Buffy sighed and looked around, William hadn't been by her side today, and as much as she hated to seem co-dependant, it hadn't been the same as it was yesterday.
She sat up, her legs coming up to tuck beneath her chin, her arms going around her knees. She watched what was happening every day, not knowing why she watched, only knowing that she needed to know.
"Buffy Summers?"
Buffy turned her head to see who was addressing her. She looked at the young man in confusion.
"Yes? Do I know you?"
The man shook his head. "No you don't. I'm here to offer you something."
"Offer me something? I – I don't understand. Who are you?" she asked.
He stepped closer to her and offered her his hand.
"Come, I have much to explain."
________________________
"You are the Chosen One, correct?" the man asked.
She nodded, wondering where he was going.
"You were told that death was your gift, were you not?"
"I was. I gave that gift. Gladly," she said.
He nodded and gave a short smile. "We know."
"We?" she asked, looking around for any other signs of life.
"The Powers."
She stared at him, amazed. "The Powers. As in the Powers That Be?"
He nodded and watched in amusement as the shock set in.
"We were watching you. It was we who chose you, did you know?"
She shook her head. "I thought the Watchers Council chose me."
"No. They do not choose Slayers. They train them. They have not had much success with the last Chosen One."
"That wasn't her fault!" Buffy cried.
He held up a hand to silence her. "We know. Her time was meant to have come to an end many months before. No matter. We are here to discuss you, not her."
He lead her towards a blinding light, so bright that she closed here eyes and covered them with her hands. When she removed her hands, the light was gone, and she found herself standing in a room with three other young men, all of them looking similar to the one who had brought her here.
"You are the Powers?"
They nodded in unison.
"We watched you," said the First, the one who had guided her here.
"You fight passionately," said the Second.
"You love with an ardent fervour so great that others cannot understand," said the Third.
Buffy looked expectantly towards the Fourth young man.
He smiled and gave a small shrug. "What they said."
Buffy laughed and turned to the First. "Why am I here?"
"You are here because the world is in debt to you."
"In debt?" she repeated.
"The Chosen One sacrifices herself to the world," explained the Second.
"Not just in her final battle," the Third said.
"But in the daily war that you fight for," finished the First. "We are here to pay that debt."
She shook her head, not understanding what they were offering.
"Your sacrifice was your life," the First said.
"The gift you gave was your death," said the Second.
"The gift you are to receive is your life," finished the third.
Buffy stared at them, completely taken aback.
"My life? As in…go back?" she asked.
The Four Powers nodded simultaneously.
"Your death was your choice, your life shall be one also," the First said.
"You mean, I have to choose between staying here or going back?" she asked.
The Powers nodded once more.
"Why? Why not just send me back?"
"You like it here," said the First.
"For some, going back would be like going to hell," the Second explained.
"For others, it would be simply a second chance. Or a third chance in your case, we believe," the Third said.
Buffy turned to the Fourth expectantly. He remained silent. "You don't talk much do you?"
"Sucks being the youngest," he explained.
The First shook his head and took Buffy's hand.
"The choice is yours. We cannot force you into remaining or returning."
Buffy looked down, torn between her old life and the new life of comfort and safety she held here.
"Can I have some time?" she asked.
The First nodded and gave a small smile. "If you decide to go back, all you have to do is close your eyes, and say 'return'. If you wish to remain here, then you do so."
"Can – can I take someone with me?"
The Fist turned to the other Three. She watched as they spoke to each other silently.
"You may take one. But know this, your time and theirs is limited. You are still to be a mortal. And as a Slayer, you're-"
"I know, my expiration date is not for a long shelf life," Buffy finished.
"We'll be watching over you. Regardless of your decision. You've always been a favourite of ours," the First said.
"Thank you," she said softly.
She paused a little before turning to the First. "If I do go back, I'm not going to wake up in my grave, am I?"
The First shook his head, giving her a soft smile. "We would not put you back there. You would be placed on your grave, not in it. Next to the headstone, most likely."
She nodded, thankful for small miracles. Or large miracles…she didn't know which.
The First led her away from the others. "Come. You have much to decide."
~*~
Spike ran his hands through her hair, pulling her towards him, collapsing in a laughing heap onto the bed that was in his crypt.
"You're so beautiful," he whispered adoringly, gently pulling her head down to meet her lips with his own.
She smiled and leaned in to his kiss. Without any extra effort, Spike managed to turn them over so he was on top of her, staring down into her eyes.
"Why do you bring me here each day?" he asked softly.
She gave a small shrug and smiled coyly.
"You want me here," she replied simply.
"It's not a question of whether or not I want you. I've wanted you in one way or another for the last four years."
She smiled as he brought his lips to her neck.
"I could hurt you, you know that luv?" he whispered.
"And somehow, I can't seem to care," she replied.
He gently took a nip at her neck with blunt teeth, sucking gently on the skin there. He could feel her pulse racing, but not because of fear. It was something else entirely that he hadn't felt from her since the night in the alley when she had told him he was beneath her.
He gave a small chuckle at the irony of his thought.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Just remembering when you told me I was beneath you," he replied, his lips only leaving her neck to speak. He immediately resumed his tender assault on her skin.
Within a fraction of a second, Spike found himself on his back, Buffy's face hovering above him. She grinned and kissed his lips passionately.
"Told you," she whispered.
He smiled and placed two gentle hands on her hips.
"Somehow it seems a lot more appealing than it did a few weeks ago."
From behind them there was a pounding on the door. Buffy looked up, startled, eyeing the door frantically.
"I have to go," she said, removing herself from him in a matter of seconds. He caught her wrist and pulled her closer to him, standing up to meet her at eye level.
"Stay."
She shook her head and kissed him once more.
"Wait, okay? It's not much longer. You'll see."
The knock on the door continued, the sound echoing through the crypt.
"I love you," he whispered.
Spike woke up with a start and heard the knocking on the door continuing. So that's what had woken him up, he thought. He sighed and moved to his feet.
His sense told him that it was still light outside, so, carefully placing himself out of the sunlight, he opened the door to his crypt. He hadn't been prepared to see the Nibblet walk in without a care in the world.
~*~
"What are you doing here?" he asked, his thoughts still on the dream that she had woken him from.
"I had to talk to you," she said.
"It's not safe here Nibblet, you know that. Especially not now," he said, his voice close to becoming a yell.
"Now? What, in daylight? No offence Spike, but if you haven't worked out that the sunlight kills you, then you are deeply stupid," she said, a small smile adorning her face.
She ran his hands through his sleep-tousled hair and moved back to his bed, taking a seat.
Dawn's face suddenly fell. "Spike, I'm sorry. I didn't think. I shoulda known that it's kinda bed time for you."
She went to leave but Spike stopped her, calling her back. "It's okay. I wasn't sleeping too well anyway," he said.
"Liar," she said.
He gave a small grin and pointed to the bed, offering her a seat. She sat down a little awkwardly, sitting Indian style on the rumpled covers.
"I just…I needed to talk to someone, and…I dunno. I kinda thought of you first," she admitted.
He gave a soft smile and motioned for her to continue.
"I just…I keep having these weird dreams. About her. And I can't stop them, and I don't know what any of it means. I just…I don't want to get my hopes up, but…part of me is saying that maybe I can get my hopes up. That maybe there's a chance that we could get her back," Dawn said.
Spike shook his head, knowing the familiar feeling of hoping for something that couldn't ever happen.
"Nibblet, I know you tried that resurrection spell on your mum, but…like the Doc said, that's some powerful magic you're dealing with. If she came back…different…I just know that it wouldn't be good," Spike said.
She looked at him, offended by his thought of her trying to do a spell like that again. "I know, and I wouldn't try the spell again anyway. I know that even though there's a chance that she would be the same, the chances of it turning out badly are even bigger, but…I still just think that maybe she'll walk through the front door at night after a patrol. Or that I'll get up in the morning and she'll be down in the kitchen, trying to make waffles, like she and mom used to do before…" Dawn trailed off. She had had her entire family ripped away from her in a matter of months, and Spike could tell that she wasn't coping.
"I know what you mean," he said, sympathetically. "Some nights, I kinda just expect her to bust open the doors and stand there, hands on her hips, glaring down at me, kicking my arse for something stupid that I did. As for the dreams, well…they're there. Every night."
Dawn looked down at her hands which were fidgeting with the covers on the bed for lack of something better to do with them. Spike saw her agitation and almost smiled with the memory that Buffy would always fiddle with her hands when she was anxious, or nervous.
"You're so much like your big sis'," he said.
Dawn smiled, tears in her eyes.
"Thank you."
Spike smiled and hesitantly touched her knee. "You should get back to the Magic Shop before Giles starts worrying."
Dawn nodded and stood up. Spike followed her over to the door and stopped her just as she went to walk out.
"You know that if you want to talk about…anything…you can talk to me. Bottling stuff up inside of you hurts a lot more than talking about it. Believe me," he said.
"Thank you."
~*~
William sat, watching the lives of Buffy's friends pan out before him. He had been waiting for her to return from her visit with the Powers, somehow unconsciously knowing that she would be leaving him within a matter of moments.
He heard her approaching from behind him, and his thoughts were confirmed when he heard her voice break into the silence that had previously surrounded him.
"Will?"
He turned to see her standing behind him uncertainly. He reached out a hand, beckoning for her to join him where he sat. She took hesitant steps forward and sat herself beside him.
"Will, there's some things that need to be said," she started, her voice slow and broken as she stumbled over the words that she didn't know how to express.
"They want you to go back, don't they?" he asked, his question making her speech seem a little less difficult.
Funny how both Spike and Will always knew what she was thinking and what she needed when she was unsure of what it was herself.
She nodded, answering his question. He turned away from her a little, hoping she wouldn't notice his tears. She reached her hand up to his face, wiping away the stray tear from his eyes.
"They said I could go back. 'Cause of how I died," she said simply.
"Because you sacrificed yourself so that the world could continue," William said.
She nodded, wondering how many people could say that they had plummeted off a tower to save the world.
"I was told that death was my gift to give. Life is my gift to receive. But…I don't have to take it," she said.
He looked at her, astonished that she would even consider not taking the offer.
"You have to go back. Buffy, this is the chance of a lifetime. You could do the things you never got to do, see your friends…tell him the truth," William said.
"I don't want to leave here though. I've got you and I've got my mom," she said.
"But you've got everyone else that you love down there. You're sister…you're friends. Spike."
"I know that," she said. "But, it's…it's beautiful here. And I can still see them from here. I can see that they're doing okay," she said.
"But they can't see you. And you can't talk to them or touch them, or any of that. And I know you want that. Buffy, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. No one gets to go back except the truly tremendous. That's you pet," he said.
She nodded and looked down at her hands, wondering how he would react to what she was about to ask.
"They uh…they said that I could take someone with me. To go back," she admitted.
He looked at her, his eyes wide.
"I want you to come with me," she said.
He smiled and leant forward, kissing her forehead softly.
"Thank you, but…I can't. That's not my world anymore. It's his. And you love him, not me," he explained.
"Please, Will. I need you. I can't go down there alone. I can't live down there with no one else realising what going back means. I want you with me."
He sighed and took her hands.
"Buffy…I love you, honestly I do. I would do anything within my grasp to help you, but what you're asking me to do-"
"Will, please!" she looked at him desperately, her heart aching with the confusion that had plagued her since the Powers had made their offer.
He gave her a soft smile and stood up.
"You should say good bye to your mum," he said.
"Will you come with me?" she asked.
"I'll make sure you get there safely," he promised.
________________________
Joyce hugged her daughter tightly, saddened that she was leaving, but rejoicing in the fact that Buffy was being given another chance at life.
"Take care of Dawn, okay?" Joyce whispered.
Buffy nodded and kissed her mom on the cheek, stepping out of her mom's comforting embrace.
William took Buffy by the hand and gently brushed his lips against hers.
"You ready?" he asked.
She nodded and closed her eyes, holding onto William's hand loosely.
"Return," she whispered.
It was too late for her to notice that William had dropped her hand.
With that, she plummeted into the darkness.
~*~
Spike looked up at the clock that sat in Main Street, the large hands on its face telling him that it was five in the morning. The sun would be up soon, which meant that it was time to start heading back towards the Summers' home.
He turned to begin walking through one of the cemetery's but stopped as he heard a noise behind him.
A hand shot up through a freshly covered up grave. He sighed, taking a stake out of the pocket of his trusty duster, waiting for the vamp to get up.
"Welcome back," Spike said, hiding the stake behind his back.
The vamp looked at him, confused. "You're like me?"
Spike nodded and stepped towards him.
"I'm like you. But, I don't play by our rules," he said.
The vamp looked at him in confusion for a second until Spike pulled the stake from behind his back and plunged it into the vamp's heart. The vamp dusted and Spike continued walking.
He stopped as he reached Restfield cemetery, the place where he had spent several years in his crypt. It was also the cemetery that held the girl of his dreams, as well as that girl's mother.
He opened the creaking gates and stepped inside, his heart heavy. He checked the time on his fob-watch that had been attached to him since the early 1900's.
5:20 in the morning. Which meant that the other vampires would be heading back to their shelter houses, and no one would be outside. This, in turn, meant that he could go and visit Buffy's grave.
He knew he was cutting it close, but his crypt was only metres away from her gravesite, and he wasn't expected to be back at the Magic Shop before sunset.
He sighed as he walked the path towards Buffy's grave, wishing for a moment that he had never come back to Sunnydale in the first place. Immediately, he stripped the thought from his mind, grateful for every second that he had spent with the Slayer.
With his head down and his hands in his pockets, Spike approached the grave. His ears pricked to attention as he heard someone yelling, screaming non-stop.
He broke into a run and followed the voice to Buffy's grave. He saw someone, a young woman yelling at the heavens, kicking the headstone that read:
Buffy Anne Summers
1982 - 2001
Beloved sister and friend.
She saved the world a lot.
Spike charged towards them, not caring that his chip would shock him if the violator of his girl's grave was human or not. He tackled her to the ground, getting her away from Buffy's headstone.
She wriggled beneath him, fighting violently with him, her fists pounding into his chest. She got out from beneath him, standing up, but he wouldn't let her get past him. She was screaming at him, words that sounded as though they didn't exist, but as her energy drained, he could make out the words that she yelled.
"You liar! You lied to me! Will!! How could you?!"
He caught her wrists as they beat his chest, and to his surprise, she collapsed against him, sobs wracking her body. He held her up, and took a step back, trying to see who this woman was.
He pushed back her dishevelled hair, only to stare into the eyes which he had dared not to hope to see again.
"Buffy?"
~*~
Spike looked down at the young woman in front of him, his head telling him to distrust his eyes, but his heart couldn't help but leap with the thought that this truly was Buffy.
Her body suddenly went limp, and he almost failed to keep her from hitting the ground. He picked her up effortlessly and quickly thought about where would be the safest place for him to take her.
The hairs on his skin started to prickle with apprehension, a sign that told him the sun was coming up. He hesitated a moment before making his decision. The safest and quickest place to take her was his crypt.
He carried her easily and entered the crypt just as the sun began to make it's first appearance . He placed the unconscious girl onto his bed, pulling the covers up around her. He knelt beside her, his hands moving towards her face.
It was exactly how he had remembered her, her clothes the same as those she had worn on her last day of battle. He pushed a stray strand of hair away from her face and leant forward, brushing his lips over her forehead.
"Is this what I was waiting for luv?" he whispered. "You were trying to tell me that you were coming back?"
Buffy lay completely still, her body fallen into a deep sleep, as one could imagine a body would do after going through the shock of coming back from the dead.
He stood up, beginning to pace around the room, never going more than a few feet from the bed.
He looked again at his watch, surprised to see that it was already seven thirty. He had been with her for an hour and a half without noticing the time flying by.
He didn't know what to do, or even if this was real. He pinched himself several times until his skin became a little red. "Definitely not a dream," he whispered to himself.
He stopped pacing and stood beside the bed, looking down at the small blonde haired woman who captured his heart.
"I have to get your Watcher, pet. He'll know what to do," he whispered.
He gave her a final kiss, his lips gently touching hers.
He quickly scrawled a note to her, just in case she woke up. He knew he didn't want to leave her to wake up on her own, but he couldn't handle being in their alone and not knowing what had happened.
He moved to the basement area of the crypt and swiftly made his way through the sewers, stopping when he knew he was just outside the magic shop. He threw the blanket he had brought over himself and quickly came up from a manhole and made a mad dash into the shop.
Giles looked up, startled to see the vampire at such an early hour.
"Spike, what is it?"
Spike tried to find the words to explain what he needed to, but found that nothing could express what had happened.
"There's something you need to see."
Giles looked at him uncertainly. "What is it?"
"I can't explain, but we have to hurry. You need to see this, okay. Just trust me."
Giles nodded, still a little hesitant about following the vampire who hadn't explained his erratic behaviour. But if his Slayer could trust the blonde vampire, then Giles could as well.
"How did you get here? The sun's out."
"Sewers. They run through the majority of Sunnydale. Just….meet me at my crypt okay? Hurry," Spike said, dashing back to the manhole he had only just emerged from.
Giles shook his head, worried about the mentality of the vampire, wondering if the grief had finally gotten to him completely.
He turned to Anya who was looking on in confusion.
"Are you alright by yourself?"
Anya nodded and waved her hand, telling him to go.
He went outside and got into his car, regardless of his concern and drove towards the cemetery which he had secretly visited every day since Buffy's death.
He parked the car and got out, retrieving a stake and cross from the glovebox. 'Just in case,' he told himself.
He walked to Spike's crypt, stopping briefly beside Buffy's grave. The earth looked as though there had been a fight, footprints and patches of grass gave it a dishevelled look.
He made a note to fix it when Spike had told him whatever needed to be said. Though why it couldn't have been done at the Magic Box was beyond him.
Giles knocked on the door of the crypt and entered slowly, seeing Spike pacing beside the bed. He could make out a lump under the bed covers and he felt his heart begin to tighten, fear suddenly coming over him.
He took a step closer and saw two feet at the bottom of the bed, a hand poking out from the top of the covers.
"Spike," Giles said cautiously.
The vampire looked up at Giles and could immediately smell his fear.
"Is this some sort of a sick joke?" Giles asked. He readied himself to take out the cross if Spike advanced on him.
"It's not a joke. This is very real," Spike said, the worry in his voice was evident.
"Why bring me here?" Giles asked.
"Because you're the only one that would know how to handle this," Spike explained.
Giles looked at him in confusion.
"How to handle you becoming a killer again?" he asked maliciously.
Spike looked at him, confused and a little shocked. "A killer? What? She's not dead Giles. That's what I've been trying to tell you."
Giles felt himself relax a little and took a step forward towards the bed. As he stepped forward he could see a familiar face under the covers.
He raced forward, his knees failing, his body collapsing beside the bed. His hands reached out, touching her face, his eyes taking in every detail.
"Buffy," he whispered, tears springing to his eyes.
He composed himself, taking short, sharp breaths of air. He stood up and looked accusingly at the vampire.
"What did you do?" he asked, angrily.
"Me? I didn't do anything. You and you're lot brought her back. You're three little witches and their magicks did this," Spike said.
Giles turned back to the sleeping girl on the bed.
"Was she like this when you found her?" he asked.
"Asleep, you mean?" Spike asked. "She was alive and kicking when I found her. Literally kicking. I've got the bruises to show for it."
Giles closed his eyes, trying to rack his mind as to why this could happen.
"She hit you?"
"Hit, punched, kicked. She's toting some finger nails to boot," Spike said.
Giles opened his eyes and knelt before his surrogate daughter, gently taking her hand with his.
"What happened to you?" he whispered softly.
He felt her stirring, and reluctantly let go of her hand. He took a step back and watched as the Slayer's eyes began to open.
~*~
Buffy groaned softly as she began to wake up from her deep sleep. Her muscles were aching, and she hadn't felt this tired since her eighteenth birthday. She stretched in the bed and rolled over, before it suddenly occurred to her that she had no idea where she was.
She opened her eyes to find herself in a double bed with red satin sheets. The walls were a dark grey concrete, ones that she had seen many, many times. 'Spike's crypt,' she thought to herself.
She felt the stab of pain from last night when she realised that William had dropped her hand at the last second, forcing her to come back to the earth alone, even after he had promised to get her there safely.
Buffy sat up, her body still sore from the transition of being dead. She knew from watching her friends that it had been a week since her death. A week of being separated from her friends and family.
She pulled the blankets around her and suddenly knew instinctively that she was being watched.
There were two other people in the room with her. One human (she could tell from the heavy breathing), and one vampire. Her Slayer 'spider-senses' had obviously already kicked in. She knew that it was Spike, for who else would have brought her to this crypt?
She turned slowly, unsure of how the two people behind her would react to her return.
She glanced between the two men, surprised to see Giles standing beside the blonde vampire. She held Spike's gaze for a second before turning away and looking at her Watcher.
She looked down at the covers, realising that, thankfully she was fully dressed. She stood up, her legs a little shaky.
Giles rushed to her side as he saw her almost stumble. He helped her regain her balance and without hesitation, he pulled her into a crushing embrace.
She hugged him back, equally as tightly, tears coming to her eyes as she heard him whispering 'Thank God, thank God' again and again.
Giles took a step back and looked at his Slayer, thankful that he had a chance to see her again, grateful to whomever had brought her back. His earlier anger at the stupidity of the person abusing magick had dissipated completely and his only emotion now was sheer happiness.
Spike hung back a little, watching as the Watcher and Slayer were reunited. His heart gave a jump as he realised that this was really real. It wasn't like his dreams where she would ask him to wait, and it wasn't like his dreams where she would always have to leave.
She was back. Really back.
He stared at her and watched as she and Giles shared a smile. He looked at her hopefully when she cast a glance in his direction, her eyes not leaving his this time. He had understood without a word why she had gone to Giles first.
Giles had been her Watcher, her father, her friend for five years. Spike had been an enemy, then an ally, and finally a friend. Or at least someone that could be trusted.
Buffy felt Giles give her a small push towards the blonde vampire, who had suddenly found himself moving towards her.
She fell into his embrace easily, her tears falling freely, his tears mixing with hers. He kissed the top of her head, thankful that he was able to hold her the way he had dreamt of holding her for so many months.
"Welcome home."
~*~
After another ten minutes of tearful hugs and warm embraces, Buffy, Giles and Spike found themselves sitting on either a chair or on Spike's bed, in Buffy's case.
Giles and Spike couldn't keep their eyes off the young woman in front of them, both fearful that at any second she would disappear and never return.
"Buffy," Giles began "I don't want it to sound as though I'm not glad to see you, believe me, I have never been more ecstatic in my entire life, but…how did you get here?"
Buffy gave a small smile, thankful that she was so obviously wanted here in this life by both of the men in the crypt.
"It's kind of a long story," she warned.
Spike grinned. "I've got all day luv. Or until six o'clock this afternoon anyway."
Buffy smiled and glanced at Giles to see if he would stay and listen.
"I left Anya in charge of the Magic Box. She should be quite capable of handling it by herself."
Buffy nodded and hugged on of Spike's pillows to her chest.
"Okay. Well…when I died, it was…it was kind of weird. Like I was in the middle of two places. I know this sounds really cliché, but…I saw parts of my life flashing before me. Different parts, some happy, some…incredibly painful. And then, suddenly, I was standing with my mom. I don't know where we were, it didn't seem to be anywhere specific, but…it was safe and warm, and…I was loved."
Buffy smiled at the recollection. Not that she wasn't glad to be back, but the memories of where she was had all been good ones.
"I watched you. All of you. I watched the funeral and everything that came after that. It hurt to watch, but…it was comforting to know that you guys were continuing. That you were living. And then…I met someone."
She turned to look at Spike. "I met you."
Spike looked at her, wide-eyed and confused.
"Me? I didn't go anywhere luv."
"Your soul, Spike. I met your soul," she explained.
Giles looked at Buffy with a new interest. "Spike's soul? Are you certain?"
She nodded and looked at her Watcher. "It was William. He and I got kinda close, and…it was nice having a familiar face up there besides my mom."
Spike felt a stab of jealousy rip through his body. Even though unconsciously he knew that William's soul was still part of who he was, the fact that William had spent the time with Buffy when he hadn't was infuriating.
"Anyway, to make a long story short, there was someone else. Or, four someone else's actually. The Powers."
"The Powers that Be?" Giles asked.
"Yup. They said that I could come back here. If I wanted to. Which, I obviously wanted to cos…look. Here I am," she said, smiling with a little force.
It still hurt her to think that William had lied to her about coming back with her. He had given her false hope, and she didn't know whether she could forgive him for doing that so easily.
"Why would the Powers do that? They're not usually that nice about things like this," Spike said.
He had heard that the Powers were forces to be reckoned with. They were in charge of everything that lived, including the demons and the forces of darkness. They could not control people, though they had the power of life and death. They usually, however, only dealt with death.
"Giles, do you remember what the spirit guide told me?" Buffy asked.
Giles nodded and unconsciously removed his glasses to begin polishing them.
"Death is your gift. I remember."
"What?" Spike exclaimed. "What do you mean death is your gift? Death's not a gift!"
Buffy looked at him and smiled, recalling that she had said something similar to the spirit guide herself.
"I know. I thought that too. But the spirit guide didn't mean that I would be the cause of death. It meant that I could give my death as a gift."
"So, you died as a gift to the Nibblet, you mean?" Spike asked.
Buffy nodded, thankful that he had understood.
"The Powers gave me that message. Death is my gift to give. They told me that because I died to save the world, the world was in debt to me. They said that my life would be my gift to receive if I wanted to take it back. The rest is kinda obvious."
Giles smiled and replaced his glasses. Some things never changed, including Buffy being able to make a light hearted comment about every situation they faced. He imagined that it was the only thing that helped her to stay sane.
"So uh…I think that kinda covers it," Buffy said.
Giles nodded and stood up from his chair.
"I, uh…I kinda wanna go and see Dawn," Buffy said.
"It's Friday, pet. She's at school already," Spike said.
Buffy's face fell, knowing that she couldn't go to the school to surprise her sister.
"And the rest of the gang?"
"Anya's at the store. Xander went to work early. Willow, Tara and Amy are in classes," Giles explained.
Buffy smiled at the mention of Amy. "Will finally figured out the spell, huh?"
Giles nodded. "Perhaps I should let the two of you catch up. I think leaving Anya at the store for a lengthy amount of time could potentially be disastrous," he explained.
Buffy grinned a little and stood up, hugging her Watcher once again.
"I'm glad you're back," Giles whispered.
"Me too."
Giles stepped back and glanced at Buffy once more before turning to the door.
"Giles?"
He stopped and looked at Buffy.
"Could you, uh…not tell the others just yet? I kinda want it to be a surprise. I'll drop into the store at about six. Make sure they're all there, okay?"
~*~
Spike and Buffy stood in Spike's crypt, no more than a few feet away from each other, both of them stealing glances at each other. Whenever they're eyes, met, they would stare for a second before turning away.
"Buffy," Spike began, his voice no louder than a whisper.
She looked up at him, tears in both of their eyes. He took a step towards her, bridging the gap between them. Tentatively, he reached a hand up to her shoulder and felt her stiffen at his touch. He went to take his hand a way, hurt by her flinching, but he felt her relax underneath his touch.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, a tear slipping down his cheek.
She reached up and wiped it gently from his face, shaking her head, not quite understanding what his apology was for.
"I failed you."
It finally dawned on her what he was apologising for. Her death.
"Spike, it wasn't your fault. I didn't have a choice," she said softly.
"You shouldn't have had to make the choice in the first place," he cried, unable to tear his hand away from her arm.
She took a step closer to him, reaching her arms out to embrace him. It was awkward at first until both of them relaxed into each others arms, tears falling once again.
"I'm sorry…about this morning," Buffy whispered. "I was kinda…upset."
He smiled above her head and leant his cheek against her hair.
"I noticed that luv. You wanna talk about it?" he offered.
She looked at him, startled by his invitation. She took his hand and led him towards the bed, sitting down amongst the covers. He took a seat next to her. His eyes widened in shock as she lay down on the bed.
He lay next to her, unthreateningly, keeping his hands to himself.
She scooted over, curling herself next to him, taking his arm and resting it over his mid-section.
"Doesn't matter," she whispered, closing her eyes.
He watched her as she drifted back to sleep and couldn't help himself as he felt his eyes begin to close with hers.
Within minutes, they were both asleep, finally comfortable in each others arms.