Spike's insightfulness has always been a wake up call for Buffy. Your Spike gets her motor revving and it's a wild ride. You've captured a Spike that has been missing from fanfic for a while. Immensely enjoying the read.

Author's Response: I do so like Evil Spike and wish there were more stories with him. Thank you so much for enjoying it!

Spike still should have a light headache for stunning Buffy... (my guess). It was good that Spike tried to tell Buffy some new truth. And he was totally right about seeing a shrink. If Buffy only had done that, she would have felt better (I think).
When Buffy gets involved with Spike now he made sure that she knows what she is doing. Still... she isn't okay, the 'not feeling' is still an issue. I'm not sure that Spike alone will help without Buffy getting the help of a psychiatrist. Still a bit sad to see no feelings involved. I'd thought Spike would change; doesn't look like it at the moment nor that Buffy would change herself and trigger Spike's change regarding falling in love. I'll have to wait and see, huh? I'm not sure if that won't hurt them even if they try to avoid the hurt and being honest.
At last Buffy is starting to change in other ways if it wasn't a one-time-thing. She has seen the truth in what Spike told about Xander. And that Willow needs control.

(PS because I just checked my old review and saw you responded about Allaboutspike - that archive now closed to new stories but it's still on-line and will stay on-line as long as the site-owner can afford it. But several others vanished or are down with a promise to come back. *sigh*
Too many.)

Author's Response: No headache. He can hit her, remember, even if he can't hit anybody else. :D Yay about the 'AllaboutSpike' site! Thank you for telling me! I thought it was down. I going to rush there and save the rest of my favorites. The trouble is we're losing fans as they get involved with other shows. :( But at least we still have EF, SR andBSV.

I can see where some might have a problem with this story. They probably want Spike to bow down to the greatness that is Buffy. Kiss the ground she walks on even if she treats Spike like he is beneath her. I think if it was a man who did the same things Buffy did then there have been more of an outrage. Since it is a woman that did those things to a man then there wasn't as much as an outrage. One thing that Spike always had for Buffy is that he always respected her. Even when he was evil you can still he had great respect for who she was. Respect that she was the slayer. Buffy did respect Spike in the beginning but after he got the chip she started treating him like he is beneath her. She forgot that he was a master vampire. Now he is reminding her once again that he is master vampire that should be respected. I'm glad that Spike is telling some hard truth about herself and her friends. She needed to hear that. That is why I love Anya because she is always truthful. Even if the truth isn't always easy to hear. Spike is the same way. He always tells it like it is. So, while I can see where some would have trouble with this story. I'm not one of them. I'm one that is loving this story. That is loving Spike but I always love Spike. While I do love the hot sex. I do hope that their feelings start becoming softer towards one another. That they don't always hurt each other. I need to see that truly care for the one another too. I want both from my Spuffy couple. I want the hot sex but I need to see that is just more than sex between them. That there is real deep feelings like love. That is the only thing I'm worried about in this story. That we won't see the love side between Spike and Buffy as well.

Author's Response: I'm a rabid Spuffy girl and the love side really is coming. Guaranteed! Everything's rather at a cockeyed angle right now, but it will straighten out. Promise. You're right. The people who don't like the story don't admit that Buffy did anything wrong in S6. If we put a man in Buffy's role and a woman in Spike's, Season 6 would have been horrific. I'm so glad you're liking it! Thank you!

I was pleasantly surprised to see where you took this, which was not quite the dark place I was expecting. It's good to see that your imagination is better than my fears. You actually had them communicating here for the first time, and Buffy actually seemed to be listening, which was an enormous improvement on the situation. I also liked that Buffy finally came to him on her own at the end of the chapter. I'm getting awfully tired of her rationalizations, though.

As for Spike, I mostly liked him and his bravado, except in one place, where he told Buffy she was a disappointment.
To me that is like kicking someone when she is down. I absolutely hated the way Buffy treated Spike in S6 especially in Dead Things and As You Were, (and I hate her attitude here too). But I don't think that makes it okay for Spike now to turn around and completely dismiss her with such a hurtful abusive comment. Ugh. I think Tara had a good point about "Tough Love" but that only applies to her and Willow -- this Spike is not showing Buffy any kind of love, tough or not.

I adore your playful snarky untamed Spike from "Change Partners and Dance" etc, who gradually grew to respect Buffy even while pointing out her weaknesses. I wish this sniping pair would remember that they were friends once at the end of S5 and beginning of S6, before Once more with Feeling and Smashed. I do feel like you've had them turn some kind of a corner here, which is a positive sign. Yet it is hard to believe that this Spike could ever fall in love with this Buffy. I actually kind of want S6 Spike back. Bring on the Spuffy. (And the next chapter too)

Author's Response: The Spike in 'Change Partners' was dealing with an undamaged Buffy. This is S6 Buffy, madly rationalizing away, who has to be hit over the head with a two-by-four before she thinks. Which is what Spike is doing. And the parallel with Willow and Tara was there on purpose, a hint at what's really going on with Spike. Spuffy will happen. Guaranteed. :D

Now we're getting somewhere! I liked him making her have to listen to all he had to say, and I don't think he was too harsh. I loved her snapping at Xander - we all know he deserved it. Hopefully soon we'll see that what they physically feel for each other can be shifted into something more for both of them. They both need some changing.
Still loving this!

Author's Response: They both have things to learn about themselves. :D I'm so glad you're liking this! Thank you! Some people have been getting upset and I was worried.

GO SPIKE!!! And tell it like it is. Wish something like this had actually been said, cause it's all true! I loved the return of the cattle prod. lol

And Buffy couldn't stop herself from going to Spike. HOT sex scene as always, but kinda odd with Spike really not caring for her. You could have made this much worse, don't understand the complaints. ( I may be evil cause I was hoping for darker)

Anyway I loved it, it's so good. Can't wait to see what changes between them, cause we know something has to. :)

Author's Response: I was hesitating on darker, then decided not to. Good thing too, the way some people are freaking already. You're the first person to review and I'm kind of bracing myself for the others, since even this might be too much with Spike not really caring. (Or is that the truth? :D) I'm so glad you like it! Thank you!