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The Scoobies had made themselves as comfortable as they could in the old warehouse. Dawn had fallen into an exhausted sleep, much to Buffy’s relief. Xander and Anya had wandered off up onto a gantry, trying to enjoy a little time of privacy. Willow, Tara and Giles were squatting on some upturned boxes and talking in undertones, glancing every now and again at the Slayer.

Buffy moved restlessly about, checking and re-checking the windows and doors which were now barricaded. Suddenly, she tensed, her Slayer senses detecting a vampire – no, she thought to herself not *a* vampire – Spike. She had no idea when he had become immediately identifiable, but she knew he was there.

Spike swaggered through the only unblocked doorway, his eyes dancing with malicious glee.

“Hello kiddies. Miss me?” He smirked, “Well, don’t fret, I’m back and I’ve brought a big surprise for you.”

He swept his arm towards the door dramatically. His posturing was spoilt a little, when Glory shoved him aside as she stalked in, followed by a group of her minions. Spike gave a manic chuckle as the humans all looked at him with varying expressions of shock and fury.

“Told you, you’d be surprised.” Spike crowed. “The big bad’s got his bloody rocks back – and I’m gonna make you pay for every sodding humiliation you’ve ever heaped on me.”

“Get on with it, vampire – I’ve no time to waste.” Glory snapped “Show me my Key and you can have all the others.”

“You bastard!” Xander yelled.

“Well yeah.” Spike smirked. “All vampires are bastards – comes from only having one sire.”

“SHOW ME MY KEY!”

Spike put his hands over his sensitive ears. “Bloody hell, can’t a bloke have some fun? Un-bunch your knickers.” He caught Glory’s expression and hastily said, “Yeah, well, it’s her,” and pointed to one of the young women.

“At last!” Glory smiled happily as she strode towards the girl. “Come here my dear, you have a destiny to fulfil.”

As soon as the she-god’s feet passed a mark scratched on the floor, all hell broke loose. Spike launched himself at the nearest two demons and another two fell from crossbow bolts, fired from the gantry where Xander and Anya were hanging over the rail.

Guarded by the watcher, the two witches began chanting, Willow holding up the Dagon sphere, while the magic they were weaving concentrated its weakening effect upon Glory. The hell-god swayed and almost lost her balance.

“Why are you fighting me? I’m only collecting what is mine!” She exclaimed.

Buffy smirked as she hefted the troll hammer she’d confiscated from Olaf. “Oh, you haven’t seen fighting yet!” And swung the weapon into Glory’s face.

Spike whooped with uncontained joy. This was what he missed – the battle – fists and fangs in an all out, no holds barred fight. He yelled in sudden pain as a cross bow bolt embedded itself in his shoulder.

“Get down here you pea-brained prats! I’m on your bloody side!” He looked up at the gantry at the shocked faces of the two Scoobies.

“Could’ve fooled me.” Xander muttered. But he and Anya snatched up their axes and raced down the stairs, to fight the demon acolytes face to face.

Grimacing, Spike pulled the bolt from his shoulder and thrust it into the body of the demon he was fighting. “Bloody ‘urts don’t it mate!” he yelled as the demon screamed and looked down with astonishment at his chest.

Between the magic cast by the witches and Buffy’s attack, Glory was wavering. Just as Buffy thought that she might be defeated, the she-god suddenly lunged forward and snatched the Dagon sphere from Willow’s nerveless hands and, with a supreme effort, crushed it.

“Now that was an unfair advantage.” Glory smiled smugly. Buffy swung the troll hammer towards the hell-god’s face again, but this time Glory ducked, and punched the Slayer on the chin. Buffy was flung high up into the air and crashing to the floor, stayed down.

Spike gave a rage-filled roar and threw himself at Glory’s back, using a classic vampire grasp – one arm round her head and the other across her shoulders - and sunk his fangs deep into her throat. Glory yelled in anger and tried to dislodge the vampire prising at his hands and breaking a few of his fingers in the process. He felt nothing but rage at the attack on his slayer, “drain the bitch, drain the bitch,” was his only thought.

Suddenly, the room was filled with a flash of blinding green-white light and the screams of the scabby demons. Spike already had his eyes shut, concentrating on not being thrown off by Glory. As they had planned, the Scoobies threw themselves down and away from the demon acolytes who burst into flames and fell writhing to the floor.

Through the fog of rage and blood lust, Spike felt Glory stagger and suddenly fall. He automatically dropped away, but found that rather than the blood giving him strength and unlife, it was having the opposite effect. Struggling to stay on his feet, he looked towards where Buffy had fallen and saw her shakily walking towards the Bit, who was looking faint and ill. Thankful that they were at least alive, he collapsed bonelessly.

“You okay?” Buffy asked her ashen-faced sister.

“Is it really over? Is Glory dead?” Dawn whispered.

Buffy glanced over to the other humans, who were slowly clambering to their feet. She called to Tara and asked her to look after her sister. “I’ll make sure of it – don’t worry.”

Buffy and Giles walked towards the fallen demon-god, who was lying motionless where she had fallen. They looked down in astonishment; expecting to see a woman, they saw instead a young man, dressed in Glory’s clothes.

“Who’s that?” Giles asked faintly.

“It’s Ben, the doctor. How did he get here, and why is he dressed in Glory’s clothes?” They all looked at one another in consternation.

“Glory must have been inhabiting his body. It’s the only possible explanation.” Giles said slowly.

A groan interrupted them.

“Oh bugger.” Spike’s body was reacting in a most peculiar way. His stomach was clenching and, for the first time in his unlife, was rejecting blood. He coughed and then retched.

“Eeew!” Anya stepped back hastily from the rapidly growing pool of red.

“I’m gonna see your eeew and raise you a yeuch!” Xander said disgustedly.

“I don’t feel well.” Spike groaned piteously. His stomach was going to turn inside out, he was sure of it.

“Was I the only one who thought Spike’d really turned against us?” Xander demanded.

“That was the plan.” Buffy said quietly as she smiled reassuringly at Dawn and Tara who were slowly approaching them. The Slayer crouched down next to the vampire and rubbed his back, as another spasm shook his body.

“The plan? You *planned* to scare us to death?”

“Look, I’m sorry. We thought you’d be much more likely to convince Glory, if you really thought it was happening.”

“*We*!” Xander looked round at the rest of the Scoobies. “Am I the only one who thinks that it’s creepy that you and this *vampire* were the only ones who knew what was going on?”

“It worked, didn’t it?” Buffy said sharply, suddenly tired of the argument. “Now come on, don’t let’s stay here any longer than we have to. Okay?”

“Um, Buffy, what are we going to do about Ben?” Willow asked uncertainly.

Giles straightened from his position next to the young doctor. “We go home and call the police from there. We could call for an ambulance, but I’m afraid we’d be too late for that.”

“He’s dead?” Quavered Dawn.

“Spike killed him.” Xander said accusingly.

“No, as a matter of fact,” Giles smiled grimly, “I did.”



TBC
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A/N Thanks again for the feedback – that so many of you take the time & trouble to review – is wonderful!!





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