"Thank God that’s over" Xander sighed deeply as he headed out of the front of the school, right hand holding onto Willow’s left.

"Yep" said Buffy from his other side, "School is officially out for the Summer"

"And not a moment too bloody soon" Spike added, wrapping an arm around his girlfriends shoulders.

"Down side is we’re not going to see you guys for a while" Willow sighed, "I mean, it’s great that my family have agreed Xander can come on vacation with us but I’m gonna miss you two" she told Buffy and Spike.

"And we’ll miss you too Red" Spike told her with a smile, "but you’ll be back before you know it for Mum and Dad’s wedding"

"Oh of course" Willow gushed, "Wouldn’t want to miss the big occasion" she smiled, the chance to see Spike in a suit instead of his usual black leather would be fun as he played the part of best man for his father, plus of course Buffy and Dawn were to be bridesmaids, since Giles saw them as an extension of his own family anyway.

"I can’t believe Giles is getting married" Xander shook his head, "I mean, he’s going to have like a honeymoon and at his age...eeww"

"Shut it Whelp" Spike snapped, "That’s my parents your getting disgusted by" he frowned, although the last thing he wanted to think about was his Mum and Dad, doing what comes naturally to newlyweds. Xander just bugged him sometimes, although he’d got on better with the boy these last few months since he and Buffy, and Xander and Willow, had started dating.

The four best friends parted outside the school, Willow getting teary as she hugged Spike then Buffy, before Xander hugged Buffy too and then looked uncomfortably at Spike. The two males just nodded semi-politely at one another before taking the hand of their waiting girlfriends and walking away in opposite directions.

"So" Buffy sighed, "three weeks to the wedding of the year, huh?" she smiled.

"Yeah, it’s come around fast" Spike nodded "but I’m glad, it’ll be sort of nice to have an officially married set of parentals" he grinned.

"Didn’t you tell me you had relatives coming over?" Buffy seemed to remember him having mentioned something about more family members arriving.

"Oh yeah, my Dad’s sisters son wants to be at his favourite Uncle’s wedding, apparently" he rolled his eyes and smiled as they walked along "I’ve never met the bloke, seeing as I’ve only known Dad a few months, but he’s meant to be a decent enough guy"

"What do you know about him?" Buffy asked keen to know everything as always.

"Well, aunt Sarah, as I’m s’posed to call her" Spike rolled his eyes again "she married an Irish bloke, Patrick Doyle, and they had a kid called...Allen Francis" he explained, trying to remember all the details Giles had told him "but he hates his name so he’s just called Doyle"

"Irish, huh?" Buffy said thoughtfully "That should be interesting"

"Why’s that, pet?" Spike asked with a frown, a slight twinge of panic in his chest as he thought perhaps Buffy might prefer this Irish bloke to him. His hand tightened around hers, Buffy felt it and knew why, at the same time wondering how someone as seemingly tough as Spike could be so insecure.

"Cordy’s coming to stay for the summer vacation, remember?" she said as if the answer to his question were so obvious. When he still looked blank, she elaborated "Put her near a guy with an accent and she’s smitten"

Spike grinned, remembering that Cordelia had been a little over-friendly around him when he’d first met her. It’d be nice to see the girl again and Buffy thought of her as a second sister, the two were so close.

"How old is he?" Buffy asked, still thinking of Doyle and Spike came back from his thoughts to answer her.

"Er, eighteen, I think, maybe nineteen now...I’ve had to learn about so many people in my family that I didn’t even know I had, it’s hard to keep track" he complained, "anyway, he’s coming, and my Mum’s parents and her brother, my Uncle Johnny, I think you’ll really like him" he smiled, glad his girlfriend was so interested in his family.

"Are they all staying at your house?" Buffy frowned a little.

"I dunno, pet" her boyfriend shrugged as they neared but their front doors now "Probably, yeah"

"And with Cordy at my house it’s going to get awfully noisy in Revello Drive" she almost laughed as she pictured the over crowding.

"Well, at least the Summer won’t be boring" Spike laughed.

"Spike!" Giles voice bellowed from the bottom of the stairs, causing the boy to turn over in his bed, shoving his pillow over his head to block out the noise.

"William!" his mother called to him this time, "I want you down here and looking decent in the next twenty minutes" she warned, "or I’m taking ‘the photograph’ next door"

"Oh bloody hell" he cursed realising he would have to get up. His mothers threats were not to be taken lightly and he really didn’t want Buffy to see the dreaded photo that shall not be mentioned...

"I heard that, William!" Jessica called at the sound of her son’s colourful language, "Now hurry up, we have to go fetch Doyle from the station"

"Okay, okay" Spike called, "I’m coming...don’t get your knickers twisted" he mumbled the last part under his breath as he rolled out of bed, pulled on his black jeans, grabbed a T-shirt (also black) and headed for the bathroom. Despite the fact that Spike’s friends and family tried to convince him to wear colours, he’d got used to the black and just liked to wear it now. It was no longer a statement of sadness or anger at the world...he just liked the colour, or lack thereof as the case maybe. The same was true about his hair, he thought to himself as he grabbed the gel from the cabinet and carefully spiked his bleach blond locks. He just liked it that way and he’d kind of got used to it, so he kept it that way with no plans to change anytime soon.

"Ten minutes Spike" Giles called and the boy sighed deeply, finishing off his hair before heading down the stairs to the kitchen.

"Where’s the fire, Dad?" he asked as Giles scooted past him, quickly followed by Jessica.

"Some of us would like to make a good impression on the members of this family we’ve yet to meet" his mother told him, straightening sofa cushions whilst Giles re-arranged the magazines on the coffee table.

Spike shook his head not understanding the big deal. His grandparents wouldn’t care if the magazines were in a pile or fanned out, or if the cushions were plumped or flat. They were easy going folks, his Nana Caroline and Grandad Charlie, wouldn’t give a stuff if they lived in a pig sty or a castle so long as they were happy. Then there was Uncle Johnny, Spike’s favourite bloke in the world, with the possible exception of his new-found father these days. Another guy who wouldn’t notice if you cleaned for three days straight or didn’t bother for a month.

But they were arriving tomorrow and Doyle, who was arriving today, was a bit of a mystery. If he was anything like his Uncle Giles, well, as much as Spike loved and respected his Dad he could be a bit of a poncy bugger, if Doyle was anything like that, heaven help the Slayer’s boyfriend’s reputation after being seen with him in public!

"Er, you two do know that clocks running behind time don’t you?" Spike frowned glancing between his watch and the clock on the mantle, "it’s almost ten thirty"

Both Giles and Jessica turned to their son with shocked expressions before the female grabbed her fiancés wrist and read the time from the watch there. There were a few mumbled curse words as Giles grabbed his keys and Jessica all but pushed Spike out of the front door towards the car.

"Don’t worry about me" the boy complained as he climbed in the back seat, "I don’t need to eat breakfast or anything"

"You can have something when we get back" his mother told him, before snapping on her seatbelt and turning too Giles as he started the car, "Step on it"

Seated on his suitcase, just beyond the Sunnydale train station, Allen Francis Doyle was beginning to wonder if his Uncle Giles had forgotten he was coming. The young man didn’t mind so much, he was fairly comfortable where he was, the weather was a lot more decent in California than at home in Ireland and the view included enough attractive women to occupy his time, but he didn’t like the idea of being stranded there forever, alone and without any decent booze...oh God he couldn’t even legally drink over here...it was getting worse before it had even begun...

"Doyle!" he turned as he heard a car approach and an English voice call his name. He grinned as he got to his feet and a man and woman jumped from the car that stopped just feet in front of him.

"Uncle Giles" he greeted, coming toward the man and shaking his hand, before deciding just to hug him anyway.

"I’m so sorry we’re late, we, er...got held up" the Englishman apologised.

"You’re late?" Doyle frowned a little, "I hardly noticed" he lied.

"Well, this is Jessica, my..my wife to be, I suppose" Giles smiled as did the two people who were being introduced. He took her hand and kissed her cheek too, saying how pleased he was to meet the woman who would make an honest man out of his favourite Uncle. It was then that Spike approached, and despite the fact that Doyle had almost two years on his ‘cousin’, the bleach blond boy had almost six inches extra in height and looked pretty daunting, all moody and in black clothes, with spiked hair and a dangerous look in his eyes, or so the young Irishman thought.

"Er, Spike, this is Doyle" Giles stammered, "Doyle this is my son, Spike"

"Right" the Irishman nodded, "William known as Spike"

"Allen Francis, known as Doyle" the younger man answered in kind, neither of them offering to shake hands or even go within a few feet of each other. They were both very wary the other, especially since Giles was new-found father to one and almost second father to the other.

"Right then" Giles broke what was soon to be a very uncomfortable silence, "Shall we go" It was a statement more than a question as he put Doyle’s suitcase into the trunk of the car before opening the passenger door for Jessica and then climbing into the vehicle himself.

The two young men were not so happy to find they must occupy the back seat together and both made a point of watching the scenery outside the windows go past, instead of having to look at and speak to one another.

As the ‘family’ arrived back in Revello Drive, Doyle spotted someone from the window that he was much more eager to meet, and it seemed she might be just as keen to meet him, since she was standing on the doorstep of the house next door, smiling particularly when she saw the car pull up.

The young man was out of the car in seconds, but he was a little disappointed when he realised the blonde’s smile was not for him, but for Spike.

The bleach blond made no offer to help Giles to carry Doyle’s luggage or anything as he saw Buffy outside her front door. He saw the look on Doyles face and instantly knew he found her attractive, and he didn’t like it at all. Like a predatory animal marking his territory he strode over to Buffy and without a word began to kiss her senseless.

"I’m gonna go out on a limb and guess that they like each other" Doyle said with some sarcasm as Jessica got out of the car and stood beside him.

"Yes" she laughed slightly, "the girl being slowly suffocated is Buffy" she explained with a smile, "she’s Spike’s girlfriend"

"That’s...nice" Doyle frowned a little, it seemed a shame a beautiful girl like that was dating someone like Spike, but there had to be other decent girls in SunnyD, he told himself as he tore his eyes away from the couple and headed inside with his Uncle and soon to be Aunt.

"Well, that was a nice greeting" Buffy sighed when Spike finally allowed her to breathe, she swore she didn’t know how he could carry on so long without stopping for oxygen, she was sure if she weren’t the Slayer with the power to go without air for longer than most girls, his kisses would have been the death of her by now.

"You want another one?" he smirked, "Cos it can be arranged"

"Spike" she giggled, "I actually came out here to meet your cousin"

Buffy instantly regretted saying that as she felt her boyfriends arms tense up around her. He had no reason to be insecure or jealous or anything, but he always was.

"I mean, obviously I’d rather stand here kissing you all day" she back pedalled "But I was trying to be polite"

Spike seemed to understand now, and he relaxed his grip on her again.

"I’ll do a compromise for you" he smiled, mischievously, "We’ll only snog for half the day and then we’ll go be polite"

"Idiot" Buffy swatted his arm and giggled until she was silenced by his lips on hers again. They were so caught up in what they were doing they didn’t here the front door open and close, in fact they didn’t hear the third person clear their throat the first two or three times either.

"I was trying to subtly get your attention but hello!" Dawn practically yelled the last word so she could get some attention out of her sister and her friend, "when you two have quite finished sucking face I kind of wanted to meet the new guy!"

Buffy and Spike broke apart, he smirking at Dawn’s remarks, her scowling at her brat kid sisters interruption.

"Come on then, Bit" Spike took one arm from Buffy and put it around Dawn’s shoulders as he led his two favourite girls down the porch steps and around to his house, "Time for you to meet the git I s’pose"

"Is he that bad?" Buffy asked, from the glance she’d gotten he certainly looked nice enough, but then she wasn’t so good at judging people, her first impressions about Spike had been completely wrong.

Her boyfriend didn’t answer her question as he took his arms from the sisters shoulders and led them into his house. Giles, Jessica and Doyle were in the living room when they came in.

"Buffy, Dawn" Giles greeted, "I take it you’ve come to meet our guest"

"Hey" Dawn grinned bounding up to the young man beside Giles, "you must be Doyle, I’m Dawn and that’s Buffy, we live next door. You’re Irish right? That’s cool, I’ve never even been out side of California! But I’d love to see Ireland and England too of course" the girl rambled not giving Doyle a chance to answer at all, so he just smiled at her and her enthusiasm, before turning to her sister.

"You’re Buffy?" he checked with the blonde and she nodded.

"Yes, Buffy Summers, pleased to meet you" she offered a hand for him to shake and while he did take it, he kissed it instead of shaking.

"Pleasure to know you Miss Summers" he smiled and Buffy decided that he really was kind of attractive, not as attractive as Spike though, obviously, but then no-one ever could be, a tingle did run up her spine however when he’d taken her hand and raised it to his lips like that.

"Yeah, so, Buffy’s my girlfriend" Spike dropped in, not so casually, "We’re dating, in love actually"

Buffy was highly embarrassed, but she did understand why he was doing it. Just wanted to make sure everyone understood the situation, and that wasn’t a bad thing really, saved on misunderstandings later.

"Well, if these two are so much in love" Doyle sighed, turning to Dawn, "where does that leave us two, sweetheart?" he winked and the young girl turned a dozen shades of scarlet.

"I...I’ll...see you later" Dawn said fast as she bolted out of the front door.

"Not again" Buffy sighed as she rolled her eyes and Doyle looked questioningly at her.

"My sister has a crush on every guy that comes within ten feet of her" the blonde shook her head, "and they never last. She had a thing for Spike when he first moved in, well, I guess we both kind of did" she smiled adoringly at her man, "but I won"

She kissed him then, leaving no doubt in his mind that she was his always, that whether Doyle liked her or not he stood no chance, of course Buffy also managed to embarrass Giles and Jessica to the point where they left the room to make a cup of tea in the kitchen.

"I’m going to get this case upstairs" Doyle mumbled, mostly to himself, when Buffy and Spike still hadn’t come up for air after a couple of minutes. He squeezed past the couple and dragged his luggage up to the spare room, beginning to wonder whether he’d made the right decision coming to Sunnydale or not.

"Be honest, pet" Spike said to Buffy, when his cousin was finally out of ear shot and their lips had parted from one anothers, "that was just to make me feel better about him liking the look of you, wasn’t it?"

"Maybe" Buffy conceded, "But I just wanted you to know how much I love you"

"I do know, luv" he smiled, holding onto her, "just don’t understand it is all, how someone as amazing as you can love a useless waste of space like me"

"I don’t want to hear that from you" Buffy snapped, a little anger evident in her tone, "You are the greatest guy I have ever met, and I don’t want anyone but you, and I never will" she assured him. He smiled at that and she knew he understood by the way he looked at her then, by the way he kissed her once more, softly and tenderly, also telling her without words that he loved her above and beyond all else too.

"So, when are the rest of your house guests arriving?" she asked after a while.

"Tomorrow, I reckon" Spike told her, "though where we’re gonna put everyone I have no idea" he shrugged.

"Well, Cordy arrives from LA tomorrow too" Buffy told him, "so with all these other people around, we might not see much of each other" she frowned slightly at the thought until Spike kissed her yet again.

"Then we’d better make the most of today" he told her between kisses, and she didn’t mind that idea at all.

Chapter 3 - My Best Friend

"Cordy!" Buffy yelled as her friend emerged from a cab outside the house in Revello drive.

"Hey Buffy!" the brunette grinned as the girls embraced each other. Spike was soon beside them, smiling at both, truly pleased to see Buffy’s best mate back in SunnyD. It made his girlfriend so happy to have her friend back for the summer and he had to admit he liked the girl too.

"Nice to see you again Cordelia" he said as she was released from Buffy’s grip.

"You too Spike..." she nodded before deciding she might as well hug him too, "oh come here" she smiled, grabbing him much to his surprise and squeeezing him tight. He decided he should probably hug her back and did so breifly before moving away and shoving his arm around Buffy’s shoulders, incase she didn’t approve of the hugging. Of course, she didn’t really care and just grinned at his attempt to keep her happy.

"You’re in a very good mood" she noticed that there was a huge grin on Cordelia’s face that was even brighter than her usual smile.

"Well, life is good" Miss Chase told her friends as they walked toward the house, Spike releasing Buffy to instead carry their friends suitcases and bags for her, all five of them! "School’s out, I’m back in Sunnydale with you guys" the brunette listed "I have this incredible dress for your parents wedding" she smiled to Spike "and I can finally get away from Jason" she sighed a happy sigh.

"Who’s Jason?" asked a confused Spike, as he carried/dragged god knows how many tonnes of clothing toward 1630 Revello Drive.

"I told you!" Buffy huffed, in a way Spike noticed that curiously she only did when Cordelia was around "The guy that likes Cordy and follows her around like a little lost puppy"

The bleach blond nodded, meaning he did remember now but was having trouble breathing enough to verbally answer, he had no idea womens clothes and makeup could weigh so much.

"He is such a complete idiot" Cordelia explained about Jason "it’s like ‘hello, what part of no do you not understand?’"

"Well, for the next few weeks you’re free from all that" Buffy grinned as the three finally made it to the front door and went inside.

"Yes, and I’ve been looking forward to this for so long!"

Inside the house, Cordelia said hello to Joyce and Dawn and thanked Mrs Summers yet again for allowing her to stay. She really was so grateful to come back to Sunnydale and spend time with Buffy. LA was cool, what with all the shoe shops for one thing, and the fact she was in the right place to launch the acting career she’s always dreamt of, but Sunnydale, Hellmouth Central, was still home.

Buffy and Cordelia talked about anything and everything and for the most part Spike had to admit he was bored. Makeup, clothes, and other blokes they lusted over really weren’t his favourite topics of conversation, as they really wouldn’t be for most men.

"As fun as it is listening to you two girls gossip all day" he said with a smile as he rose from his spot on the sofa to the left of Buffy, Cordelia to her right "I have house guests I’m suppose to ‘prepare’ for" he said, air quotes all present and correct.

"Oh yeah, Buffy mentioned you had family coming over for the wedding" said Cordy "but aren’t they a little early, the wedding isn’t for three weeks?" she asked with a frown.

"It’s just my grandparents and my uncle Johnny" Spike shrugged "they want to spend some time with us anyway, get to know Dad again and all that" he paused before adding "don’t know why that git Doyle had to come so early though" in a grumbling tone.

"Spike, what is your problem with Doyle?" Buffy tried not to laugh at his childish attitude about his cousin.

"Who’s Doyle?" Cordelia was keen to know and, right on queue, the Irishman appeared in the living room doorway.

"Did I hear my name?" he asked, casually leaning on the doorframe "Sorry to barge in but the door was open and Uncle Giles wants you home Spike" he told his cousin who looked highly annoyed to see him there.

"Bleedin’ hell, I was just coming" he cursed, and Buffy gave him a light shove as she stood up with her best fried at her side.

"Doyle, this is my best friend Cordelia Chase" she introduced "Cordy this is Spike’s cousin Doyle"

"Hey" was all the girl said as she studied the man before her and he did the same to her.

"Very pleased to meet you Cordelia" he said smoothly "I’m starting to think Sunnydale must have a magnetic pull on beautiful women"

That comment made both the girls blush and Spike was hating every minute of this.

"Come on you ponce" he snapped, striding toward the front door "if Dad wants us home, lets go"

"Is he always like this?" Doyle asked as he leaned toward Buffy, Spike already out of the front door by now.

"More or less" Buffy shrugged and smiled slightly, trying not to laugh at Doyle’s expression of exasperation.

He shook his head as he turned to lave, then promptly turned back "It was nice to meet you Cordelia, hope we get to see more of each other soon"

"Yeah, great" she nodded, and Buffy thought how unconvincing she was, it seemed Doyle didn’t notice as he grinned and left in a hurry.

As the door slammed behind the two guys, Buffy and Cordy slumped back down onto the sofa and both giggled at the display they’d just witnessed.

"I think he likes you" Buffy told her friend and the brunette made a face.

"Buffy, please"

"Cordy" Buffy sighed with exasperation "you didn’t see the way he looked at you? To be honest it would be a blessing if he liked you, Spike seems to think he likes me and he’s got this whole jealous thing going on" she complained "As sweet as it is, it’s really starting to drive me crazy now"

"No way" Cordelia waved her hand in a gesture to match her words "I don’t want him to like me too much, I just got rid of Jason, I don’t need a replacement..." ‘even if he is kind of cute, and he has a gorgeous accent’ she added in her head, glad her friend couldn’t read her thoughts and completely unaware that the blonde didn’t need too. Buffy knew Cordelia too well to doubt that she at least found Doyle attractive, in the physical sense and vocal-chord-wise, she couldn’t wait to see what would happen over the next few weeks.

It was a couple of hours later when the girls heard noises outside the house and peered out the window to see what was going on. They were a little late as they saw everyone who had been outside disappearing into the house next door.

"I guess Spike’s relatives are here" said Cordelia, "You wanna go next door and say hi?" she asked, but Buffy shook her head.

"No, I don’t wanna be all pushy girl, I’ll meet them later" she shrugged, "it’s no big"

They settled back onto the sofa and the brunette remembered something she had yet to ask her friend about.

"Oh so how goes the slayage?" she asked, "I can’t believe we haven’t mentioned that yet!"

"It’s fine" Buffy told her, "I patrol, I slay, sometimes the gang comes with, sometimes not...actually, it’s all kind of boring lately"

Cordelia’s mouth dropped wide open.

"Since when did the Slayer get bored with the slaying and how is it even possible?!" she gasped.

"I’m not bored with it" Buffy insisted, "It’s just, well, there haven’t been any major demons or particularly dangerous vamps or anything in a long while, just the regular easily stakable kind, and there’s not a lot of secrecy anymore, cos Mom and Dawn know about the Slayer deal so, I dunno it’s just not as glamorous as it used to be" she grinned and Cordy laughed.

"Yeah, glamorous" she giggled, "I still remember spending three days trying to get that green slime out of my cashmere sweater last year!"

"I did tell you not wear that when we patrolled!" Buffy argued, unable to contain her own laughter as she remembered the day when she, Cordy and the rest of the gang had been attacked by a Schworkovia demon, green slime had gotten everywhere when the monster was finally slain...by Angel.

"Hey that must have been the last time Angel fought with us" Cordelia observed.

"Yeah" Buffy answered absently nodding her head, her mind in a totally different place now. She remembered the fight and afterwards when she and her vampire love had ‘gotten close’ as he walked her home. It was then he’d dropped the bombshell. Told her she was just a kid, truth was she kind of was, only fifteen after all, plus she was the Slayer and he was a vampire and soul or not he was still supposed to be the enemy. She’d cried, knowing what was coming. After just a year he was going to leave her.

He said he had good reasons. He’d only end up hurting her, he’d be too old for her even if he were human, but as the 240 year old vamp he was he was definitely too old and experienced. Plus, even if it did work out, they could never have a normal life. True happiness, which he knew would come if one day they ever consummated their relationship, would cause his soul to leave him, and return him to the killer he truly was. So he’d left her, she never knew where he went, still didn’t know to this day where he was, even if he were still alive, or undead at least...

"Buffy!" Cordelia called for the fourth time, clicking he fingers in the girl face and finally bringing her out of her daze.

"Sorry, I must have zoned out" the blonde shook her head and brought herself back to the present.

"Well, I’m glad you’re back I’m getting kind of hungry here"

After they’d raided the kitchen for a snack, the girls were trying to decide what to do next when there was a knock at the door. They didn’t hurry to answer it since they knew either Joyce or more likely Dawn would go. It was the youngest Summers who made it there first.

"Spike!" she grinned when she saw her brother-type guy on the other side.

"Hey Little Bit" he greeted, "Big sis around?"

"She’s in the kitchen with Cordy" the girl told him, "probably still discussing guys" she told him as she let him into the house, "I swear, it’s like the only thing they think about" she rolled her eyes and Spike smiled at her attitude. He knew full well that when she got together with her friends they probably talked about boys too, but she liked to act like she was above these things around Spike, she was desperate to be an adult and loved the fact that he treated her like one, whilst still cleverly protecting her from anything or anyone he felt he needed to.

"And here was me thinking the only bloke Buffy was interested in was me" he said, pretending to be hurt as he followed his ‘little sister’ to the kitchen.

"Oh I don’t think she’s stupid enough to let you go" the young girl told it how she saw it and Spike grinned as they entered the kitchen.

"Thanks Bit" he ruffled her hair as he walked passed and over to his girlfriends side, "Hey there, Slayer"

"Hey you" she replied, kissing him briefly, as Dawn made a gagging sound and Cordelia smiled thinking how sweet they looked together.

As the pair pulled apart they both shot a look at the youngest Summers who proceeded to giggle and run from the room just in case she found herself under attack as she sometimes did from her sister and almost-brother.

"Did you want something in particular?" Buffy asked her boyfriend, "Or is this just to top up on kisses" she grinned before he claimed her lips again.

"Actually" he said as they pulled apart once more, "the kissing in a bonus" he explained, "I actually came to fetch you, take you next door. I want you to meet the rest of the Harts"

Buffy smiled but inside she felt a little nauseous. The thought of meeting Spike’s extended family, the people who he thought the most of and who thought a great deal of him too, well, she wanted to make a good impression, who knows, if things turned out well, they could be her family someday.

"Let’s go" she grinned, hopping down from her stool, "You coming Cordy?"

"No, you go" the brunette shook her head, "I’ll just be in the way and I can meet the folks later"

"Okay" Buffy sighed, she’d been hoping to have one other person that she knew there when she met these people, but she’d deal. She’d fought demons and vamps for years now, these people were just Spike’s family, how scary could they be?

Chapter 4 - Meet The Family

"Buffy, are you okay?" Spike asked his girlfriend as they headed up the steps to his front door "You’re shaking" he observed with a frown.

"I guess I’m a little nervous" she half-smiled "I really want your family to like me" she told him as he put one hand on the door to open it.

"They’ll love you" he assured her "exactly like I do"

Buffy frowned at that and he almost laughed as he amended his sentence.

"Well, not exactly like I do because that would be weird, but you know what I mean" she giggled at that too.

"Yeah, I know" she nodded as they both turned back from each other to the front door of his home "Okay" Buffy took a deep breath "let’s do this"

Spike thought it was strange how Buffy got so nervous about meeting his family, when she went out every night, slaying vampires and demons, without a hint of fear. Still, he appreciated the fact she cared so much what his relatives thought of her, and he was convinced his grandparents and uncle would love his precious Buffy.

"Buffy, this is Caroline and Charles Hart, my grandparents" he introduced as he brought her into the living room and stood her in front of the sofa where his grandparents sat "Nana, Grandad, this is Buffy Summers, my girlfriend" he told them proudly and both the old people smiled.

"Oh William, she is beautiful" Caroline gushed as she looked Buffy over and clearly approved of what she saw.

"Absolutely" Charles agreed with his wife, and Buffy blushed furiously at the complimentary attention she received.

"You come and sit right here next to me, dear" the elderly lady insisted, scooching over on the sofa and making room for her grandson’s girlfriend. Spike practically glowed with pride.

"It’s very nice to meet you both" the Slayer smiled as she spoke "Spike has told me all about you, he thinks a lot of you both"

"Oh, is he still using that vulgar nick-name...?" Spike’s grandmother made a face as she looked up at the boy in question and Buffy wished she hadn’t opened her mouth as Spike looked to his grandfather in exasperation.

"Caroline" he warned his wife not to start again on the subject of William’s nickname and Buffy was glad when she changed the subject.

"Oh well, it’s really none of my business but...anyway, so tell me about yourself Buffy" Caroline asked her.

"Well, what do you want to know?" the Slayer asked with a shake of her head. She really had no idea what to say or where to start.

"Oh, everything sweetheart" the old lady told her, taking her hand "If you mean so much to our William then it’s all vital"

"Oh well, um..." Buffy laughed nervously and looked pleadingly at Spike who only smiled sympathetically. She was just about to make some kind of answer when there was a loud interruption.

"Hey Spike!" a voice shouted from the kitchen doorway and Buffy’s eyes went wide as the owner of it came into view. A man that looked no more than twenty five stood before her now, black boots on his feet, worn out jeans and a black T-shirt covering his obviously toned body and a leather jacket over the top. His hair was mid brown with bleach blond highlights and his eyes were bright blue.

"Oh my God" she gasped without realising, this guy could so easily have been Spike’s brother.

"I’ve barely gotten a chance to talk to you yet" the mystery man complained to Spike "So, how is my favourite nephew?"

‘Nephew?’ Buffy screamed in her head, ‘This guy was the famous Uncle Johnny? Now she understood why Spike loved him so much, he’d obviously played a big part in the boy’s life as he’d grown up.

"I’m you’re only nephew you daft..." Spike began, only to be interrupted by a stern word from his mother before he made it to the derogatory term that no doubt was planned to finish his sentence. With a roll of his eyes, Spike turned to Buffy and gestured for her to get up from the sofa as he spoke to his uncle.

"Uncle Johnny, I want you to meet my girlfriend"

"Hi" Buffy waved nervously as she came to stand beside them.

"This is Buffy Summers" Spike proudly introduced her "Buffy this is..."

"Jonathan Hart" his uncle interrupted, taking the girls hand and kissing it "at your service" he grinned and Buffy couldn’t help the giggle that escaped her lips.

"It’s very nice to meet you" she said honestly.

"Well, I can quite easily say the same" came the older man’s response "Spike has great taste in women, get’s it from his uncle, ain’t that right Spike?" he said to his nephew, messing up the boy’s hair.

"Somethin’ like that, yeah" said Spike, putting a hand to his head and rolling his eyes again.

"So, other than the obvious, what makes this one so special?" Johnny asked Spike without removing his eyes from a blushing Buffy.

"Everything" the younger man grinned, making Buffy’s cheeks even redder til she was sure she resembled a tomato.

"Ain’t it cute, young love and all" he asked the room in general and Caroline couldn’t help but smile slyly when she spoke up.

"What’s the matter Johnny, jealous that he’s got a nice girl and you haven’t?"

"Mom" Johnny sighed "you know I could have any girl I wanted, I’m just choosy is all" he shrugged.

"You’re not married?" Buffy asked him with a look on her face that said ‘Why the hell not?’

"No way" Johnny shook his head as if the idea of marriage disgusted him "what you think cos I’m over thirty that I should be?"

"No" Buffy denied it "I just, well..." she stumbled uncomfortably on her words, unable to voice her real reason for her disbelief. Wasn’t this guy just too damn attractive to still be single???

It was several hours later when Buffy realised she should be going and excused herself from Spike’s house. He walked her to her door, all twenty seven steps of the journey, needing to know her opinion of his family. It mattered a great deal that she liked them.

"Well, pet, whats the verdict?" he asked as they walked together, his arm around her shoulders.

"They’re nice" she smiled as she spoke genuinely "all of them"

"They certainly seem to like you" he smiled back, glad of both the fact she liked his family and they approved of her too "but then, who wouldn’t?" he grinned, leaning down to kiss her briefly.

"Your grandparents kept asking me about my life and I must have sounded so boring but I wasn’t sure mentioning the Slayer thing was a good idea" Buffy admitted as they reached her front door and faced each other.

"Er, well, best to wait a while" Spike nodded "I think Mum plans on dropping the bomb about Dad soon then it’s bound to come out that you’re the Slayer" he considered "Is that okay?"

"Of course" Buffy agreed "I mean, they’re your family and I trust you, so I trust them"

"Thanks, pet" her boyfriend smiled "I’m really glad you like them" and he truly was.

"I do..." she trailed off, thoughts playing in her mind that she didn’t like at all.

"But?" Spike sensed her discomfort, however slight, and needed to know what was wrong, find out if he could help in any way.

"It’s nothing" she shook her head, but he knew her better than that and gave her a look that made her explain "it’s just your grandmother was talking about the future" she sighed "one day maybe us being the one’s getting married...I don’t know if I’m even going to have a future" she said sadly, studying her shoes.

"What do you mean?" Spike asked, coming forward a step.

"Early expiration date kind of comes with the Slayer package Spike, you know that" she reminded him with a frown, glancing briefly at him before her focus returned to her feet.

"Yeah, but you’ve got me watching your back now Slayer" he told her, encouraging her to look at him instead of the floor "plus my dad and your other mates too. Nothing bad is going to happen to you" he promised her, his eyes boring into her eyes "and you are going to have a wonderful future, with me, if you can bear too"

She smiled at his words and the trust and love she saw in his eyes.

"Oh I think I could do that" she told him with a playful smile on her features that disappeared quickly a she turned serious again "I love you, you know that, right?"

"Yeah, I do" came his response, barely more than a whisper as he put his arms around her "and I love you too" he told her truthfully, before bringing his lips to hers and showing her just how much.

Chapter 5 - Love Is In The Air

A week passed and there was two houses in Revello Drive that were rarely quiet. A total of eleven people were squashed into the two homes and with Jessica and Giles’ wedding now just two weeks away, there was a never-ending list of odd jobs that needed doing and no-one was ever short of someone to talk to or a topic to talk about.

Buffy spent a lot of time with Spike, maybe even more than she usually would have. She knew she loved him, she’d known for a long time and of course he’d made it plain just how much he loved her too, but that day when she’d met his family and they’d talked about the future, it had changed things. He’d told her he could see a future with her and that wasn’t something Buffy had given much thought to.

First of all she never pictured herself having a future, Slayers didn’t usually make it past their early twenties and she was already seventeen, but when Spike told her everything would be okay, that it would be different for her, she believed every word so much. Of course even if she wasn’t the Slayer, Buffy was in high school, she wasn’t thinking about marriage and kids and the little house with the picket fence, and she half expected to be petrified by the thought of it but she really wasn’t. When Spike talked about the future he envisaged them having one day it gave her a happy, warm feeling inside and only made her love him even more, if it were possible.

Unfortunately, thinking of her future, reminded Buffy of her past. She was fifteen when she’d met Angel. They’d dated and claimed to be in love with each other, but he’d left after less than a year, for her own good, and because they couldn’t have a future together what with him being older and a vampire and that pesky little soul-curse problem that meant activities of a bedroom related nature were never going to happen. Buffy blushed as she thought about it, though she wasn’t sure why. Thinking about how sex might have been with Angel was weird, thinking about how sex might be with Spike was dangerous for her blood pressure...

"You okay, luv?" the very man she was having the thoughts about asked her as he noticed the colour of her cheeks.

"I..I’m fine" she stammered, smiling at him and inwardly begging her face to change back to it’s proper colour, as Cordelia looked over at her with an aggravated look.

"Were you listening to a word I was saying?" she asked her best friend, pulling herself up to a sitting position. The four young people had escaped the craziness of the adults and their wedding organisation and were laying out on a rug in the back yard, talking and getting a tan in the California sun. Buffy had zoned out a while ago, right in the middle of Cordelia’s speech about the last shopping trip she made in LA, the same speech she’d already made twice this week...

"Sorry" Buffy mumbled half-heartedly and Doyle immediately spoke up.

"I was listening Princess, every word" he assured the brunette beside him and Spike pretended to gag as Cordy rolled her eyes.

Doyle was determined to get Cordelia Chase to pay attention to him. When his eyes landed on her that first day they’d met he knew she was beautiful, after that the more he’d talked to her and hung around with her, and Buffy and Spike, the more he realised she was not just beautiful but intelligent and possibly the most wonderful girl he’d ever met.

Cordelia, however, was not so impressed by the Irishman. He was cute, she admitted only to herself and no-one else, he had nice eyes and a gorgeous accent, she conceded within her sub-conscious, but he was a little annoying, his fashion sense was appalling and she was just determined not to like him.

Spike was one of those people who noticed things and the interaction between Cordy and Doyle was something he’d been paying attention to. It was obvious his cousin liked the girl that Buffy saw as an extra sister, and as much as she claimed to hate his attention, Spike was sure she liked him too. He inwardly laughed at much of their antics, knowing damn well that before their stay in SunnyD was over those two would be snogging each others faces off, and if they weren’t he may have to bang their heads together for being so stupid!

"You think we should go back inside?" Buffy asked her friends, "We might be needed to help with stuff"

"Doubt it pet" Spike told her, "Rest of them seem to have everything covered, besides I do not want to get in my mothers way til this wedding is over, she’s like a bloody time bomb, keep expecting the pressure to get so bad her head explodes" he exclaimed causing an ‘eeww’ from both the girls and a look of distaste from Doyle.

"Oh come on" Spike sighed, "If you wanna go inside let’s go, besides the sun is getting low and I’m sort of hungry anyway"

Picking up the blanket and their sunglasses the four made their way to the Summers back porch and Buffy led them into her kitchen through the back door. The sight that met their eyes was enough to make any self-respecting teenager want to heave.

"Mom!" Buffy screamed in alarm as Spike’s Uncle Johnny removed his tongue from the woman’s throat.

"Bloody hell!" was Spike’s addition to the conversation, almost speaking in perfect unison with his uncle who said something much worse as far as cursing went.

Joyce who was still half bent backwards over the breakfast counter, straightened up fast and rearranged her blouse and her hair as she put a few feet of distance between herself and the man she had just been trying to get as close to as possible without the removal of clothing.

Buffy’s mouth hung open in disbelief, as did Spike’s, Cordelia’s and Doyle’s. Two adults making out over a kitchen counter top was scary enough but this was Buffy’s mother and Spike’s uncle! It was freaky beyond words, and as embarrassing as hell for all concerned.

"Hey kids" Joyce said uncertainly, unsure what to say or do next and she wasn’t the only one with that problem...

"What the...? I just...?" Buffy couldn’t form a coherent sentence in her head nevermind make one come out of her mouth and Doyle realised he and Cordelia should probably be elsewhere right now, besides, any excuse to get her alone.

"Maybe we should..." he mumbled, taking hold of the brunette girl’s arm and manoeuvring her into the dining room before she knew what was happening.

"Are you crazy" she hissed as she removed herself from his grasp "I wanted to see what would happen in there"

"You don’t think this is a family thing that we shouldn’t get involved in?" he raised an eyebrow at her and she looked a little defeated.

"Well, I guess" she shrugged "And I guess food is out since we can’t use the kitchen"

"There’s a perfectly good kitchen next door" he suggested cautiously "Come on, I’ll fix you something nice" he started to move across the room in the general direction of the front door. He was thrilled when he got a half a smile out of her.

"Okay, but it better be good" she warned as she followed him out of the house.

Back in the Summers’ kitchen, Johnny was determined for Spike not to think badly of him. They had such a great bond, despite the fact they lived so far away for so long, he’d hate to lose the great relationship he had with his nephew.

"Hey, look this isn’t what it looks like" he tried to tell the boy, but it was Buffy who replied, rather loudly.

"Really? So, what? You were checking for cavities with your tongue?" the blonde girl scoffed, waving her arms in frustration "Or maybe you just tripped and fell on top..."

"Buffy, that’s enough!" Joyce snapped "Must you be so rude?"

"Me?" Buffy laughed humourlessly "I’m rude? I wasn’t the one..."

"Buffy, luv" Spike stepped in, taking a hold of his girlfriend "maybe we should go sit down" he guided her towards the door to the living room and she allowed him to do so, but she had no intention of sitting down she was too wound up.

"Spike, I..." Johnny began as the young pair left the room, but Spike just lightly shook his head.

"It’s okay, just give us a minute" he said quietly as he got Buffy out the door. Once in the living room she exploded again, gesturing wildly towards the kitchen with both arms.

"Did you see that? I mean, my God, what were they doing?" she raved and Spike couldn’t help but smile at what he saw as a complete over-reaction.

"Nothing more than you and I have done, was it?" he asked and she shook her head wildly, as she paced the room.

"That’s different, she’s my mother! Why are you not appalled?" she came to a sudden stop in front of her boyfriend.

"Cos I’ve seen it before luv" he explained "My Uncle Johnny’s had more girlfriends than you’ve had hot dinners"

"So he’s using my Mom?" Buffy’s eyes went even wider if it were possible "Oh God, it gets worse" she said as she tried to start pacing again, but Spike caught her arms and wouldn’t let her move this time.

"No pet, that’s not what I meant...will you calm down Slayer, it’s not that big of a deal"

"Yes, it is!" she tried to tell him but he was having none of it.

"Why?" he asked her, knowing she’d have no good reason. After a moments consideration she exploded with one word.

"Because!"

Spike smirked as his reply came back, sarcasm-coated.

"Oh, award winning argument pet, I’m completely convinced"

"Shut up!" she complained, frustradely pulling her arms from his grasp and looking away, but not moving from in front of the bleach blond she loved.

"Sweetheart" Spike lifted her chin with his finger and made her look at him as he spoke more gently "look I don’t want to upset you but however old our relations are they’re still people with instincts and urges like anyone else"

"But it’s icky" she pouted like a child and he had to try hard not to laugh at her.

"No luv, not icky" he told her with a smile, putting his arms around her waist "just something that you’re gonna have to get used to is all, if these two are serious that is"

"I guess I could try" she sighed in defeat and Spike kissed her forehead.

"That’s my girl" he smiled "Now, maybe you should go talk to Joyce. I don’t think she ever meant to upset you"

"I guess" she shrugged, before reaching up to kiss him. She was amazed at how much easier he made everything sound. "Did I mention that you’re the best boyfriend ever?" she smiled.

"Yeah" he smiled widely back "but I don’t mind hearing it again"

She didn’t tell him so much as she showed him, kissing him hard and long. When they finally broke apart he really didn’t want her to go see her Mum, but he knew it was best to let them sort things out, there was plenty of time later for kissing and such...

"Now, run along" he told her "fix things with your Mum and if you’re a very good little Slayer, I might show you a few things I can do over a counter top"

"Ooh, promises" Buffy grinned, a twinkle in her eyes as she walked away toward the kitchen, and Spike winked at her, before watching her behind disappear.

A few seconds later Spike was joined in the living room by his uncle.

"You serious about her then?" was the younger mans immediate questions. He knew Johnny had a tendency to be the ‘use them and lose them’ type and he didn’t want Joyce to get hurt, she was a decent sort.

"Yeah, y’know I think I am" the older man admitted "It’s the weirdest thing" he almost laughed "I’ve known her for like a week and..."

"And already you reckon you’re in love?" Spike finished for him, guessing he was right by the look on his uncle’s face.

"I didn’t say in love" he said too fast, making Spike smirk "it’s just...y’know you’re right, I might be in love" he conceded "...what happened to me?" he asked next with a definite frown. Spike just chuckled as he patted Johnny on the back in a manly fashion.

"Summers women charm, mate" he sympathised "no way of resisting it as far as I know"

Buffy made her peace with Joyce and told both her mother and Johnny that she was happy for them really, it had just been a shock seeing what she saw. Soon Spike and Johnny realised they should head back next door for dinner and after kissing their girls goodbye that’s what they did.

Cordelia came back to the Summers residence but declined dinner with the family as she’d already eaten with Doyle. Buffy was a little miffed that her friend refused to divulge any details and promptly disappeared upstairs, but she was more than happy to sit beside her mother as Joyce told Dawn about Johnny. Buffy did not want to miss her younger sisters reaction and she was quite disappointed when, after a small grumble about the fact she was now the only girl in the house without a guy, she seemed pleased by the idea of her Mom having a boyfriend, and that boyfriend being Spike’s Uncle Johnny.

As the sun set and darkness fell, Buffy changed her clothes, picked up her weapons and met Spike on the front porch to go patrolling. It was a quiet night vampire-wise, and the couple took the opportunity to talk.

"Y’know I expected Dawn to go crazy when she found out Mom had a guy, but she was cool about it" Buffy told Spike as they walked through the cemetery, his arm over her shoulders and a cigarette in his other hand.

"The Bit’s not a child y’know luv" Spike pointed out, "She’s pretty grown up for her age"

"I know" Buffy conceded, "Sometimes I wish she was less grown up, as much as I complained about it, I kind of liked having to help look after her when we were younger" she sighed.

"Well, one day you can look after our kids" Spike grinned at her as he took a last drag from his cigarette and tossed the butt aside.

"You think about stuff like that a lot?" Buffy asked him with a smile as they stopped walking as she looked up into his eyes, "Future stuff, I mean"

"Sometimes" Spike admitted with a nod, "Bet you think I’m a right ponce now, right?" he rolled his eyes but she shook her head.

"No" she told him softly, "I think you’re gorgeous" she smiled playfully as she kissed his cheek, "and sweet" she continued, kissing his other cheek, "and I think I’m the luckiest girl in the world just cos you’re here and you love me" she finished going for his lips and they kissed passionately in the dark.

A tingle at the back of her neck told Buffy they needed to stop, a vampire was near. She pulled away from a disappointed Spike and shushed him when he opened his mouth to speak.

"Vampire" she whispered and he nodded that he understood as they looked around for the human-visaged demon that Buffy had sensed lurking nearby.

The Slayer got the shock of her life when she turned around to be confronted by the creature she was looking for. Not an evil enemy at all, she gasped with the shock of who really stood before her.

"Angel?!"

To Be Continued...

"Angel?!" Buffy gasped in shock as the vampire smiled.

"Buffy" he nodded a greeting, suspiciously eyeing the boy to the side of his ex-girlfriend. A certain look passed between Spike and Angel as the brunette looked back to Buffy, "Don’t I get a hug?" he asked and the Slayers eyes watered as she nodded and went into his arms.

Spike, suddenly feeling like the third wheel and also very jealous, cleared his throat loudly and was glad to see Buffy pull away from the vampire. Placing a territorial arm around his girl, the bleach blond spoke in a low voice.

"So, this is the infamous Angel?"

"Oh I’m sorry" Buffy shook her head, bringing herself out of her Angel-daze, "Spike this is Angel, Angel this is Spike Hart" she introduced, as the two shook hands for the Slayers benefit, "he’s Giles’s son" she added suddenly and Angel looked more than a little shocked, "Long story" Buffy told her ex before he could ask.

"Well, I’ve got all night" Angel smiled, glad about the look of discomfort on the boy’s face. Okay, so Buffy wasn’t his girl anymore, but he hated this guy on sight just because he’d seen them kissing and groping moments before he made his presence known.

"We have to finish patrolling" Spike snapped, desperate to drag Buffy away from this ponce.

"Great" Angel said, not missing a beat, "I’ll come along with"

"Oh, wonderful" Spike fake smiled and spoke through gritted teeth, his displeasure completely obvious, but he wouldn’t cause trouble with this git in front of Buffy. Luckily the Slayer didn’t notice, which Spike almost conceived as a bad thing, since it meant his girlfriend was paying no attention to him at all!

The threesome walked and Buffy explained Spike’s arrival in Sunnydale to Angel, who did a fairly decent impression of someone who was riveted by the tale. Spike’s arm never left Buffy’s shoulders but his eyes were watching the vampire to the other side of his Slayer. He did not trust this ‘man’ at all. There was no reason for him to hate Angel really, he’d only met him a few moments ago, but he’d hurt Buffy and that hurt Spike, plus he’d been her first love and that meant something.

As Buffy came to the end of her story and ended by telling Angel how Cordy was back in Sunnydale for the Summer and Spike’s family were staying next door too, an awkward silence would surely have fallen over the three, but a couple of Sunnydale’s undead did not let it happen.

The Slayer was almost glad of the interruption and she swiftly pulled a stake from her jacket and lunged at the first vamp. As Spike moved to go for the second, Angel stepped in front of him, shoved him back with his arm and took on the other vampire himself. The shock of the souled-vampire’s arm across his chest, knocked Spike backwards onto the grass of the cemetery and he watched from the floor as Buffy flipped, somersaulted, and kicked the vampire she was fighting right in the face as Angel punched the second. The enemies bumped together, back to back, and as Buffy brought her stake through one heart, Angel flicked his wrist, his own stake shooting out like a projectile from his sleeve, dispatching the second vamp at the exact same time. Two clouds of dust sprinkled to the ground, leaving the two old lovers looking straight into each others eyes. Spike frowned at the way they looked at each other and at the fact Buffy hadn’t even noticed he was on the ground. Pulling himself up he stalked over to his girl.

"You okay, luv?" he checked unnecessarily and she shook her head before looking over at him.

"I’m fine" she smiled, "Are you?"

"Just dandy, pet" he nodded and smiled, cleverly hiding his annoyance and hurt.

"Er, Angel" Buffy turned to him again, "You never told us why you were actually here?" she realised with a frown, yawning as she spoke.

"Maybe we should get home, Slayer" Spike suggested his arm snaking around he shoulders once again as he encouraged her to walk with him, "Angel can tell us why he’s here in the morning...if he has a decent reason" he sneered.

"He can’t tell us in the morning" Buffy whispered, "He’ll fry"

"Oh yes" Spike smirked to the vampire, who had obviously heard every word, "Of course he will"

"I can tell you now" Angel told her, shooting daggers at Spike with his eyes as the three began to walk out of the cemetery towards Revello again, "It all has to do with a prophecy" he began to explain.

"Doesn’t it always" Buffy sighed.

"Well, this one is weird" the vampire told her, taking a piece of paper from inside his jacket and handing it to her, "but then I guess they’re always weird too" he conceded.

Buffy opened up the folded paper and read the words written there, all in Angels’ impeccably tidy handwriting, the same handwriting that blessed several pages that the Slayer had hidden away at home, in the secret compartment of her weapons chest. Spike read over her shoulder, smirking to himself, even the ponce’s handwriting looked...well, poncey!

" ‘Not of evil, yet devil made, hybrid creature, his part to be played’ " Buffy read aloud, frowning hard since she had no idea what it meant. Intrigued, Spike continued.

" ‘Link to masters of our fate, twenty years from bearing date, to bring assistance to inhuman souled, he shalt be a warrior bold’ ...well, that makes a whole lot of bleedin’ sense" Spike scoffed with a sarcastic tone.

"Prophecies aren’t often big with the sense making" Buffy reminded him, they’d had to handle a couple since Spike joined the Scooby gang, "but we need to figure this out as soon as, it could be important"

"Why’s it important to us?" the bleach blond wanted to know, speaking as if Angel were not even there, "I mean, ‘the inhuman souled’ that’s gonna be him" he gestured to Angel with a slight tilt of his head, "What’s it got to do with us?" he looked up at the vampire, giving him a ‘sod off back wherever you came from’ kind of a look.

"There were co-ordinates" Angel explained, ignoring Spike’s glare as best he could, "turns out whatever this prophecy is talking about should be around about on the Hellmouth, that’s why I’m here"

Buffy blinked hard at the paper in her hand. She still did the Slayer thing, it was her calling after all, but other than her patrolling which she did with Spike and the other Scoobies anyway, things had calmed down on the Hellmouth considerably lately. Now Angel was back and with him he brought prophecies, possible evil and confusion in her head and heart.

She was glad when the three arrived in Revello Drive, she needed to be alone right now, she needed sleep and a chance to digest all this information.

"I’ll keep this" she gestured with the paper to Angel, "I’ll show it to Giles tomorrow and we’ll figure out what’s happening. Come by tomorrow night and we’ll tell you whatever we find out"

"Thanks Buffy" Angel smiled, "I knew you were the girl to come to for help" he moved to kiss her cheek and Buffy wasn’t sure whether it was her Slayer senses or something else that made her shiver when he got close. Spike almost growled as the great git dared to put his lips on her and was glad about the neutral look on her face. If she’d have look like she’d enjoyed it he’d have probably staked the ponce, Buffy’s mate or not!

With a flip of his black coat, the souled-vamp was gone and Spike and Buffy were finally alone again. The Slayer yawned once more and looked over at her house.

"So, I’ll see you tomorrow then, pet?" Spike asked, just about managing to get her attention, she had a distinctly dreamy look in her eyes.

"Oh, yeah" Buffy turned to him and replied, as if she’d just noticed he was there, "Tomorrow" she echoed as her boyfriend moved to kiss her. Usually a goodnight kiss between the pair could go on for some time, and a passer-by could wonder at how they went so long without oxygen, but tonight Spike barely got a peck on the lips before Buffy headed into her house and up to her room to sleep.

It was a ridiculous thought, the Slayer knew, to think that sleep was going to come easily to her tonight. She loved Spike, of that she was perfectly certain, but she used to love Angel and having him back here was giving her feelings she really didn’t want to have. Plus, there was the matter of the impending evil foretold in the prophecy and Buffy still had a multitude of questions for her ex. Where had he been all this time? Did he have another girlfriend now? Was he staying in Sunnydale for long? Little did she know as she climbed into bed that her questions would be answered sooner than she thought...

It had hurt, when she’d kissed him fast and practically run away. If he were the type, Spike would of cried, but he was a man and not some nancy boy. Buffy loved him, he knew it, she’d told him often enough, proved it with her looks and kisses, he just knew she wasn’t that good of an actress, she had to care for him. But he saw it in her eyes tonight, there were still feelings there for her first love, for Angel.

The excuse was a propechy, that’s why the vamp was back on the Hellmouth, not really to see Buffy as such, or so he said, but Spike was the suspicious type and he couldn’t help wondering if this supposedly good demon had an ulterior motive. He guessed he’d find out more tomorrow, unknowing that Buffy’s own questions would be answered sooner...

A light tapping sound on the glass of her window gave Buffy a start and she sat bolt upright in bed. On the other side of the pane across the room she saw a familiar face and got a distinct feeling of deja vu as she swung her legs out of the bed and padded across to the window to open it and let a certain souled vampire into her bedroom, glad that Dawn was staying at a friends tonight. Cordelia had been sleeping on a cot in Buffy’s room, but with Dawn staying at Janices’s tonight, Joyce had said the brunette should take the other available bed.

There was silence as Buffy let Angel come in, closed the window behind him, and then moved to put on her dressing gown. They sat beside each other on the bed and Buffy couldn’t take the lack of words anymore.

"So, where have you been?" she asked, trying to sound casual as her heart pounded in her chest, "I mean, it’s been eighteen months, two weeks and five days since you left" she inwardly cursed at herself for letting slip that she remembered his time of absence so well.

"Lots of places at first" he told her, "ended up in LA though, about a year ago now...I help people there..." he trailed off, not really knowing what else to say.

Silence reigned again and Buffy realised the small talk was going to get her nowhere fast. She breathed deeply and asked the question she really wanted answering.

"Angel, what are you doing here?" she asked him, only flinching slightly as her eyes passed by the mirror and her reflection was the only one present.

"Because of the prophecy" came his answer, in a similar whisper to her own, they didn’t want to wake anyone after all.

"No" the Slayer shook her head, "I didn’t mean, ‘what are you doing in Sunnydale?’ I meant, ‘what are you doing here? In my room?’"

"There were things I needed to say" he told her, looking down at his hands instead of at the girl he was talking to, "Things that were just between us"

Buffy shook her head and laughed but her heart wasn’t in it.

"You mean things you didn’t want to say in front of Spike" she realised, "I can’t see there’s anything you need to tell me that he couldn’t hear"

"Does he know everything?" Angel asked, finally looking up, his expression was slightly shocked.

"Pretty much" Buffy shrugged, "He’s one of the gang, knows I’m the Slayer and everything about you and me..." she paused, "Actually, no, he’s more than just one of the gang, he’s my boyfriend and I love him very much"

"You love him, like you loved me?" Angel’s question was barely a whisper but Buffy heard it and even though she opened her mouth to answer immediately the words got stuck. Of course she loved Spike and equally as much as she’d loved Angel...so why couldn’t she say it?

The vampire’s eyes came back up to her face again, studied her expression as she forced her mouth closed again. Their eyes were soon locked and the scene was just too perfect, too much like it had been before. The moonlight flooded in through the window, lighting up their faces as something from the past sparked up between them.

In one swift movement, Angel moved forward and placed his lips on hers. His hand reached up to her face and his fingers moved over her cheek and into her hair as they kissed, and her eyes dropped closed. His cool touch made her shiver but it was a familiar feeling she had missed. It was only when he whispered words into his kisses that she realised what she was doing.

"Buffy, I still love you" she heard, and despite it being barely audible it hit her like a lead weight, right in the chest. Her eyes shot open and immediately she had pulled her lips from his, she was on her feet.

"What the hell are you doing?" Buffy would have yelled but had to settle for an angry whisper as she did not want to wake her mother or Cordelia.

"I was kissing you" Angel told her, unnecessarily, as he got up from the edge of the bed and stepped toward her. She immediately stepped back one more stride. "You weren’t exactly putting up a fight" the vampire pointed out to her and her eyes filled up with angry tears because she knew it was true.

"You can’t still love me!" she told him in frustration and he looked at his feet before shifting his gaze back to her face.

"I can" he told her solemnly, "and you can’t tell me that you don’t still love me, because Buffy, that kiss..."

"That kiss" she cut him off, "was a mistake. It was nothing. It was just like a ‘for old times sake’ kind of a thing" she argued.

Angel sighed, "If that’s what you want to believe..."

"It is" Buffy snapped, "Because that’s what it was...now I think you should leave" she told her ex as she pulled open the window as quietly as she could and with a sad nod he moved to climb back out onto the roof. He looked back at her through the gap before she closed the window again.

"I’ll see you tomorrow night" he told her and she merely nodded before closing the window and watching him descend to the ground and disappear into the night in that vampire way of his.

When she could no longer see him, Buffy went back to her bed, removed her dressing gown and climbed back under the covers. She would find no comfortable position to sleep in, and her eyes would not fully close tonight, she knew. The guilt would not let her, the mixed up feelings in her heart and head would not allow her to be peaceful. If Spike found out what she’d done he’d hit the roof, without question, and he’d probably stake Angel for daring to come into her room, nevermind kiss her.

It was one huge mess that Buffy only prayed she’d be able to fix tomorrow, with the help of Cordelia, whom she had never been so glad to have close by in her life.

During breakfast Buffy was almost completely silent.

"Are you okay, sweetheart?" Joyce checked as her daughter pushed her pancakes around he plate. Seated next to the blonde at the counter, Cordelia had almost finished up her own food.

"I’m fine" Buffy lied like a pro with a shrug of her shoulders and a fake smile.

"You are okay about me and Johnny, aren’t you?" her mother pressed, the last thing she wanted to do was upset either of her daughters, she’d sooner be depressed herself.

"Yes" the blonde shook her head, putting down her fork on her plate, "honestly Mom, I’m just not hungry this morning"

Cordelia was less than convinced of her friends okay-ness and said as much as soon as the two girls were alone in Buffy’s room.

"Okay, spill" the brunette demanded, as she sat on the bed. Buffy was on a stool by her vanity mirror, brushing her hair and putting on some make-up.

"Spill, what?" Buffy asked, knowing full well what her friend was talking about.

"You have been acting weird since you got up this morning" Cordelia told her, "and I’m pretty sure I heard voices in this room when you got home from patrolling last night..." she trailed off and waited for her friends response, but none came as Buffy’s eyes remained on her own reflection.

"Oh my God" Cordelia gasped and Buffy spun around in some alarm, wondering why her friend suddenly sounded and looked so shocked, "It was Spike, wasn’t it?" the brunette gabbled, "You had sex with Spike last night!"

"No!" Buffy immediately protested, trust Cordelia to think of something like that!

"Spike wasn’t here, it was Angel" she explained in a quiet voice and her friend exploded again.

"You had sex with Angel?!"

Buffy sighed deeply and hushed her friend.

"I didn’t have sex with anybody" she told an over-excited Cordelia, "Geez, one-track mind, much?"

"So, give me details" the brunette pressed as her friend came to site beside her on the edge of the bed, "Why is Angel back and why the lack of happy?"

Buffy began to explain how she and Spike had met the soulful vamp in the graveyard during patrol. She showed her the paper with the prophecy on it, before finally getting to the mixed-up feelings she was having and the part where Angel had been in the very room they sat in now.

"And then he just kissed me" she explained, "and for a minute I..." Buffy’s eyes filled with tears and her voice trembled away as she remembered how she felt when Angel kissed her and afterwards how wretched she’d felt because she’d betrayed Spike.

"Buffy" Cordelia spoke softly to her friend who was almost in tears, "if all you two did was kiss and it was you that stopped it, what’s the problem?" she wondered aloud.

"Spike won’t understand" she shook her head and the tears from her eyes ran down her cheeks, "I don’t even think I understand" she admitted.

"You still have feelings for Angel?" Cordelia guessed as Buffy looked away.

"I still care about him, he’s still attractive, and on some level...I don’t know what I feel for him anymore, it’s been a long time and so much has changed" she spoke quietly, barely above a whisper, "I know that I do love Spike, I am totally in love with him, but..."

"But...?" the brunette prompted her teary friend to continue.

"But that’s about the only thing I do know for sure right now" she cried, "I wish Angel had never come back"

Cordelia sympathised with her friend, hugging her almost-sister and telling her it would all work out, despite the fact she had no idea how. She knew Spike well enough to know he’d hit the ceiling if he ever found out what happened the night before. She also knew Angel well enough to know he didn’t give up easily when he set his mind to something. Poor Buffy was stuck in the middle, with too many confused feelings and thoughts to make much sense of anything. She may be the Slayer, with the strength of ten men and all, but she was still a teenage girl with the same hormones and the same mixed emotions as any other seventeen year old female.

"What am I gonna do?" Buffy asked finally, sniffing as she sat up straight and tried to wipe her eyes dry with her hands.

"You’re gonna fix up your face, paint on a smile and we’re gonna go next door and talk to Giles about this prophecy" Cordelia said matter-of-factly.

"But..." Buffy began to protest - her friend was having none of it.

"No buts, Missy" she told her, "I don’t allow men to turn me into a blubbering wreck and I’m not gonna let them do it to you either" she said with a forceful nod, "If Angel kissed you then you’ve done nothing wrong, and if your feelings are confused right now, well, there’s nothing much you can do til you sort it out in your own head. So I say, most important thing right now is battling the evil, then we worry about which boyfriend you’d rather have"

Buffy almost laughed at the way Cordelia phrased it all, but she couldn’t quite make it and just managed a watery smile.

"I’m glad you’re here" the blonde told her best friend, "I missed you a lot"

"Missed you too" Cordelia smiled, "Now go fix that eye make-up!" she mock scolded, shoving her friend back toward the vanity mirror "Your face looks like a zebra’s ass!"

Chapter 8 - Research, Reactions, and Remorse

"Good morning, girls" Jessica greeted them with a smile as she answered the knocking at the front door only to find Buffy and Cordelia there.

"Hey, Ms Hart" Cordy smiled when her friend seemed to be making no real effort to talk, "We came to see Giles and Spike too actually" she lowered her tone to a whisper ad leant in to add, "it’s kind of a Hellmouthy thing"

"Oh, I see" Jessica nodded, "Come inside"

The two girls did, with a smile, and were surprised by how quiet the house was.

"Where is everybody?" Buffy asked and Cordelia was pleased to finally hear her voice after so much silence.

"My family have gone into town" the soon to be Mrs Giles explained, "Doyle went for a walk too, Spike only rolled out of bed a few minutes ago, and Rupert is in the kitchen" she told the two girls, before telling them to sit down at the recently cleared dining room table whilst she fetched the men of the house.

Giles soon emerged from the kitchen and Jessica made her way up the stairs to find her son who appeared to have drowned in the sink or something, given the amount of time he’d spent in the bathroom.

"Jessica tells me we have a demon of some kind to contend with" Giles said as he came to sit with his Slayer and her friend.

"More like a riddle to contend with" Buffy explained, handing the paper Angel had given her Watcher. He read the passage with a frown on his face before asking the question Buffy had been dreading.

"Where did you get this?"

"From Angel" she said quietly almost at the exact same moment Spike entered the room.

"We still talking about him?" the bleach blonde complained as he came to sit on the fourth seat at the table, opposite Buffy.

"You knew about this and you didn’t bother to tell me last night?" Giles snapped at his son who simply shrugged.

"You were ‘entertaining the guests’" he air-quoted, "Didn’t’ think you want me to come storming in on your polite chat with ‘oh by the way Dad, Buffy’s great git of an ex is back in town and a demon’s about to attack the lot of us’"

Giles rolled his eyes at his son’s attitude before going back to the piece of paper he’d been reading. Spike’s eyes fell on Buffy but her gaze was locked down at her lap and Cordy felt bad for both of them.

Jessica came back to the room and read the prophetic writing that Giles held in his hand. She sighed as she decided she wasn’t going to be much use in this. She never was when it came to demons and the like.

"I’m going to get on with the housework" she told her soon to be husband, kissing his cheek, "I’ll leave you to the hellmouth stuff"

He smiled as she left him alone with the three young people.

"Well, I think we need to get some books out and start researching what kind of demon we might be dealing with, also the latest newspapers, it may be that we can track down some articles about new arrivals in town or strange occurrences..."

He got triplicate nods from the people seated at the table as they got up and moved to fetch what they needed, Buffy making an effort not to go near Spike, him trying to get close to her and Cordelia going silently crazy because she was stuck in the middle of it all.

Giles started to notice something was wrong when two hours passed and still he had not been completely embarrassed to the point of leaving the room by his son and the Slayer’s public displays of affection that they were usually so fond of. In fact he realised they had barely spoken two words to each other and he was curious to know why. He may not have been a real father to him for long, but Spike was still his son and Buffy was practically like a daughter to him and he disliked seeing them looking so unhappy. The first opportunity he got, he took Buffy to one side, knowing she would be much more reasonable and probably more forthcoming with information than his own son.

"Buffy, I don’t want you to think I’m prying, it’s just you and Spike don’t seem as, er, close as usual, is anything wrong?"

"No" she answered too fast and he knew as well as she did it was a lie, "well, it’s nothing really, just Angel and stuff" she shrugged. There was no way she was going to admit kissing the souled vampire last night and besides that wasn’t the reason Spike was being weird with her, only the reason she was nervous around him.

"Well, if there’s anything you need to talk about, anything I can help with at all..." Giles told her, "I may be Spike’s father but I’d also like to think, well..."

Buffy smiled and nodded, she knew precisely what he meant. He was her father too, in every way that it counted and she loved that he cared so much.

"Thankyou" she said, accompanied by her first genuine smile since she’d arrived at the house, "but I don’t think even your advice could help me at the moment"

"Well, perhaps not" he conceded, "I can’t say I know a great deal about teenage relationships, but I will say this" he said as he cleaned his glasses, "Communication is very important and you’ll never get anywhere avoiding one another. It was through lack of communication that I lost Jessica for so many years and missed out on Spike growing up. Just try talking to him about whatever’s on your mind, I know it’s not easy, he can be quite stubborn and very often unwilling to listen but, it’s worth a try"

"I think you know more about relationships than you think you do, Giles" Buffy told him with a smile as she walked back to the table to talk things out with Spike like she knew she must.

"Spike" she said quietly, managing to getting his attention from the book he was scanning, "I need to talk to you"

Both blondes glanced at Giles and Cordelia before silently agreeing to leave the room for their talk.

"We’re just gonna take a short break" Spike told the other two before leading Buffy out through the kitchen and onto the back porch. The sun was as bright as ever it was and the sky was the kind of blue you only see in pictures and Buffy couldn’t help but be reminded of a song her mother had on an old record ‘the sun is out, the sky is blue, there’s not a cloud to spoil the view but it’s raining, raining in my heart’ she thought with a frown as she sat down on the steps beside her boyfriend.

"So" Spike sighed, looking straight ahead as he spoke to the girl beside him, "Angel’s back...what does that mean?"

"I don’t know" Buffy replied in a quiet voice, looking down at her hands as they fidgeted near her bent knees, "I was in love with him once" she admitted and Spike felt as if she’d just delivered one of her Slayer kicks to his heart.

"And now?" he hardly dare ask, "Do you love him or me?" he had to know the answer despite the fact he dreaded it, and he stared at her until she finally looked over into his eyes.

"I’m in love with you" she assured him, "but..."

And there was the word Spike had truly been worried about, the ‘but’ after the declaration of love.

"...but I don’t know what I feel for Angel" she admitted, tears in her eyes, "It’s all mixed up in my head and I just, I wish it wasn’t" she was almost crying and Spike knew she was probably hurting as much as he was, only thing was she was the only one who could take either of their pains away.

Neither knew what to say now. Buffy was sure she wouldn’t be able to form words anyway, not without blubbering like a baby and ending up as much of a mess as she had been before, when she’d been crying on Cordelia’s shoulder. Spike had a million thoughts in his head but didn’t think any of them were appropriate to actually voice.

In the end he said the one neutral thing he could come up with.

"We should get back inside" he sighed as he stood up on the steps, "prophecy won’t solve itself" he turned to re-enter the house and Buffy made him stop by calling his name.

"Spike, I don’t want to hurt you" she told him, a lone tear falling down her cheek and despite the fact his back was to her, the crack in Buffy’s voice was enough to make Spike wince, "I just want to be honest..."

"I know, luv" he nodded, still half way through the back door and now unsure as to whether he wanted to stay outside or go in.

"He kissed me" Buffy blurted out, "Angel, he came to see me last night and...I stopped him..but for a minute I..." it was a mixed up confession but the facts were all there and Spike felt sick when he heard those words. She hadn’t said it in the right order but ‘Angel kissed me last night’ had escaped her lips and it was all she could say until she got some kind of response from her boyfriend.

Spike looked as if someone had hit his freeze-frame button, one hand on the door, one foot in front of the other in mid-step, half way across the threshold of the back door to his home.

Anger, sadness, rage and betrayal bubbled up inside the young man as he didn’t move at all and Buffy was terrified about what his reaction might me. She wasn’t scared of his temper, she knew she could handle any violent rage he could possibly have, but more than that she knew he’d never deliberately hurt her anyway, he simply loved her too much for that. What was frightening Buffy was how much she might have hurt him. It was only one kiss and something she had stopped, but being in love meant such a great deal, and especially to Spike, she knew he would feel so betrayed by her now.

Buffy physically jumped when Spike finally moved. His motion being forwards and into the house, without a word or a sound of any kind.

Standing up as fast as she could, Buffy hurried on shaky legs to follow him into the house, wiping her face with her hand as she went. The dining room was now empty, save for the books and she watched from a couple of feet away as her boyfriend scooped up the book he’d been reading before and one other, before hurrying upstairs to is bedroom. She heard the door slam shut and promptly burst into tears. She’d thought talking about it would make it better, it had only made things worse.

Despite the fact that Doyle kind of wanted a quiet walk on his own around the town of Sunnydale, he’d managed to walk right into his future Aunt’s family and they had decided he should spend the day with them, given the fact they were all to be related very soon. When the group finally arrived back in Revello Drive, close to lunch time, they found what appeared to be an empty house.

Giles had ventured upstairs to find Jessica and was currently completely distracting her from her housework in ways that are not appropriate for discussion. Spike was in the next room, completely oblivious to the giggles and noises that usually made him want to heave. He was too hurt by what had happened with Buffy and Angel to pay attention to anything else, he really wasn’t even reading the book in front of him...just staining it with his tears.

Cordelia had gone back to the Summers house when the noises from upstairs had become unbearable, especially when her brain decided to picture what might be happening, can you say eew?

Buffy had run for the front door as soon as Spike had retreated to his room, and it didn’t occur to anyone who left the dining room that they had left certain texts on the table that perhaps they shouldn’t have...

"Hello?" Caroline Hart called as she came into the house, her husband, son, and future great-nephew, right behind her. When there was no response, the three older people walked through to the dining room as Doyle decided to go upstairs to the room he currently shared with Spike, hoping perhaps the bleach blond was out and he might get some peace and quiet for five minutes.

Originally the Irishman was going to take the spare room but after much protesting from Spike, the young man had been convinced to let his ‘cousin’ sleep on a cot in his room, so Caroline and Charlie could have the spare room. Johnny happily took the sofa and no-one asked what he meant when he said ‘he’d slept in worst places’.

Since Doyle had assumed Spike was out, he walked straight into the bedroom without so much as knocking. He found his cousin seated on the bed, a book in front of him and another on the floor, he appeared to simply be reading but there was something wrong, Doyle was sure of it.

"Don’t you knock!" Spike snapped, looking up at the slightly older man, "Stupid wanker" he muttered under his breath, as he turned back to the book that he couldn’t seem to focus on.

"Sorry" came Doyle’s barely audible reply, he answered more out of reflex than anything else, he was quite shocked by what he thought he’d just seen. Tears on Spike’s face? Or at least the tracks formed by previous droplets. However unlikely it was, it seemed the boy had been crying over something and Doyle was sure only one thing could crack the bad boy image that Spike fought so hard to maintain.

"Is Buffy okay?" the Irishman asked carefully as he walked around the bed and sat on the edge of the cot on the other side.

"What bloody business is it of yours?" came the angry reply, but Spike didn’t raise his head from the book again, he knew why Doyle had asked, he knew he’d seen his tears and there was no way he was discussing his problems with his bloody poof of a cousin.

"I was only asking" he heard in reply to his question, and hoped rather than believed the matter would be left at that.

The room was silent for a while before Doyle dared to speak again.

"Girls, eh?" he scoffed "They can be more trouble than they’re worth, can’t they?"

"What would you know?" Spike said in similar fashion, head still firmly in his book, "Stupid poofter"

"Is this answering a question with a question thing some kind of test?" Doyle asked, getting quite sick of it now, "Cos all I’m trying to do is help you out" he told the young man he’d had trouble accepting as his cousin. He wasn’t sure why he wanted to help but after all they were family...

"Don’t want your help" Spike said grumpily, reminding Doyle of a small child who’d just been told off or something.

"Well, if you won’t talk to me about your problems" the Irishman sighed, "I’ll just have to bore you with mine" he reasoned as he stretched out to lean back on the cot.

No response came from Spike but a low grunt as he continued to pretend to read the book in front of him, in truth his mind was whirling in response to the news that Angel had kissed Buffy and she wasn’t entirely sure how she felt about her ex-love. Despite his head being busy with thoughts and his eyes pretending to scan the text, he managed to keep one ear open to Doyles ramblings and became intrigued by what he heard...

"It’s Cordelia" the man nearer the window sighed as he glanced out at the sky, "She’s blowing hot and cold on me" he complained, "Like before she hardly knew I existed, then yesterday, when there was all that big deal about your uncle and Buffy’s mam, well, my princess and me, we came back here and got something to eat. We were talking, not about anything much but things were moving along nicely and, well, long story short there was kissing, but I called later and she wouldn’t even talk to me...maybe I scared her off? I dunno..."

"The girl likes you, you dozy git!" Spike exploded before the other young man had any further chance to continue, "Any ninny can see that!"

"How the hell would you know?" Doyle asked, sitting up straight again.

With a sigh, Spike discarded his book, wiping his hand across his face as he did so and making sure his crying fit was no longer obvious.

"I just know, okay?" he said vaguely but it was clear from the look on his face that Doyle wanted a better answer than that, "It’s the way she looks at you, behaves around you..." Spike tried to explain, "It’s obvious from the outside, I s’pose you just don’t see it when it’s happening to you"

"I get what you mean" Doyle nodded as he replied, "It’s like you and Buffy, I’ve never seen to people as in love as you are" he said honestly, before amending a little "‘cept maybe your parents"

"Yeah" Spike laughed humourlessly, "Me and Buffy, loves young soddin’ dream" he sighed and looked at the floor and against his better judgement Doyle felt bad for him. Something had obviously happened between Spike and Buffy to get him this upset.

"Look, Spike" he said, getting the boys attention again, "I know you don’t wanna tell me whats going on and thats fine, it’s really none of my business anyway, but I know that girl thinks the world of you and it’s pretty obvious you love her too"

"What if love isn’t enough?" Spike grumbled more to himself than to Doyle, and his Irish cousin sighed, it was going to be a long afternoon...

Downstairs...

"What is all this?" Johnny wondered aloud, picking up a book that had been left strewn across the dining room table, "Demons? The Hellmouth? The Slayer?" he read out words and phrases that he found on the page, frowning at each and every one.

"Witchcraft?" Caroline gasped to her husband as she picked up another book, Charlie only shook his head, not understanding all this anymore than his wife and son did.

"Oh, you’re back" Giles said as he arrived in the door way, tucking in his shirt and breathing somewhat heavily, as Jessica stood beside him, re-arranging her hair and smiling like a idiot.

"Yes, we’re back" Caroline nodded once, holding up the book in her hands, "and we’re all a little confused and worried about these books"

"Oh" was Giles’ only response as various old volumes were waved in his face by his future in laws. This was not exactly how he’s planned to share the complexities of his life with his soon to be family members.

"I think there’s a few things we need to explain..." Jessica sighed gesturing for her family to sit down, "You see, there’s things you don’t know about Rupert..."

"I suppose we should start from the beginning?" Giles said to his future wife before turning back to her family, "You see, to every generation there is born a Chosen One..."

Chapter 10 - How It Should Be

It was an hour or so later that Spike and Doyle decided to venture downstairs. They’d had a serious man-to-man about the women in their lives and had both decided that if anything was going to get fixed, they were going to have to fix it themselves. The plan was to go straight round to the Summers house and speak to the ladies in question. Doyle wanted to know exactly what was going on with regard to Cordelia and her seemingly on-and-off attraction to him, whilst Spike needed Buffy to understand both the fact that he didn’t blame her for the kissing and also that she and him should definitely be together, Angel be damned. He obviously wouldn’t phrase it exactly like that when he told her, but that was the main gist of it.

Unfortunately the two Romeos were not destined to make it to their Juliets this right now. They knew the chances of crossing the short distance from 1628 to 1630 Revello Drive were very slim as soon as they reached the bottom on the stairs.

The view that greeted them was an elderly man pacing the living room, his wife completely passed out on the sofa and their daughter looking like she might cry despite the best efforts of her fiance to comfort her.

"What the bloody hell’s happened here?" Spike wondered aloud, glancing at Doyle who just shrugged in response as they moved into the living room.

"Spike" Giles greeted his son, still trying to calm Jessica, "erm...it seems your grandparents were a little, shall we say, surprised by the revelations about Buffy and myself and so forth"

"Oh, so you told them?" Spike grimaced, "That must have been a barrel of laughs" he said sarcastically just as his grandmother started to come to.

"What revelations are these?" Doyle frowned, not understanding at all.

"Well, you see" Giles began as Spike helped his Nana Caroline to sit up on the sofa, "To every generation..."

"Oh please, spare us" his son groaned, "Let me explain" he begged, "Doyle, demons and vamps and stuff, it’s all real. Buffy’s this special girl called the Slayer and she kills them. Dad here is her Watcher which is fancy talk for trainer..oh, and SunnyD’s sitting on the mouth to hell" he condensed the entire complex subject into just a few words and Giles was astounded at how abruptly he phrased everything. Doyle looked understandably shocked.

"Buffy is the Slayer?" he gasped and Giles frowned as he turned to his nephew.

"You know of the Slayer?" he asked, confused. The old Mr Giles had been a Watcher and Rupert had followed in his footsteps, but his sister, Doyle’s mother, had always despised that choice of career and would not have anything of the sort mentioned within her hearing, and especially not in front of her beloved Allen.

"Oh, er, just a little bit" the young man mumbled, "not much"

"What is the big deal?" Johnny asked from the armchair, shaking his head, "So she fights demons or whatever, and you help her? I think it’s cool" he shrugged, and Spike couldn’t help but smile. It was typical of his Uncle Johnny to take it all in his stride, to almost make a joke out of it, nothing was a big deal to him, "And hey" he continued with a grin, "who’d a thought one day I’d be dating Supergirl’s Mom?"

Spike would’ve laughed if it weren’t for the facts that a) Giles shot him that warning look that said ‘ if you so much as snigger, no allowance for a month at least’ and b) he was trying to get his Nana Caroline to sit up straight and be as calm as possible.

"I can’t take all this in" the old lady mumbled, putting a hand to her head.

"I know it’s surprising" Spike told her, "but it’s really not so bad, Nana. We fight the big evil, and thats a good thing, you see?"

"I suppose" his grandmother nodded uncertainly and Spike as only to eager to have the subject be dropped so he and Doyle could get back the original plan they’d made...speaking of whom, where had the bloke wandered off to?

Doyle had actually wandered through to the dining room, landing with a thump on a chair as he went pale. Buffy was the Slayer, and that might prove a problem for him, though he was the only one who knew it. Seated at the table, Doyle’s worried eyes fell on a piece of paper covered in very neat handwriting.

"‘Not of evil, yet devil made, hybrid creature, his part to be played...’" he mumbled to himself, just as Spike appeared in the doorway.

"Hey mate, you alright?" the bleach blond frowned slightly when he saw how pale and troubled his cousin looked.

"I’m fine" Doyle lied, standing up and pocketing the piece of paper from the table when Spike wasn’t looking, "What’s happening now?" he asked casually as he could.

"Well, grandparents are calming down, reckon Mum’ll be okay with Dad, and never occurs to Johnny to be bothered by anything anyway" he grinned, "I reckon they’ll all be laughing again within the hour...so are we going to see the girls or what?"

"Er, I dunno" Doyle shook his head and Spike wondered what had made him behave so strangely all of a sudden.

"Buffy being the Slayer, it bothers you somehow, doesn’t it?" he guessed, but his assumption was denied.

"No, why would it bother me?" Doyle shrugged, before walking right past Spike and heading back up the stairs the way he’d come before. His cousin watched him go with a confused expression. Almost as soon as he’d told Doyle the truth the man had paled and looked, not so much shocked as panicked by it, as if he had something to fear.

It was something Spike decided to figure out later. Right now he had to go and talk to Buffy about Angel and her feelings for both the vampire and himself. She said she loved him but she didn’t know how she felt about her ex, and as much as Spike wanted to give her space and time and all that rot, more than that he wanted her to just hurry up and make a bloody decision!

Before Sunnydale, back in England, Spike had a girlfriend called Drusilla. Their ‘relationship’ and only lasted a few months, though they were friends both before and after that time. He thought he loved her, was convinced he was in love with her, but they were too different, in too many ways. As soon as Spike met Buffy it was like a bolt of lightening hit him, telling him without a doubt that this girl was special and that he had to be with her. When they’d first kissed it was fireworks and electric currents and everything it should be when you’re in love, it was still like that when he kissed her now, it was never like that with Dru.

Spike came hurtling back from the past to the present as he knocked on the front door of 1630 Revello Drive and it was opened by Joyce.

"Hello, Spike" she greeted with a smile, "Come on in"

"Thanks" he nodded and smiled as he came into the house, glad that Joyce seemed so cheery. It meant she didn’t know about his ‘fight’ with Buffy, if you could really call it that, "Is Buffy upstairs?" he checked.

"Yes, she and Cordelia are in her room, you can go on up if you want to" she smiled warmly and Spike couldn’t help but think she wouldn’t be so forthcoming if she knew what had happened at his house and how Buffy had come home in tears.

Through Buffy’s bedroom door, Spike could here the voices of his girlfriend and Cordelia. The words were muffled so he couldn’t make them out, but it did appear that Buffy wasn’t crying anymore and that was at least one thing to be thankful for. It almost broke his heart in two when he saw her tears, there was no way he’d be able to think straight if she was still sobbing.

With a deep breath he brought his fist up to tap on the wood before calling Buffy’s name, telling her it was him and asking if he could come in. After a few seconds Cordelia opened the door and Spike looked at her with uncertainty. If Buffy was upset, Cordy was probably angry and he’d seen one or two of her rage-filled moments before, he really didn’t fancy being on the receiving end of one.

"I’m not taking sides in this one" she told a surprised Spike, "Cos honestly, I don’t see that there are sides. You love her and she loves you" she whispered so Buffy did not hear, "and as nice a guy as Angel is, I’m hoping she sees sense and sends him packing real soon" she smiled as she put a hand on Spike’s arm, giving him at least a little confidence. If Cordelia thought he was better than Angel, and he knew for a fact that he was, maybe Buffy would see it too.

"Hi" he said quietly as he came into the room, and they both head Cordy’s footsteps going down the stairs.

"Hi" came Buffy’s own shaky reply as she looked up at him. She was sitting on the edge of her bed, looking over at the man in the doorway through misty eyes, more tears threatening to fall any second and Spike knew it. Unable to just stand there and watch her suffer, he crossed the room, sat down beside her and pulled her into his arms.

"Don’t cry, sweetheart" he soothed as she did just that into his shoulder, "I’m sorry I was an idiot back there, just running off without explanation. It’s one of my more annoying habits" he smirked as Buffy brought her head up from his shoulder.

"It’s not your fault" she sniffed, "I just wish I could make sense of everything. I love you so much but Angel..." she knew what she wanted to say but the words just weren’t coming out right, and most of them got stuck between her brain and her mouth.

"I know it’s confused things" Spike said with a much more understanding tone than he actually felt, "but just because he’s here now, it doesn’t change anything, luv" he explained, "We were happy before he came back and he’ll leave again soon..."

"I know" Buffy interrupted, moving out of his arms and reaching toward her bedside table. On it was a pile of envelopes, six or seven, Spike thought he counted as Buffy picked them up and placed them down between the two of them. Immediately Spike knew what they were, from the familiar handwriting that spelled out his girlfriends name.

"From Angel" he said softly, his eyes locked onto the letters.

"Yes" Buffy whispered, "I was reading them...remembering...things were so different back then..." she trailed off and Spike looked over at her, slight confusion on his face. He didn’t quite understand why he was being shown these letters, why Buffy was telling him about her reminiscing. Without a word, the girl reached her arm toward him, putting her hand inside his jacket, to the pocket where she knew he kept his lighter. Spike didn’t move, just watched as she produced the item and flicked it so an orange flame shot out.

"I’m not the girl Angel loved anymore" she said, picking up the letter on top of the pile, "and he’s not the man I’m in love with anymore"

Spike watched as the flame fed on the paper, curling the edges and dropping tiny pieces of glowing ash into the waste paper basket Buffy moved to put the former letter into. Clicking off the lighter, she tossed the remaining letters into the basket and let them all burn. It hadn’t been what she’d planned to do, but as she’d been explaining to Cordy what had been going on, everything seemed to slot into place in her own mind. This huge revelation like the sun breaking through the clouds on a dull day. She knew now, without a doubt, that Spike was who she belonged with, always.

The man himself was a little surprised to say the least. Of course he was thrilled that Buffy had said, in a round about way, that she’d chosen him over that ponce, Angel, but he was stunned she’d made that decision so fast and so suddenly. Without even realising why, Spike began to cough as did Buffy and it occurred to the pair that the room had both windows and the door closed and was slowly filling with smoke. Whilst she moved to take the basket of smouldering paper to the bathroom to put out the flames, Spike moved toward the window to let in some fresh air. They arrived back where they’d started, sitting next to each other on the bed, after a few moments, and nervously Buffy looked over at him. Picking up his lighter she handed it back to him without a word.

"Thanks" she thought she heard him say as he moved to take the item from her. She put the lighter into his hand but didn’t retract her arm straight away. Spike took the opportunity to wrap his fingers around hers. Both her gaze and his shifted from their joined hands to each others eyes, and he pulled on her hand to bring her closer to him, leaning forward himself until their lips met.

Against her better judgement, Buffy found herself comparing this kiss to that she’d shared with Angel the night before. As comfortable and nice as it had felt, it was nothing like this. Spike made her whole body tingle like a hundred electric shocks under her skin. He pulled her close as he could get her and she revelled in the feeling of being in his arms, almost as glad she had come to her senses as he was, because this was where she truly belonged and who she belonged with, forever. If only everything in her life could be so certain.