Part 4

Intensification

Spike was in reality in raptures, Angelus - the Master of all things deceitful - had essentially kept up his end of the covenant that they had forged over Fluffy's location. The factor that he was largely thankful about was that he now did not have to be dependant on the kindheartedness - or lack there of - of the fucking White Hats. Drusilla had instantaneously received him back, not only into the family once more, but also into her bed - he didn't like to admit it but that made him apprehensive, like he had been given to Dru as a leisure activity, a plaything. On the other hand if he looked at it optimistically, he could accept it for what it at face value; that she had missed him and wanted him back, but he had never been very optimistic, at least since his rebirth.

He was on the other hand feeling an incredibly un-vampire-like feeling on every occasion he spared Buffy a thought, he remembered it hazily from his human days - a guilty conscience. He knew what Angelus' design for the juvenile blond slayer was, he simply didn't know what the giant poof was presently up to; it had after all been more than a week since he had betrayed the slayer's position to him and yet zilch had gone on. However knowing Peaches like he did, there was destined to be something horrendous up his sleeve for the credulous girl. The reality was that Angelus was only this guarded when he was scheming rather horrific or gathering intelligence and something told the bleach-blond vampire that in the case of this particular slayer, Angelus was looking for an Achilles' heel to manipulate before he even contemplated making his so-called magnificent move.

"My Spike," a voice called to him, breaking him away from his reverie. "Are you hungry my Spike?"

"Famished," he replied drinking in the vision of his undying beloved.

Drusilla meandered giddily across the room and planted a quick kiss on his ice-cold lips. "Then I'll kill a nice toddler for you to eat."

Spike allowed her to pull him to his feet and then he said gently, "I think I'm in the mood for someone a little older." His stomach turned summersaults at the thought of eating a baby, even though they were Dru's favourite snack. He supposed it was partly due to her rampant insanity and partly because of the fact they were something she would never ever have.

"Spoil my fun," she glowered.

Anxious to make her smile evilly once more, he replied, "I never said that you couldn't eat one, pet."

Dru hugged him close, "I'm glad you're back my Spike. Our happy home is complete."

{If you only knew, pet. If you only knew} he thought. "I'm glad I'm back too."

Pushing the niggling traces of guilt - which had to be a by-product of his chip - to the back of his mind, he headed out with Dru for a bite to eat.

One week, it had been one whole week since her explanation of the true nature of herself an of things that go bump in the night to Frannie and it had been just as long since the stubborn, fearful brunette had spoken to her. So much for Frannie's guarantee that nothing Buffy could tell her would shock her, the instant Buffy educated her of what was in reality going on around her, things that she never noticed because she preferred to live in a position of ignorance, Frannie walked away and didn't look back. Not that Buffy in reality blamed her, after Merrick had initially explained the slayer gig to her she hadn't wanted anything to do with it either.

Buffy understood it wasn't the end of the world, she had been by herself before and it freed up her schedule to spend more time with the family or do her homework - if she kept up all her work she was a shoe in to make the honor roll, which would certainly surprise a lot of people. In spite of this she did miss Frannie's friendship and more and more she was missing her old life and friends back in Sunnydale. She was only now beginning to question the wisdom in cutting all the ties to her former life.

"I haven't seen Francis around lately," Angel said as she wandered into Buffy's bedroom. "Is there anything wrong with you two?"

"Not really," Buffy answered pretending to be totally engrossed with her algebra homework.

"Buffy," Angel said sat down on Buffy's antiquated lumpy double bed. "You know you can tell me anything that's wrong. Just think of me as family."

"Angel, I do think of you as family, but..."

"But what?"

"Some things are just private."

Angel merely sat there on the bed and Buffy become conscious that Angel wasn't going to disappear until she had gotten what she sought after and that was for Buffy to unburden her heart to her about what was wrong instead of bottling it up within and letting it fester.

Buffy at long last glanced up from her homework, "It's nothing. Frannie just found out something about me that she didn't like and decided to pretend that I don't exist."

"No matter what she's found out about you, it simply can't be any worse than the things that she has done. That girl is a antisocial delinquent," Angel answered supporting Buffy. Angel stood up when she recognized that Buffy wasn't going to talk about it to any further extent and went to leave the room, pausing at the doorway. "Don't spend the rest of the night brooding here in your room over Francis Malone. Go do something fun... as long as it doesn't involve you leaving the apartment."

Buffy stared at her aunt's best friend since childhood, "I'll think about it."

"Okay, if you want you can join Chloe and I. We're gonna have an Olsen twins movie fest... you don't wanna miss that."

Giggling and rolling her eyes, Buffy replied sarcastically, "I definitely can miss an entire evening of that."

"Does that mean you'll be joining us?"

"It means... yeah, I'll be joining you," Buffy told her.

"We'll be waiting," Angel told her as she left the room.

Buffy put down her math book and rummaged though her disorderly writing desk until she came across what she was looking for, her address book. She opened it to the page where Willow's phone number was written, it was a number that she once knew by heart and now since had been so long she could barely remember how it started. For a small amount of seconds she did nothing but stare at it and then as unexpectedly as she had retrieved it, she put it away once more. Taking a deep breath she stood up and went to join her cousin and Angel in the living room.

Sitting at the rear his mahogany writing desk, Angelus tapped his fingers upon the surface in both irritation and displeasure. It had been over a week since he had hired that moronic demon detective to follow his wife around and still he had come up with nothing of value. Sure he now knew his not so darling spouse's daily schedule - school, home, etc -, the fact that she was not dating anyone and the names of the family members that she was now living with. However there was nothing in that information that he could use to his advantage.

There was a soft knock upon his door, right before it swung open. "Master?"

"Yes?"

"Your detective is on the phone," the fledgling whispered mellifluously so as not to antagonize Angelus with an impertinent manner.

"Put him through," Angelus ordered. As the fledgling went to depart, Angelus spoke to him once more, "And next time... you will wait for me to grant you entry or you will encounter the pointy end of my stake. Do you understand me?"

"Y-yes Master."

A few moments later the cordless touchtone phone lying on the writing desk next to him rang and he picked up the extension. "You had better have some good news to report, or I will take you apart piece by piece while you are still breathing - if you are lucky."

"Calm down, Angelus. I wouldn't have dared to call you if I hadn't found you something useful," the aged roughened demonic voice. "It seems your slayer's aunt has a secret."

"What sort of secret?" Angelus asked, his curiosity peaked.

The demon on the other end laughed, "The kind you'll like."

Late into the hours of darkness, long after most normal individuals are dead to the world in their comfy beds, Samantha Waters entered the residence that she shared with her daughter, best friend and niece. All but one insignificant table lamp was turned off leaving the prevalent percentage of the living room in shadow, not that Samantha in reality noticed. As per usual her mind was filled with the latest case that had been assigned to the Violent Crimes Task Force - or the VCTF as it is also known - and the sporadic accidental thought of her stalker, Jack.

Dumping her array of case notes and research onto the undersized timber coffee table, she flopped down onto the overstuffed couch absolutely exhausted - both emotionally and physically. However she knew that no matter how overwrought she may be, she wouldn't be able to reap more than a few hours sleep at best; it was nothing new it had been that way since Jack had murdered her husband. Leaning back she closed her eyes and tried to absorb the stillness, the peacefulness of the quiet apartment into her distressed mind. The peace didn't last long, it was shattered by the shrill ring of the phone. Heaving a sigh, Samantha picked it up expecting it to be Bailey informing her of another victim or problem with the case.

"What now, Bailey?"

"Hi... Mrs. Waters," Francis Malone's voice came down the line. "Can I please talk to Buffy?"

"Frannie, it's nearly two in the morning, Buffy's been in bed for hours. Can't you talk to her at school?"

"Sure. Sorry for bothering you," Frannie apologized. "I guess I didn't realize it was so late."

"It's okay."

"Bye."

Samantha hung up the receiver with a groan and once again closed her eyes and tried to loosen up. The muted thuds of feet tip-toeing down the short hallway disturbed her a short time later, she glanced up and saw Buffy heading into the kitchen area. Accustomed with her niece's habit, she knew that this late night sojourn meant only one thing.

"Have another nightmare?" Samantha asked her. It was really more of a statement than a question, after all why else would her niece be wandering around the apartment at this late hour.

"What else," Buffy replied tiredly, as she moved around the small kitchen area. "Do you want a hot chocolate?"

"Sure," Samantha answered standing up and stretching her wound up muscles. As she walked towards her niece, "Want to talk about it?"

Buffy busied herself making the essential hot chocolate, but she ultimately answered her aunt. "Not really... but..."

"But what?"

Buffy stopped part way through making the drink, "It's changing."

Samantha studied her niece closely, "Changing how?"

Buffy leisurely finished off making the hot chocolate and poured it into two large decorative china mugs. She placed one in front of her aunt before she spoke again, "At first... it was just mom and dad dying and I couldn't save them. No matter how hard or much as I tried I... it was just too late."

"And now?"

Buffy took a seat at the small dining table and took a sip of the hot liquid. Sighing softly she replied, "Now... it's not just my parents I can't save. It's all my old friends back in Sunnydale and I can't save them because I can't..."

"Can't what?"

"I can't figure out what's killing them."

Samantha simply sat there sipping the drink her niece had made her and thinking about what she had just been told. Honestly even with all her training she wasn't sure what to say to Buffy. "What does Dr. Morton say?"

Buffy almost choked on the mouthful of drink she had. "That quack. The best that she can come up with is that I need closure on my life out in California."

"Really?"

"Yeah and since I don't see you letting me head out there all alone, that idea's wasted."

Samantha sighed, "You know that if Jack wasn't..."

"Aunt Sam, it's okay. The truth is I'm not sure I want to go back there... ever."

Samantha patted Buffy's hand, "Tell you what. Next time I head out to California - case or not - we'll go to Sunnydale and figure this all out."

"Okay," Buffy agreed reluctantly.

They then merely sat there, each trapped within their own thoughts, as they finished their drinks and then headed off to bed, to toss and turn because their own fretful dreams.

TBC...