A/N: This is Part Sixteen 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.

Ok. This is it. I want to thank all of you who have read this thing from the beginning. All the way from the first chapter of ENOUGH to this. Last chapter was long and somewhat violent. You might have thought that this thing would go in one direction. This chapter will change all. I don't know what you expect and maybe I will let you down with this development.

However, I write my ideas and I'll lead this story the way I want it to. This is the way I want things to go. It may be lame or unoriginal; I won't apologize for that, I can only hope that you'll keep on reading and tell me what you thought of this new direction.

On with the story.

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

Feedback: As you wish.

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Truth Hurts

"Why did I let what?" Buffy asked.

"Don't play games with me, Buffy." Giles said, "You know what I mean."

"Games?" Buffy inquired, staring at Giles, "Look at my neck, Giles, does this look like a game to you?"

"Of course not," Giles replied, "but I believe that it got a little out of hand."

"What has gotten into you?" Buffy asked, turning around, intent on leaving.

"I know what you're trying to do."

"Oh, yeah? Care to share it with me?" She said, stopping but not turning around.

"You thought that I'd forget that you were on Spike's side when he left."

"I wasn't on anyone's side."

"Say what you want." Giles said, "But you know I'm right."

"How can you be right?" Buffy turned around, almost shouting, "He hurt people who were important to me!"

"I know."

"Then how can you think that I'm on his side?"

"Because I know you."

"I don't think so anymore."

"Please, Buffy, just listen to me." Giles said, and he held Buffy's shoulders, trying to ease her, "I believe that you had us all recall our memories of Spike for a reason."

"Why should I do that?"

"You want us to remember that he mattered to us."

"So you admit now that he was one of you?"

"I'm aware that he helped us a lot in the past, but he has crossed the line."

"I'm also aware of those things." Buffy sighed, "And he won't get away with it."

"Your plan was not to kill him, was it?" Giles pushed a bit, trying to get answers from Buffy.

"Well, no." Buffy said, looking down, "I only wanted to find him. But then he had to go and do stupid things like maiming Riley and hurting Angel."

"Which then brings us to the original question." Giles said, he let go of Buffy's shoulders and took a step back, "What will we do about him?"

"I tried to see how much of him was left." Buffy said, rubbing her neck, "It seems that not much."

"That was a stupid thing to do, I must say."

"I was careful."

"The blood on your neck tells me otherwise."

"I'm not dead, am I?"

"Jean got hurt."

"A small hit to the head. I've gotten worse."

"Not the issue. You deliberately placed her and yourself in danger."

Buffy shuffled her feet and shrugged.

"I had it all under control."

"And that heart-piercing scream at the end?"

"It worked, didn't it?"

"Yes, I know, but still…"

"Look, I had to be sure that we'd give him another chance."

"Another chance at what?"

"I know that it's screwed up, but he hasn't killed anyone yet."

"Not even you."

"Exactly."

"A very stupid way to prove things."

Buffy smiled weakly and then looked up.

"You know," She began saying, "when he left I thought that maybe it was for the best. That things could be less strange than they already were."

"But?"

"I missed him."

"I noticed so when you talked to me those days."

"And you never told me you knew where he was." She reprimanded. She still held a grudge about those days. Giles looked a bit ashamed.

"He asked me not to." Giles admitted, "I know it was wrong in a way, but he had his reasons."

"I still don't believe that you kept his secret for so long."

"He won my respect with the contracts he got for you and Dawn." Giles stated, "At least he did then."

"It's still why Faith is dead." Buffy replied, a look of sadness in her eyes.

"Yes, but also why Jean is with us." Giles then looked intently at her, "If you felt that all this time, then why were you so adamant against Spike?"

"It was what everyone expected." Buffy admitted, "I bet you'd all be freaked if I said that I wanted to see Spike again."

"Certainly." Giles smiled, "But you also seemed to miss him when you talked with me."

"I did miss him." She said, "It's hard not to see someone you have seen every day for the past three years."

"I must ask another thing." Giles noted, "Was there something between you and Spike? Three years ago?"

"Why do you ask?"

"I have some suspicions."

"Care to share them with me?"

"I won't play games, Buffy, just tell me yes or no."

"A bit snippy, aren't you?"

"You just got bitten and Jean has a bump on her head the size of a lemon, sorry if I'm not bloody happy."

"It was a bad plan, ok? I admit it."

"Sorry Buffy, it's just that I don't know what is going on."

"Neither do I."

"You still haven't answered me."

"What do you want me to say?"

"The truth."

"You won't like the truth."

"So you were involved with him."

"I haven't said anything."

"There's no need for lies anymore, Buffy."

She sighed and shook her head.

"Just don't tell anyone, ok?"

"Does it embarrass you?"

"No! I mean…, I don't think they'd understand."

"Who? Your friends?"

"Yes, I mean, Dawn knows and she hasn't called me 'Buffy' in years now."

"That's why?"

"Yup."

"I had no idea."

"Yes, she sided with Spike back then." Buffy then looked away once more, "Now I'm not sure about how she feels about him."

"Maybe you should worry first about how you feel about him."

"That's another issue."

"What do you feel about him, then?"

"I don't know anymore."

Giles remained silent. He knew that given time, she'd eventually say what disturbed her. Buffy was quiet for a couple minutes.

"I used to think that it'd be nice when I got to see him again. If we ever met again." She sighed, "It's not as if I was so happy when Faith died. I blamed him, really. But I also got all that money, and Dawn got all the things I wanted for her, and then there was Jean, helping me."

"Go on."

"I really wanted to see him. I mean, no one had done such a thing for me before. Well, sure, Dad left, Angel left, you left, he left." She said, and Giles felt slightly sad for being reminded of that, "But he was the only one who left for a valid reason, as twisted as it might be to extort a contract with violence."

"You're saying that you understand why he left?"

"I do understand. I don't like it but I can get why he left."

"Really?"

"Yes, well." She cleared her throat, which hurt her and made her wince, "I did treat him, uhm, you might say wrong."

"I think we are all guilty of that."

"Sure, but he loved me." Buffy sighed, "Well, I think he did."

"Now you believe it?"

"You believed it at first?"

"No." Giles shook his head,  "I believed it later."

"How come?"

"That simple piece of paper which improved your lifestyle."

"Oh. That thing."

"So all your rage against Spike was fake?"

"Not all of it." Buffy said, "He hurt two people I cared so much about, for simple revenge."

"Angel was the turning point wasn't it?"

"He will always be a touchy subject."

"Yes, sorry about that."

"There was some truth about the things you told me." Buffy said, "He is indeed the worst person I could trust in."

"You are strange, Buffy. But so is Spike."

"Strange?"

"You keep so many things hidden." Giles said, "And it's hard to guess your real motifs."

"Such an enigma, huh?"

"It's as if you change your mind every hour."

"Hey. Watch it."

"It's true. You got mad at me for comparing Spike to Angel when you actually wanted to see him back."

"You know what they say. Truth hurts."

"But why in the hell did you keep it all a secret? Why did you have to keep it all inside you and act differently from what you felt?"

"You just wouldn't understand. I didn't understand."

"So you have feelings for him?"

"Uh?"

"Do you love him?"

"I don't know. I really don't know. And specially now after all that's happened."

"Wrapping things up. Your point with the senseless fight and the spell was to…?"

"Make sure that he could still be reached."

"In what sense?"

"Look, if push came to shove, I could have taken him."

"You couldn't before."

"I was confused at the time. Not today."

"And the bite?"

"Things got a little out of control. Nothing more."

"I hope you know how deep in trouble you got in today. Should Spike had chosen to rip off your throat, there would have been nothing we could do."

"I know, I know." Buffy cracked her knuckles, "But at least I know that he couldn't kill me."

"Don't be so sure." Giles said, "We don't know what made him stop. Next time you could not be so lucky."

"Next time I won't let him get the upper hand."

Giles smiled and hugged her.

"I was worried. Don't do anything like this again."

Buffy smiled as well and nuzzled closer.

"I won't. Don't worry."

"You know?" Giles said, still hugging Buffy, "Spike kind of sees me as your father."

"Really?"

"Yes. He can be so mysterious and cunning when he wants to, but he can also be very transparent at times."

"And you like it?"

"What?"

"To be like my father?"

"You know I do."

"And Dawn?"

"My two kids. She and you."

"Willow and the others?"

"Nephews."

"Ha." Buffy's smile grew some more, "Will your new wife keep you from us?"

"Never."

 "We're a very weird family."

"You bet."

"Giles?"

"Yes?"

"You think that Spike may want to be a part of this family again?"

"I don't know, Buffy. I don't know."

End of Chapter