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Foreshadow I: Grief, Despair and Hope by Alexannah
 
Prologue: The Mouth of Hell; Chapter One: Seeing Things
 
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Author's notes: This fic's set vaguely around series six: Buffy works at the DMP but has not started a relationship with Spike yet; Xander and Anya are still planning their wedding; the Trio have been identified. No major Series 7 spoilers except for the episode “Lies My Parents Told Me” as it uses the backstory revealed there.
Also, the series will occasionally cross over with AtS, whose timeline I’ve been even more flexible with. More details nearer the time.
The Spuffy in this fic's pretty subtle till the ending. The rest of the series will have more actual romance in.
I'm still working on the next chapter of ALC. Should be out soon.
Thanks a lot to my beta, dawnofme.

Prologue: The Mouth of Hell

London, 1867

The crowds were pressing in on all sides, everyone rushing away from the scene. He was hurrying as fast as he could towards it.

“Out of my way. Excuse me, please. Move!” he snapped at the crowd.

The ground had opened up. A huge pit lay where the buildings lining the road had once stood. Blue lightning was crackling around the scene, and the sheer power of it stopped him in his tracks. But only for a second.

Creatures from the other side, monstrous creatures, that no human had ever laid eyes on would start crossing to their world any second. He had to hurry.

He was only an amateur, really. He knew deep down that he had no hope of closing the Hellmouth. But he had to try. For his family’s future.

He ventured as near as he dared and began to chant.

Chapter One: Seeing Things

Sunnydale, 2002

It was late when Angel’s car drew up outside an old friend’s home. He switched off the engine and sat there for a moment, thinking.

This would be difficult, but the Seers had been clear about one thing: A vampire and the Slayer had to face what was coming together. Obviously, it was him. What other vampire would fight on the side of good?

As much as he was looking forward to seeing Buffy again, he knew it would be awkward for both of them. But sitting there in the dark would not defeat the enemy, and it was with a sigh that he climbed out of the car and walked to Giles’ front door.

He had barely finished knocking when the door was pulled open, revealing a harassed-looking Giles. “Angel! I’m glad you’re here; come in.”

The gang were crowded in Giles’ living room. Angel looked around at all of them, those he recognised and those he didn’t, and realised something. “Where’s Buffy?”

“We were hoping you could tell us, actually,” Willow said.

“Why, what happened?”

“What happened is a portal just swallowed her up before you came in,” Xander snapped. “No warning, it just appeared.”

“A portal?

________________________________________


Buffy landed heavily on wet grass. For a moment, she just lay there, her head spinning. When she finally opened her eyes, she saw it was night. Sitting up, she recognised her surroundings to be a cemetery – but not one she knew.

“Ow,” she muttered. “Where on earth?”

Something was not right. Glancing around, Buffy could barely see a thing. The bright lights of the town were nowhere. The only light was from the moon.

Where was Spike? He had been sucked into the portal, or whatever it was, too. Buffy hesitantly called out his name a couple of times, before her eyes fell on a tombstone next to where she had fallen.

William Pratt, it read, 1854 – 1880. Buffy frowned. That couldn’t be right – the grave was fresh. Before she had time to connect this piece of information to a possible reason, she jumped a mile as a bloody, earthy hand burst through the mound of earth, grabbing desperately at air. It grasped a tree root and was followed by an arm. Buffy checked her pockets to find herself stake-free. There was a suitable loose branch on the nearest tree. She tried to break it off, but her hands went straight through it.

“What the hell?”

Turning back, she saw the vampire hoist himself out of his grave and collapse on his knees, coughing up soil. Before she had time to think what to do, it spoke.

Bloody -” cough “sodding -” cough “hell.”

Buffy’s mouth fell open. “Spike?

Spike spat out a mouthful of earth and looked up. It was definitely him, but not as Buffy had ever seen him before. Besides being covered in dirt and wearing the sort of clothes Buffy thought he wouldn’t normally be caught dead in, his hair was brown, not to mention a mess.
“Buffy! Did you land back in the ground too?”

She shook her head slowly. “No. Spike, your hands …”

He clenched them. “I’ll be alright.” He paused. “That was not an experience I wished to repeat. Where the hell are we?”

“The past, I think. Look.” Buffy pointed behind him at the gravestone. “That yours?”

Spike turned to see what she was pointing at, and nodded. “Yeah.”

“Your last name’s Pratt?”

He glared at her. “Was Pratt. I gave up every part of my human life when I was changed.” He paused. “Most of it voluntarily.” He paused again. “Wait. We’ve gone back in time?”

“Looks like it. Weird though; I can’t touch anything. Look.” She reached out and tried to poke him, but her hand slid straight through again. “See?”

“Must be because you don’t exist,” he murmured. “That means I’m in my past body.”

Buffy looked up at his hair. “I’d have to agree with that. You know, this is the first time I’ve ever seen your hair in its natural colour.” Spike frowned and raised his hands to cover it, and she laughed. “Don’t, I like it.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, it suits you. Probably looks better combed though. And less muddy.” She reached out to brush a hanging clod of earth, and then remembered that she couldn’t.

“Well, once you’ve finished laughing at me …” Spike stood up and looked around, brushing soil off his clothes. “How do we get back?”

Buffy swallowed. “I’m not sure. The porthole’s gone. How did it appear in the first place?”

“Search me. Not my area of expertise.”

“You don’t know of any demon that could have done this?”

“Not off the top of my head. This looks more like spell work. I expect some mojo of Red’s has backfired again.”

“Great. Well, if it was Willow, the others should be working on a way to get us back. What do you say to making the most of this opportunity and having a look around?”

Spike shrugged. “Lived this once, thank you. You can explore by all means.”

________________________________________
“Angel, please, tell us everything you know.”

“OK.” Angel looked round at them all. “I told you on the phone, Giles, there’s this Seer coven I’ve had a bit of contact with recently. One of them had a vision about the Slayer, a vampire, and a really powerful guy on his way to Sunnydale. They said they’d cast a spell to ‘prepare’ us – I mean, them – whatever that means … I guess that’s what happened to Buffy.”

“And Spike,” Willow added.

“What?”

“Oh, didn’t we – Spike went through the portal too.”

“What was Spike doing here?” Angel said angrily.

Dawn spoke up. “He’s been part of the gang for ages.” Noticing the look on Angel’s face, she added quickly, “He can’t hurt anyone any more. Not humans, anyway.”

“I don’t believe this.” Angel had been so sure he was the vampire in the Seer’s vision. Damn you, Spike!

________________________________________

“Where exactly are we?” Buffy asked, starting to make her way towards the cemetery gate, Spike following rather reluctantly.

“London. My old home’s about half a mile’s walk …” Spike trailed off. “Drusilla will be waiting.”

“What?”

“When I came back the first time, I went to find her and took her back to my house. She liked it there.” A strange look appeared in his eyes. “We made plans …”

“Spike?” He had stopped walking.

“I’m not sure I want to go. Can’t we just stay here?”

“Well …” Buffy hesitated. “We don’t want to change history, do we? You ought to do what you did the first time around.”

He swallowed. “I don’ really remember it. It’s sort of … fuzzy.”

“Fuzzy?”

He nodded slowly. “Funny. I can usually remember things … I can remember meeting with Dru, going home … Then the next day or so’s a bit of a blank.”

“Did you get drunk?”

“A little.” Spike suddenly gasped as he was hit with déjà vu.

“Spike?”

Are you drunk?” a voice echoed in his head, followed by his own in reply.

A little.”

“I remember,” he said slowly. “My mum …”

“Your mom? What about your mom?”

“Shush!” Spike strained his memory hard, and more came to him.

It’s all right, Mother … you won’t have to worry about anything ever again … it’s only me.

________________________________________
“So, what about this new Big Bad?” Willow asked once Angel had sat down. “Any details on him?”

“A fair bit, actually.” Angel paused. “It’s a difficult situation. He was an amateur sorcerer back in the nineteenth century – no real power of his own – and he, rather heroically (or stupidly, take your pick) tried to close the English Hellmouth after it opened.”

“I didn’t know there was a Hellmouth in England,” Giles said curiously.

“Not any more,” Angel said. “Instead of closing it, he accidentally absorbed its power. The portal itself no longer exists.”

“Whoa. I didn’t know that was even possible,” Xander murmured.

“Nor did I,” Giles said seriously. “But I’m guessing that a Hellmouth – or the energy equivalent - inside someone could do a great deal of damage.”

Angel nodded. “When he absorbed the Hellmouth, he got kinda trapped underground – the Seers said he was dormant. Like being cryogenically frozen. But now he’s awake, and the power inside him is completely controlling him – it’s too much for one human being to handle.”

“What’s he want in Sunnydale?” Tara said nervously.

“The Seers don’t know, but they guess he’s after this Hellmouth too. But he could have come to Sunnydale for any reason. Who knows?” Angel paused. “The point is, he has the power of an entire Hellmouth at his fingertips and he’s not shy about using it. And Sunnydale is currently short a Slayer.”

Giles opened his mouth, but Willow spoke first. “What difference would Buffy being here make? This guy’s a human being; we should be tackling this in a magical way, not a stakey way.”

“You mean a spell to remove the Hellmouth from him?” Xander frowned. “Do you think that’s possible? I’m not thrilled about the thought of going up against this guy either …” He trailed off.

“If the Hellmouth is removed, it would have to find a new home, and one Hellmouth is enough trouble for this town,” Giles said firmly. “As much as I am loathe to admit it, it may be a question of him or the rest of us.” He let that statement sink in before continuing in a quieter voice, “I think Dawn ought to leave town.”

Dawn’s eyes widened, and she glared at him. “I’m not going anywhere! I want to help!”

“If Buffy was here, she would want to know that you are safe,” Giles said gently, “and even with both her and Spike you’d be a lot safer elsewhere.”

Xander spoke up again. “I’ll take her. I contribute the least.” Anya started to deny it, but he continued, “Yes I do. It’s okay.”

“I’ll go with you,” Angel said. “I want to go back to the coven and see if they have anything new; I can drop you both off somewhere.”

Dawn sighed. “Fine.”

“You should probably leave as soon as possible. Like, now,” Tara said. “Who knows when this guy will attack.”

“I’ll help you pack some things, Dawnie,” Willow said softly, standing.


________________________________________
“Oh, no! No, no, no.”

Spike sank slowly to his knees, and Buffy looked on in alarm.

“No. Can’t go … don’t want … can’t do it …”

“Spike?” she asked hesitantly. He was staring into space, rocking back and forth slightly, a pained expression on his face. He didn’t respond, and Buffy bit her lip. She had never seen him like this before, and it unnerved her.

“C’mon, Spike, you can talk to me. What happened?” she said gently, kneeling down in front of him.

He met her eyes. “I killed her,” he whispered hoarsely.

“Your mom?”

He nodded, squeezing his eyes shut. Buffy saw a stray tear run down his face and pretended not to have noticed it.

“It’s all coming back.” Spike swallowed. “I remember everything.” He was shaking now. “I … I’ve got to see her.” He suddenly stood, startling her, and without waiting ran for the cemetery gate.

“Spike!” Buffy ran after him. “Slow down!”

She had a bad feeling that history was going to be changed.

TBC …
 
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