A/N : I've been writing as often as possible all week but I never got around to updating my fics, so here it is, I'm updating this fic, 'The Guy Next Door' and posting a short story I wrote too...how much Spuffy can you handle? ;)
Btw - thanx for all the reviews, they are very much appreciated!
(For disclaimer, etc - see chapter 1)
Chapter 13 - Secrets
"Giles!" Anya yelled, holding the phone out to him, "It's Buffy, she's freaking out about Spike, he's worse"
The worried Watcher hurried to take the phone from the ex-demon who moved to sit by Xander again. All five Scoobies, Xander, Anya, Willow, Tara and Dawn, looked on as Giles spoke to Buffy.
"Buffy, it's Giles, what's wrong?"
"Oh Giles, please, you have to come" came the girl's petrified voice "Spike's getting worse, hotter and he's shaking so much...he's scaring me Giles"
"Now, calm down Buffy" her Watcher told her, though he wasn't sure it would do any good "It's going to be alright. We've checked and as far as we know Spike has a human disease, nothing magical or demonic so we should be able to cure him"
"But what's wrong with him? Why is he getting worse?" Buffy started to sob.
"I don't know" Giles admitted, "Just try to keep him as calm and cool as possible, I'll send the others over to help and I'll try to get something to help, okay?"
"Okay" Buffy agreed, "I'm gonna go back to him now" she said quickly hanging up the phone and rushing back to her true loves side.
Spike thrashed around on the bed, semi-conscious and shivering despite a fever that felt ridiculously high when Buffy put her hand to his head. She was scared, more scared than she ever had been before with perhaps the slight exception of that day on Glory's tower, when she'd lost her vampire love. Now she had him back, and as a human, she couldn't lose him, not again.
Giles seemed to think Spike would be okay, that he would live through what they surmised to be an ordinary human ailment, but Spike was no ordinary human. A man who died and rose as a vampire them killed by a mystical force and returned to the living once again, fully human and alive. It was impossible to know if William had come back correctly and what different effects the disease he had might have on his new body. Buffy knew she would just have to sit tight and try to follow Giles's instructions until he arrived to help her. She hadn't thought about it much before but she depended so much on her friends and most especially Giles, who was more of a father to her than her biological one. And then there was Spike, who meant the world to her, who had saved her life and who she depended upon so much, now he was dependant upon her...and she would do all she could to help him.
Back at the Magic Box, Giles instructed Xander to take Dawn, Tara and Willow back to the house and to try to keep Spike comfortable and Buffy calm, if either were possible, and Anya would mind the shop.
"What are you gonna do G-man?" Xander wondered aloud.
"Er, there's something I need to find...someone I need to see, I..." he rambled as he collected together his case and coat and disappeared from the shop.
"Okay, that was weird" the younger man looked around the room at the others, "Didn't anyone else think that was weird?"
"He's probably just worried" Willow shrugged, "Y'know about Spike and also Buffy"
"We all are" Tara said softly, still recovering from a hideous headache as a result of her earlier trance-spell. She knew she should have told the other Scoobies about what she'd seen but Spike was more important now and neither Buffy nor Dawn needed anything more to worry about. As they travelled toward the house, Tara thought about the situation a lot. Maybe she should just tell Willow what she saw? But wouldn't her girlfriend think they should tell the others about it? The witches head throbbed even worse as she started to worry. Her head fell against Willow's shoulder and she was half asleep when Xander pulled the car into Revello Drive.
"You okay, sweetie?" the red-head asked, waking up her girlfriend.
"My head still hurts a little, but I'm fine" she lied, concealing all the worries she was having. She glanced toward the house as Willow helped her from the car and she saw Dawn racing up to the front door and then up the stairs as fast as she could. She moved so fast she was practically a blur.
Xander waited for the girls and then helped to get Tara up to her and Willow's room so she could rest.
"The last thing we want is for you to get sick too" Xander told her.
"I'll be fine, honestly" the girl said softly with a small smile.
"Well, I'm gonna go..." he gestured towards Buffy's room when he stated to feel like a spare part in the room with the two Wicca lovers. It still seemed strange to him that Spike was back and as a human and now he was so ill, but what freaked Xander out even more than that was that he cared. Xander Harris cared if Spike lived or died and not just for the sake of Buffy or Dawn. He watched from the doorway as the Summers sisters sat, one either side of the ex-vampire who now lay fairly still with a wet cloth on his head, looking almost as pale as he had as an undead.
"How's he doing?" he asked softly as he took a step into the room.
"A little better" Buffy told him, swallowing hard and smiling just a little, "he's stopped shaking so much at least"
"That's good" Xander nodded not really knowing what else to do. He kind of felt like the third or maybe fourth wheel here too.
"Giles is.." he paused before continuing, "well, I actually don't know what Giles is doing but I'm sure he'll be here soon"
Buffy nodded, before turning back to her love as he moaned in semi-consciousness.
"Spike?" she called his name, hoping to get some response, but he was still and quiet again, "Come on, Spike" she whispered near his ear, "I love you and I need you" she told him.
"That goes for me too" Dawn added as she shared a glance with her sister.
"It goes for all of us" Xander spoke without thinking, earning twin shocked looks from the Summer's girls.
"What?" the young man shrugged, "He's a Scooby now, right? One of the gang equals us not wanting him dead"
"I know what it means" Buffy nodded and smiled a little once more. Spike was finally accepted and he was human and she was in love with him. Everything was finally going well, and it would be perfect, if only Spike would be okay.
"Hello?!" came a call from the front door as Giles entered the house.
Xander move to the stairs and ushered the older man up them, telling him that Tara was resting and Willow was with her and that Spike was a little better now the convulsions had stopped.
"Buffy, Dawn" the Watcher greeted the girls.
"Giles, where have you been?" the older girl asked, standing up suddenly.
"Er, nowhere special" he waved away her question and moved toward Spike, "Could you perhaps give me a moment with the patient and I'll see if I can do anything"
The girls and Xander did as they were asked and left the room, pulling the door closed behind them. Buffy rubbed her hands over her face and them dragged them back through her hair.
"You look awful" Xander told her.
"Thanks, I needed to hear that" Buffy managed a little sarcasm despite the seriousness of the current situation.
"I didn't mean..." the brunette tried to back-pedal but Buffy shook her head.
"It's okay Xan, I know"
"I'm gonna go get a glass of water" Dawn said, quietly slipping down the stairs.
"You want anything? Maybe coffee?" Xander asked as Buffy leant against the wall and sighed.
"Yeah, coffee would be of the good" she nodded and with a half smile, the man followed Dawn down the stairs to the kitchen.
Back in Joyce's old room, it's newer residents were both lying on top of the bed, Willow with her arms around Tara, the blonde's head resting on her shoulder.
"Will, can I tell you something?"
"You can tell me anything, baby" the red-head smiled, shifting to see the other girls face.
"When I did the spell" she said slowly "I saw something"
Willow looked surprised.
"You saw something around Spike and you didn't say anything?"
"Oh no, I wouldn't do that" Tara said, sitting up quickly and soon regretting it as her head pounded. She laid back down and sighed.
"I saw something around Buffy, a mist, a green one"
"You think she's okay?" Willow wondered aloud, trying to hide the worry she felt.
"Well, I don't know" Tara admitted, "There was this kind of a thread and it stretched from Buffy to Dawn, like a power cord and it was almost as if..." she trailed off as she thought about it, it was finally becoming clear in her mind.
"Almost as if what?" her girlfriend prompted.
"Well, almost as if..." Tara repeated, "as if the power was flowing from Buffy to Dawn, like it was being syphoned off somehow..."
"What should we do?" Willow asked as he sat bolt upright with shock, "I mean, should we tell Buffy? Oh God, we can't, not while Spike is so weak..."
"But what would we even tell her, anyway?" Tara asked, siting up more slowly, "I mean, we don't even know what it was, what it all means"
"Well, if it was power, I'm guessing it was Slayer power" Willow followed the train of thought, speaking her ideas aloud, "And if Buffy's losing it and Dawn's gaining it...Buffy's not the Slayer anymore" she gasped at the revelation.
"What?!" came a shocked voice from the door way and both girls turned to see Buffy in the open doorway, an understandably shocked expression on her face.
To Be Continued...
