Combined Strength

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After her somewhat erratic night’s sleep, she was on edge the next day and took to pacing the length of Giles’ living room.

“Where’s Spike?” Willow asked and Buffy stopped in her pacing, frowning.

“I don’t know. Why would I know where he is? It’s not like I keep tabs on him or anything.”

Willow frowned in confusion at her outburst and she looked away, annoyed that she was getting so worked up about nothing. It was just a dream. But then, you also kissed him in real life.

“Well, I thought...with the claim...”

“I don’t know,” she bit out.

Luckily the tense silence created by her strange behaviour was soon broken as the door opened and the vampire himself appeared. She just glanced at him but looked away again quickly, her cheeks blushing.

“We all set?” he spoke up and she forced herself to at least look in his direction, even if she was afraid to meet his eyes.

“Yeah,” she answered, “You get him to the base and we’ll be waiting with the spell.”

“Right, here goes then.”

She felt him hesitate for a moment and forced herself to meet her gaze. He narrowed his eyes at her but she forced a smile and with a reluctant smile, he turned and left.



They left not long after and she took to her pacing again as the others set up the spell, idly playing with the chains that she would have to pretend to be tied up with.

“Buffy?” Willow said softly, suddenly at her shoulder, “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. I’ll be even better when this is over.”

“Are you worried about Riley?”

“Riley? Yeah. Yeah, of course.”

Willow smiled reassuringly and squeezed her shoulder, before moving back to the setting-up.

“Right, I’m going to tie myself up,” Buffy announced with a wry smile.

“Be careful,” Giles warned and she nodded.

She took a deep breath and left the room, shutting the doors behind her friends and going to the room she had agreed with Spike. She laced the chains through a pipe and then wound them loosely around herself- loosely enough that she would be able to get out quickly but tight enough to look realistic. The next few minutes of waiting were like torture, until she finally heard voices.

“Yeah, it was no problem. See, Slayer thinks I’m on her side.”

She steeled herself against Spike’s words- after all, he had to act the part- and then the door burst in, Adam appearing with Spike at his side.

“See? One Slayer, just like I promised. Now, ‘bout my chip...”

“Later,” Adam ground out, “Leave us.”

Spike’s eyes just met hers and she heard Be careful, love and then he left the room, shutting the door behind him.



“Slayer.”

“Hi, nice to meet you,” she said perkily, smiling.

Adam just growled and moved towards her and she quickly worked her way out of her chains. He looked amazed and she shrugged with a little laugh.

“Oops.”

He growled again and moved toward her and just before he could get to her, she felt a burst go through her, filling her whole body with strength. That was the spell working then. She flew at the monster and was glad when he stumbled back with her hit. Using her advantage, she began to barrage him with kicks and punches.

It was amazing, she had never felt this strength before and she spun and kicked him, sending him flying through the door. He stumbled but did not fall and she flew at him again, attacking him viciously, her heart singing with the violence. She let out a cry and flew at him one last time, plunging her fist through his stomach and yanking out his power source.

He collapsed to the floor with a thud and she smiled triumphantly, looking up to meet the shocked gazes of her friends. She didn’t even have time to wonder why there were not performing the spell before the burst that had been fuelling her suddenly went and she collapsed to the floor.



“You’ll find out on Saturday.”
“What happens on Saturday?”
“I kill you.”


“I told you. I want to stop Angel. I want to save the world.”


“You’re not friends. You’ll never be friends. You’ll be in love ‘til it kills you both.”


“I wonder what went wrong. Were you too strong? Did you bruise the boy? Come to think of it, seems like someone told me that. Who was it? Oh, yeah. Angel.”


“I hate you.”


“I don’t know what to say.”
“Make me the happiest man on earth and say yes.”


“Mine.”
“Yours.”



A barrage of images and words hit her and she started awake with a sharp intake of breath.

“Buffy?”

She turned her head to meet the worried gazes of her friends.

“God, what happened? Is Spike-“

“Bloody hell,” he groaned from somewhere in the room.

“Take that as a yes.”

She sat up, holding her spinning head and looking around Giles’ living room. She had been laid out on the sofa and she soon spotted Spike, sprawled on the floor, holding his head too. Their eyes met and she saw that same rush of images behind her eyelids.

“What happens on Saturday?” she whispered and he smiled, pushing himself into a sitting position.

She turned back to her friends.

“Well, I remember kicking Adam’s ass, so that’s good. What did I miss?”

“Buffy.”

She turned to the side, for the first time taking in the person she hadn’t expected to see here: Riley.

“Riley. Are you...What are you doing here?”

“It turns out Riley had a chip too,” Giles explained and she looked between her Watcher and her boyfriend- ex-boyfriend- in confusion, “One that made him obey Adam’s commands.”

She looked to Riley and he nodded slowly.

“I’m sorry.”

“It wasn’t your fault,” she whispered and turned back to the group.




“Wow, what was in that spell? That was amazing!” she remarked with a slight smile.

“Err, well, yes, we wanted to talk to you about that. The spell didn’t quite go as planned.”

“What? What do you mean?”

“Well, it was supposed to channel our power,” Willow explained, “But instead, it, err, got Spike’s.”

She looked to the vampire and he smiled wryly, pushing himself to his feet.

“Guess that explains why I passed out,” he commented.

“Yes. It seems the spell took your strength and passed it to Buffy through the, err, connection between the two of you,” Giles explained.

“Wow,” Buffy breathed, “So that’s what vampire strength feels like.”

Spike smiled slightly, settling on a chair close to her.

“Although the eyes were a bit freaky,” Willow exclaimed and Buffy looked at her in confusion.

“Eyes?”

“You had yellow eyes.”

“That’d probably be me then,” Spike remarked.

Buffy suddenly thought of something and laughed to herself slightly and the vampire raised an eyebrow in question.

“I did wonder why I was enjoying the violence so much.”

He smiled and she shook her head, turning back to her friends.

“So, do we get to celebrate now?”