I don't really like the flow of this chapter, as I've found it exceedingly difficult to write a good story with a character who can solve everyone's problems by just snapping his fingers.

Chapter 14 - Confrontations

"What do you mean, Willow's missing?" Xander asked. They were gathered in the library at the school.

"We were supposed to go to the mall this afternoon," Buffy explained, "But she never showed up, so I went looking for her. She's not at home, and I can't find her anywhere."

Xander looked away from her, looking distantly into the ether, before responding, "Spike has her."

"Then we need to go save her." Buffy said, moving to the weapon chest, and arming herself with a sword, while Oz and Cordelia armed themselves with crossbows. Giles wasn't there, as he had left to go on a personal spiritual retreat. "Cordelia, go with Oz to get Giles, please, then meet us at Willy's."

Xander was glad that their first reaction wasn't to

expect him to solve everything. "It's not like Spike can hurt her, remember? I chipped him."

"He probably has minions to do his dirty work, and we have no way of knowing if he's found a way to get rid of the chip."

Xander just sighed, knowing there's no way he could get rid of the chip without dying, but spoke anyway. "Then let's go."

Before they could head out, the phone at the desk rang.

"Giles?" Buffy asked.

"Hi, Buffy." The voice on the phone said, which turned out to be her mother, Joyce Summers, "You and Anne still working out?"

"Uh, no, Mom, actually-" Buffy began, before their mom cut her off.

"I was hoping that we could schedule a college talk later tonight. I admit I... overreacted before." Joyce said, referencing an earlier fight they had about Buffy and Anne going to school away from Sunnydale.

"You don't have to go all the way across the country. I, um, picked up some brochures from some nearby schools, okay?" Joyce informed her, talking about college.

"That's great, but now's really not a good time-"

Suddenly a familiar voice came through the phone, and stabbed straight into Buffy's heart. The voice of Spike, who had just entered her house. "Hello, Joyce."

Buffy spun around, terror on her face. "Spike is at our house!"

"Xander can you take us there?" Anne asked

"Of course." He snapped his fingers, and in a flash, he, Anne, and Buffy appeared in front of the summers house. Anne and Buffy ran in as quickly yet as silently as they could. Xander on the other hand, just strolled in comfortably, knowing that Joyce was in no danger.

The twin girls ran into the kitchen, to find Joyce and Spike sitting down across from each other at the table, sipping on tea.

"Um... what?" Anne asked.

"Hello Anne, Buffy." Joyce greeted them with a smile.

"Slayers." Spike said, neutrally.

Buffy grabbed Spike by the throat, pulling him from the chair, and tossing him onto the table, where Anne grabbed his arm, and pinned him down.

"Buffy!" Joyce cried, "Anne, what are you doing?"

"Spike is dangerous." Buffy explained.

"Oh right," Spike said, "Like I could do anything to her, since your boy put this blasted thing in my head."

"It didn't stop you from taking Willow." Anne declared.

"You didn't." Joyce said, looking at Spike with a look of pure motherly disapproval, which caused a rather guilty look to cross Spike's face.

"Where is she?" Came the voice of Angel, who was passing by, when he saw Buffy and Anne throw spike around, then let himself into the house.

"Doesn't work like that, peaches. And when did you become all soul-having again? I thought you outgrew that." He turned his head to face Buffy and Anne, "Your friend's gonna work a little magic for me. She does my spell, I let her go."

"You're not famous for keeping promises, Spike." Anne pointed out.

"Well, you all, and your great poof here wanna tag along, that's fine. But you get in my way, and you kill your friend."

"We'll get her back, mom." Buffy guaranteed, before pulling Spike up from the table. Together, the group left, leaving Joyce Summers behind to worry.

They were passing an alley, when Spike suddenly stopped, and bent over.

"What's wrong?" Buffy asked, "Not that I care."

Spike grabbed the side of his head, "Oh... My head. I think I'm sobering up. It's horrible. Oh, God. I wish I was dead."

"If you close your eyes, and wish real hard..." Xander said, holding out his hand, with his forefinger and middle fingers in a position to snap.

Spike stood straight, "Hey, back off!"

"Would you rather be a jack-in-the-box again?" Xander asked. He would have sworn that the vampire somehow managed to pale slightly.

"We still need him to find Willow." Angel pointed out.

"Fine." Xander commented, not bringing up the point that he already knows where Willow was.

"Need him?" Anne asked, "He's probably just got her locked up in the factory."

"Well, hey, how thick do you think I am?" Spike demanded.

After arriving at the magic shop, Xander rolled his eyes, while Angel provoked Spike, making disparaging comments about Drusilla, and her feelings toward the blonde vampire.

Spike finally spun, and punched Angel in the face, then put his hand to his head, expecting to feel pain from his chip, but nothing happened.

"Hey, I can hurt demons!" He cried.

"Bout time you figured that out." Xander muttered.

He pulled back to swing on Angel again, when Buffy pulled him away, tossing him onto the floor.

"It's your fault, the both of you!" Spike shouted, "She belongs with me. I'm nothing without her."

"That I'll have to agree with." Buffy said. "You're pathetic, you know that? You're not even a loser anymore, you're a shell of a loser."

"Yeah, you're one to talk..." Spike muttered.

"Meaning?" Buffy asked.

"The last time I looked in on you two, you were deliriously in love. Now it's like you can barely look at each other."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Buffy declared.

"Oh yeah, you're so happy."

"That's right." Angel assured him.

"You're obviously not happy. The way you grimace at one another when they aren't looking. You're trying to force love, and it'll kill you both. You're thinking too hard. Love isn't brains, children, it's blood... blood screaming inside you to work its will. You are just missing it."

"I may be love's bitch, but at least I'm man enough to admit it."

The silence could be cut with a knife, as they gathered the rest of the spell ingredients. Finally, they had everything.

"Ok, Spike where is she?" Buffy asked.

"What's your hurry?"

"The hurry is Cordelia's in trouble." Xander declared, "Let's go!"

Xander knew that Oz had smelled Willow's fear, and had tracked it to the factory, where Cordy fell through the crumbling stairs, impaling herself on an iron rod.

He snapped his fingers, and they vanished in a flash, reappearing in front of the factory. Anne, Buffy and Xander ran forward towards the door.

"No, not till she's done my spell!" Spike cried.

Angel swung on him, and instantly they were fighting like their lives depended on it. Moments later, it did, as a group of vampires, stepped out of the shadows.

"Hello, Spike." Said the leading vamp.

"Hello, Lenny." Spike replied. "How ya been?"

"Better since you left. You shoulda stayed gone."

"Stay here," Xander said to Anne and Buffy, "they'll need help, I'll get to Cordy."

He charged into the building, and stopped at the destroyed stairs, leading to the basement. Lying on the floor, under the ruined stairs was Cordelia Chase, a length of rusted rebar stabbing up through her side. Next to her knelt Oz and Willow.

"It's okay, Cordy, I'll fix you." He dropped to the ground next to her, then dropped to his knees. "I'm sorry, but this is going to hurt."

With one strong tug, the rebar slid out from her side, leaving a gaping wound, running blood, and causing her to cry out. Xander pressed two fingers on his left hand to her forehead, and watched as the wound sealed instantly. Then he waved his hand over the wound, removing the blood, and repairing her shirt.

"How do you feel?" He asked.

"Kinda weak." She replied, smiling softly up at him.

"That's to be expected, you've lost a lot of blood, and you've just been impaled. You're fine now, but I'd recommend you get some rest." Xander snapped his fingers, and she vanished, reappearing in her bed at home.

"Let's get out of here." Xander said. One more snap, and the three remaining people were outside the front of the factory, where Buffy, Anne, Angel, and Spike were fighting off the last of the vampire posse.

"I heard you'd gone soft. Sad to see it, man." Said Lenny, as he was fighting Spike.

"Soft?" He asked, throwing a punch to Lenny's face.

"Like baby food."

"Well, then, let's give baby a taste." He said, as he lunged at Lenny, pinning him to the ground, and punching him repeatedly.

"Baby like his supper? Baby like his supper?" Spike asked a moment later, while he repeatedly bounced Lenny's head off the blacktop.

Xander conjured up a stake, and called to Spike.

"Here." He shouted, as he threw it to the blonde vampire, who quickly staked Lenny.

"Why doesn't baby have a nap?" He cried, as the stake pierced Lenny's chest. Spike then leapt to his feet. "Now that was fun."

Buffy and Angel look at him disbelievingly, while Anne just rolls here eyes. "Oh, don't tell me that wasn't fun. Oh, God! It's been so long since I had a decent spot of violence. Really puts things in perspective.

"I'm really glad I came here, you know? I've been all wrongheaded about this. Weeping, crawling, blaming everybody else. I want Dru back, I've just gotta be the man I was, the man she loved. I'm gonna do what I shoulda done in the first place: I'll find her, wherever she is, tie her up, torture her until she likes me again."

He turned and started to stroll away, before turning back one last time. "Love's a funny thing, ya know."

Then he was gone around the corner.

Anne looked around at the group. "Where's Cordelia?"

"She fell through the floor, and was impaled on a rebar." Xander explained, putting his arm around her shoulders.

"Oh my god, is she alright?"

"She's fine. I healed her up, and sent her home, she needs a good nights rest."

As they headed for Oz's van, Xander contemplated the fact that the vampires were sent by the Mayor, and knew he had to do something about it.

-o0o-

The doors to the mayor's office slammed open and in walked a young man with black hair and a Hawaiian shirt that appeared to be moving.

"Well gosh," Said Mayor Richard Wilkins the third, "It seems a little rude to walk in here uninvited."

"You want to talk rude?" Xander demanded, "I think selling your soul is rude. I think creating a town for vampires and demons is rude. I think attempting to sacrifice babies to a demon is rather rude, don't you agree?"

"How do you know about my selling my soul?"

"I know all about you, Richard Wilkins. I'm here to give you one chance. Give up your plans for the ascension, or I will stop you."

"Well, you are just a little firecracker, aren't you? I'll thank you for your advice, and promise to give it a real good think over."

Xander leaned forward onto the mayors desk. "Just remember what happens to those who cross me."

Then he vanished in a flash of light.