Chapter 47: New Target
Chapter Notes: Wherein Spike gets an unwanted visitor, and Willow and Mairead prove their mettle.
“They say that if you want something done right, you should do it yourself.”
Spike knew that voice; it had been burned into his memory after hours of torture. “Took you long enough to look me up,” he replied insolently. Turning slowly to face her, he silently willed Buffy to stay back in his bedroom. He had the ring on, so he could give her a run for her money, but Glory could not find out that she was the Slayer.
“Here’s the thing,” Glory said, taking a step closer to him. “I keep hearing these strange rumors. My minions tell me that you’re a good vampire, and that you’re dating the Slayer.”
He swallowed. They probably should have figured on Glory picking up on that eventually. Spike shrugged. “Truth is stranger than fiction, I guess.”
“And this knight I ran into the other day seemed to think that the Slayer had my Key.” Glory took another couple of steps across his living room, her hips swaying. Spike backed up until he hit the kitchen counter, feeling behind him for the knife he knew was there.
“Key?” Spike asked, keeping his tone light. “Dunno anything about a key, unless you mean to my place. ‘Course, she’s got one to her mum’s, an’ one—”
“Shut up!” the Hellgod shouted, her eyes blazing. She seemed to calm herself down with a visible effort. “Okay, let’s get real here. I could snap you like a twig, and I will, unless you tell me where my Key is.”
“Sod off,” he replied, his hand closing over the knife hilt. It wasn’t well balanced enough to throw with any accuracy, but the blade glanced off her shoulder, startling her. A moment’s distraction was all Spike really wanted, and he darted past her.
He was nearly to the front door, hoping to lead her outside, which would give Buffy a chance to slip out quietly, when he found her in front of him. “That wasn’t very nice,” Glory informed him, just before she slammed her open palm into his chest.
Even with the ring on, the blow hurt, and he went flying through the air. Hitting the wall with a sickening crunch, Spike tried to gather his wits about him again. There was no other way out, and fighting in close quarters like this was bound to end badly.
“Hey, bitch. Hands off my fiancé.” Buffy came out of the bedroom, ready to strike.
Spike sighed and launched himself at Glory when she turned her attention from him to the Slayer. Buffy got in a good kick before Glory’s punch sent her flying in turn, and Spike drove his head into her midsection, sending them both crashing through his door.
He could feel her hands on his head once they’d tumbled to a stop, and Spike knew that she was trying to twist his head off.
He didn’t want to find out if the ring would prevent him from dusting if he was decapitated.
Glory cried out above him, and Spike scrambled to his feet, helped by one of Buffy’s strong hands. “Go!” She pushed him ahead of her, and he ran, but only because he’d taken a firm grip on her hand.
“What did you do?”
“Hit her with the fire extinguisher,” she gasped out.
They burst out into the bright afternoon sunshine. Spike risked a glance over his shoulder and cursed.
Buffy met his eyes. “Do you think we can hold her off for a few minutes?”
“Yeah, why?”
“Willow should be on her way.”
Spike vaguely remembered what the witch had done the last time they’d needed to get rid of the Hellgod for a while. “Let’s do it, then.”
~~~~~
“Crap, crap, crap,” Willow muttered as she dashed out of the house, thanking the goddess that she hadn’t been on campus when Buffy had called. Granted, it was winter break, but there were a few things she could have been doing to get a jump start on the semester.
“Willow?” Mairead called, coming up the walk. “What’s wrong?”
“Buffy and Spike are facing off with Glory,” she said. “I need to get over there now.”
Mairead grabbed her wrist. “Where’s Oz?”
“Practice,” Willow replied. “He’s got the van.”
“Where are they?” Mairead asked.
“Spike’s place, or thereabouts,” Willow replied. The words were hardly out of her mouth when the world seemed to spin around her. “What—”
“I can explain later.” The other witch had dropped to her knees on the ground, but Willow knew that she couldn’t spare a moment. Glory had just tossed Buffy into the building with one hand, and was grasping Spike’s left hand with the other.
Willow knew that Glory was going for the ring, and that Spike would be a goner if she managed to strip it from his finger. With a brief prayer to any deity who might be listening, Willow focused every ounce of power she had on getting rid of Glory.
A moment later, she had joined Mairead on the ground, but the Hellgod was nowhere to be seen.
“Willow?”
She had blacked out for a moment, because Buffy was kneeling next to her, calling her name urgently. “Hey.”
“Are you okay?”
“That took a lot out of me,” she admitted.
“Where did you send her?” Mairead asked.
Willow looked over to see the other woman being supported by Spike; the vampire was looking none the worse for wear, probably because he was still wearing the ring. “I have no idea. I just wanted her as far away as possible.”
Buffy nodded, looking relieved. “You did that last time, too, and you bought us quite a bit of time. It should take her a while to recover.”
“Long enough to get through Christmas, anyway,” Spike said. He looked at the two of them. “Your timing was impeccable, ladies.”
“It was Mairead,” Willow readily admitted. “I think she teleported both of us.”
When the three of them looked at her, the dark haired witch shrugged. “It means that I won’t be much good for some time to come, I’m afraid, but I thought speed might be of the essence.”
“It was,” Buffy agreed. “Thanks to both of you, we’re in one piece.” She looked at Spike ruefully. “I don’t think the same can be said for your apartment, though.”
He appeared resigned. “Could have been worse, that’s for sure. Think I can at least offer you both a drink before I give you a ride home.”
“Tea would be nice.” Mairead’s legs were visibly shaky as Spike helped her up. Willow could feel a similar weakness in her own limbs as Buffy did the same for her.
“Very nice,” she agreed fervently.
Willow could feel her eyebrows go up as they stepped over the splintered remains of Spike’s front door. “I’ll call Xander,” Buffy said. “I’m sure he’ll help fix that.”
“That would be good,” he replied. “I’d rather not have to explain that to my landlord.”
The destruction inside suggested that Spike hadn’t taken the fight outside soon enough, and Willow found herself growing dismayed. If it took a Slayer, a nearly invincible vampire, and two powerful witches just to make her back off, she had no idea how they were supposed to actually stop her.
~~~~~
Doors were relatively easy to install, and Xander had been rather pleased to be called on to help out. Although he had been patrolling more lately, he knew that there were plenty of others who would likely be of more help. Give him a household repair to make, however, and Xander knew he could do something that none of the rest of them could.
“Hold that there,” Xander instructed. As Spike held the door in place, he put the pins through the hinges, giving each a little tap with his hammer to drive them home. “That should do it.”
“I appreciate it, Harris,” Spike said, closing the door firmly. It swung into place easily, and Xander was pretty sure that it fit better than the old one.
“Not a problem,” he responded, beginning to put his tools away. “It’s nice to feel useful for a change.”
Spike gave him a sharp look. “You do more than you think. Are you an’ Anya going to be at Joyce’s for Christmas dinner?”
“Better than spending the time with my family,” Xander replied. “And I don’t even have to camp out Christmas Eve.”
“It’s the little things,” Spike agreed.
Xander straightened from his tool chest. “What are you getting Buffy for Christmas?”
“I’m not telling.”
“Oh, come on, Spike,” Xander replied, picking up the bottle of beer Spike had provided.
The vampire shook his head. “Sorry, but no. Buffy will get it out of you. She’s been buggin’ me ever since she found out I had my shopping done.”
Xander sighed. “I just thought I might get an idea for Anya.”
“Somethin’ sparkly,” Spike suggested succinctly. “Women like that.”
Xander frowned. “What do you mean?”
He shrugged. “Depends. Earrings, bracelets, necklaces, basically anythin’ with gold and jewels. Plus, your girl will probably view it as a good investment.”
“Isn’t that a little…I don’t know, cliché?”
“Things become cliché for a reason, Harris,” Spike replied. “’Course, you could always give her cash. She’d probably like that.”
“She probably would,” Xander agreed ruefully. “You’re right, though. She probably would like jewelry.”
“Diamonds,” Spike advised wisely. “They are a girl’s best friend.”
Xander raised an eyebrow. “I thought that was me.”
Spike shook his head. “That’s what we’d like to think.”
~~~~~
“Do you have any idea?”
“No, I don’t.” Dawn stared at the television, feeling bored and resentful. It really wasn’t fair that she’d been grounded over Christmas break.
“Dawn—”
“I don’t know!” Dawn burst out. “He hasn’t told me.”
Buffy pouted. “Damn.”
“What’s the big deal?”
“The big deal is that I have no idea what to get him, and if I knew what he got me, I’d know how good his gift has to be.”
Dawn stared at her sister. “Just get him a really good gift.”
“But what?” Buffy said, her voice nearly a wail.
“I don’t know,” Dawn replied. “He’s not my boyfriend.”
“Fiancé,” Buffy corrected automatically.
Joyce poked her head into the living room. “Get pictures,” she advised.
“What?” Buffy frowned. “What kind of pictures?”
“Engagement pictures,” Joyce replied. “He doesn’t have a lot of photos of the two of you together, I’m sure, and he’d probably appreciate it.”
Buffy smiled. “Good idea, Mom, although it won’t be a surprise.”
“It could be,” Dawn pointed out. “Just tell him that you’re taking him out, then go to the sitting. Spike won’t care.”
Buffy looked thoughtful. “Maybe.”
“How is he?” Joyce asked. “You were pretty beat up the other day.”
The Slayer winced, and Dawn knew that her mom was not supposed to have noticed that. “He’s good. Spike was wearing the ring, so he wasn’t hurt.”
“What are you going to do about her?” Dawn asked. She knew that Glory didn’t know that she was the Key, but it didn’t make her feel very good, knowing that someone was out there, ready to kill her if given half a chance.
Buffy shook her head. “I don’t know, Dawnie. I wish I did.”
“Well, I think you should kill her,” Dawn stated.
Buffy’s smile was strained. “When I figure out how to do that, you’ll be the first to know.”
“You don’t have to be mean about it,” Dawn muttered.
“I’m not being mean; I’m being honest.” Buffy rose from the couch. “I’m going to call Spike. He said he was coming over this afternoon.”
Joyce fixed Dawn with a look as soon as Buffy had left the room. “You could try to be a little nicer, you know.”
“Why?” Dawn asked. “She’s not being any nicer to me.”
“Your sister is trying to keep you safe,” Joyce pointed out. “I think that’s pretty nice.”
Dawn sighed as her mom left the room, and went back to staring at the television screen, and back to thinking about how unfair her life really was.
~~~~~
Tara understood why Mairead was going back to England for Christmas, and she certainly didn’t blame her girlfriend for wanting to be with her family. She might have done the same, except that her family was here, in Sunnydale. And, while she was disappointed that they couldn’t spend the holidays together, Tara didn’t begrudge Mairead the opportunity to go home.
Christmas at the Summers’ was even better this year than it had been the last. She knew everyone now, and was more comfortable with them than she had been with her own family. The tree was beautifully decorated, as was the rest of the house, and Joyce appeared to be focused on making certain that everyone was happy.
Everybody had dressed up, and everything seemed to sparkle. It was the sort of perfect holiday that Tara had always wanted as a child and had never had. In her house, there had always been tension, mixed with the stiff disapproval of her father.
He had never liked her mother’s gifts, but she recognized his distaste for the fear it had been then now.
“Let me help you with that,” Giles said, taking the turkey platter out of Joyce’s hands. The others were all taking various dishes and putting them on the table. Tara grabbed one of the vegetable dishes and did the same.
“Are we going to open presents tonight?” Dawn asked as soon as they sat down.
Joyce looked at her sternly. “Now is not the time, Dawn.”
“You said we could talk about it later,” the girl protested.
“We always open presents Christmas morning, Dawnie,” Buffy said, a warning in her voice.
Dawn’s chin jutted out stubbornly. “No, we don’t. You just remember that because the monks made you remember it that way.”
Tara knew exactly what the girl was doing. If she pushed hard enough, Dawn would find out exactly what her mom and sister were willing to let her get away with. It was a strange way to get reassurance on where the three of them stood in relation to one another, but teenagers couldn’t be accused of being logical.
Buffy visibly took a deep breath. “No, actually, I remember that because that’s how it always was, and that’s how we did it after—” She stopped.
Dawn frowned, sensing a touchy subject. “After what?”
“Don’t worry about it, Nibblet,” Spike said.
“But—”
“That’s enough, Dawn,” Joyce said firmly. “I said we’d talk about it after dinner, and we will.”
“Has anyone else seen the new store on Main Street?” Xander asked into the awkward silence that followed. “It looks like they’ve got some interesting things for sale.”
“I haven’t,” Giles replied. “Where is it in relation to the Magic Box?”
“About two blocks down,” he replied. “It looks like antiques and oddities.”
“I’ll have to stop in sometime,” Giles said.
With that, the subject seemed to have been successfully changed, and the conversation flowed. Tara noted that Dawn still didn’t look happy, but everyone had apparently decided to ignore her, which was probably a good idea. After a little while, Dawn seemed to get over her bad mood and joined right in.
Once dinner had been finished, they all helped clear the table, and everyone seemed to disappear into the living room with mugs of cider, hot chocolate, or eggnog, whatever their preference. Tara had never been able to abide a mess, so she began cleaning up.
“You don’t have to do that,” Buffy said, entering the kitchen.
Tara smiled. “It’s okay. I really don’t mind.”
“Are you doing okay?” she asked, sounding worried. “I know Mairead isn’t here, and the rest of us are coupley, so—”
Tara rested a hand on Buffy’s shoulder. “It’s okay. We talked about it before she left; it was right for her to go, just like it was right for me to stay.”
She smiled. “I’m glad you did. It wouldn’t have been the same without you.”
She tightened her grip on the other woman. “It will be okay, Buffy. You and Spike will stop Glory.”
Hope kindled in Buffy’s eyes. “You know that for sure? Did you see something?”
Tara hadn’t, and normally she wouldn’t even think about lying, but she sensed that Buffy needed the reassurance. She needed to believe that everything would turn out for the best—more than anything else, she needed to not lose hope.
And so Tara lied. “Yeah. I promise, Buffy. Everything is going to be fine.”
She often wondered later if Buffy really had believed her, since she didn’t ask for details. Maybe she had just needed someone to say those words, more than she’d needed anything else.
~~~~~
“Good Christmas?”
“The best, luv.”
Spike could feel Buffy’s hair spread across his chest, and her hand in his. She was massaging his palm and fingers, which was more erotic than he would have thought it might be.
Then again, this was them—nearly everything they did with and to one another could be erotic under the right circumstances.
“Did you like how the pictures turned out?”
“Yeah. They were great.” Spike knew that she’d wanted to surprise him, but he’d been thrilled with the idea. Even better, it had been clear from the pictures—to him and to everyone who saw them—how Buffy felt about him. It was all in her eyes.
She was still wearing the necklace he’d bought for her, refusing to take it off. Perhaps it was silly, but seeing his ring on her finger, his necklace around her neck, knowing that she wore them as a symbol of their love—
It wasn’t so very different from the pictures they’d taken with one another.
“I hope Dawn liked her presents,” Buffy said.
They’d eventually opened presents, but it had been after midnight, so it was technically Christmas. Spike knew that Joyce had kept a few gifts back for the next day, but most had been opened that evening.
Spike had to admit that he’d been a little surprised when Giles took Dawn’s side with the observation that his family had always opened gifts on Christmas Eve. He had a feeling that Rupert didn’t share much of his childhood, even with Joyce, because she had immediately agreed that they could open a few presents that night.
“Tara said that we’re going to make it,” Buffy said, out of the blue.
“Did she?” Spike asked. “She saw somethin’?”
Buffy was quiet for a moment. “I don’t know. She didn’t say.”
“And you didn’t ask?”
“She said we were going to make it,” Buffy said, sounding just as stubborn as Dawn had earlier that night.
Spike just tugged her closer. “Then I guess we will.”