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“Glorificus is dead?” Giles asked for clarification. His mind reeled at the possibilities. This changed everything. Tara’s nod of conformation and look of thoughtful contemplation as she looked at her mother’s notebook when coupled with Penny’s speculative looks convinced the watcher that he had not been hearing things.

“That’s what she said,” Buffy confirmed. “She also told us that Tara is the ‘Daughter of Light’ and she has a ‘rightful place’ she can take. I’m not gonna die. My Champion ‘is safe’; we’re guessing that’s Spike. ‘The teacher has been reformed’; my guess is that’s Penny, since she’s all touchable now. ‘The Red Witch will learn balance’; I’m goin’ with Willow for that one and ‘the Daughter of Light will live’; good news for Tara. She said that was the good news but we needed to be warned that with the good comes the bad and that ‘the cursed one walks in darkness’, when you take into consideration mom’s vision, all fingers point in Angel’s direction,” Buffy said, sighing deeply. She was tired of the continual conflicts. She wanted time to breath; to adjust. Summer couldn’t come quickly enough as far as she was concerned.

She was startled out of her reverie when strong fingers began to massage her shoulders. This time her sigh was one of pleasure. ‘Oh yeah, he can stay.’

“Don’t let your ice-cream melt, pet,” he whispered in her ear.

Looking down at the coffee table in front of her she saw the bowl of double choc that he had set out for her. ‘Okay, it’s official, I’m keeping him.’ Grinning widely, she picked up the treat and dug right in as the incredible ‘man’ in her life continued his ministrations to her shoulders.

“Hey!” Xander cried indignantly from his seat on the couch. “What about the rest of us?”

Spike lifted an eyebrow at the complaining brunette. “You practically live here, Harris. I figured you’d do the honours. I got my hands full,” he hinted, happily continuing his ministrations on the beautiful blond love of his unlife.

Xander grumbled good naturedly as he made his way to the kitchen.

Holding the meeting at Spike’s new home had been Joyce’s idea. She would have suggested her own home, but Spike’s added security made his home a better choice. Looking around the living room, Joyce was delighted to see how well the pieces she had chosen from the gallery complemented the elegant furnishings Spike and her daughter had chosen. They truly had created a beautiful home, totally in keeping with the restored Victorian manor. She found herself wondering how long it would be before her daughter would finally realise that individuals like Spike only came along once in a lifetime and she needed to grab hold of him. Tight. Somehow she didn’t think it would be long.

“She a-also said w-we all have choices to make,” Tara offered softly, her gentle voice capturing their attention immediately as it seemed novel to hear from her during a meeting. “But we had to t-talk to you all f-first then go back to her.”

“What choices do we have to make?” Dawn asked curiously. She couldn’t believe that she had been allowed to come to the meeting, much less participate. There was no way she was going to mess up this opportunity. She had wanted to be a part of the group for far too long as it was.

All eyes turned to Tara.

She took a deep breath. She could do this. “I-I think that you all have to make the s-same choice that Mrs. Summers did.” Tara’s voice gained strength as her conviction did. “You all need to make the conscious decision that you want to continue fighting. It can’t be about doing it for Buffy, it has to be about doing it for yourself. You shouldn’t jump into a decision either. Think about it. You need to be very sure of your motives.”

“And your decision?” Penny asked gently.

“I need to decide if I want to become the new Guardian,” Tara answered the diminutive psychologist.

A knock at the door halted the cacophony of exclamations her revelation received.

Xander was distracted as he moved swiftly and automatically to answer the door. His shocked ‘eep’ drew the attention of the group. They watched as he backed away from the door. “Um…Spike? I think this is for you.”

Spike walked to door, curious as to whom or what would cause Xander’s reaction. When he saw who it was he was shocked. “What the bloody hell are you doing here?” he snarled.

“I’ve come to join you, my prince,” Drusilla giggled happily. “The pixies told me it was time.”

Buffy heard the voice and saw red. Her mind screamed one word – ‘MINE.’

Spike was alerted to the force of destruction barrelling down on them when Penny and Tara yelled to him.

“NO!” Tara yelled. The rest of the group was shocked at her vehemence.

“Stop her!” Penny demanded loudly.

As Buffy flew past him, intent on destroying the vampire at the door, Spike grabbed her around the waist with a grip of iron. Her momentum had him spinning them around in a circle; her feet flying off the floor.

“Whoa, Tiger,” he chortled softly. “Let’s hear what this is all about first, luv.”

His softly spoken words allowed her to see through the haze of her rage. “Fine,” she snapped unhappily. “But if she tries mackin’ on my man, she’s sooo dust.”

“The sunshine burns. Tsk, tsk. Such a bright, jealous fire. It makes me all tingly.” She leaned in as far as the barrier would allow. “But your fire burns for naught little one. I'm not here to steal the sweet prince from you.”

“Why are you here, Dru,” Spike asked tiredly. He was so used to Buffy’s brand of speech that the change to Drusilla’s cryptic crap was exhausting. He no longer found it charming. Now it was just frustrating and irritating.

“The stranger, she called to me, whispering little things in my ears. Psst, psst. The pixies say I'm to get my spark back. All things go round, topsy to turvey, inside to out.” She paused a moment for effect and gave the pair a pointed look. “Dark to light.”

Buffy and Spike shared a look of confusion.

“What the heck does that mean?”

“No idea, pet.”

“It means that she’s going to get her soul back,” Penny told them from the living room doorway. “I think the Guardian or the Powers sent her a message.” Penny stared at the vampire speculatively.

“I was helping Grandmum, taking away the pain, when the pixies whispered in my ear. They talked of naughty doctors hiding and wicked gods who don't belong. Mummy made the bad god go away,” Drusilla happily informed them.

“She killed Glory?” Buffy asked for conformation of her interpretation, shocked.

“After she re-sired the old bitch,” Spike spat out in disgust.

**

Darla stood on the bluff overlooking Sunnydale. She shuddered as she remembered this place and her demise at the hand of Angel. She had some scores to settle and a grandchilde/sire to collect and then she would be on her way back to LA; out of this hell hole forever. There was a job there she wanted to finish. She had a childe to reclaim...and punish.

Drusilla swayed slightly as she glided around the Magic Box, her slight frame gracefully moving to some internal music. She touched nothing, just looking as she investigated the shelves with innocent curiosity. Her entire demeanour spoke of an otherworldly existence. Even without her ability to thrall, she was truly captivating.

Buffy watched her with a mixture of exasperation and jealousy. She was a little disconcerted to find that she actually liked the brunette in a she’s-entirely-insane-but-in-a-quirky kinda way. Her delight when she discovered something new was engaging.

The blond slayer watched any interaction Spike had with his sire. She knew that she should trust him, but their relationship was so new that she couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed by her own insecurities. If she was honest with herself she could see that her vampire appeared to have absolutely no more interest in his sire than Xander did. They had both treated Drusilla with the same sort of dismissive indulgence that people tended to give to bizarre family members. And that was another thing, when did Xander loose his ‘all demons are bad’ attitude? She knew that he was accepting of Spike, but apparently his change in attitude didn’t stop at her blond menace. Whoda thunk it?

Buffy watched as Drusilla drifted over to the sales desk and said something quietly to Anya. Anya’s head shot up and she seemed to stare right into the eyes of the vampiress as if asking for conformation on what ever the brunette had said to her. With a swift nod, Anya deftly locked the cash register and darted behind the table where Buffy was seated towards the back room, where Spike was busy training Dawn and Xander.

Drusilla straightened her body and turned towards the door. Her entire body screamed Master Vampire to Buffy and the Slayer was shocked to realise that this was the first time since her arrival that Drusilla had set off her tinglies.

The front door opened as Spike stepped through the door from the training room. Buffy moved to his side, all senses on alert.

“Nobody willingly leaves my family, William.” Darla smiled with deceptive indulgence, her eyes cold.

Buffy lifted a delicate eyebrow. “Seriously? Have they met you?”

Darla scrunched up her nose and sniffed dismissively at the sarcastic blond. She would deal with the Slayer, but first she wanted her family back. Returning her gaze to her great grandchilde/brother she graced him with a winning smile. “All is forgiven; let me renew the bond, William. Then let’s go get the rest of our family.”

Spike chortled in amusement. “Did you miss the bit where I hate your bloody guts, you dilapidated old whore?”

“You will be punished for your insolence, boy,” she snarled, furious that he dared to laugh at her.

“Did they forget to resurrect your brain cells? Oh, that’s right…you never had any to begin with. I wasn’t scared of you when you were a master, what makes you think a bloody fledgling is gonna have any effect?” Spike grinned in delight. It had been a while since he had someone to direct his barbs at.

Drusilla glided forward, bridging the gap between her and the other female vampire. “The pixies are whispering Grandmum, they say it’s time.”

“Time for what?” Darla asked, barely paying the brunette any attention, her gaze locked with Spike’s unbending one. She didn’t notice Drusilla’s movements so she was surprised when the stake pierced her heart. As she crumbled to dust she locked her shocked eyes with her sire’s sorrowful brown ones.

**

Angel felt it when Darla dusted and Angelus roared.

**

Buffy snuggled in closer to her vampire. She was still a little awed that Drusilla had dusted Darla. She would never have expected the brunette vampiress to do that. She was still having a great deal of difficultly coming to terms with the fact that Drusilla was serious about wanting her soul returned to her. The idea alone had sent Penny into doctor overdrive and Tara scrambling for her mother’s journal; both completely at a loss to know why or how this had happened.

Thinking about Drusilla brought back all her fears and doubts. The vulnerable girl that love had never been kind to was terrified that she could lose the one being that she was beginning to believe she would never get over. She still hadn’t told him that she loved him and while it was true he hadn’t told her that he loved her either, it didn’t mean that she shouldn’t tell him. She was just so very scared. What if he didn’t love her? What if he was sucked back into his love of Drusilla? What if she lost him?

Spike was enjoying the moment. There was nothing he enjoyed more than sitting quietly with his girl in his arms and letting the rest of the world slip away. Okay, maybe that wasn’t quiet correct; snogging his girl was certainly something he enjoyed just as much if not more. But right now, he was happy to enjoy a quite moment. It had been a day filled with surprises and he wanted some non surprise time with his girl. As far as he was concerned he and Buffy didn’t get anywhere near enough alone time together as it was, he wasn’t planning on wasting a minute of it.

As he breathed in deeply, the beginnings of a sigh of happiness, he smelled the two things he hated most in the world, Buffy’s fear and Buffy’s tears. “Kitten?” he turned her to face him. Taking in her obvious distress, Spike was quick to show his concern. “Buffy, luv, what’s wrong?”

“You’re gonna leave me for Drusilla,” she wailed as she burst into tears.

“Huh?” Spike reeled back in shock. He was speechless. What in the bloody hell was his girl thinking?

Buffy shot out of his arms, pacing frantically as she hiccupped and sniffled and tears streamed down her face. “We haven’t been given a chance to really be together and now you’re gonna leave an I’m gonna be all alone and nobody will ever be able to take your place and it’s not fair that she had to come back before I had a chance to tell you that I love you and you’re gonna go never knowing and…”

“What did you say?” Spike gasped. He slowly stood; his eyes wide as he latched onto what he thought were the most important words on the planet.

“You’re gonna leave me.” She turned accusing, tear-filled green eyes on the stunned blond.

“Thought hadn’t even crossed my mind, Kitten.” He smiled gently as he moved closer to her. “Why would you believe that I could ever leave you, luv? You’re my sunshine, my heart.” He lifted a hand and gently wiped the tears from her face before continuing, “My breath, my blood, my everything,” he whispered seductively as he leaned in to softly caress her quivering lips with his.

Buffy melted into his sinfully beautiful embrace; lifting her arms to lace around the back of his head. Her fears seemed to well up again inside her and her kisses showed more than a hint of desperation.

Spike removed his lips and let his forehead gently touch hers. “I love you with all that I am. I’m never leavin’ you, Buffy.”

“You love me?” the scared little girl asked for re-conformation. Terrified that well of happiness that was building was premature.

“I love you,” he smiled indulgently as he spoke, his need to convince almost as strong as her need to be convinced.

“And you’re not leaving me?”

“You’d have to dust me, pet,” he told her with absolute certainty.

Buffy seemed to sag with relief. “Thank god,” she said giving a heartfelt sigh. “’Cause that seriously would have put a damper on the whole me loving you bit.”

“You love me?” William asked in awe.

Smiling softly, her eyes shining with the love in her heart, Buffy lightly stroked his cheek. “How could I not?”

A/N: Some dialogue taken from AtS season 1 episode 17 – Eternity.

Spike’s mind was reeling. He had never had this before. Had never had his love reciprocated. He marvelled at the depth of emotion that kissing someone that loves you as much as you love them created. Holding her close as his lips glided gently over hers, his inner William was weeping in joy and, much to his surprise, his demon was too.

Breaking the kiss, he pulled her tightly into his embrace and buried his face in her neck; the intensity of the moment threatening to overtake him. He breathed raggedly, using the normally unneeded action to calm himself. His demon was screaming to claim her; to permanently mark her as his own. William babbled incoherently in his mind. Words like ‘marry’ and ‘worship’ were just a few of the disjointed words that slipped through. But Spike, the individual that was steering the ship, had no intention of rushing things. He wanted it all.

Buffy held him tightly, still battling the fear that had almost overwhelmed her. None of her past relationships had prepared her for the magnitude of what she felt for Spike. Her feelings for them were like a drop in the ocean compared to her love for the incredible individual she was now wrapped around. It would take her a while to convince herself that this whole thing was real. The fairy tale that she’d sought for so long was within her grasp and she was prepared to beg rather than lose it.

She mentally gasped when she finally realised that ‘normal’ would be boring in comparison; that no normal man could complete her as perfectly as Spike did. She wanted- no, needed- the demon as much as she needed the man. She wanted it all.

Lifting her gently from the floor, Spike made his way back to the couch; reluctant to be separated from her in any way. Sitting with his slayer firmly straddling his lap, he continued to hold her, drowning in her scent and warmth.

Pulling back slightly, she lifted her head and allowed their eyes to meet. His hand gently caressed her cheek as the intimacy of the moment stole her breath away.

The flickering of the living room light did not catch their immediate attention. Both totally lost in the eyes of the other. When they did finally notice the anomaly, it took them both a few moments of regrouping before what they were seeing registered.

“Why is the light doing its best impersonation of a strobe light?” Buffy asked curiously.

Twin candles lifted by unseen hands drifted towards the coffee table; landing heavily, as if making sure they were noticed. The stereo turned on and then flipped through channels until a station playing the gentle sounds of soft classical music was found.

“Think our ghosty is trying to tell us we need a more romantic setting, luv.” Spike chuckled in amusement before his eyes narrowed with a memory. “But if it ever touches my girl’s knickers again, I will find a way to make it solid, then rip its arms off!”

**

Penny was closest to the foyer when the knock came. “I’ll get it,” she said as she waved her hand at Joyce to stay seated and moved gracefully to open the door.

“Miss me?” Angel smiled at the woman, arms wide as if waiting to be hugged.

“Hardly,” she snorted with amusement. “Let me guess…more than one facial expression and an actual personality, I’m guessing the demon is in control.”

Wesley moved to Penny’s side, hoping desperately that the woman knew enough to stay inside the barrier. He’d never faced Angelus, but he’d heard the stories. He wondered briefly if, with the curse still in place, the demon would still be as vicious as the vampire had been reported to be.

“Leave, Angel. I’m warning you…”

“You’re warning me?” Angel interrupted sardonically. “What happened, Wes? Did you suddenly grow a pair? Well, that’s it, isn’t it? I mean, that’s the whole root of your inferiority complex. Well, good news, Wes, old boy! You don’t really have an inferiority complex. You’re just simply inferior.”

Penny started giggling, her light laughter gaining the vampire’s attention and causing him to frown slightly at the unexpected interruption. That wasn’t part of the script!

When she realised she had his attention, she blithely informed him why she was laughing. “I thought you were meant to be imaginative? You said exactly the same thing to him when you were slipped that happy pill. I mean, seriously, if you wanted to really torture him you should have just sung some Manilow.”

The snickers behind her told her they’d gained an audience. The affronted look on the vampire in front of her was priceless as far as she was concerned.

Pulling himself up to his full height, Angel snarled at the disrespectful bitch. NO ONE spoke to him like that. “I’ve killed people for less reason than you’re giving me right now. You don’t want to push me, little girl.”

“Little girl? Bless you,” Penny mocked, completely unfazed by the derisive delivery of the new moniker or the implied threat. “You know, I’m not sure you understand this, but for intimidation to actually have any effect, the person you’re trying to intimidate would have to care about your opinion and, well, I don’t. But, I have to admit, I’m pleased that you’re finally taking responsibility for your actions and not trying to blame someone else for your death count.”

“You’re going to regret pissing me off,” he warned her with finality, determined to break her composure.

“What? Are you planning on doing a little stalking? Some art work? Kill the fish I don’t have?” Penny snorted dismissively. “Oh, please! You call that torture? I've seen Paulie Shore act and heard Tiny Tim and David Hasslehoff sing...you’re an amateur!”

“You should stop listening to the voices in your head, daddy, they’re not as honest as Miss Edith.”

Drusilla’s lilting voice came out of the darkness behind him.

Spinning, Angel faced his insane childe as she drifted towards him.

“The pixies say that you must leave now, my Angel. You need to find yourself again so that your princess can come back to you. The stars sing and dance for what you will become. New. All new. Shiny and bright like the sun. Changes in the fabric that would have torn. Babies and beasts together and apart. All different now.” She danced as she spoke, arms high, beckoning the stars to join her. Drifting away, back into the dark, her voice drifted back to them all, “Leave, now. Grandmummy would wish it so.”

Angel moved towards the street without a word, following the advice of the voices that led him, oblivious to the speculative gazes of those he had left behind.

“Well…that was disturbing. Anyone else disturbed by that?” Xander joked lightly. As usual, he was the first to break the disquieting silence that followed Angel’s strange departure, consequently breaking the strange thrall the scene seemed to hold over the rest of the group.

“Not as disturbed as I am to be agreeing with you, Harris,” Cordy drawled sarcastically.

“Well, you had to get right once in your life, law of averages and all,” Xander sniped right back.

“Play nice, children,” Joyce gently chided, bringing a halt to their continued bickering.

As one the group moved back to the living room, each still distracted by the events they had just witnessed. They’d all known it was coming; Penny had warned them just exactly how dangerous Angel could become. But she hadn’t mentioned the look in his eyes - the hint of insanity that they all recognised now that they’d spent some time around Drusilla. Not one of them had been prepared for that.

“I can’t predict him now,” Penny warned them all, concerned that the changes they’d brought about would temper what she knew to such an extent that they would have no pre-knowledge and that they might lose someone they weren’t supposed to lose. She was suddenly very afraid. “This could be bad, really bad.”

Cordelia’s cry of pain as the vision hit her focused everyone’s attention back to her.

Wesley automatically reached for his friend, helping her to sit as she rode the vision out.

Tara moved swiftly forward and took hold of one of the ex-cheerleader’s hands. A few softly spoken words helped ease the suffering girl’s pain. Cordelia offered a shaky smile to the Wiccan in gratitude.

“What did you see, Cordelia?” Wesley asked quietly, his concern for her clear in his voice.

“We need to open some sort of portal that can draw a specific person here. She’s from here originally, I think, but she somehow got trapped in another dimension.”

“Fred,” Penny said thoughtfully, not realising she’d spoken out loud.

“No, definitely a female, Doc,” the brunette seer insisted.

“What?” Penny looked up momentarily confused. Her brow cleared as she realised the misunderstanding. “Oh! Er, Winifred Burkle. Fred to her friends.”

“What else can you tell us about her, Penny?” Wesley asked cautiously, still unsure if he wanted to know more or not.

“In 1996, she was sucked into a portal that had been opened by a jealous professor - who has a fairly nasty habit of doing that to any student that shows too much promise. She landed in Pylea which, incidentally, is Lorne’s home dimension. In Pylea the humans are called ‘cows’ and are basically used as slave labour. She’s a beautiful woman, both inside and out, she has a brilliant mathematical mind, a vast knowledge of quantum physics and science, and a natural ability in designing and creating inventions that would make her an important asset to the L.A. team. She’s been mentally abused for a long time and will need help readjusting to life in this dimension. In my dimension, Cordelia’s vision was different and then she, too, was transported to Pylea. The rest of your team and Lorne went to save Cordelia and Fred was saved as well. This time it seems the Powers don’t want that to happen,” Penny told them.

“Okay, so, what? We find a spell or ritual that will bring her here, Penny helps her with the adjusting and some of us go kick the professor’s butt?” Buffy asked, not sure she was getting the whole dimension hopping deal right.

“I’m not sure there is a lot we can do about the professor, Buffy. He is human after all,” Giles reminded his charge.

“You might not be able to do something, but we sure as hell can. He might be human, but he stepped into the fight the minute he started opening portals to get rid of the competition. Our job is to help the hopeless and that means this guy needs to be stopped,” Cordelia insisted harshly, an eyebrow lifted in superior contempt.

Giles sighed deeply as he removed his glasses to clean them. “My dear girl…”

“Oh, no, you don’t buster!” Cordelia stood, angrily facing the man she had once considered so knowledgeable on all things supernatural. “You don’t get to do that to me. Not anymore. I believed all that council crap you told us, but you know what? The council. Knows. Jack! It’s not a black and white world, being a demon does not automatically make you evil, just like being a human does not automatically make you good. Human or not, the guy is a predator that preys on the innocent, and we will shut him down.”

Gunn and Wesley moved to join the fuming girl in solidarity, making it very clear that they fully supported her stance.

“So, we don't kill him, we bind him, or something. You're the big think-y guy, Giles, come up with something.” Buffy suggested. She was pretty much agreeing with everything the ex-cheerleader had said. “But let’s just concentrate on saving the genius in the piles dimension first, okay?”

~*~*~

“Welcome home, Fred.” Penny smiled gently at the shaking woman before grinning happily. “We have tacos.”

“Tacos?”

~*~*~

Tara waited for the rest of the household to settle before approaching Penny. She had made her decision and she desperately wanted to share it with someone she cared about. The playful doctor had easily found a way into the gentle Wicca’s heart, and with Willow gone, Tara’s first choice for a confidant was Penny.

Tapping softly, so as not to disturb the others, Tara was bade entry from within.

In a few short sentences, Tara explained to her friend why she was there.

“What have you decided?” Penny asked cautiously. She was careful to keep her own opinions to herself. She had already made her own choice to help the people that had had such an impact on her life. She may have been brought to this dimension without choice, but what she did in this dimension was up to her.

“I’m going to accept the mantle of Guardian,” Tara spoke firmly.

“How will it affect you?”

“I’ll hold the secrets that will help the others when they’ve made their decisions. Until then, I’ll watch and wait.”

Gregor paced in his tent. He despised waiting. His scouts had yet to return from their search for signs of the Beast. His clerics had failed to come up with anything new at this point, and his men were starting to doubt him. He needed this finished once and for all. This time, this place, these people; they confused him. He didn’t understand this era. He was tired and he wanted to go home, but his God had called him to this life and asked this one thing of him. He refused to be the type of man that gave God only lip service. He believed. He was a believer. He would do his job.

The sound of pounding feet snapped the general out of his musings. One of the clerics dropped to his knees as he barrelled through the tent flap.

“The Guardian…” he gasped in explanation. “The Guardian is here.”

“She who waits?” Gregor whispered reverently. She was the closest link to his God that the world contained. He rushed from the tent, his face joyous with anticipation.

As he ran to the bluff, his mind raced. All the different possibilities that the arrival of the Guardian created flashed before him; each possibility more grand and heroic than the last. He was elated that he had been chosen for this honour. Surely now his devotion would be rewarded.

His gasp drew her attention. She smiled benignly at the suddenly flustered man.

“Your mission is complete. The Beast is no more. Go home, warrior. It is time for you to rest.”

As she moved away, he felt compelled to ask a question. “And the key?”

“Is no longer your concern,” she replied with finality.

“But…it is the link. It must be severed.” His desperation was palpable in his words. His mind reeled. His God was changing the mission, the rules. His God was changing his mind. How was that even possible?

“Do you dare question me?” she eyed him curiously. “Our time has past, Gregor. My duty, yours…they have been passed on to others. If you stay in the past, you will endanger the future, the link has been severed. It is someone else’s job to take over now. Your job is done.”

Gregor watched her drift away. His mind would have been blank except for one repeating phrase - the link has been severed.

*~*~*

Tara felt drawn to her room, something was calling to her. Smiling apologetically to the rest of the people in the living room, she excused herself and followed the inner urging.

As soon as she touched the door handle she knew. She knew exactly who was in her room and she smiled in greeting.

The guardian returned the smile with one of her own. “You have decided.”

Tara nodded her head in agreement.

“This is not something that can be taken back, child. The decision must be made with full knowledge,” the ageless beauty explained. “I am here to give you the knowledge you don’t have. Once you have all the information, then you will make your final decision. A decision based on full knowledge and free will.”

Reaching for Tara, the Guardian placed a gentle kiss on her forehead and Tara learned everything.

*~*~*

“Anya, can I borrow your stud muffin for a little while? I need a manly man to light the barbeque for me,” Penny cheerfully asked the ex-demon.

Anya preened at being asked for permission. She’d never had anything worth borrowing before, and she was surprised and slightly perturbed by the strange emotions she suddenly felt. “Of course, then perhaps you could explain to me why I feel very strange all of a sudden. It’s rather distracting.”

“No problem,” Penny happily agreed before turning to the confused carpenter. “Xander?” She prompted him to follow her.

The psychologist waited until he had successfully ignited the barbeque before she broached the subject she needed to talk to him about. “One day you’re going to ask that girl to marry you, and I want to make sure that you don’t make the biggest mistake of your life.”

Xander froze, emotions played across his expressive features, rage and indignation being closest to the fore. “What mistake?” he asked through gritted teeth. He was certainly not letting anyone tell him who he could or couldn’t marry. Not in this life time!

“Last minute cold feet that caused you to leave her at the alter and destroy the both of you in the process.” Penny knew that the only way to get through to him would be to shock him out of the Nile.

“What?” he whispered, devastated. This was not at all what he was expecting.

“Unless you address the problem now, you will allow your fear of turning into your father to convince yourself that you’re saving her by leaving her. But you’re not engaged yet; we have time. I can help you, if you let me.”

Penny silently prayed that he would be open to addressing his issues with his father. She knew without a doubt that denying the problem would not work in this situation. He desperately needed to exorcise his father and reclaim himself.

“I don’t want to be like my father,’ he whispered as if afraid of the repercussions to his admission.

Penny smiled warmly at the morose young man. “You won’t be.”

*~*~*

Spike watched his friend. Xander seemed to be preoccupied by something, slightly worried. The blond had seen Penny talking intently to the brunette earlier and he had to admit that his curiosity was piqued. It was unusual to see Harris so serious and that worried the vampire more than anything else.

He was alone; truly alone for the first time in his existence. Even when Drusilla had given him the boot, he still had the family bond. They were still there; all of them. Not anymore. Now there was a gapping hole in him and the closest thing to filling the hole, easing the pain, was his humans. They made each day easier to face, each battle easier to fight. And for the first time ever, William and Spike both were on the receiving end of the emotions that they had craved for so long. These incredible humans gave him so much…he needed to give them something in return.

Spike watched as Xander disappeared out the back door of the psychologist’s house. Whispering a quick ‘I’ll be back’ to the love of his unlife, Spike followed his friend outside.

When Spike exited the house, Xander sighed in relief. He had never been happier to see the blond vampire than he was at that moment.

When Xander had made the momentous decision to support the blond vampire, his world changed in an instant. The stupidity of a black and white mindset taunted him. The varying shades of grey confused him at first, but made a strange sort of sense to him now. It hadn’t taken the two long to cement their friendship. They found that they had similar tastes in many things. Both thought the other funny and the game of choice was usually ‘the ten things I hate most about the poof’ or ‘the rubber-soul man’, depending on who was suggesting the game at the time.

They had spent time laughing at life’s little ironies. His best friend gets killed by a vampire and now his new best friend is a vampire. Only on the Hellmouth!

Xander talked and Spike listened…it’s what friends do.

*~*~*

“Penny?” Buffy asked for the psychologist’s attention. “Are you busy in the morning?”

Tilting her head to the side, Penny’s eyes twinkled as she assured the petite blond that she always had time for her.

“Good, I need to start working on that balance thingie, and then we’d better talk about that prophecy crap, too.”

The disgruntled blonde slayer pouted at the thought.

Buffy breezed through the front door of 1631 Revello Drive. She was a girl on a mission. She wanted…no, she needed to know who she was. She had to find out if all the slayer crap she hadn’t been told about was going to affect her more than it did at the moment. Would it stop her or hold her back from doing what she really wanted to do? Would it pull her away from Spike? Because that was so not with the happening.

She wanted a life and she needed to know how much of a life she was going to be given. Would it be worse or better? She wanted answers.

“I’m in the kitchen, Buffy,” Penny’s voice drifted to her, giving the Slayer a direction. As Buffy entered the room, Penny greeted her. “Morning. Have you eaten?”

“Oh! Um, er, no, not yet,” she stumbled over the words, suddenly unsure of her place. She hadn’t spent a lot of time with the psychologist; most of her time had been taken up with Spike stuff, so the simple courtesy the woman was showing her left Buffy feeling guilty. The more she thought about it, the guiltier she became. She hadn’t given a thought to the fact that this poor woman had been taken from her home, her family, her friends, and had basically been dumped into a television show and then ignored by the leading character. How self absorbed was she? She should be looking after Penny, not the other way around. There was something just so wrong about that.

Before Buffy could do anything about the situation, Penny placed a large plate of bacon and eggs in front of her. With her first bite, Buffy was overwhelmingly pleased that Penny had cooked rather than her. But at least she remembered to tell Penny that! That was something…wasn’t it?

*~*~*

“Okay, so how do I do this whole balance on the inside thing? Is it like meditation or something?” Buffy guilelessly asked the tiny psychologist.

Penny chuckled. She knew when she was being played. The Buffy innocent act had been well and truly busted as far as she was concerned. The girl had far more intellect than she let on. Penny suspected that Buffy’s act made it easier for the blond to get out of research and given her role as a warrior, made her actions understandable. But she needed for Buffy to drop the act for a little while, because it was time for some hard truths.

“At this time and in this place, you have to be honest with yourself. Avoidance and denial are not options. You want to see who you really are? Fine, but don’t try lying to me, because I’m telling you right now; I already know the truth. The problem is that I don’t think you do.”

Buffy’s eyes widened in trepidation. “But I like Egypt,” she said in the soft voice of a scared child.

“And that’s why your life sucks,” Penny retorted firmly. Keeping eye contact, she sat forward, her earnestness clear. “You could start enjoying your life straight away if you would just be honest with yourself. You say you hate being the Slayer, but when you lost your powers for the Cruciamentum, you were devastated, so clearly it’s not having the power that’s the problem. You like the powers and that’s good; so please, enlighten me. Tell me why it is bad to admit that? Why do you act like you are ashamed of them?”

“I’m not ashamed of them and I do like having them and you’re right; I don’t want to be without them.”

“You never once let Riley see how strong you were. You continually apologised for killing demons that he couldn’t handle. If you weren’t ashamed, why did you do that?” Penny pushed the envelope.

“I was trying to be sensitive to his feelings. It’s not like it was his fault. I was trying not to rub it in his face,” Buffy blustered indignantly.

“So are you telling me that Riley the Noble was dating you despite the fact that you are the Slayer? That you were the one at fault by being the Slayer?” Penny asked, incredulously.

“Well, it sounds bad when you say it like that,” Buffy groused unhappily.

Penny sighed deeply. “Buffy, for once, face the truth. You dated Riley because your friends liked him. You stopped following your heart after Angel was sent to hell. You’re afraid that you’ll disappoint them and that if you do, they might leave you. You’re so busy living your life for your friends that you’re forgetting one major thing. Your friends love you for who you are, not who you pretend to be. By putting on this act, you’re not giving them the opportunity to be friends to you and your whole relationship is based on a lie. Friends– true friends- love, play and fight together. It makes you all stronger. True friends forgive. True friends support. True friends respect the boundaries you put up. They don’t judge unless you let them. They may not always agree, but if they are a true friend, they’ll give you support, then if you’re wrong, they’ll help you pick up the pieces. By not allowing your friends to be true friends to you, you’re not being a true friend to them. You will never find balance within while you are holding onto these fears. You need to ask yourself – do you trust them?”

“I love my friends,” Buffy rushed to assure the psychologist.

“Honey, I know you love them, but do you trust them?”

*~*~*

Buffy walked the streets of Sunnydale, her mind stumbling over the sheer volume of things she had learned. There was so much she hadn’t realised, so many stories that they hadn’t shared. When had it started happening? When did they start lying to each other, denying the truth, avoiding reality? It just seemed so pointless to her now. All of it. But she loved them so much that she wasn’t willing to give them up without a fight, even if it meant she had to drag them kicking and screaming out of Egypt. Hopefully they would thank her for it – eventually.

Thinking about it logically, which was not the usual Buffy way to think, she realised that if her friends could accept Spike as they had, then maybe the truth wouldn’t wig them too badly. It’s not like they could reject it, or change it. There wasn’t anything to ‘fix’. It was what it was, and what it was, was fact. Deal-with-it-‘cause-it-ain’t-changing fact. It certainly didn’t change who she was. Well, except for the whole accepting who she was bit, that was a bit of a change, but it shouldn’t be like some big change or anything. She was still the Slayer, but now she knew exactly what that meant.

Strong arms looped around her waist from behind, pulling her tight against a firm chest. Soft lips caressed her cheek as his concerned voice seduced her. “Where you at, Pet?”

Pivoting swiftly in his arms, Buffy’s own arms snuck under his duster to settle comfortably around him. “Ooh look, a yummy vampire…wanna play?” she teased.

Lifting an eyebrow, Spike smiled in amusement. Apparently playful Buffy was running the show. “Well now, pet, are you talkin’ rough an’ tumble or slap an’ tickle?”

“Um…you know that you’re strange, right?” Buffy replied in mock seriousness. “I mean, I know that the first one means patrol type fighting, but the second one? Is that like some weird British way of saying yummy smoochies?”

Spike chuckled at the irony of Buffy saying that the British had strange colloquialisms. Leaning down, he gave her a lingering hello kiss. “Yeah, pet, you got it in one.”

With a perky grin, Buffy preened in delight, she loved it when she guessed right.

“Yay me!” Tilting her head she thought about what she wanted to say. “Penny and I worked on my inner balance today. She say’s that I still need to talk to the Guardian because there is some big decision I have to make, but that I’ve taken the balance thing-y as far as I can before that.”

Easing out of his embrace, Buffy took her place at his side, grabbed his hand and started walking. She needed to give voice to all that had transpired with the psychologist, but she knew herself well enough to know that action girl needed to be walking as she talked.

“She made me look at my life without the convenient little lies. There was no place for avoid-y Buffy, and Egypt was totally off limits. She’s really scary when she gets all in ‘strict-doctor mode’.” Buffy shuddered slightly in remembrance. “The thing is, when you take away all the baggage and just go with the basic facts, the truth is; I like being the Slayer. I get to do things that no one else in the world does. I don’t have the same worries that normal girls my age have, but then I’m not normal, so why would I? And I’m actually okay with that. A normal girl may not have to go out every night and fight the forces of darkness, but honestly? For the most part, the nightly patrols have become fun, especially since you joined the team and that’s a major bonus for not being normal. A normal girl wouldn’t get you.” She smiled at him shyly and watched as he brought their clasped hands up to his lips so that he could kiss her fingers.

“And yeah, I hate having to face apocalypses, but it’s part and parcel of the whole slayer gig, and it’s not like I have to face them alone. I have heaps of help, and from what Penny said; the help is only gonna get better. So, you know, it’s all of the good.”

Her smile dimmed slightly when she thought about her friends and the upcoming talk she was planning on having with them. “Of course the whole new-attitude for Buffy thing may cause some unnecessary wigging and loud cries for denial from Willow and Xander, but they love me, right? They’ll accept the changes won’t they?”

“What changes, pet?” Spike asked curiously. He had held himself firmly in check as she’d spoken. He was inwardly doing Xander’s snoopy dance at the thought that his Slayer was finally accepting what he’d been trying to tell her for so long. She wasn’t normal, she was extraordinary.

“Oh!” She looked at him, seemingly surprised that she hadn’t told him the best bits yet. “New and improved slayer senses for a start. More control over my slayer side. The ability to call her up at will. Increase in powers and speed. Fangs. Just call me ‘Buffy the Super Vampire Slayer’.” She grinned happily, totally unaware that her companion had stopped walking until she felt the slight tug to her outstretched arm.

“Might want to back the train up a bit, pet. I think I missed my stop.”

Innocent green eyes were beguilingly covered by fluttering eyelids as she pretended confusion at his statement. “Huh?”

“Wanna run those upgrades by me again, kitten?” Spike calmly asked, none of his inner turmoil showed. He must have misheard her.

“New and improved slayer senses?”

“After that, sweetling.”

“Um…control of Slayer Buffy?”

“Buffy,” Spike growled and then jumped when she growled back in response. “What…?”

“The ability to call her up at will,” Buffy explained the growl with a smirk.

“You’re killin’ me here, pet,” he groaned in mock frustration. He had a sudden suspicion that he wasn’t as mistaken as he’d thought and that his girl was planning on making him work for the information he so desperately wanted.

“Oooh, I’m even faster and stronger now, so…” She grinned dropping his hand and stepping away from him. “How ‘bout this? If you can catch me, you can have me.”

He watched her take off in a blur of movement, momentarily stunned by her suggestion until her voice drifted back to him, wafting on the wind.

“Fangs and all.”

*~*~*

Spike sped through the night, a predator on the hunt. Her scent teased him, her presence taunted. Once again he had just missed her. The dust of her kills still making its way to the ground, floating gently with no indication of the violence that had created it.

She had always been stronger, but he had always been faster. Until now. Spike knew with absolute certainty that if he were to catch the little firebrand, it would be because she let him.

He lifted his head and howled at the sky, his jubilation overwhelming. He loved this, his skin tingled with anticipation, he loved his life, er unlife, his home, his friends; he loved that they felt like family, that they made him feel like he belonged, like he was their equal, not beneath them. He loved their innate goodness, the way they listened to him like he mattered. He would do what ever it took to be worthy of the support and faith they had gifted him with. He would earn and deserve it. Or he would die trying.

Concentrating deeply, he let out his senses, searching for the indefinable alert that would indicate his lady. She was the one that he loved above all others; the reason, the question and the answer. She was everything, and with her by his side, he was invincible. There was nothing he couldn’t do.

Pinpointing her position had become easier the longer he had known her. It seemed his little slayer had decided to take the game indoors.

Grinning in anticipation, Spike made his way home.

“Slayer,” Spike sing-songed as he let himself into the house. “Here kitty, kitty.”

Letting out his senses, he moved towards the stairs. It seemed as though his slayer might be ready to take their relationship to the next level. He grinned in anticipation, because the only rooms upstairs were bathrooms and bedrooms.

He followed the alluring trail of her scent up the stairs and towards the master bedroom. As he continued to follow the scent, he was drawn to the closed door of the ensuite bathroom. The closed and locked door.

Frowning in confusion, Spike tried the door again, briefly wondering if he had been mistaken the first time he had tried to open it. When the door remained locked on the second try, his curiosity laden voice called her name.

“Please, don’t come in,” Buffy shouted, her voice filled with panic.

“Pet?”

“I’m fine…just a bit, um, freaked,” she replied to his unasked question.

“Not the only one, Slayer,” Spike mumbled to himself. “’S okay, luv. I’ll stay out here.” He wasn’t happy about the distance, but he couldn’t remember the last time he had heard Buffy so wound up. He needed to know what was going on. “So…wanna tell a bloke why you’re holed up in his bathroom?” He tried to offer some levity to the conversation, hoping that by lightening her mood, they could get to the crux of the problem as quickly as possible, which might mean that he could quite possibly be then able to talk his girl into finishing their game. Unfortunately, something was telling him that their games were over for the evening. Spike pouted.

“I need you to explain something to me without asking me why,” Buffy insisted quietly. Her tone of voice alerted the vampire to the serious nature of the strange conversation.

“If I can, you know I will, luv,” he replied just as quietly as he desperately tried to think of anything he might have done wrong, because he was pretty sure he was in trouble, he just didn’t know what he was in trouble for.

He sat down next to the bathroom door, unknowingly mirroring the actions of his love.

“Is there any significance to biting someone, drinking their blood, and saying the word ‘mine’?”

“Oh, pet…you’d best have a bloody good reason for asking that question,” the Master Vampire snarled before he had chance to think about the question.

He managed to stop himself from tearing the door from its hinges when he realised that the only thing he was sensing from his bathroom was slayer, there was definitely not even a hint of a claim. Perplexed confusion replaced blossoming rage and he resumed his earlier position with more questions than answers.

“Sheesh, calm down there, Blondie.” Buffy snickered in amusement. “But you could explain the whole what’s-got-Spike-pissed thingy while you’re making with the explaining.”

Letting his head hit the door frame he was leaning against, Spike sighed deeply and gazed up at the ceiling. “You’re talkin’ about a claim, pet. If one does it, it’s a normal claim. You belong to the person who claims you. If both do it, it’s a mating claim, which is the equivalent of a human marriage, only there’s no bloody divorce and the only way the claim can be broken is if an older vampire in your line challenges the mating and wins a challenge fight.”

He didn’t want to be talking about claims with the woman he wanted as his mate while they had a door between them. He had wanted this conversation to take place later, when she was ready to make a commitment to him. His William side was lamenting the timing and the circumstances of this particular conversation. William knew she wasn’t ready to get married yet. William wanted everything to be perfect. William wanted to be the one to bring it up.

“Can you think of any reason at all, why I would be suddenly getting visions of claiming you? And sort of uncontrollable urges to do the whole biting and sucking your blood thing-y and can I just say…ewww?”

“WHAT?!”

*~*~*

The summer drifted slowly by, each person facing their options from different points of view.

Everyone had been told of Tara’s decision and the situation that had arisen from that. She refused to tell anyone what she had learned, saying it was immaterial, what she had learned related directly to her choice. It had helped her make an informed decision, and now that she had made her final decision and accepted the mantle and all the responsibilities that went with it, she was not allowed to tell them what she had learned…not yet; not until they had all reached their final decisions too.

She was quick to offer to speak with each of them privately, but wasn’t really surprised that Drusilla was the first to request time and that Buffy was the last.

Drusilla knew what she needed to do, and was a little impatient. She wasn’t at all happy that she had to wait for three other people to make their decisions. She tried to explain, in her unique way, that her own visions had told her they would all be going. She didn’t understand why she couldn’t just tell the other three that so that they could just get on with it.

Tara mollified her slightly by reminding her that the others needed to make their choices freely, just as she had.

Dawn snuck in to see her next. She was impatient to give her decision, but terrified that someone would stop her and tell her that she was too young, or that she needed to be protected or some other equally irritating reason that was basically designed to stop her from doing something she really wanted to do. Nobody seemed to understand her need. She didn’t feel that she had a real past. She desperately wanted to make her future count more than her past.

Willow called her, telling Tara she was proud of her and re-affirming her dedication to the forces of light. Her choice had been easy.

Giles came, asking many questions, learning once again why he distrusted the Council of Watchers. He smiled proudly when he said clearly that this time the choice was his and that he chose to fight.

Anya was a surprise. She was so unsure of her place. Her acceptance and knowledge were now sought after but it was still so new. She needed Tara’s conformation that she was of use. That she had something to offer. That she was more than just Xander’s girlfriend.

Once Tara assured her that she was indeed a valued member of the team, Anya happily made her decision to continue the fight.

Spike and Xander came together, arguing playfully the whole time. Xander smiled his goofy smile and jokingly told them that as official sugary goodness supplier he didn’t have a choice – it was a dirty job but somebody had to do it.

Spike spoke softly, his eye’s focused on the floor. He wanted to fight, but he wanted to do something first. He wanted an all encompassing soul. He wanted the balance that it would give him. He wanted to be worthy. To be whole.

Xander complained of having something in his eye.

*~*~*

“Am I the last?” Buffy said, smiling at the honey blond Guardian from her position leaning against the door frame.

Tara smiled in response and moved slightly to make room on her bed for the petite blond to sit. “Yup, just you, sweetie.

Moving slowly and a little self-consciously, Buffy made her way to the bed. Indecision marred her features. She tried to voice her thoughts several times before looking at Tara helplessly.

“What’s troubling you, Buffy?” the gentle Wiccan asked.

“It’s just…I don’t know…when did I get a choice? I’m the slayer. It’s a part of me…who I am. I get that. But I don’t have the option to say no. So what do I need to decide?”

“The prophecy, sweetie,” Tara started cautiously. “You get to decide if it’s about you and Spike, or about Spike and some other slayer. Spike’s decision marked him as the Eternal Champion; you need to decide if you want to be joined to him as the Immortal Slayer.”

“He made his decision?” Buffy asked in a small voice. Hoping again hope that Spike hadn’t arbitrarily made her decision for her like every other man in her life.

“He didn’t know, Buffy.” The gentle Wiccan informed her insecure friend. “His decision to fight for an all encompassing soul was the final requirement. It had to be free choice; pre-knowledge may have affected his decision.”

Buffy relaxed slightly, before stiffening again and asking in a tight voice, “So basically, my choices are immortality and I get to keep my boyfriend, or mortality and I’m virtually agreeing to hand him over to somebody else to spend eternity with?”

“That about sums it up, sweetie.”

“Okay… can I just say that that really sucks?” Buffy pouted in displeasure.

“Do you love him?” Tara smiled softly as she asked the all important question.

Buffy smiled blissfully. “More than anything.”

“Then that’s what you need to think about. Take your time. The prophecy can’t be fulfilled until the Immortal Slayer is in place, so take the time you need to make your decision. But, Buffy?” Tara paused, waiting for the blond to look at her. “You can’t tell anyone, sweetie, it must be your decision.”

Buffy agreed with a short nod, her mind whirling and spinning in many different directions. She needed to find a focus. Something that she could concentrate on that didn’t make her forget the decision that she faced but maybe could help her put it all into perspective.

“Can you at least tell me about the prophecy?” Buffy asked hopefully.

Tara smiled, and when she started speaking, her voice was filled with a delicate musical undertone. “From poet to warrior, monster to man, the Eternal Champion loves. From child to warrior to woman combined, the Immortal Slayer cries. Both have been snatched from the cold arms of death. Both have been spurned by false love. Joined for all time in true love, strength, and soul, the union produces the One.”

“Why do I get the feeling that this ‘One’ isn’t a puppy?”

*~*~*

“When do you leave?” Buffy asked quietly snuggled into the arms of her love. She’d woken him early by climbing onto his bed and kissing him awake. She knew the answer to her question already, but she had plans for them and she needed to do this her way, she just hoped he would understand.

“Rupert managed to get us on a direct flight that takes off and lands during the night, so we don’t have to worry about the sunlight problem. Plane leaves at nine o’clock tonight.” He replied carefully, trying to gage her mood. She hadn’t said much about their plans up until now, so he had no idea what she was thinking. He had to admit it was driving him a little nuts.

“And the plan?”

“Anya, Harris, Dru, and I go to Africa. Anya made sure through her contacts that we can get to the village nearest to the cave first off and that they know we’re comin’. Dru and I enter the cave. She goes first so that we can be sure the humans will be safe. When we’ve got her sorted, she can look out for Harris and the demon girl while I take my turn. Then Harris and his bird get us back home. The way we figure it, the guilt is gonna be pretty crippling, so we’ll need them to be able to take care of everything.” Spike kept his voice evenly modulated. He prayed to whoever was listening that she would start talking to him. He didn’t want to push her, but he also didn’t want to be leaving on this particular journey without knowing what she was feeling.

He knew his ability to tell black and white, right from wrong was fine, but all the bloody shades of grey and lesser of two evils were driving him to distraction. He wasn’t about to give up, but he needed more; he felt his in-balance keenly. He wanted to be able to look his girl in the eye and be satisfied that he was worthy of being called a champion…worthy of her.

She just seemed so dammed unapproachable lately. Ever since they’d talked about the claim, truth be known. Giles hadn’t been able to help them and bloody Oxford had only been able to come up with a supposition. Penny had been the one to tell them it was because the first Slayer had been created using a vampire demon, and that Buffy’s slayer side clearly wanted to claim Spike.

That was when she’d started shutting him out.

He tried to tell her that he’d never claim her without her permission and that he knew she wasn’t ready for that type of commitment. He thought at the time that she understood, but now he wasn’t so sure. The trouble was he didn’t know how to fix it; how to get her to talk about it. His girl hated being pushed.

“Spike?” she asked in a small voice, biting her lip in indecision.

“Yeah, pet?” he replied softly, kissing her forehead as he continued to run his fingers through her hair.

“I’ve been thinking,” she started speaking, turning her body so that she could lean on his chest and see his eyes.

“Always a danger in that, pet,” he lightly teased.

“Gee, I guess if you think it’s a danger, I probably shouldn’t tell you what I’ve been thinking about then,” she quipped in return, her eyelashes fluttering innocently.

Alarm bells rang in his head, he was struck by the sudden knowledge that he really really wanted to know what she had been thinking. “Now, now, kitten, let’s not be hasty. You know I always want to hear everything you have to say.”

Buffy smirked at the back-peddling vampire, he was too easy, sometimes.

His hopeful little grin had her biting back a giggle; he really was undeniably cute. “I want to claim you.”

Spike’s eyes slowly got wider and wider, his mouth opened and closed repeatedly. He clearly had something to say but it was as if he wasn’t sure what to say or where to start. He wondered if he had heard her correctly. He wondered if she had caught what ever insanity bug Dru had, maybe the poof was some sort of carrier. Or maybe he’d caught it and it was only manifesting itself now. So…choices? Spike is deaf, Buffy is insane, or Spike is insane. He really wasn’t loving his choices.

“Maybe you should hear my reason before you decide I’m insane or you’re deaf,” Buffy lifted a delicate eyebrow in challenge.

Spike said nothing, just nodded his head cautiously and waited for her to speak.

“First thing - I’m not talking about a mating claim…not yet. Second thing - I really do want this. I love you and my family loves you. We discussed it, and we all want this. Regardless of what happens between us, as in you and me, you’ll always be a part of our family.” Buffy watched as his eyes filled with tears.

“As a family, we want to do it before you go to Africa so that the empty spot you have inside can be filled up and your demon knows we want him, too. We want you to know we’re with you on this fight. That you will never be alone again,” she continued, ignoring his tears. Giving him a cheeky grin, she offered him her own reasons. “Now, I’m all up there with the family reasons, but if I’m honest, I have a couple of other reasons for wanting to do this, too. You’re going to Africa with the woman you loved for a hundred years. Insecure Buffy wants her territory well and truly marked.”

Spike grinned at her through his tears. Dragging her up his body, he kissed her fiercely before uttering his heartfelt words. “God, I love you, woman.”

Buffy preened proudly before realising that they hadn’t covered the other little matter she wanted to discuss. “So, if we’re all with the nakedness and the groin-yness and the biting, how are you going to stop going all ‘grr’ and biting me too?”

And wide-eyed, fish-faced Spike was back.

Spike sat up and carefully moved Buffy so that she was facing him. Taking a calming breath and both her hands, he tried to decipher what she was suggesting. Because he had to admit that he might have missed something after the word nakedness was used.

“Pet, I think were having one of those ‘failure to communicate’ moments here. How ‘bout we go over it again more slowly this time.”

Buffy tilted her head to the side, suddenly unsure that she understood the claiming process as much as she’d thought she had. “Well, for me to claim you, I have to initiate the bite, right?”

Spike nodded his agreement.

“Then how do we make sure that your demon won’t try and complete the claim?”

“I control my demon, pet.”

“Is that some freaky vampire thing? ‘Cause when I get happy, control is the last thing I’m thinking about.”

“Happy?”

“Well, yeah, you know…um, an Anya moment.” Buffy blushed a pretty shade of rouge.

Spike grinned in delight. “Slayer, you don’t actually have sex with a familial claim.”

“Huh?” she pouted in disappointment. “But what if you want to?”

The vampire's eyes grew wide as he chuckled in amusement, “Well then I think that could be arranged,” he said pulling her close, his love shining through his eyes. “And just for the record; I'm nothing like the poof. ‘Happiness' doesn't automatically make someone lose all their senses...or their souls,” he squeaked out the last few words as Buffy used his distraction to bite him over Drusilla’s mark.

She allowed her slayer side to perform the ritual, instinctively knowing that part of her knew what it was doing. She tasted his blood as it slowly filled her mouth and swallowed, aroused by his taste. Emotions swirled through the blood, adding to the experience; awe, respect, admiration, humility and love. Love unlike any she had every known before. Love that spoke of safety, peace, and completion. Love that protected as it warmed and enveloped. Firm pulls were required to satisfy her inner slayer’s need for more. The second time she swallowed her body tingled with anticipation, she could feel him on the edges of her consciousness. The emotions she was experiencing from the blood were now clearer, more defined. His.

Once more she filled her mouth with his blood. Everywhere they touched, their skin tingled. The scent of her arousal filled the air. She could feel his imbalance, his demon and his man, and she could feel the love that all of him felt for her. It was humbling.

“MINE,” she insisted, her voice guttural and fierce.

His eye’s filled with tears as he felt the missing piece replaced. “Yours.”

His demon purred.

As the Slayer tended his neck with delicate licks, Spike held her close and tested out the bond. Buffy came to him immediately, he could sense her satisfaction with the situation and her love for him. Her sister and mother were further away, but he could feel them too. The positive emotion he was getting from them was having a bizarre effect on his demon. The stupid thing was acting like a bloody puppy rolling on his back and waiting for a belly rub. His William side was quietly sobbing and Spike was trying to find some sort of balance between the two of them.

He had never known such joy.

He had easily survived the separation from his vampiric family, but he was under no doubt that he would not survive the separation with his new family.

Soft kisses caressed his neck as she moved to nibble on his ear, grabbing his complete attention. His ardour made its presence known, nudging her hip from its hiding place under the sheets. Unable to wait for her to reach the place he needed her to be; Spike growled as he grabbed her hair and dragged her lips to his; devouring her with his intensity. Her kisses drugged him; need and urgency were replaced with languid wallowing in bone curling action.

Buffy had rarely been in the dominating position in her previous relationships, usually she followed where her partner led. This time was different. Aside from the initial kiss that Spike had instigated, he had allowed her to set their pace. This thrilled and frightened her at the same time.

Silently she straddled him, grabbing each of his hands in hers, she pulled them up above his head, encouraging him to hold onto the firm slats of the headboard. Locking her eyes with his, she slowly unbuttoned her shirt. Her smile was feline in nature when she finally removed it, making him wait, feeling his anticipation through their connection. Leaning into him, she gave his exposed nipple a quick lick and groaned in answer to his soft moan.

Smiling to herself she asked him, “Hmmm, wonder what I should do now?”

“You should bloody well let me touch you,” Spike whined in frustration, her lace covered nipples making his mouth water in need.

Her softly whispered, “What’s stopping you?” was all the invitation he needed.

Her bra was gone before her back touched the bed, his mouth latching on to one nipple as his hand reached for the other. Her senses were overloaded as his licked, nibbled, and suckled one pebbled tip and ran the peak of the other through his fingers, pulling gently, kneading, stroking.

Bolts of pleasure shot straight to her center, a combination of what he was doing and what he was feeling intensified her own levels of arousal. Underneath it all, the softness of their love cushioned and embraced.

The remainder of her clothes disappeared as if by magic. Skin touching skin; velvet passing over cool marble surfaces. Touching, tasting, kisses that cooled over heated skin and touches that brought warmth with them.

Buffy marvelled at the sensations, even without the joining of the claim, she knew that she had never experienced anything like this before. Spike’s touch showed her love that Angel’s never had, his exploration and worship of her body made Riley seem amateurish, and Parker didn’t even deserve to be mentioned. From his gentle embrace, his exploring hands, and his soft kisses, Spike made her body sing. His voice soothed as it enticed, making her bold and adventurous, encouraging her timid explorations with a litany of praise that made her blush and preen at the same time.

Their eyes met and held as he entered her, her heat warming him as he’d never been warmed before. Words seemed insignificant as they moved together in the timeless dance of the ages, the silence intensifying the strength of the bond.

Passion built, higher and higher, threatening to explode. Their coupling became frenzied as they both moved ever closer to the edge. Spike moved his fingers to her clit, gently rubbing in circles that increased in speed until she came, crying his name in exultation. Her own name spilled from her lover’s lips as he followed her over the edge.

*~*~*

Buffy allowed herself to take in the night. He had only been gone a couple of days, but the miss-age factor was still on high alert.

Patrolling was just one of the things that was different with him gone. Summer usually meant a lessoning of demonic activity around the Hellmouth and that had meant that their patrols had been more like moonlight strolls than actual patrols. They had talked about so many different subjects including their personal fantasies and dreams for the future. No mention had been made of the fact that she was mortal and he wasn’t. That she had been living on borrowed time for quite a while now. She didn’t tell him what Tara had told her, even when everything within her screamed to tell him, to ask him, to share with him, anything that would help her reach her decision.

The hardest thing about her decision was not the Spike factor. There was no doubt in her mind that he was the one she would love with her last breath. The question was always going to be - did she want to live forever?

As her mind wandered over the possibilities, she failed to notice the familiar figure that moved to intercept her. By the time the electricity from the tazer hit her, it was too late to do anything at all.

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