enlighten me?”
“Think about it.” Buffy suddenly became serious. “Dying for someone might sound like the ultimate sacrifice. But for someone to actually stick around and fight, risking his life for the people he cares about every night, and still return to the girl he loves in the morning…” She swallowed. “No matter what happens, promise me you’re not going anywhere. I need you here, with me. I don’t need you to die for me.”
“I don’t wanna die for you.” He looked her deep in the eyes, feeling like he was drowning. And he knew she felt the same way. “I wanna live for you.”
Tears started welling up in her eyes, spilling down on her cheeks, but they were all happy tears. Buffy smiled, shakily. “William’s happy for us, isn’t he? I can’t explain it, I just feel it.”
Spike nodded. “I know what you mean, pet. I feel it too.”
As their lips met again, both of them made a silent promise to never let go.
THE END
[Reviews - 602]
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Chapter or Story |
Chapter or Story | 
Chapter or Story
Has been viewed 2935 times
- Text Size +
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Chapter or Story |
Chapter or Story | Chapter or Story - Text Size +
Author's Chapter Notes:
So, this is it. I hope you'll enjoy this final chapter. It's almost twice as long as the previous chapters, but that's because I decided to add the epilogue instead of splitting them up in two separate chapters. Thank you so much to all of you who have been reading and rewiewing this story, and a huge thanks to Tammy for betaing!