3 months later-

"Spike I want you to meet Felicity." Buffy said practically dragging him into the house. He had just come home from a small patrol session where he had tried to fight off his extra energy. He had come home to a full house, and a not so full a temper as he had left with. He looked around the room to locate the body to go with the new name he was just given. The two witches were at the table feeding Jamie while the little girl babbled on about an unknown subject. Dawn was watching the television as usual. She had gotten rid of her temper and stopped arguing about the Angel incident, but that didn't stop her from being smart and sarcastic to Buffy and Spike most of the time. Giles was at the counter by the bar reading a magazine of some sort. Buffy was right in front of him. It seemed everyone was waiting for him. He looked some more and sure enough there was a short girl practically hiding behind the two witches while chatting quietly with Riley. She was a pretty sort. But she looked scared a hell. He completely missed half of what Buffy was saying.

"Come again luv?" Buffy peaked into his line of vision and giggled at what she thought he was thinking.

"I said felicity used to work for the initiative." Spike suddenly lost the taste in his mouth. Wonderful, and what lovely idea has our Slayer cooked up this time.

"You don't say." Spike replied offhandedly.

"Don't start Spike." Buffy warned.

"I didn't say much of anything Slayer."

"Yet I know what s running around in that evil mind of yours."

"That's right. I'm evil. An' you'll do well to remember it Slayer."

"Get over yourself Spike."

"Wha? 'S true. I'm evil. All grr an' stuff."

"Used to be evil. Xander turned you into a little puppy." The room became eerily quiet except for felicity who finished her sentence, and looked around quizzically.

"Did I say something wrong?" she asked Riley. Riley just shook his head.

Buffy walked up to Felicity and pulled her from the chair.

"Come on Felicity. Let's go have that talk I brought up earlier." Felicity followed Buffy to the door of thee bedroom and walked in when Buffy held the door open.

"You too Spike. Get over here." Spike just followed her his head full of questions. Once they were all settled on the bed Buffy began to talk.

"I was asleep in here last night. Spike you had come home all headachy, and I was kinda fellin' bad and stuff." She glanced off casually without any point.

"Felicity used to work for the initiative, but when she found out about Adam she quit. An ethical thing."

"Girl does all that rot to demons then gets a sense of ethics when teacher goes all wonky with her son? That's normal." Spike scoffed.

"Spike, be nice. There's a good ending."

"Obviously." He groaned.

"Felicity? Were you there when they had started outing the chips into the demons?"

"Yeah" she answered warily.

"Good then you can help Spike here." Spike looked at her wide-eyed. Felicity didn't notice.

"Why. Does he need to be taught, or…I don't get it. What do you need me for, Riley had said you needed help, but what can I do that he can't."

"Felicity, Riley was jacked on steroids, and was also chipped so to speak. You on the other hand, as a smaller girl, didn't know much about fighting so you worked more hands on with the medical stuff." Buffy affirmed

"Yeah. I was the one to administer the medicine to the soldiers as well. But I don't get it. What does Spike need help with." She said the name hesitantly to make sure she said it right. Buffy eased herself into her next train of thought.

"Do you know how to turn them off?" she asked. Spike's mouth was trying really hard to hit the floor. Felicity looked nervous Spike noticed through his gaping. Like she knew something big was going to happen. Even if it wasn't to her.

"Why Buffy? Why would you need to know that?" she looked at Spike. He knew what she was thinking. It was clear as day in her face. She had linked the Spike needing help with programming, and the how to turn it off.

"Felicity. Don't freak. You look nervous, but don't freak. I promise you are perfectly safe."

"Should I be worried?" she asked.

"No." Spike and Buffy said conjointly.

"Spike was one of your patients, so to speak, a few years ago. You put a chip in his head." Buffy said pointedly. No more beating around the bush.

"You mean he's a vampire?" she screeched. She practically threw herself off the bed. Spike knew it was mean, but he was enjoying this. She was so afraid. He loved it. He could have a little fun couldn't he?

"Hostile 17 as a matter of fact." He smirked.

"Your the one Riley told me about. The one who took and managed to escape. He said you were dead."

"I do very good impersonation of being alive then don' I ducks?" he inhaled on the cigarette he took to lighting mid comment. Felicity looked skeptically from Slayer to so called vampire in turn. She giggled a little.

"I don't believe you."

"Huh?" was what Buffy managed.

"This is a joke. I get it. It all fits. When I put it all together it all fits.

"What fits?"

"Well how about I don' know either of you. I get a call from Riley, and ex employee who rebelled; he tells me that his wife has a problem she needs help with that he can't. I meet a supposedly dead vampire who is also the infamous hostile 17, the only one to ever escape."

"Infamous huh?"

"Funny isn't it. You "Buffy" as they call you, don't even go home with your husband after the death of a close friend that is also this guys boyfriend. Am I babbling or talking too fast?" she kept going. She was on a roll, and she wasn't stopping. "I know you're a slayer. Riley tells me everything, but don't worry. You can trust me. You made sure of that before calling me didn't you?  Know that this Xander, whoever the hell that is must be a close friend. The way you all worship him the way it sounds. What smart slayerette would ate a hostile?"

"She seemed so quiet out there. What happened?" Spike asked Buffy. She just shrugged her shoulders. Then she turned to the hysterical girl who obviously thought she was going nuts.

"Look. This is real. Riley had to lie to make it look good. That was when we first started dating. He found out Spike was a friend and let it go. Spike, being incapacitated, became a friend and he and Xander were together."

"Prove it." Felicity challenged. Spike looked at Buffy. She gave him a wary look, then nodded ruefully.

"Okay ducks. You asked for it. Piss me off."

"What!"

"Piss me off. You want some proof your going to have to give me a hand. I don't work like magic you know." Felicity thought about it for a second.

"How am I supposed to do that?"

"I'm sure you'll come up with something." She got off the bed and walked t the door.

"You know what. I don't think you can do it. You shouldn't need help. After all you were a big bad master vamp weren't you?" she cooed sarcastically. "Maybe Xander did turn you into a little puppy dog, all whipped and harmless." Bingo!

It took less than a second after Xander's name came up for Spike to get really pissed off. He was in game face so fast that his fangs hurt and even Buffy was holding him back, but she didn't have to. The chip saw to that and he was on the ground holding his head for the fist time in what seemed like ages.

"Are you happy?" He asked gritting his teeth through the pain. Buffy was glaring at the girl she had obviously come to like in the short time period.

"I didn't mean it." Felicity said breathily. "I was trying to get you mad."

"Yeah well it worked." Spike worked his way to his feet slowly.

"Yeah I can tell," she said. Spike was still all vamped and upset.

"Get out." He said a little to calmly.

"What?"

"Get out of here." Try to use Xander to piss me off. I don't care what she was told. She knows nothing.

"Ok." She finally went out the door. She was met by puzzled looks from around the room.

"Riley. I think I should go. I'll call you." and she walked out after Riley nodded his head.

"What happened? Didn't it o well?" Willow asked when Buffy came out of the room.

"No. She didn't believe him. So she got him all pissed off to get him go all vampy. She said Xander turned him into a puppy. That was the first time in a long time I've seen him so violent to a human that…" she trailed off not needing to finish.

"His chip still works I take it?" Riley asked.

"Yeah, but you told her he was dead, and I know why, but that was why she didn't believe. She does now though." Then she took Riley by the hand, and they walked out the door. It was the first time in months that she went home with him, instead of staying with Spike. He under stood. She had calmed him back to normal and explained, and as Spike usually did nowadays, he understood, and agreed.

******************************************************************

"So is the brat going to help us or not."

"You scared her Spike. Give her time." Riley tried to ration.

"Quiet corn boy. Your the one who started this mess with all the stunning stuff."

"Spike you said you were going to drop that about 4 years ago."

"Yeah well that was when it didn't matter. Now it does. So is she going to help us or not?"

"Yes she is going to help us now shush up to I can finish what I was telling Riley." Buffy hissed.

"So as I was saying, she looked at me all, 'don't I know you?' and I'm like oh my god where have I seen her before. Turns out it was Anya.

"Anya huh?" Riley bit into his donut.

"Yeah."

"How is the little bint?" Spike asked. Anya had caused them all a mess or two.

"She's all happy now, married, a son, lots of money. She met some guy while in England and fell ass over teakettle for him. He sounds nice. Nice and rich."

"So back to the chip thing. Felicity will help?"

"Yep." Riley answered. "It's all a lot more simple than we thought. We should be embarrassed we didn't. All we have to do if use a magnet, and then use Willow or Tara's telekinesis to get it out."

"We tried that. Willow said it couldn't be done." Buffy knocked the suggestion out of the air. So much for that idea.

"Yeah something about the shock waves turning me into a vegetable when they left my brain. Just cause the chip is being moved doesn't me the electric flow isn't there." Riley quickly gave the reason.

"That was because the chip was still enabled. Once it is off then it can be taken out without the waves being there to disturb anything."

"That's it then?" Buffy asked. "We turn the switch on the chip to off, and it's good to go. That does sounds scarily simple."

"Not so much." Spike watched as the conversation went from hopeful to doubtful to hopeful again like it was some sort of circle. He just sat back and watched as they talked.

"Then how do we turn it off?" Buffy asked.

"You don't. I already said that. The chips weren't built with an off switch. They were never meant to be turned off so why would we need one. They were developed to stay working till the creature was killed and then be buried with them."

"So how do we 'enable' it as you say?"

"Like I said. The magnet. It works sort of like a computer. You put a magnet near its hard drive and the whole thing is botched by the misplacement of one little thing. Now if you use a really big magnet on a really small chip…"

"Then everything is dislodged and it can never work." Spike finished. "But what about all those little pieces."

"Willow can get the out after a scan." Buffy guessed.

"So that's it. I let you guys put a really big magnet against my head turn it on, and I'm good?"

"That about sums it up Spike."

"So when do you we start?" god was he anxious to get started I'll finally be back to me. I'll be myself for once. Riley smiled.

"I had a feeling you'd say that. It will be ready in two days. Well actually it's ready now, but we have to tell the other first."

"So why wait two days. Tell them tonight and do it tomorrow. The pieces can wait to be removed can't they?"

"I guess so, but don't jump the gun on this vampire."

"Oh knock it off. I'm not a little boy so don't talk to me like I Am." The two stopped arguing at the site of Buffy watching the little battle start, but it stopped it before it had a chance o get anywhere.

"Come on Riley. Let's go home. We'll have the group meet us at this place and we'll explain it to them while Spike is de-chipped. We can do this tomorrow night. Sound good?" she looked at Spike who simply nodded his head and accepted the compromise. He waved the two goodnights and settled into bed, even though he knew he wouldn't get much sleep.