Broken Circles

By Larilyn

Larilyn1@hotmail.com

www.geocities.com/larilyn1975

Disclaimer: I own nothing. "Broken Circles" written and performed by Aruna. No copyright infringement intended.

Rating: R

Summary: What if Angel had never been cursed with a soul? How would that change Spike?

This takes place during the fifth season of B:tVS around Fool For Love. Things in Sunnydale are very different without Angel & Spike’s interference. Answer to a challenge on Buffy/Spike diaries.

"Don't you get tired of fights you know you're gonna win?"

Spike to Angelus, Fool for Love

Chapter Three

"Buffy?" Giles called out from the foyer of the Summers home. Joyce poked her head out of the kitchen and informed Giles, "She’s in her room. I’m afraid she’s not feeling well."

Buffy came down the stairs. She looked incredibly pale with dark circles under her eyes.

Giles took in her appearance and raised his eyebrows at her.

"Hung over. Bad night." She flopped down onto the couch, thankfully the curtains were still drawn, the light hurt her eyes.

"So instead of patrolling, you went out drinking?" Giles chastised.

"I did some recon on our redemption boy candidates."

"And?"

"And neither of them tried to kill me." She grabbed a pillow and held it over her eyes. "Unless Spike’s master plan was to make me wish I was dead. And honestly, right now I do."

"I’m afraid I don’t understand."

"Spike made me drink that nasty stuff…"

"Made you?"

"Well not made me, made me. But he gave it to me."

Giles was concerned and annoyed, "You went out drinking with a vampire?"

"No! Of course not." She groaned, "He was there. I was there. Alcohol was there."

"Buffy, he could have taken advantage of your weakened state."

"He didn’t." Buffy analyzed the evening’s events. "They were both perfect gentlemen. No fighties, no stakies, no bities."

"Both?"

"Angel was there too, for part of the night anyway."

"Buffy, I cannot express how concerned I am…"

Buffy laid down on the couch and pressed the pillow to her ears.

***

Buffy nursed the coffee, trying desperately to keep her nausea at bay. Giles’ lecture hadn’t helped. Fortunately, he wasn’t really at his best, since Buffy’s mom was in the next room. He had left, still annoyed with Buffy, to do some research.

Joyce was reading the newspaper. "Oh thank goodness. They caught that awful man."

"What awful man?" Dawn asked through a mouthful of cereal.

"The one that was robbing people at ATM’s. He knocked poor Mrs. Reynolds down and broke her hip."

Buffy jumped twenty feet in the air when the phone rang.

"Buffy, its Mr. Giles." Joyce handed Buffy the phone, which she reluctantly took.

The static indicated that Giles was on his cell phone, probably calling from his car en route to home, "Buffy, I believe we have a situation."

"Shocker."

"Jenny was going through last night’s police reports. She believes there has been a significant attack."

***

Jenny’s slender fingers danced over the computer keyboard, "I’m in the police department’s computer system." She told her husband.

"Is there a surveillance camera?"

"I’m working on it."

Buffy trepidatiously entered Giles’s apartment, "What’s up?"

Giles informed his Slayer in his best ex-librarian voice, "For one, there has been a marked increase in vampire attacks the past few days. I believe you will need to step up your patrols."

"No rest for the wicked."

"Also, Jenny has uncovered something rather strange. The ATM bandit…"

"Way lame nickname."

"…was delivered unconscious to the Sunnydale police department last night. Jenny?"

"Its printing." She promised.

Giles took the photo from the printer with a flourish and showed Buffy, "He was sporting these."

Buffy saw the unmistakable vampire bite on the mugger’s neck. "The vamp didn’t kill him?"

"No. I was thinking that this may be the work of…"

"Redemption boy?"

"I was going to say, ‘our candidate for redemption.’ But if you prefer Redemption Boy…"

"So I’ll talk to the desk sergeant last night. See if I can get a description of whoever dropped the mugger off."

The phone interrupted Giles’s next thought. He answered it and an immediate urgency took over, "Dawn? Slow down… All right… you need to call an ambulance… we’re on our way." He cradled the receiver and told his Slayer, "It’s your mother."

***

Willow apologized for the fifth time, "Sweetie, I’m so sorry."

"Its okay," Tara watched as Willow pulled a sweater over her head, "Your friend needs you."

"But its your birthday…"

"We’ll celebrate later. Tomorrow." Tara chirped. "Do you want me to come with you to the hospital?"

"That’s okay. I know you have a test.."

"I’ll come over after," Tara kissed Willow sweetly, "I love you."

Willow smiled, "Love you too, baby. I’ll see you later."

***

Jenny brought Giles a paper cup full of coffee and pecked a hello kiss on his cheek. As she shrugged off her coat she asked, "How is she?"

"They’re running some tests."

"I talked to the desk sergeant."

"Did you get a description of our vampire?"

"He was, and I quote, ‘a nice young man’."

"That’s it?" Giles asked, disappointed.

"I’m afraid Sunnydale’s finest don’t have the keenest powers of observation."

***

Tara tossed her backpack on her bed and tapped the answering machine.

Willow’s lovely voice was dampened by the recording, "Sweetie, its me. They’re keeping Buffy’s mom for observation. Buffy’s sending me home. Wait up for me? I’ll be there soon."

Just as the message ended, someone knocked at the door.

Tara laughed at Willow, "Did you forget your keys again baby?"

But when she opened the door, it wasn’t Willow standing there.

***

Spike was still a little hung over when he ventured out, just after sunset. He craved the old human cure, a cup of steaming coffee. He simply followed the smell of brewing coffee, right to the UC Sunnydale campus.

His journey for Java was derailed when he heard a woman sobbing. "Please, Donnie no."

"Tara! Shut up, and get in the car."

"Please, I promise, I’ll be good. I can control it. I don’t want to leave."

"I told you to get in the car!"

Spike heard a distinct smack and the girl sob. This was no good.

" ‘Ey, there a problem here?" He stalked toward the car, eyeing the man in the scraggly beard.

"This is a family matter mister."

Spike glanced at the older gentleman in the driver’s seat. He stoically stared forward. Obviously not caring about the pain of the girl clutching her cheek.

Spike held his hand out to the girl, Tara. "You all right, luv?"

"Y.. y.. yes." She stammered as she rose to her feet.

"You wanna get in that bloke’s car?" Spike gestured to Donnie, who was puffed up and ready for a fight.

"N…No."

"Well then," he turned to the pitiful excuse for a man and placed himself firmly between Tara and Donnie. "Girl ain’t going anywhere with you. Family matter or not."

"Listen mister," Donnie listed toward Spike.

Spike didn’t feel the need to waste anymore time on him. The girl was safely behind him, unable to see his face, so he figured, ‘what the hell.’ Spike vamped out and snarled, "No, you listen…"

That was all it took. Donnie stumbled into the car and bellowed, "Go get out of here, Dad!"

The older gentleman, ‘Dad’ blubbered something, "What about Beth?"

"Fuck Beth. Let’s get out of here."

The tires squealed as they sped away, Spike turned toward the girl, his human mask firmly in place. He asked again, "You all right?"

She nodded. The girl looked familiar. The Bronze. Buffy.

"You a friend of the Slayer’s?"

Tara nodded, unfazed that Spike had used Buffy’s title instead of her name.

"Then I’d imagine she’d be right ticked if something happened to you."

"Tha.. Thank you."

"Welcome, pet. Going for coffee. Wanna join me? Maybe talk about what just happened here?"

Tara looked unsure.

Spike assured, "Be safe with me, luv. Won’t let any creepy crawlies get a hold of you."

***

"I brought you something." Angelus tugged on Darla’s ear with his teeth.

"A present?" She purred.

Angelus gestured toward their bed, where the blonde girl was tied.

"Her name is Beth." Angelus informed his mate. "And she’s yours to play with."

***

"Demon? What kind of demon?"

"Just a demon." The girl’s stutter had started to fade away. She was regaining her composure.

"There’s lots of demons, luv. Take me for instance…"

"Y.. you?" She looked around the terrace nervously. Looking for cover.

"Don’t worry, luv. Promised I wouldn’t hurt you, and I won’t. Now, did anyone tell you what kind of demon you are?"

She shook her head. "Just that, my mother was a demon. She could do magic. And I…" Tara stared into her coffee cup. "I can do it too. The women in our family have demon in them."

Realization hit Spike. Human men could be such bastards. "You’re no demon. A witch maybe. Probably from a long line of witches. Nothing to be ashamed of. Some of the best people I’ve known are witches." He patted her hand and stood. "I’ve gotta shove off. Haven’t eaten yet. You’ll be all right, luv."

He was half way down the sidewalk when Tara called out, "Wait! I didn’t get your name."

He didn’t turn back, he just raised his hand in a silent goodbye.

End Chapter Three