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Author's Chapter Notes:
At last a new story from me :) Sorry about the long wait for anything new from me, but RL has had me wishing desperately for time to spend tapping away at my keyboard. Hopefully I'll be able to keep up regularly with this one. I have quite a few chapters written already, so fingers crossed you all like it and I'll keep a regular posting schedule.

Thank you to my wonderful and talented beta Mari who is always helpful and has the best ideas. She really helped make this chapter something I feel proud about posting! *snuggles*
Buffy walked through Shady Hill Cemetery, idly pondering over the last few weeks of her new college based existence while on the look out for any vampires hunting for their evening meal. She had recovered from her bout of self-consciousness after the disaster that was her ‘battle’ with Sunday and her waste-of-space minions and had finally started feeling like her old self again. Getting rid of Kathy, the annoying Celine Dion obsessed demon, was another high point in her recent weeks as well. Buffy had known she was a demon from the get go, but it had been another matter trying to convince Willow and Giles that it was more than a bratty only-child hissy fit at sharing her space with someone new.

Willow had moved in at the beginning of the week so no more psycho roommate for Buffy. Surely things would turn around for Buffy, the college girl now? She was enjoying her classes, especially her psychology course, and was finally finding a normal rhythm to settle into. Maybe she could even forget about the wonderful world of slaying for five minutes a day….

Buffy shook her head and smirked ironically to herself. As if. The sound of laughter up ahead combined with her screaming slayer senses alerted her to trouble. A group of four fledgling vamps carrying what looked like bottles of alcohol were happily making their way through the cemetery, unaware of her presence. They were probably heading to wherever they had decided to nest and following them may lead to a few more. At the very least she could get a location and get them tomorrow in daylight.

Happy to follow after her prey stealthily for now, Buffy let her thoughts slip back to her more mundane daily life. Like the cute older guy she’d met recently. What was his name? Peter? No, Parker. Maybe he’d be worth a shot. Willow was trying to nudge her in that direction, Buffy reasoned. A nice, normal college guy. What could be wrong with that?

She heard a small rustle and before she could even turn around, everything turned black.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Buffy didn’t know what had hit her. One minute she was busy tracking down a group of vamps, hoping they would lead her to their nest, while debating the merits of pursuing anything with Parker, the hottie she’d met last week, and the next she was waking up on a cold tile floor in a stark white room. Her head was pounding and her arms were tingling. She opened her eyes and looked around warily, but could only see sterile white walls, not quite the usual run-down demon digs she was used to.

Buffy moaned as she shifted her legs under her to stand up and take better account of her surroundings. Once on her feet, she turned out toward the corridor and was faced with a giant glass wall. Approaching it slowly she took note there were other rooms similar to the one she was in across the hallway. The one directly across from her contained a blue skinned demon she didn’t recognize, cowering in a corner, its head laying over up-drawn knees. In the cell next to it she saw a vamp, stalking the cell like a caged bear. He snarled at her when he caught her staring.

“What is this place?” Buffy muttered to herself. She placed the palm of her hand on the glass, but was immediately thrown back as volts of electricity shot through her. She crashed hard into the wall behind her, jarring her still rattled nerves even further.

“What the hell?” She shook her head, hoping to clear her vision, quickly learning to be weary of the glass partition.

Slayer senses on full alert, Buffy scrutinized her surroundings. She explored every inch of her cell, investigating every corner, before concluding that she was stuck there for the time being. She’d have to wait until her captors made their presence known to find out more about this place.

She didn’t have to wait long. Ten minutes after she had finished her exploration of her cage, the door at the end of the hallway slid open and a group of people emerged. Four were soldiers dressed in combat fatigues carrying what looked like weapons pulled straight out of a sci-fi show and the other two were a man and a woman dressed in lab coats, carrying clipboards in their hands.

“Well, Ms. Summers, it’s good to see that you’re awake,” the severe looking woman said as she approached Buffy.

“Professor Walsh?” Buffy gasped. She had only had a few classes with the psychology teacher, but she would recognize the woman anywhere. Buffy had known there was something off about her right from the start.

“Yes, well, it was unfortunate that we met under false pretenses,” Professor Walsh replied sharply, writing something on her clipboard. “But at least it brought your special skills to our attention. We are set to do some tests, and I trust you will be cooperative, Ms. Summers.”

“Tests? What tests?” Buffy said suspiciously, cold tendrils of dread spreading through her entire body, making her shiver slightly. Her instincts were telling her to run, but she had nowhere to go and there was no one here to help her.

“Nothing for you to be concerned about,” Walsh snapped, indicating that the cell was to be unlocked to one of the soldiers standing next to her.

The door slid open and Buffy backed slightly away, but soon found herself up against a wall. Though the men appeared to be human, and Buffy was sure she could take them, there was something about the cold look in their eyes that made her stop and stare. She hoped they’d be open to reason. But hey, reason was overrated, right? Two of the guns were aimed in her direction, and before she could think she engaged the nearest soldier in a fight. The electrical jolt that followed knocked her out in seconds.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The ringing of the phone caused Willow to look up sharply. It was past midnight and Buffy had yet to check in after patrol.

The redhead had come home a couple of hours earlier after staying late at the library studying with Oz. She figured Buffy would be out patrolling, but she was generally back by now on school nights.

“Hello? Buffy?” Willow answered, knowing only a few people would call this late at night.

“No, Willow. It’s Giles,” the Watcher’s voice came over the line. “But it is Buffy I'm calling in regards to. Did she forget that she was supposed to stop by tonight after patrol?”

“I don’t know, she’s not here, Giles,” Willow said, a hint of worry lacing her voice. Buffy may not be the most reliable person in the world, but if she wasn’t with Giles or here then Willow wasn’t sure where she could be. “Have you tried her house?”

“No,” Giles answered, sounding a little less at ease. “I suppose she might have stopped by her mother’s house. But I fear it is a little late to call her tonight. When you speak to her, let her know that I’d like to see her first thing tomorrow, please?”

“Sure, no problem,” Willow said, anxiety tugging at her gut. Buffy generally let her know if she wasn’t coming home at night in case she wanted some alone time with Oz. “I’ll tell her first thing in the morning. Goodnight, Giles.”

“Goodnight, Willow. I appreciate it,” Giles said before the line clicked off. Willow replaced the receiver and settled back into bed.

Buffy must be at her mom’s, she thought to herself. She just forgot to tell me. But the nagging feeling that something was wrong wouldn’t go away, and Willow tossed and turned most of the night worrying about the fate of her friend.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When Willow didn’t see Buffy in the morning, she became officially worried. When Buffy didn’t show up to Intro Psych, Willow slowly progressed into the panic mode. She called Mrs. Summers at lunch asking if Buffy had stopped by in the morning, trying to sound as normal as possible. When Joyce said she hadn’t seen Buffy since the week before, Willow knew something was really wrong.

Willow hurried back to her dorm room forgoing meeting Oz in the cafeteria. She threw her bags on her bed and quickly dialed Giles’ number. The tinglies in her belly had yet to ease, and she’d been getting better at tuning into the environment since starting with the Wicca group.

“Hello? Buffy?” Giles’ voice answered on the other end of the line, mimicking Willow’s answer from the night before.

“No, Giles. It’s Willow,” she replied, worry seeping freely into her voice.

“Oh, h-hello Willow. Have you seen Buffy this morning?” Giles asked immediately picking up on the anxiety in her tone.

“No, I haven’t, Giles. I’m really starting to worry,” Willow said. “I called Mrs. Summers at lunch and she hasn’t seen Buffy since last week.”

“Well, that’s troubling indeed. Can you get the supplies for a locator spell and stop by this afternoon? I’m sure she’s fine, but it never hurts to make sure.” Giles went on to give her a list of ingredients to pick up and to bring something of Buffy’s along.

“Sure, I’ll come over right away and stop by The Magic Box,” Willow said, hastily hanging up the phone before setting off in the direction of Oz’s room to let him know what was going on.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Buffy woke up with another blinding headache hours later. She rubbed her eyes softly and pinched the bridge of her nose in an effort to stop the dull ache behind them. She had briefly regained consciousness while strapped to what had appeared to be an operating table. She had immediately started struggling but was zapped again and hadn’t woken up during the rest of whatever they had done to her.

Buffy gently probed the sore spots on her body. She couldn’t imagine what had been done to her, but she knew it wasn’t her normal yearly physical. Anger burned in her as she looked down at a long bandage stretching down the length of her arm. After unwinding it she found a long incision, which they hadn’t even bothered stitching back up, running from elbow to wrist. She felt ill at the sight of the still open wound, feeling it throb as her body scrambled to heal itself.

Buffy moved toward the back of the cell, like a caged animal. She sat down in one of the far corners wanting to be able to see if anyone was going to return. There was a plate of food sitting in a corner along with a few bottles of water, but she didn’t trust it was safe to eat. Buffy felt strangely numb and horribly tired, but she struggled to stay awake and alert. She knew she needed to conserve as much strength as she could. It was anyone’s guess what the impostor psychology professor and her minions had planned for her tomorrow.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

That night at Giles’ house the Scoobies were gathered without their leader. Joyce hadn’t been alerted to Buffy’s disappearing act yet, but Giles feared they wouldn't be able to keep it that way much longer. Willow had done a locator spell which had shown that his charge was still at the university, but after searching all day, they hadn’t found a trace of her. Maybe the spell had gone wrong. Maybe she had been ripped into a different dimension. Maybe… There were too many maybes and not enough answers.

Giles didn’t know what had happened to his slayer, but deep in his gut he knew that it wasn’t good. She hadn’t run away and she was apparently still in Sunnydale. He was worried. Willow and Xander were unusually quiet, nervous for the fate of their friend, and this time, the oftentimes-patriarch of the group could offer them no reassurances.

He would contact the council and his friend at the coven. Hopefully they’d have some answers for them.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Buffy woke up in the morning to the sound of a small door opening and saw a sandwich appearing through it. She was starving after the events of the previous day and decided to risk it. Biting voraciously into the sandwich she looked around, noticing that the blue demon was gone. Probably off to the same chamber of horrors she had been submitted to. The vampires were missing, too, and for the first time, Buffy was starting to doubt her ability of getting out of there. Slowly the world around her started spinning and Buffy knew she’d been too hasty to trust the food. The sound of the door opening again was the last sound Buffy registered before her world turned black once more.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Spike had come to Sunnydale to find the small green rock he held in his hand right now. Smiling brilliantly he pushed Harmony out of his way and went off in search of sunlight and the Slayer. He hadn’t seen her around the last week or so which he found curious. She was always around to fuck with his best laid plans. The smirk that spread across his features as he stepped fully onto the densely populated campus was deadly and menacing. Now all he had to do was find that spunky little slayer.

After a quick lunchtime snack in the warm sunshine and an hour of fruitless searching, Spike was bored. Sure, the sun beating down on him made him wonder if he was going to freckle and it was something else to be out in an element he had feared for nearly a century. But without the little spitfire that was Buffy Summers there aiming to annoy and destroy him, the day seemed a little duller than it should have. He wasn’t sulking. He certainly wasn’t brooding. He was just disappointed that he wasn’t going to put a third notch in his slayer belt.

Night fell again and Spike was making his way through the graveyard thinking about the potential benefits of invincibility. That blonde trollop Harmony knew about the ring, and since she wasn’t the brightest crayon in the box, she may run her mouth off to the wrong people. It was probably safer to stow the ring away for a little while just in case anyone came looking for it. He could always chalk it up to her hair color and delusions of grandeur.

Having safely stowed away the precious gem, Spike made his way back toward the campus prowling for a midnight snack. He stood surveying the grounds below him, savoring the feeling of being back on the Hellmouth, full of its delicious and denial laden Happy Meals on legs.

Before he knew what hit him, the world around him turned black.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Spike woke up flat on his back in a place that was too bright for his enhanced vision. He groaned as he turned and groggily made his way onto his feet. He explored the area around him, running his hands over the white walls of the apparent cell he found himself in. Looking through the glass front he moved to lean against it. A large electric shock went through his body, throwing him back onto the hard floor he just got up from.

“For fuck’s sake!” he yelled, shaking his hands at the painful sensation. He got up again, this time stalking the invisible barrier like a lion caged in at the zoo. A hole opened in the roof and a blood bag dropped down with a dull thud onto the floor. Spike reached for it but a voice cut him off.

“Don’t drink it. It’s drugged,” a fledgling vamp in the cage next to him warned.

“Uh-huh. And who are you mate?” Spike drawled, bored with the twerp already.

“I’m a rat. A lab rat, just like the others. Just like you. They’re gonna kill us, all of us,” he replied, twitching slightly in the way only the truly paranoid could.

“And jus’ how are they gonna do that?” Spike asked, walking closer to the wall opposite of his chatty neighbor. Something smelled very familiar nearby.

“They starve you. When you’re ready to bite our own arm, they shoot out one of those packets. You drink, and the next thing, you’re gone. And that’s when they do the experiments,” the fledge finished in horrified awe. But as loony as the guy sounded, experiments didn’t sound like anything he wanted to mess with. He’d had his fair share of lab rats back in World War II.

“And, uh, they are? The government? Nazis? A major cosmetics company?” The somewhat familiar scent was driving him crazy while he tried to recognize it and the fluorescent lighting was making his skin twitch. He was close to snapping and nothing seemed close to stopping him.

“Who cares? All I know is, one minute I’m running from the Slayer, and the next thing, I’m here,” the other vampire said morosely scanning the hallways for any activity beyond his fellow captives.

“The Slayer! I knew it!” Spike yelled in frustration. He knew she would be behind something like this. She had certainly upgraded since the last time he had faced her. Had some fancy scientists, a whole soddin’ laboratory to work with. Spike was about to spew of a string of expletives when a breathy whisper came from the cell beside him, making him pause his internal rant.

“Spike?” The air seemed to still around him with the saying of his name. He’d recognize that voice anywhere.

“Slayer?”

TBC


Chapter End Notes:
Hope you liked. Please review and let me know if this one has your interested for more :)



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