Problems and Plans

"I don't know what's wrong with you; what kind of nonsense you're trying to pull, and I don't care. I want you to hand Faith over right now, do I make myself clear?"

There was a pause as everyone took a moment to process what Travers had said. Everyone in the group looked round at everyone else.

"Faith?" questioned Willow, finally.

"Wait, what?" said Buffy.

Travers looked as though he was going to speak again but he was preemptively cut off by Spike releasing a deep sigh of relief and saying, "You took yer bloody time on that one, didn't you?"

Buffy looked between Spike and Travers a couple of times before voicing her conclusion to the latter: "You think we've got Faith here, and you've come to pick her up?"

Travers got the strong impression this was more than just mind games, and he was genuinely missing something. It didn't sit well with him at all.

"Now look here," he began again, "Rupert contacted me some time ago to say Faith was in the area."

In an instant, all eyes shifted to Giles.

"Well, yes, er," he mumbled, taking off his glasses so he could massage his temples, "As you say, that was some time ago. I'm quite afraid she's moved on since then."

"You called him?!" Buffy balked, at the same time that Travers blustered, "You let her go?!"

In the next moment, Dawn descended the stairs to inform everyone they were being too loud and that she couldn't sleep. Spike swept her up in his arms, but before he could whisk her away back to her bedroom, Travers had stepped forward and said, "Ah, so this must be Dawn."

More looks were shared across the hallway, in every direction, as the group wondered what the top watcher knew about the girl and her origin.

Another step towards her and she held closer to Spike before stating, "I don't like you. You make mommy and daddy nervous."

Travers' eyes narrowed on her, before he looked back around at Buffy.

"I see you taught her the same level of respect you've always shown."

"How dare-" Buffy began, only to be cut off by Spike growling.

"Get the hell out of my house!"

"Why don't we all just calm down," Giles interjected, before turning to his former boss. "I should think it's hardly right for you to speak on respect when you have offered Buffy none since you entered her home."

Quentin gave a hesitant nod. "Very well," he said, stiffly. "Faith is gone. I'll have it noted. Now, Dawn. Created magically, did you say, Buffy?"

Buffy swore out loud at herself, at Travers, and the whole damn conversation. Panic filled Spike's veins but, before he could act on it, there was a buzz in the air and the whole earth under his feet seemed to shift. Next thing he knew, he was watching Travers give his head a quick shake, and hearing him say, "I'll be off then."

They couldn't close the door behind him fast enough.

"What was that?"

"Uh, that was kinda me," said Tara, meekly.

"A confusion spell?" asked Giles.

"Just a little one," she said in her defense.

But it was not an accusation. Giles actually hugged her tightly and chirped out, "You brilliant, brilliant girl!"

When Tara yelped at the sudden contact, Giles caught a hold of himself and released her, and she positioned herself behind Willow and Oz.

"Does someone want to tell me what just happened?" asked Buffy.

"Tara did a confusion spell," Anya explained. "It muddles up a few minutes for whoever it's cast on. If Travers remembers what you said about Dawn, he'll dismiss it as nonsense."

Buffy breathed a sigh of relief, then looked up at her daughter, still in Spike's arms.

"Dawn!" she exclaimed, before clasping a hand over her mouth.

"I'm magical?" questioned the girl, with a little frown. "Like auntie Willow?"

Before Buffy could say anymore, Spike said, "Not quite. You're a miracle, and we love you."

"Oh," said Dawn, suddenly smiling. "Okay."

Buffy felt Spike think a rather exaggerated, 'Bloody hell!' and added an internal little 'amen' of her own.

"Daddy?"

Both Buffy and Spike looked back at Dawn.

"Yes, princess?"

"I'm tired."

Spike smiled a smile full of a million emotions, then kissed her forehead.

"I'll take her up," he said to Buffy.

She nodded and said, 'Thank you' silently.

'The acceptance of kids, eh?'

'You can say that again!'

'Back in a tick, ducks. Why don't you get Glinda to help with drinks?'

Before she knew it, everything was back to as if the past half hour hadn't happened. Refreshment break completed, they got straight back into the Scooby meeting.

Because Willow was only able to set up the glamour on the house for demons, she proposed the extra precaution of adding warning sirens into the mix, to alert Spike and Buffy of any other kind of danger.

When everyone had ran out of steam and suggestions, Spike let out a frustrated, "Bloody hell!"

"What now?" asked Buffy.

"Everything. That's the point. It never ends. There's always something, I don't know how you do it, pet."

"Hey," said Buffy, soothingly, "We'll get through this. We always do."

He wasn't pacified, however. It had been a fortnight of too many near misses.

"Faith, Glory, Dru - what the hell is wrong with soddin' evil women?" he continued to rant.

"Probably the fact that they're evil," Xander hedged, immediately shutting up again when Spike glared at him.

"I swear," he continued, "I'll rip the head off the next person to try and tear my family apart. Pity the bloody people set up specifically to help you, with all their soddin' resources never bloody actually help you!"

"It's fine," said Buffy, but Spike still looked far from convinced.

"No, really. We don't need them. Remember what they Guardian said? I already have what I need."

Spike's mood lightened a little bit. Was she suggesting what he thought she was?

"We hit her with the extra," Buffy stated, confirming that she was.

The Scoobys threw blank looks at each other again, but Spike grinned.

Yes, he thought. He'd been dying to try it out.