"BUFFY!!!!"

The splintering sound of the ice as it gave out under Buffy and sucked her down made Spike feel sick and he knew that he didn't stand a chance running across the ice the way he was. He dived down gracefully onto his stomach, spreading his weight, and flattened out over the thinner ice.

When he reached the large hole where Buffy had fallen through he knew he had to get her out fast for the ice was already starting to crack again. He thrusted his good hand into the bone chilling water and cried out at the intensity of it. This was just his hand…what would it be like for Buffy who was swallowed up by it. Buffy. Oh God.

i Stop thinking you git! Search faster. Oh God hold on pet, I'm coming! i .

He knew it was useless. She had sunk too far down and he could only reach in up to his elbow the way he was. He quickly ripped off his duster and threw it as hard as he could. The dead center of the lake was far from the surrounding trees but he managed to throw his leather jacket onto the low bank and tree roots. Free of the restraining leather he moved closer and plunged his whole arm in up to his shoulder, biting back and hiss from the freezing water.

Search search search!

Nothing….nothing…noth-..No wait! Hair!

He felt something soft tangle between a few of his fingers and he knew it had to be Buffy's hair and he immediately fisted a handful of it. Uttering a silent apology he gently began to pull her up by the roots of her hair and when he could reach he pushed his other arm in and grabbed her around the shoulders. More of her body surfaced and his arms locked around her waist, hauling her out completely into his waiting and anxious arms.

He was almost sobbing in relief as she flopped into his arms and he didn't wait for one split second. He was immediately sliding away from the gaping ice hole and up on his feet running swiftly with Buffy in his arms. A surge of energy came out of him from nowhere when all he could think about was saving this angel's life.

Spike ran up the bank and dropped to his knees, gently depositing Buffy at the bottom of a large tree. He took a second to hiss for his poor infected hand that had taken a nasty bout in the icy water, before quickly turning his attention to the small woman lying in front of him. Her face was white as the snow around them, her lips as blue as the water he had pulled her out of, her temperature as bottomed out as any flat line and her chest…as still as death itself.

Absolute panic and grief took over him as he quickly placed two fingers over her neck and snatching them away to throw himself over her, his ear to her lips to listen for any sign of life. No pulse…not gentle rush of air escaping her lips…Please god no…

A waterfall of tears flooded his eyes and he was about ready to let them all fall when he remembered there was still one tiny fleck of hope. For the first time in his life he threw up a prayer for the fact his father had always been away from home as a firefighter.

He sniffed up his fears and tears quickly and pulled Buffy's coat off of her savagely. He arranged his hands appropriately over her heart and began pushing forcefully trying to get her heart to spark up and starts it's rhythm. He watched as compression after compression left the girl in front of him as lifeless as before.

"C'mon pet…Don't do this. You can't leave me here now…. Not now…Not after all this…Oh God bring her back, please!"

His words came out strained from worry, exhaustion, the cold and his tears silently coursing down his cheeks. Why was this not working? It always worked for his dad.

He quickly remembered the second part to the CPR he had learned and after fifteen compressions to Buffy's heart he leaned over pinching her nose and tilting her head back. He took a deep breath and laced his lips over hers, expelling the oxygen into her mouth and down to her lungs. He pulled back and watched her chest rise and quickly fall again. He repeated the action again and then went back to pumping Buffy's chest beginning to get frustrated.

"One breath sweetheart that's all I'm asking for…Please Buffy, stay with me. Don't give up now. We got so far."

Despair was setting in and the tears rolling down his face grew thicker. A small sob escaped this throat and in between breathing into her lungs, Spike paused to rub his face free of tears so he could see. One breath…Two breaths.

A cough.

Well more of a choke.

Water bubbled up from Buffy's lips and Spike was so shocked and over joyed he almost forgot to help her. He quickly brought her into his arms and sat her up against him, holding her head to his shoulder so she could cough out the cold murky water and breathe easier. Rubbing her back seemed encouraging and after what felt like a whole gallon of water had past from her lungs she collapsed against him and began to sob.

The sound make Spike's heart wrench but he couldn't blame her after that traumatic experience. He was sobbing too and clutching her so tightly he would of forced the air back out of her if he hadn't pulled away to look at her face.

She was a deathly pale with dark ghostly, purple circles under her eyes. Her lips were loosing their bluish tinge but her teeth chattered and her whole body was wracked with tremors from trauma and temperature loss. Her eyes fluttered open as more frozen tears flurried out and he reached up a cool hand to wipe them away. He offered her a small smile through his own tears and bent forward to place a comforting open-mouthed kiss on her forehead.

"All over pet, shh…Spike's got you now…You're safe baby."

She managed a nod and lifted her stiff arms up to circle his neck while she sat in his lap. Spike smiled and cradled her there letting out a long sigh when she buried her face in his neck and breathed on his skin gently. He rocked them both from side to side for a while, trying to sooth away the nasty event he wished he could have prevented. Shock was a killer and he was beyond relieved he had managed to snatch his Buffy from the fangs of death just in time.

i His Buffy?….My Buffy?….Yeah I like the sound of that. i

When he was sure Buffy had calmed down, Spike unlatched her from around his neck and laid her back down on the ground to check her over for any injuries. He let her sleep while he did this, as long as she was breathing he was happy and he would make sure she got out of this mess ok. He noted fearfully that the skin of her fingers was turning a light purple, early signs of frostbite. It scared him to death for he had the symptoms too.

The ranger's stations couldn't be far away. In the summer here people would take guided tours from one of the ranger towers around the lake to taste the fresh water. If help was just through a few more trees he could do it. He could do it for Buffy.

He turned his attention back to the sleeping girl and brushed some icy strands of hair away from her frightful face. She shivered even in her sleep and he could tell it was truly unconsciousness. Brushing his fingers over her lips softly he stood up and limped back to the bank where he had thrown his coat. He picked it up taking a moment to give his knee a prod. It hurt like Hell after he hit it on the ice as he slid down to his stomach and he growled at the bruise under his jeans. No time to think for that now.

Spike returned to Buffy and carefully wrapped her up in his more or less dry leather coat and then placed her own coat on top for any extra warmth he could salvage. He lifted her into his arms and held her close afraid to ever let go for fear of loosing her again. He looked back out to the lake and cursed it for almost ruining him and taking away Buffy.

One last blink and the journey was on again, this time an extra way around the lake.

Hope was around the corner and damned if he wasn't going to find it!

To my darling reviewers : I'm so sorry! I know it's been a long time but I do have reason. School, stress, a break down a date for an operation and being sick all rolled into one. I get chronic tonsillitis and the docs have arranged to whip them out for me. After they are done I should have two whole weeks to write write write. Hope you liked this chap. Love to you all!