Title: The First Seconded

Author: Falcon-Rider falcon_rider@hotmail.com

Rating: PG-13 for Angst and ect. And CD

Disclaimer: I own nothing 'cept the plot and Nich.

Authors note: Hey lookie an update…

 TO THE STORY!

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Part Seventeen

Mixed Acquaintances

59 days

Giles glanced across the small elegantly decorated restaurant and sighed. He was late and Anya wasn't going to be happy. It wasn't really his fault after all Spike had been kidnapped and had even died, never mind that the male slayer was now alive and well. His eyes found the Vengeance demon in the corner sipping a glass of wine and he smiled as he took in her appearance.

Anya wore an elegant backless red gown that fit her perfectly and showed off her curves extremely well. Her bleached blonde hair was piled on her head except for several strands that curved down to frame her face. She frowned at Giles as he pulled out the chair across from her. "You're late."

"I am really sorry Anya," He smiled nervously like a schoolboy on his first date as he adjusted his tie after sitting down. "There was a probe with… willow."

She crossed her arms across her chest. "You are an amazing man Rupert." She told him smiling, "But unfortunately lying to me is not one of the areas that you excel at. "What really happened?"

"Anya I promised I wouldn't tell anyone," Giles sighed and removed his glasses. He placed them into his front pocket and lifted his head back up to look her in the eye. "I promise you as soon as I can tell you I will."

"Fine, I'm just glad you're here now." She smiled and glanced down at her empty glass.

Giles returned the smile then called a waiter over to get a menu. After the two ordered they settled into a simple but pleasant conversation. "So how's the shop doing?"

"Better," Anya replied as she unfolded her napkin and placed it carefully on her lap. "Now that the construction crew has completed rebuilding the high school on its former hellmouth-y resting place they can now focus on the other projects, which includes the Magic box."

"So when will the remodeling job be completed?"

"In a month or so, depends on if they're called out to do a bigger more 'important' job. Really all these months of selling out of the small rental down the street aren't very good for business. I mean we're hardly making any money and-" Anya frowned. "What are you smiling at?"

Giles smiled even wider if possible, "The woman of my dreams."

Anya was silenced with that comment and she smiled and bit her lip. "Oh."

*

A swirl of wind and air that held an electrifying other worldly air hinted gave notice of the vengeance demons arrival in the shop. When she had fully appeared she smoothed down her dress trying to rid it of some of the wrinkles.

"Not that I'm protesting but isn't that a little dressy for work ahn?"

Anya shrieked, and clamped her hand over her mouth quickly before glaring at the man in front of her. "Xander! What are you doing here?"

"Well let's see, my crew is currently having redoing your shop and you said you wanted a progress report so…" Xander smiled holding out his hands and glancing around. "Here I am, and have been for half an hour. So where have you been a dinner party?"

"If you must know I was at a meeting," She turned away from him and walked over to where the cash register had been set up. "A business meeting."

Xander raised his eyebrow as his ex-fiancé stuttered on the word 'business' but didn't say anything about it. "Well the crews been at it for an hour and a half, you want to come down and see for yourself?"

Anya nodded keeping her back to Xander, "I will as soon as I open the store and Dawn arrives for her shift… which should be any minute now."

"Alright then," Xander let his arms swing limply at his side as he glanced around awkwardly. "I guess I just be getting back to work then… See you in a while Ahn."

"Yah," Anya didn't even turn around as he left. "See you."

*

Buffy smiled at her manager or rather ex-manager as she stood, "Thank you so much for understanding."

"That's all right, we have many employees that come and go all the time," The blonde woman smiled. "Best of luck with your classes."

"Thanks," Buffy replied smiling broadly as she opened the door to the double meat palaces manager office for hopefully the last time. "I'm gonna need it."

*

"I'm late, I'm late, I am so late." Dawn bit her lip as she hurried through Sunnydales busy business district. "Anya is so going to curse me."

The younger summers had just gotten out of detention for 'misbehaving,' aka Communication with other summer school students via notes, and was half an hour late to her job at the temporary set up for the magic box. She was working there for free for the whole summer due to her clepto actions last year under the employment of the magic's boxes co owner, along with Giles, Anya who happened to be a vengeance demon.

The teens clepto actions had almost disappeared, being that they were now only used to pick pocket Vamps and Demons she slayed. Dawn and the rest of the Scooby's had discovered only a few months before that at the same age Buffy had been called Dawn had as well. Since, however, no one had thought it possible or let the teen try and fight her abilities had gone unnoticed. Sides who would have thought that a green glowy mystical ball of energy called a key that had been placed in human form, as the slayers kid sister would turn out to be a slayer herself?

As she crossed the street she ran into a jogging young woman and stumbled. "Sorry!"

The blonde turned and smiled at her, her blue eyes twinkling, "That's alright, wasn't just your fault neither of us expected to run into anything so lets just act like nothing happened alright?"

Dawn nodded, "Sounds okay. I'm still sorry though." Something itched at the back of her mind, the woman in front of her was familiar but she couldn't quite place her. "Do I know you?"

"I don't think so… do you go to Sunnydale High?" The woman asked frowning slightly.

"Yah, I was just there. I'm taking a summer math class." Dawn blushed slightly.

"Awe a trouble make," She laughed. "You've probably just seen me around. I've been getting my stuff into the classroom and my office… I'm the new Gym teacher. Which reminds me I was on a run which I better finish, see you around kid."

"Bye." Dawn called as the woman ran off. She frowned as she entered the makeshift magic box, she hadn't gone anywhere near the new gym lately seeing how the class were in the farthest wing haven been the first part of the building finished.

So where had she met that woman before? She was brought out of her thoughts as her boss called out to her.

"Dawn, you're late!"

*

Faith continued her jog down Main Street happily. Dawn, her sister in Slayings kid sister, hadn't recognized her. Her feelings were mixed on that subject, she knew she didn't want anyone to know that she was in town or having a teaching job but a part of her did want to find out. She felt as though she was a little kid sneaking cookies just waiting for someone to catch her with her hand in the forbidden cookie jar.

That's what this new life was, forbidden. For once she could jog down main street without having anybody stare at her or have guys whistle at her… not that they didn't anymore they just didn't do it as often. She could also go into a lot more stores without being constantly watched by the people that worked there in case she were to steal something.

For once she was normal.

She had slayed one vampire since her return to the small town of Sunnydale aka the hell mouth and that had been out of self-defense. Faith had also managed to make friends, normal friends. The young couple across the hall from her had even invited her to dinner several times and she had gone shopping with the mother to be for baby clothes and many other things. Sarah and her had become fast friends and faith helped out the now eight month pregnant woman with house hold chores while her husband Bobby was at work.

For once in her life she had a best friend.

*

50 days

"You will be going to Las Angeles then," Giles commented after Spike had explained to the ex-watcher about Nichs Vision and Cordelia having been the one to heal him.

Spike nodded, "As much as I dislike the poof technically he's my sire, not to mention another warrior for the powers, so I'm afraid its my duty him out of whatever mess he's gotten 'im self into." Spike grinned. "'Sides can't wait to see the look on his face when I'm the one who appears out of the blue all dark and mysterious comin' to his aid!"

Giles chuckled the ex-vampire had changed drastically after his second, or rather third experience with death. The first had been of course when Drusilla had turned him in the nineteenth century, the second in the instance before he had become mortal once more and the third at the hand of a robot employed by the council of watchers. The ex-watcher had nearly laughed at the irony, the slayer of slayers turned slayer three times dead was in love with the most powerful female slayer who was incidentally three times dead as well. "When will you and the others be leaving?"

"A week from now, and it'll just be me an' Nich," Spike picked up his glass of tea bout to bring it to his lips. "Glindas gonna stay 'ere with the books and translate while helping Red with the magic's."

"Are you two going to be able to handle everything?" Giles asked as Spike sipped his tea.

The Slayer shrugged, "I don't know… but some of peaches teams got to be 'round we can get their help as well."

Giles nodded, "Before you go I'd like to run through a few more training exercises with you."

Spike set his glass down and groaned, "Fine, just don't sick Nich on me… she bites."

The elder looking Englishmen chuckled as spike rubbed the place on his arm where his adopted sister had bitten the day before in the middle of a training exercise. "Don't worry, I'll only do that if you skip."

*

Buffy hummed softly as she sorted through the mail. It was nothing but bills and a credit card application, which she tore into pieces. The bills she set on the desk in the living room/lounge before she took her coat off and headed to the hall closet to put it away.

As Buffy took out an empty hanger and slipped her coat on it she noticed a black lob in the back of the hall closet on the floor. Kneeling down she pulled the object out and ran her fingers over the black leather. Spikes coat. She closed her eyes as tears threated to fall. A piece of the dream she had had only a few nights before came back to her.

The blonde Vampire lifted his head toward her from where he knelt. His voice was hoarse and his bright blue gaze filled with sorrow.

Buffy's walked toward him but only a few feet from him found herself up against an invisible wall.

"When one dies another is called."

Spike turned his head toward the side as a young woman wrapped her arms around his shoulder and held a cloth over his face. Buffy felt dread and worry and sorrow pass through her as the woman spoke.

Buffy bit her lip and held the coat to her chest as she stood. Taking out another hanger she slipped the black leather object over the hanger and frowned. In the dream the first slayer had come to her and repeated what she had been told before her second tryst with death: Love, give, forgive… death is your gift. Perhaps it hadn't meant that death was her gift to give but that she was being given a gift.

She mentally shook herself; it had just been a dream, right? Not a slayer dream… the only way her vampire lover could have died was not what had been shown. After all he was dead and didn't need to worry about something as trivial as breathing. He wasn't dead… just gone.

Right?

Buffy turns the corner toward the Police station and stares at the scene before her.

Spikes Body lying crumpled on the floor of an office.

 His eyes wide and empty.

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Author Note: Oh lookie I updated… more soon but I haven't seen lessons yet… cause stupid UPN no ton cable… im busy with Dance and school work… stupid teachers gave me six assignments total every night last week…And I'm trying to type ep 6 of my star trek: Eclipse fic I wrote with Lesietta in eight grade. I'm not in 10th grade. Geez time flys…Also I went to a lock in Saturday and got no sleep otherwise this would have been up then.  Hey… I just realized I went from chap 16 to 18…. Do I not like the number 17 or something?? I better fix it…

To be continued in: New

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