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Chapter 42
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‘Hmm…guess even in a war there are sweet domestic moments.  Who knew?’  Buffy smiled as she looked at Spike sprawled in the comfy chair in the nook he’d turned into his small private library.  Buffy hadn’t been surprised by the volumes of poetry and Shakespeare; she’d come to expect that of her vampire.  She’d long since realized that beneath the punk thug exterior lay a scholarly poet with amazing depth.
 
Her eyes skimmed a few of the titles of his latest acquisitions.  “So are you planning to come clean to Giles that you can read…what language is this?” She picked up the book Spike had just laid aside when he noticed her presence.
 
He smiled up at her fondly and teased, “You illiterate valley girl!  In my day, every well educated bloke was expected to learn Latin and Classical Greek--and not just the languages, but the literature, culture, art, history, philosophy, whole ball of wax.  Headmaster in my day, a real task master about it too, Edward Balson was his name and Classical Studies his obsession.  Wanted the next generation of frilly boys to have somethin’ in their noggins of worth.”   He chuckled as Buffy blinked rapidly.  “This lovely find is a rare copy of Ars Amatoria by Ovid in the original Latin,” he answered proudly. 
 
“What school was that?   I mean, I know you were educated, but you’ve always let Giles think you got your education on the mean streets of London, maybe even schooled by Jack the Ripper or someone like that.”
 
Spike laughed, “Kept me from havin’ to do research in those musty volumes he called a library, didn’t it?”
 
“You didn’t answer my question,” Buffy pointed out.
 
“Eton, love, followed by Oxford like any proper gent, even those with the blood but not the dosh to back it up any longer.”  He closed his eyes briefly as if deep in thought.  “Always was about the blood…as a human and a demon.  Only difference is, when you’re a vampire you learn it all tastes the same, no matter the class or race. Kings or slaves, makes not a jot of difference.”
 
Buffy giggled, “Vampires: champions of the classless society!”
 
“Well,” he grinned wickedly, “we’re not exactly big on social reform, just not picky eaters for the most part.  Dru used to say older people tasted funny, like death, that they stuck in her teeth, but that was all in her addled mind. “He had a sad, wistful smile as he remembered his once beloved sire.  He shook his head as if to clear the painful memories of what had happened to her from his conscious mind.  “Now, drink from someone on drugs or drunk and you can tell the difference!  Get a bit of the high yourself, but drugs and drink don’t care about class or race either.”
 
“So double bang for your buck if you pick a stoner or wino…and by the way…ewwww.”
 
Spike rolled his tongue behind his front teeth and smirked, “Oh, yeah, good times.”
 
Buffy gave him a dirty look. “THOSE good times are all over, mister.  You keep talking like that and I’ll start to think Giles is right and your tutor was Jack the Ripper!”
 
“As for ol’ Jack…not too far off the mark ‘bout bein’ one of my early teachers. Just like Eton, he was good with the birchin’ and swung a mean cane when he wanted to drive home a lesson.  Your boy Angel--well, Angelus--was the Ripper.  I was only a stripling young vampire but remember it well.  He was mad at Darla for some reason and left us back in ’88 while he took his rage out on the kind of whores who couldn’t send him to a dusty grave with one hand tied behind her back.  Rampaged his way through Whitechapel ‘til Darla fetched him back before he got too sloppy and brought out the pitchfork crew.”
 
“Angel?!  HE was Jack the Ripper?!” Buffy could tell by Spike’s face that he wasn’t just pulling her leg.
 
“Well, the bugger’ll like as not tell you it was Angelus as if he wasn’t even there, but yeah.”
 
“But I thought Jack the Ripper was some crazy guy.”
 
Spike raised his eyebrow and just looked at her.  “Thought you met ol’ Angelus?  Wanna tell me why he didn’t fit your description?”
 
“Angelus was cruel and evil, but not batpoop crazy.”
 
“Because tryin’ to end the whole soddin’ world and wipe out your food supply is sane?”  Spike gave her a look that dared her to disagree.  “Look, pet, you live as long as it takes to be a master vampire and one of a few things happens.  You can go a bit mad like Kakistos or Angelus when his demon really gets goin’.  You can mix full-on evil with daftness like old Bat Face Nest--the Master and his plan to bring back the Old Ones ring a bell?  You can be more entertainin’ like Drac and learn tricks, get a rep as idiosyncratic.”
 
“That’s not what I’d call him,” Buffy huffed at the memory of the pest.
 
“Me?  I just kept learnin’ new things.  Always did like school as a human.  That’s not to say I haven’t had my moments of bein’ bloody minded stupid from time to time,” he admitted.
 
“Sheeya,” Buffy teased.
 
“But even at my worst, I never crossed the Rubicon completely.  Told you once that I like this world.  Don’t want to see some apocalypse wipe out all the people.   Humans make life interestin’.  Been cuttin’ back on the evil too since I met a certain Slayer.  Doesn’t leave me too many choices but to keep on learnin’ then, does it?  Day I lose interest’s the day I go as barmy as…” His voice trailed off as he once more thought of Dru and her Angelus-inspired madness.  “Well, don’t plan on it anytime soon.”
 
“Good to know,” Buffy sat on the arm of the chair and ran a hand through his hair, dislodging the tamed curls from their gel prison.  “Enough crazy around here without you joining in.”
 
The radio that seemed to always be on some place or another in the warehouse switched to a news break.  They were less frequent than in the early days of the  new world order, but enough breaking news events still occurred to make keeping an ear tuned prudent.
 
The alarming trend of countries threatening the Coalition of Nations working together to keep our planet safe from the demon threat and return control to human kind continues.  Today, the UK pulled out of the GHA after a referendum vote spearheaded by a group of MPs from Scotland.  The final vote was 68% for leaving and 32% against.  The pro-leave movement’s spokesman Henry McLeish was quoted as saying that this vote strikes a blow for common decency. 
 
There is speculation about the role the leaked video of a controversial private conversation between late GHI head Quentin Travers and Secretary General Beldescu may have played in the voters’ decision.  We wish to remind you that the veracity of that video is still in dispute.
 
Other referendums are scheduled for Canada, Australia and New Zealand in the wake of this outcome.  This brings to 19 the number of nations breaking affiliation...
 
“Wanna turn that thing off, pet?”  Spike was far more interested in the current events taking place between he and Buffy to be bothered by the latest news, even if it was from his homeland.  There were enough Scoobies with their own damned radios to pay attention if needed.   “Already lived through WWII once.”
 
Buffy smiled at how carefully Spike laid his treasured book on the small wooden crate that passed as a side table.  She had to laugh at how much reverence and adoration he showed his library--not as much as he did her, of course.  “Think it’ll get that bad?”
 
“Think it might be worse since this might actually wind up bein’ the whole world involved before it’s done.  Back in the last one, Dru and I scarpered off to Spain.  They were supposedly neutral, but there were plenty of Nazis everywhere.  Franco was a fascist, after all, so he was friendly to ‘em.”
 
“So you stayed in Spain during the war?  I’d think you’d love the chaos of the battlefields.”
 
“Not really.  Yeah. lots of tasty fear, panic and confusion and blood flowin’ like a literal bloody river.  Sounds good on paper.”
 
“Um…I’m thinking no,” Buffy scrunched her nose in a way Spike thought utterly adorable.
 
“Is to a vamp, love,” Spike shrugged.  He was glad that Buffy no longer cringed whenever he mentioned anything from his days of killing and feeding.  Then again, he tried not to bring it up too often.  He was also glad that the dull pain he still felt whenever his Dark Princess’ name came up or his memories drifted back to their time together had lessened a bit with each night spent in Buffy’s arms.
 
“So why Spain?”
 
“Things get that bad and it’s not safe for anybody, not even the junior half of the Whirlwind.  Darla hightailed it to the States, and me and Dru headed to Madrid.”
 
“So you stayed there ‘til the war ended?”
 
“Dru took up with a Graxnor demon and left me high and dry.  I got lured to a party that only sounded good.  Was a set-up by a special branch of Mengele’s division of butchers.  Drugged the blood and next thing I knew I was trussed up like a Christmas goose and carted off to a Nazi submarine with a handful of other old vamps.  Posers mostly, and long overdue a good dustin’, truly an embarrassment to our race.”  He chuckled a bit at the memory.  “Don’t know where they planned to take us.  Likely a lab somewhere in Germany eventually, maybe Poland.”
 
“How’d you get away?  Did Dru come to the rescue?”
 
“Got captured by the good guys and, in the confusion, killed more than a few of the Krauts and a handful of the Yanks too.  Only me and two of the least annoying of my fellow prisoners were left when Peaches showed up playin’ Captain America.  Seems the US Government blackmailed the sod into rescuin’ the mission and returnin’ the sub to Allied hands.  They didn’t know anythin’ about us, o’ course.”
 
Buffy startled at Spike’s nickname for Angel. “Angel?  He was a war hero?!”
 
Spike bit down on his jealousy and irritation at Buffy’s soft look at hearing of Angel’s exploits.  “Sure, that’s how he’d paint it.  Not like he volunteered, had to threaten to dust him to get him to help.  Mostly he was just spendin’ his time avoidin’ humanity at that point.  Took a sneak peek at a certain Slayer to get him to actually join the cause.”
 
“So Angel rescued you?”
 
“Wasn’t exactly his first priority, no.  Didn’t have enough crew to get the sub back and, like I said, they promised a dustin’ if he failed.  This G.I. Joe he needed to get the sub close to port was dyin’ from a screwdriver to the gut, compliments of Germany’s finest, so Peaches turned him against his will.  Fella’s name was Sam Lawson and right unhappy he was about the turning too.”
 
“Angel turned someone even though he had his soul?”
 
“Yeah, claimed it was an emergency. Guess it was, to be fair.”
 
“I bet he staked the guy once they got to port.”
 
“Bloke didn't make port, least not on the sub.  Angel threw us both out in the ocean a good twenty miles from shore and he didn’t need Lawson any longer.  Poor bugger begged Angel to stake him.  Lawson and I had to swim for shore.  Washed up somewhere on the English coast.  I gave him some “Vamps for Dummies” crash course lessons on how to survive.  He decided to keep workin’ for the good ol’ US of A and eat his way behind the Nazi lines.  Turned his personal lemons into lemonade, I suppose.  I left him to it and headed back to Madrid and Dru.”
 
“So this guy’s still out there somewhere, I guess.”  She sounded so sad at the thought that Spike felt a bit bad at having told the story.
 
“Far as I know, yeah.  Nice enough bloke.  More than a bit pissed at Angel and likely still is.  Had plans to marry his girl back in the States after the war, go to college on that promised G.I. bill scholarship.  Missed his mum.  Thanks to Angel, he didn’t get to die a war hero, and as a vamp could never go home again.”
 
“That’s sad.”
 
Spike nodded.  “Maybe it was that soul of Angel’s made a difference, but Lawson turned quick and kept a lot of his humanity.  Pretty good control over the demon right from the start too.  Made it harder on him in a way.  Maybe he’s out there not tryin’ to be the Big Bad somewhere.”
 
Buffy looked like she was processing that possibility and decided to cling to it.  “What did the Nazis want with a sub full of vampires?”
 
“Didn’t read much German back then, but the paperwork wound up in the hands of the US government.  What I was able to read looked like the beginnin’s of the Initiative.  Same idea that bitch Maggie Walsh had: build a super soldier, maybe a vamp army.”
 
“That’s so crazy,” Buffy shuddered.
 
“What part of old Adolph’s plans were you thinkin’ were sane, love?”
 
“Point.”  Buffy ran her hands through Spike’s already loosened curls and considered how best to indulge in a far happier pastime than trudging through some of Spike’s more dodgy memories.  “So how about enough about our exes, world wars and let’s see about something more with the happy making?”
 
Spike smirked, “Lookin’ for a happy endin’ then, love?  Think I can manage that.”
 
“You always do,” Buffy whispered and pulled him into a steamy kiss.
 
***
 
Jonathan stealthily entered the warehouse.  He knew the group had already seen him on their cameras and would be there to check on who he was bringing into their inner sanctum.
 
Giles didn’t disappoint.  He gave the white haired woman a long look, “Who is this you’re bringing to us?”
 
“She won’t tell me her name, but she insists she as to see the Chosen One…er…Buffy.”
 
“And so you brought her here?”
 
“Don’t be alarmed, Watcher.  I’m on your side,” the woman gave a tight grin.
 
“And I should believe this on your word alone?”
 
Jonathan blushed brightly, “I would never compromise you guys like that!  I had Lorne read her.  He said she was alright and could maybe even be a big help.”
 
“He said nothing more than that?”
 
“I don’t think he wanted to share with me, but he did say she was okay.”
 
Giles sighed.  Lorne had not failed them as yet so he was inclined to trust this stranger.  “I’ll see if Buffy is available.”  He didn’t offer to bring the woman any further into their sanctuary however.
 
“You’ll like Buffy.  She’s a sweet girl,” Jonathan tried to make small talk.  “Saved our class and our town tons of times!  We named her our class protector because we had the fewest deaths in the history of Sunnydale High School.”
 
The woman raised a brow but didn’t reply.
 
“Okay, shutting up now,” Jonathan muttered.
 
An irritated and rumpled looking Buffy emerged from the corner area that she and Spike had turned into their own private nest with Giles following close behind.  “This had better be good,” she grumbled.
 
“I'd forgotten how young you would be.” The old woman looked Buffy over from top to bottom and then smiled, clearly pleased at what she saw.  “Comes from the waiting. Mind plays tricks.”
 
Buffy looked at her with curiosity. “Who are you?  Am I supposed to know you?”
 
“Once I was one of many, but now I am alone in the world, the last of my kind.”
 
“So are you here representing one of our allied demon groups?”  Giles grew more interested because she didn’t look like any demon he was familiar with.
 
The woman chuckled softly and shook her head, “Hardly!  My sisters and I helped to defeat the last of the Old Ones eons ago.  Let me put it this way, I look good for my age.”
 
Buffy looked confused, but Giles perked up.  “I thought you and your…sisters…a legend.”
 
“Not for the lack of your fellow Watchers’ trying,” she glared at Giles.  “After the Shadow Men trapped the demon and merged its essence with the First Slayer, they wanted full control of the girl.”  She looked at Buffy with sympathy.  “As time went on, these men became the first Watchers.  Some did as they aught and aided the Slayer in her duties but others preferred to wield the power.  The Watchers watched the Slayers and we were watching them.”
 
Buffy looked at Giles and noticed he looked uncomfortable at the things the woman was saying.  “So what are you?”
 
“I am the last of the Guardians.  Women who help the Slayer, protect you.”
 
Buffy looked at Giles, “Why have you never told me about them?”
 
Before Giles could answer the old woman continued, “The Watchers, rather more corrupt than the usual batch, used magicks to have us sealed up.  I do not know by what means I was released, but here I am.”
 
“So what all do you do?  Do you have special powers, ‘cause we can use all of those we can get on our side of this mess.”
 
Spike moved silently next to his Slayer and looked defiantly at the old woman who had interrupted what had promised to be some rather spectacular lovemaking with Buffy.  “Seems human enough.”
 
The woman looked him over skeptically.  “If you think to shock me by standing at the Slayer’s side, vampire, you will find you have failed.   You are not the first of your kind to bond yourself to the Chosen One, although the Council of Men didn’t like that any more than they did us.”
 
Giles cleared his throat, “Yes, well…has anyone let you know what has been going on lately?”
 
“The rather amusing and wildly dressed demon who had me hum for him brought me up-to-date, at least with the essentials.  I gather this dimension has been shut off from all the others?”  Giles nodded.  “And you have had no direction from the Powers That Be?”
 
“Not that I’m used to getting any communication from them,” Buffy grumbled.  “Not even any Slayer dreams, and I think the Powers were the ones who usually sent those.”
 
The woman appeared to be deep in thought or perhaps reaching out mentally in some way.  “I see.”  She shook her head as if irritated.  “It seems everyone but you,” she nodded first to Buffy, then to Giles, “has forgotten their responsibilities!  Well, that is going to stop now.”
 
“You have a way to help?”  Buffy brightened considerably.
 
“Let’s just say that once I am through, there will be no more ignoring duties, no matter how unpleasant.”
 
***
 
A/N:  Small sections of dialogue modified from “End of Days” written by Douglas Petrie and Jane Espenson