Chapter 9

Buffy spent hours searching through Giles’ books later the next night, but wasn’t having much luck. She was about to give up, when she suddenly noticed a book on the top shelf that looked to be hidden in the far back. She grabbed the step ladder, making her way to the top and snatching up the book. Buffy sat down and began to read through it, flipping the pages until she came across something of interest. It was hard to focus much on anything, the kiss she shared with Spike the night before coming back to her. They didn’t talk much about it afterwards; she just made up some excuse of why she had to get home, giving him a light peck before leaving his crypt. Buffy would have to dwell more on the kiss later, she had other things on her mind at the moment. She stopped on a page when she noticed a picture of Spike, or William as he was known back then. He wore glasses and a tweed suit, his hair being a sloppy mop of curls.

“Wow, the years have really changed him,” she said to herself. Buffy read about how he was treated in society, being teased constantly for his poetry. It was the devastation caused by a Cecily Underwood that had him going out into the night, only to meet his death shortly after. She shivered at that, but continued to read on. William was taken by the devil, townspeople had said, claiming they saw him after his supposed burial. His weapon of choice being a railroad spike, which he jammed into the skulls of those that were cruel to him in life. He acquired the nickname of Spike, causing chaos and mayhem wherever he went, along with his three companions. Buffy shut her eyes tight at that knowledge. She knew that he was a killer, but it seemed more real to her now. She was amazed that it only took her mother for him to change his ways. He slaughtered two Slayers, becoming obsessed once he found out about their existence. “Slaughtered two and fell in love with one. I guess stranger things have happened.” Buffy wanted to find more about the vampires he hunted with, flipping the pages until she came across another familiar face. She gasped at the sight of the dark haired woman, knowing that face anywhere. “Drusilla,” she whispered and continued to read, placing a hand over her mouth when it all became clear. Drusilla was the vampire that made Spike, the one that also murdered her mother. It was about time they had a serious talk.


* * * * *


“Did you know about this?”

Giles took the book out of her hands, trying to not let his temper get the best of him, knowing that she looked through his private collection. “I knew of her, yes. Did I know that she was responsible for your mother’s death? I really couldn’t say. I just suspected that it might have been her. You were the only one that witnessed what happened, but you were too young to really understand.”

Buffy shook her head. “I understand just fine, I see her face almost every night. That’s not something you just forget. Why didn’t you ever tell me that she was Spike’s sire?”

Giles cleaned his glasses before answering. “I didn’t think you needed to know. I assumed he would eventually tell you himself, but he doesn’t exactly have any clue that she is responsible for the demise of Elizabeth. If you knew her real identity, there would have been no stopping you from going after her. Drusilla is a very powerful, demented vampire. You’re not strong enough to face her.”

“You knew this would happen, didn’t you? You knew that I would end up falling for Spike, that’s why you wanted me to stay away from him. Now I find out that the woman who turned him, the one he loved before my mother, is the same one that killed her. What am I supposed to do?”

Giles didn’t know what to tell her. He had hopes that Buffy wouldn’t suffer the same fate as Elizabeth, falling for the same vampire, but he wasn’t all that surprised by this turn of events. “I believe you will do what is right. Your mother is gone, Buffy. Destroying Drusilla is not going to bring her back, nothing will. It’s best if you just put this whole thing behind you and move on. Going up against her would be suicide.”

Buffy laughed humorlessly. “If you think I’m just going to give up now, then you don’t know anything about me. I’m going to Spike’s, don’t wait up.”

Giles let her walk away, knowing that nothing could stop Buffy once she set her mind on something.


* * * * *


“So, I did some reading today.”

Spike glanced up from his book, putting it down at her sudden appearance. “That’s good to hear, do you not know the concept of knocking?”

Buffy ignored him as she stepped further into the crypt. “I wanted to find out more about your past, so I did a little snooping.”

Spike had a feeling that he wouldn’t like where this conversation was headed. “You could have just asked me if you were that interested.”

She shrugged. “You know me; I’m not one for asking first. I read all about Darla, Angelus, and Drusilla. She was the most interesting one of all. I realized that I’ve seen her face before. The same face when I was a little girl, the one that haunts my dreams almost every night. The same one that fed off of my mother as I watched, dropping her dead body not more than two feet away from me. I would have been next on her list, but I guess she had other plans for me.”

Spike’s eyes widened at this new piece of information. “Drusilla? She was the one that killed Liz?”

Buffy nodded. “Funny enough, her main reason for that was you. She blamed my mother for your turning against her, for choosing a Slayer as your partner. I remember the words she whispered to me before she vanished. She said that he’ll come for me, that we’ll be a family again. What exactly did she mean by that?”

Spike shook his head. “Bloody hell if I know, she was off her bird. I gave up trying to figure her out. You can’t blame me for this, Buffy. I was off in some other dimension by that time, and I left her way before that.”

“I’m not blaming you. The only person I blame is her. Giles thinks I’m in way over my head. That I should just forget about the whole thing and get on with my life, but I can’t do that. I’ll never be able to sleep again knowing that she’s still out there. All the lives she’s probably taken, the childhoods she destroyed. The only way for me to ever have peace again, is for her to be dust. I won’t rest until I find her.”

Spike grabbed her arm before she could leave. “You don’t know her like I do, pet. Drusilla is bloody insane, and I mean that literally. You’ll get yourself killed if you go up against her. Besides, she could be anywhere. You wouldn’t even know where to look.”

She ripped her arm out of his grasp. “I have my sources. I’m doing this, Spike. Nothing that you or Giles say will make me change my mind. I don’t care that she’s your sire, or that you once had this whole other life with her. The next time I see her, she’s going to meet the nice pointy end of my stake. You’re either on my side or you’re not, but I have to do this. If you get in my way, that gem won’t stop me from killing you. I’ll find a way around it,” with that said, she made her way out of the crypt.

Spike ran his fingers through his hair. He knew that he had to make her realize this wasn’t the way, but just hoped to do that without meeting a dusty ending. The look in her eyes was like nothing he had seen before. Spike knew that she was very serious, and that thought terrified him.