Author's Note: So, so sorry about the delay between posts... I'll get back in the fanfic groove soon, I promise.

But hey, this chapter was a lot of fun to write. Hope you enjoy reading it. Reviews are lovely.

Midtown…

"Why the long face, B?"

Buffy Summers rolled her eyes; no matter how many years passed, she would never get used to or like the nickname Faith Lehane had given her. Getting the dark-haired Slayer to stop using it was a losing battle, though, so she had long ago given up on it.

Patrolling in New York City was far different than patrolling in Sunnydale. There was more ground to cover, for one thing; Midtown alone was massive enough that one could probably fit three Sunnydales in it. How Sunnydale had once had its own zoo, college campus, and airport was beyond Buffy.

"There's an Ascension brewing," the blonde Slayer said. "That not enough reason to be brooding?"

"No, it is." Faith shrugged. "But I think there's something more."

"What do you want me to say, Faith? That things are awkward with Angel around, especially knowing that he and Detective Beckett had a thing, have a thing, may one day get a thing again? Or how about the fact that Spike's apparently back and has reverted to his less savory strutting-around-like-a-wannabe-badass-and-obsessed-with-Drusilla ways?"

Faith shrugged again. "That's a start."

Buffy sighed and shook her head, crossing 40th Street on her way to Bryant Park. Faith followed in lockstep. "Look, I'm only here cause Giles told me how urgent it was."

"Right, how dare any of us pluck you out of your nice, comfy life?"

Buffy spun on her heel once they crossed the street, closing the distance between herself and Faith with a clenched jaw. "You're right, I do have a life. A good one. Dawn's just graduated from college and I'm trying to help her find a job… one far away from all this."

"And it just so happens your life has nothing to do with any of us." Faith shook her head. "Tell me somethin', B: when was the last time you saw Willow or Xander?"

Buffy blinked and took a step back. "Willow is in Africa, training Slayers and helping the local magi deal with the Hellmouth in Cairo. Xander's in Moscow training Watchers."

"And when's the last time you called either of them?"

"When did you become Little Miss Social?"

"You're just like Angel," Faith countered. "Look, that spell gave you a choice, I get it. You got a choice no other Slayer's ever had. You could walk away from the demon fighting and no one would blame you. But B… you can't walk away from your life. You can't walk away from the people who matter."

Before Buffy could respond, an ear-piercing scream rang out into the night. Both women burst into a full sprint through the park, leaping over park benches and dodging passersby before they ran into a grove of trees.

Faith jumped off the side of a nearby tree, pulling out her stake before attacking the male figure in a black leather coat that was hunched over a redheaded woman. Her boot slammed into the man's back and he stumbled to the ground, losing his grip on the young woman. Buffy, trailing behind, frowned when the girl came into view.

"Alexis?!"

Alexis Castle gathered her footing, blue eyes impossibly wide as she cupped her palm against the side of her neck. "Buffy!"

"Marvelous," a familiar British voice chirped. "We all know each other."

Buffy whirled around in time to see Spike punching Faith in the stomach, the dark-haired Slayer doubling over and dropping to her knees. Buffy's mouth hung open and her blood ran cold, frozen at the sight of Spike in full-on vampire mode with a look in his eye she hadn't seen in years. Even from a distance, Buffy could tell this was not the Spike she had come to know.

"Red here's a bit young for my blood," he teased, closing the distance between himself and Buffy before taking a swing at her. "But if she's a friend of yours… well, that just adds another layer of fun now, dunnit?"

Barely dodging the blow, Buffy punched Spike in the side. When he doubled over, she kneed him in the chin, dropping the vampire to the ground in a heap before pulling the stake out of her back pocket. But Spike rolled out of the way before she could do the deed – mostly because she waited a split-second longer than usual before delivering the blow.

Spike roundhouse kicked Buffy, standing over her when she fell to the ground.

"I was hoping I'd find you," he said, kicking Buffy in the side. "I got some unfinished business, love. Something I shoulda done to you a long time ago."

Faith bum-rushed Spike face-first into the ground before he could kick the blonde Slayer again, straddling him and pounding her fists into the back of his head. She grit her teeth and hit the vampire as hard as she could, unaware of the arm that swung around from the side and clocked her in the side of the head.

The dark-haired Slayer rolled onto the ground and sprung back to her feet before Spike was on her, slapping the stake out of her hand before wrapping his hand around her neck. His face hovering inches from hers, Spike bore his fangs.

"You used to be fun," he snarled.

"You could use a Tic-Tac or 12," Faith teased.

Spike growled and tightened his grip on Faith's neck, pulling her body flush against his and smiling at the gasp that escaped from the back of her throat. "Red was too sweet for me," he hissed. "I think you're more up my alley."

Before Spike could close in for the bite, something heavy slammed into the back of his head. He released his grip on Faith, hunching his shoulders and ducking for cover as whatever it was that hit him kept whaling on him. Spike barely caught a glimpse over his shoulder, seeing an older redhead swinging her vibrant, multi-colored purse at him. It felt like there were at least three bricks inside, and Spike was blinded not just by the purse, but by the older woman's matching outfit.

"Hands off, Billy Idol!" the woman yelled out, swinging the massive bag with both hands. Spike turned just in time for the bag to hit him in the chin, sending him onto his back with a cut on his chin. By the time Spike slammed into the dirt, his face had returned to its human visage, and he scrambled to his feet.

"Bloody hell," he grumbled before disappearing into the night.

Hoisting the bag over her shoulder again, the older redhead joined Faith in helping Buffy back up to her feet. "Are you ladies alright?"

"Five by five," Faith said between gulps of breath. "Nice swinging."

Martha Rodgers gave a dismissive wave of her hand, which was covered in a wrist-length purple glove. "And they say a life of theatre never gets you anywhere. In 1991, I was cast in a stage production of A Streetcar Named Desire, and I got a lot of practice swinging heavy things at people."

Buffy cringed and rubbed a hand over the back of her neck. "I don't remember that play being so violent."

"Oh, it wasn't." Martha gave a tight-lipped smile. "The director was a bit handsy with the cast."

"You alright, Gram?"

Martha's smile turned warm and she brushed hair out of Alexis' face. "Of course, darling. I should be asking you that. You're the one that hooligan went after."

"I'm fine," Alexis said, checking the hand that had been on her neck to make sure. There was no blood. She could have sworn she felt his fangs against her skin, but clearly, they hadn't punctured her skin. "Thanks to Buffy and Faith."

Martha's eyebrows shot upward. "Oh, you know these two."

"We're friends with Detective Beckett," Faith explained.

"Ah." Martha gave a nod. "I take it that means you know my son, too."

A knowing smile crept onto Faith's face as she straightened her posture and cracked her knuckles. "Oh yeah, I'm familiar."

Castle's loft…

"So what's it like?" Castle asked, closing his laptop and setting it on his desk. "Being a Slayer?"

Kate Beckett pursed her lips as she stared out the window of Castle's office. She had barely been in her own apartment over the last seventy-two hours; when she wasn't at the precinct, she was here at Castle's loft. She couldn't exactly place why, but since Buffy had come to town and they got a sense of just how bad things were, she couldn't bring herself to go back home.

Maybe it was the unsettling reality that she had to somehow bring down a United States Senator before he morphed into some giant hellbeast bent on destroying the world. That was pretty low, even for a politician. Maybe she simply was starting to enjoy Castle's company.

Maybe it was a little of both.

"It's funny," she finally said. "My mother used to tell me, 'Katie, you can be anything you want.' But all I ever wanted was to be her. You know, help people. Make a difference." She shrugged and glanced down at a random spot on the floor.

"But, you are." Castle stood and approached Kate by the window. "You do."

The smile that spread onto Kate's face was sad and didn't quite reach her eyes. She glanced up at Castle and saw something in his eyes that she didn't dare give voice to – not yet – and Kate found herself looking down at the floor again.

"I don't know about that, Castle."

Castle cocked his head to the side. "Do you know why I chose you as the inspiration for Nikki Heat?"

"No." Kate frowned; she still hated that name. "Why?"

"Cause you're tall."

The smile returned, a little brighter this time, and Kate couldn't help but giggle. She shook her head, and it almost didn't register at first when Castle's hand rested on her shoulder. But once it did register, she tensed up for a moment, only relaxing when she saw the calm look in his eyes.

"I never got a choice," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "Being a Slayer. I chose to be a cop. But being a Slayer? I had no say. Just woke up one day and there was all this power." Kate shook her head. "It sounds cool, badass chick with superpowers, but… no one ever asked me if I wanted to slay vampires. No one ever asked if I'd be okay with occasionally help stop the end of the world."

"What would you decide?" Castle asked. "If you were given a choice."

"I…" Kate sighed. "I don't know. But you know the worst part? Sometimes, my murder victim was killed by a vampire. So yeah, I can go out there and I can hunt down the bastard and I can put a stake in his chest, but… what about the victim? What do I tell their loved ones?"

Castle blinked. "The truth?"

Kate shook her head. "Not sure how badass Nikki Heat would be in a straitjacket."

"But avenging those deaths has to count for something."

"It does." Kate bit her lip. "But… I know what it's like when the police use the term 'cold case.' I've been there. 'Oh, we've done everything we can, but there just aren't any leads.' I swore when I became a cop that I would never tell a loved one I couldn't solve a murder."

Before Castle could say anything, the sound of the front door slamming shut caught his attention. Before he could get to his office door, though, it swung open and the two Slayers and two redheads burst through.

"We've got a sitch," Buffy said, approaching Kate. "Spike is very much back."

"But we knew that," Kate said. "I distinctly remember fighting him."

"But you didn't have to save Alexis to do it," Faith threw over her shoulder, dropping to her knees in the far corner of the office to root through a small wooden chest that housed several stakes, bottles of holy water, and crosses.

Castle stood up a little straighter, a darkness settling in his eyes as she closed the distance to his daughter and grabbed her wrist. "A vampire attacked you?"

"I'm okay," Alexis promised. "Really. Buffy and Faith swooped in."

Faith grinned, hoisting a crossbow over her shoulder before tossing a stake Buffy's way. "And a nice assist from Gram and her handbag."

Martha beamed with pride and bowed as if she were on stage following a riveting performance.

Castle clenched his jaw and turned his attention from Alexis to Martha. His hands clenched into fists to keep his fingers from shaking, and his skin went pale. "What were two doing out there at this hour?"

"Alexis was helping me at the studio and we ran late." Martha shrugged. "And neither one of us had money for a cab."

Castle reached over and pulled Alexis into a hug that was entirely too tight, his chin resting on the top of her head. Anger coursed through his veins, and he had to loosen his grip on his daughter when she smacked him in the back.

"Next time, Mother, call me and I'll send the car service."

"And deprive myself of a moment in the spotlight?" Martha turned to walk out of her son's office, thrusting her arms in the air. "Ha!"

Finally releasing his daughter, Castle made for the chest in the corner, flinging the top open before reaching down to grab a bottle of holy water, a stake, and a cross with a black string around it. By the time he turned around and put the cross around his neck, Kate was on him, grabbing the cross and yanking it off.

"No, Castle."

"Beckett…" Castle sucked in a deep breath, puffing out his broad chest. "Kate, he attacked my daughter."

"I know, and we will make sure he can't hurt anyone else."

"Yes, we."

"That doesn't include you." Kate pressed an open palm against his chest, feeling his thundering heartbeat. She swallowed hard and took a moment to compose herself. "Buffy, Faith, and I will go after him."

Castle tightened his grip on the stake, sucking in a deep breath only to find that it didn't calm him like he had hoped. The other two Slayers were giving him sympathetic looks, which he appreciated, but he feared they would side with Kate on this.

"Beckett…"

"She's right, Ricky," Faith said. "This isn't just some random-ass vamp. Spike's bad news."

"So bad my mother scared him off with a purse."

"Hey now, that thing looked heavy," Faith said with a smirk. "No telling what she keeps in there."

Kate reached down to gently pry the stake out of Castle's hand, slipping it under the hem of her jeans before taking his now-free hand into her own. Castle looked down with a scrunched brow before he met Kate's gaze with a quizzical look.

"Promise me you'll be here when we get back," she said.

Castle opened his mouth, but the words wouldn't come. He looked over Kate's shoulder at Buffy, watching the way her face fell when she double-checked her own stake. For all the personal history she had with Angel, there appeared to be something there with Spike as well. Part of Castle wanted that story, too, but for right now all he wanted was Spike's ashes fluttering in the breeze.

"Rick." Kate's voice was insistent. "Promise me you'll stay here."

His shoulders slumped and with a sigh, Castle nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, I promise."

"Good." Kate reached up and softly kissed Castle's cheek, giving him a small smile and a pat on his chest before turning back to the other two Slayers. "Take me to where you found him. We'll start there and work our way out."

Castle watched the three women, loaded up with all manner of weapons, leave his office. He was still fuming when the front door shut, his hands still curled into tight fists. His heart rate had decreased only slightly, and he still wanted to reach into that chest, pull out a weapon, and make like Van Helsing.

But seeing as how his few violent encounters with humans hadn't ended well, Castle knew the logical thing to do was let the Slayers handle Spike. But he was a father, and someone had attacked his daughter.

Vampire or no, he couldn't let that slide.

Reaching for the phone in his pocket, Castle stared at his office door as he dialed a number and brought the device to his ear. The call connected on the second ring.

"Angel Investigations, we help the helpless."

"Angel, Rick Castle. I need some help."