Indeed, the Scoobies were fighting a lot. But Willow made Dawn understand why she and Buffy are having difficulties.
And Xander seems to be on his way to revenge.

wonderful new chapter - thanks so much for the update.

Good progress, finally!

This denial is getting ridiculous. "He couldn't"? He shot Anya! Did Willow think Anya lied about Xander shooting her? Or that it was an accident? Oh but I forget, Anya is just a demon and she and Willow aren't the closest anyway. Good heavens. Buffy, Giles and Willow herself are examples that even the most well intentioned people have a dark side and are vulnerable to temptation, insecurity and hatred. Willow herself just tried to end the world. What makes them think Xander is so different? Is he going to have to shoot Willow for her to finally see how sick he really is?

If Willow plans to help Xander then the sooner she accepts that Xander has lost it and is no longer "Xander" the better prepared she'll be. He has manipulated their friendships and abused their trust to cover his tracks. She has to be prepared for him to use those tactics to gain her trust again - assuming he lives. And if he does live, do they even have a plan to deal with him?

I'm not sure why Dawn is being attacked so much. Given her maturity at the time this is set and the fact the she doesn't trust any of her companions to act in Spike's best interest , and considering recent events her fear isn't exactly unfounded, she is acting as expected. Certainly time was being wasted arguing and blaming Buffy but that wasn't the only thing they were wasting time doing, so Dawn was hardly the only person holding up the rescue.
While Dawn's determination should be tempered, let's not forget, Buffy nor Angel would have even looked for Spike had Dawn not been harping continuously about his absence and that she was certain something had happened to him. It was pure luck Buffy stumbled upon him in the first place since she was relieved to be rid of him. I doubt Dawn has forgotten all of that.

In any event, love to see that we're getting some where and that old Spike is making somewhat of a comeback. I'm looking forward to the aftermath.

i just loved seeing spike get nis rocks back...and the tables turning. i'm interested to see how you write dark willow (even if it's only for a bit), as i was unimpressed at how the writers took her on the show. great work, can't wait for another update.

Good for you Spike, wonder if now he will kill him or let othe consqences come out.

Love the story my guess is its almost over.

Wonderful chapter! I liked it a lot! Please Update soon!
MOa from Germany

Yay! Spike's BACK! Very cool, seeing him take his strength and power back. Have I mentioned I love this story? Twenty times? ok.

fantastic update!! wonder if willow will turn all psycho witch again...eeek! cant wait to see more, love this fic!

To bad Dawn got there so late wouldn't mind seeing her go lol. Anyways good chapter :) !!!!!

first of all i'll say a cautious "hoorah!" at spike's last comment...very excited to see him back to the big bad. i say it cautiously because i'm just a little worried you're going to knock me off my feet in the way that this fic has continually done (yet somehow i beg for more, haha)
secondly...xander killing his parents = one of the most intense fic scenes i've EVER read. you really pulled off disturbing xander like i never expected. i sort of get the feeling that you threw that in there for a bit more than dramatic effect, and if you did i really must commend you on thinking ahead and really getting into the characters reactions to him when they all come face to face. i got the idea that he killed his parents to put the nail in the coffin on his being past the point of no return in the minds of the scoobs, willow in particular. i don't think she'd have been able to accept his crime against spike quite as easily as the others (even buffy) could have, coming from a dark place that everyone was unsure she'd return from herself, without seeing some hard proof that there was NO helping xander come back. this may also help buffy do whatever must be done with him and not deal with the terrible guilt of possible rehabilitation. exceptional forward thinking.
anyway, i REALLY can't wait to read more.

yay! go Spike! poor xander's parents though... so, Spike knows he's more powerful than xander, buffy's on the way with help.... this all bodes well for our bleached blonde bad boy. yay! (again lol) you rock. i love it.

You are nasty leaving such a cliffhanger - but it looks as if the "big bad" is back and I'm not sure I like Xander's chances if the Scoobies don't get there first. Great chapter.

Yes Yes Yes!!! Big bad is back... I love snarky Spike, and it's time Xander got a taste of his own medecine. After all Spike is the child of a master of torture...he must have learnt a trick or two!!! Time to put this knowledge to good use!!! (Hope Xander pee in his pant...I want to see a terrified Xander now...)