"No. I don't believe you. The slayers not dead, I don't have a soul, Dawn did NOT cease to exsist and Red is not a demon. I refuse to believe this. You've had yer fun, pulled yer prank on me now knock it the fuck off!"

Alex shook his head, this was not going right. How the hell was he supposed to convince Spike he was telling the truth? If only he could talk to Wil. He honestly had no idea how to convince Spike of anything, how was he going to keep him from leaving when the sun set? What would it do to Wil if Spike killed someone? "Spike, what's the last thing you remember?"

Spike thought long and hard, he wanted to say it was leaving Buffys' house after he had attacked her but he knew there was more. A thousand jumbled images tumbled through his mind. He saw a demon with glowing green eyes, a vast stretch of desert in the moonlight, the deck of a ship sailing across the ocean. It was confusing. "I - I don't know."

Alex watched as Spike tried to grasp what was happening to him. "Try Spike. Try to remember."

There was a train, then a bus, he was walking along the highway. He was sitting in the cab of a deisal truck with a large bearded man. The 'Welcome to Sunnydale' sign, the treasure, the slayers house. Spike tensed, he didn't want to know, he was afraid. "No, I don't want to remember! Make it stop, makeitstopmakeitstopmakeitSTOP!"

Alex caught the vampire as he fell to the floor shaking and howling. He wished he knew how to help him, how to make it stop. "Shh, it's okay Spike, it's over now. Let it go, there's nothing you can do for them now, I was there and I couldn't stop her. You couldn't have either, she would have done something to you as well."

Spike remembered, he remembered everything now. The night in the cemetary where he howled for hours, the only thing that kept him from greeting the sun was.... "William." "Yeah, Wil. I told you about him, remember? He lives in there now too. Can you feel him? Is he okay?" Alex couldn't help but push Spike a bit, he was very concerned about Wil.

Spike concentrated, twenty-eight years of Wils' memories flooded his brain, but it was only the past week that stood out in his mind. Spike payed close attention to those memories. Meeting Alex, kissing Alex, almost having sex with Alex. Alex had been very supportive of Wil, wanting to help get Spike better. Xander would never have done any of those things. Xander hated Spike, but Alex had come looking for him. Spike shook his head, alternate dimensions had nothing on this one. This one was as strange as they got. His soul was falling in love with Alex, Xander. It was more than Spike was ready to deal with. He had killed his souls lover. How bloody ironic!

"Look Xander, er Alex. I need some time to think about all this. Could you leave me alone fer awhile?" Alex let go of Spike and helped him to his feet. "Sure, I ah, I start work tomorrow so I need to do some shopping. You want anything while I'm out?"

Spike gaped at the man in front of him. Alex was a hell of alot nicer than Xander ever was. "Well, unless yer gonna open a vein for me... again.... I could use some blood. Oh, an' I drank all the beer." Alex chuckled. "You know Spike, I was right. You would bite me if given the chance, told you I was very biteable, moist and delicious!" Alex grinned and walked toward his room. "Just let me change my clothes and I'll get out of your hair. "Biteable indeed, yer a real nummy treat, Harris."

The laughter from the bedroom made Spike frown. "What?" Alex returned to the livingroom in jeans and a blue shirt. "You said the exact same thing to me over thirty years ago Spike. Don't you remember? I had you tied to my chair?" Spike thought back recalled the conversation. "Oh, so I did. Guess somethings never go out of style" Alex chuckled. "Yeah, unlike your wardrobe."

Spike looked down at his outfit and made a face. He reached up and touched his hair, as he felt the loose curls he pulled his hand away sharply. "Could use a pair o' jeans and some hair dye." Alex shook his head. "Uh uh. I like Wils' hair the way it is, and so does he. I'll see about the jeans though, maybe some hair gel?" "That'll do, thanks Xa... Alex."

Alex grabbed his keys and walked to the door. He turned back and looked at Spike. It was wierd, it looked like Wil but he could definately tell it was Spike. Wil was sweet, smart, shy and gentle. Where as Spike had always been tough, mean, scary and sexy as hell. You could see by the way the vampire held himself that this was not Wil. Alex was sure that if this was the vampire he had seen that first night in the cemetary he'd have recognized Spike right off.

"I'll be back in a couple hours, Spike. Make yourself at home."