TITLE: Potential
AUTHOR: BullDogPhilbo
RATING: PG-13
FEEDBACK: See, it's this thing where you read someone else's fic, then you tell the person what you thought of it. The person gets enough good feedback, they keep writing. Everybody wins.
DISCLAIMER: Joss Whedon? Yes. Me? No. Enough said.
DISTRIBUTION: You want it? You can have it. Just let me know where to see it.
SUMMARY: Set during/after 'Restless' (season 4 finale). After helping the Scooby Gang as they defeat Adam, Spike returns home, and makes a startling discovery about himself while dreaming.
SPOILERS: Some season 4, vague season 5.
DEDICATION: To Hilary, for hooking me up with the world of fanfic and allowing me to unleash my creative writing prowess upon all of known civilization. UPDATED DEDICATION: And also for pounding on your screen. Helped a lot.
***
"Nasty sort of fellow. Lucky for you blighters I was here, eh?"
Giles looked down at the demon the blonde vampire had just killed before it could get its hands on the three of them as they lay exhausted on the floor, then looked back up at the vampire. "Yes, thank you. Although your heroism has been slightly muted by the fact that you were helping Adam to start a war that would kill us all."
"You probably just saved us so we wouldn't stake you right here," Xander added.
"Did it work?" Spike asked.
The three of them got up, none of them answering.
"Well, then, everything's alright," Spike answered himself. "And we all get to be not staked through the heart. Good work, team."
As Buffy came through the door on the other side of the room, Riley beside her, Willow glanced at Spike for just a second before walking over to Buffy and hugging her. In the moment that Spike and Willow made eye contact, Spike thought he could see a hint of bright blue light in the witch's eyes. As Willow looked away, the vampire felt a momentary vibration in his head. He shook his head a little to clear it, but it had already stopped, as quickly as it had started. Looking back up, Spike glanced at the witch again as she and Buffy embraced.
***
It was around eleven that night, and Spike was headed back to the crypt, feeling a little disappointed. After leaving the Initiative once he was sure the sun had gone down, he had headed over to Willy's bar for a couple of drinks. The bar was empty except for Willy and Spike himself, which struck Spike as a little strange at first. After thinking about it for a couple of seconds, he imagined the majority of the demon population of Sunnydale must currently be lying dead and dismembered either on the floors of the Initiative or throughout sewers and caves all over town, handiwork of the late Robot Boy. Hell, he was lucky not to be one of them. After leaving Willy's bar, Spike had strolled around town for a couple of hours, looking for a little demon-fighting action, but it was a waste of time. There wasn't a single demon to be found anywhere around town, either. Eventually, Spike decided to head back home and get a little shuteye.
As he walked in through the doorway of his crypt, Spike felt another brief vibration in his head, and stopped for just a moment, before resuming stride and laying on his bed. He fell asleep almost at once.
***
"Spike."
The blonde vampire stirred. He had only heard his name once, but it was loud enough to rouse him from his sleep immediately. Sitting up in bed without thinking about it, Spike blinked a couple of times, then looked toward the doorway, and the sound of the voice he had just heard. He was mildly surprised to see a familiar figure standing there, one he hadn't seen in a while now.
"Dog Boy," Spike said, stretching. "This is a surprise. I thought you ditched the redhead and ran away to join the circus or something."
"Spike," Oz said, walking towards him. "It's been a while." He reached the foot of Spike's bed, and stood there, looking down at the vampire.
"Well?" Spike asked after a couple of moments. "What is it?"
Without speaking, Oz raised an arm, and pointed at Spike's face. Spike heard a weird humming sound, and then the vibration in his head started again. It lasted longer this time, and was stronger. Spike shut his eyes and shook his head. When he opened his eyes again, he was stunned to see that he was standing outside the crypt in the cemetery, and he was fully clothed.
And it was daylight.
***
Spike was about to take off his duster and cover himself with it when he realized he wasn't burning. He looked around him, confused, and saw Oz moving up alongside him.
"It probably takes a little getting used to, I guess," Oz said, standing beside Spike. "Don't worry about it."
"Alright, what the hell's going on?" Spike asked, looking around him. He was tired, disoriented, and he wasn't in the mood for playing games.
"Everything," Oz replied cryptically.
Spike turned back to face Wolf Boy, but he had vanished. Spike spun around, his duster fanning out around his legs, but Oz was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, Spike heard faint music behind him. He looked toward the sound of it, and realized he could see two people sitting on a picnic blanket at the edge of the cemetery, just by the fence, under the shade of a large tree. A small black object that looked like a radio sat on the blanket between them.
Heading over to the two figures, Spike recognized them as he drew near to them. It was the redhead, and her little witch girlfriend. Spike couldn't think of her name off the top of his head. Moving closer to them, he felt a hot burst of sunlight hit the right side of his face, and he instinctively flinched. But again, there was nothing.
He reached the blanket, and looked down at the two girls. Neither of them seemed to notice his arrival. They sat with their legs crossed, facing each other. They each held half of a sandwich in one hand, and were taking small bites out of them. The radio continued to play softly. Spike recognized the song. Free Bird, by Lynyrd Skynyrd. Not bad.
Then, Willow looked up at him. "Hi, Spike," she said, smiling. "Glad you could make it."
"What's going on?" he asked, still a little confused.
"This is Tara," the redhead replied, pointing at the blonde girl. "She's my friend."
Spike noticed the blush that crept up from the blonde girl's neck as she smiled. Tara turned her head up, and looked at Spike. "Hi, Spike," she said softly, still smiling. "I'm glad you came over. I wanted to get the chance to say thank you."
"For what?"
"For helping me out."
Spike looked confused. "With what?" He didn't have the slightest idea what the girl was talking about.
Tara hesitated before answering. "Oh, well, I guess you haven't yet, but you will. It was just something you did for me one time. So thanks." She smiled again, and Spike felt strangely touched. This girl seemed completely genuine, even if he still couldn't understand what she was saying.
"Well, we have to go now," Willow said, standing up. Tara stood up with her. "Our friends are in trouble, and we have to help them."
Spike was surprised to feel concern growing in him. "Who's in trouble?" he asked.
"Never mind," the redhead said. "It's under control."
"We hope," the blonde girl added, as they turned to go.
"Wait."
They turned back to him. "Don't worry about it, Spike," Willow said. "We've got it. Another time, though."
"What do you mean, another time?"
But the witches were already walking away, and he doubted if they even heard him.
Looking back behind him again, Spike saw Oz standing by the crypt.
"By the way," Tara said. Spike turned back to face the witches. "Riley says you can forget about collecting on that eleven pounds."
Spike stared at the blonde girl in confusion. "Huh?"
But they were walking away from him again. Spike stood where he was for a few seconds, then shrugged, and walked back over to where Oz was standing.
"What was that about?" he asked, moving up to him.
"Just something I had to show you," the werewolf replied. "Follow me."
With that, Oz started walking, and Spike followed him after a moment.
***
walked for about ten minutes or so, and Spike tried to make sense of what was happening. For one thing, they hadn't left the cemetery, despite the distance they had walked. Every time Spike looked ahead of him, the edge of the cemetery never looked any closer. Secondly, they were in direct sunlight at every moment. Even when they passed, or even walked under the shade of the trees that dotted the graveyard, that feeling of gentle heat that Spike hadn't forgotten since his brief possession of the ring of Amarra never left, or even faded.
Oz never spoke, and Spike, for reasons he couldn't understand, didn't seem to want to ask him any of the questions that were plaguing his thoughts. For whatever reason he was here, he seemed to be in a perfectly serious mood, and didn't seem at all intimidated by his constant close proximity to Spike. Maybe it was because he knew that Spike wasn't able to harm him due to the chip in his head, but Spike wasn't sure whether Wolf Boy was even aware of that. He couldn't remember if the young guy had been around when Spike was chipped, but if he did know about it, he hadn't mentioned it so far. Content just to walk for the time being, Spike followed Oz as he continued on through the cemetery.
Eventually, they reached a mausoleum, and Oz stopped. Spike stopped just short of him, looking at the mausoleum. He had never seen this place before, and he stalked the grounds around his crypt every night, looking for unfriendlies that wanted to play. Spike looked at Oz uneasily.
Oz smiled. "After you," he said, motioning to the door of the mausoleum with one hand.
Spike looked at the door nervously. "Nah, mate, you can go first."
"Oh, I'm not going in."
Spike looked back at Oz. This was getting stranger by the minute. Oz simply looked back at him, still smiling slightly. Looking back at the door, Spike steeled himself, and opened it, walking into the mausoleum.
***
He had expected to find himself in a deep, dark, dusty room, probably filled with coffins and what not. What he didn't expect was finding himself standing in a kitchen.
Looking around, he noticed that it was nighttime again. Moonlight shone through the curtain covering the window above the sink. The room was dark, and empty except for Spike. It was also strangely familiar. Something tugged at the back of Spike's mind, telling him that he had been in this kitchen before. Still, he couldn't quite remember whose kitchen this was.
When he saw a figure move into the room, however, he figured it out at once.
"The Slayer," he growled.
***
As he watched, Buffy walked over to a knife rack sitting on the a counter, and pulled out a very large and sharp-looking knife. Spike's eyes widened. Did she know he was here? Had she seen him? The room was dark, but he supposed his hair made him stick out like a sore thumb in a dark room like this. Buffy turned around, and the grim look on her face sent a chill up Spike's spine. However, instead of walking towards him as he had feared, she turned again, and walked back out into the hallway, which, Spike noticed, was as dark as the kitchen.
"Hey, Slayer?" he asked nervously.
Buffy didn't seem to hear him. Instead, she just kept walking. She walked slowly, the knife held outwards by her side, and Spike instantly recognized her stance. She was stalking something. Or someone.
As Buffy continued to walk, a door near her suddenly burst open, and a figure walked through it. Spike was stunned when he saw who the figure was.
It was him.
***
Spike was literally speechless and frozen as he watched himself walk right in front of Buffy's path. Reacting, Buffy raised the knife, but then paused as she saw who was in front of her. She let out a breath, and relaxed slightly. Then she said something, but Spike didn't hear it, despite the fact that he was only a couple of feet away from her. He was sure by the way that her mouth moved that it hadn't been just a whisper, but he didn't hear anything. Just as he didn't hear a thing when his mirror image opened his mouth to say something back to her.
That was another strange thing. As if seeing himself come walking through the door wasn't strange enough, Spike now noticed that his double had paid no more attention to his presence than Buffy had in the kitchen. As he watched, Buffy and his double talked to each other, and it was obvious that they had no idea he was standing there. Their mouths moved, but Spike heard nothing. It was as if he was watching television with the sound turned all the way down. Plus, his double had a look on his face that Spike found impossible to interpret. Certainly he never looked like that whenever he spoke to the Slayer, did he?
His double had been holding something in his hand, and as he put it into the pocket of his duster, Buffy looked down at it and said something else, seeming to frown slightly. Before his double could answer though, a giant bug-like creature jumped out at the other Spike, knocking him to the ground. Spike watched on with a wide-eyed stare. Without thinking, he reached down to try and pull the creature off of 'himself', but was stunned even further when his hands appeared to pass right through it, as if it were a ghost.
Or as if he were a ghost.
Spike watched as Buffy tried to look for an opening to attack the creature as it lay on top of his double, but a flailing foot kicked at Buffy's hand, and the knife went flying. Then the creature turned, and launched itself at Buffy. Spike felt his chest tighten slightly, and he ran at the creature again, but again, his hands passed right through it. As Buffy threw the creature off of her, Spike saw movement out of the corner of his eye, and turned to see his double pick up the kitchen knife from where it had landed. His double mouthed the word 'Buffy', and tossed her the knife. She caught it, and the creature once again attacked her, knocking her to the ground. She stabbed at the creature with the knife again and again until it was still.
As Buffy pushed the creature off of her and lay back, Spike was stunned once more by what happened next. His double held out a hand, and Buffy grabbed it as he pulled her to her feet. Spike watched with disbelief. The fact that his double had hung around after the creature had attacked Buffy and seemed to have forgotten all about him was confusing enough for Spike.
*First, I stick around and help her kill a disgusting bug monster when I could have taken off without a hand being laid on me, then I offer her my hand and pull her to her feet?* he thought. *What ridiculous parallel universe am I in, anyway?*
"None," Oz's voice spoke from behind him. As Spike turned, he saw Oz standing in front of him, and he realised he was back in the cemetery again.
***
It was still nighttime, and the cemetery was now cloaked in shadow. Spike looked behind him, but the mausoleum had disappeared. "What the ...?" he began, turning back to face Oz.
"About time you came back," the werewolf overrode him. "I was starting to get bored."
"What are you talking about? I was only in there for a couple of minutes."
"Not for me." Oz was smiling slightly. "From this end, you were gone for hours."
Spike eyed the young guy narrowly. "Alright, what's going on here? I want a bloody explanation."
Oz sighed, and looked at Spike seriously. "Well, fair enough. I guess you deserve one. Sit down." Oz sat down on the grass, and after a moment, Spike joined him.
***
"You see, Spike, you look at me, and you think you're looking at someone you know, but in actual fact, we've never met before. I exist on a different plane from you. I just had to take a human form so you would be able to see and hear me. And I thought taking the form of someone you knew would give me more of a chance of convincing you to listen to me."
"Alright, I'll bite," Spike said. "If you're not Wolf Boy, then who are you?"
"I'm not at liberty to divulge that, Spike. All I can tell you is why I'm here and what I'm supposed to talk to you about."
"Fine," Spike replied indifferently. "Why are you here?"
"I'm here because I was sent here." Oz quickly raised a hand. "Don't bother asking me who sent me here, because I don't know. I answer to higher powers that I never see or hear from directly. The commonly used phrase to describe them is the Powers That Be. They communicate with me, but not in a regular fashion. I get these kind of visions that tell me to visit people and talk to them about their lives."
"About their lives?" Spike sniffed. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm a vampire. I don't live. I'm the bloody undead."
"I sense hostility," Oz said, looking closely at Spike. "Clearly, you're not in the best of moods at the moment, and haven't been so for some time now. Your life has changed drastically in recent times, hasn't it? I imagine that chip in your head has a lot to do with it."
"Yeah, too bloody right," Spike muttered.
"But you see, the thing is, Spike, you need to understand why these things have happened to you. That chip in your head. You may think that all it represents is that a bunch of faceless government agents bugged you so you couldn't do what you were created to do, but, actually, it represents the very important message that the Powers That Be have sent you."
"Oh, yeah?" Spike asked sarcastically, feigning awe and wonder. He wasn't very impressed by this guy's little speech. His voice dropped to its previous bored tone. "And what very important message would that be, then?"
"That there is more to your existence than wandering around at night, grabbing random victims and slurping on their throats."
Spike looked at him.
"The Powers That Be see great potential in you, Spike. They feel that you were meant for so much more than simply being just another number, just another evil, bloodsucking creature of the night. You have the ability to do great things, if you want to. If your desire and your resolve are strong enough, you can lead a much more fulfilling and significant existence than the one you're leading now. It's a path you've already started to become aware of and walk down, ever since you started venting your frustrations on the demon population of Sunnydale. But the Powers That Be called upon me to speed up your awakening a little."
"What's the hurry?" Spike tried his hardest to sound indifferent, but inside, he felt strange.
"The hurry is that the sooner you realize your full potential and accept your original destiny, the bigger an impact you'll have. There are evils on the horizon, Spike. Great evils that threaten to seriously effect the balance of things and maybe even to destroy the entire world as ... well, as you know it. The reason I've been called to you is that you have the ability to play an important role in negating those evils."
"And how do I do that exactly?"
"Well, by continuing with the changes your life has been going through. Specifically, by aligning yourself with the side of good."
Spike looked at him, unable to believe what he had just heard.
"More specifically, by aligning yourself with the people you've been helping recently. The people whose lives you saved from an evil and enraged demon just this very day."
Spike sat there, the message finally dawning on him. "You don't mean -"
"I do," Oz immediately answered him. "The Slayer, and her friends. They're going to need all the help they can get over the coming months. The Slayer especially."
"Why the Slayer especially?"
"Because, Spike, this town has always been Great Evil Central, but the Slayer has seen off the evils this town attracts time and time again. As you can attest to personally, I'm sure."
Spike frowned.
"But soon, Spike, forces will make themselves known in this town that Buffy doesn't have a hope of withstanding at the moment, even with the friends she currently has around her to assist her. Plus, she's about to enter a very difficult part of her life on a personal level. She's got some pretty significant life changes ahead of her to work through."
"Like what?"
"Oh, I haven't the faintest idea. I don't get all the specifics. All I know is that if she's going to have any hope of getting through this next stage of her life without dying or becoming a basket case, she's going to need the help of every single person around her. Yours especially."
"Why me?" Oz was silent for a few moments, and Spike grew frustrated. "Can't you tell me that, either?" he asked, somewhat coldly.
"No, I can't, Spike. Not because I don't know, this time, but because ... you have to discover that for yourself."
The two of them sat in silence for a few minutes. Spike pondered over everything he had been told. Overall, it didn't seem that bad. Maybe siding with the Slayer would be a good thing, in the long run. After all, it had been he himself who had told Adam that she did seem to have this uncanny knack for always winning. And look what had happened since then. The Slayer was still standing, and Adam had been reduced to nothing more than a pile of junk gathering dust on a cold floor. "So, what's next?" he asked finally.
"Next?" Oz looked back up at him. "Well, Spike, what's next is you have a decision to make." He looked seriously at the blonde vampire. "The path that you choose to go down from this point will have great influence on upcoming events, whichever way you decide to go. Should you choose the path that the Powers That Be have designed for you, you will have to make some sacrifices."
"Sacrifices?"
"Yes. Oh, nothing too major. At least not too begin with. But you can forget about trying to get that chip out of your head, for starters. That chip is your link to the path the Powers That Be wish you to choose. The path you have been destined for even since before you were made a vampire. Choose to ignore that path, and you'll lose everything. No second chances. No redemption. Accept it, and you'll be able to do more good than you could ever have imagined possible. And you'll make some truly special friendships along the way that you will grow to consider invaluable."
Spike sat in silence, deep in thought once more.
Oz stood up. "Well, sorry to bail on you so suddenly, Spike, but it's my time to leave now. I've done all I can do for you. And tonight is a special night. There is magic in the air, and there are other people who need my help. The rest is up to you."
And with that, Oz disappeared, and Spike was alone.
***
Spike sat up in bed with a start.
***
The rest of that night, Spike spent sitting just outside Buffy's window, watching her sleep. He had been given a lot to think about, and this seemed to be the perfect place to do it. As a matter of fact, he had an idea that he had already made up his mind, but he didn't want to admit that to himself yet, because he didn't want to move from this spot just yet.
As the night went on, and Spike sat still, looking down at the sleeping Slayer, he began to see her in a way he never would have thought possible. As a friend.
"Goodnight, Buffy," he said softly. "I'll see you tomorrow." Then, he climbed down from the roof outside Buffy's window to the ground, and walked away.
THE END
AUTHOR: BullDogPhilbo
RATING: PG-13
FEEDBACK: See, it's this thing where you read someone else's fic, then you tell the person what you thought of it. The person gets enough good feedback, they keep writing. Everybody wins.
DISCLAIMER: Joss Whedon? Yes. Me? No. Enough said.
DISTRIBUTION: You want it? You can have it. Just let me know where to see it.
SUMMARY: Set during/after 'Restless' (season 4 finale). After helping the Scooby Gang as they defeat Adam, Spike returns home, and makes a startling discovery about himself while dreaming.
SPOILERS: Some season 4, vague season 5.
DEDICATION: To Hilary, for hooking me up with the world of fanfic and allowing me to unleash my creative writing prowess upon all of known civilization. UPDATED DEDICATION: And also for pounding on your screen. Helped a lot.
***
"Nasty sort of fellow. Lucky for you blighters I was here, eh?"
Giles looked down at the demon the blonde vampire had just killed before it could get its hands on the three of them as they lay exhausted on the floor, then looked back up at the vampire. "Yes, thank you. Although your heroism has been slightly muted by the fact that you were helping Adam to start a war that would kill us all."
"You probably just saved us so we wouldn't stake you right here," Xander added.
"Did it work?" Spike asked.
The three of them got up, none of them answering.
"Well, then, everything's alright," Spike answered himself. "And we all get to be not staked through the heart. Good work, team."
As Buffy came through the door on the other side of the room, Riley beside her, Willow glanced at Spike for just a second before walking over to Buffy and hugging her. In the moment that Spike and Willow made eye contact, Spike thought he could see a hint of bright blue light in the witch's eyes. As Willow looked away, the vampire felt a momentary vibration in his head. He shook his head a little to clear it, but it had already stopped, as quickly as it had started. Looking back up, Spike glanced at the witch again as she and Buffy embraced.
***
It was around eleven that night, and Spike was headed back to the crypt, feeling a little disappointed. After leaving the Initiative once he was sure the sun had gone down, he had headed over to Willy's bar for a couple of drinks. The bar was empty except for Willy and Spike himself, which struck Spike as a little strange at first. After thinking about it for a couple of seconds, he imagined the majority of the demon population of Sunnydale must currently be lying dead and dismembered either on the floors of the Initiative or throughout sewers and caves all over town, handiwork of the late Robot Boy. Hell, he was lucky not to be one of them. After leaving Willy's bar, Spike had strolled around town for a couple of hours, looking for a little demon-fighting action, but it was a waste of time. There wasn't a single demon to be found anywhere around town, either. Eventually, Spike decided to head back home and get a little shuteye.
As he walked in through the doorway of his crypt, Spike felt another brief vibration in his head, and stopped for just a moment, before resuming stride and laying on his bed. He fell asleep almost at once.
***
"Spike."
The blonde vampire stirred. He had only heard his name once, but it was loud enough to rouse him from his sleep immediately. Sitting up in bed without thinking about it, Spike blinked a couple of times, then looked toward the doorway, and the sound of the voice he had just heard. He was mildly surprised to see a familiar figure standing there, one he hadn't seen in a while now.
"Dog Boy," Spike said, stretching. "This is a surprise. I thought you ditched the redhead and ran away to join the circus or something."
"Spike," Oz said, walking towards him. "It's been a while." He reached the foot of Spike's bed, and stood there, looking down at the vampire.
"Well?" Spike asked after a couple of moments. "What is it?"
Without speaking, Oz raised an arm, and pointed at Spike's face. Spike heard a weird humming sound, and then the vibration in his head started again. It lasted longer this time, and was stronger. Spike shut his eyes and shook his head. When he opened his eyes again, he was stunned to see that he was standing outside the crypt in the cemetery, and he was fully clothed.
And it was daylight.
***
Spike was about to take off his duster and cover himself with it when he realized he wasn't burning. He looked around him, confused, and saw Oz moving up alongside him.
"It probably takes a little getting used to, I guess," Oz said, standing beside Spike. "Don't worry about it."
"Alright, what the hell's going on?" Spike asked, looking around him. He was tired, disoriented, and he wasn't in the mood for playing games.
"Everything," Oz replied cryptically.
Spike turned back to face Wolf Boy, but he had vanished. Spike spun around, his duster fanning out around his legs, but Oz was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, Spike heard faint music behind him. He looked toward the sound of it, and realized he could see two people sitting on a picnic blanket at the edge of the cemetery, just by the fence, under the shade of a large tree. A small black object that looked like a radio sat on the blanket between them.
Heading over to the two figures, Spike recognized them as he drew near to them. It was the redhead, and her little witch girlfriend. Spike couldn't think of her name off the top of his head. Moving closer to them, he felt a hot burst of sunlight hit the right side of his face, and he instinctively flinched. But again, there was nothing.
He reached the blanket, and looked down at the two girls. Neither of them seemed to notice his arrival. They sat with their legs crossed, facing each other. They each held half of a sandwich in one hand, and were taking small bites out of them. The radio continued to play softly. Spike recognized the song. Free Bird, by Lynyrd Skynyrd. Not bad.
Then, Willow looked up at him. "Hi, Spike," she said, smiling. "Glad you could make it."
"What's going on?" he asked, still a little confused.
"This is Tara," the redhead replied, pointing at the blonde girl. "She's my friend."
Spike noticed the blush that crept up from the blonde girl's neck as she smiled. Tara turned her head up, and looked at Spike. "Hi, Spike," she said softly, still smiling. "I'm glad you came over. I wanted to get the chance to say thank you."
"For what?"
"For helping me out."
Spike looked confused. "With what?" He didn't have the slightest idea what the girl was talking about.
Tara hesitated before answering. "Oh, well, I guess you haven't yet, but you will. It was just something you did for me one time. So thanks." She smiled again, and Spike felt strangely touched. This girl seemed completely genuine, even if he still couldn't understand what she was saying.
"Well, we have to go now," Willow said, standing up. Tara stood up with her. "Our friends are in trouble, and we have to help them."
Spike was surprised to feel concern growing in him. "Who's in trouble?" he asked.
"Never mind," the redhead said. "It's under control."
"We hope," the blonde girl added, as they turned to go.
"Wait."
They turned back to him. "Don't worry about it, Spike," Willow said. "We've got it. Another time, though."
"What do you mean, another time?"
But the witches were already walking away, and he doubted if they even heard him.
Looking back behind him again, Spike saw Oz standing by the crypt.
"By the way," Tara said. Spike turned back to face the witches. "Riley says you can forget about collecting on that eleven pounds."
Spike stared at the blonde girl in confusion. "Huh?"
But they were walking away from him again. Spike stood where he was for a few seconds, then shrugged, and walked back over to where Oz was standing.
"What was that about?" he asked, moving up to him.
"Just something I had to show you," the werewolf replied. "Follow me."
With that, Oz started walking, and Spike followed him after a moment.
***
walked for about ten minutes or so, and Spike tried to make sense of what was happening. For one thing, they hadn't left the cemetery, despite the distance they had walked. Every time Spike looked ahead of him, the edge of the cemetery never looked any closer. Secondly, they were in direct sunlight at every moment. Even when they passed, or even walked under the shade of the trees that dotted the graveyard, that feeling of gentle heat that Spike hadn't forgotten since his brief possession of the ring of Amarra never left, or even faded.
Oz never spoke, and Spike, for reasons he couldn't understand, didn't seem to want to ask him any of the questions that were plaguing his thoughts. For whatever reason he was here, he seemed to be in a perfectly serious mood, and didn't seem at all intimidated by his constant close proximity to Spike. Maybe it was because he knew that Spike wasn't able to harm him due to the chip in his head, but Spike wasn't sure whether Wolf Boy was even aware of that. He couldn't remember if the young guy had been around when Spike was chipped, but if he did know about it, he hadn't mentioned it so far. Content just to walk for the time being, Spike followed Oz as he continued on through the cemetery.
Eventually, they reached a mausoleum, and Oz stopped. Spike stopped just short of him, looking at the mausoleum. He had never seen this place before, and he stalked the grounds around his crypt every night, looking for unfriendlies that wanted to play. Spike looked at Oz uneasily.
Oz smiled. "After you," he said, motioning to the door of the mausoleum with one hand.
Spike looked at the door nervously. "Nah, mate, you can go first."
"Oh, I'm not going in."
Spike looked back at Oz. This was getting stranger by the minute. Oz simply looked back at him, still smiling slightly. Looking back at the door, Spike steeled himself, and opened it, walking into the mausoleum.
***
He had expected to find himself in a deep, dark, dusty room, probably filled with coffins and what not. What he didn't expect was finding himself standing in a kitchen.
Looking around, he noticed that it was nighttime again. Moonlight shone through the curtain covering the window above the sink. The room was dark, and empty except for Spike. It was also strangely familiar. Something tugged at the back of Spike's mind, telling him that he had been in this kitchen before. Still, he couldn't quite remember whose kitchen this was.
When he saw a figure move into the room, however, he figured it out at once.
"The Slayer," he growled.
***
As he watched, Buffy walked over to a knife rack sitting on the a counter, and pulled out a very large and sharp-looking knife. Spike's eyes widened. Did she know he was here? Had she seen him? The room was dark, but he supposed his hair made him stick out like a sore thumb in a dark room like this. Buffy turned around, and the grim look on her face sent a chill up Spike's spine. However, instead of walking towards him as he had feared, she turned again, and walked back out into the hallway, which, Spike noticed, was as dark as the kitchen.
"Hey, Slayer?" he asked nervously.
Buffy didn't seem to hear him. Instead, she just kept walking. She walked slowly, the knife held outwards by her side, and Spike instantly recognized her stance. She was stalking something. Or someone.
As Buffy continued to walk, a door near her suddenly burst open, and a figure walked through it. Spike was stunned when he saw who the figure was.
It was him.
***
Spike was literally speechless and frozen as he watched himself walk right in front of Buffy's path. Reacting, Buffy raised the knife, but then paused as she saw who was in front of her. She let out a breath, and relaxed slightly. Then she said something, but Spike didn't hear it, despite the fact that he was only a couple of feet away from her. He was sure by the way that her mouth moved that it hadn't been just a whisper, but he didn't hear anything. Just as he didn't hear a thing when his mirror image opened his mouth to say something back to her.
That was another strange thing. As if seeing himself come walking through the door wasn't strange enough, Spike now noticed that his double had paid no more attention to his presence than Buffy had in the kitchen. As he watched, Buffy and his double talked to each other, and it was obvious that they had no idea he was standing there. Their mouths moved, but Spike heard nothing. It was as if he was watching television with the sound turned all the way down. Plus, his double had a look on his face that Spike found impossible to interpret. Certainly he never looked like that whenever he spoke to the Slayer, did he?
His double had been holding something in his hand, and as he put it into the pocket of his duster, Buffy looked down at it and said something else, seeming to frown slightly. Before his double could answer though, a giant bug-like creature jumped out at the other Spike, knocking him to the ground. Spike watched on with a wide-eyed stare. Without thinking, he reached down to try and pull the creature off of 'himself', but was stunned even further when his hands appeared to pass right through it, as if it were a ghost.
Or as if he were a ghost.
Spike watched as Buffy tried to look for an opening to attack the creature as it lay on top of his double, but a flailing foot kicked at Buffy's hand, and the knife went flying. Then the creature turned, and launched itself at Buffy. Spike felt his chest tighten slightly, and he ran at the creature again, but again, his hands passed right through it. As Buffy threw the creature off of her, Spike saw movement out of the corner of his eye, and turned to see his double pick up the kitchen knife from where it had landed. His double mouthed the word 'Buffy', and tossed her the knife. She caught it, and the creature once again attacked her, knocking her to the ground. She stabbed at the creature with the knife again and again until it was still.
As Buffy pushed the creature off of her and lay back, Spike was stunned once more by what happened next. His double held out a hand, and Buffy grabbed it as he pulled her to her feet. Spike watched with disbelief. The fact that his double had hung around after the creature had attacked Buffy and seemed to have forgotten all about him was confusing enough for Spike.
*First, I stick around and help her kill a disgusting bug monster when I could have taken off without a hand being laid on me, then I offer her my hand and pull her to her feet?* he thought. *What ridiculous parallel universe am I in, anyway?*
"None," Oz's voice spoke from behind him. As Spike turned, he saw Oz standing in front of him, and he realised he was back in the cemetery again.
***
It was still nighttime, and the cemetery was now cloaked in shadow. Spike looked behind him, but the mausoleum had disappeared. "What the ...?" he began, turning back to face Oz.
"About time you came back," the werewolf overrode him. "I was starting to get bored."
"What are you talking about? I was only in there for a couple of minutes."
"Not for me." Oz was smiling slightly. "From this end, you were gone for hours."
Spike eyed the young guy narrowly. "Alright, what's going on here? I want a bloody explanation."
Oz sighed, and looked at Spike seriously. "Well, fair enough. I guess you deserve one. Sit down." Oz sat down on the grass, and after a moment, Spike joined him.
***
"You see, Spike, you look at me, and you think you're looking at someone you know, but in actual fact, we've never met before. I exist on a different plane from you. I just had to take a human form so you would be able to see and hear me. And I thought taking the form of someone you knew would give me more of a chance of convincing you to listen to me."
"Alright, I'll bite," Spike said. "If you're not Wolf Boy, then who are you?"
"I'm not at liberty to divulge that, Spike. All I can tell you is why I'm here and what I'm supposed to talk to you about."
"Fine," Spike replied indifferently. "Why are you here?"
"I'm here because I was sent here." Oz quickly raised a hand. "Don't bother asking me who sent me here, because I don't know. I answer to higher powers that I never see or hear from directly. The commonly used phrase to describe them is the Powers That Be. They communicate with me, but not in a regular fashion. I get these kind of visions that tell me to visit people and talk to them about their lives."
"About their lives?" Spike sniffed. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm a vampire. I don't live. I'm the bloody undead."
"I sense hostility," Oz said, looking closely at Spike. "Clearly, you're not in the best of moods at the moment, and haven't been so for some time now. Your life has changed drastically in recent times, hasn't it? I imagine that chip in your head has a lot to do with it."
"Yeah, too bloody right," Spike muttered.
"But you see, the thing is, Spike, you need to understand why these things have happened to you. That chip in your head. You may think that all it represents is that a bunch of faceless government agents bugged you so you couldn't do what you were created to do, but, actually, it represents the very important message that the Powers That Be have sent you."
"Oh, yeah?" Spike asked sarcastically, feigning awe and wonder. He wasn't very impressed by this guy's little speech. His voice dropped to its previous bored tone. "And what very important message would that be, then?"
"That there is more to your existence than wandering around at night, grabbing random victims and slurping on their throats."
Spike looked at him.
"The Powers That Be see great potential in you, Spike. They feel that you were meant for so much more than simply being just another number, just another evil, bloodsucking creature of the night. You have the ability to do great things, if you want to. If your desire and your resolve are strong enough, you can lead a much more fulfilling and significant existence than the one you're leading now. It's a path you've already started to become aware of and walk down, ever since you started venting your frustrations on the demon population of Sunnydale. But the Powers That Be called upon me to speed up your awakening a little."
"What's the hurry?" Spike tried his hardest to sound indifferent, but inside, he felt strange.
"The hurry is that the sooner you realize your full potential and accept your original destiny, the bigger an impact you'll have. There are evils on the horizon, Spike. Great evils that threaten to seriously effect the balance of things and maybe even to destroy the entire world as ... well, as you know it. The reason I've been called to you is that you have the ability to play an important role in negating those evils."
"And how do I do that exactly?"
"Well, by continuing with the changes your life has been going through. Specifically, by aligning yourself with the side of good."
Spike looked at him, unable to believe what he had just heard.
"More specifically, by aligning yourself with the people you've been helping recently. The people whose lives you saved from an evil and enraged demon just this very day."
Spike sat there, the message finally dawning on him. "You don't mean -"
"I do," Oz immediately answered him. "The Slayer, and her friends. They're going to need all the help they can get over the coming months. The Slayer especially."
"Why the Slayer especially?"
"Because, Spike, this town has always been Great Evil Central, but the Slayer has seen off the evils this town attracts time and time again. As you can attest to personally, I'm sure."
Spike frowned.
"But soon, Spike, forces will make themselves known in this town that Buffy doesn't have a hope of withstanding at the moment, even with the friends she currently has around her to assist her. Plus, she's about to enter a very difficult part of her life on a personal level. She's got some pretty significant life changes ahead of her to work through."
"Like what?"
"Oh, I haven't the faintest idea. I don't get all the specifics. All I know is that if she's going to have any hope of getting through this next stage of her life without dying or becoming a basket case, she's going to need the help of every single person around her. Yours especially."
"Why me?" Oz was silent for a few moments, and Spike grew frustrated. "Can't you tell me that, either?" he asked, somewhat coldly.
"No, I can't, Spike. Not because I don't know, this time, but because ... you have to discover that for yourself."
The two of them sat in silence for a few minutes. Spike pondered over everything he had been told. Overall, it didn't seem that bad. Maybe siding with the Slayer would be a good thing, in the long run. After all, it had been he himself who had told Adam that she did seem to have this uncanny knack for always winning. And look what had happened since then. The Slayer was still standing, and Adam had been reduced to nothing more than a pile of junk gathering dust on a cold floor. "So, what's next?" he asked finally.
"Next?" Oz looked back up at him. "Well, Spike, what's next is you have a decision to make." He looked seriously at the blonde vampire. "The path that you choose to go down from this point will have great influence on upcoming events, whichever way you decide to go. Should you choose the path that the Powers That Be have designed for you, you will have to make some sacrifices."
"Sacrifices?"
"Yes. Oh, nothing too major. At least not too begin with. But you can forget about trying to get that chip out of your head, for starters. That chip is your link to the path the Powers That Be wish you to choose. The path you have been destined for even since before you were made a vampire. Choose to ignore that path, and you'll lose everything. No second chances. No redemption. Accept it, and you'll be able to do more good than you could ever have imagined possible. And you'll make some truly special friendships along the way that you will grow to consider invaluable."
Spike sat in silence, deep in thought once more.
Oz stood up. "Well, sorry to bail on you so suddenly, Spike, but it's my time to leave now. I've done all I can do for you. And tonight is a special night. There is magic in the air, and there are other people who need my help. The rest is up to you."
And with that, Oz disappeared, and Spike was alone.
***
Spike sat up in bed with a start.
***
The rest of that night, Spike spent sitting just outside Buffy's window, watching her sleep. He had been given a lot to think about, and this seemed to be the perfect place to do it. As a matter of fact, he had an idea that he had already made up his mind, but he didn't want to admit that to himself yet, because he didn't want to move from this spot just yet.
As the night went on, and Spike sat still, looking down at the sleeping Slayer, he began to see her in a way he never would have thought possible. As a friend.
"Goodnight, Buffy," he said softly. "I'll see you tomorrow." Then, he climbed down from the roof outside Buffy's window to the ground, and walked away.
THE END