Superman

Author: Dark Lycoris

Rating: NC-17

Pairing: Willow and Spike

Summary: Willow and Spike, with the aide of Xander and Anya help Dawn deal with the loss of Buffy. Tara moves home. Then something unexpected happens.

Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with `Buffy the Vampire Slayer'. The show and characters belong to Joss Whedon

Spoilers: Right after `The Gift', the end of season 5

Author notes: The song is `Kryptonite by Three Doors Down'. Tara left after the battle with Glory. There is a mention of Spike and Buffy, but that is it.

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~Part: 1~

`I took a walk around the world to ease my troubled mind
I left my body laying somewhere in the sands of time
I watched the world float to the dark side of the moon
I feel there is nothing I can do, yeah . . .'

Willow sat on the ground between two grave stones, one that belonged to her best friend's mother and the other that belonged to her best friend. Her head was bowed as she silently wept, her shoulders slumped with defeat. It was hard for Willow to remember a time in her life when her heart had not been filled with sadness. It just seemed that lately she had more of a reason to be sad. They had all fought so hard to defeat Glory, but in the end Buffy still died. So many things had gone wrong that day it was hard to pin point the moment it had turned against them. In the end none of it really mattered they had still failed to save Buffy.

Willow knew that somewhere along the line it was she who had let Buffy die. When Willow had touched Glory and returned to Tara what had been taken, she should have stayed just a second or two longer in Glory's head . . . weakened her just a little bit more. Then again, maybe she should have understood what Buffy's quest had meant sooner. How could have Buffy's gift had been death? Being the smartest person in the group, shouldn't she have figured it out before Buffy had jumped to her death?

Willow's small frame shook as the sobs racked her body. In her mind she was reliving the moment two weeks ago when she had looked up into the star speckled midnight sky to see a lone silhouette diving toward the opening of the portal. As the phantom shape disappeared from sight Willow heard Buffy's voice whispering in her ear. `My gift is death? How can death be my gift?'

Willow had known the moment the battle started that they would not leave it unshaken. Still, as the Slayer's inter circle they had to protect Dawn. Buffy had made it clear that they were there to protect Dawn at all costs. One of the many reasons that Buffy had laid so much faith in Spike was her knowledge that, if she fell in battle, he would rise to the occasion and make sure Dawn stayed safe. Say what you will about the beast, but the man would protect Dawn until he drew his last breath, so to speak. That was what they as a whole were doing; protecting Dawn.

Spike and Willow had both been staying with Dawn at the Summer's home. Spike thought that it would be better for Dawn if she stayed where she had lived with both her mom and sister. He had felt that she had been through enough. To ask her to move away from the memories the house had held for her would just be too much for the girl. So Spike had moved in about a week or so after they had buried Buffy. He had been there for both Willow and Dawn in their grief.

Willow knew he was hurting as well, but since the night of the battle he had remained closed off to sharing any feelings he had for Buffy. He had thrown himself into caring for Dawn. Willow remembered the first night well.

They had taken Buffy's body and left the parking lot where Glory's minions had built the tower. The Scoobies had never been more defeated, each one carrying their own sorrow. The early morning light separating them from Spike as they carried their fallen home, leaving him in the shadows of the fading night.

That night, as the sun had set, Willow had sat on the back steps, her head hung low when she had heard the swish of leather and looked up into the most painfully misunderstood blue eyes she had ever seen. It was in that moment that she had realized that he was in as much, if not more, pain than the rest of them. Spike had been there for them like always, and still he had failed to be their saving grace. He felt like Willow did, that he was the sole cause of Buffy's death. Spike had tried, but he had failed Dawn as he had fallen the distance from the tower to the cold unforgiving ground. Willow could plainly see the weight of that burden resting heavily across his shoulders. He was here looking for something, anything to help ease that burden.

"Red." His voice shook as he struggled to contain his emotions.

"Spike." She knew that this was the hardest thing he had done in a long time. He was as lost as she and Dawn were. The loss of Buffy was causing more discontentment than any one would have guessed. A group with out their leader. There had to be something they could focus on, to rid them of their guilt.

"Dawn is in the house. She would like to see you. Why don't you go inside and see if she needs anything." Willow wanted Spike to know that he was welcome. "She wanted sometime alone so I came out here." Willow saw him open his mouth to say something, but she continued on as if she hadn't noticed. "She asked about you earlier and said that if you stopped that she wanted to see you. So if you don't go in and say Hi she will have a cow."

Spike smiled. It wasn't a happy smile but a forced facial reaction to Dawn's determination to keep him involved in her life. He was sure that the other members of the gang would not be as happy to see him as Dawn would be.

"I think maybe I'll just go. Tell Niblet that I'll stop tomorrow." He turned to go.

"Spike, you don't have to go. Dawn and I are the only ones here. She could really use a friendly shoulder to cry on." Her voice was scared, Dawn wasn't the only one who didn't want to be alone.

Spike searched his pockets and pulled out a cigarette. He lit it and took a couple of deep drags. Even if he was dead it still calmed his nerves. He needed something, anything to take away the sting of pain in his chest. He knew that this time he was in need of something stronger than booze to help with the pain. If he was the old Spike he would be bathing the streets red with the blood of his victims. It would have taken a lot of deaths to take the edge off what he carried inside. Since he was chipped, and there was no way he was going to be painting anything unless he used his hands and a bucket of pig's blood, Spike sighed and turned his attention back to Willow. He watched her for a moment before he spoke. "Where is everybody?"

Willow hung her head. "Giles went back to his apartment to make arrangements for the funeral, Xander and Anya went home for the night."

Spike watched her as the air between them filled with salt from the fresh tears that pooled in her eyes. This was more than just her sorrow over losing her best friend; there was something more in her eyes than just simple grief. That is when it hit him; she hadn't mentioned her witch. He crushed out the embers of his cigarette as he settled himself next to her on the back steps. He made no move to touch her.

"Where is your witch?"

That one little question broke the dam that had held her tears in place. Willow knew that it was gonna be hard to deal with her failure to save Buffy. With all the magic that flowed through her veins, all the power that she was capable of, she had failed the two people that needed her most. She was not witch enough to save her best friend, and too much of a witch for her lover to stay. Buffy's body hadn't even begun to cool before Tara had informed Willow that she was leaving. Tara told Willow that she was leaving on the next bus home. It was all just too much for Tara to deal with; said she needed to go some place that wasn't the hell mouth. Tara had asked Willow to come with her, suggesting that Dawn could live with Xander and Anya. Willow had refused to run away and leave Dawn to fend for herself. Tara had picked up her bag and walked out the door, not even bothering to look over her shoulder.

"S. . . she w . . . went h . . . home." It was all Willow could manage to get out before her own tears choked her.

Spike didn't know what to say. The witch had just up and left Willow the morning after she had watched her best friend dive to her death. How could the timid little witch have just up and left? He would never have thought that Tara could be so cruel. Spike lifted his arm and placed it across Willow's shaking back. Her sobs had slowed but he could still smell the salt as tears rolled silently down her cheeks. He wasn't sure what to do. ` If I offer comfort to her, how much is too much? Will I lose myself in her touch? I am hurting too.'

Willow wiped her eyes on the sleeve of her shirt. She knew he was trying to be there for her, just didn't know how he was going to do that. He didn't want her to hurt anymore than he wanted to hurt. Willow leaned back against his side and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Thank you, Spike." She sighed as his arm instinctively wrapped around her shoulders pulling her closer.

"Welcome, Red." He felt himself relaxing as she made herself comfortable in his arms, her tears now dry as she sought the solace he was offering. It had been a long while since he had held someone in his arms that made him feel content, like he was just what she needed. Spike noticed that Willow fit along his side just as perfectly as the sun slipped into the horizon's pocket, following a path made that was fated to be forever, always making way for the shadows of the night.

Sometimes in life things can be revealing to one with a watchful eye and a quick mind. In other cases people can go a lifetime without ever finding their place, closing themselves off from the possibilities that are present. And then sometimes `Fate' intervenes and places things in the way just so you find what you are looking for. . . whether you want it or not.

Willow looked up from her spot on the ground between the headstones. She could see the sun starting to set. She stood and brushed off her skirt. She knew there were people waiting for her at home, and she had better get back before Spike and Dawn had a chance to worry.

`If I go crazy then will you still call me Superman
If I am alive and well, will you be there holding my hand ?
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite . . .'

Three months later. . .

`I watched the world float to the dark side of the moon
After all I knew it had something to do
with you
I really don't mind what happens now and than
As long as you'll be my friend in the end . . .'

Nothing is ever easy in life; you just take what you can get and do your best with it. When there is a loss of life that touches you and yours, you take the time to make sure you are there for your family, start the rebuilding process.

"Niblet!" Spike yelled for what seemed like the hundredth time. "Get down here, now! The moron express with be here in 5."

"Spike, I asked you to please stop calling Xander that. He is nice enough to offer to drive Dawn to school . . ." Willow said as she walked up behind him. Willow paused like she had a sudden thought. "Unless of course you would like to walk her." She tired to hide her smile.

"Ha ha, Red. You're a bloody riot." He turned back to the stairs "Dawn! Get down here!"

"Coming Dad." Dawn said as she appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Just bloody wonderful I live with a bunch of comedians." He threw his hands up in mock surrender, then stomped off to the kitchen mumbling under his breath. Willow and Dawn both tried to stifle their giggles behind his retreating form. It had become a morning tradition for Spike to stand at the bottom of the stairs and yell for Dawn to hurry. He would complain when Dawn would call him dad, but Willow and Dawn knew that he loved the whole game. He had settled nicely into their lives.

He stayed in the basement on a small bed placed off to one side. He had refused to move upstairs into one of the bedrooms. Willow thought maybe he felt uncomfortable with the idea of having to take either Joyce's or Buffy's room. Spike had told her it had to do with his sun sensitive skin.

One afternoon Xander had come over and they had put up some walls to give Spike a space of his own. But that was as far as it went; Spike had never moved but a few small things into the room. Often Willow thought it meant mean that he didn't plan on staying long. She wished Spike felt more at ease with them. No matter what they were doing he always kept a small part of himself closed off. Willow was startled out of her thoughts as the front door opened and Xander walked in.

"Hey Dawnie, Wills. What is for breakfast?" Xander asked as he sniffed the air. He slipped an arm around each of the girls and guided them toward the kitchen.

Spike looked up as the trio walked into the kitchen. "Let me guess. You're hungry, right Harris?"

"You think I show up 15 minutes early just so I can eat?" Xander managed a semi hurt look. "I only do it out of the kindness of my heart, I love giving Dawn a ride to school. Plus I wanted to say `Hi' to my two closest friends." Since Buffy's death, Xander had come to see Spike in a different light. Spike had taken care of Dawn without any real complaints. Xander had watched as Spike and Willow made a home for Dawn, making her their first priority.

Spike couldn't hold in his snort at Xander's comments. "More like the kindness of your stomach. Besides don't you have a woman at home to cook for you? Oh, that's right; your woman can only cook between the sheets."

"Spike!" Willow almost choked on her coffee.

"Dad, you know you shouldn't talk like that in front of me. I am only a kid after all." Dawn said, with her face all scrunched up in her best pout face. "Just think of the bad things I'll do now that you exposed me to that kind of talk."

"Bloody hell, I told you to stop calling me that," he hissed through clinched teeth. "Now hurry up and eat or you'll be late." He scowled only half heartedly at Dawn before setting the plate in front of her.

~~~*~~~

After everyone else had left the house Spike settled in for the day. He lay awake on his bed as he thought about everything that had happen since Buffy had died. He had been completely convinced that he had loved her. She was strongest woman he had even known. She had managed to live longer than any other slayer. Dru had been strong, but only because of her demon; she still had to be treated like a child.

Spike wasn't sure what he was doing. He had made a deal with a Slayer to take care of her little sister, yet he was a soulless demon. He should have just left the night the Scooby gang had carried off the dead body of the Slayer. `Cuz that is what she was: she was the Slayer and he was her sworn enemy. Spike should have left with Dru when she came back for him. It was simpler times back then. He had known his place. Being with Dru wasn't always the best place to be, but at least there he knew Dru loved him, that he was her childe. Dru hadn't always cared for him the same way he cared for her, but that was because she was completely crazy. You learn to work with it when it is all you have got.

Then he had lost his Dark Goddess only to come back to this hell hole, get his plans mucked up with the Gem of Amara, and then the solider boys putting the chip in his head. Now he was playing house with the Slayer's kid sister and Red.

Spike shifted on the bed as thoughts of the red-headed witch filled his mind. Another reason he was starting to question himself. He shouldn't be enjoying the moments in everyday life that would bring him brushing up against Willow as she passed him in the hall. The other day he had stepped out of the bathroom wearing just a towel. Willow had stood at the top of the stairs, just staring as he had walked past. He would have sworn that he saw lust in Willow's eyes as she watched him making his way down the stairs. Then when he got to the bottom of the stairs, he glanced over his shoulder just to see if she was still watching. She was gone, but he could still hear her heart racing. Spike had thought for sure that when he had come back upstairs he had caught the sent of her arousal lingering in the hall.

The emotions that day's thoughts stirred in him only made the situation that he was in all the more wrong. Living with Willow and helping to take of Dawn . . . he was pretending to be more than he was, a soulless demon. Willow and Dawn believed him to be strong, their protector; that he would die before anything happened to either of them . . . that as long as he was un-alive and well he would be at their sides. Spike had been thinking that maybe it was time for him to move back into his crypt, to put some distance between him and temptation. The longer he was around Willow, the bigger the temptation she became. He felt like he was on the edge of the tower, and from where he was standing it didn't seem that far to fall. Willow had this way about her; when she looked at you, it was like you were the only one there. She would give you her complete attention.

Spike lay on his bed, his head filled with confusion and his eyes closed. He must have drifted off, `cuz when he woke he could hear movement in the kitchen and a conversation held in soft whispers. Spike heard the microwave beep and the smell of warm blood filtered through the air. He was ready to get up when he heard the basement door opening and the soft steps of someone . . . no, not someone; it was Red.

Spike could smell the sweetness of her innocence, even from another room. He could always pick out Willow. It was remarkable how that scent stayed with her no matter what life brought her. Dawn was a child and didn't smell of innocence as strongly as Willow. Maybe being made from the Slayer had something to do with it. Either way, he knew it was Willow even before she stepped quietly into his room and placed the mug on the stand next to his bed.

Spike opened his eyes just enough to see the look on Willow's face as she watched what she thought to be his sleeping form. `Or more importantly,' he thought to himself, `what is not there? She looks at me with no distrust in her eyes. She finds no monster in me.' He knew then that what little bit had happened between him and the witch over the last few months was more than he had gotten from the Slayer in a year. He wasn't sure where he was going, but he knew that Willow was going to be a big part of whatever the future held.

He opened his eyes and sat up, running his hand through his sleep tousled hair. "Thanks, Red."

"Welcome, Spike," she said softly as she left him to his meal.

~~~*~~~

Spike awoke to the sound of a scream, sending him upright in his bed, knocking over the empty cup Willow had brought him earlier. It took a moment to orientate himself. `The Summer's basement. Dawn!' He was up the stairs heading to Dawn's room when Willow opened her door. Without hesitation they both headed to Dawn's bedroom door. Spike opened the door just as Dawn screamed again. Both Spike and Willow moved to either side of the dreaming girl. Spike's strong hand reached out and shook the girl from her sleep.

"Niblet, wake up." He shook her again.

"Buffy?" Dawn asked as she opened her eyes.

"No, Dawnie. It is us," Willow said as she felt the girl move into her arms and start to cry.

"I . . . I still miss . . . ss h . . . her." The saddened girl confided through her tears.

"Of course you do. We all do. We will probably miss her forever, but after awhile it doesn't hurt as much when we think of the good times." Now Willow had tears in her eyes.

Spike was turning to go out the door when he heard Dawn's voice.

"Where are you going?" She had stopped crying but you could still hear tears in her voice.

Spike turned back around to face the bed. "I was feeling knackered and thought I would head back down to the basement."

"No, I want you to stay with me and Willow." With that, she lifted the side of her blankets inviting him to join her and Willow. Spike shook his head as he felt himself take a step forward closer to the bed. He knew now without a doubt that he was soddin' pouf when it came to the two girls in that bed. He had shared so much with them in the little time he had spent living there. He knew he was lost, but as he slid into the bed and felt Dawn's head come to rest on his shoulder as the covers were tossed over him, he suddenly couldn't remember why he even cared. Spike felt Willow's hand come to rest on his stomach as she spooned the back of Dawn.

Willow felt a smile spread across her lips as Spike's fingers curled around hers. They may not have known it in the beginning, but now she was sure that they were gonna be alright. As long as they had each other, nothing else mattered.

The next morning Spike awoke to the sound of the TV playing down in the front room and warmest feeling in his chest. He always hated waking in the morning hours. When the sun's rays were fresh, they seemed to cloud his thoughts even more than when he woke in the early evening hours. Suddenly his eyes snapped open as he felt the warmth bury itself in the crook of his neck. All he could see was red. When he remembered that he needed to force the bodily function of breathing, he pulled air into his lungs. As he did, his head buzzed with the heady smell that was Willow. That was when his idle mind went to work.

`How did I get here? Oh yeah, Niblet's bad dream.'

Spike heard Willow moan as she pulled him closer, rubbing her breasts against his chest. Spike moved to her as he buried his face deeper in Willow's hair. He knew he should take himself back to the basement but he couldn't seem to move. This felt too good; a warm, willing body in his arms. His eyes drifted shut, sleep threatening to overtake him, when Willow's tongue darted out to taste the skin along his neck. Spike's body shuttered in response. He knew he needed to get out of there, his body was responding to the witch's innocent touches. That was the last thing he needed right now; to have her wake and find that it was a demon she was holding. He wanted to avoid that look of rejection when she knew what was holding her. Spike tried to carefully remove himself from her arms without waking her.

Willow felt something being tugged out of her arms. Even half asleep she knew she didn't want to let it go. So she didn't. She opened her eyes as the movement continued.

"Spike?" Willow's sleep coated mind asked

Spike heard his name slip from her lips and he froze. He knew there was no way to avoid what he was so afraid of now. He looked down to see her wide green eyes watching him. There was a moment when he had thought that it was over, that everything he had grown comfortable with in the last months was lost to him. She would want him to go now, he just knew it. He felt Willow stiffen as the sleep faded away. He prepared himself for what he thought was about to happen.

"Do you want to go to my room?" Willow asked softly.

"What?" He was sure she had not just asked if he wanted to go to her room.

Willow released him and sat up. "I thought that maybe you were uncomfortable in here. It is after all Dawn's room. I just wasn't ready to get up yet and I thought that maybe you would be able to relax and fall back to sleep in my room."

Spike looked at her. She just wanted to be held. She wasn't afraid of what he was or what he might do. Willow opened her mouth to say something, then decided against it and closed her mouth again. Suddenly feeling very uncomfortable she dropped her gaze to her hands as her face blushed.

"Or you can go down stairs and sleep." she finished quietly

Spike wasn't sure if he had heard her right at first. Then she had said it again. He knew it was a bad move, but it didn't matter. He was lost to the world when she looked at him with those eyes of hers. "Yeah, Red. Let's go to your room. Niblet will be up here soon to get dressed."

Once they were in Willow's room and had settled into the covers. Spike gathered Willow in his arms and said, "Luv, just promise me one thing."

Willow sat up a little to look Spike in the eyes. He sounded so serious. "What's that?"

"Don't ever tell anyone what a nancy boy I am."

"Your secret is safe with me."

She moved back into his arms and rested her head on his shoulder. Spike released the breath he had been holding and settled back into the bed. He shook his head as he thought about how the woman in his arms made him feel. Red was defiantly a unique woman that was for sure. She was cable of so much love that she gave it willingly to everyone who needed it. Spike drifted back to sleep with a smile on his face, a real smile.

`If I go crazy than will you still call me Superman
If I'm alive and well, will you be there holding my hand?
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite . . .'

One month later . . .

`You call me strong, you call me weak, but your secrets I
will keep
You took for granted all the times I never let you down
You stumbled in and bumped your head
If not for me then you would be dead
I picked you up and put you back on solid ground . . .'

It had been better than four months since they had laid their friend to rest. Things had finally settled down. Dawn had started school and things around the house ran well. Spike got Dawn up and ready for school, and during the days he helped around the house. He was the glue that held them together. Giles had gone back to England. He had called the remaining gang together one night and told them that he was returning to England to start his life over. Now that Buffy was gone it was time for him to move on. He said he would keep in contact with Dawn and the others. Willow had gotten the impression that it had something to do with Dawn finding out that he had wanted to sacrifice her instead of Buffy. Dawn had yet to forgive Giles for what had been said. Xander and Anya came over every night for dinner. As a whole they did what they could to give Dawn the home she needed.

Every night Spike would leave the house just after dark for patrol. Sometimes Xander would go, but mostly Spike went out alone. He needed a way to relieve some of his aggression. Willow knew that it was Spike's way of balancing himself. He had been so good to Dawn, taking care of her, provided for her. Willow wasn't sure where all the money came from, she didn't really care. Between the two of them the bills were paid. Willow's parents sent money every month. She was sure that they meant that money for college, and Willow paid her major college bills with it, but the extra money went to the house and for what Dawn's needs. Things were gonna be okay.

Willow waited up every night for Spike to return from patrol. She knew he was more than cable of taking care of himself, but since that first night they had shared a bed, things had changed between them. They shared a bed and nothing more, just held each other and gave comfort. Spike would stay with her until it was time to get Dawn up for school. Then after Xander stopped by to take Dawn to school, Spike would head back down to the basement and sleep the rest of the day away while Willow headed off to college.

Willow looked up at the clock, almost time for Spike to come home. She got up and headed to the kitchen. She always had a cup of cocoa ready for him when he got back. Willow knew that time was running out for her. She knew in her heart he would leave like all the others in her life had. It was only a matter of time.

Spike had been more withdrawn at night when they went to bed. After the first night they always talked before falling asleep. They talked about everything from each of their pasts. Spike had told her of the days before Angel, when Angelus had been his sire. He had told her of Dru and their relationship. Willow had told him what her life had been like before Buffy; her parents, and her relationship with Xander. They had left no stone unturned. Spike had told her one night that he felt like he could tell her everything and it wouldn't matter. She would still treat him like he was a man and not a monster. They had grown close in the last four months.

Willow looked up at the clock. She still had a few minutes before he would be back, so she grabbed the cocoa and went into the front room. She put the cups on the coffee table and turned on the TV. Willow settled herself on the couch.

~~~*~~~

Willow could feel a knot in her neck, She tried to turn over to relieve the pressure, and when she did her face hit the back of the couch. `I am on the couch? Hmm, I haven't done that since before Buffy died. Wonder why Spike didn't wake me?'

Willow sat up on the couch and she looked around the room. The TV was still playing and both cups of cocoa were still on the coffee table where she had left them. Willow looked at the bottom of the stairs; there was no duster flopped over the railing. That is when the knot formed in her gut. A cold, heavy knot . . . the kind that makes a chill settle in your bones because it means somebody isn't coming home. Willow jumped up off the couch and quickly searched the top two floors of the house. Finding no sign of him, she went to the basement. The door was open just a crack.

Willow knew the moment she entered his room that he wasn't there. She didn't even look around, she just dashed back up the stairs. She had to see how long it was until sunrise. She came to a halt in front of the clock. Willow never even looked at its hands; the red light of the sunrise was reflecting on its glass face. She knew something was wrong. Spike still wasn't home.

She turned around and walked to the back door, swinging it open to greet the morning light as it crept across the lawn, over the steps. Willow felt a wave of pain in her heart as the sun's rays warmed her face. She shivered as its sun's warmth poured onto her skin. Willow knew in that moment there was more to what was between her and Spike than just comforting each other. She felt the tears well up in her eyes. `What if he never comes home? I never got a chance to tell him how I feel. What if I never see him again?'

Willow felt a tickle in the back of her mind. Something so distant that she almost missed it. A whispered, `Willow . . . Willow . . .' Tears flooded her eyes. "Spike"

`If I go crazy then will you still call me Superman
If I am alive and well, will you be there holding my hand ?
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite . . .'

~~~*~~~

Spike opened one eye. He tried to clear his head. The last thing he remembered was patrol. He had been in the Restfield cemetery when he had felt something. It was almost the same feeling he got when he was around the Pouf; not exactly the sire-childe bond, but the feeling of power gained from age. As a vampire grew older, its signature got stronger and stronger. Still, there was something different about this signature; something was altering its strength. Spike felt the tingling start again and knew that his captor was about to pay him a visit.

Spike tried to sit up. Who ever was coming, he was gonna greet them on his feet; give them a face to face meeting with the Big Bad. Spike found however that he could not move his arms or legs. There was something magical holding his body to the altar.

Spike felt the vampire enter the room. He didn't even bother to look up; he knew he wouldn't like what he saw.

"I have looked a long time for you," the voice hissed. "You are worth the wait, Master will be pleased."

"Bloody hell! Not another mad minion trying to resurrect its master. You guys just don't get it, do you? You won't get away with anything here. This is the Slayer's town." Spike knew that if he was gonna get anywhere he first needed to find out what the minion knew.

"You must think that I am a fool." The voice was gravelly. At first Spike had thought it was a woman that had spoken to him but now it sounded like a man. "The Slayer has been dead for a little over four months."

Spike's eyes snapped open as the creature revealed that it knew that Buffy was dead. The sight that met his eyes as the creature stepped forward was appalling at best. The creature that stood in front of him was, or at least at one time had been, human; he could smell it on the air. At the same time Spike could feel a demon . . . no, two demons. One was a vampire, but the other one he couldn't identify. Whatever was standing in front of him was a combination of all three.

The creature moved closer to Spike. Its gnarled hand touched his face. Spike tried to pull away. "What? You find me revolting?" The creatures face started to shift, revealing the beautiful woman that was hidden beneath. Her hair was a soft blonde and her eyes were black holes, void of all life. Spike noticed that the skin of her face wavered like it took a lot of power for her to shift back and forth.

Her hand drifted down to his chest. The skin under it began to tingle.

"You are perfect. Just what I need to bring my Master home. A being of evil transformed to good, not by a soul but by love." The creature hissed as it's face shifted back to its original form, digging its fingers into Spike's chest cavity.

Spike could feel the fingers stoking his heart right before he sunk into the blackness swimming inside his head. `Willow . . . Willow . . .'

~~~*~~~

"Xander, he would have come home last night." Willow was beyond any thoughts other those of Spike. She was so worried. He was all that held her world together. With him gone she wasn't sure what to do.

Xander had taken Dawn to school, then come back to find out why Willow was so upset. When he walked into the house, he had known something was wrong. The house was just too quite. No smell of food in the air. Then he had seen the look in Willow's eyes. He knew he needed to get Dawn out of the house and to school, and then make it straight back to Willow. Now that he was back in the house he was more concerned than ever. Willow was falling apart and Spike had not even been gone 12 hours yet. This was not good.

Xander stood and walked to his pacing friend. He wrapped both arms around her and just held her. Willow slowly relaxed in his arms, her eyes drifting shut.

"Wills, he will be home tonight. He must have gotten trapped by the sun. As soon as the sun sets he'll come sauntering in here like nothing happened." Xander cooed softly in her ear. "You just gotta have faith."

Willow's eyes snapped open. "Faith?"

Xander felt Willow start to pull away from him. He wasn't sure what he had said but something had struck her. "Wills, what's the matter?"

Willow looked at Xander. He knew the look that clouded her eyes; it meant that she was thinking. Something he said had started the whole process.

"You know Xander, your right. Maybe he just got caught somewhere because of the daylight. If he is not here tonight at sundown, however, I will need you and Anya to stay with Dawn for the night." Willow didn't bother to look up as she walked over to her laptop. She had things to do.

"Wills, are you okay?" Xander was worried now. Willow was so lost without Spike. As Xander stood on the threshold, he realized that Anya had been right; Willow and Spike were in love. He felt like he should keep repeating it in his head, force himself to believe what he had some how missed. Sure, he knew he had been there everyday, watching the two of them fall for each other. Xander knew that he should say something to his best friend, help her in her moment of need. He just couldn't seem to make his feet move.

He had been pretending that they were just making a home for Dawn, not falling in love. Xander moved to stand next to his friend. He hesitantly placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Will, he will come home." Xander offered quietly. "Just wait and see. He'll be here right after the sun has set,"

Willow just nodded and kept typing.

~~~*~~~

Spike was sure it had been at least a few hours since he lost consciousness, but he knew it was well past dark. He looked up as the door opened and the creature walked in.

"It is almost time to meet my Master," it hissed.

Spike was looking for a reason to stall. "So, you gonna share? Or is this one of those bloody times when it is all smoke and mirrors? `Cuz so far, I am thinking that maybe your Master is gonna be a shade disappointed."

The creature spun around, "You don't know what you are talking about. He will be as pleased with me now as he was then. You have no idea what I have been through, so many years I've lost track, wandering this planet looking for the perfect form for my Master."

The creature turned from the distorted form of the demon into the soft supple curves of a woman. "This is what I looked like when we fell in love. Then his horrible wife, Isabelle, found us. She never deserved him. Jonathan loved me more than he loved her. Isabelle and Jonathan parents had their marriage arranged since the day they were born; a treaty of peace between their families. One family held the powers of darkness and the other held the powers of light. We never had a chance. Jonathan and Isabelle were bound together." Her voice broke as the events she spoke of brought tears to her eyes.

Spike knew he was playing this for all it was worth. He was waiting for the right moment. Waiting for the right opportunity to make his get away. The creature just had to let its guard down. He just had to be patient.

"What's your name, luv?"

"Amelia." She tried to stifle her sobs as she spoke.

"Tell me what happened." Spike requested in his most comforting voice. He had learned a lot in his hundred some years in this world. The thing he knew the most about was how to pacify a woman on the edge. After all, Dru being his Sire had taught that lesson many times.

Amelia looked at him. Her Master would indeed be pleased with her. This vampire was going to be perfect. She stepped around the bed and took a seat next to Spike's hip.

"Jonathon loved Isabelle, but not like he loved me. I just needed to show him. So one night I invited him to meet me at a small house outside of town. He came and we made love in front of the fire place. I told him of my love, my plan for us to be together." Her voice was soft and distant, like she was lost in the memories of her sordid tale. "His wife found us together and she was furious. I never realized how important the treaty was until it was too late." She paused

"Isabelle's family was old, and their roots in magic went back for generations. Only the women were blessed with the power, and they bore only female children in order to keep their line alive. Each of the women in Isabelle's family carried the mark of pure white magic burned into their skin right above the heart. It was there to remind them of their duty.

Jonathan's family isn't much different, except that it is the men who hold the power. They were, however, rather new to the world of magic. His grandfather had been involved in a church. They had found some tombs in the bottom of the church that had been disturbed. When Jonathon's grandfather entered one of the crypts, he stumbled across an amulet on the floor. When he picked it up and read the incantation on it, his body was infused with the magic of an old, evil power. He was transformed into a Warlock. It was shortly before the birth of his first child who had been a girl. Both the mother and child had were murdered. The sudden gaining of all that power had been more than Jonathan's grandfather could take and it had driven him to slaughter his wife and baby." Amelia smiled a soft sad smile.

"It had took me years to find out why Isabelle's family had been so distraught over the loss. His wife had been Isabelle's great aunt. Before Isabelle's family even had a chance to morn, Jonathan's father had taken another wife, and all the rest of the children that followed had been boys. That is when things had gone so wrong between the two families'. Jonathan and Isabelle had been the families' second chance at peace.

Jonathan and Isabelle were meant to balance that magic; each of them was one half of a whole. When Isabelle found us, she banished Jonathan away and cursed me to this pitiful existence. I need to free my Master so he can set things straight. He can reverse the curse Isabelle cast on me, return my beauty to me. Then he and I can be together." As she spoke, Spike noticed a shimmer pass through her as she struggled to keep her human face in place. Amelia had once been a beautiful woman, now she was cursed with a life of wretchedness.

After she had finished her tale of heartbreak all Spike could think was that this chit is as daft as Harmony. "Tell ya what. You let me up and I'll help you set things right."

Amelia smiled. Slowly releasing the magic that kept Spike bound. It was almost time, seconds until everything was were it needed to be, the moon, the planets. Everything had to be the same as it was the night Isabelle had banished Jonathan.

Spike sat up on the bed just as Amelia's hand reached up to reveal a small palm full of glittery sand. Amelia whispered something as she blew the dust in his face.

The last thing Spike would remember was the burning of his skin as the magic mixed with his flesh.

~~~*~~~

Willow pulled her car over in front of a tall building somewhere in L.A. She knew it didn't look like much but it was where they had hidden Faith. Willow could feel the magic that surrounded the building, each spell stronger than the last, each balancing and protecting. Willow was nervous. She was about to walk into the biggest magical compound in the Western Hemisphere - through the front door - and was than going to walk right back out that same door with Faith in tow. She had the blessing of the PTB, thanks to Angel.

Willow had been told by Angel that there had been several attempts of Faith's life since Buffy had died. So they had moved her here in order to keep her safe. Angle felt that the Watcher's Council had been the ones to initiate the bounty, that way they would have been able to start fresh with a `untarnished' Slayer to train.

`I watched the world float to the dark side of the moon
After all I knew it had to be something to do with you
I really don't mind what happens now and then
As long as you'll be my friend at the end . . .'

~Part: 2~ If I Go Crazy

`If I go crazy than will you still call me Superman?
If I am alive and well, will you be there to holding my hand
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite . . .'

The next night . . .

Willow knew as she sat in the car that what she was about to do was wrong. She was bending the rules to fit her purpose. But she needed a slayer to help her find Spike. Willow felt herself smile, `Wonder what the Council would think of this; a broken Witch helping a murdering slayer escape a magical safe house just so that slayer could help said Witch find a vampire.'

Willow's smile faded to a frown as she felt the sensation of something on the  inside crumbling. A small part of her had just lain down and wasn't getting back up. It wasn't like she wanted it to happen, it just had. There was something about her relationship with Spike that was different, something that Willow just couldn't let go of . . .  which is why she was where she was now waiting for Angel to meet her.

Last night Willow had gone to see Angel, told him he was going to help her find Spike. That she needed a favor to rival any asked before. And when Willow had told him what she wanted he had just sat there staring at her.

"Nothing to say?" Willow had asked with a forced smile on her face. She knew Angel was in shock. She had just told him Spike was missing and that she wanted his help to find the blond vampire.  Then Willow told him of her plan to get Faith to come back to Sunnydale with her. Angel just stood and started to pace.

"Willow are you sure about this?" He turned to face her. "Do you even know if anything has actually happened to Spike? Maybe he just left.  He is after all only a demon. It is not like he has a soul or anything."

Before Angel could continue Willow was up and on her way across the room. "Don't stand there and tell me that he just left, like Dawn meant nothing to him. Something has to have happened to him, he wouldn't just leave her." By the time Willow finished her statement her hands were shaking and the pain was evident in her voice.

Angel froze as he noticed that something inside of Willow had changed . . . a tiny shift in her power signature, something that only a demon would be able to pick up on. Some part deep inside himself told him that she was no longer someone to be taken lightly. The first thing Angel needed to do was get more information from Willow.

  "Okay Willow, I am sorry. But I think there is more going on here than you are telling me. You have to be honest with me if you want me to help," Angel stated as he showed Willow to a chair, taking the one next to her for himself. "How long have you and Spike been living together?"

Willow just stared at him, her mouth a gape. "How do you know we were living together?"

"I can smell him and Dawn on you. They are the strongest scents. Are you in love with him?" Angel knew that it was always better to ask than to assume. He also could tell that they had no been intimate. He wondered why they hadn't been together.

Willow didn't look up from her hands folded carefully in her lap. "Yes," she whispered

Angel knew that there had to be a reason for the change in Willow's power signature. He just hoped it was because of the stress she was under and not the fact that she had been messing with the darker aspects of her craft. Sometimes when one so young had this much power, it was easier for them to let the magic control them . . . to fall onto the darker aspects of magic, especially when they had witnessed or experienced the dark energy of the hellmouth.

Willow spoke softly, "I didn't even know until he was gone that I had feelings for him. Spike has no idea that I am in love with him. That is why I have to find him."

Angel leaned across and took one of Willow's hands in his. "Willow, what if he knew of your feelings and left anyway? What if he just wanted out, away from you and Dawn? I want you to understand that just because you find him doesn't mean he will want to come back. Just because you tell him that you love him."

Willow swallowed the tears that were threatening to fall and looked up into Angel's eyes. "I know that, but I have to find out for myself."

Angel realized that Willow was a grown woman now and had the right to make her own decisions. The fact that Willow knew she needed help only showed how mature she was being. "Alright Willow, what is it that you want from me?"

"I want you to talk to who ever you need to, find out where Faith is and get her released," Willow stated matter-of-factly.

"What?" Angel was completely taken aback by her statement.

"I need a slayer. Faith is the only one I know of . . . unless you want me to try and raise Buffy from the grave? And I don't really know anything in particular. All I do know is that something is wrong, Spike wouldn't have left Dawn." Willow was perhaps foolishly clinging to the fact that a slayer could solve her problems, but she didn't know what else to do.

Angel was about to say something when his secretary spoke up. "Remember the way you felt about Buffy? Don't you think Willow needs closure? If Spike really left, then she needs to know. Face her demon so to speak."

Angel knew he had been had as soon as he heard Cordelia speak. She knew he was still dealing with Buffy's death. He needed closure as well, though he more than likely would never get it. He had known Cordy was in the shadows listening to what Willow had said. Willow didn't know that the seer had had a vision that morning warning them of the red-head's impeding visit. Cordelia hadn't said much about the vision other than that if they didn't help Willow she would find her own way, and it would lead her onto a path of darkness. Then there would be more evil in Willow than they were ready to deal with. Angel knew there was more to her vision than that, but the brunette seer had held her tongue.

"Okay what do you want me to do?" Angel realized he had given up the moment Cordy mentioned Buffy. The sad part was Cordelia knew she had him. `Why fight it? Who could win with the two of them on the same side?'

Willow looked up at Cordelia. She tried to hide her surprise at the former May Queen's defense. Willow knew Cordy had to have a reason for backing her up, Willow could only hope that the something was big. Willow wasn't all that sure of herself right now, so it was nice to have somebody who was. She made a mental note to talk to Cordelia later. Right now, however, Willow had other things on her mind.

"Well," Willow cleared her mind of all thoughts except the ones that had brought her to L.A. "I have already been inside of the California State Prison system computers. Faith hasn't been in the prison in L.A. for a little over 4 months. When I tapped into the surveillance camera across from Faith's cell there was a girl in there, but it wasn't Faith. She has to be somewhere. I need you to help me find her." Willow knew that she sounded desperate, but she didn't care. Faith was not where she was supposed to be and Willow had a hunch that Angel knew where she was.

"Because the more I think about it, the more it doesn't make sense. How could a slayer just disappear in the City of Angels considering you are the Angel who protects it? How could someone have gotten that past you? The only conclusion I am left with is that you must have had something to do with it. Do you know where Faith is? I want to take her back with me to Sunnydale." After Willow had finished, she stood still and  held her breath. She didn't know what to do if Angel didn't help her.

Willow was snapped from her thoughts as Angel knocked on her window, motioning for her to follow him into the building. Willow got out of the car and followed Angel up the sidewalk into the building. He opened the front door, holding it for Willow to enter. He motioned for Willow to take a seat. Angel then turned and walked up to the receptionist,  speaking to her in hushed tones.

Angel turned around to face Willow, saying, "Wait here, I'll be right back." Willow watched as Angel disappeared behind a large door. She settled into wait.

~~~*~~~

When Angel finally returned he was accompanied by a slim man with glasses. Angel motioned for Willow to join them. Once Willow came to stand at Angel's side he introduced her.

"Willow Rosenberg, this is Allen Johnson," Angel said as Allen shook Willow's hand.

Willow always hated these moments; she always felt so awkward. "It is nice to meet you, Mr. Johnson."

Willow noticed as he shook her hand that his skin had a yellow tint to it. His hair was snow white and his eyes flashed silver as he regarded Willow. She hadn't noticed his striking features until she had looked him right in the eye.

"It is nice to meet you as well, Miss Rosenberg. Now please follow me." Allen turned and headed into the building with Willow and Angel following him. As he led them through the compound he said, "I am taking you up to Faith's room. She is waiting for you."

As they approached the door to Faith's room Willow paused and turned to Angel. "Maybe I should talk to her first."

Angel smiled, "Yeah maybe, since she is not aware of what has been going on." Angel stepped back and let Willow step up to the door.

Willow knocked on the door, and when she heard a muffled `come in' she opened the door and walked into the room.

Faith looked up from her spot on the bed and smiled when she saw who her visitor was. "I'll be damned, Red. Not one person has come to see me even once in all this time. When someone finally does, it is one of Buffy's famed four. I must have really done it this time." Her voice was heavy with sarcasm.

"Hello Faith." Willow could hear the bitterness in Faith's voice; part of her still hated the Scoobies. "I have come to ask you a favor."

Before Willow could continue Faith had interrupted. "Buffy is dead, isn't she?"

"How do you know? I mean yes, Buffy died about four and a half months ago." Willow wasn't sure, for a moment she would swear that she had seen regret mixed with a little sadness in Faith's eyes at the mention of Buffy's death.

"I just knew Buffy was gone I felt different . . . not so much stronger, just alone. I was  in my cell when this unnatural feeling of loneliness settled over me. I knew then that Buffy was gone. When I was called as a slayer, Buffy was already the slayer. So I never knew what it meant to be the one and only until she was dead. I just know that now I am sure what it means to be the chosen one. About four months ago, there were a couple of attempts on my life, so they moved me here." Willow could have sworn that she saw unshed tears in the slayer's eyes.

Willow walked over to the bed Faith was seated on and sat next to her. "Faith, I am sorry, I never thought to check on you. I have had a lot happening. After Buffy died, Tara left. Then Spike moved in and he and I were taking care of Dawn. Then four nights ago, he just never came home. I know he wouldn't just leave. He would have come to me first." Willow had tears in her eyes and her voice was thick with emotion.  "Angel called in a few favors. If you want to, Faith, you can leave here today and come home with me to Sunnydale. I need some help finding Spike. If you help me do that I can get you out of here for good . . . as long as you can stay out of trouble."

Faith just sat there staring at Willow before she found her voice. "Wow Red: you're gay, then straight and in love with a vampire. All of this comes from living on the hellmouth, you know that, right?" Faith made sure there was a teasing smile gracing her lips when she continued. "While I am thinking about what you said, tell me more of what has happened since I've been in here."

Willow told Faith of everything that had happened in the time she had been in prison. They must have talked for quite some time, `cuz as they were catching up someone rapped softly  on the door. Faith called out an invite and Angel stepped into the room.

"You girls know what your doing? We should get going soon. I can feel the sunrise coming,"  Angel stated as he closed the door.

Willow looked at Faith. "It is up to you."

Faith knew she would do just about anything to get out of here. She hadn't even been outside once in a little over four months. Faith knew it was better than the prison that she had started out in, but still; she was the slayer, she wanted to be free.

Faith looked at Willow. The red-head looked so lost. On the outside Willow was trying to hold it together. But on the inside Faith could see things crumbling, as if the very core of Willow's being was succumbing to the pressure it felt. If Willow was gonna offer her a way out, Faith would have to be a fool to say no, wouldn't she?

Faith wasn't stupid. She knew if she left here with Willow that she wasn't getting out of this bed and breakfast for nothing. There was going to be something horrible waiting for her back in good old Sunnyhell.  Faith decided it didn't matter, she wanted out.

"I am game. Let's go." Faith jumped up and headed for the door.

"Wait, don't you want to take anything with you?" Willow was pleased with the decision that Faith had made, but was concerned with the impulsive way Faith had made it.

Faith paused to look around the room. "Na, let's just get out of here."

Angel opened the door. "Follow me girls."

Willow and Faith turned to follow Angel down the hall. As they approached the end of the hallway, an old woman stepped out of the last room.  Willow felt a hand touch her arm. She turned to excuse herself, but when she did she was trapped by the smoky depths of the old woman's eyes. Willow could feel the soft whispers of words start at the edge of her mind, louder and louder they came until Willow could finally understand what was being said.

"You are the one. The one that was never meant to be. And soon will be. Find the part that is missing. Finish what was started long ago, bound by your heart. Stand strong child."

Before Willow could open her mouth to respond the old woman was gone. `What had she meant?'   Faith placed her hand on Willow's shoulder snapping the redhead from her thoughts.

"Come on Red, let's get out of here. The fresh air will clear your head. Did the old woman say something to you, inside your head? She does that sometimes. She was a seer of sorts at one time . . ."

"No, not exactly." Angel said as he joined the girls. "She was more of a teller of prophesies. Then one day she told her Master of his fall from power. He had her eyes cursed as a punishment. Told her that she would never again lay eyes upon the ones she loves. Then when he fell from power his last act was to put a bounty on her head. That is why she is here. Did she say something to you Willow?'

"She told me `You are the one. The one that was never meant to be. And soon will be. Find the part that is missing. Finishing what was started long ago, bound by your heart. Stand strong child.' I am not sure what she meant, but I know that it has something to do with Spike." Willow was shaken by the whole scene.

"No body told you about this place did they?" Faith asked as she slipped her arm through Willow's and began to follow Angel. Faith continued when Willow shook her head "The guy you met on your way in, do you know what he is?" Again Faith continued on when she saw Willow shake her head. "He is a demon, the second most powerful Siskin in the world. There are only three pairs of his kind left in this world. Each pair runs a place like this. Together they keep the magical `bad' confined, and those who are wanted dead hidden away.  I ended up here as a way to keep me alive. I guess there are people out there who want a new, younger slayer. Don't you see: they couldn't kill Buffy, but then she did it herself and there was only one: me. Angel came after me one night, after the third attempt on my life and brought me here. I guess somebody figured that a slayer in prison would make an easy target. Now let's get out of here."

~~~*~~~

Dawn stood just inside the open front door, waiting for Willow's return. Resting her head back against the cool wood, she breathed deeply of the night air. She was trying desperately to control the emotions churning inside of her. It wasn't enough that she had lost her mother, and then her sister. She had also lost Spike, to god knows what.

Now she stood here waiting for a shell of her former friend to return from L.A. with a person who had brought so much discontent to her sister's life. Faith had held her mother hostage and than switched bodies with her sister. There where other things that she could remember being told about Faith. But since the whole Glory ordeal Dawn had learned a few things. One: the people that loved her loved her because of who she was and not who made her. Two: that the memories that she held were the same as everyone else's.

Faith had never done anything to her personally and if Willow thought Faith could help. Dawn would try and work with that. She couldn't stand the thought of losing another person. And with each passing day Willow was slipping farther and farther away. Dawn didn't know how much more she could take, but to save Willow she would try her best to get along with Faith.

With that decision made, she noticed headlights of an oncoming car. Willow was home.

~~~*~~~

The ride home was made quickly after Faith and Willow had returned Angel to the hotel. Faith had been eager to put as much space between her and the compound as possible. So they had said their good-byes and headed home to Sunnydale. Willow noticed a change in Faith the closer they got to the city limits. When they pulled up in front of the Summers' home Willow noticed that Faith was looking nervous. It had been awhile since Faith had been in Sunnydale, and this place held some bad memories for her. Faith had been so angry and lost the last time she had been to this house.

Faith didn't take her eyes off the front door. "Does it still look the same?"

Willow smiled sadly. "Yeah, nothing different really. You want to go in? Xander and Anya stayed with Dawn while I was in L.A."

Faith looked at Willow, a smile slowly spreading across her face. "Know what I really want to do?"

"What?" Willow felt herself start to smile. Faith's first few hours of freedom, what would she do with them?

"Let's go for a quick patrol. That way I can familiarize myself with any  changes in the surrounding area. Besides, it has been like for ever since I could really stretch my legs."

Before Willow could even say yes or no, Faith was out of the car and grabbing her bag. "Good, I just want to freshen up a bit first."

Willow watched as Faith headed to the house. Willow knew from the talk that she and Faith had on the way home that Faith knew she couldn't change what happened, and that it was time to move on and let go of the past. Starting over is sometimes the hardest part, but it can be the first steps towards to recovery.

~~~*~~~

Xander heard the front door slam against the inner wall. Then the sound of feet on the stairs. By the time he got to the door Willow was just coming in and dropping her bag by the door.

"Hey, Wills." Xander opened his mouth to say something when the bathroom door slammed close. He smiled. "Sounds like Faith came back with you."

"Yeah, she is up stairs freshen up. Then we are going for a quick patrol. Do you mind staying with Dawn for a little while longer?" Willow's voice sounded tired.

"You want me to go with Faith on patrol? You look tired." Xander asked

"Not tonight. But you can tomorrow night if you want." Willow told Xander as she closed the front door.

Later that night . . .

Xander stood on the front porch waiting for the girls to return. So lost in his thoughts he didn't even notice Faith walking up behind him. He was concerned about Faith, her affect on Willow. He had been against the idea from the start, but Willow had insisted that getting Faith was the only way. He remembered all to well the affect that Faith had had on Buffy. The dead guy in the alley. He wondered if Faith could even walk the straight and narrow path.

"Xander." Faith reached up and shook his shoulder. "Xander."

"Uh . . . what?" He jumped as soon as he felt the hand on his shoulder. Faith had startled him from his thoughts. He stiffly nodded his head at her. "Faith."

"Yeah. Willow asked me to come let you know that we were back so you can go." Faith said it in an `I don't care about anything' way. She always retreated into her bitch facade when she was unsure of some one's reaction to her. It was easier to play it off like she didn't care. But, still this was a different situation all together. She was gonna have to deal with Xander everyday. They needed to clear the air.

"Listen, Xander. What happened between me and you, well, I was hoping to move past it. I am here to help Willow." Faith's voice was soft and unsure.

Xander was so surprised by the tone of her voice. This was the small wonderful part of Faith he had imagined all those high school nights. He smiled at her. Maybe he could give her a chance. After all this was the hellmouth stranger things had happened.

"Faith, I am worried enough about Willow to give you the benefit of a doubt here. I am not sure what happened between her and Spike, but this is killing her. It is weird. I never saw it until it was too late, or at least that is what Anya tells me. Willow and Spike are in love. But it is more than that." Xander paused, hoping to get his words out right.

"Willow has stopped eating. She doesn't sleep but an hour or so at night. Dawn tells me that she can hear Willow tossing and turning at night. She calls out for Spike over and over again until she awakes. Then Dawn can hear her crying in her room for the rest of the night. There is something wrong with this whole situation. There is something else between Willow and Spike besides love. I can forgive anything and everyone as long as you realize this is about Willow. We need to find Spike and soon," Xander finished, his voice filled with the emotion he felt.

"Yeah, that is why I am here," was all Faith could mange. The love that filled Xander's eyes as he spoke of Willow touched Faith. It was a look she had always wanted to see in someone eyes when they spoke of her. It had yet to happen. Faith knew that if she took the chance that was laid out in front of her she would finally find a place to call home, and friends to fill it with.

"We will find him. Set things right. All I am asking is that you give me a chance. I won't let anyone down this time." The conviction in her voice was strong.

Xander looked Faith in the eyes. He saw nothing but honesty. He gave her a small nod.

"Yeah. Goodnight Faith. I'll see you tomorrow night for patrol." Xander said as he stepped off the stairs.

"Hey Xander, who is Anya?" Faith asked

"Anya . . . oh, she is my girlfriend. You will meet her tomorrow night on patrol." Xander said with a soft smile on his face.

"You take your girlfriend patrolling? Oh, you are warped." Faith couldn't hide her laughter.

"Anya used to be a vengeance demon. I think she can handle patrol." Xander stated proudly.

"Yeah, I bet. See you tomorrow night." Faith said as she stepped back in the house.

~~~*~~~

Willow and Faith walked slowly along the perimeter of Restfeild cemetery. They had been out patrolling for better than two hours. Faith had staked a couple of fledglings. They had overheard talk of a new warlock, nothing for sure just whispers and rumors. Faith had said that she would go and talk to Willie the next day.

"Red, how come you sprung me and yet you haven't called Giles?" Faith just grinned  wickedly. "Not that I am complaining, but don't you think he might be able to help?"

Willow only nodded and stopped walking, "I did call Giles. He said that maybe this was all for the best. That Dawn needs people in her life who are a stable, positive influence for her. I tried to explain how things had changed since he left. But he insisted that if Spike had left it was more than likely because Buffy was no longer part of the group. Giles suggested that he could send for Dawn, but with the way things were between the two of them, it was highly unlikely that Dawn would want to move half way around the world only to be with someone who made her uncomfortable. I had to just agree with him and hang up."

Faith let a low whistle escape her lips. "Wow, he really told you that?"

"I don't think he understands how important Spike is to Dawn and me." Willow dropped her gaze to the ground as her eyes filled with tears. It took almost a full minute for Willow to realize what it was that lay at her feet. It was an old Zippo lighter. Willow kneeled down to pick it up. "Faith."

Faith looked at Willow as she held up the lighter. Faith noticed the fresh tears that sprung to Willow's eyes. Faith knew beyond a shadow of a doubt to whom the lighter had belonged. "We will find him."

As they walked back home Faith thought about the conversation Willow said she had had with Giles. It didn't really make any sense. Why would he refuse to help people who at one time he would have done anything for? Maybe he knew something that they didn't. Faith decided to give Giles a call. Maybe he could shed some light on things, but first she would talk to Xander and Anya and see what they thought.

`If I go crazy than will you still call me Superman?
If I am alive and well, will you be there to holding my hand?
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite . . .'

~~~*~~~

`You call me strong, you called me weak
But still your secrets I will keep
You took for granted all the times I never let you down
You stumbled in and bumped your head
If not for me then you would be dead
I picked you up and put back on solid ground . . .'

The same night across town he started to awake. His eyelids fluttered several times before finally opening to reveal smoky blue. He tried to sit up, his skin still burning and tingling. His mind was filled with images he didn't recognize. He wasn't exactly sure what was going on, but he needed to figure out where he was. He opened his eyes and looked around the room. He saw a movement out of the corner of his eye.

"Who is there?" he demanded. His voice was weak and his breathing passages stung.

Amelia stepped from the shadows "It's me Jonathan. It's Amelia."

He wracked his brain, `Amelia?'  His mind could recall a woman by the name of Isabelle, even a red-headed girl, but he couldn't seem to place the woman that stood before him.

"Amelia, can you tell me where I am?" he asked. Maybe if she told him something about where he was, he would be able to figure out what he was doing there.

"Yes, things will become clearer the longer you are awake. I was told that you might be slightly confused when you first awoke. Jonathan, do you remember anything?" Amelia asked as she edged closer to him.

"A few things, but what I do remember is all garbled. Do I know someone named Isabelle?"

Jonathan watched as her face shimmered. Amelia managed to keep control of herself, but it was obviously an effort. There was no reason to lay all of her cards on the table until she knew where she stood with Jonathan.

"What just happened with your face? I saw it shift." Jonathan knew there was something about this girl he couldn't quite place, but he knew he didn't have anything to fear from her.

"We will talk about that later. What you need to do right now is get some more rest. If you would like something, I would be happy to get it for you."

Jonathan knew she was right. He needed rest. He leaned back against the pillows. He didn't have to wait long before he drifted back to sleep.

`If I go crazy than will you still call me Superman?
If I am alive and well, will you be there to holding my hand?
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite . . .'

The next night . . .

Xander had his arm around Anya's waist as they walked behind Faith. He noticed that Faith had been awfully quite since they had left Willow at the Summers' house. Xander was the first to admit that he knew very little about women, but on this occasion he knew enough to know something was wrong.

"Are we gonna keep walking around in uncomfortable silence, or are you gonna tell me that you two slept together?" Anya's loud voice boomed in the quite darkness.

Faith spun around and looked at Anya. Faith couldn't hide her smile. The look on Xander's face was priceless. He was frozen in place and his eyes were huge. His mouth kept opening and closing like a fish out of water.

"Well, that is why you two aren't talking to each other, isn't it?" Anya asked. Now she was getting annoyed.

"Well . . . I . . ." Xander stammered.

"No. I have something that I want to talk to you about. I was quiet because I didn't know how to start the conversation. But I can see that with you, Anya, I need not worry about how bluntly I say things in the future." Faith was in an all out smile by the time she finished. Anya was a girl Faith could get along with; she said everything that was on her mind.

Xander stepped forward. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Willow." Faith than told them about what had happened in L.A. and then about the conversation Willow said she had with Giles. They all agreed that if anything else happened they would again contact Giles.

One week later . . .

Willow watched the lighter reflect the moonlight as she turned it over and over in her hand. With each gleam of the metal, a new memory flashed in Willow's mind, every moment of the last four months and three weeks played over and over like a skipping CD. She could feel the tears wetting her face.

Willow didn't raise a hand to wipe the tears away; she simply let them run their course. Willow knew there was no point in denying what was; she was nothing without her Superman. Willow knew it was absurd that she was so incapable of surviving on her own, even with everything she had been through. But she had so many regrets that would forever be just that; something she regretted.

Willow knew every time she looked in the mirror just how close she was to the edge. This was by far worst reaction she had ever had to being abandoned. The first time her parents had left her alone she had spent days in a stupor and nights hiding in the bottom of her closet. The house had seemed so overwhelming that she had found one small, safe spot and barricaded herself in. When the morning light shone over the balcony's edge, she crawled out of that safe spot and continued on, happy to have made it through the night.

When Oz had left it was her first heartbreak; love had not been kind. Willow had spiraled out of control. She had tried to drown her sorrows and had ended up abusing her magic. Willow had never realized how much love could hurt until then.

Now she was a woman. And as she looked back on her relationship with Oz she knew that she had loved him, but in a young and inexperienced way. She didn't deny her love for Oz; she had loved him with all her heart. Things just could never have been the same after Veruca. Both she and Oz had known that they had to move on.

Spike, however, was a completely different story. They had originally spent time together by force, their shared love for Dawn drawing them together. Spike had become her rock when her life had been turbulent. Willow hadn't even known that it was love she held in her heart for Spike until he was out of her reach.

Now she just wanted the opportunity to tell him how much he meant to her. Willow knew her friends were starting to worry about her, but she just couldn't seem to stop her descent. She was really trying, but the whole Spike leaving thing was more than she could overcome. Willow knew there was just something about the way Spike had treated her that made her so dependant on him. Willow was so lost in her thoughts that she never heard Faith come up behind her.

Faith slowly walked up beside Willow and sat on the grass next to her. Faith looked down at Willow's hands, seeing the lighter held tightly in her grasp.

"Will, listen I know you are hurting." Faith reached out and plucked the lighter from Willow's hand. She and Willow had found the lighter in this exact spot a little over a week ago, right after Willow had brought Faith back to Sunnyhell. Willow had made it clear that the only reason she sprung Faith was so that Faith could help her find Spike. Faith knew something was wrong; the longer Spike was gone, the more Willow acted like she was having withdrawl . . . Making the search for Spike a little more desperate. So far they had run across every dead end imaginable. After Willow had found the lighter she hadn't let it go. Willow knew Spike had to have had the lighter on him the night he disappeared.

"Red, sitting in this spot every night is not gonna bring him back. We need to do some research." Faith pulled a cigarette from her pocket and lit it with the lighter, then handed it back to Willow. Faith took a couple of deep drags before continuing. "You know, you've got Dawn worried sick. First she loses her mom, then her sister, then Spike. Now she thinks she has lost you. Come on, Red. You got to give that kid a break. Let's get you home and into bed." Faith stood and extended her hand to Willow.

Willow looked down at the lighter one last time before taking Faith's hand, pulling herself up. She slipped the lighter into her back pocket before turning and whispering into the night. "Please come home to me." With her deepest desire a drift on the wind she turned to follow Faith home.

`If I go crazy than will you still call me Superman?
If I am alive and well, will you be there to holding my hand?
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite . . . `

~~~*~~~

Isabelle followed the two girls back to their house. She needed to find a way to reach out to them, ask them for their help. Isabelle just didn't know how. Could she just walk right up to them and ask for help? I wasn't like they had normal lives. Isabelle had watched the dark-haired one fight like a warrior in the cemetery. She could also sense the power that the redhead held. Isabelle knew the red-haired girl was the one she was looking for. Her great-grand- niece had turned out more beautiful than she had ever thought possible.

Isabelle watched as the two girls walked up the stairs to the front door. She knew  that longer Jonathan was out and about the more damage he could do. If she was going to have a chance of stopping him she had to act fast. Isabelle drew in a deep breath and stepped from the shadows. "Excuse me."

Faith spun around on the porch, pushing Willow be hind her . . . only to come face to face with a young woman that could have pasted for Willow's sister.

Willow peeked her head over Faith's shoulder. She couldn't believe her eyes. Standing at the bottom of the stairs was her great- aunt Isabelle. Willow could remember her grandmother telling her stories of magic and her sister before Willow's mother had placed her in a home. Willow could remember how angry her mother had been when she had walked in on one of grandmother's wonderful tales.

Willow recalled secretly listening to her mother and father talking about the effect the tales would have on her. Willow's mother had insisted that they move her grandmother to a home, some place where she would have less of an affect on Willow. She remembered that her grandmother had passed away not long after that. Willow still had a box with a few of her grandmother belongings. Suddenly things were making sense; that is  if she was to believe what her grandmother had told her a child.

Willow stepped around Faith. "Isabelle?"

"Yes, I am your great-grand aunt."

Willow stepped forward. "My grandmother showed me your picture and told me stories about you when I was a kid."

Isabelle had only hopped that the girl before her was as smart as she was meant to be. Things were going to happen to her that she could not yet comprehend. Isabelle stepped closer to the stairs.

"I have waited a long time to meet you, child. I . . . disappeared before you were born. You look like your grandmother, maybe a little of your mother. I have come a long way and need your help." Isabelle knew that it was best to just lay her cards on the table for her niece. Willow was a smart and fair woman; she would understand.

"Whoa, wait a sec here. I know this is the hellmouth and all, but come on. You're really expecting us to believe that you are here for our help?" Faith was on her way down the steps when Willow touched her arm, stopping her in mid stride.

"Let's at least hear what she has to say." Willow couldn't help it. Her interest was peaked.

"Oh come on." Faith was starting to protest. "She's your great-aunt and she doesn't look a day older than you. What do you think we were born yester-" Willow cut her off with a wave of her hand as she walked toward Isabelle.

"I have some things in a box in my room you might want to take a look at.  They belonged to my grandmother. My father gave the box to me shortly after she passed away,"   Willow told Isabelle as she took Isabelle's arm, leading her into the house. Willow didn't even look over her shoulder as she took Isabelle upstairs to her room.

~~~*~~~

Faith stood in the door jam watching as Willow whole heartedly accepted what Isabelle said. Something in Faith's gut was telling her that this whole situation was spiraling out of control. It was a feeling that Faith associated with her childhood and things she had buried long ago. `Her great aunt, my ass. Time to quit playing. I am calling Giles. This counts as the something that Xander and Anya and I talked about.'  With her mind made up Faith turned toward the kitchen; she would use the phone in there.

Faith waited as the phone rang. `Five . . . six . . . seven. Come on old man, be there.' Faith was impatient to get some answers. She had a funny feeling in her gut about Isabelle.

"Ello?" came a sleepy British man's voice.

"Giles?" Faith wasn't sure if she had gotten the right number.

"What . . . who is this?"  the voice inquired

"It's Faith." As soon as she said her name Faith heard some movement, and then nothing. "Giles, talk to me. Something is going on here, and it is getting worse but the minute."

"She got you out. I don't know why that surprises me, although I thought it would have taken a little longer," Giles answered

"Doesn't really matter now, does it? We get home tonight and there is a woman here waiting for us. She told Willow that she was her great-aunt. Now tell me what the hell is going on." Faith knew that her instinct to call Giles had been right because she could tell Giles was hanging on her every word,  his breathing becoming faster with every word she spoke, starting with the mention of Isabelle.

"What did the lady say her name was?" He was hoping he was wrong, but how could he be?

"Who is she, Giles? Is she who she says she is?" Faith was worried. `How was it even possible? She didn't look any older than me or Willow.'

"Her name Faith, what was it?" Giles voice was edged with worry.

"Isabelle." Faith heard Giles sharp in take of breath. "Shit, she is what she says she is, isn't she?  How is that even possible?"

"Tell Willow I am on my way, and not to do anything until I get there. I'll leave tonight." His mind was racing with thoughts. He had to hurry.

"Giles?" Faith asked

"Yes," he paused to answer her.

"I won't ask how you know what you do. Just hurry." Faith's voice held her worry.

Giles was silent for a moment before answering. "I'll get a reservation as soon as I can. I'll try to be there by tomorrow night."

"K, Bye." Faith hung up the phone with a heavy heart. She had finally felt like she was gonna have a chance at a real friendship, at being accepted for what she was. Now it looked like the one person in the world she was comfortable with was in danger. Faith had always liked the redhead,  but had been hesitant to make friends with her because of Willow's friendship with Buffy. Being friends with two slayers would be too much for anyone.

`If I go crazy than will you still call me Superman?
If I am alive and well, will you be there to holding my hand?
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite . . .'

~~~*~~~

Faith walked up the stairs toward Willow's room and then she stopped halfway down the hall. Faith could hear muffled sobs coming from behind Dawn's bedroom door. Faith knew this had been hard on her. Faith had to admit that she respected the girl. Dawn had shown so much strength since Faith had been there. Dawn was trying so hard to be strong. Faith knocked on the door.

"Come in," came a muffled reply to Faith's knock.

Faith waited until she heard the movement inside of the room stop, giving Dawn a moment to compose herself. Then she opened the door.

"Hey Dawn. Listen, I know that things have been rough around here lately. But it will get better, I promise."

Dawn could only nod as fresh tears filled her eyes.

"I know this may not make you feel better, but Giles is on his way. I know what happened between the two of you, but he is smart. He can help us figure this out."

Dawn looked up at Faith and nodded. She and Giles may have had their problems, but he was more than capable of figuring this out. Dawn knew that Faith was offering her the only comfort she could by letting her know that Giles was coming. Dawn was still a little surprised sometimes at how different this Faith was than the one she remembered from not so many years ago. But right now she would take comfort where she could get it.

"Thanks Faith."

"No problem kiddo." Faith stepped out of the room and closed the door.

`Now I just need to talk to Red,' she thought as she walked down the hall. She could hear Isabelle's voice as she walked up to the door.

"Willow, I wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for the fact somebody figured out a way to release Jonathan. We were supposed to be sealed together forever, keeping the balance of magic. Somehow, somebody released him into this world which, in turn, has drawn me out. I must find him in order to keep any more of this burden from resting on your shoulders. But my time is limited. We must act quickly."

Faith knocked on Willow's door, opening it just enough to pop her head into the room. "Red, Giles just called. He is on his way. He said not to make a move until he gets here." The whole time Faith spoke, she never took her eyes of Isabelle.

Willow looked up at Faith. "Oh, yeah. Now he wants to help," Willow said with no small amount of sarcasm.

Faith didn't say another word. She pulled her back out into the hall and closed the door behind her.

`You call me strong, you called me weak
But still your secrets I will keep
You took for granted all the times I never let you down
You stumbled in and bumped your head
If not for me then you would be dead
I picked you up and put back on solid ground . . .'

~Part: 3~ Your Secrets I Will Keep

Giles knocked on the door of the Summers' home. It was now just before sunset. He had made good time, considering. He had rung the bell, waiting now for someone to answer the door. He had hoped that he would never have to make this trip, never have to tell Willow what he had known since she was a junior in high school. He had stumbled across the prophesy when they had been researching one night. Giles had followed the blood line mentioned in the footnotes and it had led him to Willow. At the time he dismissed it because he knew that Isabelle and Jonathan were sealed away. Besides, he didn't know who Willow's other half was. And as long as Willow never came in contact with her other half, the change would never start.

The Watchers Council kept a close eye on what had transpired between the two families. No one in the Council had involved themselves in the matter, but it was a great deal of power that the two families held. So the Council watched, with interest, for the outcome. In his early days with the Council Giles had studied the diaries they had from the two families.  When Faith had said that Isabelle was in the house with Willow his heart had nearly stopped beating. He had known then what it all meant, including the recent developments in Willow's relationship with Spike. Now he would have to explain himself; something he was not looking forward to. Once again the prophesy rang in his ears.

`Good and evil will consummate the bond
Each one will bring forth what they hold dear
Changing forever in the sight of love
Baptized with the fire of a thousand flames
Standing strong, two will come together
Power rooted in the past
Young and old will be intertwined
From grief and failure
Will be born the bond
No man shall break
A binding that was meant to be, will be cast aside
What was never meant to be, will be'

Faith opened the door to find Giles standing there deep in thought, his brow wrinkled in concentration. Faith thought he looked tired, with maybe a little jet lag mixed in. She reached out her hand and placed it gently upon his arm.

"Giles."

When her voice reached his ears he snapped out of his thoughts with a shutter. Now he remembered why he had always tried to keep a distance between Faith and himself. Even after all this time she still affected him the same way. Just the sound of her voice, the gentle touch of her hand, was enough to convert him to Ripper in a second's time. He had not even looked her in the eyes yet and he was already struggling to control himself.

"Giles?" Faith noticed the moment she touched him that his body had gone instantly ridged. She knew that they had issues; she just wished that they didn't. Faith could remember every detail of the first time they met. She had always thought that she had a thing for `bad boys', but then she had been introduced to Giles and everything changed. Giles was smart and at times funny. He was strong and never buckled under the pressure of the slayer/watcher lifestyle. Faith had spent many a night in her lonely hotel room thinking of ways to win Giles over.

Giles was embarrassed to be caught lost in his thoughts by Faith. When he looked up into her eyes he found himself swimming in two pools of desire. He wanted to say something to break the mood, but when Faith's fingers dug into his arm as a reaction to the sexual tension brewing between the two he couldn't seem to open his mouth. His tongue seemed to have doubled in size and he struggled to swallow.

Her hair fell in wavy curtain around her shoulders. Her deep brown eyes seemed to engulf him completely. He knew for certain as his eyed drifted down to her slightly moistened lips, then further down to the warm mounds of flesh that peeked out the top of the tank top she wore, that he was a damned man. Because if he spent any time at all with Faith he knew he would have to have her.

"Hey, Giles. Glad you made it." Dawn's voice broke the mood, and right as Faith was readying herself to kiss him. The sound of Dawn's voice caused the slayer to step away from Giles.

"Well . . . I . . . yes, I am here." Giles was slightly relieved to see Dawn. If it hadn't been for her he might have done something he would have hated himself for later.

Faith stepped back and let him in. "Come in, you must be tired from your trip." Her voice was distant and her eyes down cast.

Giles cursed himself for Faith's reaction to him after Dawn had made her presence known and he stepped in the entree way. He set down his suitcase and turned to Dawn.

"It is good to see you again, Dawn. I came straight from the airport. I was wondering if I could use the phone here to book a hotel room?"

Dawn watched as Faith's head shot up at Giles's request. "You could just stay in the basement. There is a small room with a bed. Faith could move upstairs to Buffy's old room," she offered. Dawn knew the others saw her as a child most of the time, but she was more aware of everyone else's desires than they themselves seemed to be. Dawn knew that despite the things that had happened between her and Giles, he had every right to be happy. And if his reaction to Faith was any indication of the happiness the two could find together then Dawn would do what she could to help them see what was very apparent to her.

"Yeah, I don't mind. I'll get my stuff and move it upstairs." Faith's voice was soft.

"Faith, you don't have to. I can't just as easily get a hotel room." He didn't want her to feel misplaced just because he was there.

"No." Her voice was strong and sure. "I want . . . you should be here, at the house. So that way you can help out easier." She had blushed when she had almost told him that she wanted him here. That it was part of the reason she had called him so quickly. Something she had always kept to herself was the feelings she had for the watcher. Even when she was younger she had had this crush on him. He was a strong, worldly man.

"If you want to follow me, I will show you down to my . . . your room."

Giles picked up his suitcase and followed Faith.

`I took a walk around the world to ease my troubled mind
I left my body laying somewhere in the sands of time
I watched the world float to the dark side of the moon
I feel there was nothing I could do. Yeah . . .'

~~~*~~~

Jonathan stood, his legs felt weak but his mind was much clearer now. He was starting to understand the images that kept flashing in his mind. He realized that the redhead he kept seeing was someone his host was projecting into his thoughts. She meant a lot something to his host. `Funny, she reminds me of someone,'  Jonathan thought as he tested his legs. He felt strong. It was just that it felt so foreign to be inside a container again, or at least that is how the body felt; like it had been contained. He had been nothing more than energy trapped inside a glass sphere for so long, floating endlessly along side Isabelle. `Isabelle.'  They had completed the bond, spent decades wrapped around each other. 'He needed to find her, soon.

Jonathan could feel his magic weakening. He wasn't sure why, but he knew something was wrong. Jonathan felt like he should understand the things that had happened better, but with the way Isabelle locked him away he hadn't really had a chance to understand what was happening to him. All he knew was that right now things were strange. This tiny voice in the back of his head kept telling him that he needed to find Isabelle.

Jonathan walked to the door. He opened it slowly, holding his breath as he listened for movement in the hall. He knew that there were at least two other people inside the building with Amelia. Jonathan slipped into the darkness, quietly making his way to the door at the end of the long hallway. When his fingers touched the knob he felt power surge into his body and he closed his eyes. Isabelle was looking for him. She was searching through the bond. Jonathan knew that if he could just get outside in the fresh air that Isabelle's pull would be stronger.

Jonathan reached out for the wall of the hall. When his hand touched the cool block he once again felt his power surge. Wherever he was, the structure was tainted with evil: a kind so strong and powerful that it called to him. Jonathan could feel the power pulsing through every stone. Blood flowing like motor between the cracks. When he closed his eyes, the rivets of blood surged forth out of the stone like a river, wetting his feet and dropping him to his knees. He could think no more of Isabelle as the essence of the structure infused his pores.

That is how Amelia found him: head flung back, arms out stretched as if he was waiting for his god to save him. Amelia felt a cold smile spreading across her face. She knew Jonathan would feel compelled to find Isabelle. That was why she picked this place. The evil here was so strong that it would cloud Jonathan's mind. That is, after all, that is why Isabelle sealed them in the Dansing Sphere in the first place: Jonathan could never seem to control his powers or his reaction to evil energy. He was now too weak to offer up any resistance to the pull of evil.

`If I go crazy than will you still call me Superman?
If I am alive and well, will you be there to holding my hand?
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite. . .'

~~~*~~~

Faith knew something was up. Giles had asked her to call Xander and Anya, telling them to stop over. He had also asked Willow, Dawn and Isabelle to join them in the living room.

While Giles waited for everyone to join him and Faith in the living room he took a moment to compose his thoughts. He knew the prophesy by heart and had extensively researched it. He just wasn't sure how everything fit together. He knew that Willow was one half of The Pair. But if Spike was the other half then what had happened to him? Right now he should be with Willow, continuing to form the bond. Now that the bond had started between the two of them it had to finish. He was afraid that the longer Willow and Spike were separated the more risk was brought to them. And that was what concerned him the most. It was becoming painfully obvious what would happen to Willow. She was withdrawn and hadn't been eating. He was concerned for the redhead's welfare.

Giles shook himself from his thoughts as he heard the front door open and saw Dawn greet Xander and Anya as they arrived. Everyone made there way to the front room and took their seats. Giles stood and began.

"Willow, I know you may not understand this, but Isabelle is your great-aunt," Giles stated.

"Well, isn't that nice. Even Xander can tell that. They have the same power signature. I may be new to this whole human thing, but I think this is what they called beating around the bush." Anya's voice was laced with annoyance as she told everyone what she thought.

"Um . . . well." Giles face was flushed with his embarrassment. He opened the book he held in his hands. "Well, then let's start with this." He found his page and began to read.

"Good and evil will consummate the bond
Each one will bring forth what they hold dear
Changing forever in the sight of love
Baptized with the fire of a thousand flames
Standing strong, two will come together
Power rooted in the past
Young and old will be intertwined
From grief and failure
Will be born the bond
No man shall break
A binding that was meant to be, will be cast aside
What was never meant to be, will be"

After he finished reading the prophesy he watched Willow's face. He was waiting for her to react. To his surprise it was Isabelle who spoke first. Willow just continued to sit quietly.

"A binding that was meant to be, will be cast aside? What does that mean? I should still have a few days to put Jonathan and I back in the sphere, right?" Isabelle asked

"Wait, what do you mean?" Xander asked, his confusion clear in his voice.

"What Isabelle means is that she only has so many days to put her and Jonathan back behind the wall of the Dansing Sphere." Willow's voice was deadly calm as she explained. "If for some reason Isabelle doesn't do that then I will become one half of the pair, taking her place in the sphere. Now all we have to do is find my other half, which are we sure that Spike is my other half?"

"No. This is not happening. I didn't bite my tongue and try to understand everything that has been happening just so Willow could get locked away with some stranger." Dawn was in tears by the time she finished.

Willow stood and walked over to Dawn. "I understand what you mean." Willow put her arm around Dawn. "We almost had a family."

Dawn turned her face into Willow's shoulder and released her tears. "I miss Spike. If he was here he would know what to do," Dawn whispered for Willow's ears only.

"I know Dawnie. Me too." Willow's agreement brought tears to her eyes as well.

"It won't be just Willow, will it? That is why Spike is missing: he has the power of the other half of The Pair somehow. And that is why Isabelle can't reverse what has happened to Jonathan." Faith was quiet as she spoke. She knew she was right. "I dreamt of it last night, her and Spike together, only they weren't in a sphere. They were here with Dawn."

Giles cleared his throat to gain the attention of the room. "Well, actually Faith, I believe you are partially right. Willow and Spike were fine until they started to share this house. Like the prophecy said, `From grief and failure will be born the bond.' I think that it refers to Buffy's death; because if Buffy hadn't died Willow and Spike wouldn't have ended up together in this house and the process of their bonding would never have started. Once they started having contact everyday, the transformation started. Because they were predestined to become The Pair all they had to do was be near each other. Someone releasing Jonathan from the sphere would explain why Spike may have come up missing. Spike's body would be the perfect host to hold the energy and magic that is Jonathan."

  Isabelle was the first to speak. "No one could ever be strong enough to stand the power that is inside of Jonathan. It would be like good and evil battling over one body. No man could stand that kind of pressure. That is why I sealed us into the Dansing sphere; I didn't want Jonathan to end up like his grandfather."

"See that is where you are you are wrong," Xander stated with conviction. "You don't know Spike."

Xander paused and gave a look like he had just been hit with sudden thought. "Wait; what do you mean by `ending up like Jonathan's grandfather?' "

Isabelle turned and looked at Xander. "When Jonathan's grandfather received his powers they drove him mad. Shortly thereafter, his wife gave birth to there first child. He murdered her and his new born daughter. I was afraid that Jonathan would react the same way. I didn't want to die, so I sealed us in the sphere. Once we were inside the sphere he was no longer influenced by the power around him. The Dansing Sphere was made by a warlock to keep his wife sealed away so she could not touch him with her magic and so he could rule her kingdom as he wanted."

Willow spoke next, her voice caring just a hint of fear. "Are you telling us that if Jonathan is near a strong reserve of dark magic then that magic can affect him?"

"Yes, he can channel it to a point, but it acts like a drug. It can affect his mind and actions." Isabelle stated. "This is why I am concerned about Spike. What is so special about this man that makes you think he could shoulder the weight of The Pair?" Isabelle asked smugly

"Well, for starters he hasn't been a just a man in over a hundred years," Dawn shot right back.

"While you all fill her in, I have a special vamp to find." With that Faith grabbed her coat and headed to the door.

As Faith walked out the door she glanced over her shoulder at Willow. The longer Spike was missing the stranger Willow acted. But if what Giles and Isabelle said was true, Faith knew the longer Willow and Spike were a part the harder it would be on the both of them. If the magic in Spike acted like a drug in his system, then what must the bond be like for the both of them?

'I watched the world float to the dark side of the moon
After all I knew it had to be something to do with you
I really don't mind what happens now and then
As long as you'll be my friend at the end . . .'

~~~*~~~

Faith had checked every cemetery in town. She had even been down to the warehouse district and then on to Willy's. Somebody somewhere had the answers she wanted. Faith knew that the sooner they found Spike, the better. She was so consumed by her thoughts that she didn't noticed where her feet where taking her. When she looked up she found that she was standing in front of the demolished high school.

Feelings Faith thought she had left behind her suddenly rose to the surface. She knew that this was where the Mayor had died. Even though his goals had been twisted, he had still treated her like she was his daughter. Faith knew that it was something she would never experience again: no one would ever be able to forgive her for her mistakes, not whole heartedly. She knew when this was over she was lost. As the tears filled her eyes she knew it didn't matter: she would die soon. She was the Slayer after all. Right now she had people she had let down in the past counting on her and she would be damned if she would let them down again.

As Faith turned to go she felt her vampire sense started to tingle. Something was off with it though. It felt like it was being suppressed. Faith decided it was worth a closer look.

Faith made into the basement and noticed movement at the end of the hallway. She paused as she reached out with her slayer senses. She was sure there was one vampire a few feet ahead of her, and it was a minion. It gave off a signature that told her that it was not old, but definitely not fledgling. Faith knew that it wouldn't pose much of a threat to her. It was the presence she picked up on down in the basement that concerned her most. The signature was strong and then weak, like the energy of the vampire she was sensing was some how being smothered. For something that was so very strong and powerful it didn't seem possible to subdue it.

Something deep inside her knew that she was close to what she was trying to find.  Even from where she was she knew it had to be Spike. Faith slipped down the hall, making her way to the suppressed vampire signature that she had felt outside. Faith saw something unexpected moving off to her right, and she spun and to embed her stake deep within its chest. She never even got to see the minion's face before it floated past her in a cloud of dust.

`Okay, that leaves three,' she whispered to herself. Faith knew from experience that one of the vampires was moving away from her, but two remained stationary. `No doubt it sensed me coming.' she thought as she moved further into the bowels of the school to investigate the two remaining signatures.

~~~*~~~

Amelia reached for Jonathan's face. "I know this is hard for you, but time will free you of your need for Isabelle."

Jonathan snorted. "I will never be free of her. And I will never be able to stand the thought of being in this body."

"Please Jonathan, don't be like that. I know you didn't ask for any of this. I thought you would want to be free again." Amelia whispered.

Jonathan reached out and took her hand. "I know that you didn't mean for this to be so hard for me. I spent so many years as just spirit and  magic. This body is suffocating me. I can't seem to control my powers." Jonathan knew that he needed to keep the peace between Amelia and himself. He couldn't afford to make a mistake. He needed to find Isabelle. Once he was back with Isabelle then he could deal with Amelia. "I am feeling tired again, can you let me rest?"

Amelia stood and nodded. "I will be back in a few hours to check on you." She left without another word, closing the door behind her.

~~~*~~~

As Faith made her way down the dark, damaged hallway she could feel the signature of the vampire growing stronger. She knew she was close and that the coast was clear. She tried the knob of the door at the end of the hall. It was one of the schools old storage units. The door knob moved smoothly in her grasp. Faith peeked inside the door to find the room lit with a small candle in the corner of the room. Most of the stuff that had been stored in the room no doubt had been stolen long ago. The rest had been pushed to the side to make room for the make shift bedroom.

Faith noticed someone was in the bed. She moved inside the room and closed the door. As she made her way to the bed she knew that her search was over.

`Hmm, even better without the duster and shirt. You are fine for a dead man. Red is a very lucky girl,' she thought as she took in the fact that the sheet lay casually across his hips, revealing the smooth perfection of his chest.

`Maybe if I treated him like Spike that is who I will get to deal with,' she decided as she shook his shoulder. "Spike?" She paused for a moment. "Spike." She reached out and shook his shoulder again. Dealing with Jonathan she was not something she was looking forward to anyway.

His eyes snapped open, startling Faith with the confusion that resided there. Faith noticed the way his eyes were searching her face; he didn't know her.

"I'm Faith. We haven't had the pleasure of meeting yet, well at least not face to face . . . not this face anyway." Faith knew that didn't make much sense, but when he had opened his eyes it hit her and hit her hard. The look in his eyes, she knew that look. It was the look she had in her eyes the night she had become a murderer. Wild, unpredictable, liked a cornered animal, she could see the fear that had made a home in his mind. Faith knew that time was running out; she needed to get him back home. "Anyway, I know someone who has been looking for you." Faith watched his brow crinkle as he tried to understand what she was saying.

"Willow and Dawn sent me to find you, to bring you home." Faith tried to reassure him.

"Willow?" he asked, an image of the sweet redhead flashed in his mind.

"Yeah. Lovely lady, red hair." Faith wasn't sure why Spike was acting so strange.

"Red." It was the clearest thing he has said so far. His voice caressed Willow's name as it left his lips, letting Faith know he now understood who had sent her.

Faith reached down and helped Spike up. "Come on, I need to get you home to Willow. She is waiting for you to come home."

Faith could see the internal struggle as Spike fought to control his own body. Faith saw his mouth open and close as he struggled to say something. Faith leaned in to hear him better. His lips formed the `W' of Willow's name, than Faith noticed the change as Spike's body stiffened.

"Isabelle," Jonathan whispered.

"Yeah, yeah." Faith saw Spike stand and let her know that he would follow. She turned and headed back to Willow and the rest of the gang.

`If I go crazy than will you still call me Superman?
If I am alive and well, will you be there to holding my hand?
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite. . .'

~~~*~~~

The Summers' house was buzzing with activity. Everyone was tense and waiting for Faith to return. Dawn stood in the front room waiting. She only hoped that this time they would find Spike and bring him home.

~~~*~~~

Faith had known the moment she had seen him that there was something very wrong with Spike. His face was gray  and there was a tenseness about him that she couldn't understand. As they made their way back to the Summers' home Faith felt Spike stiffen in her arms. Mumbling something under his breath, he pushed Faith away. She looked down and watched as his skin began to bubble and blister. She reached down to him and placed her hands on his face. Before she could react Spike reached up with both hands and shoved Faith away.

Faith had known as soon as she touched his face that she had made a horrible mistake. His skin was hot, as if his body was heating up from the inside. Faith felt his hands pushing her away as they burned his hand prints into her stomach. She hadn't been able to pull herself away quickly enough. As soon as her hand had touched his forehead, Faith felt like she had been hit by a truck and everything was now in slow motion.

"Isabelle," he whispered.

"Right." Faith took off to the house on a dead run. She made the front porch in a single bound and blew through the door.

Dawn was the first one to see Faith. "Faith, are you okay?" she asked.

"Yeah." Faith was out of breath as she answered Dawn. "Giles?" she asked as she tried to steady her breathing.

"Giles!" Dawn yelled.

Giles came from the kitchen to find Faith standing in the entryway of the door. His breath caught in his throat as he took in her appearance. Her face and hands were covered in dirt and her hair was wild and untamed. Her eyes were wide, her breathing was fast. Giles detected the smell of burnt flesh lingering on the air as Faith moved passed him to sit on the bottom at the stairs.

Once she was seated on the stairs she told Giles where Spike was and that Isabelle should go after him. Xander volunteered to go with Isabelle to help retrieve Spike.

"Are you sure it was Spike?" Willow asked from the corner. Her voice held so many emotions hope, disbelief, desperation and fear. She had been holding herself together with the hope that she would find Spike and set things right. What if what Angel had said was true and things didn't work out the way she thought they would? What if Spike did leave knowing ahead of time of her feelings for him? What if he didn't feel the same way?

Faith looked at Willow, "Yes, and if you want to keep him with us than you better go after him. He is not himself."

Giles lifted the bottom of Faith's shirt to reveal two hand shaped burn marks. "We need to get you clean up. Willow, Isabelle and Xander will go find Spike." He helped Faith up without a glance back at the others.

"Dawn, I need you to get some hot water and clean rags so we can clean Faith's wounds." He turned around half way up the stairs and looked at the group at the bottom of the stairs. "Well, what are you waiting for? Anya would you bring me some fresh towels?" He turned back to Faith and helped her up to her room. The rest of the group immediately set out to take care of the tasks that lay ahead of them.

~~~*~~~

Willow and Isabelle made their way down one side of the street while Xander walked along the other. Faith had not been real clear on where she left Spike, just that he was somewhere down this street.

As they walked along Willow felt something on the inside of her start to stir; a small feeling that something was tugging at her magic, pulling her to something. She moved with the feeling, letting it lead her to what was waiting. As she turned the corner she felt a painful jolt shutter through her body as the pull stopped and her magic settled back into her core.

Willow gasped as Isabelle touched her shoulder. "That is what it will feel like when you find yourself drawn to him. He is hurt and calling for you. He must be close." Isabelle knew that Jonathan and Spike were fighting for control over the body, but from what she understood it was a battle that Spike was use to considering he had a demon that he battled everyday. If Willow was feeling the pull of the bond between her and Spike that meant Spike was overpowering Jonathan because Spike was stronger. When Isabelle was close enough to Spike's body she felt Jonathan use the magic bond between him and Isabelle to give him the strength to gain control.

"Isabelle?" a horse voice called from the shadows.

"Jonathan? Is that you?" Isabelle questioned. If Willow felt the pull then why was Jonathan calling for her? Spike should be calling for Willow. Isabelle moved into the shadows.

As soon as she got close enough Jonathan reached for her hand. "Isabelle I thought I had lost you."

"It is okay, Jonathan. I am here." Isabelle could tell as she knelt next to him that Jonathan was already weakening. He was not very strong and was struggling to control the magical storm that was brewing within him.

"I was afraid that I wouldn't get the chance to say good- bye." Jonathan whispered. "I really messed things up for us again, didn't I?"

"No, Jonathan. None of this is your fault. But I have a good idea who is," Isabelle said as she tried to comfort Jonathan. "And we are not saying good-bye to each other, just to the power of The Pair."

"It was Amelia," he whispered.

"I know," Isabelle said as she pulled Jonathan into her arms.

Willow stepped up from behind. "Spike?" She didn't like the way Isabelle was holding her Spike. Willow felt the jealously well up inside of her. It was something that she was not use to feeling, and for a new feeling it was very overwhelming.

Jonathan looked from Isabelle to Willow with a look of confusion, almost as if he didn't know who she was.

"Spike? I have been looking for you." Willow's voice was coated with her concern and uncertainty. He had to know her. She couldn't have found him after all this time only to have him not be Spike.

As soon as Jonathan's eyes focused on the girl before him he felt something inside the body he shared with the host go wild. Spike's body stiffened as the battle raged within. This girl was the reason the host kept fighting with him for control. The host was desperately trying to return to this girl. Jonathan spoke the one word that kept repeating in his mind.

"Red."

Willow felt tears come to her eyes at that one word. She nodded. It was a start; Spike was still in there. She didn't know how but she was going to get him back.

"Jonathan. I know you are weak. We need to get you some place safe. Can you help me do that?" Isabelle asked once Spike's body had relaxed again, ignoring the exchange between Willow and Spike.

Jonathan looked at Isabelle and nodded. She helped him stand. "Willow, can you get Xander? We need to get Jonathan back to the house."

"His name is Spike." Willow's voice shook as her tears rolled freely down her face..

Xander stepped up behind Willow, placing his hands on her shoulders. He could feel her body shaking with unreleased sobs. It tore him apart to see Willow's spirit breaking as she watched Spike's body clinging to Isabelle for support.  Even if there was somebody else in there with Spike, Xander knew it still hurt Willow to see him touch another woman. "Come on Wills. Let's get him back to the house before we try sorting this out."

Willow could only nod and follow as Xander helped Isabelle move Spike back to the house.

`If I go crazy than will you still call me Superman?
If I am alive and well, will you be there to holding my hand?
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite. . .'

~~~*~~~

Back at the house, Giles stood outside of Faith's bedroom door waiting for the others to return. While he was cleaning her wounds he had noticed that the skin that had been burned was turning almost a bluish hue around the edges. He had seen a lot in his time and he knew one thing for sure Faith had some kind of magical poisoning, no doubt from the burns she had received.

Giles heard the front door open and Dawn call Spike's name. He turned and headed down the stairs. The others must have returned with Spike. When he turned the corner at the bottom of the step, the reality of the situation hit home. Half of Spike's face was blistered as well as most of his chest. Giles noticed that Spike's arms and hands were burned as well; the same type of burns as Faith had on her stomach.

And as far as he could tell the rest of Spike's body had suffered the same fate. The smell of burning skin stung his nose as he walked further into the front room. Giles could tell that the vampire had not fed for days. His ribs were showing, and what un- blistered portion of his face that showed was gaunt and sunken. They brought Spike in and sat him on the couch.

"Jonathan, I need you to do something for me," Isabelle said as she rested on her knees next to the couch.

Jonathan turned his head to look at her and nodded.

"Remember how I told you that it was necessary to lock us inside of the Dansing Sphere forever?" Isabelle paused and waited for Jonathan to nod. "I was wrong about the forever part. Would you like to rest? No more fighting to keep your magic under control."

Jonathan tried to sit up. He stopped once he could look Isabelle in the eyes. "Tell me what I have to do."

Isabelle now understood that Jonathan had only been human. Maybe he wasn't strong enough to hold the magic in check in the real world. It was time he rested. Isabelle knew that she was also incapable of holding her magic much longer. She could have done it with a stronger partner, but that was a moot point now because Isabelle could never imagine her journey without Jonathan. Being locked in the sphere had taught her one thing: love the one you're with. That was what she had done and now it was time for them to relinquish the magic and move on.

"Jonathan, this body you are in, it's not human. It is the body of a demon and it needs certain things to keep it strong." Dawn came into the front room and set down two cups of warm blood on the coffee table. Isabelle turned to pick one up and handed it to Jonathan. "You need to drink this . . ."

Before Isabelle could finish her statement Spike's face had shifted and he had downed the first glass and grabbed the second. Once he finished the second glass, wide yellow eyes settled on Willow's tired frame.

Willow looked up to find the eyes of Spike's demon boring into hers. Willow watched in stunned silence as Spike moved toward her. Once he was close enough he reached out and grabbed her; pinning her back against his front, one arm wrapped possessively around her waist. The other gently cupped her face and tilted her head back, burying his face in her hair, inhaling her scent.

The demon slammed forward when it smelled the warm fresh blood. But when the demon had felt the invader giving up he had been giddy at the prospect of once again being in control. He was the rightful owner of this body. He had felt like he had been smothered almost into nonexistence with the invader trying so hard to maintain control over the body. But now he was back and desperate with need. That was when the most delicious scent filled his senses. He turned to the redhead sitting just a small distance from him, the scent he detected was her. The scent was intoxicating, like a drug. Once it had invaded his system he was no longer aware of what he was doing. He just knew that the need for her that was rising like a tidal wave inside him and needed to be satisfied. His motions were a blur until she was resting in his arms.

"Mine." His voice was soft but firm. "Mine."

"Yours." Willow was surprised to hear her voice agreeing with Spike's demon. Because that is what this was; Spike's demon was recognizing her.

He turned her head exposing her neck even more. Willow could feel a low growl rumbling through his chest as he examined her neck. She felt his grip on her hair tighten as the growl broke past his lips echoing into the room.

Giles knew that the demon was acting on a very basic level. He also knew when he heard Willow hiss that Spike's demon was about to assert his claim on the redhead. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Xander start to move forward concern for his friend evident on his face.

"Xander, wait." Giles placed a hand on the boys arm.

"But he is gonna hurt Willow," Xander said

"No, I don't think so. I think he claiming what he feels is his." Giles stated.

Spike leaned into Willow's neck. He could smell his scent all over the girl. He could tell that they had not been intimate, but his scent was present in her every pore. He was sure she belonged to him, so why was there no mark on her? Bits and pieces of memories were swimming around in his head, but nothing made sense. He would sort those things out later; he had always been a demon that acted first then dealt with the consequences later.

Willow knew she should be afraid. This was her Spike, yet he was so raw and venerable right now. When his nose touched her neck she felt her knees weaken. She knew what was about to happen and it thrilled her. She hadn't been sure whether or not Spike would want her, and now his demon was about to claim her as his.

When Spike grazed his lips across her neck, he could smell her willingness dripping from her core. His body instantly responded to hers. Without another thought he sunk his fangs into her neck, freeing her life's blood for him to savor. As soon as the exquisite blood touched his lips, the flashes started. Every time in his un- life they had crossed paths: the night in factory basement; the night Spike had wanted to die; the night Buffy had died; the next night and all the others. All the nights that he had laid awake with her in his arms. Willow had belonged to him for some time and neither had known it. But now he knew and he would never let her go.

Spike removed his fangs and purred contentedly as he laved her wounds with his tongue, his arms moving to surround her. Xander stepped forward to make sure Willow was okay and Spike growled.

"It is alright, Xan. I am fine." Willow breathlessly responded.

Spike pulled Willow closer to him. "Mine."

Willow moved her head so she could look Spike in the eyes. "Always."

Spike could see the truth in her words. He let her go as his human mask slid into place. She turned and helped him back to the couch. "You need to rest."

Isabelle spoke up first. "I need to speak with Jonathan before you rest."

Spike looked up at Isabelle. "Speak witch, he is listening."

Isabelle walked over to the couch and sat on the edge facing Spike.

"You have to release the magic within. Give it over to your host. He was meant to wield it. He was meant to be your half of the pair." Isabelle stroked Jonathan's cheek.

"Is she yours?" Jonathan pointed to Willow. Willow noticed that when he spoke he didn't tilt his head the way Spike did. He didn't move with Spike's grace. She released the breath that had stuck in her throat when Isabelle said Jonathan's name. It was Spike's body, but that was definitely not Spike talking.

Isabelle  motioned for Willow. Once Willow was next to Isabelle, the older woman spoke. "Jonathan, this is my great-grand daughter, Willow."

Jonathan didn't speak, just closed his eyes. Isabelle knew that he was preparing to release his magic over to the host. She turned away from Jonathan and back to the remaining gang.

"Let's go into the dinning room and talk," Isabelle said

The group moved their meeting into the dinning room. Once everyone had settled, Giles spoke. "Isabelle, I think Faith may have gotten some sort of magic poisoning from the burns she suffered."

Isabelle's face registered no shock. "I was afraid of that. Jonathan was a human man when he underwent The Pair bonding ritual. Then he was ripped from the Dansing Sphere and placed into Spike's body, which is not altogether human. To make the situation worse for Jonathan, Spike was the one destined to hold the powers. Jonathan is feeling his powers being pulled from him and his spirit is being weakened by the battle over the magic. So he can't control the effects of the magic. Poisoning Faith could be one of the side effects. We can go up shortly and check on her." Isabelle turned to Willow. "Once Jonathan completes the spell to release his magic he will be Spike again. He will need to stay close to you. Only you can help him heal."

~~~*~~~

Isabelle followed Giles up the stairs and into Faith's room. Isabelle could feel her body growing tried. She knew her time was nearing an end. Something about it just felt right, knowing that Willow and Spike would be taking her and Jonathan's place as The Pair. Isabelle had known the first time she laid eyes on her grand- niece that she was indeed stronger and smarter than she herself had ever been. Between Willow and Spike maybe they could do some good with the power of The Pair instead of just locking it away like Isabelle had been forced to do. No, Willow was not the coward that Isabelle had been. Willow would stand strong and face the night, just like she had been doing along.

"Isabelle?" Giles shook her shoulder snapping her from her thoughts.

"Oh, yes." Isabelle walked over to the bed and sat down.

Isabelle lifted Faith's shirt and peeled back the bandage. She knew the moment she saw the blue spider web pattern spanning across Faith's stomach what she had to do. She removed the rest of the bandage and placed her hands in the blistered hand prints on Faith stomach.

"You were right. She is being poisoned. I will remove what is hurting her, but I can't give back what it took," Isabelle said.

Before Giles could respond Isabelle's eyes began to glow and a thousand tiny flames danced along her arms and into Faith's wound. Giles could see the wounds began to heal.

When Isabelle spoke again her voice was weak. "It took her strength. I did all I could to heal her, but as I said before I can't put back what was taken. She is lucky that her strength was all it took. If she had not been the slayer she would have been dead before she made it back to the house. If I were you, " Isabelle stood and moved to the door, "when she wakes I would be here for her, tell her your heart's one true desire. She wants the same things from you."

"How do you know?" Giles's voice held his surprise

Isabelle smiled as she opened the door. "I read her emotions as I healed her. You however, have it written all over your face. Take this chance as if it were the last one you shall ever have."

Isabelle walked out of the room and closed Giles in with his thoughts and the object of said thoughts.

~~~*~~~

The house had finally settled down after all the excitement. Xander and Anya had gone home after everyone had gotten something to eat. Anya had claimed a headache from all the excitement, and had told Xander to take her home. Dawn had gone up to bed just shortly after they had left. Everyone had gone their separate ways to recharge after the evenings draining experience.

Faith lay awake in bed thinking about all the things that had happened since Willow had showed up in L.A. Faith had known on the drive down that she would not be the same when this was over. But she had thought that it would mean the end of her life. This was not at all what she was expecting to happen. She had a lot to think about keeping her awake.

Faith knew that she wasn't going back to sleep. She threw her covers back and silently crept down the stairs to the kitchen. Faith looked around in the cupboards until she found some tea. As she waited for the water to heat she noticed the basement door was open and she could see the soft light in Giles's room illuminating the stair well. She slipped from her chair and moved closer to the door. She could hear the soft hum of a man's voice. She slipped down a couple of stairs and peeked her head over the banister and into doorway of his room.

He was alone, sitting on his bed with the cordless phone in his hand. Who ever he was talking to, he was upset. But before she had a chance to listen in on the conversation, he hung up the phone.

As Faith leaned forward for a better look the tea kettle up stairs in the kitchen sounded its finish, causing Faith to jump back. Her heart was pounding so hard she almost missed it when Giles spoke.

"If you're making tea, I would like some too."

"Umm . . . yeah, be right back." Faith was so embarrassed that she had gotten caught peeking in on him that when he suggested she share the tea Faith jumped to get it. Anything to avoid the fact that she had been caught playing the peeping tom.

Giles had heard her come down the stairs and into the kitchen. He had thought that it might be one of the other girls, but when he heard the creek of the basement stairs he knew it was Faith. Then the tea kettle had whistled and he had looked up to find Faith leaning over the rail of the stairs. Her hair hung loosely around her shoulders, her eyes wide with embarrassment.

He knew it was a mistake, but he just had to give her a reason to come all the way down the stairs. Temptation, even for a man of his age and culture, was hard to resist. `Maybe it is time I stopped running from something that has always been there,' he thought.

~~~*~~~

As Faith slipped down the basement stairs she didn't notice Dawn standing in the shadows of the hallway. Dawn watched as Faith made tea for her and Giles. When Dawn had heard Faith sneaking down to the kitchen she thought that maybe Faith would want to talk. But now, as she watched Faith trying to hide her smile as she left the kitchen, Dawn realized that Faith had found all the help she would need with Giles and maybe some happiness as well. Dawn yawned and returned to her room upstairs.

~~~*~~~

Faith walked down into his room with two hot cups of tea balanced gingerly in her hands. Before she could enter the room Giles stood.

"Here, let me help you with those." He reached for the cups and set them on the table. He then turned back around. "Please, come in."

Faith walked into the room and shut the door behind her. She walked over and sat next to Giles on the bed. He sat the phone next to the tea cups and picked up the book on the bed.

"What were you reading?" Faith asked with childlike interest.

"Just something I have been researching," Giles said as he rested his back against the headboard.

Faith thought that it might be a bad move, but this was only a passing thought as she slid up the bed, resting her back against the headboard and reached for the book. Taking it from Giles's hand she looked at the cover of the book, then back at Giles.

"Why are you reading about magical poisons?" Faith asked

Giles' voice was soft as if he was afraid he might frighten her away. "I wanted to see if there was a way to reverse what happened to you. The only thing I can tell for sure is that the poison has taken your strength. You are still the slayer . . ." He couldn't finish was he was thinking; how this left Faith vulnerable and Giles was worried that he would loose her before he even had her.

"Good." Faith handed the book back to him. She acted as though it didn't matter to her one way or another.

"You don't always have to be so strong about everything, Faith. I would like to be here for you." Giles stated it quietly, but his voice was filled with conviction.

"Really?" Her voice held her surprise.

Giles turned to look at her. As he looked into her eyes he realized that no one had ever taken the time to show her how special she was. No wonder she had such a hard time being the slayer at first. She was given all this power and she had barely had a grasp on who she was as a person. That's when he decided she was worth a chance. If he didn't take the chance now, he may never have another opportunity.

"Faith, I would like to be here for you. And when you are ready, I would like to be more," he stated with conviction.

Faith looked away from his eyes. "I come with a lot of baggage. I am not just some young girl for you to play around with; I am more than just a slayer."

"I know. Faith, when you were in prison, didn't you wonder where all the books came from? I mean the ones about demons and vampires. Did you really think that the prison library had those in stock for you? I had arrangements made for those books and a few other provisions as well. I never walked away. Sometimes I was just in the shadows." He reached out and took her hands in his.

Faith had always wondered who had done the little extras for her. If she was honest with herself she knew that what he was saying was true. Sometimes she would get the feeling like she was being watched as she made her way through her day. She would never have guessed that it had been Giles watching out for her.

"Can I sleep down here?" Faith asked. "I haven't been able to sleep. All I can think about is how this not over yet and here I am only half of what I need to be," she finished in a whisper.

"Please. I need to finish a little more reading, but please stay."  Giles opened the book and began to read. He had only finished a paragraph when Faith slid closer and lifted his arm and tucked it around her shoulders, resting her head on his shoulder as he continued to read.

Giles was having a hard time concentrating on the words of the book. Faith was sleeping next to him with her soft breath tickling his neck. Her breasts were pushed up against his side and he could feel her taunt nipples pressing through the thin material of her night shirt.

He glanced down on Faith's sleeping face. She had never been more beautiful to him than she was now. All the hard lines in her face were gone and she seemed at peace in her dreams. He laid the book down and just watched her sleep for a moment before deciding that he need to get some rest as well. He turned the light off and moved down on the bed, careful not to wake Faith. As soon as he was settled and had pulled the blankets over their forms Faith moved closer to him, wrapping her arm tighter around his waist. Giles felt his body responding to her nearness and knew he had a long night ahead of him.

~~~*~~~

Willow watched Spike as he rested. As she touched the mark on her neck, she wondered if she would find some sign that when he woke he would be her Spike and not just the demon. She wanted Spike whole, but if she had to she would take just the demon.

Willow felt her eyes becoming heavy as she thought about everything that had come to pass. All those early mornings that she had lain in their bed watching Spike sleep, thinking how lucky she had been to know all the wonderful sides of Spike. He was more then a demon and so much more than a man. When he woke up she wasn't leaving anything to chance. She would tell him how she feels.

As Willow drifted off to sleep Spike's eyes snapped open. A red mist poured from his eyes, nose and mouth, pooling to form the body of a young man. The figure floated for a moment before leaving in search of Isabelle. He wandered up the stairs and into Faith's room.

"Isabelle," Jonathan spoke softly

Isabelle sat up in the bed and smiled when she saw the red mist form of Jonathan floating at the end of the bed.

"You're free. Then everything went well. You are free to move on." Isabelle knew she should feel better about all of this, but she couldn't push away the sadness in her heart.

Jonathan reached out and tried to offer her comfort, yet he could not. His hand never touched her skin just passed right through her face.

Isabelle looked up at him with unleashed tears in her eyes.

"My dear sweet Isabelle, I may be free of the body, but I can't move on without you. I will be here right at your side until you are ready to move on with me." Jonathan told his other half.

Isabelle nodded and whispered, "Soon."

~~~*~~~

When Amelia found that Jonathan was missing she searched the school.  When she didn't find him there, she went back to the room he had stayed in looking for a clue. As she looked around the room she caught a strange scent on the door frame. Amelia smiled.  Things were looking up. Something about it was familiar. Then it hit her. There had been a slayer there. Amelia smiled. Now all she had to do was find out where the slayer lived.

~~~*~~~

Faith awoke to the firmness of a man's body pressed against her. A hand was gently stroking her leg. Her eyes fluttered open as she felt a firm erection grinding against her leg, and the hand had moving up to tenderly squeeze her butt cheek.

She smiled when she opened her eyes and saw Giles's light brown hair. His head was buried in her neck, his lips taking tender nips. She loved this dream. It was her favorite. He was so sweet and gentle as they made love. She moved into his caresses as she turned his head to capture his lips in a smoldering kiss.

Giles knew he must have died in his sleep. How else could you explain the voluptuous woman that he held in his arms. She was as sweet as a hundred childhood dreams, touching and teasing him in a way he hadn't experienced since he was a young man.  He leaned into the pleasure the body next to him was offering. It had been too long.

His fingers slipped under the edge of her shirt lifting it over her head to reveal her breasts. His hands expertly cupped them, bringing her nipples to hard nubs with just his finger tips.

Faith moaned into his mouth as she ground harder against his erection. She slid her hands under his tee-shirt, running her finger across the muscled plane of his chest. He helped her remove his shirt breaking the kiss for only a moment.

Her fingers brushed through the fine hair of his chest, touching and teasing as they went. She broke away from his lips, following the path her fingers had made down to the waist band of his pajama pants.

His fingers curled into her chestnut locks. "Faith . . . please."  His voice was a husky whisper. "Stop."

Faith dipped her tongue in his belly button before looking up at him.

"Are you sure this is what you want to happen between us? This isn't a dream." His voice was low.

"Yes, it is always what I have wanted." Her voice was thick with her desire but, the clarity of her words snapped his will power.

"Me too," Giles said as he pulled Faith up his body. Kissing her breathless, he helped her shimmy out of her shorts. As soon as they were gone his fingers began to explore the triangle of curls at the vee of her thighs.

Faith tugged on the waistband of his pants trying to remove the hindrance. She soon found herself frustrated with the turn of events. He was free to touch her body as he pleased. Faith lost her train of thought as Giles fingers slipped into her weeping core.

Giles could feel Faith tugging at the waistband of his pajama bottoms. He broke the kiss and let go of her. Faith sat up on the bed as he pulled away.

"What?" Her mind was a fog as she watched him undo his bottoms.

Once he was naked he looked up at Faith to see her crawling across the bed toward him licking her lips. Even if he had wanted to he couldn't form a coherent thought once she wrapped her lips around his throbbing cock. Threading his fingers in her hair and he pulled her head back.

  "Now, none of that or this will be over before it starts," he stated firmly

Faith backed up and lay down on the bed, spreading her legs wide. She looked up at Giles, her eyes dark with desire. "Come show me what this is then," her voice soft and sultry.

Giles needed no more encouragement then that. He rested himself between her legs, placing his engorged cock at her entrance. He reached up and held her face in his hands, losing himself in her eyes as he sank his member home.

They both moaned their satisfaction as he sunk home for the first time. Releasing her face he lifted himself up on his forearms and began a rhythm. They greedily explored each other bodies; bringing each other pleasure until Giles felt Faith's walls fluttering around him as she sunk her nails into his back. He didn't realize it was a distraction until he landed softly on his back. He looked up at Faith. She smiled as she ran her fingers down his chest.

"I need more than soft love," she said as she ran her fingers down the same path on his chest, this time raising welts where her nails dug into the skin.

Giles surged up as Faith broke the skin on his chest. He knew that Faith would accept him as Giles and Ripper; something he had never found before. Jenny had not been able to accept what he had been in the past. Faith would. Giles smiled a pure Ripper smile as he flipped him and Faith over.

"Okay little girl." Giles whispered before he plunged his cock into her weeping core. His touch was no longer gentle. They both needed to find their release. His motions became more aggressive. Now that he knew what she needed, he could certainly give it to her.

Faith could feel the change in Giles. He wasn't holding back. He wasn't touching her like she was made of glass. His fingers were more demanding in their pleasurable journey over her body. She knew she was close, so close.

He watched as her head rolled back and her mouth formed a soundless moan. He felt her orgasm as it triggered his and he sunk home one last time before he spilled his seed.

Once they had caught their breath, Giles moved himself to her side and pulled her against him. "I will find a cure for what has happened to you," he whispered in her ear.

Faith could only nod as her eyes filled with tears. He really cared for her. She had finally found what she had been searching for this all time.

`I watched the world float to the dark side of the moon
After all I knew it had to be something to do with you
I really don't mind what happens now and then
As long as you'll be my friend at the end . . .'

~~~*~~~

As Spike's eyes fluttered open they came to rest on the sleeping form of Willow. He couldn't remember what had happened, but knew he was responsible. She looked like she hadn't slept in days. Her face, even in sleep carried a sadness that made his stomach turn. He thought of all the mornings he had woken to the feel of her body pressed against his and known that they were stolen moments.

Willow was something he couldn't explain. He had felt drawn to her from the first moment he had seen her. When something happened in his un-life that he couldn't deal with he would find himself with Willow.  It never failed; when he was down and out he always found himself with Willow: when Dru had left him, even when he found out about his chip he had found her. It never failed.

He thought about the night he had escaped The Initiative. He had had his lips against her neck, tasting the skin, only to find he couldn't turn her. She would have been his queen, not just his princess.  He closed his eyes and thought of the past few months and everything that had happened since the slayer had died.

Spike sat up suddenly and looked around the room. He could feel the familiar tingle of the slayer. There was one in the house, but it wasn't Buffy. Spike stood and moved toward Willow.

"Willow, wake up." He shook her shoulder gently to wake her.

Willow awoke to the shaking of her shoulder. When her eyes opened in search of who was waking her, she found herself looking into the blue eyes of the man she loved. Tears welled up in her eyes and spilled over onto her cheeks.

"Spike?" Willow's voice shook with the emotion that she had stopped feeling the moment Spike hadn't come home.

"Yeah, who else would be waking you in the middle of the night?" he asked.

Willow flung herself into his arms. "No one." The anticipation that had begun to build when they had brought Spike back the night before was now flooding her with relief.

Spike was back. Her Spike was back.

Without a thought, Willow kissed him with all the emotion that she held in her heart for him. She was starting to feel light headed from the lack of air so she broke the kiss. Pulling back she looked into two clearly shocked blue eyes.

"You scared the life out of me. I thought I had lost you." The relief she felt had passed and fresh tears poured from her eyes.

Spike pulled her closer and started whispering comforting words to her as he stroked her hair. He didn't know what had happened,  but one thing he did know was that his Red had just snogged him stupid. Maybe she would still want him around after all.

"Shh, I will always be here for you and Dawn. I wouldn't leave you," he whispered.

"I know. But you did leave me . . . you left me all alone," she sobbed.

"Willow, what happened? The last thing I remember clearly is being in Restfield cemetery." Spike was really confused now. He knew he was missing something, but Willow was behaving like he been gone for weeks and not just found in the cemetery a few hours later.

Willow leaned back to get a better look at him. The blisters that had adorned his skin were barely visible and his body looked as if it had never missed a meal. "You really don't remember?"

"I am not sure. What I do think I remember doesn't make much sense. So tell me what I missed and then I'll tell you what I am hearing right now." Spike couldn't keep the sneer off his face. `The watcher is getting some,' he thought.

Willow smiled. `Yup, that's the Spike I know and love.' She started to move off his lap.

"Where are you going?" he asked as he tightened his grip on her waist. He felt something inside him cringe at the thought of her moving a way from him, even for a moment.

Willow felt the same pull she had felt the night they had found him now surging back to life as she had started to move away from him. Isabelle had been right: the bonding had started. She settled back into his arms as she told him what had happened to him and what was yet to come.

As Willow finished talking she turned her head and Spike reached up to brush her hair out of the way. In doing so he exposed the fresh mark on her neck. The moment he saw it he remembered the taste of her blood on his tongue and the feel of her body in his arms.

Willow felt Spike stiffen beneath her, then relax. Willow turned to look at him. "Is there something wrong?"

"No. Did my chip go off? How did I do it?" His voice held curiosity, but mostly uninhibited joy. He felt his demon surge with pride when he traced his fingers along the mark.

Willow couldn't hide her smile when she heard the happiness in his voice. "No, your chip didn't go off. Hmm . . . I wonder if the magic had something to do with it?"

Spike knew that he hadn't even thought; he had just acted. He had been so close to her so many times and never crossed that line. He would never expect something more from her than she was willing to give. But to see his mark on her throat, and to know what she felt like in his arms, his teeth buried in her neck. Willow had sagged against him, begging his demon for more as she was claimed.

Willow had felt the change in him, but hadn't expected his next move. She was pleasantly surprised to find herself being carried up the stairs to the room they had shared so many times. Willow giggled when he tossed her onto the bed. He turned and locked the door.

"Something funny?" he asked

Willow looked up into his eyes and smiled. "Yeah, I am over here and you are over there."

Willow started to sit up, but Spike moved so fast that the next thing she noticed she was flat on her back with Spike resting between her spread legs, his face buried in the crock of her neck, his tongue exploring the bite mark on her neck.

Willow moaned and trembled as Spike continued to taste her skin. He paused and looked up into her eyes. "Mine."

"Yes," was all the response Willow managed before Spike had stolen her breath with a soul smothering kiss.

Spike broke the kiss leaving Willow gasping for much needed breath as he kissed a path down along her jaw and onto the angle of her creamy collar bone. Willow arched her breasts into his chest as she rolled her head back to give him better access to her willing body.

She ground her pelvis upward creating the friction his harden member needed. Spike growled softly as he leaned into her touch. Never in his un-life had anything felt so right.

Willow had truly been made for him. They were perfectly matched as their bodies moved together.

Neither of them was aware when or how their clothes were removed; just the desperate need for skin on skin had been quenched. Now that they lay before each other void of all barriers, Spike moved between Willow's thighs as she willing offered him entrance.

Spike reached up and cupped Willow's face with one hand while resting the rest of his weight on his other arm.

"I will never leave you again. I promise," Spike stated with conviction as he slipped himself into Willow's core. "I will always stand beside you."

Willow arched her hips up to encourage the movement. There was no need for foreplay; they had both been wanted this for too long as it was. "I need you to love me now. We can talk more later."

Spike smiled as he slowly moved his hips back and then, with the same deliberate movement, sunk home again hitting Willow's sweet spot. His hands wandered over her breasts, bringing her nipples to hard nubs. Spike dipped his mouth down and captured first one pebbled nipple and then the other until Willow was near her peak. He could feel the hum of her body building as he slipped his fingers down and tweaked her clit, snapping the tension in her body and slamming her full force into her orgasm.

Without stopping her movements Willow bared his bite mark to him. Spike's face shifted without a second thought and sunk his fangs into her delicate neck.

Willow felt Spike shutter as he spilled his seed into her waiting womb. He didn't take too much blood, just enough to push him over the edge. Once he had control of his body he rolled off of Willow and pulled her against his side. Willow snuggled against him as he spread the blanket from the floor over their intertwined bodies.

"I love you," Willow whispered as she drifted back to sleep.

Spike turned to look at her as she said the words. No one had ever said them to him like that before. When Willow had sleepily declared her feelings, he knew she meant them just as they were said, honestly. Spike couldn't keep the smile from his face as he drifted off. For the first time in a very long time he was looking forward to the next day.

~~~*~~~

Everyone had settled into the new routine. Spike and Willow couldn't seem to keep their hands off each other. `They are almost as bad as Xander and Anya now.' Dawn thought as she watched them on the couch. Isabelle had explained that it was the bond that kept the need to be close so present in their minds. It would fade a little with time. Dawn went into the kitchen to fix a snack and saw that the basement door was closed as well `Well, then what is Giles and Faith's excuse?' she thought as she made her snack. It didn't really matter anymore. She was gonna have more of a family than she had thought was possible when Buffy had died. Dawn went back into the front room to watch some TV until Xander and Anya came to pick her up so she could watch them making out instead.

~~~*~~~

Amelia stood in the shadows watching the activity inside the house. She had waited for almost a week; just watching, no more. Tonight she was going to make her move. She had waited until the brunette haired boy and his girlfriend had taken the younger dark- haired girl and gone out. Not that it mattered whether they lived or died, but three less people to deal with couldn't hurt.

Now all she had to do was get the attention of those who were left in the house. Amelia smiled as she weaved a spell in the air. A small ball of magic appeared, and when Amelia couldn't hold it any more she released it towards the front window. On impact it exploded the window.

Spike was the first one out the front door, followed closely by Faith and Giles. As soon as Spike laid eyes on Amelia he wanted to kill her, to tear her part for all the pain she had caused. His demon screamed for retribution for the crimes against him, instinct told him this was his captor.

"What do you want?" Spike hissed as he descended the stairs intent on doing what he was just thinking about.

"What I have always wanted," Amelia answered back. Her face shimmered ever so slightly as she struggled to control her temper.

"Spike," Giles called "I think I know what she is."

"What?" Spike let annoyance show in his voice.

"She is a Viijean demon," Giles stated proudly.

"What in the bloody hell is that?" Spike demanded

"Well, there is only one on record, but it is a demon that is created, through a ritual, out of other demons or anyone who practices the black arts, and whose function is to carry out just one purpose. Each demon had to sacrifice a portion of themselves in order for this ritual to work. She was made with one goal and will continue to go after that goal until she is dead," Giles stated. "I am not sure who would have done this, but they must have feared what The Pair being formed might mean."

"Yeah," Spike said only half listening to the watcher, making sure not to look away from Amelia. "Kill her, I know this part."

"Spike," Willow called from the porch.

"It is okay Red. Just go back into the house." As soon as he had heard Willow's voice something inside of him went on like a light. He could sense Willow's movements as she walked towards him onto the grass without even turning to look her way. He could feel the anger and concern rolling off her. He knew this was just the beginning; it would only get stronger as the bond between them grew. They were inside of each other now.

"No," Willow said as she stepped up beside him. "I will always be right here by your side."

Spike reached out and took Willow's hand.

As the exchange between Willow and Spike went on, Isabelle quietly slipped around behind Amelia. Chanting softly she laid the Dansing Sphere on the ground. The sphere began to glow. Isabelle was trying desperately to build enough magic to pull Amelia into the sphere when out of nowhere a fist knocked her to the ground.

Willow saw the minion hit Isabelle and she moved toward her great-aunt, leaving Spike to deal with Amelia.

Willow moved up behind the minion and started a spell to create a ball of fire she could throw at him. The minion sensed Willow behind him and turned to face her.

"What ya got there little girl?" he asked as he grabbed for her wrist.

Seeing his movement Willow backed away from him, towards Amelia. The minion stepped closer in an attempt to push Willow even closer to its master. The minion stepped forward and pushed Willow to the ground. When he reached for her again she touched his arm with the hand that had held the forming fire ball.

The minion stepped back and screamed with horror as his arm dissipated in a matter of seconds, Willow was showered with dust as the rest of the minion wasted away. Amelia was desperate; things were falling apart faster than she could fix them. She needed a way to insure her own safety. When she heard her minion's scream, she turned and saw Willow on the ground just a few feet away. Amelia made her move. She closed the distance between the two of them and grabbed Willow, pulling her up off the ground.

Willow felt cold fingers grasp her arm as claws dug into her skin. She turned to face her captor, only to find Amelia's half contorted face as the creature began morphing back into her demon form.

"I am going to feast on your innocence. It will hurt Isabelle all the more; I'll have Jonathan for myself and your blood on my hands," Amelia hissed as she finished changing.

"Willow!" Isabelle cried and Faith rushed forward toward Amelia. Since Amelia had returned to her demon state she was strong enough to knock Faith down and unconscious.

Isabelle's weakened state left her too far away to be of any assistance. Giles was too preoccupied with his lover's welfare to notice that Isabelle was unable to help.

"Spike," Willow cried as she felt Amelia's claws dig into her throat.

Isabelle knew time was running out; she was fading . . . which meant that Jonathan should be returning for her. Isabelle had to make sure Willow lived in order to balance Spike's new position as one half of The Pair. She knew that this was the only reason that Spike's body had accepted Jonathan; Spike was meant to wield Jonathan's powers.

All those years ago Isabelle had assumed that, despite their inability to control their collective powers, she and Jonathan were destined to hold the position as The Pair. But now she realized that they were only holding them for Spike and Willow. Those two would do great things together. Isabelle prepared herself for a spell to remove Willow from Amelia's grasp, only to find she was too weak to complete it.

"Just one last spell, please . . ." Isabelle whispered as she crumpled to the ground. "Take from those who mean harm, Give to those who offer protection," Isabelle chanted softly as she touched her own forehead. A small bead of light formed in the spot Isabelle had touched. "I release from within, the powers that be. To you I give what was always meant to be yours, Willow."

As soon as her words were finished there was a flash of light that shot from Isabelle's forehead to Willow. The beam of light quickly wrapped itself around the younger woman from her toes to her finger tips, swallowing her in a blaze of light. The flash was so bright it caused Amelia to release Willow and shove her backwards as Willow's skin began to heat as the magic infused with her body.

Spike stepped up behind Amelia, wrapping one arm around her waist. Amelia backed into him as she tried to clear her eyes from the blast of light that was surrounding Willow.

Spike's free hand slithered up her abdomen and across her chest in sensual movement. His hand came to rest on Amelia's delicate throat, under her chin. Since she never turned to look at his eyes, she had no idea that she was in danger . . . until his grip tightened on her throat in a painful manner. Then her eyes snapped to his and she found the two black holes of one channeling magic glaring back at her.

"What?" Amelia croaked as she struggled to breathe, forcing her shift back into the form of a woman. Amelia realized too late that Jonathan was gone. Spike leaned in and kissed her pale lips. Her body began to hum as the magic poured from Spike into her. Spike broke the kiss and placed his free hand on her chest right above her collar bone.

"Amelia, listen to me. You are and were nothing. I want you to know that Jonathan was happy with Isabelle. Then you jerked him out of the sphere. This is where I draw the line. You will die. I won't let you interfere with us any more. You will never affect anything again," Spike said his contempt evident in his voice.

Amelia's body jerked as the magic pushed its way into her veins. Acting like a poison it soured everything in its path. Suddenly her body swelled as blood began to pour from her eyes, mouth and nose. Her chest suddenly expanded as her heart exploded.  Spike released Amelia, dropping her to the ground. The creature lay lifeless, crumbled at Spike's feet.

Spike closed his eyes. He hadn't felt this powerful in a long time. The magic hummed in his ears and clouded his mind with the intoxicating images of death and destruction; something that had been robbed from him by his chip. He sneered as Amelia's body crumbled into a pile of smoking ash.

"What was that?" Willow panicked voice sounded, snapping Spike back to reality.

Spike looked up to find Willow's eyes filled with tears. "I was only protecting you." One look into Willow's eyes and he knew how to control all the power that was within him. His love for her would be a guide for him from here on out. He knew that whatever happened in this world, Willow was his line in the sand, the something he could never cross.

"Is that what the bond will do to you?" Willow asked, her eyes filled with regret.

Isabelle stepped forward to touch Spike's cheek. "You have done well. You have shown that you are strong enough to handle the magic inside of you. We must finish this."

Isabelle grasped Spike's hand and then turned to Willow reaching out for hers. "I never meant for any of this. You will never know how much this saddens me. I hope for your sake child you are right, that the two of you will be strong enough to withstand the bond." Isabelle then clasped Willow's hand tightly. "I am sorry, I had time to adjust to this; you will not. Be prepared for what will be."

With that Isabelle gave Willow's hand to Spike. A ball of light suddenly consumed the three. You could hear a whispered `good- bye' as Isabelle faded from the circle and floated upwards to intertwine with Jonathan and then they faded away. The ball of light drew Willow and Spike upwards and consumed completely.

Giles helped Faith to stand, checking the wound on her forehead. They both stood and watched as the light grew brighter and brighter. Willow and Spike hung in the air as tiny flames danced over their bodies until they heard a popping noise and the ball of magic fire shattered into a thousand pieces,  dropping Spike and Willow to the ground. Spike held Willow tightly in his arms, his eyes wide and black as Willow clung to him.

Faith stepped forward into the shower of light and reached for Willow. "Willow?"

Willow's head jerked her eyes up to meet Faith's gaze only to reveal two pools of glowing light that held a thousand dancing flames, just like the light that had consumed her and Spike, making them The Pair. Faith stumbled backward, her eyes still locked with Willow's.

`I watched the world float to the dark side of the moon
After all I knew it had to be something to do with you
I really don't mind what happens now and then
As long as you'll be my friend at the end

If I go crazy than will you still call me Superman?
If I am alive and well, will you be there to holding my hand?
I'll keep you by my side with my superhuman might
Kryptonite . . .'

The end

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