Disclaimer: All the vampires and other fun characters belong to Joss Whedon. Just playing with his toys.
Continued thanks to the reviewers! Keep the feedback coming!
 
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Chapter 11: Redemption
 
Giles spread the map of Sunnydale on the table. He sprinkled it with selected herbs and lit three candles, making sure they were ordinary ones, not the confused mélange of enchanted ones that Anya had gathered. Buffy paced, fuming. Whoever did this is dead. Dead, dead, dead. Spike found himself struggling to stay focused on the problem at hand, when all he wanted to do was bend Buffy over the table and take her, right there, Watcher be damned. Yeah, that would go over real well. Get a grip, William.
 
Finally, Giles finished his preparations and straightened up. “Alright. Come close and keep an eye on the map, so we can see where our adversary is.” Grasping the talisman in his right hand, he began chanting. “Delicamus!” he finished. The map began to glow, the glow shrinking to a bright spot at a point on the map.
 
“Delaney Street,” said Buffy, peering at the map. “There are some older apartment buildings and hotels in that area. Maybe our little curse happy friend is hiding there.”
 
Giles muttered another spell and handed the talisman to Buffy. “Here, take this. I put an enchantment on it so that it will glow when we are near the spellcaster. But we’ll have to hurry, this spell won’t last forever.”
 
“Best get moving then,” said Spike. The three of them got into Giles’ car and headed for the point indicated on the map.
 
“Do you think we should get Willow?” asked Buffy. “She really has become pretty good with the witchcraft stuff.”
 
Giles considered. “As she too appears to be under the spell, I’m not sure if she won’t do more harm than good.”
 
“What’s our plan then?” asked Spike.
 
Giles looked in the rearview mirror, momentarily forgetting that his back seat passenger would not be visible. “Right before we go in I’ll put a shielding spell on all of us. It should protect us until we can subdue whoever is doing this. We’ll need to bind them and prevent them from speaking. I’ve got some rope in the trunk that should do nicely.
 
“You carry the rope, Rupert,” said Spike. “Me ‘n the Slayer should keep our hands free.”
 
“Agreed,” said Giles. He drove on to Delaney Street. The talisman glowed brightest in front of a very run-down apartment building. According to the sign, rooms were available by the week or the month. They got out and entered the building. The talisman continued to glow brighter as they climbed to the third floor, but dimmed again as they passed the landing. “Third floor, I guess,” murmured Giles as they made their way down the hallway. The hall was dark and dingy, with only a few weak light bulbs to pierce the gloom. The talisman brightened as they cautiously walked down to the very last door.
 
“Must be the place,” Spike muttered. Giles whispered the words of the shielding spell, then nodded to Buffy. Squaring her shoulders, she kicked the door open.
 
The room was dark, save for the light of two red candles on either side of a silver bowl of water. Seated in front of the bowl, facing the door was a man in a black robe with brown hair and a beard, graying at the temples, with dark, piercing eyes. “I’ve been waiting for you,” he said simply. The three of them jumped as the door slammed shut behind them. Buffy and Spike assumed fighting stances side by side.
 
Giles chanted the words to a spell. “Let your evil tongue be silenced…”
 
The man held up his hand and a wave of power shot forth. The air rippled as Giles was thrown back, hitting the wall and collapsing on the ground. He groaned, and then lay still. Spike growled and tensed. Clearly this guy had known they were coming.
 
“Giles!” Buffy screamed. With furious eyes she turned back to the sorcerer. Barely hearing Spike’s warning of, “Slayer, don’t!” she leaped toward the man, intending to tackle him to the ground. With another silent gesture of the dark man’s hand, she bounced off an invisible shield and went flying into Spike, knocking them both to the ground in a heap.
 
“What the hell is your problem?” she snarled as she and Spike got back to their feet, unconsciously moving closer to each other.
 
The man spoke in a deep voice. “I could ask you the same question,” he said. “What could be the problem that would cause someone with a sacred calling such as yours to be so derelict in your duty?”
 
“What are you talking about?” Buffy asked, bewildered. “Who are you? And why are you trying to kill all of us?”
 
“My name is Dominic,” said the dark haired man. “Your actions, or lack thereof killed my brother. Father Gabriel.”
 
Buffy was momentarily confused. Father Gabriel? Who the hell? Then her eyes widened as she remembered Thanksgiving and the Chumash Indian spirits. She remembered the gentle historian with a pang of regret.
 
Spike spoke up at this point. “Wait just a bloody minute there, mate. The Slayer didn’t kill your brother. I got skewered three or four times by those same spirits that killed your brother. Buffy tried to save him and she barely survived.”
 
“Silence, vampire,” thundered Dominic. He raised his hand and suddenly both of them were dangling with their feet off the floor, as if someone was holding them by the neck. Buffy gasped and struggled, getting angrier and more frightened by the minute.
 
Dominic continued his raving. “I’ve watched you, Slayer. For a year I’ve watched all of you. Watched you lead your immoral lives. My curse just accelerated the sins that rule your lives already. I’ve been watching you as the lust, the greed, the anger inside all of you blew you apart. You should be a force for good, but there is nothing good in any of you. Your sins killed Gabriel, and now they are killing you.”
 
Nothing good? Buffy thought. For a moment she believed him. She thought about how she had nearly killed Xander, how Willow had made Tara worse with her spell, how Xander had treated Anya. Then she had a thought. “Watch us now, then,” Buffy challenged, gasping out the words. “If you’ve been watching us, then look at the others now, and tell me what you see.”
 
The pressure on her throat lessened somewhat as Dominic looked at his silver bowl and spoke a few words. His eyes widened as scenes flitted across. Joyce stretched out next to Dawn, stroking her hair and crying a mother’s desperate tears. Willow sitting next to Tara, holding her hand and telling her it would be ok. Anya pacing back and forth, biting her lip with worry as she watched for any sign of Xander regaining consciousness.
 
“We’re all just human,” Buffy said quietly. “Killing my sister and my friends is not going to bring your brother back.”
 
Dominic had been touched by the scenes of obvious love and devotion that had flashed before him. But the sound of Buffy’s voice reawakened the anger within. He snatched up a knife with a red handle and a curved blade and advanced on Buffy. “No!” howled Spike, struggling against the magical restraints. “Leave her alone! You want to kill something evil, here I am.” In response, Dominic pulled a crucifix from under his robe and pressed it against the side of Spike’s face. Spike screamed as his flesh burned and he vamped out from the pain.
 
“Stop it!” screamed Buffy. At that moment, Giles groaned again and tried to sit up. Dominic looked sharply in that direction, and the distraction weakened his concentration enough to allow Buffy to fight the spell. With all her will she tackled Dominic, knocking him to the ground and rolling over and over, wrestling with him for the knife. The silver bowl spilled and the candles scattered as they fought. Finally, they came to rest with Buffy on top, holding the knife to Dominic’s jugular as she shook with rage.
 
Dominic stared at her, panting. “What are you waiting for? What’s one more life destroyed by your anger?” he shouted. His face was a mask of grief and fury.
 
Buffy was literally seeing red. Every muscle vibrated as her brain screamed to kill this man. But a voice at her back quietly said, “Don’t do it, Slayer.”
 
Spike had staggered to his feet and stood behind Buffy, his face blackened and smoking. Dominic looked confused. Why was this monster, this creature of evil asking the Slayer to spare his life?
 
Spike continued, “You kill him and you’ll never forgive yourself. Can’t watch you put yourself through that, Buffy. You need to put the knife down, love.” Buffy froze, her muscles quivering as she fought for control. “Put it down, Slayer.” Spike repeated.
 
Spike’s low, soothing voice reached through the haze. Buffy’s eyes refocused on the man beneath her as she slowly moved the knife away. She slowly stood up, her eyes never leaving those of the sorcerer. “I don’t kill people,” she said. “I get angry sometimes. Everyone does. But I don’t kill humans. Even when they deserve it.” She tossed the knife away and stepped back next to Spike.
 
Dominic staggered to his feet, looking at them both in disbelief. No! They can’t cheat me out of my revenge. I won’t allow it! With an incoherent yell he lunged once more for the knife. Spike growled and prepared to leap, chip or no chip, when Buffy held him back. “No, Spike,” she said firmly. She walked up to Dominic with her head held high, locking his eyes on hers. “You want to kill me? Here I am. But let my friends alone. If you think you’ll find peace by killing me, then you’re going to have to do it with your own hands.” She stood there defiantly, arms at her sides, with her jaw clenched resolutely. Slayer, I hope you know what you’re doing, thought Spike as he fought his demon back.
 
Dominic held the knife high, ready to strike. Foolish girl, he thought. At last his brother would be avenged. Gabriel would rest in peace. But as he stared into those defiant green eyes, a voice very like his brother’s crept into his mind. She is innocent of my death, Dominic. She has done the best any imperfect human can do. By killing her, you dishonor all that I stood for. His hand started to shake, and tears began running down his face. Finally he screamed, “Oh Gabriel, I’m sorry!” as he collapsed weeping to the ground.
 
The same collective shiver that had gone through them at the start of the spell went through them again. Spike was relieved to feel his mind clear and his endless state of arousal disappear. Buffy felt as if someone had opened a stopcock and drained gallons of poison from her system. She felt calm, and as the calm descended she felt pity for Dominic. She knelt down next to the sobbing man and tentatively put her arms around him. He covered his face with his hands and whispered, “Forgive me. Oh God, please forgive me.” Spike helped a dazed Giles to his feet and they watched in silence as the Slayer comforted their enemy.
 
TBC