Catching up: "So then," Giles was looking over Willow's shoulder to contemplate the old drawing of the clan. "That means that she doesn't need Spike's demon." He looked up and took off his glasses. "Good god, that could mean she already has what she wants."

Bring me to Life.

"We do not know what she wants, but we do know some of what she needs, and if we know what she needs then we can keep those things away from her until we find out what she has planned." Giles was saying to Willow when Buffy entered the living room. The two were sitting on the couch, leaning onto the coffee table debating heatedly with each other.

"So aside from Spike," the blonde slayer broke them out of their dispute. "What else does this mega bitch want?"

"Well," Giles said with a slight stutter. "We're not quite sure."

"Well find out." She crossed her arms and prepared her leadership role to hand out instructions. "I want you and Willow and Dawn learning everything you can about the succubus and whatever it is she's doing and how and when and why. Me and Angel will go out patrolling tonight and see if we can find anything. If Faith is feeling up to it she'll tag along as well." Faith had returned from the hospital a few hours prior and was currently getting some rest in Dawn's bed. "I'm going to have Tara and Anya and Xander go down to Willy's, see if he knows anything." She shrugged out of the room and headed for the stairs.

"Buffy wait-" Willow reached her hand around the corner, catching Buffy by the arm and pulling her around to face her. "I think I can restore Spike's humanity. If she hasn't made use of it yet." She watched guarded hope fill her friend's eyes. "But it's risky. I mean, it could really mess him up if it doesn't work."

"I want to try." Buffy said quickly, ignoring the warning. More messed up than he was now? Yeah right.

"Ok, then I'll get the stuff I need…" Willow's eyes drifted above Buffy's head as she pondered the different things she'd need to cast her spell.

So dark, Spike thought jadedly. So dark, no light. Where's the girl? Must protect the girl. Can't find her… He felt around for Buffy's hand, but only felt the same cold material as before. Is this punishment? He thought to god. Finally going to hell, and now I'm back. Is this punishment? For all that I've done? He felt slight pressure touch his finger tips, warming them ever so slightly. But he pushed the thought away, confused by the strange contact. So dark, so cold.

He was getting warmer though. Each second brought a new wave of heat that flooded him. He wondered briefly if he was burning, left in the sun somewhere. But the heat brought no pain. It felt sort of like life, like fire – though it didn't burn. He opened his eyes to the peering blackness, but there was a small light in the distance, beckoning to him. Am I dying? Again? No, can't leave, can't leave the girl. Must fight. Stay away from the light, no more light. Stay in the darkness. He braced himself against the returning cold, pushing off the warm feeling he'd only just greeted so welcomely.

"Why isn't it working?" Buffy asked Willow, quite as a ghost. She didn't want to interrupt the spell; it had taken so long to get it to work.

"Sh, Buffy be patient." Willow scolded without opening her eyes. The room was dark, lit only by a small candle.

The candle flickered brightly against the dark backdrop that was the night around them. She'd done her patrolling with Angel. Faith had volunteered to go along, but began to feel woozy the second she'd stepped out the door. Her accelerated slayer healing may have healed most of the concussion already, but she was still suffering from some head trauma. They all guessed she'd be fully healed in a few days time.

Out of the corner of her eye, Buffy saw Spike's hand twitch. She took his hand in hers and squeezed his finger tips, hoping that he knew she was with him. His fingers resumed their reach and withdraw rhythm, which worried Buffy horribly.

"He's fighting it," Willow squeezed her eyes shut tighter. "I don't know why, but he is."

Buffy sat up on her knees and looked into Spike's dead eyes that stared straight towards the ceiling, the usually electric blue looking almost grey in his comatose state. His mouth twitched as he tried to form words, but opened barely enough to show visibly. He huffed out a breath that distracted Willow long enough to curse angrily at her candle. She'd have to get new ingredients and start the spell over.

There's the girl, there's my girl. Spike felt Buffy's hand then, for the first time since their last visit to hell. Time to protect my girl. Because my girl needs protecting. With an angry mental shove, he expelled the remnants of the light from him, and forced his demon forward to see into the dark with out difficulty. Suddenly he felt he could move again.

"Oh!" Buffy gasped and yanked her hand away from the hissing vampire beside her. She jumped to her feet and blocked him from Willow. She didn't know why though, Spike would never hurt Willow.

Spike violently snatched Buffy into his arms and growled low in his chest. The sound reverberated through her and for the first time in a long time, she felt scared of him. Scared to be held by such a monster. This wasn't Spike. Spike was gentle – or gentler than this anyway. He wouldn't hurt her, and he would never look down at her like that. No, this Spike scared her. More than Angelus had.

"Buffy I think I've figured this out." Willow tried to turn her focus away from the demon long enough to explain the situation to Buffy. "I think when she took his humanity, because he was all humany, he was stuck in the empty half of him. When he went into game face mode he brought back his demon and well, yeah. That's the best way I can explain it. Just a theory though, doesn't really –"she squealed as Buffy shouted out in protest against Spike's too tight embrace. "Buffy!"

Stomping sounds from the stairs alerted her that they would soon have company.

Spike had his arms wrapped around Buffy's torso, fists digging into her spine with inhuman strength. Buffy slammed her own fists against his chest but only achieved getting winded by him, leering down at her.

What? Idiot, don't hurt the girl! You're supposed to be protecting her! His human reminded him.

Ashamed, Spike righted Buffy on the floor and "gently" took her hand and leaned into her. Nervously she held him, afraid that he'd snap again. A mob of people were in her bedroom now. Giles, Tara, Dawn, Xander, Faith… Everyone. And all were holding some sort of weapon created to harm vampires.

Spike growled at them furiously, how dare they threaten him?

Calm down, you're just going to scare the slayer. The voice warned him again. Do what I would do – hold her – Gently! The voice protested as Spike made to hold her again too tightly. He forced his muscles to relax though as he wrapped an arm protectively around her middle and pulled her slowly against him – careful not to hold too tightly again.

Buffy flinched slightly, which didn't bother the demon, but made the voice in Spike's head wince terribly. See what you've done? There – look. She's scared of you. Is that what you wanted? How are you supposed to protect her if she's scared of you? With a slight grumble, Spike draped his other arm around her and made small circles on the back of her hand lightly with his finger. There you go! The voice rewarded him with strong enthusiasm.

Buffy calmed slightly, it seemed Spike was back to his somewhat normal demon self. But the human part of him – his soul? – was no where to be found.

"It's ok," she told the others. "We're fine." She pressed herself back against him, which made his human voice sigh in relief.

"Oh, good." Giles hesitated. After a long and slightly awkward silence, he gave her his information. "We found the name of this succubus, she's called Marfach. She is indeed one of the succubi that Willow discovered in the text yesterday, but she was actually from a more recent clan called the leanaí bás a fháil which translates to immortal children. They came from Ireland about one solid century ago. They fed off of all of the town's virgins until there were no more, and then proceeded to feed off of children. They became quite powerful there, wealthy, never hungry, that is until the slayer of the time found them and killed all but one. She let Marfach live only because she had rescued her lover from a werewolf. Really she killed him later, but by that time the slayer had already passed – but that's not relevant.

It seems that she is trying to resurrect her brother's and sister's, so that she can take rule over a small vulnerable place like they once had. So that would mean, that she didn't want Spike to feed off of, it would mean that she needed a superior soul to use in her ritual." He concluded.

Everyone stared at Giles, not sure what to make of the situation.