Chapter 22

"You're gonna live in that small room over there. I know it looks like a closet, but it's a room now." Xander said as Faith and Buffy followed Xander into the apartment. "You're not gonna touch my food. I take the first shower in the morning, and if I use up all the hot water, that's your tough noogies." Spike walked up to the door and looked in. Xander turned to Buffy and Faith and said, "And I hate this plan." To Spike. "Are you keeping up, or do you need some kind of English-to-Constant-Pain-In-My-Ass translation?"

"Invitation." Buffy said.

"Is there something more emphatic than hate? Can I revile the plan? Fine. I invite you in." Spike entered. "Nimrod."

"Don't want your soddin' food anyway." Spike said.

"I just don't understand when his problems became your problems.. more specifically mine."

"The school basement is making him crazy. We can't just leave him there." Faith said.

"Why not? Crazy-Basement-Guy is better than Stalking-Slayers-Guy. Besides, you have an apartment!"

"I, uh.. I don't want him there. Not yet. Maybe not ever."

"It's true. You guys aren't..? You're not starting up again with the whole..?" Buffy asked.

"No. A thousand gallons of no. Ok, it's just.. things are different now. He has a soul."

"I'm sure that'll be a real comfort when he soulfully attacks you again." Xander said.

"Yeah, what does that mean exactly.. that Spike is all soul-having?" Buffy asked.

"I don't know, but he's been through a lot, Ok, and nobody's attacking.." Faith jumped and spun, ready to hit someone when Spike touched her arm.

"Faith. Sorry." Spike said.

"No, it's me. I-I just.."

"I'll go. This can't work."

"It will. I-it already is. Ok, you know, you've been out of the basement for half an hour, and you've already stopped talking to invisible people."

"Bollocks."

"Ok, so there was that one episode in the car, but.."

"No, bollocks to the whole thing. I don't need your mollycoddling."

"It's not coddling. Now go to your closet." Faith walked out. Buffy shrugged at Xander and Spike and then slightly limped out. Her ankle was healed pretty much completely, but she still limped a little to make sure.



Monday came fast and Buffy sighed. She, Faith, and Dawn were out on the football field watching the football players practice. Actually, they were there to support Conner who had joined the team.

"So, what is it?" Buffy asked.

"What's what?" Faith asked.

"Last night, you said you weren't helping Spike out of pity. What is it?"

"It's a good question."

"Is sitting there drinking soda some kind of a Zen non-answer?" Dawn asked.

"No, I just.. I don't know what I'm feeling. I think I can't stand him, but sometimes.."

"You love him?"

"Like none other. But now, I feel for him."

"Feel what, exactly?"

"Dawn.." Buffy warned.

"No, I'm.. I'm just trying to understand. I mean, none of it makes sense. First you both say you love each other and Spike's saying he'd die for you, but he tries to rape you."

"For the record, Spike knew how wrong it was. That's why he went away." Faith said.

"Then why did you?"

"I needed to get away. Take a break that wasn't behind bars."

"Spike leaving to get a soul? Like that would make him a better man? Xander had a soul when he stood Anya up at the altar. And now he says he still wants her? I just don't think it's the school basement that's making people crazy."

"I should really get back. You comin' with?" Buffy asked.

"I just don't see why people bother. I mean, you put all this energy into chasing and having and brooding and I just don't understand these relationships where you all do insane things."

"Bye rant girl. Later Faith." Buffy walked away with a wave at Conner.

Dawn kept talking to Faith. "Well, you could, like, paint a beautiful mural on every ugly wall in the world, and then you could paint a beautiful mural on every ugly mural in the world." Dawn stopped talking as she spotted the quarterback, a tall, slender, athletic blonde teenager, putting on his letterman jacket after practice. She was mesmerized as he drank from a squirt bottle and then doused his face with water from the bottle and walked off. She watched him so intently, that she leaned after him as he left, causing her to lose her balance and fall off the bleachers.

Faith laughed at her as se helped her up. "Dawn, you're such a teenager!"

"God, I hope he didn't see."

"I'm sure he didn't."

Faith and Dawn walked down to the field where Conner met up with them. "Hey guys!"

"Great work out there. Just try not to bash anyone's skull in with your superpowers." Faith joked.

"I've been doing good. Did mom say anything about my playing?"

"I think she said, um.. Nothing." Dawn said.

"She went back in. Your dad's coming to pick her up and they're going to the doctor to check on her ankle and then going to see Anya." Faith said.



Buffy's used her battleaxe to fight a demon in Anya's apartment. The place was completely trashed. Anya was on the floor in the corner, crawling.

"Maybe I'm not even the right Anyanka. Ever think about that? There's tons of Anyanka's out there. Maybe one of them pissed off this, uh.. what did you say his name was? D'Hoffryneffer.." Anya mumbled.

Buffy, Angel, and the demon continued to fight until Buffy finally hurled the battleaxe at it and it landed in the thing's chest, killing it.

"Good thing I stopped by and heard screaming. So, I guess D'Hoffryn decided to take you out after all?" Buffy said.

"Yeah. He's, uh, not head of vengeance for nothing." Anya got an ice tray from the freezer. "Well, thank you both for the generous life-saving. Now please go away." She took the ice and a dishtowel into the other room and picked up a knocked-over chair. "Look, I don't need anyone's help. Or, ok, clearly I do, but I don't want to need anyone's help, so stop helping." She started making an ice pack with the ice and towel.

"I get it. After the other week, you feel you need to be all renegade and broody. Taking yourself out of the loop." Angel said. "I get that."

"I need to figure out who I am."

"Another, something bad is happening. I don't want my friends out there alone right now, ok?" Buffy said.

"Well, I-I guess you guys could use my help. Willow's not very good with the practical strategizing.. except when she's evil. And Dawn.. she's not really good for anything."

"Right." Buffy sighed. "Well, I got a date with a doctor. We'll see you later."



"What's Dawn doing?" Buffy asked. She and Angel were curled up next to each other on the couch watching a fire blaze.

"I don't know. Some project she's doing I think." Angel said.

"Oh. Interesting. Where's Conner?"

"Hanging out with some of his new football buddies at the Bronze."

"If only Dawn.."

"Hey guys!" Willow said, walking in.

"And Willow weren't here."

"If only." Angel whispered in her ear.

"What's going on? Where's Conner and Dawn?" Willow asked.

"Conner, Bronze. Dawn, basement."

"Why?"

"Project. I think that's what she said to Angel who said it to me."

"Hmm. Well, I'm going to bed. Too many facts and voices flowing through my head."

"Rough day?"

"The worst. Stupid pop quizzes. I miss last week." Willow walked upstairs with a wave.

Dawn ran through the living room and up the stairs. "See you tomorrow guys!" Buffy and Angel just sat there, unfazed and in love. Buffy sighed and leaned back down onto Angel's marble chest that felt like it was built just for her. He laid a kiss on top of her head and breathed in her vanilla scent. She turned in his arms and kissed him deeply. His hands were sliding down to her hips and up under the hem of her shirt just as the door opened.

"Mom! Dad! God, get a room!" Conner said.

Buffy and Angel broke apart and laughed. "Hi sweetie. Have fun?" Buffy asked.

"The best. Thanks for letting me go out with my friends tonight."

"Welcome."

"Good night."

"Night." Angel called.

"Conner?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah mom?" Conner stopped half way up the stairs as Buffy walked into the foyer.

"Will you check on Dawn for me? Make sure her project's going good."

"Sure." Conner ran the rest of the way up.



Buffy stood at the bathroom door. Dawn had locked herself in the bathroom to hide from the day's events. Dawn's sobbing was loud behind the door.

"Come on, Dawnie. Come out. Dawn, sweetheart, it's not that bad." Buffy called.

"How would you even know? R.J.'s never gonna notice me now." Dawn said, opening the door.

"From what you said, I'm sure he already noticed you, I mean with the falling and the.." Dawn squeaked and closed door. "Spirit. Spirit. They said you were spirited, right?"

"Go away!"

"Dawn.."

"Things are a lot better, I see." Angel said, coming up the stairs.

"She opened the door and I think I said something wrong."

"Shall I order a pizza? Don't teens in a snit like pizza?"

Dawn opened the door angrily. "It is not a snit! I-I finally met him.. they guy of my dreams, ok? And I blew it. R.J. hates me now."

Buffy saw her old cheerleading outfit on the bathroom floor, shredded. "Dawn, what is that?"

"Just the end of my life." Dawn ran off to her room.

Angel walked to the bathroom door and saw Buffy picking up her old outfit. Buffy sighed and walked to Dawn's room. "You shredded my outfit."

"I'll buy you a new one."

"That's not the point. I don't want a new cheerleading outfit." Buffy handed Angel the outfit and walked over to Dawn's bed and sat down. "Dawn, I'm sorry that you feel so bad. Ok, but in the morning this won't seem so terrible. You don't even know this R.J. Not really."

"I do know him. I know his soul."

"Really? Dawn, he wasn't even on your radar yesterday."

"I'm sure this crush will blow over soon and you'll find some other guy you like." Angel said, trying to comfort Dawn.

"It isn't a crush. It's love. I love R.J." Dawn said.

"Again, since yesterday. Dawn, it's awfully fast." Buffy said.

"What? You're telling me I don't feel what I feel?"

"No, of course not. I believe that you think it's real. It seems real.. to you."

"You know what? Maybe I don't want advice from the Dysfunction Queen. You have no idea how I feel. You have no idea what real love is. Maybe if you did, you wouldn't make fun of me this way."

"Dawn, I'm not making fun of you. And please! I do know what real love is. Standing right there."

"So? And then you tell me that it's all so sudden! Buffy, you said that you were in love with Angel and you two hadn't even been going out for more than a week."

"It's different. We had known each other longer." Angel said.

"Just go. Leave me alone." Dawn said, flopping back down on the bed.

Buffy sighed and left. Angel followed her to her room, dropping the cheerleading outfit in the garbage. Buffy slumped onto the couch and sighed, looking up the stairs.

"She's never acted like this before." Buffy said.

"She's young. She's got a crush. It'll pass." Angel said, sitting next to her and massaging her neck.

"What if it doesn't? What if she does something drastic?"

"Like what?"

"Like, she decides to sleep with him just cause she thinks she loves him and then he leaves her and hurts her and then he follows her around and tries to kill all her friends and family and then.."

"Buffy."

"Sorry. I guess I was channeling some fear of what happened to me when I was that age."

"She's 16. You were 17."

"Doesn't matter. She's so like me at that age it's scary. I just don't want her to get hurt is all I'm saying."

"She's not going to get hurt."



Buffy stood in the principal's office staring at Dawn. Her little sister had gotten called in for hurting some football player. Apparently Dawn had pushed the guy down some stairs.

"It all happened so fast. I mean, one minute he was walking, and the next he stumbled, and then he fell." Dawn said.

"Why would he say you pushed him down the stairs?" Principal Wood asked.

"I don't know. Maybe he was just embarrassed. It's hard being clumsy, especially when you're popular and athletic. I'd bet."

"Yeah, well, to be candid, it wouldn't be the first time I caught O'Donnell in a lie."

"It'd be nice if his lies didn't involve my sister, though." Buffy said.

"Anyway, I'm gonna have to call Coach Wheeler and, uh, tell him the bad news. Not a conversation I really want to have."

"At least you still got R.J. to take over." Dawn said.

"Yeah. Well, I think we have everything we need for now. I'm sorry you had to get involved in this, Dawn."

"That's ok. I'm just really sorry it happened." Dawn stood up and walked out. Buffy stared at her as she walked out. Principal Wood stood up and turned to look at Buffy.

"Sorry you had to get dragged into this." He said.

"It's ok. At least she's off the hook."

"Pampered football players. Can't ever take the blame for themselves."

Buffy nodded and walked out. She sat at her desk and picked up the phone. Angel picked up on the fourth ring.

"Busy?" Buffy asked.

"Not really. What are you doing?" Angel asked.

"Being severely bored. Well, now anyway. Dawn and I just got out of the principal's office."

"What'd you do?"

"Angel.."

"I was kidding."

"Dawn pushed some football player that was going to replace that boy that she likes down the stairs."

"She did what?"

"She pushed him down the stairs. I told you she might do something drastic and it can only get worse from here." A student knocked on Buffy's cubicle. "I'll talk to you later. A student just came in. Love you."

"Love you too."

Buffy hung up and looked at the student as she sat down.