A/N: Apologies in advance. I have always been fond of narrative vs dialogue. This chapter is heavier one the first and lighter on the second. So the chapter was so big, I decided to break it into two parts. Enjoy, Gentle Readers!

Vi shivered as the relentless rain fell, each drop a sharp sting upon her arms. The wooden stake felt slippery in her grasp. Overhead, a sharp crack of thunder startled her so badly, the stake dropped from her hand. The vampire in front of her laughed and with a burst of speed leapt over the headstone of the grave before her. Heart thundering, she backed up a few steps as the vampire advanced, bright yellow eyes aglow.

"I can smell your fear." Slowly, his teeth elongated a fraction of an inch at a time. He titled his head and sniffed the air. "Do you know what fear smells like to a vampire?"

Shaking her head, she continued to step backward until her foot stepped into a slight hollow on the ground and she lost her balance, falling backward with one hand behind her. The mud was slick between her fingers as she panicked and scrabbled backwards on all fours, while the vampire prowled closer.

Suddenly, her fingers scraped against the rough outer wall of a crypt and Vi realized she was trapped. The vampire laughed as she tried to curl into a little ball and wrap her arms around her head as his hands splayed toward her. Strong fingers gripped her wrists and she shrieked in terror.

"No, stop!" she cried.

Within a heartbeat the grip on her wrists lessened.

"Aw, bloody hell," Spike said softly.

From her left, Vi heard Buffy sigh in disappointment.

"Okay… let's review. Who can tell me where Vi went wrong?"

"Went wrong?" Karen shouted over another crack of thunder. "Went wrong? Everything about this is wrong! Maybe if it weren't raining and it weren't so frickin' cold, Vi might have stood a better chance!"

"So, it's not Vi's fault?" Buffy asked as Vi shuddered, trying to regain control of herself. Next to her, Spike extended his arm but quickly withdrew his hand when Vi flinched.

The chorus of "no" from the other potentials was immediate.

"It wasn't a fair set up," Marie began, but was interrupted by a variety of other protests.

"She's exhausted from the training we did earlier…"

"It's raining cats and dogs!"

"… there is mud everywhere…"

"…slick as hell!"

"… didn't even have her stake…"

"…cornered her on purpose!"

"How could you expect anyone to…"

A low snarl silenced their voices and every eye looked toward Spike. There was no enjoyment in his glowing eyes, they were the flat stare of a predator.

"Looking for a fair fight? Think you can," he waved his hand in around, "control the weather? Want the Big Bad to stop if you drop your weapon?"

"Spike." He tensed at the sharp command in Buffy's voice then whirled around and advanced toward the Slayer. His tone was angry when he started speaking again.

"I've said it once and I'll say it again," he narrowed his eyes when the Slayer started to walk backwards. His vampire face returned and Vi wondered if it was just her imagination or were his eyes just a shade more predatory, his teeth and nails just a little longer than before. (Was it possible, she wondered, that he had been going easy on them before?) "A vampire always has his weapon."

"And you can stumble," he continued. Suddenly Buffy, stumbled and her foot slipped on the ground and within seconds, her pose mirrored Vi's earlier position, on the ground with the wall of the crypt at her back and nowhere to go.

"Your heart can be pounding in fear," for the first time, his voice slightly garbled (altered, Vi realized, by the even longer pointed teeth protruding from his mouth). "but that won't make them stop." He reached down and grabbed Buffy's wrists, roughly yanking her up from the ground and a few of the girls inhaled sharply.

He raised his hands in the air and Vi noticed that Buffy's feet dangled inches above the ground. A few of the girls shifted nervously. Buffy's eyes were wide, and she twisted her body ineffectually trying to escape the vampire's grasp.

"And you might be weaponless and the only thing you will have is…" For a moment, the downpour lessened like nature was holding its breath.

"Me." And suddenly, the Slayer exploded into action. Her wrists were still in the Vampire's tight grasp, but she brought her feet up together and kicked into his chest. Startled, he released his grasp and she fell downward. She hardly hit the ground when she tucked into a backward roll and stood a split second later. Spike was already rushing toward her, a low menacing growl but just when he got within arm's length, the Slayer hit him with a powerful backhand.

Stunned, Vi and the other girls could only watch as the Slayer and Vampire fought with kicks and hits, neither one appearing to give any quarter; Spike in total game face the whole time and Buffy with only her fists, elbows, and feet to protect her. Once in a while, Buffy would grab something from the ground. She threw rocks (which Spike easily dodged) but she didn't give up. She used overhanging tree branches to grab and give her the momentum to swing her feet toward him and send Spike crashing to the ground then let go of the branch and somersaulted through the air.

The rain was continued, each drop like a hundred needles stabbing at her skin, but for a moment Vi forgot that she was weary, drenched, and chilled to the bone as she watched the Slayer and Vampire battle each other. They were relentless, tireless in their battle. Fingers splayed, Spike swiped with unnaturally long nails which the Slayer avoided and retaliated with powerful kicks that knocked the vampire backward. And just when Vi thought they had both exhausted themselves, their punches and kicks increased in speed.

"Jesus..." from her left, Vi heard Marie exclaim. Then more voices chimed in.

"…but it's Buffy. She's the Slayer and…"

"Oh my god, did you see that flip she just did? I get dizzy doing a somersault. They don't expect us to…"

"…think he was actually going easy on Vi?"

Vi was unable to tear her eyes away from Buffy and Spike. They duo were still trading hits, but their bodies were much closer than before. The Slayer back-handed Spike with her left hand, but he caught her wrist. She saw his lips move, but the rain drowned out his voice. Buffy's lips curved in a smile that caused Vi to flush. Buffy reached up with her right hand but Vi didn't think she was going to hit Spike. Still, the vampire caught the wrist in his hand. The pair stood perfectly still and Vi could almost see a current of electricity run back and forth between them. Overhead, the sky flashed rapidly, then thunder rumbled so loud that Marie shrieked in alarm.

Vi wasn't sure if it was the rumble of the thunder, the lightning flashing in the sky or the potential's panicked shriek, but in an instant Buffy was striding toward them and telling them the lesson would be continued another night. Behind her, Spike stared at the Slayer's retreating back. Once again, his lips moved but Vi didn't know what he said. She noticed, however, that the Slayer's steps paused. She watched Buffy look over her shoulder at Spike. Once again, Vi imagined a current of electricity crackling between them. Then, Buffy turned back to the group letting them know it was time to go back the house.

Vi saw a slow smile cross Spike's face and she thought she recognized the expression upon his face.

Hope.

Vi opened her eyes, confused for a moment by the lack of thunder, lightning and rain. The dream had been so vivid, that she felt transported in time. Had it not been for the warm, comforting weight of Daniel's arm slung across her stomach, she could have sworn that she was still in Sunnydale preparing for the most terrifying battle of her life.

She lay still for a few moments, listening to the quiet, steady breaths of the man beside her. Carefully, she rolled to her side and moved her legs to the side of the bed. She wriggled her toes slightly when they touched the thick plush carpet and stood, facing the long, narrow French windows. Opened earlier that evening, there was a warm breeze stirring the air in her room. With practiced ease, she sat sideways on the seat and hugged her knees. From the window seat, she could see the wide expanse of the back lawn, the stables a short distance to the East and the pool to the west. Vi couldn't count the number of hours she spent sitting on the window seat learning to communicate with Cho-Ahn or nestled in her boyfriend's strong, muscular arms trading stories about their childhoods or just in quiet contemplation.

Tonight, her eyes lingered on the twinkling stars until the echo of water splashing drew her eyes to the pool. The lights from the bottom of the pool allowed her eyes to easily find Xander as he came up from a dive and began his nightly ritual. Behind her she heard the rustle of blankets and the pad of bare feet upon the hardwood floor. At the touch of fingers upon her shoulder she sat forward and made room to Daniel. It took a few moments for them to get situated but soon enough her head lay on his chest and his hand upon her head.

"Why do you think he only swims at night?" Vi wondered. "Every night, without fail, he comes out for a swim. Yet, during the day you wouldn't know that he could swim – he doesn't go near the water at all." She felt Daniel's shrug.

"Not sure – he and I haven't said more than a few words to each since you arrived. I will say that if I didn't know better, I would swear he was training to be a contender for an Olympic medal. He appears to have the same kind of drive that professional athletes have."

"He wasn't like this when I met him. I mean he could handle himself in a fight alright, but it seemed that he was too busy working or fixing stuff around Buffy's house to spend time at the gym. He didn't get like," she fluttered her fingertips toward the window in the pool's general direction, "that until…we arrived here."

They were quiet for a while; Vi blinking drowsily as she stared at the lone man swimming lap after lap. They couple lay together until Daniel nudged her. When they rose to return to the bed, she noticed Xander was still doing laps.

The next morning, Vi sighed with contentment and leaned back in her chair, her hands patting her full belly in an imitation of a rim-shot. As always, Kennedy's staff put out an amazing breakfast buffet worthy of a five-star rating. In the chair beside her, Cho-Ahn gave the most unladylike of burps. There was a pause at the table and then various giggles broke out around the table but were quickly smothered as Giles gave an annoyed snap of his morning newspaper.

Vi stifled her sigh as more than a few Slayer-shaped frowns were directed toward the Watcher. Things in the house had been a little tense since Buffy and Dawn had left with the pink-eyed demon. Unfortunately, Giles and Willow made no effort to censor their conversations and more than one Slayer had overheard their plans for a new Watcher's Counsel "once Buffy comes around and everything goes back to the way it should be".

A few of the girls tried to speak out, but Giles' condescending attitude had them quickly walking away for fear they would lose their temper. Last night, she ran into Marie, who was walking away from the dining room, her expression murderous.

"Buffy can't come back soon enough," Marie had hissed through clenched teeth, her fingers tightly curled against her palm.

It wasn't the first time she had heard the sentiment that that day and Vi didn't think it would be the last. Giles' was a little more vocal regarding Buffy's "preposterous" idea and while Willow didn't outright agree with Giles, she didn't disagree with him either.

Vi picked up a large glass decanter and poured more water into her glass.

Conversation at the breakfast table dwindled to a few murmured words here and there. Vi was just about to clear her plate, when Giles stood up and looked at his watch. He paused at looked around the table at the girls and for a moment Vi thought she saw something akin to regret on his face.

"Well, I have some calls to make."

His words were ignored by much of the room and he stood awkwardly for a moment then gave a small sigh and left. Not more than a moment later, Andrew and Faith entered the room. Faith paused in the doorway, her eyes scanning the faces of each Slayer seated at the table while Andrew headed straight toward the buffet.

"Brioche!" he declared with such delight that Vi found it hard to suppress a smile as he speared a slice for his plate. Happy sounds continued to emanate from him as he perused the lavish brunch spread atop the sideboard.

Faith's attention remained directed toward the group seated at the table.

"Let me guess," she began as took a vacant seat next to Rona. "Giles got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?"

"Try every morning." Rona muttered darkly, stabbing the last chunk of her French toast with deadly precision.

"He's such an arrogant ass." Helen contributed

"Ching-wah tsao duh liou mahng. " Cho-Ahn added. Vi choked on a mouthful of water, half-amused and half-horrified.

"Mei-mei!" she chided her friend, shocked.

Cho-Ahn shrugged unapologetically and Vi shook her head in amused exasperation as the girls clamored to know the Chinese-to English translation. Finally, Vi gave in.

"It's one of her favorite curses and certainly not appropriate for conversation around the dinner table." Vi gave her "little-sister" an affectionate shove on the shoulder before she continued. "I will tell you this. It implies one is sexually interested in frogs and their mother is a female dog." She finished just as Andrew took a seat.

"That's certainly creative." He gave Cho-Ahn an admiring glance. Her friend and she must have understood the compliment because she preened, a smug smile on her face.

Smiling, Faith went to the buffet and filled a small bowl with Greek yogurt which she topped with a myriad of berries while the conversation continued.

"Oh, you have no idea." Vi said, then added, "Chinese curses are creative, hilarious and often shocking all at once. You should see the look on Tim's face when I make him translate. He blushes and stammers…it's so sweet." Everyone laughed in good humor, but Cho-Ahn turned to Vi with a quizzical expression.

"Tim?" she questioned.

"Tim," Vi paused then patted her own cheeks and then stammered and exhaled in an imitation of how Tim looked whenever Cho-Ahn said something outrageous. Cho-Ahn's expression cleared and she let out a peal of laughter, nodding.

"Tim gāngà"" She said, between breathless chuckles. "Exactly!" Vi agreed. The two girls giggled again then Vi translated 'gāngà' meant awkward.

For a few moments the room was quiet. A few of the group had finished eating yet remained to enjoy one more cup of coffee. Vi noticed Andrew quietly savoring his first bite of the brioche, his eyelashes fluttering in shameless enjoyment.

Helen was the first to break the lull in conversation.

"Anyone know when Buffy is coming back?" she asked, blowing gently before taking a sip of the steaming coffee.

"Soon, I hope." Marie returned, her expressing quickly turning glum. "I heard Giles and Willow talking yesterday and it's obvious they want to go back to the old way – Watchers telling the Slayers what to do, where to go."

"Buffy will fix that." Helen re-joined. "Once she comes back, she will set them straight."

"Well," Marie dragged out the word, "Giles and Willow seemed pretty confident that Buffy will set us straight."

As the discussion continued, no one noticed Andrew's increasing irritation each time one of the Slayers said, "Buffy will" or "ask Buffy to". Suddenly, with a loud clatter, he dropped his fork on to his plate and pushed it away. The conversation halted to a sudden stop as each girl turned to the blonde, mystified.

"I've lost my appetite." With a sigh, he placed his hands on the edge of the table to push his chair away and left the room.

The conversation became muted, reduced to just a few softly spoken word. Vi wondered if the other Slayers were replaying the previous conversation in an attempt to discover what might have caused Andrew's sudden change in behavior.

tbc