Angel looked at Xander. "Do you want to tell her or shall I? Oh, by the way, the 'evil vampire Spike' did NOT want Buffy to know this… so maybe it's time you redefined your view of 'evil' Xander."

"Spike didn't want me to know what?" Buffy asked, suspicion creeping into her voice.

Xander sighed, he knew when he'd lost "I wrote a letter to Angel. I lied in the letter, I told him Spike had found a way to remove the chip, and that he'd come back to kill you and Dawn. That's why Angel's here."

Buffy stared at Xander in shock. The tension in the room could have been cut by a knife. "Get out" Buffy finally said. "Get out and don't come back until you're ready to apologise to Spike – and to Angel for wasting his time. And to me for insulting my intelligence and acting all macho. Like I don't have enough shit to worry about Xander. Just get out, you make me sick."

"But Buffy…", Xander began. Buffy held up her hand, face averted "No Xander, get the fuck out of here. You can't behave like a true friend, so I won't treat you like one. Go!" The last word was a scream.

Xander looked at Angel for help. Angel shrugged. With one last look at Buffy, Xander turned around and fled.

Buffy collapsed onto the lounge, "Oh god, what just happened?"

Angel sat down beside Buffy and gently took her hand, "Buffy, Xander has needed somebody to put him in his place for years. You know, I've never really understood why Xander hated Spike and me so much, when he loved Anya so much. Anya has killed more people in her long, long life than Spike and I combined. He's always been such a hypocrite. I know you love him, and he'll come back to you, as always, tail between his legs. Just watch, you'll see."

Buffy sighed, "I hope so. I don't know what life would be like for me without Xander in it. I'm just so sick of his bullshit, you know? Anyway, it's late. Dawn's out with Connor, and you're not heading back to LA until tomorrow right? You guys need a place to sleep! You can have Willow's room."

Buffy stood up, business taking over, "I'll get you some towels and some clean sheets" and headed to the linen closet.

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Dawn and Connor were having a great time at the Bronze. Connor was such a cutie, and it didn't hurt Dawn's reputation at all to be seen with him. Shame about the clothes, but some girls like that grungy/homeless look. The fact that he felt like a brother didn't stop Dawn from parading Connor around, introducing him to everyone she saw.

Connor was reserved to begin with, but when he realised that the venue he was in was a place of recreational fun, he settled down and trusted Dawn not to abuse him in any way. There were so many pretty females in this place. And a lot of them were looking at him, but no like he was used to, not like he was food. Well, kind of like he was food, but it didn't feel bad. In fact, he liked it. He liked the way girls were smiling at him, and blushing when he caught their glance. He didn't understand it, he didn't understand what his hormones were doing to him, but he liked it. He felt like a great cat, a predator, on the hunt, but not to kill.

One particularly attractive girl sidled up to Connor and leant in to whisper in his ear, "You're not really here with that 'girl' are you?" Her voice sounded like music, it sounded good enough to lick. He felt paralysed with wanting to touch her, to kiss her.

Dawn saw the particular exchange, saw the submissive, anticipatory expression on Connor's face. Although she knew she had no claim on him in a romantic way, she was also not going to let him walk out with a complete stranger – and a complete stranger who appeared to be doing some kind of mojo on him. "Actually, yes, we are together," Dawn told him, pushing the woman gently away, "and it's time for us to go. See ya!" She grabbed Connor's arm before he had a chance to react, and pushed him towards the door.

"Sorry Connor," she said when they got outside, "But who knows what the woman was! And your dad and Buffy will be worried about us if we don't go home soon." As soon as Connor was out in the fresh air, he realised that he didn't care. It was like that woman inside had put some sort of hypnotizing spell on him!

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Spike was lying on his bed. Why had he thought this could work? What ridiculous part of his brain actually thought that if he came back, he could make things work? Just when Spike was on the verge of sleep, a thought came to him… something was going to happen, things were going to change… and then he drifted off slowly to sleep.

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That night, everyone slept soundly. You'd think after all of the excitement that dreams would have invaded their sleep. But no, it was almost a preternatural sleep.

Buffy awoke suddenly, wondering if something had woken her. She listened carefully, but couldn't hear any odd noises which would have woken her. With a force so strong it nearly took her breath away she realised that she HAD to see Spike. She had to see him now. She got up to go down to the kitchen. Everyone else still seemed to be asleep.

As she walked down the stairs, there was Spike. He was sitting on the lounge, head in his hands. "Spike? What are you doing here? Are you ok?" Buffy went over and stood before him.

Spike looked up to her. He had such sorrow in his eyes. "I'm sorry I'm here so early, I'm sorry I'm here at all. I just had to come, it was like there was some compulsion in me, I didn't have a choice. I woke up and just knew I had to be here." Buffy stared at him, eyes wide "I had the same thing when I woke up. I just new I had to see you, I was coming down here to grab a coffee, then I was going to head over to the mansion. I don't know why, I don't know what I'd say when I got there, but I just knew I had to see you."

She moved up closer to him, and the closer she got, the stronger the desire to touch him became. They were staring into each others eyes, drowning in each others eyes. He pulled her to him, and she rested her head on his shoulder. She meant to simply lay her lips against his neck. But when she was close enough to smell his skin, all her good intentions vanished. He smelled so warm, so incredibly warm. She wanted to put her mouth against that warmth, so she did. There was a quiet voice, deep in her mind, trying to get out, telling her that that he shouldn't be warm, he was basically dead, he shouldn't be warm. That voice was drowned out by the very warmth it was trying to deny. She licked along his neck, licked over the skin, like he was candy. He shuddered in her arms.

Her arms slid down his back, across his shoulders, folding her body around his. He'd behaved himself until then, hands at his sides, but now he reached for her, wrapped her in the strength of his arms, the force of his fingers, kneading at my her through her clothes.

She heard him whisper, "Oh, God."

Just at that moment, the door opened, and Willow walked in.

"Hi guys, did you miss me?" She stopped, staring at them, dumbfounded, then said "What the hell are you doing? I can feel magical power around the two of you that is intoxicating… what is going on?"