Title: Forgiving Evil

Chapter 10/12: Xander's Revelation

(see chapter one for more detail)

          "Willow? You're back!" Xander smiled widely and grabbed Willow into a hug as tight as Buffy's was. He basically ignored the slayer and her sister as he led Willow to the couch. Buffy and Dawn got the hint and took Willow's bags up to her room.

          "Xander I missed you so much. And I'm so sorry for everything that happened last year. I almost killed you. But the world owes so much to you for stopping me in time. I owe you so much for stopping me in time. I love you." Willow said.

          The two old friends talked for an hour or so on the events of last spring and decided to try and forget it. Last year was a bad year for everyone and it was better forgotten. While on the topic, Willow decided to help out Buffy a bit.

          "Hey Xand, how are you able to forgive me?" Willow asked slyly. Xander looked taken back, but answered the question without hesitation.

          "Because I know you weren't in your right state of mind. You were angry and hurt and confused because you had lost someone you loved. And I love you. And everyone else loves you, too."

          "Then why can't you forgive Spike?" Willow said.

"He's a soulless…er, soulful, evil monster and he tried to rape Buffy." Xander argued.

          "Think about it Xander. Spike loved Buffy with his whole being. With the soul he supposedly didn't have. Just like I loved Tara. He slept with Anya and I abused the magicks. He raped Buffy out of hurt and confusion. I tried to end the world out of hurt and confusion. If you can forgive me you should at least try to forgive him. Xander, he's trying. He really is. The hardest thing is to face the people he's hurt. I know what he's going through."

          But Xander wasn't buying it. "He killed hundreds, maybe thousands of people."

          "So did Anya." Willow shot back.

          "He has a bad past, he's done some pretty evil stuff."

          "So has Giles." Willow thought of 'Ripper'

          "He tried to kill us!" Xander pleaded desperately.

          "So did Buffy!" Willow cringed a bit. "And so did I."
          "He steals and lies." Xander stated, thinking he won.

          "So did Dawn." Willow was on a roll now.

          "He left the one person he loved when she needed him most." Xander admitted.

          "So did you." Willow reached out and hugged Xander tightly. As she held him she kept talking. "We've all done some pretty bad stuff. And we've all been forgiven. Why should Spike be an exception to the rule? Please Xander, give him a chance. He deserves it. And when you two fight it tears Buffy apart."

          Willow stood up from the couch and looked down at Xander. "I'll talk to you tomorrow. Get some sleep and think about what I said." Xander didn't answer as Willow disappeared upstairs. He waited a few minutes and then let himself out, locking the door behind him.

          Upstairs, Willow found Buffy and Dawn sitting on her bed. She sat down with them and started to unpack her clothes and other belongings.

          "So, did you have a good talk with Xander? Work stuff out." Dawn asked as she put one of Willow's shirts into a drawer.

          Willow couldn't help but smile. "Yea, I really did."

At Spike's Crypt…

          Spike sat in his chair and stared absently at a wall. His face was unreadable. A glass of brandy dangled from his left hand. Suddenly there was a knock on the crypt door. 'Who would be bloody knocking on my door?'

          "Come in." he called out. He wasn't too scared, he figured it wasn't something demony or it wouldn't have knocked. He turned as he heard the door open and close and expected to see Dawn or even Buffy standing there. Instead he saw Xander.

          "Bloody hell. What are you doing here? Come to kill me again?" Spike stood up and backed away. How was he going to defend himself against Xander?

          "I come in peace." Xander raised his hands to show he held no weapons. Spike relaxed only a tiny bit. Xander continued. "I talked to Willow tonight and she got me thinking. Everyone deserves a second chance. I'm not saying I forgive you or support this relationship you have with Buffy, but I might be open to it in the future. I gotta get used to this."

          Spike nodded his head, a silent agreement. Xander turned to leave and paused. "And if you ever hurt Buffy again, I'll stake you myself." It sounded threatening but Spike could tell it was softer than Xander had wanted it to be. Xander left and Spike flopped back down in his chair.

          "Bloody hell. This is too much." He gulped down the last of his drink.