And Make a Lost World Thy Home: Chapter Three

[jesterladyfic]

Chapter Three

Veronica managed to clear her schedule even further after speaking with Buffy and letting Logan know Buffy was coming. She called Mac and told her what was going on and was relieved when Mac said she’d do some research. Veronica knew when Mac said “research” she meant the most exhaustive search of the Internet the world had ever known. True to her word, Mac sent over a preliminary report later that day and Veronica read through it anxiously before making dinner.

There were numerous examples of people who claimed to have seen the future. Mac had divided them into categories like: clearly nuts, verified by experts and events, and unknown. She had further divided them into age, gender, religion, and country of origin.

Veronica focused on the women her age and found a startling number of girls throughout history who had experienced things similar to her. It was actually quite reassuring, if still alarming that it was much more likely that it could happen to her.

By the time she’d finished the report Veronica was certain of two things: one, Mac was a genius, and two, she couldn’t keep reading the same information over and over or she’d go crazy. She needed a break.

She put some pasta on to boil and got some chicken on the grill. She’d never put too much emphasis on cooking - she was more of a baker - but she found that the process helped her to calm down when she was on a case and connect pieces together she wouldn’t think of otherwise.

Instead, she found her mind wandering to the neglected pregnancy test sitting on the counter in her bathroom and Logan’s wounded face when she said she wasn’t going to take it yet. The odds were very against her being pregnant, she hadn’t even been technically late yet, but Logan had been so excited that she had quickly caught his enthusiasm. Of course, that had been before her dreams.

She wondered if she was sticking her head in the sand, but she just didn’t think she could cope with being pregnant while all of this was happening to her. Maybe there had been a part of her that just wasn’t ready for children anyway. She knew the idea terrified them both and they’d been debating the idea for over six months before they finally decided they were ready. Perhaps a little more time wasn’t a bad thing.

She knew that was what Logan was worried about, that this dream thing would put the kaput on the kids idea, and she was a little annoyed that was his main concern, rather than her mental well-being. She was being a little harsh, she knew he cared about her more than anything, but she was struggling not to panic and she’d appreciate a little catering to her whims.

Why was she panicking about having sudden dreams about the future and being possibly pre-cognizant? Well, that would be because she knew this wasn’t the first time this had happened to her. Yes, there had been the bus crash dreams after she’d met Buffy, but Lilly had been haunting her long before that. Lilly was the reason Veronica hadn’t been on the bus. The dreams she’d had with Lilly telling her things had helped her on many cases and had helped her resolve a lot of issues. They just had never been as clear as the ones about Spike, so something had changed. Veronica just didn’t know what.

Logan got home while Veronica was still finishing dinner.

“That smells good,” he said, greeting her with a kiss on the head.

“I am but a humble cook,” she said, smiling up at him.

“Normally I’d agree with you, but I am being entirely truthful when I say it smells good.”

“Well, if there was one thing I learned growing up with my dad, it was how to grill,” she said.

“My sainted father-in-law, may he be blessed,” said Logan. “Since that is something I did not learn from my own papa, I will set the table for my contribution.”

“He can be taught,” said Veronica in mock surprise.

Logan smirked at her before reaching over her head for the cutlery.

It wasn’t long before Tara got there and they ate together. It was a normal enough occurrence in their lives. Tara’s coven was just inside the Neptune city limits and after she’d established it two years ago, she’d become a constant fixture at their house.

“How was class today?” asked Logan. “Did you have to keep anybody after?”

“It might surprise you, Logan,” said Tara, “but most students in Wicca higher learning actually want to be there. I’m not teaching public high school.”

“A detriment to all public high schools,” he replied smoothly.

“Logan, chew,” said Veronica.

He blew her a kiss before putting more chicken in his mouth.

They chatted amicably but there was a level of tension in the air that Veronica knew was originating mostly from her. It was simply difficult to act like it was just another normal dinner for them. They had barely finished before Tara stood up and extended her hand to Veronica.

“Come on, sweetie; let’s do an aura reading before you vibrate out of your chair.”

“Thank you,” said Veronica.

“Is this a private reading or can anyone join?” Logan asked with a forced casual tone.

“You just have to be quiet so I can concentrate,” said Tara, glancing at Veronica.

“No leering,” said Veronica.

He saluted them both and sat back in his chair.

Tara took Veronica’s hands and closed her eyes in concentration. Tara’s magic had always been subtler and more nuanced than anybody else Veronica had known, not that she was an expert. In her time with the coven, Tara had been able to hone her powers to have so much skill Veronica knew Giles had often begged her to become Dean of Magic at the new Watcher’s Academy. For the moment, Tara was content where she was, for which Veronica was glad.

Veronica couldn’t feel anything, but she was simply happy to have something being done. It was a long time before Tara opened her eyes and leaned back in her chair, looking a bit tired.

“You okay?” asked Logan. “You need anything?”

“Just some water,” Tara said, taking a drink from her glass. “That was a little deeper than I normally go.”

“How long do I have, Doc?” asked Veronica.

Logan shot her an unappreciative glance at her macabre humor.

“I think you’ll live,” said Tara in a quiet rebuke. “As far as I can tell, there’s no spell or presence influencing you. There has been a shift in your aura though. Like…something that was lurking beneath the surface was suddenly switched on or given a power boost. I would definitely say that you’ve always had this ability. I don’t think it was anything Buffy passed on to you, though I’ll have to verify that when she gets here. How it got juiced up, I don’t know.”

“Well, that’s somewhat reassuring, I guess,” said Veronica. “So…what does that mean?”

“It means research,” said Tara mildly. “I’ve learned a lot, but in the magic business, research is always the best way to figure things out.”

“This is what Mac was able to find,” said Veronica, giving Tara a copy of Mac’s report. “So far, anyway.”

Tara skimmed over it.

“Wow, that is incredibly thorough,” said Tara. “I’m once again very pleased she’s teaching my students.”

“It’s a brand new world and the witches are trading in their broomsticks for laptops,” said Logan teasingly.

“We’re not stuck in the Middle Ages,” said Tara. “Perhaps the 1800s.”

Logan smiled broadly at her and Veronica could tell he was very much relieved she didn’t have some demon living in her head. Granted, Veronica was very relieved about that herself. It still did beg the question, though – what exactly was going on and why?

“So do you think it’s safe to go down to Sunnydale?” asked Veronica. “I promised Logan I’d ask your permission.”

“Advice, I said advice,” said Logan quickly.

“May I?” asked Veronica, not looking at him.

Tara laughed while Logan crossed the room and put his arm around Veronica. She leaned into him instinctively.

“I think it will be okay,” said Tara. “It’s obviously connected to all of this and pretty much the next logical step. Just be careful, it’s been a long time and the military has definitely let up on its guard.”

“I know,” said Veronica.

“Mac’s been keeping an eye on it, as you know,” said Logan. “With Buffy with us, we should be protected.”

“Well, I’d like to go, too,” said Tara. “You never know when you might need a witch.”

“Hell yeah,” said Veronica.

“So we’re doing this again,” said Logan.

“Come on, you know you were getting bored with normality,” teased Tara gently.

“Not when we’ve got witches haunting the place,” said Logan.

“I think you’re confusing me with a ghost,” said Tara. “Easy amateur mistake.”

“Just testing you,” he said. “Besides, I wouldn’t trade a lot of things about the past seven years, it’s just…”

“Just?” asked Veronica, pulling away to look at him.

“Well, I want the next part of life,” said Logan, avoiding her eyes.

Veronica leaned back in to him, not really wanting to see his either.

“We’ll get there,” she said quietly.

Tara watched them and then started clearing the table.

“How many times, Miss MaClay?” asked Logan, moving forward and taking plates out of her hands.

“I refuse to be treated like a guest,” said Tara.

“Well, in that case, I’ve got some tax forms in there you could look over,” said Logan.

“If I were a tax consultant, I’d be happy to,” said Tara. “Now if you had some potions…”

“Dang, fresh out,” said Logan.

They bickered amicably while clearing up the kitchen and Veronica was grateful for the moment to think.

She still wasn’t really ready to talk to anyone about Lilly, but she had the feeling that was going to become important later. In the meantime, with Tara researching and the threat of something influencing her gone, she was able to relax for the first time since her second dream. Veronica had never been one to like being forced into anything, but something about this situation was incredibly important and she was somehow being used to bring it about, and that was daunting. In the meantime…well, in the meantime, at least Buffy was on the way and they could start getting more concrete answers.

***

Buffy’s flight was on time, for which Logan was grateful. He’d had to deal with an increasingly irritated Veronica as the day wore on and she had run out of things to arrange and clients to pass off. They’d had an argument that morning about not telling her dad what was going on. He’d even brought out Wallace as ammunition, but Veronica had been adamant she wasn’t going to say anything until after they’d been to the Hellmouth. Logan thought it was going to backfire on her, but even if it didn’t, he knew they’d be hurt they hadn’t been some of her first phone calls.

Out of all of their friends, Mac had been the one to integrate most fully into the world of the supernatural. Wallace and Keith were both friendly with the Sunnydale crowd, but they’d warmed to magic even less than Logan. Keith and Giles kept up a rather cordial friendship, but other than that, their interactions were limited to outings with Tara.

Weevil and Dick had been formally introduced to magic at Logan and Veronica’s wedding, when it became apparent it would be impossible to hide it from them at that point. Duncan had already been forcibly introduced to magic when his mother had engineered the body swap between Buffy and Veronica in the first place, but after he’d moved to Australia, he hadn’t been as much a part of their life.

But all that meant was that those of their friends who weren’t as friendly with the otherworldly parts of their lives became forced to the fringes when Veronica and Logan had an apocalypse to deal with. It had caused some friction and Logan was very aware of that and tried to mitigate it as much as possible, which is why he thought it important Veronica talk to her dad and Wallace at least. He could understand that she was scared to talk to them about it and so after the argument he’d tried to be as conciliatory as possible, but he’d at least wanted to point it out.

Now that Buffy was here, at least there was someone else for Veronica to focus on, which would make him feel less like a ticking time bomb. Strong-willed different opinions were still their number one source of conflict and likely would be ‘til they died.

Logan pulled up to the arrivals area and Veronica scanned the waiting passengers.

“There she is,” Veronica said, getting out to help Buffy with her bags, a pointless gesture since Buffy was stronger than both of them put together.

Logan hopped out as well and there were quick hugs all around before Buffy ducked into the back seat and Logan peeled away from the curb.

“How was your flight?” Logan asked.

“Very boring,” said Buffy, “as was the long layover.”

“Last minute flights are not fun,” said Veronica.

“You said it,” Buffy agreed. “So, I hate to jump straight into business, but I’ve been anxious for about fourteen straight hours now, so feel free to fill me in.”

Logan and Veronica exchanged a glance before Logan turned back to the road and Veronica launched into Tara’s visit the night before.

Buffy listened quietly and Logan kept one eye on her in the rearview mirror as often as he could spare it.

When Veronica finished and told Buffy that they’d made plans to head for the Sunnydale cavern in the morning, Buffy nodded and looked out the window for a moment.

“I’m glad I didn’t give you Slayer diseases,” she said finally.

“Way to focus on the positive, Buff,” said Logan.

“A Slayer is always positive,” said Buffy.

“Excuse me?” said Veronica incredulously.

“Sorry, just something poor Wes said to me once, back in the day,” said Buffy.

“Ahh,” said Logan.

They had met Wesley Wyndham-Pryce before, the first time being at Buffy’s funeral years ago, but despite Veronica and Logan’s relative closeness to Buffy and her crew, they’d spent little time with Buffy’s ex, Angel, and his crew, even though they were based in LA.

“Beside many points,” said Buffy. “Thank you guys for getting everything set up, I’m sorry this has burst in on your lives.”

“Eh, we’re always glad to see you and have our lives in danger,” Logan said.

Veronica shot him a glare and he shrugged at her and then winked at Buffy in the mirror.

They were mostly quiet on the way back and then Buffy got settled in while Logan went out for takeout. He imagined they probably talked while he was gone and he didn’t grudge them that, it was partly why he’d offered to get dinner anyway.

Both of them seemed more relaxed when he got back and so Logan was happy to let the matter of potential resurrection rest and simply catch up with his friend.

“How many Slayers you got now?” he asked.

“Just two,” said Buffy. “Nadia will be moving on soon, she’s got real potential and definitely wants to make slaying her life business.”

“It takes a certain type, Slayer powers or not,” said Veronica.

“Yeah,” said Buffy. “I don’t really know if my other Slayer is going to make it, she’s got attention span issues and doesn’t seem motivated.”

“Maybe she’s missing her Watcher,” said Logan idly. “What was his name again…Zach?”

“Levi,” said Buffy, glaring at him. “You know full well that was a mistake, Logan.”

“All I’m saying is that you can never replace a good Watcher,” he said, trying to hide his smile.

Buffy kept on glaring and Veronica looked caught between joining Buffy and hiding her own mirth.

“Wasn’t it good I was trying something new?” said Buffy. “I mean, he was cute and smart and had an accent. Where could I go wrong?”

“I don’t know; some kind of weird triangle with a newly trained Slayer?” said Logan as if it was a purely hypothetical scenario.

Buffy huffed a laugh herself and leaned back.

“I give, I give. I shouldn’t have tried to move so fast. I think I was just in a space where I suddenly panicked about the rest of my life.”

“Well, you had circumstances,” said Logan, relenting.

“Well, I don’t know. The circumstances excuse felt exhausted by that point,” said Buffy. “I grieved for a long time and by the time I was over that, I just felt like being me, you know? Finding out who I was without a guy, happy without a relationship, focusing on other things. But then I reached a point where I was…lonely. So I decided to try dating again and it worked for a while.”

“I really liked Gene,” said Veronica.

“Who didn’t like Gene?” agreed Logan.

“Gene was the dream,” said Buffy, smiling in memory. “That was just one of those times where you want different things.”

“So no Gene, let’s jump Levi?” said Logan.

“Logan, you’re a pig,” said Veronica.

Buffy’s face twisted a little, but then she smiled.

“Yes, Logan, it was very much exactly like that,” she said sarcastically.

“Well, then what was it like?” he asked. “Don’t dry up on me, Summers. I did miss our girl talk so much.”

Buffy threw a pillow at him, lightly, he was sure, but it still knocked the wind out of him.

“Let’s just say I really considered trying to make things work with Angel again,” said Buffy.

“Ahh,” said Logan.

“Right,” said Buffy. “Thankfully, I considered that for about an hour until I realized that, ironically enough, I’d be using him as a substitute for Spike, which wouldn’t be fair to either of them or myself. Not to mention Cordelia, which I still can’t wrap my head around, but then again…no judgment from over here.”

“No, we couldn’t have that,” said Logan.

“Shut up,” said Buffy. “All I’m saying is that I was really at a place where I finally thought it was my time, all Buffy, all Slaying, all love happy. Levi was just kind of a bump on that road.”

“A significant bump now,” said Veronica. “Not even noticeable down the road.”

“Probably right,” Buffy agreed.

“Except as teasing fodder,” pointed out Logan.

“Look, Echolls, if you want we can drag out all of your past mistakes,” said Buffy. “I’ve got a list.”

“Veronica’s probably got pictures,” said Logan.

“Oh, I do,” said Veronica.

“Then let’s talk about something else,” said Logan. “Like anyone else. How is Giles and how is Willow and have you talked to Anya and Xander lately? What about your neighbors in Cleveland, how are those people?”

Buffy and Veronica exchanged amused/not amused glances.

“It’s not like you don’t already know those things,” said Buffy. “Giles is big happy important Watcher guy. Willow has her own coven and works at the Academy. Xander and Anya’s little guy is about the cutest thing Africa has ever laid eyes on.”

“Exposition out of the way,” said Veronica.

“No, not,” said Buffy. “Not out of the way, because I want to hear about you guys. I am All Bad At Communication Buffy.”

“You really are,” said Veronica. “I don’t know why, but somehow it always feels like you guys are about five years behind on technology…”

“Weird,” agreed Logan.

“I have noticed that myself,” said Buffy. “I think I still have a beeper.”

“Of course you do,” said Veronica. “Mac would be so ashamed of you.”

“Well, I’m not a tech person,” said Buffy. “Just ask Willow, but I flunked computer class and it wasn’t because a demon tried to take over the Internet, I promise.”

“No excuses,” said Veronica.

“I promise I will try and do better,” said Buffy. “You know if the Hellmouth doesn’t get resurrected and we all die.”

“Whoa there, Summers,” said Logan, very uncomfortable with the idea even as a joke. “That’s what you’re here for.”

“Sorry, bad joke,” said Buffy. “I never learned appropriate humor.”

“No, I’m just…tense,” said Logan.

“You wanna talk about it?” asked Buffy, with a sidelong glance at Veronica.

“Nothing to be said that hasn’t been said before,” said Logan.

“He’s worried that I haven’t told my Dad or Wallace what’s going on,” said Veronica carefully.

“Why not?”

“I want to know what to tell them. They’re…normals, really.”

“I think they both handle news really well,” said Buffy. “They accepted me, remember?”

“Well, that directly affected them. This may not. Somebody’s got to handle the business while I’m taking care of things, it may as well be my dad.”

“He’s a good PI, but I think he prefers being a father first,” said Buffy.

“Tough,” said Veronica. “I can’t handle anything else right now. As for Wallace, he’s finishing up his first year teaching and really happy with his girl and until I know what’s going on, I’m not going to tell him. My head, my decision.”

“Backing way off,” said Buffy, putting her hands up.

“Sorry. I am also tense,” said Veronica.

“Then that makes three of us,” said Buffy. “Where’s Tara, she’s always a good buffer.”

“Doing her own life clean-up so she can perhaps be prepared for world saving in the near future,” said Veronica. “She’ll meet us here tomorrow for the big road trip.”

“Hope you have good tunes,” said Buffy.

They talked for a long time that night, avoiding any more discussion about the next day, until Buffy finally stood and stretched.

“Heading up?” asked Logan.

“Naw, thought I’d case the town,” said Buffy. “As I recall Neptune has a very poor cemetery to body ratio, but there’s always cliff sides where bodies might have gotten dumped over.”

“In Neptune, I wouldn’t be surprised,” said Veronica. “You know your way back in.”

“Be safe,” said Logan.

“It’s so sweet when he worries,” said Veronica.

Buffy ruffled Logan’s hair on her way out of the door. Logan suffered the indignity in silence and then offered his hand to Veronica.

“Shall we?” he asked.

“We shall,” said Veronica.

They headed up for bed together and Logan took the opportunity to relax as much as possible before the potentially life-changing next day.

***

Veronica stood beside Buffy and the other Slayers as they opened the Seal and headed into the Hellmouth. As they descended Veronica noticed her dream had changed. The other Slayers were gone; Tara and Logan had joined them now.

The four of them stood there watching the battle play out, even watching another Buffy fight.

“This is new,” Veronica said.

“This is as it has to be,” said Tara.

“Why the cryptic?” asked Veronica.

“It is the way,” said Tara.

“The way to what, of what?” asked Veronica.

The three of them ignored her as Spike’s form was once again engulfed in light.

Veronica stepped toward the amulet, reaching to pick it up as she had before. Tara barred her way and gestured to Buffy, throwing something glittering into the air that swirled around them and settled over Buffy’s head like a halo or a crown.

Buffy knelt and picked up the amulet. Nothing happened for a long moment and they stood in the dark in silence.

The dark cloud swarmed up and Spike appeared, screaming. Veronica reeled back from the pain she felt from him.

He looked at them, vamping out and growling. Buffy went to him, her arm outstretched. His own was held out in front of him, his palm face out. She put her palm to his and a spark ignited, fire leaping up from their hands.

“It’s time,” gasped Spike.

Veronica slowly opened her eyes. Every dream was both less and more terrifying.

“Three time’s a pattern,” she said quietly.

***

Buffy slept well for the first night in a while, which was odd considering she was in a different time zone and in a different bed. She’d always had odd sleeping habits though, so it wasn’t unusual for her body to adjust to new situations. She roamed around Neptune for a while, but there was never much vampire activity there and the only thing she did was break up a couple of bar fights with the biker gangs.

She awoke the next morning and did some stretching before wandering downstairs where Veronica and Logan were already awake and eating.

“Didn’t want to disrupt your sleep,” Logan said, waving her into a chair. “Eat up, Tara should be here soon.”

“This looks good,” said Buffy, putting bacon in her mouth.

“Why, thank you.” Logan buffed his nails on his shirt.

Veronica simply rolled her eyes and wandered over to the window, as if watching for Tara. She looked tenser than she had the night before and Buffy wondered if she’d had another dream. She didn’t feel like bringing it up though, so breakfast was eaten in mostly companionable silence.

Buffy helped clear the kitchen and then went downstairs to the basement Logan and Veronica had set up as a workout room. It had the standard weight machines and treadmill, but there was a punching bag and a sparring ring as well, with full length mirrors down one wall. In the corner was a large, wooden, beautifully carved chest, a wedding present from Xander and Anya, and it held almost as impressive a weapon collection as Buffy’s. It certainly was less used. The only items that looked truly battered were the stakes.

Buffy had brought her own stakes, checked in her bags, but she shifted through the weapons to find a sword that was well balanced to her hand. It didn’t have the same feel as her swords at home, but it would do. She missed the feeling of wielding the Scythe, but she’d given it to Faith long ago, knowing it wasn’t really hers to keep anymore.

“Just what I was going to do next,” said Veronica, poking her head in. “Find what you need?”

“Yeah,” said Buffy. “We’re not expecting trouble, so just the latest edition of Mr. Pointy and a sword will do.”

“I’m just going to grab some stakes for Logan and I,” said Veronica.

“Perfect. Tara here?”

“Just pulled up.”

Buffy and Veronica joined Logan and Tara in the entryway.

“Buffy, how are you?” asked Tara, giving her a warm hug.

“I’m okay, how are you?”

“I’m wonderful. It’s really good to see you.”

“I know, I’ve been bad about visiting,” said Buffy.

“We all are,” said Tara.

“No, don’t lump yourself in with the rest of us. I’m pretty sure I’ve seen you at least once a year,” said Buffy.

“All right,” said Tara agreeably. “Are we ready to go?”

“We’re ready,” said Logan. “Let’s go hunting.”

They piled into the car and started their journey. Buffy and Tara chatted in the back seat, exchanging all the news about Buffy’s Slayers and Tara’s coven and what Dawn and Giles were doing. The topic of Willow was usually avoided, but every now and then Buffy had to slip her into the conversation and it was good to see that it didn’t seem to bother Tara. It had been six years for them and Buffy was happy to see both of them had moved on.

Veronica and Logan let them catch up, sometimes exchanging quiet words in the front seat. Gradually though, their whispered words became harsher and Buffy and Tara both cut off their words when Veronica spit Logan’s name out in a reproof.

“I’m sorry,” Veronica said immediately. “Listen, I had another dream last night.” She relayed it to all of them. “Tara, can you tell me why the dream keeps changing? Are we making it come true somehow?”

“It doesn’t sound like that to me,” said Tara, thoughtfully. “It’s more like as we put the pieces of the puzzle together, other pieces come to light. I just think more is being revealed the further we go along.”

“It makes me nervous,” admitted Veronica. “What did Spike mean, ‘it’s time?’ ”

“I guess we’ll find out,” said Tara.

They drove the rest of the way in silence, parking a fair distance from the actual cavern. The government had quartered the entire place off with barbed wire and warning signs for unstable ground. They’d had guard rotations for the first year, but as time went on and nothing happened, the military had gone back to other things and Sunnydale had been buried in minds and paperwork, a local legend to the nearby towns. Nothing had been recovered, though some looting had had to be quelled at the beginning.

Buffy led the way to the spot she and Faith had discovered when they did their own reconnaissance after the battle, wanting to make sure no Turok-Han or Bringers had survived.

“Something’s been here recently,” said Buffy, looking at strange marks on the ground. “I don’t know what though.”

“That would be a helicopter,” said Logan, who admittedly had the most experience with riding in them of the four of them.

“Who would bring a helicopter here? The military?” asked Veronica.

Buffy shook her head.

“I don’t know, but let’s be careful.”

It was a long hike down and Buffy was glad she was wearing shorts by the end of it and that Logan and Veronica had packed plenty of water for everyone.

When they got to the bottom Buffy had to stop for a moment and keep herself from tearing up. When she had been down here before, she’d been numb or high on adrenaline and she hadn’t had time to focus on what losing her home had meant to her. Despite all of the trouble and grief, Sunnydale had been her home and there were many good memories buried here along with her mother.

This was the first time Buffy had been back since the immediate aftermath and the past rushed to meet her along with the rubble. The place was an absolute wreck, but there were signs of nature having its way, trees and bushes and grass growing over the cement and glass and wood and steel.

“Where to now?” Logan asked after they’d all considerately let her compose herself.

“The origin of it all,” said Buffy, plowing a way through, bits of insight coming back to her from her last trip.

It took them a long time to make their way to where the high school had been. It had been the epicenter of the collapse and was still the center of the cavern.

“How do we get in?” asked Veronica.

“Faith and I forged a tunnel of sorts,” said Buffy. “Let’s see if it’s still there.”

It was and they all exchanged silent looks before leaving their packs and taking only their weapons and flashlights down into the dark.

The building itself was entirely caved in, but it was almost like the Hellmouth had flung everything away from itself as it died, because their way was relatively clear and Buffy and Faith’s efforts from before had marked their way, the ribbons they’d tied still there, fraying around the edges.

“Does it look the same?” asked Logan.

Buffy was about to retort that she would have no way of knowing that exactly when she noticed something and stopped. There were fairly fresh footprints in the dirt.

“No,” she said slowly. “Someone’s been here.”

Tara stopped and put her hand on the wall, concentrating.

“Someone’s done magic here recently,” she said. “Dark magic.”

“So what do we do?” asked Logan.

“Keep going,” said Veronica. “We’ll never get answers if we just stand here.”

Buffy felt trepidation about descending into the Hellmouth itself, but she led the way, resolutely shining her flashlight ahead and holding her sword loosely in her other hand. The blackness swallowed everything but the tiny bit of light their flashlights illuminated. When Buffy reached the place where she’d fought her last battle, she stopped, calling quietly for Veronica to come forward.

“I guess I need to guide us from this point,” said Veronica. “I wish I had more light.”

Tara whispered a few words and tiny balls of light flickered into place all around them, rising high, spreading the light.

“That’s beautiful,” said Logan.

“And useful,” said Tara, winking at him.

“Okay,” said Veronica, sounding surer of herself. “I stood over here.” She walked and they followed her. “Then I saw the glint of light from the amulet over here.”

They followed her again and then stopped as she stood, searching for something, her face tense, head cocked like she was listening.

“What next?” Logan finally asked.

“Sh,” said Veronica and stood still again. She started, like she’d seen something behind them and then began moving and knelt down, pushing rocks and ash out of her way. “Here,” she said, and her voice shook.

They gathered around her and saw clearly illuminated in Tara’s lights the amulet, dented and tarnished, but undamaged, lying on the ground.

“I should have come back for it before,” said Buffy.

“You couldn’t have known it would be here,” said Tara.

“It is here,” Buffy answered, not taking her eyes off of the amulet.

“You should pick it up,” said Veronica, looking at Buffy. “It was you.”

Buffy shuddered inwardly, but knelt down and spread her fingers over the surface of the diamond, then slowly gathered the chain and held it up. It felt cool and gritty in her hand and she gently rubbed her fingers across the surface. She didn’t know what to expect and looked at Veronica, who shrugged.

“What happens now?” asked Logan.

“We wait quietly,” said Veronica, taking his hand.

Nothing happened and Buffy began to feel relieved and disappointed. She turned, gathering the amulet and its chain into a loop and put it over her neck, preparing to leave and admit defeat.

Light glowed in the heart of the amulet and glowing embers and dark smoke mixed together flowed from it and swirled before them, gradually taking shape in the form of Spike, his right hand outstretched, palm face out, his voice loud and sudden in the quiet as he screamed.

Though they were all half expecting it, Buffy was the only one who didn’t jump backwards. She took a tiny step forward.

“Spike?” she whispered.

He looked at her, his voice quiet now, but his form still shaking. He vamped out and growled at her, then fell to his knees, his hand still out like it was permanently stuck in that position.

Buffy moved forward cautiously, reacting instinctively, and knelt before him, putting her left palm against his. His fingers twined around hers and her heart began to beat faster, memories rushing over her.

The others were watching them intently, but she only had eyes for Spike and his ragged imitations of breath.

He looked up and his vampire features melted away and she was left looking into his eyes, filled with confusion and pain.

“B-Buffy?” he asked finally, his voice rough and broken.