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 46: Target Practice

Spike knew that something was up. The last few times he’d been out on patrol, he’d been inexplicably joined by a soldier, and sometimes two or three. What was even stranger was that Buffy didn’t seem to mind. In the past, when they’d run into the soldiers, they’d said hello and then goodbye almost immediately.

During the last few weeks, however, Graham or one of the others would nearly always show up, and then stick close. It was decidedly odd, and Spike was certain that Buffy was behind it.

When they bid goodnight and a merry Christmas to Graham on patrol one night, Spike was ready to say something. “Alright, what’s goin’ on, Buffy?”

“What are you talking about?” she asked innocently. He could tell from her tone of voice that she was hiding something, though.

He raised an eyebrow to show her that he wasn’t fooled. “I’m talkin’ about the fact that I can’t step out my door without one of the soldiers being there. I might be paranoid, but they’ve been pretty friendly.”

“I thought you and Graham were friends,” Buffy said, still trying to sound as though she didn’t know what he was talking about.

Spike snorted. “Please, luv. Give me some credit.”

She sighed. “Fine. I asked him to keep a lookout for you. I want to keep you safe.”

He reminded himself that she’d had the best of intentions, and that the soldiers hanging about hadn’t done any harm. “An’ you don’t think you should have mentioned this to me?”

“You would have been angry.”

“Angrier than I am right now?”

She looked like a kid who’d been caught with her hand in the cookie jar; Spike thought it was adorable. “I’d hoped you wouldn’t notice.”

That was his Slayer—the Queen of Denial. She gave ostriches a bad name. In this case, however, he couldn’t exactly blame her, especially since he probably would have done the same thing in her shoes. “I’m not angry, pet. I just wish you’d let me know.”

Buffy shook her head. “I don’t know how to do this, Spike.”

“How to do what?”

“How to be with you, and keep Glory off our trail, and all of the rest of it. The knights are going to be showing up soon, although we probably won’t have to worry about the Council this time, and Glory is still an issue—”

Spike stopped her lips with a kiss, knowing by now that it was the simplest maneuver. As he deepened their embrace, he felt the approach of a number of vampires, and he knew that they were in trouble.

Not wanting to give away the fact that he knew they were being watched, Spike broke off the kiss only to trail kisses down her neck, pausing to whisper in her ear, “We’re not alone.”

“I know.”

He felt the tension in her body and knew that she was ready for a fight. Her hands gripped his shoulders in a brief warning and then they broke apart from each other with a suddenness that startled their attackers.

The moment of surprise was all they needed to press their advantage and avoid being overwhelmed. Buffy staked two in short order, and went after a third. Spike had his hands full with another four, and he noticed that the Slayer’s opponent seemed more interested in keeping her busy than in killing her.

One of the vampires managed to grab his right arm, keeping it immobile, and Spike knew that if he didn’t break free soon, things were going to get very ugly. Suddenly, the vampire hanging onto him dusted, and he could just make out the crossbow bolt that had struck it in the heart.

Spike dusted another, and the other two dusted one after another. His mysterious benefactor was revealed a moment later when Oz and Willow stepped out of the shadows.

“Good thing we heard the commotion,” Willow said as Buffy staked the last vamp.

Spike shrugged. “I had it taken care of.”

Willow appeared skeptical, as did Oz, although his expression didn’t change much. “Sure you did, sweetie,” Buffy said. “You know, we may want to start patrolling in larger groups if this is going to be a regular occurrence.”

“Or you could let me go by myself so no one else was in danger,” Spike suggested, not thinking for a moment that she’d let him get away with it.

He wasn’t disappointed. “Over my dead body,” Buffy announced.

“We could start patrolling in larger groups,” Willow pointed out. “In fact, it’s probably a good idea, since it would help us fight as a team. We might need the practice.”

Buffy nodded. “We probably will. Good thinking, Willow.”

“I can even work out a rotation,” she offered, sounding a little more enthusiastic than Spike would have thought anyone ever would when talking about patrolling. “With class schedules and stuff, and maybe it would be a good idea for you and Spike to have a break sometimes.”

Spike liked that idea; they hadn’t had a night off since their trip to New York, and that had been quite a while ago. “Sounds good, Red.”

“Do you want us to walk you home?” Buffy offered.

Oz raised his eyebrows. “Why don’t you let us walk you home?” he suggested. “That might be safer.”

Unfortunately, he was probably right. Sunnydale wasn’t safe for either the Slayer or her tame vampire these days, and Spike knew it.

~~~~~

“Mom? Is everything okay?”

Joyce looked up and smiled, but Dawn didn’t find the expression very reassuring. She’d seemed sad a lot lately, but she didn’t understand why. “I’m fine, sweetie.”

“No, you’re not,” Dawn said. “You’re worried.”

“I’m not worried.”

“But you’re not okay.” Dawn leaped to the first conclusion that came to her mind. “Is Giles being stupid?”

“Rupert is not being stupid,” Joyce said quickly. “It has nothing to do with him.”

“Then what is it?”

Joyce leaned back in her chair. She’d been in the kitchen, working on bills and paperwork when Dawn had come downstairs for a drink. Now that her mom was a lot better, Buffy was spending most of her nights with Spike. Dawn would never admit it, but she kind of missed having her sister around.

Although she missed Spike more.

“Do you miss your father?” Joyce asked.

Dawn sat down at the kitchen table, surprised at the question. Her dad was one of those things they never talked about, maybe because it hurt too much. She thought it might hurt Buffy more than her, though; Buffy had always been closer to their father, while she’d always been closer to their mom.

“Not really,” she finally admitted. “I can’t really even remember when he was around, and I think Buffy—” Dawn stopped, not wanting to say that she thought Buffy remembered the times when their parents weren’t fighting better than she did.

Of course, she remembered crying for a week after their dad had finally left because it had hurt, and it meant that everything was changing, and it was scary. Now, though, it didn’t seem like such a big deal, because their lives didn’t really have room for him.

If anything, Joyce looked both relieved and more upset; Dawn hadn’t known you could get those kinds of emotions into one facial expression, all at the same time.

“It’s okay, Mom,” she said, wanting to reassure her.

Joyce sighed. “No, it’s not, but thank you for saying that.”

“Buffy hasn’t asked about him, has she?” Dawn asked, wondering what had brought this up. Really, no one ever mentioned Hank Summers if they could avoid it.

Joyce shook her head. “No. I just—I thought he might call for Christmas.”

“He always sends presents.” Dawn didn’t need to point out that the previous year he’d sent them both a check inside a nondescript Christmas card that wished them a “Merry Christmas,” with nothing more to personalize it than a “Love, Dad.”

Buffy hadn’t said anything about it, although Spike had made a sarcastic comment about nominating him for Father of the Year.

Not that Dawn had actually been there; she knew she hadn’t been, but she remembered the scene as though she had.

She wasn’t sure what it said for life on the Hellmouth that knowing she hadn’t existed in human form until recently no longer freaked her out.

“He did this year, too,” Joyce said, pulling out an envelope from the pile of opened mail and passing it to her.

Dawn opened it, somehow unsurprised when she saw the card. It was slightly different than the one she recalled from the previous year, but not by much. He’d even signed it the same way; Dawn supposed they should be grateful that he’d included two checks, instead of one to be split later between them.

She didn’t mind the money, but she knew that Buffy would; her sister thought of it as an easy out, a way for him to give gifts without finding out what they liked—or were like—these days.

Maybe the monks had done something to make it easier for her to accept that her dad was gone and wasn’t coming back.

“It’s okay, Mom,” Dawn said. “It’s his loss, right? And Giles and Spike will be around for Christmas this year, so it’s not a big deal.”

It was, of course—a big deal. On the other hand, it was a normal problem to have. Dawn knew half a dozen other kids from school with a parent who’d gone M.I.A. It was one of the few problems in her life that she could tell other kids about and have them understand.

She just wanted to fit in, which is why she asked her next question. “Can I go to the Bronze tomorrow with Janice?”

“Alone?” Joyce asked.

“No, with friends,” Dawn replied patiently. “It’s an all-ages thing. Everybody I know is going, and it’s not a school night.”

“I don’t think it’s safe,” her mom replied. “Not unless your sister goes with you.”

Dawn didn’t bother to point out that if Buffy came with her, that would defeat the entire purpose of the evening, which was to act like a normal kid for a change. “I just want a normal night,” Dawn pled. “Buffy got to go to the Bronze when she was my age.”

“No, Buffy was older,” Joyce said firmly. “And she didn’t have a Hellgod after her, that I knew about.”

“But—”

“No.”

It was said in such a way as to let Dawn know that there weren’t any other options. “Fine.” As she stomped upstairs, she couldn’t help but think that life just wasn’t fair. No one else she knew had to deal with a Slayer for a big sister, and not being able to go out because of a Hellgod.

Just like no one else she knew had had a mom who was sick. None of it was fair at all.

~~~~~

“So, what do you want for Christmas?” Buffy asked.

Spike raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t you leavin’ this ‘til last minute?”

“You haven’t done yours yet,” Buffy said.

“Yeah, I did. Got it done a month ago.”

Buffy stared at him. “Really?”

“Yeah.” He smirked. “The ring came in handy for something.”

“You got all your shopping done?”

“Your mum, Dawn, Giles, you.” He grinned at her. “I even got somethin’ for Harris an’ his girl.”

Buffy frowned, looking around his bedroom. “But where did you put it all? I would have noticed!”

“You’re in class on occasion,” Spike pointed out.

“But where did you put it all?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?”

Buffy moved quickly to straddle his waist, deciding that his superior attitude was annoying her. “I would like to know, actually.”

“Don’t think I should tell you. Surprises are nice.”

Buffy’s eyes narrowed, and she decided to find out whether vampires were ticklish; turned out that they were.

Spike was soon laughing helplessly and pleading with her to stop. “I’ll tell you!”

She paused. “Where did you put them?”

The moment’s pause was all he needed to flip them both, ending up on top and threading her fingers with his to keep her hands still. “That’s for me to know, an’ you not to know.”

Buffy giggled as he nuzzled the side of her neck. “You couldn’t tell me where you put them?”

“You’d sneak around an’ poke at them,” Spike replied.

Her reply was cut off by the ringing of the phone. With a stern look at her, Spike picked up the phone. “Yeah?”

Buffy couldn’t hear the voice on the other end, but she saw the expression on his face. “We’ll be there as soon as possible.”

“Who was it?”

“Your mum. She said Dawn’s gone missing.”

Spike was already out of bed and pulling on his pants, and Buffy wasn’t too far behind. “Why would she go missing?” She looked at the clock. “It’s after eleven! There’s no reason for her to be out of her bed, let alone out of the house.”

“You’re tellin’ me,” Spike said. “I made her promise to be careful, an’ this is what she does.”

Buffy was still stuck on the idea that Dawn had snuck out of the house when she knew very well that she was in danger. “She knows she’s the Key; she seemed to be okay with it. Where else would she go?”

“Seems your mum figured it out because Janice was gone, too. Her mum called Joyce, an’ then Joyce checked Dawn’s bed. It was probably some idiot stunt they were doin’ to be cool.”

“Shit.” Buffy yanked her boots on with more force than was necessary. “I’m going to kill her.”

Spike’s eyes were sparking with anger. “Not if I get there first.”

~~~~~

Dawn knew this wasn’t a good idea, but it was all-ages night at the Bronze, and Janice had wanted to go. When their parents had said no, Janice had come up with the bright idea of sneaking out, and she hadn’t wanted to look like a coward.

Besides, nobody ever let her do anything these days. Dawn knew that Buffy was out saving the world when she was fourteen. Well, maybe fifteen, but what was one year?

What she hadn’t counted on was how scary it was, walking by herself after she and Janice split ways. It was dark, and the street lamps didn’t give off nearly enough light. She wrapped her arms around herself, put her head down, and walked as quickly as she could.

Suddenly, a strong hand clamped around her arm, pulling her into an alley. Dawn let out a little shriek that was quickly stifled by another hand. “Ssshhh,” came the hiss in her ear. “You’re being followed.”

He kept his hand over her mouth, so Dawn didn’t have much choice about remaining quiet. A minute or so later, she saw a gang of vampires walking down the street. At least, she thought they were vampires. There was something about their manner that alerted her to the fact that they probably weren’t entirely human.

The man turned her so that she could see his face, and she recognized Graham, one of her sister’s friends. “If I take my hand away, do you promise not to scream?”

Dawn nodded, gulping in the air once he’d pulled back.

“You’re Buffy’s little sister,” he said. “Dawn.”

“You’re Graham.”

He looked really stern. “You shouldn’t be out alone after dark, you or your friend. It’s too dangerous.”

Dawn remembered Janice with a sense of fear. “Is she okay? Did you see her?”

“The other guy I was with followed her home,” he said. “And now I’m going to walk you back.”

She knew that he wasn’t going to give her a choice, but she really didn’t want to see her mom’s face when they showed up at the front door. “Yeah, okay.”

Dawn knew that Graham didn’t need directions to her house; he’d been there for Thanksgiving. After a few minutes, he asked, “What were you doing out tonight?”

“The Bronze had a thing, and Mom wouldn’t let me go.”

“Was it your idea, or your friend’s?”

“Hers.”

“Didn’t want to look lame?”

“Yeah.” She wondered how he’d guessed.

As though he’d read her mind, Graham offered, “My younger brother followed me out one time. I was going to a party I didn’t want my parents to know about, so I had to sneak him back in.”

“How many brothers do you have?”

“Two, and one younger sister.”

“You’re the oldest?”

“It’s tougher than you think,” he replied. “Your parents expect you to be the responsible one.”

Dawn made a face. “Buffy gets to do anything she wants to.”

“Buffy’s also out risking her life every night,” he pointed out reasonably.

She didn’t want to be reasonable, but she had to admit that the soldier had a point.

They walked the rest of the way to her house in silence, and once they arrived, he walked up to the front door and rang the bell. Dawn noticed that he was keeping an eye on her, as though he half-expected her to run away from him.

The door opened, and Giles stood there, his eyes taking in both her and her escort. “Come inside, Dawn,” he said. “Your mother’s been worried.”

Dawn gulped. Her mom was in the living room, sitting on the couch, and she knew immediately that she’d made a big mistake, even bigger than she’d thought.

“Mom—”

“Where have you been?” Joyce demanded. “I’ve been worried sick about you. Janice’s mom called me to find out if you knew where her daughter was. How could you do this to me?” She looked past Dawn. “Oh, Graham. Thank you so much for bringing her home.”

“It’s my pleasure, Mrs. Summers.” He nodded. “I should get going. I hadn’t finished patrol yet.”

At her mother’s look, Dawn murmured a thank you of her own, and he smiled, then left.

“I’ll call Spike and let the rest of them know that we found her,” Giles announced as he left them alone.

“I’m really sorry,” Dawn blurted out.

Joyce frowned. “You’d better be, young lady.”

“I just wanted to go out with my friends, like a normal kid!” Dawn said, the unfairness of it all bursting out of her.

Joyce wasn’t moved. “You’re not a ‘normal kid,’ Dawn. You’re special, and that means that for right now you have to be more careful.”

“Just because Buffy is the Slayer,” Dawn muttered.

Her mom fixed her with a glare. “Your sister is not at fault in this. You’re the one who chose to sneak out, and you’re the one who’s going to be grounded. For a week.”

Dawn’s eyes widened. “But it’s Christmas vacation!”

Joyce smiled grimly. “You probably should have thought about that before you snuck out. Now, go up to your room, and stay there.”

Dawn did as she was told, brushing past Giles as he entered the living room. She had to admit that her mom had a point, but she still didn’t think it was fair. Nothing in her life was fair.

~~~~~

“Thank you for letting us know, Giles,” Mairead said just before hanging up the phone. “Graham brought her home,” she announced for the benefit of the others.

Willow grimaced. “I would not want to be Dawn when Buffy gets done with her.”

“I’d be more worried about Joyce,” Oz observed. “Moms are tough.”

“She did hit Spike over the head with an ax when he attacked Buffy,” Willow agreed.

Tara frowned. “When was that?”

“Oh, when he was evil,” Willow said, waving a hand. “He took a gang of vampires and attacked the school on parent-teacher night. He was going to kill Buffy, but Joyce stopped him.”

Mairead was fascinated. “Then you knew him when he was evil?”

“Oh, yeah,” Willow said. “And he was really evil. He kidnapped Xander and me and threatened me with a broken bottle if I didn’t cast a love spell for him and Drusilla.”

“Who’s Drusilla?” she asked.

Willow frowned. “Haven’t you ever heard the whole story?”

Mairead shook her head, and Tara echoed her movement. “We’ve heard parts,” Tara said, “but Spike was always so nice to me that I didn’t really ever think of him as being evil.”

Willow snuggled up next to Oz on the couch. “Well, I’d be happy to tell the story if you’re interested.”

“It would be interesting,” Mairead admitted. “He seems so nice.”

“He is!” Willow was quick to say. “Really nice. Now. Xander could back me up on this, but I’m not sure that Buffy likes to talk about it.”

“It makes sense,” Tara observed. “They’re really close.”

“Way closer than she ever was with Angel,” Willow agreed.

Mairead stroked her girlfriend’s hair as she leaned back against her on the loveseat. “I keep wondering if there’s anything we should be doing,” she admitted.

Willow shook her head. “I already asked Buffy about that. She said we were already doing it with the patrols.”

“There’s not much else, I don’t think,” Tara said.

“Unless you could either get rid of Glory or the entire vampire population of Sunnydale,” Oz agreed.

Silence fell as they all considered—and discarded—that possibility. “It would be one heck of a Christmas present,” Tara said wistfully.

Mairead only wished that it were possible.