- T h r e e Y e a r s O n -

[Three Years On III]

...He knew how dangerous Spike was. After all, he'd trained him......

~~~

Drusilla's head shot up. She could sense someone. She turned to tell Spike but his expression told her that he was also aware. He gave her a sharp look which said : "Act normal." So they did. They cuddled and stayed close to their hostages.
Meanwhile, Buffy remained crouched behind a pile of rubbish, waiting for the right moment to attack the pair of vampires. She watched Spike whisper something in Drusilla's ear and light a cigarette. She saw they had also captured Giles. Then, after a count of ten, she walked towards them. All eyes became transfixed on her.
"Surprised?" she mocked them, pleased that she'd been able to sneak up on them without being detected. Spike took a drag of his cigarette.
"Not really," he replied cooly "I knew y' were there. We both did." Buffy's confidence faltered. But when she glanced at Dawn, she became so angry it was painful. Spike noticed this and smiled, beginning to advance.
"Oh, don't worry. There's, almost, not a scratch on her." he teased. The Slayer snapped. She leapt forward and drove a kick into Spike's chest. He fell back a bit, but came straight back with a series of hard punches. After that, the fight could've gone either way, with the pair exchanging thundering blows. Suddenly, Buffy got bored with Spike blocking her latest assault and delivered a crippling low-blow. The vampire fell to the floor and curled up, swearing between horrified gasps. Dru was non too pleased with her move and ran at the Slayer. But she made short work of knocking the vampire out. By the time she'd done that, Spike had gotten gingerly back to his feet.
"Jesus, Slayer!" he croaked "That was un-called for!" She shrugged.
"I don't really care." she spat "As far as I'm concerned it's anything goes." She watched as a smile formed on his pale lips.
"Right," he cleared his throat "I'm glad. C'mon out, lads!" A hoard of assorted demons and vampires appeared around Buffy. Angel burst in and surveyed his apponents.
"Y' can kill the poof, but leave the Slayer for me!" he yelled and the room came alive.

~~~

Somewhere in the distance, Dru could hear someone calling her name. But she just couldn't open her eyes. Spike thumped a near-by wall in annoyance.
"C'mon, pet!" he urged her, but she was out for the count. He lifted her up and carried her outside where he had a porche waiting. If he wanted a get-away car, he wanted one with style. He laid her out in the back seat and sighed. He so wanted to love her. He couldn't wait for Dru to reveal her way to 'cure' him. After one last glance at his Sire, he ambled back inside. Spike blinked. The Slayer was trying to work her way through Spike's strong knots on Dawn and Angel was finishing off one last vampire.
"Bloody Hell." he muttered, before remembering the porche. If he could just stay very, very quiet, he could simply creep outside...
"You little parasite." Angel growled and lifted Spike clear off the ground by the scruff of his neck. He looked accross at Buffy, who was busy with Dawn and Giles and decided to make his move. As a last resort, Spike used the same move the Slayer had just minutes ago. He kicked Angel below the belt with a dangling leg. Angel immediately dropped him and Spike scarpered. He could kill Buffy another time. He had just reached the back door, when suddenly someone took his legs from under him with a swift kick. His head bounced off the hard cement floor and shockwaves were sent rippling through his body. He remained on his back, dazed, and saw the face of the Slayer come into focus.
"Bloody Hell." Spike muttered, as he tried to shake it off. He watched as Buffy raised a sharpened stake high above her head and prepared to bring it down into his chest.
"C'mon, Slayer, y' don't wanna kill me!" he assured her "Coz if y' do then you'll have no-one worth fightin' left, will y'?" The Slayer curled her upper lip in disgust. She hated Spike for what he'd done. Fooled them all, kidnapped her friends, her family...
"Spike," she grabbed a fistful of his white-blond hair roughly "Shut up." Then, as everyone watched, she began to bring the stake plummeting down.

~~~

It all happened in a flash. One minute, Buffy was on top of Spike, about to stake him, and the next, Drusilla had her in a headlock which was threatening to break her neck. Giles and Dawn made small efforts to help, but they weren't of much use to anybody. In the centre of the abandoned club, Angel and Spike circled each other, growling fiercely.
"You're kiddin' yourself if y' think y' can beat me." Spike spat. Angel didn't reply. The two were waiting for the other to make a move. Eventually, Spike got bored. He lunged at Angel and hit him hard in the gut with a vicious punch. Angel replied with a backhand, and after that they were back to square one.
Waiting for the other to move.
Meanwhile, Buffy was amazingly finding Drusilla quite tough to fight. At every moment, the vampire was trying to hypnotise her. The Slayer didn't get it. A few minutes ago, she'd knocked her out easily. As if to prove her wrong, Dru leaped forward and dug her long, sharp nails into Buffy's neck and prepared to bite. But Buffy wasn't about to give her that luxury. She twisted around, holding onto Dru's arm and threw the insane vampire into the stone wall where her sister had, just a few minutes ago, been chained.
With that done, the Slayer turned her attention to Spike and Angel, who were just breaking away after another bout of fighting. Both were bloodied and battered from the small scrap.
"Hey!" Buffy yelled, advancing quickly. Neither turned to look at her.
"Hey!" she repeated, louder this time, as she joined Angel by his side.
"Oh that's right," Spike sneered "Get help from your little girlfriend, hide behind her like the poofter you are." Angel flared.
"Buffy," he said dangerously "Leave."
"Are you crazy?! Leave you alone to be killed?!" she exclaimed angrily.
"She doesn't have faith in you!" Spike gasped in mock horror.
Angel shot her a look which meant: "No arguments. Leave or I'll make you leave." Buffy was shocked. She knew he was stubborn, but this was just stupid. Who knew what nasties Spike had hidden away in the old club? Finally, she took Dawn's hand and led her away.
"Dawn? Leavin' so soon? But we were just startin' to have fun!" Spike called after the retreating three. Giles turned, ready to fight him, but the Slayer held him back.
This was Angel's battle.

~~~

Through fuzzy eyes, Drusilla watched her Sire and her Childe fight ahead of her. She had to do something. They were both going to die if they kept this up for much longer. Her mind gained a rare focus and she thought up a simple, but effective plan.
"I'll be back for you." she whispered to Spike, and crept silently outside.
The two vampires continued to exchange blows, each more powerful than the last. Spike felt himself growing tired, but he would never admit that to Angel. Ever. He would keep fighting him until he killed him, or he, himself, dropped dead to the floor. But, unbeknown to Spike, Angel too was tiring.
"You're nothin' more than a freak." Spike accused "A mistake. An accident."
"Oh yeah?" Angel decided to use his secret weapon "You think Drusilla wanted to Sire you?" Spike stopped. "She didn't. She was just lonely and you happened to walk by."
The fight froze. Spike couldn't believe it. But thinking about it now, it made sense. He had been a loser as a human.
Then it hit him. The night he had been turned. He had ran out into the street, distraught that Cecily had humiliated him. He'd smacked into some people. No. Not just 'some people'.
Angel, Darla and Drusilla.
His beloved Drusilla, who now drove through a crumbling wooden wall into the club, intent on saving him.
"Dru?" Spike sniffed quietly, turning to his Sire with glassy eyes. He couldn't love her, but he had, and this was tearing him apart. Angel just watched, regretting the information he had just disclosed. Sure, he hated Spike, but in some twisted way, he was family. In an instant, Drusilla realised what had happened. Whether that was through psychic means or simply instinct, no-one bothered to guess.
"Spike," she held her arms out for him, when he didn't come, she turned her fury to Angel "What lies have you been telling him?" she demanded.
"No lies, Dru. I told him the truth." Angel replied evenly.
"I was an accident?" Spike asked, and Angel was struck by how much he sounded like a little child confronting his parents.
"No, my sweet," Drusilla assured him "If I hadn't wanted you, I'd have carried on my way."
Spike gulped, looking from one vampire to the other. Who should he believe?
Who did he *want* to believe?
Well, when it came down to it, he knew the truth. Drusilla was lonely, he was there, end of story. But he couldn't just dump her. Not when she knew the cure which would allow him to love again...

~~~

Spike dropped the metal bar he'd just used to knock Angel unconscious with and walked towards Drusilla.
"He nearly had me believin' you just ran into me by accident, there." he lied, noting away her reaction. She smiled nervously and gave him a hug.
"I've got a secret to share." Dru announced in a chilling whisper "The cure's in this room." Spike's eyes roamed over the delapidated club. Drusilla watched him and laughed softly.
"Do you want a clue?" she teased him. Spike bit his lip to stop himself going off at her but nodded.
"You just knocked him out." Dru pointed to Angel's crumpled body.
Spike grinned. It was right under his nose. Plus, this meant that he'd be able to dump Dru for what she did alot faster. He sauntered over to Angel and looked back to his Sire.
"Right then, what do I have to do?" he asked.
"Drink an iccle bit of his blood and..." Dru paused before drawing the rest of the sentence out "Then. You're. Free. To. Love. Me!" she sang.
"Yeah, whatever." Spike muttered to himself and looked at Angel in disgust. Well, this promised to be sickening. Whoever thought up these dumbarse 'cures' needed a good smacking.
"Just another human." He told himself as he propped Angel up and prepared to bite. "Not a vampire. Just a human." Then, he took a deep breath and bit into his neck.
The taste was horrific. Spike was certain he was going to throw up. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore, he pushed Angel away and collapsed on the floor. He didn't care if it hadn't worked. He wasn't doing that ever again.
"Did it work?" Spike asked Drusilla, figuring that if she could tell when he couldn't love, that she could tell when he could.
"What did it taste like?" Dru queried
"Did the bloody cure work or not, Dru?" Spike yelled, standing up and wiping his mouth of Angel's blood "Answer the bloody question!"
Drusilla placed a hand on his chest, and the expression she gave him meant a definate "Yes" Spike allowed himself a smile before getting down to buisness.
"Dru, I'm leavin' y'." He told her "Thanx, and all that for the cure, but I know Angel was tellin' the truth. I might meet up with y' again in a year or so. Try not to get staked and g'bye." he finished, satisfied with his little speech and clamboured into the porche which Dru had earlier rammed through a wall. Drusilla's jaw dropped open.
"But - " she began, but Spike didn't want to draw this out.
"See y' soon." He flashed her a smile and sped off into the night. Dru suddenly began to cry madly. She ran out after him and fell to the floor in despair. She couldn't believe he was doing this to her! What the Hell was he planning to do without her?!

~~~

Spike sang along to the pounding music in his get-away car, tapping the dash board in time to the beat. He thought about what to do next. Should he drive around America for a bit? Go back and kill the Slayer? Whatever. He had time. And, now that Drusilla was out of the picture, he had freedom. He'd be back to kill Buffy in his own time. She wouldn't get away that easily. He just wanted to do something different for a while. Something different that didn't include hooded Sorcerors intent on ruining any chance of his at happiness.
Well, he had all he wanted now. He was Spike again. Completely.

~~~

Tara and Willow had eventually come round in a big circle to Anya and Xander and each party had reported their individual failure. It was only after a phone-call later that they all knew that the whole gang was still that - whole. Buffy assured all of them that they had done a good job, but Willow didn't feel that she had. In all the madness, she'd forgotten that she could've used magick to locate Spike. But she wouldn't tell anyone that. Not that she didn't think they'd forgive her, but she couldn't handle the fact that they'd *have* to forgive her for anything. Still, Dawn and Giles were safe and sound, so everything had turned out alright.

~~~

Dawn and Buffy sat in silence in the living room of their home. Giles had long since left, as had Angel, who hadn't told them the disturbing nature of Spike's cure, just that it had been done.
"You think he'll be back?" Dawn asked finally, breaking the silence.
The Slayer was unsure if her younger sister meant Spike or Angel, but she knew that in both cases, the answer was:
"Yes."