Author: Chelsea

Disclaimer: I can’t afford them, so I guess I don’t own them. XWP’s characters are owned by Ren Pics/Studios USA. BTVS characters are owned by Mutant Enemy.

Summary: Crossover with Buffy, the Vampire Slayer. Willow messed up on a spell while trying to send Spike back in time to avoid the Initiative and the two ended up in Ancient Greece.

Rating: PG – mild violence

Willow stared at the book in front of her, absently flipping through the pages. Unable to find what she was looking for and worse still, unable to concentrate due the noise generated from the TV in the other room, she finally shut the book that she was using for her research with a sigh of disgust. She pushed back her head of flaming red hair and looked into the outer room. Her wide-spaced grayish green eyes flickered under the artificial light. There he was, Spike, the vampire, sitting on the couch watching Dawson's Creek. Willow sighed again. It seemed that everyone else has a life except for her and Spike. Buffy and Riley were out patrolling; Xander and Anya were at the Bronze. And even Giles has a date, leaving good old dependable Willow to do the research and baby-sit the vampire.

She walked out and sat down a little away from him, sneaking glances at the brooding vampire. Ever since he had found out about the chip that the Initiative had placed inside his head, he has been constantly in a bad mood. Willow wasn’t sure if the implant was really the answer. She hated to think that he was forced into being something that he’s not. Buffy and Riley had argued that it was all for the better, but Willow has her doubts. The implant might have been a quick fix to an on-going problem, but there are consequences, and she’s sitting with one of them right now. Again her thoughts drifted to the spell that she’d found this morning. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t even realize that the program was over and Spike had turned off the TV. She jumped in fright as she felt a cold hand brushed against her neck.

“Relax Red, I can hardly bite you. Remember the chip?” The blonde vampire said sarcastically. Although he wouldn’t admit it to anyone, he would never hurt Willow. She was the only one in the gang who has shown him any compassion. He smiled as he remembered how the little witch actually offered to let him bite her when he first found out about the chip and its implication. And while everyone else has simply tolerated him or pretended that he doesn’t exist, Willow has always found time for him. She was the only one who talked to him and actually treated him semi-decently.

“I was just thinking about that.” Willow moved back to the edge of the seat. The words were out before she could catch herself.

“Thinking about what?” Spike was bored. The inactivity was starting to get to him. He almost wished that he was out patrolling with the slayer, but since Willow was staying in, he decided to stay also. He’s still trying to figure out why Willow fascinated so much, but he’s starting to understand. Unlike the slayer, Willow is a multi-dimensional character. She’s not flashy and because of her shyness, she’s often overlooked, especially when she’s in the company of Buffy, whose in your face attitude can get tiring after a while. She’s so used to being in the shadow of Buffy; she didn’t even realize how beautiful she really was. Over the past months, Spike had finally come to understand that the little witch was really what’s holding their little group together. On the surface, she’s just doing the research and helping with the patrol, occasionally staking a vampire now and then, but in reality, she’s their conscience, their strength, she’s the heart and soul of the Scooby gang.

“That chip in your head.” Willow bit down on her lower lip and trying to decide how much she really wanted to tell him.

Her voice brought him out of his musing. “What about the bloody chip?”

“Well…I um…was thinking that it isn’t fair to force you into being something that you are not. Our job is to stake vampires, not to well...put a foreign object into their brains.” The witch stuttered.

“What are you suggesting Red?” The bored tone was gone.

“I'm not suggesting anything.” Willow shrugged. “There really isn’t anything that I can do. I mean, even Giles and Buffy can’t do anything.”

“The watcher and Slutty don’t want to do anything. They are perfectly happy having me like this.” Spike stared at Willow, noting her agitation. “But you are different, aren’t you? You think that there’s something morally wrong with the Initiative, don’t you?”

“Forget it Spike. What I think doesn’t really matter. Look, I have to go home. Tell Giles I‘ll finish the research tomorrow.” Willow jumped up and went to grab her bag, preparing to leave.

“That’s right Red. Go home. Pretend that it isn’t inhuman to keep me in this form. Go ahead and deny to yourself who or what I really am.” Spike’s voice followed her as she stepped out the door.

Willow quickly walked through the deserted campus. Even with her wooden stake, cross and holy water sitting securely inside her bag, she knew it was stupid to just go charging off in Sunnydale at night by herself, but being confronted by Spike over the Initiative issue wasn’t something that she wanted to do. She wasn’t sure if she would have been able to sit by and try to justify what she considered to be a crime against the undead.

Once inside the dorm she ran up the flight of stairs and locked herself into her room. She looked at the other empty bed and shrugged. She very much doubted that Buffy would be using that bed tonight. Ever since she and Riley had become a couple, Willow rarely sees her roommate. Buffy appeared to be happy, and that was good enough for Willow. No one knew better than Willow how hard it was on Buffy when Angel left. And to some degree, Riley has filled the void that was left by Angel.

She walked over to the window and glanced outside. Sure enough Spike was out here, leaning against a tree smoking. She had known that he was following her. She didn’t exactly know why, whether it was to protect her from all the vampires roaming the streets of Sunnydale at night or some other ulterior motive, but somehow knowing that he was there made her feel safe. Willow quickly dropped the curtain back into place when she saw him looked up, but she wasn’t quick enough.

All of a sudden he was hanging outside her window. “Invite me in Red.”

“Go home Spike.” She said tiredly.

“And just exactly where is home? The watcher’s? The crypt? I had a home once.”

He looked so lost that Willow felt unable to deny him. Without giving herself time for second thoughts, “come on in Spike.”

Spike climbed through the window, bringing with him the smell of cigarette and leather. He started to look around the small room with interest. It hasn’t really changed since the last time he was here. Willow was standing nervously by the corner, silently berating herself for being fifty different kinds of fools by inviting him in. He thought he’ll alleviate her fears by putting a little distance between them, so he sauntered over to her desk and before Willow could stop him, he picked up her spell book.

“Spike no!” Willow tried to grab it out of his hand, but he only pivoted and held the book up higher.

Willow bit her lip nervously while Spike read the page. Finally he slammed the book back down on her desk. “What the hell are you trying to do Red?”

“I don’t know.” Willow looked away, avoiding his eyes. “It was just a stupid idea.”

“A time traveling spell? Why?”

“No reason. I don’t have to explain anything to you. Just leave it alone.” She muttered defensively.

“I’m interested. Was it so that you could prevent the mutt from leaving? Or was it so that you could have another chance with that moron Xander?”

He was smirking at her, and his sarcastic tone really got to her. Before she could decide on the wisdom of telling him the truth, she blurted it out. “It was for you. I was trying to see if I could send you back in time so that you could avoid being captured by the Initiative.”

Spike stared at Willow in astonishment. If only he could breath. “What are trying to say Red?”

“I just thought that…”

“What are we going to do with you luv?” The sarcasm was totally gone. He was genuinely touched.

“Forget it Spike, it probably won’t work anyway.” Willow ducked her head. The gentleness of his voice was starting to make her blush. Goddess, why did I have to go and invite him in? Wasn’t there a public service announcement about not inviting vampires into dorm room? Especially the one that you have a crush on?

Spike was thoughtful. To be able to be a master vampire again, none of this pathetic animal blood from a bag, he felt a rush as the thought of being able to sink his fangs into real flesh and the taste of warm human blood. He stared at the wide-eyed witch standing in front of him. Yeah, she could do it. “I don’t like being like this Red. It isn’t me, and I think you agree with me on this.”

“I…” Much as she tried, Willow couldn’t turn away from those piercing blue eyes.

“Do the spell Red.” He handed the book over to her. “Please.”

Spike hit the ground hard, but before he could even start to think, Willow fell out of the sky and landed on top of him.

“Goddess!”

“Any particular goddess you are looking for?” The two looked up and saw a young blonde no taller than Willow in a red velvet two piece staring at them a little apprehensively.

“What the hell did you do Red?” Spike looked at Willow accusingly.

“I…I must have messed up the spell.” Willow saw that the blonde seems to have relaxed a little. She stood up and looked around at their primitive surroundings. She saw crudely but sturdily constructed huts, wagons and horses. She heard Spike cussed as he stood up to stand beside her. Her heart sank as she looked at the blonde. “Um…where are we?”

For once in her life, Gabrielle had gotten up before the sunrise. She was standing outside her hut just enjoying the early morning breeze when out of no where, she saw two people tumbling out of the sky. After studying their strange clothing, Gabrielle figured that these two were definitely not from Greece. In fact, they weren’t from anywhere that she knew about. “You guys are in the Amazon Village, Greece.”

Willow’s stunned “what?” was mixed with Spike’s sarcastic “Great! It’s not enough that I’m mentally neutered by the Initiative, you’re going to get me physically neutered as well.”

“Well, we don’t really do that.” The blonde said as she desperately tried to stifle a giggle.

“Oh shut up Spike.” Willow said, then turned to the blonde. “I’m sorry, but we are…kind of lost. I’m Willow, and this is Spike.”

“Gabrielle.” Gabrielle introduced herself, then looking at Spike, she couldn’t resist adding a bit sardonically, “Amazon Queen.”

Willow rolled her eyes helplessly. This must be my day. Of all things, we have to go and insult the queen. “I’m sorry. Just ignore what he said. He is what we called a classic nut case. He needs a lot of therapy.”

“That’s rich, coming from you.” He started to mimic Willow. “Oh Spike, let me help you. I’m the smart one; I am the one with the perfect grades; I can do any spell.”

“I did not say that. You were the one who insisted that I do that stupid spell.”

Spike started to say something, then he narrowed his eyes as the morning sun started to filter through the dark. “Willow, get us inside.”

“Huh?” Willow turned, then realizing that the sun was about to rise. She immediately turned toward the Amazon; “can you get us into somewhere dark?”

Gabrielle saw that Spike was trying to cover his head with his duster. “Yeah, come on in.” she stepped into the hut, followed by the two strangers. Once inside, Willow asked urgently, “please keep the windows shut.” Gabrielle hesitated slightly, but did as she was asked.

“Now you want to tell me what’s going on?”

Willow looked over to Spike and he nodded at her, indicating that she should tell. “Spike, well Spike is a vampire.” She waited for the blonde to freak out, but Gabrielle just nodded. “Um…he can’t be exposed to the sun or he’ll combust.”

“I see. That’s not a problem. You can stay inside until the sun goes down.” When they looked at her as if she’s crazy. “No, honestly I do understand. I was a vampire once. Well, it’s a long story. Maybe I’ll tell you guys about it some time. You want to tell me what you guys are doing here?”

“Well, Spike was a demon vampire. We came from Sunnydale, also known as the Hellmouth. It’s where you will find all sort of demons and vampires and stuff.” She took a deep breath and continued. “Spike needs to feed and the only way to do that is to drain the blood from humans. There’s this group of commandos known as the Initiative. They...um…captured Spike and put this chip in his head, now whenever he wants to kill, he gets this uncontrollable pain and…” Willow knew she was babbling and couldn’t believe that Gabrielle was actually taking everything that she was saying seriously. Gaining confidence, she continued. “Well, I was thinking that it wasn’t right to do this to him, and I’m a um…practicing witch.” Gabrielle raised her eyebrow at that but remained silent. “Anyway, I was working on a spell trying to send him back to before the day he was attacked by the Initiative so that he could stay away from them. I guess I went a little too far.”

“You are a what?”

“A witch. I…um…I can make things happen by casting spells. I guess you guys call us sorceresses. ” Willow saw the confusion on the blonde’s face and continued. “I f I concentrate really hard, I can even move things. But I still have a lot to learn.”

“Obviously!”

Willow turned to Spike and hissed. “Look, if you have nothing nice to say, then just shut up!”

Gabrielle grinned and took a moment to digest all the information that was just given to her. Finally she nodded. “Okay, how can I help you?”

“We need to get back home, to our own time, which I think is many, many years into the future. I don’t think I can do it by myself.” Willow said. “Do you know of anyone with magical powers who might be able to help us?”

Gabrielle chuckled. “Oh yeah!” She stood up and called. “Hey Aphrodite, can you come out please?”

“Aphrodite?” Spike and Willow glanced at each other awkwardly.

Before Gabrielle could form a reply a bright flash of lights signaled the arrival of a resident of Olympus. Gabrielle groaned as Ares and not Dite appeared. “What are you doing here? I asked for Dite.”

“Well, Dite was otherwise engaged, and she had asked me nicely to come see what kind of trouble you are in now.” Ares said. He turned around and looked at the two strangers. “Who are they?”

“They are the reason why I asked to see Aphrodite.” Gabrielle grimaced. “Willow, Spike, meet Ares, God of War. He got major issues. So if he seems sarcastic, obnoxious, offensive, malicious, well, don't take it personally. It's in his nature.”

“Hey, I am standing here, Blondie.” Ares said a little louder than was necessary.

“Good, then I wouldn't have to repeat myself.” Gabrielle just shrugged.

Spike was openly sneering, while Willow tried hard not to laugh, finally she managed a timid, “Um…hello.”

Ares grinned at Willow and looked over to Spike who was staring at him with a certain amount of hostility. “And just exactly what are you?”

“I’m a vampire, and she’s a witch.” Spike told him with a great deal of satisfaction in his voice.

“Great, just what I needed, a blood-sucking vampire and a meddling witch.” Ares threw his hands up in the air. He turned to Gabrielle. “You are REALLY going to owe me this time.”

“Can you help them or not?” Gabrielle interrupted a little impatiently.

“And what do I get for helping them?” Ares tilted his head to one side and inquired.

“THEIR undying gratitude?” Gabrielle said, refusing to be baited.

Ares just threw his head back and laughed. “All right, so what do you want me to do?”

“Willow and Spike ended up here by mistake and they want to go home. Can you send them back?” Gabrielle asked.

“Well, we certainly don’t need a vampire running around in Greece.” Ares mocked and grinned when he heard Spike hissed.

Willow grabbed Spike by the elbow to hold him back. She really didn’t want to know what would happened if the vampire attacked the god. She winced slightly as she caught the muttered “Neanderthal” coming from Spike. Not wanting him to anger someone who could very well be providing their ticket home, she quickly asked. “Do you think you can help us?”

“That depends on how you got here in the first place.” Ares shrugged. He had decided he would help them. The vamp might be a bit annoying, but he likes the little witch. She reminded him of a young Gabrielle. Besides, he certainly didn't mind letting the bard owes him a few favors.

“Well, I sort of messed up on this spell. It was only suppose to send him back a few months, instead it…got us here.” Willow explained.

“A spell?” Ares frowned. “That’s a little more difficult. I need to know how you cast the spell, the exact wording that you used in order to reverse it.”

“I…I don’t remember. I was reading it off my spell book and I just inserted the time at the end.” Willow said nervously. When Ares started to frown, Willow broke down. “Oh Goddess, I’m sorry Spike. I never meant for this to happen.” Willow turned to Spike and looked like she was about to cry.

Spike just pulled her to him and said softly, “it’s okay luv. It’s gonna be okay.”

“How touching!” Ares said sarcastically.

Gabrielle elbowed him in the stomach and apologized. “I’m sorry, but remember what I said? He got major issues. It‘s all this my father preferred my brother thing, a really traumatic childhood experience.” She then turned back to Ares who was looking at her with amusement. “You are a God, can’t you do anything? Can’t you just send them back?”

“Look Blondie, I can’t. I maybe a God, but there are still supernatural stuffs that I can’t undo. They came here through a spell; the only way for them to go home is to reverse the spell.” He emphasized word by word just like he was talking to a child. “In order to reverse the spell, I need to know what the spell was first. If the little witch can’t remember, then there is nothing I can do.”

“Can’t you transport into the future and bring the book back?” Gabrielle suggested.

Ares stared at Gabrielle for a moment and smiled. He couldn’t believe his luck. “Well, I suppose I could. So how about it Blondie? Want to take a trip into the future?”

“I’m not going with you.” Gabrielle said, and actually took two steps away from him.

“I’m certainly not going to go by myself. If you want me to help them, then you’re just going to have come along.” He turned on his most charming smile. “Besides, just imagine all the stories that you can write.”

Gabrielle looked over to Willow and saw the little witch watching her with a pleading look on her face. She stared at Spike and the vampire just shrugged, letting her know that it’s up to her. Gabrielle sighed. “Alright, let’s hurry and get this done.”

Ares grinned. “It’s not a trip to Tartarus. You might even enjoy the experience, not to mention the company.”

Gabrielle just rolled her eyes. “Give Ares the location and time. I’ll be right back.” She came back shortly with a young woman who looked like she has just been dragged out of bed. “Willow, Spike, meet Varia. Just let her know if you guys need anything.” She turned to Varia who was openly eyeing the pair in wonder, any lingering thoughts on sleep has been totally wiped out of her mind. “What...?”

“I‘ll explain later.” Gabrielle smiled at the Amazon apologetically. “Ares and I need to go retrieve something for Willow. Can you make sure that they are okay while I’m gone? Don‘t let anyone bother them, and be sure to leave the windows and door shut when the sun in out.”

Varia nodded, then whispered, “you better have a good explanation. What do I tell Xena when she comes back?”

“Since she’s out on a hunting expedition, I don’t expect her to be back for a while. But keep her away from them in case she does come back before me. Just tell her I’ll explain everything when I’m back.” She smiled at Willow reassuringly. “Do you guys need anything before we leave? Varia will get someone to bring some food and water.”

“Do you have any blood?” Willow said softly, afraid to ask, but knowing that she must.

“What?” Varia looked at Willow like she was about to attack her.

“For the vampire.” Ares said. “Well, I don’t think you can get the Amazons to give you any of their blood.” He waived his hand and lined the shelf with a roll of bottles. “Your dinner.”

Spike refused to say anything, so Willow said it for him. “Thanks!”

“Anything for you, little witch.” He said a little flirtatiously and smiled when he heard the vampire growled and saw Gabrielle gave him a scathing look. “Nice to know that you care.”

“I do care…about Willow.” Gabrielle said, then she turned to the two standing uncertainly in the corner. “Don’t worry, we’ll be back as soon as we can. If you need anything, let Varia knows. She’ll take care of you.” She walked over to stand next to Ares, but before they could disappear, Willow ran across the room and hugged the bard. “Please be careful, and if you happen to run into Buffy, tell her I’m okay.”

“Who’s Buffy?” Ares asked.

“She’s the slayer.” Spike finally spoke up.

“What’s a slayer? A slayer of what?” Varia couldn’t stop herself from asking.

“A vampire slayer, be careful of her, she’s freakishly strong because she has the slayer’s power.” Spike said and looked at Ares, a challenging look in those blue eyes. “But since you are a god, you could probably kick her…”

“Spike, stop it!” Willow interrupted, and Spike just grinned at her. “Buffy is my friend, but she does tend to stake first and ask second, so please just explain to her what happened. Don’t hurt her.”

“Don’t worry Willow. I promise we won’t hurt your friend.” Gabrielle smiled at her reassuringly.

Ares just shrugged. “Whatever she says.”

Gabrielle’s smile was the last thing Willow saw before she and Ares disappeared.

Ares and Gabrielle appeared on the edge of Sunnydale. Gabrielle looked around. “I thought we were suppose to go to Willow’s to retrieve her spell book. Did you mess up on the direction?”

“It isn’t often that I get a vacation, so I thought we’ll take a little detour. Check out the Hellmouth.” Ares smiled.

“Cut it out Ares. This isn’t a game. They are waiting for us. Let’s just get this over and done with.”

“They are not in any danger. Unless you don’t trust your Amazons. Aren’t you at least curious about all this?” He questioned. “Wouldn’t you like to be able to go home and tell Xena all about it?”

“Well, yeah, but…we promised Willow…”

“Somehow I don’t think Willow minds having a little time alone with Spike although I honestly don’t know what she sees in him. Come on Gabrielle, I want to do a little exploring.” He grabbed hold of her hand and pulled her along.

“Ares, wait, we can’t go around dressed like this.” She shivered a little when a gust of wind blew across the empty street.

“You’re right.” He was thoughtful, then with a wave of his hand, Gabrielle found herself dressed in clothing identical to what Willow was wearing, jeans, sweater and sneakers. She looked at Ares and he had on what Spike was wearing, black jeans, red shirt and leather duster.

“Okay Blondie, let go cruise around.”

As they approached the cemetery, a group of vampires came charging out at them. Gabrielle went to pull out her sais, but unfortunately she didn’t have them on her. “Great, just great.” She dodged from her first attacker and kicked him in the solar plexus. When the vampire doubled over in pain, she dived over his back and rolled, quickly picking up a stick with a sharp point off the ground on her way up. When the vampire turned around, she simply staked him.

Ares, on the other hand, was having more problems than the bard was. He didn’t understand why none of his blows seemed to affect the demons; they just kept coming back. “You’ve got to stake them with a wooden stick.” Seeing his difficulties, Gabrielle yelled as she kicked another demon to the ground and staked him, turning him into a pile of dust.

Once Ares learned the trick, they got rid of the rest of the vampires in no time. When there were no more vampires left, Gabrielle tucked her stick into the waistband of her jeans just in case she needs it later. “That wasn’t exactly the kind of adventure I was hoping for. Let’s get out of here before some other demon shows up.”

Ares and Gabrielle walked out of the cemetery and around the streets. Sunnydale is not known for its nighttime activities. Most people tended to play it safe and stay home. The streets were deserted, all the shops were closed, a few cars drove by, but nothing much was happening. There was an eerie quietness around the town. Gabrielle was looking around in wonder, couldn’t believe everything that she was seeing. She was fascinated by all the tall buildings, vehicles, even the traffic light was a source of wonder for her. Her excitement was contagious, and Ares found himself caught up in it. They examined mailboxes, stop signs, street lamps, and even garbage cans. The stood outside an electronic store and had a lively argument over what all the different electronic gadgets were for. They stood outside a boutique and laughed at the various items on the display window. In between they met another group of vampires and dusted them. Finally they ended up in front of the Bronze. They could hear the music a block away. Ares grinned. “At last, some action, let’s go check it out. Not giving Gabrielle a chance to argue, he pulled her inside after him.

The place was dark and packed with people on the dance floor. Gabrielle stepped closer to Ares. “I think we should just go get the book and leave.”

“Hey, I’ve never danced with you before. Another first.” Despite Gabrielle frantic struggles, Ares managed to pull her onto the dance floor.

But the place was so crowded they found themselves constantly bumping into other couples. Finally Gabrielle had had enough. She shoved Ares away from her. Taken by surprise, he fell against another couple, a little blonde dancing with her boyfriend.

The blonde turned around and Gabrielle was about to apologize when she saw the blonde just stared at them. “Where did you get those clothes?” Buffy Summers turned to Riley, “that’s what Willow and Spike were wearing. Oh my god, they must have killed them and stole their clothes.”

Buffy looked for her stake, then remembered that she had it in her purse on the table. Acting on instinct, she punched Ares on the face. The force of it was enough to knock him back against Gabrielle.

“This freak of nature must be the slayer.” Ares rubbed his jaw. “Not even Xena can pack a punch like that.” Before he could return the favor, Gabrielle pushed him back a couple of steps. “Look, Buffy right? We’re friends of Willow’s”

That stopped the slayer in mid stride. She stared at the couple and had to admit that really didn’t look like vampires, besides they were so obviously still breathing. “Who are you two and where is Willow?”

“My name is Gabrielle, and this is Ares. Look can we sit down and talk about this?”

“So you are telling me Willow is stuck in Ancient Greece with Spike?” Buffy still didn’t know whether she should believe them or not, but somehow she didn’t think the blonde was lying. Then another thought struck her. “Oh my god, you left her there with Fangless? He might just go crazy and tear her apart.”

“What do you mean by ancient?” Ares started belligerently, but Gabrielle just cut him off. “Somehow I doubted that Spike would hurt her.” Gabrielle smiled, remembering the interaction between the vampire and the witch. “If you can just take us back to Willow’s, then we’ll take the book back and reverse the spell.”

Buffy looked at them suspiciously. “How do I know if I can trust you two? How do I know if you two are not just trying to steal Willow’s magic spell book?”

Ares sighed. He was getting tired of this. “Look slayer, you don’t know. You either trust us or Willow stays where she is forever.”

“Why are you guys here in the Bronze? Why didn’t you just go straight to the dorm?”

“Well, Ares wanted to...explore a little first.” Gabrielle started, but Ares interrupted her. “I finally got her all to myself for a while. I wasn’t in any hurry to take her back.” Gabrielle started to blush. She wasn’t sure if he was serious, but it was still nice to hear. “Um…let’s just go get the book.” She said lamely and stood up.

Riley whispered to Buffy. “Are you sure you want to trust them?”

“We don’t really have a choice. That does sound like something that Willow would do.” Buffy said, then turn back to Gabrielle. “Come on, let’s go get her spell book, I couldn’t wait for Willow to be back. I have a million questions for her.”

“So this is it?” Gabrielle took the old book; the pages were practically falling apart due to over usage. She turned to Ares. “Let’s go.”

“Wait, I want to come with you.” Buffy said.

“I don’t think so Slayer. We have already caused enough disturbances to the time line in one day. Let’s not over do it.” Ares said. And before Buffy could object, he and Gabrielle disappeared.

Ares and Gabrielle reappeared in the Amazon Village. They saw a group of Amazons were just standing outside Gabrielle’s hut giggling. Gabrielle saw Varia and beckoned her over. “What’s going on?”

Varia shrugged. “Something about blue eyes and cheekbones.”

Gabrielle shook her head and walked over to the group, tilted her head to one side, indicating that they should leave, and the Amazons looked at her sheepishly and went away. Gabrielle walked up the steps and entered her hut while clutching Willow’s spell book. The room was in complete darkness, but she could make out the two figures sitting in the corner huddled together.

“Hi, we’re back.” Gabrielle said simply.

The two broke apart and jumped up. Willow looked at her expectantly. “Well, did you get it?” Gabrielle smiled and held up the book. Willow rushed over and took it from her. “Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!” She flung herself at Gabrielle and hugged her. Gabrielle was a little taken back, but she smiled and hugged her back.

Ares watched and laughed. “Hey, I was there too. In fact I got us there and back. Don’t I get a hug too?”

Willow looked at him shyly and was about to walk over to him when out of nowhere Spike dashed over and hugged Ares. “Thank you mate!” He gave Ares a mischievous look and grinned slyly.

Ares was stunned, but then he was in a good mood and instead he started to laugh and then tousled Spike’s hair like he would a child’s. He turned and saw that Gabrielle and Willow were trying hard not to laugh, but they were failing miserably. He stared at Gabrielle. “Go ahead and laugh, just remember that you still owe me.” He then turned to Willow. “And you little witch, I’ll let your guy take care of you.”

The four studied the spell and finally it was Ares who came up with the answer. “Look, the spell is flawed. You need to be a little more specific. All this says is to a time before the Initiative, and that means any time. We can reverse the spell, but if you are going to use this again, be very careful of the time line.”

“That’s okay, she won’t be using it again.” Spike said while Willow looked at him in surprise. “We’ll discuss this later.” He said to her softly.

“So do you guys want to go home now or would you like a tour of Mount Olympus?” Ares asked.

“A tour of Olympus?” Willow’s eyes widened. “You mean it?”

“Sure. It’s pretty empty right now, but come on, I’ll introduce you two to Aphrodite. She‘s not very good with spells either.” When Ares noticed that Gabrielle was trying to silently back out of the room, he grabbed her hand in a tight grip. “Oh no, you’re coming too.”

Willow peeked outside and saw that it was still daytime. “But what about the sun?”

“I’ll take care of it. I am, if you remember, a God.”

“Are you two ready?” Ares asked, a little sad to see the two getting ready to leave. Although he wouldn’t admit it, he was getting pretty attached to the little witch and her vampire. Their little excursion to Olympus proved to be much more enjoyable than he had thought. The little witch was definitely an engaging little thing. Ares found himself caught up in her excitement, seeing Olympus through her eyes. As for Spike, he finally understood what the witch saw in him. Underneath all that sarcasm was a man of intellect, sense of humor and charm.

“Wait.” Gabrielle rushed over to Willow and hugged her. “You will be careful?”

Willow hugged her back. In a way she wished that they could just stay here with her new friends, but she knew they must go back. “Yes, thank you.” She said a little tearfully. “Will I ever see you again?”

Gabrielle started to shake her head but Ares interrupted her. “Sure you will, but only if she asks me nicely.” Gabrielle was surprised but she definitely was going to hold him to it.

Willow smiled at Ares and then whispered in the bard’s ear. “He really likes you, you know. He might be the unforgiving God of War to the rest of the world, but with you, he’s just a big teddy bear. Give him a break, you won’t regret it.”

“Same to you. Your vampire does have a heart where you are concern.” Gabrielle whispered back. She stepped away and on impulse, hugged Spike. “Bye Spike, take care of her.”

Ares recited the spell and Gabrielle watched a little tearfully as her new friends started to disappear. She watched until the spot in front of them was empty.

“Are you alright?” Ares asked as he looked at her forlorn face. It’s amazing how close Gabrielle and Willow had become in such a short time.

She nodded and then asked, “are you sure it worked? You didn‘t send them off to somewhere else did you?”

“Hey, this is me you are talking to, not Dite. Come on, I’ll show you.” He pulled her closer and opened up a viewing portal.

Willow and Spike fell through the time dimension and reappeared inside Willow’s dorm room. Buffy and Riley were there. Upon seeing them, Buffy rushed over. “Willow, you’re back.” She hugged her friend.

“Yeah, we are back.” Willow smiled at her friend. Greece was an adventure, an unforgettable one, but this was home. Besides, Ares had promised to visit, and she knew he would keep his promise.

“What were you trying to do?” Riley asked.

“Um…I…” Willow saw Spike was quietly letting himself out. “I’ll explain later.” She said and dashed out of the room, following him.

Willow caught up with Spike outside. She looked at him uncertainly. “Spike, I’m sorry I messed up the last time, but now I know what I did wrong, maybe we can do this again."”

“No Red. Let’s just forget this crazy idea of yours.” Spike ignored Willow and continued to walk away.

Willow stared at him for a moment, then ran after him. She pulled him to a stand still. “Why? You were all for the idea earlier.”

“Let’s just say that I’ve changed my mind since.”

“Why?” For some reason, Willow just can’t let it go. Her heart was beating twice as fast as she waited for his answer.

“You want to know why?” Spike turned back to her and pushed his hand through his blonde hair. “Okay, I’ll tell you why. Because of you witch, I don’t want to lose you. I don’t want to turn you. I don’t want an evil Willow. I want you just the way you are.” When Willow didn’t say anything but just stared at him, he cussed and then started to walk away.

Finally regaining her senses, Willow sprinted after him.

The end