Revenge For Love

By Tasha

- (1) The Stage Is Set
Chapter Summary: Angelus makes his way back to the mansion during "I Only Have Eyes For You" where the ghosts of old tragic lovers possessed him and Buffy.  Angelus is furious at being made to feel "love" for the Slayer again.  He heads out with Dru for a "vile kill" and comes across the Slayer who seems to be lost in thought.  In his rage he drains most of her blood and leaves her to die.  This is not the end of our heroine as Spike, who can now walk (unknown by Angelus and Dru), sees the fall of the Slayer.  What will he do?  Will he let her die?  Or will he give her a new life to help him get revenge on his Sire?

***Warning: There is blood play involved in a lot of this story, including claiming and feeding for vampires.  There are also many sexual situations and innuendos, as well as the violence of revenge on some characters and some language.  Please read with caution if any of these things freak you out.***

Author's Note: Quotations for the beginning of this chapter are taken directly from the episode "I Only Have Eyes For You".

Disclaimer: All characters originally created by Joss Wheadon and Mutant Enemy belong to them by all rights.  I just sneak them out of the vaults to play with them whenever I can.  I do not make any money off of this.  I have only the satisfaction that others enjoy the creativity and storylines that I come up with for our heroes, heroines, and villains.

'Single' quote marks surround thoughts in this story.  "Regular" quotes are around spoken words.

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Giles paced behind the library's check out counter.  He looked over at the door to his office.  His attention was drawn back to the main doors when the trio walked in.  Willow, Xander and Cordelia strolled through the doors.  They chatted back and forth amongst themselves, holding their flashlights.

Willow looked up at Giles.  "Everything seems normal.  Not a snake, not a wasp."  She stopped at the counter.

Cordelia walked alongside Xander.  "Yep.  School can open again tomorrow."

Xander settled himself between Willow and Cordelia.  The sarcasm of his tone was not disguised in the least.  "Explain to me again how that's a good thing?"

Cordelia rolled her eyes and sighed.  "I'm drawing a blank."  Giles spoke not a word.  He simply looked away from the teens to head back into his office.  Cordy jerked her head back slightly perplexed.  It was unlike Giles not to have something to say about everything.

Giles slowly walked over the threshold of his office.  His face was a mask of concern for his charge.  'What she must have gone through to have to kiss Angel and then lose him again.'  Although he knew Buffy had to kill Angelus, he was not insensitive enough to not feel some of the pain that she must be feeling.  He only recently lost Jenny to Angelus' revenge.  He knew the pain of love lost quite well.  "Are you feeling any better?"

"James picked me."  Buffy didn't even look up from her perch on the small lounge.  "I guess ... I guess I was the one he could relate to."  She twisted her hands together.  "He was so sad."

Giles was at a loss of what to say.  What did you tell a young girl who had her first love ripped away from her again and was forced to feel through the pain and love of another couple as well.  He strode over to a chair nearby Buffy and sat down.  "Well, they can both rest now."  He hoped that it would bring her some small comfort that at least two lovers were now at peace together, even if it wasn't her.

"I still ..."  Buffy choked on the words she wanted to say.  "Part of me just doesn't understand why she would forgive him."  She looked up at Giles for guidance.

Giles looked away before he looked back at Buffy.  "Does it matter?"  Love was always something that conflicted him.

"No."  Buffy sighed.  "I guess not."  Giles smiled warmly.

"I need to go do something."  Buffy stood up slowly.  She folded the blanket that had been covering her.  She handed it over to Giles.  "Maybe if I do a little patrolling I can get this off my mind enough to go home."  She rested her hand on Giles' shoulder.  "Thank you, Giles.  For everything."

Giles nodded at Buffy.  He wasn't sure just how wise it was for Buffy to go out patrolling in her current emotional state, but he knew that she was a person who needed to act, not sit around to deal with her problems.  He could only hope she would be safe.

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Angelus rubbed his face vigorously under the water of the outdoor fountain.  He splashed himself several times as if that would take the scent of Buffy out of his senses.  He huffed, growled and scrubbed harder.

Spike sat in his wheelchair with his hands touching in a triangle shape of contemplation watching with an inner delight.  "You might want to let up."  Anything that annoyed Angelus that much made him a happy man.  The man was too big for his own britches.  It was nice to see him so infuriated.  "They say when you've drawn blood, you've exfoliated."

"What do you know about it?"  Dru started to walk towards Angelus as he ranted.  "I'm the one that was freakin' violated."  He threw his old shirt at the ground and walked across the garden.  "You didn't have this thing in you."

"What was it?"  Dru inquired.  She rubbed some of the trickling water between her fingertips seeking the answers to her questions.  "A demon?"

"Love!"  Angelus ground out in disgust.  He slapped a folded shirt against his leg to open it up. 

"Poor Angel."  Dru's voice was soft and delicate.  It belayed the evil that was within her.  She brought her water-coated fingertips to her mouth and licked them clean.

Angelus finished putting his shirt on.  He left it open when he walked back over to Dru.  He was frustrated and ticked off beyond belief.  "Let's go."  He'd been under the "control" of his soul for so long that he swore nothing would rule him again.  The ghosts of the lover's took his control and will from him.  It was not something he could stomach right now.  "I need a real vile kill before sunup to wipe this crap out of my system."

Dru sauntered over to Angelus.  Spike turned his wheelchair to face his Sire and his former lover, Dru.  He sucked in his cheeks in anger when they both snarled at each other.  'How long are they going to flaunt their little tryst in front of me?  It's sickening.'

"Of course.  We'll find you a nice toddler."  Dru clucked her tongue against her teeth and pressed her body into Angelus'.  Angelus looked like a panther on the prowl.  He nipped the air in front of Dru with a growl and headed towards the stairs.

Dru turned to Spike before she followed Angelus.  She always knew that he was there, but her love for her "daddy" was first and foremost on her mind.  She figured that Spike would always be there for her when she needed him.  When the "Scourge of Europe" were together all she had to do was send him little bread crumbs from time to time, and he would remain most devoted to her.  She decided to toss him the crumbs again to make him feel as if she was still interested in him.  "Want to come, pet?"  Angelus could be temperamental, and she did so like a "warm" bed to sleep in.

Spike blinked to avoid rolling his eyes at Dru.  He knew what she was up to.  He hadn't lived for nearly 200 years around her without knowing the little games that she played.  So often he followed her along like a lost puppy, but not this time.  He was fed up with her and her "daddy".  Angelus was his Sire as well, but there was no way he was going to hang all over the poofter like she did.  He was saved from having to answer by Angelus' return in-between Dru and Spike.

"No can do, Dru."  Angelus waggled a finger at Dru.  He spared a quick glance at Spike, but nothing more.  "I'm sure he'd be hell on wheels, but we don't have much time."  He turned back to fully face Spike.  He missed the little pout on Dru's face, but he wouldn't have cared if he'd seen it either.  "Gotta travel light."

Spike glared at his Sire with disgust.  Being patronized was worse than feeling helpless.  Angelus rubbed the salt in the wound further.  He rested a hand on each of Spike's shoulders.  "Sorry."  He nearly whispered to cover some of the disdain in his voice.  He couldn't care less if Spike knew how much he still hated him, but he wasn't going to give Dru any reason to sympathize with Spike.  "Try to have fun without me."  He patted Spike's shoulders and pushed back away from him.

As Angelus hurriedly walked up the stairs, Dru skittered after him.  Not even a moment's thought was given to Spike still sitting at the bottom of the stairs in his wheelchair with nothing to eat.

Spike smirked darkly like he had a precious secret to reveal.  "Oh, I will."  His eyes twinkled in mischief.  He moved one foot off the footrest and placed it on the ground.  With sureness and strength he stood up to his full height.  He kicked the wheelchair away from him and slashed his hands through the air in a fighting stance.  He was sick of this garbage.  Angelus would find out just how dangerous Spike could be.  "Sooner than you think."  He glared at the stairs, darkness covering half of his features.  He would have his revenge soon enough, and this time neither Dru nor Angelus would be able to soften his heart enough to save themselves.  Angelus dusted Darla, his Sire.  Spike was going to find a way to make sure that Angelus met the same fate.

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Angelus tromped through the cemetery.  There was nothing quiet about his hunt tonight.  He wanted some violence and whatever got in his way was going to pay.  He drained the first humans he passed in mere seconds, discarding their bodies amongst the bushes.  He needed to find the best way to make every single one of Buffy's friends pay for every emotion he was ever forced to feel during his ensoulment.  He would think of something particularly special to finish Buffy off with after all of her friend's died.  That was if he could resist twisting her neck off the next time he saw her.  Which would seem to be, now.

Buffy sat on top of the Trevors tombstone.  She twisted the edge of her shirt.  She was so lost in thought that she missed Angelus and Dru coming her way.  She was dreaming of the past, the nights she'd spent in Angel's arms.  She remembered the times they'd talked all night while they patrolled.  The softness of his kisses haunted her almost as much as the remembered touch from the night they made love.  Nothing was right anymore.  Jenny Calendar was dead, Giles was going crazy, and all of her friends & family were in danger.

Dru purred with delight.  "Sweet little princess, ready for her prince."  She twirled around Angelus.  "Can we take her home, Daddy?  She'll make a nice pet."

Angelus growled low in his throat.  "I will not keep anything of her."  He snarled at Dru.  He pushed her harshly down to the ground.  "She is everything I detest!"  He rushed at Buffy, knocking her off the tombstone to the ground.  He landed on top of her.

Buffy shrieked.  "AHH!!"  She hit the ground hard.  She tried to roll away, but Angelus had a tight grip on her arms.  She pressed her foot into the ground and pushed back to knock Angelus off balance.

"Bitch!"  Angelus howled.  The back of some ribs snapped when he hit the tombstone that he'd knocked Buffy off of.  He vamped out to scratch his sharpened nails at Buffy.  He sliced several marks down her arms, tearing her shirt.

Slayer blood permeated the air.  Spike watched the battle from behind a nearby mausoleum.  He was strong enough to stand and walk, but he wasn't quite ready to fight yet especially not with Angelus' current state of anger.  The lure of the Slayer's blood almost made him leave his hiding place, but he forced himself to remain still.  It wouldn't do to make Dru aware of his presence.

Buffy bounced back up on her feet now that Angelus had let go.  She twirled around to face him with a swinging jump kick to his face.  "What's the matter, Angel ... can't take me in a fair fight?  You have to hit me from behind?"  She was mad.  Not only did the face of the man she love now belong to a killer, but she continued to fight with the feelings of love for him even though she knew he was just a demon now.

"I can take you any day, lover."  Angelus punched with his right hand then slammed up at her chin with his left.  "You are the one that's off her game."  He ducked to the side away from Buffy's next punch and leveled her to the ground with a foot to her chest.

"Don't call me that."  Buffy gasped and gulped trying to catch her breath.  The wind was knocked out of her as soon as she hit the ground.  She tried to stand up, but Angelus was right there with a foot at her throat.  "Angel please."  She managed to choke out.  "There has to be some part of you that still loves me."

Angelus sucked in a deep breath of air that he let out in a loud and vicious howl.  He grabbed Buffy by the shoulders so hard that she practically flew through the air against his chest.  He pinned her arms behind her back.  "There is NOTHING in me that still loves you, Slayer.  Nothing!"  He buried his face into Buffy's neck, licking up the trail of her jugular.

Buffy quivered in Angelus' embrace.  She tried to twist herself out of his grip, but it was no use.  The extra anger and hatred from the events of earlier in the night had fueled him to an even more powerful state than before.  She slumped against him in resignation.

"You'll go to your maker with the face of your lover burned into your mind as the means of your death."  Angelus twirled Buffy around to face him with her arms still pinned behind her back.  He looked up into Buffy's eyes with an evil glint of pleasure and satisfaction in them.

"Angel no!"  Dru jumped up from the ground.  She regained her senses only to see Angelus holding the Slayer in his arms.

"Don't worry, Dru.  My soul isn't back."  Angelus tossed his words over his shoulder without ever breaking his gaze with Buffy.  "This bitch is finally going to die."

Dru pulled on Angelus' shoulder.  "You can't, Daddy."  She pleaded with him while the pixies flew about her insane mind.  "If you try to kill her, she will be stronger than before."

"That's nonsense, Dru."  Angelus loved the luscious creature he created, but sometimes her visions nearly drove him insane.  He pushed Dru back with one arm while his fangs pierced Buffy's neck.  He pulled strongly on her blood.  He wanted to drain her, but he decided to leave her with just a little bit left.  He hoped that her Watcher or her friends would find her only to watch her die.  That thought delighted him to no end.

Dru screeched.  "No!  Angel!!  No!!"  She ran off back towards the mansion screaming into the night.

Angelus broke away from Buffy's neck.  His fangs ripped their way across her skin on the way out.  He took no care to heal the marks.  He wanted her to suffer with every last breath she took.  He tossed her body to the side.  It flew towards the mausoleum.  He followed the path that Dru took back to the mansion.  He knew that he had some "comforting" to do to his Childe.  It wouldn't do to have her too upset to perform for the evening.

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Spike listened to the wavering heartbeat of the Slayer.  He could tell that she didn't have that much time before her heart would cease to beat.  When he was sure that the coast was clear, he walked steadily to Buffy's body.

Buffy fought for each breath of the air she needed to live.  So many regrets crossed her mind.  What were the last words she said to her mother?  Had she told her friends how much she cared about them?  She always knew that the Slayer came with an expiration date, but she hoped that she could beat the odds for once.

Spike knelt down and lifted Buffy's head into his lap.  He looked down at the Slayer.  She looked so frail, so helpless.  This was not the Buffy Summers that he'd fought so many times, watched the vitality of her dance, and the one whose fire in her eyes always seemed to stir something deep inside him.  This was not right.  The Slayer shouldn't go out like this.  She'd hardly had a chance to fight properly.  Her spark was gone, as if something ripped out the heart of the Slayer.  He eyes trailed the path that Angelus had taken.  'I guess something did rip her heart out, pillock.'

Buffy stirred in Spike's arms.  She weakly pulled herself up further into his lap.  Darkness was encroaching around her.  Her eyes flickered open to the sight of platinum blonde hair against the background of a dark night.  'He's such a contradiction.  He's both light and darkness at once.'  She thought absentmindedly.  "Spike?"

Without his vampiric hearing, Spike never would have heard Buffy's whispers.  He situated her further into his lap.  "Slayer?"

"Spike?"  Buffy gripped his arm as tightly as she could.  Each breath was a battle not to make it her last.  "Tell them I'm sorry."  She closed her eyes.  She knew not why she gave him any message to give to her friends and family.  Somehow she knew he would deliver it if he could.

"Oh no you don't, Slayer."  Spike pulled Buffy tightly to his chest.  "I've got you, Buffy.  You're not going to end this way, not because of that wanker."  He turned Buffy's neck to the side.  "You have to keep fighting."

Buffy shook her head back and forth.  She was so tired.  It was time for the end.  It was time for her to rest.

"Buffy, you need this."  Spike placed his lips against the lightly bleeding puncture holes in her neck.  He licked them to seal them.  She had to do this willingly.  If she wouldn't' accept his blood, there would be no chance of reviving her.  The more willingly she followed, the tighter their bond.

"All gone."  Buffy moaned.  "All love is gone."

"No it isn't, pet."  Spike leaned down to the untouched side of her neck.  He would not put his teeth anywhere near Angelus' marks.  He knew that his mark would eradicate Angel's automatically, but he still didn't want any memories of Angelus' mark near his own.  "I promise that I will care for you.  I will love you, Childe.  I promise you that with all that I am."

Buffy twitched when Spike's fangs entered her neck.  She shook slightly as a different sense of pleasure and pain coursed through her body.  Angelus' bite had been fierce and unrelenting, cruel and vicious.  This bite, even with the small amounts of blood that Spike was slowly taking, seemed to be more potent.  It was as if he was carefully siphoning out something that he held precious and treasured.  Flashes of light bounced behind her eyelids while her heart slowed.

Spike took as little as possible with each pull, but it had to be enough to eradicate any claim that Angelus might try to have on Buffy once she'd risen.  If he took the blood too fast, she'd be too weak to drink, and her heart would stop beating too soon.  Bringing someone across was a tricky business.  The steps were different depending on if you wanted a Childe, a minion, or a strong Childe.

With the last necessary drop of blood had been pulled Spike bit through both his and Buffy's wrists in a fairly straight but jagged line.  He wrapped his hand in hers allowing their wrist wounds to mingle their blood.  He clawed his neck to open a free flowing wound.  He brought Buffy up to his neck.  He massaged her neck with his free hand after securing her position with his arm around her to encourage her to drink.  "Come on, pet.  You have to drink."

Too many seconds were passing without Buffy swallowing the "life" giving fluid.  "Slayers are different.  You won't be like a regular vampire, luv."  Spike tried to coax her with words in any way that he could.  He forced her lips harder against his neck.  "You'll be purer than others."  The blood filled her mouth and started to trickle down the back of her throat.  He continued to massage her throat in a swallowing motion.

"I'll protect you, keep you safe."  Spike never made a Childe before, but he wanted this with every part of his being.  Something within him called out to the Slayer from the first moment he saw her at the Bronze.  He passed it off for the lust of the kill for so long that he didn't want to believe it could be for any other reason until now.  This wasn't a lust for her death.  This was a passion for her life.

"Buffy now!"  Spike's voice growled more forcefully.  His demon sought something from deep within the Slayer that it needed.  The last traces of his humanity called out to the woman that she was. 

The sun would be up soon, and they needed to hide soon.  Spike quickly wrapped their joined wrists together to secure them.  Although that exchange of blood did nothing to turn her, it helped to bind the two of them together ... sharing in the flow within and without.

Buffy felt the reverberations of Spike's growl.  She murmured his name, and some of the blood slipped down her throat.  It tasted so sweet.  Yet there was something else that underlined that sweetness ... power ... He tasted of power, strength and something else that she couldn't put her finger on.  The allure was passionate, and it stirred a need from deep within her soul.  Strangely the Slayer part of her called out to Spike's blood instead of refusing it.  It was her human side, her fears, which fought to keep from drinking.

As Buffy's heart neared its last beat, the Slayer demon within her took over in a fight to sustain itself.  It forced her lips to seal on the wounds Spike created on his neck and to suckle the "life" giving force he offered.

Spike breathed a sigh of relief when he felt a more active pull of his blood into Buffy's mouth.  He closed his eyes as a wave of emotions, thoughts, and memories passed between them.  He saw her life, her fears, her joys, her disappointments and her dreams.

Buffy could see what Spike was, what he is, and what he could be.  She saw the fire that burned deep within him, and she faintly caught a glimpse of a warmth that was so buried she almost missed it completely.  'What was that?'  It was the last thought on her mind as she drifted into unconsciousness, her lips automatically pulling the blood into her body.

Spike allowed her to feed for much longer than was necessary.  He wanted her to be strong, not mindless.  She would need every ounce of strength if she were to defeat Angelus.  Sire's blood was almost as potent as Slayer blood.  He just hoped that all he'd read and known of past Slayers was true.  If not, Buffy would more than likely side with Angelus and his evil desires instead of battling him.

Buffy collapsed fully in Spike's arms.  Her lips detached from his neck, and her body began it's battle to step into the beyond or remain on Earth.  Her soul fought within her.  Would it step into the ether or would it remain?  What was Spike's demon calling for?

From the power that Buffy took her last gulp of blood, Spike knew which path she would take.  "Come back to me, my love."  She would return to him, and she would be his ... and this time NO ONE was breaking the bond that was created.  "Come back to me."

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(To Be Continued)

Revenge For Love - (2) Repeating History
By Tasha

Chapter Summary: Spike watched as Angelus nearly drained Buffy dry in the cemetery.  He waited until the coast was clear before he went to the Slayer.  More than just one thought nagged in the back of his mind about Buffy dying.  He finished the draining and offered her his blood to turn her.  Now he has to find a safe place for them once she awakens.  What would make Spike think that Buffy won't just kill him?  What makes him think that Buffy will want revenge on Angelus and not want to join him in his evil?  Why did he really want to turn her in the first place?

Author's Note: The history that I have made up is not based on anything we've seen in the show.  It is made up from various lore pieces that I've read and my own active imagination.  This is one way that I see things can be at least for this story.  All characters not a part of the BtVS universe were created by me.

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With only moments to spare, Spike carried Buffy into his room at the mansion.  He carefully laid the "sleeping" Slayer down onto his bed.  He walked over to the bathroom attached to his room to retrieve a washbasin and cloth.  Being a vampire he didn't need the bathroom for taking care of waste, but he did enjoy a nice hot soak in the bathtub or an invigorating shower.  It was one of the luxuries he allowed himself from his human days.

Spike brushed Buffy's long hair away from her face.  Even in death she looked like an angel to him; so peaceful and glowing.  He dabbed the washcloth into the warm water.  After making sure it was wrung out he swiped the cloth over the various scratches and dirt blotches on her skin. 

Slayer healing, along with her vampiric healing, would take care of the wounds, but he didn't want to chance any infections.  The time between human and vampire was a tedious and tense one.  The body was changing, and any abnormalities present in death could affect the amount of growth and strength in their new life.  Regular human diseases didn't affect vampires once their turning was complete, but he wasn't taking any chances on Buffy's overall being.

'Why are you being so careful with her, mate?  She's the Slayer for pity's sake.  She's a means to an end.'  Spike's demon argued against the gentleness that Spike himself was bestowing on the Slayer.

'She deserved better than what she got.  Angelus is a right bastard that took advantage of her.'  His inner reason argued back.  'She's too beautiful to die just yet.'  He trailed a fingertip down Buffy's brow and along her cheek to her jaw.  He always found Buffy to be one of the most sensual women he'd ever met.  The way she fought was poetry and passion in motion.  She fought with a flair that the other Slayers he battled couldn't have touched upon.  Her style was her own, it wasn't trained solely in Council techniques, and it was one of the things that made her such a worthy opponent.

'We did only turn her for revenge on Angelus, right?'  Spike's inner demon did not like the way the rest of Spike's thoughts were turning.  'Once the poofter is taken care of we'll have our Dark Princess back.'

Spike's inner reason was normally the more sedate of the two sides that made him whole.  Just hearing Dru's name infuriated his other half though.  'We are not taking that bitch back even if she begs us this time.'

The demon was confounded.  The other half was usually the more romantic and sappy one of the two.  For him to be so adamant about refusing Dru was nothing he expected.

'I do not want to look at her anymore, let alone let her touch us.  She used us for the last 80 years just to get back to her Daddy.'  The tumult of emotions within put its foot down firmly.  'We may be love's bitch, but the time has come for us to find another woman more worthy of us.'

Golden eyes forced their way to the forefront of Spike's visage.  Spike tilted his head to the side admiring the curves of the Slayer, even with her clothing on.  'I suppose we could do worse.  I always did find her one very hot babe.  She's shaggable.  Besides, she won't be able to refuse me since I'm her Sire.'

'No!'  Spike's inner humanity forced the demon back.  'She accepted our blood, but we will not force ourselves on her.  We'll see how she is when she wakes up before we know if she wishes to remain in our bed.'

'If you think I'm letting this hot, nearly virgin, piece of flesh out of my sight without touching and tasting her, you're crazier than Dru.' 

'I'm sure we can reason with her.'  His inner humanity countered.  'Surely you felt the emotions as she fought to decide to take our blood or not.'

'It felt like an almost supernatural force ripped through us when she finally drank from our wrist.  That doesn't mean I'm letting her tell me no.  I've had enough of no from Dru.'  The demon argued vehemently.

Spike snarled.  He held his hands over his ears.  This arguing within himself was giving him a headache.  'You will both work together or I'll just do whatever the hell strikes my fancy at the time and damn the consequences.'  He sat on the side of the bed, panting.  If only people realized how hard it was to live with yourself as a vampire when so much of your previous humanity remained.  That was one reason why vampires usually ignored such things.  They forced their humanity away and focused on the primal influences.

Spike finished preparing Buffy for bed.  He needed to get her out of the bloodied and dirty clothes, but her size made it difficult for him to find anything that would fit her.  He opted for clothing her in one of his t-shirts.  It looked more like a 3/4 nightshirt on her anyways.  When he was finished he pulled back the blankets on the bed, moved her over to the cleared area, and tucked the blankets back around her. 

There would be no crawling out of a grave for his Childe.  He still had nightmares of doing that himself.  Spike reasoned with himself that he turned Buffy because he knew she would more than likely retain her Slayer attitude which would make her want to kill Angelus even more.  He didn't want to face the other reasons he feared her complete death.  Seeing her injured and laying there nearly killed him to witness.  He wasn't prepared to delve into the reasons why it mattered to him.

Spike dumped the basin out in the bathroom.  He was glad again that he moved his bedroom to this corridor.  Spike's room was in an entirely separate wing from Angelus'.  After listening up close to the shag fest between Dru and Angelus the first night, he moved himself into another wing.  It was no easy task to accomplish from the guise of his wheelchair.  Luckily not much remained from the factory for him to move.  That was another disaster that he could blame Angelus for.  If he hadn't played "neck twister" with the Watcher's girlfriend, Giles wouldn't have come to the factory in a rage to kill them all.

With vampiric hearing he was still forced to listen to the more energetic outbursts and growls of the other two vampires.  At least the distance deadened the majority of the noises for him. 

Another reason he picked this room was the little hidden passage he discovered when he first inspected it.  The nearly invisible door led into a passage from his room to outside the mansion off to the left of the garden in the foliage.  He'd used it tonight to stow his wheelchair back in his room before following Angelus and Dru to the cemetery to see what they were up to.  It was also convenient to use when Dru "forgot" to bring him a kill of blood.

Lately the wanker Angelus tormented him by ordering only bagged blood to be left for Spike.  Dru wasn't allowed to bring a kill to him for fear of retribution, and Angelus could come up with some hellacious kinds of torture even to vampires.  Thankfully the blood was of human stock and not pig swill.  The bagged blood was Angelus' way of punishing and demeaning his Childe for the sarcastic comments he made at the factory and continued to make.  It also served as a painful reminder that Spike was supposed to be dependant on Angelus' "good graces" now.  These demonstrations of his Sire's power over him only served to enrage Spike further, demon and man.

Spike looked into the crate of bagged blood at the end of his bed.  One of the minions must have set it there for him.  It was sitting on top of a small table to make it easier for him to reach if he was in his wheelchair.  The minion had to be one that still favored Spike over Angelus.  There were few minions still loyal to Spike.  He needed to figure out whom he could count on.  They'd be needed to help with distractions when the time was right.

Spike was fairly sure that Dalton was among those whom he could trust.  The bookish vampire touched a softer spot in Spike.  Dalton was a genius, but he was a horrible fighter.  He was a smart man but a terrible vampire.  Dalton understood his desire to keep books around in his private collection.  Talking about history, literature, and philosophy with Dalton had been the only thing keeping him sane in those last days before Dru's illness was "cured".  Both knew the need for privacy to keep the ridicule away from them.  It wouldn't do for a Master Vampire to seem too human, especially in Sunnydale.

Dalton would know which of the minions he could trust.  Spike held up one of the blood bags.  He turned it over in his hands using his vampiric eyesight to examine the bag for any small puncture holes.  He wouldn't put it past Angelus to drug the blood.  Content that it was hole free, he moved to the next bag.  It wouldn't do for the Slayer to be poisoned with her first taste of blood.

For once Spike was happy to see the ample supply of bagged blood.  The blood lust for a vampire when first awakened was powerful and gut wrenching.  Many fledglings were killed during their first night of existence because their bloodlust made them even more foolish and careless about their kills.  He wished he had more time to be better prepared for the Slayer's awakening.

He knew not how strong the Slayer's soul would be to start with.  A lot depended on who won the battle of wills at her death.  He counted on her soul being strong and her previous care for others to remain true.  Human traits were known to carry over upon turning.  Usually Sire's weeded out those minions or Childer they deemed to be too "human".  Angelus took delight in beating the human out of William.  Spike learned to hide his true self from his Sire.  He knew what Angelus wanted, and he gave it to him when he had to.  Spike was counting on Buffy's humanity being present.  If it wasn't he would be forced to stake her.  He didn't need another loose canon.

For the umpteenth time this morning, Spike hoped his passion for the written word would pay off.  When his quest to seek out Slayer's to destroy them began, he searched for any lore or knowledge, no matter how obscure, on what a Slayer was like.  There were many rumors about how a Slayer was created or chosen.  There was no way to pinpoint who would be called.  That point always frustrated him.  During his more headstrong days he wanted to fight one Slayer after another.  Unfortunately after the Slayer he killed during the Boxer rebellion, he didn't find another Slayer to confront until 1977.  About the time he finally heard about a Slayer someone else killed her.

Amongst the folk tales, rumors and stories Spike sifted through, he located many interesting tidbits about Slayers.  In a book he stole from a French monastery he read about a Slayer chosen in the 1500's and another one in the 1650's.  Both Slayers died before they were 18 years old, but it was only their first death.  Both Slayers were somehow turned into vampires.  That fact alone was unusual.  Why would a vampire want to turn its worst enemy instead of kill it?  The book was previously protected quite heavily.  So, he figured the information within it was important.

During the 1500's the Slayer's Watcher and other Council members quickly hunted down the German Slayer turned.  Even as they attacked her with holy water and crosses, she refused to fight back.  She tried to tell her Watcher that she had her soul, and meant them no harm, but they all refused to believe her.  Why should they?  It went against everything they knew, right?  She begged with her last word for them to let her live to continue her work.  Her captors used consecrated wooden stakes to nail her to a cross facing east as the sun rose on the next day.

The Council hoped this example would be enough to deter any other vampires from turning a Slayer.  Later, evidence was found to support the former Slayer's claim of a soul.  At the very least she was fighting on the side of good and justice.  Reports were gathered from villagers who had been saved by the Slayer/Vampire from other vampires.  Villagers who were set free by the former Slayer when she found them attested to her care and kindness even when her Sire tried to get by her to attack them.

They Slayer, by all accounts a mere fledgling, managed to stake her Sire two days after awakening as well.  A bond was not formed properly between the two when she was turned because her Sire only turned her as a type of trophy to attest to his victory over the Slayer.  She easily overpowered him in hand-to-hand combat.  This meant the Slayer/Vampire must have been extremely strong and cunning.  She could have easily defended herself to the Council who attacked her. 

Not wanting to admit that they might be wrong about vampires, the Council destroyed any documentation that supported the claim of a soul.  Those in the inner circle were sworn to secrecy, and it was unknown how the information ended up in the monastery's book.

The second Slayer managed to live a couple decades after being turned.  Her turning read more like a fairytale or legend than the horror story of her predecessor.  The French Slayer managed to avert an apocalyptic battle with the help from several members of the same vampire clan. 

The French Slayer's Watcher recorded the history of this clan in great detail both before and after her death.  His writings were the reason that the monks guarded the book.  The book was vowed to remain out of the Council's hands at all cost.  It would seem that the head of the vampire clan managed to survive a revolution whilst his Sire did not.  Therefore a vampire who would have eventually been killed for exhibiting too many human traits lived on.

Feeling more human than demonic, the vampire named Charmand was a bit more selective in his meals and his Childer.  How he managed to survive over 150 years before meeting the Slayer, Antoinette, was anyone's guess.  He was considered a shame among the older clans, but no one that was sent to kill him survived.  After 100 years of trying, the other clans decided it was more prudent to leave the now Master Vampire alone.  They were only making themselves look weaker and more foolish with each defeat.

Whereas most believed the lingering human traits made Charmand weak, its effect was the opposite.  His remaining intellect and personality were a great asset to the vampire.  His plans were more carefully thought out.  His patience and calm saved him from foolishly rushing headlong into many dangerous situations.  Villagers tended to protect his interests by informing him of dangers because he in turn protected them by removing the more evil presences.

Charmand quickly learned that the taste of fear on prey who were inherently evil was much sweeter than those who were pure.  The blood of the pure, if not freely given, left a bitter taste in his mouth and an ache in his undead heart.  He instructed his followers to only feed on the unjust and to protect the just from evil if it were possible.  Those who did not abide by the rule of feeding were hunted down by Charmand personally and killed.

It was under this philosophy that Antoinette and her Watcher, Louis, stumbled upon in the seaside town of Calais.  Newly arrived in the port town, the two were attacked by a small group of "rebel" vampires.  Charmand, who had been tracking these vamps for weeks, rushed into the fray of battle between Antoinette, Louis, and the vampires.

At first Antoinette feared the true leader of this band of vampires was making his appearance.  She felt the power that radiated off the Master Vampire, and she knew he would be harder to defeat.  Her confusion began when Charmand started attacking the vampires themselves instead of her.  She was further astounded when Charmand took the brunt of a sword slice through his abdomen that would have killed her Watcher, whom it was meant for.

Only when the last vampire was dust did Charmand collapse to the ground from weariness and blood loss.  Louis, at a loss as to why a vampire saved his life, felt indebted to tend to Charmand's wounds.  With the help of Antoinette they carried the vampire to their flat on the edge of town.

Over the next week Louis, Antoinette, and Charmand talked while he healed.  Though he found the taste repulsive, he acquiesced to their request of drinking blood from the butcher in their home.  It slowed his healing process down, but it also gave the three of them more time to talk.

Louis found Charmand to be quite intelligent for a man and especially for a vampire.  They spoke on many subjects covering the previous 150 years.  As each day wore on, and Charmand seemed less like a vampire but more like a man, Antoinette found herself opening up to him.  He understood the isolation necessary at times to keep safe.  He seemed to understand the need to kill those of his kind who were evil.  He in turn tried to explain to her and Louis that not all vampires are evil.

When Charmand healed enough from his injuries he returned to his lair.  Antoinette and Louis thought it would be the last they saw of the vampire.  Charmand, or one of his followers, kept an eye on the pair though.  They stepped in to help Antoinette slay if she was in too much danger.  Charmand often requested their assistance when he found out about certain nests of vampires and other demons as well.  A sense of trust blossomed between them all.

Louis left out any mention of Charmand in his diaries to the council.  He started a separate journal where he wrote down his most guarded thoughts.  He knew the Council would never approve of Charmand, even if the vampire was helping them.

Charmand and Antoinette fought side by side for almost a year when a battle of apocalyptic proportions arose.  Many of Charmand's clan fought alongside the slayer and their Master.  The battle was fought bravely and valiantly, but Antoinette could not be fully protected.  It was her job to protect, and she did not shirk from her duties.  Though successful in averting the apocalypse, Antoinette was gravely wounded.

Charmand rushed Antoinette to the home of her Watcher.  He fought his demon's urges to take her right away, feed and turn her.  He couldn't do that to her without Louis approval.  He only hoped Louis would understand.

When Louis heard the knocking at his door, he feared the worst.  Neither his charge nor Charmand had returned in quite some time.  He opened the door to reveal Charmand carrying an unconscious Antoinette in his arms.

"She is so pure and full of light.  I won't let her go like this."  Charmand looked up at Louis from the doorway with tears in his eyes.  Antoinette's body was limp in his arms.  He felt her heart beating slower and slower.  "I know she will not return to us in evil."

Louis watched the pain on the face of Charmand.  There was no doubt in his mind that Charmand loved his charge.  The fact that Charmand even came to his house to "ask his permission" spoke highly of the vampire's respect for their ways.  "You wish to turn her?"

"What else can I do?"  Charmand begged.  "I can not let her die.  She is the light of my night.  The one who brings me joy like no other."

Louis nodded in understanding.  "She could become that which even you have swore to kill."

"If she does, then I will stake her myself."  Charmand vowed.  "I could not bear to live with an evil heart behind my love's face on its body."

"I shall hold you to that, Charmand."  Louis responded.  "Take her to my room.  Once her heart stops, another Slayer will be called."  He led down the hall to his bedroom.  "We must be prepared to leave at a moment's notice if we are discovered."

Charmand nodded.  He laid Antoinette down on the bed.  "I pray love that you will return to me as you are and so much more."  He bent his head to suckle her neck.  He quickly bit down into her jugular with his fangs and supped the last needed amount of her blood into his mouth.  He bit into his wrist, placed it at her mouth, and waited for her to drink.  When she pulled his wrist tighter to her mouth, he finally relaxed.  She accepted his gift.

Antoinette did indeed arise with her soul and goodness intact.  Her caring and attraction to Charmand halted any of the Slayer demon's desires to kill her Sire.  News traveled through the countryside quickly about a turned Slayer.  Louis and Charmand moved too quick for the Council to catch them.  Knowing time would be of the essence; Charmand turned all control of the clan over to his second in command.  He hoped things would continue to be run as he would wish them.

Charmand took Antoinette and Louis to a monastery deep in the heart of France.  He saved some of the monks from traveling "night bandits" a couple decades before.  They were given sanctuary within the monastery walls.  Even the Council didn't dare trespass on the consecrated ground of the church during that time in history.  All three lived there for nearly two decades.

With no outbreaks reported to the Council of violence at the monastery, it was assumed that the Slayer/Vampire had been killed along with her Sire.  The Council couldn't fathom how men of god would stand such an abomination around them otherwise.  Louis was left in the monks' protection, and the focus changed to the newest of the Slayers in Russia.

Charmand and Antoinette ventured back out amongst the clans.  The losses were heavy to their clan over the years.  Many were lost due to attacks from other clans or acts of civil disputes between the vampires.  When Antoinette tried to mediate one such dispute she was caught in the crossfire of an errant sword slash. 

Having been claimed and mated during their time together Charmand felt and saw his mate's death.  He felt her last cry of his name in his mind before he watched her dust fall to the earth.  If only they could have stayed with the clan and not had to hide from the Council.  Maybe the clan wouldn't have become so lost to his ways.

After that Charmand went off on a rampage.  He nearly annihilated the entire clan in his grief and pain.  It was only when the sun rose the next day that the bloodshed ended.  The vampire, lost without his mate, walked out into the sun to become dust himself ... a testament to the love he shared with her.  He could not go on without her.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Spike closed the book.  He practically had the story memorized already, but he read it again just in case he missed something.

"I'll get them to understand somehow, pet."  Spike stroked the back of his hand down Buffy's cheek.  "I won't let them hurt you."  He laid down next to her.  If he was going to be any good to his new Childe, he needed to rest.  All of his walking around tired him out more than he would have thought.  He needed to be strong.

He checked out the room one more time before closing his eyes.  Strong incense burned throughout the room.  He was doing everything he could to mask her scent from prying noses.  A glyph placed on the headboard would disguise the presence of a new Childe for now.  It wouldn't last long, but hopefully it would be long enough to get the Watcher to agree to his proposal.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When Dalton arrived in Spike's room several hours later it was deathly silent.  He made sure no one followed him.  These nightly visits allowed him to keep his Master updated on what else was going on in the mansion.  The sun set a half hour ago.  Drusilla and Angelus were already out on a hunt.

Spike had been waiting for the bookworm to arrive.  Sometimes the timing of his visits varied, but he knew to count on them.  If Dalton ever did not show, he would know that something was seriously wrong.  He looked up from the bed where he sat next to Buffy's body.

"Oh my."  Dalton stared at the blonde haired beauty on his Master's bed.  "She's beautiful."  He stepped closer to the bed.  He looked from the woman to Spike confused.  "How?"

Spike drew Dalton in closer.  There was no sense in taking further chances of being overheard.  He whispered most of the events of the last day to Dalton.  He explained why he did it and the loyalty that he expected from him towards Buffy.  He outlined his need to get a message to the Watcher.  He told Dalton all that he needed to know.

Dalton nodded.  He knew Spike realized he was loyal to him, but even as young as he was he saw the risk Spike took in telling him all of this.  He stood up, chest puffed out with pride that his Master trusted him so.

"Dalton I'm entrusting this task to you.  Speak of it to no one and leave immediately."  Spike nodded his head towards the opened crack in his wall.  "If you cross me, you will be dust.  Understood?"  He handed over the book he carefully hid for close to 100 years.

"Yes, Master Spike."  Dalton buried the book beneath his coat and headed for the passage.  He looked back at his Master and his new sleeping Childe.  He smiled, closed the door and hastened his steps to get as far away from the mansion as quickly as he could.  He had a mission to do.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"I covered for her, Giles."  Willow voice piped into the conversation in the library.  The Scoobies spent most of the day either searching for Buffy or worrying about her welfare.  Now they regrouped in the library to share the details of their last search.

"Quite good, Willow."  Giles sighed and sat down.  "At least her mother won't worry about Buffy just yet."  He removed his glasses.  They dangled from his fingertips precariously.  "We'll have to think of something before school on Monday though.  I doubt your sleep over story will still hold out that long with Mrs. Summers."

Xander wrung his hands together.  "What I can't figure out is why we are sitting here and not looking for Buffy still.  She has to be out there somewhere."

"What would you have us do, Xander?  The factory has been practically gutted."  Giles' patience was wearing thin.  He was in no mood to deal with Xander's berating or whining attitude.  "We have no idea where Angelus, Spike and Drusilla are hiding out.  Even if we knew, we couldn't begin to break in without Buffy."

Dalton slowly pushed the swinging doors of the library open.  He held a stick with a white handkerchief tied to the end of it in one hand.  Spike's instructions were clear, and he would follow them to the letter.  Much was resting on whether or not this group took the time to read the book.  He clutched the book tighter to his chest.  "I believe that I might be of some assistance."

Willow, Oz, Xander, Cordelia, and Giles all gaped at the timid man by the door.  Oz sniffed the air.  "Vampire!"  He warned the others.

Giles jumped up, cross in hand, to stand in front of the teens at the table.  "You will not harm these children."

Dalton eep'd when the teens started reaching for stakes and swords.  He waved the white flag high.  "Does not this flag mean I come in peace?"  Surely Spike hadn't set him up under false pretenses.  No, he would not believe that of his Master.  Spike understood him like no other vampire or human did.

"Why should we believe a blood sucker even knows the meaning of the word peace?"  Xander stood next to Giles clutching a newly sharpened stake.  "I say we stake first, and ask questions later."

Cordelia buried her face into Xander's back.  She wanted to hide from this nightmare that was now her life.  Oz's arm was wrapped protectively around Willow.  He was ready to defend the woman he loved if the vampire so much as twitched the wrong way towards her.

"I have news of Miss Buffy."  Dalton gulped hard.  If his heart could beat it would be racing a mile a minute.

Giles ran at Dalton.  He grabbed the vampire by the collar of his jacket and forced him up against the wall.  "If you've hurt her, I will kill you without hesitation."  He snarled in a way that would make any vampire proud.  Yet this man was human.  He clenched his hand around Dalton's throat and squeezed.  He held the cross high and threateningly.

"It was not us."  Dalton tried to choke out behind the tightening around his throat.  He squirmed in the Watcher's grasp.  His hands still wrapped around the book, he tapped it against Giles' chest.  "Please, let me explain."

Willow walked over to Giles.  Even if it was bad news, she wanted to know how Buffy was doing.  She tugged on Giles' arm.  "What's the worst he can say?"  She looked at Giles and then to the others.  "We're already afraid she is dead.  It can't hurt to let him speak."  The softness of her voice was gone when she narrowed her eyes on Dalton.  "And if he had anything to do with it, we can kill him afterwards."

Giles pulled Dalton to the table.  He pushed him forcefully into a chair.  "Talk."  He ordered.  "For your sake it better be something we want to hear."

Dalton set the old and worn book on the table.  "I fear that you will not want to hear what I have to say."  He rested his hands on the cover.  "It is our desire that you will see the hope in it though." 

"She's dead, isn't she?"  Giles voiced the question on everyone's mind.

"In a manner of speaking, yes."  Dalton pulled at the collar of his shirt to loosen his tie.  How do you tell the girl's Watcher and friends delicately that their friend is a vampire?

Willow inhaled sharply.  "Oh my gosh.  She's a vampire!"

"What?!?"  Xander's jaw dropped.  "No way in Hell!"

"I assure you she is not in Hell."  Dalton began with a calm he wasn't feeling.  "Master Spike will take very good care of your Slayer."

"SPIKE!!"  Cordelia shrieked.  "Bleach blond hair, wants to eat the whole school, Spike?"

"Spike killed her?"  Giles' face fell.  When he saw Spike at the factory he was in a wheelchair.  How could Spike have bested Buffy?  Was she more devastated about the ghost incident than he realized?

"No, Miss Buffy ran into Angelus late last night."  Dalton hurried to explain.  This group was looking more and more stake happy.  "Angelus left her to die.  He nearly drained her completely."

"Angelus ..."  Giles sneered.  Ripper of his younger days came out in full force.  "That creature stole Jenny from me.  Are you telling me that he turned Buffy too?"  He gripped the arms of his chair so tightly that the wood creaked and crackled.

"No, please stop interrupting."  Dalton sighed exasperated.  He was nervous enough already without all the interruptions.  "Angelus left Miss Buffy for dead.  It would appear that he would have taken great delight in knowing that one of you found her."

Giles stared at Dalton aghast.  "That sounds like his twisted sense of pleasure."  He frowned.

"Master Spike was nearby for reasons I won't go into at the moment.  He had nothing to do with Angelus' fight."  Dalton tapped his fingers along the cover of the book, a nervous habit from his human days.  "Master Spike knew she was going to die.  He had only one choice to keep her "alive" in any way."

"So he turned her to make Buffy his little slave?  Is that it?"  Xander was beyond angry and hurt.  Their lives were a living Hell.  This whole town was Hell.  Why not, they lived on a Hellmouth.

"Master Spike took the last of Miss Buffy's blood and offered her his own."  Dalton hurried on.  "She could have refused it, but she didn't.  Something within her grasped onto his gift."

"Gift?  Are you daft man?  Being a vampire is not a gift.  It is a curse."  Giles was astounded that this idiotic fool of a vampire thought that such a state of life was something to be cherished.

"It can be to the right people."  Dalton defended.  "In this book are words from one of your own Watchers on what happens when a Slayer is turned.  It isn't the same as others.  Not even all vampires are evil either."  He pulled the book back to his chest partially to protect his heart and partially to protect the book from being snatched from him.  "She will be much the same as you knew.  She will have her soul."

"That's preposterous!"  Giles slammed his hand on the table.  "It's a lie.  The Council would never believe such a thing."

"Exactly why this book was protected from the Council for centuries at the request of the Watcher who wrote in it."  Dalton countered.  "Master Spike came upon it in his travels by means you would not approve of.  It matters not how he got the book, but that it is in his possession and he has read it, does matter."

"Why would Spike want to turn a Slayer if he knew she'd keep her soul."  Rational thought and questions fought to make their presence known in Giles' mind.  The whole idea was hard to grasp, but his Watcher curiosity started to get the better of him.

"There is no love lost between him and his Sire, Angelus."  Dalton explained.  "He has a respect and ... consideration for this particular woman."  He cleared his throat.  He saw the way his Master watched the pale woman before he left the mansion to come to the library.  Whether the Master Vampire realized it or not, there was more to his original reasons than he was willing to admit.  "He did not want her to die in such a way.  His gift offers her a way to kill the one who has caused all of you and him so much pain." 

"I can't believe it."  Giles shook his head back and forth.  "I just can't believe it."

Dalton pulled an envelope out of his jacket.  He tucked it into the cover of the book.  "Master Spike wishes you to have this book to understand his reasoning for turning the Slayer and expecting her to remain mostly as she was.  He gave me specific information and instructions.  I need to return to our resting place to inform him that all has been done."  He handed the book over to Giles.

Giles remained in his seat trying to let the information sink in.  He looked up at Dalton with tears in his eyes.  He'd failed Buffy.  What more could he do now?  She was the creature she hated the most; the creature she had vowed to kill.  Wasn't that her worst nightmare?

"I realize that you will not take our word for it."  Dalton patted the cover of the book in Giles' hands.  "All accounts are documented in this book by the hand of the other Watcher.  I hope you will read it before you decide what you need to do."  He pointed to the envelope sticking out of the book.  "If you wish to see the Slayer and speak further about this, read the letter."

Willow wept into Oz's shoulder.  How could this have happened?  Just yesterday Buffy was helping her try to exorcise the spirit from the school.  Less than 24 hours ago they all sat in this library together.

Oz ran his fingers through Willow's hair in comfort.  Strangely enough he could smell no deception on the vampire.  The calm with which he spoke was too even for a lie to be hidden behind it.

Xander sat in shock.  To him everything seemed frozen in time.  His mind tried to grasp the fact that Buffy was a vampire now.  He refused to accept it.  Cordelia wasn't close to Buffy, but she wanted to comfort Xander as best she could.  She rubbed his arms and hugged him close.

Dalton walked to the doors.  "Don't let the ignorance in history be repeated.  Angelus will pay for what he's done.  Have faith in your Slayer's heart."  No one stood up to stop him, and he wanted to make his escape before they decided to follow him.  He disappeared into the school's hallways then out into the night.

Giles stood slowly.  "It would appear that I have some reading to do."  His voice quivered in timbre, belaying the seeming calm of his stature.  "It would probably be best for you all to go home now.  We'll meet back her in the morning about 10 am."

The gang all nodded numbly.  They were all at a loss of what to say or do.  When they exited the library it was decided that no one wanted to be alone right now.  Willow's parents were away for the weekend.  So everyone decided to camp out at Willow's house until the morning.  At least they would be together.  That brought them a small sense of comfort.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Back at the mansion a nervous vampire paced the confines of his bedroom.  It was customary for a new vampire to rise with the sunset.  There was no way for him to tell exactly when his Childe would arise.  At least three had passed since the sun set.  He felt the pull of her to him, but she wouldn't open her eyes.  He hoped it would be soon.  He grabbed one of the blood bags from the crate.  He bit into it and drained the bag in three gulps.

The smell of blood stirred the air.  Buffy's nose twitched a little.  Her arms stretched out, and she yawned.  Her eyes blinked a few times before opening fully.  She looked around the room.  Her gaze rested on Spike.  "Spike?"

Spike turned around quickly.  He felt Buffy's awareness of what was around her begin.  He slipped into the bed next to her, sitting up.  He pulled her into a sitting position and wrapped his arms around her.  "I'm here, Buffy."

"What's going ..."  The events of the night before flashed through her mind.  As the realization that she was awake and Spike was sitting next to her hit her, she screamed.  There was only one way she was still "alive", and if Spike was here he had to be the cause.

Spike, prepared for such an outburst, quickly clamped his hand over Buffy's mouth.  He growled as Buffy, now in game face, bit his hand nearly crushing two fingers in her grip.

Spike raised his hand to backhand her.  He didn't want to hurt her, but he couldn't have the whole mansion running to their room to find out who was screaming.  He wouldn't make Buffy his slave, but she would learn respect for her Sire and quickly if she was going to act like this.  Just before his hand struck her cheek, he felt Buffy growl and let go.

Buffy looked up at Spike lost in a haze.  The taste of his blood created a craving in her like she had never known.  She knew it was his blood, but the taste didn't repulse her.  She wanted it.  She knew it was precious, and she wanted more.

Spike watched the bloodlust flow through Buffy.  The look was more than a fledgling's bloodlust though.  There was a primal gleam in her eye that made it look like she was going to devour him whole.

Buffy licked along Spike's collarbone with a snarl.  Her roughened tongue trailed up one side of his neck until it encountered the marks from Dru when she drained him and Angelus when he Sired him.  With a growl of possessiveness, Buffy turned Spike's neck and buried her fangs into it.  She tore at the scars, obliterating them.

Spike cried out himself at the searing pain of Buffy's bite.  She wasn't simply feeding or placing a love bite on him for foreplay.  She was cutting his neck to shreds over the scars of his Sire and Dru.

Buffy drank deep gulps of Spike's blood down her throat.  He was her Sire, and his blood tasted like ambrosia to her.  It made her want more of it, and she felt herself becoming more aroused by the moment.  She stopped drinking for a few moments to lick along the wounds she created.  Instinctually she slit her tongue on her fangs and applied the mixture of her blood and saliva to the wound.

Spike started to feel weak.  He needed all of his senses to be aware of everyone in the mansion.  He forcibly pulled Buffy away from his neck and pinned her down on the bed.  His neck burned where her blood mingled with his and he perked a curious brow at her.  "Do you have any idea what you tried to do, Childe?"

Buffy smirked in fake innocence at Spike.  "Do tell, Sire."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

(To Be Continued)

Revenge For Love - (3) A Full Awakening
By Tasha

Chapter Summary: Dalton went on a mission for Spike to the Scoobies and Giles.  He took the old Watcher's diary with him to help prove Spike's case.  Spike kept watch over Buffy in case she woke up on the first night.  Although she didn't rise at sunset, she did awaken a few hours later.  At first she tried to scream, and then she bit Spike's hand for covering her mouth.  She then attacked his neck upon seeing Dru and Angelus' marks there.  How will Buffy react to her bloodlust?  How will Spike make Buffy understand?  That's for this chapter to discover.

***Warning: Little voyeurism in this chapter as well as blood play of various sorts, and sexual situations.  Strong NC-17 here folks.***


Author's Note: I'll explain more in the next chapter about the "demon" that actually turned the Slayer.  So, if you get confused in this chapter, don't worry.  More history and explanations will come in Chapter 4.

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Half of Spike found Buffy's sassiness delightful, even playfully desirous.  His demon, however, demanded him to put this Childe in her place.  "Do not mock me, Slayer."  He growled and tightened his grip on Buffy's hands above her head.

"Slayer?"  Buffy laughed.  "Surely I'm that no more since you killed me!"  She spat the accusation at him.

"I did not kill you!"  Spike became angrier by the moment.  Somewhere his research must have been off.  This Slayer didn't seem all that soulful to him.  Perhaps she was not the woman he believed her to be.  "Angelus killed you."  He shook her with force using their joined hands for leverage.  "I gave you life."

"Life?"  Buffy vamped out.  "You call this life?"  She fought the surge of emotions within her.  A part of her actually realized what was occurring in her body.  It welcomed the change.  She felt stronger, more focused, and connected to the man holding her.  She felt like she belonged.  That part of her called out to Spike in a primal way.  It wanted her to continue what she was doing before.  Something angered it about seeing those marks on Spike's neck.  It actually felt like the Slayer within her wanted to make her own mark known.

'She's so beautiful.'  Spike took the time to enjoy the change in her face.  Strangely he noted that her eyes were not amber, but violet in color.  'Strange.'

"Yes, you still walk this Earth.  That is a form of life."  In the privacy of his own mind Spike wondered what his continued purpose on the Earth was.  He wanted to believe he was worth more than a killing shell of his former life.  He wasn't just dead.  He felt things.  He had "life".  "Would you rather I left you to finish dying in the cemetery?"  He cringed at the mere thought of her blood spilling from her body and into the ground beneath her.  His mind rejected any thought of Buffy not being around anymore.

"Anything would be better than my worse nightmare coming true."  Another side of Buffy wanted to close her eyes, bury her face in Spike's shoulder and cry.  'It is strange how both parts want some attachment to Spike.  Why should he matter to me at all?'  Her human side now seemed the weaker of the two, wanting to cry, but even without her realizing it her human side was there.  It wasn't that it didn't exist but more like her Slayer side was forcing itself to be known more predominantly.  Why would it be her Slayer side that felt more alive now that she was "dead"?

Spike watched the various emotions play across Buffy's face.  He saw the battle going on, and it actually relieved him to see it.  It gave him hope that yes Buffy was still in there.  If she wasn't, then she wouldn't have been fighting being turned.  She feared it.  She seemed to fear what she would become.  He needed to help her see that she was still so much of who she was, only more.

Her stomach wrenching in pain interrupted Buffy's thoughts.  The force and intensity of the pain made her cry out instinctively. "Sire!!"

Spike knew the force of bloodlust on a newly risen vampire was strong.  The painful memory of his first bloodlust, and clawing his way out of his grave, stuck with him even now.

Although new vampires arose around sunset, they usually took more days to rise than Buffy had.  That was why vampires were buried before they actually arose.  The family wouldn't realize that their loved one had been turned.  They assumed they were dead.

Neither accounts of the Slayer's being turned included any detailed information on how long it took them to rise.  The Watcher's entries were only a day or two apart though.  That led Spike to believe that it was less than 48 hours between first death and awakening.  Something told him to be prepared for it tonight.  It was as if he could feel Buffy stirring even in her "death" stage.

Spike felt connected to her on a deeper level all around.  Having never Sired a Childe before, he was unclear if what he felt was normal or not.  Something told him this bond was going to be different from a usual Sire/Childe bond.  A feral part of him was still reeling at the initiated dominance and claim that Buffy played with.  A Childe so young shouldn't even feel that need yet.  The Sire bond should have been enough of a connection without the drive for more.  He pushed those thoughts aside for now.  His Childe needed his guidance and care for her first true feeding.

"SIRE!!"  Buffy repeated more desperately.  One hand clutched her stomach tightly.  Her other hand gripped and scraped at Spike's arms.  Her hands broke free from his grasp when the bloodlust overtook her.  She bucked to try and remove him completely, but Spike pulled her deeper into his embrace instead.

Spike drew Buffy's head up to his neck.  He cradled the back of her head in his hands.  This was going to be a hard time for her.  He knew she would refuse to kill a human being if the demon that turned her was her Slayer demon as he believed it would be.  This was a test of just what he had created.  He had to know.  He would feel the fierce need to protect his Childe no matter what, but something told him that he only wanted Buffy to be the Childe he felt she would be able to live with herself being.  He didn't want her to spend an eternity unhappy or dust herself.  "It's all right, pet.  You just need to feed."

"NO!"  Buffy shook her head back and forth in a panic.  "I won't kill anyone.  I'd rather starve and die ... well dust."  Tears flowed freely down her cheeks even as her cravings fought to make her break that vow.  She needed the blood, and she wanted it.  She would not take it by the death of an innocent though.

"Childe ..."  Spike's tone held the authority of his position to her.  He was a step away from going against his own wishes on controlling her.  He wouldn't let her starve.  He tried instead to use his voice in a reasoning manner, asking her to respect his knowledge of things.  He only hoped that she would accept it.  "You have to eat, pet."

Buffy picked her head up from where it rested on his shoulder before.  "Please don't make me kill someone, Sire."  She used his title in a respectful manner.  She wanted to please him, but if she felt the blood of an innocent on her hands it would kill her more than her original death.  Her Slayer wanted vengeance, and it craved the violence of battle, but it too wanted only the blood of the dark or unjust.  "Please, Spike."

Spike realized that Buffy passed the test and temptation with flying colors.  "Damnit, Slayer.  I'm not the bastard that Angelus is."  He growled.  Even as he was happy that she passed, her begging upset him.  He was not that wicked.  "That would be beyond cruel to turn you and then expect you to feast on those you are sworn to protect."  He pulled her face to his neck once more.  "Drink.  I give you permission to this time."

'Permission?'  Buffy thought.  'Is that what I did wrong before?'  A nagging part of her mind told her that was part of the reason Spike was upset before.  He was her Sire.  Didn't Giles say something about Sire's blood being a gift and more potent than any other blood, save a Slayer's?  'Sometimes I really wished that I'd paid more attention to Giles' lectures.'

Spike pulled several bags of blood from the crate.  He bit into one, quickly draining it.  "Later we will talk more about your feeding, but now you need this to make you stronger."  He tossed the empty bag aside.

Buffy could smell the blood in the air.  She turned her head to see Spike draining another blood bag.  She sniffed near his lips.  'Human.  How odd.  Since when did Spike start bagging it?'  That train of thought was lost as her gut tightened again.  She looked up into Spike's eyes.

Spike nodded.  As he looked at Buffy his look was actually full of pride.  No fledgling could control their bloodlust for as long or as well as Buffy had.  She hadn't even spent the whole time in her vampiric countenance.  He tilted his head to the side, brushing his nose against her cheek to guide her down towards his throat.

Buffy needed no further urging.  With a delight she never knew she'd have, she vamped out and sank her fangs deeply into Spike's throat.  She growled deeply as each drawn out stream of her Sire's blood warmed and coated her throat.  She swore that it was the sweetest and most wonderful thing she ever tasted, even if a part of her was going "yuck ".

Spike gasped at the intensity of Buffy's bite.  He clutched two blood bags in his hands and drained them both simultaneously.  Buffy was taking a lot from him, and he didn't want her to have to stop until she had her fill.  His cock hardened at the pleasure of their joining.  He could feel her amazement and delight through the Sire/Childe bond, but he also felt it through the bond of her fangs in his neck feeding from him.  The sharing of blood between vampires was considered quite an erotic state to be in.  Usually sex preceded the bite.  He wasn't about to force that on Buffy.  She was confused enough already.  Fate had other plans though.

Buffy growled louder, and her fingernails scraped down Spike's back.  She slowed her drinking from him, but she refused to let go of his neck.  She took small sips and swallows of his precious blood while she curled her body into his lap.  One leg slid around one side of him and the other slid around until she could lock her ankles behind him.  No explanation was needed or given.  She felt a power running through her, and she wanted to share it all with him.

Buffy's shift in position forced a groan from Spike.  He was already quite hard and straining against the jeans he still wore.  Buffy's nightshirt, which was one of his own t-shirts, rode up her hips to bare a portion of her stomach.  Her barely covered sex was moist, and he could feel the heat of her arousal.  'Wait a minute.  Heat?'  It dawned him on that although Buffy was nowhere near the temperature of a normal human, she wasn't as cold as a vampire either.  She was somewhere in-between.  This revelation aroused him even more.  He ground his hips up into her warmth, clutching her uncovered cheeks with his hand, and pushed her into his grinding.

Buffy broke away from Spike's neck with a gasp.  She pulled her breasts tight against him, rubbing hardened nipples through her shirt against his bare chest.  She rocked her hips forward which rolled and circled her covered heat over his burgeoning erection.  "Want you.  Need you."  She snarled breathlessly.  She tried to push him down the bed to be on top of him.

In an echo of Buffy's snarl, Spike growled his response.  He twisted her around so that her back was to the headboard.  He felt her pushing at him, but he refused to allow her the dominant position.  His demon and his man lusted after this woman, but his demon would not allow Buffy the first play of dominance for now.  One hand reached behind him to unlock her tightened ankles.  He forced her down onto the bed on her back hard.  His demon pulled forth his needed claws and shredded the t-shirt on her, purposely nicking her skin in several places.

Buffy's body felt like it was on fire.  It burned for him like a raging forest fire with no hope of being quenched without him.  This was all so new to her, and yet she knew instinctively what to do.  Angel had been her first and only time to be intimate with any man.  How she could be so wanton, she didn't know.  She only knew that she had to have Spike and have him now.  She needed to feel him fill her, or she swore she would die another type of death.

Spike licked his way up Buffy's chest.  He lapped his tongue over each tiny cut, suckling her blood into his mouth.  Between her vampiric and slayer healing, each wound was closing fast once he licked it.  He grinned wickedly while her body writhed underneath his touch.  When he reached her covered breasts he bit through the lace at the front with his sharp canines.  He brushed the material aside with his nose to pay direct attention to her golden globes.  Her skin color would more than likely fade with time, but she would be beautiful to him no matter what.

Buffy twisted her fingers in Spike's hair.  She pulled at the blonde strands trying to hold on and guide him to where she ached the most.  She kicked against the bed and squirmed more.  "Yes.  Spike!"  She called out, but when he reached her panties, ripped them off, and placed his cool tongue at her entrance she screamed out, "SIRE!"

Spike jumped up to cover Buffy's mouth with his in a passionate kiss.  He loved the ring of her voice in his hears in pleasure, but that scream could bring the whole mansion down on them.  Dalton said that Dru and Angelus were out hunting.  He hoped they were far enough away that they didn't hear that.  "Quiet, or you'll bring all of hell down on us."

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Dalton walked carefully up to the mansion.  He was ever mindful of any noises or shadows around him.  He was successful in living through his confrontation with the Slayer's friends, and he didn't want his death to happen so near to his goal of returning to his Master.  Confident that the coast was clear, he snuck into the garden's foliage to the door of the hidden passage.

Dalton crept up the stairs.  Spike said that no one knew of this place, but you never knew when one of the more curious vampires could discover it.  He was just about to Spike's room when he heard it ... the beautiful and passionate voice of his Master's Childe calling out for her Sire.  He stopped dead in his tracks, with his hand on the door panel.

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Buffy whimpered as much for the loss of his intimate touches as she was for the scolding from Spike.  Her eyes held the apology in them, but they also showed him the desires she had to continue.

"Will you be good?"  Spike asked.

Buffy nodded.

"I want to hear you pet, but not today.  We have to get you to safety first."  Spike was genuinely worried about Buffy.  Angelus, his Sire, would stop at nothing to see Buffy destroyed.  She wasn't quite ready to face him yet, and it was his duty to make sure she was.  This was becoming more than just revenge.  He cared whether or not Buffy made it out of the battle even more than he wanted to see his Sire dead.

Buffy nodded again then whimpered.  She sounded like a lost puppy looking for their Master, and her eyes reflected almost as much.  "Please."  She muttered behind his hand.  "Please, Sire."  She wriggled her body underneath him to entice him back to his previous touches.

Spike's desire for her grew with the whimpered pleas of his Childe.  How could she be so innocent and so seductive at the same time?  It baffled his mind.  He kissed his way back down her chest, lavishing attention to each breast.  His free hand traveled back down her stomach to her covered pussy.  He rested his fingers on the outside of the satin covering her there, pressing just lightly into her clit to scrape the fabric over the tender nub.

Buffy closed her eyes.  She actually bit her lip, and accidentally Spike's hand, to stifle the moan that wished to escape her lips.  Spike's yelp of pain automatically brought her tongue out to care and treat the unintentional wound.  She suckled the cut harder to get more of his blood.

Spike watched Buffy gather his blood on her tongue and enjoy it.  It made him even harder than he thought was possible.  He tore her panties off in shreds to get to his prize.  He plunged two fingers into an already very wet hole of pleasure.

Buffy's pussy quickly accustomed itself to the two fingers and begged for a third then a fourth.  When Spike obliged her hips rose off the bed and plummeted back down.  She wriggled around, her body moving to show his affect on her instead of calling it out.  Her body was strung tighter and tighter with each luscious tension that this primal like joining was creating.

Spike bit into Buffy's breast with his fangs just above her nipple.  He groaned at the tightening of her inner muscles around his fingers and the flow of juices that were produced with the painful pleasure of his bite.  He had a wicked thought about piercing a fang through her nipple to place a ring in it.  Her nipples were so pert and tasty.  He wanted to adorn them with jewels to accent her beauty.  'Perhaps later.'

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Dalton pushed the panel open just a little bit.  Even from the little slit of the room that the door revealed he could see the passionate embrace of Spike and Buffy.  He shivered in response to the smells of arousal and power that emanated from the room.  It was intoxicating.  Even Angelus and Drusilla did not smell of this with the same intensity, and they'd gone at each other anywhere they wanted to in the mansion.  Many times he'd been witness to their couplings, but it was never like this.

Dalton needed to tell Spike that his mission was complete, but this was a touchy time for Sire and Childe.  Their first bonds would be the strongest.  If he interrupted now, it could damage the closeness later.  He was torn in his duty, his demon's desire to watch, and his human's side to let them be.  He decided on listening to the last two.

Dalton sat against the back wall of the passage to keep himself as far away from the door as possible.  It still allowed him to gaze upon his Master and his new probable new Mistress without the worry of being caught.  He was sure that Master Spike would be too caught up in Buffy's scent, and his own desires, to notice Dalton's presence.

Dalton ran his hand down the front of his tied breeches.  He bit his lower lip as Spike's head moved down and now bobbed between Buffy's legs.  He released his own cock from its confines and wrapped a tight grip around it.  While he watched his Master in the throes of pleasure he stroked his cock from head to base.  His movements sped up when theirs did, and he tried to calm down when they slowed down.

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Spike grinned into Buffy's curls as the smell of a male vampire's arousal hit his nose harder.  By scent, he knew it was Dalton.  His senses were on high alert, and he had not missed Dalton's entrance into the tunnel nor his slight opening of the door.  Peering up at Buffy's face, he could tell that she had missed these signs.  Under normal circumstances, well normal for vampires anyways, he would have invited Dalton into the room for a closer look.  He would have possibly even allowed him on the bed to watch Spike and Buffy together, but he doubted that Buffy was ready for such a display.

Spike drove his tongue deeper between Buffy's lips and lapped up the sweet nectar of her womanly body into his mouth.  'Nothing says I can't give our little pet a show though, now does it?'  He reveled in the thrill of it all.  Dalton was his most loyal, and he deserved a treat.  He wasn't a threat to his relationship with Buffy.  He trusted him.  He quickly forgot about Dalton's presence, getting lost in Buffy's alluring scent.

Buffy bucked her hips into Spike's mouth.  She tightened her thighs on either side of his head.  Angel certainly hadn't done this to her.  At first she was frightened when Spike kissed his way down her stomach to her pussy.  Then she thought she would die when his tongue stroked her folds.  Now, all she wanted was the pleasure he was giving her.  She spiraled higher and higher to the pinnacle.  She slapped hand over her mouth to help her from screaming out.

Spike could tell that Buffy was near.  The twitching of her muscles around his fingers was only one of the signs of her body.  Everything he did, she responded to in so many wonderful reactions.  He watched her face.  He memorized every movement and reaction.  He shook his head back and forth, pressing inward to bury his tongue as deeply as he could within her and then scraped his teeth along her lips on the way out.

Buffy couldn't stand it any longer.  Her body was going to explode, and she didn't care who or what she was anymore.  All that mattered was the pleasure she was receiving and the man giving it to her.  'I have to have this.  I have to keep this.'  Her mind repeated over and over as she started to fall over into her first orgasm with Spike.

Spike felt the intense tightening of Buffy's muscles on his tongue.  The flood of juices that hit his tongue on the first pulse intoxicated him.  With that first burst of her orgasm he leapt from his position between her thighs to position his cock and thrust forward into her warm tight passage.

The loss of his mouth was replaced soon with the pounding and full thrust of his thick cock into her core.  Her orgasm burst again, turning into a multiple twist around each climax.  She forced Spike's face down to hers and buried her scream in a passionate tangling of their tongues and mouths mimicking the fucking of their bodies below.

Spike grabbed both sides of Buffy's face tightly.  He fucked her hard and wild, plunging his cock deep into her depths to bury himself against her womb again and again.  They were both in full game face.  Their fangs bit into each other's lips and tongues, but it only drove their passions further.  The mingling of their blood was perfect, and the taste divine.  Both hungered for the other and the joint blood was his undoing.

Buffy sucked on Spike's tongue as her blood mingled with his.  She felt the tingling of their tongues touching and the wounds continuously being massaged by the other's blood and tongue.  She locked her legs just under Spike's butt and pushed his whole body up against hers to force his cock in as far as it would go in a quick but held thrust.

It was Spike's turn to bury his scream in Buffy's mouth and throat.  Their mingled blood started his climax, but when his cockhead speared her womb and her pussy tightened around his cock, he lost it.  Large thick bursts of his cold seed creamed Buffy's pussy and womb.  His legs buckled while his hips bounced in shorter strokes to remain as deep in her as he could while he came.

Buffy scratched her fingernails up and down Spike's shoulder blades.  Her body rocketed into another orgasm that kept flowing into another and another.  Each stream of his cold seed made her pussy spasm again.  Every little twitch of his cock and hips sent her into ecstasy due to her increased sensitivity.

Spike ripped his mouth away from Buffy's.  He stared into her eyes only a moment before he saw the marks on the side of her neck.  Although he knew that his marks for turning her were more important than those of the one that first plunged into her, his demon was livid.  'No one will touch her again.  She is mine.'  He growled loudly and plunged his fangs into the Master's and Angelus' side of her neck.  He would obliterate their marks for good with a mark that would erase theirs.

Buffy's eyes widened and her sex twisted into another climax when Spike bit her.  She wanted to taste him.  She needed to be one with him in all ways.  She leaned up far enough to quickly pierce Spike's neck with her fangs and counter drink to his pulls on her neck.  The scars which she'd previous torn out were slightly more faded, even in the reddening of the torn skin.  It angered Buffy's Slayer inside that the marks were not completely gone.  It knew what Spike was doing, and the Slayer wanted it the same.

Spike took several long pulls of Buffy's blood before he ripped his head from side to side again to make sure nothing would remain of the previous marks.  Bloodied lips glistened in the dim light of the candles in the room when he pulled back enough to speak low in her ear.  "Blood of my blood.  Childe and yet now Sire.  Two beings, one life.  You are mine, forever shall be.  No one shall come between me and thee.  I claim thee for my own."

Buffy broke away from Spike's neck to utter one word, "Yours."  Her whole body radiated in a pulsing electricity.  She felt a warmth push through her, and her hand was forced to rest against Spike's chest near his unbeating heart.  She pulled back to look into his eyes.   His blood tainted her lips in red.  She stared into his eyes, her fingers tingling against his chest.  "Blood entwined, shared as one, and freely given.  Two beings, one life.  I am yours, and you are mine.  Forever shall it be.  I claim thee for my own."

Spike stared aghast at Buffy.  "Yours."  He answered in complete awe that she returned the claim fully.  Her demon must be a lot stronger than he anticipated.  He felt the power emanating from her.  He felt a pulse and almost a pain in his chest.  It wasn't bad, but it burned.  He opened Buffy's mouth with his tongue to knick it on her fangs.  Something about it seemed more right than biting his own tongue, more intimate and shared.

Buffy slit her tongue on Spike's fangs before he could remove his mouth completely.  They both took their bleeding tongues back to the other one's neck.  Coating the blood of their tongues over the blood of the punctures, they blended their blood and sealed the wounds.  Each of them buried their face against the other one's neck while their bodies once again thrust and rocked against each other.

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Dalton watched from his perch in the tunnel.  'Oh my.'  He gazed in wonderment at the green and blue mist that hovered over the two vampires.  He felt the joy of the claiming taking place all around him.  The misty light pulsed during the uttered words and soared down into both of them as a golden ray when the bites were sealed, ultimately completing the claim.

Dalton found himself caught up in the moment.  His cock erupted in his hand, and he was forced to bite into his other hand to keep from alerting his Master and new Mistress of his presence.  Panting needlessly, he tried to gather his wits about him before he thought about entering the room.

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Buffy and Spike careened over the precipice of their mating one last time in a mixture of buried moans and growls against each other's necks.  Spike collapsed on top of Buffy.  Then, he turned her to the side.  His cock, still hard within her, never left her canal since he rolled to the side with her.  Instead he lifted one of her legs over his to draw her in closer.

Buffy relished the feel of his cool body against hers.  She didn't want to lose their connection anytime soon.  She was actually thankful that Spike seemed to feel the same way.  She nestled her face against his neck and purred against her mark.

Spike shivered in pleasure.  'Minx.'  He licked the side of Buffy's neck, playfully nipping his mark.  "Rest love.  I think we have quite a few things to talk about when we wake up."

Buffy nodded her head.  Somehow her unlife didn't seem as bad anymore.  Spike would take care of her, and she had a feeling that now he would never leave her either.  A contentment she never knew washed over her.  She'd been happy when she made love to Angel, but this transcended that by miles.  'I never thought I would feel the perfect peace in the arms of the one I thought was my mortal enemy.'  She pondered that thought.  'I guess he really did save me.'

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(To Be Continued)

Chapter Summary: Dalton made it back to the mansion, but he got stuck in the passage because of Spike and Buffy's joining, then claiming. Spike took in a lot of blood from the bags and convinced Buffy to feed from him directly. That led to the mating and claiming. Now they are resting and lots of thoughts are going through Buffy's head. Spike said they have a lot to talk about when they wake up, and he's right. There is much left for our new Mates to discover, including a family.

Author's Note: Sorry that we don't quite cover the things I intended to cover for this chapter. The writing bug hit me right after I finished Chapter 3, and I only ended up covering one or 2 events that I originally intended to. Hopefully Chapter 5 will cover more on the Slayer demon and the meet up with the Scoobies. I can't promise it though as this story is really writing itself into a lot more when I start to put pen to paper.

Disclaimer and Distribution notes are listed on the Index page of this story. minor f/m/m in this chapter but only in a vampiric sense

'Single' quote marks surround thoughts in this story. "Regular" quotes are around spoken words.

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A blissful Buffy rested in her lover's arms. A few weeks ago Spike was her enemy and Angel was her ally. Angel was the idealistic first love, and Spike was the epitome of evil. Angel was her guide and protector while Spike plotted his moves to destroy her.

Now Angelus was her enemy, and she loathed the thought of him. Buffy felt and heard Spike growl in his slumber. 'I wonder if he knows what I'm thinking about?' She was still paying for her mistake with Angelus and the Judge. She should have killed him then. Angelus was more demented, heartless and evil than Spike would ever be. Her connection to him told her enough about Spike to know that. Angelus taunted her family and friends. He went behind her back to get to those around her. Spike always faced her in a "fair" fight. He didn't play head games. Spike was all fists and fangs.

Somehow she just knew Angelus would have relished killing each one of her friends and family to make her suffer by being last. That is if those ghosts hadn't gotten in the way. It pushed him too far over the edge, and now he would be the one paying for his mistake. She remembered Dru's screamed warning to Angelus right before he bit her. They crazy woman might not have been so crazy after all. Dru seemed to know what would happen. Because of Angelus' actions, Spike turned her. She was stronger than before. Her senses were heightened, and her childlike ideals were replaced with centuries of power and knowledge from the source of the First Slayer.

'Yes he will pay dearly.' Buffy thought to herself. Many images flashed through her mind each time she sampled Spike's blood. When he started the claim, the images became even more vivid. With the plunging of her fangs into his neck she shared in the pains he suffered lately and in the past at the hands of Angelus, Darla and Dru. It was one of the many reasons that spurned her inner Slayer to repeat and complete the claim.

Buffy's mate had been chosen, and no one was taking him away from her or treating him like that ever again. Her Slayer knew that he was strong and intelligent. The connection she felt to the demon and the humanity within him was strong as well. She would see that he was treated like a Master Vampire should be treated. She would make sure that he was treated also like a man.

'Giles is so not going to like this.' Buffy cringed at the chastisement she was sure to receive from her Watcher. She sighed inwardly. 'Since I don't want to kill anyone, does that mean I kept my soul? If I did, how will I get Giles to believe me? Will he stake me on sight?'

Spike's arms tightened around Buffy. Even in his resting state he was attuned to her thoughts and emotions. The claim was strengthening the longer their shared blood flowed through their supernatural bodies. It was likely that any additional sharing of blood would strengthen the bond. The warmth of her essence touched him when her hand was placed over his unbeating heart during the claim. He felt the pull of his humanity become stronger, and his dreams reflected that.

Buffy smirked to herself. 'So protective. So cherished.' It made her very happy to feel the security and love of his embrace. 'Is it love?' She questioned herself and then nodded in affirmation. 'Whatever name he wants to give to it, I felt the bond to him. It is there. It's beyond a normal explanation of love.' She caressed her hand over Spike's. She still had a duty to fulfill as the Slayer, but now she would take much more pleasure in watching Angelus fall and pay for everything he'd done to her Mate and others. She hoped that Spike would respect her duty and not make himself one of her duties to perform.

So lost in her thoughts and the euphoria of her joining with Spike, Buffy was only now starting to sense the presence of another nearby. Her senses were full of Spike's scent and that of their combined arousals. She couldn't make out all of the specifics of the presence, but her instincts told her it was a male vampire.

Buffy tried to remain calm. Had their passions caught the attention of others? It didn't feel like Angelus; not very old or as dominant. She wouldn't call the presence completely weak, but he was no challenge for her skills. He seemed submissive in nature like a servant. Still it unnerved her that someone got this close to her without her notice. She slowly slid out of Spike's embrace. There was no sense in waking Spike or alerting the intruder of her knowledge about his presence.

Casually Buffy stretched to her full height. She arched her back and extended first her legs and then her arms out in front of her alternately. She hoped the stretching, in her naked state, distracted any attention to her search for his position. She allowed her senses to pinpoint him directly.

With the grace and poise of a predator sneaking up on the kill, Buffy reached over to the headboard of the bed. 'Why would a vampire have a wood headboard? Isn't that dangerous?' In a flash of movement she snapped a wooden bar from the bed, dashed to the opening in the wall, threw open the door and pulled the vampire behind it up by the collar of his shirt.

Spike jumped up out of bed. The surge of adrenaline from his mate, and the fear of Dalton's scent, took him abruptly from his slumber. He ran to Buffy's side and grabbed the hand holding her makeshift stake. He only had fractions of a second to act. He took the stake from her hand.

Buffy turned to her Sire and growled. "He was spying on us, Sire." In full game face, violet eyes glowing, she faced the now whimpering vampire once again. She placed her hands on her hips and her feet were slightly apart in a definitive stance of dominance and power. "He shouldn't be dusted for it?"

Dalton fell to his knees before Spike and Buffy. "I mean you no harm, Mistress." He bent over and placed his head on her feet. "I am but a humble and loyal servant of Master Spike." He turned his head to look up at Spike for his support leaving his cheek on Buffy's feet.

Spike quirked his scarred brow. 'Now that was slightly unexpected. He knows that Buffy is my Childe, but he readily accepts her as his Mistress? I know he saw the claim, but he is more dedicated to me than I thought.' He bent down to place two fingers under Dalton's chin. "This is Dalton. He has been a loyal minion from before and after Angelus' reign in Sunnydale." Spike directed Dalton up from the ground to stand in front of him. He looked at Buffy for her reaction.

Buffy watched everything with curiosity. Every move seemed like a ceremony of offering and acceptance. She felt a kinship towards this vampire. His words seemed genuine, not merely a display of false humility. She accepted his plea. She turned to Spike and nodded her acknowledgement of acceptance. He seemed to be unaffected by this man's presence. She would trust him too.

Spike smiled. 'Damn, she's glorious. So young, and yet she already holds herself like a queen.' He pulled Buffy to him to kiss her deeply. Their tongues mingled and danced

Dalton's mouth opened wide. Their bodies glowed with a golden aura in their passion. It was entrancing to watch.

Buffy and Spike pulled away from each other, panting. Though they did not need breath, their passions fueled instinctual reactions of gasping. They became lost in each other's gaze until a clearing throat brought them back to the here and now.

"Master." Dalton cleared his throat. "Forgive my intrusion on your time, but I have news."

Spike, still holding Buffy in his arms, moved back to the bed. He sat down on the edge of it along the one side. "Go on. Did everything go all right with the Watcher? I see you are still alive."

Buffy nestled her head against Spike's shoulders. Her nakedness wasn't a concern to her right now. No one in the room appeared fazed by her state of undress. So, she made no attempt to cover herself. She felt no shame in her natural state. Her attention perked up at the mention of her Watcher. 'What business would Spike have with him? Did he tell Giles about me?'

Spike felt the concern and questions from his Mate. He stroked his fingers through Buffy's hair in a soothing fashion. He nodded for Dalton to begin.

"They were most upset, as you could imagine, Master." Dalton wrung his hands together in front of him. "I did almost end up dust. They weren't even going to give me a reprieve with the little white flag you mentioned."

Buffy snorted. The image of a vampire walking into the school library with a white flag of surrender up was hilarious. Dalton had more guts than she originally gave him credit for. She could well imagine the looks on her friend's faces.

Spike and Dalton turned their attention to Buffy. "Something amuses you, pet?"

"Um, yeah." Buffy smirked. "Cute mental image there of the surrender flag."

Dalton was offended. "Maybe it would have been funny if I wasn't scared for my very life." He spoke in anger. "They wanted to kill me!"

Spike growled in displeasure at Dalton. His eyes narrowed into thin blue slits as he gazed at the vampire.

"My apologies, Mistress." Dalton quickly hung his head in a show of repentance and submission. "I felt insulted and belittled, but that is your right to do." What was it with him? Did everyone love to make fun of him?

Buffy tilted her head to the side in a bit of confusion. "I did not mean to insult you, Dalton. I do not want to diminish anyone that is helping us." She mimicked Spike's earlier motion by placing two fingers under Dalton's chin and raising his eyes to meet hers. "My humor and way of talking isn't always understood by all. I'm sure it must seem strange to you."

"I'm sorry, Mistress." Dalton smiled warmly. Things were always touchy around Master Spike and Drusilla. If Drusilla even cried that she didn't like a minion they were dusted. He was happy to see that this Mistress was not so temperamental. "I shall endeavor to understand better, Mistress and not take offense so easily."

Spike plopped back onto the bed, resting on his elbows. Each display was new territory for him even as it was the same in so many ways. He hoped that he would have an eternity to spend with his Childe and Mate to learn all there was to know about her. Hopefully they would also discover more about themselves together that they didn't know existed either.

"The Watcher was most distressed over the turn of events. The mere mention of Angelus' name ..." Dalton was interrupted by an angry growl from Buffy. He hastened to continue. "Sent him into quite a fit. He did not react all that much better to yours, Master, but then again he knows that you turned his Slayer."

Spike nodded. "Didn't expect the git to be too pleased about it."

"I gave them the book and the note." Dalton continued. "The children were all embracing each other and weeping while the Watcher stared out in shock and loss."

Buffy's heart may not be beating, but it broke at the thought of her friends in pain. She looked at Spike in plea. "Will I be able to see them?"

"Yes, luv." Spike drew Buffy down into his arms. He kissed her forehead. "The letter I sent with Dalton asked the Watcher to meet us at a specific place tomorrow." He looked up at Dalton. "Did he say he would accept?"

"He didn't say specifically if he would or not." Dalton sighed. It was rare to see such gentle forms of affection between vampires, and it made him feel privileged to be a witness to it. The fact that Spike was a Master Vampire made it even more rare to let a minion see such an openness of emotion. "The last I saw he was heading to read the book. We can only hope that he will see the truth in a Watcher's own words."

"Tomorrow?" Buffy questioned. "What will we do until then? My mom must be worried sick about me."

"We have to stay here for now, pet. I have incense and other things working to cover your scent. Angelus has to believe that you are dead." Spike sighed.

"Well he'd be half right." Buffy huffed sarcastically like a spoiled teenager.

"None of that." Spike chastised. "We aren't going to get into the life and death thing again are we?"

Buffy sighed. "Not right now, but I have a hell of a lot of questions for you Spike. You said we'd talk."

'There's that feisty Slayer I adore.' Spike nodded. "That I did." He turned to Dalton again. "I need more blood bags, Dalton. See if you can get them past the poofter and the bitch without too much fanfare. If you have to, tell him that some of the blood bags he gave me were tainted or something."

"Yes, Master." Dalton turned to go, but then he stopped and faced the pair on the bed again. "Master?"

"Yes, Dalton?" Spike queried.

"I must tell you that I witnessed your claim, Master." Dalton moved to his knees at the side of the bed. "I did not wish to intrude, but I could not help myself. I was riveted to watch you both."

Buffy gasped in shock. Spike wasn't surprised in the least. "I know." He answered. Buffy pinched Spike's upper arm hard. Her human delicacy was appalled that someone watched her have sex with Spike. Her Slayer side became aroused at the thought of someone witnessing their coupling.

"Ow." Spike snapped back in more playfulness than pain. "He was not interfering, and it is a treat for a minion to be allowed to witness such things." He tried to explain the situation to Buffy.

"You knew?" Dalton questioned. He was actually relieved to know that his Master was aware of his presence. It made his concerns lessen and his respect for him grow because if Spike knew that Dalton was there then his Master had truly given him a willing gift.

"Yes, I happened to look up from between my beloved's thighs when the door opened partway." Spike grinned. He was delighting in the bit of warmth in Buffy's cheeks. 'Still need to figure out the whole warmth thing.' He thought.

"Thank you, Master." Dalton sighed in relief. "It was a thrilling thing to witness, like nothing I've ever seen before." He remembered back to what he'd seen. "There was a misty light above each of you that swirled into a golden light that entered you both when the claim was complete. I never knew that would happen."

"Neither did I." Spike's brow raised in curiosity. He turned to face Buffy. "I've never claimed anyone, pet. It never did that when Angelus claimed Dru after he returned." He shrugged. "Maybe it was because he'd claimed her before, and he was just renewing it. I don't know."

"Maybe it's different because I was the Slayer." Buffy pressed her hand flatly over his heart. Her fingers tingled at the memory of the warmth that surged between them during the claiming.

"You are the Slayer, present tense, luv." Spike cupped Buffy's cheek. Their lives were becoming a myriad of more questions without answers yet. "We'll have to ask the Watcher about it."

"I'm sure Giles will love doing the research on that one. I can hear that phone call now." Buffy laughed. She held an imaginary phone to her ear. She cleared her throat and spoke in a horrid impression of her British Watcher. "Yes, I'd like to find out about this mist that covered my now vamped Slayer and her Master Vampire mate when they claimed each other." She practically rolled on the bed in laughter. "The Council will love that one."

Spike snorted. "Very amusing pet, but we aren't calling the Council of Wankers for anything. They would have destroyed the book I found because it didn't fit into their "all vampires are evil" ideal." He grew slightly fearful. He knew what happened to the other Slayers. He was determined that would not happen to Buffy. "They're certainly not going to help us now."

"You are so going to tell me what's in that book later." Buffy glanced across to Dalton who was still on his knees. He seemed to be waiting patiently for something. "Is there something else, Dalton?"

Dalton nodded slowly. "I know that you are newly risen, Mistress, but I have no doubts that you are Master's true Mistress." He looked over at Spike and then back to Buffy. "I wish to pledge my loyalty and all familial rights to you both. I ask that you and Master Spike accept me into your kinship, and I would give my blood as offering proof of that." He turned his head to the side. He was a vampire without a Sire. He belonged truly to no one, and no one truly cared for him before except Master Spike.

Buffy sat up on the edge of the bed. Spike followed her. She looked at him for guidance. Spike pointed at Dalton's neck. "You must drink first." He hoped that she wouldn't be too freaked out by the request. He liked Dalton. He felt a kinship already to the bookish vampire, and he had a desire to keep him as family.

Buffy leaned forward. She kissed Dalton's neck softly where a beating jugular would be if he were a breathing human. She worried the vein with her human teeth, bringing it more visible to the surface. How she knew to do that, she didn't stop to contemplate. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the Slayer within her. She was gradually realizing that the Slayer within was the source of her vampiric power. Her fangs sliced neatly into Dalton's skin.

Dalton tensed at the prickles of pain in his neck. He then sighed out in the pleasure of it. He opened his eyes to look at Spike. Spike knew what Dalton was feeling. Such an act brought pleasure to vampires. Spike could see Dalton seeking his Master's approval to enjoy the pleasure that Buffy was giving him. Spike nodded his affirmation and shifted into his demonic visage as well.

Buffy suckled Dalton's blood into her mouth. She felt the truth of his vows written in the cells of his own blood. She growled low into the connection, awash with the delights of the new joining. It was different than her claim with Spike, but there was a rightness about it anyways.

Spike moved around behind Dalton. He lifted Dalton's head up straight. "Though not my Childe by birth, you are now my kin by blood. Serve true and you will be rewarded. Betray us, and punishment will be swift and deadly. You belong to us." He reared his head back before he plunged his fangs deeply into Dalton's neck on the opposite side of where Buffy was still drinking. He picked up Buffy's arm and put it with his in front of Dalton's mouth.

Dalton felt himself quiver in weakness and excitement. He opened his eyes to see the proffered wrists. He bit into Buffy's first, pulling two strong streams into his mouth. He followed it with a bite to Spike's wrist. He repeated the two pulls of Spike's blood. He then retracted his fangs to lick both of their wounds, sealing them. For the first time since his Sire had been killed, he felt whole again. He belonged to a family, and he knew this one would treat him right.

Though Spike was a descendant of the Aurelius line, Buffy was only partially so. By completing this bond with Buffy and Spike acting as head of the family, they created a new one. This family consisted of the Aurelius bond and the Slayer bond. No one would be able to tell that Dalton was now a part of Spike and Buffy's family unless they knew exactly what the new scent was. Dalton not being Sired directly by anyone of the Aurelius line also helped to mask the Aurelian scent. Angelus and Dru would be unaware of the new addition.

Buffy and Spike removed their fangs from Dalton's neck with a feral growl of delight when they both felt him crest over into orgasm. They licked the wounds on his neck closed before they attacked each other in a whirl of claws and fangs.

Spike buried his cock into Buffy's wet quim simultaneously as his fangs sunk into her neck over his claiming marks. He pumped his hips forward in a fury of movement that no human could reproduce for any length of time.

Buffy clutched and clawed at any part of Spike's body she could reach. To muffle her screams she buried her fangs into Spike's neck and drank of his precious blood. Her back scraped across the floor. Each powerful thrust from her Mate drove her more wildly into ecstasy.

Dalton rested his back against the bed. His eyes were glazed over in pleasure whiels he watched his Master and Mistress mate again, reaffirming themselves to each other. Their bodies had a golden aura around them once more.

Spike and Buffy reached their peaks at a frantic pace. Both of them tightened around each other and collapsed together. Their heads ripped away from the others neck with a forceful "Mine" followed by "Yours" from each of them. There was a surge in the golden light, and both of their bodies arched when it pulsed brightly and entered them both. Both sated for the time being they fell asleep right there on the floor.

Dalton stood up on shaky legs. He stumbled over to the shower of Master Spike's suite. The Slayer's scent was all over him now. He couldn't go out into the rest of the mansion without giving her existence away. He stepped into a steamy shower, washing hard with herbal soaps to remove her scent. After he dried off he splashed a bit of an old bottle of cologne on himself that he found next to the sink. He quietly slinked across the room and exited Spike's suite. He made sure the door locked behind him. This would not be a good time for his Master and Mistress to be disturbed.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

(To Be Continued)

Revenge For Love - (5) Revelations
By Tasha

Chapter Summary: Spike and Buffy have started to "create" their own family bonds.  They started with Dalton, who has offered his unconditional loyalty to Buffy and Spike.  He's on a mission to secure more blood for the pair.  Buffy and Spike have much to talk about now.  Can they keep their hands and fangs off each other to talk?  Will they go meet the Scoobies?  Will the Scoobies be there?  Will Giles believe the book that Spike gave him?  Will we find out just what kind of demon turned our Slayer into the being she is now?  Will they be able to stay hidden from Angelus until the're ready?  That's for this chapter to discover.

**WARNING: Although not graphic in description, this chapter does include mention of abuse or torture as a part of Angelus' initiation for new fledglings.  It is near the beginning if you need to skim down, but like I said I'm not very graphic about it.  It's just enough to let you know that not so nice things are happening.**

Author's Note: As with the history of Charmand and Antoinette, the mythology here for the Slayer demon is based on various lores (some from vague references in BtVS) and my own original ideas

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Dalton scurried around the mansion for all that he needed to complete the task from his Master. He tried to blend into the background amidst the flurry of preparations for the end of another night. Most of the minions paid no heed to him on any given day anyway. This made his task much easy to carry out. So long as Angelus and Drusilla didn't return, that is. Angelus and Dru were still out on their hunt, but dawn was quickly approaching. They would be back soon. Right when he thought his good luck was holding, Angelus' voice bellowed across the main room.

Drusilla sauntered alongside Angelus. She rolled her eyes while Angelus regaled a couple newly risen minions with his story about Buffy's death. 'Silly daddy.' She loved Angelus with all of her demented being, but she was mad at him for not listening to her last night. The pixies were quite upset too. They refused to speak to her today because of him.

"It was a beautiful sight." Angelus laughed with deviant glee. "I wish I could have seen their faces when they found her in the morning." He puffed his chest out. He looked like an imitation of a cock-a-doodling rooster. 'I can't wait to rub this is Spike's face. He killed two Slayers, but I killed the Slayer he never could.'

"She might not be dead, Daddy." Dru piped in. The balance of power had not changed heavily in their favor yet. She still felt the heavy pull against her of their demise.

Angelus growled angrily at Dru. She tried his patience at times, and he was not going to be questioned by his Childe in front of the minions. He backed her against the wall. "She was dead long before morning. The Slayer was barely alive when I left her." He sneered. "If she lasted 10 minutes, it would be a miracle. No one could have saved her in time."

"Yes, Daddy." Dru knew this battle was lost before it began. Her actions may have been submissive, but inside her anger at him boiled. Nothing was going to sway him from his delusions. She threw her hands up in the air muttering as she walked away. "Miss Edith says no tea and cake for Daddy today. He's been a bad boy."

Angelus shook his head back and forth. 'If she wasn't such a wicked killer and luscious fuck, she wouldn't be worth putting up with her craziness.' He surveyed the minions in the room. 'Still, I'll have to pummel her into the bed today to make up for it. That will get her to forget her anger.' He kicked the two new fledglings into the middle of the room.

Angelus laughed as the new minions faltered. His sadistic grin grew when the other minions started their initiation rights into the clan. "Isn't the violence a wonderful sight?" He said loud enough to be heard. This spurned the group to greater acts of violation and abuse. He didn't stop the display. He knew part of it was for his benefit. The older minions wanted Angelus to see who was the most evil of them to curry his favor. 'If they survive, they are worth keeping. If not at least the others had their fun.' He noted the actions of several key minions. 'Excellent.'

Dalton shivered in disgust from his vantage point on the opposite side of the room. 'Barbaric.' The whole sight sickened him. These types of displays were one reason that humans thought vampires were all evil and cruel. He wanted no part in the perverseness of Angelus' form of initiation. His frown deepened with each tear of clothing, claw or fang wound created, and other abuses pounded into the fledglings bodies.

Dalton had to get out of this room and back to Master Spike's suite before the scene made him physically ill. Angelus already discarded him as a weak vampire. He wouldn't be expected to participate in the initiation. If it wasn't for his knowledge of ancient texts and languages he would probably be dust, but he refused to give Angelus any pleasure by showing his distress more outwardly.

Angelus circled the room. "Good boy." He praised a minion who dug his claws into one of the fledgling's back. The fledgling screamed out his anguish. The new minion felt the claws cut through his skin and streak his back with blood and tortured flesh.

Dalton groaned out loud. His luck took a more serious downwards turn. Angelus seemed to have stopped his circling in front of the corridor that led to Spike's living area of the mansion. 'How can I sneak by with him standing right there?' He mustered up as much courage as he could and stepped towards the corridor. 'Remain calm, and try to ignore Angelus. You are insignificant to him. Maybe he won't notice you.'

Angelus clapped his hands in sadistic joy. The two fledglings already survived more than he thought they would. He would need strong fighters to bring this town into line. He noticed Dalton coming closer to him with a crate in his hand. 'If that stupid Sire of his did this instead of coddling him, that insipid vampire never would have made it. I don't know why I keep him around, and what is that smell?'

Dalton froze in his tracks. Angelus had stepped directly into his path to stop him. He did his best not to shake, but he couldn't hold back a tremble of fear at being caught. 'What was it that Master Spike said to say? Oh yes, the blood was tainted.' He stood there and waited for Angelus' question that never came.

Angelus threw his head back and laughed. "You worthless vampire." He spat at Dalton. The scent of fear emanating from the bookworm fueled his lust for power to greater heights.

"Yes, Master Angelus." Dalton lowered his gaze. His trembling body served to add to his appearance of being a weakling. He hated calling him that. In his mind, Angelus was nothing more than a disgusting creature. He had a true Master now, and his name was Spike. "I am fortunate that you allow me to live under your protection, Master." His demon fought with Dalton to fight back, but he reined him in. He was a man of many talents that he never showed because as a man he abhored violence. The time for them would come later. Master Spike needed a link to those outside of his room. He needed to keep himself under wraps for his Master and Mistress' sakes. "I am grateful."

Angelus growled. This sorry excuse for a vamp was no challenge to his dominance of the clan. It disgusted him to waste his time on a nothing. "As you should be. You offend me with your presence." He sniffed the air around Dalton again. "You also offend me with your scent." He moved away from him a couple steps. "I know you like those fluffy colognes, but that crap you have on smells like something Spike wore a time or two."

'Uh oh. I thought the cologne was from a previous human occupant.' Dalton cringed inwardly. 'How stupid of me not to recognize the scent in my haste. I'm in trouble now.' He clutched the crate's handles tighter.

Angelus shook his head. Spike was the last being he wanted to have on his mind right now. He shook the memory of his scent away. "Throw the rest of the bottle out." He waved to Dalton to go wherever he was headed. He couldn't stand the smelly vampire's presence any longer. "If I smell that on you again, Professor, your heart will meet fresh air from outside your body. Understood?"

"Yes, Master Angelus." Dalton hurried down the corridor. He didn't stop to rest until he reached the top of the stairs at the end of the corridor. If his heart could beat it would be pulsing in double time. He checked behind him to see if anyone followed him. As he suspected, no one had. They were all too busy with the torture in the main area and vying for Angelus' favor. He leaned up against the closed door trying to gain his wits about him again before entering his Master's chamber.

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Buffy sat up straight abruptly. She pushed away from Spike. "Dalton!" She said with concern and agitation.

"What is it, luv?" Spike questioned. He had been dreaming peacefully of times gone by and future possibilities. He rubbed his eyes. Being awakened so quickly disturbed him. He had been so content that he was having trouble wiping the sleep from his brain.

"Can you not feel it?" Buffy stood up and stalked to the door. "Something is wrong with Dalton. He's scared."

Spike woke much more quickly with each step Buffy took across the floor. "No! Pet, you can't go out there." He jumped up to catch her. He grabbed for her hand to keep her from opening the door and leaving.

"But he needs us. I must protect him." Buffy pulled away from Spike's grasp.

Spike wasn't prepared for her strength. He fell to the floor after her hand was wrenched from his. He pushed himself up in time to see Buffy opening the door. "CHILDE!" He called out in a firm and commanding voice. "STOP!"

Buffy stopped immediately with the door half opened. She couldn't move, and it frightened her. She tried to move her muscles or turn around, but instead she was frozen in place. She felt lost and confused, defenseless. So, she started crying.

The door caved in the rest of the way with Dalton's weight, which had been resting against the door. He fell at Buffy's feet. "Thank you, Mistress." He looked up at her face and then over to his Master's. "Is something wrong, Master?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The first rays of the sunrise filtered through the windows of the high school library. One lone man sat at a desk in his office amidst various books and scrolls. His brow furrowed in concentration with each new revelation. He removed his glasses, dropped them to the desk, and pinched the bridge of his nose with his eyes shut. "Dear Lord."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Joyce Summers moved about the home on 1630 Revello Drive. Out of habit she opened the door to Buffy's bedroom to wake her up for school. She sighed at the realization that her daughter wasn't home, yet again. 'At least she's with Willow.' She started to leave the bedroom when a book caught her notice.

Joyce walked over to Buffy's dresser. A box of tissues sat next to the book with several crumpled ones on the dresser top. 'Was Buffy crying?' Concerned for her daughter's well being, she turned the book over to confirm what she suspected. This book was Buffy's diary. 'She never leaves it out. She must have been really upset.'

Joyce was torn between reading the diary and putting it back down. 'If she's that upset, I want to be able to help her.' She sat down on Buffy's bed with the book. 'She gets more distant every day. I feel like I don't even known my own daughter. Maybe this will help me to understand.'

Though a part of her conscience was screaming at her to put the book away, Joyce's motherly snoopiness and concern beat that part down. She opened the cover to read the first entry.

Entry #1 This has to be the worse day of my life. I so cannot believe the creepiness of it all, and could that guy be any more fashion challenged? Merrick, what kind of name is that?

Joyce kept reading from one entry to another. Her face shifted through more emotions than anyone could track. She dropped the book several times in fright and shock only to force herself to continue reading.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Sire?" Buffy's voice cracked through her tears. She didn't understand what was happening to her. She felt Spike's anger and also his fear that she was walking out the door. She couldn't even turn to face him.

Spike stood back up. He motioned for Dalton to finish coming in. He pointed him towards the other crate of blood bags and instructed him with a nod of his head to sit in one of the room's chairs.

Dalton shut the door, nodded and proceeded to do exactly as Spike indicated. He was befuddled about what was going on. Had those been tears in his Mistress' eyes?

Spike stepped up behind Buffy. With a hand on each of her upper arms near her shoulders he turned her to face him. "Come here, Childe." His voice echoed the concern and tenderness that he felt for his Mate.

Buffy's arms relaxed, then quickly wrapped around Spike's body. "Oh my god, Spike." She shivered in his embrace. "What happened? I couldn't move." A pair of frightened child-like eyes gazed up at him.

"I had to stop you, Childe." Spike cupped the back of her head with his hand. He purred softly to soothe and calm her. "I did it without even thinking that it was my Sire voice I used."

"Sire voice?" Buffy had a feeling she wasn't going to like his explanation for this one. Anything that could make her not move even when she wanted to was not good.

'She's going to be brassed off.' Spike sighed. "It is one of the many things that I needed to tell you about." He looked over at Dalton.

Buffy lifted a brow, but she calmed down some as Spike kissed and licked away her tears in a show of nurturing.

"Let's see what Dalton has to say, and then you and I can have that talk." Spike licked all traces of the salty fluid from Buffy's cheeks then kissed her forehead.

"All right." Something told Buffy to bite her tongue for now. She wanted to demand him to tell her, but that didn't feel like the right thing to do to her Sire in front of Dalton.

Spike relaxed a little. He may be Buffy's mate, but he was also her Sire. Sometimes those responsibilities had to come before the other. He couldn't risk her doing something so rash. The thought of losing her already scared him more than he cared to admit.

Dalton watched his Master and Mistress from a chair near the covered window. The sunlight would kill him in an instant, but the heat that radiated off the deep velvet drapes reminded him of a time when he could walk in the sun. When he felt that Spike and Buffy were waiting for him to speak, he stood up to walk over to them.

"Drusilla seemed quite a bit upset at Angelus tonight." Dalton began. His Mistress's eyes flashed violet, and her teeth elongated into fangs.

Spike caressed Buffy's cheek in assurance. He felt the change in her. It was likely that the names of Angelus and Drusilla would affect both of them for a while to come even if they didn't want them to. He wasn't sure whom Buffy was growling over more, Angelus or Drusilla.

"She stormed away to their quarters before I even came up here." Dalton smirked at the thought that Angelus might be losing his Dark Princess as well as already having lost Spike. "He brought in a couple new minions, and of course threw them to the wolves." He shook his head in disgust once more.

"Bastard. I know what his kinds of initiations can be." Although no minions swarmed around him at his turning, Spike had felt the cruelty of Angelus' introduction into the vampire world. He tightened his hold on Buffy.

Buffy looked up at her Sire and Mate. She rubbed her cheek against his arm in a comforting fashion. She purred softly to show her support and affection.

"Other than that, everything seems to be moving along as it usually does."

"Thank you, Dalton." Spike ran his fingers through his bleached waves. "Go get some rest."

Dalton headed for the door. Spike stopped him before he could leave. "We're going to meet with the Watcher tonight. I have more plans, but they all depend on his reaction. Don't come by until late tonight if you can manage."

"Yes, Master. I'll do my best." Dalton turned back to the door. "I have a feeling that I'll be the designated fledgling sitter." He stepped out into the hall. He shut the door quietly behind him.

The echo of the door shutting reverberated through the otherwise silent room. Spike stretched his hand in the direction of the bed. He stood at the end of it, not ready to sit down yet.

Buffy curled her legs underneath her when she sat. Her back rested against the headboard. She gave Spike her full attention. Good or bad news he was her Mate and Sire now. That meant he had to take care of her. Right?

'Might as well get the worst of it out first. Maybe the rest of it will be easier to accept then.' Spike paced the width of the bed and back. "IFirst off, want you to know that I won't be exercising all of my Sire's rights. I hadn't intended on using the one I used today in the first place."

Buffy nodded. "All right. What is to stop you from using all of your "rights" on me like you did with the voice though?"

"A Sire may use his voice in a certain tone or intent behind the words to force their Childe to obey. A Childe is unable to resist these commands."

"Like I wasn't able to move once you said stop?" Buffy nibbled on her lower lip. He could make her do anything he wanted?

Spike watched the nervousness and worry cover Buffy's face before it could disappear. "I had to stop you from exposing yourself to anyone, possibly Angelus." He sat down at the end of the bed. "I made a desperate plea that any lover would, but by being your Sire it forced you to stop."

"What if we were in the middle of having sex and you yelled for me to spread it and take it hard when I didn't want to?" Buffy doubted that she would ever want to refuse Spike's advances, but she needed to know she had the choice of stopping him. "Would I have to lie there and take it in pain without my consent?"

"No! Never!" Spike wanted to pull her to him to comfort Buffy, but it was best if they kept their distance at the moment. It sickened him to think about taking Buffy by force. Even his demon, having now sampled her complete and utter submission, wasn't willing to force his Mate sexually. "That is one Sire right I will NOT incite. I want you to come to my bed freely, Buffy."

Buffy relaxed a little. She knew sex was often used as a show of dominance over another vampire. She remembered reading about it in one of Giles' books. Spike didn't say that he couldn't do it, but he did say that he wouldn't. That would have to be enough for now. She hoped they would never have to have a discussion about that again.

"That doesn't mean things might not be rough at times. You might find that you enjoy certain pleasures that you haven't tried before." Spike's eyes were full of truth and honesty in the words he uttered. "But I will never force myself upon you. I've been subjected to that many times, and you shouldn't ever have to feel like I did."

The warmth in Buffy's cheeks rose. "I was only with Angel once, and we all know how that turned out." She sighed. "You are my only real and lasting experience." She soothed any ruffled feathers with her next statement. "You are all that I will ever want or need. Please tell me more about Sires and their Childer."

"Pet …" Spike scooted a little closer to Buffy's position. His anger at another touching Buffy only lasted a moment. Angel was in the past, and she chose Spike to be her Mate. That was all that mattered to him; man and demon. "Most Sires want to mold and shape their minions and Childer into the perfect demon. They try to force them to be who they want them to be and not who they really are." He tried to explain the most common directives for a Sire. "A strong Childe is a reflection on their Sire."

"You don't want to teach me things?" Buffy misunderstood what he was trying to say to her. 'He has almost 200 years of experience in the world. I could learn so much more from him, avoid so many mistakes.'

Spike jerked his head up. He heard Buffy's thoughts clearly in his own mind. "What was that, pet?"

"I asked you if you didn't want to teach me anything." Buffy repeated.

"No the part about my experience in the world."

Buffy looked at him puzzled. 'I didn't say anything about his experience out loud. How did he know?'

"Because I bloody well heard your thoughts, pet." Spike answered Buffy's thoughts out loud this time.

"Oh my!" Buffy slapped her hands to her mouth in shock. "That is just freaky."

'Tell me about it.' Spike grinned widely, letting a natural conversation carry itself mentally. 'I've heard about telepathy between mates, but it is highly rare.' He finished out loud. "It only occurs in the strongest of claims."

Buffy nodded. She heard both his thoughts and his vocal words with the same inflection and tone that he used vocally. "That is going to take some getting used to. How ever will I keep secrets from you?" She winked.

Spike beamed. He crawled up the bed and laid next to Buffy. This allowed her the higher position, since she was sitting up and he was laying down. He wanted to make her more at ease, help her to feel that she had more control. "It is wonderful though." He needed her to feel secure that he considered her his equal and not beneath him.

"Why?" Buffy questioned.

"Because, pet. It means that we have a strong bond." Spike was nearly giddy inside. "Our claims are mutually shared in mind and body. Our demons agree with our physical forms and emotions. We are more in synch than a normal mated pair ever would be."

"You mean it shows that what we did was right, and not just some awakening vampire sex thing?" Buffy thought about all the times she faced Spike in battle. There was something that always drew her to him like a moth to the flame. She had known he was forbidden, even more than Angel, but a part of her wanted him even then. Now it seemed that he was who she was meant to be with in the first place.

"Exactly. If it was a forced or haphazard claim, we wouldn't be able to read each other's minds." Spike rested his head in Buffy's lap. He caressed the top of her leg with his fingertips. "That crazy little Slayer of yours likes the "Big Bad"." He teased.

"Don't go getting a big head about it, Spike." Buffy rolled her eyes. "Your ego doesn't need any more stroking."

"But I thought you liked my big head." Spike tucked his tongue along the roof of his mouth with the tip pressed against the back of his top teeth. He smirked up at Buffy. "And I'm all for any stroking you want to do to me, pet."

Buffy playfully slapped Spike's upper chest. "Good grief. You really are horrible." She bantered in play.

"You're right, and you know you love it." Spike turned his face back into her lap. He kissed her inner thigh, trailing his tongue in circles along her femoral artery.

"Oh gosh." Buffy closed her eyes and shivered. "If you don't stop that, we're never going to get to the story about the book." She pushed Spike's head further down her legs and away from the place she would rather he be. "I need to know what is going on before we meet Giles."

Spike pouted like a child who just lost his favorite toy. "You're right, but it's more fun to tease you."

Buffy waggled a finger at him. In her best Drusilla voice she continued, "Be a good boy Willie or no tea and cake for you."

Spike raised a brow. He should be upset, but instead he just laughed. "That was bloody horrible, luv. Don't do it again, and never call me Willie." He shook his head back and forth. "Leave the crazies to the crazy woman."

Buffy smiled. She loved to hear Spike laugh. "Speaking of the bitch … Are she and Angelus able to hear each other's thoughts? I'm assuming he's claimed her."

Spike thought about that for a few minutes. "I don't think they can." He pondered it further. "I've never seen any indication that they could." A deviant and self-satisfying smirk grew. "How perfect that the "ideal" vampire couple aren't truly made for each other." He huffed. "Serves them both right."

Buffy seemed comforted that Spike wasn't upset about Dru and Angelus. "It's their loss." She leaned over to cup Spike's face in her hands. She bent down and kissed him tenderly. She sat back up. "Now the book … make with the splaining please."

Dalton might not be able to understand Buffy's terms, but Spike was rapidly catching on to the California bred girl's slang. It still baffled him that the English language was so decimated, but he'd work on that later. Her slang was a part of the attitude that he loved.

"First, I want to clarify what I meant earlier." He laid on his back, draped over Buffy's legs. "I will teach you a lot of things, but I'm not going to try and change who you really are. If I wanted a mindless clone, I wouldn't have turned you. You are so much more than that."

"Oh, nice with the sweet talk." Buffy licked her lips in contemplation over all the different ways she could reward Spike's compliments.

Spike closed his eyes and groaned. "Cor, pet. Don't think about that kind of thing." He slapped at the hard length of his cock. "Down boy." He flipped over on the bed to crush his member beneath him. It ached with need for relief.

Buffy giggled. "Oops. Sorry, Spike."

"Now then. Let me tell you a story about a vampire named Charmand, and the Slayer he fell in love with named Antoinette."

Buffy sat back against the headboard again. She listened to Spike unravel the mysteries of a Slayer who found love with a Master Vampire in the 1600's. She asked different questions along the way to make sure she understood what he was saying. She was always rewarded with Spike's patience and understanding.

Spike followed Buffy's thoughts and emotions while he told the story. He gauged her reactions to certain parts, and he was delighted to find her acceptance instead of her denial. When he finished his story, Buffy had a decidedly angry frown on her face and tears on her cheeks.

"So because the Council kept hounding them, and they had to stay in hiding, they both ended up dying?"

"I'm afraid so, pet." Spike nodded. "Even with the best second in command, you can not replace a Master Vampire's influence over a clan." He explained some of the inner workings of nests, families and clans. "Especially with the seemingly unnatural order of things in Charmand's domain, it would take a firm hand to keep any new vampires in line. Old vampires might even slip to the old ways causing even more havoc."

"The hierarchy seems very strict in its chain of command." Buffy pondered what would happen when Angelus was killed. Dru would surely have to be dusted as well. Would that make Spike in charge of the Aurelius family line?

"Actually it would, pet." Spike answered her unspoken thoughts. "The Master and Darla are already gone. If Angelus and Dru were also dusted, I am the next in line."

Buffy blinked. 'I could be mated to the new Master of Sunnydale?' She gulped anxiously.

"Don't worry pet, I have no intentions of following in Peaches or great-great grand daddy's ugly footsteps." Spike reassured her. "I don't know what will happen once they are gone. We'll have to figure that out when we get there. No sense in putting the card before the whole fricking corral of horses." He knew that most of the minions would have to be staked. There was no way Buffy could allow them to go on killing. He was fairly sure that Dalton would suffer through any chance that was asked of him. He didn't want to lose his book loving comrade.

Buffy chuckled at the analogy. "Why do you think the Slayers kept their souls? If a vampire demon joins us at death, how can it survive with the soul?"

"That is one place where your Council of Wankers are spinning their wheels in the wrong direction on." Spike sat up next to Buffy. He wrapped his arms around her to bring her closer. "Where do you think your slaying abilities come from?"

Buffy shrugged. "It's always been explained as just some mystical force that passes from slayer to slayer, generation to generation."

"Why do you think Slayers are able to sense vampires so well? Could it be that you recognize "one of your own"?"

"One of my own? You don't mean that the First Slayer was a vampire, do you?" Buffy's eyes widened in worry and disbelief.

"Not what I said, pet." Spike stopped to think of the best way to phrase his thoughts on slayer abilities. Louis, the Watcher from the 1600's seemed to agree with his notations in the journal. "When anyone is turned, it is the demon that joins with the human to create the new being. For most that means a vampiric demon enters them and tries to take over everything. For some, the majority goes to the demon, but enough of the human side remains for it to be noticeable. That makes us seem more human that others."

Buffy nodded and listened with avid interest.

"A Slayer is different because she already has a type of demon inside of her." Spike waited for the gasp that he knew would come from Buffy. He pressed a finger to her lips to tell her to allow him to continue to explain. "Slayer abilities rival a regular vampire's in strength, sense, stamina, and speed. I feel, as did Louis, that the First Slayer was created by a merging of a vampire like demon with a human female."

"Merging? So no bitey, just possession of the evil kind?"

"Something like that, yes, but less with the evi. The woman was strong enough in her humanity that it overrode the baser instincts of the demon that inhabited her. When she died, the essence of the Slayer herself and her demon was passed on to the next Chosen One." Spike laid everything out in detail. "You don't have a vampire demon inside you, luv. I believe that when I turned you it allowed your Slayer demon to show it's more vampiric qualities, but you are still different from other vampires. Did you know you have violet eyes when you morph?"

"I do?" Buffy perked up at that thought. "No golden?"

"No golden. You have softer ridges on your forehead, and your eyes are a beautiful violet color. You are so beautiful; human and vampire." Spike adjusted himself against Buffy. He didn't want to get too far off the course of their discussion.

"And of course I can't even look at myself in a mirror to see how pretty I am." Buffy teased

Spike laughed lightly. He loved the written word, and he thrived on new knowledge. It was a pleasure to share his knowledge with Buffy. "Even if a Slayer isn't turned the demon becomes stronger the older the Slayer gets, but most slayers don't live past 18 anyways. So, it isn't given a chance to take a firmer root. Those slayers who did survive past 18 seemed to disappear or have strange accidents along the way."

Spike shook his head back and forth. "I tracked a couple slayers in the 1940's and mid 1950's. Both of them were 20 years old when they died, and it wasn't a demon that killed them. Their deaths were listed as natural causes. Natural causes won't kill a Slayer. I think it was the Council."

"Why would the Council want to kill its own Slayer?" Buffy was appalled at the accusation. Sure, she didn't like the bunch of bureaucrats, but it wasn't their fault she was called. She couldn't hate them for that. She felt they should be giving her and Giles more support though.

"Because as the demon grows stronger, their Slayer was changed from a malleable child into a stronger woman with her own mind and ideals." Spike rubbed a hand down Buffy's arm. "Things stopped being so black and white. By that time she would have seen more about vampires than just what the Council wanted her to see. They couldn't afford that. So, they removed the threat."

"You don't think Giles would be plotting with them to have me killed if they aren't happy with me after next year, do you?" Buffy worried her bottom lip with her human teeth.

"Somehow I doubt it. Rupert Giles wasn't always the man you see now. I've heard tales about his younger days." Spike grinned in admiration. When he arrived in Sunnydale he did his own bit of research on the Watcher. Ripper's younger days were a treat to read. "He seems to care greatly for you, and not just as a Slayer. He's bit more of a rebel. If he believes us, he'll stay by you."

"I hope he believe us." Buffy sighed. "My mother is going to freak. I have to tell her something now. I never told her I was the Slayer. What will she think now when I tell her I'm kind of a vampire? She won't understand why I need to take night classes now instead of going to a regular high school."

"She's your Mum, Buffy. She'll understand." Spike caressed Buffy's face in long repeated strokes. "We need to take it one step at a time. First your Watcher, then your Mom or your friends. We have to be careful. Angelus must believe that you are dead."

Buffy nodded and yawned. "First we sleep." She yawned again. "It's strange, but I can feel the sun. It is pushing me to rest."

"Yes, it is time to rest. In time you will be able to completely fight the urge if you have to." Spike pulled Buffy with him as he laid out flat on the bed. "You already have an amazing amount of control. I'm very proud of you."

"Thank you, Sire." Buffy yawned and her eyes drooped closed. She snuggled against Spike and rested her cheek on his chest. She purred her contentment, which was echoed by Spike's won purr of delight. The two of them drifted off into a peaceful slumber where their dreams intermingled together, showing them another level of connection to each other.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Dru ranted while she paced the floor of their bedroom. "She is alive. The pixies are warning me about her." She turned to Angelus in a huff. "I warned you not to try and kill her. Bad Daddy." She growled.

"That is ridiculous, Dru. We had the same argument this morning." Angelus stalked over to Dru. He grabbed her arms and squeezed them hard. "I'm telling you that she is dead. No one could have survived that."

Dru mewled and bounced in place. "Please, Daddy. I don't want to go poof." She half-heartedly clawed at Angelus' chest. "She is like a hurricane wind; all blowing but not being seen. Only the crushed houses are left. We will be her crushed houses."

"I'm going to settle this once and for all." Angelus growled. He pushed Dru onto the bed. "I'm going to that little brat's house, and I will look for her. If I can't find out about her there, I'll torture every single one of her friends until I get my answer. Will that satisfy you?"

Dru nodded. The pixies didn't lie to her. Daddy was going to be mad when he found a living Slayer. "Yes, Daddy."

"Fine." Angelus kicked the bedpost. "Stay in here tonight. You are NOT to go out until I return." He ordered, knowing that his Childe would have to obey his command. He threw open the door and slammed it behind him. He needed to vent some frustrations before the sun set.

Dru whimpered. She pulled Miss Edith off the nightstand. She clutched the doll to her like a lifeline, rocking back and forth with it.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"My baby ..." Joyce Summers wept over the opened diary. She reread it at least 5 times, and it never got better. She laid down on Buffy's bed and grabbed Mister Gordo into her arms. "My poor baby." The diary dropped to the floor half underneath the bed where it would remain long after Joyce cried herself to sleep.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Shortly after sunset Angelus climbed the tree next to Buffy's room. When he reached the top he saw a large form on Buffy's bed. He realized fairly quickly that the form was Joyce Summers, Buffy's mom. 'Excellent.' He thought. He could see the tracks of make-up smeared down the woman's face to indicate that she had been crying.

'Buffy is dead. Crazy Dru doesn't know what she's talking about.' Angelus was satisfied that he had nothing more to worry about where the Slayer was concerned. He jumped down from the tree. He proceeded to head off into the new night with a bounce in his step. "This town will be mine, and none of her little friends are going to be able to stop me."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"I'm scared Spike." Buffy sat in front of Spike on their bed. Freshly showered, fed, and fully rested, Spike was brushing her hair for her now.

"I can't promise that it will be all right, pet, but I will be there no matter what." Spike tried to comfort his Childe. She needed the words of encouragement, and he worked to relax her with every stroke of the brush.

Buffy closed her eyes and purred. Every pull down the length of her long blonde hair felt like heaven. Her body tingled and relaxed. How could something so mundane seem so erotic to her? "I swear you could make anything seem sensual, Spike."

Spike chuckled. "Like this, do you?" He teased. He set the brush to the side and pulled Buffy back against his chest.

Buffy relished the feeling of his hard chest against her back. When he wrapped his arms around her she curled her hands and arms around his. "Thank you, Spike."

"For what, kitten?" Spike asked. He caressed the side of his face into her golden tresses. He inhaled her wonderful scent and committed it to memory.

"For saving me." Buffy turned in Spike's arms. "Even if they don't accept me, I know that you truly did save me that night. Thank you."

Spike kissed Buffy passionately pouring all of the emotions he was feeling into it. They stayed there for at least 15 minutes kissing non-stop. Neither needed to breathe, and they were using that to their full advantage. When they broke apart, both were panting.

"I would rather stay here all night making love to you, but we do have to meet your Watcher."

Buffy nodded. "All right." She hopped off the bed reluctantly. "Let's go."

"We'll take the same passage you pulled Dalton from." Spike pressed his hand into the right stone to release the locking mechanism. "Keep your senses sharp. We don't want to run into anyone out there who could give us away."

Buffy stretched her hand out to clasp Spike's in hers. Spike looked down at their joint hands and smiled. "Time to get this show on the road." They both stepped into the dark passage and vamped out. Once the door was secure again, they headed out to meet Giles.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Giles paced back and forth in what used to be the living room of an abandoned house. Earlier in the afternoon he'd convinced the rest of the group that it would be best for him to arrive at this meeting alone. All of them had protested for one reason or another. Mostly they all wanted to see Buffy, but they were also worried that it was a trap for Giles.

Giles explained to them that the less attention that was brought to the meeting, the better off they'd all be. He didn't fully trust Spike, but after all he'd read he was fairly certain he could trust Buffy. He would know once he saw her. He had a stake, a cross and some holy water readily accessible if he was wrong.

Giles looked at his watch again. It was two hours past sunset already. 'Where are they? Spike said to meet here one hour after sunset. I hope nothing has happened to them.' He sighed audibly. His head jerked to the side at the sound of light footsteps, barely noticeable to most people. He spent too much time around the unnatural and demonic to not be more aware of his surroundings that others would usually be. "Who's there?"

"Giles?" Buffy tentatively stepped further into the home. Her shadow moved along the way until her body was hit in full by the moonlight.

"Buffy?" Giles lit the lantern next to him to get a better look at her.

"Oh Giles!" Buffy ran towards Giles with her arms outstretched. In the two years Giles had been her Watcher, he already felt like more of a father to her than her biological one. She needed to know that he still loved her.

Giles took three steps back when Buffy rushed him. His instincts told him to run. It was only his devotion to Buffy that stopped him from running out of the house right then and there.

Buffy's arms dropped to her sides. "Oh God, Giles." Her disappointment was evident in her whole stature and expression. She turned away from Giles' rejection and into the arms of the bleached blonde vampire who stepped up to hold her.

"Nice move, Watcher." Spike growled. "Break the girl's heart, why don't you." He rubbed circles on Buffy's back. He dipped two fingers under her chin to bring her head up. He kissed her forehead.

Giles stared at the scene with wonder and innate curiosity. Last night he read everything the Council had on William the Bloody. Nothing spoke of any form of kindness that would be shown like the display he was witnessing. This was a ruthless and relentless killer. He slowly lifted one arm out towards Buffy. "I'm sorry, Buffy."

Buffy turned to face her Watcher again. She sniffled. "You don't believe the books, do you?" Her life was crazy enough already. Was she going to be alienated by her friends and family too?

"You have to admit it was quite a far fetched story at first glance." Giles looked up at Spike. He kept his gaze on the Master Vampire as he approached both of them. He noticed how protective the vampire was of his Slayer. He had no intention of becoming the Master Vampire's evening snack by moving too quickly. Tentatively he placed a hand on Buffy's shoulder. "It goes against everything I've ever been taught."

Spike snorted. "And of course you can always believe everything that your teacher teaches, right? Never question anything for yourself?" He was more than perturbed that the Council kept any information hidden that went against their status quo. "Those wankers wouldn't know the full truth about vampires and slayers if it bit them in the arse."

"Be that as it may, the information has been proven accurate most of the time." Giles countered in the soft argument between the two of them. Buffy switched her gaze from Giles to Spike depending on who was talking at the time.

"Bloody stuffed shirts." Spike chastised. "Completely closed minded bunch. Are we adding you to that count, Watcher?"

Buffy's eyes echoed the hopefulness that she wanted to find in Giles' answer. She waited anxiously for him to speak again.

"As incredulous as some of the evidence is ..." Giles' voice trailed off for him to take a deep breath. "I'm inclined to believe it is true. The brief additional research I was able to do supports the book in vague references."

Buffy and Spike both let out unnecessary breaths that they didn't realize they were holding. Their body language relaxed, and Buffy jumped into Giles arms to give him a big bear hug.

"Buffy!" Giles squeaked. "Breathe ... Need to breathe."

"Oops. Sorry Giles." Buffy let go. Although her cheeks didn't color, slight warmth did travel to her cheeks in place of a blush.

"You seem even stronger than I remember." Giles removed his glasses to clean them. "You are able to morph into a vampiric face, correct?" He watched with fascination while Buffy morphed out.

Buffy opened her mouth and tilted it back to show him her fangs. She lowered her head to stare at him, showing off her violet eyes. She pointed to them. "Much prettier than the normal gold. Well, so I'm told. No reflection. Which if I may say is going to make getting ready to go out much more difficult, and what about my make-up? I'm going to be Miss Pale Face." She shrugged.

Giles stifled a chuckle. 'That is definitely my Buffy. No doubt of it now. Only she would worry about something so trivial after being turned.'

"I'll make sure you never go out with a smudge of dirt on your face, pet." Spike playfully swiped the tip of his finger down the end of Buffy's nose. "You don't need to worry about any make-up either. You are beautiful just as you are."

"Awww, Spike." Buffy nestled herself into Spike's arms, pressing her face against his chest. She purred softly in delight. "You can do my hair any day too, Mate. It felt so wonderful earlier."

Giles found himself lost in the moment of tenderness between his charge and the Master Vampire. He mentally made notes for his journals. His thoughts derailed upon hearing the last words from Buffy's lips. "Mate? You claimed her?"

"Didn't intend to, but it happened." Spike's arms tightened around Buffy protectively. Nothing was going to keep her from him. Especially not after the revelation of a deeper bond. They were made for each other. If he had a soul, which her seriously wondered about at this point, they would be soulmates.

"We need to talk to you about some of the before and after effects too." Buffy rested her cheek against Spike's chest. She was able to look at Giles off to the side. "I'm fine with it Giles." She continued as Giles' facial expression turned into a more confused one. "My little inner Slayer even wanted this. She's the one that knew what to do. Not me."

"Slayer? So, the part that made you a slayer still resides in you?" Giles grabbed a notebook out of his inner jacket pocket. He had to write some of this down.

A large wooden cross poked out the lower inner pocket of Giles' jacket. Spike jumped back on instinct taking Buffy with him. Buffy looked up at Spike in confusion. "What's wrong?" Spike pointed to the cross. "Those things make me bloody uncomfortable even to be around."

Buffy tilted her head to the side to get a better look. She walked up to Giles and opened the jacket up. Her gaze wandered down to the cross in Giles' pocket. "I don't feel uncomfortable." She softly uttered. Her curiosity got the better of her. She reached down, dipped her hand in the pocket, and brought out the cross. Nothing sizzled or burned. She didn't even flinch. She held up the cross to examine it like a young child would a caterpillar on a stick. She twirled it around in her palm.

"Good heavens."

"Bloody hell."

"Cool!"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

(To Be Continued)

 
Revenge For Love - (6) Safety Net
By Tasha

Chapter Summary: Spike and Buffy made it out of the mansion to meet Giles in an abandoned house.  At first Giles was more skeptical of Buffy, but the longer he talked to her the more he saw the spark of his young charge in the new being before him.  A cross in Giles' pocket intrigued Buffy, and she picked it up.  She isn't burning from it.  What other differences are there?  Will Giles and Spike be able to collaborate their respective knowledge's, or will Giles get a superiority complex?  How are they going to keep Buffy off of Angelus' radar?  Will Joyce track down Giles to get information from him?

Author's Note: As with the history of Charmand and Antoinette, the mythology here for the Slayer demon is based on various lores (some from vague references in BtVS) and my own original ideas

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Buffy tossed the cross in the air and caught it again.  She was unaware of the perplexed looks on the faces of her Watcher and her Mate.

'Uh, pet?'  Spike stepped up behind Buffy.  He held her arm still.  'Give the Watcher his cross.'  He turned her around to face him.  He forced himself not to shrink away from the cross in her hand.  'You're making me nervous, pet.'

Buffy sighed.  "All right, Spike."  She answered out loud without even realizing that she was the only one who heard him speak.  "Taking away all my fun."  She handed the cross back to Giles.  She crossed her arms in front of Spike.  Her lower lip pushed out in a pout.

Spike groaned.  'You really don't fight fair, luv.'  With the tip of his finger, Spike pushed Buffy's lip back up and together.  "Can't resist it when you pout."

"Then don't resist, Spikey."  Buffy teased.

Giles tucked the cross back into his pocket.  For each question answered another one formed on the tip of his tongue.  His gaze faltered between Buffy and Spike.  He cleared his throat to get their attention.  "Spike never spoke, but you seemed to know what he wanted you to do?"

"Oops.  We did it again, didn't we?"  From the perplexed look on Giles' face she realized she reacted to Spike's thoughts and not his physical voice.  'This is going to take some getting used to.  I don't even think about whether you are speaking out loud or not.'

"Yes, we did luv."  Spike nodded to Buffy and answered her thoughts with his own.  'It will be very helpful and quicker for us to communicate privately at times.  We'll have to actively try to keep ourselves talking in other's company when relevant.'  The cross tucked away, Spike felt free to curl his arms around Buffy again.

"Is telepathy a common result of the Sire/Childe bond?"  Giles asked in genuine curiosity.  Nothing in his previous research indicated telepathy as a common vampiric trait.  Were his books missing this information as well?

"It's deeper than that, Watcher.  Nothing common about it."  Spike responded in annoyance.  He felt insulted that Giles would think something so extraordinary was a common occurrence.

Buffy twisted the fingers of her hand with one of Spike's.  "It is a result of our mutual claim."  Both of these men were dominant and strong in their individual beliefs.  She was quickly learning that Spike's failure to kill her before wasn't due to him being ignorant.  Something stronger had always been at work between them that wouldn't allow one to kill the other.  He might be impatient, but he was smart.

"Even then it is rare for the bond to be strong enough to form the telepathic connection.  Especially in a claim so recently established."  Spike added.  He needed to impart the knowledge to Giles that the bond was a stronger, more unbreakable, bond than even normal claims.  He hoped the Watcher would get the hint that nothing Giles did would break their claim.

"Fascinating."  Giles adjusted his glasses on his face.  'Is he actually threatening me?'  He eyed the Master Vampire carefully.  Everything about Spike's stance echoed the power flowing under the surface.

"I hope you think so after we lay it all out for you."  Spike chirped.  "Buffy says you love to research.  We've got plenty to look up."  He picked at his flaking black nail polish on one hand.  "Buffy and I have already experienced a lot that I didn't know would happen either as her Sire or her Mate."

"I'm afraid that the Council doesn't have many articles on vampire claims."  Giles sighed.  Where would he get the information he needed?  "I can't stop the Council from finding out about Buffy's death either."  This was a part he hated.  The Council would more than likely hunt Buffy down if they found out she was turned.  "When the new Slayer is activated they will know.  We will simply have to keep Buffy's existence a secret."

"I don't think we have to worry about the wankers knowing she died."  Spike pressed his lips against the back of Buffy's head in a kiss.  "She isn't on the Slayer radar anymore."

"Of course she's not."  Giles replied.  He seemed flustered with what he assumed was Spike's lack of care in his attitude towards the Council.  "Which is why we have a problem.  Her physical death will not go unnoticed by them."  His jaw clenched in a growing bout of anger.  "I know you don't respect their establishment, but you can't blindly disregard them as completely impotent."

"You're not understanding me, Watcher."  Spike ground the title out through clenching teeth like a curse.  "She was dead to them a long time ago."

"Make some sense, Spike."  Old habits died hard.  Giles was ready to defend the Council and his own standing in the demon intelligence community.  He knew what he was talking about.  Spike couldn't possibly hold such knowledge.  "Talking to you is like reading a sodding prophecy, Spike."

"I hate prophecies."  Buffy shivered.  "Buffy and prophecies are two very un-mixy things."  She sighed.  "The last time I ..."  Her head snapped up and her gaze met Spike's in understanding.

"Died."  Spike finished Buffy's sentence for her.  "The Master drank from you last year, and you drowned in his lair."

"Yes, but Xander revived me."  It unnerved Buffy that Spike knew so much about her past.  She hardly knew anything about his except what the Council put into their books.

"Get any strange jingles on the phone from the Council then, Watcher?"  Although Spike spoke to Giles, his eyes never left Buffy's.

"Not really."  Giles thought back to what happened the year before.  Usually his mind could snatch up the smallest of details into his active memory.  So much transpired between this year and the last.  It made it hard to sort it all into a mental timeline he could remember.

"Are you saying that the Slayer died, and the Council didn't know about it?"  Spike raised an intrigued brow.

"Wait."  Giles brought his index finger up to his lip.  "Quentin Travers did call me late that night after the Master was killed."  He forced himself to remember the conversation as best as possible.  "He asked me how things were going, and if Buffy was all right."

Spike nodded.  He could practically see a growing light bulb trying to force itself on over the Watcher's head.

"I told him about the Master's death, but I didn't say anything about Buffy's brief death."  Giles continued.  "I felt it unnecessary to tell him since she was alive again.  He didn't question me further after that."

"So, it would seem that the Council knew Buffy died that night."  Spike countered.

"It would seem so.  That would also mean that they knew about Kendra being called."  Giles' frowned.  "They didn't tell me about her until Kendra showed up in Sunnydale."

"That's right, Giles."  Buffy leaned back against Spike's chest.  "Kendra didn't seem to know about me either.  She believed she was the only Slayer."

"Strange."  Giles tapped his index finger against his jaw.  "It was foolish to keep that information from us.  We could have found comfort in knowing that we had another strong ally at our disposal."

"Unless the Council didn't want you to know about the other Slayer for a reason."  Spike interrupted.

"What would the purpose be in that?"

"I think they thought the Chosen line had moved on to the new Slayer.  So, they watched Sunnydale, Buffy, and you to see what would happen.  When it seemed that all was still well, they left Kendra where she was to train more in case Buffy stopped being "useful" because the Chosen line no longer flowed through her veins even though the Slayer was still present."  Spike started his hypothesis softly.  "They had the bonus of a more dispensable Slayer here on the Hellmouth when Buffy lived.  I'll bet they even made you send in your reports more frequently."

"Yes, but that isn't unusual."

"It makes sense if you realize that they needed those reports because she wasn't on their "radar" anymore."  Spike kept his tone even.  "Without your reports and whatever person they sent here to watch you both, they wouldn't know anything about Buffy anymore."

"What makes you think you know so much about this?  You haven't dedicated years of your life studying under the most knowledgeable people in this field."  Giles was furious at the thought that the Council would be watching him and his charge.  The whole idea was preposterous, and he was tired of Spike's know-it-all attitude.

"Guys, this is hardly the time for a display of mine's bigger than yours."  Buffy straightened up.  She was sure that Spike wanted to start pummeling Giles, and she couldn't allow that.  "I'm a bit curious to hear what he has to say."

"Of course you would."  Giles snorted.  "You're now his little puppet.  He can control everything about his Childe."  In his anger he used the word with disgust and loathing.  He lashed out at the most tender spot in the vampire's armor.

"You bastard!"  Spike cursed Giles.  "What I can do, and what I will do are two different things."

"Who is to say that you aren't controlling her?  You can't prove it."  Giles advanced a step closer to Spike and Buffy.  "She could be your little yes man now."

'Uh oh.'  Buffy held up one hand against Giles' chest and the other against Spike's.  This situation was getting uglier by the moment.  Who needed Angelus to come after them?  They were going to kill each other instead.

"You're right, Mate."  Spike wanted to wipe the satisfied smirk away from Giles' face with his fist.  He chose instead to wipe it away with something much stronger ... the truth.  "But you, Sir, are a rude man.  Not all vampires are vagrants and imbeciles.  Some can be very nice chaps like Dalton."

Giles smirk disappeared immediately when Spike's normal accent shifted into a much more cultured and upper class one.  He stared at the vampire as if he'd grown two horns.

'Love the accent, Spike.'  Buffy purred.  There was something raw about the coarseness of his usual accent.  The refined one caressed over her in a sultry manner too, more romantic then feral.  She loved them both for different reasons.  'You'll have to tell me the story behind where you got that one from.'

Spike winked at Buffy.  "I've spent almost a century in the pursuit and study of Slayers.  I used that information to kill two of them.  Now I'm using that information to save the one that is mine."  He adjusted imaginary spectacles.  "I can speak several languages including: Latin, Greek, Hebrew, French, Fyarl, Russian, and Aramaic.  I can read more languages, among them several demonic and ancient texts."

"But ... But ..."  Giles was reduced to stutters of disbelief.  The accent seemed natural to Spike, and it spoke of a refinement and education that he never attributed to the vampire.  The Council wrote that William the Bloody was an uneducated ruffian from the dregs of society even before being turned.

Spike switched back to his deep and rough lower class street accent.  "We don't all forget where we came from or what we knew.  Some of us still learn even after we're turned, Watcher."

Giles was well past the lens cleaning stage.  It wasn't until now that he removed his glasses to clean them though.  He had been frozen in place while the change came over Spike.  "I expect you picked that up over the decades by spending time in London."  He accused.  "You can't expect me to believe you had any culture in your life before you were turned.  You were no more than a street thug."

Spike growled, brushed past Buffy and slammed Giles into a wall.  "Pay attention Watcher because I won't do or say this again."  He ripped Giles' glasses from his hands.  "If you aren't a help to us, you won't exist any more.  So listen up."

Giles' heart raced.  He gasped for breath, but he remained firm in his spot.  He may not believe Spike, but he wasn't in a position to upset the vampire further.  If crosses didn't hurt Buffy, it was possible that Holy Water would be useless as well.  Spike could just have Buffy finish him off if he pushed it any further.

Buffy felt torn between protecting Giles and kicking him.  She felt the anger and frustration coming off her Mate in waves.  It radiated through her entire being.  She wanted to comfort Spike, or argue with Giles, but she sensed that this was something Spike needed to handle on his own.

Spike stepped back from Giles.  He stood next to Buffy again.  Taking in a deep breath he didn't need, he slipped the glasses on his face.  "Allow me to introduce you to the man your Council thinks it knows."  He mussed up his slicked back hair into a mass of fairly unruly waves and curls.  He pulled the glasses a bit lower on his nose before looking first down at Buffy and then back up to Giles.

Buffy's knees went weak at the penetrating gaze Spike gave her before he looked back at Giles.  'Damn, but that's not fair.'  She clutched the back of a chair to keep her balance.  'Your hair is so much sexier like that.  I never thought those glasses looked sexy on Giles, but damn you are a hottie.'

'You better not think anything on Giles is sexy, or he is going to be missing it right quick, pet.'  Spike suppressed his usual smirk.  He didn't want to ruin the effect he needed to portray.  "Allow me to introduce myself to you."  His accent easily slipped back into the upper crust one from earlier.  He bowed at the waist gallantly.  "My name is William Andrew Henry Jamison.  I was born on October 29th in the year of our Lord and Queen eighteen hundred and fifty-two to Andrew William Charles Jamison and Anne Elizabeth Winters Jamison, Lord and Lady Chesterfield."

"William" shifted nervously from one foot to another, seemingly shy.  "My father and sister, Victoria, perished in a plague shortly after I graduated from Oxford in 1876 with my degree.  I was forced to resign further literary and philosophical pursuits due to my mother becoming quite ill.  I now know that she had TB, but at the time there was no cure or successful treatment.  All of our money, what little there was left of it, went to her continued treatment."

Giles itched to start writing in his notebook.  He flipped open to an empty page.  He looked up at "William" to make sure he wasn't going to get bitten for writing things down, and then started scratching in as much of the details as he could.  Something was very familiar to him about that name.  He would research it more later.

"The gentry and nobility were being phased out with each passing year.  Titles were mainly mere words on paper, but the Jamison name still afforded me invitations to various social gatherings."  He clenched his hands into tight fists.  This was like reliving all of the anguish and humiliation that he tried to put behind him.  "At a particular gathering I allowed my foolish romantic idiocies to overtake good judgment."

Buffy slipped her hands around one of Spike's fists.  She rested her head on her arm.  She rubbed his clenched hand to work on relaxing him.  She could sense the pain each word was causing Spike.  She had a feeling that Spike was doing this for her benefit. 

Spike knew that they needed Giles' help, and he was willing to suffer his own humiliation to help Buffy.  They needed some of the Ripper's past forays into magic to protect them.  "After being completely insulted and humiliated in front of a group of my peers, I ran from the party.  In a barn I was approached by one of the darkest but most beautiful woman I had ever met.  She cajoled and catered to my weaknesses.  In my acceptance of what seemed a precious gift of a better life, I allowed her to bite me.  She drained my life force into her body, and then brought a strange man to my place on the barn floor to bring "life" back into my body."

"William" moved away from Buffy slowly.  He stood directly in front of Giles.  "I awoke different, that is for sure.  Yet, I was still the same."  He paused for his words to take more of an effect on Giles.  "Whether it was the fact that my emotions were so full and heightened at the time of my turning, or that somewhere someone thought I was a better man than I was, I retained much of who I was."

Spike removed the borrowed glasses.  He slipped them onto Giles' face.  "This wasn't acceptable to my Sire, and unless I'd buried that part of myself I would be dead much like Louis explained in his journal of other vampires.  So I've let the demon reign, forced the guilt as far back as I could until it was fairly non-existent and became what Angelus desired."

Spike extended his arm out to Buffy.  He curled it around her waist.  He rested his forehead against the side of her head.  "I didn't fit in as a human, but I swore that I would fit in as a vampire."  His accent deepened with no evidence of the refinery from moments before.  "I succeeded, and my goal was to destroy all that was good and embrace evil.  I've never been quite the heartless bastard that Angelus is, but I have earned my place in Hell.  No doubt of that."

Buffy gasped.  She turned to look at Spike.  She cupped his face with her hands.  "You don't have to be that vampire anymore, Spike.  There is so much more to you than just him."  She forced back the tears that threatened to spill.  "They Slayer wouldn't have chosen you if she thought you were nothing more than a killer."

"Shhh."  Spike placed two fingers over Buffy's lips.  "You are all that matters to me now, other than seeing Angelus dead."

Giles closed the notebook and collapsed against the wall.  "Good heavens.  I had no idea."

Spike kissed Buffy's forehead again then looked at Giles.  "It is possible, Watcher.  Charmand proved that."  He pulled Buffy against his chest, separating her long tresses with his fingers.  "I'm evil, but 'm not all evil."

"Do you regret what you did or being turned?"  Giles asked.

"Not likely, Watcher."  Spike scoffed.  He noticed the fearful expression on Giles' face.  "I never knew the joy in my 28 mortal years that I've shared with Buffy the last two days.  Without being turned, I never would have met her."  He hugged Buffy tighter, rocking them by twisting from one side to the other.

There were many unanswered questions that hung in the air between the trio.  Buffy looked up at Spike as she realized some almost disturbing things.  "Let me get this straight.  As a human you were 28 years old when you died?"

Spike nodded.

"Why you dirty old man."  Buffy teased.  She was only 17 and she would look that way for the rest of her "life".  If being a Slayer hadn't already matured her faster, it would seem even worse.

"Oh yes, Childe."  Spike playfully taunted Buffy with the term in more ways than one.  "Quite pervy actually."

Buffy stuck her tongue out at Spike.  With a laughing growl, Spike pushed Buffy against the wall next to Giles.  He heaped kisses on Buffy's face, then up and down her neck.  "I wouldn't change a thing, you little minx.  Young or old, you're what I want."  He nipped her collarbone.

Buffy sagged against his body and the wall.  She twisted her fingers in Spike's loosened curls.  With a jerk she ripped his head from her neck to devour his lips with her own.

Giles shifted around more nervously the further the intimate display progressed.  He slid away from the wall and across the room.  He couldn't resist penciling in details of the encounter into his notebook for further reflection.  He still felt like a "peeping Tom".

Mid-kiss Spike jerked his head away from Buffy's.  "Bloody Hell!"  He dug into the pockets of his duster frantically.

Buffy dropped down the wall.  She watched Spike move in a furious flurry.  "What is it?  What's wrong?"

"Angelus."  Spike managed to retrieve a velvet herbal pouch bag.  He separated the ties and dumped the pouch's contents on an end table.  "We have to hurry."  He motioned Giles near.

"We should be running from here."  Giles interjected.  He briefly scanned the contents on the table.

"No time."  Spike moved different pieces, powders and leaves into a specific pattern on the table.  "He is going to sense us soon, if he hasn't already."  He handed a piece of paper to Giles.  "Read this!"

Giles looked over the Latin lines on the page.  He raised his brow.  "Do you know what this is?"

"Yes.  It's our only protection."  Spike flicked his lighter until a small flame glowed.  "If he finds out she's alive or I can walk, we are done for.  We're not ready to face him yet."

Buffy was lost and confused, but if Spike was this scared, she didn't care what he wanted to be done.  "Just do it Giles.  If he says that it will protect us, I trust him."

"I don't think this is wise."  Giles shook his head, but he held the page closer to the lantern.  Neither Buffy nor Spike seemed willing to fight Angelus yet.  "But I'll do it."  He started chanting the Latin phrases.

One stack at a time Spike lit or mixed one set of herbs into another.  The stash on the table smoked then a puff of smoke and flame jumped into the air.  With the flame still burning, Spike reached in to smear the soot on his hand.  He hastily rubbed a wide line across Buffy's forehead, his own and then Giles'.  The last of the chant fell from Giles' lips, and all three felt the magic rush through them and then out.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Angelus strolled through the night along various Sunnydale streets after he found Joyce crying on Buffy's bed.  This town was completely his now, and he wanted to explore it further.  His travels turned him towards a series of abandoned houses.  He scouted out each one for a possible stronghold or additional base of operations.  He was tired of all the minions scurrying around the mansion.  Some of them needed to find somewhere else to live.

Angelus' head jerked up quickly.  "Spike?"  He said in confusion.  The sense of his Childe's presence was weak, but it still felt like him.  There was something else present that he couldn't put his finger on.  He was drawn towards one of the abandoned houses on the block.  With each step nearer, the sensation became stronger.

One moment Angelus would swear that he heard a heartbeat and smelled the flow of human blood along with his Childe's presence.  The next moment it seemed that everything was gone.  He leaned up against the house.  'Strange, there is a lit lantern in there.  Better check it out.'

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The door to the abandoned house where Giles, Buffy and Spike were standing in rattled.  It opened into the entryway, and a dark figure stepped from the moonlight into the shadows.

Buffy, Giles and Spike watched the figure prowl for what was in the house.  When the figure emerged into the open area the lantern lit his pale features.  Buffy gasped.  'Angelus!'

Spike quickly covered Buffy's mouth with his hand.  He wasn't sure just how complete the spell would be.  'Hush pet.'  He watched Angelus move scope out the room.

Giles looked down at the table.  If Angelus came close enough to them wouldn't he see the evidence of the spell?  He was surprised to see an immaculate and unblemished table.  He looked over at Spike in question.

Spike took the page from Giles and his pencil.  He wrote down, "Cloaking Spell; our own little safety net.  Ingredients disappear once the spell is cast."

Giles nodded.  He waited for Angelus to discover them.  There were too many variables present to mask with a simple cloaking spell.  If he had been too hasty in its execution they could be revealed.

Angelus walked towards the table.  He almost ran into Buffy, but she slowly turned away before he could touch her.  'Spike, if he finds us.'  She shook in Spike's arms.  Before seeing him again, Buffy thought she was ready to face Angelus.  She was positive she wasn't ready now.

'Just stay calm, pet.  The less the spell has to cover, the more effective and longer it will last.'  Spike's calming words in Buffy's head were for his own benefit as well as hers.  He was able to walk again, but he wasn't in full fighting capacity yet.  If Angelus found out Buffy was turned, he would torture her for years until he tired of her.  He shuddered to think of the things Angelus would put Buffy through.

Buffy's eyes widened at the images that seeped into her brain.  She whimpered.

Spike shook his head at Buffy.  'Not happening, luv.  I will stake us both before he could do that.'

Buffy nodded, but her fear and worry increased exponentially with each passing minute.

Angelus lapped the living room for the third time.  Nothing seemed out of the ordinary other than the lit lamp.  He headed back to the entryway.  He opened the door to leave finally.

Angelus closed the door and shrugged.  "Angelus my boy, you've been spending too much time with Dru."  He laughed at himself.  "You're starting to feel things that aren't there too.  The lantern was probably left by some homeless human."  He practically bounced down the steps to begin his exploration of the area again.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Oh God, that was close."  Buffy clutched her chest.  She spoke softly, still afraid that Angelus might hear them.

Giles trembled.  "I take it back, that was very wise."

Spike snorted.  "How gracious of you, Watcher."  He then muttered under his breath, "Pillock."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

(To Be Continued)


Revenge For Love - (7) Letting Go
By Tasha

Chapter Summary: Angelus almost caught Buffy, Giles and Spike meeting.  Thankfully Spike found a cloaking spell that would cover their essences as well as their bodies and scent.  Spike has revealed to Giles a good portion of his past in an attempt to sway him to the cause.  Now they must set things in motion with the rest of the Scoobies and Joyce.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"That was way too close for comfort."  Spike sat down on the back of the couch.  His mind raced over various scenarios.  "I need to know for sure if we have your support, Watcher.  Are you in or out?"  He hoped the revealing of his proverbial soul, and the cloaking spell trick, was enough to gain Giles' interest.

"I'll have to verify some of the historical facts of your background."  Giles began.  "But I suppose if you wanted me dead you would have given me over to Angelus just now."

Buffy laid her head on Spike's shoulder.  She curled her arm around his.  "What do we do next?"

"I am going back to the mansion."  Spike sighed sadly.  He wanted to keep Buffy with him, but the further she was from Angelus and Dru, the better chance they had to keep her "life" a secret.  "You are going with your Watcher."  He stared directly at Giles.  The seriousness of the task, and the protectiveness Spike had for Buffy, was echoed through his gaze and impressed upon Giles.

"No!"  Buffy sat up abruptly.  "I'm not leaving you."  She stood in front of Spike.  Her voice was frantic.  The desperation was spoken partially by a new fledgling not wanting to be apart from her Sire, but it also came from her desire to remain with the man she had chosen as her Mate.  She didn't want to leave his side in case something happened.  "Please don't make me leave you, Sire."

"Buffy, I know Willow and Xander are anxious to see you.  They are waiting at my house in case you were able to visit after our meeting."  Giles thought up several reasons for Buffy to return with him.  "There's also your mother to think about."  He wasn't trying to be cruel.  If Spike wanted Buffy to go with him to his house, there must be a reason for it.  He read during his training about the bonds between Sires and their Childer.  He knew the separation would be difficult on both of them even if there weren't any other factors to consider.

"Mommy."  Buffy responded meekly.  "Is she all right?"  She looked over at Giles with concern.

"She doesn't know anything yet, Buffy."  Giles frowned.  "She thinks you are staying at Willow's house, but that will only hold out for so long."

Buffy nodded.  "We need to tell her everything, Giles especially now."

"Surely you don't want to put her in that kind of danger?"  Giles retorted.

"She's already in danger."  Buffy argued.  "Do you think Angelus is just going to leave her alone now that he thinks I'm dead?"  There was no way she was keeping her mother out of the loop any longer.  It was important to Buffy that Joyce was told what was going on and how to defend herself.  "He's going to go after everything and everyone.  There's nothing to stop him."

"Pet, you have to be very careful about who know what."  Spike held up a hand to stall Buffy from interrupting him.  "I know you need to see her, but Angelus must continue to believe you are dead.  She wouldn't be too convincing as a grieving mother if she's all happy you are alive."

Buffy nodded in understanding.  "I'm sure she'll be upset by it all.  I've never told her about my calling.  She won't have to act there."  She imagined the tears and probably anger she would face from her mom.  "Maybe it we make sure she is working on funeral arrangements it will keep Angelus out of the loop?"

"We could even set it up as a sunset graveside service."  Giles added.  An idea started to brew in his head.

"That's bloody brilliant, Watcher."  Spike quipped in delight.  "Tall, dark and forehead wouldn't be able to resist a chance of wiping out all of the Slayer's friends and family at once."  He nodded more emphatically the longer he thought about it.  “It might cause him to delay any current plans he has for your family and friends if he feels he can take care of everyone in one fell swoop.”

"Spike, if we can disguise our presence like we did tonight, you and I could be waiting in hiding in a nearby crypt."  Buffy was all for planning Angelus' dusty demise.  "Better yet have an open casket, and I'll wait for him there.  With my new state concealed, he'd never know I was a vampire until I came out of the casket to get him."

"I like the way you think, luv."  Spike delighted in the complete lack of hesitation on Buffy's part to exterminate the former love of her life.  It boosted his confidence to a different level of security.  "He'll think he's picking the perfect ambush when it will end up being the perfect trap instead."

"We could tape stakes to the undersides of the chairs and in the coffin as well for everyone to use."  Buffy thought further on ways to conceal weapons and secure her mother's safety.  "How long do you think we need to get everything together, Giles?"  She asked.

"I will probably take at least a day to speak with your mother."  Giles mentally calculated any necessary arrangements.  "Probably another two days for preparation and to make sure Angelus knows about the funeral."

"Sounds about right."  Spike nodded.  "I have some things at the mansion to finish, and then I'll be able to join you."  He looked over at Giles.  "If I am welcome."

"I'm sure we can arrange something."  Giles responded flatly.  He didn't relish the idea of allowing another vampire into his home after the disaster of the last time, but the look on his ward's face told him what she wanted.  "We have to find a safe place for both of you that will keep you hidden until the time is right."

"I'm sure you’ll fine the perfect arrangement."  Spike rolled his eyes, not hiding the sarcasm in his voice.  He had no doubts about where exactly Giles would like to put him.  'In front of the largest window on the East side of the house.'

'Sire, please.'  Buffy called Spike by his title in the hopes of appeasing his demon as well as showing her respect.  'I trust, Giles.'

'I'm 95 percent sure I can trust him to care for you, Childe.'  Spike continued their conversation mentally.  'But he would sooner stake me than trust me.'

'I'll do what I can to sway him, beloved.  He won't hurt me, and if hurting you hurts me ... which it does ... he won't hurt you.'  Buffy caressed Spike's cheek with her thumb while she cupped the majority of it with her hand.  'Are you sure that I can't stay with you?'

"Yes, I'm positive."  Spike brought the conversation back to the verbal realm.  "If Louis is correct you were actually turned with the vampiric like traits of your Slayer demon as it accepted my blood to bring it forth."  He pressed his forehead against Buffy's.  "Your link to the Aurelius line is weaker because of it.  I feel you as your Sire, but I feel you more as my mate.  Once we claimed each other, I felt you strongly on a much different level."

Giles, who had been watching the two supernatural beings converse without speaking, was glad to hear the conversation again.  He wondered what he missed during their shared verbal silence.  Somehow he thought they were talking about him.  Did it show a certain form of restraint that Spike and/or Buffy hadn't insulted him out loud?  Or were they simply plotting?  All of this confusion was giving him a huge headache.  Nothing was even as simple as it used to be, and things were complex enough before this.

"I believe that is the main reason you weren't sensed while we were at the mansion.  I covered your scent with the incense, but that would not cover your essence."  Spike pulled a small leather bound notepad from his duster pocket.  "Here are some additional notes, observations and thoughts from the last several decades that I’ve made or found out about from others.

Giles accepted the notepad being handed to him.  His inquisitive mind wanted to tear into the contents right away.  His headache was forgotten with the draw of new research.

"You are already a powerful vampire, Childe.  That is not something normal that happens to a fledgling.  You have a control over your own demon and bloodlust that a lot of vampires never achieve.  Angelus and Dru should have felt you at the mansion."  Spike explained.  "I don't want to take any chances with your life if I'm wrong about your demon."

"I'm afraid, Spike."  Buffy nestled her face into Spike's chest.  "Angelus will kill you if he even suspects anything.  If he realizes you can walk it will be bad.  If he realizes that you turned me, he will dust you.  You know how possessive he is."  She looked up at him to share in his gaze.  "If the cloaking spell didn't work completely you could be walking into trap.  It would be just like Angelus to play a head game with us."

"I'll be very careful, pet."  Spike threaded his fingers through her silky hair.  "We won't be apart long and we'll still feel each other."

Buffy nodded.  "Two days, Spike."  She spoke firmly.  "You have two days to take care of whatever you need to do.  Then I want you with me for the last day before we face Angelus."  Though determination was etched into her face, her voice trembled a little at the end of her "order".

"Getting a little bossy, Childe?"  Spike called Buffy Childe, but there was a teasing note in his voice.  He was not disciplining her.  "Do I need to remind you of your place?"

Buffy chuckled.  Her body, mind and demon realized when Spike was serious in his reproach or not.  "I know exactly where my place is, Sire."  She wrapped her arms around Spike's back.  With a hop up she wrapped her legs around his waist.  "Right here is where I belong, Mate."  She ground her hips down against Spike's clothed but rapidly growing erection.

Spike groaned lustily.  He worked to pry Buffy from his arms.  She was strong.  So, it was no easy task.  He practically had to start tickling her to get her to let go.  "If you start that I'll never make it back to the mansion before dawn."

Buffy smirked.  Spike's reactions gave her a sense of power that had nothing to do with being a Slayer or a vampire.  It was a feminine pride that tickled her to her core for being able to make him react that way.  The fact that he couldn’t easily push away made her feel even more comfortable with her choice of Mate.  Spike was her equal.  Her Slayer side recognized his strength that rivaled hers, and her human side craved his protection.  Both sides accepted Spike for what they needed.

Spike finally wrenched himself from Buffy's grasp much to the dismay of both of them.  Lust burned between them in their eyes, from low rumbling growls and the growing tensions of their bodies.

About the time it looked like the two mates would pounce on each other again, Giles cleared his throat.  "Buffy, I think it would be best if we leave soon."

Buffy sighed.  'Please come back to me as soon as you can.'  She kissed Spike deeply with all of the longing that was caused at even the idea of them parting.  It was more than the link from the claim or the bond of a Sire.

Spike deepened their kiss and pulled Buffy into a tight embrace.  "Nothing can stop me from returning to you."  He said after their kiss ended.

"My car is out back, Buffy."  Giles extended his hand out for Buffy to accept.

Buffy kissed Spike again briefly before she clasped her cool hand into Giles'.  To his credit Giles shivered at the cool touch, but he did not pull away from her.

Spike watched Giles' reactions.  It was a giant leap of faith and trust on Spike's part to let his Mate and Childe leave with another man.  His demon knew that Giles posed no threat sexually to his mating claim, but Giles could still take the opportunity to kill her.  "I'll take the sewers back to the mansion.  It will be the safest route."

"Why?"  Buffy asked.  Her hand stayed in Giles'.  She felt safer with him holding her hand.  Only Spike made her feel the safest right now, but there was a sense of peace in her Watcher’s hands as well.

"Because Angelus would never stoop himself down low enough to travel in the grime of the sewers.  He's too uppity about his precious appearance."

Giles half chuckled.  "This coming from the bleached wonder of vampires and vanity?"  He teased.

"Oh."  Buffy answered Spike.  She stifled a chuckle behind a hand that now covered her mouth.

"Sure, laugh it up pet.  I’m not afraid to get down and dirty."  Spike puffed out his chest and stood a little straighter.  "Can't help it that I'm so bloody handsome, and I want to show it off."

The three of them shared in a brief respite from the tensions by laughing together.  Giles was the first of the three to recover.  "Goodbye, Spike."  He offered his free hand to Spike's to shake.

"Goodbye, Watcher."  Spike shook the offered hand firmly.  "Take care of my girl."  Gone was the levity of a few moments before.  Spike's voice dripped with an unspoken threat of what would happen if harm came to Buffy in any way.

"As if she was my own daughter."  Giles answered with no indication of backing down.  His intentions where Buffy was concerned were clear.  Giles did love Buffy like a daughter.  He would protect her at all costs, even from the Council.  In many aspects he had much in common with Louis, Antoinette's watcher.  It was just taking him a little bit longer to find the right amount of acceptance to everything presented to him.

"I'll send Dalton to your place with blood for Buffy."  Spike added.  His research of the Slayer included all of her friends when he first arrived in Sunnydale.  He knew where each of them lived and hung out.

Giles nodded.  He wasn't in the mood to argue with Spike about knowing where he lived.  "That will be very helpful.  I'm not sure where Angel picked up his pig's blood."

"No pig's blood for my, Childe."  Spike sneered.  "Only human.  She needs to be strong for her battle."

"But ... I can't ... can't condone the murder of innocents."  Giles stuttered.

Spike exaggerated the rolling of his eyes.  "I know that, Watcher."  He sighed.  "The poofter has been feeding me bagged human blood.  It's probably from a blood bank.  So at worst it was stolen."

"Oh."  Giles stopped stammering.  "Stolen isn't good, but at least no one was killed to procure it."

"I know that even as a bit of a demon, the Slayer isn't going to allow the death of innocents."  Spike explained.  "Try to heat it up in the microwave a little bit, pet."  He turned his gaze to Buffy's.  "It won't be as good as getting it from me, but it will taste all right when warm."

"Thank you, Spike."  Buffy hugged Spike one more time.  "I appreciate everything you are doing for me."

"You are my Childe and my Mate.  I will do everything I can for you until I'm dust in the wind."

Giles tugged on Buffy's hand a little.  They both turned towards the back of the house and disappeared into the kitchen area.

Spike watched Giles and Buffy leave.  With a sigh he turned to leave out the front door after he heard the click of the back door being closed.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Giles opened the car door for Buffy.  Buffy sat down in the seat and buckled in.  Once Giles slipped into the car as well Buffy spoke.  "He really isn't as bad as the books said he was."

Giles sighed.  "I don't know what to believe any more, Buffy, but I do know that he is a dangerous force to be reckoned with.  Even though that force seems to be directed at helping us now, it does not excuse the actions of the past."

"I know, but we gave Angel a chance because of his soul."  Buffy rested a hand on Giles' arm.  "Spike wasn't cursed with a soul, but he still saved me even knowing that I would keep my soul.  It makes no sense for a completely evil creature to turn someone that they know won’t be evil and would probably stake the one who turned them."

Giles started to interrupt, but Buffy rushed on with the rest of her argument.  "You can't say it was just for his own evil purposes or to make me his slave.  If that was the case, I would still be at his side or chained to a bed somewhere.  He wouldn't be letting me go home with my Watcher to protect me and let me take care of my family and friends.  Does that sound evil to you?"

"No, it doesn't Buffy."  Giles started the car.  "What will happen when Angelus is gone though?  Spike isn't going to let you go.  I know enough about claims to realize that."

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there, Giles.  We have enough problems to deal with right now."  Buffy shrugged her shoulders.  "It seems to me that he's tried to do what he can to help you accept me.  I don't foresee him trying to take me away from you guys without my consent."

"I hope you are right.  This is going to be hard for your mother to accept."  Giles put the car into drive and headed down the street towards his own house.  "Your first, no second, "death" isn't going to be any easier.  If he tears you away from her later, I don't know what it will do to her."

"I won't leave Spike, Giles.  Nothing you say will make me do that."  Buffy unconsciously wrung her hands in her lap.  "I trust him.  He doesn't want to hurt me."

"I'll pray that you are right, Buffy."  Giles added before they both slipped into silence for the remainder of the trip to Giles' home.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Every step further away from Buffy was harder to take than the last.  Spike could tell when Buffy and Giles actually pulled away in his car.  As the distance increased between them faster, the ache he felt inside built in intensity.  He felt her distress.  Something was troubling her.  He tried to send comforting sensations across the distance through their connection.  Both of them were strong vampires, and their claim was strong.  It allowed them a greater distance of connection.

Spike knew when they arrived at their destination.  The pulling against their bond finally stopped at a certain level.  The pulsing tightness around the area of his unbeating heart slowed down to a particular beat and tension.

'We're here, Spike.'  Buffy thought to her Sire.  'Xander and Willow are in there.'  She nibbled her lip nervously.  'I can hear their heartbeats and smell them.  How weird is that?'

Spike chuckled.  'It's natural for us, pet.'  He smiled in pride at her acceptance of her abilities even if it was still weird to her.  'Try to keep your physical contact with them to a minimal level.  It will help you control your cravings.  They need your reassurances of being all right, but if you stay close for too long it will affect you more.'

'Thank you, Sire.'  Buffy answered in gratitude.  'I miss you already.  It actually hurts, Spike.'

'I know.  I feel it too, beloved.'  Spike opened the manhole cover near the mansion.  He hopped onto the street and replaced the cover.  He reached the garden of the mansion quickly.  'We have to stop communicating this way luv.'

'Why?'  Buffy saw Giles looking at her strangely.  She hadn't moved from next to the car even after they arrived.

'It is strengthening the connection of our essences, luv.'  Spike tried to explain.  He hated the thought of not being able to talk to her through it.  'We are already radiating a type of essence because we are bonded.  Using the telepathy will amplify that.'

'Angelus would be able to feel that?'  Buffy was worried.  Each revelation only caused her more concern for Spike's well being.

'Yes, he could.  Also your friends will freak out if you just start staring off into space while you talk to me.'  Spike teased to lighten the mood.  'Now go to your friends.  I have much to do if I am to get back to you in two days.'

'Hop to it then.'  Buffy teased back.  'What are you waiting for?'

'I'm waiting for my little chit of a Mate to let me go.'  Spike smiled.

'I'll never let you go, Spike.'  Buffy's voice in his head turned serious.  'Never.'

'Eternity my darling.  We now have eternity to share together.'  Spike answered.

'I'm going to hold you to that bleach boy.'  Buffy stepped up next to Giles.  "I think I'm ready."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Spike felt the connection lessen without Buffy actively putting her thoughts out to him.  The bond lingered there; taunt from the distance, but warming that he could still feel her.  He separated the foliage along the wall to open the door.  He slipped into the passage that led back to his room.  Indeed he did have much to take care of before he would be ready for their fight.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

(To Be Continued)

Revenge For Love - (8) Friends and Family - Part 1
By Tasha

Chapter Summary: Spike headed back to the mansion.  Buffy and Giles headed to Giles' house where Willow and Xander are waiting for them.  They are planning to meet again in 2 days.  In three days time they expect to plant their trap for Angelus.  Will Buffy be able to see Xander and Willow without wanting to eat them?  Will they accept her as she is now?

**WARNING: There is some blood sharing between Spike/Dalton in this chapter as well as Buffy/Dalton.  There is no m/m sex or sexual touching, but vampires do react erotically to being bitten.**

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Dalton was waiting for Spike's return to the mansion.  Spike felt the younger vampire while Spike was still in the passage.  Letting his senses reach out to sense anyone else, he found out that Dalton was alone.  'At least we were able to get away with the meeting without Angelus finding out we were gone.'  He stepped into his bedroom.

"Good evening, Master."  Dalton walked over to Spike.  He stepped up to Spike, tilted his neck and offered himself up for his Master's test to confirm his loyalty.

Spike tilted his head to the side in wonderment.  "You offer this willingly, Dalton?"

"Yes, Master."  This was an old custom that few Master Vampires insisted upon anymore.  By tasting the blood of their minions, Childer, or other vampires they could sense if another had bitten them or if their loyalties had switched.  Dalton knew that his loyalties were secure, and he wished to offer up that proof to his Master.

Spike grinned.  "I trust you, Dalton."  He grew more proud of his new family member with this offering.  "Do I have any reason not to trust you?"  He asked calmly.

"No, Master."  Dalton remained in his position in front of Spike.  "What you are doing is dangerous, Master."  He turned only his eyes to look at Spike.  "I wish no doubts in your mind at all in case anything happens in the future.  You know the kinds of games that Angelus will play."

Spike nodded.  He pulled Dalton into his arms.  His face shifted, and the demon sprang forth.  Each time he shared in Dalton's blood it brought them closer.  He promised himself to find a way for Buffy to partake of Dalton's blood again to reaffirm the connection within their family.

Dalton prepared himself for the bite.  Vampires enjoyed the painful pleasures that most humans did not.  It did sting or burn when first bitten though.  His body tensed at the first stretching and snapping of his skin under his Master's teeth.  He visibly relaxed a moment later at the first pull of his blood into Spike's mouth.  He brought his hands up to Spike's arms and held on.

Spike growled deeply.  'His blood is richer than I expected.  It must be an after effect of him drinking from Buffy and I.'  He thought to himself on the second and third pulls.  His grip tightened on Dalton's arms.  He felt himself harden in response to the lingering taste of his Mate in Dalton's blood.  He refused to give in to his demon's desire to take Dalton to bed.  He had always remained faithful, and he would always be faithful to his Mate.

Dalton felt Spike's hardness press against his own clothed erection.  At the fourth pull from his neck, Dalton panted.  His legs trembled.  Any moment, and he knew that he would careen over the edge into orgasm.  "Master, please.  I'm going to ..."

Spike knew what Dalton needed to do.  The younger vampire showed restraint already by not cumming.  Spike lifted his wrist to Dalton's mouth.  He growled his approval.

Dalton's demon eagerly surfaced.  His fangs latched onto Spike's wrist and drank deeply of his Master's precious fluid.  He felt the bond of family increase and strengthen.  When at least his orgasm hit him, Dalton slumped against Spike.  His fangs retracted, but his hand held Spike's wrist loosely to his lips.  "Thank ... Thank you, Master."

Spike licked the twin puncture wounds lightly with his tongue.  "You are welcome, faithful Dalton."  He grinned a toothy blood-stained grin at the younger vampire.  "You deserve to be rewarded for your loyalty.  Your blood is pure, my son."  He sat down on the edge of the bed trying to collect himself.  He hadn't allowed himself the pleasure of an orgasm.  He felt the need for sexual satisfaction crying out to him, but he refused to vanquish his sexual purity by giving in to the lust of the moment.

"Master, are you all right?"  Dalton looked at Spike with worry.  He noticed the visible shakiness traveling Spike's limbs.

Spike buried his demon back into the recesses of his mind and his human guise moved to the forefront.  "I'll be fine, Dalton."  He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply.  Though he didn't need to breathe, the slow inhaling and exhaling always helped to calm him down.  "It is harder to feel this way without Buffy here to satisfy me."

Dalton wasn't insulted in the least.  He watched Spike be faithful to Drusilla the whole time he'd known the Master Vampire in Sunnydale.  Even when Drusilla's attentions had faltered and other vampires tempted Spike, he never found another until he gave up on Drusilla entirely.  Perhaps one day his Master and Mistress would welcome him into their bed, but he was content to be allowed to watch occasionally and serve instead.  They had already given him so much by welcoming him into their family.  "Where is Mistress Buffy?"

"I sent her home with the, Watcher."  Spike answered.  His raging hard on subsided to a more controllable level.  He was finally calming down enough to speak coherently again.

"I take it things went well then?"

"As well as good be expected from a man who spent his whole life listening to Council trash."  Spike sneered in disgust.  "He won't hurt, Buffy.  Of that I'm certain."

"He did show great concern for her when I first met him."  Dalton nodded in agreement.  "He was most distressed about her vampiric status, but I could see the love shining in his eyes through the pain."

Spike looked up at Dalton.  Having been on the outside of society as a mortal, they both understood each other quite well.  They were better at reading people's emotions and moves than others because their observation skills were more honed.  If he could just teach Dalton to fight better, he would make an excellent second in command.  He wasn't prone to rash decisions and hasty plans.  That would help Dalton survive longer if he could defend himself.  "The Watcher is going to need help in dealing with Buffy though.  He has no idea who he truly has on his hands."

"She is quite remarkable, Master."  Dalton beamed in pride.  He had been brought into a powerful family.  His demon knew it and reveled in being a part of something strong.

"That she is."  Spike moved down to the full crate of blood bags at the end of the bed.  "I need you to head to the Watcher's house with this crate.  I can feel her need for blood increasing."  He picked up the crate and handed it to Dalton.  "Head through the sewers.  You can avoid any chance of meeting up with Angelus that way."

"Yes, Master."  Dalton hefted the crate in his arms.  "Any other instructions, Master?"

"Yes."  Spike rattled off the directions to Giles' house via the tunnels.  "I also want you to sneak back into the factory to my old room.  You know the one I speak of?"

Dalton nodded.  "I don't know how much is left, Master.  The fire department didn't arrive until the factory was gutted completely."

"What I need you to find was in a protective box.  It would have survived even if the whole place burnt to the ground."  Spike explained what the box looked like.  After he described it his head shot up in alarm.  "Hurry ... get this blood to Buffy immediately."  He ushered Dalton to the passage door.  "Have her reaffirm her familial link to you."

Dalton pushed the door open further with his foot.  "Yes, Master.  I will return as quickly as I can."

Spike ran his fingers through his hair.  'I hope he isn't too late.'  He could feel the confusion and bloodlust growing in his Childe.  'Hold on, luv.  He just doesn't understand.'  He pushed the thoughts through as quickly as he could.  He was afraid to linger on their connection long, but he had to help her.

Spike felt proud that Buffy was defending him, but he didn't want her to regret her actions later.  'You are strong.  Force it back.  Let the fool go this time.'  He waited a little bit longer to be sure Buffy let the boy go before he closed the telepathic link again.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Before Giles unlocked the door to his home, the door flew open.  Willow stood on the other side of the door.  "Giles, we were getting so worried."

Giles walked into the house.  "We ran into a little trouble with Angelus, and we had to wait until he left."

"Angelus?!?"  Xander shrieked.  "See, I told you it was a trap."  He finally noticed that Buffy was standing at the door on the outside.  "Um ... I mean ..."  He shuffled his weight from one foot to another.  "Hey, Buffy."

Buffy frowned at Xander.  'I don't know if I can do this.'  She thought to herself.  'They are going to hate me.'  She tried to step into the house only to be stopped by the invitation barrier.  Her eyes went wide in the realization that she needed an invite into homes.  'Oh God, I really am a vampire.'

Willow tensed on the inside of the house.  She looked up at Giles and then back over to Buffy.  "Um, Giles?"  She pointed to Buffy who was still standing on the outside of the door.

"Oh yes.  I forgot about that."  Giles looked over at Buffy with sympathy.  "Please come in, Buffy."

Buffy stepped over the threshold.  'I can do this.  I can do this.'  She fought back the tears that threatened to spill while she repeated the mantra in her head.  Whoever said that vampires couldn't feel was off their rocker.  This wasn't the soul that made her feel.  It came from deep within her being.  She'd seen the evidence of emotions from Spike an Dalton as well.

Willow backed away from the door to stand next to Xander in the middle of the living room.  Everyone stared at each other in silence until Giles cleared his throat.  "With you being able to touch the cross, it slipped my mind that you would need an invitation, Buffy."

"It's all right, Giles."  Buffy tried to shrug off the trepidation she was feeling.  "Guess it comes with the territory of being undead, eh?"  She half chuckled.

Willow took one step closer to Buffy.  "I'm so sorry this happened, Buffy."  She offered up an apology.  "We shouldn't have let you leave alone."

"Will, Angelus would have just killed you if you went with me."  Buffy explained.  "He wasn't exactly in a head game mood when I saw him.  He was out for blood."

"And apparently the Buffsters blood was just too much of a temptation, Buff?"  Xander teased.  He was scared out of his wits, but in usual Xander fashion he tried to be the class clown to avoid facing the reality of the situation.  "A regular Buffy buffet."

"You could say that."  Buffy blushed.  "Not exactly glad that I was flashing a 24 hour all you can eat sign on my neck that night."  She laughed.  "Too bad he didn't finish his meal.  Mom always said clean up your plate or you're in trouble."

Willow gasped in shock.  "Buffy!"  She rushed to hug her friend.  She was terrified that if Angelus had taken everything her friend would be dead.  That thought overrode her fears of Buffy being a vampire.  In every way this sounded like her friend, Buffy.  She hugged her tightly.  "Don't say that.  You would be dead."

"Hate to break it to you, Will, but she is dead."  Xander cringed at his friend hugging the Vampiress.  His fear of vampires rose another notch.  He had seen what becoming a vampire could do to a friend.  Jesse was an entirely different person after being turned.  He reached down to the table to get the stake they set there in case it was needed.

"It's okay, Will."  Buffy rubbed Willow's back as the young redhead started to cry.  "He will pay for messing with me, and hey not all that evil.  I'm still Buffy in here.  Just a few more perks and my soul."

"Like a soul helped dead boy any."  Xander interjected.  His prejudices and fears were getting the better of him.

"That's enough."  Giles stepped into the argument.  "She hasn't been cursed with her soul.  She kept her soul even after turning."

"You sure about that G-man?"

Giles ignored Xander's destruction of his name.  He looked up at Buffy.  He only paused a moment at the look of concern in her eyes that he would denounce her.  "Yes, I'm positive."  He pulled the cross from his pocket and tossed it to Buffy.

Buffy caught the cross mid-air.  Willow shrieked and Xander gaped.  One arm remained wrapped around Willow while she twirled the cross with the other.

"Is she supposed to be able to do that?"  Willow looked on in wonder.  "Angel didn't like crosses even with a soul."

"There is a lot we don't know about Buffy yet, but we are going to work through it all."  Giles narrowed his gaze on Xander.  "Without the snide remarks."  His doubts were burying themselves further into the back of his mind, and his fatherly instincts presented themselves more strongly.  He needed to support Buffy, and he would not allow the annoying brunette child to hurt her.  "She's going through enough right now without your comments."

Buffy smiled gratefully to Giles.  She handed the cross back to him.  "I'm sure you have a few tests that you'd like to run, but I really do need to rest."

Willow moved away from Buffy.  She sat down on a couch in the living room.  "What are you going to tell your Mother?"

"Everything Wills."  Buffy answered.  "And no one can know that I'm alive.  Every one needs to proceed as if I'm dead ... completely dead."  She added when Xander's mouth opened as if to make a comment about her life and death status.  "We're even going to plan my funeral."  She explained the idea that Spike, Giles and she came up with.

"That is way creepy, Buffy."  Willow shivered.  "Staging your own funeral?"

"So long as Deadboy ends up forever dusty dead, I don't care."  Xander added in his two cents worth.  "Deadboy, Jr. can go right along with him to dusty land."

Buffy stood up and growled.  "You will not touch Spike, Xander."  Her eyes turned from their normal green to her vampiric violet.

Giles watched the change come over Buffy.  He was both fearful for Buffy and Xander.  He knew that if Buffy did something to Xander, she'd regret it later.  He fought with himself to allow Buffy to teach Xander a little lesson or to pull her back completely.

Buffy's demon had been under a reasonable amount of control until now.  She fought down the lure of their beating hearts and pulsing blood in their veins when she was calmer.  Now that she was getting upset, it was harder to control her more primal urges.  She needed to feed.  Their blood called to her, but she felt a stronger need to drain the one who threatened her Sire and Mate.

"Easy, Buff."  Xander started backing away from Buffy.  "He is just a soulless vampire."  He frantically grabbed for a nearby cross.  He rolled his eyes at the futility of that and backed up further.  "So he's your Sire.  So what?  He destroyed you."

Buffy's ridges formed on her forehead as the demon became more in control of her body.  Her human side was appalled at Xander as much as her Slayer demon.  This was her Mate that he was talking about.  Didn't the fact that she still had her soul, and Spike knew she would, make a difference to her "friend"?  "You know nothing of what you are talking about, Xander."

Willow, fearful for Xander's safety, boldly moved in front of Xander.  She placed herself as a barrier between her two friends.  She was afraid of Buffy, but she couldn't let Xander be hurt either.  She held a stake in her shaking hand.

Buffy continued her advance across the room to Willow and Xander.  She stopped a moment when Willow put herself between Buffy and her goal.  "Spike is my Mate, Xander."  She snarled.  "If you touch him, I will kill you, friend or not."  Everything in her tone showed that she was not giving an empty threat.  She meant every word.

Giles stood up next to Willow.  "Buffy, Xander didn't know about the claim."  He tried to reach out his hands to his demon-faced Slayer to at least slow her down long enough to talk to her.

"Xander doesn't care about that, do you Xan-Man?"  Buffy mocked Xander's nickname.  "You still hate Spike enough to kill him, don't you?"

"Of course I do.  He deserves to die."  Xander spat out.  He was livid.  His supposed best friend just threatened to kill him.  "Buffy would never hurt me.  You aren't her.  You're just a demon in her body."

"Xander!  Buffy!"  Willow shrieked when an angry Slayer/Vampire pulled her away from Xander.

Giles hit the back of the couch before he hit the floor after Buffy pushed him away from Xander as well.  He watched in fear while Buffy grabbed Xander by the arms and buried her fangs into his neck.

Buffy felt the words of her Sire come to her.  She felt him trying to send comfort and calming to her.  She pulled her fangs out of Xander's neck after two good gulps of his blood.  It wasn't enough to even weaken him much, but it was enough to scare him.  She threw Xander down to the floor and stepped back from him.  Her own body trembled a little from rage, bloodlust and worry before she pushed it back down again.

Xander looked up at Buffy terrified.  She bit him.  Why wasn't he dead?  Isn't that what vampires did?  They bit you and then you're dead?  He tried to speak, but nothing came out of his mouth.

Buffy curled her tongue out over her lips to lick all traces of Xander's blood off them.  She was making sure to give Xander the right impression of how much trouble he had been in.  "Hmmm, not too bad.  Tasty from the source."

Buffy took a moment to look at Willow and then Giles.  She took two more steps back towards the door to show that she wasn't going after them.  She spoke directly to Xander.  "That evil soulless Spike just saved your life, Xander."

Giles stood up with the assistance of the back of the couch.  "What do you mean, Buffy?"  He was half appalled that Buffy attacked Xander and half intrigued that Buffy hadn't killed him.  He tossed a hand towel to Xander to push against his wound.

"Spike felt me, all of me, want revenge on Xander.  He must have felt the bloodlust caused by the need to protect my Mate and the timing of my previous feeding."  Buffy explained.  She sat down in a chair near the door.  "He stopped me."

Willow's voice was shaky as she spoke.  "Stopped you?  He isn't even here."

Giles started to explain.  "It would seem that Spike and Buffy share a telepathic connection due to the fact that they have claimed each other as Mates.  Telepathy is rare, but they are very strongly bonded."

"Mates?"  Willow questioned.  "Is that like being married?"

"In human terms yes."  Buffy answered Willow's question.  She stressed the word human.  "It is a much stronger bond than mortals can have.  You feel everything about your Mate.  It's a comforting feeling."  She spoke with a bit of awe.  "It is binding until one of us is dust, and nothing is going to dust him that doesn't dust me first."  She directed her gaze to Xander with the last sentence she uttered.

"Oh."  Willow helped Xander stand back up.  "I think I read something in Giles' books about vampire's mates.  They will defend their mate no matter what, right?"

Giles nodded.  He continued to clean the glasses that fell to the floor when Buffy pushed him away.  "Yes.  It seems to mean that each Mate has accepted the other with all that they are.  Not even another vampire can destroy a true bond without the death of one of the mates."

"Is it a true bond?"  Willow questioned.  "It seems strange that a slayer would accept a vampire for her mate."

"I don't see how they could speak telepathically without it being a true bond."  Giles rubbed the lenses of his glasses with a cloth.  "I have to research it further.  From what I gathered from Buffy and Spike earlier it is not a common occurrence amongst vampires."

Buffy pointed a finger at Xander's shaking form.  He wasn't weak from blood loss, but he was scared beyond any fear he'd ever known.  "Which means you are lucky you are alive Xander Harris."  Her ridges had receded back to a smooth brow, but her eyes were still a deep violet color.

"Yes, quite."  Giles put his glasses back on.  "Spike held you back?"  He directed his question directly at Buffy.  If Spike helped to stop Buffy from draining Xander his respect for the vampire would grow.

"Yes.  I think he's sending ..."  Buffy stopped mid sentence.  She jumped to her feet and opened the door.  "Dalton!"

The three other occupants of the home turned their sights to the bookish vampire holding a crate of something at Giles' door.

"Mistress."  Dalton breathed a sigh of relief.  When he neared the home he heard the rapid beating hearts and smelled the fear that radiated from inside.  He was worried that something happened before he could get there.  Seeing the three humans alive he relaxed some.  "Master sent me with the blood."

"I am so glad to see you."  Buffy hugged Dalton.  She picked up the scent of her Mate on Dalton's neck.  She growled low, sniffed the new marks, and turned her violet eyes to seek out Dalton's.

Dalton hastened to explain before his Mistress tore him apart.  He knew that being apart from her Sire would be hard enough even without being mated.  Even though he hated his Sire he felt the pull to him when he left him early on.  "It was an offering of loyalty, Mistress.  A familial reaffirmation, nothing more."  He reassured Buffy.

Buffy took the crate from Dalton.  She set it on the ground inside the house since Dalton could not enter the home.  "Excuse me a moment."  She tossed over her shoulder while she pushed Dalton out of the door into the dark recess of some shadows.

"Mistress?"  Dalton gulped.  "Master wishes you to reaffirm your claim and assure yourself of my loyalty."  He spoke quickly in the hopes of avoiding incurring her anger.

Buffy nodded her head in understanding.  Nothing was being hidden from her then.  Spike knew she'd be able to smell his scent on Dalton.  Although she realized that her Mate would not betray her, for those brief moments her own insecurities surfaced in doubt.  She plunged her fangs into Dalton's neck right over Spike's marks and drank.

Dalton shivered with the connection to his Mistress.  She quickly offered him her wrist and he drank.  He restrained his desires in this time.  He wasn't sure how much control his Mistress would have after whatever happened in the house with her friends.  So, he kept his lust reined in trying to complete the ritual as quickly as possible.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Inside the house, Willow and Xander looked at Giles in confusion.  "What was that about, Giles?"  Willow asked.

"I'm not sure, but she is safe with him.  He seems to have some loyalty towards Spike."  Giles answered.  He crept over to the window to see if he could see anything.  He was surprised when just a couple minutes later Buffy seemed to emerge from the shadows to walk back into the house.  "Is everything all right?"

"Yes."  Buffy simply said before she sat back down in the chair.  Dawn was approaching, and it pulled at her consciousness.  She hoped Dalton made it back safely to the mansion.  He had about a half hour to an hour left.  She yawned.

Xander headed for the door.  He gave Buffy as wide of a berth as he could.  "I think I'm going to head home.  I've had enough excitement for one night."

Buffy looked up at Xander.  "Remember what I said, Xander."  Her green eye color returned to complete her fully human face.  "Stay away from Spike."

"I don't like it, Buffy."  Xander started angrily then sighed.  "But I don't see what choice I have."  He finished resignedly.  "All bets are off if he tries to kill any of us.  I won't care what you say about how "good" he is then."

Buffy watched Xander leave.  She heaved a sigh to Giles.  "Is this new for him, or was I too blind to realize it before?"

"He's been this way since Jesse, Buffy."  Willow answered instead of Buffy.  "He never liked Angel, and he's been saying I told you so all around ever since your birthday."

"Angel."  Buffy sighed.  The pangs of losing her first young love hurt her.  She was happier with Spike, but Angel was still her first love.  She was furious at Angelus for destroying Angel, but something in the back of her mind told her that Angelus and Angel weren't really all that different.  She felt her human and demon sides.  Angelus had to always be in Angel no matter how much he denied it.  "Xander hates me, doesn't he?"

"No, Buffy."  Willow sat down in front of Buffy.  "He just doesn't understand what is happening.  You always killed vampires.  Remember last year when we experienced our worst nightmares?"

Buffy nodded.  Ever since she was activated as the Slayer her worst fear was in becoming a vampire.  The irony of it all wasn't lost on her.  "I know, but this is different.  I'm not just a regular vampire."

When Xander left, Giles headed to the kitchen with the crate of blood bags.  He put most of them in the fruit drawer of his refrigerator.  He placed two of them in the microwave to heat up.  He heated them up a little at a time, not quite sure what temperature to make the blood.  He poured one of the bags into a large mug.  He stepped back into the living room in the middle of Buffy and Willow's conversation.  He handed the mug to Buffy.

Buffy smiled gratefully at Giles.  She brought the mug to her lips and sipped the thick red liquid.  She made an ick face at first.  "Spike was right, it does taste much better from him."

"Did I not warm it enough?"  Giles asked.

"No, it's nice and warm.  It just taste different without being filtered through, and combined with, Sire's blood."  Buffy explained.  "Sire's blood is the purest thing for a Childe.  Of course Slayer blood is the richest thing for vampires.  So my Slayer/Childe blood still has a one up of goodness for him."  She chuckled.

"Interesting."  Giles took the empty mug back into the kitchen to fill it up with the second blood bag.  He watched Buffy empty the second mug.

"I'm good now.  Thank you, Giles."  Buffy looked at Willow.  She was afraid that she would see disgust on the face of her best friend.  Originally she hadn't given any thought about how or when she would feed.  Now she felt a bit self-conscious about eating in front of her friends.

Willow sensed Buffy's worry.  "It's okay, Buffy.  You aren't killing anyone."

Buffy relaxed with her friend's acceptance of her dietary needs.  "Thanks, Wills."

"Xander might come around, Buffy.  You scared him pretty good."  Willow rubbed Buffy's knee in comfort.

"I know I did, but I tried to warn him."  Buffy sighed.  "After he made the first comment, he should have realized that he needed to shut up.  He always has to keep beating his point home."

"I know.  He's always been like that."  Willow agreed.  "You have to do what you need to, but could you please try not to eat Xander?"  She giggled nervously.

"I'll try, Willow, but if he comes near Spike to hurt him ..."  Buffy let the thought hang there in the open.

"Hopefully it won't come to that."

Giles yawned.  "Willow, it would be best to let Buffy rest now."

Willow nodded.  "Okay, Giles.  I'll be back over tonight, okay?"

Buffy smiled.  "That would be nice, Willow.  I really am tired."

"I'll let myself out."  Willow grabbed her coat and headed out of the house.

Buffy stood up and stretched.  "Spike said that I would be able to resist the call of the dawn more later, but right now I can't think about anything other than collapsing into a bed."

"You may have my bed upstairs."  Giles motioned to the stairs.  "There is a quilt in the closet that you can toss over the window up there.  We don't know how well you can handle sunlight yet."

"Why do I sense that you are going to want to test that out at some point?"  Buffy teased.

"You know me too well?"  Giles teased.  He pulled a blanket out of a linen closet.  He tossed it over the couch.  "I'm going to curl up here with that notebook for a little bit before I go to bed."

"Don't push yourself too much.  We have to tell my mother about this today."  Buffy rested one hand on the railing up the stairs.  "I have a feeling that is going to take all the strength that both of us have combined."

"Somehow I think you're right."  Giles laid out on the couch.  He removed his glasses and set them on the coffee table.  "Good night, Buffy."

"Good night, Giles."  Buffy started up the stairs.  She stopped on the third one.  "Giles?"

"Yes, Buffy?"  Giles peeked over the back of the couch.

"Thank you for giving me a chance."

"I love you like a daughter, Buffy."  Giles sighed.  "No matter what the Council says, I couldn't do anything but give you a chance."

"I love you too, Giles."  Buffy smiled.  She walked the rest of the way upstairs, prepared her room for darkness, and slipped between the blankets of Giles' bed.  She missed her Sire and her Mate.  She softly cried herself to sleep with the loss of his comfort and security.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Dalton returned to the mansion in plenty of time to avoid the sunrise.  He deposited the box on Spike's dresser.

"Any problems?"  Spike queried.

"No, Master."  Dalton rubbed his neck.  The bites from Spike and Buffy both tingled in the presence of either of them.  "She did not kill anyone, and I was able to locate the box fairly quickly."

"Good.  Go rest, Dalton."  Spike stretched out on his bed.  "You look tired."

"My nerves are getting the better of me, Master.  My apologies."  Dalton walked over to the door to head into the hallway.

"We're all pretty tense right now, Dalton."  Spike called out to the door.  "It will get better soon."

"I hope so, Master.  I hope so."  Dalton left the room and closed the door behind him.

'Me too.'  Spike sighed.  'Me too.'  He tried to force himself to sleep without his Mate.  Instead of the peaceful dreams he experienced for the last couple days, he was plagued with nightmares of Angelus killing his beautiful Buffy.  It was a long day for the bleached vampire as he lived out his own worst fears in his dreams.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

(To Be Continued)
 

Revenge For Love - (9) Friends and Family - Part 2
By Tasha

Chapter Summary: Xander got a taste of just how fangy Buffy is now when he opened his mouth with one too many remarks against Spike.  Willow seems a bit skittish, but supportive.  Giles is in research mode.  Joyce has a lot of questions, and I'm sure she is going to be demanding some answers from Giles and Buffy.  What will happen when Joyce shows up at Giles' door?  Will Spike and Buffy be able to stay away from each other when they sleep?  Have the pixies been talking to Dru again yet?

A HUGE Thank You to Tam for beta段ng this chapter for me.  My brain has been pretty scrambled with everything going on lately.  She helped to make sure that this chapter made the sense that I wanted it to.  Thanks Tam!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Joyce Summers woke to the first rays of the sun streaming through Buffy's open window.  She had spent the whole night in Buffy's bed fighting through one horrible nightmare after another.  In so many of them, she watched her little girl fall at the hands of the disfigured creatures that Buffy wrote about in her diary.

Joyce sat up in the bed, rubbing the remnants of sleep from her eyes.  Each nightmare slipped back into her conscious memory.  Some images seemed more like real memories than nightmares.  The more she thought about it, the more various events made more sense to her.  'I've seen these vampires before.'

"How could I have been so blind?"  Joyce muttered out loud.  "That is what those people were at Parent/Teacher night."  She snorted.  "Gang members on PCP.  How could I have been so gullible?"

Something Buffy had said to her a long time ago came back to slap her in the face.  "Sometimes people only see what they want to see because they aren't ready for the truth."  At the time, Joyce believed that Buffy was being sarcastic.  Apparently not.

Joyce had done exactly that.  Instead of listening to her daughter's early Slayer ramblings, she had brushed it off as Buffy being a rebellious teenager.  She'd thought Buffy was using imaginary creatures to excuse her destructive behavior.

For the last two years, Joyce had chastised Buffy for being lazy or irresponsible when she was in fact doing the exact opposite.  Her daughter had been forced to grow up and fight a darkness that Joyce could not imagine having to deal with as a child.  She had so many questions and no clear idea who to get the answers from.  What was the name of her Watcher?  Wasn't it something Giles?

"Wait a minute."  Joyce stood up, left Buffy's room and headed downstairs.  "He's the school librarian."  She dug through various bills, papers, and other notes on her desk.  When she located the Sunnydale High staff directory, she thumbed through the various sections until she found what she was looking for.  "Rupert Giles."

Joyce picked up the phone and started to dial information then hung up.  "Maybe I should call Willow's house first?  The girls should both be there this early on a Saturday."  She thought about some of the entries in Buffy's diary.  "Never mind.  She probably isn't even there."

With a sigh Joyce picked up the phone again to call information.  She hastily wrote down the phone number and address she was given.  She marched back up the stairs for a quick shower and a change of clothes.  She wanted some answers to her questions, and she promised herself to give this Mr. Giles a piece of her mind, face-to-face.  How dare a grown man hide something like this from her about her own daughter?

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Spike and Buffy slept simultaneously in different locations.  Buffy curled up in Giles' bed alone.  Likewise Spike lay in his bed at the mansion by himself.  Though apart, both seemed to travel to the same plane in their dreams.

Spike stood behind Buffy who was sitting on a wooden board.  The board was attached to a large tree branch by two long ropes to complete the old-fashioned swing.  He rested his hands comfortably on her shoulders while he looked out over their surroundings.  It seemed so peaceful here.

Buffy's feet dangled close to the ground.  If she tilted her foot she could reach the ground on her tiptoes.  Off in the distance the sun lay heavy on the horizon.  She felt no need to run for cover.  Her skin didn't even tingle in concern or worry.  "Spike?"  She couldn't feel the approaching sun, but she could feel Spike's presence.

"Yes, Kitten?"  Spike looked down at the golden aura that surrounded Buffy in the sunlight.

"How are we in the sun?"  Buffy knew this all had to be a dream, but everything felt so real.  She was drawn to Spike's essence as if he were physically standing behind her.

"Hell if I know."  Spike admired the beauty of the sunlight rolling over the hills.  Without his vampiric sense of time he hadn't realized that the sun was actually rising.  "It must be a dream, but you shouldn't be here."

Buffy toed off the ground to twist the swing around to face in the opposite direction.  "And why shouldn't I be here?"  She grabbed the lapels of Spike's duster to hold herself stationary.  "Should I be hurt that you don't think you should be dreaming about me?"

"No, you silly chit."  Spike tweaked the end of Buffy's nose.  "I can feel you here."  He placed his hand over his heart.  "And here."  He tapped his right temple with a fingertip.

"So?"  Buffy replied with a hint of agitation in her voice.  If she wasn't so new to being a vampire, she never would have fallen asleep without Spike.  She refused to be upset at the opportunity to feel him in her dreams.  "I need to feel you here with me.  Why don't you want me here?"

It nearly broke Spike's heart to see the pain and doubt in his Mate's eyes.  "Luv, I want you here."  He inhaled a deep unnecessary breath.  "But if we are still connected enough to share a dream, it could create enough of a draw to alert Angelus and Dru."

Buffy relaxed a little bit.  She wrapped her arm around Spike's waist.  "Please don't make me leave so soon."  She softly played up to his more emotional side in the hopes that she could get him to forget the logic.  This was a dream.  No one should be able to ruin it for them.

"You are safe for now."  A tall dark-haired man stepped beyond the copse of trees into the open.  "No one can feel the pull of your presence outside of this place."

"Who ..." Buffy's question was halted by the emergence of a younger looking female who exuded a sense of power well beyond her appearance of age. 

"Spirits from another realm guard this place.  You are not tied to your former reality here," she explained to Buffy and Spike.

The man walked alongside the woman.  Their hands were clasped together.  Spike's nostrils flared at the power of their scent and essence.  These two were claimed by each other.  The warning marks and signatures were obvious.

Buffy picked up on the claim.  She tilted her head to the side in curiosity.  They had to be vampires.  Even though she couldn't remember seeing them before, she felt like she knew at least the woman.  "Why are other vampires in our dreams Spike? I hope this isn't one of your kinky fantasies because I have to say that I don't think I'm ready for a group thing yet."

Before Spike answered, the other vampire laughed wholeheartedly.  "She is just as feisty as you my darling."

The woman hid her chuckle behind a hand covering her mouth.  She found the blond woman's antics adorable.  There had been so much to learn after she was turned.  This blond seemed to take it more in stride than she had.  "I have a feeling that she will learn much faster than I did, beloved."  She settled her gaze on Buffy.  "She has many who will protect her.  They might just make it."

"As amusing as this repartee is turning out to be ... Who the bloody Hell are you?"  A draw of kinship filtered around him, but something was unusual about these two.

Buffy slipped off the swing.  She cautiously moved a little closer to the woman.  Something about her called out to her.  It told Buffy she was family, almost like ... sister!  "Were you a Slayer?"

Spike's head snapped up to meet the two unknown vampire's gazes.  "Slayer?"  He growled low.  He stood next to Buffy ready to make a hasty retreat if necessary.  Were his vampire senses so off that he couldn't tell a Slayer from a vampire anymore?  Turned Slayers still killed vampires.  He couldn't take the chance that this woman would try to kill Buffy.

"You're partially right," The young woman replied.  The man gripped his Mate's hand tighter.  "We are sisters in more ways than one now."

The elder vampire faced Spike directly.  "I'm surprised that you haven't figured out our identities already, William."  He grinned in delight at Spike's discomfort.  He always enjoyed a good tease, especially at someone else's expense.

"Don't tease him too much dear."  The female waggled a finger of caution at her Mate.  "So much has happened in such a short time.  All he cares about is the safety of his Childe and Mate.  Surely you remember that feeling."

Spike moved beyond the point of being irritated while they talked about him as if he wasn't standing right there.  "If someone doesn't start making sense soon, there are plenty of trees around here to turn you to dust with," He snarled.

"You should learn some patience young man.  Rushing about recklessly has always been your weakness."  The male poked a finger into Spike's chest.  "We've waited almost 400 years for your arrival.  You can wait ten minutes for our explanations."

"400 ... Bloody Hell!"  Spike exclaimed.

"Oh my!  OH MY!"  Buffy trembled in Spike's arms.  "Antoinette?"

Antoinette nodded.  "Yes Buffy.  I am Antoinette."  She smiled warmly at the man next to her.  "This is my ever annoying but beloved Sire and Mate, Charmand."

"But you're dead?"  Buffy was highly confused.  "I mean really dead as in dusty dead."  Every time she thought her day couldn't get any stranger, it did.  "Yet you're here together?"

Charmand curled his arm around Antoinette's waist.  "We are here as proof that the 'Powers That Be' sometimes get things right.  It's not a common occurrence on their part."

Antoinette playfully slapped Charmand's shoulder.  "We have a mission, and it doesn't include bashing deities.  Not today at least."  She chuckled.  "Save that for the next time we see them."

"Why are the bloody Powers That Be sending you to us?"  Spike questioned with a roll of his eyes.

"For one thing, you needed to know that you are not alone," Charmand started off talking and Antoinette finished.  "We can honestly say that we know what you feel, at least some of it."

Buffy tugged on Spike's arm.  'Maybe they can tell us why I can touch crosses.'

"Your soul is stronger than your vampire side."  Antoinette answered Buffy's thoughts out loud.  "That is a good sign."

"Oi, stay out of our heads," Spike protested.  "We have enough trouble keeping thoughts straight between the two of us without another two more sets waltzing around in there."

"Sorry, it's a habit you pick up after nearly 400 years of being together."  Antoinette motioned to the air around him.  "Here, nothing is hidden."  She settled her gaze on Buffy.  'We are not hidden from you either.'  She thought to her sister Slayer.

Buffy jumped at the female voice in her head.  "Okay, that was way weird."  She swatted at the air in front of her as if she was trying to swat at a fly to shoo it away.

Charmand laughed.  "She is delightful."  His eyes twinkled in joy when he looked over at Spike again.  "You are going to have your hands full for eternity with that one, you know that right?  You are bound for eternity."

"Kind of had that figured out since we claimed each other, you git."  Spike sat down on the swing.  He pulled Buffy into his lap, rocking back and forth slowly.

"May I slap the Whelp, love?"  Charmand rolled his eyes at the sky.  "You all really hate me, don't you?"

Antoinette patted Charmand's arm.  "He's young, dear.  He doesn't know any better."

"I am NOT a child!"  Spike protested. 

Buffy laughed at the petulant tone in Spike's voice.  "Don't have a tantrum now, Sire." 

Spike pinched Buffy's waist.  "Watch it, Childe.  I'll turn you over my knee," he teased.

Antoinette leaned into Charmand.  She laid her head down on his shoulder.  "I wonder if they realize just how much they care for each other, yet," she whispered softly.

Charmand caressed his fingers down Antoinette's arm lightly.  He cleared his throat.  As much as he wanted to let them have their fun, he knew their time here was limited.  "You are bound to her more than in the normal plane, William."

Buffy stopped squirming on Spike's lap.  Both of them focused their attention on Charmand and Antoinette.

"Have you claimed each other several times already?"  Charmand asked the question with a raised brow.  Somehow he couldn't fathom these two as being celibate.

"Um ..." Buffy blushed.  She tucked her head into Spike's shoulder.

"Yeah, mate.  We did."  Spike answered for the two of them.  "Haven't kept track, but she's fed from me several times too.  Except for the last feeding, she's drank all her blood from me."

"So you consumed the blood, and then she drank from you?"  Charmand questioned.  That was strange behavior for a vampire, even a more human one.  Such filtration was a gift to the Childe, beyond a normal bond.

"Yeah, that's what I did."  Spike narrowed his gaze on the other Master Vampire.  "I want her to be as strong as possible."

"Interesting."  Antoinette added.  She noticed the confused look on Buffy's face and attempted to explain why that was unusual.  "Sire's blood is the most potent for his Childe.  His strength flows through the blood as well as his control."

Buffy nodded as she listened.  She'd noticed the flow of Spike's power each time she drank from him.  She felt stronger each time she ate and more aware of everything around her.

"By giving you so much of his blood, he is creating an equal."  Antoinette further explained.  "Most Sires don't want someone to be as strong as them.  Even a strong Childe would not be given what you have.  In a vampire sense, it shows that you are treasured above all.  It shows that he considers you his match and not some automaton to simply do his bidding."

"I knew it was a gift, but I had no idea how much of a gift."  Buffy cupped Spike's face with her hand.  "You see me as your equal?"

"Of course, luv."  Spike kissed Buffy's palm.  "Even when we were enemies, I admired and respected the way you fought.  Your passion and fire thrilled me with every battle.  I always saw you as my equal."

"Yet you decided to keep me your equal even after death?  You could have had me at your mercy to do your every bidding."  Buffy's voice was full of emotion.

"I would never want you to be anything but what you are, Buffy."  Spike nuzzled his face into Buffy's neck.  He licked the twin scars of his mark, purring.  "Anything else would demean who you are, and I love you just as you are ... sassiness and all."

"Love?"  Buffy's head jerked to the side to look at Spike.  "Do you mean that?"  She was surprised at the admission, but she also knew that he was telling the truth.

"I've never been good at telling love from crushes, but if what I feel for you isn't love, then I don't ever want to be in love," Spike answered honestly.  Somehow it seemed easier to articulate the words here in this realm.  He didn't even feel too poncy for saying it either.  "All I want is you, Mate."

"Oh Spike," Buffy sighed.  "Everything inside of me tells me that I love you too."  She snuggled in his arms and purred.  "It's why it kills me a little bit every minute we are apart."

"It won't be for too much longer, pet.  I have some plans in motion to get me back to you sooner."

"You are going to have to use it a lot sooner than you think, William."  Charmand interrupted the touching scene between the two vampires.  "Angelus doesn't know about Buffy, but his jealousy is going to force your hand."

Spike thought about the amulet in the box back at the mansion.  "It will work?"

Charmand nodded.  "It will, but not quite how you think it will."  He started to say more, but Antoinette hushed him.

"He has to find out on his own, Charmand."

"Sometimes working for the Powers is frustrating.  You never know when enough is too much," Charmand sighed.  "I can tell you that you will not be separated even if one of you perishes.  I believe your bookish friend mentioned a light that surrounds you when you exchange the claim?"

"Yes, Dalton said something about that."  Buffy traced circles on Spike's chest while she listened.

"Your soul is very strong, Buffy, and it carries itself throughout all that you do and share," Antoinette explained.  "You share everything with William, even that."

"You aren't saying that I am bloody well gaining a soul, are you?"  Spike grumbled.  "I am not going to become like that brooding ..."

"It doesn't work like that, William," Charmand interrupted.  "Angelus buried his humanity a long time ago.  He destroyed his soul completely.  The curse was the only thing to bring even a sliver of it back."

"So how is this any different?  I haven't exactly been a good boy for the last hundred years," Spike answered sarcastically.  "My soul isn't all pristine and shiny."

"You still gave yourself limits.  I'm not saying that it isn't quite a bit tarnished, but you never destroyed your humanity."  Charmand stepped forward to place a hand on Spike's shoulder in camaraderie.  He knew what it was like to feel the battle for dominance between the human and demon sides.  "You fought to keep your emotions out of the foreground, but you never pushed them completely away.  Your passion, tenacity, and love are as much a part of you as your demon."

"You did care for Drusilla for almost a hundred years, Spike," Buffy added.  "You loved her enough to stay by her side even when Angelus left you both.  Most would have just left her to die."

"It wouldn't have been right to do," Spike muttered.

"That kind of thinking is exactly why your soul was never completely gone."  Antoinette smiled warmly at the confused vampire.  "The connection to Buffy, and the sharing of her blood, binds you both more with each claim.  Her soul calls out to yours just as much as her demon does.  You'll notice the effects more as time goes by, but I'm sure you've already felt less of a need to kill innocents."

"If you can call the Watcher and the Whelp innocent, yeah," Spike huffed.  "But I had just fed before that.  Besides, didn't want Buffy to feel bad about killing her friend."

"Fresh kills can never be replaced by bagged blood.  You know that, William."  Charmand, who had lived as a vampire for over 150 years, knew the draw for the hunt.  "You have controlled your demon well before.  This is just a little bit of help to make it easier on you to do so."

Spike nodded.  "At least I get credit for controlling it a lot even before the bitty soul."

"Those who would belittle your humanity do not know what they are talking about."

"Hear that, pet?"  Spike smiled at Buffy.  "How do you think the Watcher would feel about hearing that?"

Buffy giggled.  "What about ..." Her voice dropped off into thin air and her body disappeared from Spike's lap.

"Buffy!"  Spike screamed as he scrambled off of the swing to find his Mate.  "Where is she?"

"Something must have pulled her attention back to her natural reality."  Charmand looked to Antoinette for her thoughts.

Antoinette nodded.  "Something must have awakened her.  She should be all right."

"Should be?"  Spike was mad.  "That had better be definitely."

"It all depends on where she fell asleep at.  If the place she was at is safe, then she is safe," Charmand explained.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Joyce Summers banged on the door to Rupert Giles' home.  She had tried knocking more lightly a couple times already.  The longer it took for the man to answer the door, the more upset she became.

A disheveled Giles opened the door to the frantic looking woman.  "Mrs. Summers?"  He asked groggily.  "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Joyce pushed past Giles into his home.  She was mad enough that manners and proper etiquette didn't matter to her anymore.  She had ended up calling Willow's house before she left, and Willow's mother hadn't seen Buffy in the last few days.

"Do come in."  Giles rolled his eyes.  He shut the door and faced Joyce head on.

"I want to know where my daughter is," Joyce spoke bluntly and straight to the point.  "I know she's not at Willows, and I want to see her.  Now!"

Giles eyes automatically looked towards the stairs that led up to his bedroom.  A quick look to his watch told him that it was only 4 hours since they both went to bed.  She wasn't going to be ready to wake up yet.  "She is safe, Mrs. Summers."

"I didn't ask if she was safe, Mr. Giles," Joyce fumed.  "And frankly I don't trust that you are telling me the truth after all the lies you've fed me."

"Lies?"  Giles was flustered.  "I've never lied to you, Mrs. Summers."

"Not telling someone something they should know is still a lie by omission.  I know that she's some sort of vampire slayer."  Joyce thrust Buffy's diary into Giles' hands.  "I also know that you send her out to kill these creatures every night knowing that they could kill my little girl."

"Mrs. Summers, please sit down.  Let's talk about this as civilized adults."

"I don't want to sit down."  Joyce stomped her foot much like a two year old would in a temper fit.  "I want some answers."

"Buffy is sleeping, and we need to be quiet.  She's had a rough time of it lately."  Giles tried to calm Joyce down.  "I'll fix us some tea."

"I know all about that Angel fellow.  A lot more than I ever wanted to know about him too."  Joyce cringed.  Buffy's diary went into a lot of details about her relationship with Angel and the night she slept with him.  "Buffy is here, isn't she?"

"Yes, she is, but as I said before she is sleeping."  Giles filled the teakettle with water and put it on the back burner of the stove.

"I want to see her now."  Joyce walked towards the stairs.

Giles ran in front of Joyce.  "You shouldn't go up there.  She needs her rest."

"What are you trying to hide, Mr. Giles?"  Joyce tried to twist away from Giles.  "She's my daughter.  You can't keep me from her!"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Yeah, she should be safe."  Spike ran his fingers through his hair nervously.  "She's with her Watcher."

Antoinette gasped.  "Are you sure that he won't try to stake her?"  Louis had been very understanding of her and Charmand, but Charmand had also saved his life.  Would Buffy's Watcher be the same way?

"He might stake me, but he wouldn't do anything to harm Buffy," Spike reassured the ex-slayer.  "He loves her like a daughter, it seems."

"Good."  Antoinette relaxed a little again.  "We don't have much time left.  You have the amulet, correct?"

"Yes.  The Watcher has Louis' book.  He's researching it further."

"The Council can't be told about any of this, William," Charmand was adamant in his command.  "They will seek you both out and destroy you at all costs.  If the two of you are lost, who knows when the next opportunity will occur.  It took nearly 400 years from the last time."

"For what to occur?"  Spike questioned.

"Too many factors have to be right for a Slayer to be turned and mated, William," Charmand sighed.  "We are a rare breed of vampire, and it takes a very special Slayer to see that."

"Buffy didn't have much of a choice in this one.  Something in me just couldn't let her die like that."

"She did accept you when she awoke, though."  Charmand insisted.  "Most Slayers would just stake their Sire.  She is special.  Like my Antoinette, your Buffy's Slayer demon realized that the two of you belonged together.  That couldn't have happened if Buffy hadn't felt some sort of attraction to you before her death."

"I've smelled her arousal whenever we fought, but I always thought it was just a Slayer thing," Spike snorted with delight.  "You know the thrill of the fight and all."

"It was more than that," Antoinette interjected.  "Fighting does turn Slayers on, but not to the levels that it did when you two were fighting each other.  That was far from normal."

"How do you know that?"

"Because of how you are with each other now."  Antoinette twisted her hands together.  "If you had only fought at regular levels, you wouldn't be so drawn to each other now."

The sun started to sink to the horizon.  Charmand's shadow draped over Spike's body.  "I don't know when or if we will see each other again, but know that you aren't alone." 

Charmand hurried his words along.  He felt the pull of the Powers calling them back.  "The flux of power is changing, William.  Follow your heart, and you will be steered in the right direction."

"The father shall perish, and the mother will become the child," Antoinette spoke softly but loud enough to be heard.  "The circle will be banished, and the coven brought forward.  A friend will become the enemy, and an enemy will be the protector."  She cupped Spikes cheek with her hand and leaned down to place a soft kiss on his forehead.  "Be careful, fair warrior, and take care of my sister."

"The path is not easy, but you are going to be given a chance that we did not have."  Charmand looked at Antoinette sadly.  "Don't let anyone take it away from you.  You both belong in the light, together."

As the mystical sun set Spike vanished from his dream and into wakefulness, and he wasn't alone.

"Dru?"  He looked up into the eyes of his former love.  "What the hell are you doing here?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"You can't keep me from her!"  The shouting grew louder the longer Buffy laid there.  She growled and jumped out of bed.  Not only was she still very tired, but also she'd just been ripped from Spike's arms to the sound of bickering downstairs.

A very cranky and sleepy Buffy threw on the nearest piece of clothing she could find which happened to be one of Giles button down dress shirts.  She hastily buttoned the shirt and stomped down the stairs not even realizing that she was in full game face.  "What the hell is going on down here?  Can't a girl get any sleep even when she's dead?"

Joyce Summers looked up at what sounded like her daughter.  She stared, open-mouthed, at a face that both did and did not look like Buffy.  "Buffy?  Your face?" she stuttered.

"Giles?"  Buffy's gaze flitted between Giles and her mother.

"You're ... you're ... oh no!"  With those last words Joyce Summers passed out right into Giles' arms.

"Mommy!"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Drusilla tweaked the end of Spike's nose.  "Time for my little doggie to wake up."  She danced her fingers down Spike's chest.

Spike sat up abruptly.  He grabbed Dru's hand and growled.  "Not yours to play with anymore, Dru."

Dru gazed into the fiery gaze of Spike's now golden eyes.  "You really are lost to Mummy, aren't you?"

Spike shook off his demon face.  "I don't know what you mean, pet.  I just don't like you touching me smelling like the poofter."  He tried to brush off his disgust at her touching him.

"You are going to come and play with all the other kiddies today, Spike."  Dru pulled a t-shirt over Spike's head.  Spike laid stiff legged while Dru pulled up a pair of black jeans and fastened them.  "You've been alone in here too long.  Time to be a nice boy."  She tucked her arm under Spike's knees, lifting him out of the bed.

"Dru, I don't want to go anywhere.  I want to stay in my room," Spike argued with the woman he once felt was his destiny.  He was silently grateful that Dru refused to let him mate with her several decades ago.  What he had now was so much better than anything he could ever had with Dru.

Dru ordered one of the newest minions around when she carried Spike into the main area of the mansion.  "Go get the chair and bring it to me."  She twirled around a couple times with Spike in her arms.  "Daddy won't listen to me, but maybe you will.  I miss you, Spike.  I don't want to lose my happy family."

Spike forced himself not to get sick from the spinning.  He was still a bit disorientated from being pulled from the other realm.  He clutched Drusilla tightly out of necessity, not want.

Angelus watched Spike and Dru from a shadowed corner.  It angered him to see Dru giving any attention to his wayward Childe.  'She's only supposed to be thinking about me.  I'm all the family she needs.'  His frown twisted into a vicious sneer.  'I think it is time for dear Willie to meet his maker permanently.'

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

(To Be Continued)

Chapter Summary: Buffy and Spike have met Charmand and Antoinette in a dream like realm.  They answered some of their questions, and Antoinette left Spike with a little prophetic message to think about.  Now we have to deal with Dru, Angelus, and Joyce.  All have their own reactions to what is going on around them.  Some for the reactions are good, and some could mean death for one of our lovers.  How will they make it through another day without each other?  Will the amulet help Spike’s plan?  What did Charmand mean about it not working quite as Spike expected it to?

**WARNING: This chapter is angsty.  A character death is implied, but I hope you realize before the end of the chapter that it is just a set up.  I would never truly kill off one of our Spuffy lovers.  I warn you on the angst because one of our lovers is not going to realize that the other is not dead.  So they will react traumatically to it.  Everything will be taken care of in Chapter 11 though, and happiness will return.**

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Dru, put me down,” Spike growled loudly.

Several of the minions in the main room stopped what they were doing to watch the two vampires.  They hadn’t heard the strong commanding voice from the blonde vampire since before the vampiress’ healing ritual.  It shocked them to hear it again.  Some of the minions who remained loyal to Spike were encouraged by the outburst.  They were tired of Angelus’ orders and treatment.  They longed for Master Spike to exert his dominance again.

Dru pouted at Spike.  “My boy doesn’t want to play with his Dark Princess?”

Spike rolled his eyes.  “I’m not your boy anymore, Dru.”  He motioned his hand towards the now nearby wheelchair.  “Angelus is your boy, pet.  Your precious Daddy.”

“Daddy is my man,” Drusilla cooed.  “Spike is my boy.”  She rocked Spike back and forth in her arms like a baby.

Spike pushed hard against Drusilla’s chest.  “I’m not your sodding child in any sense of the word.”  He twisted hard enough after the shove to fall out of Dru’s arms and hit the floor.

Drusilla and the entire room stared at Spike’s prone figure.  “I chose my William to be one of us,” she spoke with a whimpering voice because of Spike’s denial.

Every fiber of his being, demon and human, wanted Spike to stand up and slap Drusilla.  Thankfully Dalton saved him from making that mistake.  Although it made him look weaker to the other vampires, he needed to keep his recovery a secret.

Dalton snaked his hands into Spike’s armpits.  He pulled up while Spike used his hands on the chair’s arms to drag himself up into the chair.

Angelus’ low laugh echoed through the opposite side of the main area.  ‘He is so pitiful.  Even that Dalton freak has more power than Spike right now,’ he thought to himself.  An idea started to form in his head for a way to rid him of Spike without having to stake him.  ‘That would be pure sadistic poetry for him to take care of it for me.’

Spike growled.  He glanced across the room and narrowed his gaze on the gloating Irish vampire’s form.  His eyes flashed amber, fangs dropped, and hands clutched the arms of the wheelchair brutally.

Dalton maneuvered each of Spike’s feet into place on the footrests as if the vampire was unable to do it himself.  He stood up in front of Spike when he was done.

“Thank you, Dalton.”  Though everyone else heard a strained offer of thanks from an agitated vampire, Dalton knew his Master was genuinely appreciative for his actions.

“You’re welcome, Master.”  Dalton bowed then walked away.  He sat down in a nearby chair in case he was needed again.  Things were getting tenser every day in the mansion.

Spike refused to acknowledge Drusilla’s presence directly.  When he spoke again it was as if he was addressing thin air.  “You only wanted a little live dolly to tease your precious Daddy with.  That’s why you drained me but begged him to turn me.  You didn’t want any kind of bond between us.”

Dru scooted over next to Spike’s chair.  She dropped to her knees and cupped his cheeks with her hands.  “No, my William.”  She shook her head back and forth.  “I’ve always wanted my effulgent one.”  She tried to placate him.

Angelus growled low.  ‘Drusilla should not be touching the boy.’  He started to move towards them both, but Spike’s next actions halted him.

Spike threw Dru’s hands off of his face.  He grabbed the rims of the wheels and turned himself away from Dru.  He started to wheel towards the corridor to his room.

Dru whimpered.  Returning to his side, she whispered into Spike’s ears.  “My poor Spike.”  She swayed back and forth before whispering again.  “The pixies tell me how bad you have been.  I won’t be able to save you from Daddy if you aren’t nice to your princess.”

Spike’s eyes remained golden when he snarled at Dru.  “I’ll be just fine.  You are the one that will need saving.”  He closed his eyes for a few moments.  When they opened again they were back to the radiant blue of his human visage.

Drusilla looked at Spike with surprise.  There was no love for her in his eyes anymore.  All she saw was hate and anger.  Her lower lip trembled.

Spike pulled Dru’s head down to whisper in her ear low enough that only the two of them were able to hear what he said.  “There will come a time for you to choose, Dru.  I will never love you like I did before, but I might be able to save you.”  He let go of her head and straightened himself upright in the chair.  “You’d do well to remember that.  The rules have changed.”

Dru watched Spike wheel himself away from her.  She ran in the opposite direction to the bedroom she shared with Angelus.  Angelus followed Drusilla out of the room.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Buffy held her mother’s head in her lap when Joyce Summers came to.  “Buffy?”  Joyce asked.

“I’m here, Mommy.”  Buffy hadn’t given any thought as to who would be at Giles house earlier.  Neither had she realized that her irritation brought her demon face forward.  The last thing she wanted to do was scare her mother.

“Buffy?”  Joyce forced herself to sit up a little bit.  She rubbed her temples.  She definitely felt a headache coming on.  “Your face, earlier.  Did I imagine it?”

Buffy sighed and looked up at Giles for help.  “Mom, Giles told me that you read my diary?”

Joyce nodded.  “I didn’t mean to, but you’ve been so down lately.  You actually left your diary out, and I know that isn’t like you.”  She tried to explain in a way that wouldn’t make Buffy mad.  “So, I read it.  It scared me.”

“With all that’s happened now, we were going to have to tell you.  I wish you didn’t found out that way.”  Buffy sighed.  She hated that her mother read her diary, but they had more important things to worry about right now.

“There is no easy way to tell you that your daughter is a Slayer, but perhaps we could have made the knowledge easier to bear.”  Giles stepped in.  He handed Joyce a hot mug of tea.  He sat down in a chair across from the couch that Buffy and Joyce sat in.  “We could have answered your questions along the way.”

Joyce looked back and forth between Giles and Buffy.  “What do you mean with all that’s happened?”  Her hands trembled around the mug when she took a sip of the soothing liquid.  “What could be worse then finding out your daughter is sent out every night to kill things that can kill her in return?”

Buffy bit her lower lip nervously.  “Mom, I’m not just the Slayer anymore.”  She covered one of her mom’s hands with hers.  “If you read my diary, then you know that vampires don’t always kill people.  They sometimes turn them.”

Joyce nodded.  She didn’t like where this conversation was heading.  “Oh Buffy.  Your face.”  She started to cry.  “Your dead, and you’re going to eat me.”

Giles took the mug from Joyce.  He set it on the table before it was spilled all over both females.  “She isn’t like a normal vampire, Joyce.  She has her soul.  She won’t kill anyone.”

“Well at least not anyone that doesn’t deserve it.”  Buffy hugged her mother to try and reassure her.  “I’m still the same old Buffy.  I just have a few more perks.”  She tried to lighten the mood with a bouncy comeback.

Joyce looked over at Giles in confusion.  “But that sounds impossible.  First I find out she is a slayer, and now you tell me she is a vampire but I shouldn’t be worried?”

“I know it doesn’t make sense, Mrs. Summers.”  Giles removed his glass and began a severe polishing of the lenses.  “This is difficult for me to grasp, and I’ve been dealing with the demonology side of things for many years.”

“I’m special, Mommy.”  Buffy tried to explain everything more simply.  “Not many like me even in the family of Slayers.”  She shrugged.  “Had to be the oddball I guess.”

It took the next 4 hours to get Joyce to comprehend just what Buffy was before and what she was now.  They brought out texts and diaries of past Watchers to help explain things to the grief stricken mother.  Things got even harder when they told her that she needed to plan out Buffy’s funeral.

“No, you can’t make me do that.”  Joyce argued vehemently.

“Angelus has to believe that I’m dead.”  Buffy reiterated.  “It is the only way that we can guarantee he’ll show up without thinking we are trying to trap him.  We need the advantage that him thinking I’m dead will give us.”

“Joyce,” Giles had been told about 15 minutes into the first conversation to call her Joyce.  “I know this is all overwhelming and difficult, but Angelus needs to be stopped.  He’s already tortured each of us in different ways.  His announcement to you about Buffy’s sexual activity was minimal compared to the deaths he’s overseen.”

Buffy rubbed Giles’ arm in comfort.  “I’m so sorry, Giles.”

Giles nodded.  “I know, Buffy.  It wasn’t something you could have prevented.”

“Yes, I could have.”  Buffy sighed.  “If I had been able to kill him after the Judge, he wouldn’t have gotten to Miss Calendar.”

“It was too much to ask of you at the time, Buffy.”  Giles had fought with himself ever since Jenny’s death to not blame Buffy.  A part of him still wanted to berate his Slayer for not doing her duty.  The fatherly side of him knew that he could never expect a daughter to be ready to kill the man she loved at the drop of a hat.  “Yes, it was your job, but I can’t imagine having to be the one to kill the one I loved.”

“I won’t fail you this time Giles.”  Buffy clutched Giles’ arm tighter.  “He will be dust.”

“I know he will.”  Giles turned back to Joyce.  “We have the opportunity to spring this trap on Angelus.  We won’t get another one.”

Joyce, who had listened to each of them talk about the past, sighed resignedly.  “All right.  What do I need to do?”

In the middle of the funeral plans, Willow showed up at Giles’ apartment.  Giles directed Willow to research Spike’s human name for any connections to the Council.  He was still disturbed by a sense of familiarity to the Jamison name.  He made dinner for Joyce, Willow and himself.  Buffy went upstairs to catch a couple more hours of sleep.

“Why wouldn’t Xander come, Willow?”  Giles directed the conversation to Willow while they ate.

“He said that he wasn’t going to help Buffy figure out how her and Spike were supposed to be together.”  Willow was upset with Xander.  She didn’t understand all of this either, but she knew they needed to support Buffy more now than ever.  She hadn’t faulted Buffy for going all fangy on Xander once Giles told them about the bond.  She’d want to go all fangy too if Xander tried to say mean things about Oz or want to kill him.

“I hope he doesn’t do something foolish.  That boy is a naïve child when he doesn’t get his way.”  Giles cut another piece of potato before he dipped it into a cream like gravy to eat it.

“He said something about taking care of things the way it should be, but he was just babbling then.”  Willow reassured everyone at the table.  “You know how he gets when he’s upset.  Nothing makes sense.”

“We should be careful what we say around him now, just in case,” Giles said and Joyce nodded.  “We have to do everything we can to protect Buffy.  If the Council were to find out about this, there is no telling what they would do.  I’m sure they would try to kill her at the very least.”

“The very least?”  Joyce gulped.  “Isn’t death the worst?”

“Not necessarily, Joyce,” Giles sighed.  “If they see Buffy as only a creature, they could capture her to study her.  There is no telling what kinds of tests they would do.”

“How could they do something so inhumane?”  Willow was freaked out about hearing this.

“They wouldn’t see it as inhumane if they didn’t feel she was human.”  Giles responded in explanation.

“Oh, I see.”  Joyce’s hand shook as the next forkful made its way to her mouth.

“We’ll do everything we can to stop that from happening, Joyce.  I love Buffy like my own daughter.”

Joyce nodded.

The three inside had now knowledge of the dark-haired teenager that stood near Giles’ window outside.  At first he thought that he’d join them at the house to see if he could talk some sense into them.  That woman he saw the night before could not be Buffy.  He would prove to them all that it wasn’t.  The Council.  Giles said something about the Council would be able to take care of it.  ‘Hmmm, just have to find a way to get a hold of them.’  He snuck away and headed towards home to think on it further.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Angelus wiped Drusilla’s blood from his lips as he walked over to Spike and Dalton in the main room of the mansion.  “You’re nothing but a waste of space, Willie.”  He’d spent the last couple hours trying to take Dru’s mind off of Spike.  No matter what he tried, Dru kept going on and on about the rules, pixies, and balls of sunshine.  It had frustrated him beyond irritation.

Spike gritted his teeth.  He wanted to stand up and beat his Sire senseless.  “I would get better if you or Dru would remember to feed me properly.”

Angelus laughed.  He leered over him with a hand on each arm of the chair.  “Listen to how pathetic you sound.”  He got right next to Spike’s ear.  “Needing to be fed like a little puppy.”  If he couldn’t get Dru to stop talking about her William, he would take William out of the equation.

Spike moved back as far as he could in the chair.  He was only half acting while he cowered away in fear from the elder vampire.  Angelus had a look in his eyes that meant death and destruction.  After the way Drusilla left earlier, he had a feeling that Angelus wasn’t all that happy with him.

“Well let me tell you something … pet.”  Angelus used one of Spike’s nicknames for others in a derogatory manner.  “I’ve managed to pound Dru’s obsession for you out of her system every night with my cock buried inside of her.”  He grinned maliciously.  “After this evening’s session you aren’t even a passing thought.”

“But she loves me.  She said she wanted to keep me earlier.”  Spike played off that his earlier tirade was just playing with Dru to try and make her seek him out more.  He fought to maintain his pathetic façade that his world revolved around Drusilla.

“You mean your little show of dominance earlier?”  Angelus guffawed.  “That didn’t even bother her in the slightest.  She forgot you the moment I walked into the room and buried my fangs in her pretty neck.”

Spike simpered a little for effect.  He beat his fists weakly on top of Angelus’ hands in defiance.

“My wicked girl only loves her Daddy.  You were a convenience until my return, nothing more.”  Angelus hammered each word home with a mocking pat on Spike’s shoulder.

“You’re lying!  As soon as I get out of this chair, I’m going to kick your ass back into soulland.”

“I’m not lying, and you know it.  You knew it earlier when you gave that weak attempt to make her think you didn’t want her.”

“She has to love me.  I can’t live without her.”  Spike pouted.  “I was only trying to get her back.”

“Then perhaps it is time I ended your pathetic life permanently.”  Angelus pulled back slightly to show Spike with his eyes that he was serious.  “There is only room for one wolf in this henhouse and that’s me.”

Spike blinked.  “What are you saying?”

“I’m saying you either remove yourself from our lives …”  Angelus bit Spike’s ear before he whispered the last words to him.  “… Or I’ll remove you myself.”  He stood up.  “Think about that one, Willie.  You have one day.  Make it count.  I’m off to hunt.”

Spike gulped.  With each step Angelus took away from him, he would swear that his heart beat in his chest in fear.  Things had to be taken care of and fast.  “Dalton, take me back to my room.”

Dalton pushed the wheelchair down the corridor to Spike’s room.  He carried the chair up the steps, and then continued the rest of the way towards the room.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Joyce left Willow, Giles and Buffy at Giles’ apartment that evening after Buffy woke up.  She headed straight for the funeral home to make the necessary arrangements.  Even knowing that her daughter was still alive, it was creeping her out to be planning Buffy’s funeral. 

The undertaker looked at Joyce strange when she requested the empty coffin and the sunset service.  She explained that she wished the body to be in its natural state, and she gave instructions for where the casket was to be delivered to and when.

After that was finished, Joyce headed back to Revello drive as quickly as she could.  It was already dark out, and she knew about the many reasons she should be afraid to be out alone in the dark in Sunnydale.  She locked the door behind her and readied herself for bed.  The next two days were going to be trying on her every patience and nerve.  She had to make everyone believe that Buffy was dead.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Well that just can’t be right.”  Giles read the web site page and Watcher records three more times.  “That is absolutely absurd!”  Willow had called him over a few minutes ago to see what information she found on William Jamison from her last few hours of research.

“What is, Giles?”  Buffy stood up from the couch to stand behind Giles.  She read over his shoulder.  First she snorted, the chuckled, and then an all out guffaw filled the Watcher’s apartment.  “Oh my!  The irony of that is priceless.”

Giles wore a mask of expressions mingled from surprise, intrigue, anger, and unbelief.  “There’s no bloody way that is right.”

“But it is bloody hilarious.”  Buffy mocked Giles’ tone and accent.  “I think it is perfect.”

“There must be another William Andrew Henry Jamison from that time period.”  Giles closed the book.  “Get on that monstrosity of a machine and find another one.”

Buffy and Willow exchanged amused glances.  Willow started clicking through more databases.  “Sure, Giles.  If you say so, but I doubt it.”  She wanted to laugh right along with Buffy, but the prospect of Giles and Spike … it was just too funny for reality.

“No one is leaving this apartment until we prove that to be a lie.  I don’t care if we are here until dawn.”  Giles was flustered.  He huffed over to one of the chairs at the kitchen table and plopped down.  He tried to concentrate on Louis’ diary entries and other books, but his mind kept coming back to Willow’s revelation.  ‘I don’t care what it says, I’m not calling him Uncle Spike.’

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“We don’t have much time, Dalton.”  Spike quickly jumped up from the wheelchair once they were secure in his room.  “Angelus is going to stake me himself if I can’t make him believe that I’m dead in the next day.”

“How are we going to make him believe that?”

“The box I asked you to bring me contains an amulet that I can use to mask my presence and my every vampiric essence from everyone.”  Spike rummaged through the box.  He held up a wooden amulet, edged in gold, and covered in various symbols.

“No one will be able to sense you?”  Dalton queried.

“I could stand right next to the poofter and he wouldn’t want to believe his eyes because he wouldn’t feel me.”  Spike rubbed the dust off the front of the amulet.  “The diaries mentioned how this was created by the monks to help Charmand mask his presence when the Council was near.  They weren’t able to trace a vampiric signature because there wasn’t one to find when he wore this.”

“I thought that the vampire was dusted.  Wouldn’t this amulet have dusted with him?”  Dalton was slightly confused.  He didn’t want to doubt his Master’s abilities, but there were big problems if he was wrong about this.

“He left it with the Watcher that day because they weren’t worried about the Council finding them.  The wankers had long given up their chase of him and the Slayer,” Spike explained.  “The amulet was with the book when I took it.  Though Charmand said it wouldn’t work like I thought it does.”  He pondered that thought for a moment.  “I can only hope that he means it works better, not worse.  He would have warned me if it wouldn’t cover my essence.”

“Charmand?  You spoke to this vampire?”

“Dream state, very strange.”  Spike spouted off a quick explanation.  “We don’t have much time to plan.  Bring me one of the new fledglings and …”

Spike’s sentence was cut off with the door being pushed open and one of the newest fledglings stepping into the room with some bagged blood.  The fledgling screeched to see the Master Vampire standing and not in his wheelchair.  The fledgling tried to run away, but Spike and Dalton grabbed him and tossed him back into the room.

“Well I guess you won’t have to go get me one after all.  We just had him hand delivered.”  Spike gagged the fledgling and tied him to his wheelchair.  He buried his fangs into the fledgling’s neck, and he drank enough blood to throw the new vampire into unconsciousness.  When he was positive that the vampire was out for the count, he untied him.

“He’ll do nicely.  Need dust you see.  Sorry mate, noting personal.”  He tapped the unconscious vampire’s shoulder.  “Now here is what you need to do now, Dalton.  Timing is critical.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Angelus grumbled as he returned to the mansion just before sunrise after a boring and uneventful hunt.  Drusilla hadn’t joined him, and there was nothing worth even an ounce of his effort to kill that night.  All of the precious Scoobies seemed to be in hiding. 

The only bright spot of the night was the news that the Slayer would be buried after a sunset funeral, two nights from now.  He had connections at the funeral homes in Sunnydale.  He was positive that all of the Slayer’s family and friends would be there to attend, and he was going to make sure that this was one funeral that no one would forget.  He had plans to rid Sunnydale of every last one of them, and he now had the perfect place to kill them all in one grand gesture.

Dalton rushed across the main hall.  His eyes were wide with fear.  He raced over to Angelus and fell at his feet in a position of mercy.  “Master Angelus, please come quick.”

Angelus kicked Dalton over with the tip of his boot.  “What are you sniveling on about, bookworm?”

“Master Spike, Sir.  He’s acting strange.  He’s going to …”

“Spike is always strange.  Nothing new there.”  Angelus shared a laugh with several nearby minions over his little joke.

“This is worse than normal, Master.  He’s threatening to kill himself with the next sunrise.”  Dalton looked up at the dark haired vampire.  He had to play his part well or Angelus would never fall for this.  His eyes echoed a genuine fear and submission to beg from Angelus.  “The drapes are open, and he’s just sitting there.  He bit me when I tried to move him.”  He held up his arm where several bite marks dotted up and down it.

The other vampires watched Angelus to see what his reaction to this news would be.  Spike was Angelus’ Childe.  By all vampiric rituals Angelus should try to stop his Childe from doing something foolish.

Angelus was in no rush to save the bleached thorn in his side.  He knew that he’d have to at least make a show of trying to save Spike, or he would lose face amongst the clan.  With a sigh he stood up.  “Best go see if we can talk to him then.”

Dalton stared at Angelus.  He was surprised that the Master Vampire was acquiescing so easily to the request.  ‘He’s not actually going to try and save him, is he?’

In answer to Dalton’s thoughts, Angelus purposely tripped over something on the floor.  He laughed from his face down position.  “Must have nibbled on someone tonight who had a bit more than human food in their system.”

‘Oh so that is how he’s going to play it.’  Dalton was half relieved and half peeved that Angelus wasn’t even going to try and save Spike.

Angelus finally made it to the stairs just as the sun was cresting over the horizon.  Screams of pain and agony caressed his ears.  He picked up the pace of his walk.  There was no way that he’d make it to the room before Spike was dust.  That suited him just fine.  He could say that he made the effort, but he was just too late to save him.  The screams ceased right about the time he made it to Spike’s room.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

In two separate parts of Sunnydale the wailing screams of a woman were heard.  One belonged to the vampiress Drusilla, and the other belonged to the vampiress/slayer named Buffy.  Both cried out for the same thing, the loss of one man and one vampire named William “Spike” Jamison.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Angelus stood in the doorway to Spike’s room.  He was careful to avoid the sun’s damaging rays.  Inside the room the draperies were open just enough to bathe the wheelchair in front of the window in sunlight.  Even from this distance, Angelus noticed the pile of dust on the chair and the scent of singed flesh and hair in the air.

“Couldn’t even go out facing your fate, could you boy?”  Angelus laughed.  The wheelchair was facing away from the window as if the former occupant didn’t want to see the sun hit him in those final moments.  “A coward to the end.”  He rejoiced in the demise of his Childe. 

Nothing in the room or anywhere near felt like the essence of his wayward son.  The bond between a Sire and Childe felt severed.  Drusilla’s screams, which echoed throughout the mansion, were further proof that Spike was no more.  He turned away from the room, his gleeful laughter following him down the hallway to the main area.  He had a woman to see to.  He would pound any thoughts of Spike out of her head as he fucked her into oblivion.  Today was a day to celebrate.  Spike was dead.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Dalton stared into the room in pain.  Even the faking of his Master’s death disturbed him.  If he was alive his racing heart might have given away the game to Angelus.  He was once again grateful that he was a vampire.  He trotted around the light path to close the drapes.

Dalton walked over to the passage to say goodbye and close the door.  He was surprised to see that Spike was already gone.  ‘I wonder what happened.’

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Everything had been quiet while they continued with the research.  Willow had actually fallen asleep two hours before at the table.  Buffy’s screams snapped her from her sleep in a heartbeat.

“SIRE!”  Buffy sobbed openly, clutching her legs to her chest.  Willow and Giles moved to Buffy’s side.  “He’s gone, Giles.”

Buffy pushed at anyone that tried to get near to her.  “Oh God, Spike’s gone.”  She buried her face in her knees and cried out with her heart and soul for the one she could no longer feel the presence of.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

(To Be Continued)

Chapter Summary: Dru tried to get Spike to think she still wanted him.  Angelus, jealous of Dru's attentions on Spike, threatened Spike with a dusting if Spike didn't do it himself first.  Spike and Dalton set up a fledgling to take the dusting for him, and Spike prepared the amulet to cover his essence.  As Charmand suggested, the amulet worked but not quite how Spike thought it would.  Buffy believes that Spike is dead as well.  Not even their telepathic link was strong enough at the distance they were apart from each other.  Now we see the repercussions off all of this.  What happened with the amulet?  Will Spike make it to Giles' place in time to stop Buffy from doing something very foolish?

**WARNING: Just a little reminder that this story is rated NC-17 overall, and it contains many graphic sexual situations throughout.  This chapter has biting and sexual moments in it.  I don't always warn with each separate chapter, but since there hadn't been any sex for a few chapters I'm sending out this little reminder to you readers.**

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Spike's voice drifted off in the echoes of the hidden passage near his room.  The moment the amulet lay draped around his neck and onto his chest, he panicked.  Emptiness filled him where previous vampiric bands had been.  Even his link with Buffy was close to non-existent.  What he did feel from Buffy was pain, despair, and grief so strong that he nearly cried.

'Buffy,' Spike tried to reach out with their telepathic link.  'Buffy, luv.  I'm all right!'  There was no response back to him.  The emotions he felt from Buffy were becoming unbearable, and he screamed at being unable to soothe her.  This wasn't right.  He should still be able to contact her.  'Damn it.  This must have been what Charmand meant.'

As soon as he was sure Angelus was out of the room, Spike bolted down the passage.  There was no time to wait for Dalton to check on him.  He needed to get to his Mate before she tried something foolish.  He knew what he would do if he lost Buffy.  He hoped the Watcher or her friends were around her to try and stop Buffy from doing the same thing he would.

Spike dashed from the gardens of the mansion to the nearest sewer entrance without a care about sunlight exposure.  He figured he wouldn't be in the direct sunlight long enough to burn.  The sewers were the quickest way to the Watcher's house, and he needed to get there fast.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Buffy, we mustn't jump to conclusions."  Giles tried in vain to wrap his arms around Buffy to comfort her.  "Spike said he had some plans to work on.  Maybe this is a part of it?"  He wanted to be hopeful for Buffy's sake, but he was concerned himself at her loss.

"You don't understand, Giles."  Buffy lifted her head from her arms.  Tears trailed down both sides of her cheek.  "There's nothing.  I've tried to send a thought to him, and I've tried to feel him.  Reaching out does nothing.  I'm just ... empty."

Buffy rubbed the bite marks on her neck.  "You weren't supposed to leave me."  She spoke out loud as if Spike were there to hear her.  She rubbed the marks harder, but she still felt no response or tingling.

Giles stood up.  "I'm going to make some tea and heat up some blood for you, Buffy."  He was out of his element to counsel Buffy in this situation.  A Watcher wasn't trained to care for a Childe when they lost their Sire.  Neither did he know what to do with one Mate when the other perished.

Willow, after being pushed away again by Buffy, followed Giles into the kitchen.  "What are we going to do, Giles?"  She never remembered Buffy being this torn up about anything before.  "She wasn't even this bad when Angel went all Angelus on us.  Do you think Spike's really gone?"

"For all our sakes, I hope not.  Buffy needs him."  Giles readied the teakettle with fresh water.  He prepared a tray with three cups, a little bowl of sugar, and a tiny pitcher of creamer.  "I'm hoping that he's using some sort of cloaking spell, but that shouldn't have affected their telepathy.  At least it didn't affect them the other night."

Buffy ignored the conversation in the kitchen.  She didn't care why Spike was gone.  She focused on the pain and emptiness where his presence used to reside.  It was only a few days ago that she would have happily dusted the bleached Master Vampire herself.  In the last few days a connection had burrowed so deep into her mind, body and soul that without their connection she was crumbling.

What was it that Charmand and Antoinette said about being bound for eternity, even beyond a second death because of the joining of their souls?  Did that mean if she dusted they would be together again?  What if she was wrong and Spike wasn't in Heaven?  'Then I'll fight my way down to tear Hell apart to find him.'  She looked up at Giles' door.  'Just a few quick steps away to find out for sure.'

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Spike kicked through bits of paper, wood and metal debris that tried to get in his way on his run through the tunnels.  'I have to reach her,' was the mantra he continuously repeated in his head while he ran.  A greater sense of despair and desolation hit him from Buffy as he drew nearer to Giles' house.

Spike estimated he was still a couple blocks away.  He tried to reach Buffy telepathically, but he still hit the proverbial brick wall during the attempt.  "Remind me to punch that git for being the king of understatement," he growled loudly.  'Nice warning there, mate,' he directed his thoughts towards an absent Charmand.

With one block to go, Spike received clearer thoughts and emotions from Buffy even though he wasn't able to send thoughts himself.  He was in such a desperate dash to reach Buffy that the thought didn't cross his mind to remove the amulet.  'Don't you dare do it, Slayer!'  He practically screamed his thoughts in an attempt to reach his Mate any way possible.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

For a brief moment Buffy stopped her creep towards the door.  She thought she felt Spike for just a second before he was gone again.  She closed her eyes.  'Don't bloody torment me,' she mentally cursed the powers.  'A little fraction of feeling isn't going to stop me.'

Willow looked out into the living room from the kitchen.  She watched Buffy stand up and stare at the door.  She tugged on Giles' sleeve.  "Giles, I think that Buffy is ..."  Before Willow could finish her statement, the door was already flung open, and Buffy ran outside.

"BUFFY!"  Giles and Willow both yelled in unison.  In their haste it actually took them longer to reach the outside because they were tripping over each other and everything in their path.

Buffy stood out in the direct sunlight outside of Giles' home.  Her arms were spread open wide in offering, just waiting for the burning to begin.  By the time Giles and Willow joined her outside, Buffy was weeping.

Willow stuttered in confusion, "I thought ... Shouldn't she be burning?"

Buffy cried harder.  She looked up at the sky with pain in her eyes.  "I don't care if my soul is purer than the demon, Antoinette.  Let me die!"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"NO!"  Spike yelled out.  His voice reverberated off the sewer tunnel's walls with a matching strength to the voice that first called out.  He jumped up the last few rungs of the ladder to the street and shouldered the manhole cover off.  He left the hole open while he ran across the street, into the courtyard of Giles' place.

A flash of black and white blurred past Giles, who was standing at Buffy's side, and tumbled with Buffy back into Giles' house.  "Spike?"  He turned his head to look into the house where the snarling black and white blur covered Buffy with is body.

"Don't you ever ..."  Spike kissed Buffy all over her face.  "Ever ..."  He shook her by the shoulders.  "Do that again!"  His demon growled loudly in anger while his inner humanity wept.

"Spike?"  Buffy looked up at her Mate.  She still couldn't feel his presence, but she felt the tingling sensation of her Sire and Mate wherever they touched.  "Oh God, Spike!  I thought you were dead."

Spike snarled.  He hated to see his Mate in tears.  Knowing that he was the cause of those tears grated at him even further.

Willow and Giles slowly walked back into his house.  Many questions swirled around in Giles' head as to why Buffy hadn't dusted.  She was out in the sunlight long enough to start to burn at the very least.

Spike growled possessively at Buffy.  "What the bloody hell were you trying to do, Childe?"  He gripped her upper arms so tightly that if she were human he would have broken her arm.

Being a vampire increased Buffy's threshold for pain.  It also made her body less susceptible to injury.  As a Slayer her bones were stronger than a human's.  Her combined Slayer and vampire constitution gave further extensions to her thresholds.  "I couldn't bear the loss of your presence.  If you were gone, I was ready to join you.  I can't live without you anymore, Spike."

Spike sat up halfway.  He pulled Buffy up with him.  "I felt your strong emotions, but you weren't hearing my thoughts."  He rocked the two of them back and forth in a soothing motion.  "I tried to reach you, pet."  Buffy's words warmed his undead heart.  Her devotion told him that he was cherished, and she claimed that she couldn't live without him.  That told him she was no longer thinking of herself as being "dead".

Buffy looked up into the eyes of her Sire.  Matching tracks of tears fell down their faces.  She felt the warm tingling sensation burn hotter the longer they touched each other.  If she wasn't seeing him with her own eyes, Buffy would swear that Spike was still gone.  His presence was still missing in her spirit.  "I see you Sire, but I don't feel you."  Her voice choked on the words.

"I'm real, pet.  I'll make sure you feel me."  Spike, who had remained in his vampire face since leaving the mansion, yanked Buffy's neck to his lips and plunged his fangs into her skin.  "Mine," he roared through a mouthful of her wonderful Slayer/Childe blood.

After re-entering the house, Willow tried to avoid the couple.  Willow was pretty scared, but she realized that Spike and Buffy needed some "alone" time.  She resolved herself to give them that privacy until a yelp of pain snapped her full attention back to Buffy.  The sight of Spike roaring with Buffy's blood on his lips chilled her to the core.

Giles bolted to the kitchen table to retrieve a stake.  Before Spike bit Buffy, he found himself a curious observer of how the two interacted.  The moment he felt any real danger, his papa bear side made an appearance.  Half a second before he brought his hand down to turn Spike into dust, a lustful moan from Buffy stopped him.

Buffy's body tensed from the fierceness of Spike's bite.  With his fangs embedded in her throat, their connection was renewed and strengthened.  Although she couldn't feel his actual Sire presence, she felt the mental mating ties between them snap back into place.  "Oh my!  Yours!"  She moaned in pleasure after her initial yelp of pain.  She clamped her mouth onto Spike's neck.  Her fangs slipped into her previous marks, and she happily drank from him.  "My Sire.  My Mate.  Mine!"

"Yours."  Spike's voice answered Buffy's proclamation.  A sense of relief washed over him.  Mentally he could sense his Mate's telepathic link with him once more.  It unnerved him that it was still a weaker link than what they previously shared.  'It must be an effect of the amulet.  I'll be bloody glad when I can take it off again.'

Both fully "vamped", Spike and Buffy clawed at each other's clothes in earnest.  Each swipe rewarded one or both of them with a better view of their Mate's body.  No thought was given to the two humans standing stock still in Giles' house.  All that mattered for the mates now was to renew and reacquaint themselves with each other.

Willow found it hard to decide if she should be appalled or aroused at the sight before her.  Her best friend was tearing into Spike like a wanton and feral beast.  She might have thought Spike was making Buffy do things against her will if she hadn't seen the look in Buffy's eyes that radiated the desire and need she had for everything she and Spike were doing to each other.

Giles pulled at the collar of his shirt.  He gulped hard.  With a come hither motion of his hand, Giles gestured for Willow to follow him back out the door.  Once outside he locked the door.  "Why don't we go get some breakfast in town?  I think it would be better if we weren't there to witness what they're doing."

"That's ... That's a good idea, Giles."  Willow stared at the closed door for a minute.  "Will they be all right in there?  It looked like they were going to tear each other to pieces."

"As awkward as it may seem, it appears that Buffy and Spike were renewing their claim in a bestial way."  Giles led Willow out of the courtyard.  He decided against driving in favor of walking to allow them more time to clear their heads.  "Their demons and human selves all need the reassurance of their mate being alive and cared for."

"That is a pretty scary way to say I love you," Willow countered with a shiver.

"There are many aspects of their relationship we may never understand, Willow, and there are many different types of love."  Giles tried to explain the situation quickly and simply.  He had no desire for anyone to overhear any critical points of the conversation.  He wasn't convinced about the Council's lack of knowledge about Buffy.  He feared Travers sent operatives to watch them.  So he kept his voice low for Willow’s hearing only.  "Demons react to each other on a more primal level.  Although I have witnessed tender forms of affection between them, their other sides will also demand their own forms of expression and affirmation."

"I think I understand better Giles, but it still frightens me to see them act like that."  Willow sighed softly.  "I almost forget Buffy's new state until something like this shocks the realization back in."

Giles nodded.  "We need to give her all of the support possible."  They arrived outside of a small diner.  "Hardly anything is happening in a "normal" way for Spike and Buffy either.  We're all muddling through this, but we'll survive better if we stick together."  He despised the thought of his Slayer being turned, but he wasn't foolish enough anymore to assume this was the end of his charge.  He was willing to stand up to Angelus, the Council, or anyone else that came after Buffy.

Willow weaved around several tables to locate an empty two-seater in the corner.  "I'm scared, but I won't desert Buffy.  If only we could get Xander to understand."

"Xander has shown a lot of prejudice when it comes to those he deems as evil."  Giles knew Spike wasn't completely good, but he had to respect the fact that Spike was willing to risk his entire existence and way of life to protect Buffy.  Spike also seemed willing to fight whatever was necessary to keep her safe and loved.

Willow nodded.  "He never liked Angel, but part of that was from his crush on Buffy."  She'd been so mad at Xander for the last couple years because of his crush on Buffy.  She'd loved him for a long time before she met Oz, and it had hurt to watch her best friend chase after her other best friend especially when she knew that Buffy didn't love Xander like that.

"He has taken great pleasure in repeatedly saying I told you so, as of late."  Giles groaned in frustration.  He had more reason to be upset with Buffy about Angelus than Xander, but he also wasn't going to blame her for everything either.  Part of the blame lay at Jenny's feet for not telling them about what she knew and for staying late at the school alone when she should have been safe at home.  He missed her terribly, but there was nothing he could do to bring her back.  He needed to move on as best he could.

Willow noted the furrowing of Giles’ brow.  She squeezed his hand in support.  "Once Xander gets a hold of something, he doesn't let go."  Willow rolled her eyes.  "He's all on the bandwagon to stake Spike, but I doubt that Buffy lets him anywhere near Spike.  Her fangy display the other day proved that."

Giles nodded in agreement.  "Yes, you are right.  We need to watch Xander carefully."  He sighed.  "I am afraid that I don't trust the boy not to overreact emotionally when it comes to Buffy."

Conversation stopped when the waitress walked over to take their order.  The two sat in relative silence contemplating the state of their lives while they waited for their order and then ate it.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Back at Giles' house Spike and Buffy were lost in their own world where only the two of them existed.  Bits and pieces of their clothing were strewn throughout the living room, furniture was knocked over, and the two of them were practically fucking their way around the room.

Spike hovered over Buffy's body, buried to the hilt within her warm channel.  He snarled and bit her shoulders and breasts while he pounded into her pussy savagely.  The force of his thrusts slid them both along the carpet.  She would have been pushed away from him if he hadn't grabbed a hold of her shoulders or waist to remain intimately connected.

Buffy was not idle in her actions either.  Her claws, fully extended in her demon's façade, dug into Spike's back.  Thin lines of red blood dripped over his shoulder blades, the scent of his blood driving the pair to further heights.

“Never leaving you.”  Spike grunted, punctuating each word with a separate plunging of his cock in and out of her body.  He grabbed Buffy’s shoulders, pulled back and flipped her over to her hands and knees without losing the warm sheath around his cock.

Buffy gasped in pleasure and shock at the change of position.  She braced her hands against the floor.  Her claws dug into the carpet and wood beneath it.  She used any leverage she could get to push herself back when Spike pushed his cock forward.  “I’ll kill anyone that even thinks of touching you.”  She tightened her inner muscles to strangle his cock within her as she spoke.

Spike’s head snapped backwards, and he howled.  His body shook in ecstasy.  His orgasm was ripped from his body with the tightening of her pussy around his cock.  He curled his hands on her shoulders; claw marks being embedded in her front and back.  He yanked her body up against his and buried his fangs into her neck.

“SPIKE!”  Buffy yelled out in orgasmic joy.  Her body rushed over the edge the moment his fangs entered her neck.  The rush of Spike’s cool seed within her womb did nothing to chill her, but it satisfied her body’s need for his essence in any way that she could find it.  Her muscles pulsed and rippled around his cock, milking each strong jet of thick cream deep within her canal.

Spike rocked his hips forward and back in shorter strokes that were no less forceful than his previous fucking.  Even as his body emptied itself within her, his hunger for her remained.  His passion for Buffy would never die, and he pounded against her womb harder with the round thick head of his cock.

“Yes, Spike.  Yesssss!”  Buffy’s words slurred off when the colorful light display began behind her eyes.  She bucked back against Spike, sending him to the floor.  Quickly she turned around, straddled Spike on the ground, and impaled herself on his still stiff member with a bounce.

“BUFFY!”  Spike bellowed.  His voice echoed off every wall, bouncing back to them.  His cock plunged so deep within Buffy’s depths that he felt his throbbing head force its way past her cervix and deep into her womb.  His eyes nearly crossed at the different feeling of this most secret place of his lover.

Buffy fell over on top of Spike.  The brief shot of searing pain that radiated from her lower regions was nothing compared to the fullness and completion she felt with where her lover was now buried.  She bounced a little to keep him deep within her as the force of that first thrust sent her into another orgasm.

Spike rolled Buffy beneath him.  He lifted her hips up into the air.  With a feral growl he pounded into his climaxing Mate.  Every thrust relit the fire within Buffy’s body and continued her orgasmic crest to near unconsciousness.

Anyone else would literally be crushed from the pressure and force of their lovemaking.  No matter the intensity of this sex between them, it was lovemaking to their demons.  It was a passion beyond the normal mortal feelings between humans.  This connected them on an even deeper level.  Spike’s essence and blood filled his Mate while he consumed Buffy’s blood and essence. 

The lovers were lost to the outside world.  Only one thing existed for either of them, that was each other.  Unfortunately the outside world still existed, and it was about to intrude on their private world.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Willow and Giles walked leisurely back to his house.  They hadn’t been sure how long the lover’s needed to be with each other before it was safe to go back home.  Neither one wanted to walk into the middle of anything resembling what they left them doing.  So, they casually talked about school, and other mundane things, until they heard a shrieking scream coming from the direction of Giles’ house.  Both of them took off in a dead run.

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Inside Giles home an enraged vampire crouched over his wounded Mate.  “Buffy!”  He fought every urge to destroy the boy that did this.

Buffy lay on the floor naked and bleeding around the wooden stake embedded in her unmoving left lung.  Only inches from her heart, she tried to remain still while the tears ran down her cheeks.  “Oh God, Spike.  It hurts.”  Her claws dug into her own hands in clenched fists.

At first Spike had been too stunned to even move.  One minute they were pounding each other into the floor, changing dominant positions frequently, and the next he was yanked off his Mate.  When he shook his lustful head to clear it and react, a stake was swishing through the air to his heart.  Mere moments before the tip of the stake would have pierced his heart, he found himself with an armful of Buffy sporting a stake embedded in her lung with her back against him.

“Make it stop, Sire.  Please, make it stop.”  Buffy cried out at the pain.  She didn’t know if it would kill her or not, crosses and sunlight had no effect, but it hurt like hell.

Cold brown eyes stared at the couple on the floor.  His back rested against the wall opposite Buffy and Spike.  He felt sick to his stomach to see the blood oozing out of the woman he’d had a crush on for almost 2 years already, but another twisted part of his mind told him that it was just what she deserved.  ‘The bitch wanted to play with evil.  She’ll end up dust right alongside him.’  He stretched his arm out behind him to gather another stake into his hand.  Slowly he took two steps forward prepared to stake the vampire caring for his Childe and Mate.

Willow and Giles burst through the door.  “XANDER!”  Willow yelled.  All she saw was Spike leaning over someone with his back to Xander.  Xander held a stake in his hand, and it was only a couple strokes from plunging into Spike’s back.

“COWARD!”  Spike roared, turned around, kicked Xander in the gut and forced him into the wall.  He grabbed Xander’s wrist.  He pressed it tighter in his hand until the pain forced Xander to drop the stake.  “How could you?”  He brought his knee up to disable the boy.

Xander saw stars when the force of the kick knocked the breath out of him.  The stars were joined with a searing white light when his balls were wounded by Spike’s knee.  He crumbled towards the ground in a heap of quivering pain.

Spike dropped the whimpering Whelp to the floor.  He turned to a shocked Giles and Willow.  “Do something with him,” he ordered.  If Spike had his way, he would drain the boy right then and there.  His Mate was in danger though, and that was the only thing that saved Xander’s life.

Giles stepped up to the couch.  As he neared the end of it he inhaled sharply.  The sight of Buffy lying in her own blood was enough to nearly stop his own heart from beating.  He ripped Xander up off the floor, back into the wall.  A very Ripper like voice emanated from Giles’ lips.  “If she dies, you die.”  He tossed Xander into a nearby armchair then headed to the bathroom for his first aid kit.

Willow’s eyes practically bulged out of their sockets at the sound of Giles’ voice.  The entire atmosphere of the room was dark and foreboding.  She had never felt so much negative energy in all of her life.  It literally changed the room temperature with the chill.  She walked over to Xander trying not to look at Buffy’s pain stricken form.

Spike caressed Buffy’s cheek.  Buffy’s teary eyes never faltered from her lover’s gaze even when her body shook in pain.  He knew the stake was near her heart, and he was afraid to remove it.  One wrong twist of his wrist, and he would lose her.  As much as Buffy wished to die when she thought she’d lost him, he would greet the sun himself if he lost her.

Giles returned to the living room with a metal box and a plastic shower curtain.  He draped the curtain over the couch.  “Spike, do you think you can get her up here without jarring the stake?”

Spike nodded.  Nothing could express the gratitude he felt towards Giles for trying to help him instead of blaming him.  He felt quite proud of the Watcher’s display in front of the boy.  He half expected the Watcher to finish what the boy had started.

Giles secured a fluffier pillow under the top of the shower curtain on the couch.  He placed another pillow down a bit further in the approximate position of where Buffy’s chest would be.  He had no desire to see her dust, and they had to keep her upper torso as flat as possible.

Spike looked down at his beloved Buffy.  “We have to try and get that out, pet.”

Buffy nodded.  She was in too much pain to speak to him verbally.  ‘Do what you have to do, Spike.  Just don’t leave me.’

“I’m not going anywhere, pet.”  Spike spoke out loud for the sake of the others in the room.  He figured they would realize that he was speaking to Buffy.  “On the count of three, luv.”  He slipped one arm underneath her legs and another at her shoulders.  “One … Two … Three.”  He lifted Buffy up as softly as he could.

The few steps to get around the end of the couch and lay her down on it seemed like a mile to Buffy.  She cringed and whimpered out pitiful little cries with each movement of her muscles against the embedded stake.  Tears rolled down her cheeks.  No amount of vampire or Slayer stamina seemed to be able to compete with the pain of the wood in her chest.

Giles examined the wound with a clinical eye.  He tried to push his paternal emotions to the back of his mind but failed.  Xander moaned behind them.  Giles tossed a capped bottle to Willow.  “Blow some of this dust into his face.  If he wakes up again, do it again.”

Willow caught the bottle.  She walked over to her oldest friend with trepidation.  She knew Xander hated vampires, but his actions were vindictive beyond anything she realized he was capable of.  These were not the actions of her Snoopy dance loving best friend.  She uncorked the bottle, pinched a little bit of the dust into her palm and blew it at Xander.  About ten seconds later, Xander slumped forwards, asleep.

Giles never wavered his attention from Buffy’s wound.  He pressed as softly as he could around the wound.  “It appears to be a clean piercing.”

“Clean piercing?”  Spike growled.  “That is a stake that was shoved into Buffy’s body, not some belly ring.”

“I know that Spike,” Giles yelled.  He looked at Spike.  “I was trying to ascertain whether or not the wood splintered when it went in, Spike.”

“Oh.”  Spike hung his head a little bit.  “Sorry.”

‘He’s just trying to help, Spike.’  Buffy gazed lovingly at her Mate.

“I know, pet.”  Spike sighed.  “I don’t know who to trust right now.  Your best friend just tried to kill you.”

Buffy started to shake her head, but the pain it caused stopped her.  “You,” Buffy barely made out the word verbally.  ‘He was trying to kill you.’

Spike’s shoulders slumped.

“What did she say?”  Giles inquired.  He was unwrapping several layers of gauze and cotton from the first aid kit.

“She said he was trying to kill me.”  Spike waited for the burst of angry words to spew from Giles’ mouth.

“I see.”  Giles picked up a scalpel.  The Slayer/Vampire healing was sealing the wound around the stake too quickly.  They were going to need to cut around the stake to remove it.  “She couldn’t allow that to happen to you.”

The matter-of-fact tone with which the words were spoken surprised Spike.  “You aren’t going to blame me for this?”

“I believe the blame rests at Xander’s feet.  He should have realized Buffy would defend you, especially after her display the other night.”

Spike stared open-mouthed at Giles.  A moment of awkwardness passed between then.  Giles cleared his throat to break the silence.  “I need you to hold Buffy down.  We don’t want her to jar the stake into her further if she moves while I work.”

“That won’t be necessary.”  A decidedly female voice spoke from behind the men.  An ethereal glow surrounded the ex-Slayer who stepped closer to the couch.

“Antoinette?”  Spike stood up abruptly.  “Why the bloody hell didn’t you two tell me that I’d lose touch with her completely?”

“We warned you, William,” Antoinette spoke patiently.

“Not bloody well enough.  She tried to take a dance in the sun.”  Spike pointed at Buffy.  “And now one of her little friends decided to take a piece of her when she defended me.”

“I know, William.”  Antoinette patted Spike’s shoulder.  “I’m here to help.”  She walked over to Giles.

“I … I don’t … understand.”  Giles stuttered.  Spike called the woman Antoinette.  Surely this wasn’t the Slayer from Louis’ Watcher diaries.  “You’re …”

“Yes, Rupert.”  Antoinette knelt next to the couch.  She pressed the palm of her hand against Buffy’s brow.  “You were brave, little sister.”  She consoled the injured Vampiress.  “The powers wish to reward your love.”  She had to admire the small woman on the couch.  She had such a fire and passion to her.  “You risked your own life to protect your Mate.  You were willing to crumble to ash to join him when you thought he was gone.  These are signs of the devotion and depth of your love.”

Willow, Spike, and Giles watched the glowing woman tend to Buffy.  They stared amazed when a glowing hand grasped the stake.  The stake disappeared in her hand as if it was never there.

Buffy gasped.  The pressure of the stake was gone.  The searing pain that tore through her only minutes before disappeared.  She inhaled and exhaled several times, testing the use of her unnecessary lungs.

Antoinette rubbed her hand over Buffy’s gaping wound.  The wound quickly sealed itself.  New skin grew over the reddened skin to replace it.  When she was done, she stood up to face Spike again.  “This is a one time visit to this plane, William.”  She cupped Spike’s chin in her hand.  “A friend’s heart has turned black.  The circle knows of Buffy’s existence.  They will try to come after her, but do not fear the coven.  They will protect you both.”

Spike nodded.  ‘Why can’t the bloody powers stop speaking in riddles?’

Buffy, who was rapidly regaining her sense of strength in the absence of the pain, turned her head towards Spike.  ‘What would be the fun in them just telling us outright?’  She teased with a laugh.

Antoinette reached out one hand to clasp Willow’s hand.  Her other hand surrounded Giles’ hand.  “You both know what is truly right and wrong.  Do not close your minds to what you do not understand.  All is as it should be.”  With those last words she disappeared into the other realm once more.

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(To Be Continued)
Revenge For Love - (12) Family Bonds
By Tasha

Chapter Summary: Buffy tried to take a walk in the sun when she thought Spike was gone.  She didn't burn, and Spike knocked her back into the house.  Buffy and Spike renewed their connection, and an interruption by Xander left Buffy staked but not dusty.  Antoinette arrived on the scene to assist and issue another little warning for them all.  Now Giles, Willow and Spike are researching anything else they'll need for the funeral tonight.  Buffy is resting on the couch.  Xander is unconscious in a chair in Giles' living room.  So far Xander's life has been spared, but will the bonds of family allow him to survive?

**WARNING: A bit of torture, major character death, and violence in this chapter.  Also if you love Xander, you are probably not going to want to read this chapter.**

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DEDICATION: This chapter is dedicated to my faithful reviewer Dana.  She's been here from the beginning with her comments and ideas.  Her ideas were a key factor to this chapter's contents.  So, if you like Xander blame it on her.  LOL.  Just kidding.  I wanted this to happen, but I just wasn't sure how to make it the most believable.  She had some great ideas.  Also the day this is being updated (June 13th) is her birthday.  So Happy Birthday, Dana, and thank you.

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After Antoinette disappeared, Spike worked on getting Buffy to rest.  She refused to head to the bedroom.  She deemed it too far away from Spike.  She finally relented to resting on the couch.  She adamantly denied being tired, but her body disagreed with her.  Weary from her wounds and traumatic emotions over Spike's "death", her eyes closed and sleep claimed her rather quickly.

Giles checked on Xander's condition.  Confident that Xander would remain unconscious for a couple more hours, he directed Willow down a new path for their research.  He seemed to recall reading once or twice about vampires who walked in the sun.  He dismissed the idea previously, but after the day's earlier events he wanted to look into it.

Spike sat at the table behind the couch.  His gaze intermittently switched back and forth from Buffy to the books in front of him.  He scanned the journals for any pertinent information.  Maybe there was something to be found by reading between the lines.  Right now he was as lost as a rowboat in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.  Absentmindedly he fingered the amulet around his neck.

"Is that the cause of this morning's turmoil?"  Giles pointed at the amulet Spike wore.

Spike nodded.  "Seemed to have a few effects that someone forgot to write about or mention."  He was still a bit disgusted at himself for not finding a way to get word to Buffy.  He had assumed he would be able to use his thoughts when she lost his vampiric essence.  "I knew the amulet would mask the essence of my demon, but the bloody thing covered more than I thought it would."

"It was foolish to wear something magical without being informed or knowledgeable of its function."

"I didn't have a whole lot of bloody choice, Watcher."  Spike sighed in exasperation.  "Do you honestly think after how I came barreling in here that I wanted her to think I was gone?"

Giles set down the book he was reading.  He thought back to the earlier desperation he'd seen in Spike's eyes when he tackled Buffy.  The question was better left unanswered.  He was willing to support and protect Buffy, but he couldn't help his skeptical nature where demons were concerned.  "Where did you get the amulet from?"

"Louis," Spike answered simply.  "Surely you read about it in his journal."  He held the book up off the table.

"Of course, but I assumed both amulets were destroyed when you made no mention of their existence."

"Why would I give up all my aces, Rupert?"  Spike queried honestly.  "Would you have told me if our places were reversed?"

Giles stuttered for a moment before he became silent again.  He shook his head back and forth to indicate that he would have kept the knowledge to himself.  "We need to work on our trust issues."  He nodded his head in Buffy's direction.  "For her sake."

"I'm trying, Watcher.  You have no idea how hard this is for me.  It's just as hard for me to trust you as it is for you to trust me."  Spike sighed in frustration.  "I keep waiting for the stake in the back."  He tilted his head towards Xander's slumped form.  "Not like it hasn't already been tried."

"I have no plans to stake you unless you give me further reason to.  We have a common goal, Spike."  Giles wrote down a few more references to check for information.  "We both want to protect Buffy and kill Angelus."

"You have more in common than that."  Willow muttered out loud.   He voice was soft but audible to Spike and Giles.

Spike glanced over at the studious redhead.  "What was that, Red?"

Giles' eyes widened in a minor fit of fearful trepidation.  "I'm sure that we don't have time for frivolous jaunts, Willow.  We have important research to tend to before tonight's confrontation."  He tried to dissuade Willow from further conversation, but his words had the opposite effect on the young girl.

"I think it's cute, Giles."  Willow grinned mischievously.  She picked up several pieces of paper before she walked over to Spike.  "The irony of it all is amusing."

"What's amusing?"  Whatever Willow was referring to was making the Watcher nervous.  Spike delighted in the squirming ritual Giles was succumbing too.  "Has to be good if your wriggling that much."

Spike's words struck at Ripper's sarcastic side.  His demeanor shifted to one of secret amusement.  "We'll see just how funny you think it is shortly."  He had a feeling that a vampire finding out he was related to someone from the Watcher's Council would grate the vampire even more than it did Giles.

Willow handed the small stack of papers to Spike.  "I've checked and triple checked each date and person from several sources."  She wondered if Spike would be upset at the link.  'It must be lonely to think you are all that remains of your family.'

Spike flicked through the first few pages.  "Nothing but a whole lot of genealogy on the Watcher's fam ..."  He stopped mid-sentence when a particular name caught his eye, Catherine Anne (Jamison) Giles.  "No way."

Giles tried to act disinterested in Spike's reactions.  He hadn't given much thought on how Spike would feel about their familial link.  He watched the creases of confusion mar Spike's face.  "Not so smug now, are you?"

"This isn't bloody funny, Watcher," Spike squawked in response.  "You made this up."  Although he protested vehemently, he hoped it wasn't some sick game.  With Angelus' return, and subsequent faking of Spike's final death, Spike felt like he had been cut off from the last of his family.  Buffy was the only one he could link to as family.  'If this information is correct, I'll belong to a whole new family.'

Willow risked patting Spike's arm with her hand.  "I promise you that I have validated everything as best as I could."  She inhaled deeply when Spike's cool hand covered her own.

"How did you find this, Red?"  Spike smelled no deception coming from the girl.  Her eyes reflected the honesty and purity within her.

"It took nearly all night to piece together where the familiarity of your name came from for Giles."  Willow loved a good puzzle.  Taking in each little note, clue or road block added to the merriment of the challenge for her.

Spike chanced a glance at Giles for confirmation.  Giles nodded in the affirmative.  "Your name struck a familiar cord in my memory.  I was unable to ascertain the reason until Willow showed me her research."

"Once I found the link to Giles' family, I traced the whole line through the Watcher diaries and Council records."  Willow beamed proudly.  "You are Gile's great great great uncle.  Your father's sister, Catherine, married Giles' great great great grandfather."

Both Spike and Giles simultaneously exclaimed, "Bloody hell".  Neither one of them knew what to say.  One man was still a Watcher, and the other was still a vampire.  They now had a lot more in common.  Perhaps the time would come when they could talk about it further, but that time wasn't now.

"I'm not calling you Uncle Spike."  Giles removed his glasses and started cleaning them.  "I suppose it would be Uncle William, but I'm still not doing it."

"Stupid git."  Spike rolled his eyes.  "I wouldn't want you to.  Sounds bloody ridiculous."  Although a part of him enjoyed the fact that he was someone's uncle now.  He wasn't going to admit that to Giles.  He always assumed his family line died when he was turned.  He'd forgotten about his Aunt Catherine.

"Good."  Giles slipped his glasses back on.  He tucked his handkerchief into his pocket.

"You do realize that you have a free life pass with me now."  Spike considered the implications of Giles being family to him.  "I've never been like Angelus when it comes to family."

"How so?"  Giles questioned.

"Angelus hunted down all of his family when he was turned and killed them."  Spike stated matter-of-factly.  "I still respected my family, and I tried to stay away from them as much as possible.  The only person I did anything to was in the hopes of curing her illness by making her a vampire because I loved her."

Giles stared at Spike awe struck.  It was common knowledge that many vampires killed all human ties to world once they were turned.  The fact that Spike didn't added another link to the puzzle of his humanity versus his demon.

"That didn't turn out as well as I'd hoped, but I never would have done it if I'd known what she would have become."  The thought of his mother as a vampire still made him ill to think about.  She was nothing like the caring woman he'd adored all of his human life.

"So you are saying that because I am family, you won't kill me?"

"That's right."

"Why?"  Giles was curious as to how Spike's mind worked on these matters.

"Family is blood.  Blood is family."  Spike started in his explanation.  "Blood gives us life, and it binds us.  Being family tightens those bonds further.  Some people will do anything to protect their family no matter what line they cross to do it."

Giles nodded as he listened.  Willow sat enraptured by the conversation.

"I am one of those people.  You don't know how much I want to kill that Whelp right now."  Spike pointed at Xander.  "The only thing that even saved his life was that my Mate's life was in danger, and she needed tending."

"I won't let you kill him, Spike, even though he deserves it."  Giles' even tone belayed the anger that he himself felt over Xander's actions.

"I give my word that I won't do it this time, but not everyone in my family may be so forgiving."  Spike turned his attention back to the journal in front of him, effectively ending the conversation.  He had felt the rage of his "son" through the familial bonding all day.  He had no doubts that a day of reckoning would soon be upon the boy known as Xander Harris.

Buffy kept her eyes closed on the couch, but she'd been listening to every word spoken in the last 15 minutes.  Dalton's growing anger and rage nipped at her demon's psyche.  She knew what he planned on doing.  A small part of her told her that she needed to stop it from happening.  The larger part of her Slayer and human side told her that Xander had been warned what would happen if he tried to hurt Spike or her.  Her only concern was for her best friend Willow.  She was likely to take the whole matter very hard.  She'd deal with that when she had to.  She sent along a reassurance to Dalton through their familial bond, giving her approval for what he intended.

Spike looked up over the back of the couch at Buffy in amazement.  He'd felt her assurance and approval being sent to Dalton.  He raised a curious brow but made no mention of Buffy's thoughts to Giles and Willow who were engrossed in their research again.  Buffy continued to amaze him.  'She'll make a fine Mistress.  Her understanding of our ways is growing as well as being tempered by her Slayer side.  I have to change, but she is changing too.  We'll find the middle ground.'

Buffy smiled to herself on the couch.  She felt her Sire's pride in her.  She understood many things that she couldn't before.  She found a sense of peace in the mixture of what she'd been told was right and what she felt was right to do now.

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Dalton's agitation grew exponentially as the day wore on.  When Buffy was staked he shot out of Spike's room like a rocket.  Before that he lay in his Master's bed enjoying the euphoric feelings of their joining.  Only the presence of the sun stopped him from racing to Buffy's aid.  He felt her pain finally subside, but that did nothing to appease his anger.  Even Angelus' loudly uttered, "freak", hadn't deterred him from his mood.

Every hour that went by increased his resolve for revenge.  He loved his new Master and Mistress.  They'd welcomed him and given him a purpose or reason for "living" again.  While he plotted, one obstacle seemed the hardest to get around.  How would he get into the Watcher's house?  He hadn't been invited in yet.  'I'll cross that bridge when I get there.'

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Shortly before sundown, Joyce Summers arrived at Giles' place as planned.  She was quickly greeted by her daughter's loving embrace before she could knock on the door.

A large pile of stakes lay on the living room table, joined by a couple swords and daggers.  It looked like they were preparing for an all out war.  In a way Joyce guessed that is what this was.  They were waging a war on the vampires.

Buffy led Joyce over to Spike.  "Mom, I'd like you to meet Spike.  He's the one who saved me."

Joyce extended her hand out to Spike.  "You look vaguely familiar to me.  Have we met before?"

Spike gently grasped Joyce's hand and kissed the back of it.  "Not properly, but you did slam the flat end of an axe into my skull on Parent/Teacher night at the high school."

Joyce gasped.  "Oh my!"  She pulled her hand back to cover her mouth.

"S'all right.  No hard feelings."  Spike smiled.  "You were protecting your daughter.  Can't fault you for that.  I'm right fond of protecting her myself now."  He pulled Buffy's back against his chest in an embrace.

"So, I see."  Joyce regarded the vampire with a motherly interest.  He seemed quite protective of her daughter, but he was also the reason she was a vampire in the first place.  She had a hard time reconciling being thankful to him for that.

As if she read her mother's thoughts, Buffy spoke, "Angelus killed me, Mom.  I would have died completely if Spike hadn't turned me.  Be mad at him, not Spike."

"I'm trying to understand all this, Buffy.  I really am.  It's just hard for me to get it all straight in my head."

"I know that it's a lot to take in, Joyce."  Giles stepped into the living room from the kitchen with a cup of tea in hand.  He handed the cup over to Joyce.  "I find myself at a loss to understand it all myself, but things are as they are.  We need to focus on the future and not the past now."

"I'm sure you're right, Rupert."  Joyce looked back at her daughter and Spike.  "All I can promise is that I'll try to give you both a chance."

"That's all I can ask for Mrs. Summers."  Spike sighed a sigh of relief.  He worried whether or not Joyce Summers would stake him on the spot when they met.

Buffy felt her lover relax, and she smiled.  "Once Angelus is dust, we all have a lot to talk about."

Giles nodded.  "Quite, right."  He opened up several backpack like bags and started to stow the stakes and daggers away in them.  "The sun has nearly set.  The mortician should have the casket in place.  Willow do you have the ingredients for the cloaking spell ready?"

"Yes, Giles."  Willow looked over the different herbs before her on the table.

"Cloaking spell?"  Joyce questioned in confusion.

"It will make me practically invisible until I use the command to reveal myself.  That way I can get into the coffin without alerting Angelus to my presence."  Buffy explained.

"What about Spike?  Won't he sense you somehow?"

"Not with this amulet around my neck.  It works like a vampire dampening field."  Spike turned to Giles.  "Once all hell breaks lose, I'm taking it off though.  Somehow I have a feeling that if it weakened some of my vampiric abilities, it could weaken them all.  I need to be in top form for this fight."

"Agreed."  Giles gathered the bags, handing one to each person.

Buffy pulled several stakes from her bag and stowed them away on her person.  She looked over at Willow, "Okay, cloak me up, Will."

Willow muttered the phrases for the incantation.  She lit each herb in the order of succession that Spike told her.  With a poof of smoke, Buffy disappeared from in front of them.

Joyce shrieked.  "Buffy!"

"I'm still here, Mom."  A disembodied voice danced around the room.  "I'm still standing in front of you."  A ghostly hand touched Joyce's arm.  "See.  I'm here."

Joyce's heart raced.  "I don't know how I'll ever get used to this supernatural life of yours."

Buffy patted her Mom's arm.  "It gets easier every day, Mom." 

"Let's go."  Giles led Willow and Joyce to the door.

"You guys go on ahead.  We'll be right there."  Buffy called out to Giles.  She waited for the door to close before she wrapped her arms around Spike's waist.  "You know he is coming for him."

Spike nodded.  He wondered if Buffy felt the presence as much as he did.  "Are you going to stop him?"

"No."  Buffy shook her head back and forth.  "I warned Xander what I would do if he tried to hurt you.  He didn't listen."

"Are you sure that you can live with the consequences of this, pet?"  Spike wanted the Whelp dead for what he'd done to his Mate but not at the expense of her sanity or guilt.

"If you mean will I feel guilty, then not so much.  I will only hurt for how much it is going to hurt Willow."  Buffy answered honestly.

"Tell him to make the boy disappear then.  It will always leave a doubt as to what truly happened."

Buffy nodded.  "All right.  You'd better go.  I don't want them to suspect you in any of it."  She leaned up to kiss Spike softly.  "Stay safe, Sire.  We're in this together."

"I will, Childe.  He may have been my Sire, but you are more important to me than ten Sires."  Spike kissed Buffy's forehead and hugged her tightly before he left Giles' house.  He needed to catch up to the others.

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Angelus practically danced around the mansion.  "The streets will be painted red tonight, my dear."

Drusilla stood with her arms crossed in a pouting fashion.  She was angry at her Sire, and she wasn't going to play his game tonight.

"Come my deliciously evil queen."  Angelus nipped at Drusilla's ear.  "It is time to play with the kiddies and make them bleed."

"I do not wish to go, Daddy."  Dru stomped her foot in a tantrum motion.  "The dollies aren't going to play nice, and I don't want to be there to see them take over."

"You're talking nonsense, Dru.  We have them at our mercy and surprise."  Angelus turned Dru around in his arms.  "We'll crush them before they even know what's hit them."

"No, Daddy.  The pixies tell me that play time is over, and we are going to be punished."

Angelus growled.  He threw Drusilla away from him and into the wall.  "I'll not listen to such crazy meanderings Dru.  I've had enough of your double talk."  He stomped towards the door.  "Stay if you want to, but you will pay for your insolence when I return.  You will know true punishment then."

Drusilla whimpered in the corner of their bedroom.  She rocked herself back and forth singing, "Ring around the rosie.  Pockets full of posies.  Ashes, ashes, we all fall down."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Dalton watched Angelus gather all of his minions for the mission.  He faked his remorse over Spike's death to a more dramatic level.  Angelus had sighed in disgust then ignored him.  'Good.  One obstacle out of the way.'  He watched the minions and Angelus leave the mansion.

Dalton barricaded Drusilla in her bedroom.  He wasn't sure what Spike would want to do about his former lover, but they didn't need her getting loose to help Angelus.  Confident that she was secured, he headed out of the mansion towards the Watcher's house.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Joyce, Giles, Willow and Spike arrived at the predetermined cemetery.  Spike quickly headed into a nearby crypt to wait for the right time to strike.  Joyce rearranged some chairs for the people that were showing up to honor her daughter's memory.  Several students from school, a couple teachers, and some of Joyce's business associates took their seats.

Giles and Willow strategically placed several stakes under each chair with tape.  They opened the casket lid slightly to slip a few more stakes in there.  Buffy would have her bag of stakes with her, but you could never have too many stakes when dealing with vampires.  They both took their seats while they waited for Buffy and Angelus to arrive.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The door of Giles' place opened up when Dalton arrived.  It appeared that the door had opened on its own, but the whispered words of his Mistress brought understanding.  "You haven't been invited, have you?"

"No Mistress.  I haven't."  Dalton tilted his head to the side in supplication to his Mistress.

Invisible fangs dove into his neck to take two long pulls for verification of what Buffy already knew.  Dalton was loyal to her and Spike.  "I'll bring him to you."

Dalton nodded.  He watched the boy's unconscious body seemingly float across the living room to the door.  The body was placed on the ground outside of the entrance.

"Do what you wish, but make sure no one finds the body."  Buffy commanded.  "He should know pain, but I will not see my other friends suffer even more because of it."

"Yes, Mistress."  Dalton heaved Xander's body up over his shoulder.  "It shall be done."  He disappeared into the shadows of the growing darkness intent on his revenge.

Buffy headed off quickly towards the cemetery.  She had to be in place very soon. 

Unobserved by the others, an older woman left her place in the shrubbery that surrounded Giles' home.  "A very interesting development indeed.  I must check again with the others to be sure we are correct about this."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Xander groggily roused from unconsciousness to a searing pain in his limbs.  He found himself stretched and tied to an X like fixture of wood.  His hands and legs were each bound to a different end of the X.  He was stretched out just beyond the limit of being comfortable, and the pain was slowly gaining strength.

"You're finally awake."  Dalton stepped out of the shadows into the moonlight.  He held a wooden stake in his hand that he slapped against his palm constantly.

"What do you want?  Untie me and maybe Buffy won't stake you."  Xander recognized the vampire who had visited all of them in the library a few nights ago.

Dalton laughed.  "Who do you think helped me to get you?"  He reveled in the look of fear on the boy's face.  "That's right, little one.  You broke her trust, and now you will pay for it."

Xander yelped and pulled against his bonds.  The face before him was a true demon bent on revenge.  Each pull against the ropes dug them into his wrists causing them to bleed.  He nearly pulled his arm out of its socket to get away from the rapidly approaching vampire.

"Do you have any idea what it feels like to know your Mate or Mistress is in such pain as you caused?"  Dalton stopped right in front of Xander.  "Do you know the burning that it causes in your gut when you can't do a thing to help?"  He slashed out the sharpened stake cutting Xander's clothes and cutting into the skin of his abdomen.

"AHHHH!"  Xander screamed.  A burning sensation buried within his abdomen as well as the pain from the wound created.  He wondered if the tip of the stake was laden with some kind of poison.

Dalton smirked.  "Oh it won't kill you."  He lifted up the point of the stake to show Xander his own blood and a slippery green residue underneath it.  "It will just make it hurt more."

Xander's eyes widened, and his screams were louder with the next slash of the stake deeper into his stomach from one side to the other.

"I should turn you into a vampire and torture you for decades."  Dalton taunted.  "Even then I would not feel satisfied that you had suffered enough."  He laughed.  "No one worries about the bookish vampire.  Well you are learning differently, aren't you boy?"

"Ye ... yes ..."  Xander stuttered.  "Oh God, it hurts."

"This is nothing compared to what I could do to you."  Dalton twirled the stake in his hand.  He raised it to shoulder height.  "Do you know what she felt?  What she was willing to go through to keep you from hurting her beloved?"  He rammed the stake forward into Xander's lung, near his heart.  He pushed at it again to embed the wood deep enough to press the tip into the wooden X that he was attached to.

Xander screamed bloody murder, but it was no use.  Wherever they were, no one was near enough to hear them.  The pain was excruciating, and he found himself loosing consciousness.  He wasn't able to bear the pain, and he knew he was going to die.

Dalton hated violence as a whole, but his demon rejoiced in the pain he caused the young man.  Even his human side felt justified in this revenge.  As the boy lost consciousness, Dalton sank his fangs into Xander's neck.  He drained him to within a couple heartbeats of his last before slashing his wrist and forcing the blood down the boy's mouth.

Dalton murmured a few words that required no permission from the boy to accept.  He only gave him enough blood to allow him to turn.  He would barely even be strong enough to be a minion, but it wouldn't matter.  He uttered a few more phrases to hasten along the turning. 

The boy would be a vampire enough by morning that when he greeted the sun he would feel the pain burn through him before turning to ash.  There would not be any remains to be found, save some ash that no one would be able to identify as Xander Harris.

Dalton fulfilled his promise to his Mistress and his need to avenge the wrongs committed against his family.  Now it was time to head to the cemetery to aid his family against Angelus.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

(To Be Continued)

Chapter Summary: Dalton took care of Xander.  Spike and the rest of the Scoobies are at the cemetery already.  Buffy is on her way there.  Everything is set up for Angelus' appearance, and everyone is quite nervous about it.  Dru is locked in her bedroom at the mansion.  It's time for the big fight between Angelus and the Scoobies.  Only one group will walk away successful.  Will it be the Scoobies or Angelus and his minions?

**WARNING: Major character death (even though it is a villain or two), lots of violence in this chapter (the title of the chapter should give that fact away), and language.**
Author's Note: One of the characters in this chapter will have an accent.  I will be trying to show this by phonetically, or otherwise, spelling words out for their speech.  So no, I don't need to correct typos.  It is being done on purpose.  Just an FYI.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~


Buffy practically skipped the entire way to the cemetery.  She put all thoughts of Dalton and Xander out of her mind.  She needed all of her concentration to be focused on her upcoming battle with Angelus.

Since Spike and Buffy renewed their claim right before they left Giles' house, both of them still heard the other one's thoughts.  Spike felt Buffy draw nearer to the group.  'You all right, luv?'  He was worried about Buffy's emotional state of mind after she made the decision concerning her former friend's life.

'Yep.  Everything is according to plan.'  Buffy's invisible body walked by several barely concealed vamps about fifteen feet from her "gravesite".  'Angelus isn't hiding his minions well.  I just passed 4 vamps by the Tapper crypt.'

'He thinks the humans are too weak with grief to be a threat.'  Spike paced in the crypt he was hidden in.  'Everything is in place here but you in the coffin.'

'I'm getting there now.'  Buffy walked up behind her mom.  She tapped her on the shoulder.

Joyce yelped and shot out of her seat.

"Joyce, are you all right?"  Giles rested his hand on Joyce Summers' arm.  He knew this whole situation was still a shock to his Slayer's mother.  He worried that the slightest thing would snap the woman's emotional stronghold into smithereens.

"Sorry mom," Buffy whispered.

Joyce's heart raced.  "I'm fine, Rupert.  Cemeteries have always spooked me."  She tried to cover up her reaction to Buffy by passing it off as nerves.  It wouldn't bode well to alert Angelus to their plans.  They'd come this far already.  There was no turning back now.

Giles nodded in understanding.  He felt the air stir when Buffy moved in front of Joyce.  "I've never been very comfortable in them myself, despite my ... profession."

Buffy leaned as close to Joyce as possible.  She whispered into her mother's ear at a level only Joyce would hear.  "Walk over to the coffin.  Stand in front of it.  Then I need you to open the lid just enough for me to crawl in."

Joyce walked over to the coffin slowly.  The site of it unnerved her, even though she knew her daughter was "alive".  She carefully lifted the lid with only a small space for Buffy to sneak into it with.

Buffy squeezed her way into the tight space.  She laid herself out in the bed of satin.  She felt the extra stakes Giles left for her in the lower half of the coffin.  She added her bag of stakes to the stash.  "Angelus is here," Buffy whispered low.  "When I appear, open the lid the rest of the way.  Then have the priest begin."

Joyce nodded.  She added a few sniffles for effect and to calm her nerves.

"Body, reveal," Buffy uttered the phrase that made her body appear in the casket.  The spell still masked any vampiric essence from anyone's senses.

Joyce outwardly shivered.  "I hate this."  She brought a handkerchief to her face to wipe away real tears.  Her daughter truly looked dead as she lay there unmoving.

Buffy wanted to jump out of the coffin to comfort her mother, but she forced herself not to do that.  She had to remain still.  Any movement might tip off Angelus.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Angelus watched from a nearby tree.  He delighted in the grief stricken faces of Buffy's family and friends.  The pain they suffered laced the air, much to his delight.  This was a delicious way to have his revenge on all of the Scoobies.  Before sunrise this town would belong to him.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Joyce motioned for the priest to begin.  She took her seat next to Giles.  Giles clasped his hand with Joyce’s to show his support.  He promised himself that tonight he would protect this woman at all costs.  She was new to everything supernatural, and her emotions would not keep her focused enough for a proper fight.

Buffy waited in her coffin for the right moment to strike.  She needed to wait for Angelus to make the first move.  She only hoped that he stuck with his method of taunting his prey before killing them.

Spike bounced on the balls of his feet, itching to be out there to kick some butt.  He was ready for a fight.  He'd been ready for weeks in that stupid wheelchair, waiting for the right opportunity to stick it to the poofter.  Now he had even more reason to want the bastard dead.  Everything was a matter of timing.  Patience wasn’t a strong point of his.  He felt Buffy send him a calming sensation and patience to help him out.

The priest stood in front of Buffy's coffin.  He not only wore a cross around his neck, but every piece of clothing and jewelry he had on consisted of multiple cross patterns.  He'd lived in Sunnydale for a lot of years.  A sunset graveside service was NOT a smart idea.  "Friends and family, we are gathered here today to honor a vibrant young life who was taken long before her time."

As Buffy listened to the priest drone on and on, she mentally snickered.  'Hey Spike, he thinks I was taken long before my time.  Think he has any idea just how much longer I'm going to live now?'

Spike laughed.  'Very funny pet.  Pay attention.'

Buffy mentally rolled her eyes.  She sent an image of her sticking her tongue out at her Sire.

'Careful pet.  I am more than willing to put that tongue to good use.'  Spike retorted.

Buffy snorted from the coffin.  'Oops.'

The priest stiffened in front of the casket for a brief moment before he continued on with his eulogy.  'I need to get out of this town before it kills me.'

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

An ebony skinned woman silently passed through the entrance of the cemetery.  She'd heard about the event through various indirect channels.  Thankfully she'd already been on her way to Sunnydale after a very disturbing dream.  She had a feeling she was going to be needed tonight.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Giles casually looked from one end of the guest area to the other.  His main focus was forward on the priest, but he allowed his eyes to scan their surroundings.

The longer the priest droned on, with no sign of attack from Angelus, the more tense the Scoobies grew.  Joyce knew Angelus was near.  Buffy told her so.  Why wasn't he attacking?  She really hated that vampire.

Angelus jumped down from the tree limb he previously perched on.  With an arrogant air about him, he slowly walked over to the open casket.

The various classmates and Joyce's co-workers assumed Angelus was a late attendee of the funeral.  When the man turned to face the gathering in full vampiric visage many screamed.

"Come, Come ..."  Angelus cupped his hands in come hither motions.  "We are all here today because of Buffy.  Don't be shy."

Angelus' minions quickly returned the few attendees who attempted to escape from their seats.  Giles and Willow inched their hands lower on their seats towards the taped stakes underneath.

"Some of your faces I recognize."  Angelus clapped his hands together.  He aimed a broad grin at Giles.  "Those of you that I don't know, I'm sorry you chose to come to this funeral because you are all going to die."

Various gasps and shrieks carried through the crowd.  One woman fainted into her husband's arms.

Angelus turned back to face the casket.  His minions had the whole group surrounded anyways.  So, he wasn't worried about an attack from behind him.  He leaned over the coffin.  "My poor dear Buffy.  So young," His voice seemed to soften the more he leaned into Buffy, but the timbre was laced with mocking disdain.  "But thankfully you're finally dead, bitch."

"Don't count on it."  Buffy head butted Angelus then flipped out of the coffin.  "I've had a little reprieve.  Heaven isn't ready for me yet."

"What?!"  Angelus growled as chaos erupted behind him.  Giles, Joyce and Willow flipped their chairs over.  They ripped the stakes from underneath and attacked the minions surrounding them.  "I killed you!"

"Not so much."  Buffy circled and counter circled Angelus' position.  "Didn't your mother ever tell you to be sure clean your plate completely.  Never leave food behind."  She growled, jumped at Angelus with a swinging kick, and knocked him over to the ground.

Spike ran out of the crypt out of the site of his Sire.  “Reveal me.”  He didn't care if Angelus saw him or not.  Besides the amulet still hid his essence from his Sire.  He knew the Scoobies needed help with all of the minions.  He barreled through a group of three vampires who attacked some of Buffy's classmates.  He tackled another that had a hold of one of Joyce's co-workers.

Joyce forced a stake into the back of one vampire before it could reach one of Buffy's teachers.  Her gut instincts took over while she raced to the casket.  A cowering priest was pushed out of her way.  She ripped the skirting from the casket, drew out a familiar looking axe, and twisted back around to the priest.  "Their vampires for crying out loud.  You have a cross, and now a stake," she handed him a stake, "Use them."

The priest made a cross with his fingers from his head to his chest followed by both shoulders.  He sent up a prayer to heaven before he jumped into the fray of battle.

Dalton ran in from the side along with three other minions, who upon seeing Spike switched sides.  The only reason they were fighting on Angelus' side was because they feared Spike was dead.  Seeing their Master alive, they immediately returned to his service.

Spike howled in the delight of battle.  He felt the thrill of the violence running through the borrowed blood in his veins.  He fought to keep his game face at bay.  That way he wouldn't scare the various humans he was trying to save.  Two vampires dusted from separate stakes he'd slipped from the sleeves of his duster into their unbeating hearts.  "About time you showed up, Dalton."

"Sorry, had a bit of trash to take care of."  Dalton entered the fray at his Master's side.  He looked briefly at Buffy who was fighting Angelus.  "Is she all right?"

Spike craned his neck to see Angelus have his Childe pinned against the coffin with his hand on her throat.  "Oh no you don't."  He ripped the amulet off his neck and stuffed it into his pocket.

Angelus jumped back from Buffy.  He held his head in pain as the emotions, essence and presence of Spike returned to him.  "Hell!"  He screamed with a growl. 

The few moments of distraction gave Buffy the opportunity to gain ground again.  She kicked Angelus away from her.  "Thank you, Sire!"  She rubbed the title into Angelus' mind.

"What?!?"  Angelus’ head snapped back up to Buffy.  "Sire?"

Spike taunted Angelus while he dusted Angelus' minions.  "Should have listened to Dru, Sire.  She might be batty, but she knows what she's talking about at times."

"Reveal all."  Buffy commanded the spell to completely end.  She watched in delight at the contorted features on Angelus' face with the knowledge of just exactly what was before him.

"No ... No ... that's impossible."  Angelus was furious.  How dare they trick him this way?  He was the head of the Aurelius Clan.  They should be withering at his feet in obedience.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The wailing scream of a vampiress bounced off the walls of the mansion.  She pulled her locks from her head when the presence of Spike was revealed to her mind once more.  She scratched and kicked at the locked door.

The essence of Spike's Childe, no longer being hidden from her, forced her to the ground on her knees.  "No ... Daddy ..."  She knew that nothing she could do now would save her precious Daddy from dust.  The pixies had been right, but he wouldn't listen to her.  Now they would both die.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The ebony skinned woman jumped into the fray of battle.  At first she had a hard time finding out just who was on what side.  Her first trip to Sunnydale revealed to her that not all vampires should be considered evil.  Some of the vampires seemed to be attacking the humans.  Others seemed to be helping them.  She staked a vampire through from the back that had Giles pinned to the ground.

Giles adjusted his askew glasses when the pressure of the vampire was removed from his chest.  He looked up at the woman before him.  “Kendra?”

“Hello, Wawtcherman.”  Kendra offered a hand to Giles.  “Is dis a pryvat partay, or did I jost miss ma inveetation?”

Giles laughed.  He was amazed at the growth in Kendra from the last time they saw her.  She actually seemed to crack a joke.  “We’re glad to have you.”  He stood up again.  “There’s too much to catch you up on, but don’t stake Spike or Buffy.  Angel lost his soul.  So feel free to stake him this time.”

Kendra looked over at the small blond who fought with fierceness against Angelus.  “I tink she wahnts dat playsure herself.”

Giles nodded.  “Quite, true.”  He was proud that the amount of minions against them had greatly dimished.  He picked up the presence of Dalton’s head bobbing over the pair of vampire’s he was fighting.  “That one in the glasses is on our side too.  Anyone else, you’ll have to use your judgment.”

Kendra nodded.  She accepted the extra stake Giles handed to her.  She departed into the middle of a bunch of cornered humans.  This was going to be fun.  With a shrill Xena like howl, she dove through the humans at the vampires.  “Tyme to meet Misstair Poynty, devils.”

Joyce gasped for breath.  She’d just managed to cut the head off one of her latest attackers.  She leaned against Giles.  “Who is that?”

“That is Kendra.  She is another Slayer.”

“I thought you said there was only one?”  Joyce looked at Giles in confusion.

“I’ll explain later.”  Giles removed his glasses a moment to clean them.  He ducked the punch from a nearby vampire.  The vampire met with the flat head of the axe over his head.  When the vampire fell to the ground unconscious, Giles staked him.  “Nice work.”

“Thank you.  Must be in the Summer’s blood.”  Joyce laughed.

Giles joined her in laughter.  Together they attacked another vampire to keep him from disturbing Buffy and Angelus’ battle.  “You’re a natural, Joyce.”

Spike retrieved several more stakes from inside the coffin.  He tossed two of them through the air.  Each hit their targets with unfailing accuracy.  The vampires shouldn’t have tried to sneak up on the Island Slayer anyways.  “Face em fair and square, I always say.”

“MASTER!”  Dalton screamed in warning.

Spike turned in time to bring a stake up protectively and curl to the ground.  The dead vampire’s dust covered his duster.  He jumped up and brushed the vampire’s remains from his treasured coat.  “Pillock.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Buffy and Angelus’ fight heightened in ferocity.  Angelus was pissed, and he wanted to make sure to rid the Slayer from his life and once and for all.  “Why are you even fighting if you are a vampire?”  He backhanded her.

Buffy’s head snapped back with the force of the blow.  She loved taunting Angelus.  She’d been waiting for this moment since the first minute she’d opened her eyes to the night.  Even though Spike was her Sire, her only desire had been to kill Angelus not Spike.  “Funny thing about us Slayer’s,” She quipped back.  “We keep our souls.”

Angelus sneered in disgust.  “That’s just wrong.”  He swiped his foot out to knock Buffy off balance.  “You just can’t do anything right, Spike.  You have a bleeding heart Scooby for a Childe.”  He bellowed into the night air.

“Leave my Mate out of this, you bastard.”  Buffy elbowed Angelus in the gut followed by a high heeled boot heel into his foot.  “He’s more a Master than you will ever be.”  She raised her hand in the air.  She brought it down hard to his chest.

“You’ll never know what you’re missing, Missy.”  Angelus pushed Buffy to the ground.  He lay on top of her with the stake partially into his skin.  “Besides, you can’t kill the face of your lover.”

Buffy pushed the stake into Angelus’ chest a little harder.  “Sorry, Peaches,” She used one of Spike’s nicknames for his Sire.  “But I have a wonderful lover, and you aren’t it.  You were most disappointing.”  She forced the stake the rest of the way into Angelus’ heart.

The shock on Angelus’ face was the last thing she saw before a poof of heavy vampire dust covered her body.  Buffy closed her eyes.  She whimpered at the loss of her first love, but the pain she felt was for the loss of Angel and not Angelus.  She realized that her first love had died the moment Angel lost his soul.

Spike ran across the gathering area to his Childe.  He felt the pain that tore through her the moment his Sire died.  He gathered her in his arms.  He rocked her back and forth.  He whispered soothing words of comfort and calm.

Buffy nodded against Spike’s chest.  “It needed to be done.”  She looked up into the loving blue eyes of her Sire and Mate.  She saw the questions and doubts in his eyes.  “I don’t regret my decision.  I never will, Mate.”

The two of them kissed passionately while the fighting around them ceased.  Those few minions loyal to Angelus froze at the death of their Master.  It made them easy pickings to be sent to their final death in a flash of dust and wood.  Family and friends gathered in different clusters to comfort each other after the night’s trauma.

Kendra, Dalton, Willow, Giles, and Joyce gathered around Buffy and Spike.  Giles wrapped an arm around Joyce’s waist.  He drew her in to rest her head on his shoulder.

Dalton sniffed Willow slowly.  He picked up the scent of what might be a werewolf, but he also sensed an underlying power under the surface.  ‘This one would be fun to get to know.’  She gave off an air of intelligence that intrigued him as well.

Kendra looked back and forth at everyone.  Her dream had proven to be a Slayer dream, but she still needed a lot of things explained before any of this would make sense.

Spike and Buffy looked up at their gathered comrades.  He stood up slowly.  He directed orders to his loyal minions to return to the mansion without further bloodshed to await his orders.  In a flurry of “Yes Master’s” they left the cemetery.

Buffy hugged her mother and Giles tightly.  Willow joined in the hug as well.  Buffy finally noticed Kendra’s presence.  “Thank you, Kendra.”

“Naught a problem, Bouffy.”  Kendra smiled.

“Let’s get back to my house.”  Joyce offered.  “I think we could all use some rest and regrouping.”  She turned to Spike.  “Something tells me that you’d be a hot chocolate man.”

Spike’s ears perked up.  “Hot chocolate?”  He didn’t even try to maintain his Big Bad image.  He had no idea on this woman figured out his chocolate love, but he loved her already.  “Do you have any of those little marshmallows?”

Joyce laughed softly.  With instructions to Buffy’s classmates and Joyce’s co-workers that everyone should go home, the Scoobies headed out of the cemetery towards the Summers’ home.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Dru wailed and wailed at the mansion.  Blood red tears fell from her face.  Even though the pixies told her about Daddy’s death, she felt the pain of his loss so deep that it tore at her very being.  Even when Angelus was souled, she still felt him in the back of her mind.  Now there was nothing left.  Her daddy was gone.

When Angelus was souled, Dru always held out the hope that he would return to her.  Now she had no such chance or hope.  She refused to live any longer without him.  She had nothing left to live for anyways.  Her Spike was lost to her, and now Angelus was dead.

Drusilla stood up slowly from her spot on the floor.  With determined steps she walked away from the door to the window.  She threw open the heavy draperies that previously protected the entire room from being bathed in sunlight.  The easterly facing window would be flooded with sunlight come the dawn.

Drusilla admired the twinkling of the stars above.  They called out to her to join them.  They told her it was time to come home.  She sadly danced her way back to her bed.  She gingerly cradled Miss Edith in her arms after she laid down.

Dru stared up at the blood red canopy top above her.  Her mind was blank of thought except the resignation that it was time for her to go.  The welcoming voices of her mother, father, and sisters called to her on the breeze.  She closed her eyes to the memories of her human days.  It was time to rest, and soon she would be with her family again.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"I didn't see Dru, Dalton."  Spike turned to his "son".  He was proud of how the vampire fought tonight.  "Any idea on where she is?"

Buffy grumbled a bit to herself because of Spike's question.  She knew where his love lay, but she couldn't stop herself from a little bit of jealousy rising over his concern for Drusilla's well being.

"I locked her up in her bedroom at the mansion, Sire."  Dalton explained his earlier actions of the evening.  "She refused to follow Master Angelus out for the ambush.  He confined her to their quarters."

"He is not your Master anymore, Dalton."  Buffy snapped.  "I don't want to hear those two words together again."

Dalton cowered away from his Mistress.  "Yes, Mistress.  My apologies."

"Easy there, pet.  Old habits die hard."  Spike squeezed their joined hands.  "We know where his loyalties lay."

Buffy sighed.  "I'm sorry, Dalton.  I shouldn't have snapped."

"It's all right, Mistress.  I understand."  Dalton leaned over, took Buffy's free hand in his, and kissed the back of it gently.  "My true Mistress and Master are you and Master Spike.  Forever more."

Giles watched the exchange with much interest.  He had a feeling that he would learn a lot about vampiric families by watching these three from now on.  There was an extra bond there that he was sure had been sealed with blood.  Everything about vampires dealt in blood, at least from Spike's point of view.

The whole group continued walking through the streets of Sunnydale on their way to the Summers' residence.  They were all happy that this night's battle was over.  It was time to regroup and recuperate.  They each spent the remainder of the journey lost in their own thoughts.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Miss Summers?"  A darkly dressed man in his early thirties stepped over from the Summers' porch swing to stand in front of the main door.

Spike stood in front of Buffy to block the way between the stranger and his Childe.  "Who wants to know?"

The man pulled a cross from his pocket.  He advanced on Spike's position.  "Step away from her, vampire.  She is Council property, and we aim to reclaim what is ours."

Spike hissed, but he refused to give up his position.  Buffy tensed behind Spike.  Her whimpers told her Sire that she had no intention of willingly leaving with any Council member.

"I don't think so, tweed boy."  A strangely familiar bass voice called from the street.  His footsteps hastened across the lawn.  The dark haired boy stopped a few feet away from the group of Scoobies with an M-16 machine gun pointed at the Council representative.  "Stand down, and I won't fill you full of holes.  These bullets can more than kill a human with one.  If you don’t step away, I’ll unload the whole clip on you."

Buffy and Willow blinked in surprise, the former being more surprised than the latter.  "Xander?"

Spike growled.  He had no idea why the Whelp was still alive, or why he was protecting them now after trying to kill them earlier.  "Whelp!"  He snarled.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

(To Be Continued)

Revenge For Love - (14) Surprises and Explanations
By Tasha

Chapter Summary: Angelus is dead.  Dru is waiting for the sunrise at the mansion.  A Council representative has showed up to “reclaim” Buffy, but Spike and a surprising appearance by Xander stopped it from happening.  How in the world is Xander alive or has he just escaped Dalton’s bonds?  Kendra showed up to help with the battle in the cemetery.  What happens now that the battle is over?  Will Kendra stay?  Will the Council succeed in taking Buffy back to England?

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Dalton looked at Xander from head to toe.  He hadn’t sensed a vampire coming near.  This boy hadn’t felt like a vampire either, and he knew that he should be a vampire if he was walking around.  There was no way the boy would have survived the blood loss and vampire blood given to him.  He walked over behind Xander.

Xander watched the vampire move behind him.  He remembered his name was Dalton from the time he visited them in the high school library.  He kept his main gaze on the Council representative, but he was curious as to why the vampire circled him.

Spike gazed at Buffy in confusion.  ‘Pet, I thought you said that problem was taken care of?’  He questioned her in their thoughts.

‘So did I.’  Buffy followed Dalton’s movements.  He seemed to be as confused as they were.  She knew her “son” would not have failed them.  ‘I gave Xander to Dalton, and he was quite upset with Xander.  There is no way he let him live.  Look at him.’  She nodded towards Dalton.

Spike glanced over at Dalton.  He tilted his head to the side while Dalton examined Xander.  ‘He does seem perplexed.’

Buffy nodded at Spike.  ‘Yes, he does.’  She let her concern about the Council representative wander since Xander had the gun pointed at him.  She walked over to Xander.  She sniffed him near his neck.  When Xander was passed out at Giles, she’d been too busy to make any sense of Xander’s actions.  They had so much more to work out at the time.  She hadn’t paid attention to his scent.

Dalton sniffed Xander again.  He looked at his Mistress and shook his head.  He whispered softly enough that only Spike and Buffy would hear.  Of course Xander heard too since Dalton was right near his ear.  “This is not the one I turned.  There is no way he could have escaped, and he does not even smell like the one I killed.”

Buffy nodded in agreement.  “He isn’t a vampire either.”  She added to the conversation.  “So, if you turned him, this isn’t the man you took with you.”  She was highly confused.  Who was this person before her?  She never really smelled Xander when she was completely human.

“Buffster,” Xander briefly switched his glance to Buffy.  “I will explain everything as soon as I can.  I promise.”  He returned his gaze to the cross wielding Council member.  “Right now we need to take care of tweed boy here.”

Buffy stepped back next to Spike.  She motioned for Dalton to keep an eye on Xander.  “Don’t let him out of your sight.”  She said loud enough for everyone to hear.

Willow moved next to Buffy.  “Why, Buffy?”

“Something isn’t right, Wills.”  Buffy told her friend.  “Until we get it all figured out, no one is leaving.”

Xander stepped closer to the man with the cross.  “Move it, buster.  Inside.”  He waved the front of his weapon in a motion towards the front door.

Giles, who had been watching everything going on with avid interest, whispered to Joyce, “Go in through the back door to unlock the front door please.”

Joyce nodded.  She disappeared around the side of the house to the back door.  Lights flickered on from the kitchen to the entryway.  Then the door opened.  She stepped aside for the strange man to enter followed by Xander, Dalton, Spike, Buffy, Kendra, Willow and Giles.

“Mom, how did we get in?”  Buffy knew that she had no need for an invitation because he mom told her earlier that she’d been invited just in case, but Spike and Dalton still did.

“I invited them each in vocally when I went home to rest,” Joyce answered.  “Just in case they’d have to get in quickly when I wasn’t here.”

“Thank you, Mommy.”  Buffy hugged her mother tightly.  She was amazed at how well her mother was handling everything.  Joyce accepted her vampiric family as if they were human.  It made her feel good to know that she had her mother’s support.

“Breathing, Buffy.  I really need to do that still.”  Joyce choked out.

“Oops.  Sorry.  I always forget that.”  Buffy blushed.

Buffy walked over to the man from the Council.  She ripped the cross out of his hand.  “Oooo … Owwww.”  She teased then rolled her eyes.  “Stupid Council.”  She tossed the cross to Giles.  “Do we have anything we can tie this idiot up with?

Joyce headed downstairs for some ropes she had.  The banging of various storage items being sifted through was heard up the stairs from the basement.  Finally Joyce Summers emerged with thick nylon ropes in her hand.  She handed them to Buffy.

Spike chuckled and winked while Buffy tied the man to one of the kitchen chairs that had been placed in the living room.  ‘I’ll have to keep in mind that she has those, pet.’

‘Pervert.’  Buffy laughed, even though her thoughts held a note of chastisement.

‘And you love me for it, sweetheart.’  Spike answered her with a gleam in his eye.

Buffy secured the last knot around the man’s feet.  “All right, now someone better start explaining a few things.”  She pointed at Xander.  “You first because I know darn well that you should not be able to be here right now.”

Willow shivered at the coldness in Buffy’s tone.  “Buffy, maybe he just woke up.”

“He shouldn’t have survived something if my guess is right.”  The dawn of realization was upon Giles.  The strange looks that passed between Spike, Buffy and Dalton made more sense now.  “Right, Buffy?”

Buffy faced her Watcher, mother and friends.  “You’re right, Giles.”  Her voice held no remorse.  She gave Willow a sympathetic look though.  She doubted that she would understand her reasoning.  “I had to protect myself and my family, Willow.  I’m sorry, but I gave the person at Giles’ house to Dalton to take care of.”

Willow gasped in shock.  “Oh my gosh.”  Her hands slapped over her mouth.  “You told Dalton to kill Xander?”  She looked over at Xander’s strangely calm face.

“Yes, Willow.  That is what I did.”  Buffy sighed.  “I knew Dalton would do right by his family.  I don’t know how to help you understand why I had to do what I did.”

The man tied to the chair spoke up.  “See, this just proves that you need to let the Council take care of her.  She isn’t stable.”  He squirmed in the chair to try to get loose.  “She’s killing humans.”

Kendra stood next to the couch.  She leaned against the wall.  She was ready to make a move at a moment’s notice if Giles’ gave any indication that Buffy should be staked.

Giles shared a look with Spike.  “You said that not all of your family would understand why you hadn’t killed Xander right away.”  He spoke about their conversation earlier in the day at his house.  “Did you know what was being planned?”

“Not specifically.”  Spike stood at Buffy’s side in a show of solidarity.  “I felt the anger from our son.  I had a feeling that he would seek retribution.”  He wrapped his arm around Buffy’s waist.  “I was not going to stop him.  It was his right.”

“The rights of a vampire are inconsequential!”  The Council representative yelled out.  He looked at Giles.  “Surely you can’t condone the death of a human.”

Xander raised the butt of his weapon.  He brought it down hard on the back of the Council representative’s head to knock him unconscious.  He looked up at the shocked faces around the room.  “He was getting annoying.”

Dalton spoke up for the first time since they stepped inside the house.  “The one who is waiting for the sunrise is not this one.”  He pointed to Xander.  “I would know.  His scent is embedded in my brain because of all that I did to him.”

“He smells familiar to me.”  Buffy walked around Xander.  “But I didn’t pay attention to his scent the first night I saw him as I am now.”

“You know there is a way you can tell, pet.”  Spike offered a suggestion to everyone.  He knew they wouldn’t like it, but it would answer a lot of questions.  “You bit him the first night you saw him.”

Buffy nibbled her lower lip.  “Yes, I did.”  She shyly looked around the room at the various expressions on everyone’s face.

“But … Buff … Buffy.”  Willow stuttered.  “You can’t mean that you want to bite Xander again?”

Giles glasses were quickly ripped off his face and cleaned vigorously.  “As much as I hate to agree, that would be a sure way to find out.  Faces may be glamoured, but blood does not lie.”  He sighed.  “Not that I condone it mind you.  It is Xander’s choice.”

Xander gulped and stiffened.  They’d told him that he would be required to do something that would scare him, but they assured him that it was necessary for the greater good.  “I have an explanation for what happened, but you’d just think I was lying if you weren’t sure of who I was, eh?”

Spike stared at the dark-haired boy in surprise.  He figured that the human would be all running away right now.  “You’d be right about that, Whelp.”  There was no doubt that the teenager was afraid.  The scent of fear radiated off the boy, but he hadn’t run away yet. 

Spike hadn’t spent much time around the boy before now.  So, his sense of the boy’s scent was useless.  He only knew the scent of the one who attacked him the last time.

Xander rested the M-16 against the wall by the front door.  He gulped hard, and his breath caught in his throat.  He moved to stand in front of Buffy with his hands in the air to show that he had no weapon against her.  He closed his eyes and turned his head.  “Just do it quickly.”  He put his faith in Giles and Kendra to stake Buffy if she started to take too much.  He’d been shown so much of the future and what would happen if he let his anger get in the way.  He had to trust Buffy this time.  He only hoped that his trust was well placed and that his worst fears wouldn’t come true.

Buffy looked at Xander with wide eyes.  She shook off her shock, reached for one of Xander’s hand, and brought his wrist to her lips.  Blood was blood.  She didn’t have to take it from his neck.  She thought it might make the whole thing easier for him if she took the sample from his wrist.  She looked over at Giles one more time to see if he was going to stake her.

Giles edged to the front of the couch, but he kept his hands in his lap.  The look on his face told her that he didn’t like it, but he wasn’t stepping in.  He held his breath when Buffy slipped into her demon’s guise. 

Buffy’s elongated fangs pressed against the skin of Xander’s wrist.  Their sharpness met no resistance to pierce the vein and pull the needed taste into her mouth.

Xander gasped the moment Buffy’s fangs pricked him.  It was different than the first time he’d been bitten.  Sure he was scared this time too, but he was more confident that he would survive the encounter this time.  He felt the shiver of slight pleasure go through him, and it shocked him into opening his eyes.  “Oh my.”

Buffy stopped pulling on Xander’s blood.  She licked the twin prick holes closed.  The saliva on her tongue held healing properties to hasten the sealing of the wound.  She released Xander’s hand, stepped back into Spike’s arms, and trembled.  “That is Xander.”  She’d been unprepared for her own reactions to sampling Xander’s blood that way.

Xander slumped against the wall.  His heart raced from the encounter.  He wasn’t quite sure what to think of it all.  It certainly didn’t feel like he’d expected it to.  He tried to calm his quickened breathing.

Everyone watched Buffy and Xander’s reactions with interest.  Each person had a different angle or thought on what they’d witnessed.

Willow moved over to Xander to hug him.  She held him in a tight embrace.  “I’m so proud of you Xander.”  The fact that Xander went from trying to kill Buffy and Spike to helping them was huge.  Though now she was confused as to who Dalton killed.

“You shouldn’t be, Wills.”  Xander found his voice again.  He hugged his best friend then let go.  “If they hadn’t found me after I called the Council, I might be the one who was dead.  I was full of hate.”

“Who are they?”  Giles questioned.  “And what possessed you to call the Council?”

“I was upset, G-Man.”  Xander began his tale.  “She went from one evil dead to another.”

Spike growled deeply.  He tightened his arms around Buffy.

“Give me a minute to explain, bleach boy.”  Xander held a hand up to silence Spike.  “I have to tell the bad to get to the good.”

Buffy rested her hand on Spike’s chest.  “Let him finish.”

“Only for your sake,” Spike answered Buffy.  He pulled her over to the other side of the room to sit down in a chair together.

“There is so much more at stake here than any of us probably realize.”  Xander picked up the gun when the man started to rouse awake again.  He didn’t want to have to deal with him too.  So, he used the butt end of the gun again to knock him out.  “All I wanted to do in the beginning was get Spike away from Buffy.  So, on the way home the first night I snuck into the high school to get the Council’s number from Giles’ office.”

Giles mentally went through where he had the number stashed.  “How did you even know where to find it?”

“I came in one afternoon after school when you needed to make a report.  I just waited out in the main library area until you were done, but I saw where you put the book away at.”

“I’ll have to move that, it seems.”  Giles huffed, a bit flustered.  That drawer should have been locked.

“I’ll replace the lock.”  Xander answered the unasked question. 

“Oh Xander.”  Willow whimpered in exasperation and sympathy.

“I was desperate.”  Xander explained.  “So anyways, I called them the first night.  Then when I came back to Giles’ place the one day I saw Spike and Buffy all over each other on the floor, I turned right back around and headed home.  That was when Mister Tweed here showed up.”

Joyce listened to the boy who was supposed to be one of Buffy’s best friends, talk about how he betrayed her.  Her motherly instincts wanted to slap the boy upside the head.

“It turns out that they’ve had operatives here every other week watching Buffy since the Master killed her.  This week was their off week, but the operatives were close enough to get back in a hurry when I called.”

Spike growled at the mention of his Great-Great-GrandSire.  “Stupid bat faced git.”

Buffy chuckled.  “Watch it.  He’s family.”

“Was family, luv.  Thankfully you dusted the idiot.”  Spike snorted.  “He deserved it.  No one touches my girl.”

Kendra raised an eyebrow.  Her arms were crossed over her chest.  She might be silent, but she hadn’t missed any of the exchanges between anyone.  She wasn’t here for most of what they spoke of, and her last trip taught her to get all her facts before reacting.  So, she was trying to be patient.  It was hard to do in the presence of so many vampires.  She was itching to stake them all, including her Slayer sister.

“Believe it or not, I actually refused to go back to the house and stake Spike.”  Xander found himself still a bit unsure of why they wanted him to do it instead of them.  “They said they needed me to stake Spike so they could take Buffy back to England.  That wasn’t why I called the Council.  I thought I was protecting Buffy from evil boy there.  I didn’t want anyone taking her anywhere.”

Giles sighed.  “You were very foolish to call them especially with everything you’ve read and heard about the Council.  You should have known they wouldn’t let Buffy go if she was a vampire.”

“I know Giles.  It was pretty stupid.”  Xander frowned.  “When I refused they tied me up, gagged me, and put me in the closet of my room.  Before they put me in the closet I saw one of the Council guys actually change into my clothing, and he had my face on him.  I have no idea how they did it, but right before my eyes was another me.”

“That explains why Xander tried to stake Spike.”  Willow entered the conversation.  “I didn’t think Xander could be that hateful to kill Spike after Buffy’s warning.”

“What changed your mind about Spike though, Xander?”  Buffy questioned.  “You were defending him, as well as me, with that gun on the Council guy.  Also, how did you escape?”

“There are a lot more people that know about Buffy’s predicament than we’ve been told.  The Coven explained a lot of things to me about how wrong I was about vampires.”  Xander started to speak again when a loud knocking came from the door.  He quickly walked over to see who it was.

“Careful Xander.  Council members won’t need an invitation.”  Giles cautioned.  Spike stood up ready to attack if necessary.

“No one else from the Council should be able to get past the street now.”  Xander opened the door.  He revealed the face of a middle aged woman with piercing green eyes and auburn hair.  “Hello Athena.”

Athena stepped into the Summers’ home.  She smiled brightly at Giles.  “Hello, Rupert.”  Her voice held a clear and crisp British accent.  She opened her arms up to Giles.

“Athena?”  Giles stood up, walked over to the new woman, and hugged her.  “It has been forever since I’ve seen you.  You don’t usually leave the Coven in England.  What brings you here?”

Athena looked around the room until she rested on the blonde head of Buffy Summers.  She took two steps forward before the bleach blonde vampire blocked her path.

Giles clapped Spike on the shoulder.  “Athena is an old friend.  I trust her with my life.”  He looked at Athena.  “Do you promise not to bring any harm to my charge?”

Athena nodded.  She watched the vampire as he reluctantly stepped to the side of his Mate.  “This young lady is what brings us here earlier than we intended.”  She extended a hand out to Buffy.  “We’ve waited a long time for another Slayer to emerge this way.”

Buffy accepted the lady’s hand.  She stood up in front of Athena.  “You’ve waited for me?”

Xander’s voice from the other side of the room brought the attention back to him.  “Seems like you are all prophecy girl again, Buffy.”  He half chuckled.  “Except this time you got to come back from death with a lot more perks.”

“An interesting way to put it, Xander, but it is so much more than that.”  Athena stepped back to face the entire room.  “We’ve known about the one who would bring light to the darkness and darkness to light for hundreds of years.  When the last Slayer was turned, Antoinette, we tried to defend her, but we weren’t strong enough.  We knew she wasn’t the one the scrolls spoke of, but we tried anyways.  It was the Coven who gave the monks the amulet you used William.”

Spike blinked in surprise.  Athena knew his name.  Why would a Coven, which he knew consisted of a bunch of witches, care about knowing him?

“Yes, William, we know who you are.”  Athena read the waves of curiosity off of the vampire.

“How did you know Antoinette wasn’t the one the prophecy spoke of?”  Giles itched to have his notepad in front of him.  He looked around the room for any kind of paper and pen that he could take notes with.

“Mom, I think we need to get Giles some paper before he starts writing on his arm or the furniture.”  Buffy laughed.

Joyce chuckled.  In the time she’d spent with Buffy since her turning, they talked about Giles and his research.  Joyce had read some of Giles’ journal entries into the Watcher’s Diaries as well.  He was quite thorough in his quests.  She opened her roll top desk, picked up a pad of paper, chose a suitable pen, and walked back over to Giles.  “Here you go, Rupert.”

Giles actually blushed at the gesture.  “Thank you, Joyce.”  He hastily opened the notebook and started writing furiously.

‘Some things never change.’  Athena smiled and shook her head.  She’d known Rupert Giles for many years.  “Antoinette only died once.  The scrolls speak of one Chosen in the land of the sun who would die at the hands of a Master.  We didn’t realize it actually meant THE Master.  Also it is told that she would be shaded from then on until her second death, where she would find her peace in the darkness.”

Buffy squeezed Spike’s hand.  ‘That part is right.  I have found my peace in the darkness.  You are my peace, beloved.’  She kissed the back of Spike’s hand.

‘You bring light to my darkness, pet.  You are my sun.’  Spike turned their joined hands over and kissed the back of Buffy’s hand.

Athena sighed happily at the sight of the two lovers.  They seemed to be a good match.  This bode well for what they would face later.  “The Council also knew of these scrolls.  There are many things that the hierarchy of Council members actually keeps from the general Watcher eye.  This is one of them.”

“I always suspected that they held things back, but the last few days have shown me so much that I never knew about.”  Giles sighed in disgust.  “The group that I thought I was protecting from evil has shown that it holds a lot of evil in its own.  They taught us so many lies.”

“Yes, they have.  Lies that have tainted the origins of demons and Slayers enough to cause friends to turn on one another.”  Athena looked Xander squarely in the eye.  “Though thankfully once we explained a few things, and showed him bits of time, he turned around.”

“I won’t make the same mistake again.”  Xander promised Spike and Buffy.  “I may not like it, but I’m not going to like everything and everyone.  This is what you want.  So, I’ll deal.”

Buffy jumped off the chair and ran at Xander.  She hugged him with tears in her eyes.  “Oh Xander, I’m so glad you feel that way.  I didn’t want to see you dead, but I thought you tried to kill my family.”  She looked at Willow.  “I don’t regret sending the man that hurt my Mate and I to his death, but I’m glad it wasn’t really you Xander.”  She turned back to Xander to hug him again.

“You gave us a bit of a scare with that one, Buffy.”  Athena interjected.  “We thought that our calculations were incorrect when we saw that you allowed the death of a human.  Once we looked at the situation further, we realized why you did it.  Evil comes in many forms, and not all things evil are demons.  You did what you had to do.”

Spike relaxed some in the chair.  Maybe if this Coven supported their rights in this way, they would have a chance to convince the Watcher and Red that Buffy was justified in her actions.

“How did you know about Buffy’s transformation though?  Other than Xander’s call to the Council we haven’t told anyone about it.”  Giles shook the pen in his hand to make sure the ink continued to flow.

“We have been watching Sunnydale for a long time.”  Athena pointed to Willow.  “We felt the presence of a new power itching to emerge from that young lady there.  Although she hasn’t realized it yet, she will be quite powerful in the future.  We were watching to be sure that she was trained before her power took her.”

Athena crossed one leg over the other as she sat down in a chair.  “It made the arc of emergence more noticeable to us when Buffy was turned.  Immediately we watched the Council to see if they realized what happened.  As soon as we were aware that they knew, we warned them to stay away from the Slayer.”

“I’ll bet the wankers didn’t like that too much.”  Spike snorted in disgust.  “They think they own the Slayers, as if they aren’t even people.”

“You are correct, William.  They laughed at us and told us to mind our own business.”  Athena huffed.

Giles actually laughed.  “The Council told a coven of the most powerful witches in this realm to mind their own business?”

“I had the same reaction to Quentin Travers when he told me that.”  Athena nodded.  “That man has gotten far too power hungry.”  She shook her head back and forth.  “We warned them that the Coven would protect this one.  I told him that we knew of the prophecy, and we would not allow the Council to destroy this girl.”

“You can’t keep us from what belongs to us.”  The Council operative was conscious again.  “You stupid and foolish woman.  She isn’t yours to control.  She’s ours.”

“Arrogant fool.”  Athena smirked.  She flicked her fingertips at the man, and he disappeared.  She blew the end of her fingers with a grin on her face.  “Never liked Charles.”

Willow blinked.  “What did you do to him?”

“Don’t worry, my little Wicca.”  Athena smiled.  “I just sent him back to the Council with a little present of warning.  He is alive.”

Giles wished he could see the look on Travers’ face when his operative was returned to him magically.  “So the Coven will protect Buffy whenever possible?”

“Yes, she will be magically warded as well as her natural defense enhancements.”  Athena pulled a book from a bag that appeared on her wrist.  She opened it to a specific page.  “Buffy’s Slayer demon, and yes Slayers were originally created from a vampiric like demon, has turned Buffy into what we call a daywalker.”  She pointed out several passages.  “The Council found this information a few hundred years ago around the time of Antoinette’s turning.  She will be able to walk in sunlight, crosses will not harm her, and she will not dust from a staking.  Though she could still die from it since it could cause her to bleed to death if her healing abilities were weakened.  Of course having her head cut off would have the same effect as it would to a human or vampire.”

Spike wrapped his arms around Buffy tighter.  He held her against his chest.  He knew that he would rather dust himself than see any harm come to Buffy.

“We assumed that Buffy would have some vampires willing to help her, but we did not expect a full claiming and mating to occur.”  Athena sat down facing Spike and Buffy again.  “Antoinette and Charmand shared a deep bond, but it was not as strong as what you two share.  We aren’t sure why.”

“Maybe I kept more of my humanity than he did?”  Spike interjected his thoughts.  “I also became a Master vampire fairly quickly.  Though that was because of the Slayer I killed during the Boxer Rebellion, but with the blood of two Slayers in my veins that would increase my demon as well, right?”

“Perhaps that is it.”  Athena pondered the information.  “You do realize that you never lost your soul completely when you were turned?  Not all vampires do.”  She looked over at Dalton.  “Your son is the same way.”  She realized the connection between the vampires here was strong.  She turned back to Buffy and Spike.  “Also the auras we’ve seen from you two show that when you mated Buffy’s soul connected with what remained of yours.  It enhanced its strength and solidified it within you.”

“Bloody hell.  I’d better not resort to my namby pamby days, Slayer, or so help me …”  Spike growled.

Buffy laughed.  “You’re still the Big Bad to me, love.  Always.”

“That’s easy for you to say.  You have no idea what a poncey git I was when I was a human.”  Spike huffed.

“You are as you always have been when you’ve allowed your true self to show, William.  You will share more of an even balance with your demon now.”  Athena interrupted.  “We don’t know what other benefits you will see as time goes by.  The more blood you two share, the stronger things will be between you.

“What does this prophecy say about me?”  Buffy needed to know what she should expect.

“You are the guardian of the mouth of hell.  That must refer to the Hellmouth.”  Athena looked over at Kendra.  “The Slayer line runs through Kendra now.  There is only one blood Slayer.”  She focused on Buffy again.  “You will live for quite a long time if your Mate, friends, and the Coven have any say in it.  You will actually outlive the Council itself.  That is one reason why the Council wants you.  It is said that you will abolish the Council in time.”

Giles gasped.  “Abolish it?”

“We don’t know why.  We only know that it is destined to happen.”  Athena saw how worn the faces of everyone around her were.  “I know this is a lot to take in at once.  You may keep that book.  It holds all the information you need.  Rest assured the Council will not be interfering again.  I will be having a personal little chat with Quentin Travers today.  If he doesn’t behave, the end of the Council will be sooner over later.”  Her voice held the note of a threat and anger in it.  “They will not be allowed to destroy the Chosen One.  We will make sure several Coven members are present in Sunnydale for the time being to be sure our instructions are followed to the Council.”

“Thank you, Athena.”  Buffy sighed a bit in relief.  “I’ve been worried about so many things since I woke up.  I feel so much safer now.”

Athena stood up.  She cupped Buffy’s face in her hand.  “You have such a great love inside you, Buffy.  Share it with the world.  Let your heart guide you.  You will find the right way to live then.”

Athena moved in front of Spike.  “Your love and devotion will serve you for many decades to come, William.  Forget the pain, but remember the lessons learned from them.  Do not return to the life of mayhem that you led, or it will destroy you and your Childe.”  She offered her hand to Spike to bring him to his feet.  She leaned forward.

Spike felt the warmth caress his cheek and course through his body when Athena kissed his cheek briefly.  He looked at her with widened eyes.  “Wha …”

“A gift, fair warrior.”  Athena stepped away from Spike.  She moved over to Willow.  “We will be watching you young lady.  Soon, you will need to begin your training.”  She smiled warmly at Willow.  “It is time for me to leave.  Your home will be protected with our wards.  You can all rest easy.”

Joyce and Giles nodded in synchronization.  “Thank you, Athena.”  Joyce was happy to know that her daughter would live for a lot longer.  She would never have the kind of life Joyce envisioned for her, but she would be happy.  That was all that mattered to her now.

Xander let Athena out of the door.  Then he sat down on the couch next to Willow.  He hugged her.

“So another apocalypse averted.”  Willow chirped.  “No more Angelus trying to eat all of Sunnydale.”

“Yep.  The Hellmouth is not so hell mouthy right now.”  Xander quipped.  He smiled at Buffy and Spike.  They did look very good together.  He bit back the jealousy in his heart.  He never would have had her in the first place.

“Do you think you’ll be staying, Kendra?”  Buffy asked her sister warrior.

Kendra shook her head no.  “Dis is yawr playce to be.”

“I doubt the Council would keep her here.”  Giles sat back on the couch.  “Especially since the Coven will be clear about Buffy remaining on the Hellmouth.”  For the first time in weeks he felt relaxed.  “The Council won’t want to incur the wrath of those powerful Wiccas.  You two should be safe.”

“For now.”  Buffy sighed.  “Until the next time someone thinks they are bad enough to take me on.”

“We’ll always be ready, luv.”  Spike kissed Buffy’s cheek chastely.  “With everyone here, they wouldn’t survive any attempt they made on you.”

“You’re right.”  Buffy stretched out in the chair she and Spike shared.  “If I can tame the “Big Bad” no one else will even be a challenge.”

Everyone in the room laughed but Spike.  He pinched her butt and tickled her mercilessly.  “I’ll show you who’s big and bad.”

Buffy jumped up off the chair and ran for the stairs.  She squealed the whole way up while she tried to escape Spike.

Everyone heard the door to Buffy’s bedroom slam closed with much giggling and shrieking.  They all looked back and forth at each other.  No one wanted to acknowledge what would be happening next up stairs.

Giles cleared his throat.  “Well …”

“Yes … I suppose I should go grab the sleeping bags for everyone to sleep in and some sheets for the couch.”  Joyce stood up.  “I think it would be best if we all stayed together still.”

“Quite right.”  Giles agreed.  “At least until we are sure the Coven was able to get through to the Council.”

“Dibs on the couch.”  Xander chimed in.

“Giles gets the couch.”  Joyce corrected.  “He deserves to be as comfortable as possible.”

“Darn relegated to the floor.”  Xander mock pouted.

“Be happy you even get the floor after what you did.”  Joyce waggled a finger at him.  “You’d better not hurt my baby girl again, or you will meet Mama Bear Joyce.”

Xander gulped and nodded.  Willow giggled.  Giles smirked.

“What about me, Mrs. Summers?”  Dalton questioned.

“Please call me Joyce.”  Joyce Summers smiled warmly.  “I have a cot that I can put in the basement for you.  That way you will be safe from the sun.  I’m sure Buffy will take care of covering her window for her and Spike.”

“Thank you, Joyce.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

As the sun rose from beneath the horizon two separate vampires went to meet their end.  One male vampire, recently turned, was sent to the hell he deserved for his many actions against those he should have tried to protect instead of kill.  He left this realm screaming in pain and cursing his fate.

In another part of Sunnydale an old vampiress went from flesh to dust peacefully and quietly.  No screams rent the air when the flames consumed her.  She left this world with a smile on her face because her soul was leaving for heaven.  The insanity she suffered from all those years after being turned was no more.  Her soul, long buried deep within her to protect it, was set free to join her family in the sky.  She was at peace, her destiny fulfilled.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

(To Be Continued)

Revenge For Love - (15) The End of the Beginning
By Tasha

Chapter Summary: Athena from the Coven in England informed the Scoobies about a great deal of what was happening to Buffy and Spike.  We found out just who the real Xander really is.  This chapter is written for 6 months after the last chapter.  We catch up on what has been happening with the Scoobies and how everyone has adjusted or not adjusted to the changes.

Author's Note: I have had several people express interest and request a sequel to this story after Ch. 14 was sent out.  I do have ideas in the works for it, but it will not be the next story I go into.  I have a promise to keep to Bloodshedbaby for a story to one of her challenges.  I might start the sequel once I'm into that story if I see in reviews for this chapter that the interest for a sequel is still there.  The way I end this story, you can take it as an end or a set up for a sequel.  {Smiles}

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Buffy's voice penetrated the Summers' residence before the blonde daywalker stepped inside followed by Giles.  "I don't work for them anymore.  I refuse to babysit and train who could actually be here to kill Spike and I.  If we let her that close, I don't know what affect it will have on the wards."

"Remember the wards are based on blood now, Buffy.  It won't affect that.  I've checked out the Council's story with a few of my trusted colleagues."  Giles closed the door behind him, blocking out the mid-day sun.  "The new Slayer is quite a rebel.  She bawks their authority at every step.  She's already gone through two Watchers."

"So why should I take this Faith off their hands?"  Only six months passed by in their lives since the final battle with Angelus.  Three months after Kendra returned home they received word from the Coven of the Slayer's death.  Buffy tried to keep busy with her new life since then.  She wasn't ready to face Kendra's replacement yet.  "It sounds like her rebelling is actually helping our cause to keep the Council off balance."

Joyce Summers stepped into the living room from the direction of the kitchen.  She heard the argument between her boyfriend and her daughter in full swing outside.  So, she had a feeling Rupert would appreciated something to drink.  She kissed Giles briefly and handed a glass of bourbon to him.  "Rough day, dear?"

"Yes.  Thank you, Joyce."  Giles returned a short, but sweet kiss.  After tentatively, then seriously, dating for 5 months Joyce and Giles decided he should move in with Joyce.  Buffy and Spike had their own place to live, and Giles only rented his apartment.  With both Giles and Joyce living alone it seemed reasonable for them to advance their relationship on many levels.  The Summers' residence became Scooby Central.  Although their lives were never quiet or sedate, Joyce and Giles were happy together.

"That bastard Travers called Giles today to tell us he was sending the new Slayer and her new Watcher to Sunnydale."  Buffy hoped her mother sided with her in the argument.  Joyce acted like a mother bear ever since she found out about Buffy's death and new calling.  "Make Giles tell Travers to go to Hell."

"Language please, Buffy."  Joyce rolled her eyes.  Spike took excellent care of her daughter.  She'd never seen Buffy happier, but his cursing was one thing Joyce wished Buffy hadn't followed in his footsteps with.  "I'm sure Rupert has a good reason why he is willing to accept this."  Her tone indicated that Giles better have a good reason for putting her daughter in danger.

Giles gulped the bourbon down in one swig.  One thing he learned quickly while he dated Joyce was that Buffy's spirit, determination, and stubbornness were not Slayer traits.  They were in the Summers' family genes.  He admired Joyce's tenacity, but he didn't want to be on the wrong side of an argument with her.  "I don't believe Faith is a plant.  My sources actually believe the Council is sending Faith here with the hope that her reckless behavior will get her killed and maybe her Watcher too."

"How screwed up is that?"  Buffy snorted in disgust.  "I'm with Spike on his Council of Wankers analogy.  It's sounding better and more true everyday."

"Be that as it may, I feel we should take this girl under our wing."  Giles tried to reason with Buffy.  "She was not discovered as a Potential until after she was already Chosen.  She hasn't lived her whole life with Watcher training."

"Still not seeing why I should care."  Buffy crossed her arms in front of her against her chest.  Her attitude may seem harsh to someone that hadn't lived her life the last few months, but her resentment came from her concerns for her friend's and family's well being.

"She, like you, hasn't spent her whole life being poisoned by their teachings."  Giles handed the empty glass to Joyce.  "She hasn't spent enough time with her last two Watcher's to be influenced by their teachings either.  From what I've heard she didn't listen to them much anyways."

Joyce accepted the glass back from Giles.  With the way the conversation was going, she decided to refill it for him.  She knew her daughter was as stubborn as she was when it came to protecting those she loved.  Buffy wanted them all prepared and protected.

Joyce spent the better part of the last 6 months training with Giles, Spike, Buffy and the other Scoobies.  She was rather proficient with crossbows.  She procured an artistic looking cane that she kept at the gallery for further protection.  The cane held a sword in it should she need it as well.  She was able to wield it easily, and it was sturdy enough to get the job done.

"We have a chance to bring her across to our way of life.  Like Kendra, she could accept and be willing to protect the truth about Slayers, vampires and other demons."  Giles stepped closer to Buffy.  He rested a hand on her shoulder.  "I know you are worried, but we need to do this.  The more people who share our way, the better off the supernatural world will be handled properly."

"But is it really worth the risk?"  Buffy hated arguing with Giles.  She loved him like a father, but she feared any contact with the Council again, even indirectly.  Yes they needed more people on their side, but they couldn't afford to be wrong about anyone.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Council wasn't happy with the Coven's original demands, as the Scoobies expected, and for several weeks after the battle the Council tried to get around the Coven's spells.  The Council had a few witches of their own that they relied on.  They foolishly sent several Watchers and a dark ops unit to observe, infiltrate, capture and/or destroy Buffy and Spike.

The first attempt on Buffy's life merely annoyed the Coven's elders and Buffy.  The protection wards and safety spells deflected the feeble attempts of the Council to test the Coven's seriousness and power.  Buffy felt when anything challenged the magic surrounding her.  It was a warning system to let her know something was going on.  It allowed her to contact the Coven before any real damage was done to the wards.

The second attempt, two months later, was a more elaborate plan to bring down the wards and capture Buffy through indirect means.  The dark ops team kidnapped Willow, Giles and Spike.  They tranquilized Spike enough to keep him incoherent but conscious enough to keep the link open.  They counted on Buffy's ability to track down her Mate to bring her to them.

What the Council overlooked was the determination and dedication of Joyce and Buffy to the men they loved, and the military edge to Xander's way of thinking that he cultivated more over time.  At the time no one understood how the Council operatives were able to kidnap Willow, Giles and Spike in the first place.  Later the Scoobies found out that three of the Coven members, three stationed in Sunnydale, took magically ill right before the kidnapping.  Losing the magic of that many members at once, near Buffy, weakened the wards enough for the Council's team to sneak in close and grab them.

Buffy wanted to tear through every place in Sunnydale to find Spike once she realized her Mate was gone.  Only the strength and patience of Xander and Joyce combined was able to stop the Slayer/Vampiress from raining down death and destruction in a raid of pure bloodshed.  They used Buffy's connection with Spike to help pinpoint the area their friends and family were being held.

Xander worked up a plan for infiltration that included help from Joyce and Buffy.  It would have been nice to have Oz's help, but he wasn't available to help the Scoobies.  He wasn't even in Sunnydale anymore.  His band got a U.S. touring opportunity that they couldn't afford to pass up about a month after the battle.  He broke off his relationship with Willow because he said it wasn't fair to ask her to wait for him when he might never be back.

Willow was crushed, but she knew her place was with Buffy in Sunnydale.  Giles made sure Oz had some tranquilizer darts and a list of names for others who could help him in certain cities on the full moon.  Willow buried herself in her books, studying various aspects of witchcraft at the suggestion of the Coven members in Sunnydale.  She visited them often to discuss specifics of certain spells.

Xander tried to ask Cordelia to help as well, but the ex-cheerleader no longer wanted to have anything to do with him or his "freakish" group of friends any longer.  She refused to understand Xander's need to stick by and defend Buffy now that she was a vampire.  She said their relationship wasn't worth having to deal with all the craziness that made up his life.

With the loss of Oz and Cordelia, and the strange loss of communication with the Coven, the remaining Scoobies felt deserted.  So, it was a strange little trio of Scoobies who were forced to mount a rescue on their own.  It was hard for each of them when several days passed by before they were ready to make a move.  All of them were on edge by the time it came to move in.

Buffy figured they only had one shot at a rescue.  If they failed, every one of them would be dead or a lab rat prisoner of the Council.  Thankfully luck was on their side.  The dark ops team never expected the three person rescue group to be so meticulous with their planning and execution. 

The captors were taken completely by surprise in the middle of one of their taunting sessions of the captured Scoobies.  In the midst of taunts and jeers that the former Slayer left them to die at their hands, the operatives were incapacitated with bolts and arrows through shoulders, knees, arms, and legs followed with punches, kicks and elbows at key pressure points to knock them unconscious.

Xander cradled an emotionally wrecked Willow in his arms after he released her from her bonds.  Joyce wept in Giles arms.  Both of them held each other up, comforting the other.  When Buffy located her Mate in a separate room from the others, she growled.  The guard barely had a moment to realize the Vampiress was in the room before his body hit the floor half drained.

Buffy lowered the bruised and bloodied body of her Sire to the floor.  She pulled the still bleeding guard over to him.  She lifted Spike's head to the guard's neck, and Spike awoke enough to finish the blood that remained in his tormentor.

All of the Scoobies' physical wounds healed in a few days, but the emotional and mental scars that were left on all of them took a lot longer to heal.  The rest of the operatives were sent back to the Council magically bound with nightmares implanted in their brains that would keep them from even thinking about returning to Sunnydale again. 

Dalton was furious when he returned to Sunnydale after his trip to England to visit the Coven.  He apologized profusely for not being there when his Master and Mistress needed him.  He informed them that he'd had the pleasure of tormenting Quentin Travers for a considerable amount of time in revenge and warning to leave them alone.  He worried that they would be upset for him harming the human.

Spike and Buffy reassured their son that all was well.  They held no anger towards Dalton.  He did nothing wrong in their eyes.  He protected his family, and he carried out the wishes of the Coven to show the seriousness of Travers' refusal to obey their directives.  Being nearly drained by an enraged vampire was not something Travers was soon to forget.  Quentin was allowed to live with the warning that should he ever cross them again he and his whole family would be wiped from the earth.

Athena visited Sunnydale after the kidnapping incident.  She strengthened all of the wards and spells by linking them to Buffy's blood.  Spike, Buffy and Dalton already shared a blood bond from feeding from each other and being linked through a familial claim.  Joyce, being Buffy's mother, was also protected by her link to Buffy's blood automatically.  Xander, Willow, and Giles agreed to share a familial blood link with Buffy to keep the protection spells more specific and unbreakable.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Buffy was pulled from her memories of the past few months by the sound of the front door being opened.  Spike stood framed in the doorway by the sun.  He pulled off his black leather duster and shook it outside.  It was dusty from a mix of burnt herbs, dirt and sawdust.  He slipped it back on once he was confidant that he wouldn’t get Joyce’s house dirty.

Joyce hugged Spike at the door.  "I don't think I will ever tire of seeing you so handsome in the sunlight, Spike."

Although the vampire still wasn't accustomed to showing a lot of open affection around most humans, he loved Joyce as much as he did his own mother.  He returned the hug with tenderness.  "I'm not sure I'll ever get completely used to being able to walk in the sun again.  Sometimes the minions forget I can go out during the day.  They try to stop me from leaving and almost dust themselves."  He shook his head back and forth.

Buffy ran over to her Mate eagerly.  She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him passionately.  Being apart from Spike for long periods of times was still hard for her to handle.  Her only consolation was the link they shared.  It grew stronger with each passing day.  They’d spent the last week apart, except for brief times during the days when they met to talk out current plans or strategies.

Spike grinned at his beautiful Childe after they separated from their kiss.  He rested his hands on Buffy's waist.  Seeing her beauty in the clarity of the sunlight still made his unbeating heart flutter.  Buffy was always gorgeous to him, but in the sunlight she was even more breathtaking.  He'd never forget the first time he saw her in full sunlight.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The morning after the battle, Spike awoke from a deep slumber by Buffy's screams.  They'd forgotten to close the curtains amidst their frolicking earlier.  The sun shone brightly through the window.

"Spike!"  Buffy screamed.  "Oh my gosh!"  She jumped up to close the curtains.  She stopped after she realized that Spike wasn't even smoking.  "Spike?"

Spike opened his eyes groggily.  "Oy, pet.  Turn off the lights."  He raised his hand to cover his eyes from the brightness.

Buffy tugged on Spike's arm.  "It's not the lights, Spike."  She pulled his hand away from his eyes.  "It's the sun."

"Sun?"  Spike jumped from the bed out of reflex.  "You trying to dust me, Slayer?"

Buffy giggled.  She imagined the worried look on his face mirrored the one she had when she woke up.  "No, silly.  You weren't smoking.  Come back here and see."

Joyce, Giles, Willow, Xander and Dalton burst through Buffy's bedroom door.  Dalton jumped back into the hall to avoid the sunlight.  The other four stared at the naked pair of vampires, one of which who wasn't smoking and should have been.

"What is going on?"  Joyce grabbed Buffy's robe from behind the door and tossed it to her.  She threw Spike a towel from the hall closet.  She was dealing with her daughter being intimate with another man, but that didn’t mean she wanted to see it so openly.  "Why were you screaming, Buffy?"

"I woke up, and the sun was beating down on Spike.  I panicked.  Shouldn't he be dusty?"  Buffy started to explain and question.

Giles looked over at the half covered vampire.  "Fascinating."  He adjusted his glasses.  Enough direct sunlight still hit Spike's body, and there was no sign of smoke or blistering.

Dalton peeked out from behind Giles' body.  He was careful to avoid the sunlight by staying in Giles' shadow.  "Master?"  His worried voice questioned.  His Master’s and Mistress’ panic hit him while he was in the middle of drinking a mug of blood downstairs.

"It's all right, son.  I'm fine."  Spike's comforting voice soothed Dalton's nerves.  "Looks like that kiss from the witch really did mean something."  He laughed heartily.  “And here I thought she just found me too irresistible to pass up.”  He teased.

Buffy slapped Spike playfully on the arm.  "You think this was the gift she meant?"  Buffy asked.

"It's quite possible," Giles answered.  "If Spike was unable to go with you during the day, you would be at more risk.  The Coven has taken up the mantle of your well being.  This could be another way to ensure you are safe."

Spike stepped back into the sun fully.  He closed his eyes.  He practically giggled like a small boy with delight at the warmth of the sun on his skin.  His demon wanted to shrink back from the light, but Spike pushed forward until his body was covered completely in light.

"So beautiful, Sire."  Buffy stared at her lover in awe.  His alabaster skin appeared to glow in the brightness because it was so pale.  It almost looked like he had a halo surrounding his whole body.  "Like an angel."

Spike opened his eyes.  With a feral growl he pounced on Buffy on the bed.  "I'll show you that I'm nothing like an angel."  He grinned like a predator at his Childe.  "I'll always be a little devil."

Willow shrieked.  "I think that is our cue to vacate."  She rushed out of the room, pulling Xander with her.

"Yes, quite."  Giles wrapped an arm around Joyce's waist.  Dalton preceded them into the hallway, and they all headed back to the kitchen for their interrupted lunch.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Giles extended his hand for Spike to shake.  "Everything finished at the house?"  Any doubts Giles had of Spike continued to be eradicated with each day that passed.  He couldn't deny the fact that Spike put Buffy's needs always before his own.  He'd put up with the entire Scooby gang's quirks and protected them. At first it was because Buffy wanted him too.  Now it seemed that he'd grown to care for each of them in his own.  He was a part of their family, as was Dalton.

Buffy and Spike lived at the mansion since the battle, but Spike wanted a place that he and Buffy could call their own without the memories of the past.  The two of them picked out a fixer upper house only a short distance away from Revello Drive.  It was close enough for visiting but far enough away to give everyone his or her privacy.

"Yep."  Spike accepted the extended hand and shook Giles' hand firmly.  "I finished sanding the porch this morning, and the stain is curing on the deck right as we speak."

"I'm so excited."  Buffy bounced up and down in Spike's embrace.  "He hasn't let me back into the house for the last month.  Once he let me pick things out and tell him what I'd like, he kicked me out.  I’ve hardly seen him at all the last week."  She pouted.

"Oooo ... look at that lip."  Spike flicked his fingertips over Buffy's extended lower lip.  "Gonna get it."

Buffy pulled out of Spike's arms.  "Not until I get to see my house."  She hid behind Joyce's back and stuck her tongue out at Spike on the side.  "No more spiking for Spike until I'm in my new home."

Spike laughed.  Joyce and Giles shared a knowing look.  They loved to see how much joy Buffy got out of life now.  Her calling was dangerous before.  Now it was even more dangerous since her calling had been altered.  Both were amazed that Buffy seemed more alive now that she was technically dead than when her heart beat.

Giles cleared his throat.  "There is still the matter of Faith to discuss, Buffy."

"Is that the new Slayer bird?"  Spike heard about the Council's call from Xander second hand.  Xander showed a knack for carpentry and construction over the time Spike worked to fix the house up.  The two shared a camaraderie while they worked.  It strengthened a growing friendship between the two of them.

"Yes."  Giles turned to Buffy.  "I am certain that Quentin is going to send the girl and her Watcher no matter what we say."

"Why is that, Rupert?"  During the last few months, Spike and Giles also found a common ground or means to base a friendship on.  Spike was able to read, write and speak several languages, including a few demonic ones like Fyarl.  He surprised Giles with his knowledge of history and literature as well.  Things were not anywhere near as tense between the two now.  The pair would often be caught sharing a drink and chatting or watching British football on the television.

"My sources indicate that Quentin already feels this new Slayer is a liability."  Giles inhaled deeply.  "She won't follow his orders, and she's already gone through two other Watchers.  Her last Watcher was killed because of her refusal to follow orders.  At least that is the story he's giving the rest of the Council."

"You think he's lying?"  Joyce piped up.  She felt nothing but loathing for the head of the Council.  He'd done nothing but put her daughter into danger from the moment of her calling.  She knew that most of that was due to Buffy's calling itself, but the Council wanted to take her little girl away from her family and friends.  That was not something she was willing to tolerate.

"Richard Wadsworth, an old Watcher friend of mine, told me that the order would have obviously resulted in Faith's own death.  Faith must have realized that, and she refused to follow the order."  Giles removed his glasses.  He pinched the bridge of his nose tightly.  "Faith's Watcher, a Miss Gwendolyn Post, was found dead the next day.  Richard indicated the cause of death being highly suspicious.  We fear that she was eliminated because she couldn't control Faith."

"That's awful!"  Joyce exclaimed.

"Bloody wankers!"  Spike echoed Joyce's sentiment.

"A new Watcher has been assigned to Faith named Wesley Wyndham-Pryce.  He's rather green, and his father is a bit of a prat, but Wesley's pretty harmless."  Giles sighed.  He knew how hard it was to follow in your father's footsteps.  He was born into a family of Council serving Watchers and support staff.  He fought what was expected of him for many years.  He felt a draw to help the young man break free of the ties that bound him.

"So, it would be of no consequence to the Council if the new Watcher was killed along with the girl?"  Spike questioned.

"Probably not.  He's green, and his father seems a bit unhappy with his performance even though his marks are quite high."  Giles drank down the second glass of bourbon that Joyce offered to him earlier.  "If we could persuade both Faith and Wesley to our cause, it would go a long way to securing Buffy's safety from the Council."

"It won't be easy," Spike intoned.  "A wet behind the ears Watcher is more likely to spout off the handbook and regulations than he will be to accept the direct opposite to what he'd been taught."

"Or he might be more willing to accept the proof that the Council isn't what he thought it was when he realizes they sent him to his death without a second thought."  Giles countered.

"This is all irrelevant if I don't want them coming."  Buffy growled low.  Sometimes it frustrated her when Spike and Giles got going on different topics.  The two talked almost as if no one else was in the room.  It was both scary and comforting that the two got along so well now.

"That's what I'm trying to tell you, Buffy.  Quentin is sending them here whether we like it or not."  Giles put his glasses back on.  "We either remove the possible threat as soon as they get here, or we give it time to see which way they are willing to go.  I vote for giving them that chance."

"I'm willing to give it a try."  Spike put in his two cents worth.  "Either way we watch her and the Watcher carefully to be sure if they are on the up and up.  If they aren't, then we know what we have to do.  Might as well give them a chance first."

Joyce nodded in agreement with Spike.  She hugged Buffy who was now at her side instead of behind her.  "They deserve a chance.  What kind of people would we be if we didn't give them an opportunity to prove themselves."

Buffy sighed.  She saw that she was outnumbered even amongst the four of them.  She wondered what the other three of their official family of Scoobies would vote for.  "I'm not comfortable with it, but I'll back up whatever the majority wants."

"I'll call the others to come over to discuss it."  Giles headed for the phone.

"I'm taking my girl home."  Spike dove for Buffy.  He lifted her into his arms easily.  "Since we've already given our vote, we're not needed.  Right, Watcher?"

"That's fine, Spike."  Giles dialed Willow's number.  It was more than likely that Xander would be at Willow's house since he wasn't at Spike's.  Hopefully he'd reach two people at once.  "We'll let you know what is decided."

"Thanks, Rupert."  Spike juggled the squirming Slayer in his arms to open the door.  He hooked his foot behind it to close it.

"Hello?"  Giles spoke into the phone.  "Yes, it's Giles.  We need to have a meeting tonight.  Can you be here by 4?"  There was a pause as the person on the other end of the line answered.  "Great.  We'll see both of you then, Xander."  He hung up, and he dialed Dalton's cell phone number.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

About a block from their home, Buffy squirmed right out of Spike's arms.  She took off in a dead run towards the house.  "Catch me if you can."  She taunted back to Spike.

Spike growled playfully.  "Oh, I'll catch you all right, missy.  Then you'll be in trouble."  He bolted down the street after her.

“Promises, promises.”

Anyone who looked out their windows would have been surprised to see only a blur of color as the two supernatural beings ran with full strength and speed down the lazy Sunnydale street.

Buffy stopped dead in her tracks at the edge of the front yard.  Her mouth gaped open.  She stared at the house that only a few weeks ago looked about ready to be condemned.  She'd been skeptical when Spike spoke of buying the house and fixing it up.  They picked all the colors and styles out together, but she never imagined it would look so good.  If the outside looked this great, she had a feeling the inside was going to blow her away.

Spike grabbed Buffy around the waist from behind.  He twirled her around and tossed her up in the air.  He caught her in his arms.  With confident steps he strode up the recently stained deck to the front door.  "Welcome home, pet."

Buffy leaned over in Spike's arms.  She turned the doorknob.  The door opened easily.  The lock wasn't based on a physical key but a mystical one.  It was based on blood ... their blood.

Spike carried Buffy over the threshold.  Although they weren't considered married in the human world, they were mated which was considered stronger than being wed in the demon world.

"Such a romantic."  Buffy kissed Spike's lips.  "You big softie."  She teased.

"Oh really?"  Spike carried Buffy upstairs to their new bedroom.  He turned the corner through the doorway into the lavishly decorated room.  During the renovations, he knocked down the wall adjoined to what used to be a bedroom next door to make a huge Master suite.  In the center of the room, along the outside wall, was a four poster cherry wood bed adorned with crimson silk sheets.

"Wow."  Buffy slid from Spike's arms to the ground.  "This is gorgeous.  It's like I envisioned it could be and so much more."  She leaned back against Spike's chest.

"Only the best for you, pet."  Spike cradled Buffy in his arms, and he rocked her from side to side.  He rested his chin on her shoulder, kissing her neck.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Giles followed the maitre' d with Joyce to a table at one of Sunnydale's more ritzy restaurants.  The Scooby meeting completed, he whisked Joyce off for a night on the town.  Each Scooby would send their vote in to Giles' phone once they thought about it overnight.  For now Giles put his full concentration on Joyce.  He had something special planned for her.

Joyce noticed Giles was fidgeting a bit more tonight.  She hadn't seen him this nervous around her in quite some time.  She wondered what he was up to.  When the maitre' d directed them to a private room with candles gracing a table for two, she became even more suspicious.  "What's going on Rupert?"

Giles smiled warmly.  He waited for the gentleman to pour two glasses of champagne and walk out of the room before he pulled out Joyce's chair for her.  "Something special, darling."  Instead of pushing the chair back in, he lowered himself to one knee next to Joyce.

Joyce's eyes widened.  Giles seemed in a hurry to get the Scooby meeting over with, but she had no idea that he was planning something like this.  When he practically ran up their bedroom before they left for dinner, she figured he needed to get his wallet.  Now she wondered just what he picked up.

Giles looked up longingly at the woman who stole his heart so quickly.  After Jenny he thought he wouldn't find love again.  He certainly didn't expect to fall in love again so quickly, but he knew without a doubt that Joyce was the woman for him.  "Joyce," he began, "I know we've only been dating for a short time, but you are already firmly wrapped around my heart."

Joyce held her breath.  Her hands trembled against her thighs where they twisted around each other.

"Your fire and devotion warm me to the center of my being.  Your tenacity and love complete me."  Giles foraged through his pants pocket for the tiny velvet box he bought at a jewelry story weeks ago.  Using one of Joyce's rings from her jewelry box, he had it sized to fit her perfectly.  "I can not imagine my life without you, and I want you to know how much you are cherished and loved."

Joyce gasped at the now opened velvet jewelry box.  She stared at the heart shaped emerald nestled in a bed of tiny ruby and diamond chips around it.  She looked up at Giles with love shining in her eyes.  "Oh Rupert."

Giles breathed a little easier because Joyce wasn't laughing at him.  He'd never asked someone to marry him before, and he was very nervous.  He pulled the ring from its home.  He cradled one of Joyce's hands in his while the other readied the ring at the ring finger of her right hand.  "Joyce Summers, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife for the rest of our days on this earth and beyond."

"Yes!"  Joyce hugged Giles tightly after he slipped the ring on her finger.  They shared a passionate kiss followed by more hugging and tears of joy falling down their faces.  "I never thought I'd let another man into my life like this, Rupert, but I love you so much."

"And I you, Joyce.  All my heart is yours.  I want to spend the rest of my lifetime showing how much you are loved."  Giles kissed her again.  They were interrupted by the knock of their waiter on the door outside.  Giles stood up behind Joyce and scooted her chair in.  He leaned down to whisper into her ear after he called the waiter in, "We'll celebrate properly later."  He kissed her cheek softly.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Buffy turned in Spike’s arms.  She backed away from him towards the bed.  She ran her fingers down the buttons on the front of her blouse.  Starting at the bottom she slipped each pearlized button through its buttonhole.

Spike watched with fascination at the little seductive display Buffy gave him.  He stepped closer to her.  He ached to touch her.  While he worked on finishing the house, Buffy stayed at the mansion.  He wanted it to be a surprise for her.  It had been too long since they’d touched and shared a bed.

Buffy stopped revealing the skin underneath her shirt when Spike moved.  She shook her head at him.  “Nuh uh,” She spoke.  “You teased me through our link with all those images as you stroked yourself the last few nights.  My turn to tease.”

“I wasn’t doing it intentionally, luv.”  Spike stopped and whimpered.  “You didn’t exactly help with that little display of thoughts while you showered last night.”

Buffy huffed.  “I was entitled to a little pleasure after the VERY graphic dream you had yesterday morning.”  She left the last two buttons alone.  Her breasts were barely covered with the mostly open shirt.  She lowered her hands to the waist of her jeans.  “All those delicious images of our bodies mingling and grinding against each other.”

Spike shivered in remembrance of the dream.  “I missed you, pet.”  He felt himself grow harder every minute.  His demon wanted to rip the rest of Buffy’s shirt open, throw her on the bed and ravish her breasts with his teeth and tongue.  “I can’t be held responsible for what I dream.”

Buffy grinned.  She felt how close to the surface Spike’s demon was.  The power radiated off of him in waves of sexual tension and desire.  She bent over, unzipped her boots, and then kicked them off.  Her breasts exposed themselves when she bent over.  They hung downward in the absence of a bra.  When she woke up that morning she decided to torment her lover to the point of taking her.  She knew how knowing that she had no bra on would tease him.

Spike growled.  His cock pressed against his jeans so fully that it hurt to even move.  ‘Two can play at this game,’ He thought.  He unzipped his jeans, and his cock sprung forth quite happy to be out of its prison.  He wrapped his hand around the pale shaft at the base.  He caressed it in a couple full strokes and licked his lips.

Buffy groaned.  ‘That’s not fair.’  She unbuttoned her jeans then lowered the zipper.  She slowly lowered the denim to reveal every inch of her tanned body.  Once Buffy found out that she could still walk in the sun, she worked on maintaining her California golden tan.  She kicked the discarded jeans at Spike’s face followed by her wet panties.

Spike snatched Buffy’s panties from the air.  With his free hand he buried the silk and lace into his nose.  He inhaled deeply the scent that was his lover’s essence.  His growl deepened.  ‘I’ll never get enough of that scent, beloved.’

‘I hope not,’ Buffy answered.  Speech wasn’t possible during times like this when their bodies were as tight as a coiled spring.  It was at these times that their telepathic link came in very handy.

‘I’ll never get enough of you, Buffy.  Eternity isn’t long enough to spend with you.’  Spike narrowed his eyes on Buffy’s body, laid out on the bed and exposing herself to his gaze.  Her glistening mound called to him, and he forced himself to remain still.  He wanted to bury his face into the sweet honey of her pussy.  He practically drooled at the thought of her taste on his tongue.

Buffy followed Spike’s lust filled eyes.  She teased her fingertips up her stomach.  One hand disappeared beneath her shirt to tease and pinch taunt nipples that showed through the shirt.  The other hand worked to release the last two buttons.  The shirt fell completely open, and it was removed shortly thereafter.

Spike followed the trail of her fingers.  His tongue longed to trace the path her fingers took.  When Buffy’s hand dipped back down her stomach to nestle in the trimmed curls surrounding her sex, his patience broke.  Before Buffy’s fingers pinched her clit in the tips, Spike pounced on his lover.

Buffy squeaked out her surprise.  She wondered how long she would be able to tease Spike before he would be unable to keep from responding to her scent and their shared needs.  She found herself ably pinned to the bed with both her hands caught in one of Spike’s hands.

Spike’s t-shirt was pulled off of him before he ever made it to the bed.  He kicked his boots off a few seconds after his body hit the bed.  He grabbed Buffy’s hands in one of his.  His tongue lashed out to tease at Buffy’s nipples.  He licked and suckled his way around each breast then nibbled each nipple with care.

Buffy arched into Spike’s touch.  Her body hummed in the anticipation of their joining.  She moaned out loud when his fangs, now extended into his mouth, grazed over her nipple enough to draw blood.  The smell of her blood in the air called forth her own demon, and she “vamped” out.

Spike felt his lover change into her demon form.  He looked up at her through hooded eyes of passion.  He bit down harder into Buffy’s breast around her nipple.  He shook his head back and forth a little to bury his fangs into her deeper.

Buffy responded eagerly to her Sire’s bite.  She tried to pull her hands from Spike’s grasp.  She stilled when he growled deeply.  She whimpered in need.  “Please, Spike.  I need …”

“I know what you need, baby.”  Spike lifted his head from Buffy’s breast.  He kissed a trail down her stomach.  “This sweet little place needs my attention?”  He teased with a lick up between her nether lips to her extended clit.  He let go of her hands.

“Yes!”  Buffy’s hands shot down into Spike’s hair.  She arched her hips up and ground her pussy into Spike’s lips.

Spike removed his jeans with one hand.  He worked his pants down with one foot and then the other.  His face never left the sweet haven of his lover’s sex.  He lapped up every bit of her sweet essence.  He felt her tense beneath him.  He knew she was near her climax by the way she panted and squirmed.  He felt the need for her release through their link.  He knew what would send her over the edge.

Buffy screamed out her release the moment Spike’s fangs pierced either side of her clit.  Her whole body quaked and quivered in a wave of bliss.  Her hands tightened in his hair to hold him in place while her body bucked repeatedly against his face.

Spike grinned in male pride at being able to pleasure the woman he loved.  He drank in the mixture of her blood and cream of satisfaction deeply.  When he felt Buffy’s body come down from its high, he leapt up her body.  His cock plunged into her still twitching pussy in one solid thrust.

“SPIKE!”  Buffy screamed out in surprise.  Her lover never ceased to amaze her.  Sex with him was never the same.  He varied positions, pleasures, and taught her something new every time.

Spike’s cock beat at the back of her channel into her cervix.  It plunged deeply and poked at the entrance of her womb.

Buffy lifted her legs straight towards the ceiling.  She wrapped her ankles around his neck.  Her ass lifted from the bed, and the angle of Spike’s penetration changed.  Both lovers moaned in delight at the new angle.

Spike’s thrusts picked up speed.  ‘Gonna fuck you into the mattress so hard you won’t leave this bed for days.’  He snarled from the force of the next thrust into Buffy’s tight canal.

Buffy squeezed her inner muscles around Spike’s cock.  She knew what he liked, and she was more than happy to oblige.  Her muscles fluttered around the rock hard shaft piercing her body.

Spike threw his head back with a roar of pleasure.  He would never tire of those wonderful Slayer muscles.  His thrusts quickened in their pace.  His gaze locked with Buffy’s.  In a flash his struck, his fangs buried into Buffy’s neck.

Buffy howled her release into bliss yet again.  She came hard.  Her muscles tightened like a vice on Spike’s cock in pulses, and she buried her own fangs in Spike’s neck.

Spike came hard.  His cock burst forth with thick streams of his cold seed.  He buried his cock in deeply, and his seed pulsed against Buffy’s cervix to fill her.

Buffy careened over the edge again the moment Spike’s seed touched her womb.  She shivered and bucked against Spike’s body.

They both held each other tightly.  When both of them came back down to earth, they retracted their fangs from each other’s necks.

“Mine, as I am yours,” Spike spoke softly and reverently.

“Yours, as you are mine,” Buffy answered lovingly.

Spike flipped them over to ease the weight of his body off of Buffy.  His semi-hard cock remained inside of her.

Buffy collapsed on top of Spike.  Both of them panted even though neither needed to breathe.  She buried her face into the crook of his neck.  The Slayer within lay contently satisfied from the raw need she was able to bring forth in her Sire and lover.  The woman within felt warm and complete, surrounded by the love of her beloved.  The only time her demon and human sides were satisfied was in Spike’s presence.

Spike wrapped his arms loosely around his Mate.  He was content on so many levels.  His demon languished in the aftermath of their passion and blood sharing.  The man inside him relished in the love and connection he felt to the woman he loved.  In Buffy’s arms and presence was the only time he felt completely satiated and at peace.

While Spike and Buffy slept peacefully, spent after their night of lovemaking and passionate sex, a text message came through the encrypted system to their phones.  The Scoobies' vote was finished.  By majority vote in the positive, Giles and Buffy would meet Faith and Wesley upon entering Sunnydale.  It was time to seek out more allies.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

**The End**

(If you wish a sequel to this story, please send me a review requesting one.  Some people wrote me with interest, but I want to be sure that enough people are interested.)
 

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