Shadow

Buffy read the headline for the tenth time that day. Search For Savage Killer Ongoing blared on the front page of the Chicago Tribune. "Impressive find, Sammy."

"Hmm?" Sam grunted, looking up from his directions. "I knew as soon as I saw the headline that it was one of ours. Here's the place."

"You know, I've got to say that when we were with Dad, the three of us did just fine without these costumes," Dean grumbled, tugging on the collar of his jumpsuit.

He and Sam were dressed in jumpsuits from ADT. They were going in posing as repairmen for the alarm company and were going to buzz Buffy in as soon as they were left alone. Dean walked around the car and took out a 'toolkit' out of the trunk.

"You want to pull this off or not?" Sam sighed. He remembered what the standing operating procedure was before he left for school. If the witness was male, Dad sent Buffy to charm any relevant information out of him, if it were female, Dad sent Dean. If it was an authority figure, it was Dad's job, kid or someone shy, it was his job.

"I'm just saying, these outfits cost hard earned money!" Dean huffed.

"Whose?" Sam demanded.

"Ours! You think fraud is easy?" Dean asked, pointedly ignoring Buffy laughing as the two of them walked across the street.

Twenty minutes later Buffy entered the apartment. "So, a killer walks in and out of the apartment, no weapons, prints, anything?" she asked as she walked through the door.

"Yep," Sam confirmed. "This is most certainly one of ours."

"I'm inclined to believe you," Dean said, holding out the EMF he had just turned on. "This is lighting up like a Christmas tree."

"What did you get from the cops?" Sam asked, pulling out a few more items from the toolbox.

"Well, I spoke to a ruggedly handsome officer of the law called Michael," Buffy began.

"And what did you find out?" Sam asked, rolling his eyes.

"That he enjoyed Dean's ass more than my tight, low cut shirt," Buffy laughed.

"And nothing about the case that we didn't already know, except that Meredith's heart was missing," Dean interrupted, ignoring Buffy and Sam's laugh.

"Her heart?" Sam asked, laughter fading.

"Her heart," Dean confirmed.

"So, do we have a theory yet?" Buffy asked.

"The landlady did say it looked like an animal did it. Werewolf?" Dean suggested.

"The lunar cycle's not right," Sam disagreed.

"If it were a creature, there would be some kind of trace, hair or something," Buffy added. "Spirit?"

Dean cocked his head and stared at the blood splatters on the carpet. "Do we have any tape?"

Buffy watched as Dean began to use the tape to make some kind of symbol. "Not to be a pain in the ass, but couldn't you make any shape by connecting the dots?"

Dean didn't answer her, but put the final piece of tape in place. "Does that symbol look familiar to either of you?"

Buffy cocked her head and looked at the floor. It looked like an incomplete figure 8 with a circle in the middle. "I don't think so, You?"

Sam shook his head. "Me either."

It was Dean's idea to go check out the place where the dead Meredith worked. He claimed it was to find clues, but Sam and Buffy knew better. They gave Dean a head start of half an hour while they searched everything they had for the unknown symbol.

Dean looked up at them as they entered and found a table. He joined them a few minutes later. "I talked to the bartender," was his opening remark.

"You get anything, besides her number?" Sam asked, taking out Dad's journal from his computer bag.

"Dude! I am a professional!" Dean protested.

"Picking up women is a professional sport?" Buffy asked in mock confusion.

Sam laughed. "You have no room to talk, Buffy. You're just as bad!"

"Hey!" Dean cried, holding up a napkin. "So I got her number. So what?"

"Why don't you do a little thinking with your upstairs brain, Dean?" Sam suggested. He sighed and picked through the newspaper clippings in the front of the journal.

"Look man, there's nothing here to find out." Dean said in exasperation. "She worked here, waiting tables. Everyone was her friend, said that she was normal. She didn't do or say anything that could be considered weird before she died. What about your end? Find anything about that symbol?"

"Nope, nothing. Dad's journal didn't have anything, and none of the usual books had any leads. We just have to go deeper," Buffy answered, disappointed.

"What about the first victim?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, a man by the name of Ben Swardstrom. Last month he was mutilated the same way as Meredith, doors and windows locked, alarm set, no sign of break-in," Sam confirmed.

"And no connection as of yet," Buffy added as an afterthought.

"So, to recap!" Dean began, a smirk crawling across his face. "The only successful intel we've collected is the bartender's phone number." Sam shook his head in frustration, only to catch sight of someone over Dean's shoulder. "What?"

Sam stood up and walked away. Buffy and Dean got up and followed him. He came to a stop behind a woman with short, cropped blonde hair. Sam reached over and tapped her on the shoulder. "Meg?"

The woman and her companion turned around and looked up at the three Winchesters.

"Sam?" Meg exclaimed standing up and giving Sam a hug, and letting all three get a better look at who she was talking to.

"Spike?" Buffy asked.

"Hello, luv," The man who spoke had platinum blonde hair that was gelled back and plastered to his head. He was dressed in black jeans, a black undershirt and a purple over shirt peaked out under his black duster. His clear blue eyes met her green ones and Buffy's head was flooded with memories.

She was standing facing him, holding a fire axe in her hands. "Do we really need weapons for this?"

"I just like them. They make me feel all manly."

*Flash*

"Look at you, you poor, little lost lamb."

*Flash*

"Angel," she whispered.

"Yeah, it bugs me to see him like that. Another five minutes, though, and Angel will be dead. . . so I forbear. Don't feel bad for Angel, though, he does have something that you don't."

"What's that?"

"Five minutes."

*Flash*

"You do remember you're a vampire, right?"

"We vampires like to talk big. 'I'm going to destroy the world.' It's just tough guy talk. Strutting around with your friends over a pint of blood. Truth is, I like this world. It has dog racing. Manchester United. And you've got people, billions of people walking around like Happy Meals on legs. But then someone comes around with a vision, a plan that might actually work. Angel could do it, and your precious little wold will come to an end."

*Flash*

"What a fantastic day. Birds singin', squirrels makin' lots of rotten little squirrels, the sun beaming down in a nice non-fatal way. It's very exciting. I can't wait to see if I freckle!"

*Flash*

"A bear! You made a bear!"

"I didn't mean to!"

"Undo it! Undo it!"

*Flash

"It's so sudden! I don't know what to say!"

"Say 'yes' and make me the happiest man alive."

"Oh, Spike! Of course it's yes!"

*Flash*

"Lesson the first: A Slayer must always reach for her weapon. I've already got mine."

*Flash*

"Death is on your heels, baby. And sooner or later, it's gonna catch you. And part of you wants it. Not only to stop the fear and uncertainty, but because you're just a little bit in love with it. Death is your art. You make it with your hands day after day. That final gasp, that look of peace. And part of you is desperate to know: What's it like? Where does it lead you? And now you see, that's the secret. Not the punch you didn't throw or the kicks you didn't land. She really wanted it. Every Slayer has a death wish. Even you."

*Flash*

"I can't listen to this! Spike is a monster, okay, and plus you're only fourteen years old!"

"I like hanging out with him, is all. Even if I did have a crush on him, it's not like he would notice, not with you around."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Spike's totally into you. You didn't notice? Buffy, Spike's completely in love with you."

*Flash*

"I love you."

"Oh my god!"

"You're all I think about, dream about. You're in my gut, my throat, I'm drowning in you, Summers, drowning."

*Flash

"Uh, wouldn't bother with the small stuff. Couple of good axes should keep Glory's mates away for a little while while you attack her."

"We're not all going to make it, you know that."

"Yeah. I always figured I'd go down fightin'."

"I'm counting on you, to protect Dawn."

"Till the end of the world, even if it happens to be tonight."

"I'll be a minute."

"Buffy. I know you'll never love me, I know I'm a monster, but you treat me like a man. . . and that's. . . get your stuff, I'll be here."

"Buffy, you alright?" Dean asked, voice full of concern. She shook her head and blinked, turning her attention from Spike to him.

"I'm okay," she said, breathing deeply.

"Oh, my god, Sam! What are you doing here?" Meg asked, not noticing Buffy or Dean at all.

"I'm great, just visiting some friends," Sam said, pointing back to his table.

Meg followed his finger. "Where are they?"

"They're not here yet. What about you, Meg? I thought you were going to California."

Meg nodded, smiling. "I came, I saw, I conquered, and I met what's her name, something Michelle Geller."

"Who?" Sam asked, confused.

"It got boring, so I'm here for a little while," Meg sidestepped.

Dean cleared his throat, trying to get Sam's attention, but he was ignored. "Are you from Chicago?" Sam asked.

"No, Andover, Massachusetts," Meg corrected.

"Sam," Dean said.

Sam looked over and saw Buffy and looked a little green. "You alright."

"I think so," Buffy replied, looking back at Spike.

"Who are you?" Meg asked.

"Oh, sorry. This is my brother, Dean, and my sister, Buffy," Sam introduced.

"Oh, this is Dean?" Meg asked, surprised.

"You've heard of me?" Dean asked, puffing out his chest.

"You bet. I heard all about how you treat your brother like luggage!"

"Excuse me?" Buffy demanded.

"Why don't you let him do what he wants to? Let him off the leash a little?" Meg demanded.

Buffy and Dean exchanged confused looks. "I need a drink. . ." Dean muttered walking to the bar.

"Would you like to dance?" Spike asked, holding out a hand to Buffy.

"Sure," Buffy answered, taking his hand, but keeping her eyes on Sam as Spike walked her to the dance floor. When she looked back at Spike, he had a confused, but pleased look on his face.

He gently placed his hands on Buffy's hips." Why didn't you tell anyone you're back?" Spike asked as the song began.

"Who?" Buffy asked, wrapping her arms around Spike's neck, slipping her fingers under his leather duster.

"Red, the Welp or Niblet. Or even the Poofter. They've been lookin' for you for a while," Spike answered.

"I don't know who you're talking about. You're talking to me as if you know me. I feel as if I should know you, but I have no clue who you are," Buffy said.

"You recognized me, said my name," Spike pointed out.

Buffy stopped moving. "What's my name, Spike?"

"Are you off your bird?"

"Answer the question," Buffy demanded, crossing her arms.

"Buffy Summers, alright! That's your name. Why don't you know your name?" Spike asked, confused.

"Are you working for them?" Buffy asked, getting defensive.

"Who?"

"The people who appeared out of nowhere in California. There were four of them, and they all called me by that name."

"What is your name?" Spike asked slowly, as if he were putting together a puzzle in his head.

"Annabeth Winchester."

"Buffy!" Dean called, making his way over. "Time to go."

"Who the hell was she, Sam?" Dean demanded as they walked out to the car. All were to busy to notice that Dean's Impala wasn't the only classic car in the parking lot. A shiny, well maintained DeSoto sat in the parking space next to Dean's baby.

"I don't really know. I only met her once. Meeting up with her now? I don't know, man, it's weird."

"And was was she saying about me treating you like luggage? You bitching about me to some chick?"

"I'm sorry, Dean. It was after we had that really big fight in Indiana. But that's not the point, just listen. . ."

"Was any of that true?" Dean demanded. "Are we keeping you against your will?"

"No, of course not!" Sam denied. "Now will you listen?"

"What!"

"There's something strange going on here!" Sam insisted.

"You're telling me!" Dean shouted. "And you!" He rounded on Buffy. "Who was that Spike guy!"

Buffy shook her head. "I don't know, but he's important to me, for some reason."

"You don't know?" Dean asked, skeptically.

"Yeah! He's one of the people from my dreams, okay? But that doesn't mean I know why I know him!"

"Do you think he could have anything to do with what's going on here?" Sam asked. "Because none of this is a coincidence!"

Buffy's first instinct was to say 'no', but she stopped herself before she could say anything. Something was nagging at her and she couldn't figure out what it was, why Spike's presence here bothered her so much. "I'm not sure," she decided, after a pause.

"This whole thing bothers me. I meet Meg once on a random Indiana back road, then I meet up with her again at a random bar in Chicago bar, one where a girl, killed by something supernatural, worked? Something's not adding up," Sam insisted.

"Like what? Any ideas?" Buffy asked.

"Do me a favor, would you? Look into a Meg Masters from Andover, Massachusetts. See if anything unusual comes up, like that symbol," Sam asked.

"What are you doing to do?" Dean demanded.

"I'm going to watch Meg," Sam declared.

"You know, stalking's not usually a come on for girls," Buffy teased.

"He's thinking too much with his upstairs brain," Dean mock whispered to Buffy.

"I just want to see what's what," Sam said in his defense.

"All right, you little pervert," Dean smirked, getting into his car, ignoring Sam's reply.

"I swear, I can't look at these books any longer," Dean sighed. "It's not in here. You having any luck?"

Sam had left Buffy and Dean in the hotel room while he 'kept an eye' on Meg. Dean searched on Sam's laptop, while Buffy worked on her own.

"Have you ever heard of the Summers School for the Gifted?" Buffy asked, not looking up from her computer.

"Should I have?" Dean asked, wondering where she was going.

"Spike knew me as Buffy Summers, the same name the red head called be back in Jericho. Dawn, from Indiana, told her friend that she hadn't seen me in two years, and he responded by telling her to have patience, that I didn't know who she was yet. That's not how most people would react. So I looked up Buffy Summers."

"What did you find?" Dean asked, now not liking where this was going.

"She is known as the Head of the Slayer Line, for being the oldest living Slayer, despite the fact that she has been missing for almost three years. Look at the picture, Dean! She could be me!" Buffy insisted.

Dean got up and looked at the picture Buffy was freaking out about. "You know this isn't you. It can't be. This is that freshman cheerleader that burned down Hemery High's gym a month before we left LA."

"These people finding me three times in a year isn't a coincidence, Dean! I've been having dreams about these people for the better part of three years!" Buffy pointed to the people listed on the staff page. Dean recognized Dawn and Xander from the diner in Indiana an Spike from earlier that night. "Willow must've done something, and now she's trying to correct it because whatever she did she messed up! Giles is probably trying to fix it, and . . . ."

"Buffy,"

"You and Sam aren't really my family. Mom's dead, Dad's in Spain, Dawn. . . god! Where's Dawn? Spike's supposed to be taking care of her, what's he doing here?" Buffy started hyperventilating.

"Buffy!"

"What if all this isn't real? What's happening to me?"

"Annabeth!" Dean shouted, grabbing Buffy's arms and gently, but firmly, shaking her. "Calm down. No matter what's going on, you are my sister, and that's all that matters. Not whatever you're trying to convince yourself. Sam and I aren't going anywhere. I promise you!"

It was as if a switch was flipped in Buffy's head. She blinked and relaxed. "Of course you're not going anywhere, why would you?" She closed the web page without another look. "Let's try to find out what's being summoned, shall we?"

Dean stood there, confused. Buffy was acting like she didn't know what had just happened, and he knew that that was unusual, even for her. He shook his head and pulled out his phone. He wasn't going to read another book, if he had any say in it. "Hey, Caleb. I got a question for you."

Caleb called back two hours with the first real piece of information they had gained that night. "It's a demon called a Daeva. The sigil's Zoroastrian, very old school, like two thousand years before Christ."

"Demon of Darkness," Buffy said. "Kinda like demonic pit bulls."

"How did you know that?" Dean asked.

"Training. They have to be summoned, and they're not easy to control. Tend to bite the hand that fed them, among other things," Buffy answered.

"Since you know so much, what do they look like?" Dean asked.

"How would I know? They haven't back on Earth for two thousand years!" Buffy repeated.

Sam was sitting in the Impala, looking into Meg's apartment. Dean had updated him on the situation a few minutes ago by phone. Buffy was beginning to act strange and know things she shouldn't. He wasn't sure what to think.

Meg was getting dressed after a shower, fastening on a bra, followed by a black shirt. She left the window and a few minutes later walked out the front door. Sam quickly ducked so he was lying flat on the front seat of the Impala, not daring to look up until he was sure she was gone.

Sam got out of the car and followed Meg, keeping a block between them, to not let her know he was following her. Ten minutes later he saw her duck into a warehouse. He was on his way in when he saw the car parked in front. It was a beautifully maintained black DeSoto. It looked familiar, but Sam couldn't place it.

He walked into the abandoned warehouse and looked around. The place looked empty, but there was a slight creaking from upstairs, followed by the flicker of the lighting that indicated a candle was the primary source of light. Sam found a elevator and discovered that the shaft was empty. He began to climb up the shaft, holding onto the bars in the wall.

After a twenty minute hike,made longer because he was trying not to alert Meg to his presence, he reached the top. Meg and Buffy's friend Spike were standing in front of an alter. Spike looked board. "This isn't going to work. The Slayer's defeated everything that has gone after her and her family, including Glory," Spike said, flicking his lighter and lighting a cigarette.

"This isn't about the Slayer, though she's supposed to be dead," Meg answered. "Shut up. I have to make a call."

Meg stepped closer to the alter, picking up a bowl. She dipped her finger into the blood that was inside and started muttering to it. Spike rolled his eyes and pushed off the table. He looked to the back of the warehouse and his eyes met Sam's.

Sam inhaled sharply in surprise, expecting Spike to expose him, but to his surprise, Spike didn't act as if he saw him. He turned his attention back to Meg. "So, what's Daddy dearest say?"

"Continue, regardless. Let's go."

Spike nodded his head and tossed his half smoked cigarette on the floor. As he stepped on it, he tilted his head to the alter in an unobtrusive way to the table. Sam watched the two leave and carefully pulled himself out of the elevator shaft and onto the floor. He pushed himself up and carefully made his way to the alter.

The missing hearts from the two victims were sitting on the table, as well as several bowls of blood and other ancient items. The symbol that was on the floor of Meredith's apartment was drawn in blood between two of the bowls.

"What the hell?" Sam asked in confusion.

Sam burst into the motel room, causing Buffy and Dean to turn around. "Dude, I got to talk to you!" Sam and Dean exclaimed.

An hour later all three were caught up with each other. "So, hot little Meg's summoning the Daevas? Sammy's got something for the bad girls! And Buffy's little friend was there too? What's with the bowls again?"

Buffy and Sam rolled their eyes. "She was talking into it, the way witches scry into a crystal ball. She was communicating with something."

"They don't actually use a crystal ball," Buffy corrected. "They use water."

Dean and Sam exchanged looks, and decided to ignore Buffy's statement. "Who was she communicating with? The Daevas?" Dean asked.

"I don't think so. Whoever it was is giving her orders. You said those things were savages. Someone's coming to that warehouse."

"Oh god," Dean exclaimed as he sat down.

"What?" Sam asked.

"I got a call from my 'friend', Michael, at the police department. He gave me the complete records of the people who died. We missed something the first time," Dean answered.

"Like what?" Sam asked, taking the folders Buffy handed him.

"The first victim, the old man. He spent his entire life in Chicago, but he wasn't born here. Look," Buffy said, gesturing to the folder.

"Lawrence, Kansas," Sam read. "Holy shit."

"It gets better. The second victim, Meredith, was adopted. Three guesses where she was from," Dean said, linking his fingers behind his head and swinging his legs onto the table next to the computer.

"Lawrence," Buffy answered.

"Holy shit," Sam repeated. "Lawrence is where the Demon killed Mom. What's the significance of that town? And how do the Daevas fit in?

Buffy shrugged. "I don't know, but I think we should destroy the alter, grab Meg, and have ourselves a little interrogation."

"What about Spike? Sam saw him there," Dean asked.

"Spike's not a part of the demon thing, unless he was forced into it. He's got other things to worry about," Buffy said confidently. "He's on our side with this, trust me."

"We don't want to tip her off, and nabbing Spike would do that," Sam said. "We've got to get in that warehouse and see who is showing up to meet her."

"I'll tell you one thing. I don't want to go into this one alone," Dean said.

Dean called Dad while Buffy and Sam ransacked the Impala for everything they could think of to use against Meg. "I'm worried about you," Sam said, stuffing things into the duffle bag under his arm. "Are you sure you're doing alright? Dean told me about your freak out earlier."

When he glanced at his sister, he didn't see the calming presence that had been there his whole life. He saw someone who was terrified, and trying to convince themselves that everything's going to be fine. Buffy was pale and she was shaking badly, though trying extremely hard not to show it.

"I don't know what's going on," Buffy admitted, "but I do know that somehow, Spike and Meg are involved with it, as well as those people who keep following me. I want to know what it is, so I can find some why to deal with it."

"Alright, fair enough," Sam conceded. "Whatever you're going through, Dean and I will be with you through it all."

"I don't know if I want you there," Buffy admitted. "I don't know if I want to be there. If I find answers, I'm not sure I'm going to like what I've become."

"You get everything?" Dean asked as Sam and Buffy walked back into the room, a bag each over their shoulder.

"We got every useful thing out of that rust bucket we could," Buffy said, throwing her bag on the nearest bed.

"Bite your tongue, heathen!" Dean rebuked her, catching the unloaded gun and the bullets that Sam tossed to him.

"I got every weapon we could think of and books from a half dozen religions, filled with exorcism rituals. I'm not sure what we're up against, so I prepared for everything," Sam said, loading a shotgun of his own.

"Big night," Dean commented.

"Yeah," Sam sighed. "You nervous?"

"Should we be?" Buffy asked.

"I guess not," Sam shrugged. "God, can you imagine what would happen if we actually found the demon?"

"Don't count your chickens before they hatch, Sam," Dean warned.

"Yeah, I know. But what if we did?" Sam asked. "Man, I'd sleep for a month, go back to school, become a person again."

"You want to go back to school?" Buffy asked in a small voice.

"Yeah, once we're done hunting this thing and we've found out what's wrong with you, Buffy," Sam confirmed.

"Huh," Dean sighed. "Great, good for you."

"What's wrong with going back to college?" Sam demanded. "What are you going to do when it's all over?"

"There's nothing wrong with school," Buffy said, "but the hunt is never going to be over. There's always going to be some creepy bastard that wants to ruin someone's life for some reason. I went to college and . . ."

"No, you didn't," Dean corrected.

"No, I didn't," Buffy agreed, shaking her head.

"There's got to be something you both want for yourselves!" Sam insisted, skating over the awkward moment.

"I don't want you to leave the moment this thing is over!" Dean shouted turing to face the wall.

"What is your problem?" Sam asked, confused.

Dean sighed, then turned back to Sam, throwing his arms in the air. "Why do you think we drag you everywhere? Why do you think I went and got you at Stanford in the first place?" Dean demanded.

"Dad and Buffy were in trouble. You wanted help in finding the thing that killed Mom," Sam answered.

"That's part of it, Sammy boy," Buffy said.

"But there's more! You, Dad, Buffy and me. . . I just want us to be together again. I want to be a family again!"

"We are a family, Dean. I'd do anything for the three of you, but things are never going to be the same again."

"They could be," Dean said, petulantly.

"I don't want them to be," Sam answered. "I don't want to live my life like this. When this is all over, you're going to have to let me life my own life." He turned to repack the bag.

Buffy pulled Dean into a tight hug. "I'm not going anywhere if I can hep it."

Sam led them to the warehouse fifteen minutes later. "I saw a ladder on the outside that went up. You two take the elevator shaft and I'll take the ladder," Buffy whispered, and was off before either of the boys could stop her.

Buffy had seen Spike's car outside of the building and thought he might be lurking on the ground level in hopes of running into her. She wasn't surprised when someone grabbed her as soon as her brothers were out of sight.

"Slayer, you've got to be more careful," Spike's British tones whispered in her ear.

"I'm better off than you think I am,' Buffy retorted, pulling out of Spike's grip as she spun around. She pulled a stake out from her waistband and held it out.

"Very good, pet, but that's not the issue here. You and yours are walking into a trap," Spike warned.

"What are you doing here, Spike?" Buffy asked, crossing her arms.

"I was sent by the Niblet to see what happened to the Slayer stationed here. We lost contact a month ago. Turns out she was victim to your demon friend. Got her to brag to me about getting the Winchesters, so I decided to stay and see what would happen. Imagine my surprise when I find out that you're pretending to be one of them."

"I'm not pretending anything. As Dean reminded me, we went to school with Buffy Summers. She was two years behind us," Buffy said. "You need to leave. Go report in and tell them to leave me alone."

"As you wish," Spike replied, lighting a cigarette. He blew a plume of smoke in her face then spun around, leaving the room in a sprint.

Buffy watched him go, then began to pull herself up the ladder, hoping the entire time that it wouldn't break on her.

"So where's your little Daeva friend?" Dean asked, trying to keep Meg busy until Buffy arrived. What was keeping her?

"Around," Meg answered, smiling broadly. "You know, that shotgun's not going to do much good."

"Don't worry. The gun's not for the demon," Dean assured her.

"So, who is it, Meg? Who's meeting you here?" Sam demanded. "Who are you waiting for?"

"You," Meg answered laughing. "and your sister, once she's done talking to that pathetic excuse for a vampire."

A shadow was quickly creeping up the wall toward Sam but he was saved the full attack when Buffy punched it away. She was able to fend off a few blows before the Daeva got the upper hand. She felt talons dig into her flesh then she remembered no more.

"Buffy, you alright?" Dean asked. It was the first thing Buffy heard. Groaning, she looked around. She, Dean, and Sam were tied up to wooden pillars, with Dean in the middle. Each of the boys had blood running down their faces, and Sam was still out of it.

"I think so," she groaned.

Sam started moaning shortly after she gained conscience. He blinked owlishly at the smiling Meg, who was sitting a few yards away. "Don't take this the wrong way, Sam, but your girlfriend, she's a bitch." The taunt didn't change the look on Meg's face.

"This whole thing's a trap," Buffy said.

"Running into you at the bar, following you here, overhearing you. It was all a set up, wasn't it?" Sam accused. Meg laughed. "And the victims from Lawrence?"

"All to draw you in," Meg answered. "Though I didn't expect the Council to show up, even if it was in the form of a pathetic vampire."

"You killed those two people for nothing!" Sam accused.

"Baby, I've killed a lot more for a lot less," Meg said.

"You've got us here, it's Miller time. So why aren't you killing us?" Dean asked.

"You're slow on the uptake, aren't you?" Meg asked rhetorically. "This trap isn't for you."

"It's for Dad," Buffy finished.

"Oh, sweetheart, you're dumber than you look. If Dad was in town, he wouldn't walk into something like this. He's too good," Dean smirked.

"He is very good," Meg agreed. "But like any living thing, he's got a weakness, and his just happens to be the three of you. I happen to know that he's in town, and he'll come to save the three of you. And the Daevas will kill everyone, nice and messy."

"It's going to take more than a shadow to kill Dad," Dean taunted.

"The Daevas are here in the room, invisible. Their shadows are the only part of them you can see," Meg corrected.

"Why are you doing this Meg?" Sam asked.

Buffy didn't hear her reply. She knew that Dean and Sam would keep Meg's attention away from her, as usual, so she could get free. People always underestimated her because she was female, but more often than not it was to her advantage.

"What kind of deal do you have going on here? And with who?" Sam continued.

"I'm doing this for the same reasons you do, for loyalty," Meg answered, walking over to Sam and sitting on his lap.

Buffy watched, keeping an ear on what Meg was saying to her brothers, but concentrating on the knife in her back pocket. If she could reach it and start on the ropes, she could get through fast enough to prevent Meg from raping Sam, something she was getting close to doing.

"Go to hell!" Sam hissed, leaning as far away from Meg as the wooden beam and ropes let him.

"Baby, I'm already there!" Meg whispered, leaning in to kiss Sam's neck.

"Get a room!" Dean muttered as Meg began to talk dirty to Sam, biting his ear and sucking on his neck.

Buffy tugged on her ropes and determined that she had cut through enough. She purposely dropped the knife, which caught Meg's attention. "Sorry, I forgot you were here," Meg taunted, pushing away from Sam and settling herself on Buffy's lap. She leaned forward to see behind Buffy and spotted the knife. "What were you planning on accomplishing?"

"Getting your filthy hands off of my brother," Buffy hissed, pulling the rope apart and punching Meg in the face. Jumping to her feet, Buffy blocked the series of punches Meg swung at her, before kicking her in the stomach.

Sam and Dean managed to cut free by then and Sam ran to the alter. "NO!" Meg shouted as Sam toppled the alter with a great deal of force. An invisible force attacked, dragging Meg out of the window at the other end of the floor, causing her to fall several stories. The Winchesters walked to the window and saw Meg lying on the ground.

"I guess the Daevas don't like being bossed around," Dean observed.

"I guess not," Buffy agreed.

"Hey, Sam?" Dean called.

"Yeah?"

"The next time you want to get laid, try to pick someone who's not buckets of crazy, okay?"

"Why didn't you leave that stuff in the car?" Buffy asked as the three of them approached their motel room.

"I've said it once and I'll say it again, it's better to be safe than sorry. We don't know where the Daevas went," Sam answered exasperatedly.

Dean walked around Sam and opened the door. As soon as he walked in, he noticed a figure in front of the window. "Hey!" The figure turned around and stepped into the light. "Dad?"

"Hey, boys," Dad said, smiling. Dean rushed forward and pulled Dad into a tight hug, trying to pour all his fear, relief, and worry into it. "Hey, Sam. Buffy."

"Hi, Dad," Sam said softly. After spending the better part of a year looking for the man in front of him, Sam was suddenly apprehensive. They had parted on bad terms. Did Dad even want to see him.

"I've missed you Dad," Buffy said, taking her hug after putting her duffle bag on the floor.

"It was a trap, I didn't know," Dean reported. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be, I figured it was," Dad brushed off.

"Were you there?" Buffy asked.

"I got there just in time to see the girl take the swan dive. She was the bad guy, right?" Dad asked.

"Yes, sir," all three children confirmed.

"Good," Dad said. "It's tried to stop me before."

"The demon?" Sam asked.

"It knows I'm close, knows I'm going to kill it. Not banish or exorcise it, actually kill it."

"How?" Dean asked.

"I'm working on it," Dad smiled.

"Let us come with you! Let us help!" Sam insisted, ignoring Dean's warning look.

"No, Sam. Not yet. Just try to understand. This demon's a scary son of a bitch. I don't want any of my children caught in the crossfire, I don't want you hurt," Dad insisted.

"Dad, you don't have to worry about us!" Sam said.

"Yes, he does. We're his children," Buffy said softly.

"Sammy, the last time we saw each other, we had one hell of a fight," Dad said.

"Yes, sir," Sam agreed.

"It's good to see you, son." Dad pulled Sam into a tight hug that Sam returned after a beat. "It's been a long time."

"Too long," Sam agreed.

Then chaos erupted. Dad was flung into the kitchen cabinets across the room. "No!" Dean shouted, before he was attacked himself. Buffy was able to block a few hits, but was quickly overpowered by the Daeva. Sam was beaten back but was able to get to his duffle.

"These things are shadow demons, so let's light them up!" Sam shouted, pulling out a flare and lighting it.

The motel room was suddenly filled with light. Dean helped Dad out and Buffy snagged Sam on her way out of the room.

Fifteen minutes all four were patched up and standing by the Impala. "We don't have much more time. As soon as that flare's out, they'll be back," Sam warned, trying to get Dad to get into the Impala.

"Sam, wait!" Dean said. "Dad, you can't come with us."

"What? Why?" Sam demanded.

"You boys are beat to hell," Dad pleaded.

"We'll be alright," Dean assured him.

"Dean, we should stick together!" Sam implored. "We'll go after those demons. . ."

"Sam! We almost got Dad killed in there! They're not going to stop! They're going to try again, use us to get to Dad. Dad's vulnerable when we're around. He's better off without us," Dean shouted.

"Dad, no!" Sam begged. "After everything, after all the time we spent looking for you, please! I've got to be a part of this fight!"

"And you will be," Buffy assured him. "Just not right now."

"This fight's just beginning," Dad agreed. "And we're all going to have a part to play. For now, you're just going to have to trust me. You've got to let me go." Dad gave each of them one last hug before walking over to his truck. "Take care, boys."

The three of them watched as Dad got in and drove away. They exchanged looks then piled into the car, Buffy and Dean in the front. Dean backed out of the ally and drove off into the night.

"She said what?" Dawn asked.

"She wants to be left alone," Spike repeated.

"We can't do that," Giles said shaking her head. "It's getting close to the time of the prophecy. We need our leader. The time for waiting is over.

"What do you suggest?" Faith demanded.

"We create a spell for her memories to unlock when she sees someone from her past, you," Giles said. "When she sees you, she will remember everything as Buffy Summers."

"I can't believe you! She's been doin' jus' fine on her own, and now you want to control her again?" Spike shouted. "And you lot call her your friend!"

"She needs to knew who she was so she can take her place as head of the Slayer Line!" Willow insisted.

"From what I've heard, it was you that made her be the way she is now. She's happy let her be!" Spike insisted.

"We can't," Giles said, with a note of finality. As he turned his back to everyone, his eyes went black.