Buffy cast a quick glance at Spike, who was snoozing on the couch. Shaking her head, she returned her gaze to the pile of bills on the floor in front of her. She was even less productive with paying these than she had been with trying to find whatever did this to Spike. Groaning, she scooped the bills up and slammed them down on the coffee table.
Spike jumped up at the sound, his eyes darting back and forth. They fell on Buffy, who was sitting on the floor with her elbows on the table and her head buried in her hands. Poor Slayer. Spike hopped down quietly and walked over to her, hoping she would tear his little furry head from his shoulders.
Buffy looked down as something nudged her hand. Spike was sitting next to her, watching her with big blue eyes. She opened her mouth to yell at him, but instead just shook her head. Smiling slightly, she ran her hand down his back. "Thanks…" Even as a mangy dog there was something comforting about having him there. "But you're not getting off that easily." She warned, sticking a finger in his face as she stood. She ruffled the fur on his head and made her way into the kitchen.
Yeah, but we can be friends till then, ey luv? He thought, following after her.
"You hungry?" she asked as she dug through the fridge.
Two barks.
She let out a small laugh. "Good, I think seeing a puppy drinking blood would be a bit traumatizing."
Nah, maybe a bit disturbing, but you'd get over it.
She shook her head and closed the fridge. "Come on, we'll go do a quick patrol and see if Anya found anything."
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Anya looked up as the bell rang from above the door. Dawn walked in and offered her a small smile. "Hey. You find anything?"
"Sort of. I mean, I know what made him like he is, but I don't know how to fix it." She sighed and stared at the green orb on the table in front of her.
"That thing did it?" Dawn asked, setting down her bookbag and staring at the orb. "What is it?"
"Orb of Fegruu. It grants the will of whoever is holding it."
"So why don't we just pick it up and wish for Spike to be a vampire again?"
"Because it only works once which means I'm going to have to buy a new one for the shop because this one is no good anymore. No one buys magic items that don't perform magic." She ranted.
"Oh…."
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"Spike, get out of the way!" Buffy ordered. She had her arms looped around the neck of a large black demon and the thing nearly plowed over Spike as it tried to shake her off of him. She had hoped do dust a vamp or two tonight, but instead they were greeted at the cemetery by a very large and very teed-off black demon. It roared and tossed her roughly to the ground. She landed with a harsh thump against the side of a marble statue. Raising one of it's long black claws, it prepared to slash at her.
Growling, Spike jumped at the creature, burying his sharp teeth into it's leg. It howled in pain and turned to face the dog, snarling. It tried to grab at him, but he leapt nimbly out of the way. Come on mate, you'll have to do better than that. It swung again and Spike used the oprotunity to dash under it's legs. It turned to grab him once more but instead was met with the rather angry face of the slayer. She swung her fist, nailing him harshly in the jaw. It stumbled backwards and snapped it' jaw at her. It lunged at her and it's sheer mass knocked her to the ground.
"Oof." Buffy tried to kick the thing off of her, but it was no use, it was too big. It used a large fist to hit her across the face.
A deep growl emitted from Spike's throat and he jumped at the demon once more. Landing on it's back, he sunk his teeth into it's neck. Roaring, it stood up quickly, forgetting completely about the Slayer who was laying on the ground, nearly unconscious from the blow. Spike continued to growl and tightened his hold as the demon tried to throw him from it's back.
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"It's no use. I can't find anything." Anya said defeatedly as she slammed her book down on the counter. "Perhaps we should just let Spike stay a dog. I mean, it can't be that bad, can it?"
Dawn stared at Anya like she was mad. "I'm pretty sure Spike wouldn't like that."
"Yeah, I guess so. Plus Buffy would probably get mad too. She's always….what are you doing?" Anya stared at Dawn as the girl made her way over to where the orb was sitting. Cocking her head to the side, she picked it up and examined it. "Dawnie, I've been looking for hours. It's no use."
"I have an idea." The teen stated.
"Dawn, please, I've tried four different spells to reverse whatever that thing did. The odds that you'll be able to fix it are astronomical."
Dawn shrugged and dropped the orb to the ground, breaking it into hundreds of tiny pieces. A thin green mist rose from the shattered remains and then vanished.
"Well, I never thought of that." Anya said with a shrug.
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I'll kill you you bloody wanker. Spike thought as he continued to sink his teeth deeped into the back of the monster's neck. You hurt my Slayer.
The demon growled and tried to reach over it's shoulder to grab him, but failed. Instead, it flung Spike about, causing him to loosen his grip a bit.
Bugger. Spike was about to let go before he could be thrown from the demons shoulders, but a strange green light formed around his body. What the…. This distracted him enough for the demon to throw him to the ground. Much to his surprise, he landed with a soft thud on his feet. His two feet, boots and all.
He grinned and looked up at the demon. "Well, now, ain't this a pleasant little surprise?" He chuckled and lunged at the creature, punching and kicking furiously. Kicking the creature in the chest and sending him stumbling backwards, Spike used the opportunity to grab it's head and twist sharply, snapping it's neck.
"God I missed being able to kick the hell outta you lot." He grinned and knelt down beside Buffy, who was beginning to stir. Brushing her hair from her face, he smiled. "'ey pet."
"Spike?" she asked softly. "How did you…."
"Dunno, luv. And personally, I don't care. All I know is I'm my good ole self again.." Offering her his hand, he pulled her to her feet. "You alright?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine." She assured him. "And Spike?"
"Yeah luv?"
She punched him in the nose. "That's for lying to me."
"Bugger!" He complained, wiping the small stream of blood that had begun to flow away from his nose. "Lyin' 'bout what?"
"Being a dog."
"I din't bloody lie 'bout it, I couldn't even bloody talk!"
"Yeah, well, you could have written it down or something." She shot.
"Paws." He stated, holding up his hands.
She grabbed his hand and pulled it down. "Well you didn't have to act all puppy-ish. I would have figured it out a lot sooner if you hadn't."
"You would have sent me to the pound!" he protested.
She grinned. "I should have. You know, let them fix you." She made a little snipping motion with her fingers.
Spike shook his head and clucked his tongue. "You think that's funny, do you?" She nodded. "Well, you know what I find funny?"
"What?"
"I was walking around your house naked for three days."
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A/N One more chapter after this. Thanks for reading and please review!