Chapter 46: Late Night Chat

“Ow! Son of a…” Buffy grunted and did a partial somersault, using her legs to send the newborn vamp flying back into a tree.

“Buff, another one!” Xander called, as he and Anya lunged into the second vampire’s path. Spike, sending one glance in the Slayer’s direction, chose to give the Scoobies a hand with the other vampire. Buffy, even in her hormonal, queasy state, could still kick ass like no other.

“Tara!” Willow tossed a stake at her girlfriend, who was hiding behind a tree, waiting for the perfect moment to attack. When she heard Xander and Anya struggling, she rushed out, running with the other two as they pinned him to a tree. Tara drove the stake into the demon’s chest. A burst of dust covered them, and they walked it off, brushing of their respective jackets.

“That was amazing, baby,” Willow breathed in awe. Tara blushed in the moonlight.

“It was nothing.”

“Oof!” Buffy hit the ground with a thud as her vampire lunged at her, knocking her down. Spike rushed to help her, but she was up and staking the vampire within a second. When it was over, she brushed herself off and looked at her friends.

“You ok?” Spike asked, his fingers brushing hers as he came to stand beside her.

“Yeah. Yeah, just a little…ugh…cramp?” Spike’s hand moved to her belly. “Oh. Not there. My back.”

“C’mon, pet. Let’s get you home.”

“I’m ok, Spike,” Buffy assured him. “Bitty Buffy’s ours. She’s strong.” Spike’s lips curled up into a grin. “What?”

“You just called our baby ‘Bitty Buffy.’ And you called her a girl.” Buffy couldn’t help but smile.

“Well it’s catchy. It’s your fault, you know?” Spike smirked, and Anya and Xander meandered over breathlessly with the rest of the group.

“Well, that was fun, kids,” Xander gasped.

“You can go home, Xander,” Buffy chuckled, smiling a little.

“You sure? I mean, I’ve got strength in me for at least one more. Ok, maybe not so much one more vampire, but if a fiendish kitten comes along? I’m your man.”

“No, it’s ok,” she laughed. “Really. Go on. See you guys tomorrow.”

“Want us to hang around?” Willow asked. “I mean, we are going back to the same place and everything.” Buffy shook her head.

“I think we’ll give the cemetery one last go-around and head back. Somebody should probably get back to Dawn. She gets comfortable with us letting her stay home alone, and she might get comfortable with letting certain teenage boys come over while we’re gone.”

“Ah, gotcha,” Tara said, holding her hand up. “We’ll see you both later then.” Willow and Tara turned to leave, and as Buffy looked down to brush some vamp dust off of her coat, Spike and Willow shared a secret glance. Spike raised an eyebrow, and she gave him a little nod. He nodded back, and their respective partners were none the wiser.

***

“Isn’t Faith the Slayer that’s in prison for murder?”

“Does that bother you?”

“It probably should, but I don’t have much room to talk.” Dana took a sip of her tea as she sat across from Quentin Travers in a white room, similar to one she’d been holed up in after she’d been taken out of the prison. “Why is she coming here?”

“For the same reasons you are. To be evaluated. To be given a second chance.” Dana eyed him. “Neither you nor Faith had the kind of upbringing that Miss Summers had. Faith’s moral grounds were a bit…askew. We tried dealing with her once before, but that didn’t go to plan. She ended up turning herself in to police custody to try to start making amends. But you and I both know that what’s done can’t be undone.”

“Unfortunately,” Dana muttered. “Is she safe?”

“She’s a bit rough around the edges, but I’m confident that she’ll be fighting on the right side.”

“Fighting? As in a war?”

“If it ever came down to it, I suppose.”

“Ok,” Dana said quietly. “Look, I’ve done all your tests. I’ve trained with some of your Watchers. I don’t understand why I’m still here.”

“You’re not ready to go back to Sunnydale, are you?”

“Well…I don’t…I’m not…I kinda want to travel.”

“Of course.” Travers sipped at his own tea. “Your past haunts you, doesn’t it?”

“Well…yeah. It should. I mean, I did some pretty bad things.”

“And none of it was your fault,” Travers reminded her. “You were innocent before any of this started.” Dana nodded slowly.

“Yeah, but…it doesn’t change…”

“What if it could?” Dana’s eyes widened with surprise.

“What are you talking about?”

“What if you could go through life not remembering the things you did?”

“Then I wouldn’t be myself,” Dana pointed out. “I’d be a Slayer, but I wouldn’t…” She shook her head. “Look, I’ve made a lot of progress. Dr. Owens put that in my file, didn’t he?”

“Yes, of course he did. And Mr. Giles has nothing but rave reviews for your performance in training and on the field.”

“So what’s this all about? You can’t erase my bad memories. I mean, that’s just not possible.”

“What if it was? Would you want…”

“Would I want to not have to remember the awful things I did? Sure. But…that sounds like…I don’t know what it sounds like, and I don’t want to think about it.”

“Of course. I’m sorry for frightening you.”

“If you took away all of my painful memories, I wouldn’t have much but a few childhood memories left.” She shook her head. “No, my memories make me who I am, even if I’m not sure who that is anymore.”

***

“You liar!” She made a face at him as they walked through the cemetery, finally alone.

“Me?”

“Yeah, you. You are so wrong.”

“No I’m not.”

“Yes you are.” She stomped her foot a little with exasperation, and he grinned, loving it when she got all irritated. Irritation was sexy on his Slayer.

“I think I know you a lot better than you know me, kitten. I’ve got over a hundred years on you. I’ve done a lot of things I’ve never told you about.”

“Yeah, well, that doesn’t mean anything. I know who you are now and that’s what counts.” Spike rolled his eyes and jumped out of the way to avoid tripping over a weed-hidden gravestone.

“Try me. What’s my favorite song?”

“Oh, trick question. You’re expecting me to say “I Wanna Be Sedated,” but I know you secretly have man love for the lead singer of 3 Doors Down.” Spike scoffed.

“When you’re wrong, you are so wrong that it’s scary.” Buffy grinned.

“Oh, but I’m not saying your favorite song is one of theirs. Nope. I happen to know your favorite song is “Hanging by a Moment.” Spike’s eyes widened, and he cleared his throat.

“What gives you that idea?”

“Only because that’s the first song that comes on when you wanna be all romantic and…tender.”

“Tender? Baby, that’s the last word I’d use to describe…”

“What? What’s wrong with tender? And I happen to like doing it to that song.”

“Doing it? What are you, sixteen?”

“Shut up. You’re trying to distract me. I’m right though, aren’t I?”

“If you tell anyone, I’ll hold out.” Buffy’s jaw dropped.

“You would not. You can’t go more than twenty four hours without sex, and you know it.” Spike made a face. “Ha! See, I do know you better.”

“What about you, miss “Wind Beneath My Wings?”

“Hey, I never said that was my favorite song.”

“But you wanted it played at our wedding.”

“I was under a spell.”

“Doesn’t mean it affected your choice in song, does it, pet?”

“What are you, memory man?”

“Something like that, yeah.”

“Ass,” she muttered, as he drew her into his arms and planted a soft kiss to her lips. She moaned softly and opened her eyes, smiling up at him.

“What?”

“Tender,” she grinned. Spike grinned a little and kissed her again, not so tenderly. When he pulled back, he cocked an eyebrow.

“Still tender?”

“You’re a teddy bear, but you just won’t admit it.” He growled a little and devoured her lips with his own once more. When he pulled back, he smiled.

“Oh fine,” she said with a roll of her eyes. “You’re the big bad. Ravish me against the wall of this crypt.” Before she could say another word, his lips were over hers, and her back was pressed against the wall.

“You asked for it pet,” he breathed into her ear, causing her eyes to roll back and her hands to grip his arms.

“Ohhh…” And then she melted into his embrace.

***

She woke up alone in her bed at about two thirty in the morning. She frowned, remembering Spike falling asleep right next to her after she’d tired him out. Maybe he was outside having a smoke. Whatever his reason was for being gone, Buffy still had to pee. So, she pulled herself out of bed, pulled on her robe, and headed into the bathroom.

After she’d done her business, she started back toward the room, but she heard a faint murmur from downstairs. It was a low voice tinged with a British accent. Her frown grew deeper, and she silently padded down the stairs. When she reached the foot of them, she could hear a softer voice; a female voice.

Moving stealthily through the shadows, Buffy made her way toward the kitchen. She craned her neck to peer in, and she found Spike sitting at the counter next to…Willow? Since when did they have little middle-of-the-night chats?

“Are you sure about this?”

“Of course I’m sure. I love her. I need to do this for her.” Buffy’s heart began to hammer against her chest, and she was amazed that he of the super hearing wasn’t catching on to her presence.

“But now? With everything that’s supposedly going to happen? I don’t know if this is the right time, Spike.”

“It’s the right time.” He sounded solid in his reasoning. Whatever the hell his reasoning was for.

“And you’re not going to say anything to her? You’re just gonna…”

“That’s how it has to be.” Buffy felt her breath catch in her chest, and her face felt numb.

“But…just…not saying anything?” Not saying anything about what? Buffy wondered. Though something nagged at her, telling her she already knew the answer to that question.

“Look. If I do this…this is my way of showing her my family matters to me. She says she knows it, but…this way, she’ll know without a doubt.” He cleared his throat. I already know that, you idiot! Buffy’s mind hissed.

“I think she already knows that, Spike.” Thanks Wil, Buffy’s mind called out. Willow shook her head. “You know Buffy hates having her life planned out for her…you do this, and there’s no going back. Not for her. It’ll be a permanent thing. At least it will be for her. You’ve gotta be really sure about this, Spike.”

“I’m sure. Just…do me a favor, will ya?”

“What?”

“Be there for her. She’s gonna need you there when…you know how emotional she’s been lately.”

“Oh. Yeah. Yeah, ok. She’s my best friend. Of course I’ll be there for her.” After a long pause, she continued. “If this is what you really think is best for Buffy and the baby, I’ll help you.” Buffy felt the cold sting of betrayal that matched the bitterness of her tears. How could they do this to her? Behind her back? He was really going to do it. He was actually leaving her, and he wasn’t planning on telling her. He was just gonna go.

No. This wasn’t going to happen. She wouldn’t let it be that way. When she heard the screeching of bar stools against the kitchen floor, she silently made her way back down the hall and headed up to bed, fuming with anger and ready for a fight. But by the time she got back to bed, all she could do was sit down and let the tears fall. She let herself cry silently into her hands for a few minutes, trying to get her hormones in check. She was prepared to fly off the handle the moment he came walking in, but when she heard his footsteps approaching, she immediately dove under the covers and closed her eyes, hoping he wouldn’t listen for her heart thundering away and breaking in her chest.

*****

Hey guys! Please let me know what you thought of the chapter. I've been getting more people telling me they've lost interest, so I'm kinda worried here! I have a new trailer for the fic, by the way. You can find it on youtube and metacafe.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqSMqwB5Em4

Just look for After the Fall 2nd Trailer, or look under the user of BuffyXenaDQFan. :) Thanks!