A/N: This is Part Ten of the CLOSURE series. This is a sequel of the ENOUGH series, so please read that one first or this won't make any sense. Sorry if anyone was offended because of the way I treated Angel in the past chapter.

Disclaimer: You should know that this belongs to Joss Whedon and the parties involved in getting the show on the air.

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Comparisons

"Buffy, help."

Dawn's face went pale as she almost didn't recognize Angel's voice. It was as if he was talking with cotton balls on his mouth. Dawn ran out of the kitchen and picked up the cordless phone, which she tossed at Buffy.

"Who is it, Dawn?" Buffy asked.

"It's Angel," Dawn said, "and he doesn't sound too good."

Buffy lost no time and walked into the kitchen. She didn't like when everybody listened to her conversations with Angel.

"Angel? Are you all right?" She asked. Angel moaned on the other side and struggled to speak.

"Buffy, you are in danger." He managed to say.

"What? What are you talking about?" She asked.

"Spike." Angel whispered, but Buffy heard the name correctly.

"Spike?" Buffy whispered as well.

"He came to kill me, Buffy." Angel said.

"Oh God, are you ok?"

"Alive. Barely."

"Do you have anyone there to help you?"

"I'll cope. You need to be careful."

"Where is he now?"

"I don't know. But Buffy, he has the ring of Amarra."

"Yes, I know."

"You knew?"

"I just found out about it."

"How?"

"He fought with Riley."

"So he's hunting us down."

"Actually, Riley found him first."

"Is he…?"

"Not dead, but he's hurt. Badly."

"I'll go to Sunnydale as soon as I recover."

"You think he'll come here?"

"It's the next logical target."

"Ok."

"Take care, Buffy."

"You too."

Buffy hung the phone and stared at the kitchen door. It had been a usual occurrence when Spike walked in through that door.  Just to check on her sister or to see her or to talk to them. Now it was very likely that he'd walk once again through it, but to try to kill them. She walked back into the living room, where as usual, everyone expected an explanation.

"What was it?" Dawn asked, having told the gang that it was Angel who had called.

"Anya was right." Buffy said, "Spike was in L.A."

"And I guess he visited Angel." Giles said.

"Yes." Buffy said, looking down, "Now it's official. Spike is hunting us down."

"What?" Xander asked, "Can you elaborate on the hunting part?"

"He hurt Angel as well," Buffy said, "and it's safe to assume that we're next on the list."

"What to do, then?" Willow asked.

"First, we need to do a de-invite spell." Buffy said, "He's still invited to the house."

"Drastic, isn't it?" Dawn asked.

"I don't have time to argue, Dawn," Buffy said, almost angry, "Spike now hurt Angel. That was the last straw."

Giles saw this as his opportunity to talk to Buffy about the things that were on his mind since days before.

"Yes, well, Willow, can you take charge?" He asked. Willow nodded and Giles turned to see Buffy.

"May I speak with you?" He asked, "In private?"

Buffy seemed confused but nodded. She walked to the kitchen door and Giles turned to look at the gang.

"I don't want any of you eavesdropping. Is that clear?" He stated as coldly as he could. He didn't want anybody disturbing them.

"Sure, Giles." Willow said, having seen the look in Giles' face.

"And don't interrupt us." He said, before walking out of the kitchen door. Buffy was sitting on the porch steps and she was staring into the sky. It was a beautiful morning.

"I never thought it'd come to this." She said, sighing, "I knew that I'd always be hunted by vampires but I never thought it'd be one who I knew."

"Being realistic, Buffy, we live with that constant threat everyday." Giles said. Buffy looked at him and frowned.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Angel." He stated.

"That's different."

"How come?"

"His soul, and why is everybody bringing that up?"

"I have my reasons."

"It's not like Angel is planning on killing us right now."

"We don't know if Spike wants to kill us."

"I believe that what he did to Riley and Angel is clear enough."

"They're still alive."

"Yeah, well, ask Riley to clap."

"It's no different from what his organization did to Spike."

"They saved a lot of lives with that chip."

"True, but they maimed him."

"And he was a murderer, what is your point, Giles?"

Giles took off his glasses and sat down in the porch next to her.

"I need to talk to you and I want you to listen to me." He said.

"Uh oh, I don't like those talks of you." She joked.

"Yes, I'm aware," Giles said, and stared at Buffy, "and I believe you won't like this one as well."

"You're warning me?" She asked.

"You could say that."

"I don't like this already."

"Well, that's too bad. You need to listen to what I have to say."

"Shoot."

"Why have you never trusted Spike?"

"He's never been trustworthy."

"Give me reasons, Buffy."

"He tried to kill us all. Several times."

"So did Angel. Another reason."

"He killed two slayers."

"Angel killed Jenny."

"What's the meaning of this, Giles?" Buffy asked, already getting angry.

"I believe that you compare Spike with Angel." Giles stated. Buffy stood up and her eyes flared with fury.

"What?!" She almost shouted.

"It's true, Buffy." Giles said, as he also stood up, "You measure Spike up to Angel, and in your eyes, Spike will never be as good as Angel."

"Because Spike doesn't have a soul!"

"Ok, Buffy, I was prepared for that one." Giles said, and his voice grew cold, "Let's compare Angel to Spike, but we'll compare them on an equal basis."

"Equal basis?" She asked.

"Yes, how long has Spike been a vampire? A hundred and twenty years?" Giles asked.

"Give or take a few." Buffy answered.

"And let's see what he does." Giles said, " He turned his ways and helped you slay. He stopped killing humans…"

"Because he had a chip, and because he asked for money every time he helped!" Buffy nearly screamed.

"Once again, I'm going to have to ask you to shut up and listen, Buffy." Giles said, "And don't even think about walking away. You need to hear this."

"You want to make me angry, Giles?" Buffy asked, as she crossed her arms.

"No, Buffy, and you shouldn't try to make me angry." Giles shot back. Buffy noticed the underlying tone and she just shook her head, but she made no attempt to leave.

"Let's continue," Giles said, "besides from helping you, he managed to become friends with your sister and your mother. He kept helping even when we stopped paying him. He helped us against Glory. He suffered your death as much as we all did. He worked with us all summer. He kept helping you after you came back. He loved you. He left but he gave you a contract that helped you immensely."

"I knew all about that. What is the point to it?" Buffy asked.

"Now. What was Angel doing when he was a hundred and twenty?" Giles asked.

"Don't."  Buffy whispered.

"Oh, yes, Buffy. Let's do it." Giles said.

"It's different. He didn't have a soul then." Buffy said.

"Spike doesn't have a soul now. Tell me what Angel did when he was a hundred and twenty."

Buffy just remained silent and looked away from Giles.

"I'll tell you then. When Angel was a hundred and twenty he killed and tortured people. He traveled through Europe causing as much deaths as the plague did. He killed babies and he enjoyed it. Later on, he tortured Drusilla, drove her mad and turned her into a violent vampire. Should I continue?"

"He has a soul now, Giles." Buffy said, "He's paying for what he did."

"How, Buffy? Just because he feels remorseful and he helps people?" Giles asked. Buffy nodded emphatically.

"That's another point, Buffy." Giles said, "Angel helps because he was promised redemption. He has a reason, a very selfish reason. Tell me why did Spike helped people." Giles stated.

"Because he has a chip and he can't harm humans." Buffy said.

"I have never believed you are stupid, Buffy, but that was the most stupid answer you could have said." Giles said.

"Well, since you're so intelligent, tell me why?" Buffy asked, now angry.

"I'm not the one who needs to be convinced, Buffy." Giles said, "I believe you're afraid."

"Afraid? Of what, Giles?" Buffy asked, "I have faced down a lot of things that would make the bravest man weep like a child."

"Then why don't you trust in Spike?" Giles asked.

"I have told you before!"

"You haven't said a bloody thing!"

"What do you want me to say?!"

"Tell me why did Spike helped you! Tell me why did he stay even after you were dead! You know it Buffy, so just say it!" Giles was also screaming by now. Buffy just got quiet and looked away.

"You won't say it because you know what it implies. And you still hold Angel so high in your heart and mind that you can't accept it." Giles said.

"What do you mean?" Buffy asked.

"You know what I mean. You know why Spike helped you. You know why he did everything he did. But if you accepted it, then that would mean that Angelus could have loved you, and that frightens you to death." Giles said.

"What?!" Buffy shouted again.

"Spike made the choice that Angelus couldn't. And if you ever believed in Spike's love for you then that would mean that Angel didn't love you so much. If Spike could love you without a soul, then Angelus could as well. He only didn't want to." Giles said. Buffy couldn't take it anymore and she slapped Giles.

"Angel loved me. How dare you to doubt it. He made a sacrifice for me." She said. Giles rubbed his cheek and stared at her.

"You naïve girl. Angel is your first love; I'll give you that. But you can't see past that. You can't see that he didn't love you enough to quit his old ways. Spike does. He's still showing how his love for you influenced him. He didn't kill Riley and he didn't kill Angel. But you are still worshipping Angel when he didn't love you enough to stay or to fight against his nature."

Buffy reacted the only way she could and she tried to slap Giles again. This time, he caught her hand and gripped it hard.

"I know I'm not as strong as you are, and that you could break free at any moment." Giles said, "But you are too headstrong and you need to see that. Not because of Spike, but because one day another man will come into your life, and you will still be dreaming of Angel and you won't give that man a chance. It happened with Riley and you did it to Spike. Looking back on it, we all treated Spike like dirt, and he was only looking for your acceptance and your trust."

Giles released Buffy's hand and noticed that her eyes were filling with tears.

"I'm sorry for making you cry, Buffy." Giles said, as he caressed her cheek. Buffy closed her eyes and leaned her head towards Giles' hand.

"But if you are to have a normal relationship with anyone you have to forget about Angel and see what he really was." Giles lifted Buffy's face and stared into her eyes, "Angel was the true monster, Buffy. You trusted him fully and he betrayed you on every sense of the word. Try to compare that to Spike the way you have always compared him to Angel. Think about who is more trustworthy of the two of them."

Giles' hand left Buffy's face and he walked away from her. He walked up the porch steps and opened the kitchen door. He thought about the same thing that Buffy had thought earlier that morning. Spike was a regular acquaintance of the house and now he would come to hunt them. A sense of sadness washed over him.

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Buffy was left to ponder the things that Giles had told her. She had thought about such things before but she did fear the meaning of such thoughts.

They were true.

If she accepted Spike's love for her then it meant that Angelus could have loved her as well. He didn't, and that meant that she wasn't as important to him as she always thought she was. And the comparisons that Giles made were also true. At Spike's age, Angel didn't worry about the safety of a sixteen-year old girl, or how delicious a marshmallow-filled cup of chocolate was.

She did think about whom out of those two deserved her trust the most.

One changed his every sense of being for a crumb that never came.

The other created mayhem and destruction when she gave him her all.

She let the tears flow freely.

She had given her trust to the one must unworthy.

End of Chapter.