Keeping Up With the Scoobies Chapter 14: Friendship is Magic (2), a buffy: the vampire slayer fanfic

BtVS || Spuffy || BtVS || Spuffy || Keeping Up With the Scoobies || Spuffy || BtVS || Spuffy || BtVS

Title: Keeping Up With the Scoobies – The Long Way Home

Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Tags: m/f, f/f, hurt/comfort, survivor's guilt, fluff, found family

Main Pairing: Spike/Buffy

Side Pairings: Tara/Willow, Xander/Renee, Robin/Faith, Connor/Dawn, Dowling/Dylan, Angel/Cordelia, Wesley/Fred, Gunn/Anne, Oz/Bay, Buffy/Satsu (briefly), Willow/Kennedy (briefly)

Buffy Characters: William 'Spike' Pratt, Buffy Summers, Dawn Summers, Rupert Giles, Willow Rosenberg, Alexander 'Xander' Harris, Andrew Wells, Tara Maclay, Renee, Faith Lehane, Robin Wood, Robert Dowling, Dylan Turner, Satsu, Kennedy, Daniel 'Oz' Osbourne, Bayarmaa 'Bay'

Angel Characters: Angel, Cordelia Chase, Connor Angel, Harmony Kendall, Winifred 'Fred' Burkle, Wesley Wyndam Pryce, Charles Gunn, Lorne, Anne Steele

Summary: Buffy shared her powers with all potential Slayers. But that was only the beginning. Now, she has to deal with all the new Slayers, with the aftermath of LA going to hell – and coming back. The world knows about the supernatural, there's no going back.

Keeping Up With the Scoobies

The Long Way Home

14. Friendship is Magic (2)

Buffy was tired as she walked into the kitchen. Long night of patrol. Not that she was getting old or anything, but she was twenty-four, with a decade's worth of hunting and slaying, keeping up with eighteen year old Mei and all of her energy? That made her feel old. Mei was their youngest, she'd barely turned eighteen and had been so excited to move into the Slayer Den (name was still a work in progress, but Buffy firmly voted against Slay-Cave, regardless of how often Andrew suggested it). Mei, much like the other young Slayers, had never seen the terror.

They'd been Slayers for just a bit over a year, training for less than that. The most action they'd seen was slaying a vampire on patrol. It nearly made Buffy feel nostalgic, for her first year in Sunnydale. The Master aside, being a Slayer had felt so different back then. And then she'd died for the first time and things started to change for her, she started to realize just how serious this calling was. They? They didn't know yet, for them it was all excitement, adrenaline and fun.

Sisterhood too. Something that hadn't really been a part of Buffy's Slayer-experience. Kendra had only been a part of her life for such a short time, before she'd died. And Buffy's relationship with Faith had been rocky at best. It was better now, ever since the last near-apocalypse, but they'd still never shared the kind of sisterhood that these new Slayers got to experience.

"Mornin', Buffy," greeted Roxanne as she entered the kitchen.

Her dark skin was glistering with sweat, the tank-top sweat-soaked too. It was barely seven AM, how had Rox already been out jogging? Reaching past Buffy, she took a cold water-bottle out of the fridge. Buffy stepped aside with the orange juice.

"How do you have the energy?" asked Buffy. "You're older than me."

Which was a bit weird at times. Not all potentials were younger than her. Many had been from Buffy's generation, or older, who hadn't been called either but gained the power after Willow set it free. Roxanne nearly emptied the bottle before leaning back against the counter.

"You've had this power since you were a young teen," Rox capped the bottle and put it on the counter next to herself. "I didn't. I've been a normal girl, a normal woman, with a normal office job. And then there was this... burst. This energy I've never known before, all unlocked at once. I'm still getting used to having that strength and energy, you know?"

"How... do you like it?" asked Buffy. "I mean, you had a normal life, as you said. And now you're sharing a bedroom with an energetic and possibly ADHD twenty-five year old."

"Tess is great," Roxanne shrugged and brushed some dreadlocks over her shoulders. "I... don't mind it. To tell you the truth, I was pretty... lonely before all of this. Living in my one bedroom apartment all on my own, going to my job for routine. My job that required me to straighten my hair because something like these dreads looked 'unprofessional' in their opinion. Sure most of the other Slayers are younger than me, but I'm getting along well with them. I made some genuine friends. I can express myself freely. Ann-Marie dyed my hair – I've never dyed my hair before!"

"The red suits you," commented Buffy with a small smile.

"Thanks," Roxanne grinned. "You don't have to worry, Buffy. You're doing great. This... What you're doing here is great. The girls trust you enough to tell you if something was wrong, okay?"

Buffy nodded slowly. She had to admit, that was something she was struggling with. Being a leader, an authority figure. She was glad to share the duty with Giles – he was the senior Watcher and there were parts of being a Slayer that Buffy preferred them to learn from a Watcher.

After Rox was already out of the kitchen again, Buffy went to the fridge to put the orange juice away. When closing the door, her eyes caught a pamphlet pinned to the fridge with a magnet. An art showing? She took it off the fridge to flip through it. How fanciful and normal.

"Good morning, Buff," Willow yawned widely. "I wish I could sleep another hour or two..."

"You're a busy working girl! Go and make that dough, Will," Buffy looked up to grin at her best friend, holding up the pamphlet. "This yours? Looks like a Will and Tara date idea?"

"Mh? No. I saw Spike pin that to the fridge the other day. It's his."

Spike? An art show? Tilting her head, she made her way out of the kitchen, with the pamphlet. When she returned to their bedroom, Spike was laying awake, reading a book. He put it aside to look at her with a smile. Once she was close enough, he pulled her down and into a kiss.

"Hey," Buffy whispered with a small smile. "So—o I just found this in the kitchen... What is it?"

"Pamphlet. About an art show," offered Spike, just to earn a light slap on the chest. "Okay, okay. It's... A friend of mine's in town and... that's the artist."

"...You have a friend?" Buffy squinted at him. "Like a... normal person kind of friend?"

"Uh. Yeah?" Spike ran his fingers through his hair. "Normal human, proper person kinda friend."

That seemed so strange. Buffy didn't even have normal human proper friends. All of hers were entangled in the Slayer system somehow. Eager, she sat up some, holding the pamphlet up.

"We're going there! Together. As a date. That's something normal people do, right? Go to the art gallery showings of their friends. I wanna meet your friend. Okay?"

At that, Spike looked kind of surprised. Like that wasn't the reaction he'd expected? Oh, please. Had he thought she'd see that the artist was a woman and she'd get all jealous like? She wasn't that immature. The two of them were going steady. She knew she had Spike's heart. So why would she get jealous? If Spike said this Dylan Turner was a friend, then Buffy believed that. With a grin on her lips did she lean in to kiss his cheek. Hah! She had come up with a date plan. Very good.

/break\

Faith frowned annoyed, bouncing her toddler on her hip, the phone tucked between her shoulder and head. Robin was out with most of the squad, but the rest of them were very loud annoying teenagers in the other room. When she had agreed to this, she thought she'd co-parent one toddler with Robin. Not ten Slayers, on top of that. Why had she accepted to get involved...?

Hope cried out and ah yeah that. Raising a kid alone on the run and doing her solo gig wasn't going to fly. At the very least, she needed a support system with the kid and she wanted her daughter to have a relationship to her father. Something Faith never had, not in a positive way at least. Robin? He'd never even known his father, didn't even know the man's name. She didn't want that for Hope. Because Robin was a good man. The kind of man Faith had never seen herself with.

"Fred Burkle, Watcher headquarter. What can I do for you?"

Fred? Right. Giles had given up the spot for Wesley and Wesley's girl. The peppy nerd.

"Faith here," Faith adjusted Hope a little. "Listen. I may be a senior Slayer but I do not do politics. B can do her show and dance in the news and stuff, but I'm not shaking hands and the only baby I'll be kissing is my own. So tell me, Watcher central, what do I do with this invite from the mayor? Not the best track-record with mayors, you know."

She could hear the main door open and more loud teen girl voices. Great for having a conversation on the phone. Faith rolled her eyes and leaned her head back as much as the phone allowed.

"Uhm. You should... go. Or sent your Watcher to do it?" Fred sounded unsure. "Thanks to Buffy and Mister Giles, and Harmony I guess in a way, we're currently in negotiations about... pay."

Robin entered the room and his face lit up when he saw Hope. He approached to take the toddler from Faith, allowing her to adjust the phone, though her eyes didn't leave Robin and Hope.

"Wait. Say that again, I think there's too many teen hormones in this house and I misheard you."

"Pay," repeated Fred. "We're doing a public service. We've been in negotiations with the government to work as free contractors. Buffy is very insistent on the 'free' part. She doesn't... trust the government too much. But basically, the Slayers aren't all that different from private contractors in the army or security firms and with all the attention that's been on you in the past months now, voices grew louder that Slayers should be paid to keep the public safe."

"Huh," Faith blinked a couple of times. "Okay, sure. I'll send Robin to talk to them. Thanks."

Robin looked up, frowning in that way that meant 'what's up?'. And it was mildly disturbing for Faith to know someone good enough to read them like that, but living together like this, they'd developed their own communication. It was all going much smoother than Faith ever anticipated.

"You knew that B hooked us up with steady income? Courtesy of Uncle Sam?"

Robin frowned at her. "Yeah, that was one of the bullet points during the last call-conference with Xander. The one you napped through. Maybe you should pay more attention."

Okay, that was fair. But huh. Getting paid for being a Slayer, now that sounded nice. She'd have to call Buffy and just perhaps say something that vaguely resembled a thanks. Maybe.

/break\

Willow smiled to herself as she stood in the doorway of the living room. Some of the Slayers were having a movie night, rom-coms from the 90s, because Andrew got to pick. The thing that made her smile was that Spike was among the Slayers, watching with them. He could never deny a Shakespeare adaptation. The fact that Willow knew that, alone. Living together really had brought them closer together. She could see the love in his eyes when he looked at Buffy.

"Willow! You're home," Tara walked up to her with a smile, instantly stealing all of Willow's attention. "I thought you would only return tomorrow. How did your trip go?"

Willow turned her head slightly, fidgeting with the heavy silver ring in her hand. "Good. I think."

Tara's eyes wandered toward the living room, finding Spike. "Does he... know yet?"

"I didn't want to get his hopes up, in case I fail," whispered Willow, slipping her free hand into Tara's to pull her along upstairs. "This is different, something I've never done before."

"That's never stopped you before," Tara's smile softened. "I'm sure you can do it. The question is if it's really a good idea to do it. And that's not about Spike. I know Spike. This one, the one from my world, who'd kept going and doing good even after Buffy's death, in Buffy's name."

"The risk of it getting into the wrong hands," Willow sighed. "Yes. I know. But... today? It feels like less of a risk. When the original ring, the gem of Amara, came up, it was... It wasn't normal for vampires to walk in the sun. Now, the new generation of vampires? They can all do that, thanks to when they were sired. So it feels like less of a risk to put into the world, you know?"

Tara hummed in understanding. Her hand was so soft in Willow's, like it belonged there. Things between them had been stilted at first, but by now, they had both adjusted to it. They'd come to the realization that it was as though they had been apart and were now reunited. Both had lived their own lives in the time apart and they had to relearn about each other now. Additionally, both carried the grief they had for the other. This part was more tricky, but the rest? They'd managed to work around it. To get to know each other for who they were in the now. Fall in love with each other all over again, for both the old as well as the new. Willow smiled as she brushed Tara's hair behind her ear and Tara tilted her head so the two of them could kiss, gently.

"I'll worry about it tomorrow. The spell and if it works, telling Spike," whispered Willow. "For now, I think I want to focus on... being here. With you."

"I'd like that," Tara smiled against Willow's lips. "I think that is a good plan."

/break\

Spike reached out for Buffy without being consciously aware of it. He just couldn't believe his ears, or eyes. So he sought out his back-up. Buffy met him half-way, taking his hand, though she looked as baffled as Spike felt. In front of them stood Willow, holding out a thick silver ring with a red gem embedded in it. Fancy piece of jewelry, just looking at it. Knowing what it could do though...

"But why?" asked Spike, even as he accepted the ring with shaking hands.

"Because we're friends," Willow smiled thinly. "Because the bad guys can walk in the daylight by now and if they can, the good guys should too, right? And you're one of the good guys, Spike."

She'd recreated the gem of Amara. Infused the ring with the kind of magic that protected a vampire from the sunlight. Apparently, she'd been doing research on that and gathering all she needed for the spell for over a month now, but hadn't wanted to share with Spike and Buffy yet, in case she failed. But the witch who empowered all potential Slayers all over the world? She had the stuff it took.

"Thank you, red," Spike's voice sounded faint even to himself. "Sounds kinda weak, considering what you're offering me here, but... truly, thank you. This means a lot. Your trust does too."

"Oh," Buffy straightened up. "We could go some place before the art showing tonight! Where do you want to go? What's something you want to see in the daylight?"

Well, wasn't that an impossible question to answer, after over a hundred years without the sun...?

/break\

In the end, the two just took a very long stroll and visited the Golden Gate Park. Nothing fancy, just... Spike enjoying the real sun on his skin. He was still buzzing with the excitement of it by the time they reached the gallery. It all didn't feel entirely real to him just yet. Then again, neither did Dylan and Buffy hugging each other. Honestly, Spike had expected some jealousy from the Slayer when she learned he had a lady friend. Instead, she was just excited that Spike had a friend and that the two of them could do something as normal as go to an art showing. It was cute. She was cute.

"So, Spike hasn't really told me how you two know each other?"

Dylan was leading Buffy and Spike slowly through the gallery, showing them her favorite pieces. "He hasn't? I thought he'd boast with his heroics. At least some. He was just... passing through town and ended up saving it. He killed a demon, saved my life."

Buffy raised her eyebrows and turned toward Spike, who simply shrugged. "It was on my way back from the cave. After I got my soul back. I was just passing through but then the... opportunity arose to... save some people. Figured it was the right thing to do, you know?"

The way Buffy smiled at him just made him feel even more awkward. There was something about the soft sincerity with which she'd look at him. It wasn't new, she had looked at him with those eyes so very often in the past. But always only until she caught herself, then she'd turn away from him or get defensive. Not anymore. Instead, her smile blossomed and she leaned in to kiss him.

"I'm glad you got the girl, you know," Dylan grinned playfully at Spike before turning toward Buffy. "He said there was someone, but he didn't sound so sure back then."

"Yeah, it... took us a while," Buffy chuckled. "Things were complicated."

"Easy is overrated and boring," offered Dylan amused.

That was what he'd liked about her from the get go. She understood, she had an easy time understanding and it was easy to talk to her. Spike smiled faintly to himself, even as he turned away from the women to instead focus on the art. It was beautiful. She had real talent.

"I tell you what. Any one of them that you like, it's yours."

"What, no we couldn't-" Buffy held her hands up, a surprised look on her face.

"Please. Without Spike here, I wouldn't have drawn any of them anyway. He made me look at my life, reevaluate what's really important to me," Dylan aimed a smile at Spike. "It's the least."

Spike rubbed the back of his neck and looked at one with cliffs, framing the outlook to the sea. "I guess I fancy this one? If you don't mind. Think it'd look nice in the living room, wouldn't it?"

"Aw, you two are even living together," Dylan smiled teasingly. "Listen, I know we... hadn't known each other long and it's been a long time, but... it'd be nice to get to know you better, both?"

"That sounds good," Spike returned her smile before he turned toward Buffy.

"I support you having friends," Buffy grinned mischievously as she held onto his arm. "You can't keep borrowing all of mine. And it'd be nice to spend time with someone we don't live with."

/break\

Cordelia frowned curiously as she fished a thicker envelope out of the mail. All the other ones – mostly bills and the weekly letter from Fred, who was adorable like that, hand-writing them letters on how she and Wes were doing – found their way onto the table, but this one got her attention. So did the address on the envelope. It came from San Francisco. Now even more curious, she opened it and shook it to get the content out. One letter and... a tacky piece of jewelry?

"Angel," Cordelia's voice pitched as she scanned the letter. "Angel!"

He came rushing down the stairs, nearly stumbling in his hurry. "What? What is it? An attack?"

"No. Nothing bad," Cordelia looked up at him. "A... present. From Willow. For you."

His brows furrowed as he approached her and took the letter from her. Remember the gem of Amara? Call this Amara 2.0. I made one for Spike and I thought you should also have one. The ring enables you to walk in the daylight without harm coming to you. Don't worry, it won't work for Angelus – this one can only be used by a besouled vampire. Enjoy. Willow.

"...But..." Angel trailed off, unable to form a sentence and unsure where it was headed anyway.

All he could do was stare at the ring in Cordelia's hands with the withered hope in his heart reigniting, filling him with a warmth he only got to experience rarely. Cordelia smiled at him with all the understanding in the world as she handed him the ring.

/break\

In a tall office building in San Francisco, behind a thick, dark wooden door with golden letters claiming to be the office of Lily Vesper, sat a woman of ethereal beauty. Her long, black hair seemed to melt into the shadows behind her, her pale skin in a stark contrast to the darkness around her. Her perfect features were marred by a displeased frown. It only looked like mild irritation, yet anyone who had had the displeasure of being on the receiving end of her true wrath knew that mild irritation was only the first step into the direction of total demise.

"Slayers," she spat the word out like it was poison in her mouth. "Plural. Can you believe this? The insult. There used to be one. A nuisance, busy enough trying to keep the low-level vermin like vampires at bay. Barely worth remembering her name, she'd die and fade into obscurity before I could blink, just to have the next doe-eyed Barbie doll take over."

"I... I can't imagine, mistress," replied her underling, cowering.

"Of course you can't," Lily lifted her face to frown at him in disdain. "You're vermin just like them. But now look at where I am. I have risen high, undetected by humans. And then this Barbie comes along, with her ridiculous little name and her ridiculous little group of friends, changing the world. Now the world is infested with Slayers. You can barely cross the street without running into one of these perky annoyances. State-sponsored, imagine that. Receiving pay to follow their calling."

She smacked the newspaper down onto the table and hit it hard with her hand, fingers spread and palm hitting right on Buffy Summers' face. Buffy. What kind of name was that even. Smiling so happily as she stood next to the mayor, shaking hands. A front page article on how 'proud' the mayor was to know the head Slayer in her city and how revolutionary this was. To know that the humans were protected from the evil that lurked in the dark. Humans knew of the dangers now and they also knew who to call for help. Slayers got their own hotline that people could call, a supernatural 9-1-1. Making the life of Lily and her associates much more complicated than she had to.

Well, she wouldn't be who she was if she couldn't deal with this problem.

Author's note: Okay look, I watched Vampire Diaries. Daylight Rings? SUPER useful. Especially since they were literally inspired BY Buffy and her gem of Amara. Considering the comics made new vampires able to walk in the sun there is absolutely NO reason why our good guys SHOULDN'T and if Willow can infuse EVERY potential Slayer with Slayerness, then she damn well can create Daylight Rings. So. Daylight Rings!

Aaand a villain emerges. Because this is BtVS and while this will remain mostly slice-of-life relationship (romantic and platonic) focused, we do need some villain action, don't we? ;)

Now for the bad news, due to August being Writer's Month and me wanting to participate in the month-long daily prompt event, I will absolutely not be able to write chapter updates on top of that, so we're on hiatus next month but will be back to our usual schedule in September (but there will be a little Spuffy treat in my Writer's Month prompt fills too, to ease the wait)