Chapter 3 – If I Had A Wish..

                Spike kept looking around. There was something definitely wrong about this place. Suddenly he saw torches light all around him. Spike withdrew from the fire.

                And promptly was backhanded across the face. Spike blinked in shock when she fell to the ground. He looked around. No one was there. Suddenly he felt a foot connect to his stomach, and he tumbled over, clutching it. A ghost? He stood up, tensing up, looking around. Where was it?

                Buffy stood and suddenly what was attacking them emerged from it's invisible state. Spike stared at it in shock. It smirked at them.

                It stood around Spike's height, had a big turban on, and wore baggy silk-looking pants. It was tan in color, like a human, but no human glowed like it did. It was like it was in a ball of light. The light didn't bother Spike, amazingly.  The—thing sneered at them. "Now this isn't something I have seen in a few millennia. A slayer and a vampire—"

                "How'd you know? And who the bloody hell are you?" Spike asked, sounding impatient. The man opened his hand toward Spike and he instantly shut up when he was thrown back into the boxes.

                "Insolent little loudmouth, that is what you get!" the man grinned widely.

                "Excuse, Mr. Blue Shiny Guy, while I appreciate you shutting him up, I was wondering, before I kick your ass, who ARE you?" Buffy asked, looking at the man squarely.

                "If you must know, I am Alla, the owner of this house." He replied. "I am a djinn."

                "A genie?" Buffy tilted her head.

                "Such an awful name—" he shuddered. "Never call me that. Now—fools—prepare for your punishment for awakening me!"

                Spike suddenly felt a stabbing pain in his chest, like something spiked him. He looked down, a bit panicked, but found nothing there. He fell to the ground, shivering from the pain. It felt like someone was inside him, poking around and making a mess of his insides. He let out a soundless groan.

                "And now you—" he pointed to Buffy, and suddenly she was completely blown backwards. Her back arched as it smashed against the wooden boxes. She gasped as she was suddenly floating in mid-air. She flailed when suddenly she was dropped. Spike watched as she landed roughly on her back again. He turned his attention on the Alla guy, who suddenly motioned down. Buffy let out a scream and looked like something was pushing her against the ground.

                "Time to be the hero." He mumbled to himself. The pain was still searing, but Spike managed to stand up, clutching his side. Whatever spell he had on him hurt like a bitch. The djinn had his back to Spike, which was a very very big mistake, especially because Spike was a very pissed off vampire now. Suddenly he saw him motion again and again Buffy was in the air. She was a rag doll to this guy, and when she was a rag doll, things were not good.

                Spike caught her before she smashed into the ground again. The sudden movement sharpened the pain, but he shook it off. He put her down, standing up, twitching at every little movement he made. He faced the djinn, standing in between him and Buffy. The djinn smirked arrogantly.

                "You protect the one who is sworn to kill you?" he asked. "You vampires were always idiots."

                "Sod off." He replied in a warning tone.

                "Oh-hoh!" he laughed. Spike glared at him, gritting his teeth, ignoring the pain completely. "You're a cocky one, aren't you? Here, son, hit me in the chest. Free shot."

                Spike instantly felt the pain stop, and he stood up straight. "One free shot?"

                "All yours." He grinned.

                "I don't take freebies." Spike replied, his pride quickly overturning his sense. The djinn laughed loudly.

                "Don't say I didn't offer." Alla replied. Suddenly he disappeared.

                Spike looked around, waiting, waiting for that first chance to get him. Suddenly Alla appeared right in front of him, kneeing him in the stomach. Spike took a step back, holding his stomach as the pain flared up. While he was unguarded, he felt a hand slam into his head. He fell to the ground, the pain overtaking up.

                "Pathetic." Alla spat, kicking him lightly with his foot. Spike winced. "Well, looks like I'll have my way with the girl now—that was fun, though, really—"

                Spike winced, his muscles bunching up as he tried to pull himself up. Alla stared in amazement as Spike stood, though just barely as he looked like if someone just poked him he'd fall over. He kept a determined glare directed at the djinn. "Leave her alone, I said."

                "Wow, kid, I'll give you credit, you're a pretty strong one." Again with the chuckling, the sneering laugh. Alla suddenly twisted his hand and Buffy flew into the boxes again. If she had any consciousness before, it was lost with that hit.

                "You little bastard—" Spike had had it, and he jumped at the evil glowing man. He winced when pain shot through his head. He fell short, holding his head. "Bloody hell, I forgot about that little thing—guess you're not a demon, eh bloke?"

                "This is getting too easy!" Spike groaned as he flew backwards over Buffy and into those damns boxes after Alla decided to throw him into it. This was getting to Spike now, but he still staggered up, still managed to stand.

                "You are not going to get me down without a—ow, gawd, did you have to hit me that hard?" he winced as the pain started to get to him. "If I didn't have this bloody chip in my noggin', you'd be *so* gone right now."

                "You know, I like you, Vampy. What's your name, kid?" he peered at Spike, who stood up straighter, trying to get a little of his dignity back.

                "William the Bloody." He replied proudly, pretending that 'The Bloody' meant something a bit more vicious. "But most people call me Spike, because I'm known to kill my victims by sticking a railroad spike through their heads."

                "And now you can't even hit me once?" he asked, smirking.

                "Well, you see, I have a chip in my head so that when I think bad thoughts about things other then demons and monsters and other vamps, I sort of get a shock to the brain—it hurts like a bitch." He shook his head.

                "I see, I see. Well anyway, talk is cheap, and I'm tired. How about I give you a wish and you and your little friend can leave. I'm not in the whole 'destroying people' thing today."

                "Oh I know exactly how you fee—did you say wish?" he asked. Alla nodded.

                "Yeah, you know. That thing people read about in books—I AM a djinn, you know.  So out with it, Blondie, what do you want? Some blood? Some chicks?" he smirked.

                "I want to be human again." He replied without hesitation. Alla looked at him, surprised.

                "Why would you wanna do that? Humans are so overrated." Alla replied, shaking his head. He glanced at Buffy, who was still out cold. "Oh, I understand. Well isn't this Romeo and Juliet-like."

                "She doesn't think I can love." He explained lowly. "But I can, and I love her. I want to be human. I need to be human. Just make me how I was when I became—this. And set me up, you know?"

                "Yeah, I got it." Alla nodded. "Now wish it formally."

                "All right. I wish that I were human." He said without hesitation again.

                Spike felt a sudden pain in his side, so sharp that he suddenly found himself doubling over from the pain. He felt himself connect to the ground, and after that, total blackness.

                It felt like he was asleep for years when he finally woke up. He shook his head, feeling like he had been smashed in the head with a hammer. A few times, actually. He rolled over, and promptly fell on the floor. "Ow—what the—?" he lifted himself with his arms, and suddenly found him staring straight at an open window that was flooding light into the room he was in—where ever he was. He quickly backed away, well, crawled away, all ready flinching at the light.

                He suddenly realized the whole room was lit up. "Well isn't this bloody interesting." He stood up, rubbing his head. He had all ready realized that for some reason, the light wasn't even remotely hurting him. And like that he remembered—the whole night before, the wish, he wanted to be human—

                He looked around for a bathroom in the place he was. He found it, turned the light on, and stared at himself in the mirror. He had a reflection. He actually had a reflection. He touched his chin and the reflection did the same. "Never thought I'd see myself again, that's for sure."

                He looked like he used to look before his vampire days—same hair, same goofy glasses, but with the clothes he was wearing usually, his 'Spike' clothes. "I'm human again—that bastard didn't lie."

                He would have laughed if he weren't in complete shock.