If I Knew Then... CH 16 FINAL CHAPTER!
Title: If I Knew Then...
Author: Shade
Pairing: S/X
Rating: PG to NC17
Disclaimer: All assorted characters belong to Mutant Enemy and Joss which is fine, because I suspect Buffy's high maintenance anyway.
Summary: AU-The African demon in Grave grants Spike's wish in a way he never planned. Flung back in time, he has to relive the previous three years with all the knowledge of what's to come.
A/N: Beta by the always lovely blinding_sight. She has been consistantly there for me even as this silly little story of mine dragged out for OMG years. I can never thank her enough! Certain bits of dialog are taken from the following BtVS episodes:
4:22: Restless
Previous Chapters
Chapter 16: Restless OR Spike and Tara and Jonathan save the world!
Spike walks back toward his crypt with a sense of satisfaction. Adam is back to spare parts. The Slayer may have taken him out, but Spike was part of the team. He still feels a slight twinge from the demon about it, but he can't deny that there had been some good violence. The Watcher had gathered up the pups and herded them off to Joyce's after the great escape. Buffy had strongly hinted that he wasn't invited, not that he wanted to go anyway. So back to the crypt it is. He's halfway there when he sees someone familiar skulking around a corner.
"Rayne," Spike mumbles and runs to catch up. By the time he reaches the corner, the mage has disappeared, possibly literally. "Bugger," Spike spits.
His first instinct is to head over to Revello drive, but he knows the others are exhausted after the spell. Giles and Willow are in no shape to be throwing around any magic, that's for sure. There's only one place he can turn. He turns and runs toward campus.
She blinks at him with soft eyes. He's obviously woke her up. The kitty covered pajama pants are a big clue.
"Sorry to wake you up, love, but it looks like I need a witch," he says.
Tara doesn't invite him in, which he's proud of. Instead, she bites her lip and says, "I...I'm not that g-good. Willow's stronger."
"Willow's drained after tonight. You'll have to do. Go on and get dressed, pet. There's a Chaos Mage on the loose and it looks like we're the only ones who can stop him."
He waits outside while she changes. It doesn't take long before she steps out. The long flowing skirt and cutesy T-shirt are just so Tara that he has a sudden nostalgic longing for his own time. Tara is the one person that would always talk to him. No matter what was going on with the Slayer or the others, he could always depend on Tara and the Bit. Without even thinking about it, Spike wraps his arms around her shoulders and hugs her close. Tara is stiff, unyielding, and when he pulls away she looks unnerved.
"Wh-what was that for?" she asks.
Spike realizes what he's done and coughs with embarrassment. He steps back and straightens his coat.
"I just-I-Let's just pretend that never happened, okay?"
"Are the others...is Willow okay?"
"They're fine. They're all over at Buffy's. Big bad destroyed and all that."
"Oh. Good. You said something about a Chaos Mage?" she asks, thankfully changing the subject.
"Right, did Willow tell you about Giles getting turned into a demon?" he asks leading her out of the dorms.
She shakes her head and he can see the doubt in her eyes that has nothing to do with Giles and Willow. For a moment he wonders why and then he realizes she's thinking of herself. Spike pulls up short.
"Right first things first, let's get that out of the way," he says.
"What?" she asks confused.
"I've been meaning to talk to you about this, and this is a good a time as any. Then we can deal with that Rayne wanker. You're family is a load of gits. You're not a demon, and I can prove it."
Tara stumbles back in shock. She starts looking around for an escape route. Spike holds his hand up to stop her. He really wishes that Buffy had beat Tara's father black and blue when she had the chance. Maybe this time he can talk her into it. Before Tara can start to babble at him he takes her arm and pulls her off the sidewalk under a tree where they'll have a little more privacy. It seems to make her more panicked so he starts talking.
"Listen, you know this chip goes off if I hurt humans, but not if I hurt demons, right?"
Tara looks too panicked to reply, so Spike merely reaches over to her slowly and give her a good hard pinch on the arm. The chip sizzles to life, and he leans back on the tree waiting for the pain to stop. His face is clenched for a moment so it isn't until he opens his eyes that he realizes she looks like she's about to cry. He very nearly succeeds in not cursing his head off in front of her.
"Bloody hell woman! I'm hurting myself to make a point here!"
Tara pauses. The damp eyes look at him and suddenly fill with wonder instead of tears. Spike smirks at her.
"Oh, the other shoe drops, does it? You're no more a demon than the Queen Mum. Then again, she has lived a long bleedin' time," Spike pauses to collect his thoughts and continues. "Anyway, it doesn't matter even if you were a demon, luv. You couldn't be evil if you tried. It's who you are and what you do in life that matters."
"Like how you help Buffy and the others?" she asks meekly.
Spike frowns at that and yells, "I'm evil! Don't think any different! Rip your guts out soon as look at you if I could."
Tara shrinks back at his outburst. "R...really?"
Spike deflates and pats her on the shoulder before replying, "No, not really. I wouldn't hurt you, Glinda. You've been good to me."
"I have?"
"You...will...be good to me. Don't make me think about the time travel business! It hurts my head. Just trust me on this. Sooner or later your old man is going to show up spouting off his usual demon nonsense. When he does, you come tell me and I'll punch him in the face chip or no chip. Better yet, I'll make Buffy punch him in the face. That'll get him! Being beaten up by a woman, ha!"
Tara's eyes grow wet once more, and he's not sure what he's done to upset her again. Before an apology can slip past his lips she grabs a hold of him in a tight hug. Spike soaks up the warmth and lets her collect herself. When she pulls away, it's her turn to have post hug awkwardness.
"Right, now that we've gotten all the disgustingly mushy stuff out of the way, do you think we can get to work?" Spike asks.
"You said there was a chaos mage?"
"His name's Ethan Rayne. He's an old mate of Giles' from the Watcher's wild days."
"Giles had wild days?"
"Not compared to mine, but wild enough that he's embarrassed as hell about them now. It's pretty entertaining, actually."
"How are we going to find this Ethan?" she asks.
"I suppose we'll follow the trouble. What's the first thing you'd do if you were a chaos mage that had escaped from a government prison?"
"Open the Hellmouth?"
Spike cocks an eyebrow at her. She flushes a bit under his gaze.
"Remind me never to piss you off, pet."
Tara ducks her head and follows Spike as he heads toward the high school ruins. As they get closer, she grips his hand in hers. He looks down at their threaded fingers. She's scared and nervous and will be absolutely no good to him if Rayne pops out and says so much as boo. He squeezes her hand to make her look at the leer on his face.
"Careful, ducks, you'll end up making Red jealous. I have been known to be irresistible."
Tara smiles at him, but doesn't let go of his hand. When they get to the doors of the school they both cringe at the feeling. The usual high he gets from the Hellmouth is altered and oily. It feels like the beetles from the wish demon's cave crawling on him all over again. Spike gives an involuntary shudder.
"He's here. He's done something to the Hellmouth," Tara says.
"I hope you brought the big guns in that bag of yours."
Tara pulls out a red colored mushroom and a smooth, polished rock that's a dark forest green color. Spike stares at the meager offerings.
"Well," he says snidely in a loud voice, "It's a good thing I wasn't worried."
Tara shushes him and replies, "You wanted a witch."
"True enough. I hate magic."
"It depends on the kind."
Spike nods and sweeps a hand in front of him at the blackened doors of the high school. When Tara looks as ready as she ever will, he opens the doors and walks in first. She's so close behind that his coat bumps against her legs every few steps. When they get closer to the library, she pulls forward. The hole that used to be Buffy's base of operations is glowing with a purplish light. The air crackles with ozone and little sparks of electricity pop every so often. Tara waves the mushroom over the rock a few times. After the third pass, the electricity flares bright white and Spike has to look away and rub his eyes.
Tara bites her lip after the fireworks and pulls him out into the hall. She looks grim.
"What?" Spike asks.
"He's done something to the Hellmouth. It's complicated. I can't break it without damaging the structure of the spell."
"So?"
"It would be like trying to diffuse a nuclear bomb. The Hellmouth is very sensitive to magic. Ripping the spell apart could set off a chain reaction that could make the Hellmouth open with it."
"And that would be bad. Right. We need more help."
"Giles?"
"Same situation I was in earlier. He and Willow are no good tonight, and we don't know what Rayne has planned for this light show."
"It's similar to a glamour, but there's something really ominous about it."
Spike draws up short and says, "A glamour?"
"What?"
"I think I know someone that might be of help. The trick is finding him."
Spike stalks out of the school with Tara close behind. He walks to the nearest phone booth and picks up the phone book. It takes him a minute to find it, but thankfully it's the only name of its kind. He memorizes the address and is back out on the sidewalk again, moving quickly. Tara keeps up and didn't once ask him what they are doing. The trust is surprising. He keeps forgetting that she hardly knows him. He glances back at her and gives her a grin. She returns it with a dose of encouragement.
The house is dark. Spike bangs on the door until the porch light comes on. A harried, sleepy eyed woman in curlers answers the door. Spike puts on his best charming smile.
"Hello, Mrs. Levinson, is Jonathan home?" he asks.
"Do you have any idea what time it is?"
"Yes ma'am, and I'm sorry to wake you up, but there's been an accident. One of Jonathan's friends is hurt and I knew he'd want to know as soon as possible."
The woman looks at him skeptically, but is interrupted by Jonathan coming to the door in Star Wars pajamas. He's wiping his eyes like a little boy, and Spike can't help but notice the teddy bear that is quickly hid behind his back when he spots Spike on the stoop.
"Jonathan?" his mother asks. There's a world of questions in that one word.
"It's all right, mom. Go back to bed."
The woman gives a disapproving look, but disappears back into the dark house. Jonathan waits a moment until she is out of earshot before turning back to them.
He hisses, "What are you doing here, Spike?"
"We need your help. Tuck the teddy back in and get some pants on."
Jonathan's weak chin takes a stubborn slant. "And if I don't?" he asked. "It's not like you can cross this threshold to make me."
"No, you're right, I can't, but my witchy friend here can turn you into a toad," Spike replies. He looks back at Tara to find that there is a serviceable evil grin on her face.
Jonathan sighs, "Fine."
He closes the door on them and they wait. After a few moments, Jonathan shuffles outside with a small leather satchel. Spike throws an arm around his shoulders, just to get the shiver of fear he knows can.
"So what's going on?" Jonathan asks with a shaky voice.
"Chaos mage has done something to the Hellmouth. Tara here's a white witch and she says it's like a glamour. Since you like fooling people with magic, I figured it'd be right up your alley."
"A Chaos mage? That's heavy stuff. I'm really not that good at spells. You know how my last one turned out."
"Jonathan, you rewrote reality for a whole town. Now I'm no wizard, but even I know that takes some power. That kind of power can take you places you don't want to end up, I can promise you that. Consider this a public service. You help us take out the bad guy and we keep you from hanging out with the wrong element."
"But you're a vampire," Jonathan says with confusion.
"And?"
“That’s kind of the definition of the wrong element.”
“Oh pish, I’m full of the marrow of human kindness, me.”
“Only because you ate it,” Jonathan mumbles and looks at Tara for help.
She just hides a grin behind her hand. The three of them head back to the school. There is still no sign of Rayne. Jonathan and Tara talk shop after she shows him her trick with the mushroom and rock. Spike tunes them out and does some reconnaissance in the rest of the building hoping to find some hint of Rayne. He comes back empty handed and by the defeated look on the other two's faces they've hit a wall as well.
"So?" Spike asks.
Jonathan sighs and explains, "Tara's right. This thing is far too dangerous to take on. I think I know more about what it's supposed to do, but I can't help stop it. I think the only thing that could is the caster."
"So Rayne has to undo it?"
Tara nods.
"Then we have to find him. Damn, I was hoping it wouldn't come to that. For all we know he's half way to Timbuktu by now."
"I don't think so," Jonathan says.
"Why?" Tara asks.
"Well, Chaos mages feed off chaos energy. It's the source of their power. If he does something to the Hellmouth, it's going to cause a lot of chaos. It'd be like cooking Thanksgiving dinner and then leaving it for someone else to eat."
"You're right," Spike agrees. "Rayne would stick around to enjoy his handy work. But where?"
"If he did a spell this big, we could probably track the residual energy left over from it, maybe?" Jonathan looks to Tara for affirmation.
"He's right. I should have thought of that, but we'll need some supplies."
"Magic shop it is," Spike says, once again spinning and heading outside. He lets the two behind him try to keep up.
The magic shop is just as he remembers it, although it isn’t as cheerful as when Giles will own it. Spike picks the lock on the back door, while Tara plays lookout. Jonathan stands next to him wringing his hands like a Victorian spinster.
“Will you calm down? You’re distracting me. I can practically hear you sweat,” Spike grumbles.
“Well, excuse me! I didn’t expect to get woken up in the middle of the night to go breaking and entering with a vampire!”
Spike flinches and hisses back, “Keep it down!”
“I’m really not cut out for this sort of thing,” Jonathan whines. “Why’d you come to me anyway?”
“Partly to keep an eye on you, but mostly because I knew you could help. Who knows? Maybe this will get you in with the Scoobies.”
Jonathan’s eyes flash in the dim light from the street lamps beyond the alley. The hope in them makes Spike look back at the lock and cringe. He hopes Buffy doesn’t stake him for this.
“Do you-do you really think so?” Jonathan asks.
The door opens under Spike’s gentle care and he uses it as a cover not to answer. Tara quickly follows them inside.
“Get what you need and anything else that might come in handy. Somehow I don’t think that Rayne will go quietly this time. Especially considering that I can’t lay a hand on the wanker.”
The two of them get to work discussing the spell they’re going to and the merits of mother’s wart or whatever. Spike takes the free time while they’re distracted to pocket a few trinkets that he can sell later.
The furniture is all wrong, but it’s still the Magic Box. He almost expects Buffy and Dawn to flounce through the door. Anya would be behind the counter counting money. Xander would be sitting at the table with Willow pretending to read some of Giles’ old tomes but really catching forty winks. Spike finds himself smiling at the very thought of Xander and has shake his head to clear the image.
“We’re ready,” Tara says and lays some money on the counter. When the other two look at her, she just gives them a small frown. “Not all of us are bad guys.”
“I’m not a bad guy. Not really,” Jonathan says indignantly.
Spike rolls his eyes and replies, “Yeah, we’re both just misunderstood. Can we get on with this?”
The three of them return to the Hellmouth. Outside the library’s askew doors, Tara and Jonathan do a little chanting while tossing herbs all over the floor. Spike stays out of the way. Suddenly, there’s a clap like a gunshot. Spike jumps at the sound, but it only precedes a soft lavender glow. It rises up like mist from the herbs and coalesces into a thin ribbon of purple smoke that drifts down the hall. They follow with Spike in the lead. He wrenches a lead pipe the length of a staff from one of the exposed walls, just before they exit. One can never be too careful. The smoke drifts down the quiet streets. They follow it across the south edge of town. A couple of vamps show some interest in their party during the trip, but Spike flashes some fang at them to warn them off.
They are led into the hilly part of town on the other side of the park. There’s a steep dirt road that leads to the top of the hill. It’s a popular lover’s lane because of the view at the top. Spike used to pick off a couple of teens a week up there. He stops when they’re about three quarters the way up.
“You were right Jonathan. He’s probably sitting up there on the top of the hill waiting to watch the fireworks. The road leaves us exposed at the top. I usually come up the backside when I come up here. The trees block you from view.”
Tara gives him a knowing look at that statement, but being evil he doesn’t flinch, much. Jonathan misses the byplay and asks, “So you’re saying we should go around to the other side?”
“No, I’m saying I’m going around to the other side. You keep going.”
“You’re using us as bait?”
“Distraction, ‘s different. You guys are all prepared, right? He’s probably knackered from his spell earlier. It’ll be a piece of cake. We’ll give him the old one-two.”
Spike doesn’t give them the chance to argue and stalks off around the hill. Once he’s covered by the trees, he picks up some speed. By the time he gets around to the edge of the clearing at the top, he can see Tara and Jonathan coming up the road holding hands. Tara has a sprig of something in her other hand clenched into a tight fist. Jonathan mirrors her on the other side with a chunky crystal. There’s one car parked at the overlook. Rayne sits on its hood looking out over the lights of Sunnydale below. He looks back at the pair walking up behind his car.
“Well this is surprising. I must say, I was expecting dear old Ripper any time now. Or even a spunky Slayer perhaps, but who are you?”
“We’re here to stop you, Wizard!” Jonathan says in his best comic book hero wannabe voice. Spike slaps a hand over his face and shakes his head.
Rayne gives a snort. “Is that so?” he says. He’s turned to look at them over his shoulder so his other hand is blocked from their view. Spike can see it clearly from his vantage point and notices it starting to glow.
“DOWN!” he yells and bolts from the trees.
Jonathan merely gapes like a caught fish, but Tara goes down and her death grip on his hand pulls him down with her. A bright crackling ball of energy flies from Rayne’s hand and blasts through the air they were just standing in. Spike goes into game face and gives his best growl. The pole comes down inches from Rayne and leaves a serious dent in the hood. It’s mostly just a scare tactic. Spike can’t hit Rayne, and he won’t try until it’s absolutely necessary. Once he does, he’ll be out of the action completely thanks to the sodding chip.
Rayne rolls away from the blow and goes right off the hood to his knees on the ground. By this time, Tara has pulled Jonathan back up and starts to chant. He echoes her back with a shaky voice. Rayne apparently knows what spell they’re doing because he starts his own chant in a guttural language that even Spike’s never heard before. Spike tries for another distraction diving at the man, but a gale force wind starts to whip around Rayne’s body. He’s making his own tornado with himself safely in the eye. Spike’s leap towards the man is brought to an abrupt halt in mid air as he hits the column of wind. It jerks him to the side and flings him out over the edge of the lookout’s cliff.
“Bollocks!” he yelps as Rayne and the other two disappear out of sight as he falls down the face of the hill. Spike twists and manages to bash into a tree growing out of the side of the steep incline. It knocks wind out of his lungs that, thankfully, he doesn’t need. The next jolt comes from a tall shrub that he smashes through before finally hitting the ground in an aggressive roll. He bounces along the rough landscape of brush and rocks. The world is a spinning mass of earth and sky. Each roll onto his back he can a see a light show going off at the top of the hill only to have it ripped away as his turn completes and he gets a face full of dirt. There’s a large elm a quarter way up the hill. He approaches it at an alarming rate. It’s obviously dying because there is no greenery, just gnarled branches poking in every direction. Spike scrabbles with the dirt trying to slow himself down or find a handhold, something, anything. He manages only in snapping his right arm against a sharp rock. The pain barely has time to blossom before his back slams into the elm. The pain of the impact makes him forget all about his arm. He’s jarred to the bone. It takes a moment for his vision to clear. He tries to move but finds resistance and only pain.
Spike looks down to see a large blood covered branch protruding from his chest. His impact has shattered the tip, but the thick end next to the trunk has held enough to become a crude stake. An inch or so higher and he would have been dust. He tries to pull himself from the spear of wood, but he’s too weak and injured. After a moment of painful struggling, Spike lays back against the trunk of the tree. It’s growing out from the hill at a twisted angle. He’s reclined back in a mockery of comfort. He can’t see the top of the slope in the darkness. The light show from earlier has ended. Spike gasps and it comes out a wet gurgle. He’s punctured a lung for sure, possibly both. He can’t pull in enough air to speak. Either Jonathan and Tara won or they didn’t. If they did, they’ll come looking for him eventually. If they didn’t, it won’t matter because the Hellmouth will likely be opening in minutes. Spike drifts in and out of consciousness. He can feel the edges of the wound knitting and pulling apart again. His vampiric healing is trying to fix him despite the large fucking tree sticking out of his chest. It’s a little like agony, but compared to most things he’s endured in Sunnydale it doesn’t even rank in the top five.
What seems like hours later, but is probably only moments, he hears a voice calling from the top of the hill.
“Spike! Spike!”
He can’t see Tara yelling over the side of the hill, but her voice is like a song. So they’d won. Wonderful. He can’t reply. Instead, Spike digs around in his pocket and pulls out his lighter. He lights it and holds it up.
“I see you! We’re coming!”
After a few minutes of scrabbling, the two of them swim into his vision. Jonathan has a nasty scrap over one of his eyebrows. Tara looks tired and dirty. It takes both of them to pull Spike off the broken branch. They do it slowly which is much more painful, but there is less of a chance that the wood will splinter and pierce his heart. Once he’s off the tree. They carefully make their way down the last of the hill to the bottom supporting Spike between them.
“Go team,” he manages to rasp, but regrets it when it causes a coughing fit that brings up blood.
“I’ll go back up and get his car,” Jonathan says trying not to look at the blood. He runs off back toward the road. Tara kneels next to where Spike is lying on the ground and holds his hand.
Spike can’t ask what happened so he just squeezes her hand until she looks at him and then he pointedly looks at the top of the hill.
“The wind was bad, but I did a simple concentration breaking spell. He couldn’t keep it together and then Jonathan hit him with a sleep spell. Rayne had enough defenses up that it didn’t p-put him to sleep, but it was enough of distraction that I r-ran over and hit him with your p-pipe. I hope I didn’t hurt him too bad. We still have to get him to stop the spell,” she explains.
Spike reaches over and pats their joined hands in reassurance. The car pulls up nearby. Jonathan gets out and they help him into the backseat next to a limp Rayne. Jonathan drives like an old woman despite Tara’s urging.
“I don’t even have a license, okay,” Jonathan finally snaps. Spike wants to say something, but he still can’t draw in enough air to bother. He flips two fingers at the rearview mirror in a useless gesture since he doesn’t have a reflection and Jonathan refuses to take his eyes off the road.
Back at the school once again, Jonathan and Tara drag Rayne inside. Spike is at least strong enough to stagger along under his own power, but he leans on the wall for support. Spike pulls the crooked library door open and then motions to Tara. When she comes over to him, he digs around in her bag and pulls out a bottle of water. Spike dumps the whole bottle over Rayne’s head. The mage slowly starts to rouse, but Tara helps by slapping him. Jonathan stands behind the man clutching the pipe with a fearful face.
“Wha-,” Rayne’s words die on his lips when he sees the glow through the doors.
Spike leans back more nonchalantly than he feels and points at Rayne then at the Hellmouth.
Tara nods and takes over. She says, “Fix it, or y-you’re going to go up with it.”
Rayne looks at all of them. When his eyes come back to Spike, he sees the yellow eyes of a demon looking back.
“Fine,” he sighs, broken.
All in all, the spell isn’t that complicated to stop. A few mumbled words and the glow fades back into darkness. The four of them troop back out into the Sunnydale night. Spike has to take stops every so often so he doesn’t notice that Rayne and Jonathan are pulling ahead of him Tara. There’s a yelp as soon as the two of them clear the doors outside. Tara runs to help and Spike tries to speed up. Once he gets outside, he sees Jonathan on the ground with a scraped elbow to match the scratch over his eye. Tara is helping him to his feet and Rayne is nowhere to be found.
“He pushed me,” Jonathan says.
“It’s okay. I think he’s done for the night,” Tara says, pulling out a salve for Jonathan’s elbow.
“I think we all are,” Spike rasps.
“Where to now?” Jonathan says.
“Buffy’s,” Spike manages. The three of them head back to the car. Jonathan drops them off at Revello Drive a few minutes later.
“I’m going to go home. If I’m not there when mom wakes up, she’ll have a fit.”
“Wait,” Tara says running back to him. She scribbles something on a piece of paper. “It’s my dorm number. Maybe we can have lunch one day and talk about magic. I can bring Willow.”
Jonathan gives a small smile and replies, “That would be nice. I don’t really have anyone to talk to.”
Tara pats his arm and then climbs the steps again to help Spike. The sound of the car disappears down the street.
“He don’t know you like birds,” Spike whispers. The lungs are starting to knit up and he can get a few more breaths to talk.
“That’s why I said I’d bring Willow,” Tara says with a sly smile before knocking on the door.
To Spike’s surprise, it appears as though everyone is awake. Joyce gives a loud gasp when she sees Spike’s wound. She pulls him into the kitchen and has him sit down on a stool to be examined. Tara starts explaining things to Willow who has a concerned look. Spike tries to shuffle out of his coat with a lot of trouble. Two big hands take the collar and carefully pull it off his back. Spike turns his head to see Xander giving him a worried look. They both look at the large bloody hole in the middle of the coat’s back. Spike tries to sigh, but it causes him to start coughing again.
“He’s going to need blood,” Giles says stepping forward to cut Spike’s ruined T-shirt off.
After hearing Tara’s story, Buffy actually volunteers to get the blood when the butcher opens in an hour. Willow keeps interrupting Tara to hug her with tight worried embraces. In all the confusion, no one seems to notice Xander taking his hand. The women all move to the next room. Giles hovers over Spike cleaning the wound and pulling out the occasional splinters with tweezers. The Watcher carefully ignores the handholding and concentrates on his work instead.
“Hey, you okay?” Xander asks.
“Right as rain,” Spike says softly. “How was the movie?”
“We didn’t finish it. Long story. Remind me to tell you later.”
“This is going to be a while. You’re probably tired, Xander. You should get some sleep.”
“NO!” Xander and Giles bark in unison.
After the night he’s had, Spike doesn’t ask. The sun is starting to come up by the time Giles finishes cleaning and bandaging. Buffy leaves for the butchers and promises to bring back doughnuts for everyone. Tara and Willow tut over Spike’s coat while Joyce closes curtains and starts making breakfast.
Spike leans heavily on the kitchen island watching Joyce. Tara places a hand on his arm to get his attention.
“Don’t worry about your coat. I know a mending spell that will fix it,” she says softly.
“Thanks, pet. As usual you’re a life saver.”
“I think she did a lot of life saving tonight,” Xander says sitting down on Spike’s other side.
Tara blushes prettily. She walks off into the dining room with Willow and starts telling her about Jonathan. Spike feels tired. Every one of his hundred odd years is perching on his shoulders. Xander takes up a lot of space on his stool, and if he happens to be close enough for Spike to lean on his shoulder, he hopes the boy won’t mind.
Spike closes his eyes and listens to Xander and Joyce chatting softly. He has the feeling that Willow and Tara are snogging in the dining room. Giles has apparently turned on the stereo over in the living room because he can hear the gentle sounds of Eric Clapton and the rest of Cream doing their thing. All in all, despite the hole in his chest, it’s a good moment. The sound of feet clumping down the stairs doesn’t even really register until he hears a young gasp.
“Oh my God! What happened to Spike? Why didn’t you wake me up? Man! I miss everything!” the voice whines.
Spike’s eyes snap open and he jerks around so quickly that he knocks Xander off balance. The boy grabs the counter to keep from completely falling off his stool. There in the middle of the Summers’ kitchen stands a gawping Dawn, four months before she’s even supposed to exist.
“Bloody hell!”
---
So there we go! IIKT is in the can! Yes I know I left a bit of a cliff-hanger, but I fully intend to do smaller one shots in this universe, one of which will deal with the whole Dawn/Glory debacle. I hope you all enjoyed the story as much as I enjoyed writing it. My only regret is that it has taken so long to get it done. I thank everyone for their kind words and encouragement and mainly your patience.
Author: Shade
Pairing: S/X
Rating: PG to NC17
Disclaimer: All assorted characters belong to Mutant Enemy and Joss which is fine, because I suspect Buffy's high maintenance anyway.
Summary: AU-The African demon in Grave grants Spike's wish in a way he never planned. Flung back in time, he has to relive the previous three years with all the knowledge of what's to come.
A/N: Beta by the always lovely blinding_sight. She has been consistantly there for me even as this silly little story of mine dragged out for OMG years. I can never thank her enough! Certain bits of dialog are taken from the following BtVS episodes:
4:22: Restless
Previous Chapters
Chapter 16: Restless OR Spike and Tara and Jonathan save the world!
Spike walks back toward his crypt with a sense of satisfaction. Adam is back to spare parts. The Slayer may have taken him out, but Spike was part of the team. He still feels a slight twinge from the demon about it, but he can't deny that there had been some good violence. The Watcher had gathered up the pups and herded them off to Joyce's after the great escape. Buffy had strongly hinted that he wasn't invited, not that he wanted to go anyway. So back to the crypt it is. He's halfway there when he sees someone familiar skulking around a corner.
"Rayne," Spike mumbles and runs to catch up. By the time he reaches the corner, the mage has disappeared, possibly literally. "Bugger," Spike spits.
His first instinct is to head over to Revello drive, but he knows the others are exhausted after the spell. Giles and Willow are in no shape to be throwing around any magic, that's for sure. There's only one place he can turn. He turns and runs toward campus.
She blinks at him with soft eyes. He's obviously woke her up. The kitty covered pajama pants are a big clue.
"Sorry to wake you up, love, but it looks like I need a witch," he says.
Tara doesn't invite him in, which he's proud of. Instead, she bites her lip and says, "I...I'm not that g-good. Willow's stronger."
"Willow's drained after tonight. You'll have to do. Go on and get dressed, pet. There's a Chaos Mage on the loose and it looks like we're the only ones who can stop him."
He waits outside while she changes. It doesn't take long before she steps out. The long flowing skirt and cutesy T-shirt are just so Tara that he has a sudden nostalgic longing for his own time. Tara is the one person that would always talk to him. No matter what was going on with the Slayer or the others, he could always depend on Tara and the Bit. Without even thinking about it, Spike wraps his arms around her shoulders and hugs her close. Tara is stiff, unyielding, and when he pulls away she looks unnerved.
"Wh-what was that for?" she asks.
Spike realizes what he's done and coughs with embarrassment. He steps back and straightens his coat.
"I just-I-Let's just pretend that never happened, okay?"
"Are the others...is Willow okay?"
"They're fine. They're all over at Buffy's. Big bad destroyed and all that."
"Oh. Good. You said something about a Chaos Mage?" she asks, thankfully changing the subject.
"Right, did Willow tell you about Giles getting turned into a demon?" he asks leading her out of the dorms.
She shakes her head and he can see the doubt in her eyes that has nothing to do with Giles and Willow. For a moment he wonders why and then he realizes she's thinking of herself. Spike pulls up short.
"Right first things first, let's get that out of the way," he says.
"What?" she asks confused.
"I've been meaning to talk to you about this, and this is a good a time as any. Then we can deal with that Rayne wanker. You're family is a load of gits. You're not a demon, and I can prove it."
Tara stumbles back in shock. She starts looking around for an escape route. Spike holds his hand up to stop her. He really wishes that Buffy had beat Tara's father black and blue when she had the chance. Maybe this time he can talk her into it. Before Tara can start to babble at him he takes her arm and pulls her off the sidewalk under a tree where they'll have a little more privacy. It seems to make her more panicked so he starts talking.
"Listen, you know this chip goes off if I hurt humans, but not if I hurt demons, right?"
Tara looks too panicked to reply, so Spike merely reaches over to her slowly and give her a good hard pinch on the arm. The chip sizzles to life, and he leans back on the tree waiting for the pain to stop. His face is clenched for a moment so it isn't until he opens his eyes that he realizes she looks like she's about to cry. He very nearly succeeds in not cursing his head off in front of her.
"Bloody hell woman! I'm hurting myself to make a point here!"
Tara pauses. The damp eyes look at him and suddenly fill with wonder instead of tears. Spike smirks at her.
"Oh, the other shoe drops, does it? You're no more a demon than the Queen Mum. Then again, she has lived a long bleedin' time," Spike pauses to collect his thoughts and continues. "Anyway, it doesn't matter even if you were a demon, luv. You couldn't be evil if you tried. It's who you are and what you do in life that matters."
"Like how you help Buffy and the others?" she asks meekly.
Spike frowns at that and yells, "I'm evil! Don't think any different! Rip your guts out soon as look at you if I could."
Tara shrinks back at his outburst. "R...really?"
Spike deflates and pats her on the shoulder before replying, "No, not really. I wouldn't hurt you, Glinda. You've been good to me."
"I have?"
"You...will...be good to me. Don't make me think about the time travel business! It hurts my head. Just trust me on this. Sooner or later your old man is going to show up spouting off his usual demon nonsense. When he does, you come tell me and I'll punch him in the face chip or no chip. Better yet, I'll make Buffy punch him in the face. That'll get him! Being beaten up by a woman, ha!"
Tara's eyes grow wet once more, and he's not sure what he's done to upset her again. Before an apology can slip past his lips she grabs a hold of him in a tight hug. Spike soaks up the warmth and lets her collect herself. When she pulls away, it's her turn to have post hug awkwardness.
"Right, now that we've gotten all the disgustingly mushy stuff out of the way, do you think we can get to work?" Spike asks.
"You said there was a chaos mage?"
"His name's Ethan Rayne. He's an old mate of Giles' from the Watcher's wild days."
"Giles had wild days?"
"Not compared to mine, but wild enough that he's embarrassed as hell about them now. It's pretty entertaining, actually."
"How are we going to find this Ethan?" she asks.
"I suppose we'll follow the trouble. What's the first thing you'd do if you were a chaos mage that had escaped from a government prison?"
"Open the Hellmouth?"
Spike cocks an eyebrow at her. She flushes a bit under his gaze.
"Remind me never to piss you off, pet."
Tara ducks her head and follows Spike as he heads toward the high school ruins. As they get closer, she grips his hand in hers. He looks down at their threaded fingers. She's scared and nervous and will be absolutely no good to him if Rayne pops out and says so much as boo. He squeezes her hand to make her look at the leer on his face.
"Careful, ducks, you'll end up making Red jealous. I have been known to be irresistible."
Tara smiles at him, but doesn't let go of his hand. When they get to the doors of the school they both cringe at the feeling. The usual high he gets from the Hellmouth is altered and oily. It feels like the beetles from the wish demon's cave crawling on him all over again. Spike gives an involuntary shudder.
"He's here. He's done something to the Hellmouth," Tara says.
"I hope you brought the big guns in that bag of yours."
Tara pulls out a red colored mushroom and a smooth, polished rock that's a dark forest green color. Spike stares at the meager offerings.
"Well," he says snidely in a loud voice, "It's a good thing I wasn't worried."
Tara shushes him and replies, "You wanted a witch."
"True enough. I hate magic."
"It depends on the kind."
Spike nods and sweeps a hand in front of him at the blackened doors of the high school. When Tara looks as ready as she ever will, he opens the doors and walks in first. She's so close behind that his coat bumps against her legs every few steps. When they get closer to the library, she pulls forward. The hole that used to be Buffy's base of operations is glowing with a purplish light. The air crackles with ozone and little sparks of electricity pop every so often. Tara waves the mushroom over the rock a few times. After the third pass, the electricity flares bright white and Spike has to look away and rub his eyes.
Tara bites her lip after the fireworks and pulls him out into the hall. She looks grim.
"What?" Spike asks.
"He's done something to the Hellmouth. It's complicated. I can't break it without damaging the structure of the spell."
"So?"
"It would be like trying to diffuse a nuclear bomb. The Hellmouth is very sensitive to magic. Ripping the spell apart could set off a chain reaction that could make the Hellmouth open with it."
"And that would be bad. Right. We need more help."
"Giles?"
"Same situation I was in earlier. He and Willow are no good tonight, and we don't know what Rayne has planned for this light show."
"It's similar to a glamour, but there's something really ominous about it."
Spike draws up short and says, "A glamour?"
"What?"
"I think I know someone that might be of help. The trick is finding him."
Spike stalks out of the school with Tara close behind. He walks to the nearest phone booth and picks up the phone book. It takes him a minute to find it, but thankfully it's the only name of its kind. He memorizes the address and is back out on the sidewalk again, moving quickly. Tara keeps up and didn't once ask him what they are doing. The trust is surprising. He keeps forgetting that she hardly knows him. He glances back at her and gives her a grin. She returns it with a dose of encouragement.
The house is dark. Spike bangs on the door until the porch light comes on. A harried, sleepy eyed woman in curlers answers the door. Spike puts on his best charming smile.
"Hello, Mrs. Levinson, is Jonathan home?" he asks.
"Do you have any idea what time it is?"
"Yes ma'am, and I'm sorry to wake you up, but there's been an accident. One of Jonathan's friends is hurt and I knew he'd want to know as soon as possible."
The woman looks at him skeptically, but is interrupted by Jonathan coming to the door in Star Wars pajamas. He's wiping his eyes like a little boy, and Spike can't help but notice the teddy bear that is quickly hid behind his back when he spots Spike on the stoop.
"Jonathan?" his mother asks. There's a world of questions in that one word.
"It's all right, mom. Go back to bed."
The woman gives a disapproving look, but disappears back into the dark house. Jonathan waits a moment until she is out of earshot before turning back to them.
He hisses, "What are you doing here, Spike?"
"We need your help. Tuck the teddy back in and get some pants on."
Jonathan's weak chin takes a stubborn slant. "And if I don't?" he asked. "It's not like you can cross this threshold to make me."
"No, you're right, I can't, but my witchy friend here can turn you into a toad," Spike replies. He looks back at Tara to find that there is a serviceable evil grin on her face.
Jonathan sighs, "Fine."
He closes the door on them and they wait. After a few moments, Jonathan shuffles outside with a small leather satchel. Spike throws an arm around his shoulders, just to get the shiver of fear he knows can.
"So what's going on?" Jonathan asks with a shaky voice.
"Chaos mage has done something to the Hellmouth. Tara here's a white witch and she says it's like a glamour. Since you like fooling people with magic, I figured it'd be right up your alley."
"A Chaos mage? That's heavy stuff. I'm really not that good at spells. You know how my last one turned out."
"Jonathan, you rewrote reality for a whole town. Now I'm no wizard, but even I know that takes some power. That kind of power can take you places you don't want to end up, I can promise you that. Consider this a public service. You help us take out the bad guy and we keep you from hanging out with the wrong element."
"But you're a vampire," Jonathan says with confusion.
"And?"
“That’s kind of the definition of the wrong element.”
“Oh pish, I’m full of the marrow of human kindness, me.”
“Only because you ate it,” Jonathan mumbles and looks at Tara for help.
She just hides a grin behind her hand. The three of them head back to the school. There is still no sign of Rayne. Jonathan and Tara talk shop after she shows him her trick with the mushroom and rock. Spike tunes them out and does some reconnaissance in the rest of the building hoping to find some hint of Rayne. He comes back empty handed and by the defeated look on the other two's faces they've hit a wall as well.
"So?" Spike asks.
Jonathan sighs and explains, "Tara's right. This thing is far too dangerous to take on. I think I know more about what it's supposed to do, but I can't help stop it. I think the only thing that could is the caster."
"So Rayne has to undo it?"
Tara nods.
"Then we have to find him. Damn, I was hoping it wouldn't come to that. For all we know he's half way to Timbuktu by now."
"I don't think so," Jonathan says.
"Why?" Tara asks.
"Well, Chaos mages feed off chaos energy. It's the source of their power. If he does something to the Hellmouth, it's going to cause a lot of chaos. It'd be like cooking Thanksgiving dinner and then leaving it for someone else to eat."
"You're right," Spike agrees. "Rayne would stick around to enjoy his handy work. But where?"
"If he did a spell this big, we could probably track the residual energy left over from it, maybe?" Jonathan looks to Tara for affirmation.
"He's right. I should have thought of that, but we'll need some supplies."
"Magic shop it is," Spike says, once again spinning and heading outside. He lets the two behind him try to keep up.
The magic shop is just as he remembers it, although it isn’t as cheerful as when Giles will own it. Spike picks the lock on the back door, while Tara plays lookout. Jonathan stands next to him wringing his hands like a Victorian spinster.
“Will you calm down? You’re distracting me. I can practically hear you sweat,” Spike grumbles.
“Well, excuse me! I didn’t expect to get woken up in the middle of the night to go breaking and entering with a vampire!”
Spike flinches and hisses back, “Keep it down!”
“I’m really not cut out for this sort of thing,” Jonathan whines. “Why’d you come to me anyway?”
“Partly to keep an eye on you, but mostly because I knew you could help. Who knows? Maybe this will get you in with the Scoobies.”
Jonathan’s eyes flash in the dim light from the street lamps beyond the alley. The hope in them makes Spike look back at the lock and cringe. He hopes Buffy doesn’t stake him for this.
“Do you-do you really think so?” Jonathan asks.
The door opens under Spike’s gentle care and he uses it as a cover not to answer. Tara quickly follows them inside.
“Get what you need and anything else that might come in handy. Somehow I don’t think that Rayne will go quietly this time. Especially considering that I can’t lay a hand on the wanker.”
The two of them get to work discussing the spell they’re going to and the merits of mother’s wart or whatever. Spike takes the free time while they’re distracted to pocket a few trinkets that he can sell later.
The furniture is all wrong, but it’s still the Magic Box. He almost expects Buffy and Dawn to flounce through the door. Anya would be behind the counter counting money. Xander would be sitting at the table with Willow pretending to read some of Giles’ old tomes but really catching forty winks. Spike finds himself smiling at the very thought of Xander and has shake his head to clear the image.
“We’re ready,” Tara says and lays some money on the counter. When the other two look at her, she just gives them a small frown. “Not all of us are bad guys.”
“I’m not a bad guy. Not really,” Jonathan says indignantly.
Spike rolls his eyes and replies, “Yeah, we’re both just misunderstood. Can we get on with this?”
The three of them return to the Hellmouth. Outside the library’s askew doors, Tara and Jonathan do a little chanting while tossing herbs all over the floor. Spike stays out of the way. Suddenly, there’s a clap like a gunshot. Spike jumps at the sound, but it only precedes a soft lavender glow. It rises up like mist from the herbs and coalesces into a thin ribbon of purple smoke that drifts down the hall. They follow with Spike in the lead. He wrenches a lead pipe the length of a staff from one of the exposed walls, just before they exit. One can never be too careful. The smoke drifts down the quiet streets. They follow it across the south edge of town. A couple of vamps show some interest in their party during the trip, but Spike flashes some fang at them to warn them off.
They are led into the hilly part of town on the other side of the park. There’s a steep dirt road that leads to the top of the hill. It’s a popular lover’s lane because of the view at the top. Spike used to pick off a couple of teens a week up there. He stops when they’re about three quarters the way up.
“You were right Jonathan. He’s probably sitting up there on the top of the hill waiting to watch the fireworks. The road leaves us exposed at the top. I usually come up the backside when I come up here. The trees block you from view.”
Tara gives him a knowing look at that statement, but being evil he doesn’t flinch, much. Jonathan misses the byplay and asks, “So you’re saying we should go around to the other side?”
“No, I’m saying I’m going around to the other side. You keep going.”
“You’re using us as bait?”
“Distraction, ‘s different. You guys are all prepared, right? He’s probably knackered from his spell earlier. It’ll be a piece of cake. We’ll give him the old one-two.”
Spike doesn’t give them the chance to argue and stalks off around the hill. Once he’s covered by the trees, he picks up some speed. By the time he gets around to the edge of the clearing at the top, he can see Tara and Jonathan coming up the road holding hands. Tara has a sprig of something in her other hand clenched into a tight fist. Jonathan mirrors her on the other side with a chunky crystal. There’s one car parked at the overlook. Rayne sits on its hood looking out over the lights of Sunnydale below. He looks back at the pair walking up behind his car.
“Well this is surprising. I must say, I was expecting dear old Ripper any time now. Or even a spunky Slayer perhaps, but who are you?”
“We’re here to stop you, Wizard!” Jonathan says in his best comic book hero wannabe voice. Spike slaps a hand over his face and shakes his head.
Rayne gives a snort. “Is that so?” he says. He’s turned to look at them over his shoulder so his other hand is blocked from their view. Spike can see it clearly from his vantage point and notices it starting to glow.
“DOWN!” he yells and bolts from the trees.
Jonathan merely gapes like a caught fish, but Tara goes down and her death grip on his hand pulls him down with her. A bright crackling ball of energy flies from Rayne’s hand and blasts through the air they were just standing in. Spike goes into game face and gives his best growl. The pole comes down inches from Rayne and leaves a serious dent in the hood. It’s mostly just a scare tactic. Spike can’t hit Rayne, and he won’t try until it’s absolutely necessary. Once he does, he’ll be out of the action completely thanks to the sodding chip.
Rayne rolls away from the blow and goes right off the hood to his knees on the ground. By this time, Tara has pulled Jonathan back up and starts to chant. He echoes her back with a shaky voice. Rayne apparently knows what spell they’re doing because he starts his own chant in a guttural language that even Spike’s never heard before. Spike tries for another distraction diving at the man, but a gale force wind starts to whip around Rayne’s body. He’s making his own tornado with himself safely in the eye. Spike’s leap towards the man is brought to an abrupt halt in mid air as he hits the column of wind. It jerks him to the side and flings him out over the edge of the lookout’s cliff.
“Bollocks!” he yelps as Rayne and the other two disappear out of sight as he falls down the face of the hill. Spike twists and manages to bash into a tree growing out of the side of the steep incline. It knocks wind out of his lungs that, thankfully, he doesn’t need. The next jolt comes from a tall shrub that he smashes through before finally hitting the ground in an aggressive roll. He bounces along the rough landscape of brush and rocks. The world is a spinning mass of earth and sky. Each roll onto his back he can a see a light show going off at the top of the hill only to have it ripped away as his turn completes and he gets a face full of dirt. There’s a large elm a quarter way up the hill. He approaches it at an alarming rate. It’s obviously dying because there is no greenery, just gnarled branches poking in every direction. Spike scrabbles with the dirt trying to slow himself down or find a handhold, something, anything. He manages only in snapping his right arm against a sharp rock. The pain barely has time to blossom before his back slams into the elm. The pain of the impact makes him forget all about his arm. He’s jarred to the bone. It takes a moment for his vision to clear. He tries to move but finds resistance and only pain.
Spike looks down to see a large blood covered branch protruding from his chest. His impact has shattered the tip, but the thick end next to the trunk has held enough to become a crude stake. An inch or so higher and he would have been dust. He tries to pull himself from the spear of wood, but he’s too weak and injured. After a moment of painful struggling, Spike lays back against the trunk of the tree. It’s growing out from the hill at a twisted angle. He’s reclined back in a mockery of comfort. He can’t see the top of the slope in the darkness. The light show from earlier has ended. Spike gasps and it comes out a wet gurgle. He’s punctured a lung for sure, possibly both. He can’t pull in enough air to speak. Either Jonathan and Tara won or they didn’t. If they did, they’ll come looking for him eventually. If they didn’t, it won’t matter because the Hellmouth will likely be opening in minutes. Spike drifts in and out of consciousness. He can feel the edges of the wound knitting and pulling apart again. His vampiric healing is trying to fix him despite the large fucking tree sticking out of his chest. It’s a little like agony, but compared to most things he’s endured in Sunnydale it doesn’t even rank in the top five.
What seems like hours later, but is probably only moments, he hears a voice calling from the top of the hill.
“Spike! Spike!”
He can’t see Tara yelling over the side of the hill, but her voice is like a song. So they’d won. Wonderful. He can’t reply. Instead, Spike digs around in his pocket and pulls out his lighter. He lights it and holds it up.
“I see you! We’re coming!”
After a few minutes of scrabbling, the two of them swim into his vision. Jonathan has a nasty scrap over one of his eyebrows. Tara looks tired and dirty. It takes both of them to pull Spike off the broken branch. They do it slowly which is much more painful, but there is less of a chance that the wood will splinter and pierce his heart. Once he’s off the tree. They carefully make their way down the last of the hill to the bottom supporting Spike between them.
“Go team,” he manages to rasp, but regrets it when it causes a coughing fit that brings up blood.
“I’ll go back up and get his car,” Jonathan says trying not to look at the blood. He runs off back toward the road. Tara kneels next to where Spike is lying on the ground and holds his hand.
Spike can’t ask what happened so he just squeezes her hand until she looks at him and then he pointedly looks at the top of the hill.
“The wind was bad, but I did a simple concentration breaking spell. He couldn’t keep it together and then Jonathan hit him with a sleep spell. Rayne had enough defenses up that it didn’t p-put him to sleep, but it was enough of distraction that I r-ran over and hit him with your p-pipe. I hope I didn’t hurt him too bad. We still have to get him to stop the spell,” she explains.
Spike reaches over and pats their joined hands in reassurance. The car pulls up nearby. Jonathan gets out and they help him into the backseat next to a limp Rayne. Jonathan drives like an old woman despite Tara’s urging.
“I don’t even have a license, okay,” Jonathan finally snaps. Spike wants to say something, but he still can’t draw in enough air to bother. He flips two fingers at the rearview mirror in a useless gesture since he doesn’t have a reflection and Jonathan refuses to take his eyes off the road.
Back at the school once again, Jonathan and Tara drag Rayne inside. Spike is at least strong enough to stagger along under his own power, but he leans on the wall for support. Spike pulls the crooked library door open and then motions to Tara. When she comes over to him, he digs around in her bag and pulls out a bottle of water. Spike dumps the whole bottle over Rayne’s head. The mage slowly starts to rouse, but Tara helps by slapping him. Jonathan stands behind the man clutching the pipe with a fearful face.
“Wha-,” Rayne’s words die on his lips when he sees the glow through the doors.
Spike leans back more nonchalantly than he feels and points at Rayne then at the Hellmouth.
Tara nods and takes over. She says, “Fix it, or y-you’re going to go up with it.”
Rayne looks at all of them. When his eyes come back to Spike, he sees the yellow eyes of a demon looking back.
“Fine,” he sighs, broken.
All in all, the spell isn’t that complicated to stop. A few mumbled words and the glow fades back into darkness. The four of them troop back out into the Sunnydale night. Spike has to take stops every so often so he doesn’t notice that Rayne and Jonathan are pulling ahead of him Tara. There’s a yelp as soon as the two of them clear the doors outside. Tara runs to help and Spike tries to speed up. Once he gets outside, he sees Jonathan on the ground with a scraped elbow to match the scratch over his eye. Tara is helping him to his feet and Rayne is nowhere to be found.
“He pushed me,” Jonathan says.
“It’s okay. I think he’s done for the night,” Tara says, pulling out a salve for Jonathan’s elbow.
“I think we all are,” Spike rasps.
“Where to now?” Jonathan says.
“Buffy’s,” Spike manages. The three of them head back to the car. Jonathan drops them off at Revello Drive a few minutes later.
“I’m going to go home. If I’m not there when mom wakes up, she’ll have a fit.”
“Wait,” Tara says running back to him. She scribbles something on a piece of paper. “It’s my dorm number. Maybe we can have lunch one day and talk about magic. I can bring Willow.”
Jonathan gives a small smile and replies, “That would be nice. I don’t really have anyone to talk to.”
Tara pats his arm and then climbs the steps again to help Spike. The sound of the car disappears down the street.
“He don’t know you like birds,” Spike whispers. The lungs are starting to knit up and he can get a few more breaths to talk.
“That’s why I said I’d bring Willow,” Tara says with a sly smile before knocking on the door.
To Spike’s surprise, it appears as though everyone is awake. Joyce gives a loud gasp when she sees Spike’s wound. She pulls him into the kitchen and has him sit down on a stool to be examined. Tara starts explaining things to Willow who has a concerned look. Spike tries to shuffle out of his coat with a lot of trouble. Two big hands take the collar and carefully pull it off his back. Spike turns his head to see Xander giving him a worried look. They both look at the large bloody hole in the middle of the coat’s back. Spike tries to sigh, but it causes him to start coughing again.
“He’s going to need blood,” Giles says stepping forward to cut Spike’s ruined T-shirt off.
After hearing Tara’s story, Buffy actually volunteers to get the blood when the butcher opens in an hour. Willow keeps interrupting Tara to hug her with tight worried embraces. In all the confusion, no one seems to notice Xander taking his hand. The women all move to the next room. Giles hovers over Spike cleaning the wound and pulling out the occasional splinters with tweezers. The Watcher carefully ignores the handholding and concentrates on his work instead.
“Hey, you okay?” Xander asks.
“Right as rain,” Spike says softly. “How was the movie?”
“We didn’t finish it. Long story. Remind me to tell you later.”
“This is going to be a while. You’re probably tired, Xander. You should get some sleep.”
“NO!” Xander and Giles bark in unison.
After the night he’s had, Spike doesn’t ask. The sun is starting to come up by the time Giles finishes cleaning and bandaging. Buffy leaves for the butchers and promises to bring back doughnuts for everyone. Tara and Willow tut over Spike’s coat while Joyce closes curtains and starts making breakfast.
Spike leans heavily on the kitchen island watching Joyce. Tara places a hand on his arm to get his attention.
“Don’t worry about your coat. I know a mending spell that will fix it,” she says softly.
“Thanks, pet. As usual you’re a life saver.”
“I think she did a lot of life saving tonight,” Xander says sitting down on Spike’s other side.
Tara blushes prettily. She walks off into the dining room with Willow and starts telling her about Jonathan. Spike feels tired. Every one of his hundred odd years is perching on his shoulders. Xander takes up a lot of space on his stool, and if he happens to be close enough for Spike to lean on his shoulder, he hopes the boy won’t mind.
Spike closes his eyes and listens to Xander and Joyce chatting softly. He has the feeling that Willow and Tara are snogging in the dining room. Giles has apparently turned on the stereo over in the living room because he can hear the gentle sounds of Eric Clapton and the rest of Cream doing their thing. All in all, despite the hole in his chest, it’s a good moment. The sound of feet clumping down the stairs doesn’t even really register until he hears a young gasp.
“Oh my God! What happened to Spike? Why didn’t you wake me up? Man! I miss everything!” the voice whines.
Spike’s eyes snap open and he jerks around so quickly that he knocks Xander off balance. The boy grabs the counter to keep from completely falling off his stool. There in the middle of the Summers’ kitchen stands a gawping Dawn, four months before she’s even supposed to exist.
“Bloody hell!”
---
So there we go! IIKT is in the can! Yes I know I left a bit of a cliff-hanger, but I fully intend to do smaller one shots in this universe, one of which will deal with the whole Dawn/Glory debacle. I hope you all enjoyed the story as much as I enjoyed writing it. My only regret is that it has taken so long to get it done. I thank everyone for their kind words and encouragement and mainly your patience.