A/N: Hope everybody had an enjoyable Easter. Now sit back and enjoy as Buffy kicks some Turok-Han ass and saves the day! :-)
(Note: Some dialog taken directly from the episode.)
Disclaimer: Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its characters are the property of Joss Whedon.
Head strong and we're standing tall
Ready to fight, we're ready to brawl
In the distance, hearin' them calling your name
The time has come to deliver the pain
'Cause you're going, going down
-Pop Evil, "Unstoppable"
Buffy tried not to think about the fact that a week had passed. She tried not to think about how, with each day she failed to rescue Spike, she felt him fade a little more. The vampire was past the point of pain now. She was pretty sure he was delirious. It was doubtful that the First even bothered to feed him. Giles once told Buffy that a vampire could survive indefinitely without blood, but if starved for long enough, would suffer permanent brain damage. Buffy really tried not to think about that.
Instead, she focused on taking care of the Potentials. More of them were arriving every day; scared teenaged girls shoved onto buses and airplanes by their Watchers, or located by the coven in England and warned before the Bringers came for them.
Sometimes, the First's servants waited for the Potentials' arrivals in Sunnydale. Which was why Buffy rushed to the bus depot late one night to escort the latest Potential to the house. She arrived none too soon to find the girl cornered by some Bringers. Buffy took the first two out before they knew she was there, then fought off a third while the last one actually tried to make a break for it. As she stabbed her opponent with his own curved blade, she shouted at the runner, "Hey! Try picking on someone my own size!"
She hurled the knife, watched with satisfaction as it stuck in the Bringer's back. As the dead man toppled, Buffy approached the girl huddled against the deserted bus station. "Rona, right? I just got word you were arriving."
Like all the Potentials, Rona was in her teens. African-American, her hair styled in long dreadlocks, wearing bib overalls and a hoodie, carrying a backpack. Up until a few days ago, Rona didn't even know she was a Potential. She had no Watcher, didn't know anything about fighting vamps and demons. Her entire world had been turned upside-down practically overnight.
As Buffy helped her stand, Rona stared at her in awe. "You're her!"
Buffy smiled, "Her is me."
Rona eyed the bodies. "Y'know, I thought, uh... Well, they told me I'd be safe here."
"Right. Well, you are. I mean, you will be...safer...with me around," Buffy winced at her less-than-confident tone, "Next time you're attacked—"
"Whoa, whoa. 'Next time'?" Rona gawked, "You sayin' I'm gonna get attacked again?"
Buffy gave an apologetic shrug. "Welcome to the Hellmouth."
The didn't run into any more trouble on the way back to the house. Buffy was mildly surprised to see all the girls who were camped out in the living room were still awake. Molly was there, along with the three newer girls. There was Vi, a redhead with an affinity for colorful clothes; Chloe, a shy girl with short, black hair and olive skin; and Eve, a pretty blonde with a southern drawl, who seemed to be something of a pessimist.
"You guys are all still up?" Buffy asked.
"Ah, who needs sleep?" Xander sat up in his makeshift bed on the couch.
Buffy gestured to the new arrival. "Everybody, this is Rona."
There was a chorus of welcomes, the last coming from Andrew, who's chair had been turned away to give the girls a modicum of privacy.
Rona frowned, uncertain. "Um... Why is that guy tied to a chair?"
"The question you'll soon be asking is, 'Why isn't he gagged?'" Xander quipped.
Giles entered the living room. Judging from the fact that he was still dressed in his street clothes, he hadn't even tried to get any sleep. "Molly, why don't you show our new houseguest where the kitchen is," he Watcher suggested, "I'm sure she's hungry after her travels."
As Molly and Rona left the room, Giles approached Buffy and asked in a quieter voice, "Everything alright?"
"She had a welcoming committee," Buffy informed him. She saw Anya bring in another sleeping bag for Rona and helped the ex-demon spread it out on the remaining floorspace.
"So, the First know Potential Slayers are making their way here," Xander remarked, his expression concerned.
Giles rubbed his eyes wearily. "I must warn the coven to be cautious."
"The First is always gonna be one step ahead of us, Giles," Buffy stated, frustration barely in check, "I need to know how to stop it. No, not stop it. Hurt it. I want to hurt it real bad. Tell me how."
Unfortunately, Giles was fresh out of resources to consult on the matter. The stolen Watchers' records were the best source they had to go on, and the information there was thin.
"I made the rounds myself," Anya added, "Tried to dig up anything useful from the demon community. The ones that didn't attack me didn't know anything or didn't talk. Either way, we've got squat."
"Well, squat's not gonna cut it," Buffy retorted, "What about the Turok-Han?"
"The vampire time forgot?" Xander drawled.
Buffy snorted. "Time may have forgotten him, but I sure as hell won't. We know stakes don't kill it, but anything in those ancient myths about what does?" she asked without much hope, "Sunlight? Fire? Germs?"
Before Giles could answer, Andrew broke in, "So, Giles, with that thing guarding the entrance to the First's crib, how will Buffy get to Spike?"
Buffy suppressed the pain of hearing Spike's name. It hurt enough just thinking about her kidnapped lover, never mind talking about him. "I really hate to admit this," she sighed, "but he's not wrong. And there's no way I'm gonna be able to help Spike until that thing is out of the way."
Eve chose that moment to interject, "Spike? Sorry, I-I'm confused. H-He's that vampire who's been killing people, right? He's the one you're worried about helpin'?"
Buffy immediately leapt to his defense, just barely keeping her tone level in spite of her frayed nerves, "He's not responsible for killing those people. This witch who works for the First was using some kinda mind-control thingie on him. B-But he's better now, Chloe."
The dark-haired girl looked almost apologetic as she corrected the Slayer, "I'm Chloe. She's Eve."
Buffy winced; she really needed to work on getting everybody's names straight.
Eve continued, "I-It's just... Well, we've been talking, and, well, do we have some kind of plan? You know, any kind of plan to keep us from dyin'?"
"We're working on it," Buffy replied, wishing she sounded more confident.
Giles spoke up, "There is one avenue that we haven't tried, yet."
"Giles!" Anya jumped to her feet, glaring at the Englishman.
"Beljoxa's Eye," he said, ignoring the former vengeance demon.
"And exactly what part of town is that avenue in?" Xander queried.
Anya hissed, "I told you no!"
"Wh-What is...Botox's Eye?" Buffy asked, puzzled by Anya's reaction.
"Beljoxa's Eye," Giles corrected with long-suffering patience, "It—It's an oracle-type creature that exists in a dark dimension."
"Internal vortex, more like," Anya reluctantly clarified.
Buffy quirked an eyebrow. "Fun?"
"Not really, no."
"The point is," Giles persisted, "only demons can open the gateway to it."
Anya scowled at him. "Excuse me. Ex-demon here."
"You've still friends in the fold. Murderous acquaintances, anyway," he muttered.
"But there's no reason to think that this Beljoxa's Eye will have any of the answers we're looking for," the ex-demon protested.
"I'll take anything I can get," Buffy replied. "Anya, please, we're running out of time," she swallowed around the tightness in her throat, "Spike's running out of time."
It was getting harder to tell his dreams from reality. Everything was in a fog most of the time, waking or sleeping.
Sometimes he heard an unfamiliar girl's voice sing to him. It was the song his mum used to sing to him, so long ago. It comforted him.
Remember the vows
That you made to your Mary
Remember the bow'r
Where you vowed to be true
Oh, don't deceive me
Oh, never leave me
How could you use a poor maiden so?
His right eye cracked open, the left still swollen shut. None of his injuries were healing. The symbols cut into his torso still looked as if they'd just been made, over a week later. It was the lack of blood that hindered his healing ability; he hadn't been fed since his abduction. He was so weak, the Bringers hadn't even bothered to use chains when they tied his wrists to the wall; just leather cords.
A couple of the Bringers were hunched beside a fire a few yards away. One of them stood, drew his knife, and approached the restrained vampire. When the hooded man got close enough, Spike made a desperate move. Taking his weight on his arms, he lifted his legs and wrapped them around the Bringer's neck, then twisted until he heard the neck snap. Spike dropped his feet back to the ground and yanked on his wrists, snapping the leather cords. He punched out the other Bringer running towards him, then took off down the nearest tunnel. Spike had no idea where he was going; all he could think about was getting as far away from the First's minions as possible. As he rounded a corner, he skidded to a halt. Buffy was waiting for him at the other end of the tunnel, her arms outstretched, a gentle smile on her face. A surge of love and relief rose in Spike and he tried to close the distance between them—
—only for the cords to pull tight when he reached their limit. Spike wasn't even surprised anymore. He'd experienced this fever-dream too many times.
Not-Buffy stepped into view, smiling cruelly. "Dreaming of me again, aren't you? Poor Spike," it cooed in false sympathy, "He still thinks I believe in him. Be realistic. I don't even believe in myself. Least not enough to risk my skin to save your ass. Not enough to face...that."
The Turok-Han snarled, then turned and wandered off. The creature had lost interest in Spike after he stopped reacting to the torture. Apparently, it wasn't as much fun if all the victim did was stare off into space.
"I'm sorry, Spike," the First pouted, "but you need to accept this. You know it never would have worked out. It's time to let go, so we can both move on. I promise, soon it'll all be—" It paused when it realized the vampire wasn't listening. His head hung low and he was muttering something to himself. Curious, the First stepped closer to listen. It smiled in amusement as it made out the words.
"She will come. She will come for me. She will come. She will come for me," Spike repeated this litany, only stopping when Not-Buffy reached out to place an insubstantial finger over his lips.
When the vampire fell silent, the First, "No. I won't."
The fact that it was wearing Buffy's face, speaking in her voice, was the harshest torture of all.
Buffy and Xander were just untying Andrew—with the implied threat of dismemberment should he try to escape—when Tara hurried into the room. She'd answered a phone call from the coven a moment ago and received some urgent news. "Buffy, Althenea called. Another Potential arrived in town day before yesterday. She's at the Sunspot Motel n-near the highway."
"Why are we just finding out about this now?" Xander asked.
"Bringers killed her Watcher before he could tell anyone he sent her," the witch replied, "I-If it wasn't for a particularly powerful seer in the coven, we w-wouldn't even know about it now."
Buffy pursed her lips. It was late in the day, but they couldn't leave the Potential out there alone. The longer she was out there without protection, the more likely the Bringers would get to her first. "Okay. There's still a couple hours of daylight left," she decided, "You guys should be safe here. I'll get her and bring her back."
As she headed for the door, Xander followed. "I'll go with you."
Andrew eagerly jumped up and started after them. "Alright! Retrieving a Potential. Let's do it!" At their scolding frowns, the blonde geek visibly wilted. "Or I could just...go wash up." He was pretty ripe, after all, having spent days tied up in that chair.
It was a short drive to the Sunspot Motel in Xander's car. Buffy had a quick word with the desk clerk, then she and Xander headed for one of the rooms.
"You sure this is it?" Xander stared uncertainly at the door.
"Clerk said it's the only check-in they've had in a week," Buffy replied, "Tourism must be down."
Xander drawled, "Right in the middle of apocalypse season."
Buffy knocked and called out, "Hello? It's okay, we're friendly. And we have eyes."
Xander noticed a gap in the curtains covering the motel room's window. He peeked in, shielding his eyes from the sunlight, then tensed as the room's interior came into focus. "Buffy. Kick the door down."
She didn't question him. Not when he was using that too-serious tone. The cheap lock gave easily to her powerful kick and she and Xander entered the room. The girl's body lay face-down on the floor, an overturned lamp lying next to her, still switched on. Blood stained the back of her shirt from where she'd been stabbed.
Buffy knelt beside the body and checked for a pulse. She looked up at her friend, face grim. "She's cold. Been dead for days."
Xander shook his head in regret. "Poor kid. She made it all the way to Sunnydale just to get herself killed. If only we'd—"
Both of them gaped when Buffy turned the body over, revealing the dead Potential's face.
"Eve." At least Buffy got her name right this time.
"Eve, who's in our house?" Xander exclaimed.
Buffy's jaw clenched in rage. She stood and stormed out of the motel room, Xander hurrying after her. She yanked the passenger door of his car open, almost ripping it off the car in her anger. "Get us back to the house," she barked. Xander hastened to obey.
Buffy burst through the front door, startling everyone inside.
"Buffy? Wh-What is it?" Willow stammered.
Buffy didn't say a word. After checking the living room and kitchen, she marched down the basement stairs. Willow, Tara, Dawn, Andrew, and Xander followed. Buffy saw all the Potentials sitting together on the basement floor, apparently engaged in girl-talk rather than making use of the training equipment.
"Get away from them!" Buffy yelled.
The girls looked at her in surprised confusion.
"Who?" Kennedy blurted, "Get away from who?"
Eve was the only one whose expression remained calm. A hint of a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. "What's the problem, officer?" she drawled.
Buffy glared at the false Potential. "I said get away from them. Now."
The girls all got to their feet, Not-Eve standing calmly while the others backed away from her.
"Buffy, what did Eve do?" a worried Dawn asked. Her eyes widened when Xander told her, "That's not Eve."
"Eve's dead," Buffy said, eyes never leaving the apparition.
A frightened Rona stammered, "I-I don't understand."
The First smirked. "Oops. One more down. Oh, well. Can't save 'em all. Can you, Buffy?" It turned to face the Potentials. "Thanks for the slumber party, girls. It's been real fun these past couple of nights. I learned a whole lot—"
"Shut up and get out," Buffy snarled.
The First threw her an arrogant look. "Or you'll do what?"
The Slayer didn't respond. They both knew there was nothing she could do to the incorporeal being.
"I'll be sending a guest over to visit y'all later on tonight. After the sun goes down, of course. Try and make him feel welcome...before he rips y'all to pieces." Not-Eve grinned maliciously. "Bye."
In a flash, the apparition was gone.
Andrew did an about-face and ran up the stairs. "I need to go wash up again!"
The confrontation had left them all shaken, especially the Potentials. Everyone was gathered around the dining table, arguing about what they should do.
"I know you're all scared," Buffy said, "You know what? I am, too. But Giles and Anya will be back soon and hopefully they will have information that we need to stop the First. In the meantime, we need to stick together. We're stronger that way. We cannot afford to fall apart now."
"She's right," Andrew agreed, "Where would the Justice League have been if they hadn't put their differences aside to stop the Imperium and his shape-shifting alien horde?"
Buffy stared at him. "Don't help me."
Xander spoke, "Buff, sun goes down and übervamp's on its way. So, a plan would be good right now."
Buffy turned an apologetic look towards Willow. "Wil, I'm sorry to ask, but..."
The redhead sighed shakily, "I know. We need a barrier."
Tara reached over and gripped her hand in reassurance.
"A major one," Buffy nodded, "Something tells me this vampire doesn't need an invite to get into the house. Can you do it?"
"We'll try," Tara answered. Willow smiled at her girlfriend in gratitude; she had more faith in her abilities with Tara's steadying presence.
The Potentials, however, were less than reassured.
"And what if that doesn't work?" Chloe all but shouted, "What if that monster gets through?"
"Then we'll deal," Buffy replied calmly.
"Deal?" Rona exclaimed, "Fight, you mean. How are we supposed to do that?"
"And with what?" Vi added.
Kennedy, as the only one who seemed to have any confidence in the Slayer's abilities, countered, "With whatever it takes!" But then she looked at the older woman with a hint of uncertainty. "Right?"
"Buffy, you fought the Turok-Han, and it almost killed you," Molly said, "You staked that thing, and it didn't die."
Vi's eyes bulged in rising panic. "Maybe it can't be killed."
The impromptu meeting quickly degenerated into squabbling. Buffy and the Scoobies watched the rising panic with a sense of helplessness. Then Willow's telepathy picked up a thought: Willow? Can you hear me?
Yes, she responded. Her eyes met Buffy's
We're losing them, the Slayer thought to her, We can't let that happen. I have an idea. Grab Tara and Xander.
The teens didn't even notice the adults leave the room. Buffy led her friends into the kitchen, where they continued their wordless dialog. Buffy needed to face the Turok-Han. The Potentials needed to see that this monster, fierce though it was, was not unstoppable. But the fight needed to take place away from the house. Fortunately, Xander knew just the place...
Deep below ground, the First sensed the approach of night. Still in the guise of Eve, it intoned solemnly, "The time has come...for all good children to say...goodnight." It turned to the waiting Turok-Han and commanded, "Take 'em all. Except for her."
The creature snarled and ran for the tunnel leading to the surface, eager for the hunt.
The First morphed into the form of Buffy and smiled at the half-conscious blonde vampire still tethered to the cave wall. "Well...alone again. I just love having you all to myself."
Spike didn't react. In his delirium, all he heard was the stranger's voice singing:
Oh, gay is the garland
And fresh are the roses
I've culled from the garden
To place upon thy brow
Oh, don't deceive me
Oh, never leave me
How could you use a poor maiden so?
The sun was setting. Bringers gathered outside the house to prevent anyone from escaping. The weapons chest was opened, its contents divided amongst the Scoobies and the Potentials. Buffy frowned as Andrew approached.
"Can I have something?" Seeing her expression, he whined, "C'mon, the Turok-Han's coming for me, too, y'know. I have a right to defend myself. If you...say so."
Buffy sighed; he had a point. But no way was she giving him a weapon. She reached into the chest and handed him a bottle of holy water instead. Andrew hugged it to his chest like a security blanket.
Dawn peered out one of the windows. "Guys. Something's happening."
The others looked as well, and quickly wished they hadn't. The Turok-Han had arrived. The door rattled in its frame as the creature began pounding on it. It wouldn't be long before the übervamp broke through.
Willow took a steadying breath and gripped Tara's hand, interlacing their fingers. The witches began to recite the incantation which would raise the protective barrier. "Caerimonia, Minerva, saepio, saepire, saepsi."
The door began to splinter under the constant barrage. Everyone shifted anxiously. Andrew began muttering, "Um...deflector shields. Deflector shields up."
The Turok-Han smashed its way into the house. It saw its prey huddled together in the living room and lunged.
"Saepio impedimentum."
There was a shimmer to the air and the übervamp slammed into an invisible forcefield.
"It's working!" Vi cried excitedly.
The witches grimaced under the strain. "It's—It's strong," Willow gasped.
"Hang on," Buffy urged.
The shimmering barrier began to waver.
"They can't hold it!" Kennedy yelled.
Rona fidgeted in panic. "What do we do? What do we do!"
"Run," Buffy ordered, "Everybody run!"
As the others made for the backdoor, Buffy placed her hands on Willow's and Tara's shoulders, signaling them to let the barrier fall. They all ran out the back and fought their way through the Bringers. They ran down the empty street for a few blocks before Xander glanced behind them and declared, "Okay, no Bringers following. Guess they'll save us for ol' Snaggletooth."
"Time to split up," Buffy said.
The Potentials stared at her, incredulous.
"Split up?" Molly blurted, "We're splitting up? Is that wise?"
Buffy looked at Xander. "Take everyone and find a safe location."
He nodded, playing to the script. "I know a place."
"What're you gonna do?" Dawn asked, the only Scooby kept out of the loop.
Buffy answered, "Try to slow it down. Lead it away from you guys. Get it to chase me."
Alarmed, her sister cried, "Buffy, you can't take that thing on yourself!"
"I'll stay," Kennedy volunteered.
"No," Buffy flatly turned her down. She grabbed the holy water from Andrew.
"Hey! I need that!"
"Get 'em out of here," she shouted to Xander, "Now!"
She threw herself at the Turok-Han the moment it showed itself. With a leap, her feet connected with the monster's chest. It was like trying to kick a mountain. Buffy dropped to the pavement while the übervamp barely even swayed from the impact. When it leaned over her, she smashed the bottle of holy water into the creature's face. The liquid didn't do nearly as much damage as it would have to an ordinary vamp, but it still left a nasty burn on the Turok's face. The übervamp retaliated by shoving her head through a car window. Buffy managed to free herself from the monster's grasp and started running in the opposite direction from where her friends went. It only took a few seconds for her to realize the Turok wasn't following her. It had gone after the others.
Buffy ran at full Slayer speed to the place Xander had chosen for the final smackdown; the construction site of the new public library. She got there just in time to see the others standing in the pit of the building's foundation, backing away from the Turok-Han. Buffy found the main switch for the work lights and turned it on, flooding the area with light, then she hopped onto the closest wall and stood with her arms crossed, cool and confident.
Willow stopped Kennedy from raising her crossbow at the Turok. "Just watch. It's showtime."
The Scoobies and the Potentials all scrambled up the nearest scaffolding, taking themselves out of immediate danger and giving themselves the best view at the same time. The übervamp ignored them for the moment, its baleful eyes focused on the Slayer.
"Looks good, doesn't it? They're trapped in here. Terrified. Meat for the beast, and there's nothing they can do but wait." She did a forward flip off the wall and landed a few yards from the Turok-Han. The creature growled at her warily as she sauntered towards it. "That's all they've been doing for days," she continued, "waiting to be picked off, having nightmares about monsters that can't be killed. But I don't believe in that. I always find a way. I'm the thing that monsters have nightmares about. And right now, you and me are gonna show 'em why. It's time," she paused dramatically, "Welcome to Thunderdome."
Andrew, unable to pass up the chance at quoting one of his favorite movies, murmured, "'Two men enter. One man leaves.'"
The fight was different this time. Buffy was well-rested, she knew the übervamp's moves, and most importantly, she swore to herself she was not going to let Spike remain a prisoner one more day. She was going to kill this thing, and then she was going to rescue her vampire.
Even with her newfound determination, victory didn't seem likely. The Turok-Han was fast, wicked-agile, and relentless. Mostly, all Buffy could really do was dodge the worst of its attacks. She still took quite a few hits from the thing. At one point it even flung her against the scaffolding where her friends anxiously watched. Kennedy dropped her crossbow in the impact. When Buffy hit the ground, she picked the weapon up and managed to get an arrow into the übervamp's shoulder. This slowed it for just a second; long enough for her to get to her feet and grab a nearby metal pole. She struck the creature over the head, then pole-vaulted over to where she saw a pickaxe on the ground. The Turok leapt after her, its foot striking her face before she snatched up the pickaxe and swung it at the creature. The Turok-Han grabbed the pickaxe on one of her swings and used its leverage to fling her against the site manager's sheet-metal office. Then it used the tool's handle to strike her, sending her flying into a pile of cinderblocks.
The übervamp tossed the pickaxe aside and rushed after her. Buffy picked up a cinderblock, tried to hit the monster with it, but the creature shattered it with its fist, then sent her sprawling from a punch to the jaw. It kicked her in the stomach before she managed to roll away and regain her feet. Another hit, and she burst through the wooden platform of yet another set of scaffolding, landing atop the swaying structure. The Turok-Han clambered up the scaffolding, found the dazed Slayer and picked her up by the throat.
Gasping, Buffy grabbed the arrow protruding from the creature's shoulder, snapped it off, then drove the broken shaft through the Turok's right eye. The monster staggered back with a howl, releasing Buffy in the process. She then rained a series of blows on the übervamp, forcing it to back up and up until it tangled itself in some orange netting. Buffy didn't let up on her attack. She grabbed a pole and swung her legs out, kicking the Turok-Han off the scaffolding and onto a pile of lumber below. She leapt after it, landing just as the creature staggered to its feet. They exchanged several hits, there strength more or less equal now.
It was just as Buffy suspected; the Turok-Han was so used to defeating its opponents quickly that it had no real staying power. All she had to do was endure the fight long enough for the creature to wear itself out. Its swings began to miss their mark as often as not, while Buffy's strikes connected over and over again. She grabbed the back of the creature's neck and slammed its head into the scaffolding's poles. Metal clanged and the übervamp reeled, accidentally turning its back to her in the process. Buffy found a nearby coil of barbwire and wrapped it around the monster's neck, pulling it tighter and tighter until its head was severed from its body.
The Potentials watched in awe as the nightmarish Turok-Han dissolved and blew away.
Buffy wiped her hands, sending up a small cloud of particles. "See? Dust. Just like the rest of 'em."
She walked towards the scaffolding and gazed up at her friends and the astonished teens. "I don't know what's coming next. But I do know it's gonna be just like this—hard, painful. But in the end, it's gonna be us. If we all do our parts, believe it, we'll be the ones left standing." She finished with the words Spike once uttered to her, "Here endeth the lesson."
Her friends smiled. Dawn beamed with pride. The Potentials and Andrew gazed at the Slayer in awe.
And a short distance from them, invisible to their eyes, the First watched them all in impotent rage. The doubts it had spent so many hours sowing in their minds was erased in a matter of moments. Worse than that, it had just lost a valuable prisoner.
This was only one battle, the First reminded itself. Let them have their paltry victory; it would still win the war.
Buffy wanted to run straight to the First's underground chamber and retrieve spike, but her friends insisted she have her injuries seen to first. While in no way nearly as bad off as her last confrontation with the Turok-Han, she had still taken quite a beating. Her ribs were taped, scrapes and cuts cleaned, and butterfly bandages applied to a deep gash on her left cheek.
"Spike will need blood," she said as she readied herself to leave.
Giles and Anya had returned from their visit with Beljoxa's Eye, though they had yet to tell her how it went. Judging from their somber looks, it wasn't anything good.
"I'll go to the butchers," Giles volunteered.
Buffy smiled gratefully, then hurried out into the night and made her way to the Christmas tree lot where the only entrance to the tunnels she knew of was located. She jumped down the hole and hurried down the tunnel, trusting the Claim to guide her. She ran into a few Bringers along the way, but they hardly slowed her down. She kept a knife she took from one of them in case she ran into any more trouble. However, it seemed the rest of the First's minions had cleared out.
Buffy's heart leapt to her throat when she entered the chamber and found Spike tied to the wall. The fact that they didn't even use chains to restrain him told her just how weakened the vampire had become. Tears stung her eyes as she took in the numerous signs of abuse; the swollen eye, the symbols carved into his flesh, the faint wheeze that spoke of fractured ribs.
Spike's head rose unsteadily, his undamaged eye regarding her with apathy. "A knife now, is it?" he slurred, too addled to realize that it wasn't the First, "What'll... What'll that... You—You can't hurt me. You're...You're just a bloody figment, you are. You're just..."
The tears she'd been fighting now spilled down her cheeks. A sob escaped her.
Spike blinked in confusion, then he felt it, felt her love and sadness and relief through the link. His lower lip trembled. "Buffy?"
Crying, Buffy closed the distance between them and used the Bringer's knife to cut him free. She let the knife slip from her grasp and fall to the ground as she cradled her lover's broken face in both hands and he weakly wrapped his arms around her. His legs would have given out if Buffy hadn't been there to hold him up. Gasping and sobbing, their lips met again and again in desperate, joyful kisses. The Claim sang with their intense emotions.
"I knew," Spike murmured between kisses, "Knew you'd come for me."
"I love you," she whispered hoarsely.
"Love you."
They rested their foreheads together, breathing each other in. Finally, Buffy drew back and gently encouraged Spike to rest his arm across her shoulders so she could take his weight. "Come on. Let's go home."
Slowly, on wobbly legs, they left the underground chamber of horrors and headed for the safety of home.