Acknowledgements: First and foremost, I have to send kudos to Zafra. She was my Beta Reader, but more than that, she helped give me the confidence to actually post this thing. Thank you Zafra, you're the best :)

Synopsis: This story takes place sometime after "The Gift". I know,I know, 'Unoriginal much?' That's OK. It's just my first story. Buffy has been back for quite a while, and she and Spike have just about settled into their new found friendship. I'm a huge S/B shipper, so Angel fans be warned. And for some reason known only to TPTB, Xander and Anya are suspiciously missing any dialogue whatsoever. I like them, really I do. Feedback is highly desirable, brutal honesty is greatly appreciated. And yes, I am a rambler. :)

************

The night started like any other for Buffy. A quick patrol alone, then over to Spike's crypt for a more thorough search of the surrounding cemeteries and neighborhoods. Tonight they were going to clear out a vampire nest she had been needing to get to. A big one by all reports, it wouldn't be easy. The rest of the gang was out of town except Giles, and he was busy researching something he wouldn't explain to her. All he said was that they were going to need all the preparation they could get if his suspicions were right, and he would tell her about it when he was more sure.

So it was up to her and Spike to deal with the nest. She always felt better when Spike was with her. They worked well together… no, great together, a team so in sync they didn't need to speak. Patrolling with Spike was never quiet though, and that was another thing she liked about him. He was both smart and funny, and it showed in the one-liners and scalding remarks he dished out to the vampires they fought. He made patrolling almost, fun.

She smiled as she neared his crypt. They had come to an understanding the night they fought Glory. He had said he knew she'd never love him, and she believed it. If there was one thing she was sure about, it was that Spike was truthful with her.

Buffy burst through the door as usual "Ready Spike?"

He was bent over the coffin he used as a bed, with one foot resting on it as he tied the laces of his boot. "Alright, keep your pants on. I'm almost ready." He hadn't looked up at her yet. He finished with his boot and went to get his coat as Buffy stood mock impatiently tapping one foot.

When Spike turned towards her, ready to go, she gasped slightly at his face. His right eye was nearly swollen shut and his lower lip was cut. "What happened to you?"

Spike shrugged and walked past her to the door "Nothing much. Just zigged when I shoulda zagged." He looked back at her with a shy smile.

She suddenly realized without being told what had happened. "You went after them by yourself didn't you."

Spike took a defensive stance and looked her straight in the eye, "Not that it's any business of yours, but yea. Figured I'd help you out by reducing their numbers a bit, make tonight easier for us."

"Easier? How do you figure it's gonna be easier for us with you all beaten up? Look at you. You'll never see them coming on your right side."

"All beaten up?!" Spike said indignantly. "I'm not 'beaten up'. I'm just… slightly… minorly, injured. And I will too see them coming. I am a vampire you know?" he smiled seductively at her "I do have certain… abilities." She quickly smacked him upside the head on his right side. "OW!"

"And blocking an attack on your right, is apparently NOT one of them. At least not tonight." Buffy brushed past him. "Looks like you're strictly backup tonight." They left with Spike holding the side of his head, looking like a disciplined puppy.

************

To say that the abandoned warehouse was silent would be a gross overstatement. It was deathly silent. There were no crickets, no dripping water, nothing. Buffy and Spike's footsteps echoed loudly off the bare walls. The cement floor was covered in a layer of dust. Cobwebs hung everywhere; from the rafters high overhead, across the forgotten manufacturing equipment, and over the broken windows. It was dark and dank, and looked as if it hadn't been visited in ages.

Buffy looked around in suspicious confusion. "Are you sure this is where they were?"

Spike hung back eyeing the dark corners on the far side of the huge room. "They were here alright. Still are by my guess."

She turned to see were he was looking. At first there was nothing, just a dark doorway on the far left side, cobwebs hanging across it and boxes stacked a story high next to it. She squinted at the doorway trying to see past it in the blackness. Then something caught her eye. She redirected her gaze to the left, at the small space between the boxes and wall. Two small yellow eyes peered back at her then disappeared as the creature quickly retreated… into the wall? Buffy wasn't sure she had seen it right. She and Spike walked slowly around the equipment and headed toward the dark corner.

As she approached it she realized there was another, smaller doorway there, hidden by the boxes and darkness. She started towards it but Spike held her back. "Not that way luv." He whispered to her. "That's how they got the jump on me before." He nodded back the other way and she followed his lead. He took them out a window and around a small shed, towards the back of the building.

The back of the building was a mess, to say the least. Once a storage yard for broken equipment, now the forest had taken over. Thick with trees and underbrush Buffy knew combat would be difficult if not impossible in there. There had to be some way to draw them out, get them to go back into the building where they wouldn't be able to hide. She looked back the way they'd come.

As if reading her mind Spike answered her in a hushed whisper. "Won't work, I've already tried it. They know they have the advantage in that, swamp, and they're not about to give it up."

Swamp? Buffy had thought it more like a woodsy area till she looked down and noticed how wet and squishy the ground was. They were a few feet from the tree line. If it got any wetter in there, 'swamp' was definitely the right word. "OK then smarty," She whispered back, "What do we do?"

"I don't know, You're the powerful Slayer." He grinned at her "Maybe if you scare them with your terrifying reputation they'll make a run for it."

"Ha, Ha. Very funny Spike." She looked back at the trees and suddenly she had an idea. She turned back to Spike with a smile on her face. "Actually, Spike…"

"Uh, oh. What'd I say. I didn't mean it whatever it was." Spike knew he wasn't going to like whatever Buffy had in mind for him. He also knew he would do it anyway, just because she asked him too.

************

The small clearing was empty of vampires, but they were nearby. Watching from the trees, they were just waiting for the two in the warehouse to step in. Then they'd jump on them and have a nice dinner. Their lookout had come back from the building a few minutes ago to report there were only two of them, and one was a young girl. The other was the vampire they had easily dealt with last night. With 5 of them here and 3 more of their friends coming back any minute, the vampires were sure it would be a short fight.

Suddenly they heard a terrified scream coming from the side of the building. Confused, the vampires watched as a bruised and bleeding vampire stumbled into the clearing. "No! No, please no more!" he turned to flee and tripped on a root. Nearly falling into a large dark puddle, the vampire closest to him pulled him back just in time. Spike screamed, still trying to run from whatever was chasing him. "No! Let me go!"

Annoyed, the vampire turned Spike around and yelled in his face "What is your problem? We haven't done anything to you yet. What are you so afraid of?"

"The Slayer! The Slayer is going to kill me! Please, let me go!" The vampire let him go and Spike ran screaming into the woods the opposite way from which he'd come. The other vampires came out of the trees and watched him go. They looked at each other then back towards the building.

The branches rustled briefly, and out stepped a young girl in shorts and t-shirt, with leaves in her messy ponytail. "Ok, who wants to die first?"

"Who the hell are you, girl?" The first vampire asked.

"I'm the Slayer." The Vampires burst out laughing. Buffy stared for a moment. Realizing this may work better than she'd thought.

"The Slayer!? Ha! You're no slayer, girl. We've heard about the Slayer. She's terrifying, unstoppable… and a hell of a lot tougher than you look." He looked her up and down hungrily. "You? Why you just look… tasty." They had managed to stop laughing by this point and were slowly walking towards her, over confident in their ability to take her.

Buffy faked a scared look "How many of you are there?" She looked at the surrounding woods worriedly.

"Just us baby. Good thing too. Little thing like you would hardly be an appetizer for any more than 5 vampires." He smiled menacingly at her, showing his sharp teeth.

"Well, I guess I'll have to do." Suddenly she lunged at the first vampire and staked him before anyone knew what was happening. "Oh, that was way too easy." She looked at the remaining four who stood looking at her in shock. "I thought you guy were supposed to be tough."

"Y, y, you're the, the Slayer?!"

"Well Duh! I thought I just went over this with you guys." She braced herself for another lunge. One of the vampires attacked her while the other three ran into the darkness. Spike was there, however, and held out both arms, and clothes-lined two at once.

He looked at the two vampires lying on the ground in front of him and smiled. "Well, well, we meet again." They tried to get up to run, but Spike was too fast for them. "Now don't be running off before I've had my fun." He grabbed one vamp by the back of his jacked and tripped the other. He staked the first and kicked the second in the ribs. "Come on now. Don't make this too easy for me. I have a reputation to uphold, after all."

The vampire stood up, fists ready. "I may not be able to take on the Slayer, but you're just a ordinary vampire. I'll enjoy killing you." He was trying to sound tough but Spike knew better.

Spike sniffed at him. "What's that?" He sniffed again as the vampire looked around confused. "Do I smell… fear?" Realizing he'd been had the vampire lunged at, Spike, angrily. Spike easily ducked out of the way and staked him in the back.

As the dust settled Spike looked up to see how Buffy was doing with her one vamp. Suddenly he realized there were actually 3 of them, and Buffy was barely holding her own. "What? Where did you come from?" He charged towards them, and as one was thrown backwards towards him by Buffy, he punched him in the small of his back. Spike spun him around and punched him twice in the face. "Not nice ganging up on my girl like that." He quickly staked him and turned to get another.

Buffy had been too busy with the vampires in front of her to even notice Spikes approach, but when he said 'my girl' her ears perked up and she realized help had arrived. Not to let him get away with anything, she teasingly warned him while trading blows with the 2 vamps left. "I heard that Spike."

"I know, I know, I'm sorry. You're not my girl." He stepped up to one of the vamps and punched him in the back. As he turned toward Spike his face met with several punches then a knee in the stomach. as the vampire dropped to one knee, Spike spoke close to his ear, "She really can be touchy sometimes."

"I… heard… that… too." She stated between punches to her vamps face. She then kicked him in the stomach, sending him flying backward right into a tree. As he slid to a heap at the base of the tree, Buffy turned to Spike who was just staking his vamp. "You know Spike, when we get out of here, we're gonna have a little talk about …"

She didn't get to finish her sentence as the vampire she had thought was out of commission, shoved her into a huge black puddle where she landed face down in the mud.

Spike silently cursed himself for not paying better attention and advanced on the vampire. Laughing hysterically at Buffy, he never saw Spike until it was too late. As the stake pierced his heart he managed to smile at Spike before turning to dust. With a confused look on his face he spoke to Buffy "He smiled at me. What's that all about? You don't just smile at the person staking you. It's… rude." He looked down at Buffy.

She sat in the middle of a huge puddle, mud covering her face and entire length of her body. She looked up at Spike and warned him "Don't you dare laugh."

Spike managed to keeep his face perfectly straight. "Laugh at you pet? Never." He reached out a hand to help her up. Just as she took his hand a small giggle escaped his lips. Buffy got a wicked look on her face and yanked on Spike's arm sending him into the pit with her. He landed face down also, though managed to brace himself enough to not completely cover his face as Buffy had.

As he slowly sat up and looked at her, she burst out laughing, "Now that is funny!" She laughed and laughed as Spike sat there looking at her, nodding his head with a smile on his face. When she calmed down a bit and looked over at him, he flicked a bit of mud at her which landed on the only clean spot on her face. "Why you…" The mischievous look in her eyes told him this was gonna be fun.

As Buffy picked up a huge handful of mud and drew her arm back to hit him with it he lunged for her arm and sent them both flying backwards. An all-out mud fight ensued with compromising positions taken occasionally, on both their parts. When it was over they were both laughing and breathing hard. Buffy and Spike both had a handful of mud poised to throw when Buffy called out "Truce!"

Spike paused and looked at her questioningly. "Really?" Weighing his decision, he looked at her with his head tilted to one side. Even covered in mud she was beautiful to him. "Why should I trust you?"

"Because I trust you." Realizing the double meaning in what she just said, she lowered her arm and looked seriously at him.

Spike lowered his as well and they looked at each other in comfortable silence for a moment. "Alright then. Truce." He stood up carefully in the slippery mud and reached out to take her hand. He helped her up and together they left the clearing.

************

They walked along the streets together as friends, enjoying each other's company. They laughed at each other's appearance and talked over how the battle went. They agreed it had been much easier than either one of them had anticipated. When they reached Buffy's house he continued to follow her up the front steps. Buffy stopped and faced him blocking his way. "Where do you think you're going?"

"Um… I was going in the house?" Spike couldn't believe she had a problem with him being there again.

"Well you can't. I'm going to take a shower." Buffy crossed her arms at him.

"And well you should. You're a mess." He said with a smile.

She smiled back "Yea, well you're not that pretty to look at yourself."

"Which, is exactly why I was going in the house." She looked blankly at him He sighed "Shower." He pointed with both hands at his own mud covered self.

"Not in my house. Go take a shower in your crypt…" She realized it probably didn't have a shower, "… or where ever it is you usually shower."

"I would pet, but my crypt doesn't have indoor plumbing, and the Y is closed for remodeling. They shut off the water supply, so I can't even break in to take one. Looks like your house is the only available shower around."

"Fine. You can shower here… just wait on the back porch till I get done first." She turned to go inside.

"Back porch?" Spike didn't get it.

"You're muddier than I am, and I don't want you dripping that mud all over the house, while you wait for me to finish my shower. I'll come tell you when I'm done." She walked in the house and shut the door.

Spike watched her leave and muttered to himself "Dam, and here I was hoping you'd want to take one with me." He smiled to himself and went round back to wait.

By the time Buffy came out on the porch, she didn't have to worry about Spike dripping mud anywhere. It had dried to a hard crust all over him. She stopped in the doorway when she saw him and burst out laughing again. "Very funny." He grinned at her as the mud on his face cracked some more. "May I please come in now?"

"No. First lets get as much of that stuff off you as we can. If you go in the shower like that you'll clog up the pipes for sure." She walked towards him still smirking, and began brushing the dried mud off his back.

Together they managed to get most of it off. As they walked in the back door Buffy talked over her shoulder to him. "Towels are in the linen closet next to the bathroom, and Giles keeps a change of clothes in the guest bedroom closet, for when he sits for Dawn."

"Spike stopped and looked at her disbelievingly. "You're not suggesting I actually wear Giles clothes?"

She turned toward him. "What's wrong with that?"

"Have you even seen how the man dresses?"

"You're not exactly GQ material yourself. Look, you can use our washer and dryer if you want, so you'll only have to torture yourself for an hour or so." Every minute of which I can delight in your discomfort for once. Buffy grinned at the idea of him being at her sharp witted mercy for that long.

He crossed his arms and frowned at her. "Not bloody likely."

"It's your choice." Buffy shrugged. "Nice clean Giles clothes, or…" She looked him over and wrinkled her nose at him.

He looked down and gave a big sigh. "Fine." He turned and headed defeated up the stairs.

Buffy went to check her messages and was surprised to find 7 of them, all from Giles. The last one was just finishing when Spike came downstairs. "…I'm afraid this will be quite dangerous Buffy. Worse than I had originally thought. Please call me as soon as you get in. We really must begin working on a defense as soon as possible. Um… goodbye."

"He sounds worried." Buffy jumped at the sound of Spikes voice. She turned to see him standing in the doorway, with a mildly concerned expression. He was dressed in Giles kaki pants, light blue shirt, and sweater vest. She smiled slightly as she realized how normal he looked without all that black.

He noticed her expression and shifted to a defensive state. "Don't say a bloody word." He threatened with a growl.

She took a step towards him, and scrutinized every inch. "I was just going to say… you look… nice." She wanted to make him squirm but she just couldn't do it. He looked to damn good. His hair was still wet and as a drip threatened to roll off the end of his nose, she instinctively reached up and gently wiped it away. Surprised at her own actions, and nervous at the closeness of Spike's body to hers, she looked into his eyes. She had never noticed how beautiful his blue eyes were, or maybe she had, but had been so busy hating him she had ignored it. They were so close she could feel his breath on her face. It was intoxicating, being this close to him; looking into his eyes, smelling the clean sent of his skin.

He stepped ever so closer to her and looked longingly at her mouth. "Should we call him back?" He wanted nothing more than to kiss her now, but knew she would hate him for it. Or would she? He looked back to her eyes and thought he saw a similar longing in them. Maybe…

Buffy stepped back and reached for the phone "Good idea. We should know why Giles was so upset." She breathed a sigh of relief as she dialed Giles number. That was too close for her. What was she thinking anyway? They had an understanding, a truce. She trusted him with her life and with Dawns'. She knew she could rely on him and count on him for anything. He was a friend. An unusual friend - but just a friend. But when he was that close to her…

Giles answered the phone quickly "Buffy? Thank God you called. Where have you been?"

As Spike watched Buffy talking on the phone he tried to bring his emotions under control. His mind was racing. This had been a strange night to start out, but was getting weirder by the second. They had patrolled hundreds of times and wiped out many vamp nests since Buffy came back from the dead. She had been smiling more and more at him, trading jokes, enjoying his company, yet never had she shown any kind of reaction to him as she had tonight.

She glanced at him briefly then turned her back to him as she continued talking to Giles. Surprised, Spike stared at her back. The look in her eyes just now…he was right. He hadn't been sure of what he felt from her a minute ago, but now he knew. She wanted him. Spike you idiot, he chided himself. She was right there, inches from you, her defenses down, wanting you, and you blew it. You had one bleedin' chance and you lost it. She'll never look at you that way again. You were so sure she just saw you as a friend you never thought it would even be possible for her to want you like that. Arrg! What have you done.

Buffy hung up the phone and turned to Spike with a look of fear on her face. It was a look Spike rarely saw and it worried him. "Buffy?"

"We'd better get to the Magic Box." She turned to go out the front door and Spike followed closely behind her. Whatever had Buffy so worried, Spike knew that it was gonna make any chance of exploring what had almost happened between them impossible for now. He pushed lusty, hopeful thoughts out of his head and followed her silently.

************

When they arrived at the Magic box they were surprised to see Tara and Willow at the table With Giles.

"Will, Tara, When did you get back? I thought your camping trip was supposed to last all week?" Buffy sat next to Willow, and Spike went around the table to sit on the stairs.

"It was, but duty called us back. Duty with a British accent." Willow nodded at Giles then did a double take on Spike. "Um, Spike?" She looked at his clothes and suppressed a giggle.

"Don't say it. Don't say a bloody word. I'm warning you." Spike did look serious. His dour expression made him even more Giles like. As the girls looked back and forth from Spike, frowning at them, and Giles with his nose buried in a huge book, they could no longer contain themselves and collapsed in a fit of giggles.

Giles heard the commotion and looked up. "What? Oh, Buffy, Spike, you're here. Good, we can get started." He set the book down and picked up a smaller yet still large book and laid it open in front of him. "As I said on the phone…" He looked at Spike again and frowned. "What, in God's name, possessed you to wear my clothes?"

Buffy struggled to keep a straight face. "We, um, we kinda ran into a little problem dealing with that vamps' nest I told you about."

Giles frowned at Spike again.

"I don't like this any more than you do. It was her idea!" He pointed at Buffy who had managed to calm herself.

"Well it was either that or one of moms old dresses." She looked at Willow and they burst out laughing again at the image.

Giles sighed. "Yes, alright, well let's just put this behind us. We have higher priorities to deal with." He sat at the table and paged through the book. "I came across a prophesy that I thought I should have a better look at."

"Because it mentioned the Slayer, right?" Buffy tried to get a look at the page Giles had opened to but it was in a strange language. Figures, she thought. She sat back and readied herself for a Giles story.

"Right. It stated that The Chosen one would be forced to face her fears in order to defeat a powerful demon, before it was able to destroy the earth."

"Oh goodie. Another apocalypse prophesy. I just love those don't you?" Spike smiled sarcastically at Buffy, who grinned in response.

"Yes. Well, it could be called that I suppose." Giles turned back to the book and searched for a passage "Ah here it is. 'When day becomes night, the powers will be released, and those who walk in dreams will have free reign. Their only bane will be their most treasured prize, The Chosen One will give them prantach.'"

"I'll give them what?"

"Prantach, it means roughly, invincibility." Giles braced himself.

"Invincibility? Why would I give them invincibility? You didn't mention that part on the phone, Giles." Buffy was really worried now.

"Yes. Well, sorry. Um…" He looked back to the book and scanned back a page. "'In dreams they stalk their prey, feeding on the souls of those they claim. The dreams of pure light turned to pure dark, from which there is only one escape.' I, I believe that means death." Giles closed the book and waited for the questions to start. He was supprised when Spike spoke up.

"So what you're saying… is that this demon twists your pleasant dreams into nightmares, scares the soul right out of you, and uses it to grow stronger. And since the Slayer here is the strongest soul of all, getting her will make them invincible?" Everyone stared at him in shock. "Am I right?"

Giles couldn't believe he had understood so well. "Yes. Exactly. Um, how did you know that?"

"Hey, I may be a vampire, but I'm not stupid." Spike sat back feeling proud he'd been the one to figure it out so quickly.

Buffy was the first to recover. "So how do we fight him? I mean he has to have a weakness right?"

"Them actually. It states that there are 4 demons, representing the 4 corners of the Earth." Giles smiled grimly at her.

"Great. Ok so what's their weakness?"

"Giles, tell her about the timing." Willow turned to Buffy. "You're gonna love this even more." She said sarcastically.

Giles cleared his throat "Well, it seems that the 'When day becomes night' part is actually referring to a total solar eclipse, that will happen tomorrow."

"Oh, yea. I heard about that on the news last night. I figured it might bring extra nasties out of hiding, especially the vampire kind." Buffy glanced at Spike. They had talked briefly about tomorrow and how vampires would be able to walk around as the moon blocked the sun. That was why they had decided to wipe out the vampire nest that night. The rumors about it had apparently exaggerated the number and strength of the vamps in that nest though.

"Th, there's m, more though." Tara hated her stutter and took a deep breath in an effort to calm herself. "According to the p, prophesy, The Chosen One can only be k, killed at the exact height of the eclipse, or it won't work for them."

Willow smiled at her. "Right. And you have to kill them moments before that or… well… or you can't really kill them."

"Huh?"

"It's like this luv, These…" Spike looked back at Giles "What are they called?"

"Dream Killers." Spike looked at him unbelievingly. Giles reopened the book and offered it to him. "That is the closest translation I could come up with for an unpronounceable name. Unless you'd like to try…"

Spike turned back to Buffy "Right then. These Dream Killers don't really exist fully in our dimension. They're kind of in the doorway, between us and the realm of our dreams. If you tried to kill them at any old time it would only wound them and send them back into the dream realm. But when the Eclipse happens it allows them to fully exist here in the waking realm, so if you kill them here, they really die." Spike, looked up to see Giles once again staring in amazement. Spike sat back with a proud smile on his face.

"Exactly." Giles picked up a paper on the table. "While they're in between worlds they're very susceptible to physical damage. When the eclipse happens however, they become stronger, capable of sustaining more damage. Then, once the soul of the Chosen One is taken, they will be… invincible. Up until that point… ah, between the start of the eclipse and it's height… Their defenses are, incredible speed, being able to hide in shadows, and causing hallucinations."

"But until then they're killable right? I mean we can stake them, behead them, run them through the gut with a spear, and they'll die, right?" Buffy wanted to hear something positive. A way to kill them; not how hard they are to kill.

"Yes. A, any of those will kill them, if done after the beginning of the eclipse."

"But before they get to me." Buffy didn't like the thought of being in the grips of some nightmare-causing demon. "Exactly how long is that, anyway?"

"Well the eclipse is supposed to last exactly 4 minutes, from 11:58 to 12:02, so the Height is… at noon." Willow looked at Giles with concern. "We'll have exactly 2 minutes from the start of the eclipse to find them and kill them. That's not much time."

"Actually I believe it's more than enough time." Giles looked at Buffy "I believe we won't have to look for them. They will find you the moment the eclipse starts, if not before. All we need to do is stay close to you and attack them the instant they appear."

"And if they don't appear? What if they can do whatever mojo on me from a distance? You said they could blend with shadows and cause hallucinations, right? What if they stay back hidden in the shadows and send me my nightmare long distance, and the whole while you all are under some hallucination that everything is fine and dandy with me." Buffy looked at each one of them, for support but no one had any response to that. They simply stared at her surprised by her unusual outburst of fear.

"I, I, hadn't thought of that." Giles looked down at the books on the table.

"What about me?" Spike stood up looking like he wanted a fight. "I have dreams but I'm already dead, and I don't have a soul. Maybe their mojo won't work on me."

Buffy looked to Giles hopefully. Her hope was crushed by the look on his face "I'm afraid we can't count on that considering what's at stake. If we're wrong there won't be time to come up with a new plan." He looked around at their tired faces and decided they need some rest in order to be ready for the fight tomorrow. "Why don't we all go home and get some sleep. We can meet here tomorrow bright and early to discuss our options."

They nodded absently and got up to leave. "Oh, and Spike?"

Spike turned to see Giles frowning as he looked over his clothes. "You don't have to say it, trust me. I'm going to change right now." He turned and stormed out of the shop mumbling to himself in a mock Buffy voice. " 'You can use our washer.' 'Only take an hour or so.' Yea right…"

Buffy and Willow walked out behind him giggling again. From out side Giles could hear a pissed off vampire shout loudly behind him "Oh shut up!"

************

When Giles got home and turned on the light, he took a deep sigh and plopped down on the couch. He was exhausted. He had been researching these dream demons for a day and a half straight. He took off his glasses to rub his tired eyes. He was also tired of the struggle, the struggle to keep Buffy alive. He had had no clue when he first met her that he would grow so fond of her. She was like a daughter to him. She was closer to him than he ever thought anyone would be. He would do anything for her, even ignore his own needs to make her happy, to keep her safe. His mind began to drift off to sleep and he sat up quickly. He needed to go over the books again. There had to be something in them that he had missed. Some way to keep Buffy safe.

Just then the doorbell rang. "Just a minute." He slowly got up, and putting on his glasses went to the door. He was surprised to see Buffy standing there. "Buffy? I thought we agreed to get some sleep tonight."

She breezed past him with a smile on her face. "I know but I couldn't sleep. There's something I wanted to tell you tonight but I haven't had the chance." She smiled at him so sweetly Giles couldn't help but smile back.

He closed the door and stepped up to her. "What is it?" He couldn't imagine why she would be so happy after what he'd told her tonight. Perhaps she was getting too used to risking her life. He'd have to have a talk with her about that. Just then his phone rang. "Excuse me." He went to answer it as Buffy bounced impatiently in the living room.

It was the council. Great. Maybe they had some information that would help. "Prepare yourself Giles," The voice on the line said. "I know you never expected this to happen, but you'll be pleased to know that Buffy has been relieved of duty."

"What?" Giles didn't understand.

"The council has decided that she has paid her dues, and it was about time she enjoyed the rest of her life. A new slayer has been called."

"You mean Buffy is free?" Giles couldn't believe his ears. It was what he'd always wished for her but knew would never happen. Well, thought would never happen, he had obviously been quite wrong.

"Yes, Giles. She is freed of her responsibilities as the Slayer. And don't worry, we have already warned the new slayer of the Dream Killers. We will be ready for them when they come for the new slayer. Buffy is in no danger." Giles was beaming as he turned to Buffy. She looked questionably at him. The voice on the phone continued, "And Giles, Do take a rest will you? You've worked so hard you deserve a vacation. We're giving you a month off before your next assignment."

"Thank you, thank you so much." Giles hung up the phone and returned to a very confused Buffy. "You're not going to believe this but I have some good news. You're no longer the Slayer. The council has called a new one, and the Dream Killers will not try to get to you now. You're free Buffy." He said smiling at her "Free to live the life you want." He was so happy for her.

"Oh my God. I can't believe it. This is turning out to be the best night of my life. Giles I have some good news for you too. I'm getting married." Giles was not smiling anymore and Buffy rushed to reassure him "Not tonight or anything. But he is the one. I know it. I've thought it before but this time I really know. Don't worry, Giles, you'll like him. He is so sweet, and funny. And he is so good to me. He wants me to go back to finish school first."

At this Giles smile returned. He sounded right for her if he was willing to put her needs first. Everything was working out so well. He felt happier than he ever could remember, the room seemed brighter somehow as Buffy went on about her new beau. "And Dawn is crazy about him. I can't wait for you to meet him…" There was a knock on the door just then. "Well speak of the devil, I bet that's him." She got up to answer it and looked back at Giles with her hand on the doorknob. "I asked him to come over to meet you. I just know you'll like him too."

She slowly opened the door and the room went slightly darker, as if someone had turned the dim switch down just a bit. Giles looked into the darkness beyond the door for what seemed an eternity. He gasped in horror as he saw Spike walk into the room, danger in his eyes. "Honey, I'm home." Spike smiled an evil smile at Giles then turned to Buffy and put his arms around her. "There's my love. I missed you." His husky voice sent shivers down Buffy's spine as she leaned into him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Oh Spike." He kissed her forcefully.

Shivers of a completely different kind ravaged Giles' back as he looked at the two of them. "You, you can't be serious. Buffy, you must be under another spell. It has to be a spell. I really must talk with Willow about that."

She shook her head at him "I'm not under a spell, silly."

"Course you are, pet." He grinned at her and sung seductively in her ear "I put a spell on you." She giggled and he kissed her again.

It was too much for Giles to take. "How could you possibly…he's a Vampire." He knew he was stating the obvious but he was too in shock to think of anything else.

"Now Giles, That wasn't very nice." Buffy pouted at Giles. "Of course he's a vampire, but he would never hurt me." She turned lovingly back to Spike. "Would you sweetie?"

"Of course not, luv." Spike gently turned her so she was smiling at Giles with her back pressed up against Spike. As his arms wrapped around her and he rested his chin on her shoulder, he looked up at Giles. His game face slid on and Giles instantly knew what was about to happen. "This won't hurt a bit." He quickly sank his fangs into her.

************

Giles was frozen. He couldn't believe this was happening. "NO!"

He looked into Buffy's terrified eyes as she whispered her plea to him "Giles, Please. Help me."

It was too late. She was drained and lying on the floor. Still, Giles could not move. He silently willed his legs to take a step, his arms to reach out, anything to bring him closer to her, to try to help her. All he could do was stand there horrified, while the tears streamed down his face. "Buffy." He whispered.

"Don't worry mate. I didn't kill her. I'd never do that to such a pretty, pretty, girl." He knelt down and gently raised her head. "I'm gonna make sure that she'll never be lonely again." He cut his chest with a pocket knife and raised her lips to the blood that flowed there.

Giles shut his eyes "No! Buffy!" He couldn't stand this, watching helplessly while his beloved Buffy was turned. This couldn't be happening.

"Of course it couldn't." Giles eyes snapped open at the sound of a far away voice. Spike was still there and Buffy was still drinking from him; but Spike's face had changed back. His human eyes looked up at Giles, filled with concern and determination. "You know I would never hurt Buffy, so this can't be real." Though only 3 feet from him, Spike's voice sounded far off, as if shouted across a huge field. "Think man. How could the council have known the exact made up name you gave the demons." Giles thought about that as the far away Spike voice slowly came closer, "And why would they call a new slayer when Faith is still alive. There can only be one Giles, you know that." As his voice drew ever closer, so did Spike himself. Though Giles' legs still weren't moving and Spike was still kneeling on the floor, somehow they were getting close to each other. "In fact when was the last time anything felt real Giles."

Spike's voice was right where it should be now, and he suddenly grabbed Giles shoulders, and shook him "Wake up man!" Spike shouted in his face.

Giles looked around him. He was sitting on the couch, Buffy was nowhere to be seen, and Spike was kneeling in front of him, shaking him violently. "That's quite enough Spike. I'm awake, thank you."

"Oh." Spike stopped and sat back on the coffee table. "Welcome back. For a minute there I wasn't sure you were gonna pull out of it."

"Dream Killers?" Giles asked as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"You got it on the first try." Spike grinned at him "I'm almost impressed."

"Yes, well, don't be. It wasn't too hard to figure out. Once I'd woken up that is. My dearest dream becoming my worst nightmare before my eyes." He teared up again thinking about what almost… No he corrected himself… didn't happen. It wasn't real. He stood up and walked to the spot near the door where she… the dream had made him believe she… "Where's Buffy?" He knew it had been a dream but he still felt the need to reassure himself by seeing her.

"At home. Don't worry, I made sure she was safe in her room before I left." Spike walked over to the chair on the right side of the couch and removed a large ax that was embedded into the back of it.

Giles hadn't even noticed the ax till Spike went over to it "What the hell is that? And why was it in my 17th century antique chair?" He quickly went over to the precious furniture and lovingly touched the ripped upholstery.

"Oh. Sorry mate, but it was either that or I let him kill you with your nightmare." Spike sniffed and turned towards the front door.

"Him?" Giles looked at Spike concerned "There was only one. Not all 4?"

"Yea, just the one. Pretty easy to kill, too. Fast bugger, but not fast enough." He smiled proudly, but Giles wasn't looking at him.

He was pacing with the look he got when he was trying to figure something out. "Why only one? The prophesy clearly states there are 4 of them. So why was he alone?"

"Maybe that's all that was needed to get to you." Spike quipped at him. He understood Giles was concerned but didn't know why. They wouldn't touch Buffy till the eclipse tomorrow. "Maybe they decided to split up to cover more ground. You know, one last killing spree before the big day."

"Oh God." Giles had stopped pacing and turned to Spike. "They're improving their odds." Spike frowned, not liking where this was headed. "If they split up and one of the 4 came here," He counted off on his fingers "Me, Willow, Tara… and…"

Suddenly Spike got it "Dawn. Bloody hell!" He took off, out the door faster than Giles could see.

"I'll go to Willow's," He shouted to the empty room. "You go get Dawn."

************

Giles skidded to a stop at Willow and Tara's place. Jumping out of the car, he looked up to their window, as he ran in, and noticed their light was on. As he approached their door he heard giggling coming from inside. Oh no, he thought as he knocked furiously on the door, I'm too late. "Willow! Tara! Wake up! It's a dream!"

Suddenly the door opened and Willow stood there looking at him, wide eyed "Sheesh Giles, We're awake already, what's the problem?" As she looked at him, he heard Tara in the room calling to Willow, "Loverrrr, come back. I miiiiiiis yoouuuuu." She giggled then and Willow turned and called into the room. "In a minute precious." She turned back to Giles with a smile on her face. We're kinda busy Giles. You know, possible last night together and all. Could this wait till tomorrow?" Giggles erupted again from inside the room followed by cheerful humming.

Giles backed up a step and began to make an embarrassed exit "Yes, of course. I…"

"Good." Willow promptly slammed the door in his face. All sounds immediately stopped from the room and Giles began to walk away. He paused, listening. Something's not right. He stepped silently back to the door and listened hard for any noise from inside. Nothing, no giggles, no humming. Then a soft cry, barely audible. Then a scream.

Giles broke through the door and took a quick survey of the room. It was fairly dark but the light from the doorway was enough to illuminate the two girls sleeping on the floor, with two ghostly figures bending over them. The two figures looked up, and Giles was taken back by the fact that they had no faces. He recovered quickly though, and struck out at them with the sword he carried, trying to hit both with one swing. He missed the first completely and barely caught the other in the arm. They both promptly disappeared.

Giles bent down to Willow and shook her gently. He then remembered how violent Spike had to be to get him to wake, and decided to slap her hard instead. Her eyes instantly flew open "Tara!" She yelled before looking around and realizing what had happened.

Giles turned to Tara and duplicated the slap on her. Tara woke with the same startled look, but without the yell. She looked over at Willow and the girls hugged tightly. "I thought I'd lost you." Tara whispered.

"Not a chance." Willow replied. They parted and smiled at each other before turning to Giles. "Dream Killers?" Willow asked.

"Yes, I'm afraid so. They attacked me a short while ago. Spike saved me." That sounded strange even to him. Spike had saved him. He decided to try to keep a more open mind about Spikes intentions from now on. Not exactly trust him, just try not to completely miss-trust him.

Looking behind Giles to the broken door, Tara asked "Where is he now?"

"Oh God. I forgot. Dawn."

************

Willow, Tara, and Giles rushed up the steps to Buffy and Dawn's house. The door was open and the lights were on. As they entered the house they heard crying coming from upstairs. All three rushed up the steps and down the hall following the sound. They entered Dawn's room fearing the worst.

Buffy was sitting on the edge of Dawn's bed, rocking her in her arms. Dawn was completely broken down. Tears streaming down her face, she cried uncontrollably as Buffy tried to calm her. "It's ok now, Dawnie. I'm here and you're safe. Shhhhh, Dawnie don't cry, you're safe now." Buffy looked up at the three of them in the doorway with tears of her own in her eyes.

Spike was pacing angrily by the window, ready to kill something. "I should have been here sooner. I should have been faster. It's my fault."

"No." Buffy looked at him sternly. "You did fine. Better than fine, you saved her life. If you hadn't gotten here when you did…" Her tears threatened to over flow again. Fresh sobs from Dawn drew her attention back. "It's ok, Dawnie. I'm here. You're ok now."

Spike noticed the group in the doorway. "You two ok?" He asked the girls. They nodded.

Willow moved over to the bed and sat on the other side of Dawn. "I can watch her, Buffy. You and Giles need to make a plan for tomorrow. I don't think any of us are going to sleep much tonight." She looked up at Giles.

"Yes. Of course. Buffy?" She was still rocking her sister, not wanting to leave her in such crisis.

Spike went over to her and placed his hand on her shoulder. "It'll be alright luv. Willow's a powerful witch remember? She'll protect Dawn. We'll just be downstairs." He knew she needed to distance herself from Dawn, if she was going to be able to pull it together for the coming fight.

Buffy reluctantly stood up, letting the still sobbing Dawn rest in Willows arms.

"I'll stay too." Tara went and sat where Buffy had been and put a hand on Dawn's back. Buffy looked at the three of them, and smiled as Dawn responded to their presence by slowing her crying and clinging tightly to Willow's arms.

************

Down in the living room, Giles sat calmly on the couch and watched Buffy and Spike pace angrily in front of him. They were mirror images of each other, stalking to opposite sides of the room then back to meet in the middle. Each time they met, they would trade who got to voice their anger. It was Buffy's turn now. "Then we're gonna kill them, all four of the bastards. Kill them and send them back to the hell they came from." She looked up at Spike.

"Right. But first we're gonna rip out their spines and strangle them with 'em." He turned away smiling at the image as he strode to the other wall and back. "No. Better yet, let's cut off their heads, rip our their spines, and have ourselves a nice game of cricket with 'em." He smiled up at Buffy as they met in the center again.

"You're disgusting. That's not punishment enough for them." She turned away to head back to her side. "What we need to do is find their worst fears and torture them with it. HA! I know, we'll cage them at the eclipse and watch them burn when the sun hits them." They stopped in the center of the room and turned to smile at Giles. "What do you think Giles, Cricket or eternal torture?"

Giles looked at them for a moment then began to laugh. Buffy and Spike looked at each other bewildered, then back at Giles. "Have you lost your marbles?" Spike took a step toward the hysterical Giles with the thought of slapping him. "What's so bloody funny?"

"You two." Giles stopped laughing, took off his glasses, and wiped his eyes as he explained. "I see it now. I don't know why it wasn't obvious before." They were so alike; both so filled with passion, both quick to anger, both willing to do anything to save the people they loved. Giles realized they were perfect for each other, well, except for the 'he's a vampire, she's a slayer' thing. He placed his glasses back on and looked up at them. "I'll explain later. Right now we have some planning to do… that is if you two are done with your ridiculous show." He stood up and went into the kitchen to fix a pot of tea. It is going to be a long night.

************

He had been right. The night was long indeed. Buffy had gone up to check on Dawn several times. Finally she came down and told a relieved Spike and Giles that she had stopped crying and was sleeping peacefully. Willow and Tara had agreed to sit up with her through the night, so Buffy could concentrate on making the plan. By the time the sun began to rise they were all exhausted.

They wanted the showdown to happen in Spike's crypt, where he would be on familiar ground and the Demons would be far from Dawn. Giles would stay at the house with her until just before the eclipse; then he would join Spike and Buffy at the crypt. Just before the sun peeked over the horizon, Buffy walked Spike home.

As they entered his crypt, Spike remembered something "Oh, I forgot. I have a special weapon I've been saving for a special occasion." He walked over to the hidden passage and dropped down the ladder. Buffy fell exhausted on the makeshift bed and told herself she would NOT close her eyes. Seconds ticked by as Spike searched below for his prize weapon. Buffy's eyes drooped once… twice… the third time they stayed shut.

Spike returned from his search proudly holding a beautiful, ornate sword. The handle was gold with diamonds, and rubies. The shaft, gleaming silver with detailed carvings on one side. "Stole this beauty off some Prince of Arabia ages ago. Always thought it was a bit too fancy for a bloke like me, but you…" he looked up to see her sleeping soundly on his bed. "…are sound asleep." He smiled briefly then hurriedly went to her and shook her awake. "Buffy!"

"What?! What? I'm not sleeping." Buffy sat up and looked around with half shut eyes. She took one look at the concern on his face and giggled. "You're cute when you worry. You know that?" She traced a wobbly finger over his brow and giggled again.

"Oh, boy. You're punch drunk." He sat next to her and smiled at her confused expression.

"I am not. You can't get drunk from punch." She looked at him seriously for a second before a smile slowly spread across her face. "Unless of course someone spikes it. Ha! Get it? Spikes it?" She fell into his arms in a fit of laughter.

He couldn't help chuckling at her silliness as he gently helped her back into bed. "You need to sleep."

This woke her up completely. "No way! I sleep, those demons will try to get me."

"No they won't, luv. I'll watch over you. Besides they won't try anything till the eclipse starts, remember. That's still hours from now." He gently laid her back down and covered her with the blanket.

She smiled up at him as her eyes began to droop again. "Ok. Just for a little. I trust you."

"You'd better by now." He sat back and looked at her lovingly. She may never love you, but you're a lucky bastard just to have her trust, he thought to himself.

Her eyes were just about closed when she reached out and squeezed his hand in hers. "Don't leave me."

Surprised by her gesture, he responded by squeezing her hand. "I'll never leave you, luv."

She smiled again and sleepily replied. "I like it when you call me that." Her eyes finally closed. Spike sat next to her for a long time enjoying the feel of her hand in his, and watching her peaceful face as she slept.

Eventually he let her hand go and went to the fridge to fix himself some blood. He wanted to be fully energized when the battle started. So much was riding on him. He knew the dangers would be great and one small slip on his part, and it would be over. He looked at Buffy sleeping in his bed and his dead heart leaped at the sight of it. How many times had he wished for this. To have her here with him, and there she was. He shook his head in disbelief; talk about a silver lined cloud.

He sat on a chair and watched her sleep till almost 10:00. He kept going over and over the possibilities of the coming battle in his head. It was torture this waiting. Every time he thought he should just get some sleep or doubted things would work out, he looked at Buffy. It had to work. And he would not sleep again until he knew she was safe.

He got up to stretch his legs and pace while he waited for her to wake. He looked at his watch again. 10:30. he hated to wake her. She really needed all the sleep she could get, but this was starting to cut it close. He wanted to go over things with her a couple more times. He decided to give her another half hour, then he would wake her. He turned on the TV. and sat down to watch. Maybe one of his favorite soaps would relax him a bit. Take his mind off things long enough to get this nagging feeling out of his stomach that things were not gonna work out.

He opened his eyes. Had he dosed off? Couldn't have, it'd only been a minute. He looked at the clock… 11:45. "No!" He rushed to Buffy's side. "Wake up luv, we've almost missed the party." She didn't respond. "Buffy? Come on wake up it's time to get ready" She continued sleeping peacefully.

Just then Giles entered. "Are we as ready as we'll ever be?" He wanted to keep the mood as light as possible for as long as possible, but when he saw Buffy sleeping his smile dropped and anger took it's place. "What have you done!"

************

"Me? I haven't done anything. She needed to rest before she had to go and face another damn apocalypse, didn't she?" He turned back to her and shook her gently. "Buffy luv, Giles is here. We need to get going."

Giles pushed Spike out of the way and sat in his place by her side. He took her shoulders and shook her very hard. "Buffy! Wake up!" Spike was surprised by the force he used but let him continue. He had a bad feeling about this.

Giles continued yelling and shaking her for a long time but Buffy's face remained peaceful and her eyes closed. Giles stopped as he realized what was happening. Buffy just smiled calmly. "They have her."

He said it with such utter defeat in his voice that Spike flared in anger. "Oh no they don't." It was Giles's turn to be pushed away as Spike sat next to Buffy and began slapping her "Come on Slayer! Wake up! It's not real girl! Fight it!" Giles had to pull him off for fear of his truly hurting her. Spike took off for the far wall, rage and fear causing his game face to come on. "This can't be happening. I won't loose her. Not like this."

Spike made a move back toward her, to begin his assault anew, but Giles blocked his path. "Blind rage, though a tempting option, is not what is needed now." He stared Spike down until his human face returned. "A clear head is what we need, so get your personal demon under control and help me think."

Spike tried to calm down. "Right. Clear head. Got it." But he was at a loss. If they already had her in the dream, and shaking hadn't snapped her out of it as it had Giles and Dawn… Spike suddenly looked around the room. They were here. They had to be. He used his vampire senses to search every crevice of darkness, but he found nothing.

Giles saw what he was doing and stopped him. "That won't help Spike. Even if you found them, you can't really kill them until the eclipse starts. I believe they will show themselves once the time to… uh… time to kill her is close. Until then we must work on waking Buffy."

Spike turned back to where Buffy was still sleeping peacefully in his bed. "We tried that remember? It didn't work?"

Giles led him back over to the bed an guided him to sit down. "Yes. Brute force didn't work, so now we must try a different approach." He took a deep breath as he prepared himself to speak the words he never thought he'd say to the vampire, any vampire for that matter. "You know Buffy better than any of us. You love her, and I think… no, I'm sure in some way she loves you too. She certainly trusts you with her life, that much is clear." He watched as Spike looked uncertainly at him, then helplessly at Buffy. "Talk to her Spike. Let her know you're here and you won't leave her."

"I tried that. I told her to wake up, that it wasn't real." Spike looked at his beloved, defeat beginning to overwhelm him. "She didn't hear me."

"I believe she did." Spike looked at Giles confused. "When I was in my dream, I heard you talking to me, explaining how my dream couldn't be real. You even pointed out specific things in my dream that were wrong."

"But I didn't say all that. I just told you to wake up." Spike frowned.

"I know, but Somehow, I heard you telling me exactly what I needed to hear in order to break free." Giles knelt down beside Buffy and gently stroked her hair. "If you speak from your heart… um, well, dead as it may be." He smiled briefly at the irony. "Tell her that you are here for her. Tell her that she is not alone. She will only be in this pleasant dream for a short while before it turns to her deepest fear. My instinct tells me that being alone will be part of that fear. So talk to her," He stood up and went to the door where he had dropped his bag of weapons. "and I will get everything ready."

Spike looked back at Buffy as Giles began to unpack the weapons he'd brought. Spike couldn't believe this was happening. He looked at the clock, 11:54. Four minutes. Four minutes to live, then Four minutes to die. How could things have gone so wrong so quickly? He looked at the woman he loved and gently took her hand in his. He knelt beside her and whispered to her "Buffy? It's me Spike. I know you're in there somewhere and I know you can hear me. I want you to know that I'm right here Buffy. I'm not going to leave you no matter what." He smiled a sarcastic smile. "In fact, you couldn't get rid of me even when you tried, remember?" he laughed briefly at the memory then paused as he saw Buffy's smile grow wider "Buffy? Buffy. Can you hear me? Buffy?"

************

Buffy opened her eyes to a birthday cake with 25 little candles on it. It seemed quite a roaring fire after her sister's cake. She laughed at the thought and looked up to see everyone she loved smiling around her. Giles was in the background, smiling proudly at her as usual. Willow and Tara were on her right, and Tara was taking pictures. Dawn was sitting on her left laughing something about not burning down the house. Xander and Anya were standing behind her, arm in arm. And directly in front of her, holding the cake was the most gorgeous man she'd ever seen.

"Alright luv, better blow these out before they set my hair on fire." Spike smirked at her from across the blaze.

Buffy took a huge breath and blew them all out at once. "Yea. I get my wish." She was so happy. Things had been going so well for her lately. Everyone she loved was there, even Spike. No matter how bad things got, he was always there for her. He always accepted her, both her strengths and weaknesses. He never tried to change her and he always loved her. She cringed at the thought of how many times she had pushed him away, but he always came back. She had wondered so many times why. He had said he loved her but that couldn't be the reason. Angel had loved her and he left. Riley had loved her and he left. So what was it about this man that made him stay with her.

She smiled and thought to herself, He just does. He is here with me and will never leave me. She got up and walked over to the table where he was cutting the cake. Suddenly she noticed that everyone had left and the room was a bit darker. Strange, she thought. Well, maybe they just wanted to give us some privacy. She placed her hand on Spike's shoulder. "Spike? I want to tell you something."

"What is it luv?" He continued cutting the cake and dishing it into the plates stacked next to him.

"I know for a long time I've said that I hated you." She ran her fingertips back and forth across his back. His black t-shirt was stretched tightly across his frame and her fingertips danced playfully across his muscles. The coolness of his vampire skin came through the material, teasing her hand closer. "For a while I even tried to kill you."

He stopped cutting and raised his head, still facing away from her. "Yes pet?"

She placed both hands on his arms and drew close to his back, resting her head on him. "We've been through a lot since then. You've stood by me through so much. I guess I'm trying to say that my feelings have changed." She was frightened saying this to him, baring her heart and soul so trustingly. But something told her it was right. She trusted him. She loved him.

He hadn't moved and Buffy was beginning to think he didn't understand what she was trying to say. "Spike, I'm trying to tell you, that I love you."

At that Spike turned quickly and Buffy realized he had his game face on. "That's just what I needed to hear."

Buffy took a step back "What?"

Spike stepped slowly toward her with evil laughter in his eyes. "Do you really think I would stay with you after an admission like that? Do you really think any man would."

Buffy backed away fearfully. "No. You don't mean that."

"Of course I do… pet." The nickname was said with such loathing, that Buffy cringed at the sound. Why was this happening? "You said it yourself, you could never love me, I'm a monster remember?"

"But you're not. That's what I'm trying to tell you." Buffy pleaded with him, wishing he'd stop advancing on her with that hatred in his eyes. "I know you've changed. You're not the evil man you once were."

"No, I'm not. And that's your fault too, isn't it?"

"What?"

Spike stopped his advance and smiled at her. "It's because of you that I had this chip put in my head. It's because of you that I let Dru go when she came back to get me. And it's because of you that I'm here now, playing house with you and the Little Brat." He pointed angrily up stairs. "I should be out causing mayhem, doing evil, having fun!" he leaned toward her sinisterly "Eating. People." He slowly licked his jagged teeth then stood back and laughed.

Buffy was repulsed. How could this have gone so wrong? Spike had been so good lately. Had stood by her, protected her and Dawn with his life. Had even stayed and helped everyone after Buffy had died. How could this be happening now, after all that?

"It's because of you, of course." Spike had stopped laughing and was advancing on her again. "It's always been you. You're the one who drives us away. No man can stand to be with you. No man will ever want to be with you." He paused and looked hungrily at her bare neck. "Especially once I'm through with you."

Before she could blink he had pinned her arms behind her and was sinking his teeth into her neck. "No!" she tried to scream but it came out as a gurgling whisper. She desperately tried to break free of Spike's grasp but it was no use. He had her in an iron grip and she was fading fast.

Before long she was lying on the floor looking up at Spike standing over her. Blood was dripping from his mouth as he smiled at her. The light was fading around her as she watched him turn to go. "Well that was fun, let's see who's next. Ooohhh Wiiiilloooow?" He called as he walked away from her. He laughed and laughed as he got farther from her. Buffy's eyes were closing. She knew it was over for her. "I can't believe you left me." Buffy whispered to Spike's retreating back.

"But I didn't leave you luv." Her eyes opened slowly. Had he come back to torment her some more? She couldn't take it. She couldn't stand to see Spike act as the monster he once was. Buffy looked up to see him still walking away from her laughing, as he searched out his next victim. The voice came again, closer this time. It was Spike's voice alright, but it was full of love not hatred. "I'm right here Buffy. I'm with you and I'm not going to leave."

Buffy tried to look around her but the pain in her neck had spread down her back and she felt paralyzed. She was dying.

************

"She's dying." As Spike held the sleeping Buffy's hand he realized her pulse was slowing. He looked up at Giles who was standing ready with an ax. Giles nodded at the clock. As Spike looked at it, it changed to 11:58. It was time. Both men looked around for any sign of the demons but there was no one there. The men looked at each other confused. They had thought with time being so short, the demons would appear immediately after the eclipse started. Actually, hoped was more like it. It would have given them the time they needed to kill them.

"Looks like our guests are running a bit late." Giles looked around the room once more then went to the only dark corner of the room. Several candles had been placed by Giles around the room wherever there may have been darkness. The room was brightly lit except for one corner, farthest from the bed. Giles crouched behind a coffin where he could see the dark corner well, but would be hidden temporarily from any demons entering there. "Looks like it's time for plan B." Giles nodded at Spike.

Spike turned back to Buffy and began talking reasurredly to her. Her pulse was getting weaker by the second and Spike was determined to some how bring her back. "Buffy, I'm right here."

************

Buffy heard the kind voice again. "I'm right here." But where? She tried to look around but her head just would not turn. She scanned the room with her eyes. The retreating Spike was gone and darkness was everywhere… except. Off to the right side she caught a glimpse of something blinking softly in the blackness. She struggled to turn her head just enough to get a better look at it. There it was again, blink, blink, blink… she counted, and when it reached 7 and stopped, she realized it was her answering machine.

Seven messages? Suddenly she remembered. When she and Spike came back to the house to clean up after wrestling in the swamp, she had seven messages waiting for her, all from Giles. Why would I remember that now? She thought. Spike's voice came again from right behind her. "I'm still with you, Buffy. I won't leave you." It triggered the memory she was searching for.

That night as she looked into Spike's eyes, she connected with him. For the first time she truly saw what was in his heart for her, and realized what was in her heart for him. She had pushed the feeling away, telling herself it wasn't real, in a way, afraid it was. She couldn't care about him that way, but she did. And so when she looked in his eyes that night, in that moment she knew, really knew that he loved her. She clung to the feeling and began repeating to herself over and over. "He loves me. He won't leave me. He loves me. He won't leave me." Slowly the pain in her back began to subside and she could once again turn her head. She kept up the mantra in her head as she noticed the light begin to return to the room.

************

"Yes Buffy, I'm here." Spike called to her as he saw her start to move slightly. She began to mumble and Spike leaned closer and struggled to hear her.

Suddenly one of the demons decided to make it's presence known. It stepped out of the shadows near where Giles sat hidden "No!" It yelled in a deep booming voice. Spike looked back at it in surprise. As it took a step towards Spike, Giles jumped out of his hiding place and quickly beheaded it. It flamed briefly then disappeared leaving a scorch mark on the cement floor.

"Is it really dead?" Spike asked from the bed.

"Yes. I believe so, but there are more coming. Keep working on Buffy. Only a minute to go." Giles hurried back to his hiding place as Spike turned back to Buffy.

Her chanting was becoming coherent now and Spike smiled gratefully as he heard her whisper, "He loves me. He won't leave me." Her pulse was getting stronger and Spike had no doubt she would come out of it soon. But would it be soon enough?

He glanced worriedly at the dark corner. Nothing yet but he knew it wouldn't stay that way long. "Come on luv. We need to hurry this up a bit." He turned back to her and an idea came to him. "Well," he shrugged. "if it worked for sleeping beauty…" he leaned down and kissed her gently on the lips, stopping the whispering flow of her chant.

************

Buffy was getting stronger by the second and so was the light. She continued her chant, ignoring how silly she was beginning to sound. She just wanted the nightmare over and if this is what would do it, then so be it. As the light around her grew she realized she wasn't in her house any more. Suddenly she felt lips on hers, cool and gentle, they caressed her so sweetly, her eyes flew open.

It was him. Spike really was here. She closed her eyes again and put her arms around him, deepening their kiss. Spike jumped back at the change and stared at her with a huge smile on his face. "You're back!"

"Yes, but I wasn't finished with you yet." She smiled at him and tried to pull him back down to her.

"Later, pet. We're expecting company." He hated to put her off like that but there were priorities to deal with. And one of them was coming out of the darkness now. The demon moved too fast, and was upon Spike before Giles could even take a step. Spike and the demon traded blows as they moved away from the bed where Buffy was struggling to rise. A second demon entered from the shadows behind Giles and knocked him to the ground.

As Giles fell to an unconscious heap the demon lunged toward Buffy. She jumped up on the bed at the last second and kicked it hard in the face sending it backward, into Spike and the first demon.

They all fell in a tangle on the floor, which gave Buffy just enough time to grab the jewel studded sword Spike had left leaning against a chair. She ran toward the three, grabbing a stake from Gile's bag on the way. "Spike!" She yelled and tossed the stake at him as he separated himself from the tangle of demons.

Spike grabbed it without looking and began pummeling the demon in front of him.

The other demon realized then that they were out muscled, put his head down, and closed his eyes. Buffy saw what he was up to and charged him as fast as she could "Oh no you don't." As she was about to reach him, he disappeared from sight. She kept going though, and brought her sword down right were she knew he was still standing.

He suddenly reappeared and collapsed in two sections, on the floor, before bursting into flames and disappearing for good. Buffy turned to see Spike finish off his demon with the stake. He jumped back as it flamed brightly before disappearing. "These guys sure love making a flashy exit don't they." Spike smiled over at Buffy.

She smiled back briefly before turning away. "Giles."

She ran over to her watcher and helped him up off the floor. "Did I miss anything?" He said groggily.

"Not much." Buffy stated matter-of-factly. "Just two fiery demon deaths. You know, the usual."

"Two?" Giles looked at her concerned "Are you sure there were only two?"

Buffy glanced at Spike "Yea. I got one and Spike staked the other. Why?"

"There were 4 altogether." Spike knew what Giles was thinking and glanced nervously at the dark corner of the room. "Giles beheaded one. With yours and mine that still leaves one more." The all turned to look at the darkness but there was nothing there.

Giles looked at the clock which read 12:03. "Well in any case I believe we're safe. Look at the time." As they turned to look Giles explained. "The eclipse is over and their chance to get Buffy's soul is past. They can do no more harm for now."

"For now?" Buffy didn't like the sound of that. "Look, I just got done with the fight of my life… again. Are you saying that I'm gonna have to go through this all over again someday? With the same demons I mean. Please don't tell me that's what your saying."

"Well, it.. it's not certain. The prophesy only mentions this one event. We have no way of knowing if preventing it from happening this time won't cause them… um, him to try again." Giles wanted to reassure her, but realist that he was, he also had a responsibility to keep her prepared for anything.

"Great." Buffy shrugged her shoulders "Well, Guess I should be used to it by now. Nothing new, really, for me. Every demon between here and hell was already gunning for me, why not add one more to the list."

"Look at it this way," Spike grinned at her "at least you know you're wanted." Buffy punched him good-naturedly in the arm. "Ow."

Giles began collecting his weapons and placing them in his bag. "Well, we'd better head back to your house Buffy. I'm sure the girls are quite worried."

"I'd better go with you." Spike said as he grabbed his blanket, and draped it over his head. "Did you park close by?" He asked Giles.

"Right at the front entrance." Giles finished packing his bag and stood at the front door.

Buffy walked up to Spike. "Maybe you should stay here and rest."

Spike looked her straight in the eye and spoke softly. "You need rest a lot more than I do right now luv. After what just, well almost happened…" He frowned slightly and sighed. "Besides I want to check on Lil' Bit. You know, make sure she knows the Big Bad's still in one piece." He grinned at her playfully.

"Alright Mr. Big Bad. Cover up your face so the sun doesn't turn you into Mr. Crispy." She roughly pulled the blanket over his face, and dragged him toward the door.

As they walked out the door, from the shadows in the dark corner came the sound of low, evil laughter, and a hooded, faceless image slowly faded to black.

************

Giles drove Spike and Buffy to her house, then took Tara and Willow home and went to get some much needed sleep himself. Spike insisted on staying at Buffy's house while she slept. Buffy knew that soon they would have to talk about their relationship, but for now she was happy to let him just be there.

Later that afternoon when Buffy finally woke up and came downstairs for something to eat, Xander, and Anya bounded into the living room. They had a wonderful time on their honeymoon, and wanted to tell Buffy all about San Francisco. Soon Dawn, Willow and Tara arrived, and the stories started all over again, more exaggerated than before. Giles showed up later that evening with enough Pizza for everyone, and an all out party ensued. They laughed, cried and had a wonderful time enjoying being together again.

Buffy was starting to wonder if the Dream Killers had gotten to her again when she noticed Spike slip out of the room and down the hall to the back door. Just when I want him to stay, he decides to leave. Guess this is real after all. She shook her head and went after him.

When she opened the door he was sitting on the steps with his back to her, staring at the starry night sky. "So, when are we gonna talk about it Slayer?"

Buffy was taken back by his use of the name. She had gotten used to hearing him call her Buffy, luv, even pet. He only used 'slayer' when he was really upset.

She went over and sat down next to him, and looked at his face. "I guess now is as good a time as any. What's on your mind?"

He turned towards her with a frown on his face. "You know damn well what's on my mind. I think I've earned the right not to be made a fool of. Don't play games with me."

She flinched at his harsh tone and scowled back at him. "You're right. I won't play games with you." She took a deep breath. Better get It over with, she thought. "You were right about me. I do feel something for you. But I don't know what to do about it." She looked down at her feet trying to sort through her feelings.

"Don't know what to do about it?" Spike didn't understand. That part was easy for him. "You just do what you feel." He gently raised her chin so she was looking into his eyes. "What do you feel Buffy?"

She looked deep into his eyes and her breathing quickened. His cool hand on her cheek felt so good, his lips looked so inviting. No. She stood and walked a few steps into the yard before turning to face him again. "All my life I've held back my love because every time I gave it… Every man I've ever loved, left me." She held up her hand to stop Spike's reply "I know, that's not what you're gonna do. I believe that now. I do." She looked into his eyes and sighed. "I'm just…" This was harder than she thought it would be. "I'm…"

Spike rose and walked toward her. He took her arms in a gentle hold and looked deep into her eyes. "It's ok. You don't have to say any more." He could see it was tearing her up and he couldn't stand to see her hurt. He never could. "I know you're afraid to love me Buffy. I'm ok with that." Spike tried to reassure her.

"But you shouldn't have to be. You deserve more than that." He looked taken back so she continued quickly before her nerve left. "I do care about you Spike, but no matter what, things are complicated with us. They will always be complicated and I'm not sure if we'll be able to handle that. If I can handle that." She sighed and stepped away from him. This wasn't coming out right at all. Fighting she could handle, killing she was good at - this trying to explain her feelings stuff, this was hard.

She turned back to him, determined to convey the baggage she carried. He needed to know everything if he was going to decide to stand by her. "All this time I thought what I wanted was a 'normal' guy. Someone like Riley. You know, the all American type who has a good job, drives a car… in the day… is human."

Spike tensed up at the name Riley. It had been so long since he was in her life, it hurt him for her to be bringing him up now. After coming so close to being his, she was backing out. He wasn't 'normal' enough for her to truly love. "You want Riley back?" he chocked the words out, terrified of her answer but needing to hear.

"No. Don't you see? That's what I thought I wanted. What the Dream Killers made me realize… admit to really, was that I just want someone to love me who won't leave. Someone who can accept me for who I am, Slayer and all, and not try to change me. That someone is you Spike."

His eyes widened in shock. Was she really saying this? Was this really happening? Maybe he was the one dreaming now.

"You've been the only person in my life who didn't wish I was different, more Buffy, more Slayer. You accept me for me, I see this now. What you need to realize is that there's even more to me than that. I'm scared Spike. I'm scared that I'm going to fall so in love with you, that I'm going to loose myself. I know it sounds crazy, but it's how I feel. I need time to get over that fear. I need you to understand, that if you really want to be with me, it's going to take time. And you'll need to be strong. Strong enough to stay with me when my fear paralyzes me, or strikes out at you." She looked at his startled face. That gorgeous face that had been her companion for so long. She reached up and gently touched his cheek. "Can you do that for me? Can you understand my fear and help me through it?" She waited with bated breath for his answer.

He gently put his arms around her and surprised her by drawing her into a tender hug. After a moment he backed away and said "I understand fear, luv. Hell, I caused it for over a hundred years. I'm in this for the long haul." They stood there with their arms around each other for what seemed like lifetimes.

The silence was so comfortable, his touch so reassuring, his eyes so blue. Buffy wasn't thinking any more. She leaned toward him and gently pressed her lips to his. He froze for an instant, then drew her closer. As their kiss deepened, she clung to him more tightly, and became lost in him. A twinge of fear tickled the back of her mind, Don't loose yourself, it warned. Shut up, she replied, and pushed the thought away. The feel of his hard body against hers was so right. His smell, his taste, it was all she wanted to know.

As she drew even closer to him, he knew this was it. This was the moment he'd suffered and waited for. He reached his hand up to the back of her head and tangled his fingers in her hair. His other hand reached down to the small of her back and pulled her closer.

She moaned softly at the way his hands felt on her body. She wanted to be closer to him. She knew it would never be close enough. He drew back from her lips and teased his way over her chin, down her neck and settled where it joined her shoulder. She moaned again and pulled him to her. Her breathing was heavy now. She wanted to rip the clothes right off him.

She ran her hands up under his shirt and hungrily explored his muscled torso. Around to his back and down over his butt. He lifted his head and looked at her lips. He savored the sight of them, and the look on his face took her breath away. He smiled his trademark, seductive smile and quickly claimed her mouth once again.

For an instant she was startled by his forcefulness, then she realized this was what she wanted - what the others had been to afraid to give her. They had always been gentle with her, timid even, letting her set the pace. Spike was anything but timid right now, and she responded gratefully, with a strength rivaling his.

When they came up for air she was flushed and breathless. Any more of that, she thought and we're going to do it right here on the lawn. She giggled at the idea. Reluctantly, she held him at arms length from her and gazed at him lustfully "We need to stop." She panted between breaths.

She didn't want to stop and it showed in her eyes. Spike smiled at her and nodded. "Sure luv. Whatever you say." She was trembling now and he knew It wouldn't take much to push her over the edge. But he couldn't do that to her now. No matter how much he wanted to. There'll be plenty of time for that later. He smiled thinking of what he would do to her when the time and place were right.

She noticed the hungry passion in his eyes and it made her tremble again. How was she ever going to be able to sit at the Magic Box with him again, without lusty thoughts running through her mind? He turned to go and was not surprised when she grabbed him and pulled him back to press against her. She looked into his eyes and scolded him "I said stop, not leave."

He smiled back at her as he placed his arms gently around her once more. "What have I told you a hundred times pet? I'll never leave you." She rested her head on his chest as he held her close. Her breathing slowed and after a while she sighed contently.

After all the struggle, all the despair, and all the longing, they had found a true peace. Sure, they would always fight, that was part of what made their relationship hot. But now she knew without a doubt that they would be together. And being together was going to be immensely better than being apart.

The End.

**************