Disclaimer: BTVS and characters belong to Joss Whedon and the Powers the Be (except for any small original characters I might end up using). I'm not making money from this and there's no intent to infringe copyright or intellectual property rights.


Chapter One

Rome. City of romance, of emperors, of beauty. The city where victors marched triumphantly through the streets being cheered by the crowds, conquering heroes returning. The two vampires both sighed heavily as they made their way back to the hotel, resignation and disappointment predominating their thoughts. Angel's shoulders were hunched, his almost perpetual pouting frown firmly in place, Spike noticed. His own hands were clenched in his pockets, fingernails drawing just a little blood. A little physical pain to accompany the heartbreak of discovering he'd been right all along.

"How about raiding the mini bar?" Angel's sullen voice cut through the mist of despair swamping Spike's mind.

The blonde looked up, held Angel's gaze. "Maybe when we get back to the office, mate. Think I'm just gonna go for a walk and a smoke, you know?" Angel sighed again and Spike was forced to suppress a growl of irritation.

"Yeah, I get you. Don't...don't stay out too late, okay, William?" Spike was surprised to hear the concern in his companion's voice, and his eyebrow lifted, a smirk curling his lips.

"Don't fret, Peaches. I'll be back before dawn to tuck you in!"

Annoyance clouded Angel's swarthy features and Spike grinned to himself for the merest of moments before heading out into to night.

Wandering through the near deserted streets, Spike allowed himself to fall headlong into the abyss of self pity. Angel was such an idiot. Buffy's running around with the Immortal was no damned slight to the self torturing vampire, far from it. Nope, the Slayer was simply trying to replace her first lover every time she hooked up with another of the legion of the undead, and Spike had always known it. He'd fooled himself for a while, held out hope that she would see him for just...him, Spike, William the Bloody, the one who loved her for everything she was and could be, not an ideal, a goddess on a pedestal. He'd even cherished her last words to him, wrapped them around him as a ghost of her, wanting to believe it was true even when he denied it to her face. Dracula, Spike and now the Immortal. No wonder it had been so hard to get that bloody demon head - the Immortal must on some level realise that he might have Buffy, but some part of the Slayer would always want Angel, would always be trying to recapture the magic she'd found with his grandsire. And that would rankle. Spike grinned in spite of himself - well, in some small way it was a comfort to know that the Immortal didn't always get quite what he wanted.

The waves of misery poured over him once again soon enough, however. There was no satisfaction for him knowing he'd been nothing more than a substitute for the walking sulk that was his grandsire, even if a small part of him knew that wasn't strictly true. Dawn had never liked Angel, never been friends and hung out with Angel like she did with Spike. Dawn had become like his sister over the years and that was something he'd have that was all his own. Time spent with Dawn.

Spike stopped, half smoked cigarette dropping to the cobbles. How stupid was he? The sulk and he had legged it all this way just because of Buffy, and here Spike had never even asked Andrew about the Bit! Well there was a way to fix that at least, he decided, breaking into a run.

He knew Andrew had gone out, they'd seen him leave, so he knew there might not be anyone in the apartment. He deliberately squashed the thought that the Immortal and Buffy might be in there with the lights out, not really wanting to contemplate his gorgeous girl in the arms of that smug, pompous, overbearing bastard. He concentrated hard, trying to sense whether anyone was home, unable to stop himself. The compulsion to see her was overwhelming, just one more glimpse, maybe just to watch her face while she slept. His fists clenched again in frustration: he could feel himself taking on more and more of Angel's woebegone habits. He sensed someone alone in the third floor apartment and decided to take his chances, circling round to the back of the building to find a way up.

Dawn woke suddenly, unsure what had interrupted her dreams of being adored by the latest boy band, but reached under her pillow for the long dagger she kept there. She'd been training with Buffy again even though they were under the Immortal's protection in Rome, because you just never knew what was coming next. She reached out with her senses, trying to find out what had disturbed her rest and knew there was someone in her room.

"Buffy?" She whispered, hoping her sister was just watching over her. A low chuckle she'd never thought to hear again rewarded her.

"Not quite, pet."

Dawn's heart thudded painfully. Spike was dead. She knew he was, Buffy had told her everything that happened, and when the Hellmouth collapsed dragging Sunnydale with it, she knew he'd been buried along with everything else she'd once held dear. Keeping a firm grip on the knife in her hand, she cleared her throat.

"Spike? Are..are you a ghost? Have the Powers sent you? Oh my god, you're the First again, aren't you?" Dawn's voice and breathing elevated to dangerous levels as her mind raced. The First, in Rome, in her room. And Buffy was out somewhere and she was all on her own....The light suddenly came on and she was startled, blinking, forced to raise an arm to shield her eyes. In the next second the knife dropped to the floor and she threw herself across the room, engulfing the solemn looking vampire in a huge bear hug.

Spike tried to brace himself as he caught the girl, who'd certainly grown even taller since he'd seen her last. His arms went to her shoulders and patted them awkwardly. He heard Dawn's frantically beating heart and her mumbled words, "Ohmigod it's you it's really you!" His arms curved round her a little more and he gingerly returned the hug, feeling shudders rippling through her slight frame.

"You bastard!" He was unprepared for the slap that connected with his cheekbone, rocking his head back. Dawn had jumped back from him, tears streaming down her face, a look of anguish filling her eyes.

"Ow! Bloody hell, what's that for?" He shouted, lifting his hand to his bruised jaw. He noticed that Dawn was packing quite a punch these days.

"Where have you been? I thought you were dead! I've spent months crying about you, missing you, knowing I didn't get to say goodbye! And now you just turn up?"

"Calm down, Bit, it's a long story. And yeah, I was dead...for a while. Listen, just sit down and I can tell you, right?"

"How do I know it's you, huh? You could just be some trick..." Dawn squeaked as Spike's hand covered her mouth. His skin was cool to the touch as it always had been, and he smelled of leather, nicotine and just, well, Spike. She reached up and poked him in the ribs with one finger, causing him to twitch and shy away. Hmm. Still ticklish in the same spot then.

"Oi! That's not fair!" He exclaimed, and began tickling her until she was breathless and hoarse from shrieking.

"Okay, okay!" She panted. "I believe it's you! But you still haven't answered my question about where you've been," she pointed out, eyes narrowing.

Spike sat back and lounged on the end of her bed. "Not sure this is really a good bedtime story, but you did ask for it."

When he got to the part about the insane Slayer in LA, he glossed over his personal torment by the deranged bint, and just mentioned how he and Angel had found the girl and were going to look after her when Andrew had turned up.

"What do you mean, Andrew turned up?" Dawn asked him sharply.

"Just that, Bit. Andrew turned up with a squad of slayerettes just as Angel and I had found the girl at the docks, and he gave us a tongue lashing and took her away," Spike explained, wondering what he'd said wrong. Dawn threw her pillow across the room as she got up, shouting.

"I don't believe that guy!" She spun round, trapping his blue eyes in a steely gaze. "He's known all this time that you were alive and didn't say one word! Not one word to me or to" she broke off. "I am so gonna kick his ass," she muttered.

Spike looked down, unsure how to take that bit of news. He'd figured Andrew would have reported everything to the Slayer, filled in all the little details, regardless of the brief chat they’d had. But here was the nibblet saying that she didn't know, that Buffy didn't know....He shook his head. There was no way Buffy wouldn't know he was alive. The Immortal knew, and he'd....Oh no, the Immortal wouldn't say one word, would he? That would give the Slayer options, something else to think about, maybe spoil the git's plans.

Dawn sat down closer to Spike and reached her hand out to rest on his arm.

"We're going to have to tell Buffy, Spike. I just, I mean....I'm not sure how she's going to take it."

A/N A massive thank you to Dia for a wonderful job of beta-ing on short notice. Her work makes this fic better.

Disclaimer: I own nothing the characters and all IP rights belong to Joss and The Powers That Be. I'm just having fun :)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Two

"Heya Dawnie, how was school? Still enjoying it?" Buffy was smiling as her younger sister  entered the apartment. Dawn grinned back.

"Yeah, it's still weird doing math in Italian, but I don't think the language is what makes  calculus incomprehensible."

"Still up for our training date tonight?" The older Summers loved the fact that she could  share her Slayer side with Dawn, something that had only been made possible by Willow's  spell. With so many other Slayers out there, she had finally been able to relax; the sole  responsibility for keeping the forces of darkness at bay was a burden she had happily  relinquished.

"Oh yeah. I've been practicing, I am so gonna trash you," Dawn teased.

"Sounds like you've been dreaming, not practicing," Buffy retorted dryly.

Dawn took a deep breath. She and Spike had been trying to figure out a way for Buffy to meet  him, and now was the time put their plan in action.

"How about we do a run through Cimitero Protestante? Maybe some of the catacombs? It's been  a while since we did any field practice, and I saw in the paper that there've been quite a  few burials there recently," Dawn knew she was talking too quickly, in imminent danger of  babbling but she was riding a nervous high.

"Hmmm, well you know that there's not much point given the Immortal takes care of that sort  of thing, but I guess it couldn't hurt. If nothing else, I can pretend to be a big nasty  monster for you to take care of," Buffy smiled indulgently. Dawn jumped up and down  inwardly. So far, so good.

"Cool! Just let me go change and we can warm up." The tall teenager ran to her room,  slamming the door and grabbing her cell phone. Diving into the closet and closing the door  behind her, she flicked through her phone's address book and pushed the button to call  Spike.

"Hullo?" the grumpy British voice sounded husky.

"Spike, it's me. I woke you up didn't I?"

"Umm, yeah, Bit, but it doesn't matter. What's up?"

"I've managed to talk Buffy into taking me out on patrol tonight. Can you get to the  Cimitero Protestante? We'll swing through there at some point. There should be enough cover  for you to lurk, and umm, well, it's kinda pretty," Dawn finished lamely, hating the fact  that she was no good at this romantic stuff. 

In his hotel room, Spike was already on his feet, running a hand through his tousled blonde  hair.

"Uh, sure, Nibblet. I'll find it. Address?" He grabbed the complimentary stationery and a  pen, scribbling while Dawn rattled the location off.

"Umm, Spike?"

"Yeah, Bit?"

"Don't wear your jacket. Just wear a t-shirt, and umm, maybe a red shirt. Maybe some cologne  too."

Spike's eyebrows drew together. The Bit was giving him instructions on how to dress for  Buffy? Bloody bossy Summers women!

"Yeah, right. I'd best get going if we're meeting up later, alright?"

"Sure thing. Ciao!"

Dawn rang off before risking discovery, her heart thumping. She couldn't shake the nerves  that accompanied her excitement at reuniting Buffy and Spike. Her sister had been a mess for  months after the battle with the First, often letting Dawn sleep in her bed as they  comforted each other in their grief. Even though Buffy was dating the Immortal, Dawn knew  her older sister was holding him at arms length, unwilling to let yet another man in and  risk him causing her heartache. Dawn wasn't sure how involved Buffy was with the Immortal,  and like she was going to ask. Nope, she didn't really want to hear about her  sister's sex life, thank you very much. Sisterly closeness only went so far.

A couple of hours later the pair had wandered out into the warm Italian night. Dawn had  bitten her tongue to restrain from suggesting an outfit and maybe some more make-up to Buffy  - that would so totally get her suspicious. She snuck a look at her sister, the legendary  Slayer. Her golden hair was down, back to the shoulder length that Spike had preferred, and  she was wearing brown leather pants teamed with a cream wraparound top that set her tan off  wonderfully. Okay, her sister was always going to look gorgeous. Dawn sighed. Why  hadn't she gotten the blonde hair and the tan genes? Those monks had so much to answer for  if she ever ran into them.

The girls made their way to the nearest entrance to the  catacombs. Dawn shrugged off the brief sense of unease she felt upon descending the steps  and feeling the earth close around her. Ever since she'd been underground with Buffy when  Willow had lost control of her magic, confined spaces had felt uncomfortable. However, she  figured it must be worse for Buffy so saying anything just seemed selfish and pathetic.  Resolutely, the brunette suppressed her shiver and took point, leading the way through the  underground tombs.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Spike pulled out another cigarette and crumpled the now empty pack in his fist. His nerves  were on a knife-edge as he hid behind a mausoleum waiting for Dawn to turn up with big sis  in tow. How in hell did he let himself get talked into this? He still had no idea what he  was going to say to Buffy when he did see her - assuming of course that he didn't turn into  his usual idiot self at the sight of her and say something stupid.

After an hour or so, his  senses tingled, warning him of the approach of something supernatural, Bracing himself,  Spike peered around the corner of the granite edifice, hoping for a glimpse of his golden  goddess. For a long moment, he couldn't see anything, until he unleashed his demon to  enhance his vision. Across the cemetery he saw a flicker of movement, and a moment later he  felt a brief rumbling of the earth. What the bloody hell was going on? Stealthily he moved  closer to the new arrivals, senses wide open to catch any clues. He caught one scent that  caused him to suppress a growl. The Immortal. Now what could he be doing creeping  around graveyards? Voices, too low for him to make out, drifted though the still night air.  He inched ever closer, intrigued.

"I still require three. Carlinian, Harendil and Aurelian. I need them within the next two  weeks. I don't care what you have to do or how much it costs," The Immortal was telling an  unseen companion.

Spike's ears pricked up. Aurelian? What did the Immortal want with the  line of Aurelius? The other party replied in a murmur, and the earth rumbled again. Spike  caught the faintest whiff of ozone, a sure sign that a dimensional portal had been opened.  He didn't like this. The blond vampire carefully watched as his rival strode from the  cemetery and chewed his lower lip thoughtfully, half tempted to follow and investigate  further. But Buffy intruded into his considerations. No, plenty of time to find out what the  eternal wanker was up to. He had one thought on his mind tonight, and she'd waited long  enough.

"That was really good, Dawnie," Buffy praised her sibling, who smiled, panting.

"When did this place start attracting Jo'hirg demons?" Dawn asked, wiping her hands on her  pants. They were definitely going to the dry cleaners first thing tomorrow.

"I have no idea. Seems a bit weird since the Immortal keeps track of everything in Rome.  Wonder how he missed it? Not that I'm sorry, I was starting to feel a bit redundant what  with all the quiet on the evil front," Buffy admitted. "Come on, let's do that lap of the  Garden of Peace and we can go home so you can shower."

Dawn nodded agreement, butterflies  leaping in her belly. She crossed her fingers as they emerged in one of the small cobbled  streets near where she'd told Spike to meet them.

'I hope this is gonna be alright. God, I hope Buffy doesn't stake him by accident!' Dawn  hurried to catch up with her sister.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Spike felt her approach as tendrils running up his spine. She was here. He felt the panic  overtake him. He couldn't do this, couldn't look into her eyes and see his hopes and dreams  crushed by her unconcern, or even worse, her discomfort. She may have told him at the last  that she loved him, said the words he'd been longing to hear ever since he'd confessed his  love to her. Part of him was still convinced that it was only the knowledge that he was  sacrificing everything that had made her say it. That she'd felt obligated to give him  something to make it worthwhile. He didn't want to gaze into her clear hazel eyes and see  the burden of that obligation. Maybe this hadn't been a good idea. She was close now,  though, and he couldn't resist taking the opportunity to see her. She didn't have to see  him.

'Now you really are starting to sound like Peaches,' he mocked himself. It was the spur he  needed to push him into action, and he had a wicked idea. Doubling round behind the two  young women, he began to stalk them.

Dawn looked around, wondering just where the blond vampire had hidden. Was he still there?  Had he gotten tired of waiting and just left? Uncertainty slowed her steps and Buffy looked  back.

"What's wrong, Dawn? You see something?"

Dawn shook her head, and Buffy stilled to reach out  with her Slayer sense to discover what her sister might have picked up. There it was.  Vampire. Motioning to Dawn to stay where she was, the Slayer hunkered down behind a  headstone and began to move towards the threat, focussing on the presence she'd identified.  There. Not a hundred yards away, behind that raised tomb. Inhaling, she sprang onto the  stone, stake raised and on the downstroke when a strong hand caught her wrist and held her  arm immobile. Buffy twisted in an attempt to kick the creature holding her when a second arm  caught her round the waist and turned her. Now at her back, the vampire pulled her in close,  preparing for the killing stroke.

Spike could hardly contain his elation at holding Buffy in his arms again. God, it had been  too long. Too long since he'd felt her powerful little frame against his. Too long since  he'd been able to breathe in her fragrance and revel in the knowledge that she was his. His  body's reaction was instant, and Buffy felt it. She went completely still for just a moment,  then started to struggle harder as his erection pressed into her lower back.

"It's not a stake in my pocket, love, I'm just pleased to see you," he murmured into her  ear.