Willow

"Where is she?" I'm pacing back and forth in the living room, growing hysterical. "She left here hours ago!" I look at Dawn, Xander and Anya each in turn, waiting for some kind of logic to escape one of their lips.

"Calm down Will, she's probably fine." Xander said seriously, raising a hand to stop me in my steps.

I put my arms out to the side, nearly defeated. "But what if she's not?"

"Buffy's a big girl, she can take care of herself." He seems sure enough, but I don't miss the buried panic that light up his eyes.

"I bet she's with Spike." Dawn offers. "They've been spending lots of time together since she got back." Her smile is hopeful, and I don't dare argue with her.

I turn around quickly when I hear the backdoor open, and together we all head towards the kitchen in investigation. We all stop dead in the doorway though when we see Spike there, leading Buffy over to sit at a stool at the island.

"Evenin'," he says to us, smiling in welcome at Dawn. We're even more surprised when he makes his way over to the fridge and pulls out a bunch of ingredients that he throws together in a pan on the stove.

"What'cha making?" Dawn asks casually, while the rest of us gawk.

"I'm making an omelette for my undead princess." The thought was serious, but he covers what would obviously result in a sever face breaking complimentary of the undead princess, by putting up a very sarcastic front. "You hungry niblet?" He asks while he adds some kind of spice into the mix.

"No thanks," she slumps down onto the stool near Buffy's.

"So where have you two been all day?" Xander crosses his arms accusingly at Spike.

Buffy

I've never felt such an urge to scream at the people I love to leave. But hey, at least it was something. I'm feeling something, and it's a start, Spike would be proud. Though I have no clue as to why that came into my head.

Spike flips the omelette once and adds stuff to it that I'm too not-carey to care about. He lets it simmer for a minute, letting his eyes bore into me. I'm not looking at him, but I can feel his stare like it's a part of me. I guess that comes from the slayer senses – whether they're half dead or not.

"Spike was just updating me on stuff." I hear myself say tonelessly. It isn't completely a lie, he told me some things. Mostly about himself, which was still stuff.

"What kind of stuff?" Dawn asks, excited to be part of the grown up conversation.

"Nothing 'bit, you got homework?" Spike slides the yummy looking egg onto the plate and set it in front of me. For the first time since her return, I actually feel hungry. Briefly I wonder if it's because of Spike.

"Yeah, I have some English, wanna help?" She takes a piece of egg off my still untouched plate and nibbles at it.

"Thought you said you weren't hungry." He mutters. "Can't right now, Willow you mind helping with homework today?"

"Yeah, sure." The red haired girl looks up suspiciously between the three at the island, and then calls for Dawn to follow her out into the living room.

I catch the relieved glint in Spike's eyes when Xander follows after them.

With a sigh, Spike comes over to me and wraps his arm around my waist. "You can stand being around me?" He asks. "You're not just saying that?"

"Yep," I squeeze his hand and turn to face him. "I need you." I feel myself smile – an alien feeing as of late – when he wraps his arms around me and lets me tuck my head beneath his chin.

"How do you feel right now?" His thumb is tracing circles on my back, soft slow soothing circles that go 'round and 'round and 'round, kidnapping all of my thoughts.

"I feel safe." My eyes flutter shut.

"You were freakin' out just a second ago, pet." His breath prickles my skin. "I heard you." He holds me closer to him, and I snake my arms up his back to his shoulders.

"You heard me?"

"Yeah, you're heart beat. If I didn't know better I'd think you were getting murdered."

Giles

Answer the phone, answer the bloody phone. I've been hearing the ring on the other end of the line for quite a while now, normally the answering machine would have taken over, but nine rings later I'm still oh so impatiently waiting. I'm at the airport, waiting to board my flight. It's been delayed though, about two hours, but even so I feel it best to call ahead and let them know I'm on my way. Perhaps speak to Buffy...

"Hello?"

"Finally," I mutter too quietly for Tara to hear on the other end. "Tara, hello, it's me, Giles, erm... I was just calling to let you know I'll be boarding my flight soon."

"Oh Giles that's great! We all really miss you. Buffy's around here somewhere... Do you want to talk to her?"

Do I want to talk to Buffy? Well of course I very well do. But I cannot think of a single thing to say to her, and from what Dawn and Willow had told me, she won't have a thing to say either.

"Well, perhaps not, as I said I'll be boarding the plane soon, I'd best hang up." I lie, I'll just have to wait until I'm back in Sunnydale.

"Oh alright, it's probably easier that way. She's in the basement with Spike right now so she probably wouldn't feel to phone-talky right now anyways." Tara tells me.

"She's with Spike?" I take off my glasses and begin to clean them, clearly I won't like where the conversation is going. A speaker blares above my head, saying something unintelligible. It gets my attention though and I see the sign for my delayed flight flash red. 4 hour delay. Bugger.

"Yeah, she's been hanging out with him a lot. I think he's really helping her, I mean, she actually ate something today without us shoving it down her throat."

"Oh really, well Tara that's wonderful news." I breathe out in relief, a light smile working its way into my voice. My slayer is making progress, perhaps she'll be out of this zombie state as Dawn puts it, before I get back.

"It's great, Spike made her this omelette, and she ate every last bite. I wasn't there, but I heard..." Her voice fades at the end; I suppose she's become unsure of what she's saying.

"Oh, I see." I look beside me, and catch a small sized man trying to make a run for it with my luggage. "Excuse me Tara, but I must be going now." I say quickly, already making my way after him before I've hung up the receiver. I slam it back on its base and chase after the man who's taken my things.