Go the Whole Wide World

Author: enigmaticblue

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: The standard "I don't own them, please don't sue" should suffice, don't you think?

Archive: If you've got my stuff already, otherwise just ask.

Summary: Wesley finds himself with business in Rome, and Angel sends Spike along for company, wanting to get him out of his hair. It's amazing how small the world is sometimes. Set sometime after Why We Fight.

A/N: spikes_lady asked for Spike and Wesley bonding with possible Spuffy. I hope this suits.

Chapter 14: Slaying the Dragon

“If your success is not on your own terms, if it looks good to the world and does not feel good in your heart, it is not success at all.” ~Anna Quindlen

Spike motioned Buffy to stay back, wincing when she glared at him. “She’s not goin’ to want to talk to a Slayer.”

Buffy raised an eyebrow. “I’m sure I can make her talk.”

Spike sighed, then looked at Wesley, hoping that the other man would help. “Wes?”

“Perhaps you should let us handle it,” he suggested. “I speak the language, and Spike knows her. You should probably save your strength for the Immortal.”

She didn’t look terribly happy about it, but the Watcher’s logic was impeccable. “Fine. But hurry up, because it’s been days since I went demon hunting.”

“Your wish is my command,” Spike said, smirking when she rolled her eyes. The alley leading to the side entrance was within a few paces of the nearest entrance to the extensive underground system, and the buildings on either side leaned together in such a way as to block out any sun.

He watched as Buffy moved down the side street a little farther, out of range of the vampire’s senses. As soon as he was sure it was safe, Spike knocked on Aria’s door. There was no answer immediately, and Spike knocked again. “Aria! It’s Spike! Open up!”

“Who is your friend?” her rich voice called through the door.

“Just that, a friend,” Spike assured her. “We’re not goin’ to hurt you.”

The door opened just a crack, and he could see only one eye and a part of her face. “What is it that you want?”

“Lookin’ for the Immortal. Bartender told me you know where he likes to go when things get hot.”

Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Why?”

“Because he nearly killed my girl,” Spike responded. “Sex is one thing; harmin’ her is something else altogether.”

“I cannot help you.” Aria began to close the door, but Spike kicked it open. Using his speed to his advantage, Spike was inside the apartment before she could react.

In another moment, he had her up against the wall, his hand around her throat, lifting her well off the ground. “Let’s try this again,” Spike ground out. “I want the Immortal; you know where he is. You’re going to tell me.”

Aria spat something at him in Italian, which Spike had no trouble understanding, even without Wesley’s translation. “She just told you to go to hell.”

“I got that,” Spike said tersely. “Look, Aria, this guy is a bastard. He uses women for sex; he’s a bloody incubus!”

A predatory smile curved her lips. “No, he preys upon human women. For us, it is merely a pleasure.” Her eyes filled with scorn. “So, your woman is human?”

“That’s not quite accurate.”

Spike looked over his shoulder to see Buffy standing in the doorway. He should have known that she wouldn’t have the patience to wait for him. “Thought we talked about this, luv.”

“No, you thought she’d open up to you. She hasn’t.” Buffy strolled forward, as though she was entering the home of a friend, and not an enemy. “I think it’s time for me to try.”

Spike shrugged, knowing that he wasn’t going to have any success arguing. “You want me to hang onto her for you?”

“That would be nice,” Buffy said sweetly. “I think I might need two hands for this.”

He winced, knowing that Buffy was in the mood to do some damage, and since the Immortal wasn’t there, she’d take out her anger on Aria.

Buffy pulled out a stake. “I have to ask. Are you getting the picture yet, or are you too stupid to realize who I am?”

Aria’s eyes widened as she figured it out, and her face shifted. “Slayer!” she hissed, then let out a stream of Italian that Spike was certain was mostly profane.

“Wes?” Buffy asked. “Would you mind giving me the gist of what she just said?”

He smiled, his eyes cold. “Along with many comments on your parentage, and what she hopes the Immortal does to you, she also seems to think that Spike is a traitor. She had a few things to say about his mother as well, but they don’t bear repeating.”

“I am the Slayer,” Buffy agreed. “And you could probably make the argument that Spike is a traitor, although I’d have to disagree. That doesn’t really matter right now, however. What does matter is that I’m going to kill the Immortal. If you tell us where he is, that’ll save us some time, and we’ll let you live. If you don’t, I’ll stake you now. Your choice.”

Aria laughed. “You can’t kill him. For that, you have to touch him, and then you will lose yourself.”

Buffy threw a punch that caused the vampire’s head to slam against the wall. “See, that’s where you’re wrong. People are always telling me that I can’t do something, and then I go ahead and do it anyway. It’s a bad habit. Now, where is he?”

“Go to hell,” Aria spat.

Buffy put the point of the stake just over her heart. “Where is he?”

“Somewhere you’ll never find him.” She smiled cruelly. “And he will love to take you. His guards will dismember your boyfriend, and then he will suck the life right out of you.”

Buffy’s cell phone rang, and she used her free hand to pass it over to Wesley. “See who that is, will you?”

“Hello?” Wesley said. There was a pause, and then he smiled. “I see. That does make things easier. I’ll phone back in a moment for directions.” He disconnected. “Willow’s found him.”

Buffy’s eyes glittered with triumph as she looked back at Aria. “Hear that? We know where he is, which means you die.” She pulled the protection amulet from under her shirt, holding it up in front of the vampire’s face, waiting until Aria recognized its importance. “And he’ll never touch me again.”

Spike pulled back as Buffy slammed the stake home, watching the dust drift to the floor. “Didn’t expect that,” he admitted.

“Expect what?” Wesley asked.

He shook his head. “Thought she’d be a bit more helpful. Turns out that she knew what the bastard was up to all along.”

Buffy shrugged. “It doesn’t matter now. I’ll call Willow, and we’ll end this. It’s about damn time the Immortal learns what a Slayer really is.”

And it couldn’t be too soon as far as Spike was concerned.

~~~~~

Willow hadn’t wanted to allow all the Slayers to come, and she had attempted to convince Dawn to stay at the apartment as well. All four girls were adamant, however, and Willow couldn’t really come up with a good argument for the Slayers. They were trained and experienced; their job was to kill demons like the Immortal. Alessandra, especially, had a very personal reason for wanting him dead.

Dawn had an even better reason, which was why she’d won the debate.

Willow had insisted on calling Buffy with the Immortal’s location before they went anywhere, however, since she was the one who had to do the killing. She also wanted to give Buffy a heads-up, to let her know that the girls would be showing up.

Once she’d passed the word along, Willow let the girls know that they were ready to go. “How are we getting there?” Julie asked.

“Wesley’s driver?” Dawn suggested. “I’ll bet he wouldn’t mind.”

“Do you know how to contact him?” Willow asked.

Dawn shrugged. “I’ve got his number. Wes thought we might need the car, just in case.”

“Call him,” Willow said. “It’s the best solution.”

Either Wesley’s driver didn’t mind playing chauffer to a bunch of girls, or he had orders to take them wherever they wanted to go, too. Marco showed up in short order, and when Willow gave him directions, he knew exactly where they were going.

“You wish to find the Immortal, yes?” he asked in broken English.

Willow frowned. “You know where he is?”

“This is place where he goes,” Marco explained. “But not only place.”

Willow nodded. “Yeah, that’s where we’re going, and we’re kind of in a hurry.”

“Of course.”

By the time the ride was over, Willow was wishing that she hadn’t mentioned that they were in a rush, because his driving had probably shaved a few years off her life. “Thanks,” she managed when Marco pulled up in front of the old stone building.

“I wait for you,” he said.

“Thanks, Marco,” Dawn said.

He smiled at her, saying something in Italian that made her blush.

“What did he say?” Willow whispered to Rosalia as they approached the building.

“That he was happy to serve a pretty girl,” the Slayer replied with a smirk. “He flirts.”

Willow couldn’t exactly blame him. Dawn had definitely matured in the last couple of years, both emotionally and physically. She could honestly say that Dawn wasn’t just Buffy’s kid sister anymore; she’d become someone Willow was proud to call a friend.

“Where is he?” Alessandra asked, looking up at the building. There was no sign out front indicating what its purpose might be. The architecture told Willow it was old, but she had no idea how old, since that really wasn’t an interest of hers.

“I guess we could go through the front door and find out,” Julie said dubiously.

Dawn wrinkled her nose. “And give away the fact that we’re here?” She frowned. “Everybody’s got an amulet, right?”

Willow nodded. “We’re all covered, Dawnie.”

“I think we should go around to the back.” Rosalia’s expression was serious. “Find an open window.”

Willow hesitated. She wished she knew where Buffy and the others were. “Okay, but we stay out of sight until we know that Buffy and Spike are here. I don’t want to be forced to make a move too soon.”

~~~~~

Wesley glanced over at Spike. “Do you know this place?”

Spike shook his head. “No, haven’t seen it before. Looks like an old house. He prob’ly uses it for a hidey-hole when he needs one.”

“How are we getting inside?” Buffy asked. “The front door?”

Spike raised an eyebrow. “Do you really think that’s a good idea?”

“It is the most direct route,” Wesley observed. “Although Spike does have a point. It would tend to announce that we’re coming.”

“Who cares?” Buffy demanded. “We’re here to kill him, right? I don’t think it matters if he sees us coming.”

Wesley frowned, thinking quickly. Without any way to know where the Immortal was inside the building, there was every possibility that they would lose the element of surprise as soon as they entered. It appeared as though the only way that they would be able to surprise their quarry was if they announced their presence.

“What if Spike and I went through the front door?” he suggested. “If he doesn’t see Buffy with us, he might assume that she’s not coming, and that she’s too weak.”

“And we still get to surprise him.” Buffy smiled. Wesley noted that it wasn’t a particularly pleasant expression. “Give me a couple of minutes, and then kick the door in. I want to be inside first.”

Wesley watched as Buffy jogged across the street and through the alley on the left side of the building. Spike fidgeted next to him, and Wesley knew that the vampire was wishing he could be with her every step of the way. He suspected that when this was all over, it would be a very long time before Spike would let Buffy out of his sight.

“So, you goin’ back to L.A. after this is over?” Spike asked.

Wesley shrugged. “I’ll have to. If nothing else, I’ll need to pack up my things.”

“You goin’ to want company?”

Wesley looked over at him in surprise. “Excuse me?”

“Do you want company?” Spike repeated patiently. “Told Angel I’d watch your back, an’ that includes back in L.A.”

Wesley was touched. “No, thank you. I think this will be a conversation I need to have with Angel alone.”

“And are you comin’ back?” Spike asked.

Wesley wasn’t quite ready to make a commitment. “We’ll see what Giles has to say when I talk to him. I’d like to hear what he has to offer before making a decision.”

Spike nodded. “Yeah, makes sense. Let’s go.”

Wesley loosened the gun in his holster as he followed the vampire across the street, then checked to make sure he had a stake close to hand. He wasn’t sure what they would find inside, but if the Immortal could inspire loyalty in a vampire like Aria, Wesley wasn’t about to take any chances.

Spike tried the door first, and upon finding it locked, he backed up. “Just a mo’.”

His first kick caused the door to shudder, but no more than that. Spike kicked it again, and it creaked. Then again. At the fourth blow, the latch broke under the pressure, and the heavy wooden door swung open.

Wesley drew his gun and followed Spike inside, knowing that the vampire was more likely to be able to handle whatever force met them. A body lay just inside the door; Wesley didn’t recognize the type of demon, he could see the signs of a struggle.

“Slayers,” Spike murmured. “More than one.”

Wesley’s eyebrows went up, although he supposed that he shouldn’t have been surprised, since Willow was the one to notify them of the Immortal’s location. He doubted that the other Slayers or Dawn would have been content to wait for their return.

They made their way as silently as possible through the hallway. Wesley could see that it was decorated in the fashion of several centuries before, so much so that it felt as though he had traveled through time. He wondered if the décor reflected the Immortal’s true age.

There was a scattering of dust on the carpet at the foot of the stairs, and Spike looked back at Wesley with a wry grin. “Why do I get the feeling that we’re missin’ out on all the fun?”

Wesley smiled in return. “Perhaps because it appears as though they haven’t left anything for us?”

They made their way up the stairs, not worrying quite so much about keeping quiet. Wesley could hear the sounds of a fight coming from a room at the end of the hall, and Spike broke into a run. Wesley hurried to keep up, skidding to a stop behind Spike in the doorway.

The three younger Slayers, Willow, and Dawn were standing in a rough semi-circle behind Buffy, who was face-to-face with the Immortal. “You thought I wouldn’t come after you?” Buffy was asking. “You tried to kill me.”

“It was business only,” he replied in an oily voice. Wesley could catch the edge of power, although it had no effect on him.

Nor did it make an impact on any of the women in the room. Buffy reached for her amulet, holding it up to show him. “Recognize this?”

The Immortal recoiled. “What have you done?”

“We’ve taken your power, just like you took mine,” Buffy spat.

“And others’,” Alessandra chimed in. “You will learn pain.”

Buffy turned to look at the other Slayer. “Alessandra? Would you like the first blow?”

“Yes.” Her eyes glittered with barely contained rage. “This is for my sister. You ruined her.”

The Immortal raised his hands in an attempt to placate her. “She enjoyed herself.”

“You did not take no for an answer,” Alessandra spat. “You raped her, shamed her, and jeopardized her soul.”

Alessandra got in more than one blow. Her fists were a blur as she flew at the demon that looked so much like a man. Buffy did nothing to stop her, keeping her arms crossed in front of her, and watching with an impassive expression.

“That is enough, Alessandra,” Rosalia finally said, stepping forward. “She will be avenged.”

“Buffy has to finish it,” Dawn added, waiting until Alessandra stopped her attack. She put her arm around the girl’s shoulders. When they turned away from the Immortal, Wesley could see that the Slayer’s cheeks were streaked with tears, and her chest was heaving with sobs that she was barely keeping under control.

Rosalia and Julie joined them, and the three girls put their arms around Alessandra, ignoring the Immortal, who had dropped to his knees. His face was streaked with blood, and he was holding his stomach.

Buffy approached him, kneeling so that she could meet his eyes. “You took something from me, and I’ve come to get it back.”

“You gave it to me,” he argued. “And so sweetly, too.”

Spike growled at Wesley’s side, and the Watcher put his hand on the vampire’s shoulder to hold him back.

The Immortal heard it, and he smiled through the pain. “She wanted me, not you, William.”

Buffy laughed. “Are you kidding me? I was imagining that you were Spike the entire time.” She stood, and in one smooth motion, grabbed his head and snapped his neck.

The Immortal’s body dropped to the floor, and Buffy gasped. Wesley could see the energy rising from the still form. Some of it clearly went back into Buffy, but the rest shot straight up. Wesley wondered if it would simply dissipate, or if the Immortal had stolen the life force from other women, who were now feeling a return of their strength.

When it was done, all that was left was a shriveled mummy, curled up on the floor.

Spike didn’t waste any time. He pulled Buffy into a long embrace, and Wesley watched as she whispered something into his ear that made him laugh. Spike kissed her then, gently, although the kiss was soon less than chaste.

Wesley felt a hand on his arm, and he looked down at Dawn. “We’d probably better leave them alone,” she said. “They’ve got a lot of ground to cover, and I think we’re going for ice cream. Wanna come?”

He didn’t even have to think about it. “I’d love to.”

~~~~~

“It seems kinda anti-climactic, doesn’t it?” Buffy asked, snuggling up to Spike’s side. Neither one of them had been willing to stay in the house, especially since the sun had gone down. They walked along the moonlit streets of Rome. It was a beautiful night, and she was simply enjoying his company as she hadn’t been able to do since that night in Sunnydale when Spike had come after her in that abandoned house.

“I don’t know,” Spike replied. “He got what was comin’ to him, didn’t he?”

“Yeah, but he definitely wasn’t that hard to kill.”

“Would have been without those amulets Red cooked up,” he pointed out. “Besides, he was so sure of his power over you, served him right to get pummeled. The Immortal was always a coward at heart.”

“Clearly.” Buffy sniffed.

Spike gave her a curious look. “Did you mean it? What you said to him at the end?”

Buffy sighed. She’d been afraid that he was going to ask her about that. “Yes and no. No, because I honestly don’t remember what I was thinking, or if I was thinking anything. Yes, because there’s no one else I want to be with, and if I’d been in my right mind, I would have been thinking about you.”

Spike’s face softened, and the arm resting across her shoulders pulled her closer to his side. “It wasn’t your fault, Buffy. What he did—”

“The Immortal was a slime ball,” Buffy said. “Are you going back to L.A.?”

“No.” Spike looked down at her, a smile curving his lips, and Buffy could see his eyes light up. “Dawn asked me to stay, so even if you didn’t want me around—”

Buffy pulled him to a stop and pulled his head down, meeting his lips with her own. For a moment, she lost herself, forgetting that they were standing in the middle of the pavement where anyone could see them. Forgetting that they still had a lot of talking to do, and that she owed Giles a phone call for not telling her that Spike was alive. Forgetting everything except for Spike, the smell of him, the coolness of his skin—everything that she’d thought she’d lost.

When she pulled back to catch her breath, Buffy was pleased to see that Spike looked a little dazed. “Don’t think I can refuse an invitation like that,” he managed.

“You can’t.” She smiled. “And there’s more where that came from, if you still—”

It was his turn to kiss her breathless, showing her without words that he bore her no ill will for what had happened. Buffy leaned her head against his shoulder, feeling his arms come around her. “Make me forget,” she murmured, knowing that Spike would hear her, and that he would understand what she meant.

“My pleasure.”

As far as Buffy was concerned, they couldn’t get back to the apartment fast enough.