"I'll be back in about hour."
The hour comes. And goes. The sun rises.
Buffy watches as the dark turns to grey, turns to blue.
Something's happened.
Tara answers the phone on the 4th ring, her voice sleep drunk.
"Tara?"
"Buffy? What's wrong?"
"Tara- I- I need your help. Something's happening and I-"
"With Willow?"
"What?"
"Did she hurt someone?"
"No- well... no this isn't about Willow. I really need a huge favour. Like a massive, massive hold it over me forever favour."
"What is it?"
"I need you at the house. Something's happened to Spike, and I need to find him. I know it's awful to ask but can you be here until I get back? Dawn get's picked up in an hour and I... I just.."
Tara's silent on the end of the phone.
"What happened to Willow?"
"She's ok, she's... resting. Can you? Please?"
"I can be there in 10."
"The back door's unlocked, thank you."
She slams the phone down and sprints.
She pushes open the door to the crypt. It's like walking into a freezer and she shivers, the gloom of it pushing in against her.
"Spike?"
His coat is lying over the chair.
At least he made it back here.
The cover of the hole is pulled back. As she stands over it the smell of blood filters its way up to her.
Oh God. Please let that be animal blood.
The smell claws its way into her brain as she descends the railings. Jumping the last few.
The murky blackness is only penetrated by the strangled light filtering down from the hole. By the bed she can just make out a box of matches. She strikes one, lighting a few candles, dispelling some of the half-light.
She picks up a candle and walks deeper into the cave.
As the light dances across the cave walls she hears a low groan, and nearly drops the candle. The light flickers, threatening to go out entirely.
She rounds the corner of the bed she sees him, lying crumpled with his back to her on a black rug.
Except it's not black. A pool of blood as flowed out and around him.
"Oh my God," she sets the candle down on the floor, stepping gingerly around him. She kneels down on the carpet and nearly loses her balance when she sees the gash snaking up from his stomach to over his heart, "oh God- Spike-"
Spike opens an eye weakly, the other is caked in blood and clotted shut. His lips are shredded, deep thick cuts criss-crossing his mouth. one arm is wrapped around his stomach, the other underneath is head. There's deep moon-shaped claw marks in his wrist. His hand is clutching a blood soaked knife.
She moves to take it from his hand and he winces at her touch, his lips pull back showing his bloody teeth. Two long wounds score down his gums over his canines.
"It happened again?"
He blinks slowly in response.
"Ok. Ok- uh, just hold on." She gets his arm around her and lifts him up as slowly as she can, propping him up on the chest at the end of the bed.
She pulls the sheet off the bed and tears it into long strips.
"Right, uh-" She gets one arm out of his shirt but his other is firmly pinned around his stomach. "I need your other arm." He shakes his head, not meeting her eyes.
"Come on, Spike. Arm." She pulls the shirt down off his shoulder until its bunches at his elbow. She takes the other arm, pulls it round his stomach, holding the cut closed, and gently pulls the other away, removing the shirt from his arm. "There. Worst bit's over."
He cocks an eyebrow.
"...Nearly over." She grabs the bandage strips, kneels down between his legs and starts wrapping them round him tightly starting at chest. She works her way down to his arm.
He lets her move it gently off.
She pales, biting back her shock. The cut is incredibly deep, and there are claw marks around the skin.
She finishes bandaging his stomach, and helps him back to the bed. Settling him back onto the pillows.
"I'm going to get Tara. I'll be back soon. Just try and sleep for a bit, alright?" His hand finds hers, squeezing. Clinging.
"Did it say something else? Anything new?"
He nods weakly.
"Buffy... I..."
"It's ok. Don't talk. I'll get Tara."
Tara let herself in through the kitchen door. There's a lingering smell of cigarette smoke, the kitchen sink is full of dishes, several cups have floating cigarettes in them.
She empties them, takes them to the sink and runs the hot water.
The house is so quiet, and for a blissful moment she's like she could walk up the stairs... crawl into bed with Willow. The need for it cuts deeply.
"Tara?"
She drops a mug in shock and it shatters in the sink.
"Hey Dawnie," she starts picking shards of china out of the sink.
"Where's Buffy?"
"She had to go take care of-" she turns and sees Dawns arm in a sling, "Oh Dawn! Your- Your arm!"
"It's fine, it's just a fracture."
"What happened?"
"Nothing... it's- it's honestly fine."
But Tara can read between the words.
"...Willow."
"I-It was an accident."
"When?"
"...Last night.
Tara finishes pulling the broken pieces of mug out of the sink.
"Did anyone else get hurt?"
"No, it was... just a blip. Not that I'm not mad about it but..." she shrugs, "she's gone a little... off the deep end."
Tara dumps the broken shards in the trash, and starts cleaning the rest of the dishes.
"What deep end?"
"Hanging out with Amy... doing magic that makes her all wiggy looking. We were supposed to go to the movies but she took me to this place instead. It was weird it was like it was cloaked or something. Super gross place and-" are car horn startles her, "- oh that's Xander. I'll see you later." She grabs her book bag from the hallway with her good arm, hoisting it onto her shoulder. She waves at Tara, but Tara feels like she's been frozen to the spot.
She's left blinking in the kitchen at Dawns words.
Rakes. Oh God what was she doing there.
She finishes the dishes. Cleans the table, empties the trash. Every little thing trying to keep her occupied.
I should go... why can't I go?
She starts straightening up the living room, casting glances to the stairs.
What if she got hurt too...
What if
She climbs the stairs as quietly as she can. At Willows door she puts her hand on the doorknob... but can't turn it.
She sighs, letting go of the knob.
As she passes Buffy's bedroom something catches her eye.
Spike's shirt... or what looks like Spike's shirt... lies crumpled on the floor. The bedsheets are all but torn off.
And there's a scent lingering in the air.
Oh...
"Tara?"
Buffy's voice is calling her from the kitchen and she jumps like she's been caught in the act.
She closes the door and heads down the stairs.
"Tara?"
"I'm here, sorry I was just- I was-," she takes Buffy in, there's blood on her clothes, and on her hands.
"What happened?"
"It's Spike. We have a problem."
They sit outside on the steps leading down into the garden.
"You're sure it was William?"
"I'm sure."
"What did he look like?"
Buffy smiles a little sadly.
"He looked... sweet. Sad."
Tara nods.
"A-and then... after? His demon?"
"It was like it was trying to eat him from the inside."
"What...brought William out in the first place?"
Buffy bites her lip.
"Uh..."
Tara's eyes widen as she reads it clearly in Buffy's face.
"Oh... really..."
"It's not- it didn't-"
Tara glances up at Willow's bedroom window. It's shut, with the curtains drawn.
"You... and-?"
"Please- Tara, it's not really... like that."
"Does Willow know?"
"NO! No I- please, please don't tell them I'm not..."
"Buffy it's ok, really."
"They won't understand. They'll- God if they find out- I don't think- I know it's messy, but they won't understand."
"Buffy... Willow could help, we need her. We need Giles."
Buffy looks like she's going to cry.
"Ok... ok we can- we can try it without them. I could try a revealing... it might.. at least point us in the right direction. I'll need a few things from the Magic Box but I could meet you back here?"
"Can you meet me at Spike's? He's not- he's not very movable right now."
"Sure... give me an hour."