Chapter 19
“Okay, let’s see, Willow and Tara are definitely coming and so is Anya, Giles has to be there so that just leaves Xander.”
“I can’t believe he said those things to you.”
Buffy looked at her little sister Dawn again while she finished getting changed. She’d swung by the Magic shop after her talk with Xander to do some training while Giles was, predictably, out. Dinner was over and she was preparing for the big showdown at the meeting tonight. Dawn had come up and joined her after a while. Buffy was glad her sister was on her side in all this but she was confused as to why Dawn would be so happy that Spike and Buffy had gotten together.
“Yeah well, Dawnie, Xander isn’t exactly big on the vamp love, not that I blame him, and Spike was never one of his favourites, heck he wasn’t exactly on my list of favourites either.”
“No I guess Angel topped that, and, wait, who was second? Oh right you didn’t have one…unless of course Spike…”
Buffy shot her sister a look and Dawn grinned. Teasing Buffy was fun and Dawn was going to make the most of it while she could.
“Hey I’m just saying, besides, I get what you mean about Xander but I still can’t believe he could be such a jerk.”
Buffy smirked and decided to do some teasing of her own.
“So the crush is off then?”
Dawn’s eyes widened comically and she straightened from where she’d been leaning against the wall.
“I so was not crushing on him, and even if I was, I like Spike better anyway.”
It was Buffy’s turn to look surprised.
Wait, what now? Since when has Dawn ever liked Spike?
“Since when?”
Dawn rolled her eyes.
“Please. I may not spend that much time with the once evil bloodsucking fiend but a girl would have to be crazy not to notice, Spike is totally hot. I mean that whole bad boy thing, bleached hair, the leather, the smoking, all that sexy smirking cos he knows exactly how hot he is, not to mention the accent. If I didn’t think you’d murder me for it I would have been spending most of my free time at his crypt.”
“Excuse me?”
“Not doing anything, relax, sheesh, teenager here, just talking, hanging out. But alas, my chance is gone, he’s all about the Buffster now. Not that he’d have ever noticed me to begin with.”
“Hanging out with Spike? Oh yeah, you would have been in so much trouble for that missy. You’d seriously want to spend time at his crypt? What about all the times he tried to kill us?”
“Correction, tried to kill you. He was never anything but nice to me and Mom, and you are the Slayer after all, but, hey, I guess he didn’t really wanna kill you after all, he’s completely in love with you.”
Buffy tried to take all this in, still reeling from the fact that Dawn liked Spike. Correction, had a crush on him. She internally rolled her eyes.
Yet another member of the Spike fan club, it just keeps growing. How the hell does a so-called evil vampire get so many people to like him?
When she thought about it Dawn was right. A girl would have to be crazy not to notice the hot British bad boy with that alluring sense of danger. She’d felt it herself at the beginning but ruled it out because they were enemies and you did not have lusty thoughts about your enemies, especially not when you had a boyfriend…at least you weren’t supposed to.
“Let’s hope he’s still in love with me when I find him.”
“Well it’s only been a day and he can’t move around that easy with the big ball of fire in the sky. He’ll probably show up tonight.”
“I don’t know if that would be a good idea considering what happened but I’d definitely like to feel him around just so I know he’s okay. Stupid vamp making me worry.”
Dawn smirked which, Buffy noticed for the first time, was very reminiscent of the blonde Brit and stepped closer, placing a hand on Buffy’s shoulder and looked at her seriously.
“You, dear sister, have got it bad. Worrying about him when it’s not even been twenty-four hours? Talking about him to Mom and finally making a stand against the Tweed Patrol? He’s good for you. I bet he wouldn’t disappear off nearly so much if you told him how you really felt.”
“What? What do you mean, he knows I have feelings for him. Wait what are you implying?”
“Sure, feelings. Feelings with no further description. Like I said Buffy, you’ve got it bad. Think about it.”
Dawn moved back out of the room leaving Buffy’s mind whirling. She paused before fully leaving the doorway.
“Don’t forget, the meeting’s starting soon, wouldn’t want you to be late.”
With that said she skipped off down the hall smiling to herself.
What? But…I…huh?
Buffy considered the meaning behind Dawn’s words. Apparently her sister didn’t think she was being completely honest with her boyfriend about how she felt, but that couldn’t be true. Obviously she cared about him. He loved her, he would do anything for her and he was always trying his best to make her see the woman he saw, who she could be if she stopped hiding and trying to fit in with her idea of normal.
Wait a minute.
She backtracked. He was very clear about his feelings for her, he loved her, but Buffy had never defined what she felt about him. But that was because she wasn’t sure how she felt, wasn’t it? She had agreed to give him a chance and so far he’d proven that it was the right decision but she’d never really explored it further. It was too soon to think about, it had to be. She thought about all those times they’d been together and how she’d felt when she’d looked into those bluer than blue eyes and saw his heart right there in front of her and how it had been so calming and exciting at the same time, when she’d felt loved and protected and cherished, when she’d been falling…
Falling…
Dawn’s words echoed in her ears, “you’ve got it bad.” She plopped down on the bed and whimpered. The last thing she needed right now was another great big epiphany.
***
Travers was pacing back and forth in the magic shop, outwardly composed but with a slight spring in his step. The members of his team were gathered around, all clutching their clipboards and watching him. They could sense his satisfaction. Ever since she’d turned her back on the Council after surviving her Cruciamentum, Travers had been longing for a way to get back at the brazen little cheerleader and he finally had his moment, thanks to her inexplicable attraction to vampires. Lydia thought to herself that at least where William the Bloody was concerned, the attraction was understandable, but she would never admit that to her superior, not if she wanted to keep her job.
Giles leaned against one of the bookshelves, staring at the floor stoney-faced. He was keeping disturbingly quiet, not even saying a hello to the others when they arrived. The rest of the Scoobies were sitting upstairs, behind the railings, feet dangling over the edge, all casting looks at the older man. Anya had been working in the shop all day and so was the first one waiting for the meeting to start. Giles and the Watchers were next, early as usual, not wanting to miss the chance to position themselves imposingly around the shop. They needn’t have worried. They had plenty of time. Willow and Tara were next to arrive and together, they and Anya made their way upstairs to avoid the uncomfortable tension created by the Watchers. Travers wanted them in the background anyway. Xander had shown up, much to their relief but also making them anxious that he would say something stupid. He would have been late, which is probably what he’d intended if the one person who was expected to be there had turned up. Joining his friends without a word to the Watchers, barring a sidelong look at an oblivious Giles, he clearly was confused and irritated that Buffy wasn’t there yet.
“Where the heck is she?” he whispered to Willow.
The red-head shrugged nervously.
“I honestly don’t know. She’ll definitely be here, she probably just got delayed fighting some demons or something.”
Xander snorted.
“Well she better be here after invading my house telling me to show up. If she’s with that vamp…OW!”
The Watchers glanced up briefly, annoyed, and Xander rubbed his arm where Anya had rather painfully pinched him. He scowled at her and she glared back making him lean away scared. He tried to cover up his nervousness at his girlfriend’s displeasure by complaining.
“What was that for?”
“If I hear one more word about Buffy and Spike, Alexander Harris, I’ll rip that arm off and beat you with it,” she hissed menacingly.
Xander flinched and Willow and Tara turned wide eyes on the ex-vengeance demon. Xander opened his mouth to speak but a raised hand from Anya made him shut it quickly, afraid she’d hit him again. Instead she jabbed a finger into his chest, pushing him back as she punctuated every word she threatened in a voice barely above a whisper.
“No. No to whatever dumb comment, nasty insult or snide remark you want to make. No, no, no! Spike and Buffy are a couple, deal with it. She obviously likes him and he clearly gives her many pleasing orgasms and who she chooses as a partner has nothing to do with you, got it? She will be here. Now shut up and wait like the rest of us and get over this prejudice you have against demons before I reconsider why I’m dating you.”
With that said, Anya turned back to watch the front door, her face set in stern disapproval as Xander rubbed his sore chest. He had paled at the word orgasms and decided to keep his mouth shut as he shrank back from his fuming girlfriend and sulked, turning his attention to the door as well. Willow and Tara gaped, impressed. Anya always spoke her mind and sometimes, it seemed, it paid off, although the bit about pleasing orgasms was a bit much. Maybe her and Xander were right for each other if she could deal with him like that. Add to that her defence of Buffy, though the two never really seemed to get along, and their impression of the ex-demon changed. They had a whole new admiration for the feisty, straight-forward blonde.
***
Buffy had planned to be the last one to arrive. She knew Travers would jump down her throat for it but she wanted to make an entrance. Them waiting for her was an important statement if she was to prove they needed her and not the other way around, so she had waited outside, hidden, as she observed her friends entering. She had just about given up on Xander when he arrived, still with a sour expression on his face but his being here was a good sign that he was still willing to be a part of the group, even if it was just for Giles.
After a deep breath and taking a few minutes to steel herself for battle Buffy walked through the door, the bell announcing her arrival as something deceptively cheerful. Every eye in the place turned to face the Slayer and she fought an unexpected flutter of stage fright, continuing in to the room, appearing unconcerned as she took a place near the centre of the room. This was what she wanted. All eyes were on her ever since she was called, criticising and judging her. Now she would gain their attention because she commanded it, because her word was law and anything to do with her personal life was none of their business unless she said otherwise.
She stood as tall as she could and folded her arms, staring Travers straight in the eye, smiling expectantly. The Council head seemed slightly put off at her carefree behaviour, it was not what he expected from the girl whose life was about to change drastically under his orders. He brushed it off as false confidence, a facade to attempt to hide the distress she must truly be feeling. He raised his head so he could look down at her and clasped his hands behind his back.
“Miss Summers. You’re rather late aren’t you? I understand this must be a distressing time for you, bidding farewell to the man who has mentored you for so long but I thought you would have had more respect for the man to at least show up on time, not to mention the discourtesy you’ve shown your superiors.”
Buffy didn’t miss Xander’s slight nod as Travers berated her for being late, nor did she miss the less than subtle glare Anya shot in his direction that had him shift his gaze to the floor uncomfortably. She had plenty to say to Travers but wanted to wait and let him believe he had the upper hand here. After all, there was nothing like luring your enemy into a false sense of security, was there?
“Well I’m here now.”
Giles glanced up, surprise flashing across his eyes before he remembered he was being Mr. distant and moody and turned his attention back to the floor. It was the biggest reaction he’d had since the big reveal. He wasn’t the only one who was surprised. If she didn’t have everyone’s attention before now, that had soon changed at her short reply. It wasn’t at all what they had been expecting. An apology or annoyed remark, yes, a simple acknowledgement and expression suggesting he get on with it, no. Travers raised an eyebrow before deciding to just carry on. The girl was tough and putting on quite a show of bravado but it wouldn’t last, not with what he was about to say.
“Yes, well, Miss Summers, as you know Mr. Giles shall be returning to London with us. We’ve made reservations at the hotel for him to stay there until our flight and feel it’s best he have no further contact with you or your…team. Furthermore I think it has been well established that you continue to place civilian lives in danger because of your selfish desire to surround yourself with friends and family despite your calling. Because of this, we feel you should also travel to England where you will be retrained as you should have been from the start. In the meantime we can send a defence unit to the Hellmouth to maintain control. Understand that this is a second chance for you to prove yourself as a Slayer.”
Buffy raised an eyebrow at that but maintained her unconcerned demeanor. He wanted to take her to England huh? She hadn’t seen that coming, not that it mattered.
“After reconsideration I decided that although I was initially prepared to cut off connection with you, the fact remains that you are a champion for the powers and an asset if given the proper guidance. You understand this means doing as instructed and not consorting with the enemy any longer. Also, while you may be in the same country, this does not mean you will have any communication with Mr. Giles. Is this clear Miss Summers?”
“Crystal.”
Several voices upstairs gasped and shocked faces looked down at her. Giles once again broke his piece of the furniture impression to gape at her. He might be mad at her but her apparent willingness to comply with the Council had him stumped and must have hurt too. She couldn’t help the thought, good, that her behaviour was upsetting him. She was mad at the way he’d treated her too. The Watchers seemed unprepared for this new side of the Slayer and fidgeted nervously. Lydia kept casting glances from Buffy to Travers wondering where this might be leading. Travers himself seemed a bit put off and flustered by her behaviour but cleared his throat and prepared to continue which is what Buffy was waiting for before making her move.
“Now that we’ve established that I’ve heard you out loud and clear, I expect the same from you. You see I have a few words of my own to share tonight and I expect you to listen.”
The female Scoobies relaxed, this was what they had expected. Travers looked indignant and opened his mouth but Buffy raised a hand to silence him.
“Please hold all questions until the end, thank you.”
She began to pace slowly back and forth, keeping her arms folded with a relaxed expression as though she were completely at ease with everyone focused on her.
“Now that I have such a rapt audience it’s time we set the record straight. I am the Slayer. The one and only. Yes, Faith is a Slayer, but seeing as she’s locked up right now with some major issues to deal with you’re stuck with me. As the Slayer it’s my job to battle whatever evil hell-spawn is trying to end the world and so far I think I’ve done a pretty good job, considering I died once and all.”
Travers was not pleased and made a move to interrupt but she carried on, ignoring him.
“Now, despite what’s happened the last few days the fact is you need me Travers. The Council needs me, and you know it. I’ve been too blind to realise that I’m the one who should be calling the shots here, not you, and that’s going to change. You see, Quentin, withholding information on the latest Big Bad makes you responsible for the next apocalypse, one that actually will be the end of the world if you decide not to cooperate and haul me off to England instead. Now I’ve had enough of this charade, pretending you have a right to control me. It ends now.”
She stopped pacing and faced him, staring him dead in the eye, her expression suddenly serious. Everyone knew she meant business and they waited for her to finish. Even Xander was looking on with interest and for the first time since last night, Giles was fully focused on her.
“Here’s what’s going to happen. You give me all the info you have on Glory and the Key she’s after and I don’t take it from you by force, which, I shouldn’t have to warn you would be a painful and unpleasant experience for you and your…” she flicked her eyes over the other Watchers briefly, “…team. Giles stays here. There will be no deportation and as a matter of fact I believe he should be reinstated as my Watcher since he’s done a damn good job of mentoring one of the longest living Slayers on record and I’ve made it perfectly clear he’s the only one I’ll work with. In fact, his success and hard work should result in a nice fat pay check, which, since he has been acting as my Watcher all these years, should be paid retroactively understood?”
Giles’ mouth dropped open. The Scoobies let out little cheers, except Xander who was reluctant to show too much enthusiasm but had a smile on his face as he observed Giles. No matter what his argument with Buffy was, doing that for the gang’s father figure deserved respect and showed that the older man was appreciated. He would be happy that Giles could stay at least. The Watchers were either, stunned, confused or outraged as they muttered amongst themselves and darted looks at Travers and Buffy.
The head of the Council was going different shades of red in outrage. How dare she speak to him like that? This was not acceptable. He had to restore order and regain control of the situation.
“Miss Summers I shouldn’t need to remind you that you are in no position to make demands. We are your superiors and I think…”
“I don’t give a damn what you think!” Buffy slammed her hands down on the table, cold eyes trained on the older man.
Silence struck the room as the Slayer and Head of the Council stared each other down. Travers was stunned as he looked into the eyes of a warrior, the Slayer. He felt a tremble run through him at the force in the girl’s eyes and couldn’t believe she was the same woman he’d been ordering around the past few days.
“It’s become painfully obvious that you need me, not the other way around. All this ‘reconsideration’ and ‘giving me a second chance’ is just a cover for the fact that you would be nothing without me. The Council exists because of the Slayer, not the other way around, and without me your jobs are meaningless. Glory is coming and we don’t have time for games. You either give me the information and remain, in some form, my allies, or I see you as a threat, take what I want, and put an end to your organisation once and for all, and yes,” she stood and held out a hand to stop him interrupting, knowing exactly what he was about to say, “I do have the power to do that.”
“Y..y..you can’t…we..you…this an outrage!”
She quirked an eyebrow at him and smirked.
“I don’t doubt that but it’s the truth. Now to address the issues you have with me personally. I do things by my rules, that’s how I stay alive. My family and friends understand the danger they are in and they accept it even when I would prefer they not take the risks they remain by my side because they are more useful than any of you. The witches are more powerful than you could hope to be and they pay for their mistakes and correct them. I’d like to see you take such responsibility. All your training doesn’t come close to the field-time they’ve clocked and when I ran away that one time, they kept Sunnydale safe, something you could never do.”
Giles was still shell-shocked from her statement about him being reinstated as a Watcher with retroactive pay but looked up as she defended her friends before turning his attention to the Scoobies who each seemed affected by her words. Anya and Tara were grinning wildly and Willow was tearing up, a smile on her face, her bottom lip wobbling emotionally. Xander was watching the girl he had admired for so long with a new appreciation. Before him was a strong, powerful woman who had hidden away behind a cheery, normal girl persona. He was beginning to see there was more to Buffy than he initially thought. She was a leader, their leader.
“The vampire…”
She glanced up to notice than Xander’s face clouded briefly before he looked at the ground. She waited until he looked up and met his eye. After a beat he nodded and gave her a small smile. Giles had also found the floor interesting all of a sudden but felt Buffy’s eyes turn to him and looked up, drawing in breath he too gave a small nod. She could accept that, for now. She looked back at Travers.
“Spike has been an invaluable ally for a while now. You know how dangerous he is and the chip in his head only prevents him from hurting a human directly, there’s no reason he couldn’t turn to demons and minions to help. He fights by my side because he wants to and yes, we have since become a couple, but he is not the enemy. As far as I’m concerned the enemy is you. Spike’s proven himself to me, soul, or no soul,” Xander and Willow’s mouths twitched, remembering the blonde vamp’s words, “now it’s your turn, somehow I doubt you’ll manage as well as he did. Now,” she tossed her hair back over her shoulder and raised her head, a triumphant grin on her face, “about that info…”
Travers glared at her before taking a deep breath and staring at the table, when he looked up again she saw the resignation in his face.
Finally.
“Very well. It seems we underestimated you Miss Summers. You want the information and we’ll give it to you. Glory isn’t a demon,” he paused and she waited expectantly, “she’s a God.”
You could hear a pin drop. Buffy’s brain seemed to slow down as she absorbed his words.
“What?”
***
Joyce was washing up in the kitchen when she heard the back door open and shut behind her. She frowned. Dawn was up in her room and she wasn’t expecting Buffy back yet. Surely the meeting couldn’t be over yet? It wasn’t a good sign if that was the case. She turned off the tap and turned around, whoever she had been expecting it certainly wasn’t the person now standing in front of her.
“Spike?”
“’Lo Joyce.”
The dishevelled vamp wobbled a bit on his feet before plopping down at the counter. He was definitely looking worse for wear, his clothes wrinkled and his hair sticking out in places from its typically slicked back style. His eyes seemed rather unfocused and seeing him sitting there at her counter looking like he did gave Joyce a sense of Déjà vu.
“Not that you’re not welcome but what are you doing here? If you’re looking for Buffy she’s out.”
“Know that. If Buffy was here I wouldn’ be. Fancied a chat was all. You were the ‘nly person I knew who knew, least I s’pose you know, bout what happened, with the…fight, an’ all.”
He ran a hand through his hair, messing it up even more and Joyce felt sorry for him. He looked like he was going through hell. Of course he also looked drunk which she wasn’t too happy about but it was Spike and he had certain ways of dealing with things. Ways she hoped would change for the better.
“I’m well aware, yes. You were rather harsh on her you know. I agree with what you were trying to do but it probably could have waited until she was ready to hear you out, or at least until you had your temper under control.”
She gave him a disapproving look and he lowered his gaze shamefully.
“I know. I jus’…I got mad an’…Buffy an’ I seem to handle fightin’ better than talkin’ sometimes. I didn’ mean to upset her more but I wanted her to see…an’ when she started sayin’ I only loved the Slayer an’ not her it pissed me off. I’m sorry.”
Joyce felt her annoyance melting away at the sad sight and his obviously sincere apology. She stepped forward and leaned on the counter facing him.
“I’m not the one you should be apologising to. She knows that’s not what you meant. As a matter of fact she’s taken your advice. If everything goes according to plan she should be taking charge of her life as we speak at that meeting tonight.”
“Yeah? What meetin’ s that then?”
“The Council arranged for her and the others to meet tonight and discuss their terms for Giles’ deportation and Buffy’s punishment. She’s going to surprise them and make a stand.”
Spike’s eyes lit up for a minute before a thought seemed to cross his mind and he frowned.
“Easier said than done though innit? Scoobies weren’ too thrilled at the news, she’s not gonna have too many friends there.”
“I wouldn’t worry about that. Buffy spent the day visiting them to talk things out. Willow and Tara are on her side and they accept that she knows what she’s doing. They’re not as against you as you might think and Anya actually seemed enthusiastic according to Buffy.”
“And the whelp? Don’ expect he listened to reason?”
Joyce smiled sympathetically.
“Not exactly but she made him listen. His presence is unpredictable but he didn’t seem completely against going. I know you have a lot of problems facing you but you and Buffy need to work this out. You’ll be stronger together and I know Buffy wants you around. She was really upset after you walked off.”
Spike winced and looked up at Joyce, hurt showing in his blue eyes.
“I never wanted to hurt her but she needs to sort this out and I’m afraid we’ll jus’ end up fightin’ again. I can’t stay away from her but I want to give her space as long as I can so she can figure this out. I want to prove to her I want her, not the Slayer. I don’ want her to think I’m pushing her into stickin’ up for herself.”
Joyce reached across the counter and patted his hand affectionately. If she ever doubted Buffy’s decision to be with Spike she knew now it was the right one. He really loved her.
“After tonight that shouldn’t be a problem any more. No matter what the others think you have the support of the Summers women, including Dawn. Now,” she stood up straight and grinned at him, “how about some nice hot chocolate, with little marshmallows?”
“You know me too well luv.”
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Okay so here's chapter 19, the showdown with the Council. Getting nominated at the Sunnydale Memorial Awards has me blown away and I'm typing like crazy to update as quick as I can for all you wonderful people reading it. You rock!