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Using Wood as their guide to all of Faith's regular haunts they searched the whole rest of the night. With each unsuccessful sweep of a cemetery or bar or dark alley Buffy's tension skyrocketed. She was having trouble concentrating. Her body felt like a coiled spring wound tighter and tighter. They needed to find her now, not later, not soon, now.

Of course it would be the last place they had come to that had been the place where the brunette woman had last been. The evidence was all there from the broken shrubbery, the muddied footprints, the abandoned stake, the broken headstone and of course the blood. It wasn't enough to have killed her Buffy knew but it would have been quite an injury for that much blood to be staining the wet ground.

It was the look on Wood's face that tore at her heart, one of total agony and genuine fear for someone he loved, and as much as she hated to admit it she understood exactly what he was feeling.

As the edges of the night sky began to lighten they all understood the need to head back to the others and regroup. Without a word the three began to head towards the car when Wood suddenly stopped and turned. Taking a few steps he reached out and picked up the fallen stake and clutched it to his chest.

********

In the total darkness that surrounded her she tried really tried to ignore the loud thumping of her head that was pulling her out of unconsciousness. Giving it a few more seconds she felt the pounding become more insistent and knew that the blessed sleep wasn't coming back. Stretching out with her other senses keeping her eyes closed she could feel the tingle at the base of her spine. Only this time it wasn't the slight message that she was used to. This was a shout her inner slayer screaming that there were way to many vamps and other nasty things in the same room with her. This wasn't going to be a good thing she could tell.

Carefully and ever so slowly she tried to open her eyes. Luckily there was little light in the area she was in and it kept her head from actually exploding from pain. As it was she had to blink several times to take the harshness out of her vision.

"Nice of you to join us." Definitely a male voice. It was coming from almost behind her and she couldn't get her head turned enough to look at him.

Her other senses began to jump on the bandwagon and she started becoming aware of the feeling of bindings on her arms and legs. They were heavy probably metal than probably chains. That didn't make her feel any better.

"Wouldn't want to miss a party." Good her voice still worked. It was a little rougher than usual but it was still strong.

"That works out well for me than considering your one of the guests of honor."

"And it's not even my birthday." She snarked.

"But we have to wait on one other guest. Until then..." He finally stepped into her field of vision and she let go a gasp of horrible recognition. There was a jolt of horrible pain to the back of her head and oblivion claimed her once more.

********

"Please tell me you guys have some ideas."

"I wish we could Buffy but for the moment we are at a loss. I'm sorry." She watched as his gaze fell to the floor. "Unfortunately I have some worse news that I need to tell you."

Somehow she had made her way to the couch and sank into it bonelessly.

"There have been more attacks I'm afraid. The number hasn't been fully...." he trailed off and looked back at her. The look of pain and anger in his eyes was so intense Buffy actually felt herself take a gasp in shock. He tore his glasses of his face and threw them across the room. "FUCK!"

He began to pace furiously long strides covering the living room from one side to the other. It was at that moment she was glad the others had all left the room.

"They knew. Knew right where to bloody hit us." His pacing seemed to intensify.

"Giles." Her voice was soft and questioning.

"There all gone Buffy they were trapped inside and they knew it. They set fire to the house in England and killed anyone they found escaping. They managed to use a bomb on the Immortal's stronghold. They knew. I don't even know how but they knew." He kicked a plant in the corner of the room sending the dirt scattering all over the floor.

In an instant she was on her feet and easily she slipped her arms around the only father she had cared to know.

As her arms tightened around him the energy he had gotten from his anger was spent and he wilted in her embrace.

"Fifty one Buffy. Fifty one lives lost that I couldn't...."

"Don't you dare try to blame yourself for any of this Giles. You've done your job. It was mine to protect them if anyone is to blame it's me."

He grasped her shoulders and looked into her eyes.

"You can't blame yourself Buffy."

"Sure I can just watch me. If I hadn't been so wrapped up in myself for the last four months maybe I would have noticed what was happening. Maybe I could have acted then."

"No."

"Um to which?"

"All of it. There is something I should have told you a while ago and now others have paid for my lack of foresight. Bring the others in here."

She cocked an eyebrow at him in confusion but nodded in agreement.

"What about Angel?"

"The slayers with him are still safe. I told him that I believe we need him here. He is on his way."

*******

With everyone assembled back in the living room she turned an interested eye at Giles.

"This may well be painful for everyone to hear and I regret that it has to be done. But I can no longer stand idly by why countless innocent lives hang in the balance."

She watched as Spike watched the older gentleman nervously. She raised an eyebrow at him but he ignored it.

"There is a prophecy....” the whole room groaned at his hard glare there was silence once again. "A prophecy I thought I would never see in my lifetime." He pulled an old piece of parchment out of his notebook. "I have been working on the translation for some time and only recently discovered that it may in fact be playing out." Some how he had managed to find his glasses and settled the now crooked frames back onto his face and read.

"The line of the chosen shall become split in twain
Until all that lay dormant are thrust forward.
The last shall be called never to feel time
To protect humanity until it finally breathes its last.
Two creatures chosen by her heart answered in deed
Neither human but carrying there essence
Shall stand shoulder to shoulder until blood mixes and cleanses
Sealing the deepest of wells that was pushed open
Freeing one to live again and chaining the other to her."

After the third sentence Buffy had stopped hearing the cryptic words. Never to feel time. Well she would definitely qualify there.

"Okay so I understand the first part, I mean its Buffy and than she died and we ended up with Faith after Kendra right?" Giles nodded. "So than what was it all that lay dormant are forward? That would be us making all the potentials into slayers."

"Yes indeed that would be the most logical interpretation. The next however I only recently discovered."

"What was that to never feel time? Maybe like time travel or traveling through dimensions. Or maybe portals?"

Buffy felt the stares from both Spike and Giles waiting and willing her to answer. Wait, Giles? He knew?

"When did you know?" her voice was small.

Willow and Xander looked quickly between the three people locked into each other’s gaze.

"Know what?" He was definitely missing something Xander could tell.

"Never to feel time, to never have time touch her? They mean the last of the chosen would be immortal." It was Spike of course who made her confront this. It was always him pushing her forward pulling her away from her self-denial and need to shelter her friends from ugly truths. She sighed guess now was a good a time as any.

"I hope you guys have saved some money cause I'm going to have to celebrate a whole lot of birthdays."

"What?"

"Me Xander I found out a few months ago. I'm not ever going to have to worry about dying again. "

Willow studied her seriously. "You mean it Buffy really I mean the living forever thing cause I mean that could be cool right the not worrying about dying thing a serious bonus."

"Yeah its true I'm like all Immortal Buffy all doin the slayage forever." She noticed that Xander and Wood were just staring at her now. Well they would have time to let it all sink in she supposed.

"If I may continue? The next obviously refers to Angel and Spike."

Willow nodded excited at her knowledge. "Both vampires mean neither is human but the essence would be their souls."

"Is that why you told Angel to come here?"

"Yes. If the prophecy is occuring we will need his participation."

"The Poofter is gracing us with his presence. Terrific."

"The last of it I have yet to understand all though I am told that the end of one being chained and the other to live is pretty straight forward."

"Vampire with a soul who gets to become human and another who spends eternity with said chosen bird." He looked nonchalant as he leaned against the wall. "Ripper read that other again."

"Shall stand shoulder to shoulder until blood mixes and cleanses sealing the deepest of wells that was pushed open."

"Bugger all. The deepest of wells I knew that was trouble. Peaches sure mucked up this time."

"What are you talking about Spike?"

"The eternal resting place of the old ones. The deeper well."





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