Okay, I'm changing the ending. I don't know where it came from either. Boredom, I suppose. This is my first fic, so I reserve the right to mess up and go back and I'll probably do it a couple more times before it's done. Thanks so much for sticking with the story, for the reviews and the honest feedback. I need all the help I can get, heh. Though Jade Stone and Azure K Mello are still kinda starting to scare me. Eep.

The knock at the door sounded like a choir of angels to Spike. It was the sound of salvation, sparing him from any more blurting of painful memories and feelings to Xander Harris. It was bad enough that he all but licked the heels of the Slayer, exposing his soul to her and leaving his heart out where she could stomp it at her leisure, but to go and moan about his issues to the young man...

He shook his head irritably.

As soon as he opened the door, Hurricane Red flew by him and all but threw Xander into his room. He caught a brief glance of wide, surprised eyes before they disappeared around the corner.

In his state, it took him an embarrassingly long time to realize he wasn't alone in the room. Eric hovered in the doorway looking ready to flee on a moment's notice. Spike narrowed his eyes and the young man took a step back.

"I thought we had an agreement. You don't come here and I don't kill you." He said menacingly.

Eric gulped audibly, "Yes, I got that, but Willow wanted to bring me along and I couldn't come up with a reasonable excuse to, well, not. She's a very determined young woman."

"Yes, but you're a very good liar." Spike responded, "You were given an opportunity to stake the place out, pun intended, guilt free and you took it."

The young man turned an almost alarming shade of red, "Vampires can't read minds, can they? I mean, I've never read anything about it..."

Spike smirked, "No, but I happen to have a talent for reading people, and you, well, you're about as easy as the old Dick and Janes." He started to circle the young man, in lazy shark like arcs. Eric looked extremely nervous at treatment and Spike had to suppress the evil chuckle that was just dying to escape.

Much like Eric. The obvious relief on his face when Willow came back into the room did make Spike laugh, and the dark warning glare he got from the witch didn't faze him.

Willow collected the bag she had tossed on the floor before sweeping Xander away and began spreading maps of Sunnydale around on the coffee table.

"Eric's plotted out a few of Dracula's hiding places, but a couple, well, we don't understand how he can get to them."

Eric shifted nervously and quickly positioned himself behind Willow before speaking, "We believe that the whole turning in to mist thing is merely an illusion, so he can't get through any of the blocked tunnels that way."

Spike looked thoughtfully at the places marked out on the map. There were a couple that he'd imagine Vlad would stay in, but most of them seemed to be obvious dead ends. There was a moment of inner conflict, where he wondered whether or not to let the White hats know that they were being sent on a wild goose chase, but somehow, the thought of them all getting out of harm's way while this young moron tries to take down Vlad held a certain appeal.

He adopted a grave expression and nodded thoughtfully, "Oh yes, I can see this one right here as an ideal place for him to hang his cape."

Willow furrowed her brow, "But we left it blocked off during the fight with the Chimera. How would he get in?"

Spike looked sheepish, "Well, there was actually another entrance." He added hastily at Willow's dark look, "Hey, it was back when I was evil, so don't blame me for not telling before. Sides, you got all the Chimera, so no harm done."

"Right," Willow said skeptically, but circled the location on the map. "You're sure this is where he'd go?"

"Of course," he answered, "It's got all the amenities a vamp could wish for, plus access through the tunnels to prime hunting ground." Which was true, even if Vlad was more the type to simply rent out a large mansion or check into a hotel, for the average vamp it was a cozy little nest. Which meant that the group would find enough vampires to keep them occupied.

Eric watched him in mild shock. The young man must have thought he was going to be turned in and didn't know what to make of Spike's continued cooperation. He managed to pull himself together before Willow turned to him.

"What do you think?"

"Well," he answered, still a bit off kilter, though Willow seemed to dismiss it. Probably just thought it was being in the same room as the evil undead issues. "Over the years he's established a fairly specific pattern and if he keeps to it, then that would be the most likely place he'd go."


"I just wish we could figure out what keeps bringing him here every year. It's like clockwork, he shows up, kills a few random people, apparently just feeding, and then leaves a couple of weeks later. There's no mystical correspondences and the only thing happening in town is the annual auction at the Doll Museum." Willow grumbled.

Eric tensed a bit and Spike shot him a warning glare. Eric swallowed and looked away quickly, "I haven't been able to figure it out, either. It's almost like he comes here on holiday. Maybe he's just trying to get away from it all. I mean, what better place for a vampire to summer than on the Hellmouth?" he said.

Spike shrugged, "Could very well be, I suppose. Odd bloke. And very tricky. You'll need some backup..." he offered, a little half-heartedly.

"Well, we'd invite you along on the hunt, but we're leaving while it's still daylight. Hopefully a small element of surprise will help." Willow gathered the maps and stuffed them back in her bag. "Until then I'd appreciate it if you'd keep watching Xander for me." She handed the bag to Eric.

"Will you go put this out in the car for me?"

Eric looked like he was being offered a new car from Bob Barker, "Of course," he answered hurriedly, and started backing out of the apartment, "Er, you will be all right, won't you?" he asked.

Willow waved him off, "Yes, yes, we've explained this before. Good, decent, kitten loving vampire, here."

As soon as he was gone, Willow turned to Spike. She bit her bottom lip and searched for words, "Um, Spike...you haven't noticed anything, um, odd with Xander lately, have you?"

"Odder than usual you mean? I don't think Dracula's got any hold on him, Red." Spike answered.

Willow shook her head, "No, I don't mean buttmonkey odd, I mean, odd in general. He seems, I don't know, off somehow."

"Off?" Spike asked, and tried to keep a neutral expression. Willow clearly wasn't buying it. He tried not to cringe under her scrutiny.

"Yes," she said slowly, and regarded him suspiciously, "He's been kind of withdrawn, lately. And jumpy. I think he may be hiding something." Spike wondered if she was trying some sort of mojo on him, but decided that this was just the full force of something Xander had referred to as 'resolve face'.

"It's not a Dracula's evil bug eating minion secret," she continued, "I think it's something that's affecting him on a personal level. You wouldn't happen to know what it was would you?"

"Me?" he was pretty sure he didn't squeak. Full grown vampires didn't squeak. Or talk to themselves. Clearly he'd been spending too much time around Xander. "Why would I know anything, not that there's anything to know..." And now he was babbling. Brilliant.

Willow quirked an eyebrow, "Um, maybe because you've been rooming with him for a while now and would see him more than the rest of us." She shook her head. "Never mind, Spike. When Xander's ready to talk about it, I'm sure he'll come to me."

She seemed satisfied enough with that reasoning and Spike found himself with the odd desire to let out a sigh of relief. Evil Black Magic Woman Willow would have been preferable than her in this current over protective mode.

He shook his head. He was channeling Xander again. Clearly it was a sign of yet another oncoming apocalypse.

Willow smiled brightly and headed for the door. Spike's inner Victorian gentleman had him escorting her to the door before he even realized it. He was happy he just didn't bow or kiss her hand. It took him years to get rid of his mother's rigorous training, and that terrible mistake he called a soul had brought much of it back.

"Take good care of Xander." Willow ordered.

Spike rolled his eyes, "I already agreed to watch him for you. Don't worry, I won't let any nasties get a hold of him."

She looked like she wanted to roll her own eyes, "Just take care of him." Her face suddenly got dead serious, "Cause if you find out you hurt him, well, I'll have to kill you with my shovel." With that lovely sentiment and a quick bright smile, she took off down the hall, leaving a fairly confused vampire gaping out the doorway.

Spike gathered what was left of his wits and closed and locked the door. He headed into the kitchen and had put a kettle on to boil before remembering that Xander wasn't likely to have anything remotely palatable in the way of tea. Then he mentally smacked himself. Hard.

He sat in the living room and wondered for a moment why it was so quiet in the apartment, before realizing he hadn't bothered to tell Xander he could come out of his room. Well, Xander wouldn't have to know how long it took.

He knocked on the door but didn't get an answer. They hadn't been out there long enough for him to fall back asleep, really. He opened the door a crack and peered in. And blinked.

The window was wide open and there was no Xander anywhere in the room. Spike sighed. Willow was going to kill him.