All About Spike - Believe by Rocky

Believe
By Rocky

Part 2

The pavement was shattering under my feet—burning, and quaking. But the rumble of the ground could not compare to the sky. The clouds battled, smothering each other and striking bright red lightning across the violent heavens.

A hoard of Bringer-bodies piled around me, their black cloaks torn and stained as they slipped into the cracks in the ground. A high scream sounded in the distance, and I closed my eyes as all fell silent.

My body was shaking. I sat up on the sofa. Xander’s wide eyes relaxed. I caught my breath, and settled back down. “I’m okay.”

“God, Buff,” he sat down next to me. “When I heard you screaming like that, I thought,” he looked away, “I thought maybe he was…”

Oh, Spike. Of course you would think that, Xander. The sun crept through the open door, warming the cold sweat on my face. If Xander heard me scream, I bet Spike…

He was pulling himself up the stairs. His feet dragged behind him, and his head fell after I stepped through the basement door. I pulled him up, and he groaned once his feet were under him, leaning heavy against me. He braced himself against the banister as I walked him down the three steps. Once at the bottom, his arms fell limp to his sides and strained to hold him up as nearly all strength left him.

“I thought something…I had to try…”

I didn’t answer, taking it slow across the floor before setting him back on the bed. He had just started to raise his arms as I backed away from him. They dropped into his lap.

“The ankle’s out.” He stared at it. “I figured it’d be alright, but…”

“You made it worse.” I knelt to check on it.

“Couldn’t stand it…you carryin‘ on like that—screamin‘ like that.” He fell back onto the bed. “I’d never heard you…like that. What happened?”

“Me…resting.” He shook when I touched his ankle. “And you wanted me to wrap chains around this?”

He winced as I lifted it onto the blanket. “I wanted…” he closed his eyes, then slightly opened them, “Don’t fret yourself about what I want, love. Got bigger things to fret ’bout.”

I was at the sink now, washing him off me, scrubbing soap up my arms. The clearing of my skin felt smooth and relaxing...And all the slay-girls are out of the house.

“I’ll be back.”

He gave no answer, asleep. I crept up the stairs.

“How is he?” Xander was leaning against the fridge.

“Xander, let’s talk about this after I…” I nodded my head upstairs.

“Oh, sure.” He sniffed. “I’ll just be down here…well, unless you, uh…need any help?”

“I’ll manage.” I smiled. He looked like old Sunnydale-High Xander—all playful with the big goofy grin-like. Felt good to see him like that again.

I took my time. The hot water relaxed all my sick and tired muscles. I intended to relax completely, so I forced myself not to think about stuff. Didn’t last nearly as long as the shower.

Hot water stung inside the cut on my cheek. That was gonna scar, Slayer-heal or no. Just what I need, a big nasty scar across my face. Real come-and-get-me look I’ve got going on lately.

But, as I scrubbed my shoulders, I pictured all the marks on Spike. There would be so many scars after he had healed. I felt my body tensing up, and I dipped my head under the water. I ran my fingers through my hair, and the thoughts rolled off with the warm water.

“Any talk of more slayer-wannabes?”

“Nah,” I told Xander. “We’re probably getting close to the last of’em.”

“’Cause I was thinking, you know, they’re not really…fighty.” He put his feet up on the table. “I mean, I don’t think I could take’em, but they definitely need some work.”

“Some real work.” I agreed. “Think I should make’em patrol with me tonight?”

“I dunno, Buff. We don’t know how many of those Trekkies are roaming the streets.”

“Trekkies?”

Xander’s hands flew into the air, “What? What’d Giles call that thing?”

“Turok-something.” I answered.

“Turok, Trekkie…” Xander’s spoke quieter, “Same thing.”

“And that attitude is why Giles is doing research without you.”

“Oh, yes. I still can’t believe he went to the big library full of dusty, fat, and boring books without me!” Xander looked around the empty house, “And, speaking of Trekkies, where’s Andrew? And, you know, everyone?”

I looked out the window. The sun was going down and Dawn was still out with the slayers-to-be. “I gave’em the day off. Guess Andrew went with them.”

“Kid makes me all kinds of nervous,” Xander wiggled his shoulders. “I mean, Jonathan…he…”

“He killed him.”

“They were best friends, Buff. If this thing’s powerful enough to turn best friends on each other…”

“I’ll stop it.”

Xander’s face lifted, and his mouth turned up into a smile. “I’m with you, Buff. No matter…I mean, even if…even if Spike…”

I smiled. This was so hard for him to say.

He clapped his hands together. “Spike and me, we’ve fought side-by-side before…and, we can do it again.”

His words came as a sudden relief to me. It felt good to have friends behind me again. I could see how he got to Willow that day. “Thank you.”

He patted my knee and smiled. “Plus, you know, I’m kinda likin‘ the whole save-the-world persona. Chicks really dig it.”

“We do.” I hugged him.

They devoured the pizzas. Giles had just placed them on the table seconds ago, and boxes were already opened and emptied. I picked a mysterious-looking mushroom off my slice before taking a big bite.

“So, any luck with the books?” I watched Giles remove his glasses. Probably didn’t want to watch me chew my food. I swallowed the pizza. “Sorry.”

“Yes, that’s quite alright.” He wiped them clean and replaced them. “I found…something. Although, I’m not quite sure it’s going to be of…of use to us.”

“So what do we got? Stuff on the markings?”

“Well, yes, I found them…Buffy, I was really focusing more on you.”

“On me? Why?” I sat down, blocking out the chatter and laughter from the living room. “What did I do?”

“Well, we’re not sure if it is you, Buffy. I just want to go over all areas.” He could see my discomfort, and lifted his tone. “And, Spike? How is he?”

I sighed. “He twisted his ankle up pretty bad when I…Oh, God. The dreams. I forgot all about them! Giles, I’ve been having these dreams.”

He sat down next to me, intrigued, no doubt.

“They’re…vivid. More real than the others. And it’s like I’m not even really there…like I’m just watching it all happen, and there’s nothing I can do. Places are burning and…”

I clamped my mouth shut as Dawn bounded into the kitchen. She grabbed a box off the table and skipped back out.

“And I heard a girl scream.”

“Dawn?” he asked.

“I’m not sure. I—I don’t know.”

“Well, it’s quite obvious that it’s an apocolypse you’re foreseeing, Buffy. Quite natural, seeing as we are flying head-on into one.”

I shook my head. “They’re different.” After a moment of silence, I tossed the crust into the trash and stood. “I’m off to patrol.”

“Can I come?” a girl’s voice asked.

“God, this is great!” Kennedy sniffed the night air in. “I’ve never gone out hunting before!”

“Patrolling.” I corrected her. She glanced at me. “We aren’t doing this for sport—it’s our job.”

She nodded, clenching her hands tighter on the crossbow. “Sure is a big cemetery.”

I smiled. “Yeah. That happens at the Hellmouth.”

“I’ve only been in a cemetery once…” her voice grew softer. “For my mom’s funeral.”

My heart ached, and my stomach started to churn. Mom. So quickly her image came up in my head. I nodded to Kennedy. She stopped before a tombstone.

“I mean, I was younger then…” she traced the letters in the stone. “And she—my new mom—she’s great. My step-sister’s great, too…” her arms dropped. “Really great.”

“Do you miss them?”

She turned to me. “I miss a lot of things. But this is my job.”

We started walking again. “You know, I was the first Slayer who actually had friends? And family? They—the Council—they were bigtime against it. But they didn’t know. They don’t know. What it is…to be the Slayer.”

I felt her eyes on me again, but she was silent as I spoke.

“But you do.” I looked at her. “You feel it. Inside you. The good…and the bad. You know it. Because it is who you are.”

A chill ran down my spine and I froze. Kennedy stopped as well.

“Did you feel it?” I whispered to her.

She nodded.

“Close your eyes. Feel it out. Find it.” I smiled, “It’s more fun this way.”

Her eyes were closed, and her face crinkled. She took deep breaths and began to take slow steps.

I stayed put. “Quietly. Slowly. Don’t forget, they have power too.”

She raised the bow, creeping around the tombstones. I knew exactly where he was. I gripped my stake and crossed my arms.

She stopped, and quickly turned around. Her wide eyes looked past me. I smiled.

“Buffy! He’s behind you!”

The vamp grabbed my shoulders and pulled back. I whipped him over my head with ease. He slammed on his back at my feet. I looked back at Kennedy, “Now, he’s not.”

I pinned him down. He struggled, growling and ew, stinking. Kennedy came up alongside me.

“I’m gonna let him up. Get ready.” I handed her the stake.

She dropped the crossbow and got into fighting stance. I rolled off the vamp. He jumped up, quickly knocking the stake from her hand. She blocked a punch and swung, but he grabbed her fist and twisted her arm.

“That one’s easy!” I yelled, “Just flip it back around on him!”

She looked back at me. The vamp moved her arm against her back and brought his teeth towards her neck. She struggled and whimpered. For a second I looked in her eyes and thought she was too scared, but I knew what that kind of fear would build up inside her.

Kennedy closed her eyes and thrust him off her, grunting as she pushed him to the ground. She sat on his back, yanking his hand to the back of his neck.

“Grab the stake. You can hit the heart through his back.”

The vamp cried out as she leaned forward. She placed the point square into his back and shoved. He crumbled beneath her. She scooped up some of the dust and blew it into the cold air. She did good. Big smudge across her cheek. She looked stronger.

“Not bad.” I helped her up. “How’d it feel?”

Kennedy twirled the stake. “Not bad.”

I picked up the crossbow, aimed, and fired at the vamp behind her. Dust poofed around her back. She looked over her shoulder, then back at me.

“Why didn’t I feel that one?” she coughed.

“Because you weren’t alert. You weren’t ready.” I started to walk again. “It’s okay. It happens. Just don’t let it happen enough. Because one night…” I stopped and faced her. “One night, when you alone are the Slayer…I won’t be here.”

Continued in Part 3