Chapter 5

"What?" Willow woke to find herself in Buffy's room. "How did I get here?"

"Don't know." Willow startled in her bonds at the sound of Oz's voice.

"Oz?"

"Told you they'd be awake, pet." Spike voice drawled from the doorway.

"Spike, Willow looks positively edible in those lovely restraints," Buffy giggled at the sound of her voice.

"Buffy, what's going on?" Oz was calm as usual.

"We are going to make you like us," Spike was about to ask Buffy how they were going to get the new additions to their family back to the mansion when she took some handcuffs out of the bag she was carrying.

"Spike go put these on Oz, I've got Willow."

"Buffy, are you going to make us-"

"Vampires." Buffy broke in "Are you ready to go?"

"No, please just let us go." Oz answered before anyone could reply.

Buffy growled and began to pout, "Something wrong, luv?"

"They don't want to be a part of our family."

Spike pushes Oz back down on the bed. "Buffy, I am sure they are just nervous, but if they don't want to be in the family, then we can always take them back to the mansion and put them with the others."

Buffy nods and looks over to Willow and Oz. "You have a choice, join us or be like the others."

"Buffy, I don't want to be a vampire, I just-" Willow breaks off into a sob.

"Oz, what about you?" Spike held Buffy as she waited for Oz's reply.

"No, I can't, I won't become a vampire."

"Then, you will join the others on the wall!" Buffy roared at the two on the bed.

"Giles! Giles! Wake up!" Xander was screaming for Giles to wake up.

"Xander. Could you possibly refrain from screaming in my hospital room?"

"Giles, we're not in the hospital anymore."

Giles slowly lifted his head to see Xander chained to the wall next to him. "Where are we?"

"Nearest I can tell we are in some old abandoned house. I think Buffy plans to torture us when she comes back."

"Rupert?"

"Ms. Calendar? What are you doing here?" Giles' voice was uneven as he looked into the eyes of the woman he was falling in love with.

"I-I don't know? Where is here?"

"Buffy's got herself some new digs."

Jenny looked from Rupert to see Xander chained to a wall as well. "I see. What exactly is going on?"

"What do you mean she's stuck in the past?" Giles was furious. The gang had spent hours trying to get through to anyone or thing in the netherworld that could bring Buffy back.

"Where did Spike go?" Dawn, like the rest, had been oblivious to the fact that Spike was no longer next to them.

"I don't know. I haven't seen him since we found out what time period Buffy was in," Willow stood up as Giles screamed for Spike to answer him.

"Bloody Hell! We've lost the both of them now!"

"Settle down, Rupes. I just went to clear my mind."

"Well, now that you're clear, it seems that Buffy is trapped in the past and she can't get back."

"Giles, what if she does something to change the future?" Willow looked as if she'd swallowed a toadstool.

"Not to worry, Red. I took care of that."

All heads turned toward Spike but he offered no explanation.

"Care to elaborate, Spike?"

"No," Spike turned on his heel and began to head to the stairs when Willow put him in a binding field.

"If you know something you had better tell us."

"Nope, don't think you lot are ready to know the truth yet," Spike's eyes had a deadly glow to them as he turned back toward the stairs and left Willow's binding field. "Oh, and Red. Your magic tends not to work on those more powerful."

"Willow, what did he mean 'those more powerful?'" Xander had a terrified look on his face as Willow finally moved her hand from where she'd held it to enact the Spell.

"I-I don't know Xander. I just –" Willow got lost in her train of thought while Giles tried to move her to the couch.

"Xander, go see if you can get an explanation out of Spike."

"On it, Giles."

As Xander headed up the stairs, he kept thinking of the best way to approach this. "Spike, give me an explanation or I'll-I'll-I'll find a way to hurt you!"

"Come in Xander," Spike's voice was low when he answered Xander's demand. "Close the door."

Xander did as Spike said and moved to sit in the chair next to the bed. "So, what exactly is going on?"

"I don't know too much, mind you. Only what I can see," Spike rummaged through the nightstand until he found a pack of cigarettes. "None of this gets back to the Watcher or the Witch. You hear me?" Xander only nodded, waiting for the rest of the story while Spike lit his cigarette. "The only reason you're in the loop is because you're next in line for the change."

"Change, what change?"

"Do you remember last year, telling Dawn how we'll never know what it is like to be normal?"

"Yeah."

"Well, that coin works on the flip side too. You would never have known what it is like to be supernatural. That is what's going to change. You could have left at any time, or stayed gone when you did leave, but you came back to help Buffy. This is why you were chosen to be among the last warriors."

"What are you talking about Spike?"

"This." Spike held out a book for Xander to take. "This is the book that tells everything. It was written by Buffy and me a long time ago. You see. We aren't exactly who we say we are. And neither are you."

Xander opened the book to be hit by a wave of light. "Spike? What's going on?"

"Destiny."

Xander handed the book back to Spike with a new understanding of all his lives and the reason why he had to be put to rest for so long. "It is good to see you again old friend. Am I to call you by your given name?"

"It's still Spike, mate. Been that for too long now," They laughed as Xander remembered the reason for the change.

"It is really coming?"

"'Fraid so. Damn! We need Buffy."

"I've got it."

"Giles, we need to go check on, Xander!" Willow startled Giles when she jumped up at the appearance of Xander.

"Oh. What did you find out?" Giles moved to offer Xander a seat.

"Nothing. He's just really concerned about Buffy."

"He knows something," Willow looked pissed as she hoisted herself from the couch. "And I'm going to find out what it is!"

"No! You don't want to do that," Xander jumped in front of Willow. "Because he, um, he was, uh, irrational when I left. I don't think he'll be too receptive of you barging in and making accusations."

Giles and Willow seemed to contemplate this for a long moment before reluctantly agreeing to wait before asking him about it again.

"So, did he say anything that could be of help in finding her?"

"No, not that I recall, just something about Tempus better get his act together."

"Tempus, why would he say Tempus?"

"Because he's not just a myth," Everyone jumped when they heard Spike's voice come from the front hall.

"Spike! What do you mean?" Willow was sitting on the couch looking up at him in mixed fear and curiosity.

"I mean, he actually controls the movements of time."

"So if we can find Tempus, we can get Buffy back?" Giles looked at the book in front of him trying to will it to give him an answer.

"Yeah, but you can't get to it from here. I'll go find him. Just don't do anything stupid." Spike looked at Xander in an unspoken agreement that he was to protect the others until it was their time for the change.

"Where are you going?" Willow sounded nervous at the thought of losing the only other person able to hold his own as well as Buffy.

"To find an old friend," at that, Spike picked up the bag he'd placed at the front door and left.

"Don't worry Will. He'll be fine." Xander put an arm around Willow as she looked back at the old yearbook.

"No, I'll be there in about a twenty minutes. Just tell the girls to be ready. Yeah. Thanks Leo." Spike turned off of the freeway to go into the city of San Francisco. "Well, it's a good thing I'm not allergic to the sun anymore."

As the old DeSoto pulled up to an old red house that looked like it had been there for many years, he remembered the house he and Buffy had shared when she fled Sunnydale after killing Angel. I wish you were here with me, luv.

Spike got out of the car to meet up with Leo on the porch. "Hey! Look, the girls want to ask you a few questions before they help you. They don't trust easily. You know how it is."

"Yeah, I was sorry to hear about Gideon. We both were. Well, shall we go in?"

Leo led Spike into the house where he saw the sisters standing in the doorway.

"Just because Leo trusts him doesn't mean we have to," one of the sisters said. Leo couldn't hear it, but Spike's supersensitive hearing did.

"There really is no reason you should trust me. I haven't given you reason to," Spike extended his hand to the red-haired one who'd made the comment. "Name's Spike."

"Spike, huh. I'm Paige, this is Piper, and this is Phoebe," Paige gestured to each of her sisters as she shook Spike's hand.

"Now, Leo says you can help me find a way to get to the past to save Buffy."

"Yeah. We just have one question. If you're really as powerful as Leo says you are, why can't you do it yourself?" Paige finally released his hand when Piper asked her question.

"My power is linked to her you see, if she's not here, I'm not as powerful. And time travel takes a lot of power. So, will you help me?"

"Yes, but how did it happen in the first place?" Phoebe said. She felt the concern and love that Spikre had for the woman they were looking for. She also felt the immense force of good that was inside of him.

"That is one of the things I don't know."

"Phoebe, go get the book and the chalk, Leo, go up there and see what they know, Paige, Spike, come with me to the kitchen."

Everyone nodded and went their separate ways to begin the hunt for Buffy.

"So, you're trying to find your girlfriend? What exactly did you notice about the way she left?" Piper looked into his eyes trying to judge his answer.

"I noticed that she wasn't in the bed when I woke up that morning."

"And she didn't have any reason to leave?"

"No, I love her. I would never hurt her if that's what you're implying. She's my world. I feel like I'm dying without her."

"Piper, back off. Can't you see he's really concerned about her?" Paige began to stir the potion they were brewing as Piper added some Murdock Root.

"Fine, but we still don't know if this will work."

"GOT IT!" Phoebe's voice came from above them just before the clamor of feet running down the stairs.

"What have you got Phoebe?" Piper looked at the chalk and the papers in her sisters hands.

"You said that you asked the reality Buffy was trapped in to be suspended as a parallel universe to ours right?"

"Yeah. So what's the point?"

"All we have to do is get you to the other universe and with the potion and the spell, I think we can. Provided someone goes with you to make sure you make it back."

"Well, which one of you is going then? I'd kind of like to get this over with."

"I'll go. Piper stepped forward just as Leo appeared in the kitchen. "Hey, what'd I miss?"

"Phoebe figured it out. And I'm going with him wherever he goes to make sure they can get back."

"Okay, but be careful Piper. I don't want you to get hurt. Wyatt and Chris need you."

"So, Spike, as near as I can tell, you two will be taken to the manor that exists in the past. I'll try to send a premonition to the Phoebe then to let them know that you will be coming and that you aren't evil."

As Piper finishes the potion, Phoebe begins to say the spell. "And they're off."

Phoebe laughs at Paige as they begin to clean up the kitchen. "Are you sure the spell sent them where we wanted them to go?"

"Xander! Where is Spike? I know you know. Now where is he?" Willow began to push furiously at his chest.

"Will, calm down. I really don't—."

"I KNOW YOU KNOW!" Willow's eyes began to turn black as she rose off of the floor. "NOW TELL ME!"

"Will! Don't make me hurt you!" Xander put his hands up in a motion that earned a bark of laughter from the fully enraged Willow.

"YOU hurt ME?" Willow aimed an energy ball at Xander to emphasize her point only to have it come hurtling back at her.

Willow looked up at Xander from her place on the floor. "How did you do that?"

Xander looked at her and smiled before walking to the stairs. "I'm going to take a nap."

"Now you're acting like Spike? What the HELL is going on?" Willow looked down at her hands that were now bound in a green field. "Xander! Release me NOW!"

"Sorry, can't hear you."