Disclaimer: Joss owns the characters of BTVS. I am not making any money off of this fic. Please don't sue me. Beta'd by AtheneHahn

A/N: Written in answer to Redwolf50's Challenge 109. Challenge details at the end.

by Jackofspikes

Chapter 44

"Did I miss something? What happened to the whole let's-just-separate-Buffy-and-Spike-for-a-little-while thingie we had going on?" Willow asked, confused.

"Claim him? I would have thought that would make the situation worse, not better?" Giles was completely confounded by the new turn of events.

"What? Wait! There was separating?" Buffy was pretty sure nobody had mentioned any separating to her and she really didn't like the idea of that at all.

Spike heard the word claim and went into mental picture overdrive. A sharp smack across the back of the head by William brought him abruptly back from his happy place.

"Hey!" Buffy shouted indignantly.

William snickered inwardly when he suddenly found himself facing a very pissed off younger version of his love. The expression on her face made his unbroken nose twitch in anticipation.

"Nobody messes with my boyfriend," she snarled, her fist heading directly for his much abused proboscis.

A slight breeze indicated his movement, her fist hitting nothing but air.

From behind her William leaned in, taunting. "You need to be quicker than that, slayer," he chortled. This wing thing was turning out to be a bit of alright.

Joan walked forward, clipped William over the back of the head and faced her younger self. "Happy?"

"Oy!" William responded, unhappily pouting. "He deserved it. He was having...um...naughty thoughts and she's only bloody sixteen."

"Oh, how would you know?" Buffy snapped in response and just like that the gravity of the situation became real. She cringed at the thought that everything she was thinking including all her very private little fantasies in relation to a completely biteable boyfriend were being shared with another. Joan was getting it all. And it so didn't matter that she and Joan were basically the same person, 'cause as far as she was concerned if she could see the other person then they had no business in her head. "Oh! No, no no no, we have to fix this right now. There is way too much sharing going on. Buffy thoughts need to be Buffy thoughts."

Wolfie faced the older slayer. "It was easier at the start, right? When you first got here?"

"Yes," Joan responded tightly. Her younger self was seriously becoming a pain in the ass.

"You placed a familial claim on William. Your mother and sister are part of that claim, but so is Buffy. Because the dimensions haven't split yet, there is only one mother and sister. There is not meant to be two Buffy's, so the claim you placed is overcompensating. The stronger it gets, the more obvious the memory changes and the emotions that come with those memories will become. If Buffy places a similar claim on Spike, it will balance out the claim. The memory changes will go back to being what they were, which was manageable for you. Buffy and Spike won't need to be separated, and you will be able to focus on more important things," Wolfie hastened to explain.

Joan prayed that her younger self would co-operate.

"What's this familiar claim thing-y, Giles?" Buffy asked. It didn't matter to her that there were probably at least four others in the room that could have answered her question. The Slayer asked her Watcher.

"Familial, Buffy," he automatically corrected.

"Whatever," Buffy waved her hand in dismissal.

Giles sighed in resignation. He reminded himself that, if Joan was any indication, at least his slayer would get a little more attentive in the future. Marginally. "The familial claim that Joan placed upon William is a simple incantation of a few words. It is non-invasive and non-violent. However, by accepting the claim William's ties to his vampiric family were severed completely and new bonds were made with the Summers family. The Ritual itself is a precursor to a mating ritual. It is, for all intents and purposes, an engagement...of sorts."

He allowed that little piece of information to sink in. "It is a serious step and not something to be rushed into lightly," Giles told them, before shooting a slightly reproachful glare at Joan. "But, if you are both agreed that it is a necessary step to help Joan and William and not a firm commitment to mate later on, I can not see any reason why this would hurt either of you. Perhaps it would be best if the two of you did a quick patrol around the school while you discuss it?"

Both blonds shared a glance and nodded in agreement, silently moving as one to leave the library. Both deep in thought.

Buffy stopped walking, looked up at the stars and sighed deeply. She was out under the stars every single night, but she was hard pressed to remember the last time she had taken the time to really take in the beauty of the cloudless expanse. The stars truly were beautiful. Turning to her companion, she smiled. He was beautiful too.

"So, what do you think?" she asked lightly.

"I think this is gonna rely on you, luv. I was sold on the idea as soon as a claim was mentioned. But, then, I'm already thinkin' that I'd prefer facing the sun than be without you," he told her softly as he lifted a hand to ghost over her cheek.

As their eyes locked, Buffy felt the fluttering of butterflies in her stomach as it suddenly became harder to breath. Unconsciously, she stepped closer to him. As his lips drifted closer, she felt drawn. Endless moments passed until finally they met and Buffy saw stars exploding in celebration.

~*~*~

Wolfie approached the younger slayer as she sat on one of the benches in the student lounge and stared out through the windows into the night beyond the glass.

"Spike said you wanted to talk to me?" he offered hesitantly, a little unwilling to interrupt her musings.

Glancing over to the hovering Sasquatch, Buffy smiled and encouraged him to join her.

Gathering her thoughts together, the young girl thought about what she wanted to say before she tried putting it into words.

"I need you to explain something to me," she started hesitantly.

"I'll try," he offered in return.

"I've been working on the new slayer vision-y thing, and when I walked into the library today, I saw something." She closed her eyes, in an attempt to recapture what she had seen. "When the spell that Miss Calendar did started, Xander had this uber creepy darkness around him. It sorta got lighter during the meeting on Monday, but today it's almost gone. And Spike was all glow-y, but his um, glow wasn't just around him, it was kinda hovering around Xan...like it was protecting him or something." Buffy opened her curious eyes and looked to the redhead for explanation.

Wolfie smiled; this he could answer.

"Your young friend was allowing his own jealousy to guide him. What he has learned over the last few days has changed his attitude. The lightening of the darkness he was being surrounded by shows us how far he has come. He's a remarkable young man with a very bright future ahead of him...now."

Buffy grinned. "So, he'll be less with the touchage now?"

The redhead smiled enigmatically and nodded in agreement.

"And the whole Spike-in-protection mode?" she asked cheerfully. The explanation of her friend had relieved her considerablely.

"Exactly that. Spike is a very protective individual. He loves absolutely. He and Xander have bonded and now Spike's demon considers your friend as 'his' to protect. He's a lot like you in that respect."

"Huh?"

"You love them all, so your aura hovers protectively over them all. Spike's will too, given time to get to know the rest of your friends as he now knows Xander."

Buffy's smile lit up the room.