Dawn had come downstairs and her eyes brightened at Willow's appearance and the mention of her sister. "Willow, what is it? What did you find?"

"Dawn go upstairs." I said to her, my gaze not leaving Willow.

"But Spike, it's about..."

"Dawn, I said go upstairs." My voice was shaky, but I think she saw that my eyes were firm when I looked at her and my tone cold. She headed back up the stairs, and very deliberately lowered the radio. "Why don't we go into the kitchen?"

Red followed me there with deliberate steps. I knew she hadn't been sleeping. She didn't even bother to come home some nights, and Tara would call looking for her. She would never really say where she was all that time, would just appear out of the blue wearing the same clothes she had left in two days ago and holding a Styrofoam cup of coffee. Black, and usually cold.

"So what did you find Red?" I asked her, drying my hands on a towel. I was trying not to let my voice wobble too much as I spoke, but this was the kind of news I had waited for since the night Buffy had died, something that could offer me a little hope that she might return.

"It was in this book." She laid the mildewed volume on the tabletop, flipping through the pages rather slowly, the only noise the rustling of the ancient parchment.

"Red, what was in the book? You have to tell me what you found." I was getting angry with her, and knew that if she didn't start speaking soon, the little chip in my head would start sending it's bloody shocks for the evil thoughts I had about her.

"Oh, of course. It's a prophecy. It says that Buffy..." The microwave began to beep as soon as Buffy's name had left her lips, an empty hollow sound.

"Bloody hell." I said under my breath, smashing my fist onto the top of the machine. The noise gurgled out, and I was sure that I had broken it. Warm blood wasn't the top thought in my mind now.

"It says that Buffy will rise again."

"What do you mean? How do you know that's what the prophecy is saying?"

"It says, and I quote, 'The slayer who will rise twice'. Buffy died once before at the hands of the Master, Spike. She rose once before. This must mean that it will happen again."

My mind was not processing the information at all. "She's died before? Why didn't we just do the same thing that you blokes did the last time it happened?"

"Xander gave her CPR before, and she was resuscitated. There was no way that could have worked this time."

"What does the rest of the prophecy say, does it tell us what he have to do? Cause I would bloody well like to get a start on it." This was a spark, a little flicker of light in the darkness that had been my existence for what seemed like an eternity.

"'The slayer who will rise twice' and then umm" her voice dropped to that of a whisper and she spoke very quickly "'will use fatherly love to bring forth two children of light and dark who will inherit their parent's strengths.'"

"Wait, wait, wait Red, did you just say what I think you said?"

Willow looked more awake than she had in a long time. Her eyes were bright and her voice had become a little bubbly and less monotone. "Buffy will rise at some point, to have children. This is everything that we ever wanted. She'll be alive again Spike. She'll be alive, and she'll be able to have a normal life with children and love."

"But she'll do it without me. Thanks Red, I get now why you sped up through that part. Where'd you get this book anyway? I thought Giles didn't have anything useful."

"He doesn't. I got this somewhere else." She was trying not to tell me where the book had come from. It was not a good sign.

"Where'd you get the book Red? It didn't just fall out of the sky."

"Maybe it did, maybe a bird dropped it. How do you know? This is the Hellmouth, anything is possible."

"Willow, don't bullshit me. I've heard enough bloody bullshit from everyone and I would like some bleeding answers!"

"Alright, it wasn't a bird, it was an angel." She averted her eyes and headed to leave the kitchen.

"You brought this to the poof? Why the bloody hell did you get Peaches involved in all this?"

"Spike, he wanted to help. I needed the help. It worked out well. We got the information we wanted. Be happy." It wasn't the information I wanted, I don't know what I wanted to hear, but it wasn't that.

"That's where you've been disappearing to isn't it? LA."

"Yes, I've been in LA. He needed something to do Spike, to help. He loves her, you know that. You should understand, you love her too." She was right; he felt the same way that I did, probably worse. He'd been able to hold her at some point.

"How about I go tell Dawn, Red. Why don't you call the Scoobs? Tell them they can come here. Everyone needs to know. We need to do everything we can now that we know it's going to happen."

"Sure Spike." I headed out of the room and up the stairs. Dawn'll be happy. I guess that's better; I've gotten used to disappointment.