Title: The Soulmatchers

Author: Sunglow999

Pairing: Spike/Buffy

Rating: R (Just to be on the safe side)

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Joss Whedon & Mutant Enemy, except Cassie and Orion – they belong to me.

Spoilers:- Up to Dead Things, things are different from there on in. Crossover with Angel later on. This is my first ever fanfiction so reviews would be helpful, email me at sunglow999@hotmail.com

Chapter 6. Old enemies and new spells.

Anya unlocked the door and Angel held it open for Cordelia, slender girl, an African-American man and Wesley Wyndham-Price to enter before following them in.

Angel made the introductions while Cordelia sat at the table, rocking the baby.

"This is Connor." Cordelia said.

"Wow, you got your figure back quickly." Willow said, taking in the flat line of her stomach.

"Oh, he's not mine, he's Angels son."

"Deadboys?"

"And Darla's."

"Darla? I thought you offed the bitch." Spike said.

"She was brought back last year. Long story but the upshot of it all is that she killed herself so that Connor could live."

"Darla? Self-sacrificing? Sure it was 'er?"

"It was Darla. I do know my own sire." Angel bit out.

"Yeah, reckon you do." Spike smirked.

"Spike!" Cassie could see trouble brewing.

"What's he doing here anyway?" Cordelia asked. "You do know he's evil, don't you? The last time we saw him he tortured Angel for the Gem of Amara."

"Too right I'm still evil."

"You tortured Angel?" Buffy scowled at Spike, who grinned. Xander looked interested.

"How? What did you do?"

"Shoved red hot pokers through his guts." Spike admitted.

"Ew." There was a chorus of disgust from the women in the group, except Cassie, who looked intrigued.

"Spike, we really didn't want to know." Willow looked sick.

"I did." Xander said.

"What did you do with it?" Cassie suddenly asked Angel.

"I destroyed it."

"What?" Spike started forward. "You stupid pillock!" He would have gone for Angels throat but Cassie managed to grab the collar of his duster and pull him back.

"You still haven't explained what he's doing here." Cordelia complained.

"Oh, he's neutered. He can't hurt humans because he has a chip in is brain." Willow said. "Riley, Buffy's last boyfriend, belonged to a secret government organisation who did experiments on demons, only they made a Frankenstein monster who wanted to make everyone a demon hybrid. He was way icky."

"So, you can't hurt humans?" It was Angels turn to smirk.

"I can still hurt demons, Angelus." Spikes eyes flashed gold as he snarled at him.

"Enough already!" Buffy was starting to get annoyed. "We can play catch up when we've found where they're holding Cassies brother and got him back."

Spike subsided and Cassie brought the LA crowd and Tara up to speed. Wesley was fascinated and went into Watcher mode, asking all sorts of questions about her life as a soulmatcher.

"Wesley, we don't have time for this." Angel eventually interrupted.

"No, no you're absolutely right, Angel." Wesley took off his glasses and polished them. "When this is all over, perhaps you and your brother could do a series of interviews, just for my own personal records, you understand."

"I can't speak for Orion, but I'll be moving to LA after this is all over." Cassie said. "If you've got a few weeks spare, of course, it might take that long to give you a fifteen hundred year history."

"Fascinating, fascinating." Wesley put his glasses back on, beaming at her.

"Okay, people, lets get this show on the road. Where do we start?" Gunn clapped his hands together.

"We need to find where they're holding Orion. As I said before, there are too many powerful wards round him. I need two others to help me do the spell."

"Tara, can you be one?" Buffy asked. "Willow, we can't ask you to do it." Willow nodded.

"S.sure."

"Wesley?" Buffy noticed Tara start to object out of the corner of her eye. "Tara? What is it?"

"I..I work b.better with w..women." Tara ducked her head, hiding behind a curtain of hair.

Eveyone looked at Willow, who had gone pale and jumped to her feet, backing away from the table.

"I can't. Please, I can't." She whimpered. She had promised to stop with the magic and she would do anything to get back Tara's trust and love.

Cassie took Willow by the shoulders and looked deep into her eyes.

"Yes, you can, Willow. You won't be the focus of the spell, I will be. All you have to do is help Tara channel the magic into me. You'll be okay."

"You're sure?"

"Positive."

Willow took a deep breath and nodded. She was rewarded with a smile from Tara and it gave a big boost to her confidence.

Tara got the ingredients for the spell off the shelves, Anya for once saying nothing about the cost, while Willow marked out the circle.

Cassie produced a map of Sunnydale and spread it in the middle of the circle. She took a Celtic ring out of her trouser pocket out it in the pewter bowl Tara had put beside the map.

"Ready?" She asked Tara and Willow. They knelt with her in the circle and watched as she added the spell ingredients one by one over the ring, chanting in ancient Anglo Saxon. Her final act was to cut her finger and drip blood into the bowl. She then took Tara and Willows hands and said one last phrase. The influx of powerful magic crackling in the air made the hair on everyones arms suddenly stand up. Cassies eyes had turned black as the magic became concentrated in the circle. Everyone could see a gold mist appearing over the map. It swirled, as if confused, before becoming a bright yellow light. It slowly descended and disappeared into the map. Cassie released Tara and Willow and they slumped back on their haunches. They looked at the map and saw a yellow spot pulsing in one grid.

"The docks." Willow said, happy it was all over.

"Jeez, those warehouses are massive. How many vamps do you think they can hold?" Xander asked.

"Several hundred." Angel said.

The Scoobies looked at each other and Xander summed up their feelings in one word.

"Shit"

TBC