Brace Yourself

Author: enigmaticblue

Rating: PG-15

Archive: If you already have my stuff. If not, just ask.

Disclaimer: You know the drill. I don't own these characters. If I did, they would all be living happily ever after by now.

Summary: The sequel to Collide. There are unexpected consequences to the ritual Buffy did to break the curse on Spike, Dawn is trying to figure out what it means to be the Key, and Willow is coming home. And that's just the beginning.

Chapter 16: A Hostage to Fortune

"Got to feel woke up inside again/Got to feel less broke more fixed/Got to feel when I got outside myself/Got to feel when I touched your lips/The things we do to the people that we love/The way we break when there's something we can't take/Destroy the world that we took so long to make/We expect her gone for some time/I wish her safe from harm..." ~Bush, "The People That We Love"

Dawn wasn't too surprised to see that Buffy's bedroom door was closed when she woke up. She'd been trying to get herself up and off to school, since her sister needed more sleep these days with the pregnancy. Spike had given her a very serious lecture on the need to make things as easy on Buffy as possible, and that included letting her sleep in.

Of course, Spike had given her said lecture well out of earshot of the Slayer, for fear she would go ballistic over his attempts to coddle her, but Dawn didn't blame him. She thought it was kind of cute, how protective-daddy he could go at the drop of a hat.

Her new little niece or nephew wasn't going to lack for love, that was for sure.

Dawn managed to get to school, trying to ignore how much it hurt to watch as Janice sat with the cool kids, leaving Dawn to look around for a free spot. She reminded herself that she had better things to do with her time than worry about high school politics. She could open up portals to other dimensions, after all, and Dawn was pretty sure that Buffy would allow her to help stop the next apocalypse.

Still, saving the world was in the future, and lunch was now, and it still stung. She supposed that she could be grateful that it was Friday, at least.

"Hey, Dawn," Laura said as she passed. "You want to sit with us?"

Dawn smiled gratefully. "Yeah, thanks."

"Are you going to the dance?" Laura asked.

Dawn hid a grimace. The winter formal was fast approaching, and Dawn had no idea if she even wanted to go. If Bracken was still around—and if she could explain a dance to him—he might go with her. On the other hand, it could end up being weird, since he knew so little about her world. He might be uncomfortable. "I don't know," she hedged.

"You should!" Sarah cajoled. "It's going to be fun. Laura and I are going to go stag together. You could come with us."

Dawn hesitated. "Maybe. There's a guy, but he's not a student here, and I don't know if he'd want to come."

They both leaned forward. "An older guy?"

"Not that much older," Dawn said. "But he's out of school. He's staying with my sister's fiancé. And he's been out of the country for a long time."

"Out of the country?" Laura asked, highly interested. "He's foreign?"

"No, he's just been living in Africa," Dawn improvised. "His parents were missionaries."

They plied her with more questions after that, but thankfully they were relatively shallow, like what his name was, whether he was cute, and what he was doing. Dawn was forced to do her best to come up with plausible answers, hoping that she would remember her story later on. If she was asked about Bracken again, she'd have to tell the same story, otherwise it would appear as though she'd made her boyfriend up completely.

How lame was that?

She managed to get through the rest of her day, grateful when she could head home. Dawn still remembered the days when she liked school, not just for the classes, but for the social opportunities. These days, she felt more like a misfit than anything else.

Letting herself into the house, Dawn called out, "Buffy!" Frowning when there wasn't an answer, she went into the kitchen to check the fridge for messages. There were no notes from Buffy, but the red light on the answering machine was blinking steadily.

Dawn punched the button and listened to Spike's voice. "When you get this, give me a call, Buffy. 'm takin' Bracken to get some clothes, an' we need to talk to Rupert about getting him proper paperwork. I'll probably be at the Magic Box this afternoon, helpin' the witches look for spells. Better stay put until someone comes to get you, luv, even if you don't like it."

Concern was beginning to blossom into full-fledged worry. Dawn didn't remember what her sister's plans had been, but she was fairly certain that it hadn't involved lying in bed all day without answering the phone. Unless Buffy was sick.

With a sense of foreboding, Dawn took the stairs two at a time, stopping outside Buffy's door. She knocked softly. "Buffy?"

There was no response, and Dawn twisted the knob, opening the door slowly. "Buffy?"

A moment later, Dawn saw the unmade bed and no sign of the Slayer.

~~~~~

Spike frowned, not believing his ears. "What the hell are you talkin' about?"

"This," Giles replied, playing the message left on the Magic Box's answering machine. Buffy's voice was immediately recognizable; it was her words that made no sense.

"I'm sorry, Giles, but I can't put everyone in danger when the Council is only after me. It's too much of a risk. I'll call you when I get somewhere safe."

Spike began to shake his head immediately. "That's not Buffy," he insisted. "You know that isn't Buffy. She wouldn't take off like that. When was that message left?"

"About fifteen minutes ago," Giles replied. "I went out to get lunch, and when I returned this was waiting for me."

Spike reached for the phone. "We've got to call the house. Dawn should be home from school by now, an'—"

He was cut off by the shrill ring of the telephone, and he picked up the receiver impatiently. "Yeah?"

Giles gave him a dirty look for his poor phone manners, but the anger swiftly changed to worry. "You sure about that, Dawn?" Spike asked, then paused. "No, you stay put. I'm goin' to send someone for you." He hung up and looked at Giles. "She just got home, an' Buffy's not there. Her bed wasn't made, and Dawn hasn't seen her all day."

"How could someone take her?" Bracken asked, speaking up for the first time. "Dawn said she was stronger than anyone else."

"They must have caught her sleeping," Spike said, rage beginning to burn in his blue eyes. "Bloody hell! I should never have left her alone! I knew!"

"You didn't know," Giles said quickly. "We all thought that Buffy would be safe in her own house. Dawn didn't say that the window was open, correct?"

"No," Spike admitted grudgingly. "Dawn said she didn't notice anythin' this morning. However they got in, they didn't break anythin' doin' it."

"We'll get her back," Giles promised. "I'll go pick Dawn up and bring her back here."

Tara and Willow came through the front door of the Magic Box, both appearing a little more comfortable in the other's company, although by no means was the tension completely gone.

"Where were you two?" Spike growled.

Tara frowned. "We got hungry and thought we'd take a break. What happened, Spike?"

"Someone took Buffy," he said. "I should have been with her last night."

Willow shook her head. "You couldn't have known, Spike, and if you had been there, they might have just dusted you and taken Buffy."

Spike grimaced angrily, unable to argue with her. The chip was still working, and even if he'd been there, it was likely that he wouldn't have been able to stop the Council's goons.

"I'm going to pick Dawn up," Giles said gently.

When Giles had left, Willow asked, "What about Xander and Anya? Shouldn't we let them know?"

"They leave you a phone number?" Spike asked sharply. "How the hell are we s'posed to contact them?"

"Spike," Tara said, her voice a gentle rebuke. "We are all worried about Buffy, and it's not your fault. The Council wanted Buffy, and they found a way to get her."

Willow took an audible breath. "Tara, I think we should focus on the protection spell for the baby. I'll see what I can do with a locator spell to find Buffy"

"I agree," Tara responded. "Spike, Bracken, you two can help us look for a protection spell."

Spike bit back the angry comment on his tongue, knowing that it would be counterproductive; they were all doing their best. He sat down at the table with a sigh and reached for the book closest to hand. "What are we lookin' for?"

"Any references to spells that have to do with physical protection," Willow said. "And while you're at it, look for spells about removing foreign objects from a body."

Spike looked up at her, wide-eyed. "Thought you said you wanted to talk to Buffy first."

"Buffy's not here now, is she?" Willow asked sharply. "Besides, she's your fiancée, and carrying your baby, and Buffy would kill me if you fried your brains trying to drain Travers."

He shrugged his agreement. "S'pose so." Spike looked over at Bracken, who was still standing uncomfortably. "Grab a seat an' a book, lad."

"I can't."

Spike frowned. "Can't what?"

"Spike," Tara said, shaking her head. "Have a seat, Bracken."

The young man sat down, staring at the books in dismay, and Spike suddenly understood. "Never learned to read?"

Bracken moved his shoulders. "My mother taught me a little, but..."

"You do what you can," Tara encouraged him. "If you recognize any words that look like they might apply to what we're looking for, just let one of us know."

He nodded and reached for a book, beginning to flip through the pages. Spike watched him for a moment, noting the reverent way Bracken touched the page, as though it was a precious thing.

Spike turned back to his own book, beginning to scan the pages for a spell that might help him protect his child.

~~~~~

Buffy woke slowly, her mind fuzzy. For a moment, she couldn't recall where she was, or what had happened, but it all came rushing back as she felt the restraints on her wrists and ankles. She began to struggle immediately but could tell there was a difference in her strength.

She was weak. Buffy had the same feeling in her limbs as she had during the Cruciamentum.

Twisting her head from side to side, she could see that she was in a hospital-like room, with bare walls. From what she could see, there were no windows, and the bright fluorescent lights left the room stark. To top off the hospital theme, they had taken her clothing and given her a standard hospital gown.

Buffy twisted in her bonds, wondering how long she'd been out, or if Spike knew she was missing yet. The Council's men—and she was certain that they were from the Council—had entered her bedroom while she'd been in the midst of a Slayer dream. By the time Buffy had realized that they were there, she'd had two tranq darts in her chest.

Her biggest fear at the moment was for her child. Would the drugs harm the baby? Had they even thought about that? Did the Council care?

"I see you're awake." Buffy raised her head to see Quentin Travers enter the room, followed closely by two guards. "You weren't supposed be conscious for some time."

"I've always been precocious," she quipped, in spite of her crippling fear.

Buffy didn't think she'd ever felt quite so helpless as she did right at that moment. If it had just been her own skin on the line, that would have been bad enough, but it wasn't just her, and there was nothing she could do for her child at that moment.

"I warned you," Travers said conversationally. Buffy tensed as a white coated man entered the room behind him. "I told you that we could not risk having this monstrosity born."

"That's my baby you're talking about," Buffy gritted out. "If you harm him—"

Quentin shook his head. "Our goal is to determine what sort of threat the demon presents. And you needn't worry about your vampire finding you. This place is completely shielded from locator spells, and everyone within the Council who knows of its existence is here. Completely loyal to me, I might add. We can afford to wait months, if necessary, although I believe it will be only a few weeks before the thing inside you is viable."

Buffy renewed her struggles against the restraints. "Let me go, you bastard! When I get free—"

"You won't," Travers said complacently. "We're using a stronger dose of adrenal suppressants this time. You'll be lucky if you can lift your head in a few hours. The doctor assures me that it won't harm the child. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a meeting."

She tried to fight, tried to move so that the doctor couldn't stick the needle in her arm, but the guards held her still effortlessly, and Buffy fought back tears as she felt the prick.

Spike would find her, and so would the others. Travers had underestimated them before, when she'd fought Glory. The head of the Council had dismissed her friends as being of no use at all, but he had been wrong then, and he was dead wrong now.

The only question was whether they would find her in time.

~~~~~

"Do you think we should call the others and tell them the good news, Mrs. Harris?" Xander asked, more than a little drunk on champagne and his new bride's body. He'd heard that married sex was the best kind of sex, and they weren't wrong.

Anya was so happy, she was glowing, and that made him happy.

She rolled her head to look at him. "I suppose we could."

Xander grabbed her hand and pressed his lips to her palm. "I want to tell the whole world how happy I am."

"You're happy?" Anya asked. "I think I'm happier."

He laughed and rolled on top of her. "Not yet."

A little while later—when they were both too tired to contemplate celebrating any more—Xander finally picked up the phone to call Willow. It was late evening, and he was fairly certain that she would be home.

Except that the answering machine picked it up, and Xander hung up without leaving a message.

"Call Giles," Anya said. "He's my employer. He should congratulate me."

Xander shrugged, figuring that if Willow wasn't at his place, she could be at the Magic Box. In fact, there was a good possibility that he'd find most of the Scoobies there at this time of night, unless they had gone out to celebrate.

"The Magic Box," Giles' voice said.

"Congratulate me, G-Man," Xander said jubilantly. "I'm a married man."

There was a moment of silence, and then the Watcher said quietly, "Xander, Buffy is missing."

"What?" Xander was certain he hadn't heard him right. "What's going on?"

"Someone took her last night. Willow's working on a locator spell as we speak, and the others are researching protection spells for the baby." Giles sighed. "My contacts at the Council are as in the dark as I am. No one seems to know where Travers might have taken her."

"We're coming back," Xander said immediately. "We'll be there as soon as we can."

"Thank you. And congratulations, Xander. Pass the word along to Anya as well."

He put the phone back, looking over at his wife. "I'm sorry, An, but—"

"It's Buffy, isn't it?" Anya asked, her expression somber.

Xander nodded. "They can't find her."

"We need to get back then," she said simply.

Xander stared at her. "You don't mind?"

She glared at him briefly before beginning to throw her things in her suitcase. "Buffy is my friend, too. Of course I'm going to want to help her. I did that last spring, didn't I?"

"You did better than I did," he responded. "Thanks."

"You pack," Anya ordered, although there was a warm light in her eyes. "I'll call for a flight. We can always have another honeymoon later."

~~~~~

The pressure was definitely on. Willow had her doubts about the efficacy of a locator spell, particularly when the Council had gone to so much trouble to get their slimy hands on Buffy. If she had been a betting woman, Willow would have bet her next paycheck that the Council had done something to shield their location from traditional spells.

On the other hand, she was one powerful witch. Willow might just manage to make it work anyway.

The training room had been full of Buffy's things—spare weapons, water bottles, a set of sweats that she tended to keep there. Willow chose the sweats for the focus of the spell, setting up the magical elements carefully on the training room floor. There was no way she was going to get this wrong.

Locator spells were pretty easy for her these days; the traces of themselves that people left on their belongings were easy to follow back to the owner, and well within the realm of natural magic that the coven had drilled into her.

The spell was working just fine, and Willow could sense the threads of magic she'd sent after Buffy following those traces when it just stopped.

It was almost like hitting a brick wall, and the wall hit back.

She was rocked out of her concentration, and Willow's eyes snapped open. A tremor ran through her frame before she locked it down, frowning in concentration. If she could only figure out where that brick wall had come from—she might be able to follow that to its source. If Willow could figure out who had done the barrier spell, that would be a clue.

Instead, all Willow could sense was the presence of the barrier.

"Are you okay?" Tara asked.

Willow shook her head wearily. "There's someone blocking me."

"Bloody hell," Spike burst out. "How are we gonna find her?"

"I'll call Nigel," Giles said. "I doubt that there are many affiliated with the Council who are powerful enough to set up a barrier spell like that."

"What if that doesn't work?" Dawn asked anxiously.

"We'll keep lookin'," Spike promised her. "An' if I have to kill every single Watcher, I'm gonna get her back."

"It's not going to come to that," Giles said sharply.

"It might," Spike growled.

Bracken cleared his throat. "Can't you use something else as a focus?"

"Use what?" Willow asked, wondering what the young man meant. He couldn't even read, but he thought he knew something about magic?

He shrugged. "You are following like to like: an object to its owner. There are some ties that cannot be broken, even if you put a wall between them."

Tara was the first to get it. Willow could see her ex-girlfriend's face light up. "Dawn."

"What about me?" Dawn asked.

"Blood," Willow said, finally understanding. "We use Dawn as the focus."

"Can you do that?" Giles asked.

Willow shook her head. "Not usually, but we might be able to manage it, particularly with Tara and me behind her. We might even be able to open a portal directly to where Buffy is."

Giles nodded. "You'll work on it?"

"All night if we have to," Willow replied, then looked at Bracken. "That was a really good idea."

He flushed. "I know what it is to be connected by blood."

They started to head back into the main area of the shop, but Willow asked Spike to stay back. "I think I can disable your chip."

He audibly swallowed. "How soon?"

"Tonight, preferably," Willow replied. "I want to make sure I'm fresh when we do the spell to find Buffy again."

"It's not goin' to incapacitate me, is it?" Spike asked. "Might be better to do this with the chip in that case."

Willow shook her head. "I can't make any concrete promises, but I don't think so."

Spike nodded. "Right."

"We'll do it later," Willow said. "Give me a chance to catch my breath after doing that spell, and we'll see if my theory works."

She really hoped that it did work.