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Author's Chapter Notes:
Many, MANY thanks to Dusty273 and Im_Bloody_English for fixing this up for me and reassuring me I was on track. A special THANKS to Im_Bloody_English for taking the time out of her rollercoaster of a life to create her magic, love you hun!

On that subject, IBE is dealing with some heavy stuff and will return when possible - be it tomorrow or next week, or maybe even next month - it's up to her really. And while we all love her, her well-being should be utmost at the forefront. Stay strong lady, and PinHead will have a *gloriously dark time* later on ;)

Thanks also to Sotia for being the wonderful person that she is - you bring laughter everyday - and YAY! I got the recipe!

For Blackoberst who has an awesome mind and beautifully haunting poetry - you rock dude!

A line of dialouge was taken from "Lies My Parents Told Me." I thought it fit here, I'm sure you'll figure out which one it is.
“So how you wanna do this, pet?”

Buffy heaved a sigh. “Maybe you should wait on the back porch…until they’re used to my eyes at least. Hopefully, by then, they won’t wig out too much when they find out about the hearing.”

Spike nodded, agreeing with her that to face the Scoobies ‘alone’ initially, would be best for all parties involved. Only Giles knew that Spike would be making an appearance, but how would he react to the vampire’s presence was not that difficult to imagine. And who knew what Willow and Tara, along with Xander and Anya, would do once they understood the full extent at which Buffy had changed.

They’d laced their fingers on the walk from Restfield to Buffy’s back porch, Spike’s long thumb occasionally caressing hers when her trepidation over the meeting filtered through to him. In return, she would squeeze his hand in silent thanks for the support.

The nearer they got to her house though, the more apprehensive she became, until it was overwhelming for her and she began panicking…which in turn made him feel like spiders were crawling through his veins. It was enough to drive a sane person barmy.

He gently tugged on her arm, stopping just on the edge of her back lawn and pulling her into a soothing embrace. “Going a million miles an hour inside, love. If you’re not ready…”

“I am,” she murmured against his neck, breathing in his scent and calming down. “I’m just…afraid.”

He laid his cheek on the top of her head and gently rocked her back and forth. “Of the Scoobies?”

“Yes,” she whispered meekly. “I’m afraid of what they could do to me.”

He tightened his embrace and growled. “No soddin’ half-wit is gonna lay so much as a finger on you, Buffy. I promise…even if it gets me the mother of all headaches.”

She nuzzled into his neck. “My knight in tarnished armor…what would I do without you?”

“Well, lessee…there was that unfortunate incident with Peaches trying to send the world to hell in a hand basket. And of course there was the time I kept you and your mates safe while defeating the Frankenstein wannabe. Want me to get into savin’ you from G.I. Whitebread?”

“You know, you destroy all meaning to the term ‘rhetorical question’.”

“Told you love, I’m still evil,” he smirked.

She shook her head in silent laughter. “You’re so evil you’re good,” she drawled as a light came on in the kitchen, illuminating a small portion of the back yard and drawing her attention.

Through the small window above the sink they could see Tara, washing dishes. Occasionally, she would lift her head and peer outside, trying to see through the bushes, but after a few moments she would return to the washing up.

“I’d better go,” Buffy murmured as she slowly separated herself from Spike.

Halfway across the yard, she turned and looked over her shoulder at the vamp, which had a cigarette hanging from the corner of his mouth. He smiled full on at her and she returned it, grinning like a fool herself. She then turned and quietly walked up the steps, hesitating at the back door. Taking a deep breath, she turned the knob and entered the kitchen.

“Buffy!” Tara started, nearly dropping a glass on the floor.

“Shh! I-I don’t want Willow to know I’m back yet,” she said in a panic, keeping her eyes lowered upon entering. If she knew Tara, however, it wouldn’t be long before she figured something was up. Best get it over with.

Tara frowned in confusion at her request but complied. It wouldn’t be as if Willow could hear her anyway, she’d just started a shower upstairs. “Woah,” was all she could say next.

“What?” Buffy was puzzled at Tara’s words since she had yet to raise her head.

“Uh…well…I-I-I…”

“I can explain,” Buffy hurried to assure her as she lifted her eyes to look into Tara’s.

The glass Tara was holding fell to the floor, shattering and sending shards everywhere, neither girl moving. “Oh, Holy Earth Mother!”

“I swear I can explain!” Buffy whimpered, advancing on the gentle Wiccan.

The crunch of glass under her foot stopped Buffy from coming closer as she pleaded with her eyes for Tara to hear her out. She wasn’t prepared, however, for the serene smile and near giddiness that radiated from her friend.

“It’s astounding,” Tara breathed as she clutched her dishrag, hiding her goofy smile behind it.

“My eyes?”

“Your eyes…and your aura,” she added, drawing a circle in the air to indicate the space around Buffy.

“My whata?” Buffy frowned, never having heard of an aura.

Tara chuckled lightly. “Your aura. Everyone has one. It’s an energy field that surrounds us and it’s made up of colors that reflect every facet of ourselves. Each color has a different meaning.”

“Oh! Is-is mine like an orange or-or a puke green or something?” she asked, afraid of the answer.

“No sweetie, actually it’s very beautiful,” Tara reassured her gently, stepping out of the pile of glass at her feet. “I was really worried about it…before.”

Buffy watched her sweep up the broken glass and dump it in the trashcan before she could bring herself to ask about ‘before’. “What did it look like?”

Tara sat at the kitchen island and began running her index finger along the grove in the tile. “It was…a murky gray, borderline black, with brownish yellow undertones,” she murmured, not looking at Buffy who joined her at the island.

“Oh,” she said quietly. “That’s bad, isn’t it?”

Tara nodded her head. “It meant that you had a lot of fear and unreleased grief within you, that you felt trapped in your life. Also, insecurities with others, introversion.”

That ain’t the half of it! “And now? What’s changed?”

Tara raised her eyes to look at the Slayer. “You’ve…well, for lack of a better term, evolved.”

“You mean I was a lowly amphibian and now I’m a primate?” she giggled, her eyes flashing green and silver.

“Wow! Your eyes shift colors with your moods, too!” Tara gasped.

“They do?”

“Oh yeah, almost like a mood ring.”

Buffy glanced down to see her fingers playing with the hem of her navy blue peasant blouse. “What…what does my aurora look like now?”

“Aura,” Tara laughed, correcting her. “Well, it’s like a royal blue with lavender and silver…which is MUCH better.”

“Oooo, cool colors! What do they mean?”

“The blue means you’ve found your path in life after a difficult journey. The lavender is usually etheric or otherworldly, having passed through that boundary between life and death, which we all know that you’ve done. Silver means something inside of you is awakening, that you’re becoming one with something,” she explained, slightly flustered. It was hard to put into layman’s terms what she was actually seeing.

“Woah.”

“Exactly.”

“Hey Buf-” Willow stopped in mid sentence as she entered the kitchen and her best friend turned to look at her.

“Hey Wills.” She gave the redhead a little wave of her hand.

Willow peered closer into her eyes, watching them flash into a dark green. “Woah!”

“Seems that’s the word for the night.” Buffy slid off her stool and began pacing between the stove and the sink, her arms crossed.

“How’d you get your contacts to switch colors like that?” Willow took the seat Buffy vacated. “I’d love a pair.”

“Willow, I don’t think-” Tara started but Buffy cut her off.

“My vision is fine, Wills…it always has been. Why would I need contacts?”

“Well, there was the whole ‘being dead’ thing. Maybe your eyesight needed a boost? I mean, it must’ve been hard with…you know, all the fire and brimstone,” she reasoned as she grabbed a bottle of tea out of the fridge.

Tara noticed Buffy’s eyes practically glow with irritation, as they became a vibrant shade of iridescent turquoise. But she had no chance to respond as the doorbell rang…right at six o’clock.

Taking in a deep and shuddering breath, Buffy tried to compose herself long enough to open the door. Forgetting her strength, the door whooshed open to reveal Giles standing on the porch with his finger poised to ring the bell again.

“Buffy?” He frowned, still standing in the entryway. “What on earth is happening with your eyes?”

Judging by the thunderous expression on her Watcher’s face? Quite a bit was happening with them. “Uh, come in, Giles. Want some tea?” she asked, a little too cheerfully.

Ignoring her obvious attempt to distract him, he stepped over the threshold and cupped her cheek, pulling down her lower eyelid to peer into her eyes. “My god…the color keeps changing!” he breathed.

She nervously backed away from him and fidgeted. “I was waiting till everyone got here to tell them about…everything. I don’t really want to have to go over the same stuff two or three times. Knowing Xander, it’ll take him long enough to get it the first time around.”

Giles just stared at his Slayer’s ever changing eye color, completely unaware that it was making her edgy. The reproach she saw on his face was enough to make her stomach sink and she let her gaze drift to trace the patterns in the wood flooring. After a tense moment, he moved towards the living room to sit on the couch. Heaving a huge sigh, she rubbed the back of her neck and moved to shut the door, just as Xander and Anya were arriving.

“Hey, Buffy, wait!” Xander winced as he got his fingers caught on the edge of the doorjamb.

She reopened the door to find Xander with his digits in his mouth doing the I’m in extreme pain dance with Anya looking on in amusement. “Sorry, guys, wasn’t paying attention!”

Xander mumbled something around his fingers as he joined Willow, Tara, and Giles all gathered in the living room. He immediately got the sense that this was going to be the meeting to end all meetings when Giles covered his mouth with one hand and tucked the other against his side. He sat near the Watcher, noticing Tara with her hands clasped together tightly and resting on her knees, her face pinched with some unknown emotion, as Willow babbled on about their retreat.

Anya lingered at the door as she stopped to look at Buffy for a few moments. “You’re going to tell us how this happened, aren’t you?” she queried.

Buffy smiled thinly and nodded, her eyes flashing a disturbing shade of yellow for a few seconds.

Anya patted Buffy on the shoulder patronizingly. “Good luck with that, ‘cause I don’t think Giles will understand.”

She then joined the others as they sat spread out in the living room, leaning over to whisper in Xander’s ear. “This will be interesting. She won’t be able to worm her way out of this, that’s for sure.”

Clueless to what she was blathering on about, Xander finally focused on Buffy as she entered the room and faced the whole group.

“Ay Caramba!” he yelled, startling everyone to include Buffy. “What the hell happened to your eyes? Did you stare too long at the TV or,” he turned to whisper to Willow. “Is this a side affect of the spell that brought her back?”

Buffy narrowed her eyes at both of them. No one could have heard his question…no one but her. So, Xander was a part of the bad mojo that brought her back, huh? She was so gonna kick his ass.

Slipping her hands into her back pockets to keep from strangling him, she cleared her throat to gain everyone’s attention. “Look, I’m only going to tell you what’s happened once, ‘cause to be honest, I’ve had a really strange day and I need to…well, I need to…oh, just, ugh!” She threw her hands up in the air, filled with frustration.

“W-why don’t you start at the beginning,” Tara offered quietly, earning a smile from Buffy for the support.

She bit her bottom lip and exhaled. “A couple nights ago, Spike and I were patrolling…”

“Lord, I knew he was involved in this,” Giles muttered as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

Buffy spared him a dirty look but continued. “And while we were fighting, I accidentally kicked him in the nose…and broke it…again.”

Xander snickered. “Was that really an accident?”

“Yes, it was,” she growled, her eyes flashing silver and emerald green. The effect was so startling to Xander that he immediately shut his mouth. Seeing that he wasn’t going to make any more snide remarks, she continued her explaination.

“Anyway, he was bleeding and I let him come home with me so he could clean up.”

“Why were you worried about Spike cleaning himself up?” Willow asked. She, most of all, seemed oblivious to the state of change within Buffy.

“You know, I’m really surprised at you all…truly,” Buffy accused with disdain, hands on her hips. “He helped you all summer and you couldn’t give a rat’s ass about his position in all of this.”

Giles tensed with anger. “He had to be coerced into helping us!”

“No, he didn’t,” Tara countered with a frown. “He was just so…so sad that it took a lot to get through to him. Once he knew we needed him, he was always there, protecting Dawn and us.”

Buffy bit her bottom lip as she smiled tremulously at the gentle woman while the others just stared in shock. She alone defended Spike, and for that, she was eternally grateful.

“So now that we’ve established, in an alternate universe mind you, that Spike is the patron saint of Buffylites, what has he got to do with your stylish choice in eye colors?” Xander quipped, earning him a pinch in the side from Anya.

Buffy glowered at him. “Some of the blood from his broken nose fell on the counter. Quite a few drops, if you must know. And I-I…well I-”

“She’s in limbo at the moment, caught in between something she started and only I can finish,” Spike said softly from the kitchen doorway.

All eyes turned towards him as he cautiously moved into the living room, stopping behind Buffy to lay a gentle hand on her shoulder, squeezing lightly. “Don’t know myself what’ll happen with her, but she’s got a few new traits, that’s for sure.”

Before anyone realized what was happening, Giles had Spike slammed up against the banister, a stake pointed at his heart. “You bastard, you’ll die this time!” he seethed in full Ripper menace.

Spike closed his eyes and waited for the plunge. He supposed it was a fitting end to the unlife he’d lived up to that point. He just wished he could’ve had a little more time with Buffy. Forget the wrong that I’d done, love. But…even though Giles was pressing with all his might, nothing was happening.

Seeing her chance at happiness about to become dust, Buffy grabbed Giles’ wrist and squeezed, hard enough to hear a few bones crack. “No,” she hissed.

Pain contorted her Watcher’s face as he tried to withdraw his now useless hand from her grasp, hearing the stake clatter to the floor. Panting, he looked at her colorless eyes, suddenly reminded of her appearance when she’d fought Adam. Even though he was well and truly afraid, he needed to reason with the girl.

“Buffy! For God’s sake, release me!”

Tilting her head as if to size him up, she spoke in a tone that brooked no argument. “Never try that again. If you do, I’ll break more than your wrist.” She then released him, watching him cradle his arm against his chest.

Trying to plead his case one last time, he begged. “Please, listen to reason!” He turned to look at Spike in loathing as he spat. “He thinks you’ll care for him…that you’ll…love him!”

Spike glanced at her with a sad smile. “It’s all right, pet. Don’t fash yourself over it.”

But Buffy wanted this settled, once and for all. She reached out and grabbed Giles’ shirt, pulling him close, her mouth turning down in a heavy frown. “Listen hard, Rupert Giles. I love you, like a father…but this is my life, my choice…my heart that I lay on the line.

“Spike knows me, he knows what I have to do and he lets me do it…my way,” she ground out, tears skimming her lashes. “And he doesn’t do it thinking I’ll care for him, or love him.”

Giles breathed a small sigh of relief at that. At least she wasn’t going to allow Spike the freedoms that she had with Angel. That reprieve lasted all of five seconds.

“I've never told him that I care for him...until now,” she said quietly, shifting her gaze to the dumbfounded vampire. "I love him.”

Spike closed his eyes in sweet agony as a collective gasp ushered from the entire group. She was right on all accounts. She’d never said I care for you and definitely never said I love you. Hell, she’d only told him in a round about way that she liked him earlier. Of course, at the time, he’d chalked it up to just needing someone to talk to.

Buffy glanced to Giles, seeing the simmering anger underneath while he said nothing. She then turned towards the group in the other room and waited for the gnashing of teeth to begin. She didn’t have to wait long.

Both Willow and Xander jumped right in while their respective partners flamed with embarrassment. “He’s got some hold over you Buffy, like Drac did!” Xander said in a raised voice.

“Uh, hate to break it to you…Renfield…but I’m not under anyone’s power,” Buffy countered.

“She can’t be thralled anymore, Whelp. Once my blood hit her tongue it neutralized any sway that was held over her…from any source,” Spike added, noticing Buffy’s raised eyebrows.

“That’s utter malarkey! Why didn’t it work with Drac then? Buffy tasted his blood and she didn’t get all psychedelic with the eye chart,” Willow pointed out.

“That’s because she wasn’t his mate,” Anya said calmly. Everyone, including Spike and Buffy, turned to look at her. “What? You humans seriously need to brush up on Vampire Rituals.”

Expectant faces waited for her to continue as she sighed. “Ok, free lesson in Vampire Rites. The next one will cost you…a lot,” she said with a glint in her eye. “It’s rare to find a vamp wanting to mate in the first place but since we all know Spike is not your normal ‘shag a few bints there, eat a few hussy’s here’ kind of vampire, then it’s safe to assume he’s special.”

Xander snickered. “Short bus kind of special?” He never had a chance to deflect the slap to the back of his head. “Ow!”

“As I was saying,” Anya continued, glaring at her whiney fiancé. “When certain powerful vamps find their mate, they’re immediately attracted to them.”

Buffy glanced at Spike and he nodded in agreement. “Didn’t want to admit it, but Dru knew.”

Anya confirmed his statement. “I’m sure you gave off a certain pheromone or vibe that was meant to attract Buffy, hence repelling all other females. That’s probably why Dru didn’t stay long after you met her.”

Thinking back on it, Spike could see it all clearly now. The moment they’d roared into Sunnydale everything had changed. The minute he laid eyes on the Slayer he was a goner. He’d never slept with Dru the whole time they were on the Hellmouth, making one excuse or another. And while listening to her shag Angelus senseless wasn’t appealing, it wasn’t the end of all things because he had the Slayer to concentrate on. No wonder Dru got sick of his ‘obsession’.

“So, ok…why didn’t she respond to his…icky sex smog then?” Willow asked with disgust.

“There was another powerful male vamp around, vying for her attention. And by the time Angel was no longer an issue, neither was Spike. The next time you came in contact with him was around Thanksgiving…and we all know how that turned out,” Anya explained, reminiscing about Xander’s various ailments while she coddled him.

“Why did I fight it so hard then?” Buffy asked herself quietly.

Anya turned her eyes to Giles and frowned. “Because certain prejudices were programmed into you. To be honest, I’m surprised you’re admitting them now. But then, it could be that Spike’s skin is cool and Hell’s fire is hot, so it’s probably a total comfort thing and you’re just using him.”

A chorus of “What?” rose up from everyone, all for different reasons; Spike was still trying to figure out why they all thought that Buffy had went to Hell after she died. Buffy never wanted to be accused of ‘using’ Spike in that way and Giles balked at the insinuation that he taught Buffy to hate all things demon. Xander and Willow were trying to shut out the images of cool Spike skin, having no success. Tara was the only one that voiced no opinion.

“To ah, what extent has Buffy changed then?” Giles asked, wincing in pain as he tried to realign the small bones in his wrist.

“Well, she’s ingested some drops of blood, so it’s started,” Anya said. “That’s why her eyes keep changing. Spike hasn’t taken her blood and neither one has staked a claim on the other, so they’re both kinda in Limbo for the time being. He can probably feel emotions from her and she can sense shadow images from him. But it would need the words and the blood to complete it. Otherwise, they’ll both be miserable until it’s done.”

“Complete what?” Giles and Xander huffed in unison.

Anya rolled her eyes in exasperation. “A mating claim.”

“So not hearing this,” Xander denied and looked at Buffy as if she’d kicked him. “Why would you voluntarily play connect the dots with something you’re supposed to kill?”

She answered the entire lot of them. “God, I’m sick and tired of this!”

“So are we,” Giles muttered, sitting on the steps and taking a deep breath to fight the pain.

Buffy’s eyes became a dark blue, almost black as she approached the group, ignoring her Watcher’s comment. “I’ve got advanced hearing as well and it’s so amazing!”

“Will wonders never cease,” she heard a sarcastic complaint from behind her.

She turned around to glare at him. “I would think you’d approve of these abilities, Giles, they’re an asset to my Slayer duties. Think about it…no more demons or vamps catching me off guard, no wonky hypnotics ‘cause I’m immune, and I can see things before they appear. Exactly how is this a detriment to me?”

Giles turned his hate filled eyes towards Spike, who hadn’t moved an inch from the position he’d left him in. “You’ve sold your soul for a few trinkets in my opinion.”

“Back off you bloody git!” Spike growled threateningly, but stopped as he watched Buffy slowly move forward and squat down, face level with Giles.

“You try anything again, and Spike will kill you,” she said matter-of-factly, paying no heed to the outrage from the group.

“Buffy, love…I don’t think that’s a wise thing-”

“More importantly,” she emphasized by griping his broken wrist again. “I’ll let him.”

All the blood drained from her Watcher’s face as he audibly gulped, wincing in excruciating pain. “I understand,” he whispered, sweat gathering on his brow as he was near to passing out.

“You can’t do this! Tergum absentis!” Willow yelled as she threw out her hands with a spell meant to push Buffy away.

Spike quickly stepped in front of her, preparing to take the full brunt of the spell, but was shocked when he felt only a shift in air movement as the spell was repelled from him…and back to Willow.

The redhead flew backwards across the room, landing with a resounding ‘oomph’ on her backside in the dinning room. “What the hell was that?”

“Oh, did I forget to tell you that little detail?” Anya cooed with a smirk, watching the angry witch push herself off the floor, gearing up to do something a little stronger. “I would advise against it.”

She glared at Anya. “I can do this, he can’t beat me,” she said with menace, turning her fury on Spike. “Incendio!” She flung out her right hand as a fireball shot straight towards the vamp.

This time, Buffy stood in front of Spike and the flame bounced off both of them as if hitting a barrier. It then returned, with great speed, back to the person who had issued the threat. Willow stopped the inferno with an ice shield just before it singed her eyebrows.

“STOP!” Tara screamed and immediately, Willow’s hands became bound behind her back.

“Tara’s the only one of you with any common sense, you know?” Anya observed as she inspected her nails.

Willow panted with exhaustion. “Baby, please? Release me! I can do this, I know I can!”

“It’s not a matter of if you can, sweetie,” Tara said morosely. “You shouldn’t.”

“No, you really shouldn’t. It’ll just come back to bite you on the ass…times three,” Anya pointed out. “They’re protected. Once the claim starts, they’re guarded from outside interference until it’s complete. Then…well…they’ll be damn near indestructible.”

“And if it’s not completed?” Giles asked from the stairway.

“Misery, suffering, the bowels of Hell kinda of stuff,” she replied nonchalantly. “But then again, Buffy might be used to that kind of treatment and gotten accustomed to it. She may want Spike to beat her and call her his bitch.”

Both blonds just stared, open mouthed, at the ex-demon. Xander, who had yet to voice anything during the entire scene, still couldn’t believe his ears and eyes. Giles grumbled a few Good Lord’s and one May the Saints Preserve Us to cope with everything. Willow groused and whined until Tara finally released her on the promise that she wouldn’t do anymore magick.

Shaking her head to free it of the image that Anya had provided, Buffy turned from the group and spoke softly to Giles. “I’ll splint your wrist for you.” She then weaved around his form and headed upstairs for the supplies.

Spike stood well on the fringes of the group, not really fearing them now, but still with a healthy dose of respect for their underhanded ways. The only ones he remotely trusted were Glinda and Demon girl, but beyond them, it was asking too much.

Xander finally cleared his throat. “Does this mean we have to be buddy buddy with Spike now?”

“Is that a problem? You’re kissy kissy with me and I’m an ex demon. Your double standards will not get you orgasms, mister,” Anya pointed out.

“Ahn!” he blushed, mortified. “I just don’t want him shacking up in the extra bedroom is all!” he said indignantly.

Buffy had returned at that point with a bandage and a Velcro splint for Giles, wrapping his wrist as tightly as she dared. She could feel the undercurrent of emotions rolling over her like waves, but the strongest was the one from Spike. She glanced at him and butterflies exploded in her stomach. He was looking at her in that way, the way that said he’d love her past the end of time. She felt horrible that he’d found out this way about her love for him, but it couldn’t be helped. Had she tried to keep it under wraps any longer, the situation tonight might have been worse. The truth seemed to make everything a little easier to deal with, even if it caused more pain in the end.

“I think I’ll take that cup of tea you offered earlier, Buffy,” Giles spoke hesitantly. His nerves were shot and he needed to cling to a creature comfort, tea providing a soothing lull to his frayed constitution.

Buffy looked up at Spike and he nodded, heading towards the kitchen. Giles watched him disappear and then turned back to Buffy. “Nothing I say will make a difference, will it?”

She silently shook her head.

Giles sighed and watched as she deftly wrapped his wrist and set the brace. He dared not voice any more worries tonight, lest he incur her wrath once again. He needed at least one hand to hold his cup.

“So…” she drawled after closing the clasp on the brace. “What have you found out on that handkerchief?” She helped him to a standing position and ushered him into the living room with the rest of the Scoobies.

“Well,” he rasped as he gathered his thoughts. “It seems the material was made within the last twenty years or so.”

“What was made?” Xander piped up as Spike returned with a tray full of teacups and a rather large kettle.

“This,” Giles said with a little groan as he reached inside his pocket and withdrew the white cloth, laying it on the coffee table in front of everyone.

Spike set the tray on the table and stepped away from the group, retreating to the shadows to sit. He watched as Xander poured Giles a cup of tea and the ensuing argument about how much sugar should be added, most of it ending up in the whelp’s lap.

“Come sit with me?” Buffy whispered in his ear, pressing a soft kiss to the spot just under his lobe.

“You sure, pet?” It would be an open declaration of their ‘relationship’, whereas everything else was only speculation.

“You love me, right?” He nodded firmly. “Then yes, I’m sure.”

He smiled brilliantly and pulled her face to his for a gentle kiss, touching his lips to hers. “We got a lot to suss out, you and me.”

“Later,” she said with a wink and pulled him with her to sit on the floor across from the Scoobies.

“I do have to grudgingly admit, Spike makes a good cuppa,” Giles said, savoring the creamy goodness of PG Tips straight from England.

“Knew you’d appreciate it, Rupes,” Spike agreed, trying not to be snarky. He didn’t want to push it, but apparently even his un-living on the same plain of existence was enough to irritate the Watcher.

“Shut up, Spike. I was merely making an observation.”

“Rude bugger,” he mumbled under his breath, causing Buffy to snicker.

“Uh, yeah… about that handkerchief…anything else?” Buffy asked, trying to avoid another stand off.

Nodding as he sat his cup down, he tried awkwardly to clean his glasses with his injured wrist. “Yes, well, I did explain that this seemed to belong to an ectoplasmic entity, within the last twenty years. There are also traces of shoe polish and what looks like…leather, I believe.”

“Want me to do a tracer spell, Giles?” Willow asked quietly. “It’ll tell us where the ghost is from or why he’s here.”

“Does it involve highly developed magicks?” He was extremely wary. Willow had been dabbling too much in the darker arts, the raising of Buffy a prime example of it, and although he’d warned the budding witch, he doubted she took anything he said to heart.

She snorted. “Hardly. It’s just a simple enuncio spell.”

“If anything goes wrong…”

“I’ll stop it,” Tara said softly.

Giles reluctantly nodded and watched as Willow held the cloth in her hands. “Dico nos quisnam vos es.”

As if on cue, the material began to smoke a putrid green, even though there was no fire. Gobs of slime dripped down her hand to land on the table and her shoes. Finally, she flung the fabric on the floor, her hand beginning to burn as a disembodied voice eerily whispered through the air.

The rest is silence…you were not ready for Lothos.

Buffy tensed and wrapped her arms around her legs, frowning. No, it couldn’t be…could it? That was so many years ago, the painful memories buried deep inside. Had Lothos found a way to return? No, that couldn’t have happened, not after she’d lopped his head off before she burned down the building. It might have seemed overkill, but he’d taken something from her that was precious and she wanted to make sure he’d never be able to do so again. Spike’s musings brought her back to the present.

“Lothos…hey, I knew that Nancy-boy ponce. Looked like a Phantom of the Opera reject. Too bloody frilly for my taste, that one,” Spike ventured. “Had a lackey named Amilyn. He was a bit of all right, but wasn’t exactly known for his brains, that’s for sure. Heard they were dusted in Los Angeles a few years back.”

Everyone turned his or her eyes towards Buffy as she bit her lower lip and looked away. It was then the vampire’s eyes widened, finally comprehending the link to Buffy. “It was you, wasn’t it, pet,” he whispered.

Buffy just turned and stood up slowly. “I think I need some air.”

Spike rose to go with her but she stopped him with a hand pressed lightly against his chest. “Stay, please? I-I need to do this…on my own,” she pleaded.

His jaw ticked with frustration and hurt, but he saw the resolve in her eyes. He ducked his head and agreed to her request, his eyes never leaving her as she moved to the back porch door. She turned to look at him as he felt the thread pull and nodded slowly.

Knowing Spike would do as she asked, Buffy turned and walked out the back porch door into the warm, breezy night. The clouds drifting by made the moonlight alternate between dim and bright, the shadows seeming to breathe life. She sat on the steps as she’d done countless times before and listened to the silence.

Closing her eyes, she whispered, “Merrick?”


Chapter End Notes:
Spike... alone... with the Scoobies... GASP!



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