A house with as odd a cast as this would never be truly peaceful, but the next day was closer to tranquil than the Scoobies could ever remember being. The girls seemed to be determined to ignore each attempt Giles made to get them to focus on the Renata/Drusilla issue, instead setting about decorating the house for Christmas, despite his many protests. The snow was falling thicker than it had the day before, and Dawn managed to talk Spike into helping her find the perfect Christmas tree- promising to make him a cup of hot cocoa in return 'just like her mom used to make.'

Dawn did make some effort to please Giles, as she went about her overhaul of the house. Her 'effort', however, primarily consisted of asking Giles repeatedly about British Christmas traditions until he was finding it quite difficult to hide how much her ongoing interview annoyed him. When he'd lived in Sunnydale, he'd made some attempts to join the holiday traditions on a few occasions, but usually he wasn't much for decorations, particularly in light of their current situation. He was careful though to avoid allowing Dawn or Willow to see his exasperation; they really were trying to do something nice for everyone, and the house was looking quite festive by the time the sun had gone down again.

Willow in particular was determined to be as busy as she could, spending the day either helping Dawn and Spike, or locked in her bedroom talking to Lindsay on the phone. Giles had insisted she not leave the house, and in a matter of hours she could feel herself going stir-crazy. She could understand the logic behind his decision, as did Xander, who steadfastly refused to aid her in her little escape plans, but something about being told she had to stay meant that all she wanted to do was leave.

Buffy was as antsy as the others, but was doing a much better job of hiding from the determined Christmas elf than the unfortunate Giles and Spike. From her hiding place on the roof, wrapped in several layers of ski-gear and clutching a large thermos of hot cocoa, she waved evilly at Spike as he traipsed through the snow with her Scythe by his side after a chattering Dawn, who seemed to be having a difficult time settling on the ideal tree. Spike returned her wave with a scowl and several rude gestures of his own, some of which Buffy didn't even recognize, but had a hard time keeping himself from smiling at how adorable she looked, perched on the roof under all her layers.

Finally starting to feel the chill of the air, Buffy slipped back through the window and into Giles's study, hoping to sneak back down into the kitchen before Dawn had finished directing Spike to the perfect tree placement in the living room. Giles was sitting at his desk again, and smirked at her as she grinned, one finger to her lips, slipping out the door on her tiptoes. It wasn't that she didn't love her sister dearly, but Dawn seemed to rush to take a leading role in all things 'normal', perhaps to compensate for rarely being allowed into the more serious Slayer/Council business. It was understandable, but it was difficult to be so tolerant when confined to the house with a bossy young teenager, especially a Summers teenager.

Right as she entered the kitchen, the lights on the phone receiver flared to life, and Buffy quickly snapped it up before it had a chance to ring.

"Hello, Giles… residence…" Buffy spoke quietly, leaning over the counter a little to make sure she was still safe.

"Buffy?"

"Oh, God, Angel. I'm sorry, you must want Giles, I'll get him. Just one moment-"

"No," said Angel quickly. "I mean, yes, I was expecting Giles, but this is information you're going to need as well…"

"Are you sure?" Buffy shifted nervously. In his note, Angel had essentially told her he wanted to put their friendship on hold completely, and she wasn't quite sure what he expected from her now.

"Yes Buffy, I'm sure… I can handle a phone call, I promise." Angel sounded firm, and Buffy breathed a quick sigh of relief. Whether he meant it or not didn't matter right now, he'd at least given her the O.K.

"I do need to tell you something, and I don't have much time. I was up all night scoping out some of my old spots… Luckily, demons are creatures of habit; I found quite a few that were able to paint a clearer picture for me of what's going on. You're not going to believe this, but Drusilla is involved, she's teamed up with the soulless witch." He paused, waiting for her reaction, but Buffy only sighed.

"I know."

"You do?" Angel seemed almost disappointed; he thought the information he'd found would be crucial. "What, Slayer vision?"

Buffy shook her head before realizing he couldn't see her.

"No, Spike."

Angel huffed, but thankfully, he didn't ask her to elaborate. She wasn't sure that the details of that particular revelation was a conversation that she and Angel should have.

"Well," he continued, shouldering his curiosity. "That wasn't the only thing I called to say… I did get confirmation that Wesley's hunch was right on the mark… they're aiming to bring back Sunnydale, and they have the amulet already. Apparently they've been bragging about it, trying to recruit demons for their 'new city,' several are waiting to go. The witch has a bit of a reputation for finishing whatever she starts, even if Drusilla doesn't… most of the ones I've run into are sure she will succeed… of course, they don't know you."

Not knowing what to say, Buffy hung her head, waiting for him to continue. She could tell from his voice that there was something else... something he didn't want to say. From the way he was speaking, she wouldn't have to force it out of him. If he was putting off saying it, it meant that he'd already decided to tell her.

"Buffy…" Angel took in a deep, unnecessary breath. "There's one more thing. They know that Spike is here, and they know he's fighting on our side. From what I can tell, Drusilla's put a hit out on him, promising a 'high place' in the 'new city' to whoever -or whatever- kills him. He left behind a lot of enemies here even without that… I don't think it's safe for him out here. Just thought you should know."

"Thanks, Angel." Buffy closed her eyes, knowing how much Spike would hate being told to stay out of the action, especially given the source of the tip. "I don't know that I'll be able to talk him into staying low, but I'll do my best."

"I knew you would." He paused, out of time and information to impart, but not wanting to lose her presence, even through a phone. "Make sure Giles and the rest get the info too, I'll see if I can get anything else tonight."

"Thanks Angel," she repeated. The line clicked off, and she put the phone down numbly, feeling colder than she had on the roof. It seemed that the people she loved most were in more danger than she thought.

Spike was released from his duties when it came time to decorate the tree, and quickly found Buffy's new hiding place from her scent alone. She'd pulled several pillows into Giles's study, and was blocked from view by one of his free-standing bookshelves, reading quietly while Giles worked. If Spike was surprised to see that the book she'd chosen was 'A Collection of 19th Century Poems,' he took it in stride, instead settling in beside her and slipping an arm around her shoulders.

"Hey, you," she said quietly, barely looking up from her book. He'd noticed that it was her usual response when he interrupted her thoughts, and took a moment to appreciate that he'd spent enough time with her now to start noticing those little things.

"Will's looking for you," he said. "Something about 'girl talk', I didn't ask any questions… Might want to find her before the Bit ropes her into more Christmas nonsense."

"Don't act like you weren't having fun!" Buffy put her book down, grinning at him as he tried to act grumpy. She knew he loved Dawn, Spike was not the type to let himself be stuck doing anything he didn't want to be doing. "...besides, if I go find her now, I will lose this peaceful little spot. I'm very comfortable here!"

"Does that mean you're opposed to me joining you?" Buffy laughed quietly as Spike leaned towards her, slipping her arms around him as he pulled her closer. Within seconds, she was in very great danger of the encounter becoming a rather inappropriate one, and tried to slow him down, but he was having none of her weak resistance. Giving in, she returned the kiss in full, feeling a flush of heat throughout her body as she started to run out of air.

The moment was broken by Giles, who sighed dramatically the moment he realized what was happening behind his bookshelf.

"No, no, none of that," he called out from across the room. "Out, both of you."

Sheepishly, the couple untangled themselves and slipped out of the study, Giles glaring at them from above lowered glasses to make sure they'd complied with his request. It's not even a spell this time…

Still, he'd been granted a new understanding of the two over the past days. He did still hold some misgivings when it came to the relationship, which was only natural when a girl he loved as his own had chosen such a volatile individual as a partner. He had to admit, however, that Spike really did love her. He'd always assumed that Spike's attentions to Buffy were built on infatuation, or some obsession with her Slayer status, but Spike clearly loved the girl, woman, beneath the persona. Buffy herself may not be as verbally open with her feelings as he was, but Giles had spent enough of his life in love to notice the way she looked at him. He knew she'd forgiven him for it, many months ago now, but it did give him some guilt to realize that he had almost been responsible for the death of the 'man' that she now looked at with such affection. At the time, he thought he was making the tough and necessary decision, like he had with Ben, but he'd underestimated the vampire gravely in more ways than one, and he knew that now.

Downstairs, Buffy and Willow were able to sneak off into the kitchen for their talk, with Willow starting to make dinner for them all as they did so. Spike followed them for a moment, trying to heat up some blood for himself, but wound up drinking it cold as the girls stared him down until he marched right back out of the kitchen.

"Women. Not like I want to be in that bloody conversation…" he grumbled, closing the door loudly behind him.

"So," said Buffy, grinning at Willow. "Girl talk… would this be about your new girl?"

"Yes," Willow pouted. "Giles won't let me see her. He took my keys, and he even called her and told her that I'm 'not to leave the house.' Do you have any idea how embarrassing that is?"

Buffy laughed. "Yes, well… Giles loves us, sometimes a bit too much. Trust me, I know all too well what it's like to have him messing with your love life."

Willow beamed. "Does that mean you'll talk to him for me? I mean, Lindsay's a Slayer too, and totally trained in the fighting stuff, it's not like I'll have no protection or anything…"

"Maybe..." she answered, the uncertainty in her voice causing Willow's smile to fall a little. "I'm sorry Will, I know she's strong too, but Lindsay's a brand-new Slayer. She's a skilled fighter, but she's used to fighting humans, and who knows how many demons the witch will bring next time. I feel much better having you here too, where I can watch your back myself."

Willow nodded sadly, and Buffy put an arm around her shoulders. She's certainly come a long way since I've gotten here, going from 'thank God I don't have to face her this week' to begging for my help so she can run off for a visit…

Suddenly an idea struck the redhead, her face lighting up again.

"I know! We can have a double date! That way you'll be there, and Spike, it'll be max protection, I'll be the safest girl ever!"

Buffy laughed at the idea. It was plausible, but even picturing the look on Spike's face when she asked him to accompany them on a double date was deeply amusing. Sharing the reason for her laughter with Willow, the girls rushed off to recruit Spike, eager to find out if his reaction would be as funny as they were picturing.