CHAPTER FIVE

“I was going over some of Wesley’s books when I came across this...” Willow held a thick book open to a passage in Latin. They were back in Angel’s office, Angel, Buffy, Spike and Fred standing in front of the desk and Wesley and Willow standing in front of them. Gunn, Kennedy and Faith were back from lunch, but chose to wait in the lobby. Squinting at the tiny font, Buffy recognised one word.

“Thaumogenesis?” Her brow furrowed, “Isn’t that the spell you used to make that demon you made solid?”

“When we brought you back to life, exactly,” Willow nodded, closing the book with a dusty snap. “And I figured, if we swap a few choice phrases for something more appropriate, we might just be able to make Solid Spike.” She smiled proudly.

“There’s only one problem.” Wesley cautioned, “Spike is connected, bonded, to the amulet. To make him solid, we would need to break that connection.”

“So do it, Percy.” Spike spoke up, his eyes flickering to the amulet clenched in Buffy’s hand. “Break the soddin’ thing.”

“It’s uh, not as simple as that.” he explained, stepping forward. “The bond was made through powerful magics, ones that neither Willow nor I can break. The charm is ancient, and I doubt even Wolfram and Hart’s resources could be of use. If we made you corporeal using this spell, you would still be Wolfram and Hart’s property and wouldn’t be able to leave the city...”

“Hey! I ain’t nobody’s bleedin’ property, mate.” Spike interrupted indignantly.

“So you’re saying, what, Wes?” Angel asked, arms folded across his chest.

“That in order to make Spike corporeal again—“

“—we would have to move the link.” Willow finished, “That is, Spike would be bonded with something else.”

“Well, that leaves out pretty much everything in the building, the same thing would happen if we used anything here.”

“Bond him to me.” Buffy muttered, looking up to meet Willow’s eyes. “Move the link to me.”

Spike turned to his Slayer, his eyes wide. “Buffy, I—“

“I’m not losing you again,” she whispered, her voice so low that only he should have heard. The tight set of Angel’s jaw suggested that he heard too. Turning to Willow and Wesley, she straightened. “So? Do it.”

“Buffy, the spell... I don’t know what the bond would actually do to a human host, it could kill you.”

“I don’t care, Wes. “

“Buffy, love,” Spike reflexively went to touch her arm, stopping a few inches short when he remembered he couldn’t. “I... you shouldn’t do this. It’s too much of a risk.”

Buffy smiled up at him, her eyes shining. She held his gaze for a few long moments before turning to the witch and offered her an encouraging smile, her eyes silently begging her to agree. “You can do this, can’t you Will?”

Willow gave a nervous smile back, and nodded, exhaling. “I can do this. Are you sure this is what you want, Buffy? Spike won’t be able to move away from you, not far anyway. He’ll have to be with you all the time.”

Looking up into the blue eyes of the leather-clad vampire next to her, she nodded. “I’m sure.”

*                              *                              *                              *                              *                              *                              *

Buffy turned the amulet over in her hands, watching the jewel refract rainbows over her skin. Placing it carefully in one of the circle’s Fred had traced onto the carpet, Buffy turned to her best friend. “So how does this work?”

Looking up from the tome she was nervously pouring over, Willow bit her lip. “Like I said before, because we didn’t, you know, ‘make’ Spike, I had to change some of the words so he would respond to the spell... But, uh... I’m going to need Angel’s help with this one.”

The vampire in question looked up, startled. “What? Why would you need my help?”

“I uh, need your blood.” Willow admitted, holding up a bowl sheepishly.

“My blood?”

Willow chewed her lip, “Yeah. From what we gathered, the biggest link he has with the world is his sire, and we can’t exactly get Drusilla’s blood... so grandsire might do the trick.”

Angel was silent for a long moment before he turned to Buffy. “I’ll do this, if anything to get him the hell outta here...” Spike smirked. “But, Buffy, you can still back out of this.” Spike’s expression turned to a glare. “You don’t have to—“

“Yes. I do.” Buffy cut him off, calm determination ringing in her voice. Slipping off her jacket, she stepped into the circle at the opposite end of the symbol from the amulet.

O—O—O

 

Angel nodded, defeated, and held out his arm to Wesley, who ran the blade of the knife he was holding over his wrist, drawing dark red blood. Buffy wrinkled her nose as he let the thick liquid drip into the bowl Willow held out, before she offered him a grateful smile. “Thank you.”

Angel tried to return the grin reassuringly, but it came out more as a grimace. Letting slip a nervous giggle, Buffy quipped: “Well this is ominous.”

“You’re tellin’ me,” Spike murmured with an eye roll, stepping into the centre circle, facing Buffy and closing his eyes at the same time she did. “Let’s just get it done already.”

Handing Fred the bowl and muttering directions to her, Willow motioned to Wesley and they took up their positions on either side of Spike, linking hands around his body. Meeting Wesley’s eyes, the Wicca sighed. “Here we go.”

“Child of darkness, hear these speakers. Child of darkness, we entreat.” Their voices were low, droning on as a soft yellow light immediately enveloped both Slayer and vampire, as well as the amulet on the floor. “With your actions, you were bonded. To our voices wilt thou bend.”

Buffy felt a pleasant tingle run through her, and she shivered. Opening her eyes, she watched as Spike began to glow brighter, his eyes shut and his lips softly parted. Wesley nodded at Fred, and she moved to paint symbols on the floor around Buffy and the amulet, dipping her finger into Angel’s blood.

“With this blood thou took motive. With this blood came to pass.” They chanted monotonously, and Buffy’s hand came up to shield her face from the light now pouring out of Spike. With a painful twinge, she realised how similar it was to the moment he died, and tears began to well up in her eyes. He was so beautiful in the light. “We rescind no past devotions. Give thee substance. Give thee mass.”

Red light suddenly burst from Spike’s chest and he shouted out in shock and pain. It shot into the crystal on the floor and into Buffy’s chest, and she mirrored his cry. Fighting the urge to double over, Buffy watched as Spike was engulfed in the red light, so bright she couldn’t see him clearly anymore.

“We turn to Janus to break connection. Forge a new one, make it last.” Willow nodded at Buffy, and she began chanting her own lines as they began again, her eyes never leaving Spike.

“Child of darkness, hear thy bond mate. Child of darkness, we entreat.” She recited, and the light from the amulet died. The glow between the two of them shone twice as bright, the line between pulsing from him into her. Buffy felt like a hook was being plunged into her chest, trying to drag her heart out of her. She screamed in agony, and her cry was echoed by Spike. Stumbling, both of them fell to their knees.

As soon as their voices cried out, Angel rushed forward and Faith kicked open the door, all three warriors pouring into the room. Kennedy pulled out her stake, her eyes on Angel. As the dark haired vampire reached for Buffy, Willow’s eyes shot to him, and he was thrown back onto the couch, the entire thing falling backwards.

STAY AWAY! She yelled silently in the minds of the people rushing out behind her without breaking her chant, and Faith threw out her arms to stop the others.

Buffy gritted her teeth, reaching a hand out to Spike. “Child of darkness, hear thy bond mate. Child of darkness, we entreat...

“SOLID!”



*****************************************************************************************
Author's Note: Ok, so I ripped off another spell. But what with my Charmed binge with them recycling spells and this be my first fictional "casting", I kinda did it easy, so I apologise for that.

Secondly the symbol: O-O-O is the symbol on the floor... just so you know what I'm talking about.

Also, I realise I'm very cruel for ending it here, but the next chapter won't disappoint. So please read and review!!!