TITLE: Forgiveness
DISCLAIMER: Surprisingly enough, I don't own any of this. ME and Joss do. But I can pretend.
THE STORY: Set five years after the end of Season 6. Buffy never heard from Spike again after he left. Now a new danger threatens the world and everything that she has worked for is endangered. Spike and Angel are the only ones that can help.
FEEDBACK: Please. In fact, I'd love some serious reviews on what you think works and what doesn't in my writing.
CHAPTER ONE - THE MORE THINGS CHANGE
Buffy felt pretty damn good as she made her way down the sidewalk towards the town centre.
If she'd been the singing kind, she probably would have burst into song right about now. Oh what a beautiful morning or something like that. Fortunately for the populace, she wasn't the singing kind.
Instead, Buffy silently counted her blessings.
First of all, it was a beautiful spring morning, with the sun shining in a clear blue sky, birds singing, children playing, and all that kind of thing.
Secondly, she had just spoken to Dawn on the phone, and her sister was planning to get way from college life for a while and come stay for the weekend. Buffy still found it hard to accept that her little sister was old enough to be a student at Sunnydale U, but there it was. It wasn't often that Dawn would take the weekend off to come visit, and Buffy couldn't wait to see her again.
Thirdly, she had despatched four vampires last night to meet their maker, which was cause for a good mood in itself. But even more pleasing was the fact that demon activity in Sunnydale at the moment seemed to be down. Maybe she was actually winning the battle.
And finally, she didn't have any work to prepare over the weekend for next week. So she was as free as the proverbial bird.
Life, all round, was pretty sweet. Buffy didn't like to think the thought - well, out loud, as such - but it finally seemed that things were starting to fall into place. It wasn't perfect, of course, but Buffy was old enough now to realise that it never was. It was getting pretty close, though, and after that terrible year when Tara had died five years ago, and everything else she held dear had fallen apart, Buffy thought she was entitled to a little bit of rightness.
As she turned into the street towards the Magic Box, Buffy felt a smile creeping across her face. She considered for a moment, and then decided not to fight it. Let the rest of the world think her mad. She was happy, dammit, and she didn't care who knew.
****
Alison looked around the Magic Box, checking that everything was in order before unlocking the door to the bright Saturday morning outside.
Shelves dusted? Check. Cash register organised? Check. Stock displayed appropriately? Check. Rupert Giles sitting at the table engrossed in an ancient tome? Check.
Satisfied that all was as it should be, Alison crossed to the doors, drawing back the heavy bolt and propping the door open to let in the fresh spring air.
For a while, the peace of the shop was broken only by a few quiet customers, the ringing of sales, and the whisper of the page turning as Giles continued reading.
Then, right on cue, the peace was shattered.
"Good morning, everybody!" A cheery Buffy bounded into the store, smiling in Alison's direction before collapsing in a seat next to Giles. "How are we all on this oh-so-beautiful Saturday day?"
"What?" Giles looked up from his book, that look on his face that Alison had come to know so well, the one that revealed his confusion at finding himself in the Magic Shop instead of whatever strange world he had been reading about. "Oh, good morning Buffy. Is it ten o'clock already?"
"On the dot," Alison confirmed, joining them at the table with a tea tray.
Buffy watched with pleasure as the familiar Saturday morning ritual unfolded - the judicious trickle of just the right amount of milk into the enormous blue mugs, the careful pouring of the tea through the tea-strainer, the steady stirring in of sugar for herself and Alison, and finally the ceremonious handing over of the mug. She enjoyed the ritual more than the tea itself, truth be told, but it had become a Saturday morning tradition since Alison had moved to Sunnydale, into the Magic Shop, and into their lives two years ago. Buffy wouldn't have forgone it for the world.
Buffy liked Alison. She was a petite, pretty, dark-haired woman, in her mid-thirties, who Buffy had decided was perfect for both the Magic Box, and for Giles. Since moving to Sunnydale after the death of her husband, she had been a most knowledgeable assistant in the shop and a fine addition to the Scoobies. With a smattering of magic knowledge and a calm, level head, Alison had proved perfect in any way. Buffy was pleased to note that Giles seemed to think so as well, in his own quiet, diffident way.
It was hard to imagine a time before Alison.
"Thank you, Alison," Giles murmured, taking his mug without looking up. He was still engrossed in his book, and Buffy felt a dark foreboding that threatened the sunny day. Usually, Giles would push aside whatever book he was reading or accounts he was studying while they drank their tea, in order to talk with her about the latest danger in Sunnydale and make plans for the week ahead. It was a time that Buffy thoroughly enjoyed, reporting on her latest slayings, and watching Giles and Alison pretend not to watch each other.
Today, however, Giles didn't seem able to tear his attention away from the book.
"Watcha reading, Watcher?" she asked flippantly, hiding her sudden fear.
"Oh, nothing - nothing." Giles seemed to become aware of her gaze, quickly shutting the book, but keeping a hand resting on it as though he couldn't bear to lose contact. "Nothing for you to worry about, Buffy."
"Giles. I have known you for ten long years. I can tell that there's something," Buffy told him. "Glasses are being polished. The little crease is appearing in the forehead. And the clincher - tea is being ignored. Something must be muchos wrongus. So, spill."
Giles gave a wry chuckle. She did know him far too well for him to hope to hide anything. He replaced his glasses and leaned back in his chair.
"I've been picking up the portents for a few months now," he admitted, rubbing the worry line in his forehead wearily. "The most recent was last night, I'm afraid. It proved conclusively that the Hellioan prophecy is coming to pass."
Buffy sighed gustily in exaggerated exasperation. "And what, exactly, is the Hellie-whatever prophecy?"
"Well, it's an extremely old prophecy from a religious cult in the time of ancient Greece," Giles began. "It's unusual in being very specific. It refers to a number of signs - eclipses, weather patterns, and so on. Last night's sign was a particular and rare pattern of celestial alignment. The final sign it describes is an earthquake, and then it details that the time has come for the old ones to reclaim the earth."
Buffy frowned, wondering why Giles was so worried. "Come on Giles, it's not as though we've never heard that one before. Return of the Apocalypse. Apocalypse Now, Again. Part 2. We defeat it, save the world again, keep it a secret, and wait for next year's 'end of the world'. What's the big?"
"Buffy, I've never seen a prophecy as detailed and exact as this one," Giles said. He closed the volume with a slam. "And it's the very last prophecy recorded by this cult. As though - there was no more to record of the future after this one was fulfilled." He paused for a moment before continuing. "Also, it refers to an important role played by a certain group of vampires. One that we know fairly well." He looked at Buffy. "The Order of Aurelius."
"Aurelius? Are you sure?"
"Of course I'm sure." Irritably, Giles opened the book. "Roughly translated, it says:
"On the night of the full moon the earth shall shake with fear.
The old ones shall return to the earth
Back to the beginning
Back where they belong.
Brought back by the leader of Aurelius
To claim what was theirs.
And the earth shall no longer be home to mankind.
Only if the Empress of Night-time leads the way
Only if the three of sadness come together
Only if the two hands guide the shade
Will the doorway remain closed.
"Ok, so definitely Aurelius," said Buffy grudgingly. "So why don't we just call Angel, get the inside scoop?"
"I've already spoken with Angel," Giles replied, and Buffy was silenced for a moment. It still bothered her that Angel had more contact with Giles these days than with her.
"Right. So, um, what did he say?"
"He couldn't help," Giles admitted. "He's not exactly kept in the loop, he says. He did have another idea though." Giles paused again, removing his glasses for a quick polish. He looked up at Buffy, then returned his attention to his cleaning.
Buffy waited, eyebrows raised. Giles sighed and replaced his glasses.
"He suggested we ask Spike."
Spike ....
Buffy froze. Against her will, memories swirled around her, and long-forgotten emotions washed over her - anger, frustration, disgust, fear, hate. She swallowed hard, forcing down the memories of that terrible time five years ago, when she had been trying to cope with her own return from the dead, with creating a home for Dawn without her mother, with Giles' absence, with Spike's attack and departure, with Tara's death, and with Willow's horrific descent into dark magicks. After a few seconds, she felt the world stop spinning and settle back into place around her.
"Ask who?" she finally asked, her voice hard. To her ears, it seemed to come from a long time ago.
"Ask Spike, Buffy," Giles said calmly. He met Buffy's eyes steadily and they regarded each other silently for a moment. An understanding borne of their years of friendship and regard passed between them, and Buffy gave a slight nod, accepting that Giles had good reason for bringing up the name of Spike.
"Why would Spike help? We don't even know where he is -" She caught a glint in Giles' eyes. "You know where he is, don't you?"
"Yes, I do," Giles admitted. "I've known for about two years. I wasn't going to tell you unless you asked me. But I feel that it's necessary now."
Unable to sit still any longer, Buffy surged to her feet, pacing the room.
Spike.
Even now, she felt a wave of nausea when she thought about him. Logically, she knew that the feeling wasn't just due to him, but just as much to everything else that had been happening at that time. But it was just easier to blame Spike. It always was.
For a while, she had expected him to return, as they all tried to get their lives together after that awful year. It had taken a long time, but recently Buffy had begun to feel as though they had all moved on, and had created a life for themselves that had left the darkness behind. Now, in a simple sentence, Giles was threatening a peace that she had not realised was so fragile.
A frown marred Buffy's brow as she thought back over the past five years, following Tara's tragic death and Willow's attempt to avenge her and end the world.
Willow had spent some time in England with Giles, recovering from both the physical and psychological effects of what she had done. To this day, Buffy still had no idea how Giles had dealt with the authorities in the aftermath of Warren's murder and Willow's attack on the police station, and she would never ask. Willow had returned after a year, a pale, quiet girl who was only now beginning to show flashes of the old Willow's personality. Her time with the witches' coven had taught her to control the magic that was an inextricable part of her, and she spent part of each day in meditation, as well as keeping in constant contact with the coven. She still lived with Buffy, working as a computer freelancer and paying much needed rent to supplement Buffy's meagre income.
Xander and Anya had spent the next six months ignoring each other, then trading verbal snipes, before settling into an uneasy friendship. Eventually, however, Anya had started to see someone else, and Xander had been devastated. It was only after Anya had left Sunnydale with her new boyfriend that Buffy had started to see a return to the funny, thoughtful boy she had known at school.
As for Dawn - Buffy had no idea what she would have done without her little sister. Dawn had proved a tower of strength, helping Buffy out as much as she could, working hard at school, convincing the social workers that she was best staying in Sunnydale with her sister.
Giles had also been a rock to cling to. He had returned with Willow from England, taking back his old role at the Magic Shop and in Buffy's life. Buffy had managed to finish a teaching degree by correspondence course and finally leave the fast food industry, securing a job at Sunnydale Junior School teaching seven year olds.
Spike had been pushed back into the farthest recesses of her mind, and when Buffy did think about him, she found that she assumed he was dead.
And now, Giles was forcing him back into her mind, back into her life ...
Turning back to Giles, Buffy studied him for a moment. He was watching her calmly enough, although she could detect a slight tension in the way he sat.
"So why do you think Spike would help us?" Buffy asked.
"Angel seems to think he would," Giles replied, but Buffy got the feeling he was holding back on her.
"And why would Angel think that?" she continued to prod.
Giles sighed, removing his glasses again. "Buffy - it's not really my story to tell. I think - I think we should go to Los Angeles. See Angel. See Spike. Decide what the best course of action is."
Buffy frowned. Why was Giles being so secretive? What did he mean, it wasn't his story to tell? She debated pushing further, trying to get Giles to spill, then abruptly decided against it. If this was the way he wanted to do it, then she would go along with it.
"Fine then. Let's go."
Giles looked at her in surprise. "Now? You want to go now?"
"No time like the present!" Buffy said cheerfully. "I've got the car here, all full of fuel, ready to go. You call Angel and let him know we're on our way. I'll call Willow and let her know I won't be back till tonight. And we'll hit the road."
"Well." Giles turned to Alison who had been watching them silently, sipping her tea. "Will you be all right to hold the fort here?"
"Of course."
"Well. Well then. Yes, let's go now. I'll meet you at the car in five minutes, shall I Buffy?"
"Five minutes," Buffy confirmed, pulling her cell phone from her bag as Giles headed out to the private office to ring Angel.
TBC
DISCLAIMER: Surprisingly enough, I don't own any of this. ME and Joss do. But I can pretend.
THE STORY: Set five years after the end of Season 6. Buffy never heard from Spike again after he left. Now a new danger threatens the world and everything that she has worked for is endangered. Spike and Angel are the only ones that can help.
FEEDBACK: Please. In fact, I'd love some serious reviews on what you think works and what doesn't in my writing.
CHAPTER ONE - THE MORE THINGS CHANGE
Buffy felt pretty damn good as she made her way down the sidewalk towards the town centre.
If she'd been the singing kind, she probably would have burst into song right about now. Oh what a beautiful morning or something like that. Fortunately for the populace, she wasn't the singing kind.
Instead, Buffy silently counted her blessings.
First of all, it was a beautiful spring morning, with the sun shining in a clear blue sky, birds singing, children playing, and all that kind of thing.
Secondly, she had just spoken to Dawn on the phone, and her sister was planning to get way from college life for a while and come stay for the weekend. Buffy still found it hard to accept that her little sister was old enough to be a student at Sunnydale U, but there it was. It wasn't often that Dawn would take the weekend off to come visit, and Buffy couldn't wait to see her again.
Thirdly, she had despatched four vampires last night to meet their maker, which was cause for a good mood in itself. But even more pleasing was the fact that demon activity in Sunnydale at the moment seemed to be down. Maybe she was actually winning the battle.
And finally, she didn't have any work to prepare over the weekend for next week. So she was as free as the proverbial bird.
Life, all round, was pretty sweet. Buffy didn't like to think the thought - well, out loud, as such - but it finally seemed that things were starting to fall into place. It wasn't perfect, of course, but Buffy was old enough now to realise that it never was. It was getting pretty close, though, and after that terrible year when Tara had died five years ago, and everything else she held dear had fallen apart, Buffy thought she was entitled to a little bit of rightness.
As she turned into the street towards the Magic Box, Buffy felt a smile creeping across her face. She considered for a moment, and then decided not to fight it. Let the rest of the world think her mad. She was happy, dammit, and she didn't care who knew.
****
Alison looked around the Magic Box, checking that everything was in order before unlocking the door to the bright Saturday morning outside.
Shelves dusted? Check. Cash register organised? Check. Stock displayed appropriately? Check. Rupert Giles sitting at the table engrossed in an ancient tome? Check.
Satisfied that all was as it should be, Alison crossed to the doors, drawing back the heavy bolt and propping the door open to let in the fresh spring air.
For a while, the peace of the shop was broken only by a few quiet customers, the ringing of sales, and the whisper of the page turning as Giles continued reading.
Then, right on cue, the peace was shattered.
"Good morning, everybody!" A cheery Buffy bounded into the store, smiling in Alison's direction before collapsing in a seat next to Giles. "How are we all on this oh-so-beautiful Saturday day?"
"What?" Giles looked up from his book, that look on his face that Alison had come to know so well, the one that revealed his confusion at finding himself in the Magic Shop instead of whatever strange world he had been reading about. "Oh, good morning Buffy. Is it ten o'clock already?"
"On the dot," Alison confirmed, joining them at the table with a tea tray.
Buffy watched with pleasure as the familiar Saturday morning ritual unfolded - the judicious trickle of just the right amount of milk into the enormous blue mugs, the careful pouring of the tea through the tea-strainer, the steady stirring in of sugar for herself and Alison, and finally the ceremonious handing over of the mug. She enjoyed the ritual more than the tea itself, truth be told, but it had become a Saturday morning tradition since Alison had moved to Sunnydale, into the Magic Shop, and into their lives two years ago. Buffy wouldn't have forgone it for the world.
Buffy liked Alison. She was a petite, pretty, dark-haired woman, in her mid-thirties, who Buffy had decided was perfect for both the Magic Box, and for Giles. Since moving to Sunnydale after the death of her husband, she had been a most knowledgeable assistant in the shop and a fine addition to the Scoobies. With a smattering of magic knowledge and a calm, level head, Alison had proved perfect in any way. Buffy was pleased to note that Giles seemed to think so as well, in his own quiet, diffident way.
It was hard to imagine a time before Alison.
"Thank you, Alison," Giles murmured, taking his mug without looking up. He was still engrossed in his book, and Buffy felt a dark foreboding that threatened the sunny day. Usually, Giles would push aside whatever book he was reading or accounts he was studying while they drank their tea, in order to talk with her about the latest danger in Sunnydale and make plans for the week ahead. It was a time that Buffy thoroughly enjoyed, reporting on her latest slayings, and watching Giles and Alison pretend not to watch each other.
Today, however, Giles didn't seem able to tear his attention away from the book.
"Watcha reading, Watcher?" she asked flippantly, hiding her sudden fear.
"Oh, nothing - nothing." Giles seemed to become aware of her gaze, quickly shutting the book, but keeping a hand resting on it as though he couldn't bear to lose contact. "Nothing for you to worry about, Buffy."
"Giles. I have known you for ten long years. I can tell that there's something," Buffy told him. "Glasses are being polished. The little crease is appearing in the forehead. And the clincher - tea is being ignored. Something must be muchos wrongus. So, spill."
Giles gave a wry chuckle. She did know him far too well for him to hope to hide anything. He replaced his glasses and leaned back in his chair.
"I've been picking up the portents for a few months now," he admitted, rubbing the worry line in his forehead wearily. "The most recent was last night, I'm afraid. It proved conclusively that the Hellioan prophecy is coming to pass."
Buffy sighed gustily in exaggerated exasperation. "And what, exactly, is the Hellie-whatever prophecy?"
"Well, it's an extremely old prophecy from a religious cult in the time of ancient Greece," Giles began. "It's unusual in being very specific. It refers to a number of signs - eclipses, weather patterns, and so on. Last night's sign was a particular and rare pattern of celestial alignment. The final sign it describes is an earthquake, and then it details that the time has come for the old ones to reclaim the earth."
Buffy frowned, wondering why Giles was so worried. "Come on Giles, it's not as though we've never heard that one before. Return of the Apocalypse. Apocalypse Now, Again. Part 2. We defeat it, save the world again, keep it a secret, and wait for next year's 'end of the world'. What's the big?"
"Buffy, I've never seen a prophecy as detailed and exact as this one," Giles said. He closed the volume with a slam. "And it's the very last prophecy recorded by this cult. As though - there was no more to record of the future after this one was fulfilled." He paused for a moment before continuing. "Also, it refers to an important role played by a certain group of vampires. One that we know fairly well." He looked at Buffy. "The Order of Aurelius."
"Aurelius? Are you sure?"
"Of course I'm sure." Irritably, Giles opened the book. "Roughly translated, it says:
"On the night of the full moon the earth shall shake with fear.
The old ones shall return to the earth
Back to the beginning
Back where they belong.
Brought back by the leader of Aurelius
To claim what was theirs.
And the earth shall no longer be home to mankind.
Only if the Empress of Night-time leads the way
Only if the three of sadness come together
Only if the two hands guide the shade
Will the doorway remain closed.
"Ok, so definitely Aurelius," said Buffy grudgingly. "So why don't we just call Angel, get the inside scoop?"
"I've already spoken with Angel," Giles replied, and Buffy was silenced for a moment. It still bothered her that Angel had more contact with Giles these days than with her.
"Right. So, um, what did he say?"
"He couldn't help," Giles admitted. "He's not exactly kept in the loop, he says. He did have another idea though." Giles paused again, removing his glasses for a quick polish. He looked up at Buffy, then returned his attention to his cleaning.
Buffy waited, eyebrows raised. Giles sighed and replaced his glasses.
"He suggested we ask Spike."
Spike ....
Buffy froze. Against her will, memories swirled around her, and long-forgotten emotions washed over her - anger, frustration, disgust, fear, hate. She swallowed hard, forcing down the memories of that terrible time five years ago, when she had been trying to cope with her own return from the dead, with creating a home for Dawn without her mother, with Giles' absence, with Spike's attack and departure, with Tara's death, and with Willow's horrific descent into dark magicks. After a few seconds, she felt the world stop spinning and settle back into place around her.
"Ask who?" she finally asked, her voice hard. To her ears, it seemed to come from a long time ago.
"Ask Spike, Buffy," Giles said calmly. He met Buffy's eyes steadily and they regarded each other silently for a moment. An understanding borne of their years of friendship and regard passed between them, and Buffy gave a slight nod, accepting that Giles had good reason for bringing up the name of Spike.
"Why would Spike help? We don't even know where he is -" She caught a glint in Giles' eyes. "You know where he is, don't you?"
"Yes, I do," Giles admitted. "I've known for about two years. I wasn't going to tell you unless you asked me. But I feel that it's necessary now."
Unable to sit still any longer, Buffy surged to her feet, pacing the room.
Spike.
Even now, she felt a wave of nausea when she thought about him. Logically, she knew that the feeling wasn't just due to him, but just as much to everything else that had been happening at that time. But it was just easier to blame Spike. It always was.
For a while, she had expected him to return, as they all tried to get their lives together after that awful year. It had taken a long time, but recently Buffy had begun to feel as though they had all moved on, and had created a life for themselves that had left the darkness behind. Now, in a simple sentence, Giles was threatening a peace that she had not realised was so fragile.
A frown marred Buffy's brow as she thought back over the past five years, following Tara's tragic death and Willow's attempt to avenge her and end the world.
Willow had spent some time in England with Giles, recovering from both the physical and psychological effects of what she had done. To this day, Buffy still had no idea how Giles had dealt with the authorities in the aftermath of Warren's murder and Willow's attack on the police station, and she would never ask. Willow had returned after a year, a pale, quiet girl who was only now beginning to show flashes of the old Willow's personality. Her time with the witches' coven had taught her to control the magic that was an inextricable part of her, and she spent part of each day in meditation, as well as keeping in constant contact with the coven. She still lived with Buffy, working as a computer freelancer and paying much needed rent to supplement Buffy's meagre income.
Xander and Anya had spent the next six months ignoring each other, then trading verbal snipes, before settling into an uneasy friendship. Eventually, however, Anya had started to see someone else, and Xander had been devastated. It was only after Anya had left Sunnydale with her new boyfriend that Buffy had started to see a return to the funny, thoughtful boy she had known at school.
As for Dawn - Buffy had no idea what she would have done without her little sister. Dawn had proved a tower of strength, helping Buffy out as much as she could, working hard at school, convincing the social workers that she was best staying in Sunnydale with her sister.
Giles had also been a rock to cling to. He had returned with Willow from England, taking back his old role at the Magic Shop and in Buffy's life. Buffy had managed to finish a teaching degree by correspondence course and finally leave the fast food industry, securing a job at Sunnydale Junior School teaching seven year olds.
Spike had been pushed back into the farthest recesses of her mind, and when Buffy did think about him, she found that she assumed he was dead.
And now, Giles was forcing him back into her mind, back into her life ...
Turning back to Giles, Buffy studied him for a moment. He was watching her calmly enough, although she could detect a slight tension in the way he sat.
"So why do you think Spike would help us?" Buffy asked.
"Angel seems to think he would," Giles replied, but Buffy got the feeling he was holding back on her.
"And why would Angel think that?" she continued to prod.
Giles sighed, removing his glasses again. "Buffy - it's not really my story to tell. I think - I think we should go to Los Angeles. See Angel. See Spike. Decide what the best course of action is."
Buffy frowned. Why was Giles being so secretive? What did he mean, it wasn't his story to tell? She debated pushing further, trying to get Giles to spill, then abruptly decided against it. If this was the way he wanted to do it, then she would go along with it.
"Fine then. Let's go."
Giles looked at her in surprise. "Now? You want to go now?"
"No time like the present!" Buffy said cheerfully. "I've got the car here, all full of fuel, ready to go. You call Angel and let him know we're on our way. I'll call Willow and let her know I won't be back till tonight. And we'll hit the road."
"Well." Giles turned to Alison who had been watching them silently, sipping her tea. "Will you be all right to hold the fort here?"
"Of course."
"Well. Well then. Yes, let's go now. I'll meet you at the car in five minutes, shall I Buffy?"
"Five minutes," Buffy confirmed, pulling her cell phone from her bag as Giles headed out to the private office to ring Angel.
TBC