This is the third in a new Spike & Cerberus (And now Buffy & Scooby Gang) series called the "Watchdogs" series. If you didn't read preceding stories or the peceding SERIES, Spike & Cerberus... do so. It won't make any sense otherwise...

"No, Cerberus! You stay!"

The vampdog stood there, staring at the red-headed witch, his head tilted. **Honestly, I don't speak only French or something, woman, I can understand you perfectly well...**

Willow ran a hand through her hair, feeling sheepish. "Oh, right, sorry, Cerberus ... But I mean it, they don't allow dogs in the theatre, I'm sorry!"

The dog whined and bowed his head, tail down.

"Oh, look at him Willow! Can't we pretend I'm blind and bring him with?"

Cerberus wagged his tail. He loved this girl.

"To the movies, Dawn?"

"Blind people still go to movies! They can hear, ya know!"

Willow looked a bit stumped at that, and turned to Tara for help. The golden-haired witch just shrugged.

"C'mon, we're gonna be late, love!" Spike dragged Buffy past the girls, to the door.

"But I don't understand why we have to see a vampire movie! I get enough of vampires in real life!"

Spike stopped, Buffy halting between Willow and Dawn, interrupting their conversation. Spike gave her a hurt look.

"Tired of vampires, are you then?"

Buffy hurriedly apologised. "No! No, it's just that, well I mean, don't you think it's kind of degrading, watching vampire movies? I mean, how can you keep from rolling your eyes at another inane portrayal of yourself?" She hung on his arm, hoping he wouldn't doubt her affection.

Tara spoke up before he could reply. "Oh, no, Buffy, the n-new Vampire Hunter d-D is really a b-beautiful film! I'm s-sure you'll both love it!"

Spike looked a little skeptical. Tara and Willow had been the ones to suggest they see it-- they'd seen it once already, and seemed eager to see it again. He was especially mistrustful of Tara's stutter-- she only did that when she was nervous these days. Spike wondered why they were so keen on him and Buffy going. Hell, with a subtitle like "Bloodbath" he wondered why they had gone to see it in the first place. Still, it was an excuse for him to spend some time with Buffy in a dark place, so it wouldn't be a total loss. It wasn't exactly a date, with the Wiccas and the Nibblet coming along, but it was a start.

"We better get going, or we're gonna miss the previews!" Willow reminded them, herding them out the door.

In the hustle, Dawn forgot about trying to bring Cerberus with. When the door closed behind them, the vampdog sat there for a minute, staring at it, dejected. Then he got up and went to the computer that had been set up in the basement, which he now shared with Spike as their new habitat.

Funny that Willow had made this special set-up, with a keyboard and switches that Cerberus could operate, yet still spoke to him in babytalk. He turned the computer on, got online, and checked his email. With the large keys of his special keyboard, he was able to reply to his various pen-pals and join in on conversations on message boards and in chat rooms. Of course, no one knew he was a dog or a vampire, except for Nicky, the vampire bunny.

Nicky was online! Cerberus instant-messaged his friend, and received a prompt reply. Cerberus told his friend how left out he was feeling. Spike was spending all his time with Buffy, which Cerberus totally understood-- he liked Buffy himself. But he just wasn't that close to the others, except maybe Dawn, and tonight even she was gone. Cerberus was starting to feel how he had when he was a stray-- lonely.

I know how you feel, Nicky told him. Lydia spends most of her time with Oz now. When I was just an ordinary bunny, it didn't matter so much-- I didn't really understand things like "time". But since her and I are bonded, I share her human thought process now. I know what I was missing before, what I didn't even realise I was missing-- and am starting to miss again. And you're going through the same thing with Spike-- you understand that you are being left out, and you remember the hurt even when he comes back.

Yes! Cerberus typed. That's exactly it! Before, when he came back from being gone, I didn't dwell on the fact that he'd been away, and I didn't fear that he might leave again! I just was happy he was with me. But now I can't escape this idea that I will be alone most of the time, and that even when I am with him, he's still really more with Buffy! And then I feel terrible for being jealous, because I really do like her!

What we need is a way to spend time together, you and I, when our bond-mates are spending time with others, the rabbit replied.

Cerberus thought a moment, then started to type again, Willow has developed some sort of traveling spell, using something she wears on her arm. But I don't know how to work it ...

The rabbit was considerably more enthusiastic.If it's a magical object, and not just a focal point for her own magic, we might be able to figure it out!

Well, it was worth a shot. Ok, I'll see if I can find it. Back in a few ... And the dog logged off.

Most of the theatre's other patrons were sitting further back, and those that weren't also weren't sitting that close to the odd couple. Buffy brought out the candy she had stashed in her coat-- she felt guilty enough spending money on the movie, without having to pay theatre prices for the food, too. Spike happily dug into the M&Ms. It made Buffy smile, seeing him like a little kid.

"Oh look, luv," Spike whispered while the previews ran, "a GREEN one." He gave her a wicked smile and put it on his tongue, then leaned in for a kiss.

Blushing a little, she indulged herself in his chocolaty-sweet mouth. When the show started, she snuggled against him, and he leaned his head against hers. She hoped he didn't hear her heart racing. Why was she so nervous? Sure, she hadn't been on a date in quite a while, but it wasn't like her and Spike hadn't kissed plenty of times already. In fact, she was a bit frustrated that they hadn't done anything else. She couldn't imagine he had been this much of a gentleman with Dru, and certainly not with Harmony. Maybe this was just another measure of how he had changed.

She put thoughts of his ex-girlfriends out of her mind-- she didn't want to taint their night with thoughts of what had been. She had enough reminders like that when Xander was around. She knew from when she was dead that Spike's love was genuine, as was his change of heart about his role in life. She wanted to enjoy being with the man he was now.

She focused her attention on the screen, and quickly forgot her troubled heart. Having seen Pokemon when Dawn was watching it, she hadn't come to think much of anime. This was something totally different. It was dark and haunting, fluid and faerytale-like.The gothic dark was her world-- she lived it every night. Yet she had never really seen it as beautiful before.

And then Meier came on the screen.

"Spike?" she whispered.

"Yeah, luv?"

"No, I mean ... he looks like you!"

Spike laughed softly. "Yeah, I suppose there is a superficial resemblance."

As the story wound on, they found the similarities to be far more than superficial. Meier was supposedly evil, but Buffy refused to believe it. She wondered if it was because she refused to believe it of Spike, and was projecting too much. And the relationship between D and the girl vampire hunter, Layla-- it reminded her a bit of both her former relationship with Angel and her new one with Spike. She was relieved when it was revealed that the human girl, Charlotte, really did love Meier, and he truly loved her in return. She cried when he was burned, cried when she thought he had died, cried when Charlotte fell, and bawled at their final scene.

And so did Spike. And he also wept over Layla's funeral. He didn't make a sound as he wept, but Buffy knew what she was seeing was just a pale reflection of how he had grieved for her when she had died. Seeing that the girl in the movie had lived a long, happy life had left her with an odd sense of peace, one that was disturbed by Spike's reaction. She suddenly realised something she hadn't considered before. Spike would watch her grow old-- and die all over again. She felt a pang of fear-- would he distance himself from her, the way D had done with his slayer? Or would he stay with her forever, even after her death, the way Meier had done?

She reached up and stroked his cheek, causing him to look her in the eye. There was so much pain and fear there, it broke her heart. She didn't fear death-- she knew what it was like-- but she feared what it would do to him. Alive or dead, there had to be a way they could face eternity together.

She wiped away his tears, and whispered so only he could hear, "It's just a story, Spike. There are far more stories, and endings, in the world. I'm not just some fragile, mortal girl. She wasn't a real Slayer. I promise you, right now, that I will always be with you-- and I will never let you leave me. One way or another, we will always be together. Besides, I died twice already-- I'm not that easy to get rid of," she purred, and kissed him.

He laughed through the kiss, a laugh of both sadness and joy. She started to laugh too. He ran his fingers through her hair and drew her close, holding her tight. She snuggled against his shoulder, her embrace just as fierce. "I'll never let you go," he whispered.

"Jeez, you too, will you get a room?"

Spike looked up into the eyes of a disgusted teenager, eyes that said she was secretly pleased, but fulfilling her adolescent duty to be obnoxious.

"Yeah, yeah, we get it, Platelet. Time to go. But when we get home, if you don't like what you see, you can always go to your room." He winked.

Dawn stuck out her tongue. "Or you can go to yours ..."

"DAWN!" Buffy chided, her face red with more embarrassment than anger, but her sister was already running up the ramp out of the theatre.

Are you sure you wanna try this? Cerberus typed.

Everything will be fine, dog, stop your worrying!

Cerberus huffed in frustration. They had discussed this back and forth for a couple of hours, looking at the various books on magic each of them had lying around, living with witches like they did. Nicky had come to the conclusion that Willow had created a magical object that could let someone teleport, not used an object to simply enhance her power.

Well, it wasn't like he was going to use the portal. If the bunny had a death wish, then it was no fur off his snout. He didn't want to admit he cared about the little ball of fur, and didn't want to see him end up a crispy critter.

Resigned to his course, the dog shoved his nose into Willow's magic gauntlet. He concentrated on the image Nicky had put on the screen of Lydia's room, via the webcam. His nose started to tingle, and he fought back a sneeze. He wasn't successful.

When he sneezed, the fabric of space before him ripped open, and the gauntlet flew off his nose. In the tear, he could see the same image he'd seen on the computer. Nicky hopped through, and the tear closed up behind him.

**It worked!** The rabbit did a little dance around the astonished dog. **So what do we do now, huh?**

Cerberus was still staring where the portal had been. He had done that? He had worked magic?

**C'mon, Cerbie, what do you do for fun around here?**

Cerberus finally looked at the bunny. **Don't call me Cerbie.**

Lydia gasped and stopped, right before the exit, causing the people behind her to mutter and grumble as they piled up, then moved around her.

"What is it, Lydia?"

She looked at Oz, her eyes wide as saucers. "Nicky! He's ... he's gone!"

"Oz? Lydia? What are you two doing here?"

Oz looked over Lydia's shoulder and found Spike standing there. Buffy was on the vamp's arm. Not missing a beat, Oz asked her, "Are you a ghost, a zombie, a vampire, or resurrected?"

Lydia turned to see whom Oz was talking to. She didn't waste a moment when she saw Spike. "Can you still feel Cerberus?"

"Um, cloned, actually," Buffy answered Oz. Then she asked Lydia, "Do we know you?"

"I can, but faintly," Spike told Lydia "We had to come a bit of a ways from Sunnydale to get here, and he had to stay--" he stopped abruptly, his eyes suddenly wide and his mouth agape in horror. "He's GONE!"

"Who's gone?" came a voice from over his shoulder. "OZ!" Willow cried, when she spied whom the bleach-blond vamp was talking to.

Lydia saw movement beside Willow. "Tara?!"

"Lydia?!? Oh my gods!" Tara squealed with glee, and swept her friend up in a fierce hug. She sensed something was wrong, and pulled back, her hands gripping the girl's shoulders. "Sweetie, what is it?"

"Get your paws off my girl!" Oz pulled Tara away.

"Hey, leave Tara alone, Oz, I told you it's over between us!"

Oz's face started to shift, and he snarled at her. "Not you! Lydia!"

Willow stepped back, a little hurt to have her old lover threaten her so. Then she noticed the girl he was with, and realised retroactively that Tara had hugged the girl. She had been so focused on the shock of seeing him, she hadn't paid attention, but now she felt a surge of jealousy. The only problem was that she wasn't sure if she was feeling that way because Oz was with her or because Tara seemed to know her.

Wait a minute. She knew this girl too!

"You ... you were at the club that night ... with the bunny, and the-the GRRRR at Angel's later ..." She made claws with her hands for emphasis. And she suddenly understood. "You're the werewolf girl."

"No, she's not Veruca-"

"I know, Oz. We saw Lydia transform at Angel's, the night we met her."

He looked at Lydia in confusion. "Angel knew you were ... and he never said anything? Lorne didn't say anything?"

Lydia sighed. "If they had told you, you would have ignored me. You weren't exactly accepting of your nature at the time ... Look, can we talk about this later? Something's happened to Nicky and Cerberus!"

"Okay, where was Nicky when you last felt him?" Spike asked her, obviously upset himself.

"Back at our place... and then suddenly the bond felt a lot fainter ... in fact, it felt like it was in a different direction! And then it was gone entirely!"

Spike grabbed her shoulders. "What direction?!"

"I-I don't know, it happened so fast, I ..." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She lifted her hand and suddenly pointed. "That way. I think..." She lowered her hand, obviously not so certain.

Spike looked in the direction she pointed in. "Sunnydale..." he whispered.

"Hey, what's going on?" Dawn asked, having just come out of the bathroom. She noticed Oz, and said "Hiya, wolfboy! Long time no see!"

Oz looked at her a moment in confusion. Then he suddenly smiled. "Hiya, kiddo!"

Spike had watched the exchange, and felt a pang for Dawn. He knew what had just happened, but no one else had likely even noticed. The spell that had made Dawn had just kicked in, giving Oz new memories, ones that included the girl-that-never-was. Spike prayed she never noticed that herself.

"OOOWOOOOoooooooOOOO!!!!!!!!"

Cerberus snapped at the bulldog's stub of a tail, eliciting shrieks of terror from the beast. Nicky raced ahead of it, growling in his own bunny fashion. The dog backpedaled, looking something like a cartoon character, Cerberus thought. It stopped when it came nose-to-nose with him, panting in terror.

**Boo.**

The dog yowled, and leapt over the bunny, racing for its life into the night. Cerberus and Nicky flipped onto their backs, rolling about in animal laughter. **Did you see the look on its face?** Cerberus mindspoke, sending an undercurrent of laughter with the words.

**Heh, that's one scaredy-cat!**

Cerberus felt good. He felt empowered. He'd just kicked the tail of a bad-ass dog that had made his life miserable when he was a mortal stray. Revenge was a dish best served to the cold.

**So now what?** Nicky asked, kicking his legs in a bunny's dance of joy.

Cerberus thought for a moment.

**That wasn't much of a challenge. Let's go after some bigger bullies!**
 

"Spike, it'll just make it harder to find them if you get pulled over for speeding ..."

Buffy was holding on to her seat belt for dear life. The vampire growled in frustration, and eased up on the gas. Lydia, in between them, was whining faintly. Buffy put a hand on the girl's arm, in comfort.

Things were tense in the back seat as well, albeit for different reasons. Willow couldn't even put a name to how she felt, being near Oz again, knowing that he was seeing someone else. And she wasn't too happy with Tara at the moment, so she didn't feel so guilty as she thought she ought to. Tara should be feeling some guilt of her own, by Willow's reck.

Lydia had come to the Magic Box once after they had met her in L.A. Tara was there helping Anya with things, and Willow was in a class. Tara remembered the girl, and struck up a conversation with her. She found out that Lydia had been seeing Oz. The werewolf girl had come to the Magic Box under the pretense of getting some hard-to-find items, but was really curious about Willow. She knew there was a lot of pain in Oz's heart over the red-head, and Lydia thought the two should talk and work things out. After all, they were both seeing new people, right? But Tara didn't think it was a good idea, at least not just yet. So they talked about their loves, and then moved on to Wicca. Tara was happy to have met another Wiccan with such strong ties to the supernatural world. She and Lydia talked on the phone every now and again after that, and had lunch a few times.

Willow suspected her of cheating.

Oz suspected Lydia of cheating.

Tara secretly feared Willow wanted Oz back-- or that Willow might find she liked Lydia better than her.

Dawn reflected that the back seat was not a good place to be at the moment.

"I feel him!" Spike and Lydia cried in unison from the front.

Dawn sighed in relief. At least one thing was going right.

"Wait! It's gone again!" Lydia wailed.

Ok, so maybe things were still tense ...

"Get outta here!" the bartender yelled at the animals, throwing a bucket of water at them.

Cerberus and Nicky put on their game faces, snarling at the man. He backed up, suddenly afraid. Cerberus had come here once before, with Spike, and the bartender had insisted he wait outside. Spike had taken a pretty bad beating while Cerberus was out there.

"N-nice doggy! Nice ... b-bunny?"

One of his patrons stood up from the bar and walked over to the scene. "Oh goody, snacks!" he cried, licking his lips.

The vamp-animals shared a look, before leaping at the demon.

"There! He's that way!" Lydia pointed.

"Yeah, I fe-DAMN!" Spike hit the Desoto's horn in frustration. The tug of the bond, when they could feel it, kept going in different directions. They had found themselves doubling back towards L.A., and that last blip had been somewhere west of them. It was like every time they started to get close, they rushed off faster than the speed of light of somewhere else.

"Maybe we should go to our place?" Oz suggested. "They seem to be moving closer to L.A. now, and we might find a clue there."

"No! We should go to the Magic Box!" Willow told them. "With some supplies, I bet we can divine what's going on!"

Lydia didn't turn around to reply. "I have supplies at my place. I'm a witch too, y'know."

"But you won't have anything of the caliber we have-"

"CHILDREN!" Dawn snapped, disgusted with the lot of them. "We're closer to L.A. now, we'll go to L.A. This isn't a contest, Willow! You're with Tara, she loves you, Oz and Lydia love each other, and can you blame Tara for being afraid of telling you about them? You're all jealous of Lydia, but did you think for one minute that maybe Tara might be jealous of Oz? Or that you might fall for Lydia? And Oz, Willow had every reason to move on with Tara, you didn't exactly leave any indication that you were going to come back. Don't blame her for losing what you didn't try to hold on to! And Tara, you can't expect Willow to forget her first love, but you should trust her more! She chose you before, didn't she? When she knew you a lot less than she does now! And Oz, I'd say you should offer Lydia the same courtesy, if you love her! And if you can't let go of your love for Willow, then you should say so! Your "man-of-few-words" routine is what lost you Willow in the first place! So be happy with Lydia, 'cause you can't have Willow back, and Willow be happy with Tara, and remember why you chose her in the first place, and Tara trust in your love, not your fear! There's no reason you can't all be friends!" She ended in a pant.

The vehicle was silent, save for Dawn's breathing. Buffy felt a surge of pride at her younger sister's perceptiveness, but said nothing. She saw Spike grinning slighty, and could see Willow and Tara cringing in the side mirror.

Then Lydia piped up. "Actually, I was thinking the four of us could be more than friends, if y'all would get over this whole 'monogamy' kick. It's fairly common for my people to get together in pack-matings. Tara, Willow, I love Oz as my lifemate, but I do find you both attractive."

Dawn stifled a laugh as the three seated next to her turned bright red.

"I-I love Willow!" Tara protested.

Willow hugged Tara. "And I love you. I'm sorry I doubted you, and I'm sorry I ever gave you reason to doubt me."

"Lydia, what are you doing?? I love YOU, Willow and I are long over!"

Lydia turned around in her seat, and smiled lovingly at him. "I know. But it's okay to still care for Willow-- and I would hope you could come to love Tara, too." She smiled at her fellow Wiccans. "Well, the offer is still on the table, girls, but I understand if you don't want to try it." She winked. "But I hope we can all be friends, at least. To quote an old saying among my people, 'Your pack can only be too big if you don't have enough love to go around. Or food.'"

Dawn laughed, breaking the tension. The rest of the vehicle joined her, Tara and Willow snuggling together, and Oz giving Lydia a hug and a kiss over the seat. When he sat back down, he held on to her hand still.

Buffy thought you could feel the love in the car like a thick, comfortable blanket. She wished she were sitting next to Spike, so she could let him know how much she loved him.

**I know, Slayer ...** came his voice in her mind, making her jump in surprise.

He caught her jump out of the corner of his eye, and nearly jumped himself as he realised what had happened. He had heard her voice, in his mind, saying that she wished she could let him know how she felt. He had responded as he would to Cerberus, when he didn't want anyone else to hear. But he hadn't really registered that he'd only heard her voice in his head, not his ears, or that he's responded the same way-- he'd done it instinctually, not consciously. And she had heard him!

He tested it. **Can you hear me, love?**

When there wasn't an answer, he shrugged it off, figuring he was imagining things. And then-- **Yes, I can!** Her mind-voice was filled with awe.

**Well, well, well, love, this is an interesting turn of ev--!**

"I think I can sense them again!" Lydia unwittingly interrupted him.

Spike reached out. Yes, he could feel Cerberus, barely. And as the DeSoto ate the road, he realised the bond's tug was getting stronger. He still wasn't close enough to hear any replies to his mind-cries, though-- unless something was wrong, and Cerberus couldn't reply.

"So you really think Spike and Lydia don't love you, anymore, huh?" Lorne asked his late-night visitors.

They only nodded in agreement. At the last demon-bar they had gone to, they had fed off some very drunken creatures, taking nips here and there as they fought. Now the animals were a little tipsy themselves-- and very, very maudlin.

"Listen, guys, I've heard both of them sing, and I happen to know for a fact that they each love you very much! Sometimes people in love get ... distracted from the other parts of their life for a while. It doesn't mean they've stopped loving you! They'll come around, you'll see. When parents bring home a new baby, the older siblings always feel like their moms and dads don't love them anymore, when it's really just that a new baby needs a lot of extra attention until it's strong enough to take care of itself. New love is like that, needing to be nurtured until it's strong enough that it doesn't need constant attention."

The vampire beasts gave him blank looks.

Lorne sighed. "It's a bit late for metaphors, I know. Give me a break, I'm tired. Speaking of which, don't you two think you should be getting home? Spike & Lydia will be worried about you!"

They didn't seem to believe him, and didn't seem too tired, either.

Lorne eyed the gauntlet at Cerberus' feet. "Lorne, my boy, time to take matters into your own hands ..."

Lydia looked around. "Well, we're almost home, and the bond isn't as strong as it would be if they were at my place. They seem to be further north..."

"Is it just me, or does the bond seem a bit ... fuzzy, to you?" Spike asked the wolfgirl.

She nodded. "Let's stop at my place, since it seems to be on the way. Maybe we'll find a clue to what's going on there, and then we can be better prepared."

Spike nodded, clearly distracted with worry. Buffy could feel his anxiety-- unless it was just her own she was feeling. She loved the little dog, maybe as much as Spike did, and was as afraid of something happening to Cerberus as she would be for Dawn under such circumstances. She tried to send Spike a little astral squeeze of reassurance. When she felt it back, she knew it had worked. Long-distance nookie ... if only she wasn't too upset to enjoy the prospect.

Lorne grabbed the gauntlet. Cerberus didn't care enough to stop him; he just sat staring at his paws.

"Now I'm taking you boys home, whether you like it or not! First stop, Lydia's house! And then, since I've never been to Spike's place, we'll have to hope Oz is there to take you home, pup!"

The animals just sat there.

Lorne sighed and put on the gauntlet. "Right, then, let's hope this works the way my old one did!"

He aimed his hand at the air next to them, and concentrated.

Lydia fussed with her keys while the rest of them waited behind her on the stoop and the walk to her door. She had just about gotten the door open when they heard something behind them. The gang turned to find a rip in the space behind them. Out from it came a green demon.

"Lorne!" Spike, Oz, and Lydia cried.

"The Host!" Tara and Willow cried.

"Who?" Buffy and Dawn asked.

"Ha! I don't believe it! It worked!" Lorne laughed. He turned and motioned to someone behind him. "C'mon, you two! I wanna get back to bed!"

Cerberus and Nicky waddled glumly out of the portal.

"I believe you're missing these!" Lorne proclaimed.

"Nicky!"

"Cerberus!" Spike and Lydia rushed forward and swept up their respective familiars, fussing and crooning over them, tearfully asking what had happened to them.

"They got lonely and decided to use this to go gallivanting off together," Lorne explained, taking off the gauntlet and holding it up.

"My gauntlet!" Willow exclaimed, taking it back from the Host. "How did they manage to use it?!?"

Lydia answered while she hugged her rabbit close. "Animals are closer to magic than we are. They have a natural affinity for it-- it takes a lot less effort for them. That's why they were able to break Lorne's shield on Caratos the first night they met, and fight. I'm glad you two are friends now, but next time, tell us when you're doing to do something like that! You sacred me half to death!"

**Ma ... mom, you're squishing me ...** Nicky squirmed.

**Yeah, put me down!** Cerberus tried to get away.

"Oh no you don't!" Spike reprimanded the pup. "Now that I have you back, I'm never letting you go again!"

"Spike, give him here," Buffy ordered.

"Okay." Spike handed the canine to her.

**Well that didn't last long,** Cerberus muttered.

**Now you listen up!** Buffy scolded him, **Like it or not, we're a pack! Dawn's your sister, Tara, Willow, and Anya are your aunts, Xander's your uncle, Giles is your grandfather, and Spike and I are alpha male and female, the parents of the pack! We're a family, and nothing is gonna break us up, got it?**

Cerberus flattened his ears in supplication, and gave her a tentative lick.

"Heh, well I guess that settles it," Buffy laughed.

Dawn, tired for waiting for her turn to hold the pup, wrapped Buffy and the dog up in her arms. Spike put his own arms around them all.

Oz held Lydia as she held Nicky. Tara thought they looked like a couple with a baby. She smiled, and held her own true love, who couldn't seem to squeeze her tight enough for either of their liking.

"Well, this is all very sweet, but I'm going back to bed," Lorne informed them as he turned to head back through the portal.

"Lorne?"

He looked over his shoulder at Lydia.

"Thank-you."

He smiled. "No problem." He moved to go.

"Hey Lorne?"

"Yes, Spike, I know, you're welcome!"

"Nice pajamas!"

Lorne grunted in supposed irritation, but smiled as he walked back into his club, hearing the laughter of a family happy to have its children back as the portal closed behind him.

"Well, I guess we should get going too ..." Willow said, and put the gauntlet on. She opened a gate large enough to fit the DeSoto, leading to Buffy's driveway.

She turned to Oz. "I'm happy for you, for the both of you. If you're ever in Sunnydale ..."

Oz and Lydia smiled. "Yes, and if you're ever in L.A. ..."

Willow held up the gauntlet. "I think that'll be happening a bit more often ..."

The Scoobies piled into Spike's car, Buffy getting in last. Lydia stopped her.

She whispered to the Slayer. "Ask Spike if he remembers what I told him about the nature of vampires and souls sometime." She smiled, and said more loudly, "I hope you come visit, too."

Buffy smiled, slightly puzzled. "We will."

They pulled through the gate, into the driveway.

"So I think it'll work!" Willow told them all excitedly as they took their coats off. "It'll be a doggy-door of sorts, and allow Cerberus and Nicky to see each other whenever they want. But no more adventuring with the gauntlet!" she shook her finger at the dog for emphasis.

"Ah, Sweety, I think we better ask Lydia and Oz if it's ok, first ..." Tara told her gently.

"Oh, yeah!" Willow blushed.

Buffy smiled and patted the dog reassuringly. "I don't think it'll be a problem."

"Man, I'm beat!" Dawn proclaimed, heading up the stairs. Tara and Willow nodded, and went up too.

Spike and Buffy stood awkwardly at the foot of the stair.

"I .. I had a good time tonight. Thank-you." Buffy smiled shyly, wringing her hands.

Spike licked his dry lips, darting looks at her, but not quite able to face her completely. "Yeah, um, it was fun! We ... ah ... we should do it again ... sometime?" The last word had a hopeful lilt to it, sounding slightly like a question, rather than a statement.

Buffy shrugged, not able to meet his eyes either. "I ... kinda thought maybe the fun wasn't over yet tonight..."

His brows went up, and he eyed her sideways. "What-" his voice cracked, and he cleared it. He straightened his shoulders and looked her full in the eye. "What sort of fun did you have in mind?"

She stepped closer to him, her skin suddenly on fire, her heart aflutter, and her lips aching with their own sort of hunger. Her cheeks tingled, and her hands, and she felt like crying, but happy tears. It was hard to breathe. They drew close, her eyes closing, and the tingling spread throughout her body. She reached up and put her hands on his chest

He was warm.

Before she had a chance to wonder, he pulled back. She almost cried out for want of him.

He was looking down at Cerberus, who was staring at them with his head on his paws, his eyes sad.

Spike looked at her, pleading. **You know I love you, right? You know I want this as much as you, but ... After what Lorne said tonight ...**

She smiled. **It's okay, Spike, I understand. But I'm selfish ... I don't want to be alone tonight either. Why don't you both just come up to my room. We'll just sleep, and he can stay in the bed with us. We can do ... more ... another night ... **

He drew her close and kissed her forehead tenderly. Anymore than that, and he knew neither of them could hold back. But like parents with a child who was afraid of the dark, they knew that Cerberus needed to be with them that night. It was enough for them to be together.

And thinking of Cerberus as a child made Buffy think of something else as they made their way up the stairs. In the movie they'd seen that night, the main character had been half vampire, half human. This wasn't the first time she'd run across that idea in the vampire myth. She wondered if Angel was wrong about it being impossible for vampires to have children. After all, he had never tried it, as far as she knew. Maybe that was an old wive's tale. She made a mental note to ask Spike about that, and about what Lydia had said to her. She looked forward to testing her theory ...

She put those thoughts from her mind as she snuggled into her bed, Spike's arms wrapped around her, her comforter over them, and the dog at their feet. She didn't even notice this time that both vampires were warm, when they weren't supposed to be.

There would be plenty of time to thing about all those things tomorrow.