DISCLAIMER: The Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel characters are the property of Mutant Enemy, Joss Whedon, and Fox Studios. The story contents are the creation and property of Djinn and are copyright (c) 2001 by Djinn. This story is Rated PG-13.
Gravity
Part 8 – Payback
by Djinn
"Come on, put your back into it. A Watcher scoffs at gravity." – Giles to Spike, Restless
It was dark and stuffy. Amy
tried to move, but her body wouldn't cooperate. Had to be magic.
"Help me," she
tried to scream. It came out as a croak.
The door opened. Someone
stood in the door; a misshapen body was silhouetted in the light that came
pouring in. A voice that Amy had hoped never to hear again said mockingly,
"Something I can get you, dearest?"
Amy whimpered.
"Didn't think so." The
door slammed.
Amy tried to reach out with
her mind to Willow and Tara. The way was blocked, warded against just such an
attempt. She tried again anyway, made her mental scream as loud as she could. Nothing.
"Help me," she whispered again as she lost consciousness.
##
"I feel
responsible." Giles was pacing.
"It was your plan,"
Spike said, unable to resist.
"It wasn't his
fault," Willow said. "And it was a good plan. We didn't know she'd
disappear."
"Think that deratting spell went bad?" Spike asked. "Hate to
think of her running around LA as a rat."
"No." Willow
frowned at him. "It's not that kind of spell."
"She didn't want to
go," Tara murmured. "I made her get out of the car."
"It's not your fault
either," Willow looked around the room. "We don't know that anything
bad has happened. There might be a perfectly good reason for her to have
dropped out of sight for a while."
The eyes that met hers were as
skeptical as Spike knew his were so she shut up.
Faith looked up. "Can't
you do some kind of magic to find her?"
Tara shook her head. "We
already tried that. It didn't work."
"But it's not like we
had that big a connection to her," Willow said, her tone defensive.
"You kept her as a pet
for two years, that's not a connection?" Faith glanced at Giles.
"Well if you know so
much about it, you're welcome to try."
"I'm just saying." Faith
held up her hands. "Don't get all defensive, Red."
Willow glared at her.
Giles' voice was gentle. "Faith
does have a point. Shouldn't you be linked by the spell you did to resurrect
Buffy? That kind of magic bonds people."
"We tried. There's nothing." Willow looked at Tara and she nodded.
"So
what do we do?" Xander looked at Spike, then Giles. "Do we go find
her?"
"We're trying cakes tomorrow.
We can't go." Anya looked more put out
than normal.
"Not till we hear back
from Cordelia." Giles sighed. "Hopefully soon."
"I thought she was
vision girl now. How come she's not getting anything on this?" Buffy sounded
the way she always did when someone mentioned the girl who got to work with
Angel. Jealous and annoyed—pretty much how he felt when he thought of how she still
loved Angel.
Giles shrugged helplessly.
Spike looked over at Buffy. She'd
chosen to sit across the room from him. Her eyes rose to meet his and she gave
him a sheepish smile. He returned the smile then forced his face back into a
more serious expression.
The phone rang. Willow was
closest. "Hello?" She looked surprised. "Hi. Yes, I do know who
you are. No, I understand. It's okay." She glanced over at Tara. "Yes,
she's here. Hold on." She put her hand over the mouthpiece and said to
Tara, "You might want to take this in the kitchen."
Tara got up quickly. Willow
hung up as soon as Tara started to talk, then she walked into the kitchen.
"Weird time to take a
personal call," Faith said.
Spike tended to agree with
her. Who was on the line? He couldn't remember Tara ever getting any personal
calls. Strange...although he'd never thought so until now.
Willow returned from the
kitchen, looking even more worried. "This is worse than we thought."
"Who is that on the
phone?" Giles asked.
"Just a friend. A witch friend. She said there's been some really weird stuff going
on in LA. Someone really powerful is doing some very dark magic."
"And this has to do with
Amy how?" Buffy looked from Willow to Tara who'd just come back in the
room.
Tara nodded at Willow, who
asked, "Anyone remember Catherine Madison?"
Giles, Xander, and Buffy
looked at Willow in disbelief.
"But she's gone. I saw
her disappear." Buffy looked at Giles. "She couldn't be back, could
she?"
"I don't see how."
"Tara's source thinks
she is. Says whoever's doing the magic has a deep tie to Amy."
"How does your source
even know Amy?" Anya studied the witches skeptically.
"She doesn't. But she
intercepted a cry for help. Very weak, and meant for Willow and me." Tara
looked at Giles. "We didn't sense anything. Whoever has her must be
blocking her from calling to us."
Willow nodded. "Which
explains why we can't find her either." She shot a "So there"
look at Faith. "Anyway, Tara's source says that she can sense a tie
between Amy and the person holding her. A familial tie. I guessed it was Amy's
mom."
Giles shook his head. "Catherine
Madison back? I shudder to think what kind of frame of mind she must be
in."
Buffy stood up. "We beat
her once. We can do it again. Let's go."
Willow shook her head and her
voice was apologetic as she said, "You didn't really beat her, Buffy. Magic
did."
"I held the mirror that
reflected her spell back."
Giles cleared his throat. "I'm
afraid Willow is right. Slayers really won't be much use in this case."
Spike looked at Buffy and felt
his own insecurity rise. "Maybe there are other reasons for going to LA
besides the case?"
Her head snapped up and her
eyes met his. "I just want to help."
"You're sure?"
Xander stood up. "Who
cares why she wants to go." He looked over at Buffy and gave her a
sheepish smile. "Sorry, Buff. But let's focus on what matters. Willow's at
least as powerful as that overgrown cheerleader was, right? With Tara and her
source, that's three against one."
"We can do it,"
Tara said. She turned to Willow. "We should go now."
Willow nodded then looked at
Xander. "Can we borrow your car?"
"I'll drive you,"
he said.
Anya rolled her eyes "No,
you won't. Cake tasting and we have a meeting with the minister tomorrow
morning. Don't even think of trying to get out of it."
"Anya, why does an
ex-demon want to get married in a church?" Xander rolled his eyes. "Poor
Spike can't come in if you do that." He didn't sound very broken up at the
thought.
"You believe that old
wives' tale?" Spike chortled. "I'll be there."
"An, maybe we should
reconsider having that outdoor wedding. You know, the one in the bright
sunshine."
She scowled at him. "We're
having an evening wedding. I've told you some of my demon friends won't come
out during the day."
"But then Spike couldn't
be there either, sweetheart." He smiled winningly at her.
"I don't care. Give
Willow the keys before I get my feelings hurt."
He handed them over with a
sigh. "I guess we'll be walking to the church and the bakery?"
She nodded. "The florist
is on the way. I can show you the arrangements I've picked out."
"Oh joy." He looked
at Willow. "Give us a ride back to our place?"
"You bet. We just need
to get some supplies." She and Tara hurried upstairs.
"So
no slayers needed?" Faith stood up.
"It would seem not."
Giles said.
"Can't say I'm sorry to
miss LA. Don't have the best memories of that place."
"Me neither," Buffy
muttered.
Dawn stood up and looked at
her sister. "Well come on then." When Buffy didn't move, Dawn reached
down and pulled her off the couch. "Patrol, remember? You aren't getting
out of it anymore." She smiled happily.
Buffy grinned back. "Patrol.
Wow. I never thought I'd actually be happy to go slaying again. Let me get my
stuff." She hurried upstairs.
Faith and Dawn grabbed their
own bags. Dawn looked over to where Spike was still sitting. "You coming
or what?"
He didn't move. Dawn's
question aside, he wasn't sure if he was needed...or wanted. "I think the
three of you have it covered."
Buffy heard this as she came
back down the stairs. "Afraid to slay with me?" she asked with a grin.
He smiled. "No." He
stood up.
"Good." She turned
and walked out the door.
He followed her out.
"Good hunting,"
Giles called after them.
Buffy hung back a bit and let
Spike catch up. "You thought I didn't want you with us?"
He shrugged. "Wasn't
sure."
"Why?"
He shrugged again.
"Not your normal witty
self, are you, Spike. Something wrong?" Her face suddenly fell. "You're
not regretting this afternoon, are you?"
He stopped. "God
no."
Her relief was plain.
He leaned in. "I could
never regret that. Never. Thought maybe you were having second thoughts,
though."
"Did I act like I
was?"
"No. But I still
worried."
She looked at Faith and Dawn,
whose backs were turned. She grabbed Spike and kissed him hard. "Don't look
for trouble where there isn't any, okay?"
He nodded and followed her
happily as she hurried to catch up with the others.
He heard a soft sound, tried
to make out something in the trees behind them, but didn't see anything.
Buffy circled back.
"Vampire?"
"No. Must be the
wind."
"Or you're just are
hoping I'll kiss you again."
"Will you?"
"Later. Come on." She laughed and he loved the sound of it as
he followed her into the night.
##
"So
your mom sounded nice." Willow looked over at Tara who was concentrating
on driving. They were going much too fast but so far hadn't run into any
police.
"You'll like her." Tara
smiled wistfully. "This isn't exactly how I thought we'd all meet
though."
"How did your mom know
it was Amy?"
"She didn't. She just
sensed that the message was for us. And that the person sending it was really
scared."
"Poor Amy."
"What do you think her
mom's going to do?"
"Last time she stole her
body."
"She mentioned that. I
sort of thought she was exaggerating."
Willow shook her head. "Nope.
She wanted to be a cheerleader again. She was like the best Sunnydale High ever
had. They called her Catherine the Great."
"That's scary."
"She's scary, Tara. Where's
she been all this time? And why now, why did she come out now?"
"We'll be there soon,
sweetheart. Hopefully my mom will know." Tara reached over and took
Willow's hand in hers.
Willow thanked her goddesses
yet again that she'd managed to steal Tara back from Glory. Her lover was too
good to be lost that way. "I love you, Tara."
Tara squeezed her hand in
reply. They were quiet the rest of the way to LA.
##
Light spilled into Amy's
prison. A harsh voice spoke several words. Amy could feel control of her body
returning.
"Get up."
She staggered to her feet,
trying to make legs and arms that had fallen asleep mind her. She stepped out
of her prison and looked around. She was in what looked like an apartment. Her
prison was a closet. The room she was in connected to a kitchen. Another door
led into what seemed to be a bedroom. There were no windows.
"Sit down."
She sat in a straight chair
by a wooden table and turned to look at her captor. A gasp of horror escaped
her and she turned away.
"Ugly, aren't I?" Her
mother pulled her back and forced her to look at her. Her flesh looked as if it
had been melted and reattached to her body. Her features were lumpy and not in
the places they should be. She was hideous. "This is your fault. All your
fault."
"I didn't have anything
to do with it. You tried to kill me and my friends."
"Your friends?" Her
mother laughed. "Your friends were responsible for the explosion that made
me look like this."
Amy shook her head. "I
don't understand."
"God, you are as
pathetic as you ever were. Do you know where I went after that Summers bitch
got in the way of my spell?"
Amy shook her head.
"The same place I was
going to send you. Into my statue, my award."
Amy gasped in understanding.
"That's right. I had to
watch you and the others every day. Then you disappeared. I wondered about
that. Thought maybe your father had taken you away." Her mother began to
pace. "So I watched the others. Prayed to every
dark god I knew that I would be set free. And I got my wish. Did they tell you
what happened to the school?"
Amy nodded.
"I thought I was
destined to be locked in that statue until someone reversed the spell. I didn't
know that if the prison is destroyed, the prisoner goes free." She touched
her face. "Only I had to wait till it was destroyed. Metal takes a long
time to melt, Amy."
Amy shuddered.
"I was weak but I
managed to crawl out of the wreckage before anyone saw me. Found some vampires
who brought me here. I've been gaining my strength back since then." She
sat down opposite her. "I looked for you as soon as I was strong enough to
scry. Saw that you'd gone and trapped yourself in that rat form. Stupid girl. Can't
even do a simple spell like that right?"
"I panicked."
"You blew it. Just like
you screw up everything. I decided to leave you there till I was stronger. But
your friends saved me the trouble. They finally figured out the counterspell. And then you came here, to LA, right to me. I
couldn't believe my fortune."
"What do you want?"
Amy tried not to look at her mother.
"What do I want? What do
you think I want?" She grabbed Amy's chin and yanked her face up. "Look
at this body. Look at yours. What could I possibly want with you? I think
you'll look good in this husk, darling. I know I'll look good in your
skin."
Amy sobbed in terror.
"Oh, don't worry, Amy. It'll
only hurt...forever." She smiled and the expression was purest evil.
Amy tried to rise but her
mother's eyes held her captive. "Be still," she ordered.
Amy felt her body again go to
sleep. "Don't do this. Please?"
"Don't do this? Too late
for that, dear. It's already beginning. Don't you smell the herbs steaming? In
twenty-four hours, you'll be wearing this grotesque body."
"My friends will help
me."
Her mother laughed. "Your
friends left you at that shelter all alone. Just how much effort do you think
they're going to put out on your behalf? They'll probably be happy that you're
gone."
"No, they'll come,"
Amy said. But deep down she wasn't sure that they would. "Help me,"
she thought desperately, suddenly unsure there was anyone who cared enough to
even hear her.
##
"Tara, who's your
friend?" The young man looked suspicious.
"The reason I can't go
out with you, Colin."
"No kidding? Okay, put
up your dukes!" He pretended to spar with Willow.
She drew her hand back as if preparing
to cast a spell.
"Whoa there, Witchling." He laughed and turned to Tara as he keyed
in the combination to the door. "Your mom's waiting for you in the
conjuring room."
"Thanks." She led
Willow through the warehouse.
"He seemed pretty mellow."
Tara smiled, remembering how
Colin had been one of her first real friends. His easy goodwill had brought her
out of the shell she'd erected to protect herself from her family. "Our
kind tends to be light-hearted. At least until they need to be something else. Then
we can fight."
"Your kind." Willow
shook her head. "I still wish you had trusted me with the truth."
"I know. Me too." They
walked down the stairs. Tara waved at the demons sitting around the communal
dinner table. She said several words in her mother's language and a doorway
appeared in the wall. They walked through it together. The smell of incense got
stronger as they approached an ornately carved door. Tara frowned. "Things
must be bad. She's already started working."
Tara knocked three times on
the door. Her mother opened it and let them in. Once they'd crossed the
threshold, she closed the door. "Move toward the middle," she
instructed, as she pulled out her athame and rapidly drew a half circle across
the door. Blue-green light flared as the half circle joined a bigger circle,
completely enclosing them. The woman turned and smiled. "You must be
Willow."
"Mrs. Maclay."
"Call me Laurel." She
gave Tara a quick hug. "Darling."
"Hi, Mom."
Her mother walked to the
altar. "This isn't the way I envisioned us meeting."
"That's because you
didn't envision us meeting at all," Willow said, just a little bit of
disappointment tinging her voice.
"You're right about that."
Her mom's smile was genuine. "And not afraid to speak your mind, are you? I
can see why Tara loves you." She motioned them to the altar. "I've
set up a scrying spell. You two can't find the girl, but no one's expecting me
to look for her. So let's see what I can find." She
pulled a silk cloth off a blackened mirror. Staring intently into it, she began
to intone a ritual. "Doerlg euogh
ratilssss." The last bit came out as a true hiss
as her face morphed into that of a snake.
Tara looked to see Willow's
reaction to her mother's transformation. She didn't seem fazed, just looked on
in curiosity. Then an image began to form in the mirror. They could see Amy as
she sat rigidly in a chair. Her voice suddenly rang out. "Help me!"
"Yes, child. Yes, we
plan to." Laurel's voice was soft but full of power.
Suddenly someone else was in
the picture. Willow gasped as what was left of Catherine Madison peered up at
them.
"She can't see us,"
Tara assured her.
"But she can sense
us." Laurel began to chant again. "Cltaith firfsss. Morlkwag!" She
yelled the last and the mirror zoomed out to show a neighborhood.
Tara gasped. "That's
here. Just down the street. We used to play ball behind that building."
"I guess if you want to
stay hidden, you hang where the other people hiding out are." Willow
studied the building. "No windows."
"Just the one
door," her mother said.
"No sneaking up on
her." Tara whispered as the image faded out. "So
what now?"
Willow looked down. "We
could ask Angel for help."
Her mother shook her head. "Does
he have magic?"
"No."
"Then we do it alone. The
three of us. We can overpower her."
Willow suddenly looked
uncertain. "I'm not so good under pressure."
Tara took her hand. "Yes,
you are. It's just before that you spaz." She
grinned at her.
"Like now?"
Tara nodded. Then she looked
at her mother. "Why are you doing this? All this time hiding, why come out
now?"
Her mother's expression was
hard. "Because once she finishes with her own daughter, she intends to
come after the people who stopped her before. That means Willow, and you too,
Tara, if she thinks it will hurt Willow. I swore that I'd never let anyone harm
you again. And I meant it." She turned back to the altar. "We have to
prepare. What does she want from Amy?"
Willow made a face. "Her
body. It's what she's always wanted. Now even more. She looked horrible."
"What happened to
her?" Tara's voice was pained.
Willow shook her head. "I
don't know. Maybe however she got back here wasn't really meant to be a door? She
looked all burnt or something."
"I've heard of a
sorceress that's been hiring out for dark acts of magic. She's known on the
street as Slag." Her mother shook her head in horror. "Now we know
why." She looked at Willow. "Your vampire friend may be interested to
know that she's been working for that law firm he's gone up against."
Willow nodded. "I'll
tell him."
"Of course, it will
probably be a moot point." At their
looks of confusion, she continued, "She won't give up. I can feel her
desperation. This won't end until she has that girl's body. Or until she's
dead."
"What if she switches
bodies before we can stop her?"
"You know the answer to
that, Tara. She'll kill Amy as soon as she's got her body." Her mother's
jaw set. "And if that happens, then we will kill her."
"You're so sure we'll
win?" Willow asked quietly.
Her mother gave Willow a
strange smile. "Of course we will. We have you on
our side."
##
Spike had a twitchy feeling. He'd
been feeling strange all through a fairly uneventful patrol. He looked around
again. Nothing looked out of place but that didn't stop him from frowning.
"What's up with
you?" Faith looked into the woods he was inspecting. "Is something
there?"
He shook his head. "I'm
just spooked tonight."
Faith smiled. "Maybe
having B along has you all weird."
"Must be." He
looked away.
"Or maybe it's because
you smell like that expensive perfume she likes so much."
"Guess I got too close
when we were sparring." Spike kept his voice even.
"Is that what they're
calling it now?" She laughed huskily. "Don't worry, I'm not going to
say anything. Gotta hand it to you though. Never
thought you'd get her."
He gave up on the pretense. "Tricky
thing's keeping her."
Faith just nodded. "Sure seems like." She glanced up to where Buffy and
Dawn were laughing. "She's in a great mood. If this is what you do for
her, keep it up." She grinned wickedly.
He grinned back. "You're
trouble."
"Don't I know it." She
hurried to catch up with the others.
Spike turned to the woods
again. "I know you're out there. I just don't know who you are."
Nothing answered. Not that
he'd thought it would. He followed the slayers up the front steps of Buffy's
house.
"Something up?"
Buffy asked as he walked inside.
"Just a funny
feeling."
"You too?" Dawn
said. "Like the space between your shoulder blades is all itchy?"
Spike nodded.
Faith looked at Buffy who
just shrugged. "No itches here either." Faith looked over to where
Giles sat doing his accounts. "Well not that kind of itch anyway."
"Please take her home,
Giles," Buffy said.
Her watcher looked up and
pushed up his glasses. "What? Oh yes, quite." He gathered up his
things. "Much activity tonight?"
"Not much." Buffy
shrugged. "Not that I'm complaining. I think I'm out of shape."
"We'll get you back and
quick. Like tomorrow when we all start training together." Faith grinned
at Dawn.
"Yeah, like I've been
waiting all my life to work out with you two." Buffy watched Faith and
Giles walk to his car and called out, "See ya,"
before she closed the door.
Dawn ran into the kitchen. "I'm
so hungry."
Buffy rolled her eyes at
Spike. "I'll be down when she's asleep, okay?"
He nodded. "I'm not
going anywhere."
"See that you don't."
He just grinned as he headed
for the basement. He could hear Buffy and Dawn arguing over something. It was a
good sound. He threw his coat over his chair and stretched out on the bed, then
lit a cigarette and blew smoke rings up at the ceiling.
He knew Buffy would be a
while. It always took Dawn time to settle down after patrol. He let his mind
work on whatever had been bothering him outside. He had the feeling that
someone or something had been watching them as they patrolled. But in his experience there weren't too many things could trail a
vampire and three slayers and not get caught. Whatever this was, it was good. But
they were better. Tomorrow night, they'd see who trailed whom.
There was more arguing from
upstairs. He strained and realized Buffy was trying to get her sister to go to
sleep way before Dawn was ready. "Eager, are you?" he said with a
laugh. He was getting antsy himself. He understood Buffy's desire to keep this
a secret for now, but he wasn't sure he was going to like all this waiting.
He heard them go upstairs. He
waited, then finally he sensed Buffy creeping down the stairs. Feeling
mischievous, Spike got up and hid. As Buffy walked in and quietly closed the
door, he reached around her neck and pulled her back to him.
She elbowed him hard in the
side. He fell back and saw her turn and kick out. He grabbed her leg, pulling
her off balance. She landed hard on the cement floor. Without a word she kicked
at his leg, knocking him over. He landed just as hard next to her.
"Well that was fun. Is
this your idea of foreplay, Spike?" Her eyes were sparkling.
He grinned and pulled her to
him. "I think you know better than that." He kissed her and was happy
when she responded to him fiercely. "I like that," he said huskily as
she got up and pulled him to his feet.
"You do?" She
pulled him to her for another kiss.
Spike felt himself losing
control. She didn't have to do anything and he was drowning in her. He stroked
her hair. "Want you so much."
"I'm beginning to get
that." She removed his clothes and nuzzled him. Her lips on his flesh made
him shiver. He decided she was over dressed and took steps to rectify that.
"If it's any
consolation," she said as he pushed her down to the bed, "the feeling's
very mutual."
"Yeah?"
"Oh yeah."
"That makes me feel
much, much better."
"Thought it might."
She pulled him to her.
They didn't say much for
quite a while. Just busied themselves with getting reacquainted with each
other's bodies and what gave them pleasure. A great deal of pleasure.
"We fit." Buffy's
voice was tranquil as she snuggled closer to Spike.
He knew what she meant. Their
bodies seemed made for each other. He ran his fingers lightly down her back.
She shivered and nuzzled his
neck.
He smiled at her reaction. "Man
could get used to this, Buffy."
"So could a woman."
She pulled away and studied his face.
"What?" He watched
her expression become very serious. "You want to ask me something?"
She nodded. "I was just
wondering...how many lovers it takes to get that good?"
He laughed. "Less than
you've had, I'd think."
She punched him softly. "No
way."
"Who do you think I was
out shagging?"
"Well Looney Toons for
one."
"Yeah, okay. Dru. For
most of my vampire life, I might add."
"You didn't cheat on
her?"
"Why would I cheat on
her?"
Buffy narrowed her eyes
suspiciously. "Then there was bimbo Barbie."
"Harmony, right." He
smiled. "That's two. You make three."
"No."
"You don't make
three?" He grinned. "You're just mad because you've had more than I
have."
"One more. Big
deal."
"And if I hadn't caught
that wanker dumping you that day you could claim nothing happened and we'd be tied."
"You were really not
nice to me then."
"I was really not nice
to anyone. Bad period."
She snuggled in. He could
barely hear her as she said, "It was two more."
"What?"
"Dracula. You forgot
him. I know everyone pretty much decided that he was something the monks threw
at us to get my blood to make Dawn, but I'm pretty sure I had sex with
him."
Spike shook his head. "Doesn't
count. He wasn't real. And if you don't have to count him, then I don't have to
count the Buffy robot."
"How come? She
exists."
"Yeah, but she's not
real. Just a machine. You don't really to start counting things with motors, do
you?"
"I don't know what
you're talking about."
"Of course not."
She nodded. "Okay you
don't have to count her." She turned over so she could look at him. "There
was nobody before you became a vampire? I mean, you were all bad and stuff right?"
"I may have exaggerated
the level of my badness."
"By how much?"
He reached for his
cigarettes.
"Oh-oh, you're nervous. You
always do that when you're nervous."
He lit his cigarette and offered
it to her.
"As if. And don't try to
distract me. What were you like before you were turned? Really?"
"Really?" Spike took
a deep breath. "I was a failed poet and a namby-pamby mother's boy."
She started to giggle. "You?"
"Yes." He looked at
the ceiling.
"But William the
Bloody?"
"The Bloody Awful
Poet." He shook his head. "I really don't like to think about
it."
She frowned. "So if that's how you were, what made you bad? Was it the
demon? "
"What demon?"
She rolled her eyes. "The
one that takes over when you become a vampire."
"There is no demon,
Buffy. That's a tale the watchers tell you so you feel better about killing
us."
She stared at him in
confusion.
"Humans don't need a
demon to be evil. You should know that by now. It's enough to become a vampire.
It makes you strong, frees up all those hormones and urges that people don't
normally talk about much less act on."
"So
there's no demon?"
He shook his head. "Think
about Faith. Did she need a demon to go evil? Or Harmony. Even better
example."
"Harmony's an
idiot."
"Exactly. What are the
odds she'd get saddled with an idiot demon on top of being completely addled
already? Pretty slim. The answer is that Harmony stayed Harmony. And because of
that, she didn't change all that much."
"Still clueless and
basically a weak-willed moron?"
"Now you're getting it. Most
of us, when we become a vampire, we can be whatever we want. Can fight back
against all the things people mocked us for in the past. Suddenly we're a thing
to be feared and that's a heady brew, my lovely slayer. But that's not what
made me the way I am."
"What did then?"
"Not what. Who."
"Drusilla?"
He smiled fondly. "No,
not Dru. She picked me because she wanted something soft, something that would
love her."
"Angel."
"Angelus," he corrected
gently. "Bugger beat the crap out of me teaching me to be mean, to be
hard." Spike shook his head. "And Darla was just as bad. In her own
way, she was even crueler to me. But once I came around, began to show them
that I was bad, that I could be dangerous, they eased up. Eventually we became
a family."
Buffy didn't say anything.
He looked at her and noticed
her eyes were haunted. "You met Angelus. You saw what he was capable of. How
would you like to be a newborn in his hands?"
"But he's different now.
He has a soul."
"Yeah but whose?" Spike
laughed. "Sure wasn't his. That boy was nothing
but a lay about from the time he was small. Can't see the Liam I heard about
sitting around all brooding and gloomy just cuz he
got his soul back. More likely drunk in a pub with a couple of whores on his
lap."
"It's not his
soul?"
"Well, I don't think so.
But I do have a bit of an axe to grind with him."
"Then whose soul is
it?"
"How the hell should I
know?" Spike felt his good mood evaporating. "Do you really want to
talk about Angel?"
She shook her head. "I
really don't." She sounded testy too.
"I'm sorry, love. Shouldn't
have brought him up." He pushed the hair off her face. "Let's talk
about something less irritating. Like me maybe?" He nibbled on her ear.
She was tense, then finally
she giggled. "Or me."
"Another good
subject." He moved down her neck. "Or you and me. Together. Very
close."
She let him push her onto her
back. "How close?"
"Very, very close."
He kissed her.
"Mmm.
Show me?"
"With pleasure,"
Spike murmured as he proceeded to do just that. Repeatedly.
##
Willow felt as if she were
climbing up a long tunnel. She opened her eyes slowly, trying to remember where
she was. Then she smelled the incense and recalled the spell they had done last
night to prepare for this morning's fight. Tara's mother had led them deep into
a trance. That had been hours ago. Willow stretched gingerly, expecting to feel
stiff. Her body moved with ease. She felt wonderful.
"It's quite
effective." Laurel's voice was soft. Willow glanced at her, then at Tara,
still deep in trance.
"It is. How did you do
that?"
"It's a centering
technique. You don't use those?" Laurel didn't seem to expect an answer. She
smiled knowingly. "Not that I'm criticizing. You've come a long way in a
very short time."
"You can sense
that?"
Laurel laughed softly. "No.
Tara told me."
"Oh."
"I can sense other
things though." Her look turned serious. "Be careful, Willow."
"Oh, I'm totally
careful." Willow tried to give her a solid smile but knew she failed
utterly. "Well after I do something really stupid, then I think of all the
ways I could have been more careful."
Tara's mother nodded. "You
need to think first, then act. You've been lucky so far."
"But so much of it is
instinct. I mean I study the spells, but then the time comes and I just know
how to do it, you know?"
"I do. That kind of
talent is dangerous. Makes you careless. Learn to center. It doesn't need to
take all night. I can teach you if you wish. When this is over."
Willow looked at the other
woman and realized she hadn't even noticed when her features became human
again. "Okay."
Tara started to stir. She
opened her eyes, smiled a dreamy smile. "I was with Inanna."
Willow smiled. "Ooh, I
was too. It was like in that myth. Where she goes to the underworld to take on Erishkigal?"
Tara looked down, "We
were just having pancakes."
Willow looked at Laurel, who
shrugged and replied, "Tara has a rather informal relationship with her
goddesses."
"She gets breakfast and
I get high ritual. Hardly seems fair."
Laurel smiled. "To each
what she needs, according to her gifts."
"So is the providence of
the goddess. I know. I'm just hungry and divine pancakes sound really
tasty."
"They weren't very good."
Tara smiled sheepishly.
"Liar," Willow
smiled at her. "But thanks."
Laurel rose in one sinuous
movement that Willow instantly envied. "Can you teach me that?"
The woman looked at her in
amusement, "It helps to be a snake demon."
"Yeah, I can see where
that would come in handy." Willow watched as she dipped her finger into
some oil that had been warming over a candle. She touched it to Tara's brow,
then her throat, then moved to anoint Willow.
"Will you do me?"
she asked Willow.
Without a word, Willow stood
up and walked to the altar, dipping her finger into the oil. It was pleasantly
warm and smelled of myrrh and geranium. She touched it to Laurel's forehead and
throat.
"Did you bring your
athame?"
Willow nodded and walked over
to the bag she'd set off to the side of the circle. She dug out Tara's dagger
first, handed it to her. The she pulled her own free of the bag. She felt a
familiar tingle when she touched it.
"Hold it over the
flames."
They consecrated their
knives, then Laurel handed them small bags on silken cords. "For
protection."
Willow smelled it and
identified several herbs she knew. She slipped it over her head then tucked it
inside her shirt. Her mouth suddenly went dry. They were really doing this. She
was going into battle. No slayer to protect her. No watcher to tell her the
hundred ways the spell could go wrong. This was the real thing.
"You'll be fine,"
Tara whispered.
Willow only nodded. "This
is that time I spaz."
Laurel opened the circle and
they followed her out the door. As they climbed the stairs to the surface,
Willow ran through the things the older witch had told them. The best ways to
deflect the spells that Catherine was sure to throw at them. The most effective
means to bind her power. She tried to focus on those things, not think about
how nervous she was. For herself. And for Tara.
The sunlight was a shock. She
blinked, trying to get used to the bright light. They needed the daylight. The
spell Catherine was working was complex and dark. It would reach full power
only after the sun had set. Now, in full day, the magic was gaining strength
but still far from ready to use. They had to move now. While Amy was still
herself.
Willow heard a noise behind
them. Saw a group of Laurel's friends shadowing them.
Laurel caught her glance. "They
aren't as strong as we are. But together they can bring down that building. Obliterate
whatever's inside. If we fail."
Willow refused to think about
that. She grabbed Tara's hand and squeezed it hard. "We won't fail."
Laurel smiled at her
approvingly. "No. I don't think we will."
##
Spike woke with a jerk. "Buffy?"
She was in his arms, but she
wasn't moving. He shook her. "Buffy?"
"She's asleep."
Spike turned quickly. Riley
stepped out of the shadows. He held a tranquilizer gun. "I shot her."
"You bastard." Spike
went for him, then fell over in pain.
"That pesky chip again. Man that must suck." Riley looked at him. "You
might want to get dressed." He walked by Spike and covered Buffy back up,
touching her face tenderly. "Don't want her catching cold while she
sleeps, which should be for a good long while as long as this thing is working."
He covered the tranquilizer dart up with her hair.
Spike pulled on his jeans. "What
do you want?"
Riley smiled in a way that
made Spike's blood run cold.
"If you hurt her, I
swear I'll—"
"Why would I want to
hurt her? I love her. You on the other hand." Riley's pulled out a taser
and held it to the vampire's arm.
Spike tried to scream but
couldn't do more than moan. A second later he quit struggling, his nerves
screaming from the shock he'd been given.
Riley leaned in close. "I
told you. If you touched her...I'd kill you for real. But I've got a better
idea. Let me tell you about it on the way." He picked up a blanket, then
slung Spike over his shoulder in a fireman's carry.
Spike lost consciousness on
the way out the door. The last thing he saw was Buffy sleeping peacefully.
##
Dawn sat up in bed. Something
was terribly wrong. She heard a noise in the living room, then the sound of the
door opening. She rushed downstairs and out the front door in time to see Riley
dump a blanket-covered Spike into his truck.
"Let him go." She
started across the lawn.
He pulled out a stake. "You
want him to die?"
She stopped. "Riley,
what are you doing?"
"You don't know?" He
shrugged. "Ask your sister." His eyes never leaving her, he reached
in and turned on the ignition. Then he crawled carefully over Spike, closing
the door behind him.
She could tell he still held
the stake. She didn't know what to do. "Spike," she whispered helplessly.
Riley drove away fast. Dawn
considered running after him but realized she needed to find Buffy. She ran
upstairs. Buffy's bed hadn't been slept in. She thought about what Riley had
said. Her eyes widened and she tore down to the basement. "Buffy, wake
up!" She slapped her sister. "Damn you."
Buffy didn't move. Dawn let
her drop, ran up to the kitchen and hit the speed dial for Giles. The watcher
answered groggily. "I need Faith," Dawn yelled. "Riley's taken
Spike and I can't wake Buffy up and I don't know what to do."
Giles voice was calm. "We'll
be right there, Dawn. Just hold on."
Dawn hung up the phone and
hugged her arms around her. She sniffed back tears. "I'm not a baby,"
she said. She sank down to the floor. Why hadn't she stopped Riley? Buffy would
have. She got up and ran back downstairs. Tried again to wake her sister up. She
heard the others come in.
"Damn it, where is
she?" Faith's voice held a note of panic.
"I'm down here,"
Dawn shouted.
Giles and Faith barreled into
the room. Giles' eyebrows nearly disappeared into his hair as he took in an
obviously naked Buffy in Spike's bed.
"Shit." Faith
reached for something that was sticking out from under Buffy's hair. She
pulled, held up a dart. "Tranquilizer." She looked at Giles. "Get
me some cold water."
He nodded and ran upstairs.
She looked at Dawn. "Find
her shirt. Quick, before he comes back."
Dawn grabbed it and tossed it
to Faith, who hurriedly dressed Buffy.
"Decent from the waist
up anyway." Faith slapped Buffy gently, then a bit harder. Nothing.
Giles came back in with a
large bowl of water.
Faith took it, smiling
grimly. "She is going to be wicked pissed at me for this." She dumped
the bowl of water over the other slayer.
Buffy slapped out at her. Faith
tried to hold her down. Dawn rushed to help. Faith turned to Giles. "We'll
bring her up once she's, you know, more presentable."
Giles looked at the clothing
littering the floor and nodded suddenly. "Yes. Quite." He hurried
back upstairs.
"Damn it, what's wrong
with you two?" Buffy was furious. "Is this some stupid slayer
sorority initiation because if it is, I'm not pledging."
Faith held up the dart.
"What's that?"
"Your neck sore?"
Buffy nodded then gasped. "Spike?"
"Riley took him. I
couldn't stop him." Dawn looked at Faith.
"It's okay. You did the
right thing. We'll get him back."
Faith sounded so sure that
Dawn almost believed her.
Buffy stood up. Then sat back
down and pulled the covers up. "Could I have the rest of my clothes
please?" She shivered.
"Grab Spike's shirt
too," Faith told Dawn. She turned back to Buffy, "Take that off, it's
all wet."
Buffy did as she said. She
pulled the sheet up around her until they handed over her clothes. She dressed
in a hurry, while they turned their backs. "Riley took Spike? Why would he
do that?"
Dawn blew up, "Well duh.
You're boinking him. And Riley's like totally jealous
ex-boyfriend stalker guy. If he kills him..."
"He would have killed
him here if that's what he wanted to do." Faith looked at Dawn. "But
he took him. Why?"
Buffy pushed past them. "I
think I know. And this is so not good."
##
Tara looked at her mother, clearly
waiting for her signal. At her nod, Tara began to mentally seek the wards
around the building. Willow knew she was looking for the anchor. She thought it
was near the front door, where the shield felt the strongest. Tara closed her
eyes, concentrated. Willow put her hands on her shoulders and tried to
strengthen her.
"Powers be
revealed," Tara ordered.
A black web surrounded the
building. The wards were definitely of the evil variety.
"This is bad,"
Willow whispered.
Laurel leaned in. "If
you insist on fighting evil with evil then yes this is bad."
Willow looked at her
uncertainly.
"You can't overpower
everything, Willow." Laurel moved close to the wards. She began to sing
softly.
Tara joined in. The melody
was beautiful. It was a hymn to Ishtar. As they watched, golden stars began to
swirl in front of them, then joined together to create a little galaxy. Then a
network of galaxies. Willow began to sing. The stars multiplied. Laurel held
out her hands and the stars surrounded her. "Burn away that which is
unclean," she said softly.
The stars flowed to the web. Wherever
they landed the black strands fizzled and disappeared. The wards began to fall.
Tara laughed.
Laurel smiled serenely at
Willow. "Not everything has to be such a production, dear."
The door flew open. Catherine
Madison stood in front of them, her eyes black, her voice enraged. "You
will die!"
Without conscious thought,
Willow reached back, felt Tara's hand join hers. Willow could feel her power
triple when Tara and her mother joined hands.
Laurel leaned in, laying her
hand on Willow's shoulder, and whispered, "Now would be a good time for
your brand of magic, Willow."
Willow smiled. She could feel
her knife humming against her leg. Without a thought she drew it from its
sheath and pointed it at Amy's mom. Energy shot out from it and she flew
backwards, into the wall. Her eyes narrowed.
Willow kept the dagger
pointed at her. "Give us Amy."
"I have need of the
girl." Catherine's eyes darkened, her hand
snapped out. "Dark ones, take them."
Willow heard Laurel and Tara
begin the song again. The stars reappeared in front of them just as the bolt of
power from Catherine's hand flew at Willow. The stars absorbed all of it.
"Now, Willow." Laurel's
intent was clear, no holding back. Willow opened herself up to Tara and her
mother, felt their power pour into her, and sensed her own strength rising
above it. She felt as if she were cloaked in magic. "Give us Amy,"
she demanded one more time.
"No!" Catherine
began to chant a ritual, black streams poured from her hand.
"Then go to the gods you
serve," Willow said, feeling calm come over her. She resheathed
the athame and lifted her hand, letting fly a ray of pure power. It caught
Catherine, causing her to fall. The energy surrounded her and began to
compress. The woman screamed as she was bound by the power. Then it turned
black as her own unthrown weapon began to burn her. Catherine
screamed again, just before she disappeared.
Willow turned to Laurel, who
smiled in approval. "Well done, daughter."
Willow felt tears well. Daughter.
It meant a lot. She hugged her, wishing she felt as close to her own mom.
Tara ran to the door. Amy was
just walking out. "What happened? All of a sudden I could move
again." She looked around. "Is she gone?"
Willow nodded. "She's
gone."
Amy collapsed into Tara's
arms. "I'm sorry. I was just so scared."
Laurel took over. She wrapped
Amy in her arms and walked her away from the building. "I think it's time
you went home, don't you?"
Amy nodded tearfully. "I
miss my dad."
"Of
course you do, dear." Laurel beckoned to one of the other demons. He
came quickly. "Take her back to the shelter. Don't leave till you see her
father show up." She looked at Amy. "Think of him, dear, so my friend
here can get a picture of your father."
Amy concentrated and the
demon's eyes unfocused for a moment, then he nodded. "I see him. I won't
leave until she's safe."
Willow hugged Amy. "Everything's
all right now."
Amy smiled. "You came
for me."
Tara nodded. "Of course we did. We're friends." She smiled shyly. "We're
family."
Amy hugged her, then got in
the car the demon had driven up. "I'll see you when I get back?"
"You betcha,"
Willow assured her. She took several steps toward Tara, then staggered.
Laurel caught her. "Okay
then. Time for you to rest."
They helped her back to the
building, got her settled on the couch in Laurel's apartment. "Get her
some food, dear. She didn't have pancakes, remember?"
Tara grinned and ran out.
Willow watched Laurel as she
made a cool compress and laid it on her forehead. Sighing happily, she leaned
back. Her eyes met those of the older woman's. They were wary. Willow had a
sudden insight into the cause for the woman's concern. "You're afraid that
I'm evil, aren't you?"
Laurel pursed her lips. "I
think you stand on the precipice, my dear. Your intentions are good, but your
methods are suspect."
Willow frowned. "I'd
never hurt Tara."
"I know that." Laurel
leaned in, adjusted the compress. "Because if you did, I'd kill you."
Willow nodded. "I know. But
I wouldn't hurt her. I love her."
Laurel sat back. "I know
that. I sensed only love for her in you when we joined powers. But you must be
careful. Magic is dangerous. It twists and turns so easily that it's hard to
see that the path's become evil until you're too far down it to turn
back."
"I'll be careful. You
can help me?"
Tara came in with some soup. "Help
you with what?"
"With centering." Willow
smiled easily at her lover. "Your mom thinks I'm kind of weak on
that."
"I've told you
that." Tara helped Willow sit up, unaware that Willow and her mother were
exchanging a cautious glance of perfect understanding.
##
Spike could hear voices
behind him. He opened his eyes, then closed them again quickly as bright light
nearly blinded him. He opened his lids more slowly, letting his eyes adjust.
"Our patient is awake,
Doc." Riley's voice was directly above him. "How you feeling, Spike? You
comfortable?"
Spike realized he was bound
securely, even his head was held tightly to the cold metal table he was lying
on. "Wouldn't have figured you for the S&M type, Finn."
Riley laughed, but not in a
good way. "Like you'd be anybody's dream date."
"Buffy might disagree
with that." Spike couldn't resist the shot. He wasn't surprised when Riley
backhanded him.
"You don't say her
name." Riley moved around the table.
"I get to say it more
than you do these days. Must bother you a whole lot. Me and her. Together."
"I said shut up."
Spike smirked. "Or
what?"
"Or I make you shut
up." Riley held up some duct tape.
Spike decided to stop
taunting his captor. He looked around. "Where are we?"
"I call this an
operating room. Other people might call it a cave. You remember it, surely? Adam
used it. Your buddy Adam. Buffy should have staked you after that betrayal. You
got too many chances from her, Spike. That's gonna
end now."
Spike felt a pinch on the top
of his head, then a sharp pain. "Hey!"
"Just some anesthetic. Not
that I think you deserve it. But the doc insists it's necessary."
A familiar-looking man walked
around the table. "It'll just be a moment for the area to become
numb." He looked at Spike. "Hello again."
"You're that doctor that
didn't take my chip out." He looked at Riley. "Are you insane? This
hack can't do the operation."
"Dr. Overheiser
is a very good surgeon. This just happens to be a very tricky procedure." Riley
leaned in, smiling dangerously. "See if he screws up, you're left a
vegetable. Or possibly just a crazed animal. I'm hoping for the latter
actually."
Spike thrashed. Or tried to. The
straps were too tight to let him do much. "This is your plan? This is the
stupidest thing you could do."
Riley shook his head. "Afraid
I don't see it that way."
Overheiser moved back to the end of the table. "He's ready.
Are you sure about this?"
Riley nodded and smiled
nastily. "I'm going to give you your life back, Spike. Not that you'll get
much time to enjoy it. Don't imagine Buffy's going to be real
happy to see William the Bloody back. She still seems bitter about that whole
Angel turning evil thing. I'm thinking this is going to affect her the same
way. Make her realize that vampires just do not make good boyfriends." He
laughed and tore off a piece of duct tape.
"If you understood Buffy
half as well as I do, you'd know this plan is never going to work—" His
words were cut off as Riley slapped the tape over his mouth.
"I'm suddenly real tired
of listening to you bump your gums, Spike. You have a good operation." He
patted him on the shoulder companionably, then turned to Overheiser.
"I'll be outside. Have a phone call to make. You can go as soon as you're
done."
Spike couldn't do anything
but stare at the ceiling as Overheiser worked. Despite
his bravado, he was afraid. Very afraid.
##
Tara drove up to the house
and parked, then studied Willow with concern. "Are you tired? You've been
really quiet."
"Just thinking about what
your mom taught me before we left."
"Are you going to tell
the others about her?"
Willow shook her head. "Nope.
She was just a friend of yours. A really powerful witch friend." She
smiled at her. "I'll protect her secret, I promise."
Tara leaned over and kissed
her. "I love you so much."
Willow kissed her back. "I
bet everyone is out slaying. I know a bedroom that's just crying to be
used."
Willow nodded and they
hurried up the steps and through the door. Four pairs of eyes turned to them.
"No patrol?" Willow
asked guiltily.
Tara saw that Dawn had been
crying. "What's happened?" Then she realized there was someone
missing.
Willow arrived at the same
conclusion. "Spike?"
Giles stood up. "Riley
took him."
"Riley took Spike?"
Willow sounded very confused. "Took him where?"
Buffy looked up. Her eyes
were very hard. "That's what we're trying to figure out."
Faith handed her another map.
"We've been to the frat, Riley's old apartment, even the psych
building."
"What about the
initiative bunker?" Tara sat down next to Dawn and wrapped an arm around
her.
"Filled in. No trace
left." Buffy slammed the map down. "We've looked everywhere. The
longer we wait..."
Giles nodded. "If we're
too late..." He and Buffy shared a look.
Tara felt like she was
missing something, but then she often did when it came to the slayers and
watchers. They seemed to have an unspoken communication. They didn't do it to
leave anyone out, just all seemed to be on a different wavelength. "What
will Riley do to him?"
Buffy opened her mouth, but
was distracted by the ringing of the phone. "Hello?" Her face became
even tighter. "Where is he, Riley?"
Everyone perked up.
Tara watched Buffy. This
wasn't just a concerned slayer. This was far more. She hoped that Spike was okay,
because she knew Riley wouldn't be if anything bad happened to him. Not that
she cared that much about Riley, but she was worried about Buffy if she lost
one more person she cared about.
Buffy slammed the phone down.
"The cave." She stood, paced angrily. "I should have thought of
that. He went there, always goes there. God, how could I forget that?"
Faith stood and blocked her
pacing. "So you forgot. Move on. What do we
do?"
"He said come
alone."
Faith nodded. "And you
will. He won't even know we're there. Will he, squirt?"
Dawn shook her head.
"If he suspects..."
Faith touched her shoulder. "He
won't. We've got your back, Buffy. Deal with it."
"He said to bring my
slaying kit."
"I don't like the sound
of that," Dawn went to the closet and pulled out some crossbows. She
tossed one to Faith, then stuck a knife in a boot sheath.
Buffy raised an eyebrow. "When
did you start wearing that? And you know it won't do any good against a
vampire."
Dawn glared at her. "It
isn't for a vampire."
Faith moved between them. "Get
your stuff, B."
Buffy didn't argue, just ran
upstairs and came down quickly with her bag. She ducked into the kitchen for a
moment, then joined them. "Okay." She turned to Giles. "I may
get to kill my first human yet."
He didn't disagree, just put
his hand on her shoulder. "Be careful. All of you."
They hurried out, leaving the
others to watch.
Tara looked at Willow, whose
face was a study in confusion as she said, "I still don't get it. Why
would he take Spike?"
Tara decided it was up to
Buffy to tell her friend the answer to that question. She just shrugged.
"I'm going to make some
tea," Giles said.
Willow stood up. "I'll
help you."
Tara sat alone for a moment,
then she walked out to the porch. She couldn't just wait in the house. She sat
on the steps, looked up at the moon and began to sing softly, trying to send
whatever protection she could to the slayers and the lost vampire. Some little
stars formed near her then headed off after them. She sensed Willow's eyes on
her from the window and looked over. Willow smiled, nodding in support, then
turned back to Giles. Tara resumed her vigil.
##
Buffy ran into the cave. She
hoped Faith and Dawn were behind her because she no longer heard their
footsteps.
"Here you are,"
Riley smiled from the far end of the space. He held a crossbow that he loaded
and primed even as he turned to the cage that held Spike. "I told you,
she'd be right on time."
Spike only snarled. His face
was twisted in demonic rage as he leapt across the cage at Riley.
"Spike," she
whispered. The vampire turned to her and rushed the cage, growling and fighting
to get to her. Buffy's hopes plummeted. "Riley, what have you done?"
He turned back to her and
shook his head sadly. "See, you say you've changed and that's why you
don't love me. But the way I see it, you were always throwing me over for these
damn vampires. That's why I started going to the crib in the first place. I let
them drink from me because I wanted to know what it was that got you so off on
these creatures. And I can kind of understand, it is an amazing feeling."
"That's not why..."
"What? Dracula didn't
drink from you? Angel didn't?"
"That was to save his
life."
"You just keep telling
yourself that, Buffy."
She moved into the cave,
toward him.
He kept Spike's cage between
them. "It's really okay, you know, you wanna
prefer these monsters to me. But I thought it just wasn't right that your
current one couldn't give you that feeling. Couldn't drink from you." Riley
rattled the cage loudly. With a roar, Spike rushed and clawed at him. Riley
just smirked. "So I found that doctor that used
to work with the initiative. Had him do a little work on this one's head. And
now, well, see for yourself." He hit a button on the wall and the cage
door slowly opened. "Look ma, no chip. Did I mention I forgot to feed
him?"
Spike advanced on her,
hissing loudly.
"I think the operation
may not have gone all that well. He's been a bit agitated. Guess you have to
kill him now. No more chip, no more good vampire. No more good vampire, no more
watcher. And no more lover."
Buffy slowly backed away. She
pulled a stake from her bag, didn't want to raise it but did, readying herself
to fight. Her body tensed for the first kick when she got a good look at
Spike's face. He was winking at her.
She stopped and could feel a
half-smile creeping across her face.
"Buffy, you have to kill
him." Riley moved forward. "He's crazed with hunger. There's no chip
to make him mind you."
She did nothing.
Spike was directly in front
of her. With a grin, his face morphed back to normal. "Dr. Overheiser should be offended at your ex's lack of
confidence in him, Buffy." He touched his hair gingerly. "Feels like
everything's okay up there."
Riley looked shocked, but
recovered quickly. "You still haven't fed, Spike."
"Bloke's been watching
too many horror flicks. Thinks we can't miss a meal or two?"
Riley's tone was desperate. "Go
on. Attack her. She's right there."
Spike looked over at her. "Yeah,
she is."
Buffy tilted her head to the
side, exposing her neck to him. "I'm right here."
He leaned in; she could feel
his lips touch her throat. It tickled.
He pulled away. "Your
blood smells delicious as always. That perfume on the other hand, I'm not so
sure about."
Riley shouted angrily. "What
the hell is this? You don't have a chip anymore, Spike. You can attack her. Or
hey, attack me."
"You really don't get
it, do you, you wanker?" Spike walked toward Riley angrily. "We're
not mindless monsters. I don't have to attack you or her or anything."
"But you can feed now. You
can kill." Riley looked at Buffy, frantic appeal in his eyes. "You
could never trust him now. Would you want him around Dawn?"
Buffy thought about it. Looked
at both men. Finally she smiled, "I trust
him," she answered. "I trust him with my life."
Riley reached back, pulled
out a crossbow. "Well I don't." He fired.
Buffy ran but she knew she
was going to be too late to stop it. Then something flew past her hair, hitting
the bolt that rushed toward Spike and driving it off course. Dawn stepped out
of the shadows, already reloading her crossbow.
"Niblet,
hell of a good shot! Thought I was a goner there." Spike grinned at her.
Dawn turned the weapon on
Riley. "Drop it."
"Not on your life."
He fitted another bolt into the bow. "I'm betting you can't do that
twice."
Faith came up behind him
silently. She raised her own crossbow and held it to his skull. "And I'm
betting I can shoot you in the head before you get that shot off."
"Now drop it," Dawn
ordered.
He seemed to slump in defeat.
The bow hit the ground. Faith kicked him forward, then picked up the bow. She
tossed it to Buffy.
"What do we do with
him?" Dawn looked at her sister.
"I've got an idea."
Spike walked toward Riley. "What do you say? Just you and me? Finally."
Riley immediately assumed a
fighting stance. "I'll enjoy kicking your butt, Spike."
"I've been waiting a
long time for this," Spike said as he fended off the first blow. He struck
out, caught Riley firmly, knocking him back. He smiled when there was no pain. "Oh
yeah. I'm back."
"Not if I have anything
to say about it," Riley gritted as he kicked out at the vampire.
Spike absorbed the blow, went
for a kick of his own. The force knocked Riley back.
Buffy could tell that he was
just toying with Riley. Spike was beaming like a child. And he hadn't gone all
bumpy. Not even when Riley got in a couple of nasty jabs.
"Okay, I'm bored." Spike
threw a punch, then followed it with a roundhouse kick that knocked Riley
against the far wall, where he crumpled to the ground, looking dazed.
The vampire turned to the
slayers. "This is the best day of my life." He walked over to his
rival, reached down and pulled him up.
Riley unsteadily tried to
fend him off.
Spike dusted him off. "Don't
worry, mate. I'm not going to hurt you. You gave me back my life." He
propped Riley up against the cave wall then walked over to Buffy. "And you
gave me something else." He touched her cheek. "You said you trust me
with your life. But I don't think you were planning to trust me with your
heart."
She tried to disagree.
"No, you weren't going
to. How could you trust me, with the chip being the only thing keeping me from
reverting back to some monster? The way Angel did." His look softened. "That
wasn't the way to learn what love was like, Summers. Hurt you deep, he did. Made
you not trust." He leaned in and kissed her hard. "But a chip isn't a
soul. You lose a soul, that's bad. You lose a chip,
you live with it."
Riley shook his head from
where he'd slid down the wall. "He's a monster, Buffy."
Buffy turned to study her
ex-boyfriend. "We're all monsters. One way or another. Some are just more
up front about it." She looked at Spike.
He grinned back. "Does
that mean you love me?"
"I wouldn't go that
far," she said with a laugh. She handed Spike her crossbow and walked over
to Riley. Helping him up, she let him lean on her. "Here's the deal,
Riley. You're going to go back to your unit or better yet, go back to Iowa. Settle
down. Find a nice girl that doesn't kill vampires for a living. Have kids. Buy
a house. It'll be good."
"No vampires in Iowa."
"Well..." Spike
stopped at Buffy's glare. "Right, no vamps there."
The others followed as Buffy
walked Riley back to his truck. She got him settled in the driver's seat. "You
gonna be okay?"
He reached down and stroked
her hair once. "I feel lost."
"Sunnydale does that to
a person. Go back home. You'll find yourself there."
They watched him drive off.
"Think he'll be all
right?" Dawn asked.
"Maybe. In time." Buffy
turned to the two slayers. "You guys go on. We're going to hang here a
bit."
Faith grinned.
Dawn made a puzzled face. "Why?
What's left to see here?"
Faith rolled her eyes and
grabbed Dawn's arm. "Say goodnight, Dawn."
Dawn seemed to get it and a
huge grin lit her face. "Ohhhhh." She
turned quickly. "We're going now."
She made the kind of squeal only an excited teen could make.
"Thanks for saving my
life, Dawn." Spike called out.
"Yeah, wicked good
shot," Faith said. "How'd you do that?"
"I don't know. I just
knew I had to." Their voices drifted off.
Buffy turned back to Spike.
"So, no chip," he
said.
"No chip."
Without a word, they started
to circle each other. He made the first move, his fist sending her back several
feet. She recovered instantly, moving around him till he dropped his guard. Her
kick sent him sailing. He was down for seconds only, then he flew at her,
knocking her to the ground. He landed on top of her heavily.
"Sparring's going to be
so much more fun," she said with a grin.
He kissed her. "Lots of
things are going to be more fun."
She ran her fingers through
his hair. He winced when she hit the sutures. "Sorry," she said as
she gently traced the area that had been cut.
"Is the hair okay? I'll
find him and kill him if he ruined my look."
"It's good."
He kissed her again.
She looked at him intently. "You
could hunt now. Do you want to?"
"If I say yes, are you
going to stake me?" He kissed her again. "I've never stopped wanting
to hunt, Buffy. Chip or no, that never changed. But I don't plan to do it. Or
not humans anyway."
She studied him. Was he
serious? Could she trust him, really? Trust him with Dawn, with any of them? She
looked at his eyes. They hid nothing from her. She relaxed and kissed him
softly. "I believe you."
He smiled, said wistfully,
"I am hungry, though."
"Let me up then." She
ignored his protests and pushed him off her. Going to her bag, she dug around
till she found the pouches of blood she'd grabbed at the last minute. She
tossed them to him. "I thought Riley might try something like this."
He ripped the plastic open
and drank both down greedily.
She gathered up her bag and
started walking.
He ran after her. "Hey. Aren't
we going to celebrate my not being skewered by your psycho ex?"
"We are."
"I call this walking, not
celebrating. Hold up and let's do this right."
"Spike, you have blood
breath. It's disgusting."
"Oh, like Angel never
had blood breath. Give me a sodding break."
She reached her hand back and
felt him take it. "This isn't about Angel, Spike."
He pulled her into his arms,
held her for a moment, his face buried in her hair. "No," he
whispered, "This has nothing to do with him."
She relaxed in his arms. "I'm
glad you're okay."
"I'd never hurt you,
Buffy. Chip or no, I'd rather die than hurt you."
She kissed him.
"What about blood
breath?"
"Shut up, Spike." She
kissed him again.
When they finally pulled
away, he smiled gently. "Still so sure you'll never love me."
"Well, I don't know
about never," she said seriously, then her expression turned wicked. "Race
you to the others?"
His eyes gleamed. "You've
got it," he said.
She waited for him to try to
get off early, stepped in front of him as he did and tripped him. Taking off,
she heard him yell, "That's a foul, Summers."
He came up quickly behind
her. She ran faster. Her blood was burning in her veins and she'd never felt
more alive. She turned to see him at her side, his lips pulled back in a savage
grin.
"You know I love you,
Buffy," he said just as he passed her.
"I know," she said
as she cut him off and flew by him. She felt him just behind her then he was at
her side again. They ran together until they caught up with the other two
slayers.
"That was fast." Faith
said with a smirk.
"Don't even go there."
Spike glared at her.
"Go where," Dawn
asked curiously.
"Never mind," three
voices said at once.
She pouted. "No one
tells me anything."
Buffy laughed and saw Faith
do the same. She found herself smiling at her. A real, warm smile. Faith
returned it.
"Glad I had you two at
my back," Buffy said.
Dawn shrugged. "We stick
together. We're slayers."
"Sometimes it's not that
simple," Faith said.
"Well it should be that
simple."
Spike looked at the older
slayers. "She's right. In the long run, what else really matters?"
Buffy bumped up against him
affectionately. "I can think of a watcher or two that matters."
Faith smiled in agreement.
"And friends
matter," Dawn said as they neared the house.
Tara sat on the porch,
watching for them.
Buffy sighed happily. "Yes.
Friends matter." She dropped her arm around Dawn's waist. "And little
sisters definitely matter." She glanced over at Faith, who was watching
her. "Don't they, Faith?"
The other slayer nodded
gravely, recognizing what was being offered. Her arm dropped down to wrap
around Dawn from the other side. "Little sisters are the most important
thing of all."
Tara called out and rushed to
meet them. Dawn pulled away and ran to tell her what had happened.
Buffy held out her hand to
Faith. "We've done truce. Wanna try allies
next?"
Faith gripped her hand hard. She
nodded. "Allies it is." She let go of Buffy when Giles stepped onto
the porch.
Buffy watched Faith hurry to
him; saw his relief that she was back safe. "They love each other,"
she said, as if realizing it for the first time.
"Yeah, they do." Spike's
voice was low. "Love doesn't always come from where you expect, slayer."
She grinned. "I'll try
to remember that."
She saw Willow come out, her
gaze sweeping the crowd till she saw Spike with Buffy. Her smile was
breathtaking.
"Hey, Red. Worried about
me?"
Willow ran down and hugged
him. "Yes, I was." She smiled at Buffy. "Riley...did you have
to...?"
"We sent him home. After
Spike gave him a bit of a thrashing."
"You mean?" Willow's
look was worried. She pulled back quickly.
"Don't worry, I'm not going
to try to finish the job I started two years ago."
"Oh, well, okay
then." She fingered her neck. "You're sure?"
"He's sure, Will." Buffy
pulled Spike behind her. The rest trailed into the house behind them.
"If you all don't mind,
I'm going to get Spike some food?" She led him to the stairs.
"In the basement?"
Giles asked.
She looked at him, expecting
disapproval. But his eyes were dancing. She smiled. "Yes. Have to debrief
him, too."
Giles nodded sagely. "That
could take quite a while."
"All night even,"
Faith said in her most helpful tone.
"Debriefing Spike is
going to take all night?" Willow's eyes widened. "Oh."
Tara smiled and took her
hand. "Let's go to bed. All the excitement is over for one night. Come on,
Dawn. Time to hit the rack."
Dawn followed them upstairs.
"We'll be going,"
Faith said.
"Yes. Well." Giles
looked at Spike. "I'm glad that you're still alive. Never thought I'd be
in a position to say that."
"Me neither,
Giles." Spike laughed as they walked to the door.
Buffy locked it behind them
then turned to the vampire. "Do you need to eat first?"
He shook his head. His eyes
were intense. "There's only one thing I need and I'm looking at it."
She smiled and followed him
down the stairs. When he turned to take her in his arms, she held out a hand
and stopped him. "I need to say something. I don't know what we are to
each other, or what we'll become. This is new and it's strange. You and I,
together...you know I didn't want it. I'm still getting used to it. But if you'd
died tonight, part of me would have died with you. I just thought you should
know that."
He pulled her close. "Sweet,
sweet slayer." His mouth found hers in a fevered mix of gentleness and raw
lust.
They fell on the bed.
"Love me," she said.
"Till the end of
time," he replied as he kissed her.
Buffy kissed him back
fiercely and lost herself in the sensations he provoked, the feelings he
aroused. It might not be love, what she felt for Spike, but whatever it was, it
was powerful. And later, as he held her and she relaxed in the safety of his
arms, it was gentle and good. She grinned sleepily. It wasn't like any love she'd
ever known but given her history maybe that was a good thing.
##
In an abandoned mansion, a
fire flickered warmly. Two men sat in front of it savoring cognac and cigars.
"This is really where
Angel lived?" Haversham asked. "And nobody ever noticed?"
"This is Sunnydale. Nobody
ever notices anything. It's the perfect spot to take up residence. At least for
now." The other man crossed his legs; a tail peeked out from under his
smoking jacket. He leaned back, puffed deeply. "I still don't understand
why you helped the slayer get her life back. Wouldn't it have been easier to
just kill her once and for all?"
Haversham shook his head. "Dead
she calls another slayer. We were lucky this time it was only her sister."
The other man smiled. "I
remember her. Such a tender girl. And so willing to bring her mother
back." He held out his hand, palm up. "I owned a little part of her
for that."
"Well you did till she
became a slayer. That wiped the debt free."
"Too bad too. She was
well on her way. Of course then Glory wanted to use
her for that ceremony."
"Why did you interfere
in that, anyway? Look at all the trouble you caused." Haversham stabbed
out his cigar.
"I couldn't
resist." Doc smiled savagely. "Thought the slayer would have to kill
her sister. Knew that would push her right over the edge. Never suspected she'd
figure out the connection. Take the big plunge herself."
"Yes, well, I'm afraid
Buffy Summers is smarter than any of us gave her credit for."
"That will only make
this more entertaining."
Haversham drained his glass.
"I'll drink to that." He stood, put on his coat. "Hate to leave
you when the fun's just getting started." He looked around the mansion. "But
I'll be back."
Doc leaned his head back and
lazily smoked the rest of his cigar. He raised his glass to the departing
watcher. "Here's to fun."
FIN