Prologue

Buffy walked through the ornate double doors, into a dark, narrow, hallway. The floor and walls were covered with stone. Dust and cobwebs spotted the dank passage from floor to ceiling.

Buffy walked further along the stone passage. Fire rose from flaming pits. Chains clanked and swayed from the ceilings.

"Nice. It kinda has that interior decorator from Hell thing happening."

The passage soon opened up into a vast chamber. It appeared to be a huge chapel, only this didn't look like a place of prayer.

"Ever had the feeling you've been somewhere before?"

Buffy knew she was talking to herself, but she couldn't shake the familiar feeling that the place was giving her, serious wiggins.

"Slaaaaaaaayer."

The tiny hairs on the back of her neck rose. She raised her fist up in a basic Slayer fighting stance, her senses on DefCon Five. Three glowing forms of energy materialized in the center of the chapel. A figure appeared in each of the three forms. Each figure appeared to be a gagged man. A black cloth covered the eyes or mouth of each. One of the figures had a metallic sphere swiveling around it. Another appeared to be attached to two elongated metal rods, while the other was just surrounded by a glowing sphere of energy. Their bodies twitched as of in agony.

"Which one of you is Curly?"

She knew it was a dumb joke, but it shook off the major wiggins that they were giving her. The feeling didn't last too long as another figure materialized out of nowhere. But unlike the gagged trio, Buffy recognized who this was.

The Master

Buffy stared as the Master floated towards her, the three figures soon forgotten. She was in pure shock. She wanted to run, but her legs wouldn't budge. She stared on in stunned silence.

"What's the matter Slayer? You act like you seen a ghost."

She wanted to retaliate to the smart comment, but the effort was fruitless. Her voice refused to cooperate

"What? No witty banter? I'm crushed. I had built up so much nostalgia for our reunion. Ah well…"

He grabbed her neck before she had a chance to act. She felt the sharp pain immediately after as the Master bit into her neck. It was all over. She stared blankly at the ceiling as she felt the life force drain out of her.

Buffy jumped up from her pillow. Her face broke out in a cold sweat. She shook her head, trying to get the image of the dream out of her head. This was one of the many nightmares The Master appeared in since the night she killed him with what had to be the biggest stake in her career, but this dream felt different. This one felt real.

Buffy crawled out of bed and went down into the kitchen. She poured herself a glass of water and swigged it down. She was pouring herself another glass when she heard a shuffling sound in the living room. Her body tensed up and she listened for another sound.

"Honey?" Her nerves cooled at the sound of the familiar voice.

"In here mom." Buffy called.

Joyce Summers walked into the kitchen wearing purple silk pajama pants and a matching top. Her mom always knew how to stay beautiful, even when she got out of bed. Buffy hoped she would be like that when she gets older.

If I get older. Let's not forget the expiration date that's posted on the Slayer label.

"Buffy, what are you still doing up? It's three in the morning" Joyce said with a worried look on her face. Buffy was used to that look. Her mom had been worried about her since the night she found out she was the Slayer. She was sorry she had to put that kinda burden on her. Her mother cared so much for her.

"I know. I just had a nightmare, that's all. I'm fine mom, really." Buffy said calmly.

"Another one? Sweetie what is it that's been bothering you so much? Is it your ex-boyfriend, Angel? Because…" Buffy cut off her sentence.

"No mom, it's not. It's nothing you should be worried about right now."

"Buffy, you know that is not true. I am always worried about you, always will be. It's my job. What kind of mother would I be if I wasn't?" Joyce walked up to her daughter and embraced her. Buffy managed a weak smile.

"I know. It's just I don't like to put this much on you. You shouldn't have to worry about me all the time. If I could have a better life for you, I would. But it's my duty to make sure you and the rest of the world are safe." Buffy said.

"It's okay honey. You just go back upstairs and get some sleep. You have a history test tomorrow. You did study right?" Joyce asked.

Buffy smiled. "Sure. Goodnight mom."

"Goodnight sweetie."

Buffy grabbed her glass of water, went back upstairs, and plopped into her bed.

First things first. Tell Giles about my weird dream. I have a feeling that something big is about to go down.

Chapter 1: Bad Dreams

"I guess I'll be seeing ya." Oz said as he gave her a soft wave and jumped into his van. Willow returned the small gesture and stared sadly as Oz started the engine. He had a gig in L.A with the Dingoes and would be gone for a few days.

It's gonna take a lot of chocolate to make up for those few days. Maybe me and Buffy could have a brownie pig-out, complete with a full night of Hindi TV.

"I'll call you later to check out how things are going. You won't even know I was gone."

"Don't worry, we'll hold down the school. You have a good time in L.A, I'll miss you." Willow said sadly.

Oz leaned out the window and pecked her on the cheek.

"I'll miss you too." With that, he drove off, waving his hand out the window as he disappeared down the road. Willow stared on. The sound of the lunch bell snapped her back to reality. She grabbed her backpack and headed back to class.

"Why the long face?" A familiar voice asked her. Willow turned around to see Buffy's shiny face, only she looked like Not-So-Shiny Buffy today.

"Hey. I was just watching Oz leave. He's on his way to L.A for that gig. He's gonna be gone for a few days." Willow replied

"Bummer." Buffy said. Buffy looked down at the ground in troubled thought, and then she suddenly perked up.

"Hey! We can make it up with a brownie pig-out later tonight and maybe watch a little more of that Hindi TV?" Buffy asked happily. Once again, Buffy managed to make Willow smile.

"It's like you read my mind. That sounds like a perfect idea." Willow said

"Oh crap, sorry Will, I just remembered. I have to go to cheerleading practice tonight." Buffy said worriedly.

"Cheerleading? Buffy I thought you gave that up awhile ago after that whole incident with Amy's mom being a witch." Willow asked.

"I know, but I'm doing this as a promise to Cordelia. Her squad is a few girls short this year and she was practically on her knees begging me to join."

"Are we talking about the same Cordelia?" Willow asked

"I know I can't believe it either." Buffy said as she stared off into the distance.

"Buffy, are you okay? You don't look too well today." Willow asked worriedly. Buffy gave her a forced smile.

"I haven't been getting much sleep lately. I've been having a lot of bad dreams this past week. The Master has been making a lot of cameo appearances in them lately." Buffy replied. Willow perked up.

"At least you know they're not serious, right? I mean, you already killed the Master, twice. Like Xander said, you 'ground his bones to make your bread.' He can't come back again, right?" Willow grew nervous. "Right?"

"Right Will. But I still feel like I need to tell Giles, just to be on the safe side. Also, The Master isn't the only one I've been seeing in my sleep lately. Like just last night, I saw these three weird…" Buffy voice trailed off as they entered their history class.

"Get inside, hurry. Leave everything off your desk except a Number 2 pencil, don't talk or you will immediately receive a failing grade."

Crap I forgot about the history test.

Willow took out two pencils and threw one to Buffy, a knot forming in her stomach as the teacher went around with the tests.

---

The place where vampires hunted and demons sulked. The place where evil cults planned to overthrow mankind. The place known for its huge obituary section in the Sunday paper. The place where the Slayer roamed night after night trying to keep things in order. Yep, Spike was back in bloody Sunny Hell, and wasn't all too happy about it either, too many bad memories.

If it wasn't for that sodding bitch and her vampire Nancy Boy running around, I would have nothing to hide from.

Spike hated Sunnydale; there wasn't anything he could think of about it that he liked. But he had no choice. Dru was stuck in some kind of trance. She kept mentioning something about some demon named Laibach and Sunnydale. Spike knew she was crazy, and he had Angelus to thank for that, but she was acting crazier that usual, as if something was taking over her mind. Spike seeked help by contacting a local sorcerer. The sorcerer seemed afraid after taking a look at Dru, and told him that he had to summon the demon in Sunnydale and do as it said, or Drusilla's fragile mind will crumble, reducing her to ash.

The sorcerer told him Laibach's plans to take over the world. He planned to build a bridge between his demon world, and this world to cause Hell-on-Earth. He needed the Master to help him build this bridge, but the Master was already dead. He took over Drusilla's mind to gain corporeal form and go to Sunnydale to resurrect the Master. Spike wasn't too thrilled in bringing the Master back, but he'd do anything for his beloved Dru. The sorcerer also told him about a vampire pair by the name of Malik and Scylla, and a skilled necromancer named Matereani. They were supposed to be skilled in raising demons and stuff. The sorcerer gave him the address, and in return, Spike killed him.

For the road

Spike took the address of the trio and told them about his little adventure. They agreed to aid him and now the five of them were in Sunnydale. Spike regretted coming here the moment he set foot back in the Hellmouth. He had promised to the Slayer never to return here again, and he was all too happy not to, but here he was.

By the time they got to Sunnydale, Drusilla was rendered brain dead. She could not move nor speak. Spike laid her by the alter and ordered Malik to retrieve the spell book from Sunnydale High's library when the sun went down. He didn't want to risk being caught by the Slayer or any of her Wannabes. The main priority was to save Dru, the last thing he needed was Buffy on his arse.

He hated Malik. He was one of those reformed vamps, always taking orders; he was never one for orders. He had to admit though that having him around was proving to be a true convenience. He would stake himself in the heart if Spike asked him too.

Sounds fun. I might have him try that after I get Dru back.

Spike took a long drag from his cig and lay down on the alter by Drusilla's still form. Remembering the good hunting days with her and promised pure vengeance on the bitch who did this to her.

---

Finally, the end of school. Xander felt like this day was dragging by forever. It was a Monday after all, which were usually gloomy.

Extra gloomy if you consider that I live on a Hellmouth.

Unlike most kids his age who spent their hours after school hanging out with friends at the movies or at the park, his after-school hours were spent all day in a musty library, or out in the middle of the night risking his neck alongside the Buffster, while at the same time trying to come up with an excuse every night on why he's coming home every night with some sort of bodily injury or not coming home at all.

Xander walked down the hallway, lost in thought as Cordelia dragged along behind him on another one of her fashion rants. She was going on about some dress she fell in love with on her visit to the mall on Saturday.

Even though he loved her, Xander still couldn't figure out how he hooked up with Cordelia. They couldn't stand each other then and they can't really stand each other now.

Except for when we sneak in the broom closet everyday during lunch, which is always fun.

Everyone else couldn't see how they hooked up either. He remembered how hurt Willow was when she found the both of them kissing behind a stack of books. She still had feelings for him even though she was going out with Oz at the time, and it hurt her to see him kissing Cordelia out of all people, when he was supposed to be the Treasurer of the We Hate Cordelia Club. Willow was over it now. She and Oz have a strong relationship going on and he and Cordelia's relationship was still going strong.

There's still something about Willow that makes me love her more than any girl in the world. I don't know if it's her cute school girl innocence, or the fact that we've known each other for so long.

He knew that she had Oz, but there was something about Willow that couldn't stop him from wanting to be around her all the time, and the same for her about him it seemed. They both knew that they should move on, that they had their current relationships to worry about. But whenever Xander was around her, he couldn't help but love that adorable little twinkle in her eye or that soft innocent smile that seemed to be imprinted on her face. And whenever they found each other alone, he couldn't help but want to kiss…

"Xander? I'm talking to you! It wouldn't hurt to give me an answer!" Cordelia said angrily. Xander snapped out of his thoughts.

"Huh? Yeah, I say go with the blue."

"Xander are you even listening to me?" Cordelia asked.

Just then, Xander saw Buffy hit the corner, she was heading towards somewhere in a rush. Xander saw this as a quick escape.

"Buffy! My blonde little pal, how are ya?" Xander asked all too happily. Buffy stopped and turned around, she looked a mess. Her hair was out of place and there were dark circles around her eyes.

"Hey Xand. I'm doing okay. Not counting the fact that I just blew the history test, but I'm recovering." Buffy said quietly

"Buffy are you..." Xander was just about to finish his sentence till Cordelia cut him off

"Buffy you look like crap." Xander punched her in the arm

"Ow! What, she does! I'm just being honest!" Cordelia said innocently. Xander decided to just ignore her. There was no need to start anything with Cordelia right now.

Buffy talked quickly. "I'm fine. Just haven't been getting much sleep lately. I've been having these weird dreams that have been keeping me up all night. I'm about to go hurry up and talk to Giles before cheerleading practice. I still gotta run home and get my practice outfit."

"Didn't ya hear? Giles is out. He went to England for a little while to fill the Council in on the whole incident with Gwendolyn Post. But he should be back later on tonight. Me and Willow are going to meet up with him in the library to get him settled back in while you and Cordy are at practice. You know a welcome home party. You want me to bring it up to him?" Xander asked.

"No, I'll tell him later on tonight….How come they couldn't of just talked about it over the phone?" Buffy asked. Xander shrugged.

"I dunno. They're British. I guess to them a story doesn't feel the same without a face-to-face conversation over a cup of tea." Xander said. Then Buffy suddenly brightened up.

"It figures. Well Xand, I'll see you later, I gotta go get ready. Cordy, see you at practice." Buffy took off. Just then, Cordelia turned to face him.

"See you later, I gotta get ready too." she gave him a small peck on the cheek and took off in the opposite direction as Buffy. Xander was all alone.