Title: Sanguine

Author: Anne Rose

Email: anne3rose@yahoo.com

URL: http://annerose.cjb.net/btvs
http://www.fanfiction.net/profile.php?userid=47579 

Rating: PG-13

Spoilers: Seasons 6 & 7

Summary: S/B, It's the obligatory "Spike's Return", what's up with the
soul, and btw I hated Seeing Red, story.

Archive: Yes. I would be honored if you want to archive it. Please let
me know where so I can visit it. 

Author's Note: Thanks to Caffey and Spiletta for asking me annoying
questions so I could fix things. Thanks to Rabid/Raeann and Hubby for
betaing. (c) November 19, 2002

More Author's Notes: My beta readers asked me a bunch of questions, and
rather than sending the plot exposition fairy to drop anvils on you,
I'm writing long, boring author's notes. You can skip ahead if you
promise not to whinge later.

1) First of all, I adore Joss, but nobody is right all the time. I'm in
the "that wasn't attempted rape" camp. I think Joss made a huge error
in using that term - but as a male writer/executive producer in our
society he probably felt he needed to in order to avoid millions of
angry letters and pickets. When Buffy was constantly beating up Spike,
there was no labeling of it as battery or her as an abuser. That's a
classic double-standard. IMHBCO

PSA - Unquestionably "no" should mean "no", and "Seeing Red" is an
object lesson in why you should not keep saying no when you mean yes.
(Listen to the dialog during the balcony scene in "Dead Things".)

2) I don't think everything in life has to be incredibly complicated.
Sometimes you can just wake up and smell the coffee, the light bulb
comes on. (Insert cliché of choice here if that didn't work for you.)

3) To whinge is to whine in England or Australia. It's not a bloody
typo! I offer http://m-w.com as a reference if you still doubt me.

4) PSA stands for Public Service Announcement. 

5) IMHBCO stands for In My Humble But Correct Opinion.

Disclaimer: Joss and Mutant Enemy, etc... own BtVS. No infringement
intended. Any resemblance to people living, dead, or undead, or to real
life events is all in your mind, is downright scary, and means you
seriously need to get a life.

~*~*~
Part 3
~*~*~

The house was silent now, and Giles sat alone in the kitchen with his
thoughts. As usual his charge had done something unexpected. Buffy
seemed like a magnet for the unexpected, a second vampire with a soul
was only the latest in a long line of impossibilities she had
encountered.

He finished his cereal automatically, not noticing what he was doing
until the spoon came up empty. He looked at it for a moment, confused
about how it got that way. He moved automatically to the sink. Giles
was washing out his bowl when Spike walked into the kitchen, and opened
the fridge.

Spike didn't seem to notice Giles presence as he took a cup down,
filled it with blood, and popped it into the microwave. 

"Buffy tells me you've had an eventful summer," Giles began.

Spike continued to stare at the cup spinning slowly around.

"Spike." Giles spoke, sharply, trying to get the his attention. When he
still didn't respond, Giles walked over and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Spike."

Spike jumped at the touch and flattened himself against the wall. "Not
real. Not real. You're just trying to trick me again. Rupert flew back
across the pond. He's in merry old England with the witch."

"I was in England, with Willow, but I flew home yesterday. I'm moving
back to Sunnydale." He watched as Spike raised his head and seemed to
look straight through him.

"She needed you. Needed you and you left, like all the rest. I told
them it would happen." Spike looked away and Giles wasn't sure anymore
if Spike was speaking to him or someone only he could see. "Poor little
twig can't keep a man. Gets her all down. Few more disappointments,
she'll be cryin' on my shoulder, mark my words..." 

He turned back to Giles. "And I was right. You left and she turned to
me. But I'm a monster... She said it was killing her." Spike half
staggered half fell against Giles sobbing. "It's your fault as much as
mine. You should have stayed. Then I wouldn't have had to leave...
promised I wouldn't, but had too... couldn't stay, not anymore..." 

Giles managed to peel the distraught vampire off him and get him onto
the stool. He set the blood in front of him and told him to drink it,
but Spike didn't acknowledge him. Giles considered the situation for a
few minutes, not sure how to handle an insane vampire complete with
soul.

"Spike, why are you here?"

"I promised Buffy I would protect Dawn." The words came out clearly
this time and his eyes focused for a moment.

"Buffy bought the blood for you. She wants you to eat and get well
again." Giles hoped that logic wasn't too complicated for Spike in his
present condition. His answer came when Spike picked up the cup and
drained it.

"Why'd you come back, Watcher?"

Spike's question startled Giles. Not only because it was unexpected,
but because it was coherent, unlike his earlier ramblings.

"There is something big rising. We came back to lend a hand."

Spike nodded. The answer seemed to satisfy him. He got up from the
stool and ambled into the main room. Giles found him sitting on the
sofa, remote control in hand, surfing channels on the TV. He seemed
calm now. Giles walked past him to the dining room table and began
laying out the books he'd brought.

~*~*~

Giles was startled out of his reading when the front door banged open
and suddenly the house was filled with noise. He looked up from the
books and papers scattered across the table and realized it was late
afternoon.

Dawn tossed her pack on the coffee table, and she and Buffy headed to
the kitchen. They walked past Spike, but didn't notice him curled up on
the end of the sofa, absorbed in the TV. 

Xander noticed Giles and called to him from the entry.

"Hey, G-Man. How's the research going?"

Giles closed his book and looked up. "I've eliminated a number of
things... beings from consideration. But so far, no solid lead on what
it might be." Giles stood and stretched. He removed his glasses and
rubbed the bridge of his nose. "And how was your day?"

"The school is looking good. It's almost finished and ready to help us
relive our favorite nightmares from Hellmouth High. Buffy already had
some excitement. Someone sent a couple ghosts to attack her."

Giles walked around the table and toward the family room. "They say you
can never go home again, but it's comforting to know nothing ever
really changes in Sunnydale."

Xander laughed and shook his head.

"I need some tea. Would you care for some?" Giles passed Xander and
headed toward the kitchen.

"Tea? Gee, thanks, but I think I'll have anything else. But you go
ahead and enjoy your tea." Xander followed him, but as he entered the
living room, he noticed the TV was on. He froze in his tracks. "What is
he doing here?" Xander yelled into the kitchen.

Spike dropped the remote and curled in on himself as Xander stalked
forward.

Buffy dashed out of the kitchen. Spike had been so quiet, sitting on
the corner of the sofa, she hadn't realized he was there.

"You don't belong here, Spike. Find a blanket and haul your undead ass
out of here!"

Spike offered no resistance as the verbal assault continued.

Xander was preparing to say more when Buffy caught his arm and whirled
him around to face her. "Xander, this is my house. Mine. I decide who
is welcome here." 

Xander stared at her in disbelief. Spike took the opportunity to dash
from the couch to the basement.

She let go of Xander's arm. "Spike is staying in the basement until he
feels better. He's helping me watch out for Dawn in case the new big
bad comes after her." She tacked on the last as an after thought.

Xander backed up and tried to gather his thoughts. "Ok, where to begin
on the wrongness of this. How about starting with, 'That's not the
basement' and heading straight on to - 'why?'"

"Come with me." Buffy grabbed his arm again and dragged him into the
kitchen. Xander opened his mouth, but Buffy put her hand up to silence
him. "Don't. Just don't, Xander. Take a moment and think, before you
say something you'll regret."

Xander tried to control himself. "Ok, I'm thinking. It's not helping,
but I'm thinking." He shook his head in mock confusion. "Why isn't it
helping? Oh, that's right, it's because he's a vampire. There was a
time when we used to kill them."

Buffy took a deep breath and tried not to think of strangling Xander.
"You didn't turn your back on Willow when she tried to destroy every
human being on the planet. This is no different."

Xander's eyes narrowed. His voice was cold and harsh. "Willow didn't
try to rape me."

Buffy slammed her hand down on the counter, stunning them all. She
invaded Xander's personal space, standing almost nose to nose with him.
"Xander, I - never - want - you - to - say - that - again. You have no
idea what went on between the two of us, and you have no right to
judge."

Xander brought his hands up in frustration. "I saw the bruises, Buffy."

"Do you remember the bruises on him at my birthday party?"

Xander smiled, "Ya, looked like he crossed some demon and it used him
as a punching bag."

"It wasn't a demon. And he didn't cross me. He was trying to protect me
when the nerd trio made me think I'd killed Katrina. He tried to stop
me from turning myself in, and that was how I thanked him." Buffy
looked away when she saw the look of shock and horror on Xander's face.

Giles had been listening silently, filling the teapot at the sink. The
water was now flowing over the top and into the sink, but he hadn't
noticed. He finally set the pot down and turned off the water. Without
saying a word, he took a seat next to Dawn at the counter. She was
concerned, but didn't look surprised, unlike the two men.

Buffy began speaking again quietly. "What Spike did was wrong. I know
that." She looked up and met Xander's eyes. "But it was nothing I
hadn't done to him, and worse. Xander, I used him and when he couldn't
take it anymore, he snapped. And then he felt so horrible that he left
town." Buffy pleaded with him to understand. "He has a soul now, and
it's killing him."

Xander had let her speak. He bit his tongue and listened quietly. When
she got to the part about the soul, he shook his head. The anger in his
face was replaced by concern. He laid a hand on her shoulder. "Buffy,
there's a term for this, it's called the Stockholm syndrome. It's like
when hostages begin to sympathize with their captors."

"Ok, then explain why we're all still friends? Willow tried to kill us.
And how about Anya? How many people did she kill? What about me, when I
tried to kill all of you? While you're at it, explain to me how people
dying because you summoned a song and dance demon is different?"

Xander gaped at her. "That was an accident. What Spike did was
intentional."

Buffy pushed away from him and glared. She took down a mug from the
cupboard and started toward the fridge, but paused as Xander began
ranting again.

Xander looked over at the others. "Giles, say something to her. Explain
it."

Giles sighed and looked at the two of them. Xander looked confident he
would agree with him. Buffy on the other hand was trying to look
confident, but he saw how frightened she was that he would disapprove.
He knew a little about Buffy and Spike's relationship. Enough to know
it was complicated beyond the norm. "Xander, Buffy is an adult, and
capable of making her own decisions."

Xander's mouth fell open. "You can't be serious!"

Before Giles could reply Buffy interrupted. "Xander, I'm serious. We
have always helped anyone who wanted to change, like Willow, Anya, and
Angel, but you're not listening to me, so let me draw you a picture." 

Buffy grabbed a packet of blood and a knife and tossed them on the
counter by the mug. "Vampires need blood to live, and it helps them to
heal. The more blood, the faster they heal. And human blood like this
is just about the best thing for them." She tossed another packet to
Xander. "But there's one thing that is better." 

She picked up the knife, and before anyone could move she slashed her
forearm and held it over the mug. Her blood poured into it at a
frightening rate. 

Giles stood and stared at her, but made no move to interfere. Xander
just opened and shut his mouth like a fish on dry land. Dawn was calmer
than the other two, but she was freaked out as well.

Buffy looked back at Xander. "This - is how serious I am."

The mug was starting to fill, and the flow of blood had only slowed a
little. Buffy looked at it and wondered if had been such a great idea
after all. "Dawn, would you grab another cup for me? And Xander, if you
really want to help, why don't you go grab the first aid kit?"

Xander stared at her for another moment, then he realized what she had
asked for and dashed out of the kitchen. 

Dawn gave her a second mug. Buffy moved her arm over it when the first
had filled. 

Giles came over and observed Buffy as she stood watching the blood flow
from her arm. "Is it slowing?"

She lifted her arm a few inches. "Yes. This cup is filling much
slower." She sheepishly turned to look at Giles. "I guess this isn't
the best plan I've ever had. In fact planning maybe would have been
good."

Giles smiled at her. "You are impetuous, and patience has never been
your strong suit." Giles reached over and put a hand on her shoulder to
comfort her. "However, your instincts are usually right."

"You're not mad at me," she whispered.

"Oh, Buffy." He pulled her closer and hugged her as well as he could
without disturbing her arm. "I'm concerned, but you're doing what you
believe is right. How could I be angry with you?"

Buffy nodded.

Xander returned. He set the first aid kit on the table and fumbled to
open it. "Uh, what do you need first? We have gauze, tape...
band-aids?"

Buffy lifted her arm, the blood had slowed, and the wound was already
starting to heal. Xander handed her a gauze pad and she pressed it
against the cut. After a minute Giles helped her wrap it. "Good as
new." She said with a forced lightness in her voice. "Thanks guys."

Giles cleared his throat. "Buffy, I had some difficulty getting Spike
to eat earlier."

Buffy nodded at Giles before picking up the cups and heading
downstairs.

~*~*~

TBC...