The Other Side of Never by AJ Hofacre

cammie
02/11/2015 04:58 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
Good story but I think the reunion would have been more intense without Dawn there. It was kin of awkward instead of heart-warming and would have been more satisfyingly emotional if it was only Spike and Buffy.
I find myself logging into this account for the first time in years just to answer this review. I would like to know - why do you seem to think that the reunion of the three of them together is awkward? Throughout this entire story, I made a point of showing Spike's nervousness in regards to the appearance of both Buffy and Dawn. I find it a little insulting that you would rather I eliminate a character that meant something to Spike for the sole purpose of giving Buffy and Spike more screen time together. This was about Spike's love for Buffy, and his love for Dawn, and his desire to be good enough for the both of them. This was about Dawn and Buffy's guilt from their previous interactions with Spike. Every character means something to me here. Every character counts, not just the ones you prefer to see. I didn't set out to write this story so that Spike and Buffy would see each other for the first time in four months, and then promptly rip their clothes off and screw each other senseless on the ground. It is a reunion between family, between three people who care very much for each other, two of whom did not get to properly say their goodbyes to each other, and that carries every bit as much the emotional weight as a reunion between two lovers would.

I'm sorry that you didn't see what you would have preferred to see, but I wrote what I wanted to see, and I'm pleased with it. 

- AJ Hofacre

12/04/2009 03:52 pm
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
Oooh, I LOVE this! Just how it should have been! You've got the characters perfectly in character and their interaction is spot on! If only it were canon ... *sigh*

sin_amatic
03/18/2009 03:25 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
Ya know... I always thought Buffy was half-baked. 

Thank you for writing the ending or shall we call it a beginning... I had always hoped for.  A truly wonderful conclusion to your "yearly."  (Which btw was 'bloody' brilliant. Like one of them bloomin' onions with  lot's of layers!)

Ta!  S

analise
09/21/2008 04:52 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
I really liked this one.  Spike being flippant like a girl (she loves me she loves me not) then Buffy destroying the whole cookie analogy.  lol.  Very sweet.  Thanks.

alým
04/09/2008 01:07 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
:clap: This was amazing! Looooved it!!!
Thank you!

Alizabeth
03/08/2008 07:40 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
Awww, I loved that last bit. It was so sweet.
Aww thanks! I'm glad you liked it :)

Alexis
03/01/2008 03:12 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
That was brilliant! I really enjoyed that. I do love a fic where Buffy choses Spike over Angel. And I was really glad to see the reconcilliation between Spike and Dawn. Their friendship was one of my favorite aspects of the show and I was sad when they never made up (even though I could understand why). Thanks for making everything right in the world again!
You're very welcome :) Thanks for reading, and I'm glad you enjoyed it!

02/27/2008 03:53 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
Awe! SO  CUTE :P
LOVED IT :P
So glad you enjoyed it :) Thanks for the review!!

02/26/2008 06:56 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
I just LOVED it. 
I'm so glad :) Thanks for reviewing!

02/25/2008 01:50 pm
The Other Side of Never 1/1         

 What a wonderful "feel-good" story.  And I adored the last line most of all; it really was heart-warming:  "Call me Nibblet."

I figured it was the proper way to end it :) The way I see it, Xander caused so much damage to the Dawn & Spike friendship, it had to be put right again, and that Spike has such an attachment to that nickname for her, it seemed only right. Thank you for reviewing, and I am so glad that you enjoyed it :)

02/25/2008 11:00 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
If they had only talked about personal things rather than 'Slayer situations' during the actual show, everyone would have been less miserable. Great character study.
*sigh* I blame Joss. That's all there is to it.

Thanks for the review :)

02/25/2008 12:32 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
Omg love this story so much:) Definitely an amazing sequel. Love the end quote too;) Definitely a cute Dawn/Spike line.
LOL. I'm glad you liked it :) And I love the end quote, too :) I thought it was the RIGHT way to end it. No cliffhangers or double-meanings here! Thanks for the review!

02/23/2008 02:36 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
Very cute, I love anything that Spike wins over Angel.
So do I, that's why I wrote it :) Aside from the fact that Angel's just a general ass. Thanks for reading!

02/23/2008 01:02 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
sweet read, thank you.
Thank you for reading :) I'm glad you liked it!

Ikepear
02/22/2008 10:50 pm
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
Enjoyed the story. Nice to have you back. I think I still have a copy of "Out of My Head" on my hard drive somewhere. Don't stay away so long this time.

Ikepear
Oh, I'm glad :) Thank you so much! I've been working on revising Beneath You, and I'm trying to create a banner for OoMH so I can start posting the revised version of that up here. It's better to get your point across with pretty pictures :) Thanks for sticking with!

Saggit
02/22/2008 07:54 pm
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
Nice little piece, deftly characterized (as usual). I usually prefer snark, but this was well handled, and it's good to see you back in form, again. :)
Well, snarkiness is the order of the day on my one shot, All In Time. It's all human, and Spike's popping the question :D I very much appreciate your words, and thanks so much for reading :)

Cas
02/22/2008 05:49 pm
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
Sweet story.  And yes, we'd like to see more compelted works!
I'll get there! I'll get there slowly, but I'll get there :) Thanks for reading!

anon462
02/22/2008 05:03 pm
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
That was fun! And very very good!!!  :)

That was a reunion that I would have loved to see!!!  :)
Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it! And I think that was a reunion MANY of us would have preferred to see :)

02/22/2008 03:58 pm
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
Awwww. Loved Spike's internal monologue and the way his insecurities built until he was furious - and then the flip back to hopeful and happy when he saw the lights.
It's the sort of thing that would happen, wouldn't it? This takes place after AtS "Destiny," and Angel's been telling him up until that time that Buffy's happy and that she doesn't want to see him. Of course, Angel also thinks that Buffy's in Italy, so what the hell does he know, right? ;) Glad you liked it!

Aurelia
02/22/2008 07:44 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
Awww, I loved it. I wanted to hug Spike when he was feeling insecure and I sighed when Buffy and Dawn showed up and proved he had nothing to worry about.

Great fic.
I'm glad you liked it :) Thanks for the review!

02/22/2008 07:08 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         

Neat - nice part 2 - maybe another nice part 3 would come with Andrew -

like your playful style -

Why thank you! I didn't want this to be all boohoo moody (well, aside from the Spike/Dawn reunion, because Dawn had a LOT to answer for), so i tried to make the entire thing as sweet and reunion-y as possible without going overboard. And if I get the courage, there will def. be a part three, this one with just Buffy and Spike... and maybe some Angel bashing ;) Thanks!

Tamara
02/22/2008 05:40 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         

This reunion is even better than the one I imagined when I read yearly. I love the bitterness Spike shows when he thinks he was set up. Considering the past behavior of those involved and the fact that esley is Angel's friend , he had no reason to trust that it would work out for him.

Well, i decided to change that around a little bit :) I hated that the only people that seemed to want anything to do with Spike half the time were Fred (and later Illyria) and Angel (and not even willingly). God, even Lorne wouldn't go anywhere near him, and you'd think that being an empath demon, he'd be able to sense Spike's emotions come flying at him from miles away!

Sorry, ranting. I'll get back on track now. The point is, I wanted Spike to have someone on his side that wasn't exclusive to Angel, and Wes has got reason to be suspicious of Angel, too, especially after the whole memory wash thing. Thank you for reading :)

LadyYashka
02/22/2008 05:25 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
You're Welcome! I enjoyed getting to see this early. :D

As I already said, I love this fic. And go you on having a completed fic! It's nice when they are finished isn't it? :)
Oh, it's FAB when they're finished! I feel such a sense of relief for having gotten it done! I figure when I finish Beneath You, it's going to be like the weght of a mountain troll sliding off my back :) Thanks for reviewing!

jess
02/22/2008 04:56 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
awww sappy sweet PERFECT!
LOL, I'm glad you liked it :) Thanks for the review!

02/22/2008 04:15 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
Very sweet - loved Spike talking to himself and convincing himself that they weren't coming.  Hope you keep writing.
I hope I do, too. And I'm glad you liked this :) Thanks for the review!

02/22/2008 02:48 am
The Other Side of Never 1/1         
That was delightful! Congratulations!
Thank you!!!!