Thanks so much for the reviews……again!
Chapter 5 – Seek and Destroy
Buffy groaned as she woke up the next day feeling a slight ache on her head. Feeling a small bump on her forehead, she started to recall what had happened the night before. Think Buffy. Uhhhh, rain, bath, lots of rooms. Buffy thought as she stood up and picked up the ice pack she saw on her bedside table. Then uhhh, water, kitchen… Buffy gasped as she saw the note and recognized the handwriting. Then all the events came racing back to her. Spike.
She remembered slipping from the water and knocking herself out. Then a faint, blurry memory of being kissed on the forehead. No. It can't be. Buffy thought as she backed away and fell on her bed. "Oof!" she said. At the same time, the ice pack slipped from her hand as she fell and it hit Dawn squarely on the face which woke her up.
"Ow!" Dawn cried as she sat up after being woken up, unintentionally. "Rude much!" she added while wondering why on earth would her sister throw an ice pack of all things to her while she was asleep, knowing she hasn't done anything wrong lately. Or at least she thinks she hasn't. "What was that for?"
"Oh. Oops! Sorry, it kinda slipped from my hand" said Buffy as she got up from the bed.
"Uh huh. And why do you have an ice pack?" asked Dawn.
"Oh uh because…" Buffy trailed off, not sure whether she should tell Dawn the truth. She might just not believe it. But then Buffy remembered the talk they shared in the plane and realized how much Dawn cared and grieved for Spike too. She deserved to know the truth.
"Buffy?" asked Dawn.
Buffy walked over to Dawn and sat at the edge of her bed. "If I tell you what happened, do you promise not to freak out, or tell anyone about it?" asked Buffy.
Dawn nodded in response. "Ok, last night," Buffy started, taking a deep breath. "I woke up at the middle of the night and went to get water. When I got there, I spilled lots of water on the floor out of shock because I saw…Spike" said Buffy as Dawn's eyes went huge. But before Dawn could say anything, Buffy put a hand up, stopping Dawn from saying anything yet. "I forgot about the water, made a run for Spike, slipped on the water, and boinked my head on the table ahead of me"
Dawn opened her mouth to say something but nothing came out. Taking opportunity of her inability to speak, Buffy took out the note she found on her table and showed it to Dawn.
"But, how can that be?" asked Dawn, still shocked.
"I honestly don't know" said Buffy feeling hopeless.
Dawn then asked what had been on Buffy's mind. "Are you sure you weren't just hallucinating or something?"
"I don't know. It just felt so real. Especially the part where I think he kissed me on the forehead. But it was all a blur" confessed Buffy.
"Yeah, I know" Dawn confessed too.
Buffy was about to nod when she realized what Dawn just said. "What, huh?"
"I think he also kissed me on the forehead last night"
This time it was Buffy's eyes that went huge.
"He used to do it all the time" Dawn continued with a smile before Buffy could speak. "That summer when you were…gone, before he left for his crypt after patrol, he would always kiss me goodnight on the forehead. Sometimes, he would actually sneak in just to do that. I was always awake when he did that but he always assumed I was already asleep. He really looked out for me back then" said Dawn with another smile.
Buffy was close to tears when she heard that. That means it could be possible. If Dawn also…I wasn't hallucinating, was I? She thought. Sighing, she went and lay down next to her sister, letting Dawn rest her head on her shoulder. She shouldn't have false hope all over again. It will just end up with her and a broken heart. "Why does life always have to be so complicated and hard?" asked Dawn.
"I don't know, Dawnie. I've been trying to figure that out my whole life. It's just the way it is, I guess" Buffy said remembering all the trials she had to face throughout her life. Even before she was a slayer.
"The Spike appearances thing, what are you gonna do about it?" asked Dawn.
"I think I'm gonna talk to Angel about it. He may know something and just didn't want to tell us" Buffy said, her leader mode switching back to place. "You can help if you want to. Ask around or something" she said as she sat up.
"Buffy?" asked Dawn.
"Yeah?"
"What are we going to do about dad?" Dawn asked softly.
"We'll…we'll deal. Just like we did when…Mom died" answered Buffy and Dawn nodded. After a few moments of just sitting together in silence, Dawn spoke up.
"Hey you know this talking together thing is becoming a habit for us" Dawn said with a grin.
"Well, no one's complaining" said Buffy as they shared a smile. "C'mon, let's go get breakfast" she said as they got dressed.
"That's the third demon tonight" Robin said as he and Faith dragged the now dead body of the demon to a deserted place.
"Yeah and that's not even counting the two vamps earlier by the Trevi Fountain" added Faith while they started making their way back to the others.
"Yeah, who knew vampires had taste in tourist spots?" he joked as they reached Willow, Kennedy, and Xander.
"So, we gonna call it a night?" Xander asked to no one in particular.
"Uhh yeah. I guess so. We've checked everywhere already anyway" said Willow. "Guys?"
They all agreed to call it a night as they headed back home. "Don't you guys think something's up? I mean, there's been a lot more demons for the past few weeks. Rome isn't exactly on top of a hellmouth" stated Kennedy.
"Yeah, it is kinda. Fishy I mean" said Faith.
"Well then let's hit the books tomorrow" Willow said as everybody groaned. "What, you guys got a better idea?"
"How 'bout we go patrol like we always do, you know, maybe pound some demons for info. The usual. Maybe take some shifts. Some of us hit the books, some hit the demons" Xander said.
"You have thought about this way too much" Willow said with a grin.
"Just trying to make sure I don't have to use my one functioning eye with the books because frankly, I get tired easily reading, what more with one eye" said Xander returning the grin.
"It will be just like before, back in Sunnydale" Xander said after a while. They all walked in silence thinking about Sunnydale. They all missed it. Especially Willow and Xander, missing the ol' Scooby meetings. The two shared a smile, thinking the same thing.
"Ok then. So we'll fix everything up tomorrow. My place at 9AM" Willow said, breaking the silence.
Everyone agreed and said their goodnights and goodbyes as they parted ways to their homes.
The next morning, everyone including Andrew was gathered in Willow and Kennedy's living room, books all over the place and weapons together in a corner.
"What exactly are we looking for?" asked Andrew.
"Let's start with looking for the demons we found last night. They looked scaly, spikes on its back and umm, horns on its knuckles" said Willow.
"And don't forget the stone thingy on its tongue" added Xander as Andrew nodded.
"Oh look at this demon. A Narlykk demon. Says here it can only be killed by licking it. Gross" said Kennedy.
"And weird" added Faith.
After an hour of researching, Xander spoke up. "Ok I'm getting tired of this can we talk shifts please?"
"Yeah okay. Who doesn't mind staying here with me and the books?" asked Willow.
"I don't" answered Kennedy.
"Fine here" Andrew said without even lifting his head from the book he was reading.
"Ok then. Me, Robin and Xander will head out. Try to get some info. See if something's going on" Faith said as they got weapons and started to leave.
"Have fun" Willow said as she closed the door. Turning around, she had an evil smile on her face. "Donuts anyone?" she asked and they all grinned.
Xander, Faith and Robin all went to the spot where they last saw the demons last night. It was in a local cemetery and in no time they found 5 vampires in a crypt. "Finally something to do" Faith said.
"Okay I want this to be quick and snappy. What's the news on the biggest badass in town? Why have there been more demons than usual?" asked Faith when they barged in and all the vamps spread out.
"What makes you so sure that we'll tell you anything?" asked one vampire trying to put up a tough act who Faith assumed was their leader.
Faith shrugged and got the leader by his neck and threw him out the crypt into the sun. In a few seconds he was dust. "Again I ask the question. Anyone who gives me nothing but answers will join Mr. Dusty-pants out in the sun" she said to the rest of the vampires gesturing outside where now there was dust.
Immediately one of them said "We'll tell you anything"
"That's a good vampire. Now what's the news about the big bad in this town?" she asked.
"And why have there been more demons around than usual?" added Robin.
"Listen, all we know is that this demon from ancient times was resurrected by his kind. One of those early demons before time or something" the vamp said.
"Anything else?" asked Xander, wondering when it will be time for him to actually do some action. All of the vamps shook their heads.
"Awww. I was really expecting more from you. Well ok, not really. You better not be lying or leave something out" Faith said.
"N-no. It's true that's all we know, I swear!" one of the vamps said, fear evident in his voice.
"Can we kill them now?" Xander asked and if possible, the vampires became even paler than usual.
"Yeah sure, why not" Faith said as she shrugged and dusted the vamp in front of her and Robin and Xander got the other three.
"So basically all we know is that a powerful demon has just been resurrected and may start all kinds of evil badness?" asked Xander after dusting those vampires and they made their way back to Willow's.
"That about sums it up" Robin said.
"Yippee" said Xander sarcastically.
In a while they got back to Willow's place.
"Guess what?" asked Xander and Willow at the same time.
"What?" they both asked again at the same time.
"You first" they said again together and they both grinned.
"Okay. I better stop this before this becomes never ending" Kennedy interrupted. "Xander you first"
"Okay. We found out that there's this big, ugly demon that got resurrected by his kind" he said.
"Hmmm. That kind of starts to make more sense" Willow said more to herself. "Well ours is kind of more interesting" she continued, pausing for a while. "We happily found out that we get to stop another incoming apocalypse!" Willow said with fake enthusiasm.
Hearing that, Robin, Faith and Xander all groaned and flopped down on the sofa.
Buffy sighed as she leafed through the papers that she had. "What do you think? What kind of flowers do you want?" she asked. She and Dawn were sitting on lounge chairs in a room that looked like a mixture of a library and a living room.
"Anything's fine with me. Besides I don't think dad would want us to fret so much about it" said Dawn.
"I kind of wanted it to be just us. You know, at the funeral. But I guess it would be kinda rude to those who would've wanted to come. Like friends of dad" Buffy said.
"Yeah" agreed Dawn. Just then, Angel came walking by and saw the two sisters.
"Hey. How you guys doing?" he asked as he approached them.
"Been better" answered Buffy.
Angel noticed what Buffy and Dawn were working at. "Here" he said and got all the papers. "Let me take care of everything. You shouldn't have to do this again"
"Are you sure?" asked Buffy as Angel nodded.
"Thank you" she said meaningfully.
"It's no problem" he replied. His beeper then rang.
"You have a beeper?" asked Buffy, amused.
"Yeah, hey sorry, I got to go. Business meeting" he said as he stood up.
"Well look at you, Mr. Busy-bee" teased Dawn.
"It isn't exactly an easy job but I guess it pays off" he said as he started to leave. "You guys shouldn't worry too much. We'll help you with anything. Just ask" he added as the girls smiled.
"When are you gonna tell him about Spike?" asked Dawn as soon as Angel was gone.
"Maybe not today. I have too much on my mind" Buffy answered and Dawn nodded in understanding.
That day went by quickly. Both Buffy and Dawn spent most of the day together, taking comfort in each other as they shared the grief they had for their father. The two sisters spent a long time in the park that they used to go to with their dad, talking and having a picnic. Trying to taking things easy. It was easier for them to be in places where they are reminded of their father rather than rush into forgetting him all of a sudden.
Things have been settled, plans have been made. The funeral was going to be held three days from that day and the day after that, Buffy and Dawn were going to head back to Rome. Buffy finally decided that since she practically spent the whole day thinking, she decided to talk to Angel about Spike that night.
Bracing herself for the talk, she paced back and forth in her room. Hi Angel. You know how you're like really secretive sometimes? Well it's time to 'fess up. What do you know about Spike coming back from the dead? Buffy thought and practiced in her mind. She snorted at the thought that just came to her mind. That was too weird! How about: Hey. I need to ask you something. It's really important. It's a matter of sanity here. Eww. No it sounds freaky! Ok ummm. Hi. Uhh, you know how I'm a nutcase and how I need to a mental hospital ASAP? Well I was wondering, have you seen Spike around? You know like walking, talking…alive? Uuggh! Who am I kidding? I'm acting like a silly teenager trying to talk to her first boyfriend! It's Angel we're talking about! I can tell him anything! Well if it's usually about him and Spike then there's a slight problem.
Frustrated with herself for stressing so much on this, she decided to just wing it. So she made her way to Angel's office and knocked on the door.
"Come in" she heard him say.
"Oh Buffy, it's you. What can I do for you?" he asked.
"I uh actually wanted to talk to you. It's about… Spike" she trailed off when she saw a book open on Angel's desk. On the book, there was a picture of a demon. "Is that the demon that k-killed my dad?" she asked uncertainly.
"Yes" he answered trying not to look at her, starting to panic. Also wondering how on earth could she know about Spike being alive. Maybe she's just going to ask about something else about him. Wait, like what? He thought.
"Oh" she simply said as she turned away from him and walked around the office. At one moment she almost forgot why she was even at Angel's office because of the demon. Now that she knew what it looked like, then she could kill it. Make it pay for killing her dad.
"Buffy what about Spike? You're not usually like this. You can tell me anything" Angel said as he stepped away from his desk and moved towards Buffy.
Look at me now. I'm a total wreck. Buffy thought as she laughed bitterly. I'm not myself lately. Everyone sees it. I see it. And I can't even explain anything. How I feel, what I know. What is wrong with me? It has to be the loss. Grief.
"Buffy I'm serious. What's wrong?" Angel asked getting more worried by the minute.
"It's uh nothing. Forget about it. I just wanted to thank you for everything you've done for me and Dawn lately" she lied. What was I thinking? I cant tell him now. It's too soon. I even might have just been imagining it. I have got to move on. He… They wouldn't have wanted me to be like this.
"Oh. I already told you it was no problem at all. Are you sure you're okay?" he asked.
"I'm peachy" she said with a fake smile.
"Ok. Just making sure. But you know you can tell me anything right?" he asked and Buffy nodded in reply as Buffy left the office.
Buffy made her way back to her room, slipping in quietly. She sat on her bed thinking again. None of this would be happening if it weren't for my dad dying. She thought. This stupid demon and my dad dying. Because of that it makes it harder for me to move on also for Spike. It's making me act unlike myself. I have to kill it. It should help me move on, right?
Getting some of her weapons, she got ready to find the demon. Hearing Dawn take a shower, she decided to write a note saying she went out for a walk. She closed the door quietly and walked her way out of the building with a serious look on her face. She had a demon to kill.
Sorry for the late update! Reviews please !