Disclaimer: Let me check…no, I still own nothing!

A/N: Wohoooo!!! I passed the 100 reviews mark! Yay! *Does insane happy dance* Love you all!!! Oh and Kanga – appreciated the input and realised you were right – I do intend to address the issue as soon as I can…hopefully soon since there's not long left! Just wanted to let you know I knew you weren't trying to flame – constructive criticism is helpful! Love you all and your lovely reviews!!!

Chapter 27: Ambush

The second the door was opened Buffy felt herself being pulled into the hall out of Spike's grasp. Buffy wrenched herself out of Xander's reach and turned just in time to see Spike bouncing off the newly reinstated barrier. He was in game face and growling as Giles aimed a tranquilliser gun at his chest while staying well out of the furious vampires reach.

"Buffy!" he roared, "Invite me in!"

"Come in Spike." Buffy replied smugly, thinking she had found a hole in the Scooby's plan. Spike however, was still running up against the barrier. Confused, Buffy looked around, wondering what the hell was going on. Xander was behind her, still trying to get a hold on her, Giles was steadfastly not looking at her but keeping the gun aimed at Spike who was still growling and banging on the invisible barrier keeping him out of the house. Willow and Tara sat on the dining table chanting. Anya was hovering behind Xander looking uncomfortable. Breaking away from Xander Buffy made a run for the door only to come up against a barrier herself – It didn't take her long to realise they were doing some kind of spell to keep her and Spike apart.

Buffy felt the tears beginning to well in her eyes as she held her hand up against the barrier, Spike mirroring her actions from his side. She felt an ache in her heart when the microscopically thin barrier prevented their hands from actually touching. It hurt to be so near him yet unable to feel his cool skin. Why were her friends doing this to her?

"Buffy please don't cry." Spike pleaded, though he was close to crying his own tears of frustration. "I'll think of something!"

"I suggest you leave Spike." Giles announced in his most ripper like tones. "Otherwise we wont hesitate to make you!"

Spike turned to Giles. "I'm not going anywhere you wanker, not without her!" he growled threateningly. "You can't do anything to me now I'm chipless anyway."

Giles didn't bother to respond, he simply fired the gun, sending a dart into Spike's chest. Spike looked down at the dart in surprise – didn't the watcher know that these things didn't work on vamps? At first he looked up at Giles, intending to mock him for his folly…but his vision began to blur and he felt dizzy. As if from a distance he heard Giles's muffled voice telling him it was a special tranquilliser recipe cooked up just for him. Spike tried to fix his attention on Buffy who was crying his name. He wanted to tell her it was ok and not to worry, that he would be fine, but he didn't seem able to form words. He only realised he had fallen to his knees when he felt a jolt through his legs. *I love you Buffy* was his last coherent thought before he succumbed to blackness…

Buffy wondered who was screaming at first, but soon she realised it was her own voice she was hearing. "Please" she sobbed, though she wasn't entirely sure for what she was begging. For Spike to be ok, for her friends to let her go, for the world to open and swallow her, delivering her from this hell. It could have been any or all of them. She was only vaguely aware of someone wrapping his or her arms around her and pulling her up from the floor. When had she fallen down? She didn't look to see where Tara and Anya were taking her, she kept her eyes fixed on the open doorway where Giles and Xander were lifting the unconscious Spike and manhandling him into the backseat of Giles's car. She was sobbing as they bound her hands behind her back, too lost in her pain to try and break free. Why were they doing this to her? Why were they talking her away from the one person who made her life worthwhile?

She didn't take her eyes off the door when Willow closed it, or even when she heard Giles driving away. Xander hadn't come back in so she assumed they had both taken spike somewhere. She only looked at Willow when the girl kneeled in front of her, blocking her line of sight, a kind smile on her face.

"Hey." Willow said softly. "How are you feeling?"

"Like the people who are supposed to be my friends just shot my boyfriend and trapped me in my house." Buffy replied, her voice flat. "How about you?"

Willow fiddled with the hem of her shirt nervously. "I…I'm…I mean we, all of us are just worried about you Buffy." She tried to explain. "You've not been acting like yourself since…you got back and well, we figured if we got you away from Spike we'd be able to break whatever hold he has on you."

"He doesn't have any hold over me." Buffy insisted, "I love him!"

"Buffy…" Willow tried to interrupt but Buffy spoke over her.

"Why couldn't I get out of the house?" She asked, angry at her 'friends' presumptions. "And why didn't it work when I tried to invite Spike in? What did you do to me?" She was screaming by the time she finished and willow was wincing, sure her eardrum was about to burst.

"It's just a little spell." Tara tried to explain calmly, staying well behind Buffy so she didn't have to meet the accusation in her eyes. "We just altered the disinvite spell so you wouldn't be able to invite vampires into the house, and just a tiny barrier spell to keep you in."

"So I'm a prisoner in my own home?" Buffy Spat. "How comforting!"

"No, no. Nothing like that." Willow insisted, "You just need someone inside the house to invite you to go outside is all. As soon as we undo whatever Spike has done you'll be free to go!"

"How many times do I have to tell you?" Buffy screamed "He's done nothing to me! The only one's hurting me here are you!"

"We're only doing this because we care Buffy." Willow soothed. "It's hard for you to see right now, but Spike's using your terrible experiences since you died to manipulate you – you don't even realise he's doing it." Willow was shocked by Buffy's bitter laughter.

"You don't get it do you?" Buffy said through her laughter "You weren't saviours pulling me out of some hell dimension. I was happy!"

"What are you saying?" Anya spoke for the first time, confused.

"I was happy." Buffy repeated, a far away expression forming on her features. "I was in heaven, and you ripped me out of there. I was happy before I died as well you know…with Spike…it's always been Spike."

Willow was in tears, Tara and Anya not far behind. But Buffy wasn't really talking to them anymore, nor was she talking to Xander and Giles who had just come back and were standing in the doorway, looking around confused. She was talking now for all the weeks, months, years even that she had had to stay quiet. She was talking for herself and for Spike. She was telling them the whole story for the first time.

"You know he was the one who helped me beat Angelus and Dru?" she began. "Dru died that night. None of you knew that did you? No because you never bothered to ask. Losing her destroyed him as much as loosing Angel destroyed me! But we pulled each other through. I could talk to him when I knew all I'd get from my 'friends' was good riddance to dead boy! Yeah he got me drunk a lot too while we were in LA, but that's spike, it's what he does! He talked me into coming back even though he knew he'd be alone again. He hates being alone more than anything else yet he went through it for me, because I was needed here. Of course he came back as soon as I needed him…just in time for Christmas. I should have guessed then really, what he meant to me I mean. We got each other exactly the same present. That ring of mine you like so much Willow, the one I never take off. He gave me that! None of you ever noticed he wears one just like it. I got it for him."

"Why didn't you tell us?" Willow asked through her tears.

Buffy looked at her, remembering her audience. "And get a response like this one? Yeah! Now why didn't I think of that? Spike and I were friends for years and none of you noticed. He was just dead boy or that annoying vampire. It didn't matter how many times he saved any of you. He was just an evil vampire who didn't deserve acceptance! Even when Glory tortured him, even when you worked beside him all summer the first thing you do when I get back is try and keep me away from the best friend I ever had!"

"He's a vampire Buff!" Xander cried. "An evil, soulless thing! All this friends crap is probably just part of some elaborate plot to bag his third slayer!"

"God Xander!" Buffy groaned. "How stupid can you be? You know how impatient Spike is! Do you really think he'd take five years to put a plan into action? He's had plenty of opportunities to kill me and he hasn't taken a single one. He loves me!"

"He can't love!" Xander insisted, and Buffy rolled her eyes. This was going to be a long night…

As Spike came around his head was throbbing. It took him a few seconds to adjust to his surroundings. When he did he noticed several things:

It's dark.

I'm tied to a chair.

I'm in Giles's apartment.

I wasn't either of these things when I passed out.

I'm not alone.

Spike vamped out to extend his senses, ignoring the pain the more sensitive hearing cause in his already aching head. There was definitely someone in the room with him, and it was someone he recognised. Unfortunately his brain was still too foggy to remember who it was right now.

"Who's there?" He asked at last, frustrated by his inability to see who it was.

"Shhh." Came the whispered reply. "I'm getting you out of here!"

A/N: Well hope that wasn't too mean of a cliffhanger! Please let me know what you think – remember I love you all!