"What's taking so long?" Buffy whined as she paced around the room, glaring every so often at the witches.

"Almost...done!" Willow beamed happily, making on last check that everything was in the proper position. Buffy bounded forward, kneeling down beside the round mirror that had been placed on the floor. Giles and Riley followed suit, and the five were soon gathered in a loose circle.

Taking a deep breath, Willow began chanting, her voice soon joined by Tara's. Their voices rose in pitch, and when the last word was spoken, there was a bright flash from the mirror. Everyone leaned forward eagerly.

In the mirror, an image was slowly emerging from black fog. It looked like a large building, and as the picture gained clarity, Willow bit back a cry of relief. "I know that place! It's that new hotel out on the north side of town. I just--" her voice hitched, "I went past it to pick up some of the supplies for the spell."

Tara held her hand comfortingly. "Y-you didn't know he was there. It'll be ok, really. You can't blame yourself."

Buffy waved a hand to shush them. "It's getting closer."

They watched as the mirror seemed to zoom in on the hotel, curving around the back and pausing just outside one of the doors. There was a flicker, then the inside of the room was shown. The picture rotated, then showed them an aerial view of the bed.

Buffy hissed when she saw Spike, curled around the missing Scooby. The hiss turned into a gasp of anger when Xander's head turned, bringing the set of fang marks on his neck into full view. "His mouth," she whispered. "There's blood on his mouth."

And there was. Faint drops of red glistening on his lower lip, a smudge of darker color at the corner of his mouth.

"Oh goddess, no," Willow whimpered, burying her face in Tara's shoulder.

Giles sat back, shocked. "It can't be," he breathed.

Jumping up, Buffy tried to suppress a growl of rage. "That bastard!" she spat. "He turned him. He turned Xander! He's fucking dust!"

"Now Buffy," Giles interjected, "We don't know that for certain. It- it could just be that...that..."

Buffy glared at her Watcher. "I know *exactly* what it is. And I'm going hunting." She grabbed up a couple of stakes, heading for the door. Riley scrambled after her, and the two were quickly gone.

Willow sobbed once, a hand over her mouth. "Not Xander," she cried softly. "Please, not Xander."

Tara held her, shooting a worried glance at Giles. "C-can't we do anything?"

Giles removed his glasses, polishing them absently. "Well, if it's true about Xander, then I'm sure Spike will shortly be dust."

"But...what about Xander?" she asked softly, patting Willow's head as another sob issued forth.

"I…I suppose we could try a soul restoration spell. If we can gather together the right components."

Willow dashed the tears from her eyes, sitting up with a determined look on her face. "Yes. Yes! Let's do it."

Biting her lip, Tara asked, "What if Buffy gets to him first?"

Willow shook her head. "No. She won't kill Xander. She *won't*!" She jumped to her feet, pulling Tara up after her. "Let's go! We need to find an Orb of Thesulah!"

~~~~~~~~~~

Xander sat in bed, staring at the door with trepidation. "I don't wanna go," he whispered.

Spike paused, arms full. Taking a look at the brunette, he unceremoniously let everything drop at his feet, quickly moving to Xander' side. "Aw, pet, I know, but we have to go. Doctor's orders, y'know." He hugged to boy close. "Don't worry, mate. Won't let no one hurt you. Ok?"

Shivering, Xander nodded. "'kay."

Spike kissed his shoulder, then stood again. "Gonna finish packin' the car. Don't move, I'll be back in a sec."

Xander watched as Spike retrieved his deposited cargo, disappearing through the door. Another two trips with the rest, and Spike was back, gently hefting the human and carrying him to the car. He set him down, buckled him up, then got in the driver's side.

"Already checked out, so say goodbye. Got a line on a new place, we'll swing by after your appointment, ok?" Spike put the car in gear and pulled out of the parking lot.

"Sure," came the soft reply. Xander peeked over at Spike, then inched his hand across the seat. The vampire glanced down, noticed, and dropped his own hand from the steering wheel, twining their fingers together as he drove.

A few minutes after they left, a blond-haired girl rounded the corner, boyfriend in tow. They headed straight for the lobby, and she planted herself in front of the large desk there.

Buffy glared hard at the young man, ignoring the wide-eyed girl by his side. She leaned forward menacingly, taking a good look at his nametag. "Jason. I'm looking for a friend," she stated.

Jason cocked an eyebrow, not in the least bit intimidated. "Really? Yes, I would suppose you'd be in need of one."

The girl, Leslie according to her tag, giggled.

Buffy struggled to reign in her temper. Through gritted teeth she continued, "It's kind of an emergency. His...brother was in an accident. He told us he was staying here with a friend, but forgot to give us the room number."

"Uh-huh." Jason just continued staring at her, noting how her face was turning an interesting shade of pink. He fully expected to see steam coming out her ears any second.

Riley stepped forward, laying a calming hand on Buffy's arm. "It really is important that we find him," he explained rationally. "His name is Xander. He's about 6 feet tall, dark hair and eyes, not skinny but not too built. Sound familiar?"

Jason shrugged. "Not in the slightest."

Buffy slapped her hand down on the desk. "Look, we know he's here, now just tell us where!"

Again, Riley spoke up. "Well, maybe you saw his friend. He's a little shorter, bleached blonde hair, blue eyes, kind of slender."

Nodding now, Jason grinned. "Yeah, him. I remember him. Checked in about a week ago. Never saw anyone with him, though."

"Which. Room." Buffy was visibly struggling to control her temper now.

"1742, around back."

"Great. Thanks *so* much," she said sarcastically, then stalked out of the lobby. Riley smiled apologetically, then followed.

Leslie frowned at Jason. "Why didn't you tell her that blondie already checked out?"

Jason snickered. "Are you kidding? She gave me the willies; she was definitely lying about that whole emergency thing. I don't think she's a friend at all." He grinned widely. "Besides, that guy was totally *hot*, and you just know he was here shacking up with his boyfriend. Probably trying to get away from *her*."

Leslie sighed heavily. "Yeah. What a waste. I wouldn't have kicked him outta my bed for eating crackers!"

Moaning in agreement, Jason slumped over the counter. "Me neither. Damn, why can't I find a man like that?"

Buffy kicked the door in, ignoring Riley's muted protest. She snarled in fury at the barren room, totally devoid of Xander, Spike, or anything else other than the usual hotel things. "Damn it! They're gone!" She kicked a chair, then went to the bed and ripped the rumpled covers off. There were a few small splotches of blood on the sheets, but nothing else. "Just missed them. Fuck! They were just here!" She pounded the bed with her fists.

Riley reached for her. "Hey, we'll find him. At least we know he's still in town."

"Yeah, for now. Who's to say he won't just run?"

"Well, he's always tried for you before. He probably turned Xander to get to you, and now he's just waiting for the right time to use it. You can't let him get you off balance."

Buffy took a deep breath. "You're right. I have to stay calm." Another few breaths, and she straightened. "Ok, back to Giles'. Time for a new plan."

~~~~~~~~~~

Spike paced outside the room. He wanted to be *in* there, with Xander. But the doc had asked for a minute alone with the boy. //Fine. But if he so much as makes him whimper, I'll...I'll...//

{What? Glare at him and call him a mean, nasty man? Chip, remember?}

//Oh, who asked you?// He continued pacing, his path growing until he was treading the length of the hall. His attention was so focused on what was happening inside that room, he didn't notice someone approaching. He simply kept walking, and reached the corner at the same time as the other person.

They collided, and the smaller man went sprawling to the floor. Spike jumped back with a growl, slipping into gameface. "Watch it!" he snarled, wincing at the warning throb in his head.

The man on the floor shook his head, sitting up and brushing himself off. A hand was run through spiky, bright red hair, and he lifted his head.

Spike frowned. He had the feeling that he knew this guy from somewhere. Something clicked, and his features smoothed out. "Dogboy?"

Oz blinked up at the vampire. "Spike," he answered calmly.

*****