Once again, thank you for all the feedback with this fic- on the mailing lists and @ ff.net. I really appreciate ALL of it!

Disclaimers and everything in part 1

Please excuse all typos and mistakes. This fic is very old!

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"So, what was that all about?" Xander asked on the way to Doc's home.

"What was *what* all about?" Spike asked back.

"You know...you and Buffy and Tara going into the back room together." Xander said, "Someone walked out looking mighty smug."

"Like I'm going to tell you, Harris," Spike replied. "We aren't buddies or anything, so why bother?"

"C'mon, Spike, how bad can it be?" Xander asked. "You two talked, so she must have talked you out of staking yourself, or going for a morning stroll, or she told you that she forgave you, or she told you something about the whole 'monster' thing, or-"

"She kissed me," Spike replied.

"What?! She did what?" Xander asked, now outraged. "That's...that's pretty bad."

"You know, I thought that you might be the one person in this lame gang that would actually understand me, Harris. After all, weren't you once in love with her too?" Spike said.

Xander lowered his eyes, "yeah."

"So you should be able to relate," Spike replied. "Especially since you have the ex-demon in the mix. You love here, right?" Xander nodded at once, not even questioning how he felt about Anya. "Well, I love Buffy, okay?"

"Wait...*how* did you kiss her?" Xander asked. Spike explained what Tara had done for him. Now that the two had started talking, he couldn't simply shut up. "Why'd you kiss her?"

"I don't know...felt like the right thing to do at the time." Spike said. <Bloody hell, was it wonderful,> He thought to himself. He tried to brush off the kiss, making it seem as though it was nothing important.

"Come on, Spike, drop the tough guy act." Xander said. The two were outside of Doc's door, but Xander refused to turn the doorknob before the two of them talked. "Buffy is *dead* and you're just acting like-"

"You don't know what I'm acting like *at all*, Harris," Spike said. "You don't know what is going on."

"I know that you think that you let her down..." Xander started. "That's what Buffy and Tara were talking about. She saw you in her bedroom, and I think she thought that you were going to go and kill yourself."

"No, can't kill myself. I promised...I promised her that I would protect Dawn," Spike said, lowering his eyes.

Xander looked Spike over for a second, seeing the guilt in his eyes. His mind flashed back to earlier today when Tara had said "Sounds like Spike has a - a soul instead of a chip." Now he was really beginning to wonder that himself. "This isn't just a get-in-her-pants type of thing, is it?" Xander asked him.

"What the hell do you think?" Spike asked. He sighed, knowing where this conversation was going. "C'mon, let's go see if they're in there." He pushed past Xander and pushed open the door, walking into darkness.

"Maybe they're not here," Xander said as he followed Spike inside.

Spike look around the room, walking over and turning on the lamps that were on Doc's table. He looked around the living room. There was no sign of Doc or Dawn, but there were some scattered papers and books. "Here," he said, walking over to the corner. Dawn's backpack and jacket were lying against the back of the chair.

"So they have been here..." Xander said.

"Check for papers from that chest," Spike said, picking up Dawn's stuff. Xander walked over towards Doc's table as Spike searched through Dawn's backpack. He pulled out some sheets of paper, but they weren't what they were looking for. Instead, he saw a sloppy drawing on a blank sheet of notebook paper. Spike studied the drawing for a second, thinking that it was simply something that Dawn had drawn in school. His eyes narrowed before widening in horror when he finally realized what she had drawn.

"Harris!" Spike shouted. He walked over to the man and shoved the paper into his hand. "We've got to go *now.*"

"O...Okay," Xander said. "I've got the papers."

Spike grabbed the papers out of Xander's hand and stuffed them into his deep pockets. "We've got to go...Doc's got Dawn, back up on that tower."

Xander looked down at Dawn's drawing, seeing a sloppy image of the tower where she had stood less than 48 hours ago. "Okay, let's head back to the shop." The two men walked out of the apartment building, not bothering to turn out of the lights or close the door.

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Spike and Xander stormed into the Magic Box the same time that Willow and Tara climbed down from the Loft. "Anything?" Tara asked Xander as she walked towards him.

"Something," Xander replied. "He's got Dawn up on that tower thing."

"And we got the papers back," Spike said. He pulled them out of his pockets and lay them out on the table.

"Tara and I found a couple spells that might work on closing small mystical portals, but nothing on huge energy portals like ones made from Dawnie's blood." Willow said, walking over to the table.

"Check the papers, see if they say anything," Buffy said.

Tara told Willow what to do, and they started looking at the sheets of paper.

"Giles? What- what do we know?" Tara asked for Buffy.

"Not a whole lot, I'm afraid." Giles said in a typical Giles fashion. "The two Hell-gods...like Glory, but less powerful-"

"Well, that's good, right?" Anya asked. She hadn't done much helping. She'd gone down to the basement instead to do price checks on all of her goods.

Giles sighed. <Always being interrupted,> he thought. "They are- are less powerful over in *their* universe. Here, they'll be just like Glory...more powerful because there are two of them. They'll cross over from that dimension the moment that the portal is open, allowing them and...and many other beings to cross over as well."

"So this is pretty bad." Xander said. "Instead of ET phone home, we've got ET's parents calling over here collect."

"Yes, Xander...once again, you've put it in layman's terms for the rest of us," Giles said sarcastically.

"No problem," he replied.

"Okay...so, we go stop him," Buffy said. "We've done it before, we'll do it again. All we need this time is to really kill him and get Dawn out of there."

Spike sighed and lowered his head. <Bloody hell, it's like deja vu all over again.> Then, he knew that if he could do this, he would set right all the mistakes he had made the other night. "Let me do it," He said aloud.

Everyone turned to look at him all confused. Only Buffy was the one who understood why he truly wanted to be the one to take on Doc. "Spike-" Giles started.

"No, let me do this." Spike said. "It's the least I can do for her...for you, Buffy."

Buffy smiled. Spike wasn't that bad a fellow when he wasn't so worried about his attitude and ego. "OK, Spike has Doc-detail. What else?" She asked, waiting for Tara to repeat her words.

"Well, as Willow had said, we found some small spells..." Tara started less nervous. "We think that we could postpone or...we-weaken the portal. But- but we don't know if we can totally close the portal with such a little spell."

"To close a portal the size of the one from last night, we'd need a huge amount of energy," Giles said thoughtfully.

"Right, so that's why we don't think that this will-"

"Woah!" Willow shouted, cutting off Tara. "Sorry Baby, but...woah!" She was examining the sheets of paper in her hands and her expression grew in hope with each word that she read.

"What?" Everyone asked together.

"I think...these papers, we can close the portal." Willow said. "We should have just checked here in the first place. It's got a whole reversal spell that we can do...we being me and Tara and...we can work this."

"That's great...Willow the Big Gun to the rescue," Buffy said to herself. "Okay...we've got Doc-duty, closing the portal set up...God, I wish I could fight."

"Okay...so, are we set?" Xander asked.

"Well, we have to wait until nightfall...Doc will probably perform the spell at midnight, so we have some time." Giles said. "Let's get all set up, though, shall we?"

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The ten hours that passed seemed like only minutes. Spike was boiling over with anger, revenge set in his mind to kill Doc. To get revenge on what he failed to do the first time. He was holding an axe in his hand and a couple knifes in his pockets just in case he lost the axe. <OK, I can do this...I can get this bastard.>

"Are we ready?" Buffy asked her friends. She looked around at her friends. Willow and Tara had some herbs and a couple potions in their hands while Spike paced aimlessly around the room. Anya and Xander and Giles were also standing around. They were coming along, but weren't planning to fight.

"Re-ready?" Tara asked everyone.

"I think that we're about as ready as we can ever get," Xander said.

"Good, then let's head out." Buffy said.

Spike led the group followed by Willow and Tara and the rest of the gang. Buffy was the last person to walk out of the store, trying to gather her thoughts in case this was the last night that she would ever be with her fiends. <What am I going to do? Am I going to get to say goodbye? Will I get the chance to thank them all for what they've done for me?> Millions of thoughts raced through her head as she tried to keep her mind focused on what was coming up in a few minutes.

"How ya holding up?" Xander asked Spike, quickening his pace to keep up with the vampire.

"I'm fine," Spike replied coldly. He didn't mean to be so cold to Xander, but wanted to keep his mind confused. He couldn't let his emotions get to him right now.

"Are- are you okay?" Tara asked Willow quietly.

"Yeah...I'm kinda nervous. I've never really performed a spell quite this large before." Willow admitted. "I- I guess that...well, I think we can do this."

"Don't worry, you'll be great...just like you're always great." Tara said sweetly. She gently grabbed onto Willow's hand and brought it up to her mouth, kissing it. Willow smiled, Tara's sweet motion giving her a wave of confidence.

Buffy smiled at her friends. Xander and Spike were becoming friends. Willow and Tara were so sweet together. Anya and Xander were together. Dawn would be alive after this, Buffy would make sure of it. If she were forced to leave her friends, at least she would be leaving them safe and sound.

As the large tower became in view, Willow and Tara started pulling out the stuff that they would need for the spell. Spike twirled the axe around in his hands, getting a feel for the handle. More than anything, Buffy wanted to fight. She didn't feel right if she wasn't helping her friends. "Okay..." Buffy started. "It's time."

"Let's go guys," Xander started as Buffy also spoke. "Let's get this show on the road."

Spike looked up at the black sky, trying to see if Doc and Dawn were already up there. Indeed, he saw Dawn's body and another body up on the plank extending from the main part of the tower. <OK, this is it, mate.> he said to himself. <Buffy is watching, Sweet Bit is up there...I can't let them down now.>

"All right, Spike...you're up first." Giles said. "Willow and Tara are gonna follow you up in a few minutes. Try to get Dawn off the tower so she can be far away from the portal."

Spike nodded and started climbing the steps to the top. He remembered each step he took the night before. <God, this is going to haunt me until the day I die if I don't do this right,> he though to himself.

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Doc and Dawn stood up on the portal together. Doc was grasping a beautiful dagger with jewels and gold encrusted on the handle. Dawn struggled to get free from the ropes. She thought that no one knew where she was or what was going on. <Buffy won't be here to save me this time,> Dawn thought.

"Well...it's almost that time," Doc said, looking down at his pocket watch. "We don't want to be late and miss the opening."

"Please...don't do this..." Dawn pleaded. She twisted her wrists around to see if she could loosen the ropes grasp around her.

"Hey, kid, don't worry. Everything will be okay," Doc said. He looked down at Dawn's stomach, deciding where to cut her. In a flash, his arm traveled across her stomach, cutting Dawn in three places. She screamed from the pain as the blood began traveling down her side and stomach. Doc smiled to himself, pleased at what he had just done. "Well, isn't this just deja vu?"

From behind him, a voice called out, "Well, deja vu isn't what it's all cracked up to be, mate."

Doc spun around and Dawn's head snapped up. "Spike! Its you!"

"Of course, Nibblet. Who else would be up here?" Spike asked, drawing the axe out in plain view.

"Well, well...if it isn't the vampire with a soul, back for another try." Doc teased.

"Now let's not get so low as to insults," Spike said. <Ug, being compared to my pouf of a sire...that's worse than getting beat in a fight.>

"Think you've got what it takes?" Doc said. "C'mon, give it a try."

Spike ran towards Doc, holding the axe out. Doc dived under him, moving like a frog as he quickly jumped back up to his feet. Spike swung the axe and Doc grabbed it with his tongue, trying to throw it out of his hands. Spike staggered up towards Doc, hanging onto the axe handle as he grabbed onto Doc's black coat.

"Like I said, you don't come near the girl," Spike said. He started pulling Doc down with him and the two started falling. Spike couldn't grab onto anything and the two of them started falling down the side of the tower. <Goddamn deja vu,> Spike thought as he went flying.

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Willow and Tara were at the top of the tower as they saw Spike and Doc fall off. The two girls gasped as they watched Spike fall off the side of the tower. "We can't worry about that now, we've got to deal with this."

Willow and Tara looked below the portal and saw a huge circular mist appear, much like an upside-down tornado. The mist had swirling colors of orange and reds and yellows, and would have been considered beautiful if not so deadly. The portal was slowly growing larger and Willow and Tara knew that there couldn't have been much time left until all hell broke loose- again.

Willow ran to the edge of the tower, pulling out a knife from her jacket. She grabbed the rope in her hands and sliced through it, releasing Dawn's wrists. "Run!" Willow said.

Dawn started running toward the steps, casting a worried look at her two friends. "Don't-don't worry, we'll be okay," Tara said. Dawn smiled and started running down the steps of the tower, taking each step two or three at a time.

"Okay...get everything out," Willow said. Tara took out a couple of bottles and the paper that had the spell incantation on it.

"Okay, we should have everything," Tara said. "Do your stuff, Will," she added.

"Okay, here we go," Willow said. She took a deep breath and sat down Indian-style. Tara followed her motions and the two clasped hands together, helping to make the spell that much stronger. Tara gave Willow a reassuring nod before Willow opened her mouth to start the spell.

Willow and Tara could feel the magic flowing throughout their veins. Willow looked below her and saw the portal begin to grow in size. <Are we too late?> she thought to herself. Willow took the potions that were surrounding the two of them and dropped the bottles into the swirling pit. She closed her eyes again and continued the spell.

Willow tightened her grasp around Tara's hands as she fought to stay still as the magic continued to do its work.

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Spike and Doc landed on the concrete floor at the same time. "Bloody hell," Spike muttered to himself, trying to drag himself to his feet. He looked around and saw Anya, Giles, and Xander nearby. The younger two looked as though they were getting to rush into the fight in order to help Spike. He didn't want any help, but there was no way that he could let them know that. He looked around him for any sight of Doc and saw him lying over there about 20 feet away. <Ahh...playing dead this time once again,> he thought.

Spike picked up the axe that had landed beside him and started to limp over to where Doc was lying. He raised the axe high over his head, preparing to bring it down on his neck when Doc jumped to his feet and punched Spike, pushing him down to the floor. <Or maybe not,> Spike added.

Doc leapt over Spike and landed behind him. Spike quickly turned around and looked at Doc, both of their faces naked with surprise. "God, don't you ever die?" Doc asked him.

"I should ask you the same question." Spike said.

Instantly, Spike was brought back to the night when Doc asked him a very similar question. <God, snap out of the deja vu, mate!> He commanded himself. Spike's memories gave Doc a second to attack, and he whipped out his tongue, pushing Spike against a metal pole that served as one of the legs on the tower. Spike tried to free himself but wasn't able to. With his left hand, Spike raised the axe and brought it down on Doc's tongue.

Doc screamed as he stepped back. Spike was instantly released as he watched the remainder of Doc's tongue slid back into his mouth. With that, Spike punched Doc in the face and tried to find the right time to slice his head off.

There was a flash in the sky above Spike and Doc and the two looked up to see the portal suddenly grow in size. <Bloody hell, were we too late?> Spike asked himself. However, unexpectedly, the portal started shrinking. At a rapid pace, the portal grew smaller and smaller until there was nothing left there at all.

"NO!" Doc shouted. "Glorificus! Oh my high and exalted one! Glorificus, I have failed you!" He shouted into the nighttime sky. Spike walked up behind him and followed through with his motion, not stopping until the axe went completely through Doc's neck. Doc fell to the floor, dead. But then Spike saw what had happened the night before, and he couldn't stop hitting Doc with the axe.

"Die you nit! Die!" Spike growled at the dead body, unable to stop.

"Spike!" Xander shouted, running over to where the vampire stood beating the crap out of Doc's dead body. "Spike! Stop! He's dead!"

"Yeah? That's what we thought the last two times also." Spike said, giving one last and final swing to the axe. Blue goo covered Spike from head to toe when he finally stopped and calmed himself down. He had done it. Finally, he had gotten revenge on the one thing that had beaten him. "Okay...I'm done."

"Good job...dead-boy Jr." Xander said, teasing him. He patted Spike on the back, instantly regretting it when he started at his good-covered hand. Together, the two started walking over to where the gang was standing.

"Call me that again, whelp, and you won't live to regret it," Spike warned as he approached everyone. <Whelp isn't that bad once you get used to him,> he thought. Of course, he would never admit that to anyone else.

"Right, you wish," Xander replied. He saw Dawn slowly walking down the stairs followed by a smiling Willow and Tara. "Dawn! Will!" Xander shouted, running over to them.

"We did it!" Willow said. "Oh man, that's the coolest spell I've ever done!" She explained. "Tara and I are kick-ass Wiccans!"

"It was pretty...intense," Tara admitted. She helped Dawn stand on her feet, and smiled down at her before saying, "We need to get Dawnie to a hospital to get these cuts looked at."

"It's...it's okay. It's not as bad as the last ones," Dawn said quietly. She winced as she took another breath. "OK, maybe a hospital isn't such a bad idea."

Buffy slowly walked up to her friends, amazed by what she had seen them do. Willow and Tara were more powerful than ever. Spike had done an amazing job, and she knew that everything would be all right. "Is everyone here okay?" she asked.

Everyone stopped what he or she was doing and slowly started turning around. "Bu- Buffy?" Dawn slowly started asking. She took a step closer to where she had heard the voice come from.

"You can hear me?" Buffy asked her sister.

Spike turned around quickly and watched in amazement as a bright light began appearing in front of them. He took another step or two closer to Buffy and Dawn as the sky lit up in pinks, yellows, whites, and purples, and other colors. As the light appeared a silhouette began forming, slowly lighting up into the figure of a small woman...Buffy. The lights grew lighter until Buffy herself seemed filled with the light. Her entire being was illuminated with light, as though she was visiting her friends from heaven. "Oh God..." Spike whispered under his breath.

Buffy looked behind her at the sky and then back to her friends. "Wow, I guess that I did a good thing." she said. She looked at all of her friends with their stunned expressions on their faces.

"Bu-Buffy..." Willow started. What to say to your best friend that looked so...heavenly?

"I...I think that I'm suppose to walk towards that. I should walk toward the light." Buffy said. She pointed behind her and the illuminated sky. "I think that I have to go."

"No! You said that you could stay!" Dawn shouted towards her sister. She ran up to Buffy, stopping right in front of her. Dawn was unsure whether or not she was allowed to touch her or not, so she simply stood there, trying not to cry.

"Dawnie, I have to go...they want me to go," Buffy said softly, walking up to embrace her sister. Dawn closed her eyes and let the tears fall, refusing to think that she would never see Buffy's face again. Buffy wrapped her arms around Dawn, hugging her tightly.

Buffy cast another glance around at her friends, wishing that there was another way. She knew that her friends could make it without her. They would mourn for her for months, but eventually they would all have to move on. Part of her wanted release from all the recent stress in her life, but a part of her yearned for that stress to keep her motivated. She knew that what she was doing was the right decision. "Look, I'm just going away...think of it that way."

"Except that it's forever," Dawn said.

"NO...no, it's not." Buffy slowly said. And then, something in her brain snapped. It wasn't like she was supposed to know this, but she did. She knew away that her friends would find a loophole and they would bring her back. It almost seemed like a trick, as if it was too simple, but Buffy had to give it a shot. "I-I don't have a lot of time. I need to talk to Spike." She removed her arms and stepped back from Dawn, looking for Spike.

"Buffy-"

"I *am* coming back," Buffy said to Dawn. She kissed her sister's forehead before backing up and away from her. She started walking over to Spike who was standing a part from her friends. It was almost as though he still didn't think of himself as one of the members of the gang.

"So...I guess that the big guy upstairs wants you now." Spike said, lowering his eyes. He didn't think that it was right to look at her. He was a vampire, a demon, and it wasn't right that he should get a chance to see something so extraordinary. It was something that Spike didn't consider himself worthy of.

"Spike...Spike, look at me." Buffy softly commanded. Very slowly, Spike raised his head and met eyes with hers. "I'm sorry that I can't stay longer," Buffy said to him. "Even as a ghost."

"Buffy...dammit, I knew this would happen." Spike said. "I get close to you and now you're leaving me again...only this time, for good. Bloody hell, I-"

And then Buffy was pulling him towards her, kissing him with all the might that she could manage. She couldn't really feel him, she could only reach out and simply grasp things. She couldn't feel his leather jacket or the smoothness of his skin. However, she wrapped her arms around his neck as the two kissed, trying as hard as she could to feel his lips.

Spike wrapped his arms around her waist, wanting to never let go. She was solid. He could feel her skin against his even though she wasn't naturally solid. It was as though he was touching a cross and it burned him on every inch of his exposed skin. But he'd risk it. Spike would have born the weight of ten thousand crosses on his skin just to touch her...this heavenly being.

The Scoobies looked on in surprise but didn't make a word. Wild thoughts were racing through their heads, especially Willow, Xander, and Giles. However, all were too amazed by the beautiful picture they were seeing in front of their eyes. "Spike..." Buffy started as she pulled away.

"Bloody hell, I'm kissing an angel," Spike muttered.

Buffy grinned and pulled him tightly to her, hugging him. "Spike...tell them to look at the sheets. Look at the last page...the last spell," she said cryptically in his ear.

"What are you talking about, love?" Spike asked.

"Bring me back." Buffy kissed him again, feeling his skin against hers start to lighten. Her time was running out, so she continued talking, try to tell him as much as she possible could. "And when I get back? You and me. Date. A nice date, no patrolling for vampires in your car with a little can of whiskey, you got that?"

Spike froze. They were going to be a couple? She wanted him? "Let's just concentrate on getting you back, okay love?" He hugged her tightly, knowing very well that he had to let go. Slowly, he felt her solid body start to dissipate. Fear overcame him...<What if we can't get her back? What if she really doesn't know what she's talking about?> Spike worried that this would be the last time he ever saw her.

"Spike...you have to let go of me." Buffy said.

"I...bloody hell, I can't," Spike muttered. "What if-"

"I'm coming back, Spike..." Buffy said. She stepped out of his embrace and began walking away from him. "Get to these papers..." she whispered, her whispers sounding more and more like the wind around them. The night sky began dimming as Buffy was walking away from her friends. The night sky started overpowering the light, and soon, the two was engulfed in total darkness.

Willow walked up behind Spike, unsure of what to say to him. "Spike..."

"C'mon, Red." Spike said, turning on his heels and started to walk back to town. "We've got to get to those papers."

"What?"

"We've got to bring her back," Spike said. He continued walking into the town and the gang followed behind him. As strange as it may have seemed, they didn't mind Spike leading the group for once.

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Willow shouted an incantation into the sky. The papers that the gang had stolen from Doc showed the way to revive a victim from the portal. However, since they had stopped Doc and assumed everything was finished, if Buffy didn't mention the papers before she left, no one would have caught that.

With Willow's final words, the earth around her shook as the rest of the Scooby gang stood around, trying to stay on their feet.

A large cloud of smoke appeared from out of nowhere. The clouds billowed and crackled with mystical energy. Willow shouted a phrase again as she raised her arms into the sky, commanding the forces around her. As Willow continued chanting, a figure suddenly fell out of the sky. A shaky and small woman, clothed in what she had been wearing the night she died, fell and landed on the ground.

Everyone watched as Buffy swept the hair out of her face and tried to smile up at her friends.

"Buffy!" her friends shouted.

"Hey guys," Buffy said shakily, trying to get used to her surroundings. She gasped for breath, as though she had to get used to breathing once again. She cleared her thoat as if she couldn't speak correctly.

"Bu...Buffy?" Dawn asked. She started walking up to her sister and ended up running into Buffy's open arms.

"Dawn...it's okay, I'm here now," Buffy said.

"Buffy, you're back," Dawn said, wrapping her arms around her sister as she cried. When Spike had told her what Buffy had said, Dawn didn't believe him. She hadn't believed that it would be possible to get Buffy back. Maybe Buffy had said all of that to try to keep Dawn under control...wishful thinking. But Buffy was here now and Dawn could hold her and see her. <Thank you God,> Dawn thought.

The two Summers' women embraced for a few seconds before Buffy pulled back and climbed to her feet. She looked around at her friends who were all staring at her as though she had just come back from the dead. "Oh come on, guys. I might be reanimated flesh, but I'm not going to break!"

That was all they needed. Willow and Xander and Giles, followed by Tara and Anya, all ran up to Buffy, trying to hug onto a part of her body. Buffy embraced them all. <My friends, my family,> she thought to herself. <This is my reason for fighting, my reason for living.> She sighed, content from her friends surrounding her.

Standing apart from her friends, Spike stood and watched the heart-warming scene, unable to move. <Bloody hell, she's back,> Spike thought, watching her reunite with her friends. <She's back and now she expects me to be her poofy boyfriend...her lap dog.> He started freaking. <What the hell am I doing here?>

Buffy looked around, finally noticing that the one person she felt that she needed to talk to the most was nowhere in sight. Finally, she noticed Spike, standing over several yards away from her under a tree. His face was covered in shadows and Buffy knew that he was simply so far apart simply because he didn't know what to do.

"Hey, give me a second, guys," Buffy said, breaking out of the group hug. She started walking over to where Spike was standing.

As Buffy approached Spike, Spike had to fight off the urge to run back home to his crypt. He shouldn't have been here...she should be spending time with her friends instead of him. But he saw her...her glittering eyes, her bright smile, and his feet were still planted to the ground. "Well...I see that the lover-Wiccans brought you back in once piece," Spike started.

"Spike..." Buffy started, trying to speak to him.

"So, I guess that's all you need me for, right? I mean, now that you're back, you really don't need me to help you out or to watch over Dawn or..." his voice died off.

"Spike...what's wrong with you?" Buffy asked.

"Nothing, Slayer...just glad we got you back," Spike said, turning around from her. He started walking away from her, his head and eyes lowered to the ground. Buffy started following him, trying to block him from moving.

She grabbed onto his bare arms, stopping him from walking. She made a face of disgust from the blue goo that was on his skin, but she forced him to turn towards her. "Look at me!"

Spike raised his head and stared at her. "What? What do you want from me?"

Buffy looked down at her hands, feeling Spike's bare skin under her fingertips. "I...I can feel you," she said softly. "Spike...I want to feel you."

He tried to restrain himself. If he really wanted, he could have pushed her away and ran back to his crypt and get away from her. But it was too late. "Oh, bullocks," Spike muttered. Spike pulled her close to him for a kiss. She shook before collapsing in his arms, her body going limp.

Tara watched as Spike grabbed Buffy and wrapped his arms around her. She wasn't really surprised that the two were together, since she had witnessed it firsthand, but she was surprised that they were suddenly so open about it.

Willow gasped, her mouth dropping open. She looked over at Xander and then over to her right to look at Tara. When she noticed that no one else copied her motion, she asked, "So...wait, are we all okay with Buffy and Spike...well, kissing?" Once again, Willow looked at Tara and Xander as they all tried to not watch Spike and Buffy.

"I am!" Dawn said, grinning from ear to ear. Finally, her sister and her one of her best Scooby-gang friends were together. <Aw, how sweet,> Dawn thought, smiling, and secretly dreaming of the day when she'd get to experience something like that.

Tara blushed and lowered her head, not wanting to mention the reason why she knew about Buffy and Spike. "It's- it's not that bad," she said softly.

<Good lord,> Giles thought, rolling his eyes as he rubbed his forehead. <My slayer has gone off and gotten involved with another vampire.> He sighed, dreading what the two would do together. He took off his glasses and massaged his forehead again. <I must be the most cursed Watcher in the history of the Council.>

Xander lowered his head, trying not to watch Buffy and Spike kiss. <Great, it's the Angel-thing all over again,> he thought, groaning loudly. <But at least this time I like the guy...oh wait, I'm a friend to Spike? I need to get my head checked.> "Yeah, and I already knew about it," Xander said.

"How?" Willow asked.

"Oh....he told me," Xander said.

Oh..." Willow said, surprised that this was happening so suddnely. "Tara?" Willow asked, looking over at her girlfriend.

"Oh....uh, it's- it's not big news," Tara said, trying to sound unimpressed and as if she didn't really care.

Xander tried to get their attention without having to walk over to break the two apart. "Oh, c'mon you two wacky lovebirds...let's get back into town before you start out with the make-out session," Xander shouted over to Spike and Buffy.

Buffy and Spike broke apart grinning. Unsaid words were expressed between the two from their actions and the look in their eyes. These two were screaming "love" so loudly, that the others could see it from ten yards away also. Spike pressed one more kiss on Buffy's lips before grabbing her hand and slowly leading her over to her friends. "Ready to get back to the land of the living?" Spike asked her while they were still out of hearing range.

"Ha. Ha. Very funny," Buffy said. Look who's talking." She tried to look mad at his sarcastic remarks, but only broke out into another grin. She hooked her arm around his, looking him over. "You need a shower...you're covered in blue slime." She stopped walking and unhooked arms with him, making a face when she saw the blue slime all over her arm too.

Spike looked down at his outfit, noticing all of the goop on his clothes. "Guess so...want to join me?" he asked her, raising his eyebrows to further express his suggestion.

Buffy made a thoughtful expression, playing along with Spike's innuendo. "Well...I guess I could use a shower too. Coming back from the dead just makes a girl feel all dirty!" She laughed aloud before grabbing onto Spike's shirt and pulling him close to her. She kissed his lips softly before turning around and catching up with her friends. She fell into step beside Dawn and quickly kissed her head.

In a row, Giles, Anya, Xander, Willow, Tara, Dawn, Buffy, and Spike started walking back into town. Buffy held hands with Spike, her other arm wrapped around Dawn's waist. And finally, tightly nestled in between Spike and Dawn, Buffy felt at peace in between the two people that she loved the most.

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T H E!

E N D!

I hope that you all enjoyed this fic! I enjoyed writing it up and reading the feedback in response. :) Hey, it's the most feedback that I've ever gotten for a story before, so I'm happy. Thanks!