very good read, thank you. delightful chapter ending.

Wow!  That question really surprised me.  Great roundabout way to get there though.

And there it is:

".....he knew he'd finally managed to bypass his racing brain, that the words came from his soul."

and Spike - the real Spike, had re-entered the building.  

What a wonderful piece between he and Buffy: far more equal, her less desparate than of recent - thank god and finally .....Finally!

Comfort food, this, without the calories.
 

I was dying for an update and am not disappointed.
Liked no nonsense cursing Willow.
I absolutely loved your description of how Buffy wanted to convince Spike to be with her and it's connection to " Seeing Red'. I think you captured the emotions of that moment perfectly.

Oh, WOW.  Didn't see THAT coming!  It's sweet, kinda like the simple, plain Will was.  Sad how withdrawn & resigned to her bleak fate she was.  And, LA? Ironic, as previously both of them hated it there, were done & shed of that city at points in their existence. But it comes back a full circle,  eh? 
Honestly, I'm not sure which version of this fic I like most.  This, so far, is seeming ultimately lighter in feeling.  Yet, the original had something way unique to it, including the totally perceivable-to-the-reader feeling of being time-tossed, jumbled, spatially mixed up; yet in that very sense, it dragged on, bogged down a bit, as if it was just too hard to get the point over of something humanly impossible to describe----the point really, as those principles involved were not human: a God, a vampire, primarily, followed by deceased-and-defunct other vampire, fighters, watchers, yadda yadda, demon armies, etc...even slayers, witches, ad nauseum.  But the attempt, even mind-boggling, was at the least, a fascinating ride.
This, the re-furbished version, is cleaner, neater, and does get from point A to C more clearly and neatly.  I'm not sure if that is better or worse, but it settles to the spirit easier. And, again, not sure if that's better or worse, as like I tried to describe above about fic-V.1,  it was unique.  It did disturb, did shake your feelings up a bit.  It was nice to see Buffy able to be happy, for that while, tho' unlike the regular happy sappy love story fics we all often read that comforts us so.
Not to say V.2 is or will be a typical sappy, sugar-sweet ending to a hard pilgrim's journey. We, the reader, don't know the ending yet---for all we know, a hard-reached love including marriage, could just be the beginning of an arc in your fic.
Good to see Buffy relent from being above Spike, even as the Victorian Gentleman in him squeaks past his guard to get down on one knee and propose.  Perhaps the dancing dizzied him up a mite!  Another bit where Spike-the-Victorian snuck out for a few moments...And Buffy seems to respond well to that him, like it calms her, when in their personal space.
I'm oh-so-very interested in where this still has to go.  Please don't just slap a pre-fabbed typical fic ending on this to get it over and done with! This is and has been a very fascinating ride & read; your words drew so many of us, the readers, out---quite literally---and teased us, no, lured us into the storyline, wrapping us and our minds into it literally! Readers yakked on tag-boards and chats, emails about this fic, chomping at the bit til the next update was out===that is how much it affected us by it's rare difference.  Thanks for that experience. I do hope you continue to write more & more again in this fandom.
~~K.~~
~~fyreburned~~
fyreburned@yahoo.com

How lovely! I love the direction you took them in this chapter.  Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful story with us!

Wonderful chapter H.  Hope you're not going to spoil it.  Loved Spike's proposal.

No caveats: are you still in love with Buffy?"
the words came from his soul.  Bloody hell, I'd ask you to marry me

I'm free to live how I need to live, to love who I need to love.

Kisses on the cheeks and lips of Willow--And Faith, although her test was a little more questionable at first.  Goddess love the good girlfriends of the slayer.

You know I had no idea I could hold my breath long enough to read it all, but I did.  I made hard copy, just devoured it over and over and played with the words and read it outloud and wallowed in it like my cats in stinky stuff. 

And yes I'm a massive weepy teary girly girl, and no I understand it won't ever be done between 'em til one or the other or both are dust--but what a helluva!! story you done made--take care of 'em.  Miz Herself, Queen--owns Spike's beautiful voice, knows when to write it deep and soft, sharp as his cheekbones, goddess, how you have delighted.  Thank you--I'm so reading the next 17 chapters!! (There's more, right?)

Okay, didn't see that one coming. :) But yay for Spike.  The question now is, are you going to let them have that? Or are you going to yank their (and our) hearts out again? :)

Wonderful way to handled this "meeting again, connecting again."    Speaking from the heart and instinct and desparation of another loss in life - that instant of  the most real and vital.  

Asking her to be his wife was a surprise and I hope that it works out - 

Liked this section very much -

"Don't quite feel like they did happen. Not exactly to me." The admission made him feel even more off-balance. They stopped at an intersection to wait for the light to change. "Remember it all, but it's like it happened to someone else. Like I was a sort of made-up toy for Buffy. Simple an' innocent. Easy for her to give herself to, easy to hold up in front of the others, because what did my past matter if I didn't know any of it?"

Thanks again for the regular updates - you are s model of the "Best of Buffyverse FF writers,"  -  excellent work and with the effort to bring out the work on a regular basis -   Thank You your latest chapter. 

yeah finaly all the angst was killing me.

I'm so happy I'm tearing up (I know, I'm a weird person, OK? But 'Distance' rocks my world! You rock my world, with this wonderful fic of yours!) And though I'm afraid the road may still be bumpy ahead I wanna thank you for this update!

xxx

This was so worth the wait! Loved Willow in this chapter, for not letting Spike cheat himself out of what he and Buffy deserve. The imagery of their meeting was beautiful.   Can't wait for her to be Mrs. Pratt!

At long last!!!!  It was about time the found together again.

I just read the last 4 chapters again, after you changed them, and I´ll tell you that I like this version much more.

Please update soon. Love the story.

Thank god Spike snapped out of it - the hangdog act was getting a little tired.  I was afraid he was going to stay stuck in ATS5 mode for good - but I have hope for them now.  Buffy has been surprisingly sensible.

*Laughs out loud while clapping hands joyously together*  THANK YOU!!!  I can't wait for the grand finale; amazing chapter.

Incredibly nice and actually quite unexpected.  I was preparing myself for more angst, so having them move forward is such a delightful surprise.  Thank you!

Wow... never expected that ending...

And Buffy finally talking and the voice of reason.  But still the misunderstanding that Spike wants to be fighting the battle on his terms.. his area.. but with her... Mrs.Pratt..

A wedding...