See Part One for disclaimer and details. Thanks to all the people who have reviewed so far, please - keep 'em coming.
Part Two: Love Spell
East End, London, England
November 24th, 1998
Wesley Wyndam-Pryce ventured into the depths of the Council facility, and stared at the imprisoned vampire known as Drusilla.
The Watcher was no longer the arrogant amateur he had once been, the man whose supernatural experience had been limited to facing two vampires under controlled circumstances was no more. Wes had seen and done too many things in the pursuit of Quentin Travers' orders: he had tried to communicate with the Spirit Guides, he had attempted to speak with the creature known as Beljoxa's Eye, and he had interrogated a number of people that were members of a coven in Devon in order to carry out his duty.
Wesley had even encountered an assassin who'd wanted to join the Order of Taraka, after an informant had told him that the hired killer might have the information he sought, and somehow lived to talk about that particular duel to the death.
But in the end, all of his efforts had gotten Wyndam-Pryce precisely nowhere. One of his friends, a man named Robson, had subsequently suggested a more 'unorthodox' approach to the problem. Which had led to the capture of one-fourth of the infamous group of vampires that had terrorized Europe back in the 19th century, and Wesley's current presence here in one of the Council's dungeons.
"Is she going to wake up soon?" Wes asked as Robson joined him.
"Shouldn't be long," the other Watcher shrugged. "Tranquillisers don't work that well on the undead, after all."
"Very well," Wesley frowned. "All right then, go on. I'll handle it from here."
"You sure?" Robson asked.
"Yes. Go."
The man nodded and left the room, walking up the stairs. Wesley waited till Drusilla woke up and then he said roughly, "Can you understand me, vampire?"
The insane creature didn't appear to take any notice of Wes at first. "Can't see him no more," Dru muttered. "My poor William, he speaks to the stars. No more dancing with the daffodils and the princess."
Wesley frowned. His aim was to try to get Drusilla to talk about anything to do with the previous timeline, assuming she had the knowledge he sought, but the human wasn't sure if this had anything to do with that. "I take it you're talking about William the Bloody, the childe you sired back in 1880? The vampire also known as Spike?"
"Oh, my precious Spoike. No more tea parties for 'im. My dollies will be all so sad," Drusilla mumbled.
Wesley decided to change his approach somewhat. "You were sired by the vampire known as Angelus during 1860, who was also the one who gave you the name of Drusilla. In life, you were the human being known as Anne Fairfax-"
"Poor little Anne," Drusilla interrupted Wesley. "Her mummy ate lemons, raw. Loved the way they made 'er mouth tingle, she did. She loved custard and brandied pears, and pomegranates. They used to make her face and fingers all-l-l red."
Wes was beginning to get annoyed. "What do you know about the future? The one that now will be, and the one that would have been if not for the Belial siphon spell?"
Suddenly Drusilla began to laugh, a vision appearing within her mind. "Oh, my precious kitten! The Queen of Cups has put 'er mark on you, she has." Then she scowled, "The witch, the witch, the wicked redheaded witch! Oh, she's got so much to answer for..."
Wesley sighed. This was obviously going to take a LOT longer than he'd been anticipating.
Sunnydale High, Sunnydale
November 26th, 1998
A lot had happened in Sunnydale in the months since Xander Harris had met Tara Maclay.
Rack finally got over his concerns and really began raking in the cash from his customers. Buffy Summers eventually came home an emotional wreck from her four-month LA adventure, not long after senior year started. Xander and Tara had privately gotten together often over the course of those months in the search for her, but maintained only sporadic contact afterwards, a distant friendship but nonetheless still a real one.
Back in October, the new Slayer named Faith Lehane had arrived in town, with the vamps named Kakistos and Mr. Trick hot on her heels. Faith had put on a good show of appearances, but deep down she'd been terrified of the Greek Freak and rightly so. Buffy had helped the brunette Chosen One slay the ancient cloven-hoofed vampire out to suck the very marrow from their bones, and finally decided to get on with her own life as well.
The problem with that, though, was that Angel was returned from Hell by one of the Powers That Be after spending one hundred subjective years being tortured there. Buffy had found him, and subsequently hidden his presence from the rest of the gang. Which was probably why Miss Summers had failed to notice how Willow and Xander had entered 'more than friends' territory during Homecoming, even though those two were both dating other people.
After the Band Candy incident, and then the revelations that Angel was back and Faith's new Watcher had been an evil fake, Xander had finally confessed to Tara what he had been up to with Miss Rosenberg. Miss Maclay had subsequently advised Harris to simply end it before he made things even worse, once the witch learned that he didn't want to choose Willow over Cordelia.
( Okay. I can do this, ) Xander thought to himself as he paced in the library. ( It's real simple. I'll just go up to her and say, "Willow, it's over. That whole illicit smoochies thing between us is now officially a thing of the past." Then we can simply join Cordy and Oz for an evening of innocent, fun-filled bowling. What could go possibly wrong? )
Dragon Cove Magic Shoppe, Sunnydale
Not long after sunset
Spike wandered into the establishment, feeling hung over and pissed.
Drusilla had left him ages ago in Brazil before getting caught by the Council, and he'd been reduced to nothing but a shell of what he'd once been because of that. William the Bloody's fragile and demented sire had been his entire world ever since the British vamp had staked his undead mother 118 years ago. Spike had figured that he and Dru would be together forever, occasionally drowning the world in blood and making love in between till the planet itself came to an end.
Alas, but that alliance with the Slayer months ago against Angelus had ruined everything. Spike now had nothing to live for after Drusilla's rejection, and he'd been spending his nights trying to drink himself into oblivion because of it. A futile task, given the whole immortal creature of the night deal, but one he was investing quite a bit of effort into.
The shopkeeper soon found him looking at one of the books. "Did you come in through the back?" she asked, looking around in confusion.
"Yeah," Spike growled. He had come to a decision about what to do regarding Dru. "Look, I'm after a curse."
"A what?"
"A curse!" Spike yelled in exasperation. "Y'know, for something nasty to be inflicted. Boils, maybe. Pustules. Leprosy, that sort o' thing. I wanna go for the gusto here!"
"I'm sorry, but here at the Dragon Cove, we're, uh, we're not really into that sort of activity," the storeowner said hesitantly. "I've heard there's a place downtown that may be more suited to what you're after."
"Yeah?" Spike dropped the book. "So whereabouts is it, exactly?"
"I'm not sure, I've never actually been there myself-" She broke off as the doorbell jingled, and Willow walked in. "Would you excuse me for a moment?"
"Fine." Spike ducked behind a bookcase as soon as he saw the familiar redhead.
"Blessed be," the shopkeeper said pleasantly. Willow was a regular customer after all. "So, what'll it be today?"
"Here, it's all on the list," Miss Rosenberg replied.
The shopkeeper frowned as she examined the piece of paper. "Willow, some of these ingredients are used in a variety of love spells." Spike suddenly pricked up his ears at that little tidbit of information and he became quite interested in their conversation. "Honey, are you sure you know what you're doing?"
"Oh yeah," Willow replied at once. "I mean...I know how to do a love spell, but this is more of an anti-love spell. Yeah. Uh, kind of a de-lusting thing. The supplies are basically the same, right?"
The shopkeeper nodded, recalling another customer's interest in such a thing. "Basically, although raven feathers tend to breed a little more discontent than canary. Let me just change that for you..." The woman quickly bagged Miss Rosenberg's purchase after the ingredient alteration. "That'll be $16.40 for the lot."
"Great, thanks." Willow paid the bill, then grabbed her supplies and left.
The shopkeeper turned around, and was confronted by the nightmare visage of Spike's vampire features. Before she even had time to scream, the peroxide-blond demon sank into his fangs into her throat and quickly drained her, dragging the body down to the floor.
Spike then leapt up, wiping his lips and grinning like a madman. "The hell with that bloody curse, Dru, I've got me a better idea."
Sunnydale High Science Lab, Sunnydale
A short while later
Willow was working away with her potions and powders in the classroom, and Xander was trying to figure out how to tell her about his recent decision. Playing around with the canary feather, he suddenly noticed something familiar about the pages Willow was working from and stepped around her to get a better look. "Is that a spell book?"
Willow frantically tried to obscure it with her hand. "No, no, no! Chemistry book."
Her efforts were pointless though as Xander said accusingly, "Wait a minute. This is love spell stuff! You're doing a love spell?"
"No! Of course not! This is a purely scientific..." Willow babbled as Xander picked the book up and read its title, which was 'Witchcraft'. "...de-lusting spell for us. I thought it would go better if you didn't know."
Xander was more than a little annoyed as he said, "Are you nuts, or have you forgotten that I tend to have bad luck with these sorts of spells?"
"But you said you wished that these feelings would just go away!" Willow replied desperately.
"Well, we don't need to resort to the black arts in order to do that, believe me!" Xander told her. "Look, Willow, this whole 'us' thing? I was going to tell you anyway tonight that it's over. As in no more kissing, no more groping, from now on we're just good friends. So I'll see you later at the bowling alley with Cordy and Oz." Harris then walked to the door, switched on the lights and left the girl behind. In more ways than one.
( Damn it, ) Willow sighed as she stared at the mortar and pestle. ( Then again, maybe it's all for the best... )
"Hullo, Red."
Willow was filled with instant terror, as she turned around and saw Spike standing where Xander had been less than a minute before. "Spike? I, I thought you left town..."
"Yeah, well, now I'm back." William the Bloody slowly advanced towards her. "Need yer help on something, actually. Don't mind helpin' out an old friend, do you?"
"No, of course not-" Willow said automatically. Then she blinked, waking up to reality. "Uh, what, what did you have in mind?"
"A spell," Spike slurred, taking a long swallow of whiskey from his bottle. "A spell, pet. That's what I need. I'm gonna get back what's mine, I am. Teach her to walk out on me."
"Her? Who's her?" Willow asked tentatively.
"DRUSILLA, you stupid bint!!" Spike roared, vamping out. "You can do that, right? You can make Dru love me again? Make her crawl back to me on her hands and knees?"
Willow knew nothing about what Wesley was currently up to in merry old England, so she said feebly, "Well, I can try."
Spike grabbed her by the neck. "What do you mean, try? You'll bloody well do it!"
"Yes, I'll do it!" the terrified Willow nodded.
Spike let go of her and in a drunken rage smashed his bottle against the classroom workbench. He then grabbed Willow again and threatened her with the sharp edges. "You lie to me, and I'll shove this through your face! You want that?"
Willow shook her head, utterly petrified. "No..."
"Right through to your BRAIN!" William the Bloody snarled.
"No, please, no..." Willow's pleading tone was now pitiful. "I'll do whatever you want! Okay?"
Abruptly, Spike turned off the threats and resumed his human face. "All right, then. Get started." He let her go, and gestured to Willow's nearby spell book. "And hurry up, ducks. Don't have all night."
Reluctantly, Miss Rosenberg began to gather her supplies and opened the spell book to the right place. She knew several things: one, she'd never even attempted anything like this before. Two, Spike wasn't likely to be in a very forgiving mood if it didn't work. And three, she had better not try the same spell Amy had done back on Valentine's Day, or else Spike would kill her the moment a love-crazed Buffy threw herself at the British vampire.
"Now, I've not exactly an expert at this, y'know. I-I-I can't guarantee it's gonna work right away," Willow confessed to the undead guy.
"That's all right, luv," Spike shrugged. "If at first you don't succeed, I'll kill the hell out of you."
Willow gulped, and resumed her preparations. After a grumbling Spike had handed over a sample of his blood, the redhead incanted her magic spell. A brilliant emerald-green light subsequently erupted out of the bubbling glass beaker above the Bunsen burner, startling both Spike and Willow the millisecond before hurling both of them to the floor.
The light moved outwards in an ever-expanding 360-degree circle, losing intensity as it did so. By the time it reached the exterior of the school building, the circular light had already diminished to the point of invisibility. But the magical power it represented remained as strong as ever, and the spell quickly engulfed the entire town.
Willow and Spike slowly and hesitantly got up. As soon as they laid eyes on one another, both vampire and witch engaged in a mad, passionate and frantic kiss.
"I love you," Willow and Spike both whispered at the same time, before they went back to making out and tearing at each other's clothes.
Sunnydale High Parking Lot, Sunnydale
Two minutes earlier
"Where the heck is she?" Cordelia said impatiently, tapping her foot. "I didn't even want to do this, and now Willow is flaking out on us?"
"I'm sure she won't be long," Xander told her soothingly. "Will was just, uh, finishing off something in the science lab. I was right there barely a few minutes ago."
"I'll go get her," Oz decided, as he trotted off in that general direction. Xander and Cordy subsequently engaged in small talk till the spell hit; and then, it was as if they'd lost all control of themselves as their hormones surged and the romantic fireworks began.
Sunnydale High's most mismatched couple had no idea that Willow had botched the love spell so that everyone "fell in love" with the first person they saw after getting hit by the magicks. In the case of Xander Harris and Cordelia Chase the spell amplified what was already present, with the effects being most profound.
Not far away, the first person Oz saw was...Harmony Kendall.
Sunnydale High Science Lab, Sunnydale
November 27th, 1998
Long after midnight, Willow and Spike were still oblivious to everyone and everything except each other. Thanks to the love spell, they had also engaged in the traditional sort of activity when two people felt this way about one another. They had gotten dressed again afterwards, though; the classroom was a bit too cold for Willow's taste to remain naked after losing her virginity to William the Bloody.
"You know, Spike, I've often wondered about something that Angel mentioned once. Do people really get a rush out of being bitten, if it's done right?" Willow asked.
Spike frowned. "Don't wanna talk about that nancy boy, pet. He uses way too much hair gel, and he wears lifts."
"But is it true?" the redhead really wanted to know.
Spike stared into Willow's sea-green eyes with his own blue ones. "Willow, my sweet, precious plum. I could never harm a single hair on your head, don't you get that? I'd fight to the death to protect you, I would-"
At that moment Amy Madison found the enthralled duo as she entered the lab. She had come to the school looking for Giles, but the man had gone on a retreat out of town. Amy hadn't known who else to go to once she'd realized that the entire town was under some sort of love spell; and the only reason she wasn't affected was because the teenage witch had taken the precaution of casting a protection spell on herself, after the last fiasco back in February.
"Willow, I've been looking everywhere for you! Did Xander get you to do a new love spell for him?" the Madison girl demanded.
"Droopy Boy?" Spike demanded, reminded of Angel's little 'gift' during Parent-Teacher Night. He angrily went into game face and Amy instantly recoiled upon seeing it.
( Oh dear God, he's a vampire?! ) she thought to herself. ( All right, all right, don't panic... )
Willow blinked. "Xander? No, of course not." She shrugged. "Okay, I did try to do a love spell earlier to get Drusilla back for Spike, but it totally bombed. Well, I mean, that was before he and I realized that we were soul mates."
Amy shook her head, unable to believe what she was hearing. "Willow, trust me. Your spell worked, just not the way you thought it would. So we need to reverse it, people's lives are in danger from not being able to think straight! Come on, you remember what happened back on Valentine's Day don't you?"
Willow frowned, remembering all too well. She stared at Spike, "Do you think she's right? That all this is just a spell?"
"Oh, piffle," Spike said comfortingly as he went back to his human mask. "But look, darling, if it makes ya feel better go ahead and undo what 'appened earlier on. It won't make any difference to me. To us."
"Oh, Spike, I love you so much!" the young woman exclaimed happily. Willow subsequently gave him a deep kiss full on the mouth. One that the former poet returned with a great deal of enthusiasm, due to a mix of sexual desire and bloodlust.
Amy waited till Willow and Spike were done, then said hesitantly, "Let's do this then."
Sunnydale High Science Lab, Sunnydale
A while later
It was almost sunrise before the two witches were finally ready to proceed. Spike had gotten bored and wandered off for a walk, something Amy was glad had happened. Once the spell was undone, if she was right there was going to be one pissed off Master vampire looking for revenge, and she had no intention of becoming vamp chowder.
"Okay, I think we're ready. Let's do this," the young woman said to Willow.
The redhead turned towards the door, "I'll go get Spike-"
Miss Madison had no other choice: she had to punch Willow out cold. Amy winced, "Oh, that's gonna hurt later. And in more ways than one."
Amy sighed, then squared her shoulders and began to chant. When she was done, there was another explosion of light: but this one was pale blue in color, and it quickly spread out the same way and undid the original magicks invoked all those hours ago.
Sunnydale High Parking Lot, Sunnydale
A few seconds later
A freaked-out and semi-nude Harmony Kendall ran away from Oz's van, as the werewolf musician actually made an expression and said to himself, "Huh."
Sunnydale Motor Inn, Sunnydale
The same time
Cordelia Chase woke up naked alongside an equally naked Xander Harris, and looked around at her surroundings and her partner. She then started screaming her lungs out in that cramped and sweat-soaked motel bed.
UC Sunnydale, Sunnydale
The same time
There was a loud crash as Tara Maclay threw a statuette into the mirror, completely ashamed and disgusted over the lewd acts she'd committed tonight. Since the first person she'd seen when the love spell had hit was herself, given how she'd been staring into said mirror; which was now just a million shards of broken glass.
Mobile location, downtown Sunnydale
A while later
Rack, who had been mystically protected from the effects of Willow's love spell just like Amy, finally managed to stop laughing about what had happened to the rest of the town. "Gotta love that wacky Hellmouth."
Clearing at the top of Breaker's Woods, California
A few hours later
Giles fiddled with the volume control of the radio. "And in local news, the town of Sunnydale has been quarantined due to some sort of chemical leak from the nearby Army base under the command of Colonel Samuel Newsome. Apparently the town's citizens underwent some bizarre behavioural changes last night, with everything ranging from violence to sexual promiscuity. Local authorities have issued a statement addressing the situation, but the Army has yet to officially make any comment. In the meanwhile, Sunnydale has effectively shut down for the day. All schools and businesses are closed, and residents are being advised to stay at home and rest up. The Mayor's office has ordered the entire town remain sealed, until the chemical is identified and all the symptoms disappear. We'll bring you more on this ground-breaking story as it develops."
"Oh, bugger!" was the Englishman's only comment as he stared at the radio.
Somewhere in southern California
Later that day
Spike was in a bad mood, as his black '59 DeSoto tore along the highway.
After being released from the love spell, he had wanted to kill and dismember and indiscriminately bathe in blood for all the indignities that had been heaped upon his person. In particular, the vampire had wanted to rip Willow apart so badly he could taste it. But before Spike could head back to the science lab he'd heard the approaching voices of Angelus and the bloody Slayer, and without minions or a power base, he'd decided discretion was the better part of valour and all that rot.
Since the odds were that the witch would be unapproachable for the foreseeable future, Spike had subsequently chosen to get out of Sunnydale for now and strike later when nobody expected it. Besides, after he'd sobered up he'd known what to do with regard to Drusilla. Find her, tie her up and torture her until his sire liked him again.
( That's all it'll take, I'd wager. Just be the same Spike she fell in love with all those years ago, ) the vampire thought in satisfaction. ( Hang on, pet, I'll find you soon enough. )
East End, London, England
The same day
Within the Watcher prison facility, Wesley finally gave the order for Drusilla to be exposed to the sunlight after three days of listening to her lunatic babbling.
TBC...