Summary: Very AU. It was a simple dare. Just spend an hour inside Sunnydale's own haunted mansion, Crawford Manor. But Crawford is no ordinary house, and William 'Spike' Giles is no ordinary kid. Now events set in motion decades ago are finally coming to ahead, the gates to hell are opening and its up to Spike and his friends to figure out what his role in this is before it's too late.

Spoilers: None.

Pairings: Buffy/Angel, Willow/Tara, Cordelia/Riley, Wes/Fred, Cordelia/Angel with hints of past Darla/Angel and Xander/Anya and future Buffy/Spike.

Author's Notes: I'm getting a lot better wtih the updates. Like I said in the previous chapter there were only two more chapters left. This one of them and there one more to come after this. So I hope you enjoy this new chapter.

Endsong

Giles watched his sleeping son with a familiar fondness that now brought a heavy weight along with it. His son looked so much like his wife, like his beautiful Rebecca. Rebecca was buried today after being pronounced dead just five days ago. It seemed like he buried a part of him with her that afternoon. But there was still need for all of him. He needed to be strong for this small person who now depended solely on him. He ran a hand softly over his son's curly hair and sighed. He had no idea how he was going to do this. He had no clue how he was going to be able to raise his son without his wife.

He took one final look at William before leaving the room. He headed downstairs towards the kitchen where he heard rustling sounds. A week ago, that would have been his wife probably making a midnight snack for the inevitable arrival of their darling boy who still had yet to learn how to sleep through the night. But this wasn't a week ago. This was today and today there would be no midnight snacks and joking around. Today there was only misery, heartache and his sister in law Emma McClay, which really was synonymous with misery and heartache.

"Rupert," she greeted curtly as he walked into the kitchen. She was sitting at the kitchen table drinking a cup of tea that she had just prepared. "How is William?"

He glanced her wondering if she thought at all about the words that were coming out of her mouth or if she just went for it. It had to be the latter because there was no other possible way something that stupid could seem okay in her head. Instead of answering her, he just settled for looking towards the refrigerator to see if he could get William to eat something.

"I know you heard me, Rupert."

"Yes, I heard you, Emma. But I'm choosing to ignore you."

He heard her scoff and that brought just a little levity to his heavy heart. It felt good to mess with his sister-in-law. She was never a big fan of his. She never thought he was good enough for her sister and then consequently their son. Of course, Rebecca had obviously thought otherwise and he knew that he was number one in his son's eyes. Still there was something about Emma that always found a way to get under his skin. He sighed heavily as he pulled out a casserole that one of their neighbors had dropped off.

"Look at yourself." Here it comes, he thought. "You're a mess, Rupert."

He turned around to give the woman a look. "I'm not sure if you knew this but my wife died a few days ago."

Emma's face darkened and for a brief moment, he regretted the comment. After all Rebecca and Emma were sisters. But it was only for a very brief moment. It passed because after all mocking Emma was one of his favorite past times. And he needed any small sense of joy that he could find these days.

"Your socks don't match and your shirt is on backwards," she pointed out. Before he could even begin to wonder what that had to do with anything, she beat him to the chase. "How are you going to take care of your son when you can barely take care of yourself?"

His newfound joking attitude was dropped quickly as he glared at his sister-in-law. "Don't presume that I'm incapable of taking care of my child. William is my son."

"And my nephew! He is the last link to my sister. He's special, Rupert. You can see it just by looking at him. You're barely holding it together at the moment," she replied calmly taking a sip of her tea. "Who is going to be there for him when you start breaking down?"

Giles' jaw dropped slightly. "And just what are you hinting at here, Emma?"

"Matthew and I are willing to take him in. This way he doesn't need to leave behind the life that he's used to. He's only seven years old. He just lost his mother and you want to take him away from his home as well. Away from Tara and that Weakley boy."

"Wesley, his name is Wesley," Giles corrected through clenched teeth. "And while I appreciate the offer, I'm going to have to say no."

"Rupert, be honest with yourself. Do you really think that you're going to be able to care for him the same way that Rebecca used to? Uprooting him will only result in even more trauma. Just leave him here with us for awhile. And then when you're in a better place, you can come back and be with him."

As Giles contemplated the nicest way possible to tell his sister-in-law that she was in a fact a crazy shrew, he heard a little whimper. He whirled around to find wide blue eyes that rivaled his own.

"Oh, William, you're awake," Emma smiled in his direction. She was amazingly oblivious to his obvious distress. "You want something to eat, sweet pea?"

The boy remained focused only on his father. "Daddy?"

Giles knew what the question was just as he knew the answer without even thinking it over. "Never, Will. Never."

A slow smile spread across the small face and he ran into his father's arms. Giles hugged his son tightly and felt warmed by the trust William had placed in him. No, it wouldn't be the same without Rebecca. Obviously because she was gone. But that didn't mean that it couldn't be just as good. They would make it work. He would make it work because he had promised his wife as he held her lifeless hand. He would always take care of their child.

"You're not to worry," he whispered in the boy's ear. "We'll always make it through. We'll always be together."

"I know, daddy. You don't worry either, okay?"

Giles pulled back and smiled widely. "Okay."

Giles blinked back tears as that memory assaulted him at probably the most inopportune time. The hellmouth was growing wider and he could feel the heat from the pit. He could hear Elizabeth's maniac laughter. He could hear the other teens' yelling and trying to make sense of what was happening. He heard all of this. But the only thing he saw was his son. The vivid blue gone replaced with an eerie white that had encompassed the whole of his eyes.

"Spike?" he said, in a broken whisper.

The young man's attention snapped to his father and he shook his head. "Not anymore."

"Spike, there has to be another way. Let us help you," he continued, ignoring Spike's protest. "Son, just let me help you."

For a brief moment the white faded and the blue returned. Just as quickly it was gone but he knew that his son had heard him. "You've already helped me, Ripper."

"You don't have to do this," Tara spoke up. "William, Spike, whoever you are, just give us a chance to fix this. To help you."

"I don't need any help," he retorted. "All I need is your absence."

He held up a hand and suddenly the assembled teens and Giles found themselves flying out the room landing in a heap just outside the door. Giles scrambled to his feet in time to see the double doors slam sht. Before he could reach them a solid wall formed over them effectively sealing him out of the room. He could still hear the rumble of the Hellmouth even from where they stood now. His son was alone with one seriously whacked out ghost and the Hellmouth… that he opened. Giles pushed frantically against the wall as if he could reach through to the doors inside but it was useless. He felt a cold hand settle on top of his and looked up to see Faith shaking her head.

"You're not getting in there. He doesn't want you in there," she trailed off, looking thoughtfully around the room they were standing in. "Not yet, anyway."

"How do you know?"

"He's the house remember?" she smiled sadly. "I'm bound to it and consequently to him. So I'm aware of what he wants, what he's thinking about."

Tara stepped forward, chewing on her bottom lip nervously. "How much of him is William?"

"Too much. We've got to stop him while we still have time," Faith said, decisively. Her eyes landed on the bag in Wesley's hand. "Whatever you've got in there, you need to use it. If it was enough to make Elizabeth notice, then it means she's nervous about it. And even if it's not the answer, it might buy us some time at any rate."

All of the teens turned to Giles as if looking for further instruction. The man nodded slowly. "You heard her. Wesley, Willow you two get on that spell. Take Cordelia, Fred and Angel with you."

"Got it," Willow said, smiling brightly. "Don't worry Giles. We will save him. Even if he doesn't want it." After that the group disappeared into another room so that they could perform the spell. Giles knew that they had to do the spell and for that needed more concentration and quiet but he couldn't help be apprehensive at leaving them alone.

"You need to try to find a way back into that room," Faith said, breaking through his thoughts. "I'll take the others. After all, Liam is my little brother." he nodded in gratitude and watched as she spun on her heels and disappeared.

Giles then looked to Tara, Xander and Buffy who remained with him. If they had any chance of getting through to Spike it lay on the four people who stood in that room. If they couldn't get through to him then no one could and Sunnydale and most likely the world would be doomed.

Tara picked up on her uncle's train of thought and smiled grimly. "We are the only thing that stands between the world and the mouth of hell."

"Does anyone else think the world is so screwed?" Buffy chimed in.

Elizabeth's eyes darted around the room somewhat nervously. William was the pillar of calm in the center of the room with the hellmouth opening around him. His eyes flickered up to meet hers and he arched an eyebrow. "Problem, sister?"

"They know something," she muttered, chewing on her bottom lip. "I don't trust them."

William rolled his eyes. "Well they're not exactly here for tea and cookies, you stupid twit. They're here to stop this. If you're so damn worried about it, stop them. Otherwise leave me alone. I need to concentrate and your constant fretting is starting to piss me off."

His sister opened her mouth to reply but quickly realized the futility behind it. He closed his eyes once again tuning out the world around him, focusing only on the Hellmouth. With a deep sigh, she closed her eyes, and summoned something to deal with the meddlesome teens. She had a feeling they wouldn't be going down without a fight, but they would indeed be going down. It was time they met up with some old friends.

"So how long does this magical voodoo stuff take to work?" Cordelia asked, toying with a candle absently. Angel plucked it from her hands, placing it where it belonged with a patient smile. His girlfriend rolled her eyes looking to Faith. Her old friend was staring off into space with a worried frown on her face. She started to say something but instead chose to focus on Willow, Wesley and Fred who were seated on the floor with the candles surrounding them. A circle had been drawn around the area they were sitting in with chalk. After a brief bought of bickering it was decided that Wesley would be the one to actually perform the spell. He claimed it was because his Latin was better. Willow claimed it was so he would shut up. Cordelia was more inclined to go along with Willow's version of events.

"This spell," Faith started, snapping out of her light trance. "What exactly is it supposed to do?"

"Break the connection between Spike and the house. It will give us time to figure out what to do with the Crawford's and apparently now the Hellmouth. If Spike isn't attached to it, there might be another way to close it that doesn't involve killing him."

Faith nodded her head and closed her eyes again. Sensing that her services were no longer needed, Cordelia directed her attention to the spell that was finally about to start. She wrapped her arm around Angel and smiled as he pulled her into an embrace. They had always been close friends, but this new level of intimacy was one that she had secretly longed for.

"It's about time," Faith said, not bothering to open her eyes. "Seriously, Liam, you disappoint me." Her brother blushed and she cracked an eye open finally.

"No one calls me that anymore, you know. It's just Angel now."

"Not in my lifetime, Liam," Faith stressed. Cordelia smirked at the banter and wisely chose to step away giving them time alone. Angel approached his sister and reached a hand towards her shoulder. "You can touch me, little brother. I won't fall apart."

He smiled tremulously. "You don't know how much I missed you."

"I do. I missed you too." She shook her head. "It seems stupid now, you know? All we wanted to do was prove to that annoying jerk, Harmony, that we were someone important. And now look. We're dead."

Angel squeezed her shoulder not knowing what else to say. How do you comfort someone who spent the last two years of their life trapped in a house? A house that was currently trapping them as well. Life really had come full circle.

"You're going to get out of here," Faith promised. "I don't think mom and dad could handle loosing another child. And I love you, little bro, but I don't think I could stand eternity in here with you and them."

He cast a glance over his shoulder to see Fred swatting Cordelia away from the circle. The cheerleader looked slightly put out before plopping to the ground next to the former Texan. He smiled at her fondly before looking to Wesley and Willow. The two were chanting quietly. Faith hissed slightly and his attention was once again solely on his sister.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she whispered. "It's just the spell. It affects everything in the house. That includes me."

Angel chewed on his lip nervously. "Should we stop?"

"No," she paused. Her eyes darted around the room and finally landed on him. "I'll be fine." A slight smile passed on her lips. "I'll be fine."

He wanted to ask her what she was talking about but never had the chance a pair of hands grabbed him from behind. "Angel!" Faith yelled, distracting the chanting teens. She turned to them sharply. "Don't stop!"

Wesley and Willow hesitated only a moment longer before continuing. Cordelia was on her feet and by Faith's side searching for some sign of Angel. Fred was behind her less than a second later. Suddenly she grunted and fell into an unsuspecting Cordelia's arms. The cheerleader's eyes widened as she stared in horror at Fred's attacker.

"Darla?"

"So what exactly are we supposed to say to him once we find him anyway? He's clearly not Will anymore," Tara paused. "Or rather he is Will, just not our Will. He's the bad Will."

"For the purpose of my head not hurting anymore than it already does, let's just call him Spike," Xander said.

"Right, well, he's not Spike anymore. So what do we say?"

"I'm all in favor of just knocking him and dragging him out of here," Buffy offered up. "And then torching the place."

"I could definitely stand to see this place burnt to the ground."

Giles listened to their mindless conversation half heartedly. Truth be told, he was wondering the same thing Tara was. His son was very clearly not his child anymore. He had failed to protect his child when he needed it the most. True, his son was a stubborn bastard, but he knew that and had failed to make accommodations for that as he always did. He underestimated the connection between the house and his son. And that mistake may very well cost him not only his child but the entire world.

"Don't blame yourself, Uncle G. This was going to happen whether we wanted it to or not," Tara said, walking beside him. "Now we have to hope that Wes and the others can finish that spell and break the house's power so that we have a chance at getting through to him."

"Yeah, it should be easy," Buffy added, brightly.

"Except for the part were the hellmouth is opened."

"Shut up, Xander!"

"Yes, do shut up, Xander."

The group jumped at the sudden voice. They turned around to see the wall that was behind them disappear. Spike was standing with his arms crossed over his chest and a small smirk playing across his lips. Glowing eyes were locked on them.

"Well it looks like you found me," he grinned. "Now what?"

"Darla? Can I say that you're not looking so good, hon?"

That was of course an understatement. Her skin was practically translucent and her normally vibrant eyes were dead and lifeless as she swung the piece of table leg she had attacked Fred with. Cordelia managed to shift the Texan to the ground near a concerned, but still chanting Wesley.

"Faith, what do we do? Is she dead?"

"Not yet," Faith replied, ducking a near blow to the head. "She's still alive but not for much longer. Elizabeth feeds off the energy of those that come into the house. She's been feeding off of Darla and Riley. But she hasn't taken much from them because the house is coming alive."

"Damn, so she's alive, huh?" Cordelia said, with a small frown. With alarming speed she moved forward, taking Darla's weapon and bashed the girl over the head in the process. "That was for sleeping with my boyfriend."

Faith gave her an amused look before looking in the direction Angel had been dragged down with a frown marring her features. "So if we were just fighting Darla, then it must have been Riley who got Angel."

"I swear if that big dumb zombie has even hurt a single hair on Angel's head," Cordelia muttered, clutching the table leg tighter. The two girls crept down the hall and were just in time to hear a loud thudding noise that was unmistakably the sound of someone hitting the floor. "Angel!"

"What?" the teen in question replied as the two girls rounded the corner. They found him smirking in satisfaction over an unconscious Riley. "I don't think he took the news that we're dating too well."

Cordelia rolled her eyes. "You're so lame."

"Come on, we need to get back to the others. That circle serves another purpose besides ambience," Faith said, interrupting what was sure to be another round of banter between the love-struck pair. Angel looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "It's for protection. Elizabeth is sure to know what we're up to by now and she's going to send company after us."

"Sis, you worry too much," Angel grinned. "We'll get back to the others and everything will be fine."

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he regretted them. He had always been of the belief that sometimes you could cause things to happen just by speaking about it. And it would be many years before he convinced himself that he didn't cause what happened next. One minute he was standing in front of his sister and girlfriend smiling widely and the next he was being tossed against the wall as Faith took a blow to the stomach that was intended for him.

"Faith!" he cried as his sister slowly fell to the floor. Cordelia stepped forward still wielding her weapon of choice. She cracked Riley over the head causing him to drop the fireplace poker none of them had seen him picking up. Angel caught Faith gently in his arms. "Oh no, no, no, Faith. Oh no, I'm so sorry. Faith."

"Liam," she smiled softly. "This is not your fault…. Believe me. It's Elizabeth's."

"But… but…"

"No, now… go… have to get back to the circle…. Don't worry…. About me… was dead anyway."

"No," he whispered, clutching her closer. "Faith, please don't leave me again."

Faith closed her eyes and offered up another smile. She opened her eyes through much effort and put a gentle hand on his face. "Not leaving… just going to rest… get back to the circle. Please, Angel."

"Its Liam to you," he corrected. With a final smile, Faith closed her eyes for a final time and her body went limp. Angel barely had time to register that fact as the weight in his arms disappeared. "What…"

"She's gone?" Cordelia said, blinking her own eyes that were wet with tears. She glanced down at the unconscious Riley. "She's right though. We need to get back to the circle, before Elizabeth sends anything else after us."

Angel didn't appear to hear her at first but finally he rose from his crouched position to stand beside him. She didn't say anything as she led him back down the hall to the others. She simply held onto his hands tightly. As they finally approached the circle, Wesley and Willow completed the spell. There was a hum in the air and then silence.

Willow's eyes widened as she saw Angel's bloodstained shirt. "What happened to you? Are you hurt? Where's Faith?"

Angel lowered his gaze to the floor and sighed. Cordelia tightened her hold on his hand and rested her head against his shoulder. "She's gone. Riley attacked Angel with a fireplace poker and Faith stepped in for him. She's gone."

The redhead gasped quietly but said nothing more. She glanced down at Wesley. He was holding onto Fred who was slowly starting to regain consciousness. She smiled briefly in their direction before returning her attention to Angel and Cordelia.

"We finished the spell. The connection between the house and Spike should be broken. Hopefully that means the others can get through to our Spike.

"I still say leaving the fate of the world in the hands of Xander Harris is not a wise idea," Cordelia mumbled, earning a small snort of amusement from Angel. Maybe he would be okay after all.

Giles swallowed heavily and tried very hard not to look down at the cracked ground that lay at his child's feet. He failed miserably. Even from where he stood from across the room he could make out images, things that would live in his nightmares for years to come. He could feel Tara shivering beside him but couldn't think of a single thing to say to comfort her.

"Spike, you can stop this," Xander yelled over the roar of the hellmouth. "We can find another way to close it. But you just have to trust us."

"I'm sorry but that's just not in the plan," he shrugged. "Now I know you didn't think you would come in here and talk me down like this was a bloody afterschool special… did you?"

"It was a thought," Buffy mumbled. "It's a little hard coming up with an effective plan when you're worried about the highly irrational blond that seems really fond of running off and putting himself in danger."

Spike shook his head. "Look around you. Does it look like I'm in danger?"

"Do you not see the giant mouth to hell that you're currently standing in front of?" Tara pointed out, snidely. "I'm thinking that constitutes as dangerous."

"Not when you're the one in control," Spike returned with an easy going smirk.

"Enough," Elizabeth interjected, reminding everyone that she was still in the room. "You have to know that it's hopeless. You're not going to win. Spike has already accepted his destiny." She paused, locking eyes with Giles. "His family. He's made the choice to open the hellmouth and there is nothing anyone can do to stop it. I win, you…." she trailed off with her eyes going wide as she caught sight of her reflection in the hall mirror.

"I believe the word you're looking for is lose," Xander pointed out, earning an elbow in the side from Tara. He started to complain when he noticed just what made Elizabeth lose her train of thought. Brown spots started to appear on her skin. Her blonde locks were lightening to a dull grey color. Wrinkles creased her face. Elizabeth Crawford was rapidly aging in front of their eyes. The spell had worked.

"Lizzie, I hate to break it to you but your age is showing," Buffy quipped with a cruel smirk.

"No! What have you done? What have you done?"

"It's the spell," Tara said, smiling as well. "It broke the connection between Spike and the house. This, of course, includes you. The house is powerless now. And that means it's time to see who you really are underneath it all."

Elizabeth cast a horror filled look towards Spike. The teen was standing with his head slightly bowed. With baited breath they watched as he slowly lifted his eyes and revealed glowing white eyes. Elizabeth let out a joyful laugh that came out as more of a cackle.

"You cannot break his connection to the house. He is the house!" she shrieked gleefully. "He's already opened the hellmouth. It doesn't matter what you do now. Its over. I can always get a new body later on." She sized Buffy up critically. "Maybe I'll try you on for size."

They shuddered in unison. Xander leaned into Tara. "I told you she was so into her brother. You so owe me."

While she continued to taunt the three heartbroken teenagers, Giles took advantage of her distraction to approach his son. He half expected to be flung across the room as he had been earlier, so he was pleasantly surprised when Spike stepped closer to meet him halfway.

"William, I know you're still in there," he started, before shaking his head. "You have to fight this, Will. This isn't you. This isn't what you wanted."

"This is exactly what I wanted," Spike corrected him. He put a hand on the older man's shoulder and pulled him closer. He then leaned in so that his lips were right beside his father's ear. "You're not to worry. We'll always make it through."

Giles' eyes widened at the familiar words. He tuned his head to the side and was shocked to see the blue eyes he so loved. Spike smiled briefly before the white covered them once again. With a wave of his hand, Giles was sent flying across the room and into the other three. They landed in a tangled heap of limbs.

"You see," Elizabeth said, crossing her arms over her chest. "Just accept defeat. He is ours. He's where he belongs." Spike went to stand beside her. She smiled as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "He's home."

"Spike," Buffy whispered. He looked into her eyes and nodded.

"She's right," he finally said. "Well at least about one thing. This is where I belong." He closed his eyes briefly. When he reopened them they were the normal blue they associated with Spike. "But this sure as hell ain't home, ducks."

"Huh?" Elizabeth gasped. "What…."

"So eloquent. Maybe you should have spent a little less time with the black arts, dear sister," he sneered. "Like I said earlier this evening, I want this over. And now…." He smiled, pulling her even closer. "It is."

Before anyone could react, much less process what he meant, Spike backed up so that he was on the edge of the hellmouth. He mouthed something to his family before fell backwards into the crater, dragging a kicking and screaming Elizabeth with him.

"No!"

Giles raced over to the hole hoping to grab onto his son but he was too late. He could only watch in mute horror as Spike disappeared into the fiery abyss with a pleased smirk on his face. The hellmouth roared and the ground stopped shaking. Rocky ground slowly formed over the hole blocking any chance Giles had to save Spike. All around them the house started to revert back to its original state of decay, but Giles couldn't see any of it. All he saw was the rocky barrier keeping him from his son. All he could see was the closed hellmouth and his massive failure.

"Uncle Giles…."

He heard Tara's hesitant call but he couldn't bring himself to answer it. It wasn't until he felt the feather light hand on his face that he realized what was going on. He looked up quickly to find himself drowning in a pair of warm brown eyes. He was dimly aware of the other teens returning but nothing was going to distract him away from the woman in front of him.

"Rebecca."

She smiled warmly and cocked her head to the side. "Hello, Rupert."

So what did you all think? Not necessarily a cliffhanger this time. Well sort of not a cliffhanger. Yeah, I'm going to get started on that last chapter. Hope you enjoyed.