Spike's mind was full of questions when he saw Buffy walk into the demon-filled Bronze. He closed his eyes and grumbled a few curses as he thought about Buffy’s irrational behavior. Fearing that the still recovering Slayer would do something as utterly stupid as facing a horde of demons, he walked around to the back of the nightclub. He wanted to know what she was really up to and if she needed help, he wanted to be there. Although judging by how she'd acted back at the wrecked Summers' house, she didn't need it. Nonetheless, he would keep an eye on her.

It still surprised him how quickly she got back on her feet. Slayer strength or no Slayer strength, it was definitely odd.

He slowly made his way to the back alley of the Bronze, craning his neck as he hid behind a wall to see if there were lookouts. Fortunately, there was only one demon guarding the door. Spike grinned, knowing that getting past the demon would be a piece of cake. He raised his upper lip on one side and swaggered right up the entrance. He continued to saunter up the steps until the demon stopped him just a few feet away from the door.

Spike kept his calm and looked the demon in his blood red eyes. “I'm here for the shindig.”

The demon chuckled. He eyed Spike, put his hands on the sides of his rotund waist and then snorted. “No, you're not. William the Bloody.”

Spike inhaled deeply to ready himself for the fight he knew was coming. “Famous, am I? But it's just Spike now, mate,” he said casually.

“I know who you are. You’re affiliated with the dead Slayer,” the demon clucked and advanced toward him. It lunged, arms wide open, ready to grab the vampire.

Spike pushed him to the side with his left hand and kneed him in the stomach, hard. The demon doubled over and Spike mercilessly kicked him one more time. He titled his head left to right, readjusted his coat and walked past him. “Ponce.” He chuckled and made his way in.

As soon as he entered backstage, he heard Buffy's voice. “A proposition.”

The demon scoffed, though he seemed to be interested in hearing what the Slayer had to say as he stood there silently and seemingly in deep thought. “What kind of proposition?”

“The kind where I don't kill you,” Buffy said while she paced across the dance floor. The demon didn't answer, probably gauging if she was bluffing or not. “And believe me, I could kill every single one of you. I sort of killed a God, in case you haven't heard,” she said with a smug smirk. She cocked her head to the side and asked,. “Who are you again?”

“My name is Roh'gna. Chief of the--”

“Whatever,” Buffy said, waving a hand dismissively as she kept walking back and forth across the center of the club. “So what do you say, Rhonda?”

The demon clenched his fists and stopped himself from attacking the Slayer right then and there. Though he knew there was a possibility that they could take her if they attacked all at once, he wasn't going to risk it. Not now, at least. He tried to correct her. “Roh'g--”

“I don't kill you and let you stay; you take orders from me,” Buffy said, cutting him off. She stopped in front of Roh'gna and folded her arms, her right foot slightly forward and sneered. “And we'll all be one big happy family.”

Despite the authoritativeness in her demeanor, every demon in the Bronze laughed at her. Roh'gna laughed the loudest. The absurdity of one girl taking on tens of demons, however strong she was, was too much.

But Buffy wasn't the least bit deterred. Her lips turned into a frigid straight line. She was certain and absolutely serious about everything she'd said and their mockery didn't have any effect on her. Instead, she scanned the Bronze for a victim and approached one demon in the corner to prove her point. “You seem strong enough,” she said with a shrug. The demon raised his chin, a gesture that said that he agreed with her and was proud of it.

Unexpectedly, Buffy socked the chosen demon in the face, grabbed his huge, slimy head and snapped his thick neck. The maniacal laughter ceased. The demons all fell silent and the only sound that filled the room was the loud thud of the lifeless body of the demon as it hit the ground.

Buffy's eyes wandered across the room, looking at the demons whose mouths hung open. Her face lit up with a cocky grin, pleased that she’d accomplished her goal. “Right. As I was saying... Do we have a deal?” She faced the angered Roh'gna and said, “Not like you have a choice, but...”

“What's in it for us?”

Buffy quirked a brow and pouted. “Didn't I just say the continuing-to-live-your-worthless-lives part? Isn't anybody listening?”

“And what else?”

Buffy leered and strode forward, stopping when she was in front of Roh'gna. “You know, I'm getting really tired of convincing you.” She looked the chief straight in the eye, challenging him, threatening him with just her glare.

Roh'gna forced down the bile in his throat. He wasn't going to let some little girl boss him around, but then again, the Slayer wasn’t just any little girl. He decided to cooperate, this time at least. Voice tight with anger, he asked, “What do you want us to do?”

Spike, all the while, had been eavesdropping.  At first, he told himself that Buffy was just bluffing. He tried to convince himself that she was just playing them and was getting ready to finish them all off though he knew it really wasn't Buffy's style to follow the keep your friends close and your enemies closer school of thought. But now, he’d had enough. He didn't want to listen any more. He couldn't believe what he'd heard. The Slayer had definitely gone daft.  It was as if he was listening to some cold-blooded killer, a demon, even.

Spike ran his hand down his pallid cheeks and exhaled loudly. He studied Buffy for a moment, deciding whether to stay or to go. He figured that if he was to save Buffy from herself, he needed to know what she was planning. If he didn’t like it, he might just be able to stop her if he had the least bit idea of what she was up to. So he chose to stay and remain for the rest of the meeting.

A few moments later, Buffy quickly spun around to his direction, eyebrows furrowed and eyes trying to pierce the darkness where Spike was hiding. Spike quickly saw that she had sensed him, and sunk back further into the shadows to avoid being seen.

Turning back to the demons, Buffy told them that they should continue the conversation at some other time. “I still need my beauty sleep,” she said. She moved past Roh'gna who was scratching his chin in confusion.

Spike left quickly when he saw Buffy headed for the exit. If he hurried, he could beat Buffy home and she would never know that he'd been spying on her.