Home

Chapter 10


Sunnydale

Her third day back.

Spike woke her up by leaping from the bed and swatting his body with his hands, shouting "get them off me". Realising nothing was there, he sniffed and acted embarrassed. Buffy sniggered and got a growl for it. He leapt at the bed and 'attacked ' her.


Giles had had enough of Buffy's illusiveness and Spikes disappearance meant only one thing, she was with him.Being as it was daylight outside and no cloud cover, he knew that Spike would be in his crypt.


The two lovers were oblivious to the third person that had entered the crypt. Spike had tossed Buffy back on the bed after her launching herself at him. He jumped on top of her and was snarling into her neck when Giles finally came down the ladder to confront them.

At his age , he should have known better. His face flushed and his brain refused to communicate with the rest of his body, including his mouth.

Buffy grabbed at the sheets and covered herself and Spike.


Giles finally got his legs to move and he returned to the upper level . He didn't have to wait long before a sheepish Buffy and a cocky Spike joined him.


"Just what the hell is going on?" he yelled "How can you possibly hide out here and not inform us that you have come back? How can you stay with Spike of all people?"
Buffy didn't say a word, she just stared at the floor. She reached for Spikes hand which he gladly gave her with a gentle squeeze. His anger at the intrusion and now the yelling was rising within him. It only got worse as Giles turned his anger and frustration out on the vampire.
"How could you not inform us that Buffy was back? Was that part of your plan? To hold her against her will and take advantage of her?"
"He wasn't" she said softly . His arms enveloped her and she rested her head on his chest.

Giles glared at them and snatched his glasses off , he pointed them at the two of them "So you two had better explain to me then, what the hell is going on"
Buffy broke away from Spike and sat on the tomb Spike walked to her side and stroked her arm as she prepared to tell her Watcher everything.


L.A

Angel ran down the stairs and went into the office without saying anything to the rest of the A.I. team.

"And another day of brooding alone starts"
"Cordy is it really necessary for you to bait him?"


Wesley walked in to the office and asked if Angel had any new information. Angel shook his head and Wesley sat down.

"I don't know what is going on with you but if you let me know, maybe I could help"
"I appreciate it, but this is something personal. "
"Regarding Buffy?"

Angels eyes met his and stayed "What do you know of it?"
Wesley felt the vibes coming off his boss and he shifted in his seat, clearly the situation with Buffy and Spike had upset him more than they thought ,"Just that she altered Spikes history and apparently your as well"

Angel stood up and tossed the pen he was holding, back onto the desk, it rolled and hit the floor. Wesley's eyes followed it's path, not wanting to look at Angel to see the effect this was having on him.

"It did, I remember meeting her as Angelus and striking a bargain with her, I kept my part but she had disappeared before I could hurt her fortunately. She wore my bite , that protected her, but well, I don't know why but ....."
"But what?"
"Well, she ..... took something from me"
"Memories?"
"Yes, things that shaped me into who I was, who I am now effectively"
"Angel you seem the same person to us, maybe a little more troubled, but never the less, still the same "

London

The carriage pulled up outside the Inn in Leeds. Angelus was the first to step out and offer his hand to help Darla and then Dru out. William, or Spike as he was now known, stepped down in a flurry of coat and attitude.

"Don't worry bout it, I bet they don't even notice til we're long gone. If they do, well , I'm thinking that the two of us would be no match for the likes of them"
Angelus growled "We aren't hooligans Spike, we're used to living in the circles of gentry and keeping ourselves off of the Watchers Council hit list"
"Watchers Council?" he asked "The ones that trained Buffy" his voice trailed off as the words tumbled from his mouth. His heart ached and he closed his eyes , seeing her face as he made love to her. He opened his eyes again and returned to his arrogant persona.
"Well, let them find us, I'm sure between us all, we could give them something to record for future generations of Slayers"

Outside an angry mob formed, trapping them in the Inn. Angelus watched as more men gathered, his anger with the youngest of the group grew. Darla paced the small room that they now resided in, Dru fluttered around the room in her own fantasies, completely unaware of the danger. Spike shifted and rocked on his feet. Eagerness at having a fight wound him up tighter than a clockwork spring, Angelus could see that he was going to explode with energy soon, and he didn't like the thought of that happening in the confined space of the small hotel room.

Angelus pulled Darla away from the other two , "There is a sewerage tunnel that will lead us out of here and it is at the back of the building. If we can get Dru and Spike to remain quiet enough, we should get away safely"
"And go where? I haven't been a vampire for three hundred years to start living in filth and hiding in sewers just because a few mortals decide we ate the wrong person"
"You tell him " Spike chipped in
"Shut up!" Angelus growled
"So what do you suggest? That we wait it out and hope that they don't barge in and kill us? In case you hadn't noticed , dawn is fast approaching and then we would be trapped by them"
"So we escape now and hope that they don't follow us" Darla snapped, she gave Spike a look that could burn harsher than holy water. Not that it mattered to him.


Sunnydale

Buffy sat on the couch next to Spike. Giles busied himself in his kitchen preparing cups of tea for everyone except Spike. Willow smiled at them both hoping that it would break the frosted atmosphere and ease some of the tension , maybe even make herself feel a little better.Xander scowled at Spike. His hatred of all things Spike rising to the surface and seeing him holding her hand, his arm wrapped around her waist or massaging her shoulder, wasn't helping the deep rooted disgust. Anya was unaffected, she knew that Spike was in love and she suspected that the Slayer felt the same way. As an ex vengeance demon she knew that vampires were excellent lovers and she had also known plenty of Slayers that had in fact had vampires as their life partners. After all, vampires matched them in strength and stamina, it almost made sense that they would be drawn to each other sexually. So, Anya flicked through her girls mag reading the agony aunt pages, trying to keep herself from being bored totally .

Tara sat the other side of Spike. She was the newest to the group and felt uncomfortable at being at the meeting. Lately Spike had grown in his respect for her. She had become the motherly influence in Dawns life and had shown him a kindness that the others lacked.

So now that they were all present and correct, Giles had no idea where to start,so he adjourned to his kitchen to make tea.
He had hidden in there for a while and the adult in him told him that he had to go back and start this meeting, if you could call it that. To him it seemed more like a interrogation and venting session. Xander looked like he was about to stake Spike for daring to kiss Buffy's shoulder, definitely time to go back and face the music Ripper, he thought. He still had to inform them all of the results of his whole night of research that he had indulged in. Once this was over he was definitely returning to England for some rest and relaxation.
He put the tray on the table and allowed everyone to settle back down with their beverages. Once calm had settled again he coughed to clear his throat before starting.

"Before we all start I just want to let you all know that I will not tolerate bickering or throwing accusations around. I will not accept stakings or beatings here either. " Everyone mumbled something and when that had calmed down, he began.
"Buffy's told me that she took the journey back in time to stop a new vengeance demon from coming forth, she so happened to be a friend of William's, when he was human. The Powers didn't take into consideration that William and Buffy would know each other or that they would cross paths. I'll come back to that in a minute. Angelus was in the vicinity at that time as well. Buffy saw fit to stop Dru from siring William on the date he was meant to die, so she altered history. Thank heavens you didn't fight him or stake him, or Dru for that matter. William was sired a few days after he should have been and Buffy would have been left in that time with no allies, although the Slayer line does not run through her, it would have left a break in the chain that would have left Slayers in training vulnerable. The Powers had foreseen this and so with the right push, they orchestrated a plan involving Willow. Which brings us up to date. The problem with the spell that Willow performed had never occurred to me before I read the Barcolontic Texts last night. In the text it mentions a once dead chosen warrior, causing a shift in time and coming back from the dead again. In doing so, she comes back different, if you are aware of Slayer mythology , then you will understand what has happened, for now, I'd like to show you using Buffy and Spike"
He held out his arms to signal their spots. He reassured Buffy that it was okay before he asked Spike if he still had the chip, once he got the nod, he instructed Spike to hit Buffy . Wearily Spike thought of the times she had infuriated him and he bought forth his demon and hit Buffy in the stomach. Spike instinctively put his hand to his head waiting for the white hot lightening pain to shoot off inside his skull, it never came, making the group and Spike ,gape at her with open mouths. Buffy frowned and pouted.
"I came back wrong"
"Not wrong exactly" The Watcher continued as Buffy and Spike resumed their seating arrangements. "When Buffy passed through the portal it altered her essence, the Slayer part of her. I won't bore you with too much of the details as to what makes a Slayer , but suffice to say that it is in it's pure form, a demon. It lies within her and only surfaces whenever a demon or vampire is in close proximity and she has to fight. Now though, the Slayer demon has fused completely with Buffy.Buffy has become a hybrid."
"Great, can't I have one day where I can be normal Buffy? I'm not going to grow a monkey tail or horns am I? Or get all hairy and have to spend three hours a day shaving?"
Giles smiled at her and Spike squeezed her hand before raising it to his lips.Giles continued.

"As for the changing of history, that was a bloody stupid thing to do! Spike now has a head full of confusion as to what is real and what is not, so has Angel"
"Angel, how comes?"
"You saw him, made a pact with him, wore his mark I believe? That alerted Angelus of your future together, now Angel is dealing with the fact that Spike or rather William took that away. "
"But Angel and I still happened, Spike stayed away from the hellmouth until the St Vigeous thingy. Even then we didn't well unno"
"The fact remains that you didn't love him the way you were supposed to, you were the reason he stayed on the path to redemption, now he feels there is no point, he has lost his way. I believe the Powers sent Spike back here, when Dru made it clear that their time together was at a close, I surmised that that was in fact the Powers sending her the vision of Buffy and Spike together, so she had no choice. Your choice to return here was preordained, so that you would be in place for this to happen. After talking to Wesley and consulting book after book, I have come to the conclusion that, Spike is the new champion that the Powers that Be need. He is the one that fights at the shoulder of the Slayer. Spike now has a path towards redemption."
"Bollocks" Spike stood up "I don't even have a bloody soul"
"No" Giles replied "You don't" he walked behind the couch and rested a hand on Buffys shoulder "You share yours with Buffy"

The Slayer and vampire stared at each other, Spike cocked a brow and smiled "How the bloody hell did that happen?"

"I'm not sure to be honest, but it would of happened once the Powers knew that time had been changed and that the repercussions would have the effect it did"
"The night you came to me, after your siring, I felt it" Buffy said
"I thought that was just .... after glow or something"

Giles coughed , bring the attention back to him "Well, I'm not sure what else will be uncovered but that is pretty much all I have to share on the matter, except that we will have to help Angel, get him back onto the path "
"Right"
"Buffy , I know that you have only just returned and that I'm sure it is a little overwhelming for you , but we need to do tests, find out....."
"No"
".... what effect the change has had on your abilities" he paused after her interruption "What do you mean no?"
"I'm still me Giles, not some freak that probing and poking" she tutted at Spikes snigger and raised brow , turning back to Giles she carried on " I am still the girl that I was , just instead of having the Slayer in me as a whole being of it's own , it's now a part of me in every sense, I won't be a lab rat for you to dissect"
"I understand, and you realise that it is imperative that the Watchers Council do not learn of this change of events and circumstances"

Everyone nodded.

Giles finally let out a sigh, sat down and cleaned his glasses.

"Is that it?" Spike asked
"For now, although I do want to talk to you alone at some point Spike"
Spike nodded

Buffy reached for a doughnut and her now cold tea. She grimaced and put the tea back, "Giles?"
"Hmmm" he said swallowing the mouthful of doughnut
"Why do I remember both sets of memories?"
"Possibly due to the Slayer in you, I haven't really put much thought to it"
"But I'm not the only one, Angel does, and Tara does too"
"Then I suggest we work out the hows and whys later, but for today, I think I have had quite enough of this topic"
"Me too" Buffy replied as she popped the last bite of the sugary goodness into her mouth "Now I just want to have a little fun, slayer style"
"If you patrol, take ...."
"I know I know take my soul mate" she said as she stood and took Spikes hand
Spike smiled, the thought of being her soul mate , made his chest tighten and he could almost feel his heart beat again.