"Is this a joke? I am not gonna be threatened by two little girls," Tara's father argued,

"You don't wanna mess with us," Dawn replied, holding her chin high.

"She's a hair-puller," Buffy told him, pointing at her sister.

Giles stepped up, cleaning his glasses and raising his eyes to meet Mr. Maclay's. "And you're not just dealing with two little girls."

"You're dealing with all of us," Xander added.

Before, Spike had denied caring, but this time he moved to stand by Willow and Tara, arms crossed, the threat in his posture clearly evident. The others gave him shocked looks.

"What?" he snapped defensively. "I don't kill a Lei-ach demon for just anybody, you know Well actually but still, that's not the point"

He froze as Tara looked at him with open eyes and a fissure of fear ran up his spine.

She knows! She knows I knew about the spell, and that she was the one that cast it.'

For a moment, he was certain that Tara was going to give him away, but then her father's ranting saved him.

"This is insane! You people have no right to interfere in Tara's affairs. We are her blood kin -- who the hell are you?"

"We're family," Buffy answered as they grouped around Willow and Tara, staring him down.

Mr. Maclay turned away, but Tara's brother Donny protested.

"Dad, you're not gonna let them" When he saw his father's expression, he started towards Tara. "Tara, if you don't get in that car, I swear by God I will beat you down."

Xander puffed out his chest and refused to move out of the way. "And I swear by your full and manly beard you're gonna break something trying."

Spike saw the look in Donny's eyes and didn't like it. Without a word, he moved to add his support to Xander.

Pillock doesn't need to know I can't hit him.'

Donny looked at the two of them and backed down.

"Well, I hope you'll all be happy hanging around with a disgusting demon," Tara's cousin Beth sneered.

Anya raised her hand, "Excuse me. What kind?"

Beth blinked. "What?"

"What kind of demon is she? There's a lot of different kinds, some are very very evil, while some have been considered to be useful members of society..." Anya explained, giving Xander a loving look.

"Well, I don't... what does it matter?" Beth replied, flustered.

"Evil is evil," Tara's father insisted.

"Well, let's just narrow it down..." Anya pressed.

And here's my cue' Spike mused. Don't give myself a chip headache for just anybody either.'

"Oh, I get it" he said, approaching Tara. "Here, why don't I make this simple."

One migraine coming up,' he cringed to himself as he popped Tara on the nose with a quick jab. The shock blinded him with pain, and he yowled as Tara yelped.

"Hey!" Willow yelled, then her eyes opened wide in understanding. "Hey!"

"He hit my nose," Tara cried, holding her injured face.

"And it hurt! I mean, him!" Willow exclaimed excitedly.

"And that only works with humans..." Buffy announced smugly.

"There's no demon in there," Spike said, shaking off the pain. "That's just the family legend, am I right? Bit of spin to keep the ladies in line? Oh, you're a piece of work. I like you."

"I'm not a demon," Tara sobbed.

"You're not a demon," Willow affirmed, smiling.

"He hit my nose."

Spike, his hand still on his forehead, muttered, "Yeah, well, you're welcome."

His voice caught Tara's attention. She looked up at him with a mixture of confusion and awe on her face, and he once again got the impression that she was seeing right through him. It was the first time he'd seen Tara since he'd been sent back and he cursed himself for thinking he would be able to fool her. Even as she blinked at him, he saw the wheels turning behind her eyes and knew he had to do something to deflect attention from himself. Thankfully, Giles did it for him by addressing Tara's father.

"Mr. Maclay, I'd say your business here is finished."

Tara's father tried one more time. "Tara... for eighteen years your family has taken care of you and supported you, if you wanna turn your back"

Spike watched as a new expression of pride and self-confidence came across her face and she stood up to her father for the first time in her life. "Dad. Just go."

There was a moment of tense silence, and then they obeyed, sulking out, muttering about magic, until the door closed behind them. Tara breathed a sigh of relief and turned to Willow.

"I'm so sorry," she apologized again.

Willow hugged her. "It's okay, baby. I understand why you did it."

Spike saw Tara's eyes meet his over Willow's shoulder, and she kept looking at him as she left her lover's embrace. Her gaze bore into him and he was suddenly afraid. He knew if she revealed his secret, he would have to have a clever lie ready to deny her claim, but the young woman surprised him with her empathy and understanding.

"Thank you, Spike, for what you did. I know it caused you pain."

He blinked and looked away. "Well, if I hadn't then you would have left here thinkin' you were a demon and I couldn't have that could I? Bloody imposter you'd be. Give us real demons a bad name."

Tara smiled at him and laughed softly. "Perish the thought," Then more timidly, held out like an olive branch, "We're headed to the Bronze now. It's my birthday. Would you like to come?"

Her simple offer left him dumbstruck and he fought the tears that welled in his eyes. He knew she could see the effect her invitation had on him, but she respected his privacy and didn't call attention to it. Still, it took him a moment to swallow the lump in his throat.

She sees me. She really sees me. She's always seen me'

It meant more to him than words could say, but he knew if he accepted, things were bound to go wrong.

"I'd love to, pet, but I have other plans. Maybe some other time though."

She nodded and gave him another smile. "Okay."

They fell silent for several moments, none of them quite sure what to say. Spike was the first to speak.

"Well, I'd best be off. Give your mum my best, Slayer. Tell her I'll be by to see her soon."

"Goodnight, Spike," he heard Buffy say as he sauntered out with a swagger. The saunter was gone as soon as he was out of the shop, however, replaced by slumped shoulders and a sigh of relief.

Another thing changed, another day gone.' Buffy had died on May 22nd. Only 197 more days to go.'