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"What have you done to yourself my sweet?" Spike looked up. He must be hallucinating. She couldn't really be here, now could she? It must be more of his nightmares/daymares that he now constantly had. "You've forgotten me?"
Spike shook his head. He knew who. He just couldn't understand how she had come back. Not now. Why? "Are you really here? Or are you all in my mind?"
Laughter. Insane laughter. "Spikey, how dare you talk to me like that. I've always been real. Might not seemed like it, but I have been. And I've come to help you. You need my help."
"Drusilla, you are the last person that I need help from." Spike turned his back on his sire. "I need to understand what I've done to myself." He turned back around to face her. "You are the last person to help me. I need someone. Someone that understands and can help me."
The female vampire shook her head. "Angel will not come. He wants nothing to do with you. You have gone and done something that he wished he could do so long ago. But that's not the big picture. The big picture is that you have to rid yourself. Rid of all the burning."
The blond vampire looked up at Drusilla. "I really don't think so, pet. I fought hard to get back what is mine. And I'm not about to just throw that away. I will keep it. And I will live with it."
"Even with the blood that you shed?" Drusilla laughed at the look of horror on the one that she had sired. "You are covered with blood. I can see it. You took the life of the one. And that was why you had the burning inside of you."
Spike growled and morphed into that of the vampire. "Get the hell out of here! Before I lose what's left of my sanity and decide to stake you right here and now."
Drusilla shrugged. "All right, Spike. I'll leave you. For now. But you can't deny what you are. You are evil. Even with that thing burning so brightly inside of you, it is blood that gives you life and that you so crave. And that my young vampire is what this is all about." She smiled before turning to walk out of the crypt.
Spike held his hand against his head. Was she right? Was all that he had done in vain? He sighed. He knew that there was one way that he could prove himself. And that was to prove himself to the one person that mattered.
The vampire picked up a sword and a stake. He looked outside. Twilight had come. And that was enough for him to be free to roam around. He would make this little town safe for those to walk in. Or he'd die trying.

Not much time had passed since Faith had broken down in the slayer's arms. She had carried her to the bed. They sat there, the blond's arms still wrapped around her tightly. Buffy looked at Giles who only shrugged.
Tears had begun falling immediately. And they just would not stop falling. In all the time that the blond had known the rogue slayer, she had never seen her like this. It was almost too much for her to handle.
Finally, the tears didn't stop, but they did slow down. She pulled out of the embrace and wiped at her own tears. "I'm sorry B for all of this. I..." Her eyes found Joyce's. "I almost..."
"Faith, it's all right." There was that warm and soothing voice of Buffy's mom. And so forgiving. Just moments before the slayer had held a knife to her throat.
"No it's not!" Faith stood up quickly as did Buffy. "All the things I've done the past three years. Well, a year of it doesn't count cause in a coma. But all those things I did and in such a short time. And now, I almost killed..."
Buffy stepped closer to the rogue slayer. "But you didn't. You could have. For whatever reason, you managed to contain yourself. Do you know what's going on?"
Faith shook her head. "I woke up. I wandered around for a while learning about what was now going on in Sunnydale. Lots happened in such a short time. And then, something came to me. I don't know if I was actually seeing it or dreaming it. I saw, the mayor." Tears still fell silently down her already wet cheeks.
Buffy looked at Giles before looking back at Faith. "You do know that we defeated the mayor. And he's, well, dead."
"Yeah." Faith nodded. "I got that. One of the first things I learned that bossman wasn't bossman anymore." She looked into confused eyes. "But that's a good thing. I mean, he planned on at the very least destroying Sunnydale. And you know those demons, B. They'll keep going to they've conquered the world."
There was even more confusion on the blond slayer's face. "You are now fighting on the side of good again I take it?"
"Yeah." Faith sighed. "If it'll have me back. Some of the things I did. It was just totally not of the good. I mean, look at what I almost did here. Boy did I make some lousy choices over the years."
"That's a given." Buffy smiled as Faith looked a little surprise by her bluntness. "But that doesn't mean that you can't either change the things you've done or try and make up for them. It can be done. And you are still a slayer. That means that you have a calling. That you are a chosen one just like me."
That brought a little bit of a smile onto Faith's face. "That would be sweet, B." Faith looked at Joyce. The one that had been more of a mother than her own. She still couldn't believe that she almost killed her. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Summers. That's just lame but it's all I can say. I never should have tried to kill you. And that sounds just crazy."
Joyce came closer to the rogue slayer. "Faith, I've already said that it is all right. I don't know exactly what you are going through, but I'm sure that after being in a coma for so long, everything is confusing. And of course, all that you went through before that."
Giles had taken in all of this in total silence. "We do have one problem."
Buffy looked at her watcher. "What would that be?"
"The police are after a girl that fits Faith's description." Giles watched Faith's face for any signs of reaction. "It's jut for questioning in the case of the death of the deputy mayor. But it will be hard to explain everything." Giles smiled a little. But it faded. "We will stand behind you, no matter what. But there is one more problem."
"What's that?" Faith didn't want to think of yet another thing that could complicate matters even more.
"I think he was referring to us." Everyone turned to see who had walked in. "Faith, we are with the Watcher's Council. You will be coming with us."

Anya screamed and Xander pulled her behind him. Oz flew in front of the werewolf part of himself. It had already caused how many deaths, he wasn't about to let it hurt any of his friends.
Willow held onto Tara's hand. They had begun a spell the second that the werewolf had broken down the door. But it wasn't fast enough. They all watched in horror as the werewolf's claws raked through Oz's chest.
"Goddess!" The spell finished, Willow quickly made her way to Oz's side. The spell had put up a barrier surrounding the werewolf. It growled and clawed at the invisible wall it now found itself trapped in.
Blood was everywhere in an instant. And the faster the blood flowed, the more sedate the werewolf became. It was obvious that Oz was seriously hurt and there was a connection with the werewolf. And that didn't bold well for the werewolf. But the fact that they were connected was the important thing. They had to keep up the barrier and help Oz at the same time.
Willow grabbed the blanket that she always kept on the couch for her and Tara to use when they snuggled. "Xander! Call 911 now!" The redhead began to put pressure on the deep cuts across her ex's chest. "Tara, get some towels or sheets or something. We've got to put pressure on this until the paramedics get here."
Everyone began doing as they were told. Oz's eyes fluttered open for a moment. "I'm sorry."
The redhead shrugged. "Hey, it's all right. But next time maybe you'll come to me before you get yourself involved in the black magicks. I've learned a lot over the years from Tara."
Oz coughed. And with each cough, blood came out as well. "I'm sorry that I came back here. I wanted to break up you and Tara. I want you for my own."
Green eyes went very wide. Tara was by her side handing her a sheet. The redhead took it and began ripping it so that she could tie it around Oz. She just had to save him. After all, she once loved him very deeply. And he had saved her so many years ago from that bullet.
Carefully, she tied the sheets around his chest as tight as she could. "Is there anything else we can do for you?" She noticed that the werewolf was now lying still. Too still for her liking.
Oz's eyes closed. "Just know that I love you. And always will. If only I'd never come back here." There was a whimper from the werewolf.
A little bit of a yellow glow began coming from both the werewolf and Oz. Willow quickly stood up and backed up several steps. She felt Tara wrap her arms around her from behind. Xander and Anya stepped beside the two witches.
The lifeless bodies of Oz and the werewolf began floating. The barrier that Willow and Tara had put up had long ago faded away. The glowing became even brighter as the two came closer together. A bright flash blinded the four watching and when they were able to look again, there was now only Oz. The two had merged back into one.
The lifeless body of Oz floated to the ground. Willow was the first to react. She ran over and kneeled down before his body. She put her hand to his face. It felt so cold. She tried to find a pulse, but there wasn't one. Had she lost another person that she had once loved so much and still cared for?
That's when there was a pounding on the door. The paramedics had arrived. Xander let them in. Willow stood back and watched them do their thing. Was there hope? They put Oz on a stretcher and took him to the ambulance without a word. They just drove off into the twilight of the night.
"We've got to call Buffy." Willow made her way to the phone. "And then we have to get to the hospital." The witch made her way to the phone.
"What are you going to tell her?" Xander eyed the witch. "I mean, was Oz dead?"
Willow shot him a look. She knew that she had not found a pulse. But anything could have happened. "I'll just tell her the truth. We found out who was behind the killing spree. And I'll tell her that Oz is in the hospital."
"That's it?" Xander put his hand on hers. "Will, I saw the look on your face. He's dead, isn't he?"
Tears were now in the corners of the witch's eyes. "Back off!" Everyone turned and stared at the usually quiet Tara. "Give her time. She needs time."
Xander came face to face with the blond. "Why can't she just tell us if Oz is alive or dead. Is that so hard?"
Tara eyed him. "Look, death is not easy to deal with. So give her a chance to deal."
"Enough!" Now everyone was looking at Willow. "Look, I didn't want to have to say this, but I think Oz is dead. I couldn't find a pulse. I think I've lost another person." Tara was there in an instant with her arms around her everything.