A/N: I own nothing of the Whedonverse nor any fairytales and I am not profiting from this work.

Chapter 7.

Previously on Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Why should I care about what happened with Spike? Pillock. Is it going to be integral to

the rest of the story? Fine.

"No, Spike...Go."

What'd he do last time he was in Sunnyhell and had been thrown out on his arse by the woman in his life? Well, it was a worth a try.

There! Now you are up to speed. Children.

Spike found himself on the front porch at 1630 Revello Drive with a fist raised to knock when he started to think better on it. He was far too hungry to fight the Slayer if she were home and while he might be able to get Joyce to give him something to eat it would by no means quench the demon's thirst burning in the back of his throat. He needed to feed. He needed to… His train of thought was derailed when a car drove up to the house and he had to make an off the cuff decision. The decision was, Jump into the bloody bushes. So he did. It wasn't the brightest of moves but then again, he wasn't exactly the Human Torch. Not unless he decided to go for a mid-afternoon stroll. The car stopped and one of the Slayer's lackeys hopped out. It was the boy. He was running up with a large book under his arm and fumbling with a set of keys. Once the key was in the door the book started to say somethin'. Wait. The book started to say something? Sure as fire and brimstone and the twenty-four hour news cycle the bloody book was speakin'!

"If she isn't here, I've no clue where she'd go. Willow did say she hadn't seen her, correct?" The whelp walked in and the voices grew muffled but no less easy to hear.

"Yeah Giles," The boy took a breath. "How'm I gonna fix this?" He sat down on the couch and set the Librarian/Book on the coffee table.

"I have an idea." The voice came from the door.

"Spike." Xander sneered and stood up, readying himself to charge the bleached menace. Spike started moving the same second and only allowed the briefest of moments to register that the Slayer still hadn't removed his invite. As his body began to ram the boy a searing flash of white-hot pain ripped through him bringing the Master Vampire to his knees.

Just Before…

"...My Ringtone is Hurdy Gurdy. I use it mostly to play Snake since mom doesn't like paying for texts. But, I was going to college and she didn't want me to hafta use a pay phone and what if there wasn't one around in an emergency? And well I-"

"Wills, as much as I am loving the rundown on how you have a number I can reach you at, and not gonna mention that Giles has it before I do, I need to know where I can find Buffy."

"Buffy's missing? But the sun only just set. Where did she go?"

Xander Harris shrugged and rubbed the back of his neck. Then, with a downward rub of his mouth, said quite contritely, "I may have hurt her feelings and caused her to run out of Giles' apartment a few hours ago."

"During the daylight?! And what do you mean you may have hurt her feelings? What have you done?"

"She was a vampire Willow!"

"She is our friend!" Xander had already been reamed by the Watcher and didn't think he could take another verbal thrashing.

"I know that...now. That's why I called you. Where would she be if she isn't with you, at the dorms, or with Giles?"

"Maybe she went to see her mom?" The phone was getting crackly and sounded close to dropping the call.

"Got it, don't know why I didn't think of that." He wisely ignored Giles idea of him being an idiot. The two friends hung up and Xander gathering the keys and Giles headed out the door and toward, hopefully, Buffy.

Also Slightly Before…

"Anya. We have been shopping for too long. And I'm saying that." Buffy was bored. She had no way to pay for any of the fun she saw and she couldn't even splurge vicariously through the ex-vengeance demon. She had been window shopping for. Three. Hours. Honestly, Buffy wasn't sure she could listen to anymore about some fusty revolution. No matter how much credit it was worth in 'certain circles' and Crimea river but she just wanted to go home.

"Fine." Anya flounced her way toward the parking garage and Buffy felt that getting out of there was deceptively easy. "Where would you like me to take you?"

"Uh...I haven't checked on my mom in a while. She might be pretty worried." Buffy chewed her lower lip thinking about how she should try to spend more time with her mom. It was probably so lonely at home.

Back to the action…

Joyce Summers pulled up to her little slice of suburbia alongside a van and a sedan. That's odd. Buffy didn't say she was coming over but it looks like everyone in town is here.

Once she reached the front porch she was met with quite a sight. Xander was being restrained by Willow. That boy Oz was studying the prone form of that poor young man Spike. And Buffy was being consoled by that sweet girl Anya. Wait...consoled? Why did her baby need to be consoled?

"Buffy, sweetheart, what's wrong?" Her daughter looked up and jumped to hug her mother. She was a bit cold to the touch but Joyce chalked that up to the chill night air. Anya was the one to answer.

"She's sad that she can't go inside." The young woman stood and brushed her skirt down before walking into the house. Joyce looked nonplussed.

"Honey, don't be silly, come inside. We'll get you warmed up, make some hot cocoa, and figure out why there is a bleeding vampire in my foyer." Buffy nearly went into another round of tears but gave her mother a watery smile in return. Home was a wonderful place to be.

Everyone was sitting around the Summers' dining table with cocoa and cookies having been brought up to speed on Buffy and Giles' conditions. Well if you count the still incapacitated Master Vampire who was not only still unconscious but was now tied to a chair to boot. Willow and Oz had arrived just as Xander had been about to get murdered right proper, Spike's words, when the vamp in question had fallen to the ground with a yelp of excruciating pain and passed out bleeding from the nose. Xander had wanted to stake him while he was down for the count but both Willow and Giles had thought it best they keep him alive. For now.

Spike started to rouse and made a crinkly face as though he here were actively scenting something. When he opened his eyes blearily he looked around as though someone was missing. Everyone's eyes were on him and quite frankly it was not pleasin'.

"Alright, where's the magnificent poof?" He glared at the Slayer.

"What?" Buffy didn't know what to say nor what he was saying so 'what' was about as good as Spike was going to get.

"You know. Peaches. Angelus? I can smell family and since Darla and Ol' Batface are dust and Dru's got no business here, figure it'd havta be the Great Ponce Himself, the Broodmeister. Come on out Angel Soft! I know you're here!" But his Grandsire didn't appear from the shadows. The Slayer looked him dead in the eye to get his focus.

"Drusilla was here." Buffy rested her hands on her lap. Spike pursed his lips and swallowed to fight the immediate response.

"Using the past-tense there Slayer. Something I missed?" He narrowed his eyes and watched her for duplicity.

"Just a little. Your ho-bag ex-girlfriend came and went but left a surprise in her wake."

"Yeah? She always did know how to make her mark." Spike smiled tightly. The rest of the room watched the exchange avidly.

"Oh she left a mark alright." With this the Slayer lifted her hair and showed the siring mark on her neck as she brought her demon to the fore.

"Jesus Christ!" Spike pulled back as far as he could and cocked his head at the Slayer. "Only Dru'd be loony 'nough to turn a Slayer." This was followed shortly by an introspective, "Shit, now she's got me tied."

A/N Tune in next week for the exciting continuation...