~~~~~~~~
Prologue:

Life can change in the blink of an eye. Sometimes you have some warning and other times it takes you by complete surprise. Spike was used to the latter.

It began when his mother’s illness changed the mapped-out course of his life. His long anticipated career in academia changed to an office on the Exchange and tending to his terminally ill mum.

His plan to woo and wed a lovely, respectable woman and build a decent life changed in a dark alley, upon his meeting an even darker being than he’d ever imagined existed.

A gypsy curse was all it took to permanently alter his demonic family dynamic. True, Angelus had stayed with them for a time after his soul had been forced on him, but the change was clear and quick.

For a long while, Spike had traced his more recent changes to that dream where he realized his love for Buffy. Eventually he came to acknowledge that his heart had been ensnared from the first time he saw her, dancing as if she were liquid, music in a human body. Quicksilver she was, whether dancing or fighting, and Spike laid his unbeating heart at her feet from the first.

The chip had been another unexpected change, whereas the soul was of his choosing.
Burning to ash in the Hellmouth had been expected, too. From the moment Buffy declared him her champion and handed him the amulet, Spike had known the price of winning her regard. He knew well he was not coming back from that mission.

Spike truly hadn’t expected to survive this last battle either. The demon horde that spilled into the alley looked impossible for three super-powered beings and one dying human to defeat.

They had all known it was a suicide mission when Angel enlisted them in his private crusade. Spike always said he knew he’d go down fighting and this time he went down using fist and fang rather than a gaudy fashion accessory.

Actually, Spike wasn’t completely sure they HAD been defeated. When he came to, he tried to remember details of the battle only to find it was one of those life changing in an eye blink moments once again.

One minute Angel was charging after a dragon, while Illyria and Spike fought back to back against every demon imaginable. Charlie Boy had taken out only one demon before he collapsed and fell to the pavement, his wounds from the pre-battle battle finally getting the best of him.

Before Spike could return his attention to the battle, it was over. A booming sound like a clap of thunder coupled with a blinding flash of light left the vampire out cold on the wet surface of the now nearly empty alley.

The last thing Spike remembered seeing was Angel on the back of his dragon target, fighting for all he was worth. When Spike woke, only he and Charlie were in the alley. None of the fallen bodies of defeated demons remained for awkward explanations.

Charlie needed a hospital immediately, so Spike had no time to try to puzzle out what had happened to his sire and the ancient god in Fred’s body.

Once Charlie was in the tender care of the staff of Our Lady Of The Angels hospital, Spike returned to the scene of the battle and tried to piece together just what had happened.

It was pointless. The alley was empty. A plethora of demons…Angel and Illyria…all gone in a flash. Literally, in this case.

As Spike searched the alley for some clue as to what had happened, he was approached by the boy. Spike vaguely remembered seeing him with Angel at the office in the weeks before it all went to hell.

"Did my dad make it?" asked the lad.

"Depends on who’s your daddy. You don’t look much like Charlie Gunn, but if he’s the proud papa, he’s at Lady of Angels ICU. Gonna make it, they think. Got a feeling it’s more likely you’re the Watcher’s sprog", Spike ventured a guess.

"No, Angel’s my dad. You know, the ‘vampire with a soul’ superhero. I know he was planning on doing the whole OK Corral scene here after he brought down the office building and Hamilton".

Spike looked dumbstruck at the lad, his mouth open in unspoken surprise.

"You okay? I mean I can see you’re banged up and all, but, dude! I didn’t know a vamp could pale out like that". Connor looked at Spike with concern.

"Just how is it that you’re Angel’s git? That soul of his do somethin’ special to his swimmers I don’t know about? Who’s your mama? Had to have been before Sunnyhell. Thought he was the Lone Ranger before his great eternal love for the Slayer", Spike said, trying to make sense of the information that Angel had offspring of the non-vamp variety.

"Well, actually, I was only born a couple of years ago. It’s a mystical thing. Mom was a vampire named Darla. She staked herself so I could make it".

"Mighty big for a toddler, aren’t ya? Course, with Darla for a mum, must be glad you’re not a reptile or some such", Spike said. "No offense or anything, but your folks aren’t my happiest family memories. Just startin’ to get along with Angel before he decided to declare war on hell and play kamikaze."

"No offense taken. I never knew her. Like I said, she staked herself. Hated Angel too, until a few weeks ago, at least when I remembered him. Grew up in a hell dimension. It’s a long story. Where’s my dad?" Connor asked again.

"Last I saw him, he was playin’ rodeo with a dragon. Big flash of light and when I came to there was just me and Charlie in the alley. Had to get him to the hospital, Charlie being human and all. By the time I got back here, well, haven’t been here long, so you can see the same things I do. Not much to go on. No ash pile either, so I reckon m’ sire hasn’t dusted. Blue’s gone too".

"Dimensional portal, maybe?" suggested Connor.

"Your guess is as good as mine", Spike replied.

Spike and Angel’s boy searched the alley for any clue that might lead them to the answers they sought. The alley was as clueless as they were, however. Whatever had happened in that flash of light, the end result was that both Angel and Illyria were gone without a trace.

As the sunrise neared, Spike offered his couch to the worried youth for a rest before they could decide where to turn for possible answers.

It was just as well that sleep eluded the two searchers, as there were many questions they had about one another that needed answering if they had any hope of working together to locate the missing.

~*~
Chapter 1
~*~

(6 months later)

November was chilly for Southern California and Connor was wrapped like an Eskimo as he shuffled into the diner to meet Spike and Gunn.

Charles had taken several months to get back into any condition to help in trying to resolve the missing persons dilemma. He had asked Spike and Connor to meet him so he could tell them of his plan to move on. Anne needed his help with shelter business and Gunn had decided to use his legal knowledge and degree for good purposes from now on. His credentials and expertise in the law had cost Fred her life and Charles felt he owed it to her to not waste any of it. Okay, perhaps he might not use the encyclopedic familiarity with Gilbert and Sullivan any day soon, but the legal services he could freely give would help a lot of needy people.

Connor surprised his two companions by announcing his own intention of giving up the search. "Dad wanted me to have a life separate from him. He risked everything to give a good life to me. I don’t think he’d want me to throw away my college degree. He was very proud of my going to Stanford. I honestly don’t think we’ll ever find out what happened to him, so I’m going to work on getting readmitted next semester and try to catch up between now and then. I’ll check in every once in a while and you’ll know where to find me if anything changes", Connor explained.

"Well, seems it’s up to me then", said Spike. "I’m thinking of getting in touch with an old…well not exactly a friend, but acquaintance, to see if we can magik up an answer or two. I think you met Red once, Charlie. Powerful witch, best chance we’ve got at this point."

The three ate their meal in uncomfortable silence, each lost to his own thoughts. No one really wanted to just write off Angel or Illyria, but, as time passed, it was less and less likely any hope of finding either of them remained.

Three weary warriors parted company that night, each going his own way in a world vastly more complicated than the average person could imagine. Their private battles were still ahead of them, but the need to be a cohesive team no longer existed.

Wolfram & Hart had left them alone and had not reestablished an office in LA. None of the survivors had any deep desire to pursue the suicide mission begun by Angel either. It seemed they were at an impasse.

The only pleasant surprise had been to discover that Angel had made provisions for each member of his team in the event they survived. This meant that neither Gunn nor Spike need worry about money or legal documents. Connor had a trust fund guaranteeing a bright future for himself as well.

Gunn was still licensed to practice law and got a fine letter of referral from W & H as well as a sizeable IRA account and packet of untraceable fast cash.

Spike was now a legally registered alien with resident status, green card and all necessary documents to flesh out his new identity. Spike had to laugh at Angel’s unexpected humor in giving him the surname of Rice-Stoker. So far no one had commented on it or seemed to get the connection.

Spike even had documents crediting him with the education he had received over a century ago. Angel had changed the dates and other particulars to match Spike’s new identity, but somehow had all the correctly completed studies accounted for.
What sort of career Mr. William Rice-Stoker could reasonably expect with a degree in the classics was a mystery. Fortunately, the cash Angel had squirreled away in Spike’s name made it a non-issue.

Spike even held title to the Viper with the miracle glass and a deed to the old Hyperion hotel.

Maybe it was time to do some redecorating and open that place as well as re-open Angel Investigations, Spike thought. First though, he’d contact Willow and give finding his sire one last chance before he moved on. Spike was never one to give up easily and the words "move on" left a distinctly bad taste in his mouth after his last trip to Italy.

The old hotel held the promise of a steady income and the unfamiliar security of a real home as well. The investigations business would permit Spike to indulge his instincts for conflict and violence while continuing to fight the good fight.

Angel had provided perfectly for his needs to be met; all Spike had to do was grab on.

Spike wasn’t too eager to put in a call to London. That prat Giles would likely insist on screening any calls Spike might make to any of the people there. Giles’ unwillingness to help Angel had led to the series of tragedies that eventually caused Fred to die needlessly.

Spike had long forgiven Giles for the plot with Wood on his own life--understood it even--but Fred had been an innocent. She deserved the protection of the white hats and it had been withheld from her based on her friendship with two beings the Watcher despised. Spike wasn’t as quick to forgive that.

Spike figured he owed Angel one last chance and Willow was the best option to give it to him.

Angel’s boy Connor might come off as a tough cookie, but Spike knew the lad needed some closure where his dad was concerned. The memories that had been returned to him so soon before losing Angel were leaving questions for the boy that only Angel had answers for. If Connor were to have any real peace, all avenues needed to be explored before Angel was consigned to being just another memory.

Blue was another matter. Spike wasn’t sure if it was even in Illyria’s best interests to return her to the human world that had so disappointed her. Talk about a step down the food chain! Going from an ancient god with millions of worshipers to a sidekick to a pair of souled vampires had been a leap off the species cliff. She might well be better off wherever she was.

Gunn was still weighed down with guilt over his unknowing part in Fred’s transformation into Illyria. Fred was lost to them, but somehow having Illyria about had been both a sorrow and a comfort to the handsome lawyer. Spike knew Charlie would want a reason to think that there was peace at last for the being that had been reborn into this world at such a high cost.

Just as when Angelus left his vampire family over a century ago, Spike was left to assume responsibility for the emotional well-being of those left behind. Good thing being a caretaker came naturally to him.

~*~
Chapter 2
~*~
It had taken Spike multiple attempts to finally speak directly to Willow. He finally had to resort to paying a girl to make the call for him. She pretended to be a girl that Willow had a one-time date with in California.

Spike had been right about Giles and his unwillingness to allow Spike access to Willow. Spike wasn’t even sure if Willow had known he was alive, or undead, after the closing of the Hellmouth. She had certainly sounded shocked when she heard his familiar voice as he took the phone from his ‘helper’.

"Um, you sound a lot like someone I used to know", Willow had said quietly. "You don’t happen to be someone that has a severe sunlight allergy and strong emotions for my best friend? I mean you can’t be cause he’s dead. Well, he was always dead, but he’d be dead dead this time", Willow rambled on.

Spike chuckled and replied, "Yeah, Red, it’s me. Long story. Thought you’d have heard from Junior Watcher Boy after our run-in over the daft slayer. Never figured him to be able to keep a secret. Miracles still happen I guess."

"Talking to you…now, THAT’S a miracle! Spike! You can’t imagine how glad I am to hear your voice", Willow exclaimed.

Spike was touched and more than a little surprised. The little witch had always been nice enough to him, but he couldn’t fathom why she sounded so very glad to be in touch with him. She sounded relieved in some way that caused his senses to go on alert.

"What’s up, Willow? I’ll get to why I’m calling you in a minute, but you sound unnaturally happy to hear from me and that must mean something. Everything all right there? Dawn okay? Buffy?" He nearly whispered that last name. "Saw her in Rome last spring. She looked fine, happy even. Moved on to that normal life she always was going on about, even if she did pick that pillock Immortal to do it with. No accounting for her taste, eh?"

Willow was quiet on her end of the conversation for a long enough time to make Spike wonder if she had hung up on him. The absence of a dial tone made him reject that possibility. "Red, you there? You’re startin’ to scare me now. Tell the vampire you can’t seem to be rid of what’s up."

"Spike, I need you to get to London as soon as you can. Buffy’s gone missing and we’re pretty sure that Immortal, what did you call him…pillock…yeah…has
something to do with it. Dawn is beside herself, blames herself for encouraging Buffy to date him. Giles keeps going on about having warned her, and how she always picked dangerous boyfriends. I’m not getting a thing trying to locate her, or him. Your calling like this has to be a sign. I know you’d never stop until we find her."

"M on the next plane, luv. While you’re waitin’ on me to join the search and rescue,see if you can get any results doing a locate on Angel and Illyria, will ya?"

Spike was beginning to throw things in his duffle bag as he spoke. He hadn’t planned to push his way into Buffy’s life again, but he had no intention of allowing anyone to hurt his Slayer--not as long as he was still in existence anyway. She might tell him to go away and move on, but, by God, she’d be alive enough to tell him to his face.

"Sure thing, Spike". Willow’s relief was palpable. "Um…who’s Illyria?"

Spike was startled by how little Willow seemed to know about the goings on of the L.A. group. Giles had evidently played everything very close to the vest,
giving nothing away to the former Scoobies. Spike began to wonder just how much Buffy herself had been told. "Illyria’s an ancient god king, sort of a super demon. You might try the locate on Fred’s body, though, ‘cause that’s where Illyria was last seen livin’. I’ll explain THAT story to you when I get there. Just look for Fred and Angel, would you?"

"Sure thing. Can’t you tell me a few things now, though? I thought you burned up in Sunnydale. How is it you’re alive? Why didn’t you let any of us know?"

"Maybe you should ask the Watcher that last one, luv. I did burn up. Hurt like a bitch, it did, too. Still not alive though, same handsome vampire you all knew
and hated. Long story, Red. Somehow tied to that bauble I was sportin’ in the Hellmouth. Came to in hell…all right, Angel’s office, but close enough. Was
kinda body challenged for a bit, like a ghosty, so not too able to phone home. Angel was predictably not too interested in informin’ the Slayer that yours truly was back, so to speak. Finally got the body back, but things just seemed to get in the way of a grand reunion. Giles knew though, after the whole ‘Dana the barmy Slayer cuts off Spike’s hands’ incident. He decided that Angel and all of us here were workin’ on the side of Evil, Inc. without so much as hearing anything from our side of it. Cost Fred her life, that did. I’ve been trying to call you for days now and the wanker has blocked my calls. Had to get Ginger here to make this call." Spike hurried through the explanation.

He promised to fill Willow in on all the details when he got to London and hung up to start making reservations. Soon Mr. Rice-Stoker was booked on the next available flight to the motherland that William hadn’t seen in decades.

~~~

Spike carefully read out the address to the cab driver he had hired at Heathrow. The man, clearly Pakistani, had a loose grasp of the Queen’s English and Spike
didn’t want to go on a long tour of the capital right then. His plane had conveniently landed just at dusk and by the time Mr. Rice-Stoker cleared customs, it was dark enough to move about safely. The last thing he wanted now was a language mix-up to delay his arrival.

Once more, things had rapidly changed for Spike. He had sought out the help of the witch to find Angel and Blue only to find himself in London on a search for the love of his unlife. He felt sure Buffy would turn up fine. After all, the girl had cheated death twice and even survived the assistance of Xander in carrying out her calling. Surely nothing could defeat her if she had managed to overcome that!

Willow had a small flat above a Curry house on Brick Lane in East London. The boutiques and Bangladeshi emporiums lining the street seemed a fitting setting for the Scooby witch. Somehow Spike couldn’t envision that stuck up bint Kennedy in this setting, however. Maybe Willow gave her the old heave-ho, he thought cheerily. She could never hold a candle to Glinda. No heart in the dark Slayerette like there had been in the gentle white witch who had been the only one to show a bit of kindness to Spike that awful year after they brought Buffy back from heaven. "Good riddance to bad rubbish--least I hope so", he muttered under his breath.

Willow looked genuinely pleased to see him when he knocked on her door. "Spike! You got here so fast. I thought you said vampires didn’t really fly except in books, and maybe Dracula. Come in. I don’t have any blood to offer you, but I think I can brew up a decent cuppa by now."

"Thanks. Wouldn’t mind a proper bit of tea. Been a while since I’ve had one", he replied.

While Willow prepared the tea and some fresh cookies, they caught up with all the necessary information about what had happened since that afternoon in Sunnydale.

"You mean Giles just assumed that you and Angel were all evil and fangy again? I just don’t know what his problem is with you any more. Okay, I see his
prejudice where Angel is concerned, his having murdered Miss Calendar and all, but you saved the world! I’m really gonna have to chew his tushie for screening my contacts, that’s for sure. I mean I liked Fred. I would have done anything I could have to help her even if Angel had gone all soulless and evil. Giles needs to learn that we aren’t teenagers any more and can make decisions for ourselves. Okay, some of our decisions haven’t been so happily ever after, but still they’re our decisions to make."

"Take it you and the well-trained slayer didn’t go the distance?"

Willow looked wistful and was rather quiet for a bit before replying. "No, Kennedy and I just weren’t the long haul pair. I guess I needed someone when it started and she was kinda pushy too, it all started pretty fast. I’ll never find another Tara--I know that--but I want it to be about love, you know? Sex is great, but I want the whole enchilada. Heck, I want the whole Mexican plate special! I guess I don’t have to explain the "love being important" part to you, huh?"

Looked like at least one of the Scoobies had finally realized that vampires could love and that Spike had adored the Slayer.

"Right there with you, Red. You’ll find the right person. Got a lot to offer and I know Glinda would want you to be loved again. Just give it time and stay open to it. I wanted Buffy to move on when I combusted. Never thought I’d be coming back and all. I have to admit I would never have wanted that bloody bastard the
Immortal to be the fella. Overstuffed, legend in his own mind bugger made life miserable for me and Angel back a century ago. Had another couple of run in’s with him after Angelus got all souled up too. Wouldn’t have expected him to take Buffy in like he did Dru. I mean Dru was loose in the attic, so she had an excuse. Darla’d screw anything, so no surprise there…but Buffy? Slayer I knew had standards. What the hell happened to make her fall into his hands and other parts?"

"I’m not sure how they met. Dawn can tell you. She’ll be here in the morning. I didn’t tell her you were coming. I wasn’t sure if she knew you were undusty or not and thought it would be easier in person. I haven’t been as close to Buffy as I used to be. I was all caught up in the coven and learning to use my powers wisely and Buffy was so different after Sunnydale. It was like she was bipolar or something. Some days she just was quiet and off to herself and other days she was a whirlwind of shopping, dancing and being the good time girl. It was kinda exhausting to me trying to keep up. Finally, she and Dawn moved to Rome and I’d hear from her occasionally, but not too often. More like the odd email. I don’t think she’s even e’ed Xander more than a handful of times! He’s coming too, to help plan the search for Buffy."

Spike ignored the news of Xander’s planned arrival and remarked on the state of the Scooby friendships. "Sad, that. You all may have been a right pain where I was concerned, but the lot of you were close. I think it was your friendship that helped the Slayer survive as long as she has. Too bad she changed her circle
of friends. At least you lot were loyal and really cared about her, even if you didn’t have great taste in picking out her boyfriends."

Willow laughed lightly in response, but inwardly agreed on all points. Maybe once they found Buffy, repairs could be made where needed. As long as you were still alive, it was never too late. At least that’s what Tara had always told her.

"You can have the couch as long as you are in London. I’d offer you the bedroom, but there’s no window in the parlor to worry about sunlight issues, so the couch should be safer", Willow offered.

Spike was overwhelmed at the thought of being welcomed in a home of a Scooby. Things had changed a bit or so it would seem. Still, it remained to be seen what sort of reception he’d receive from the Watcher, the whelp, and his niblet.

~*~
Chapter 3
~*~

"Willow, you awake? I got in a bit earlier than I expected", Dawn announced as she let herself in to Willow’s flat. The fact that she had a key spoke of a closer relationship than the one Willow had described having with Buffy of late.

"’Lo, Dawn. Willow’s asked me to help in the search for big sis. Hope you don’t mind." Spike sat up on the couch, his hair a mess of tangled curls from his sleep. He couldn’t take his eyes off his Little Bit. So grown-up looking now! He yearned to find something other than disgust or hatred in her eyes when she looked at him. He was rewarded with a flash of joy on her face--just before she passed out cold on Willow’s rag rug.

"Oh, balls! Maybe Red should have warned the Bit ‘bout my comin’ over to lend a hand. Dawn? Niblet? Christ on a unicycle, sweeting, you need to come ‘round now. Don’t scare ol’ Spike like this." Spike was at the side of the collapsed girl and doing his best to revive her when Willow stumbled into the room.

"What’s happening, Spike? I thought I heard voices and not of the dream soundtrack type either", Willow said. She was a vision in plaid flannel jammies and slippers that looked like giant ducks on her feet. She couldn’t see either of her guests from her perspective in the door jamb and was still wiping sleep from her eyes.

"Hell, Willow, the Bit’s pulled a fainting spell that’d be the envy of most women from my human days. Think you should have told her I was coming after all."

"Wow! I don’t have any smelling salts and I really don’t feel like slapping the poor kid. Guess she’ll come around soon. Maybe you should … um… go wash up or something ‘til I talk to her, ‘k? " Willow put on her best reassurance face and pointed the way to the bathroom for the vampire in question to wash up.

Dawn gave out a low moan just as Spike was leaving the room. He nearly ran back to her side, but, at a look from Willow, continued to the W.C. to give the ladies
time alone.

"Dawnie. Honey, are you okay? Why’d you faint?"

"I saw a ghost, Willow. God, I’m out of my mind about Buffy and I must have just conjured him up because subconsciously I think he’d know how to find her and
bring her home. Damn that stupid vampire, dusting like that! He was the one that was never supposed to leave us."

"You mean Spike, honey? That was no ghost, just a vampire like always."

Dawn looked shocked at Willow’s response. "What are you talking about, Will? Spike died at the Hellmouth; you were there."

"Gee, I though you knew. Well, Spike and I both thought you knew … you and Buffy at least. Damn Giles!" Willow muttered the last part, causing a look of confusion on Dawn’s face.

"What are you talking about and what does Giles have to do with it? What should Buffy and I know? Was that really Spike?" The questions tumbled from Dawn’s
lips in rapid succession.

"Slow down, Dawnie, I’ll explain it all in a minute. I’ll make it the Cliff Notes version for now ‘cause Spike will want to come back to see if you’re okay pretty soon."

Willow had just gotten to the part where she was telling Dawn about the phone call from Spike when he carefully came back into the room. He looked nervous at the sort of welcome he might expect and worried about Dawn’s earlier reaction. He had heard Willow explaining the events since Sunnydale and was puzzled that Dawn seemed unaware of his return to terra firma. Andrew had seemed to indicate that both Buffy and Dawn had been made aware of his return when Spike had been in Rome the previous year. Was it possible that neither of his girls had known? Maybe the direction to "move on" hadn’t really come from Buffy or been directed towards him after all.

"Hey, Nib …er…Dawn. Hope you’ll accept my help and not be wanting to light me up this time. Really just want to help find Buffy, not wantin’ to mess up your lives or anything." Spike still felt awkward around Dawn. They hadn’t really talked since she had threatened to set him afire. He had gone to his death still feeling the sharp sting of estrangement from his surrogate sister. Talking to her had once been so easy. Now it was like learning a new language, stilted and strange.

That strangeness ended instantly as Dawn tackled the vampire sending them both crashing to the floor in a tangle of limbs. She was hugging him hard enough to make him glad that he didn’t need to breathe and was babbling so fast he couldn’t understand what she was saying. When she began to pound on his chest, he felt more in his element with the girl than he had in years.

"Why did you do something as stupid as putting on that ugly necklace? You jerk! You weren’t supposed to die and leave me until I said you could. You didn’t even give me time to finish pouting and punishing you for the whole attacking Buffy and leaving me thing, you big dummy. God, I’ve missed you! I’m so glad you’re alive. No, don’t say, ‘undead’, I know what I mean! You’re more alive than any of my friends have ever been, Spike. God, if Buffy had known you were back she’d never have started dating that poophead, Eduardo the ‘Great’. Why anyone would want HIM to be immortal is beyond me. Now, you on the other hand…don’t you ever dust on me again, you hear me!"

Spike felt his face might split in two with the goofy grin he knew he was sporting at the blessings of love and forgiveness from his girl. He didn’t even mind the bruises he was sure to carry for an hour or so from the pummeling she was giving his chest as she read him the riot act for his absence from her life.

Willow watched from her seat on the couch, her face aglow with happiness at seeing her young friend having a moment of joy in her otherwise troubled situation. Hindsight was so very clear and it was obvious now that the friendship, the love, between the girl and the vampire had been very real on both sides. Willow felt a twinge of sadness that none of them had given credit to the emotions right under their noses back in the day when it would have made everyone’s lives less stressful. Perhaps a lot of tragedy could have been avoided if they had all just talked honestly and had been willing to put aside prejudices. Oh well, water under the bridge. Learn from the mistakes of the past and forge onward.

Willow fixed breakfast for the three of them. After washing up, she said she’d head to the butcher’s for some blood for Spike, leaving the two friends to talk
in privacy.

"Buffy finally told me what happened that night before you left for Africa. I guess she thought I was too young for the details before. Stupid Buffy! I wasted all of that anger on you when we could have made up like I wanted to. I wouldn’t have felt so guilty and lousy after you dusted if I had only known it was okay to love you. Xander told me what he’d seen in the bathroom and Buffy didn’t clear anything up except to say there was more to the story. When we get her back, remind me to yell at her again for not telling me sooner, okay? For what it’s worth, Xander apologized to me for telling me. He’s changed a lot since losing Anya. Try to give him a break, even though he doesn’t deserve it from you, all right? Buffy needs you both now and it’s time to bury the hatchet."

"Glad to, Sweetbit. Mind if it’s in the wanker’s head?"

Spike dodged her hand as she raised it to playfully swat the vampire. "Always put Buffy’s needs over a spot of vengeance, not to worry. Noticed the boy going through some changes that last year anyway. He had lots of times when he might have made sarcastic comments but didn’t. I think he was starting to grow up a bit there at the end. Too bad he lost Demon Girl right then. Maybe he’d have finally done right by her after all."

Spike listened as Dawn described how Eduardo Medici, a.k.a. The Immortal, wined and dined Buffy until she finally loosened up and began to see him exclusively.

The ancient human had first seen Buffy as she shopped for clothes at a fashion show in Rome. The California blonde had attracted his notice and he sent his card over to her at the end of the show along with an invitation to join him for an espresso. Buffy had been intrigued by the handsome Italian with the large entourage hanging on his every word and gesture. With his dark good looks and aura of power, he had seemed like a film star or royalty to the wide-eyed Slayer.

At first, Buffy hadn’t been interested in more than a quick caffiene pick-me-up as she satisfied her curiosity about the man who was so interested in meeting her. The less Buffy showed herself to be interested, the more attracted he seemed to be. It was obvious he was not used to women who didn’t just fall at his feet. Buffy was a challenge and Eduardo had never backed down from one of those in his long life.

Dawn had been worried about her sister’s mood swings since closing the Hellmouth and thought the interesting and sexy man might help Buffy to level out. She encouraged her older sister to accept the dates and gifts that Eduardo kept pressing on her. Before long, they were seeing each other nightly. Buffy thrust herself into a series of parties and the pursuit of pleasure as she hadn’t done since she was called as a Slayer. It was as if she was trying to cram years of living into a few months.

Giles had warned his surrogate daughter that the Immortal, though human, was still a supernatural being. His immortality and the secrets of how he had attained it were a mystery. While Eduardo was not overtly evil, he wasn’t necessarily good either. Giles had been worried about the relationship Buffy seemed to be throwing herself headlong into.

Bufy had a rather loud argument with her former Watcher about his habit of finding fault with the men she chose to be with. It ended with an estrangement between Giles and Buffy that had lasted up to her disappearance about 6 months previously.

Giles left no stone unturned in the search for Buffy, but there seemed to be no more leads to follow. It was as if she had simply disappeared in a flash.

That wording gave Spike pause. If he calculated the timing of Buffy’s disappearance correctly, she must have gone missing right around the time of the great battle that had taken Angel and Illyria into the great unknown. Curious! Could his original quest be tied to the search for his lost love? What did it mean that the Immortal had disappeared as well? Maybe the best idea would be to research the Italian fop and just how he had become immortal in the first place. A visit to the Wolfram and Hart offices in Rome might lead to a clue or two as well. The bint in charge with the whopping great breasts seemed to like Spike well enough; she might slip up and let loose a secret or two. It wasn’t much, but it was more than they had a few moments ago and it was a start.

~*~
Chapter 4
~*~

There was an awkward silence between Xander and Spike upon first meeting again after so much time had passed. Each was unsure of his position in the other man’s mind. Spike was used to hostility, although to be truthful the Whelp had been nice enough, though distant, during that harried last year after Spike’s return from Africa complete with soul. Spike didn’t think it was all because of the soul either. The boy had seemed to have become more thoughtful and less of a speak-first-and-think-later type of fellow.

For the past year, Xander had been ashamed of his prejudice regarding Spike. After the vampire's self-sacrifice at the Hellmouth, there was no way to delude himself that Spike was other than what he had claimed for a long while--a man in love and with good intentions. Clearly Spike had loved Buffy, in a pure no-conditiony way, too. Spike’s final act at Sunnydale, pure in its intent, made it impossible to ever think otherwise.

Xander had watched the dynamics in the household after Buffy had rescued Spike from the First Evil. He had seen many changes in the vampire, but more importantly, he saw much the same about him post-soul. Realizing that
Spike’s emotions were not really different, with or without the falsely important soul, had been like turning a light on in a dark house for the young man. Xander finally had to re-evaluate Spike on his own terms, not in the shadow of Angel/Angelus. Everything that had happened in the previous year, his walking away from Anya on her most important day and Willow going to the dark side of the force included,had also left Xander with much to ponder.

Xander had nearly sought out the vampire for a little chat after Spike had saved his other eye from Caleb’s cruel thumbs. It just seemed like there was
never a good time. So much happened so fast and Spike had withdrawn even further from the group after they had put Buffy out of her own house.

"Spike. Good to see you walkin’ among us again. Even better seeing you here helping to find Buffy. I think the good guys stand a chance of winning now that the whole team’s ready to go." Xander extended his hand to the startled and suspicious vampire.

Spike took so long to take Xander’s hand that the girls grew uncomfortable. Finally he shook it firmly and answered. "Nice to know you realize I’m on Buffy’s
side. Always have been. Well, not always; did try to kill her for a bit, but mostly on her side."

"Look, man, I think we need to clear the air a bit in a guy-to-guy way, no offense, ladies. Why don’t we slip down to the pub and have a couple and maybe I can whip your ass at snooker while we’re at it." Xander looked hopefully at Spike as he made the gesture of truce.

"Seein’ how we’ll need to be workin’ together and all…yeah. Besides, Buffy thinks of you like a brother. If I’m droppin’ back into her life, even for a short bit, don’t need to put her in that situation again. Always going to love her, even if she has moved on and all. What she wants and needs has to come first, you know?" Spike missed the confused look on Dawn’s face at his comment about moving on.

"Spike, Buffy thought you were dead. She only moved on because you were gone", Dawn started to explain.

"Later, Bit, okay? Lots of miscommunication and missed moments to deal with once we get the Slayer back, right?"

The boys’ night out proved to do the job and it was well past closing time when the two returned to Willow’s flat. Neither was in any condition to tell the girls how their talk went, but judging from the way the tension was gone, it had to have gone well.

As Willow looked at the two males snoring loudly on her couch where they had fallen into a drink-induced slumber soon after sitting down, a smile played on her
face. "Aren’t little boys cute when they start to grow up? I think they might even become friends when all of this is over. Who’d’ve thought that?"

Dawn couldn’t help laughing at the concept and the sight of the two "enemies" as Xander’s head dropped down on Spike’s lap. "Well, for that to happen, Xander better wake up and move where his head is or there’ll be no coming back from that!" She snickered as she shook her sister’s oldest friend to wake him.

"Come on, Dread Pirate Roberts, off to Willow’s guest room with you!"

Xander began muttering nearly unintelligible lines from Princess Bride as Dawn helped him to his room.

Willow carefully tucked an afghan around the sleeping vampire and called a soft good-night to Xander. "I’ll leave the light on, Dawnie. I don’t expect to fall
asleep that fast. I promise not to hog the covers either!"

~~~

Xander proved to be the key to getting Giles to open the few files the new Council had on The Immortal, a.k.a. Eduardo Medici a.k.a. loads of other names over the centuries. Xander managed to convince Giles that Spike was not now, nor had he been for a long time, an agent of evil. The fact that it was Xander insisting on Spike’s being reliable went a long way in making the case to the Watcher. Xander was not known as a great fan of the vampire, after all.

It was a somber group that gathered round the table in research mode. The environment had none of the feeling of camaraderie of former Scooby research marathons. Xander and Spike had an obvious truce and grudging trust. The Watcher and the vampire were another matter. They were all aiming for the same goal, but
there was no love lost there at all.

Willow and Dawn were confining their research to magic-based methods of locating the missing beings. Since being informed that Angel and Illyria were missing also, they felt it more likely that magic was going to be the best resource to find the three supernaturally enhanced beings and the human called The Immortal.

Willow wanted to do some tests on Dawn regarding any residual Key elements that might prove helpful if other dimensions were involved in the missing persons case.
Dawn had no problem with any test that might lead to the safe return of her sister.

Xander was looking at recent periodicals and on the internet for more current information on The Immortal with a view to finding out everything possible about his recent history. He liked to run with the jet set, so there was ample information available. The man had been everywhere the international spotlight chose to shine. He was front and center at the wedding of Princess Di and had escorted not one, but two, nominees to an Academy Awards ceremony just prior to his hooking up with Buffy. The man was everywhere, flashing his too-white smile in his tanned-to-perfection face.

Giles, rather predictably, was concentrating on information about the Senior Partners in general and Wolfram & Hart of L.A. in particular. He huffed quite
often at the obvious ties to evil and muttered about Angel making deals with the devil leading them all into this current dilemma.

Spike had had more than one encounter with the Immortal and was the first to find the references he had clearly expected on the being. He snorted as he read the various boasts that had been codified into "fact" in various tomes. From multiple sources he compiled notes on the most helpful information to share with the group.

The Immortal’s best known name seemed to have been the Count Saint Germain. He was a real mystery of history, that one. Said to have been born in the 1600s in Transylvania as the illegitimate son of Prince Franz-Leopold Ragoczy…or perhaps in Bohemia, the illegitimate son of a noted Rosecrucian…or even in 1710, in San Germano, Italy, the son of a tax collector. His appearance lent itself more to the latter of those choices.

He was said to have been an alchemist who discovered the secret of immortality. There were records of him in such far flung times and places as 1710 Italy in the
home of the Countess von Georgy (where he appeared to be around 45 years old) and as late as 1820 France, where the Countess d’Adhemar also reported him as being approximately 45 years old. The last reliable sighting was in 1897 France where the singer Emma Calve autographed a photograph of herself to him with the comment, "To Saint Germain, the great chiromancer who has told me many truths". This credited him with the "gift" of fortune telling.

Portraits of the man over the centuries perfectly matched the few photographs that Dawn had of her sister’s latest boyfriend.

There a man who had claimed to be the famed Saint Germain in 1972, but that was likely a hoax.

The things that the being currently known as The Immortal claimed of himself were startling in the extreme. He said that he had been a guest at Cana when Jesus turned water into wine. He said he had been a friend of Mary’s mother, Anne, and that he himself had suggested Anne’s canonization by the church at the Council of Nicaea in 325 A.D.. He was known to speak at least 13 languages, from ancient
Sanskrit to the modern languages of English and French.

He was never low-key, living in the homes of the most powerful and influential families in Europe. He met many of them multiple times over the years and was
said to never age. Even such a luminary as Voltaire described Saint Germain as "a man who never dies, and who knows everything."

His many talents and lack of aging were attributed to his supposed discovery of the renowned "Philosopher’s Stone", that holy grail of alchemists from the time
of the Pharaohs of Egypt.

Whatever his true origins and exploits, it was unlikely due to alchemy and a stone. More likely it was a demonic alliance of the kind Hamilton and Eve had with the Senior Partners that had imparted them with immortality. Wolfram & Hart was older than recorded history, after all.

If this were the case, then perhaps the war started by Angel was not at an end, after all, and Buffy was yet another casualty. It remained to be determined
whether Medici, Saint Germain, or whatever his actual name was, had been acting on behalf of the Senior Partners or was swept up in the battle because of his relationship with Buffy.

Spike was certain that the key to finding Buffy lay in uncovering the role played by The Immortal in the whole thing. Had he courted Buffy just to be in
position to kidnap her when given the word?

Buffy didn’t seem to be his usual "type". Eduardo was adored by women and men of every age and nationality. He tended to be attracted to dark beauties like those from Mediterranean coastal countries, usually from wealthy backgrounds and good
education. A California blonde with the vocabulary of a valley girl and the sensibilities of a small town girl didn’t seem to fit his mold. As much as Spike
loved Buffy, he had a hard time seeing Eduardo Medici falling at the well-shod feet of his Slayer.

The bloody bastard might have spun his stories to the royals and nobles of days gone by, but Spike had a feeling the real story was one far more simple and
deadly than any told by the pretender to good family and bad science. More likely there was a contract somewhere in the files of some W & H office with the
real story. All Spike had to do was get a good look at the right files and they would be on their way to some answers.

Even Giles was impressed with this line of thought. He might never actually respect Spike, but he had to privately admit that he may have underestimated the
vampire’s research abilities.

The team, as Willow had insisted they consider themselves, met at a curry house near Willow’s flat to decide their best course of action. Giles was to be the main contact person, remaining in London and keeping all the communication lines open and passing important information on to the rest of the team.

Spike had nearly spit out his coffee at that choice. "You mean the same Giles that didn’t let anyone know I was back? The same Giles that kept important phone
calls from Willow that could have saved Fred? He’s our communication man? We’re doomed from the start."

"Spike, while I understand your sarcasm, I assure you that returning Buffy to her friends and family in all safety ensures my diligence in carrying out this
position."

"My God! Have you taken pompous pills or just rammed an additional stick up your arse, Watcher? You used to speak halfway decent Queen’s English. Somethin’ in
those Council walls turn you into a right prig, or what?" Spike stared at Giles as if he were some alien species under observation.

"Just because I choose not to mangle a rather lovely and versatile language in some ill-considered attempt to appear younger than I truly am does not make me a
prig, Spike."

"Right. Being a stiff-arsed, rigid anachronism’s what does it."

"Could you two please just let it go?!" Xander interrupted with an exasperated sigh. "Look, I don’t understand half of what either of you are saying, but
I know we all agree on the important stuff. We need to find Buffy and get her home safe. If we also find Dead Boy and that weird god girl you told us about, all the better. I’m going to use my manly charms to see how many of The Immortal’s exes have stories to tell. And before any of you say a word, I’ll have you know that I’m known in many circles as quite the ladies’ man lately." Xander still had the pirate mystique of the eye patch. It seemed to have given him a certain rakish charm that had changed his luck with the ladies. Many months in the company of all those potential Slayers had helped him in understanding the
fundamentals of appealing to women as well. After losing Anya, he had started to play the field in a big way. He had lost any desire to settle down, at least
for the present.

"Yes, quite. Let’s see then, Xander will be looking into former relationships of this Immortal, Willow will be using her coven contacts to attempt dimensional locators for the missing and what is it that you will be doing again?" Giles lifted his brow and stared pointedly at Spike.

"I’m thinking of strolling into the Wolfram & Hart office in Rome. Lady in charge there seemed to fancy me a bit when the Poof and I were there last. Figure I’ll turn on the charm and work my way into the lady’s … er … files."

"Well, that settles it. I’m headed back to Rome too. I’m not about to let you try to charm any snakes on my home turf without me." Dawn stood up and yawned.
They were all fairly tired from the hours of research and planning. "Andrew should be in on this too, since he was living with us when it all happened."

"Maybe not such a good idea", Willow pointed out. "We don’t know what Andrew might be involved in. He was always kinda wishy-washy when it came to choosing sides and he seemed to have a bit of a crush on The Immortal himself. I remember him gushing about Eduardo when he came to London the last time."

"Yeah, I’m with Red. Like the boy, but don’t trust him. We’ll play that one as we see fit later. Best not to let the boy know too much about what we’re up
to. We can try to get him to spill any information he might have. Niblet, that can be your target, heh? The boy seemed to have a soft spot for you and you
might get him to slip. Who knows, he might not even know that he has information."

"Ladies and gentlemen, I’ve got some jilted ladies to see to. I’ll be in touch." Xander headed out of the resturant and into the night.

"I’ll book us a flight out just before sunrise so we can get on the plane before it’s too dangerous for you, Spike. Not going to lose you again. I think one
of the middle seats on the big planes should be safe enough for a vampire?" Dawn looked worried trying to plan the travel arrangements for the ultimate safety of her resurrected best friend.

"’S okay, Bit. I’m used to getting about now. Mind, nothing as easy as the Wolfram & Hart perks, what with the private jets and cars with special glass, but I’ve never let a little thing like a bit o’ sun slow me any. Not likely to start now." Spike smiled fondly at the girl who was half of his heart.

"The Council will, of course, pick up all the valid expenses. Buffy is still the Slayer." Giles glared at Spike, "But I will be checking all the items charged to be sure they ARE valid."

Spike snorted and shook his head. Some things would never change. It was kind of nice to have some sense of security in the world gone mad. It was strange enough having Xander treating him like an equal, probably for the best that the Watcher treat him the way he had always done.

~*~
Chapter 5
~*~

The flight to Rome passed quickly as the two friends caught up on each other’s lives during their self-imposed estrangement.

"So, Bit, tell me all about how that prick the Immortal got his hooks into my Slayer? All right, she HAS shown some poor taste in men in the past what with Angel, that college idiot and Finn, but she had shown improvement with me. Looks like she took a giant step backwards. The Great Poof was a better choice even with the bloody curse." Spike shook his head in amazement at the thought of his beloved being attracted to such a puffed-up piece of fluff as Eduardo the Magnificent.

"She was real weird after Sunnydale. It was like she was this boat that got untied and was just drifting with the tide. And, boy, were there some stormy seas at times! All that time she was all, ‘I want a normal life’, then when she had the chance, she was clueless what to do. She got bored easily. She was really moody, too. She didn’t cry or anything, at least in front of anyone. I know I heard her more than once at night though."

"Buffy’d mope around even worse than when she first got back from heaven, then she’d go on a spending spree and come home with tons of shoes. I don’t know how many times she redecorated our apartment. Sometimes, I had to go check the number on the door to be sure it WAS our apartment. Other times the place wouldn’t even get cleaned up for a couple of weeks…eeeew, not even the dishes!"

"Then Andrew moved in after his apartment got burned down and that seemed to get Buffy in a better mood. They’d go shopping together. Andrew can be such a girl, but he’s got great taste in clothes! He’s the one that got her to start going to the designers’ runway shows. He knows some of the people and got Buffy great deals on the real things. Who’d have ever expected that from the little nerd tied to the armchair? He’s got lots of friends in the Italian fashion industry now, goes to all their parties and everything."

"So anyway, he moves in and Buffy perks up, buys lots of clothes, meets Eduardo at one of the shows and the rest, as they say, is history." Dawn looked a bit tired with the long story she’d just compressed to a few paragraphs.

"So, the boy, he’s the one introduced her to the Immortal?" Spike asked quietly.

"No, I don’t think so. I mean Andrew’s got lots of friends, but they are, like, fabric cutters and hairdressers, not in the kind of crowd the Immortal runs with. Naw, I think he was pushing Buffy to go out with Eduardo hoping he’d get to meet him, because he sure didn’t have those kinds of connections. I mean, can you see Andrew with that group of International glitterati?"

"Even the biggest shots like a lap dog hanging about, pet." Spike had a thoughtful look on his face as he said this. "So, Buffy started going in circles that led to her meetin’ Old Eddie AFTER Andrew moved in with you two. And the boy moved in after his own place went up in flames. Did I get that right? I might be wantin’ to have a bit of a chat with my ‘amigo’ Andrew after all."

Dawn looked a bit nervous for her odd yet likable young friend. "No, I think I should be the Andrew connection, just like we planned. You’ll have enough dealing with the Italian bombshell you described over at the law firm. Let me handle Andrew. Like you said, he likes me. I really don’t think he would have done anything to hurt any of us. As weird as it may seem, we’re the only family he has."


"I’m not going to hurt the pup. Like I said, I like the boy, but don’t you ever quote me on that! I think he could be used or intimidated pretty easily though. This all just smells really bad, Bit, and vamps have great senses of smell. When did this apartment fire happen?"

"Soon after Andrew got back from California. He’d gone there to rescue a crazy slayer. Oh! I guess you know that story better then I do. Gee, Spike, we really didn’t know about you being back or about what happened to you with that. God, both of your hands? Do you have a scar? Can I see?" Dawn had her old curiosity face in place and Spike had to laugh.

"Just a little scar on each forearm. They used these shaman guys to make the graft take. Hurt like hell, but healed up right and proper. How’s the slayer girl doin’, anyway?" Spike was eager to change the subject because realizing that Buffy HADN’T known he was back when he was in Rome made him slightly crazy himself. He should have insisted on seeing her in person and not gone back to L.A. with his tail between his legs, should never have just taken the word of
the boy when it was about the love of his life. Spike had been stung seeing her with the Immortal, but he should have just gotten in her face over it like he would have in the past. Too late now to think of what might have been.

"Dana will never be able to be in the field. Giles has her working at the council headquarters. She’s still taking medicine, but she’s doing better", Dawn replied to Spike’s question.

Spike looked at her blankly. He’d quite forgotten at first what he had asked.

"Oh! Suspected she’d not make it. Too bad, she had the potential to be one of the greats. Some bloody bastard had to hurt the little girl and ruin her forever. Saw that happen often enough over the last century. Tried not to pick my victims too young. Dru liked the little ones, but usually killed them. Sounds bad, but probably more merciful in the long run. I wasn’t who the slayer girl thought I was, but I hurt plenty of others over the years, so I can’t hold what she did against her, you know?"

"I didn’t know it was you, Spike, but Dana did say that she felt really bad about hurting the man in LA. I think she’s aware of what she did on some level. Sometimes I think sharing all that slayer power may have not been such a good idea in the long run. We still don’t know if there will be more girls called as the current slayers die off. Too hard to tell if the ones we find are from the spell or replacements of ones we lose. We’ll know in a few years, I guess."

"Yeah, well, if we’d known all it would take is flashy jewelry and a fried vamp, it woulda saved lots of trouble on everyone’s part", Spike said ruefully.

"Gotta say again that I’m glad you didn’t stay fried! I missed you, you big idiot. I didn’t even get to tell you that I love you. I can kinda get why you stayed away from Buffy when you got back, but why not call me? I thought you loved me. I thought I was like a little sister to you." Dawn looked as if she was ready to start crying again.

"Do love you, pet. You and your sis are my whole world. Wouldn’t want to be alive in a world without the two of you in it. Last time we saw each other, you still weren’t talkin’ to me. Far as I could tell, you would’ve liked to toast marshmallows on the flaming vamp if you’d been in the Hellmouth when it happened. Wasn’t sure how Buffy’d feel, but was fairly certain you were well rid of me."

"See, I said you’re an idiot. God, all that summer, just you and me most of the time and you STILL don’t understand angsty teenage girls in a pout? I was confused about the whole deal with you and Buffy, but was really mad ‘cause you left ME. You were gone that whole summer and didn’t even call or write once. You were my first friend EVER. I mean I had those false memories of people before I really turned up, but you were the first one for real. You were my lifeline after Buffy jumped off that tower. I loved you…LOVE you. I was hurt and punishing you for leaving me. I guess I never thought I’d run out of time to make up. Next time…NO…let’s not have any next times, okay? You’re back in my life and that’s where I’ll always want you. You got that, you silly vampire? Even if I get mad or stupid, don’t ever go away and not come back again."

Spike had moist eyes that he hid from the young woman next to him. Her love had carried him through one of the hardest times of his entire unlife. The girl could never truly know how much her love and acceptance had meant to him. Buffy was the love of his life, but Dawn was both the sister and the child he would never have. She was as vital to him as Buffy in her own way. It had killed him when she had looked at him in hate and it ate away at him as she glared and ignored him for months afterwards. Her words had started to repair the rip in his heart that had been there so long he had gotten used to it.

Dawn yawned widely and then snuggled into her seat, leaning her head on Spike’s shoulder for a nap. "Can see why Xander tried to use you for a pillow last night", she muttered.

"Bloody hell! He did what?" Spike sputtered, but Dawn was already asleep.

~~~

He thought back to the last trip to Rome with Angel. Spike had been gripped with a different kind of fear then. He was sure he’d finally be coming face to face with his beloved and was a nervous wreck over it. Did Buffy miss him at all? Would she be glad to see him or angry? Would she be angry that he was alive or that he hadn’t called? He’d needed those tiny bottles of liquid courage then.

Now he was afraid again, but FOR her, not of her reactions to him. He had the worst feeling that if he and Angel hadn’t been such easily manipulated sods, his girl would be safe now. They had been played. He could see it easily now. It had to be the Senior Partners. Buffy, like the soul, was a common denominator between he and his sire. They both loved Buffy differently, just as they had gotten their souls in different ways, but both would dust rather than see any harm come to the Slayer who had saved them.

The partners knew that and used it. She was their trump card to keep the vampires in line. Only thing was they didn’t see Angel going off half-cocked and declaring war on the Circle of the Black Thorn and the partners themselves. That had to be the core of the situation, had to be why Buffy was courted by that blowhard Eduardo and why she’d gone missing at this time. Spike was going to have to do anything it took to get a look at those files.

He remembered the Italian CEO Ilona Costa Bianchi with her theatrical, over-the-top behavior and her ten replacement coats. He recalled how she had thrust her ample chest practically in his face as she called him the very definition of handsome. Yeah, he could play her. Had to be careful how he did it though, wouldn’t do to tip his hand. The diva DID know that both of the L.A. vamps had it bad for Buffy. He had to make her think he’d ‘moved on’ as Buffy had supposedly told them both to do. Had to be careful about it. Ilona was shrewd and far too knowing.

(flashback to Ilona’s office during TGIQ just before having Angel put on the racing jacket):

"Oh, my so beautiful boys, I have located your Boffy. She is with the Immortal. Such a lucky girl with three such perfecto men to chose from. I’m all filled with the jealousy at her good fortune! They were dancing, but then they…how should I say it…ah…went and then came! Quite loudly, too, according to his guarda, and
many times."

"That couldn’t have been my Buffy. She’s a sweet girl and wouldn’t make a scene like that!" Angel sounded aghast.

Spike had snorted loudly and given Angel a look that showed he felt his sire was completely bonkers.

"What did you do, Spike, corrupt her? She was innocent and a lady when I left her for her own good", Angel accused.

"Well, yeah, guess I did try to corrupt her at that. She took to it like a duck to water though and taught me more than a trick or two while she was at it. What? Don’t look at me that way. I didn’t even have my soul then, what’d you expect?" Spike had asked defensively.

"You mean she slept with you BEFORE you got your soul?" Angel was nearly apoplectic at the thought.

"Well, yeah", Spike said with the slightest of smirks.

"Come, come, boys. What is important is the head of the Capo and replacing your lovely leather coats. Such a shame to treat fine vintage clothing like that! Come, see what I have for you both", Ilona had practically dragged them into her office and presented them with the new coats.

(return to Spike thinking on the plane):

Yes, the bint knew how they both felt about Buffy. He’d have to play his cards very carefully if he wanted her to accept that he wasn’t showing up on her doorstep with the intention of finding Buffy. He’d never get near her files unless he said the right things and acted the right way. Ilona might not know the details, but Spike would bet a month’s worth of otter blood that she had more than a clue of what had happened both in L.A. and in Rome. He only hoped that she thought Spike was merely envious of Angel’s former relationship and interested in Buffy for that reason. His one upmanship attitude that day might have planted that seed. God, he hoped it had.

~*~
Chapter 6
~*~


Clearing customs in Rome was a breeze since Dawn had mastered the local lingo. Spike was proud of his Little Bit. She had a rare gift for languages and a good head on her shoulders for dealing with people.

Spike told Dawn all about the exuberant and lavishly endowed CEO of the evil law firm and his plan to charm his way into her private areas. "Yeah, for your sake, I hope you mean her file cabinets, ‘cause Buffy doesn’t do jealous without leaving bodies behind", Dawn warned.

"I’ll do what I have to do, Bit. Think you may be expectin’ your big sis to care more than she does about what I get up to, though. Too busy makin’ cookies for Angel from what I heard, unless she DID serve ‘em up to the bloody Immortal."

"You DO know that I haven’t got any idea what any of that meant, don’t you? Never mind. We’ll concentrate on getting Buffy back and then work on your weirdness and her cooking, if that’s even what you meant." Dawn shook her head in confusion.

Dawn couldn’t understand why Spike seemed to have lost his confidence where Buffy was concerned. She determined it would all work out, even if it took her locking the two of them in a room together until they worked out all the insecurities and misunderstandings they’d erected as a wall to hide their feelings for each other. Spike was the only creature on the planet who could match Buffy for stubbornness and insecurity. They could try the patience of a saint!

"Spike, maybe it would be better if you stay at a hotel for tonight. I want to have that talk with Andrew and don’t want him tipped off that you’re here. If he is guilty of anything, he’ll head for the nearest border before I can even grab the duct tape. You can have Buffy’s room tomorrow night. There’s a small hotel around the corner from our apartment that will be perfect for you tonight. I’ll drop in after I grill my roommate; unless I need to use some muscle, then I’ll call. What am I saying? I have enough muscle to handle Andrew! Why don’t you catch a nap? If you’re going to be Charm Boy to the Italian sex bomb you’ll need all the rest you can get!"

Spike laughed at Dawn’s description of Ilona and agreed. "You’ve got a point there, Niblet. Good thing a vampire doesn’t need to breathe ‘cause a fella could suffocate on those knockers of hers with just a careless hug! Pair of potentially lethal 45s she’s got there." He ducked as Dawn aimed her playful slap to the back of his head. "What is it with you Summers women always hittin’ me? Buffy usually keeps it to the nose, but you go for any target!"

Spike was beaming as he said it. He had never expected to have a return to the easy affection he had once shared and always treasured with Buffy’s little sister. It was an unexpected blessing.

Dawn headed for her home as soon as they got Spike checked in to a small hotel for the night. The clerk had smirked at the two and winked at Spike making gestures that made it clear that he thought the two were planning to use the room for an illicit night of passion. Dawn was oblivious, but Spike was livid.

"Look, mate. This LADY is my sis, capice? You need to be keeping your filthy mind and hands as far away from this girl as you possibly can, if you like livin’. I don’t think you’d like my bad side." He flashed his game face so quickly that the clerk was never able to later say for certain just what he had seen, only that it had made him need a change of pants.

~~~

"Andrew, you home? I just got back from my visit to Giles and I’ve got presents! Come out, come out, wherever you are", Dawn called out as she entered their apartment. Since the Immortal had disappeared along with Buffy, Andrew’s social life had come to a grinding halt. Dawn was certain he would be home.

Actually, she chided herself, she should have noticed that the group that had kept Andrew out at the clubs most nights had only started to hang with him after Buffy had begun to date Eduardo. The abrupt end of Andrew’s nightlife clearly pointed to the Immortal’s influence being the source of his popularity. ‘I should have figured that out. I can’t imagine why I never wondered why the little jerk suddenly had gorgeous woman hanging on both arms and a wardrobe James Bond would envy. I mean he’s the same Andrew, for crying out loud! I get the ‘duh’ award for spacing that!’

"Ah, the return of the fair maiden from the cold climes of the north. How’re the slayers and Mr. Giles faring without my presence? What did you bring me? Did you get the latest X-Men like I asked? They had it here, but it’s in Italian…not the same." Andrew had his eager-ten-year-old face on as he greeted Dawn.

"Yes, doofus, I got your comic book. I even picked up the latest Hellboy, too. As for prezzies, I brought the tapes of the eighth series of Dr. Who that Giles said you could have, some of those shortbread biscuits you fell in love with in London, and a packet of jelly babies."

Andrew began to leap around the small living room like a rabbit on steroids yelling, "gimme, gimme" and reaching for Dawn’s carry-on eagerly.

As angry as Dawn was to think he had anything to do with Buffy’s disappearance, she couldn’t help but smile at Andrew and feel a slight softening towards him. He was such a needy child at heart, and she really couldn’t believe he would have deliberately done anything to hurt Buffy. Still, it was likely that he had done something, knowingly or not, to aid Eduardo in some way.

"You’ll get all your goodies after I unpack. Have you had dinner yet? I don’t know if I should be glad or sad that the airline doesn’t serve food anymore, but I’m starved! Please tell me we have food in the fridge, cause I’m too knackered to hit the shops this late even if I could find one open."

"You said ‘knackered’, sounded just like Sp…. There’s some of that smelly cheese you like and some eggs and mushrooms if you want an omelet, but I haven’t been to the market this week. Um, Dawn, did Mr. Giles have any news from the homeland? I mean, how are all the gang back in the U. S. of A? Anything new for your friendly chronicler of all things slayerly?"

Dawn was glad she was unpacking while she answered. She had never been a good liar and really didn’t want Andrew to catch on to Spike’s near presence. She knew from the vampire that Andrew knew Spike was back and her slip with a Spikeism might have been enough to set off Andrew’s paranoia.

"Not really anything new. Willow and the coven have a new project for helping in the drought areas of the world this season. They have to figure out the right balances before they try it, though. Faith says the Hellmouth has been kinda quiet in Cleveland lately. Not really sure why. Giles was all excited about finding a stash of books that had been part of the Watchers Council and managed to survive the bombing. No new leads on where Buffy is. I think Willow may be onto a spell to reveal everyone involved in her disappearance soon. She said it will make them glow purple when she casts it." Dawn was glad Andrew couldn’t see her wicked grin at the thought of how the boy would take THAT bit of misinformation.

"Purple?" His voice went up an octave and broke like an eleven year old boy. "Wow. That’s…that’s… um…is she sure it’ll work? I mean, I’ll bet there are lots of things you could…eat…that might cause a person to look purple. You wouldn’t want to falsely accuse someone or anything."

Dawn stood in the doorway with her arms folded across her chest the way Buffy used to do when in her General Buffy mode. She was effectively blocking the only exit from the small kitchen with her body.

"Andrew, I think you need to dip into your mental watchers journal and start spilling to little sister before I have to start getting physical on your Star Wars collection. I don’t think you sold us out, but you know more than you’ve been telling about The Immortal and Buffy. Time to spit it out before Spike has to pull it out of your brain literally, ‘cause it took all my feminine wiles to keep him from coming home with me tonight."

She could tell from the way Andrew blanched that he had some information he was going to share. She just hoped it was enough to get the ball rolling on the rescue mission.

"Spill!" She yelled at the clearly terrified Junior Watcher.

"I didn’t do anything wrong. I love you guys, I’d never do anything to hurt any of you. You’re my family, you’re all I’ve got", the boy said softly. He had begun to cry with the last sentence and Dawn had to steel herself to keep from folding. It was not a play for sympathy but the stark, sad truth. The only people who had ever cared for the young man were the ones he now feared losing. "I swear I didn’t know."

She’d played bad cop, now was the time for good cop. "Andrew, I know you didn’t do anything bad on purpose, but obviously you know something. You have to tell me anything that might help. Buffy’s life may be in danger. I know you don’t want that on your conscience."

"It all started with the fire. I had only been here in Rome for a couple of weeks and everything was so perfect. I’d just brought Dana back to the bosom of her slayer sisters and faced down Angel. Mr. Giles was so proud of me! I was really ready to start being a watcher to the girls here." His voice had drifted into a whine after the first sentence.

"Concentrate, Andrew. Just the facts, okay?" Dawn had to keep him on track before he spun off into AndrewLand on her and any truth disappeared in the tornado of spin he’d put on it.

"Okay. Like I said, it started with the fire. After I moved in here, some guy met me on the street while I was shopping for that great bread you guys love so much. He said the fire was a warning and that I should help this guy’s boss with a project of his. I turned him down, of course! Anyway, he said the fire would be the beginning of lots of bad things that could happen to me here or the last of my troubles, depending on if I did this guy a favor. He promised that the favor wouldn’t hurt anybody. He even said it would be a good thing for Buffy. I told him no, of course."

"Then what happened? You obviously changed your mind", Dawn coaxed.

"Remember that case of food poisoning we all had after the Calamari Alfredo I made? I mean I don’t ever want to even hear the words stomach pump again in my life!"

"Andrew, stay on track! Are you saying someone messed with our food?"

"The guy came back and said there are poisons that can kill,too, and that I should be able to see how easy it would be for someone to put some in our food or water even. I asked him what the favor would be, just out of curiosity, you know. He said it wasn’t anything bad, Dawn. He said his boss thought Buffy was really hot, but she hadn’t paid any attention to him. All they wanted from me was to make sure Buffy went on a date with this guy. He told me that his boss had dated Penelope Cruz and that hot Victoria’s Secret model with the exotic eyes. When he told me who his boss was, I figured he’d be okay. I mean he’s famous, or at least all the people he hangs out with are. It would be like Brad Pitt wanting to meet Buffy--if he wasn’t already married to Jennifer, that is. I didn’t see any harm. Buffy didn’t have to date him more than once. He promised!"

"You didn’t think it was even a little weird that this guy--this rich, handsome, powerful, guy--had to use fire and poison to get a date?"

"No. Look, Dawn, I don’t have a lot of experience like that. Every guy I’ve ever known had to use magic balls or kidnapping to get the girl", he answered sheepishly. "I guess I did think it was weird, but it was easier to just make sure Buffy met him. I swear that’s all I did."

"So if that’s all you did, why did you suddenly get lucky in the popularity contest? Looks like you got a pay off for something. I want it all, Andrew, every detail, every compromise."

"At first it was like he was just so happy Buffy was dating him that he was being generous. I got some party invitations, was included when some of his friends went to Monte Carlo for a weekend, that kind of thing. Okay, it went to my head a little, but I didn’t get asked to do anything else. Not at first. Later, Eduardo told me I needed to discourage a couple of vampires from Buffy’s past who would be coming into town. I knew he meant Angel and Spike. I also knew that Spike had told me not to tell Buffy he was back, so I didn’t see the harm. If Spike had wanted to be with Buffy, he would have come to Italy after he got his body back, wouldn’t he?"

"Uh uh, buddy, you’re not justifying this that way. I heard from Spike what you told them. You LIED. You let them think Buffy knew that Spike was alive and that she didn’t want either of them. You knew that Buffy still cried at night thinking about Spike and you made sure they left thinking she didn’t care!"

"Spike’s gonna kill me, isn’t he?" Andrew asked nervously.

"Not right away anyway. You may know more, so you’re safe for now." She saw the look of panic on Andrew’s face and decided to stop with the scare tactics. "No, Andrew, Spike doesn’t kill for sport any more, remember. He’s a good guy now and even has his soul. I can’t promise he won’t be pissed off and I don’t blame him, but you’re safe. I don’t think I want to be there when he hears all of this from you either."

"You mean I have to tell him? Can’t I just take a field trip to check on my slayer in Milan while you tell him?"

"Nope. Time to be a man, Andrew. Oh, your comics are on the coffee table. I haven’t unpacked the Dr. Who stuff yet."

"Dawn, did I have anything to do with what happened to Buffy?", he asked, his voice making a plea for reassurance.

"Only in the making sure Buffy had the first date kind of way. Look Andrew, it’s pretty clear that they would have found some way to get Buffy into Eduardo’s dating pool. You were just the weakest link and they used you. What you should have done was tell us. We would have known something was up of the not good variety by the WAY they got you to help." She saw how distraught he was to think he had placed his friend in jeopardy and took pity. "It’ll all work out. Spike’s here now and he’ll fix it. OH!!!! Don’t tell ANYONE that Spike is here or why, got that?"

"My lips are sealed like a Ziploc storage bag", Andrew promised and made the motions of zipping his mouth.

~~~

Spike didn’t kill Andrew, of course. He did, however, pull the boy by his left ear to force him to stop pacing and concentrate on his confession.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow! Spike,my ears will stick out funny. Let go!"

"They already do stick out funny, just be glad I’m not pullin’ ‘em off. So you said your little bit, we took the bait like the dumb fish we were, and you strolled out with two bimbos for a night on the town and now you want me to believe you meant no harm? What the bloody hell DO you call harm, you pillock? Had to know something wasn’t right. Just my bein’ there after tellin’ you I didn’t want you tellin’ the slayer I was alive should have told you something was up. I really think you need to give some real thought to just what side you’re really on. You’re like tofu--you don’t have any flavor of your own, but suck up whatever’s close. Think you need to take bit of a sabbatical and go home to Daddy Watcher for a refresher on wearin’ the white hat."

"Spike, did you just say ‘sabbatical’?", Dawn said in surprise.

"What? Perfectly good English word. Bit, I’m a hundred twenty some years old, I’ve learned a lot of words in a lot of languages. Don’t get your knickers in a twist when you hear me use ‘em." Spike shook his head and snorted. ‘Wonder what the Bit would think if she saw that diploma of mine. Probably think more than the dates were fake, I s’pose. Guess my ‘Spike, punk of the streets’ attitude’s worked a tad too well’, he thought.

"Yeah, sabbatical. Great idea, Spike. I’ll call Giles now and tell him I’m coming in from the cold for a while. You don’t think he’ll grab my ears, too, do you?", Andrew asked.

"I’ll talk to the Watcher. Explain your interestin’ take on Buffy’s dating habits. Suggest he try to help you figure out how to spot the bad guys when they come up and burn down your house and poison your food. You’d think it’d be obvious, but I guess not. You’re not safe to let loose, much less make judgment calls." Spike then began to feel a bit sorry for the poor idiot and continued, "You’re not a total write-off. Suppose you just need a bit more training and
growin’ up is all."

Andrew flung his arms around the uncomfortable vampire and sobbed, "Thank you, thank you, Spike. You’re the best friend I ever had. Thank you for not hating me. I promise I’ll do everything I can to help get Buffy back."

"Hold on there, Junior, just go to watcher school and learn what you need to. Leave the Buffy hunt to me. And keep your yap shut. This whole operation is top secret, got it?"

"Sure, Spike, whatever you say", Andrew promised.

Now they knew they were on the right track. Buffy’s romance with the Italian love machine had been engineered from the start. Spike found himself feeling more hope than he had in years. Not only would he get Buffy home safely, but maybe, just maybe, she would be happy to see him. Maybe there wouldn’t be a face-to-face suggestion that he ‘just move on’ as he had been secretly fearing since signing on to locate his girl. Unlife was beginning to take an upturn once more.

Tomorrow, it was time to storm the gates of Wolfram & Hart, the Italian edition, and the mighty fortress that was Ilona Costa Bianchi, she of the formidable turrets.

~*~
Chapter 7
~*~

To say that Ilona was surprised to hear who was in her reception area would be an understatement. She remembered vividly every detail about the sexy vampire from their previous meeting. He had been the one brimming with life and oozing sex appeal almost from his pores. Oh, yes, she remembered Spike.

Angel had made her want to be wary, on guard. Perhaps it had been his reputation as Angelus, but she thought it more likely the edge he seemed to always be perched
on, that feeling that at any moment he might just slip and decide to kill you.

Not many vampires made it to the top of a corporation. She had never worked with one with that much power until the L.A. branch of the firm had been handed to Angel for reasons that were well beyond her understanding.

The funny thing was that both of the male vampires had been so wrapped up in their quest and their jealous posturing over that Slayer, it had been easy to simply
think of them as males, not vampires. Dangerous males, to be sure, but males nonetheless. The vibes they gave off, however, were as different as night and day. Angel made her guard go up and her senses go on full alert, whereas Spike made her wish the workday at an end with some time alone to get to know the black-clad blond with the bad boy attitude better.

Ilona worked hard for the Senior Partners, but she could play hard, too. Perhaps the fates were being kind to give her another chance at showing her personal best to the British vampire. She was sure she HAD shown him some of her personal best the last time, but it never hurt to remind a man what you had to offer.

"Ah, Spike. Buona sera. I did not hope to see you again so soon. Scusi, prego, come, come into my office and make a home for yourself there. Are you here for business or pleasure this time? I am happy to help with either, for such is MY way. You have but to command."

"Your so dour boss is not with you this time?" Ilona looked hopeful. "Is it too much to hope that you are looking for more the diverta and not so much the boom boom.? Dispiace, I ask too many questions and here you have traveled so far without my even offering so much as an espresso. Scusi. Pietro! Bring refreshment at once. What is your pleasure, Spike? We can offer many choices to fill any need you might have. Coffee, tea, vino, perhaps blood--we DO stock human you know, you have
only to ask. Really, Spike, feel free to ask of me anything at all."

"Had a bit of a dust up back in LA. My sire looks to’ve been turned into dragon chow. Can’t lie and say I’m all choked up about it. Might sound bad, but Angelus was always a right wanker where I was concerned. He was pretty stark staring mad there at the end anyway. No bleedin’ idea what he was thinkin’ orderin’ me to pick up some brat then meet up in that alley. I coulda been dusted! More demons than you could swing a cat at. He musta done somethin’ to piss off someone real important. When I came to, I didn’t see a trace of the bugger. Whole law office was gone, too. Just a big pile of rubble. Had to say a sad farewell to my retainer for scut work. Kinda hopin’ the firm might have somethin’ for me here, providin’ they don’t blame me for Angel running mad on ‘em". He had decided to just jump in with a version of the facts since it was dead certain she’d have heard of the events in LA.

"I’m sure the Senior Partners would love to hear of your offer. No one can blame you for the actions of another. Clearly Angel did not know how to use a man
of your obvious skills.. I myself can think of many, many uses for a man such as yourself." She was openly flirting with him now, leaning forward in her chair and showing off her assets to their full advantage.

"Yes, I had heard of the doings in California. Such an ingrate, Angelus!", she spit, as she had once before when talking of the gypsies at their last meeting. "Paaa, nothing as distasteful as an ungrateful employee, no? It was easy to see he did not appreciate you and did not treat you with the respect you deserved either. I spit upon his dust. We shall speak of him no more." She laid a hand on his left leg just above his knee and gave him a squeeze then left her hand there on his leg. The looks she was giving to him held the promise of being fully able to appreciate Spike in every way imaginable.

Spike didn’t want to appear too eager. He wasn’t planning on sleeping with the woman if he didn’t have to. It would feel too much like cheating on Buffy under the circumstances. Still he could always be forgiven for flirting his way into her files.

"Miss Costa Bianchi, I’m sorry to have come so late, but vampire and all", Spike made a cute, rather shy sweep of his lashes as he said it, as though nervous in the
company of such a ripe handful of woman. "I don’t think I ever really thanked you for the generous gifts you sent to my home. I’ll never need another coat again, thanks to you. You do a right fine job of warming me up. The shoes were bloody thoughtful, too. Nothing like slipping into something Italian and well made to make a fella feel like he’s never been in anything better." Oh yeah, she was buying!

"Prego, we’re old friends by now, call me Ilona."

Pietro arrived with a butler’s cart containing a variety of pastries and a selection of liquid refreshment. Spike could smell the O-Neg in the carafe begging to be savored. He had almost decided to indulge when Buffy’s face came up in his mind’s eye with that look she got when she most disapproved of him--in other words, her normal look.

"Thanks, pet. I’ve already eaten." He caught her disappointed look and decided to amend his refusal. "I meant the blood, pet. Rest of it looks right fine. I might pass on the bakery goods if I thought I could talk the most beautiful Italian since Sophiia Loren into joining me for dinner somewhere dark and cozy though." He gave her another calculated little-boy-lost look and sat back to wait.

"Of course, of course! I know just such a place. You should put your so handsome self in my hands; you won’t be disappointed."

"I’m sure I wouldn’t be disappointed putting myself in any part of you, pet." He assumed a look that only lacked circulation to be a blush. "Sorry, no offense intended. You’re quite lovely and, um, outgoing. Been on my own for quite some time now and don’t always think with the right part of my body in the company of a beauty such as yourself. " He tucked his tongue behind his teeth and gave her a half-lidded look filled with promise.

"No, no, think nothing of it. You have quite the senso dell’umorismo. I like a gentleman that can make me laugh. Surly you are also making a joke when you say
you have no woman to keep the nights from becoming too cold? I would think your Boffy would have been beyond happy to fall once again into your so muscled arms
when she saw you."

"Actually, no. Buffy’s moved on and said I should, too. Think I’m finally ready to do like she said. Immortal’s welcome to her. Dark-haired beauties were
always more my style anyway. Had my dark princess for a century ‘til she took up with a Chaos demon. Bit barmy, my Dru was, but had her charms." Spike said
carefully. He hoped he had moved the conversation away from his obvious feelings for the Slayer.

"So you are not here looking for her then?" She looked closely at the vampire sitting across from her. Clearly she was trying to read as much from his expression as she was from his words.

"Why, she gone missing? That’d explain why her little sis was actin’ off. I dropped by to see the Bit earlier. Just cause her sister’s moved on’s no reason
for me to snub the kid. Used to look up to me, she did." He hoped he’d laid the groundwork to explain any sighting of him in Dawn’s company.

"I really wouldn’t know. Just that Eduardo hasn’t been in town for a while and rumor had it that they were inseparable. They are most likely at his villa in Tuscany. He was born there in 1580, you know. His father was that rascal Francesco Medici, who never bothered to marry his mother, the poor girl. Ah, but such can be the way of love, no?"

"Suppose so. Seen more than a bit of it over the years. Don’t have to be worried at leaving behind any little embarrassing bundles though. One of the pluses of being a vamp. Stamina and the lack of needing to breathe help make up for any little thing we might not be able to do", he hinted. Once more he gave her a look that shot heat down her abdomen to her womb. Ilona began to squirm in her chair a bit.

"Yes, yes, I have heard such legends. But men are so prone to, how can I say this, exaggerate? They catch a fish and say it is so long when it is but half of that, no?"

"Can’t speak for all men, Ilona, but my…fish…have always managed to impress. No one’s ever claimed my…fish…were too small. Usually just the opposite, in fact. As for the stamina, well, love, no need to exaggerate here. Man learns a lot trying to keep things interesting for one demanding lady for a century. I always was a good student." He sat back in his chair and twitched his hips and moved one hand up his thigh drawing attention to the rather impressive bulge in the front of his jeans. God, she was nearly panting! Spike could have smelled her arousal even if he’d been in the other room.

"What do you say to that dinner, pet? I’m thinking I’d like to eat a bit of real Italian." Ilona was hooked and landed, now all Spike had to do was hope that she
kept her apartment in the building, just as Angel had in L.A. He had a little surprise for his lusty date that would keep her out of the way while he had a peek
at her real unmentionables.

Too bad he had to play the bint. She was sweet enough really, and had done him no harm. Well, he wasn’t going to hurt her. Might even leave her with a fond
memory or two, even if they weren’t quite the memories SHE was planning on making tonight.

~~~

Dawn had been about four blocks from her apartment when she first noticed the feeling. She was sure she saw someone out of the corner of her eye, nearly able
to be seen, but not quite. Whoever it was had shadowed her all the way to the apartment, never revealing him or her self. Dawn was seriously creeped out.

She rushed into the apartment and closed the door behind her, locking the dead bolt with a sigh of relief. Her heart was racing with nervousness. She hadn’t felt like she was being followed earlier when it definitely would have been of the bad to have a tail on her. For that, she was grateful.

Dawn had delivered her small package in the men’s room of the small restaurant near the Wolfram &Hart offices. It was one of those intimate, dark, romantic places that had the smells of wonderful cooking to appeal to whatever senses your date didn’t. Dawn had no doubt at all that Spike would be able to lead the unsuspecting CEO to this exact restaurant just as they had planned. Dawn never did understand how Buffy had ever resisted Spike when he decided to turn on the charm. Her sister was the
only woman Dawn could imagine being able to resist Spike in full flirt mode. Poor Ilona was toast!


The phone rang, making Dawn nearly jump out of her skin. She answered it on the third ring and before she could even say "hello", heard Giles on the other end. "Dawn, if that you? Is everything all right there?"

"Yes, Giles, it’s me. Everything’s fine. What’s up? You sound majorly stressed."

"There’s been an incident in California involving Angel’s college-aged son. His adopted parents, the Reillys, have been murdered. I haven’t been able to reach Spike. The boy insists that Spike be told at once. If this is in any way connected to all the rest, you must take all precautions, Dawn. I won’t lose you as I have your sister."

Dawn could hear real concern and affection in his voice. Funny, she had forgotten how much Giles really did love her and Buffy. He had obviously been blaming
himself all this time for his surrogate daughter’s disappearance. That was Giles, becoming more rigid and closed off the more he was feeling those pesky emotions. No wonder Buffy had a hard time expressing love with a role model like that!

"God, Giles, I’m so sorry about his folks. Is he okay? Spike told me he’s really nice, not like Angel at all. Did you say his last name is Reilly? How weird is that?"

"Yes I suppose it is now that you mention it, although no stranger than the name Angel chose to give Spike. Really! Rice-Stoker. Outrageous! I can barely wait for Buffy to be returned to us so that we can all have a laugh about such things. I’m terribly worried about you, my dear. Andrew says he can return to watch your back if you so wish."

"No, he’s really better off there with you right now. You know Andrew, likely to slip at the worst time. We’re fine here. Things are happening just like the are supposed to and we’re safe as houses." Dawn hoped she was reassuring her substitute dad with her calm voice and non-alarming words.

"Tell Connor that we’ll be in touch and that we’re really, really sorry to hear what happened to his folks," Dawn continued. "Spike said that Connor thought they were his real family until just a few weeks before that last battle. Angel had the W & H people do this memory thing, sort of the reverse of what the monks did with me. I know he must have felt they were his real parents."

"The lad is staying with some girl named Nina and said Spike would know whom he was talking about. You will pass on the word, won’t you? Here is the number where he
can be reached." Giles gave Dawn the number to Nina’s apartment, as well as Connor’s cell phone. Dawn promised to have Spike call as soon as he got in,
wished Giles a good night and rang off.

Dawn hoped that Spike’s mission was going to be a success tonight. The sooner this mess was fixed, the better and safer it would be for them all. Dawn gazed at her front door nervously, reminding herself that the dead bolt was engaged. It was then that she spotted the small envelope someone had shoved under the door while she had been on the telephone.

Dawn picked up the sealed envelope with no addressee and took it to the kitchen to use a knife to open it. She held it up to the light to see if it looked suspicious, then realized she wouldn’t be sure what to look for and got a kitchen knife to open it. Inside there was one folded sheet of paper with a series of glyphs on it. No word, no explanation. Merely odd, foreign looking glyphs. She suddenly wished Giles was still on the line.

~*~
Chapter 8
~*~

A person might think that traveling from glamorous place to glamorous place, chatting up beautiful women and having some of them even cry on his shoulder, would be exactly what Xander would consider the perfect duty. Instead, he merely felt tired. One can only listen to so much angst before one feels sucked dry.

Whoever or whatever this Immortal was, he was a total bastard in the way he wined, dined and used women. He’d left a string of broken hearts that wrapped around the Mediterranean like a bleeding necklace. Xander had to
hope that Buffy hadn’t really opened her heart to the cad. She had enough issues to deal with regarding love already.

Xander had been trying to call Giles to report in for the better part of the last hour. The secretary, a girl unfamiliar to Xander, said that Mr. Giles was in a rather heated meeting with Andrew Wells and was not
to be interrupted. Xander didn’t have any real leads to report but he still wanted to pass on what he had found while the memories were still fresh. You never knew what one chance word might reveal and they needed all the clues they could gather. Too much time had already passed with Buffy gone from them. Now they were actually being proactive in the search, there was no time to waste.

After trying Council Headquarters and receiving a busy signal the last three calls, Xander decided to just call Willow and have her pass the information along to Giles.

Xander sounded exhausted when he finally spoke to Willow. He wasn’t used to the extreme hours of the jet set and since that was the crowd The
Immortal ran with, he had been up long past his bedtime most nights. Giles had provided Xander with papers identifying him as a reporter for a glossy magazine and doors opened easily for the rakishly handsome, one-eyed "reporter". In fact, Xander was amazed, and occasionally shocked, to discover just how free with information some people became when faced with press credentials.

"I tried to get to Giles, but he was in some sort of meeting with Andrew and when I called later, his phone was busy. Anything happening I should know about, Will?"

"Andrew was the one who sort of opened the door to let the wolf in, just like we suspected. He feels terrible about it, too. Giles read him the riot act. Then he put him to work alphabetizing books for the new Watchers Council library and checking and filing statistical reports from the field. I think Andrew is beginning to think he would have been better off if Spike had gotten all fangy on him instead of sending him to Giles. I think Dawn said that Spike was still planning on getting a look at the files in the Rome office of that law firm, maybe later today. What’s the what with you, o roving reporter?" Willow’s voice sounded carefree and
it made Xander homesick for times gone by, when doughnuts solved every problem or seemed to.

"You know, I think I’m getting old, Will. There was a time not long ago that the idea of spending hours with Sports Illustrated swimsuit models and a couple of Spanish female rock singers would have been the stuff of wet dreams. Now I just want a quiet night early to bed…alone!"

"Yeah, right there with you, Xander. Maybe when Buffy’s back and the stress is over, we can go and ogle some girls together. Maybe even get a real date. Be sure to keep those phone numbers."

Xander laughed as he pictured the two of them on the prowl together. "I came up with the big zero of useful information. All I have to show for the last few nights, aside from some truly memorable hangovers and a tattoo I don’t remember getting, is information we already had. The Immortal likes his women dark, exotic, smart and rich…or at least well-connected--definitely the anti-Buffy.

"He makes a woman feel like she’s the center of his existence, makes a complete whirlwind of the whole sweeping romance thing, then just disappears," Xander continued. "No call, no card, no flowers. Leaves them wondering what they did wrong and too embarrassed to even admit
they’d been dumped. Usually they never hear from him again, but for some weird reason, they still want to. Funny, none of them hate him. They all seem to think it was something they had done to drive him away and that he’s this wonderful catch. Magic, do you think?" Xander was suspicious why so many beautiful and desirable women fell for the same thing over and over again.

"More likely he just knows how to pick ‘em." Willow suggested. "There’s
lots of really great women who get sucked in to abusive relationships, convinced the guy is great and they are the ones deserving to be treated like that. It doesn’t matter how beautiful or even successful the girl is either. Maybe he just has a knack for picking them out in the crowd. Buffy’s got her own set of insecurities where men are concerned. I can see how a jerk like that could exploit some of them." Willow felt herself getting angry on behalf of the sisterhood of the abused and exploited.

"There was one cutie from Algeria who hinted he still met with her a few times for sex, even after he’d started his supposedly exclusive relationship with Buffy. I’ve got her number highlighted in case we need to talk to her again. She met him at some party for Dodi Fayed and Princess Di, claims Eduardo orchestrated that little romance, too!"

"You know, this guy makes me want to knock him senseless, even if he hasn’t hurt Buffy in a physical way." Xander was in total Protective!Brother mode. "I mean if he got this great woman to notice him
and treats her like he did the rest of his women, he deserves to have Spike pull off his arm and beat him to death with it. Whatever charms we know the Buffster has in spades, that jerk must not have appreciated them,
‘cause I can’t imagine having her and cheating! I’m gonna so love watching her tear him a new one when she finds out."

"God, Will, you wouldn’t believe hearing these ladies gush about Eduardo and how they lost this great love of their lives! Reminded me of Buffy after Angel left, made me sick. I mean, Buffy was just a kid, but
these women aren’t teenagers." Xander never had understood why Buffy had held onto her dreams of her doomed relationship with Angel even after he had lost his soul and started murdering. She should have washed her hands of him and been glad, in his opinion. They all should.

"When it comes to love, we all become insecure kids again, I guess. We can’t get lucky enough to find a Tara every time", Willow replied. Suddenly she was dreadfully tired as well. "I’ll let Giles know how it’s going from the man in the field so you don’t have to keep calling long
distance. Hey, take some pictures of these goddesses while you’re at it. A girl can dream a little! Now go get some rest. There’s still lots of southern Europe to cover before you move into the Near East. Gotta say, that guy sure got around!" Willow stifled a yawn as she ended the call.

No sooner had she hung up from that call than the phone rang again. This time it was Giles.

"Oh, hey, Giles! Psychic much? I just got done talking to Xander and promised that I’d call you with what little he’s come up with."

"Willow, I need for you to come to the research library at Council headquarters as soon as possible. I realize it’s quite late, my dear, but something has come up. Dawn has just faxed a rather extraordinary
paper that I will need your help in deciphering. She was followed home and it was slipped under her door. I think it prudent for us to decide what to make of this as quickly as possible. Dawn says that Spike is already putting his plan in motion, so he is unaware of this development. She is going to stay safely locked in the apartment until Spike gets back or she hears from us." Giles sounded worried. Not for the first time, he wished they were all in the same town, as they had been for so many
years. He felt powerless to protect his charges when they were spread so thin. His Buffy was gone and he had been too far away to even sense the danger to her until it was too late. He couldn’t stand to lose another.

"Be there as soon as I get changed. I don’t think even the new Watchers would be able to handle me in my ducky slippers. Giles, don’t worry about Dawn. She’s a pretty smart girl. I’m sure she’ll be fine until Spike gets there and, once he does, no one will touch her." She knew that Giles realized the truth of that even if he still held reservations about the vampire.

Willow decided to stop for some coffee to take for the research party. As tired as she was, she felt they’d need something more caffeinated than the Earl Grey that Giles always kept on hand. She hoped this would turn out to be a clue to help Buffy, not a red herring. If she had to be looking
at pictures at this hour, she’d far rather look at some of those swimsuit models Xander had been hanging out with.

~~~~

Spike easily steered Ilona to the small restaurant he and Dawn had scoped out the previous day. It was small enough to be intimate yet large enough to blend in with the few early diners occupying the small tables.

He was confident Dawn had done her part already and the whole project still had the green light. They had prearranged a signal if anything had gone wrong and no signal had been given.

Spike discovered that, as he had hoped, the lovely CEO did indeed live in the Wolfram & Hart executive apartment, just as Angel had in L.A. After wining and dining the beauty, Spike expected her to invite him back for a continuation of the evening. Of course, his plans of how to spend that
time were vastly different from Ilona’s.

They entered the restaurant and at Ilona’s request, were led to a table in
the back corner. She was unfamiliar with the restaurant, even though it was within walking distance from her home and office. She seemed mostly
unaware it even existed, eating most of her lunches at the office and her dinners at home. The Senior Partners were demanding bosses regarding all their Branches, it would seem.

They were seated and handed the wine list immediately. "Vorrei una bottiglia di vino rosso", Spike ordered in perfect Italian. Red wine was the perfect solvent, after all. He smiled at Ilona and asked shyly, "That’s all right with you isn’t it? I probably should have asked, but you look like a full-bodied kind of girl. If you’d have rather something else, speak up." He gave her one of his flirtiest smiles.

"No, the house red will be wonderful, I am sure. I am in your hands completely, Spike. You speak Italian?"

"Only a few words." He flashed a grin and ran his index finger over the back of her hand that she had placed on the table. "I made sure to learn the important words, yeah? Wine is important; it’s like love. Intoxicating, like a beautiful woman. I’ll have to watch myself tonight. Could get drunk on you all by yourself, pet."

"Such sweet words, my handsome vampire. I think maybe you could be the best dessert of all." Ilona leaned over the table and made a slight growling sound that reminded Spike of Dru for a moment.

"Seein’ how I’ve used up most of my Italian, except some words that’d get me arrested in public, how ‘bout you order for both of us. I’m gonna risk leaving such a beautiful woman alone for a moment while I wash up a bit." Spike winked at Ilona and stood up. He lifted her hand and kissed it then turned and headed for the men’s room.

He heard Ilona call for the waiter and ask what the special was for the day. Spike heard the waiter answer and hoped Ilona would pass on the eel. If he didn’t get that lucky, he could always use the excuse that vampires never really eat much. Something about the fish made Spike flash back to some bad memories of Angelus.

In the men’s room, Spike quickly reached behind the tank and found the small vial with a sedative that Dawn had hidden earlier for his use. Spike had suspected that there might be magic at the office that could detect anything he’d try to bring there. By drugging the wine here at the restaurant and making sure Ilona had enough of it, Spike hoped the drug whould begin to work around the time he got Ilona back to her
apartment. All any of her employees might see would be a slightly tipsy CEO and her affectionate date headed upstairs for a bit of amore.

Dinner turned out to be surprisingly tasty and the conversation remained light and flirty throughout. Ilona had been divorced around the
time she had been promoted to CEO of the local Wolfram & Hart branch a few years ago. All her time had been devoted to pleasing her bosses and proving herself to them. She was rather starved for the attention Spike
lavished on her. In fact, he was beginning to feel like a right bastard for stringing her along like this. Well, it was only one date, no harm in that. Besides, he was going to let her down easily when his mission was completed.

He idly wondered if he should try to play matchmaker with that stuffy git Giles. Ilona would loosen him right up and both of them could use a good shagging. Spike was startled when he realized Ilona was looking at him, clearly waiting for a response to something she had asked.

"Sorry, wool gathering. I’m afraid I was imagining how you’d look in your own environment. Got caught up in visions of satin and such. Did you ask
something, love?"

‘Ah, yes, you would like the satin. Such a tactile being you are! Something soft and seductive would be just the thing. I believe I have such a thing just waiting for appreciative eyes. Maybe you would like a
nightcap at my apartment, no? What I had asked was if you were pleased with your hotel accommodations. The place is so very small, but I am sure it is fine. Of course if it is not, other arrangements can be made." Ilona ran her hand up Spike’s left arm and her thumb caressed his sensitive neck.

"The hotel’s been fine. Don’t need much. Of course, other places might have more to offer, I’m sure", he replied with a sexy smile. Spike noted that Ilona seemed to be fully aware of just where he was staying. He wondered if she was having him followed out of suspicion or if it was standard with W&H to distrust everyone. She seemed to be trusting, but he didn’t dare mess this up. He’d only have the one chance.

They headed for her apartment with Spike’s arm around Ilona. She was beginning to show the first signs of the drug and he didn’t want to have to carry her in. Better she appear tipsy to any employee who might be watching.

"Scusi!" Ilona giggled as she stumbled slightly, pushing her firm body tightly against him as he helped keep her from falling. "I don’t understand. The vino seems to be making my legs like the jelly. Maybe it’s the oh so handsome man I am with and not the vino at all, eh? So nice to have such strong arms to steady me though. Grazie. You are so very fit, like one of our famous marble statues. I should like to become a sculptor and have you to pose for me one day."

"I can think of other uses for those lovely hands, Ilona. You don’t have to wait to use them either. Why not instead of making art,we make music?", Spike replied suggestively. He pulled her a bit closer as
they walked and used his hand to make small caressing movements on the side of her stomach.

Spike had spent endless hours roaming the building in L.A. as a ghost. He knew every nook and cranny in detail. The layout of the Roman office looked identical, on the surface at least. Spike was counting on it being more than superficially similar. He needed to get to the file room without being noticed or stopped.

Angel’s flat in L.A. had a private stairwell that led from the executive apartment to many areas of the office, including the file room. There would be no security with prying eyes to see him enter the room from that entrance. Lack of imagination on the part of W&H architects was the
best hope he had and he was gambling all on that being the case.

By the time they entered her apartment, Ilona was becoming drowsy. Spike helped her to the couch and knelt to take off her shoes for her before sitting next to the still-conscious woman. He drew her feet to his lap
and began a slow, sensuous massage to further her relaxation and his plans. She closed her eyes and moaned in pleasure at his touch.

"So gentle, the hands of a killer", she murmured. Her head fell back onto the pillowed armrest of the couch as the drug claimed her.

"Night-night, love. You’ll wake up just fine. Have sweet dreams." Spike covered his date with a velvet throw he found on the back of an overstuffed leather chair in the corner of the room and placed a chaste kiss on her forehead.

"Right then, off to work with me now." He went to the panel where the door to the passage had been located in L.A. It was there, just as he had counted on it being. Spike decided to detour into the room with the security equipment to disable the one camera that should be located in the file room. It wasn’t likely to be noticed at this hour and the guard would probably just assume a malfunction that could wait, but Spike was taking no chances. The mission was too important.

~*~
Chapter 9
~*~

Giles narrowed down the origin of the glyphs to human, probably Asian. The difficulty was the numerous languages, many long dead, that used similar pictographic glyphs to express thoughts as well as magic. He was concentrating on the linguistic areas of investigation while Willow looked into magical uses for the glyphs. It would have helped so much if the person who’d put the glyphs under Dawn’s door had included some sort of clue for their intended use.

Willow closed her eyes and sighed as she closed yet another book. "Giles, you got any aspirin? These symbols are making me all headachy and the books just make me see more of ‘em than I started out with. A couple of them would make cool tattoos, though."

"Yes, I quite think we could both do with a short break. There is a bottle of aspirin in my office. Why don’t you go stretch your legs, have a couple of tablets and get a breath of fresh air? We can meet back here in, say, half an hour. I think I’ll give Dawn a call to be certain she’s all right." Giles was haunted by the fear that Dawn would turn up missing as well.

Willow went into Giles’ office and took the pills he had offered. She looked wistfully at the sofa and decided to just lie down and close her eyes for a few minutes. In a beat of a heart, Willow was sound asleep.

Giles entered his office, saw the lovely redhead asleep on his sofa and smiled fondly. The poor girl could use a brief nap and he did have that call to make… He decided to use the telephone in his secretary’s office so he wouldn’t disturb the sleeping witch.

"Dawn, is everything all right there? You sound odd… Oh, yes, I suppose it is rather late. Sorry, yes, 3 a.m. is a trifle early for a wake-up call, I agree… No, no, everything is the same here. No news, that is.
I wanted to be sure you were still fine there. Is Spike back yet? … Yes, well, I’m sure he’s fine. He’s survived far worse than he’s likely to encounter in the file room of a law office, even an evil one.… Yes, I suppose that is redundant. Well, I’ll ring off now and let you get back to sleep then… Good night to you as well, Dawn." Giles sat the phone
down sighed deeply. He opened the cabinet and reached behind the ledgers there for a bottle of single malt he kept for emergencies. A small drink might just be what he needed. Like Willow, he needed some down time and his would come in a shot glass.

Giles began to wonder if they should just call it a night. Perhaps he should just put a blanket over Willow and allow her to continue sleeping for a few hours. He eyed the chair in horror at the thought of the back
pain he would likely have if he decided to sleep in it.

Before he could decide what to do, Willow awoke.

"Giles! I thought someone was here with me. Guess it was you, huh?" She raised her hand to brush back her hair and noticed for the first time the slip of paper clutched in her hand. It had one word on it, in plain
print: Nepal. "What’s this?"

Giles had no answer for her. He had been in the outer office and no one else had been there or in the office where Willow had napped. "Perhaps you wrote a note to yourself before you lay down for your nap", he
suggested.

"No, no! I was totally note-free, I swear". Willow looked at the mysterious note as if it would spring to life and attack her. "Okie dokie, getting a little freaked out now. Notes under the door is one thing; notes put in my hand while I’m in sleep land, not so much.
Giles, I think we probably need to focus on the mystical with this."

"Indeed. What is it that’s written there, Willow?"

"It just says ‘Nepal’. Maybe it’s a clue about where those glyphs come from. Do you have that compendium on Tibetian mystical charms here?" Willow was suddenly quite awake.

"Yes, it’s actually on the shelf behind you. I was looking into something for our slayer there just last month and hadn’t gotten around to replacing it in the library", Giles offered.

Willow located the book and rapidly looked through the index for illustrations of talismans and magically powered symbols. Turning to the indicated chapter, she had the first bit of success all night. "Eureka! By George, I think we’ve got it!"

~~~
Dawn wasn’t able to get back to sleep after Giles called to check on her. She decided to get up and make a pot of tea while she waited for Spike to get back. She found herself looking nervously toward the front door, half expecting another envelope to be there. The floor remained bare.

Spike got back around a quarter to 4, entering the apartment as quietly as possible so as to not disturb Dawn. "Hey Spike, how’d it go with the evil empire?"

Spike jumped slightly and clutched his unbeating heart. "Bloody hell, Bit. Give a fella a heart attack you would, providin’ I was livin’ of course. It went okay. I didn’t find where Buffy is, sod it all, but made copies of lots of files on her and that wanker she’s been datin’. Figured we’d go through ‘em and find out more. I can always have myself another
date if I need more information. Gotta send some flowers or somthin’ to the not-so-little lady to keep that door open in case we need it."

Dawn accepted the pile of papers Spike took from the lining of his coat and went to the kitchen with them. "So, how do you plan on explaining why your date went to sleep on you, loverboy? That can’t be good for your reputation." Dawn snickered a bit.

"Hey! If I HAD been seducin’ the bint, she’d still be awake and keeping her neighbors up, too! Figure I’ll say she must have been tired and what with the wine and all, fell asleep. Me, bein’ the gentleman I am, left her to get her rest. Probably need to call her in the morning, though, along with the flowers. Don’t want any suspicion or to make any new enemies.
Besides, she’s a nice lady. I’m thinkin’ of introducin’ her to the Watcher."

Dawn gave Spike a smirk and laughed at the idea of Giles dating the notoriously uninhibited Italian lawyer. "Yeah, like he’d date anyone YOU fixed him up with", she snorted.

"I’ve got great taste in women, I’ll have you know. Giles needs someone to look out for him that way. Gonna get as sour as those old watchers if he doesn’t get rescued by someone. Could use my guidance and good taste."

"One word for you pal: Dru!" Dawn broke into gales of laughter at the look on Spike’s face. "Oh, don’t pout! She picked you, you didn’t pick her. Come on, let’s see what you got here."

They laid copies of the files on the table and spread them out for both of them to see what he’d found. Dawn picked up the pile on The Immortal and began to thumb through, stopping to read from time to time.

Spike began to leaf through the pages about Buffy and saw that they had information going back even before she was called as the Slayer. The information was more in-depth after she began her relationship with Angel, then rather sketchy after he moved to L.A.. There seemed to be an effort to fill in the blanks at some point after Spike had returned to Sunnydale with his soul.

The main interest seemed to be Buffy’s relationship with souled vampires. ‘Must be because of their interest in turnin’ Angel evil’, Spike thought. He’d heard stories about the campaign on the part of the Senior Partners to manipulate Angel. He wasn’t sure why their interest picked up again with his winning his soul back. Spike hadn’t even contacted Angel until the bleedin’ amulet coughed him up in the Poof’s office.

"Whoa, man! What is it with my sister and old guys?!" Dawn looked horrified.

"Hey! I’m not as old as Angel, I’ll have you know. I prefer to think of myself as well-aged, anyway." Spike looked more than a little hurt by Dawn’s comment.

"Not you, silly. I never remember you’re old anyway; you’re such a juvenile delinquent. You’re more like guys Buffy’s age. Yeah, Angel was old and acted it, too! I remember how he was always all, ‘I know what’s best because I’m Mr. Experience here’ and Buffy let him make decisions … geesh! I was talking about Eduardo the truly Immortal! He makes Angel look like a kid."

Spike snorted, remembering the obvious lies that buggering bastard had told about himself to enhance his image among the impressionable.

"No, really! They have the documents here. He was born ...."

Dawn’s reading was cut off by Spike’s interruption. "Let me guess, he was one of the bleedin’ apostles followin’ Jesus about in Palestine."

"Wrong again. Just shut up for a minute and I’ll share. You’re supposed to be a good example to me, so stop being rude! According to these church
registers in the file, he was born in 1580. He was named Marcello de’Medici. His father never married his mom, but claimed him and let him take his last name. His dad was Francesco de’Medici, the oldest son of Cosimo. He was the one the made the family important in Tuscany, with their hands in everything from politics and business to art. They were a really powerful family."

"I’m familiar with that bit of history, thanks. Don’t know all the details, but the name brings a few things back from my education. If the old man claimed him, he must have been part of the family business, too. Might explain the wealth and connections, but not the whole immortality thing."

Spike remembered how Marcello’s family had sponsored some of the most gloriously beautiful art to come out of that part of the world. Florence was still filled with the results of their patronage. His inner William felt a pang of envy that Marcello might have been around to see such beauty being created. ‘Bloody wanker would probably claim to have posed for some of those sculptures’, he thought.

"Looks like he worked in the banking part of the family business. He was pretty good at it, I guess, and the Wolfram & Hart partners used that bank to handle their money. That’s where they seem to connect. Hmm … Looks like he got passed over for inheritance when his daddy died. His uncle became the big shot. Marcello was seriously pissed at that! Looks like he signed some kind of deal with W&H about that time."

"Now you’re cookin’, Niblet! What did he promise for his soul, what did he get?" Spike was interested now. He gave Dawn his full attention, putting aside the files he’d been glancing through.

"I don’t find anything about what they got from him. He seems to have promised to return a favor whenever they called it in, but nothing specific in these files. He made out like a bandit though! He stopped
aging, hence the immortal part, and got rapid healing in case he gets hurt or has an accident or something. He also got to screw over his family. They went into a decline from that time on and lost most of their power eventually. He just got richer and richer." Dawn shook her head in amazement at the balance sheet of Eduardo’s current worth.

"So what’d they finally ask from him?" Spike was afraid the price tag included Buffy.

"Nothing in the files about him having to return the favor yet. God, this is like that scene in ‘The Godfather’, you know when that guy came in to ask a favor of Don Corleone and later had to fix up Sonny’s body for the funeral." Dawn shivered at the thought of what an evil like W&H would ask for their help. She was pretty certain it wouldn’t involve anything as tame as the funeral director had to do in the movie!

There’s lots of stuff in here telling things Marcello/Eduardo did over the years. They kept close tabs on him. It’ll take a while to go through it all. You find anything interesting in Buffy’s file? And can I just say how creepy it is, knowing they have a file on her?"

"Nothin’ I didn’t already know. Lots of general stuff. Most of the details are about her love life, excludin’ Finn." Spike was pleased to see the human boyfriend not being deemed worthy of an entry in Buffy’s file.

"Can I just say ewwwww again? Anything about me in there?" Dawn wasn’t sure which would be worse, to be noted enough for W&H to have included information on her or to have been considered so unimportant as to be
ignored.

"Mentions you as her sis and a cross reference to a file on the Key. Wish I’d known that. I would’ve picked up that file, too. Guess I’ll have to have another date after all. Probably more than one, if I don’t want her to catch on. Wouldn’t do to have her fall asleep twice in a row. Gonna have to come up with another brilliant idea for the next time, yeah?
We need to make a list of any files I need to look for the next time. I don’t think I can promise more than one more try at getting what we need."

Just as the sun was rising and the pair were getting ready to call it a day, the phone rang.

"Hello, Summers residence. Dawn speaking. Oh, hi, Giles. Sorry if I was all grumpy when you called earlier. I was having a great dream about Orlando Bloom when you woke me. Spike’s back, by the way."

Giles debated whether he should indulge his desire to have little to do with the vampire, or be a grownup and just ask to speak with him. He sighed and asked, "Would you put him on then, please? Oh, and Dawn,
please be extra careful. Whoever it was that followed you and slipped the note under your door is still about. There may be more than one person involved as we’ve had a bit of a note ourselves. Since we aren’t sure of the motives or source, be on guard, dear."

Dawn assured Giles that she would make certain to be on alert and handed the phone to Spike. Then she waved good-night to her vampire and headed for bed.

"Watcher. You got something?"

"Yes, actually we think we do. Those glyphs turned out to be Tibetian in origin. Some sort of ward that prevents mystical detection. Willow thinks she can make some talismans from them and they may be useful for us. They would ensure secrecy, at least from any supernatural source. We would still need to exercise discretion in our conversations and be on alert for more traditional spying methods. It could come in handy to place the symbols on the walls to protect our homes and office. We still are in the dark about who could have passed the glyphs to Dawn or what the motive might be."

"Not that I don’t find all that interesting, mate, but what the bleedin’ hell are you talking about? Dawn didn’t say anything about any glyphs. You might want to start from the beginning or wait ‘til I go in there and shake the answers out of Sleeping Beauty." Spike reminded himself to give Dawn a sound yelling-at in the morning for holding back something so obviously important that the Watcher was involved.

"Well, in a nutshell, Dawn was followed home yesterday while you were out. When she got home, she engaged the bolt and called me. By the time she rang off, there was an envelope on the floor that had obviously been pushed under the door. It was a single sheet of paper with pictographic symbols on it. There was no explanation and no sign of who put the envelope under the door. She quite rightly faxed a copy to me and we began research at once. We weren’t getting very far in the research when Willow took a brief nap. Upon awakening, she discovered someone or something had placed a slip of paper in her hands with ‘Nepal’ written on it. That led to our discovery of the meaning behind the glyphs. I can’t imagine why Dawn didn’t tell you about being followed."

"I can. Bint likely knows I won’t let her out of my sight now! Tie her up while I’m out if I have to", Spike muttered.

"I doubt you’ll need to go to that extreme, Spike. She was properly shaken and will certainly be quite careful."

"Damned right she will! Anything else from your end?" Spike listened as Giles relayed the information Xander had collected. Spike then passed on the information he and Dawn had gathered from their own investigations.

"So, looks like I need to turn the charm on again and get back into those files one more time. I don’t like leadin’ the lady on like this, but she does work for Evil, Inc." Spike concluded as he finished telling the Watcher his plans.

"That’s precisely the way I felt when you and Angel were connected to Wolfram & Hart in L.A.", Giles said. It felt good to feel some vindication for his attitude the previous year. Willow had read him the riot act and Spike had been acting morally superior as well. It wouldn’t do to let matters stand that way.

"Least you knew us, could at least ASK what we were up to", Spike reminded him. "’Sides, not like Ilona’s asking for help savin’ a life and we’re turnin’ her down flat. Just don’t feel good leadin’ the lady on’s all. Not gonna kill her or even hurt her feelin’s if I can help it. Don’t try weaselin’ out of what you let happen, old man. Not the same thing."

Giles coughed and decided not to reply to that. "Well. I suppose that’s all until any of us has further information. I’ll be sending the talismans to the two of you as soon as Willow has put them together. Meanwhile, it would be advisable to copy the glyphs onto the doors and windows of Dawn’s apartment. She has the paper that was slipped to her.
I assume you have the ability to copy them?"

"Not a useless wanker, ‘course I can copy some symbols! Any more insults before I ring off?" Spike rolled his eyes at Giles’ attitude.

"Tell Dawn I’ll call her later today after we’ve all had a chance to get a bit of a rest. Spike, I don’t mean to stir things up with you. Years of habit, I suppose. Perhaps it would be best to start with a fresh slate between us. If we’re to be deserving of Buffy’s love and, more to the point, be successful in finding her, we need to get along. For what it’s
worth, I am sorry that my judgment was flawed regarding Angel…and you. I am dreadfully sorry for that young woman dying. I don’t know that we could have helped, but I am sorry we didn’t try. When this is all resolved, we will likely need to clear the air between us on many issues. Suffice that we plan on it and achieve a truce for now?"

Spike was still as a mouse. Had the Watcher nearly apologized? To HIM? He blinked several times and then realized he hadn’t replied. "Right. For Buffy. Guess that’d be best all round. Suppose I can do anything needed for her. Truce then, might even find it in me to be civil on occasion. I’ll tell Dawn…and don’t worry about her, I’ll take care of her like she was my own. Love her too, you know."

"Yes, Spike, I’m beginning to see that. Be careful with this Ilona woman. And good luck."

Spike was gobsmacked--a near apology and well-wishing from Giles! This must be an apocolypse! Be just his luck to start getting on well with all the Scoobies only to have Buffy tell him to get lost, he thought. Seeing how it looked like she didn’t know he had returned from burning up in Sunnydale, she’d likely be furious with him. Just needed to get his Slayer back so she could kick his ass proper, if that’s what she wanted to do.

~*~
Chapter 10
~*~


"I’m proud of you, Giles. You were always a better man than you showed around Spike. I’m sure Buffy will be really happy to see you making this effort for her." Willow had heard the last part of the Watcher’s conversation and knew how much it cost her dear mentor to reach out a hand of truce.

She strongly suspected the biggest problem for Giles was the same one they had all had at one time or another. The horrible events when Angel, whom they had
all learned to like and even trust, lost his soul had scarred them all. Giles had had the worst of it, next to Buffy herself. He had lost his love Jenny to
the horror that was Angelus. Spike had been viewed through a glass tinted by the dark specter of Angelus ever since. Any benefit of the doubt Spike might have been given had been withdrawn before the vampire had even begun his journey of redemption.

They should have all learned their lesson after Spike’s sacrifice in the Hellmouth; certainly she and Xander seemed to have done so. Seeing how Buffy had
reacted to the death of the vampire should have moved Giles as well, and it had to a degree. Giles made an effort to admit to Buffy that his attempt to help
Principal Wood get rid of Spike had been wrong. He and Buffy made peace of a sort, but their relationship had never been quite the same. It was one of the reasons Buffy had moved from London to Rome. It was painful to be near her father figure with the bad feelings that lingered.

Buffy was going to be furious finding out Spike had returned and that Giles had known and not told her. Giles and Spike being at peace with each other would go a
long way towards healing all three of them. For Buffy’s sake, Willow hoped it would work out that way. She had never really mended fences with her own
parents over their casual disregard of her feelings for Tara. It had left deep wounds.

"Yes, well, I am a middle-aged man and Spike’s quite a lot older. Time we act our age, I suppose", Giles replied. He was a bit pleased and a trifle embarassed that his effort had not gone unnoticed.

"Okie dokie, what do you say to a bit of house and office painting?" Willow smiled widely and held up the black paint and brushes she had located for them
to use in painting the mystical glyphs.

"I can’t imagine why the former Council didn’t incorporate these into their old building. It would seem mystical cloaking would be quite valuable and the answer was right there in one of their own books", Giles mused.

"We didn’t snap to ‘em either. Maybe the old Council never had a reason to research that particular book", Willow offered. She privately felt they must have had something along these lines in place all along, even if it weren’t identical.

"Yes, I suppose that must be it. I agree that if we put a few of these up, we’ll sleep a bit better and I, for one, am quite exhausted." Giles reached out an took a brush from Willow’s hand and prepared to paint the symbols strategically around the office.

~~~

Dawn awoke to the glare of a stern-looking vampire. She remembered, too late, that she hadn’t told Spike about her adventures the day before and knew what was coming.

"Anything you’d like to share, Bit? Somethin’ ‘bout bein’ followed home, maybe?"

"Sorry. I wasn’t holding out on you, so pull your fangs back, ‘k? It slipped my mind when you came back with all the fun reading. I would have remembered and
told you today. I was fine, Spike. I think whoever it was only started following me a few blocks from here. I never saw them, just felt like I was being
tailed, you know what I mean?" I take it Giles mentioned the paper I faxed to him? Did they find anything out about the symbols? I thought they looked Chinese or something. Remember the potential slayer Chao An? She had a book with Chinese writing and they looked kinda like that." Dawn took the paper from her
nightstand and handed it to Spike.

He looked it over as he told her what Giles had said. "Red’s puttin’ together some talisman or such for us both to wear. They seem to think these will be helpful. Can’t do any harm. Still think we need to be careful, but a mystical ward’ll come in handy."

After having something to eat, they began to draw the mystical symbols around the windows and doors of the apartment. Something about them seemed familiar to Spike, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

"Do you think that’ll be enough or should we really piss off the landlord and do the walls, too?" Dawn grinned as Spike wiped a bit of paint from her cheek.

"I think this’ll do, least for now. I’d better get those flowers ordered for Ms. Costa Bianchi. Roses, I think. Need to call her and explain about her noddin’ off, maybe set another date in a few days. That’ll give us a bit of time to decide what goodies I should bring home next time I get in her drawers."

"My ears! Spike, I don’t want to know what you get in anyone’s drawers", Dawn teased.

"Not like that, you great goof, and you know it! Don’t want in anyone’s unmentionables ‘cept your big sis and she’s not here. Probably still not interested
either. You got school today, Bit?"

"Just a couple of classes this morning, but I missed them. That leaves me free, even if failing my required courses. Summers family tradition, I guess. Buffy had trouble getting anything done that first year in college, too."

"Well, not every student has to save the world nightly, or look for supernaturally missing sisters either. But neither do they have a friendly neighborhood
vampire who can tutor them back into a decent grade."

Dawn squealed and threw her arms around Spike in gratitude. "Great! That means you’ll do my calculus and my paper on the evolution of Italian city-states?"

"No, that means I’ll help you study and make sure you keep your nose to the grindstone. ‘Sides, Eduardo’d be your best source for the paper, livin’ it and all.
Maybe he’d better become your preferred boyfriend for Sis, if schoolwork’s all you want." Spike ducked from Dawn's playful swat, smiling at the easy comraderie that had returned between them.

"As if! Nope, gonna pass on the Italian stallion and stick with the punk vampire I know and love." Dawn kissed him on the forehead before he could expect it.
If Spike could have blushed, he would have. Dawn had never kissed him before. He could get used to affection like this; would love to, in fact.

Suddenly Spike remembered where he’d seen those glyphs, those EXACT glyphs: the apartment of Lindsey McDonald and that Eve chit back when Lindsey was pretending
to be Doyle and yanking Spike’s chain. The whole apartment had been covered with them and Lindsey had them tattooed on himself as well. Yeah! They were to keep the Senior Partners from knowing what he was up to. Spike wondered if Eve was the one who put the paper under the door. It didn’t seem likely she’d care about what
was happening here and no one had seen her since the night of the battle, but she was a possible source. Spike decided to put a call in to Giles even before ordering Ilona’s flowers.

~~~

Giles thought deeply about the possible implications of the information he had just received from Spike about the symbols and where they had last been used. The person who had slipped the note to them might not be trustworthy. Still, it was good that the glyphs had proven effective in masking people and plans from the Senior Partners in the past.

If their benefactor had been this Eve woman, what was her motive in helping? Someone clearly knew more than they were willing to reveal. It would be a very good thing to discover where this woman was and ask her a few pointed questions.

Giles placed a call to the number given to him by Angel’s son Connor. The boy had been wanting to help again in the search for his father since his adoptive parents had been murdered. Now he had more than one reason to solve this mystery. Spike had agreed that Connor and Nina would be able to handle the search for Eve.

Since the former liaison had been last seen in L.A., California was the logical place to begin the search. Giles had been quite disturbed to hear that Angel had first used and later ordered the murder of Lindsey McDonald. Perhaps Angel was not so dissimilar to Angelus after all, merely having a veneer of civilization to go with the shortened name.

Giles decided he should find out as much as possible about the doings at Angel’s L.A. branch of Wolfram & Hart to try to fit all these many pieces together correctly. Spike could tell him of the events and decisions leading up to that last disastrous battle. Giles picked up his phone and arranged a flight to Rome. Better to discuss this at Dawn’s apartment with those wards in place; telephones
would be too easy to monitor.

~~~

Xander was the next lucky recipient of a cryptic message. He was enjoying some quiet time and having lunch al fresco in a small café that faced the blue waters of the Aegean. He had come to Mykonos to locate yet another spurned woman in Eduardo de’Medici’s life. She had a fondness for wind surfing and was said to be staying at an exclusive hotel here on Kalafatis Beach. Since she was related to a royal family, Xander was not having an easy time securing an interview.

He had been thinking of Anya all day, something he hadn’t done this obsessively in over a year. Hearing all those stories from abandoned women seemed to have
picked the scab that was over Xander’s heart. He had burned the image of Anya’s betrayed face on the day that would have been their wedding and held it in his
heart, never fully healed. She deserved so much better from him and well he knew it.

So preoccupied with his sorrow over wasted opportunities and lost love was he that Xander didn’t get a good look at the person who placed the postcard next to his plate of suvlaki. It was a standard picture postcard sold to tourists everywhere and on the back was one word: Tezcatlipoca. ‘Okay, I know they say ‘it’s all Greek to me’, but that doesn’t look like Greek at all. I’d better call Giles on this one. since I’ve joined the group of recipients of chain letters from the beyond, or whatever this is.’

Once more, Xander got Willow on the line instead. Giles was on his way to Rome while Willow was still busily working on talismans for the group to wear.

"I didn’t get a good look. I was kinda day dreaming," Xander admitted. "It was a woman though, long legs, dark hair. I only saw her from behind--nice
behind, too. Couldn’t even tell how long her hair might be. It was styled up though, so it must not have been too short. Oh! She was wearing a sleeveless top with a turtleneck! Kinda odd not having sleeves with one of those; I’m only used to seeing turtlenecks on sweaters."

"Yup, you were right that it isn’t Greek, Xander! I was Googling while you were talking. It’s the name of an Aztec god or demon. I’ll have to do some more
research. Weird, first glyphs from Nepal, now Aztec demon gods. These clues get around as much as The Immortal did!" Willow was excited at the prospect of
research to sink her teeth into. " Good job getting even a glimpse of the letter carrier. That’s more than any of the rest of us have done. I wonder if that Eve woman has dark hair. Then again, she could have dyed it. Giles promised to call as soon as he got settled in at Dawn’s. I’ll tell him then."
~~~

Nina and Connor had little trouble finding Eve. Her broken body had been the only one identified from the rubble that was the former offices of Wolfram and Hart. Two bodies were found by the search and rescue team that sifted through the remains after the building collapsed in the first volley of the grand battle. One was an unidentified male Connor was certain was Hamilton. The man had died from a broken neck and blood loss from some kind of neck wound. The other body had been positively identified as Eve. She had been buried under the rubble, crushed to death.

Naturally, since W&H was directly involved in all the events they were investigating, the Scoobies couldn’t assume the mystery woman hadn’t been Eve simply because she was dead. The only thing they could be certain of was that if it were Eve, she was definitely a supernatural entity at this point.

"Hey, Willow, since that god name is Aztec, maybe Mexico is a clue of some kind," Connor suggested. "You sure your locator spells scoped that out completely? I don’t mean to be a pain, but I kinda don’t trust magic much. It’s a thing." Connor remembered the witch from her visit to re-ensoul his dad. She seemed powerful, but magic still was kind of iffy in his mind.

"Trust me, Connor, if your dad was in Mexico, we’d all be there having margaritas and trading stories right now. No, if they are someplace that this demon god is
involved in, it has to be some other dimension. I’m trying to find a way to search without having to go through them all. There are a blue million dimensions out there, then you add in those that aren’t demon-controlled and it gets really crowded. At least we have the demon’s name and that’s a start. Of course, we are assuming the clue was about your dad. It could be about Buffy. Then again, maybe they’re together." Willow blanched at the thought of her best friend and her first love in some demon dimension together. Poor Spike, like he needed that!

~*~
Chapter 11
~*~

"I had no idea that Angel had undertaken a full-out war from behind the lines. I would have cautioned him against it. It’s bloody hard to survive in the belly of the beast and it sounds like he nearly didn’t." Giles had listened in amazement to the long tale of Spike’s year with Angel as they worked at the Wolfram & Hart
branch in L.A.

Some of what had taken place, such as Angel’s inducement to accept the firm, Spike didn’t learn until after the final battle. Finding out his sire had mind-wiped all his friends and even his own son chilled Spike. He knew Angel could be manipulative, but that seemed extreme, even for him. Giles seemed better able to accept that as being typically Angel than Spike had been.

"So, this Lindsey McDonald…was he on the side of good or evil? I cannot just accept Angel’s decision to have him killed as the final word on the subject, you
understand."

Spike thought about his answer for a while before replying. "Can’t really tell. I hope Angel was right, ‘cause Lorne’s gonna have to live with offin’ Lindsey. Then again, Lorne’s psychic, reads people when they sing. Pylean, he is. Lindsey sang for him more than once. I figure Lorne saw evil in him or he’d never have shot him. I’m not sure Lindsey was certain what side he was on himself. Mostly he was on his own side. Didn’t have real good judgement, gotta say that. Poor sod fell in love with Darla!"

"Did Angel seem in control at the end? He had to realize that his declaration of war was a suicide mission. He rather dragged all of you into his personal vendetta, didn’t he? It sounds as if he had set all the wheels in motion and would never have been able to either stop them or do all that was necessary to carry it out alone. He had his friends backed in a corner that way. You all had to help him or watch him be destroyed. I know he was always making decisions for others, manipulative bastard, but this was starting an apocalypse for God’s sake!"

Spike gave a bitter laugh and replied, "Well, wasn’t the first time, now was it? Remember Acathala, the great apocalypse started by Angelus that Angel credits
himself for stopping? ‘I told her to with my eyes’ my ass."

"Started to get along with the poof at the end, but that didn’t make me blind. No, he knew what he was doin’. I think he was just getting tired. All that fightin’ evil and then losing the promised reward, losin’ Buffy, losin’ his son, losin’ his own way. I think he just wanted it to be over. Me … well, had nothin’ to lose and love a good fight, I reckon. Keepin’ his sorry arse from a dustin’ seemed like the right thing to do, that and rescuing that baby. War was already started and all; couldn’t just walk away."

"Worse than the McDonald hit was Angel killin’ Drogyn to get into the Black Thorn. Drogyn was about as pure as you get and Angel lured him to L.A. to be killed. Almost thought we were dealin’ with Angelus there. Poor bastard, decades peaceably guardin’ the Deep Well and then in a matter of months lost Illyria and got sacrificed to a cause that wasn’t even his!" Spike shook his head sadly in memory of the truth teller’s sad end.

"You say this Drogyn was lured to L.A. by Angel? How on earth did Drogyn find Angel in a city of that size? How did Angel contact him?"

"Didn’t. Just made the rumors go out that he’d been the one to sacrifice Fred to house Illyria and knew that’d draw Drogyn to him. Worked like a charm. Drogyn contacted us to warn us that Angel had gone over bad again."

"But how did he find you?" Giles was intrigued by this honorable man who was murdered to light the fire under a war he had no part in.

"Drogyn said he could track anyone who’d ever been in the Deep Well," Spike got a strange expression on his face and hit himself on the forehead. "I’m a bleedin’
idiot! Of course! Had to have some kind of replacement for the guard duty there! If Drogyn could track us anywhere cause we’d been to the Well…so can his replacement. I must have been daft to not think of it sooner."

"Think of what, Spike? I’m afraid I’m not following you." Giles looked puzzled.

"Angel and I were able to be tracked by Drogyn ‘anywhere’ since we’d been to the Deep Well. Illyria was buried in the Well for eons. We’ve been trying to find Angel and Illyria and we’ve had a bloodhound right under our noses all this time. Whoever took over for Drogyn should be able to tell us right where they are."
Spike was a flurry of movement. "It’s in your neck of the woods, too. Suppose I’ll need to go and show you the entrance. Gotta get the right tree, after all. Still need to get the rest of the files we want from the W&H office here before we head to Merry Ol’ though. Wanna meet a sweet Italian lady while you’re here, Watcher?"

"Perhaps another time. I think I’ll only stay a night or two, then head back to London. I think I can use my sources to find the name of this Drogyn’s replacement. By the time you have had your…er…date, I should have that information ready. I rather hate pulling Dawn from her schooling right now, but I don’t feel comfortable leaving her by herself after she was followed. I think she should come to England with us. Oh, and Spike, don’t even think about fixing me up with someone. Aside from Buffy, your taste has been truly appalling when it comes to women. I mean Harmony Kendall, really!"

"Before I forget it, tell me as much as you can about Eve". Within an instant, Giles was back to business.
"When I checked in with Willow earlier, she said another one of those extraordinary one-word clues had been slipped to Xander in Mykonos. He nearly saw the woman who placed it on his table. She had dark hair and long legs, according to Xander. Not much to go on, but at least we think she appears human for the most part. As it was quite sunny, a vampire can be ruled out. Since Eve was connected rather intimately with McDonald, we thought it might be she who delivered the glyphs to Dawn. This woman seems to know just who we are and which of us are working together."

"Can’t see that one helpin’ for any good purpose", Spike snorted. "Hated the lot of us, especially after sending Lindsey to hell and all. Then, when she lost her immortality due to us, let’s just say she was really pissed off as well as scared. I wouldn’t expect it to be her. She’s a blonde. I know women and their hair color aren’t the most constant things in the universe, but she doesn’t fit the ‘helpful Hannah’ mode either. Yeah, she had nice legs, but she wasn’t real tall." Spike was remembering Eve and Lindsey’s games and beginning to feel more nervous about these clues, especially if there was a chance their source WAS Eve..

"We’ve rather ruled her out, as it happens. I had Angel’s werewolf girlfriend and Connor do some checking in L.A. Eve’s body was found and identified in the rubble of the office building there. Naturally, death is not necessarily something to discount one as a suspect. However, I agree with you that it is a long shot for her to be our mystery woman.

"Didn’t know Connor ‘til we started workin’ together after his daddy disappeared. Nice lad, not at all like his papa. Felt real sorry when I heard about him losin’ his family like that. Ugly business all around. His memories might not have been real, but his emotions were, just like our Dawn. How’s the boy doin’? Spike looked both interested and concerned.

"He seems to be more angry than anything. He feels responsible in a way for the Reillys being put in harm’s way. I tried to explain that he was an innocent in all of this. As I understand it, Wolfram & Hart selected the family he was placed in and he was not even aware of his true origins until just before all hell broke loose there. I’m not sure if what I said helped at all. He’s furious at the Senior Partners and their entire evil organization for the way they’ve wrecked havoc on everyone he’s cared about. He’s appointed himself protector for Angel’s girlfriend and seems to think she may be in jeopardy as well.

~~~

Giles didn’t wait to get the information on the replacement of guardian of the Deep Well. He was able to get the information from an old acquaintance, a shaman of a pre-Christian Roman sect, who owed the Watcher a favor. As his religion still worshiped the Old Ones buried at the Deeper Well, he was quite familiar with those charged with playing prison guard there.

"No, we shall NOT be killing the guards and releasing the Old Ones, Marco. Why on earth would you expect us to do such a thing? The one god who was returned has
created enough disorder as it is. This information pays the debt you owe me, by the way. I can’t imagine there being any need to contact me again, especially with some hare-brained scheme to return the world to some imagined glory days with the release of ancient demons. You really should have abstained from the hallucinogens while at University. I’m beginning to think I did you a disservice in protecting you from your father’s wrath. Had he not been one of my few
friends at the Council at the time…well, take care of yourself, Marco, and do try to keep safe from what you’ve chosen to worship."

Spike entered the apartment as Giles concluded his call. "Any word on the Drogyn replacement?"

"Yes, I have the name. You did say there was a small group of armed demons that attacked you and Angel before you actually got to the entrance, correct?"

"Yeah, we used wire and beheaded them. Don’t remember how many there were, but more than a handful."

"I’ll arrange for some of our better trained girls to join us, then. A slayer unit should make short work of any who attempt to stop our talking with the guardian. We are banking a lot on Buffy being in the same location as Angel and Illyria, you know. I sincerely hope it does turn out to be that simple, even though it rarely does."

"Even if we only get a location on the poof, it’ll help somewhat. It all has to be tied together because of the timing. I want Buffy back safe and sound, and if that means she’s been cozying up to her first love in some demon dimension…well, as long as she’s safe. She did make some promises to Angel, after all, at least
according to him. Let’s just see about getting the lovebirds back in one piece, yeah?"

Giles could tell from Spike’s expressive face that there were deep and painful wounds exposed in that statement. He couldn’t really see Buffy ever making a
future life with Angel, but he didn’t want to see her do so with this other vampire either. In truth, Giles had yet to meet any male good enough for his surrogate daughter. If one set aside the fact that Spike was annoying and a vampire, he supposed one could see how Spike and Buffy had connected. They had much in common and each seemed to complement the other in many areas. Suddenly, Giles had the desire to remove his brain and scrub it thoroughly for even thinking such thoughts!

~~~

Giles called Willow and gave her an update about the Deeper Well and the plan for Spike and Dawn to return to England with him in a few days. He asked about her research progress as well.

Willow had been going through every codex in the Council library trying to find information on the clue given to Xander. The name, Tezcatlipoca, was an Aztec god and there were lots of web sites with information, as well as old dusty tomes. The most compelling information about this god seemed to be that he was a god of destiny. "Didn’t Spike say something about Angel and this prophecy of destiny and all?"

"Yes. Something called a Shanshu. I really wish we had that scroll that Wesley used to discover this prophecy. As it is, we only have what Spike remembers being said of it. It would seem to follow that Angel might have some connection to this Old One. There may be more we can learn from this guardian of the Deep Well about this particular god, too."

"Here’s what I’ve found out from my sources…" Willow began to read from notes she had taken from both the internet and the codices and files. ‘Tezcatlipoca was the Aztec god of night, sorcery, and all material things. He carried a magic mirror that gave off smoke and killed enemies. It also showed him the thoughts and deeds of men. He was called God of the North, Lord of the World and the Natural Forces. He sometimes appeared as a tempter, urging men to evil; he tested men's minds with temptations. He’s a magician, a shape shifter, often seen as a jaguar. He challenges warriors at crossroads at night".

"He’s referred to as ‘The Creator God, the God of the Hunt, Patron of Princes, God of Providence, Lord of the Here and Now, the Enemy on Both Sides, the true invisible god who walked over the heavens and surface of the earth and hell. He’s also called the ‘Master of Men's Destinies’. Wherever this god went, wars,
anxiety and trouble were sure to follow. Tezcatlipoca was thought to incite wars and was called Necocyautl, which means "sower of discord on both sides".

Willow took a deep breath and went on.

"He was the god of sin and misery and used an obsidian knife, kinda like they used to cut out the hearts of their sacrifices to him. Oh, this is helpful…on his
ankles he wore twenty golden bells, that ought to keep him from sneaking up on you!"

"Tezcatlipoca and his brother Quetzalcoatl worked together to restore creation by transforming themselves into two enormous trees. Wow, lots of these ancient gods are involved with trees. Just like the coven taught me,it’s all connected!"

"Indeed, much of myth is rooted, no pun intended, in truth", Giles pointed out. "Interesting, the entrance to the Deeper Well is a tree also. I wonder if this is the only entrance, or if there might be another in North America? I suppose that will be yet another question for this guardian when we get there."

~*~
Chapter 12
~*~

Xander arrived in London ahead of Giles, Dawn and Spike. He had finally gotten his interview with the jilted royal and needed to spend some time with females who weren’t still pining for a man who had treated them badly. That left Willow, of all his women friends. Willow had always been his port in a storm, always would be.

"So, three of us have gotten these notes and I’m the only one with so much as a glimpse? I wonder if that means one of us would recognize her. I mean if she’s a
total stranger, why the ghost act?" Xander was busy polishing off a plate of freshly baked cookies that Willow had baked in his honor and mulling over the
whole note mystery.

"Good point. Then again, why use us?" Willow had given the matter some thought herself. "Why not Spike and Giles? There may not be an answer at all. She
may be choosing the contact based on who’s the easiest one to sneak a note to at the time. We’ll never know until we get this whole thing figured out."

"I’m thinking that I want to get my hands dirty on this one. I’ve been out of the combat loop for too long now. I was always the one to go get my axe and head in. Seems like I’ve been avoiding that since I lost Anya. If getting Buffy back isn’t the time to pick up a weapon and get pointed in the right direction, then I don’t know when it would be. When Spike goes in after her, I’m going, too. He may not like it, but that’s what sidekick’s do." Xander finished the last cookie and stood up. "Not a lot of glory as the sidekick, but we get the job done."

"I don’t think anyone thinks of you as just some Boy Robin to Buffy’s Batman," Willow said soothingly. "You’ve always been a brave soldier in the war against evil, Xan. From the time we were in high school, you were always right there. You have a lot of courage. I’m sure Spike will be glad to have you there to help out. You fought together really well that summer before we brought Buffy back, after all."

"Yeah, I’ve been thinking about that, too. We really shouldn’t have shut him out after we got Buffy back. It was like that whole summer hadn’t happened. No
wonder everything got so screwed up!" Xander had a slight frown on his face as he let himself go back to that disastrous year. "I wish I had thought more about a
lot of stuff back then. Anya and I would have had a few good months at least."

"You can’t live in the past, Xander. You think I don’t regret every moment I threw away that I could have had with Tara? All any of us can do is learn from our mistakes and do better. We can also remember that both Anya and Tara loved us, and that they wouldn’t want us to just stop living because they did. You’re a great guy, Xander, you’ll make some woman really happy. Okay, with your history, you might make some demon really happy. Point is, you’ll find someone to love that will benefit from all you’ve learned. Anya would want that…you to be happy, that is."

The telephone rang, interrupting the bonding of the broken-hearted.

"Oh, hi, Giles! Guess who else is here? Xander!…No, he hasn’t got any new information, but he wanted a little break from all the weepy women for a while. … Okay, we’ll meet in the morning at the Council office. All those wards should make it safe to plot and plan and even share gossip. See you all then. I’m looking forward to seeing Dawnie again. I’ve missed her." Willow hung up and gave Xander a smile.

"Guess I should get some shut eye then if we’re meeting in the morning. Times like this, only having to shut one comes in handy", Xander quipped. "Good thing Spike never cared about little issues like sunlight or we’d be waiting for our meeting. Weird vampire!" Xander yawned and headed in to get some sleep after hugging Willow goodnight.

~~~

Spike prepared for his date with Ilona carefully. They had already chosen the files to steal. The file labeled "Key" involving Dawn and a handful of other files that might contain information useful both in their current situation and in the future were the targets.

Since there was not likely to be another "date" in the offing, they decided they should simply take the files and not bother to make any copies this time. In fact, the files Spike had copied previously were to be taken as well, if only to get them out of the hands of this branch of Wolfram & Hart.

Since they no longer cared about keeping the door open for a possible future tryst, it was Dawn’s idea that they use the fastest way to put Ilona out of the picture. Drugging the lovely CEO was the best solution since it had been so successful the last time. Spike felt uneasy trying to take the vial of sedative into the building, however. His date was for an intimate dinner in her apartment rather than a restaurant away from the watchful eyes and ears of Wolfram & Hart.

Giles and Spike finally decided the best solution was for the two of them to work together. This would be a chance to test out the strength of the talismans Willow had sent at the same time. Spike would distract Ilona while Giles, under the mystical protection of the talismans, would slip into the file room and take the desired files.

Spike had told how Lindsey entered the L.A. offices undetected until they physically spotted him in the bowels of the building. With Spike giving the best directions for Giles to enter the file room, it would only be necessary to avoid any physical contact with the security staff of Wolfram & Hart. Spike would keep Ilona occupied for at least an hour to allow Giles plenty of time to get in, get the files and get out.

They had decided on a safe house to reconnoiter until they were sure they had been undetected. Dawn was to await them there, painting more of the symbols on the
doors, walls and windows of the warehouse storeroom in preparation. If all went well they would go back to Dawn’s apartment and later fly to London with no problem. If things did not go well, they would need to slip out of Rome and thence to London some other way, avoiding detection by the Senior Partners and
local Wolfram & Hart operatives.

Everything went according to plan until Giles was nearly out of the building. One of the files had an unexpected and hidden computer chip that set off alarms within the building. As soon as Spike heard the clarion, he knew Giles was in trouble. He only hoped the Watcher could outrun the expected security team until he could help him escape.

"Situazioni d’emergenza!" The call proclaiming an emergency came on the loudspeaker of Ilona’s intercom system.

Spike heard her asking questions of her security team and issuing orders to seal the building. He had to do something to get her out of play and quickly. He
could kill her, but his soul screamed out against that plan.

It had been a long while since Spike had had human blood, much less direct from the source, but circumstances required quick action. It was odd tasting human blood again after all of these years. Spike had forgotten how potent it was direct from the tap, how it infused his body with a power and strength that animal blood just could not match. It was almost like drinking something with a high alcohol content after a diet of watered down beer.

He took just enough from Ilona to leave her unconscious without killing her. His soul didn’t even feel a pang, considering the alternatives. It wasn’t quite the type of penetration that Ilona had been expecting, but Spike could tell that she hadn’t disliked it either.

He sped from her apartment toward the area where he knew Giles would be trying to leave the complex. "Hey, what’s the noise all about? Tryin’ to have a date
here, a little romance. Your boss wants to know what the hell’s going on." Spike asked the man who appeared in charge of the security team. Spike was happy to see they didn’t appear to have captured Giles or even located him as of yet.

"Where’s Ms. Costa Bianchi? Why isn’t she here asking herself, vampire?" The guard sneered at Spike.

"She’s not ‘xactly dressed for the occasion, if you get my meaning", Spike replied with a smirk.

"Tell her there’s been a breach of security and we’ve got a handle on it. She doesn’t need to disturb her down time over the matter. It’ll be taken care of by
the time you get back to her apartment, in fact." The commander exuded confidence.

At that point Spike saw Giles from the corner of his eye and realized he was going to have to do something proactive to keep the security team from seeing him as
well. Spike motioned to Giles to make a break for the exit while he turned the guard towards himself.

"Look, I don’t think Ms. Costa Bianchi will just take my word for it, mate. Why don’t you just drop on by and give her the word yourself." Spike saw Giles dash for the door as he was speaking.

One of the security team chose that moment to take his eyes off of the vampire and yelled an alert to the rest, pointing at the rapidly disappearing back of Giles. The guard with the clearest shot raised his weapon and pointed at Giles’ retreating form. Spike made a flying leap towards the guard, knocking him off balance and making the shot go wide.

"Well, vampire, good thing we’re not as trusting as the boss. We came prepared for your kind." With that, the guard raised his crossbow and aimed at Spike, letting loose a bolt of wooden death. The shaft pierced Spike just millimeters above his heart. Spike steeled himself for the pain and began running at top speed in the opposite direction that Giles had taken. He hoped the security team would follow him instead of the human Watcher. Spike knew he would have plenty of
time to deal with the arrow after they were all safely out of harm’s way.

~~~

"Where’s Spike?" Dawn had asked the same question of Giles multiple times in the past hour. Giles told Dawn that Spike had created a distraction to allow his
escape and that he had assumed the vampire was quickly following him there to the safe house. Every time Giles came up with the same reply, "He should be here shortly, Dawn, he is quite resourceful", she became more and more frantic.

"He should be here by now. Are you sure he got away? Giles, what if they staked him?"

"I wish I could say with certainty that he got away, but you know very well I cannot. I do know that Spike is rather like the proverbial cat, he tends to land on his feet. We can’t go looking for him right now. What if we leave and he turns up only to find no one here? I was spotted, so I cannot go looking and I am sure you would be easily recognized if you tried to go. If he doesn’t show up in good time, we’ll have one of our slayers organize a search. Rona knows him.
I’ll have her head it if necessary. I really don’t think it will be necessary, however."

"Rona doesn’t like him." Dawn frowned to think her friend’s life might be left in the hands of an indifferent or even hostile slayer.

"Rona will do as she is told by the head of the Council, Dawn. No need to fear. I truly don’t think it will come to that. Most likely Spike is simply leading them on a wild goose chase to prevent them from locating our safe house."

Dawn gave an expression of "pffft" when he stated that Rona would obey easily. "Buffy’s not the only slayer with a will of her own, Giles."

Giles responded with a dirty look. Just as he was about to argue his position where slayer discipline was concerned, they heard a loud bang against the wall near the door.

Dawn jumped and ran to the door, flinging it open before Giles could caution her not to chance opening it. Spike was slumped on the ground with the shaft sticking from the area near his heart. "Oh my God, Giles, they’ve nearly dusted him!"

"Careful, Dawn! Don’t jar him too much. As you said, the arrow is terribly near his heart, we don’t want to dislodge it and finish the job. Spike, are you
conscious?"

Spike had managed to lose the security team following him and make it to the storage unit before he slipped into unconsciousness. Giles was concerned
because the blood loss didn’t seem bad enough to cause the vampire to be in the condition he was in. He remained silent about his concerns, however. He wasn’t about to add to Dawn’s worries by saying anything just yet.

They carefully dragged Spike into the protection of the safe house and closed the door behind them.
After removal of the arrow and inspection of the wound, Giles had to guess that the arrow had either some magic or poison on it to have put Spike into the
nearly comatose condition he was in. He decided to chance using his cell phone and place a call to Willow.
Having a powerful witch on one’s side was of enormous value. Willow teleported Spike to London to analyze the unconscious vampire herself and start whatever process might be needed to cure him. Dawn and Giles would use more conventional means of transportation to return to England. It wouldn’t do to overuse a resource like Willow!

Giles packed the stolen files into the bags they had readied for the trip and had Rona pick them up to drive them to Milan for the flight leaving for London. No point in making it too easy for the Wolfram & Hart security to track them. So far the talismans had worked perfectly. Dawn had discovered the embedded computer chip and it was now disposed of safely. Giles could but hope that the only view they had of him had been his rather run-of-the-mill backside. God willing they would all be home safe soon.

~*~
Chapter 13
~*~

Spike was burning up. He was still in a near coma, but what was most disturbing was the high fever he was running.

"I just don’t get it. Vampires don’t run any temperature at all, they’re your basic room temperature model. I can’t find any magic, so it has to be something that was on that arrow. It feels like déjà vu in a way, but I can’t put my finger on it." Willow was starting to really worry about the survival of her charge.

"Wait! I know this! I’m having a thought here, Will. Yes, a definite thought." Xander looked positively excited. "Remember Angel when Faith tried to make a pincushion out of him? We had to baby-sit him while Buffy went all ‘Xena, Warrior Princess’ on Faith to get blood for Angel? It was some kind of poison and Angel was sweating like a steelworker ‘til Buffy let him nearly drain her. That’s what this looks like…like the…what did they call it? Oh yeah, ‘killer of the undead’, I remember! The only cure was the blood of a slayer!" Xander looked downright proud of remembering.

"Ooh yeah! Buffy went all ‘no one messes with my boyfriend’ and quit the council. I remember, too! We’ve got nothing to lose by trying some good old-fashioned vintage slayer. We’ve got enough slayers here to take a little from each of them to cure Spike and not even make them sleepy! Xander, you’re a lifesaver or something like it."

Willow called Vi in and told her what they needed. Vi was happy to help her old comrade and trainer Spike. She organized the blood donation from the girls there
at Council headquarters. Those girls who had been in the Hellmouth with Spike had been first in line to donate. The other girls had heard their stories and
were more than happy to roll up their sleeves and add a pint or two. Soon there were bags aplenty of potentially curative blood.

"You know, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to have some slayer blood on hand, for medicinal purposes anyway. Never know what it might cure." Xander was filled
with optimism and they hadn’t even managed to get any of the blood into Spike yet.

***

By the time Giles and Dawn arrived at headquarters, Spike was back to his normal hyper self. It was all Willow could do to keep the vampire at rest, insisting
he have sufficient down time to prevent a relapse.

"Man, you need to save all that energy for fighting the oogly-googlies we’ll face getting the Buffster out of whereever they’ve got her. You seriously need
some Ritalin, dude! Bet you were always getting spanked in school."

"You offerin’, Whelp? I didn’t know you cared." Spike smirked at the horrified look on Xander’s face at the thought. "Just what do you mean ‘we’? You plannin’
on a bit of dimensional cruisin’ with the Big Bad when we figure out where she is?"

"I’m there. Look, I know you think I’m just a puny human, but I’ve been backing up Buffy since we were kids. I can watch your back better than anybody. Besides, if things go wrong, you don’t think I want to miss seeing you get your pale ass whupped, do you?"

Spike laughed at that and replied, "I’ve seen you fight. You’re all right in a tight corner. Be glad to have you along." He wished he had a camera to capture
the look of surprise on Xander’s face at that!

Spike would never admit to the boy that he had always grudgingly admired him for his bravery over the years. In all the time Spike had gone up against humans,
precious few had put up much of a fight once they knew what he was. Xander had taken on vampires and demons, knowing how outmatched he was, for years. He had no
superpowers or enhanced healing to fall back on either. No, best not say anything. The whelp’s head would likely explode thinking Spike admired him for anything at all.

If Spike had overheard the conversations correctly while he was recovering, Xander had been the one to latch onto the cure for him as well. Spike couldn’t let that go without some remark. "Glad your brain was workin’ better than usual rememberin’ the cure for the poison. Thanks for that."

"Yeah, well, we still need your undead ass to find Buffy", Xander replied. His genuine smile showed that there were more reasons than that for his desire to
see Spike survive however. "You can be handy to have around."

"Should I go pick out china patterns or register us or somethin’? You do know if we start being civil to each other Buffy’ll be convinced she’s still in some
other dimension and just try to leave, don’t you?" Spike grinned at Xander and the two shared a short laugh.

Giles poked his head in the doorway looking more than a little startled at hearing the shared laughter. "I was hoping you were on the mend, Spike. However, if you are getting on with Xander, there must still be residual damage."

"Come on in and join the fun, Giles. Just think if all three of us were getting along, Buffy’d probably think she was trapped in another weird world like when she was in that asylum and tried to kill us all. That would be majorly bad!" Xander began to laugh again at the thought.

Giles couldn’t stop his lip from quirking in a small grin at the thought. "I suppose she would be rather surprised at that. Speaking of recovering Buffy, do
you think you’ll be up for a trip to the Cotswolds and this Deeper Well tomorrow, Spike? I am putting together a score of slayers to accompany us and deal with those demon warriors you spoke of. You can locate the proper tree more quickly without the added distraction of a fight."

"Tree? Don’t tell me we’re going for answers from the Keebler elves?" Xander looked puzzled.

"No elves, nitwit! Those aren’t even what elves really look like anyway and they don’t bake! The tree is the entrance to the Deeper Well where all the Old Ones
are buried…all but Illyria, that is. She got out." Spike looked a bit exasperated at Xander’s lack of knowledge about creatures as powerful and stately as elves. He probably thought they were silly midgets who assembled cheap toys at the North Pole when not makin’ those cookies and such!

Talk of the Deeper Well led to a serious discussion about the plan to talk to the Guardian and the events that had last led Spike and Angel to the prison for old demons. Xander was suitably regretful about the events leading up to the death of the Burkle girl. He had never met Fred but remembered Willow speaking highly of her. From the sound of it, Spike had held her in high esteem, too.

"I’ll be fine and fit to unleash upon unsuspectin’ demons by tomorrow, don’t you worry ‘bout it, Watcher. I’m still hopin’ the Senior Partners got lazy and just
zapped all our missing to the same place. This Guardian should be able to tell where Angel and Blue are at least."

Spike hated to admit that he was hoping to bring his sire and the odd yet compelling demon god back to his own world in a short time. It would be icing on the cake to get Buffy back that quickly too. Of course, that would mean that Buffy and Angel would have had all this time to cozy up and bond again. Hell, if they
got her back safe and sound, he’d throw the bloody party for her and Angel himself. Then quietly go off and stake himself.

~~~

The demon warriors were no match for the well trained group of girls. Spike, flanked by Giles and Xander, entered through the doorway concealed in the giant
tree and came face to face with a twelve-foot demon of unknown variety. "This the new Guardian then?" Spike looked at Giles for some clue how to address the being
before them.

"You are Enkidu of the Nephalim and current guardian of the Deeper Well?" Giles bowed slightly to the large creature in front of them. "Son of a Titan, renowned
in ages past and current protector of realms, I greet you and implore your assistance."

The giant looked, not at Giles, but at Spike and replied. "Your arrival was predicted, half-breed. That which you seek is not here. The cursed one and
the escaped Old One are in another dimension that must be accessed from another part of this world. You must look to the New World and the place of their Old Ones. I can give you directions, but entrance is won in battle. There is the place of ‘he who holds destiny’, it is there you will find those lost to you. Know your foe well before engaging in battle. There will be a price demanded that must be paid if any may return. Have what you need with you or be prepared to
sacrifice one of your number." The giant glanced at Spike’s two companions as he said this.

"Okay, not liking the sound of that. Why do I get the feeling the price isn’t something we can put on the Council’s Visa card? Got any idea what this guy, this
very large glowering guy, is talking about, Giles?" Xander lowered his voice as the giant turned his eyes on him .

"Actually, you might have given us the clue we need from that postcard you were given in Greece. There are those who feel the ancient gods early civilizations worshiped were actual beings. Demons or Old Ones most likely, although there is a fringe element that believe them to have been extraterrestrials. The name you were given is that of a god of the Aztecs. That would also fit with the New World the guardian referred to. As for the price, well, we need to research Aztec culture a bit more, but I think I may have some idea of what it would be. If I am
right, we’ll have to think of something creative to pay it."

"Not wanting to go all Art Bell on you, but what if they were extraterrestrials? We can’t just borrow a shuttle from NASA", Xander said.

"Don’t be ridiculous, Xander, what sort of a universe do you think you live in? Extraterrestrials, indeed!" Giles huffed at the thought that Xander could be so
gullible.

"I used to listen to that show. Not so crazy at all, Watcher. In fact, I called in one night when the bloke had open lines for any real vampires to call in.
Don’t think he believed me though." Spike looked thoughtful as he continued, "Maybe it was ‘cause I told him all about the whole chip thing and all. Don’t know why else he wouldn’t believe me. Not like I had one of those daft stories he has sometimes, like those chupacabra things that suck blood from goats. I mean goat blood is vile, no self-respectin’ creature’d drink that!"

"Spike, do be serious", Giles said in disgust, "you’re beginning to annoy the giant demon."

They got the necessary directions from the giant demon and headed back to headquarters to make certain they had all the information they would need for their planned encounter with Tezcatlipoca.

"If you’re thinkin’ what I am ‘bout that price we’ll be havin’ to pay, I may have an idea. It’s a long shot and not all that easy either but better than
anything else I can think of. When we get back, I’m gonna’ put a call into Charlie boy. Need to run an idea by him and just hope he’s in the mood to take a chance by givin’ us a hand." Spike looked quite serious indeed.

~*~
Chapter 14
~*~

"Grisly bunch of buggers these Aztecs. Surprised the Spanish survived to commit genocide on ‘em." Spike put aside the history book he had been reading and sighed
deeply. It looked as if the germ of an idea he had gotten as they were leaving the Cotswolds might be the only direction to take. Spike decided to wait and pay
Charles Gunn a visit in person to make his request. Some things you just had to do face to face.

"I’d think you’d fit right in, Spike. I mean who better than a vampire to understand bloodthirsty?" Xander quipped.

"That’s just it. They were all for the bloodlettin’, but wasted all of it. Let it run down the steps of those temples of theirs. Not right wastin’ blood like that." Spike shook his head in disgust at the thought.

"So you’re a…what, vampire environmentalist with a ‘waste nothing’ approach to draining people?" Xander may have called a truce, but he still had to get his
digs in when he could. Actually, he seemed to think Spike enjoyed the verbal jousting.

"Yeah, Whelp, sorta like you and doughnuts … don’t leave any crumbs behind," Spike got in the last word this time.

"Spike, you said you had an idea to deal with the payment necessary to leave that dimension after we’ve rescued Angel and Illyria. Would you mind sharing the idea? I don’t think we should leave it for the last minute," Giles said.

"I’d kinda like to talk it over with someone else first. If he’s up for lending some vital help, we might be okay. It’s a lot to ask though and I want him to feel free to turn me down. If we all approach him, he might feel pressured into helping and I respect him too much to do that." Spike looked sad as he spoke.

"I can certainly understand that. If this person should turn you down, do you by any chance have a backup plan?"

"Yeah. How attached are you to the Junior Watcher Boy?" Spike had seen Andrew skulking around the bookshelves and decided it was time to confront the lad. "I’m thinkin’ he might do in a pinch."

"Spike! What a pleasant surprise to see you here in London! You’ll be happy to know that I’ve been doing really well in the class on avoiding and resisting a
thrall. Mr. Umboto says I’m at the top of my class. You were right. I need lots more training." Andrew looked uncomfortable in the presence of his hero.

Spike felt a bit bad for the boy. After all, Andrew had been the only one to greet his return with anything close to pleasure. "You’ll do fine eventually. You need to remember everyone fights evil one choice at a time;it’s not just a one time battle. You’ll make it."

Spike managed to dodge the boy as he lunged in for a hug.

"Why don’t you locate a few more books on this god for now? Need to know how to fight him if we want to stand any chance at all. If it was that easy, Illyria’d gotten herself out of there by now. She’s no easy one to beat in a fight."

"Maybe they did get free but can’t pay the price to get out", opined Xander.

"Yeah … not somethin’ you’d carry a spare", Spike muttered.

"Okay, enough with the cryptic. What’s this price you seem to have figured out? You two have been giving each other that doom-and-gloom look since we left the
Deeper Well. It’s share time", Xander insisted.

Giles sighed and turned to face Xander. "The sacrifice made to Aztec gods, as you should know from all the research you’ve been assisting with today, was the heart of a warrior."

Xander blanched at the thought. "Can I say "eww"? I’d also like to point out that I am a sidekick and not a warrior while I’m at it."

"Too late now, Whelp. You’ve proven yourself in battle too many times." Spike smirked at the fear in Xander’s eyes.

"The whole idea is to come up with a way to make this payment without any of us leaving our hearts behind" , Giles explained.

"Yeah, I don’t think Tony Bennett had that in mind when he was singing about leaving his heart in San Francisco", Xander said, trying to lighten the mood.

"Not going that far north, you git. More like Northern Mexico according to the directions Tiny gave us." Spike pretended to ignore the looks given to him
when he used his choice of nickname for the Guardian.

"Bleedin’ god sounds like some Morris Dancer, what with the bells and all", Spike muttered as he went back to his research.

"Oh great, we get the god of war! Didn’t the Guardian say we’d have to do battle to get in to the dimension? Nothing like taking on THE local war god. You know,
I liked it much better when we just had to face off against stupid vamps and some demons. This god-of-the-month club we seemed to have joined is a bummer!" Xander complained.

"Hey, watch it with the ‘stupid vamp’ comments, Whelp. You stayed off the menu ‘cause of the soddin’ chip, not lack of plannin’." Spike glared at Xander.

"Yes and thank you for reminding us of why we all loved having you in our company, Spike, not to mention why there are trust issues still." Giles leveled a serious gaze at the vampire.

"Not stupid’s all. Not plannin’ on eatin’ the lot of you. Didn’t when I could have. Think I’d have earned a bit of trust by now." Spike whispered this but both the other men heard it anyway.

Spike began to feel uncomfortable being stared at by his companions and decided to put some space between them all to allow a cool-off period. ‘Gotta learn when to shut up’, he thought to himself.

Spike stood and started to exit the room. "That reminds me of somethin’ else. The sacrifice was of a BEATING heart, eh? Might need to have a talk with Willow on that one. ‘Scuse me while I go chat up the witch."

"Giles, say we aren’t going to be pulling hearts out of anyone, please?" Despite his best efforts, Xander sounded a little shaky.

"Of course we aren’t. I am interested in hearing what plan Spike may have to manage this, however."

~~~~

Willow and Spike had their heads together for over two hours, poring over books and grimoires. Finally Willow spoke. "I wonder if you’ll need a sacrifice for each one of you that plans to leave? I guess we need something big enough to hold multiples, just in case. I think I have what I need in the back room. I’m not much with the sewing, but I can do the spell part. Dawn is a pretty good seamstress and can make a decent pouch. Gotta make it leak proof ‘cause, human
hearts…pretty messy! Besides, I know she’ll want to contribute."

Giles entered the room and seemed to catch on to the plan without much effort. "I see. The plan is to take the sacrifices in to start. I assume the magic is to keep them beating?" At Willow’s nod, he continued, "The question remains, where are we going to get these hearts?"

"I’ve got an idea, like I said, but I don’t want to share ‘til I talk to my friend. Look, we’ll find them somewhere without killin’ anybody. Besides, needs to be the heart of a warrior, right? Can’t just go offin’ an accountant and hope for the best." From the look Giles gave him, Spike was sure he’d put his foot in his mouth yet again. "Just sayin’", he muttered sheepishly. Humans could be far too sensitive about some things.

"Oh, Giles, I’ve got another idea for something that might help. Andrew has been helping me with an idea for a kind of universal translator, like on Star Trek. Actually it was Andrew’s idea. I figure if you get there and they all speak Aztec, you won’t even be able to ask if they’ve seen Buffy or Angel." Willow began to sketch her plan for the device.

"The language is called Nahuatl, Willow, but that’s a very good idea. Such a device would be quite useful for more than just this mission. Do keep working on
both of these projects." Giles was impressed with Andrew using his pop culture obsession for something potentially useful.

"Not gonna have to stick something out of my ear, am I, Red?" Spike asked, envisioning the characters on Star Trek and the props they had used.

"Nope, strictly Next Generation or even Voyager", Willow said.

"But not ‘Enterprise’, ‘cause that sucked", offered Andrew from his position eavesdropping.

~~~

As soon as Willow had prepared the magical supplies they would need, Giles, Xander and Spike headed for L.A. Spike had called ahead and arranged for Gunn to meet them at LAX. Spike was finding it uncomfortable thinking what he was about to ask of the young warrior who had already lost so much in the cause of good.


"Yo! Spike, my man! Good to see your white-on-white self!" Gunn looked more relaxed then Spike had ever seen him. Of course, working at the shelter and
practicing law were not as stressful as the constant battle against the forces of evil.

"Charlie! Lookin’ like life’s startin’ to pay you some respect! How’ve you been?"

"Not too bad, not too bad. Still miss some of it and still haunted by the blasted Gilbert and Sullivan in my head, but pretty good all things considered. Doin’
the good deeds with the regular folk, helpin’ lots of brothers and sisters. Killin’ the occasional sorry vamp, too, so I stay in shape. How you doin?"

"Been worse, haven’t flamed up in a while, so it’s all to the good. Hey, where’re my manners? This here’s the infamous Rupert Giles and the whelp’s Xander Harris. He’s kinda the white you…you know, human, but out fightin’ the fight."

Charles had narrowed his eyes at the mention of Giles but trusted Spike’s judgment enough to let it pass without comment. Obviously the vampire didn’t think the Watcher was going to betray anyone or withhold help that would lead to sweet girls dying again.

"Nice to meet you, Harris." Charles held out his hand to shake Xander’s. He merely nodded to Giles. Giles noted the snub and decided to ignore it. According to Spike the L.A. group held him to blame for their loss of a fine young woman. Giles supposed he’d react much the same way if their roles were reversed.

"So what brings you back to the land of sunshine and beaches? I’m bettin’ it’s not a vacation. Did you get a lead on Angel and Fred..er, Illyria? I kinda thought that might be it, ‘cause you called me instead of a travel agent." Charles looked at Spike closely trying to decide if this visit was good news or bad news. The vampire always had a face that was easy to read.

"Pretty close, Charlie. Got a lead all right, but it’s not all puppies and clover, if you know what I mean."

"Sound like normal stuff for us, hey?" Gunn threw an arm over Spike’s shoulder, emphasizing to the other two men the acceptance given to Spike by Angel’s crew. He’d heard enough about the Sunnydale contingent to know that Spike never got the
props he deserved for the years of helping out, much less saving the world. Charles might never be considered a fan of vamps, but he recognized a good guy when he saw one, unlike some people who made decisions based on where a person worked.

Spike saw the surprised look on Xander’s face at the camaraderie and decided not to shrug off the arm as he would otherwise wish to do.

"Actually, I was hopin’ we could drop these two off to get their beauty sleep and you and I could go get a pint or two and talk about it." Spike really did want
Charles to feel completely free to turn him down without an audience.

"So long as it’s not that damned poetry/biker bar you used to drag me to, I’m in." Gunn smiled to himself at the horrified look on Spike’s face. The confusion on
the faces of his companions was pretty priceless, too. Gunn could see he could
get a lot of mileage out of that bit of information!

Gunn dropped Xander and Giles off at the Hyperion. He’d been living there and making sure the renovations Spike had started were on schedule. Angel had left it
to Spike, but Spike said it was really in trust for all the survivors of the battle. Hell, knowing Angel, Spike was probably right.

~~~

The bar was just a hole in the wall, but Guinness was on tap. They made small talk at first. It was obvious that Spike had something weighing on him, but
Charles knew to wait for the vampire to get around to it on his own.

"So…hear anything from Lorne? Felt bad Angel had him do that bit of dirty work. Fella was a lover, not a killer. I shoulda taken out Lindsey, not him. Guess Angel felt McDonald wouldn’t get suspicious with Mr. Green Jeans."

"Nope, not a word. You’d think it wouldn’t be too hard to stumble on a red-eyed, green-skinned, singing demon but he’s as hard to find as the Invisible Man.
Maybe he’ll get in touch someday, when he gets past all the crap of that last year. I’m sure he’s out there singing show tunes and knocking back sea breezes somewhere. Look, Spike, I’m willing to bet you didn’t just travel across the planet to ask if I’ve seen Lorne. What’s up?"

Spike ordered another pint for each of them and began catching Charles up on everything that had happened since they had parted company. The mood turned light
when Spike got to the part about the Italian CEO. "Think she’d be up for a tall, dark and handsome lawyer and former employee of her evil law firm? Sounds like
the lady needs to be put on the right path."

"Thought you and that Anne bird were a match-up?" Spike was relieved to have a short delay in getting to the major issues that brought him there. "Don’t tell
me you struck out again?"

"No. Never even picked up the bat. Anne’s really pretty, and sweet as they come, but you know…too much like Fred. Can’t seem to see past that, know what I mean? I’m still free, single and lookin’ for love in all the wrong places. What about you, you finally move on like Angel did?"

Spike went back to his story at that point. Starting with the back story of Andrew’s involvement with the whole Immortal part of the picture.

"So that whole ‘move on’ thing wasn’t even from her? Damn! That’s seriously cold!"

"Yeah. Still doesn’t mean she’d be wantin’ to pick things up with me, but it feels a bit better knowin’ she didn’t know I was there. The boy’s a menace though. He’s back at Watcher Central relearnin’ how to tell the bad guys from the good guys."

Spike took a deep breath and jumped into the rest of the story, having run out of delaying tactics. "So here we are getting’ ready to chase down this Aztec war god and go in guns blazin’. Well, not guns really…you think they’d help?"

"Don’t know if you can actually kill a god, Spike, but I’d think guns would do more damage to you guys. Well, maybe not you unless they were wooden bullets, I guess.
Okay, I follow the game plan so far but gotta wonder what you need me for?"

Spike stared into his Guinness as if the meaning of life could be found in its foam. The silence was beginning to unnerve Charles. Suddenly the lawyer’s
eyebrows shot up as he had a flash of an idea. "Oh, no! No, no, no, no, no and again, no! You cannot be going where I think you are with this train of thought. Jesus, Spike, I thought we were friends!"

"We are. That’s why I wanted to talk to you all private like. Look, I won’t blame you if you tell me to go to hell, even send me there yourself. I’ve done some really horrible things in my life, but askin’ a friend to do this is one of the worst, I know it. Look, I’d do it myself, but bein’ a vamp, my heart would likely dust as soon as it was out."

Charles’ mind reeled in remembered horror. The holding dimension with its basement of torture was one of those memories that Gunn would have been happy to have wiped away. Sure, he could see where Spike was coming from. It made sense, even to him. The problem was it was HIS heart they were talking about having cut out over and over. He wondered how many they were planning to ask for.

"You sure Angel and Illyria are in this dimension?"

"No. Look, I could lie to you and say we were certain and get you all guilted up to lend a hand, or heart I should say, but I respect you too much. Charlie, it
has to be the heart of a warrior and I can’t think of any better than you. Not sayin’ that to score points either. Wasn’t kiddin’ ‘bout you and Harris earlier--damned brave humans. Easy to be a strong and tough warrior when you’re the Big Bad, ‘nother thing when you’re just a mortal. I really can’t think of any other way, unless I could sweet talk Xander into a tour of the W & H employee discipline hall of fame."

"Let me sleep on it, okay? Look, for what it’s worth, I know you’d not ask me if you thought there was any other way. I don’t hate you for asking. I’m grateful
you’re doing this in private and letting me have the option, you know, with dignity. I’ll let you know in the morning, okay? I assume you have a plan for
having a replacement for me after you get all the parts you need?"

"’Course. Woulda picked Eve, but the bint appears to be dead already. Remember that bugger Corbin Fries? I was still in that bleedin’ amulet when it all went
down but I remember all of you talkin’ ‘bout that wanker. Was gonna kill his own kid to force you to get him off those charges. Your first case, wasn’t it?"
Gunn nodded in memory of his first "win" in a courtroom.

"Think a visit from the lawyer that kept him out of prison might be in order. Little trip to suburban hell, switch the necklace and Fries gets to finally pay for his sins a bit, eh? Figure we play it right and his sprog stays nice and safe, even gets a better home out of it. Yeah, sleep on it, Charlie. I don’t want you to agree unless you are really willing to do this. If you say no, I’ll figure something else out. Not gonna push you into a corner with no real choice, unlike some other vamps we know. Won’t have anything but respect for you either way, your choice."

"So, how many hearts do you think you’ll be needing?" Gunn had a pained expression on his face at the prospect.

~*~
Chapter 15
~*~

Spike and Gunn headed out the next day in the Wolfram & Hart self-driving Camaro, having picked up Mr. Corbin Fries earlier with the enticement of some new girls to
pimp. The suburban neighborhood looked eerily the same as when Gunn and Spike had last seen it. Mr. Fries, conveniently unconscious, didn’t see a thing.

"Better make sure to get more than you think you might need, ‘cause I’m only doin this one time, Bubba!" Gunn looked more than a bit nervous. It was a measure of
his trust in Spike that he had decided to go through with the heart donations at all.

"Right. You know you can always ask me for anything from here on out, Charlie. You’re helping me get Buffy back one way or another and I know what it’s costin’
you. You’ve got a blank check with this vamp."

"I’d do it for Fred, gotcha. Gotta tell you I didn’t sleep at all last night trying to decide if I was willing to go through with this. I just hope it turns out to do the trick. You get your ass dusted without getting everyone back and I’ll find a way to bring you back just so I can stake you myself, got that?! And, hey, Angel gets back here, I’m makin’ sure he knows I did this for you, not him. After that mind wipe crap, I sure don’t owe him my heart! Lost all my memories of me and Fred, finally got them back and she was gone. I don’t hate him, but wouldn’t do this just to save his ass."

"Thanks, Charlie. Don’t be too hard on the Poof, he’s just used to makin’ the decisions for everybody. Never gonna change, I ‘spect. Failing of his, even
made the decisions for Darla usually and that’s goin’ some. Be nice for Connor having his dad around though, yeah?"

"Yup, the kid’s all right. I helped take care of him when he was first born. Won’t mind helping Connor out either. Okay, I guess we do this, huh? Let’s get in
and out with your bag of beating hearts and go have a couple, what d’ya say? This suburban hell isn’t givin the warm fuzzies to this homeboy. I’m urban all the way."

***
It took far longer than either of them wanted. Spike nearly ended it several times only to remind himself that this was the one shot at having an acceptable ‘get out of the Aztec god dimension free’ card. If he hadn’t thought of Charles Gunn as a bloody hero before, he did now. Spike was going to make sure that Buffy had a chance to meet this man and thank him personally one day.

~~~

Giles and Xander had seen nothing of Spike since arriving in L.A. the day before. There had been a message left on their doors saying only that Spike would explain it all later that evening after he finished running an errand.

Spike returned just before sunrise with Willow’s magic bag filled with grisly bootie. Upon hearing how Spike and Gunn acquired the prize, neither Giles nor Xander was particularly surprised that Charles Gunn had chosen to take a few days out of town.

"Geez, how many times did he get his heart cut out? These lawyers are diabolical with their punishments, man. You really don’t want to screw with them!" Xander was horrified when it was all explained to him.

"Well, better barricade yourself, boy, ‘cause that’s just what we’re doin’. I don’t plan on leavin’ any of ‘em standin’ when we’re done to hand out any punishments though. Okay, we’ve got our exit passes, now to work on gainin’ entry. Got a definite on it yet, Watcher?"

"Actually, I think I have put it all together, yes. The ancient legends of the Aztec gods say that these gods entered our world from caves in the north. These
legends also say that our particular god was turned into a tree, along with his brother. My guess is that the Cueva Grande caves in the Huapoca Canyon in
northern Chihuahua are the most logical entry point to their realm. It is a hidden cave, hard to access, and tall trees surround the entrance. We’ll need to fly in to El Paso and cross over to Juarez then head south to Madera. They suggest using a four-wheel drive vehicle as the terrain is rather rugged."

"You guess! Please say this is more than a guess, G-man, ‘cause driving around a foreign country with a vampire and a bag of human hearts isn’t something I want to do on a guess."

"No more so than do I, Xander, and do stop calling me by that ridiculous nickname. With the information we have, this is the most likely way in. I have asked
Willow to contact the coven to see if they can discern a dimensional portal in that area to confirm my research. We should hear from them later today. In the meantime, I suggest we study a bit on the methods of warfare of the ancient Aztecs. If we do have to battle our way in, we need to be prepared."

"I got lots of practice fightin’ an Old One with Illyria. Watcher’s right, takes the bash and smash to a whole new level. Blue knocked me six ways from Sunday more than once. If I wasn’t such a stubborn bastard, I’d’ve just laid there and bled instead of getting’ up over and over. Good practice though. Between Glory and Blue, I think we can take ‘em."

"Gee, I feel so secure. Giles guesses and Spike thinks…we’re doomed!"

"With that attitude, we will be. Xander, if you don’t want to go along with us, I’m sure we will both understand, won’t we, Spike?"

"He’s just talkin’. Never saw the boy run from a fight yet. Just normal nerves, right, Harris?"

"Yeah, but this had better lead us to Buffy pretty soon. If all I have to show for this adventure is getting Angel back into this dimension, I’ll shoot myself!"

~~~

Giles had gone out to pick up some supplies for the anticipated trip through the wilds of northern Mexico, leaving Spike to sleep and Xander to brood.

Most of the gear would be purchased once they arrived in El Paso, but some things were more easily found in L.A. At least that’s what Giles told himself as he
laid out his Visa card to pay for the GPS at the local electronics super center. All the Watcher could picture when he thought of El Paso was that country and western song about a cowboy and a senorita in the badlands of New Mexico. It didn’t hold much promise of high tech purchases, even though Giles knew the city was quite modern and fairly large.

He saw the paper underneath the windshield wiper from across the parking garage. The handwriting was unfamiliar, but Giles was nearly certain it would turn out to match the postcard Xander had been given in Greece. There were two words this time, ‘Tonatiuh’ and ‘tochtli’. "Oh for the love of …why don’t you simply come forward and say what you want to say instead of all these cryptic notes." Giles spoke aloud, not certain in the least that the note passer was in hearing distance.

"At least I can recognize that these words are in the language of the Aztecs. Perhaps it will make more sense when we get there." He spoke a bit louder, just
in case the mystery woman was nearby. "I suppose this means that we are on the right track? It might help if you’d slip a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ note along those lines before we fly out of here."

It came as no surprise that there was no reply given.

However, when Giles returned to the Hyperion, he was startled speechless when he saw, painted in large red letters upon the front door, the word, ‘YES".

"Well, I suppose one should simply ask the right questions", he mused.

~~~

It had been all Spike could do to keep Dawn from booking the next flight to Texas once she heard that a portal was actually identified. She had gotten the
idea that since the files on her had been labeled "The Key", she might still have residual abilities to open the way between dimensions. Nothing they had found in the file thus far seemed to indicate that was the case, but Dawn was grasping at any straw that might give a good reason for her to join in the action stateside.

The coven had verified the existence of a portal in the area Giles had guessed it would be. They were not able to pinpoint the exact entry point, however. It was enough that they had the correct destination identified. The team felt as prepared as they could be, not knowing anything more specific about what they were likely to encounter.

Charles returned to the Hyperion in time to see the group off. "Man, you are one brave dude, I gotta tell you. It’s a genuine honor, and I know Buffy will be
headed your way to thank you herself as soon as we rescue her." Xander was sincerely impressed with the young lawyer. In the back of his mind, he found
himself remembering how Spike had compared him to this brave man and felt humbled. Wow, if Spike really meant it that way, he had a lot to live up to.

~~~
The Jeep Cherokee they had rented in Madera had given up the ghost at the Huapoca suspension bridge. Xander was rather glad it did, because the bridge looked too
rickety to support the weight of the vehicle, their gear and the three of them. They waited in the Jeep for the sun to set in deference to Spike’s needs.

As they waited, Xander entertained his companions with stories of his slayer searches in Africa as well as the string of jilted women left in the wake of The Immortal. The boy had come a long way from delivering pizzas and selling ice cream bars.

Spike shared an edited version of his history with Eduardo de’Medici. " Then there was that time in the 50s in Madrid. Bloody bastard set a mob on me and Dru. Worst part was we hadn’t even settled in yet, so the vamp that did take out the monastery had nothin’ to do with us! I managed to hide Dru, but the crowd left me for dust. Just lucky I was able to crawl under a bridge or it would have all been over then. I finally get to the hotel where I’d stashed Dru, only to find that bugger in bed with her!"

"Wow, man, you’ve had some serious bad luck with women! Sad thing when the only woman to be faithful to you, and admit she’s with you, is Harmony. Dude, you must have some baaaaad Karma."

Spike glared at Xander but realized he had no real reply to what the boy had said. Suddenly he wished he had thought to buy a bottle of Jack in Juarez when they got their supplies for the trip. "Yeah and you two have such a great track record with the birds yourselves", he muttered.

"And that was the last you saw of him until the current situation?" Giles was trying to change the focus of the story back to The Immortal, instead of Spike’s lamentable love life.

"Well, no. He managed to get me arrested for tax evasion in France a few years later. Had to prove I didn’t owe any bleedin’ taxes and that wasn’t easy, bein’ dead and all. Got a taste of prison for a few hours before I ate a couple of guards and made it out."

"Yes, well, perhaps we can begin our hike to the caves. This Jeep is rather claustrophobic all of a sudden", said Giles.

~~~
The cave’s entrance was hidden behind a waterfall, just as they had been told to expect. It proved to be a false lead, however, as it was nothing but an ordinary cave with no portal to be found! Giles was beginning to wish the mystery woman would show up and give them better directions than the painted "yes" she had left
on the Hyperion door.

Spike leaned against the tree and lit a cigarette while they tried to decide the most likely location to cross the barrier between dimensions. Giles came over
to the vampire to discuss their options. Just as Giles started to go over the two or three alternative areas he had in mind, he noticed a pictograph on the tree. They were drawings of an eagle and a rabbit. "Of course! ‘The eagle who soars’ and the ‘rabbit’…that’s what she meant!"

"Not sure I follow you, Rupes. What’re you talkin’ about?"

"The two words on that last clue we received. The ‘eagle that soars’ is the sun god Tonatiuh and the word ‘tochtli’ means rabbit. The entrance must be near this tree. Look! See the drawings here just above your head." Giles pointed to the two pictures that had been carved in the old tree. From the look of them, they weren’t all that old either. "I wonder if our mystery woman is responsible for these carvings as well?"

"Talented little minx. Too bad her talents don’t seem to include talkin’. Make things a lot simpler to just tell us what we need to know." Spike was getting
more than tired of all the piecemeal help. He’d always been straightforward and had little patience with those who were not.

"When we finally discover who she is, we’ll have to ask her why she’s chosen this method. I’m just grateful for the help we’ve received. For six months Buffy was gone without a trace and now it looks like we are at least on the trail. I can’t really complain." Giles sighed deeply then set about trying to find some
indication of the entrance.

"Maybe we need to say some magic words like ‘open sesame’ or something", Xander offered.

"Not bloody likely. I’m thinkin’ … these particular gods seemed to be as interested in blood as a vamp. Wonder if blood’s the answer; it usually is with these things."

Spike hadn’t even finished speaking before Giles took a pocket knife and made a deep slice in the palm of his hand. He put his bleeding palm on the carving of
the Eagle and they all felt the ground give a shake.

When no portal opened, Xander cut his palm and placed it on the carved Rabbit. The air shimmered in a rainbow of colors waving as if it were liquid and the portal revealed itself. ‘I don’t know if I should take it being a rabbit as a bad omen. I know Anya would have said to run the other direction’, he thought to himself.

"Well gentlemen, it would appear we’ve a battle to engage", Giles said and passed through the portal. Xander and Spike followed closly behind, carrying the rest of the weapons and the essential bag with Charles Gunn’s donated hearts.

~*~
Chapter 16
~*~

Spike looked out over the field in front of them and blew out a breath. "Seein’ how our band of buggered is gettin’ smaller each god we fight, I reckon we better make short work of this, if we want to have a reason to use those hearts Charlie boy donated. You know, the world was a lot simpler place back when there was a manageable number of gods to deal with. Now there’s one on every street corner. Liked the old C.O.E. standard a bit better, more straightforward." He turned to Xander and quipped, "Remind me to nick one of them green-feathered headgear to take back to the Bit as a souvenir. Okay, once more into the breach, ‘eh?"

There was a good-sized army of painted and feathered Aztec warriors, primed and waiting for the interlopers to descend the ridge and engage in battle. The Jaguar Knights had spotted them when the portal opened and had signaled with their bird calls to the Eagle Knights. In response to the signal, the Eagle Knights began chanting as the Jaguars moved to encircle the small invasion force.

"Bit of overkill, don’t ya think, Watcher?" Spike asked as he saw how badly they were outnumbered. "Must have been expectin’ an army a tad bigger than we are."

"Remember they rely on their priests to determine battle strategy and timing. Also, don’t forget that they are more interested in capture than in the kill. We are too valuable a sacrifice to be overrun on the field of battle." Giles had studied the Aztec battle methods thoroughly on the plane from LAX to El Paso.

"And yet I don’t feel comforted," Xander replied.

The first wave of warriors met Spike, who had taken point position for the trio. Spike was wielding his favorite battle axe in a frenzy of bloodlust. Watching the violent vampire, Giles was reminded of tales of Berserkers who lost themselves and became one with the battle, going into near madness as they attacked. Surely Spike had the spirit of them in him this day. The Aztec warriors were armed with spears they had been well trained in using, but they had never before come up against such a warrior as the whirling, screaming axe-wielder they now faced.

Spike had taken out a good dozen before the unit of Jaguar Knights completed their movement to surround the trio. Xander began to imitate Spike’s movements and sounds, working on those warriors to the right of the vampire. Giles took up a position behind and to the left of Spike and was firing off volleys of arrows from the crossbow he commanded. Whether it was the element of surprise or just the strangeness of their fighting methods, the rescue team was able to take out one full unit of Jaguars before taking any hits themselves.

It was fortunate that the Jaguar Knight’s vanity had caused him to have his spear made completely of silver. If it had been merely metal-tipped wood, Spike would have dusted. As it was, the spear went into his heart but didn’t turn him to ash. Xander lopped the head off of the startled Knight as the rest of the unit fled the sight of the man still upright and fighting with a spear through his heart.

Spike pulled the spear from his chest and tore the bottom of his t-shirt, bunching the material to shove into the wound to stem the blood flow. He was going to have to eat something to heal as quickly as possible. With a growl, he latched on to one of the recently killed Knights and went game face.

The remaining Knights screamed in terror, "Night Axe! Call for the priests!"

Giles continued to rain arrows from his crossbow at the retreating army, while Spike fed his way back to fighting form. Xander looked at the scampering warriors and asked, "Not that I mind, but what just happened?"

"I believe there is a legend of a creature that is dead yet roams the earth with a gaping chest wound. It eats people. They call it the Night Axe. It would seem that Spike has just brought the creature to life, if you will. Clearly they weren’t expecting any such thing. I would assume they will consult with their priests as to how to proceed, and when. At best this incident will buy us some time and perhaps gain a bit of a reputation for us to inspire fear."

"Good thing for you that spear was metal, Bleach Boy, or the only thing we’d inspire would be a good sweeping up." Xander clapped Spike on the back in a show of friendship.

"Right then. I’d say we use the time we have and scout about. Not liking the ratio of us to them and the element of surprise is gone now." Giles picked up his rucksack with the arrows and headed the rest of the way down the hill. "I think there is shelter in that grove of trees there. We can rest and get a feel for the lay of the land."

Spike had already gone a fair way towards healing thanks to the strong human warrior blood he had taken. He was rather surprised that neither of his companions said a word at what he had done. "All right, which one of you’s gonna say it? Not used to you lot turning a blind eye to a vamp feeding."

"Under the circumstances, it’s a great deal like medicine, isn’t it? Besides, the warrior was already dead. I’m afraid I just don’t have it in me to complain." Giles looked Spike straight in the eye and didn’t flinch when Spike knelt and drained another of the fallen Aztec Knights.

"’M not gonna make a habit of it, so don’t start lookin’ for some sharp wood. Figure you still need me in battle‘s all. I’m still off the human on regular days and still got the soul." Spike had heard the Watcher but still couldn’t shake the idea that there would be hell to pay for his instinctive actions.

"Spike fighting on our side is of the good. I vote you help yourself to all the Aztecs you can eat, provided they’re already dead, that is. Just one thing … when this is all over, are you gonna be like some junkie going through withdrawal when you go back on the pig variety?" Xander looked genuinely concerned at the thought.

"Don’t go worryin’. It’s just a matter of self-control and whether you believe it or not, I’ve got plenty of that. Okay, Tiny the Guardian said we’d need the battle to get in. We’ve done that and we’re in right and tight. I’m thinkin’ the less battlin’ we have to do from here on in, the better."

"I second that!" Xander had no desire to have to face scores of angry Native Americans again. His track record with angry Native Americans often resulted in funny syphlis. They weren’t likely to get lucky a second time.

They moved stealthily towards the temple area. The tiered structure towered over the landscape, dominating everything in its shadow. "You know, I think I prefer this stuff as ruins. Less overdressed guys with pointy sticks, more with the cool crumbling statues and skulls." Xander spoke in a whisper to Giles.

"Yes, I must agree with you there. Archeology is fascinating, but not when it comes to life like this."

"Ssssh, thought we were supposed to be sneaking up on the locals here while we’ve got the chance. Can’t sneak up with you two yappin’, Spike glared at the other two.

As they neared the edges of the settlement, they noticed a cage with a figure in it. It appeared to be a makeshift jail of sorts. The lone guard was dozing, clearly in REM. Giles whispered to the others, "As this appears to be the equivalent to prison here, I suggest we poke about this area for our missing. I would imagine their being sent here against their will would make them prisoners of sorts."

They located a stone building, barely more than a room in size. There they could see Angel, heavily manacled and looking as if he’d had more than a passing acquaintance with a Knight or two himself. Giles and Xander headed for a hidden location to wait as Spike went in to free Angel. Daylight would be coming soon and they wanted to be in a secure and dark place before it made their entire trip an exercise in futility.

"Yo! Come on, ya bloody wanker, wake up!" Spike shook his sire to bring him to alertness.

"Spike? Damn, are you going to follow me everywhere for eternity?" Angel’s smile proved his words to have been meant in jest. "Took you long enough to get here. They have Illyria at the palace. I think she’s enjoying being around her own kind again. At least she’s kept them from killing me so far, so I can’t complain too much. Did I get the dragon?"

"Yeah, Puff went poof. I’ve got Giles and Xander here with me. We need to get Buffy and get out of here. If Blue wants to stay, okay by me." Spike was unchaining Angel as he spoke.

"Buffy? What are you talking about? It’s just me and Illyria here. Buffy wasn’t in that alley. Why would you think she’s here?"

"Look, lots of stuff’s been happenin’ while you’ve been soakin’ up history in this reenactment dimension. We were hopin’ they put all of you in the same place, but no such luck, huh? I’ll explain what we know after we get away from the snoozin’ guard out there, okay?"

Stealthily, Angel followed Spike to the small cave chosen by Giles for them to hide in. It was easily defended and would provide all the shelter they would need. They were still counting on the priests to be dithering about what to do about the three intruders that had routed their best warriors.

Spike made one quick trip to the battlefield to bring back a fresh body for Angel to feed from. They would need everyone in their party to be in top condition if they hoped to survive. The Whelp and Giles had enough food in their backpacks to hold them for a while.

"So you’re saying that The Immortal took Buffy somewhere at roughly the same time we were snatched from the alley? Does that mean he works for the Senior Partners?"

"Can’t put nothin’ past you! Yes, you bloody git, the Immortal’s in the employ of your former bosses. Has been from day one. We probably should have figured that one out when we had that whole game of ‘who’s got the head’ last year. Pretty obvious, lookin’ back on it."

"And you don’t have any idea where they’ve taken Buffy? We have to do something."

"Want to state the obvious, Dead Boy? That’s what we’re doing here. You can’t think I’d take on the great feathered army to save your sorry ass, can you?" Xander glared daggers at Angel. Nope, no love lost there!

"We assumed she might be here with you as your disappearances seen to have coincided. Obviously, we were incorrect. Since we are here, we’ll complete your rescue, and possibly this Illyria’s, return to our own dimension and look for fresh clues." Giles was tempted to just leave Angel and the demon god there, but since the ultimate goal was to defeat the Senior Partners, the captives had to be removed from their influence.

"I don’t know if Illyria will want to go. She’s even taken to reverting to her original form for public appearances. Scares the hell out of the locals, I gotta tell you. She wasn’t happy in our world, Spike. You know that."

"Yeah, but I also know that you don’t have a clue of how to talk sense to her either. You can’t just give her orders and expect her to fall in line. Gotta use psychology on her."

"And you’d know about psychology how?" Angel asked with a smirk.

"Seein’ how you left me with your Dru-shaped mess to take care of, let’s just say I learned the hard way." Spike gave his sire look bordering on hatred at the memory of the woman Angelus had destroyed and then abandoned. Dru was dangerous and a loon, but she had once been a sweet and pious girl with her whole life ahead of her. Even after getting a soul cursed on him, Angel had neglected the girl he had ruined, leaving her survival to the fates and Spike.

"He has a point", Giles stated.

"All right. Look, when night falls, I’ll take you to where she’s been living. You can give it your best try. If she wants to stay though, I say we leave her and go find Buffy." Angel was already trying to take charge of the operation.

"Yes, well, we’ll see about that when the time comes. Right now, I suggest Spike take the first watch. You’re still peppy from the fresh blood, right?" Giles assumed command again.

"Yeah, I’ve got it. Don’t need much sleep anyway. I’ll wake one of you if I start to fade. You picked a good spot here, Watcher. Proud to serve under you." Spike said that last deliberately to put Angel in his place. He missed the flush of pride on Giles’ face at hearing the words though. ‘There, take that, you manipulative ponce. You’re the one getting rescued, that doesn’t make you the bloody General. Your fault we’re in this mess’, thought Spike.

Tomorrow, Illyria’s pet would make a pitch she couldn’t turn down and the five of them would get back to their own world. They had their Slayer to find and rescue. Blue would be a big help if the battle got as dangerous as Spike feared it would before it was all over. For now, Spike would watch as the others rested.

~*~
Chapter 17
~*~

Xander was curious about the being housed in the formerly fragile body of Fred Burkle. Spike described her well, both in appearance and fighting skills. Illyria’s lack of social skills, on the other hand, would need to be seen first hand to be fully appreciated, Spike thought.

"She sounds like a comic book heroine with the superpowers and leather body armor and all. I can’t wait to meet her! So, blue hair and some blue on the skin, huh? Sounds pretty sexy to me." Xander looked more than ready to meet the demon god that had become part of the AI team for a short time.

"Let us hope that you don’t see this Illyria in its true form then. There is a reason the locals are awed by it." Giles offered.

"Why do you call her ‘it’? I mean you used to use that term for some vamps and demons, but not in a long time. From what Spike and Angel have said, she sounds like Wonder Woman or Catwoman or something and I wouldn’t call either of them an ‘it’."

"I say ‘it’ because, although now housed in the body of a modified human female, Illyria was called a demon god KING. The implications are male. Heaven only
knows what it considers itself, if such things are important to it at all. In its true form, it resembles neither. I saw etchings of it in the Codified Annals of the Old Ones back in London. Quite tall, having four dicernable arms and a body that most closely resembles twisted snakes or tentacles--it’s rather
hard to tell which. It is also impossible to see the gender, if it even has the same method of reproduction as most demon and human species."

"Why am I getting an image of Galaxy Quest all of a sudden?" Xander shivered at the though of the love scene between the tentacled girl and the human ’engineer’ in the film.

"Because you’re a soddin’ nitwit who gets all his literary references from pop culture? Why don’t we just go and liberate Smurfette and you can ask her
yourself. As the Illyria I know and have fought with, she has all her girly bits now." Spike laughed at Xander and his flashback to younger habits of
thinking. Where had all that newfound maturity gone?

"Yeah, like you don’t wallow in pop culture, too. Smurfette isn’t exactly Aristotle or Shakespeare. There’s a reason you fit in so well with the Scoobies
when we let you. Hard to remember you’re a vampire at all, much less an old one, when you start talking about Passions and Monty Python. Of course, then you have to open your mouth with some story about some wino you ate and remind us all over again." Xander shook his head and laughed with Spike over their unacknowledged similarities.

"Are you quite certain that Illyria won’t give away our presence in some way? Angel seems to think it’s … she’s… cast her lot with the beings in this
dimension. Won’t this compromise our chances of escape?"

"We can trust her. Stakin’ my unlife on it, aren’t I? Even if she does decide to stay here, she won’t be givin’ us up. She was just startin’ to feel human-like emotions there at the end. Didn’t like ‘em much and understood ‘em even less, but was havin’ ‘em anyway. Tore her up losin’ Percy like that. Made her right crazy to kill. Worried about Charlie, too. She’ll be glad to hear he’s doin’ fine. Yeah, Angel, he’ll be touched to hear that you asked. Charles said to say … well, he’ll tell you himself when you get back to L.A. You’ll be wantin’ to thank him if we get out of here with all our bits and pieces intact."

When darkness fell at long last, Spike went with Angel to the section of the stone palace that served as home to Illyria. Spike was still convinced they
could talk her into returning with them to their home dimension. She was a formidable warrior and since the battle was still engaged with the forces of the Senior Partners, her help would be invaluable. Spike felt certain that the blue demon was unlikely to feel any more at home in this dimension than in their own. She had developed a few beginning relationships in theirs, however. That was his trump card.

~~~
Illyria stood on her roof, gazing at the unfamiliar sky. It had a different pattern of constellations from her own time, even from the night sky she had
begun to become familiar with after her recent transformation. She remembered standing on another roof with Wesley as he tried to ease her feelings of claustrophobia from being contained in such a small and frail shell as the Burkle one. She was still strangely feeling an emptiness and gnawing pain at the memory of Wesley’s death. She did not like the feeling.

Her kingdom of Vahla ha’nesh was gone forever and her worshipers were no more. She was a living anachronism with no real place or purpose. The ooze that had been as scum to her in her prime were now the predominate species, even here in this dimension. The Old Ones that ruled this place were the only beings similar to her in abilities and history. Yet even they were new in comparison to the glory that was herself. They were not much more than the humans with whom she had been forced to cohabit in the other dimension. None of these had the whimsical ability to amuse as her pet, the halfbreed, however. None had yet to touch her emotions like Wesley and Gunn either.

There were times when Illyria longed for the days of quiet nothingness that made up existence in the Deeper Well. At least then there had been vague thoughts of
futures that were no longer possible. All had changed while she slept.

Illyria had begun to think of herself in terms that fit her new body. She was slightly uneasy with that development and wondered at times how much of the Fred
Burkle person remained with her. Illyria had never needed introspection before. It simply WAS. There was no questioning of who or what that meant, no
wondering of what choices might be made. It was both uncomfortable and oddly exciting at the same time to be experiencing such thoughts.

The combination of the hormones this body produced and memories left over from the Burkle entity had been confusing in the extreme to the once powerful demon
god. Finally it had become necessary to make some choices if sanity was to remain.

The traitor to his kind who had released Illyria from the Deeper Well had chosen this form to house his god without consulting Illyria about that choice. Now
that it had been made, Illyria had to decide what to do about adjustment. This resulted in a grudging embrace of those elements specific to the shell. There would most likely always be aspects that would not feel remotely natural, or even pleasant, but Illyria was on her way to acceptance at last.

Her world and ways had passed. She, however, had not. She had power and intelligence and eons of experience to draw from. She could make her place where she chose, as she chose. As she tilted her head and surveyed this world around her, a slight smile graced her lovely face.

~~~
Spike saw her in the moonlight, gazing out as if she were the queen of this world granting her subjects a rare and prized view of her benevolent beauty. The moon’s light bathed her with a softness that belied her strength and power. Her stillness lent a grace to her form that the awkward movements of her still
unfamiliar human body robbed of her. She was stunning. Fred had been a very pretty girl; this one, however, was on the level of a goddess, as was fitting.

Spike’s inner William rejoiced at the sight. He had always loved surrounding himself with things of beauty. Buffy would always have his heart, but that
didn’t mean he couldn’t appreciate the magnificence of his blue goddess.

"Think she’s planning where to set up a temple to herself?" Angel just didn’t seem to see the poetry of the sight before them. He had recognized the power but missed the lyrical beauty.

"No. More like she’s sussin’ out her place in the universe. Blue’s about a lot more than lookin’ for a bunch of mindless minions. You don’t give her nearly
enough credit." Spike had learned to observe Illyria well when he found himself put in charge of studying and testing her.

"Lotta depth in that one, not crazy and completely self-indulgent like Glory. Oh yeah, that was one of those life and death battles you managed to skip out
on when Buffy needed help. You missed quite a party there. ‘Course it ended badly, but it had its moments." Spike briefly let himself remember the first tender kiss he ever received from Buffy after Glory had tried to torture the information she wanted out of the stubborn, lovesick vampire.

"You know, for bein’ the one great love of Buffy’s life, you sure opted out on a lot of it", Spike continued. "I mean L.A. was only, what, a couple of hours away from Sunnydale and you couldn’t show up to lend a hand from time to time? Bad enough Finn left when he did, what with Joyce just out of hospital,still in a bad way and Glory hot after the Bit. Got his feelings hurt and left Buffy to deal with a hellbitch that had beaten her several times already. Least he didn’t profess to be her eternal soul mate like you. Looks to me like you didn’t need Junior Watcher Boy telling you to move on, you already had." Spike moved ahead of Angel now their target was in view.

"You don’t know, Spike. It wasn’t easy leaving Buffy. It was for her own good. She needed a chance for a normal life, things I could never give her. Neither can you for that matter. I was unselfish enough to leave her to find what she needed." Angel was indignant. Spike should recognize the supreme sacrifice Angel had made to give up his precious love for her own good.

"Tell yourself that all you like, mate. Buffy’s not normal and’ll never have what you call a normal life. Best chance she has for a life at all is someone who can match her for strength an skill. If you’d loved her, you’d have stayed close, or at least showed up to make sure nothin’ nasty offed her. Tell yourself whatever you want about the great sacrifice, truth is you were just a selfish bastard that couldn’t stand bein’ near her with the curse problem ruinin’ your good times."

Angel looked daggers at Spike. He was angry, all the more so because on some level he recognized some truth in what Spike had said. "You stayed away too after you came back so does that make you selfish? Not so superior are you?"

"I stayed away for lots of reasons that made sense at the time. Lookin’ back I’m thinkin’ I was wrong....it happens. Maybe I’ll get lucky and have another chance and make it right. Give her the chance to decide if I stay or go instead of actin’ like you and makin’ the choice for her. Guess I was more scared then selfish, but you’ve got a point. You’ll never hear me admit that again, by the way. But I am right, you already moved on so don’t play the tragic lost love ‘cause I’m not buying." Spike had tired of the conversation. There was no way the poof would ever see himself as the less than perfect hero as long as he kept making "Angel" all good and "Angelus" the bad and never the twain shall meet. His sire needed some couch time with a good therapist.

"Yeah, well ….. I only wanted to encourage Buffy to move on too!" Angel realized it sounded lame, it did to him as well. Something about Buffy, and Spike for that matter, made him act just like a petty twelve year old. He hated that.

"Time to get to work on project Bluebird. You wait here tellin’ yourself lies and I’ll go convince Illyria that she’ll have a better class of creature to step on in our dimension." Spike walked off towards the building with the demon god on the roof.

Spike climbed the stone walls that made up the perimeter of Illyria’s abode. He lightly dropped into a cat-like crouch when he vaulted over the ledge to the
roof. Illyria had spotted him long before he had begun his climb. Not much got past Blue.

"You have come to this dimension to retrieve your leader? He is undamaged. This world was to be his punishment by the Wolf, the Ram and the Hart. I have
intervened. They have gained power from the time they were barely above a vampire, but they are as nothing to me, even in this shell. They sought to curb
my powers before and failed. They do well to fear me. Why do you seek me, halfbreed?

"First off, Blue, I told you before the Poof is NOT my leader. Came to spring both of you. You just think you want to stay here. What is there for a being like yourself here? This is more primitive than my dimension, and that’s sayin’ somethin’. You’d be bored here in a month! Come on, you’re bored already. I can see it. You’ve already terrorized the natives with the floor show of your glorious normal appearance, what’s left for you here? Can’t see you cozying up to what passes for gods here."

"There is truth in the words you speak. They are not fit for the name god. They bowed before me in days gone past. I devoured many of their kind just as
these lungs I now have devour air. I am not pleased with this place. There is no place worthy of me."

"Come on, little Shiva, you’ve missed us, admit it! I saw the fire in your eyes when we’d spar. You were startin’ to fit in real nice, too. Can’t see you
givin’ up on the challenge of learnin’ how to handle that body you took over. Lots of people loved that little girl. If we had to lose her, least you can do
is put that body to good use. Besides, I never thought you’d give up before the battle’s even over. These bastards that sent you here are still runnin’ about loose in my dimension. They killed Wesley, nearly done in Charlie Boy, shipped you off here with the bleedin’ ponce who started the whole war. You tellin’ me you’re gonna’ let them get away with that? Gonna retire in an Aztec village here, havin’ no company but these wankers, while the Senior Partner’s yuk it
up in my world?"

"Again you speak truth. There must be payment for what was done to Wesley. There must be pain. I am bothered that it matters to me, but it does." Illyria
tilted her head and let her eyes go out of focus. It was as if she were searching within herself to try to understand her emotional reaction to the murder of the human she had known for so short a time. "He was worth more than all of them combined and should be honored in his world. This is a worthy endeavor. They will learn to fear me once again. I shall crush the Wolf, the Ram and the Hart beneath my feet and use their bones for mortar. Their time is at an end and my time is just beginning."

"Yeah, well, I didn’t really mean for you to decide to replace ‘em. Wouldn’t mind your helpin’ to bring ‘em down though. Sounds like you’ve got a lot more
info on ‘em than we ever thought to ask about. As for the rest, maybe you should keep doing that navel gazin’ to get in touch with your inner Fred first."

"Why would one gaze at the tied-off remains of an umbilical cord ? That is useless, having no value."

"Figure of speech, Blue. Another reason for you to search out the memories you have of Fred. Never mind. You’ll do just fine. Just need a bit of time to
get used to the new you’s all. What say we take a leap of faith off this roof and I introduce you to a couple of other humans to annoy you. The younger one’ll send you right round the bend; the older git’s likely to remind you a bit of Wesley."

~~~
Xander felt like Michael Corleone when he saw Appolonia in the first Godfather movie. His first look at Illyria coming up the path with Spike and Angel made him feel like he’d been hit with a lightning bolt. Sure, he’d looked at women since losing Anya, even dated a few. But this…this was like a walking wet dream. She was every comic book kick-ass superwoman he’d ever fantasized about since puberty. Beautiful and deadly, with an aura of power about her that it didn’t take a witch to see. Xander was in love. He could live with tentacles; hell, wasn’t he a demon magnet anyway?

"This must be Illyria. I must admit to a certain fascination about you. I hope we will have a chance to talk at length later." Giles was nearly bouncing in his excitement. In typical Watcher manner, it was only to be seen in his eyes, his body remained rigid as always.

"My pet has told me you are similar to my Wesley. I shall consider your request in his honor."

"Quite. Pet, did you say?" Giles looked from Angel to Spike in confusion.

"That’d be me, Rupes. Blue took a special likin’ to me while we sparred. Shows what good taste she has, don’t it?"

"Shows she has you in the right perspective, Spike", said Angel. He was more than a bit upset that it had taken Spike such a short time to convince Illyria to come with them when he had been trying for months to get her to merely consider it. "’Pet’ is about right."

"The vampire is displeased that his entreaties went unheeded. You are too insignificant to have such pride. The halfbreed spoke logic and presented a
challenge. I grow weary of this place and desire to leave."

"Hello, I’m Xander. Nice to meet you, your goddessness." Xander stood before Illyria, looking completely enraptured.

Spike let out a bark of laughter at the look on the boy’s face. "Ambitious bloke, aren’t you. Gotta give it to you, you aim high, Whelp."

"The one-eyed human recognizes my glory in spite of the smallness of its container. He has greater vision than many with two eyes. He shall be my guide as I adapt."

"What is it with you and demons? Never seen the like of it. The council should study you, Xander. It’s really quite remarkable." Giles shook his head in amazement at the instant connection between the human and the god.

"Am I missing something here?" Angel was confused by the undercurrent of the conversation.

"Usually are", Spike replied. "Let’s just say this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship."

"That’s from Casablanca. I saw that when it first came out! See, I’m not missing anything." Angel sounded indignant.

~~~
At daybreak, Illyria went to the Grand Hall and summoned the brothers Tezcatlipoca and Quetzalcoatl. As she had implied to Spike the night before, these gods showed a deference to Illyria that spoke much of the power of the ancient god king.

"I grow weary of this world. We will leave for the dimension of these creatures now. You will order your puny warriors not to interfere. Dues should be paid,
however, so here is the tribute for those I am allied with here. There shall be no payment for myself, as I come and go at my own choosing. I shall accept
tribute from you as is MY due. I honor you by allowing you to continue to rule here. You should be crushed for the insects you are for daring to take action against me in the employ of such insignificant ooze as the Wolf, the Ram and the Hart. I expect you to give me whatever pathetic worthless things hold value here to try to match my glory."

The brother gods looked oddly relieved at the prospect of Illyria leaving their world. It would have only been a matter of time before she would have usurped their powers there and reduced their status to lackeys. The people gathered in this world for the purpose of adoring THEM had already been awed by the sight of Illyria in all her tentacled glory and her powers were still infinitely stronger than theirs, even combined. What was precious metal compared to regaining their position in their own world. Besides, she might just break the yoke of Wolfram and Hart on this dimension and the brothers could rule with no interference from them. Yes, it would be a good thing to see the back of this one.

They left in safety, having handed over four of Gunn’s hearts and collected more gold and silver than they could fit into their packs.


"So we could’ve just walked out of here anytime? Why didn’t you tell me that, Illyria. I was kept in chains!" Angel was steaming.

Illyria cocked her head and studied the vampire. "You are insolent and too full of your own importance. You do not command me. You do not lead me. I do as I
choose and crush all who dare defy me. You are nothing but walking ash and you dare to question me? Did you kneel before me and ask that I intercede for
you? Did you show deference to my magnificence and power? You have much to learn, vampire."

"Yeah, that’s tellin’ him, Blue. Poofter always did get a bit above himself."

"You amuse me, halfbreed, but heed my words as well. You will not distract me with Coot Bandicot again. You are my pet, but do not try my patience too far."

"You play Crash Bandicoot? What level did you get to? I think I can show you a few tricks to the game. I mean if I’m going to guide you, that ought to include the better video games, too." Xander had carefully not bothered to point out Illyria’s misnaming of the video game. He remembered how hard adjusting to being a human could be. It had taken years for Anya to come close to fitting in. Xander could do this, he had done it before. He could lead Illyria to her humanity, he could have a purpose again.

Illyria simply looked at the human with the eye patch and wondered again at why she had chosen to throw her lot in with such as these.

~*~
Chapter 18
~*~

It was late when the travelers arrived at Heathrow. They took a taxi immediately to Council headquarters. Giles called Willow and arranged for her and Dawn to meet the returned rescuers and the newly rescued pair in the morning. He sadly imparted the news that Buffy had not been in that dimension after all and that the search was still on.

There had been little discussion among the group of rescuers about the disappointment they felt not finding Buffy in the same dimension as Angel and Illyria. All three were feeling the fallout, however. Emotions were running high and tempers were on the edge. Silence had been the order of the day to prevent the verbal flare-ups they all had sensed but managed to avoid.

Even Illyria and Angel sensed the mood. Angel was beginning to feel miffed that his rescue was seemingly not worthy of a celebration of some sort. "I think it’s a good thing you got me out first. After all, now I can be part of the rescue team for Buffy. We’ll have a better chance to get her back with all of us involved. That’s probably why they had me so far away; you know, split us up, weaken us." Angel suggested.

"Sure thing, Dead Boy. Every successful rescue requires two souled vampire warriors on the side of good. Well, you’re on the good guy side at least most of the time. If it had been me, I’d have let you stay in the land of tortillas and Tlachtli. Hey, bet they’d have made you captain of the team, too!" Xander sniped at Angel. He had never liked Angel, originally because of jealousy and later underscored by the emergence of Angelus.

Illyria stared at the human she had chosen for her new guide with interest. "You dislike the vampire, human. How is it that you work with one you obviously disdain? My pet has also claimed the vampire is not his leader, although he often speaks as one. Your insolence, if the vampire is your leader, should bring a quick and painful death to you. I conclude that Angel is not your leader either." She began to stare at Angel questioningly. "Whom do you lead, vampire?"

"No one, it seems. Look, we have history among us. Not all good history. What’s important is that our goals are the same. That and we all care about Buffy." Angel hoped the subject of his place in the group would just be dropped at last.

"How can this quest succeed with no leader? In my world, the strong and wise lead and the enemy is crushed beneath the victor. The Wolf, the Ram and the Hart are not invincible to an enemy with the power that comes from strong leadership. You are all foolish and deserve to lose. You fight amongst
yourselves and win the battle for them," Illyria sneered at the group.

"Blue, if it wasn’t for the fear that you’d just keep on fightin’ until you ran
the world, I’d vote for you. I see your point though. Maybe we should decide on a real leader, yeah?" Spike would follow Xander before he’d elect the Poof, however.

Xander raised his hand and announced his choice. "I vote for Giles. He’s head of the new Council and has all those resources. He’s always been good with the planning and researching. If we can keep him from getting hit on the head, he’s good in a battle, too."

"I don’t have a problem with that, providin’ he listen to other ideas and also providin’ he shares the plans. I don’t want to be sent on a one-way visit to someone with a great cross collection or anything." Spike stared hard at Giles with cold determination in his gaze.

"Spike, about that … I suppose now would be a good time to admit that I made a serious error in judgment. I’m sure you understand it was nothing personal. I truly felt you would be an unintentional danger to Buffy and the mission as a whole. I realize that I underestimated you and your commitment to choosing the right course of action. You needn’t think I’d do such a thing again. Besides, if I ever did, I doubt Buffy would forgive me again." Giles genuinely looked repentant as he looked Spike in the eye and apologized.

Spike didn’t answer at first, carefully watching Giles to determine his sincerity. "Right. We’re okay then. Lesson learned all round." Spike looked at Xander and continued, "Yeah, I’ll follow the Watcher."

Illyria didn’t appear to be offended to have been passed over as leader. "If the halfbreed is correct
that you are in any way like Wesley, I concur. What of you, vampire? Will you challenge for leadership?"

"No. I can follow." Angel shot an angry glare as Spike snorted at his comment. "Well, I can! I followed lots of times. Don’t have any problem with it. Give me a good leader and I’ll follow anywhere he leads, ask anyone." He continued muttering as Spike began to laugh out loud.

"Looks like it’s settled then. Send up the white smoke, we got us a new Pope!" Xander beamed with joy that Angel had been put in the position of official follower and that no one else had been suggested to lead except the only one he fully trusted.

"What is this reference you make, Guide? Is there to be a burnt sacrifice to honor this Pope we will now follow into battle? What is your choice for the sacrifice, Pope?" Illyria looked hard at Giles as she waited for him to order the proper victim to the fires of ascension.

"Okay, time for the Guide to step up here." Xander grinned and prepared to explain his comment to the blue goddess in leather. "I’m thinking we should stop by a bookstore for some additions to the old Council library. Definitely needing some books on pop culture references if my goddess here hopes to keep up with the translations she’ll need."

" That might not be a bad idea at that. Yes, I’m sure they would be of help for a good many of us as well. As Buffy, Willow and Spike suffer from the same condition that you do, it would be required reading for any English speaking person dealing with the lot of you." Giles smiled slightly at the thought of the ancient god king in the middle of a group conversation filled with nothing but references to cult television, boy bands and modern music. "Indeed, it might save our lives to bring Illyria up to speed quickly. I’d rather not have her hit frustration overload on a bad hair day."

"Yeah, just imagine it hittin’ on a day she gets PMS", suggested Spike with a shudder. "Better defuse that bomb like the Watcher suggested. Good leadin’ right out of the box there, Rupes."

"Your selection as Pope, does it give you the right to make sport of me? Think carefully, Pope. I was worshiped before your grandfathers were even ooze in the primordial seas. I shall not be made the object of ridicule, even by this Pope."

"’Spose now wouldn’t be the time for a joke about that papal infallibility clause, ‘eh?" Spike quipped.

"This leader is now infallible? It is wise to make him the leader then. I shall heed his edicts if such is the case." It was fortunate for Spike that Illyria was not able to see the mirth that lit his face.

"Oh, yeah, bookstore immediately, if not sooner." Xander decided.

"See, we should have let her stay where she was. She’s going to wind up dusting Spike and eating Xander for lunch before we even find out where the Senior Partners sent Buffy. On second thought, maybe that’s not such a bad thing." Angel said.

"Oooh, somebody’s a sore loser. My guess is you’d better worry about pointy wood too, sire. At least she thinks of me as a pet. You, on the other hand, simply annoy her."

"Enough!" Giles decided it was the perfect time to issue his first edict as Pope, er, leader.

~~~

Dawn took off the eye mask she had chilled and been using since she’d finished sobbing herself to sleep the night before. It wouldn’t help to have red puffy eyes when they got back, she had told herself. She had been so sure that her sister would be coming home with the guys. It hadn’t even entered into her
mind that Buffy might still be lost to them. Willow had given Dawn an herbal tea to help her rest, but all she had really done was cry into her pillow.

"Don’t be negative, Dawnie. If it was that easy to get Buffy back, she wouldn’t have been gone all this time. You trust Spike, don’t you?" At Dawn’s nod, Willow continued. "You know he’s not gonna rest until Buffy’s back safe and sound. Everything’ll work out fine. For some reason the clue lady sent us after Angel first. Now we have a full army and those Senior Partners don’t stand a chance! Why, we even have an ancient god on our side. It’s just a matter of time, sweetie."

Dawn had sipped at the tea and pretended to yawn before heading for the guest room. She didn’t want to make Willow worry about her. Of course, Willow heard the tears, even muffled by Dawn’s pillow.

Dawn was so like her sister, thinking a pillow could hide the sounds of distress her sobs made. Willow had heard that sound coming from Buffy’s room almost every night after Sunnydale had been turned into a crater. Buffy never said a word to anyone, acting as if she was getting on with her life and that all was fine. At night, however, when she seemed to think no one could hear, she poured her misery and loss into the cool linen and goose down. It was that nightly release, overheard by her concerned best friends and then her Watcher, that finally convinced them of the reality of Buffy’s feelings for the sacrificed vampire. It had been the beginning of a re-evaluation of the past few years on all their parts.

Now Willow had no difficulty knowing with certainty that Buffy’s vampire was worthy of the trust the Slayer had placed in him so long ago. Willow meant what she had said to Dawn, Spike would not stop until Buffy was back. There was no way some evil, even demonic, bunch of lawyers could stop Spike when it came to finding the woman he loved. And when he did? They’d be toast.

***

"Dawnie, you about ready to head over to headquarters? You can gild a lily too much, you know. You’re already beautiful enough to launch ships, sweetie, and it’s just the same guys who headed for the States a few weeks ago."

"I’m ready, I guess. I just don’t want them to think they let me down by not finding Buffy, that’s all. Paint on a happy face, you know?"

"I think all the paint in the world won’t make them think you’re okay with how it turned out. Don’t worry, they won’t think you’re weak. I’d bet they’ve even cried a little, not where anyone could see them or anything, but I’d bet they all did."

"Remember what I said last night about Spike? Well, look how it’s working out. He started trying to find Angel and Illyria months ago and didn’t give up. See what happened? They’re back. Spike found them. Now he’ll find Buffy. You’ll see." Willow put on her best confidence face and gave a firm nod.

"I can’t wait to meet this demon god that took over Fred’s body. I hate that Fred died like that, she was a real nifty girl. But according to what Giles said last night, this Illyria’s really got Xander in a tizzy." Willow smiled at the hope that her oldest friend might be on his way to healing finally. "Who’d have thought little Xander would wind up destined to date every female demon he spends any time with, and now a god! Not what you usually find in the yearbook under ‘most likely to…’. Well, maybe in Sunnydale you should expect it in a yearbook, I guess."

~~~

From the time they were all reunited, Dawn sat glaring at Angel. She knew in her heart it wasn’t fair to resent his rescue, but she just couldn’t seem to stop herself. Dawn had always been a little afraid of Angel and nothing had changed over the years to make her like him any better.

Spike had been on the phone to Connor in Northern California with the suggestion that he and Nina come to London at once to make sure they were all in a single, defensible place. Charles had declined the suggestion when he had seen them in LA. He had been happy to do his part in getting his former team members out of the dimension but was more than ready to go back to his work at the shelter.

"I’m done, man. I think I’ve given up enough: few pints of blood, few hearts, decent taste in music. You don’t need any more fire power than you’ve got already. You’ve already got a wildly overconfident human with no superpowers but lots of plucky courage; that role’s cast. I’m going to do what only I can…help out a bunch of regular folk who fight a different kind of demon every day of their lives. Something comes up and you need me--really need me for the good fight-- you know I’m there. But not this one."

"Only if you promise to come to Rome and meet Buffy after we get her home. Got another lady I’d like you to meet while you’re there, Charlie boy." Spike shook his friend’s hand and clapped him on the back. He would always remember how this human, a self-styled vampire hunter, had treated him first like a man, then like a friend.

"Good Lord, Spike, are you still trying to find a suitable boyfriend for that Italian woman? Are you planning to start a dating service when this is all successfully completed?" Giles shook his head in amusement at the thought.

"Got a soul now, don’t I? Means I got a conscience. Lady was nothin’ but nice to me and I had to lie to her, lead her on, bite her, hurt her. Not gonna romance her myself, but she’s a nice lady, could use a nice man to keep her on the straight and narrow. None better than Charlie." Spike nodded to the handsome lawyer.

Gunn laughed heartily and shook his head at the vampire, his friend. "I’ve seen your taste in women. She’s gotta be a looker at least. We’ll see about letting you play matchmaker after you get your girl back." Charles ignored the slightly hurt look Angel gave him when he referred to Buffy as Spike’s girl.

Charles wasn’t trying to hurt his former boss. It was just that in all the years he’d known Angel, Buffy hadn’t been a factor. He’d seen the sparks between Angel and Cordy and saw how obsessed Angel had been with human Darla. Gunn felt fairly certain that Angel had gone beyond mild flirtation with Nina the wolf girl, too. No, the only vampire Gunn had ever seen single-mindedly in love with the Slayer had been Spike.

"I’m glad you all decided to elect a leader anyway", said Willow, "’cause last time I decided to be the leader, it led to black eyes, the veiny face and much badness. Glad to not even be in the running for the job!"

"This Pope can be a woman as well, then?" asked Illyria.

"Pope, what’s the Pope got to do with this? Someone want to explain to the Jewish Wiccan how the Pope’s involved?" Willow was confused by the subject matter.

"I’ll explain it all later, Will. For now, why don’t I take my lovely goddess on a tour of the Council and show her a few things." Xander began to steer Illyria towards the door and out of the line of rapid fire comments sure to further confuse and irritate the marginally human being.

"Is anyone else scared that Xander is going to be her guide to the wonderful world of human speech, much less behavior?" asked Dawn.

"He did all right with Anya. Okay, she was never the girl next door, but she was fine eventually", Willow said in defense of Xander.

"Demon girl was all right, Blue will be, too. Probably be a good idea to keep Andrew away from her though. Don’t want the two boys havin’ a duel over the hand of their dream woman, after all. Besides, there’s only so many Star Wars references Blue can take before her head explodes. Best keep Junior Watcher far away." If Spike knew anything, he knew that Andrew was attracted to the same things in a mate as Xander was. Best keep them away from each other.

The woman entered the room just after Xander and Illyria exited. How she had gotten past the secretary, Giles was not sure. "May I help you miss? You shouldn’t be in here without a proper pass and visitor’s badge."

Angel’s jaw clenched as he saw the newcomer. "Lilah!"

~*~
Chapter 19
~*~

"Lilah! I thought you were supposed to be curled up next to some roaring hell fire roasting your buns for all eternity." Angel headed towards the mystery woman.

"Funny things happen when dimensional portals start opening up and residents of hell are invited to a dust-up in an alley. Sometimes a few strays find other things to do. Hello, Angel. Any of your crew manage to survive?" Lilah was grinning as she sauntered across the room. "Heard a rumor Gidget got an upgrade. Good for her, maybe her new status will give her a godlike appetite and she’ll put on a few pounds."

"You know this person, Angel?" asked Giles.

Angel nodded and replied, "Oh, yeah. Don’t turn your back, Giles. You don’t know what you might find sticking in it."

"That’s not fair, Ace. I never pretended to be your bestest buddy, now, did I?" Lilah sat at the desk chair and crossed her elegant legs, making herself completely at home. "Heard YOU played the knife in back trick on Lindsey though. Oh, right, it was the gun in front trick. Had the Jolly Green not-so-Giant do it, too! Low blow. had to mess with Okie’s sense of importance. Good move! Damn, wish I could have been there to see it!"

Lilah looked at Giles and addressed him, "So you’re the Watcher that didn’t stay fired. Poor Wes, he never really recovered from that failure. Did you like the red paint? Nice touch, I thought."

"You! You’re the mystery woman? The one leaving the notes everywhere?" Angel looked alarmed.

"Well …yeah. Who’d you think it was? Eve? She’s not forgiving like me. You screwed her, used her, tossed her out on her skinny ass, then killed her boy toy. Nope she’s got no interest in giving bullets to you unless they’re shot from a gun."

"Why would you think I’d believe YOU want to help us? You’ve never played for the home team. The closest you’ve ever come to good was when you touched Wes and the good was all him." Angel was angry now.

"Hey, Wes said I was great! Made a real man out of him. Wesley all growed up, gotta love a man with stubble and a shotgun. Seriously, Ace, you know I always back the winning team. You caught the Senior Partners with their pants down. That hadn’t happened before. Really shook them up. I figure you’ve got a real shot at takin’ em down this time, so I drafted myself. Sort of a mid-season trade." Lilah smirked.

"This the bint who got you to take the deal to run the law firm from hell?", asked Spike. He looked her over carefully. "Heard about you, missy. You do your research, know your enemy and tempt like Satan himself. Why’d you start with the clues? Since it led to springin’ the Poof, I gotta wonder if you’re sweet on him. That it?"

"You must be Spike. Hmm, bet you were a cutie in the Hope diamond knock-off. Sorry I forgot to mention the burning to ash part of the deal … oops! Really thought the Gloomy Avenger was going to wear the jewelry, play the hero and dust. No, not sweet on… what did you call him? Oh yeah, the Poof." Lilah laughed at Spike’s name for Angel.

Willow had sidled up to Giles and whispered, "Should I do some sort of truth spell on her?"

"You do that and she’ll be mute, Will. Nothing but lies comes out of her mouth", Angel warned.

"Why did you give us those clues? They was obviously intended to help in the rescue of Angel and Illyria. What could you possibly gain by that?" Giles didn’t trust her one bit, yet so far all she had done was help.

"All right, enough of the friendly banter, time to get serious. I’m really glad to see you were smart enough to paint those wards and wear them as talismans. I was counting on the Challenger to remember Lindsey’s one brilliant move." Lilah had nodded towards Spike at the word Challenger. "Lindsey could be a doofus, but he was smart enough to find out how to shield his plans and movements from the Senior Partners."

She looked straight at Spike and smiled. "Good job, Soul Boy! No wonder Angel’s worried you’ll nab the prize. Gotta love you, you must drive him crazy! Got the soul for yourself, got the girl…looks and brains, too…must really fry his oysters to think you’re the one after all."

"You’re wasting our time, Lilah. If you think we’ll believe anything you have to say, then you got seriously stupid in hell." Angel looked at her with loathing.

"Hey, gift horse here! The symbols worked, didn’t they? Helped you plot and plan unseen? I pointed the cavalry to the right dimension, got the directions to the other one, too. Can save you lots of time trying to figure out where the big boys stashed the Slayer." Lilah had a sing-song tone to her voice, enticing them with her information.

"What’s in it for you?" Giles didn’t doubt she had the information and only wondered at her motives in helping them.

"Well, see, that pesky Standard Perpetuity Clause on my employment agreement didn’t seem like such a big deal until I was moved to my permanent location. I like it hot, but I’m thinking more like the Bahamas, if you know what I mean. Wesley took that deal to come over to W & H so that he could destroy my agreement and free me. Sweet, sweet boy, Wesley. Didn’t work, of course. The paper just kept regenerating, kinda like the blonde cutie over there. Burn it up and it just comes back."

"I got where I am by seeing opportunities and being ready to move. The Partners opened the portal and I slipped out, used the symbols Lindsey already found and made contact. I figure you win, you’ve got the best
chance anyone ever has had in history, and my contract finally ends. Lilah gets a ‘get out of hell free’ card. Win-win, Angel, can’t complain about that."

"I can tell you where Buffy is. I can tell you what you have to do to get her out. So, what’s it to be boys and girls? Ready to take a chance, roll the dice, maybe all come out winners?" Lilah leaned back in the chair and put her put her arms behind her neck. "Work with me and there might even be extra goodies in it for you…"

"Word of warning though, kiddies, no bag of magically beating hearts will get you back with the Slayer. You’re going to have to get bloody, really bloody to do that. This isn’t just a battle, gentlemen, it’s full out war, winner take all. I can help with the getting in, but you’re going to have to do the fun parts." Lilah looked directly at Spike as she said the words. "Time for that whole cup thing. Only this time, no Mountain Dew. Oh, and as for that little detail, that’ll have to wait until you put the three Seniors out of our misery. Me, I’m expecting a bit of gratitude from all of you and maybe even those Higher Powers who have you by the short hairs." She included Angel in her look that time.

~~~

"You show me written ramblings of fools. In my time and place, I WAS language. There was no confusion. This library is filled with half-truths and fiction. You would have me learn anything from them?" Illyria looked at Xander closely. "Wesley put much store in the writings, but he checked them for accuracy. Much of this world’s trouble is traceable to such inefficient listings of knowledge. Truth is here." She pointed to her head. "And here." She pointed to her heart. "Not in pulverized trees and recycled rags."

Xander had finally gotten the whole Pope confusion straightened out. Illyria was going to be much more of a challenge than Anya had ever been. Xander wondered if the rewards of helping her would pay off as well.

"Giles is better at following his instincts and taking this stuff with a grain of salt than the last group were. Hey, maybe you could help with the truth checking later? " Off her look, Xander decided to amend his suggestion. "Or you could just do as you please. I thought you might want to show the world all your superior knowledge by getting this straight, but maybe not."

"I shall consider your request. Too much knowledge in the hands of children such as yourself is dangerous. I must think on this further. The vampire and my pet can assist in changing these to reflect reality. This is a fitting project for them. The vampire must be challenged for the truth of what he offers, however."

"Couldn’t have put it better, your worshipfulness." Xander wondered idly why Giles had never quizzed Angel or Spike about vampires long before now.

"You may call me Illyria, or Greatness. Other words are superfluous and do more to demean than honor. I shall call you Cyclops as you remind me much of Poseiden’s son in looks and manner."

"Um… could we maybe just shorten it to Cy?" Xander pleaded. "I’d hate
to give Spike another reason to laugh at me."

Illyria tilted her head and stared at him for a short while before replying. "This does not displease me. It shall be done."

When they arrived back at Giles’ office, Illyria immediately spotted the newcomer sitting at the desk. She stopped in her tracks, causing Xander to run into her back. Illyria’s eyes narrowed as she stared at Lilah. "The Fred entity knew this one. The memories are not positive ones. This one is dead yet not a spirit. It reeks of the Wolf, Ram and Hart, why is it here?"

"Nice to see you, too, Twigs. Gotta say, that new voice… lots sexier than that high Texas twang. Blue looks good on you, too. Wardrobe could use a little toning down though."

Illyria started walking towards the desk, causing mild alarm amongst the rest of the group. Clearly Illyria didn’t suffer fools lightly and Lilah was being singularly foolish in her taunts. "This one is like the tomes my guide just showed to me, filled with half-truths at best. This does not make a good ally. Does our leader choose to lead us into folly as did the vampire?"

"Hey, everyone was on board with that for his own reasons", Angel objected.

"What offers have you come to make this time, liar?" Illyria reached the other side of the desk and was peering deeply into Lilah’s eyes.

"A pretty good one, actually. I tell you where to find the Slayer and how to get in. You defeat the Senior Partners and I get to move to a dimension a bit cooler than the one I’ve been in. Everybody gets what they want. Got a problem with that?"

"Still workin’ on why we should trust you at all. I’m with Blue on this one, don’t reckon you’ve earned any trust points with any of us. As for your housing problem, seems like you had to know where you’d be spendin’ eternity; you’re a smart bird. Also sounds like you pretty well earned it, too." Spike had moved to stand next to Illyria, facing Lilah.

"You know, those travel brochures just never really capture the reality. Besides, I was young. Thought I was going to live forever, or at least to be an old woman. I changed my mind. Didn’t give too much thought to the possibility that I could change circumstances until Wesley tried to free me. Haven’t thought of much else since then."

"Wesley tried to free you? Yes, the Fred memories do say that you were of importance to him. You were not a good influence to Wesley, yet he cared about you. For this we will listen to you, for Wesley." Illyria didn’t take her eyes off of her as Lilah squirmed in her chair.

"I’m playing straight for a change. Too much for me to gain not to be on the level. This isn’t some trick or lawyer wiggle here. I want a better place, you want your Slayer and we both want the Senior Partners gone permanently. Distrust me all you want, but don’t dismiss me."

"Look, I’ll tell you what I know. Lots of it you already know or have figured out. The Partners plan to make out like bandits in the apocalypse they’ve had planned since they first seized power millennia ago. Then came this one here." Lilah pointed to Angel. "All souled up and looking to rock the boat. For almost a hundred years, all they had to do was keep tabs on him, ‘cause he wasn’t doing much except not killing. When he started playing the do-gooder, we kept closer tabs, especially when he moved it to our town."

"That prophecy on the Scroll of Aberjian had all our mystics and scholars busy. It was pretty vague. All that stuff about a vampire with a soul who might play on our side or against us in the apocalypse. If he went against us, there’d be these rewards, but it wasn’t a sure thing he would go against us. We had entire divisions set up to make sure Angel came over to our side, believe me."

"Then came the wild card: you." Lilah pointed to Spike. "Who would have ever expected a vampire to go out and GET his soul back? I mean who wants a conscience anyway, much less after a century of killing? Now we had two contenders and no way to know which. You flamed away and we were happily back to just Angel. Then, poof, you’re back. Lindsey wasn’t responsible for that, by the way; that was a Higher Powers thing.Lindsey never had that kind of power or pull! That’s when the Partners got the brilliant idea to call in their marker with de’Medici, the Immortal. He’d been playing his way around Europe for centuries on a free ticket, after all."

"See, one of the things you boys have in common is that you love this Slayer. The Partners felt if they had their man there controlling things with her and ready to jump in as needed, they would have a hold over both of you. She was a sort of trump card. Then you got impatient." She pointed an accusing finger at Angel. "Had to start things on your own. They had Eduardo teleport your Slayer to the home office. Yeah, where they are, the Senior Partners are. What you need to know is how to get to them." Lilah sat back in the chair and waited for some indication that they were willing to accept her help.

"You said nothing of the leaving, liar. The only way to leave that place is through the blood of the Wolf, the Ram and the Hart. They cannot be left to live." Illyria added.

"It’s always the blood, like I said, always the blood. Well, I’m ready to get my hands dirty and don’t mind a bit that it means taking those three out. Guess Blue here needs to fill us in on all she knows about this trio." Spike took Illyria by the arm and led her to the small conference table and pulled out a chair for her.

"This must be my apocalypse, the battle where I go against them." Angel said with excitement in his voice.

"What makes you think it’s your battle, you pillock? Could be mine. No way of knowin’ is there?" Spike sneered.

"Actually there is", Lilah hinted.

~*~
Chapter 20
~*~

"I was sure you wouldn’t take just my word, Ace." Lilah reached into her purse and handed a sheath of papers to Giles. "Our boys in research were working on this all the way up to the time of the great slaughter. You remember, big, horned stone beast rained fire on LA, destroyed Wolfram & Hart, killed everybody but me, and sent me into hiding? Thought I’d just keep their notes when all the dust settled. As far as the Partners know, the research went bye-bye along with the researchers."

Giles looked at the papers she had given him. "I don’t suppose the original manuscript is still in existence anywhere? I would much prefer to attempt a translation myself. You do understand why I can’t simply trust the work of your employees."

"Sure, I figured you wouldn’t take the research at face value, any more than my word. I have the original all tucked away, safe and sound. Protected it with those symbols Lindsey was good enough to discover and try out. But I’m not just handing it over. I’ll let you look at it and copy what you want, but I keep the scroll. Insurance, you understand. There’s lots more on that scroll, but this is the part that concerns your particular battle. Things work out for me and I may leave the whole scroll to you as a parting gift. Whattaya say, we have a deal?"

Willow tried to look over Giles’ shoulder at the notes. "What is it, Giles? Does it tell us where Buffy is?"

"These are translations, or partial translations, of an ancient scroll of prophecies. I’ve heard of this scroll but never seen it." Giles was engrossed in the notes.

"Is that the scroll of Aberjian, ‘cause if it is, it’s about the souled vampire--me--and the apocalypse I help stop." Angel worked his way over to Giles to get a look at the notes.

"Will you stop thinkin’ everything’s about you?! Besides, I thought Percy had that scroll; not likely there’d be two copies." Spike was more than a little irritated with Angel’s insistence that he was the major player in any and all prophecies with a champion.

"Got it in one, champ. No, this isn’t that scroll. This one is far older. Prophecies on a lot of things and people. Most of the world’s history in there; it’s like Nostradamus, only easier to understand. Most of it was in Proto–Sumerian, but some segments were newer copies sewn in to replace sections that had deteriorated. Those are in the languages of whoever was keeping it at the time. I think you can see from the section of notes I just gave you, they’re talking about Spike here. Unless there’s a softer side of Angelus…sorry, Liam…we don’t know about. Just don’t see him as ever being a poet, even a bad one."

"What? What’re you sayin’? Those scrolls say somethin’ about a bad poet? Can’t see how that’d be anybody here." If possible, Spike became a whiter shade of pale.

"Okay, ‘bad’ may not be fair, it only says failed. Guess he could have been good and still failed." Lilah looked anything but apologetic as she smirked at Spike. "We have better records on the life and times of William the Bloody than the Council did, cutie. I probably know more about you before and after Drusilla than anyone here…except you, of course."

"No, the poems were bad, trust me." Angel had to get a dig in after having been on the receiving end of the snark for so long.

"Hey, you said you liked my poetry." Spike said in a hurt voice.

"And you reminded me that I also like Barry Manilow. Figure the source." Angel mentally high-fived himself for using Spike’s own words to win the round.

"So Spikey is sorta the president of the real Dead Poets Society, huh?" Xander quipped. Oh, the mileage he was going to get out of this piece of information!

Dawn, seeing how distressed Spike was at this public revelation, leapt to her friends defense. "Spike’s always been a romantic, plus he’s Victorian, naturally he’d write poetry. Right, Spike?"

"Actually, the age of poetry written by every person with a pen came and went in Spike’s grandparents’ era. William was just behind the times." Angel was so loving this.

"He’s just a classic", defended Dawn.

"Yeah, Mandy, let’s talk about embarrassin’ moments, why don’t we? Actually, I am embarrassed and wishin’ everyone would just shut up about it, okay? I kinda came out back in L.A., just before the battle anyway."

Spike missed the look of alarm on Xander’s face at that comment.

"The people at the poetry slam applauded, I’ll have you know." Spike glared at Angel and Xander. "Even went back with Charlie Boy and your sprog a few times after that last battle. May not have wanted to advertise it to the whole world, but there it is. Got the name ‘bloody’, ‘cause they said I was a bloody awful poet. S’pose you’re never gonna let me live that down, huh, Whelp?"

Xander was speechless at not only WHAT Spike had just revealed, but that he had admitted it at all. He sort of felt sorry for Spike being outed the way Lilah had done it, with Angel using it to poke at Spike even though they had just risked their lives to rescue him. "Can’t see how I can keep from bringing it up every once in a while, but I’ll try to restrain myself in the interests of our newfound truce. Besides, there’s nothing wrong with writing poetry, I guess."

This time Spike was speechless. Xander letting prime taunting material go signified a genuine change in their relationship. "Thanks, mate. I appreciate that", he said softly.

"Yes, well, now that we’ve gotten all the mileage we can out of taunting Spike for the present, perhaps Lilah can take me to this scroll so I can compare these notes to what I myself can make of it", Giles said.

"Giles, I’ve been studying languages for a couple of years and I kinda did well with all that Sumerian when we were taking on the First Evil. Can I come too? Maybe I can help." Dawn was eager to be more than a spectator.

"Of course, Dawn, I would appreciate your help. Perhaps Willow can join us, too…for multiple reasons." Giles looked sternly at Lilah as he spoke.

"Ooh, an Attack Witch! I’m all aquiver. If it makes you feel safer, Councilman, why not bring her along? Okay by me. Let’s just get this deal moving before the Senior Partners get wise to us. They aren’t stupid." Lilah got up from the chair and headed for the door, looking back to make certain she would be followed. "Make sure you’re all wearing your pretty talismans, kiddies. We don’t want to make it too easy for them."

"While we are gone, perhaps you gentlemen can find out whatever information Illyria may have on the Wolf, Ram and Hart, as well as their home dimension. You won’t mind sharing that information with the team, will you, Illyria?" Giles asked politely.

"It is logical to share such information. I shall reveal what is necessary to these beings."

"Good. Then we shall meet here again tomorrow afternoon. That should give us all time to have some new information to share." Giles turned to leave.

"Rupes, does it really look like that stuff might be about me?" Spike pointed to the notes and asked. He had an almost childlike look on his face as he asked. "Never thought I’d warrant a prophecy is all."

"Yes, Spike, if the translations here are correct, it would appear to be about you." Giles thought it odd that Spike should be surprised. Actually, the Watcher was ashamed that he hadn’t looked for prophecies about the vampire years ago. How many vampires in history had been artificially prevented from killing and feeding, after all? How many chose to actively fight alongside the Slayer? How many then proceeded to go and re-acquire their soul? Giles was also regretful that he had never bothered to ask Spike just what he had done to gain that soul. He had been so blinded by his prejudices against the annoying vampire and his fears for Buffy in light of the obvious attraction between her and Spike that he never even considered the likelihood of Spike figuring in prophecy. Time to turn a new leaf and make up for lost time.

~~~

"The Wolf, the Ram and the Hart are beings, not gods as they would have humans believe. In my time, they were barely above vampires. They found ways to convince the ooze that eats its own that they were to be worshiped. For this alone they deserve to be dismembered! As I slept in the Deeper Well, I knew
not of their doings. When I was released, I cared not until they attacked me and took power from me through Wesley. I cannot speak to the green any longer, cannot bend time to my will. They dared challenge a true god! I learned of the deeds they had undertaken while their true betters slept. Their infamy reeks of lies and betrayal. I found the recordings of their deeds in Wesley’s library in Los Angeles and I will choke them with their written lies."

"Just a reminder, Blue, we were only tryin’ to keep you from going Chernobyl on us. Your new body wasn’t able to hold all that power you had. That Hamilton birk seemed to have the answer, but Wesley changed it so it wouldn’t kill you, just release the pressure a bit. We meant well, Bluebird, and you still have more power than anyone I know, for what it’s worth." Spike didn’t want Illyria to think he and Wesley had meant her harm. Indeed, Spike truly had come to like the demon god.


"I am aware who intended my destruction. Now I shall ensure theirs." Illyria stared off to a place no one else could see and fixed a hard gaze on the unseen Partners in her mind. Illyria was more than happy to expose the sordid past of the Senior Partners to those who would use the information to destroy
them. She continued with the requested information.

"When the Old Ones passed to the Deeper Well, these vermin rose up and assumed powers and stations that were not theirs to assume. There were more than these three initially; many, in fact. These three are what remain in this dimension. The others went to places better suited to their kind. These three kept their influence here, and in some other dimensions, using their borrowed powers to make the weak buckle."

Xander turned to the lovely demon god and spoke for the rest, "Would you mind sharing their lies with us? You’d save us a lot of research if you could tell us what you found out in those records."

"You are wise, Cy, to not waste time doing what I have already accomplished."

"Cy?" Spike looked at Xander, his eyebrow lifted in question.

"Never mind, Robert Frost. It’s her idea of a pet name for me. Let it go, okay?" Xander looked sheepish, which only fueled Spike’s curiosity.

"Think I’ll have a little chat with your new girlfriend ‘bout that little gem later. And hey, nowhere near Robert Frost in style or content, illiterate! More like Byron, least that’s what I was aimin’ for." Spike stated firmly.

"What makes you think she’ll tell you anything if I ask her not to?" Xander asked. He was becoming a bit alarmed thinking of Illyria’s bluntness.

"I’m her pet, remember. People always tell their pets everything." Spike smirked at the look of fear that passed over Xander’s face. Whatever the origins ofthis ‘Cy’ were, Spike bet it would be good enough to shut the boy up about the poetry when Buffy came back.

Illyria ignored the exchange between the two men and looked annoyed to have been interrupted. When they finally shut up, she began to reveal what she had discovered in the records room of the Wolfram & Hart offices.

"The Wolf, the Ram and the Hart have had many names in your world. They masqueraded as gods, usurping powers of others using magic and tricks. They ruled your human societies, taking tribute that did not belong to them and playing games with your people. The begat ill-formed offspring with human women, sullied the name ’god’ with their capriciousness. Their antics besmirch the word ‘god’, making a mockery of it among the learned."

"The Wolf had his largest number of worshipers using the name Apollo. He joined others, who later withdrew from this dimension when the days of their godhood passed, and was worshiped throughout what you call the Greek empire. Before the writer Homer ever breathed, Apollo in wolf form was known. His mother Leto was a shewolf, according to the legends, when birthing Apollo and Artemis. In time, as that empire fell and the cult of Apollo began to wane, he took other names in other locations, always as a godlike figure. The Vikings knew him as Fenris, son of Loki. Native American peoples knew him under many a name."

"The wolf was always his chosen appearance. His true appearance is not far off from that of his Fenris state. He is large, with jaws able to crush ten strong men. His paws, however, have talons, much like many of the creatures known as dinosaurs had. He has a voracious appetite for flesh."

"The Ram was best known as Khnum, the creator god of pre-dynastic Egypt. He claimed to have brought humans into being on his potter’s wheel. The ooze that were your ancestors were foolish enough to believe and worship. His reign was not as long as the Wolf in this place, but the variously named ram-headed gods dominated the Middle Eastern regions of your early history. Many sacrifices were made in his honor."

"The Ram always appears as some creature with a ram’s head and curved horns. His true form is as a winged beast. His ram’s head is true, as are the horns. He spits a form of toxin that will paralyze those it touches. "

"The Hart, or Stag, was honored as a nature god in many lands of what is now Europe. The Celtic peoples called him Herne. He was the Lord of the Hunt, the Horned God, Lord of the Forest. Many are the people who still revere his name as they worship nature."

"The Hart appears as a man with a deer’s head and a full rack of antlers. The true form is much the same. The antlers are of unbreakable metal, however, and sharper than the finest blade. He is quick-footed. It is difficult to move quickly enough to land a blow on him, whereas thrusts with his deadly antlers readily find their target."

"The other deceivers and pretenders of their kind moved from this plane, being replaced with new gods and other myths, yet these three remained. As humans began to place their faith in things other than gods, such as money and power, they formed the beginnings of Wolfram & Hart to continue as objects of worship and might."

"In time, they moved themselves from this plane to another one cloaked for their safety. Humans no longer feared them as they once did and power can make many enemies. They used minions to carry out their orders and edicts while staying within the safety of their dimension. They have branches of power that reach across many dimensions, but none provide satisfaction to them as does this one."

"They have power and formidable abilities, but they can be defeated. If you are to battle them, you will need to prepare and learn of their weak points."
Illyria looked at Spike closely. "The white-haired one has had much practice in battling me, yet it has been a while. Perhaps we should hone your skills, pet."

"Sounds fine to me, Blue. Figure they can’t touch you for skills and sparrin’ with you’ll likely keep me alive. You up for some rough and tumble, luv?" Spike wiggled his eyebrows at Illyria, who merely looked at him with incomprehension.

"If you are requesting that we begin training you for the battle, yes", she replied.

"Hey, why is everyone assuming that Lilah is right and it’s Spike that’s going into battle? I’m the one who’s been fighting Wolfram & Hart for years! I’m the one they’ve been afraid of all this time." Angel was fed up with all the attention being paid to his wayward offspring.

"Reckon we’ll know for sure when Rupes finishes checking out that scroll. Meantime, you wanna tag along and let Bluebell knock you around a bit, I won’t stand in your way. She’s got a powerful right hook, you’d best prepare to get your hurt on", Spike said to Angel with a laugh.

Xander walked briskly behind the trio saying, "Personally, I’m just going to enjoy watching both of you get your undead asses kicked by my lady."

~~~

The following afternoon, the group gathered around a conference table in the Council meeting room. Xander shared the information Illyria had passed on to them the day before. He had taped it and had a secretary type it into the computer. He passed out copies to all present.

"I’m thinking Willow can work with Illyria and we can get some decent illustrations to go along with this, too. Maybe even some showing the best kill zones and points of weakness. Spike and Angel worked out with Illria yesterday and she concentrated on that angle. I figure, with some training time, the appointed champion can take out these clowns." Xander started to sit down when Illyria spoke up.

"Why do you mention humans in strange paint and large shoes? I do not understand why such should be present." Illyria was looking at her guide in puzzlement.

"Another figure of speech, ducks. Xander’s full of ‘em. He means that the Senior Partners are bloody wankers of no importance," Spike explained.

Illyria nodded in comprehension, "It is a fitting description then. You may proceed."

Giles stood and began to discuss the scrolls and the prophecy. "I was up late last night going over these portions repeatedly, seeking to ensure the smallest possibility of error in the translation. Dawn has concurred with me that the notes left by the employees of Wolfram & Hart were largely correct. There were minor differences in word choices, mostly based upon my personal knowledge of Spike and Angel. The prophecy is written in what appear to be a series of couplets. They are rather crude in rhyme and meter, but they do get the point across."

Giles cleared his throat and began to read the translations of the scroll,

"Sons of Sekhmet, Lilith’s get,
Root of this tree shall split."

Giles looked at the group and explained, "In many myths and chronicles, the origin of vampires was Lilith, the first wife of Adam according to Hebrew mysticism. She is the mother of all demons in that belief. Sekhmet is the lion-headed goddess of ancient Egypt, the wife of Ptah. Her worship center was in Memphis. According to legend, humanity rebelled against Ra and he sent Sekhmet in the form of a lioness to destroy those in rebellion. It is said that she drank the blood of the human prey. There was so much carnage that Ra spilled jugs containing a magic potion Sekhmet mistook for human blood. This inebriated Sekhmet and stopped the slaughter, saving the human race. There is a school of thought that believes there were humans who turned rather than died under her attack, creating the first vampires. This is, of course, pure speculation. Whether true or not, the meaning of this prophecy is clearly meant to imply vampires." Giles went back to the scroll translations and continued to read.

"Both for love turn to light
In her cause do fight."

"Angel in face, demon in act
excess cause the spark put back"

"Eldest of two, the soul is forced
dwells deeply in remorse."

"Opens portal, closed with her sword
Fights for good, looking toward reward."

Giles looked at Angel and suggested, "This would seem to be you, Angel. Your soul was cursed upon you and your love for Buffy led you to help in the fight for good. The portal must refer to the Acathala incident when Buffy had to send you through with her sword to close the vortex. I assume the reward you look to is this Shanshu. That is another prophecy altogether, a different scroll in fact. There are a couple of others seeming to deal with a miracle child that likely refer to Connor. Nothing about this current situation, however." Giles bent to read, avoiding Angel’s rather hurt look.

He returned to reading from the translations. "Spike, the next portions appear to refer to you, the other part of the split tree."

"Finding death in love and love in death,
dark beauty’s embrace ends his breath."

"Buries deep, failed poets soul
seeks the light to make him whole."

"Learns again to love and burned
What was lost seeks returned."

"For love will fight, then burn to ash
Believed gone, yet returned in flash."

"For that same love, fights still
blood of Wolf, Ram and Hart will spill."

"So it would seem that Miss Morgan has indeed been correct in her assertion that the champion to battle the Senior Partners is Spike. Indeed, she has proved quite helpful in many respects and should we continue to be successful, it is my intention to try to assist her in improving her lot as she requested." Giles closed his notebook and sat down.

"Well, children, what’s it to be? You going to start trusting your Auntie Lilah? I want you to succeed. You take them out and I get the only chance to improve my afterlife. Hell, I want you to get your Slayer back. It’ll be funny watching what happens with the testosterone festival when Spike and Angel face off for the hand of the fair maiden."

"Just to further prove good faith on my part, I’m going to give Sparkles here the address where the portal to their plane is located." She pointed to Spike as she said this. "You can’t see the portal or the number on the door to it without a special mystical device though, so the address won’t exactly get you in. Since getting this nifty gizmo might just attract more attention than we want, I vote that Giles and I go alone to pick it up. The last thing I want is the Partners to catch on to us and even if you don’t trust me, you do him." Lilah wrote something ona piece of notepaper and handed it to Spike. "Here’s the address."

Spike looked at the paper and rolled his eyes. "Bloody hell! You have got to be joking! What the bleedin’ hell do you take us for, you miserable bitch? I’d rip your lying lungs right out of your chest, but seein’ how your already dead, there’d be no point."

Angel came to look over Spike’s shoulder at the note Lilah had given him. "What the hell is this supposed to be, Lilah? Some last practical joke?"

"Gee, you boys really didn’t look closely at your client list, did you? Don’t blame me for someone else’s idea of a funny. Why do you think Henley wrote it anyway? He wasn’t too happy we didn’t get him off that string of charges; that ‘contributing to the delinquency of a minor’ really stung. Also, after they recorded all this dirty laundry, what makes you think the Senior Partners didn’t get even? Why do you think they broke up just three years later, even with all those top ten hits?"

"What’s she talking about? What’s the matter? Won’t we find Buffy?" Dawn was nearly frantic.

"Here, Bit. Lilah’s idea of a bad joke", Spike handed the note to Dawn. She looked at the paper and read, "Hotel California, Room 666, Todos Santos, Baja, California. Sur, Mexico". Dawn promptly slapped Lilah.

"My, aren’t you the little cat fighter. Your big sis would be so proud! Really, do you think I’d make something this silly up? It’s no joke. The portal’s there. You won’t find Room 666 without the device though and that’s why Giles needs to come with me. He’ll also get proof that the address is the truth.
So, you coming, Watcher?"

"Yes, I think we had better clear this up once and for all. If I don’t return, carry on with the search for Buffy. It is my hope that I’ll be back with this device and confirmation that however unlikely this address appears, it is indeed the location."

~~~

It took about a half an hour to arrive at the site where Lilah claimed the necessary mystical assistance would be given to them. She again reassured Giles that confirmation of all she had said would be forthcoming.

Lilah went with Giles into the dark underground chamber of the hidden location, paid the required tribute and lit the flame. "I can’t go in there of course, but you can tell him ‘hello’ from me. Being damned has its drawbacks. The oracle is the conduit to the Higher Powers. He’ll give you the amulet that will let Spike see the room and the portal. He’ll also back up what I’ve told you. Tell him … tell him I’m finally trying, okay? He’ll understand."

The setting was unusal, it looked much like a Grecian temple. A dumbstruck Giles was face-to-face with someone he thought to never see again, at least not in this life. The powers had chosen well, Giles decided. "I don’t quite know who I was expecting to meet here, but I must say you were amongst the least expected. I was told you died in battle, how is it that you are here, and in this position? How are you Wesley?"

~*~
Chapter 21
~*~

"You know, it sounds so much like only one person can go in there to get Buffy out. But from what Illyria says, I don’t see how Spike can kill all three of these Partners. I mean did you see the bashing Illyria just gave to both Angel AND Spike during that sparring session? My girl didn’t even break a sweat and they got tossed around like Raggedy Ann and Andy." Xander shook his head, remembering the practice session that was mostly about seeing how long the two vampires could remain standing as Illyria flung them about.

Willow and Xander were going over the notes taken from the information Illyria had given them. They were looking at the series of couplets that seemed to indicate that Spike and Spike alone would be the one to battle the three uberdemons.

"Good thing Spike seems to love a good, mismatched fight. Also has plenty of experience getting the stuffing knocked out of him. I mean let’s see, not counting Buffy, just in the time we’ve known him there’s been lots of whuppin’s. There was Glory, whatever left the mess he was in physically when he was all soul getting, the ubervamp the First Evil sicced on him, that replacement demon when we used the shadow casters, those demons in the alley in L.A… I’m pretty sure there’d be lots more if I thought about it. Then he’s been training with Illyria since she got here in our world. He’s like this energizer Bunny, he just doesn’t stop." Willow was trying to see the positive side in Spike being the chosen champion.

"True, but except for those alley demons, he only had to face them one at a time. There are three of these, and we don’t even know if it’s all at once. I mean we can only hope that their egos are so big they’ll want to tag team instead of group attack, but it just sounds too much like a no-win situation for the guy. Don’t ever say anything, but I’m starting to like him. Don’t really want to see him get trashed and then dusty in a permanent way." The concern showed on Xander’s face.

"I’ve been thinkin’ … he may have to go in alone, but that doesn’t mean we, I mean I, can’t give him some special kinds of weapons and protections. I think what I need to research is how to use a bit of magic to give Spike what he needs to annihilate these guys. I think I’ll go lure Dawn into some serious magic research. Let me take one of these." She picked up a copy of the report of Illyria’s revelations. "I’ll talk more to Illyria about possible defenses, too. If you see your girlfriend, send her into the library, okay?"

"She’s not my girlfriend. But I think I’m both turned on by the idea and scared poopless. Yup, poopless Xander here. I left Anya at the altar because I was afraid I’d be a jerk like my dad and hurt her. I wouldn’t have that luxury with her goddessness. She’d pull out my spine if I didn’t take the trash out fast enough! It would keep me accountable though, no turning into my dad allowed. Do you think I have a shot with Illyria, Will?"

"I think she already likes you or she wouldn’t have decided to have you around. Besides, Cy, you’re a demon magnet, remember? How can she resist the pull? She just has to figure out how that human body operates and emotions, she needs to get a grip on them. It may take a while; but I know you, bubba, you’re a really patient guy. Of course, when her hormones kick in you may want to run for shelter, or at least put on that puffy suit you used to wear." Willow smiled at the picture that put in her head.

Dawn and Andrew popped in at that point. "Hey, guys, here are the lyrics from that song," Andrew said in greeting. "What’s ‘Tiffany-twisted’ mean? That, like, makes no sense. You know I can’t get this song out of my head now, that is SO unfair."

Willow looked over the lyrics and mused, "Hum…’stabbed it with their steely knives but they just can’t kill the beast’ huh? I wonder if that’s some kind of message that you can’t kill these guys with normal metals? Or…or…maybe you can’t kill them by stabbing? I feel like I’m grabbing at straws here! If Lilah was right and the Senior Partners were angry about the song, maybe there’s more information here than just the address to the portal."

Andrew raised his hand as if in school and offered, "Want me to get on that? I mean I was already going to try to figure out what this Tiffany-twisted thing’s all about. Maybe they mean jewelry? Did you ever see ‘Breakfast At Tiffany’s’ with the beauteous yet fragile Audrey Hepburn? She was forced into a doomed marriage of tragedy with Barnaby Jones … you know, Buddy Ebsen. She fell in love with the handsome writer George Peppard, even though she really wanted to marry this rich guy from South America. She was always looking at the fancy jewels at Tiffany’s, see she …"

"Will you shut him up or shall I?" Angel had come into the room as Andrew began his Roger Ebert imitation. Angel was out of sorts and quite happy to think of hitting someone. Andrew was such an easy target!

Andrew tried to hide behind Xander. "Meep! I’ll just go and see if anyone in our cipher division can find a hidden message in these, okay?" He backed out of the room and sprinted down the hallway towards the various research divisions of the new Council.

Willow scowled at Angel. "Andrew means well, Angel. He loves Buffy too. She’s sort of the mother/sister/role-model that he has a mad crush on. Did that sound as sick and twisted to everyone else as it did to me? Andrew just falls in love with power and authority of any kind, really. Maybe he’ll stumble onto something useful. It wouldn’t be the first time he did that."

"The way I hear it, he’s a big part of the reason the Immortal got his hooks in Buffy in the first place. I don’t know why you didn’t get rid of him as soon as you found that out." Angel was outraged when he had heard the way Buffy had been set up using her own inner circle.

Spike limped in shortly behind Angel and had heard much of the conversation. "They’re not like us, Angel. This lot are all about forgiveness and second chances…least when it comes to humans, that is. Ain’t that right, Red?"

Willow suspected that Spike had his feelings hurt that her walk on the dark side had made barely a ripple on the smooth rivers of friendship with the Scoobies, while he had struggled for acceptance for years without making headway. "It is possible that we’ve had a kind of double standard in the past, Spike, but we’ve been trying to learn from our mistakes. Growing up seems to involve a lot of embracing that grey area. It’s kinda murky and scary. We fought it as long as possible, but maturity wound up happening in spite of ourselves." She smiled at Spike and tried to show in her expression that he WAS forgiven and considered one of the team.

"Good thing, too, ‘cause by the time maturity did hit, we all pretty much needed forgiving. We made some colossal screw ups, right, Will?" Xander felt sorry for Andrew when all was said and done. He remembered more than one time when his own immaturity had put Buffy in danger, even from himself. He still couldn't go near the Hyena areas of any zoo he visited, maybe never would.

"Well, I did try to destroy the entire world. That’s pretty big in anybody’s book. My kill count would have topped both you guys easily if Xander hadn’t stopped me." Willow looked at Spike and Angel as she said this. She hadn’t really thought about it before, but it was humbling to realize the truth of what she had just said. "I had a soul, too, so that’s not the important thing. Suddenly I feel kinda sick and more than a little dirty."

Spike felt bad for opening old wounds in the witch. He had always sorta liked her and didn’t really want to hurt the girl or remind her of her spectacular failure at expressing grief. "No need to get all maudlin, Red. You’re makin’ a splendid comeback handlin’ the dark in ya’. Gotta take it one choice at a time, luv, that’s all. You’ve been doin’ fine."

Willow wished she’d had time to talk to Spike that year after her return from the brink of disaster. No doubt his insights would have helped her heal and learn much faster. ‘Okay, I should have MADE time. We all just kept away from him when he came back all crazy and soul having. Well, Buffy didn’t, but the rest of us did’, she thought with no small regret. The more she was getting to know Spike, the more she liked him and realized that, in many ways, he was not so different with the soul as he was before getting his soul back." Maybe when they had Buffy back safely, she’d seek him out for some much delayed soul baring. Tara would have liked that, she had always tried to get Willow to see the good in Spike.

"So what was Jar-Jar Binks going on about anyway? Heard m’ sire threaten him before the boy went off to change his trousers. He come up with anything useful?" Spike knew that Andrew had stumbled onto useful information more than once since he began to associate with the Slayer and her group.

"He was just being Andrew, you know, sidetracked by Hollywood The whole world is one big movie to him. Some things don’t change, or at least they haven’t yet. He was trying to see if there might be anything useful in the lyrics of ‘Hotel California’, got hung up on the Tiffany-twisted line and … bam … landed the whole conversation in the middle of an Audrey Hepburn movie. Angel doesn’t exactly have patience with youthful exuberance," Xander explained.

"Like you said, some things don’t change," Spike replied, looking at Angel.

"Hey, I taught you well enough that you survived over a century. You were even able to keep Dru safe and sound, thanks to me toughening you up. You would’ve been dust that first week if I hadn’t," Angel said defensively.

"You may have a point, but that wasn’t your motive and we both know it. Back off the boy, he’s not some fledge you can take and mold. The Watcher’s doin’ the job just fine without any help from you." Spike had no idea why he felt so fiercely protective of Andrew. There were parts of the awkward boy that reminded him of William, and of Xander, too, he had to admit. That thought made Spike more than a little uncomfortable to acknowledge even to himself.

"Ok, guys, how about we divide up the research between Willow, Xander and me. I think Angel and Spike will be too busy training with Illyria for the big fight." Dawn had grown weary of all the old business that seemed to have floated to the surface lately. All she wanted was to get Buffy back. There would be plenty of time then for could’ves, should’ves, and would’ves. She had her share of those too, if she were honest with herself. The timing wasn’t right though. "Priorities, people!"

"Bit’s right, as usual lately. Right scary, too, her bein’ the level headed one. Makes me twitchy." Spike pretended to shy away from Dawn making a cross with the index fingers of his hands as if to ward off a vampire.

"Watch out, you dope, you’re liable to set yourself on fire! Didn’t anyone tell you not to play with crosses? Angel, seems you failed after all." Xander was smiling widely at the wonderful opportunity to insult both vampires in a single quip.

Willow laughed lightly and then agreed with Dawn, "Okay, Dawnie’s right. Andrew’s on the song lyrics, I’m working on weapons and charms for the fight itself. Xander, how about you dig into all the myths you can find about the different gods the Partners pretended to be. There might be battles recorded that they nearly lost and we can use the information to see what nearly worked and what didn’t. Dawnie, why don’t you look at Giles’ translations of those scroll prophecies to see if there are any more hints there. Angel, you and Spike should go get some dinner, then get back in there with Illyria. Think Rocky I and train, train, train. Goddess, now I’m starting to think like Andrew!! When Giles gets back, we’ll see if we need to redistribute the workload. I think we need to be prepared before we make any moves to take them on. I think we’ll only get one shot at this."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~


Thanks to lyrics online via google:

*lyrics for Hotel California (Don Henley, writer)
for anyone interested*

"Hotel California"

On a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair
Warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air
Up ahead in the distance, I saw a shimmering light
My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim
I had to stop for the night
There she stood in the doorway;
I heard the mission bell
And I was thinking to myself,
'This could be Heaven or this could be Hell'
Then she lit up a candle and she showed me the way
There were voices down the corridor,
I thought I heard them say...

Welcome to the Hotel California
Such a lovely place
Such a lovely place
Such a lovely face
Such a lovely face
Plenty of room at the Hotel California
Any time of year, you can find it here

Her mind is Tiffany-twisted, she got the Mercedes Bends (yes, spelled that way)
She got a lot of pretty, pretty boys, that she calls
friends
How they dance in the courtyard, sweet summer sweat.
Some dance to remember, some dance to forget
So I called up the Captain,
'Please bring me my wine'
He said, 'We haven't had that spirit here since
nineteen sixty-nine'
And still those voices are calling from far away,
Wake you up in the middle of the night
Just to hear them say...

Welcome to the Hotel California
Such a lovely place
Such a lovely face
They’re livin' it up at the Hotel California
What a nice surprise, bring your alibis

Mirrors on the ceiling,
The pink champagne on ice
And she said 'We are all just prisoners here, of our
own device'
And in the master's chambers,
They gathered for the feast
They stab it with their steely knives,
But they just can't kill the beast
Last thing I remember, I was
Running for the door
I had to find the passage back
To the place I was before
'Relax,' said the night man,
We are programmed to receive.
You can checkout any time you like,
but you can never leave!

~*~
Chapter 22
~*~

"So, is this what happens to Watchers when they die? We go on to become guides in other forms? Rather puts an end to any idea of eternal retirement and reward, if you ask me." Giles was smiling at Wesley as he lightly teased him. Giles knew how being fired from the Council had stung the younger Watcher and he wanted to soothe that wound if possible. "You were a fine Watcher there at the end, both in guiding Angel … no small feat in and of itself … but many of the changes in Faith were directly attributed to you and your guidance and trust. I can see why the Higher Powers would choose you for this position. You’ve earned the honor."

Wesley blinked rapidly in astonishment. Had Rupert Giles just complimented him? After the fall of Sunnydale, when the world was suddenly teeming with new slayers and very few Watchers, Wesley had held on to a small hope that he might be approached to rejoin the Council. The offer was never made. That had stung as much as his initial firing had done. Now it appeared that Rupert had re-evaluated Wesley’s worth and found him worthy. In some ways, that meant even more than the Higher Powers selecting him for this position, because they were infinitely more understanding and forgiving than Giles.

"I was not supposed to have died so soon. They told me I still had a destiny to fulfill, but Cordy chose to listen to her heart instead of following orders. The vision she gave Angel in that last kiss was supposed to have been given to me; the vision, that is…nothing was said of the kiss. Angel took the information and went off half-cocked to bring down the Black Thorne and the Senior Partners. He declared war with only partial information, without consulting a soul, and you know where that leads." Wesley motioned for Giles to follow him to an area where they could sit and discuss the situation.

"I would not have made the same choices that Angel did, no matter how well-meaning he may have been. Therefore I became nothing more than cannon fodder. Instead of keeper of the visions as the Powers had planned, I became a dead ex-Watcher at the hands of Vail. I didn’t even make it to the last battle in the alley. When Illyria killed Vail and left, I was transported to a very rare dimension and offered this position. It is not without its perks."

Giles noticed movement from the corner of his eye and turned his head quickly, catching a glimpse of a young, rail-thin girl with glasses who wiggled her fingers at him in a shy wave.

"That is Fred. Winifred Burkle. No soul as pure and bright as hers would ever be allowed to simply be destroyed! We were fools to ever believe that was the case. She is my assistant and companion here. I have my heaven and no regrets." Wesley smiled fondly at the young woman before turning back to Giles.

"What Lilah has told you is truth, as strange as that concept may be. Rupert, would you be good enough to tell Lilah something for me?" At Giles’ nod, he continued, "Tell Lilah that no effort is ever wasted or too late. The Powers read motives … hearts, if you will. She may not be heaven material," Wesley chuckled at the very thought, "but there are levels of hell as well. She has done well. Tell her that for me, will you? "

"Of course. She has a rather abrasive personality, but her help has been invaluable. We floundered around for the better part of a year with no clue of what had happened or how to retrieve our lost until she stepped in. I’m rather pleased that she will have a reward of sorts. I’m also glad to hear that it is never too late, for any of us, actually. There are things I need to rectify in my own life once this crisis is passed."

"Lilah had a message for you as well." Giles proceeded to pass on the bittersweet message to Wesley as he had promised.

Wesley listened intently with a secretive smile on his face. "She was of importance in my life at a very low point. I am glad that some good came from that in the end." Wesley turned to look at Fred, who was bringing a small tray with a bottle of single malt and two glasses to the two Watchers. "As you can see, I meant what I said about perks!" He smiled at Giles and poured two fingers of fine amber warmth into the glass before handing it to Giles.

"Before we get on with the important issues for your current mission, I’d like to talk about a more personal issue." At Giles’ gesture of agreement, Wesley continued. "The night before that reckless battle, Angel told all of us to go and enjoy what would likely be our last night alive. There was nothing to bring me pleasure in that world any longer, so I took some books and scrolls back home with me to while away the evening in research. I thought I might leave notes in the event I did not survive the battle. When I completed what I could before getting some needed rest, I placed these items in a moving box with your name on the top. I am certain that my father has all my personal items stored somewhere in the attic of my boyhood home. It would never occur to him that any of my things might have some importance, so he will not have opened any of the boxes." Wesley looked infinitely sad as he thought of the relationship he would never have with the man who had demanded so much, and saw so little, in his son.

"The most important things in that box are the rather infamous Scroll of Aberjian with the Shanshu prophecy, in all its obscure glory, and a book that will look like blank pages. That book is a bloody marvel! Wolfram and Hart had this magically enhanced book that works as a template for literally every book ever written. If you need a text, you merely call it out and open the book. You will discover the very text requested! I even read a children’s story to Fred from it as she lay dying. I don’t have to tell you the importance of that book to the Council! It is a one-book library. Even texts long destroyed can be called up with it. When this is all settled and Buffy is back where she belongs, go to my father and collect the box. It is clearly marked with your name so he will give it to you."

"Good Lord, man! I had no idea such an artifact was even possible, much less in existence. To have that in the hands of the Council would instantly elevate the ability to research beyond anything the Council ever had in its entire history! It will be all that I can do to prevent myself from going straightaway to your father to retrieve that box. This is a priceless gift, Wesley. I intend to make sure you are credited with it, too. No black marks on your ledger, if you will. Travers was wrong to lose a valuable man like you, especially as the troubles were not really of your making." Giles was clearly excited at the prospect of getting his hands on the treasure box Wesley had put together for him all those months ago.

"I would like to dare offer a bit of advice. I hope you don’t mind." Giles nodded over his second glass of fine whiskey and indicated his willingness to listen at least. "It is about Spike…and Angel as well, for that matter. I worked closely with Angel, came to call him friend. We had … differences … those last few years, but I still cherish the friendship and the changes it brought to my life. These two beings… men…are a valuable resource as well, Rupert. Don't make the same mistake the old Council did, only seeing black and white. They have much information and many talents. Use them, don’t disenfranchise them."

"Angel needs to accept that he IS Angelus as much as he is Liam. Until he does that, he will find no peace. He has many bad habits, but I am sure you are already aware of his tendencies to play with the truth and to make unilateral decisions for everyone around him. His heart is in the right place. He wishes to fight the good fight. You must help and encourage him along that path. He did not chose the path, but has embraced it and with good grace, for the most part."

"Spike. Now Spike is a different kettle of fish! He was quite off-putting upon first meeting. It took months to see past his carefully constructed façade to the man beneath. He is extraordinary! There is tremendous strength, love and good in Spike. The amazing thing is that it was there before he got his soul! That alone is startling, Giles. The demon went along with the man in fighting for having his soul restored! I don’t think we can possibly begin to understand the full implications of that! I came to know him rather well that last year. Do not let your prejudices and the training we both received keep you from knowing and working with this unique and remarkable being."

"You are building the Council all over again. You have the opportunity to do it right this time, to build on truth and use it for the good purpose it was supposed to have all along. I think you have the resources to do this. I can but encourage you to not cut out such valuable ones as the two vampires with souls."

"Now, as to that…no, now is not the time and you are not the person I should say this to." Wesley took a long drink before continuing. "When Spike succeeds in returning Buffy and destroying the Senior Partners power--and I am quite confident he will succeed--you must bring both Angel and Spike here to me. There are issues that need to be addressed. It would be best if you didn’t distract them by telling them about that, however. Perhaps you should even refer to me as the oracle instead of Wesley, while you’re at it. They must be focused on the mission at hand and not focused on themselves. There will be time to tie up loose ends later."

"I have to agree with you about the distraction. Knowing YOU are the oracle would most assuredly be a large distraction. Angel is wracked with guilt over your death and I think he is still far too interested in that blasted prophecy about his reward as well. No, you are quite right. As for seeing the value in those two … well I have already done so where Spike is concerned, even if he isn’t completely aware of my change of heart. It may take a while with Angel. There are personal issues there that I must wrestle with before I can fully embrace working closely with him again. I will think deeply about what you have said, however. I do value your wisdom on the issue of souled vampires. You are the real expert, after all", Giles continued with a genuine smile.

"Fred, my darling, would you be so good as to bring me that box I showed you before Rupert arrived?"

Wesley watched her move with his heart clearly reflected in his eyes. It was obvious that Ms. Burkle had been the love of his life. Giles was delighted that this earnest ex-Watcher had not lost her forever after all.

"Here ya are, sweetie. I sneaked a peek, hope y’all don’t mind. After the last amulet Wolfram and Hart offered, I kinda wanted to see this one. It doesn’t look at all like the one that dusted poor Spike. I’m sure he’ll be glad of that!" Fred commented.

"Hi, I’m Fred! I know y’all have met my body already, though she does look a mite different in it than I did." Fred giggled a bit at that. "I never met Illyria, ya’ know. She kinda just moved in when I moved out. It was mighty painful, too. Wesley’s told me that she was nice enough to pretend to be me when my folks came for a visit. Tell her thanks, will ya? She’s got my memories stored in that brain there. I’m glad she’s usin’ them. My folks get the whole demon/vampire thing, but I don’t know how they’d handle me bein’ dead and my body walkin’ around with some old god that’s called a king, ‘cause that’s, you know, a male kind of title and I’m female and all, and that’s a bit much for any parents to handle, don’t you think, Mr Giles?" Fred looked at Giles expectantly.

Wesley laughed fondly and said to Giles, "My beloved has a bit of a reputation for run-on sentences. I find her completely delightful, of course, in all her mannerisms. You might need a bit of time to adjust, however."

Giles stared in befuddlement as the woman rattled off the words rapid fire. He could certainly see the charm of this slip of a girl. She was quite unlike the being now housed in her body; it was rather disconcerting. He shook his head, as if to clear cobwebs, and smiled at her in return. "Yes, Ms. Burkle, it would be a bit much for anyone to handle, as you put it. You will be pleased to know that Illyria appears to be interested in using her abilities for the side of good. She is formidable indeed. It is a pleasure to meet you, however. You quite charmed Spike and Angel clearly loves you like a sister. Charles Gunn also becomes most wistful at the mere mention of your name. You are well-remembered and loved. Yes, it is a pleasure to meet you indeed."

Wesley watched the exchange with obvious pride in his lady shining from his eyes. "Thank you, precious one. I’ll go over the use of the amulet with Mr. Giles now, if you don’t mind parting with it, that is." Wesley never tired of gently teasing her. Fred still blushed so prettily.

"Oh, of course, silly me, talkin’ away when you have all those people…and a couple of really sweet vampires of course…waitin’ back at home for you to get there with this thing. I don’t know what gets into me at times, I can just go on and on. It’s a wonder Wesley gets a word in edgewise at times. He doesn’t complain though. I wouldn’t want you to get the wrong idea about that. No, Wesley’s the perfect
gentleman. I’ll just take this tray back and let you boys finish talking. It’s a pleasure meeting you, too, Mr. Giles. I’ve heard about you from Angel and Wesley and of course Willow, when she came to put Angel’s soul back. Spike talked about you a bit, too, and not all of it bad either! I feel like I know you in a way." Fred took the tray, kissed Wesley on the forehead and left the area.

"Remarkable woman." Giles meant the compliment.

"Yes, hard to believe such a lively sprite has one of the brightest minds of her generation. She was a physicist, you know. Utterly brilliant! Her professors were so intimidated by her that one of them sent her to a dreadful dimension where she was nearly eaten! Pylea is another dimension that is actually run by the Wolf, Ram and Hart. Their destruction will aid beings in many different planes. Tell Spike I have every confidence in him. He is really quite in need of validation, beneath that false bravado of his. Never completely sure of his worth. I don’t know if that is only since the soul, yet it is obvious if one but looks." Wesley opened the box that Fred had given him and showed the small orb to Giles.

"This small device, for lack of a better term, will uncloud the vision of the one who carries it. In short, the portal that is not visible to the naked eye will be revealed to Spike if he is carrying this. This will get him into the dimension of the evil trio. It will also show them in their true visage. They only appear to be shape shifters. In reality, it is all just smoke and mirrors. They are what they are. It does make it difficult to do battle with them when you cannot see them properly, however. This will make it a bit easier for Spike to see where to strike, when to retreat. Illyria is giving excellent training in how to battle these three. That, along with the magical enhancement Willow is planning for the weapons Spike will take with him, should be sufficient to win the battle. Now, let me explain the ritual Spike will need to conduct to return from that dimension with Buffy. The blood of all three Senior Partners will be required, as you have already been told."

The two Watchers spent a lengthy time going over the ritual, with Giles taking an enormous amount of notes. He was determined that this be perfectly done. It would be of little use if, after defeating the old beasts in battle, Spike were not able to open the portal and return with Buffy to the dimension where they belonged.

"Word of warning, Giles. Don’t rush into this half-cocked like Angel did at the beginning of this war. This is the final battle with this particular foe. Naturally, evil will still exist, but this powerful tool of evil will be destroyed once and for all if Spike wins. Make certain you take the time to prepare, train and plan. Time moves differently in their dimension and Buffy is being kept safe. You need not rush in helter-skelter to effect the rescue. She really is just fine, Rupert. Yes, she will be more than glad to return to those she loves, but she is fine. You must all get this just right. You have but one champion and he must be ready and go in with what he needs if he is to have any chance at success."

Giles thought about what was really at stake. His girl’s life and future were hanging in the balance. They would likely only have one chance at recovering her and that one chance was Spike. "Quite. So, I must somehow coordinate all of this while keeping two very headstrong, contentious and impatient super-powered beings from attempting a rescue of the woman they both love. Simple really."

~~~~~

~*~
Chapter 23
~*~

Connor and Nina arrived at the Watchers Council building just after Giles returned from his visit to the Oracle. Angel had heard Spike suggest that they come to London during their last phone conversation but was still a bit shocked to see his long lost son along with the girl he had left behind.

The new arrivals were settled into guest rooms in one of the small cottages on the grounds that the Council used when in emergency lock down. Since the Senior Partners had to have noticed the escape of Angel and Illyria and know that some plan was afoot, it was decided that all the group should be a safe distance from one another. Willow and Giles had even moved onto the property for the duration of the mission.
Everyone had hopes that Buffy would be safely among them soon and life would resume its normal ebb and flow.

Connor came into the conference room with Nina trailing behind. They had been caught up on the situation by Andrew when he helped get them settled in their rooms. Angel had been notified of their arrival but was in the training room sparring with Illyria and Spike at that time. If the truth were known, Angel was feeling a bit at a loss for what to say to either of them. It had been so long since that day before the great battle that ended with Angel’s removal from both their lives.

"Hey, Dad. You look pretty good for all that time in the Salsa Dimension. Good to see you. I suppose Spike told you that I helped look for you for a long time until it started to look pointless. I figured you would want me back in school, Dad; it’s not that I didn’t care." Connor was still not comfortable around this man who took up the bulk of the angst in one set of his memories and no part at all in the other set. Reality can be difficult for a young person at the best of times, much less having multiple realities in one’s memory! Of course, there was very little of Connor’s life that could ever be called normal.

"Angel! You know, when I said you needed a vacation to Cabo to drink Margaritas and make love on the moonlit beach, I didn’t mean in another dimension OR without me!" Nina eased up to her long lost boyfriend and gave him a hug. "Glad you’re back in one piece. I missed you. We both have."

"Nina, Connor, it seems like I don’t have to introduce you two. It’s kind of weird knowing so much has happened here while I was gone. I’m so glad to see you both. Yes, Son, I know you didn’t give up on me. You did the right thing. I wouldn’t have wanted you to spend your life looking for me. I gave you up so you’d have a life, a good life." Angel reached out and awkwardly drew Connor into his embrace with Nina. "I hear you two have been rooming together the last few weeks. How’d that go, you get along all right?"

Spike watched his sire’s discomfort, knowing only Connor could understand the unease such a thought might give Angel. Spike had heard the stories of how Connor fathered a supernatural child with Cordy while her body was possessed. Angel had witnessed the tryst and it led to all manner of disaster with the relationships and loyalties of the L.A. crew. Angel had to be wondering if Nina was still HIS girl, not Connor’s. Wolf Girl and the sprog were even closer in age, after all.

"It’s all right, Dad. Nina and I have become good friends while you’ve been gone. We’ve looked out for each other, that’s all. She’s a good catch, but for some weird reason seems to be really into you. I’ll have to show you some pictures of my girlfriend. Her name is Mary O’Hara, but we call her Scarlett." Connor could see Angel visibly relax at the knowledge that he hadn’t lost another woman to his son.

Giles cleared his throat and drew the attention back to the business at hand. "While I am fully aware that reunions are quite important…necessary even…I am afraid the clock is ticking here. Perhaps I should give you the information passed to me by the Oracle of the Higher Powers and then we can go about our various duties. I feel certain the Senior Partners are more than aware of our intentions, if not our activities. Time is of the essence here."

Everyone took a chair and turned their attention to Giles as he related most of his experience, leaving out only the identity of the Oracle and the presence of Winifred Burkle. "This", he placed the smallish orb on the table before him, "is a device that will permit Spike to see the entry to the Partners’ realm. It will also allow him to see their true form and movement, rather than the images they project to confuse."

Spike stared at the object fixedly. His mouth had gone quite dry while looking at it. He took a sip of water before speaking. "This little bauble isn’t something I have to wear, is it? I mean, it’s not gonna start playin’ disco ball and shoot out rays or anything?" He realized they all knew he was remembering the amulet that he wore to close the Hellmouth and defeat the First Evil. "Not that it’s any big deal, just hate wearin’ pansy jewelry to every apocalypse. Don’t go with my image is all. Just once, I want the needed accessories to look all manly, like a nice shiny double-headed axe or somethin’. " He wanted to pick up the orb but feared his slightly shaking hand might give too much away.

Giles looked at the vampire and chose not to tease him for his rather rational nervousness at being made to use yet another magically enhanced tool to defeat the enemy. He hadn’t yet had time to question the vampire about his perspective on closing the Hellmouth, but Giles expected the memory to be quite painful. He remembered being told how Spike’s form reappeared, screaming, in Angel’s office. Giles smiled gently at Spike and sought to reassure the vampire that this time he was not expected to just be a sacrifice.

"I don’t think you need wear it, Spike, although it is much smaller and not nearly as gaudy as the last amulet you were requested to wear. I quite agree that you should avoid such fashion statements in the future. You do need to have this on your person, however. Perhaps we can design a way for you to have it on without you having to look the princess."

"I’d appreciate that, mate. So, this thing gonna make me see how old and ugly my sire really is?" Spike attempted to deflect the worried thoughts with a bit of snark.

"Hey, just be glad mirrors don’t work on you either, Willy." Angel teased back. He took no small pleasure seeing how angered Spike got at the nickname he’d never allowed after that first introduction by Dru. Angel turned to Giles and asked, "So we’re still going with the idea that Spike has to go in alone to this battle?"

"Well, it certainly looks that way. As the Partners are able to distort reality and this orb is the only way to keep one’s vision clear, it would be best for only one to go in. You wouldn’t be of much help to Spike if he had to spend any of his energy protecting anyone else. It will be quite difficult enough defeating these beasts and keeping Buffy safe. No, we will best help Spike by sending him in there fully prepared and ready. Of course, I do understand how you feel. I want nothing more than to charge in there and get our girl back myself. We must not lose sight of the fact that these Partners have been around longer than any of us can imagine…except Illyria, of course. To defeat them, we must not miss a note."

"Spike, why don’t I sew that thingy in a pouch and then sew it to whatever you’re going to wear going in?" Dawn so wanted to contribute some skill. She had done a fine job making the bag for the hearts that had to be taken into the previous rescue mission, the least she could do would be to fire up the old Singer for the cause. "We could make the fabric magically enhanced or something, too, so you don’t lose it or have it cut off or something. Right, Willow?"

"Sure, Dawnie, I think we could manage that. Hum…maybe you could even sew up some special clothes that will work to help protect Spike while you’re at it? It’s not a far stretch to think of a magical armor kind of thing. We can look at different ideas after the meeting, okay." Willow understood just how Dawn felt.

"Just be sure it’s in basic black, right? Not going in to battle in any outfit the Bit decides to play "Humiliate the Vamp" with. Now’s not the time to work on some makeover project." Spike gave Dawn a stern glare. "Black and denim’s just fine, got that?"

Andrew shot up his hand at that and said, "Oooh! Wouldn’t leather be more … um … practical? I think a leather body suit would really be hot."

Spike lowered his head and glared daggers at the boy from under his lowered brow. "You’re not getting me in any superhero get-up, you git. No leather, no bleedin’ tights. No buggerin’ spandex either."

Xander clapped Andrew on the back and laughed, "Andy, you’ll just have to fantasize all those costumes, ‘cause it ain’t gonna happen. No capes either, right, Spike?"

"Damn straight," Spike replied seriously. "Only vamp wears a costume’s Drac and he’s a bloody joke, he is. Too many films made about the fictional exploits of that poof if you ask me. Bugger still owes me eleven pounds, the welsher."

~~~

Angel took his son and Nina on a tour of the Council grounds as soon as the meeting broke up. The sun had just set, but it was still light enough for a decent look around.

"I could help train Spike!" Nina suddenly stopped and had an excited look on her face at the thought of actually helping instead of just being protected.

"What are you talking about, sweetie? How can you possibly help train Spike?" Angel looked at his girlfriend as if she had run crazy.

"No, not all the time, but the full moon is later this week. Look, one of the partners is a wolf, right? Well, so am I three nights of the month. He could spar with me when I change. I know I’m not as powerful as this other Wolf would be, but the moves would be similar, I’d think." Nina was getting really thrilled at the idea. "It would make this werewolf thing useful for once."

"Nina, you can’t control the wolf on those days. You would be really trying to kill Spike, not spar or train. He’d have to really hurt you to save his own hide. I don’t see that it would help at all. I know Spike would be touched at the offer, but it just wouldn’t help, honey." Angel had felt real fear at the thought of his girl in any kind of fight with a vamp.

"Wait! Ok, Dad, I see your point about the sparring, but it wouldn’t hurt to really observe Nina while she’s all Wolf Girl. She’s right about the moves and instincts and all. Whatever we might learn watching her could help against this Wolf, right? Kinda like the football team watching a video of their opponents’ last game."

Angel looked at Connor and Nina and saw the desire to be proactive on their faces. "I don’t know how closely this Wolf acts to a werewolf …" He saw their crestfallen faces and added, "but it couldn’t hurt, you’re right. We’ll suggest it, okay?"

"So, where’s my little Ernie staying?" If Angel could blush, he would have at her use of a pet nickname in front of his son.

"Ernie?" Connor asked.

Angel looked at his feet and mumbled an answer. "Yeah, like Bert and Ernie on Sesame Street. I was turned into a puppet and we had our first date that way. Nina says I looked like Ernie in a bad mood." Angel turned hurt puppy eyes on Nina and said, "I’d appreciate it if neither of you called me that in front of anyone. Especially Spike or Xander."

"Only if I get the whole, complete story, Dad". Connor laughed at the picture of his dour daddy in plush.

"I’m staying in your room, Nina…if you’ll have me, that is." Angel finally answered his girlfriend’s question.

"Of course, silly. I was just trying to figure out what room I’d need to sneak into, if you weren’t in mine." Nina slipped her hand through the crook of Angel’s arm as they continued the tour.

"So, Son, speaking of stories, let’s hear a bit about this Mary of yours." Angel changed the subject.

~~~

Spike sat at the table after everyone else left the room. He was staring at the orb, occasionally reaching a hand toward it only to snatch the hand back before touching it. He hated the cold fear that had taken hold of him. Too much was on his shoulders. True, the last time he had a magic object given to him to win a battle, he expected to dust. He hadn’t been disappointed. The memory of the pain would never leave him, even though he had gone into it with his eyes open. The whole world was at stake then. This time it was HIS whole world. The entire plan to save Buffy rested on his ability to win, to get it right. He didn’t want to remember the whole Glory battle where his failure had led to his beloved’s death. He had to get it right this time. If that meant wearing all of Liz Taylor’s jewelry collection and burning slowly, he’d do it. That didn’t mean that the possibility didn’t make his entire body feel frozen, however.

Giles was walking past the conference room and noticed Spike sitting there looking at the orb. He could understand the vampire’s trepidation about magical objects. One couldn’t burn to ash and not have any leftover nervousness about a repeat performance.

"Spike, I feel quite certain that this orb is benign. I really don’t think you need to worry there will be any nasty surprises from using it. This oracle seems to hold you in some regard. I’m sure he would have told me if there was any danger to you."

Spike shook his head as if to break a thrall and looked at the Watcher. He had only really heard part of what Giles had said but understood that the Watcher was trying to offer comfort about the bauble on the table.
"Not that, Rupes, just don’t want to blow this, you know. If I had done a million things different on that tower years ago, Buffy wouldn’t have died then. All that stuff that happened because of her dying and getting pulled out of heaven … that shouldn’t have happened. I screwed it up then and can’t afford to screw up this time. Can’t let Buffy down again."

Giles sat down next to Spike and looked at him as if for the first time. "Do you mean to say that you feel Buffy’s death years ago was somehow YOUR fault?" Giles was astonished. Guilt and remorse weren’t things a non-souled vampire should have been able to feel and Spike had no soul at that time. Perhaps Wesley had been right and these vampires would be of value to the new Council. Obviously some of the "facts" encoded in those old books of the previous Council were in error.

"Course it was my fault. Soddin’ little demon had me off that tower before I could even get to the Bit. I didn’t even take the wanker with me on the way down. I was the one supposed to die up there, not Buffy. Never forgave myself for that, never will." Spike had a bleak look at the memory.

"Don’t be daft! It was no more your responsibility to win that battle than anyone else’s, Spike! Surely Buffy has told you that. The fact that you helped at all is remarkable. The element of surprise seeing the demon you thought you had already killed put you off your timing, that’s all. Buffy made a choice up there on that tower, just as Willow made a choice in resurrecting her later. We all made … make… choices, Spike and not always the right ones. I chose to help Robin Wood try to stake you, for instance. Just think of how much damage that would have led to. The First Evil would have won. All those Turok-Hans would have eventually overrun the handful of Slayers there. As remarkable a choice it was for Buffy to make to share the power, it would never have won the battle alone. Look, there’s another choice with a few bad consequences. Dana was no more ready to be called as a Slayer than your sire Drusilla would have been. Good Lord, I just had a thought! We can only pray that none of those potential slayers had already been turned., There may be vampiresses out there with slayer strength we have yet to find! " Giles paled a bit at the thought.

"You see, none of the fallout from THAT choice--the power sharing--is the fault of Buffy. There are some negative results from that choice, yes, but the good outweigh the bad. I am sure of that. Willow bringing Buffy back had a lot of bad fallout, but so very much good as well. I, for one, can’t imagine how my life would have been had Buffy stayed dead and that’s true for all of us. The only choice you made on that tower was to die, if necessary, to protect Dawn. Not accomplishing that isn’t a matter of any bad choosing on your part. Things happen, Spike, things out of our control. You did everything you could up there on that tower … more than anyone could have expected of you. It wasn’t your fault."

"What if it’s the same this time, Giles? What if nothing I do can save her?" Spike looked at Giles as if he were drowning and Giles held the only life preserver. "What if I’m not enough?"

Giles swallowed before answering, "Spike you are the best equipped to get it done. Of all of us, you stand the best chance. You’re not God, neither am I. You can but do your best. Train, prepare and just do your best. No one asks any more of you than that. The potential for failure is always there in any endeavor. The only guarantee of failure, however, if when you don’t try at all. You’ll do fine Spike. There has to be a reason you’re here to try this at all. You dusted in Sunnydale; by all logic, you should still be dust in the bottom of that crater. The Powers have brought you back for a reason, Spike. You serve a higher purpose."

Spike snorted. "Maybe they just don’t know what to do with me, eh? I mean, saved the world so hell might not be the spot, but sure not heaven material. Maybe I’m back cause there’s no other place for me."

"That’s nonsense! I’m sure there would be a bathtub in heaven to chain you up in until they decide what to do with you. It worked for me, after all," Giles laughed. He placed a comforting hand on Spike’s shoulder and said, "I’m sure you’ll do fine. You always give your best and that is all we ask."

Giles slipped from the room, leaving Spike to marvel at the Watcher’s words and attitude. Maybe things really were changing for the better. Spike got up and decided to hunt down Illyria for a final match up before getting a bit of rest for the night. Being around humans had turned the vampire into a creature of more than just the night and daylight would come far too soon.

~*~
Chapter 24
~*~

The group gathered for the now routine morning meeting. Giles looked from face to face and saw the same grim determination on each countenance. If sheer willpower were all it would take to get Buffy back, then they were assured of victory. He noted the battered body of Buffy’s once and future Champion, Spike. The vampire had been driving himself hard and taking quite a beating in his preparation for the battles to come.

"Spike, much as I laud your commitment to training, I think you need to take some time out between your daily beatings from Illyria." Giles smiled slightly to ensure Spike saw his remark as a humorously phrased expression of concern. "In all seriousness, you must be certain that you go into this more than simply well trained, but well rested also. I truly don’t believe that Buffy could deal with seeing you again only to watch you dust before her eyes. She barely recovered from the last time that happened. It won’t be enough for you to get in there and get her out, you must get yourself out as well."

Spike was not accustomed to HIS survival mattering to anyone. He wasn’t sure how to respond at all. The look on his face clearly showed his confusion.

"I’m completely simpatico, my powerful yet sentimental friend! It’s a feeling that takes getting used to, mattering to these brave warriors of good." Andrew patted Spike’s arm and nodded his head in understanding … and not a little empathy. "Having been rogue dark knights, lone big bads on a course of evil, it feels strange to have a team of white hats behind you, rooting for your victory. I know the feeling well."

There was dead silence around the table as everyone except Spike and Andrew did all in their power not to laugh out loud at the incredible attempt at camaraderie by the young nerd. Spike himself was fighting an entirely different urge. Much as he felt sympathy for the awkward boy, it took all the willpower he had not to throttle the lad. "Unless you want a live, up-close and personal demonstration of what a real Big Bad looks like, you’ll take that hand off of my arm right quick."

Dawn lost control first, breaking into gales of laughter. "Oh, yeah, Andy, you and Spike are soooo two of a kind!" She whooped in glee. Everyone, with the exception of the two "big bads" in question and the confused blue demon god, doubled over in laughter.

"Oh, please, I really think we should leave these two alone to continue that macho bonding none of us saw coming." Xander was beyond delighted at having such easy targets handed to him.

"Not plannin’ on hornin’ in on your romance, Whelp.
Don’t need to get your knickers in a twist. Andrew here still loves you best, right?" Spike glowered at both of the thorns in his side.

"I don’t know, Willy, I seem to remember when you were first fledged … Maybe the boy has a point." Angel began.

"Right, then. Think the Pope here needs to get a grip on the lot of you so we can get down to the serious business at hand. Wouldn’t you say so, Giles?" Spike was torn between anger and desperation for the conversation topic to change.

Giles was wiping his eyes at that moment. He hadn’t laughed that hard in years. "Actually, I think we must all have needed this release of pressure. Thank you, Andrew, for that comic relief. And yes, Spike, we shall gather what’s left of our wits and get back to business as soon as I can get the image of the pair of you playing at Black Adder from my mind."

"I fail to see how this increasingly annoying child and my pet would benefit from handling a serpent. None of the Partners are reptilian in form. What purpose would such play serve?" Illyria looked both confused and irritated.

At that, even Spike joined in the much needed laughter as Xander attempted to explain yet another pop culture reference to his charge.

"I do not understand how you humans are ever able to successfully communicate with all of these ridiculous references that only have meaning when there is a point of common understanding," Illyria pronounced.

"I think you may be onto one of the reasons for modern warfare, my lovely lady", said Xander.

Spike saw the hurt and humiliated look on Andrew’s face and his soul painted a long ago picture of a young, eager poet being made the butt of the jokes. Before he could stop himself, he offered, "That’s all right, Andrew. I get what you were tryin’ to say ‘n’ all. You’re spot on, too. Takes a bit of getting used to, having anyone give a rat’s arse what happens to you. Wouldn’t go so far as to say you were ever a Big Bad, but you did walk on the dark side. Glad you finally found somethin’ to guide you besides misquotin’ Yoda and Dr. Who. Pay no mind to this group of comics. Need a bit of a laugh, what with all the high drama, yeah?"

Spike turned to the surprised group gathered at the table and mildly chastised them. "Leave off the lad, right. He’s strugglin’ to do the right thing and means well. Doesn’t deserve to be the tag line of everyone’s joke fest. How ‘bout we get to work now."

The team sobered up at the realization that feelings had been hurt and only the former evil vampire seemed to care, much less notice. It was a humbling moment all around.

"Quite right, Spike. Andrew, I see you have your usual large number of notes with you. I know you have been working diligently on decoding that song for possible relevance. If you would like to start…" Giles nodded at the Junior Watcher and sat down, ceding the floor to Andrew.

Andrew stood and cleared his throat a couple of times before beginning. His voice began a register above his normal tone. "As you all know…" He cleared his throat again and started over. "As most of you know, I’ve been trying to discover anything in the song ‘Hotel California’ that might help Spike in his upcoming battle. That whole song is, like, crazy weird! Every other line sounds like some kind of secret message. I’ve tried to look for the most likely stuff though. The guys down in encryption have been going nuts on this. We think the ‘head growing heavy and sight going dim’ might be about the cloaking stuff that the orb is supposed to fix. We’re not too sure about the ‘pretty boys dancing in the courtyard’, but I’m working on that line ‘cause I think it’s probably important, too."

" I Googled everything I could find on the year 1969 ‘cause, you know, they made sure to put that date in the song, so it must mean something. Um, a bunch of stuff happened like the moon landing and Golda Meir becoming the first woman premier of Israel and Pompidou becoming the President of France. None of that seems like the work of evil, except maybe Pompidou. There was good stuff, too, like the Boeing 747 launched, Monty Python was first shown on BBC2, and Woodstock -- the real one." Andrew bounced on the balls of his feet with that list.

"Yeah… Woodstock …good times." Spike smiled dreamily. He noticed the stares of the others and tried to cover. "What! I like music! Me and Dru wanted to see Santana live and Hendrix was rockin’ the house. There’s more to life than killin’ and eatin’ people!"

Andrew cleared his throat again and resumed his report. "Of the things clearly bad, there was hurricane Camille, but that’s kinda like an act of God, not lawyers. The Tate/La Bianca murders happened, too. You know, Charlie Manson and his family. There might be a connection there. We’re checking on that one."

Andrew took his seat and smiled awkwardly at the group. He was still working on poise.

Giles nodded and said, "Dawn, have you anything to report? I see you have a sketchbook there."

Dawn’s cheeks pinked in embarrassed excitement. "I’ve put together some sketches for an outfit I’m going to make for Spike to wear in to battle. Willow is working on an enchantment to make it like a kind of armor, without all that heavy metal ‘cause Spike’s more the punk kinda guy." She laughed at her own joke and wondered how long it had taken Buffy to perfect the perfect pun. "Okay, lame, I agree. Anyway, this will cover as much of Spike as we can and still be flexible. Since he’s such a fashion poophead, I’m going to mostly use black denim so we don’t have to listen to him whine. We figure it can be made to work a lot like magic Kevlar. Those ‘steely knives’ should just bend once we’re through with it. I wanted to do a ski mask thing like a lot of terrorists wear and protect his curly head, but Willow thinks that might be too much. So we decided to make the neck high to prevent accidental decapitation and a dusty end." She passed the sketches around the table, watching Spike’s reaction most closely.

"This looks good, Bit. You thinkin’ of a change in career plan and becomin’ a fashion designer? Not too nancy boy for my taste and lots of freedom of movement. Won’t look like I just escaped from some stupid comic book movie either. Yeah, this’ll do fine." Spike was pleasantly surprised. "Be right nice havin’ that mojo’d protection, too, Red. Thanks."

Nina’s offer and Angel’s suggestion of how they might utilize her idea were discussed and decided upon. They had no way of knowing how closely a werewolf might move and fight compared to the Senior Partner who resembled a wolf, but any information was better than none at all. Illyria seemed to feel there were some
similarities and that settled the issue. A plan was put in motion to set up a large holding area for Nina to use at the time of her three-night lock up during the full moon. Cameras would be positioned all around to permit observation and taping for review. Discussion included how they might entice Nina’s werewolf self into stalk and attack mode without endangering any living thing and Connor agreed to head up the group working on that detail.

"I hear you offered to actually dance a bit, Pup. ’Preciate that. Glad Peaches talked you out of it though. Wouldn’t want to have to really hurt you and don’t fancy havin’ any chunks taken out of my hide either." Spike smiled at his sire’s lady. He clearly respected her show of bravery in having made the offer.

Angel spoke up and asked the group, "So, has anyone seen anything of Lilah since her little act as tour guide for Giles?" He would never allow himself to trust the lawyer and vowed to make sure no one else let their guard down either. Any mistake involving Ms. Morgan would no doubt be lethal to someone.

"Actually, no, although I am not really surprised. She is not precisely among the living and her activities need to be even more carefully planned than our own. I expect we will hear from her at her leisure and not before."
Giles had taken full measure of the lady and suspected she would show up only when absolutely necessary to further her own ends.

"I still don’t know what we’re waiting for. I mean Spike’s in as good a shape as he’s likely to get and we can put the rest of this together almost overnight. I think we need to strike while the iron is hot. Go over, get in, get Buffy out and get it done." Angel was chomping at the bit to do more than plan and research and train. There was a damsel to rescue and it was hard enough being prevented from being the one to mount the white horse and ride to the rescue.

"Yes and that attitude has led us to this point, has it not? You are every bit as impetuous as Spike. Having a sound plan and as much information as possible before it is needed will win the day. To simply charge in willy-nilly will only result in defeat and death. I would have thought your premature opening volley against the Black Thorn would have taught you something. The oracle has assured me that Buffy is not experiencing time in the same manner as we are here. She is not languishing in some tower awaiting her rescue. She wouldn’t be doing that in any case, Angel; she is the Slayer and a warrior in her own right. She may require assistance, but not saving, and she would resent your attitude. She is not the fifteen-year-old girl you have frozen in your memory. She is a seasoned leader."
Giles felt good getting some of those issues dealt with.

Giles looked at the two vampires across the table from him, noticing even more differences between the two. Really, Angel had so often behaved as though Buffy were some fragile princess in need of a white knight sweep in and save her. The worst part was how often she would assume that very role and allow herself to become unsure and weak in Angel’s presence. At least Spike had always treated Buffy like the warrior she was and brought out the best in her, the strength. They fought side by side instead of Spike trying to push her behind him as he fought the battle, the way Angel had done. "Why did I never notice that before?" Giles wondered to himself, "So many differences between them."

Willow went over some of the spells and enchantments her coven was working on for weapons, as well as the clothing Spike would wear. Spike might have a healthy distrust of magic, but under these circumstances, he was willing to set them aside and use what they had to tilt the scales to their favor. No dark magic was even being considered, as it would more likely rebound and help the three demons.

Illyria seemed to feel that Spike was improving with each practice. She was not holding back much at all and he was quick on his feet, both literally and mentally. Both of those abilities would hold him in good stead once he faced the foes alone. She had also been attempting to help the Poisons & Potions department in synthesizing the poisonous effects of the paralyzing toxin generated by the Ram. If they could find a way to build immunity in Spike or formulate an antitoxin he could have with him, it would greatly help his chance of surviving that encounter.

Spike looked at Giles in a deadly serious way and asked, "So, anybody gonna figure out how I can kill ‘Eduardo-the-too-long-lived-already’, cause I’m thinkin’ he’s gonna be a factor and bein’ immortal and all, it may not be that easy."

Xander sighed and offered, "Hey, I’m research boy on the Senior Partners. Might as well add him to the mix. I’m on it."

"Good. Well, I suggest we all get about our assignments then," Giles said to close the meeting.
"Angel, a word with you, if you have a moment?"

Angel stayed behind as everyone else filed out of the conference room. "Yeah, Giles, what’s up?"

"I need you to give a factual and highly detailed description of the vision passed to you by Cordelia. I have it on good authority that the vision was not intended for you and your actions based upon it were, to put it bluntly, rash and foolhardy. Perhaps if you relate the vision, we can discover what the Powers had hoped to achieve rather than the mess you made of it. I really do mean factual, Angel. Now is not the time for your interesting and creative definitions of truth." God, it felt good to stick a pin in the bloody pillock! It might not be fair to still blame Angel for Jenny’s death, but Giles was only human after all.

Angel narrowed his eyes and leveled a hostile gaze on the Watcher. "You know I’d never endanger Buffy, Giles. Of course I’ll describe the vision accurately."

"You have endangered Buffy, you ruddy, arrogant, fool! Why do you think we are having to mount a rescue at this very moment? You’ve done more to endanger her over the years than any other being, living or undead. Shall I run down the list for you? You have sought to reduce her to the insecure child you first met and left her with enough issues to keep a score of therapists busy and well fed for years. This is in addition to your forays into the dark side that only began with the Acathla disaster. You are a menace. I no longer care how well intentioned you may be with your soul, you shall toe the mark from here out and undo this latest danger you’ve put her in. Are we quite clear?" Giles was speaking quietly but there was no mistaking the fire within.

"I love Buffy. I always will. If not for that blasted curse, I would never have left her. There’s no way I’ve ever done anything but look out for her. I even came back that Thanksgiving, without even touching her, just to help out. I don’t know what your problem is, old man." Angel was as angry as Giles. His eyes flickered with gold as he rebutted the Watcher’s accusations and implications.

"Really? Where were you when her mother died? Oh, yes, she did relate to me that you came to hold her hand that night before heading back to L.A., after reminding her of how tragic your doomed love was and how it hurt you. Did you return to help defeat Glory or protect Dawn? Where were you when Willow brought her back broken and lost? She met with you and couldn’t even speak of what transpired when she returned. Suffice to say, her mood in no way improved after that meeting. For that matter, where were you the summer when she was in heaven and her little sister needed protecting? You have a very strange way of defining love, Angel. I think your curse is a blessing in disguise for her."

"I could ask you a lot of those same questions, Giles. You managed to skip out on her, too. You wanna go one on one with the ‘who let Buffy down the most’ contest, bring it on", Angel challenged.

Neither man noticed Dawn, who had come back to fetch a sketch that had not made it back into her portfolio. "Maybe we should all just let the past lie for a while until we get Buffy back. Then if you guys want to have a duel at dawn--or maybe dusk would be better--okay by me. I think we all have issues from the last few years, but now’s not the time."

"Perhaps instead of the fashion industry or languages, your skills would be better used in the field of diplomacy, Dawn. You are quite right." Giles looked at Angel and said, "I still expect a full account of that vision given to our Prophecies & Omens division for dissection by morning." Giles turned and stormed out of the room.

~*~
Chapter 25
~*~

Andrew pored over the news items from 1969, trying not to miss anything that might be of importance in the song clues to the Senior Partners’ dimension. "Hum, I missed that one. Anton LeVay published the Satanic Bible in 1969. That’s gotta count as evil, ‘cause, you know, Satan." He was talking out loud to himself while working late in the main research library.

"What! Who’s here?" Xander had fallen asleep behind the stacks and was startled by Andrew’s voice ringing through the silence of the library.

"Not to fear, Xander. It is just I, your fellow researcher, Andrew. I think you fell asleep, bro. Are you just tired or did the subject matter put you out?" Andrew looked at the open volume titled ‘Banking and Politics in the City-State of Florence, Italy 1500 – 1600’. "I think I’d go to sleep, too, man."

"I hadn’t really even started on that." Xander closed the book and put it on the side table against the wall. "I doubt if I’ll find the way to kill Eduardo in there anyway. Geesh, I wish I could do something a little more useful, you know? I always sucked at the whole research thing. Mostly I got the donuts and tried to hide the latest X-Men comic in the book to look like I was in research mode. I was always more of a ‘give me and axe and point the way’ kinda guy. Now I’ve got the whole pirate vibe going with the eye patch, but my buckle won’t swash. At least, no one wants my buckle swashing. I feel useless!"

"Don’t despair, my friend, you have plenty of uses. You’ve always been more than comic relief, not like me. Even Spike has mentioned how brave you’ve always been. Me, I’m just a loser who got lucky enough to survive Warren’s plans and help out in that battle at the Hellmouth. I know everyone just feels sorry for me and lets me hang around, but sometimes I get to really do something that does help and that makes it all okay. You’ve already paid your dues. You’ve been a knight in the army of good. Just because you aren’t charging in with your lance out doesn’t mean you aren’t valued."
Andrew blushed slightly at the ‘lance out’ line, realizing how his colleague might take that comment.

"Thanks, Andy. You know you aren’t just kept around as a joke, don’t you? I mean it! Giles is Mr. Business. He wouldn’t go to the trouble of keeping you around and training you if he didn’t think you had the right stuff. You’re a funny guy, true, but that’s okay. The constant fight against the big bad meanies needs a court jester to help keep everyone’s sanity. I used to be the joke boy, trust me on this." Xander felt a sense of near brotherhood with the young Watcher wannabe.

"I guess the research will be valuable if we get the right information. I mean if we can figure out how Spike can kill these dudes and get back safely with Buffy, that’s as good as if we’re actually in the fight, isn’t it? Besides, I think there’s still a lot of people who want you to swash your buckle." Andrew smiled encouragingly at Xander.
"Oooookay. Maybe I’ll not use that phrase again."

Xander rolled his one good eye. "How about we work on these research projects together? Keep each other awake that way. Not like it’s a date or anything, ‘cause, REALLY not my type, but comrades in arms and all."
"Great! I’ll get the donuts this time!" Andrew had a smile from ear to ear as he left the room in his quest for yeasty goodness.

~~~

"What does this mean, Giles?" Willow was looking at the blood ritual the Oracle had given that would permit Spike and Buffy to leave the Wolf, Ram and Hart dimension and return to their own. "It says ‘the blood of the beasts must be cast upon the jewels of light. Blood that was taken at the end of the fight’ I understand it means Spike has to use blood from the Wolf, the Ram and the Hart, but what’s this ‘jewels of light’ thing? Didn’t the Oracle give you a clue?"

"No, he did not. I sometimes think part of the purpose of these emissaries of the Higher Powers is to make all their help as murky as possible. I’ve spent most of my adult life struggling to decode one prophecy or another. Usually it only makes sense when it is happening. Not a lot of good in that if you ask me. Might as well go in blind if it makes no sense until it’s all over." Giles was every bit as frustrated as Willow at all the leaps of faith they were going to have to take on this mission.

"You’d think HE’D be a bit more forthcoming at least. After all, he had to struggle with this nonsense just as I have. His promotion shouldn’t have made him forget that!" Giles wondered why the ex-Watcher hadn’t been more clear in his assistance and instruction.

"What did you say, Giles?" Willow hadn’t heard all of what her friend had muttered. "Do you know this guy?"

"No, I don’t suppose I do", Giles answered. He consoled himself that he wasn’t really lying to the girl. He had never really spent enough time with Wesley, even when the young Watcher came to Sunnydale to replace him with Buffy and Faith. He knew very little about him on a personal level. It was clear that Wesley had changed quite a bit during his years with Angel, but Giles didn’t really know the man.

~~~

Spike feigned a move to the right, catching Illyria off-guard for a change. He managed to land a fairly powerful blow to her rib cage before she returned to her commanding position in the fight. "See there, Blue, you’re not all invincible-like after all!" Spike was grinning in spite of the trickle of blood running from his brow down his face. Being able to land any blow on the demon god was an achievement to celebrate.

"You have learned to use trickery well, Pet. This will be a good skill to use in your battles with the impostors. When you are fully prepared, you shall grind them into the dirt in my stead. You shall wear their entrails as ornaments and gift me with their spines." Illyria looked determined.

"Sure thing, Bluebell. Happy to bring you the bony prezzies, just help me be all non-dustable by Larry, Curly and Moe and they’re all yours." Spike had been sparring with Illyria every day since the plan had been laid. Some days they sparred more than once.

At first, Angel joined them more often than not and there was a certain satisfaction that Spike had been able to best his sire on more than one occasion. In fact, he was winning more times than not against Angel, a fact that explained his sire’s not joining the warriors on a regular basis any longer.

"Where is the vampire? His feeble efforts at least afforded a distraction to hone your skill in fighting against multiple enemies." Sometimes it was almost scary that Illyria seemed in tune with Spike’s mental process.

"Figure Pops got tired of me comin’ out on top. Bloody wanker never did like a fight he might not win. Liked to do his ‘art’ on nuns and orphans and such. Now, me…I always did like a real bit of rough and tumble against someone that had it in ‘em to turn me into somethin’ to vacuum up. More of a challenge, yeah? Angel’s off pouting somewhere, that or playin’ alpha dog with Wolf Girl."

"Or maybe being useful by relating to Giles that vision given to me by the Higher Powers." Angel stood in the doorway with his arms folded in front of him. He was glaring angrily at the two super-powered fighters.

"Let’s see how tired out you are, boy." Angel did a spin that was so fast as to be nearly invisible and connected his foot with Spike’s chest. Spike flew to the wall and let out a wild cry as he surged to his feet and engaged his sire in battle. The real anger lent a power to Angel’s blows that wasn’t always present. It was a good session.

~~~

Nina was patching up the cut on Angel’s cheek when she had an idea. "Honey, remember how you always use human blood to heal faster?"

"That’s okay, Nina, I’m not that knocked around. Spike can’t do that much damage to me. Plain cow with a dash of otter will be fine."

"Yeah, I know. That’s not what I mean. I remember the story you told me about how sick you were with some poison and Buffy made you drink from her because slayer blood was the only cure."

"Yes." Angel looked quite puzzled by Nina’s train of thought. "So?"

"Well, what if a vampire had a steady diet of slayer blood BEFORE going in to battle? Wouldn’t that be like using premium gas in a race car or something?" Nina tilted her head and nearly glowed with excitement.

"I don’t think anyone’s ever tried anything like that. Most vampires get dusted before they get a drink from a slayer. Usually if you get to drink from a slayer, it’s after you’ve killed her in battle, so the fight’s already over." Angel still wasn’t sure where this was going.

"What if we started to feed Spike nothing but grade A, certified pure, slayer blood from now until he goes in after Buffy? That might make him extra hard to beat and even protect him from that poison. He might even heal right away if they slice him up, too." Nina was excited to have thought of another way she could contribute to the cause. "I think I’ll mention this to Mr. Giles right away."

"Well, there is the issue of getting slayer blood. I can’t imagine them lining up to donate for Spike’s supper." Angel sounded almost surly. "He sure isn’t going to be drinking it from the tap."

Nina left in search of Giles while Angel was still grousing about the dangers of an all-slayer diet to a dangerous vampire like Spike.

~~~

The girls currently living at Council headquarters all agreed to donate to ‘Project Feed the Vamp’ once it was explained to them. It had been harder to convince Spike than it was to get the volunteers.

His new diet was causing the blood to sing in his system. Spike felt more powerful than ever before in his unlife. He was even able to defeat Illyria for the first time in a match-up. He wasn’t sure how happy he was going to be going back to a pork diet when this was all over, but Spike was enjoying the effects for the moment.

"Excuse me, excuse me." Angel had to work his way past the line of slayers as they queued up to donate to the cause. He was headed to the workout room and seeing the parade of teenage food bank donors actually caused a change of facial expression on the vamp to one of high irritation.

"Sure, like Spike deserves all this slayer blood. He killed two of them before he decided to turn all good and try to be like me." Angel was more irritated with the fact that neither Giles nor a single slayer offered a solitary complaint or sign of irritation at the request for their life’s blood. If anything, there was an air of pleasure in donating to the vamp. "It’s like a blasted church potluck down here." Angel was not a happy vampire.

"Is there a problem, Angel?" Willow heard his muttered complaints and noticed the alarming difference in expression on the usually placid vampire.

"Come on, Willow! You can’t actually feel right about this! I mean what better way to turn Spike back to the dark side than a steady diet of slayer blood. He’s liable to latch onto Buffy’s neck when he sees her instead of getting her out of there. He’ll drain her! You have no idea what slayers’ blood does to a vampire!" Angel looked deadly serious.

"That’s true. I’m not a vampire, so I can’t know what it would do. I do think I know Spike though. He didn’t drink from Buffy before he got his soul, when his chip didn’t work. Spike’s got a lot of self-control. He didn’t hurt her without the soul and he won’t hurt her now that he has the one he fought to get." She gave Angel her best resolve face. "This is the best idea anyone has had to help Spike be ready to take on these guys. Don’t get all broody over this and put ideas in anyone’s head. You have Nina; you need to just let go of Buffy. Get over it."

"That’s not it. I’m just worried about her. I know Spike. I know vampires. I know the power of Buffy’s blood. You can’t control that." Angel was adamant.

"I remember you nearly draining Buffy. I saw the results, remember. You had your soul back then, too. Buffy said you turned her down, but she hit you a few times and then you went all fangy and drank. You almost killed her! I also know that Buffy beat soulless Spike nearly to death and he didn’t even fight back, much less try to take a nip. Spike knows why he’s getting the good stuff. He also knows it will end when he doesn’t need it any more. You say you know Spike, but you’ve only spent a few months with him since you got your soul, way back before the previous century turned. I think we know him better than you ever did." Willow stalked off leaving Angel with his mouth gaping open.

"Has everyone gone crazy here?" Angel asked no one.

"Maybe not everyone. I don’t think we’ve met." The handsome stranger extended his hand to Angel in greeting. "Faith and I just got here to help with Project Rescue Buffy. Nice to meet you. My name’s Robin Wood."

~*~
Chapter 26
~*~

She was fresh-scrubbed, her long, dark hair still slightly damp. She wasn’t the young tough girl who first came into Sunnydale like a gale force wind, sweeping everything she touched into a frenzy of uncontrolled change. This was a more mature and infinitely more lethal woman. The hardness that had made for a reckless youth had grown her into a warrior woman, all hard edges and calculating glances. There didn’t appear to be any softness in her. She was the ultimate dream slayer, a weapon forged in adversity and poured into flesh.

"Yo, bad boy, how they hangin’? Up for some real competition on those floor mats? If we plan to get B back to the bosom of her family so everyone can get all squishy, we’d better toughen your ass up." Faith gave a half-smile as she threw the gauntlet at Spike’s feet.

"Ah, the Dark Slayer arrives. Wondered how long before you’d show up. Did you bring the Educator with you or have you moved on to other pastures?" Spike eyed the newcomer with a bit of suspicion. He had started out liking Faith well enough until she ousted Buffy from the safety of her own home and took the lead to disaster in those last few days before the final Sunnydale battle. One could say they had a mixed history.

Spike’s history with her last known boyfriend, Robin Wood, was not mixed at all. It was a relationship built on the bones of Wood’s dead mother, the slayer Spike counted as his last slayer kill. The best word Spike could think of to describe their connection was loathing. The treachery used by Robin Wood to lure Spike to his cross-encrusted garage, just when the focus should have been on their mutual enemy the First Evil, was not easily forgotten by the vampire. While Spike might understand the desire to even the score for Nikki Wood’s death, the timing had been a near disaster. The subterfuge used, Wood’s offer to help in detriggering Spike, had been unworthy at best. It wasn’t just the slayers who liked the sides to be clearly marked black or white.

"Gotta say you’re lookin’ wicked buff. Must be the menu. I need to worry about you goin’ all Lestat on my neck while we’re whuppin’ each other’s ass? I’d hate to have to use something pointy and wooden on B’s best chance at a happy homecoming." Faith had obviously already been told of Spike’s special diet. "Saw the troops lined up like a Red Cross blood drive. Kinda gets a girl curious, you know what I mean? Robin already got the skinny from Soul Boy. I suppose someone’ll come by and ask me for my donation before long. Think I should tell them I gave at the office?"

"Don’t need your blood. Got enough from the rest. I like mine less bitter, if it’s all the same. Well, from what you just said, I guess Wood’s managed to keep your interest somehow. Good on him. Should I start watchin’ my back?"

Faith gave a short burst of laughter before answering. "Nah. Here to help. Not you, maybe; but B, for sure. We’ve all learned a little bit of patience over the years. Cleveland’s bad enough, but add the fact it has a Hellmouth and you learn a lot of lessons. We brought Kennedy with us, too. Figured you could use the stimulation, you know, sleepin’ with one eye open. Looks like your whole fan club’s here now, Dusty. Well, ready to get sweaty?"

They began to spar slowly, each feeling out the other’s moves. The only real battle the two had ever had was the fury-inspired flash dance in the Summers’ home when Spike found out they had driven Buffy from hearth and home. That had been pretty much a draw. Now they were both getting a sense of the rhythm of the other.

They had just started to really get into it when Spike’s other dark-haired nemesis arrived and joined in the fray. Kennedy had cropped her dark hair into a short, boyish cut but looked otherwise unchanged. Spike briefly wondered if Willow was aware of her arrival.

"Looks like you’ve been working out, Spike. Maybe you won’t just be good for opening up skylights," Kennedy said as a greeting.

"Yeah? Well, you still have another century of training needed before you could ever take me by yourself, Snippy. Course, that attitude of yours was always enough to make me want to run off by itself. I’m at better than full strength, missy. You sure you’re up to this?"

Kennedy picked up a broadsword and let it answer for her. Spike easily leapt over the swinging blade before it even came close to hitting his shins. His kick, delivered while still in the air, dropped Kennedy to her knees. "Looks like YOU need a bit of working out before you take on the Big Bad", Spike taunted.

He felt the slayer blood in him begin to run hot with the challenge of two slayers who didn’t particularly like him. Finally there was that added spice of danger to add to the mix of the training. He hadn’t been holding back in these sessions, but subconsciously everyone knew there would be no dusting of Spike during the fighting. With these two, the potential for an "accident" was at least a consideration. The fighting had moved to a different level entirely.

They had been trading blows for only a short time before they acquired an audience. Word had spread of the arrival of the trio from Ohio. Even the young slayers had heard some version of the stories about this group of players and their history with the resident hero vamp. Everyone wanted to watch the
blood sport.

Spike was grinning in glee to finally be in his element. He had always thrived dancing on that razor sharp edge of danger. He never liked an easy win. As hard as it was to achieve even a draw with Illyria, there was no need to fear losing his head. Even Peaches didn’t want to do more than beat Spike to a pulp, if possible. THIS was more like it! Fist and fang--okay, no fang--but with the slayer blood in his system, his demon was sated and not raising any objections.

Faith tossed a battle-axe to Kennedy. "Girlfriend, heads up!" She was pummeling Spike, her fists connecting most blows, yet he was merely grinning stupidly at her. Faith was starting to get a bit creeped out that all her punishment didn’t seem to be weakening the vamp one bit.

Kennedy caught the axe and aimed for Spike’s back. Spike grasped Faith’s fists in his hands and swung her around using her body to block the fall of the axe. Kennedy, seeing his move in the nick of time, pulled back on the axe to avoid doing any damage to Faith. Spike let go of Faith, tossing her into Kennedy and bringing both Slayers to the mat.

"Seems to me you ladies might be a mite jet-lagged yet, else you’re getting lazy with all the help on that other Hellmouth. What say we give you a bit of mercy and wait ‘til after you’ve had a bit of a kip, eh? That is unless fallin’ on your ass is what you do best?" Spike was looking pointedly at Kennedy as he said that last bit.

Kennedy wiped the blood from her split lip and narrowed her eyes. "I can take you, pretty boy. There’s no vamp I can’t turn into ashtray filler." Kennedy was angry at the insult to her slaying skills. She was grabbing for the axe when Faith put a hand over hers and stopped her.

"Spike’s right, Ken. We’re here to get him battle ready and we all have to be on top of our game to do the job. The idea is to leave Bleach Boy in one annoying piece. ‘Sides, B’d fuckin’ have our asses if we dust her boy toy. Okay, Scrappy Doo, we’ll meet first thing in the morning. Have that demon the girls are all talkin ‘bout and the Big Guy join in the fun, we’ll all have fun kickin’ your scrawny ass." Faith reached out a hand to help Kennedy rise.

"Lookin’ forward to it. Time you match up with a master vampire, test your mettle and all. Doin’ you both a favor in the long run. See you at seven then." Spike sauntered from the room leaving the sweating, winded slayers to towel off and glare at his unmarked back.

~~~

Spike nearly ran over Willow on his way to the showers. "Hey, Red, nearly bowled you over there. You okay?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I’m okay. I was woolgathering, I guess. Memo to the Wicca, only daydream in the safety of your own room." She tried to put on her bravest face, but the smile not only didn’t reach her eyes, it was far too wide and brittle.

Spike tilted his head and stared at the little witch. He figured he had his answer about whether Willow had been told of Kennedy’s arrival.

"How ‘bout offerin’ a tired vamp a cuppa. I haven’t had a decent bit of tea since that lovely pot you brewed when I first got back to the motherland. Sure you didn’t mojo it a bit?" He gently teased.

"Sure! Well, not ‘sure’ as in ‘yes, I used magic to make tea, because I’m back to misusing magic’. ‘Sure’ as in ‘glad to fix a pot for you’. I think I can even manage to find some fairly fresh oatmeal cookies while I’m at it. Meet you at my cottage after your shower?"

"Thanks, Red. Need a friendly face and welcomin’ shoulder after those two!" Spike continued toward the locker room and the showers beyond them.

He had a feeling Willow would need an ear and he owed the witch his comfort. Maybe he’d stop by the supply room and pick up a box of tissues while he was at it. It didn’t have the same feel as taking flowers, but it wasn’t exactly a date either.

~~~

Spike handed Willow a small bag with the tissues and a few other random items that he had added to disguise the real reason for his foray into the storeroom.

"Brought a few things while I picked up some supplies for myself. Don’t know if you need any of ‘em, but here", he thrust the bag into Willow’s hands.

She peeked into the bag and saw the odd mix of items. He had everything from Q-tips to Jell-o in the bag. Her brow furrowed in puzzlement. "Wow, you really don’t shop much, do you?"

"Can’t say as I do, Red. Well, sure, blood from the butcher, fags and beer from the convenience store, that kind of thing. I usually just eat out when I get peckish. Lots of stuff out there now, not like in my day. Course, in my day, I didn’t do the shoppin’ anyway." He smiled at his hostess sweetly.

Willow headed for the kitchenette and unloaded the bag on the table before putting the items in the cupboards. The tea had been steeped to perfection while waiting for Spike’s arrival.

The fine bone china of the tea service reminded Spike of his mother’s best company china and parlors of years gone by. Suddenly the completely modern setting began to have the warm, comforting feel of home.

Willow poured a cup for each of them, remembering how Spike took his tea from their last visit over a cuppa. He was strangely touched to notice that she had bothered to pay attention to that detail.

"So…I guess you already know your ex is in the house. You okay with that?" He felt that it was best to just grab the bull by the horns and not beat around the bush. That thought made him remember how Buffy used to chide him for mixing his metaphors and he couldn’t stop the slight smile at the memory.

Willow gave a half grin and answered, "We haven’t run into each other yet, but, yeah, I heard. I don’t really know what I’m going to say to her. We didn’t so much break up as just drift, you know? I was busy here in England with the Council and the Coven. Kennedy’s Action Girl; it was too tame for her here so she headed for Cleveland. We kept in touch daily for a while, then it became weekly, then less and less until it just stopped. I don’t really know what to say to her."

"For what it’s worth, I think you can do a lot better. You’ll never find another like Glinda, but that doesn’t mean you have to settle for the Wicked Witch of the West either", Spike offered.

Willow laughed out loud at that. "I know you guys don’t exactly get along, but she’s not quite that bad! I really don’t think she needs to keep looking up to avoid houses or anything."

"I don’t know about that. I kept wantin’ to yell, ‘Auntie Em, Auntie Em’ while we were fightin’ earlier." Spike grinned widely.

The two new friends laughed over the visuals their comments had put in their heads. Spike was right--Willow was definitely over her fling with the bitchy slayer with the pushy attitude.

"You probably will be wantin’ to iron out the divorce settlement while she’s here. Make sure you get your half!" Spike was gently teasing Willow into the best mood she had been in since hearing of her former lover’s arrival. It had stung a bit that Kennedy hadn’t even tried to locate her at all since getting in late the night before.

"Yeah! She’s rich, too … I wonder how long you have to be together before you qualify?" She couldn’t believe she was able to make jokes about the break up. Spike had a way about him! The more she got to know the vampire, the more she could see how Buffy and Dawn had come to love him.

"I was thinkin’ more like half her body parts when I finish with her. Just tell me your favorite bits and I’ll set ‘em aside for you." Spike laughed at the bright blush on Willow’s face.

"I did kinda like that pierced tongue of hers. Hey, that would solve a couple of problems! I’d get the body part I had the best memory of and you’d get a silent Kennedy to have to spar with. Yup, that sounds like a win-win situation." Willow had entered into the spirit of the conversation easily. Her mood had lifted completely and she was no longer dreading the long evening ahead.

"You know, I’m getting’ a bit stir crazy here in Watchers Central. What say we break out of here tonight? I know a club where the Guinness is on tap and not watered down. Happens to have turned into a gay club since I was last in town, but I’m thinkin’ that won’t bother you any. Let’s see about findin’ you a little cutie to invite over to see where you work tomorrow. If it should happen to be the same time you have that first awkward meeting with the loud mouth, well, who’s to say how long you’ve known the bird? What’d you say to that?"

"You’ve got yourself a date! Wait, not a date … I’m a girl on the loose tonight. You okay with the whole gay bar thing? My guess is you’ll have to beat the guys off." She nearly glowed red with the blushes caused by her slip of the tongue. "I didn’t mean it that way… not that you’d be beating off any guys, just that they’d be wanting you to ….. Oh, goddess! There is just no way to save that sentence is there?"

"’S okay, luv. I know what you meant. I’ve been to a gay club a time or two. I don’t have any prejudices. I figure I can protect myself if anybody gets too frisky or can’t take ‘no’ for an answer. Music’s usually better in gay clubs anyway. Why don’t you go and doll yourself up a bit and we’ll make the grand escape." Spike smiled reassuringly at Willow.

Her step was lighter as she slipped into her bedroom and started going through her closet for something that said ‘available’ without saying ‘easy’ along with it. She hadn’t really done any dating at all since Tara had been murdered. It was time.

~*~
Chapter 27
~*~


The club was crowded with dancing couples packed like colorful sardines in a tin and tables packed with groups of people laughing or deep in conversation. The band was not currently on stage, but the distinctive sound of "Tainted Love" by Soft Cell was coming from an old-fashioned jukebox at the end of the bar.

Spike and Willow paid the small cover charge and made their way to the long, highly polished oasis with a few empty stools lining it. Spike held up two fingers and pointed to the tap behind the bartender. "That okay with you, luv? Figure you’ve been livin’ here long enough to appreciate the best thing ever to immigrate from Ireland."

"That’s fine. I like the creamy goodness that is Guinness. You won’t mind if I ditch you to cruise a bit, will you?" Willow was already feeling more relaxed than she had been in what felt like forever.

"Sweetheart, that’s why we’re here. Course I don’t mind. I’ll just stay here and keep the barkeep happy with orders and tips. You need anything, you know where to find me, right? Looks like lots of fish in the sea tonight, so go make someone happy." Spike smiled encouragement to the witch and privately hoped she would get lucky in her choice this time. The girl had as much bad luck with love as Spike had. Time to change the luck of the lot of them, himself included. Once he got Buffy back, Spike wasn’t going to just stand back. It was time to find out, once and for all, if she meant those words she’d said in the Hellmouth.

The music stopped as the pianist headed for the stage to begin the live music again. Spike didn’t look but assumed the entertainment would be worth listening to, judging from the reaction of the crowd. The cover charge had been small, but that only meant the paid entertainment wasn’t all that well known, not that the quality would be off. Spike offered a silent prayer that it wouldn’t be some Barry Manilow wannabe.

The voice was powerful and mesmerizing, Spike gave him that. There was a vague sense of familiarity as well.


"At first I was afraid I was petrified
Kept thinkin' I could never live without you
by my side;
But then I spent so many nights
Thinkin' how you did me wrong
And I grew strong

And so you're back from outer space
I just walked in to find you here with that sad look
upon your face
I should have changed that stupid lock
I should have made you leave your key
If I'd've known for just one second you'd back to
bother me

Go on now, go, walk out the door
Just turn around now
you're not welcome anymore
Weren't you the one who tried to hurt me with goodbye
Did I crumble
Did you think I'd lay down and die?
Oh no, not.I. I will survive
Oh as long as I know how to love I know I'll stay
alive"

The vocalist continued to belt out the old Gloria Gaynor anthem to getting on with life. It was one of the better covers Spike had heard of "I Will Survive" and he’d heard quite a few over the years. Spike twirled his seat to get a better look at the talented singer and nearly choked on his brew.

"Lorne! Damn, what is this, a family reunion?" The green-skinned, red-horned demon had the crowd in the palm of his hand. He hadn’t seen Spike, obviously, and was throwing himself completely into the defiant song of survival.

For a peace-loving demon, Lorne had grown quite a pair in that last battle. He had even allowed Angel to turn him into a hit man, taking out the future threat of Lindsey McDonald. Lorne had managed to survive, at that, and Spike was glad to see him looking so well.

Lorne had just shifted into his version of "I Love The Night Life" when he spotted Spike’s platinum hair across the stage lights. To give him credit, he barely faltered. Only a slight nod towards Spike gave any indication that the demon had seen him at all.

Spike raised his glass in a toast to him and turned back to the bar. He didn’t want Lorne to think he had hunted him down to drag him back into the life of warfare that the Pylean hated so very much. Better to be casual and not frighten the bugger too badly.

Willow sidled up to Spike with a cute, shy-looking girl with shoulder-length, medium brown hair and spectacular green eyes standing just behind her. "How you doin’, Spike? Anybody try a pick up line on you yet? I’ve seen a few guys lookin’ you over", Willow teased the vampire.

"This is Ciara, she’s a grad student in the biomedicine program at King’s College London. She’s going to get a Nobel Prize one day for her stem cell work!" Willow smiled sweetly at her companion.

"Nice to meet you. So, guy’s campus then?" Spike looked the girl over and thought she reminded him of a cross between Tara and Fred Burkle. She was a definite improvement over the brash Kennedy.

"Mostly. Willow says you’re an old friend and you were the one to bring her here. I don’t remember ever seeing you here before, but I’m glad you came in tonight. Willow has a quick mind and wit. Not too hard on the eyes either." The girl spoke quietly but without any hesitation. She had a slight Northern Irish lilt to her voice that put Spike in mind of Belfast.

"Nice to find Willow lives in London. I heard her American accent when she asked me to dance and thought she’d be just another blow-in. She’s got some lively crack for certain! She’s told me this tale of you being some sort of Pishogues. Divil a much if I believe her, of course. Too hansdome by far for that, I said."

Spike grinned at the girl and laughed. "Oh, you can believe our Willow. Vampire here, unbeating heart and all the rest. Do I scare you?"

Ciara looked at Spike as if sizing him up to be sure he wasn’t pulling her leg. Finally she laughed and put out her hand to shake his. "You’re not lookin’ over hungry…so, no, not afraid. Sure then if Willow finds you worthy, you must be a fine fella. Not lookin’ to have a wee nip at my neck or anything?" She asked the question playfully, clearly not worried a bit.

"You don’t seem as surprised that vampires exist as you are that I AM one. What’re they teachin’ the next generation of lab coats over there?" Spike was amused at her easy acceptance and manner.

"I’m a regular here. And look who’s singing! " Ciara pointed to Lorne and Willow finally noticed the singer. "Vampire’s not much of a stretch."

"Oooh, I know him! That’s Lorne! I met him at Angel’s old hotel when I went to put his soul back--Angel’s, not Lorne’s … I don’t even know if Lorne has a soul. I didn’t know he could sing! He’s really good." Willow was excited at the prospect of getting a chance to actually talk to the loudly dressed demon when he got a break.

Ciara was still gazing at Spike, who was looking a bit suspicious, and more than a bit concerned, of her easy acceptance. "You’d have to be daft as a camel to not know there’s more than humans on this wee planet. I’m no eejit, I know what I’ve seen. Besides, I’m Irish. We have an easy time accepting the supernatural. We even redesigned the main runway at Shannon so as to not disturb a faerie hill--
you know, an entrance to the land of the wee folk. Vampires are rare ones though. Don’t see too many of your kind about."

"We’re around. Lots more older vamps in London than most other places. We keep quiet here, not all fangs and frenzy. You know, blend in for the most part. Lots of night jobs in this century, add to that the sunlight shortage and the whole goth thing with the pale faces and no one pays any attention."

"True! Lots of soft days to keep away the tan issues, eh? Don’t be takin’ this the wrong way, but I’d love a chance to study you a bit some day. It’s the doctor in me you’re appealin’ to, by the way. Interested in the physiology part of what makes you tick. Think it over and let Willow know if you feel up for it." Her offer didn’t make Spike feel like the lab rat the Initiative had tried to make him into.

Spike tapped Willow on her shoulder and drew her attention back from the disco demon on stage. "Willow, love, mind if I have a word … private like? I’m sure Irish won’t mind, will you Mo croi?"

"Sure, you two go on. I’ll just listen to Green a wee while", Ciara said.

Willow was puzzled by Spike’s intense look. "What’s up?"

Spike looked back at the table where Ciara was tapping the beat of the song Lorne was singing. "Any particular reason you’re trusting the little scientist with a peek at all our frilly unmentionables?"

"Huh?", Willow looked completely confused.

"All the information on vampires, demons, witchcraft … the whole bloody Council of wankers! Please tell me you haven’t mentioned our current mission to the arm candy." Spike was horrified at the lack of secrecy on Willow’s part.

Willow was hurt that Spike would think her indiscreet. "Of course not! I haven’t lost my mind, Spike. When I first met Ciara, she was in a group talking about demons because she said the singer wasn’t human. It’s not like demons are some big Government secret anymore. After we activated all the Potential slayers and all these young girls turned into Wonder Woman overnight the cat was kinda out of the bag, you know? Most people eventually catch on. As far as the Council stuff, it was YOUR idea to bring a new girlfriend there to meet Kennnedy, remember? I figured I’d have to explain where I work a little bit at least. I didn’t give her any details, just that we work against evil, fighting the bad demons of the world. Besides, I kinda’ peeked into her head to check her out a little before I said a word, but PLEASE, please don’t tell her, okay? She’s really nice, a lot like Tara without the magic and all. She might be a keeper."

"Calm down Red. I trust your judgement. After all you like me! Let’s get back to your cutie before someone else snaps her up, eh?" Spike had been mollified by Willow's explanation for her candor with the new girl.

Ciara smiled warmly at Willow when she and Spike returned to the table. She had been enjoying the live music but was happy to have the winsome redhead and her vampire friend return. Willow could turn out to be the most interesting girlfriend Ciara had ever had. In fact, Willow’s circle of friend might just be the most fascinating Ciara could imagine. Not much room for boredom in her immediate future!


"So, my one night to dance my cares away and I fall into the company of a vampire and a wiccan while some green demon sings the soundtrack. Sure that would get my da in a dither if I mobiled him with that news." The girl smiled at the idea of her rather parochial father’s reaction to the world his youngest belonged to. "He’s not dealin’ that well with my datin’ choices already. Sure the big city over here is corruptin’ his baby. I should have Willow introduce me to that lovely singer and introduce him as my boyfriend next time the old ones come over for a visit. That’d give ‘em a bit of a start."

They all laughed at that picture as Spike bought another round of drinks for the girls. "Lorne’s a decent sort. He’d likely join in the joke, but I don’t think your father’d believe for long that Lorne was your boyfriend. All he has to do is say a few words and your da would be draggin’ you back to hearth and home so fast your head would spin." Spike was chuckling at the visual play of that scene.

The singer in question had just completed a rousing rendition of "Hot Stuff" that even Donna Summer would have applauded. He had glanced over from time to time and was relieved to see that only Spike, of all the old gang, appeared to be there. Maybe Angel wasn’t seeking him out again and this meeting was just chance after all.

Lorne had meant what he had said back in the Wolfram and Hart offices: he wanted out and had gotten out. He planned to stay well out in the future, too. Still, Lorne was nothing if not a social being and had liked Spike well enough to be horrified at the thought of snubbing the vampire. When his set was done, he strolled towards bar and the two girls drinking with the undead.

"Slim! About the last thing I expected was to see your luscious self sitting in a gay bar in London. Might have dreamed it but never expected it! Please tell me you’re just here for the firewater and tunes and not on some kind of Angelic mission." Lorne looked squarely at Spike, never letting his eye contact falter.

"Just out for some R & R, Kermit. Not gonna tell Peaches a thing about your gig here, unless you want me to", Spike reassured the green demon.

"No offense, Sweetcheeks, but I’d just as soon let that Auld Lang stay Syne, if you don’t mind. Still love Angelcakes, all you guys really, but it’s not my scene. I left Pylea because I wanted music and beauty. I was happy and then I met Angel. Just not diggin’ that vibe, you know." Lorne looked sad as he spoke.

"Yeah, me, too, except the Pylea part. Angel has a way of suckin’ the joy out of things and not just ‘cause he’s a vampire either. Your secret’s safe with me. You sounded really good up there. Looks like London’s bein’ good to ya." Spike could see the demon had found his place in life again and he had no intention of dragging Lorne back to the never-ending battle between good and evil that surrounded everyone he knew.

"Oh, it is!

‘My Kind of town, London is…,’

Lorne sang, substituting London for Chicago. "The only place better for a singing demon is Vegas, but that didn’t go down well the last time. Besides, it’s too close to L.A. and everything I left behind. They love me here. It’s not my own club, but soon, soon." Lorne looked wistfully around him.

"Good on you then, mate." Spike was pleased for him. They hadn’t particularly bonded in Los Angelus, but he rather liked the bloke.

"Say, I’m not sure I really want to know, but how’d that whole plan of Angel’s wind up? I know how my mission went and so do not want to revisit that little episode. How’d everyone else do? I can see you managed to make it out alive, or undead anyway. Anyone else?" Lorne looked almost afraid to ask.

"Percy didn’t make it, died in Blue’s arms. She was right pissed off ‘bout that. Charlie Boy nearly didn’t make it, but he pulled through. He retired, too, so you’re not the only one to move on to better things. He’s in L.A. usin’ all that legal know-how to help the hopeless. Gonna come over for a visit in time. I know this hot little Italian lawyer and I’m plannin’ on playin’ Cupid for him. Let me introduce the ladies and buy you somethin’ in a tall glass and I’ll fill you in on the rest. This here’s Ciara, Willow’s new friend, so all this’ll be TMI for her, but what the hell." Spike called the bartender over and ordered a SeaBreeze for his green friend.

By the time Spike finished his tale, Willow had long since taken her new friend back to the dance floor. No point in scaring off the bint all at once. Spike understood completely.

"So, you finally going to let your long lost love know how you feel? You’re going to a lot of trouble to just walk off into the sunset, my color-challenged friend. You kids need to finally talk to each other! I mean your being here doesn’t mean you’ve decided to change teams, does it?" Lorne looked a bit hopeful as he asked. He shrugged at Spike’s head shake.

"No. Buffy’s the only one for me. Not likely to be noticin’ anybody else long as she’s in this world. I’m strictly here to get the witch a nice night out and have a pint or two." Spike ordered another round and was struck with an idea. "Hey, you bein’ Mr. Entertainment and all, maybe you could help me with somethin’. Don’t panic, not gonna ask you to get any more involved than a phone call‘s all." Spike had seen the shuttered look come down on the demon’s face at the prospect of being pulled into the current mission.

"This Lilah bird said somethin’ about us not payin’ attention to our client list at the old law firm from hell. Figure it would’ve been your department. You still able to pick up a phone and chat up someone like Don Henley? Seems the Senior Partners actually live at the real Hotel California. What a joke, huh? I was wonderin’ if you could ask how he came to write that ditty and what some of the words might mean. You’d save us a month of research if you could do that and I wouldn’t tell a soul…or even any souless being…‘bout you bein’ involved. What d’you say?" Spike looked earnestly at Lorne.

"I suppose I could make a couple of calls. Hotel California, huh? Yeah, that fits. No guarantees, Sweetcakes, but I’ll give it a go. You got a number I can moby you at with the 411?" Lorne squirmed a bit but trusted Spike to keep his involvement quiet.

Spike gave him the cell phone number where he could be reached and thanked him as the girls came back to the table.

"You get all caught up finally?" Willow smiled at the two guys with the glum faces.

"Sure did, my little magical Robin. I remember you coming in like the cavalry and saving our bacon with the whole ‘let’s bring back Angelus for the good of the world’ fiasco. Good to see you again. I hear you went all Gandalf at the Hellmouth going-out-of-business party in SunnyD. Must have been quite the showstopper."

"Stopped my show, that’s for sure," Spike mumbled and took a deep drink from his glass.

"It was! I have lots more control over the magic now. Not a loose cannon on deck, if you know what I mean. Black and veiny, so not the fashion statement I’m after," Willow said with a shudder.

Lorne excused himself to return to the stage for his final set and promised to be in touch with Spike very soon.

"So, you guys friends?" Willow was surprised to feel a bit of jealousy over the idea of any other group having an emotional claim on their vampire.

"Never got close, but he’s a right one. Glad he’s doin’ what makes him happy now. ‘Preciate it if you don’t say anything to the Poof about seeing him here. They said their goodbyes before that battle and Lorne’s not looking to say ‘hello’ again any time soon."

Willow agreed that mum would be the word and turned her attention back to the girl she was starting to get to know. "Ciara wants the grand tour of the Council. I was thinking maybe tomorrow afternoon would be cool. Maybe you’ll be training with, you know, the group? I think it would be neato for her to see the Big Bad in action, if that’s okay with you?"

""S fine, pet." Spike looked at the young scientist-in-training and smiled in welcome. "Gonna be quite an eye opener. You sure you’re up for it?"

"I’m Irish, I adapt." She was smiling broadly as she said it.

"So’s the Poof, but for the love of whatever god you believe in, don’t get him to pull out the old accent! He hurts your ears and proves the meaning of brogue, if you get my meaning." Spike grimaced at the thought.

"I don’t get it?" Willow looked from one to the other of her tablemates.

"’Brogue’ means shoe in Irish … Gaelic. ‘Twas meant as an insult, meanin’ we sound like we’ve got a shoe in our mouths when speaking the Queen’s English. Course, now it just gets used to mean the accent‘s all," Ciara explained to her new friend. "Your friend is saying that this fella is a pain on the ears when he slips into his accent, right?"

"Damn straight he does. Don’t sound natural at all, much less musical like you, kitten." Spike often wondered if the history of his sire that he’d been told was embellished because the accent just had never sounded right at all.

The trio spent another couple of hours engaged in small talk interspersed with dancing before Spike and a tired but happy Willow headed back to Council Central.

"Reckon they noticed we went AWOL?" Spike asked Willow as they walked toward the entrance, arm in arm.

"Don’t know, don’t care. Just floating on the happy right now. Thanks, Spike. I feel like a new woman. I needed that."

"You’re welcome, Red, anytime." Spike felt refreshed as well. Maybe Lorne could come up with something to make the night a profitable one on the Buffy rescue front, too. It would be nice to know they had done some good at the same time as they’d unwound a bit.

~*~
Chapter 28
~*~

There was a crowd of young slayers and watchers gathered around the training room. A well fed Spike was surrounded by an impressive team of "opponents" consisting of Illyria, Angel, Faith, Kennedy, Vi and Caridad. Spike was not seriously challenged by any of them except perhaps Illyria. The extra strength his special diet infused him with made it far too simple to shrug off the attacks of the slayers. Vi and Caridad weren’t really doing anything to really harm him anyway; they liked him too much to see him as anything but a friend.

Kennedy let her temper get the best of her as usual and so her attacks were wild and off the mark more often than not. She had never liked Spike, felt he had no place on the "good guy" team and was secretly disgusted that a slayer of Buffy’s caliber had taken him as a lover. She had recently learned that the other vampire in the room had also been a lover of Buffy’s. Seems that Ms. Summers had some confusion as to what a slayer was supposed to do with vampires. Of course, Faith seemed to like the two of them as well, but at least she wasn’t sleeping with them.

Kennedy was particularly pissed at Spike for another reason altogether. When she had sought out Willow the night before, she had been informed that her girlfriend had gone out with the vampire for the evening. Kennedy didn’t think there was anything romantic involved, but she resented it nonetheless.

Kennedy had been seeing a dancer, a civilian in the supernatural wars, back in Cleveland. Gia was strong and beautiful and had been really impressed with Kennedy’s fighting skills, their having met when Kennedy intervened as she was being mugged after a performance. One of the reasons Kennedy had sought out Willow was to let her know of this change in their relationship. It wasn’t as if she and Willow were really still together, but they had never formally broken up either.

She wanted nothing more than to pound the vampire into the ground. It was bad enough that the uppity monster slept with Buffy and obviously commanded the respect and affection of most of her friends and the slayers in residence, but he had been feeding on slayer blood! They were giving it to him as if making offerings to some pagan god . It was obscene and unnatural. Even the other vampire, Angel, seemed to resent it and see it as the perversion it was. It made her sick.

She attempted a spin kick at the bastard only to have him neatly dodge the move, landing Kennedy on her ass once again.

Spike smirked at her and asked if she needed a hand up. "You want to rest that ass of yours a spell, luv? You’ve landed on it enough times, must be a trifle sore." The other slayers dared to laugh with him.

"I could take you, vampire, but they tell me they want you undusty for now. It’s not easy pulling my punches." Kennedy had retorted as a cover to hurt pride.

Spike stopped the training for a moment and looked at the girl with narrowed eyes. "You know, this might be a good time for a little lesson, what with all the little slayers about and all. Buffy once asked me about those slayers I killed back in the day. Wanted to know how I beat them. I tried to explain that it wasn’t so much about me as it was about them. Now you, you have the same problem that got number one killed. You’re arrogant. That slayer, she thought there was no way some vamp was going to take her down. The arrogance made her sloppy. That’s all it took for me to have that good day and get a new slayer called. You keep it up, girly, and you’ll meet the same end from some lucky vamp out there. Listen up, ladies, the reason new slayers used to get called, and called often, was because the previous one died. I had two to my score, but every dead slayer met something nasty in battle and lost. Remember what I just told this one here, don’t ever get thinking you can’t be taken, because you can. I think we all need a break about now."

Spike strode out of the training room, anger pouring off of him in waves. The stupid bint was going to get herself killed, and maybe some others with her, if she didn’t come off her high horse and face reality. He may not like her, but that didn’t mean he wanted her dead.

"That how you bested my mom? I don’t remember her being arrogant. Good, yeah, but not arrogant." Robin Wood had fixed Spike with a steady gaze as he asked.

"No. You’re right, she was good, best I ever fought ‘til Buffy. Had grace and skill; used her imagination, too. Not easy to beat. Some of the best fights I ever had were against Nikki. Hated the dance endin’ that soon. I was headed home from the Village that night. Went to see a new act in a club down there. Could see your mum was tired. Hell, I even offered her a rain check so the fight would be more interestin’. Lot more fun when she was on top her game, you know. But no, she had to do that duty, take me on. I was full of spit and vinegar that night. The music had been good and I was juiced, pumped up and fed. Your mum wasn’t arrogant, she was just ready to end the dance, that’s all. I don’t know why. Maybe she missed your daddy, maybe she was tired of the mission takin’ over
her life…whatever the reason, she was ready to pack it in. Shame, too, ‘cause she was poetry."

"You trying to say my mother committed suicide?" Wood looked furious. "She had ME, a son to raise, a son who needed her. She did love me. I’ve thought about what you said and you’re wrong. She did love me; she just had her duty to perform and was dedicated."

"Never said she didn’t love you. Probably did. Just not more than the mission, not enough to tell the bloody Council of Wankers to sod off and get themselves another girl somehow. That’s not a bad thing. Nothin’ wrong with dedication. I don’t think she committed suicide by vampire, at least not on purpose. She was tired’s all, off her game and not willing to admit it. A fledge could’ve taken her that night. Maybe it was just a bad day. We gonna go another round, Educator?"

"Not at this point. Like Faith told you, we’re here to help get Buffy back. We’re never going to be amigos, Spike, but I was there at the Hellmouth. Even I can’t say you’re the same creature that destroyed my world when you killed my mom. I don’t know what to think of you, to tell you the truth. Actually, I try NOT to think of you at all. Anyway, you don’t have to wonder if I’m here to kill you. That’s not the plan anyway. Spike, I can’t say I’ll ever want to spend any time in your company. I’ll never get past the ‘you killed my mother’ issues, but you don’t have to wonder about a repeat of that last time we worked together."

"Glad to hear it. Last time you put revenge ahead of the mission and nearly blew it for everybody. I won’t let you put Buffy in jeopardy and if I’m her hope of getting back safe and sound, I’ll take you out if I have to. Told you that back then, still holds true. You don’t come after me or mine and we’ll deal." Spike had the feeling that he and Wood had finally achieved a peace of sorts.

I’m here strictly to help out, and to back up Faith." Robin looked Spike straight in the eye and the vampire could tell he was being honest.

"Yeah, well, Faith’s a good ‘un. Lotta hurt hidin’ under that tough exterior. Doesn’t value herself like she should. Nice to see her treated right. She needs to feel like she matters and I’m glad you’re there to do the job," Spike offered.

Wood laughed and shook his head. "They said you’re pretty insightful. I thought they were nuts, but you nailed Faith, that’s for sure."

"No special talent for that. That attitude of hers just screams ‘inadequate’. For what it’s worth, seems a bit better of late. Reckon that must be ‘cause of you. Remember what I said about slayers though, it’s still true. When it comes down to it, they’re always alone. Don’t let it make you into an ass." Spike didn’t know why, but he sincerely hoped Wood listened to him and was able to be Faith’s long haul guy.

"Think I’d better get back in there before Kennedy convinces herself she tired me out." Spike headed back towards the training room.

"Good lesson you gave to the girls back there. I’ve tried to get Kennedy to listen for quite a while. She’s headstrong though, and thinks she knows it all." Robin shook his head with worry.

"Well, let’s just hope she’ll learn a little somethin’ out of all this and stay alive, eh?" Spike said over his shoulder.

~~~


"So? What do you think of our little organization, or what I’m allowed to show you anyway? The old Council would never have even let either of us in the door, but Giles is trying to be a little more open." Willow had shown Ciara around the areas deemed accessible to the public. She had introduced the young grad student to several of the slayers as they came upon them.

"I knew that story about the super strong young girls bein’ the result of all the fast food in their diets was a load of horse shite. I mean really, fast food, and only the girls? That whole song and dance about how the chemicals mixed with the female hormones in some girls? Nonsense! McMiracle, my rosy red arse! I think the scariest part is how many people just swallowed that lie whole. But then it does make it so you don’t have to pay attention to the truth, eh? Didn’t hurt the stock exchange for those fast food chains either. They were needin’ a boost after all the commotion about the dangers of high fat diets. Makes you wonder about a conspiracy, not that those ever happen." Ciara snorted in disgust.

"I grew up living over a Hellmouth where every demon in our dimension had a vacation at one time or another. We had more cemeteries than we had mall stores! Vampires were so common that neck injuries didn’t even make the papers. No one noticed a thing. High school principal turns into giant snake food? Must be gangs high on PCP! People believe what they want to believe. I stopped being amazed a couple of years ago when the whole world silently agreed that an isolated earthquake--one that never showed up on any of the detection devices --caused a giant sink hole that ate an entire Southern California town. No one even questioned why the town was mostly deserted by the time the thing hit." Willow shook her head in sadness over the human desire to live in denial.

"Come on, Spike is probably training right about now. That would explain where most of the girls are. Between movie-worthy fighting skills and that hot, compact body of our favorite vampire, we’ll be lucky to get close to the training room." Willow led the way to the gym.

"I may like girls, but I have to say that Spike is a lovely specimen of the male gender. Not as big a jackass as most of them either," Ciara remarked.

"So this old girlfriend of yours…she one of the ones gonna be sparrin’ with Spike? I hope you aren’t after someone too butch, ‘cause I’m not much of a fighter, you know." Ciara wondered just why Willow seemed interested in her if a slayer was more her type.

"Actually, my first love was a guy. He was a musician and a werewolf, but that’s a long story. The first girl I ever loved was sweet and kind and gentle. Tara fought the good fight but was more about the peace, love and tolerance. I don’t think she’d have ever hurt a soul except in self defense. She was special in every way. Kennedy kinda pursued me. She’s … um… ", Willow struggled to find the right words to describe her last lover.

"Bit of a steamroller? Rather like those footballers in the straight world not takin ‘no’ for an answer and bowlin’ a lass down. That what you’re tryin to say, love?" Ciara tried to help.

"Kinda. Yes, I can see Ken as a soccer hooligan." Willow laughed at the picture that presented. "I was vulnerable and lonely. I’m not sure what it was about me that she was attracted to. Maybe it was my reputation for the magic. She wanted a show, I guess. Well, she got one, more than one. Everything was fine as long as I was the big bad powerful witch. When I was plain old Willow, not so much." Willow looked sad and a bit self-conscious.

"Well then, that goes to show she’s a right amadan, heh? That’s a fool, by the way. You’re beautiful and smart and have a kindness about you. If that’s not good enough for Miss Kennedy, then the loss is hers alone." Ciara sought to reassure Willow. "Come on then, let’s let her see what she gave up."

The two women linked arms and headed to the gym, looking to all the world like long-time lovers. Some days were better than others, Willow thought.

~~~

Nina was patching up Angel after the training session had ended. He had been tossed about more than usual, thanks to the extra power in Spike’s punch. All those years of Angel coming out on top were at an end, at least as long as Spike continued to be pumped full of premium.

"Angel, honey, do I need to be worried? I know we haven’t been together a long time, but I though we had really connected and might have a future together. You seem awfully jealous of Spike being the one to go in after Buffy. I know everyone says you and Buffy were these star-crossed tragic lovers pulled apart by fate, but I never really believed it. I mean, if you really wanted to be with her, why didn’t you see about getting your soul anchored or something like that? I know you love her, always will, but you’re acting like she’s your girlfriend. What does that make me? Should I just move on here?"

Angel felt a shiver of fear at the thought of losing the relationship with Nina. The girl was bright, beautiful and talented. She had just seemed to ‘get’ him without any effort. He hadn’t really thought too far into the future, but he could always see Nina there when he did. "No, baby! I left Buffy because I wanted her to have the life she deserved…you know, a nice and normal guy who’d give her the white picket fence and PTO meetings. I guess having her pick Spike as a replacement is the problem. Damn, that boy always irritates me to no end! It just makes me a little crazy to think of him being the hero, him getting the cookies."

"Cookies? I don’t understand?" Nina looked puzzled.

"Never mind. They were never baking for me anyway. That was never our problem. I don’t know why she even said it. It wasn’t like it was her not being able to commit, it was the damned curse. She was committed from the start, overbaked even." Angel had said that mostly to himself, further confusing Nina.

"Nina, baby, I moved on long before Buffy sent word that I should. Maybe I didn’t realize it at the time, but I did. I fell in love with Cordy even. I never got to tell her, but I think she knew. Then there’s you. Something about us just hits all the right notes, you know what I mean? I don’t have to be the perfect hero for you. I don’t have to cover up my faults out of fear that I won’t be good enough for you. You accept me as I am and I love that about you."

"I think all this stuff is more about Spike and me than about Buffy. Not Spike and me as in a couple! We’ve got issues that go back to the 1800s for heaven’s sake! We were just starting to deal with them when I got sucked into Montezuma’s revenge. I still see him as the same guy I knew back then and it’s hard to see that as hero material. I kinda got used to being the one and only good vampire, I guess. Maybe I just never learned how to share. Whatever’s really going on with us though, it’s not about you, Nina. I hope you don’t give up on me, on us. I think I’d really hate losing you." Angel turned his best pleasing eyes on his girlfriend and smiled as he saw her crumble before the power of The Look.

"I’m not going anywhere, Ernie. Where else am I going to find a boyfriend who knows when to cage me up every month, after all?" Nina smiled as she tried to lighten the mood. "Well, I could probably find one, but I mean one I trust to know what I mean when I hold out the manacles."

"Not to change the subject or anything, but do you think that Connor might be a better choice in the training ring than Kennedy? That girl has some real aggression issues. I’m afraid Spike’s going to have to really hurt her before it’s all over." Angel had been thinking about this idea all day.

"I don’t know this girl that well, but it sure looks like she’s wound pretty tight. It might be worth bringing up in the meeting tomorrow. I don’t know if Spike’s the one you need to worry about though. Illyria was ready to disembowel her today, judging from the looks she was giving Kennedy. That girl just doesn’t know when to follow, does she?! Imagine trying to give orders to Illyria! She’s lucky Spike stepped in when he did or we’d be down one slayer." Nina had been terrified when the argument had begun between the two warriors, sure blood would be spilled.

"Good point. Yeah, I think Kennedy needs serious time out for everyone’s sake. She should have just stayed at the Cleveland Hellmouth instead of coming over here and trying to give orders. She even tries to push Giles around! I can’t see what Willow ever had in common with her." Angel was baffled.

"Aside from the whole gay thing? Not much I can see. Say, I like that new girl Willow’s seeing! Nice and smart, too. I noticed that Kennedy’s mood really went south when she saw them there at the session. Funny, I didn’t get the feeling that Kennedy still had any real attachment to Willow anymore. Some people are like a dog with a bone; they don’t want it but won’t give it up." Nina opined.

Angel wondered if that was his problem where Buffy was concerned. He realized over the years that the Buffy he thought he knew had long since grown into a woman he didn’t know at all. He knew that there were things he had done, choices he had made, that Buffy would never accept, never forgive. He wasn’t even sure if he would still want the Buffy he did know. He’d grown too. Maybe it was time to let go of the bone and just be grateful that Buffy had shown him how to love again. Maybe that’s what she had done for Spike, too. It had certainly led to real changes in the younger vampire. Angel couldn’t keep denying what was right in front of him. Maybe Buffy wouldn’t want Spike either, but it no longer was anything that involved Angel.

"You know, maybe I should have a talk with Willow about that soul anchoring thing you mentioned." Angel noted the flash of hurt on Nina’s face and quickly set about to reassure her of his meaning. "Buffy’s not the only one who could make a fella perfectly happy, after all."

Nina smiled at Angel and moved into his arms. From the way her kisses felt, Angel wanted to have that talk with Willow pretty soon. He could only brood during sex for so long before slipping up.

~*~
Chapter 29
~*~

Lorne was as good as his word. He called Spike with the information as soon as he managed to convince his one-time client Henley that he really was the ‘mean green demon who gets talent seen’.

"Spikey, my sweet, frothy cappuccino. I talked to Don Henley about his song. He is so much easier to talk to when he’s straight, let me tell you! I’m so glad he’s cleaned up his act. Seems the song was the result of a drug-induced dream while he was camped out at the W & H offices. He seems to have channeled into the Senior Partners’ wavelength. Scared the pee pee out of him, if you get my meaning. Anyway, he saw this blonde cutie in the dream and it sounds like your Slayer. She’s a regular dancing machine, this charmer. The whole Tiffany thing’s the son’s stuff, not daddy. The stained glass maker—not the jeweler -- they were father and son. There’s something weird about this stained glass thing that affects the mind of this blonde. It’s, like, hypnotic or something. Henley wasn’t really sure. He was trying to write things he saw and it was kind of surreal. You know, heavy with the Dali, light with the Lama. It was definitely the Partners’ dimension though. Henley is still spooked about it; said if it hadn’t been a dream, he’d have never gotten out of there. It was one of the experiences that made him decide to get sober."

"So Buffy’s in some kind of trance or thrall. That makes sense. My girl wouldn’t just be sittin’ about, waitin for a rescue. Anythin’ else important in the bleedin’ song, mate?"

"No way of knowing ‘til you get there, I’m guessing. My friendly Eagle thought it was just bad cocaine until my little jingle. He got the whole evil vibe, lots of the imagery picked that up. You might want to avoid knives though, in case you’re the beast. I may know you’re Buffy’s yummy lemon meringue, but if you were making with the bumpies in Henley’s little peek into the future, he might call you a beast."

"Oh, thanks again for keeping those luscious lips sealed about my gig here. I like my life now and my being a demon isn’t even an issue with my new friends. I wish Angelcakes well. It would even be fine if you kept in contact on the sly. You can even give my number to my Chocolate Cupcake, too, but I just can’t see Angel wanting anything from me except favors that will put me right back in the war zone again."

"What is it with you and the food names, Kermit? Spend ten minutes talkin’ to you and put on twenty pounds." Spike laughed at the choice of pet names Lorne was prone to giving everyone. Spike could almost see the grin on Lorne’s face as he tried to answer.

"I never thought about it. I wonder if there’s a bit of evil demon in me after all? Nothing like tempting people with yummy, empty calories to live up to these horns, right?"

"Take care of yourself. I’ll drop in to hear you blow the roof off and not even be wantin’ any favors. Bring Buffy by when I get her back. You’ll like her, just don’t ask her to sing. She can carry a tune, but her voice is kinda reedy. Likes those bleedin’ boy bands, too. You think the Poof was bad with "Mandy", you should hear her crucifying "Wind Beneath My Wings." Spike got a warm feeling in his belly remembering Buffy singing that number to him while under Red’s ‘my will be done’ spell years ago.

That spell was when he became utterly lost in her, Spike knew that now. He may have loved her before, Dru said he did, but that spell was his undoing. He’d give all he had, all he was, to hear her singing that bloody song again right now. Long as she was safe in his arms, he’d even listen to her mangle some damned New Kids On The Block crap.

"Slim? You don’t even have to sing for me to be sure you’re going to get her back. I’d put all my red chips on it. It’s the power of love and you’ve got it. Listen, this demon’s got a rehearsal, so I’ve gotta motor. Keep in touch, Spike." Lorne rang off after Spike offered the traditional "break a leg."

Spike smiled to himself. Vampires weren’t supposed to hang about with other demons. It just wasn’t done. That was one of the tip-off’s of something rotten afoot with the whole Adam mess, all the vamps and demons workin’ together. It was like watchin’ cats and dogs all lollin’ about sharin’ food bowls!

The only real friend Spike had in Sunnyhell had been a demon named Clem. Then there was the welcoming and highly social Lorne after Spike got his body back. He was the first to include Spike when pub crawling. Even if Spike didn’t go with them often, he appreciated the invitation. Something to be said for some demon races, in Spike’s opinion. He missed Clem and would try to look him up when Buffy was safe and sound. Maybe she’d like a trip Down Under to visit Clem, too.

His skin-challenged buddy was working with the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service in Australia. Got all ecologically minded when he saw his first hairy-nosed wombat and found out there were only a hundred thirteen left and going extinct quickly. For some reason, the little marsupials would actually let Clem feed them when the natural food supply was scarce. No one else could get them to eat. Clem liked it near the Epping Forest Station and the Aussies accepted him without question.

Buffy’d like it in Australia. Be just the ticket after this whole nightmare was finished. Spike could just picture her in a little bikini, sunning her perfect body on a beach while he watched from a cool and shady porch. He felt himself harden at the image of his golden goddess slick with tanning oil and sated from lovemaking. "Damn, gotta stop that. Still don’t know where I stand with Buffy. Last real communication were those last few nights before I turned into the Disco Ball of Death. Have to take it slow and let her set the pace. I’ve got forever, after all. Not getting any older."

~~~
Xander heard the commotion coming from the gym before he even got near the door. Lots of squealing slayers and shouting people. He opened the door, peered inside and took in the latest diplomatic mission for the XanMan.

Illyria had Kennedy by the neck and had her lifted at least a foot off of the floor. Kennedy was as blue in the face as the demon god. Giles was sputtering and trying to wrest the mouthy slayer from the hands of the deceptively strong, tiny body that housed a sincerely pissed off demon god. "Illyria, you really must not kill Kennedy. The girl may be a twit, but she is our twit. Strange as it may seem, she is of value." Giles was getting nowhere fast.

"Your greatness, please let the annoying little girl down. Believe me, we’ve all wanted to do what you are doing at one time or another, but it isn’t good for the senior officers to kill off the troops, right?" Xander hoped to placate the demon enough to save a burial.

Illyria tilted her head and regarded the humans around her before looking at Kennedy again. She came to some conclusion and the tossed the slayer against the wall as if she were a rag doll. Caridad got to Kennedy’s side just before Giles. "Are you alright, chica? Maybe I should help you to the infirmary, no?" Kennedy was gasping for breath but appeared all right otherwise.

"What in blazes brought this on? I had half expected something on this order, but with Spike, not Illyria. Have you no sense whatsoever?" Giles was glaring at the young slayer, more angry than worried over her health. He quickly noted that she appeared to be in much better condition than the situation warranted.

"This child annoys me. She shows no respect for her betters in battle or rank. She is wild, unskilled in battle and of little use. I should crush her like an insect for her attitude alone. My pet has shown her patience and more courtesy than deserved by such as she. I am not so indulgent. Who is she to give orders to a god? She thinks to impress me with her nonexistent power and amateurish battle moves. She would have lasted but seconds in war in my world. She will cause the deaths of others. I will no longer deal with her." Illyria spoke calmly and with coldness.

"Gotta agree with you there, Bluebell. Bint’s lookin’ for an early grave. I’m thinkin’ we need to do without her services, Rupes. Got a Hellmouth that needs attendin’? Hell, I’ll pay her way." Spike had come onto the scene and caught the drift quickly. Kennedy had obviously said the wrong thing to the wrong being at the wrong time. Lucky for her there were others around.

"Yes, I suppose it would be for the best. I had hoped that Kennedy could learn some useful lessons during the course of this training. It appears I was incorrect." Giles turned to Kennedy and shook his head as he gave his order. "In the morning, I expect you to be on the next flight back to Cleveland. The Hellmouth needs to be guarded and Faith is of assistance here. I expect you to use great care in the discharge of your duty there and not put any of the other slayers at risk. I think when this emergency is over, I may arrange for some anger management classes for you. You are dismissed."

Willow couldn’t help but feel a bit of sympathy for her former lover. Kennedy didn’t take criticism well at the best of times. This public humiliation wouldn’t sit well with her. Willow started to move towards the slayer when Spike put a hand on her arm to prevent her leaving.

"Not such a good idea, pet. Don’t want to become an enabler, now do you? Besides, you’ve got that lovely little colleen you’re just startin’ to get to know. Don’t put a spanner in the works because the twit couldn’t keep her mouth shut. Let her learn from this. You’ve got a soft heart and Tara would be proud of you, but let it go. Let her go. Best all round." Spike spoke softly as he sought to reassure the witch that she didn’t owe anything to her ex.

"Come on, luv. ‘Sides, think you’d want to know what Lorne came up with about the codes in the song, eh?" Spike tempted Willow.

"Ooh, yeah, our secret project. Anything helpful from the covert agent?" Willow understood the need to keep the demon’s name out of it.

"Might be. Won’t really know ‘til I get there. Looks like a spell on Buffy. Nothin’ new there. Nice it’s not one of yours for a change though." Spike gently teased the blushing girl.

"Yeah, maybe it won’t have any weird side effects that way. I’m a really good witch, but when it comes to me, Buffy and spells, not so much. It just isn’t mixy. Gee, I finally learned that lesson. Yay, me!" Willow smiled slightly.

"Well now, some of those mistakes of yours are right pleasant memories for this vamp, Red. Kinda glad they happened. Doesn’t mean I want any more spell casting on my person, mind you, but no regrets either." Spike smirked a bit, reminding Willow of the old Spike they all knew from years gone by. This time, however, she returned the grin and didn’t think, ‘evil vampire up to no good’. Funny what getting to know someone could do to your perspective.

~~~
Connor was more than adequate as a replacement in the training. In fact, the boy had some pretty good moves. He was quite the dirty fighter, thanks to growing up in the Quor-Toth dimension. You learned a different sort of skill coming of age in a hell dimension.

The boy had integrated his true memories over the past year and was back to full fighting form, just in time for his being called upon to help.

"I don’t want to be that hate-filled person I was. I don’t want to lose the person the Reilley's thought they raised. Still, this is important. I like Spike. He was really good to me after Dad disappeared. I want him coming back from that place." Connor was talking with the youngest Summers, Dawn.

They discovered many similarities between their existences and had bonded a bit over them. Both were the products of mystical agencies, living prophecies. Both had questionable memories so tampered with that reality was relative to them. They were both intelligent and resourceful as well. Neither had a
real childhood, Connor having spent his in a hell dimension with a different time flow and Dawn existing for millennia as pure energy before becoming an instant teen.

While not attracted to one another in a boy/girl sort of way, they had forged a close friendship since meeting. Dawn might have found the guy cute in a boy band kind of way, but Connor had an eye for older women so it would have been pointless anyway. Dawn noticed how Connor’s eyes followed the older slayers and decided to find out if the child of two vampires wanted to actually meet one, perhaps Caridad. What sort of friend didn’t play matchmaker from time to time, she asked herself.

Dawn was quite content to be the single girl for as long as she could stay that way. Buffy’s love life had been enough to scar even a seasoned veteran. From what Dawn had witnessed, love made Summers women stupid and pigheaded, when they weren’t crying all the time. Nope, love could wait until Dawn was a woman who knew what she wanted and wasn’t afraid to go get it.

She only prayed her big sister would return with half the maturity that last thought indicated. Dawn didn’t want to live through another bout of ‘Buffy swims the Nile’. Eventually even Spike would have to get tired of that crap. From the looks the slayers had been giving him for weeks now, Buffy could have competition if Spike ever noticed.

~~~

Giles sat alone in his study, drinking a soothing dram. He rarely drank any more, but there were occasions that called for it. He was preparing to approach the team with his belief that it was time to take action. He had watched Spike grow ever stronger. There didn’t appear to be any area of preparation, mystical or otherwise, uncovered. Enough time had passed to perhaps lull these Senior Partners into a false sense of security. Giles had taken Wesley’s advice to heart about not rushing in, but one could delay too long as well.

Tomorrow Giles would have a talk with his key players, begin to stock up on a blood supply for their champion and start putting things into motion at last. Soon his dear girl would be home where she belonged. Soon.

~*~
Chapter 30
~*~

The flight to California was quiet. Most of the group were lost in their own thoughts. Private reflections and recriminations were the order of the day. It was a somber team headed for a final battle with a seemingly ageless enemy.

Spike and the original Rescue Rangers, Giles and Xander, were there, as was the rest of the core group, including Faith and Wood. They had selected Vi and Caridad from the slayers called at the Hellmouth time of power sharing along with three girls discovered months after. Those girls--Naomi, Ming-Nga and TaLisha--were the ones who had stood out in skills and maturity.

It had been decided that a decent back-up force would stand ready, even though the prophecies seemed to indicate that Spike alone would fight this battle. Angel was once again heading up the back-up force, just as he had agreed to do when Sunnydale fell.


Giles would still call the shots, but Angel was his military right-hand man, or vampire rather. He had slayers, seasoned rogue demon hunters, one awesomely powerful witch and a former demon god at his command. While fifteen seemed a small number for a back-up unit, the skills they represented were impressive.

Angel felt a bit nervous about Nina including herself in the group, but as she had pointed out quite forcefully, she was no pushover, even not in wolf mode. All the time spent waiting for some word about Angel’s whereabouts and then the intense training time in London had shown her strength and enhanced senses to be with her even during the other phases of the moon. She had sparred regularly with Connor as they awaited the call to join the group in England. After the Reillys’ murder, they had not wanted to be caught with their defenses down. Charles Gunn had helped teach Nina some of the skills he had honed to perfection on the streets of L.A. When it came time to put the team together, Nina had insisted her skills were at least as effective as those of Robin Wood and Xander Harris and far exceeded Dawn Summers’ to boot.

Still, Angel brooded. Strike that! He reflected seriously. His son Connor had innate abilities that still amazed the Watchers. Actually, Connor’s very existence baffled the lot of them. The offspring of two essentially dead creatures was of definite interest to the reformed group. Angel stared down
more than one tweed-clad moron who made the mistake of looking at Angel’s pride and joy as if he were small, furry and had a long, hairless tail. They were on their way to save Angel’s lost love. But everything Angel cared about was on the line, not just Buffy. Connor and Nina were his future and a deep part of his heart. Even Spike, as one of his Aurelian line, would be a severe loss if he didn’t make it.

Angel hated not being in control when so much was riding on the outcome. He’d rather charge in himself than risk all he loved, especially when another was making the battle plans. As much as he respected Giles, Angel didn’t give away authority easily. Angel still wanted to be the one to go into the belly of the beast and rescue the fair damsel, with her kicking and screaming if necessary. To have to sit back and rely on William the Bloody, the wayward offspring begat by Angel’s own mad offspring, made his teeth clench. What Cordy had once teased him about might be true after all; Angel might have difficulty delegating responsibility to others. And so he sat and brooded…reflected on the upcoming battle.

Giles was going over the plans in his head again and again, making sure that no tiny detail would be overlooked. He had learned in the aftermath of the Sunnydale battle that Spike could be replied upon to do his part and do it to the death if necessary. Giles only wished they had more information about the
other dimension or that they could chance entering it along with Spike. Instead they would be left to cool their heels in a backwater Mexican town waiting to see what might spill out of a disguised dimensional doorway.

Now was the time for Rupert Giles, Watcher through and through, rather than Ripper Giles, man of action,taking no prisoners. All the victories past and future would mean nothing if he had to record the loss of his Buffy at this juncture. When they went in to face down the First Evil, Rupert had nearly made a fatal mistake by allowing his prejudices and fears to attempt to remove the one being necessary for that victory to occur. This time even Robin Wood knew better than to second guess Spike’s value to the project.

Dawn was biting her fingernails. She hadn’t done that since she was ten. Of course, that was a false memory; she had never been a ten year old girl, but she clearly remembered her mother putting a foul-tasting liquid on the nails to break her of the habit. Dawn trusted Spike implicitly and she had confidence that Buffy was all right now and would be safely returned to them soon. Still, the memories of the past that were real for her made her realize there was still much to be lost. Not everything was guaranteed to end up puppy dogs and lollipops in this life.

Frankly, seeing Spike so pensive made Dawn squirmy. Her vampire had always been restless, nearly hyper at times. The only time Dawn could remember Spike being so eerily quiet had been during his period of newly souled madness. She prayed that he wasn’t slipping back into some weird state with the weight of the whole rescue laying on his beautifully muscled shoulders.

"Hey, Big Bad, not having second thoughts about rescuing Buffy, are you? I know she can be a bit of a bitch, but we all love her anyway, even you." Dawn smiled to be sure he knew she was merely teasing.

"Just wonderin’ when I lost my balls‘s all. I mean even when I was poncy William, I still had enough of a pair to make a right wanker of myself. Knew those frilly boys would rip into me with my poems and so on, but kept at it anyway. Stupid but bold at the same time, ya know? All those months after I got my body back, I managed to talk myself out of so much as even callin’ Buffy. Then the daft boy says ‘move on’ and I tuck my tail between my legs and do what HE says. Don’t rightly know what I was thinkin’. I’ve never been scared of the boogeyman before, not even as a human--hell, not even when I found out there WAS a bloody boogeyman. I just didn’t think I could stand hearin’ her say that I was right when I said she didn’t love me. If I hadn’t lost my balls somewhere, maybe none of this would’ve happened. Maybe she and I wouldn’t be together, but I’d have been there, annoyin’, irritatin’, scrappin’ with her. I’d have been there at least and that soddin’ overblown puff, The Immortal, wouldn’t have just scampered off with the Slayer to some 70s music dimension."

"Andrew thinks that’s why he’s not with us on this mission. He thinks you blame him for Buffy and Eduardo and this whole mess. I told him he was being an idiot, that you were blaming yourself, but he’s so full of guilt that he’s as bad as you are!" Dawn told Spike.

"Hell, Niblet, I’ve got over a century of experience behind me to call on. He’s just a baby yet. He was played by the same poof that got it over Angelus and me lots of times. No need for him to expect to have done any better then we did against The Immortal. This time it wasn’t even that one making the game plan, it was serious evil masterminds. Boy didn’t stand a chance. Andrew isn’t part of this game because he can’t fight his way out of a wet bag. May be hope for him as a Watcher type in time, but he’s never gonna be Andrew, G.I. Joe edition." Spike laughed at the image that conjured up.

"Well, it’s not your fault either, you big dummy! When has Buffy ever listened to anyone? She didn’t even listen to Mom and Dad when we were kids. Mom always said Buffy was as headstrong as a mule. Nope, if she wanted to go somewhere with Eduardo, she would have gone. She might have gone just to get even with you for not calling her, if she’d known you were back. No one makes Buffy do anything except Buffy. And as for the rescue, she can usually take care of that herself, too. Don’t go all Angel on us and forget you’re not dealing with some fragile flower here!" Dawn cautioned.

"Wouldn’t think of it, Bit. I love the whole package, even the part that’s tough as nails. I know this is one of those times that prove we all need a bit of help from time to time. Big sis’ll likely cut my ears off and stuff ‘em up my arse for chargin’ in like she needs help as it is. Hope so anyway. I saw her once with her spirit crushed, don’t ever want to see that again in my expected very long lifetime." Spike remembered far too well how broken Buffy had been that night in Sunnydale, that best night of his life as it turned out. Part of what had made it the best was knowing that he had been able to help her find her feet again, bounce back. When the chips were down, it had been HIS words, HIS encouragement that had given her the lifeline she so desperately needed.

The conversation between Dawn and her vampire had been softly spoken, barely above a whisper. Still, in the near silence hanging like a shroud over the group, it might have been shouted.

"One of the things that makes me glad not to be the champion this time is the thought that I might get to see Buffy rip a patch off of you for a change!" Angel teased. "Kinda looking forward to that, Spike. Buffy kickin’ your ass has got to be one of the prettiest sights this vamp could hope to see."

"Not gonna argue with you, Gramps. If she comes out kickin’, that’ll mean she’s okay. ‘Sides, she’ll feel all guilty later and there’s nothing like makin’ up with Buffy." Spike smiled wistfully. He wasn’t about to mention to his sire that Buffy had never bothered to do any making up with him in all the years they had fought and shagged and argued and fought some more. A vamp could dream, after all.

"Yo, who’s up for some deep sea fishing when this is all done? I’ve been reading the stuff Will printed off about Baja, Mexico … okay, I’ve been looking through and checkin’ out the good stuff. Thinking we could use some unwind time battling nothing stronger than a sailfish or something. Anybody want to take me on?" Faith playfully slapped Robin Wood’s butt and quirked her eyebrows suggestively at him.

"Think I’ll pass, luv, sunlight issues and all." Spike said with a laugh.

"That’d be me, too," Angel agreed.

"Okay, aside from the vamps, anybody else wanna wuss out on me?" Faith challenged. "Come on folks, we’re in the home stretch here. No need for all the doom and gloom brooding, except for Angel, of course. We need to be thinking about the good stuff after Spike here beats these woodland critters and we’re all in Baja on the Council’s dime."

Faith felt odd taking on the role of cheerleader for the group, but someone had to do it. Xander usually pulled out the comic relief, but he was too busy teaching Illyria the finer points of poker.

"I can’t believe none of you took the time to teach Her Greatness how to play this! She’s a natural with a built-in poker face and everything. I’m thinking Vegas," Xander enthused.

"We didn’t have time to teach her much of anything, Whelp. I’m thinking she’s got enough of Fred’s memories in there to be playing you pretty good, though," Spike suggested.

"The purpose of this game is to use trickery to accumulate these wooden discs. Is that not so, Cy? If this is so, then any memories contained in this shell will be of benefit. Of what good are these discs? They appear to have no magic, no purpose." Illyria looked to her guide to all things human and tilted her head in curiosity.

"Well, they represent whatever we want them to represent. Usually it’s money, although some degenerates have been known to play for kittens." Xander gave a crooked smile at Spike as he answered.


"Neither juvenile felines nor paper currency have value to such as I. These discs serve no purpose to me. This game begins to bore me." Illyria put her cards down and pushed herself back from the small table.

"You get good enough at it, you can get lots of paper currency. With lots of paper currency, you can get pretty much anything that does have value to you." Xander tried to put the goal into perspective for the blue god.

"Will it return my kingdom? My stolen powers? My worshipers? My glory? It is of no value." Illyria stood and looked down at the chips in disgust.

"Maybe not like you remember, Illyria, but power? Yeah, money can buy that. It’ll even get you worshipers if you have enough of it, at least as long as you have it. I suppose it can even buy a kingdom and what passes for glory here. It’s a stupid set-up we have here, I agree, but that is the way it works," Xander said with a sigh.

"It is vainglorious and false. There is no true value attached to these, or to what they represent." Illyria wasn’t buying into the values of modern society one bit. "Where is the proper homage for duty and honor and loyalty? Where are the warriors heralded, the artisans decorated, power and authority held in respect and fealty? In my world, the strong took because their strength earned such rights, they then saw to the needs of those worthy yet weak. The useless were left to wither." Illyria narrowed her eyes as she looked first to Xander, then to Spike in inquiry.

Spike and Xander shared a look, each hoping the other would take on the explanation of the finer points of mercy and charity. Spike finally shrugged and dove in. "Bluebell, I used to think just like that back in the day, before the soul. There is some truth in what you said, but it has to go further. The strong have an obligation to help the weak, to help them get stronger. Makes the whole lot of us better in the end. Right, Whelp?"

"Yeah, what he said. If you do it your way, you wind up with a world full of nothing but selfish bullies fighting each other until only one is left." Xander tried to further explain.

"And this is not a worthy outcome for such?" Illyria was clearly perplexed.

"Makes for a lonely world, princess. Bloody, too. Lots of cultures have tried it. Leads to paranoia and corruption in the leaders. You’ll see the more you get in touch with that human spark Fred left behind. No one more likely to be able to teach you about compassion than that one. Try lookin’ at the
world with her memories turned on and you’ll do fine." Spike hoped enough of Fred’s character was available for Illyria to use as a touchstone to learning the basics of using the heart for something more than pumping blood. "Besides, you never know who you might count out as useless. Take the Whelp here, one eye and a bit on the puffy side, but a good man to have at your back in a fight. Most of these girls would be written off by most people, but they each had a slayer layin’ inside, waiting for a call. You never know who might be just the one you need and if you’ve left ‘em to wither, they won’t be there when you do."

Willow had been following the conversation and jumped in at that point. "Ooh yeah, like Steven Hawking! He’s in a wheelchair and needs someone to interpret what the heck he’s saying, but he’s a brilliant physicist. What if you only listened to him try to talk and saw that he couldn’t walk … you could write him off completely! Maybe I can Google up some more examples, Illyria. That might be even better than learning to beat Xan at poker."

~*~
Chapter 31
~*~

The flight had been remarkably smooth if nearly silent. As they soared over the Western Rocky Mountains, however, turbulence was the order of the day. They were all heartily glad that their last meal had long settled or the situation could have proven dire.

"Ow! Ow! Owie!" The plantive cry was muffled yet still audible to all. It seemed to come from one of the overhead storage bins. The private jet had four of these areas that were so useful for the storage of blankets and pillows.

"Fe fi fo fum … I smell the blood of a boy that’s dumb." Xander knew just who had made those three exclamations. "Andrew, don’t you think you’d be more comfortable down here and not bent up in a stuffy carry-on stash? It’s not like we’re gonna toss you out of the plane, after all."

"Mr. Giles might." The watcher-in-training whined from inside the bin. "I was supposed to stay at headquarters to answer calls, but it’s not fair for me not to be here." In spite of his word choice, Andrew didn’t sound like a petulant child.

Robin Wood opened the bin and helped Andrew extricate himself from the blanket he had wrapped himself in to hide. Wood and Xander helped the boy out and prevented him from falling head first to the cabin floor.

"Andrew, you’ve got to learn to obey orders, man. This isn’t some vacation that Mom and Dad decided you had to stay home from. Technically only Spike, here, needs to be along for this ride." Xander nodded his head in the direction of the visibly amused vampire. "We’re here as back-up muscle and that’s not exactly your talent."

"It’s not that." Andrew took a deep breath and stood up straight as he began to explain his actions. "It’s my fault that Eduardo got close enough to take Buffy. This is my mess; I caused it and should be there to help fix it. You guys don’t know what it’s like. Every day I remember what I did and come up with all kinds of ways I should have acted without putting Buffy in danger. I used to get really depressed when we didn’t know what he’d done with her, if she was alive and all. Now we know, and I can help undo what I did. Please, guys, don’t shut me out?"

Spike tilted his head and stared at the boy before speaking. "Lad’s got a point. Gonna weigh on him if he’s not part of this. Won’t matter how much we tell him it’s not just his fault. He’s gotta try to be part of it. Like he said once before, redemption’s hard, and I DO get that. Bit late to send him back anyway."

"Thank you, Spike! You won’t be sorry. I can be useful. Just watch! None of you’ll regret it." Andrew went to hug his uncomfortable champion.

"Well, see that we don’t, yeah?" Spike answered and backed away from his one man fan club.
~~~

The group decided to set up headquarters in the same small town that offered the hotel of Eagle’s song fame. It didn’t seem to be a good plan to announce their arrival by actually using that exact hotel, or any other, for that matter.


Andrew proved himself of use from the start. He and Caridad went into town looking for some property that could be rented. They posed as a young couple thinking of setting up a small business with room above to live in. The rest of the group laid low, out of sight. They waited for word that a place had been found that could avoid detection by the senior partners.

Andrew found the perfect place and, thanks to Caridad and her command of the language and natural flirtatious nature, got it at a good price. They rented a small storefront to serve the need for a training room and sleeping quarters. A small apartment on the second floor provided for cooking and bathing necessities for the group. Giles and Willow set up a communications center in the bedroom of the
apartment, while the small parlor would serve for meetings and communal eating. Their new headquarters weren’t quite as spacious as the old room behind the Magic Box but served the purpose well enough.

Spike was taking on a minimum of four opponents each time he sparred to try to keep it matched in the way they anticipated it might be in the other dimension. The routine was for Spike to prepare for multiple adversaries in battle. Any fewer combatants he might actually face in the other reality would only make the job easier for the vampire.

Spike was feeling the way he imagined Olympic athletes felt when preparing for their moment of glory. "Bugger that," muttered Spike, "the last bit of jewelry I wanted to prove myself a champion didn’t turn out so good for this vamp. Think I’ll skip the whole medal wearin’ analogy this go-round."

~~~
The young slayers were having a late snack in the parlor and trading rumors and fantasies about Buffy’s colorful history with vampires. Happily, the vampires in question were downstairs beating each other to a pulp.

Giles was beginning to think bringing all these girls along wasn’t the best idea he had ever had. It was rather like being thrust into a girls’ slumber party. The giggles and whispered gossip were enough to make Ripper want to pay the lot of them a visit. Even Dawn regressed to a chatty teen in the company of the slayers.

"Come on, Dawn, tell us! I heard that he was really romantic and mushy." Naomi had not been in Sunnydale when the First had been the Enemy du Jour. Stories had been told throughout the slayer school in London of Spike’s love for Buffy and his dying as her champion. As with all third-hand reports, there had been plenty of embellishment as the story was passed from girl to girl.

"Actually, he was wacky and scary when he came back from Africa. I mean right after Spike got his soul, the First started to screw with his mind. He was killing again and didn’t even know it. Spike was a regular Manchurian Vampire for a while. Then he was captured by the First and beaten worse than even Glory had done. Nothing romantic there, believe me! Later we were all too busy trying to stay alive for much romance." Dawn tried to sidestep discussing her sister’s messed-up love life.

"Actually, you could cut the sexual tension with a knife," offered Andrew. This instantly made him the center of all interest to the group of wide-eyed girls. "It was plain for everyone to see that the Slayer of Vampyres was yearning for the chance to take the Noble Vampire away for some private moments. The Slayer tenderly cared for her battered secret love. Most of her free time was spent at his side, sharing the cares of the day and escaping the trials of the moment. Both our heroes were too dedicated to the mission to do more than gently touch each other and gaze longingly, though. Alas, when the enemy was defeated, the brave yet sun-challenged hero sacrificed his very existence so his lady love could live freely and find happiness without him. As fate would have it, the pair were cruelly kept apart by circumstances after the hero was rewarded with his return to life, or unlife, again." Andrew was warming up to the topic the more attention given to him by the lovestruck girls. "The tragic heroine, so successful in battle yet challenged in matters of the heart, never knew her soulmate was back. He nobly refused to interfere with the life she had built on the ashes of his sacrifice."

"I heard he sent Buffy out of the Hellmouth at the last minute. He said something like, ‘cor blimey, luv, I’m just an old vampire and you’re a beautiful young woman with your whole life ahead of you. You must live.’ And then he kissed her and sent her away while he died." TaLisha sighed at the imagery.

"Oh, for heaven sakes!" Giles got up and crossed the room to the table. "I wish you would all stop this annoying treacle at once! As for those last words in the Hellmouth, I must say that as much as Spike does massacre the Queen’s English and as vulgar as his speech generally is, I have never heard him utter a single ‘cor’, much less ‘blimey’, in all the years I have known him! Have you not listened to anyone speak since you’ve been in London? Have none of you listened to SPIKE speak for that matter? No, from what I was told, Spike quite sensibly suggested that Buffy needed to get out of the collapsing Hellmouth while he completed his mission."

"Not quite as simple as that from where I stood," Faith joined in. "Buffy tried to get him to take off the necklace and book out of there. Things were happening wicked fast and everything was falling down around us. They held hands and flamed up while I was yelling at B to get her ass in gear. You could see the look on her face though…man, she was torn."

Dawn continued the story. "She finally told Spike that she loved him, but he said she didn’t and made her leave him there to finish closing the Hellmouth. I never knew that until months later when I heard her crying one night. She hated thinking that Spike died not knowing that she really meant it when she said the ‘I love you’. Butthead should have believed her; it’s not like she says it easily or anything."

No one had seen the vampire under discussion and his sire come into the room. Angel, however, was the one to speak. "She actually said the words?"

"Yeah. Right there at the end." Spike admitted.

"You never told me she said the words! Damn, she really does care about you. Dawn’s right, I was the only one she ever said those words to without choking. I can’t believe you didn’t rip the necklace off and run out of there with Buffy if she actually said the words." Angel stared at Spike in amazement.

"Knew she’d stay if I didn’t make her leave. Wasn’t her time; it was mine. Didn’t go to all that trouble just to watch her burn up and get buried under her hometown. Anyone want to explain to me why my last brush with the eternal’s under discussion here?" Spike asked the girls. He had missed all but the last part of the conversation, much to Andrew’s relief.

"Oh, just girls and their idea of high romance, that’s all," Nina laughed lightly and placed a sweet kiss on Angel’s cheek. "Not every girl gets lucky enough to have her very own vampire, you know. So they speculate. Relax, Ernie, I didn’t start with any of my stories, not yet anyway. I think they might love the story about that first date and your removable parts though…" Nina giggled as Angel, looking aghast, pulled her from the room.

"Removable parts? What parts were removable?" Andrew was beside himself with curiosity.

Spike was grateful to have the attention of the hormonally charged girls shift away from him for the moment. He was really starting to like Wolf Girl more and more!

"Yes, well, I suggest we all turn in and get some much needed sleep. Spike, the blood is warmed and ready, so you can recoup from tonight’s practice battles. Are you certain you want to enter the dimension tomorrow? No one will object if you wish to prepare further." Giles looked directly at the battle-weary vampire in front of him.

"No. Tired of waitin’. Want to get on with this. Get Buffy back with her little sis where she belongs. Don’t know just what I’ll be facin’, but all these mock battles can’t get her back, only the real thing. Time to do what we came for." Spike headed for the kitchenette and drank the healing blood. He was never very patient to begin with and when it came to Buffy, even less so. Time to face whatever it was going to take to rescue the woman he would always love.

Dawn had been watching Spike, noting how tired and worried he looked. She had just retold what she knew of that last battle in Sunnydale, the one where they had lost Spike while winning the war. It was so wonderful having him back in her life and now he was going to go off and play the hero again. Dawn couldn’t stand the thought that she might lose him again.

"I’m not doing this again! I like to believe that I learn from my mistakes." Dawn had a look of determination on her face as she made the announcement, apropos of nothing.

"What’s that, Bit?" Spike asked, since the only thing certain was that Dawn’s words had been directed at him.

"In Sunnydale, before you closed the Hellmouth, I held it in, kept it up." Spike still looked completely puzzled as Dawn continued. "I was so mad at you for leaving the summer before. Yeah, I was pissed at what went down between you and Buffy, but I was really mad that you left me without even a note good-bye. It was like I didn’t matter at all. I was just Buffy’s little sis that you pretended to care about to get to her. You finally came back all crazy and I wanted to make you hurt, too. I was really nasty to you all that time, even that day when we headed for the High School and the last battle. I thought there’d be time later, after…you know. But there wasn’t an after. Well, there was, but I didn’t know about it. Then when I did see you again, I found out that I almost lost you again in that alley in L.A. I’ve learned, Spike.

"You’re getting ready to go in and fight these three Super Big Bad’s all by yourself. I won’t let you go in there without making sure we’re all clear. I won’t wait to say stuff for some ‘later’ that might not come. Being bratty to you, especially after it was clear that Buffy wasn’t all freaked by you being around her, was wrong. Trying to hurt you when you were already obviously hurting was wrong. That was the worst thing I’ve ever done and I won’t let myself do that again."

Spike tilted his head slightly, then gently tucked some whisps of Dawn’s hair behind her ear. "Bit, that’s all ancient history. Hell, that’s older than I am! It also isn’t the worst thing you’ve ever done."

"What do you mean? I can’t think of anything meaner I ever did to anyone." Dawn was happy Spike didn’t seem to hold any bad feelings for her turning her back on him in the months between his ensouling and the end of Sunnydale. Still, the way he had said it made her sure that he had something to spill out of the worm can that was their collective past.

"Not just you, Bit, the whole lot of you Sunnydale crew," Spike began.

"Now, Spike, I find it quite unfair for you to hold everyone responsible for my decision to eliminate you that way. Only Robin and I were involved, surely you know that." Giles had been listening to the conversation and felt a prick of conscience at the reminder of those troubled times.

"Not talkin’ ‘bout that. I get THAT. Didn’t like it much but could see your way of thinkin’ even back then. Told you that. Would’ve staked myself if I thought I’d be a threat to Buffy back then. Thought about it after the First said its piece about it ‘not bein’ my time yet.’

"No, I’m talkin’ ‘bout all of you tossin’ the Slayer out when you didn’t like the way she was leadin’. I mean here she was openin’ her house to every potential slayer on the planet you could dump on her, feedin’ ‘em, sharin’ with ‘em, trainin’ ‘em and most of all, protectin’ ‘em. You lot seemed to forget that last bit. Protectin’ ‘em. The First was out there plannin’ to do away with the whole
slayer line, Buffy included. The town was crawlin’ with Bringers and those bleedin’ cave-vamps, all out lookin’ for anyone slayer-like to off. So all of you decide that’s the right time to toss Buffy out on the street? Where was HER protection? Who was gonna make sure she was okay?

"None of you seemed to get it, how vulnerable she was. You just turned her out of her own house while the town was occupied by the enemy and elected yourself a new leader. The least you could’ve done was let her stay safe in her own home, the home she was payin’ the bleedin’ mortgage on. That was the worst thing any of you ever did. I hope you all managed to apologize to her after for countin’ her life so cheap then."

"I never wanted to be in charge. I was against tossin’ B out, but we had a mutiny on our hands there. She was cool about it, all things considered. Told me not to be afraid to lead the girls. Look, loverboy, we were all tense. No one wanted B hurt. I made sure we kept an eye on her, watched her back and all." Faith still felt guilty about the coup d’etat that had left her a reluctant general.

"You already made your position clear on that decision when you beat up on Faith afterwards," Robin stood up for his lady.

"She started it. Wanted to beat on more than just the Cowgirl at the time. Back down, Black Beauty, your rider’s safe enough from me now. Still think the lot of you owe Buffy for that bit of betrayal." Spike was angry all over again at the memory of how vulnerable and lost they had left his Slayer.

Faith flushed at the reference to her come-ons to Spike, both in Buffy’s body and hinted at in the basement when she had arrived to join the battle against the First Evil. "Hey, Bleach Boy, let’s just tone it down. No point in getting all pissy the night before the battle. We’re all on the same side here. You’re right, it was wicked dangerous to let B leave like that. Lots of bad choices went down about that time, we were all doin’ the stupid. What say we close the book on that whole deal, at least until B’s back here to put in her own two cents?"

Dawn had started to cry quietly during the discussion. "I’m the one. I told her to leave. I think she would have stayed, maybe even fought for her plan, if I hadn’t said what I did. I was scared. I was so afraid she was going to go back to the vineyard and get killed. I guess I hoped she’d be out of the battle and safe or something. I never even thought about how dangerous it was out there. I’m a bad
sister."

"Hey, Bit, none of that!" Spike felt ashamed for making his Niblet cry. It was all old history, after all. "Buffy never held it against you. I’m sure she knew you weren’t wanting her to get hurt. Don’t listen to me. When have I ever made any sense, eh? I’m just the lovesick vamp, right? Don’t cry, sweeting, you break my heart when you cry."

Dawn went into Spike’s outstretched arms and let out all the emotion she had been holding in for what seemed like years. He held her close and whispered nonsense into her hair as the rest of the group headed downstairs, leaving them alone.

"I’m sorry, Bit. Should cut out my tongue, I should. Never meant to hurt you. I’m a bad, rude man. Don’t cry. I’ll get big sis out and home and she can kick my ass for upsettin’ you in front of everybody, okay?"

Dawn sniffled and ran her hands through her tear wet hair. "No, you were right, Spike. Don’t apologize. That was the worst thing any of us did. You bring her home and we’ll finally get that chance to make it up to her, okay? We’ll all get a chance to fix our screw-ups. I know she wants another chance to talk to you, too. We can all jump out of the Nile together and grow up, start fresh. But Spike, you have to come back, too, you know. I can’t lose you again. Neither can Buffy. Besides, who else has the guts to call us all on our stupidity? We’ve all missed you, Spike."

"Yeah, well, your loss was Angel’s gain. Musta been a reason for my being sent back to him. Course, I had lots of stupidity to point out to that merry group, too," Spike teased. "My lot in life, I suppose, pointin’ out the error in ways to the lesser folk."

Dawn playfully tapped his arm and walked with Spike towards the stairs. "So…tell me about those removable parts Nina hinted at!"

~*~*~*~*~*~
chapter 32
~*~*~*~*~*~

Todos Santos was a sleepy town filled with the long lost charms of old Mexico. The storefront leased by Andrew and Caridad drew no real attention in a community long in the habit of staying out of others’ business. The sun was setting as Spike suited up in the special clothes concocted by Dawn and Willow.

Spike laughed to himself as he realized that Dawn had to have had Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible on her mind as she designed the snug-fitting black outfit. "Not hangin’ from any big rubber bands with high tech headgear, no matter how much the Junior Watcher might beg," Spike mumbled. The clothes covered him well, even up around his neck. Willow had assured him that the spells worked on the material combined with the charms sewn in would make it harder to penetrate by any non-magical weapon or poison. His boots had been similarly magicked by the uberwitch.

His bare head was as vulnerable as ever and his hands would be uncovered. "Not goin’ into battle trussed up like a mummy in black wrappin’s. Plan to kill these buggers but not with laughter. Looking for a good bloodlettin’ on account of them takin’ my lady." Spike had a small argument with Dawn over the issue while the plans for the costume were being discussed. He was touched by the depth of Dawn’s worry about his survival. This was so different from the last time he went into battle with these particular people.

The slayer blood Spike had fed upon was singing in his system, filling him with power and strength. He was as ready for battle as possible.

"Don’t you dare not come back, you hear me!" Dawn hugged him tight enough to break the ribs of a human. "I fully expect to be refereeing between you and Buffy by tomorrow. In fact, I plan to go buy some earplugs while you are gone just to get ready."

"This axe may be small, but the blade is able to slice through steel with no trouble at all. Oh, and it fits on the belt right here." Willow attached the weapon to the hook on Spike’s belt. "Got a couple of special swords for you, too. Amazing what you can find on eBay when you know how to tell the real deal! They hook on your back here so you can just reach over your shoulder and use them, one at a time most likely."

"Ooh, you could use one in each hand like that Saracen fighter in the Robin of Sherwood series! You’d look so totally cool that way!" Andrew got a dreamy look on his face at the thought of his vampire hero wielding two swords in combat. "Ahhh, Nasir!"

"Calm down, pup. I’m in this to win, not for the show. ‘Sides, no one’ll be there to see anyway." Spike laughed at Andrew’s eager expression. "I’ll use whatever works to get the job done, even a bloody chamber pot if that’s all there is around to bash with."

"What’s a chamber pot?" Andrew looked to Giles for an answer.

"Nothing you need concern yourself with." Giles turned to Willow and reverently touched the two swords she extended to Spike. "Are you certain these are the authentic swords? Dear Lord, I didn’t even think them real, merely legend."

Willow smiled confidently and replied. "Most legends have some basis in reality. Look at vampires, for goodness’ sake. The whole Council is built on belief in legends, Giles. I was surprised the Council hadn’t collected these years ago.

"This is called Caladbolg in Irish, or Caledvwlch in Welsh. It was the sword of Cuchulain and Fergus Mac Roich in Celtic history. It’s supposed to ‘consume everything’ and be able to even cut through a hill! The Welsh legends of King Arthur call it Caliburn and it’s the sword called Excalibur in the other Arthurian legends." Willow handed the gleaming word to Spike, who looked at it in some awe before sheathing it on his back.

"Feels a bit wrong…a Big Bad like me havin’ such a weapon handed to me to use." Spike was feeling humbled at the history now resting between his shoulders. "Not exactly round table material here."

"Nonsense! They were flawed characters also, Spike. Facing the challenges in front of them caused them to reach beyond their own natures. Sounds quite like you, actually," Giles responded, much to Spike’s surprise.

Willow drew out a much older, less shiny sword and handed it to Spike for the other sheath. "This one is called Hrunting. It’s kind of tricky. It has great power and is never supposed to fail its user. Um, there was this one time though …" Willow had a slightly pained look on her face as she recalled the one instance the sword had failed badly. "When Beowulf went under the lake to kill Grendel’s mother, it didn’t work. So, okay, not invincible, but you’re darn tootin’ it’s powerful! You might want to save that one just in case. I tried to find out more about Grendel’s mother and why it didn’t work on her, but there’s just no real data now.

"I tried to buy Balmung, the sword Sigurd used to kill the dwarf Fafnir when he was a dragon. It was supposed to be able to cleave an anvil! Some jerk in Denmark claimed he had it, but it wasn’t the real thing. Those swords of Wayland all have a special magic imprinted on them. Can’t fool me!" Willow
looked over Spike’s new weapon-enhanced battle costume with satisfaction. "Wish we could have gotten some of the armor he made, that would have been mega cool."

Spike smiled at the little witch and reassured her that he felt more protected then he ever had been in battle. "Besides, all that metal’d be a dead giveaway that I wasn’t exactly just wantin’ to check into the bloody place. Least this can be hidden a bit with my duster, yeah? Gonna pack some smaller weapons in that small carry on bag and I’ll be ready to go check in to the famous Hotel California, complete with useful luggage."

Angel approached the warrior with a small thermal bag. "Here. More premium blood in case you need it when you get out of the dimension. Should be enough to jump start you ‘til you get back here with Buffy."

"Thanks, Gramps. Mighty nice to know you care." Spike knew how hard it was for Angel to let him, of all vamps, be the one to go into battle with Buffy as the prize. "I’ll get her out. No worries, mate. Learned from the best, didn’t I? Had to be a right good scrapper, havin’ the great Angelus on my arse all those years."

Angel clapped him on the back where no swords hindered a hand. "Good luck, boy. I really mean it. I want you back here too, preferably in one piece."

"That makes two of us then." Spike extended his hand and looked Angel in the eye as they shook hands for the first time in complete accord.

~~~~

Spike looked over the small hotel of Eagles song fame with his head at an inquisitive tilt. It wasn’t particularly impressive. A simple, two-story stucco building with palm trees lining the sidewalk in front. The upper floor boasted a balcony that ran the entire length of the building, as the porch on the ground level did as well. It could have been a modest building anywhere in Mexico or parts of the American Southwest. There was nothing to indicate any supernatural element to it. Nothing special about it at all. Nothing except it held the doorway to Spike’s beloved and that made it the most important building ever erected.

Spike entered and headed for the desk with the nameplate labeled ‘El Recepcionista, Miranda Gomez de Calderon’. The pretty, dark-haired clerk smiled in greeting as Spike approached.

Spike brushed off his Spanish and asked for a single room with a bath. "No tengo una reservacion. Cuanto cuesta coda noche?" He shrugged apologetically when admitting to having no reservation. Senora Gomez, however, was unconcerned and told him the nightly room rate, then asked for his passport and a deposit.

William Rice-Stoker was directed to the escaleras and given his room key. The hotel didn’t have a need for an elevator and the stairs were wide with a short enough rise to make the trek up them not too difficult for even the weariest traveler.

Spike took his two small bags and headed for the room he would officially be residing in. After storing his weapons bag and blood stock and looking about his plainly appointed room, he decided to take a walk down the hall to see if the hidden room would show up with a quick pass.

At the end of the hallway was a small closet, most likely a utility closet used by the maids for storing the supplies needed to keep the small rooms tidy and fresh. Spike opened the door and peered in. The orb sewn into his front pants pocket did its job and there, at the back of the small closet, unseen by the naked eye, was a door with the numbers 666 emblazoned on the front. "Well, looks like I pick door number two then." Spike went back to his room to select what weapons he planned to take and return at once to his real destination. He felt as ready as he would ever be. Time to go get his girl.

~*~
Chapter 33
~*~

The heavily armed vampire took a deep, unnecessary breath and opened the door to the hallway, where he nearly collided with a slightly frazzled Giles. "Watcher! What are you doing here? Any problem with the plan?"

"No, Spike. All seems fine, as fine as we can be certain of at least. No, I am here for three reasons, actually. First, I can better tell from here if the back-up force will be needed. Then I have but to signal and the rest can be here in a flash. Second, I wish to be nearby when you bring Buffy home. I realize I may be selfish. Dawn, after all, has a closer tie to Buffy. Buffy and I haven’t been as close in these last few years, regrettably. Still, she is precious to me. The closest thing to a child, really. I’ve missed her greatly and as it fits well with our plan, I choose to live up to my title of Watcher and watch, if you will. Thirdly, I wish very much to be your first line of support, Spike.

"I think we have established a new relationship based on mutual trust here of late. I cannot undo our troubled history, but I can build a new future, beginning here and now. I came to wish you well, Spike, and be here if things go sour.

"Am I to assume that you have already located the hidden entrance to the Senior Partners’ dimension?" Giles turned hopeful eyes to Spike.

Spike shrugged and replied, "Yeah. Hard to hide it in such a small place, thanks to the handy dandy orb-o-matic the oracle bloke gave you. It’s in the janitor’s closet. Figures, anything to do with cleanin’ up after people is usually as good as an invisibility ray, even without the magic." Spike chuckled a bit. "It’s how lots of demons blend in. Dress like a typical homeless sod and no one even sees you."

Giles held out a small electronic device to Spike. "Andrew insists you need some high tech weaponry as well. This is a taser-like device that should incapacitate a foe if you press it on his skin. That does, of course, necessitate getting in close contact. I’m not sure how helpful it might actually be, considering that factor, but I have delivered it as promised."

"Might be just the trick to use on Eduardo the Unkillable. We never did find the Achilles heel on that bugger and I can’t see him just handin’ Buffy over. Won’t mind shootin’ a few volts into that great git." Spike had a wistful look on his face at the thought of tasering the Immortal and watching him writhe. "You lot might want to keep lookin’ for a loophole in his "Get Out Of Death Free" card or we’re just gonna have to keep dealin’ with him over and over. Slippery character and full of nasty tricks; best take him out durin’ this war if we can."

"Excellent point. Naturally we will be continuing to look into a way to permanently remove him from the scene. It is my fond hope that the removal of his masters will put a period to his contract, and thus his immortality." Giles agreed with Spike in his assessment that the Immortal was not someone to take lightly. He had managed to avoid payment for his supernatural gifts for several hundred years before the bill came due.

"That’d be a bit of alright, Rupes, but we both know it never seems to be that easy. I want this to be the end of that particular Renaissance man. He keeps fuckin’ me over, especially going after my women. Needs put down," Spike spat out. Thoughts of Dru and now Buffy were in the forefront of Spike’s mind at that moment. Memories of time spent in a potentially lethal jail cell on a trumped-up charge of tax evasion while The Immortal was screwing Dru’s brains out weren’t any less painful all these years after the event.

"I concur. We will find out how to make certain he pays for his crimes. In the meantime, I quite agree that Andrew’s bit of hardware might be just the ticket to immobilize him." Giles would have preferred a more certain plan to take out this particular character, but the taser would have to do for now.

Giles settled into the room to prepare for his duty as lookout. Xander was in position to see the prearranged signal should Giles give it. The entire back-up team could be at the hotel within minutes.

"Wish me luck, old man." Spike headed for the door.

"Godspeed, Spike." Giles had never meant that phrase more.
~~~

Spike hadn’t been sure what to expect on the other side of the door of Room 666. What he did not expect was to find himself in the lobby of a hotel quite similar to the one in his own dimension. The rather seedy appearance was the major difference. The lovely Senora Gomez was nowhere to be found. Instead of the well-manicured and coifed clerk at the other hotel, there was a thin, balding man with bird-like features and jerky movements. He had something of a tic that caused his head to spasm to the left frequently. He appeared to be startled at the sight of the black-clad vampire with all the shiny cutlery on him.

"Welcome to the Hotel California. How may I help you?" He said in a raspy voice.

"Yeah, know the song. Check out any time I like, blah blah blah. Where’s the Senior Partners’ suite, and don’t even pretend you don’t know what I’m talkin’ about." Spike put on his best "don’t fuck with me" face.

"Are you expected? I don’t have any appointments listed for any of the Partners. Perhaps you would like to leave your card? I could get you settled in a room to await their availability. We have room service as well." The clerk ran a finger along his collar as if it had tightened appreciably.

"This is a surprise visit. Won’t be needin’ a room, just three body bags, four if you try to play hero." Spike advanced on the man and glared at him.

"I’ll just ring them, shall I?" The man picked up an old-fashioned telephone and made a move to place the call. Spike’s hand shot out and ripped the telephone cord from the wall, wrapping it around the startled clerk’s neck in one quick movement.

"I think you missed the word ‘surprise’ in my comment. Now, you be a smart little rodent and point me to the right room and you might just survive this little massacre." Spike tightened the cord enough to make his point to the mousy clerk.

The man gagged and pointed to his throat to indicate his inability to breathe, much less speak. Spike loosened the cord enough for the man to choke out a phrase. "Mr. Hart is in, I believe. He is in the owner’s suite on this floor. Please don’t kill me; my contract has me scheduled for a worse place than this hell-hole when I die!"

"You and me both, so I’ve been told. Hey, maybe we’ll be neighbors! Just in case, neighbor, better not jerk me around. I’ve got a long memory." Spike slipped into game face for a moment to underline his point.

The already pale man lost even more color and gulped. "No! I’m being square with you. I got no reason to be loyal to those three. They stuck me here in this pit and just ‘cause I skimmed a few lousy grand off one of their operations. I’m a lawyer, Harvard class of ’08, not some hotel clerk. No sir, no loyalty here!"

"Before I help you into a little nap, you can answer a couple of questions. How long a nap will depend on how good your answers turn out to be." Spike had pushed the little man down on a chair and was towering over the twitching stool pigeon, leaning towards him in intimidation.

"Blonde cutie, early twenties, expressive eyes and kick-ass attitude. Woulda checked in with a slick Italian show-off. Where can I find them? I’ll be wantin’ the suite numbers for the other two Partners, too." Spike saw a flicker of fear in the clerk’s eyes as he realized the full extent of Spike’s intentions.

"Mr. Wolf and Mr. Ram have their suites on the top floor. Mr. Hart is the most reasonable of the three. Look, if they misrepresented you in a case or something, I’m sure they’ll make it right. You want your lawyer fried, he’ll fry. They run a tight ship. Customer’s always right, that’s their motto. As for the blonde dame, yeah, she checked in with Eduardo d’Medici, old client of the firm. They have the third suite on the top floor, but she’s probably dancing in the courtyard about now. Lots of pretty, pretty boys out there that she calls…" Spike tightened the cord a bit.

""I said I know the bloody song. What about Mr. Not Immortal For Much Longer? He out there with her?" He loosened the cord so the stoolie could take a breath and talk.

"Yes. No. Maybe. Look, I don’t know, okay? He’s been spending a lot of time with Mr. Ram. I don’t think he was expecting to have to stay here so long. Not exactly his kind of hotel, you know. Not a five star joint. Eduardo’s none too happy. Complains all the time, makes demands of the staff. Not that interested in his little friend either. She’s in a world of her own and Eduardo’s used to being the center of attention. He was one of my clients for a while when I headed the Milan branch. Likes to come down here and rub it in that I’m stuck here now."

Spike cut off the blood supply to the informative clerk’s brain long enough to knock him out. A few minutes and some duct tape later, the former lawyer was rolled nicely into a small closet and locked in.

"Right then, off to see the bleedin’ Green Man. Crazy world when a vamp takes Excalibur into a fight with Herne the Hunter. Owner’s suite it is,"

Spike guessed the unmarked door off the office area was the most likely entrance to the suite housing the deer-headed demon. "I’m guessin’ stealth is my best plan ‘round ‘bout now. No point in lettin’ the other Partners in on our little consultation. Think I’ll go for the polite surprise approach." He took the axe from its hook on his belt and held it out of the line of sight of anyone who might answer the door.

As ready as he’d ever be, Spike knocked.

"Dilby, I told you I wasn’t to be disturbed!." The Senior Partner was speaking as he opened the door. He had a comely Hursgrath demon tucked into his right side and a highball glass in his left hand. It was obvious that the demons were NOT discussing any pressing legal matters. Hursgrath demons were well known for their oral skills and not of the verbal variety.

"What the hell? Who let you in here, vampire? If you’re here to plead for mercy for that trollop of a slayer to be released or make some deal to get her out, you’re sadly mistaken." Mr. Hart gave his playmate a slight shove into the hallway. "Later, ducks. I have an intruder to dust. This won’t take but a moment. Be sure to save my place."

Spike pushed forward, shoving the demon into his suite. Spike shut the door with his foot as he cleared the entrance after Hart. The suite was much larger than it appeared possible from the outside. It was also far more posh than the seedy lobby had indicated. Clearly this Senior Partner had a taste for expensive art and furnishings.

Spike eyed his first real opponent and smirked. "You know, I’m kinda glad you’re the first lucky customer. Got me some personal issues; not too fond of antlers. Was kinda worried I might have some sentimental problem in takin’ out Herne, bein’ English and all. Instead you’re nothing but pretend, not some god of old Britain. Fact is, you just put me in mind of another antlered, rutting wannabe I met in Brazil, only less drippy. Let’s dance, Rudolph, or are you one of Santa’s other livestock?"

Spike blocked the way to the door and the hallway beyond it. The last thing he wanted was to alert Hart’s two other partners and turn this into a three-on-one. Hopefully, the demon girl with Linda Lovelace talents was waiting in her room for her starring role in "Animal Planet Goes NC-17".

Hart lowered his head, stag style, and prepared to charge at the vampire. Spike pulled the axe into fighting stance and prepared for the blow. The antlers hit Spike just under his armpits, slashing at his sides at rib level, as Hart tossed Spike against the far wall.

Hart snorted in triumph and raised his head to sniff the anticipated, delicious smell of blood. He looked puzzled as he noticed there were no deep gashes spilling life’s elixir on his lovely marble floor.

Spike surged to his feet and shook his head as if to clear it. "Good work, Willow and Dawn! Score one for the home team," Spike said to himself.

He turned to the demon and taunted him. "Think I saw that move on Wild Kingdom. Gonna snort and rush me again? Come on, give me a little challenge, will you? I’ve been trainin’ too hard for you to turn into just another nancy demon with a coat rack on your head. Come on, Bambi, show us what you got."

Spike launched himself at the demon, using a sweeping kick to knock Hart on the side of his shins. The demon went down hard but was up again almost as fast. Spike clipped the axe back on his belt to free up both hands for the pleasure of pummeling the antlered demon.

Hart had long legs with cloven feet to match his deer’s head. He also had speed and agility to match any vampire. He kicked back at Spike as soon as he regained his feet, knocking Spike into the large, sunken entertainment area. As Spike hit the step backwards, he lost his balance and fell to the carpeted area, landing on the edge of a glass-topped coffee table.

The base of the table was wrought iron and Hart grabbed a leg of the broken mess as he leapt to put a finish to the annoying undead before Spike had a chance to stand again. He managed to get a good heft to the table leg as he swung and connected with Spike’s skull.

The Slayer blood raging in Spike’s system kept the damage at a minimum and the adrenaline helped to propel him to his feet before the table leg could crash down again.

As he rose to his feet, Spike unclipped the axe and neatly lopped off the left antler of the gloating demon. "Gaaa! You miserable halfbreed bastard! It takes years to grow a rack like this! I was going to stake you, but now I think I need to do you slowly." Hart advanced on Spike, glowering in rage.

"What’s the matter? ‘Fraid our demon whore’ll start callin’ you Stumpy? Maybe she already does, huh?" Spike threw the insult with deadly aim.

The enraged Senior Partner lowered his head, tilting the longer side towards Spike, and charged once again.


Spike dropped and rolled out of his range, picking up the severed antler as he rolled. He now wielded the axe in one hand and the demon’s own antler in the other.

Spike lunged with the longer antler, aiming at the demon’s midsection. He pierced it, although not deeply. Before Hart could respond, Spike brought the axe across and slashed the other antler off close to the skull.

The antler was grabbed by Hart before it could hit the floor and he began to use it in the same way Spike had used the other one, slashing at the vampire wildly.

Spike again dropped and rolled, this time a forward roll, coming to a stop behind the demon and quickly jumping up, left foot in kick position to hit the flailing demon in the small of his back.

Hart was propelled towards the ruins of the coffee table face first. Spike grabbed a rather lovely marble bust of some dead Roman and brought it down on the back of the Partner’s head with a sickening crunch. Hart didn’t move and Spike moved in to check for signs of life.

Spike grabbed the partial antler left on the demon and raised his head to see if he was dead. In a last hurrah, Hart bit deeply into Spike’s exposed right hand.

"Bloody hell! I haven’t had my rabies shots, you git!" It was time to end this little party. Spike used the severed antler he still held and neatly slit the throat of the first of the Senior Partners. "Gotta find somethin’ to catch some of this blood in if I want it fresh enough for that ritual" Spike thought.

He looked around the trashed room and found a Grecian amphora that put him in mind of Buffy’s mum and her art gallery. He used it to catch the flow of blood from the demon’s jugular vein. It wasn’t spurting, so the creature was dead. Still, the flow was copious and the smallish urn was rapidly filling. "Best make sure," Spike reminded himself as he hacked off the head of his fallen foe.

"Well, that wasn’t worth the bother! I should be in, out, and on my way in no time. Probably should stow this nice liquid door key out of here some place safe and tidy, find my Slayer, then finish off the other two buggers. Piece of cake."

He put the amphora filled with blood under the unfortunate Dilby’s desk in the lobby and headed for the courtyard and his first look at Buffy since Rome.

~*~
Chapter 34
~*~

The courtyard was easily located through the French doors at the end of the lobby. The sight that met his eyes reminded Spike of the first time he had ever seen Buffy so many years ago. She was poetry in motion still. But she didn’t seem to be any more aware of him now than she had at the Bronze that first time.

Buffy was dancing like she made love, primal and wild. It was almost like watching sex to see her move. There were several panting boys dancing all around her that seemed to think so too. She shimmied up to one with a Marine build and dark features and began to writhe against him in rhythm with the beat of the music. The boy’s eyes shaded with lust.

Buffy was as unaware of her effect on her dance partners as she was of Spike’s presence. She moved as if there were nothing in the world but the music, the beat and her body. Her eyes were closed and her lips parted and moist.

Her body had filled out some finally. The thin-to-the-point-of-gaunt look she had sported the last time Spike had seen her was gone. She would never be fat or even overweight, but she had a woman’s curves again. Spike was struck dumb, feeling like his feet were nailed to the floor. He wanted to rip the heads off of the hormone-gushing pack of males. At the same time, he fought the desire to sweep Buffy into his arms and carry her off to the nearest room to make her his again. "Not that she ever really was mine," Spike reminded himself.

The sunlight shining on her filtered through a stained glass dome that covered the courtyard. It painted the scene in rich emerald, violet and red…the color of healthy, oxygenated blood. The whole scene was intoxicating on several levels.

The music changed in tune and tempo, creating an undulating rhythm that had Buffy rivaling Salome in her dance before Herod. Spike could easily see why that old king had gladly offered up the requested head of the Baptist as payment for such a dance. He would put his own head on a platter to have Buffy dancing for him just one time in that way, wanton and willing.

He was going to have to get her out of there quickly, before he embarrassed himself as he hadn’t since adolescence. Spike shook his head to clear it and called out to his love. "Buffy." No response, no indication that she had even heard him. He tried again. "Slayer!" Still Buffy danced on, unmindful of
anything but the music and movement.

"Christ, Buffy, need to stop dancin’ now and come with me. Your lil’ sis is worried sick. So’s your Watcher and friends. Had to be really worried or they wouldn’t have sent me in for ya, right?" Still there was no response from the Slayer.

"Come now, love, time to leave this charming hellhole." Spike was hoping not to have to pull her from the courtyard. He had seen people under a thrall when Dru would use it to control the mind of a victim. It could be dangerous to yank a slayer from such a thrall. She might dust him before it registered just who had grabbed her.

"Sweeting, don’t make Spike have to get physical. That never seems to help with us, yeah? I’m just gonna come out there and clear the dance floor of some of the clutterin’ chorus boys and we’ll get you set to rights." Spike started out towards Buffy only to encounter the first of the Senior Partners’ minions.

The demon in the red robe looked like a normal human except for the tattoos marking his face. He put a restraining hand on Spike and prevented him from continuing towards Buffy. "You may not pass. You have no business here, vampire. This part of the hotel is for invited guests and special clients only. You will have to leave now." The demon lifted Spike and began to move him back into the lobby area.

"Don’t think so, padre…or whatever you are. ‘Sides, you could say I’m here thanks to Mr. Hart," Spike said.

"I am unaware of any client of Mr. Hart that is due here today. The Senior Partners never lower themselves to handling mere vampires." The demon looked at Spike suspiciously.

"Never said I was a mere anything, you git. You could say I’m one of a kind…or one of a pair, I guess. Senior Partners pay lots of attention to this ‘mere vampire’. Get your hands off me and I may let you live," Spike said with bravado.

The robed demon laughed, making a deep and guttural sound. He lightly tossed Spike through the French doors, wiping his hands as he turned away from the nuisance.

Spike launched himself at the retreating back of the demon, landing on his shoulders and grabbing the cowled neck of the robe for purchase. The startled demon tried to throw Spike off of his back, but the vampire was hanging on for dear life.

They wrestled for control of the situation with Spike unleashing all his favorite unfair fighting techniques, including eye gouging.

The demon roared in pain as Spike managed to plunge his thumb into the false monk’s left eye, not hard enough to push through, but enough to finally get the upper hand with the demon. Before the screaming demon could recover, Spike grabbed his head and twisted quickly, breaking his neck and ending his caterwauling.

There was still no indication that Buffy had noticed the brawl in the least.

Spike ran the song lyrics through his mind in a desperate attempt to figure out how to safely get through to his lady love. "Tiffany twisted, yeah! What’d Lorne say? Oh, yeah, something about stained glass and that Tiffany bloke. Must be the dome that has Buffy in its spell," Spike muttered. He frantically looked around to find something he could use to break the glass and with it, the magic holding Buffy a dancing prisoner.

He saw a small concrete bench along the edge of the tiled courtyard. It was pretty, sitting there amidst the roses, but Spike had better plans for it. He wrenched the top from the bench and flung it at the glass dome hoping that the sunlight it would expose wouldn’t be flammable to vamps in this dimension.

Spike leaped to the protective cover of a convenient bower of foliage near the now bare legs of the bench. The sunlight flowed over him before he made it to safety. Fortunately, the sunlight here, as in the Aztec dimension, was vampire friendly. It seemed to be Spike’s lucky day.

Buffy danced until the dome was destroyed, whirling like a dervish as she had not since Sweet’s visit to Sunnydale. So far, no smoke was rising from her, but if she had been dancing as long as Spike suspected she had, she would be dead tired with massive leg pains. Indeed, Buffy fell to the courtyard soil, bellowing in agony and rubbing those legs, even as Spike had the thought.

Spike rushed to her side at once and attempted to help massage her left leg. Buffy kicked out in reflex, sending Spike sprawling on the concrete "dance floor".

"What the bloody hell, you silly bint?! Tryin’ to help out here," he protested. He was startled by Buffy’s reaction. It had been a while since the Slayer had played ‘kick the Spike’.

"You are dead. This place…and you…are not real. So just go back to whatever brain cell kicked you out and leave me to die from terminal leg cramps," Buffy spat at the prone Spike. "If Spike weren’t dead and were really here, he’d have the sense to give me an ice pack and not a massage anyway."

"Love, I really am here. Not the First or anythin’. Couldn’t have kicked me across the room if I were that bugger. ‘M here to get you out of this place and back home to all those nice Italian shoe stores you’ve been keepin’ in business." Spike could see that Buffy was still having some serious problems even though the spell appeared to be broken. "Been dancin’ long, pet?"

Buffy narrowed her eyes and glared at the Spike-like apparition in front of her with a hand extended to help her up. "This is so not funny and when I get my hands on Eddie, he’ll wish he’d never met me! Go away! You’re not suppose to show up until I’m nicely asleep and can moan all I want to."

Spike tilted his head and looked startled at her words. Could it be that the Slayer actually dreamed of him at times? Wet dreams? His lucky day just kept getting better and better.

"I don’t know who or what you are, but you’re not Spike. He’s at the bottom of the hole that once was Sunnydale. Just like everything else I loved…well, not Dawn…Okay, and not my friends…but everything else. I’m not entirely stupid. Just go and be somebody else and leave me alone." Buffy was surprised how much it hurt to see Spike in this cruel parody of the one lost to her.

"Got a lot of things to explain, love. Lotta time to make up for, too, I’m thinkin. Right now, we best get you out of here though. Plenty of time for playin’ catch up, and anything else you might want to play, later." Spike made another try at helping Buffy up from the ground.

Buffy sighed deeply and made a decision. "Right. I’m in a freakin’ oldies songland. Naturally that would attract Spike."

"Hey! My taste in music is classic, not oldies. Don’t see any demon dimensions built on any boy band shite, do you?" Spike was mildly offended at the insult to his taste. "Come on, up you go, love." He tried again to get Buffy to her feet.

"Hands! You keep yours there and I’ll keep mine here, okie dokie?" Buffy tried to stand but found that more than her leg muscles were a problem. Her joints were on fire and not only in the leg area; all of them ached. She was itching all over and a small rash was starting to develop on her right arm. The areas behind her ears and under her arms felt slightly swollen and tender. She was also slightly dizzy. "Whoa, Nellie! Hey, whoever you are, I might let you help me to that chair over there after all. Not feeling so good here."

Spike immediately rushed to her side and slipped an arm around her waist, drawing Buffy close to him so he could accept most of her weight and get her moving. "What’re you feeling, Slayer? Might help if I knew."

Buffy gave him a little rundown of the different symptoms and Spike frowned in concentration. "Wait a minute, something familiar here…." Suddenly he got a small grin on his face and his worry lines smoothed out. "Okay, you need to trust me on this, sweetheart. I think you’ve got a bit of altitude decompression happenin’. Ever hear of the bends? Usually get ‘em scuba diving, but altitude can do it, too. Don’t move around for a bit, only makes it worse. You need oxygen, pet. Too much nitrogen in the blood causin’ the pain and itch. Look, if that’s a side effect of this thrall, they probably have oxygen somewhere in case of an accident. You stay put and I’ll see what I can find, okay?"

Spike set off in hopes of finding an oxygen tank somewhere. "Maybe that talky git in the closet will know," he decided. "I always thought it was just bad spellin’, but it looks like the song’s a mite literal! 'Mercedes bends' is just what it meant."

Dilby, the little mousy clerk, was more than happy to point Spike to the first aid room and its sparse but adequate supply of oxygen. "Had a nasty accident a few years ago with a client in the wrong place at the wrong time. Mr. Wolf insisted on keeping a tank or two around ever since. Guy was a druggie and kept laughing about getting the bends at a hotel in Mexico. Giggled a lot after the pain stopped."

"Thanks for the 4-1-1, Dilby. Gonna tape you back up again though. One chatty distraction at a time and Buffy’s prettier." Spike went to the room and grabbed a portable tank before heading back to his Slayer.

Buffy was skeptical about the "cure" but accepted the oxygen since there wasn’t any harm in it. "This is the latest thing anyway. Oxygen bars are even catching on in Europe, not just Japan and the U.S.. Might as well do the O2; can’t hurt me."

Buffy began to feel better with the combination of time and oxygen. Fortunately, her case was a mild one and the leg pain was more because of the long dancing session.

Spike had liberated some ice from a machine and made a pack for it using part of the robe from the dead minion. It was helping with the muscle cramps, but Buffy wanted nothing more than to go to her room and just lie there. Her body was still throbbing and not in a good way.

"Really don’t want to leave you anywhere, Slayer. Bloody slick Italian’ll snap you back up and then we’ll really be in the fire." Spike vetoed Buffy’s request to be helped to her room. "Got a nice little room on ourside of the janitor’s closet. You can sleep all you want once I get you there. I’ll even bring you breakfast and dinner in bed."

"Talking crazy like that won’t make me believe you’re Spike, buster. Just ‘cause you don’t make any sense with half of what you’ve said won’t make me buy the act. I know my ‘crazy Spikespeak’ and you aren’t even close! You can keep your room in the closet, just get me somewhere to lie down and then get lost." Buffy was starting to feel better but wasn’t up to walking without help yet.

Spike needed to kill the last two Partners, get their blood for the ritual and get Buffy out before her disbelief buggered them both up.

"Buffy, I don’t know how to convince you I’m real, but I am and I need you to be a nice little Slayer and cooperate or we’re both going to be dead again." He wasn’t sure how many lives they had left between them and wasn’t wanting to find out any time soon. "Neither of us are cats, love, can’t be saying how many times we can come back."

"Cats and closets. I think you need this oxygen to revive some brain cells, mister. Look, I’m tired and cranky and seriously pissed. I’ve got a short list right now starting with Eduardo. I’d put you on it if I knew who you really were. Just get me somewhere to recuperate and I’ll not try too hard to figure out what to call you to put your name on that list. And for the last time, stop looking like him!" It was starting to cause her heart to constrict, seeing the much remembered face of her dead lover on this stranger. That bastard Eduardo was going to pay for this.

Spike scooped Buffy up and carried her into a lobby alcove with an overstuffed loveseat. He got her as comfortable as possible with as many pillows as he could find on the furniture in the room. "Just stay here and breathe. Keep that ice on your legs while I go kill a couple of demons."

Spike turned from Buffy only to see three more of the red-robed minions closing in quickly. Evidently Spike could forget about any secret attacks from here on out since the alert seemed to have gone up.

The first robed demon moved with unnatural speed, charging at Spike like a linebacker. He caught Spike with a body blow that would have knocked the breath out of Spike had he needed air. Spike flew into the wooden column that helped hold up the vega ceiling work. The column split and smaller wooden pieces
were jarred loose, some falling.

"Balls! Nothing like providin’ stakes to the bastards," Spike thought as he gingerly got to his feet and sidestepped another of the demon monks. The third had already seen the same advantage that Spike had and was picking up some of the fallen decorative vegas. Each glorified stick was about the circumference of Spike’s thumb. They might not be pointy, but they’d still do a dandy job of staking an unfortunate vamp.

Spike was trading body blows with the minion he had sidestepped earlier, trying to keep his eyes on the now standing minion and his wood-wielding friend. The one pummeling Spike outweighed the vampire by at least as much as Angel did. Spike idly wished he had thought to have a bit of that bagged slayer blood before he had to take on this trio.


The one who had performed the tackle at the onset of the attack was coming up on Spike from the rear. He didn’t seem to be armed with anything other than his fists, but the fists, like the demons, were large. They looked like smoked hams on the end of long arms. Spike ducked in time to let the demon in front swing and miss, hitting the other demon’s face. A wonderful side effect, having the minion clock his buddy!

With the demons distracted, Spike was able to move away from the tag team boxers and dart around the one facing him. He drew up short when confronted with the wood bearing minion. A quick sidestep kept the makeshift stake from finding its mark.

Spike wasn’t sure if his magic suit was a sure thing or not but was grateful that it seemed to hold for now. The stake glanced off the material as Spike did a swing kick, knocking the demon off his feet. The demon, tangled in his red robes, fumbled to get up from where he’d landed next to the sofa containing the confused Slayer.

Buffy was completely unclear about what was going on and who these characters were, but she did know that the one that looked like Spike had helped her earlier. Besides, she didn’t think she wanted to see a Spike look-alike dusted in front of her. Seeing the real Spike begin to dust in the Hellmouth had been one time too many for her. Buffy took the oxygen cylinder she had been using and brought it down hard on the skull of the robed demon.

Spike was distracted by Buffy’s unexpected help and tossed a genuine grin her way before returning to battle the remaining two minions. "Thanks, love," he tossed over his shoulder to Buffy.

The demon wearing the black eye that had been intended for Spike came at him with a roar. This vampire was proving to be slippery and the Partners hated a disruptive element in their home. His large fist connected with Spike’s jaw, throwing the vampire’s head back in a violent jerk.

Spike returned the blow, catching the demon in the throat and cutting off his ability to breathe for a moment. This allowed Spike to turn his attention to the other minion, who picked up a wrought iron sconce and began to bring it down repeatedly on Spike’s back.

"I really don’t like my spine fucked with, you reject from a monastery! Buffy’s the only one gets to mess me up like that." Spike grabbed the approaching end of the candleholder and wrenched it from the demon’s hands, disarming him.

The other minion had regained his breath and was charging at Spike again, this time relying on a dagger instead of the fists he had been using before. He was evidently smart enough to notice that the material of Spike’s clothes seemed to repel stakes and was giving metal a go. When the demon saw the blade was having no more effect than the wood before it, he slashed at Spike’s unprotected face, catching him on the cheek.

Spike drew back but not before feeling the blade go deep, opening his left cheek from just below the eye to his jawline. With no time to move out of the other demon’s line of attack, Spike was kicked behind the knees, dropping him to the floor.

Spike dropped all the way to roll away from the two attackers and move closer to Buffy. Spike didn’t want the bloody git she’d walloped to come to and use Buffy as a hostage. Spike stopped rolling as he got to her position on the couch and kicked the still unconscious demon across the room and away from his girl.

Spike grabbed one of Buffy’s pillows and used it as a makeshift shield to help deflect the other demon’s blade as he came at him again, having followed Spike’s rolling move. The blade was used with enough force to rend the pillow. Stuffing flew around Spike, still crouched by the sofa.

Before Spike could get to his feet, he was crushed under the weight of both demons still in the fight. His last sight was the repeated connection of that ham-sized fist with his rapidly swelling face.

Buffy, still not fully functional, was torn between helping the Spike clone and indecision about if, or whom, she should help in this contest. Just as she decided to continue to back the one who looked like her dusted vampire, the minion she had hit with the oxygen recovered enough to take the decision out of Buffy’s hands and give her that rest she’d been begging for earlier. Soon Buffy joined Spike in the artificially induced blackness of unconsciousness.

~*~
Chapter 35
~*~

As she swam her way through the murky depths towards consciousness, the first clear thought Buffy had was to realize her legs throbbed painfully. She moaned in agony as pieces of memory began to float her way, most of it still staying just out of her desperate reach. She remembered Eduardo suggesting a quaint little hotel near the beach in Mexico and her amusement when she first saw it in all its faded
glory.

They had dinner in a small, candlelit restaurant that had wonderful fresh seafood and some tasty California wine that had seeded the cloud now covering her mind. "He must have drugged me, the bastard." Buffy couldn’t figure out why her boyfriend of the moment would feel the need to drug her; she had been a regular accomodatathon for him, after all. She had been playing in the Eurotrash sandbox with The Immortal for the better part of the last year!

She had some vague memories of being taken to another part of the hotel, away from their charming room.. Not much else was clear, although she did seem to recall being asked to dance by a guy who looked a lot like Angel and Riley tossed in a blender. "Ewwww, maybe not a blender. More like one of those ‘if they mated’ thingies…yeah, that’s better. More on the mixy, less on the messy."

She kept her eyes closed because she just knew that wherever she was, it would be spinning and no way was she going to boot all over her dress. She remembered what she was wearing last--some things a girl remembers!

The damned thing had cost a week’s salary at the vintage shop, but it was a Versace (Gianni, NOT Donnatella, thank you very much) Spring 2001 Collection, halter-topped, body-hugging confection in white, superlight silk jersey with peacock blue polka dots.

Just having it helped Buffy pretend that she had been a carefree Vogue reader that spring instead of the girl who lost her mom, fought a hellgod and died only to be pulled down from Heaven and start down the road to Depresso!Buffy.

Okay, parts of that year and the next had their good points. "Spike! Yeah, I remember. Spike was here. No, that can’t be right. Spike didn’t make it out of Sunnydale." Buffy was doubly sure she didn’t want to open her eyes now. Something was trying to pass itself off as her dead vampire and it was breaking her heart all over again.

Buffy was startled from her reverie by the entrance of her former Watcher. "Buffy, my dear girl! Thank God we’ve found you. Willow has been working non-stop trying to locate you. I refuse to say ‘I told you so’ about the Immortal but shall simply rejoice in finding you. Are you quite all right?"

"Giles? How did you get here? This is a weird hotel with lots of mojo and demons, too. I think I was under some kind of spell." Buffy threw her arms around her rescuer and nearly wept in relief. "There’s somebody or something here that’s trying to make me think he’s Spike. I don’t know why. They even had him save me from the neverending dance of doom."

"Yes, well, Buffy, there are some things I can help you with understanding. You are safe now, that is the important thing." Giles smiled down at the young woman.


~~~

Spike came to feeling like his arms were aflame. He knew what that felt like from personal experience. He was not able to see very well owing to the swelling in his face. Gradually he realized that he was suspended from chains, his toes barely glancing the ground. His arms seemed to be dislocated at the shoulder, making maneuvering difficult and painful. "Buffy? Slayer? You in here too?" He had little real hope that they were still together but thought it worth a try.

As he had both expected and feared, there was no reply from his lady love. "Bugger! Course they didn’t leave us together. Can’t make it too easy on the vampire, now can they?" he groused aloud to himself.

Spike heard the sound of a door opening and shutting and noted the rapid heartbeat of another in the room. "Well, you have presented us with a few challenges along the way. Frankly, you’ve been a bigger thorn in our sides than Angelus ever was. Always able to figure him out, depending on whether he has that soul or not. You’re a regular wild card, aren’t you? Big Bad scourge of Europe, Slayer of Slayers, gets tamed by a slayer, even goes out and gets a soul. Messed up plenty of prophecy
interpretations with that bit, I have to tell you. Suddenly you put all our plans and predictions in question. Then you do us the favor of taking yourself out of the picture only to return from ash. Very inconsiderate of you!"

Spike sensed this being coming closer and tried to focus on his location. Whoever it was wouldn’t be expecting him to have much fight left in him at this point. Spike grasped the chains and felt a corresponding bolt of fire shoot through his shoulder blades to his spine and down his back. He tensed in readiness. "Come on, closer, you prick," he thought.

The being stayed just out of range for any contact from his chained captive. One thing the Senior Partners had learned about this vampire was not to assume anything. "You’ll be wondering about your little girlfriend, I suppose. Really don’t see the appeal myself. Tamed both you and Angelus…or rather Angel…but I don’t see it at all. Valley girl with no chest to speak of and the vocabulary of a ten-year-old. I prefer more sophistication and womanly curves personally. Don’t concern yourself about Miss Summers, she is in far less peril than you at the moment. In fact, she is blissfully enjoying a reunion of sorts as we speak. Touching, to be sure. Not a dry eye in the hotel."

"Reunion with who? Don’t think she’ll be as happy to see Eduardo as you seem to think." Spike was fishing for more information. He only hoped that Buffy remembered her anger towards her immortal boyfriend, if that was who they had sent to guard her.

"No, not Marcello. I prefer to call de’Medici by his birth name; it reminds him of his place. It seems that Miss Summers has been rescued at long last. She was delighted to be reunited with her old Watcher and friend." The being was still keeping a polite and safe distance from the chained vampire.

"Balls! Had to follow me in. ‘I trust you Spike. We’re relying on you Spike. We know you’ll bring Buffy safely home’, my ass! Shoulda known the old wanker’d lay on the butter and not mean a word. Deserve it, I do, for fallin’ for it all over again." Spike berated himself for trusting the same group of people who had never made him one of them in the past and had betrayed him at least once when it counted.

The being in the room with Spike began to laugh in amusement at the ease with which both his captives had just accepted the ruse without question. So very gullible, each in his or her own way. It was almost too easy to nip this situation in the bud. Shame about Hart, but he had always been a bit of a weak link.

"What’re you laughing at? Think I don’t know they aren’t riding to my rescue? Know bloody well I’m disposable." Spike was more than just irritated, he was hurt and didn’t want it to show, not for this wanker.

"Oh, my! You are amusing. I can certainly see why the Slayer chose to keep you around. You are quite entertaining. I didn’t say it was actually her Watcher, now did I? Thank you for the information that Mr. Giles of the Watchers Council is in town though. Our acolytes would have returned with that information of course, but I do appreciate the idea of you letting that slip. Would you care to let me in on the rest of of the rescue force?" At Spike’s facial expression, or what could be made of it, the being shook his head and smirked. "No, I didn’t suppose you would. Pity. Well, for you at least. I don’t mind a bit of torture to while away a few hours."

"What are you on about? Not Giles, then who the bloody hell is with Buffy?" Spike was suddenly wishing Rupert HAD followed him in to this dimension. At least Buffy would be safe with Giles.

"Come now, you’ve seen shape shifters before. So has the Slayer. She’s seen it here lots of times if she would just use that little mind of hers. Like I said, gullible." The being laughed again at the thought. "Thinks her Watcher is real and you are the one in borrowed form. Yes, I begin to see the attraction. The two of you are quite similar in some ways, aren’t you? You see what you wish to see even in the face of the obvious. Seems a shame she still can’t seem to see you. Must not want you at all."

"She thinks I’m dust, you birk. Knows her Watcher’s still kickin. Shows how smart Buffy is to figure that out. Not her fault she doesn’t have all the facts." Spike defended Buffy. He’d always felt bad for her low self-esteem where her mental abilities were concerned. Poor mite never had much of a chance to study. How was she to be expected to shine in school? Didn’t make her any less intelligent. "All right, not Giles. Then who? Who are you, while I’m askin’?" Spike didn’t know if he’d get a straight answer but thought his jailer might be smug enough to give some info.

"I let my partner play his games with the lovely Miss Summers while I deal with you. Don’t worry, I doubt Wolf will kill her. It’s far more his style to play with her a bit. Did you know that the story of Little Red Riding Hood was seeded in his venture into your world as Fenris? ‘What big eyes’ indeed. I can almost see your Slayer with that little hooded cape and earnest, innocent face as we speak."

"So you’d be the goat then?" Regular barnyard you’ve got here. Anyone ever explain the term ‘dumb animals’ to any of you lot?" Spike hoped to anger the Partner enough to draw near enough for him to get in a healthy kick or two. The vampire wasn’t sure enough of his arms to try to use his legs beyond that just yet.

"You think to insult me? I could not care less what you choose to call me. I have no vanity. I know my power and that is enough." Spike could still hear a bit of an edge in the voice of his tormentor, enough to know he didn’t take insults nearly as well as he wanted Spike to think.

"Oh yeah, I tremble before your might …NOT. Did in your other horned buddy with his own antler. Thinkin’ of the best way to use one of your curly growths and do the same to you. Have to tear those wings off you first." Spike still couldn’t see Ram but remembered the description they had on his true form. Spike would have to watch out for that poison. It wouldn’t do to be paralyzed on top of everything else.

"Intriguing! How is it you can see me in my true form? How is it you can see at all, for that matter?" Ram leaned in a bit closer, trying to see Spike’s eyes that appeared to him to be swollen shut.

Spike took his shot and aimed for the voice. The vampire bellowed in pain as he used all the energy he had left to deliver a sharp kick towards the Ram. He felt it connect with some part of the Partner’s anatomy but couldn’t tell how much damage he’d been able to do.

Ram was kicked back about five feet from the swinging captive. His human body had the same fragility as any human being and Spike’s kick had cracked a couple of ribs. It wouldn’t do to let the vampire know he had done any damage however. "I can see you have not learned to respect your betters, half-breed. I’ll leave you to think on it for a bit while I look in on the lovely blonde in the other room."

~~~

"We knew at once, of course, that it wasn’t Spike. We did call Angel to confirm it though. I am so terribly sorry that these beasts have chosen to use such a painful image to try to trick you, my dear." FalseGiles was so very comforting to Buffy, so concerned with her well-being. "You’ll be fine now, Buffy. I won’t let a thing harm you now. I will need to leave you for a bit to hunt down that Immortal and put an end to this charade once and for all. Will you be all right here by yourself for a bit, my dear? " FalseGiles was every bit as solicitous as the real one would have been in this same circumstance.

"I’ll be fine, Giles. Be sure Eddie knows he’s history with me, will you? God, can I pick ‘em or what! Tell you what, Giles, you get to pick my next boyfriend, okay?" Buffy grimaced in pain as she rubbed her still aching legs. "Go on. I can’t wait to get out of here and into a hot tub."

Wolf leered at the naïve slayer and stood to leave the room. "I think I’ll see if there is something for you to eat while you wait for me to clean up the rest. You need to build your strength again. I’ll return shortly with a basket of something or another."


Wolf closed the door to the room containing Buffy and softly, silently, engaged the lock. "Good thing our shamans reinforced these or the bitch could just snap it off," he thought.

Ram was approaching from the room where they had taken the vampire warrior. "Well, did you get anything out of him, other than blood?"

"Nothing we didn’t already suspect. The Watcher, at least, is in town. That probably means a contingent of slayers as well. Funny they sent one vampire in here alone. Not sure what to make of that. Oh, and this Spike is able to see me as I truly am. That’s a trifle disconcerting, especially as his eyes look to be closed shut." Ram had a small frown as he thought about the vampire. He didn’t like surprises and that one in there was full of them.

~*~
Chapter 36
~*~

Spike clung tenaciously to alertness. He would have loved to slip into the bliss of unconsciousness while his vampire healing did a bit of work, but he feared greatly that Buffy might need him.

The man-like creature with the ram’s head looked anything but man-like, thanks to the orb sewn into Spike’s magicked clothes. The leathery wings he kept tucked close to his well-muscled, albeit thin, body gave him an appearance that would give a Satanist the willies.

The "fingers" of those bat-like wings had protuberances that were effective as claws. Spike’s ripped chest, arms and thighs gave eloquent testimony to their power. Even Willow’s best magic hadn’t held up to them for long.

"Not gonna want to see what happens to you when the Bit sees what you’ve done to her first design. You have no idea how the chit can make your eardrums bleed," Spike said to the Ram during a brief lull in the torture session. Spike was not about to let this glorified demon think he had managed to break the spirit of a master vampire.

"You sleep hangin’ upside down in a cave? ‘Cause I gotta tell you, the whole bat/sheep look is just not workin for me. Be a bit more terrifyin’ if your face didn’t make me crave mint jelly." The taunts earned another round of Spike playing the role of pinata for the insulted demon. Pain could keep one awake after all.


"You are rude and insolent, vampire. I shall be most pleased to see to your ending at last. The abomination that brought you back from dust will be rectified. Those idiots Morgan and McDonald tampered with things beyond their understanding. That amulet was intended for Angelus, a vampire worthy of my notice.

"Now, my twice dead friend, you shall reveal to me the reason you are able to gaze upon my greatness without the shields to my appearance." The Ram punctuated his demand with a nod towards the minion who was administering the torture of the reticent vampire.

"Tellin’ you sod all. You claim to be all powerful, figure it out on your own." Spike had resisted all the questions put to him about the rescue force and what knowledge they might have about the Senior Partners and their doings. He had also managed to keep the involvement of their eternal employee, Lilah Morgan, from his interrogator.

The minion demon used his still-hot poker on the exposed soles of Spike’s feet to encourage a change in Spike’s mind about answering the Ram’s questions. Spike’s screams rang out loudly.

"Grigork, assemble a team and bring them to me," Ram ordered the torturing minion. "We shall let Mr. Rice-Stoker think a little while about his choices. None of those he is attempting to protect care a bit about his welfare. I feel certain that he will remember that in time to do himself some small good."

The red-robed minion left the room after bowing deeply to his Dark Lord.

~~~

"Spike! God, Giles, that sounded like Spike. Are you sure he’s an imposter?" Buffy was torn between the desire to run to the aid of the vampire or listen to her Watcher’s assurance that it was a trap.

"Absolutely certain, Buffy. I may not have liked Spike, but I would never turn my back on him in need. Not after Sunnydale, at least." FalseGiles was oh so convincing. "No, my dear, we need to remain here. Willow has devised a way to cloak our presence, but there are limits to its power. We dare not venture too far until you are fully able to move."

"Giles, he‘s a vampire. My tinglies were going majorly. I’ve never heard of a shape-shifting vampire. How did they know about Spike anyway?" Buffy was trying to make sense of the events that had taken place ever since her drugged dinner with Eduardo, when everything had become fuzzy and weird.

"Well, the amulet did come from these fiends. They had to know that it was worn in that last battle for the Hellmouth to have closed as it did. They employed Angel and were aware it was not him. I would assume their research would be quite detailed. They must have found data that let them know Spike might be your weakness. Cruel yet effective. Who knows but that you might have trusted him had I not arrived in time." The Wolf smirked through his Giles face, making his expression look much like an uncomfortable Giles smile.

"Yeah, that makes sense. I really want a piece of these guys, Giles. They messed with me the wrong way this time. I was finally dealing with Spike being gone and they had to drag this look-alike out to knock off the scab. I’m seriously pissed." Buffy continued to rub her dance-agonized legs while trying to tune out the cries of pain that sounded so very much like the vampire she still mourned.

~~~

The minions filed into the torture room, heads bowed. The one called Grigork was spokesdemon. "All hail Khnum, who created man upon his potter’s wheel, the designer of the Ka, bringer of the life-giving waters, source of fertility, one who guards the depths. Ebune, bringer of spring; Amun, giving health and life; Baal, Hammon of the twilight. We salute you and offer our lives in your service."

"Yes, yes, very nicely put indeed. I have need of your most discreet demeanor for this assignment. It is necessary to verify the information I have extracted from this lower being. I rely on you, my obedient servants, for that duty. You must go to the other side and determine the strength of the force that seeks our destruction. I must have numbers and abilities in detail. There have been traitors involved and we must ferret them out and deal harshly with them. My benevolence has run dry." Ram stood tall as he gave his orders to his troop of followers.

"It shall be as you have wished, o Great One. May we perish in the attempt if we fail you!" Grigork raised his head and looked earnestly at his god.

"That will be exactly your fate should you do so. Look upon this vampire and know that far worse will befall you if you DO fail me in this." Ram’s voice rang with authority. Those that did look saw Spike roll his eyes in derision.

"No worries, boys. He’s askin you to verify nothin’. Told this bloody poser nothin’, so there’s nothin’ for you lot to check out." Spike turned his head from the gang of demons and looked at Ram. "Simple minds to be easily led by the likes of you. You might throw a pot on some wheel, but all that other rot’s enough to make me laugh, ‘cept it might hurt a bit at the moment. What is it with you so-called gods anyway? Love to hear your minions rattle off crap and turn out to be half-witted weaklings in the end. Barmy bint took on the slayer once before and got beat down for her trouble. Say, was Glory your sister? ‘Cause I’m thinkin’ you come from the same gene pool."

"Watch your tongue, vampire, or I shall cut it out for you to better see it." Ram replied with an ineffectual threat. Really, if he were still looking for information, Spike would need that tongue!

"Keep your fetishes to yourself, Sheep Boy," Spike spat back.

The minions murmured to each other in shock to hear their god spoken to so irreverently. Spike briefly thought he might sow a bit of trouble in the ranks if he could just rattle the winged demon enough to make him look ungodlike to his troops. "If you’re so all powerful with the Ka’s and caca’s and all, why can’t you just get the info from readin’ my brain? Why have Grig here do all your torturin’? Can’t work up a decent lightnin’ bolt or somesuch? Gods aren’t what they used to be, I guess. Can’t see servin’ the likes of you."

Spike had no way of knowing if he had planted the seed of discord or not in the group of minions. They set about to fulfill their orders quietly enough. Ram, however, turned his wrath on the bleeding captive and took out a bit of personal aggression for a change, instead of just ordering it.

~~~

Buffy’s legs were feeling normal again, thanks in part to the icepack given to her by the Spike look-alike. "And have I mentioned lately how happy I am with the rapid healing portion of the whole slayage package?" She grinned at FalseGiles.

"You mustn’t push yourself too fast, Buffy. We still need to return to our dimension and may well encounter resistance. That Immortal fellow you dated may be the least of our worries," Wolf in Giles clothing warned his unknowing captive.

"Look, this vamp may not be Spike. He might be one of the bad guys, too, but it sounds like he’s in major hurt. I think I should make sure he’s okay at least. He did help me, after all." Buffy started to walk towards the door to the hallway.

Wolf realized that Buffy would put the pieces together sooner or later and his continuing the charade as long as possible would serve to make her more easily managed. "Of course, we cannot in good conscience leave any creature to unnecessary pain, I quite agree. Perhaps it would be best if you were to stake
the poor creature and put him out of his misery."

Wolf and Buffy followed the sounds of Spike’s cries of pain to the room at the end of the hall. Wolf preceded Buffy into the room and found it empty of all but Spike and Ram.

Ram immediately shape-shifted into the guise of a young woman when he saw who was with his partner.

"Mr. Giles! I’ve found this vampire but didn’t know if I should stake him or not. He looks like that vampire that you told us about who fought for our side," Ram improvised quickly.

Buffy looked at the ‘girl’ with a puzzled expression and then asked FalseGiles," So, who’s this and why have the bad guys chained up their own player?"

"Buffy, allow me to introduce … Jane. She is one of the new slayers. She accompanied me here to rescue you." Wolf gestured to the disguised Ram.

"Hey! If you’re not the one playin’ with the vamp, what’s the what with that?" Buffy asked the ‘girl’.

"I heard screams and thought Mr. Giles was in a mess and came to back him up. Found this guy hanging up and bleeding everywhere. I’d just figured out he’s a vamp when you guys got here. Want me to stake him?" Ram, playing the plain Jane slayer, asked.

"No, let Buffy do any dusting. He did, after all, pretend to be Spike and took advantage of her warmer feelings. It’s only right she have that duty." Wolf was relishing the idea of having his befuddled captive administer the coup de grace on the stubborn vampire. He chuckled inwardly at the plan to make sure Buffy knew just whom she had dusted before they finally killed her, all in good time. "Delicious!" he proclaimed to himself.

Buffy looked at the dangling mess that looked to all the world like Spike. "I’ve sure seen him in this condition often enough to know what he looks like tortured!" she thought. Damn, something just wasn’t right. He looked so much like Spike and had helped her. Why was he being tortured if he was one of the bad guys anyway? Buffy wasn’t too sure she wanted to dust him just yet.

"Giles, I want to know more about who this guy is and why he helped me. Someone is really putting the hurt on him for some reason and since it’s not us, it has to be the bad guys. Didn’t you tell me once that the enemy of our friend is our enemy …. No, wait, it was enemy of our enemy is our friend! Yeah! That’s it. Looks like he’s got the same enemies we do." Buffy looked over at the groaning vampire who was beginning to return to consciousness.

"Buffy….Pet, you can’t believe anything you see. You need to trust me and move away from the big bad wolf, yeah." Spike tried to warn her.

"Giles, what is he talking about?" Buffy asked her companion.

"Oh, shit! Buffy, no matter what that pillock looks like, it’s not Rupert. You’re seein’ what they want you to see; it’s not real. These two are the real Big Bads, the ones Peaches has been workin’ on takin’ out. Giles isn’t here and I have no idea what the flying sheep looks like to you." Spike wished he could find a way to get the orb to Buffy so she could finally see reality.

"There’s a better chance of him being Giles than there is of you being a reanimated pile of dust! I saw Spike die. I’ve missed him so much this past year. I know there’s some weird stuff happening, but I’m not gonna just take the word of a vamp with a dead man’s face." Buffy was more confused than she wanted anyone to know. She didn’t want Giles to think her judgment was so easily messed with by a Spike double, but she didn’t want to leap to any decisions of a permanent dusty nature either.

Wolf could see that Buffy was wavering and having at least some sympathy for the tortured vampire. He took her by the elbow and drew her into the hallway, out of sight of the room’s occupants. "Buffy, you can’t let his appearance sway you! I understand that you feel he was of assistance to you a while ago, but the fact remains he was obviously placed here to your detriment. If he has turned against his masters, as it appears, the kindest thing would be to put him out of his misery," Wolf cajoled and wheedled.

Inside the room, Ram took matters into his own hands and spat paralyzing poison onto Spike, ending the vampire’s ability to plead his case with the Slayer. It was a shame. In time, the stubborn creature might have told them what they needed to know about this latest attack on their little kingdom. Ah, well, the group of humans most likely to have come along on this venture might be more forthcoming. Ram sighed at the wasted time spent trying to get the information from the Quixotic vampire now hanging mute and stiff from his chains.


Buffy turned just as Spike went slack in the chains and looked from him to the other two in the room in puzzlement. Something was not right and obviously the hanging vampire just had something happen to him. He had stopped trying to win Buffy to his side, but his eyes were still pleading with her to listen with her heart.

~*~
Chapter 37
~*~

It was the eyes. Buffy might not have total recall of everything about Spike; she admitted to herself that she often chose not to really see him. It was safer for her heart that way, easier for her security. It wasn’t too hard being the Sheriff of Black & White World. Being Point-n-Stake Buffy had helped make her the longest lived Slayer in history…thus far. Still, she hadn’t been completely blind to Spike. Who could?

There were moments frozen in time that she could see as clearly as when they had happened. One was Spike hitting the invisible barrier newly replaced after years of free access, the magic barrier she desperately had Willow and Tara place to protect her heart and home from Spike and his love.

Funny, she hadn’t even waited to ask her friends to do the spell until she had spoken to him, confronted him. All it had taken was his awkward declaration of love. His real offense--chaining and threatening her-- happened as the spell was being done! She had never really feared his intention to kill her, but the idea he could truly love her terrified her to the core.

His eyes as he mouthed a silent "please" at that moment came to haunt Buffy in the year after the closing of the Hellmouth. All the hurt, confused desperation he was able to show with a simple look lingered in her mind.

She could call to mind Spike in chains easily. He was so often in chains those last few years, some of them placed on him by her. She could see him in her basement now, eyes pleading with her to make it quick and stake him for the greater good. His terror that, if she let him live, he would hurt or kill someone he loved shone in those eyes as he begged for release.

Finally, Buffy’s memories led her to the basement of the high school on that last dreadful day. Those eyes had begged Buffy to turn and leave him to his fate. The look offered her the freedom and life she craved while pleading with her to know the depth of his devotion and love, the willingness of his sacrifice.

No one had eyes that spoke as clearly as Spike’s.

Buffy had time to think about these things when "Giles "and the "young slayer" had gone to "scout about this dimension". Eduardo was in hiding and "Giles" wanted to be certain the Immortal would not be free to cause any more harm to Buffy.

The vampire with the pleading eyes still hung from the manacles in the next room. He hadn’t made a sound since his attempt to get Buffy to trust him and turn on Giles, claiming all was not as it seemed. Buffy couldn’t figure out where Eduardo had found a vampire that looked so much like Spike. It made no sense. The odds of finding anyone, vampire or not, who looked identical to Spike were high. Add to that someone with the speaking eyes of Spike…well, it just seemed impossible to Buffy.

The more she thought about it, the less it seemed possible that it wasn’t Spike hanging there mute in the room next door. Sure, he’d died…dusted…but Buffy herself had died twice and was still here to tell of it. If Buffy looked at it that way, it was more abnormal for Spike not to return than it would be for him to be right next door at this moment.

Her heart began to pound and adrenaline caused her skin to feel as if ants were marching up and down her body. Every instinct she had screamed for her to fly to the next room and release the vampire she felt strongly was Spike, no matter what her Watcher said. If Spike were alive, no power on earth would keep her from coming to his aid.

Buffy felt a surge of confidence in her newly formed decision. After all, the decisions she made based on her tinglies had never steered her wrong in the past. She couldn’t allow Giles to undermine her confidence again. He hadn’t tried that since the Hellmouth and she wouldn’t give him that control again now.

~~~

The stream of red-robed, tattooed demons pouring from the janitor’s closet took Giles by surprise. He hadn’t expected Spike and Buffy to return just yet, but he wasn’t happy to see what could only be the Senior Partner’s army of minions coming into his dimension. It clearly meant that the element of surprise had been lost in some way. Beyond that portal, Spike might well be dust already. Obviously the Senior Partners still lived and were in firm control.

Giles fled to the window and gave the signal to the back-up team waiting yet dreading the call to arms. Angel’s return signal let Giles know they were on the move and would soon join him there in the small, "sleepy" hotel.

"You are of the Council", the demon said as a statement, not a question. "Your traitorous halfbreed is defeated." Grigork, head of the Partner’s army, looked at the scholarly looking Watcher with disdain. If this was the best back-up the vampire could muster, the Partners had nothing to fear. This Watcher might defeat them in a spelling bee, but surely he was no match in a real battle.

"So…Spike is dust again. Well, that never seems to prevent him from coming back for Buffy, so I would expect you’ll be needed by your masters back in your own world very soon. He has quite a volatile temper and won’t be pleased to have his rescue interrupted by the likes of you." Giles hoped to taunt more information from the tall, glowering demon.

"Not dust, at least not when I left him hanging from the ceiling a short while ago. I am certain that my Lord is finishing with him as we speak," Grigork replied. He failed to see the spark of hope his admission lit in Giles’ eyes. While Spike still lived, so did hope.

"Ah, yes, Spike in chains, undergoing torture no doubt. That is an overused cliché at best. I rather think Spike might even secretly enjoy it a bit as often as he has found himself in that situation. Makes for more of a challenge, adds a bit of spice. He was never one to glory in an easy kill. Your master most likely has his hands full right now. Perhaps you’d best run along back to lend a hand while you still have one." The demon failed to notice the shades of Ripper that had begun to show in the Watcher’s face.

"Senor, alto! Necesitamos un policia!" The harried Senora Gomez was yelling to Angel to stop in the lobby even as she placed a call to the local police to report the strange invasion of her employer’s normally peaceful hotel.

Illyria tilted her head and looked toward the frightened woman, finally deciding that whoever this human was summoning would be a hindrance to their battle plans. The blue-tinged god took matters into her own deceptively delicate hands and knocked the unfortunate clerk unconscious while pulling the phone cord from the wall.

As Angel’s team moved into position throughout the Hotel, the demon monks met them on the stairwell. Giles had already engaged Grigork in battle, surprising the demon with his ability to wield a sword, instead of merely being able to spell it correctly. If the tattooed minion lived, he would learn the valuable lesson that one could not judge a book by its cover.

Angel was using a small hand axe to beat back two larger, robed demons while Connor took on yet another, fighting back-to-back with his father.

Several of the demons saw the group of warriors there to meet them and leapt from the stairwell to the lobby below to avoid the vampire and his son, who were battling on the stairs proper.

Wood had his group of Naomi, Min-Nga and Caridad near the door to keep the battle contained within the hotel. The plan was to draw as little attention as possible to the supernatural events taking place in the midst of the commonplace.

Faith’s team was already engaged in the battle with those demons that had made it to the lobby. Nina was proving skillful, even in her human guise, as she neatly lopped off the head of one robed demon and danced away from the approaching blade of another.

Talisha had fallen to the attack of the two largest minions who managed to get past Faith. Vi saw the young slayer fall and launched herself onto the back of one of the two demons, using a hunting knife to slice the minion’s throat.

Illyria entered the fray and quickly took out the other murdering demon that had killed one of their number. The demon god had not deigned to converse with the fallen slayer but would always admire power and strength. The girl had died well.

In a short time, all of Angel’s team were actively engaged in battle.

Giles managed to fight Grigork out into the hallway and herd him toward the stairwell and Angel. The demon had taken several blows, as had Giles. In fact, Giles looked far worse than he actually was with his face bloody from surface cuts. So far neither combatant had bested the other.

There was a flash of light as Willow teleported to her position behind Giles. She had been observing the battle from her position at the command post. Her job was to ensure no other demons spilled out of the dimensional portal to join in the battle.

Xander, Andrew, and Dawn were impatiently waiting at the command post to make sure there was a next line of defense if the battle were lost to Angel’s team.

As the battle began to look contained, Wood sent Caridad and Naomi back to report to Xander and await word there about the outcome.

"Don’t let any of these bastards get back through the door to report!" Angel shouted his order to Willow, even though it was clear the witch had no intention of allowing any such thing.

When the dust settled, the rescuers had lost only one girl and managed to decimate the minions sent to slay them. Giles insisted they keep Grigork alive for questioning and that demon alone survived the battle.

Giles told the group of Grigork’s taunt and it was decided that the demon would be taken back to the command post by Angel so that Willow could use a truth spell to get all the information possible from him.

"I still think we should sent part of the team in there, Giles. Obviously, Spike has blown it in some way and we can’t just wait around for Buffy to stroll out of there on her own. The Partners are still in operation and let’s not forget Eduardo while we’re at it." Angel was chomping at the bit to enter the other dimension and save the day.

"No! The Oracle was quite clear that the battle was to be fought by one souled vampire alone and that vampire is Spike. We have no idea what sort of disaster we might inadvertently create if we defy prophecy!" Giles was still wiping blood from his face and hands as he argued with Angel over the vampire’s desire to change the plan.

"We changed prophecy lots of times in the past. Buffy was supposed to die when she went up against the Master, but we changed that. I don’t see why you’re so insistent on obeying some old words on a scroll you haven’t even seen just because some oracle with a fancy orb says so." Angel was becoming petulant.

"True, Buffy was revived, but it also split the Slayer line for the first time. Now, I do not in any way regret the actions that saved Buffy, or the calling of a second Slayer, but one must be very careful when dealing with actual prophecy. Angel, you tried to precipitate the apocalypse that you believed would lead to your reward of Shanshu and we are even now cleaning up the mess left from that decision!"
Giles said in frustration.

"That is not what I was doing! I signed away my claim to the damned reward anyway. I was trying to hit them where it hurt and make a difference, that’s all." Angel refused to look Giles in the eyes as he spoke.

"Yes, and we all know how one can simply sign away a reward from The Powers that has been part of prophecy for millennia. I dare say the Shanshu shall be given to whomever the Powers intended it to be given and nothing you could do, say, or sign can alter that. The fact remains that you once again started an apocalypse that you later will take credit for stopping. I have not forgotten Acathla, Angel, or the events that led to that heartbreak for Buffy." Giles shook his head and sighed, wondering if Angel really didn’t see the similarities or if he was merely being stubborn.

"You made choices, Angel…Bad ones, in my opinion. As Angelus, you decided to end the world and necessitated Buffy sending you to hell to stop what you started. This time you decided to hurry up the final battle, get it over with once and for all. You were in full control of your soul with that decision. You do realize that you put all of your friends in an untenable position with that decision, do you not? They were faced with the choice of watching you march off to your doom alone or standing by you to try to help as best they could. It was a suicide mission at best, really, and for what? No, my decision stands. You may have started this little war, but we shall be fighting it under my command. Spike shall play out his part and we will continue as planned." Giles poked his finger on Angel’s chest in emphasis.

Angel began to argue once again, only to hear the soft voice of his son taking sides against him. "Dad, I think maybe we should follow orders, don’t you? If Spike is still alive in there, he’s managed to rattle them enough to send out these guys. That’s of the good, huh? We need to be patient. Everyone knows you’re just worried about Buffy, but I think it’s too soon to start changing the plan. You’re already a hero, dad. No one can take what’s yours away from you, just like Mr. Giles said. Guess I got my hot head from you, huh?"

Angel looked blankly at his son for a moment before he smiled fondly and hugged Connor. "Yeah, you got the family temper, that’s for sure. You’ve managed to get it tamed lately though. Maybe you can teach your old dad a trick or two while we wait for the Bleached Wonder to save the day."

~~~

Buffy grew tired of waiting for Giles’ return to state her case for trusting Spike. "I was always more Action Buffy anyway," she reminded herself. She was glad her legs were back to normal and not screaming at her for using them again. Her head felt clearer than it had in a long while, too.

She crept to the room next door and saw that there was only the too familiar sight of Spike dangling from chains to greet her.

"Spike! Spike! Look, I’ve decided to trust you ARE Spike, and, boy, do you have some explaining to do, mister! Talk to me, Spike!" Buffy could see that the vampire was alert, even if he said not a word. Again his eyes spoke to her, this time filling with gratitude. She didn’t need to hear the "thank you for believing in me" to have it clearly said. "You’re welcome, Spike. Of course I believe in you. Told you that a long time ago, remember?"

~*~
Chapter 38
~*~

Spike stared at Buffy in amazement. Could it be that she had somehow finally seen him … really seen him? Years of misunderstandings and misconnections couldn’t just fall away like that, could they? Spike felt the beginnings of something foreign lodge in his belly … hope.

"I don’t know why you went all Mime!Vamp on me, but I can just look at you and know what you’re trying to say. Only Spike is that big a loudmouth." Buffy looked into those now obviously familiar blue eyes and smiled. She moved forward quickly and took his bruised face between her soft, tender hands, staring deeply into the pooled windows to Spike’s soul and continued her surprising reassurance.

"When we get back to something normal and nice, we need to talk about improving our communication skills." She kissed him then, tenderly and carefully yet still with authority and need. Buffy then leaned back, still caressing the precious face she had thought to never see again and laughed slightly. "Then again, this whole mess we seem to be in IS normal for us! Gotta tell you, Spike, as sexy as you are in bondage, I’m not loving the battered and pained look. Wish you could tell me why you’re not running your mouth. Duh! If you could tell me, then your mouth would be running… and I’m babbling as bad as Willow ever did!" She kissed Spike once more before going to work on freeing him from the manacles.

Spike tumbled free and fell at Buffy’s feet. The poison in his system, thanks to the Ram, still made verbal skills impossible. He was not really able to move any of his limbs voluntarily. He silently cursed the flying sheep for taking away his best asset at this particular moment. Here was the woman he loved and had been keeping himself in exile from, ready to hear his vows of undying love and, for once in his long unlife, he couldn’t speak!

Buffy could tell her vampire was not able to move on his own and was in dire straits physically. "I think we’d better get you away from here pronto, Tonto. For some reason Giles is sure you aren’t you. He said Angel confirmed you’re a fake Spike. Pffft! Angel and his ‘I know Spike better than anybody’ crap didn’t know the real you when you hadn’t even dusted yet! Nope, this is leap-of-faith time for Buffy. You’re the one who convinced me my instincts were dead on, buster, so it’s time to put my money where my mouth is."

Buffy gently scooped up her inert love and moved quickly into the hallway. She planned to handle Giles later, after she had hidden the strangely silent vampire somewhere only she would know about for now. The General had made a decision!

With her precious cargo, she moved as rapidly and silently as a stealth bomber to the end of the hallway and toward the stairs to the lobby. Behind the check-in desk was a door. Buffy nearly tripped over the bound and duct-taped Dilby, who was still writhing on the floor of the closet. "Shoot! Never a vacancy when you find a good hiding place! Oh, well. Spike I hope you won’t mind a roommate for a while. It’s a little cramped, but I think it will be safe enough." To make sure her vampire wouldn’t have to deal with the wriggling clerk’s gyrations, Buffy neatly cold-cocked the man, adding to the lumps left by Spike earlier.

"No snoring! Vampires need peace for healing time here," she ordered the unconscious clerk. Buffy was getting a bit silly. She felt giddy at the realization that she was actually in the same room with the man she loved. She placed Spike on the floor as far from the clerk as possible in the small area.

Spike was giving her frantic looks, first making sure to have eye contact and then looking down towards the place where the Oracle’s revealing orb was sewn into his clothing. He could only hope that Buffy would follow his gaze and use the orb to see the Partners for what they truly were. He wasn’t in any condition to fight the fight as yet and he couldn’t imagine Buffy snapping the neck of the pillock she thought was her Watcher or a baby slayer with toxic spit.

Buffy teared up just looking at Spike. "What are you trying to tell me, handsome? I can see you’re trying, but I’m not that good with charades. I mean you can’t even tug your ear for a ‘sounds like’ clue or anything?" Buffy was nearing the end of her patience with the vague visual cluage.

"Okay, I’ve got no money to buy a vowel here, so I gotta go with what I do know. You’ve been seriously fucked up, first with the fight and then whatever cat got your tongue. Not sharing that tongue either!" she whispered, off topic. "First things first, then. We get a mostly functional Spike and then take it from there."

Spike looked on with shock as Buffy picked up a letter opener on a shelf and opened a vein in her wrist, holding it to his lips. "A. You are a vampire, Spike or not. B. Slayer blood is of the major good for vamp owies … so … . drink up, Spikey, and just call me Bossie the Moo Cow."

Spike wasn’t sure if he would be able to swallow the nectar he had never imagined tasting; the muscles in his throat weren’t any better able to work than the rest. Buffy seemed to realize he was having problems and tilted his head back, allowing the healing blood to dribble down his throat without him having to actively swallow. "Hey, good thing you can’t gag or choke, huh?"

Spike could feel the blood begin to help; no quick miracles, but at least he began to have a reason to expect one might be in the offing. He still needed to get Buffy and that orb together and fast.

"Bu … or … shows," he attempted to communicate orally as his eyes still tried to get her to follow them to the orb. Buffy finally noticed the direction of his gaze and her eyes grew huge.

"Um, Spike…" she said as she took in the bulge near the area of his right pocket. "Much as I’ve missed you, I don’t think now’s the time! Good to see you’re getting that muscle control back though." She was blushing deeply as she stared at the firm, tented area of his trousers.

Spike rolled his eyes at her assumption. The girl had developed quite the dirty mind since he’d seen her last. As endearing and promising as that information was… she was right, now was not the time!

The blood was finally making more of a difference at last and his tongue loosened enough to make it useful. "No, you sweet dozy bint! It’s sewn in my bloody pocket! It’s a magic orb that’ll help you see these soddin’ bastards for what they are. Can’t fight ‘em if you aren’t sure what you’re seein’. Use that post opener and cut it out. You can use it better than me for a bit, love. That tasty bit o’ Buffy has lots of work to do before I’m a hundred percent and we don’t have time to wait."

~~~

Ram had the struggling Eduardo a.k.a. The Immortal pinned to the wall of the room he had shared with Buffy when they had first arrived. "Marcello, Marcello, I am so very disappointed in you. All these centuries we gave and we gave. We opened our arms, our hearts and our deep yet not endless pockets to you. Did we once ask for anything from you to disturb your play? Did we ever interrupt your enjoyment of our bounty as you scampered all over the globe in pursuit of pleasure and amusement? No, we did not. And we finally, after all those long years, asked for One.Simple.Favor. One tiny task to ease our burdens and how did you respond? You were supposed to neutralize the overly ambitious vampire with the slayer fetish, a vampire the walking blonde joke thought to be dust already. You assured us that you had handled the matter to our satisfaction. Clearly you underestimated both the vampire and our needs. Just how is it that this reformed dirt pile is HERE, in our own home dimension, bleeding on my favorite lotus-patterned, privately commissioned Persian Gabbeh carpet as we speak?"

Buffy’s latest boyfriend could only gurgle in reply. His windpipe was nearly crushed by the infuriated uberdemon. Eduardo desperately tried to remember the original terms of his agreement with the law firm from hell. He was pretty sure the immortality clause could be overridden by one of the Senior Partners and at the rate Ram was going, he was about to meet his maker at long last. The endless party was coming to an abrupt end.

"I told Wolf you were a buffoon, a waste of our time, a leech bleeding off our precious resources to no good purpose. The pretty party boy enjoying a neverending adolescence at our expense. Sure enough, the time came to pay the piper and you used Spanish coin for payment. Dealing with one lovesick vampire and one perpetually blind slayer should have been child’s play for you, Marcello. You had no difficulty dealing with a much brighter slayer in the last century with fewer of our resources at your disposal. Clearly you have become complacent and therefore are of no further use to us. I have made an executive decision to cut our losses with you at long last. Consider this a foreclosure." With that, Ram snapped the neck of the formerly immortal being.

Wolf entered the room of his long-term ally and laughed at the sight of the corpse rapidly turning into a skeletal heap on the floor of the quaint hotel room. "Guess Eddie came up a bit short on the repayment part of the deal, eh? Pity. He was always a hoot to watch. His way with the dames and the fellas was pretty impressive, you have to admit. Wish I’d gotten a peek before you got rid of all the soft tissue parts. Come to think of it, he’d have made a fairly tasty meal. You should have let me have a chow-down if you wanted to pull his ticket."

"It needed doing, Wolf. I usually don’t like dirtying my hands this way. It’s unseemly and not at all in the way of a gentleman. You know how his antics have annoyed me for years though. Really! The silly way he conducted himself! A representative of evil should never be held up to lewd jokes and playboy lifestyles!"

"You’re a weird one, Ram. Seems like ‘lewd’ and ‘playboy’ are right there in the ‘how-to evil handbook’." Wolf laughed out loud at his Partner’s affectations of gentility in the face of the murderous truth at his feet.

"Those acolytes of yours haven’t reported back yet. I think it’s time to send a couple of my boys in. I keep trying to tell you: use muscle to get the job done, forget the ritual and crap." Wolf had taught those principles to several of his favored clients over the years. His prize pupil, John Gotti, had managed to get a bit too cocky, but Wolf’s methods were usually quite effective.

"Fine. Send your goons to clean up this mess. I have a vampire to finish off in my room I’m fully intending to charge the corporate account for replacement of my carpet!" Ram started for the door and a return to getting his hands dirty with a bit of torture.

"Nah. Vamp’s gone. That nutty slayer’s got a mind of her own. Don’t know where she’s stashed him, but they couldn’t have gone too far. You know the motto, ‘you can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave’." Wolf began to whistle the tune of the song their little world had inspired in the wild 1970s.

"This just keeps getting messier and messier. Felric! Get in here!" Ram shouted for his second highest minion to attend their needs.

~*~
Chapter 39
~*~


Grigork managed to hold his tongue until Willow’s truth spell kicked in. He was genuinely committed to his master and had been quite willing to die rather than spill secrets to the white hats.

Thanks to the well-applied magic, the group now knew that one of the Senior Partners had been dispatched before Spike was captured. Giles told those who had not been present during the questioning what they had discovered. "So it would seem that Spike is currently being tortured on the orders of this Ram entity. While I do not wish any harm to Spike, we all know him well enough to know not to count him out just yet." Giles looked pointedly at Angel with that last comment.

"What about the Buffster?" Xander clenched his fists in anger at the thought of her situation as recounted by the demon monk. He had nearly caused Buffy to dance to death once before, but that had been unintentional and she had been saved by Spike then as well. This time the intentions were lethal and Xander wanted to remove the head of her smarmy Italian boyfriend for handing her over that way.

"Do not concern yourself about the white-haired one. My pet will not allow this second-level demon to prevent the completion of his mission. This Slayer means far too much to the halfbreed. If she is as powerful as the dark-haired one with the fawn’s eyes, I believe it will take something greater than a simple rhythmic
movement to bring her to destruction," Illyria reassured her chosen human guide.

"Quite so, Illyria. As it happens, the acolyte did say that Spike had broken the spell that held Buffy in a perpetual dance to the death. The problem would seem to be that the shape-shifting abilities of the Senior Partners has managed to cloud Buffy’s perception of reality." Giles had a worried look on his face at the thought of Buffy in jeopardy still.

"Spike’ll get through to her, Giles. They have a connection that these bozos can’t touch. He’ll help her see what’s real." Dawn’s face showed not one single bit of doubt as she spoke.

"I don’t think a short affair when Buffy was vulnerable and hurting is the basis for the kind of trust you’re talking about, no matter how much I’d like it to be true." Angel was still of half a mind to charge in and save the day in his usual manner.

"I’m not talking about a sexual connection, Angel. You weren’t there! Buffy and Spike have always had this vibe between them. Even hurting each other majorly didn’t stop it. It’s like they are part of each other in a way. They bring out the best in each other when they don’t fight it all the time." Dawn rolled her eyes at the thinly veiled jealousy of Buffy’s first true love.

"Dawn is correct. If I had still had doubts, that last year when we were fending off the First Evil would have proven it. I feared the connection that I clearly saw. I warned Buffy that their mutual reliance was dangerous. I was incorrect, as it turned out. I underestimated Spike and misjudged the relationship completely. I have confidence that waiting a while longer is the best course of action. Now, any suggestions as to what we should do with our unwilling guest?" Giles motioned to the room housing their hostage.

"I shall dispatch this worm and teach him what a true god is," vowed Illyria as she headed into the room. "I do not permit my pets to be harmed by such as he."

Somehow no one in the group felt moved to stop her.

~~~

Felric entered the Senior Partners’ chambers, head bowed nearly to the waist. "I am yours to command, O Great Khnum." The robed demon looked to his leader and noticed the presence of the other Partner and amended his greeting.

"Forgive me! All hail the glorious Fenris, Apollo, Son of Leto, Son of Zeus, Child of Loki, Twin of Artemis. The sun whose glory conquers the night sky. The knowing one of light, music and poetry. He who speaks to the oracles and prophets and will one day slay the mighty Odin! All quake in fear at the jaws of the Great Wolf!"

"Yes, yes…thank you for that lovely personal history and ass-kissing." Wolf chuckled and turned to Ram. "No wonder your boys can’t get the job done. Too busy neutering themselves and coming up with crap like that and not busy enough with the real skills. Farlik, Fralik…whatever the hell your name is … go get my boys and get in here. And stop with the kowtowing or we’ll never get around to business."

As Felric left the room to obey his masters, Wolf spoke to Ram. "Really think it’s time we knock some of that crap off. We’re facing the first real threat in centuries, don’t have time for the robe and incense games. In the time it takes for one of your boys to say hello we could have been moving into action."

"I disagree. The lower ones have to know their place, have to remember who they serve and why. Your band of hooligans may ‘get the job done’ as you say, but they are more likely to try a coup in time. If they forget for a moment who and what we are, they might feel worthy of giving the orders rather than executing them. There is a reason for hierarchy and for maintaining the status quo. It may look like simple ego stroking to you, but I think I stand a better chance of avoiding a mutiny than you do at this stage."

"Well, you say po-tay-to, I say po-tah-to, whatever. Right now we’ve got a missing vampire with a martyr’s complex and a powerful slayer on the loose and I want the situation contained quickly. Probably be good to find out why the vamp sees us the way we are, too. That can’t be good for our side. We can find out who the traitors are from those humans the vamp likely brought as back-up later. First things first." Wolf turned to greet his team of enforcers as he finished with Ram.

"Right. No more nice guy. Somewhere in this lovely hotel there’s a paralyzed vampire and a deluded slayer. Find them. Bring them both back here. Alive, don’t care about the condition, but alive and able to talk. You, Sven, take a couple of the boys and scope out the other side. Be discreet, will ya? Just do a head count of the enemy and see what happened to Ram’s team, then high-tail it back here with a report. Oh, and you really don’t want me to have to send out a search and rescue for you., Believe me, you will not enjoy the return home! You might want to try to blend in a bit. Think covert, tourist, mangle the language instead of the people, you get the idea." Wolf issued his simple orders and then turned his back on his minions, knowing they would obey in an instant.

~~~

Spike was still having trouble with voluntary muscle control, but his ability to speak was back without having to take all of his concentration in forming words. Buffy had moved his head to her lap as she sat on the floor next to the prone vampire. She was running her hands through his hair, freeing the
curls that the gel had tamed before his entrance to the dimension.

"Spike. I know we have bigger fish to fry right now but tell me, you DID dust there in the hellmouth didn’t you? I didn’t just leave you to crawl out alone? Please tell me I didn’t do that! I would never have left you if I had thought there was any way to save you. You do know that, don’t you?" Buffy
whispered one of her worst fears to him.

"Yeah, love, you did the right thing, just like I wanted you to do. I was food for dust mites all right. Dusted good and proper, I was. Not sure what happened, but next thing I knew, I was reassembled in Angel’s office. Pretty sure he’d call me junk mail." Spike smiled slightly at the joke that Buffy clearly didn’t get.

"The amulet, pet. Someone mailed it to Angel and when he opened the envelope, it fell on the floor and Hurricane Spike arrived," he tried to explain.

"Wait, are you saying that you weren’t dust all that long? You were in L.A. with Angel?" Buffy pulled on the hair she had been caressing only moments before. "You bastard! Why didn’t you come to me, or at least call? Did you not hear me when you were down there in the Hellmouth? I know what you said, but I also know you know me well enough to know you mattered! What were you thinking?" Buffy was hurt and angry that yet another male who claimed to love her had evidently just stayed away from her for her own good.

"Wasn’t that simple. First thing I did was ask about you. Pissed off the poof, too, let me tell you! Wanted to call you right off, that’s when I walked through the desk and we all learned I wasn’t really all there." Spike smiled up at Buffy and carefully raised a finger to teasingly admonish her before she could jump on that comment. "Watch it, missy! I mean I was noncorporeal; brain worked just fine, thank you!"

"Well it didn’t work fine enough. I thought you were dust. Dead and gone and never to return. Spike, it would have only been short time to be apart! You could have had someone call and I would have come right away." Buffy would likely always regret the lost time.

"Not a long line of volunteers to play dial-the-Slayer for me, love. Took ‘em a while to even decide to try to make me a real boy all the way. I haunted the place for what seemed like forever…well, that and fading into hell from time to time." Spike said.

"What do you mean hell, like HELL hell or just a dimension kinda hell with Glory clones?" Buffy asked with a worried frown. "I mean, you saved the world, Spike. That was your doing. The most we could have done was kill a bunch of them before they got loose. We were too outnumbered to stop the First’s army. That was all you. Okay, not stupid here, I know about your past as a vampire, the Big Bad. I reminded you of it often enough even when you were clearly trying to switch sides. But, gee, Spike, you saved the whole entire world full of people and puppies and goats and everything else! I’d think the big guy in charge would give you some credit for that! Do you mean that what we choose to do doesn’t matter at all?"

"No, pet. I don’t really have an answer about the great hereafter stuff. One minute I was burning to ash and the next I was eyeballin’ the grandsire. Don’t have a clue what or where I was in between. The hell part that came later might have been because of this Pavayne pillock. He was feedin’ souls to hell in his place for centuries and tryin’ to make me next in line. Might’ve just been him causin’ that and not some just punishment for my years of killin’ and evil. Reckon I’ll find out sometime where I’m gonna spend eternity, but I have to believe that what we choose DOES matter. If it don’t … well, what’s the point? We might as well all play at the Big Bad and then go out in a blaze of glory when we get caught, yeah? That just don’t sound right, even to a vamp like me."

"It just wouldn’t have been fair for you to be sent to hell. I never, ever thought you’d be THERE. I always pictured you in the kind of place where I was and knew I’d see you again. That made it bearable. Okay, you were a ghost of a vampire, but obviously you got your body back in time. Why didn’t you call then?" Buffy let the hurt show in her tone of voice.

"Wanted to. Started right off to find you. Knew you were in Europe and was headed right to the elevator and out of the building when all hell broke loose. Seems there’s only room enough for one souled vampire in this here world, least that’s what that Eve bint said. Had a whole private Amazing Race with the poof for a cup that turned out to be Mountain Dew. Kinda got sidetracked. Then got hoodwinked into thinkin’ I was a bloody champion for the Powers and had to stay fightin’ the good fight that Angel had walked out on." Spike closed his eyes in embarrassment about that whole episode.

"You are a champion for the Powers, Spike, but you have a place of your own. You aren’t an Angel substitute for them or for me." Buffy said softly and began to stroke his hair again.

"Really?" Spike looked at her in awe. He took a ragged breath and continued the short version of his time in L.A. "I was sure the Junior Watcher would tell you ‘bout me soon as he got back with the daft slayer that cut off my feelers. Just expected it, you know. Kinda expected you to call or show up. Childish, huh, waitin’ for you to make the first move? Then it turns out the boy actually kept the secret! By then I was caught up in the whole Fred/Illyria switch and with the battle against the Black Thorne. Just ran out of time, love. Been looking for you since I found out you were missing though. Even before I knew you didn’t know I was back and hadn’t sent word that I should just move on."

"Who said that? Why would I say you should move on? I thought you were in heaven! Move on to what? Some… I don’t know…angel or something?" Buffy’s eyes were tearing at the thought.

"Not like that with Angel!" Spike went on the defensive, a shocked look on his face. "I call him a poof, but that don’t mean I’m interested!"

"Huh?" Buffy blushed deeply as she realized what Spike had thought she meant. She gently cuffed him on the head. "Not Angel, an angel…you know, wings, halo, white robes, long flowy hair. You’ve seen them on Christmas cards."

Spike chuckled. "Real thing looks nothin’ like that, love. Angels are warriors, not nancyboy poofters. See a real angel and kiss the ground. They’re not little babies with bows and arrows either."

"And you would know this how?" Buffy teased.

"Better education system when I was a lad, I suppose. Still got a weekly dose of fire and brimstone from the pulpit to brand a young soul with fear and awe. Handbook of the good guys spells it out proper like. ‘Jesus is my best friend’ stories were a century away at least, pet."

Buffy laughed at the concept of a Bible lesson from a vampire. With any other vampire, it would be surprising; with Spike there was no such thing as typical vampire behavior.

"I get it. There’s lots more to the story of Spike’s return and we WILL so hear it all, buster! Right now we’ve got to kill a bunch of bad guys and get you back to fully automated vampire status. One thing I won’t wait for though…" Buffy demonstrated the one thing by crushing his lips with hers. She poured all the longing and grief and joy she had felt and was now feeling into one mind-numbing kiss that managed to touch his very soul. "Welcome home, sweetheart. I do love you and I missed you so much."

Spike wondered if the Ram had killed him after all because he surely had to be in that heaven where Buffy expected him to belong.

~*~
Chapter 40
~*~

Spike hated to break the moment with Buffy. They’d never really had too many tender ones in their stormy history and he was quite enjoying the novelty of it. There were, however, still dangers of which Buffy only knew a fraction. If the other two Partners already knew of their escape, they would only have time for a short briefing .

"Pet, not that I’m wantin’ this to end any time soon, or ever, but you need to get caught up a bit on what’s happenin’." He hoped the seriousness of his look would drive home his point. "You probably already sussed out that you’re not in Kansas anymore, huh?" At her nod, he continued, "Ever hear of Wolfram and Hart, love?"

"Big evil law firm that Angel went to work for after you closed the Hellmouth. I know they have a branch in Rome with some oversexed woman in charge there. I tried to get the goods on them just before I met Eduardo. Come to think of it, my first few meetings with him were at parties that W & H were sponsoring."

Buffy got a strange, uncomfortable look on her face and clasped Spike’s hand tightly. "I want to explain about him, about that whole situation. It might look like I forgot you easily, but I didn’t … forget you, that is. I was sure you were gone for good. I knew you died so I could continue to live and it didn’t seem like I would be honoring your sacrifice if I just stopped living too. Okay, Eduardo was a lame choice, I get that! Still the whole evil-but-not, mysterious, attractive to men and women, not completely human thing kinda reminded me of you at first. Guess we DO have a lot to talk about later. Go on with the current events though, ‘kay?"

Spike gave her hand a little squeeze. "Nothing for you to explain, love. You didn’t do anything wrong. Not like we were even together there for a long time, so can’t call it cheatin’." He smiled at her, his clear eyes underlining the message that he found no fault in her actions after Sunnydale. "Actually, I’m pretty glad you didn’t just turn to Peaches. Have to say it made me a happy vamp when I realized you weren’t there with him when I came back!

Spike paused for a quick, unnecessary breath.

"Right, back to the important stuff for the moment. This, where we are right now, is the dimension where the Senior Partners of Wolfram & Hart live. They run Evil, Inc. in a lot of dimensions, but this is the one where they hang their hats. That old song, "Hotel California" has lots of clues, turns out. Who’d have thought, eh? Anyway…to get out, I have to kill all three of the partners and do this ritual Red and the Watcher put together using their blood. Took care of the Hart bloke already, then got nabbed by Ram’s henchmen while you were still all barmy. Giles isn’t here, pet. That bloke is really the demon called Wolf. The one you seemed to think was a baby slayer was really Ram. I’ve got this magic orb you can use to see them the way they really are. They can look like anything."

Buffy shivered at that thought. "Like the First! God, that was so confusing. You never knew who you were talking to until it was too late. Why did you say that YOU had to kill these guys? There’s two of us and two of them, piece of cake."

"No, love. There’s a prophecy and all. Don’t wanna bollocks it all up by getting too creative. Gotta be me. Don’t mean you can’t help by takin’ out their toadying minions though. Probably ought to let you have the orb." Spike started to try to tear the device free but Buffy stayed his hand.

"How ‘bout you keep it since you have to be the one to fight them. I’ll just trust you to tell me what I’m seeing. Will that work for you?" Buffy offered.

Spike was dumbstruck at the new level of trust that Buffy was showing him. "That’d work. We need to stick together though. Wait!" Spike had a look of horror on his face at a memory. "Since they can shift shape, they could try to look like me to get at you. Maybe wouldn’t hurt to have a code or something in case they try it." They agreed on several phrases they could use if such a thing were to happen and hoped it would be overkill.

"Buffy, love, you didn’t happen to pick up a couple of nice, pointy swords when you were rescuing my hide, did you?" At her confused look he continued, "Brought in a pair of special swords. Even if I don’t get a chance to use the bloody things, need to keep ‘em safe. They’re not just average weapons. One’s Excalibur, like in King Arthur; other one was used by Beowolf and it’s magic, too. Don’t think Willow’d be too happy if I left them behind, seein’ how she went to a lot of trouble findin’ ‘em."

"So Willow’s here too?" Buffy looked a bit wistful.

"Well, in a manner of speakin’. Whole lot of ‘em and Angel and his get, too. They’re in our world. Like I said, prophecy and all. Up to me to kill these buggers--that part’s pretty clear. Rupert’s leading the troops just on the other side of the portal. Pet, you’ve been gone a long time--‘bout six months our time, and that's before I got involved in finding you. Everyone’s here to see you get home safe and sound. Was a group effort up to my comin’ in after you. Been playin’ Lone Ranger from then on." Spike saw the tender smile on his love’s face at the thought of all her friends being nearby.

"Well, since you have to go play the hero, you’d better be in good shape. Have a pint on me…or of me…as they say in Merry Ole! See, I did learn to speak English finally!" Buffy teased.

"Don’t wanna weaken you either, pet." Spike looked at her with worry in his eyes.

"I did say a pint. I’m not wanting you to go crazy with the bloodlust or anything. Maybe this fine fella’d like to donate to the cause a bit?" Buffy lightly kicked at the wide-eyed Dilby.

"Sounds like a plan. Don’t think I’m plannin’ on goin’ back to any all-human diet. This is just temporary, on account of need’s all. Be too tempting, even with the soul, if I keep it up too long." Spike admitted his private fear to Buffy. He was a vampire, after all and he’d been dining on pure slayer essence for months.

Buffy pulled her hair to one side and offered her neck to Spike for the jump start of her blood. "Seems fair. My neck has been tapped for three other vamps, might as well have a mark or two for the one I’m in love with. The wrist cut’s already healed and won’t even scar. I don’t think you licking my arm counts for much since you were really out of it."

"What licking are you talkin’ ‘bout, love?" Spike looked at Buffy with his head tilted in curiosity.

"In that woman’s basement…when the First was using you. You were gonna drink from me then got all horrified and jumped back after only a little bit." Buffy looked as confused as Spike that he didn’t seem to remember the incident.

"Most of what I remember about that whole thing was realizing I’d been killin’ again and that you were gonna have to dust me. Sorry, love. Shoulda been something I’d remember, your blood and all." Spike looked embarrassed.

"You had plenty on your mind. Don’t worry about it. Well, make this memorable, ‘kay?" She moved her neck closer to his mouth in invitation.

Spike moved close to the base of her neck and began to rain kisses over to her collarbone and then up her offered neck. He trailed his tongue in reverse, over the path his lips had just taken, tasting her salty skin. He repeated the pattern several times until he had Buffy moaning and slightly writhing at the sensations his mouth was creating. When her eyes were lust-filled and her body nearly combusting, he went into game face and gently let his elongated incisors slide into her jugular vein.

Buffy moaned loudly at the penetration and wondered why she had never let him do this when they were having their sexathons. After all, back then she wouldn’t have even cared if he did take too much. She had been that depressed. Now she just trusted his love enough to not worry at all.

Spike took several long pulls on her blood, savoring the taste of pure Buffy in each of them. He could feel the power seep into himself with each one, healing and empowering. He was as hard as a rock, but there was no time to allow for an easing of his desire.

Buffy, on the other hand, had plenty of time to enjoy the way each pull of her lover’s mouth caused lightning to flash from her neck to her womb. With each pull she could feel herself tensing in that all too familiar way. She buried her mouth in his shoulder to muffle the scream she could feel bubbling
in the back of her throat. He had always turned her into a screamer when she came!

Spike chuckled as he felt the reaction, glad that at least one of them was getting complete satisfaction. He took one last pull on her vein and withdrew his teeth from her neck. He laved her neck, closing the holes that might just leave a pretty scar after all. Then he closed his eyes in pleasure, feeling the power and strength course through his system.

"Okay, now to the cheaper meat. Gotta get you to top form, honey." Buffy was dragging the struggling desk clerk towards Spike as she spoke. The duct tape had come loose from Dilby’s mouth and he was looking with terror at the vampire he was about to be fed to.

"Please, please, don’t kill me. I swear I’m not a bad guy. Okay, I’m a crooked lawyer, but working here’s been punishment enough for that. Can’t go eating all the crooked lawyers, not enough vampires for that!" Dilby begged.

"Oh, shut up! Spike’s not gonna kill you; just drink enough to add to my blood. He needs to be able to move all his parts if he’s gonna kill the other two Partners, right?" Buffy rolled her eyes at the terrified man.

Dilby lowered his gaze and asked quietly, "I’m not going to …you know …I mean, I’m not a homosexual and he’s a male!"

"Relax, mate. Not gonna even try to make you feel all warm and fuzzy. Just a meal’s all." Spike smirked at Dilby. Then he replaced the duct tape on the man’s mouth before going back into game face for a bit of the yummy.

Spike wiped his lips when he had taken enough from the involuntary donor and laughed to Buffy, "Quick as the poor sod was to pass out, didn’t need to worry ‘bout the side effects after all."

"How are you? Feel like collecting a couple of swords and kicking some demon ass?" Buffy held out her hand to help Spike stand.

"Ready and willin’. Think there’s gonna be one surprised sheep-headed wanker out there seein’ me up and about after the poison he put in me." Spike peeked out the door to be certain their hiding place had not been discovered.

"So that’s what was wrong with you! I knew it had to be something serious to get you to shut up." Buffy smiled as she teased her resurrected lover. It was so very good to have him alive and there for her to tease!

"Balls!" Spike drew Buffy back into the closet and quietly closed the door. "Shhhh", he whispered in her ear. "Bunch of those robed ninnies are streamin’ into the lobby. Looks like they’ve found the empty chains. Well so much for that surprise. They still shouldn’t be expectin’ me to be at full power though. Maybe that’d be a good move when we come up on ‘em. Best save our strength for the big boys though."

The dynamic duo waited in the locked closet for the sounds beyond to still, indicating the search party had moved on. Spike unlocked the door and glanced out to the now empty lobby and nodded to Buffy that the coast was clear for the moment. They moved carefully behind the counter, keeping low and on the alert. "Best get those shiny lovelies before going on a creature hunt," Spike said in a low voice.

"Upstairs it is then", Buffy agreed. "I don’t suppose there are any back stairs in this place, are there?"

"Not real sure. I didn’t really scout it out too far after seein’ you out there dancing like Sweet was in the building." Spike squeezed Buffy’s hand fondly.

"Didn’t think so. Kinda got you caught by saving me. Sorry." Buffy said it, even if her eyes didn’t look sorry he had found her at all.

"I’m not! That’s why I’m here, pet. No point in the whole mission if not to get you out safe and sound. Dropped my guard’s all. That’s my fault. Water under the bridge now. Let’s check the parts I didn’t get to and see. There might be other ways up to the next floor." Spike led the way towards the back of the hotel. "Could get used to partnerin’ up with you in a fight." Spike smiled at Buffy.

"Sounds good to me. Retirement’s not all it’s cracked up to be. Kinda not liking the "Normal Girl’ gig as much as I though I would. It’s nice not having all of it on just my shoulders, but I’m ready to get in the game again. Having you back and at my side just makes it even better." Buffy was happy to assure Spike that a lot of things had changed since their last meeting.

No more waiting to the last minute to try to make everything clear for Buffy ever again. She was going to have to have a talk with Angel when she got home, too. Time to fix all those mixed signals where both of her vamps were concerned. No more fighting over her, with or without oil.

~*~
Chapter 41
~*~


Buffy and Spike made their way in silence to the upper floor to collect the swords and make a stand. It was going against Buffy’s every natural instinct to agree to let Spike go into the battle with the remaining Partners alone. She had every intention of watching his back, however. She had just gotten him back into her life and there was no way she would let pair of amped-up demons take him from her again.

The couple stayed hidden in the recess of the stairwell, watching the activity in the hallway. Ram’s robed minions were milling about outside the doorway to the room where Buffy had awakened such a short while ago. She looked at Spike and whispered, "Looks like we’ve found the core to this rotten apple. Still wanna get the swords first, or are you planning to charge in now and catch them by surprise?"

"I made a mistake earlier by thinkin’ it was gonna be too easy; wound up hanging from the bleedin’ ceiling. Remind me to stop that nasty habit, yeah? Starting to get permanent chain and manacle marks on my delicate skin." Spike smirked at Buffy after his little joke. Soul or no soul, Spike was still and always her Spike through and through. He quirked an eyebrow and continued, "Course, if a certain blonde warrior bint with a tongue as sharp as any sword wanted to put a pair on me…"

Buffy smiled and rolled her eyes before replying quietly, "You already have a big enough pair, I think!"

Spike couldn’t stop himself from following his urge and kissed her on the forehead. "Nice you didn’t finish that off by callin’ me a pig, love."

"Not a pig …although if it’s true that you are what you eat…," she teased in return. "Look! Those monk guys look like they’re getting ready to move out somewhere."

"Don’t think they’re headin’ for Matins either--course, I can’t really tell what bloody time it is in this dimension," Spike muttered.

"Is this Matin another demon?" Buffy was hoping for one she could take on in battle.

"No, pet," Spike held back his laughter with difficulty. ""Matin’s a mornin prayer gatherin’ for the other kind of monks--you know, the ones supposed to be on our side. Any of those headed our way?"

"No. Looks like they’re headed down the main staircase. I think they’re finished searching for us up here." Buffy peeked around the edge to survey the scene again. "I don’t see anyone coming out of that room either. Think the big boys are still in there?"

"Likely. Can’t see either of them puffs dirtyin’ their hands with the grunt work. That’s the whole point of havin’ lackeys." Spike huffed a bit in disgust.

"Coast looks clear. I’m glad it looks like they aren’t in the room where you were being held. The swords might have been moved, but it’s worth a look anyway." Buffy moved into the hallway, walking point. Spike kept his eyes focused behind them, nearly walking backwards on full alert.

As the pair passed the door to the room they suspected housed the two demons they needed to slay, they paused to listen for any sign of occupancy.

"And I’m telling you that this entire situation could have been handled differently from the start. That female you kept helping up the corporate ladder should have been gutted when she suggested the entire plan of giving control of the Los Angeles branch to that … that abomination. All it would have taken was a look at his unpredictable behavior, with or without a soul, and any fool should have anticipated disaster!" Ram was wading knee-deep in waters that had already flowed under the bridge and getting on Wolf’s last nerve.

"Yeah, like your plan was any better with that whole confusing mess with darkness and The Beast reacquainting himself with Angel. Gotta say I kinda enjoyed the whole ‘girlfriend sleeps with the son’ bit though. Didn’t think you still had it in you, you old goat! Shame we lost Jasmine in that disaster. And I will admit it looked like your little soap opera might have done the job since the idiot let them take away his soul. Maybe if we’d offed his circle of friends first that would have done the job," Wolf reflected.

Buffy motioned to Spike to move into the room they were interested in, then jerked her head towards the suite with the conversing Partners, a questioning look on her face. Spike mouthed the word "later" and they moved on.

To door was well oiled and made no noise when they opened it. Spike’s blood still pooled where it had spilled and the chains hung empty from the ceiling in quiet testament to the torture he had recently endured. In the corner was the special sheath, complete with mystical swords that had been removed from Spike’s back to allow a clear target for the lash the robed minion had favored.

"Bingo! Hello, my lovelies!" Spike was gleeful at seeing his weapons available. He repositioned the sheath and adjusted it for easy reach of each sword, testing the access.

"Do I get one of those pretty shiny toys or are you going to be needing both to feel all manly?" Buffy teased as she held out her hand for a sword.

"Suppose I can spare one for the lady." Spike looked at both swords with longing, loath to part with either to anyone but his Buffy. Finally he settled on the older of the two and handed Hrunting over to Buffy. "This one’s supposed to never fail. Seems like a good choice. Beowulf had a bit of a problem trying to off Grendel’s mum with it. Its name is Hrunting."

"When did you start naming your weaponry, Spike? Must be a guy thing, naming stuff they like to play with. Riley called his old Camaro "Betty’. Did you have a name for that pile of junk you used to drive or do you only name swords and axes?" Buffy had an indulgent smile on her face as she asked.

"Didn’t name it, now did I? ‘Hrunting they named the hilted sword, of old-time heirlooms easily first; iron was its edge, all etched with poison, with battle-blood hardened, nor blenched it at fight in hero’s hand who held it ever, on paths of peril prepared to go to folkstead of foes.’ Spike quoted the ancient heroic poem to a befuddled-looking Buffy.

"Huh? I get the poison part … cool … what the hell was the rest?" Buffy had a bad feeling her lack of study time was about to be exposed.

"Old epic poem, one of the oldest. Tells of a hero named Beowulf and his battles against all kinds of beasties, gods and nasties. That’s what this beauty is, love, his sword. Used it against a monster named Grendel. That’s ancient magic you’re holdin’ in those dainty, lethal hands of yours, Slayer. Have a bit of respect. Willow fixed the poison part so that it won’t hurt either of us, so don’t get your knickers in a twist about that part of the quote," Spike reassured her.

"Works for me! Okay, hero, what do you say to taking out a couple of lawyers?" Buffy smiled up at Spike brightly.

"Ladies first," he held the door for Buffy to lead the way into battle.

Spike kicked in the door to the room where they had heard the Partners’ voices, Excalibur drawn and ready. Buffy flanked him after they cleared the doorjamb. Ram looked up from the small desk in the room, a startled expression on his face. To Buffy he appeared human in all respects. A rather dusky-skinned, handsome businessman, in fact. He reminded her of a young Omar Sharif.

"My dear young lady, there’s no need for violence here. I don’t know what nonsense this vampire has been feeding you, but I am not your enemy. I am a friend to mankind. I’ve given many great gifts to humanity as you all grew and developed. Surely we can discuss our differences like civilized beings?" Ram had taken a position behind the chair of his desk as he spoke.

"Don’t know what you’re seein’, Slayer, but this one’s the goat-headed sod that did the damage to yours truly. Watch he don’t spit on you." Spike looked at Ram and continued, "That’s one nasty way to poison a bloke by the way. Didn’t your demon mum ever teach you it’s not polite to spit on somebody?"

"So, looks like you’re just another horny demon after all, huh?" Buffy added.

Without warning, Ram unfurled his wings and leapt from the open window to the courtyard below.

"Since when do sheep fly?" Buffy asked. "That is so unfair!"

Spike had already cleared the window and followed the demon down to the pavement below. Buffy made the leap a few seconds after and, remembering the prophecy insisting on Spike doing battle alone, took up position to fend off any others who might try to intrude on the battle.

Spike had learned how the famous toxin was administered and was not letting the demon get a clear shot with the poison again. Ram was using his horns to butt Spike against a pillar, while at the same time trying to grab the sword from Spike’s hand.

Spike heaved Ram away from him, sending the demon sprawling into a terra cotta pot filled with geraniums. Before Ram could regain his feet, Spike was looming over him with the sword singing towards Ram’s neck.

Ram rolled away before the Sword could connect and dove behind a rose trellis.

Ram’s minions began to try to join in the battle defending their lord, but Buffy was hacking away at their number. So far, they were all trying to enter from the lobby doors and she was able to contain them well enough.

Ram unfurled his leathery wings again in an attempt to put distance between him and the angry, Excalibur-wielding vampire. Before he could spring up to use his wings, the sword of legend neatly severed the right wing, throwing Ram off balance and back to the ground.

"See how well you fly with one wing, pillock!" Spike charged the demon, intending to run him through with the sword while he had a slight advantage.

Ram responded by trying to spit poison onto Spike’s few areas of exposed skin. Spike dodged the spray, moving with the grace of a dancer. "You should still be paralyzed, vampire. What trick allows you to withstand my powerful toxins?"

"Yeah, like I’m gonna tell you! This isn’t some stupid telly rot where the hero gives away all his secrets to the Big Bad." Spike laughed at the demon as he continued to press his attack.

A familiar voice rang out from the other entrance to the courtyard. "Got room for another hero here, or should I just let Buffy handle the whole monastery?"

"Have at it, Peaches. Just leave the wildlife to me, yeah?" Spike answered.

"Angel! What are you doing here?" Buffy continued to hold back the red-robed minions as she spared a glance to her first love.

"Just here to help my idiot offspring. You know me, love a good fight." Angel joined Buffy in holding off the encroaching enemies. They began fighting back to back, slashing and hacking through the remaining numbers of Ram’s followers.

"Angelus, you ingrate! We gave you everything, did all you demanded and you side with these two?" Ram glared at the newcomer while continuing to fend off Spike’s attack.

"Didn’t give me anything but a big headache. And these two are family," Angel retorted.

Ram grabbed a section of the rose trellis, broke off about a foot of painted cedar and then, whirling, picked up a large section of the broken terra cotta pot to use as a shield.

"Make that flowerpot on your wheel, Khnum? Shoulda stuck to doin’ the arts and crafts and kept out of meddlin’ in human lives," Spike taunted as he fought.

Ram executed a leap over Spike and before the vampire could turn to face him, drove the wood slat through Spike’s back where the shirt had been torn during the torture.

"Spike!" Buffy froze in horror, expecting to see her lover dust in front of her a second time.

"S’okay, love. He missed anything important." Spike changed hands with his sword, now using his right to continue to beat back the demon.

Using a sweep kick, Spike knocked Ram to the ground and brought Excalibur down and across the demon’s throat. He had to jump back to avoid the spray of black toxin that shot from the severed neck along with arterial blood. As the sheep’s head rolled to the side, Spike jammed the sword into the gut of the body releasing a stream of viscous matter that poured out onto the concrete. On contact, smoke began to rise as the concrete reacted as if acid were eating through it.

"Damn glad I wasn’t standing too close to that!" Angel looked at the smoking body at Spike’s feet.

"Balls! Need that blood! Quick, Gramps, grab something to collect it from the head over there," Spike ordered.

Angel picked up a smaller flowerpot, knocked out the contents and rushed to Spike with the makeshift container. He glanced over to see that Buffy had finished off the last of the minions and was safe.

"Thanks, mate." Spike gathered as much blood as he could from the flow still available. Spike then stood and clapped Angel on the shoulder in greeting. "Thanks for not followin’ orders. There were too many for Buffy to handle by herself. Old man’s gonna be right pissed though."

"Naw, I finally convinced Rupert that you might need some backup after all. As long as I keep away from the main guys, he’s okay with it." Angel explained.

"Troops okay out there?" Spike asked.

"Lost one of the new slayers, the cute one with all the braids," Angel replied.

"TaLisha. Damn! She was a right good dancer, too." Spike shook his head sadly.

"Um, guys, shouldn’t we do something with this icky stuff before we get more company?" Buffy pointed to the pot with the precious, urgently needed demon blood.

"Yeah, we’d better at that, love. Well, that’s two down and one nasty wolf left." Spike took the pot from Angel and carefully took it to the lobby, pouring it into the amphorae with the blood he had taken from Hart earlier.

"So, Angel, plannin’ to stay for the next act?" The slight smile Spike gave to the other vampire made it clear that it wouldn’t offend him if the answer were yes.

"Thought I might. Never know when you might need your pale ass saved. Besides, I owe you one at least," Angel answered. Angel then turned to Buffy and broke out in an unaccustomed grin. "Buffy! We’ve been worried sick about you. You’re looking good, all things considered."

"What do you mean, ‘all things considered’? I look fine!" Buffy rushed to the mirror in the lobby area to reassure herself that she still looked stylish yet deadly. Spike shrugged and he and Angel shared a look of mutual amusement.

"Calm down, kitten. Angel only meant your bein’ held captive and all. You look perfect, always perfect." Spike said with his adoration clearly showing in his eyes.

"Glad you came, Angel. I’m good, but there were just too many of them for me. Nice to have you at my back." Buffy hugged Angel tightly but didn’t even attempt a kiss in greeting. "Spike, this really IS Angel, isn’t it? You’ve still got that orb doohickey?"

"The one and only, pet. Wouldn’t have let him get close to you if it weren’t the real vamp. Hey, wait a minute … maybe that’s not such a good thing. Last time you wound up with Angel breath," Spike said with a furrowed brow.

"Down, boy! I made my choice of where to serve the cookies," Buffy said, putting a reassuring hand on Spike’s arm.

Angel couldn’t help throwing in a reminder of their torrid history though and said softly, "Thought you said you were always going to be my girl, Buffy?"

"I did. I am." At Spike’s hurt look, Buffy grabbed both vampires by their arms and forced them to stay to hear what she had to say. "Angel, you were my first love. Everything I learned about loving a man, I learned from you. I told you then that I would always be your girl and inside me, the part of me that will always be sixteen IS your girl and that will probably never change. Spike, you still love Dru, don’t you?" Spike nodded, eyes still narrowed in suspicion of the bond between his sire and his love.

"The thing is we both grew up. Okay … I grew up, you just grew apart from me." Buffy was addressing Angel again. "A part of me may always be your girl, but the rest of me, the grown-up me, is someone that moved on. I may be your girl, but I’m Spike’s woman." With that she leaned up to the vampire under discussion and kissed him tenderly. "Come on, Angel, you’ve moved on, too! Don’t play all hurt guy with the puppy eyes. I know you and Cordy had a thing, remember? I came back from the dead and you couldn’t wait to get back to her in L.A. It happens. Almost no one finishes up in the happily ever after with their high school sweetheart. That doesn’t mean I don’t love you and always will. Just differently, you understand?"

"Yeah. I knew it, Buffy." Angel still had a sad look to him as he voiced his real feelings for the first time. It was true that he had dearly loved Cordy after he and Buffy had parted and he would likely still be with her if she hadn't been so cruelly taken from him. "Can’t even call it a broken heart really, not now anyway. Guess we did the heartbreak part a long time ago. I’ll always love you too, you know. Kinda hard to let go of a habit though. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I guess I just had ‘Angel n Buffy 4eva’ imprinted like you wrote on that notebook when you were in High School. I had the idea that you would always be mine. Not fair to you, I admit it. Think we can prove Spikey wrong and actually become friends?"

"Well we can’t let him be right ALL the time, can we?" Buffy smiled tenderly at Angel and wrapped her arm around Spike’s waist. "I don’t think I could put up with him if he thought he was always right."

"Hey, this is the souled version--I know all about my faults." Spike leaned a bit closer into Buffy’s embrace. "Not always right, make plenty of mistakes, but never gonna hurt my girl again, ever."

"OK, let’s get this last guy so Spike can kill him and we can go home. There’s a couple of people I want you to meet," Angel said to Buffy, letting go of her hand.

"A couple? Geesh, when you move on, you don’t play around, do you?" she teased the broody vamp. "At least we practice serial monogamy!" She gave Spike a gentle squeeze then released him. "So are we talkin’ an Oz kind of wolf? Did you bring any shiny silver bullets?"

"Not that easy a job, Buffy. This is a wolf straight out of nightmares. Supposed to even scare the Viking gods, no pansy group there! Don’t expect killin’ him’ll be a cakewalk. Bugger seems to think he’s Al Capone, to listen to him talk. So major bad wolf with a gangster complex. I’m thinkin a sneak attack, if we can do it," Spike suggested.

"Okay, who’s up for a little wolf hunt?" Buffy looked from her past love to her future, her eyes gleaming, ready for a fight.

~*~
Chapter 42
~*~

"So this Wolf guy’s also Apollo, like ‘Greek god Apollo’? You’re saying Apollo was a wolf? The statues all show this cute, buff guy!" Buffy pictured Spike making short work of the male she had seen carved in marble during her travels to the ancient places of Europe. Come to think of it, Spike looked a bit like those statues in her estimation…okay, a bit bigger in places. Buffy blushed at her unspoken thoughts. "You can take him with no problem, sweetie."

"Not quite the same as the statues. He really looks like a massive, ravenous wolf--the kind they used to describe to scare little kiddies. ‘Sides, Apollo myths say his mum was a she wolf even if his daddy was Zeus. Kinda kinky, those old Greeks." Spike gave her a lopsided grin.

"So he’s a wolf in hunk’s clothing, huh?" she teased back.

"Aren’t we all?" Spike agreed. "This one offers to eat you, better turn him down. Guarantee you’ll be doin’ more screams of pain than the other kind."

"Would you two stop the sexual innuendo for at least one minute and get serious," Angel huffed.

"So speaks the man who for the better part of his unlife made the Pope look promiscuous. Not talkin’ Pope Giles either!" Spike said to his elder.

"Giles is the Pope? How long was I in here? And doesn’t he have to be Catholic? IS Giles Catholic?" Buffy was lost.

Angel was not about to be derailed by Spike’s sarcasm or Buffy’s confusion. "Now I understand all of Dawn’s snarky comments. You guys really know how to corrupt an innocent kid. I hope she didn’t see half the stuff you two were up to." Angel shook his head.

"Don’t worry bout the Bit, Gramps. She didn’t see a thing. Well, mostly she saw us fightin’ and fussin’ a lot. All that sexual tension and what all. ‘Sides, you were the one who loved corruptin’ the innocents. Me? I was more of a ‘street brawl against the Royal Navy’ kinda vamp," Spike snarked.

"I don’t think Dawnie’s half as innocent as I wish she still was. Did you meet her Italian boyfriend, Gino?" Buffy looked at Spike and had to grin at the narrowing of his eyes as her meaning sunk in.

"Don’t think I had the pleasure, no. Think I might just need to check out a few things when we get you sorted out, pet." Spike’s voice had a definite edge.

"Overprotective much?" Buffy teased. "To be fair, Dawn is a lot older than I was when …" Buffy stopped short, realizing how uncomfortable both vampires were with this turn in the conversation. "Yeah, sort this out first, good idea. So how are you gonna get the last of these evil lawyer demons so we can get back to our normal topsy-turvy world?"

"Shhhhh!" Angel heard low sobs coming from the courtyard. "I think someone just found what’s left of Ram. "

The trio ducked into the small office behind the desk and waited to see if the alarm would be sounded. When nothing was heard but the mournful cry of one individual, Angel decided to put an end to the grieving and prevent any further uproar over the dead demon.

Angel crept into the courtyard and saw the robed figure of Felric, Ram’s last devoted acolyte, as he cradled the head of his lord and master. The demonic monk was so awash in grief and disillusionment that his god was killable that he didn’t hear the stealthy approach of the vampire. One quick wrenching of his head by Angel and all Felric’s grief came to an abrupt end.

Buffy grabbed Ram’s head while Spike and Angel moved Ram’s body to a hiding place. Dead demons and minions were to be expected; Wolf knew they were there after all, but the heroes wanted Ram’s defeat kept quiet as long as possible. The element of surprise was what had allowed Ram to be defeated so easily. He hadn’t expected Spike to be healed so quickly. What Wolf didn’t know could only help them.


"So why did Giles only send you in to help, Angel?" Buffy was curious about her Watcher’s plan of action. "I get the feeling there’s a small army, or at least a modest yet attractive platoon, waiting on the other side. Is there more of this prophecy I need to know about?"

"Not really. Spike has to take out the big guys by himself. I fought that point long enough until Giles made it clear that there was no wiggle room on that part. The trick in this dimension is getting out once you’re in, at least if you’re not FROM here. They seem able to send out all the robed warriors they want, but it takes a special ritual with blood for anyone from our dimension to get out again. You remember the song lyric, ‘you can check out any time you like but you can never leave’? Well, that’s literally true without specific magic. No way the ritual would work for more than three of us, so Giles agreed I was the best choice for the job."

"Coulda sent in Bluebell," Spike grumbled, still not too happy about all the huggage between Buffy and Angel. "Woulda loved to see the look on these wannabes’ faces, getting their first look at an Old One in the flesh."

"Bluebell? Sounds like a fairy name, like Tinkerbell. You have a little fairy in a jar, Spike?" Buffy was only half teasing.

Spike did laugh at that. The idea of Illyria as a fairy or contained in a jar was just too funny not to. "Pet, do yourself a favor and don’t say that in front of her! Blue’s tiny, but not jar-size and has more power than an army of slayers. Remember those Old Ones the Master was wantin’ to release and serve?" At Buffy’s nod, Spike continued, "Well, Illyria’s one of ‘em. We had to do some serious mojo to take some of her power away or the whole bloody dimension would’ve imploded. Even down a quart, she’s not one to toy with. I think you’ll like her. Calls me her pet, means it literally. I keep expectin’ a collar and leash."

"Cat toys? Blood-flavored rubber chews? I can get behind that idea, but not with you having another mistress." Buffy smiled and got a wistful look in her eyes.

"Hey, none of that now! I’m no bloody housecat, not even for you. Tiger or lion, maybe. Possibly a Panther." Spike said in an affronted tone of voice. Then he leaned closer and whispered in Buffy’s ear, "Course, you DO know how to make me purr like a housecat. Know just where to scratch too."

"Geesh, you two! Vampire here, remember, with vampire enhanced hearing! Spare me the details." Angel tried to act disgusted with the conversation but part of him remembered well how cat-like Spike could be and felt uncomfortable memories of Angelus and William long ago. Spike might be cat-like in his movements, but when it came to being unabashedly affectionate he was more dog-like and obvious. Angelus had never been able to beat that out of the boy and secretly had been glad of that. His boy was one of a kind.

~~~

"What the hell do you mean ‘Ram’s missing’? I was just talking to him a little over an hour ago." Wolf looked to his right hand demon and said, "Take some of the boys and make a complete search. I don’t want to see any of your faces until you have some information or I’ll have to get creative with a nice lead pipe, got that?" Wolf wasn’t liking how things were looking. Hart was dead and now Ram was missing. "That white-haired, completely average size, pain-in-the-ass walking corpse shoulda stayed dust in that crater in California. He’s gonna wish he’d stayed non-corporeal." Wolf was pacing as he ranted, his minions scurrying to keep out of his way.

"Who does this traitorous half-breed think he is anyway? Angelus I can understand; it was a curse, not his fault. He could still be a player if my Partners hadn’t had their heads up their asses! This jackass though, ‘Mr. I closed a Hellmouth, ask me how’ … he goes out and fights to get that damned soul. Switched sides before he even got it. What kind of world is it out there now? Demons equal evil. Okay, some inept bastards aren’t players, but evil at heart, yeah. This clown comes along and upsets the whole apple cart. Gives us all a bad rep. Can’t trust anyone. Vampires rescuing slayers! Nothing makes sense in a world where that can happen." He had built up quite a head of steam in his ranting and his followers were eyeing the door with longing. Finally the storm clouds let loose the expected disaster as Wolf grabbed the slowest of his minions and devoured him whole.

"Your pardon, master, but will you be chairing the quarterly summit for the earthly dimension in place of the renouned Khnum?" One of Wolf’s inner circle, Aeneas, reminded his lord of the meeting with luminaries that gathered four times a year to plan their continued control in the events of humanity.

"Not the best time to be gone, but I doubt old Ram’ll be up to it. Yeah, send someone ahead to the White Room to let that group of sycophants know I’m coming. That’ll make a lot of ‘em piss their pants." Wolf chuckled in the knowledge that he, of the three Partners, struck the most fear in the mortals that were gathering. "Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum," he snapped his fingers towards his two lieutenants as they drew near, awaiting orders. "Fridtjof, get the files on who’s been naughty and nice. Aeneas, go through Ram’s database and get his notes on this powwow. The rest of you, FIND THAT VAMPIRE AND HIS SIDEKICKS!" Wolf’s bellow was loud enough to rattle the windows.

~~~

"Did you hear that?" Buffy nearly jumped out of her skin at the booming voice.

"Yeah, pet, have to be more dead than I am not to hear." Spike sometimes hated his oversensitive vampire senses.

Angel drew his lips into a grim line and nodded once before replying, "My guess is that’s the dulcet tones of the lone Wolf."

"Well, at least we know he’s still here. Should we stay together or split up?" Buffy could see advantages to either plan and hoped one of her vampires could help her decide the best plan.

"I think we’d best stick together. If they split us up, they can do those mind games again and we won’t be able to watch each other’s back." Spike immediately thought of the orb in his pocket and shuddered at the memory of how Buffy had been blinded to the Partner’s true form.

Angel chuckled and got a lopsided grin on his face before saying, "This must be the end of the world, I’m agreeing with Spike!"

"Very funny!" Buffy shook her head, smiling. She was actually stunned to see the two vampires getting along as well as they were. "This vamp lovefest part of that long story you have for me, Spike?"

"Well, yeah. Was kinda busy since we saw each other last. Spent more time with Peaches than anybody should ever have to. Worked out a few issues. After a century or so, it seemed time to mature a bit," Spike admitted.

"Brave new world out there then! I’ll just have to be Adjusto Girl, I guess. Next thing you’ll tell me is that you’re paling around with Xander and I’ll just have to decide this is a dream."


Spike and Angel traded a look before Spike replied, "Actually, love, looks like the carpenter and I have buried the hatchet, too…and not in each other’s backs."

"He still hates me if that makes you feel any better," Angel offered.

"Lad’s moved from demon girls to demon gods though. You’re gonna get a kick outta Illyria’s my guess," Spike smirked at the thought.

"Well, let’s kick some furry wolf ass and get back through the looking glass to this unbelievable world you keep hinting at, okay?" Buffy looked from Angel to Spike in encouragement.

"That voice was coming from this floor. I thought we checked all the rooms out?" Angel looked down the hallway, wondering what they might have missed.

"Wonder if this place has invisible spaces like the W & H building had?" Spike had a clear memory of checking out every nook and cranny of the L.A. office while still non-corporeal. "Might make it a bit of a challenge finding him if he’s holed up somewhere like that. Gotta find him though, ‘cause we’re not getting out of here without his blood for the ritual."

"Does that magic orb of yours show any doorways we haven’t accounted for, Spike?" Angel remembered the White Room in his old complex. It was cross-dimensional and likely hooked into this place and all the W & H offices worldwide, maybe even in the other dimensions. Finding it might lead to all sorts of possibilities.

"Haven’t tried to use it that way since I found the doorway into this place. Good idea, Gramps." Spike took hold of the orb and tried to tune into the energy pulsing from the magical object.

A door at the other end of the hall opened and two demons dressed in three-piece suits exited. The trio of heroes ducked into an alcove just in time to keep from being discovered.

The tall, blond demon built like a rugby player was whispering to his companion, a shorter, swarthy demon with almost feminine features. "Sure hope these mortals haven’t screwed up anything major with the boss as enraged as he is. Remember the last time he chaired the summit? Took a whole team of G’Lympphites to clean up all the blood. Good thing they didn’t all die or we’d have had a terrible time explaining that many important deaths at one time."

The darker demon replied, "True, but the great Apollo was justified. That war had been going along nicely until those idiots in the Orient decided to attack the United States and draw them into the mix!"

The blond sighed and smiled wanly, "Yeah, those were the days. Conquest and appeasement …most of the continent falling nicely into place. They don’t make wars like that anymore."

"You want wars? In my day, Alexander laid waste to most of the known world! Now THAT was a conqueror," the smaller demon boasted.

"Oh, yeah? I’ll have you know the Vikings who sailed under my orders did as much damage as your girly-men armies ever did."

Buffy wondered how these demons ever accomplished a thing with all the infighting. As if reading her mind, Spike remarked, "That Wolf must rule with an iron fist to keep this lot working together. Got a feeling we finally found the head of the beast."

Suddenly there was more activity in the hallway as larger numbers of demons began to spread out in an obvious search pattern. There was a time to fight and a time to hide from capture. This was the perfect time for the latter, in Angel’s opinion. "We’d better find someplace to wait out the search party for now."

Fortunately, Buffy found a laundry chute in the maintenance closet. It was a fast drop into the bowels of the building with lots of dark corners in which to secret themselves until it seemed safe to beard the Wolf in its lair.

~*~
Chapter 43
~*~

The White Room was silent enough one could hear the air move after the Partners’ minion announced that Mr. Wolf was going to be sitting in for Mr. Ram. The room was filled with enough famous faces to please even the most jaded celebrity stalker in the world. There were a lot of unknowns present as well, exuding power the way a courtesan exudes perfume. These were the real powers on Earth: the manipulators
of history and commerce, the builders and shapers of the future. They all paid regular homage to the oldest power known to them, the Senior Partners.

They would have all preferred reporting to Mr. Ram; he was by far the most civilized of the trio. Mr. Hart threw wonderful parties but hadn’t chaired a summit in at least half a century. That Partner’s interests had slid down the slope of decadence and self-pleasure, taking less and less interest in the
affairs of mankind. Mr. Wolf, however, caused the blood to run cold in more than one human gathered in the blindingly white room.

"Good thing the demon worlds meet separately then, don’t you think, Mr. Prime Minister?" asked a mitered cleric to the luminary seated next to him.

"No sense adding even more fuel to the fires of hell, eh?" The Minister replied and winked.

The religious leader looked down his nose at the mere elected official and replied, "Hardly a cause for jest, young man. This is serious business for demons, as well as humankind. There are herds to be handled and plans to see to fruition. I hardly think a flip attitude will go far in placating Mr. Wolf."

Silence once more reigned as all who heard the brief conversation thought to their own spheres of influence. Each hoped against hope that the others had screwed up their own areas, taking the heat off himself.

Wolf’s consiglieri, Fridtjof and Aeneas, entered the room ahead of their lord and master. Fridtijof announced Wolf’s arrival to the standing room of dignitaries. "The great Lord Fenris--Apollo, son of Zeus--has deigned to chair this meeting. You may give your thanks to him for this great honor at the end of the meeting."

Wolf strode to the head of the long table, ignoring the dais and microphone, glancing from face to face and taking note which of these vassals squirmed the most. He would be sure to look closely at their individual reports. Nervous minions generally had something to hide.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please be seated," Aeneas ordered and shut the great doors to the room.

"Let’s get on with this. I have some pressing business to take care of as soon as we get through here. Ram’s……indisposed and Hart has finally retired." After the quiet murmur of comments that greeted his announcement, Wolf continued, "Yeah, well, no loss, right? I mean the last original evil plan Hart came up with was the invention of pantyhose. Guy lost his edge. You’ll get the straight shooter this
time. No mollycoddling from me. Some of you heard rumors of how the last summit went that displeased me. I don’t think I need to warn any of you of what’s expected, right?"

Faces blanched at the implied threat they all knew he was fully capable of delivering on.

"Let’s start out with the industry and information division. Gates, when are you finally going to manage to get the back doors open for those MAC users? Lots of great worms and viruses going to waste there. Windows 2000 was brilliant, but you really have to step it up on breaching those walls!" Wolf glared at the nerdy-looking billionaire.

Reports were given in the realms of Commerce, Industry and Information without any violence from the fearsome demon and the room filled with humans began to relax a bit.

"What about civil unrest? War, terrorism and insurrection are all going on schedule, but there’s been a real let-down in the holocaust division. Someone want to explain that little problem or should I just start pacing around with a game of musical chairs and start bashing heads?" Wolf looked at the grouped world leaders and religious heads in distaste. "Come on, boys and girls, get with the program! I mean that whole political correctness crap did a great job of turning people against themselves and all, but now most of them wouldn’t raise a hand to defend their own kids. Makes me look back fondly at the nationalistic fervor of the old days!"

There were excuses and promises meant to placate the testy Partner, followed by assurances of a stepping up of civil unrest and bloodshed.

One of the leading lights in the Religion and Entertainment division rose to offer a ray of hope. "Lord Wolf, sir, may I call to your attention the wonderful strides we have made in turning humanity from The Powers That Be? Our concentrated efforts to pervert the various holy words and the doctrinal scrimmages setting sect against sect have gone a long way toward making simple faith and hope a thing of the past. We have done so much to be seen as purveyors of hatred and hostility that the average human is confused at the very least and outright turned away from the words of Light at best. We are quite proud of the accomplishments in our sector. The last big wins we had date back to the Inquisition and the Crusades before that."

"True, fewer of these mud babies crawling around on your planet seek the old golden path. Makes the lot of them a depressed, hostile, hopeless bunch. You’re on the right track. It’s a win-win situation. Those that cling to the spiritual paths of their fathers are more and more entrenched in doctrine and suspicion, making everybody else hate them while others just reject the whole thing. Keep this up and TPTB won’t have any followers left. Kudos, boys!" Wolf acknowledged.

"My legal eagles have done a bang-up job thanks to the tag words of ‘civil liberties’, ‘personal freedom’ and ‘basic rights’. Hell, we even have soccer moms afraid to speak out against kiddy porn on the Internet in the interest of tolerance and anti-censuring. You people are so easy to play!" Wolf actually broke into a grin at the reminder of how easily people could have their very best intentions pave their way to hell.

"Okay, I want to see the latest charts and reports from the News and Propaganda divisions. I believe some people are starting to catch onto the manipulation. Gotta go for subtle here, people! I am happy to see the progress from the fluff media sector though. All those impossible standards of beauty have even started to reach the males. Everybody’s nice and insecure, trying to achieve impossible goals. It’s almost funny watching idiots get down to skin and bones and still diet, I have to tell you!"

"Nice cross-department cooperation with the assault on language. People can't even understand their own native tongues half the time with all the deliberate misspellings and corruption of standards. You guys in the Education sector helped out a lot by lowering those standards and churning out dumbed-down graduates. Before you know it we'll have a work force unable to do a thing but take their place as a cog in the wheel. Won't even be able to communicate their unhappiness at this rate, much less understand what's happening and organize to stop it. Great job!" Members of the chuffed divisions visibly preened in pride at Wolf's praise.


There was an easing in the tension as Wolf appeared more pleased than displeased over the state of affairs of mankind, compliments of this group of movers and
shakers. He made suggestions to tighten up the current directives and alternately warned, threatened and praised as each group gave their reports.

Lunchtime was approaching with eager anticipation from those already weary of listening to the prattling and backslapping of the political branch. They had received the highest praise from Mr. Wolf for the one-two punch of blurring the distinctions of political parties and simultaneous forwarding of the plan to obliterate the political boundaries that bound humanity into national identities. The day of ascending to open rule of this dimension was fast approaching. Now if his minions had only captured the damned half-breeds and that bitch of a slayer, Wolf would have a banner day.


~~~

"Any more of them?" Spike asked Angel. The older vampire had been carefully watching the progress of the search party. So far they had managed to avoid detection.

"Just a couple in the next room. I think we can move back into that room and regroup once they’re sure we’re not there. My guess is Wolf’s not where we can get him just yet. Whatever this meeting is, it’s important enough to take him away from going after us. Damn! Wish we could find that meeting room and really shake things up!" Angel got that mulish look that showed his desire to just plunge in and take no prisoners.

"Maybe not such a great idea, Angel. Remember how we got into this mess in the first place? ‘Circle of the Black Thorne’ ring any bells? Let’s not turn this into another suicide mission, okay? I just got my girl, not too eager to be all Mr. Dusty again any time soon." Spike had begun to entertain the idea that there was still lots of his unlife ahead of him before punching his final ticket. Might not be a bad time to remind his sire that he had some unliving yet to do as well.

"’Sides, you’ve got that cute wolf-girl and your boy to consider. Turn into a regular family vamp at the rate you’re going, Peaches." Spike suggested.

"Don’t even tell me." Buffy held up her hand to silence the explanation she could see Angel preparing. "Obviously we both rebuilt our lives after the great movie ending that was our romance. I’m glad, really. It’s a good thing that you moved on, Angel. You deserve to find a love that fits the mold you used to have me in. I don’t fit in it anymore and I don’t think you’d really like how I’ve baked actually. You don’t owe me any explanations."

"No, but I’d like to think we can be friends when this is all over. I’ll always care about you, Buffy. You know that. Even care about this idiot." Angel looked at the startled vampire at Buffy’s side.

"Works for me. We are sort of family in a way," Buffy suggested.

"Wouldn’t go quite that far, love. Distant cousins, maybe, but not the kissing kind," Spike put in.

Finally, the search team moved from the basement and the trio crept into the adjoining room to devise their war plan.

~~~

Lunch had gone rather smoothly and the atmosphere was bordering on giddiness in the delegates’ relief that thus far no one had gotten their brains splattered on the large conference table.

Friddtjof sidled up to Wolf and whispered the progress report of search efforts to his boss. One look at the powerful demon’s face caused storm clouds to gather on the formerly bright horizon and fear once more took a seat at the table. Whatever the message from his advisor, Mr. Wolf was no longer in a pleasant, laid-back mood. It didn’t bode well for the Plague and Disease division due to make their report immediately after lunch.

"They can’t get out of this dimension without my blood and there is no way that is gonna happen. They aren’t invisible or invincible. It’s a bubble-headed Slayer and two soul-afflicted vampires, for the love of Me! Just look harder. I don’t want to hear any excuses. I expect all three tied up and ready for some smackdown when I get finished with this pack of ass-kissers. No excuses, you hear me?" He had spoken softly, but there was as much authority as in his earlier bellow. Heads were going to roll before this day was finished. It was only a matter of making sure you kept your own head intact.

"Now, where were we?" Wolf licked his lips, golden eyes glowing, as he reconvened the meeting. "Let’s see that data on the whole Mad Cow scare first." Nervous hands passed a sheaf of papers toward the head of the table as a small scurry of Hyeeder demons began to clear the table of the remains of lunch.

~~~

"So, frontal assault?" suggested Angel.

"I’m thinking sneak attack, personally," replied Spike.

"Whatever gets the job done, if you ask me. I think whichever way we go with this, the fewer skanky minions he has around, the better. Spike, how about you tell us what you see when you look at this wolf guy, ‘cause he was, you know, Giles-y to me." Buffy wanted them all on the same page for this battle.

"Big wolf, without all the cute doggie parts. I think I didn’t really get a good look at him on account of being kind of a mess at the time, but he’s really big and his snout has enough sharp teeth to give a vamp fang envy. I know he usually has that whole Greek god look when dealin’ with his troops. Dresses like a bad Mafia movie don though. Keep expectin’ him to say stuff like ’Guido, put this guy to bed with the fishes’ or some such." Spike used a bad Marlon Brando imitation that made both Angel and Buffy laugh out loud.

When the laughter subsided, Spike continued. "Got a feeling he’s a lot bigger than what I got to see. Power rolls off him so you can almost taste it. One thing in our favor is his ego. I’d bet he doesn’t really think we can take him. We can use that."

Angel nodded sagely while Buffy remembered back to the night when Spike explained how he had defeated two slayers in the past. "It won’t hurt that I was acting like a silly school girl with The Immortal. If this Wolf saw us after we got here, he can’t think I’m too much of a threat."

"My reputation for chargin’ in half-cocked might help, too. I’m a bit of a wild card they don’t really know what to expect from. Angel might be a different matter." He looked at his fellow vamp. "You put up a long fight and got the best of them more times than not. I think he’ll know you’re a possible threat. Wonder if we can make Wolfie think you hate me even more than you want to do him in…little
dissention in the ranks, eh? Get you in close, maybe lull him into thinkin’ you might play in his toy box. That’s what they kept trying before, yeah?"

"Could work. They know how I felt about Buffy. Maybe if they think I’m pissed that you got the girl, they might buy it," Angel agreed.

"This might be a good idea. You two don’t need to act too much to have a believable pissing contest. We just need to have someone see a little scene without being able to capture us while they’re at it. How about surveillance cameras they must have some around here somewhere…the lobby maybe? Buffy suggested.

"Time to untape Dilby again, you mean," Spike smiled. "I think I have an idea!"

"And why does that worry me?" muttered Angel.

~*~
Chapter 44
~*~

"All right, I can play that. I helped Cordy practice for auditions often enough to know how to act." Angel digested Spike’s plan and hadn’t found any obvious flaws. "Now, where do we play this out for the enjoyment of Wolf’s spy network and not get captured?"

"Our boy Dilby here’s earned himself a pass with all the help he’s given. Hope for you yet, lawyer." Spike cuffed the still bound desk clerk lightly on the back of the head. "Ilona will have a spot for you in the Italian branch that you just might live to take if you keep playin’ for the good guys."

"But he said the surveillance cameras weren’t operational, except for that one area around Wolf’s private quarters. I may have dressed up as Little Red Riding Hood for my last Halloween party, but that doesn’t mean I want to just jump into Grandma’s
bed and make it easy for the Big Bad." Buffy’s brow furrowed as she tried to picture how they could stage their little bit of vamp theater and still get away in one piece.

Angel bit his lip as he thought for a moment before answering. "Well, I’m supposed to change sides, right?" His fellow conspirators nodded. "So, I don’t have to get away. We just have to make sure Spikey makes it out of the room before Wolf’s goons try to re-enact the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. Saw that one first hand and don’t exactly want a replay."

"Yeah, neither of you guys would look great in dresses either." Buffy chuckled, stopping only when she noticed the complete confusion of the two vampires "’Some Like It Hot’? Tony Curtis and Jack Lemon in dresses…joining an all girl band to hide from the mob …Marilyn Monroe? Bet you thought I wouldn’t know what you meant, Angel?"

Angel was still mystified by her reference but merely shook his head slightly. "Um…Buffy, Marilyn wasn’t there. I did meet her with Frank and the guys once,
but that was years later, in Vegas. I don’t think she was in Chicago then and if she was, she would have been a child."

"She means the movie, Peaches. Gonna need to have Xander be your interpreter too when we get back?" Spike smiled at Buffy and teased, "Good thing you finally decided on the hipper vamp instead of Ole Stuffy here."

"I’m not stuffy, Spike, just cultured," Angel grumbled.

"Yeah, like yogurt," Spike jibed back. "All that culture’d explain what you were doin’ hangin’ with the Rat Pack in Vegas. Come to think of it, you were supposed to be eatin’ rats about then…somethin’ you wanna fess up to? Always wanted to know what happened to that Joey Bishop bloke."

Instead of getting irritated, as Spike had expected, Angel grinned. "No. What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. Thought even you knew that!"

The lighthearted moment ended with a clearing of Dilby’s throat. "Gentlemen, perhaps a look at the blueprints for this fine hotel might be of some help? A way for Mr. Spike to safely exit the area and allow the…ahem…capture of Mr. Angel?"

"Dilby, you clever sod, you! Holdin’ out on the team, were you? Good on you! Haven’t lost that edge you’ll need to practice law again." Spike smiled at the
befuddled clerk. "Well, let’s see ‘em!"

~~~

The summit meeting was still in high gear and no one was lying in a pool of his or her own blood yet. The reports regarding the African continent had been
stellar with warfare dividing the peoples and keeping them from joining together to fight the real enemies of famine and plague. The release of AIDS-infected lab monkeys housed in the pharmaceutical complex in Angola had been a master stroke. True, the virus had begun to spread beyond the targeted groups, but now it was doing its major damage in Africa as had been the original plan. In time, the decimated continent would be ripe for the plunder once again. The country’s natural resources would soon be in the hands of new colonial masters, making it much easier for control of the remaining population.

Aeneas crept up behind the grinning Wolf and passed him a note as Wolf was congratulating the researchers who had further developed and released the Ebola virus in the same basic area with no one the wiser.

Wolf read the note and ordered a five-minute break in the summit. "Fridrjof! See that our honored guests have some refreshments. I’ll be in the antechamber
doin’ some quick business." With that, the fearsome demon left the large white room, seeming to disappear completely as he passed a magic barrier.

"Okay, tell me what you’ve got, Sven." The minion that Wolf had dispatched to the outer dimension had returned with the enemy head count as ordered.

"Your greatness, it appears your assumptions were correct that the vampire has back-up of sorts. There are a dozen in a rented shop near the hotel. A mix of slayers and civilians of unknown abilities. There is one that appears human until you look closely. She has blue hair and skin and, from what I was able to overhear, goes by the name of Illyria. I think it may be the Old One you had imprisoned with
Angelus. There is a watcher, too. He’s in one of the hotel rooms on their side of the dimensional wall. I saw no signs of the other souled vampire. They are
well-armed but don’t appear to be planning an assault."

"Good, good. See any of Ram’s red robed rabble while you were out there?" Wolf asked. He was pretty sure his partner’s monks had met their end at the hands of
the small but potentially lethal back-up party.

"All dead from what I could see. I think they managed to capture Grigork, but squirrelly as he was about adoring Ram, I don’t think he’d tell them anything
useful." Sven looked his master in the eye, confident he had relayed important good news. "I really don’t think they’re a threat unless they come into our dimension and I don’t see them doing that. Looks like it’s just the vampire and his Slayer girlfriend."

"I agree. But, pal, that attitude about Grigork being squirrelly because he knew to keep his lip zipped…you might want to think about imitatin’ that." Wolf wondered if Ram might have had a point after all about keeping one’s minions in a state of reverence and awe. "Just ‘cause I’ve been a fair boss don’t mean I’m not worthy of adoration from the likes of you. You’d best remember what I did to Tyr when he
drew the short straw back in Valhalla. Tyr was a god, and I devoured his hand. Think what I can do to you, Sven."

"Yes, oh, yes, most powerful Fenris! I live to serve." Sven backed out the door bent at the waist. It never paid to forget the origins of these Partners, in spite
of their everyday mild appearance. Fenris was the son of Loki. Sven remembered well the tales told by his mother over the hearth fires of home. The tame stories put about for his other identity as Apollo paled beside those of the great Wolf of Valhalla! Whatever the truth of his origins, he was yet a god of great power and little mercy; Sven knew that from personal experience.

~~~

Spike patted Dilby on the top of the head as if he were a pleasing pup, causing the lawyer cum desk clerk to nearly bite his tongue. "Good job, Dilby. Looks like there’s a couple of good places for a vamp to just disappear. Wolf must like a bit of flash and dazzle in front of the minions. Looks like we’re on. Think you can manage more than one facial expression, Peaches? A good actor needs to look like he means his lines."

"You worry about your lines and I’ll worry about mine, Willie. I ate my first actor before you were even born," Angel said indignantly. "It won’t be too hard convincing them I like you better as dust."

"So I’m supposed to…what?" Buffy was not happy being left out of the little drama, but getting Spike out of the area would be challenge enough without trying to get herself to safety as well.

"Just sit here and look pretty, kitten. Takes no effort at all! Keep our helpful friend occupied and I’ll be back before you know it," Spike smirked.

"We might need a little time to convince the Wolf I’ve changed sides. After the curtain comes down on our little matinee and Spike gets back here, you two should hang around here or the basement while I get them all nice and convinced. I can bring Wolf to the courtyard when I’m sure he’s bought the act. Lots of elbow room for a good fight there and it worked great with Ram. Only two entrances, so Buffy
and I can hold off any minions that come along while you take him out. Better give me a day or two at least to be sure. I don’t think he’s as stupid as he looks." Angel knew his on again/off again flirtation with evil made it likely Wolf would buy into the idea that the vampire who had the soul forced on him might turn. Even his own people had believed him when he started this war; why not an egocentric uberdemon?

"Yeah, that courtyard should work fine. Had plenty of good luck there already, what with finding Buffy and offin’ the flying sheep. I think the basement’s the best place to hole up if we’re gonna wait a couple of days for the grand finale. I was noticin’ on that blueprint there’s a small room behind those old boilers that don’t look like they’re used for much of anything now. Might be a good spot to lay low and fairly easy to defend if we have to. Probably need to take Dilby here along just in case," Spike agreed.

"The blood, too! We wouldn’t want to lose what you’ve already collected," Buffy reminded her love.

"Good thinking, but I think we’d be better off keepin’ the blood somewhere else and I think I know just where. Dilby, my man, isn’t there an employee break room round here? Angel, mind getting that jug we’ve been using?" Spike wasted no time in putting his idea into motion.

The break room was next to the closet they had been hiding in. It was the standard set-up with a table with two folding chairs, sink, coffeepot, microwave and small fridge, along with some lockers for personal items. In the refrigerator, Spike found what he was looking for: a small thermos container with someone’s leftover stew. "This yours, Dilby?" Spike guessed.

"Yes. You can eat it if you want though. Anything you want…well …I’d rather you didn’t bite me again." Dilby wasn’t relaxing in spite of his seemingly changed status from captive to co-conspirator.

"Thanks, but I’ll pass on both." Spike quickly emptied the contents in the trash bin next to the table and rinsed out the opaque container. "Now don’t be forgettin’ we sacrificed your lunch and go tryin’ to eat this," Spike teased the shaky clerk as he poured the mixed blood of the two Partners into the thermos. After making sure the lid was firmly screwed on, he placed the container back in the fridge. "Don’t think anyone’ll think to look in your lunch bucket for this. We can come and
collect it when we’ve got the last bit to add to it.

"Let’s go check out that hidden room before we pull the curtain up for the show." Spike led the way to the back stairs followed by Dilby, then Buffy, with Angel watching their backs from the end.

~~~

Giles returned to the shop for an update from the rescue back-up group only to face a worried Dawn.

"You don’t think Angel’s messed it all up, do you?" Dawn was nervous about having both vampires in the other dimension, especially with the unresolved Buffy issues.

"No, oddly enough, I do not. I believe Angel finally understands the necessity for bowing to the prophecy and letting Spike do the killing. His extra help with
holding off the minions will be useful, however. From the information we received from that robed demon, I daresay Spike can use the help. We can but hope that
Buffy has recognized Spike for who he really is by now. If nothing else, Angel can help convince her."


"It’ll be alright, Dawnie," soothed Willow. "Since that last battle, Angel’s aura is a lot more peaceful when he hears Spike’s name. I think he’s finally letting
go of some of his control issues."

"That and I threatened to clock him if he didn’t stop with that alpha male stuff!" Nina grinned. "Hey, I’m a wolf a few nights of the month, I recognize the signs. A couple of hundred years of having to make all the decisions gets to be a habit, I guess. Connor and I will have to work with him on that when all of this is settled. I’m thinking more of a partnership than an old-fashioned caveman family."

"But he’s got the perfect forehead for playing caveman!" Xander observed.

"You speak of those that climbed from the ooze. The female was the dominant in those days, forcing the males to face the dangers of the beasts while they ran
the households. I do not see the half-breed allowing that much power to this one," Illyria added. "I do not understand what his forehead has to do with leadership."

"Neither do I," mumbled Andrew. "But I bet Angel would look really, really good in a loincloth! Maybe leopard skin, or tiger even. Just like Tarzan. Nina could be Jane."

"Don’t even think about calling me ‘Boy’," warned Connor.

"That was my line," joked the usually reserved Robin Wood.

"Yes, well, be that as it may, we should have some activity soon, I should think. Angel will be able to help Spike achieve his goal and we can all get back to
civilization." Giles had a wistful look as he thought of his cozy home where he could expect a proper cuppa and buttered scones with real clotted cream at tea.
He had gotten quite used to his routine before all this globetrotting and dimension shifting had uprooted him again.

Faith whispered in Wood’s ear, "Wanna slip back to our room for a demonstration of what a manly man I’ve got? This cavegirl’s feeling all dominant and I’d hate to
have to club that pretty head of yours and drag you to our cave to get some aggression out. I think I can use my muscles in more interesting ways. I’m thinking I might like to tame a dinosaur I know with a long… thick …well, I guess I should say ‘neck’, considering we’re in company."

No one noticed when the couple edged out of the main room and disappeared.

~~~

Wolf ordered Sven to choose the best demons available to continue the search for the troublemakers. If the reports he’d received just before the meeting were correct and both souled vampires were now in the mix, he might not have to do a thing. All those years of playing Angel had proven that not all of Angelus was gone when the soul was in charge.

The months when the two Aurelians were forced into close company at the L.A. branch had been volatile even on the best of days. Many a pleasant evening had been spent watching surveillance tapes of the two vampires coming to blows over one thing or another. Since both vampires were well known to have claimed rights to the fair-haired slayer, it wasn’t likely they would play nicely together at this stage of the game.

"May all be dust by the time this frickin’ meeting’s finished." Wolf smiled and returned to the room full of nervous humans.

All the delegates sat again after Wolf was seated. "What say we work on wrapping this up before the next apocalypse, waddaya say?" "Perhaps selections for the next round of elections might be a good place to restart, your greatness?" offered the head of the Western Political Division. "Whom should the various parties groom for
office?"

"Doesn’t matter," Wolf waved him off. "They all belong to us anyway. Who looks best kissin’ babies?"

~*~
Chapter 45
~*~

The small band made its way carefully to the basement of the hotel. Dilby, having been drafted to the cause, led the way. "I’ve only been down here a couple of times. No one is supposed to know about the room behind the boilers. I think there’s a small room, then another door leading to a dark room with some cells for special prisoners of the Partners. It’s all very hush hush. I…um …accidentally found it one evening and got curious. If they ever found out I had a clue, I’d be one dead lawyer."

Spike got a thoughtful look at hearing the details of their planned hiding place. "Cells, huh? Don’t think you’d mind too much if we put you in one of ‘em ‘til
this whole thing’s finished, would ya, Dilby? Not that I don’t trust you. Oh, who am I kidding, of course I don’t trust you! Any of those special prisoners there now?"

"I really don’t know, Mr. Spike. I wouldn’t dare be caught watching the comings and goings of the Partners too closely. I do know that they’ve stayed pretty
close to home ever since the Circle of the Black Thorn was…um…disbanded."

The boiler moved easily for any of the three superpowered beings of the group. The human, Dilby, would never have been able to dislodge it, however. "So how is it you know about the other room with cells? Unless you’re a lot more than you seem to be, no way you moved this to snoop around." Angel looked at the lawyer/clerk with suspicion.

"Okay, okay. I sort of overheard some of Ram’s minions talking about it when he had a guest there. I haven’t actually seen it. The minion who opened his yap was gutted when Ram found out he had loose lips. I wasn’t about to let anyone know I’d heard the little secret," Dilby explained. "Let’s just say that Wolfram & Hart doesn’t have the most enticing severance package."

"Think there’ll be any guards? I mean if they have a prisoner there, they probably need to have someone watching them." Buffy, like the others, was being
careful to whisper even though they hadn’t seen anyone on either the lobby floor or in the basement. There was no point in tempting fate.

"Well," said Spike with a shrug, "no time like the present to find out." With that he opened the door to the inner room. It was empty. They could all see the
other door on the opposite wall that supposedly led to the cells. Buffy moved silently towards that door and flung it open as soon as she could see that Angel and Spike were ready for combat if needed.

When no one attacked and no sounds were audible, they entered the large room. A flick of Spike’s lighter revealed several empty cells and no occupants. The
light didn’t reach to the farthest corners though and both vampires reached out with their enhanced senses to check for life.

"I’m pickin’ up a heartbeat. Too fast for human, even scared human. Don’t smell human either." Spike was cautiously heading toward the being in the far corner
cell.

"Smells familiar somehow. Can’t quite place it. Too many other smells, prison-like smells. Makes it hard to pin down." Angel was right behind Spike.

"Kinda like Newgate back in the day, huh?" Spike shivered at the memory of a killing spree Dru had insisted upon soon after he had been turned. She had
wanted to find out if highwaymen and rogues tasted any better because of their evil. They hadn’t. In fact, the smells in the prison had put Spike off eating
altogether. This place had a similar scent of body waste, rotting food and misery. If hell had a perfume, this would be it.

As they approached the far cell, they heard the beginnings of a low warning growl emit from a furry creature in a corner of the cage. It was manacled.
The dim light from Spike’s lighter didn’t quite reach far enough to give any details, but the rattle of chains was a familiar one to both vampires as well as
Buffy.


"Demon?" Buffy knew when she asked that it was a stupid question. What? Did she think the Partners were running a dog pound?

"My guess is yes," deadpanned Angel. "Could be werewolf. I don’t think there’s a full moon for a few weeks yet, but this dimension may be completely different. I think that’s the reason for the familiar scent. Well, Nina smells better than this, but I’ve never left her to rot in a cage either!"

"Okay. First things first. Let’s keep with our plan. Wolfie here isn’t going anywhere and I really don’t want to waste energy fighting a werewolf before we
take on the real baddies. Let’s lock Dilby up towards the front and deal with the forgotten prisoner after we kill the REAL big bad wolf." Buffy had always had
a problem justifying werewolf kills since they were human most of the time. The only exception she would have happily made was Veruca and that was because the
bitch had hurt Buffy’s friends so badly.

They locked Dilby in a cell but didn’t manacle him. "Hey, maybe you should leave some water in case you don’t make it." The lawyer/clerk caught the dark
look given to him by the abnormally strong girl and amended his comment. "Okay, sure, you’re going to royally kick the Wolf’s ass. No problem. But I might
get a little thirsty anyway. Besides, Mr. Angel did say he wanted a day to convince them he’d switched sides, right?"

"Got a point there. We’ll fix you up right proper." Spike noticed a faucet near the outer door and filled a jug for their drafted helper.

"You know, since there is a prisoner here, we’re probably going to have company sooner or later." Buffy couldn’t imagine that there wouldn’t be someone along to check on food and water for the creature in the back cell.

"We’ll have plenty of warning, pet. They can’t get in this whole section without moving that bloody boiler and you can’t do that without makin’ some noise. Not
to worry. They come in, we rip their heads off, take the kibble and feed the nice doggie." Spike didn’t want to suggest that the werewolf might well have been
left to die without food or water by the Partners. Well, it would be rescued soon enough. "Just hope the soddin’ pup doesn’t try to take an arm off in gratitude," Spike thought.

They closed the doors on the growling werewolf and frightened human and moved to the open chamber on the other side of the door. "Maybe we should poke around
a bit for supplies since you’re wantin’ that quality bondin’ time with Wolf. Don’t want Buffy here in the dark with no comforts at all." Spike caressed Buffy’s shoulder as he spoke.

"Good idea, I’m all for the lightness here." Buffy was hoping that Spike wouldn’t be gone too long anyway, but light would be of the good. "Besides, I’ve missed seeing your face. If we’re gonna be stuck here while Angel plays like he’s gone evil, I’ll want a chance to look my fill."

They had little trouble finding a selection of kerosene lanterns that would do an admirable job illuminating their hiding space without throwing out so much light as could be seen outside the room.

The hotel laundry facilities were located in the basement as well, giving them access to a couple of cozy bed comforters that would make sleeping on the
floor much more pleasant. They even found a pair of pillows in the large storage room off the laundry.

Spike and Angel left Buffy to make a comfy nest for herself while they cautiously raided the pantry for some provisions for her and Dilby. Water was available in the cell area, so that wouldn’t be an issue.

Spike pulled out a frozen beef roast from the freezer while Angel arched his brows in confusion. "Ah Spike, I don’t think Buffy can cook even in ideal conditions. Maybe that’s not such a good choice."

"Not for Buffy, you nit, for the pup in the cage. May not’ve been fed in a bit. Don’t hurt to make nice with the puppies." Spike put the roast in a plastic sack, along with a few easy open tins of food for Dilby.

"You’re probably right. I don’t think that werewolf’s fed in a while. I smelled hunger. More than the normal ‘the moon is full and I need to eat someone’ hunger. Good thinking." Angel hoped that if Nina had been in a similar situation someone would have given thought to her care.

As soon as they had fed the prisoners and made sure Buffy was set and comfortable, the vampires headed for their theatrical debut.

~~~

"You need to keep your damned hands off her. She’s MY girl, has been since she was fifteen. I’ve only been waiting for that Shanshu to finally be with her. Our
love is a forever love. All she is to you is something of mine that you want," Angel blazed at Spike with his opening volley.

"Yeah? Well, who left whom, Peaches? Looks to me like ‘forever’ ended with graduation. You left her in pieces that took years to get back together. Buffy and I had more than one night of perfect happiness anyway. What’d you have? One night and then lots of nothing, that’s what." Spike had no trouble thinking of things to say to his sire where Buffy was concerned, even if it was all an act.

"I was always there in her heart, boy. Did she ever slip and call out MY name when you were having that great passionate affair you keep talking about? Bet
she thought it. You were never more than a convenient substitute, Willie boy. Bet she wasn’t even there with you emotionally, huh?" Angel’s shot in the dark
was hitting a bit too close to home for Spike’s comfort. When it came to his fragile heart, that year had been torture worse than any devised by Angelus and Angel’s words were too much an echo of Buffy’s to just ignore the hurt.

"Yeah, well, don’t matter what happened then, does it? She’s not depressed now. She picked ME. No matter what she didn’t feel at first, she loves me now." Spike desperately hoped his words were the truth.

"She didn’t know she could choose, now did she? No, you came charging in here to rescue her from Eduardo and she was grateful. Well I’m here now, boy. I may
have signed over my Shanshu, but I’m not letting you get the girl. You are not getting my leavings, Willie. You never got Dru’s heart and you won’t get Buffy’s either. You’ll always be second best," Angel spat the hateful words, opening up century-old wounds.

"Sent you away, didn’t she? Back at the Hellmouth? Picked me for her champion, NOT YOU!" Spike punctuated the last two words with pokes at Angel’s
chest.

"She didn’t want to risk losing me. She sent ME back to safety. She let you wear that cheap piece of gaudy jewelry because it didn’t matter what it did to you,
I’D still be safe!" Angel felt bad saying that last bit when he saw Spike flinch in obvious pain at the words. "Come on, Spikey, she sure moved on from her
‘terrible grief’ at your dusting pretty quickly. How long after you closed the Hellmouth before she started playing the Immortal’s dancing queen? She told me she still had some baking to do before she settled down with me. She tell you anything like that, boy?"

Come to think of it, she hadn’t. NO! Spike was not going to start believing this little drama. It was all for the benefit of Wolf and his minions. There was no truth in it…was there?

Spike threw the first punch. It never took much for the two of them to come to blows even on a good day and the fight was only partially staged. The blows were real enough and the simmering jealousies behind them as well.

"If you think I’m going to just sit by and let you walk off into the sunset with the girl, you’re crazier than your sire ever was. Buffy’s going to be mine,
Spike. Whatever it takes, she’s going to be mine. I’ve waited too long, been too patient." Angel launched himself at Spike again, pushing him towards the secret panel they had found on the blueprints. Just as the minions entered the room, Spike disappeared through the unseen opening.

Angel acted startled as the minions surrounded him. "Where’d he go? Where did that bastard go?"

"We shall find the vampire soon enough. Now you must come with us to be destroyed by the great Fenris," the swarthy demon, Aeneas, ordered. "Find the other one!
He cannot have gotten far. He must have gone through that window there. Check the grounds!"

~~~

Spike moved quickly to the end of the hidden passage and exited to the far room they had chosen for his escape. There was a laundry chute in the wall that
allowed him to slide straight to the laundry room in the basement and Buffy.

He landed on a small pile of soiled sheets and dragged himself out of the bin. "It was just play actin, Spike. Get over it." He was still so insecure where
Buffy was concerned, especially in light of her historical, much eulogized love of Angel. So much of what Angel had said could be plausible. "No! She said I am her choice…me, not Peaches. Not gonna let him ruin even one more minute I have with her."

Spike’s enhanced hearing could make out the many footfalls on the floor above and he made haste to the boiler and their hiding place. Time to go home to Buffy. His home would always be wherever she was, whether it was a hole in a wall behind a boiler, a cozy crypt, fancy flat or hell itself. His home was in Buffy’s heart. He prayed he was right trusting her when she told him he was the primary resident there.

~~~

"Well, well, if it isn’t our renegade CEO and the only member of the Black Thorn left alive. Welcome, Angel. I think I need to discuss our employee handbook and
all the fine print on terminating employees you must have missed." Wolf’s eyes blazed red as he drew himself up and revealed his true form.

The minions scattered both in fear and because there was little space in the room for anyone beyond Wolf as he expanded to full size. He towered over the nervous
vampire. Ceilings of twelve feet proved too low as Wolf brought his head down in front of Angel. His fetid breath assaulted the vampire, nauseating him. His
jowls oozed with drool and his teeth, though sharpened to points, were as large as Angel’s fingers.

He was immense in size, his body taking up at least a good half of the room. His claws reminded Angel of those hands on the character in the horror movie Lorne
insisted he watch about nightmares that became real. Angel hoped to hell he was going to get a chance to play his game before he found himself eaten. Angel
hadn’t felt real fear in a long time, not for his own safety at least, but he was feeling it now.

Wolf growled then forced out English words as he licked his lips, "So…any last words?"

~*~
Chapter 46
~*~

Spike moved the boiler easily. His emotions were still raging from the staged fight with Angel that managed to strike a bit too close to home on many issues. Buffy had clearly said she loved HIM, chose HIM. Even with Peaches here, too. Buffy wasn’t a liar. Still…

Spike’s memory went back to the year that was both heaven and hell to him. He had finally gotten the chance to discover firsthand the answer to the question he
had once posed to Riley Finn: was it better to have Buffy without her love, to be close to her and be in her body but not in her heart or was it better to love from afar with the hope of someday? He’d had both versions of the question and had to say that neither really felt good.

Spike hadn’t minded the physical blows. He was used to them really. At least when she was beating on him he had her attention and touch. He didn’t really enjoy pain, in spite of possible evidence to the contrary. He much preferred giving and receiving pleasure any day.

The verbal stakings he received over and over had taken quite a toll, however. What made it harder to get past now was his soul’s agreement with Buffy’s words from those days. He WAS an evil, disgusting thing. There was no good in him, not until loving her.

He was beneath her. A century bathed in blood made that a given. He had tried to kill her more than once, even hiring the order of Taraka to take her out. There was no way around what he had done, what he was still capable of, what he was…is.

He was a vampire and there was no getting around that. The difference now was the soul, but all that did, really, was to underscore how much better she deserved. Even after the soul, Buffy had pointed out to the Potentials that underneath it all vampires were all the same; animals, she had said. The best he should be allowed was to become her faithful domesticated pet of sorts…not her equal, not her love. A
pet, perhaps, but even then the fact remained that he would always be a dangerous breed at best.

"Oh, God! What went wrong?" Buffy saw Spike’s agonized face and assumed the worst. "Did Angel get dusted? Are you all right? Come here, baby, and let me see."

Spike flinched from her gentle touch and concerned words. He was torn, wanting to grasp at the love she offered and he so desperately needed and desired, yet knowing she deserved so much better. He couldn’t undo his past or change what he was.

"Angel’s fine. Least I think he is. It all went down the way we figured. I got out and he was pretty convincing with the Spike hate. Wolf’s smart enough to know that having Angel on his side would be his best chance in finding us fast." Spike was keeping his distance from his lady love, determined to channel the discussion towards plans for getting out of their current dimension and away from whatever Buffy might think she felt for him.

Buffy stared at Spike, trying to fathom what had happened to change his response to her. They werecloser than they had been in, well…ever, really. She had no walls up to hold him off and she had finally been clear in her mind and what she said about her feelings. There was no pull from her past with Angel to confuse her, no shame at loving Spike to close her heart and mouth. Something was wrong though. Spike was
avoiding her touch and looked more lost than he had since his days in the basement of Hellmouth High. What had Angel said or done to cause this?

"Spike. Baby, you need to talk to me. I can see by your face that something is really, really wrong. Don’t shut me out. You begged me to talk before and I was too stubborn and afraid to do it. I learned that I should have listened to you then. Don’t do what I did--talk to me." Buffy was beginning to be afraid. She had no real fear that they wouldn’t win against the worst that the demon world could throw at them, but she was terrified of having her heart broken yet again.

"Nothing new, pet. Everything’s the same, even me. That’s the problem. I forget myself at times. You make me feel like a man, always have done. I stayed away so you could have the life you deserve, Buffy. Can’t say the bloody Immortal was what I had in mind, but you bein’ happy is all I want in this whole world. We aren’t exactly Ozzie and Harriet, Love," Spike said softly.

"I thought her name was Sharon." Buffy was confused and it showed.

"Different Ozzie, very different. I guess I can’t really think of an example you’d get, what with the world bein’ so different now. Not too many happy, perfect couples out there on TV or in real life either. Just meanin’ I forget sometimes that I’m a vampire, that I’m a serial killer. Haven’t done it in a long while and don’t particularly want to, but I am what I am." Spike’s head was lowered in sadness.

Buffy could feel the anger rise within her. "Angel! I swear, if Wolf hasn’t killed him I’m tempted to dust him myself!"

"Not Angel’s fault, pet. Got my own soul to point out those truths. You were right all along about why I’m not fit to be near you, never will be. Gave up that right decades before you were even born. I had choices. Proved that when I stopped wantin’ to kill for food after I fell in love with you. True, it’s harder to chose the right thing without the soul, livin’ the life of a vamp. Doesn’t mean I didn’t have a choice though. Always been butchers around and demons to kill when I’d need a spot of violence. I made bad choices. Choices that made me all those uglies you saw all along." Spike looked deeply into Buffy’s eyes so that she could see the truth written there.

"You’re still an idiot!" Buffy took hold of his chin, forcing him to maintain eye contact and not drop his eyes in misplaced shame again. "You have no idea how
special you are, do you? The fact that you made ANY good choice in your whole unlife is a miracle. You shouldn’t be able to do that, and you did time after
time. We never said a thing to help or encourage you either; you did it in spite of us. It wasn’t the chip. I finally figured that out after I lost you, or thought I did. You could have had others do the killing part and still been the Big Bad. There was good at the core of you even then and the chip just gave you the excuse and the nudge you needed. Take away the soul from Angel, even shove in a chip, and
he’d still have been looking for ways to destroy me and the entire world!"

Spike started to shake his head in denial, but Buffy wouldn’t allow it.

"That’s another thing: you were always able to love. You put Dru’s needs over your own even while you were still a killer. You weren’t supposed to be able to do
those things either: love, self-sacrifice. You’ve always been special. I was just too blind to see it before and too scared when I finally did. Yeah, you’ve been a
killer. You’ve also saved the world a couple of times, maybe even more than that. The first time you didn’t even have the chip yet, much less a soul. I know it doesn’t work that way, life for life or anything, but it does have to matter. It makes you different on so many levels. Don’t repeat my stupid words to me now when they are even less true than they were then," Buffy began to cry. "Don’t let me
mess this up again with stuff I can’t go back and undo."

Spike could withstand almost any torture devised, but not the hot, wet tears of the woman he loved. His arms slid around Buffy’s sobbing frame and drew her close
in his embrace.

"Shhh, my love. Shhh. I’m a foolish man, I am. Have all this golden perfection laid in front of me and I try to run the other way! Quiet now, Love. I’m
afraid that I don’t have the strength to walk away from you even if I do think you deserve better. Still much too selfish to go far. I would have gone to find
you in time, you know. Took all my will to stay away after I got my body back. Wanted to find out why I was back first, then thought I’d let it go too long.
Still, I would have come to you in time. Die a little every day I’m apart from you. Have to stay dust to stay away."

"Maybe you and I should have that talk now, huh?" Buffy choked out. No way was she letting any more bad history stand in the way of the future she so completely wanted with Spike. He had been dead and was now alive; she wasn’t going to lose him again.

~~~

They each had so much to say that once the conversation began it was as if floodgates opened and everything spilled out.

Spike began with a summary of everything that had happened to him since his return after burning to ash in the Hellmouth. He glossed over the reasons for not getting in touch with Buffy as soon as he was recorporealized until he finished the tale up through the current rescue mission.

"I should have called or written, left it up to you about seeing me again. Sorry, Buffy. Not proud to admit the real reason. Told myself it was ‘cause I’d gone
out a hero and it would be anticlimactic to just pop up again. Told myself I was protectin’ you ‘cause I never did find out who really brought me back or why.
Didn’t want to be a tool for evil again like with the First. Reminded myself that you had moved on with your life and there wasn’t likely to be a place for me in it. Bit of truth in all that I suppose, but the real truth was…," Spike paused and drew in a deep breath before baring all to the woman he loved, "I was scared."

"What were you afraid of?" Buffy couldn’t imagine what might cause a fearless warrior like Spike to be afraid, especially anything to do with her. After
all, she had never been able to stake him even when they really were enemies.

"Reality, I suppose. See, if I didn’t get in touch, I could always believe you meant it there at the last, that you loved me, at least in that moment. Could tell
myself I did the noble thing and let you move on with that normal life you always said you wanted." Spike gulped before exposing his deepest nightmares of that year. "Couldn’t stand to see the look on your face if you weren’t glad I was back. If you didn’t love me that way and then had to find some way to nicely let me know you weren’t interested. I didn’t want your pity, didn’t want you to want me ‘cause of what I did. I was afraid of what kind of look you’d have when you saw me. Knew you’d be glad I wasn’t roastin’ in hell or anything, but wasn’t sure if you’d be that happy havin’ me back in your life again.

He couldn’t look at her. Part of him still feared that look she had given him in his worst nightmares. "Could always tell myself that you’d have been happy to have me back, that you’d wrap your arms around me and tell me you loved me. I could tell myself that if I’d only had the balls to just come to you, I’d have everything I ever wanted and it was my fault it hadn’t happened. Better that than be all hopeful and get pity or disappointment instead. I was a coward."

Buffy was quiet for a long while, absorbing all he had said, all that he felt. She knew that her years of mixed messages and failure to commit had laid the groundwork
for his insecurities. He was no coward, just a man who had been hurt one time too many.

"There would have been no pity, Spike, just joy. I missed you so very much. If I had a clue you weren’t dust there in that hole, I would have been there as fast as
I could book a flight." Buffy took his hand and brought it to her lips, placing a soft kiss on his palm then holding it to her cheek. He could feel her tears on his hand as she held it there.

"You are not a coward either. I had a lot of time to remember our history while you were dead to me, lots of time to relive all the bad, all the good." Spike started to interrupt and Buffy knew he was going to take responsibility for the bad memories. "Shh. Now it’s my turn, Spike. You made some mistakes, a couple of really big ones. Still, you had no soul to help you with those choices. I don’t have that excuse; I should have known better. I should have judged you by your actions, not how Angel was or how a vampire is supposed to be. Those things I finally told you I saw when you were chained up in my basement before the First took you, I saw them before and chose to ignore them. I was afraid, too."

Buffy looked deeply into Spike’s eyes, making sure he could see her sincerity. "I was afraid to love you. I denied how I felt and what I saw, because I was terrified. I haven’t got a great track record with guys. Most of the males that mattered most in my life have left me. I wasn’t able to trust my instincts any
more. It really had nothing to do with you. I feared being left all alone. You would go because all the men I loved did sooner or later and my friends would have
deserted me because of you. I was afraid, and I was wrong."

"When you came back with that soul, I felt guilty, too. You had done the unthinkable for me! My mind was spinning. Then everything else was going on with all those
girls that I had to protect…you being taken by the First…the end of the world hanging over me again…I guess I just thought that when it was all over, there’d be time. I think how I felt showed in how I acted. Xander said he knew as soon as I brought you home when you found out you were killing again--that’s why he stopped being a jerk towards you. He could tell. We talked a lot right after. He’d lost Anya and I’d lost you.

She closed her eyes in memory of those terrible dark days. "I never said the words though. Not until the very end when I knew there would be no more time and you HAD to know. It drove me crazy that you didn’t believe me. I couldn’t blame you for it. When had my actions and words ever matched where you were concerned anyway?"

Spike began to stroke her hair gently as he drew her closer into his embrace. They had both endured so much hurt for so long and denied themselves and each other the purity of the love they held in their hearts.

"I did love you, Spike. I still do. I am beyond happy that you are here and I have a chance for us to get it right this time." Buffy smiled up into his face.

"And Angel? I remember how important he always was with you. Know you’ll always love him, how happy you were when he came to help in Sunnydale. Some part of you still want him?" Spike prayed for the only answer his heart could handle at this point.

"Angel is my past. You heard me tell him that just a while ago." Buffy took hold of Spike’s face and continued. "Look, you big dummy, if I had wanted Angel, I would have gone straight to L.A. after Sunnydale became a big hole in the ground. I didn’t. I had a bigger hole in my heart than that one in Southern California and you were at the bottom of both. I didn’t even call Angel after; Giles let him
know what happened. This is the first I’ve seen of him since I sent him away and made you my champion. Angel is my past. No regrets!"

Spike’s lips descended to hers in what felt like slow motion. They had kissed after Spike freed her in the courtyard but this was different, this was so much more. It was regret and promise, comfort and passion, remembrance and renewal. It was the joining of two souls in the most complete way possible. It was a kiss of love.

When they broke away to let Buffy catch a breath, she giggled a bit. "You know, we do have a bit of time on our hands here. Cozy comforter over there and plenty of privacy. I’d love to try something we’ve never done."

"That so, Love? Can’t think of much we haven’t done already. Maybe you’ll have to show me what you have in mind." Spike had a slight smirk as he teased her.

"We’ve never made love to each other, Spike. Not with both of us there at the same time. Not freely, no holds barred. I want to make love to you and finally let you make love to me. I’m tired of waiting for some better, perfect time that usually slips out of my hands. I don’t want another thing to regret with us." Buffy took his hand and led him to the piled bed linens in the corner.

Spike swallowed hard and tried to gather the pieces of his blown mind. It had always been lovemaking for him. He adored her with his body even when she had rejected the words. He had worshiped her with kisses and loved her with his hands and pretended she was feeling it as well. Now, if he understood her correctly, she had felt it, understood it. Now she wanted to not only accept it, but also to return the feeling.

His hands were in her hair, her glorious hair that was longer than he had ever seen it. Golden silk that ran through his fingers and smelled of exotic flowers and
sunshine. Her hands were busy as well. One was loosening his hair, letting his untamed curls run riot while the other was caressing his chest, building a fire within him that threatened to combust.

Buffy toed off her strappy sandals, still kissing Spike. Suddenly, instead of being eye to eye, she found herself fitting perfectly to his frame, just as she remembered. He was taller than she was, but not so tall that she had to stretch to continue devouring his lips.

Her tongue slipped between his parted lips and she began to explore his mouth. She ran her it along the back of his teeth teasing the sensitive skin that covered his fangs. Spike moaned, the sound muffled by their continued kiss. His tongue joined in the dance immediately, tasting his sweet Buffy as he never dared to dream he would again.

Her hand began to move to the bottom of his shirt, lifting it up and out of the way so that hungry flesh could touch hungry flesh, unfettered.

Spike moved one hand to the back of her halter top and loosened the tie at her neck. His other hand carefully moved her hair to one side as his mouth sought out the curve of her delicate neck. As Buffy panted desperate breaths, his lips and tongue made magic on that sensitive column of skin.

They moved slightly apart to allow his shirt to be removed at last and he bent to remove his Doc’ss As he tossed the boots to one side, he straightened up to the
sight of Buffy, her dress top falling loose and leaving her bare to his gaze from the waist up.

Her breasts were fuller than when they had last been intimate. They were perfect, ripe and round, just the perfect size to make an exquisite handful. Her nipples were already hard and a deep, dusky pink. He took one in his hand, caressing and teasing, while his mouth claimed the other.

Buffy leaned into him, moaning her pleasure as she trailed her hands all over his upper body. Her finger dipped under his waistband with every pass. Finally that taunting hand moved to the front of his jeans and gently squeezed his erection through the denim.

"You growled! I distinctly heard a growl there," Buffy whispered.

"You’re makin’ me crazy here, Buffy. Want you so bad. Need you so much. Don’t want to rush, but I’m like a lit bottle rocket ready to go off in a blaze of color," he spoke into her neck.

"Color, eh? Now, that would be new. Let’s see what this new substance tastes like, shall we?" Buffy dropped to her knees at the same time she slipped the top button of his trousers free. She had him unzipped and in her hand before Spike could think clearly. After she took hold of his throbbing cock, all chance for clear thinking left him.

Spike had to rest one hand against the wall to steady himself from the onslaught of her mouth and tongue. His other hand grasped at her head to slow her tempo enough
to maintain some control. As wonderful as the feeling of her soft lips, hot mouth
and talented tongue were, he wanted to be buried deep within his love when he finally found his release.

It was taking all his concentration not to come quickly. It had been so long. Aside from the one aborted tryst with Harm, he had been as celibate as a monk. Buffy couldn’t know that, of course.

"Buffy, love, please. Much as I adore that heavenly mouth of yours, I need to be in you. I haven’t…" How to mention Harmony was the question. Actually, Spike decided, mentioning the blonde vamp wasn’t a great idea at any time, especially not now. He decided on a more vague explanation, "It’s been so long, Love. Can’t guarantee that vamp stamina right away."

Buffy had taken him all the way in to his balls. She didn’t seem to have any problem with pesky gag reflexes at all. There was just lots of sensation, almost too much. She sucked with just the right amount of pressure to mimic her internal Slayer muscles while flicking his oversensitive cock with her tongue as she pumped him with her mouth. Her hand reached his balls, caressing them as she sucked.

When Spike was nearly whimpering in his need for her, she moved her mouth from his swollen cock and took each ball into her mouth, rolling them in the most delightful way while looking up at him with impish glee in her eyes. Finally she relented.

"Okay, mister. We do this your way, but I plan to finish what I started here. Want to taste you, swallow you down, make you come forever." She rose to her feet, her hands trailing up his bare torso as her lips sought his in a soul-touching kiss.

"Think we both have on too many clothes, don’t you?" Spike began to remove her dress. "Silk. Nice, soft. Not as soft as your skin though." The dress pooled at her feet and she kicked it aside. Versace be damned, she had Spike back in her arms!

She had not been idle while Spike removed the last of her clothes. Buffy had pushed his jeans past his slim hips and down his legs. She giggled a bit as Spike hopped about, trying to get them off without falling over or letting go of his hold on her. His hands were already occupied kneading her breast with one and tangling in the hair at the nape of her neck with the other.

Finally free of all clothing, the lovers melted into one another, bodies starved for contact, heat against cool. Buffy was panting from the latest of the successive kisses. "Do you really think I could ever meet any other man who could play my body the way you do? No one knows how to set me on fire like you and there isn’t anyone I want to burn with the way I do with you. I’m never as alive as when I’m in your
arms. Even back then I knew that was true. Everything is a perfect fit…perfect!"

Spike lowered Buffy to the comforter, never letting go as they fell bonelessly into the softness. He began to rain kisses down her jaw line to the front of her neck,
licking and kissing his way across the collar bone to her right breast. His right hand palmed the neglected leftone. Her nipples were rock hard and flushed with color. Spike let go of the right nipple with a small pop and moved his mouth to
the left one. He was using his hand to continue the caressing of the right nipple, just the right amount of pressure in his flicking and squeezing to cause pleasure instead of pain.

Buffy let her kisses follow a similar path to Spike’s odyssey on her neck. She stopped at his Adam’s apple and tongued it before moving on to the hollows of his
collar bones. Her hands were busy, one making lazy paths along his side from abs to hips and back again while the other traced patterns on his strong back.

The only sounds were Buffy’s ragged breathing, punctuated by moans from both the lovers as they re-acquainted themselves with each other’s bodies.

Spike finally moved on from Buffy’s firm breasts and left wet kisses on his way to her glistening pussy. She had never let him play much this way when they had been lovers before. Oral sex seemed far too intimate for Buffy to allow much giving or receiving. It made what they were doing far too real for her then. Now Spike would have his chance to show her what kind of pleasure he could give when she was willing.

He settled his head between her thighs and glanced up at her lust-glazed face, smiling. "So pretty, Love. You are so beautiful everywhere, but here you are
exquisite. All wet and warm and flushed for me." As he spoke, his fingers were moving around her outer lips, spreading the moisture her body seemed to be producing
in massive amounts. He watched her face carefully as he inserted first one, then two fingers into her channel, pumping them and curling one to reach her sweet spot with each thrust.

Buffy writhed beneath his touch. "God…Spike…oh, so good. Yes! Oh, yes! Right there, again…more. Spiiiiiike!" Her body convulsed, throbbing around his fingers as she came for the first time. He slowed the thrusts, letting her come down from her climax. When she was barely twitching, he flicked her clit and sent her into a second orgasm. Colors exploded behind her eyes at the intensity. How had she ever walked away from this, from him?

He chuckled at the look of awe she gave him as she swallowed and gasped. As he kept his half-lidded eyes on her, he slowly put both Buffy-drenched fingers into his mouth and sucked them clean. "Delicious. I could live on this and give up blood entirely."

As Buffy laughed at the thought, he bent his head towards her once again and this time she felt his mouth as he kissed her pussy with near reverence before running his tongue over her outer labia and plunging it into her. His finger found her clit and began to rub small circles directly on that delightful spot as his tongue alternated, caressing her inner labia then thrusting into her channel. She was headed for her third orgasm before she knew it.

Spike felt her lower body tense up in preparation for another climax and he held her as still as he could, not losing contact as she writhed and bucked beneath him. She nearly pulled out some hair, she was grasping his head so hard. Her scream of ecstasy caused the werewolf in the back chamber to howl in alarm.

Spike kissed his way back to her mouth and then shared essence of Buffy with his goddess as his tongue tangled with hers in a hot kiss.

They lay together, her hands playing in his hair as he rested his head upon her breast. As soon as Buffy could speak again, she tilted Spike’s head and gave him
a small, playful pout before saying, "Sure you won’t let me return the pleasure?"

"Oh you’ll be returnin’ it, pet, just not with that pretty mouth of yours. Not this time anyway. You don’t know how I’ve ached to feel you all around me again. Gonna make you scream," Spike promised.

"You already did," Buffy admitted with a laugh. "I think we got the wildlife riled up back there! Of course, I do have Slayer stamina and think you could get me screaming again without too much bother."

"No bother at all, missy." Spike’s deep chuckle as his head lay on her breast caused vibrations that Buffy could feel all the way to her womb.

"Well, if it’s no bother…"

She hadn’t finished the sentence before Spike rolled her on her back and positioned his cock at the entrance of her wet, willing quim. Neither of the lovers wanted to break eye contact as Spike slowly entered her. They needed to reassure each other that they were both there together, that this time they were making love.

A low growl started at the base of Spike’s throat as he felt her inner walls sheath his cock in liquid heat. He felt her stretch to take him all the way in as she moaned her pleasure.

He paused after becoming fully seated within her. "There is NOTHING standard about missionary with you," Buffy quipped and kissed him deeply as they began the ancient dance of lovers. His thrusts were slow and steady to begin setting a pace that brought her orgasm as a surprise. True to her word she did scream again and this time it was his name she shouted to the heavens. Spike decided he had found the music he truly loved in the sound.

He varied his thrusts after her climax, pulling nearly out and making several shallow thrusts before slamming home. He kept that rhythm, bringing her to yet
another climax.

"God, can a person die from coming too many times?" Buffy asked when she caught her breath.

"Got a bit of time to make up here. You’re not complainin’ are you?" Spike smirked, knowing full well that Buffy was more than happy to continue all
night if possible. "I’m thinkin’ we can break that five hour record if we really put our minds to it. Whaddaya say, Slayer, up for it?"

"What do you think? We’re perfectly matched, you know. If you can take it, so can I." Buffy rolled the two of them over so that she was now in control of the tempo and Spike had the freedom to knead her breasts as Buffy moved over him.

She leaned back, supporting her back against Spike’s bent knees and rotated her hips in fluid motions. She loved watching Spike’ face as he watched her loving him.


His gaze then moved to where their bodies joined and he took on a look of wonder as he took in the sight of her wet pussy moving up and down on his thick, hard cock. Watching her not just welcome him into her very core, but directing the possession. He watched silently as his slick cock disappeared within Buffy again and again. Her inner muscles were grasping and releasing in a way that made Spike sure he would pop
like warm champagne, and soon.

His eyes closed as he neared his release. "Spike, I want to see your eyes when you come. I want to see the look in them as you shoot your cum deep in me." Buffy had never talked during sex in the past, much less saying words guaranteed to cause the best orgasm in his long life.

"Buffy. God, love you so much. Coming, geez, I’m coming," he moaned as he shot into her, spurt after endless spurt of his seed. He could feel the contracting of her muscles that let him know without a word that she had joined him in the leap over the edge to paradise.

Buffy lay down atop Spike as they caressed each other with their hands. Buffy’s foot tenderly moved up and down Spike’s leg. The afterglow lit the room in a near visible way. "So…any other stupid ideas about me wanting someone other than you, my vampire? My love. Any further doubt that I’m more than happy you’re back? And never letting you go either."

It was a contented Spike that fell into a deep sleep with his Slayer, his Buffy, wrapped tightly in his arms. As for Buffy, she slept well for the first time since the night before the battle with the First. The missing ingredient was there again: Spike’s body wrapped around hers.

~*~
Chapter 47
~*~

Wolf towered over his new captive, jaws agape as if ready to devour the hapless Angel. The vampire wracked his brain for words of wisdom, or at least words to keep him from being eaten…or worse. What was it Cordy had always said about acting? ‘Oh, yeah, "reach inside yourself for the truth and use that". Sorry, Cordy, you weren’t the best actress, but I’ll take that advice.’

Angel drew himself up to his full height and found his inner rage. He poked Wolf on his left haunch and began to rant. "Look, I don’t think I give a rat’s ass what you do to me at this point as long as I get to see you do the same, or worse, to that cocky prick who thinks he can walk in and take everything I’ve worked for. He only wants her because she was mine first, just like my reward.

"I suffered for that Shanshu, put up with this soul and all that guilt because someday I’d get my chance for happiness. I passed up being human when the Mohra
demon changed me because I knew that in good time I’d be given my reward. It was a carrot on a stick for the muzzled vamp, that’s all it ever was!

"I’ve had to deal with this soul, this guilt, for years. No peace, no joy, just remorse and duty. HE just waltzes in with his shiny new soul and, POP, after a couple of weeks whining in a basement, she feels sorry for him. She takes him home and mollycoddles him, even knowing he’s still killing and a threat, even saves his pale ass when she could have gotten rid of him for good!

"Now he gets MY reward AND my girl? How is that right or fair? Bastard Powers just jerking my chain is what it is. I was a force to reckon with and they treated me like some trained bear or leashed dog. Promise everything and give nothing."

Angel hadn’t spared a look at Wolf throughout his tirade. He figured since he wasn’t dead yet, he must have an interested audience at least. Angel glanced at the slavering demon as he paused for breath, trying to gage the reception of his words by the remaining Partner.

Wolf lowered his head further until his muzzle was almost touching Angel’s face. Bits of drool landed on the vampire’s clothing from Wolf’s open maw. The demon’s red, glowing eyes studied the vampire carefully as if to judge the veracity of the anger that had spewed from Angel’s mouth. After all, hadn’t they tried to turn Angel from the side of good all these years? Wasn’t it at least a possibility,
according to the scrolls? The prophecies were quite clear that even the ancient sages had not been certain of the souled vampire’s ultimate loyalty. Wolf
decided to hold off on the planned execution of his turncoat employee and coax more confessions first. Unlike servile, mindless minions, Angel could be a powerful ally if he could only be made to see the advantages of rethinking his side in the great struggle of good vs. evil.

"So," Wolf began in soft, soothing tones, "not a happy lieutenant in the Powers’ army anymore? I thought I heard the famous vampire with a soul was solidly in
the white hat camp. What game are you trying to play here, vampire?"

"That’s just it. I am not playing any game anymore. I am tired of being a pawn on some insane chessboard where you can’t really tell who’s the good guy. The Powers are masters at game playing. All their vague promises that if I’m a good enough boy, do what I’m told, don’t rock the boat or ask too many questions, AND if I’m just patient, they’ll give me a clean slate plus all the goodies I’ve passed up over the last century."

Angel sidled up to the Wolf and spoke as if in confidence, demon to demon as it were. "Look, when that gypsy bitch’s clan shoved this soul in me, I tried to deal, I really did. I mean I’m an adaptable kind of guy. Then that miserable prick messed THAT up too by eating all of them and taking away Darla’s bargaining chip to force them to remove the cursed soul! SPIKE!" Angel spat.

"So, I suffered the overwhelming guilt, ate only bad guys, kept a low profile. I managed the guilt and it was no picnic. Then Darla, the slut, decided that
wasn’t good enough and drove me away as if I were nothing! A fledgling or a minion gets more respect! I was the scourge of Europe for over a hundred years until she decides I’m not evil enough to travel with her. It wasn’t like I was some born-again evangelist trying to turn her to the other white meat or anything! I coped. I killed. So what if my meals were the scum of humanity? It’s not like I tried to keep the bitch, the prick and the loon from feeding on all the babies and virgins they wanted."

Angel’s pitch began to rise again in anger. "I ate rats! DO you have ANY idea how disgusting that is? How bad they taste? How many you need to get a decent
meal out of them? Rats! Years of rats…," His voice trailed away in bitterness and nausea at the remembrance.

"I tried to just stay away from humans, the temptation of all that pulsing goodness just under a thin layer of skin. Tried not to really look at them. Hell, most people aren’t nice anyway. Not just criminals, the guys in the three-piece suits and soccer moms with their nasty secret sins! Gotta tell ya, becoming food would be too great an honor for most of humanity. But, noooooooo, I stayed away and
ate friggin’ rats!"

Angel threw an arm over the now humanoid shoulder of the shape-shifting demon and spoke low as if in confidence. "Still had dreams though, wonderful dreams of the hunt and the kill. They never went away. Slept a lot in those years. Used to wake up more hungry than ever until that damned curse-ordered guilt would start up and smack me down. Made me ashamed of what I was, not just what I’d done."

Wolf moved to a seat behind his desk and indicated a chair for Angel to sit as well. Anyone looking in would think they were a couple of businessmen sharing
trade secrets. Wolf now wore his Apollo visage and Angel knew that the threat from him was nonexistent, for the moment at least.

He continued his confessional. "Finally, after a century of that crap, these bastards, these Powers, send their boy with an offer, show me Buffy. What a
sweet little morsel she was then too, all innocence. Sitting there sucking on her lollipop like a little girl, making a man hard to watch her." Angel stopped in memory of his first sighting of the new Slayer. "Whistler--that’s the bait-and-switch agent for those lying Powers--says, ‘help her out’. Yeah,
help! Look, don’t touch and sure as hell don’t get too happy.

Angel paused again and got choked up, closing his eyes from the painful thoughts he was about to share. "I gave her up. Do you have ANY idea how hard that was
for me? She was young and beautiful and MINE and I gave her up. She loved me even after meeting Angelus! She would have accepted anything I offered and I walked away.

"Before I could even think about just hiding out for another century or so, they send a new guy to keep me in line. Sucked me into the whole ‘help the hopeless’
gig like I was some white knight or something. And I did it too! Buffy’d always know that a noble hero loved her from afar. I was a bigger idiot than Spike by then. That’s what the Powers had reduced me to.

"I might have had second thoughts in time," Angel admitted. "So they brought in the kicker by having us stumble onto that scroll, the scroll of Aberjian your
L.A. branch just happened to have lying around. Finally they spelled out just enough of a hint of what I’d be getting eventually if I’d only stay the course.

"Fact is, I lost Buffy and found Cordy. Then they took her away from me, too. I got my boy thanks to your Special Projects Team, only to lose him as well. Connor will never be mine now and even if he WAS, we still lost all of those years while he was in Quor-toth. Angel sits there with a big fat zero but lots of promises if he’ll just be a good doggie.

Angel glared at a space in front of him as if seeing something Wolf could not. "Spike," he spat again in distaste. "In walks Spike. He’s always been a pain
in my ass. The little bastard even turned against me, his grandsire, while he was still evil. Can you believe that? Made me a laughing stock. I hate that." Angel let the anger vibrate around them as if it were a living thing. "My kid hates me, even after all my sacrifices to make sure he gets a happy life. Meets that idiot and, guess what? Connor likes him. Good ol’ uncle Spike. Not holding any of Spike’s past against him, no sir. Probably blames me for all the evil in Spike’s history too!"

Wolf poured a glass of water from the carafe on his desk and pushed it toward the distraught vampire. Angel had clearly found the end of his rope and it looked like he was letting go at long last. "Go on. I’d like to hear more about this Spike. We know very little, you see. I’m afraid we wrote him off as unimportant years ago. Too much impulse, too much emotion for him to interest us. Frankly, I’m surprised he managed to survive beyond his early years, especially tagging along with the wonderfully mad Drusilla. He was never even a footnote in our
files."

Angel took a drink of the water and glared into his glass. "He should be dust. WAS dust, damn it." He paused again and backtracked a bit in his litany of
mistreatment. "You know, I finally had Buffy back! She promised that when she was done ‘baking’ we’d finally be together. Dumb Angel, ever hopeful…gonna Shanshu, get the girl, live happily ever after!" Angel caught the puzzled look on the Partner’s face and grinned at his confusion.

"Buffy’s not really good with analogies. Not good with the English language actually!" He and Wolf laughed a bit at that.

"True! I enjoyed her bubble-headed chatter when Eduardo first introduced her to us. Lovely girl to look at and remarkable luck. Not a very smart dame though. Must be pretty good in the sack though if she’s got two master vampires by the dick!" The pair laughed again at the irony of it all.

"She sent me away to keep me safe. All but sent out the engraved invitations for our future and put the amulet in that idiot’s willing hands. She had to guess he was not walking away from that. She saved ME! Okay, so she went off to party a bit, sow those wild oats. She had warned me, after all. Spike was dust, that’s what mattered. He was dust and Buffy was off baking.

Angel’s anger broke to the surface again as his words took on an even harder edge. "Then those vicious sadists don’t just send him back. They send him back TO ME! My own personal thorn in the side following me around, haunting me, taunting me, making my already miserable existence even more of a living hell. Everywhere I go, there’s Spike in the way. It was bad enough when he was just a ghost, but then they recorporealize the little prick and BAM, suddenly I’ve got a challenger to MY Shanshu! Everyone knew that was mine, but now there are TWO souled vampires and
that damn prophecy could apply to either of us.

"Let me tell you, I’d had enough by then. I mean he’s always wanting what I have. First Dru, then Buffy, now my reward too! I couldn’t let that happen, now could I? SO I figured I’d prove to those tricky Powers just who’s the better vamp in case they forgot. Make the big gesture. Even signed the damn Shanshu away to prove how pure and noble my motives were. All that hero crap Spike’s supposed to have done was just to get in Buffy’s pants anyway. I’d show them who deserved that reward! So, I took on you guys, only for what? HE gets Buffy? He gets BUFFY? I don’t think so!"

Wolf had tensed up a bit at the reminder of Angel’s betrayal but was still interested in where this was all going.

"Spike comes in here and does his showboating. Hey, I got here as fast as I could so Buffy could see a true hero, make the right decisions." Angel sighed deeply
and looked directly at Wolf, narrowing his eyes. "I may not get her, but I’m taking him down with me. Some other vamp’ll have to be lured into getting a soul and shoot for that Shanshu, ‘cause I tried to do the right thing and signed it away. I swear to you that Spike will NOT get it either, if it’s my last act on earth," he vowed.

Wolf got up from his chair and slowly walked to the window, looking down at his gardeners hard at work. He had his hands clasped behind him and didn’t turn to
look at Angel as he addressed him. "You hate this Spike a lot, don’t you? Sounds like the do-gooder Powers are on your list as well. Am I reading you right, Angel?"

Angel nodded in agreement and slammed the water glass back on to desk hard enough to crack the glass.

"Angel, I never understood why you had to make US your enemy. What have we ever really done to you anyway? Sure, we took opposite sides on some issues, but you
gave as well as you got and we never tricked you about our intentions, or our offers. Even at the end we gave you everything you asked for and more. Took care
of your little Connor mess and even gave you a way to seal the Hellmouth for your blonde bimbo." Wolf still had his back to Angel, so he didn’t see him stiffen at
the insult to Buffy.

"You had a nice set up there in L.A. Daylight wasn’t a problem anymore. All the high tech toys a boy could hope for. Access to our whole operation. Hell, we
didn’t even stop you from using all that power we gave you as CEO in any way you wanted. We didn’t interfere when you cost us clients and contracts. We didn’t try
to stop you when you used our resources to play superhero. If you needed anything, we never turned you down. Not once." Wolf turned to face Angel before continuing. "Then you turned on us. Why, Angel? You made a lot of good points about the way the Powers operate. We never double crossed you." Wolf chuckled at a thought, "Hell, we never even hung any crosses up to piss you off!"

Angel gave Wolf a half grin and self-deprecating chuckle in return. "Yeah, stupid believing I’d get it all back. Huh, got nothing. Spike gets the Shanshu, Buffy and even my kid’s respect and I get nada, zilch, zippo. What kind of sick joke is that?" Wolf shook his head and shrugged as if he were puzzled at the contrariness of the Powers and fates as well. "And THESE are the good guys? All they’ve done is take advantage of my good nature an jerk me around. Probably sit up there laughing their asses off at the gullible vampire. Use me ‘til they tire of it, then send me to hell in the end anyway. I ought to sue them. Know a good law firm?"

Wolf laughed out loud at Angel’s surprising joke. The demon gave Angel a calculated look and returned to his chair on the other side of the desk. "Perhaps we can still work together. I understand a calculated betrayal as well as the next demon. Seems some vacancies have recently opened up in our higher ranks. You might be the man, or vampire, for the job after all. I always did think you had what it takes. Told Ram that almost every other day! We could probably even do a little tinkering with Blondie’s memory, remove some of those hearts and flowers for the skinny
vamp and get her head screwed back right again. You only saw a fraction of the resources we have available."

Wolf could see from Angel’s avid expression that the suggestion had more than a little appeal. "Of course you’ll have to prove yourself again. Get me past my
jitters, help take out this Spike." Wolf couldn’t see any indication that Angel was anything but on board with the idea.

"Ya know, we could even do a guilt removal on you if you’d be interested. Sorta like that green geek had us do with his need for sleep, only do it right with no
backlash. We wouldn’t need Angelus. You can stay Angel, keep the soul, lose the guilt. Best of both worlds really. I won’t even mind you runnin’ the whole
‘help the hopeless’ gig again…within reason, of course. You could still be the big man. The guy to come to for dragon slaying. Not literally, naturally; not enough of those left to have you killin’ my livestock. We could set you up real pretty. Might even be able to give you some of those perks that prophecy promised." Wolf’s oily voice flowed over Angel in benediction, offering all he ever wanted and then some.

Wolf saw the look of desire on Angel’s face and did offer one reminder in a joking fashion. "Of course, … now how did I say it to that Mario Puzzo writer? Oh,
yeah," Wolf slipped into a Marlon Brando imitation, "One day I will come to you for a favor…." He saw the flicker of alarm flash across Angel’s face and amended
his jest, "Just joking, just joking! Don’t get your panties in a bind! Geesh, you vamps don’t have much of a sense of humor do you? Ram and Hart ran their own shows without me buttin’ in. You could work yourself into a pretty set-up like that if you play your cards right. Wanna talk turkey?"

The Partner held out his hand across the desk in a gesture of friendliness. His smile didn’t completely overshadow the gleam of red in his eyes as Angel
reached over and accepted his hand in a firm grasp. "Just so long as I get to be the one to send Spike to hell where he belongs."

"Want to see brochures on the different choices? I’ll even let you pick which hell you want to punch his ticket for." Wolf and Angel both laughed and the
temperature in the room seemed to drop a bit.

~~~
Spike woke with a start. He and Buffy had finally fallen into an exhausted slumber after a night of making up for the lost months apart. His sharp movement woke Buffy, who was curled contentedly in his arms, her head resting on his chest.

"What’s the matter, baby?" She was wiping the sleep from her eyes and already missing the comfort of their cuddle.

"I’d say someone just walked over my grave, but seein’ how I’m not in it, that wouldn’t be right." Off Buffy’s confused frown, he continued, "Don’t know,
Love. Something just feels wrong. Don’t think I was dreamin’ unless you’re not really here in my arms." He kissed his beloved and settled back into the warmth of
the comforter with Buffy.

Spike played with Buffy’s hair and stroked her arm as they lay there trying to return to their interrupted sleep. "You don’t think we should worry about Angel,
do you?"

Buffy looked up at Spike with mild alarm. "You don’t think Wolf will kill him or anything like that? Maybe we should have just stuck together and attacked like
we did Ram." Buffy began to fidget in nervousness.

"That’s not quite what I meant, pet. I was thinkin’ more of his inner Angelus comin’ out to play. Grandsire’s done some iffy things, even as Angel. Made
some choices that’d add a few years on you if you knew ‘bout them. Think he’d sell us out?" Spike was amazed that he was secure enough of his position with Buffy to even suggest a chink in Angel’s armor without getting a black eye. Things were changing for sure!

"No!" Buffy looked certain. "No, he’d never do anything to hurt me on purpose! I’m sure Angel’s done some stuff I wouldn’t like. I even know about some of
it, Spike. But he always THOUGHT he was doing the right thing. Even then. He’d never choose to do evil as long as he has his soul. He’s not confused about
what’s right and wrong here. He’d never betray me!" Buffy kissed him and settled back into his arms again. "Just go back to sleep and stop worrying over nothing."

~*~
Chapter 48
~*~

The sounds from the back cell were increasing in volume, awakening the lovers. "Seems Lassie’s a bit peckish. Good thing I brought more than one helping of meatsicles for the poor beastie." Spike got up and rummaged in the supply bag they had brought into the hiding place, retrieving a packet of brisket and heading for the cell.

"Don’t get too close, baby. That’s the wrong Wolf to get a bite out of you." Buffy wasn’t really worried about the werewolf, but she was nervous about the upcoming battle with Wolf. "Of course, I’m hoping nothing gets a bite out of you except me."

"Oh, offer to bite me now! Careful what you offer a vamp, love. I might just go a bit primal next time we make love if you go nippin’ on me. Back in a tick." With that, Spike headed back to feed the captive.

The werewolf was in a corner of his cell, eyes glowing red and panting as if he’d run for miles. Spike tossed the meat towards the hulking figure.

"Here ya go, fella. Don’t know how long you’re gonna be all wolfy here. Hard to tell in this dimension, but I don’t think there’s a full moon happenin’. Too bad you got the demon runnin’ the show for now or you’d be able to tell us a few things about this place, I’m thinkin’."

The werewolf stopped ripping into his dinner and cocked its head, as if listening to what Spike had to say. The creature drew closer to the barred wall and sniffed in Spike’s direction, emitting a low growl.

"Hey, lover, you okay in there?" Buffy came back into the cell area to check on why Spike hadn’t returned yet. "Spike? You all right?"

"Safe as houses, pet. Just havin’ a chat with the nice puppy’s all." The werewolf’s ears had gone up in attention at the sound of Buffy’s voice. The sniffing continued, this time with Buffy as the prime target.
Suddenly the Wolf let out a small whine and moved to the middle of the cage.

"This beastie seems to recognize the Slayer in you, pet. Don’t seem too afraid, acts more like it knows you. Wolfie seem familiar to you? You have only dated humans and vampires, right?" Spike couldn’t help but tease slightly. "Looks like he’s not wantin’ to rip out your throat at least."

"Very funny! You know my whole dating history! Are you going to get jealous of every male from here on? ‘Cause cute as a little jealousy can be, I so don’t want to deal with you going all green-eyed. I like them blue." Buffy and Spike were looking at each other as they teased.

"Bu..bu…buBuffy? That you?" The sound of a pain-filled but completely human voice coming from the changing beast in the cell took them both by surprise.

Buffy stared, wide-eyed, at the transformed werewolf. He was huddled, self-conscious and naked in the cell, bright orange hair standing up in spikes. He looked small and lost and suspicious, glancing from Spike to
Buffy and back.

"Oz? Is that YOU?" Buffy reached into the cell before Spike could try to pull her hands back.

"Careful, pet, don’t know why he was all wolfed out. He could turn again and you’d make a tasty morsel," Spike cautioned.

"Wolf’s under control. Not hungry now." Oz was never one for too many words, but you could still understand his meaning.

"So they WERE starving you! Is that why you didn’t recognize me yesterday?" Buffy’s heart broke to think of her old friend being mistreated in any way. She felt a bit guilty for not doing more for him while she and Spike were safe and comfortable in the next room.

"Only saw food." Oz looked at Spike and nodded. "Thanks. Blanket, maybe?"

"Oh, sure. Hang on, Oz, I think we can find something for you to wear. God, I can’t believe it’s you!" Buffy headed to the other room to find something for her naked friend to cover himself.

"Buffy!" Spike called, "Laundry room’s around the corner. Might be some clothes in with the bedding. I can’t see the Partners doing their own
laundry."

"Good idea." Buffy headed for the door to the rest of the basement, leaving Spike to answer any questions Oz might have.

"So…you changed sides?" Oz stared at the vampire. His last real memory of Spike was helping rescue Angel from a torturing vamp that Spike had working on him. He had heard Spike had been tinkered with by the Initiative and wasn’t a threat any longer, but it didn’t necessarily follow that he was playing for the good guys now.

"Yeah, long story. Lot’s happened. Even got a shiny soul now to keep me in line. What about you? Seein’ how you’re in a cell, I gotta figure you pissed off the Senior Partners in some way. That pretty much makes you on the same side we are. How’d you get mixed up in this business?" Spike hadn’t unlocked the cell yet, wanting to be sure Oz did indeed have the demon under control.

"Tibet. Pack there like me. Control the wolf, teach others. Good life, comfy den. This guy, kind of a cowboy, shows up looking for mystical symbols to block detection. Old Zen master that worked with us finally
caved and helped him out." Oz shivered, either in memory or from the chill of the room. Spike couldn’t tell which.

"Must’ve messed up, got detected anyway," Oz continued. "Team of commandos showed up at the den, killed the Master and the pack. Decided to take me for some reason. Woke up here." Oz lowered his head on his crossed arms.

"Bloke likely was Lindsey McDonald. Used to work for this lot." Oz looked up at Spike’s words. "Yeah, he got caught. Tried to off Angel and the Partners sent him to the Leave It To Beaver Hell of Eternal Heart
Removal. He eventually fought against them in Angel’s little war. Killed in the line of duty and all." Spike tilted his head and looked at Oz thoughtfully. "Any idea why they didn’t just kill you too? Is it ‘cause you know Buffy?"

"I don’t think they know much about me except that I can control the wolf unless I’m starved. Think they planned to play science guy on me, got sidetracked," Oz shrugged.

"So, a Zen den, huh?" Spike grinned at the idea. "Bad for business, I reckon, if all sorts of demony types learn some self-control, yeah?"

"I found these. They may be a bit big, but I think they’ll work." Buffy returned with a pair of tuxedo trousers and a tee shirt.

"Hart’d be my guess. Liked to dress the part of a playboy," Spike said at the sight of the tux pants. "He won’t be needin ‘em anymore."

Buffy turned her back as Oz dressed. "So…Oz…how’ve you been? We haven’t heard from you at all since you left Sunnydale the last time. I kind of thought you’d show up after Tara died and Willow went all scary witch."

"Didn’t know. Living the simple life at the top of the world. Bit out of touch." Oz finished rolling the cuffs on the trousers and carefully approached the bars. He could see that Spike was tense and not too quick to trust. Neither was he. "So…Tara’s dead? Is Willow holding on?"

"She had a really bad time for a while, but she came back; you know Will. This all happened a couple of years after you left." Buffy went to the wall holding the cell keys and came back to unlock the one holding her friend.

"You sure about that, pet? Don’t think the boy’d hurt you by choice, but you can’t know how strong that demon might be, how much control he’s really got." Spike was worried that Buffy’s blind spot for her friends would get her maimed or killed before he could act.

"I’m sure. Oz was learning to control the wolf years ago." Buffy thought a minute and continued, "We might want to hunt up some more food, just to be sure." She really did trust Oz but knew that Spike was on his last nerve where her safety was concerned.

"I’m a small guy; not hungry now," Oz looked from Buffy to Spike and then nodded. "Looks like you learned to love a soul into a vampire. Nice trick." He smiled at Buffy in approval.

Buffy smiled back. "He did that on his own. Went out and fought for it! He’d already started down the road to redemption before the soul though."

Spike looked as if he would blush if he could have. "Could only go so far without the spark though, love. Had to get it for that last leap."

"Looks good on you." Oz nodded his approval. His eyes flashed red for a moment as he took careful sniffs of the area. "Am I right to smell more than one souled vamp around here?"

"Yeah. The Poof’s off playing with the granddaddy of all big bad wolves right now. He’s trying to make it look like he’s changed sides, get up close and personal-like so I can finish off the last of the Partners and we can all get out of here." Spike relaxed a bit seeing Oz deliberately use aspects of his wolfie parts without losing control.

"I’m up for that. Where do I sign on?" Oz had no idea how long he’d been in that cell, but he knew it was long enough already.

Spike looked at Buffy before answering. "I have to do the actual kill. Kind of a prophecy thing. You want to help watch Buffy’s back, it’d make me a happy vamp. See, I know she’s the best Slayer that ever was, but
this is their playground and she’s just one person. Glad to have you aboard." He put out his hand to shake and found it in the surprisingly firm grasp of the smaller man. "I’m going for some more supplies and to scout around a bit," he said to Buffy, "Why don’t you catch Day-Glo up on what’s happenin’."

Buffy leaned in and kissed Spike, drawing him into an embrace that would have bruised ribs on a mortal man. "Keep safe. Not losing you now!"

Spike chuckled a bit and headed for the door. As he passed Dilby’s cell, he tapped on the bars and asked, "Any special requests? Only gonna play room service this one time, so speak up."

"Th…thanks, Mr. Spike. I’m easy to please. I’d love whatever you bring to eat," the clerk answered in gratitude. "Except pizza…I get indigestion. Or salami…I hate salami. Oh, and nothing with peanuts…allergies. Maybe no cheese either…irritable bowel issues."

Spike tilted his head at the "easy to please" captive. "Anything about you workin’ right? It’s soundin’ like you need the Mayo Clinic. Used to bleed people with lots of sicknesses…no leeches, but I think we can think of a substitute." Spike flashed a glimpse of fang to further tease the man.

"Oh, no, really, I’ll be fine with whatever you bring." Dilby cowered in the far corner of his cell.

Spike stopped at the door and turned his head back to his sweetheart. "Buffy, they sent me in here with a thermos of Slayer blood. When the soddin’ Ram trussed me up, they took everything I had on me except the orb. I didn’t see it when we picked the swords up. I’m gonna see if I can find it. Little pre-battle pick-me-up wouldn’t be a bad idea. ‘Sides, who knows what kind of mischief the bad guys could get up to with Slayer blood for a ritual, yeah?"

"You can always drink from me again." Buffy didn’t see the startled look on Oz’s face at what she had said.

"No! You need to be at top strength too. Not gonna use you like my own personal keg to tap. Was different when I was paralyzed and had to have it, I’ll make do with Dilby here if I can’t find the thermos, but I’m not takin’ any more from you." Spike was firm as he rejected her offer. He looked at the now trembling Dilby and rolled his eyes. "Not gonna drain you either, so don’t go loosenin’ those irritables. Plenty of minions still around for quick take-out."

He turned back and looked at his three companions once more before leaving. "Angel wanted a full day to worm his way into Wolf’s good graces. We need to use the time to get ready. This fight is our last shot at getting out of here alive, or undead anyway.

~~~

Angel woke in comfort. The facilities provided by Wolf were top drawer and made the apartment Angel had been given in L.A. look like a slum in comparison.
There was a girl of about fourteen tied to the bedpost. She looked complacent as only the drugged can.

"Thought you might want a little snack, maybe a bit of slap and tickle along with it. Cute little thing, isn’t she? I tried to pick one out that fit your tastes. Hope I didn’t go too old. These girls today, they grow up too fast, don’t you think?" Wolf was sitting in the corner of the room smoking a cigar and watching Angel carefully.

"Thought you said you didn’t need me to turn into Angelus for this little partnership to work?" Angel could hear the blood rushing in the young girl’s veins, making her skin a delicious soft pink. His dreams were still haunted by the hunt and kill. To waken to this offering was requiring all his strength not to succumb. "I’m off the human. Ever tried otter? Not too bad really, even if it does take quite a few of the little vermin. Might as well cut her loose, unless this is some kind of test."

"Hospitality, that’s all, hospitality. Don’t want the little girl, fine. Otter it is." Wolf picked up a telephone and barked an order for a fresh pint for Angel and a rare burger for himself. "Just remember, we can get rid of that pesky guilt issue. Don’t have to kill the kid, but no harm in having a sip or two. Hell, she’s doped up enough; she’ll just chalk it up to a bad trip. Learn a lesson about not taking pills offered at raves. You might even be saving her worthless life by driving home the point. Help the helpless while helping yourself, just like a regular charitable organization."

"Look, you want proof I’ve decided to take your offer? You’ll get it when I get rid of that pest Spike for you. Believe me, that will give me so much pleasure I might just lose my soul after all." Angel tied the belt on the silk robe made available to him and untied the girl. "Why don’t you just put this one back where you found her? You could just say my tastes have changed. I’m saving myself for Buffy. Maybe keep Spike alive long enough to hear her beg me for it." Angel’s smile managed to cause a chill to run up Wolf’s neck.

"So where is your girlfriend and her annoying vampire puppy?" Wolf sauntered toward the door, girl in hand, and tossed her to his minions waiting outside.

"Well, they were supposed to be in the basement. Little hidden spot you’ve got there. If I know Spike though, he won’t keep to the plan. Since our little tiff, my guess is they’ve found another hiding place by now. Our best bet is to lure them out of hiding. It shouldn’t be too hard since Willie Boy has to get your blood to do that ritual to get out," Angel reminded Wolf. "He’ll come to you."

~~~

Spike returned after a short time, finally ending Buffy’s nervous pacing. He had even managed to return with a bundle of supplies. He had found the small duffel bag that he had initially brought into the dimension was going through the few items inside it as everyone else ate.

"God, I can’t believe you found chocolate! If I didn’t already love you, I would now." Buffy rolled her eyes back in her head as she savored the Belgian truffles Spike had packed just for her.

Spike smiled fondly at her as she moaned her pleasure. "Know what my girl likes, now don’t I?" He set aside the thermos, saving it for just before the battle. He had found a container of blood in the bar area and used it to slake the hunger. "Oh, I’ve got a toy for you, compliments of young Andrew." He tossed a taser over to Buffy. "Careful how you use that, it packs quite a few volts.

"Followed my nose and found the kitchen. They were puttin’ together a tray. Looks like Angel’s in, ‘cause there was a nice bit of otter blood bein’ readied. The Poof loves that stuff. Was tempted to take the tray,
but I don’t really want to show up on their radar, yeah. Had to settle for what I could get from the pantry and fridge while they were busy getting the tray ready for the boss."

Dilby was happily devouring the cold cut sandwich Spike had given to him, having removed the salami and cheese before biting in. "This is good," he admitted as he stuffed himself.

"A picnic, less the ants." Oz had used the supplies Spike brought to construct a nice sandwich for himself as well.

"Buffy, love, you should probably have something with a bit more nutrition than just the chocolate," Spike smirked. He had lifted the tray of chocolatey goodness as a last minute decision. It had been a good one.
"Have a sandwich and some crisps at least, love." He handed her the bag of potato chips and quirked a brow in amusement at the look of joy that crossed her face.

"You brought all the good stuff. Salty goodness even. Oh, it seems like forever since I’ve had simple stuff like this! Eddie was all about the five star restaurants with weird-looking stuff I can’t pronounce. Half the time it looked like some kind of art on a plate and there’d only be a couple of bites of whatever it was. I can’t remember the last time I had bologna and cheese!"

It made Spike happy to see Buffy with a healthy appetite. The last couple of years after she had been resurrected were not filled with memories of Buffy eating well. Fast food brought home cold from the Doublemeat Palace had passed for balanced meals for far too long. This might not be a dietician’s dream, but at least her appetite was back. Once they were
out of there, Spike was determined to make sure his girls had the sort of life they deserved. Before, he’d tried to die to give that to them, now he’d try to live to ensure it.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

~*~
Chapter 49
~*~

Buffy looked at the taser that Spike handed to her. "Hum…except for a rocket launcher, modern weaponry and Buffy are usually non-mixy. Maybe Oz should have this little goodie."

"Works for me, kitten." Spike kissed Buffy lightly and gave a thumbs up to Oz as Buffy handed the high tech weapon over to him.

"I had a thought," Oz announced. "No one here has seen me without all the grr and fur. I could scout around, see if Angel’s ready for the big dust-up."

"Prefer you not say ‘dust-up’, lad; vamp here, kinda sensitive about some things." Spike tried to look severe as he teased Buffy’s old friend.

Oz nodded and replied, "Understood."

"How do you feel about takin’ a bit of a gamble?" Spike had been turning an idea around in his mind during their day of waiting and now it was time to share.

"Need a bit of a chat up with the clerk first though."

Spike strode towards the cell holding Dilby, key in hand. "Here’s your moment of truth, Dilby. You can decide your future--how long it lasts and how you’re gonna spend it--right here and now."

"What do you mean?" Dilby was still terrified of the vampire, even though the times he had been bitten had proven to be less horrific than anticipated.

"Need to choose sides for real, not by default. Are you in or out?" Spike tilted his head and waited for the answer.

"I’m not a fighter. I don’t have any special powers… well, unless you count my ability to plea bargain a case in an average of twenty minutes. Somehow, I don’t
think you are wanting me to litigate for you." Dilby took in the dead serious look the vampire was giving him and drew in a deep breath.

"Look, I don’t really owe the firm anything. I did a good job for them and then they decided to make me the scapegoat when a case went sour. I worked hard for
them, did things I’m not proud of and that’s saying something for a lawyer! So far you people haven’t been brutal with me, haven’t abused me too much. I guess if I have to actually take a side it would be yours." Dilby looked resigned to whatever mayhem he might soon be involved in.

"Good choice, little man." Spike smiled broadly. "We get out of this alive, or undead in a couple of cases, and I’ll make sure you get taken care of. Not a bad sort of bloke after all. Here’s the deal: you know this place better than we do. You’ve been working that front desk for a while, yeah?" At Dilby’s nod, Spike continued. "How about a bit of actin’, you up for that?"

"I did minor in theater arts; seemed like it went with criminal law. What do you have in mind?" Dilby ran a nervous finger under his collar as he finally, by his
own free will, threw his lot in with the little rebel band and sealed his fate.

"Nothing too dangerous," Spike reassured the balding man. "The Partners used to meet some of their clients here, right?" Dilby nodded again and Spike resumed.

"All you need to do is act like you’re doing your normal job. Oz here’s gonna pretend he’s a client of Hart’s who’s here a bit too late to meet up with his counsel. All you have to do is pretend you’re giving a pissed off client the grand tour to soften the blow of the meetin’ being called on account of death. That’ll give the two of you a chance to scope things out, maybe catch Angel’s eye and see if you get a thumbs up for the plan to start gearing up."

"Might work." Oz looked thoughtful as he mulled over the idea.

"You sure none of these sods set their peepers on you without the muzzle and bad hair day?" Spike asked Oz. It would be critical for Oz to pass for a client, not an escaped prisoner.

There was no hesitation in Oz’s reply. "Totally."

"Right then, let’s get this show on the road." Spike took Buffy’s hand in his and raised it to his lips for a quick kiss on her knuckles. "I fancy getting home soon. No offense about the accommodations, just no place like home, yeah? Got a welcoming committee on the other side and I don’t think they have unlimited patience. Last thing we need is a whole bloody army stormin’ the doors and muckin’ things up."

"I can’t wait to see Dawn and the guys!" Buffy looked hopeful. "I’ll have to do some major sucking up to Giles about Eddie though. He tried to warn me and this time he was right. I’m really going to hate admitting that!"

"To be fair, Watcher has a pretty good track record. Was right about the Poof and the Immortal…only one he got completely wrong was me," Spike reminded Buffy.

"Wasn’t always wrong about me either if I want to be fair. How’d he feel about Captain Cardboard?"

Buffy laughed slightly and shook her head at the mention of Riley. Spike still had some jealousy issues they’d have to work on when life settled down. "I don’t think Giles ever really said much about Riley. I know he hated Maggie Walsh and the whole Initiative idea. If I had to guess, he probably liked the idea that Riley was human but wasn’t too happy with the kind of humans Riley associated with…you know, the old ‘birds of a feather’ thing."

Spike muttered under his breath, "Got that right. Bugger was nothing but a bully in a uniform; no better than a demon himself."

"What’d you say?" Buffy hadn’t been able to hear what Spike had said but guessed it was no compliment to her ex-boyfriend.

"Nothin’. It’s in the past, isn’t that what you’d say?" Spike hoped the whole issue would be put to rest.

"Yes and no. Riley is definitely my past and no part of any future, but I also know I need to apologize for the way I acted when he came back into town with that
perfect little wife of his. Things weren’t right between us then, true, but you didn’t deserve my taking his side and not even listening to you. I am sorry, for what it’s worth." Buffy said quietly.

"S’all right, love. Didn’t exactly have a spotless record for you to put your faith in me back then, did I?"

"Well, I did owe you the benefit of the doubt," Buffy admitted. "I mean I should have gotten a little suspicious when he claimed you were some high profile arms dealer!" She laughed at the concept.

"Here now! Not so farfetched! I’ve got my skills, you know." Spike was mildly affronted that Buffy thought him incapable of playing in the big leagues of bad boys.

"Yes, you certainly do!" Buffy agreed and smirked at him. If Spike could have blushed, he would have at her look.

"I just mean that I should have known that you weren’t doing the all-out evil anymore by then. I should have seen the changes in you when they were happening and helped you with that. Just because I wasn’t in a good place then was no reason for me to be completely blind," Buffy said regretfully.

The last thing Spike wanted for either of them was a painful walk down the lane of past mistakes. After the previous night, it was all about the future and new
beginnings, not old hurts.

"Here, love, no need to take a sad tone. The road past had its share of rocky parts, but it did lead us here, right? Can’t say that’s a bad thing. We’ll get it right this time." Spike drew Buffy close to his chest and reverently kissed her forehead.

"Yes, get it right," Buffy agreed, "I’m all about that!"

Spike caressed her back, taking the time to revel in her nearness for a moment before getting back to business. "Guess we need to get this show on the road
then. Looks like you two are up," he said to Oz and Dilby.

~~~

Oz and his "guide" Dilby traversed the hotel from bottom to top with no sign of either Angel or Wolf. They were just about to give up when Oz spotted Angel in a back lounge shooting pool.

Angel gave a startled look at the sight of the boy he hadn’t seen in years. "Oz, is that you?" he asked, putting aside his cue.

"In the flesh," Oz hinted. ‘How are you, Mr. Angel? I was supposed to meet with Mr. Hart about some band business. Didn’t expect to see you so far from the
L.A. office." Oz hoped his cover would work and Angel would catch that he was part of the team now.

"Yeah, about that…I suppose this toad here’s already told you that Spike went all antisocial on Mr. Hart. Looks like you’re gonna need a new representative. I happen to have the ear of Mr. Wolf…maybe he’d take you on, since it is his firm and all." Angel was looking at Oz as if trying to decide just where he fit into the whole situation.

"It’s a nice enough day," Angel continued. "How about you meet us in the courtyard in about an hour? I think Wolf’ll have a couple of minutes to spare for an old friend of mine."

"Cool." Oz sounded typically terse and nonchalant.

Dilby and Oz wasted no time in returning to the hiding place to let Buffy and Spike know that the battle was on in barely an hour. Time for Spike to drink that thermos of Slayer Special and mount up.

~~~

The warriors and one skinny lawyer entered the courtyard right on schedule, Spike leading the way.
Wolf, Angel at his side, was waiting with a handful of minions lazing about unworriedly.

"Well, Angel, looks like you were right! The blond menace DID come to us. You were right about the wolf wannabe too. You’re battin’ a thousand so far." Wolf licked his lips in anticipation of ending this petty war once and for all.

Wolf rose to his full height, towering over the small group, slathering jowls agape. He leaned in until he was crowding Spike against a pillar and taunted him.
"Are you Vidar then? I doubt that, since he’s a god of silence. My experience with you, vampire, shows you to be anything BUT silent!"

Wolf looked around the courtyard then back to Spike again. "This is hardly Ragnarok either. The end battles won’t be in a seedy hotel garden. Perhaps you need a bit of a lesson to understand why you cannot win against me, you walking dead thing.

"You see there are prophecies about ME. Angel here gets the importance of that sort of thing. There is a time and place for me to get nervous about an attack. You and here isn’t it."

Spike didn’t break eye contact with the fearsome demon. "Blue said you were all full of yourself. Not wrong, as usual. You really believe all that mythology shite?"

"I am no myth! I was power before you drew breath as a mewling human. I was feared before you were reborn as animated ash!" Wolf drew himself up in arrogance. "Even as a pup they feared me. The gods of Valhalla wouldn’t go near, only Tyr and I took his arm for his troubles. It took magic and trickery to subdue me and will take the son of Odin to defeat me, according to prophecy." Wolf loomed over Spike as he growled low and reminded him of the myth, "And that will only be AFTER I’ve already killed Odin."

Spike laughed at the demon and his belief in the old tales that likely weren’t even about him anyway.
"Believin’ your own publicity now, Lobo? Been pretendin’ you’re a god so long you went over the edge? You know, I met a god once. Right crazy bitch she was too and I know all about crazy bitches. She fell easy enough and she was the real deal. You? You’re nothing but a puffed up demon, kind I kill every day
of the week and twice on Sunday."

"Odin drank from the cup of hydromel, the mead of the poets. Do you think William the Bloody Awful Poet is fit to take on the mantle of Odin’s son? To kill me? I think I’m not the only one who’s a puffed up demon." Wolf laughed, then lunged forward, jaws opened to attack the vampire.

The minions had come to life during the male pissing contest and called out for reinforcements, keeping Buffy, Oz and Dilby busy fighting them back from the main area of the courtyard.

Spike was wielding Excalibur with both hands, slicing at the Wolf and drawing plenty of blood but not getting in a good enough cut to do any real damage. Angel stood at Wolf’s side, sword drawn but not engaging in battle.

Spike ducked under the swiping paw of the Wolf and rolled to his feet behind the Partner, neatly slicing a deep gash in the left arm of the furred demon.

Wolf roared in pain and anger as he spun to face his irritating vampire challenger. Spike had already sidestepped away from Wolf’s return blow. The demon grabbed a broadsword from one of his minions, determined to engage in combat with Spike. He had fully intended to simply devour the pest, but a sword had its uses.

The hapless minion Wolf disarmed was immediately picked off by Dilby, who was now grinning from ear to ear in glee at having actually taken down an opponent in this battle. The fact that the opponent had been unarmed at that moment hadn’t registered with the small lawyer. He was filled with newfound confidence at the kill.

Wolf’s broadsword connected with Excalibur, knocking the mighty weapon from Spike’s hand. As the sword clattered onto the stone floor, Spike leapt upon Wolf’s back, his arm going around the demon’s neck in position for a quick snap.

"What are you waiting for, Angelus? That Shanshu that’ll never come? I expect some intelligent backup here!" Wolf growled out to his unmoving ally.

Finally, Angel spoke. "Heat of the battle, Spike, I’d much prefer hitting you with blunt instruments." Then he plunged his sword through Spike’s side all the way to the hilt.

~*~
Chapter 50
~*~

The army of minions stopped its attack as soon as Angel acted. It was as if they were waiting for further orders from Wolf about what to do with Buffy and Oz.

"Spiiike!" Buffy watched in horror as Angel ran his sword through Spike. She knew, of course, that the wound wouldn’t kill him, but he was bleeding badly. Even with the pre-fight thermos of Slayer blood, the wound would cause Spike to be handicapped right when he needed to be in top form. She glared at Angel. "What the hell do you think you’re doing?"

"Just getting what’s mine." Angel’s jaw was set in a determined clench as he turned cold eyes first on Buffy and then Spike.

"That’s right," gloated Wolf, "the boy’s been bending over backwards for those tight-assed Powers. Finally wised up and realized they were just playing him like
a cheap violin. Signed on with the winning team for a change. We always deliver on our promises."

"Oh God! You’ve lost your soul!" Buffy was horrified, remembering Angelus all too clearly.

"Nope, lover, all soulful and fancy free," Angel assured her. He pulled the sword from Spike’s body and watched dispassionately as the younger vampire slumped to the floor, moaning in pain. "Don’t panic. Wolf here’s gonna make sure all your dreams come true! Those cookies you promised ready to eat, babe?"

"You bastard!" Buffy spat. "I’m not yours! I haven’t been yours since I was seventeen! You knew that going into this fight. What makes you think I’d have you when you ally yourself with this slobbering hunk of evil?"

"’Cause this slobbering hunk of evil will fix it so you will," Angel answered. He glanced at Wolf and apologized, "Sorry about that; her words, not mine. You might work on that when you do her tune up too. Just a thought. Those company picnics’ll run a lot smoother if she’s not so negative."

"What have you done? There’ll be no tuning of any kind on Buffy. I like being out of tune. You want a robot, ask Spike how that works out!" Buffy was disgusted at the idea that there was a plan to mess with her mind, her free will.

"Not my finest moment," mumbled Spike. He had his eyes firmly fixed on Angel, trying to decide if his sire had truly gone over to the other side. If Angel had
changed sides, they might not have a chance and Spike would not accept that possibility easily.

Buffy headed toward Angel, magical sword drawn and fury in her eyes.

"Stop her," ordered Wolf to his minions. "Don’t kill the girl though."

The battle resumed with Oz doing his best to hold off the minions that were headed towards Buffy.

Buffy had no choice but to turn away from the large Lupine creature and defend herself from the army of demons determined to stop her from attacking her former lover.

Spike managed to pull himself upright as his vampire healing, fueled by Slayer blood, began to do its magic. He couldn’t allow himself to be distracted by
watching Buffy and Oz and only hoped they were holding their own. If he knew his girl, those minions wouldn’t know what hit them!

Two demons came at Buffy from opposite sides and she spun quickly to avoid the sword of the first. She whirled toward the minion and grabbed the outthrust sword, slicing her hand at the same time she disarmed the demon. "Damn! Gotta remember not to do that!"

Buffy threw the captured weapon in the air as she twirled and speared the other demon. As the airborne sword headed back to the ground, she ducked into a roll, neatly catching the sword in her free hand. Now, sword in each hand, Buffy went on the offensive.

Angel turned to Wolf and asked, "You want me to handle this little problem? Take out the trash?"

"By all means. I try to save myself for worthy opponents. No need to lower myself to take out one lovesick vampire." Wolf grinned. "He’s all yours."

"Only fair. I made him. I’ll unmake him." Angel thrust as Spike parried the attack.

"Bit full of yourself, aren’t ya, Peaches?" Spike had stopped bleeding externally but was still weakened from the skewering. It was likely he was still leaking a bit internally or so Spike thought. "Givin’ yourself lots more credit than those twenty years were worth. I am what *I* made myself to be, not Angelus, you bloody sadist!"

"Self-made man, eh? No wonder you’re such a mess." Angel advanced on Spike mercilessly as metal clanged against metal. Angel was pressing forward in a methodical manner, moving Spike further and further from Wolf.

The Partner moved out of the way of the raging battle, taking up the corner furthest from the two battling vampires. He still didn’t completely trust Angel, so he kept close watch on that particular portion of the fighting. So far Angel and Spike appeared to be fighting to a draw.

Oz had no plans of wolfing out. He could control the release of the inner demon when he wasn’t starved, but controlling the demon while it was in predominance was another matter. He had been working on it when he was captured and now was not the time to try it out in hopes he could use his human reason. The last thing Buffy needed was a blood-crazed werewolf ripping and tearing willy-nilly, no discrimination in targets.

Oz used the taser to immobilize minions that got close enough to him. He also wielded a purloined sword he had taken off the first victim of his series of offensive plunges into the ranks of the demon army.

Dilby had been driven against a pillar but was still holding his own against a red robed minion of the late Ram. He ducked his head left and right, just missing the lunges of the demon’s sword.

Spike finally regained his fighting form and was beating Angel back a bit. The two vampires were moving in a deadly ballet across the courtyard. Angel backed into one of Wolf’s minions and lost his footing, allowing Spike to neatly slice a fairly long gash on Angel’s left upper arm. "Sorry, mate, heat of the battle," Spike parroted Angel’s earlier words with a sneer.

Angel, clearly angry, began to slash at Spike with lightning fast strokes. He pushed the smaller vampire clear back across the courtyard from Wolf. The Partner’s eyes glittered in anticipation of this latest threat to his power base soon being gone.

"Spike, you just don’t learn, do you?" Angel was still slashing away at Spike. Spike’s fast reaction was the only thing saving him from being sliced to ribbons. As it was, he had precious few wounds to show for all the fury. "I thought you would have learned how to handle yourself back in Dresden in ’95. Are you really so stupid that you don’t remember a thing I taught you?"

Spike stumbled over a broken flowerpot but managed to keep upright. "Do you have ANY idea how tired I am of having you always calling me stupid?" His eyes
flashed amber, but he didn’t go into game face. "I remember all the lessons learned at the hand of Angelus…and your other parts too." Spike’s voice had a bitter edge to it.

"Then you should thank me, boy." Angel lunged and Spike whirled to the left. Angel’s sword missed Spike’s side by less than an inch. Spike dropped to a
crouch and did a sweep kick at Angel’s legs, managing to bring down the larger vamp. Spike plunged Excalibur toward his prone foe as Angel rolled, just in time to have his shirt rip from the sword, pinning it to the earth.

Buffy was still using two swords in battle, crossing them like a wild Saracen, slashing with the left as she lunged with the right. The head of the minion to the
left rolled off before he even saw the blade coming his way. The other minion’s eyes widened in horror as he found himself impaled on her right sword. Buffy used her foot to brace against the dying minion’s chest and pull her weapon out for further use.

There was another red robed demon from Ram’s group coming up behind Buffy as she was pulling out the right-hand sword, but she quickly twisted the left blade to point behind her and ran it through the unfortunate demon’s midsection.

Dilby had a look of amazed glee as he began to feel some confidence in his ability to stay alive. He still kept his back to walls and pillars but was doing a bit of offensive fighting, not merely protecting himself from the blows of the demon army. He had actually killed at least three all by himself.

One of the red robed demons twisted Oz’s left arm back and the taser was dangerously close to being used on the werewolf instead of by him. Oz twisted in his captive’s grasp, fighting to move his arm back into position to use the voltage on the demon and keep from taking it into his own small frame. His eyes began to glow a deep red and he struggled to keep his wolf at bay. Finally, in a last desperate push, the taser came to rest upon the chest of the red robed minion and Oz shot him full of electricity. "Yes!" he exclaimed and spun to charge the demons that were flanking Buffy.

"Wondered where you were," Buffy quipped. "I was afraid I was gonna have to yell for Dilby to get my back. That was a major wig!" Buffy and Oz moved back to back to stand against the advancing demons. Buffy was still slicing and thrusting with two swords at the same time. Oz had pocketed the taser in favor of using both hands to wield the saber-like weapon taken from his last opponent. It was a heavy but
quite effective choice.

The floor was beginning to become slippery. Spilled blood and bodies were starting to pile up, making it important to watch one’s footing. Spike and Angel were leaping over the falling bodies without missing a clash. They were still across the courtyard from the avid Wolf.

Spike grabbed hold of a lightpost and in a move more expected from Gene Kelly, used it to spin around, feet flying out in a kick to Angel’s midsection. The larger vampire went down hard but rolled onto his upper back and bounced back up almost immediately. This allowed Spike to start beating his sire back with brutal blows, sword to sword.

Spike managed to get his sword past Angel’s to slice Angel’s face just under his left eye. "Son of a bitch, Spike! You could’ve put my eye out with that," Angel growled.

"Just rememberin’ Dresden like you said, Pops," Spike snarked back. Angel made a slicing maneuver aimed right at Spike’s neck, but Spike ducked and made a swift kick at his grandsire’s ankles instead. Angel managed a jump at the last moment, sword
swinging well over Spike’s head and avoiding the smaller vampire’s sweeping foot.

Spike sprung up using his right hand to push up while the left continued to use Excalibur to block Angel’s resuming attack. "Look like Buffy’s safe?" Spike whispered as they moved into close contact, hilts of their swords crossed against each other.

"Looks like. Oz has her back and the clerk is managing to actually help." Angel nodded to Spike as the two pushed off each other, landing Angel at the feet of Wolf, who was rising from his crouched position.

As Angel rose to his feet, his sword ‘accidentally" impaled one of Wolf’s paws. Spike leapt behind Wolf and yelled, "Now!" before launching himself onto the
great demon’s back.

Angel spun quickly and grabbed at Wolf’s open mouth, pulling with all his might on the lower jaw to prevent the Partner from snapping his powerful jaws shut in a killing bite. At the same time, Spike grabbed the upper jaw and pulled forcefully in an upward movement, yanking the muzzle back and up. A terrible ripping sound joined with a guttural growl as blood began to spurt from the ripping maw of the last Partner.

Finally, with his arm firmly around the neck of the Wolf, Spike gave one powerful twist and the sound of a loud snap drew every eye to the scene being played out. The twitching body of the mortally wounded Wolf fell to the ground as Spike jumped off his back.

Angel handed a flowerpot to Spike to gather the necessary blood and grinned in pleasure as he pointed out, "You were more graceful in Dresden. Getting old, Spike?"

"Yeah, well, you’re a better actor with age, Gramps. Remind me not to play poker with you," Spike grinned back at his sire, his eyes dancing. "Good thing you
finally let me know or you’d be a pile of dust now."

Angel snorted at the idea that Spike would have bested him. "You wish! I wasn’t even giving it my all and I had you sweating."

"Oh, yeah? Who has a nice long mark on their face and arm now, eh?" Spike gloated.

"Who played the starring role as a shishkebab right out of the box? You really shouldn’t have left yourself open like that until you knew what I was up to, you idiot," Angel chided.

"Oddly enough, Fenris was supposed to die kinda like this. Odin’s son Vidar rips the Fenris wolf apart by pulling its jaws two different directions. You don’t
think this clown really was who he said?"

"Believe me, Spike, you aren’t a Norse God, so I’d say that’s a ‘no’." Angel and Spike turned to look at the confused faces of their team and the horrified demons that had not fled at Wolf’s death.

"So, Mr. Angel was on our side?" Dilby finally put voice to the question on all their minds.

"Yeah. Little game we played back in the day against this big dumb demon. Made it look like we were going at it to the death so we could get in close and pretty
much do what we just did to the overgrown pit bull there," Spike explained.

"The bigger they are, the dumber they are," Buffy added.

"Actually it’s ‘harder they fall’, Buff," Oz corrected.

"You know, that’s probably true ‘cause the big ones fall from higher up. So it would be harder, don’t you think?" Buffy happily headed down the side track offered.

"Don’t forget the short, fat ones," Oz suggested.

"They tend to just fall over, not so much on the hard, ‘cause, you know, closer to the ground," Buffy opined.

"Were they like this back when the lot of you fought together?" Spike asked Angel as he smiled in amusement.

"Actually, Oz is using more words than he used to. Where’d he come from anyway?"

"Remember the starvin’ werewolf in the cell? Turns out it was your boy there. Happy coincidence, yeah?" Spike explained.

"Came in handy. When I saw the numbers of minions left I wondered how long we were going to have to play Pirates of Penzance while they took care of them." Angel shook his head in amazement at the numbers of dead demons littering the floor of the courtyard.

"Bloody brilliant double sword action there, love," Spike proudly said to Buffy.

"Thanks, I always wanted to do that. It seemed like the perfect time to give it a try." Buffy beamed at her lover. "And you!" She swatted Angel on his good arm, hard. "You had me scared like crazy! I was sure you’d gone all Angelus on us! Good thing I was too busy or I’d have dusted you after you speared Spike. Don’t you ever try anything like that again, by the way, or I will."

Buffy began to push up Spike’s shirt to check the injury and make certain he really was all right. "Did you really have to go that far, Angel, or were you just being a jerk?"

"Seemed like the perfect way to finally convince Wolf to put away those last bits of distrust. Besides, I owed Spike one for that whole bug demon thing," he said with a side glare at the grinning vampire.

"Heat of the battle, just like I said then," Spike retorted.

"What’s going to happen to me, Mr. Spike?" Dilby asked nervously.

Spike looked at the little man and smiled gently. "You did good, lawyer. I ‘spect you’re more than tired of this dimension, maybe ready to get back in a courtroom and out of the courtyard, eh?

Dilby nodded quickly. "Maybe not bother with the whole courtroom part though. I’m thinking I’d like a bit more adventure in my life." The little lawyer/clerk swished his sword for effect, barely missing Angel, who hissed at him in warning.

"So…who’s for goin’ home?" Spike looked at the other four with a lifted eyebrow as all hands were raised, along with all their spirits.

~*~
Chapter 51
~*~

Having retrieved the thermos of blood collected from the other two Partners, the group gathered in the lobby. As Angel added the blood from Wolf to the mix, Spike pulled out the paper with the ritual written on it. "Lets see…‘Blood of beasts, cast upon jewels of light…annoint the victors’…blah blah blah…. Looks like we need to put some of this on each of us and pour the rest on something it calls ‘jewels of light’. Any ideas?"

Dilby smiled broadly, happy to be able to contribute. "The artist called his stained glass roof ‘The Jewels of Light’. That was the object that channeled the magic used to put Miss Buffy into her trance."

"Looks like we need to go collect some glass. They had to miss some of it when they swept up." Buffy headed for the broom closet in search of a dustpan as she spoke.

"May I?" Oz reached for the written ritual in Spike’s hand. "Been doing the mystical gig lately."

Oz began to try to work out the way to perform the ritual necessary to get them all out of the dimension as Buffy, Dilby and Spike headed to the courtyard to gather glass.

Oz looked over at Angel, who was looking a bit awkward. "Convincing. Had us fooled."

"Yeah, I get that. It’s scary at times how easy it is to play the bad guy. It’s like he’s always there looking over my shoulder, just waiting for a chance to take over. I can never really relax and let my guard down or Angelus will be back in the driver’s seat." Angel looked a bit haggard.

"Same with the wolf. Stop fighting it; you only get worn down. Learn to accept the parts you can use and control the ones you can’t." Oz gazed at the vampire
with understanding. "I remember in the old days you used to meditate. You were on the right track then."

"There’s no part of Angelus I can use!" Angel looked outraged and horrified at the thought.

"Sure there is. What do you think you were doing setting up Mr. Wolf?" Oz nodded as he saw understanding show in Angel’s eyes. "Looked to me like you were still in control when it counted."

"That’s why I started the meditation thing. The first time I kissed Buffy, I vamped out and scared her to death. She didn’t know I was a vampire at the time." Angel closed his eyes at the sweet memory of those times long past. "I never had a tight grip on the demon. Stayed away from humans for the most part, until Buffy that is. I guess you’re right, I should give it a try again. I don’t think I’m going back into hermit mode just because Willie won the woman."

"Everyone has an inner demon. Most of us don’t give them names and very few sprout hair monthly, but we’ve all got them." Oz smiled as he shared his insight with the vampire.

Before Angel could respond to that thought, the rest of the group returned with a dustpan filled with colored glass.

"Figured out the ritual yet, Pup?" Spike tilted his head in curiosity as he looked to Oz for the interpretation.

"Yup, it’s pretty clear," Oz said. He didn’t notice the look on Spike’s face but heard the snort of amusement from the younger vamp.

"To you, maybe. Even Willow wasn’t too sure how it would all pull together. Course, knowin’ what that ‘Jewels of Light’ shite is all about helps." Spike nodded to a chuffed Dilby.

"Glad to help. Say, with the Partners dead, my contract is finally non-binding!" Dilby nearly did a dance of joy at the thought of his long servitude being at an end. "I don’t even have to work for a different branch of W & H any more. For that matter, I don’t have to be a lawyer!"

"Since you’re on a path of redemption, stayin’ away from those career choices seems like a good idea." Spike smiled gently as he teased the clerk. "Legal profession’s full of grey areas and compromises. Takes lots of soul searching to not get corrupted. Too much temptation--just ask Gramps here."

"Too true. Only thing worse is politics," Angel readily agreed.

"Okay, Wolfman Jack, how ‘bout you set us up and we get out of here, yeah?" Spike was itching to return to their own dimension. True, he’d have to share Buffy
with the whole happy group, but it was the first step on a path that looked like it might lead to a bright future with the Slayer and he was never one to be patient.
"Bit’s gonna be a wreck ‘til we get this one home." He pulled Buffy close and placed a kiss on the top of her head.

~~~

Giles was in a half sleep when he noticed that the brunette lawyer who had started them all on this trek was sitting at the foot of his bed. "Good Lord! How did you get in here, Lilah?"

"Being dead has some advantages, Pascoe. Locked doors are no challenge," Lilah laughingly replied.

Giles reached for his glasses on the nightstand and turned on the table lamp before sitting up to converse with his uninvited guest. "And who are you thinking of casting as Dalziel, Xander?" At her delighted laugh, he scowled and continued, "Really, Miss Morgan, being a specter gives you no right to simply enter a gentleman’s bedchamber. I would have thought you better mannered than that."

"True. Then again, it’s not every day a gal, or ghost, gets a termination notice on her contract. Congrats, old boy! Looks like the blond vamp pulled it off."

Lilah had Giles’ full attention at that remark. "And just how would you know that? Are you saying you can see what is occurring in that dimension?"

"No, I’m saying that my eternal contract isn’t binding anymore. The only way that can be is if the Senior Partners are all gone. Ergo, the undead underdog pulled a coup." Lilah grinned at Giles in glee. "So, planning on keeping up your end? Since my final destination is hanging in the balance here, I didn’t exactly want to wait for you to get your beauty sleep. How about it?"

"What precisely do you expect me to do at…," he looked at the alarm clock on the night stand, "4 a.m. in the backwaters of Mexico?"

"Dimensional, baby, kinda transcends all those barriers," Lilah reminded the Watcher. "So what’s a girl gotta do to get your tweedy ass up and on a mission to the Oracles to see about an upgrade for this newly unemployed spirit?

"All right, fine. However, I do insist that you take yourself out of my room while I dress. Wait in the common room and we’ll get you sorted." Giles stifled a yawn and headed to his suitcase to find something to wear on their journey.

They made a short trek to an alley that contained an invisible barrier Giles easily traversed. Seeing Wes again was not the great shock it had been the first time as he approached the Powers’ current Oracle.

"So, my friend, what brings you back here at such an early hour?" Wes smiled in greeting. He was fully aware of the mission Giles was undertaking but couldn’t resist a slight ribbing at the impatience of one Miss Lilah Morgan and the way she seemed to be able to get her way when it came to former watchers.

"You know perfectly well, I haven’t a doubt in my mind," Giles smiled and accepted the chair that Wes offfered.

"Ah, yes, the reward sought by Lilah. I had a feeling she would turn up on your doorstep, as it were, with undue haste once Spike completed his mission."

"I am taking it on faith that Spike HAS completed it successfully, at least the battle portion. Lilah arrived and insisted on my meeting with you before any
of them returned from the Partners’ realm." Giles was hoping for some confirmation from Wesley that Buffy would soon be returned to them and that all had gone well.

"Indeed, she was always one to put her needs at the top of the priority list," Wes sighed in remembrance. "As it happens, yes, all went well and the Partners
are no more. I suspect you will behaving quite a celebration to hail the conquering heroes in good order."

Wes motioned to Fred to bring a file that she had been holding as she waited for the two men to finish their greetings. "Hi! Glad to see you again, Mr. Giles.
Would you mind too much tellin’ Angel how proud I am of him? He really had to fight his demons, or his demon would be more accurate really, ‘cause he only has the
one, but he did have to fight it down to keep from fallin’ to temptation and all. Even we were worried for a while, what with all the temptin’ offers that crafty Wolf Partner was wheelin’ out. We may be Oracles, but we can’t see everything here, you know… well, of course you don’t know, but it’s true, we only know what the Powers want us to know and sometimes they like to be all Sneaky Sammy on us."

Giles had forgotten how the lovely child was prone to run-on sentences. Wes laughed delightedly at his friend’s expression when confronted with Fred’s charming way of speaking.

"Yes, I’ll be certain to do that, urm, Fred." Giles looked from one to the other of the Oracles and asked, "Will I be permitted to tell them just who the Powers
have made their Oracles this time?"

"Oh yes, no need for secrecy now. I simply didn’t wish to muddy the waters when so much was at stake.
‘Mission first and foremost’ as we were taught in the Council, eh, Giles?"

Wesley looked over the papers he removed from the file Fred had handed to him. He lit upon one in particular and began to grin widely. "Oh my, this is perfect! So many hell dimensions to consider for our Lilah. I think she’s earned one that isn’t too terribly unpleasant and this fits the bill perfectly. Do be certain that Lilah gives you the prophecy scrolls she promised. I think you will find a good many of the prophecies are yet to occur and the new Council will have a valuable resource for the research department. You must also ring up my father and arrange to pick up that box I spoke of."

"I’ll be sure to do it as soon as we return to London. I really can’t tell you how much I appreciate your thinking to make this available to us, especially under the pressure your circumstances created when you boxed them." Giles was impressed with the clear head Wesley had shown the night before the battle against the Black Thorne. His presence of mind would benefit countless generations of watchers and slayers alike.

"Do tell Lilah that I hope she appreciates the effort it took to arrange her eternal home. Remind her that she is, after all, supposed to be in a hell of some sort." Wes didn’t explain the reasons for this reminder, but Giles got the feeling there was more going on than met the eye.

"Another issue needs to be addressed, I fear," Wes added. "When all the dust has settled on this affair and life has returned to some semblance of normality,
I need for you to bring both Angel and Spike to see us. There is an issue that needs to be put to rest once and for all."

"Of course," Giles agreed. "I’m sure they will both be anxious to see you two at any rate."

"Until then, my friend." Wes extended his hand to shake farewell. Giles, in an uncharacteristic display of emotion likely brought on by his relief knowing
Buffy was safe, pulled the startled Oracle in for a quick, manly hug and back slap rather than the expected handshake.

"Well, I’m off then. Thank you again, Wesley. Your father might never know your worth, but had he the knowledge and good sense, he would be proud of you." Giles gave Fred a quick hug as well and exited the dimension.

"Well?" Lilah was ready to tear the paper from Giles’ hand in her eagerness to move up in the hell circles to one with less brimstone.

Giles handed her the paper and saw the smile begin to appear on her face as she saw the destination granted to her. "Oh, this is even better than I had hoped! It’s not any worse than being exiled to Fresno." Lilah gave Giles her hand and shook his. "Thanks for your help, Watcher. Won’t be seeing you around since this is a one-way ticket."

"Lilah, I am to remind you that it IS still a punishment for your misdeeds and the eternal destination is still hell," Giles told her.

She merely grinned and nodded.

"Oh, and the scroll?" Giles reminded her. "The one you promised to leave in my care when you finally revealed yourself, remember?"

"Oh, I left it on your bed before we headed here. I just knew Wes wouldn’t let me down." Lilah turned to head into a multicolored wavering barrier that just appeared as she accepted the paper from Giles. She stopped before crossing and added one last word, "Tell Mr. Soulful I might just see him in hell yet." She blew a kiss and said, "Catch you later, Ripper," then crossed the barrier.

~~~

Lilah looked at the classy appointments of her new home. The view out the window was nice enough and the home had a nice, comfy feel, even if it was a bit small.

"Hi, roommate! Welcome home," came a voice from the kitchen area.

"Oh, God, no! God, no!" Lilah had paled considerably.

"Oh, come on, Lilah, it was harder on me when they told me who I was going to spend eternity with and I’ve had to wait around for you to get here. It’s no picnic for me
either," said Lindsey McDonald.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

~*~
Chapter 52
~*~

The party atmosphere hadn’t let up since the five returned to their own dimension. They all looked a bit bedraggled but were whole and alive and that was what mattered, after all.

Dawn couldn’t be pried from her sister’s side, alternating between hugs and tears followed by playfully soft swats and threats of dire retaliation should Buffy disappear again.

There was a slightly awkward moment when Willow first caught sight of Oz, but the joy at seeing each other again finally outweighed the bittersweet memory of their parting so long ago. Willow was relieved that she didn’t have to tell Oz about Tara’s passing. His gentle "I heard. So sorry," was followed by his pulling Willow into a tender embrace that spoke volumes.

Giles returned from his trek with Lilah and his eyes danced with joy at seeing his Slayer safe and obviously happy. There was a suspicion of tears in those eyes as he removed his glasses and struggled to find that stiff upper lip his countrymen are so
famous for. Buffy’s rush to embrace him finally ended all pretense at stoicism and the father came out full force as Giles hugged Buffy for all he was worth.

"My dear girl," he choked out, "We never stopped looking. We never would."

Buffy nodded in understanding, tears running down her face as well.

"Welcome home, Buffy. I think you’ll find we’ve all managed to grow up quite a bit while you’ve been gone." He chuckled and tried to lighten the mood. "Well, perhaps not Andrew."

Introductions were made as needed and Buffy got her first look at Angel’s new family. Connor seemed to be a truly nice boy and Nina hit it off with Oz from the start. The two part-time wolves were already talking about setting up a program to help others afflicted with their problem. The lessons Oz had learned from the monks in Tibet could be taught to others in need of taming the beast within. It looked to be the beginning of a beautiful friendship in the making.

Dilby was nervously staying close to the wall, not sure of his welcome until Spike introduced the former lawyer to Giles and explained the help the man had given in their last battle. Giles graciously offered to find a place for him with the new Council if Dilby so chose. After that, the clerk mingled quite happily, getting to know the various slayers and Buffy’s extended family of Scoobies.

Willow and Dawn wasted no time in sealing the invisible portal, closing off the access to the former home base of the late Wolf, Ram and Hart. The battle began by Angel in a dank alley in Los Angeles was finally completed.

Faith sidled up to Buffy as the welcome home party stretched into its third hour. "Yo, B," she said, "think I’m gonna hit the road with my own personal ‘Sir’ and give him some of that ‘With Love’, if you get my meaning. Let Robin get in some special tutoring on the Council’s dime. I’m thinking a nice boat, some blue Pacific and the only demons we go after having fins. Robin, me and the deep blue sea."

"Be careful of those finny demons. You’ll have to ask Spike about the real meaning of loan shark," Buffy said cryptically. She waved at a smiling Spike and blew him a kiss from across the room.

The next pair to bow out of the celebration raised more than one eyebrow. Xander looked slightly nervous as Illyria tweaked his imaginary leash. "My guide will now take me to this Las Vegas to apply the skills at this poker I have acquired. Cy has explained that amassing large amounts of meaningless paper valued by the ooze that eats its own will give similar power to that which was mine before Vahla ha’nesh was destroyed. I shall conquer that insignificant city and rebuild my kingdom upon its rubble."

Xander gave a lopsided grin and assured the group, "Don’t worry, I’ll make sure she’s a benign ruler." It looked as though Xander’s magnetism where demons were concerned had finally attracted one with enough of Anya’s qualities to be more than a passing fancy. "Besides, who better than a demon god to rule over Vegas now that Elvis is dead?"

"You get a weird feeling of deja vu?" Dawn whispered to Buffy as they looked at the retreating pair.

"Oh, yeah! Shades of Anya with the discovery of money, for sure." Buffy replied. She grasped Spike’s hand as he joined them, twining her fingers with his openly. As Giles had promised, they faced no dirty looks from anyone, even though Buffy no longer cared.

"Blue speaks her mind too, like Anyanka always did," Spike added. "Whelp best not think of pullin’ a runner on her or she might literally eat him for breakfast."

"Wow, I feel really left out," Dawn said with a grin. "Everybody seems all partnered up but me. I mean Angel and Nina are in ‘get a room’ mode over there; Willow’s on her cell with Ceara; Robin and Faith are out of here and now Xan and Illyria. Even you came home with the sense to grab the hot vampire love." Dawn laughed at the shock on Spike’s face and deep blush of embarrassment on Buffy’s. "Hey, not a kid here."

"Well, you do have a point. Looks like only Giles and Andrew aren’t paired up with somebody," Buffy agreed as she looked around the room. The two men in question had walked up just in time to hear Buffy single them out.

The look of horror on Giles’ face as he glanced at Andrew was priceless. "Quite so, and I intend for that to remain the case for the time being." Giles shuddered at the thought of Andrew following him about with his puppy dog eagerness and hero worship. It wouldn’t do to have the lad develop other, less desirable attitudes toward him any time soon. Perhaps Andrew might enjoy a transfer to the Asian office?

The party didn’t so much end as dwindle to a few die-hards in semi-stupors trading war stories and draining the last of the Victory Vino, as Andrew had dubbed it.

Buffy and Spike slipped away to the room Mr. Rice-Stoker rented at the start of this adventure. For once, they actually made it to the bed.

~~~

Spike felt unaccustomarily shy for reasons he couldn’t pinpoint. Here was his Slayer, his Buffy willingly and openly with him and the look on her face said all the words she rarely spoke to anyone. Life rarely handed Spike his heart’s desire and he was half expecting some cruel twist to yank it all away in a flash.

Buffy seemed to be in tune with his thoughts. For once, she was reading her vampire as accurately as he had always read her. Perhaps she was merely looking at him and really seeing him for once. Her heart broke at the insecurity she saw in the once arrogant vampire. She knew that she and she alone was the cause…and the only cure.

"Spike, I’m not going anywhere. Kinda played that game. And winning it," she shrugged, "well, let’s just say it felt more like losing. I’m the brand new, improved Buffy here. I know what I want and need and that’s you."

She moved across the room to his side as she spoke. "No more mixed signals…well, not on purpose anyway. I knew I loved you back in the Hellmouth and knew I’d waited too long to tell you so. You may not believe it, but I spent a lot of time after you dusted thinking about us, our history, choices. Not going there again. Soul/no soul, vampire/human, normal or normal for us…none of that matters. What DOES matter is you," she ghosted her hand up Spike’s arm in a gentle caress, "and me and how right we are together."

Buffy wanted nothing more than to pull Spike to her and plunder his lips, but she wanted to let him take the lead. She had all those times in the past when she had come to him and taken what SHE wanted with no thought to his wants and needs to make up for.. There was no doubt that Spike wanted her, but Buffy wanted him to know that he had the right to be the one in charge. She wanted to wipe away any thought that she would ever just use him and leave him in tatters again. It was time for new beginnings.

Spike wasn’t sure what Buffy was playing at. She was obviously aroused; the aroma was nearly driving him mad. She was clearly intending them to spend the night together. By now, the Buffy he remembered would be ripping his clothes off and pushing him towards the usually elusive bed.

Since he’d been turned, Spike had never run from a fight in his life; but this was different, this was a heart battle and he had a bad history of losses there. Still, he was ever a fool for love.

Spike drew Buffy tight against his lean frame and lowered his head to capture her lips in a kiss of utmost tenderness. He poured all the love and adoration he would ever feel for this girl into the kiss as he felt her melt into his arms in complete surrender.

"Oh, thank God," Buffy gasped between kisses. "I was beginning to think I was going to have to give you an engraved invitation! I thought I made it clear back in the Evil Hotel that I am yours forever if you want me. What’s with the sudden cold feet?"

"’M cold all over, pet. Vampire, remember?" Spike tried to shift the conversation away from his insecurities.

"Ha and ha, very funny. A poet AND a comedian." Buffy grinned at him.

"Wait, how’d you know about the poetry?" Spike asked, his eyes narrowing.

"Had a little talk with Xan at the party. I thought I was going to have to sell him on the idea of us in a couply way, but instead I found out there’s a new president of the Spike Fan Club." Spike snorted at that. "Whoda thought Xander’d be up for that role? So…think I could inspire you to write a poem about me?"

"How ‘bout I write it with my body," Spike gently began to trace her facial features like a blind man seeking her countenance. "Wasn’t that good with words, but I think I might do you justice with my hands." He ran those very hands down her neck to her breasts, leaving one to caress the globes she freely offered while the other moved to her back, drawing her even closer to his hardening length.

Buffy moaned as he played her body like an instrument. No one had ever made her flesh sing like Spike. Even in the annus horribilis that followed her resurrection, Spike had been able to ignite fires in her with just a touch, a kiss. Now that Buffy’s heart had joined the dance, it was just that much more intense.
Spike’s firm yet soft lips were lighting a trail of that fire down Buffy’s neck as his hand untied the halter top of her dress. The silk slid effortlessly to pool at Buffy’s feet as she stepped nimbly away from the fluid material and into the hardness of Spike.

Her hands began to raise the hem of Spike’s shirt in a feverish attempt to feel skin on skin. She was hungry for him and her appetite wasn’t going to wait for niceties, so she ripped it the rest of the way off him. Spike chuckled into her mouth, not ending the kiss. For once, Buffy ripping his clothes off signaled a desire for HIM, not just sexual release, and he was filled with joy.

They had made love since their reunion, of course, but this night was one for all the sweetness of feeling that had been denied or confused in their checkered past. Every tender touch, every whispered word poured out a wealth of emotional truth. No more denial or holding back for this couple. They were ever tied one to the other by choice and would stand together as equals against any comers.


~~~

Spike woke with a start. He could feel the tingles throughout his body. Gently, so as not to disturb the softly snoring Slayer at his side, he rolled Buffy slightly and rose from the bed. He made his way to the door, grateful for his lack of need to turn on a light.

Opening the door to peer into the hallway, Spike wasn’t really surprised to see the door to Angel’s room opening also. Both souled vampires met in the hall to talk of their shared concerns.

"Felt it too, did you?" Spike could see the answer in Angel’s eyes. "See her?"

"No, but we’d better handle this quickly," Angel whispered.

"I’ll handle it. Make sure it’s done right, yeah?" Spike glared at his grandsire in steely determination.

"Just going to walk out on Buffy now that you’ve finally got the girl?" Angel snarked.

"Not bloody likely," Spike responded. "Not one to sneak about, like some I won’t mention."

Angel gave a short bust of laughter at the familiar banter. "Okay, you see to the ladies then. I’m going back to my nice, warm, soft sweetheart and stepping out of your way."

Spike grinned at Angel and headed back to his room.
"Buffy. Sweetling?" He gently shook her shoulder. "Buffy?"

"Mwaaaa," Buffy mumbled, "I don’t want to go to school today, Mom. I don’t feel good."

Spike laughed at the not-quite-awake Slayer. "Wakey, wakey, Buffy. Vampire boyfriend needs to tie up another loose end."

"Mmmm….vampire boyfriend tied up," Buffy smiled in her half awake state. "Yummy!" Buffy opened one eye and looked at Spike in amusement. "Did anyone ever tell you you’re pretty in chains?"

Spike smiled fondly. "Actually, yes, although I don’t think they said ‘pretty’ when they did."

"Something tells me I don’t want to hear that story," Buffy snapped through her jealousy. "As for anyone else in the future, that’s SO not gonna happen."

"Ooh, feisty! That’s my girl," Spike teased.

"Count on it, buster. You are definitely off the market." Buffy had finally fully wakened and was sitting up in bed, no longer shyly covering herself from Spike’s hungry gaze.

"So what’s with the early wake up call?" Buffy teased back. "I think my way of waking you up a while ago was a lot nicer than a quick shake." Buffy’s eyes widened at the thought of what could have caused Spike to awaken her, if not more lovemaking. "Is everything okay? It’s too soon for another apocalypse!"

"No, no," Spike reassured her, "Nothing like that Buffy. Just somethin’ I can’t put off. Loose end I have to tie up before we start on that happily ever after." Buffy was looking at him in confusion. "Look, precious, I’d explain it all, but it really is something I have to do. No one else can, not even the most beautiful woman alive."

Buffy smiled at the compliment. "Don’t even think about doing anything dangerous, Spike. I can’t lose you."

"Not gonna," Spike promised. "I swear I won’t be in any danger. Fact is, I should be right back here before you even order up breakies in the morning. Just didn’t want to slip away without tellin’."

"So you’re only going to be gone for a little while, you’re sure?" Buffy was already missing him. "I’ve done the whole being away from Spike bit and gotta tell ya, I don’t wanna go back to that."

Spike kissed her soundly and pulled on his jeans. "Don’t know how glad I am to hear that," he admitted. "Swear I’ll be back as soon as I can and I’ll tell you all about it then. Meanwhile, get some sleep so you’ll have lots of energy when I get back," he leered.

Buffy lay back down but was vaguely troubled when she remembered the urgency in Spike’s dressing to leave.It was going to take some getting used to, trusting Spike to always be the guy who comes back.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

~*~
Chapter 53
~*~

Giles was dreaming about his earlier visit to the Oracles. It was so vivid he could almost taste the fire of the excellent whiskey that Fred poured as he listened to the instructions uttered in Wesley’s cultured tones.

~*~
"Now, as to that…no, now is not the time and you are not the person I should say this to." Wesley took a long drink before continuing. "When Spike succeeds in returning Buffy and destroying the Senior Partners’ power--and I am quite confident he will succeed--you must bring both Angel and Spike here to me. There are issues that need to be addressed. It would be best if you didn’t distract them by telling them that, however.
Perhaps you should even refer to me as the Oracle, while you’re at it. They must be focused on the mission at hand and not on themselves. There will be time to tie up loose ends later.

"Another issue also needs to be addressed, I fear," Wes added. "When all the dust has settled on this affair and life has returned to some semblance of normality, I need for you to bring both Angel and Spike to see us. There is an issue that needs to be put to rest once and for all."
~*~

Giles awoke refreshed and determined to unite Wesley with the two souled vampires before the day was over. "Might as well complete this before we head back to Mother England and new adventures," he muttered.

The Watcher’s plan had to be delayed due to the unexpected disappearance of Spike. Buffy assured Giles that Spike would be back very soon but refused to say what had taken the vampire from her side.

Angel and Nina joined the small group gathered round the buffet-style breakfast laid out on the counter. Nina piled a plate with Willow’s pancakes made from Tara’s famous recipe and tried to convince Angel that eating human food was not ‘gross and disgusting’. "Spike does it all the time, Ernie!"

"Not a big inducement, hon," Angel growled. He did, however, accept a single pancake and sausage patty, much to everyone’s amusement.

"Well," smiled Buffy, "Looks like I’m not the only one able to tame a vampire here. Good work, Nina. Angel’s in good hands. So what are your plans now that we’re all back where we should be?"

"I don’t really know for sure, but Oz and I have a plan to start a retreat. We’ll work with other werewolves, especially on getting the wolf under control. There are other demons that want more control and we can help them too. I suppose we could also branch out into anger management with humans." Nina looked at Angel and smiled softly before continuing. "Some of it, like where and how much time I’ll put into it, will depend on Angel’s plans."

Angel looked a little startled. "Well, of course I’ll back you guys up with that. Sounds like a good plan. Not like I have an office to go back to or anything." He actually looked a little lost.

"I’m sure there’s lots of stuff you can do, Angel. You can teach that Poo Chi stuff you used to do with all the stretching and posing…ooh, and that meditation stuff you’ve got down perfectly," Buffy suggested.

Dilby offered his own thoughts, "Mr. Angel could always act if he wanted to. I was sure fooled when it looked like he was working for Mr. Wolf!"

"Gotta have more than two facial expressions to act, Zorro," Spike’s voice came from the doorway as he rejoined Buffy. "Bit out of his reach, don’t you think?" He dropped a kiss on Buffy’s upturned forehead.

"Yeah, like reason number ten why you shouldn’t think of a career in comedy, Spike. Very funny--NOT," Angel glared at the younger vamp.

"Okay, all vampires out of show business, check." Buffy’s words smoothed the ruffled feathers of her ex and defused her now and future lover. "Really, Angel, given it any thought? Gonna open another agency helping the helpless?"

"Nah." At everyone’s startled reaction, he quickly explained. "Not that I’m going to stop helping or fighting the good fight or anything; I just want to be more efficient. I’m not sure how yet."

"Now that you both are here, perhaps I can help guide you to an answer to some of those pressing questions," Giles added. "When I visited the Oracles and received the orb that allowed Spike to see past the Partners’ deception, I agreed to bring both of you to see them when this was all concluded. If you are both free later today, we might get some answers from The Powers about your future destiny." Giles deliberately withheld the identity of those Oracles.

"I’m free," Angel answered.

At the same time, Spike said, "Yeah, I’ll give ‘em a listen. Make my own plans though."

"Excellent. Buffy, dear, perhaps you might like to do a bit of shopping while I have your vampire otherwise occupied."

"Hum….shopping, I’m not sure…," Buffy laughed at the surprised look on Giles’ face. "Oh, who am I kidding, of COURSE I’m ready to take the Council’s plastic and see how fast it can melt!"

"Good thing this is a small, sleepy Mexican town and not a place with a large mall," Willow quipped. "Want girlfriendy company?"

"Let’s not forget the little sister with the sharp eye for a bargain," Dawn added, grabbing her purse.

"Well, looks like we’re all sorted then," Spike nodded and filled his plate with a little of all the offerings laid out for the group breakfast. He smiled at the look of disgust Angel gave his plate and smacked his lips to further irritate his grandsire.

"It’ll be good to have you pesky Aurelians all gainfully employed and accounted for," Willow teased.

"Well, all but Drusilla," Buffy said and refused to look at Spike to see his reaction.

"Nope, took care of that little detail last night." Spike gently pushed Buffy’s gaping mouth closed before explaining. "Poof and I both felt her. Must have been drawn here because her whole family was in one spot, ‘cause last I heard she was still in Belize."

"So, what did you finally do to deal with her?" Angel clearly was concerned. He knew Dru was still among the undead because he hadn’t felt the snap of the blood tie that would have come from his offspring becoming dust.

"Took her someplace she’ll fit right in. Someplace she’ll love." Spike took a bite of pancake and smirked.
"Give ‘em a run for their money she will!"

~~~

Quetzalcoatl looked pained as he poured tea into the doll’s cup. "Miss Edith is ever so grateful to have such a colorful suitor." Dru turned to his brother and flashed her best flirting look at Tezcatlipoca, "and Mummy would love one of those still beating hearts, please."

The groups of Jaguar and Eagle knights performed an intricate dance as entertainment for the rulers of their world. Soon one of the endless supply of sacrifices would be led to the altar and the ancient ritual would continue as it had daily for eons, much to Dru's delight.

The now sealed dimension would never be the same with the dark princess ruling her two new playthings. The brothers wondered, however, if she wasn’t just as dangerous as Illyria. Best to keep her involved with tea parties and bloodletting that was still under their control, since there was no way to exile her from their kingdom. Still, she was lovely, wearing nothing but an elaborate headdress of feathers and a sly smile.

~~~

The small, nondescript door opened to a dark chamber where Giles left his offerings. The room shifted around the three to the now familiar sight of vaguely Grecian décor. Giles waited for the arrival of the Oracles and the surprised reaction of the two vampires.

He didn’t have to wait long.

"WES? Wesley?" Angel was shocked into monosyllables.

"Percy! Glad to see you got an upgrade. Workin’ for real power now, yeah?" Spike was less shaken.

"Yes, so it would seem. Ever the right hand man, as it were," Wes beamed at the trio. "Bloody glad they don’t make me wear a toga though. Hard to find them in tweed," he quipped wryly.

Angel was still staring openmouthed at the friend he had badly used more than once. Now that same friend was the official spokesman for the very Powers for whom Angel was supposed to be Champion. He was more than a bit nervous.

"Oh, do close your mouth, Angel. You look rather silly," Wes teased. "Come on out, my dear. Best get the shocks over all at one time."

Fred came from around the pillar and glided next to Wesley as she smiled at Angel and then Spike. "Hey, y’all. Glad ya made it out of that dimension. Not that I thought you wouldn’t, ‘cause, you know, TWO souled vampires, champions…they didn’t stand a chance. Well, maybe a chance, since nothing is totally certain, but not a good chance and there are prophecies about how things would most likely go."

"Good to see you too, ducks," Spike grinned widely at the babbling, waiflike Oracle.

"Hey, Spike, thanks for tryin’ to save me and all. Wasn’t anything anybody could do though," Fred greeted the blond vampire and gave him a hug. She then turned to Angel. "And you! Stop torturing yourself over what happened! You did what you had to, Angel. Couldn’t turn that loose on the whole world just to get me back. You’re still the beautiful man who saved me."

"I knew a soul like yours couldn’t be gone forever," Angel whispered.

"Now that we are all caught up, perhaps you’d care to have some issues cleared up?" Wesley motioned for the group to have a seat and Fred took her seat next to Wes.

Wes looked at each vampire before him, a serious expression on his face. "I wanted to speak with you both about prophecies."

"Bloody hell," muttered Spike. "Had about enough of that rot already. Feel like a bleedin’ pawn, what with all the writin’ and visions. Like bein’ back with Dru again."

"Be that as it may, Spike, there is the issue of the Shanshu." Wesley looked closely at Angel with a slight expression of disappointment. "Angel, you deliberately began a fight you knew you would not be able to win. A fight that ultimately could have led to an apocalypse that the side of good would have no hope of ending. You usurped the role of the Powers in determining the timing of the final battle in your desire to have it all sorted out. You placed your friends in the unenviable position of leaving you to your disaster or joining in your quixotic suicidal mission."

Angel had begun to shift uncomfortably in his seat under Wes’ gaze. "In your efforts to be accepted by the Black Thorn, you signed a document that forfeited your rights to the Shanshu, this after taking the life of a true innocent." Wes was outwardly disapproving at that. "Drogyn was a faithful servant of the Powers, of the forces of good. He did not deserve you making him a gamepiece in your little crusade. Shame on you, Angel."

"So, I lost the Shanshu to Spike, figured so anyway from the time he popped out of that amulet." Angel couldn’t keep the bitterness from his voice. "Gets the girl, gets the clean slate, gets to be human. Fine!"

Angel started to get up to leave but was stalled by Wes’ voice commanding him, "Sit down!" Angel reluctantly obeyed.

"Say, Percy, any way I can turn this down? Didn’t much care for bein’ human the first time and much as I’d like that clean slate part, not seein’ becomin’ human as a reward." Spike looked almost desperate.

Wesley chuckled as he took in the varying expressions on the two souled vampires. "How very interesting!
Giles, I’m surprised you haven’t been studying the differences between Angel and Spike all along. The Council had such a limited view of the makeup of vampires. I sincerely hope the new Council will be more reality-based."

"Indeed. I doubt the old guard would recognize the new Council and the differences are only going to increase if I can convince Spike to join us formally."

Spike looked to Giles in amazement. "That’ll depend a bit on Buffy, but I’m interested, yeah."

"Back to the Shanshu," Wes commanded attention to the topic at hand. "Angel, what on earth gives you the idea that anyone could simply sign away a prophecy? It is either about you or not."

Angel looked sheepish as he nodded to his old friend. "I guess I hoped I couldn’t."

"The Shanshu was always about you, Angel. What other souled vampire is so unstable that the side they would choose was ever in question?" Wes laughed at the stuttering indignation from Angel at that.

Spike practically preened at the implied compliment as he punched Angel on the arm. "Got ya there, Pops! I picked my side even before the soul. No question which side I’d fight on in a battle."

"Quite true. You have no history of starting apocalypses either," added Giles. "This is Angel’s second, if I’m not mistaken."

"I helped stop this one," Angel argued.

"I helped stop this one and the other one too," Spike countered. "Not a soul on me that first time either."

Fred felt sorry for Angel at that point, even if he deserved the chastisement of his fellows. "Angel’s done lots of good too, Wesley, don’t forget that. He’s still the Powers’ Champion and the Shanshu’s still about him, right?"

Wesley felt a small twinge of guilt at the enjoyment he felt with Angel’s discomfort. "Yes, my dear, you are right as always. To get back to the matter at hand, it has been decided that Angel shall be granted his reward immediately. You will find your memories intact even though you will be starting from scratch morally, the slate having been wiped clean. Originally, your memories and the guilt and pain they bring would have been wiped as well, but having to remember all your actions and choices was deemed to be the safest option. It has been argued that you need those memories to prevent a slide into the same behaviors you chose as Liam AND as Angel. You will not have to pay for the evils done to this point, Angel, but you do have to make the same effort as everyone else from this point on. Your soul is as fresh as a newborn babe, but it is hoped the wisdom of your years will guide you to a good end."

Angel sat back in his chair puffing out a breath of relief. "So I’m human then, in every way?"

"One hundred percent bona fide human male, yup," Fred smiled widely.

"When?"

"As soon as you leave these walls you’ll notice the signs, heartbeat, sensory changes and so forth. You’ll have the same limitations as any human, Angel, don’t forget that." Wes looked thoughtful, then warned, "You’ll need help dealing with Nina when she undergoes her changes every month."

"I think I’m liking her plans with Oz more and more," Angel admitted. "Maybe I could even give Connor a little brother or sister in time?"

"That’s entirely up to you, but yes, you’ll be fully functional," Wes responded.

Spike had been silent throughout the exchange. He hadn’t wanted to become human, but it did sting a bit that the evil done by Angelus could be set aside so easily. Wes caught a look at the remaining souled vampire and decided to give him some hope as well.

"Spike, the Powers are far from unaware of you. Just because the Shanshu was meant for Angel does not mean there is no reward in store for you as well. Indeed, who more deserves one than a vampire who chose to change for love, to fight for his soul and who has just averted the mother of all apocalypses?"
Wes smiled as Spike sat up straighter in his chair. "You said yourself that you have no desire to be human again, so that wouldn’t have been a reward at all, now would it?"

Spike shook his head in agreement, "Buffy might not agree."

Giles took pity on the vampire and reassured him, "Buffy loves you as you are, Spike. You don’t have to be human to appeal to her. Indeed we were all a bit foolish to think a normal human male could ever be a proper mate for the Slayer."

"Wouldn’t have minded that clean slate though," Spike glanced at Fred before continuing, "That glimpse of hell I had when I first got back makes me sure I really don’t want to wind up there, no matter how much I deserve it."

"Oddly enough, the Powers agree with you, Spike." Wes’ smile was warm and his eyes reflected the joy he felt in passing on this message. "The slate was wiped clean the moment you accepted that amulet knowing full well it would likely cost you your existence. Like Angel, you can write your new destination based on your choices now, not those when you were the Big Bad."

"Wow," Spike sputtered, "didn’t see that as a possibility. Was still plannin’ on fightin’ the good fight, ya know, even if I was hellbound. These poor buggers need all the help they can get," he smirked at Giles.

"Help we’ll be delighted to accept," Giles replied.

Fred whispered to Wes, only to have the Oracle shake his head in the negative. When this was noticed by the others, he offered a slight explanation. "Fred wanted me to tell you the whole of your reward. It is in the prophecy scroll Lilah left behind, should you wish to research it. I think that Spike would rather just live his life unfettered by a looming prophecy and promised rewards, am I right?"

Spike shook his head in agreement immediately. "Damn straight! Nice to know I matter somehow, but I’d just as soon make my own future for my own reasons. Don’t want to start makin’ decisions or pickin’ my battles ‘cause I’m reachin’ for some brass ring. Wanna do good to be doin’ good, not for some prophecy and reward."

Angel felt shame fill him as he realized how important the promise of Shanshu had become to him over the years. The purity of his desire to be a champion for good had been tainted with the desire to win the prize. Buffy was right; Spike was the better man in the end.

"Fine. But in the meantime it was decided that you could use some freedoms and protections in battle, even though you remain a vampire." Wes took something from Fred and handed it to the shocked vampire.

Angel looked over and gasped as he saw what Wes had given Spike. "I destroyed that! How can that be here?"

"The Powers That Be are more than capable of putting it back together, Angel." Wes was amused at how limiting Angel’s view of the Powers appeared to be. "Which is harder: to wipe away one’s sins or to put a man-made ring with mystical properties back together after a vampire has stepped on it?"

Spike still stared at the Gem of Amara that rested in his hand. His mind flashed to the last time he had it in his possession and the lengths he had been willing to go to trying to retrieve it from Angel. It was his turn to feel shame; he had never been one for torture before, much less having others fight his battles.

"You sure about this, Percy?" He hesitated to put it on as he looked deeply into Wes’ eyes, searching for the confidence he wasn’t feeling.

"Absolutely. You’ve already proven yourself, Spike. This is merely a tool to make you more effective in the fight. Not all evil waits for dark, you know. Buffy needs you at her side in the daylight as well." Wes looked at the vampire who had fought for the soul he knew would damn him to guilt and he sought to reassure him.
"There is no danger giving such a tool to you, Spike. You won’t misuse it and if you ever did lose that soul of yours, it will still be safe. The Powers know you quite thoroughly."

Spike slipped the ring on his finger and stared at it in awe. He let himself dream for a moment of soft days and taking Buffy to the bright Mexican beach for a day of fun in the sun before their return to England.

"Oh, and Giles, I have a message for you to relay to Willow, if you would," Wes took Giles to one side, leaving Fred with the two rewarded vampires.

"Wes still loves you, Angel. He’s sayin’ what he has to, but he’s not mad at you or anything. He’ll never forget how you took him in and helped him become the man he was. I know we plan to keep an eye on you from now on." Fred kissed Angel lightly and sent a message of her own to Nina. "She’ll be good for you, Angel. I’m glad you have her and Connor."

"And you," she playfully tapped Spike on his knee. "Don’t go thinkin’ you’re all invulnerable! You take too many chances already. Buffy couldn’t handle losin’ you now. See, I told you she missed you. Maybe you two should think about makin’ it formal between you two. A girl likes that."

"I’d do anything to please Buffy. Think she knows that too." Spike wasn’t embarrassed to admit his ‘weakness’ to the sweet girl he had come to care so much for during his year in L.A. "Yeah, I’ll be careful. Not wantin’ to dust just yet. Got things to do, places to be."

"Wonder what that’s about," Angel motioned to Wes and Giles in the corner.

"Not sure, but from the look on Giles’ face, it’s not a problem," Spike opined.

~~~

The group crowded around the newly human Angel in awe and amazement, taking turns listening to his heartbeat and trying to make him blush.

Spike and Buffy sat across the room wrapped up in each other. "So you’re wanting to try out beach volleyball?" Buffy was giggling at the thought.

"Isn’t it what you pulsers do? Head for the sand and sun to whack a ball back and forth over a net?" Spike gave her his best innocent look.

"I think you watched far too much Baywatch, buster," Buffy accused. "You do know there will be no Pamela Anderson viewing in your future, right?"

"Who needs her when I have my arms full of perfect blonde goddess right here." Spike leaned in to kiss his girl. Buffy moaned in pleasure until Spike teased her with, "’Sides, it was that Carmen Electra bint that was worth the extra looks."

They were both laughing as Buffy chased him toward their room for some serious payback, not to mention driving all thought of any other woman from Spike’s fertile imagination.

"What were the exact words again, Giles?" Willow begged.

"The message from Tara was as simple as it was clear, Willow. She loves you and wants you to find love again. She’s glad you moved away from the destructive path you started down and thinks this new girl, the student you met in London earlier, will be a healing force in your life." Giles face softened as he saw the needy look on Willow’s face. "Love never dies. She was very clear in wanting you to remember that especially: love never dies."

Willow nodded, tears falling freely. "I’ll never find another Tara, will I?"

"No, I don’t suppose you will. But that doesn’t mean you won’t love again or be loved. Every relationship is different, just as all people, all beings really, are different. I’m learning that even applies to vampires," Giles remarked as he looked at the new human standing with one arm around Nina and the other around his son Connor. "She loves you enough to want you to find that happiness again. You’d be wise to listen to Tara. She was ever wise, you know."

Willow nearly knocked the Watcher over with the exuberance of her hug.

The group went to their individual rooms late that night.
Buffy and Spike made the mistake of mentioning their beach plans within hearing distance and it was turning out to be a popular idea for many of the young slayers before a return to London’s often gray skies.

Angel promised to keep in touch with the Council and be of any assistance he might be. He may no longer be a vampire, but he did have a couple of centuries of experience with demons behind him and was a fairly impressive fighter in his own right.

Nina and Oz had decided on California for their retreat. The mountainous area surrounding L.A. was a prime location and Angel even had some land there thanks to his employment package from Wolfram and Hart. He offered to set up an office for the Council’s use there once it was built and readied. The good fight needed to be fought in many areas of the world, after all, and the battle took many forms.

A brief, well-deserved vacation for all in the sunny land of the Aztecs would be enjoyed for a few days before returning to the duties they all faced. Since Faith, Robin and Xander had already begun their vacations, it was only fair to grant the same to the others who had come willing to lay down their lives in the rescue mission. This Council valued its slayers as more than glorified weapons.


******** two years later *******

Buffy grabbed for the popcorn that rested on Spike’s stomach as they lay side by side in their bed watching the television. The cottage on the Council’s grounds outside Leeds had been their private retreat since they had made their relationship official.

"Shut up! It’s all Dilby’s fault anyway," Buffy insisted.

"Right. Remind me to strike some terror into the little clerk when we go back to headquarters Monday. Bloke makes a decent Watcher, even if he had to play guidance counselor first," Spike grinned and moved the bowl further from Buffy’s reach.

"Ssshh, they’re about to announce," Buffy squealed in excitement.

"Just a stupid statue, Buffy. Doesn’t mean a thing really. Lots of real talent never even get a shot at it," Spike pouted.

"Hush, you’ve got no reason to be jealous and I’ll prove it later," Buffy promised.

"And the winner for Best Actor in a Drama goes to…," the scantily clad actress was saying on the TV. Her plastically handsome co-presenter opened the envelope and the girl giggled as she yelled out, "Angel O’Connor!"

"Fancy Angelus playin’ a bleedin’ FBI agent," Spike shook his head in amazement. "Good thing they were lookin’ for stoic, what with the lack of facial expressions the Poofter can pull out."

"Spike, be happy for him. He’s got the life he wants and we have each other. That’s more than good enough for me." Buffy kissed him soundly, pushing all thoughts of Angel from his mind. They were so wrapped up with each other that they missed everything that followed on the television. Neither one cared.

Angel was on the screen holding up the golden statue and smiling to the camera. The camera panned to a beaming Nina in the audience mouthing ‘I love you’ to her husband as he accepted the award. "Lots of people got me here, but I just want to say," he held the statue aloft, "Cordy, this one’s for you." Angel looked heavenward and winked.

~fin