Good evening, All:)
Here is chapter twenty-two of Time. Again, set in the real world, the confrontation between Spike and his foe begins. But will he be able to fight?
The next chapter will be out on Thursday evening. Please let me know if you like this one! Your feedback means everything to me.
Thanks for reading:)
*Cheery Vibes*, Nimue
"As sick as it sounds, in my little head, there's a little Sunnydale, and a widdle Buffy, and a widdle Spike, and Spike wubs Buffy." James Marsters 14 July 2002
Title: You Always Hurt (Time - Chapter Twenty-Two)
Author: Nimue
Rating: PG -13
Pairing Buffy/Spike. Most major characters included.
Feedback: Yes, please
For instant notification of fic releases, straight to your mailbox, please visit Always_Everyday@yahoogroups.com
Disclaimer: All characters belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, UPN, Fox... Just Borrowing. (with, of course, the exception of Emma and William, who belong to Buffy and Spike)
Summary: Set immediately following Illusions. Giles, Anya and Cyrus try and come up with a plan to help Spike. Xander finds help for Takina, but will it be in time? Giles explains to Buffy what has happened. Spike decides to take matters into his own hands at the safe house, but is met with a shocking surprise.
You Always Hurt
The three of them sat quietly in the empty second floor snack room. None of them wanted to say it, but they hadn't a clue how to boost Spike's power short of delivering Buffy to him. And Buffy was in no condition to stand, never mind fight. They weren't even sure how to tell the Slayer that her other half had gone.
"Well, maybe we need to be concentrating on a way to recapture Draconius," Giles sighed, gently rolling a paper cup full of tea between his hands.
"The Box of Oraclese was a bust," Anya responded. "And my magics will only work against his host. Not the spirit himself. Which isn't a whole lot of help."
Giles looked at her, studying her face. "And you say we need Emma back to retrieve William?"
Anya nodded. "She will have to open the door to the Queen's chamber. Tara and I could get that far, but only a born emissary can release him."
Cyrus looked at them a moment. "Part of the Powers," he muttered. "How is it that the Evil can be vanquished, Rupert? How is Draconius killed at the First?"
"Simply enough, beheading," Giles answered. "If the host is beheaded, the spirit can be sent back to Hell with the spell performed at the First."
"By you.... well, you back then..." Anya stuttered, smiling nervously.
"Yes," Giles answered, nodding. "By the Father. It will send the Evil back to Hell."
Cyrus nodded. "Then all we must do is go to them," he commented. "We need to be there when Spike and the soldier fight Draconius."
"The problem *is* that Spike cannot defeat him without Buffy," Giles repeated as if his friend and mentor had suddenly become dense.
Anya nodded. "He may have to," she sighed. "Draconius will not leave the Peacemaker alive. Spike will not be able to get her back without fighting him. The best we can do is go and help him. Maybe I can distract him so that someone.. one of you... can chop his ugly head off."
Giles looked at his hands, pondering the subject for a moment. "A caveat. It is lore, myth, that if Draconius is sent back to hell, he will gather his forces and release Armageddon upon the Earth. Do we really want to take the chance that that particular prophesy is incorrect?"
Cyrus studied the Watcher, the same thought passing through his mind. "Rupert, the prophesy was that when the Evil was sent to Hell at the First, he would come to release Hell itself against the Earth when his time had come. He has come back. We have all averted Apocalypse. I think that the prophesy is either incorrect or has come to pass without our connecting it with the event. In any case, what choice do we have? Emma must be saved.
It is my duty as her Watcher as well as my need as her friend. Draconius is too dangerous, even restrained, to inhabit this dimension. We must send him back."
Giles nodded, sighing. "I suppose you are right." Slowly, he stood, lending a hand down to Anya. "I should tell Buffy what has happened and that we have found William. Anya, would you please see what you can find in the way of weapons and spells and meet me downstairs in a few moments? You are by far the fastest..."
"In a flash," Anya whispered, kissing his cheek and poofing into thin air.
"Cyrus, please tell Tara of our plans. See if she has recovered enough to try and put a protection spell on us, and possibly guide Spike. Show him how to kill Draconius. Anything."
Cyrus nodded. "I doubt she'll be up to much, but I am sure she will try."
Giles nodded, heading for the door.
*****
Spike stood in stunned shock as he watched a smile break on her flushed face. Buffy? Couldn't be her. Couldn't be her, he repeated as her thin, golden arms wrapped around his neck and her swollen lips pressed against his again.
She was in the hospital, drugged, operated on, in pain, when he saw her last, part of him argued.
Buffy is the Slayer, she can heal at an amazing rate. And no drug will keep her away from what she needs. She's proven that. And she wasn't in her room when he went to look for her.
Right after Riley left.
Spike's mind reeled, his daughter on one side of the room, bound, captured. His lover on the other, wrapped in another man's embrace. He couldn't think enough to reach out to her. Couldn't focus. His heart exploded in his chest and rage got the better of him.
The window shattered as he flew through the glass into the darkened room.
*****
Tara heard him scream. Even in her exhausted sleep, she heard the familiar voice and was out of her chair in a split second. She ran, nearly dragging herself down the hall towards the noise.
Xander slumped to the ground, clutching her to him, holding her like a child wrapped in a gray hospital blanket. He saw Tara approach and looked at her with stunned, heartbroken eyes. "Help us," he whimpered, as she got closer, seeing Takina's blood-matted hair from the top of the blanket.
"Oh my.." her voice choked short as she slapped her hand over her mouth, spinning on a heel and running down the hall. She nearly clothes lined an intern as she rounded a corner.
"Whoa," the young doctor said, catching Tara as she crashed into him.
"Help... need help," she muttered, grabbing the now frightened man's wrist and dragging him back towards Xander. The doctor followed at a jog, heading down the corridor behind the speechless woman.
Tara stopped, pointing at Xander as they approached. The doctor looked at the crumpled forms in the hall, walking closer slowly. Tentatively. "Sir, are you alright?"
Xander looked up, his eyes glazed and afraid. "Can.. can you help us?" His voice was that of a child. Broken and shaking and afraid. "She.. she's hurt... bad."
The doctor dropped to his knees, pulling the blanked back from her face. He dropped it, shock spreading over his features. "Doctor Noel?" He gasped.
"What.. what happened?"
Xander shook his head, rocking a bit, holding her against him. "Need help."
The doctor pressed his fingers to her neck, feeling the thready pulse. "Stay right here." He jumped, heading towards a phone in a hall, speaking frantically. An announcement came over the speaker overhead, mumbled and coded. The doctor came back.
"Where did you find her?" The young man asked, helping Xander lay her down on the cold tile floor. Xander wrapped the blanket around her tenderly. Didn't want her to be cold.
"She... she was missing. She's ... my... I love her," he mumbled incoherently as the doctor began to take her vitals. "I .. I went to look for her and the last place anyone knew she was was the lockers. So I went in there... she was... she was there."
"OK," the doctor answered quietly. "We'll help you."
"Is.. is she alive?" Tara's voice asked, quiet and afraid.
The young doctor's head turned. "Yes. But she needs help fast. We don't know how bad this head injury is. If there is any internal hemorrhage." He turned back to Xander. "Do you have any idea who did this?"
Xander looked up at Tara. Her eyes dropped. They both had an idea, but like everything else in this life, human justice didn't seem to apply. Xander shook his head. "No."
A cart was rolled down the hall. Several doctors, nurses, interns, all in scrubs and white coats swarmed them, situating Takina on a backboard and hoisting her onto the gurney. Tara walked to Xander, wrapping an arm around him as he watched in stunned horror. They had all lost someone dear to them. All but him. He had never lost anyone that close. Closest was Buffy. And that was different. So different. In the back of his head, in all of their heads, they knew that Buffy went out every night and every time she patrolled, every time she hunted, she might never come back. They had learned to live with it.
But Takina. She was a doctor. A normal... a human... Whatever, he thought. His love. His other half. She couldn't die.
Xander leaned down and kissed her pretty cheek as they rolled her off. "We're taking her to emergency. We'll do everything we can," the young doctor panted as they rolled her past. Xander nodded, turning back to Tara, burying his face in her shoulder. Crumbling. His tenuous world finally falling apart.
*****
"Ladies, May I have a moment alone with Buffy?" Giles asked as he entered her room. Willow and Dawn looked up, eyeing the Watcher. Giles looked exhausted. Afraid.
"Is... Is everything OK?" WIllow asked, studying him. His face was stone. Set. "Guess that was a stupid question."
"Please," Giles repeated.
"Sure," Willow responded, standing. Dawn stood with her, her legs a little wobbly from fear and fatigue. They left without another word.
Giles looked at Buffy lying there, staring at the ceiling, unmoving. Cautiously, he made his way towards her, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Buffy, we need to talk."
Buffy didn't respond, merely stared at the drop ceiling.
"You don't have to say anything," he continued. "I do understand that you must be... frightened. And hurt. And angry. But I need to be honest with you. Will you listen?"
She nodded, almost imperceptibly. The truth could not be anymore painful than what was already in her head.
"Tara and Anya discovered that what has ... happened... to William is indeed mystical. A spell, an ancient one at that," Giles began. Buffy's face turned towards him, interested in what he had to say. He may not be providing her with answers, but at least he wasn't filling her with the 'Everything'll be OK,' garbage.
"He has been trapped in Time. He is... he's following various paths until he finds the correct one. Living his future over and over until he gets it right. When he does, he will be delivered to the chamber of the Queen of the Sky. Part of the Powers. Completely benevolent. He will be safe there. But he will remain trapped until an emissary of her court retrieves him," Giles continued.
Buffy's look questioned him, although she could not bring her mouth to form the words.
"Another part of the Powers," Giles answered, reading the look. "Emma," he clarified.
"She's gone." Buffy's voice was like an ancient dandelion on the wind. Tiny and fragile and barely even there.
Giles nodded. "She is," he repeated. "Draconius has returned, Buffy. We believe he has Emma."
The look in Buffy's eyes changed from sadness and resignation to terrified anger. "What?"
"Riley received a phone call from his wife that the government had tracked Draconius to a residence in Sunnydale. He received the call not long after Emma disappeared and we had begun to look for her. Riley left to surveil the premises while Spike came to talk to you. I take it he didn't?" Giles asked, watching her face become angrier by the moment.
"I was with William," Buffy answered quietly. "He left a note." She paused a moment. "Where is he now?"
"At the address Riley gave to him. Spike cannot defeat Draconius without you, but if they can catch him off guard or without the witch, they can retrieve Emma and live to fight another day."
Buffy thought a moment. "What about Takina? I thought Dawn said that is who she gave Emma to?"
Giles sighed. "We think it may have been the Witch. She's a shape shifter. Dawn would have had no way of knowing."
Something happened, snapping all of the pieces together in Buffy's head. "And Emma disappeared right before Riley told you Draconius had returned to town?"
"Yes," Giles answered, quirking a brow at her.
"Doesn't that seem odd?" Buffy asked, sitting up a bit against the pillows. "That and the fact that all of this happens just as *Riley* returns for some odd reason?"
"He says he was assigned to protect Emma. The Council says that, per their contacts, his story checks out," Giles answered.
Buffy shook her head. "Where is this place?"
"Old mansion house near the intersection of Ninth and Cedar. Anya, Cyrus and I are about to head out there to see if we can help Spike and hopefully contain Draconius."
"Good," Buffy said quietly, her face angry, but her mind reeling with sudden understanding. "Do that." She was quiet, her gaze returning to the ceiling. "Giles, I'd like a few minutes alone."
"Right," Giles said softly, his face betraying his concern for her. Her voice, her actions, her eyes. She was furious and hurt. Never a good combination in a woman who had just had her children stolen. Never a good combination for a girl with superpowers and a questionable temper.
Slowly, he stood, backing through the door, hoping she would hold it together just a bit longer.
*****
"Hello, *Love*," Buffy hissed as Spike crashed to the ground inside the room. Spike's head jerked up and he jumped to his feet, staring at her. "Fancy seeing *you* here."
Spike shook his head as if to erase a bad dream. Was it her? Had he marked her? Would he have to fight her?
Part of the question was answered as she turned, grabbing a sword that had been balanced against the wall. Something was going on. His mind was... muddy. As if there was a spell.. something keeping him from seeing her. From feeling her. Reaching into her head.
Buffy raised the sword and with a primal scream, launched herself at Spike. Riley leaned back against the wall, smiling as she stabbed at him. Spike jumped out of the way at amazing speed, hurtling himself against the wall near Emma.
Emma.
She can't see this. Can't see her mum trying to kill her dad. Been through enough already.
The little girl looked over at him, her eyes frightened. He thought it was because of what she was seeing. Because of what Buffy was doing. But she knew. Knew why. The fear was for him.
Spike pushed himself off the wall, leaping over the advancing woman and rolling through the open doorway into the next room. At least then Emma wouldn't have to see.
Riley followed as Buffy stalked towards him, her face cold and hard. "You," Spike hissed, eyeing this soldier. "You're him?"
"That I am," Riley answered, leaning against the doorframe, his voice now that of the ancients.
"Think they could have picked a smarter host. Better looking at least," Spike snarked as he ducked another jab from the broadsword. "What did you do to her?"
"She's mine now," Riley said bluntly. "But then again, she always has been."
Spike looked at Buffy. She growled, crouching down and dropping the sword. She wanted to play a moment first. Beat on him a while. Make him hurt. More fun that way. Why go for the kill when you can go for the pain? Rough him up and then watch him watch his daughter die. All at the hands of his 'love'. All in the safety of knowing that the real Buffy would never be able to interrupt.
Buffy pushed off, leaping at Spike and tackling him to the ground, her legs on either side of his chest. He looked at her stunned. Not wanting to hit her. Not wanting to ever again fight with any intent. Not her. Not ever. But she swung, a crushing blow landing on one perfect blue eye. He felt his vision fade and stars appear before him.
"Buffy," he muttered.
"Aw, isn't that sweet?" Riley cooed. "He doesn't want to hurt his little Slayer." He stiffened, a smile appearing on his face and his voice becoming rich and angry. "Well, guess what, *Spikey*. She's mine now. She'll kill you just because I tell her to. So at least go out with a bang."
"She never loved you, Mate," Spike snarled, catching Buffy's hands mid swing and toppling her onto her back. "Might've believed it if you'd come back as Peaches. But she never loved you to begin with. So, not buying it now."
With a lightening quick movement, his fist came down on her cheek, her head jerking to the side with the force of the blow. She turned her face back to him, eyes filled with tears.
"Spike?"
Her voice. A whimper. Her face red and already swelling from the blow.
Spike jumped from her in horror, backing away as she stared at him with startled green eyes, whispering his name over and over again.
"Spike?"
"You always hurt the ones you love," Riley snarked, turning towards Spike and landing a crushing blow.
To be contd.
Here is chapter twenty-two of Time. Again, set in the real world, the confrontation between Spike and his foe begins. But will he be able to fight?
The next chapter will be out on Thursday evening. Please let me know if you like this one! Your feedback means everything to me.
Thanks for reading:)
*Cheery Vibes*, Nimue
"As sick as it sounds, in my little head, there's a little Sunnydale, and a widdle Buffy, and a widdle Spike, and Spike wubs Buffy." James Marsters 14 July 2002
Title: You Always Hurt (Time - Chapter Twenty-Two)
Author: Nimue
Rating: PG -13
Pairing Buffy/Spike. Most major characters included.
Feedback: Yes, please
For instant notification of fic releases, straight to your mailbox, please visit Always_Everyday@yahoogroups.com
Disclaimer: All characters belong to Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, UPN, Fox... Just Borrowing. (with, of course, the exception of Emma and William, who belong to Buffy and Spike)
Summary: Set immediately following Illusions. Giles, Anya and Cyrus try and come up with a plan to help Spike. Xander finds help for Takina, but will it be in time? Giles explains to Buffy what has happened. Spike decides to take matters into his own hands at the safe house, but is met with a shocking surprise.
You Always Hurt
The three of them sat quietly in the empty second floor snack room. None of them wanted to say it, but they hadn't a clue how to boost Spike's power short of delivering Buffy to him. And Buffy was in no condition to stand, never mind fight. They weren't even sure how to tell the Slayer that her other half had gone.
"Well, maybe we need to be concentrating on a way to recapture Draconius," Giles sighed, gently rolling a paper cup full of tea between his hands.
"The Box of Oraclese was a bust," Anya responded. "And my magics will only work against his host. Not the spirit himself. Which isn't a whole lot of help."
Giles looked at her, studying her face. "And you say we need Emma back to retrieve William?"
Anya nodded. "She will have to open the door to the Queen's chamber. Tara and I could get that far, but only a born emissary can release him."
Cyrus looked at them a moment. "Part of the Powers," he muttered. "How is it that the Evil can be vanquished, Rupert? How is Draconius killed at the First?"
"Simply enough, beheading," Giles answered. "If the host is beheaded, the spirit can be sent back to Hell with the spell performed at the First."
"By you.... well, you back then..." Anya stuttered, smiling nervously.
"Yes," Giles answered, nodding. "By the Father. It will send the Evil back to Hell."
Cyrus nodded. "Then all we must do is go to them," he commented. "We need to be there when Spike and the soldier fight Draconius."
"The problem *is* that Spike cannot defeat him without Buffy," Giles repeated as if his friend and mentor had suddenly become dense.
Anya nodded. "He may have to," she sighed. "Draconius will not leave the Peacemaker alive. Spike will not be able to get her back without fighting him. The best we can do is go and help him. Maybe I can distract him so that someone.. one of you... can chop his ugly head off."
Giles looked at his hands, pondering the subject for a moment. "A caveat. It is lore, myth, that if Draconius is sent back to hell, he will gather his forces and release Armageddon upon the Earth. Do we really want to take the chance that that particular prophesy is incorrect?"
Cyrus studied the Watcher, the same thought passing through his mind. "Rupert, the prophesy was that when the Evil was sent to Hell at the First, he would come to release Hell itself against the Earth when his time had come. He has come back. We have all averted Apocalypse. I think that the prophesy is either incorrect or has come to pass without our connecting it with the event. In any case, what choice do we have? Emma must be saved.
It is my duty as her Watcher as well as my need as her friend. Draconius is too dangerous, even restrained, to inhabit this dimension. We must send him back."
Giles nodded, sighing. "I suppose you are right." Slowly, he stood, lending a hand down to Anya. "I should tell Buffy what has happened and that we have found William. Anya, would you please see what you can find in the way of weapons and spells and meet me downstairs in a few moments? You are by far the fastest..."
"In a flash," Anya whispered, kissing his cheek and poofing into thin air.
"Cyrus, please tell Tara of our plans. See if she has recovered enough to try and put a protection spell on us, and possibly guide Spike. Show him how to kill Draconius. Anything."
Cyrus nodded. "I doubt she'll be up to much, but I am sure she will try."
Giles nodded, heading for the door.
*****
Spike stood in stunned shock as he watched a smile break on her flushed face. Buffy? Couldn't be her. Couldn't be her, he repeated as her thin, golden arms wrapped around his neck and her swollen lips pressed against his again.
She was in the hospital, drugged, operated on, in pain, when he saw her last, part of him argued.
Buffy is the Slayer, she can heal at an amazing rate. And no drug will keep her away from what she needs. She's proven that. And she wasn't in her room when he went to look for her.
Right after Riley left.
Spike's mind reeled, his daughter on one side of the room, bound, captured. His lover on the other, wrapped in another man's embrace. He couldn't think enough to reach out to her. Couldn't focus. His heart exploded in his chest and rage got the better of him.
The window shattered as he flew through the glass into the darkened room.
*****
Tara heard him scream. Even in her exhausted sleep, she heard the familiar voice and was out of her chair in a split second. She ran, nearly dragging herself down the hall towards the noise.
Xander slumped to the ground, clutching her to him, holding her like a child wrapped in a gray hospital blanket. He saw Tara approach and looked at her with stunned, heartbroken eyes. "Help us," he whimpered, as she got closer, seeing Takina's blood-matted hair from the top of the blanket.
"Oh my.." her voice choked short as she slapped her hand over her mouth, spinning on a heel and running down the hall. She nearly clothes lined an intern as she rounded a corner.
"Whoa," the young doctor said, catching Tara as she crashed into him.
"Help... need help," she muttered, grabbing the now frightened man's wrist and dragging him back towards Xander. The doctor followed at a jog, heading down the corridor behind the speechless woman.
Tara stopped, pointing at Xander as they approached. The doctor looked at the crumpled forms in the hall, walking closer slowly. Tentatively. "Sir, are you alright?"
Xander looked up, his eyes glazed and afraid. "Can.. can you help us?" His voice was that of a child. Broken and shaking and afraid. "She.. she's hurt... bad."
The doctor dropped to his knees, pulling the blanked back from her face. He dropped it, shock spreading over his features. "Doctor Noel?" He gasped.
"What.. what happened?"
Xander shook his head, rocking a bit, holding her against him. "Need help."
The doctor pressed his fingers to her neck, feeling the thready pulse. "Stay right here." He jumped, heading towards a phone in a hall, speaking frantically. An announcement came over the speaker overhead, mumbled and coded. The doctor came back.
"Where did you find her?" The young man asked, helping Xander lay her down on the cold tile floor. Xander wrapped the blanket around her tenderly. Didn't want her to be cold.
"She... she was missing. She's ... my... I love her," he mumbled incoherently as the doctor began to take her vitals. "I .. I went to look for her and the last place anyone knew she was was the lockers. So I went in there... she was... she was there."
"OK," the doctor answered quietly. "We'll help you."
"Is.. is she alive?" Tara's voice asked, quiet and afraid.
The young doctor's head turned. "Yes. But she needs help fast. We don't know how bad this head injury is. If there is any internal hemorrhage." He turned back to Xander. "Do you have any idea who did this?"
Xander looked up at Tara. Her eyes dropped. They both had an idea, but like everything else in this life, human justice didn't seem to apply. Xander shook his head. "No."
A cart was rolled down the hall. Several doctors, nurses, interns, all in scrubs and white coats swarmed them, situating Takina on a backboard and hoisting her onto the gurney. Tara walked to Xander, wrapping an arm around him as he watched in stunned horror. They had all lost someone dear to them. All but him. He had never lost anyone that close. Closest was Buffy. And that was different. So different. In the back of his head, in all of their heads, they knew that Buffy went out every night and every time she patrolled, every time she hunted, she might never come back. They had learned to live with it.
But Takina. She was a doctor. A normal... a human... Whatever, he thought. His love. His other half. She couldn't die.
Xander leaned down and kissed her pretty cheek as they rolled her off. "We're taking her to emergency. We'll do everything we can," the young doctor panted as they rolled her past. Xander nodded, turning back to Tara, burying his face in her shoulder. Crumbling. His tenuous world finally falling apart.
*****
"Ladies, May I have a moment alone with Buffy?" Giles asked as he entered her room. Willow and Dawn looked up, eyeing the Watcher. Giles looked exhausted. Afraid.
"Is... Is everything OK?" WIllow asked, studying him. His face was stone. Set. "Guess that was a stupid question."
"Please," Giles repeated.
"Sure," Willow responded, standing. Dawn stood with her, her legs a little wobbly from fear and fatigue. They left without another word.
Giles looked at Buffy lying there, staring at the ceiling, unmoving. Cautiously, he made his way towards her, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Buffy, we need to talk."
Buffy didn't respond, merely stared at the drop ceiling.
"You don't have to say anything," he continued. "I do understand that you must be... frightened. And hurt. And angry. But I need to be honest with you. Will you listen?"
She nodded, almost imperceptibly. The truth could not be anymore painful than what was already in her head.
"Tara and Anya discovered that what has ... happened... to William is indeed mystical. A spell, an ancient one at that," Giles began. Buffy's face turned towards him, interested in what he had to say. He may not be providing her with answers, but at least he wasn't filling her with the 'Everything'll be OK,' garbage.
"He has been trapped in Time. He is... he's following various paths until he finds the correct one. Living his future over and over until he gets it right. When he does, he will be delivered to the chamber of the Queen of the Sky. Part of the Powers. Completely benevolent. He will be safe there. But he will remain trapped until an emissary of her court retrieves him," Giles continued.
Buffy's look questioned him, although she could not bring her mouth to form the words.
"Another part of the Powers," Giles answered, reading the look. "Emma," he clarified.
"She's gone." Buffy's voice was like an ancient dandelion on the wind. Tiny and fragile and barely even there.
Giles nodded. "She is," he repeated. "Draconius has returned, Buffy. We believe he has Emma."
The look in Buffy's eyes changed from sadness and resignation to terrified anger. "What?"
"Riley received a phone call from his wife that the government had tracked Draconius to a residence in Sunnydale. He received the call not long after Emma disappeared and we had begun to look for her. Riley left to surveil the premises while Spike came to talk to you. I take it he didn't?" Giles asked, watching her face become angrier by the moment.
"I was with William," Buffy answered quietly. "He left a note." She paused a moment. "Where is he now?"
"At the address Riley gave to him. Spike cannot defeat Draconius without you, but if they can catch him off guard or without the witch, they can retrieve Emma and live to fight another day."
Buffy thought a moment. "What about Takina? I thought Dawn said that is who she gave Emma to?"
Giles sighed. "We think it may have been the Witch. She's a shape shifter. Dawn would have had no way of knowing."
Something happened, snapping all of the pieces together in Buffy's head. "And Emma disappeared right before Riley told you Draconius had returned to town?"
"Yes," Giles answered, quirking a brow at her.
"Doesn't that seem odd?" Buffy asked, sitting up a bit against the pillows. "That and the fact that all of this happens just as *Riley* returns for some odd reason?"
"He says he was assigned to protect Emma. The Council says that, per their contacts, his story checks out," Giles answered.
Buffy shook her head. "Where is this place?"
"Old mansion house near the intersection of Ninth and Cedar. Anya, Cyrus and I are about to head out there to see if we can help Spike and hopefully contain Draconius."
"Good," Buffy said quietly, her face angry, but her mind reeling with sudden understanding. "Do that." She was quiet, her gaze returning to the ceiling. "Giles, I'd like a few minutes alone."
"Right," Giles said softly, his face betraying his concern for her. Her voice, her actions, her eyes. She was furious and hurt. Never a good combination in a woman who had just had her children stolen. Never a good combination for a girl with superpowers and a questionable temper.
Slowly, he stood, backing through the door, hoping she would hold it together just a bit longer.
*****
"Hello, *Love*," Buffy hissed as Spike crashed to the ground inside the room. Spike's head jerked up and he jumped to his feet, staring at her. "Fancy seeing *you* here."
Spike shook his head as if to erase a bad dream. Was it her? Had he marked her? Would he have to fight her?
Part of the question was answered as she turned, grabbing a sword that had been balanced against the wall. Something was going on. His mind was... muddy. As if there was a spell.. something keeping him from seeing her. From feeling her. Reaching into her head.
Buffy raised the sword and with a primal scream, launched herself at Spike. Riley leaned back against the wall, smiling as she stabbed at him. Spike jumped out of the way at amazing speed, hurtling himself against the wall near Emma.
Emma.
She can't see this. Can't see her mum trying to kill her dad. Been through enough already.
The little girl looked over at him, her eyes frightened. He thought it was because of what she was seeing. Because of what Buffy was doing. But she knew. Knew why. The fear was for him.
Spike pushed himself off the wall, leaping over the advancing woman and rolling through the open doorway into the next room. At least then Emma wouldn't have to see.
Riley followed as Buffy stalked towards him, her face cold and hard. "You," Spike hissed, eyeing this soldier. "You're him?"
"That I am," Riley answered, leaning against the doorframe, his voice now that of the ancients.
"Think they could have picked a smarter host. Better looking at least," Spike snarked as he ducked another jab from the broadsword. "What did you do to her?"
"She's mine now," Riley said bluntly. "But then again, she always has been."
Spike looked at Buffy. She growled, crouching down and dropping the sword. She wanted to play a moment first. Beat on him a while. Make him hurt. More fun that way. Why go for the kill when you can go for the pain? Rough him up and then watch him watch his daughter die. All at the hands of his 'love'. All in the safety of knowing that the real Buffy would never be able to interrupt.
Buffy pushed off, leaping at Spike and tackling him to the ground, her legs on either side of his chest. He looked at her stunned. Not wanting to hit her. Not wanting to ever again fight with any intent. Not her. Not ever. But she swung, a crushing blow landing on one perfect blue eye. He felt his vision fade and stars appear before him.
"Buffy," he muttered.
"Aw, isn't that sweet?" Riley cooed. "He doesn't want to hurt his little Slayer." He stiffened, a smile appearing on his face and his voice becoming rich and angry. "Well, guess what, *Spikey*. She's mine now. She'll kill you just because I tell her to. So at least go out with a bang."
"She never loved you, Mate," Spike snarled, catching Buffy's hands mid swing and toppling her onto her back. "Might've believed it if you'd come back as Peaches. But she never loved you to begin with. So, not buying it now."
With a lightening quick movement, his fist came down on her cheek, her head jerking to the side with the force of the blow. She turned her face back to him, eyes filled with tears.
"Spike?"
Her voice. A whimper. Her face red and already swelling from the blow.
Spike jumped from her in horror, backing away as she stared at him with startled green eyes, whispering his name over and over again.
"Spike?"
"You always hurt the ones you love," Riley snarked, turning towards Spike and landing a crushing blow.
To be contd.