Spike sauntered over, grinning. "You're hot when you're threatening dire physical harm, Slayer." He put a hand to stop both Buffy's and Giles' reply. "I know, 'shut up, Spike.' Not original." He met Giles' annoyed look and only grinned harder.
Giles turned his glare in the direction of the soldiers' departure. "I found very little on the Knights of Byzantium, other than what we already know. Their sole purpose is the discovery and the destruction of the key."
Buffy stepped closer to the corpse of the ragged man. "Poor guy. Just 'cause he was a little nuts . . ." Spike joined her and began going through the dead man's pockets. "Hey, stop that."
He ignored her. "What was that about the hellbitch taking his mind?" he said.
"It's one of her powers," Giles said. "She draws strength from devouring the minds and intellects of others. Apparently the mindless ones become her servants."
Spike settled back on his heels, a wallet in his hands. "This guy wasn't homeless before Glory got to him." He flipped it open to show several credit cards, pictures, and a wad of cash.
"Give it here," Buffy ordered. "And don't you dare take that money."
"He doesn't need it anymore, pet."
"I don't care, that needs to go to his family, give it here."
Spike sighed hugely and handed her the wallet. She was too busy looking through the various cards to notice him pulling off the corpse's watch and wedding ring. Buffy paused on one card. "He worked at Sunnydale General, he was a therapist over there."
"He's been wandering around like this for quite some time, given the state of his clothes," Giles observed. "I imagine his family has given up on him by now, this being Sunnydale."
"So I can have his wallet back," Spike said. He mostly dodged the kick Buffy sent his way.
"No," she said firmly. "I'll give it to the police, say I found it in the park."
"And if you think the cops won't take their share . . ." Spike muttered.
"Jerk." She started to walk away, then paused to give Giles an uncertain look.
"We'll be in touch," he told her. "We'll leave messages with Anya on what we find regarding Glory's location."
"OK," she said. She let herself look sadly at her mentor for a moment, then firmed her shoulders and headed off.
"Buffy, one thing," he called after her. She looked back over her shoulder. "I took the Orb of Thesulah from the shop. I'm using it as a paperweight again. I wouldn't waste time trying to find another one."
Buffy stared at him, licking her lips. Willow had torn the shop apart, looking for the Orb and accusing Anya of selling the thing. Anya had sworn she hadn't, though she admitted it was because no one had asked. The only vampire they'd had to worry about had been Spike.
"If you were to find one," he went on, "don't bother using it. It would be far kinder of you to simply kill me. I doubt I'd survive long if you gave me Angel's curse."
"We weren't . . ." she started, but she knew she'd never mastered the art of lying. "It was just a thought."
He smiled ruefully. "I understand. But not a good one. Your Giles is gone. There's only me left."
She let her grief show for just a moment, then tucked away again everything that distracted her from her job. Without a word she turned and walked away.
"Make a lovely cricket ball, that Orb would," Spike said as he joined Giles. He was counting a thick wad of cash.
"Where did you get that?"
Spike nodded over his shoulder. "Didn't show the wallet till I'd taken my cut. Figured the Slayer would go noble on us and I left enough for her to find so she could feel superior."
Giles shrugged. "It's getting late, I'm tired." They went on their way, leaving the body for whatever scavengers or city clean-up crew happened to come along first.