Cherish The Day
Chapter Three
Giles, Willow and Tara opened Spike’s crypt door and slowly walked inside.
Spike was sitting on his chair with a half bottle of vodka held lazily in his hand. Some Bach played lowly on his stereo.
"Took you all long enough to get here." Spike grumbled, taking a swig from the bottle.
"We need to know exactly what happened?" Giles practically gasped out
"Where’s her body?" Willow asked her voice cracking slightly.
"There is no body. She’s just gone." He sputtered out.
"What the hell does that mean? WHAT HAPPENED? What did you do?" Giles shouted at Spike hauling the drunken vampire off of the chair.
"Giles, stop it. I want to know." Willow squeaked out.
Giles let go of the vampire, who flopped back down in his chair.
Spike took one last gulp, emptying the bottle of the harsh liquid. He looked at the bottle puzzled.
"What happened? Spike, tell us." Willow pleaded. Giles pulled Willow into a hug as she began to cry again.
Spike threw the bottle across the crypt. The shattering glass sounded beautiful to his ears. For the past five hours he had only heard Buffy’s last cries as she slipped into the vortex.
‘Spike, don’t let me go! Please, Spike.’
‘Buffy, please just hold on I won’t let you go.’
"But I did." He whispered.
The vortex got stronger sucking her in; her hand slicked with sweat began to slip from his own. The look of terror in her eyes. That look would haunt him forever.
Spike held his hands over his ears, slumped over, and began to cry. Willow and Giles looked at the vampire in shock, as he openly wept in front of them. Tara reached for Spike who hugged her waist in desperation.
"They...opened a portal an...and she got sucked in a-and I couldn’t save her. It w-was too powerful." Spike cried as Tara stroked his hair.
"Who?" Giles asked.
"Ara...kor demons. Some rit...ual I w-walked in on go...going back to my crypt. She was soo...scared. And I c-couldn’t do any...thing."
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After Willow had gone to sleep, Tara crept out into the night. She needed to see Spike explain to him what was going to happen but she couldn’t let the others know, until she was sure. She walked briskly to the storage unit a couple of blocks away where she held some of her mothers witchcraft books. She reached there in a matter of minutes and rummaged through the boxes. She found the book of Izaris and read the passage about the Arakor. The Witch absurd the word and felt sick to her stomach..
“It would be wrong, if they knew. It’s better for them to think that she’s dead. It’s better that they not know what’s to come.”
But she needed to find Spike, and talk to him. He was the only she could tell. She grabbed the book and ran back to the dorm.