Disclaimer: I blame Kennedy on Joss.

Author’s note: Some dialogue taken from ‘Chosen’
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Chapter 50: Light and Tears

As the potentials, Scoobies, and various random demon fighters fought the inability to sleep upstairs, playing Dungeons and Dragons, or tossed and turned in their beds, worried about the battle that Liz was leading them into the next day, Buffy took the time to pull her mate aside. She’d wanted to leave this to the last minute. She’d wanted to make sure that he couldn’t protest, but she had too much respect for him to leave him in the dark, to push him into New York and leave him there with no way to find out what was happening. Tomorrow they were opening the seal and it was very likely that she wouldn’t survive. Leaving Dawn with a few potentials watching an upbeat teen flick in the living room, Buffy led her mate down to their basement, a serious look on her face.

“I know I’m not going to like this. Am I pet?” he asked once Buffy closed the basement door behind her.

Buffy walked down the stairs slowly to press herself into the tepid body heat of her mate.

“No , you aren’t,” she admitted softly.

“Out with it then,” he ordered.

Buffy sighed.

“I want you to take Dawn and go. To New York. Away from all this. Now.”

Spike moved Buffy’s body away from him and looked at her curiously.

“You know I wanted to be part of this,” he stated, shocked that she would want him gone. “You know me well enough to realise that.”

Buffy nodded. “I know, but I am afraid Spike,” she admitted as she clutched his hand in hers. “More afraid than I’ve ever been before, and it’s because of you and Dawn. I need you safe, for my piece of mind more than anything else. I can’t go into battle with you, being in love with you, and be effective. And Liz needs me, or at least my soul, in this fight.”

“Run that by me again?” he asked her. “That bit about your soul. You don’t have a soul. Demon, love.”

“Remember Angel gave Liz this thing,” she started, reaching into her pocket and drawing out the amulet. It started to twirl on its chain. “Has to be worn by someone not human, but with a soul. That’s me, in this situation.”

“Yeah, the poofter wanted to wear it for his sweetie pie,” muttered Spike bitterly.

“He didn't seem to happy with the way it turned out,” Buffy added. “But at least Liz had the good sense to tell him no. I have to wear it, no one else can. And if no one else can, than I can’t be the one to take Dawn away from all this. She needs someone to protect her while this battle is raging. The Immortal could choose this moment to go after her. I need you with her now. Please, Spike?”

Spike tore his eyes away from her for a moment, making it really hard for Buffy to read his emotions. She needed him to agree to this. She needed this more than she needed to grant vengeance wishes.

“Couldn’t demon girl take her?” asked Spike turning his eyes back to Buffy.

The emotions in his eyes had always been easy to read. This time they were telling her that this was a last ditch effort to avoid the inevitable.

“Anya’s pretty adamant about protecting the whelp,” noted Buffy.

“Waste of bloody skin if you ask me,” noted Spike mumbled, before giving a big sigh. “Alright, love,” he conceded.

Buffy felt the tension release from her shoulders. She wrapped her arms around his chest and hugged him. “Thank you,” the demon whispered gratefully.

“You just get yourself out of that bloody hole in one piece,” he ordered, his lips in her hair as he held onto her just as equally tight. “When do we go?”

“Now, let me wake up Anya.”

The pair mounted the stairs and walked into the dining room hand in hand. Anya was sitting next to the group playing Dungeons and Dragons, snoring peacefully. Buffy tapped her friend on the shoulder, waking her instantly but startling the mistress of Arashamahar into her demon visage.

“Who interrupts the sleep of the mighty Anyanka?” she bellowed instinctively.

“Uh, the mighty Erixel,” answered Buffy with a laugh. “Can I borrow you, boss?”

“Oh,” started Anya, looking around the table at the interrupted gamers. “Okay, this game was boring anyway.” Anya stood from her seat and brushed down her wrinkled skirt.

Buffy beckoned Anya towards the living room. Inside, the potentials were still watching movies, but fortunately Dawn had passed out, her brown hair spread out on a couch cushion. Quietly, and hoping not to attract too much attention, Spike scooped Dawn up off the couch. Buffy opened a portal, scorching the hardwood floor of the Summers’ home. The demons and the key entered the portal, the quiet protests of the potentials that were awake being abruptly cut off by the closing of the portal.

Once they were on the other side, Buff opened another portal. The group stepped into the portal once more and found themselves in a very dusty house. The window’s had been boarded up and sheets covered the furniture. None of them, save Dawn who had never been there, had been in this particular house for decades.

“Spike, can you take Dawn up to Annette’s room?” asked Buffy sadly.

The vampire nodded and headed up the stairs.

“What are you doing?” Anya finally asked, either because she’d finally woken up or because she realised that this was an appropriate time.

“Dawn and Spike aren’t going to be part of this fight. And I need you to get me back to Sunnydale,” explained Buffy.

“You can teleport yourself back,” stated Anya with her hands on her hips indignantly.

“I have to fight this one as a Slayer, Anya. I’m giving Spike my pendant.”

“What!” stage whispered Anya. “You can’t do that! I forbid it!”

Buffy rolled her eyes. “Am I going to listen to you? I know no one else better to entrust my pendant to.”

“You...you could die!” moaned Anya revealing why she really didn’t want Buffy to go pendant free.

“And I probably will,” admitted Buffy.

“See I don’t want to hear that!” exclaimed Anya, her voice rising to new levels of hysteria.

“Shhhh!” admonished Buffy, intensely aware that if Dawn woke up before they were gone that it would be really difficult to get away without a scene.

“Bloody hell demon girl, you are going to wake the Nibblet!” said Spike growled adding his own caution. He took Buffy’s hand and gave it a squeeze.

“Are you okay with this insanity?” asked Anya, directing her question to Spike.

“Not really,” he admitted. “But then someone’s gonna have to take care of the Bit when you all get yourselves decapitated,” he noted bitterly.

“Some of us aren’t going to be decapitated,” the mistress of Arashamahar snapped back. “Some of us are going to let themselves be killed in stupid human ways. Maybe one of those ubervamps will drain your blood! Or maybe they’ll just rip you to shreds!”

“Anya you are always just such an optimist,” Buffy remarked, effectively putting an end to Anya’s ranting.

Buffy let Spike’s hand go and reached up towards her pendant. The glittering red stone had been the only constant thing in her life since she was elevated. She lifted the chain up and off, holding it at arms length towards her mate. She really wished that she’d have to opportunity to see it again and the man she was giving it to again.

As the chain slid from her hand to his, both the vampire and the slayer missed Anya’s silent ‘Wish granted.’
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Anya and Buffy arrived back in Sunnydale just as the sun rose over the deserted town. Inside 1630 Revello Drive, the potentials were already brandishing weapons. It was time to go. Liz stood in the middle of the living room holding the scythe, a grim look of determination on her face.

“Let’s go,” she said curtly, brushing past the demon and the slayer in the doorway.
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The group entered Sunnydale High, the signs of its abandonment evident.

“Welcome to Sunnydale High,” said Robin Wood unnecessarily as they walked through the doors. “There’s no running in the halls, no yelling, no gum chewing. Apart from that, there’s only one rule: if they move, kill them.”

Buffy rolled her eyes.

“Ok,” started Liz, taking charge. “Potentials in the basement. Follow Faith and Buffy.”

Buffy nodded but instead of going immediately to her post, she turned to Anya and gave the demon a hug.

“If it all starts to go wrong, teleport yourself out of here,” Buffy whispered to her friend. “I don’t want you decapitated either.”

Anya nodded, returning the hug.

“If you have to go to the bathroom, it’s to your left,” came Xander’s voice behind the pair of hugging friends. “If you don’t have to do to the bathroom, picture what you’re about to face. Better to go now.”

Buffy disengaged from Anya and turned down towards the basement. It was time to get this show on the road.
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Buffy stepped into the mouth of hell along with the potentials and the other two slayers, the amulet around her neck. It was starting to worry her a little that she was feeling nothing from the ugly thing around her neck. She’d worn a magical amulet around her neck for centuries, she knew what a mystical amulet was supposed to feel like. This one felt like it was busted.

Buffy pulled Liz aside once they were all into the cave.

“I don’t want to worry, you, but I don’t think this doohickey of Angel’s is working,” noted Buffy in a whisper.

“I’m not worried,” intoned Liz.

“Really? It’s not working and you aren’t worried?” asked Buffy.

“I’m not worried,” stated Liz again.

The group stepped up towards the cliff before them, lights of a dozen torches illuminating the cavern below them and revealing the army of ubervamps they were about to attack.

“I’m not worried,” Liz repeated, her voice losing the calm edge she had once had.

“Really? ‘Cause I’m flashing back to Xander’s whole bathroom speech,” snapped one potential.

“Liz...” whispered another.

“I’m not worried,” Liz repeated again. “As long as Willow can work her spell before they...”

Liz didn’t have time to get her sentence out before the Turok-han below noticed the intruders.

“...see us.”

And the battle was on. Suddenly all around them, the potentials stirred. BUffy hoped that Willow’s had already taken effect.

“These guys are dust,” noted one potential.

As the battle raged, the mêlée and chaos was interrupted slightly by the appearance of Kennedy, carrying the scythe.

“Liz!” shouted the nasty potential as she threw the scythe to her general.

As the Turok-han noticed that there was another person to attack, Kennedy readied herself for the fight.

“I could get used to this!” she giggled, smashing a Turok-han into the ceiling.

Buffy rolled her eyes at Kennedy’s antics as she snapped the neck of another ubervamp. Suddenly there was an incredible heat coming from the amulet around her neck. Ignoring what was going on around her, she touched the jewel, the heat burning her hand.

“Liz! Whatever this thing does, I think it’s...” Buffy’s voice was cut off by the scream that issued from her lips. It was a pain that was more intense than the fall that had claimed her ability to walk.

On the peripheral of her senses, Buffy heard Liz issue commands to the troops, unaware of what was going on. Tears prickling at the edge of her eyes, the pain more intense than she had anticipated, she had one thought in her mind. That she was going to get through this to see Spike again.

Buffy stumbled back from the pain, her back coming into contact with the wall of the cavern. The way that the pain was coursing through her, Buffy knew that it was going to get worse before it got better.

“Oh bloody hell!” she screamed as another wave of pain enveloped her.

White light from the amulet suddenly shot up towards the ceiling, punching a hole in the rock above her. The pain subsided but now she couldn’t move. Stuck in the ring of orange light, Buffy’s eyes sought out the figure of her granddaughter in the chaos of the battle before her.

“Liz!” exclaimed Buffy.

Before Liz could react the light from the amulet shot out in every direction, frying the Turok-han instantly and bringing down the ceiling.

This is cool, Buffy thought, suddenly finding herself face to face with Liz.

The former potentials streamed by fleeing the falling rocks, no longer needing to fight the ubervamps. Buffy smiled as Liz’s eyes locked with hers.

“It’s time for you to go, Elizabeth,” said Buffy sweetly, the orange light radiating from her body.

“No! No, you’ve done enough. You could still...” started Liz.

“No, that’s not how this works. You knew that when you gave me this thing. You wouldn’t leave without making sure that it was over. That’s what I’m doing. Captain goes down with the ship, I’m the captain now, you’re the general, you get to live another day.”

“Liz, come on!” shouted Faith from the top of the stairs.

“You’ve got to go,” said Buffy firmly.

“Thank you for being my grandmother,” said Liz, looking into the green eyes of Buffy.

Buffy smiled back. “I loved every minute you let me be one to you. Take care of Dawn. And don’t let Spike walk into the sunrise for me, ‘kay?”

Liz nodded, a tear rolling down her cheek, before she was startled by another rock crashing down next to her.

“Time to to go, Elizabeth,” Buffy cried, the power coursing through her turning intensely painful once again.

With a nod and a smile, Liz took off towards the entrance of the high school.

Looks like I’m actually going to die this time, thought Buffy as she felt the world go dark. A sense of calm passed over her as she realised that she had finally saved the world like she had been meant to as a slayer a century ago. The funny sensation lasted longer than she expected, like she was trapped somewhere, dark and hard. Time stretched on for a long while.
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Spike was closing the door to Dawn’s bedroom as he felt Buffy’s connection to him fade.

“Buffy,” he whispered softly, refusing to let himself succumb to tears. She was gone and he felt so empty.

Outside the sky was clear, stars were coming out into view. The world was safe and he had a feeling it was all because of Buffy.
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tbc...