Disclaimer: They aren’t my toys

Feedback is nice...it makes me smile.

“Hey Buff, glad you could join us,” greeted Xander as he sipped his beer.

“Yes, Welcome to the recreation of the Bronze. This version does smell better than the original,” added Anya.

Buffy smiled. Buffy couldn’t remember when the last time she was here. It must have been before her mom died. A smile spread across her face when she remembered. It was that time that had asked Spike to tell her about the other slayers. He had tried to kiss her. Buffy stole a glance at the man that was standing to Xander’s right, who was casually sipping his beer. She couldn’t figure out if it was an ewww moment or not. That had been before the bot, which was definitely an eww moment. Buffy only realised that she was staring when his blue eyes stared back at her own green ones. Embarrassed she turned her head away. She tried to think of things to make her mad at him, but couldn’t. Even thinking about the bot, she couldn’t help but think that she knew something else. Something that would be impossible for her to know.

“Buffy! come dance!” ordered Dawn from the dance floor.

Reluctantly Buffy followed her sister’s lead and joined the group of people, real and fake, who were bouncing happily on the dance floor. Buffy looked into the crowd that surrounded them, trying to place names to faces. Harry Kim was there, dancing with some girl, no idea what her name was, Julian and the captain were playing pool, a bunch of security officers (and she knew this because they were in uniform) were standing by the balcony stairs looking completely out of place. Buffy really wished that she could remember the other people there that night. It was so frustrating not knowing everyone. Especially when she was supposed to be the boss of a bunch of them. Suddenly the music slowed and the dancers broke up into couples. Dawn had abandoned her to dance with a cute brown haired guy. Buffy turned to go sit down again, when she felt familiar arms wrap around her waist.

“Don’t think you are going to leave me here on the dance floor all by my lonesome, Goldilocks,” Spike purred.

“That would be cruel, I’m not the evil one in this scenario.”

“Right, I’m the bloodsucking fiend.”

Buffy looked up into his eyes. He had moved around to face her and they were swaying to the music. Buffy let herself be caught up in his embrace. It felt safe. There was no other word for it. Spike was safe. He was the only one she could really talk to about the other Sunnydale, the story he had created. It was like he was her only link with home.

“Don’t forget the evil part, evil bloodsucking fiend” joked Buffy.

As the words left her mouth her mind latched on to a memory. She remembered saying something very similar to Spike...no it was the Buffy bot who said it. But how would she know that? She had been in the desert with the first slayer and the gourd shaking Giles.

“Oh my god!” gasped Buffy as she made the connection.

“Buffy? Luv?” asked Spike concerned.

Buffy pulled back from him and looked back into his eyes.

“The Buffy bot.”

“What about the bot, luv?”

“I ran that episode twice, once as Buffy, once as the bot.”

Spike smirked. “Did you now, pet.”

“Yes, how else would I remember all the things you did with it?”

“Exactly what did I do with it?” he said with a leer.

“Eww! so not telling you. Besides you were there, you know.”

“No pet, I don’t. I only program the scenarios, the plot, it’s up to the people running the program to carry out the parameters. I only wrote that Vampire Spike would get a bot that looked like Buffy and take it back to his crypt to ‘play’ with it. Oh and for Xander and Anya to find the bot and Spike doing it in the cemetery. Other than that...”

“You are so full of yourself. You have no idea, how disgusted I was when I first saw the bot.”

“So disgusted that you ran the program again, this time taking the place of the Buffy bot?”

Buffy blushed

“Maybe you should read your personal log for that day, find out what you really thought? Might shed some light?”

Buffy nodded and fell back into the motion of dancing.

“Spike?”

“Yes, luv?”

“By chance, were we ever engaged?”

“No, just part of the program, why?”

“Just thought, so much of the program is based on our lives...”

“I wrote that episode, just before you started dating that git Finn. I admit I was jealous. I wanted to be able to tell you that I wanted you to be mine. I had this idea that...it’s not important, it was a good idea, I went with it, and you started dating that wanker, even before I had finished it. I remember what you wrote me when you had run the program when I sent it to you... said it felt like kissing your brother.”

Buffy laughed. “Not that I would know how that felt like...I don’t have a brother.”

“How about that time you kissed Xander?”

“First of all, I was poisoned by an alien plant thing, and I thought he was you! I thought you were over this? It was like what 2 months ago! I’m so never going to that planet again.”

Spike laughed. “You will if you are told to go Goldilocks, that’s part of your job.”

“I guess, I don’t remember much about my job.”

“I think you remember more than you think you do pet. I’ve never had the Slayer kiss the Whelp in the program, especially under the influence of an intoxicating plant thing from an alien planet.”

Buffy stared up at him with wide eyes.

“You are right! I guess I’m remembering stuff.”

“That you are love.”

“Spike?” she whispered.

“Yes, Love?”

“Thank you”

“For what?”

“For lots of stuff, mainly for bringing the Scoobies here for me, and for not jumping down my throat about not remembering”

“Not a problem, pet.”

Spike held her closer and leaned his cheek against the top of her head.

“You know..” she began, “It’s not quite so bad here.”

Buffy smiled. Spike here and Spike in Sunnydale were exactly the same person. In fact the scoobies were all the same, just in different places in their lives.

“So I’m going to run “The Gift” tomorrow, and see what really happens,” said Willow to the group.

“Just be careful you don’t jump off the tower like Buffy did,” advised Anya.

“Why would I be Buffy?” asked Willow “Why wouldn’t I be me in all my Witchy goodness?”

“You don’t know how your program will end up, you might have to jump instead.”

“No,” interjected Buffy. “It had to be me...or Dawn. Only our blood can seal the portal.”

“What is his obsession with the blood? I mean honestly...everything is about the Blood,” asked Willow.

Buffy smiled, remembering something Spike had said. Buffy stirred her fuzzy pink girly drink with her mini umbrella for a moment.

“Hey, Buffy?” came a voice, a male voice.

Buffy looked up to see an attractive Asian man before her.

“Yes?”

“Um, right, you lost your memory. Harry Kim, I work at Ops. We go skating together occasionally?”

“Oh, right.” Buffy blushed, “I’m sorry I don’t remember you.”

“That’s ok, I was wondering if you wanted to dance?”

Buffy nodded and took Harry’s hand. Curiously enveloped by Harry’s arms, Buffy felt strange. Kinda like she was dancing with Riley again.

“Listen Buffy, I know that you are not exactly up to specs right now, but I think I need to get this off my chest.” Harry exhaled loudly. “I like you, a lot. And I just want to have a chance to get to know you better. I really like spending time with you.”

“That’s nice Harry. Thanks. But I’m sorta no memory girl right now, and I should really get to know me before I start dating again.”

“Right, that’s fair.”

“Sorry.”

Buffy and Harry danced in silence for the rest of the song. Buffy let her eyes drift over the assembled people in the Bronze. She noticed how her sister was dancing very closely with that same brown haired boy, who curiously reminded her of Ben.

A feeling of terror jolted through her system. Ben was here. That meant Glory was here. Buffy looked frantically for Spike.

As soon as the music ended Buffy extricated herself from Harry’s arms and ran to Spike, who was soundly beating Xander at the ancient earth game.

“Ben is here!” cried Buffy, pulling at Spike’s duster.

“Huh?” retorted the startled Holo-novelist.

“Ben! As in Ben is Glory? He’s here, dancing with Dawn! We have to get him away from her. He’ll cut her again.”

“Buff! That’s Doctor Archer. He’s harmless. One of Glory’s ex’s” said Xander.

“Huh?”

“Buffy, Luv, Glory, the hell god Glory, is dead, you beat her with the Troll hammer? Then Giles suffocated the git” assured Spike.

“Glory’s gone?”

“Yes love”

Buffy looked relieved at that. Buffy put her hand to her head.

“Spike? can you take me back to my room. I think...I need to get out of here. This is too much like Sunnydale.”

Spike just nodded.

“Uh, do you want a drink or some such, pet?” Spike asked.

“No, I think I just want to watch some TV and go to sleep.” said Buffy absently heading to her room

“Uh, Buffy, Luv, there is no TV in the 24th century.”

Buffy stopped dead in her tracks and turned to face the black clad man.

“Excuse me??? What do you mean that there is no TV?”

“Just that pet, no TV in the 24th century.”

“That’s it! I’m officially in hell. What exactly does one do to chill around here then?”

“Reading? Listening to music?”

Buffy groaned.

“Well I suppose I could read some more of those personal logs.”

“The one after the Buffy bot?” he grinned.

“Ok, maybe not with you in the room. Speaking of rooms, did you want your own?”

Spike shook his head. “Na, I’ll just bunk here on your couch. ‘S not like I haven’t slept on it before.”

“I guess,” said Buffy not remembering. “Spike?”

“Ya, pet?”

“What happens if I don’t remember this life?”

Spike moved to embrace her.

“Don’t you worry about that love, You will remember. And even if you don’t, you’ve got a whole bunch of people who will take care of you.” Spike wrapped his arms around her.

“Would you take care of me? Dawn obviously won’t, she’s all grown up. Would you take care of me Spike?”

“You know I would. I love you Buffy”

Buffy sank back into his embrace with a contented sigh. She had never thought that she would be grateful that Spike loved her.

She couldn’t sleep here, in this fake room. Buffy bolted out of her bed and out of her quarters. Standing in the hallway, clad in her pjs Buffy called out to the computer to show her to the holodeck.