In the End
Chapter Seventeen
Jessica sat on the floor still panting, her chest still glowing from the spell. The gang crowded around her.
"Who are you?" asked Buffy
Jessica rose to her feet "I can explain" she stuttered
"You better" said Spike, Faith put her arm out to stop him getting closer.
"I'm sorry… I'm trying to protect you" said Jessica
"You're her…" said Anya "You're Jaraslawa"
Jessica looked down at the floor "Yes" she said barely above a whisper
"Who's that?" asked Faith
"Nahum's other half" replied Spike
"I came here to help you" said Jessica "I thought if you knew who I was you wouldn't trust me"
"I think it's a little late for that" said Buffy
Something clicked in Giles' brain "Of course, how did I not see this before? The disc…"
"I had to make sure you had all the information, I paid a demon to drop it" said Jessica
"All the information? We've spent weeks trying to translate that thing!" said Anya
"Why are you against him?" asked Buffy
"We don't see eye to eye, we separated over a hundred years ago. When I found out he was trying to move up the ranks in our dimension, when I figured out what his mission was I knew I couldn't let him do it. The scales are there for a reason, good verses evil..it needs to be balanced" said Jessica
"You're really trying to help?" asked Buffy
"I promise, just because my husband is an evil hell dweller doesn't mean I am too" she told them.
"So why set me up?" asked Faith "That vamp attack?"
"I had no idea about that, Nahum must know you are here" said Jessica "I know where your weapon is"
Buffy looked at her "Where?"
"I'll show you "
Buffy nodded and walked out of the room, Jessica followed her.
"Buffy, I'm sorry" said Jessica "I should've been honest"
"This whole time you've been trying to protect us?" asked Buffy
Jessica nodded
"And what about Spike?" Buffy asked
"He was kind to me, the first man in centuries that was kind to me… I misread the situation… the night we kissed I slipped him a potion in his drink" said Jessica
"You what?!" Spike's voice came from behind her
"I'm sorry Spike" said Jessica "I knew you'd never really see me unless you were under the influence… but even then you still wanted her"
"What?" asked Buffy
"He didn't tell you?" Jessica asked "During our kiss his still whispered your name. I knew then not even a silly potion could come between you"
Buffy and Spike looked at each other awkwardly.
"Take me to the weapon" said Buffy
XXXXX
Buffy put on her jacket carefully she still had some cuts and bruises that hadn't healed yet. She wasn't at a hundred percent, she knew it and the others did too.
Giles knocked on her bedroom door
"Come in" she said
"Buffy, I have to advise against this" he told her
"You think it's a trap?" she asked
"I do. We cannot trust Jaraslawa. She's been lying to us since she got here" said Giles
"She says she's been protecting us" said Buffy
"She didn't protect Faith at the cemetery last night" said Giles "I fear she'll turn on us"
"More than likely" Buffy shrugged
"So you're just going to go through with this? Knowing she's leading you to your death?" asked Giles
"I told you, I'm tired of waiting for them to come to me" said Buffy
"I can't get behind this Buffy" he told her
"Fine you stay here with Dawn" said Buffy, leaving him standing alone in her room.
Buffy stormed down the hallway and bumped into Spike.
"Hi" he sighed
"Hi"
They stood in awkward silence for a few seconds
"Are you ready to go?" Buffy asked
"Yeah… yeah whenever you are" he told her
"Good, I'll see you downstairs" she said walking away.
"Buffy…" he called to her
"Not now Spike" she said without turning to face him "Just… not now"
XXXXX
Jessica led Buffy through the woods. The rest of the gang followed behind.
"So what made you and Nahum part ways? I mean you were in love for centuries?" said Buffy
"I loved him more than anything, but he didn't treat me as an equal. I was always less than" said Jessica "I grew tired of it, he never listened to my opinion because I was his mate. Not his partner…" said Jessica
"I can relate to that…" said Buffy
"You can?" asked Jessica
"When I was younger I was in a relationship with a guy who just saw me as a kid really… and then there was my college boyfriend who couldn't handle the fact I was stronger than he was…"
"And Spike?" Jessica asked
Buffy paused for a moment "He gets it… I never have to worry about him getting pissed at me for rescuing him or have to worry about what I say around him. He just takes everything I throw at him"
Jessica smiled "He's your soulmate"
"I wouldn't say that exactly… his soul is new" said Buffy
"I wouldn't be so sure" said Jessica "Here we are…"
Buffy looked ahead and saw an old vineyard in front of her. They stopped just outside of the door. Buffy paused to address the team behind her
"Okay, Set up a perimeter. Guard the door. I don't want anything getting in behind us. My team goes in first, we check the place out. You guys are our safety-net. We give the signal, you guys come in, guns a-blazing"
"So, what's the signal?" asked Xander
"I'm thinking lots and lots of yelling" said Buffy
"Got it" said Xander
"Shall we?" Buffy lead Spike, Jessica and Willow in through the door.
Buffy walked down the steps into the wine cellar. Buffy looked around in the shadows
"Stay alert, you guys"
A couple of vampires jumped out of the shadows from behind the barrels of wine, and attacked Buffy and the gang. Willow managed to hold her own against the vampire that attacked her. The vampires all of a sudden stop their attack
"Hey now… is there any need for this violence" said Nahum moving out from the shadows "I see you've met my lovely wife"
"I'm not your wife" said Jessica
"Oh that's right you made yourself human to help the Slayer" he chuckled
Buffy looked at Jessica "You did that?"
"She did" said Nahum, without warning he backhanded Jessica sending her flying through the air and landing a few feet away
"And you, sweet Slayer… I didn't expect you to be up and around after the other night…" he said, laughing
Buffy punched him, but he grabs her throat and tossed her across the room. Buffy landed a few feet away from Jessica.
Spike vamped out and attacked Nahum, he pushed Spike down with ease. Spike tried to get up, but Nahum head-butts him, then he threw him across the room into a huge wine storage tank as soon as Spike hit it wine poured out.
Willow began to chant quietly to herself.
Nahum grabbed Willow by the neck "You've got a Witch too?" He chuckled
Jessica saw Willows legs dangling and attacked Nahum from behind. He dropped Willow immediately and struggled to get Jessica off his back.
Xander, Faith and Anya rushed down the steps. Faith charged at Nahum, Xander noticed Buffy laying unconscious
"Buffy!" he yelled, running over to her. fighting off vampires on his way to her side.
Faith had a knife in each hand she lunged forward towards Nahum. He jumped back escaping the knife's edge
"Well, you're the other one, aren't you" Nahum smirked
Faith attacked him again with her other knife but he grabbed her arm, twisting it, and crossing it with her other arm in a fashion such that she can't move, He squeezed her hands until she's forced to drop the knives. Faith kicked him in the crotch, causing Nahum to let go of her just enough that she can escape his grasp. She backhanded him across the face.
Nahum grabbed Faith's arm and twisted it painfully behind her back, causing her to double over. She fell to her knees as he twisted and pulled her arm and walked around to the front of her.
Xander managed to get to Buffy's side as she came to
"Xander, get out of here. You have to retreat. Do it" she told him
Xander didn't say anything, he ran over to Willow who was still coughing from being strangled earlier and picked her up. "Time to go" he told her
Buffy rushed over to Nahum. She fought him more evenly this time, she managed to avoid his punches, and landing a few of her own. She punched him so hard, Nahum is sent flying across the room.
Spike grabbed Buffy's arm "We're all leaving" he told her
"Wait…" said Buffy gesturing to a hole in the floor "You get them out of here"
"Not without you" he said
"Go" said Buffy firmly
Buffy ran and jumped down into the hole in the ground. Spike grabbed hold of Anya and made a run for it.
Buffy landed awkwardly but she quickly got to her feet, she walked around the cave-like room under the wine cellar.
Buffy walked up to a huge rock that sat in the middle of the room, stuck inside of it is a shiny axe of some sort. Buffy smiles
Nahum opened the hatch and walked down the stairs into the room. Buffy turned to look at him.
"So...you found it. Not impressed. 'Cause the question now, girly girl, is can you pry it from solid rock before I come over there—"
Buffy grabbed the handle and pulled the weapon out of the stone one-handed with ease. She looked it over moving towards him with it in her hands.
A/N: Recognisable dialogue is from 'Dirty Girls'