A/N: Huge thanks to my betas Luxferi and Amarysso

* * *


“I know where he is.”

“Really?” Buffy was surprised. She hadn’t thought finding one of Angelus’ minions would be that easy. “Wanna share?”

“He took us outside last night. Had these… duels, to find the best fighters. I didn’t have to fight, he said I was too pretty. But Johnny did.”

“Why are you telling me this? You’re a vampire, you like violence…“

The brunette swallowed. “Johnny died. Some ugly polgara got him. He’s dust.”

“Who’s Johnny?” Buffy asked carefully.

The vampire tilted her head to show the bite mark on her neck.

“He was my mate. My sire. My everything...”

Buffy rolled her eyes. “And haven’t we heard that one before…”

The female vampire looked offended, but rather than vamping out, she was at the verge of tears. Buffy didn’t seem to notice - she tapped her foot impatiently.

“Look, whatever your name is-”

“Diane.”

“Diane. I’ll kill him. He’ll pay. Just tell me where Angelus is.”

“There’s an old mansion behind Richmound cemetery. It’s not visible from the road, but there’s a small path that leads to the garden entrance. He won’t be expecting you.”

Buffy practically ran out of there, she had gotten all the information she needed.

It was time to bring her mother back.

* * *

Spike was waiting outside, cigarette in the corner of his mouth, walking in circles. He wasn’t sure what he was doing. He’d said he wouldn’t come when she called, like a dog, yet here he was waiting for her like a leashed poodle for its owner outside the supermarket. No, not a poodle. Spike saw himself more like a pit bull. Maybe a rottweiler. One of those dogs which once they got their teeth into something, they never let go.

He’d said he’d help her. Why the bleedin’ hell had he said something like that? *Because she needed him, that’s why.* But Spike wasn’t completely sure he could keep his promise - he’d try, no question about it - but what good would he do? What good was he doing out here?

Spike had just decided to go inside and join Buffy when the girl in question stalked out of the pub pass Spike and continued down the street.

“So?” Spike asked as he tried to catch up with her.

“He’s at a mansion behind Richmound cemetery,” Buffy said over her shoulder.

“You sure? Who told you this?”

“Some vampire called ‘Diane’. Know who it is?”

“No.”

Spike had stopped but Buffy continued down the road, focused on her destination.

“You’re going?”

“Yes.”

“Even though it’s most likely a trap?”

“Uh huh.”

Spike rolled his eyes, sighed and ran reluctantly up to her. “You’re gonna get yourself killed.”

“You coming with?” Buffy said perkily, smiling one of her best, but false, smiles.

“Look, Buffy. Usually when you do this sort of thing, world saving, whatever, don’t you have something resembling a plan?”

“I didn’t think you were the ‘think first’ kind of guy.”

Spike looked almost offended and replied quickly, “I’m not. But uh… the chance of me getting a lot dead-er by the end of the night-”

“You’re helping me?” Buffy prayed to God she’d kept her voice flat, that she didn’t let it show how much she wanted and needed his help.

“Didn’t I tell you I would?”

“Great,” she said, again trying to hide any emotion, “let’s go.”

“Luv, wait.”

“No?” Buffy stopped and turned around to face him. ”What are we waiting for?”

“I’ll go. You go back and tell your mates. Grab some weapons.”

“All I need is this stake.” Buffy was starting to get annoyed. Why was he keeping her?

“And he might have minions of the non-vampire variety. Look, Angelus shouldn‘t know I‘m… helping you out. If we show up together all best pals, it won’t be a surprise.”

“Fine.” Why did he have to be so smart?

“I’ll play along until you get there. Then I’ll take care of Dru.”

“Are you actually making the plan?” Buffy looked at him in disbelief.

“Looks like,” Spike said and threw his cigarette butt on the ground. “Now off you go.”

Buffy was about to turn around when she hesitated and gave Spike a pondering look. “Spike. If you’re playing me… if you know, all this should turn out to be some grand scheme to kill a Slayer? You’re dust before you realize what happened.”

Spike just winked, chuckled and left.

* * *

Buffy threw the door open and went into the living room with a grim look on her face. On the table in front of the sofa, Xander had lined up her weapons and Buffy headed straight for the large axe, which the boy was busy polishing, and snatched it right out of his hands.

“Hey!” he objected.

“Any luck?” Giles inquired and removed his glasses.

“According to some vampire he’s at a mansion behind one of the cemeteries.”

“You sure?” Xander asked. “And that’s where your mother is?”

“I think so.”

“Buffy, a vampire told you this? Doesn’t that scream, you know, trap?”

“Willow is quite right. You don’t know this creature’s agenda. It’s probable it will lead you straight into the claws of Angelus while your mother is at a complete different location.” Giles reasoned.

“Then I’ll make him lead me to her.”

Her friends were silenced by her determined look. They couldn’t argue with that.

“Um… Buffy?” Willow asked nervously. “Where‘s Spike?”

There was a moment when the Scooby gang looked around as if expecting the vampire to be hiding behind Buffy’s back and pop out behind her shoulder.

“Yeah, where’s the bloodsucking fiend?” Xander agreed.

“He went in advance.”

“You think that’s wise?” Giles asked, trying to keep the judgemental note out of his voice. “Spike will most likely warn Angelus about your arrival.”

“He’s probably planning the whole damn thing!” Xander exclaimed.

“No, he won’t. He hasn’t. Look, I don’t have time for this. I gotta go. Spike has promised to take care of Dru-” Giles opened his mouth to say something but Buffy cut him off, emphasizing her words “-and I trust that. If he doesn’t, if I‘m wrong… Well, I guess I have to fight the three of them. I am going to get my mother back. No matter what happens.”

With that, Buffy left the house, axe in one hand, stake in the other, slamming the door behind her.

* * *

Spike was walking the narrow path towards the mansion’s garden entrance. He was hardly sneaking, but with being a vampire his motions were soundless. It wasn’t long until he saw it, the mansion Buffy, and that vampire by the name of Diane, was talking about.

Spike was surprised he’d never seen this large building before, it seemed so out of place, yet somehow right at home where it almost melted into its surroundings. It was old, maybe 19th century if Spike estimated right and according to the wildly grown garden and the ivy climbing up the granite walls, no one had lived there for quite a while.

Spike strolled into the main room through the open garden door.

“So this is where you’re hiding?” he said casually, spotting Angelus and Drusilla further in. ”Should have known you for choosing something classy. Darla was all about the fancy castles and spectacular views, wasn’t she? Guess you got some of that.”

“Spike.” Angelus’ voice was flat. “Didn’t think you would join us. Busy chasing after that Slayer of ours.”

Dru watched her childe suspiciously. If she suspected, or for that matter saw what he was hiding, she didn’t say anything.

Their last meeting hadn’t exactly been pleasant, he’d found her in Angelus’ bed and she’d pretty much given him up. This time Spike felt more unwanted than he ever had in his unlife. When they met after a longer absence, or after a fight, Drusilla always used to dance and giggle when she saw him, her eyes that technically were dead used to sparkle with life and insanity and she would run up to him and caress his chest with her bony fingers. Today she looked at him sadly and mumbled:

“William, my dear, have you seen the stars tonight? They speak of wonders… and losses. “ Drusilla smiled at their prisoner, sitting on the floor.

Joyce tried to scream but her voice was drowned by the fabric stuffed in her mouth, bound around her head. There was an ugly wound on her forehead, and her hands were tied behind her back; her feet tightly together. She pulled at the ropes but all it was good for were bruises and red, sore skin.

Angelus laughed at her efforts.

Joyce looked at Spike with pleading eyes.

A miscellaneous group of demons came from the main entrance into the hall where Spike was standing. There were five of them. A couple of vampires, a large scaly demon with a nasty smell; a thin snake-like demon with mucus running from its nose. Last came something Spike was sure to be a troll. It was smaller than the trolls he’d come across in the past, but he still wondered how such a creature ended up in dear old Sunnydale.

If Spike had followed Buffy into Willy’s bar he would have recognized one of the vampires as Diane. It turned out he didn’t need to - when she opened her mouth.

“The Slayer is on her way. Everything is going as planned.“

“Wonderful.” Angelus leered. “I’m itching to get started.”

Angelus walked over to the fireplace where a row of sharp metal instruments lay neatly, waiting to be heated and inflict as much pain as they possibly could.

Spike froze. Yes, it was a trap. Buffy knew where to go because Angelus wanted her to. Now, there were seven demons there excluding himself, two of which were among the most powerful alive, or in this case, undead. This was not good. Really not good. He wasn’t even sure Buffy could take on Angelus even if he was alone.

“You’re itching to get started? You sure you’re not dying to?”

Okay, so it was a bad pun, but Buffy couldn’t stop herself. It took all her willpower to not just rush in and let her mother loose.

She walked slowly into the main room where the others where standing. She took it all in; Angelus in front of her, a pack of demons further in. She recognized ‘Diane’ as one of them. Buffy grew cold, maybe Willow had been right? This looked very much like a trap. It didn’t take long for Buffy to figure out that the other woman in the room, at her left, had to be Drusilla and a pang of jealousy hit her when she saw how close she was standing to Spike. On the floor beside them sat her mother, she was tied up, bruised, but she was alive. Relief washed over Buffy and with a hint of a smile and a short nod she tried to reassure the woman when she met her eyes.

“Well, well, well. Who do we have here?” Angelus taunted as he spotted her and leered in her direction. The pack of demons laughed obediently with him, some of them too stupid to have an opinion of their own, some of them smart enough to play along with their master.

Spike chuckled with them. Buffy gave him a quick, worried glance and seeing him and the cold look in his eyes made her more scared than Angelus ever had.

“Came to catch the show?” Angelus said, nodding at the instruments of torture he’d prepared. “Or should we have some fun first? I know Johnny here would really like himself a feisty blonde.”

A large, shabby vampire was looking at her appreciably, running his tongue over his vampire teeth and smirking obnoxiously in her direction. His hands were in the belt loops of his jeans and his right traveled down to his crotch. The display overall was sickening.

“But we wouldn’t want a repeat performance on your part, would we?” Angelus continued. “The other night when-”

“Shut up.” Buffy cut him off.

“Have you told your mother about that? How you so eagerly jumped me?” He strolled over to where Joyce was sitting and crouched beside her casually. “Wanna know how I fucked your daughter?”

Joyce flinched, but made no other protest. Buffy could see the anger boiling in her mother’s eyes and she wished more than anything that she could tell her he was lying. She felt so ashamed.

“Stop talking, will you!” Spike interrupted impatiently. “And you faggots what are you waiting for? Are we gonna stand here all day?”

There was a confused moment when Buffy looked back and forth between the demons and Spike. What was he telling them?

“Kill her!”