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Author's note ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~(indicates flashbacks)
And then there was Spike (part 6)
Emily Margaret Walsh smiled to herself as she went over her agenda, mentally ticking off all the accomplishments she had made so far. Her eyes were dreamy, as if contemplating her first love, and so she was.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A mercilessly cold rain fell and it was also foggy that night. Emily's long blonde hair was pulled from the elegant Audrey Hepburn style she'd copied and now whipped wildly around her face like the snakes of Medusa. She bit her lip as she fought her way against the wind and up the stairs to her apartment building's entrance. She turned back and waved to her boyfriend, Michael, as his umbrella was wrenched from his hands.
"Are you sure you don't want to come in? Have some coffee and discuss the wedding?" She gazed at the small diamond on her hand, still in near shock at his proposal.
"Angelface, if I come in with you right now, I won't leave tonight and I know your beliefs. I know you want to wear white and be honest about it."
But he did climb up the steps, closer to her, defying the wind trying to pull the words away from his lips, "But you only have to say the word, and I stay. Even if I have to get you to tie me up so that your virtue stays intact. If that's what you want."
His mouth pressed against hers and she clung to him, unashamedly. Their tongues moving in concert, hearts pounding in unison. Hands locked in each other's hair as they melted together.
Emily knew that busybody Widow Foster would be watching from her window, clucking her tongue in abject disapproval and disgust. She knew word would get back to her father and he'd be disappointed, but she'd never really mattered to him as a person, only as a trophy. She'd never really rebelled before now.
"Let's go upstairs, my darling husband-to-be. And then we can get out of these wet things."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
She shook her head. Walsh hadn't thought about Michael in years, and she didn't intend to start again now. It was all because of Riley and Buffy. Their newfound love, their happiness, all doomed and they didn't even know it yet.
******
Riley had just finished a de-briefing and was leaving the Initiative base to get ready for his date with Buffy. It had been one long day since the embarrassing debacle with the evil combination of alcohol and his brother. Unfortunately, once Tom had sobered up, he'd told Buffy and, worst of all, his fellow Initiative members the source of his childhood nickname. He sighed heavily.
"Hey, Bucky," Forrest slapped him on the shoulder, "How's it going?"
"It would be much better if you never called me that again. And if you had a way that I could make Buffy forget about Tom and his big mouth too."
"But it's so funny. Babyboy Finn, watching 'Size Small' on TV and riding around the house on his pinto pony which was some bigass couch cushion. You were a real Buckaroo."
Riley looked at him. His eyes were hard and serious, "Never call me that again."
Forrest gulped and no quick quip came to his rescue.
"Yes, sir."
******
Riley parted ways with Forrest and went to meet Buffy. He was torn between his duty and his feelings for Buffy and the Scooby gang. He had not yet told them about Spike's recapture because he wasn't sure what they would do.
Willow was exiting the dorm room as he approached. She nodded to him, lost in her thoughts. Then time seemed to slow as they passed each other. She whirled, her hair an auburn cloud about her pale face. Her powers were steadily growing in ways she had not anticipated. She could feel the confusion radiating off of him in steady waves.
Willow knew.
******
The man was panting, sweating with exertion. His muscles protested against his every move, but he kept pushing. The feelings of inadequacy began to pass and he began to feel more like himself again. Strong, intelligent, in control, fearless…
"Giles, I need --" Willow flung open the door, a little embarrassed to find Giles working out in shorts and a muscle shirt, "I need you to put on some tweed and then I need your help," her eyes were steady as her voice dropped to a whisper, "to rescue Spike from the Initiative."
Moments later, they were sitting on the couch, Willow fidgeting anxiously, as they discussed the situation.
"But why don't you want to involve Buffy?"
"She's too close to Riley and the Initiative. I don't want her involved. She'd be all conflicted and stuff. Besides, you know she doesn't like Spike and I'd rather do this myself, well… with your help at least."
She smiled, "And we can get Xander and Anya to help too. And Tara, maybe."
"Who's Tara?" Giles cleaned his glasses obsessively, "I haven't heard mention of her before."
Studying her toes, Willow shyly offered, "She's a friend. A Wicca friend. And we can do some serious mojo when we work together. Sorta like you and Ethan when you were young, but without the whole demon-worshipping, badboy aspects."
"Considering how much trouble Ethan caused during his last visit, you may want to re-think making that comparison in the future."
******
Hostile 17 was still refusing to drink and Walsh marveled at his willpower. He looked haggard and drawn. His flesh seemed to shrivel but his demon grew more and more fearsome. That gleam in his eyes, that raw intelligence and anger. It made her shiver uncomfortably.
She observed him and decided to test the modification to the implant. Her voice filled his cell, commanding him to drink.
Spike jolted at the sudden surround sound in his cell. He gave a one-fingered salute and shouted, "Sod off you bastard! I will not drink your tainted blood."
He fell to the floor, convulsing, screaming. His entire body felt like it was on fire, like Holy Water was flowing through his veins. His form heaved and juddered as the onslaught of pain continued, far worse than anything he had ever experienced before.
A long-winded scream echoed in the cell.
"WILLOW!"
******
"Spike!" Willow shrieked and began to convulse, "No! Stop it! Spike!"
Her voice grew higher and higher. Giles' prized brandy glasses began to shatter, cutting her fair skin. The windows seemed to implode. Giles had his fingers in his ears and cowered on the floor, feeling the wetness dripping out of them. Blood.
******
Walsh observed the cuts that appeared from nowhere on the hostile and instantly healed. He began to appear healthier, if that was possible for a vamp. She ceased the emitter test and began to take down notes.
******
Tara had felt such pain, she knew it was Willow. She was in trouble and she needed help. Closing her eyes, Tara used her innersight to find Willow and willed her some of her own strength until she could get there in person.
She opened her eyes and began to stagger off of campus, bumping into an attractive guy from her Ancient History class.
"Woah," he grabbed her, "Are you okay?"
Tara looked into his eyes and flushed, "I'm fine…" she struggled to recall his name, "Graham. It's just some major bad cramps."
He stepped away from her and paled, "Oh, uh, OK. I gotta go do something."
"I'm such a dork," Tara chastised herself, "Even more of one since I'm talking to myself out loud."
******
T'Hafreyn was furious. First his lowly servant demon had vanished and now, someone was torturing his vengeance demon in waiting. He would tolerate no more of this.
He vanished.
******
"Now, Xander!" Anya stomped her foot imperiously, "I'm not imagining this. We have to go help Willow. So get out of bed, or I'll cast a little spell to stop you from enjoying orgasms."
He scrambled out of bed, yanking on clothes and running a hand through his hair.
She sauntered up the stairs, Xander hot on her heels, "and I wasn't a vengeance demon for nothing you know."
******
Buffy smiled into Riley's bare chest. They'd almost made love, but she had to stop because she could feel Amy watching her. As she began to fall asleep under Riley's fingertips… damn the boy could give a good massage… her eyelids flew open.
Amy was clawing frantically at her cage, keening in a way Buffy had never witnessed before. The feeling of the wiggins came over her and she bolted out of the bed.
"Something's wrong."
Just then, Riley got a call.
"Finn here. What? A hot spot at what coordinates? No, I'm on it." Pause. "No, I'm on it, no back up units required. That's an order. Finn out."
Wide blue eyes met his narrowed ones.
"Something's up at Giles'"
******
Anya and Xander got to Giles' first. They walked in, carefully avoiding all the broken glass. Giles and Willow were both unconscious and bleeding. Xander looked at Anya, helplessly as he carefully cradled his best friend.
"What did this to them?" Xander forced the word around the lump in his throat and a tear rolled down his cheek.
******
Riley and Buffy were speeding to Giles' house when a girl stumbled in front of the car.
"Riley! Look out!"
He swerved and pulled over. Buffy had leapt out of the car before he had it in park.
"Tara, what's wrong?"
The girl murmured, "I have to help Willow."
Buffy picked her up and buckled her into the car.
"Hurry."
******
The car squealed around the corner and stopped in front of Giles'. Buffy helped Tara out of the car and to the door. Riley went in first and surprised Anya and Xander.
Without a word, Tara came inside and knelt beside Willow, taking her hand within her own and she began to murmur a spell. A faint glow appeared around Willow. Tara then leaned down and kissed her softly on the lips.
Xander raised his eyebrows but breathed a sigh of relief as he watched familiar eyelids flutter and deep hazel green eyes take in everything as Willow regained consciousness and sat up.
"Spike," she spoke, "Giles! Oh Goddess, this is my fault!"
She carefully placed a hand over Giles' chest and grasped Tara's hand with the other. Anya knelt beside her, placing her hands on Willow's shoulders.
Everyone watched in complete silence as the two Witches and the former demon worked together to bring Giles around.
"What on earth? Willow, are you all right?"
"They're torturing him. They hurt him so deeply that it affected me. I think I gave him enough of my strength to help him, but it was too much for me."
"For me too," Tara piped up, "I felt your need and I gave you all the energy that I could but I think after all this, I'm bagging off for a few days."
Giles was carefully cleaning the blood from his ears, "I believe had it not been for you three that I would be deaf. Thank you."
Anya flushed most of all, still being unused to doing good deeds and being thanked for anything by anyone except for Xander.
"Manifestation of the threefold Goddess," Willow murmured under her breath.
"OK," Buffy took control, "Who's torturing Spike and what's the plan?"
******
T'Hafreyn manifested himself in the Initiative base, alarms and lasers went wild when he appeared. Unperturbed, he immobilized all who tried to stop him.
Seeing all sorts of acquaintances and some of his minions in the cells, he began to free them all.
"Moxule, you fool. This is where you've been?" T'Hafreyn growled, "How do you expect us to get the little witch to join us if you're here languishing in a damn cell?"
******
As everyone was heading for campus, Willow spoke in Riley's mind, "I'll talk to you later."
He looked at her incredulously, "I'm sorry."
Buffy turned to Riley, "Did you say something?"
Before he could answer, he received an urgent call. Riley relayed to the gang what was happening at the base.
"Well then there goes my great distraction part of the plan," griped Xander.
Anya smacked him swiftly in the back of the head, "There will be plenty to do. We'll have to stop some of the demons that are escaping."
"Hope we don't run into any of your ex's," Xander quipped. Then he was on the receiving end of an extremely dirty look from Anya.
"What I meant to say was, yes dear," Xander gulped.
******
Looking at the chaos about him, T'Hafreyn prepared to vanish, when he noticed the unmoving figure in one of the cells. He chuckled. There would be a very vengeful witch just waiting to accept his proposal after this. Chuckling, he disappeared in a discreet puff of smoke.
The still form was handsome and long-limbed. As the alarms continued to go off, it opened on brilliantly blue eye. He took in the smoke and the open cage door.
"Red."
******
Walsh was locked in room 314. No matter what happened, no one was going to destroy her experiment. She lifted the cover off of a hidden keypad and typed in a series of codes.
The wall opened and another elevator shaft was revealed. She pushed the gurney into it and continued to monitor the security cameras. She saw Buffy fighting and dusting hostiles alongside Agent Finn.
"My work, all my work. Lost."
Walsh also noticed some apparent civilians inside, helping Buffy. There was no sign of Willow though. She turned her mind to how hostile 17 had cried out the name of her top student. Perhaps he'd intended to turn Willow into a vampire.
Spike fought his way through the menagerie of demons when, suddenly, a bright light enveloped the structure. He fell to his knees and disappeared.
"What the hell was that?" Walsh exclaimed as she administered another sedative to the body on the gurney.
When the light faded, Walsh saw Buffy give a final survey of the area before whistling for the others to leave.
"Buffy Summers," pondered Walsh, "Just whose side are you on?"
The figure on the gurney struggled to retain consciousness. The dark brown head poked its way from under the blankets and fixated on the surveillance screen.
"B?" Faith muttered before losing consciousness.
******
"Well that was just way too easy," Buffy complained on the way back to Giles', "Whoever let all the demons out made it simple to get Spike outta there. And Will, stunning special effects."
Willow looked up from the unconscious form of her lover, "I didn't know that I had that sort of power in me."
Tara, Xander and Anya were walking to Giles' from campus.
"We're always the bicycle brigade," complained Xander, "and this time we don't even have bikes. So we're stuck walking."
Then he hoped that no one would remember that he'd lost his wallet during the battle, which is why they were walking instead of taking a cab.
Anya snuggled up to him, "But it's kinda romantic except for," she turned to Tara, "Who the hell are you anyway?"
"A friend of Willow's. I'm Tara. And I swear by the Goddess that I know you from somewhere."
Anya gave her a strange look, "No, no you must be mistaken."
******
Willow cried softly into Spike's hair.
"Willow, what's wrong?" Giles inquired.
"It's too late for the ritual," Willow sobbed, "I don't know when there will be another alignment to attempt this."
A cool hand reached up and cradled her face, "Shhhh, Pet. Don't cry. It breaks my heart to see you cry."
They clung to each other, both crying.
"Spike," Willow pulled back and wiped the pink tears from his face, "Demons don't cry. How can you be crying?"
"Pet, I'm crying because I feel my heart is breaking. That harridan, Walsh, is on my hitlist for this, implant or no implant."
"She's a bloody fishwife," piped up Giles.
"Aye, mate," Spike toasted him with an imaginary glass, "That she is."
******
Professor Walsh sat at a computer terminal, inputting information about her weapon. This Faith would be the ultimate killing machine once she was re-programmed properly. And if it worked on a demented mind like Faith's, it would be even more successful on Buffy.
THE END… for now