Chapter 13
Prophecy
Giles and Angel were patiently waiting for Buffy to reemerge downstairs. Within an hour of his call to Wesley, the other ex-watcher had found the information they needed to locate the oracle Spike had spoken of.
Silence blanketed the room, everyone fidgeting, trying to keep themselves occupied while waiting. Spike took Kitara's hand and nodded toward the kitchen. She followed, happy to have a chance to be alone with him. Once inside, her smile faded when she saw the expression of annoyance on his face.
"What's wrong?" she asked, concern plaguing her voice.
"Nothing, luv. Just wasn't expecting to see you. Bit surprised is all."
"You don't mind, do you?" She pushed her arms around his waist, her tone sweet and seductive.
"It's just dangerous. Bad things 'round here. You should have stayed in L.A. where it's safe."
"I can handle myself. Besides, I have you to protect me." She smiled and reached up to brush a strand of curled hair away from his face. His motions were showing no sign of the affection they had exchanged before he'd left, just the day before, and it was visibly upsetting her. She stepped back.
"It's Buffy, isn't it?" she asked, a frown falling over her features.
He bit his lip, contemplating what to say without hurting her feelings. Moving away, he turned in silence toward the refrigerator, opening it to grab a bag of blood. Pulling a mug from the strainer in the sink, he attempted to open the bag when he felt her move behind him. Her hands wrapped around, grabbing the contents in his hands, forcing him to stop what he was doing. He gripped the counter and sighed deeply.
"I knew this was gonna be hard on you, Spike. Being around her."
He stood still, jaw clenched, head down, not sure of what to say. She placed her hand on his arm and pulled him around to face her.
"You need to remember why you left here in the first place. You said it yourself, she treated you like dirt. Do you really want to put yourself through that again?"
"I know, luv. But you don't understand."
"Explain it to me then," she answered, crossing her arms in front of her.
He leaned back against the sink, placing his hands in the pockets of his coat.
"She's everything, Kit. She's the reason for my existence. The reason I'm still here." He took a short pause and then continued. "After the chip, I wasn't anything but a useless, dead shell. She became the thing in this world that gave me purpose. Made me want to live. I owe it to her to be here. She needs me."
"She has plenty of people to help her. She doesn't need you. She's manipulating you because you let her. She'll use you until you've served your purpose, and then she'll throw you away. Just like she did before."
"Kit..." He tried to stop her from going further. He didn't want to admit that what she was saying had struck a nerve.
"No," she interrupted. "I'm not gonna let her hurt you again. I care about you and I've seen the pain she caused."
"It's alright, luv. It's over between us. We both know it. I'm just here because she needs... because 'they' need all the help they can get right now."
She moved in closer, pushing herself up against him, running her fingers down his chest.
"Where does that leave us? I thought we were off to a pretty good start back in L.A." She casually lifted her eyes to his, waiting for a reply.
It hit him that this was the moment he was waiting for. The moment he needed to be pushed into making a decision once and for all. No more slip- ups, no more letting his heart fool him that he and Buffy would ever have a chance. He reached up suddenly and caught her hands in his.
"It leaves us right where we left off, pet. Nothing's changed." His head tilted and his lips met hers with a gentle force.
He pushed the images of Buffy aside that were forcing their way in. The images of her writhing beneath him, desperate kisses between them, as they lay entwined in the deserted graveyard. 'No more thinking of her,' he challenged himself. He knew he was attempting to convince his heart that this was what he really wanted. He did have feelings for Kitara. They may not have included the passion and fire he felt for Buffy, but she was obtainable. In his mind, Buffy was not.
Their kiss ended abruptly when they heard a ruckus coming from the other room. Spike instinctively pulled her behind him, and headed back to where the others were. He entered, immediately gaining the attention of Xander, who had just come through the front door with Anya.
Xander's eyes burned into him, cold and unfeeling. "What are 'you' doing here?"
"He's here to help," Buffy stated, appearing at the top of the steps, fresh from her bath. She made her way downstairs and stood next to her friend, silently challenging him to argue.
"We don't need his help," he groaned, his eyes still focused on the blonde vampire.
"Xander, that's enough!" she shouted, pulling him into the hallway away from the others.
They began to speak in a hushed tone. "Are you nuts? Why would you even let him in here?"
"We need him. That's all you need to know. Now if you have a problem with it, there's the door," she said, pointing in the direction from which he'd arrived.
"Now you're choosing him over your friends?"
Her voice was strong and determined. "I'm not choosing anyone. We need help, Xander. And I'm not gonna turn away anyone that offers."
"I swear if he lays one hand on you..."
"He won't. Now, are you going to come in here and act civilized or do I have to use force?" she asked mockingly, trying to ease the tension.
He glanced at her and with a roll of his eyes stepped back into the living room, with Buffy following behind him.
"Now that we got that straightened out, how was Dawn? Did she seem to be okay there?" she asked, looking toward Anya for an answer.
"She was fine. She's safe."
"Good. Now, I need to say something." She directed her attention to everyone present, her stance tall and confident. "This thing is gonna be tough. We've seen how it works. It's going to try to pull us apart to make us weaker. We can't let it." Her eyes turned toward Angel and rested on him. "I don't want anymore macho bullshit, no more shows of testosterone," eyes darting to Spike, " no more fighting between any of us. We need to pull together if we have any chance of winning."
Spike smiled. This was the 'take charge' Buffy he'd grown to love. This was the inner strength he'd come to expect from her.
Giles was the first to agree. "Buffy's right. We do need to work together."
She nodded. "Did we find out anything about the oracle Spike mentioned?"
"Yes. Wesley had information." Angel answered, from his seat across the room.
"It seems this oracle is in another dimension. There's a portal. I was hoping Willow could help with opening a doorway," Giles said, looking her way. "It's gonna take some power, and frankly, I think you're the only one who can do it."
"Oh... of course. But whose gonna go through it?"
"I am," He answered bluntly. "I think I'll be better equipped to translate any cryptic messages we might receive." He stared around the room, waiting for any argument. When no one spoke up, he stood and made his way toward Willow.
"Alright then. I say we get this done. The sooner we discover anything, the better off we'll be."
"Are you sure this is okay?" Buffy asked, with concern. "I mean. another dimension. Giles, you have no idea what might be waiting there for you."
"We have to do it. It's the first solid thing we have to go on." He turned back toward Willow, handing her a notebook he'd been holding onto. "Wesley translated it. Latin of course."
She nodded and took the book from him. He positioned himself in the middle of the room and took a deep breath when she began chanting the words. Barely a minute went by when a bright light emerged before him. He glanced around, taking in the sight of his surroundings as if it would be the last time he'd have the chance to do so. He took a step and was engulfed in the light, before disappearing entirely out of sight.
They stood in amazement as his body stepped through the portal to nothingness. The tension was high, and no one spoke a word. They had no idea what to expect or how long he would be gone. All eyes turned on Spike when he unconsciously began whistling to pass the time.
"Uh, sorry." He reached in his pocket, fishing for his smokes, but stopped when the ball of energy light reappeared in front of them.
Giles stepped out, standing in the same place as when he left. Buffy rushed to him, wrapping herself around him, causing some discomfort to the watcher. "Uh... Buffy... you can let go now. Anytime..." he mumbled, trying to break loose from her grip.
"Sorry. Sorry. Just glad you're back. Giles, that was just creepy," she responded, pulling away from him.
"Yes...well..."
"Did it work? You were only gone a couple of minutes."
He looked down toward his wrist where his watch sat. "I assure you it was quite a bit longer. Now... I guess we have some things to sort through."
Everyone in the room gathered closer as he took a seat on the sofa, taking his glasses off one handed, holding them in his lap.
"It 'is' a prophecy."
"That's never good," Buffy stated, cringing at his words.
"Well, no. I suppose not. But it's something to go on anyway. There's a book. We'll need to locate it. Angel," he said, looking toward the vampire, "I'm afraid you'll need to call Wesley again. I'm sure he'll have to help with translation."
Angel nodded his reply.
"Did he say anything that'll help before we find this book?" Buffy asked, not hiding her impatience.
"Yes, in fact. It seems there's two major key players. You, Buffy, being the slayer. And Angel, a souled vampire." He looked back and forth between them. "At least that much was easy to figure out."
Buffy looked a little sheepish and cleared her throat. "Maybe not," she spoke hesitantly.
Giles looked at her in question.
Her eyes sought Spike out and caught the bewildered look on his face. She waited for him to speak up, but took the lead when he remained silent.
"Giles....it might not be that easy."
His confusion shown on his face. "What do you mean?"
"Well.....it might not be Angel. It could be Spike."
The silence that fell over the room was almost deafening. Everyone turned to him at the same time.
"He has a soul."
TBC
Prophecy
Giles and Angel were patiently waiting for Buffy to reemerge downstairs. Within an hour of his call to Wesley, the other ex-watcher had found the information they needed to locate the oracle Spike had spoken of.
Silence blanketed the room, everyone fidgeting, trying to keep themselves occupied while waiting. Spike took Kitara's hand and nodded toward the kitchen. She followed, happy to have a chance to be alone with him. Once inside, her smile faded when she saw the expression of annoyance on his face.
"What's wrong?" she asked, concern plaguing her voice.
"Nothing, luv. Just wasn't expecting to see you. Bit surprised is all."
"You don't mind, do you?" She pushed her arms around his waist, her tone sweet and seductive.
"It's just dangerous. Bad things 'round here. You should have stayed in L.A. where it's safe."
"I can handle myself. Besides, I have you to protect me." She smiled and reached up to brush a strand of curled hair away from his face. His motions were showing no sign of the affection they had exchanged before he'd left, just the day before, and it was visibly upsetting her. She stepped back.
"It's Buffy, isn't it?" she asked, a frown falling over her features.
He bit his lip, contemplating what to say without hurting her feelings. Moving away, he turned in silence toward the refrigerator, opening it to grab a bag of blood. Pulling a mug from the strainer in the sink, he attempted to open the bag when he felt her move behind him. Her hands wrapped around, grabbing the contents in his hands, forcing him to stop what he was doing. He gripped the counter and sighed deeply.
"I knew this was gonna be hard on you, Spike. Being around her."
He stood still, jaw clenched, head down, not sure of what to say. She placed her hand on his arm and pulled him around to face her.
"You need to remember why you left here in the first place. You said it yourself, she treated you like dirt. Do you really want to put yourself through that again?"
"I know, luv. But you don't understand."
"Explain it to me then," she answered, crossing her arms in front of her.
He leaned back against the sink, placing his hands in the pockets of his coat.
"She's everything, Kit. She's the reason for my existence. The reason I'm still here." He took a short pause and then continued. "After the chip, I wasn't anything but a useless, dead shell. She became the thing in this world that gave me purpose. Made me want to live. I owe it to her to be here. She needs me."
"She has plenty of people to help her. She doesn't need you. She's manipulating you because you let her. She'll use you until you've served your purpose, and then she'll throw you away. Just like she did before."
"Kit..." He tried to stop her from going further. He didn't want to admit that what she was saying had struck a nerve.
"No," she interrupted. "I'm not gonna let her hurt you again. I care about you and I've seen the pain she caused."
"It's alright, luv. It's over between us. We both know it. I'm just here because she needs... because 'they' need all the help they can get right now."
She moved in closer, pushing herself up against him, running her fingers down his chest.
"Where does that leave us? I thought we were off to a pretty good start back in L.A." She casually lifted her eyes to his, waiting for a reply.
It hit him that this was the moment he was waiting for. The moment he needed to be pushed into making a decision once and for all. No more slip- ups, no more letting his heart fool him that he and Buffy would ever have a chance. He reached up suddenly and caught her hands in his.
"It leaves us right where we left off, pet. Nothing's changed." His head tilted and his lips met hers with a gentle force.
He pushed the images of Buffy aside that were forcing their way in. The images of her writhing beneath him, desperate kisses between them, as they lay entwined in the deserted graveyard. 'No more thinking of her,' he challenged himself. He knew he was attempting to convince his heart that this was what he really wanted. He did have feelings for Kitara. They may not have included the passion and fire he felt for Buffy, but she was obtainable. In his mind, Buffy was not.
Their kiss ended abruptly when they heard a ruckus coming from the other room. Spike instinctively pulled her behind him, and headed back to where the others were. He entered, immediately gaining the attention of Xander, who had just come through the front door with Anya.
Xander's eyes burned into him, cold and unfeeling. "What are 'you' doing here?"
"He's here to help," Buffy stated, appearing at the top of the steps, fresh from her bath. She made her way downstairs and stood next to her friend, silently challenging him to argue.
"We don't need his help," he groaned, his eyes still focused on the blonde vampire.
"Xander, that's enough!" she shouted, pulling him into the hallway away from the others.
They began to speak in a hushed tone. "Are you nuts? Why would you even let him in here?"
"We need him. That's all you need to know. Now if you have a problem with it, there's the door," she said, pointing in the direction from which he'd arrived.
"Now you're choosing him over your friends?"
Her voice was strong and determined. "I'm not choosing anyone. We need help, Xander. And I'm not gonna turn away anyone that offers."
"I swear if he lays one hand on you..."
"He won't. Now, are you going to come in here and act civilized or do I have to use force?" she asked mockingly, trying to ease the tension.
He glanced at her and with a roll of his eyes stepped back into the living room, with Buffy following behind him.
"Now that we got that straightened out, how was Dawn? Did she seem to be okay there?" she asked, looking toward Anya for an answer.
"She was fine. She's safe."
"Good. Now, I need to say something." She directed her attention to everyone present, her stance tall and confident. "This thing is gonna be tough. We've seen how it works. It's going to try to pull us apart to make us weaker. We can't let it." Her eyes turned toward Angel and rested on him. "I don't want anymore macho bullshit, no more shows of testosterone," eyes darting to Spike, " no more fighting between any of us. We need to pull together if we have any chance of winning."
Spike smiled. This was the 'take charge' Buffy he'd grown to love. This was the inner strength he'd come to expect from her.
Giles was the first to agree. "Buffy's right. We do need to work together."
She nodded. "Did we find out anything about the oracle Spike mentioned?"
"Yes. Wesley had information." Angel answered, from his seat across the room.
"It seems this oracle is in another dimension. There's a portal. I was hoping Willow could help with opening a doorway," Giles said, looking her way. "It's gonna take some power, and frankly, I think you're the only one who can do it."
"Oh... of course. But whose gonna go through it?"
"I am," He answered bluntly. "I think I'll be better equipped to translate any cryptic messages we might receive." He stared around the room, waiting for any argument. When no one spoke up, he stood and made his way toward Willow.
"Alright then. I say we get this done. The sooner we discover anything, the better off we'll be."
"Are you sure this is okay?" Buffy asked, with concern. "I mean. another dimension. Giles, you have no idea what might be waiting there for you."
"We have to do it. It's the first solid thing we have to go on." He turned back toward Willow, handing her a notebook he'd been holding onto. "Wesley translated it. Latin of course."
She nodded and took the book from him. He positioned himself in the middle of the room and took a deep breath when she began chanting the words. Barely a minute went by when a bright light emerged before him. He glanced around, taking in the sight of his surroundings as if it would be the last time he'd have the chance to do so. He took a step and was engulfed in the light, before disappearing entirely out of sight.
They stood in amazement as his body stepped through the portal to nothingness. The tension was high, and no one spoke a word. They had no idea what to expect or how long he would be gone. All eyes turned on Spike when he unconsciously began whistling to pass the time.
"Uh, sorry." He reached in his pocket, fishing for his smokes, but stopped when the ball of energy light reappeared in front of them.
Giles stepped out, standing in the same place as when he left. Buffy rushed to him, wrapping herself around him, causing some discomfort to the watcher. "Uh... Buffy... you can let go now. Anytime..." he mumbled, trying to break loose from her grip.
"Sorry. Sorry. Just glad you're back. Giles, that was just creepy," she responded, pulling away from him.
"Yes...well..."
"Did it work? You were only gone a couple of minutes."
He looked down toward his wrist where his watch sat. "I assure you it was quite a bit longer. Now... I guess we have some things to sort through."
Everyone in the room gathered closer as he took a seat on the sofa, taking his glasses off one handed, holding them in his lap.
"It 'is' a prophecy."
"That's never good," Buffy stated, cringing at his words.
"Well, no. I suppose not. But it's something to go on anyway. There's a book. We'll need to locate it. Angel," he said, looking toward the vampire, "I'm afraid you'll need to call Wesley again. I'm sure he'll have to help with translation."
Angel nodded his reply.
"Did he say anything that'll help before we find this book?" Buffy asked, not hiding her impatience.
"Yes, in fact. It seems there's two major key players. You, Buffy, being the slayer. And Angel, a souled vampire." He looked back and forth between them. "At least that much was easy to figure out."
Buffy looked a little sheepish and cleared her throat. "Maybe not," she spoke hesitantly.
Giles looked at her in question.
Her eyes sought Spike out and caught the bewildered look on his face. She waited for him to speak up, but took the lead when he remained silent.
"Giles....it might not be that easy."
His confusion shown on his face. "What do you mean?"
"Well.....it might not be Angel. It could be Spike."
The silence that fell over the room was almost deafening. Everyone turned to him at the same time.
"He has a soul."
TBC