Chapter 8

"Mornin’ pet" Spike smiled as Buffy’s eyes opened. He’d woken just a few minutes earlier and had not wanted to go back to sleep. He laid on his side, propped up on one elbow just watching his lady dream.

"You’re still here" she whispered with a smile "I was so afraid it was all just another dream"

"I’m living a dream, luv" he told her, kissing her gently on the lips "Being here with you, knowing that you love me..."

"You didn’t know before?" she interrupted, with a hint of a frown "You couldn’t hear me?"

"Hear you?" the ex-vamp looked confused.

"In heaven" Buffy explained "I always thought the people could hear..." she trailed off when he turned to lay on his back and stared at the ceiling, his smile completely gone.

"What’s the matter?" she asked pulling herself up a little.

He was silent for a moment before glancing over at her and seeing he had clearly worried her. He had not wanted to do that.

"Nothing, pet" he half-lied, turning back to kiss her again, but their embrace was interrupted by a knock at the door.

"Sounds like we slept late" Buffy sighed, glancing at the clock and realising it was in fact ten thirty already. ‘Good job it’s Saturday or Dawnie would be seriously late for school’ she thought as she felt the bed move and Spike got out.

"I’ll get the door" he told her, pulling on his jeans and T-shirt "you get dressed at your own speed" he smiled, placing a final kiss on her forehead and exiting the room.

Spike actually felt more than a little uncomfortable, climbing into the clothes he’d been buried in. He’d had a shower before going to bed the night before, but his clothes were still muddy and a little worse for wear, still he had nothing else to wear and he didn’t want to make a big deal out of it right now.

"Hey Spike" Willow grinned, coming out of her room just as he came out of Buffy’s.

"Mornin’ Red" he smiled back "I was just gonna get the door"

"Oh, I’ll get it" she offered "Tara’s just getting dressed and I checked on Dawnie, she’s up too" she took a step towards the stairs and Spike followed.

"Then I guess I’ll make breakfast"

"You don’t have to do that" she told him, turning back.

"I want to" he assured her "I gotta thank the gang somehow, I think I’ll be thanking you all my life" he swallowed hard as he glanced back at the door he’d just closed "for bringing me back to her..."

"One more word and you’re gonna have me crying again" the witch beside him interrupted, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand.

"Sorry, Willow" Spike half-smiled, knowing he was on the verge of making himself cry too.

"It’s okay" she shrugged as they turned toward the stairs again, but still they didn’t make it down as she turned back again "Hey did you just call me Willow?"

"It’s your name, right?" the new human asked, realising why she’d mentioned it.

"Yeah, but I don’t think I’ve heard you use it" the red-head admitted and Spike smiled.

"Well, make the most of it" he passed by her to go down the stairs "you might not hear it again, Red"

Willow grinned as she followed him down the flight of steps, catching hold of his arm at the bottom.

"Spike?"

"Yeah" he turned back, slightly startled by the witches hand on his arm. He was even further surprised when she turned him completely around and pulled him into a hug.

"What was that for?" he wondered aloud as she started to walk away toward the front door.

"I’ve wanted to hug you so many times" she admitted softly, "but I was kinda scared...well, you can’t bite me now so..." she felt weird saying it and a further knock on the door meant she didn’t have to say anymore "I really better answer that" she smiled and disappeared as Spike headed for the kitchen, a similar smile on his own face. He thought maybe this time, he wouldn’t mind so much being a human, because this time it seemed he had friends.

Dawn yawned loudly as she stumbled down the stairs and made for the kitchen. As she came through the door, Spike turned to look at her from his position by the stove.

"Breakfast, Sweet Bit?" he smiled and the young Summers looked surprised.

"Hey Spike, I can do that, you should get some rest..." she said, coming up behind him.

"I think I got plenty of rest, luv" he told her and she knew what he meant "making the most of not having to now, y’know"

"Good point" she nodded, before daring to wrap her arms around him from behind and squeeze tight "it’s so great to have you back"

"Steady on Dawnie" he complained as the frying pan in his hand slipped and he almost dropped it. Truth was it was strange that people seemed to want to hug him all of a sudden, but it was unsettling in a nice way, he had to admit that.

"You made pancakes?" Dawn asked, peering around his shoulder.

"Yeah" he answered, tipping the food onto a plate "Feels weird to want to eat this stuff after such a long time just craving, well, y’know"

"Yeah, the blood" she nodded in understanding before pulling up a stool by the counter "Hey, we can go to the park later, you can get a real California tan now" she realised with excitement as Spike continued making breakfast.

"Guess I can" the ex-vamp nodded, glancing round at her.

"Or we can go to the beach" Dawn suggested "oh and now you can go out in the day there’s the mall and you don’t have to wear black, we can get you some new clothes, and no more worries about stakes and stuff..."

"Hey Dawnie" Buffy interrupted from the kitchen door "slow down. This is all a big adjustment for Spike" she said as she walked over to the two.

"Sorry" the younger girl looked at first Spike then Buffy "guess I got over-excited"

"That’s alright, Nibblet" Spike assured her "Gotta say I’m a bit excited myself, bit confused too though about how it happened" he admitted as Buffy gave him a peck on the cheek and stole some of Dawn’s breakfast from her plate.

"Well, we can talk about that now" she told him "now that everyone is here"

"Guess so. Here Bit, you take your pancakes and the coffee through to the gang, we’ll be right behind you" he said turning to Dawn and handing her a tray with cups of coffee on it and putting her breakfast on it too.

As the younger Summers girl disappeared into the living room, Spike dropped the pan and utensils into the sink to be washed and sighed.

"You okay, Spike?" Buffy asked standing behind him.

"Yeah pet, I’m fine" he said, turning to lean on the counter and face her "all this it’s...just gonna take some getting used to, like you said" he told her, putting his hands on her shoulders.

"I’ll help" she promised, going into his arms and hugging him "we all will"

"You all already have" he told her as he hugged her back "Them brining me back to you and you loving me..." he pulled back to see her face "Buffy, I..."

"Hey, I thought you were right behind me?" Dawn interrupted and Spike sighed.

"Coming Bit" he told her, taking Buffy by the hand and walking into the living room where the Scoobies were waiting.

"Mornin all" he greeted. Giles, Anya and Xander were on the sofa with Willow and Tara in one of the arm chairs and Dawn just moving out of the other to sit on the floor and let her sister sit there.

"Good morning Spike" Giles answered for everyone as the bleached blond perched on the arm of the chair beside Buffy "Er, how are you feeling?"

"Still human if that’s what you mean Watcher" he smiled "Any ideas how it happened yet?"

"Not entirely no..." Giles admitted, cleaning his glasses.

"Maybe if you told us what happened where you were?" Anya suggested, but the others realised there was a chance he wasn’t somewhere pleasant, he had been a demon after all.

"Maybe he can’t remember, or he doesn’t know..." said Tara, quickly.

"I do know" Spike said, looking at his hands and not the people he was talking to.

"Were you in heaven?" Dawn wanted to know.

"Dawn..." Buffy’s voice had a warning tone. After she had mentioned Heaven earlier, Spike had gone very quiet and strange, she guessed that was not where he’d been.

"It’s okay" Spike told Buffy before turning to Dawn "No Bit, I don’t reckon I was, knew the chances of that were slim"

"You weren’t in...?" Dawn didn’t even wasn’t to say the word, but if he hadn’t gone up to heaven surely there was only one other way to go.

"Hell?" Spike knew precisely what she meant "No, I didn’t go that far south either..."

Chapter 9

"Hell? No, didn’t go that far south either..." Spike took a deep breath and started to explain as best as he could, mostly looking down at his hands instead of at his audience "It was like, like I was in this maze and it was huge and there was no way to know where to go next, I was...lost, confused and...alone. It was like I knew there was a way out but no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t get to it. It was like it was all a temporary distraction and one day I was going to get out but then I wasn’t sure if I wanted to because I didn’t know where outside would be..." he trailed off for a moment and Tara spoke kindly.

"It’s okay, Spike, you don’t have to tell us, I mean if it’s too hard for you"

"S’alright Glinda" he shot her half a smile as he composed himself and continued his story.

"I was wandering around and suddenly there was this light and I thought ‘this is it, I’m getting out’ and I’m not ashamed to say it scared the living crap out of me, so to speak, cos I didn’t know where I was gonna end up. Then the light faded and there was a woman...I couldn’t figure out who she was but she was so familiar to me, like I’d known her all my existence and I knew I was safe with her there, I was just sure I was gonna be okay. She spoke to me..."

"William, your time has come"

"Where you belong, William, where you belong"

"She started walking and I followed her. I found myself on the edge of the maze, about to step out into...I didn’t know what. I turned back and the woman was gone. I heard voices, saw colours and lights, indistinguishable as anything real and then one final step and...I was falling...next thing I know I was...waking up in a coffin for the second time and..." Spike’s voice cracked and tears threatened to fall from his eyes. Buffy put her arm around him and rubbed soothing circles on his back.

"It’s okay" she assured him and he managed a smile. A moments silence and a deep breath and he was okay again. He glanced up and looked around the room at his audience.

"What? No jokes about the tears, Whelp?" he asked Xander, who shrugged a response.

"Figured you’d been through enough, Spike" he told him and a small smile passed between the men which everyone was pleased to see

"So it wasn’t our spell that brought you back?" Tara spoke up, looking first at Spike then Willow who sat beside her.

"You were chosen to come back anyway" Willow continued "with the added bonuses of heartbeat and oxygen-usage?"

"No" Spike shook his head "no, I reckon I was chosen *because* of the spell and maybe because...of what I did..." he was determined not to start blubbing like a baby again in front of all the Scoobies.

"Indeed" Giles started "By performing this spell, you five proved that Spike was needed here and with his end being sacrificial, it showed he had the capacity for good despite being a demon"

"Thanks for the text book explanation, Watcher" Spike rolled his eyes, could the man be any more of a walking reference book if he tried?

"So the spell didn’t go wrong?" Anya made sure she was keeping up.

"No, looks like I’m just special" Spike smiled "first time for everything I s’pose" he added more quietly.

"I always knew you were special, Spike" Dawn gave a wide smile as she spoke. She had always been the one who appreciated Spike when no one else had.

"Thanks, Little Bit" he smiled back, ruffling her hair. It made everyone else feel somewhat uncomfortable knowing that they had never appreciated him the way they should have before. They would make up for that now he was back.

"So, I guess we should fill you in on what’s been happening around here since you...were gone..." Willow piped up, and that’s exactly what they did. Hours passed as the Scoobies recounted demons they had fought and vamps they had staked, which was as much news for Buffy as it was Spike since she’d really been in a world of her own while he’d been gone.

The sun started to set and it was Tara who noticed first.

"It’s getting dark, shouldn’t we patrol?" she suggested.

"Good idea" Buffy nodded "I’ll go get ready" she added, standing up.

"Buffy are you sure you’re up to this?" Willow asked worriedly "I mean, you haven’t patrolled in a while and you’re still not up to your best"

"It’s okay, Will, I’m fine" she assured the witch "I can do anything now, with Spike here" she smiled at the man beside her and he smiled back before speaking.

"I don’t know that I’m gonna be much use to you now, luv. Just a regular human now, not the Big Bad Slayer-Side-kick that I once was"

"Hey, there’s a lot to be said for us regular human guys" Xander stood up to as he defended his kind.

"Oh yes, I find human males are very good at..." Anya started but Giles interrupted.

"Anya, please I beg of you don’t finish that sentence" he took of his glasses and cleaned them on his shirt.

"We’re good at stuff besides that Ahn" Xander informed her and she looked a little hurt, since she was trying to help him look good.

"Oh God, it’s a tragedy" Spike complained and everyone looked over at him worriedly.

"What? What’s the matter?" Buffy wanted to know.

"Human bloke now" he pointed to himself "I’ve got something in common with the Whelp!" he gestured at Xander with a look of fake disgust. He really didn’t hate the guy as much as he pretended too.

"Hey, y’know you can’t call me that anymore" the brunette protested.

"Why not?" asked Spike getting to his feet and everyone else followed suit, slightly worried about a fight that might ensue.

"Because..." Xander considered before explaining "all my best insulting names for you were evil, vamp and demon related - no longer applicable"

Spike just grinned.

"Your problem, not mine...Xander"

Buffy smiled to herself. They were still going to wind each other up at every opportunity but it was almost like these two had an understanding now, there was no malice in there words and evil-ish looks, it was just a game.

"Back to the topic at hand - patrolling" Willow reminded them at last.

"Yes" Buffy nodded once "and I’m gonna need all of you, at least until I get back to full power"

"All of us?" Dawn looked hopeful.

"Oh Dawnie...maybe..." Buffy started, she was about to ask someone to stay behind with her little sister when Xander spoke up.

"Hey, Buffy, y’know maybe you could let her come. She came with when you were...sick...and she did fine"

"Yeah, lil sis is pretty tough these days" Spike agreed, putting an arm around his Little Bit "Pulled a move on me last night, for a minute there I thought she was the Slayer herself"

Dawn smiled proudly and Buffy relented.

"Okay, you can come" she agreed "but you be careful and don’t wander off alone"

"Understood" Dawn nodded, before ducking out from under Spikes arm and heading for the stairs to go and change.

"Okay, I have to go change too..." Buffy went to follow her sister when Xander produced a bag.

"Oh yeah, brought these for you Mr Not-So-Dead guy" he said, tossing the bag to Spike who still wore the same black jeans and T-shirt that he had as a vamp. The bleach blond unzipped the bag and looked inside at a couple of Xander’s least hideous shirts and trousers.

"Great, first day as a human and I get to look like a ponce" Spike muttered and the brunette started to protest.

"Xander, I’m kidding" he assured him, before adding "sort of" as he disappeared up the stairs behind the Summers women.

He lightly tapped on Buffy’s door and she let him in, now dressed in dark blue pants and a lighter blue top, she turned to the mirror to fix her hair. Of course that had the added advantage of being able to watch Spike change his clothes whilst appearing to have her back to him - something that would have been impossible when Spike was still a vampire, of course.

She watched as he pulled on the clean trousers and then began to button the clean shirt. He sat down on the bed facing the window looking out into the night without a word. As Buffy pulled her ponytail tighter she walked over and sat down beside him.

"You okay?" she asked him.

"Yeah, I’ll be fine" he answered without looking at her, eyes fixed looking out through the window.

"Y’know, you don’t have to come" she told him, putting a hand on his knee. He turned to look at her finally.

"Buffy, I didn’t come back here to sit back and watch you fight the fight" he put his hand on top if hers "I love you and I’m gonna do everything I can for you. Whatever mess we get in, we get in it together, okay?"

She smiled as she turned her hand to hold his.

"Okay" she conceded "Just be careful, Mr Human Guy"

"I will if you will, Miss Slayer Lady" he countered, leaning over to kiss her. They didn’t hear the tap on the door or see it open to reveal the entire Scooby gang, complete with weapons, who were being kept waiting.

"Hey guys, slayage first, that later" Xander told them, as Buffy ducked her head in embarrassment and Spike just grinned.

"Oh, I think it’s sweet" Dawn smiled as her sister and one of her best friends walked hand in hand out of the bedroom.

"Yes well, could we, er... ‘make with the slayage’ as you are so fond of saying" Giles suggested as everyone filtered down the stairs "I’d rather like to get some sleep at some point tonight"

"Yes" Buffy nodded "let’s go"

Chapter 11 - Crying

Buffy sat in the kitchen of her house, Dawn to her left and Tara to her right, while Willow made hot drinks for everyone. It had taken the strength and convincing of all three of her friends to get Buffy to leave Spike’s side, but it was necessary when Giles arrived. The Watcher brought with him all he needed to give the ex-vampire a basic medical check. Being a Watcher meant the man had some knowledge of basic injuries and illness as well as some demon-related and magical ones. Because of this, the girls had decided he was the best person to call. An ordinary doctor would have required explanations they couldn’t give and there was no way of knowing if Spike’s illness was natural or supernatural.

"Here" Willow tried to smile as she placed the mug of steaming hot chocolate in front of her friend, unknowingly making Buffy feel worse and causing her to cry even harder. Hot chocolate reminded Buffy of her mother and of Spike, both of whom she had lost, one of which she’d been lucky enough to get back, but who knew how long he was back for? Was fate really so cruel and against her that it would take him away again so soon after his return?

"He’s gonna be okay Buffy" Dawn assured her sister, although she didn’t know if that were true, "He has to be okay"

"He’s a strong man" Tara told them both, "I’m sure he’ll be fine"

"Er, Buffy" Giles stammered as he entered the kitchen.

"What is it, Giles?" Buffy asked, immediately jumping from her seat, shaking with fear, nerves and worry.

"Well, I’m not entirely sure" the Watcher admitted, "It seems to be some sort of pneumonia related virus..."

"So it’s a human thing" Dawn guessed, "and not a demon-y, magic-y thing"

"It really is very hard to tell" Giles admitted as he cleaned his glasses, "He has all the symptoms, as I say, of a pneumonia virus but given what he has been through, well, it could be something entirely different"

"Just tell me" Buffy choked out, "is he going to die?"

Giles glanced at the shaking girl before him and then at her sister and two friends beyond.

"No, I wouldn’t have thought so" he half-lied, truth be told he had no idea if the new young man would see tomorrow or live forever, it was all beyond him, but he just couldn’t break Buffy’s heart by telling her that.

"I’m gonna go see him" Buffy smiled gratefully at the news she received, and pausing only briefly to hug Giles, she ran for the stairs.

"Truth time" Willow said when she was sure Buffy was out of hearing range, "you really that sure he’ll be okay?"

The man shook his head sadly, taking a seat at the counter with Tara and Dawn.

"Honestly" he sighed, "I have no idea at all, but...I just couldn’t...I didn’t want to..."

"Couldn’t bear to break her heart again?" Tara guessed.

"Yes, exactly" Giles admitted, cleaning his glasses yet again.

"So, he could die?" Dawn whimpered as more tears spilled down her cheeks. The three older people in the room knew the answer was yes but how do you tell a fifteen year old that the man she saw as a brother, her saviour, her friend, could possibly be dead this time tomorrow?

The phone rang into life and the three adults were quite literally saved by the bell. Willow moved to answer it and was surprised to hear Xander’s voice.

"Hey Will, what’s the problem?"

"Xander?" she checked and Giles appeared by her side.

"I called him just before I came here" the man explained, "Thought we might need every able bodied researcher at the ready, but I had to leave a message on the answering machine, I told him to telephone here since this was where I was coming to"

"Oh, right" Willow nodded, before turning her attention back to the phone "Xan, I’m gonna pass you over to Giles"

The Watcher explained everything and asked Xander, and Anya, to come to the Summers house as soon as they could. If they could keep Buffy in the bedroom with Spike, which shouldn’t be too hard since it was the only place she wanted to be, the rest of the Scoobies could do some research, maybe even some spells to work out exactly what was going on.

With the plan soon explained to the two Wiccas and a tearful Dawn, the Scoobies, minus Buffy and Spike of course, gathered around the dining room table, ready for the research that they so often partook of, but this was like no other research session they’d ever had before. None had ever been quite so serious, with the possible exception of a few meetings before the gangs final confrontation with Glory when they knew they would not all live to see the battles end.

Spike’s new life could be hanging in the balance and it was up to this little group of misfit people to find first what was wrong and second how to cure it - before it was too late.

* * * * *

Pain, heat, nausea, just three of the many things that hit Spike as he came into a more conscious state. He vaguely remembered a dream and then there was definitely a lot of throwing up and, beyond that the entire night was a blur to him. He tried to open his eyes and work out where he was but all his muscles, including those that operated his eyes, seemed to ache and complain at being asked to work.

He was laying on a soft surface, he assumed a bed, most probably the bed he’d been sleeping on before - Buffy’s bed, but how he’d got back there from the bathroom he had no idea. He felt something move, near his right hand, around it in fact. It seemed someone was holding his hand, and as he concentrated he could hear a voice too, coming from the person that had a hold of his hand, he had no doubt.

"...and I know you’re going to be okay" he heard the voice say, "because I’m not going to let you leave me again, you can’t" then there were tears, he heard the sobs and then felt the dampness on his hand, knowing now that the person beside him was his Slayer, Buffy.

He hated to hear her cry, he realised it hurt almost as much to hear it as it had when he’d seen it before. He wanted to comfort her, tell her everything would be okay, but he felt so weak, he couldn’t move at all, couldn’t even find the energy to speak her name. He hoped his silent begging inside of his head for her to stop crying would be enough and he found it miraculous when her sobs subsided.

"I love you, Spike" he heard her say, "I don’t know if you can hear anything I’m saying but I’m going to say it anyway just in case, I love you more than I ever thought I could love anybody and I’m gonna help you to get better, I promise"

That was all Spike ever wanted to hear and he knew that if whatever was happening to him got worse or ended him completely, he could at least die happily this time around. He didn’t want to die, not so soon after re-gaining his mortality, but he had at least had the comfort of knowing that if he did, he would have the love of this woman to take with him to the grave and beyond.

Chapter 12 - Energy

"Okay, if this is stupid just say it" Xander suddenly broke the silent researching and all Scooby attention turned to him, "but isn’t there some kind of identify type spell that can tell us what’s up with Spike?"

"If it were that simple Xander then we would have already tried it" Giles snapped, perhaps a little too harshly, but they had spent a couple of hours now pouring over all kinds of books and to no avail, everyone was irritable and tired.

"No, wait" Willow interrupted, "We can’t tell what illness or whatever he might have but we could locate any spells used on him since he came back"

"Oh yes" Anya nodded, "Tirer la couture - pull back the curtain"

"A spell to identify spells" Tara completed the explanation "At least then we’d know if the illness was magic-related, surely that would narrow down the research?"

"An excellent idea" Giles agreed, "It seems perhaps Xander you may have slightly more intelligence than we thought"

Xander grinned, glad to have helped but his smile soon fell as he remembered the seriousness of what they were dealing with.

"So, how does this ‘curtain pulling’ work?" he asked.

"Well, it is a spell that Buffy performed once before when her mother was ill" Giles remembered, "It involves someone going into a kind of trance and they are then able to see images that would show if a spell was being used"

"I can do it" Willow stood up "the trance, I mean, I’ve done stuff like this before"

"Are you sure, Will?" Xander looked worried, "I mean you used a lot of power lately what with bringing Spike back and all, you sure it’s safe for you?"

"Maybe I should do it" Tara offered.

"Or I could" Anya piped up.

"Guys, what’s going on?" Dawn asked a she came down the stairs. The gang had told her to go to bed and get some sleep since it was so late. The sun had now risen however and it was morning and the young teen really hadn’t been able to sleep much anyway.

"Hey Dawnie, how’d you sleep?" Willow smiled to the girl, Dawn shook her head.

"Not so well, but I’m fine" she told them, coming to sit at the table, "Any luck with the research?"

"Just had a break through" Xander smiled, "We’re gonna do a spell see if we can identify if another spell was used to make Spike sick"

Over the next couple of hours, the Scoobies ate breakfast, tided some of the books away and fetched incense, mystic sands and other items needed for the spell from the Magic Box. It was eventually decided that Tara would go into the trance as she had done similar spells before and she didn’t want Willow over exerting herself.

Dawn had checked on Buffy and Spike twice during the morning. The first time they had both been asleep and the second when Buffy had been awake she hadn’t said much. It seemed while Spike was getting no better he was getting no worse and that had to be taken as a positive sign.

Xander, Anya, Willow and Giles took Dawn with them to continue their research at the Magic Box while Tara stayed at the house to do the spell. Buffy was still at Spike’s side refusing to leave the mostly unconscious man and Tara thought it was for the best since they didn’t really want to have to tell the distraught girl too much about what they were doing until they were sure about what they were dealing with.

The incense was lit and the sand was poured in the counter-clockwise circle as required. Tara took her position in the centre, in a lotus position and concentrated. It took some time, but the spell was soon cast and as the Wicca woman opened her eyes she saw the world differently, through a strange sort of haze, and yet it felt clearer than normal.

She carefully stood up and began to walk up the stairs towards Buffy’s room. She would need to look at Spike and around him to see if any magic was affecting him. He had of course been resurrected by a spell but now he was back and alive the spell was over and should leave no signs behind that it was ever used. The only spells that would show were one’s currently working.

Without knocking, Tara slowly opened the bedroom door and found as she knew she would, Spike lying on the bed, asleep and shivering slightly despite his fever. Buffy knelt beside the bed, also asleep and clutching the mans right hand in both of hers.

Tara blinked carefully as she walked around the room, looking at the two people within from all angles. A mist, she suddenly noticed, not over Spike but around Buffy. A strange and very pale green swirl of energy, emanating from around the girls head and chest. From this cloud of energy there appeared to be a thread weaving through the air and back out the door. It was very fine and Tara reasoned that this is why she had not seen it before.

The pale cloud and thread of energy from Buffy took her tranced attention away from Spike as she followed the strange cord from the room, down the stairs, out of the front door. She walked in an automated fashion, her focus on nothing but this ever stretching twine of glowing green energy. She walked, following the paths as the energy twisted and turned along, she opened a door that she came too, kept walking almost completely unaware of where she was or what she was doing and then she saw where the energy had led her, where this thread of green that cam from Buffy was going too.

"Dawn" she breathed as a she saw that same mist around the other Summers girl, but this time much darker, stronger and more powerful. The cloud seemed to pulse as if more and more energy were being slowly pumped in. No sooner had Tara said the girls name as she’d fainted.

* * * * *

"Tara, baby, wake up" Willow begged as her girlfriend came to in her arms.

"What happened?" the blonde tried to stand and put a hand to her head as she did so.

"You came in the door, looking all spaced out" Xander told her, "then you stopped looked at us and you were out"

"You said my name" Dawn added "you were looking at me funny and then you said my name just before you passed out"

"I did?" Tara frowned as Willow helped her into a seat, "I don’t remember" she tried to concentrate and everything gradually came back to her - the spell, the mist, the thread, the mystical connection between the Summer sisters - but what did it all mean?

"I did the spell" she said, slowly, "and I couldn’t see anything wrong with Spike" she wasn’t sure she should mention what else she saw, at least not in front of Dawn. After all that had happened with Glory and now Spike, she didn’t want to cause anymore pain and anguish for the child.

"So, it is clear that no kind of magic has caused his illness" Giles said more to himself than anyone else, "Which would suggest it is either a side effect of the resurrection or simply an ordinary human ailment"

"And that’s good, right?" Anya guessed, "If it’s just something human and not magic he’ll just get better like humans do?"

"Well, hopefully, yes" Giles nodded, "Of course, not all human illnesses are curable but if I was right in my assumption of a pneumonia type virus, I think we stand a good chance of helping Spike to a successful recovery"

There were smiles all around at the news Spike might live to enjoy the humanity he’d recently been granted.

Suddenly the phone rang and Anya moved to answer it.

"Hello, this is the Magic Box, Anya speaking, how may I be of service to you?"

"Anya, it’s Buffy" a panicked voice came through the receiver, "I need you guys here fast, I think Spike’s getting worse..."

Chapter 14 - Rambling and Remembering

"Buffy..." Willow started, but realised she had no idea what to say anyway.

"What did you just say?" Buffy asked, coming further into the room as the two Wiccas sat up straighter "I’m not...Dawn she...oh God" Buffy rambled, running her hands back over her face and pushing back her hair.

"Buffy, we could be wrong, we’re just guessing..." Tara tried to make some sense and calm down her friend but Buffy was apparently not done with her ramble. As if she hadn’t heard a word the blonde witch said she continued.

"I was weak...she was strong...she found Spike and he thought she was me...but how could this...I don’t..." the seemingly ex-Slayer paced back and forth as thoughts swirled in her mind.

"Buffy, it’s okay" Willow tried to comfort her friend but as she reached her hand out to her, Buffy stopped walking, flinching as if she’d been shocked by electricity.

"Oh my God, the lightning" she exclaimed.

"The lightning on the tower, the day Spike..." she trailed off, her explanation much more coherent now "the lightning from the portal it woke Dawn and passed through us, I felt it, but I didn’t know, I...oh my God"

"You mean it joined you two?" Willow guessed.

"And passed your Slayer energy from you to Dawn?" Tara added.

Buffy could say no more, merely nodding mutely at her two friends, wondering what on earth was supposed to happen next.

Xander arrived outside Buffy’s bedroom just as Giles exited.

"How’s the patient?" the younger man asked.

"Er, better, I think" Giles nodded as he cleaned his glasses "It appears to be pneumonia, it’s just hit him fairly hard, probably due to his new human state. His new body is weak already, the illness is therefore more severe for him than the average man" he explained.

"But he’s gonna be okay, right?" Xander checked.

"Oh yes, I think so" the older man assured him, putting his glasses back on.

"So, where did you go before?" the brunette was curious to know "Or is it like a Watcher’s secret?"

Giles dropped his voice as he answered.

"Drugs for these kind of illnesses only come from doctors on prescription but there was no way we could let an everyday doctor see Spike, how ever would we explain who he was?"

"Good point" Xander conceded, "...so?"

"I called in a favour or two" Giles shrugged and tried to make light of what he’d done. He was not particularly proud of some of his ‘contacts’.

"G-man" Xander slapped him on the back "you know people" he smiled, with the emphasis on ‘people’, making these people sound every bit as unsavoury as they were.

"Yes, well" Giles fidgeted "I’d rather Buffy weren’t told, it may undermine me as her Watcher"

No sooner had the girls’ name been mentioned than she emerged from Willow and Tara’s room, having heard the final few words the man spoke, she said;

"You’re not my Watcher"

"Buffy?" he looked at her strangely, as did Xander.

"I’m not the Slayer" she said in a perfectly ordinary, flat tone of voice, as if the fact were not special at all. She was clearly in some sort of shock "How’s Spike?" she added her question quickly.

"I think he’s going to be fine" Giles told her with a small smile "it’ll just take time now" he made a face as he continued "er, what do you mean you’re not the Slayer?"

"Dawn is, I’m not, ask Willow and Tara" she said just as flatly as before, pushing past her Watcher and her friend to go into her room, to Spike.

The two men looked to each other for an answer but neither had one. They glanced toward the door Buffy had disappeared through, then toward the door that hid the two Wiccas, before their attention was finally diverted to the girl bounding up the stairs.

"What’s going on?" Dawn wanted to know why they were looking at her so strangely, but the truth was neither of them knew, not really.

Willow and Tara suddenly emerged from their room, confusion etched on their faces to match that of the two men there in the hall.

"Guys, what’s wrong?" Dawn tried again, "Is it Spike? Is he okay?" she continued, suddenly frantic as she dived for the bedroom door and burst in. She was relieved to see Buffy seated on the side of the bed, holding a still alive Spike’s hand.

"He’s okay?" she said slowly, moving toward the bed.

"Yeah, he’s going to be okay" her sister told her with a watery smile, before tears fell from her eyes like a waterfall.

"Then what’s wrong?" the younger girl asked, glancing between her sister and the gang beyond the door.

"I think we should go downstairs" Giles said quietly, closing the door to the bedroom and taking the Scoobies away. Dawn turned back to Buffy, who in turn looked down at Spike.

"Dawn" she breathed, not looking at her, "we need to talk..."

"What’s wrong?" Dawn asked her sister, clearly scared by the seriousness on Buffy’s face and in her voice.

With a deep breath and a glance at her unconscious lover, the older girl began.

"Dawnie, you remember the day on the tower, when Spike..." she couldn’t even say it and was forced to swallow hard as a lump rose in her throat and her eyes watered.

"Of course I remember" the younger girl replied, taking a seat on the other side of the bed, looking between her sister and her friend.

"You remember, waking up?" the blonde continued and Dawn nodded "do you know why you woke up?"

The brunette seemed to consider the question for a moment before slowly shaking her head. It had not occurred to her why she’d woken up as she had, much the same way as it hadn’t really occurred to her how she could fight so well with little or no training and this strength she felt inside of her that sometimes scared her, she’d told no-one of it but it had worried her.

"Dawn, there was power, from the portal, kind of like lightening" Buffy tried to explain, "It passed through me and then you and that’s what woke you"

Dawn nodded that she was following so far and her sister continued, blinking back further tears as she did so, "it connected us somehow, my power, it connected it to you and it’s flowing all the time, Tara saw it when she was under the trance"

"I’m getting your Slayer power?" the brunette shook her head, not really understanding, "Why? How?"

"I can’t answer that Dawn" Buffy smiled at her sister’s belief that she would always have the answers, but she didn’t, she never would, "I wish I could tell you why it happened and how and what will happen next, but I can’t"

"So...I’m...you’re not, and I..." Dawn muttered, trying to make sense of what she’d been told. How could she be the Slayer instead of Buffy? She didn’t know how to be a Slayer! But then, had she not been fighting, slaying, while Buffy had been unable to, while Spike had been gone...?

"Buffy?"

Both girls attention was diverted from whatever they may have been thinking by Spike’s voice, quiet and rough, but unmistakably him.

"Spike, honey, I’m here" Buffy turned to him, still holding his left hand in both of hers, "I’m here and Dawn’s here, and you’re going to be fine"

"What happened?" he asked, rubbing his forehead with his free hand, his eyes flickering open and closed as they tried to adjust to the level of light in the room.

"You’re sick" Dawn told him, "We didn’t know what was wrong, but you’re gonna be okay cos we’re gonna look after you" she said, too fast, making Spike smile at her.

"Nibblet, still a little incoherent here" he told her, "slow down"

"Sorry" she blushed, "I’m just so glad you’re awake" she told him, momentarily forgetting the shock news she’d just received, and flinging herself on top of the ex-vampire and hugging him awkwardly.

"Dawn" Buffy smiled as Spike winced, "I think you’re crushing him to death"

"It’s okay" he assured her, despite the pain, "There are worse ways to die" he smiled and the young girl blushed yet again as she let go of him.

"Dawnie, why don’t you go tell the others that Spike’s awake" Buffy suggested, wanting a moment alone with her man.

"Okay" the younger Summers nodded as she stood up, "I’ll be right back" she promised as she went out of the door.

Buffy looked down at the man before her.

"You have no idea how glad I am that you’re awake" she smiled, leaning forward to kiss him lightly on the lips. She saw him smile as she pulled away again but his expression soon turned solemn.

"Truth time now Buffy" he said seriously, "I know you would have told the little bit I was gonna be okay no matter what but...am I really?"

"For a while we weren’t sure" the girl admitted, "but Giles says you just have pneumonia, the regular human disease, it just hit you hard cos you’re new to the species and all"

"Makes sense" Spike nodded, his eyes closing briefly again, "I’ll tell you something, I haven’t felt this bad in a while though"

"It’s okay" Buffy assured him, putting a hand to his face, "I’m going to take care of you and you’re going to be fine. I’m here for you and I’m going to do everything I can for you until you’re one hundred percent better"

"I appreciate it, Slayer" he smiled, "but I’m not a child..." he trailed off when he saw a look in her eyes that he knew only too well, that pained, scared, kind of a look, it really bothered him when she looked like that.

"What did I say?" he asked, as she looked away from him.

"Nothing, I’m fine" she lied, but Spike didn’t believe her. He was about to ask what was going on when Dawn returned with the entire Scooby gang in tow.

They were all pleased to see their newly human, newly accepted Scooby friend awake again and less pale and ill than he’d looked earlier. There was some general chatter about Spike and how they would all make sure he was fighting fit in no time at all, they never heard the knock on the front door.

* * * * *

When no-one answered his knock, the man tried a second time but still no-one came. On the off chance he tried pushing the door and was kind of surprised to find it unlocked and easy to open. He first glanced into the living room and then the dining room, before making his way around o the kitchen. No-one was there, but he knew there were people in the house, he could sense that much. ‘Upstairs?’ he thought to himself and made his way back around to the hallway.

* * * * *

Spike was very weak and Giles suggested that whilst he was awake, he drink as much liquid as possible to get his strength back. After a joke from Xander about drinking blood, which made everyone nauseous, including the newly human Spike, Buffy offered to fetch her love some soup. He agreed that was a good idea and pressing a quick kiss to his forehead, Buffy left the room.

* * * * *

As he reached the bottom of the staircase, prepared to go up and search for the people he knew must be there, he came face to face with the owner of the house, who was more than a little shocked to see him there. Buffy’s shock, mixed with her worry over Spike, lack of sleep and earlier shock over her non-Slayer status, caused her to faint, falling from two steps up into the waiting arms of the man below. One word passed her lips as she fell, the name of the man who caught her - "Angel"

Chapter 15 - Angel

"Angel?" said Buffy as she stirred on the sofa, just moments after the man had laid her there.

"I’m here Buffy" he said softly, sitting beside her, clutching her hand, a hand that she quickly pulled away when she realised.

She opened her eyes and tried to pull herself up to a sitting position.

"Wha...what are you doing here?" she managed to ask, still a little incoherent. He shook his head.

"That doesn’t matter right now, are you okay?"

"Yes, yes, I’m fine" she assured him with a nod, pushing her hair from her face and sitting up straight "I’m just tired" she blinked "Please, tell me why you’re here"

Angel sighed, that was his Buffy, never one to worry about herself, much more worried about everyone and everything else.

"We found something in LA" he admitted "a scroll with a prophecy, about you, I think"

"Oh great" Buffy sighed "a prophecy, that’s just what I need right now..." she spoke sarcastically and Angel looked worried.

"What else is going on?"

"Oh, so much stuff, you wouldn’t believe" Buffy shook her head "what with Dawn and Spike and..."

"Spike giving you trouble?" her old lover interrupted and Buffy had to stifle a laugh.

"Oh Angel, you are so out of the loop"

The vampire looked at her strangely as he realised she was biting her lip so as not to laugh at him. What had he said that was so amusing?

"You wanna help me get back in the loop?" he asked, distinctly curious now.

"Okay" Buffy started, turning to sit up straight, beside him on the sofa, "short version, because I really don’t have the energy for the long version" she told him "Glory the hell god, bled Dawn, opened a portal, only Dawn’s blood could close it - with me so far?" she checked.

"I think so" Angel nodded "...is Dawn okay?"

"Yes" Buffy nodded too "Spike drained Dawn, not to death just to unconsciousness, and jumped in the portal thus closing it" she got that far with a straight face but the memory of that day came rushing back so fast, the pain of losing Spike, her voice cracked and tears came to her eyes as she continued "He killed himself for us" she choked out "for the world" she smiled a little as she glanced at Angel, "for me"

"He’s dead?" the vampire asked, wide-eyed. Could his unruly childe have done all this? Died for the sake of the world? For the sake of Buffy?

"He was" Buffy nodded "but the gang brought him back" she paused before adding quietly "...as a human"

Immediately, Angel was off of the sofa and pacing the length of the room. Buffy’s eyes followed him back and forth a couple of times, she knew he must be hurting. He’d been cursed with the soul and trapped halfway between being a man and a monster, not able to truly be either one. He longed to be human again and yet it was his childe, Spike, who got the gift instead. Buffy knew he must be hurting.

"Angel..." she started, but really wasn’t sure what to say to him. He saved her having to think of anything as he interrupted.

"Spike is human?" he checked, unable to take in what he’d been told.

"Yes" Buffy confirmed, realising that whilst she was catching Angel up on all she’d missed, she should mention one more vital piece of information. Afraid of his reaction, she spoke quietly "and I should probably mention that...we’re kind of together"

She hardly dared to look at him as he stopped his pacing, his eyes going wider and his skin even paler than she’d ever seen before.

"You and Spike?" he said slowly and Buffy nodded yet again.

"I guess it’s true what they say" she shrugged, "you don’t know what you have until it’s gone and when he was gone, oh God, I was a mess" she remembered with a humourless laugh.

"Why did no-one call me?" Angel seemed to ask the ceiling more than the girl he was talking to, before resuming his pacing "I didn’t know any of this, maybe I could’ve helped, I could’ve..."

"Angel" she interrupted, getting to her feet to stand in front of him and stop his movement that was making her dizzy just watching "you couldn’t have done anything more than the gang were doing for me" she told him, looking up into his face "and it’s all okay now" she smiled, moving away a little now, putting some distance between their bodies "well, except for Spike having pneumonia but Giles is pretty sure he’s gonna be okay now"

Angel sighed, running a hand over his face.

"God, this is a lot of information to take in"

"I know and I’m sorry that I had to tell you all this so fast, I know this was the last thing you were expecting when you came here..." Buffy apologised "again, why did you come here? You said something about a prophecy?" she prompted.

"Buff?" a voice called from the stirs and both occupants of the living room turned to see Xander coming down the stairs "Spike says chicken for the soup if you have any and..." he paused half way down as he noticed Angel "what’s he doing here?" he said somewhat nastily.

"I was just asking that" Buffy told him, though he didn’t seem to hear, his eyes were locked on the vampire.

"Hey Xander" the taller man half smiled.

"Angel" the younger man greeted flatly before turning his attention back to Buffy "You want me to get the food for the patient?"

"No" she shook her head "that’s okay, I’ll do it"

"Okay" Xander nodded "Well, I’m gonna go say bye to the gang" he said, pointing up the stairs the way he had come "then I should tell Anya what’s going on with Spike being awake and all" with that he disappeared and without a word Buffy headed for the kitchen, Angel trailing behind her.

"So, come on" Buffy prompted again as Angel sat on a stool by the counter and she started to warm some soup from a can "spill about the prophecy"

"Er, well, it’s complicated" the vampire told her "but it seems to be about the Slayer..."

"But wouldn’t that mean Faith?" the blonde snapped at the word ‘Slayer’ "I mean she’s the real Slayer" - ‘and if it’s not her then it’s Dawn, not me’ she thought to herself.

"No, no, it also mentioned the Hellmouth" Angel assured her "the Slayer living on the Hellmouth, something about the giving of power...it’s complex and not fully translated yet, so I brought the scroll with me..."

"Dawn’s got my Slayer powers, I know" Buffy said simply and flatly her back still faced toward Angel as he suddenly stopped worrying about trying to carefully prise the scroll from insode his jacket.

"Dawn?" he frowned in confusion as Buffy turned around to pour the soup into a bowl on the counter.

"Yeah" she nodded "let’s see, your prophecy mention lightening, threads of green energy, power shifting and my sister taking my destiny?"

Angel looked amazed, probably because he was.

"Not so much detail" he admitted "how did you...?"

"Another long story" she cut him off, putting the pan into the sink and running water into it for the tap.

"Wow" she heard him say,

"What? What, wow?" she asked, turning to face him again.

"You’re handling this well, finding out you’re not the Slayer"

Buffy sighed as she leaned forward, resting her weight on her hands on the counter top.

"Angel, right now, my priority is Spike" she explained "he’s sick and he needs me, everything else can wait" she put the bowl of soup on the tray.

"You really love him, don’t you?" Angel said, quietly - more of a statement than a question, but it made Buffy uncomfortable.

"I have to take this to him..." she said almost inaudibly, picking up the tray and making for the door. She walked as fast as she dared, focusing on getting up the stairs to Spike and not answering the question she’d been asked.

She took a deep breath as she got outside the bedroom door and walked in backwards so as to open the door without spilling the soup on the tray in front of her. As she turned she realised there was only her and Spike in the room.

"Where’d everybody go?" she asked, puzzled.

"The Wiccas needed rest" he told her from his position on the bed "the Watcher went with Xander back to the Magick shop and when I realised how late it was I sent the Nibblet to bed, since it’s a school night and all" he glanced at the clock as Buffy put the tray on the bedside table "I was only out of it for a day, right?"

"Oh, yeah" Buffy nodded, sitting down on the bed, facing him "just today" she smiled a little but Spike knew it wasn’t real and it reminded him of her earlier behaviour. There was definitely something not right. He stayed quiet for a ccouple of minutes as Buffy helped him drink some soup, but his curiousity soon got the better of him. He refused to drink anymore and as Buffy put the bowl back on the table he sighed.

"Now, pet" he said softly, reaching for her hand "tell me what’s wrong"

"Nothings wrong" she said, unable to look him in the eye.

"You can’t lie to me, luv" he told her, tilting his head to see her face better "I know you too well" he smiled and she knew it was true "Come on, tell me" he insisted.

"Can I come in?" said a voice from the doorway and Buffy didn’t know whether to be distressed or relieved at the interruption, from Angel.