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Title: Meant To Be
Part: 16/18

"What's wrong with their faces?" Hank broke the tense silence with his question.

"They are... ah..." Giles fought with what to tell him and his urge to run and help Buffy. On one hand he was relieved he was right about Spike, because Buffy should of never have been involved with him in the first place. But, on the other hand, Spike had killed two slayers... Buffy could very easily be the third.

"He bit her!" Xander cried. Giles saw the twin, blood oozing holes on her neck. He pulled out a crossbow and loaded it.

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Joyce watched the scene around her play out with a strange feeling of detachment. Her mind was slowly processing it and everything that had happened since a few months before they'd moved from Los Angeles. Pieces clicking here and there... blood stains, ripped clothes, that strange, older man she'd seen Buffy talking to in L.A., the sudden uncharacteristic "bad behavior", the gym incident... and so many other little things she'd sort of just written off.

Then there was sweet William's face. Bumpy forehead and fangs peaking out from between his lips. She remembered him as the leader of what Principal Snyder had dubbed a "gang on P.C.P". He was the one who had tried to harm her baby that night.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Jenny remained by the door. She sat down cross-legged, pulling out the items for the spell that she needed. She had been hoping to do them both together, but the spell was very specific that only one be done at a time. She glanced over at the dance floor. Spike was in game face and Buffy looked ready to kill him. Drusilla stood off to the side, eyes glinting in the dark. She whispered something in Buffy's direction before sidling closer to her and slipping a stake into her hand.

Jenny's instincts told her that Drusilla was the bigger threat, despite the fact that everyone else probably thought that Spike was.

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"Get away from her!" Giles shouted, shakily holding the crossbow up and aiming at Spike.

"I'm not..." Spike started, backing away from Buffy as she stalked closer to him. "Buffy, Luv..."

"I demand to know what's going on here." Hank shouted angrily. "What did is he doing to my daughter?"

"Oh, bugger..." Spike groaned. "I didn't do a sodding thing to her, you pollick. Drusilla put her inna..." His explanation was cut short when Buffy kicked him in the gut. "Bloody Hell, Buffy, Luv, stop."

She swing a fist at his face, but he blocked it. She did the same with the hand that held the stake, but aimed for his chest. He was a little too slow, to stop her, but her aim was off. The stake ended up going in right over his heart. "Owww! Bugger all!" He shoved her away and yanked the stake out.

"Kill him. Kill him." Dru chanted almost giddily as Buffy rushed Spike, pinning him against a wall. "Kill him, Slayer. It's your duty."

"Shut up Dru!" Spike growled. "Buffy, Sweetheart, shut her outta your mind. Don't let her control you... you're stronger than that."

Buffy stared at him for a half a second before head-butting him. She pulled him towards her and punched him in the face while he was still reeling from the head-butt. She did a quick, but forceful roundhouse kick that sent him crashing into one of the pillars that supported the catwalk.

She grabbed the stake from him before picking him up by his throat and shoving him against the pillar, furthering the damage to it. She lifted her arm, ready to strike.

The sound of wood creaking echoed throughout the Bronze.

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"Wh--?" Buffy shook her head, in an attempt to clear the haze that had enshrouded it. She frowned, realizing she held Spike by the throat and that she was about to... stake him? Horrified, she dropped the stake and let go of him. "What's going on?"

"Buffy..." Spike let out a sigh of relief and pulled her into a near bruising embrace.

"Buffy, look out!" Willow screamed from the other side of the Bronze as the pillar cracked in half, the catwalk breaking into pieces and falling to the ground. A large piece was about to fall off right above them.

Spike let go of her only to grab hold of her hand and pull her to the other side of the room where her friends and parents were. He put his hands on her face, relived beyond words that she was out of Dru's thrall. He asked her if Dru had hurt her, aside from biting her.

"I'm not hurt." She murmured, stepping closer to his body.

"Get your hands off her you... you... you blood sucking fiend!" Xander shouted bravely. His action of cowering, however, belied his words.

"Will somebody please tell me what is going on?" Joyce demanded.

"Nooooooooooo!" All eyes went to Drusilla when she screamed. She dropped Miss Edith and made a charge towards Jenny, who'd continued with the spell despite the Bronze falling apart.

The Orb of Thesulah was hovering in the air, glowing a bright yellow. Then it disappeared.

Drusilla stopped in her tracks, her wide eyes glowing for a half a second. She gasped for unneeded air, looking like a lost little girl.

"It worked!" Giles cheered Jenny, who was shaking from all the energy she'd used to do the spell.

"What worked?" Willow asked.

"I cursed her with a soul." Jenny said.

Spike pulled away from Buffy, who was trying to keep herself from bawling at the look he had in his eyes as he stared at Drusilla. "William? What's happened to me? I feel... so empty. My pixies are gone and Miss Edith wont speak to me. Spike..." Drusilla cried, holding her arms out to him. "I'm so frightened."

"I..." Buffy hung her head when he looked down at her. He knew he'd never be able to explain that he had to go to Dru. She made him. He owed it to her to be there for her... at least until Angel could be gotten a hold of.

He walked to Dru and let her grab onto him. His arms stayed at his side, his gaze fixed on Buffy, who's breath was hitching in an attempt to keep herself from crying.

"Jenny, are you well enough to do the other?" Giles asked.

Glad for the distraction, Buffy looked over at Jenny. "Other what?"

Jenny held up the second Orb of Thesulah. "Another soul curse... for Spike."

"What? You are not giving me a bloody soul!" Spike tried to go over to stop her, but Dru clung fast.

"Buffy, this will guarantee that he will not hurt you if you insist on continuing this insane relationship with him. It is for the best." Giles explained.

Jenny looked between Giles and Buffy before holding the Orb out to Buffy. "The choice is yours."

Buffy took it in her trembling hands. "It's very shiny." A couple of renegade tears slipped down her face and onto the Orb. She looked up at Spike. Drusilla was nuzzling his neck. "Whatever happens... I... I love Spike how he is. This... this would change that." She turned her hand and let the Orb fall. The glass shattered around her feet.

"Buffy! Are you insane?" Giles yelled.

"I need to... not be here." She sniffled back tears and bolted out the door. She ran like all the forces of Hell were on her tail. Seeing Drusilla clinging to Spike... seeing him go to her was too painful.

She was about a block from the Bronze when she slammed into Angel. "Buffy? Buffy, what's wrong?" She barely spared him a glance before shoving him out of her way and continued running towards home.

Buffy reached her house in a matter of minutes. Once inside, she collapsed against the shut door and began sobbing.

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"Honey?" Joyce walked into the house. Hank followed her in. "Buffy, Sweety, where are you?"

"She's probably in her room."

Joyce rolled her eyes at Hank. "I'll go talk to her."

"I should..."

"Stay here, Hank, please. You'll just upset her more right now."

Hank begrudgingly stayed downstairs.

Joyce knocked on Buffy's bedroom door a couple of times before opening it and peering in.

Buffy sat huddled in a corner of her room, her legs drawn up to her chest. She was shaking and when she looked up, her face was red and there were smudged streaks from her makeup and tears down her cheeks.

"Oh, Buffy." She went over and wrapped her arms around her daughter, trying to comfort her.

"It hurts." She hiccuped.

"I'm so sorry, Buffy. I wish I could protect you from all the hurt in the world." She grabbed a tissue off Buffy's dresser and wiped at her cheeks. "Why don't we go to the bathroom to put bandage on that... bite mark?"

Buffy nodded and followed Joyce to the bathroom. Joyce put the toilet's lid down and Buffy sat on it, much like she had when she was a little girl and would get cuts and scrapes. Joyce felt her heart twist for Buffy. Things had changed so fast and she hadn't even seen it... she wasn't there for Buffy.

She quickly put disinfectant on the two little holes and put a couple of layers of white gauze over her neck. "Do you want to explain those to me... and everything else?" Joyce winced at her choice of words. She had planned a better lead in to this conversation, but couldn't stop the words from coming out.

"Can we talk about this tomorrow? I just... just wanna go to sleep."

"All right, Buffy." Joyce placed a kiss on her forehead.

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

Buffy lay under the covers of her bed as Joyce bustled around, picking up things and putting them away. She kept her eyes closed tightly until she heard her finally leave. She let out a sigh of relief to have her mother gone. She'd been hovering over her for the good part of an hour.

She knew sleeping would be an impossibility. She sat up, clutching her blanket to her chest as she stared out the window. Spike was out there somewhere... she just worried that Dru was there with him.





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