They walked a few blocks in silence not even glancing to see if the other was still there. Buffy kept her head bent low searching the ground as she went trying desperately not to think about what was possibly happening to her watcher right at the moment.
Her only goal was to get them to her house which should be safe enough to keep them away from unwanted attention and give them a quiet place to plan what they were going to do. She hoped.
Spike was lost in his own thoughts about what this really meant for him and Dru. True he had planned on hanging around the pathetic little town until an opportunity arouse that he could claim his third Slayer but with his dark princess now on the Slayer's active hunt list that would be asking for a lot more heat than he wanted. He had never been one for keeping a low profile and he wasn't nearly stupid enough to think he could.
The thought of double crossing the chit crossed his mind. He was evil after all, it would be her own fault for trusting him in the first place. But he quickly dismissed the idea. For one he was a vamp of his word. He kept it once he gave it and he would be damned if he changed now just for any easy chance to take out the Slayer. The second reason was a little harder for him to admit even to himself. Simply he respected the Slayer as not only the Slayer but as a person too much for him to turn on her in such a way. The loyalty and compassion she showed had touched him even if he didn't want to acknowledge it.
So now he had to accept the fact that if he did in fact kill this particular Slayer it would be in a fair fight after this mess with Angelus was taken care of.
Neither of them were paying attention to what was going on around them too busy with the thoughts in their heads to notice the police cruiser that had slowed down to start following them. By the time Buffy did notice and tried to duck her head from the cops point of view the car was already stopping.
"Hold it."
The sound of the man's voice made her tense in reaction but she kept walking hoping that if she just ignored him he'd go away.
Like that was going to work.
For the second time that night she heard the sound of the hammer of a gun being pulled back.
"Stop right there." As if she needed to hear the words to freeze in her tracks after hearing that gun.
Spike however was oblivious. Guns no matter how painful couldn't kill him and it wasn't like he worried about dealing with pesky things like law enforcement.
Buffy fought the urge to roll her eyes as Spike took a few more steps before realizing that his truce partner had stopped.
He turned towards her and raised an eyebrow to her in question at which time she threw a look back behind him. Following her gaze he finally saw the police officer holding her at gun point.
"Oh you've got to be kidding me." Spike sighed heavily. "What are you a trouble magnet?"
Buffy chose not to answer the bleached pain in the ass instead focusing on the current life threatening situation in front of her.
"Don't move either of you." The young cop took a couple of steps closer to the two of them. Keeping a close eye on the two blonds in front of him he gestured with his gun. "Put your hands on the car."
She gave a look at Spike and she could swear she saw his intent in his eyes. There wasn't anything she could do in this situation except trust that Spike would get them out of it. Hopefully without killing anyone.
Spike fought an eye roll as he stepped closer to the policeman making as if to move to the car. As he passed he spun quickly and kicked the gun from the guys hand before taking him by the back of the neck and slamming his head into the hood of the car. Unconscious the cop's limp body slid to the ground.
"What the hell did you do this time Slayer. Got the bloody fuzz after you too?" There was not only curiosity but a look of amusement in his eyes.
Oh she had had enough. The night was taking an emotional toll she could no longer pay. There were only two reactions she could express right now one would be to cry her eyes out something which she wasn't going to do in front of Spike the other was anger.
This time she let her fist fly and connect with his nose. The crunching sound of the contact echoed on the mostly empty street.
"You fucking bitch!" The sound of his voice came out muffled behind his hands which were now cradling his poor abused nose. Looking at his fingers he stared at the coating of blood on them before looking back over at the Slayer. "You wanna go a few rounds pet I'm game but I don't think you've got the time for it."
"I think I should make the time." The words were devoid of any emotion and this time Spike looked carefully in her deep green eyes.
The shock of knowing what she was feeling as he stared didn't hit him nearly as hard as the fact that he cared about what she was feeling. Or lack of feeling. He could see that she was shutting down on him and this couldn't be happening at a worse time. He needed her right now. Active aware of what was going on around her. If she chose right now to break down and shut down emotionally they were going to be up a creek without a paddle. Maybe even a boat.
Just then a loud groan stopped his train of thought as well as Buffy's threatening movements.
"Looks like we need to get a move on Slayer before Barney here wakes up." He gave her a slow smirk. "Unless of course you want me to take care of him more permanent like."
"Make a move toward him Spike and you are dust." Her words were still to controlled but he could see the flash of worry in her eyes as she looked towards the cop.
After a second she began to walk away again. Spike hurried to keep up with the girl trying to push his confused thoughts away. He didn't have time to analyze his own thoughts.
The only thing he wanted to concentrate on now was stopping Angelus.
It would have been a slight shock to him to know that was exactly what Buffy was thinking.
There would be time later to think as long as the world didn't end tonight.
****************
She had almost let the sigh of relief passed her lips when she saw her mother's car pull up in the driveway. With everything else that had gone wrong tonight she didn't know why she was surprised that her mother was coming home just at that moment.
Taking a deep breath she plastered on a fake smile as her mom walked towards the front door.
She wasn't sure what it was about her mother that turned her into a babbling idiot. It wasn't the fact that she was trying to lie to her mom no over the last few years she had gotten used to that. And it wasn't a factor of guilt. The rift between them had only grown wider after the divorce and their move to Sunnydale.
But the fact remains that the best explanation she could come up with to explain Spike was that they were in a band. God she was just so lame.
Although she had to admit he wasn't much better. If things were different she would have laughed at his own explanations. If things were different.
Spike had been listening to the words coming out of the Slayer's mouth only to blink stupidly as their meaning sunk in. The Slayer's own mum had no idea about her calling and she was determined to keep it that way.
When the older woman had turned his back to him he had gone ahead with the urge to roll his eyes at his fumbling attempts at a decent lie. Hell he was evil damn it. He shouldn't have had to struggle with the lie. And he should have been able to come up with a more decent one at least.
None of it mattered once he sensed the vamp on the edge of the yard though. A couple of simple moves between the Slayer and himself and the swirl of vampire dust was making it rather hard for the Slayer's mum to crawl back into denial.
He let out the frustrated breath when he realized that they were again going to be delayed. You would think with all the distractions that it was a miracle that the Slayer ever saved anyone.
The next few minutes seemed to pass in a blur for her. The explanation to her mom the phone call from Willow and the details of her plan with Spike all of it passed quickly at the edge of her awareness. The only thing that stood out to her was the sound of the door closing behind Spike as he left the house.
And the emotions that had been swirling around inside of her threatened to break free. For whatever reason his nearness had kept her from falling apart and retreating into herself. Now he was gone.
In his place was her mom still intent on keeping her in the house and once again she was faced with two alternatives she could totally break down which would cost her precious time or she could get angry.
It was almost like she was watching some one else say those things to her mom.
Quickly she made herself forget the fight with her mom as she made her way to Giles' apartment. She refused to let another thing take precedence in her thoughts other then defeating Angelus and to do that she was going to need that sword.
*************
Spike couldn't help it, he was shaking his head in disbelief as he walked towards the mansion. As strange as this night had already been he wasn't looking forward to the upcoming confrontation with Angelus. In fact after witnessing the row between the Slayer and her mum he was willing to bet the rest of the night was going to be just as unpleasant.
And what was with the Slayer's mum not knowing in the first place? It was kind of obvious if she looked hard enough.
He tried vainly not to think about the ridiculous circumstances he found himself in instead trying to concentrate on what he was going to say to Angelus when he got back. The deal to keep the Watcher alive was going to complicate things a bit for him but he knew it was the only thing that was keeping the Slayer focused.
He was going to have to think quickly to keep Angelus from being suspicious about why he wanted the Watcher alive. It wasn't like he really gave a damn and the bloody git would know that.
Entering through one of the hidden doors Spike walked quickly down the hall towards the sound of pained grunts. It wasn't like he didn't know just what Angelus would do to the Englishman once he was behind close doors especially if he didn't tell the wanker what he wanted to hear. Still seeing the bloodied but still stoic face of the Slayer's watcher intrigued him.
Spike knew first hand just how painful Angelus' tortures could be. And he was a vampire. For a human to hold out against those deadly hands made Spike's respect grow for the man.
Not enough to keep him from feeling sick as he watched Dru snogging the git though. He felt a little queasy watching the display but was content with the fact that for now he'd held up his end of the deal with the Slayer.
Unfortunately now Angelus knew how to open the big stupid rock.
************
The walk from Giles' apartment to the mansion seemed to pass in a blur. Meeting the creepy little demon man was falling in the realm of the surreal which itself was surreal considering how often she had met up with demons.
She wasn't sure what the so called Powers had in mind for her to do and she wasn't sure even if she did. All she knew was that she needed to stop Angelus.
In the back of her mind she wondered briefly if Spike was really going to hold up his end of the deal. It was a very real possibility of course that he was going to turn on her. The thought wasn't a new one since they had agreed on their truce it was something that bothered her though.
Not that she knew why it bothered her. Maybe it was because if he did than the feelings that she thought she had seen him hold for Drusilla wouldn't run nearly as deep. Or maybe it was because it would be a real betrayal of her. And although the act itself shouldn't affect her, the way she felt deep inside she couldn't deny that it did. Inside she hoped that how she had taken care of him meant something to him. At least enough for him not to stab her in the back at such a critical moment.
She didn't delude herself into thinking that Spike didn't want her dead. She wasn't stupid nor was she that naive. Not anymore at any rate. Her hope was that the demon inside of Spike was as straightforward as she believed he was. Wanting to conquer her in a fair fight to the death. Not deliver her into the hands of his manipulative grandsire.
Her steps were silent on the deserted road as she swung the sword at her side.
The sword she was to use to stop Angelus.
She drew closer to the mansion now able to see its silhouette against the black night. There was a single light showing towards the street even if she couldn't see inside.
Stopping there she took a deep breath and gripped the hilt of the sword tighter. This was it. It was all or nothing this time.
Inside she could feel the fluttering of her stomach at the thought of facing Angelus both frightened and exhilarated at the thought of the fight to come. This, this she knew the feeling of anticipation and dread mixed together where her body was yelling for her to flee while her mind told her that it was time to fight.
So many times she had felt this way in the past. It was better to concentrate on this than anything else that had happened today. Taking a second breath she rolled her neck loosening the muscles there before pulling herself together.
Soon it would all be over. She would be done. Angelus would be dead Spike and Drusilla would be gone the world would continue to turn and she was going to be alive.
It didn't matter what happened after that. Those were the important things.
Clenching her jaw in determination she began to walk the last few steps separating her and the monster that had made her life hell for the last few months.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Hi everybody! Just a note to let you all know how much I appreciate everyone who is still reading this one. I've had a hard time getting not only this story but my other wips going so thanks for sticking with me. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed I can't tell you how much it means to me to get your opinion.