written by Whipper
We'll die, screamed the demon in a mix of anger and fear. But William, the part of him that read books and desperately wanted to see the sunshine again, the part of him that loved those two Summers girl more than his own unlife, that part of him wouldn't give in.
The demon snarled and kicked in protest. It begged William not to, ordered him not to. We'll burn and dance like the ghosts in Drusilla's dreams, cried the demon at the same time as it threatened to make him kill all the Scoobies. Turn the witch, gut the whelp... Spike shook his head and began running towards the house in which he could faintly hear Dawn scream for help. In which he had seen Buffy run into just a few minutes earlier to save her sister. From which neither of the two Summers sisters had returned.
"NO!"
Two hands grabbed him and turned him around. Hello Ripper, whispered the demon, here to save me from myself? But the stronger part in the vampire didn't want to be saved, it wanted to save, and so he just pushed the old man aside and kept running.
So this is how it will end then?
Yes!
For the first time in Spike's one hundred and something odd years of existence William was truly insistent. The demon had to give in and if there had been more time to think about it he would have realized that that meant something. But he didn't have the time. Buffy and Dawn didn't have the time.
In through the door, coat pulled over his head. The heat, the smoke... We'll burn! And Spike almost turned around and ran. But William wouldn't let him so he kept running forwards. He could feel his skin begin to crack and bleed, smell his own burnt flesh. It shouldn't have come as a surprise that he smelt like a corpse on fire.
"Buffy! Dawn!"
No answer but he could hear a heart beat. He ran up the stairs without paying any attention to the fact that his coat was on fire now. There! Move it, then! Help them so we can get the bloody hell out of here, you git!
"Spike," Dawn cried and it was both fear and relief in her voice. "I can't help..." Cough. "..her! She's stuck and..." Another painful cough. The smoke's killing her, asshole. William's calm voice in his head. "...and I can't help her!"
"Get out of here, Dawn! Now!"
"But-"
"Now," snarled the demon but it was William that finished the sentence; "I'll get her out of here, I promise."
And the little bit ran and ran and ran and hopefully Ripper would always be there for her and protect her. Somebody had to. Because he knew, William knew and the demon knew, that neither him nor Buffy would be able to be there for the little girl anymore.
Spike grabbed Buffy's hands and pulled. Just once but with all his strength. The Slayer, and of course she's still warm - the bloody house is on fire, what's not warm around here, was made to rest in his arms, she fit so perfectly, and he cried salt and blood and fire as he ran into one of the bedrooms and jumped. And then he fell and fell and fell, still clinging to the dead body in his arms, and then there were no more.
His Slayer, her golden hair all burnt and destroyed, laid so still, so still on the wet grass. Gray dust covered her body; lips, bare arms... all of her. Her layeth the Slayer and her vampire lover, Giles thought before the tears began to fall down his face. He could faintly hear Dawn, from where she was sitting in the ambulance, asking about her sister and Spike. Telling Xander that Spike had promised to get Buffy out of the burning house.
He guessed, that in a way that was exactly what Spike had done.