Chapter 9

Everyone had gathered back in the War Room to hear Willow's plan. They were all sitting around the table, with Willow standing at the head of it.

Visibly nervous, Willow started speaking, "right, so, remember how Glory knew Dawn was in Sunnydale, but couldn't pin point her?" when the Scoobies nodded, she continued, "well I couldn't find a spell for locating Dawn's essence, but I could find a spell to absorb the essence of something else."

Her statement was met with confused stares, so she continued, "I think if I use this essence spell to partially absorb the essence of Glory, I could find a way to at least find the town that Dawn is in. It wouldn't pin point her, but Buffy's demony tinglies should do the rest."

"Absorbing the essence of a demon god? I'm not always known for the thinkin' but even I know that seems too dangerous," Xander replied, in worry.

"Yes, quite right. Willow I understand your powers far surpass most, but even this would be too much. Absorbing Glory could cause her to take you over, as she did with Ben."

"It wouldn't though! I would only be partially absorbing, and since she's, ya know, dead, I wouldn't even be absorbing her just what make her her, if that makes sense," she finished, confusing even herself.

"So basically you'll just be absorbing her talents? Her powers? The ability to find Dawn?" Buffy asked.

"Right! I wouldn't be Glory, but her essence. I'd lock it in a part of my mind until we find Dawn and I can let the spell go!"

"How would you even do that?" Sam asked, thinking logically, "I mean, isn't she dead? How would you even absorb the essence of something that doesn't exist?"

Willow looked at Buffy uncomfortably before explaining, "Glory was, is, a God. She can't just be erased from the world. Her powers extend beyond that. When she was killed, it was like she was absorbed back into the seams of the universe. For all intents and purposes, she's dead. But her essence still exists."

Buffy flinched at the thought of the Hell God still being a part of their world, but pushed through it and nodded at Willow in acknowledgement.

The gang considered the idea, with Giles adding, "I would like to look at this spell myself, but if what you're saying is correct, it could be our only option."

Buffy nodded, "right, so let's do it. Willow, how long until you can be bursting with hell demony goodness?"

The terminology made Willow flinch, and Kennedy scowl, "um, about a week? I need to do some more research, gather some materials and get the right timing. It's a bit complicated."

Sam spoke up, "We got a text from a friend of ours. He's in Vermilion, about an hour away, and needs our help. While you're working on that, Dean and I are going to help Chuck."

Buffy turned to Dean incredulously, "we're fighting the Devil, and you're just going to run off on an errand?"

"It's not just an errand," Dean bit back, angrily, "our boy, Chuck, is a Prophet. We're hoping he's got some news for us"

"A Prophet?" Giles asked excitedly, leaning in.

Sam smiled, "Yeah, he'd been writing a series about our lives. He thought it was all fake until we showed up on his door step. Guy didn't even know he was a Prophet."

"Extraordinary."

"Fine," Buffy replied, stubbornly, "but Faith and I are coming. If this guy knows anything about Dawn, I want to find out first hand."

Dean smiled, "whatever you like, sweetheart."

The Impala pulled into the hotel, parked near a sign stating "Welcome to Pineview Hotel". The girls got out first, staring at the other cars in the parking lot. They were all Impalas, duplicates of the Winchester's car.

"Spooky," Faith commented, getting a nod from Buffy.

"This definitely isn't normal."

The guys joined them, equally confused, "cmon," Sam encouraged them towards the hotel, and away from the cars. They found Chuck pacing at the front of the stairs. "Chuck! There you are!" Sam said, walking up to the prophet and shaking his hand.

Chuck was visibly surprised when he replied, "Guys? And girls?" he added with further confusion when spotting the Slayers.

"Whats going on?" Dean asked, also shaking Chuck's hand.

"Ah, nothing. You know, I'm just kinda hanging. What are you guys doing here?"

Dean seemed impatient when he replied, "you told us to come."

Chuck was even more confused, and a little bit worried, "ah, no I didn't."

"Yeah you did, you texted me. This address, life or death situation. Any of this ringing a bell?" Sam replied, also impatient.

"I didn't send you a text."

Dean had finally lost his patience, "we were kinda in the middle of something, Chuck!"

"I'm sorry, I don't understand what could...oh no," he replied with a sudden realisation.

"What?" Dean asked, nervously.

A thrill squeal answered them from the top of the steps, "SAM! You made it!" everyone turned to find a pretty girl with dark blonde hair approaching them.

"Oh, ah, Becky, right?" Sam replied uneasily.

She ran down to them, "oh, you remembered!" she lowered her voice seductively to finish, "you've been thinking about me."

Her statement and Sam's obvious discomfort made the girls smirk and chuckle, causing Becky to look at them in scorn, "who are they?"

Dean smirked before responding, "This is Buffy and Faith," indicating each girl, "girls, this is Chuck and Becky." The girls smiled and waved in response.

Chuck was startled, "the Slayers?"

Faith replied, "yeah, two of many." She turned to Buffy, "ya know this whole potential activation thing makes me feel less special."

"Right? I mean I used to say I was the Slayer and everyone would 'ohh' and 'ahh', and now it's like 'oh, another one?"

"We've become common," Faith said with distaste.

"I doubt anyone could ever call you two common," Sam replied kindly, receiving smiles from the Slayers, and a scowl from Becky.

"Ah no, I know about you two specifically," Chuck added, "my dreams, they started with you, Buffy." He looked at her in awe, "I wasn't in a place to start writing about it, but I remember. You're a hero, both of you." He added, indicating towards Faith, "you've stopped more apocalypses then these boys have ever seen," He finished, looking like he was about sick, the pressure of being involved with such people overwhelming him. "Plus, you were main characters in my series before Dean went to Hell."

"Naw shucks, Chucks, you'll make us blush," Faith said with a smile, making Chuck himself blush.

Dean had gotten annoyed with Chuck practically worshiping the girls and decided to push the conversation forward, "alright, Chuck, if you didn't message us, who did?"

Chuck shook himself out of his hero worship and turned to Becky, "Becky, did you take my phone?"

"I just borrowed them from your pants."

"Becky," Chuck started with Faith whispering to Buffy in the background "ohh his pants," causing them to giggle.

"What?" Becky asked, "they're going to want to see it!"

"See what?" the Winchester's replied simultaneously.

"Oh my god! I love it when they talk at the same time," Becky shrieked, causing an eye roll from Buffy and Faith.

A man appeared at the stop of the stairs with a clipboard, "Hey Chuck? Come on pal, it's showtime."

Becky ran up the stairs, heading inside. Chuck turned to the boys apprehensively, "guys. I'm sorry. For everything."

The four of them were standing in the foyer, taking in their surroundings. A larger man in a leather jacket walked passed them with a beer in hand, he chuckled "hey Dean, looking good."

"Who the hell are you?" Dean asked, out of his element.

The man turned back, showing everyone else that he was dressed almost identically to Dean, right down to the necklace, "I'm Dean too. Duh." He explained before walking away.

The Winchesters were confused, while Buffy had cottoned onto what was happening. She was whispering excitedly to Faith, practically dancing with joy. Her whispered explanation caused Faith to start laughing her arse off, Buffy quickly joining her.

As the guys looked around, they noticed men in costumes that looked eerily familiar.

"Becky, what is this?" Sam asked.

"It's awesome! A supernatural convention, the first ever!" Becky exclaimed, causing Buffy and Faith's decreasing laughter to start back up again, even louder than before.

Faith, Buffy, Dean and Sam were posted at the back of the room, listening to the convention.

"Can you two please stop enjoying this so much?" Dean demanded of the girls, who hadn't stopped smiling.

"C'mon Deano! Lighten up, you guys are celebrities!" Faith laughed in response.

"That's easy for you to say, your life isn't written for just anyone to read," he replied, angrily.

"Excuse you? I was the one starring in prophesies at sixteen, so don't even start," Buffy replied snootily, crossing her arms.

"Hey, did you hear the German hook guy?" Faith asked, "He has a total point. Why don't we bungee our weapons? I'm always losing my stake!"

"Yeah, me too!" Buffy replied, earning both her and Faith exasperated looks from the Winchesters, "sorry," she replied meekly, sharing a secret smile with Faith.

They quieted down as Chuck looked nervously in their direction, obviously answering a question he knew the boys wouldn't like, "Oh. Well there lies an announcement, actually. You're all going to find out." He replied to a fan, who asked about Dean's trip to Hell, "Thanks to a wealthy Scandinavian investor, we're going to start publishing again."

His announcement caused the room to erupt, with Faith and Buffy even contributing to the cheering.

The hunters found Chuck in the bar later, and pulled him away from Becky.

"In case you haven't noticed, our plates are kind of full, ok? Finding the Colt, hunting the devil. We don't have time for this crap," Dean said.

In the background, Becky was trying her hardest to get Sam's attention, much to his embarrassment, and the girl's joy.

"Hey, I didn't call you!"

"He means the books, Chuck," Sam explained. "Why are you publishing more books?"

"Um.. for food and shelter?"

Dean leaned towards him menacingly, "who gave you the rights to our life story?"

"An Archangel, and I didn't want it!"

"Well, deal's off, ok. No more books. Our lives are not for," Sam paused to glance at Becky, who was still staring at him with open admiration, "public consumption."

They noticed Becky listening and moved to a more private location.

Buffy started speaking before the guys had a time to start arguing, "okay, let me get the dealio, the boys don't want you blabbing about their lives, but you need to make a living?" they all nodded, "I get it, Slayage didn't always come with a salary, so how about this, Chuck would you like to come work with us?"

Everyone seemed stunned with the offer, most of all, Chuck, "work with you? With the Slayers? Bu-but I can't fight."

Buffy smiled, "no, but you're vision boy, which, believe me, comes in handy. Plus ever since the boys told us about you, Giles has been dying to meet you. Even Willow and Spike were all with the questions."

Dean scowled at the mention of Spike's name but stayed silent.

Chuck seemed shocked, "Really? You'd give me a job?"

"A job, a place to stay, meals. It's a pretty cruisy gig," Faith replied, knowing it was a good idea.

Buffy handed Chuck a card, "look, give Andrew a call. I'll let him know what's going on, and he'll set you up."

Chucks face portrayed unabashed gratitude and worship, he opened his mouth to say his thanks but was cut off by a women's screams, causing the four heroes to run off in its direction.

"No, guys..wait!"

It took the hunters all of 2 minutes to figure out the hunt was a part of the convention. The constant quotes from their lives, and resurfacing of their previous hunts via men in costumes caused Sam and Dean to find the closest bar, with the smirking girls in tow.

"This is kinda cool!" Buffy exclaimed looking at all the costumes. Dean scoffed, putting down his beer, "'cool'? half of these guys almost killed me!"

"I can understand where they're coming from," Buffy commented under her breath, causing Sam and Faith to chuckle.

From their seat, they overheard a conversation between two guests regarding a real ghost. The boys looked interested, and moved over to question the guy, leaving the girls behind with their drinks. "They got this," Faith remarked, taking a drink. Buffy nodded and ordered another round.

Later that night, after ganking the ghost, the Winchesters came into the bar room to find two very drunk slayers.

"Juurr back!" Buffy exclaimed raising her drink in the air in a cheers motion. "How did the ghosty go?" Realising what she said, Buffy started laughing, "ghosty go," she repeated between giggles.

The boys were shocked; the blond slayer usually refrained from alcohol, claiming it didn't suit her well.

"Are you kidding? You didn't hear anything? See any ghosts? There's an ambulance outside!" Dean was shocked that his usual vigilant slayer was so unaware.

"Ah, its fineeee, Deano, we knew you had it," Faith slurred, waving them off.

Sam looked unsure but continued, "right, well, we better get going back to the school. It's getting late."

Sam hurried along to talk to Becky and Chuck, while Dean walked with the girls to the car. Even with their super powers, the girls were completely hammered. He wasn't letting them out of his sight. Sam met them back at the car with an excited look on his face.

"Well, you're not going to believe it, but I got a lead on the Colt."

"What?" Dean asked.

"Long story, I'll tell you on the way?"

The drive back to the school wasn't long enough for the slayers to sober up, so the boys split up to each guide a girl back to their rooms.

"C'mon, drunky, time for bed."

"Bed? Pfftttsss, bed is for the dead," Buffy replied, quickly resulting in laughter when she realised she accidently rhymed.

Dean cracked a smile, as he led her into her room. She may have been drunk, but at least she was laughing. He sat her on the bed, and said goodnight, turning to leave.

"Dean?" She asked shyly, "you're not going to stay?"

He looked back at her. Even drunk, she was beautiful. She sat on her bed, hands resting on either side of her, looking at him with hopeful eyes.

"Sweetheart, I would love nothing more," he swallowed, pushing himself to do the right thing, "but I just got you back, I'm not willing to lose you tomorrow when you realise that drunken sex isn't the best decision right now."

Buffy rolled her eyes, "it's so typical of you to assume I meant sex," she replied, slurring all her S's. She became shy again, and dropped her eyes, "I've missed you. So much." She looked back up at him through her lashes, "just stay with me? Hold me?"

Dean found himself choked up but rasped out, "yeah, of course." He removed his jacket and boots, before crawling into Buffy's bed, pulling her into his body. She moulded into him, and made a sigh of contentment. They fit together in every sense of the word. He had held many women in his life, but none felt like this.

They laid together for a while before Buffy started speaking, "it was so hard trying to pretend like I didn't miss you," she started so quietly, Dean had to strain to hear her. "I went to New York to get away, to leave anything that reminded me of you. It didn't work, obviously," she scoffed, "I did the whole work thing, the normal girl thing. But slaying, hunting, it's a part of me. Apart of us," she linked her fingers with his as she said it. She continued, "I don't even think it was two years before I was slaying again. I tried to keep it secret, but Spike found me." She hadn't meant to mention Spike, but his name slipped out before she could even stop it. She knew it was an instant mistake when she felt Dean stiffen behind her.

"Spike," he spat out, repeating her.

Buffy rolled so she was facing him, "Yeah, Spike," she said, defensively, "I know you have something to say, so just say it."

She barely finished when he blurted, "were you fucking him?" the harshness of the question startled them both, "no, I don't wanna know," he said, rolling on his back, wiping his hands over his face, "wait, yes I do, I think I need to," he finished rolling back to her.

She looked at him for a moment, considering lying, before continuing, "yeah, I was."

Dean snapped back from her, reeling away and getting out of the bed to pace the room. Buffy watched for a while, before coming to sit on the edge of the bed, "are we going to talk about it?"

Dean whipped back to her, anger in his eyes, "how long was I dead before you started shacking-up with the living dead?"

Buffy was momentarily shocked by his harsh words before her own anger rose, "years!" she shouted in reply, "and apparently alive for most of it!" Her words made him flinch, but he didn't back down from his anger.

"Yeah, you must have really missed me." He spat out sarcastically.

"How can you even say that?" she whispered in shock, "I thought you were dead, Dean, I was alone and miserable. Being with Spike may not have been right, but it made me feel something, anything, after you left." She was close to him now, fists clenched in anger, "you choose to stay away! You can't be angry at the things I did with my life when you chose not to be in it!"

"Like Hell! The thought of you being with anyone drives me nuts! Let alone a fucking demon!"

"Oh right, and I'm sure you were being soo faithful," she spat out. The look on his face made her know she was right. A sudden of emotions ran through her, jealousy and pain. She was still dealing with the pain of him keeping his resurrection from her. She didn't even think about what he was doing while he was alive. She sat on the edge of the bed again, looking at her feet.

Dean looked at Buffy, and knew he'd been a dick. He pulled his hand through his hair, letting out a breath and trying to calm himself

He thought about all the girls he'd been with since he came back. All the blond girls he'd been with, who couldn't fill the void Buffy left. He knelt in front of Buffy and took her hands, looking into her eyes. "I fucked up," he started, ignoring Buffy's scoffed 'ya think', "I shouldn't be mad about Spike, but I am. I can't help it, you drive me nutty, you really do. But I'm not going anywhere, you understand? You want to hate me? Fine, I'm still going to be here. You want to be with Spike," he spat the word out like it tasted bad, "fine, I'll still be here. I won't like it, but I'll be here. I'm not leaving you again, Buffy," he finished sincerely, hoping she understood, "I couldn't handle it, if I did."

Buffy was silent for a while before responding, "We're not together anymore." Dean was confused so she continued, "Spike and I. As soon as I knew you were alive, I broke it off. It wouldn't be fair to him. Or to you. Or me."

"Oh. Well, good." Dean finished lamely.

Buffy laughed and leant down to kiss him, sweetly and chastely. She pulled him back into the bed, "c'mon, the jobs not done yet. We need to sleep."

They settled in together, and Dean felt hope swell in his chest.

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