I just wanted to say that this chapter was simply brilliant. Pure brilliance. I have never read a fic that captures this couple as well as you do, and even your writing style is soo realistic... I can see everything in my head perfectly canon. Like it actually happened! The last paragraph made me want to squeal and sent chills down my spine. Very very well done! I always wondered how Spike would have reacted to what happened to Buffy in Helpless, and you nailed it spot on! Everything is so subtle yet so heavy. Nothing is contrived or out of place, characters are as canon as can be in a fanfic, SUPERB. I am absolutely addicted and cant wait to check out your other stuff. P.s this part in the fic also the name of it reminds me of dust to dust a beautiful song by the civil wars that reminds me of spuffy

Just loved this chapter. How you delve into Buffy's experience & feelings about the Cruciamentum - which we only get to suppose in the series - but you've made so real here. Then Spike's unwilling sympathy for her, how he finds himself relating to & understanding her far more than he wants to. And his insight to her strength & character. Finally the sweet moment you end it on, this swell of affection & camaraderie all shared in a laugh. 

The last few lines were so perfect: It was bright and real and free sounding, the laugh of a girl who had finally sussed out the great cosmic joke that had been played on her—and who wasn't bitter about it. Oh, not this girl.

After a minute, Spike joined her. Because when you once again find yourself sympathetic when you had no right to the emotion in the first place, and what's more, when you're sympathizing with your mortal enemy—you might as well admit that the joke is on you, too.


 

Brilliant...  They're finally bonding...  I like it!

Because when you once again find yourself sympathetic when you had no right to the emotion in the first place, and what's more, when you're sympathizing with your mortal enemy—you might as well admit that the joke is on you, too .

Chilling!  Poor little Spike, all tied up in knots!

Buffy was hiding something. Now she wouldn't be able to pry him away from the place with a crowbar  - hee of course not.    -  go

Love your story!!! btw, a note on the Cantonese comment from Spike...Cantonese is a dialect of Chinese...it's a verbal language. however, the written language is still called "Chinese," basically the difference between Mandarin and Cantonese is how the words are pronounced. The written word is essentially the same, this is why if a Cantonese speaker doesn't understand Mandarin, they can still write a sentence down in Chinese and the Mandarin speaker can read the note & still understand his/her meaning.

So Spike can "read Chinese and speak Cantonese, or read Chinese and speak Mandarin." (whichever you like him to do)

hope you understand, thanks!

I'm loving this story so much that I had to seek out more of your writing and found West of the Moon, East of the Sun, - fantastic!  You're probably the best writer I've come across so far for Spuffy fanfic, not only because you stay true to their characters and their voices, but because the quality of your writing is excellent.  Very satisfying stuff! 

I think I've been wanting to read this conversation, this chapter for years but I was only dimly aware of it.

I loved "West of the Moon" though it occasionally stuck too closely to the season 5 plot for my tastes. I only found out you were writing a new story a couple days ago when someone linked it on a forum and I saw a familiar author-name.

Right from the first chapter I liked this even better than I did your previous work, and it's shaping up to be an all-time favourite. I've read fan-fiction stories for years, many of them about these two characters and yet this one manages to feel so very fresh and original. Spike and Buffy are both hilarious, the story is fascinating, the relationship feels real and true to the spirit of the characters in general and season 4 in particular. It all flows so very naturally from the starting point, nothing is forced or contrived.

And then this chapter. Starting with the list, and ending with "Helpless" it's the best so far. Like I said above, I've wondered for years what Spike would make of the cruciamentum, and wondered how he'd react. This chapter just is the perfect reaction for a soulless Spike, just the right mix of schadenfreude, honest bafflement and that little bit of sympathy. And of course that sympathy is expressed through recommending bloodyshed. It neither white-washes nor villifies him.

Perhaps even more important, if less directly obvious, is the way it is made believable that Buffy would open up to him. He unwittingly forces her to confront it all, but not in such a way she can really blame him for it. He wasn't there for the event and wasn't in any way related to it, and he never threatened her family in so direct a way, making him a safe and neutral party. The fact there's literally nobody else to talk to and his little gesture with the photos lull her just enough to let me believe she'd tell him.

Kudos, and thanks for writing. And good luck with the rest of the story. You're setting the bar really high for yourself. ;-)

This chapter was poetry.  Poetry.  The timing, the dialogue, the twists, all so gorgeous.  Bravo.  Seriously, seriously good.

Oh wow - what a perfect place for them to find a connection.  I loved Buffy telling Spike about her test. 
I love how you keep putting in these chapters where nothing is really happening, but SO MUCH is going on.

You have no idea how much I needed an update on a birthday that seems on the verge of turning crappy. And such a fun update! Now I know things will just get better. Such a great update to a great story! Love the reexamination the cruciatum. Spike\'s reaction is priceless, as is Buffy\'s reaction to that. Pure poetry!