Chapter 7
Even though 20 years had passed Spike knew the man was Buffy's old friend Xander Harris. The man had the beginnings of a beer belly, but he still had all his hair, and a cop uniform to boot.
"What are you doing here Spike? Haven't seen you since that night." Xander had never liked him but the deadly look he was giving Spike now was enough to scare Satan himself.
"I brought along a Slayer. This is Elizabeth." Spike stepped aside to reveal the young woman. Xander's eyes went wide.
"Buffy?"
"Why do you people call me that?" She rolled her eyes.
"It's her in there." Spike whispered. For a moment Xander looked wistful and sad but then the mask he had been wearing slipped over his face.
"You deserted us."
"I had no choice."
"You promised her to protect Dawn. You let her down." Xander scratched at Spike's open wounds. He wished he could pummel the guy. Xander knew that he was hurting Spike and didn't care.
"I know. I'm back now. And it's not like I haven't continued fighting. There's a war on Harris."
"Don't patronize me Spike!" Xander cut in. "I see it every day. That's why I'm out here!
"I couldn't stay here. You have no idea."
"No idea? You're a- I'm not even Spike. Not now. I have a patrol to go on."
"Hey. Mr Harris? Wait?" Xander turned at Elizabeth's beckoning. "I know you're really mad at Spike or whatever, and you all think that I'm Buffy, but if I am, he didn't really desert me. He helped me when I needed him most, again. We've been through a lot the past few days, and I wouldn't have been able to get through it without him, so could you please give him a chance? For me?" Spike had to hand it to her, when she wanted too she could be quite convincing and all that sort of crap.
"Keep up. We check in at the shop at dawn." They followed Xander for another hour, helping him. It seemed there were vampires at every corner. Spike had noticed it when he had crossed the town line. It was the same foreboding feeling he had gotten every time he had come in the past.
Spike was impressed that Xander had survived as long as he had. But watching him as they vanquished vampire after vampire, he understood. They guy had passion. He threw himself into the situation without a thought to his own life.
"The magic shop was eerily just as Spike remembered. But he got the shock of his life when he entered the aromatic store. Standing talking to Willow was Angel, Cordy and a young man that looked like Angel but couldn't be.
"What the hell's this bloody poofter doing here?" Spike snarled.
"Buffy?" Angel looked at Elizabeth who hid behind Spike when everyone started staring at her.
"What the hells this shy act for? You were a bloody bitch when we were in Europe. Sod off." Spike shook her from his old coat.
"And it's just one big happy reunion." Anya said sarcastically. It took a few minutes of Willow's calming ways to sort through everything, enough so Spike could understand and they could tolerate him enough to not stake him on the sight.
"And you're married?" Spike squinted at Anya and Xander.
"Yes." Anya shook her head slowly, again. "How many times do I have to tell you?"
"And you have a kid?" Angel nodded. "And you don't?" he turned to Xander and Anya who shrugged. "And your witch is dead?" Willow sniffled and Spike immediately felt bad. "Where's little bit."
"Right here." Dawn came through the door and sized up Spike. She gave Elizabeth a curious look but said nothing. Dawn looked the most changed, having gone through puberty and aged.
It was funny how Spike found comfort in Angel now, someone whom 25 years ago he hated with a fiery passion. Now they were both the young looking vampires, tortured by love and curses.
"Can I say something, seeing as how I really don't know any of you all that well, and The Watcher's Council has decided to drag us from LA to be part of this war which they say is my destiny?"
"Yes." Everyone agreed. "What do you want to say?"
"Um. I kind of don't remember. But another thing, you're all very strange."
"Can I add something?" They turned to Elizabeth. Connor gave her a small smile. "I've been getting this from the moment I met Spike. I'm not Buffy. Or not anymore. I'm pretty cool about this past life theory, but please don't make me what I'm not." The last part of the sentence, with its cold tone reminded Spike of the girl he had met in that alley in London.
"I have to go to the station." Xander announced, and left without a goodbye. Everyone immediately went into gear, scurrying around.
"Make yourself useful." Cordelia shoved a box of something at Spike.
"Willow?"
"I brought this for you." Elizabeth showed Willow the translation.
"Oh good. This is good." Willow sat down, and chewed on her lip while Anya brought her over a pile of books, like clockwork and Spike was an extra gear. Everyone seemed to forget Spike and Elizabeth were there, except for Connor.
"Hey, do you want to come with me to go get coffee and donuts for everyone?" Connor asked Elizabeth. She looked to Spike and he raised his brow. She rolled her eyes and headed out the door with Connor.
"So you're the Slayer?"
"One and only. And apparently a reincarnation of this old Slayer that they all were friends with."
"Wow. That's kind of crazy." Connor ran a hand through his dark spiky hair, and looked more like the brother of his father, rather than the son. His skin was tanned from the California sun and he had soulful brown eyes.
"Tell me about it. Or rather, about you."
"Well my father is Angel, the vampire with a soul."
"I've heard of him. How do vampires have kids? I thought they were like…"
"My mum was a vampire too. I'm kind of a miracle child." He blushed, as if he were bragging. "Some destiny crap or something."
"Yeah. Destiny sucks." They reached the Expresso Pump, the same as always and got food. Elizabeth wished that most of the Watcher's Diaries on Buffy Summers hadn't burned in the fire. She wanted to know how this boy, and his father Angel connected with Buffy. Maybe it would help her be a better Slayer, or a better person in their eyes.
Elizabeth had grown up in the vampire infested streets of London. She had never known anything but the Council, and the misery of darkness. These people, they knew about it, but they were normal, like everyone else. She could tell.
"Oh, you have coffee." Dawn pounced on them when they entered the shop, like a younger woman might have done. Elizabeth felt drawn to the Slayer's Sister.
"How is the translation helping?"
"Fairly well." Willow said taking a coffee.
"Bring me anything?" Spike asked.
"Yeah. Went out of my way to stop at the butcher's. Oh I guess, I drank it. Oh well." Elizabeth stuck her tongue out at Spike.
"So Xander's a cop now?" Spike tried again to talk to Anya. The woman was running around the shop and barely stopped to answer Willow's questions. Her face had grown squinched and pinched, and a fake smile was constantly attached to it. Spike didn't need to guess, he knew, that it had been a long twenty years for them. It was something he would never know, growing older.
"Someone has to protect the town from evil other than vampires." Anya answered. They had never hated each other like Willow and Xander had hated him, and he found her easiest to talk too. "He tries. He's a good husband." Anya looked at her ring for a moment, pausing from her scurrying.
"But you aren't happy?"
"We're happy. Who said we weren't? It's just that Sunnydale is to dangerous for children right now. Willow's perfectly happy without children, and so Dawn. People have them a lot older now too."
"Stand down woman." Spike shook his head. What a sorry lot he had returned too.
"Hey Spike, why don't you take a long walk out into the sunlight." Cordy said helpfully. Spike looked at her from under his brow. He raised an eye at Angel who was next to her. He motioned to Spike to follow him to the backroom.
Even though 20 years had passed Spike knew the man was Buffy's old friend Xander Harris. The man had the beginnings of a beer belly, but he still had all his hair, and a cop uniform to boot.
"What are you doing here Spike? Haven't seen you since that night." Xander had never liked him but the deadly look he was giving Spike now was enough to scare Satan himself.
"I brought along a Slayer. This is Elizabeth." Spike stepped aside to reveal the young woman. Xander's eyes went wide.
"Buffy?"
"Why do you people call me that?" She rolled her eyes.
"It's her in there." Spike whispered. For a moment Xander looked wistful and sad but then the mask he had been wearing slipped over his face.
"You deserted us."
"I had no choice."
"You promised her to protect Dawn. You let her down." Xander scratched at Spike's open wounds. He wished he could pummel the guy. Xander knew that he was hurting Spike and didn't care.
"I know. I'm back now. And it's not like I haven't continued fighting. There's a war on Harris."
"Don't patronize me Spike!" Xander cut in. "I see it every day. That's why I'm out here!
"I couldn't stay here. You have no idea."
"No idea? You're a- I'm not even Spike. Not now. I have a patrol to go on."
"Hey. Mr Harris? Wait?" Xander turned at Elizabeth's beckoning. "I know you're really mad at Spike or whatever, and you all think that I'm Buffy, but if I am, he didn't really desert me. He helped me when I needed him most, again. We've been through a lot the past few days, and I wouldn't have been able to get through it without him, so could you please give him a chance? For me?" Spike had to hand it to her, when she wanted too she could be quite convincing and all that sort of crap.
"Keep up. We check in at the shop at dawn." They followed Xander for another hour, helping him. It seemed there were vampires at every corner. Spike had noticed it when he had crossed the town line. It was the same foreboding feeling he had gotten every time he had come in the past.
Spike was impressed that Xander had survived as long as he had. But watching him as they vanquished vampire after vampire, he understood. They guy had passion. He threw himself into the situation without a thought to his own life.
"The magic shop was eerily just as Spike remembered. But he got the shock of his life when he entered the aromatic store. Standing talking to Willow was Angel, Cordy and a young man that looked like Angel but couldn't be.
"What the hell's this bloody poofter doing here?" Spike snarled.
"Buffy?" Angel looked at Elizabeth who hid behind Spike when everyone started staring at her.
"What the hells this shy act for? You were a bloody bitch when we were in Europe. Sod off." Spike shook her from his old coat.
"And it's just one big happy reunion." Anya said sarcastically. It took a few minutes of Willow's calming ways to sort through everything, enough so Spike could understand and they could tolerate him enough to not stake him on the sight.
"And you're married?" Spike squinted at Anya and Xander.
"Yes." Anya shook her head slowly, again. "How many times do I have to tell you?"
"And you have a kid?" Angel nodded. "And you don't?" he turned to Xander and Anya who shrugged. "And your witch is dead?" Willow sniffled and Spike immediately felt bad. "Where's little bit."
"Right here." Dawn came through the door and sized up Spike. She gave Elizabeth a curious look but said nothing. Dawn looked the most changed, having gone through puberty and aged.
It was funny how Spike found comfort in Angel now, someone whom 25 years ago he hated with a fiery passion. Now they were both the young looking vampires, tortured by love and curses.
"Can I say something, seeing as how I really don't know any of you all that well, and The Watcher's Council has decided to drag us from LA to be part of this war which they say is my destiny?"
"Yes." Everyone agreed. "What do you want to say?"
"Um. I kind of don't remember. But another thing, you're all very strange."
"Can I add something?" They turned to Elizabeth. Connor gave her a small smile. "I've been getting this from the moment I met Spike. I'm not Buffy. Or not anymore. I'm pretty cool about this past life theory, but please don't make me what I'm not." The last part of the sentence, with its cold tone reminded Spike of the girl he had met in that alley in London.
"I have to go to the station." Xander announced, and left without a goodbye. Everyone immediately went into gear, scurrying around.
"Make yourself useful." Cordelia shoved a box of something at Spike.
"Willow?"
"I brought this for you." Elizabeth showed Willow the translation.
"Oh good. This is good." Willow sat down, and chewed on her lip while Anya brought her over a pile of books, like clockwork and Spike was an extra gear. Everyone seemed to forget Spike and Elizabeth were there, except for Connor.
"Hey, do you want to come with me to go get coffee and donuts for everyone?" Connor asked Elizabeth. She looked to Spike and he raised his brow. She rolled her eyes and headed out the door with Connor.
"So you're the Slayer?"
"One and only. And apparently a reincarnation of this old Slayer that they all were friends with."
"Wow. That's kind of crazy." Connor ran a hand through his dark spiky hair, and looked more like the brother of his father, rather than the son. His skin was tanned from the California sun and he had soulful brown eyes.
"Tell me about it. Or rather, about you."
"Well my father is Angel, the vampire with a soul."
"I've heard of him. How do vampires have kids? I thought they were like…"
"My mum was a vampire too. I'm kind of a miracle child." He blushed, as if he were bragging. "Some destiny crap or something."
"Yeah. Destiny sucks." They reached the Expresso Pump, the same as always and got food. Elizabeth wished that most of the Watcher's Diaries on Buffy Summers hadn't burned in the fire. She wanted to know how this boy, and his father Angel connected with Buffy. Maybe it would help her be a better Slayer, or a better person in their eyes.
Elizabeth had grown up in the vampire infested streets of London. She had never known anything but the Council, and the misery of darkness. These people, they knew about it, but they were normal, like everyone else. She could tell.
"Oh, you have coffee." Dawn pounced on them when they entered the shop, like a younger woman might have done. Elizabeth felt drawn to the Slayer's Sister.
"How is the translation helping?"
"Fairly well." Willow said taking a coffee.
"Bring me anything?" Spike asked.
"Yeah. Went out of my way to stop at the butcher's. Oh I guess, I drank it. Oh well." Elizabeth stuck her tongue out at Spike.
"So Xander's a cop now?" Spike tried again to talk to Anya. The woman was running around the shop and barely stopped to answer Willow's questions. Her face had grown squinched and pinched, and a fake smile was constantly attached to it. Spike didn't need to guess, he knew, that it had been a long twenty years for them. It was something he would never know, growing older.
"Someone has to protect the town from evil other than vampires." Anya answered. They had never hated each other like Willow and Xander had hated him, and he found her easiest to talk too. "He tries. He's a good husband." Anya looked at her ring for a moment, pausing from her scurrying.
"But you aren't happy?"
"We're happy. Who said we weren't? It's just that Sunnydale is to dangerous for children right now. Willow's perfectly happy without children, and so Dawn. People have them a lot older now too."
"Stand down woman." Spike shook his head. What a sorry lot he had returned too.
"Hey Spike, why don't you take a long walk out into the sunlight." Cordy said helpfully. Spike looked at her from under his brow. He raised an eye at Angel who was next to her. He motioned to Spike to follow him to the backroom.