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Banner made by the lovely Kristina!


Chapter 3: Discovery.


“I’m sorry Dawn, something came up. Maybe tomorrow?” Buffy suggested of their planned vid-fest for the night.

Dawn just nodded slowly, trying not to appear to be too upset. Why should she? She’d spent the entire day with her sister, something they hadn’t done in she couldn’t remember how long. The movies could wait. Dawn wasn’t going anywhere.

“I’ll see you later?” she asked hopefully.

“Definitely. I’ll be home in a few hours. Don’t wait up.” Buffy leaned forward and kissed her sister on the forehead as she approached the door. “Don’t stay up too late.”

And then she was gone. Dawn sighed when the door closed and began moving up to her room.

~*~*~

Buffy looked at her watch and decided she had waited long enough. Spike had said to meet near his crypt at nine-thirty, and it was almost ten o’clock. Fed up she dropped down from the headstone she had perched herself upon and began wandering towards the exit to the cemetery. What a waste of time that was… she thought as she walked along the path.

He’d been hanging around a lot of late, showing up on patrols, at the Magic Box, at her house. Just being around. That’s because he is in love with you… a little voice inside her head reminded. She caught herself wondering for a moment if he was just held up or if he’d gotten himself into some sort of trouble again, and then questioned why she cared. Because she didn’t… he was the one who had feelings for her.

A rustling noise of movement came from the other side of a nearby crypt, and Buffy immediately took on a defensive stance and pressed herself flat against the tomb. The hair on the back of her neck stood up on end. Not a mourner, at least not a human one. Quietly removing a stake from her pocket, she balanced it in the palm of her right hand and waited for the creature to step forward within striking range. A few seconds later she sprang from her hiding place and drove the stake downward toward the creature’s heart.

A pair of hands reached up to block her thrust, and a brown paper bag dropped to the ground, spilling its items.

“Hold up there, luv,” a familiar voice spoke. “Can’t you tell the difference between a friend or foe?”

“Your not a friend Spike,” Buffy retorted.

A wounded expression flickered across his face for a moment, before being replaced by his usual cocky swagger. He knelt down to gather his shopping, stuffing it all back into the bag.

“Why did you call me, Spike?” Buffy asked impatiently.

“Hang on a bleedin’ moment pet, let me gather my stuff.”

Buffy rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest as she waited for Spike to do just that.

“I heard some information you might be interested in.”

She tapped her foot impatiently on the ground, wondering if he was dragging this out on purpose.

“Keep your knickers on,” he reprimanded. The corners of his mouth curled up slightly; as if he only just realized the words he spoke. “Or not…”

“Enough!” Buffy shouted, storming off from him.

“A hit’s planned for tonight, an innocent is in danger,” he called out clearly, knowing that would make her stop. And it did. She turned on her heel slowly and looked at him suspiciously.

“A hit?”

“I was down at Willy’s and a few demons were big-notin’ about the payout they were going to receive once they completed the job. Tonight,” he explained further.

“Tonight, where?” she persisted.

“The Arms. The guy with the price on his head is stayin’ there.”

Buffy whirled around from him again and began to walk towards the seedier side of town.

“Hey, wait up, I gotta put my blood in the fridge,” Spike called after her.

When she showed no sign of slowing he dropped the bag in the bushes and ran to catch up with her.

“Bollocks.”

~*~*~

“If my stuff gets nicked I’ll --.”

“You’ll what, Spike, glare at me?” Buffy mocked with a raised eyebrow.

Spike glared back at her for a moment, then stepped forward towards the door. “This is the room,” he announced.

Buffy lifted an arm to stop him before he got there. “If the person living here is alive, then you won’t be able to get in,” she reminded.

Spike grimaced but held his position, waiting for Buffy to enter first. She stepped up to the door and it was at this close range that she realized the person staying there must have already had a visitor tonight. The door had been forced open; half of the locking mechanism had been ripped from the frame.

Buffy pushed it open slowly, trying not to dislodge it from its hinges. The smell hit her instantly, and she wrinkled her nose up in disgust. Lifting an arm up she covered her mouth and nose with a sleeve and stepped further into the room.

Spike entered in behind her, giving a low whistle at the sight. “Somebody had himself a whole lot of fun,” he commented appreciatively at the destruction.

“Spike, please,” Buffy replied in disgust.

Body parts were strewn across the whole room, and green tinged blood was splashed across the floor, the walls, and the bed. Weapons, swords to be more precise, were also scattered about the room, impaled in the walls or body parts. Body parts that were slightly blue in colour.

“Oh god, Thorak,” Buffy identified.

“Thor-who?” Spike repeated.

“Thorak. Giles’ new weapons dealer. I think this is him,” she deduced, crouching down to look at an the torso.

“Damn,” Spike muttered. “What a way to go, cut up by your own merchandise.” He too leaned down to inspect the damage. “Clean wounds, his blades are well made.”

Standing upright he stepped over a leg and reached for a short sword that was imbedded in the wall, impaling an arm there. He pulled it clear from the wall with one tug, and then pushed the limb free, sending it to the floor with a thud.

“Who could have done this?” Buffy asked, already trying to profile a suspect.

“Not just any demon, Vistagree’s are a tough breed. It would need to be something with a lot of bulk behind them. Or a group with a lot of combined muscle,” replied Spike.

“I’m sorry, Thorak,” Buffy apologised as she continued sifting through the contents of the room.

Spike began gathering the weapons and returning them to the large duffel that he’d seen them in earlier that day.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Buffy demanded. “You’re going to STEAL his weapons?”

Spike paused what he was doing, then shrugged his shoulders and continued filling the bag. “Not like he’s going to use them,” he pointed out, nodding toward to a limb. “And it’s prob’ly not a good idea to leave them for… oh say, some kiddy to find?”

Buffy realized he had a point and reluctantly began to help him gather the weapons. Once they were all removed from the room it made it a lot easier to count the body pieces… and it was then that Buffy realized that something was missing.

“Spike,” she called.

“Hmmm?”

“Where’s his head?”

~*~*~

Giles rubbed his temple, trying to massage away the headache that was plaguing him, but it wasn’t working. The headache was brought on by the information that Buffy had just delivered. He was never going to find that sort of quality for such a cheap price. And it was a shame about Thorak, he seemed to be a genuinely nice demon.

Spike dumped the large duffel on to the watcher’s desk, sending a stack of books flying to the ground. He shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly and unzipped the bag.

“We scored the merchandise for you, Rupert old boy.”

“Not we. It was Spike’s idea,” Buffy clarified glaring at the vampire. “The weapons couldn’t just be left lying around like that…” she trailed off.

“You say his head was missing? Intriguing. It could be ritualistic.”

“Intriguing?” Buffy repeated. “Don’t you mean gross and disturbing.”

“It wasn’t ritualistic,” Spike piped up. “Looked like a hack and slash job to me, and I should know.”

Giles pondered on that thought. “Perhaps the killer, or killers took his head as proof, a trophy of sorts for whoever ordered the hit.”

“Again I say gross,” Buffy shuddered.

Giles was still deep in thought, theories flying in and out of his brain. Buffy waited patiently for a few moments but when he still didn’t say anything she waved her hand in front of his face.

“Earth to Giles, it’s getting kinda late. I’ll check in tomorrow at the shop?” she proposed.

When Giles nodded and walked over to his bookshelf and pulled out a few volumes, Buffy waved goodbye and walked out of his apartment.

~*~*~

Buffy was about halfway home when Spike fell in step with her. They walked silently for a few minutes before Buffy got sick of the shadow act and stopped. Spike stopped as well.

“Why are you following me Spike?” she asked tiredly.

He looked confused. “I was just --.”

“Just what?” she interrupted. “Walking me home? I don’t need a bodyguard.”

“It’s just that things are different now,” he said slowly.

“THINGS are not different Spike. They’re the same. You’re still a pain in the ass.”

Hurt flashed across his face again, for the second time tonight. “It IS different,” he insisted.

“All that has changed is that you have gotten it into your head that you have a chance with me. Spike, nothing is EVER going to happen between us. Get the hint,” Buffy retorted with exasperation.

“But I have changed,” he maintained. “I’m a different man now.”

“That’s just it Spike, you’re NOT a man. You’re a vampire.”

Spike brushed off the comment. “That didn’t seem to matter with Angel,” he reminded.

Buffy’s raised her hand and slapped him across the cheek. “How dare you compare this… this infatuation you have with me; to my relationship with Angel. There is NO comparison.”

“You’re right… no comparison. I’d actually be able to give you what you need,” Spike said lewdly, grabbing Buffy and pulling her body flush against his. “No pesky curse in the way.”

Buffy struck out at Spike again, this time balling her fist and punching him in the jaw. “You're a pig. Stay the hell away from me, I mean it.”

Buffy turned her back on the vampire and stormed home, leaving him behind.

Spike watched her walk off, shocked by her actions for a moment, before his expression hardened.

“I’ll show her.”

~*~*~

Buffy slipped into her house and leaned up against the closed door. She breathed deeply for a few seconds, trying to control the rage that was boiling up inside of her. How could he think that she would ever want to be with him? It wasn’t going to happen.

She was so angry that she could feel herself trembling. He had no right to judge her relationship with Angel, or Riley, or whomever she chose to date. It was none of his business.

His words from a few weeks ago haunted her. Maybe you just can’t keep their interest…

Buffy’s shoulders shook as she began to cry, slowly slumping to the floor.

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A/N: Yes... Buffy is being bitchy. But you have to remember, that she has just lost her Mom and Riley has skipped out on her, PLUS she saw Angel at the funeral.

Give her a chance to give Spike a chance.... :D

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