Chapter 3 - Memory ...

In the guest suite, Buffy woke up. She sat up, looked around and frowned. She picked up her robe and put it on while she walked to the door. Down the hall, she opened Spike's door softly and walked inside.

Spike was sleeping soundly. Silently, she hung her robe in the closet, and draped her nightgown on the chair by the bed. She slipped in beside Spike, laid her head on his shoulder and her arm across his chest. Better, she thought, and slept.

***

"Buffy, this is not a good idea."

"This is a great idea. Shut up and kiss me again, Spike."

***

After Buffy slept again, Spike pulled on his robe and went looking for Ann. He found her in the library.

"Something weird just happened, Ann."

"I know," Ann said.

"You know? Good. I..."

After a long silence, Ann asked, "Yes?"

"She..."

Another silence. "Yes?"

Silence.

"All right," Ann said, "You listen, I'll talk: Buffy's almost twenty-one, she will be legally an adult on her next birthday. I think that you achieved your majority when you defied Glory to protect Dawn and that you even have the scars to prove it. As far as I'm concerned each of you is a consenting adult and if the two of you want one another, I'll support you."

"Ann, she came to my room. Before that, I hadn't touched her, well, maybe a kiss, but...."

"Going to you may be one of the few independent decisions she has been able to make since she became the Slayer."

"She said her name was Buffy."

"I know you would never hurt her, Spike, and it's obviously too late to remind you of what Claire said. Beyond that, I think the matter is entirely private to you and Buffy."

"Not everyone will agree with you."

"They won't bother me at all and they won't bother you in this house," Ann said flatly. "Is there a change in her mental state?"

"No."

"I'm going to fix lunch. Join me? Gang Long's back."

"We'll be down."

Spike went up to Buffy, still asleep in his bed. "Hey, sleepyhead. Wake up, Buffy."

"Umm," she said, slipping her arms around his neck.

He gave her a quick kiss. "Up," he insisted. "Ann is making lunch, it's two in the afternoon, and we should get up."

"You should come back to bed."

"Lunch," he said, pulling her up.

"Oh, all right." Buffy got up and went over to his closet. "Hey, look at this: it works here, too. Good. I've always wanted to own a kimono. This is nice, too. Do you like this dress?"

"What there is of it, yes, but I think jeans are more appropriate for today."

"It is sort of party clothes. Jeans it is, and a halter top. What are you going to wear?"

"Jeans, shirt, boots, you know, clothes."

"Ann always looks so good."

"So do you," Spike told her.

***

"Hi, Buffy," Gang Long said.

"Hi." Buffy seemed a little wary of Gang Long, but after greeting her calmly, he finished setting the table. Buffy relaxed.

Ann came in and everyone sat down. "I thought lobster salad, if no one is allergic."

"Good," Spike said.

"Yes," Buffy agreed.

"Buffy," Ann asked, "do you play Mahjong? We need a fourth."

"I think I did, once."

"We'll have a game after lunch. Then, I think I'll swim a while."

Ann had obviously briefed Gang Long: the two of them kept the conversation light and almost completely in the present. 'After lunch' was as far away in time as they touched on. They were careful to mention no one from Buffy's previous history. Ann discussed an art exhibit in San Francisco she had gone to some unspecified time ago, and Gang Long described surfing in Hawaii. Buffy stayed relaxed, and Spike managed to enjoy the meal.

"Let Spike and Gang Long clean up, Buffy. You and I will set up the Mahjong table." Ann picked up her wine glass and led Buffy to the library.

"I remember the rugs," Buffy said, looking down at the Isfahan and over at the Ardabil.

"They were gifts," Ann said. "I treasure them."

"Giles," Buffy fell silent for a moment, "Giles likes them, too."

"Giles has good taste. We'll need the four folding chairs from the cabinet by the computer," Ann said, setting up a bridge table.

"I'll get them."

Ann brought out Gang Long's bamboo and bone Mahjong set and began placing the tiles on the table. "We use American rules."

"There are others?"

"Oh, yes."

Buffy picked up one of the tiles and turned it over. "Is this old?"

"Not really, I got it for Gang Long back in 1920--something."

"That's old."

"Giles plays Mahjong, too. We should invite him to play some time."

"No hurry," Buffy said quickly.

"None at all," Ann agreed.

With only an occasional quick glance through the rule book, Buffy enjoyed the game. When the round was over, Ann said: "Buffy, you and Gang Long go swim. Spike will help me clean up here, then I'll join you in the pool."

"OK," Buffy said. "Spare suits are in the downstairs bathroom, right?"

"Yes, by the back door."

Buffy went to the downstairs bathroom.

"Do I have to wear a suit, Jingwu?"

"Yes, wear a suit," Ann said. "I'm going to."

"Oh, all right." Gang Long shifted to dragon, then to swimsuited boy and went directly to the pool terrace through the French doors in the north wall.

Ann turned to Spike: "She remembered Rupert for a moment, but didn't mention him again. There seems to be a lot of what we say that she doesn't want to hear, so she just tunes it out."

***

"Where'd they go?" Spike asked Gang Long.

"Jingwu went to the playroom and Buffy followed her."

***

"This is wonderful, Ann. Whenever you mentioned the playroom, I never imagined anything like this."

"Do you want a bag? I know you can use one."

"A punching bag? What for? Who uses the bars?"

"Gang Long is coaching Spike on the bars and on dagger work."

"I bet I can still remember the warm up routine from cheerleader practice," Buffy said.

"Go ahead," Ann invited. "I'm going to do some forms."

***

"I think I'll take a nap before dinner," Buffy said.

"We'll eat about 8:30. Gang Long wants roast demon again, but I think we'll have pheasant. Do you like pheasant?"

"I suppose. I like chicken, turkey, game hens, and even duck. Pheasant sounds interesting," Buffy said.

"Good. Pheasant with calvados and apples," Ann said.

"Spike, are you going to come nap?"

"Sounds good. I think I will."

"He'll join you in a minute, Buffy, go on up."

Spike watched Buffy go, then turned to Ann: "What?"

"This is curious," Ann said. "She shied away from the bag I installed for her. She ignored the weapons on the wall and the fact that you were practicing knife fighting. She said the forms I danced through looked very `martial arty,' and declined an offer to practice with a crossbow, saying she'd never used one. She did cheerleader routines--very athletic routines, but nothing resembling the Slayer's training I saw Rupert put her through."

"She wasn't happy being the Slayer, towards the end. She was talking about quitting. She seemed desperately unhappy about everything."

"As Claire said, there were things in her life she wanted changed and that appears to be one of them."

"Ann," Spike realized, "she hasn't mentioned vampires, she doesn't know I'm a vampire."

"What are you going to do about that?"

"Do I have to do anything?"

"Spike: your vampire status isn't just from her past, it's also your present. What do you think?"

***

That evening, Buffy watched as Spike prepared his pre-dinner cocktail of a beef bullion cube dissolved in vodka, mixed with Cambells canned blood and served with a dash of Tabasco sauce over ice in an old fashioned glass. "You really are a vampire," she said, reading the empty Cambells' can. "Aren't you?"

"Well, yeah. I've been one for years, over a century in fact."

"And your heart doesn't beat."

"Just as I showed you."

"And it doesn't have anything to do with that scar on your chest?"

"That's something else," Spike said.

"And you're not a vampire," Buffy said to Ann, "but you do other things."

"Yes," Ann said calmly.

"And Gang Long isn't a vampire."

"No."

"And I'm just a girl."

"Right," Spike said, carefully ignoring the faint frown Ann wore.

"OK."

***

"Spike, I've told Dawn you were up in Seattle--"

"Oh, hell, the party!"

"--and that you might not make it."

"No, I should go, I promised I would."

"I think so," Ann said. "Neither of us have seen anyone else from Sunnydale for four days. That may draw attention to us and our current problem."

"If we don't show up somewhere, they may come calling?"

"Certainly, a possibility. We can do without additional complications."

"How can we work this? We can't take Buffy, we can't leave her here alone, we can't tell Dawn or anyone in Sunnydale she's back."

"Spike, think a minute: Gang Long and the lions are here. She's safe here, with us or alone. We should talk to her."

"And say what?"

"Explain to her that you and I have a previous engagement, made before she came to stay here, that we should attend; but that it's going to be a really big party and we're sure Xander and Anya--who are friends of ours--wouldn't even notice one more guest."

"Yeah?"

"So why doesn't she come with us?"

"She probably won't want to go around that many people."

"And if she does, we'll take her with us."

"No!" Spike said at once.

"Why not?"

Spike thought quickly and produced the best reason he could: "Anya will never forgive us if we do. She doesn't like being upstaged."

"We'll show up two hours early and I'll do the buffet," Ann said. "I'll even stock their linen closet and the china cabinet."

"Bribe her, you mean."

"Yes," Ann said.

"That'll work," Spike admitted. "All right. We don't mention that Harris and Anya are friends of hers?"

"If she asks, certainly."

***

"Oh, no, thank you. I'll just watch TV."

"You might have a good time," Ann said.

"Maybe next time," Buffy said.

"All right. Here is something I've been meaning to give you."

"A cell phone. How nice. Thank you."

"You can call anyone you want."

"Like if the house is on fire?"

"9-1-1, yes. Or you can use this phone, it's a land line, or if you want to call your lawyer, you can use this one."

Buffy glanced at the large crystal in a silver-colored frame that stood on the shallow table behind the large sofa in the library. "That's a phone?"

"You touch it, and say the name of the person you want to talk with."

"I have a lawyer?"

"Yes. Nancy Polias is your family lawyer. Here's a list of people you may want to call, and which phone you can use to reach them most easily."

"I seem to know an awful lot of people," Buffy said. "Thank you." She folded the list and tucked it under the cell phone, which she left on the table beside the crystal phone.

***

(Chapter 4)

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