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Author's Chapter Notes:
Only one more angsty chapter to go before it comes to a head. Thank you for sticking with me, gentle readers! =) *hugs*

Banners by xoChantelly and Edgehead :)
God either didn't hear Buffy's prayer or had ignored it. She was shaken and distracted the rest of the day because of her illicit (and very messy) fantasy about Spike.

Buffy couldn't seem to stop thinking about him in ways she shouldn't. She knew he had to be an amazing lover, and she ached to find out for certain, firsthand. But there were thoughts that scared her just as much, if not more. Thoughts like how nice it would be if Spike just held her in his arms, or how it made her all warm inside when he smiled and laughed at something she said. Not mean or mocking laughter such as he'd done in the past, of course, but genuine laughs like friends share. Being united under these horrible circumstances had forged a bond between them. Buffy was seeing things in Spike that she'd never suspected -- that he would risk his life and safety to spare her pain was a huge eye-opener. Her regular life in Sunnydale (and her boyfriend, and the fact that she even had a boyfriend) seemed a million miles away. Right now the world only consisted of her and Spike.

Spike started singing a song, 'Something' by the Beatles. Instead of just letting his voice lull her to sleep while she pretended to already be asleep, Buffy sat up and watched him sing. Then watching wasn't enough. It was silly not to let him know she thought he had a good voice, and that she appreciated him doing it every night to make her feel better.

The real reason was that Buffy felt the need to be close to him. To hell with all her doubts and fears. She went quietly over to Spike and kneeled down next to him, sitting back on her heels.

He stopped singing when he finally noticed that she was right next to him.

"What?" Spike asked uncomfortably. He didn't think he could sing 'Something' with Buffy only a few feet away and looking at him like that. Why'd he choose to start with that song? He forgot to steer clear of romantic songs...

"I really like your voice." Buffy felt absurdly like a nervous teen talking to a hunk whom she had a big crush on. This wasn't easy for her; part of her was still trying to resist saying anything about her secret feelings. But she felt like she'd explode if she didn't get the thoughts out of her head. "I didn't say so before because... I don't know why I didn't. It felt weird to compliment you."

Spike smiled. "I know what you mean. Complimenting or saying 'please' or 'thank you' to each other felt out-and-out unnatural not long ago."

"It's weird, but... I looked forward to hearing you sing at the end of every day. It's been the only thing to look forward to in this place."

Spike's smile became shyer, he looked at her from under his lashes. "Really?"

Buffy smiled and nodded, feeling a warm blush springing to her cheeks. "I know you were doing it for me, and it really has helped." Then she looked at him uncertainly. "You... were doing it for me, weren't you?" She'd feel like an ass if it wasn't for her, after all.

Spike nodded, "Yeah... that first night I thought it might help take your mind off things. I was going to keep doing it 'til the night you'd roll over and tell me to shut the hell up."

Buffy laughed softly. "I wouldn't have done that. I didn't know you could sing, I'm impressed."

"Thanks, I'm glad I could help you feel a little less stressed... You going to sing me a few bars of something?" Spike asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No way," she giggled. "You don't wanna hear it, trust me."

"I bet you have a lovely singing voice."

"Nope. Nasally and whiny, that's me."

Then Spike wasn't sure what to say, Buffy was staring at him strangely and just sitting there. "Do you, uh, want me to keep..."

He went motionless when Buffy reached out and touched the side of his face. He was afraid to speak or move, as if she were a baby deer he was trying not to frighten away. Buffy was gazing at him with what he thought looked like affection and she was caressing his cheek -- he didn't want to break the spell.

Buffy couldn't fight it anymore, she swiftly leaned forward, pressing her lips against Spike's. His eyes widened, then slid closed. The kiss was a tentative one, Buffy wanted to see if this was what she really wanted. She thought that maybe her attraction to Spike was just a passing thing.

But the good feelings grew with each second their lips were pressing together. The kiss didn't last that long, only about 10 seconds (and there was no tongue), but the moment their lips touched there was sparkage.

Their eyes blinked open when Buffy pulled away.

"Why... did you do that?" Spike asked softly, awed. He was trying to control the thoughts and feelings speeding through his mind and body. She probably only kissed him as a way of saying thanks for trying to comfort her, not because she had feelings for him too.

"Because... I wanted to. I've been wanting to... I don't know how or why I feel the way I do, all I know is I couldn't not be kissing you anymore."

"Do you... want to do it again?" Spike asked, hope and happiness blooming in his chest.

Buffy could tell that Spike had liked it and would welcome another kiss by the way his eyes moved from her lips to her eyes and back again. And his voice had that deep, caramel-y tone that was virtually irresistible. She just nodded then swooped back in to kiss him again. This time they were both ready for it and eager to continue.

Spike's arms came up around her, pulling her body closer. Buffy put her arms around his neck, letting him pull her to him. She was still on her knees, moving so that she was now straddling his left thigh.

The kiss deepened, tongues came out to play, and their hunger for each other intensified.

Buffy hadn't felt this way when kissing someone for a long time. There was so much heat, so much passion flowing between them. It scared her (for oh-so-many reasons), but she wanted him so badly. She thought, 'Oh God, he's such a good fucking kisser! Ohh yummy lips! Good arms -- feel so good around me! Oh my God, how is he doing that with his tongue?!'

Spike's mind was racing too as his lips and tongue wrestled with hers. Buffy had come to him and was kissing him of her own freewill. This was better than any fantasy or even when they'd kissed while under the effects of Willow's spell last year. This was real, both of them participating because they wanted it. If this was just another dream, he didn't want to wake up.

The only sounds in the room were the crackling of the fire in the hearth, their lips smacking together, and their heavy breathing. They weren't capable of actual speech at the moment, their minds were too consumed with desire.

Spike's mouth slid down to her neck, kissing and mouthing the slender column. Buffy ran her fingers through his hair and let her head list to the side. His hot mouth on her skin and his strong hands roaming over her back felt so good. She unconsciously rubbed herself against his thigh as he kissed her throat. She didn't consider that she was in any possible danger from him. Spike cared about her, and there was the chip that prevented him from hurting her even if he wanted to. Not that Buffy was able to give serious thought to anything other than his body, what he was doing to her with it, and the delicious feelings he was bringing about in her as a result.

Spike's head was swimming. Having Buffy embracing him, encouraging him to continue, the scent of her arousal rising to his nose -- he felt as if he would burst from sensory overload. Her pulse thudded against his lips. Her could feel and hear her blood rushing through her veins. Her hot, life-giving fluid was only under a delicate layer of skin, directly under his mouth... so close.

Under normal circumstances, Spike wouldn't have any trouble controlling his demon. He loved Buffy and would rather cut off his right arm than harm her. But now... starving for fresh blood and his mind foggy with lust, his fangs extended and his eyes glowed amber. His primitive instincts took over.

Spike growled and gave the side of her neck a long, sensuous lick. Buffy didn't know anything was wrong. In fact, the growling sounded very sexy to her, making her growl a little in response.

Spike opened his jaws, preparing to chomp down on her lovely neck.

At the last second, he froze, realizing what he was doing.

Buffy moaned, surrendering to her desire for him. "Ohhh, Spike, we shouldn't be doing this. But --"

Spike was horrified with himself, he'd been an inch away from hurting (and very possibly killing) the woman he loved. He suddenly grabbed her shoulders and shoved her away from him, sending Buffy falling backwards to land a few feet away from him on her backside.

Buffy sat up, angry and confused. "Ow! Hey! I said BUT! You didn't honor the but! What's wrong with..."

Spike curled into the corner of the room, looking like he was trying to pass through the wall. He was wincing and digging the heels of his hands into his forehead and trying to hide his face. She saw his forehead was bumpy and his fangs catch the light.

Spike said in a growly whisper, "Stay away from me." He hadn't been sure if the chip worked in this dimension until he pushed her away, but it had gone off, adding to his misery.

Buffy glanced at the witch's bedroom door, hoping their captor wasn't woken up by the noise. After a few moments of silence, Buffy focused back on Spike. She inched closer to him despite his warning.

"You tried to bite me?" Buffy asked, a disappointed/hurt edge to her voice. "Guess the chip still works, huh?"

"Just... stay away. Please..." Spike said, his voice cracking.

Tears built up in her eyes. "I trusted you! How could you..." Buffy stopped to think, for once. She was assuming the worst of him again, and she'd been wrong the last few times she'd done that. It didn't make sense that Spike would protect her the way he had, and then try to hurt her himself. Especially while they were... doing what they were doing. Maybe it was just that he was so hungry that his instincts had taken over, or maybe he hadn't tried to hurt her at all. "Wait... did the chip go off because you tried to bite me or because you pushed me away?"

"Doesn't matter..." he muttered, still keeping his face turned away from her.

"Yes, it does. Did you mean to hurt me or not?"

"I was... overcome -- first by desire for you, and then by the desire for your blood. I lost control. I realized that I was about to sink my teeth into you, and that's when I pushed you away. I got zapped by the chip for pushing you. I didn't mean to hurt you... just had to get you away from me. I'm so sorry, Buffy... You have no idea how sorry."

Buffy was sad that their heavy petting had ended so abruptly and badly, but her heart didn't feel as heavy knowing that Spike wasn't trying to hurt her on purpose. She was glad that she'd let him explain first, and she hadn't just gone off on a rant and sulked.

Spike continued, "If I hadn't come to my senses, if it had gone on for just a second longer... I would have bitten you. I've been losing control, losing time, more and more. Short periods of time where I go into a sort of... trance. I come out of it and I don't remember what I was doing or why."

"Things like that have been happening to me too... I kind of zone out for a minute or two." Buffy was too embarrassed to say exactly what she'd been imagining doing during those mental lapses. "Oh, Spike... I didn't know it was getting that bad for you. Why didn't you say anything?"

"Not a pleasant thing to bring up, that one is losing one's mind. This was the worst yet." He laughed a little crazily. "Don't know why I should be surprised, this is exactly the way my luck has run since I got to Sunnyhell. I was finally doing what I've only dreamt about, and I ruin it because I'm goin' insane."

"You... dreamt about doing that... with me?" Buffy's heart sped up at the thought that he'd wanted her just as much as she wanted him, that he'd yearned for her the same way she had for him.

Spike looked at her out of the corner of his golden eye. "Once... or twice."

She smiled. "Thank God it wasn't just me! I've been thinking about you in, um, very different ways since we've been here. Do you think the Unari are doing things to our minds? Making us... feel things for each other?"

Spike's face changed back to his Human appearance. The pain from the chip was receding at last, but his emotional turmoil wasn't going away any time soon. Buffy seemed to think that her attraction to him was coming from outside herself, from the wankers that created this dimension. Maybe it was true -- for her. Spike had already been well on his way to being head-over-heels in love with her, he'd only needed a nudge in the right direction for his lust to turn to full-fledged love. He was able to privately fully accept and embrace that he loved her now, not beat himself up about it like he'd done back in the real world. But Buffy might need to believe she wasn't responsible for her feelings and actions. He'd go along with that theory if it helped her deal.

"Maybe they are messing with our minds, I don't know."

"Why would they do that?" Buffy asked rhetorically. "What would they gain from making us... care about each other?"

Spike just shrugged slightly.

"Feeling better? The pain going away?" Buffy wanted to reach out and touch him in a comforting way, but knew he wouldn't welcome it. His body language couldn't be more 'hands off'.

"Yeah. You should go back to bed now."

Buffy sighed, seeing that he was still shrinking away and wouldn't look directly at her. "Spike... it's okay, I'm not mad at you for what happened."

"It's not okay. I almost killed the woman I... I've grown very fond of." Spike wasn't ready to confess his love, he didn't know if he ever would be. "I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if I hurt you, Buffy. I hate myself, how can you not be angry with me?"

"If it was reversed -- like if you had chocolate sauce running through your veins -- you'd have to sleep with one eye open because I'd be tempted to chomp you."

Spike and Buffy both snorted a little laugh.

He smiled a bit, amazed and moved that Buffy was trying to cheer him up. Then he sighed and looked at the blue veins on the undersides of his wrists. "I'm surprised it's not chocolate sauce by now, with all the fucking sweets I've eaten."

Buffy took a deep breath, what she was about to suggest was contrary to everything she believed in. But that was back in Sunnydale, and the rules were changed in this dimension. "Spike, I want you to take some of my blood."

He turned and looked at her, so many emotions were churning within him. Spike was touched that Buffy was offering to feed him her own blood, his demon sang in triumph that it would be fed Slayer blood. He was so hungry, he wanted to shout, "YES!" But he couldn't take it from her. After the initial eagerness to accept her offer, he took a good look at Buffy. She was holding up better than just about anyone else would be in her position, but he could see the signs that she was getting weaker.

Buffy saw the emotions register on his face as he felt them: awe and happiness, then hesitancy and fear, then sadness and resignation. His shoulders slumped, and he curled back into the corner. "No."

"Why not? Spike, you need it. I want to help you."

"Buffy, you don't understand... I can't trust myself. If I get one taste... I'll want more, and more... I won't be able to stop until I'm full as a tick."

"But the chip would..."

Spike shook his head. "The chip would go off, but I doubt I'd feel it. I'd be too determined to drink, I'd do it through the pain. It's getting to the point where... I'm little more than an animal, like a shark going into a feeding frenzy. I'll act on instinct, without emotion interfering. It won't matter how I... feel about you, you'll just be food. And then I'd realize what I'd done and despise myself for hurting you. So, please, you have to keep your distance from me."

It touched Buffy that Spike cared for her so much, he wasn't interested in just getting into her pants -- though he was clearly interested in that too. "Then... I can cut myself and bleed into a cup. That way you wouldn't accidentally hurt me."

Spike swallowed and squeezed his eyes shut. Then he shook his head again, saying firmly, "No."

"Why are you objecting this time? You won't even have to get your fangs anywhere near me."

"It means more to me than you'll ever know that you offered me your blood. But I can't take it from you, Buffy. I won't. You're not exactly 100% yourself, you can't afford to be weakened any further either. I'm fading, but one of us has to stay as strong as possible."

It made Buffy's heart ache to see how Spike was fighting to do what he thought was the right thing. He was trying to go against his most primal instincts for survival just to keep her from being harmed.

Buffy sighed. "You had to choose to start being all noble in this dimension? Why not back in Sunnydale?"

"Noble," Spike repeated with a sneer. "There's a word that could never be tagged onto me."

"Until now. You're being heroic, admit it," Buffy said with a small smile.

"Never," Spike replied with an answering smile.

Buffy repeated something he'd said to her, "If your body manufactured something I could survive on, you'd let me have a suck. Right? Let me give --"

"No, Buffy." Spike looked her in the eye. "I'm not going to change my mind about this."

She wanted to smack him and cuddle him at the same time. He was being stubborn, but his motives were sweet. Buffy tried to think of something she could do for him. "Well... what if I can bring you one of the animals she keeps outside?"

"That would be... better, in that it doesn't involve weakening you. But she's not just gonna let you feed me one of her animals. And I don't think you'll be able to smuggle in a pig under your skirt."

"I'll think of something... My chain won't reach out into the yard, but I was thinking of trying to lure some kind of animal into the house with food. Would you object to having to eat a rat if it comes to that?"

Spike growled. "Not like I have endless options... I'll dine on rat tartar if I must. I don't want her catching you trying to help me and hurting you again, Buffy. I won't --"

"Shut up, Spike," Buffy said much more good-naturedly than she had in the past. "I'm going to get you blood, one way or another. No more arguments."

Spike was still nervous about what she planned to do, but his spirits were lifted slightly that Buffy cared about him. "Yes, ma'am. Just... whatever you do, promise me you'll be careful, pet."

Buffy resisted the urge to rub his leg -- in a comforting way, of course. Although her warm feelings for Spike hadn't gone away, him nearly ripping her throat out had put a damper on her horniness for the time being. It wasn't a good idea to do that with Spike, for many reasons besides the possibility of him unintentionally killing her.

"I'll be careful." Buffy gave him a smile, then went back to her corner.

Spike relaxed when she was no longer within reach. He was afraid that he'd lose control and hurt her if she was close enough to grab. It was depressing that the kissing had ended the way it had, and with his luck, it would never happen again.

Spike licked his lips anxiously, then asked, "Uh, what we were doing right before I vamped out... is that something you'd want to do again?"

Buffy looked down, blushing anew. "Um, well... maybe, yeah, I think I would. But you have to get strong and survive in order for it to happen again. Got it?"

"Now that's what I call incentive." Spike smirked and laid down to get some rest as Buffy did the same. "For my next number, I'd like to do 'I'm A Bad, Bad Man' from Annie Get Your Gun."

They looked at each other, smiling and laughing lightly, then both settled in to try sleeping.


Spike went to sleep after serenading Buffy with a Simon and Garfunkel song; he knew those so well that they required almost no effort. He was so tired, and his mind was too cluttered. He was shaken by what he'd almost done to her. Fate was cruel indeed... it was to him, anyway. Kissing Buffy was right at the top of Spike's list of things he wanted, and she seemed to be interested in being with him -- but he couldn't allow her to come near him right now. Not until he had a decent meal. She'd called him 'noble'. Was that what he was doing? Being noble? He wouldn't dissuade her from thinking of him that way, but Spike didn't consider it gallant, he just didn't want to hurt the woman he loved. His motive was selfish at its core, like most things he did. There was more to it than that, of course, but Spike had trouble thinking of himself as heroic in any way.

Buffy fell asleep trying to think of what she could find for Spike to eat -- and not what her feelings for him meant or might lead to. First, they had to escape, then she could worry about repercussions from what she might or might not do with him. Spike was right that the witch wouldn't just let her give him an animal to feed on, and a missing animal would surely be noticed. Maybe a wild animal was the best bet? There might be some rats hanging around a house made of food... It was squicky to think about it, but she would do what it took to keep Spike from starving.





The next morning was the same routine. Kicking, taunting, breakfast, then Wicked Willow leaving to do some witchy errands.

After making sure the witch was no longer in the vicinity of the house, Buffy placed a trail of food leading into the house. She hoped to lure an animal in that Spike could eat. Then she went back to her chores.

Spike was dubious about the chances of a furry creature just walking up to the house. He imagined that animals (with their keener instincts) would stay away from the gingerbread house. Animals had a way of knowing when danger loomed; they were a lot better than Humans at sensing evil.

"Buffy, you know what's going to happen if she comes back and sees the door wide open and a trail of food leading inside..."

"I know. But she's usually gone for a few hours. I'll leave it like that for a while, then clean it up and close the door if we don't have any luck getting an animal into the house. The bitch won't even know we did anything... hopefully." Buffy helped herself to a piece of chocolate cake. Her mother would surely be disappointed with her table manners. She practically inhaled the cake, eating it with her hand.

"So, the plan is that a bunny will hop through the doorway and you'll stomp on it?" Spike asked.

"Something like that," Buffy replied as she washed her hands. "Maybe the wisecracking raccoon or the mentally-challenged squirrel will come along to save us. I'll have to be careful not to stomp on them."

They laughed.

"Never did I think I'd see the day where the Slayer would be trying to trap cuddly critters for me to eat."

"Yeah, well I'm doing and thinking about lots of stuff I never thought I would..."

Though Spike was joking with her and being smirky, she could tell that he was not well. He looked so tired, like he could barely keep his eyes open. He was getting more listless -- even his snark wasn't as snarky today. But it had been a long time without him getting any blood, just all of the food that Buffy wished that she could eat.

"Why don't you try to rest," Buffy suggested. "I'll wake you up if anything happens."

Spike sniffed and sat up straighter. "Nah, I'm alright."

"Spike, close your eyes and take a nap."

"You get off on bossing me around, don't you?" he asked playfully.

"Mmmhmm, love it. Now shut up and go to sleep."


Spike stubbornly stayed awake making small talk with Buffy as she cleaned. It was silly (he knew it was), but he didn't want Buffy to think of him as frail. Despite the fact that he had very little energy, and he really should rest while the witch was away, he didn’t want to admit how bad his condition was getting -- to Buffy or himself.





Buffy guessed that over an hour had passed since the witch had left, she could be back at any time. Unfortunately, no animals had been dumb enough to hop/walk/slither through the door. It was time to clean it up and shut the door before the witch returned.

After she shut the front door Buffy sighed dejectedly. “Dammit... I was really hoping the food would attract an animal. Sorry, Spike, guess we‘ll have to try again tomorrow.”

He sighed, "It was a long shot, but thanks for tryin'."

Buffy gave the floor another quick once-over with the broom, then sat down in her corner to rest. She felt so tired, so weary. She was getting much weaker, this 'story' had to end soon if they had any hope whatsoever of surviving. It seemed so hopeless... But she had to keep putting up a brave front for Spike, as well as for herself. It was important to keep talking about getting home, even though their spirits were flagging.

She wiped sweat from her brow with the back of her hand. "I am going to go out to dinner at a steakhouse and eat the biggest, juiciest damn steak in the world when I get back home. You know, one of those mega-steaks where if you eat all of it they put a picture of you up on the wall and ring a bell? That's what I'm gonna do. And maybe get the salad bar to balance it out. How about you?"

Buffy looked at him, seeing that he was slumped against the wall, his eyes closed. He didn't look good at all. He was paler than normal and the dark circles under his eyes were more pronounced.

She wasn't doing too well herself, the ability to think rationally was getting more difficult at times like these. Her knee-jerk reaction was to fear for Spike and worry because he’d been talking to her only a minute ago, and now he looked so... dead. It slipped her mind for a moment that Vampires didn’t just die, they had to have something major happen to them (such as staking, being set on fire, decapitation), then they *poofed*.

"Spike, are you okay? Spike!" She had to raise her voice to finally get his attention.

He jerked and opened his eyes, then sat up. He looked around, confused.

"I was talking to you," Buffy said with concern and a little embarrassment that she'd panicked for a moment.

"What? Missed what you said. I was... just resting my eyes for a minute."

"That's what my grandpa used to say when he fell asleep watching TV."

"Alright, yeah, I drifted off... Isn't that what you told me to do?" It disturbed Spike that he hadn't meant to fall asleep. He figured that his body was starting to shut down from lack of nourishment, protecting itself by putting him into a sleep state until blood was available. But he tried not to let his distress show.

"We have to make a move soon, Spike. I'm getting weaker from lack of food and being worked like a mule, you're getting weaker from lack of blood. We have to get out of here."

"You're talking like we haven't been trying anything since the bloody beginning. We can't get around the bitch's protection spell."

"Well, if we don't get out soon..."

Spike sighed and nodded slightly. "Yeah... I know. But she won't give me blood. The way I am now, I doubt I could even beat up Xander."

"I'm going to offer you some of mine again -- and you better say yes or I'll kick your ass."

Spike wanted to shout 'YES'. But Buffy wasn't faring too well herself. She was putting on a tough front and pretending she was stronger than she actually was, he wouldn't expect any less of his Buffy. She was a magnificent woman; her strength and determination were two of the many things he loved about her. But he could tell how weak she was becoming. Her face was drawn and pale, she had dark smudges under her eyes, she was thinner from not being able to eat anything substantial. Thank goodness she'd gotten away with stealing a bit of food here and there, she'd be even worse off if she hadn't eaten a cookie or two every day. But the fact remained that she couldn't give him any of her blood without serious risk to her own health.

"Spike, did you hear me?" Buffy asked after he hadn't responded for 30 seconds.

"Yeah... I heard you, Slayer. My answer is still no."

"You are so damn stubborn!" Buffy huffed.

"Something we have in common." Spike smirked faintly.

"One thing I never thought I'd have trouble making you do was drink my blood."

"I never reckoned it would require much arm-twisting either, but..." he shrugged.

They spoke over each other, both wanting to get their points across:

"Spike, you need --"
"I'm not taking --"

They ceased talking when the witch came in the door.

"I'm back, my darlings!" She came in and closed the door, then went to put her basket of flowers, roots and herbs on the cabinet. "I hope you were good little children while I was away."

She crossed the room to Spike, stopping a few feet in front of him. "Stand up, boy. Let me have a look at you."

Buffy started to say, "He's tired and weak because you won't give him --"

"Shut up!" Wicked Willow snapped at her. "I didn't ask for your opinion." Then she looked down at Spike again. "I told you to stand up."

Spike took a breath, then used the wall to help him stand up. His eyes went to the magic wand clutched in the witch's right hand. They'd never gotten a good opportunity to try getting that wand away from her, she always had it tightly gripped in her hand when she got close to them. They didn't know if it would shock them if they just touched it. But their situation was getting more critical, they might not have much time left. They would have to take what would probably turn out to be stupid risks if they had a chance in Hell of getting out of this alive.

'Better to go down fighting than just lay down and take it like a bitch,' Spike thought gravely. He waited for Wicked Willow's attention to be diverted before trying anything.

Evil Willow poked a sharp, black fingernail at his ribs, he flinched away from her touch. "You're still not fat! You've gotten skinnier!" she said accusingly.

Exasperated, Spike yelled, “How many bloody times have I told you I wouldn’t gain weight?! I’ve eaten tons of the fucking food you've forced on me, haven’t I? Not my fault you didn‘t believe me, you stupid bitch!”

“Don’t sass me, boy!” the witch screeched and jabbed the magic wand at him.

Spike saw this as his chance. He was able to move fast enough to turn to the side, avoiding the wand making contact with his body, and grabbed the wand with both hands, trying to wrench it out of her grasp. Spike was trying to be careful not to touch her, just the wand. It was something of a relief that just laying hands on the wand didn't deliver a shock.

The witch wasn't giving up the wand easily though. She was able to hold onto it with one hand while clawing and scratching at his face with the other hand. She grit her teeth, trying to pull it out of Spike's clutching hands, "Stop that this minute! Let go!"

Buffy sprang up and rushed over, eager to help.

Unfortunately, the witch saw her coming. As soon as Buffy was within striking distance, Evil Willow's left hand shot viciously out at her. Buffy was backhanded with great force across the face. The blow sent her stumbling backwards, her head crashed against the wall -- and that was the last thing Buffy remembered for several minutes. It would have killed her, had she been Human.

Spike was still struggling with the witch when he heard Buffy get smacked. He didn't stop trying to yank the wand out of the Evil Willow's hand, but he looked in time to see Buffy hit the wall, her eyes roll up, and then watched as she dropped to the floor.

"Buffy!" he yelled, afraid that she might be hurt badly, or worse. There was no way in hell that a Slayer should be felled so quickly and easily, especially not Buffy. This dimension was all wrong, it was insane, and it was slowly making them insane too. Spike went into game face and snarled at Wicked Willow. "You're dead, bitch!"

"Oh no, you're the dead one, darling boy!" She grabbed his right shoulder at the trapezius, spearing his flesh and digging in with all five of her long nails.

Tendrils of fresh pain curled through his body starting from where her nails were piercing his skin. Spike had been clawed before (mostly by Drusilla), so he wasn't a stranger to it. But even Dru had never lanced him like this. Maybe it was because he was already physically weak, or maybe it was some kind of additional magick -- it wouldn't surprise him if the green bitch had enchanted fingernails to deliver pain. But whatever it was, it made Spike feel drained of energy and caused him to loosen his hold on the wand.

His golden eyes widened when he felt the wand being pulled out of his hands, "NO!" He tried getting a new hold on it, but it was too late.

The moment it was pulled free, Wicked Willow stabbed it at his chest cruelly. The finely honed end of the wand pierced the skin of his left upper-chest.

“Arrgh! F-fucking hell!” Spike yelled between clenched teeth, the pain quickly overtaking him. Even when he was at full strength, the shock from the wand would have disabled him. If he were Human the shock he just received would have killed him.

The witch kept zapping him, she was mighty pissed off. Spike felt blood running from the wounds on his shoulder, deep scratches on his face, and the new one on his chest, blood he couldn't spare. But it was the shocks from the wand that occupied his mind, making his body jerk and shake like someone who'd grabbed onto a live electrical wire.

"You'll pay dearly for your insolence, you unruly boy!" Wicked Willow extracted her claws from his shoulder, then shoved him hard. Spike hit the wall, then collapsed to the floor, unconscious.





Buffy woke up first, the back of her head and her jaw aching, she tasted blood. She groaned and pushed herself up onto her elbows. She didn't know how much time had passed. When she remembered what had been happening, she whipped her head over to look at Spike -- which made her wince hard at the throbbing in her head.

He was laying curled up on his side, blood was running from his chest and shoulder, and the side of his face had several deep scratches; it looked like a large, pissed off cat had gone crazy on him. But the most noticeable change was that Spike was now in a barred, metal cage, a cage like Hansel was put in in the story. Fear and hopelessness gripped her heart. Spike had taken (what might turn out to be) their one last bid at overpowering the witch and escaping... and it had failed.

Then Buffy's eyes quickly scanned the room -- the front door was open. They were alone, but probably not for long. She didn't notice that the axe was gone from the wall where it normally hung.

"Spike," Buffy called, but it came out a whisper. She blinked away tears as she sat up. She said louder, "Spike! Please wake up!"

Spike's eyes snapped open at the sound of her voice. He wasn't thinking coherently yet, and seeing that there were now metal bars surrounding him sent him into a frenzy. Back when he'd been plain ol' mortal William, he'd had a slight fear of confined spaces (among other fears), that old fear came back.

He went wild, his fangs bared and yellow eyes blazing -- getting to his knees and roaring with rage and animal-panic. He yanked on and rattled the bars of his cage frantically, his body swung back and forth as he pulled and pushed with all his might, like a zoo animal who had finally had enough of captivity. The bars weren't budging. He was a helpless, caged beast.

Buffy wiped away tears, forcing herself to be strong for both their sakes, then crawled quickly over to his cage. She didn't dare try touching him while he was in this mindless, violent panic-mode.

She stopped in front of the cage, waving her hands around to get him to focus on her, "Spike! Spike calm down, you're going to hurt yourself worse! Please stop!"

Buffy's voice finally penetrated the fog in his mind. Spike's wild eyes fixed on her, then he slowed to a stop, panting madly for breath he didn't need. He sat on the backs of his legs, still holding the bars between his trembling fists. "You're okay..." he said, remembering she'd been hurt too.

His face morphed back to Human; to Buffy, he looked to be in shock. And after that incredible burst of violent energy he'd just expended, he was probably as weak as a baby.

"Yeah, I'm okay." She looked at the bleeding marks on his face, shoulder, and chest. "What did she do to you?"

"Fingernails... wand." Spike leaned forward, resting his forehead against the bars. "We can't escape, Buffy. She's going to kill us, and there's not one bloody thing we can do... Can't stand this anymore..."

"Don't talk like that. We will get out of here." She knew how stupid that sounded after all they'd been through and all the things they'd tried. But she had to keep a stiff upper lip that Giles would be proud of. "It's my fault this is happening to us, if I'd listened to you at the beginning of this..."

"It's not your fault..." Spike didn't blame her for their predicament anymore, he figured that she very well may have been correct about them meeting the witch being a requirement to passing this 'test'. Perhaps the Unari had set them up to fail, or maybe they'd just missed an opportunity to escape that they weren't aware of. Spike didn't want Buffy to feel guilty about it.

"Yes, it is my fault. But I promise that I'll find a way to get out. I won't let you die." Buffy reached through the bar with her right hand, gently caressing the side of his face. She put her other hand over top of his clenched fist. "I promise."

Spike's eyes lifted to her face, his eyelids fluttered as he leaned into her touch like a cat. "This... This is almost worth all the pain. To have you touch me like this... s'pose it's okay for me to die now."

She swallowed the lump in her throat. "No one's going to die -- with the exception of that evil bitch. I'm getting out of here, and I'm not leaving without you. Do you understand?" Buffy said firmly.

Spike just looked at her with despair, his blue eyes shining. He marveled at her strength of will again, how she could still have a positive outlook in the face of the seemingly insurmountable obstacles in their path.

His mouth was near the bars, so Buffy leaned forward and pressed her lips against his, needing to find and give comfort. As she'd expected, the world and their plight faded at the touch of his lips, just like the last time.

It was comforting to both of them for a short time, then Spike tasted the blood in her mouth from when she'd been punched -- he suddenly pushed off of the bars, propelling himself backwards, hitting the back of the cage. Before a startled Buffy could ask what was wrong, she saw that his fangs and bumpies were back.

"You have to stay away," Spike croaked, turning away from her. He curled his fingers around the bars closest to him just holding onto and gripping them. He didn't think he was capable of self-control any longer. He was too depleted and deprived to be trusted.

"Spike... there's no time left to argue about it, you have to drink my --"

Willow's voice came from the doorway, making them jump. "Get back in your corner before I count to five, Buffy, or you'll be missing a foot." Wearing Sunnydale Willow's face with a grim expression, she twirled the axe in her hand like a majorette with a baton. "One..."

Buffy looked away from the witch back to Spike, not wanting to leave him to possibly be hurt again -- but she didn't want to lose a body part either.

"Go on, go," Spike said softly, his golden eyes pleading with her to hurry.

She'd never thought a Vampire's spooky yellow eyes could look soft and warm, but his did.

Buffy hesitated a moment, then did as she was told, making it back to the corner on the count of 4. She cringed away when the witch leant down toward her, expecting to be hit or chopped. But Wicked Willow only touched Buffy's shackle with the wand.

"Come with me, little imp."

"Wh-Why?"

Evil Willow smiled, which was scarier than when she scowled. "My patience has worn thin. I wouldn't give me any lip if I were you. Take the buckets to the well and fill them -- now. I want to make a nice chicken soup for dinner. And if you to try something foolish, I'll chop your head off without thinking twice about it. I was so very angry about what you two did that I had to go chop some firewood. I came very close to just chopping you both up, but I took it out on the woodpile at the last minute instead. Be grateful."

Buffy stood up, and picked up the buckets by the door. The witch pushed her out into the yard and followed her to the well.





The animal pens on the side of the house came into view when she got to the well. It was almost certainly useless, but Buffy had to try asking for some kind of compassion. "If you could give Spike just one animal... He's very weak and needs blood. You noticed yourself that he's getting thinner -- which makes no sense unless he's been telling the truth about needing blood."

"I offered him your blood and he rejected it. You expect me to believe that an evil, blood-drinking demon chose not to eat in order to spare you?"

Buffy was having a hard time believing it herself. "Spike is... different than other Vampires, he's special." She hadn't realized how different or special Spike truly was until their captivity. "Please just give him one --"

"We're beyond that now. Put down the buckets. Gather an armful of firewood and take it to the shack."

Buffy paused after she'd put the buckets down next to the well. "What do you mean, we're beyond that?"

"I will not wait any longer. Let Spike be fat or lean, tomorrow I will kill him, and cook him!"

Buffy gulped and stared at her. "No... please don't kill him. Please..."

"Gather the firewood and march to the shack. I won't tell you again." She twirled the axe. "I remember that little incident when you tried to kill me with this very axe... Wouldn't it be ironic if I used it to separate your foolish head from your shoulders?"

Buffy picked up an armful of firewood, afraid that she'd feel the blade of the axe crashing into her body at any moment. She started walking to the shack. How the hell were they going to escape? They were out of time. This test/quest was completely unfair! Buffy didn't mind a challenge, but this situation was impossible to get out of. They'd never stood a chance against the superhuman, evil witch. God help the Unari if she ever got her hands on one of them... Of course she'd have to avoid getting killed or starved to death first.

She entered the shack, going on autopilot; her mind was consumed with whirling thoughts. On a wooden table against the wall on the right sat a huge black roasting pan and a collection of sharp knives. She shuddered, knowing what their use would be tomorrow if she couldn't kill the witch before then. 'I can't let this happen. I *won't* let this happen. I won't let Spike die.'

Buffy eyed the oven as she dropped the wood in front of it, the fire was already going. The air was hot and wavy around the oven, and she'd seen smoke billowing out of the chimney outside.

"Now, remove the cover," Wicked Willow said from behind her.

There was a large, heavy iron door (about 4 feet high, and just as wide) on a sturdy hinge on the front of the oven. It could be opened by swinging the door to the left. A long, solid iron bar was standing on end leaning against the oven. Buffy deduced that the oven door could be barred, keeping anything inside that might still be alive. After all the chilling, crazy shit she'd been through she could really relate to that scene in 'Planet of the Apes' in which Charlton Heston declared, 'This is a madhouse! A maaaadhouse!'

Buffy opened the oven door, a blast of stifling heat pushed her back a step. She had to turn her face to take a deep breath and felt the wispy hairs surrounding her face curl. This could be her last chance to get rid of the witch, and it would adhere to what happened in the fairy tale.

'How did Gretel get her in the oven again?' she asked herself. 'Should have talked to Spike about it...' It wasn't easy to think straight.

"Add the wood to the fire, I want to make sure the oven stays nice and hot," Wicked Willow told Buffy. "We're going to have a tasty roasted Spike tomorrow! I'll even let you have a piece! As a matter of fact... I insist that you have some."

Buffy whirled around to face her. "You can't do this! I won't let you!"

"How adorable! You have some fight in you yet, eh? I can do whatever I like to you! I can't wait for tomorrow to come. First, I'll bake the bread shell, then pop him in and sprinkle him with the perfect blend of spices. Mmmm, Spike potpie! I can't wait to eat my oven roasted Vampire! Should I slice up some apple or stick a whole one in his mouth? I think I'll have a nice red wine with him. Oh, it's so exciting when the time for feasting comes!" Wicked Willow laughed and did a happy little jig.

"You won't be able to eat him! If you try putting him anywhere near fire he'll go up like a pile of oily rags. There won't be anything left for you to eat -- do you understand?!"

"Hmm, yes, so you've said. I suppose I couldn't cook him if what you say about Vampires is true. How tragic it would be if I was robbed of my prize. Killing him might not be the answer..."

Buffy's shoulders sagged with relief, thinking that the witch finally understood. That maybe now Spike would be spared being cooked.

"But..." Wicked Willow continued with a gleam in her eye, "perhaps I could cut off an arm or a leg without my dinner turning to ash."

Buffy looked up sharply at her, not able to hide the horrified look on her face that told the witch that it was true.

Evil Willow cackled with glee. "I think I'll experiment -- chop pieces off one at a time and see how long it takes him to die."

Tears filled her eyes. "Please don't do this!" Buffy knew that it was useless to ask for mercy from the pitiless, soulless monster, but she couldn't help making the reflexive plea. "There has to be something I can say or do to make this stop? Just tell me what you want and I'll do it!"

"Would you rather I ate you? Tell me that you will take his place -- that's how you can save him. I bet you'd cook up just fine."

Buffy felt like a coward, she just couldn't say it. All sorts of horrific images of the witch doing terrible and painful things to her flooded her brain. "I don't want you to cook either of us!"

"It's you or him -- choose."

Buffy looked up at the ceiling (addressing the Unari, if they were even paying attention), "Please don't let this happen! What's wrong with you people?! I just wanted to find my sister! Why are you doing this to us!?"

The witch laughed. "Who are you talking to, girl? Has your fragile mind finally snapped?"

Buffy ranted, "You know who I'm talking to! The Unari, the ones who made all this! They screwed us by making this an impossible test!"

"You are mistaken if you think I will take pity on you because you've gone mad. It just makes you more amusing! I've been looking forward to my feast for too long. Tomorrow, you or Spike will be going in my oven. There's nothing you can do to prevent it. Now put the wood in the fire."

Buffy didn't have to fake crying, but she did exaggerate it. She wailed, then covered her face with her hands, hunching over and sobbing. "Please let us go! I can't take it anymore!"

The witch grumbled and pushed Buffy away from the stove, "Get out of the way, you're useless! I'll put the wood in myself, you gibbering little fool."

As soon as Evil Willow was occupied, Buffy circled around behind her. She still made wracking sobbing sounds to make the witch think she didn't pose a threat. If she could charge the witch while her back was turned and butt her with a shoulder hard enough to send her forward into the open oven...

Buffy took a deep breath took a step back, leaned forward and ran, leading with her right shoulder. It was going to hurt when the protection spell zapped her, but the witch would be in the oven by then.

Displaying superhuman reflexes and uncanny knowledge of what Buffy was thinking, the witch sidestepped Buffy's attack. Buffy's momentum kept her going forward toward the oven. At the last second, she gasped and was able to put her arms out to stop herself from going into the flames.

Buffy screamed wretchedly when she felt the wand hit her on the back. It wasn't just the pain from getting zapped, it was that she'd failed yet again. This was her last chance -- and she'd failed.





Back at the Magic Box...

It was now morning in Sunnydale. The Scoobies had gotten no rest.

Giles was at the Summers' home talking to and consoling Joyce about her daughters both being missing. No one envied him that task. Xander had to go to work, there was no way he could get out of it if he wanted to keep his job. Willow, Tara, Anya, and Riley were minding the shop and continuing with the research.

New pictures (with accompanying new text) had appeared. The first showed Buffy and Spike arriving at the Gingerbread House. The second showed them being fussed over by "Willow" -- the real Willow was horrified beyond belief. The third showed them succumbing to being drugged. And the fourth showed Spike trying to sweet talk the witch into trusting him.

Willow was sulking at the table, her head in her hands.

"Sweetie, it's not your fault," Tara soothed, rubbing Willow's back.

Willow sniffled. "It's just SO wrong! The Unari made me the evil witch who's abusing Buffy and Spike! They're using my name and image without my permission -- I wish I could sue!" She sat up and looked at Anya. "Anya, is there some kind of demon version of Judge Judy that I could..."

Anya just shook her head no.

"Dammit..." Willow grumbled, pouting uncontrollably.

"That's what you're worried about?" Riley asked. "How about the fact that Spike is betraying Buffy already!"

Anya rolled her eyes. "He was saying those things to try to get on the witch's good side. He wasn't serious."

"You think so, huh?" Riley said with a condescending shake of his head.

"It's obvious. To me, anyway. Spike's been helping us lately, and he volunteered to go into the portal with Buffy before you did. I don't think he'd double-cross her."

Willow was too busy pouting and Tara was too busy comforting her to chime in with their opinions on the subject. Though if they did, they would have agreed with Anya. Riley had reason to distrust Spike, but he was going a bit overboard with the suspicion.

"Oh, I'm sure that Spike volunteered out of the goodness of his heart, right? Uh-uh. That son of a bitch has something up his sleeve. He doesn't do anything that won't benefit him in some way. A leopard can't change his spots. Spike's m.o. has always been to look out for himself and no one else. I have no doubts he's doing that again. At least Buffy is seeing that he's nothing but a filthy demon, inside and out."

Anya raised her eyebrows. "I believe 'Paranoid much?' is the correct Sunnydale response to that. You should get some rest, Riley. Your hatred for Spike and paranoia about him are getting out of control -- and annoying. I know you don't believe me, but Spike isn't betraying Buffy, it's just a strategy."

'Of course she'd stick up for Spike... They're cut from the same cloth,' he thought. Riley had his reservations about Anya. She was a very pretty, very Human-looking woman, but he couldn't just forget that she had been a hideous, evil demon for a long time. What was Xander thinking, getting involved with a demon? It was crazy.

"Well, I guess we'll see which one of us is right when more of the story appears," he said smugly. "Then, hopefully, Buffy or the witch will stake Spike's sorry ass. Buffy can get out of this without any help from him."

Anya gave him a half-shrug. She was confident that she was right about Spike's motives. Riley just wouldn't cut Spike any slack whatsoever or give him the benefit of the doubt. She was also convinced that Riley secretly hated her, right along with Spike. He despised Spike (in part) because of the evil deeds Spike had committed over a century. Anya had 1000 years of Vengeance Demon'ing behind her, she'd done terrible things to people a lot longer than Spike had. But she'd changed. Loving Xander and being accepted into the Scoobies had helped make her a new person. Because of his limitations with the chip, Spike was rediscovering who he was now too, and Anya believed that he was changing, and he'd keep changing for the better. Just like she had. Spike deserved to be given another chance to be a better person.

Riley rubbed his tired eyes, "Maybe I will go get a few hours of sleep."

"Yeah, good idea." Anya would be glad to have him gone for a little while.

He said goodbye to Tara and Willow and started for the door. Then he stopped and turned back to Anya. "What would happen to them if the book was destroyed while they were still in the other dimension? Would it kill them?"

"I don't know," Anya said. "I guess it's possible. Or it might trap them in the other dimension forever, which is also bad."

"Don't worry, Riley, we won't let anything happen to the book. They'll be safe on this end," Tara said, trying to alleviate his fear on at least that subject.

Riley smiled slightly and nodded. Concern about something happening to the book hadn't been his motivation in asking the question, he'd only been going over possible ways to kill Spike. If it weren't for Buffy and Dawn being in there too, the fairy tale book would be thrown into the nearest fireplace. Getting rid of Spike forever sounded so very good. It was becoming an obsession, he couldn't seem to focus on anything else for long. Anya was so sure that Spike wasn't throwing Buffy under the bus? Well, everyone was going to see what a total bastard Spike was when more of the story appeared and they read about him stabbing Buffy in the back the first chance he got.

'Spike is history if Buffy and Dawn come out before he does. I'll rip that damn book apart with my bare hands if I have to.'


Riley didn't know it yet, but he was the one who was going to be upset when it was learned that Spike was just trying to trick the witch to save himself and Buffy. Anya gloating that she'd been right wouldn't help his mood either. It would piss him off even more that the Scoobies would be impressed with Spike's actions. He would be frustrated that none of them could see it had to be all part of Spike's evil plan.





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