Disclaimer: I don't own this. This is no profit fun.

Dedicated to the wonderful Ginar369 as a belated birthday present. This is quite short again.

Betrayal

Chapter Thirty

Vi and Buffy stepped out from the warm house. The night was cold and Buffy could see her breath come out in puffs in front of her. She had a scarf around her neck and wore two sweaters under her coat, which she pulled tightly around her. She was still shivering, but she knew she would warm up soon once she continued walking. She stuck her hands into her pockets, regretting that she didn't put on a pair of gloves.

"I miss California," Buffy announced with a pout. "I'm pasty-Buffy. Stupid British rainy weather. What I would give to just lie in the sun and bask." She turned to Vi, who was supressing a giggle. "Sorry, I'm babbling. Don't you miss the sun?"

Vi laughed. "Yeah. Sometimes. Would you think about moving back?"

Buffy shrugged, "No, I don't think so. Although, since I have had Alice I've been thinking about it a little. It's not like there's anything there for me, so now home is the UK. Besides, Dawn's there and my Dad's in Spain."

Vi shrugged, "I'm happy here. I haven't given it much thought. I'm not particularly close to my parents. We Skype every once in a while of course."

"I get that," Buffy said. "My Dad and I aren't close."

The pair lapsed into silence. Buffy noticed that Vi was giving her furtive glances. She had a suspicion Vi called her out here for some reason other than company.

Vi broke the silence as they reached the end of the avenue. "It's weird, you know, having you around. I was so used to you being the boss."

"Looks like you're doing just fine," Buffy commented. "You have a sweet set up here and all the girls seem to like you."

"Why did you come here, Buffy?" Vi asked.

"I came here to help," Buffy replied simply. Yes – this was about Spike.

Vi raised a brow, "Are you sure you didn't come back for Spike?"

"It's not really any of your business, Vi."

"It is," she insisted. "Spike's my friend and I don't want to see him get hurt again."

"And that has nothing to do with the fact that you clearly have the hots for him."

Vi flushed. Bingo.

They were interrupted by a laugh form behind them. They turned around and came face to face with Drusilla. The long white dress she was wearing was inappropriate for the weather. If only for the fact that Buffy knew she was a vampire she would have thought the woman was mad. As it was, Buffy knew she was both.

Drusilla tutted. "I bet my Spike loves the girls fighting all over him."

"Who wouldn't love to have beautiful women fighting over him," a familiar voice drawled.

Dracula emerged from the darkness in front of Buffy. "I heard you had come, Buffy Summers. Delighted to meet your acquaintance yet again." He reached for her hand and made to kiss it.

Buffy quickly pulled her hand from his reach and stepped backward. "No thanks. Can't say I reciprocate." She reached for her stake instead. "How about you Vi?"

She glanced over at her fellow slayer, who also had her stake at hand.

"Not particularly," Vi replied, "Last time these two freaks tried to burn my house down."

"That was all Drusilla's idea," Dracula pointed out. "May I remind you that I was the one who got her to leave?"

Drusilla pouted, "You ruined all my fun and I was having such a good conversation with my Spike."

"He's not your Spike!" Vi launched herself at Drusilla leaving Dracula to Buffy.

Buffy smirked, "Looks like that leaves you and me. Ever since you skipped out on Sunnydale, I've been waiting for a reason to put you down." Handing this creep this ass would be fun. Keeping a close eye on the vampire she aimed a kick at his head. He dissolved into nothing and she landed on the ground where he had been standing.

He reformed in front of her. "You could never defeat me. A silly girl like you knows nothing of the world we live in. There are secrets that you could never wrap your little head around."

Buffy jumped to her feet. "I ended the First Evil! I think I can slay an egotistic maniac like you." Oh yeah the patronising bastard was going down.

He tried to stare her down but his mystical mojo didn't work on her anymore. Determined to hit her mark this time she took her stake and plunged it into his chest. He smirked as he dissolved once more and Buffy gritted her teeth in frustration. She was struck by a warm body from behind and there was a sickening crack as she collided heads with Vi. There was a loud groan from Vi, who had landed on top of her. Buffy had the wind knocked out of her and she didn't think she would be able to stand just yet.

Dracula crooked his finger at Drusilla. "Come Drusilla. Let's leave this little girls to their games."

Buffy and Vi managed to extricate themselves from each other. Buffy's head was pounding. Why are their four of them, she wondered briefly for a moment before she realised she was seeing double. They were getting away.

Buffy took a deep breath and staggered to her feet, "What's with that anyway?" She shouted after their retreating backs. "You hardly strike me as the thoughtful lover type – more the love 'em and leave 'em. Why's that skank so important to you?"

Dru laughed. "He wants to make friends with the fairies, silly."

"Shut up, Dru," Dracula snapped and the pair were swallowed up by the darkness.

Vi and Buffy looked at each other quizzically. The other slayer was still on the ground and Buffy helped her to her feet.

"What do you make of that?" Vi asked.

"We all know Skansilla is loopy. Dracula's smart though, so what are we missing?"

"The whole jigsaw," Vi quipped.

Buffy put her hand on the back of her head and winched. She looked at her fingers which were red with blood. "I guess we better head back and get cleaned up," she suggested. "Are you hurt?"

"I'll live," she replied. "I'm just pissed off we keep letting them get away."

Buffy clenched her fists. "I really hate Dracula."

Vi smiled a little before she faltered. "I was out of line earlier."

"It's okay," Buffy said. "Vi, I'm not here for Spike. I honestly came to help, but I'd be lying if I said that getting back with him never crossed my mind."

Vi nodded. "Thanks for being honest."

Buffy and Vi stumbled in the door to find Andrew and two of the Slayers playing cards.

Andrew jumped to his feet. "Bandages and a pan of water, people! Injured incoming."

"We're fine, Andrew," Vi said. "We can look after ourselves."

"Nonsense," he said herding them to the kitchen.

Sarah put a basin with cloths in front of the pair and Michelle handed Buffy some bandages.

Buffy put the bandages down on the table and took a damp cloth from the basin and began applying it to her cuts and grazes. What she really needed was a warm shower and to wipe the blood from her hair.

"Where's Spike?" she asked.

"He ran out for some cigarettes," Andrew said. "He should be back soon. He said he'd pick up some of those biscuits I like."

There was a slamming of the front door. "Looks like Spike's home," Andrew said.

Spike burst into the kitchen and looked relieved to see Vi and Buffy sitting down relatively unharmed.

"I smelt the blood," he explained.

"Did you get my biscuits?" Andrew asked.

"Here are your bloody biscuits." An incredulous Spike threw them at Andrew's head.

"Thanks, Spike," he replied. "I leave you guys to it. I have a game of cards to win."

Andrew left the kitchen with Michelle and Sarah in his wake.

"What happened?" Spike asked when they left.

"We ran into Dracula," Vi said.

"And Drusilla," Buffy added.

Spike frowned, "What did Old Vlad want?"

"I'm not sure," Vi said. "I think he was trying to warn us off. He said that he didn't set Drusilla on us and that all her own idea."

"Your deranged ex was being super helpful going on about fairies." Buffy rolled her eyes. "I asked him what he was interested in her for and she said it was because he wanted to make friend with the fairies."

"Fairies?" he asked her. "That's odd."

"Yeah – I know."

Spike shook his head. "No. I can't believe I didn't remember this before. There was something about fairies and the Gem of Amara. If only I could remember what she said?"

"How could you just forget something like that?" Vi asked.

"I didn't believe it, did I?" he snapped. "Dru talked a lot of nonsense and most of it went in one ear and out the other. Otherwise, she would have driven me batty with her."

He started to pace around the kitchen. "Maybe this thing isn't about Dracula after all? This fairy hullabaloo is more Dru's scene if she actually had the attention span to read. I reckon we've been looking at this all wrong. Dru coming here wasn't a coincidence; she's at the centre. I just figure out where the hell Dracula fits in all this."

"Are you saying fairies are real?" Vi asked incredulously.

"Not like the ones in the fairy tales," he said. "No such thing as Tinkerbell. Never really believed it of course but the legends had to come from somewhere."

Buffy frowned. "According to the Watcher's Diaries, Drusilla was a Seer when she was human. Is that true?"

Spike nodded, "Yeah – she had visions as a human and was afraid of them. From what I've been told Angelus tortured her until she went looney. She was taking holy orders to become a nun and she took his fancy. He chased her down and terrified her before killing everyone she loved. She was never right after that."

Buffy felt a pang at that reminder of the monster Angel used to be.

Spike ran a finger through his hair. "She was always nattering on about the voices in her head. She used to call them pixies..."

The two Slayers were watching him closely.

"No," Spike said. "That had to just be the name she gave the voices in her head."

"Did she get visions when she was vampire?" Vi asked.

"Yeah. Sometimes she used to spout off nonsense I couldn't understand and sometimes it was a warning or some such."

"Can't believe I'm saying this but maybe it's real then?" Buffy suggested.

"If it is then what's it to do with the Prince of Darkness? What's he getting his knickers in a twist for?"

"We will figure this out," Buffy declared. "We're the good guys and the white hats always win. Things get nasty when I don't get my way."

Spike chuckled. "You do at that."

"It's time to hit the books," Vi suggested.

"I think a call to Giles might be a good idea too," Buffy said. "We can ask him to get us information on fairies too just in case this is what it sounds like."

"Let's not mention this to the others just yet," Vi said. "I think we would spend more time trying to convince them to help instead of researching."

Buffy could see the wisdom. She was still a little uncertain herself. Then again before she had been called, she would have felt the same about the creatures she was chosen to hunt.

To be continued….