Title: End of Days
Chapter: Chapter Two - The Prophecy and The Gift
Author: Queen Akasha
Rating: R in some chapters
Summary: B/S. Giles tells everyone about the prophecy - or most of it. Buffy gets an unexpected gift.
Disclaimer: Joss is great, Joss is good, let us thank him for Spike and Buffy.
Spoilers: Up to the end of Season Six
Distribution: Go ahead - make my day. Just let me know...
_____________________________________________________________
Chapter Two - The Prophecy and the gift
"Who can we call, Giles?" queried Buffy. Giles was trying to locate Spike after the vampire had left town, because of a new prophecy that had been uncovered by the Watchers Council. Giles seemed to think that Spike was an integral part of the prophecy.
"Well, " Giles replied, "I do believe that Angel had an, er, associate, named Lorne. As a demon, he had some connections to the demon world. Perhaps he may have some insight on Spike."
Buffy thought that anything would be worth a shot. After all, Dawn seemed to miss Spike very much. Possibly it was the lack of a male authority figure in Dawn's life. Xander, the man that Buffy thought could fill the role, seemed to be incapacitated by his problems with Anya. Spike, whom Buffy considered a poor second, had to fill the gap, as Giles wasn't a permanent fixture anymore. That was the ONLY reason, Buffy assured herself, that she even considered trying to locate Spike. After all, her life would be so much easier without him.
"Buffy," Giles interrupted her thoughts, "could you pop over to Spike's crypt and see if he's left any indication as to where he's gone?"
"No problem Giles," replied Buffy, "A busy Slayer is a happy Slayer." Willow looked at her strangely. "Well, I mean, I've got stuff to do, and, well, nothing to do with Spike, and well " Dawn perked up her ears, "Well, I'm just gonna check this out."
The graveyard was quiet tonight. Buffy walked to Spike's old crypt without encountering anything else, living or un-living. * Hope there's no trouble, * thought Buffy, although her body was so tense that a fight would have been a relief. * Just a re-con mission, * she assured herself. * Nothing to get excited about.*
She pushed open the heavy door to the crypt, stake at the ready. "Hello?" she called. "Yup," someone answered her from the depths of the crypt. "Who's there?" Buffy asked. "And who are you?" was the reply.
Buffy smiled at the thought of a confrontation. Maybe there would be some relief for her tension. Suddenly, a familiar head popped up out of Spike's "basement."
"Hey, Buffy," it said.
"Clem?" Buffy queried. "You're still here?"
"Yup," replied Clem. "Spike asked me to house-sit until he was back. Say, did I ever give you the parcel he left for you?"
"No, you didn't, Clem. A parcel?" Buffy answered.
"Oh, gosh, sorry, I promised Spike I'd give this to you as soon as I saw you, but I guess I forgot. Please don't tell him?" he wheedled.
" Don't worry, Clem, he won't hear it from me," Buffy said gently. She didn't want to scare him. "What did he leave?"
"I'll just go get it." Clem disappeared into the nether regions of the crypt and came back with a fairly bulky parcel wrapped in butcher's paper. "You really won't tell him I forgot?"
Buffy assured him that she wouldn't, and took the parcel and left, heading home. She didn't know why, but she didn't want to open the parcel until she was alone.
Alone in her room, Buffy changed into her pajamas and lit some candles before tackling the gift. The radio played softly in the background. 'Comfortably Numb' by Pink Floyd was the current selection. She sat cross- legged on her bed and untied the butcher's string on the awkwardly wrapped parcel. The first thing she saw was a note attached to a stuffed grocery bag. She opened the note and read:
Buffy. I'm leaving this with Clem. God help him if he forgets to give it to you. I can't say any of this to your face, so I'm taking the cowards route and leaving you a note. I have to go away for awhile. I'm sorry if it's a bad time for you. I don't know about you, but I can't do this any more. I know you don't love me, but I can't stop loving you. Believe me I've tried. I feel like such a wanker.
I don't want to leave you and the Nibblet uncared for. I'm enclosing some money with this note. Don't worry, I didn't steal it if that's what you think. My mum had a bit of nice jewelry, and I sold it for the money here. I have more so don't worry about anything. Spend this for whatever you need.
I don't know what to say to you. I don't know if you even care. I just have to try. Try to make things right between us. I don't have a soul, so why do I feel so bad? Please tell me why. Nothing has been this hard before.
Take care of my Nibblet and tell her I love her. No need to tell you how I feel about you - you know.
Spike.
Wrapped in the brown paper grocery bag was money. Buffy sat on her bed, shocked, counting it. * One hundred thousand dollars * her mind registered, * Oh My God!!! This is enough for, well, ANYTHING I need. * She held her head in her hands. * Damn you Spike, * she thought * even when you're not HERE you get the upper hand. *
"Good Morning, Giles," Buffy said the next morning. "Did you sleep OK?"
"Splendidly, thank you," the Watcher replied. "And you?"
"Well, not bad," Buffy replied, "considering I had to hide a hundred thousand dollars under my mattress."
Giles stared blankly at her. "Excuse me?"
Buffy explained about the note and the money (well, some of the note. Some was private.) "Spike sold some of his mom's jewelry and left money to take care of Dawn and me."
"Well, how coincidentally convenient," said Giles. "As we'll need money to fetch Spike."
"Fetch Spike from where?" Buffy asked.
"Well, Buffy, I called Lorne last night, and he had indeed given Spike direction. Apparently Spike wanted badly to have his chip removed. Lorne told him to contact a friend overseas."
"Where is this friend," queried Buffy.
"One of the cradles of civilization," replied Giles. "Cairo, Egypt."
"Egypt!!!" exclaimed Buffy. "Pyramids, mummys, camels?"
"Yes, Buffy."
"Well, when are you leaving?" she asked.
Giles hesitated. " Actually, Buffy, I believe the best plan would be for you to go. You know yourself that you would be the best person to persuade him to come back. I'll stay here and take care of Dawn and Willow, but I think you should leave right away."
"Giles," Buffy said impatiently, " You still haven't told us about the prophecy."
The Watcher sighed. He was trying to avoid this moment. "Get everyone together, then, please. I only want to tell it once."
What was left of the gang converged at the Magic Shop. Willow and Dawn sat together at the table, perusing one of the more obscure texts, waiting for Xander and Anya. Finally the couple walked in, slightly arguing. "We never had a speeding ticket before you left me at the altar, Xander," said Anya.
"Please, you two," Giles admonished. "Can we focus? This is fairly important."
"Yeah, bring on the prophetic goodness," said Xander. Everyone looked at him and he shrugged. "Can't be 'on' every day," he said.
Giles spoke. "Let's get to the point. This prophecy is ancient - it was only uncovered a few weeks ago in Egypt, which is fitting since that may be where Spike is. It is in an obscure language, and the Council had a bit of trouble deciphering it. The first part deals with the time and the location, and the Council feels that the next part pertains to the current slayer, er, uh, Buffy, and to, um, Spike. I'll just read the part that concerns us.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////
When the end of days is at hand
The warrior of the dark, suffused with spirit And the champion of the light, thrice born, Bound together by spendings and claimed by blood Must unite their swords in battle To vanquish the anti-christ.
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// /////////
"Of course," Giles continued, "That's greatly simplified. We're not even sure if it's the anti-Christ or some other foe. However the Watchers Council feels that it is extremely serious."
"Uh, Giles," asked Dawn.
"Yes, Dawn?"
"What is spendings?"
Giles face turned red. "Well, during ,um, sex, Dawn, there are certain, um, fluids if you will, and those are sometimes referred to as, um, spendings."
"Oh, cum?" Dawn asked.
"Dawn!" Buffy admonished.
"Buffy, I'm a teenager. I'm not stupid," said Dawn.
"Um, Buffy," Giles asked hesitantly, "This prophecy assumes you have had or will have sex with Spike. I need to ask, have you done this?"
* Oh GOD * thought Buffy. The moment of truth. "Well, um, yes we've had sex," she replied.
"Good!" Giles said. Everyone looked at him. Xander looked queasy. "Well, I just mean that you don't have to do that again. However, has he bitten you?"
"No WAY!" said Buffy. "I'm the SLAYER. He couldn't bite me unless I did something stupid like asking him to."
"Well," said Giles, "the prophecy indicates that you must be claimed by the warrior of the dark, whom the Council thinks is Spike."
"Why does the Council think it's Spike and not Angel? Angel might be the Warrior of the Dark. And what's claimed?" Buffy questioned.
"Buffy, this is just a small portion of the entire prophecy, which is still being translated. However, there is sufficient, er, evidence, shall we say, that the warrior is Spike, and not Angel," Giles replied.
"And what's claimed?" Buffy asked again.
"Well, er, yes, um, Spike would of course know more about this, but I believe there's a vampiric ritual including blood sharing, which is known as claiming. This is usually only between vampires, which is another reason for us needing Spike, as we don't really know this ritual."
"Well, then, Giles," Buffy said. "I guess I'd better go get him. Willow?" she said gently.
"Yes Buffy," Willow spoke hesitantly.
"Can you please book me a flight on line? And take care of Dawny while I'm gone?"
"Of course," said Willow. "We need to pull together now."
No-one saw Dawn slip the book she and Willow had been perusing into her backpack.
TBC
.
Chapter: Chapter Two - The Prophecy and The Gift
Author: Queen Akasha
Rating: R in some chapters
Summary: B/S. Giles tells everyone about the prophecy - or most of it. Buffy gets an unexpected gift.
Disclaimer: Joss is great, Joss is good, let us thank him for Spike and Buffy.
Spoilers: Up to the end of Season Six
Distribution: Go ahead - make my day. Just let me know...
_____________________________________________________________
Chapter Two - The Prophecy and the gift
"Who can we call, Giles?" queried Buffy. Giles was trying to locate Spike after the vampire had left town, because of a new prophecy that had been uncovered by the Watchers Council. Giles seemed to think that Spike was an integral part of the prophecy.
"Well, " Giles replied, "I do believe that Angel had an, er, associate, named Lorne. As a demon, he had some connections to the demon world. Perhaps he may have some insight on Spike."
Buffy thought that anything would be worth a shot. After all, Dawn seemed to miss Spike very much. Possibly it was the lack of a male authority figure in Dawn's life. Xander, the man that Buffy thought could fill the role, seemed to be incapacitated by his problems with Anya. Spike, whom Buffy considered a poor second, had to fill the gap, as Giles wasn't a permanent fixture anymore. That was the ONLY reason, Buffy assured herself, that she even considered trying to locate Spike. After all, her life would be so much easier without him.
"Buffy," Giles interrupted her thoughts, "could you pop over to Spike's crypt and see if he's left any indication as to where he's gone?"
"No problem Giles," replied Buffy, "A busy Slayer is a happy Slayer." Willow looked at her strangely. "Well, I mean, I've got stuff to do, and, well, nothing to do with Spike, and well " Dawn perked up her ears, "Well, I'm just gonna check this out."
The graveyard was quiet tonight. Buffy walked to Spike's old crypt without encountering anything else, living or un-living. * Hope there's no trouble, * thought Buffy, although her body was so tense that a fight would have been a relief. * Just a re-con mission, * she assured herself. * Nothing to get excited about.*
She pushed open the heavy door to the crypt, stake at the ready. "Hello?" she called. "Yup," someone answered her from the depths of the crypt. "Who's there?" Buffy asked. "And who are you?" was the reply.
Buffy smiled at the thought of a confrontation. Maybe there would be some relief for her tension. Suddenly, a familiar head popped up out of Spike's "basement."
"Hey, Buffy," it said.
"Clem?" Buffy queried. "You're still here?"
"Yup," replied Clem. "Spike asked me to house-sit until he was back. Say, did I ever give you the parcel he left for you?"
"No, you didn't, Clem. A parcel?" Buffy answered.
"Oh, gosh, sorry, I promised Spike I'd give this to you as soon as I saw you, but I guess I forgot. Please don't tell him?" he wheedled.
" Don't worry, Clem, he won't hear it from me," Buffy said gently. She didn't want to scare him. "What did he leave?"
"I'll just go get it." Clem disappeared into the nether regions of the crypt and came back with a fairly bulky parcel wrapped in butcher's paper. "You really won't tell him I forgot?"
Buffy assured him that she wouldn't, and took the parcel and left, heading home. She didn't know why, but she didn't want to open the parcel until she was alone.
Alone in her room, Buffy changed into her pajamas and lit some candles before tackling the gift. The radio played softly in the background. 'Comfortably Numb' by Pink Floyd was the current selection. She sat cross- legged on her bed and untied the butcher's string on the awkwardly wrapped parcel. The first thing she saw was a note attached to a stuffed grocery bag. She opened the note and read:
Buffy. I'm leaving this with Clem. God help him if he forgets to give it to you. I can't say any of this to your face, so I'm taking the cowards route and leaving you a note. I have to go away for awhile. I'm sorry if it's a bad time for you. I don't know about you, but I can't do this any more. I know you don't love me, but I can't stop loving you. Believe me I've tried. I feel like such a wanker.
I don't want to leave you and the Nibblet uncared for. I'm enclosing some money with this note. Don't worry, I didn't steal it if that's what you think. My mum had a bit of nice jewelry, and I sold it for the money here. I have more so don't worry about anything. Spend this for whatever you need.
I don't know what to say to you. I don't know if you even care. I just have to try. Try to make things right between us. I don't have a soul, so why do I feel so bad? Please tell me why. Nothing has been this hard before.
Take care of my Nibblet and tell her I love her. No need to tell you how I feel about you - you know.
Spike.
Wrapped in the brown paper grocery bag was money. Buffy sat on her bed, shocked, counting it. * One hundred thousand dollars * her mind registered, * Oh My God!!! This is enough for, well, ANYTHING I need. * She held her head in her hands. * Damn you Spike, * she thought * even when you're not HERE you get the upper hand. *
"Good Morning, Giles," Buffy said the next morning. "Did you sleep OK?"
"Splendidly, thank you," the Watcher replied. "And you?"
"Well, not bad," Buffy replied, "considering I had to hide a hundred thousand dollars under my mattress."
Giles stared blankly at her. "Excuse me?"
Buffy explained about the note and the money (well, some of the note. Some was private.) "Spike sold some of his mom's jewelry and left money to take care of Dawn and me."
"Well, how coincidentally convenient," said Giles. "As we'll need money to fetch Spike."
"Fetch Spike from where?" Buffy asked.
"Well, Buffy, I called Lorne last night, and he had indeed given Spike direction. Apparently Spike wanted badly to have his chip removed. Lorne told him to contact a friend overseas."
"Where is this friend," queried Buffy.
"One of the cradles of civilization," replied Giles. "Cairo, Egypt."
"Egypt!!!" exclaimed Buffy. "Pyramids, mummys, camels?"
"Yes, Buffy."
"Well, when are you leaving?" she asked.
Giles hesitated. " Actually, Buffy, I believe the best plan would be for you to go. You know yourself that you would be the best person to persuade him to come back. I'll stay here and take care of Dawn and Willow, but I think you should leave right away."
"Giles," Buffy said impatiently, " You still haven't told us about the prophecy."
The Watcher sighed. He was trying to avoid this moment. "Get everyone together, then, please. I only want to tell it once."
What was left of the gang converged at the Magic Shop. Willow and Dawn sat together at the table, perusing one of the more obscure texts, waiting for Xander and Anya. Finally the couple walked in, slightly arguing. "We never had a speeding ticket before you left me at the altar, Xander," said Anya.
"Please, you two," Giles admonished. "Can we focus? This is fairly important."
"Yeah, bring on the prophetic goodness," said Xander. Everyone looked at him and he shrugged. "Can't be 'on' every day," he said.
Giles spoke. "Let's get to the point. This prophecy is ancient - it was only uncovered a few weeks ago in Egypt, which is fitting since that may be where Spike is. It is in an obscure language, and the Council had a bit of trouble deciphering it. The first part deals with the time and the location, and the Council feels that the next part pertains to the current slayer, er, uh, Buffy, and to, um, Spike. I'll just read the part that concerns us.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////
When the end of days is at hand
The warrior of the dark, suffused with spirit And the champion of the light, thrice born, Bound together by spendings and claimed by blood Must unite their swords in battle To vanquish the anti-christ.
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// /////////
"Of course," Giles continued, "That's greatly simplified. We're not even sure if it's the anti-Christ or some other foe. However the Watchers Council feels that it is extremely serious."
"Uh, Giles," asked Dawn.
"Yes, Dawn?"
"What is spendings?"
Giles face turned red. "Well, during ,um, sex, Dawn, there are certain, um, fluids if you will, and those are sometimes referred to as, um, spendings."
"Oh, cum?" Dawn asked.
"Dawn!" Buffy admonished.
"Buffy, I'm a teenager. I'm not stupid," said Dawn.
"Um, Buffy," Giles asked hesitantly, "This prophecy assumes you have had or will have sex with Spike. I need to ask, have you done this?"
* Oh GOD * thought Buffy. The moment of truth. "Well, um, yes we've had sex," she replied.
"Good!" Giles said. Everyone looked at him. Xander looked queasy. "Well, I just mean that you don't have to do that again. However, has he bitten you?"
"No WAY!" said Buffy. "I'm the SLAYER. He couldn't bite me unless I did something stupid like asking him to."
"Well," said Giles, "the prophecy indicates that you must be claimed by the warrior of the dark, whom the Council thinks is Spike."
"Why does the Council think it's Spike and not Angel? Angel might be the Warrior of the Dark. And what's claimed?" Buffy questioned.
"Buffy, this is just a small portion of the entire prophecy, which is still being translated. However, there is sufficient, er, evidence, shall we say, that the warrior is Spike, and not Angel," Giles replied.
"And what's claimed?" Buffy asked again.
"Well, er, yes, um, Spike would of course know more about this, but I believe there's a vampiric ritual including blood sharing, which is known as claiming. This is usually only between vampires, which is another reason for us needing Spike, as we don't really know this ritual."
"Well, then, Giles," Buffy said. "I guess I'd better go get him. Willow?" she said gently.
"Yes Buffy," Willow spoke hesitantly.
"Can you please book me a flight on line? And take care of Dawny while I'm gone?"
"Of course," said Willow. "We need to pull together now."
No-one saw Dawn slip the book she and Willow had been perusing into her backpack.
TBC
.