Chapter Five: The Bold and the Unconscious

(I like this chapter. I think it's interesting. Please Review and tell me your thoughts. Thanks!)


Buffy looked up, horrified. "I, killed Xander, because he killed Spike?"

Tara nodded and pointed to the new scene in front of them. Xander with a stake running at Spike, who ducked him and punched him in the nose. Spike screamed in agony, clutching his head because the chip had been triggered. Xander tackled Spike to the grounded punching and kicking him. Spike fought back with little effort because every time he tried he'd have to hold his head. Buffy burst through the door just in time to see Xander raise the stake and plunge it into Spike's chest, turning the vampire to dust before her very eyes.

Buffy screamed, "No!" just as her other self did. She watched in horror as she grabbed Xander, throwing him back and driving her sword into him. She dropped to the ground beside Spike's ashes and Xander's limp, bleeding body.


"Hey!" Xander exclaimed, grabbing his abdomen. He had just felt a searing pain tear through him. He fell to the floor.

Xander had been escorting Giles and Anya through the house to the living room when he yelled in pain. "Xander! Giles, what's wrong with him?" Anya demanded hysterically. She flew to his side. "Help him!"

Giles bent over Xander, who was breathing raggedly. "My god, Xander what's wrong?"

"I don't know," he confessed. He brought his hand up to his face. His hand was covered in blood. "Oh God."

Giles saw the blood and grabbed Anya's hands, laying them on his wound. "Put pressure here," he instructed. Shaking, Anya did as she was told. "Xander, honey, don't die." She looked back at Giles. He grabbed a kitchen rag from the counter and gave it to Anya.

"What the bloody hell happened 'ere?" Spike walked into the kitchen after hearing the commotion.

"Spike, shut up and help me get him to the couch," Giles snapped. Spike lifted Xander and took him to the couch. Anya trailed helplessly, placing her hands and the rag back on his wound. Willow stared at Xander and ran upstairs, coming back with some herbs.

"Here," she mashed something green in her hand and applied it to the bleeding hole. "It'll slow the bleeding. What happened?" She asked.

Anya sniffled, "I don't know, he just keeled over and began bleeding."

"What wrong with Xander?" The ball of light in the jar asked.

"I'm not sure, Dawn, but," Giles turned expecting to see the tall teenager, but instead saw nothing except something bright in a glass jar. "Dawn?"

"I'm right here," the glowing ball chirped.

Giles looked over at Willow. "Is that Dawn?"

The wiccan nodded. "Yeah, at least we think so."

"Ah," Giles cleaned his glasses worriedly. "Tend to Xander, Anya. Willow, let uh, Dawn, out of that jar."

"I put 'er in there, just in case," Spike spoke up helpfully. Giles didn't acknowledge him and Spike glared and growled at him.

"She's become the Key," Giles declared after examining Dawn/the ball of light. "How did this happen?" Giles eyed Willow as if she'd done something.

"No, Giles," she said as if she read his mind. "I didn't do any magic."

"No offense, but... (cough) I'm bleeding over here and (cough) Spike... is looking at me like lunch," Xander interrupted the uncomfortable stare down between with and watcher.

"Oh, pipe down, wanker. I'm not 'ungry, right now," Spike retorted, getting a scowl from Xander.

"He could just pick me off at any moment, and no one would care," Xander muttered.

"I'd care," Anya said smiling warmly.

"Really (cough cough)?"

"No, but I was trying to be doting," she answered with a roll of eyes from Xander.

"Where's Buffy?" Giles asked suddenly aware of the slayer's absence.

"Upstairs, asleep," Willow said. "We didn't want to wake her. She needed her sleep."

"Well, go wake her."

"Can't," Spike said. "I 'ready tried. She's out like a light."

Giles raised his eyebrows and frowned. "You tried?"

"Yeah." Bracing for an argument, Spike set his jaw defensively, but Giles just inhaled deeply.

"Willow come with me," he said ascending the stairs. Willow, Dawn, and Spike all went with him. They all crowded in Buffy's room. She was sleeping peacefully, her blond hair surrounded her angelic-like. Spike's heart leapt in his chest when he saw her like that. His love, the love his life, he couldn't believe he thought of her like that. She was everything good in the world when at one time, his true love was a psychotic vampire with premonitions. But he had to admit, he had never had feelings about Drusilla, like he had with Buffy. He shook his head and tried to look like he hadn't been daydreaming.

"Buffy?" Giles shook Buffy, but limp as a rag doll, she didn't stir.

"Told you," Spike said.

Giles beckoned Willow. "Put your hands here." Willow lied her hand on the sides of Buffy's head. "Try to call her." Giles instructed. Willow did as told, closed her eyes, "Buffy?" She called out silently.

Buffy marveled at all the light and colors that surrounded her and Tara. She was going through a vortex of time, that's what Tara had told her. "Where are we going now?" She asked.

"You tell me," Tara replied. "It's your sub-conscience."
Buffy looked around. They were back in Sunnydale at night, the night she had saved Willow from a vampire some six years ago.

"Help!" Past Willow screamed. "Help me, please!" Buffy observed as she somersaulted over headstones. Flying high, she kicked the vamp, flinging him backwards and staking him easily. "Come on," Past Buffy exclaimed grabbing the quivering redhead's arm and running from the cemetery.

Buffy smiled. Willow and her friendship was established in that moment. "I forgot how long Willow's hair used to be." She frowned at her own appearance. "Deja Ew. That haircut went out of style a millennia ago," she said. Tara laughed, but her expression turned serious.

"What are you thinking of now?" She asked.

Buffy looked at Past Willow and her running away. "What if I wasn't there? What if Willow had been sired?"


Willow gasped, bringing herself back from trying to connect with Buffy.

"What happened?" Giles asked.

The witch rubbed her neck. "Buffy's not there. I mean, she's there, but she's like not." She looked at her comatose friend. "I could see her, but she was too far away to reach. Every time I got closer, she went further and further away." She thought for a moment. "There was someone else with her, though."

"The First?" Spike asked, glancing at the sleeping slayer. He remembered when he was under the influence of the First. He shuddered at the thought of Buffy going through that same kind of helplessness.

Willow wrinkled her brow, "I don't think so. It was more peaceful, serene." She had a faraway look in her eyes. "Familiar."

"It could be the First. We know it can easily persuade us into believing anything it wants," Giles' gaze wandered to Spike. "We have to assume the worst."

"Right," Spike agreed.

"Willow, are you okay?" Dawn's echoey voice asked.

"Hmm?" Willow looked up at the ball of light. "Uh, yeah. Let's go check on Xander." She rubbed her neck again.

They all left the room. Spike closed the door, casting a lingering gaze on his sleeping slayer beauty. Downstairs, the Scoobies gathered in the living room. Kennedy had joined them and her and Willow were curled on a chair together, while Giles paced back and forth. Dawn flickered above Spike's shoulder, who was leaning against the wall.

"Giles, will you sit? (cough) You're making me nauseous," Xander told him. He was still lying on the couch, Anya hovering over him. Willow had put some more herbs on his wound. They still weren't able to figure out what had happened.

"Please Giles, I don't want him vomiting on my new blouse," Anya said in her tact, getting Looks from all.

Willow, still fidgeting with her neck, peered at Spike. He was toying with his silver lighter, resisting the urge to break the No Smoking in the House rule. Kennedy noticed Willow's preoccupation with her neck.

"Did you hurt your neck?" the pretty, flaxen haired potential asked.

Willow winced, "I don't know."

Kennedy brushed Willow's red hair back, "Lemme see," she said. She frowned when she saw two puncture wounds appear on her neck. "What is that?"

"What?" Willow asked alarmed. She got up and looked in the hallway mirror. She touched the bloody wounds. "When did I--" she started but her eyes rolled in back of her head and fainted.

"Willow!" Kennedy sprinted to her. Spike had caught Willow before she crashed to the floor.

"Hey, Red," he coaxed. "Wake up."

Giles came into the room from the kitchen, when he saw Spike holding Willow and the bite on Willow's neck, he grabbed the nearest sharp object, which happened to be a letter opener and charged at Spike. He lost his grip on her, and Willow fell hard to the floor. Giles backed Spike against the door and had the letter opener at his throat.

"Giles, no!" Dawn shouted. Giles turned to look at Dawn and his reaction gave Spike the opportunity to shove Giles away and turn the letter opener on him.

"Careful, watcher," he growled. "Y'might 'urt yourself."

Giles glared at the vampire. "You're lucky Buffy is upstairs. Or I would've..."

"Would've what?"

Giles shrugged Spike off. He went to the girl's side.

"Is she all right?" Kennedy asked tearfully.

Giles checked her pulse, with a blinking look he answered, "She's dead."

"What?!" Dawn cried from above. "How can she...? How can she be dead?"

Giles checked her pulse again, "She's dead."

"What's wrong? What (cough) happened?" Xander called from the couch. Wincing, he tried to sit up, but Anya pushed him back.

"No," she said. "Don't get up."

Suddenly, Willow stood up, pale and wide-eyed. "Willow? Are you...okay?" Giles asked, amazed.

Kennedy wiped her eyes and stared at her, "Are you all right?"

Willow looked at Kennedy and Giles, and back at Kennedy. "I'm fine," she said honestly.

"Do you need anything?" Kennedy asked.

Willow stared at Kennedy's neck. "I'm hungry," she said, her face changing into vampire mode as she dove at the girl, sinking her teeth into the juicy flesh of Kennedy's neck.