AN: Thanks to Sirc ( basilio_the_cat) for betaing it. And thank you everyone who left a review for the previous chapter. *hug you all*

***


With dizziness, headache and dried mouth, Buffy felt like awakening from a long sleep. Deafening silence was surrounding her – she could clearly hear her own hearbeat. The smell of dust greeted her nose, and she instinctively shivered as the cold air met her skin.


Opening her heavy eyes, she popped up on her elbows to look around and figure out where she exactly was. It was a dark, candle-lit room, and she was lying on a couch, fully dressed. The place was familiar someway. She didn’t know why, but it was.


Trying to recall her memories, the image of the cemetery popped into her mind. The last place where she had been! And Willow had been with her. She remembered talking about a guy when someone had crossed their path.… Spike!!!


The realization that he might have anything to do with her present whereabout, hit her with fury. But before she could go on wondering, the well-known voice called from the other, darker side of the room.


“Hello, luv!” Spike stepped out of the darkness, holding a bottle in his hand. “I thought you never come round.”


Buffy bolted up with a start, and now she was completely aware of why this place was so familiar – it was Spike’s crypt. “You!!!” she hissed, her eyes flashing with rage and hatred. “You knocked me out!!”


“It’s not worth to deny it, huh?” Spike smirked. “Yeah otherwise you couldn’t be here now…”


“You’ve kidnapped me…”


“No, no, that’s not the proper word, pet. I’ve just helped you to get here.”


“Willow??” concern appeared on Buffy’s face as she realized that she hadn’t been the only one in the cemetery that night. “What did you do to her? If you… “ she sent a threatening look to the vampire.


Spike laughed.


“Don’t worry, pet, your friend is in the best of health. She is needed after all…”


Buffy’s eyes narrowed in suspicion, “Needed to...?”


“To take you back,” Spike smirked.


She snorted. “I can go back on my own… “ she jumped up from the couch and headed toward the door.


“I’m not so sure,” he noted half-loudly, supressing a chuckle.


She turned her inquiring, cynical look to him.


“Maybe you can get back to your place without any help, but if you want to regain your old self from what you are now… “ the vampire grinned, “well, luv, you’ll need some help.”


“What are you talking about?” she glanced at herself, then stared at him in confusion. “From what I am…?”


“Yeah, pet, you’ve gotten into a bloody interesting situation,” Spike was watching her with amusment. “More than interesting if I may say.”


Buffy just stared at him, not getting what he was aiming to.


“Slayer and vampire in one… A bloody special combination,” Spike smirked.


Buffy’s eyes widened with shock, “What did you say??”


Spike’s amusement didn’t fade.


“Yes, pet, you’ve heard right. Isn’t it exciting?” he raised his scarred eye-brow, while his mouth curved into his famous bad-boy smile.


Buffy desperately searched her neck for a wound or some bloodstain, but there wasn’t any. “It’s a trick!” she fixed her sharp look at him, seemingly upset for being fooled.


He laughed, “No trick, Slayer. Rather a little magic.”


Putting the pieces of the puzzle together, she muttered in utter shock, “Willow??” her voice faltered. “No…, “ she refused the bare thought. “she wouldn’t…”


“But yes, she would… “ he contradicted her firmly, “and actually she did it…”


Looking daggers at him, Buffy menacingly approached the blond vampire, “You forced her to…”


“Ouch, you sound so harsh,” Spike sneered. “Actually, she didn’t have to be forced. She agreed on her own will.”


“No, that’s a lie,” she refused to believe him.


“Sorry, pet, want it or not, that’s the truth.”


“Why?” Buffy stared into his face with hatred. “Why do you play this game on me? On my friends?”


Frowning, Spike turned away. “Game??” he yelled. “On you?? Bloody hell! You are the one who plays games on other people… and actually on ME! You treat me like a bloody toy…that you can play Mortal Kombat with… test your fighting techniques on… You consider me nothing but a dog that you can tease, take for a training, give orders to… Bloody hell, no… also a dog is treated better! It gets food at least – not like me at Thanksgiving... and more respect, kind words…”


“Oh, so you want me to pet you, huh?” Buffy snapped. “Oh Spikey, you should prepare your nice little butt, because I’ll kick it in no time...”


“Bloody fucking Slayer!” Spike grumbled through his teeth.


“Disgusting bloodsucker!” Buffy retorted.


“Annoying, arrogant Barbie-girl!”


“Soulless monster!”


“Angel’s bloody bitch!”


At this comment Buffy moved in to slap him, but Spike was faster and backed out of her reach..


Turning his look back at her again, his eyes were bathing in yellow light, and he was on the verge to morph into his demon-self. Buffy answered his killing look with the same intensity of rage, and was ready to repeat her previous move if Spike hadn’t understood from the almost-physical warning.


Spike’s thirst for beating up the Slayer emerged in every dead cell of his body, the blood in his veins were singing the song of violence, and his demon was silently screaming for fresh blood – and actually the blood of the Slayer.


Acting on his instinct without thinking twice, he pulled game-face and punched her. But as soon as his fist met her cheek, the unbearable pain hit his skull, and he staggered back with a painful cry.


“Don’t you ever dare to call me that again,” Buffy spit the words. If her look could kill, Spike would already be dead. Without more words, she whirled and headed to the door of the residence of death.


“See, Slayer? That’s why you’re here,” Spike muttered in agony, massaging his head to assuage the pain. “Your bloody annoying attitude is the reason.”


As if she hadn’t heard him, Buffy didn’t look back.


“I hate you, and you may do whatever you want, this will never change. I’ll never change. I’ll never…” she claimed coldly over her shoulder.


Spike grinned, “Don’t ever say never, luv!”


“I don’t have time for your damn game,” Buffy frowned and put a hand onto the door-knob.


“If I were you,” he warned her casually, “I’d not try to leave, unless I wanted to be a…”


He couldn’t finish as, opening the door, Buffy stepped out into the early morning’s sunlight. But as the sunlight met her skin, she cried out loud and immediately backed into the shelter of the crypt.


“… a pretty pile of dust,” Spike finished the sentence wryly.


Leaning on the door, gasping in horror, Buffy stared at her aching skin.


“I’ve warned you, pet,” the blond vampire grinned.


Sinking into a never known depth of hatred, Buffy’s face suddenly morphed into game face, and she fixed her look at him.


Raising his eyebrows in surprise, Spike’s mouth quirked into an appreciative, yet evilish smile. “Wooow!!” he definitely was enjoying the sight. “Pretty!”


As the truth hit her, she almost fainted. “Oh my God…” she gasped, “I’m really a …” her fingers traced along the vampire-ridges on her face.


Spike smirked in satisfaction. The sight really appealed him. “Yeah, luv, you’re a vamp…”


Buffy was still panting; the horror she felt didn’t want to subside.


“Hey, don’t be scared,” he smiled reassuringly, “you’re a really pretty vamp.”


In that moment Buffy morphed back. Blinking, she was trying to grasp what had just happened.


“So how does it feel like?“ Spike pulled his trade-mark grin again.


Buffy was just standing there, stunned, still under the effect of the events.


“Doesn’t it feel right? To be free… “ his look became somewhat distracted as he spoke. “Do anything you feel like… there’s no limit…” Inquiringly, he tilted his head to the right, “Isn’t this something people always want? Isn’t it what you really want? To be free from your duties like school and slaying…?” Buffy looked up at him, thinking about the words. “To be completely free… and enjoy life… “ his smile was seducing and hypnotizing.


After a short pause, Buffy regained control and shook her head with disgust.


“No, not this way… that’s the world of evil, soulless, useless creatures like you…and I don’t want to belong to them… I don’t want freedom for that price.”


Annoyed by her calling him like that, Spike’s calmness vanished.


“Arghhhh…so here we go again.” His eyes were flashing, “You judge by the cover…” He snorted, “Let’s see… label: vampire - is bad… label: human - is good. You bloody bitch, though I’m a vampire, I do worth more than some of those you consider human!” he yelled.


“Don’t you feel a bit contradiction in this?” Buffy retorted. “You vampires are just one of the things I must clean this world of. Nothing else.“


“So you think we have no life? Nothing to cope with?” he cast her a killing look.


“Hmmm, okay, you have some kind of un-life you like to call “life”, but you don’t deserve it either. You got this existance by taking other real humans’ real precious life. You’re nothing else than damn serial-killers that would end up in execution, or at least life-sentence prison. All I do is just serving justice for this world.”


“Nice theory, Slayer. The only problem is that it sucks.” He grimaced. ”It’s not me who the real monster is. It’s you. You pretend to be human, you have a soul… and still you commit several murders every day. How can your gut accept this fact?” he leered at her.


Ignoring his question, she noted, “What you live is not life! So I wouldn’t worry about killing you in any minute.”


“Really?” Spike menacingly walked towards her. “You say I don’t live?” he shouted. “Then what’s this??” lifting his hand, he glided his shirt back to reveal his skin. “Touch me!” taking her hand, he placed it onto his bare arm. “Isn’t it skin what you feel? Flesh?”


Buffy drew her hand back, and replied quietly, “It is. But it’s dead. You are dead. A shadow in this world, belonging to hell. Your corporeal body only enables you to materialize and get what you want. To kill.”


Spike was staring at her, his face mirroring desperation, ache and anger at the same time.


“Slayer, you have carried it too far,” he claimed coldly. “I will kill you. But before that I show you the world you don’t know. The life you say doesn’t exist at all. I’ll prove to you that I’m not more worthless than you. I suggest you be a good girl and don’t resist, otherwise these days’ll be hell for you.”


“They already are,” Buffy murmured.


“It’s up to you if it stays so. I can ensure you, being with you for 7 days doesn’t belong to my sweetest dreams. But if your suffer, it gives me compensation for all that,” he shrugged, “I’ll manage it.”


“Not if I kill you.”


Spike laughed out loud.


“I turn you into dust,” she picked up a wood-stick from the floor to prove her intention.


“Try it!” Spike teased her with an evil grin.


With a strange glance, Buffy raised her arm to stake him, but as soon as the wood was close to his skin, her body winced in unbearable pain.


“Ouch!!” she cried out loud.


“Wow! Good work, Red!” he smiled, learning that Willow’s magic disabled Buffy to hurt people, and him as well.


Buffy frowned with disgust, “Great. I’m just like you.”


“Seems so,” Spike chuckled.


“So none of us can kill the other,” she noted dryly.


“Good observation, Slayervamp!” he laughed. “Right, let’s get back to business. I will tell you everything you should know about managing life as a vampire without any troubles, but it’s up to you if you accept this help or not. However I truly advise you to consider my words. Even if it sounds strange, but even if I could, I’d not want to kill you yet. Not yet… “ he added with a grin.


“How kind of you,” she sneered. ”Though I’d rather be dead than spend a day with you.”


“Your time will come, don’t worry,” Spike smirked. “But not now.”


Tbc...