Title: Reminders 15/?
Author: Kimi
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Oh, God, please don't make me. This has gotten really complicated...

Spoilers: Season 7 AU, takes place after my fic, Voices in the Dark
Distribution: Just talk to me, I'm easy.

Disclaimers: All Joss, all ME, all the time...
Feedback: You beta, you beta, you bet! Would love to hear from you! kimi615@hotmail.com

Special thanks to the usual suspects: Chris, who kept at this when anyone else would have been screaming for fewer drafts. Colleen, who has guests, but made her approval known in two short IM sentences, Kelly, who knows where the heart of Riley is, and Chen, who is a putz and keeps saving the fic for when I'm done. I sure did spoil her today!

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Reminders 15


She thought she had known exactly what to expect. She'd had him a thousand ways last year - each one more spectacular than the last.

But it had still been sex - him giving and her taking, or vice versa. Every move coldly calculated to bring the other back for more. More of a competition than a partnership. She'd had a taste of something a little different when he'd first come back from Africa. Twice. Then, he'd found plenty of excuses for not coming back for more. She'd hated it, but understood. If there was going to be an 'us,' then they had to like each other first, right?

This time, it had been just the two of them. In her bed. And no old ghosts, no reminders, were lying in wait for the wrong word, the wrong move. It was just them. She almost laughed as he pushed his head into her neck. Buffy and Spike. How lame was that? Maybe his name should go first.

Sex between them had always been something of a performance, too. He did it to her, she did it to him. Every once in a while, they did it together, which had been enough to send her screaming into a straitjacket in an alternate reality.

The real problem was, it had never been as good, meant as much, as the first time in that abandoned building. That first time hadn't been just sex. And not all the bravado in the world, from him or from her, could change that. It had scared her to death.

And this time, it was really different. Because her mind hadn't shut down - and neither had her heart. And the sex in the empty building paled in comparison. Finally.

She loved him and she couldn't pull him into her far enough. Technically, this time, there'd been no foreplay at all. Unless you counted the last six months. The last three years. Or longer. She tried not to think about how far back this went.

He pulled back and looked at her. "What?"

"Just thinking."

He turned over on his back, looking at a brown mark on the ceiling. Why hadn't she had Harris look at that? Roof probably needed mending. Not that it rained much in SunnyD.

"Thinking?" he said carefully.

"I love you. You know that, right?"

He was silent.

"Damn you. Are you gonna make me say it again?"

"Maybe. Thinkin' about it. I like the way you say it. Been waiting to hear you say it. Few more times won't hurt."

She got up on her elbow and looked down at him, eyes fierce. "You make me crazy sometimes."

He chuckled and traced a long finger down her jaw. "I'd forgotten that. I'll make you crazy now, if you like," he said with a suggestive smirk.

She threw herself over on her back. "I hate you."

This time, his laugh shook the bed. "No, you don't. You used to, but you don't anymore."

She turned over and stretched out flat on top of him, trying to cover him with her body, skin to skin, cool to hot. She felt him stir against her. They might fuss and fume, disagree and argue at the top of their lungs, but nothing and no one would ever make her give him up.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Buffy trailed her hand idly across Spike's naked thigh, careful not to touch anything 'important.' She grinned inwardly as a low moan ebbed from his lips. He was sleeping like the dead, she thought with a silent giggle. During the day, vampires wanted to sleep. They needed to sleep. But since Spike was such a piss poor excuse for the evil undead, even before the whole souly thing, he always pushed it. Hence the exhausted, down-for-the-count look.

It was getting late, but she just couldn't make herself disturb him. Besides, she'd been waiting months to get him where he was right now and she wasn't ready to give him up yet. And she was a little frightened of the recriminations that she was sure he would feel in the aftermath. God, she really hated his soul sometimes.

Her eyelids grew heavy, and her last conscious thought was, 'okay, just for a minute...'

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"Hello, Princess."

She stood stock-still, sniffing the air like a predator at the disembodied voice that rang through the walls.

"We're going to take your friend away for a while. You and I need to... talk. If we talk nicely, he comes back to you. If not..."

The words hung in the air. Drusilla bowed her head, but inwardly she was seething with hate. She knew what he was back for. Pretty little pictures in his head. Pretty little slayers speaking soft, pretty words.

She wanted to spit on the clean, white floor. Stupid to try to make him her prey. The devil dwelt in him. That she knew. A sick, twisted devil with the face of a boy and a sparkly stick full of pain and limpness.

Three guards came in with tasers. Her knight coiled to attack, looking at her for guidance. A tiny shake of her head and a small moue of her mouth propelled him forward into their midst.

The door closed with a click. He would be coming soon. She had to be ready.

++++++++++++++++++++++++

Dawn tore through the kitchen and the empty living room. "Buffy! Buffy!" Changing direction on a dime, she thundered up the stairs and slammed into Buffy's bedroom, just in time to see a bare white ass disappear into a pair of black jeans. Buffy was heading her off in an oversized t-shirt and nothing else, but it was too late.

"I saw Riley," she blurted out.

Spike turned around, just as he finished zipping his pants closed. Dawn didn't even take the time to enjoy his embarrassment at almost being caught with his pants down.

The slayer and vampire exchanged looks. Spike bent down and scrambled for his boots. Buffy started digging through the dirty clothes on her floor, hunting a pair - any pair - of jeans.

"He was near the Magic Box," Dawn explained, nearly out of breath. She gulped and tried to moisten her dry mouth. "He was lurking. I bet he lurks here next!"

Spike finished pulling on his boots. "Or the crypt," he said, under his breath.

Buffy stopped ransacking the floor and gazed up at Spike who was still seated on the bed. "What if he goes in?" She had a sudden image of Xander throwing his arms around beefy savior Riley Finn.

"He doesn't need to find Daniel. Daniel needs to get out of there. Get to Clem's or..."

"Oh, God, Spike, Clem's headed over there!"

Dawn tapped her foot, realizing that she'd been forgotten again.

"Oh, and nice work, guys. More scars. Spike, I saw your butt!" she said accusingly.

"Thirty seconds sooner and you'd have seen more than that. Count your blessings, Bit," he retorted as he ran his hands through his disheveled hair.

Buffy looked at her sister sternly. "Dawn. Out. Now. I'll be right there."

"Oh, yeah. Sure." Dawn said acidly. Taking one more look at the bed and at the two most recent occupants, she flounced out, closing the door with a snap.

Buffy gave the door a dark look and turned back to Spike.

"You're not going."

"Buffy..." His chin set stubbornly as a muscle in his jaw began to twitch.

"I mean it, Spike. You have the magic chip. The *one* that works. Riley knows that, even if the others don't."

"Slayer, Finn may be a stupid git, but he isn't exactly Dr. Evil..."

"Pop references much?" She shook her head. "He wanted to kill you, Spike."

"Buffy, he's shoved a stake in my heart before. True, it was plastic, but it could have just as easily been wood. He could have killed me then and he didn't. Just don't see it happening, love."

The slayer raised her eyebrows. "And when was this? Cause I don't know anything about this."

Spike looked down at his hands. "Right after you ... um, found out about Finn's little vice."

Buffy nodded her head slowly. "Got a visit, did you?"

"Well. Yeah."

"What else haven't you told me? What other little historical moments do you and my ex-boyfriend have?"

"A word or two."

"Or two?"

"Well, maybe a few more than that. And some commiseratin' over a bottle in the crypt."

"You got drunk with Riley?"

"Bloody hell no! It was just a couple of slugs. Big slugs, but..."

"Commiserating how?"

"Well, I may have said something like he wasn't the long haul guy and a bloke's got to try, and..."

She let out a deep breath and shook her head. Suddenly, the whole scene at the crypt between Riley and Spike during the demon egg debacle made a little more sense, what with the massive testosterone overload she'd witnessed. Never considered any private interchanges they might have had. Just like Spike not to mention it.

"I don't have time for this. But this is suddenly a lot more dangerous than you seem to think. If he's already staked you once, plastic or not, there is no way you're going out right now." Her voice softened as she took pity on his helpless look. "Just sit tight for once and don't go all impulsive on me. Let me go to the crypt and get everybody scattered." And get Jonathan over here safe and sound to do something about the damn chip, she thought. "Then, we'll come up with a plan. Together. Okay?"

He sat silently, looking up at her with searching eyes.

"Oh!" Buffy walked to her closet and rummaged around inside. "And you might want to look the part the next time you mix it up with any baddies." A black twisting thing sailed across to the bed. Spike picked it out of the air.

He looked down at the worn leather and back to Buffy in surprise.

"You really thought I'd give away your coat? Your only coat?" she asked, stressing the 'your'. "C'mon, Big Bad, get in character at least. You need a little James Dean bad boy swagger to go with that Roy Rogers white hat soul."

Spike's eyes began to twinkle as a slow grin crept across his face. "Big *Bad*, is it?" he said, slipping into the coat. It fell about him like a second skin. She could almost see the individual muscles of his shoulders through it. Considering fainting, or ripping it off of him, she smiled instead.

He looked down at the coat, smoothing it with his hands. "Christ, Buffy," he said in outrage, seeing the deep new creases down the front to the hem. "What'd you do? Sleep in it?"

She laughed. "On it, mostly. In it? Not so much. Now. Time to deal with the 'brat kid sister.'" She opened the door, looking back once at the pseudo-evil guy in the black leather coat.

She almost ran nose first into a fuming Dawn as she exited the room, her mind still on the demon in black. Dawn looked at her so disapprovingly that she had to remember who the adult was. Oh, yeah, she had it now...

"Knocking is a good thing. Knocking is the polite thing. Knocking is..."

"Hello! Little sister here! We don't knock. We barge. In. Barge in. And besides, you've been boyfriendless for so long, I thought you were gonna take orders or something. Be Nun Buffy or Saint Buffy or... Buffy St. Marie."

"Stay out of mom's albums. You don't know how to take care of them. Spike says..."

"Oh. My. God. Spike says?" Dawn rolled her eyes. "You're not gonna start *that*, are you?" Dawn turned to escape into her room, tossing yet another perfectly aimed parting shot over her shoulder.

"And next time, put on a longer t-shirt!"

Buffy jumped as the door slammed.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

He entered the room like he owned it. Like he owned her. And he smiled. Wicked, evil thing.

"Princess," he said, inclining his head.

She cautiously nodded back, not speaking. He had been known to capture her words, whirl them about his head, and return them to her, full of smoke and ashes, with his talk of science and psychology, babbling like a spring brook.

"I've missed you."

A lie. He missed what she gave him. She took a step back. Not in fear, but because she knew that the little red eyes above her watched her soul. And she didn't want them to see her soul when she began doing what he *told* her to do.

He'd stopped begging long ago. Or asking.

She had hoped he would forget she was here. Sometimes she forgot she was here, so why couldn't he?

"You do know we're in Sunnydale, don't you?"

Her head came up in surprise.

"You know Sunnydale?"

Pixies screamed 'lie, lie!' She shook her head.

"I saw Buffy's little sister. You remember Buffy, don't you? The slayer. You know her, don't you?"

Drusilla stared at him, eyes betraying her hatred at last.

He walked over and touched her cheek. "You *do* her so well. I should have known all that wasn't in my head. I should have guessed."

Her eyes widened.

"Seeing Dawn, being out of this place, helped me remember some things. Things Buffy told me about Spike. And about Drusilla, the vampire who could hypnotize anyone with her eyes, give anyone the dreams they desired." He smiled again. "But you didn't tell me who you were. Which makes this so much sweeter, since he now has what was mine."

She caught his meaning and clamped down on the surge of anger. She'd known sooner or later the slayer would surrender herself to her Spike. What woman wouldn't? Even the golden one. Sighing inwardly at the inevitable, she reached up to touch the big man's face, willing him with her eyes to be in her. She would give him what he wanted and he would go away for a while.

He caught her hand with a twist, and pushed it back, down behind her, pulling her into his chest.

"Oh, no, Drusilla. Not this time. No Buffy. This time, it's going to be you and me. No tricks. Let's see what you've got that would hang on to a man for over a hundred years."

She did spit then. The thought of him touching her and knowing it was her...

"Play nice now," he said softly, sparing a hand to wipe the pink tinged spittle off of his face. "Or your little friend goes for a midday walk. Or worse. You owe me for not killing you the first time we met, and I'm collecting. Now."

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Buffy rolled into the crypt, shocking Xander and Jonathan, who were piling cheetos on top of each other to make a junk food castle.

"You got that spell ready?" The slayer wasn't taking 'no' for an answer.

"Uh, sure!" Jonathan stood up guiltily, sending yellow puffs all over the floor. At least, he thought he did.

"Wait. Where's Clem?" she asked, looking around at the mess they'd made of the crypt. Spike was not going to be happy.

Xander looked at his watch. "He hasn't made it yet."

Buffy tilted her head and looked at him questioningly. "What do you mean, 'hasn't made it yet?' This is Clem, the only dependable demon I know. He would have been here *early*! You did tell him?"

Xander stood up and wiped his hands on his jeans, leaving a trail of bright yellow powder. "Yeah, I told him. I told you I told him. And he said he'd be here."

"I've got a really bad feeling about this," Buffy muttered.

Jonathan threw out a pointing finger, "Han Solo, Empire Strikes Back!"

The slayer looked at him in disgust. "Where's Daniel? In his room?"

The smaller man shrugged. "I guess..."

Buffy started toward the stairs. "Get everything together that you need for the spell. We're getting out of here now!"

Xander stared after Buffy. "Now what's got into her? And I thought you weren't doing the spell?"

Shrugging again, Jonathan looked toward the stairs. "Maybe Spike's not calling the shots on this one?"

Xander kicked at the floor. "Man, he is so whipped!"

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The big man pulled his uniform straight and smiled at Drusilla. "Nice, but not exactly what I'd expect from a hundred years of practice."

The vampire pulled the layers and layers of clothes around her, bare skin peeping through at her breasts and hip. Her hands were shaking in anger and disgust. It was all she had been able to do to keep from tearing his arms off his body. Only the reminder of what *they* would do to her, and to her little lamb, had kept her from sinking her fangs into his neck and ripping his throat out with her teeth.

"Think we'll just go back to the old way of doing it next time, if you don't mind. I'll be Riley and you be... Buffy. Okay?" he asked agreeably. "You're a little dark for my taste. The light is... lighter. You understand, don't you? Nothing against you, Princess. Just personal preference."

Riley Finn looked down at his uniform once more to check it for unsightly wrinkles. Or clues. He'd had the cameras turned off before he'd come in. Smiling at Dru again, he said, "Try to pull yourself together, Drusilla. Wouldn't want your little friend to get jealous, now would we?"

She shot him a look full of venom, but began fastening her clothes, even as she scooted further away from him until her back was against the wall. The pixies screamed so loudly she almost missed his next words.

"Or maybe your little one has found new friends." He frowned good-naturedly. "Matter of fact, I think I'll go looking for a mutual friend of ours. Later, princess."

He shot her a little salute and left the room. She shuddered and once again imagined what she would do to him if she ever got out of there. It made her smile.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

She looked at him with suspicion. It was the last thing she expected, him just walking up and knocking on the door. "What are you doing here?"

"Don't act so surprised, kid," he said pleasantly. "I saw you see me. You knew I was in town. Just came to pay my respects. Belatedly, cause I've been back a few days, but 'respects' nonetheless."

"Where's Sam?" she asked, backing away as he moved into the house. A voice in her head was yelling 'Spike, get out!'

Riley waved a hand negligently, as he continued toward Dawn, face open with regret. "You know, that was the strangest thing. It didn't work out. Went back down to South America and we just... drifted apart. Sad, the way marriages are over almost as they begin these days. Now, Professor Walsh would have told you..."

"What the bloody hell are you doin' here tryin' to scare Dawn?"

Dawn turned her eyes to the top of the stairs. She almost sighed in relief at the sight of the figure that commanded the landing. Wearing the coat.

Yay, the coat! Now *this* was Spike! *Her* Spike!

Riley slowly and deliberately looked up the stairs. "Living here now, Seventeen?"

"None of your sodding business, Whitebread. And the menacing act won't work with me."

"That's because that, with you, I'm not acting. Not so white anymore, either. Just came by to see if you were around. Thought you might want to take a walk and talk about things."

"A walk?" Spike barked a laugh.

Dawn pushed Riley back toward the door, loose hair flying. "Buffy will be back soon and..."

Riley laughed and put a heavy hand on each of Dawn's shoulders and looked into her eyes. "Really not here to see Buffy, Dawnie." The teenager bristled at his use of the pet name. "Came to see my old friend here," he said softly, looking up at Spike. "Catch up on things. Like our mutual friends." His gaze hardened, as did the ghastly smile that had become pasted on his lips like some parody in a horror movie. The hands on Dawn's shoulders tightened slightly.

Spike realized that he had miscalculated. Badly. He silently apologized to Buffy for not taking the return of Captain Cardboard more seriously. He sauntered down the stairs, leather coat swinging behind him, smiling a nasty smile. "Sure, mate," he said mildly, voice belying the look in his eyes. "Bring a bottle with? For old time's sake, true confessions, and what not?" He looked at Dawn. "Stay here and wait for Big Sis, Nibblet."

Dawn's eyes were full of fear. "But Spike..."

The vampire turned back to the girl, eyes narrowing. "Dawn. Do as I say, now. And no runnin' off to Janice's. Give her a call and ask her to come here, since you two have such big plans tonight." He turned back to Riley, nonchalantly moving his hand against Dawn's shoulder and carefully pushing Riley's unresisting one away.

"Phone works, right?" His mouth was turned toward her, but the question in his upturned eyes was directed at the man. Riley locked gazes with Spike, hard dark eyes with diamond sharp blue ones.

"Sure. No problem with the phone lines." Riley laughed. "Not that I know of, 'mate,'" he said mockingly.

Dawn looked down, hiding the surprise in her eyes. She didn't have plans with Janice. So something was up. And it looked bad, really bad, for Spike. But for once, she decided arguing would not be of the good. She trusted Spike, even if some people, like Xander, didn't. And there must be more to this than she knew. God, she hated her closed-mouth, secretive sister.

"Tell Buffy to go ahead and do what she wanted tonight, Little Bit," Spike said meaningfully. "Seems I have other plans."


TBC

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Reminders 16


Without looking at Spike, Riley nodded toward the big black Suburban as he hit the button on his keychain that disengaged the alarm and locks. The vampire silently reached for the handle on the passenger side door, determined to get this threat away from the Summers home any way he could - and quickly.

Spike suddenly found himself pinned against the door of the SUV, the left side of his face pasted against the dark, tinted window. He chuckled ruefully. One thing about Whitebread hadn't changed. Still wasn't one for a fair fight.

"If I didn't need you, you'd be on your way back to headquarters in the ashtray, Spike. But I've got some company coming from Washington and they want a little demonstration. Your chip is the one they want to see. Since they're the funding folks, I'm going to comply. But don't think it means you're my long lost pal. You're my prisoner. And there's a really quick and easy way of getting that chip out of your head."

"Gained a bit of weight there, Soldier Boy," Spike commented. His tone was in marked contrast to his submissive position. Flexing the muscles in his lower back and buttocks, he pushed himself steadily against Riley and felt him strain to hold him against the truck. Spike's smile got wider. There was a quiver in the man's muscles, but he certainly wasn't hurting him. The vampire was getting back a bit of his own as he slowly straightened, overcoming Riley's muscle and weight.

He felt Riley put all of his bulk and strength against Spike to push him back down. Spike continued to resist, just to make his point. The vampire subtly moved his body in a twist that broke Riley's grip, moving to face him. He dropped the resistance just enough that the man stumbled and fell against him, bringing them almost nose to nose. Spike laughed derisively under his breath, curling his lip.

"Not lying on my back for anyone, Finn, especially you. Not anymore." Spike waited for Riley to get the picture. "Now get off so I can get in the bloody truck. People will think we're lovers."

The man stepped back and reached for the door handle on the back seat.

"Oh, I don't think so," Spike drawled. "If I'm gonna be your lab monkey, the least you can do is make it worth my while." He reached over and opened the passenger side door. "I could even drive. Like to see how this log truck handles."

Lights winked on from out of the blackness as four pairs of white lights shone on the black SUV. Spike cut his eyes at Riley with an indulgent smile. "Back up? For me?" He tilted his head to one side, amused, and pushed the back door of the vehicle firmly closed.

Riley laughed loudly and bowed slightly, indicating the front seat.

Spike got in the Chevrolet and calmly fastened his seat belt, making a show of it as Riley walked around, speaking into a cell phone, and got in. "Sure you don't want me to drive?" the vampire asked with a raised eyebrow. "Don't fancy riding while you're havin' a conversation. Seen the fatality statistics on those bloody things." He indicated the cell phone with a nonchalant wave of his hand.

Riley grinned dangerously. The big Chevy pulled out, followed by four others. Good. No one would be waiting at the house for Buffy. At least not that he could see. It looked like he had all of their attention at the moment.

He cast about for another sarcastic barb to imbed in the man beside him.

"By the by, see you been skimpin' on the workouts, Finn. Movin' up the ranks can do that. You *are* moving up the ranks, right?"

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"What do you mean, he walked out the door and got in the truck with Riley? Is he nuts?" Buffy spun around and looked accusingly at Dawn. "And you let him?"

Dawn stuck her chin out. "Oh, yeah. Like anybody can do anything with Spike except you anyway! Besides, he came down the stairs and he was wearing the coat, Buffy! He was *Spike*."

The slayer was not as impressed at this turn of events as Dawn seemed to be. "I do *not* believe this! I leave for an hour and..."

"Besides Riley was...weird. Scary. He made me all... uncomfortable."

Buffy looked at Dawn in exasperation. "Well, duh. Riley's making vampire soldiers for the government. Scary doesn't even cover it."

"Oh, and you're just now telling me? I didn't expect the stupid git to knock on the door!"

"'Stupid git?' Stop channeling Spike! Who I am so killing if the Initiative doesn't do it first," she fumed.

"Well, he *is* stupid. Riley, I mean."

"Dawn, Riley is brilliant. He was working on his master's when I knew him. He was a valued officer in the Initiative. Stupid he's not. Spike on the other hand..." Buffy's tone was dangerous. She turned to a wide-eyed Jonathan. "Can you dechip Spike without him actually being here?"

"I don't think..." Jonathan's voice trailed off in confusion.

"Spike said you were supposed to go on with your plans," Dawn interjected. "I was supposed to wait here for you and tell you that."

"Tell me to go ahead? Like I was gonna listen to him anyway!" Buffy was ranting. "Way past respecting his wishes here. That chip is coming out even if I have to dig in there and pull it out myself!"

The slayer blew out a furious breath. "Stupid vampire! I cannot believe that my in-significant other has just ridden away in the Army-mobile with my ex who has every reason to want him in a vacuum cleaner bag."

Xander snorted in disgust, as Daniel looked down at his feet.

"And you!" Buffy rounded on the Scooby. Xander's eyes widened as he took a step back. "If you'd been the least bit supportive even once. I wish...!"

There was a flash as a beautiful woman winked into their midst. "Finally! I just knew if I listened long enough, you'd manage to mess your nest! Sometime, somehow, there had to be some vengeance coming your way, Xander Harris!"

Buffy turned toward the familiar voice in shock. She'd never get used to the whole teleportation thing. "Down, girl." Buffy grinned at the blonder than blond vengeance demon. "Bigger fish to fry. Got a minute?"

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Mind racing, Spike cast back to what Daniel had told Buffy, while referring to Spike very carefully in the third person. Spike smirked. Daniel had been a bit shocked at his run in with the Big Bad.

"... The records are gone," he'd said. "There was a fire, I think. His chip - it was a prototype - and the only one that really worked."

And "...All of Professor Walsh's schematics disappeared. So they went into a redesign. But the new chips kill. At least they do when they put 'em in a vampire that's already... fed. The chip fires, but it's too subtle or not subtle enough, so it either doesn't work or it kills them."

So, the money men were comin' to Sunnydale, he thought idly as he lounged against the seat, face not betraying the wheels that were spinning inside his head. How convenient for Riley that Spike had come back from Africa. And convenient for him that Riley hadn't been back until recently. Else Riley might have gotten his hands on his chip the old-fashioned way. By dusting him.

Strength wasn't going to do him a damn bit of good here. And since Captain Cardboard seemed to have gone over to the dark side, it might be that needling him the way he'd always needled Angelus might be a plan.

Or not...

Seemed to be working so far though. And Spike was not lying down for the slayer's big beefy ex, who wasn't even good enough to breathe her air. Also, Spike certainly didn't intend for Drusilla to spend the rest of her unlife as a brood mare. What he *did* intend was a bit up in the air right now, but...

He wondered how Riley had ever gotten his hands on his dark princess.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Buffy hung up the phone and sighed. "Well, that was oh, so much fun." She shook her head to clear it. "Not. Buffy lectures. Hence, the un-happy." She frowned.

"What was the point of calling Giles then? Don't you already feel silly enough, what with losing Spike and all?" Anya's hands were on her hips. And she had made quite a show of ignoring her ex-fiance, since she'd realized that the wish wasn't going to happen. Which was secretly a big relief. Still, where were the fish? That were bigger? She opened her mouth to ask, but Buffy interrupted her.

"Never enough of the silly. And, frankly, I thought a little CoW help might be in order. You know, government bureaucracy to government bureaucracy..."

Xander laughed bitterly. "You can't be serious, Buffster. The council may hate you, but they're bound to really hate Spike, a.k.a. William the Bloody."

"True. But I had to talk my way through it, so that I could remember I don't have anyone I can count on but us." She looked around at the motley crew. "Which is giving me a headache."

"Hey! Count on me, how? I don't care if Captains Peroxide and Cardboard go down with their hands around each other's necks. Uh, stakes in each other's..."

"Oh, come on. You know you're rooting for Riley here."

Xander ran his hand through his hair. "Well, I don't know, Buff. He did mess with Dawn... not that I think he would have hurt her or anything. Right now, I'm laying equal odds on the outcome, even with that chip in Spike's head. Cause that is one vampire who hates Riley Finn."

Dawn let out a huge breath. "Spike thought Riley would hurt me. Spike..."

Buffy held up a hand. "Let it go, Dawn. The Xanman isn't joining the Spikey Fan Club anytime soon. If ever. But he is going to help. Do whatever I need him to do." She leveled hard eyes on her friend. "Right?"

The steely glint in her eyes made his decision for him. "Well, it seems like if anybody should get to stake his undead ass, it ought to be me," he said grudgingly. Buffy shot him an eyebrow. "Or you," he muttered. He grinned. "So, yeah, I'm in. Why should Riley have all the fun?"

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"Nice rakish scar you got there. Gives you a bit of an air."

Riley laughed dryly. "I had it last time I was here."

Slowly turning, Spike looked at the man, raising his own scarred eyebrow. "I really wasn't in much of a noticin' mood that night. What with bein' busted in on in bed. Havin' my home trashed. And all for no reason anyway." Spike settled back. "Nice line it's got though," he said conversationally. "Makes you look less like a college kid, more like a man. 'More like' being the operative phrase," he needled. "Menacing. Which is sayin' a lot when it comes t' you."

"That's a funny story. Buffy told me a while back that it was the M.O. of an old girlfriend of yours." Riley snuck a look at the vampire to gauge his response. "Fingernails. Killed a slayer with them. Should have paid more attention, I guess." The man sighed for effect. "But Buffy's war stories...well, you know. After a while, they all started sounding alike. Apocalypses. Unstoppable demons. Evil vampires that lose their souls after sex. You get it, right? Hard to know when to keep paying attention."

"So. My Drusilla gave you that?" Spike worked hard at loitering against the seat. "Good for her. And without me even telling her what a spineless wanker you are."

"*Your* Drusilla?" Riley glanced at the vampire. "She hasn't been yours in awhile, chum. And she definitely has her uses," he said spitefully. "Found out all about *those* the night she tried to take me down."

Spike yawned and tried to look unconcerned, but it was hard. Because Finn had just confirmed that he had Drusilla. "Yeah?"

Inwardly, Riley was surprised at the lack of response to his revelation. "You're not sounding very surprised here, Spike. I have Drusilla. Your ex. In fact, she's..."

"Making vampire soldiers for the government." He shrugged. "You boys were headed that way with the Adam bloke."

Riley's head spun in surprise. His eyes narrowed as the lights from the street played over Spike's face, making his cheekbones and the planes of his face even sharper than usual.

"No surprise it brought you to this," Spike continued, sounding even more unconcerned. "Even with that Walsh bitch dead and gone." He smiled. "Met some of your boys today. Ran outside in the daylight and dusted themselves. Not exactly the sharpest monkeys in the zoo, Finn. Those pretty little blouses might stop stakings and beheadings, but they don't do squat against the light of the sun. Might want to have a little briefing with the boys on that."

"For some reason, their Circadean rhythm is way off."

"Well, hell, it's not like Dru's playing with a full deck," the vampire said offhandedly. "Bound to be some kink ups in the makin'." Well, wasn't this an interesting and oh, so civilized conversation?

"That Dru..." Riley chuckled indulgently. "You know, she's really something on a kill. That thing she does with her eyes..."

"Yeah. Been on the receiving end of that one. Lets you see the thing you want the most."

"Yep. I would have thought that it would have been Sam," Riley mused. "After all, I fell for her, married her. But that's not what I saw... see... at all. I see Buffy."

"See?" Spike echoed his words, mind racing.

"Well, of course, 'see.' A tender, gentle Buffy? One who loves me, says all the right things? Why not have that as often as you can? Dru's a real sport about fulfilling my little on-going fantasies."

Spike froze in his seat, as the images played across his way-too-fertile mind. The truck came to a stop, and seven men armed with tasers waited immediately outside the SUV. Hard hands yanked the door, pulled the vampire out, and placed reinforced cuffs around his wrists. Spike held himself very still, submitting, as he waited for Riley to walk around the front of the truck.

"They'll take you from here. But it was nice having some one-on-one time, Seventeen. Gonna make all this just that much more...interesting."

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The slayer had paced and thought, thought and paced. It was getting her nowhere. "Okay, this is it," she announced to the room at large. "I'm going in." She set her chin and headed toward the front door.

Xander grabbed her arm. "And do what? Yell at him? Slap his wrist? Take away his ice cream?" Xander looked at her resolute face. "Fine. I'm going with you."

"No, Xander. You're going to hold down Fort Summers. Wait for Dawn and Daniel to get back from Clem's.

"And I'm doing this because..."

"Because Jonathan has to work on the spell. He might need... things." She looked over at Jonathan, who was kneeling on the floor in front of the coffee table, gazing fixedly at the read outs on the chip. She sighed. "If you can't take it out, what can you do?"

A little dismayed that she had reopened the subject, Jonathan glanced at Buffy. He shrugged apologetically, as he returned his eyes to the papers on the table. "I really don't..."

"Gah! You can't do *anything*? What happened to all that heavy-duty creativity you had last year?"

Jonathan thought about it. "Um, Warren?"

She threw her hands in the air. "Warren. Of course. Well, there's got to be something you can do."

Jonathan tried to shrink down into the floor.

"There's *got* to be something," she continued. "Interfere with his plans. Slow him down, until..."

Xander pointed a shaky finger at Buffy, then at Jonathan. "Wait. Hold on. Just a ..." He snapped his fingers, trying to focus. An incredulous smile slowly lit up the man's face. "Interfere. With the chip. That's it! One time... wow, that's it! *That* time Spike got shot with the tracer, Willow threw a dampening whatsis around him. A spell. Like a field. Very Star Trek, except all with the magic. Blocked the signal."

The slayer's hopes lifted. Buffy turned to Jonathan, who was digging through the papers, looking for something in particular. "Can you do it?"

Jonathan kept staring at the read outs, shaking his head. "He's not here." Then, he raised his head, excitement gleaming in his dark eyes. "But... if I had... something that's his."

Buffy tapped her foot. "Like...?" She racked her brain trying to think of something that he'd left at her house. And came up with zilch. He'd had the coat on. Dawn said so. She'd have to go to the crypt. Find something...

"Blood, hair, nails, something!" Jonathan was beginning to sound as excited as he looked. It just might work. There was a spell they'd used to hide the lair from electronic surveillance, because those cable porn companies could be mean if someone was hacking into their stuff. Of course, that was just a generalized thing. This was a specific spell around someone who wasn't there. Still, the personal stuff could draw it.

The slayer swung around. Blood? Hair?

"Oh. Oh!" She ran up the stairs and barreled into her bedroom.

Her breath caught as the sight of the tousled bed filled her vision. Her stomach dropped. She put her hand on the dresser and took a deep breath.

Okay, she was beginning to panic. Which was very un-slayerlike and very un-Buffy. She gulped once and smashed the choking feeling back down into the pit of her stomach from where it had risen. Then she compressed it into something even smaller that would fit over in a bitty corner. She didn't have time or room for anything else. And Riley wouldn't just kill Spike, right?

Oh, right. Not her Riley. But the Riley that was making vampires...

Slowly, she walked over to the pillow where he'd slept and looked closely. The darker roots stood out against the patterned bedding. For once, she thanked Dawn for her cosmetic touches. No time wasted at all. Definitely Spike's.

She carefully picked up three hairs and pinched them hard between her fingers. Wouldn't do to lose them.

Unbidden, a sarcastic thought played around the corners of her mind.

Oh, yeah, Xander was just gonna love this!

Anya was waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs. "I can teleport to the crypt. Just tell me what to look for and..." The vengeance demon looked at her curiously, tilting her head to one side. "Where did you go? Did you have an emotional display? Because..."

Buffy smiled grimly and held up her fingers. Anya leaned in and looked carefully, then glanced at Buffy. She beamed, but managed to keep her voice noncommittal. "Convenient."

Walking over to Jonathan, Buffy held out her hand. The shorter man squinted and sighed in relief. "Whew. Good job." He took the hair follicles and put them on the table.

Xander looked down at the table in surprise, then up the stairs and finally met Buffy's eyes. His eyes dropped in the face of her level gaze. "Convenient," he mumbled in embarrassment.

"That's what Anya said. But she meant it."

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

She couldn't believe it. Finally, she had something important to do. Finally feeling the love of full scale Scoobydom.

Dawn looked at the fledgling vampire out of the corner of her eye - and up. She actually had to look up a little. His eyes were the oddest shade of green. And he was...well, hunky. Definitely kind of hunky. Hunky with soft wavy black hair that... Whoa! No cruising vampires. That way lay insanity. Still, they could talk.

"So Daniel. You're like...a soldier or something?"

Daniel smiled with some irony. "Something. Absent Without Leave kind of soldier. Except that I'm dead. So I guess the 'absent without leave' doesn't count."

"Bet it counts for those other guys," she said, referring to the Initiative-made vampires. Made in the USA, by the USA, for...

"Which means a tour of duty now officially lasts forever. Instead of it just seeming like it does," Daniel commented ruefully.

Dawn laughed appreciatively and tossed her hair. "So how did you end up in the middle of this rescue mission? And I am so killing Clem if he's sitting at his apartment eating popcorn."

"I like Clem."

Dawn sighed. "Everybody likes Clem."

They walked along in silence. She supposed he wasn't going to answer her question. "I'm glad Buffy sent us to do this. Cause I'm kinda worried about him."

"Well, I've gotten to know him pretty well, and something must be wrong or he would have been at the crypt."

"Maybe he just like... tripped. Caught his toe in his knee flaps and ... hit his head," Dawn quipped, trying to break the tension a little.

Daniel grinned a little. Then, he laughed. "Now there's a mental image." He picked up the pace.

She matched her strides to his as they walked on faster in a companionable silence.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"Well. Hello, mate. I take it we're 'off' for poker tonight?"

Clem looked up to see his friend standing on the other side of the barrier. It was like a dream. He had a smirk on his face and that leather coat on his back. The wrinkly-skinned demon had a surge of something like hope. Then, he saw the rest.

Spike had an escort. A uniformed escort.

"Jeez, Spike. I'm incognito here," he said through gritted teeth.

A guard pushed the vampire forward. Spike merely looked back at him and arched his brow. "Do you mind? This was gonna be poker night."

"Spike," Clem hissed the word out warningly. "These are not nice men."

The vampire laughed heartily. "Just doin' their jobs, mate. Can't fault a soldier who's just following orders. Of course, the orders are a bit bent comin' from Colonel Wankinstuff, but..."

"Enough." The lead guard pushed Spike forward.

Spike looked back over his shoulder, dragging his feet. "S'okay, Clem. I'm the one they wanted. You're just gravy. I'll see what I can do. Got an 'in' with the head guy."

"Wow. Really?" Clem thought about what Spike was saying. "Wait. Gravy? People *eat* gravy! And do? Do what? Make it worse?! Spike! Spike!"

Clem watched them push the vampire into a room at the end of the hallway. A place he'd seen vampires go into, but not come out of.

"Oooh, Slayer," he whispered, almost bobbing in fear. "You better do something fast!"

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"I've got to do something. Fast. I can't wait around here for a spell that might not even work! I've got to talk to Riley."

Anya rolled her eyes and rocked her head from side to side. "Oh, like that will help."

Buffy looked at the vengeance demon. "What?"

"Well, Riley did hurt you, right? Ran off and left you? Flew off in the big black thing?"

Xander stepped forward. "And that would be *which* time?"

"Shut up, Xander." Anya sighed and rolled her eyes again. "I'm just saying you're probably long overdue for some vengeance. Right?" She slewed her eyes at her ex-fiance and mumbled, "I know *I* am..."

"Anya, I'm all for using the teleporting and messagey stuff, but... well, that other stuff can backfire."

"Well, it's not like we can directly benefit Spike anyway." Anya pointed out grudgingly. "It's got to be Riley-related. And a real wish, too."

"As opposed to... what? A birthday blow-out-the-candles thingy?"

Twin heads of blonde hair swung around as twinnish voices rung out. "Shut up, Xander."

"Look," Buffy continued. "This is still Riley. A decent human being. Or at least, he was. I can go to him, make him understand..."

"Understand what? That you're in love with a vampire? Oh, yeah, that'll put Spike right back in those slayer arms of love," Xander said candidly. "Not instilling me with the old confidence here, Buffster. This is doomed to fail."

"I'm not failing anything. School's out. It's time Riley realized it."


TBC

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Reminders 17/20


Buffy walked over to the wall that held the elevator. Once upon a time, it had taken her deep into the Initiative. She hoped that Jonathan had everything he needed to do the spell. Of course, Anya would take care of anything else that was required. Buffy was sure of it.

If he could just put some kind of dampener around Spike to stop the chip's signal, then he could fight.

Right?

That is, if he would. Buffy was still not so sure about that part.

Of course, the other thing that she was unsure of was her reception from Riley. Would he slap her in a holding cell? Or order out for pizza?

Was anybody even here? Who said that the old entrance was the new entrance? If they'd rebuilt, the door could be anywhere above the rambling facility.

Buffy leaned down and spoke into the microphone by the hidden door. "Buffy Summers to see Riley Finn." Well, that felt stupid. She felt stupid. That was so lame, she was grateful that no one was around. And jeez, like he was just going to let her in and...

The door to the elevator slid open. Her eyes widened slightly as she shrugged. Now if Jonathan could just pull off his part, she'd have a little help in here.

+++++++++++++++++++++

"No Clem."

Daniel stood still in the center of the room. "The smell of him is stale. Not new. He hasn't been here in a while. Probably since yesterday."

The former Key flopped down on the brightly-colored Joe Boxer smiley face bed and absently stared at a bright green bean bag chair. Clem was the only demon she knew with a twin bed and kids' linens. "So we've got...what? No Clem. No Spike. Riley Finn..." She looked up at Daniel. "And Clem's canvas bag isn't here. I don't think he was taken from here. I think he never got home at all."

"Since early this morning means that he was taken on the way home from your house?" Daniel peered behind a door that had a huge poster of Tom Hanks as Forest Gump on it, and the legend, 'Life is Like a Box of Chocolates...'

Dawn jumped up, hair swinging. "Okay, we need to get back. Buffy probably needs us. Because if Riley is doing all that..." She stared at Daniel. "Not exaggerating, right? It's really bad, isn't it?"

"Yes, Dawn. It is."

"Making vampires? From live people?"

Daniel nodded once. The girl rushed toward the door. "I hope Buffy can figure something out. Riley must have gone crazy to be doing this!"

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Lt. Colonel Riley Finn smiled as Buffy was escorted onto the deck. He nodded at the soldier, who turned and left the elevated observation area.

"I was wondering if you were going to make it in time," he said agreeably. "Doing a little test run on old Spikey's chip. Thought you might want to watch."

Buffy ceremoniously looked down at her nails to hide the shock in her eyes. "Right," she grumbled. "Like I did so well in Lab anyway."

The man laughed. "I remember. And of course, with all the saving the world stuff, it was hard to make those structured schedules, wasn't it?" He swiveled around in his ergonomically-sound chair and walked to a large floor-to-ceiling window. He tapped on the high-impact, clear plastic. "See, there he is. Right down there. Although it's hard to see him with all the leads we've got hooked up to him. We'll be measuring everything. Pain levels... pain levels." Riley smiled at her.

Buffy walked forward and peered out and over, splaying her palms and fingers against the plastic. Spike looked very frail and small on the table far below. He was surrounded by technicians. And soldiers with tasers.

Now what did she think she was going to do here?

She cocked her head at Riley, playing for time and praying for Jonathan. "Sam didn't make the trip?"

Riley sighed and returned to the chair. "I'm glad you were all so impressed. No. Sam's gone. Decommissioned and somewhere in Asia doing Peace Corps type work."

"Still fighting the good fight then. And you? Gave up the good fight?"

He ignored the sarcasm. "This place was just tottering along, barely funded, until I came back. I looked around last trip and knew I had just the thing to put it back on its feet."

"Which was..."

"Well, first, you have to understand that I'd already put a feather in my cap and lettuce on my chest with the whole New York thing."

"Feather. Lettuce. Check. New York thing? Not so checked." She nodded as if humoring him.

"The Bezuine demons. I found them in South America and came up with a way to introduce them into the sewers in New York," he boasted. "Incidence of infant bites is practically nil at this point."

"But that was..."

"The Doctor? And no, Buff. That was me. Not the doctor part, but the demon answer to sewer rats. He got the idea from some rumors that we planted back here. Quite the entrepreneur, your Clem. He's around here somewhere. Not much to look at though. We supplied the eggs. They weren't the right ones, but..."

"You set Spike up."

"The connections were there. And I've always had a soft spot for your old lovers."

A tone sounded. Riley put up a hand to forestall Buffy's reply.

Riley looked at Buffy apologetically. "Sorry, Buff, but we'll have time for old home week later. Need to get started here. I have company coming from Washington, and I want to be ready with a little show and tell."

Buffy turned and looked back down at Spike from twenty feet up. "Riley, I've never killed a human in my life, but that doesn't mean I won't hurt you real bad." She glanced back at him, a determined, no-nonsense look in her eyes.

The man smiled at Buffy dangerously. "Do it and he's dust. I'll see that the chip burns out his brain. Fire from the inside out. Besides, this isn't about you and the vampire anymore. This is All.About. The Chip."

Buffy stood with Riley on the observation deck - thick, clear, nearly impenetrable plastic between her and the surreal scene below. She clenched her fists in frustration. Had Jonathan been able to do the spell?

"We've isolated the frequencies now. Recalibrated the pulse. Improved it, I think, a bit. Now we can modulate it. Change the data flow. Delicately, of course. We want everything working well for our little demonstration. So we're putting him through his paces. Now."

Riley barked an order into the mic. Almost immediately, she saw Spike's face twist in pain. This was a thousand times worse than anytime she'd ever seen him react to the chip. She watched impotently as it went on and on, his arms and legs stiffening in reaction to the pain in his head.

"Yes. Everything seems to be working just fine," he said in satisfaction. A triumphant grin stole across his face.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"Anything?"

Jonathan shook his head. "I don't feel any surges of power. Maybe we need to be there."

"Oh, sure." Xander looked at him disgustedly. "Like that's gonna happen. We can't just waltz in there, draw a circle and start casting spells."

Anya rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to make a suggestion about what her ex-fiance could do with his 'waltz.'

Dawn and Daniel burst in the door, the teenager panting with exertion. "Where's Buffy? Clem's not there. He hasn't been there. His canvas bag is gone."

"Buffy's gone after Spike," Anya answered helpfully.

"But Clem never got there. Something is really wrong. We think the Initiative has him, too." She stood by Daniel with a 'we are the world' look on her face.

Xander frowned in confusion. "But why? What has Clem done, or got, or..."

"Hello? Demon. With Slayer connections. Spike connections. Riley's got him and I'm going after him."

"Whoa, missy. You don't know that. And you're not going anywhere. Buffy's handling this." Xander realized that things were way out of hand. He grabbed for Dawn, hair sliding through his fingers, as she strode to the hand-carved weapons chest.

"I've been patrolling with Buffy... um, a lot! And I don't see you doing anything except shooting looks at Anya and bothering Jonathan anyway." She threw a cross-bow to Daniel. He caught it and looked it over.

The teenager reached back in and hefted the sword that she'd used in the cemetery the night that Willow had gone all evil. "He's got Clem and he's got Spike. By now, he might even have Buffy! I'm going in."

Xander laughed at her. "You don't know *how* to get in."

"I do," said Daniel quietly. Xander gave him a dirty look.

"And you're being ridiculous," the Scooby continued, turning back to Dawn. He nodded at the sword. "It's not like you know how to use that."

With a flash, the man's shirt was laid open across his stomach. There were a few flecks of blood. "Hey!" He rubbed a stinging spot on his belly.

Dawn looked down, mumbling, "Sorry. Just thought your shirt was too big."

"Not the shirt. Just Xander," Anya said bitingly.

Dawn determinedly walked to the door. Looking back at Xander, she raised her eyebrows in challenge.

"Are you coming or not?"

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Buffy watched Spike writhe against the restraints. His face was almost unrecognizable in its pain. The slayer tried to calm herself. She had no idea how many soldiers there were, or where the Initiative vampires were.

She didn't know much of anything. She heard a thin wail through the speaker. It didn't sound human.

"See? Like Forest used to say. Animals!" Her old boyfriend practically spat out the word. Her Riley would never be doing something like this. He'd helped free Oz, Willow's old werewolf lover, over just this kind of experimentation. What had happened to Riley in South America?

"Spike is not an animal." Buffy's words were spoken reasonably to try to stave off the fear that was clogging her throat.

"Want to see him bare his teeth?" With that remark, Riley spoke again. And the mask of pain began to disappear beneath the bumps and ridges of Spike's other face - the demon one.

"See? Animal."

Buffy winced as Spike howled. The speaker crackled as it tried to compensate for the noise. Riley stared at the scene with a feral smile, saying under his breath to the vampire below, "Not so cocky now, are you?"

The slayer's voice pulled him out of his reverie. "Right now, he looks more like a man to me than you do. Even like that."

Riley just smiled. Buffy almost shivered. "Proper stimuli applied... properly," he explained. He leaned forward on the desk and looked out at the scene below. "You know," he mused, almost to himself, "we really don't need him for this. We've got what we wanted out of the testing. The chip's the only thing left. Working backward is a pain, but..."

"What do you mean?" she asked, trying not to give into the sense of panic that was threatening to engulf her. She didn't even know this man anymore. There had been some bitterness after the whole thing with Adam, but this... this was insane!

Riley turned to her. "I can just dust him now. Implant the chip in another one. Bound to have a bad ass vampire lying around somewhere."

Buffy snorted in spite of her fear, still trying to be the slayer. "Oh, yeah. Right. A world of Spikes."

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Dawn walked with Daniel, Xander following closely and looking behind him almost constantly. She squinted her eyes in the near dark and saw the metal door in the cavern wall.

Daniel spoke into a microphone. "North, Daniel G."

Brows raised, both Xander and Dawn cut their eyes at Daniel.

"G.?" Dawn echoed.

A thin voice came from the speaker at shoulder level. "North, Daniel G. deceased. Access denied."

"Ouch." Xander looked surprised. "Oh. Guess no zombies get in here then."

Daniel ran his hand through his hair and pulled at his sweatshirt. "Guess not. There's the main entrance. We can..."

"No time," Dawn said in a steely voice. She closed her eyes and put her hands on the door.

"Uh, Dawnie, even a slayer couldn't get through that door. Well, maybe a slayer..." Xander was thinking about going the other way and wondering if it would do any good. He touched Daniel's arm. "Let's try it. The entrance, I mean. Not the 'through the door' thing."

The young vampire was staring at Dawn. Xander followed his eyes with a quick glance and turned back to Daniel. "Hey, if we're gonna..."

A soft green light lurked at the peripheral of his vision. He jumped back. "Jumpin' Jiminy Cricket, Dawn! Are you doing that? Wait. *What* are you doing?"

Dawn let her overwhelming need to open the door flow out through her fingers, through every fiber of her being. She felt an easing. Then a pop. Finally, the door in front of her slid open.

"I may not be a slayer, but I *am* a key. Still, I guess." She looked at Xander with a smirk, to cover the surprise she felt at her success. Wow! "If I can open a hell dimension," she said in a nonchalant voice, "a door shouldn't be a problem, right?"

But the sensation didn't end. She felt another pop. And another. And another. One after another, she felt doors give and unlatch. All kinds of doors. Doors that weren't regular doors even.

"Whoops. We may have a problem."

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"Nothing."

Anya tilted her head to look at the odd selection of items in the small circle. "Are you sure this is the correct way..."

"No!" Jonathan's voice was shrill. "I'm not sure of anything. Including why my parents ever moved to this place!"

Anya waited for his frustrated outburst to end. "Maybe you're just missing a little thing. One little thing. Think."

"I've been thinking! My head *hurts* with thinking. I need aspirin... or something a lot stronger!"

"Well, you just have to do better, that's all," she said in frustration. "I find that when I need to focus, talking helps me. So if you will just *talk* about the spell, perhaps you'll see what's missing. And then..." Anya fell silent.

"Oh." She looked at Jonathan. "Duty calls."

The young man's eyes went wide as Anya disappeared.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Buffy had watched Spike fight against his restraints for...seven minutes. Only seven minutes? It was the longest seven minutes of her life. Every move he'd made had seemed like it was in slow motion. And her brain was moving at the same speed. There was no talking to Riley. And Buffy had been fresh out of options at the first threat.

"We could just get it over with. Test out the far end range of the chip."

Riley kept rambling on, making Buffy more and more frightened of what the man would do.

"... go all the way. We've got everything in place to measure it. Just fire it up and watch him fry," he crooned to no one in particular. "Then, we make more chips." Making his decision, Riley leaned down toward the microphone again.

In desperation, Buffy finally made her move. And took great pleasure in it. She slammed her ex against the clear plastic, looking out past his bulky frame at the scene outside.

The sight of Spike's continued anguish made her even more furious. She looked at Riley with hatred, almost snarling, drawing her hand back to punch him in the face. "You know what, Riley? I wish that damn chip was in my hand right now. Just so I could shove it up your ass!"

Buffy shuddered as something moved inside her fist. Her eyes widened in surprise. The howls stopped. She backed away from Riley, as her astonishment gave way to grim delight. Realizing what had happened, she stretched out her fingers and opened her hand, showing the contents to her old flame.

It was a black computer chip.

"Or maybe not," she said wickedly, as she carefully laid the chip on the floor. Riley looked at her in disbelief, unmoving, eyes huge.

She took the heel of her stylish, yet affordable, boot, and ground Spike's chip to dust, as Riley's face turned white.

"Huh. Didn't even have to throw a penny in the fountain," she quipped.

The man's eyes darted to the vampire below. The technicians and soldiers seemed frozen in place. A woman in a brightly colored suit, like a parrot in the midst of grey and white pigeons, reached down and touched Spike's restraints. They fell away as he pulled himself up, one hand tight on the side of the table, while the other dragged the leads off his face, head, and neck.

She saw Spike look up into Anya's eyes and mumble something. The vengeance demon's mouth moved in a two-syllable word.

Buffy already knew what the word was.

Granted.

Riley disappeared.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Spike had never known such pain. Somewhere on the periphery of it was the idle thought that he'd been a nancy-boy ever complaining about it before. He felt like his brain was swelling in his skull and running out his ears, the ducts of his eyes, his mouth, his nose...

Oh, yes, this was going to kill him. Or leave him a vegetable. Or leave him a vegetable as it killed him.

Once again, 'impulsive' had gotten him in trouble. He just hadn't realized how far Finn would go. He made a silent apology to Buffy for not paying attention. Another one. He'd spend eternity apologizing to her. If there was an eternity for a creature like him.

Probably not. Just dust. Ashes.

And Dru. He hadn't helped Dru. Hadn't even seen her. She was here somewhere, just like Clem was. Trapped. A prisoner.

He felt himself go into gameface as the pain worsened. Worsened?

How the bloody hell could it get worse?

Suddenly, he was beyond it. The pain was somewhere over and off to the left and his thoughts were clear. A lost soul. That was Riley Finn. And all the vampires. More lost ones, just like Daniel, who hadn't chosen as Spike had. They'd been made to be used. Finn had given them the means to do it.

And for Drusilla, what could be worse than to have to wear her rival's face over and over to fulfill the fantasies of someone even crazier than she was?

God, what that wanker had done, how he'd used them all! Even Buffy. The woman the git said he'd loved.

Absently, Spike realized that his ears were splitting with white noise. A constant howling sound rose and fell, like being in the eye of a hurricane at sea. He hoped he'd be dust soon. And he hoped Buffy would never know what happened here.

Suddenly, he felt himself slam back down into his body. It echoed with the pain in his head. Every muscle in his body screamed, striving toward release.

A hand touched his head, trailed across his chest and legs, as small fingers fumbled at the restraints. He was free. And he realized, really free, for the first time in four years.

The chip was gone. He could feel its absence. There was just a steady ache where it had been.

He opened his eyes, to a pair of soft ones. Not Buffy's, of course, but full of warmth. Even surrounded by her vengeance demon face. And as he pulled himself up to a sitting position to face Anya and dragged the wires away, one thought came to mind.

Very deliberately, he locked eyes with Anya. "I wish Drusilla would kill that bastard," he said hoarsely.


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Reminders 18



Her eyes opened in surprise. An excited shiver raced through her. She raised a finger to her lips as her knight stirred beside her. It was time to play now. New rules. The pixies had told her.

She waited, body poised to leap from the bed and dance in the light, arms swinging in freedom. Freedom!

Her nose tasted the still air. Not yet, not yet.

But it would be soon. She could feel the power swirl, its colors beckoning to her. Her beautiful one waited with her, for what he did not know. Then, he would see. He was as still as death.

She hummed softly to soothe him, her head moving slightly in time to the old aria like a charmed snake.

Snakes were very beautiful.

Ah.

He was there now, reeling like a clown at a carnivale. She clapped her hands and made a face at the winking red lights in the ceiling. Stuck out her tongue. The black hole that had been her soul was filled with a welcome chilliness. She was free again. The pixies had told her.

As if in answer, the door clicked and fell open slightly. She flung herself at her devil. The evil one opened his mouth, put a hand up in fear.

Snick.

Like a switchblade, her fingernail skimmed his wrist. She watched in satisfaction as the blood welled up and poured out. His other hand clenched around the cut. His mouth was a round 'o.'

More. And oh, to bathe in it! She wished she could slather that red paint across her breasts, between her legs, her back her arms, her face. Everywhere he had corrupted with his filthy grunts and grasping hands.

Her next slash was to the artery at the left side of his neck. A negligent sweep back with the same hand severed the right. The blood spurted. She stepped back, as if suddenly afraid he would infect her with sickness. She could smell it in him. The air was thick with it, as it whirled around her.

Continuing to slash away, she followed him down as he fell to his knees, cutting away at every major artery she could reach. At his chest. Reached for his heart. All with the fingers of her right hand.

Oh, so elegant death could be. At least for the giver of it. Life flowed into death. So it had always been. Except for those such as her.

Finally, he slumped to the floor, gurgling like a springtime brook. His legs twisted behind him. Unnatural could be so natural. She knelt beside him as the blood spread around him. She pulled up her skirt like an old farm wife to keep it from staining with the vicious fluid that she suspected ran as acid through his veins.

Drusilla's partner appeared at her side, kneeling as she was, almost in supplication. His hair was golden in the stark light. He reached forward to touch the blood.

Nasty, tainted poison.

She slapped his hand away and thumped his nose. He backed off, looking at her in confusion.

"Sick blood," she hissed in explanation. "Like burning rags in a coal fire. Fit only to be washed away, my lamb. Washed and then scrubbed with mama's lye soap until the infection cannot spread." She got to her feet, surveying the broken body as it continued to bleed out. "He is not for you. He is fit for nothing and no one. Not even for a hole covered in dirt," she spat out. She looked deep into her torturer's eyes as he tried to speak through the bright red bubbles and pink froth.

She waved four exquisite fingers and waggled them at him, smiling brightly. "Ta."

The princess swept out of her tower prison, knight trailing her, never to look back. The door closed with a click.


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