Remember Me

Chapter Twenty-Five

"Get out of here," Spike hissed at him and Angel hauled off and decked him, sending Lindsey to the floor. He groaned as he lay there, wiping blood from his mouth. He felt a little woozy but knew it was in his best interests not to succumb to the faint he felt coming on.

"Don't you dare touch him," Buffy barked and thrashed about the bed.

"He took you from us!" Angel bellowed.

She swallowed hard and shook her head. "Don't touch him. Just let us go—"

"Can't do that Buffy. You belong with us. Tell her McDonald," Spike demanded, and hauled Lindsey to his
feet, lifting him clear off the ground by his shirt. "I might have my soul, but I have no qualms—"

"Spike do put him down. This is not helping Buffy. No matter how satisfying it is for you," He let out a
mirthless chuckle, "and for me for that matter," Giles advised. Spike growled and dropped the man as he
would a hot potato.

"Let us go and we won't tell the Council," Buffy was now resorting to pleading. Lindsey stared at her, sorrow
reaching into every nook and cranny on his body.

"I can help," he finally blurted out.

Buffy's eyes widened. "What?"

"What?" Was the question posed by the three men.

"I can help you," he said finally.

"How?" Giles asked.

"I can tell the truth. I can finally tell her the truth."

Buffy's lower lip began to tremble and she shook her head. "No, Lindsey, no. Please, don't. Don't do this.
Please. We can fight them. We can. Please." She was full out sobbing now.

"I need to talk to her," Lindsey told Giles. Giles nodded.

"Spike, Angel, why don't you leave the room for bit hmm? I think Lindsey and Buffy need to have a moment."

"We can't just leave them!" Spike insisted.

"I'll be right here," Giles informed him and pointed towards the door.

Shuffling out, Giles shut the door and watched as Lindsey sat beside the tiny blond staring up at him with fear
and hope.

"Are you hurt?" Lindsey asked softly, reaching out and brushing a tendril of hair away.

She flinched and moved her head away. "Don't touch me. Just say it. Say what you have to say and get out."

"Buffy. I'm sorry."

"No, you're not!" She screamed at him. Then whispering, "why are you doing this?"

"Because I love you Buffy. Because I knew this day had to happen sooner or later. I'm not a strong man
Buffy, I'm weak. I'm weak and as much as I want you for myself, I can't keep you prisoner any longer. I can't
hurt you anymore." He didn't care how desperate he sounded anymore, how pathetic. All he cared about now
was saving the troubled girl before him. He began to feel a weight lift from him. He was doing the right thing.
When was the last time he could say that?

"It's not real," Buffy told him, lip still trembling. "It's not. She's not real. The memories aren't real. I know
they're not. Just tell me they aren't."

"How Buffy? Tell me what happened."

"I went out hunting after you put me to bed. I had to go and find them and I did. We fought and Spike. . .
he bit me." She closed her eyes. "So many things are in my head and I hate it. I hate them all and I just
want it to stop. You can make it stop Lindsey, you can. Just stop them."

Her watery green eyes were tearing him up inside. He felt as if his heart had been ripped out and run over by
a mac truck about a million times. He started to cry himself. He cried for her, for him, for the relief of being
able to tell her the truth, of knowing he was helping her, of knowing he might now be free of Quentin, of
knowing that soon she wouldn't hurt anymore. At least, he hoped she wouldn't.

Giles watched the young girl cry silently and the young man before her do the same. He watched as Lindsey
hung his head in shame.

"Mr. McDonald, I think Buffy needs some time alone," he finally said after a while. Buffy was so over wrought
by everything, she was starting to doze off. Lindsey looked up at him and nodded, following Giles out of the
room.

"Do what you have to do. Tie me up, torture me. I know you want to."

"That all sounds good to me," Angel growled, stalking closer.

"I'd actually have to agree with you," Spike growled next.

Lindsey showed no fear as he faced the demons that wanted nothing more than to tear him apart, limb by
limb. He couldn't blame them. If someone had kept Buffy from him the way he had kept her from them, he'd
want to do the same. And wasn't that the way he felt about Quentin? Whatever fate they had in store for him,
he'd accept it.

"You said something about helping earlier?" Giles said as he placed himself in front of the snarling vampires.

"I can."

"Haven't you done enough?" Spike bellowed.

"I never wanted to hurt her," Lindsey ignored Angel and Giles' snort, "I love her too."

Angel and Spike started to lunge at him at the same time and were stopped by Giles.

"He's really started to annoy me with that," Spike hissed.

"Tell me about it," Angel muttered.

"Killing him won't help her or yourselves. In fact, it'll make the situation that much worse."

The vampires walked away, hanging their heads like saddened puppies.

"You realize we can't let you leave," Giles stated matter of factly.

Lindsey shrugged. "I don't care. I have nothing to go back to anyway."

"Quentin?" Giles asked, raising an eyebrow. "Your duties? More lives to disrupt and destroy?"

Lindsey hung his head. "I know you don't believe me and I don't expect you to. I do hate him and I am
sorry and I do want to help."

Giles crossed his arms. "What do you propose?"

Lindsey sighed heavily. "Planning was never much my thing. . . As you can see, if I was better at it, Buffy
wouldn't be where she is."

"Oh?"

Lindsey shook his head. "I know it was wrong. I've been paying for it since I took her. If I had the chance to
do it all over again, I would. How to stop Quentin? I don't know. I know that he needs to be stopped, but the
man is powerful and cruel. Sometimes it's like he's a demon himself."

"Every powerful man has enemies. Enemies that want him stopped. I can't imagine you are the only one that
hates him."

"I imagine I'm not. However, they, like me, are probably just as afraid to say anything."

"You're not afraid any longer?"

Lindsey shook his head. "I have nothing to lose."

"Your life?"

"I'd trade mine for hers."

Giles studied him. "You really do love her."

"I do."

"Then I guess you're going to have to prove it."

They tied him to a chair, probably tying and twisting the knots tighter than needed, complete with menacing growls and threats against his life.

Lindsey silently bore it all. In his younger days, he would have been outraged by such treatment, but now,
now he understood and accepted it. In fact, he was pleased to learn that he'd been right in his assumption of
the vampire's devotion and love for Buffy. They would do anything for her and they didn't want to accept it,
but that's what united them. Despite the fact that these two master vampires wanted to kill him, he knew they
wouldn't. Why? Because Buffy didn't want them to. Whether or not that changed when she was herself again
remained to be seen. Until then though, he would take any treatment. He would expect no less and he
wouldn't have given less to any one that dared hurt Buffy. The only question that remained was just how to
dole out that punishment to Quentin. But, first things first.

They drilled him, wanting to know everything she'd endured since the day she'd been taken. He could see the
anger and the pain in their eyes as he recounted her unhappiness, her fear, her anger, her emptiness. He
told them about Quentin doing his tests on her, wanting her to be the cold, calculating automaton Slayer he'd
always wanted. He recalled with chilling effect, the way she asked him to help kill the vampires she didn't
remember she loved. He also told them how, even with her memory gone, he believed she knew—somewhere
inside her—that she loved them. At that, the vampires appeared hopeful—albeit furious with him.

"Whatever magic he worked on her, you weren't there for? Know nothing about it?" Angel asked.

Lindsey shook his head. "Quentin made it clear he wanted no one present. He shut themselves in a room
and it wasn't until later that she awoke, her memories changed."

"Sick bastard," Spike muttered. "It wasn't enough that he fucking kidnapped her, but then he takes away all
her beloved memories of her mother and replaces them with horrific ones! He took away some of the happiest
times of her life and replaces them with bloodshed. I swear to God I will rip his head off and feel no remorse!
He is the true Monster. He is the one without a soul!" Spike's voice rose with each word until he was standing,
shaking and yelling nearly at the top of his lungs. He stopped. "I need a fag," and he brushed by them and
walked into the black night, slamming the door.

"I'm going back in. Going to try and see if I can somehow join our Buffy with the ‘new' Buffy," Angel declared
and stood.

"Do you think you can do it?" Giles asked. "What you recounted to us, it seems as if the old Buffy is fearful
of the new Buffy."

"I have to try. I can't just sit by and wait for her to change. I want her back. I want her healthy and happy. I
just want her," he trailed off on a whisper and strode away.

"See what happens when the devil is given free reign?" Giles said cryptically and left Lindsey alone.

Stumbling into Buffy's mind, Angel noticed it'd changed. No longer was his Buffy sitting in a room by herself
with her memories. No, she was shrouded in darkness. She sat in the same kitchen he'd seen her in last time,
except the lights were out. He could see her, with his vampiric eyes, tied to a chair, a thick blindfold wrapped
around her eyes, ears and mouth. Her hands tied behind her back, her feet tied to the chair, she sat up
straight as if accepting her fate.

The ‘new' Buffy was standing in her own kitchen gazing out the window, a look of longing on her face. Every
once in a while she'd glance over to the old Buffy and scowl.

This time, Angel decided, he needed to speak with the new Buffy.

"Buffy," he started tentatively.

She darted a glare at him. "You don't exist."

"I'm here aren't I?"

"NO YOU'RE NOT!" She screamed and stalked over to him, shoving him with all her might.
Angel jolted out of her mind. He put his head in his hands, frustrated.

"That didn't take long," Spike said from the doorway.

"I know," Angel sighed raggedly and stood. "I have an idea."

"Hope it's better than what you've been trying because I gotta tell you—"

"Are you going to listen? If you're not, then shut the hell up Spike."

Spike clenched his jaw and straightened. "What's your idea?"

"The Oracles. We need to enlist something greater than the resources we have. We need someone that can
get through to her."

Spike's eyes bugged as he looked at Angel incredulously. "And you think those sodding wankers are going to
get through to her."

"No, but maybe they can get someone who can."

"Like?"

"Joyce."

TBC...sooner this time I promise!! Please review. Thanks to Kimber for her help! She got me out of the block!!