Chapter 7:

It's been one week since Buffy has seen Spike. The more days that go by without seeing him, the more her guilt grows. She couldn't face him. She wouldn't know what to say. Spike has constantly been on her mind for days now. She just can't seem to figure out why this whole situation scares her so much. She's been through so much, fought so many demons and has encountered the most frightening things that no one in their life should have to see. Yet, the thing that terrifies her the most is a bleach blonde vampire with a soul. How does that make sense?

She knew she had to talk to him but every time she thought about it her heart would race and she would completely freeze up. She went by his crypt a few times while on patrol but she'd walk to his door and reach for the handle but just chicken out and walk away. No more hiding. She needed to see him now and get this over with. How bad could it be?

Buffy quietly opened the door to Spike's crypt and saw him sitting in his chair and looking completely exhausted. Poor guy. He must be having such a hard time with this. She noticed that his hair was different. He must not have bleached it in a while because there was quite a bit of his natural brown hair below the soft looking bleached curls that lay on top. She took deep breaths to try and slow her heartbeat down which she found herself doing quite often when he was around.

She sat down across from him on a small coffee table in front of his chair. She looked at him but he didn't move. He wouldn't look up at her. He wouldn't even acknowledge her.

"Spike I...... I'm sorry I waited so long to come and see you." She said.

Spike still didn't move. He just blinked and continued to look down toward the ground.

"Spike! Look at me!" she commanded.

He still did nothing. The tears that rolled down his cheeks were hidden by the shadows that covered his face.

Buffy stood up in frustration and started pacing.

"I shouldn't have run off like I did that night." She said, still pacing. "I just got scared. I couldn't handle seeing you like that knowing that it was all my fault."

"What?" he asked, finally looking up at her, "Your fault? You think this is your fault?"

"Well yeah. I mean, you did all this just to please me didn't you?" She silently hoped the answer was yes because she didn't want to appear self centered again.

"Yes. I thought it would bring me closer to you. I thought it's what you wanted. I knew how much it bothered you that I didn't have a soul so I decided to take a chance. But Buffy, you can't blame yourself for any of this. This thing that I'm going through with the nightmares and the visions is not your fault. I'm seeing the horrible things that I've done and there's no one to blame for that but myself."

"But you wouldn't even be going through that at all of it wasn't for me. I'm the one who made you feel like you had to change."

"Now I won't have you feeling guilty, pet. I don't regret getting back my soul for one solid second. It's worth every bit of hurt if it means I finally get a chance to be with you."

He walked toward her intending to put his arms around her but when he got within a foot of her she backed away from him.

"Spike, don't."

"What's the matter now?" he sighed.

"I really appreciate what you did for me. No one has ever gone that far to try and please me. It means the world to me. I need you to know that."

"But..." He said, knowing that this wasn't going to be good.

"But you know this could never work right?"

"So, we're back to that again." He ran his hands through his hair in frustration.

"Spike, you know that I have some sort of feelings for you. I have told you that before."

"So what's the problem then?" he asked.

"The same problem that there always was. You're a vampire. I'm a slayer. It was hard enough to deal with the first time.... with Angel. I can't do that again. And my friends, they couldn't handle it....I just....I can't lose them.

"Willow doesn't seem to mind and not one of your friends has been perfect. They have all made mistakes. You forgive them every time. Don't you think they could get past this?"

"That's not the point." She argued. This thing with us, it's wrong. It's not supposed to happen like this."

"So, what are you a psychic now? Then tell me pet, what exactly is supposed to happen."

"I'm supposed to find a nice, normal, sweet man with a sense of humor and a great career. We're supposed to have two point five children and a white picket fence and live happily ever after. But that's not gonna happen is it? I'm the slayer and I constantly save the world but for some reason I'm not allowed to be happy because of it. Being the slayer is all I am and all I ever could be. Nothing is ever going to change that."

"It can change if you want it to." Spike said. "Why can't you just let yourself be happy with what you've got?

"Because it's not enough!" she exclaimed.

"You mean, I'm not enough." He said, his voice shaking.

"Spike..I"

"Save it slayer. I get the point."

Spike felt a hurt that he had never felt before. He thought his emotions were intense before but with this soul they were ten times worse. He swore that he could actually feel his heart breaking.

"Look, I don't want to end up hating each other again. We've come to far for that." Buffy looked at him but he refused to meet her gaze. "We both have to move on now. I'm sorry but we just can't be together. It's not gonna happen."

They stood there in silence for what seemed like an eternity. When she realized that neither of them had anything more to say, she quietly turned on her heel and walked out once again on a broken Spike.



Buffy made her way to the Magic Box. It was closed now but Anya gave her a key in case she ever had to get in for some emergency research while on her nightly patrols. Sometimes she went there just to be alone when life got to be too stressful. This was one of those times.

She sat at the research table reflecting on what had just happened. She didn't mean for their conversation to turn out like that. No matter what she intends to say when they talk, it always ends up coming out utterly brutal.

The bell on the door to the Magic Box rang as someone opened it. 'Damn I forgot to lock the door,' she thought. Buffy looked up to see Anya's vengeance demon pal Halfrek standing there.

"Anya's not here." Buffy said coldly, remembering how Halfrek had locked all of her friends and family in her house during her birthday party with no way of escaping.

"Oh that's too bad." Halfrek whined. "I so wanted to talk to her. I came by and saw that the light was on so I thought she might be here."

"Well she's not." Buffy replied in the same frosty tone.

"I'll just look for her somewhere else then. But before I go, since you're here, I wanted to ask you something."

Buffy just glared at her and waited for her question. Halfrek strolled over to the table and took a seat next to Buffy.

"How do you know William?" Halfrek finally asked. "He is a vampire. Isn't that right?"

"You're very observant" Buffy said sarcastically, not wanting to answer any more of her stupid questions.

"If he's a vampire, what was he doing at your birthday party?"

"To make a long story short, Spike was evil, the government put a chip in his head so he can no longer hurt humans, and he started helping me and my friends so he can feel useful again. Any more questions?" Buffy asked obviously irritated but Halfrek paid no mind to her attitude.

"Spike? Is that what he's calling himself these days?" the demon chuckled. "Well, his look has certainly changed since the last time I saw him, that's for sure."

"How do you know each other?" Buffy asked, suddenly interested.

"William and I go way back. It was the late 1800's if I remember correctly. That boy was madly in love with me." She said with a reminiscent smile on her face. "He was quite a piece of work. Always following me around with those bloody awful poems of his. All my friends thought he was such a bore. One day, at a party, a male friend of mine stole one of William's poems right out of his hands and started reading it aloud to all the guests. I was deeply embarrassed and ran off. I knew the poem was about me and my friends knew it too. He chased after me as he always did and started going on about how his poems may be no good but they were just words. He told me he loved me and said that he may be a bad poet but he was a good man. I replied to that by telling him that he was nothing to me. He was beneath me."

"Cecily." Buffy said. "You're Cecily?"

"So you've heard of me? I guess it's good to know I've been remembered. Although I'm not surprised he still carries that with him. People always tend to remember the bad things in life more than the good, don't they?"

Her last statement really made Buffy think. It was true. Buffy was spending so much of her energy remembering all the awful things that Spike had done that she just let the past two years and all of his heroic intentions fly right out of her mind.

"Boy, I really screwed that one up didn't I?" Halfrek asked, mostly to herself.

"What do you mean?" Buffy asked, now totally engrossed with their conversation.

"That night is the beginning of my story on how I became a vengeance demon. In a strange way, It was William that had led me to my decision."

"How so?" Buffy questioned.

"After the incident at the party, I told all of my friends about what had happened between William and I. We all had a good chuckle at his expense." Halfrek continued. "Later that night I met a ravishingly handsome man. He courted me for a while and was a perfect gentleman. However, his kindness didn't last very long. He beat me, cheated on me and belittled me every chance he got until I couldn't even remember why I was with him in the first place. One night he just stood there and watched while some thug manhandled me. He didn't even try to help me. He was a pathetic excuse for a man who was so overcome with fear for his own life that he didn't even think to try and protect mine. I finally got up the courage to leave him but that didn't stop me from running into the arms of at least three more men that ended up treating me the exact same way."

"So it was those bad experience that made you turn to vengeance?" Buffy asked.

"Yes. For fifty years I was part of the man haters club just as Anya is but when I heard of Anya and what a great job she was doing, I decided to let her take over completely. That's when I went in a different direction and started helping all the neglected children. I guess I just got tired of seeing all those poor women with broken hearts. Anya doesn't even know that I started out that way so could we just keep that bit of information between us?"

Buffy nodded. "So what does all that have to do with William?"

"After all of those horrible experiences I had with men, I couldn't help but realize how wrong I was to have let William go. I didn't even consider giving him a chance. All of my friends thought that I was way too good for him and could do so much better. I knew all along that if I gave him a chance and it didn't work out that my friends would never let me forget it and the words I told you so would be forever implanted in my brain. The truth is that I probably wasn't good enough for him. I should have been honored to have a man like him love me. I was so stupid. I might have actually been happy."

"I'm sorry." Buffy told her with a blank stare as she was deep in thought.

"Don't be. That's just the way it goes sometimes. That's actually why I came here in the first place. I need to you tell Anya something for me."

"What is it?"

"Just tell her that I've left town and that I wish her and Xander all the happiness in the world. Before they were going to get married, I said some things to her to make her rethink this whole wedding thing. I guess my bitterness got in the way. I truly want her to have everything that I couldn't have. So tell her that I'm sorry. Xander is a good man. Tell her to never let him go. I better get going. It was nice talking to you."

Halfrek headed toward the door but turned around right before walking through it.

"By the way," she said. "Dawn is doing a lot better now. I no longer hear her cries. I just thought you'd take comfort in knowing that."

Halfrek walked out the door and out of Buffy's sight.

Buffy pondered everything that Halfrek had just told her. Then she panicked. A soft whimper left her throat and she held her face in her hands. Then she picked her head up and threw it back as if she were about to contact the heavens.

"Oh my God!" She cried. "What have I done?"

To Be Continued......

Please Review. Thanks!!!!

Chapter 8:

A week and a half has gone by and Buffy still hasn't done anything about fixing what had happened between her and Spike. She spent her nights patrolling and then lying in bed tossing and turning because she couldn't get her mind off of him. What Halfrek had said to her in the Magic Box played over and over in her head like a broken record.

Buffy had always seemed to count on Spike loving her no matter what she did but for the first time she thought what it might be like if he took her words to heart and actually decided to move on. The last time she told him to move on he was so upset that he ended up sleeping with Anya. Buffy could kick herself for waiting this long to do something about it. What if it was already too late? What if she had lost him forever? She couldn't bare it if she lost him just because she couldn't muster up the courage to give him a chance. Halfrek obviously regretted passing him up and Buffy didn't want a life like that, a life full of regrets. The only thing that stopped her was fear. The same fears she always felt when she had to make a huge decision involving Spike.

Buffy slammed a fist into her mattress and violently turned on her side.

"Why can't anything ever be simple!" She screamed at Mr. Gordo, the stuffed pig that lay beside her on a pillow.

"Buffy? Are you all right?" Dawn asked after hearing her frustrated question to Mr. Gordo.

Buffy sat up to find Dawn standing in her doorway.

"Yeah I'm fine." Buffy huffed as she roughly threw herself back on the bed.

"Sure!" Dawn said sarcastically. "You are beating a hole in your mattress and yelling at a stuffed animal because you're fine." Dawn paused for a moment and observed Buffy lying there with her hands over her face. She's never seen her so frustrated before. "This is about Spike isn't it?"

"Of course not." Buffy lied.

"Buffy.." Dawn said in her famous 'give it up cause I know you're lying' tone.

"Fine" Buffy groaned. "Yes, it's about Spike. I just didn't want to bring him up because I know how angry you are with him."

"Buffy, do you think I like being mad at him? I hate it. I don't want things to be like this. Everything is so messed up but I can't just forget about what he's done. But I don't want you to think that you can't talk to me if there is some kind of problem with him just because I'm disgusted with what he did."

"Good. I was hoping you'd feel that way because there is something I've been meaning to tell you." Buffy said.

"What is it?" Dawn asked with fear evident in her voice.

"Don't worry. It's nothing bad." Buffy assured her. "It's just....Spike has a soul."

"What? How?" Dawn couldn't believe her ears.

"After what he tried to do that night, he went to Africa to find a way to get his soul. He found someone who gave him painful tests to pass. If he passed, then he would get his soul." Buffy sighed and looked at a confused Dawn. "He did it for me, Dawn. He wanted to make himself a better person."

"Thank God!" Dawn exclaimed. "Do you have any idea how hard it is to try and make yourself feel hate toward someone you love? It's exhausting!"

Buffy was surprised at Dawn's reaction. She knew how angry Dawn was at what Spike had done but she had no idea how hard it was for her to be this angry with him. Hearing Dawn say that she loved him was a little awkward. Buffy wished that she could figure out exactly what it was she felt for Spike. It seemed so easy for everyone else. Everything seemed so black and white as far as everyone else was concerned. Her friends all seemed to either love him or hate him. Buffy's feelings were somewhere in between. She just couldn't seem to define her feelings for him.

"This doesn't mean I can forget about what he tried to do to you." Dawn continued. "But he's obviously trying to turn his life around, so I guess I can try too. Besides, Spike getting his soul for you was just..." Dawn couldn't quite find the words to express how moved she was by his actions.

"I know" Buffy said. "I had the same speechless reaction, except with a lot more tears."

"So what are you going to do now?" Dawn questioned.

"I don't know." Buffy answered. "That's what I've been up here trying to figure out and let me tell you, poor Mr. Gordo has gotten an earful."

Dawn chuckled then stood up to leave Buffy alone with her thoughts.

"Hey Dawn!" Buffy yelled out to her before she could walk out her door. "Can you tell Willow to come in here. I wanted to talk to her about something. I think she's in her room."

"Sure."

While Dawn was off getting Willow, Buffy was trying to come up with a plan. She couldn't just run up to him and say she'd changed her mind. That was getting old and she knew he wouldn't put up with her indecisiveness much longer. She didn't want to be that obvious about it anyway. She knew how Spike was and if she ever admitted that she was wrong, especially when it came to a relationship between them, he'd never let her forget it. She had to be subtle about it. That's where Willow comes into the plan. She was always smart about these things. She'd know what to do. As if on cue, Willow walked into Buffy's bedroom and took a seat next to her on the bed.

"Hey Buffy." Willow greeted. "Dawn said you wanted to talk to me."

"Yeah." Buffy looked down and twiddled her fingers nervously. "Um, Willow, Have you talked to Spike lately?"

Willow gave her a sweet sympathetic smile. Spike had told her all about how Buffy had brushed him off the other day just when he thought that they were getting somewhere.

"Yes. I have seen him quite a few times lately." Willow answered. "He told me what happened the last time he saw you. He was pretty upset."

"Willow, I think I really screwed up." Buffy admitted. "Halfrek came by the magic box after I had that talk with Spike. I found out that she knew him before he was turned. He was in love with her and she just blew him off. She wouldn't give him a chance because of what her friends might have thought and now she regrets it. What if I've made the same stupid mistake?"

Willow couldn't believe what she was hearing. After what Spike had told her, she thought that any kind of relationship between them was completely done for. She was stunned that Buffy was admitting this to her but also relieved that she had decided to start confiding in her again.

"Don't worry Buffy. He loves you. You still have time to change things if that's what you want."

"But that's the thing. I don't know what I want. Why do I feel this way? I mean....It's Spike....slayer of slayers....a vampire. Aren't we supposed to hate each other?"

"Life is never that simple Buffy. The heart has reasons which reason does not know."

"Ok Willow. You are really starting to freak me out now. You sound like a fortune cookie." Buffy giggled.

"Sorry." Willow blushed. "I just meant that you can't help who you have feelings for. It's not something that anyone has ever been able to control. I mean, look at me and Tara. In high school I was head over heels for Xander and then Oz came along and I loved him so much. Who would have ever thought that I would have fallen so deeply in love with Tara? She meant everything to me." Willow looked toward the floor and tried to keep her emotions in check. Every time she thought about Tara, her heart broke just a little bit more.

"You're right. You are. Completely. But I still can't shake this feeling that being with him is wrong. I know that's just the slayer in me. But in spite of all of that, part of me really wants to give this thing with him another try and the other part of me can't believe that I just said that. I just don't know where to start."

"I do." Willow said with a huge grin on her face. "Spike said that he was going to The Bronze tonight. Actually, I think he's doing it to try and get over you. He said that he was tired of loving someone that he knew could never love him back. He looked pretty determined, so you better move fast. Put on your sexiest dress. Make yourself irresistible. We're going to The Bronze."

Buffy looked at herself in the mirror. She had to admit it. She looked good. She just hoped it would be enough. From what Willow had said, he sounded pretty determined to finally move on. She couldn't believe that she was doing this. Getting all dressed up and making herself pretty for Spike is something she never thought that she'd be doing in a million years.

Willow walked up to Buffy's room to see if she was finally done getting ready. Willow took a sharp intake of breath as she saw her. She looked beautiful. She was wearing a gorgeous red party dress with twin shoulder straps, a sloping back and red strappy heels. Her golden hair was shiny and curled slightly at the ends so it gently swept against her neck. Her make-up was perfect. It looked so elegant with perfectly natural colors highlighting her features. She never looked more beautiful. It was as if there was a constant glow around her. She was a vision.

"Wow Buffy! You look.....Wow!" Willow was stunned speechless. "And it only took you four hours." She added.

"Oh my God! Has it really been that long?" Buffy asked with panic in her voice. "We have to get going. The sun has already set. He may already be there."

Willow couldn't help but be amused at how Buffy was acting. From that very moment, she knew how much Buffy liked Spike. She looked like a teenager getting ready for her first date. She's never seen her so nervous about anything. She couldn't ever remember a time where it ever took her that long to get ready to go out. She put extra special effort into her appearance tonight.

"Are you sure I look ok?" Buffy asked.

"You're gorgeous Buffy!" Willow answered.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes! Now come on, let's go!"

The Bronze was packed. She knew it would be harder to find Spike in here tonight. She couldn't believe how crowded it was.

Willow led her and Dawn over to a table where Xander and Anya were waiting for them. Seeing her other friends sitting there made her uneasy. She knew how Xander felt about Spike, which made it so much harder for her to go through with this.

Before they even got a chance to sit down, Anya waved her left hand in their faces.

"Xander and I are engaged again!" Anya beamed. "We're getting married! For Real this time!

"Anya!" Xander exclaimed. "I thought we were going to tell them together."

"I know. I'm sorry. I just got so excited. I couldn't wait."

Buffy hadn't seen Anya this happy since the first time they were supposed to get married. She couldn't help but be worried though. She didn't want to see either one of them go through the pain they went through at their last wedding. She hoped it would last this time. She had faith that it would though. Xander was pretty level headed. She knew he wouldn't make the same mistake twice. She knew how much he truly loved Anya.

Congratulations were given from everyone along with hugs and best wishes. They were all so happy for them and relieved when Anya told them that it would be a smaller more intimate setting. Buffy didn't think she could handle keeping Xander's relatives away from the alcohol again.

When things started to settle down between them, Dawn started looking around the Bronze.

"Is Spike going to be here tonight? I was kind of hoping to get the chance to talk to him."

"I'm not sure Dawn." Willow lied. "He might show up, I'm not really sure."

Dawn didn't know that the whole purpose for going to The Bronze that night was so Buffy could look for Spike. They wanted to make sure that stayed between just the two of them. It would make everything much too nerve wracking if everybody knew why Buffy was here tonight.

"Why are you looking for Spike?" Xander asked Dawn. "I thought you wanted to get rid of him as much as I do."

"Didn't anyone tell him?" Dawn asked.

"Tell me what?" Xander inquired.

"Spike has a soul." Buffy blurted out. "Willow, fill him in."

Buffy didn't feel like having to explain the whole soul story again. But the real reason she wanted Willow to tell them was so they would be distracted long enough to let her search the crowd for Spike. Her eyes scanned the crowd but there was no sign of him yet.

"And you believed him?" Xander asked, bringing Buffy out of search mode. "He tells you he has a soul and you all just take his word for it? I've seen him since he's returned and he doesn't seem a whole lot different to me."

Buffy considered this. She knew he was telling the truth. She saw his horrible break down first hand but in a way Xander was right. Except for trying to get past his sins, he didn't seem a whole lot different. He was the same old Spike. Still sarcastic when he needed to be but not quite as confident as he used to be. His disposition was a lot sweeter and a bit friendlier but besides that his personality hasn't changed all that much.

"He's not lying Xander." Willow said, trying to convince him. "I've been spending a lot of time with him lately and I know he's telling the truth. He's going through a lot. He's remembering all of his victims one by one through visions and dreams."

"Good!" Xander said with an angry expression. "It's about time he suffered for all the pain he's caused."

No one responded to Xander's comment. It wasn't because they agreed with him but simply because they didn't want to go on with this conversation. They all knew that sticking up for Spike wouldn't do any kind of good where Xander was concerned.

Xander secretly respected Spike for what he had done. Of course he would take that bit if information to his grave but in a way it gave him a little more respect for Spike. Also, he knew that if it weren't for that conversation that he'd had with him, he might have never realized how deeply he had felt for Anya. Talking with Spike is what led him to proposing to her once again. Spike was always brutally honest. He hated how he made him see things about himself that no one else could. But at the same time he was glad he did.

Buffy continued to search all over for Spike. She was getting butterflies in her stomach and was frustrated that she hadn't been able to find him yet.

Suddenly she spotted him in the one place she should have looked first. He was sitting at the bar. He was laughing. She moved her head to get a better look at what he was doing. The crowd was so huge that night that it was hard to see with so many people in her way.

She finally got a clear look at him.

He was with another girl.

To Be Continued....

 

Chapter 9:

Buffy witnessed a conversation going on with Spike and some other girl at the bar. He was laughing. They both were. They were leaning into each other and touching each other's arms in a flirtatious way as they chatted and to make matters worse she was beautiful.

She had long dark brown bordering on black hair. Her thick gorgeous shiny hair landed in waves just above her waist. Buffy suddenly remembered the comment that Spike had made about her hair and how much he loved her long golden locks. She instantly regretted her spontaneous haircut even though it had grown a bit more since then.

His mystery woman could have been a model. She had a beautiful face with classic features. She had almond shaped eyes, full lips and a perfect little nose not to mention flawless skin. No matter how great Willow thought that Buffy looked or the great job that Buffy herself thought she did on her appearance tonight, she suddenly felt completely frumpy and plain. Why would Spike want her when there was a girl like that who was undoubtedly interested in him?

This woman had confidence that permeated the room. Every man that walked by her seemed absorbed by her. They all seemed to glare in her direction. Buffy could see the hopeful look in the eyes of many men. She could see the jealousy in their expressions and the apparent wish that it was them that was talking with her like that, not Spike. Her Spike.

After Buffy had intently studied the girl, her visions traveled to study Spike. He looked a lot more different than she had ever seen him. His brown hair had grown in even more but he still had some blonde hair covering the top that was gelled and curled. His black T-shirt had been replaced with a beautiful deep blue button down dress shirt that brought out his intense blue eyes. He looked irresistible. He had a smile that lit up his eyes and made them twinkle. Buffy had never seen that expression when he was with her.

She saw Spike lean over and whisper something into her ear which made her belt out a giggle and touch his cheek playfully. Buffy couldn't believe what she was seeing. When did Spike become charming?

Buffy suddenly noticed that her knee was bouncing up and down in anger underneath the table. It should be her sitting there with him making him smile like that. Was she jealous? She tried to convince herself that she wasn't by making her leg stop shaking. But that still didn't stop her imagination getting away with her as she pictured herself gouging out this girl's eyes and chopping her head off with an axe. Violent? Absolutely, but that's a slayer for ya.

"I'll be right back. I'm gonna run to the bathroom." Buffy said before quickly rising from her seat.

Buffy decided to take the long route to the bathroom, which meant having to walk past the bar. Coincidence? I think not.

Buffy strolled slowly past Spike. She watched him out of the corner of her eye as she walked past. She wanted to see the look on his face when he saw how dressed up she was tonight. But as she walked past, he made no effort to look her way. He did see her out of his peripheral vision but did his absolute best not to let her catch him staring.

As Buffy walked past, her slayer senses told her something else about the girl that Spike was with. She was human.

Rage formed in the pit of her stomach. She was angry because he hadn't even attempted to look at her and she was angry because his "date" was human. What was the deal with that anyway? It would be one thing if the girl were a demon of some kind. At least that would have made Buffy feel a little better about the whole situation. But no! She had to be a nice normal human girl, which would make it even harder for Buffy to compete with.

Buffy walked into the bathroom and looked into the mirror. She lightly dabbed some cool water on her face and did her best to avoid messing up her make-up. She took some deep breaths to try and calm herself down. She couldn't believe this was happening. She finally realizes what she wants and now it might be too late.

Buffy went back to the table where her friends were. She didn't bother passing Spike again. What good would it do?

"Hey Buffy!" Dawn said. "Did you see Spike over there? Looks like he's got himself a date. She's pretty and he's looking pretty good himself."

Buffy shot Dawn an evil glare. She knew her kid sister was just trying to get a rise out of her.

"I hadn't noticed." Buffy fibbed.

"Right." Dawn rolled her eyes. "I'll be right back. I'm gonna go over and talk to him for a minute."

Dawn got up off her chair but Buffy grabbed her arm.

"Why? Why are you going over there?" Buffy questioned.

"Buffy relax! I'm just going over to say hi and maybe start to patch things up between us. I just want him to know that I'm not upset anymore that's all. But don't worry, I'll give you a full report. Dawn winked at her and headed toward Spike's direction.

As soon as Spike spotted Dawn coming toward him, he immediately got up off his barstool and stood to face her.

"Hey Nibblet." Spike greeted.

He was extremely nervous that she decided to come over to him. He didn't know what to expect. He was afraid that she'd end up slapping him across the face too just as Buffy did even though he thought he deserved it.

"Hi Spike." Dawn smiled.

Her smile made Spike relax slightly. He smiled back at her as he tried to decide what to say next.

"Um, Dawn, I'd like you to meet my date. This is Joanna."

"Hi!" Dawn greeted. "It's nice to meet you."

"Hi." Joanna said as she shook Dawn's hand.

Dawn's attention veered back toward Spike.

"I really like your hair that way Spike. You should have it like that all the time."

"Thanks, Bit." Spike said confused.

He wasn't sure exactly what was going on. The last time he saw her she treated him like a disease. She didn't even want him coming anywhere near her although he perfectly understood why.

"Spike let me cut to the chase." Dawn said as she gently pulled him a few feet away from his date so they could have a little more privacy. "I came over here because I wanted to patch things up with you. I was so angry with you and seeing you again hurt me more than I thought possible. It's just that I loved you so much and when you tried to hurt Buffy, you hurt me too. I just couldn't stand the thought of you hurting one of us like that."

Spike lowered his head and tears formed in his eyes and threatened to fall.

"But Buffy told me where you went when you left. What you did for her was amazing." Dawn touched his cheek and his teary eyes met hers. "I see now how much you love her. I always knew you did but getting your soul back for her at any cost proves to me that you would do anything for her. I forgive you Spike and I love you."

Dawn pulled Spike into a huge bear hug. He let a few tears fall but tried to contain himself so he wasn't embarrassed in front of his date.

"Thanks Nibblet. That means a lot to me. I love you too. Unfortunately though, it didn't do a whole lot of good where Buffy is concerned. I know this soul doesn't make a difference in how she feels about me. She still can't love me." He sighed and tried harder not to cry.

Before Dawn had a chance to respond, she heard a huge aggravated sigh come from Spike's date. Joanna stood up, walked over to Spike and pulled him toward the dance floor and away from Dawn.

Spike was angry at her rudeness. He wasn't finished talking to Dawn yet but he didn't say anything to her about it. He was suddenly a bit depressed after thinking about Buffy and didn't want to rehash past uglies with a woman he barely knew.

Joanna had pulled Spike into a very slow and sensual dance. She wrapped his arms around him and he pulled her closer to him silently wishing that it were Buffy in his arms.

Buffy watched as the couple swayed on the dance floor. Dawn came back to the table fuming because his date so rudely interrupted their intense and personal conversation.

"That woman is a bitch!" Dawn snarled.

"Dawn, watch your mouth!" Buffy scolded but was secretly smiling inside knowing that this woman was far from perfect.

"I'm sorry." Dawn groaned. "But Spike and I were in the middle of a conversation and she just pulled him away from me. What is her problem? Spike could do so much better."

Buffy just grinned at that. Maybe she still had a chance after all.

Buffy and Dawn continued to watch Spike dance with the dark haired girl. She was all over him on the dance floor and it was making them both sick. Buffy's knee started bouncing in anger once again and the murderous thoughts she was having about this girl had returned.

"Oh my God!" Dawn exclaimed. "That bitch just grabbed Spike's butt!"

"What?" Buffy shouted as her bouncing knee went flying up in a rage and hit the table from underneath making everyone's drinks spill over.

"Gee Buffy, Jealous much?" Dawn said after seeing Buffy's unintentional outburst.

Buffy ignored Dawn and didn't even notice the spillage and suddenly got up from the table and angrily walked over toward the dancing couple. When she was within a few feet of them she stopped to take in a deep breath and settle her anger. She walked up to them and politely tapped his date on the shoulder.

"May I cut in?" Buffy asked ever so sweetly.

"No. We're busy." His date snapped.

Buffy pushed her aside holding back her slayer strength. But she put enough muscle into it so the girl knew that she meant business.

"Thanks." Buffy said after pushing her and grabbed Spike to start dancing with him.

"Hey!" Joanna yelled. "I thought I said No!"

Joanna actually had the nerve to grab Buffy's arm and try to pull her away from him. Buffy chuckled to herself as she shook her arm away from the girl and wrapped her hand around her wrist with extreme strength. Buffy waited until she winced in pain before she stopped applying even more pressure to the girl's delicate wrist.

"You really don't want to mess with me." Buffy snarled.

Joanna was obviously surprised at the petite blonde's strength and rubbed her sore wrist after Buffy had finally let go. Joanna knew she wouldn't be able to take this girl on so she just gave Buffy a venomous look and stormed off.

Spike just stood there in complete disbelief as he watched this little cat fight play out before him.

Buffy watched him stand before her with a stunned expression.

"What?" Buffy asked with apparent anger in her tone.

Spike just shook his head and intelligently decided not to start with the obviously ticked off slayer.

"I just wanted to talk to you and she was being rude." Buffy answered an unasked question.

"Right." Spike said smiling inwardly. "I guess I should thank you though."

"Why?" Buffy looked confused.

"Because after she pulled me away from Nibblet, I knew the date was over. Nobody pulls me away from a moment with my Lil' Bit and gets away with it. I was just trying to be a gentleman and finish our date before I told her to get lost. It was the least I could do. Besides I'd only just met her last night so no big loss. So what was it that you wanted to talk to me about?"

Buffy quickly searched her mind for a good reason to have pulled him away from his date.

"I just came over here to tell you that the gang is having a movie night tomorrow at my house. I was wondering if you'd want to come. Dawn really wants you there."

Buffy hoped that wasn't too obvious.

"Well, if the Bit wants me there then I'm all for it."

Buffy got closer to him as they continued to dance and smiled as she put her face against his chest.

Spike was surprised that she continued to dance with him. He thought that she would run off after saying whatever it was she wanted to say. But she continued to hold on tight as they gently swayed to the music.

"By the way Buffy, you look beautiful tonight." Spike said into her ear in just above a whisper.

Buffy's heart jumped and the butterflies in her stomach fluttered wildly.

"I didn't think you noticed." Buffy said.

"I always notice."

They both smiled and finished the rest of their dance in silence.

To Be Continued.......
 

Chapter 10:

Dancing with Spike felt a lot better than it should have. It felt so good to let him hold her in his arms while they danced. Surprisingly enough, everyone must have been too busy cleaning up the mess she had made of their drinks to notice what was going on between her and Spike. At least that's what Buffy wanted to think. She didn't really know what her friends had seen but not one of them had said a word about it. If Xander had witnessed anything he was sure doing a good job of hiding it. He was the first person she expected to be on her case about the whole scene. Maybe he was too preoccupied with his engagement to care or maybe he had actually gotten past her attraction to Spike. She seriously doubted it but at least he seemed to be trying.



Anya woke up in Xander's arms feeling more content than she has in a really long time. She looked up at his sleeping face and smiled. She was so relieved that things had worked out between them. She couldn't be happier knowing that she was going to be able to marry her best friend after all.

"Xander." She said waiting for him to open his eyes. "I'm so proud of you!"

"Huh?" Xander was still trying to wake up and not at all sure what she was talking about.

"Well....you know, the Spike and Buffy thing."

"And again I say, huh?"

"You didn't make a fuss last night while they were dancing. I'm proud of you." Anya explained.

"Anya, I'm not getting involved with Buffy's life anymore. She's a big girl. She can make her own decisions. If something happens that I think she needs to know to keep her from getting hurt then I'll let her know. Other than that, I'm going to let her live her own life. I'm not getting involved anymore. Besides, I have a more important woman in my life to tend to." Xander stroked her hair and looked down at Anya who had her head rested upon his chest.

Anya sighed happily and lifted her head to give Xander a sweet morning kiss. She once again rested her head upon his chest and wrapped her arm around his waist.

"I love you Xander."

"I love you too Anya." Xander said as he continued to lovingly stroke her hair and smiled.



Buffy spent the whole day trying to clean up her house for the gang's popcorn and movie night. To say that she was nervous would be an understatement. All of her friends were going to be over at her house including Spike. She wanted things to go better for them this time around but she still didn't feel comfortable getting all cuddly with Spike in front of her friends. She was afraid Xander would make a scene because she still didn't know how he felt about everything that has happened recently. She really hasn't had the chance to talk to him lately considering the second try at a wedding he and Anya still had to plan for.

Buffy kept glancing at the clock in a panic. She would look at the time about every three minutes as if the time would speed up or slow down if she didn't. She asked Spike to come over earlier than the others. She wanted to be comfortable in his presence and figured it would be less awkward if she could spend some time with him before her friends show up. The sun was almost down so she knew that he would be there soon.

Buffy still didn't get the chance to shower and change out of the sweats and T-shirt she usually wore when she went into cleaning mode. She had just sent Dawn to the store to get more snacks for the group. She hoped Dawn would get back quickly so there was someone there to answer the door if anyone were to arrive. Her shower would just have to wait since she was the only one to get the door in case anyone did show up. She just hoped that Dawn would get home before Spike got there. Buffy was sweaty and tired from cleaning and her hair was a complete mess. She'd be horrified if Spike arrived to witness the mess of her appearance.

Ten minutes of waiting impatiently had passed and there was still no sign of Dawn. Buffy finally heard a knock at the door and hoped that it was Dawn who just forgot her key or something. She peeked out the window and saw Spike standing there. She let out a quiet groan at the thought of how worn down she must look. Her lack of self-esteem at that very moment almost prevented her from opening the door.

She slowly opened the door with a smile. Spike smiled back and he couldn't help but think about how cute she looked even without the make up or combed hair.

"Hello luv." Spike greeted with a shy smile.

"Hi." Buffy said and looked awkwardly at Spike. "I'm sorry I look like such a mess. I haven't had a chance to get ready yet. Dawn's at the store and I needed to be around in case someone showed up and that's why I look so awful." Buffy pouted.

Spike looked at her with a completely stunned expression. He stepped toward her and stood right in front of her. He looked at her with his intense blue eyes.

"Don't be silly. You always look beautiful to me."

Buffy's heart sang. He always seemed to know just what to say to make her feel special. She just wished that it didn't take a vampire to make her feel that way.

"Thank you." Buffy said as she looked down and blushed.

She backed away from Spike and stepped up on the first step toward the bedrooms upstairs.

"I'm going to go upstairs and get showered and changed. Could you answer the door if anyone shows up?"

"Yeah, no problem luv." Spike nodded.

"Great. Thanks. Could you maybe make some microwave popcorn too? I don't know when Dawn will be back and I want to have some kind of snack ready for when people get here. The popcorn is in the cabinet over the stove on the first shelf."

"Sure. I'll get right on it." Spike said.

Buffy headed upstairs to take her shower while Spike headed off to the kitchen. She felt so much better after her shower and started to search her closet for something cute but comfortable to wear. They were only going to be sitting around on the couch after all so there was no need to over do it. She finally chose a pair of dark blue jeans and a cute but plain black shirt.

She looked herself over in the mirror when she thought she smelled something burning. She sniffed twice thinking that it may just be her imagination but quickly discovered that it wasn't when the fire alarm started to go off.

In a panic, she rushed downstairs and entered a smoke filled kitchen.

"Spike!" She coughed. "What happened in here?"

"I don't know." Spike answered. "I'm so sorry Buffy. I must have left the popcorn in too long."

"Spike, how could you burn microwave popcorn? Didn't you read the instructions?"

"Instructions?" Spike looked bewildered.

"Yes Spike, instructions. You know, those little words on the package that tell you how long it should be in the microwave?" Buffy said with a sarcastic tone.

Spike frowned and looked down feeling like a complete idiot.

Buffy stood up on a chair and snatched the batteries out of the smoke alarm to stop that loud and annoying high-pitched beep that came from it.

Buffy tried to fan the smoke away from her eyes which were starting to burn and opened the microwave to find the charred remains of the bag of popcorn that Spike amazingly managed to screw up.

Buffy looked over at an embarrassed Spike. She gave him a disbelieving look.

He looked at her expression and started to get angry and defensive.

"Stop looking at me like that Slayer! What do you expect? I'm a vampire! I barely even eat anything else besides blood and you expect me to know how to make microwave popcorn? You're the one who asked me to make the bloody popcorn!"

"Yes, but I didn't ask you to burn down my kitchen!"

Buffy stalked up to Spike with an angry expression but her expression faded when she saw his hurt and angry face.

Her frown turned into a smile and she started laughing hysterically. She started snorting within her laughter and she could barely breathe. The whole situation suddenly seemed so funny to her.

Spike looked confused as he stared at the laughing slayer who now had tears rolling down her face from laughing so hard.

Spike's expression also started to take a more humorous turn after seeing the slayer bent over with her hand on her stomach and completely hysterical.

Spike started laughing himself and his chuckles got even louder as he looked around the kitchen to see what a mess he made trying to do a simple thing like use a microwave.

Buffy wiped the tears off her face and stood up. She took deep breaths and tried to calm herself down. She looked over at a laughing Spike who was also trying to contain his amusement.

Their eyes met and they both stopped laughing at the exact same time. Silence filled the room as they continued to stare into each other's eyes.

Spike took a deep unnecessary breath and leaned forward to press his lips against hers. A pleasured moan escaped her lips as her arms wrapped around his neck. She pulled him closer to her and deepened the kiss.

She pulled back from him and smiled. She rested her forehead upon his as they continued to hold each other.

"I missed this." Buffy whispered.

"What do you miss?" Spike asked.

"Your lips on mine."

That was all the invitation he needed and he pulled her forward for another spine tingling kiss.

She couldn't believe how much she had missed being with him like this. She knew this was what she wanted but she couldn't help feeling that this was still wrong somehow. Part of her was just afraid that it wouldn't work out and they would both end up completely broken hearted. She just couldn't seem to resist him no matter how hard she tried.

She pulled away from him again and looked into his eyes.

"Why can't I just stay away from you?" She asked breathlessly.

"Because you don't want to." He answered.

He leaned in and kissed her again. This time it only lasted a few seconds before he felt her pull away again. They barely noticed the light sound of a bell that was coming from the living room.

The doorbell rang.

To Be Continued...

 

Chapter 11:

Buffy opened the door to be greeted by two smiling faces.

"Hi guys!" Buffy smiled. "Come on in."

Xander and Anya walked into the living room and they both spotted Spike standing across the room looking nervous.

"Spike." Xander acknowledged him with a nod.

"Hey, Uh, Willow told me about your engagement. Congratulations! I'm glad you two decided to give it another go." Spike said almost a little too enthusiastically.

"Thank you!" Anya responded, trying to break the tension. "Did you see my ring?" She asked as she walked up to show him her new piece of jewelry.

Spike took her hand and inspected the ring.

Xander inwardly cringed at the sight of Anya's hand in Spike's. Xander knew that there were no romantic feelings between the two but he couldn't help but still feel that twinge of jealousy wash over him every time they are near each other. His wounds were still too fresh to be able to completely get over past events.

Willow walked in the door and pulled Xander away from his intense observation of Spike and Anya's continued discussion about her engagement ring.

Willow shot Xander and Buffy a huge grin before making her way over to a very uncomfortable looking Spike. She knew he was probably hoping someone would save him from Anya's incessant yapping about the planning of her new wedding.

"Hi Anya!" Willow greeted, now standing between the two of them. "I'm sorry to interrupt but I really need to speak with Spike."

"Oh, that's ok. We'll just finish up later then." Anya said and then started to make her way toward Xander.

Willow pulled Spike into the kitchen and he let out a sigh of relief.

"Thanks Red. I owe you one. Hearing Anya talk about her wedding is one thing but when she starts asking my opinion about material for brides maids dresses, that's where I draw the line."

Willow chuckled. "I hope she goes traditional this time because if I end up in burlap & blood larvae I may be the one skipping out on the wedding. So, how is everything going with Buffy?" Willow asked suddenly changing the subject.

"Pretty good." Spike smiled. "Actually, it's been very good. We kissed tonight. It was here in the kitchen right before Xander and Anya showed up. You know, I swear I think Xander has radar sometimes. It's like he can sense the very moment that I'm happy and then shows up to purposely cut my moment short."

Willow completely ignored his comment about Xander. She was way too engrossed in the fact that Spike and Buffy had kissed.

Willow squealed. "That's great! It's about time you two started with the smoochies. How did it happen?

It seemed strange to see Willow this excited over a potential relationship between he and Buffy. He never thought that he would see the day when one of her friends would want them to be together but it was nice to have someone on his side for once.

"It happened right after I almost set the kitchen on fire trying to make microwave popcorn"

"You almost set a fire making popcorn?" Willow asked with a look of disbelief. "I was wondering why it smelled burnt in here."

Xander walked into the kitchen just in time to hear Willow's last comments. He looked over at Spike with amusement and started laughing.

"Awww, what happened Spike? Did the ex big bad try to slay the evil popcorn?"

Spike was about to retort when Willow spoke before he got the chance.

"I wouldn't talk if I were you Xander. If I remember correctly, the last time you tried to make popcorn for us, Buffy's mom had to save you from making the grave mistake of defrosting it."

Xander opened his mouth to fight back but stopped when Buffy walked in.

"Looks like the party has moved into the kitchen and someone forgot to invite me." Buffy said. "Come on guys. Let's move it into the living room. Dawn finally got here with the snacks. She said she took so long because there were long lines but the smile she has on her face tells me that she was probably flirting with the check out guy."

The gang strolled into the living room to get settled and watch a movie.

Xander settled down on the floor with Anya comfortably leaning back against him. Dawn took a seat in the recliner they had just recently purchased. Spike sat on the middle cushion of the couch with Willow seated to his right and Buffy to his left.

As the movie started Buffy shut off the lights and let the glow from the TV screen illuminate the room.

About fifteen minutes into the movie, Buffy draped a blanket around herself and partially over Spike. She waited another fifteen minutes before she grabbed his hand underneath the blanket and entwined her fingers with his.

She didn't want to make it look obvious that she draped the blanket over themselves for the specific purpose of holding his hand. She also didn't want him to think that she was trying to hide her feelings for him again for the benefit of her friends. She knew how much it would upset him even though hiding their developing relationship was exactly what she was trying to do. She wasn't quite sure why she was still trying to hide it. Spike and Willow had a very close friendship and Xander at least seemed to finally be tolerating Spike's presence.

In spite of all those things Buffy still felt that she had to hide and in spite of all the things that Spike had done for her, she still felt a little bit ashamed. She hated feeling that way but Spike was still a vampire after all. Her morals were screaming at her in her mind because being with Spike was the exact opposite of what she should be doing in her life. Slayers were supposed to kill vampires, not have feelings for them. That is just the way it was supposed to be yet she continued to hold on to his hand even though her every ounce of common sense was telling her to let go.

She finally let go of his hand and stood up to head toward the kitchen.

"I'm gonna go grab some more snacks." Buffy said.

"I'll give you a hand slayer." Spike stood up to follow her. "Hey Xander, I'm gonna grab a beer. Do you want one?"

Xander gave him a suspicious look. "Uh yeah, sure I'll have one. Thanks."

"Anyone else want anything?" Spike asked.

"I'll have an orange soda." Willow answered.

"Me too." Dawn said.

"Nothing for me. I'm fine." Anya said.

Xander was a bit unnerved by Spike's politeness. In the past, his kindness always came with selfish reasons. He just wasn't used to Spike acting like a human being but he was through obsessing over what was going on in his mind and decided to let it go. Maybe he was just trying to get along but he couldn't help but think that there was some ulterior motive.

Spike walked into the kitchen to find Buffy putting chips into a big bowl. She looked up at him when he walked into the room and gave him a sly smile.

"I see you're trying to be the good little host out there." Buffy said.

"I'm just trying to be nice slayer." Spike growled.

"Wow, that's a first." Buffy said still smiling slyly.

"Very funny."

She continued to look at him with a mischievous grin.

"What?" Spike said, feeling uncomfortable with her stare.

She slowly walked up to him until she was just a few inches in front of him.

"Kiss me." She commanded.

Spike smiled and lowered his head toward hers until his lips were so close that he could feel her breath on them.

"You're command is my wish." He spoke before pressing a soft kiss upon her lips.

Buffy smiled at him and a content sigh escaped her throat. They walked back into the living room to deliver the snacks and drinks to her guests.

Buffy tried to hide her smile but failed miserably. No one noticed except for Willow. She was so happy that things were working out for Buffy and Spike. She knew what Spike was willing to do for her. She's never seen two people so full of love. She just wished that Buffy would finally decide to give some of that love to Spike. Willow was so full of love for Tara and didn't want to see them make the same mistakes as she did. They argued so much over magic and Willow wished that she could have realized that Tara was right sooner. They lost so much time together and she would do anything to get that back.

After the movie had ended everyone started to stand up and get ready to go home. Her friends were grabbing their jackets and Buffy was heading toward the group at the door to say goodbye. She suddenly felt two hands start sliding around her waist from behind her. Buffy panicked and grabbed Spike's hands and shoved them away from her before anyone had the chance to see.

Spike silently fumed until everyone was safely out the door.

"What was that all about?" Spike asked after everyone was gone and Dawn had left the room.

"What?" Buffy responded looking confused.

"You won't even let me put my arms around you. What are you embarrassed or something?"

"You just startled me that's all. I wasn't embarrassed." Buffy answered.

"If you're not embarrassed, then why did you make sure the blanket was covering us while you held my hand. I know that wasn't a coincidence."

Damn. He did notice. Buffy opened her mouth to say something but then quickly closed it. She had no idea how to respond to his accusations especially since they were true.

"Fine." Spike spat in aggravation from her silence. "You know what slayer? Why don't we just forget all of this? I thought you were actually starting to like me but I guess I was wrong."

"I do like you." Buffy said in a whisper while eyeing the floor.

"But your ashamed of me, is that right?"

Buffy didn't respond. She just continued to stare at the floor.

"Buffy, I can't do this anymore. Either you want to be with me or you don't. I can't read your mind. I don't know what you really want but if you want to be with me then it has to be completely. I'm sick of hiding. It seems that everyone has gotten past the fact that I've been hanging around you except for you. Why can't you accept the fact that I've changed? No one else seems to have a huge problem with me anymore so why are you still running away? In spite of Spike's many questions Buffy remained silent.

"This obviously isn't working out." Spike continued.

Tears started to form in Buffy's eyes but she still said nothing.

"If you don't care about me and you don't want to be with me, then I'll try to accept that. We can continue on as friends or whatever it was we were before. But if you want to work this out and you really do care, then you better let me know soon because I refuse to wait around for you forever. I can't go on with you like this anymore, so you better figure out what you want fast because if you wait too long this time, I might not be here when you've finally come to your senses."

Spike talked to her as calmly as he possibly could. He waited a few seconds but when he realized that she was still determined to remain quiet, he let out an aggravated sigh and stormed out the door, slamming it behind him.



Buffy tried to sleep but was unsuccessful. She couldn't stop thinking about the argument she had with Spike. Her mind was screaming at her to stay away but her heart was telling her to go to him. She was tired of having the same fight with herself over and over again. She knew what she really wanted. She just had to let herself accept it.

She shut out her arguing thoughts and opened her heart. She stood up to get dressed and get ready to talk to Spike. She thought it would take longer for her to make up her mind but the thought of losing him was just too much to bare. She couldn't take that chance.

She made her way in the darkened streets toward his crypt. As she walked there, she felt like she was in the Twilight Zone. It was way too quiet and there was no sign of anyone, not even vampires. This made her nervous. She was the slayer so the darkness never bothered her but the quietness is what unsettled her nerves. She knew that every time all signs of life disappeared that it meant there was some evil brewing.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she spotted Spike's crypt. She was almost there and thankfully without any hassles.

She knew it was too good to be true as she suddenly encountered a Lorac demon. It was black and scaly, almost snakelike. It has no legs, only a huge tail that it slithered along on. Instead of arms it had huge sword- like blades protruding from it's shoulders. This was one demon that she had seen in Giles' books that she hoped she'd never have to encounter. Of course it would be this night of all nights that she would end up running into one. It seemed that whenever she made her mind up about anything that there would always be something to interfere and stand in her way.

The demon slithered toward her in a super fast motion and tried to cut Buffy with its sharp replacement for arms. Buffy moved quickly to the side to avoid being sliced into. She moved carefully and dropped to the ground and with a swift motion, kicked her leg to the side and made contact with its large tail. She watched it fall to the ground as she kept her distance from it's now flailing blades.

Off in the distance Spike heard some commotion from outside his crypt and ran out to see what it was. He witnessed Buffy trying to fight off one of the scariest looking demons he had ever seen.

He started to run toward her because she obviously looked like she needed some help as the battle between them continued.

He got within a few feet of her, when he heard a blood-curdling scream come from Buffy's lips. He gasped as he saw the demon's sharp limb stab into her back.

"Buffy!" Spike screamed.

He ran toward her body that was now lying on the ground. Spike growled at the demon that quickly started slithering away. He stared to run after it but it made its way away from him too fast. He knew it would take him way too long to catch up with it and he didn't want to leave Buffy. She was seriously hurt and she needed some help.

He ran back to her and a strangled cry escaped his throat as he saw how much of her blood was now pooled around her on the ground. He kneeled next to her and listened to her shallow breaths. Tears started to fall from his eyes as he looked down at her pale face.

Buffy's eyes fluttered open and she looked over at Spike.

"Spike." She coughed.

"Stay quiet Buffy. Don't strain yourself. You're hurt badly. I need to get you some help." Spike's tears continued to fall.

Spike saw the utterly horrified look in her eyes. After she was brought back to life over a year ago he watched her try to find a reason to live after being dragged out of heaven. Now he saw the eyes of a scared little girl who would give anything to stay alive.

"Spike." Buffy continued to speak despite Spike's instructions. "I love you Spike."

Spike's heart sang and shattered at the same time after hearing her words. He wrapped his arms around her and lifted her head slightly off the ground. He watched as her eyes closed and he suddenly felt her body go limp.

"Buffy! Please don't leave me!" Spike cried in hopes that she would open her eyes.

She remained still.

"Buffy!"

To Be Continued.....
 

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