Buffy made a quick run through the cemetery after her encounter with Angel,
but he was nowhere to be seen and there were no dead bodies. So she headed
home in the same trance she had been in since Angel's lips had touched hers
in that fevered kiss. Her mind was still reeling. She was still trying to
process what happened. She didn't know why he had kissed her. Before she
sent him to hell, they had kissed once, under a spell, and he had been
disgusted. Why would he kiss her now, with such force, such want, and
promise her of how he wanted her?
When she got home, she went strait to bed, but sleep eluded her. She tossed and turned for hours. When she finally drifted off only one hour before dawn, she was plagued with dreams of making lover to Angel, only to have them end with Angelus in her arms, his fangs embedded in her throat. When she woke, her body was hot and slick with perspiration.
After showering and telling her mother she wasn't hungry after Joyce tried to get her to eat a bowl of cereal, she walked to school quickly and burst into the library. She snatched up the paper and began to scan for articles on any killings from last night. Finding nothing, she sighed with relief as Willow walked through the swinging doors.
"Hi, Buffy," said Willow cheerily.
"What, nothing. Oh, hi," said Buffy in a rush. She instantly scolded herself for being so jumpy. "What's up?"
"Nothing," said Willow sitting down in one of the chairs at the table in the center of the room. "Any sign of Giles?"
"Nope," said Buffy sitting down across from her. "Faculty meeting I think. Why?"
"I was doing some reading last night on Acathla, and I think I might have found a way to make the portal unopenable." Willow pulled a book out of her bag and slid it across the table to Buffy.
"Oh, that's good," said Buffy, not touching the book. She looked down at her hands.
~ As far as Buffy was concerned, the day didn't go by fast enough. Each class seemed to go by slower than the last, until finally she had training with Giles, and of course, that just flew by.
"Buffy, you're not focusing," said Giles, exhausted and exasperated, right after Buffy punched his right arm. "You're doing little things so I can tell what move your going to pull next." Buffy tried to punch him harder, but Giles blocked her. "Like that time, I could tell you were going to punch with that arm because you threw your shoulder back. That can give your opponent the upper hand."
Buffy sighed and stepped back, running her hands threw her sweat drenched hair. All day she had been plagued with thoughts of Angel. She hadn't eaten all day and she was surprised her body wasn't shaking from emptiness. She was hot and tired, and sick of training. "Giles, I'm just having a bad day today, okay? Can we just stop now?"
"Buffy, vampires aren't going to care if your having a bad day. They will still attack." Giles began to take off his padding gear and place it on the table.
"Fine, I get it," said Buffy. "Can I go now? I have somewhere to be." She wanted to go and make sure Angel hadn't killed last night. She knew she couldn't kill him, but she could still protect people from him.
~
Twenty minutes later, Buffy was standing in a fighting stance across from Angel. She had walked in and had immediately been attacked by him. She had fought back, but now her legs and arms ached and she was tired, but she wouldn't let him see that.
Angel kicked his leg out and Buffy sidestepped, but Angel, knowing she would do that, turned and swept his leg down, hitting her knees, and bringing her to the ground. She hit the floor hard, knocking the wind out of her. As she fought to breathe, Angel straddled her hips and placed both hands around her neck. His smile was one of pleasure, and cruelty. "I don't want to hurt you, Buff," he said softly. Buffy squirmed, trying to get loose, and Angel tightened his grip. Buffy let out a muffled shriek. "Well, not that badly, at least." He tightened his grip again until Buffy saw dots behind her eyes and was about to pass out, then he released her at the last second. Buffy gasped for air as his hands slid down to the shoulders.
Buffy tried to get him off her, but he was too strong, despite the fact he was still weak form just returning form hell. She hadn't eaten all day and she was still tired from training. Angel's hands slid down over her breast and to her hips. As he moved his hands, Buff's gasped for air became sighs. She hated the way her body reacted to his touch.
"See," he said. His voice was calm and soothing, filled with passion and desire. Buffy closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Her mind was fogged over with want. "I can be gentle." He stroked his hands back up her body to the neckline of her shirt. It was low, showing just enough skin. Angel ran his hands along it, and Buffy gasped. She began to struggle again.
If she didn't stop this now, she knew where they would be headed. Angel moved his body down so he straddled her knees. Buffy thrust her right knee up into his groin, and he rolled off her in pain. Buffy was up in second. She kicked him back, sending his head to the ground with a sickly smack. Buffy placed her heeled foot against his throat. Had he been human, she would have cut off his air supply. Instead he struggled weakly, still in pain form his lower body injuries.
Buffy was in fighting stance and ready to react if he escaped. "Unfortunately, Angel, I'm not that gentle." Her tone was harsh and defiant. She pressed her foot down harder, then up, smashing his head into the floor, hard. His eyes rolled back in his head before they shut.
~
Buffy sat on the couch, fiddling with the key, waiting for Angel to wake up. After she knocked him out, she chained up again, this time hands and feet, and checked to make sure he didn't' have the extra key hidden on him anywhere. Now, she waited for him to wake up. She was sure he was faking it, vampires didn't usually stay unconscious for that long, but he was weak, so she wasn't sure. After waiting ten more minutes, though, she was tired of sitting there, and she got up and walked over to him. When she was a foot away his eyes opened. He growled, savage and evil, like an enraged tiger. He lunged at her, but only moved a few inches. Still Buffy moved back.
"Bitch!" he yelled at her. "Let me out, now." Buffy said nothing, just dangled the key in his face. Angel threw every curse and obscenity her way, in both English and Gaelic, struggling, lunging, and fighting to get loose. He was acting like a wild dog that had been tied up. After about ten minutes, however, he gave up. He said, in a saccharin sweet voice, "Come on, Buff. Let me out, you know you want to."
"What I want, Angel, is to make sure my friends and the residents of this town are safe. Safe from you. And since I can't kill you, not yet at least, I guess I'll just have to leave you chained up here for a while." She dropped the key in her pocket, and then turned on her heel to leave.
As she left she could hear him yell, "Bitch!"
~
Everyday for a week Buffy went to see him. During that week, she had been putting herself threw hell. She was plaque with nightmares about his escaping, then going to her and raping her until she bled and begged him to stop. Then he would say, "Angel wouldn't do this, would he?" She's wake up drenched in sweat, chills running threw her. She'd been so nervous that he had escaped, that she hadn't been able to concentrate during class and she hadn't eaten much. The thought of food turned her stomach.
Angel also hadn't eaten in over a week, plus he was weak form just being released form hell. He had given up on fighting. Sometimes when Buffy saw him, weak and chained up, she almost felt sorry for him. She almost believed that it was her Angel chained up there, and more than anything, she wanted to let him out. Then reality hit. Her nightmares played over in her head and she turned cold.
Nine days after he returned, Buffy visited him, as usual, to make sure he hadn't gotten out. But this time, she brought blood, fresh from the butcher.
When she entered the room, Angel looked like her was sleeping. But when she placed the plastic container of blood in front of him, his eyes snapped open. A low growl erupted form his chest as he looked from the blood to her face.
"What's this?" he asked.
Buffy picked up the container. She waked over to the plush sofa across the room. She sat down and placed the plastic container on the coffee table in front of her. "I've come to a conclusion. I can't kill you myself. And for some reason, it hurts me too much to see Angel's body looking like that, even if it's you in it." She paused. Even with the nightmares, she could still see him as the man she loved, even if it was only skin deep. "So, I am going to give you this," she said, gesturing to the blood. "You haven't eaten since you returned, and I don't know how your still alive, but this should keep you around for another week. But there's one condition. I will continue to bring you blood weekly, to keep you alive, but still weak. And if for some reason, you should manage to get out, you promise not to be seen by my friends and you promise not to hurt them."
"Why should I do what you say?" he asked.
"Because," she said, getting up. She walked saucily over to him. "My friends are a part of me, and if you hurt them, you hurt me." She opened the container of blood and moved it close to his face. He could smell the deep aroma of it, even though it wasn't human, and closed his eyes. After a moment she pulled it away and his eyes opened. "And if you hurt me, there's not chance you'll ever get this," she paused, then said in a breathy voice, "or me."
~
Buffy might as well have sold her soul to the devil. She had practically just given herself to Angel in exchange for her friends' lives. And while the trade wasn't that bad- her friends lived and she got sex with Angel's body- it was immoral. After Buffy had fed him the blood, she left, disgusted with him, as well as herself. She knew she couldn't kill him, and this was the easy was out. Buffy almost never took the easy was out, and she hated that this was the exception.
It was a late Saturday night. Buffy made a quick sweep of the cemetery near her house before heading home. When she walked in the door, she saw her mother sitting on the couch in the living room curled up with a cup of coffee. Joyce looked up from the TV as Buffy entered the room. "Oh, hi Buffy."
"Mom," said Buffy, "what are you still doing up?" Buffy's mom had found out Buffy was the Slayer last year, and she was till adjusting to it. Every once and a while, Buffy came home to find her mother awake and waiting for her.
Joyce began to get up. "I just wanted to make sure you came home okay. Is there anything wrong with a mother being concerned for her daughter's safety?"
"No, but mom," Buffy began. Then she shook her head and sighed. She raised her hand in defeat. "You know what, forget it." Buffy was about to walk up the stairs when her mother spoke.
"No, Buffy. What is it? Tell me. Is something wrong? You're looking thinner than normal; have you even been eating?"
Buffy looked at her mother a second before speaking. She ignored her comments on Buffy's eating habits and answered the first part of the question. "Mom, I know you don't want to, but you're going to have to accept that I'm the Slayer. And you can't stay up every night worrying."
"Buffy, I'm your mother. It's my job to worry about you and keep you safe. But you know what? I can't keep you safe when you're out until all hours of the night fighting demons." Joyce's voice was shaky, but still strong.
"I know you hate this... what I am, but you're going to have to deal. We all do." Buffy turned and walked up the stairs.
Her mother was left to stair at the spot where her daughter stood moments ago, and hear the door slam.
~
Soon a month had gone by and Buffy's life had fallen into a pattern. She would wake up, got to school, train with Giles, visit Angel, patrol, sleep -her nightmares were coming less frequently-, then start the whole thing over again. She had managed to keep Angel being back a secret. But she knew her friends were beginning to think something was up. She knew she looked different, tired, thin, and pale, all of which were contributed to the fact she almost never got more than 4 hours of sleep, and she only ate when someone forced food down her throat. Most of her thoughts were on Angel, and when she saw him, she had to remind herself that he was evil, because more and more he seemed more like Angel.
While they still exchanged fervid worlds, Angel seemed less hostile and homicidal then when he first returned. Buffy simply contributed it to the fact that she was bringing him blood and that was keeping him alive. But it was barely keeping him alive. He was thinner and pale than he should be. He was only getting a pint of blood a week, and it wasn't even human, and she didn't think he had fully recovered from his time in hell. Buffy thought of bringing him more blood, then decided against it, reminding herself that she was harboring a truculent killer, not her true love.
Everyday when Buffy woke up, after a nigh of horrid dreams or only an hour of sleep because she was to afraid of what could happen if she dosed off, she decided that today was the day she would finally kill Angel, that she was finally strong enough to do it. She went through the day, telling herself she could do it, but the minute she walked in there, and saw him, her heart jumped in her throat and she realized that she couldn't do it, not yet. So she pushed the thought of killing him to the back of her mind for another day.
~
One day, as Buffy was leaving school, she got the feeling she got whenever a vampire was around, like her skin was itching. Her first thought was of Angel, but the feeling wasn't strong enough, so she relaxed a bit. But the fact that there was a vampire lurking on school grounds, in daylight, unnerved her. She began to look around, searching for places that vamps could hide from the sun, but there was nothing. She was standing in the open courtyard, the only haven from the sun a few small trees. Her brow furrowed as she looked around again. Then she saw him.
Spike.
Standing in he middle of the courtyard, in direct sunlight, talking to a blonde freshman, was Spike, public enemy number 2, right after Angel. Spike's platinum hair was so bright as the sun reflected off it, it was blinding. Buffy let out her breath she didn't even know she had been holding. Then she dropped her bag and ran, as fast as she could, toward the vampire.
Spike looked up just in time to see her fist connect with his nose. He stumbled back in pain, growling. "Slayer," he said. Buffy expected him to vamp out, but he remained in his human visage. But nothing about his eyes was human. They were savage, and cruel, and tinted with playfulness. "So nice to see you again," he said, his British accent laced with sarcasm.
"Wish I could say the same," said Buffy assuming a fighting stance. "You shouldn't have come back Spike." As Buffy spoke, she assessed her problem. Spike was standing in direct sunlight without so much as a sizzle. Plus, they were surrounded by people, most of who were beginning to stare. She needed to get him away from everyone, or else someone might get hurt.
"I shouldn't do a lot of things," said Spike, leering at her. "That doesn't mean I don't do them." He punched and she lunged, then landed and solid punch to his midsection. She then followed through by hitting him hard on the back sending him to the ground. She flipped him over, then, straddling his hips, she started to punch him. Spike only laughed. "Keep on squirming, love, keep it up."
Buffy was disgusted. He was getting off on this. She did her best to keep her hips still as she continued to beat him. "You're" hit "a" hit "pig" hit "Spike." Buffy slapped him hard.
"What's going on here?"
Buffy froze. Her face paled as she looked up. "Principle Snyder." Buffy got off Spike quickly and stood. "Uh.we.I."
"Just play between old friends," said Spike, standing beside her. He put his arm around her shoulder and reveled in the disgusted and horrified look on her face that showed threw her shock. "Yep, me and Summer's go way back."
Buffy gave the principle her best fake smile and resisted the urge to elbow Spike in the gut.
"Well, take your 'play' off my school grounds." Snyder gave Buffy a dirty look before turning on his heel and stalking away.
Buffy waited until he was ten feet away before grabbing Spike's arm and flipping him over. She grabbed him by the collar of his duster, and dragged him toward the library, grabbing her bags on the way.
~
Buffy dragged Spike through the halls to Sunnydale High to the library, with many looks from the students who hadn't left yet, and many complaints, protests, and swears form Spike. Buffy held onto his duster collar tightly, forcing him to hunch over as he half walked half stumbled though the halls.
As Buffy slammed though the swinging library doors, Giles looked up form behind the checkout counter. He dropped the books in his hands and walked out from behind the counter.
Buffy dragged Spike to a chair and held his hands behind his back as if they were tied. "Look what I found in the courtyard. In direct sunlight."
"Spike," Giles said. He began to reach for a stake.
"Giles, down. Before we kill him, I think it would be helpful to figure out how he can stand in the sun without flaming." She looked around. "Rope?"
"What? Uh, yes," said Giles. He disappeared into his office and reappeared a moment later with a length of rope in his hand. He passed it to Buffy, who began to tie Spike to the chair. She was surprised that he wasn't fighting too much. "So, you say he was just standing in the courtyard?"
"Yep," said Buffy, standing up. "He was taking to some freshman. Snyder caught us fighting and then I dragged him here, literally. He shut up after a started to choke him." Buffy looked at the captive. Spike glowered up at her. If looks could kill.
"You could just ask me how I can stand in sunlight without burning up," Spike said matter-a-fact.
Buffy put her hands on her hips and rolled her eyes. "How come you can stand in sunlight, Spike?"
Spike smiled like a five-year-old who had a secret. "Not telling."
Buffy just looked at Giles. He handed her a stake, and she slammed it into Spikes chest. He laughed, but didn't turn to dust.
Both Buffy and Giles gaped at him, wide-eyed.
"Oh, look," he said. "You can't kill me." A sarcastic, teasing grin crossed his lips.
"How." Buffy stated. She didn't know what else to say. Spike didn't die. He should have died. But he didn't. "How."
Giles stepped forward. "The Gem. The Gem of Amara. You have it, don't you?" Spike laughed again.
"Gem of Amara? What's that?" Buffy asked.
"Basically, it's a gem, which you probably have picked up, that renders the wearer unkillable if the wearer is a vampire. He can walk in sunlight, be staked." Giles's voice faded out.
"And can't be killed," Buffy finished.
"Looks like someone's done their homework," Spike quipped up.
"So, now what do we do with him?" asked Buffy. If Spike couldn't be killed, they were in deep trouble.
"For now, we keep him tied up until we find out more about the Gem." As Giles spoke, he moved toward the stacks.
Buffy looked at the clock on the wall. It was just past four. She still had to go check on Angel before having an early dinner with her mother and then meeting Willow and Xander at the Bronze. "Uh, Giles, if you don't need me, I've kinda got plans."
"Right, um, you can go," called Giles from the stacks.
"You don't want to stay here and keep me company?" asked Spike. His answer was a slap to the face before Buffy stalked out of the room. As the library doors closed behind her, she could hear his laughter ringing in her ears. God, she hated him.
When she got home, she went strait to bed, but sleep eluded her. She tossed and turned for hours. When she finally drifted off only one hour before dawn, she was plagued with dreams of making lover to Angel, only to have them end with Angelus in her arms, his fangs embedded in her throat. When she woke, her body was hot and slick with perspiration.
After showering and telling her mother she wasn't hungry after Joyce tried to get her to eat a bowl of cereal, she walked to school quickly and burst into the library. She snatched up the paper and began to scan for articles on any killings from last night. Finding nothing, she sighed with relief as Willow walked through the swinging doors.
"Hi, Buffy," said Willow cheerily.
"What, nothing. Oh, hi," said Buffy in a rush. She instantly scolded herself for being so jumpy. "What's up?"
"Nothing," said Willow sitting down in one of the chairs at the table in the center of the room. "Any sign of Giles?"
"Nope," said Buffy sitting down across from her. "Faculty meeting I think. Why?"
"I was doing some reading last night on Acathla, and I think I might have found a way to make the portal unopenable." Willow pulled a book out of her bag and slid it across the table to Buffy.
"Oh, that's good," said Buffy, not touching the book. She looked down at her hands.
~ As far as Buffy was concerned, the day didn't go by fast enough. Each class seemed to go by slower than the last, until finally she had training with Giles, and of course, that just flew by.
"Buffy, you're not focusing," said Giles, exhausted and exasperated, right after Buffy punched his right arm. "You're doing little things so I can tell what move your going to pull next." Buffy tried to punch him harder, but Giles blocked her. "Like that time, I could tell you were going to punch with that arm because you threw your shoulder back. That can give your opponent the upper hand."
Buffy sighed and stepped back, running her hands threw her sweat drenched hair. All day she had been plagued with thoughts of Angel. She hadn't eaten all day and she was surprised her body wasn't shaking from emptiness. She was hot and tired, and sick of training. "Giles, I'm just having a bad day today, okay? Can we just stop now?"
"Buffy, vampires aren't going to care if your having a bad day. They will still attack." Giles began to take off his padding gear and place it on the table.
"Fine, I get it," said Buffy. "Can I go now? I have somewhere to be." She wanted to go and make sure Angel hadn't killed last night. She knew she couldn't kill him, but she could still protect people from him.
~
Twenty minutes later, Buffy was standing in a fighting stance across from Angel. She had walked in and had immediately been attacked by him. She had fought back, but now her legs and arms ached and she was tired, but she wouldn't let him see that.
Angel kicked his leg out and Buffy sidestepped, but Angel, knowing she would do that, turned and swept his leg down, hitting her knees, and bringing her to the ground. She hit the floor hard, knocking the wind out of her. As she fought to breathe, Angel straddled her hips and placed both hands around her neck. His smile was one of pleasure, and cruelty. "I don't want to hurt you, Buff," he said softly. Buffy squirmed, trying to get loose, and Angel tightened his grip. Buffy let out a muffled shriek. "Well, not that badly, at least." He tightened his grip again until Buffy saw dots behind her eyes and was about to pass out, then he released her at the last second. Buffy gasped for air as his hands slid down to the shoulders.
Buffy tried to get him off her, but he was too strong, despite the fact he was still weak form just returning form hell. She hadn't eaten all day and she was still tired from training. Angel's hands slid down over her breast and to her hips. As he moved his hands, Buff's gasped for air became sighs. She hated the way her body reacted to his touch.
"See," he said. His voice was calm and soothing, filled with passion and desire. Buffy closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Her mind was fogged over with want. "I can be gentle." He stroked his hands back up her body to the neckline of her shirt. It was low, showing just enough skin. Angel ran his hands along it, and Buffy gasped. She began to struggle again.
If she didn't stop this now, she knew where they would be headed. Angel moved his body down so he straddled her knees. Buffy thrust her right knee up into his groin, and he rolled off her in pain. Buffy was up in second. She kicked him back, sending his head to the ground with a sickly smack. Buffy placed her heeled foot against his throat. Had he been human, she would have cut off his air supply. Instead he struggled weakly, still in pain form his lower body injuries.
Buffy was in fighting stance and ready to react if he escaped. "Unfortunately, Angel, I'm not that gentle." Her tone was harsh and defiant. She pressed her foot down harder, then up, smashing his head into the floor, hard. His eyes rolled back in his head before they shut.
~
Buffy sat on the couch, fiddling with the key, waiting for Angel to wake up. After she knocked him out, she chained up again, this time hands and feet, and checked to make sure he didn't' have the extra key hidden on him anywhere. Now, she waited for him to wake up. She was sure he was faking it, vampires didn't usually stay unconscious for that long, but he was weak, so she wasn't sure. After waiting ten more minutes, though, she was tired of sitting there, and she got up and walked over to him. When she was a foot away his eyes opened. He growled, savage and evil, like an enraged tiger. He lunged at her, but only moved a few inches. Still Buffy moved back.
"Bitch!" he yelled at her. "Let me out, now." Buffy said nothing, just dangled the key in his face. Angel threw every curse and obscenity her way, in both English and Gaelic, struggling, lunging, and fighting to get loose. He was acting like a wild dog that had been tied up. After about ten minutes, however, he gave up. He said, in a saccharin sweet voice, "Come on, Buff. Let me out, you know you want to."
"What I want, Angel, is to make sure my friends and the residents of this town are safe. Safe from you. And since I can't kill you, not yet at least, I guess I'll just have to leave you chained up here for a while." She dropped the key in her pocket, and then turned on her heel to leave.
As she left she could hear him yell, "Bitch!"
~
Everyday for a week Buffy went to see him. During that week, she had been putting herself threw hell. She was plaque with nightmares about his escaping, then going to her and raping her until she bled and begged him to stop. Then he would say, "Angel wouldn't do this, would he?" She's wake up drenched in sweat, chills running threw her. She'd been so nervous that he had escaped, that she hadn't been able to concentrate during class and she hadn't eaten much. The thought of food turned her stomach.
Angel also hadn't eaten in over a week, plus he was weak form just being released form hell. He had given up on fighting. Sometimes when Buffy saw him, weak and chained up, she almost felt sorry for him. She almost believed that it was her Angel chained up there, and more than anything, she wanted to let him out. Then reality hit. Her nightmares played over in her head and she turned cold.
Nine days after he returned, Buffy visited him, as usual, to make sure he hadn't gotten out. But this time, she brought blood, fresh from the butcher.
When she entered the room, Angel looked like her was sleeping. But when she placed the plastic container of blood in front of him, his eyes snapped open. A low growl erupted form his chest as he looked from the blood to her face.
"What's this?" he asked.
Buffy picked up the container. She waked over to the plush sofa across the room. She sat down and placed the plastic container on the coffee table in front of her. "I've come to a conclusion. I can't kill you myself. And for some reason, it hurts me too much to see Angel's body looking like that, even if it's you in it." She paused. Even with the nightmares, she could still see him as the man she loved, even if it was only skin deep. "So, I am going to give you this," she said, gesturing to the blood. "You haven't eaten since you returned, and I don't know how your still alive, but this should keep you around for another week. But there's one condition. I will continue to bring you blood weekly, to keep you alive, but still weak. And if for some reason, you should manage to get out, you promise not to be seen by my friends and you promise not to hurt them."
"Why should I do what you say?" he asked.
"Because," she said, getting up. She walked saucily over to him. "My friends are a part of me, and if you hurt them, you hurt me." She opened the container of blood and moved it close to his face. He could smell the deep aroma of it, even though it wasn't human, and closed his eyes. After a moment she pulled it away and his eyes opened. "And if you hurt me, there's not chance you'll ever get this," she paused, then said in a breathy voice, "or me."
~
Buffy might as well have sold her soul to the devil. She had practically just given herself to Angel in exchange for her friends' lives. And while the trade wasn't that bad- her friends lived and she got sex with Angel's body- it was immoral. After Buffy had fed him the blood, she left, disgusted with him, as well as herself. She knew she couldn't kill him, and this was the easy was out. Buffy almost never took the easy was out, and she hated that this was the exception.
It was a late Saturday night. Buffy made a quick sweep of the cemetery near her house before heading home. When she walked in the door, she saw her mother sitting on the couch in the living room curled up with a cup of coffee. Joyce looked up from the TV as Buffy entered the room. "Oh, hi Buffy."
"Mom," said Buffy, "what are you still doing up?" Buffy's mom had found out Buffy was the Slayer last year, and she was till adjusting to it. Every once and a while, Buffy came home to find her mother awake and waiting for her.
Joyce began to get up. "I just wanted to make sure you came home okay. Is there anything wrong with a mother being concerned for her daughter's safety?"
"No, but mom," Buffy began. Then she shook her head and sighed. She raised her hand in defeat. "You know what, forget it." Buffy was about to walk up the stairs when her mother spoke.
"No, Buffy. What is it? Tell me. Is something wrong? You're looking thinner than normal; have you even been eating?"
Buffy looked at her mother a second before speaking. She ignored her comments on Buffy's eating habits and answered the first part of the question. "Mom, I know you don't want to, but you're going to have to accept that I'm the Slayer. And you can't stay up every night worrying."
"Buffy, I'm your mother. It's my job to worry about you and keep you safe. But you know what? I can't keep you safe when you're out until all hours of the night fighting demons." Joyce's voice was shaky, but still strong.
"I know you hate this... what I am, but you're going to have to deal. We all do." Buffy turned and walked up the stairs.
Her mother was left to stair at the spot where her daughter stood moments ago, and hear the door slam.
~
Soon a month had gone by and Buffy's life had fallen into a pattern. She would wake up, got to school, train with Giles, visit Angel, patrol, sleep -her nightmares were coming less frequently-, then start the whole thing over again. She had managed to keep Angel being back a secret. But she knew her friends were beginning to think something was up. She knew she looked different, tired, thin, and pale, all of which were contributed to the fact she almost never got more than 4 hours of sleep, and she only ate when someone forced food down her throat. Most of her thoughts were on Angel, and when she saw him, she had to remind herself that he was evil, because more and more he seemed more like Angel.
While they still exchanged fervid worlds, Angel seemed less hostile and homicidal then when he first returned. Buffy simply contributed it to the fact that she was bringing him blood and that was keeping him alive. But it was barely keeping him alive. He was thinner and pale than he should be. He was only getting a pint of blood a week, and it wasn't even human, and she didn't think he had fully recovered from his time in hell. Buffy thought of bringing him more blood, then decided against it, reminding herself that she was harboring a truculent killer, not her true love.
Everyday when Buffy woke up, after a nigh of horrid dreams or only an hour of sleep because she was to afraid of what could happen if she dosed off, she decided that today was the day she would finally kill Angel, that she was finally strong enough to do it. She went through the day, telling herself she could do it, but the minute she walked in there, and saw him, her heart jumped in her throat and she realized that she couldn't do it, not yet. So she pushed the thought of killing him to the back of her mind for another day.
~
One day, as Buffy was leaving school, she got the feeling she got whenever a vampire was around, like her skin was itching. Her first thought was of Angel, but the feeling wasn't strong enough, so she relaxed a bit. But the fact that there was a vampire lurking on school grounds, in daylight, unnerved her. She began to look around, searching for places that vamps could hide from the sun, but there was nothing. She was standing in the open courtyard, the only haven from the sun a few small trees. Her brow furrowed as she looked around again. Then she saw him.
Spike.
Standing in he middle of the courtyard, in direct sunlight, talking to a blonde freshman, was Spike, public enemy number 2, right after Angel. Spike's platinum hair was so bright as the sun reflected off it, it was blinding. Buffy let out her breath she didn't even know she had been holding. Then she dropped her bag and ran, as fast as she could, toward the vampire.
Spike looked up just in time to see her fist connect with his nose. He stumbled back in pain, growling. "Slayer," he said. Buffy expected him to vamp out, but he remained in his human visage. But nothing about his eyes was human. They were savage, and cruel, and tinted with playfulness. "So nice to see you again," he said, his British accent laced with sarcasm.
"Wish I could say the same," said Buffy assuming a fighting stance. "You shouldn't have come back Spike." As Buffy spoke, she assessed her problem. Spike was standing in direct sunlight without so much as a sizzle. Plus, they were surrounded by people, most of who were beginning to stare. She needed to get him away from everyone, or else someone might get hurt.
"I shouldn't do a lot of things," said Spike, leering at her. "That doesn't mean I don't do them." He punched and she lunged, then landed and solid punch to his midsection. She then followed through by hitting him hard on the back sending him to the ground. She flipped him over, then, straddling his hips, she started to punch him. Spike only laughed. "Keep on squirming, love, keep it up."
Buffy was disgusted. He was getting off on this. She did her best to keep her hips still as she continued to beat him. "You're" hit "a" hit "pig" hit "Spike." Buffy slapped him hard.
"What's going on here?"
Buffy froze. Her face paled as she looked up. "Principle Snyder." Buffy got off Spike quickly and stood. "Uh.we.I."
"Just play between old friends," said Spike, standing beside her. He put his arm around her shoulder and reveled in the disgusted and horrified look on her face that showed threw her shock. "Yep, me and Summer's go way back."
Buffy gave the principle her best fake smile and resisted the urge to elbow Spike in the gut.
"Well, take your 'play' off my school grounds." Snyder gave Buffy a dirty look before turning on his heel and stalking away.
Buffy waited until he was ten feet away before grabbing Spike's arm and flipping him over. She grabbed him by the collar of his duster, and dragged him toward the library, grabbing her bags on the way.
~
Buffy dragged Spike through the halls to Sunnydale High to the library, with many looks from the students who hadn't left yet, and many complaints, protests, and swears form Spike. Buffy held onto his duster collar tightly, forcing him to hunch over as he half walked half stumbled though the halls.
As Buffy slammed though the swinging library doors, Giles looked up form behind the checkout counter. He dropped the books in his hands and walked out from behind the counter.
Buffy dragged Spike to a chair and held his hands behind his back as if they were tied. "Look what I found in the courtyard. In direct sunlight."
"Spike," Giles said. He began to reach for a stake.
"Giles, down. Before we kill him, I think it would be helpful to figure out how he can stand in the sun without flaming." She looked around. "Rope?"
"What? Uh, yes," said Giles. He disappeared into his office and reappeared a moment later with a length of rope in his hand. He passed it to Buffy, who began to tie Spike to the chair. She was surprised that he wasn't fighting too much. "So, you say he was just standing in the courtyard?"
"Yep," said Buffy, standing up. "He was taking to some freshman. Snyder caught us fighting and then I dragged him here, literally. He shut up after a started to choke him." Buffy looked at the captive. Spike glowered up at her. If looks could kill.
"You could just ask me how I can stand in sunlight without burning up," Spike said matter-a-fact.
Buffy put her hands on her hips and rolled her eyes. "How come you can stand in sunlight, Spike?"
Spike smiled like a five-year-old who had a secret. "Not telling."
Buffy just looked at Giles. He handed her a stake, and she slammed it into Spikes chest. He laughed, but didn't turn to dust.
Both Buffy and Giles gaped at him, wide-eyed.
"Oh, look," he said. "You can't kill me." A sarcastic, teasing grin crossed his lips.
"How." Buffy stated. She didn't know what else to say. Spike didn't die. He should have died. But he didn't. "How."
Giles stepped forward. "The Gem. The Gem of Amara. You have it, don't you?" Spike laughed again.
"Gem of Amara? What's that?" Buffy asked.
"Basically, it's a gem, which you probably have picked up, that renders the wearer unkillable if the wearer is a vampire. He can walk in sunlight, be staked." Giles's voice faded out.
"And can't be killed," Buffy finished.
"Looks like someone's done their homework," Spike quipped up.
"So, now what do we do with him?" asked Buffy. If Spike couldn't be killed, they were in deep trouble.
"For now, we keep him tied up until we find out more about the Gem." As Giles spoke, he moved toward the stacks.
Buffy looked at the clock on the wall. It was just past four. She still had to go check on Angel before having an early dinner with her mother and then meeting Willow and Xander at the Bronze. "Uh, Giles, if you don't need me, I've kinda got plans."
"Right, um, you can go," called Giles from the stacks.
"You don't want to stay here and keep me company?" asked Spike. His answer was a slap to the face before Buffy stalked out of the room. As the library doors closed behind her, she could hear his laughter ringing in her ears. God, she hated him.