The passage of days and nights had developed into a pattern for the tentative lovers. Work in the late evenings into early morning, then home to hang out for a while eating, watching movies, or reading. Going to bed around sunrise, and waking in the afternoon with a few hours to kill before heading to work again.

Neither minded the seemingly odd hours. Wil was more comfortable since he was able to be out and about at night, and Alex just enjoyed being with Wil. Plus, the neighborhood sported quiet a few all-night places as a concession to the mixed clientele, so getting groceries, renting videos, or performing any other errands wasn't a hardship for them.

And their Sundays off had been designated 'date night'. Last Sunday, they'd gone to a movie, choosing seats in the back row and holding hands through the picture. Wil had even pushed up the armrest between them so he could get that much closer to Alex. A few stolen kisses in the darkened theater had made the outing perfect.

Now another Sunday had come. They'd just finished breakfast and were relaxing on the sofa in what had become a familiar scenario. Alex was snuggled close to Wil as the vampire read aloud to him from whatever the book of the day was.

Alex watched Wil's face as he read, smiling. He'd managed to convince the blonde to purchase a pair of reading glasses by the simple expedient of dragging him to the display at Wal-Mart and waiting until he picked one out. The fact that seeing his boyfriend's wide blue eyes peeking up at him from behind the wire rims made him break out in a sweat as his groin tingled may have influenced said boyfriend's decision. Slightly.

Wil pushed his glasses back up on his nose as he read, then dropped the hand back down on Alex's head. Fingers played gently with the slightly curled locks of hair, mussing them deliciously. He could feel every breath that Alex took, the warm puffs of air drifting through the thin material of his shirt. It was...comforting.

A soft knocking at the door broke the mood, and Alex peeled himself away from Wil with a sigh. He walked over to the door, opening it. "Hey, Mellie!" he greeted the woman with a grin. "How's life?" He stepped back to allow her inside.

Mellie smiled back. "Oh, just peachy." She entered, pulling a young woman in behind her. "Hello, Wil," she chirped at the vampire who had risen to join the group. "Those spectacles make you look even cuter than usual."

Wil laughed. "I don't think you're the only one with that opinion, pet," he replied, nodding in Alex's direction.

"Oh boys, I just wanted you to meet someone." She gestured to her companion. "This is my daughter, Dana. Dana, Wil and Alex."

Everyone exchanged hellos, and the next few minutes were spent in pleasant conversation. Then Mellie cleared her throat, and the others quieted. "Boys, Dana here dabbles in magic, and I'm proud to say that she's quite exceptional at it."

Dana blushed. "Well, my blood has a lot to do with that. I'm 1/4 Kcsterk, and Kcsterki females tend to have a lot of talent for working magic. Mum's just one of the exceptions."

Mellie patted her hand. "Nonsense. You'd be just as good if you were a full-blooded human." She gave her daughter a quick hug, then turned her attention back to Alex and Wil. "Anyway, we were talking this morning when Dana came to visit, and she mentioned finding an old memory spell. I thought of you two right off, and when I explained what had happened with the Grun-thak demon, she offered to work the spell on you. If you want her to, that is."

The boys stared at their visitors blankly, mouths agape. Then Alex shook himself. "Um, would you excuse us?" At their nods, he tugged Wil into the kitchen. Biting his lip, he asked in a low voice, "You want to do this?"

Wil shrugged. "Dunno, pet. Don't like the thought of more magic, but...if it helps..."

"Yeah."

Wil plucked at the hem of his shirt. "Will you...?"

Alex waited a moment, but nothing else was forthcoming. "What is it?" he encouraged.

"I just...I..." Wil sighed, then asked softly, "Will we still be together? When we remember?"

Pulling the vampire into a fierce hug, Alex murmured in his ear, "I *like* you, Wil. A *lot*. Remembering...Before…it's not going to change how we are now. I won't *let* it!"

"Oh. Ok." Wil smiled and tilted his face up for a brief kiss, which Alex gave him gladly. "I say we go for it then."

"Damn right."

~~~~~~~~~~

Mellie accompanied her daughter on the quest for the supplies needed for the spell. Dana had agreed to perform it that evening, as neither Alex nor Wil wanted to waste any time once they'd decided to go for it.

It was nearing dusk when they finally had everything they needed, including a copy of the spell itself. It wasn't that things were difficult to find, but Dana was quite picky about the quality and freshness of each component. Eventually, though, even she was satisfied, and the two women set off on the walk back to the apartment complex.

They chatted amiably as they went, occasionally making a brief pause for a bit of window-shopping. And Mellie couldn't help but dash into a candy store that sported a large, chocolate castle in the window, stating that 'the boys are sure to be famished, and they do so love their sweets!'

Dana just laughed and waved her on, used to her mother's behavior when she found someone new to coddle. Of course, that didn't stop her from holding out her free hand for a piece of the fudge that Mellie had bought.

They were only a few blocks from their destination when Mellie froze in her tracks, clutching at Dana's arm to halt her as well.

Dana frowned. "What's wrong?" she asked, worried.

Mellie jerked her head toward the slight figure just up the street.

Confused, Dana watched as the young woman accosted each passerby, shoving a piece of paper in front of them and questioning them intently. It was apparent that she was growing more and more frustrated at each headshake she received in response. Something seemed familiar about her...

Dana's eyes widened. "Isn't that the--?"

"Yes! What could she be doing here?"

"Grilling random strangers, by the looks of things. Does she really think anyone around her will tell her *anything*?"

"Hush now," Mellie hissed out the side of her mouth. "Let me handle this." Then she shook herself and plastered on a beaming smile just as the Slayer made her way over to them.

"Hi." Buffy gave them a weary grin as she flipped a strand of hair out of her face. "I was looking for a friend of mine, have you seen him?" The paper appeared again, and Mellie took it, examining it carefully.

She cocked her head, wondering why Alex seemed so sad in the photograph. Raising her eyes, she peered earnestly at Buffy and answered, "Oh my, no, he doesn't seem familiar in the least. Is he a good friend of yours?" Not letting Buffy get a word in edgewise, she heaved a beleaguered sigh and continued. "Oh, it's such a shame when you lose track of friends like that. Then again, young people these days are always getting it into their heads to go gallivanting off to who knows where at the drop of a hat. Never a thought for anyone who might worry about them and wonder where they've gone to." She shook her head, making 'tsking' sounds. "Why, in my day, children were brought up right. None of this 'finding yourself' nonsense. No, they learned the importance of family. Now, it's all just 'me me me'!" Mellie shrugged. "Then again, that's just this old biddy's opinion, and I'm sure you haven't much care for that. Would you like a piece of fudge?"

Buffy had followed this rambling dialogue with a dazed look, nodding and shaking her head at what seemed appropriate intervals. Blankly, she accepted the proffered sweet, then looked down at her hand as if wondering where it came from. Blinking, she glanced back up. "Um, so...you haven't seen him then?"

"No dearie. He's quite a handsome fellow, though. Is he your beau?"

Buffy wrinkled her nose. "Ew, no! He just a friend. He...went missing a few weeks ago, and we've all been trying to find out what happened."

"Well, I'm terribly sorry that I couldn't be more helpful."

"That's ok, it's not your fault. Thanks anyway." Buffy took back the picture, gave them a wave, and went on her way.

Dana waited until the Slayer was out of earshot before she spoke. "What do you suppose she wanted with Alex?"

Mellie frowned, her forehead wrinkled. "I have no idea," she replied, "but it certainly can't be good. The Slayer's 'friend' just *happens* to be our Alex, whose boyfriend just *happens* to be a vampire, and both of whom just *happen* to have been injured in a way that made them conveniently forget anything they might haev known about the situation."

Dana gasped. "You don't suppose she had something to do with their injury, do you?"

"I don't know. But something isn't adding up, and I *can* tell you that she's going to have to go through a lot of people if she wants to get at either Alex or Wil. And even the Slayer might have a tough time tangling with Sophie!"

"Now *that* fight I'd like to see!" Dana giggled. She sobered quickly, though. "Are you going to tell Alex that the Slayer is looking for him?"

Mellie thought for a moment, then shook her head. "No, I don't want to worry either of them. I think we should do the spell first, the Slayer can be dealt with once the boys can remember exactly what happened."

"If you're sure," Dana replied doubtfully.

"Positive."

~~~~~~~~~~

"Total bust."

Willow slumped down in her chair at this news. "You sure you tried everywhere?"

Buffy nodded. "Hoofed it all over town, not even *one* person has seen him recently."

Both girls looked expectantly at the door as Riley entered. "Anything?" they asked in unison.

"Depends." He gave Buffy a quick kiss. "Drove around, didn't find any sign of his car. Then I got the idea to see if it had been impounded."

"And?"

He grinned. "Three days after he went missing, it was towed in. Had a bunch of flats, quite a few parking tickets, but was in decent shape otherwise." His face turned grim. "No idea where it was picked up, though. Seems they 'misplaced' the paperwork."

"So basically another dead end." Buffy kicked the wall, denting it noticeably.

"Well, I mean, at least we know he didn't leave town. Right?" Willow blinked up at them hopefully, clutching Tara's hand with her own.

"U-unless he took the bus, or train, or...something." Tara shrugged apologetically at her girlfriend. "Sorry," she whispered, wishing she could wipe away the desolate expression.

"It's not your fault," Willow whispered back, giving her a tearful smile. "It's just...what if something *bad* happened to him! He would never have left without saying *something* to me. I can't stand this not knowing!"

Just then, Giles returned, and he wearily tosses his jacket over the back of a chair.

Buffy perked up, almost bouncing. "Get anything out of the bleached menace? You didn't pay him, did you? It's so much easier on the bank account when you just beat the information out of him."

Giles removed his glasses and rubbed at his eyes. "Yes, well, I imagine it certainly would be more fun, but actually I did neither."

"What? You mean he just spilled? Why don't I believe that?"

"It's more bad news, isn't it?" Willow sighed resignedly. "I can take it. What'd he say?"

"Well, due to the fact that Spike's crypt was, shall we say, rather devoid of any vampire inhabitants, I'm afraid I was unable to retrieve any information for you at all."

"He wasn't there?" Buffy growled in frustration.

Giles shook his head. "It didn't even appear as if he'd been there any time recently. There were cobwebs and dust covering everything...more so than usual, that is."

"How typical. Wouldn't you just know he'd move and forget to leave his forwarding address?" Buffy rolled her eyes and snorted. "Well, good riddance. Who needs the chipped freak anyway?"

"Don't say that!" Willow cried out. "What if...what if he knows something and we can't ever find him? Or...what if *he* did something to Xander!"

Buffy's eyes narrowed. "Well now. That would put a whole new spin on things." She crossed her arms over her chest. "Ok, this thing has gotten way out of hand. We need help."

"What do you mean?" Tara asked quietly.

"We should hire a private investigator. One who can help us find Xander, and take care of Spike if it comes to that." Buffy grinned. "I think we should call Angel."

*****