By lunch the next day, Buffy desperately wished she were anywhere but in London. No, not even London specifically; anywhere but here in the conference room with Xander, Willow, Dawn, Giles, Kennedy, Faith, Wood and a few other Watchers who helped Giles run this circus. This time, it wasn't because they were down on her because of Spike -- he'd barely been mentioned except for a few off-handed tacky comments by Xander -- but because of the tension that seemed to infuse everything. She wasn't sure why she'd imagined the session would be like it was in the old library back in Sunnydale; possibly because the comforting image of them all gathered around the library table tackling their latest big bad was one of the things that had helped get her here.

Giles had been only slightly disappointed when Dawn had politely rejected his offer of Oxford and confirmed Spike's suggestion of last night that her interest did lie in Art and Florence; in fact, it turned out that he had some colleagues who might be of use to Dawn if that was the path she wished to follow. Nor did he seem surprised when she indicated that her plan was to continue providing assistance to Buffy whenever she could, especially in research areas though she was sure Buffy had someone else who could help her with that "even if he won't admit it."

No, the waves of disapproval had come from the other Watchers, the ones who didn't say it, but were clearly scandalized that the Senior Slayer was not only letting her younger sister forgo official watcher training, but was shacking up with a notorious vampire. She's lost count of how many times they'd managed to mention Wood's mother or his mother's watcher before Wood had started to look embarrassed and a glare from Giles had put an end to it.

Then there was the Willow/Kennedy situation, which alleviated the need for air-conditioning if one sat between them. Kennedy must have been PMSing because her usual bitch quotient had been turned up several notches. Everyone was a target for her little snides, though Willow was clearly primary and Xander secondary because he came to her defense.

When the lunch break was at last announced, Giles asked Kennedy in a tight voice if he could see her. In private. When she demurred, Giles said, "You can either speak with me or I can ask you to leave."

Kennedy decided to go, proving that she wasn't a complete idiot, an issue which Buffy had some serious doubts on, and a rather uncomfortable group remained behind. The other watchers found they had something to do, while Faith and Wood decided they were going for a quiet lunch together. "Anything but sushi," Faith was heard to say as they left. "How about some decent Italian?"

That left Dawn, Willow, Xander and Buffy staring at each other. "Okay, that is definitely not what I expected," Xander said. "How long has this been going on, Willow?"

"About six weeks," Willow said. "I basically packed and brought everything with me on this trip. What needed to be shipped, Giles told me I could send to his place. My ticket was one-way."

Which left Buffy with her problem; she'd wanted to talk with Giles this morning about the Willow situation, but hadn't had a chance with everything. She'd thought she'd have some time before Willow made her move, but now the clock was seriously ticking.

Dawn poking her brought her abruptly out of her thoughts. "Huh?"

"I said, do you think we should wait for Giles, or go on and get lunch?"

Buffy sighed. "Let's give him five minutes. If he hasn't finished with Kennedy by then, we should go."

That seemed acceptable to everyone, though it didn't actually alleviate the staring at each other problem. "What went wrong?" Xander asked Willow as they waited. "I thought you two were all happy together."

Willow chewed her lip, looking as if she didn't want to answer. "We're not really compatible; in fact, the only thing we seem to have in common is the fact that we're gay. Kennedy was physically attracted to me, but she doesn't actually have respect for my interests, especially the magic. Even given what she saw in Sunnydale, she doesn't take it seriously.

Xander gave his friend a hug. "S'okay, Will. You'll find someone else. Kennedy came on a little strong while you were vulnerable. It takes time to get over losing someone. It's been two years and I'm not really ready to dive back into the dating pool."

Willow looked a bit hopeful. "It took Buffy four years to get over Angel," Dawn added helpfully, "but she's happy now."

Predictably, that went over like a lead balloon. "What about Riley?" Xander asked. "Are you saying she didn't care about him?"

"He didn't make her crazy like Angel did," Dawn shot back. "And Spike makes her real crazy sometimes."

"Riley was a sweet, nice guy," Buffy said. "I just wasn't ready for anyone yet. It's like you and Kennedy, Willow. You thought you'd found someone to fill the hole, but you weren't really ready."

There was a loud "slam," and they looked through the open door of the conference room to see Kennedy striding angrily out of Giles' office. "And there's the fact that most everyone liked Riley," Buffy added, not sorry to see the girl go. I"m sorry, Willow, but I'm more worried about you in this than her. Kennedy and I never got along."

Willow had a hug for her as well as a smile. "I'm glad you're here. I don't know how I'd get through it without you guys."

For a moment, Buffy worried that Willow was going to say something about coming to Rome, but Giles' entrance managed to save her. "I must say I'm glad you waited for me, though you didn't have to. Kennedy, on the other hand, will not be joining us this afternoon, and may well not be joining us tonight. I'm afraid she didn't take the news that I intend to assign her a watcher very well, and that the argument 'Buffy doesn't have one,' wasn't actually effective. Shall we go get something; I find myself rather hungry."

If last night was the more formal get-together, this was much more like old times. With Kennedy out of the picture, Wood and Faith -- and Spike -- not present, it was much easier to catch up with what had been happening in one another's lives. Xander admitted that he was indeed thinking of sticking his toe back in the dating pool and the first question on everyone's lips was, "Is she a demon?"

"Why is that always the first thing you guys ask me?" Xander complained. "Narrssa is not a demon."

"But Anya was," Buffy reminded him. "And the woman who picked you up at Home Depot."

"And don't forget the Praying Mantis Lady," Dawn added as the laughter grew.

"Or Cordelia," Willow added.

"Hey, Cordelia was not a demon when I was dating her."

"That's open to debate -- and she was pretty demony when I went down to LA to put Angel's soul back in."

"Okay, okay. I admit defeat. Wonder how she's doing, working with Angel at the big evil law firm."

"Cordelia's dead." Buffy pushed her plate away, feeling her appetite vanish. "She died about a year after you saw her, Willow."

When everyone but Dawn stared at her, she continued. "They thought she woke up from this mystical coma she was in, only it was a spirit manifestation or something like that. It was only after she was gone that they learned she'd died without waking up. Spike says Angel was pretty broken up about the whole thing."

"I didn't realize..."Giles began.

"It was just after Andrew went to get Dana...and Angel's not with Wolfram & Hart anymore. The whole thing about him taking over was just a trick by the Senior Partners part to keep him busy and off balance while they were up to something evil."

And she and Angel had spoken on the phone precisely once in three months...when he'd called Spike to ask him about a case they'd been working on and she'd been the one to pick up the phone. The conversation had been brief and somewhat formal, neither knowing what to say to the other, even when he'd asked if she was happy. She'd been able to answer "yes" easily, but it was an awkward moment.

"Cordelia...dead." Willow shook her head. "Wow. It's hard to imagine."

"He could have called." Xander sounded bitter, which Buffy supposed wasn't too surprising. "But I guess he couldn't be bothered."

"I doubt he had your number," Giles said, "and I must admit I was not at all hospitable to either him or Wesley when we spoke during those times. Perhaps he felt the news wouldn't get passed along."

There were more complaints that Cordelia had been their friend --- or at least a fellow kinda-sorta Scooby while she was dating Xander -- and they should have been told, a reminder to Buffy of why she'd wanted to keep her relationship with Spike quiet. What had he said about Willow and Xander last night? Something about her hip pocket. When Buffy had learned of Cordelia's passing, she'd felt guilty at the idea she had barely thought of the woman in some time and sadness that yet another link to Sunnydale was gone, but that had been it. Of course, she hadn't known Cordelia anywhere near as long so perhaps she felt less proprietary.

That was the word that made her sit up suddenly. It had always been at the back of her mind, but she'd never put voice to it before. But there was Willow's insistence that best friends came first and the way Xander felt he had the right to dictate whom she dated -- while he might now hold Riley Finn up as a shining example, Buffy had not forgotten that when she'd first begun seeing him, Xander had jealously dubbed him "Teutonic."

"Something wrong?" Dawn asked, looking a bit worried. "You've got this weird expression on your face."

"It's..." There was no way Buffy could say this here and now. For one thing, the concept was still so new that she hadn't wrapped her own mind around it and for another, she didn't really feel like having the fight that it would cause. "I was just thinking about some of the other things Spike told me about when he was in Los Angeles."

Giles, Willow and Dawn were watching her as well, though Giles looked a bit thoughtful and she had to wonder if he had any idea where her own thoughts had wandered. "Mentioning Cordelia made me think about how some things had changed. Angel's dating someone; would you believe a werewolf?"

That provoked comment, thought she didn't miss the fact Giles' eyes stayed on her. Maybe Giles didn't know exactly what she was thinking, but he knew something was up. As they left the restaurant to head back to the Council's offices, Giles put a hand on Buffy's arm and indicated she should stay back while the others went on ahead. "I imagine you're rather angry with me," he said once the others were out of hearing.

Buffy wanted to yell at him, demand to know why he'd once again tried to make such an important decision on her behalf without bothering to speak with her first. If she had wondered why she'd chosen to keep this new relationship with Spike secret from her friends, she didn't wonder now. "Why did you lie to me, Giles? You knew how I felt, you know that Spike was important to me, but you kept the fact he was alive secret from me."

"And how would you have felt if you'd learned that Spike had been brought back to life and working with the forces of Wolfram & Hart?"

"I..." Buffy trailed off into silence. She wanted to say that she would have gone charging off to Los Angeles to see him, but she remembered how wary she'd been in Atlanta before Spike had told her he and Angel weren't working with the evil lawyers. That wariness had nearly sunk them before they'd even begun.

"That's why I didn't tell you." Giles' voice was low and insistent. "I didn't know that Angel had left Wolfram & Hart either. Frankly, they keep their activities as quiet as possible, so I imagine they wanted us to think he was still with them so we'd remain suspicious. I'm certain that your accidental meeting with Spike in Atlanta was not on their agenda."

"Especially since we stopped one of their clients from buying the Greivas crystal. That's why Spike was in Atlanta, to stop this guy." She lifted her chin defiantly. "Are you going to ask if I'm sure he was honestly trying to stop him?"

Giles considered her for a long moment. "I don't think I'd insult you that way. You've made your decision and the least I can do is trust it, especially considering the circumstances. We should probably walk or the others will come back and wonder what's happening."

She didn't speak as they started to walk, too many thoughts whirling in her head. "I'll understand if you want to go back to Rome early," Giles said. "I can't imagine it's very pleasant to sit here with all of us after what we did."

"Did you tell them?" It was tempting to take him up on his offer and fly back to Rome that very evening, but there was still the Willow issue to deal with.

"Actually, Andrew told them just as he told me, pretty much as soon as he could get to a telephone. He woke Faith up in the middle of the night to give her the news. You can imagine there were some frantic phone calls."

"Everyone wondering how to keep the news from me."

"That was the general gist of it. If it's any comfort, Faith did think it was a stupid idea, but Wood convinced her to go along with everyone else. After that, all I needed to do was keep Andrew away from you and Dawn and as long as Willow didn't babble too badly or Xander didn't open his mouth at the wrong time, you wouldn't discover the secret."

"Were you ever going to tell me?"

"Not as long as Spike was with Angel and we thought Angel was with Wolfram & Hart. If I'd known they'd left the firm, I probably would have told you so you didn't find out accidentally if either of them contacted you. I don't know what the others would have done."

Buffy could fill in the blanks: Wood and Xander would never say anything, preferring she stay as far from Spike as possible. Faith might have mentioned it some point and Willow would have eventually babbled out the news.

Willow. That brought her mind back to the other matter she needed to deal with. "Willow wants to be reassigned to Rome. She thinks she can help me."

Giles flinched. "Good, god, no. The last thing you need to do at this point is play nursemaid. Your focus should be on you and Spike."

She couldn't resist smiling. "I thought you didn't approve."

"I don't. But there is also the fact that you look happy, which is something I haven't seen in a long time. It's good to see...and I won't have Willow mucking it up. We'll find somewhere else for her to go. Perhaps I can convince her to do a retreat in Devon while we sort this out."

Giles continued to offer possible alternatives as they walked, and Buffy began to feel a bit better. Was all good between them? No, but they were better. Hopefully, time would heal the rest.

She still wasn't sure about the others, though.

On to Part Four

Back to Part Two