Disclaimer: I own nothing except my reviews, you wonderful people.

Okay, hello again everyone. It's Sunday and I've received 22 new emails and sequel requests since Saturday. I'm bowing to the inevitable and writing a sequel, two days after I finished the last one. You might ask yourself what the point was but I like to finish my stories on a good note, before more trouble gets to the characters, i.e., the news about Glory, Dawn, and Joyce. Well you'll just have to see how this turns out for the characters. I think that I've finally figured out how to successful separate the scene, (fanfiction.net won't let me insert a line, very annoying).

Quick notes, another writer here, Kallysten made my day by reviewing my story, since I absolutely love her stories, (especially the trilogy starting with His Childe), so thank you.

I'm jumping back in time to the morning after Spike and Buffy first got together, meaning they have to go and tell the gang. He he.

Buffy stretched, she felt like the cat in the saying that got the cream, except that she was the cat who got the cream and new there was plenty more where that came from. She turned over and noticed the weight of Spike's arm over her waist. It was a big day in more than one. Her mom was coming home. Buffy's heart leapt. She couldn't wait to get her mom here. Then they could try and pretend that this whole thing had never happened, get back to where they had been. Her mom, playing mediator while she and Dawn fought. She had learnt that she definitely wasn't ready to be a real adult yet.

Buffy also knew that they were going to go to the Magic Box together and tell the gang about, well . . .them. She was nervous; she wasn't worried about Giles or Willow. She was worried about Xander; he was bad at the 'grey area' thing.

Buffy felt the arm around her tighten slightly and she looked at the man next to her in the bed. "Morning."

Spike sat up, "Mornin' pet." Next second Buffy began to giggle, "What?" Spike as smiling along with her.

"You're covered in peanut butter and melted ice-cream."

Spike snaked out a hand and ran it over her bare stomach, "So are you."

Buffy looked down at herself, taking in the mess of their midnight snack, she could see the rest all over the bed "It's a good job you're a tidy eater. We'd have ended looking like something out of a slasher movie."

Spike laughed, "True. When's your mom home?"

Buffy looked at the clock, "This after noon in about four hours. Giles is going to take us to the hospital and bring us all back. I wanted to give the place a quick clean before she got here. Thought I might get Dawn to lend us a hand."

Spike looked at her with his eyebrows raised in mock seriousness, "Great pet, less than twenty four hours and you've already scripted me for housework. Honey moon period over already."

Buffy smiled and leant down to kiss him, "Welcome to the life that you so wanted to be a part of."

Spike pulled her to him deepening the kiss. He could handle all parts if he got this one.

* * * Buffy stumbled out of bed about an hour later to run and grab the phone, "Hello?"

Giles voice came over the phone, "Buffy. We were wondering when you wanted Dawn brought over."

Buffy felt a little guilty, her sister might need a little sisterly time. "As soon as possible."

"Right. I'll bring her right over. Uh . . .Buffy?"

Buffy felt something coming here, "Yeah?"

"How are things? You know uh . . .with Riley?"

Buffy gritted her teeth, "Actually, Riley's gone."

"Oh Buffy I'm so sorr . . ."

Buffy cut him off, "I'm not sorry Giles, it was the best thing but I do need to talk to you about how and why and how things are now."

There was a silence "Does this have anything to do with . . . Spike?"

Buffy flinched a little, there really was no fooling her Watcher, "Look, we need to talk about this later. We're meant to be meeting at the Magic Box later right, Glory research?"

"Uh . . . Yes. I have an idea."

"Okay well when we come to talk about that I'll tell you then. I want to do this face to face."

Buffy could have sworn that she heard Giles cleaning his glasses, "Okay. I'll drop Dawn off in a few minutes. I won't come in because Anya's doing an inventory and frightening everyone. I'll also pretend that you didn't say when 'we' come to talk about that. See you later."

"Bye."

* * * Buffy was constantly fighting the urge not to laugh. Spike was sat in her bath fully clothed with Dawn as they scrubbed the enamel. As Buffy had expected her sister's only response to learning about Buffy and Spike's relationship had been 'about time'. Spike had ruffled the girl's hair and declared with a flourish that it obviously wasn't hereditary; all the Summers women apart from Buffy had excellent taste in men. Buffy was scrubbing the sink ready for her mom's returned, keeping her mind focused was difficult, after all it wasn't everyday you saw one of the undead in rubber gloves.

* * *

Joyce Summers walked through the door of her home with a sigh. God it felt good to be there. She had been worried that she might never be there again. Giles had been good enough to pick her up and observant enough to see that she wasn't really up to entertaining guests at the moment. She flopped down on the sofa, "The place looks spotless girls. You been at this all day?"

Dawn grinned, "Yeah! But we had a little help."

Joyce smiled at her youngest daughters enthusiasm, "Tell me you didn't rope the entire gang in to help you."

Buffy flushed, "Um . . . no. Not exactly. Spike gave us a hand."

Joyce looked at erh daughter expectantly, "And Riley?"

"Has gone. He's taken off with the military to some jungle."

Joyce smiled to herself. She had nothing against the boy personally, he had always been polite and treated Buffy well, but she did know that he wasn't the man to truly make her daughter happy, and anyway she liked Spike, "And is Spike still here?"

Buffy flushed a very deep crimson, "Yeah. He said that he didn't want to get in the way of your homecoming so he'd stay out of the way."

Joyce frowned, "You tell him that he's to come out of hiding, he wont be in the way. Besides, if you're . . ." Joyce tried to phrase is delicately, "In a relationship now, there isn't much that he won't find out from or share with one of us three."

* * *

Spike had come downstairs and made hot chocolate for them all. He hadn't talked o much as listened. To the three women of the Summers house, as they caught up on each others lives. He smiled every now and then thinking how they had accepted him into their family, not only because of Buffy. Joyce and dawn liked him because of him. According to Buffy, Joyce had even encouraged her. He liked this feeling, like he was wanted, like he belonged.

* * *

Buffy and Spike stood facing the door of the Magic Box. They were trying to steel themselves to actually walk through it. Spike wasn't exactly keen to admit it but he was almost as terrified as Buffy obviously was. He was going to be a big part of her life. He got that, but the people through this door were a big part of her life too. They had been for five years. They had talked before, about what they were going to say; how they were going to say it . . .

"Look just explain to them that I love you and you love me and we're together."

Spike nodded, "You know what Xander's going to be like though don't you?"

Buffy nodded and closed her eyes; "I'm trying desperately not to think about it if you must know. He's going to start in about how many times you tried to kill us, how you're a soulless demon, you know the usual."

"Well he accepted Angel eventually didn't he pet?"

Buffy shrugged, "He never really did. That was the thing, he tolerated him because I was in love with him, but I don't think that he ever truly accepted him."

"Well, I don't want to be best friends. All he has to do is tolerate me, and I'll tolerate him."

"He's going to really focus on the whole, 'you tried to kill us' thing. And 'what happens if the chip stops working'."

Spike felt himself tense, "That's still an issue is it?" Didn't she know? Even if it did, he wouldn't hunt anymore. He'd lose her and she was much more important than feeding, even if something happened to her, he wouldn't do it. He knew that she would hate it. He would not do anything to cause her to feel anything but love for him. He just wouldn't. Didn't she get that?

Buffy smiled sympathetically and sat across his lap straddling his waist, "I know that you love me. It's not an issue anymore. I trust you. I'm just saying that they might not. It's not a question of whether I can deal it's a question of whether you can."

Spike relaxed and wrapped his arms around her waist, "I can deal. There are only two of your friends whose opinions I give a damn about. The witches. And after I helped with Tara, they kinda like me."

Buffy smiled, "Yeah, you were definitely the good guy."

Spike frowned and pretended to sulk, "You mean I'm not bad anymore?"

Buffy lowered her head to kiss him, "Don't be stupid. Of course, you're bad.

* * * Spike proving how bad he was had made them late for the Scooby meeting. Now they were still trying to steal themselves to open the door, "We could just run away? Join the French foreign legion? How does that sound?"

Buffy was only half kidding but Spike was apparently having none of it, "They're kinda big on the whole going out in the day. And what about you're mom, your sister, the Hell mouth, glory, the Scoobies . . ."

"Yeah yeah okay." Buffy put her hand and the door handle, "You ready?"

Spike took a deep unneeded breathe and nodded.

Buffy opened the door and they stepped inside.

* * *

Xander was quite anxiously waiting for Buffy and Riley to arrive. Giles hadn't told them anything except that they would be coming round tonight. He simply wouldn't tell them anything else, but he had that look. That look he got when one of them was doing something that he didn't approve of. Xander was worried. Obviously, Buffy had caught up with Riley or Giles wouldn't have said that 'they' were going to be here, but why was he being so secretive.

* * *

Willow had a feeling that she knew what was going on. There was no way that after the way Buffy had been talking about Spike that things could continue as they had been. Had something happened? Was it possible, was 'they' Buffy and . . . Spike. In a way, Willow hoped so. In a very warped kind of way, she liked the blonde vampire. He of course had threatened their lives, but he really did seem to have changed. And he loved Buffy. Any fool could see. And Willow had the feeling that Buffy really did love him. And Spike was . . .well there really wasn't anything other word for it . . .Spike was cool. Willow knew that she could get to like him very much.

* * *

Xander's head snapped up as soon as the door opened. He looked as though he had seen a ghost. Buffy took a very deep breath, "Hey guys."

Xander took in the fact that Buffy's hand was in Spike's, "Buff? What is going on? Where's Riley."

Buffy looked at them all and sat down at the table with Spike next to her, "Guys I need to tell you some stuff. Now this is kinda hard for me so just let me talk and then . . .well we'll have a Q & A session later. Okay, first off all Riley's gone. He left last night. I told him to go because I told him that I didn't love him. He took it pretty well and went off with the military. Second. I told Riley to go because for a while now I've been in love with someone else. And that person is Spike." Buffy took in the looks on the faces of the people around her, people that she loved. Giles looked stressed but accepting. Willow smiled at Buffy, proving that at least she had one of her best friends support. Tara's face showed a pleasant blandness. Anya was smiling pleasantly but Xander's face showed absolute horror. "I don't expect you all to like it. But I do expect you to accept it. Because you all love me."

A stunned silence followed. Willow was the first to actually move. She stood up and walked round the table to wrap her arms around Buffy. Buffy was surprised but she didn't hesitate to return her friends embrace, "Congrats Buffy."

Buffy smiled at her friend with tears of gratitude in her eyes but it was what Willow didn't next that shocked everyone. She walked round Buffy had bending down she hugged Spike. Spike was as shocked as anyone but he returned it awkwardly, Willow stood and took one of his hands, "Because Buffy trusts you, I do to unless you give me a reason not to. There is a condition though."

Spike frowned but nodded, "What's that?"

"If you hurt my friend, I'll take out my voodoo doll and make you sorry that you're a man."

Spike smirked, "I can live with that."

* * *

Xander couldn't believe that this was happening. He had thought that she would have gone to Riley and that they would have made up. But instead, she had gone and fallen in love with the blood sucking undead! Xander stood, "Buffy?"

Buffy had been smiling at Willow but now she looked to him, "Yes?"

"Are you out of your mind?"

Buffy flinched at the harshness of his tone, "No Xander. I'm not out of my mind. I love him, we don't always choose these things, and I know that the vampire, slayer combination isn't ideal but it's the way that it's going to be and the way that it is. I want you to tell me that you can accept this."

Xander just stood there shaking his head with his mouth open. Spike stood quickly, eyes flashing just a tinge of yellow, "You won't accept it? Not even for her, not after everything that she's done for you."

Buffy tugged on his arm, "Spike sit down please."

"No Buffy." He spun round again to face Xander, "Has she ever judged you about your decisions? I don't think that she has."

Xander seemed to find his voice, "You're the evil undead, and you want to me to accept that my best friend loves you? What? Isn't a normal guy enough?"

Buffy started to cry, and Spike got angrier, "True I'm the evil undead but in case you haven't notice your girlfriend has been around killing people for a thousand years before I even started. So you've got the jump on me." Spike looked to Anya, "Not trying to offend you love."

Anya just smiled, "I'm not offended. It's al the truth."

Xander glared at the vampire, "She's not a demon anymore."

"Yeah and that was stolen from her. I don't kill anymore and that was stolen from me. But even if I had the choice, I wouldn't go back to it. I'd choose Buffy."

Xander didn't seem to have anything to say.

"I'm not telling you that we have to be friends. I'm saying that you have to tolerate me and I'll tolerate you." Spike pointed to Buffy, "She has been you're friend for five years, are you really going to lose her because you don't like her boyfriend?"

Xander looked at Buffy. He didn't want to lose his friend. His friends were everything to him; they were his family. And if she wanted to be with Spike, well the vampire was right, it didn't matter how much he disapproved, it wasn't his choice. He wasn't prepared to lose. "You're right. I'm sorry Buffy."

Buffy smiled at him and she moved forward as he hugged her. She knew that he didn't like Spike, but then Spike didn't like him either. They would just have to get on. They were both important to her.

After a few looks between the two of them Xander and Spike sat down opposite each other. They were glaring but not saying anything that might offend Buffy. Buffy however was not blind and the awkwardness was starting to cut. She looked to her watcher, "So Giles what do you think?"

Giles just gave her a long-suffering smile, "It really doesn't matter what I think." Buffy was about to tell him that it mattered very much to her what he thought but he continued, "Now that we've dealt with that, I have some news, or rather I might be able to get some."

Willow looked puzzled, "Either I'm really dumb or you're not making sense."

Giles smiled indulgently at the witch, "I have not been able to turn up anything about Glory myself. I have searched all of my books, texts, I've even been to a few spirit guides, but I've turned up nothing."

Xander frowned, "But I thought you said that you might have news?"

"Well, yes. I've been in touch with the council of Watchers. I think that they'll be able to help us find out more about her. They have many more resources than we do."

Buffy flinched inwardly, "Giles you know how I feel about the Watchers."

Giles glared at her, "Buffy if you have a better idea present it now." Buffy was shocked at how harsh his voice was but she said nothing, "Right. Well then, in that case we have no other choice. I will be going to England in two days and I will see what I can find out. In the mean time, I think that we should try to avoid her."

"With you there. I've only seen her once but I don't want to see her again. She's all scary." Willow gave a little shudder, but felt Tara squeeze her and comfortingly.

Giles stood, "Well in know that this meeting ahs been short if not sweet. Buffy I'll require you tomorrow for a little training please, at around ten am. To the rest of you, good night. I have to go home and make a few phone calls. Anya could you please make sure to lock up?" Anya nodded, "Good night again."

Giles walked to the back of the store and left through the training room.

* * *

Buffy was lost in thought as she walked home holding Spike's hand tightly. Giles had been cold. She knew what this was about even if she didn't want to admit it to herself. Giles was mad with her about Spike. And yet, he had been the first person that she had told about him. He had seemed to take it all right then, why suddenly different? But Buffy knew the answer to this too. When it had been a fling, it wasn't a big deal, but now that Buffy had fallen in love with the vampire, it was a big deal again. She cast her mind back to the things that had happened to Giles when she had last fallen in love with a vampire. His girlfriend had been murdered and left mangled on his bed, Angel had almost killed him, and then he had spent about twelve hours being tortured by the vampire. As much as she didn't want to admit it, Giles did have a reason to be rattled. She felt a wave of guilt wash over her. She could have handled this better, a lot better than she had at any rate.

There was no way to make it seem normal and okay, but she had rather thrust it on them without much regard for their feelings and they were her friends. Giles was more than that. He was practically her father and she had not been fair really.

* * *

Spike had not missed the attitude of the watcher, but unlike Xander he don't expressed it. In an odd way, this seemed to hurt Buffy more. Rather than just be abusive, he had bitten his tongue, however much he disapproved and respected her wishes. Spike suspected that this had hurt Buffy even more than Xander had.

Spike took his hand from hers and wrapped his arm around her shoulder, "Hey pet. You okay?"

Buffy looked up to him, "Yeah. I went fine, great. They all accepted you."

Spike stopped and touched her face, "Pet. . ."

Buffy wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face in his chest, "He was so cold. He didn't want to hurt me so he didn't say anything, but I know how he was feeling. He was mad at me, disappointed in me. He did this once before. When I didn't tell him that Angel had come back from hell. He supported me in front of the gang but he was so hurt and angry. I thought for a while that he might never forgive me."

Spike felt his stomach clench, he knew how highly she regarded Giles' opinion and how much it must hurt that he wasn't happy with her. He just didn't know how to make it better for her. "He'll see pet. In time he'll see, I'm no threat to him or the others."

"That's not what it is. That's not what bothers him so much."

Spike was confused, "Then what is it?"

"It's that I would put him through this again. That I would fall in love with another vampire, fly in the face of my duty and, in his opinion, betray everything that he and I have spent my whole life fighting.

"He sees it as a personal thing. He spent months supporting me when Angel turned evil and now he feels like I'm risking disaster again, this time I'm even doing in deliberately."

Spike tipped her face up to him, "Love, I'm not Angel. This is not the same. Don't you know that?"

Buffy angrily pushed her hair out of her face, and stepped away from him a little, "Of course I know that. What do you think that I'm stupid? I know that you're different."

Spike laughed, "All right no need to get so cross." But inside he was calming, he had been worried for a second that she was doing this because she thought he was Angel, but he could tell that she didn't. She got it.

"Yeah well have a little faith in me. When I say that I love you, I mean that I love you, you bleached moron." Spike just smiled at her and she calmed, "Now will you kiss me already?"

Spike took her in his arms and kissed her. She shivered into his touch and wrapped one hand around his neck. Buffy rubbed her other hand over his shoulder eventually pulling away fro a second a little breathless, "Home. Now."

Buffy punched the mats held by her tense Watcher. Really tense. Every time he spoke he was hard and cold, "Switch. Left lead."

Buffy did as she was told. She took another stab at conversation, "So do you really think that they'll help us."

Giles made a dismissive move with his eyes, "I wouldn't be going if I didn't think that they could. Whether they will or not is another matter. You're not exactly their favourite Slayer and I'm not their favourite Watcher. You're dropping your shoulder I can see when you're going to attack."

Buffy flinched at his harsh tone. She tried to regulate her punches, but she could feel that they were off. She was stressed. Spike had done a pretty good . . .well an amazing job of relaxing her last night but now . . . well now she was worried again. She hated it when Giles was mad at her; it felt wrong. It was more hurtful than when anyone else was mad because it as so rare. Even when Angel had lost his soul Giles hadn't been mad at her. He had supported her, loved her, even after the death of Jenny. Buffy's mind drifted as she continued her punching.

"You're still dropping your shoulder I can see. You're doing it again. . ."

Buffy pulled away and began to take off her wraps. She was hurt, Giles was cross and picking at her and it hurt, "We're not done here Buffy. We have more to do."

Buffy spun round to face him her eyes filled with tears, "Oh I completely agree. We're not done here. But we're done here, because if you keep speaking like this to me, one of us is going to do something that we'll regret. You are going to explain to me what is bothering you."

Giles stared hard at her for a couple of seconds, "Nothing is bothering me Buffy." Giles turned away and headed towards the door.

Buffy moved forward and tugged gently on his arm, "No, tell me. This can't go on tell me."

Giles turned around and pulled his arm away from her, "I don't want to talk about it Buffy."

Buffy flinched again at the tone in his voice but she wasn't going to give up now, "It doesn't matter what you want right now. We need to talk about this."

Giles stared at her, eyes blazing, "Of course I doesn't matter what I want Buffy. It never does matter does it Buffy. In fact, it never matters what anyone wants except you. You. The Slayer. You're bringing another vampire into our group and into your bed. And it doesn't matter what we think as long as you are happy. Well you're not a child anymore. There is no excuse in inexperience anymore. Do you have any memory of how this worked out last time? Someone I loved was killed, as were numerous other people. I was tortured nearly to death and the entire world was nearly pulled into hell. I don't see how this situation is going to come out even better. To make things even worse, this vampire has no soul."

Giles took a breath and seemed to shudder, as though as he had been talking he had been letting out something toxic that was inside of him. Buffy felt the tears spill down over her cheeks and she nodded and swallowed. Anger was blooming inside of her and she wanted to kick Giles and at the same time, she wanted him to hug her and tell her that he didn't mean it and that everything was going to be okay. Instead, she took a deep breath and looked straight at the man she considered her father, "You have no right to say anything like that to me. It isn't like you have never made mistakes. In case you don't remember your past nearly killed Jenny once too."

Giles' flared again, "How dare you? That was an accident."

Buffy's eyes blazed, "So was what happened with Angel. Except that if Jenny had told us everything that she knew in the first place we might have been able to do something about it, the world would never have been in danger, I wouldn't have had to kill my lover and the 'numerous' people wouldn't have died." Giles looked as though he was about to speak. "No! You've had your say. I'm going to have mine. Everything single person in the 'group' that you refer to collectively has made bad decisions in case you don't remember. Willow fell for a robot. Xander for a praying mantis, an ancient Incan Mummy, and then for an ex-demon. Willow managed to cast a spell that nearly killed us all and Xander did the same, resulting in me ending up a rat. Okay, I may have made I lot of mistakes, but we all have, and I have never reproached any of you. You're my friends and my family, I love you all. I have always respected your partners and I've forgiven you for mistakes like you've forgiven me. I am in love with Spike. Nothing you can say will change it and I won't give him up. Before you judge me, think about it. You've done plenty of things wrong too."

Buffy grabbed her bag and stalked out of the back door, leaving Giles with his mouth open.

* * *

Buffy headed straight home. She stormed down the street. It was weird. In one way, she felt bad. She shouldn't have said what she said to Giles, but then she knew that he shouldn't have said what he said to her either. It had been cruel and unnecessary. She just had to hope that when he came to his senses and calmed down a little he was going to see that. Buffy opened the front door of her house and slipped inside. Dawn was at school and her mom was at the hospital for her check up. She slipped up the stairs and poking her head through her door, she saw Spike sat on her bed reading her baby book. Her mother had started that thing when she had been pregnant with Buffy, thinking that it was a nice idea. Dawn had one too.

Buffy knocked on the door and Spike's lifted his head to look at her. "Hey love. Weren't you a cute baby?"

Buffy flushed, "I can not believe that you found that thing. Did you deliberately start looking for things that could embarrass me beyond words?"

Spike smiled and stood, "Absolutely. Yep. Such a cute baby. What happened there eh?"

Buffy made a sound of mock outrage and smacked him lightly on the chest. "Mean."

Spike slipped his arms around her waist, "Not fair. I can't fight back."

Buffy ran her hands up his chest, "You could definite win though. You just have to try the non-violent approach." Buffy pulled Spike's head down to hers.

* * *

Buffy lay, relaxed in front of Spike. He stroked the back of her neck with his fingers and she sighed. He liked it when she did that. He liked to lie like this with her. He like it when she was happy. But now . . .he knew that she wasn't really happy. Something was really, really bothering her. He had a feeling it was something to do with her Watcher. The old guys disapproval had been obvious. Spike also knew that she didn't want to talk about it, probably didn't even want to think about it. But that wasn't the point she was going to have to deal with it at some point. "Buffy?"

Buffy gave a slight sigh, "Yeah?"

"I think we need to talk pet."

Buffy turned over to face him with a look of worry in her eyes, "Normally when a guy says that he's going to do one of three things, break up with you, tell you he's gay or say that he hates a member of your family. I don't think it's the first, I'm hoping it's not the second and I already know that you hate Xander. So you can not surprise me."

Spike just laughed, "Well, none of the above actually Slayer. This is about your Watcher."

Buffy stiffened in his grasp ever so slightly. He might not even have noticed if he hadn't had his hands on her back, "What about him?"

Spike gave her a look, "Don't pet. You know that I know there's something."

Buffy smiled, "He doesn't approve. Just like I thought really. He said some really hurtful things, you know, how I didn't care about my friends as long as I was happy." Spike looked enraged but Buffy spoke quickly, "Don't worry I said equally hurtful things about Jenny Calendar, and how Angel and her own death had been Giles' fault."

Spike looked shocked, "Well, I hate to sound like a parent refereeing their kids, but I think it's only fair to say that you both have some serious apologising to do. Neither or you should have said what you said."

Buffy looked a little shamed faced, "Yes I know. I shouldn't have said it and neither should he, but now I don't actually know what to say to him to make it right. And I do want to. You know make it right."

Spike pulled her body to his, "You'll make it right between the two of you, and you normally manage to do it in the end. He loves you and people who love each other sometimes say hurtful things because they care. I know that that doesn't actually help but it is true. The more you love someone, the more you actuall know how to hurt tham. Goes with caring."

Buffy smiled, "Whendid you ge so damn philosophical?"

"I used to be all poetic all the time."

"Really?"

"Oh yeah. Don't worry though. I outgrew it."

* * *

Buffy pulled her shirt over her head. "Believe me I don't want to go. But he's going today and I don't really want to let him go all the way to England with this hanging between us. I just . . .I need to fix it."

Spike pulled on his jeans, "You should go. I told your mom that I'd join her for hot chocolate at some pioint this evening so when you get home we'll probably be here, maybe even with the little bit."

Buffy looked up at him, "What's the little bit?"

Spike smirk, "The little bit, is your sister. As in a little bit of you."

Buffy smiled and wrapped her arms around his waist, "I love you, you know that?"

Spike kissed her, "I'm starting to learn pet."

Buffy pulled her boyfriend's mouth back down to hers. Spike gripped her waist for a few seconds before pushing her away gently. "Go. Right now. If you don't you're not going anywhere tonight."

Buffy stood outside the Magic Box for the second time in as many nights tying to force herself to go inside. She was terrified. She was afraid that maybe this time they had gone too far. That they had both said things that they didn't really mean and now they were going to be unable to make it up even after everything that they had been through together.

Buffy put her hand on the door handle and pushed open the door.

* * *

Giles felt awful. Thinking back over time and the things that they had been through together, he had realised something. Firstly, that she was right. They had all done things that were . . .questionable. Not least he, what with his occult. That had nearly killed them three years ago. And even though Spike himself was . . . questionable in himself, he did have to admit that there was less of a threat in him than there was in Angel. Even if something bad happened between Spike and Buffy, the vampire could not actually do anything to hurt them, what with the chip. He had over reacted. And as much as what Buffy had said had hurt him, he knew that she hadn't actually meant it. She had been hurt . . .hurt by him. The very idea made him shudder. So many things in Buffy's life hurt her; he didn't want to be one of them. Not him.

Giles grabbed his jacket and headed for the door just as it was pushed open by a tiny blonde-haired Slayer.

* * * Buffy looked up to see Giles coming towards her with his jacket half on, "Hey."

"Buffy!"

Buffy looked at him and prepared herself for another onslaught. Instead, Giles came towards her and put his arms around her. Buffy only hesitated for a second out of shock before she returned his hug.

Giles pulled back and steered her to the table and chairs with one hand round her back, "I'm so terribly sorry for what I said to you Buffy. You were right I had absolutely no right to say any of it."

Buffy bit her lip and looked at him, "I had no right to say what I said either. I'm so sorry. I really didn't mean it. I really didn't I swear. It wasn't your fault. It wasn't her fault. It wasn't really anyone's fault. It was an accident."

Giles squeezed her shoulder, "I know you didn't mean it."

"I cared for Jenny you know."

Giles smiled at her, "I know that you did Buffy. I know that you did."

"I know that you don't like Spike. I know that it's difficult . . ."

Giles stopped her, "Buffy you don't have to. I over reacted. It just felt like we'd already played this scene, but I know. It's different. I won't lie to you and say that I'm completely comfortable with the situation. But I do know that he seems to make you happy and that's what's important."

Buffy smiled, "He does make me happy. He really does."

* * *

Buffy waved from the door as Giles drove to the airport. God she felt so much better. She had been truly afraid that they might never work it out.

It felt good now that things were back to the way they should be, Giles begging her not to let Anya and Willow destroy the shop as they fought for Xander's attention.

That was another weird situation. And poor Xander stuck in the middle of this completely weird scenario. She would have thought the Xander would have enjoyed having two pretty women fighting over him, but he'd apparently had enough of that during the love spell. Now he just wanted them to get along. The one thing that they didn't seem in the mood to do. Typical.

* * *

Anya glared at the two witches stood in the middle of the shop. They were doing, well . . .something. She had no idea what it actually was but it involved touching stock. She didn't like it. It wasn't theirs. It was the way that she earned money. And they were touching it. Anya took a breath tried to call to memory Xander's humanize Anya rules and walked over to the table.

"What are you doing?"

Willow looked up at her as though she had forgotten that Anya was even in the shop. "Oh. We're going to try out a few spells."

Tara smiled pleasantly, "You see there's this thing you can do where you create light and we thought, what if we could make, like simulated sunlight?"

Willow bounced on her toes in excitement, "Yeah. So there Buffy is middle of the night, and she finds this whole nest of vamps. And then she just goes 'Presto!'."

"Only it won't be 'Presto!' exactly."

"And then whoomph. There's a floating ball of sunlight. Vamps get dusty."

Anya shook her head. God, she had wanted an answer not a five-act play. "That's swell. But you can't use this stuff. Giles has only been gone two days and you're already making trouble. You shouldn't do things while he's gone."

Willow grinned, "You're the fish!"

Anya decided that no matter what Xander thought about one of his two best friends, this girl was insane, "What?"

"The fish in the bowl in 'The Cat In The Hat'."

"What are you talking about?"

Tara decided to cut in, obviously trying to avoid another row between the two. "It's this book, this cat does all this mischief."

"It's so cute, he balances a bunch of stuff including that fish in the bowl, but don't try it for real when you're six. Cause then you're not allowed to have fish for five years."

Anya grit her teeth in annoyance, "You're referencing literature I have no way to be familiar with. You're trying to make me feel left out and you're stealing."

Willow looked shocked, "I'm not stealing! I'm just taking things without paying for them. In what twisted dictionary is that stealing?" Willow seemed to realise the absurdity of this argument in the middle somewhere.

Tara flinched. There was definitely another argument brewing between the two. Well, looked like she was referee. She truly felt sorry for Xander; he so did not deserve this in any way, shape or form, "Willow maybe we should just pay . . ."

Willow was not having any of that however. The redhead hated above most other things being told what to do by Anya. It always seemed to rub her up the wrong way. There was an element there of simply mistrust. After all, Anya had been responsible for her evil twin. And Willow was always afraid that something was going to happen to turn Anya evil, not unlike Angel, and then Xander was going to get it in the neck. And there was another thing, Anya assumed herself equal with Willow in everything, despite the fact that the gang had been together three years longer than Anya had been there. She knew that this was unfair. After all, she expected Tara to be considered equal, but then Tara had never been evil. It was a combination of all these things that made Willow always answer back when normally with anyone else she would let it slide. These things made her answer now. "Anya, Giles would be totally fine about this. Come on it'll be fun." Willow took a breath and tried to relax, olive branch time, "We could show you how to do some stuff, you could be floating pencils by the end of the day."

Anya considered this for a moment, "Sometimes, I miss having powers . . .Oh! Oh! I know what this is. This is peer pressure any minute now you're going to make me smoke tobacco and have drugs."

Willow rolled her eyes and focused on a tube of blue solution. "Look how easy." The tube floated and spun around.

Anya scowled, "Hey! Don't float the merchandise."

Willow turned around started lifting the other things on the counter. She knew that she was being childish but she loved annoying the ex-demon.

"Stop that."

The bell above the Magic Box door jingled as Xander came threw it, "Hey look at this my two favourite girls." His eyes fell on Tara and he smiled, "Three favourite girls."

Anya immediately rounded on Xander, "Xander, Willow's stealing. She's a burglar."

Willow also spun round and appealed to Xander, "Right! The cunning, daylight, in front of everyone, burglar. Xander I'm just doing a spell to help Buffy. . ."

Tara listened and flinched as she saw Xander going rather red in the face. She felt like she should do something. Tell them both to back off a little maybe. She was sorry for him. Couldn't exactly be easy. Before she could say or do anything, however Xander had lost his temper with both of them.

"Okay you know what? I'm tired of being the one in the middle here. I'm not going to let you two drag me into this."

Willow backed off, "I'm not."

Xander was apparently too angry to listen right at this moment, "Whatever the issue is between you two . . .just figure it out without me."

Xander turned and walked out of the shop.

Willow lowered her voice, "You made him mad."

Anya practically growled in response, "Me!"

"Tara. Who do you think he was more mad at?"

Oh no, no, no. She was not going to do this. "YOU know what. I think that you two have some stuff you need to work out. Just really . . . talk."

* * *

Buffy glanced through her notes. New classes always scary but usually kinda fun. And at least only one of her classes now she would be taking on her own. She had been forced by a combination of choices to take twentieth century history on her own. Ick! She really detested history, always had, always would. But now she was taking one class with Willow, one with Tara, and one with both of them. Sounded good to her. To make things even better, when she got home, she had a blonde Spike waiting for her. Yum! Made her day complete. They were going patrolling tonight. After catching up with the gang at the Bronze. Buffy pushed some notes into her bag and followed Tara out of the lecture hall, "God! The professor spit too much when he talked. It was like being at Sea World. The first five rows will get wet."

Tara laughed, "That was just um, you know. Enthusiasm."

"Seemed very much like saliva. Seems, like a good course though."

"Yeah. I think it'll be good."

"You got plans for the after noon?"

"No."

Buffy grinned, "What do you say we go and get Willow and indulge in a little after school hamburger?"

"We could. I was at the Magic Box earlier. And Will and Anya got involved in this little squabble. Xander left them to it."

Buffy almost laughed, "Those two. Well, I think that it might be a good idea to go and make sure that they don't demolish the shop."

Tara smiled, "The ex-demon vs. the witch. Could be kinda scary."

* * *

Willow closed her eye and concentrated, "Spirits of light I summon thee."

"Is it done?"

Red spots danced in front of Willow's eyes as she tried desperate not to scream, "No! Shhhhh! Spirits. . ."

"Sorry I thought that you were done."

Willow spun around and turned on Anya, "Do you wanna screw this up?"

"No." Anya got to her feet and put down her pad, "No I'm sure that you can do that all on your own."

"Anya you know what ever really has you mad, why don't you just say it, like you do every other thought that stomps through your brain."

"I believe I have said it."

Willow shook her head in fury, "No you haven't come on. Let it out."

Both the girls were pushed against the wall as something large, hairy and growling appeared. After a few moments, it turned around and growled at them. The girls turned heard smashing noises as the creature pushed it's way out of the shop.

Willow looked up a moment later, "He's not a ball of sunshine."

Tara pushed open the door of the magic Box and looked around in horror at the destruction. Buffy saw it the next second. Without speaking, Tara ran through to the back of the shop to try to locate her girlfriend.

"Willow! Anya!" Buffy checked around, under the counter, and round the corners of the shop.

Tara ran back in the panic now evident on her face, "They're not back there either. They're gone. Buffy, something's been here and Willow's gone."

Buffy gripped Tara's hand, "Don't worry. We'll get her back. Come on, this thing's probably leaving a huge trail.

* * *

Willow flicked over the pages of the book. There was nothing in here that was even close to being helpful. Though Anya wasn't helping either. She had to be the worst driver ever to get a license. "You know I don't even know how we made that guy, because . . .wow, advanced."

Anya frowned, "Nobody made him, he must have been trapped in that crystal and you released him."

"I released him? No this feels like a 'we' thing. Or a 'you' thing. It definitely feels like a 'you' thing."

Anya rolled her eyes and then quickly stopped because of the way the car swerved with her actions, "Look, just find the reversal spell. And hurry look what he did to that lamp-post"

"I'm trying. Put the top up the pages are all blow-y."

Anya was amazed at the girl's stupidity, "Well, I don't know how to put the top up I only just figured out what the left peddle does. It makes us stop."

Anya pressed the brake sharply to illustrate her point. Willow felt her stomach clench in horror. Well that certainly explained the worst driver ever to get a license thing. Oh, wait. She hadn't! "You don't know how to drive? Why didn't you say you didn't know how to drive?"

"Well, I couldn't know if I could until I tried could I?"

Willow tried to breath and came herself, "There's an overgrown . . ."

Anya interrupted impatiently, "Troll."

"What?"

"Troll on the loose. Now hold on, I'm going to push the right peddle harder, I expect us to accelerate."

Willow gripped the handle to the door, "There's a troll on the loose and you're going to CRASH GILES' CAR!"

Anya seemed to miss the tone of her voice and simply clarified, "It's likely we're going very fast. You should have listened to me and not done the spell. Giles put me in charge."

"Giles can be an idiot. The smart kind but still."

"Look, will you just find the spell."

Before Willow had time, to make a decent answer Anya had taken the car around the corner at speed and several pages blew away, "Oh. That's gone."

* * *

Xander ordered a beer and big plate of nuts. He was pissed off. Listening to his girlfriend argue with his friend was not exactly high on his list of 'fun things to do'. He wasn't looking where he was going as he was wrapped up in his thoughts and he ran straight into someone.

The blond haired English someone looked up, "Hey, watch it mate."

Xander sighed inwardly, so not what he needed right now, "Spike. Don't let me stop you from not being here."

Spike smirked and pretended to go all school-girly, "I was here first."

Xander grimaced, "Ah ha. Go away."

Spike felt the urge to smack the guy in the head but he swallowed it as best he could, "Now why would I do that when it's bugging you so much having me here." Spike took a deep breath and tried to be . . .nice. "Something bothering you Harris?"

Xander seemed shocked, "Um. No, well yes, but no."

Spike sighed, "Women trouble?"

Xander frowned, "How did you know?"

"What else is there in the world that can bother a bloke so much? Apart from, you know, well making sex illegal."

Xander smiled slightly. "Yeah, you're right. But this time it's women, thank god. Not the whole sex thing."

"Let me guess. Willow and Anya are still fighting over you and it's wearing a little thin."

"How did you know Willow and Anya were fighting over me."

Spike smirked, "Do you really think that I'm that blind? They've been getting that going on for weeks."

"How've you seen it coming when I missed it?"

The boy really was an idiot, "I've been around about a hundred years longer than you."

Xander inclined his head, "Yeah, I guess you have."

* * *

Anya was still trying to follow that damn thing's trail. She wouldn't have thought that in a place as small as Sunnydale an enormous troll was going to be so hard to track. And whatever the witch said, it wasn't her fault, okay well the making of the damn thing was her fault but the actual releasing of him wasn't. She had only meant to make him suffer in some horrible and unimaginable way, and a troll had been what she had thought of at the time. She was deliberately not bringing, the whole 'I created him' thing up with Willow. That was just going to make it sound like the witch was right, and she wasn't. She just . . . wasn't.

* * *

"So, I get that you're together, but how did it happen? I mean, I've promised Buffy that I'll be nice and I'm trying to be, but how in the hell did it start?"

Spike smirked, "Don't really know. I just, well I always knew that she was beautiful and well, definitely worthy of a good shag but . . ."

Xander held up a hand with a groan, "Too much information, graphic mental pictures coming to mind, I only meant, how did one of you make a move?"

Spike shrugged his shoulders, "I decided that I wanted to so I just kissed her."

Xander stared at Spike with something akin to awe, "You just kissed her, without knowing if she wanted to be kissed? How did you know that she wouldn't like, tell you that you were nothing and that she wasn't interested?"

"I didn't know for definite. I just wanted her so I tried my luck, and got lucky."

"Wow. I don't think that I would have the nerve to try something like that. I just . . . I mean, Anya actually made the first move with us."

Spike frowned, "Really? I guess that it shouldn't really be surprising. She does seem pretty confident. Did she ask you to dinner or something?"

Xander smiled and blushed, "Uh, well the first time she asked me to the prom. But then she did a runner rather than stay and face off with the mayor. When she came back, she pretty much just came into my house and took her clothes of."

"I take it you got the message as to her intentions then?" Spike laughed.

"Loud and clear."

* * *

About half an hour and six beers each later the two men were getting rather drunk. They were a bit slow on the uptake as something very large kicked in the door.

Part 7: