Thanks for those who gave me
feedback….. the second part may be a bit slow, but it offers gap fillers for
what goes on behind the story in some areas.
Chapter 2: "DEFCON FIVE, anyone?" (Or wouldja prefer if I took a dump here or
in yer toilet?)
The window to Buffy's room silently
opened to let the dark man in. Looking
around and making sure that no one heard him enter, he stealthily made his way
to the closet and drawers. Taking a bag
full of clothes and sundries, he checked to see if any of his movements
disturbed the way the room looked before his scavenging hunt. Finding everything in order as it was
before, he left the way he came in – sighing in relief, for he hadn't been back
here since the Chosen One's death. The
room just SMELLED of Buffy – so much so, that it took all of his will power to
move the way he did moments ago in taking her belongings. He felt like a grave robber, but then again
– he wasn't the one with the pick and shovel, he hoped the Protector wouldn't
send him back here into her room again. He would've died of a heart attack if he'd do this again – not that he
hasn't done it before, but THIS was Buffy's room….. got to respect that you
know. As for his heart having an
attack, his hadn't beat in the last century or so for it to ever happen.
…………
Willow entered the Summers residence
and looked in on Dawn. Calling her to
get ready for school. When she turned
to close the door behind her, she was surprised to find a figure all covered in
a heavy tarp come barreling his way into the house. She yelped and swung the door wide open to allow the smoking vamp
in.
"Hi Spike, good morning Willow!" Dawn's voice yodeled from upstairs, making
Willow jump again. The Wicca was still
wary of letting Spike take care of Dawn, but the canny vampire was adamant in
taking care of her since Buffy died…. Plus the unsettling fact that Dawn trusts
Spike to do so, was not helping matters much.
"GET DOWN HERE OR YOU'LL BE LATE
AGAIN YOU SODDING TWIT!!" Spike
screamed back, fluffing himself down and checking for burns. "That little miss moffet is bloody killing
me slowly."
That got him a giggle from the witch
and he gave her a glare of impotent fury, which sent Willow into a gale of
laughter. "And a bloody good HA-HA and
sod off to you, too."
"Sorry," Willow said, trying to catch
her breath. "But you volunteered to
watch over her."
"Least I could do for Buffy…" Spike's
voice trailed off as he mentioned her name, and Willow looked down for a few
moments, all trace of laughter fading. "Hey know, don't cry. It would
look bad and if Dawn sees you cry, so will she. And you know how I hate another tissue addicted moment if both of
you start crying your bloody guts out."
Willow smiled faintly and thanked the
vampire for the advice. It's been four
months and the pain of losing her best friend and sister-type still hit her
pretty hard. Tara was the only one who
knew she still cried herself to sleep every night since Buffy's death. She looked up to where Dawn's room was and
knew that Dawn was just like her – acting whole on the outside, while ripped to
shreds on the inside. Her gaze turned
to the vampire who had become next to family to Dawn and wondered. Chip or no, he HAD changed – he'd still be a
monster, but where Dawn's concerned, he was family.
Dawn came down the steps and looked
at Willow silently musing at Spike and turned to the peroxide vamp and
said: "You were off and drunk again
last night at her grave weren't you?" It wasn't a question, coming from her - it was a statement of fact. Willow's eyes widened at that, she didn't
even know about that at all.
Spike hung his head and nodded. "Sorry luv," he answered, "Not much else to do while you're
asleep. But don't worry, I promise not
to get too sloshed again."
"PROMISE?" Dawn pouted, which got to
Spike in an annoying manner. Bloody
hell, what the hell happened to the BIG BAD when the kid decided to drive him
crazy with her company? Slayer, this is
ALL your fault for screwing me up. Chip
or no, I bloody well liked my life the way it was before I met you. But then again, my life wouldn't have any
meaning without you either. Oh great,
think more of these and I'd become a poof like my fucking sire. He noticed Willow and Dawn give him a double
take and realized he must've said at least part of what he was thinking out
loud. Grabbing the heavy tarp, he
opened the door and ran to his car, making sure the passenger doors were open
to let them in.
The witch and the key exchanged
bemused glances and followed Spike outside and went on to drop Dawn off to
school, and Willow off to college. After that, Spike headed off towards the Magic Box. There were some things he needed to get. And he hoped no one would be too nosy for
him to do so.
………………………
Giles felt the vampire come in from
behind the store, shrugging the tarp down and out of sight. He came so often that the Watcher got so
used to seeing the blond nuisance around, he didn't have to look up to know
that it was Spike. Anya was by the
shelves, checking inventory and talking to her husband on the phone at the same
time. Rupert Giles marveled at how the
former demon did that and kept a straight inventory at all. The wedding between her and Xander a month
ago livened up the usually somber mood in the group since Buffy passed
away. It gave them new hope that the
world will continue to mend. A few
weeks after the Slayer's death, Faith was released into his custody and even
she asked for Giles to become her part-time watcher. He had a long talk with Faith and had decided that she was indeed
sincere about turning in a new leaf. With grudging consent, the former Scooby gang also accepted her and let
her continue Buffy's legacy. She patrolled
almost every night after that. Right
now, she was in Los Angeles helping Angel on a case.
"What brings you here today, Spike?"
asked Giles, coming out of his reverie.
"What?" Spike replied, "Does everybody have to have a reason for coming
into your store?"
Rupert gave the vampire an annoyed
look and shrugged.
"All right then," Spike continued,
handing the Watcher a list. "I need a
few of these."
Giles studied the list and looked at
Spike in puzzlement. "Of course I have
these, but why on earth would you want them for, vampires don't get migraines
or ulcers?" The list were a few basic
compounds which could be mixed to become something akin to aspirin and of
antacids – of the herbal kind, mind you.
"And when do Vampires have splitting
ones from a goddamn chip?" William, the
Bloody shot back. "And I'm paying this
time."
"Oh, in that case……"
. . . . . . . . .
Later that night after all the chores
were done, Spike wandered back into his former crypt (he had moved into Buffy's
house to keep watch on Dawn) and set the herbs down in front of Richard
Todd.
Todd woke up when he felt the vampire
near, and grunted his thanks for fetching the missing ingredients. Normally, they were the basic cures for
migraines and upset stomachs – add a little something more and they'd be potent
for a whole different reason. After what happened last night, he decided to
move slowly and carefully from here on.
Spike walked over to where the
Slayer's body lay and checked up on her. So Beautiful, even in death – she still radiated life everlasting. "What the hell?!" Color had returned to her face and that she was breathing
regularly now. He remembered last
night's miracle:
The Slayer's body materialized out
over her grave and landed in a flash of blinding light. Richard turned his gaze back to the vampire and
ordered him to not tell anyone of this. He then proceeded to ask Spike to go back into Buffy's room in her house
and get a few of her things.
"How is she?" Spike asked as Richard drew near, pounding
the herbs into a stone cup and mixing it with warm water.
"She's recovering," Todd Replied,
testing the taste of the mixture and propped her head up and then opened
Buffy's mouth wide and gave her the medicine. "But recovering too slowly."
"So why can't she bloody well speak
or see?" Spike waved his hand over and
over the Slayer's eyes.
"She had too much energy to absorb
when she took that ten point five score swan dive to close the gate." Richard answered, letting her head back down
and explained. "The energy didn't kill
her, just sent her into stasis. That
was why there was little blood and torn bones when you found her lying there
after she fell."
"And that is good because…….?"
"Imagine that robot Buffy of yours,"
Richard continued, making Spike blanch at the memory. "The robot had an "OFF" switch – so imagine the multidimensional
barrier's energy as one like it and you'd get it as to why she's like this."
"So what you're trying to do is to
find the switch and turn it back on?" Spike said slowly.
"Already found it," Todd said,
annoyed for the blatantly obvious. "Problem is - she's still brain-dead."
"Come again?!" Spike asked, confused.
"Now imagine your chip with a
thousand mega-volt shock attack on your brain - wiping every memory on how to
even live and whatever else you need to know. And oh, like every wired neuron has to be rewired for it to work again"
Spike's head spun, in other words; it
would be like a machine running on automatic pilot – but without the command
brain, literally.
"What about what I got you, what does
it do?"
"Nothing much," Todd said. "They were herbs to let her body's natural
defenses go into overdrive and release most of the leftover energy I haven't
gotten rid of after I revived her and took what was holding her back – to all
outward appearances, she very well was dead. After that's done, I'm going to have to do some cerebral reprogramming."
"Then what now?" Spike sat on a nearby stone
outcropping.
"We wait." Richard answered, putting
the remains of the mixture away for future use. "Besides, I feel trouble's brewing and we can't be involved yet
until she's up and back to full health."
"What the hell do you mean by that?"
Spike suddenly stood up, not liking where this conversation was now heading to.
"Would you believe another Apocalypse?" a new voice said behind them.
Both men whirled to find the oddest
dressed creature in front of them.
It was the demon most knew who went
by the name of Whistler.
. . . . . . . . . . . .
To Be Continued…..
How you ladies and gents like them apples so far? J
