Unexpected Arrival
Unexpected Arrival
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Disclaimer: I do not own Buffy or any of its characters, unless Joss Whedon
takes pity on my poor soul and gives them to me. Anyone who sues shall be paid
in pocket lint and dirt.
Graveyard - Sunnydale
Willow cried out to the night sky “Osiris! Here lies the warrior of the people.
Let her cross over”
Blood poured from the cuts on her arms.
Around her the sounds of the demon bikers cut through the night, the urn was
smashed beneath a motorbike wheel.
As the Scoobies fled
********************************************************************
Graveyard – Sunnydale – The Coffin
An orange mist settled over the decaying form that had once held the soul of
Buffy Summers. Slowly the body reformed and took its first breath with a gasp.
Buffy looked around her, she was in a small closed space, panic set in as she
beat her hands against the wooden ceiling in a desperate bid to escape.
“Coffin, I’m in a Coffin please no please no please please......”
tears welled in her eyes as her thoughts raced and she began to tear at the
coffin, dirt falling onto her face, into her eyes, her nose, her mouth,
suffocating her.
Muffled thuds could be heard coming from the earth.
That is.......... if anyone had been there to hear it.
*********************************************************************
Graveyard – Elsewhere – same time
The orange mist swept its way through the darkened
Graveyard; it was an older graveyard, those who had come to mourn long since
dead themselves, the mist seemed tosearsearching.
Finally it stopped, hovering near a broken and almost nearly unreadable
headstone. It settled into the earth, after a few moments the sound of muffled
thuds could be heard coming from the ancient grave.
That is.......... if anyone had been there to hear it.
*********************************************************************
Sunnydale Three Months Later
Buffy wandered through the cemetery twirling Mr Pointy in her hand. It was slow
tonight, she sighed she really needed something to kill, somethinnythnything to
take her mind off her break-up with Spike.
“No not break-up” she muttered, after all that would mean that there was
something there to start with. And that would mean acknowledging the train
wreck that her life had been for the last few months.
“Now let’s count off Buffy Summers spectacular life” she said to the night as
she settled onto a headstone and stared at the stars. “Hmm let me see .........
well Dawns a klepto...........Willows a magic junkie...............I hardly see
Tara since she and Willow split up.........Xander jilted Anya at the
alter.....................and she’s missing.............hmmmm.............along
with my watcher and sorta father figure. Well not
missing just gone as far away as he could get.....................and I have
been sleeping with my one time mortal enemy......stalker guy.’ Buffy gave a wry
smile “well not so much with the sleeping but having mind numbing.......turning
my legs to jelly................howling at the moon sex.”
She hopped off her perch and headed towards home “oh and don’t forget I have
that nifty deep cellular suntan.”
“Stupid Buffy life can’t even get resurrected properly”.
*********************************************************************
Spike picked through the charred remains of his bedroom, trying to salvage
anything from the mess. He picked up a tattered rag; he peered at it and
surmised that it had once been his favourite red overshirt. “Bloody Bitch” he
snarled as he tossed it onto the growing trash pile. His wardrobe now consisted
literally of the clothes on his back. He cocked his head as he heard the door
to his crypt open. “Hmm too quiet to be her, must be
the niblet.” He headed back to the upper level “Dawn” he snarled “your bloody
sister has done enough damage without you..............”
lifted her hand in a timid wave.
“Glinda? What you doing here luv?”
Spike sidled over to the sarcophagus and picked up his smokes. “Damn” he
muttered as he crumpled the empty packet and tossed it to the ground.
“I ........ um.........heard about what happened”
waved her hand towards downstairs as she spoke. “I came to see if you needed
anything”
Spike looked down as he felt moisture invade his eyes. He let himself feel a
moment of self pity then straightened himself up> up and
threw
here.............what else could an evil soulless thing like me need.” Well
maybe more than a moment of self-pity.
Fuck he was turning into a poof.
she moved to put her hand on his arm. “What about your clothes and bed” she
paused for a moment as she searched his eyes. “What about your box??”
During the months that Buffy had been gone
often called in to check on him, worried that he would do something to himself
in his grief. It was during one of these visits that she had found him sitting
in the lower part of the crypt with a small metal box clasped in his hand.
Spike had looked up at her when she had entered, the tears streaming down his
face as he picked through the pieces held within. She had lowered herself to
the ground beside him and laid her head on his shoulder and waited.
*********************************************************************
Spike’s Crypt – Three Months earlier
“They were knocking down the old house in
himself “A guy........well a demon that I knew nicked it and sent it to me. He
thought I might want it.”
“What’s in it?”
“Just bits n pieces..........a few miniatures, letters, jewellery.”
“What’s a miniature” asked
her.
“Well back when............well when I was a hopeless git, they didn’t really
have cameras. Not so much with the photography back then. Well you could have
portraits painted or you could have miniatures done. They weren’t cheap either.
That’s me mum by the way.”
resemblance..........what’s her name?”
“Anne” Spike gave a small chuckle “She had such high hopes for me. You know
wife, family.........everything a proper Victorian gent should desire.”
“What else is in the box”
“That was me mum’s favourite piece, belonged to her mum, was meant to be given
to my wife..........that and this.”
Spike held a simple gold band between his fingers lost in thought as he stared
at it.
There was an intricate pattern etched into the surface.
Spike place it back into the giv giving it a loving caress with his finger as
he did so.
“There’s just a few more bits of jewellery, some more
miniatures, letter from my Da, some of the gits poetry”.
“Who’s the git”
ground beside them.
“The git was William..................me..........before.......well you know
.......Dru. Wrote the most god awful poetry. Always
wanted what was above him.......well not much has changed heh
still want what I can’t have.”
Spike stood and offered his hand to
“Come on luv no use sitting here feeling sorry for the
git..................suns gone down............lets go kill something.”
*********************************************************************
Spikes crypt – present
entrance to downstairs. “I’ll help you find it”
“Its ok luv...............not too pretty down there.”
brother Donnie. I think I can handle anything”
Spike smirked at
special.........you know that don’t you Glinda?”
Tara demurely lowered her eyes as she blushed “Thank you Spike” she laughed
then and fixed him with smiling eyes “But don’t think I’m going to do this all
for you.......move buddy.”
both of them laughing as Spike almost fell.
Spike” she whispered.
Spike drew himself up “Don’t fret luv...........m
evil....remember.......anyways it was just stuff.” Spike looked around, Buffy
and Captain Cardboard had managed to destroy everything.
The next few hours were spent sorting through the destruction, adding to the
growing trash pile in the corner.
“Why what luv?”
“Why did you have those eggs here?”
“Owed a demon a favour”
“What for?”
Spike looked down at her sadness filled his eyes dulling there normal sparkle.
“He needed somewhere to stash em’...........he’d nicked em from some human who
had taken em’ from their mum. She was supposed to come get them
human had nicked em’ for the government or somethin’,
then double crossed em’. Musta thought he
could get more for em’ on the black market.”
“But why did you owe him a favour Spike? It must have been for something pretty
big”
“Yeah well..............he was the guy who got my box for me.” Spike shrugged
as he turned back to his task.
hand. Then there it was Spike’s box “Spike! Spike I found it” she shouted
excitedly.
Spike ran to her side and hurriedly took the box from her hands, it was twisted
and warped from the heat but after a few moments he managed to get it open.
Spike surveyed the contents of the box, it was all ruined, the heat from the
explosion had caused the ancient jewellery to melt and bleed together covering
the bottom of the box in an unrecognisable mass.
Spike stared at it for a few more moments, he felt like his chest was being
squeezed in a vice. All his memories, all that he had left of his past was
gone, he slowly stood and walked towards the trash pile.
“Wait Spike.............no”
Spike quirked an eyebrow at her “An how can you do
that luv.”
“M...Magic”
“Thought the use of unnecessary magic didn’t sit well with you Glinda” Spike
stared at the box in his hands, hope welling inside him.
“I know......It doesn’t”
Her hand squeezed his shoulder “The contents of this box..........they’re your
link with your past...........they mean that William existed.........that he
mattered to someone............that someone cared enough about him to keep his
treasures.”
“Yeah well William was a git” snarled Spike “Best that he be forgotten”
“No that’s not true.............he’s in here” Tara placed her hand over Spikes
dead heart “He’s the part of you that makes this dead thing” she tapped his
chest a few times “he makes this dead thing more alive and full of love than
many of us whose hearts beat every day. He is important Spike.”
in close and whispered “you are important Spike...........You
matter...........more than you will ever know.”
Spike paused for a moment then handed the box to Tara “Thank you luv” he choked
out the words then straightened up and gave her a gentle push towards the
ladder. “Now get out of here, you’ve done enough for today, gonna be dark soon
best be getting home before the nasties come out.
“Ok Ok I’m going”
she climbed the ladder out of the room then suddenly poked her head back
through the opening. “Come by the Magic Box tomorrow evening and pick it up
OK.”
“The Magic Box?” Spike asked “What the demon bird’s
back is she?”
“Um no but she contacted me and asked me if I could open the Magic Box.”
“What she rang you did she”
“Well more like direct dialled” said
class, I’m sure my Professor thinks I’m nuts now, started talking to myself.”
And with that she disappeared.
Spike chuckled to himself as he went back to work.
*********************************************************************
Next Day
Buffy lay in her bed listening to the sounds of life echoing through the house.
Dawn was busy getting ready for school and
She groaned and turned over; she hadn’t gotten much sleep last night. She had
run into Spike on patrol last night he had come out of nowhere when she had
been attacked by several Basilisk demons.
They had instantly fallen into step tag
teaming the demons slaying them in a matter of minutes. She had almost thrown
herself into his arms when they had finished, her entire body was thrumming
with adrenalin and his nearness, she had wanted nothing more than to cover his
beautiful face with kisses and beg him to take her back to his crypt. Then she
remembered that she had destroyed a large portion of his crypt, she felt the
guilt about her actions settle into the pit of her stomach.
So she had turned on him snapping “Spike I told you it is over, stop following
me around.”
“Listen you bitch, I just helped save
your ass............again.”
“I didn’t need your help Spike” she retorted “Now why were you following
me.....I told...............”
Spike cut her off “I was on my way home you stupid bint. I do still live here
you know.” He waved his hand in the direction of his crypt, then stalked over
and lifted a bag up from behind a headstone.
“Oh” Buffy mumbled “I’m sorry I........” She started to apologise but Spike was
gone. She shook herself then muttered “What am I doing.....you don’t need to
apologise to evil soulless things...........they don’t have feelings.” And with
that she walked off to finish patrol.
Buffy sighed and turned ovakinaking her frustration out on her defenceless
pillow “Damn” she swore as feathers went everywhere.
to poke her head around the corner “Oops......think you slayed the evil pillow
demon.” Buffy sat up and blew at a stray feather that had landed between her
eyes.
“Coffee” asked a giggling
“Most definitely” replied Buffy
Both girls stopped talking when they heard the
doorbell, quickly followed by pounding footsteps.
Buffy opened her mouth to yell at Dawn for running in the house when she heard
a shrill scream. “Dawn” she yelled as she leapt from the bed.
took in the scene before them.
Giles stood in the doorway with a squealing Dawn hang from his
Buffy.........
Both girls stared at him stunned before launching themselves at Giles wrapping
their own arms around him.