'So much for a relaxing bloody holiday,' Spike thought bitterly, as Buffy glared at him from across the table. He'd taken her out for lunch at one of his favorite cafes in LA. Their flight didn't leave until tomorrow morning, and Buffy needed to go shopping – not to mention getting filled in on all that had happened.
"My mother would NOT have left Dawn in the care of a VAMPIRE," she told him emphatically, not touching the sandwich in front of her, "Even if she WAS sleeping with him!"
"Joyce and I weren't sleeping together, Slayer, for the last bloody time!" Spike exclaimed. He didn't think THIS would be the part she was so upset about. Although he had yet to mention the Aurelius Order's role in the war between good and evil, nor his own…transformation. "She was my friend, Buffy. My best friend, and that's why she named me godfather." He took a deep breath, Here goes nothing, he thought. "And I'm not…entirely a vampire anymore." He steeled himself for whatever came next.
"What?"
And so he explained. He explained what had happened with the New Initiative – how he'd been taken apart and replaced with some mechanical parts. He explained the metal casing around his vulnerable areas – his neck and his chest. Then, seeing no way around it, he explained what had happened with the Powers That Be.
"I was given some human qualities," he explained quietly, "My body is warm, I'm in no danger from sunlight, or holy water, or crosses. And I have children. Real, biological children. I have...the best of both worlds, I suppose. My whole order does. Harmony, Angel, Xander, and-"
"XANDER?!" Buffy screeched, startling the other customers in the small restaurant. "XANDER is a VAMPIRE?!" Spike sighed.
"There was an accident during patrol, oh I don't know eight years ago? Maybe ten. He was nearly drained by a vampire, so I turned him."
"You turned my best friend? I should stake you, you MONSTER!" she lunged across the table, when a voice told her to stop. Buffy turned, wide-eyed, to the robed woman who stood beside Spike. The woman greeted Spike with a hand on his shoulder and a slight nod, which he returned.
"The world is different than when you last saw it. Things have changed – for the better," she said, a soft glow emanating from her, her voice firm, but gentle, "And Spike has played a very important role; he still does. There is very little fighting between humans and demons. And Spike is the one standing tall between them. He is the ultimate champion of the Powers That Be."
Buffy stared, her mouth agape, unable to form words. The woman took advantage of this by continuing.
"I think it is best that you go see your friends, immediately. If you will ever be able to accept this, it will be with their help and guidance," she said, before turning to speak to Spike. "They were wrong to send you. You are not the right person for the job."
"I know. But they were all uncomfortable with the task, so it fell to me," Spike explained, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck.
"You are not at fault. It would have been difficult for her to hear, regardless of the speaker." She finished by telling him that they should return to New Orleans immediately, that they could take care of the rest of the details then. "Celebrate this holiday, this time of thanksgiving with your family, and give thanks." She grasped each of them by the shoulder, and the world spun.