Chapter 5

A/N: Okay I know very depressing at the moment but it will get lighter I promise but still a groupie of the darkness for this chapter. Willow did not kill Warren. I don't like the fact Tara died, I liked her too much. So Tara is alive! Will deal with 'Seeing Red' later.

After half an hour searching the internet Willow stopped and let out a triumphant sigh.

"I think I got something here look. 'Norfolk Telegraph' June 1869. Listen to this. Last night just as the sun had set the two children of Lord William Austen were playing by the shores of the Soul River near their grandmother's estate when Miss Laura Austen vanished. She is presumed drowned, her elder brother Master William Austen was near by but never noticed what happened." Willow stopped and looked to Buffy.

"What's up?" she sighed as she saw the look on the Slayers face.

"Austen huh, we have known him for what six years we never even knew his real name." she said as she looked into the training room to see the sleeping vampire who was simply Lord William Austen, Lord a real English Lord.

"I suppose, we simply never bothered to ask. Not that Spike would have told us. And he was only twenty two when he died kinda sad really." Willow said as she skimmed past the article.

"Hold on a sec it says here that Laura wasn't the first young girl to disappear, apparently she was at least the fiftieth god Buffy I just ran a google on this three girls have vanished in the same area at the same time of year since oh my god they go back to 1660 and that's only when the records start."

"So we are thinking big bad in the green hills of merry old England." Buffy said softly as she looked to her sleeping ex-lover.

"Alright I need books on this; there must be something. All these girls have gone from the banks of the same river, same time of year, same time of day." Willow sighed as she started to pull books from the shelf. Buffy nodded and slowly went to sit by Spike's side.

Looking down on him as he slept she wondered if the voices were still there. She softly put her hand to his bandage.

"Don't touch, not worthy." He said softly as he woke curling again into a ball. Looking at him she felt guilty. Why had he gotten a soul? How had he gotten a soul?

"How did you get a soul?" she asked softly she went to him slowly and tried to hold him.

"I went to Africa, to get what you deserve. Now I know you deserve me dead." He said as he tried to claw at his bandages.

"I can still see them all of them and poor sweet Laura. It killed father when she vanished. He spent hundreds of pounds searching. Then when there were no leads he started to drink, it wasn't long after that maybe two years after she vanished he died; in some dingy bar in London. After that I became Lord Austen ran what was left of my father's business. I was barely fifteen. A man's world thrust upon me."

"I know that feeling. To much responsibility, to soon." He slowly moved closer to her.

"I wish I could see you." He said softly as he started to reach for her face but then he stopped his trembling hand hovering mid air. He snapped his hand back to his chest trembling.

"Why aren't you angry with me?" he said nursing his hand to his chest.

"I am, don't get me wrong. I had been on my way to your crypt tonight to kick the proverbial out of you. But when I saw you." She stopped and looked at him trembling.

"When you saw me you felt pity. I get it couldn't kill a poor blinded vampire." He hissed painfully as he touched his missing eyes.

"I would never pity you Spike, you hear me you are Spike. You are the man Cecily rejected, the man that held the railroad spikes, the man that protected Dawn while I was gone. You are the man who said the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me. But you have hurt me more then anyone I have ever met."

"Kill me Slayer." he begged grabbing her arms forcefully, vamping out as he did. He let her go immediately screaming in pain as he rubbed his face where the ridges of his 'game face' burned. Buffy bristled with fear as she remembered the way he had grabbed her in the bathroom. Looking at him now as he screamed with pain his feet going from under him, she couldn't help but remember how he spoke to her when she first came back.

'Every night I save you.' It had broken her heart; the look he had when he first saw that it was really her, a mixture of tears and happiness. He slumped now against the wall and he again began to sob his body shaking with the weight of the tears.

"Can you ever forgive me?" he said.

"I can try, maybe in time I'll trust you again." She sighed her head bowed as she looked to the doorway where Willow stood looking on in silence, motioning for Buffy to join her in the main shop.

"William I will be right back. I'll have to get you home before the sunrises." She said as she went to join the witch.

"Em Buffy I think I might have done something. I didn't mean to." The witch said her eyes looking at the floor. Buffy just raised her left eyebrow and put her hands on her hips.

"Well I found the demon, it's a Danann. Some old Celtic demon who takes children, it doesn't say what it does with them. But I read an incantation and I think I summoned it to Sunnydale. Sorry." The witch said softly.

"A Danann. I met one once. Is that what took Laura." Spike said softly as he stepped carefully into the shop. Buffy went to him and brought him to a chair. He fell into it and wrapped the coat tightly around himself.

"We think so. Can you tell us what it is?" Buffy sighed softly. Willow watched how Buffy took his hand softly.

"It's old, older then many a demon. But it's more of a parasite it needs a body to live in. oh God."

"What?" Buffy sighed softly as she looked up at his broken face.

"It needs a body of a young girl every five hundred years to live in. then each summer and Autumn it takes the life force of three other children to sustain itself. It's like a succubus. Bloody hard to kill, damn near impossible. When I faced one nearly didn't make it. You need to draw the souls of the children out of her then you lobe the bitch's head off. Dru sucked the souls out, wanted to see the pretty colours they made. That bitch nearly broke me in half. The Danann is awfully strong."

"Don't worry, hell I faced a god. Oh well I died but hey look at me standing here." She said softly. Spike looked towards her his eyes bandaged heavily and she heard him sigh softly, she never knew vampires could sigh.

Chapter 5

A/N: Okay I know very depressing at the moment but it will get lighter I promise but still a groupie of the darkness for this chapter. Willow did not kill Warren. I don't like the fact Tara died, I liked her too much. So Tara is alive! Will deal with 'Seeing Red' later.

After half an hour searching the internet Willow stopped and let out a triumphant sigh.

"I think I got something here look. 'Norfolk Telegraph' June 1869. Listen to this. Last night just as the sun had set the two children of Lord William Austen were playing by the shores of the Soul River near their grandmother's estate when Miss Laura Austen vanished. She is presumed drowned, her elder brother Master William Austen was near by but never noticed what happened." Willow stopped and looked to Buffy.

"What's up?" she sighed as she saw the look on the Slayers face.

"Austen huh, we have known him for what six years we never even knew his real name." she said as she looked into the training room to see the sleeping vampire who was simply Lord William Austen, Lord a real English Lord.

"I suppose, we simply never bothered to ask. Not that Spike would have told us. And he was only twenty two when he died kinda sad really." Willow said as she skimmed past the article.

"Hold on a sec it says here that Laura wasn't the first young girl to disappear, apparently she was at least the fiftieth god Buffy I just ran a google on this three girls have vanished in the same area at the same time of year since oh my god they go back to 1660 and that's only when the records start."

"So we are thinking big bad in the green hills of merry old England." Buffy said softly as she looked to her sleeping ex-lover.

"Alright I need books on this; there must be something. All these girls have gone from the banks of the same river, same time of year, same time of day." Willow sighed as she started to pull books from the shelf. Buffy nodded and slowly went to sit by Spike's side.

Looking down on him as he slept she wondered if the voices were still there. She softly put her hand to his bandage.

"Don't touch, not worthy." He said softly as he woke curling again into a ball. Looking at him she felt guilty. Why had he gotten a soul? How had he gotten a soul?

"How did you get a soul?" she asked softly she went to him slowly and tried to hold him.

"I went to Africa, to get what you deserve. Now I know you deserve me dead." He said as he tried to claw at his bandages.

"I can still see them all of them and poor sweet Laura. It killed father when she vanished. He spent hundreds of pounds searching. Then when there were no leads he started to drink, it wasn't long after that maybe two years after she vanished he died; in some dingy bar in London. After that I became Lord Austen ran what was left of my father's business. I was barely fifteen. A man's world thrust upon me."

"I know that feeling. To much responsibility, to soon." He slowly moved closer to her.

"I wish I could see you." He said softly as he started to reach for her face but then he stopped his trembling hand hovering mid air. He snapped his hand back to his chest trembling.

"Why aren't you angry with me?" he said nursing his hand to his chest.

"I am, don't get me wrong. I had been on my way to your crypt tonight to kick the proverbial out of you. But when I saw you." She stopped and looked at him trembling.

"When you saw me you felt pity. I get it couldn't kill a poor blinded vampire." He hissed painfully as he touched his missing eyes.

"I would never pity you Spike, you hear me you are Spike. You are the man Cecily rejected, the man that held the railroad spikes, the man that protected Dawn while I was gone. You are the man who said the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me. But you have hurt me more then anyone I have ever met."

"Kill me Slayer." he begged grabbing her arms forcefully, vamping out as he did. He let her go immediately screaming in pain as he rubbed his face where the ridges of his 'game face' burned. Buffy bristled with fear as she remembered the way he had grabbed her in the bathroom. Looking at him now as he screamed with pain his feet going from under him, she couldn't help but remember how he spoke to her when she first came back.

'Every night I save you.' It had broken her heart; the look he had when he first saw that it was really her, a mixture of tears and happiness. He slumped now against the wall and he again began to sob his body shaking with the weight of the tears.

"Can you ever forgive me?" he said.

"I can try, maybe in time I'll trust you again." She sighed her head bowed as she looked to the doorway where Willow stood looking on in silence, motioning for Buffy to join her in the main shop.

"William I will be right back. I'll have to get you home before the sunrises." She said as she went to join the witch.

"Em Buffy I think I might have done something. I didn't mean to." The witch said her eyes looking at the floor. Buffy just raised her left eyebrow and put her hands on her hips.

"Well I found the demon, it's a Danann. Some old Celtic demon who takes children, it doesn't say what it does with them. But I read an incantation and I think I summoned it to Sunnydale. Sorry." The witch said softly.

"A Danann. I met one once. Is that what took Laura." Spike said softly as he stepped carefully into the shop. Buffy went to him and brought him to a chair. He fell into it and wrapped the coat tightly around himself.

"We think so. Can you tell us what it is?" Buffy sighed softly. Willow watched how Buffy took his hand softly.

"It's old, older then many a demon. But it's more of a parasite it needs a body to live in. oh God."

"What?" Buffy sighed softly as she looked up at his broken face.

"It needs a body of a young girl every five hundred years to live in. then each summer and Autumn it takes the life force of three other children to sustain itself. It's like a succubus. Bloody hard to kill, damn near impossible. When I faced one nearly didn't make it. You need to draw the souls of the children out of her then you lobe the bitch's head off. Dru sucked the souls out, wanted to see the pretty colours they made. That bitch nearly broke me in half. The Danann is awfully strong."

"Don't worry, hell I faced a god. Oh well I died but hey look at me standing here." She said softly. Spike looked towards her his eyes bandaged heavily and she heard him sigh softly, she never knew vampires could sigh.