Chapter 11

“I don’t like this. What if they come after you now?”

Buffy rolled her eyes. “Why would they come after me? I’m not a demon.”

Spike shrugged. “Because now you know too much, they might not care if you’re a demon or not. I don’t want you going anywhere by yourself, and you should stick with Willow at all times when you’re on campus.”

“Spike, I’m a big girl, not to mention the Slayer. I can handle myself; I don’t need you to protect me.”

He nodded, knowing that she always hated when Angel would be too overprotective, but he couldn’t help wanting to keep her safe. “Just from hearing about what goes on in that place, I don’t want you anywhere near it.”

She wrapped her arms around his waist. “I like that you’re worried about me, but I’ll be fine. If they do come after me, they’re gonna find out just how strong I really am.”

That gave Spike some reassurance, but not enough to stop the feeling of dread that went through him.


* * * * *


“We have to find a way to put a stop to them, Watcher. I don’t like that Finn bloke sniffing around my girl; he’s a little too interested.”

Giles raised his eyebrows. “Yes, and are you sure this has nothing to do with jealousy?”

Spike rolled his eyes. “It’s more than that, all right? She was asked to join their team, I have a feeling they won’t take too kindly to her rejection, especially now that they know she plans to end their organization. Maybe it’s time that Ripper came out; scare the bitch in charge or something.”

“As much as I would love to, I doubt there’s much I can do. It’ll probably take more than a retired librarian to get her to shut the Initiative down, but that’s not why you’re here. Have you told Buffy of your situation yet?”

Spike averted his eyes from the man’s curious stare. “It hasn’t exactly come up, but I’m planning on it.”

Giles nodded. “And just when is that? Buffy doesn’t like when the men in her life keep secrets from her and since you have entrusted me with this new information, I am now one of them. She has a right to know, Spike. You can’t keep something like this a secret forever.”

“I won’t, this just isn’t the right time. The Initiative should be our main priority right now, everything else can wait.”

Giles agreed, even though a part of him believed that the longer they kept the truth from Buffy, the worst things were going to get.


* * * * *


Buffy knew that she probably shouldn’t be patrolling alone that night, but she didn’t need a bodyguard. Spike would just have to deal. A scream had her running into the nearest cemetery, only to find Harmony on the ground, three soldiers over her with guns raised. She rolled her eyes and attacked the one nearest to Harmony, throwing him away from the blonde, and sending her a glare.

“I don’t even know why I’m helping you, but I suggest you get lost.”

Harmony wasn’t one to be told twice and took off in the opposite direction.

Buffy suddenly felt a bolt of electricity surge through her as she fell to the ground, feeling paralyzed from the blast.

“You were right about her, Finn, she protects vampires. I guess she’s not one of us, after all.”

He sighed, shaking his head in disappointment. “Grab her; we should take her back to Maggie. She’ll want to do the tests right away.”

A growl sounded through the night as two of the soldiers were flung away from the girl.

Riley turned to see the same bleached vampire that they had been trying to catch. He raised his gun, but it flew out of his hand as he went flying into a nearby tombstone.

Spike ran to Buffy’s side, kneeling down beside her and seeing that she couldn’t move. “Come on, love, let’s get you out of here.” He gently picked her up and carried her out of the cemetery.


* * * * *


“Do you believe me now? Those wankers tried to capture her.”

Giles cleaned his glasses, glancing over at the still form of Buffy on his couch. “Will she be all right?”

Spike nodded. “They only stunned her, according to Harmony; it wears off in a couple of hours. If there’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s seeing my Slayer helpless. I don’t care if I have to kill every single one of those soldiers, I’ll do it to keep her safe. They’re not going to stop coming after her now.”

“Spike,” Buffy whimpered, which had him instantly moving over to her side.

“I’m right here, baby. You’re okay now,” he commented, running his fingers through her hair soothingly. The look on her face would have broken his heart, she looked so lost. Spike pressed a quick kiss to her forehead, turning back to the other man in the room. “We have to do something, Watcher. We have to burn that bloody place to the ground.”

Giles hoped there was another way, but he didn’t see any other options. Besides, it wasn’t like he’d never blown up a building before.


* * * * *


Spike bounced the giggling child on his knee, feeling charmed by her sweet innocence.

“You’re gonna grow up to be a knock out, I can already tell, but no dating until you’re thirty.”

Joyce smiled. “Good luck with that, she is Buffy’s daughter.”

He agreed. “Yeah, that’s what worries me.”

“Hey, I wasn’t that bad!”

Spike grinned up at the vision on the staircase, in her adorable yummy sushi pajamas. “How are you feeling, love? You should be resting.”

Buffy waved her hand in the air, moving to sit next to Spike on the couch. “I feel better now; I can’t stay in bed all day.” She took the baby from him, holding her close and giving her a kiss on the cheek. “It makes me sick to think that I could have been taken away from her. Riley knows I have a daughter, and that didn’t stop him from trying to abduct me. All he cares about is finding out what makes me tick, and I doubt I would even be in this situation if I didn’t reject his offer to join them in the first place. Not that I regret that decision, but I’m really getting tired of every man in my life turning evil. At least I know you don’t have a soul to lose, not that it makes much of a difference. Both Parker and Riley have souls, and look what good that’s done.”

Spike rubbed the back of his neck. “Right, well, even so, my feelings for you wouldn’t change.”

Buffy flashed him a smile. “I know, and that’s very comforting right now.” She rested her head against his shoulder, feeling content when he wrapped an arm around her. With or without a soul, Buffy knew that Spike would never abandon her.