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Chapter 26
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She was fresh-scrubbed, her long, dark hair still slightly damp. She wasn’t the young tough girl who first came into Sunnydale like a gale force wind, sweeping everything she touched into a frenzy of uncontrolled change. This was a more mature and infinitely more lethal woman. The hardness that had made for a reckless youth had grown her into a warrior woman, all hard edges and calculating glances. There didn’t appear to be any softness in her. She was the ultimate dream slayer, a weapon forged in adversity and poured into flesh.

"Yo, bad boy, how they hangin’? Up for some real competition on those floor mats? If we plan to get B back to the bosom of her family so everyone can get all squishy, we’d better toughen your ass up." Faith gave a half-smile as she threw the gauntlet at Spike’s feet.

"Ah, the Dark Slayer arrives. Wondered how long before you’d show up. Did you bring the Educator with you or have you moved on to other pastures?" Spike eyed the newcomer with a bit of suspicion. He had started out liking Faith well enough until she ousted Buffy from the safety of her own home and took the lead to disaster in those last few days before the final Sunnydale battle. One could say they had a mixed history.

Spike’s history with her last known boyfriend, Robin Wood, was not mixed at all. It was a relationship built on the bones of Wood’s dead mother, the slayer Spike counted as his last slayer kill. The best word Spike could think of to describe their connection was loathing. The treachery used by Robin Wood to lure Spike to his cross-encrusted garage, just when the focus should have been on their mutual enemy the First Evil, was not easily forgotten by the vampire. While Spike might understand the desire to even the score for Nikki Wood’s death, the timing had been a near disaster. The subterfuge used, Wood’s offer to help in detriggering Spike, had been unworthy at best. It wasn’t just the slayers who liked the sides to be clearly marked black or white.

"Gotta say you’re lookin’ wicked buff. Must be the menu. I need to worry about you goin’ all Lestat on my neck while we’re whuppin’ each other’s ass? I’d hate to have to use something pointy and wooden on B’s best chance at a happy homecoming." Faith had obviously already been told of Spike’s special diet. "Saw the troops lined up like a Red Cross blood drive. Kinda gets a girl curious, you know what I mean? Robin already got the skinny from Soul Boy. I suppose
someone’ll come by and ask me for my donation before long. Think I should tell them I gave at the office?"

"Don’t need your blood. Got enough from the rest. I like mine less bitter, if it’s all the same. Well, from what you just said, I guess Wood’s managed to keep your interest somehow. Good on him. Should I start watchin’ my back?"

Faith gave a short burst of laughter before answering. "Nah. Here to help. Not you, maybe; but B, for sure. We’ve all learned a little bit of patience over the years. Cleveland’s bad enough, but add the fact it has a Hellmouth and you learn a lot of lessons. We brought Kennedy with us, too. Figured you could use the stimulation, you know, sleepin’ with one eye open. Looks like your whole fan club’s here now, Dusty. Well, ready to get sweaty?"

They began to spar slowly, each feeling out the other’s moves. The only real battle the two had ever had was the fury-inspired flash dance in the Summers’ home when Spike found out they had driven Buffy from hearth and home. That had been pretty much a draw. Now they were both getting a sense of the rhythm of the other.

They had just started to really get into it when Spike’s other dark-haired nemesis arrived and joined in the fray. Kennedy had cropped her dark hair into a short, boyish cut but looked otherwise unchanged. Spike briefly wondered if Willow was aware of her arrival.

"Looks like you’ve been working out, Spike. Maybe you won’t just be good for opening up skylights," Kennedy said as a greeting.

"Yeah? Well, you still have another century of training needed before you could ever take me by yourself, Snippy. Course, that attitude of yours was always enough to make me want to run off by itself. I’m at better than full strength, missy. You sure you’re up to this?"

Kennedy picked up a broadsword and let it answer for her. Spike easily leapt over the swinging blade before it even came close to hitting his shins. His kick, delivered while still in the air, dropped Kennedy to her knees. "Looks like YOU need a bit of working out before you take on the Big Bad", Spike taunted.

He felt the slayer blood in him begin to run hot with the challenge of two slayers who didn’t particularly like him. Finally there was that added spice of danger to add to the mix of the training. He hadn’t been holding back in these sessions, but subconsciously everyone knew there would be no dusting of Spike during the fighting. With these two, the potential for an "accident" was at least a consideration. The fighting had moved to a different level entirely.

They had been trading blows for only a short time before they acquired an audience. Word had spread of the arrival of the trio from Ohio. Even the young slayers had heard some version of the stories about this group of players and their history with the resident hero vamp. Everyone wanted to watch the blood sport.

Spike was grinning in glee to finally be in his element. He had always thrived dancing on that razor sharp edge of danger. He never liked an easy win. As hard as it was to achieve even a draw with Illyria, there was no need to fear losing his head. Even Peaches didn’t want to do more than beat Spike to a
pulp, if possible. THIS was more like it! Fist and fang--okay, no fang--but with the slayer blood in his system, his demon was sated and not raising any objections.

Faith tossed a battle-axe to Kennedy. "Girlfriend, heads up!" She was pummeling Spike, her fists connecting most blows, yet he was merely grinning stupidly at her. Faith was starting to get a bit creeped out that all her punishment didn’t seem to be weakening the vamp one bit.

Kennedy caught the axe and aimed for Spike’s back. Spike grasped Faith’s fists in his hands and swung her around using her body to block the fall of the axe. Kennedy, seeing his move in the nick of time, pulled back on the axe to avoid doing any damage to Faith. Spike let go of Faith, tossing her into Kennedy and bringing both Slayers to the mat.

"Seems to me you ladies might be a mite jet-lagged yet, else you’re getting lazy with all the help on that other Hellmouth. What say we give you a bit of mercy and wait ‘til after you’ve had a bit of a kip, eh? That is unless fallin’ on your
ass is what you do best?" Spike was looking pointedly at Kennedy as he said that last bit.

Kennedy wiped the blood from her split lip and narrowed her eyes. "I can take you, pretty boy. There’s no vamp I can’t turn into ashtray filler." Kennedy was angry at the insult to her slaying skills. She was grabbing for the axe when Faith put a hand over hers and stopped her.

"Spike’s right, Ken. We’re here to get him battle ready and we all have to be on top of our game to do the job. The idea is to leave Bleach Boy in one annoying piece. ‘Sides, B’d fuckin’ have our asses if we dust her boy toy. Okay, Scrappy Doo, we’ll meet first thing in the morning. Have that demon the girls are all talkin ‘bout and the Big Guy join in the fun, we’ll all have fun kickin’ your scrawny ass." Faith reached out a hand to help Kennedy rise.

"Lookin’ forward to it. Time you match up with a master vampire, test your mettle and all. Doin’ you both a favor in the long run. See you at seven then." Spike sauntered from the room leaving the sweating, winded slayers to towel off and glare at his unmarked back.

~~~

Spike nearly ran over Willow on his way to the showers. "Hey, Red, nearly bowled you over there. You okay?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I’m okay. I was woolgathering, I guess. Memo to the Wicca, only daydream in the safety of your own room." She tried to put on her bravest face, but the smile not only didn’t reach her eyes, it was far too wide and brittle.

Spike tilted his head and stared at the little witch. He figured he had his answer about whether Willow had been told of Kennedy’s arrival.

"How ‘bout offerin’ a tired vamp a cuppa. I haven’t had a decent bit of tea since that lovely pot you brewed when I first got back to the motherland. Sure you didn’t mojo it a bit?" He gently teased.

"Sure! Well, not ‘sure’ as in ‘yes, I used magic to make tea, because I’m back to misusing magic’. ‘Sure’ as in ‘glad to fix a pot for you’. I think I can even manage to find some fairly fresh oatmeal cookies while I’m at it. Meet you at my cottage after your shower?"

"Thanks, Red. Need a friendly face and welcomin’ shoulder after those two!" Spike continued toward the locker room and the showers beyond them.

He had a feeling Willow would need an ear and he owed the witch his comfort. Maybe he’d stop by the supply room and pick up a box of tissues while he was at it. It didn’t have the same feel as taking flowers, but it wasn’t exactly a date either.

~~~

Spike handed Willow a small bag with the tissues and a few other random items that he had added to disguise the real reason for his foray into the storeroom.

"Brought a few things while I picked up some supplies for myself. Don’t know if you need any of ‘em, but here", he thrust the bag into Willow’s hands.

She peeked into the bag and saw the odd mix of items. He had everything from Q-tips to Jell-o in the bag. Her brow furrowed in puzzlement. "Wow, you really don’t shop much, do you?"

"Can’t say as I do, Red. Well, sure, blood from the butcher, fags and beer from the convenience store, that kind of thing. I usually just eat out when I get peckish. Lots of stuff out there now, not like in my day. Course, in my day, I didn’t do the shoppin’ anyway." He smiled at his hostess sweetly.

Willow headed for the kitchenette and unloaded the bag on the table before putting the items in the cupboards. The tea had been steeped to perfection while waiting for Spike’s arrival.

The fine bone china of the tea service reminded Spike of his mother’s best company china and parlors of years gone by. Suddenly the completely modern setting began to have the warm, comforting feel of home.

Willow poured a cup for each of them, remembering how Spike took his tea from their last visit over a cuppa. He was strangely touched to notice that she had bothered to pay attention to that detail.

"So…I guess you already know your ex is in the house. You okay with that?" He felt that it was best to just grab the bull by the horns and not beat around the bush. That thought made him remember how Buffy used to chide him for mixing his metaphors and he couldn’t stop the slight smile at the memory.

Willow gave a half grin and answered, "We haven’t run into each other yet, but, yeah, I heard. I don’t really know what I’m going to say to her. We didn’t so much break up as just drift, you know? I was busy here in England with the Council and the Coven. Kennedy’s Action Girl; it was too tame for her here so she headed for Cleveland. We kept in touch daily for a while, then it became weekly, then less and less until it just stopped. I don’t really know what to say to her."

"For what it’s worth, I think you can do a lot better. You’ll never find another like Glinda, but that doesn’t mean you have to settle for the Wicked Witch of the West either", Spike offered.

Willow laughed out loud at that. "I know you guys don’t exactly get along, but she’s not quite that bad! I really don’t think she needs to keep looking up to avoid houses or anything."

"I don’t know about that. I kept wantin’ to yell, ‘Auntie Em, Auntie Em’ while we were fightin’ earlier." Spike grinned widely.

The two new friends laughed over the visuals their comments had put in their heads. Spike was right--Willow was definitely over her fling with the bitchy slayer with the pushy attitude.

"You probably will be wantin’ to iron out the divorce settlement while she’s here. Make sure you get your half!" Spike was gently teasing Willow into the best
mood she had been in since hearing of her former lover’s arrival. It had stung a bit that Kennedy hadn’t even tried to locate her at all since getting in late the night before.

"Yeah! She’s rich, too … I wonder how long you have to be together before you qualify?" She couldn’t believe she was able to make jokes about the break up. Spike had a way about him! The more she got to know the vampire, the more she could see how Buffy and Dawn had come to love him.

"I was thinkin’ more like half her body parts when I finish with her. Just tell me your favorite bits and I’ll set ‘em aside for you." Spike laughed at the bright blush on Willow’s face.

"I did kinda like that pierced tongue of hers. Hey, that would solve a couple of problems! I’d get the body part I had the best memory of and you’d get a silent Kennedy to have to spar with. Yup, that sounds like a win-win situation." Willow had entered into the spirit of the conversation easily. Her mood had lifted completely and she was no longer dreading the long evening ahead.

"You know, I’m getting’ a bit stir crazy here in Watchers Central. What say we break out of here tonight? I know a club where the Guinness is on tap and not watered down. Happens to have turned into a gay club since I was last in town, but I’m thinkin’ that won’t bother you any. Let’s see about findin’ you a little cutie to invite over to see where you work tomorrow. If it should happen to be the same time you have that first awkward meeting with the loud mouth, well,
who’s to say how long you’ve known the bird? What’d you say to that?"

"You’ve got yourself a date! Wait, not a date … I’m a girl on the loose tonight. You okay with the whole gay bar thing? My guess is you’ll have to beat the guys off." She nearly glowed red with the blushes caused by her slip of the tongue. "I didn’t mean it that way… not that you’d be beating off any guys, just that they’d be wanting you to ….. Oh, goddess! There is just no way to save that sentence is there?"

"’S okay, luv. I know what you meant. I’ve been to a gay club a time or two. I don’t have any prejudices. I figure I can protect myself if anybody gets too frisky or can’t take ‘no’ for an answer. Music’s usually better in gay clubs anyway. Why don’t you go and doll yourself up a bit and we’ll make the grand escape." Spike smiled reassuringly at Willow.

Her step was lighter as she slipped into her bedroom and started going through her closet for something that said ‘available’ without saying ‘easy’ along with
it. She hadn’t really done any dating at all since Tara had been murdered. It was time.