I hope this comes as a surprise. It's what I had planned for this story. I have one more chapter to bring this to an end. I have loved writing it and I might try writing another. Thanks for sticking with it!

Chapter 30 I Give You My Heart

Spike watched her lips as they said his name. He had dreamt many times of her calling for him; needing him. He felt so helpless and so very outnumbered. Thirty or so other lizard demons now lined the walls of the room. That was the least of his worries though. The barrier was the problem. He didn't have a way to get to Buffy.

He stood helpless as Kalista continued her chanting as Buffy and Julian stood facing each other. Buffy looked lost now, no longer in control of herself. Spike suddenly remembered his dream, or rather his nightmare, where he is too late. He doesn't save her and she dies. He looks to Giles who is sitting with Willow in his arms, helpless as well. They both look down in shame at their failure to save Buffy.

Spikes eyes well up with tears as he watches Buffy staring at Julian. He remembers how he told her he loved her while they made love. He thinks of how he will never get to feel her skin again, or hold her hand. He feels sick inside at the thought of losing his beloved slayer.

Suddenly there is a bright white light that surrounds Buffy and Julian. Buffy then starts to come out of her trance and the king realizes something is wrong. "What's happening Kalista? The slayer is waking and we are not finished yet. What is going wrong?"

Kalista tries to respond but she suddenly has no voice. Spike turns to see Willow standing now with her eyes closed with one hand in the air and the other firmly on Giles' arm as though to ground her somehow. The bright light is coming from her and it seems to be strong. She opens her eyes and Spike is startled by the fact that her eyes are now black. She also looks very pissed off.

"Spike, go to Buffy now. I am not sure how long I can keep this up." Willow is yelling to Spike and he reacts quickly. He lunges at the barrier and it breaks, allowing him to enter the circle. Everyone else seems to be frozen in time except for those within the circle. Whatever Willow is doing it is there only chance.

Spike enters the circle prepared to take Buffy and run but she refuses. "We can't leave Spike. I promised Anne I would help her. We have to stop the king. If we run, he will only chase us down again. We don't know how to get home." His frown shows his confusion and Spike tries again to pull Buffy from the circle. Julian is coming out of his trance and looks around very confused at what is happening.

"We have to go love. Willow can only keep this up for a few minutes. We can get away and regroup. We'll come up with another plan. I can't lose you now. It would kill me to lose you now." Spike was pleading with her now and she could hear the desperation in his voice. She grabs his hands and holds them to her chest.

Buffy then calmly closes her eyes and a feeling comes over her. It was a strange sensation, but when she opened her eyes again she realized with sudden clarity what she had to do.

Buffy removed the necklace and looked into Spikes eyes. The blue depths were filled with tears and she almost began to cry herself. She lifted the necklace over his head and placed it around his neck. Then she said the words he had longed to hear.

"I give you my heart." It wasn't long after she said those words that Willow collapsed to the ground, her energy drained. Giles stood in awe of what Buffy had done, wondering why she would do such a thing. He bent down and tended to Willow and continued to watch the magnificent light show.

The light swirled around them like a tornado. The force of the light knocked Julian to the ground, still confused. The ground began to rumble and the swirling became more intense. Spike was staring into Buffy's eyes in disbelief. He could feel her love all around him like a blanket. He realized what she had done. He lowered his head and began to kiss her.

The light became brighter and brighter until the whole room was filled. The symbols on the floor around Anne's bed lit up as well, just like on the door. They kept lighting in sequence all around her bed. The mirror began to shake and suddenly the voice of the king could be heard.

"This is wrong. Something is wrong. This can't be happening. All my planning. No, I won't go. No…………." His screaming got farther and farther away until finally there was nothing but silence.

The light disappeared and then the room was empty.