Fic: Coming Apart (5/?) (Severe Spoiler Warning)

["buffythebushkangaroo" <buffythebushkangaroo@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Severe Spoiler Warning.

(Spoilers for episodes:

17 - Normal Again.
18 - Entropy
19 - Seeing Red
20 - Villains

You have been warned.)

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For Carol, who seems to like this!

(I know its only a dribble each day, but I really am snowed under 
with work!)

Anne-Lise.

--

Buffy lay awake staring at the ceiling. Never in her wildest dreams 
could she have imagined doing *this* with Willow. For the first time 
since her return, she'd felt like she'd truly touched on heaven. She 
smiled down at Willow's sleeping face. Funny, she mused, she was 
actually looking forward to telling her friends all about this; 
unlike her previous relationship with Spike which'd all sort of 
tumbled out when she'd felt reality slip away...
She stroked Willow's red hair dreamily. With her Slayer's senses, 
she felt a presence outside the door. She climbed out of bed 
carefully, so as not to disturb Willow, and grabbed a stray axe that 
lay askew on the bedroom floor. Slowly, she crept towards the bedroom 
door.
She raised the axe and quickly flung open the door. Dawn stared 
back, a horrified expression on her face.
Buffy lowered the axe.

*

"I've come to rid you of all those little gremlins running under 
your skin," Drusilla claimed.
Spike raised an eyebrow. "Oh yes, love? And how're you going to do 
that, exactly?"
Drusilla starting prodding Spike with each syllable. "By killing 
your Slayer!"
"Well," Spike replied. "You've certainly grabbed my attention." He 
looked down at Drusilla's hands. "Yeah... Um... That's not my 
attention, Dru." Spike closed his eyes. "Oh, bugger it."

*

Quentin sighed, swirling his glass thoughtfully. The stewardess had 
seemed pretty reluctant to top it up, but he'd poured on the British 
charm and she'd finally acquiesced. He made a mental note to report 
her to the airline. She should've known better.
He glanced quickly over at Rupert who was by now snoring gently. 
The little brat in the seat on his other side must have worn the poor 
man out. No wonder he wasn't able to cut it as Buffy's watcher. 
Still... The girl'd somehow survived her ordeal. He wasn't sure he 
believed the 'back from the grave' rubbish. No-one ever came back, 
that was the whole point; At least, not without being somewhat 
changed by the process. Dead was dead. Religions had formed around 
the few inconsistencies that'd cropped up... He wasn't sure a Cult of 
Buffy was in anyone's interest. After all, imagine what a crazed 
group of martial-arts-schoolgirl fans would be like. He both 
shuddered and winced at the thought.
What to do? Well... He'd play it by ear, this time. After all, this 
girl *had* defeated a Goddess. The least he could do was hear the 
poor delusional girl out.
Even if she wasn't quite sane.

*

"Buffy? Are you *insane*?" Dawn stared wide-eyed at her sister as 
she put down the axe.
Buffy winced. "I'm sorry. I just heard a noise."
"I... I tried to be quiet." Dawn stared at the floor.
"How long were you standing there?" Buffy asked with a pang of 
anxiety.
"Long enough," she admitted, fixing Buffy with a furious glare.
"Oh..." Buffy thought furiously. "Do you wanna go down and grab some 
coffee?"
Dawn nodded. "Oh... Okay."

*

"So," Spike said as he lay under the frayed rug. "Tell me about this 
great plan of yours."
Drusilla's laugh bubbled up. She took a box out from beside her 
purse. "I got this when I was away," she said. "On my journey..."
"In LA?" Spike rolled his eyes. "Not all that much of a journey," he 
commented. He opened the box and stared. "You know," he 
commented. "This might just work."
He started to laugh. "Bloody hell," he laughed harder still. "Its 
genius! So simple..."
"And shiny!" Dru added as she fondled the gun. "It sings to me," she 
sighed.

*

Buffy sat opposite Dawn in the kitchen as they hugged their coffee 
mugs. They still had to be quiet, with Xander sleeping on the couch 
in the next room.
"I know this must seem really weird," Buffy began.
"No..." Dawn jumped in before Buffy could continue on that 
line. "You've always loved Willow." She smiled at her sister. "I just 
wondered how long you'd keep beating yourself up... and chasing after 
every guy who'd dare come near you until you realised it."
Buffy realised her mouth was wide open, so she closed it.
"You knew? How? I didn't even..."
Dawn giggled, glad to finally have the upper hand over her uptight 
sis. "I'm *you* remember?" She tilted her head. "Well, partly."
Buffy frowned. "You're not...?"
"Well, yeah..." Dawn blushed. "But not with Willow."
Buffy gasped. "Janice? I know you've been staying over there a lot, 
and..."
"No, not Janice." Dawn studied the table. "Janice was just covering 
for me..."
Buffy frowned, deciding now was not the time for recriminations and 
lectures.
Dawn sighed. "I've been spending a lot of time with Tara," she 
admitted.
Buffy's mouth opened again.

*

End Part 5.