Fix You by Enigmaticblue

Summary: Desperate times call for desperate measures where the First is involved. In order to prevent the end of the world, Buffy asks Willow to do a spell that's supposed to fix everything, and Spike goes along for the ride.

Chapter 36: Hey, Little Sister

Joyce winced, putting a hand to her head. This was the second headache this week, and while she’d been certain that it was nothing, she was beginning to wonder. Particularly given what Buffy had told her about the possible future.

“Have you made an appointment to go to the doctor yet?” Spike asked.

She stiffened. “Spike? I didn’t hear you come in.”

“Have you?” he pressed, undeterred.

She sighed. “It could be nothing.”

“An’ we both know that it’s not.” He put his hands on her shoulders, steering her to a seat. “If you don’t call, I will.”

“I don’t want Buffy to know,” Joyce said quietly. “I don’t want her to worry.”

“Too late for that,” he replied sympathetically, taking up her station at the kitchen sink. “She’s been worried about you for months now, knowin’ what was likely to come.”

She watched him through half-closed eyes as he finished rinsing the supper dishes and put them in the dishwasher. His movements were quick and sure, as though he was perfectly at ease in her kitchen, cleaning up. “Where is Buffy?”

“At her Watcher’s. She told me to meet the two of you here this evening.” He smiled, and Joyce realized that he still wasn’t certain of his welcome. “Hope you don’t mind me bein’ here.”

“You are always welcome here, Spike,” Joyce said firmly.

The light in his eyes was warm. “Thanks. You still haven’t told me when you’re goin’ to make that appointment.”

She sighed, knowing that he was right. This wasn’t something that could be put off, for Buffy’s sake if not for her own. “It’s Sunday. I’ll call tomorrow.”

“Promise?”

“I promise.” She gave him what she knew was a pleading look. “You won’t tell Buffy?”

He shook his head slowly, unhappy with her request. “No, but only because it’s not mine to tell. You’ve got to insist on the tests, though, Joyce. They’ll likely try to put you off; I know it took them awhile the last time to find it, but—”

“There isn’t the time?” she asked softly. The thought of her own death, pressing ever closer, frightened her. Joyce hadn’t wanted to believe that the headaches were harbingers of things to come; it was easier to ignore them, to pretend that Buffy had been wrong, or that it would be different this time.

She couldn’t die; she was too young, and Buffy still needed her.

Joyce wondered if the same attitude had led her to ignore the problem the first time, waiting until she had no choice but to address the issue.

“It’s gonna be fine,” Spike said softly, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Joyce had no choice but to believe him. “Thank you.”

“So, what movies are we watchin’ to night?” Spike asked, deliberately changing the subject as he finished putting the dishes away.

“I’m afraid that all I got were chick flicks,” she apologized. “I didn’t know you’d be here.”

Spike shrugged. “As long as it doesn’t get out, I think I’ll survive.”

“Your secret is safe with me,” Joyce assured him.

He gave her a quick grin, then froze, his head tilted to the side as though listening for something.

“Is everything okay?” Joyce asked.

“Yeah, it’s just—”

“Mom!” Dawn came bounding into the kitchen, skidding to a stop when she saw Spike standing there. “Oh, hey, Spike.”

A soft smile curved Spike’s lips. “H’lo, Bit. Where’ve you been hidin’?”

“I was upstairs reading,” she replied. “I would have come down if I’d known you were here.” She pouted prettily. “You haven’t been around much lately.”

“I’ll have to make it up to you somehow,” he responded.

Joyce shook her head. It was clear—to her, at least—that Dawn had a crush on the vampire. She remembered feeling the same way about one of her sister’s boyfriends; it was natural in a girl of Dawn’s age. “What did you need, sweetheart?”

“I wanted to know if we could go to the library tomorrow,” Dawn said. “And we have to get my school supplies.”

“Maybe Buffy could take you,” Joyce suggested. “I don’t think I’m going to have time before school starts.”

Dawn turned hopeful eyes to Spike. “Or Spike could take me.”

His lips twitched, and Joyce thanked her lucky stars that Spike was so gracious about Dawn’s presence, and her attempts to spend as much time with him as possible. “We’ll see, Bit.”

“Mom?” Buffy called.

“In the kitchen, sweetheart,” Joyce said, raising her voice. She was a little surprised when Buffy stopped in her tracks to stare at Dawn. “Is everything okay, Buffy?”

“Huh?” She shook herself. “Yeah, it’s fine.”

“Would you mind taking your sister school shopping tomorrow?” Joyce asked.

“With Spike,” Dawn inserted.

Buffy sighed and shook her head, muttering something that sounded like, “Some things never change.” Then, more loudly, she said, “Sure, Mom. It’s no problem.”

“Good. Why don’t you go pick out a movie to watch first?” Joyce suggested, watching as Dawn followed Buffy into the living room, to ensure that she got to put in her two cents. “Is everything okay?” she asked Spike, who had stayed behind.

Spike nodded. “Yeah. Why wouldn’t it be?”

“You looked like—” Joyce stopped, unsure of how to describe his expression. “You looked a little uncomfortable for a minute.”

He shook his head. “’m fine. Just had a question answered, is all.”

“Was the answer what you expected?”

“Think it might turn out to be better.” With that, Spike followed the girls into the living room, and Joyce stood wearily, reminding herself to follow Spike’s advice and make an appointment to see the doctor.

She had so much to live for.

~~~~

Buffy waited until they had left the house and were on the way back to his apartment before she asked. “Did you feel it when it happened, too?”

Spike nodded. “I did. Felt bloody weird, too. Like someone was tryin’ to rearrange my memories.”

She let out a sigh of relief. “I’m just glad we both still remember, and that Dawn is here.” Smiling wryly, Buffy added, “I really didn’t think I’d miss her this much.”

“I knew you would.”

She gave him a sly look. “I see she still has a crush on you.”

“Still?” Spike queried.

She snorted in reply. “You can’t tell me you didn’t know.”

He shrugged uncomfortably. “Think she was a bit fascinated with the vampire thing, like havin’ her own private monster in the closet she didn’t have to fear.”

Shaking her head at his obtuseness, Buffy said, “She had a crush on you, Spike. And she knew that you had a crush on me, too. She was the one who told me how you felt.”

“Wasn’t a crush.” He could still remember how it felt, the desperate hope that she would one day return his feelings—or at the very least that she wouldn’t hate him. The love he’d felt for her then paled in comparison to how he now felt, but it had still been love. There was no question about that.

Hearing her call it a crush now reminded Spike of the months she’d spent denying his love.

“No, I guess it wasn’t.” Buffy’s hand slipped into his, and they walked along in silence for a while. “I love you.”

“I know you do, pet.”

“Glory is going to show up soon.”

“I know it.”

“What about Harmony?”

“What about her?”

“Do you think she’ll try to kidnap Dawn again?”

Spike snorted. “She could try.” He frowned, trying to remember how things had happened the last time. He hadn’t seen Harmony until after she had tried to kidnap the Slayer’s sister, when she’d insisted that Buffy was after her skin. “She’ll probably try.”

“Do you want to go hunting?” Buffy asked suddenly. “I know it’s late, but I need—”

Spike knew exactly what she needed. He understood the desire to do something, especially when there was so little within their ability to control. “Yeah, let’s go.”

This time, at least, they had one another. That was something.

~~~~~

Dawn knew something was wrong. Buffy was being entirely too nice to her; she hadn’t even minded taking her shopping for school things. “Is somebody dying?” Dawn demanded the next day when Buffy showed up at the house unexpectedly and suggested that they get lunch.

Buffy had explained that Spike was busy with work, and her classes hadn’t started yet, but Dawn didn’t trust this new friendliness on her sister’s part. Buffy usually treated her like a nuisance, but Dawn still tried to spend as much time with her as possible, even though she knew Buffy thought of her as a pest. It was just part of being sisters.

This was new.

“What?” Buffy demanded, her expression telling Dawn that she might be closer to the mark than previously anticipated.

“Oh, no. Somebody really is dying. Who is it?” Dawn demanded. “You have to tell me, Buffy. I’m not a kid anymore. You can tell me these things.”

“No one’s dying,” Buffy snapped. “And you are too a kid.” For a moment, she sounded like her old self. “What makes you think that?”

“You’re being really nice,” Dawn pointed out. “And you and Spike took me shopping. You never let me hang out with you guys.”

Dawn didn’t understand why Buffy was suddenly blinking back tears. It wasn’t like she’d said anything to hurt Buffy’s feelings.

“There’s a lot going on right now,” Buffy replied vaguely. “I wanted to spend time with you.”

Now Dawn knew that something was wrong. Buffy never, ever wanted to spend time with her, although the nonspecific answer sounded a lot like Slayer stuff. “Are you dying?”

Buffy sighed. “No one’s dying, Dawnie. Can we drop it now? Please?”

“You’ve been acting different,” Dawn said stubbornly. “I want to know why.”

Buffy rubbed her eyes wearily. “I’ll tell you when you’re older.”

That really sounded like the old Buffy. “I want to know now.”

“Well, tough. We don’t always get what we want,” Buffy shot back.

Dawn heard the sound of a throat being cleared behind them. “Buffy?”

She turned to see a blond man who looked to be a few years older than Buffy standing behind them. He looked a little wary, as though he wasn’t sure what he was interrupting, or even if he should be interrupting.

“Hey, Graham,” Buffy said. “We haven’t seen you for a while.”

“I’ve been getting things settled,” Graham replied. “I wanted to talk to you.” He glanced at Dawn. “About that thing.”

Dawn saw the look Buffy gave her—the one that said, “Not in front of my kid sister.” What she said out loud was, “Sure. Tonight? Say around nine?”

“Where?”

“The Espresso Pump?”

“Sounds good.” The man gave her another curious look, and Buffy seemed to recall that introductions were in order.

“Graham, this is my younger sister, Dawn. Dawn, this is Graham.”

“Hey,” Dawn said, trying to sound cool, and older than she was.

He nodded. “It’s nice to meet you. See you tonight, Buffy.”

“Who was that?” Dawn asked once he was gone.

“One of the Initiative soldiers,” Buffy replied absently, her mind clearly on something else.

Dawn frowned. “One of the good ones?”

“Yeah.” Buffy shook herself slightly. “Come on. I’m hungry.”

Dawn followed, still wondering what was going on with her sister. It looked like she’d have to poke around to find out.

~~~~~

Spike stepped inside the magic shop, calling out, “Hello?” Receiving no answer, he frowned, wondering where the proprietor was, since the shop was unlocked.

“Hello? Anyone here?” He stepped further inside, and the smell of death hit his nostrils. “Bloody hell,” he muttered, quickly going to the still body. “It would have to be you, wouldn’t it, Harmony?”

Spike pulled out his cell phone and quickly dialed 911. “Yeah, I’ve got an emergency at the magic shop on Main Street,” he said. “The owner’s been killed.” He went outside to wait for the paramedics, trying to remember what had happened the last time. Harmony had told him that she had a plan, and he’d laughed at her; he could recall that much.

Even now, the idea that she could actually present a threat was laughable; Dawn could probably take her.

Well, Dawn could take Harmony; her minions were something else altogether.

The ambulance rolled up, and the paramedics climbed out. “He’s inside,” Spike said. “Didn’t have a pulse when I found him.”

They nodded and took their kit inside the store just as the police began arriving. Spike sighed and steeled himself to deal with the cops. Not that it wasn’t clear what had happened; even the most clueless of Sunnydale’s finest had to be aware that exsanguinated bodies occasionally turned up.

The police questioned him almost half-heartedly, as soon as they found out the body had been drained of all blood. “Did you touch anything?” the youngest police officer asked, sounding as though he was ready to slap the cuffs on him if he had.

The older woman put a hand on her partner’s arm. “We just need to know if the scene was the same as when you entered it, Mr. Aldridge.”

“The only thing I touched was the outside door handle, and his neck to check for a pulse,” Spike assured them. “Otherwise, it’s exactly the same as when I entered.”

“Thanks for your help,” the woman said. “We’ll be in touch if we have any more questions.”

Spike doubted that there would be more questions. It was more likely to go down in the books as an unsolved murder, even though he could have told them who’d done it.

On the other hand, explaining that he’d once been intimate with the vampire who had drained the shopkeeper, and that he knew it was her because he’d come from the future—probably not the best idea.

“Mr. Aldridge?”

Spike turned to see Buffy and Dawn standing behind him. “Where did you two come from?” he asked, pausing to give the Slayer a quick kiss.

“Lunch,” Buffy replied. “I thought it might be nice, since school starts soon for both of us.”

Spike smiled at Dawn. “An’ how was lunch, Bit?”

She shrugged. “Good.” Dawn craned her neck to get a glimpse of the scene behind him. “What’s going on?”

“There was some trouble,” Spike said vaguely. “Let’s get out of their way.”

“You still haven’t answered my question,” Buffy said, sounding amused. “Why Mr. Aldridge?”

“Because I’m not usin’ my real name,” Spike said. “And no, you may not ask what it was. To be honest, if we ever tie the knot, I’d just as soon take your name as keep mine.”

The silence that immediately fell told Spike he’d said something wrong. “What?” he snapped irritably.

“You’re thinking marriage?” Buffy managed to get out.

Spike swallowed, realizing that there had probably been a better way to bring up the idea. Not that he was ready to produce a ring, but it had crossed his mind. “Yeah, well… Can we talk about this later?”

Buffy must have caught Dawn’s avid expression, because she pulled herself up short. “Yeah, sure. By the way, we’re meeting with Graham tonight.” Her look was significant. “We can have our talk after that.”

Spike hid a wince, wondering what exactly it was about marriage that Buffy would find so objectionable. He’d thought that was what women wanted—eventually, anyway. Unless, of course, her objection was to him and not to the institution.

And if that was the case, he’d much rather not know.

~~~~~

Giles felt as though he was forgetting something important. They had taken care of Dracula without too many problems; no one had been injured, although Xander’s pride had been a little bruised. Buffy had given him a rather detailed outline of the next few months, and now he couldn’t remember where he’d put his notes.

He picked up a pile of books on his desk to reveal a sheaf of papers underneath, and he breathed a sigh of relief. He’d asked Buffy and Spike to go over the events of the next few months so many times that their patience was likely running out. It was unlikely that they’d willingly tell the story even one more time.

Shuffling the papers, Giles finally located the notes he’d made on Dracula, and he scanned the page for the next event, frowning as he saw what he’d written down. “Buffy can only estimate when Dawn appears. Without any way of knowing which memories were altered, her best guess is that she showed up shortly before Glory, or the monk. Dawn’s identity must remain a secret, and she must not be told the truth, not right away.”

Giles blinked. That made no sense. “Buffy’s sister?” he murmured. “What—”

Quickly picking up the phone, he dialed Spike’s number, knowing that the vampire was likely to be with Buffy, and if he wasn’t, he would likely have the answers anyway. “Spike?”

“Yeah, Rupert. What can I do for you?”

Spike sounded distracted, and Giles hesitated for a moment before asking, “I need to speak with you or Buffy. It’s about some of the notes I took. I don’t quite understand.”

There was a pause, and Giles could hear Spike’s voice, then the voice of another. “Can it wait until tomorrow?” Spike asked, abruptly coming back on the line. “I’ve got a couple of fires to put out here.”

“Yes, if you’ll answer one question,” Giles insisted.

“Yeah, sure.”

“I have written down here that Dawn will appear, and that she is the Key. Is that—”

“That’s exactly what happened, an’ that’s all I can say right now. Buffy and I will be over tomorrow afternoon.” Spike waited a beat, then said, “I’d appreciate it if you’d check up on Joyce for me.”

The line went dead, and Giles stared at the phone for a moment, trying to decipher that last, cryptic comment. His eyes narrowing, he realized what Spike’s request likely meant, and he dialed the number for the gallery.

“Sunnydale Galleria,” her voice said pleasantly. “Joyce Summers speaking.”

“Joyce, it’s Rupert,” he said. “I was wondering if you were free for dinner tonight.”

“I’m not sure,” she replied. “I’d love to, but Dawn—” She paused, and he could hear someone else speaking in the background. “Tara just said that they could watch her.”

He smiled. “Good. Shall I pick you up at eight?”

“That would be lovely,” she replied warmly.

Giles ended the call with only a small pang of guilt, as he did have ulterior motives for the invitation that she didn’t know about. In a way, he supposed, he was ambushing her, but it was only because he cared, and he didn’t want anything to happen to her.

With any luck, she’d see it that way, too.