chap. 3 Spike stood in the basement thinking about what Willow had said. He began to pace."Why is everyone so afraid that Buffy and me are going to get back together...she doesn't love me, I realize that now,"he thought to himself. "You're gonna make a dent in the ground with all that pacing..."Dawn said walking down the steps, "Penny for your thoughts..." "Hey, niblit, how long you been standing there?" he said looking up. "Long enough to figure out you've got something on your mind," she answered. "It's nothing...just thinking about the battle," he said leaning against the wall. "I heard what Willow said..." Dawn stated getting to the point. "Oh, you did, did ya?" he said looking away, "eves dropping, I see the old Dawn hasn't quite left." Dawn put on her 'serious' face as she walked into the middle of the basement, "We trust you, it's just we're all a little on edge because of the war...she didn't mean it..." "Yeah, I know it's really hectic.."he said looking back at her, "You should eat something..." "Just about to, I just wanted to make sure you're ok," Dawn said taking a step closer. "I've been through torment and torture in my life, 'bit, this isn't..."he started but Dawn cut in, "But words can hurt ten-times that much...believe me, I know..." Dawn said and walked up the stairs stopping at the door, "she does care about you, she might not love you, but she does care." Then Dawn walked through the door and closed it behind her leaving Spike with nothing but his thoughts, and some new ones. "She's just trying to make you feel better, you know," the first in the form of Buffy said walking out of the shadows, "You know she doesn't love you...the slayer could never love you...she only keeps you around because she needs someone to use the trinket..." "Sod off," he said not looking at it, "I know what you are, and I know you can't do anything but taunt people." spike said and Dawn's voice rang in his ears "But words can hurt ten-times that much...." "She won't choose you, in the end...she won't choose you..." the first said and disappeard. Spike walked upstairs to find sun flowing through one of the windows blocking him from getting out of the basement, "Anyone wanna help a fella?" he called out but no one answered, "Hello, anyone home?" "They're not there," the first's voice said again. "Don't you have anything better to do rather than sit in a bloody basement with someone who could care less about you?" Spike said turning to look down the stairs where he saw the six year old girl he had killed before he had come back to Sunnydale. "This is suposed to hurt me," Spike said mockingly, "You're a little girl, with a dolly, and a bow...not really you're best work." "You killed my mommy, right in front of me...then you killed me...you could've killed me first but see, that's what's different about you, you love causing as much pain as possible before killing your victims," the girl said and she became Drusilla, "You always were one for the heartache, that's what the stars told me when I saw you in the ally that night..." the first said then taking the form of Buffy, "that's why you stuck around me...the heartache...you spent all your time telling me I loved to be hurt, to notice it was really you that did." "SHUT UP, YOU'RE NOT HER!!!!" he screamed loosing his temper.

About two hours later Buffy arived back at the house and saw the basement door was opened. "Spike?" she called out. Then she walked to the basement door and looked in, seeing Spike huddled in a corner and herself talking to him. "You are pathetic," she heard the first saying to him, "...you are weak, and always were, you came to Sunnydale just so I would hurt you! and you stayed here! you pathetic little...." Buffy cut it off, "Hey, it's not nice to lie." "You..." it said to Buffy and then kneeled next to Spike, "We'll finish our little chat later." It disappeard as Buffy walked down to Spike, "You ok?" Spike stood up, "Yeah, i'm fine...just a little bored, been down here listening to the thing ramble on for about two hours..." "Why didn't you go upstairs and watch tv?" she asked him. "couldn't, the sun was blocking the way..." he said and walked up the stairs and stopped at the door seeing the sun wasn't blocking the way anymore so he went into the kitchen. Buffy stayed behind, "He put on a brave face but that's all it was, you know," the first said and Buffy walked past it, "figured that one out on my own, thanks" she said and walked out of the basement.