Chapter Summary: Willow tried to use magic to get Tara to come back to her. The warded house took it as an attack against Tara, and she passed out from the combating magical forces. Valerie, posing as a Social Services agent, removed Dawn from the Summers' house once she found out that Willow was responsible for the attack on Tara. Dawn is staying with Valerie. Tara recovered, and now Spike left to track down Buffy's murdering rapist. He wanted everything ready for when Buffy awakens.

**WARNING: The beginning of this chapter especially deals with darker words and emotions as Spike tracks down Buffy's murdering rapist. It isn't way crazy, but it is not a happy part. Feel free to skim down until those scenes are done if you don't want to read that type of thing. Buffy's awakening is in this chapter though, and you won't want to miss that. There is a little bit of revenge torture again towards the end from Buffy. There is a villain character death, namely the rapist's death after Buffy's awakening.**

Spike sniffed the air to double check the trail of his prey. What he would do when he found the man, he wasn't sure. "Bloody military and their bloody chip." He muttered low. He hoped that if his intent were to restrain and not cause physical harm, the chip wouldn't fire.

Adam Masterson walked along Sunnydale's streets without a care in the world. He had a nice wad of cash in his pocket and a nest egg in his bank account from his latest job. The man may have been a geek, but Warren paid Adam well. Adam got a nice fuck out of the bargain too, but he hadn't shared that fact with the geek. The Slayer had a sweet little pussy. He'd keep that information to himself to bring up later in his mind for his self-pleasuring.

'Too bad I had to kill her,' Adam thought to himself. 'That is one hot one that I would have enjoyed "visiting" again.' He laughed with sinister glee at the thought of repeated visits to the crypt with Buffy at his mercy every time. It made him hard just thinking about it.

Spike turned up an alley. He followed the scent of the man he saw the morning he found Buffy. He recognized the scent again outside their house when Tara was unconscious. Once Tara was awake for a while, he had to leave to follow the trail. He wanted to make sure this guy never had a chance to hurt anyone else. He would make a perfect first meal for his Childe. That kind of revenge would help Buffy deal with the atrocity committed against her as well. He crinkled his nose that the scent was also now tainted with the man's arousal. 'Disgusting.'

So lost in his thoughts, Spike failed to see his prey step into the shadows of a doorway. The click of a gun hammer being cocked near his ear startled him. He froze. 'Pay attention, Spike. You let the bastard catch you,' He mentally berated himself. "You don't want to do that, mate."

"And why not?" Adam stepped out of the shadows with his weapon trained on Spike. "I don't take too kindly to being followed."

'Think Spike.' Spike knew a bullet wouldn't kill him, but it would hurt. It could also incapacitate him long enough to allow the guy to dust him if he realized he was a vampire. "You're a hard man to find. Word on the street says you can help me with a particular problem that's been pestering me."

The prospect of another job stilled Adam's initial concerns. He was on a roll. Why not add another notch to his reputation? "I'm listening, but it better be good."

Spike relaxed a little. The eyes of a hunter scanned the alley for anything to help him or a sign of any other dangers. "There's a woman who has been getting in my way time and time again. She's made my life miserable for years."

Adam leaned against the wall of one of the buildings. "Women are nothing but nuisances." He kept his gun pointed at Spike's chest while they talked.

"I'm glad you feel that way. She has some pretty powerful friends who would see me dead if I killed her directly. I've tried a few times without much luck." Spike pulled a cigarette from the pack in his duster. He lit the tip of it. "I heard you know just how to take care of the annoying bints."

Adam laughed. He ran a hand down his chest to his waist. He tucked his thumb into his waistband and tapped his covered hard cock. "I know exactly what the bitches are good for." He leered at Spike. "After that, they might as well be dead."

Spike forced himself to say every word that came from his mouth. He wanted to beat the man's head up against the wall and then slit his throat. What he wouldn't give to have the chip in his head removed to give this guy what he deserved. "Like a bit of rough and tumble, eh mate?"

"It's no fun if they don't struggle and scream." Adam clapped Spike on the shoulder and waved his gun in the air as he spoke.

"This one would struggle for sure." Spike knew by scent that this was the man, but he wanted to be sure. He'd need every damning word and reason to convince Buffy to eat the murderer as her first meal. "She doesn't like to give it up to blokes like us. She feels we're beneath her." He poured the story on thick to anger the man further.

"The bitch! I'd show her who is beneath whom." Adam snarled in disgust. His hatred of women in general fueled his anger. "Where can I find her, what does she look like, and how much ya offering?"

"Strawberry blonde bint about yeah high." Spike held his hand up to his shoulders. "Bossy little chit with green eyes and stupid hair who likes to hang out in cemeteries." He huffed in mock annoyance.

"You have no idea, mate." Spike rolled his eyes. That much was true. Buffy was under his skin, in his mind, and buried in his heart. "She is a bit of a handful. I'm willing to offer 20 grand because she also happens to be the Slayer."

"Why is that so funny?" Spike gritted his teeth. He had a feeling that he knew the answer to that, but he wanted to hear the wanker say it.

Adam laid a hand on Spike's shoulder. "I'll tell you what ... since I was already paid one hundred grand to kill the bitch, I'll let you keep your money. Normally I'd keep your money too, but I'm feeling charitable tonight."

"One hundred grand?" Spike gasped at the amount of money someone paid to have Buffy killed. "Who would have that kind of money lying around? No one in the demon world would want her dead bad enough to offer up that kind of dosh for the job."

"Who said it was a demon?" Adam sneered. "It doesn't matter anyways. The deed is already done, and I can tell you she doesn't scream too loudly. She only screamed in the beginning when I shoved my cock into her dry pussy." He laughed. "I couldn't drag a scream out of her after that no matter how hard I gave it to her. Bled real good for me though, and when I was done I shot her in the chest."

"You bastard!" Spike elbowed up into Adam's face. He tackled the goon to the ground with punches to the face."

Adam growled. "What is your problem?" He tried to aim his gun at Spike's head. He thought the guy wanted the girl dead. Why was he going postal on him now?

"You killed the woman I love." Spike pulled Adam up off the ground and shoved him against a nearby dumpster. He kicked him in the knees. "You aren't worthy to be in her presence, scum."

Adam was enraged that he was tricked into giving away his identity and last job. He fought back against Spike viciously. No one was taking him down to the slammer.

"Bloody hell." Spike fought the shocks of pain the chip emanated. He pressed on despite the pain. He choked on the blood that flowed from his nose and into his throat. 'I wish I could get this bloody chip ripped out of my head.' He was pushed back against the wall by a punch to his jaw from Adam. Both of their hands were wrapped around the gun trying to wrestle it away from each other.

Unseen by either man a strange looking female demon peeked out from another doorway. She smirked to herself. This was the perfect vengeance. Although Spike wasn't directly the injured party, his wish was a way for the injured party to find her revenge. D'Hoffryn would let her get by with it. As the men struggled for the gun, she spoke softly, "Wish granted."

The justice demon opened her hand to see the piece of computer technology that impaired the vampire Spike for the last couple years. She looked up in time to see Spike kick Adam solidly in the groin. 'Ouch,' She thought to herself. She smiled at the delight she saw in Spike's face when no pain registered in his brain.

Spike stared at the fairly immobilized man on the pavement. He felt no shock when he kicked the goon the last time. He howled, snatched the gun from the ground and practically danced around the human. "About damn time!" He called out into the air. He didn't care why the pain was gone. He'd try to figure it out later. Now, he had one human to incapacitate to get him back to his house. He chopped Adam at the back of his neck, effectively knocking him unconscious. When he was again pain free, he figured that it wasn't just a fluke. Somehow the chip was not working.

The demon smiled for two reasons at the sight before her. First, she had a feeling that the vengeance Spike and Buffy would enact on the human would be sweet and perfect. Even in her sleep the Slayer's desire for vengeance reached her ears. Secondly, she repaid a debt she felt she owed to the man Spike once was. She'd recognized him immediately when he appeared in the alley and the Slayer's visions. "Until we meet again, William." She vanished to another realm with a flash.

Spike's head snapped up at the sound of his human name. He saw the flash of light, but his supernatural vision failed to find anyone else in the alley. He shrugged his shoulders. 'Must be an after effect of the chip's pulses.' He hefted the unconscious man over his left shoulder. He hurried back home.

Shortly before dawn, Spike arrived back at the house with his hostage in tow. He punched in the necessary security codes for the door and unlocked each door with its different key. He was surprised to find Tara still sitting on the porch swing when he got there.

"Spike?" Tara awoke from her nap when the porch door banged open. She stood up. "What did you do? Who is that man?"

Spike kicked the front door the rest of the way open. He turned around to face Tara. "This is the bastard that raped Buffy. He was quite proud of the fact when he admitted it to me."

"What are you going to do with him?" Tara was in shock. The guy looked like he was pretty beat up. How had Spike managed that? Wasn't the chip supposed to keep him from hurting humans? "Is he a demon?"

"Sad to say luv, but he is human." Spike walked up the stairs. He dropped the guy onto the floor of his bedroom, and he rummaged through a bag in his closet.

"I don't know." Spike pulled a length of sturdy chain from the bag. "One moment I've got the headache from Hell, and the next hit the headache is gone." He tossed another length of chain into the middle of the room. "I don't care why it's not working, but I'm glad it's not."

"Oh my." Tara wasn't afraid of what Spike would do to her. She'd seen him protect the Scoobies for a long time against demons. She doubted he would just start hunting humans now. Besides if he really wanted them dead, he would have found a way for someone to do it for him. She was finding out that he certainly had the means at his disposal.

Hadn't Spike also said that Buffy would keep her soul? There was no way Buffy would accept him hunting humans. Tara knew that fact alone would keep Spike from going out on the prowl, even if he had no other reason.

"I won't hurt innocents, Glinda." Spike stood up and faced Tara. He smelled her nervous fear in the air. He rested his hands on her arms. "This one is no innocent. He was paid 100 grand to kill Buffy, and he added his little rape as his own bonus. He may have a soul, but he's as bad as Angelus ever was."

"I und ... understand, Spike." Tara stuttered because she was nervous. So much had happened in the last few days. It was all too much to take in at times. Her life had shifted its course, and her goals were changed.

"I am going to chain him up in my room until Buffy awakens." Spike located two metal pins that he knew would be located in the one wall. He pulled hard on each one to be sure they were still secure enough to hold a fighting human. Satisfied in their strength, he threaded a length of chain through each separate pin.

"But how will you get Buffy to eat a human? She won't do it." Tara knew that the Buffy she first met, and learned to know over the last couple years, held firm in the belief that all demons were bad and all humans were good. "She isn't going to wake up and go oh yummy treat."

"I know that, Glinda, but she needs a human meal to start with." Spike picked up Adam. He secured the two ends of one chain to Adam's wrists with cuffs. He repeated the motion with the second chain and cuffs around Adam's ankles. "I am hoping she recognizes the guy. If not, I am going to do my best to convince her that his worthless life should not be allowed to continue."

Spike stepped away from Adam. He walked closer to the door to face Tara again. "This isn't the first time he's done this, Tara. He was pleased with his line of work, and he would do it again if given the chance. He was willing to when I offered him a fake job."

Tara knew how serious Spike was about this decision. He never used her real name. He always called her by her pet name of Glinda. The fact that he used her real name told her that he was quite serious.

"I probably won't be able to convince her myself. Will you help me?" Spike's eyes begged her to understand his reasons. "She can live off animal blood, but she needs to be strong. My Sire's blood will help, but as much as this git deserves to die, she also needs this revenge to end things and bring her strength up."

Tara looked contemplative. Slowly she shook her head. "I can't encourage her to take a human life Spike; even if he does deserve it. But I won't say anything about it and I won't try to stop either of you. If the positions were reversed ..." she sighed deeply. "It's up to Buffy and I will support her in whatever that decision may be."

"You're probably right that he would do it again, and the next time there would be no hope for his victim to survive in any way." Tara thought about what would have happened if Spike hadn't found Buffy when he did. Would they have even found her body? Buffy would be completely dead, and they would have lost her again. After finding out Buffy was in heaven, she knew that Willow would never be able to convince the Scoobies to resurrect Buffy again.

"I really need to rest, Glinda." Spike sagged with relief that at least Tara agreed to support him. He sat down on the edge of the bed. "My head is still throbbing from the beating it took from the chip to start with."

"I'll bring up some heated blood for you. There were instructions in the package Valerie gave me to let me know how long to heat it for," Tara offered.

"Thanks, Glinda. I need to conserve my strength for tonight." Spike laid back on the pillows. "I don't know how much Buffy is going to fight me. I have to keep her from dusting me until I've at least gotten her fed."

"She won't dust you, Spike." Tara reassured Spike, "Not if she really thinks about it at all. You saved her out of love."

"I just hope she sees it the same way as you do, luv." Spike closed his eyes to block out the pain he feared of Buffy's rejection. "When you get back from classes this evening, I'd appreciate it if you could help me bathe Buffy and get her into some new clothes. I don't want her to wake up in the filth she died in."

Tara nodded in understanding. "That is very thoughtful of you Spike. I'm sure she'll appreciate it." She walked to the bedroom door and into the hallway. "I'll be back soon."

"Thank you." Spike waited for the blood and planned out many things to take care of his Childe. He let his senses reach out to Buffy's sleeping form. He felt the absence of the pain she was in previously. He calmed to know that right now she was merely resting peacefully because of the sun's rising while her body rebuilt its strength. 'Sleep well, beloved.'

Valerie fluffed up the pillows on the bed in her guest room. She was a bit nervous to have the teenager staying with her. If she hadn't seen the darkness in Willow when they touched, she probably wouldn't be doing this. She hadn't asked for any payment to take care of the young woman either. She knew she had to get her out of that house and into somewhere safer.

Dawn watched Valerie flitter about the room. "Honestly, I can take care of myself." She said nervously. "Not that I don't appreciate everything." She hurried on, "Spike felt I would be safe here. I just don't want you to go out of your way too much for me. I feel bad coming into your home like this."

"It's all right, Dawn." Valerie smiled at Dawn. "I've been alone for a long time now. Company would be good." It had been a couple years since her last relationship failed. Her last girlfriend found out the type of clients she worked for and dumped her in fear. She dated both men and women, but she tended to be happier with the women than the men. With her job, she really didn't have many chances to date. She wasn't too fond of the demons she met, and "normal" people didn't usually understand her dealings with the supernatural. That left her alone in her home.

"Spike must really trust you to let me stay here." Dawn voiced wavered with concern. "He's pretty particular about who he lets me be around. He's more protective than even Buffy."

Valerie chuckled a little bit. She caught the undertones of warning in Dawn's statement. "I've never given him a reason not to trust me." She knew how protective Spike was of those he cared for. He'd given her strict instructions when it came to Drusilla during his first visit to Sunnydale. "I've protected his interests over the years, and I've kept his secrets."

"I'll be glad when I can live with Spike and Buffy." Dawn realized how what she said might have sounded. "I don't mean that I don't want to stay with you, but my sister is only recently back from her last death. We haven't had a chance to spend too much time together lately. I love her."

"Don't worry about it, Dawn. I wasn't offended." Valerie stepped into the hallway. She pointed down the hall, "That door on the left is the bathroom. I usually take my shower first thing in the morning. I get up early, but I promised to take you directly to school before going to work until I hear from Spike." She wondered how much Spike's "family" had gone through lately. 'Last death?'

Dawn nodded. "Yeah, I promised him I wouldn't be skipping school this week. He doesn't want to take a chance of Willow or the Scoobies cornering me. If I'm not at school, I might run into them more. Plus I doubt a foster home would let me miss school."

"Sounds wise. There are still a few hours before sun up. We should both get some sleep." Valerie yawned.

"I have 4 hours until I need to get up for school. I don't know if I'll be able to sleep, but I'll try." Dawn went into her room. Before she shut the door she said, "Thank you, Valerie."

"You're welcome, Dawn." Valerie checked the wards and security system one more time before she headed to bed. A million thoughts raced through her mind. One thought stuck out over all the others, her memory of a beautiful blonde Wicca who shined like an angel in her mind's eye.

Tara managed to avoid Willow all day on campus. Their majors weren't the same. So, they shared very few classes together. Today she was safe from a direct confrontation in class if she could avoid Willow outside of class. The task was made easier by an internal "Willow detector" the mages created for her. Along with complicated memory protection spells and protection wards, the mages crafted a bracelet of various crystals to boost and secure the magic when she was away from the house.

Tara felt Willow's presence getting closer from the East. She estimated how long it would take her to cross the campus to the Taurus. Spike agreed to buy the car from Valerie for her.

Tara turned in the opposite direction she felt Willow coming from. She ducked into buildings and crowds as much as she could to block Willow's view on her way to the car. She was in no mood or frame of mind to deal with Willow right now.

Once Tara shut the door of the Taurus she relaxed a little bit. Willow wasn't anywhere in sight. Her internal detection system gave only a faint indication that Willow was even in the area.

Tara inhaled deeply, turned the key in the ignition and pulled out of the campus parking lot. "Time to go home." This was a huge night for all of them. Spike was positive Buffy would awaken sometime after the sun set.

Dawn walked into the Magic Box. She carefully looked through the window of the shop to see if Willow was there before she went in. Thankfully Willow was nowhere in sight. She twirled the crystalline bracelet around her wrist in nervousness.

"Hello, Anya. Is Giles around?" Dawn needed to speak to Giles alone. She had to tell him what Spike told her to say about Buffy. She also wanted to warn him about Willow. If Xander made an appearance she knew that she'd never get to tell Giles what she needed to.

"He's in the office going over the bookkeeping." Anya rolled her eyes. "He's been grumbling off and on all day." She pointed at a door to the right of the entrance into the training room. "I'm very meticulous about the inventory and money. I don't know why he's grumbling."

"Maybe I can find out." Dawn bounced in her mock teenage cheerfulness to Giles' office. She knocked on the door.

Giles jerked the door open, "Anya, I thought I told ..." He stopped when he realized that Dawn was at his door and not Anya. "Dawn? Please come in."

Dawn sidestepped past the Watcher. She noticed Giles was a lot more uptight since the night of Sweet's musical appearance. He hadn't smiled in days.

Giles closed the door behind Dawn. He removed his glasses and tossed them on the desktop. He rubbed his eyes. The figures had long since blurred on the page, but he had to keep himself occupied. Somehow he had to tell Buffy of his plans to return to England, but he couldn't get a hold of her. "Have you seen Buffy, Dawn?"

"Actually Buffy is one of the reasons why I'm here to see you." Dawn fidgeted in place. She continually shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "She needed to get away from all of us for a little bit." She nibbled on her lower lip. 'Doing good, no lies yet.'

"She knows we can handle it for a couple days." Dawn stopped fidgeting as much. Giles anger was making her angry. "I can get a hold of her if we have an emergency, but she needs the time away. Now that we all know she was torn out of Heaven, she doesn't need to fake everything being good."

"You get on the phone and get her back here right this instant." Giles' nerves were frayed beyond measure. "This is irresponsible and immature for her to leave without a word to anyone."

"She told me!" Dawn knew the real reason why Buffy wasn't available. She wanted to spit it out to Giles to defend her sister, but that would only get Spike and maybe Buffy staked. "I will NOT call her. She is being mature to leave and regroup. She knows what she's doing. She's not a child, Giles." She thought, 'Except in the vampiric sense.'

Giles punched his hand hard onto the desktop. He winced at the pain that shot up his arm. "She has responsibilities here." This was exactly why Giles felt he needed to return to England. Buffy seemed to be thinking only of herself. She left her adult responsibilities for him to handle. He needed to remove himself as Buffy's crutch.

Dawn's look hardened on the man that Buffy considered more of a father to her than her biological father. "What is wrong with you, Giles? Buffy never got to rest when she was stolen from Heaven. She's been carrying this around for so long by herself. She deserves a break."

"Oh poor Scoobies. Something might interfere with your fun. Boo hoo." Dawn tightened her hands into fists. She forced herself not to punch the man she always used to respect. "We're lucky she's even here at all. Do you think you would have continued to live after being ripped out of Heaven? I'll bet that almost every single one of us would have slit our own wrists to get back to the peace she'd known."

Giles flinched and cringed. Dawn was being crude, but he deserved the young girl's anger. He was directing his anger at the wrong person. He should be lecturing Buffy, not Dawn. "Now you're being a bit melodramatic, aren't you Dawn?" He tried to even his tone out to calm the girl down.

"Don't," Dawn pointed her finger an inch from Giles' nose, "Patronize me." She turned around, grabbed Giles' door and opened it. "Don't try to locate her, Giles. It won't work. She's protected. Even if she wasn't, you would not want to deal with the consequences if you get in her way." She slammed the door behind her before Giles could speak again.

Giles fell into his chair. He was in shock. He'd never seen Dawn so upset and forceful. She looked like she wanted to rip his head off. He buried his face in his hands. What was life going to throw at them next?

Dawn stomped out of the Magic Box. She was too angry to tell Giles about Willow. Maybe she would try again tomorrow when she cooled down some. She headed off in the direction of the meeting point she and Valerie prearranged for pick up. She almost hoped something got in her way on the trip there. She was in the mood to rumble.

Tara set her purse and backpack down on the living room table. "Spike?" She heard a rustling along one of the walls. Muffled voices were barely heard above the shuffling.

"I just wanted to make sure everything was all right." Tara walked up the stairs. "I heard some noises."

Spike and Tara entered his room. He slapped Adam across the face. "Scum here thought he was going to escape." Spike pulled the chains tight before he patted Adam's cheek. Adam had duct tape across his mouth to keep him silent. "He was screaming like a girl when he saw my demon. Weren't you, boy?" He vamped out.

Adam would have wet himself if he had anything left in his system to let loose. The golden eyes of the vampire before him haunted him every time he closed his eyes. He cursed the day he ever accepted the job from Warren. He knew he was going to die. He wished they'd just get it over with.

Spike growled. "If you make a mess for me to clean up again, you will regret it." He looked over at Tara's confused expression. "Don't ask. It wasn't pleasant."

Tara had a good idea what Spike meant. She put her hands up in the air in a surrender motion. "Not going there."

"He isn't going anywhere now." Spike pointed at Adam. "Have you eaten yet, or are you ready to help me get Buffy clean?"

"I grabbed a sandwich in the commons before my last class." Tara stepped closer to the bathroom to get away from Adam. The darkness of his aura seemed to seep into anyone that was near enough to him. It chilled her to the bone. "I assumed you would want to start as soon as I got back."

"Thanks, Glinda." Spike nodded. He appreciated everything Tara was able to do. He wouldn't have made it through the last couple days without her help. "Go ahead and turn on the tap for her bath water." He stepped into the bathroom. "Temperature won't matter as much, but try to make it a little hotter than normal. It will help warm her up. I'll go get Buffy." He disappeared into Buffy's room.

Tara looked over all the bath salts and oils in the bathroom. She lived with Buffy long enough to know what kinds the Slayer usually liked to soak in. She tapped some of the vanilla bath salts into the running water. She adjusted the temperature a bit warmer before she added 3 drops of rose scented bath oil.

A gasp was heard from Spike's room. Tara looked up to see Spike with Buffy in his arms. She was still covered in blood and filth from head to toe. Adam gawked at Buffy from the other room.

Tara shivered, but Spike growled. He kicked the door to his room shut. "I'm not giving him a show."

Tara understood Spike's anger. She helped him sit Buffy up on the edge of the tub. Together one of them would hold Buffy up while the other removed a piece of clothing. When Buffy was down to her bra and underwear Tara asked, "Do you want me to take care of the rest?"

"Vampires aren't as concerned with nakedness as humans are, pet." Spike snapped the clasp of Buffy's bra open. "It is different because I love her, but I am also her Sire. It is my job to take care of her in every way." He lifted Buffy up into his arms again.

Tara removed Buffy's underwear. Spike seemed to avoid looking at Buffy's naked form except to clean her. He didn't look at her in a sexual way while he held her. She tossed the panties into the pile with the other pieces of clothing. She'd burn them later in the backyard per Spike's request. He didn't want anything in the house, save the hostage, to remind Buffy of her rape.

Spike lowered Buffy carefully into the full bathtub. The steaming water slipped up the sides of the tub to cover Buffy up to her shoulders when she leaned against the back of the tub.

Tara and Spike worked in tandem to make sure that all physical evidence of Buffy's rape and death were gone. All fluids from the rape were wiped out and cleaned from her body. The only marks that still remained on her were the twin prick marks where Spike bit Buffy to turn her. After a few awkward starts in dealing with Buffy's dead weight, Spike and Tara managed to get Buffy's hair washed with her favorite shampoo.

"I'll get her dressed," Spike said to Tara while they dried Buffy off. They wrapped her hair up in a towel. "I can lay her down on the bed to do it. Will you take that comforter off the bed for now please? I'll have to get it washed."

"I'll go toss it in the washer now." Tara hugged Spike. "Let me know if you need anything, Spike. I'm here for you both."

"Thanks, Glinda." Spike sighed. "The sun is setting. Now, we just wait until she rises."

Tara nodded. She exited through the door from Buffy's bedroom into the hallway. She had no desire to go back through Spike's room. She wanted to avoid that man at all costs.

"Looks like it is just you and me again, pet." Spike chose a light sundress from Buffy's wardrobe collection. He wanted something functional for her, feminine, but not overly revealing. He wasn't sure what she would do when she woke up. He didn't want her to feel further violated if he dressed her in something she would rather he not see.

Spike unwound the towel from Buffy's hair. He stroked Buffy's brush through her wet hair lovingly. Occasionally he would rest his forehead against the back or side of her hair and inhale her scent. He choked back threatening tears at the motionless body of the woman he loved. "Soon, my love ... Soon."

Tara pushed a button on the intercom system to side entry security door. "Yes?" She'd just finished burning Buffy's clothes in a pit outside and returned inside.

"It's Valerie, Tara. I have a package for you guys." Valerie tapped her fingers on her hips. Dawn was safely tucked into bed. Valerie promised to wake Dawn when she got home if she had any news on Buffy. Dawn was worried about her sister.

"Okay." Tara double checked the visual screen before she pushed the button to release the door's lock. She waited for Valerie to reach the porch, and she opened the porch door for her. "We should make sure you have a key to get in. It would be easier."

"I have a key, but I didn't want to use it today." Valerie followed Tara into the main house. "I wasn't sure if Buffy would be awake yet. I didn't want to walk into the middle of something."

"Oh." Tara blushed. "That makes sense." There was something about Valerie that made Tara feel warm from head to toe.

Valerie handed over a leather satchel with several phones in it. "There is a cell phone in there for each of you and one to spare in case you bring anyone into the circle." She explained. "Each phone has all of the other cell numbers programmed into it, including mine and Dawn's."

Tara pulled one of the phones out of the satchel. She grinned at the rainbow colored cover with a nice landscape scene on the back. "This one is mine, isn't it?"

Valerie nodded, pleased that Tara found hers. "I thought it suited you. Buffy and Spike's are hopefully to their tastes as well."

Tara pulled out an all black phone. She turned it over. In red dripping font style letters it said, "It's all about the blood." She chuckled at the appropriateness of that one. She dug around to find Buffy's. It was blood red on the front with a nice pointy stake covering half of the back. In black letters it said "Power in my hands," above the stake.

"I think you have them pegged pretty well." Tara put the phones back in the satchel. She jumped in her chair when a loud growl echoed through the walls of the house. The answering growl of a more feminine nature had Tara moving for the stairs.

Valerie stopped Tara before she could get up one step. "Let them be. Trust me, you don't want to be up there right now. They'll be okay." She led Tara back over to the couch for both of them to sit down.

Spike felt his Childe moving closer to her awakening. He was never a patient man. In this he was even less patient. He needed to know that Buffy wasn't going to hate him. He had to know that she was safe. He sat down on the bed next to Buffy. He slit a line down the side of his throat. When the blood welled up sufficiently, he drew Buffy into his arms and placed her mouth over the cut.

Buffy floated in the daze of her dreams. She'd dreamt so many things over the last two days. It was overwhelming and confusing, but she found a peace in it all. She wanted to sleep and forget about the rest of the world. Her friends were never going to accept her life or choices now. She wanted to remain in this dreamland where their protests were more easily ignored.

At first nothing happened. Pale cold lips lay motionless against Spike's neck. Then he felt the slight movement of a tongue against the wound followed by a stronger suckling motion.

Buffy felt the draw of the outer world pulling harder on her. The alluring scent of something she wanted, desired, and craved filled her senses. Her dreams faded to black as the wonderful taste of security, love and Sire dribbled into her mouth. She drew more of the warm liquid into her mouth. She knew the one who fed her ... wait fed her? Her eyes snapped open.

Spike felt the moment Buffy came to full realization of what she was doing. Her body stiffened in his arms, and she stopped taking his blood. "Pet? Let me explain?"

Buffy buried her face in Spike's throat. Her fangs descended to bring more blood into her mouth. Talking was for later. Right now she needed blood, and his was sweet and powerful.

Spike was unsure whether to be horrified or cum in his pants at the feeling of Buffy feeding from him. The connection between them was different than when he was the Childe. This was stronger, more intense. He thought the Childe/Sire bond was wonderful, but the Sire/Childe bond was incredible.

Buffy continued to pull on the rich blood of her Sire. Her whole body was on fire. She felt the arousal from head to toe, and the connection she felt to Spike was amazing. She knew without a doubt that Spike was her Sire, and she was all right with that. There was a lot she needed to tell him.

Spike growled loud in warning to his Childe. She shouldn't have taken his blood without permission, but he could refuse Buffy nothing. She was, however, taking too much blood at once.

Buffy answered her Sire with a growl of her own. When Spike growled deeper with a grunt, she let go of his neck. She licked the wounds closed. Both of them panted needlessly. Buffy looked around the room. She didn't recognize it.

"Let me explain before you stake me." Spike inched a little bit away from Buffy on the bed. "You've kept your soul, so you can still go back to Haven."

Buffy listened to Spike babble. She hadn't given any thought to going back to Heaven right now. Her mother said that Spike loved her and would care for her. Buffy hadn't wanted to leave Dawn, Spike or her friends the way she would have if Spike hadn't turned her. She ran her hands down one of the long posts of her bed.

"I couldn't let you die, not like that. I'm a selfish bastard, but I love you so bloody much. I saved you for the Nibblet too." Spike feared Buffy was looking to break a piece of the post off to stake him. "I don't give a rot about the rest of them, except Glinda, but the Bit wouldn't have survived it if you died again either."

"Spike." Buffy pressed the fingertips of one hand against Spike's lips to silence him. "It's all right." She smiled warmly at her Sire. "I'm not going to stake you."

Spike relaxed a little. He stared at Buffy. His look conveyed his questioning why response.

"I did a lot of dreaming while I rested." Buffy removed her hand. She stayed sitting right in front of Spike. She wasn't going to move away from him. She needed him in more ways than one.

Spike thought about what he dreamed the first morning after he found Buffy. He tilted his head to the side while he listened to Buffy speak.

"Some of the dreams were pretty scary and not good. Some of them were very helpful and nice." Buffy grinned. There were a few things she dreamt about that she wouldn't mind finding out if they were true or not. "I wasn't meant to come back from Heaven."

"Buffy ..." Spike was stopped from commenting further by a look from Buffy that told him she had more to say.

"My mother basically told me that I had to die again to stop another evil from coming because of my resurrection." Buffy had several conversations with her mother while she slept. She'd learned a lot from her. "She told me that you were my salvation." She cupped Spike's cheek tenderly.

"I dreamt some of that too, luv." Spike smiled in joy, relief and love. "In the crypt, after I gave you my blood. She said she trusted me with you." He remembered the awe and pride he felt from Joyce saying she trusted him with her daughter. He always respected Joyce.

"She never liked Angel, but she ..." Buffy growled, vamped and burst through the adjoining bathroom doors and into Spike's bedroom. She snarled in anger at the sight before her. "SPIKE!!"

"Shit." Spike ran through the bathroom after Buffy. He wondered what took so long for her to smell the human. He figured that the bath's scents must have overpowered all the other scents until now. He stopped at the door from the bathroom to his bedroom.

Buffy pointed from Spike to the man chained to the wall. "What the Hell is he doing here?" Her anger and fury was palpable. "Do you know who this is?"

"He's dinner, pet." Spike halfheartedly chuckled in the hopes of lightening the mood.

A twinkle of deviant glee sparkled in Buffy's eyes. "Dinner?" The look on Spike's face told Buffy that he knew exactly who this was. He'd captured her rapist. "You do know I wanted to find him myself, don't you?"

Spike shrugged. "It's a Sire's duty to see to his Childe's needs. I felt he was something you needed to take care of when you woke up." He watched her every movement. He expected her to be appalled by his gift, but instead he noted a twitch of delight in her eyes. He sniffed the air, 'Yep, she still has a soul.'

Buffy walked over to the quivering man. "You and I are going to have a little bit of a chat." She drew her hand back and swiped in an x pattern from one shoulder down diagonally and then from the other shoulder down with her claws. The sharpness of her fingernail claws rivaled Drusilla's for their razor like edge while in game face.

Adam gurgled behind his duct tape covered mouth. If the chains hadn't held him up, he would have fallen to the ground in pain. Trails of blood welled and dribbled from the cuts.

Buffy's green-streaked silver eyes never left the gaze of the man she now considered her prey. Her rough little tongue curled out from her mouth. She rolled the tip over each slice of skin to lap up the blood there. "Mmmm ... interesting, Sire." She bit a flap of skin over Adam's heart with her fangs. She drew in two gulps of blood before she released him. "You really can taste the fear."

Spike gulped. He felt himself harden at the beautiful sight of his Childe on the hunt. Her actions were precise, and her moves were exquisite to behold from his viewpoint. "You'll regret knowing how good it tastes later when you have to drink the pig swill you and your bloody Scoobies have forced on me over the years."

"There's nothing to say that we can't drink bagged human blood." Buffy turned to look at Spike, but her claws shredded Adam's belt and pants to open his genitalia to her. She grasped Adam's balls firmly in one hand and squeezed. Her claws cut into the skin around his sack causing even more pain as she bled him. "Or even the blood of those as evil as this one."

Spike would have dropped over dead in shock if he weren't already dead. What was the Slayer saying? 'That had to be a helluva set of dreams if she's talking this way.' He watched Adam cringe and pale from the pain and blood loss.

"I know of at least one other person that deserves to die right now." Buffy twisted Adam's balls in her hand. With only a fraction of her combined Slayer/Vampire strength she crushed the tiny globes in the palm of her hand. "You won't be needing those anymore." She moved her grip to his cock. She scored it with her human fingernails, briefly devamping to complete the task before she revamped.

Spike covertly cupped his own balls and cock with the hands buried in his jeans pockets. It hurt just to watch Buffy exact her revenge. He wasn't going to stop her, but he hoped he never peeved her off enough for her to do that to him.

Buffy leaned in closer to Adam. "I hate to tell you, but even in my pitiful experience with men, you were a great disappointment." She huffed. "Pathetic really. Other than you shooting me, I probably would have just rolled over bored."

Adam struggled against his bonds. He was desperate to get away from this tiny slip of a woman who had him at her mercy.

"Doesn't feel so good to be on the other end of the situation, does it?" Buffy slapped him across the face. "No one will ever be your victim again." She lunged for Adam's throat. Her fangs unerringly located his jugular and bit down hard. She spared no pain for how deep she bit or how hard she pulled his blood into her mouth. She drained him in seconds.

Spike's eyes widened. 'That wasn't as hard to convince her as I thought it would be.' He was unsure about approaching Buffy. As her Sire he should be proud of what she'd done, but a part of him was scared for Buffy. He smelled her soul, but she was definitely not acting all that soulful right now. She was fueled completely by hate and revenge.

Buffy licked her lips clean with her tongue. "Strangely satisfying." She headed for Spike's bedroom door. She had another particular mission in mind before she was willing to let this hate within her go. It was the only way she could do what she knew was necessary to do.

"To find his boss." Buffy stomped out of Spike's room, into the hall and down the stairs. "I know who it is. I just have to find him."

"Pet, I don't think you're ready for that yet." Spike followed behind Buffy. He ducked in front of her at the bottom of the stairs. "There are some things you need to think about and do before you go out around others."

Buffy sighed. One of the recurring dreams she had covered exactly how she wanted Warren to suffer for hiring that guy to kill her. He was beyond merely annoying now with his robots. This was war.

Tara and Valerie stopped talking when they heard Buffy and Spike running down the stairs. All of the muffled screams and sounds coming from upstairs unnerved Tara. Valerie kept her company to keep her calm. Valerie assured her that some noises were expected when a vampire first awakened. Valerie was the only thing to keep Tara from running upstairs to check on her friends. "Buffy?" Tara stood up in the living room.

"Tara?" Buffy took two steps forward and looked into the room off to the right of the stairs. She looked at the woman standing next to her friend. No smell of danger was in the air, but she didn't recognize her at all. She faintly smelled Dawn and a trace of Spike. "Who's that?" She pointed to Valerie, but she looked at Spike. She wasn't sure if Spike's scent was because the woman was in same place as Spike or if it was something more. "That had better not be your girlfriend, Spike." She snarled possessively.

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