The End: The Truth

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Summary: Buffy faces her Watcher and gets interrupted by a phone call.

AUTHOR: Laure Alexander
EMAIL: lara@sunflower.com
RATING: PG-13
PAIRINGS: Willow/Spike
DISCLAIMER: I don't own Buffy the Vampire Slayer or any of the characters on the show. Joss Whedon and the WB Network own them (for now). No copyright infringement intended, so please don't sue.
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Dragging her feet, her shoulders slumped, a headache pounding in her temples, Buffy entered the school and made her way to the Library. It was the last place she wanted to be. She had thought that facing Giles' with the truth last summer had been the hardest thing she'd ever done, but this was so much worse.

The brightest among them had fallen.

'We all fall down'.

Buffy frowned as the incongruous snippet of a nursery rhyme popped into her head, then shook it away and pushed open the Library door.

Giles barely glanced her way. Jenny gave her a quick smile, then returned to her computer. At the far end of the book and parchment strewn table Cordelia and Xander were playing footsie while pretending to research.

It all looked so normal.

Fresh tears welled in Buffy's eyes as she took a faltering step towards her friends.

"Hey, Buffster. Come to join the hella fun research party?" Xander asked as he stuffed a handful of chips in his mouth.

Cordelia jabbed Xander in the stomach. "If you don't stop eating like that, you're not only going to sound like Cartman, you're going to look like him." She grabbed the chip bag away from him.

"Stop bogarting the cheesy poofs," he whined.

"Do you know what's in these things?"

"And all this has to do with the amulet how?" Giles asked cooly, trying not to smile at the chagrined looks the couple give him before digging back into their respective stacks of books. Turning his attention to Buffy, he began, "Buffy, have you seen Will..." The stricken look on her face finally got his attention.

Unable to stand any longer, Buffy slumped into a chair, the bottled tears finally flowing down her cheeks.

"What's happened?" Giles asked, fear staining his voice.

"Wuh...wuh...Willow," she wailed, burying her face in her hands.

All activity at the table stopped. Cordelia's sharply indrawn breath was the only sound for a long moment, before Giles swallowed hard and asked, "What's happened to Willow?

Buffy struggled to compose herself, but all she got out was, "Angel," before she began to cry harder.

Giles blanched and barely felt Jenny's comforting hand on his wrist. Behind him Xander and Cordelia both began to talk at once, panicked, but he ignored them, all his attention on Buffy.

"What did he do?" he managed through gritted teeth.

Buffy only sobbed louder and Giles reached out and grabbed her shoulders, shaking her.

"What did he do?"

His roar of anger and frustration brought Buffy back to awareness and she gulped and sniffled as he shook her again.

"Rupert," Jenny admonished softly.

Feeling his fingers bite into her upper arms, Buffy welcomed the pain and lifted horror-laden eyes to him. "He turned her, Giles. He turned Willow." As she collapsed into his embrace, weeping softly now, the telephone rang.

Stunned by Buffy's statement, desperately wanting to deny the truth, Jenny rose on automatic to answer the phone on the check-out counter.

"This can't be happening," Xander muttered, turning to gaze dully at the silent tears streaking down his girlfriend's cheeks. "I'll kill him. I'll gut the bastard!" One fist pounded the table, the other reached for a stake.

Cordelia grabbed him and hugged him tightly as he broke down.

"Hello?" Jenny forced out, her mind muddled, her fingers clenching around the receiver.

"Jenny? It's Willow."

"Willow?"

Buffy's head jerked up and she yanked away from Giles. "Hang up," she yelled, as she jumped to her feet. "That's not Willow."

Standing in an old-fashioned phone booth, Willow gave the phone a puzzled look as Buffy's muted yell reached her. "Jenny? What's going on?"

Grabbing the phone away from a stunned Jenny, Buffy spat into the receiver, "Don't call us again," before slamming it down. Anger drove away her tears, and she stormed to the weapon's locker.

Giles pushed himself unsteadily to his feet, his logical mind fighting through the sorrow. "I don't understand. We saw her here yesterday afternoon, so it's only been a day. Why would he make her a minion?"

"What?" Buffy spun around, gaping at him.

Slipping easily into Watcher mode, he responded, "It takes at least two full days for a childe to be made. He's said all along he wants her for her intelligence. A minion has very little of that."

It took Willow about ninety seconds to figure it out, and she paled, then reddened in anger at Angel. Digging into the pocket of the faded jeans she'd bought at a second hand store, she pulled out some more change, then redialed the number.

The phone rang again and all attention turned to it. Finally, after six rings, Buffy went and answered it.

"What?" she asked harshly.

"Buffy, don't hang up. It's really me. Angel didn't turn me. I'm sure that's what you're thinking, but that's not what happened, I swear," Willow replied quickly, her fingers tightening around the handset.

"Why should I believe you?"

"Why would I lie?"

"I wouldn't put anything past Angel," Buffy growled, a feeling of helplessness growing in her as she listened to the familiar voice.

"Buffy, think about it. Angel grabbed me less than twenty-four hours ago. I'd be a minion now, too brainless to be this cunning."

"Angel could be standing over you, prompting you."

"Why would he do that? Why would he piss you off any further? Buffy, please," Willow begged. "I'm not a vampire, I swear to God."

Buffy's hand began to shake and she leaned heavily against the counter as the emotion in Willow's voice finally began to get through to her. "Will..?"

"Do you believe me? Please believe me."

"I...don't know. I want to."

"Angel grabbed me but he didn't turn me. Sometime before dawn I finally got him to allow me to see Spike. Spike broke free of the chains Angel'd used to subdue him, and knocked him out. We escaped. We're...well, I can't tell you where we are, but we're going to keep running."

"He lied to me," Buffy whispered, hope blossoming in her.

"You've seen Angel?" Without waiting for an answer, Willow continued, "Did he show you my body? He couldn't, could he."

"That son of a bitch. He led me to believe...Oh, God, Willow. You're really okay?"

"I'm fine," Willow sobbed through her happy grin. "I'm safe. I'm with the man I love."

The phone pinged in her ear and Willow dug into her pockets for more change, but came up empty. "I'm out of money. I gotta go."

"No."

"I love you, Buffy. I'll be fine and in touch in a couple of days hopefully."

Before Buffy could respond, the connection was cut and she stared blankly at the phone before turning to face her friends, who had all gathered around her. A smile lit her face. "She's fine."

"You believe her?" Giles asked.

Nodding, Buffy set down the receiver. "Yeah, it was really her, and she's right, why would Angel have her call me to torment me? I'm mad enough at him."

"What happened?" Xander asked, wrapping his arms around Cordelia's waist from behind, trying to stop shaking.

Buffy shook her head. "Angel did capture her last night like I thought, but he didn't turn her, and she and Spike got away sometime early this morning. She wouldn't tell me where they are. Probably a good thing."

Picking up on one thread of the one-sided conversation between his slayer and her best friend, Giles asked, "Did you go see Angel today?"

"Yeah, I confronted him."

She frowned as her Watcher sighed.

"Buffy, that was very foolish."

"I didn't know they'd gotten away."

"Which made him even more dangerous."

"He didn't hurt me." Buffy dropped her eyes as she felt a blush creep up her face.

"Angel's made his intentions pretty damn clear that now's the time for Willow to make good on her promise. I say we stake him before he can do that," Xander ranted.

"No." Buffy flushed even more at Xander's angry, pointed look. "We just got through a battle with the Watcher's Council where we convinced them that Angel being alive and running the show here is the best way to go. If I stake him, god knows what we'll get to replace him." She took a deep breath. "I just have to convince him that turning Willow isn't what he really wants."

"And how are you going to do that?" Giles asked, then flushed, and stammered, "Ah, yes."

"This is a lame plan," Cordelia stated with an eye roll. "Angel holds all the cards."

"I'll dump his ass."

The cheerleader gave the Slayer a very pointed look. "Yeah, that'll work."

"You got a better idea?"

Slowly Cordelia lowered her eyes and stepped out of Xander's embrace. "Yeah. We accept that we can't stop Angel."

Giving a shocked cry, Xander spun her around to face him. "Are you nuts?"

"Surrender is not an option," Giles added.

She looked over her shoulder at the protesting older man. "You'd be the first one to say that we can't risk the world for the life of one person, Giles."

"It's Willow," Xander protested, shaking her slightly.

"It doesn't matter."

"Cold bitch," he bit out, freeing her to stalk out of the room.

Cordelia gave the remaining three a cool look.

"You're right, of course," Giles murmured sadly, walking past her and back to the table. Giving the two girls a sorrow filled look, Jenny followed him.

"You know I'm right, Buffy."

Buffy stared at her friend and, seeing the deep pain in her brown eyes, conceded. "Yeah, I do, but hopefully it's all mootville."

"You really think Willow and Spike can elude Angel forever?"

"Gotta have hope."

*****

Disturbed by the too-brief conversation and already missing her friends, Willow wandered back across the road to the motel where she'd left Spike sleeping in order to get something to eat and something to wear. Underwear, even used, was a vital necessity.

She didn't know how Drusilla ran around without any.

As she walked through the dusty parking lot, she eyed the setting sun in the West and picked up speed. Willow didn't think there were any vampires around, but without the collar she felt vulnerable for the first time in three months.

Opening the door to their room, she found Spike sitting on the edge of the bed in his jeans, running a hand over his face. His fingers traced a healing wound down one cheek and he scowled.

"Don't worry, you're still gorgeous," Willow tried to lighten the mood.

It worked. Spike flashed her a quick grin, then ran his eyes over her jeans and long sleeve t-shirt. "Been shopping?"

"I know we don't have much money, but I couldn't bear to wear that dress another minute. I went to the used clothes run by the local church."

"No need to apologize, luv. Did you get something to eat, too?"

Willow nodded and frowned. "What are you going to do for food?"

Spike looked away from her as he rose and pulled on his shirt.

"You can feed on me," she suggested softly.

He spun on her, eyes blazing, and she shrank from the intensity. "Never."

"You bite me all the time."

"For pleasure, not for food. Never for food, Willow." Shaking his head, Spike stomped a foot into a boot. "Anyway, I'll be fine for another day or two. I don't dare hunt this close to Angelus' territory anyway."

"So, we keep moving?"

Lacing up his other boot, Spike nodded. "Yep. Use the loo, because we're not stopping till dawn."

End Chapter 10