True Colors by TalesofSpike
 
 
Chapter #1 - Chapter 1:01
 






SECTION 1 - LEAP OF FAITH

And it's a leap of faith
When you believe there's someone out there
It's a leap of faith
When you believe that
Someone cares, oh
And when I call out to you
Will you be right there
Right there

(Michelle Branch, Album Broken Bracelet)



Chapter 1.01
Sunday, May 5th, 2002

Sunday Night

Spike moved around the pool table cue in hand, checking for a viable shot. He absently chalked the end of his cue and then leant over to go for a cushion shot into the centre pocket, speaking as he cued.

".Couldn't give a toss what gets said when it's the two of us." Straight shot into the two touching balls lined up for the corner pocket with a bit of bottom to run back to take the second. "It's not like you haven't been mouthing off as long as I've known you. Truth be known, I quite enjoy a bit of bickering now and again. As long as you don't start about Buffy and me." Clear up that second ball follow through off the top cushion and down to the other end of the table.

"I know I don't deserve her and I'm not going to say I do. I understand her and I think I can make her happy and I'll shift heaven and hell to do it if I have to." Edge that one into the bottom corner off his and get the right amount of side on it the cue ball will just trickle into the other pocket without it being too obvious. "Foul stroke. Two shots to you. Point is there's nothing you can say on that subject that I'm going to listen to. Bringing it up isn't going to cause anything but problems. I'm not asking for your approval, and finally neither is she." Spike pulled a cigarette from his pack, frowning at how few were left, before lighting it.

"Other than that, when it's just us blokes, say whatever the hell you want and use whatever nicknames you want, but in front of your missus and in front of Buffy we either talk civil-like or we stay shut the hell up. I don't want Anya upset and I won't have Buffy upset." Bloody whelp was going to win now, bugger. Oh well, at least there wasn't money involved this time and it might make him a bit too cocky next time there was.

"Agreed?" Spike asked.

"Agreed, Fangless." The black ball rolled into the pocket. Two of Spike's balls still left on the table.

"Best head back over and play nice with the womenfolk then, Whelp. It might be an idea if you 'n' the slayer sort out your differences on the dance-floor. I don't want her frettin' over it when it can all be sorted out if you talk to each other for five minutes. I know I've got a little proposition I need to talk to your better half about anyway."

Spike walked off ahead of Xander who was left wondering what the vampire was up to now. When they got back to their table Willow and Buffy were up on the dance-floor and Dawn had moved to sit between Tara and Anya.

"How about a dance, pet?" Spike asked Anya. "About time I claimed a kiss from the bride and you can dish the dirt on how married life is treating you." He led her over to a corner of the floor away from all of the others. The pair chatted amicably enough for the duration of a couple of songs or so it seemed, though if anyone was to observe really closely they might have realised that Spike had been keen to assure that none of the other Scoobies could overhear. After some time the two came back to the table and Spike gave Anya a kiss on the cheek before sitting down next to Dawn to watch Xander and Buffy. The vampire savoured being able to watch his beloved openly and without having to disguise his feelings.

She had such a frail graceful beauty, hiding a core of inner strength. Her long ebony skirt rippled and flowed as she moved, giving subtle hints as to the figure underneath in a way that Spike found far more alluring than either a mini-skirt or her more customary tight pants. Her crimson halter-top was made of satin and offered a tactile invitation to explore both the areas it concealed and the soft flesh of her back that it exposed. Her hair was held back on either side by a small silver clip so that her face was framed by wispy golden tendrils. It almost reached her shoulders again and bounced and shone as she moved to the music. A black choker adorned with a crimson rose circled her neck. It attracted his attention to that area as it would that of any vampire, yet at the same time, it created a barrier where normally there would be none. It drew attention from the scars left on her by his grand-sire and Dracula, but in doing so, he was reminded of their existence.

He was aware of every aspect of her appearance, yet it was her face that commanded the bulk of his attention. He watched carefully for any sign that Xander might have upset her, ready to rescue her at a second's notice. At first, things seemed a little uncomfortable between the pair but minutes later, when she became aware of Spike's gaze she rewarded him with a toothpaste commercial smile. For a fraction of a second he instinctively answered like with like until the Big Bad regained control and turned it into a leering smirk, which in turn almost made her laugh.

Of late, in repose her face had seemed gaunt, her eyes too big. Yet when she smiled like that the balance of her features was restored, and she was once again the beauty he fell in love with.

He was suddenly distracted from his observation of his girlfriend, (finally he could say she was his girlfriend) by a sharp pain in his arm. He turned to face Dawn.

"Bloody hell. What was that for, 'Bit?"

"When you're quite finished ogling my sister, and you've wiped the drool off your chin, you might notice that Tara and Willow have been trying to get your attention to say goodnight for the last ten minutes."

Spike's hand was halfway to his lips before he paused. "I do not drool." He turned to where Tara and Willow waited with their coats on.

"I thought we'd all be walking back together?" his tone turned his statement into a question.

"We thought we'd stay at the dorm," Tara replied. "But at least one of us will be around to watch Dawn after school tomorrow."

"Okay then, pet." He hugged both the women in turn. "Take care of yourselves."

He looked around for a clock; surprised to see it was already quarter to eleven. "Great, looks like you're going to miss your curfew, Niblet."

"Yeah, but Buffy's with me so it doesn't count."

"There might not be anyone sitting at home wondering where you are, but you've still got to get up for school in the morning, love. Best get your coat."

Spike had just shrugged into his own coat when a petite pair of arms circled his waist from behind. He turned to give Buffy a gentle kiss. "Figured it was time we got Bit home and into bed or she won't make it to school in the morning."

Buffy looked at the clock. "I guess that bit of the night where you hid on the balcony while the cops did the statement thing took longer than any of us realised." She released her grip on Spike to reach for her coat, but he got there first and held it out ready for her to put it on. Instead of letting her shrug her shoulders into position she felt his hands gently run from her collar down over the top of the lapels laying the soft hide gently in place. His cheek brushed against hers in a touch so subtle she almost thought she dreamt it except for the cool tingling sensation that affected her skin for minutes afterward.

Spike watched as his two girls said their good-byes to the newlyweds, pleased for Buffy's sake to note that she must have got things pretty well patched up with the boy if he was getting a hug. Then he moved forward, enfolding Anya in his arms.

"I hope you're going to be very happy, pet. You deserve it. I'll see you some time tomorrow."

He moved across to Xander and held his hand out toward him. 'Go on, Whelp, take it or we both end up looking like a couple of prats.' For a couple of seconds the other man stared at the proffered hand as if unsure as to what was expected, before he grasped it in a brief handshake.

"Take good care of her. You're a lucky man." Spike's words held the vaguest of threats, which was reciprocated in the groom's reply.

"You too, Spike." Xander nodded in Buffy's direction and his voice dropped almost to a whisper. "You too."

 




 

Spike and his slayer strolled hand in hand towards Revello Drive. Dawn teetered along holding on to his other arm and cursing the vanity that had made her wear her new high heels. Now aside from having sore feet, the longer the walk home took, the more certain she was of having blisters by the time she got back.

Buffy smiled across at the vampire. "Did I hear you making a date with Anya? She's a newly married woman, you know and I don't know what your arrangement with Dru was but I expect you to be a one woman vamp."

"Green suits you, pet." Spike grinned back at her. ".But if you want the sordid details about my sex-life you're going to have to ask again when there isn't a minor with us."  

"I hope it's just the Dru part of that question that you're including under that definition."

"You already know the answer to that one or you would have been asking about it before you agreed to a date. I told Anya I'd drop in at the shop tomorrow to take back what's left of the stuff I liberated the other night and pay her for the rest." '.And to make a little down payment on something else.'

"So you don't think that I would just happen to trust you?"

"Have you ever given me any reason to think you might?" asked the vampire.

"No. I suppose not, but I've got to start practising sometime."

"Too right, slayer." Spike released his grip on Buffy's hand and turned to lead her sister over to a waist-high wall.

"When are you going to start wearing shoes you can walk in, Bit?" he asked the rhetorical question. Picking her up by the waist, he stood her on top of the wall and turned round to allow her to climb on his shoulders. The movements smooth and practised as if it was almost routine, which it had been last summer. Once the younger sister was settled he lit a cigarette before he took Buffy's hand in his own again.

"So do you make a habit of carrying my sister home after a night out?" Buffy queried.

"Now and again, when she can't walk and there aren't any witnesses," was his response.

"I can see," said the petite blonde.

"Yeah, but you already know that I can act like a right soft poof. If the likes of Harris saw this I'd have to kill 'im. Besides, this way we might get home before midnight." He ran his tongue along his upper teeth, his scarred eyebrow slightly raised.

Buffy flushed, feeling a familiar tingling sensation in the region of her abdomen and quickened her pace towards home. "Well, it is a school night. The quicker we get Dawn home the better."

"Yeah, right," came an unconvinced voice from high above her head. "I'm fifteen, not deaf, dumb and blind."

 




 

Spike collapsed on the sofa and turned the TV on, flicking through the channels until he found one that was showing the news. Buffy was through in the kitchen making hot chocolate and Niblet was upstairs getting showered and changed into her pyjamas. He was there, in their home, accepted. The only thing that could have made it any better would be if Joyce were still alive, but then it would be extremely doubtful that he'd be allowed to stay overnight in Buffy's room. Even Cardboard only stayed the night when Joyce was in the hospital and presumably didn't know he was there.

The main news program finished and was followed by a local news show. The nerds' capture actually made lead item. They were being charged with Katrina's murder as well as the bank robbery and the diamond theft. Spike was wondering how they had come to be charged with murder when the girl's death had been ruled as accidental, when the report revealed that one of the group had turned state's evidence against the other two, in hopes of lighter sentencing.

The report also stated that the bank had agreed to pay a finder's fee on that portion of the money that was recovered. The money was to be shared by a group of people who detained the bank robbers until police could arrive following a fight in a local nightclub.

"Buffy! Niblet! I think you might want to hear this."

The two girls came running through to the living room, Dawn's hair still wet from the shower as the chat between anchorman and the reporter at the local jail continued. Once Buffy was safely installed in front of the TV Spike went through to the kitchen to take over making the drinks.









"So, are you going to give yourself up and claim your reward?" Dawn asked Spike as he brought the drinks through.

"Nah, no point. I'd just end up giving the money to you two anyway and it would start all sorts of questions about green cards and visas and all that crap. I'll steer clear."

"What are you going to do for money now that you've promised to be a good boy?" Buffy asked.

"I never promised to be good, pet. Just that I wouldn't nick stuff anymore. And that depends on you."

"If you think you're going to turn pimp and put me on the streets you can forget it," she teased.

"Me neither," Dawn added.

"Well, what do you think of how that lot got those orbs? Assuming they didn't have to kill anyone to get them and that even if they used to belong to someone, they were long dead. say it was just a matter of digging them up? Is there anything about it that violently offends your moral code?"

Buffy's head tilted slightly to one side as she considered the matter. "No, if nobody was harmed and they didn't really belong to anyone. I don't suppose there's any harm. Why?"

"'Cause that means you can't complain about me living off the stuff I found along with the Gem of Amara."

Buffy cast her mind back to the room filled with golden jewellery. "You sneaky little vamp. No wonder you said you could get money."

"Yeah, well. It's not like I didn't offer and if knowing where it comes from makes a difference you can take it that I'm offering again."

"And you can take it that I'm refusing again at least until I'm totally desperate or we've made some sort of formal commitment."

"How about, if this reward doesn't give you enough leeway to get out of that burger joint and get a decent job, then you let me make you an interest-free loan that you can pay back as and when?" Spike gave her his best puppy-dog look. "Please, love, I hate the idea of you working in that place. It's killing you a bit at a time. There's got to be other options."

"We'll see. If the reward doesn't cover it I might take you up on it. But I want to be sure I'm not cleaning you out. It would be like me selling the house and then living off the proceeds. It's destroying what you do have in the way of capital."

The vampire sighed and pressed his argument further. "Okay, time to come clean. The Amara stuff is kind of like my spare change. Most of what I've got is tied up in investments and stocks and shares. The bulk of it is basically legit. When I died it wasn't officially reported. I was able to sell the house and most of the valuables and convert them into investments, which have since multiplied. On occasion I've added to the accounts by not so legitimate means but the overwhelming bulk of it is honestly come by. With enough warning, I could pay the mortgage and the bills for this house and put the two of you through college and still not touch the capital, if you would let me."

"If you were never officially reported dead, then how did you end up getting buried? You wouldn't be buried unless someone found the body and surely even then they would try to have it identified."

"Or unless it amused grandpa dearest to stick me in a coffin and bury it just so he could see my face when I finally crawled out."

"You mean Angel."

"Yes, pet, or if you prefer, Angelus. Look, just say you'll let me give you enough to get you out of that bloody place and let's change the subject."

"You didn't exactly look that wealthy in that dream you had. You looked more like the poor relation."

"Yeah, well, my grandfather made some bad investments. Ended up selling half the land that originally went with the house to cover his debts. After that the income from the estates barely covered the upkeep on the house. There wasn't a lot left over. Father did his best to keep things afloat, but even if I hadn't been turned I'd probably have had to sell the house eventually and get something a bit smaller. The house itself was still worth a fair bit.

Like you say I didn't exactly look wealthy so Angelus never suspected that I had money hidden away or he'd have spent it all on frilly shirts and hair ribbons."

"Okay, I will accept a loan so that I can get out of that place, if I need more than my share of the reward."

"Thank you, pet."

At this point, Dawn who had been quietly listening piped up. "So does this mean that I can keep my share?"

"Yeah, you can keep it. in your college fund," replied her sister. "And get your hair dry, and go to bed or you'll never get to school in the morning."

"Whatever. Don't bother getting up tomorrow morning. I'll get myself ready for Xander coming round. if you can give me my lunch money now?" Spike fumbled in the pocket of his duster and came out with a ten-dollar bill. Dawn snatched it from his hand and headed upstairs calling her thanks as she left.

Buffy moved to the couch, snuggling in against his side and taking the remote from his hand to flip channels. Finally, she switched the TV off having failed to find anything to hold her attention, other than the vamp at her side.

"It's going to be a while before Dawn gets off to sleep. maybe we could go sit on the porch for a bit. if you want?" Buffy suggested nervously.

"We could." A slow smile came to his face, his deep blue eyes holding her own. His hand came up gently stroking her cheek pushing a few stray hairs aside before his cool lips claimed hers with a soft sweep. His fingers brushed a trail over her earlobe and around to the back of her neck where they kneaded gently at her tense muscles. ".Or I might have a better idea." He kissed her again and her hands moved to his shoulder and into the short curls at the back of his head deepening the kiss. She wasn't even aware of his other arm slipping beneath her knees until he had already carried her halfway up the stairs.
 
 
Chapter #2 - Chapter 1:02
 






SECTION 1 - LEAP OF FAITH

And it's a leap of faith
When you believe there's someone out there
It's a leap of faith
When you believe that
Someone cares, oh
And when I call out to you
Will you be right there
Right there

(Michelle Branch, Album Broken Bracelet)



Chapter 1.02
Sunday, May 5th, 2002

Pulling away slightly Buffy hissed at him. "Spike, no, Dawn's still awake. We can't."

"Shhh, pet. It's fine. I'm not planning anything noisy, not just yet anyway." She looked up into his face, her confusion evident as he used a booted foot to push open the bathroom door. He sat her down on the edge of the bathtub and moved to lock both doors, ensuring their privacy.

"Just what exactly are you planning?" she asked. Spike shrugged out of his duster, hanging it up on the back of the door. He crossed the room and brushed against Buffy as he turned on the bath taps. Then he took a seat next to her and kissed her once more before answering.

"Plan on soaking you in a nice hot bath until you finally relax, love. It's been a long day and I know you're nervous about me staying here but I promise I won't make you regret it." He dipped long fingers into the water pooling in the bottom of the tub swirling it slightly before adjusting the flow from the cold water tap. He scanned the selection of oils, salts and potions before selecting a camellia scented bubble bath, which he added to the water. Then he claimed one last tender kiss before moving to kneel at her feet.

His movements were slow, gentle and precise. He unzipped and removed her boots and then lifted the hem of her skirt, letting it rest across her thighs. His fingers teased the elasticated top of her hold-up stocking until he was able to roll the delicate material down the length of her leg, the soft touch of his lips following where his hands had been. He slid the flimsy black wisp from her foot and then began all over again with her other leg. Then he reached up and drew her hemline back into place, the fabric brushing against her sensitised skin all the way from thigh to shin.

Buffy found herself unable to take her eyes from the vision that knelt before her. Her fallen angel, perfect of form and redeemed by love. His face glowed with the intensity of the emotions shown in his eyes. Devotion, compassion, desire, adoration but most of all love. It was the look in those eyes when they met hers and not the skilled manipulation of expert hands that made her knees tremble.

He reached over and turned off the faucets, checking the bath's temperature one last time and she wondered if she was in some sort of dream or if her attention had been entirely focused on him, that the bath had filled so apparently quickly. He took her hands in his and pulled her up to her feet whilst he remained kneeling in front of her, and when she wobbled slightly he reached his right arm around her thighs to steady her. His left hand deftly loosened the bow securing the skirt's waistband and then he placed a hand at either side to pull it down her thighs in one languorous movement until it fell into an ebony ripple around her feet, exposing her black lace thong.

His hands returned to her hips and she responded to his gentle pressure by returning to her seat on the rim of the tub. He parted her knees and shuffled closer, his silk shirt brushing against the inside of her thighs, making her clamp her teeth on her lower lip to keep from moaning. Her arms snaked around him, elbows resting on his shoulders, small fingers twining into the gelled stiffness of his hair as she bent forward to place her lips to the top of his head.

Behind her, his agile fingers unbound the ribbon which criss-crossed her back holding her halter in place, freeing it from the loops that acted as its guide. They smoothed their way down her arms until he could hold her own, pulling them from his hair. He finally stood to remove her crimson top, which now hung loose around her neck, and her choker. He pulled her to her feet once more, this time clasping her against the length of his body for several seconds or minutes, his chin resting atop her head.

Then he knelt at her feet once more, kissing her between her breasts and moving down to her navel. He looked up; catching her gaze and holding it as he slowly removed the last of her clothing. He slid up her body and worked his way along her jaw to her earlobe nibbling gently with blunt teeth, causing her to release an almost silent gasp of air.

He took a small step back, just enough to let him loosen the buttons on his own shirt, but as he moved to undo the second one her tiny manicured hands brushed his own away to continue the job themselves. Taking her cue from him, her movements were unhurried and when his shirt hung loose on his shoulders she moved her lips down the centre of his chest stopping only when she reached his belt buckle, before turning her attention to his shirt cuffs. She pushed the soft fabric from his shoulders letting it drift to the floor. Her fingers traced the lines of his upper body where groups of muscles met, roaming across his chest, stomach, arms and back. She memorised the flawless shape of his body in a way she had never allowed herself to do before, always rushing, pushing him to fuck her hard and fast. Hiding under sheets and rugs or running as soon as it was over.

Her hands moved to his belt buckle, but before she could get it undone he pulled them away, kissing the each palm before releasing them. Whilst she was still wondering what she had done wrong he picked her up, his right arm behind her back and his left behind her knees and lowered her into the scented water. He picked up the clothes strewn on the floor and moved them to the far side of the room where they were less likely to get splashed, before sitting down on the edge of the bath to remove his boots and socks. Buffy watched and waited wondering what his next move would be.

He scooted along the edge of the tub until he was perched on the corner behind her left shoulder, leaning over to gain access to the neck muscles he had begun to massage in the living room what seemed like hours ago. Buffy felt as if her bones had melted, soaked away in the warm water and his slow firm manipulation. He worked his way outward, undoing knots in her shoulders that she hadn't been aware of, then moving nimbly down her spine as she leant forward against her raised knees.

Picking up a soft wash cloth he bathed her back and her arms, before drawing her back to rest against the slope of the tub. She expected him to move on to wash her breasts and stomach, but instead he slid to the opposite end of the bath. He reached down to draw a foot from the water resting it on his denim clad thigh as he worked the muscles in it into a relaxed submission. Talented fingers explored her calf and then higher, and she belatedly realised that his every action was designed to keep her balanced on a knife edge between relaxation and desire. Letting that leg slip back under the water he picked up her other foot and began all over again.

Only once he had kneaded all her muscles loose, did he pick up the wash cloth again and smooth it along the golden flesh of her legs. He took the showerhead from its holder and turned the taps adjusting the flow through it until he was happy with the temperature. Then he beckoned Buffy to move towards him. She slid forward, bringing her knees up and leaning over them. He unclipped the slides from her hair and raised her chin with his hand, tilting her head back over so that when he wet her hair he could do so without getting water in her eyes.

He turned the taps off again and just as she opened her eyes he kissed her upraised mouth. He reached for her shampoo squirting some into the palm of his hand. For a second she wondered how he had known which was hers before she remembered his heightened sense of smell. Of course he could tell which was hers. She watched as he rubbed his palms together spreading the liquid equally before he started to work it into her hair. Smooth white hands with elegant fingers. She remembered years ago with Willow discussing how fixation on insignificant details was a major crush sign. With Spike, there seemed to be almost no detail she hasn't fixated on at some point. Those eyes, those blue, blue eyes that lay bare his every feeling. The chiselled cheekbones that were wholly masculine yet still failed to make his face handsome rather than stunningly beautiful. The smirk, infuriating at times, irresistible at others and the scarred eyebrow, often raised in her direction that begged to be kissed or licked or traced with her fingers. His arms, his chest, his stomach. Her gaze fell below the waistline of his jeans. His ass, other things. It seemed unfair that he should be so perfect.

Then she remembered a story her mother once told her. Something about Indian rugs or tapestries and how the weavers would include one deliberate flaw somewhere in the design so that its perfection would not attract evil spirits. Somehow that seemed to explain the irony that was Spike, the soulless demon with the body and heart of an angel. William had just been too perfect to escape Dru's notice.

He didn't just shampoo her hair. His fingers massaged her scalp so soothingly she let out a gentle moan when he finished and reached for the shower spray once more, rinsing out the lather. She shifted back in the water, taking care not to splash, until she was supported once more by the back of the tub. Her eyes travelled up and down what she could now see of the vampire's body, the heat building within her beginning to rival that of the cooling bath water.

She could almost have predicted his response. The delicious eyebrow went up, as did other parts of his anatomy and his comment was exactly what she expected. Save that, "like what you see, pet?" was voiced in a husky whisper instead of his normal half-sneering tone, she could have written his script.

This time, instead of embarrassment or denial she replied with shy honesty. "Well, duh. What's not to like?" Her smile was teasing, but slightly unsure. She wondered belatedly if his sensitive ego would react unfavourably to being teased. She had hurt him badly and deliberately in the recent past. Now, she worried that those past sins would catch up with her allowing innocent remarks to be misconstrued. "You're beautiful." She wanted to say more, to let him know how the sight of him affected her. How she wished she had the talent of Michel Angelo to sculpt him as a new David, or let him live forever as a canvas masterpiece, but somehow those two words were all she could manage.

"So are you, my love, so are you."

"Will," she whispered sensitive to her sister's hopefully sleeping state. "I want you."

He smirked; his eyes alight with devilment. "I know."

Her exasperated gasp left her mouth open and he took full advantage. The kiss was deep but tender, passionate but without brutality and Buffy was quick to respond. Her hand moved to the back of his neck and she forced her fingers to hold him loosely instead of pulling him toward her since he was now balanced with both hands and the edge of one thigh on the rim of the bath, neither foot touching the floor. So far he had been true to his word about not making any noise and the last thing she wanted was to have to wait for her sister to go back to sleep. That meant dragging him in the tub with her, jeans and all, was out of the question, at least until Dawn left for school in the morning.

He seemed to know the exact moment she needed to catch her breath and drew back. Pulling a bath-sheet from the rail, he laid it out flat on the floor before scooping her from the tub and placing her on it. He knelt beside her and pulled the edges of the towel over, wrapping her in soft Egyptian cotton. Scooping her into his arms, he paused only to let her unlock the door and to listen for Dawn's somnolent life-signs before he carried her through to her room depositing her in the centre of her bed. He crawled onto the mattress beside her with the grace of a predatory jungle cat, his gaze held by the way her damp flesh tautened into goose bumps in the cooler air, her nipples tightening into dusky pink peaks that he could barely distinguish in the darkened room.

Buffy fumbled in the dark, finding the switch for her bedside light illuminating the room in a soft glow. The increased light level allowed him to take in the heavy grey blankets secured over all the windows as well as the fact that the room door still stood open.

"Bollocks," he muttered under his breath, but before he could scramble off the bed to remedy the omission the aforementioned parts of his anatomy were gripped through his jeans by a proprietary hand.

"Mine and everything that goes with them." Her grip wasn't unduly painful and fell well within Spike's definition of foreplay, but he certainly wasn't moving anywhere. It seemed his slayer had had enough teasing for one night. She gave him one last squeeze before turning her attention and both hands to his belt buckle.

"Only yours, Buffy, for as long as you want them," he purred into her ear before biting playfully at her lobe with blunt teeth. He lay down on his side propping his head on one hand so that he could watch his lover as she freed his erection from his jeans.

She stroked the silken skin of his generous shaft, using her fingertips near the base but curling her fingers as she neared the tip so that her nails grazed the delicate flesh. Like every other part of his being it responded to her whim and when her hand was removed it twitched towards her. Spike expected her to finish removing his jeans. Instead he had the air knocked out of his lungs as she pushed him over onto his back and straddled him, sliding her moist labia along his length before taking him into her burning core.

All the while she looked into his eyes and he returned her gaze. The second she impaled herself she remembered the last time that she had seen that look on his face, a combination of lust, surprise, awe and totally unguarded love. The sharp sensation of being stretched around his cool cock triggering a flashback to that first time in the abandoned house. She felt him tense beneath her, his eyelids closing milliseconds too late to hide the pain and fear that swamped his cornflower blue eyes and she knew the same memory had been foremost in his mind.

She stilled. "Will, look at me." She spoke softly, her voice just above a whisper. "This time it's different. It's been a long time. I was impatient and I rushed things but this isn't just about sex any more. I care about you and I'm not going to throw your feelings back at you in the morning. Please don't be afraid to show how you feel." Her hand moved to cup his cheek, his eyes still closed. "Remember what I told you earlier. I love you. I'm not in this to take what I want and leave you hanging. I want to make you happy." Long, dark, damp eyelashes swept apart and his eyes searched hers for answers.

She brushed her lips against his in an almost chaste caress. "Spike, make love to me, please."

He raised his head slightly, running his tongue along her lower lip coaxing her to open her mouth When she did he drew his tongue against hers, tip against tip still far from the forceful evasion they often employed. His hands travelled down her flanks, one claiming her left hip the other hooking behind her right knee, holding it at his waist so that when he rolled them both over onto their sides her leg was hooked over his hip-bone.

Slowly, he flexed his hips. Initially withdrawing only an inch or two each time, he built a steady rhythm. His hands moved to her breasts alternately stroking, holding and kneading them before tracing his thumbs around her aureoles. Finally he drew each into his mouth in turn to suckle and tease them between his blunt teeth, causing her to shudder as she moved to meet his every thrust with one of her own.

Gradually, he increased the depth and speed of each lunge until he could tell from the shivers running through her and her small moans and sighs that she was close. He pushed his still denim-covered thigh through between her legs, adding to the pressure on her clitoris with each stroke. Pulling her face into his shoulder he bent his neck to position blunt teeth over her own.

"Door's still open, pet. Bite down," he whispered.

He squeezed her nipples tightly as he moved into her, sending her spinning over the edge. She longed to scream his name at the top of her voice. Instead she sank her teeth into his shoulder. That pain and the pulsing of her hot muscles around him brought him crashing after her, blunt teeth bruising her flesh but unlike hers failing to draw blood.

 
 
Chapter #3 - Chapter 1:03
 






SECTION 1 - LEAP OF FAITH

And it's a leap of faith
When you believe there's someone out there
It's a leap of faith
When you believe that
Someone cares, oh
And when I call out to you
Will you be right there
Right there

(Michelle Branch, Album Broken Bracelet)



Chapter 1.03
Sunday, May 5th, 2002

Spike pulled Buffy in close, holding her as her tremors stilled to nothing, watching her as she pulled her head back to search his face.

"What's up, pet?"

"Just wanted to make sure you were okay."

He smiled down at her. "I kinda thought the two of us together have always been nearer unbelievable than okay."

"Sp- Will, I'm serious. We've got quite a few memories between us and a lot of them. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they could be better. There are going to be times when we're reminded of the bad things. As long as we can move past them we'll be okay but if there's a problem we need to deal with it. So. are you okay?"

He gave her a reassuring squeeze. "For a minute there it was like I was right back in that house, but this time I knew what was coming the morning after. It caught me by surprise, is all. I know things have changed. I mean, to judge by the window dressing you're not planning on sending me back to the crypt before sunrise. You've told Niblet and all your mates. S'just goin' to take a little while before I stop expecting everything to fall apart.

No..." he obviously struggled to find words to express his thoughts. "I know things are different but it'll be a while before I feel things are different. It'll take time for it to sink in that you aren't. that I'm really this lucky."

"Nice save. Promise I won't be too much of a bitch in the morning, though Dawn says I only turn human once I have my first mug of coffee, so no absolute guarantees."

"Wouldn't be half as interesting if you were all sweetness and light twenty four hours a day, pet."

"Or if you ever learnt the meaning of the word tact."

"Not much of a vamp thing. Nope, that's not true. Most vamps learn how to toady good and proper to their elders even if they don't bother with it the rest of the time. I guess it's just me."

"I suppose that would explain how well you and Angel get on. That's going to be a fun part of the Christmas card list this year." She smiled. "Dear Angel, Merry Christmas, Love Buffy and Spike. He'd be on his way here before the postman got clear of his street."

"He'll be on his way sooner than that, pet." Spike said, apparently unfazed.

"Hey, he's my ex. I think I should get to decide when you tell him."

His smirk returned at her response. "Unless you decide soon, I don't think it'll be either of us telling him."

"Where else is he going to hear about it from?"

"Well there's always the demon grapevine. Even if my name isn't specifically mentioned the fact that the slayer's taken up with another vamp'll eventually get as far as LA. Personally, I'd put bets on Harris though. It's just a matter of how long he takes to think of it."

"You think Xander would tell Angel we're together?" A frown was making its presence known on Buffy's face.

"I'd say it's more a question of whether he has the guts to pick up the phone and do it himself or whether he sends an anonymous note, but it might take a day or two before he comes up with the idea," Spike confirmed.

"What do you think Angel will do?"

"He'll probably turn up, try to speak to your mates and work out exactly what sort of thrall I have you under, or how I might have coerced you into letting me in your bed. Then as soon as he's convinced himself that it's his and Harris's opinions that count and that I've fooled everybody else, he'll set an ambush, try to get me on my own."

"Why do you think ambush?"

"It's the only way to be sure. You don't have a bicentennial by taking chances. A straight fight could go either way."

"Do you. Will he try to stake you?"

"He hasn't so far, but it probably depends on what your mates say. You've got to remember, he's known me for a hundred and twenty years. We lived together for twenty years and every day of those two decades I had to prove that I was bastard enough to belong with him and his women. He won't want to believe that I've changed. Depends whether your mates can convince him I'm not a threat to you. But on the bright side. Dru and Darla had a bit of a spree up in LA not so long ago and he didn't stake them."

"You must have heard wrong Darla died the year I came to Sunnydale."

"Yeah, and then a bunch of lawyers did some hocus-pocus and brought her back human and set her to torment the Poof into losing his soul. Except they brought her back with the same syphilitic heart condition the whore was originally dying from when she was turned. So Dru turned her again 'n' far as I know she's still around somewhere."

"He let them go?"

"After he set them on fire. yeah. But then he actually locked them in with the lawyers and he didn't know any of the others. he might be less lenient seein' as he's supposed to like you and how you wear his mark and he's a bit less fond of me than of Dru or Darla."

"How can you be so calm about it? He might kill you."

"Sufficient unto each day are the problems thereof, pet. I'm in the best fighting form I've ever been in what with patrollin' 'n' stuff. Other than that there's nothin' to be done. It's not as if the two of us fightin' is anythin' new."

"Unless we force the issue so we at least sort of know when he's coming. But what do you mean about wearing his mark? You make it sound like some sort of cattle brand or something," she had more than a hint of defiance in her tone.

"Yeah, well. You're shiverin', pet." He loosened his grip and pulled back from her, withdrawing from her warmth and adjusting his jeans. "Get yourself under the covers and I'll get the door." He stroked her cheek with the back of his fingers and kissed her brow before pushing off the bed to finally close the bedroom door. He picked up the damp towel from on top of the covers and spread it out over the wrought iron at the top of the bed.

Buffy pulled the covers back and crawled in, then lay on her side, watching Spike as he moved around the room. She waited until he was climbing into bed after removing his jeans before she reminded him of her question. "The mark?"

Spike pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her before he replied. "The scars you have on your neck, give a warning, should we say, to any vamp that gets close enough to see them. The Master's is pretty much a non-issue what with him being gone. The other two basically tell us that Soul Boy claimed you as his property, but that Drac's made a later claim since those scars are fresher and overlay the Poof's. Assuming there's still a bit of the demon left in the old man, if he'd still been around when Drac made his appearance he would have had to defend his claim. It's kind of a dominance thing. Anyone who ignores a mark like that. it's like saying they're dominant to the one who made it in the first place."

"So you being in my bed."

".Defies both of them, from their point of view anyway. Way I look at it, they both gave up whatever claim they might have had when they buggered off. A claim is just as much about undertaking to protect someone as it is about saying they belong to you."

"But, your point of view won't matter when Angel hears about us. He's going to see it as you trying to take what's his?"

"It's a direct challenge as far as the demon's concerned. The question's whether the man can or would want to keep the demon in check. Which we won't find out till he gets here."

"So if you've already basically asked for an ass-kicking why didn't you just put your mark over the top? You just passed up the ideal opportunity. Doesn't your demon want that top mark to be his?"

"Buffyyy." Her name was almost a groan. "Yeah, it does. Every time I see those marks or sense them they remind me that you're not mine. That you're his, just like Dru. I'd like nothing better than to put my mark over theirs, but if I ever claim you it'll be as my mate not as some chattel. You don't belong to me. I'm not your master and I don't want to be. So until you're ready to call me your husband I'll live with their marks. Okay?"

"Very okay. But if you're right we still have a problem."

"Unless you're planning some sort of pre-emptive action, pet, it'll keep."

"What action?"

"Acting before anyone else can. Like say I was to drive to LA tomorrow night."

"Don't you mean say we were to drive to LA?"

"Slayer, that was just an example. And the point I was trying to make is that we've got better things to do, our first night in your room, than talk about Grandpa." He leaned down to kiss her, tightening his grip to pull her flush against his body and then he rolled over onto his back bringing her with him.

He teased at her lower lip, capturing it between his and pulling at it, nibbling at it with a delighted smile. She realised, she'd been pouting and her brain supplied the soundtrack. 'Gonna get it. Gonna get it.' Suddenly it hit home. She knew in her head, knew in her heart that what they had really could work. When she came out of Willow's spell she'd been grossed out about how she could love someone she didn't even like. Since then he'd become her confidant, her partner and companion on her nightly patrols and her shaggin' partner (as Spike had once described them) but she'd never seen that happy teasing side again until earlier tonight. She hoped she would see it more often now that they were really a couple.

She grinned widely, effectively ending Spike's play.

"Wha' so funny, love?"

"Us. You. Good memories. Do you have any idea how cute you are when you get all. like you just were?"

She screeched before she could stop herself. His hands seemed to be all over her tickling in all her most sensitive spots. His voice resonant with barely contained laughter. "The. Big. Bad. Does. Not. Do. Cute." She squirmed all over his body, trying to evade his teasing fingers but not trying so hard as to move away from him. Her response coming out between her gasps for air.

"No. but you do. cute and. you. do the. Big Bad."

Spike, perhaps, would have spent some time wondering when he stopped being the Big Bad and started playing him were it not for the fact that the woman he loved was moving around on top of him in a way that made him want to pound her into the mattress. All at once he was sitting upright with Buffy straddling his lap. One hand was tangled in her hair and the other was pulling her close, grinding his erection against her coarse curls. His sudden kiss was deep and hard. Instead of resisting she gave herself up to it, only pulling back when lack of oxygen had her gasping to draw breath.

"Change," she managed in a hoarse whisper and then she reclaimed his mouth without waiting to see if he would comply with her request. She felt his bones move under her tongue, heard all the cracking and grinding sounds clearer than ever before, transmitted through her jaw bone instead of across still air.

Kissing a vampire in game face was something that required a great deal of delicacy if no blood was to be spilled. Instead Buffy deliberately ran her tongue over the sharp edges of Spike's upper teeth, opening free-flowing cuts. She brushed her tongue against his letting him savour the aphrodisiac. At the first taste he froze in her embrace and his cock grew even firmer as it rested between their bodies. When he resumed his oral exploration his efforts were equally passionate, but more tender, careful not to cause her further injury.

When the bleeding had slowed she drew back from his kiss, taking the time to look into his golden eyes. Seeing his discomfort under her gaze she knelt to place a kiss on his ridged brow, following up with a multitude more all over the altered planes of his face. Her fingers traced the contours of his demon countenance ensuring their likeness was committed to memory, along with those of the face he wore almost constantly now.

"You about finished yet, pet? Just there's some things I'm wanting to do and if I stay looking like this they might hurt. Besides, didn't you tell me only one vampire got you hot?"

"Yeah, well that's true. Only I was kinda economical with the truth about the rest of it. See I thought Angel got me hot until this other vamp showed me what hot really was. An-"

She didn't get any further, Spike pushing her over onto her back and fiercely claiming her mouth, the grinding of bone presaging his return to human form even as he did so. One hand moved to fondle her breasts, his other teasing the curls at the junction of her thighs. He had folded his legs under as he tipped her over, so whilst he leant forward from a kneeling position, Buffy was lying with her hips on top of his thighs and her legs either side of his waist. She reached behind his head entwining her fingers in his hair and just when she was in need of breath she pulled his mouth away and rolled them over onto their sides freeing her legs.

Even though Spike had no need for breath, both of them were panting when they pulled apart. A layer of sweat coated Buffy's body and those parts of his where they had been in contact.

Spike swiped along the hollow above her collar-bone with his tongue, savouring her salt taste. "So this one vamp. must be a lucky guy. Anyone I know?"

Buffy swung her legs around so that they were once more lower down the bed than her head her shins resting against the wrought iron at the bottom of the bed. She began kissing, licking and nibbling her way down Spike's contoured chest and abdomen, breaking off occasionally to answer her lover's question. "Well, I could tell you that it was you. but what if I was lying. there's really only one way to be sure." She slid further back up the mattress and in one motion she opened herself to his exploration and took the first few inches of his member into her mouth.

Spike needed no further invitation. He rested his head on one golden thigh and sensuously stroked the inside of her other causing all the tiny hairs there to stand on end, his hand gradually moving closer to the juncture between her thighs. Buffy's lips moved up and down his shaft swirling her tongue around the tip at the end of each stroke, one small hand grasping the base and mirroring the movement of her lips on those areas they couldn't easily reach, the other applying steady kneading pressure on his buttocks.

Ever conscious of the movements of her hot wet mouth, Spike used his fingers to gently part her swollen outer lips, the scent of their previous coupling arousing him further still so that he couldn't wait to taste the juices that flowed from her. He drew his tongue along the parted folds in a series of slow broad strokes, teasing the rim of her opening with his fingertips. He waited until he was close to release and then as only the tip of his shaft was between her lips, he simultaneously suckled on her clitoris and thrust two fingers into her hot, tight, wet passage. A shudder passed through her entire body and she released him, unable to concentrate on anything other than the pulsing sensations originating between her legs and the feel of Spike's fingers moving inside her.

Waves of sensation rippled out through her body making her moan until she felt his teeth bite down on her clit. She cried out his name as the waves reached an almost unbearable peak.

He withdrew his wet fingers from her core, licking them clean. Half-shut ultramarine eyes watched as she recovered. He sat up and pulled her unresisting body into his arms, kissing her on her neck and shoulders.

"Well, pet, I think we can safely say that that question's been settled," he whispered not bothering to hide his amusement, but still falling far short of his smug tone.

Buffy gave a gentle snort. "I guess it is." Her hand moved to stroke his still rigid prick, "but I think we need one more round, at least, to be sure."

"That sounds like a good idea from here, love." He captured her lips in a tender kiss. "Did you have anything in particular in mind?"

"Mmmh, something slow and hard and so deep that it hurts."

"Oh yeah, I like it when naughty Buffy comes out to play. Think we can manage that." Spike moved to kneel near the centre of the bed facing the headboard. "Come over here, love, just like this, but with your knees outside mine." Buffy did as he asked and was rewarded as his cool hands explored her body his body pressed to her back, his erection brushing between the cheeks of her ass. "Now, pet, lace your fingers behind your neck and lean forward so that your weight's on your elbows. That's it." He bent over kissing her back, his hands still gently stroking her breasts and flanks. "Ready, love?"

Buffy gave an almost imperceptible nod and he reached behind him to hook her feet behind his thighs. He positioned himself at her entrance thrusting just far enough that the tip of his erection stayed held inside her. He leant forward and keeping his arms straight he gradually rested his weight on her shoulder blades, pushing her upper torso down almost as far as the mattress.

"Pet, I don't want to really hurt you, so if you stop pressin' with your heels I'll stop pushin'." Spike felt the pressure on his thighs increase and started to push into her inch by inch. The sensation of easing slowly into her hot wet folds had him murmuring endearments and encouragement. "Oh love. so tight. so hot. so wet. beautiful." When he still had a few inches to go she gave a surprised gasp and stopped pressing her heels against his thighs. Spike froze in position.

"You okay, love?" he whispered, but before he could finish the question the pressure on his upper legs returned.

Buffy replied from below him, her voice husky, "hurts good." Spike smiled at her reply, pressing home those last inches teasingly slowly. He waited several seconds letting her body adjust to this deep position. Spike was sure he had never known a heat like hers. When she took him in, it seemed that his whole body was warmer than it had ever been when he was alive. He began to withdraw only marginally less slowly than he had entered. Her muscles gripped him even more tightly, her slayer abilities granting her a strength and control that would require considerable practice for most women.

"God, slayer, hurts so good," he moaned, and had to pause before he came there and then. She kept up the pressure until he was back at his starting point and then relaxed to allow him to enter her once more. Each time she gasped when his dick made contact with her ovaries but still she urged him in all the way and squeezed him tight as he withdrew. Spike managed to keep the slow rhythm going for almost a dozen thrusts before his self-control gave and he found himself pounding into her faster and faster. As he neared his climax he reached around her, his fingers flat against her, grinding her labia into her pubic bone with a circular motion that gave her a hint of pain but a whole lot more pleasure.

He felt the first flutterings building up in her muscles, and her control had gone to hell as he'd increased the pace, each thrust finding all the sensitive spots inside her. She was gasping for breath, the air driven from her lungs repeatedly by the force of his actions.

He whispered to her, words like dark honey. "Come for me, love. come for Spike. let it out." Spasms wracked through her and Spike wrapped his right arm round her waist holding her to him as his left hand continued its ministrations drawing out her orgasm to coincide with his own. As her tremors finally fell away to nothing he pulled them both over onto their sides spooning behind her, not wanting to draw out of her just yet.

"You're amazing, love. No-one ever made me feel the way you do," he whispered, his cheek resting against her own, one arm trapped between her shoulder and the pillows, the other stroking up and down her side from her knees to her shoulders. That was when he realised that she still had her fingers laced behind her neck. He listened intently to her breathing. The evidence was conclusive. She'd passed out.

With his one free hand, he loosened her fingers and moved her arms to a more natural position before pulling as much of the duvet over them as he could without rousing her. He kissed her shoulder and allowed himself to drift off to sleep.

 
 
Chapter #4 - Chapter 1:04
 





SECTION 1 - LEAP OF FAITH

And it's a leap of faith
When you believe there's someone out there
It's a leap of faith
When you believe that
Someone cares, oh
And when I call out to you
Will you be right there
Right there

(Michelle Branch, Album Broken Bracelet)



Chapter 1.04
Monday, May 6th, 2002

Monday

Over the course of the night and the following morning Spike and Buffy slept for short periods. In between times, they made love, they shagged, they fucked like a dockside whore and a sailor on his first shore leave in years and covered a fair few variants in between. Despite Dawn's assurances Buffy had set her alarm in time to get Dawn up for school, but since she could already hear her sister in the bathroom when it went off she hadn't actually bothered leaving the bedroom. True to form at some point in the evening the bed had been abandoned, the pair and a selection of bedding having found their way to the floor.

It was only mid-morning, when Buffy's stomach started making rumbling noises, that the pair actually made it out of the room. Buffy led the way to the kitchen, checking for open curtains en route. She filled the coffee machine on autopilot, while Spike checked out the fridge and cupboards. He passed the almost empty milk carton to Buffy for her coffee. He didn't like to comment, but in his opinion there wasn't much in the way of food in the house to feed even Buffy and Dawn. Factor in Red, Pixie and him and things looked even worse. It was no wonder the slayer was starting to look like a big-eyed waif. From here it looked like half their grocery money went on bottled water, and not even big bottles just lots of the little ones.

"Not enough milk for cereal or pancakes. Reckon I can do you toast or scrambled egg on toast and that's as much of a choice as you get, unless you're weird enough to want an omelette with nothing on." He looked across to where Buffy was pulling mugs from a cupboard, his shirt from last night only just covering her bottom as she reached up.

"Scrambled egg sounds good. Have you always been able to cook or is this a recent thing?" Buffy asked.

"Bit of both. Used to knock around the kitchens with the cook's sons when I was a kid, but didn't have any call to do much till I ended up lookin' after Niblet. Had to learn most of it all over again since tastes have changed and your average suburban kitchen doesn't have a wood-burning stove, but hey. Even watch some of those god-awful cookery programs they have on daytime television. Have to get Bit to check the seasoning on some things what with vamp taste-buds working a bit different but mostly they turn out okay if I stick to the recipe." As he spoke, Spike moved efficiently around the kitchen collecting together what he needed and making a start on Buffy's breakfast.

"To judge by how well you know your way round the kitchen you must have looked after her a lot?" Buffy came up behind him sliding her arms round his waist while he beat the eggs with some seasoning and a little water.

"An odd time the Wiccas wanted to go out, but mostly it was just covering for Scooby meetings or movie nights or whatever."

"Wait a minute. You're saying that when the rest of the people you patrolled with got together socially, you wouldn't get invited? You'd be expected to watch Dawn?"

Spike couldn't actually see Buffy's face but he could tell by the tone of her voice that she was getting herself worked up again.

"Well, yeah, but way I see it, I got the better deal. D'rather spend the night playin' rummy with either of the Summers girls than watchin' some chick flick and listenin' to Harris makin' asinine jokes. 'Sides, meant they never asked me to do any of that research that gets you lot all excited either."

"Despite the fact you probably know more languages than any of us with the possible exception of Giles, and know demons like that Glar Gluck Cash Machine thingy on sight whereas it took us half a day to work out what it was."

Spike smirked, putting the bowl on the counter next to the cooker and turning to face Buffy. "Not my fault your mates assume that I must be thick 'cause I can fight." He gave her a chaste kiss, determined not to get distracted till after she had eaten, then, turned back to his cooking.

"Hey, I could take that as an insult. Just so long as you realise you won't be getting off that easy any more now your secret's out."

"If it means spendin' more time with you 'n' the Bit you won't catch me complainin'... Well, you probably will but it'll be more to get up Harris's nose than anything."

"You're Evil."

Spike reached behind him with one hand to briefly squeeze Buffy's butt. "'N' don't you forget it." In response, Buffy nuzzled in against his shirtless back and tightened her grip around his waist content to remain there until he finished preparing her breakfast.

Ten minutes later they faced each other across the kitchen island, Spike sipping at a cup of coffee and Buffy tucking into her perfectly prepared breakfast.

"Not bad for someone who can't taste what he cooks. Thank you." Buffy said after the first couple of bites.

"Least I can do when you spend so much of your time cookin'."

"Not just the cooking. Being here, really being here for me. It's sort of new. Riley was sort of. you'd go to bed with Riley and wake up to Agent Finn - all vitamin supplements and push ups and not the naked kind. Soon as he woke up, his mind was at least partly on what he had to do that day. Angel and Parker weren't even there when I woke up. Kinda nice having somebody's undivided attention."

"Prob'ly 'cause I'm still tryin' to convince myself I'm not dreamin', love. If it wasn't for the fact I'm Evil I could think I'd died and gone to heaven, except then there'd be some blood in the fridge. which is my unsubtle way of asking if it's okay to stock up your fridge a bit?"

"Sure," she smiled over at him. "If everything hadn't happened all at once I would have probably tried to get you some."

"So, you got anything you've got to do today? .Other than making an old man very happy, that is" Spike raised his eyebrow and treated Buffy to the trademark leer.

"I've got work, late shift, four till twelve. Patrol. But nothing till this afternoon. Need some groceries though, or Dawn'll have to order in."

"Wasn't me cooking when you work late part of our deal? I'll make sure Niblet gets something to eat, love. It still leaves me plenty time to do a sweep of the graveyards before it's time to meet you from work, unless of course after eight hours at a grill you need to kick some demon ass to let off steam."

"You're joking, come midnight it's Buffy the Zombie Vampire Slayer. I'd normally blow it off, but I did that last night, so."

"So, Spike here gets a spot of violence before bedtime."

"Spike, last night, you were joking about driving to LA, weren't you?"

"Yes 'n' no. I'd rather get it out of the way, but seein' as I've got a busy night planned it can wait."

"How about I ring Cordelia and maybe arrange a visit. Tell her my boyfriend's bringing me to town and I thought we could meet up. If we had already arranged a visit there'd be no reason for him to come here."

Spike shrugged. "It's all going to end up the same way however you try to come at it, but feel free."

"Maybe, you should have kept those balls you gave to Xander a bit longer," she teased.

"Not a hope, slayer. That'd ruin all my fun, there wouldn't be any challenge to a fight then. There's no glory in beating up on things as don't have a chance against you. Remember, pet. Death, glory and sod all else, other than love."

His hand reached out to where hers rested on the counter, covering it until her fingers moved to intertwine between his. Buffy looked up from her empty plate, into a pair of soft blue eyes. "Death and love, kinda unmixy, least not fun mixy. Don't ever want you any more dead than you already are," she said shyly.

"Feeling's mutual, love." Without loosening his hold on Buffy's hand he walked round the island to stand beside the slayer's stool, Buffy turning to face him. The knuckles of his free hand brushed her cheek as his head moved in, tilted slightly to one side, bringing his lips ever closer to hers. Buffy flicked her tongue over her lower lip and then her eyes drifted shut and everything except the feel of his lips on hers ceased to exist. The kiss had nothing to do with foreplay and everything to do with laying bare their feelings to the other.

With a breathless gasp, Buffy tilted her head so she sat forehead to forehead with the vampire, both reluctant to end the moment of total intimacy. Finally as her breathing returned to normal Buffy was the first to speak.

"Can we go back to bed and just talk and cuddle for a bit?"

"As you wish," Spike's response was barely louder than a whisper.

"You've been watching 'The Princess Bride' again, haven't you?"

"Guilty as charged, princess. But how many films are there where the handsome yet evil pirate, renowned for leaving no survivors gets to find true love. Not to mention the fact that that he's blond, dashing, good with a blade. though my personal preference is for an axe rather than a sword and pretty much love's bitch."

"Ooh. Over-identify much?"

Buffy grabbed the cordless handset and started leading her very own peroxide pest to back to her bed.

"Hey, I could have said he was intelligent, well-travelled and had an English accent and a girlfriend with perfect breasts, but I didn't."

"Want me to start calling you Westley?"

"Hell, no. That's a poofy name, only thing they got wrong, shoulda called 'im William." Spike delivered this last absolutely deadpan. Buffy took advantage of the turn on the stairs to steal a furtive glance back at him only to see him wiggling his eyebrow at her in a way that brought her to a giggling standstill. Undeterred Spike bent down and before Buffy realised what he was doing she was over his shoulder in a fireman's lift.

"Who are you?" Buffy asked in between taking advantage of the view from her new position. "And what have you done with sarky Spike?"

"If you must know Sarky Spike went off looking for his soul-mate Bitchy Buffy, so when you run across one of them I'm fairly certain the other'll be close by."

Buffy landed once more in the middle of the bed. She climbed in under the covers as Spike peeled off his skin-tight jeans before joining her. He felt her feet rub against his legs as he climbed in but she made no move to bring her upper half closer, so he settled into position facing her far enough apart to watch her face. Their legs intertwined seemingly of their own volition and his hand reached over to hold hers once more.

"What did you want to talk about, pet?"

"You. What you like, what you don't like. Places you've been. Stuff you've done. minus the killing and maiming. Want to know a bit more about what's inside that head of yours. You've been part of my life for years and apart from Passions, The Princess Bride, The Sex Pistols and The Ramones I haven't got a clue about anything you like. I've seen you with a book in your hand but I've no idea what you read.

Help me understand who you are. Starting with why you hardly ever go into "game face" any more? Why did it make you feel awkward last night?"

Spike's eyes darted nervously downward and she gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. He met her gaze again, his eyes constantly gauging her reaction as he spoke. "I fell in love with you because you treated me like a man. Even though I know I'm a monster, you made me want to be that man. Bringing the demon forward reminds me how far I am from what you deserve, that I'll always be beneath you."

"Oh Spike. You said it often enough. I can't believe you don't know it, don't feel it deep down. I need a bit of monster in my man. I need an arrogant, confident guy who doesn't get intimidated by a strong woman. I need a strong guy who can stand by me in a fight without me worrying whether he's going to break. I get hot for the predator that crawled into this bed last night and made me come so often I gave up trying to count. Get the picture. I'm attracted to you. As you are. The whole package.

When you're in game face you're more difficult to read. I kinda miss those blue eyes of yours and you're right the fangs aren't practical for every situation but it's still part of you. The things I said, the way I treated you, they're to do with me being screwed up. You didn't do anything to deserve them. You've got no reason to be ashamed of what you are. As for you being beneath me, I think we both know who's been the better person since I came back. I can't guarantee next time we have a fight I won't fling it in your face. Sometimes Bitchy Buffy just takes over, but I can guarantee that I won't mean it.

Maybe, if I was a normal girl, with a normal life in some quiet little town then I could have fallen in love with that shy guy in your dream if I ever got to know him well enough. But that's not how my life went. I am who I am. My life is a mess and I need someone who's more than a man. I need you ."

"You're trying to tell me this," Spike morphed into his demon façade, "isn't repugnant to you? That it doesn't remind you of the thousands of inhuman beasts you've executed since you were called?"

Buffy threw the hand, which she had been holding, away from her in disgust, anger flashing in her eyes.

"What makes you think you can fall in love with a slayer, but the slayer can't love a vampire? It's all you. Snaggle-toothed yellow-eyed demon or the most gorgeous bloody hunk of man-flesh to ever walk the planet, it's still you.

Get over yourself already. I'm not that shallow that I can't accept what you are. Except for times like last night I'm probably not going to ask you to change, but I know it's kinda natural for it to come out when you're 'emotional' and that's okay. You said when I had sex with Riley I would be holding back all the time, well, evidence tends to suggest you haven't exactly been letting yourself go when we're together. Stop being a hypocrite. Get over worrying what I'm going to think and let yourself go."

Spike's face changed back to his normal human form about halfway through the slayer's little speech, a self-satisfied grin splitting it in two.

"What did you just call me, slayer?"

"A hypocrite, a stinking, lousy hypocrite." Buffy's arms were crossed beneath the duvet and her lips had formed into an irritated pout.

"Before that, pet. Right after the snaggle-toothed yellow-eyed demon bit?"

"Oh, then." Suddenly shy, her voice was tentative and as she dug herself in deeper she spoke faster and faster. "I think I said something like you were the most gorgeous hunk of man-flesh to ever walk the earth, but then I am biased. I have seen you naked. To be totally objective I'd really have to see all the others naked too and let's not go there."

A low rumble issued from Spike's throat and at first Buffy was unsure whether it was a laugh or a growl, until she looked at his face. "How the hell do you manage to be the wanton sex goddess of my dreams and still blush at the very idea of seeing a bloke naked? And do you have any idea how bloody adorable it is?"

"Stop it!" She prodded him in the chest. "I'm supposed to be angry at you, not all shy and happy and squidgy feeling."

Spike's voice was soft and gentle and Buffy wondered if he knew how the tone and the accent combined to make her go weak at the knees. "I thought this was "learn about Spike" time, not "get mad at Spike" time. And in answer to your point before, if now and again I hold in the demon, it's because I don't want to get carried away and bite you or claim you or something without you being fully aware of what's going on and a willing participant. I understand what you're saying and when we're both ready I'll take you up on what you said. Until then things will have to stay as they are because I'm not going to muck this up a second time. Next question?"

"Okay, what sort of stuff do you read?"

Spike shrugged. "Anything I can lay my hands on as long as it's well written and not total bollocks like that Anne Rice stuff. Can't be arsed with all that "I feel so guilty", "I cry blood" crap."

"Okay, so no Le Stat in Spikey's Christmas stocking, but what do you like? What were you reading when I came in that night when Riley was in town?"

Spike looked sheepish and his response was all but inaudible.

"What was that?" Buffy asked unwilling to believe her ears.

"I said poetry. It was a book of poetry." He looked so embarrassed and almost angry at being caught out, she just had to kiss him. As she drew away from him she once again took his hand in hers.

"What's your favourite poem? Do you know any by heart?" she asked.

"I don't know. Poetry's a bit like music. There are times when you want to listen to the Ramones and times when maybe you'd rather have a bit of Enya or Sarah Maclachlan, and yeah, I can recite more than a few."

"Give me some examples," Buffy suggested.

"The wind was a torrent of darkness among the gusty trees,
The moon was a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas,
The road was a ribbon of moonlight, over the purple moor," Spike recited, his diction automatically falling back to the more precise tones of his human days, stopping when he saw Buffy shake her head.

"Great poem, wrong mood. Too much blood and guts, try again and not 'The Charge of the Light Brigade', or Graves or Sassoon or any of the rest of those depressing First World War ones."

"Okay. How's this then?

 

Macavity's a Mystery Cat: he's called the Hidden Paw-
For he's the master criminal who can defy the law.
He's the bafflement of Scotland Yard.

What, pet? Still not the right mood?"

Buffy was now in a definite pout. "Your century's version of Dr. Seuss is not going to win fair lady. Want smoochie type poetry."

A half smirk on his lips and laughter in his eye, Spike responded. "T. S. Eliot's twentieth century, pet. As I recall that particular volume was published in 1939, but if Buffy wants smoochies, smoochies she shall have.

The fountains mingle with the river
And the river with the ocean,
The winds of heaven mix for ever
With a sweet emotion;
Nothing in the world is single,
All things by a law divine
In one another's being mingle -
Why not I with thine?

See the mountain's kiss high heaven
And the waves clasp one another," Spike was stunned to see Buffy's lips moving along with his as they finished the rest of the poem together.

"No sister-flower would be forgiven
If it disdain'd its brother:

And the sunlight clasps the earth,
And the moonbeams kiss the sea -
What are all these kissings worth,
If thou kiss not me?"

As they recited the last verse they moved gradually closer, their lips meeting as soon as the last word was spoken and tender seconds passed before the two broke apart.

(Poem is Love's Philosophy by Percy Bysshe Shelley.)

 
 
Chapter #5 - Chapter 1:05
 






SECTION 1 - LEAP OF FAITH

And it's a leap of faith
When you believe there's someone out there
It's a leap of faith
When you believe that
Someone cares, oh
And when I call out to you
Will you be right there
Right there

(Michelle Branch, Album Broken Bracelet)



Chapter 1.05
Monday, May 6th, 2002

"How is it you keep surprising me?" Buffy asked Spike.

"I could ask you the same thing. Only difference is I thought I knew more about you than you knew about me. So how is it you can quote Shelley?"

"Half a semester with Professor Lillian, and they used it on a Twin Peaks rerun on the Sci-Fi channel the other week, but only the end bit. I liked that class. Professor Lillian was a sweetie and at least I understood what he was talking about. Not like that class I went to with Willow." Buffy sighed.

"What's up, pet?" Spike asked.

"I re-applied for college, but they turned me down because I didn't re-apply early enough, like while I was dead."

"How long have you known?"

"That would be the morning after the night I spent trying to get the grass stains out of what was my new wool coat that ended up in the bin." She fixed him with an accusing stare.

"You mean that mustard yellow duffle coat thing? It was a mercy killing. That was ages ago. Did you talk to Pixie or Red or the Watcher about it?"

"No. I didn't tell anyone. Nobody. it seemed like there wasn't."

"Shh, pet. I know things were strained between us but I was always there to listen to you any time you needed it. I always will be. Don't suppose you checked to see if you could have your credits transferred over to a community college course?"

"No. Kinda figured I'd just mucked up college altogether. Didn't want to talk about it to Willow and Tara with them being all big with the studying. I suppose I could have told Giles, with him being a drop-out, but he said he left to make me stand on my own feet."

"Next time me and your watcher are on the same continent, pet, I think it's safe to say we'll have words. Why don't you pick up a prospectus for the next semester and try and make an appointment to speak to someone about whether you can salvage any credits."

"Will, there's no way I can afford to go back to college even part-time."

"Look, pet. You want to go back to college. I want you to be happy. If you insist we can call it a loan. You know if you get a decent job after college you could pay me back over two or three years and you know without an education you're likely looking at one minimum wage job after another. No ulterior motive, I'm not going to demand any money back or refuse to give you the money for the rest of the course if we split up. If anything happens to me, it all goes to you and Bit anyway.

Think how stupid you'd feel if you said no now and two years from now we were either married or I was dust and you were trying to go back and do this after another two years in a job you don't like and the credits you've got have expired."

"And think how stupid you'll feel if you pay for me to go to college for two years and then I die before I can get a proper job and pay you back."

"Love, you're not leaving me here alone again. If you die again I'll not be sticking round for longer than it takes to see one last sunrise."

"Dawn-"

"Dawn isn't a little kid any more. She's nearly old enough to be treated as an emancipated minor and what I'd leave her would give her the house free and clear, pay her a decent allowance and the rest would stay in trust for her until she's twenty-one. She would be okay."

"No. She wouldn't, you selfish bastard. She loves you. What do you think it would do to her to lose both of us the same day? -"

"Well, you better not go sacrificing yourself for some greater good then, because I'd rather spend five months under torture with that hell-bitch, Glory, than re-live the time when you were dead. I refuse to go through that again for anyone, even Dawn. And you can either like it or lump it, 'cause by definition you ain't goin' to be here to do anything about it."

The pair glared at each other in silence.

"Quitter," she spat.

"Yeah, like you were so happy to be back, and that was with me, your sister and all your mates to come back to."

"This discussion is not over. You ever think maybe it might take more than a couple of years helping out the good guys before there's a chance we'll end up in the same place?"

"Slayer, we're never going to end up in the same place. You might end up with wussy-boy William, but I'm a demon. At the end of my time on earth I'm going somewhere warm. I came to terms with that a long time ago. If I can share what time I have with you that's as much of heaven as I need."

"Stubborn, pig-headed vampire. Don't think I won't talk to the priest about this next time I'm scrounging up some holy water. We'll see about this 'damned' business."

"Think about it, pet. The bloody holy water you're talkin' about gives me blisters. I think that's as much of an indication as I need that God wants no part of me."

"You promised you'd never leave. You said you would always be there for me. Well, I don't know if anyone ever told you what Angel said when you first came to Sunnydale. He said once you start something, you don't stop until you get rid of everything that's in your way. So, you better start working out a way to get your demon ass into heaven 'cause if you don't then I'm damn well going to take that the same as you walking out on me. Are you clear on that?"

"You're a Grade A bitch, d'you know that?"

"But it wouldn't be half as interesting if I was all sweetness and light twenty-four seven, would it?" Buffy turned his earlier words against him.

"Do you have the least idea how much what you're asking would screw with the natural order of things?" A smile was forming on his lips.

"No more than a soulless vampire and a slayer being in love with one another."

"Yeah, well I've always been a reb-" The grin that had made its way onto his face at the prospect of this ultimate rebellion was suddenly replaced with a shocked expression. "What did you just say? Word for word."

"I said "no more than a soulless vampire and a slayer." Shit. I guess that's what they call a Freudian slip."

"Say it, slayer." Spike's voice was hard, brittle.

Buffy's was filled with surprise and a little awe. "I said I'm in love with you. I'm in love with Spike. I, Buffy, the vampire slayer, am in love with, William the Bloody, master vampire and slayer of slayers. I'm certifiable."

"No, pet. In a mad world, it's one crazy thing that makes perfect sense."

Spike turned his back to Buffy and swinging his legs out of the bed, bent over to pull on his jeans in one swift movement.

"Wh-where are you going?"

"Only as far as the bathroom, love."

Buffy sat up, her voice getting louder as he left the room. "But vampires don't need to use bathrooms."

Almost as soon as he left the room he was back, duster in one hand, feeling through his inside pockets with the other. The coat was slung to one side and he took Buffy's hand pulling her forward until she sat on the edge of the bed.

Spike dropped to one knee and Buffy suddenly realised what was happening.

"No, Spike. No way. Don't do this."

"Stop being a bitch for once and just listen." One arm stretched up, just managing to reach far enough to place his fingertips on her lips, stilling her protests. "Buffy, I asked you this once before and you said yes, but what I imagined I felt then is only a fraction of how much I care for you now. You are what makes my existence worth living. You are the sun that lights my world. Every day we can have together is precious and I don't want to waste a single one. Please would you do me the honour of consenting to be my wife."

"Stupid vampire." Tears of frustration welled in Buffy's eyes. "How on earth can you propose when we've only been on one date. It's ridiculous. And what you said was beautiful and that makes me feel like I should say yes, but it's way too soon."

"Buffy, you're the one who's always said slayers come with an expiration date. If I'm going to have less than a handful of years with you then I am damn well not going to hold back because of convention. Maybe if Dawn didn't exist and there wasn't anyone from social services snooping around and I could spend every night in your bed then I might be prepared to wait. Honestly though, the part of me that isn't demon is one hundred percent Victorian male and damned if I don't want to make an honest bloody woman out of you, you stubborn awkward bint. It's so bloody simple even Harris could manage the math. I'm in love with you. You're in love with me, now for Christ's sake just say yes so I can get up off this floor and kiss you, woman."

"I suppose you call that a proposal?" Buffy queried.

"No. I called the first bit a proposal. This is an argument with my demented soon to be fiancée who hasn't got the good sense to know when she's onto a good thing. Besides, you might as well give up now. You just said that once I set my sights on something I don't stop till I get it."

Buffy realised she was beat and decided to get as much out of the bargain as she could.

"On two conditions. One, we have a church wedding-"

"Are you stark ravin' bonkers, woman? We can't have a church wedding."

"I've never actually seen any physical reason why not. You're not repelled by crosses. They don't bother you unless you actually touch them, so stop acting like a fledgling. As far as I'm aware wedding services don't involve touching crosses or holy water, so I don't see what your big problem is. You can't tell me you can't go in a church 'cause I've seen you in one. Besides, I think it might be a step in the right direction for condition number two.

You do not in any way shorten your life, or unlife I should say, unless you have good reason to suppose that we will be together in the afterlife or you've spent at least as long helping the good guys as you did on the other side of the fence." Buffy's face set in her best imitation of Willow's resolve face.

"What the hell do you expect me to do? Play nursemaid to every slayer they send to this hell-hole for the next hundred and twenty years?"

"See if you can up the average life-expectancy a bit. Maybe a few more will get the chance to have a life, but look after Dawn and if she has any family, well, hey, you know what you're like for Summers women. Maybe keep an eye on the Scoobies as a whole."

"The concept of sarcasm just flew right over your pretty little valley-girl head, didn't it?"

"No, I'm deadly serious. And when their eighteenth birthday's coming up find out from Giles about the Cruciamentum or whatever they call it and warn them. Them's the conditions, put up or shut up."

Buffy wasn't sure exactly what the string of muttered curses that came from Spike's mouth consisted of, but she did think she caught the phrase "blackmailing bitch" and "whipped" in there.

"It's a deal, love. You have my word, provided you find a Protestant vicar prepared to perform the ceremony knowing that I'm a vampire."

"Done." Buffy grinned, pleased with the concessions she had gained.

"In that case, Buffy, my love, would you please do me the honour of consenting to be my wife?"

"I will."

Spike produced a rather worn looking leather box, snapping it open to reveal a reddish-gold band with five good sized diamonds set into it in a row. Around the stones and particularly at either end of the row the band had been engraved or etched with curling lines. "It belonged to my great-grandmother and then my mother. I had the family lawyers take it out of storage and get it cleaned a while ago. It might need to be resized, but I don't think so. I have the matching wedding band, as well, but if you'd rather pick something more to your own taste, then we-."

The fingers of Buffy's left hand were placed gently on his lips and then dropped to where his hands were waiting. It was hard to believe that Spike's hand would shake as he placed the ring on her finger, but maybe he was more William than he would ever admit.

He rose to his feet, pulling his fiancée into his arms with a "Come 'ere, ya stubborn bint." Then he swept her over in a dip and laid a kiss on her that would have done credit to Rhett Butler and Scarlett O'Hara.

"Just 'Buffy and William'," he said as Buffy struggled to regain her composure.

"What?"

"The wedding invitations. No 'Summers'. No 'the Bloody'. 'No Spike'. Just 'Buffy and William'."

"That works."

"Well, I'm not just the most gorgeous hunk of man-flesh that ever walked the earth, you know."

 
 
Chapter #6 - Chapter 1:06
 






SECTION 1 - LEAP OF FAITH

And it's a leap of faith
When you believe there's someone out there
It's a leap of faith
When you believe that
Someone cares, oh
And when I call out to you
Will you be right there
Right there

(Michelle Branch, Album Broken Bracelet)



Chapter 1.06
Monday, May 6th, 2002

"Dawn." The slayer yanked open drawers pulling out and sliding on some lacy white briefs. She pulled Spike's shirt off over her head, but before he had time to appreciate the view she threw it in his face.

"And she's off. What's the problem, love? I kinda thought being in your own bedroom might save you from the quick dress and run scenario."

"Get your clothes on, you stupid vamp. I might be leaving but you're coming with me. Dawn's lunch-break finishes in an hour and she can't leave school grounds. So if we want to make sure she's the first person we tell, you're going to have to drive into the school parking lot."

"Can't we just wait till she comes home and tell her then?"

"I'll be at work and you're seeing Anya before then. You think she's not going to ask you why you're grinning like the Cheshire cat?"

"Nah, Anya wouldn't read Lewis Carroll. Harris only just managed to stop her walking out of the Matrix, but point taken. Though I did hope you might just phone in sick for work and hand in your notice at the same time." Spike pulled his shirt over his head and headed for the bathroom to retrieve his boots and socks.

"If it was still Manny the manager I would, but Lorraine's always been decent. The least I can do is work my notice which I'll hand in tonight."

"That's my girl. Now tell me your bank details."

"You what?"

"If you're leaving work, then you're going to need money coming in from somewhere else. I'll get the lawyers to arrange a weekly allowance until we get married and then they can just transfer half the assets into your name. I would do it now, but if we wait till we're married then the transfer should be tax exempt or it would be in England."

"You're starting to sound like Anya."

"Hush, pet. Be nice. I was planning on asking her if she still had her wedding organiser with all the stuff about florists and dress shops and suit hire, but if you want to slog through the Yellow Pages and find all of them yourself."

Spike pushed his now fully attired wife-to-be out of the room.

She commented as they left, "Giles is going to think this is a practical joke, you know?"

"Yeah, right up until he gets the plane tickets to get his bum over here and give you away. Hmph, bet your vicar won't let me have Clem for best man. Guess I'm going to have to ask Angel."

"Pfft. And I'll have Dru and Harmony for bridesmaids. You said he'd probably beat you black and blue just for touching me and then you want to ask him to be best man."

"Hell, pet. If we're getting married he can't say I'm taking advantage of you. And he knows I wouldn't go as far as getting' married if it was just me trying to soften you up for the kill. As far as Angel goes, I've probably dramatically increased my chances of not getting' staked if he wins the fight, not that he will." He paused ready to open the front door.

"How are we doing this, pet? Are you sticking with me all the way, meeting me at the car or meeting me at the school?"

Buffy picked up the bag of things to be returned to The Magic Box and threw Spike a blanket she had found in the basement the previous day.

"Staying with you all the way."

"Sewers it is."

 




 

The black DeSoto pulled up in the school parking lot.

"It's not my fault you decided to wear heels. You were the one who said you would come through the sewers. I offered to meet you at the car."

"It's still your fault for having a stupid bloody sunlight allergy."

Spike smirked. "That's at least the second time today you've said bloody."

"Well, if it is, that's your bloody fault as well."

"Go fetch the Niblet and remember to keep your left hand in your pocket till you get back to the car."

"Yes, dear." Buffy stuck her left hand in her jeans pocket and stalked off in search of her little sister, wishing yet again that the Mayor had skipped her graduation. That way she'd know where she was going.

 




 

The two Summers women climbed into the old car.

"So what's the big emergency that brings you out the bedroom, then?" Dawn asked nonchalantly.

Buffy looked nervously at Spike who immediately frowned. "You told her already."

"Didn't."

"Did."

"Didn't."

"Did."

"Didn't"

"Definitely did, or Bit would have interrupted by now to find out what we were talking about. And you would have gone straight to the showing and the squealing and giggling and bouncing instead of looking guilty and people would have thought there was something different going on in this car from what there is."

Buffy pulled her hand from her pocket and held it out in front of Dawn. Spike lit up a cigarette.

"Oh my God. It's gorgeous, Buffy. That must have cost you a fortune, Spike."

Spike grunted. "Bet first time she saw it she went, "OhmyGod OhmyGod OhmyGod OhmyGod OhmyGod."" Spike did a better impersonation of Dawn's high pitched shrieking than any male past puberty and still in possession of his testicles should be able to do. "And I bet you did the bouncy, giggly thing that bloke's like to watch. except when it's like their little sister, so I would have just had to watch Buffy."

Both women blushed.

"I don't know why I bother. She could have come on her own. No better than a bleedin' chauffeur. Bloody church wedding."

"Spike, I'm really sorry. I just couldn't keep it in when I saw her. I had to tell her straight away."

Spike smirked back at her, his previous resentment apparently all for show. "If you'd made it back to the car without telling her, I'd have been disappointed at your lack of enthusiasm."

"What?" Buffy was confused by his about-face.

"This is your sister we're talking about. If you'd made it back to the car without telling her, it would have been a pretty sure-fire sign you were regretting saying yes. I might even have been tempted to call it off."

"You manipulative bastard," accused the slayer.

"Thought I might as well live up to what you were accusin' me of last week, pet."

"So," Dawn treated the pair to a smirk that ought to have earned Spike royalties. "Does this mean you'll be asking Xander to be best man."

"Anyone noticed hell freezin' over," Spike retorted. "Then, I think not. Maybe if Clem can't do it Rupert could do both, d'you think?"

"Can I help plan everything?" Dawn wheedled.

"Ask Buffy."

"Can I, please? I can help pick the bridesmaid dresses and everything."

"The ulterior motive is revealed," announced Buffy. "Yes, you can help as long as you get all your homework done first and keep your grades up, otherwise we might economise by getting you, Will and Tara to wear the radioactive dresses from Arashmahar."

The conversation was rudely terminated by the bell for the end of lunch-hour.

 




 

"Do me a favour, pet. Have a look in the glove box there. Behind the parkin' tickets and the log book, right at the back there should be a brown envelope with some money in."

Buffy found the rather scruffy item and before she could pass it over to him he astounded her by saying, "Get a couple of thousand out for me."

Lifting the flap of the envelope Buffy discovered a stack of brand new sequentially numbered hundred dollar bills. Counting off twenty of the bills she passed them to him, noting that there were probably five times that number remaining. Spike took the cash and stuffed it loose into his duster pocket.

"Why do you have thousands of dollars sitting in a car that's probably only worth a couple of hundred?"

"I like to have some cash around for emergencies. The car's more secure than the crypt and it's handier if I need a fast getaway. And how many times do I have to tell you that my baby is not some heap of junk? She's a classic.

You're probably goin' to need some of that once you start getting' stuff for the weddin'. Leave a couple of grand in the envelope and you keep the rest."

"You're saying, here you go have seven or eight thousand dollars?"

"Yeah, I mean as soon as you start orderin' stuff and bookin' places they're going to want money aren't they. I know what's there won't be enough for everything but I'll get more if you let me know when you're running out."

"You expect me to carry around thousands of dollar in cash. I don't even draw more than a hundred out of the ATM at a time."

"Bloody hell." Spike slung the steering wheel round to the left and pulled an illegal U-turn before pulling up in front of Buffy's bank.

"This is a "No parking" zone," Buffy pointed out.

"You better be quick, then."

His bride to be rolled her eyes and darted into the bank.

After ten minutes of chain-smoking, a quick glance in the rear view mirror showed an approaching traffic cop. Spike pulled out and began to drive round in circles. It was twenty minutes after that before he spotted Buffy half a block down from the bank, heading toward The Magic Box.

He pulled up next to her and waited for her to get in. He was unprepared for her onslaught when she did.

"You left."

"I didn't bloody leave. I've been driving in circles round that bank for the last God knows how long. Which part of quick didn't you understand?"

"It's not my fault. I got this girl, Amber, who used to be in my French class, and she saw the ring and well. And then when I said the money was from my fiancé to go towards paying for the wedding she said I should open a separate account because it would make it simpler to keep track of it all. And then the manager recognised me and wanted to talk about the reward and I had to count it all before I could fill in the deposit slip and I kept losing track."

"Sequential bills, pet. Take away the little number from the big number, add one and stick a couple of zeros on the end. Hardly rocket-science. What did they say about the reward, then?"

"Apparently they got back just over ninety-seven thousand, so it means just over three thousand two hundred each, which I could get very excited about except you seem to treat it like spare change."

The car pulled into a shady alley at the rear of The Magic Box.

"Sounds like you're getting all upset with me 'cause I'm not skint. Hey, I could've just not bothered telling you I had any money and let you go even deeper in debt trying to pay for a wedding you couldn't afford.

The money that was there is more than I would normally keep hanging around, but I started keepin' some extra after you started workin' in that dump, just in case you came to your senses and quit. The rest would normally last me a good six months but lately I've been getting through more booze than I normally do. And the only reason I just stuck two grand in my pocket is that I owe eighteen hundred of it to Anya for first and last on the flat she leased when she split up with Xander."

"Why do you owe money on Anya's lease? Were you paying her rent? That's a lot of rent. Willow only pays forty bucks a week."

"How the hell does your brain work, woman? Why would I have been paying demon-bint's rent? It's hardly like she can't look after her own money. I'm subletting from her. All-inclusive. She's not stuck with the lease on an empty apartment. I don't have to pass a credit check or set up direct debits to a non-existent bank account to cover bills and it already has cable, and she's taping Passions for me until I get moved in. Happy now?"

"Why didn't you tell me before?" the slayer pouted.

"'Cause I was planning on surprising you and the Bit and making dinner for you there after I got settled."

Spike got out of the car and tried the back door of the shop. It was locked.

"Pet, do you think you could go round the front and open this door for me, save me going through the sewers again?"

He turned to see that Buffy was still sitting in the passenger seat of the car. He opened her door leaning over the top of it to speak to her.

"Okay, love, what's up? Talk to me?"

"You. Everything. You're all grumpy. My whole life is disintegrating in front of me. Practically nothing's the same as it was yesterday morning, and even if some of it or all of it's good, it's just too much all at once and it's all revolving round you and now if I'm wrong I'm not just screwing up my love-life I'm screwing up everything."

Spike was torn between trying to comfort Buffy and his own pain at her belief she might be making a mistake. He moved around the car door to crouch next to her seat, taking one of her hands in his. "Love, I'm sorry. I didn't mean for you to get upset. I know it's a lot all at once. If you want. I don't know what to say."

An awkward silence settled on the pair, and Spike began to wonder if this was going to turn into the cruellest of 'morning after's he and the slayer had ever shared. Finally, he tried to pry into the workings of the slayer's brain.

"Okay, pet. Seems to me that the final straw was me telling you about the flat. So chances are there's something about that you don't like. Maybe you'd rather I stayed in the crypt?"

"Well, no. but, I mean it was kinda cool. I mean, it's not far from the house and it's right in the middle of my patrol routes and it was ours. Well, it was yours, but sometimes it felt like it was ours. It was. I felt safe there."

"Is that it? Buffy, I hate to tell you, but the place is trashed. Downstairs needs a lot of shoring up done before I'd let either you or Bit back in there. Then, we'd have to scrounge together some furniture that's good enough to use but not so good that it would get nicked. You vetoed pinching electricity and I don't think I could stand having a generator running all the time, between the noise and the fumes.

It isn't exactly an address you can give to social services if they start asking questions about your new boyfriend. It's definitely not an address I could have given to the cable-company or the electricity people. Living there just isn't a feasible option any more. Taking over Anya's apartment seemed to solve both our problems at once.

But that doesn't mean we can't fix the old place back up again a bit at a time. Keep the nasties from moving in. Call it our holiday home. It can still be our place."

He could see her mood improving and decided to push his luck, running his tongue over his upper teeth " . somewhere private for those mid-patrol shags."

"Spike, you're a pig."

"But you love me anyway, right?" His words were devoid of his normal confidence and she realised that she'd set him up and knocked him down so many times he just wasn't able to take her words this morning at face value. She mentally kicked herself for hurting him again.

Getting out of the car, she wrapped her arms around the neck of the vampire, who had moved to let her out. She looked up into his eyes as she spoke. "I love you and I want to marry you. It's just that you freaked me out with ten thousand different things at once. In my line of work surprises are generally a bad thing and today seems to have been full of them. No more surprises today. Okay?"

"I'll do my best. Does this mean you're ready to play nice with the capitalist demon?"

"We talkin' 'bout you or Anya?" Buffy joked looking up at him from beneath her lashes.

"Anya. But if you want I'll find somewhere a bit more discreet to park the car or we could get to either your place or the crypt in under ten minutes." He tightened his arms around her body pulling her closer against him.

"You really should have been called Randy."

"Can you blame me? It's been three and a half hours. We've been engaged for two of them and you were in such a rush to tell your sister we still haven't had a celebratory shag. Bloody disgusting, that."

"This from the man who said yesterday he didn't want me to get the idea it was all about sex, and was probably brought up in an age where pre-marital sex was a stoning offence."

"Hey, I think you're still confusing me with Anya. In my day our exploits would just make you a fallen woman."

"And what would they make you?"

"A lucky bastard?"

"Pig." Buffy walked off around the corner of the building.

 
 
Chapter #7 - Chapter 1:07
 






SECTION 1 - LEAP OF FAITH

And it's a leap of faith
When you believe there's someone out there
It's a leap of faith
When you believe that
Someone cares, oh
And when I call out to you
Will you be right there
Right there

(Michelle Branch, Album Broken Bracelet)



Chapter 1.07
Monday, May 6th, 2002

The store was empty of customers so Buffy decided to try a small experiment.

"Hi. Spike's in the alley out back with money and goods if you wanna open the door for him."

'One elephant, two elephant, three elephant, four elephant, five elephant. Five seconds from dusting the front window display to opening the back door of the shop for Spike and his money. The power of commerce.'

"Hey, kitten, how's married life treating you?" Spike was speaking to Anya, but his smile was all for Buffy. He deposited the carrier on the counter and swaggered up to stand behind her, draping his arms around her shoulders. Buffy's hands came up to latch over his and Anya caught the gleam of diamond from twenty feet away as she followed Spike back into the main shop area.

Her treatise on the fun of being able to order a whole new set of cheque books, bank cards and credit cards with her new name on was forestalled indefinitely.

"Buffy, were you aware that you're wearing that ring on a finger which would traditionally indicate that it was an engagement ring?"

"Well I guess I'm just an old-fashioned girl at heart," said Buffy.

"That's you, conformist to the end," Spike added in a mildly sarcastic tone of voice.

"Well, honest to Pete, is it an engagement ring or not? Because if it isn't, it's just a touch showy for everyday wear."

"Anya, you should know by now that my fiancée would never accessorise inappropriately," Spike said in a staid voice, which was belied by the smile that adorned his face as Anya dashed across the room to hug them both.

Spike happily watched the pair of them poring over the ring. "Kitten, is there any chance that your husband might be able to make it over here for a late lunch come Scooby meeting, or will he already have had his lunch-hour?"

"He's still on holiday. He took a week off for the wedding, but I didn't want to close the store again so soon when it was already closed when I went away after Xander left me at the altar. He just popped out to get some snacks but he should be back soon. He said even if we couldn't have a honeymoon he could still be with me.

You do know how to summon a vengeance demon if Spike leaves you at the altar on the day, don't you?"

"I'll take that as my cue to ring Tara's dorm and a pizza delivery company, and I'm not being funny here, but I think it might be better to hide the ring when Xander gets back. He might take it better if the others are here when he finds out.

And before I forget there's the money for the flat. Tara said she put all the wrappings for the stuff we used back in the bag, so you should be able to tell from that what we owe and your scarf's in there as well because we needed something personal to do the location spell. I wouldn't have broken in except with the shop bein' shut, we didn't know if you'd been kidnapped or spelled or something."

"You're always breaking in."

"Hey. Only to the shop, not to where you live, and I won't be doing either again unless we have another magical emergency and while I think on you better gimme some burba weed and add that to the bill."

Spike wandered off to the far corner of the shop to make his call, whilst the girls took the ring over to admire it in the light by the front window. It wasn't long before the witches were on their way as were a couple of large pizzas with Anya and Buffy's favourite toppings.

As he wandered back over to Buffy, Spike's attention was caught by the display of candles. "Hey, pet. I don't suppose we could get away with buying some candles and keeping them in your room?"

"I don't think so. We're still keeping the whole house "magic" free. You're going to have to get used to these newfangled ideas like electric lighting some day."

"Very funny, but surely Tara doesn't strip-" Spike paused as the shop door opened, but after giving a brief nod by way of a greeting he continued again when he saw it was Xander coming in. ".her place bare of all that stuff when Willow stays there. So what's the point of taking everything out of your place, if half the time she's going to be at Tara's."

Anya decided to add her view to the discussion. "I think Spike's right. He should buy lots of candles for your bedroom. Candlelight is far more romantic for having sex than electric light. I think if you bought lots of candles it would improve your sex life. Hey, sweetie." She hugged Xander.

Spike's face wore his patented smirk and Buffy snorted at the very idea of being able to fit in any more of a sex life.

Buffy and Xander exchanged greetings and Xander returned Spikes nod with an even smaller one.

"Hey, Ahn. I think we're in the realms of images I don't want to think about."

"I don't see why. You yourself commented on how attractive Spike is, last year, when you thought he was having sex with Buffy, and Buffy is a very attractive woman. I would have thought that imagining them making love by candlelight would be at least as erotic as many of the pictures in your magazines."

Instead of making an arch comment, Spike just raised his eyebrow even more and leered at the carpenter over Buffy's shoulder.

"I guess we better ask Red when she gets here whether it's still a problem or not."

"What's he doing here in broad daylight anyway? Shouldn't you be sleeping somewhere rather than hanging round here in the same clothes you were wearing last night?"

"I'll survive until I can grab an hour or two while Buffy's at work." Spike countered before Anya added her take on the situation.

"He's returning some items of stolen stock and paying for others. He might also buy lots of candles. And we're waiting for pizza and Willow and Tara so we can have a Scooby meeting."

As soon as she said it everyone in the room could see Xander fighting the urge to demand to know when Spike became a Scooby. He only succeeded because he knew the answer wouldn't be something he wanted to hear.

"So what type of pizza we got? Inferno?" Xander asked hopefully.

"Hawaiian and pepperoni," replied Spike looking first at Buffy then at Anya.

Spike took Buffy's left hand in his right, covering the ring before Xander had a chance to see it and led her over to get a seat at the research table. Xander looked on unhappily. Spike never sat at the research table before, either. Spike sat on the stairs to the loft or on the counter or anywhere that wasn't at the table. The table was for people who belonged, not for Spike who was barely tolerated. It was his shop, well it was mostly Giles's but partly Anya's and he was married to Anya so that made it his, right? And he built the table, and okay it had been a bad idea to light the thing from underneath, so that it lit up the area around the books you wanted to read without casting any light on the pages themselves. But it looked pretty and now Evil Dead was going to eat pizza off it.

Since the pizza hadn't arrived yet, this called for chips and dip, at the counter, where he wouldn't get any dead fingers in his food. Maybe he didn't really want any pizza after all.

The jangling of the shop's bell interrupted his chain of thought, and the two witches entered. A round of 'Hey's and 'Hi's ensued, before Spike broached the candles question. Willow and Tara exchanged looks before Tara suggested, "Maybe plain unscented ones would be okay?" Willow smiled and nodded.

"You actually carry such a thing as unscented candles, kitten, or do they all have bits of plants and molluscs in?" Spike asked.

"We've got these." She indicated some boxes each holding a dozen tea-lights.

"Okay, stick half a dozen of those in with the burba weed and tell me the damage."

"Well, the burba weed would probably crumble a bit but you crumble it up before you. -"

"I meant tell me what the bill comes to," Spike forestalled her explanation.

"Oh, in that case," Anya rang up the last items on the till as she spoke, "it comes to seventy seven dollars and sixty three cents."

"I'll give you an even hundred if you get the watcher on speaker phone for ten minutes now everybody's here."

Buffy gave him a look that was now slightly panicked, and Anya carried the phone over to the research table after ringing up the sale, putting the change into petty cash and making an appropriate note in the petty cash book.

"Are you ready, pet?" Spike looked at Buffy, who now looked even more nervous.

"Me?"

"S'your mates. but if you want." The mischievous tone he used for the second part convinced Buffy to forge ahead.

"I'm ready."

Anya dialled through to Giles' home where it was ten o'clock at night and after some brief greetings including Giles comment that this was the first time Buffy had managed to phone without waking him up in the middle of the night Buffy began the build-up to her big news.

"Hey, Giles, I'll bring you up to speed with the others. We managed to catch Warren and his gang last night and thanks to Anya they were arrested on various charges, so we shouldn't have any more trouble with them for quite some time.

We took these artefacts off Warren called." Buffy paused and Spike filled in.

"The Orbs of Nezzla Khan"

". And anyway Xander has them now, but if you can see if you can find out any information about them, in case they're cursed or anything but they seem to make whoever has them wicked strong as long as they keep them close together."

"Now you say they might be cursed?" Xander wailed.

"And because the bank got back more than half the money they stole and Xander got Jonathon and Dawn got thingy and me and Spike got Warren, then me and Dawn and Xander get to share the finder's fee, which is a bit over nine thousand seven hundred bucks."

"That's better news," said Xander approvingly.

"Yes, we can afford to have our marriage blessed now, and maybe a small honeymoon but not for several months as the shop has been closed far too many days this month anyway." Anya joined in.

"Yes, quite," came a slightly tinny voice from the phone. "I'm sure this will ease things financially for a while for you Buffy."

"Actually, I might let Dawn spend a little of hers but the bulk will go in her college fund and mine might help me with mine.

I heard back from UC Sunnydale a while back and they turned down my re-application, but Spike's talked me into looking at community college courses for next term. I'm going to hand in my notice at DMP today. As of next week I'll be an official slacker."

Protests were voiced from various corners of the room and the globe but Willow's intervention style comment was the most persistent.

"Buffy, I think it would be unwise to leave your job on the basis of one cheque which will barely cover one term's tuition fees. It's important to consider Dawn's welfare and how you can support her."

"Well I thought about that, so I decided to raise your rent, since you're not sharing a room or looking after Dawn any more." Buffy watched the surprised expressions on all their faces including Spike's. He'd come to the conclusion Willow's mooching was something Buffy was too soft-hearted to bring up. "Kidding." Buffy continued, but Spike knew that at least the idea she was underpaying was now in both Willow's and Buffy's minds. Hopefully Red would volunteer to contribute more.

"I'm reliably assured that finances aren't going to be a problem. Dawn and I will both be provided for. Which brings me to the last topic for today.

Giles, if you're willing, I'd still like you to be the one who gives me away. Think you can make the time to come over say in two or three months time? And Olivia or whoever else if you're not still. -"

Squeals of delight went up from the wiccas and Tara was the first to hug Spike whilst Willow concentrated on hugging Buffy and getting a look at the ring. Buffy could just hear Giles' exasperated tones over the sounds of excitement.

"Buffy, it might assist me in coming to a decision if you were to provide the name of the prospective groom."

Spike was the one to answer however. "Buffy reckons that Peaches warned you when I first came to Sunnydale that once I started on something I didn't stop until I got what I wanted. Does that answer your question."

"Actually, I think Buffy may have been euphemistic. Angel's precise words were more along the lines of you would kill everyone who stood in your way, but the spirit of the message is still the same. Spike, this is all above board? You haven't used any undue influence on her?"

"You mean have I put her in a thrall? Rupert, the witches could take her in the back room now and give her a strip search and they wouldn't find a fang mark on her newer than Drac's. After last summer, you can't think I'm stupid enough to make the same mistake twice. Putting Buffy under a thrall and convincing her she loved me would be like having the 'bot back, only worse. Couldn't do it."

"Yes, well, quite. Buffy says you have the means to support her and Dawn."

"I do, and I can provide you with references to prove it if that's what it takes.

Rupert, what I said about fang marks may not apply by the time you get here. If Buffy agrees to it, at some point in the not too distant future I mean for us to claim each other as mates. She's probably going to want to get a viewpoint other than mine before she makes any decision so if you've got any reference material on matings with humans or if it's ever happened before with a slayer then it may be in your best interest to look them up. All I can really tell her is what would happen with two vampires. I'm counting on you to find out the rest."

"Yes, well, I shall look into that. I'd be obliged if you were to hold off taking any action until I have some time to research the matter."

"I'll give you time, watcher, but I won't wait indefinitely. Then again- Watcher, got to go someone's upsetting my girlfriend. Anya, why don't you tell the watcher what you did on Saturday? And don't let him hang up till he speaks to Buffy."

Spike moved across the room so fast that he practically flew.

 
 
Chapter #8 - Chapter 1:08
 






SECTION 1 - LEAP OF FAITH

And it's a leap of faith
When you believe there's someone out there
It's a leap of faith
When you believe that
Someone cares, oh
And when I call out to you
Will you be right there
Right there

(Michelle Branch, Album Broken Bracelet)



Chapter 1.08
Monday, May 6th, 2002

Buffy was in the middle of a four-way hug with all her best female friends. Spike seemed to be taking care of her shiftless absentee father figure for just now and she just gave herself up to enjoying the moment.

"You're sure this is what you want?" Willow asked, pulling back slightly from the group hug, the others following suit shortly after.

Buffy looked over to where her leather-clad partner spoke on the phone. "Yeah, it took him a while to convince me, but I guess I'm hooked on the idea now."

"Can I see the ring?" asked Tara and Buffy obliged holding it out so that both the witches could get a good view.

"I think you need to get that appraised and insured if those stones are diamonds. Xander spent the equivalent of several months salary on my ring and my solitaire is only slightly larger than the centre stone, and it's old, probably even older than him," Anya commented.

"It's really nice. Is it a family thing or did he buy it?" asked Tara.

"It belonged to his great-grandmother and then to his mother, so yeah Anya even older than him," Buffy answered her friends. "And as far as valuing and insuring from what I've seen today he probably sorted that out before he broke up the set. Apparently there's a wedding band to match."

"What's your new name gonna be?" asked Willow.

"I haven't actually worked my way round to finding out yet. I suppose it'll depend what name he can get documents under."

Xander stepped forward from where he had been quietly munching his way through a family sized bag of Doritos and accompanying jar of dip.

"That does it! Buffy, listen to yourself! You're talking about getting married to someone and you don't even know his name. You say he has enough money to live off of and send you back to college, but it's not that long ago he was stealing the change from a round of drinks and now he's giving you antique jewellery. You know where his money comes from. You just don't want to admit it to yourself. I hope you can live with your conscience when you're Mrs Doctor."

"Xander, I know-" Buffy stopped mid-sentence and dropping low swept her right leg in a low semi-circle, the move being one more typically used by the unsuspecting vampire on whom she used it. Spike's previous speed worked against him as his momentum carried him face first toward the floor. In an instant he was back on his feet, but Buffy blocked his path to the male Scooby. "Stay put. I can handle this. If you'd hit him at the speed you were going you would have cracked his skull open and given yourself a migraine that would last a week."

"It would have been worth it. Human or not I'm not going to just stand by when some wanker deliberately tries to make you feel bad about being with me especially when he starts on the Doctor bullshit."

"I've got it under control, Will. He'll at least hear me out. You two would just end up in a shouting match at best,

Xander, Spike isn't the Doctor, in fact looking back, I'm pretty certain he'd never even heard of the name until Riley called him it. Whatever we killed in Spike's crypt they had chitinous armour, a segmented body, crab type legs and they were quadrupeds. Suvolte don't have chitin they have hide, they're bipeds and they have hands and feet, so unless they have a very, very strange development pattern, those things were not suvolte eggs.

I saw all this with my own eyes, but until I had a reason to doubt what Riley told me I never even gave a thought to reviewing what I'd seen, to work out whether it made sense. I just took everything he said at face value

It's no secret that Riley and Spike have never been the best of friends. At best Riley was fed some misinformation which he wanted to believe. At worst he set Spike and me up. Hell, for all I know Sam said she worked in an infirmary in the Peace Corp. Maybe Mrs Riley Finn's the Doctor and the whole thing was just a cover for them to pick up the damn eggs so they could sell them themselves.

Spike wasn't being entirely honest, but he wouldn't have ended up in that situation in the first place if it wasn't for something I did wrong. Maybe if he'd confided in me about the mess I landed him in at the time, this whole thing could have been avoided."

"You had enough on your plate, pet. I thought I could take care of it without you ever having to know."

"Yeah, well, that didn't turn out to be your best idea, but then I'm in no position to complain.

Anyway, Xander, you already know where a bit of Spike's money comes from or did you forget all the gold and gems that were in that crypt along with the gem of Amara. And as to the rest it's none of your business as long as I know and it doesn't bother me, which it doesn't."

"Good Godfrey Cambridge!" Xander tried a mental calculation of the value of the horde and tried to remember the way back.

Buffy gave Xander a look which clearly indicated she wasn't finished yet. "And as for his name, "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet" or however that goes, not that Spike's a rose more like one of those persistent creeping vines that gradually takes over the entire garden when you're not looking."

The couple exchanged a look and a smile, each reaching for the other's hand. "Thanks, pet. I'm going to take that as a compliment."

"His name isn't what's important, nor is what he's done in the past. All that matters is who he is today, and what he does from now on.

If you think that's morally reprehensible then let me know now before we start trying to work out the seating plan. This is the man I intend to marry and anyone who feels it's their right or their duty to undermine our relationship or him is no true friend of mine. And Xander there's a limit to how often we can have these conversations."

"Buffy," Anya called. "Giles wants to speak to you."

Spike walked back over to the table with Buffy, pulling her down to sit on his lap.

"Hey, Giles. Wanna play dad for a day, huh? Spike's willing to spring for a couple of return tickets. I don't know when it'll be yet. I have to find a clergyman who'll agree to do the ceremony first. I kinda thought I might try that church where I had the fight with Faith. That big long shady entryway was cool. Might look good in the photos.

If you came over early you could help me spend Spike's money. He says I can have anything I want, no expense spared for my special day. So, will ya, pleeeease? Say you'll do it?"

"And to think I was worried that Spike might be taking advantage of you." Giles commented dryly. "If you're sure that this is what you want, then I'll be proud to give you away. I can't say that I'm totally surprised.

Did you say you were planning a church wedding?"

"Uh-huh, and I've got to wait till I can see your face to tell you the rest of what I got him to agree to. Do you think you'll bring Olivia?"

"I think she might be persuaded especially since flying coach would seem inappropriate when the theme of the wedding is no expense spared."

"Definitely inappropriate," confirmed Buffy. "The pseudo father of the bride is far too dignified a position to travel coach."

"Wouldn't have wished a flight that long in coach on my worst enemy even if you hadn't said anything. Besides I have to keep in your good books in case I have to ask you to be best man as well," added Spike.

"What?"

Buffy sighed. "Spike doesn't know if the clergyman will let him have Clem. I mean Spike at least looks human, but people just don't go for the skin condition line."

"Pardon?" said Giles.

"Ooh! You haven't met Clem, have you? Imagine Tara had a sex change and got turned into a demon whose skin was three times her size, now make her bald and a bit more naïve, even if he does cheat at kitten poker and you sort of have Clem. He's a sweetie, but as I say Spike doesn't know if the minister or whatever will agree. I say it would be too squicky for him to have Angel. I mean he's family but even so. It's awkward enough that we have to invite him, and if Dawn's chief bridesmaid then she would refuse to dance with him. So you were the only other guy he would even consider, but we'll get back to you on that. If someone's prepared to marry a vampire why should they bother if the best man's a demon, but I think you might have to sign the register anyway because I don't think Clem's a legal person."

"Speaking of Dawn how is she taking the news. I assume she knows."

"She volunteered to help with the planning but it's just so she can pick her own bridesmaid dress, I think. As far as Spike moving in with us, she's keen. She's probably loved him longer than I have. It'll be good."

The bell over the shop door sounded again and a confused looking delivery boy asked, "anybody here order pizza?"

"That'd be me," Spike pulled some crumpled notes from his duster pocket, checking the denominations before passing a suitable amount to the delivery boy, who continued to gaze transfixed at the shelves of merchandise.

Giles voice sounded from the speaker. "One assumes that the arrival of food will mean the end of any credible conversation. Anya, Xander, once again congratulations. Spike, I'll get back to you or Buffy regarding the matter we discussed. Both of you, take care of each other and tell Dawn I said hello and good bye to you all."

There was a veritable chorus of goodbyes before the connection was cut and the group crowded round the table for pizza, except for Xander who remained at the counter with his tortilla chips, away from food potentially touched by dead hands.

"Oops," said Buffy, "did we forget to tell Giles you guys were back together?" She waved a pizza slice in the general direction of Willow and Tara.

"Sent him an e-mail Saturday afternoon," the redhead smiled. "Of course he probably hasn't managed to wrest it from the infernal dread machine yet."

"Speaking of dread machines, I could use some help picking one. I know those black ones look nice and I know what I want it to be able to do but I've no real idea what specs that means I need. Are you up for taking on the challenge, Red?"

"Sure, the chance to spend someone else's money on electronics and software, fine by me. But have you got a stable power supply in the crypt?"

"Right, the power supply shouldn't be a problem, I'll explain why tonight when Bit's there. I've got to go home and get changed and then do some shopping once I drop Buffy off at work but I'll be over at the house later to cook for Dawn and Buffy. So, if you guys don't mind eating the same stuff I may as well cook for everybody and we can talk about it then."

"Anya, you're good at identifying demons," Buffy returned to her earlier subject. "What sort of demon has."

Anya listened to Buffy's demon description. "That's easy, those are baby Nevlon demons."

Buffy turned between Spike and Anya, "But I thought you said- thought that Nevlons were basically harmless."

"They are," supplied Anya. "They'll eat carrion, but as far as live prey goes even a full grown one will only go for say something like a large rat or small dog at best or worst if you happen to be a small dog."

"But they swarmed all over me and Riley as soon as they hatched," Buffy argued. "It was all we could do to get the little bug. bug-like things off of us and get out in one piece."

"Were either of you actually bitten?"

"No."

"Hmm. It's normal for the mother to carry the babies round on her back, sort of like the way baby swans sit on their mother or father or whatever. But they should only do that if you were producing the right pheromones. If you didn't know what they were doing you might have thought it was an attack."

"Didn't I tell you you used to have terrible taste in men?" Spike smirked.

"How do you get from what Anya just said to me having terrible taste in men?"

"Pet, if you smelled like mommy to those demons it wasn't from the underwear you'd been wearing at DMP, that just had the funky burger smell. So, it had to be on that nice black outfit and I don't think you bought your kevlar breastplate at K-Mart, did you? He set you up, love. Guess he didn't take the break-up as well as you thought," Spike reasoned.

"You don't know the half of it. He offered to kill you. Stood there as if he was doing me a favour. Something about having completed his mission parameters, but having authorisation to take the Doctor out and did I want him to do it, implying it would save me from having to do it myself. The bastard knew you had nothing to do with it. He knocked you round when you couldn't defend yourself and then offered to kill you for me, all just to get his own back at the pair of us."

"Or to cover his own arse if you're right about him and as I recall he wasn't the only one knockin' me around."

"Shit. I am such an idiot. You were right. I just assumed you were lying because it was a human telling me you were."

"That's not true, pet. It's not like I haven't misled you lot in the past, and if he fooled you it's because he's trained to be able to fool people. It's not just about human or demon. I mean you'd take my word over say, Willy's, wouldn't you? Or Clem's word over almost anybody's provided we're not talking poker?"

"But I should have been able to tell at the time you didn't have a clue about the Doctor thing? You didn't, did you?"

"Not the faintest idea what he was going on about at all."

"W-Wait you're saying Riley tried to kill Buffy," came an almost forlorn voice from the counter as Xander was on the way to realising that yet another of his heroes had feet of clay.

"No-o." explained Spike slowly and clearly. "Riley set it up so that Buffy and him presumably would be swarmed by a bunch of basically harmless demons. Since she was expecting something different, something that was lethal the minute they hatched, panicking and blowing up my home or watching while he did it isn't really a reaction I can blame her for. At the least my home was wrecked and Buffy didn't trust me any more so it basically ended what we had going at the time. At best for him Buffy might have killed me herself, failing that she might have taken him up on his offer which no doubt would have given him great personal satisfaction.

They're free and clear to do whatever they want because anyone mentions the Doctor and you're all going to blame me. Sooner or later I wind up dead because the Doctor does something that pushes the boundary just too far.

Buffy thinks him and his bitch are her bestest mates so next time there's some nasty whose bit's'll raise a few bob on the black market running loose in Sunnydale, he can still get her to go find it and kill it for him. Not a bad little plan. Bint must have come up with it. Bit too advanced for the tin soldier."

"Just one thing," said Willow. "Why did you have a bunch of these Nevlon eggs?"

"Nah, wait, before you answer that. Are you saying Riley's a bad guy?" Xander asked, clearly shaken.

Spike groaned loudly. "Will someone either stake me, or explain to Special Ed in words he can understand?

Him and his wife are quite possibly the people who are trading in demons and demon parts.

They set me up to take the blame; incidentally breaking up my relationship with Buffy and at some point sooner or later no doubt I would end up dead. In your book that probably does make them the good guys.

But they were also setting Buffy up to do their work for them as long as she was useful and when it suited them they would probably have framed her too. The next slayer might not have the same personal history with them but hey, if you guys were still helping out, you'd vouch for him. Tell the new kid he was a stand-up guy.

I ended up looking after the eggs because the father, who I happened to know, was supposedly going out of town for a few days. Buffy sort of killed the mother when she tried to defend her nest. So I got stuck holding baby.

Notice how the possible outcomes of the little plot would also appeal to a demon whose mate of seventy years has just been killed by my girlfriend.

By the way, pet, did you ever remotely consider telling me Captain Cardboard was married, let alone to someone who worked in an infirmary."

"Mmm, Nope." Buffy did her I'm cute, don't hurt me grin, the one that becomes less effective for every year over the age of five, but still works when used on a totally besotted male of any species.

"So Riley and his wife are bad guys." Spike resisted the urge to stand up throwing Buffy off his lap and cheer at Xander's grasp of the situation.

"I knew that woman was too good to be true," said Willow. "Remind me to buy a shovel for the next time Riley comes to town. Which reminds me, Spike consider yourself hugged. Congratulations. I hope you'll both be very happy. If you hurt her, you, can of gasoline and your own Zippo."

"Hey, thanks, Red. At least you're more creative than most of the people who threaten me."

 
 
Chapter #9 - Chapter 2:01
 






SECTION 2 - ANGEL CITY

I got a buncha boys
We make a lot of noise
Little bit crazy
Playing with chemical toys
We're such bad ass dudes
I almost can't stand it myself
I wanna get the c**bs
In my elegant rags
Make my mom and daddy uptight
I wanna be an intellectual
Heterosexual, Angel City tonight.

(Motorhead, Album 1916)



Chapter 2.01
Monday, May 6th, 2002

Spike pulled off Buffy's boots dropping them into the foot-well behind him as he moved over to the other side of the car.

"Angel Investigations, we help the helpless," came the voice on the other end of the line.

Spike picked up the cell-phone from where it rested in Buffy's lap, moving it to the rear window ledge of the car so that the wire for the hands-free kit was no longer in the way of the buttons down the front of her blouse.

"Didn't that use to be hopeless, Cordelia?" Buffy watched the pale elegant fingers deftly freeing her breasts of their cotton confinement, as she spoke. She hoped Cordelia hadn't noticed that her breathing was already quickening and he had yet to touch her flushed skin.

"Buffy? Is that you? And yes." Buffy automatically leaned forward so that when he eased the material over her shoulders it simply drifted down and she had just to lift her hands to be rid if it.

"Tell me you didn't just let Angel know I'm on the phone. please." Punishing her for using Angel's name he leant forward and bit down gently on her nearest nipple, gradually increasing jaw pressure until she was just short of moaning her pleasure down the phone to the other woman. Talented fingers alternately stroked and kneaded at her other breast before using a circling motion so light it was almost as if he wasn't touching her to tease the nipple into a sharp hard peak.

"You're safe. There's only me and Groo, who you don't know, here. So if you don't want to speak to Angel, I hope it's me you want because Wes doesn't work here any more. And if you want to know that story then you're going to have to talk to tall, dark and broody because explaining what's happening round here to his ex is not part of my job description.

Neither is guarding a portal from an untold hell dimension so foul the powers that be don't actually allow portals to go there, but hey, we'll let that one pass."

Spike rolled the tip between his fingers before he gave a sharp twist, making her gasp in surprise just in time to make it sound as if she were drawing breath to continue as Cordelia finished. "Are you having your calls transferred or something?" 'Way to go with the inane comments,' thought Buffy, but then who in their right mind could expect her to think clearly while Spike was doing what he was doing.

"No, no. It's here, in the hotel lobby. But there's only been one really big scary demon come through so far and it's dead, so. what's with the phone call."

Spike's mouth moved to her other breast, suckling gently this time as if to make up for the earlier pain. His hands moved down to the tops of her jeans. This time before she spoke Buffy wove her fingers through the blond curls in front of her, pulling Spike's head back so she could meet his gaze. She let her eyes pass on the message that there was only one vampire she was thinking about.

"Okay, how is Angel?"

Spike gently traced along the line of her jeans using one cool finger until her stomach muscles tightened making it easier to deal swiftly with the zip and button holding the stiff fabric in place. He brought one knee up over her body wedging it between her and the seat back so that he straddled her just above her knees. His hands slid round behind her body pushing down the thick denim and flimsy white thong all in one movement and cradling her buttocks as her hips bucked up toward him

"Oh, you know, kinda preoccupied, busy, that long involved story it's really not my place to tell, let's just say family business and leave it at that," Cordelia responded with faux brightness.

His hands were already supporting her weight and one quick motion brought Buffy's pelvis level with his. Her eyes widened in surprise and he smiled his amusement as he nuzzled her neck and ground their pelvises together.

"Okay. I've got some personal news that I thought would come better if you two both heard it from me rather than anyone else. You could say it's family business too."

Spike nibbled, licked and kissed his way down the centre of Buffy's body as he moved back to his original kneeling position to remove her jeans. The soft silky fabric of his worn coat lining brushed against her legs and back, where he had spread it over the chill, cracked leather of the DeSoto's back seat. The leather scent from the coat was almost gone after so many years of wear and unless you were a vampire your nose would almost have to touch it to pick up on that element of its scent. It smelled of cigarette smoke, and spicy cologne and just the lightest undertone of bourbon.

"So spill. You finally stake Drusilla or what?" as always Cordelia spoke her mind.

As Spike finished pulling off her jeans, Buffy wriggled her arms into the sleeves of the oversized coat, inhaling the scents that permeated its make-up, conjuring memories of numerous times its perfume had enveloped her at the height of her passion. As he threw her jeans and underwear aside he realised what she had done and was unable to contain a possessive growl.

"I'm engaged."

A beautiful naked woman who had just announced her commitment to him lay in front of him, wearing only his ring and his coat, which reeked of his scent. Her arousal was evident to his sensitive nostrils and he could barely wait to stake his claim to her one more time. Instead he looked straight into her eyes and mouthed the words 'I. Love. You. I. Want. You. Forever.'

"Congratulations. I'll be sure to tell Angel when there's a suitable moment. Is this the army guy or is it a new one?" Cordelia conveyed the message that in her opinion a personal visit or even phone call was unnecessary, just avoiding sounding brusque.

Spike moved Buffy until she was lying on her side resting against the seat back.

"Not the army guy," Buffy said dryly, as Spike moved from his kneeling position between the front and back seats to lie next to her, squirming against her almost naked body to get maximum contact. Holding her tight he rolled onto his back. He wanted to watch his leather-clad angel move above him.

"Too damn right, cheerleader," growled Spike into the microphone that dangled near the hollow of Buffy's throat.

There was a slight gasp at the other end of the line. "Buffy, that sounded like."

"When I said it was family business I didn't just mean my family." Spike's hands slid under the coat, one tracing patterns on her back with his fingertips. The other stretching over the curve of her bottom so that a fingertip teased her moist entrance as she lay atop him.

"You're engaged to Spike!"

He worked his way between her outer lips and slid up to his first joint inside of her, easing her drenched muscles ever so slightly looser before bringing the finger to his mouth and sucking it clean. His gaze stayed on her face the whole time, her eyes darkening as she followed his actions.

"Now you see why we'd like to come up there and try to break the news gently. Spike seems to think that as soon as Angel hears he's going to regress straight back to all the macho vampire dominance crap. So, I figure we might as well come visit and get it all over and done with. Not that there's anything short of sending Spike home in a dust-buster that he can do to change my mind and if he does that he'll have one pissed off slayer on his hands."

Buffy sat up slightly, resting her elbows on Spike's chest as she tackled the buttons on the front of his shirt. Spike moaned low in his throat at the delay. Soon, however her hands slithered down between their bodies, working loose the fastenings on his jeans that were strained even tighter than normal.

"Right now, I'd say he's a little preoccupied," Cordelia commented in reference to Angel.

Buffy's hands worked on freeing her lover's throbbing erection from the denim encasing it.

"Not the only one," muttered Spike.

"This business, I don't suppose it would be important enough that some extra help might persuade him not to start a fight with Spike?" Buffy tried to see a way around this conflict.

The vampire frowned slightly at the suggestion. It felt wrong that so valuable a prize could ever be his without conflict. Surely Angel would never surrender his claim uncontested. Not unless the Poof had finally got over his feelings for Buffy, but if five hundred years in hell hadn't made any difference he doubted a couple of years in LA would. Either that or whatever was going on was big with a capital B.

All such thoughts vanished however as Buffy held his dick in her hand nudging his jeans down just far enough to rest his balls in her other.

"I don't honestly know."

Vampires were supposed to be able to sense family members and identify them by scent. Would the same apply to kin who were conceived rather than made? If so, Spike could be useful if they were still trying to track Connor tomorrow. The question was whether Spike would be able to defend himself if he found the teenager. Willow had long ago filled in Cordelia about Spike's little trip to the vet's.

"We'll take our chances. We'll come up tomorrow after I finish work. We should get there about nine. I'll leave it up to you how much you think you should tell him before we get there. It might not come as such a shock to him if you can pave the way a bit. Hope nobody has to take a swan-dive off a tower to shut your portal.

Family emergencies not withstanding it'd be nice to see you again."

"You too, I think, but I'm not so sure about Spike."

Buffy yanked the cable loose from both the phone and her ear throwing it on the back windowsill of the car. Then she folded the phone in half replacing it in the pocket of the leather coat. Aware of Spike's gaze she took the time to flick the hem of the coat to fan out behind her before bending forward to claim his mouth, making up for lost time on the phone.

Spike's hands roamed without pattern or reason underneath the supple leather desperate to touch as much of her as possible, to make every inch his and his alone. However, Buffy was moving down his body further out of his reach as she explored his bare chest with her hands and then her mouth, sucking and nibbling each nipple until, like hers, they were almost painfully hard. Her tongue traced a trail almost to his navel before cramped conditions prevented her from moving further down past Spike's upraised knees. Spike pushed against the car door with his booted feet straightening his legs until he sat with his back against the other door.

Buffy shifted down his body again, parting his legs as far as his jeans would allow using her knees, so she could kneel between them rather than straddling them. With just the tip of her tongue she traced the ridge that ran up the front of his cock, travelling all the way up his length before using her whole tongue to swirl round the top. She took him deep into her mouth, before sliding back up and using her tongue to spread fresh pre-cum mixed with her saliva over the tip once more. She repeated this pattern several times, alternating licking his full length and taking him into her mouth, one hand cupping his balls, gently fondling them until he moaned first at the pleasurable sensation and then begging her to stop, his hands clenched over the seat backs to either side.

"Please. gotta stop. can't hold it any longer. want to be inside you."

Buffy straightened up moving onto his lap and he swung round in his seat and sat slightly forward. Raising herself up on her knees Buffy used one hand to guide him into her wet vagina, lowering herself onto him a fraction of an inch at a time. Spike repressed the almost overpowering urge to close his eyes and watched her face instead as his thick shaft stretched the muscles of her hot tight core little by little. As she finally reached the end of that first stroke she took his face in both her hands. She watched his eyes and whispered, "I want you. I love you. Forever."

Her words stole the last of his self-control. As he came inside her in a cool white rush, his blue eyes turned to gold and his visage changed to that of the demon. With a growled, "Mine!" his teeth sank into the flesh of her neck, high up above the coat's collar. He managed to make the bite a clean one resisting the urge to tear at her flesh, but she bore the marks of all his teeth, not just his fangs though most of the marks were shallow. His involuntary movement inside her as he came, and more especially his gentle suckling at his bite and the knowledge he had dropped that last vestige of control brought her to a trembling climax in his arms. As he withdrew his mouth from her neck, her forehead came to rest against his. "Yours. forever," she whispered.

'Shit!' thought the vampire. Nevertheless, he nicked his tongue on his fangs so that his blood and hers mingled as he lapped patiently at the wound until the bleeding stopped. 'How the hell am I going to explain this?' he thought as he resumed his human form once more.

He held her tight until her trembling finally stopped and then stroked her back through the leather in reassuring circles. As her blood had hit his mouth he had hardened again inside her and the feel of being enveloped in her hot wet grip was intoxicating but before he could even think about satisfaction he had to tackle a rather difficult subject.

"Buffy, do you know what happened there? Do you understand the significance of it."

"You bit me, I assume that means you claimed me and since you said you weren't going to do that until I was ready to call you husband, I guess that was like a vampire wedding then."

"Not really. I meant to explain all this to you before anything like this happened. For it to be a marriage, you would have to claim me, the same way I've claimed you, and I would have to acknowledge your claim over me.

Once the claim is reciprocated, if we were both vampires we would have an empathic link. If we were close enough, unless one of us made a conscious effort to block the link we'd be able to pick up on each other's emotions. Nothing overpowering, just an awareness of what the other is feeling. Regardless of distance, we'd also know if the other was killed or seriously hurt.

When two vampires bond and one is stronger than the other, then the weaker one's abilities tend to improve. If a vampire has the ability to reform after being staked, like Drac, the bond isn't broken when they're dusted. I don't know whether that means the bond goes beyond death or not.

It's rare for a vampire to take a human mate, more often than not the human is turned first, but I think it has happened occasionally. As far as I know, it's never happened between a vampire and a slayer, but then that's the sort of thing the Council of Wankers would work very hard to cover up. There's no way to know what effect there would be if you reciprocated my claim, which is why I intended to see if Giles could dig up anything before we got this far."

The vampire looked into her face making sure she could see the truth of his next words.

"Buffy, I never intended to have this happen as anything other than a mutual thing. I fully intended to let you know all the facts and have you speak to Giles and then come to an informed decision and if you wanted to then I thought we'd do it together.

I definitely expected it to be something a bit more romantic than a quick shag in the back of the car. It's just when you said what you did, bye-bye self-control. I'm sorry, pet. You can shag me seven ways from Sunday and I'll happily keep myself in check, but you can't expect me to be all self-restraint when you take me in to the hilt, look me in the eye, and tell me you love me. Even what I did wouldn't make a claim if you hadn't said you were mine.

So, we have several options. We could leave things as they are, but I think that might be a bit unfair on you." Spike blew gently on the healing bite wound on the side of Buffy's neck. Her reaction tightened both her stomach muscles and also the muscles in her vagina pulling him deeper into her. "As you could probably tell, the bite mark becomes like a sort of super erogenous zone, which is fine when turn about is fair play, but puts you at a disadvantage when I can have you wettin' your knickers with the slightest touch. Actually that probably does just about make us even 'cause I get a hard-on pretty much whenever you walk in the room anyway."

Buffy smiled at him. "It's kinda hard not to notice especially in this position. And who says you weren't on a level footing before?" Buffy gave him a soft kiss on the forehead.

"We can wait and see what Giles says when he gets back to us, however long that may take. We could even ring him back later tonight and try to catch him before he leaves for work in the morning and tell him what a balls-up I've made of things. See if that gets his arse in gear.

Or we say, bugger it. We can't go back so we might as well go forward and we do this properly, make things mutual now, without waiting to see what Giles has to say. As far as I know there are no adverse side effects, strengths are shared not weaknesses but there aren't any guarantees. And no matter what Giles finds, in the end it's going to be an individual case."

She searched his face, trying to find the clues she needed. "You want to do this, don't you?"

"Buffy, it isn't my choice. It has to be yours. I want it. It's a stronger bond even than marriage, but I'm also scared for you. I don't expect it to work that way, but what if you began to be affected by sunlight? Just because I've only ever heard of sharing strengths doesn't mean there's not a chance you'd end up with my weaknesses."

"What time is it now in England?" Buffy asked.

"Eight hours later than it is here, somewhere around midnight. and, love, not that you can go, but I think you're supposed to be starting work about now."

"Wh-what?"

"Your neck, it's a bit obvious. You're either going to have to phone in sick or at the very least make some sort of excuse for being late so you can put a bandage on it, cover it up somehow. The barbecue fork excuse is not going to cut it."

"Great. Nice one, Fang Face." Buffy scrambled off his lap none too carefully, and started hunting through her gym bag till she found her make-up case, which held a small compact.

"Hey, I was kinda hoping we'd both have some use for that in the future. Try to leave it attached!" Spike whinged.

Buffy meanwhile tried to angle the mirror to see the extent of the damage, not aided by the dim light in the car's interior. "Shit. You don't do anything by halves, do you?"

Spike stuck his hand into the pocket of his coat rummaging around despite Buffy's protests until he found his cell-phone. Once he had it in his hand he flipped it open and pressed a button. The phone gave a small beep, and Spike held it up to his ear.

"Hell on earth," he spoke into the microphone. A series of different notes followed and then she heard a ring tone, which was finally answered by Lorraine's voice.

"Double Meat Palace, how can I help?"

"Hello, I'd like to speak to the duty manager, please." Spike's voice lost all of its normal roughness, becoming a model for well-mannered charm.

"Speaking, this is Lorraine."

"Hi. I'm calling on behalf of my girlfriend, Buffy Summers. I'm afraid she's not going to be able to make it in today for her shift."

"Oh, will she be okay for the rest of her shifts this week or should I arrange cover?"

"I couldn't say for sure. She's been attacked by some sort of animal, and she's lost some blood, but the bleeding seems to have eased off now. I think she might be going into shock though, so I was just going to take her home, put her to bed and get someone to have a look at her."

Buffy didn't know, whether to laugh or hit him and steal the phone and try to repair the damage, which was of course impossible anyway.

"Ahhh." Spike guessed that maybe the manager had picked up on Sunnydale's brand of animal attacks. "It sounds potentially serious, maybe I should make some provisional arrangements for cover."

"That could be for the best. Buffy's a very determined girl and she makes up her own mind about these things, but I know I'd be happier if she took some time to recover.

The fact is that Buffy was intending to hand her notice in today, anyway.

You know that she's her younger sister's guardian?"

"No, I don't think I did. It may have been discussed when she originally started work here, but I only recently transferred to this branch."

"Yes, well, the hours and working evenings and weekends have tended to mean she has very little time with her. Let's just say the situation at home has forced her to consider looking for something more appropriate. With what's happened today, it wouldn't surprise me if she didn't make it back at all, but as I said before, you can't predict what she'll do.

I'm sure she'll be well enough to speak to you herself tomorrow and let you know whether she'll be in for the rest of the week."

"Yes, well, thank you for calling, Mr."

"William, just William's fine."

"Well, thank you, William. I hope Buffy's going to be okay."

"I'm sure a day or two in bed will have her feeling a lot better," said Spike with a wicked smirk before he closed the phone.

 
 
Chapter #10 - Chapter2:02
 






SECTION 2 - ANGEL CITY

I got a buncha boys
We make a lot of noise
Little bit crazy
Playing with chemical toys
We're such bad ass dudes
I almost can't stand it myself
I wanna get the c**bs
In my elegant rags
Make my mom and daddy uptight
I wanna be an intellectual
Heterosexual, Angel City tonight.

(Motorhead, Album 1916)



Chapter 2.02
Monday, May 6th, 2002

"You. are. Eee-vil." Buffy punctuated each syllable by poking him in the chest.

Spike shrugged. "I left your options open, didn't I? It's up to you if you go in there tomorrow with a bloody huge elastoplast and rely on the Sunnydale denial factor, or whether you come shopping with me for stuff for the flat."

"Ooo. What sort of shopping? .Hey, no fair. How am I supposed to try to be good if you're deliberately trying to tempt me?"

"Shopping, it is. I need some heavy curtains, bedding, towels, maybe some pictures and stuff, maybe a DVD player. Since anything I buy now is eventually going to end up wherever we live when we're married, it only makes sense for you to have a say." Spike shifted along the seat nearer to Buffy and let his elbow rest on the back of the chair. He tucked Buffy's hair behind her ear so that the scar was fully visible. "It's not that bad really. To judge by the scar Angel's was a lot messier." He ran a tentative fingertip over the wound and Buffy shivered. "Most of these teeth marks are too shallow to even scar. With your healing, in a month or two all that'll be left is another set of puncture scars." He tilted his head and moved in to kiss her neck.

Buffy felt as if there were mild electric shocks flowing all through her body, except the feeling wasn't unpleasant by any stretch of the imagination. She began to think the vampire could probably make her come, in public, fully clothed, just by kissing and touching those scars.

"You're not playing fair," she protested.

Capturing her hand and pulling it back toward his still open fly, Spike replied, "Neither's leaving me like this."

"But didn't you just tell me that you get like that whenever I walk in the room?" Buffy teased even as she moved to straddle his lap once more. "That would make it a bit difficult not to leave you like that."

"Especially if you give out little samples of slayer blood, then it would. Or did you forget about that little detail?"

Buffy rubbed her pelvis up against him and Spike growled in frustration. He slid one hand between the slayer's parted legs, letting his thumb circle her clitoris as two of his fingers pushed inside her.

He resisted the urge to pay further attention to his mark as yet and instead used his other hand to guide one of her perfect breasts to his lips.

His desperation was almost primal and Buffy responded to it, urging him with her actions to take things harder and faster, pushing down on him as he thrust in with two then three fingers. Buffy saw rainbow lights spiral against a sea of black as she slumped against him, temporarily replete.

Spike's hands moved to grasp her hips and he positioned her over his painfully engorged member before pulling her down onto him in one swift movement that brought her eyes wide open once more

"God, Spike, you feel so good." She began to push herself up and down around him. "Never knew how good it could be till you." She wasn't telling him any more than he'd already worked out but it did his ego good when she said these things. His hands helped support her hips taking some of the weight from her knees and helping her slam home on the down-stroke for maximum penetration.

As her speed began to build he nuzzled against his mark, nipping at the area with blunt teeth and licking at the newly formed scabs, but careful not to reopen the wound. Even so, it was enough. Her inner muscles spasmed wildly around him as if trying to draw him deeper into her. At that signal he stopped holding back his own release and with her last few movements he soothed the raging heat within her by spilling his cool seed.

He pulled her in close against his chest and hooked his chin over her shoulder. He couldn't put into words how he felt right then and there wasn't space or time to spoon together till they fell asleep, so he just held her close against his chest and hoped that she would know. Minutes passed in comfortable silence before she moved to ease the growing ache in her hips, so maybe she did.

"So now you've corrupted me into playing truant from work, what did you have planned for the rest of the evening?"

"Well, I thought I might drop you off at home and then head back to the crypt for a wash and a change before I go food shopping. Then, I'd come back to your place to cook and then we could maybe patrol or watch a video with the Niblet and then patrol. How does that sound?"

"Better plan. You drive me over to your place or as near as you can, I fetch you a couple of changes of clothes and then we both go back to my place for you to get cleaned up. Dawn and I can go to Blockbuster while you do the food shopping. Cook, eat, video and patrol, assuming Dawn hasn't made other plans."

"As you wish, love, as you wish."

 




 

"Out, slayer." The vampire encouraged his fiancée to leave the kitchen.

"I just wanted to see if there was anything I could do to help," pouted the chosen one.

"You just wanted to find out what I was cooking, and I've heard enough from Dawn to know I don't want your help. Not this time anyway. If the table's set, go on through to the living room, find something educational on the idiot box and make Bit watch it."

"I could do the washing-up, clean up as you go along."

"What's Bit doing? Thought you were meant to spend time with her."

"Calculus." Buffy said the word with the same tone of disgust she might have reserved for gonorrhoea.

"'Nough said. There's some stuff in the sink already. Get to it wench."

Buffy moved over to the sink and added washing-up liquid and hot water to the few dirty utensils and the couple of chopping boards that were in the sink. She watched as Spike lifted the wok from the hob taking it over to the island where he had a trivet waiting to rest it on. He clicked the door shut on the microwave and dribbled some oil into a large flat rectangular oven-proof dish and tilted the dish until the oil coated the base of the dish and part of the sides. The microwave dinged and he pulled out a plate piled high with tortillas, which he used to wrap the contents of the wok into long thin parcels, arranging them in the bottom of the dish. He poured a jar of sauce over the top, covered the whole lot with grated cheese and slammed the dish into the oven.

Spike carried over the now empty wok and the plates he'd used for the cheese and the tortillas to the sink, dumping the empty jar in the bin on his way. Everything looked so organised. She'd expected the place to look like a bomb-site. Not to mention the efficient, graceful way he moved was damn sexy, even if this time he did have a shirt on. Maybe once she'd finished college she could make enough money to pay Spike to work as her own personal topless chef.

He slid his arms around her waist and rested his cheek against hers. "Can you do that big choppin' board first, love? Need it to do the salad."

Once she'd obligingly wiped down the item in question he pulled a tea-towel from it's place dried it off and got to work chopping various vegetables he pulled from the now full fridge, throwing the bits into a large salad bowl as he went. Some olive oil went into a small jug along with what looked like lime-juice that was already in it and some finely chopped bits he pulled from the new tubs of fresh herbs that now adorned the window sills. Once he'd whisked it up with a fork, this went over the top of the salad and the whole lot was thoroughly mixed up, serving utensils added and the bowl went through to the dining room. Four beers, already opened and topped with wedges of lime were pulled from the fridge and carried through.

Buffy had barely done any of the washing-up and rushed to try to make her contribution look presentable.

"Had enough of me hangin' round underfoot yet?" asked the vampire as he poured a glass of orange juice and tipped some blood from a polystyrene container into a mug before sticking said mug in the microwave and replacing the unused liquids back in the fridge.

"Hey, if you'd told me you were the undead's answer to Martha Stewart, you could have been round here every night long ago."

"So you're only marrying me so you can have an unpaid kitchen maid?" Spike smirked.

"Well, there's that, and your money, and of course I also get an unpaid sex slave and babysitter. The fact I kinda like you is just a bonus." The slayer piled more washing up onto the drying rack, and Spike waded in with a tea-towel putting things away as he finished drying them, at least until his blood was ready.

The self-proclaimed slayer of slayers leant back against the counter, sipping his blood and watching his slayer's rear view as she finished washing the last few remaining dishes and wondered what he could ever have done that meant he deserved to be here.

She turned as she finished, leaving the dishes on the rack to drain naturally. "How long before the enchiladas are ready?"

Spike looked at the kitchen clock. "Between five and ten minutes. Just long enough for me to get your pressies from the car, now it's dark." He ducked out the back door before Buffy could ask anything else and came back in with one large flat box a largish floppy parcel and a carrier bag from a large department store.

He dropped the carrier bag behind his legs and passed her the other two.

"Big one first or bigger one."

"I'd open the parcel before the box."

Buffy started to rip open the parcel, quickly discovering that whatever was in the parcel was made of black satin. Envisioning sexy lingerie she pulled half the contents of the parcel out through the hole she'd made in the wrapping.

"Men's pyjama tops?" she asked with a wry smile, holding it up against herself. Spike noted happily that it fell an inch or two short of mid-thigh.

"Waste not, want not." Spike nudged the carrier bag he'd dropped on the floor with a boot. "Figured with Bit and Red and Glinda around my normal sleep attire might not be appropriate."

"So I get the tops and you get the bottoms."

Spike nodded. "That other one's by way of reparations, but I just couldn't bring myself to buy a duffle coat, let alone a yellow one so you'll have to make do."

Buffy tore into the wrapping paper as if there was an extra prize if she opened it in under two seconds. She barely took time to register the store name on the box before she threw the lid to one side closely followed by several sheets of tissue. She literally jumped up and down as she pulled the black leather coat from the box.

"Should be a bit harder to get grass stains on that, d'you think?"

The coat billowed as she swung it round to put it on. The leather was thick, heavy and obviously intended to be hard-wearing unlike most of the coats and jackets she bought, none of which seemed to last a week on patrol. Even so, the leather draped in soft lines instead of hanging stiffly. It had a long split at the back so that it moved freely round her legs, and she danced around the kitchen and living room turning this way and that and watching the coat fan out behind her.

Rushing back over to where Spike stood watching her obvious delight, she threw her arms about his neck and wrapped her legs around his waist.

"I love it, but this is the last of the his and hers clothing, isn't it? I can't see myself in Doc Martens however practical they may be."

"Don't knock 'em till you try 'em, pet. They'd be a damn sight comfier and last a damn sight longer than most of the ones you complain about ruining in sewers and on patrol, even if they don't fall into your 'stylish yet affordable' category."

Tilting his head slightly Spike leant in to claim a kiss from her conveniently placed lips and Buffy responded whole-heartedly.

Pulling his head back, he smiled wryly. "If I didn't know better I would say you got me all worked up deliberately, so that I could be uncomfortable all the way through dinner, which should be ready now, so tidy up your mess and I'll give the others a shout and take the stuff through." So saying, he turned the oven off and took the rest of his mug of blood and Dawn's orange juice through, stopping at the bottom of the stairs to shout, "Food's ready!" and then returning to the kitchen for the enchiladas. Buffy meanwhile had moved everything Spike had brought in from the car except the coat, which she was still wearing, into a small pile at one end of the sofa.

Soon several pairs of feet were heard making their way downstairs and a companionable meal was enjoyed by all. Spike didn't eat all that much. Nutritionally speaking the food did nothing for him, but he was pleased to see Buffy and Dawn tucking in. Given half a chance he'd get the slayer back to a proper weight in no time. Especially when she found out there was ice-cream for dessert. Willow and Spike must have spent about half the meal discussing his new PC. He basically wanted to use it to rip-off copies of all the stuff he'd lost on album, so that he could burn them to disc as mp3 files and play them either through the PC or on his yet to be bought DVD player. Other than that he'd thought about getting a web-cam and trying to force Giles into the age of video-conferencing, though that, Willow guessed was more for Buffy and Dawn's benefit than his own. Likewise, he'd asked for word-processing and spreadsheet capabilities, but when Willow asked if there was anything specific he wanted to be able to do, he admitted he'd been thinking about Buffy and Dawn's school and college assignments.

Buffy was surprised to find that despite living in a crypt for the last three years, Spike was more up to date with current technology than she was. She also noticed that even though she'd once asserted that Spike didn't play well with others, he'd fitted in just fine. The more she thought about it, the more she realised, Spike played fine with others, except for males who had some sort of interest in her, or when said males forced their women to pick sides. Of course she'd kinda missed this before because the two of them spent so much time arguing for totally different reasons. Maybe, now that Giles wasn't around, fifty percent of the problem was that Xander didn't play well with Spike.

 




 

When Spike started hurling abuse at the TV, Buffy thought maybe the house video night wasn't such a good idea after all. However, having recovered from the idea of the crowd at a medieval joust doing a "Band Aid" to "We Will Rock You" he seemed to settle in to enjoy the rest of the film. If he was a little vocal in his encouragement for the film's characters it was more endearing than annoying. In fact it gave all four women the chance to tease the former Big Bad mercilessly. Buffy was even almost tempted to have him around when the soccer World Cup was on just to see how excited he could get. Maybe by then he would be around anyway.

Patrol was routine in the nicest possible way. There were enough vampires on the prowl to give both Buffy and Spike a bit of a work out, even if Spike did more watching than fighting. Buffy realised how much she'd missed knowing that someone had her back. Most of the time she neither needed nor wanted anyone's help. Spike was the only person she patrolled with who stayed out of her way and let her do her thing but would back her up a hundred percent when he was needed. Actually since her return from the grave, Spike was the only person she patrolled with. And okay, so he let her fight her own battles because watching her fight was one of the ways he got his rocks off. Which was kinda skanky, or it would be if she wasn't seeing him. But since she was, in a creepy sort of way it was kinda cool.

Now all the "need to talk" issues were out of the way, they were back to not needing to talk. Not that Spike was silent man; that was never going to happen, but there were large chunks of time where they were okay just being together. That was also of the good. Buffy thought they had lost that easiness between them after their first kiss, or at least after her reaction to it. Yet, as soon as she. as soon she what? .as soon as she admitted to having feelings for him, went on a date, took him home and shagged him senseless or vice versa, got engaged the next morning and let him claim her before the day was out. Yeah, just a few minor adjustments and all of a sudden the friendly comfortable silences are back.

Towards the end of the circuit of the graveyard Spike moved to the leeward side of a tree, sheltering the flame from his Zippo slightly as he lit another menthol cigarette. Sliding down against the side of the tree he almost whispered the gentle request. "C'mere, love." Buffy settled herself between his outstretched legs, leaning back against his chest as his free hand slid around her waist. The scene felt familiar to her and yet not. Then she identified the feeling of déjà vu. Last time the earth over the nearby grave had been freshly turned and bare and the vampire had been Angel on his last and possibly his last ever visit to Sunnydale.

Spike had steered them to her mother's grave. She tilted her head back to give him a questioning look. Spike shrugged in response.

"Day like today, wouldn't seem right 'thout sharin' it with her, sayin' thank you."

"So you think she can see us. hear us?" Buffy asked.

"I'd like to think so, though not all the time, I hope. You tell me. Do you think she knows?"

"I don't know. I remember that I knew everyone was okay, but I don't know if I ever knew the details of what was going on in people's lives, or if I just can't remember. It's like the whole thing is getting hazier the longer I'm back," admitted the revenant.

"I like to think that she knows when you're thinking about her, or those sort of moments where you think, I wish she could have been here to see this, but at the same time I feel closer to her here somehow."

"Me too." Buffy let her head rest side by side with his, her cheek against his jaw, and she placed both her hands over his right on her waist. There were things she might have said aloud if Spike hadn't been there. Instead, they ran through her head as a sort of silent prayer, which she hoped would somehow reach her mother. At her back, the vampire did much the same, only his messages were for a woman who had died more than a century before in a far away land as well as for Joyce.

When Spike lit a second cigarette, Buffy took it as a cue that he was ready to leave if she was. With a last goodbye, she levered herself into an upright position and offered a helping hand to Spike. "Come on. Time to make that phone call you were so looking forward to."

"Sure I can't just head home and let you take care of that?" Spike joked.

"Totally sure you can't head home and leave me to take care of it, Fang Boy" Buffy confirmed. "You're the one who made with the teeth. You get to talk to the nice watcher."

 





Tuesday, May 7th, 2002

Tuesday Early hours of the morning

"Hey, Giles." Buffy opened the conversation.

"Buffy? I wasn't expecting to hear from you again so soon. Is everything okay? You haven't decided that there's no need for my services after all?" It was evident that Giles hadn't indulged in his morning dose of caffeine as yet.

"The wedding's still going ahead, but Spike needs to talk to you." Buffy passed the phone over to the vampire.

"Watcher," Spike started. "There's been a development since we spoke to you last. You know what I said this afternoon about fang marks. It no longer applies."

"Of all stupid irresponsible arrogant things to do. Do you have any idea-"

"Yes, Rupert. I know exactly how bad this looks. I have no intention of using this to undue advantage. What can I say? I lost control and I claimed her. She accepted the claim without realising what she was doing. All things being equal, if we didn't have to worry about the whole human, slayer thing then Buffy would claim me and that would be it, but we need to know that she won't take on my weaknesses. We need." Spike's voice failed.

Buffy took the phone back from him. "Giles, it's me again. I know you want to lecture both of us and tell us how juvenile we've been and how you're disappointed, but we can't turn the clock back and this is a premium rate phone call. What we have to know is what do we do now?

Giles, soon is good. Please."

"Buffy, I will try to get back to you as soon as possible, but you really mustn't do anything until you hear back from me."

"Giles, we know. But we really didn't intend for anything to happen the last time."

"Perhaps you should. em, avoid each other until I can finish my research."

"Not an option. Or at least not one that I'm about to consider." Buffy made it clear.

"In that case, just, please be careful."

"We'll do our best. Speak to you soon."

"I'll be in touch," the watcher promised before hanging up the phone.

 
 
Chapter #11 - Chapter 2:03
 






SECTION 2 - ANGEL CITY

I got a buncha boys
We make a lot of noise
Little bit crazy
Playing with chemical toys
We're such bad ass dudes
I almost can't stand it myself
I wanna get the c**bs
In my elegant rags
Make my mom and daddy uptight
I wanna be an intellectual
Heterosexual, Angel City tonight.

(Motorhead, Album 1916)



Chapter 2.03
Tuesday, May 7th, 2002

Tuesday Morning

Cordy could hear the heavy sounds of Angel's hands impacting with the punching bag before she reached the room. She spoke as she went in, trying to distract the champion from his obvious brooding.

"Hey- I guess Fred is working on a way to determine if anything else came out of the portal."

Angel steadied the bag but still didn't turn to face the seer.

"That's good." His reply was terse.

"So maybe if we're very, very lucky, later today we'll be able to kill something. You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"Sure."

Cordy took a few seconds to debate her options before deciding to continue. "You had a phone call while you were out last night."

"Yeah." Angel's tone implied that he really didn't care.

"Buffy."

Angel continued to work on the punch-bag in silence, so Cordy pressed on.

"She said she wanted to see you." Angel steadied the punch-bag, looking at Cordy for the first time.

"I did say that now might not be the best time, that you were busy dealing with some family business."

"She's coming anyway, isn't she?"

Cordy nodded. "Tonight when she finishes work. She offered to help. Not that it seems like there'll be much for them to help with."

"Them?" asked Angel.

"Yeah, well, you're not going to like this part. Spike is her chauffeur for the night."

The punch-bag swung wildly as Angel's fist connected with enough force to split a knuckle or two.

"Does she know what happened the last time he was here?"

Cordy shrugged. "I don't know and I think that even if she does, she's hoping the two of you can put aside your differences, since she seemed to be volunteering his help as well."

Angel swung several more meaty punches at the bag so that the chains juddered, but still didn't comment.

"Maybe she's right. It seems from what I've heard from Willow that he's made a fresh start this last year or so. He's been helping them out for ages, for nothing, which is more than can be said for any of us. Seems like he played a big part in looking after Dawn when Buffy died. Him and the kid apparently dote on one another. I heard he nearly got himself tortured to death trying to keep her safe."

"Cordy, whatever front he may put on for public consumption, I know what Spike is. Spike is a ruthless killer with no feelings for anyone but himself and Dru and his feelings for Dru are just because it's in his blood."

"I think you may be wrong. From what I've heard not all of the Sunnydale crowd like him. Especially not Xander but then I don't recall Xander liking you either, but I think they would all say he's been useful.

It might be an idea if you spoke to Giles before they come. Get an unbiased opinion.

You either use this as an opportunity to reconnect with him, and give him the same benefit of the doubt that you want Connor to give you - or you start all "the macho vampire dominance crap" as Buffy put it and you'll probably never see him again. He's your family, it's up to you."

"Look, Cordy." Angel tried to spell things out for his colleague. "Spike is not coming here to win friends and influence people. He's a ruthless, psychotic killing machine and I know because I'm the one who moulded him. I beat every last bit of finer feeling out of him. Even if he can't hurt humans that still leaves you, Lorne, me and potentially Connor vulnerable to him. He's planning something. I don't know what, but whatever it is, it won't be a game of Happy Families."

"Angel. I get the message. You don't trust Spike. Buffy does though. She wouldn't be bringing him otherwise. I got the impression that if there's any trouble she thinks you'll be the one to start it. She trusts him not to start anything. Buffy's not a schoolgirl any more. She's a grown woman and she's seen a lot more of him for the last couple of years than you have. If she trusts him enough to put him in charge of her family's safety and she trusts him to bring her here without starting trouble then why shouldn't you."

"You just don't get it, Cordy. Spike and I have a history, very little of it good. I took pleasure in his pain. I forced him to submit to my domination. He's never been his own man. Even when I left, after I got my soul, he was forced to spend the next century trying to live up to the legacy I left behind. Then I come back and humiliate him again while he's stuck in a wheelchair unable to fight back. Spike hates me. I spent years, decades doing everything I could to make sure that he hated me. He hates me for how I treated him when we were all together and he hates me for leaving. He hates me most because he's had to live in my shadow. He loved Dru for over a century. He was the one who nursed her, looked after her, but I just had to look her way once after the best part of a hundred years and she left him for me.

These aren't things that could be forgiven. Even if he had a soul it would be nearly impossible. He hasn't, all he has is a demon thirsting for vengeance.

Tell me now that you think he wouldn't cause trouble, that once he knows Connor exists and what he means to me that he will be safe."

Cordy tried again to pacify him. "You said he hates you for leaving. That tends to imply that he wanted you to stay."

"You couldn't understand. He's family. There's all sorts of things in the mix but the bulk of what he feels is hatred and a need to prove himself."

"Okay, Angel, I say again speak to Giles, but you just said it yourself, he's family, and all this irredeemable crap is exactly what Connor says about you. It seems to me that if you want the benefit of the doubt, you should be prepared to give it to someone else now and again.

When all's said and done you can always hit him back, if he hits you first, not to mention the fact that Gunn and Fred could take him out if they had to and he wouldn't be able to do a thing about it.

Or of course, if you want Buffy to think you're a huge loser who doesn't trust her judgement you could attack him the minute he arrives.

You have till around nine this evening to think about it.

And about Connor, you're doing the right thing."

The thump, thump, thump of Angel's fists on the punch-bag ceased leaving only the sound of the bag swinging on its chains, but Angel refused to look her in the eye. Cordy turned to go.

"What if he doesn't come back?" Angel's voice stalled her on her way out and she turned back to him, their eyes meeting. "He feels further away from me now than when he was first taken. All that time I don't think I ever really believed that I'd lost him - not really. Then he shows up again and I knew I had."

"It's only temporary," the seer assured him.

"Yeah. Everything's temporary. There's just so much I thought we'd be able to do together before he, you know."

"Grew up?"

"Hated me."

"Angel, he doesn't hate you. He doesn't even know you. - But he will. He's gonna come back, Angel."

"How do you know?

"Because - he has to. Because he's family."

 




 

Buffy had spoken to Lorraine that morning on the telephone. She'd taken the easy way out and explained that she was still feeling a bit weak. She was up and about, but didn't feel she would be able to return to work as she was still shaky, emotionally and physically after the attack, so much so that she would prefer to be accompanied when she was out and about. She had promised to drop off her uniform or get "William" to drop it off later in the week. Then the pair of them had dropped by The Magic Box to pick up a set of keys from Anya so that Buffy could get a first hand look round the flat and take some quick curtain measurements before they went shopping.

Spike once again thanked the modern propensity for large malls with few points of egress and a preference for shelf-space over natural light which made vampire shopping far simpler than in the past. Once he had made it through to the dingy multi-storey parking lot attached to the mall he didn't have to worry about sunlight unless he passed near one of the four main entrances.

He had decided on the largest possible quilt size and a deep violet silk quilt cover. He had wanted black sheets and pillowcases to contrast with the cover. Buffy had wanted lilac. When Spike refused to buy "poofy" sheets it had emerged that his previous pink bedding had in fact been left behind by Harmony when she moved out. Buffy had decided that demon eggs aside, letting her unknowingly use Harmony's sheets was reason enough for blowing up his crypt. They finally compromised on a silvery grey.

Spike had insisted they drop off the bulky purchases and have a coffee before they started looking for curtains.

"Pet, have you thought any about where we're going to live when we're married?"

"Well, no. I just assumed you'd move into the house."

"And share your room?"

"Well, yeah- Oh, I see what you mean. It's going to be a bit small isn't it? But Willow's in mom's room."

"Okay, pet. As far as I can see it there are three options assuming the wiccas are back as a unit. Option the first. Red moves out of your place and in with Glinda, which means the easiest thing is for us to take your mum's room.

Option the second. Pixie moves back in to your place. This leaves us a bit short on space, but maybe if the stuff that's in the basement would fit in your room, we could convert the basement into a bedroom. Maybe get someone to put up some drywall to section off the laundry area so the rest of them can use it without disturbing us. We could probably even get them to fit an extra bathroom, maybe some sound-proofing.

Option the third, we look for another place. Either for the three of us or the five of us."

"I thought you were supposed to be quitting with the surprises."

"I did. That's why I didn't mention this yesterday. It's something you and Dawn need to discuss with the witches. Whatever way it goes I'll be happy. We'll either have a bit of extra privacy or we'll have Glinda around which'll make me happier about leavin' Bit when we patrol."

"We don't need to make a decision right this minute though, do we?"

"Well, if you think we're likely to end up in your mum's old room we're going to need a lot more curtains to match the bedding than otherwise."

Buffy just sighed and decided to concentrate on her cappuccino.

The rest of the morning and the early afternoon passed with lots of good-natured bickering and not a few sets of puppy-dog eyes on either side before they finally admitted that they weren't going to be able to fit anything else into the car. Back at the flat Buffy got to unpack all the goodies from the car, stacking them to one side until Anya removed all her stuff and Spike could officially move in, hopefully when they came back from LA.

Spike grabbed a few minutes sleep in the passenger seat on the shady side of the car. He wasn't going to start complaining, but sleeping on a stone sarcophagus after a night in Buffy's arms had resulted in him getting about the same amount of sleep for far less pleasant reasons. He could have gone up with her, but unlike earlier he had been unable to park the car in the early morning shade of the building and reach the entry hall uncovered. He didn't want the occupants of the other flats to see him running around under a blanket before he'd even moved in. Let their suspicions remain unaroused as long as possible. Besides, what's the point in having a girlfriend with super-strength if you don't let her use it now and then?

The sound of a car horn awoke Spike as Buffy cut-up the driver of a large white van, having belatedly realised that she was in the wrong lane.

"Bloody hell, woman. What on earth are you playing at?"

"Just trying to get in the right lane."

"No. Why the hell are you driving? I was supposed to drive. Remember?"

"You looked all cute and sleepy and I didn't want to disturb you."

"How often do I have to tell you not to use the "C" word, bint?" Spike was startled to realise they were almost at their destination. He had obviously been more tired than even he had realised. It wasn't even worth getting her to pull off the freeway at this stage so that he could take over, so he confined himself to giving directions and advising her as to when to change lane.

They had decided it would be better if they booked somewhere other than the Hyperion to stay whilst they were in town since Spike was none too sure of his welcome. Even if his meeting with Angel didn't result in an all-out bloodbath, it was hardly likely that his grand-sire would tolerate the noise from a room they might share. Not to mention the fact that having her ex with whom she'd spent one relatively innocent night listen to her and Spike's antics wasn't Buffy's idea of fun either.

Spike directed her toward a motel he had used before, neither too close nor too far from Angel's hotel. The room doors faced north and parking for each room was directly in front. The rooms were large with separate sitting, sleeping and food prep areas. They were well kept and Spike knew that Buffy would be pleased to find that patio doors on the south side of the room block opened onto a pleasant pool area. He'd got Dawn to fetch a bikini for Buffy when he first came over that morning and it was now sitting in the bottom of one of his duster pockets.

Passing Buffy a bundle of notes from his now almost depleted supply, Spike sent her to book the room. He slid over into the driver's seat. By some miracle they and his car seemed to have survived the two-hour trip, but that didn't mean he trusted Buffy's parallel parking.

Without him having said anything Buffy came back over to the passenger side after her trip to the office.

"Room eight. Check out is ten thirty, assuming we don't need to stay longer."

"See what you feel like tomorrow, pet. Not like you have to go to work, and I dare say LA has more choice in the way of say. expensive white dresses than Sunnydale."

Spike drove over to park in front of the assigned room and climbed out of the car, grabbing their one case and the cooler from the trunk and waiting for Buffy to open the room door. Looking at the small case in his hand, he asked, "did you actually pack anything for me or is this all yours?"

Buffy scowled in return. "You've got the bag of toiletries you left at mine the other night, some socks, a pair of jeans, two spare shirts and a spare T-shirt."

"Bet you didn't pack my trunks."

"You bet right, but since you didn't mention there was a pool so that I knew to bring mine, you've only got yourself to blame. And I bet you don't even own a pair of trunks."

"Okay, so maybe they're really an old pair of jeans that I cut the legs off of when the knees got ripped but they do the job, and it's hardly fair for you to complain." Spike pulled four triangles of material with a few ties from his pocket. "Especially when I got Dawn to find this for you."

Buffy slid her arms around him under the coat, thanking him without words. Spike leant down and kissed her softly on the tip of her nose.

"Go on, love. Go enjoy yourself. We've got a couple of hours yet before sundown. There probably is a nice shady entrance somewhere to Angel's place, but since we're going in the front way I reckon he can wait till dusk. Running in and trying to stamp out the flames from a burning blanket isn't the sort of entrance I want to make. I'll grab another forty winks, or I might just lie here and watch to make sure you don't attract any unwelcome attention. We can order pizza or something when you're done."

"No, it's okay. I'd feel guilty going swimming while you were stuck in here."

"Pet, there's only one of us is a vampire. And if you don't think I'd enjoy watching that gorgeous body of yours swimming up and down, all wet and nubile in that tiny little bikini then you don't know me very well. And I can watch fine from here as long as I stay in the front half of the room." Spike grabbed a couple of pillows and dropped them at the foot of the bed. Buffy realised that lying with his head at that end, he would be able to see the pool, or at least part of it. She remained undecided, her gaze flicking back and forth between the bikini which now lay on the bed, the pool and Spike, as he unhurriedly stripped off his duster, followed by his boots and socks, his shirt and his T-shirt. Finally he loosened the button on his jeans so that they rode on his hips and let himself flop onto the bed.

"Is that as much of a show as I get? I thought the ring would entitle me to the full package."

"You're always entitled to the full package. The bitty people in the pool there aren't."

Buffy pulled shut the curtains screening off the patio doors and then for good measure she closed the ones at the front of the room as well.

"Swimming can wait until later. Till we can go together, when all the sensible people are in bed asleep. For just now why don't we both get a couple of hours sleep. Who knows what we're going to be getting ourselves into later?"

Buffy stripped off layers of clothing until she was left in a camisole top and a thong. She climbed onto the bed alongside him, squeezing her shoulder in between his arm and his body so she could use his chest for a pillow. Her top arm draped over his waist and her leg hooked over his nearest one, her foot resting between his shins. His hand came up unable to resist the urge to stroke the gold streaked hair of the girl beside him and soon the soothing motion caused her to drift off.

 
 
Chapter #12 - Chapter 2:04
 






SECTION 2 - ANGEL CITY

I got a buncha boys
We make a lot of noise
Little bit crazy
Playing with chemical toys
We're such bad ass dudes
I almost can't stand it myself
I wanna get the c**bs
In my elegant rags
Make my mom and daddy uptight
I wanna be an intellectual
Heterosexual, Angel City tonight.

(Motorhead, Album 1916)



Chapter 2.04
Tuesday, May 7th, 2002

Spike lay awake for some time wondering what the evening would bring, not knowing how he wanted it to play out. Cordelia's question about Dru, had given away the fact that she wasn't the family business Angel was dealing with, but that still left a wide range of options. Angel hadn't even been twenty when he had made his first childe, but he had never learned to look after them. He never seemed to care for them, always abandoning them to their own devices at the first sign of difficulty. It had always been an unhappy recipe in Spike's view.

Angelus alone with Darla, meant that he was the one who took the abuse. He was the one she vented her frustration on. He was beaten and tortured, though never as often or as badly as he treated his subordinates because in truth, a life as a whore had trained Darla to be submissive to the men around her. Angel was punished only when he overstepped his bounds, and yet he railed against it. So in one of her more indulgent moods Darla allowed him to create his first child when he was little more than a fledgling.

For a while it amused him to indulge his sadistic whims, but eventually a male childe would become a challenge to his authority. A female childe would take attention away from his sire making her jealous and bringing down her ire. Occasionally, a foursome would work for a time, but even so there would often be problems between Angelus and the other male in the group. A weak male would be hounded to death, killed by Angelus' demanding tests. A strong male would eventually be a challenge to him. Angelus showed no fondness for his progeny; rather they were a means to demonstrate his power, his ability to dominate at least some of those around him. If he must follow Darla's commands, others would follow his.

Dru's devotion to him amused him. Her feelings for Spike and his for her infuriated him and he had used them in his twisted games, making each beg for pain and indignity to be visited upon them in order to spare the other. Had Spike been Angelus' childe then one of them would have died before Spike took his first slayer, but Spike was held in line by threats against his dark princess, for try as he might he couldn't convince her to leave her abusive Daddy. They had opportunity enough. Whenever pursuit closed upon the group Darla and Angel were quick to abandon the others to their fate using them as bait. Always though Dru would insist they travel to the appointed meeting place or scour his favourite cities until they found her Daddy again. Always until he got his soul.

It seemed to Spike that on average the git managed to last about twenty years between one childe or pair of children and the next. That meant he had quite a few uncles and aunts, and more cousins than he could count though to be fair he included all of Angelus' descendants of his generation or subsequent generations as cousins. He hadn't met that many. The world was still a big place, but every couple of decades some stranger in a bar somewhere would have the scent of family. Hence his remark to Buffy about a cousin who was married to a regurgitating demon.

So if Angel had family business to attend to it could mean almost anything. The real problem was he probably had far more sympathy for whoever was on the other side of the business than he had for the Poof. Just let Angel start the fight and this could be settled once and for all.

His free hand snaked over the side of the bed and when his fingers made contact with leather he gripped it, hoisting his duster onto the bed and rummaging one-handed through the pockets until he managed to find his cigarettes and lighter. He smiled to himself as he realised that he was actually grateful for the tile floor, knowing Buffy would have disapproved of him flicking ash onto a motel carpet. You are so whipped.

If it wasn't for her you could just catch the Poof on his own away from the cheerleader and the rest of his groupies, but then if it wasn't for her you'd probably be in New York, London or maybe Afghanistan. Nothing quite like a religious war, but then it wasn't as if he needed mayhem and corpses to cover his feeding any more, was it? Maybe Russia? He hadn't been there since before the revolution. How much of that unique architecture was still there? Living was probably cheap and winter nights long. Maybe he could start in India, pass through Afghanistan and up into Russia back through Eastern Europe maybe see if Drac was home.

Instead here he was killing time till he could confront his grandsire, bound by a promise that he wouldn't start a fight. Slayer had better realise that didn't mean he was going to curb his tongue. He hadn't specifically said anything, but she had to know that that would be too much to ask. He lay there for a minute listening to her heartbeat and her breathing, and knew it was worth it. There were almost no limits to the things he would do for her, but it was going to be a long couple of hours.

 




 
<

Tuesday Evening

Spike strode through the revolving door into the lobby of the Hyperion, hefting a duffel bag full of weapons in his left hand, elbow bent so that the bag rested against his shoulder. A second later Buffy followed him through. In Buffy's case it may have been by accident, but in Spike's case the all black look was definitely by design. His "pimp" necklace, as Dawn called it, was missing, as was the silver bracelet he sometimes wore, since both could potentially be used against him in a fight. His rings, many with nice sharp edges, however, adorned his hands. He'd decided to forego his normal over-shirt too, something else an opponent could grasp hold of.

Buffy had simply gone for black leather pants to match her new coat and a black camisole, topped by a sheer black over-shirt which she knotted loosely at the front instead of buttoning. Throw in the big bag of weapons and the overall effect was sort of Keanu and Carrie Moss on Peroxide.

"They're up on the mezzanine." Spike could easily hear the voices including a soft female one with a Texan? accent explaining something about Geiger counters? Angel's scent permeated the whole building but underneath he was aware of the scent of several others. Spike became aware of running footsteps, Angel's footsteps and he watched as Angel launched himself through one of the arches, landing faultlessly in the foyer below.

"Or they were." Angel had reacted exactly as Spike expected when he caught wind of his grandchilde and a freshly wounded slayer together. The elder vampire paused long enough when he hit the ground to take in the prominent wound on Buffy's neck and the lack of a matching wound on Spike's.

Angel dropped automatically into demon form and the accent of his youth. "Ye always were an arrogant little bastard, weren't you, William?" He advanced toward the blond in a fighting stance. "Couldn't wait te show off your little trophy could ye? Well, ye never did know when to cut and run, did ya? And this time ye're goin' ta pay with yer miserable existence."

"If you think you're demon enough to make me, you've forgotten about the help you needed just to get out alive the last time we met, Peaches."

Buffy wondered exactly what that little comment meant, she watched as Angel lunged forward, only to have Spike swing the weapons bag round and up into his jaw, before he slid it across the floor to Buffy. A spinning kick followed while the older vampire was still off balance, catching him perfectly on the side of his ear and hopefully causing damage to his inner ear.

"Yeah, well, he's got more help now than he had before," Cordy's voice drifted down from the balcony, where she leant against the bottom of the arch, steadying the aim on her crossbow. Next to her Gunn also took aim on the blond's heart.

"A reception committee, just for me? Princess, you shouldn't have." Spike countered. He would have made a comment about the hair but his mother had brought him up to not say anything at all if he couldn't say something nice. He made a lot of exceptions, but drew the line at telling a beautiful woman that she'd massacred one of her best features.

Angel took advantage of Spike's distraction, driving his shoulder into his stomach and bearing him to the ground, where pinned by the heavier man his speed was of little use. Cordy and Gunn relaxed their aim unable to get a clear shot at the younger vamp without endangering Angel. Just in case Buffy moved to stand between them and the vamps anyway. "Hey! If I don't get to interfere, you guys sure as hell don't get to fire stakes at my f-. my friend when Angel started it."

Spike drove his forehead up into Angel's nose, starting a nosebleed and followed up with a right hook into Angel's ear, the one he hadn't kicked, again trying to disrupt his balance so he could throw off the bigger man.

"No point being shy now, pet. Might as well give the rest of them the full story." Angel managed to pin both of Spike's arms and raised himself up enough that Spike couldn't get any more head-butts in. In desperation Spike brought a knee up before Angel could establish dominance, and was lucky enough to catch the other vampire in a very delicate area. Angel instinctively rolled into a ball at one side of the blond, and Spike flipped to his feet. He grasped the brunette's wrist and in one fluid motion stepped across to straddle the older vamp and pulled his arm behind his back forcing him down face first into the floor. Finally, Spike morphed into demon face and knelt on Angel's shoulders ready to administer the bite to his grandsire that would establish once and for all that he had dominance over him. There was normally a bit more to the ritual, but Spike figured even the Poof would concede defeat rather than force Spike to take him there in the hotel lobby in front of the assembled audience. Behind him Spike could hear Angel's cronies piling down the stairs, but he knew Buffy wouldn't let any of them interfere.

Spike's teeth bit down into the join of Angel's neck and shoulder. The Irishman struggled under him but was unable to wrestle his way free. The wound would be a messy one. Spike bit down harder, anxious to draw a reasonable amount of blood as quickly as possible and Angel struggled even more, sure Spike meant to drain him before he could expose the blond for holding Buffy in thrall. After a couple of seconds, that seemed to last for minutes Spike raised his head morphing back into human form straight away.

He leant over, whispering in Angel's ear. "You best concede or my fiancée and your minions are going to see a side of vampire etiquette I think we'd both prefer they didn't."

"Fuck off, boy!" the older vampire squirmed beneath him trying to goad him into a mistake and Spike's head exploded in a mess of bright stars as he dropped limply to the floor.

Alerted by the sudden sound of movements behind her Buffy turned to see Angel, blood seeping from his nose and from a ragged neck wound and a teenage boy pulling a wickedly sharp knife.

Everything happened at once. Angel realised the reason for his sudden freedom and saw Stephen kneel using his downward momentum to power his knife thrust as he aimed for Spike's throat. He wasn't carrying a stake, but there was no need to when beheading works just as well. Buffy was also aware of the youth's attack and she ran up and launched herself at the boy feet first. Angel's shout of "No-o-o-o-o-o!" echoing in her ears as she flew through the air. She was never sure even afterward if Angel meant to stop her or the boy.

She managed to knock the knife from the boy's hand, but her necessarily low trajectory meant she landed on the floor. Instead of trying to regain her feet she scrambled back to lie diagonally over Spike's torso, shielding his heart and his neck, ready to defend herself with her legs if need be.

A hand fumbled with the left sleeve of Spike's duster. "I don't know who you are, but you're getting involved in something you don't understand." Buffy aimed her words at the teenager who seemed reluctant to attack her as yet. "If Spike had wanted Angel dead, he would be dead already." She pulled the stake from Spike's sleeve using her fingertips. "He'll have at least another two of these in easy reach and if he could do that, then you can bet he could have used them a lot faster. Not to mention the fact that the bag he slid across to me at the start of the fight has all his favourite toys in it. Axes, swords, shotgun, the whole nine yards."

Angel's face registered shock at the truth behind Buffy's words. Not only had Spike beaten him in a fair fight, not something he would admit out loud but he had also passed up the opportunity to kill him.

Somewhere in the background Lorne cleared his throat in a meaningful way.

"Well if that ends the festivities for today." he moved round to offer Buffy a hand, which after taking a second to notice its unusual colour, she took. "Maybe we can take your .friend over to the couch and Angel can make with the introductions. Like the ring by the way. Indian? .as in from India not Native American." He reached down grasping Spike under one arm. Buffy grabbed the other and they pulled him over to the blue-grey circular couch and laid him out on the seat.

"Possibly. You'd have to ask the unconscious one."

"It's Indian." Angel's voice was thick with anger. "His great-grandfather met his wife when he was serving in the army there, before his elder brother was killed and he inherited everything." His voice softened as he changed topic.

"Everyone, I'd like you to meet Stephen. Stephen, this is Fred, Gunn, Cordelia, the guy helping move the corpse is Lorne and our two visitors are Buffy and William." Buffy tried to put stories to the faces, but other than Gunn she drew a blank. Obviously the LA to Sunnydale grapevine wasn't working that efficiently. She and Angel hadn't really touched on the other people in their lives the last time they met up, but she felt like she was standing in a room full of strangers.

"Cordy, why don't you and Buffy catch up on what everybody's been doing? Stephen and I will take the office. I'll catch up with Buffy later."

"That would be because I already told her it was your place to tell her everything, Brood Boy." Cordy muttered beneath her breath. "Fine, we'll have a regular party out here. You have fun."

"Knew it wasn't just me that noticed the brooding." Buffy couldn't resist thinking that it was typical for Spike's mouth to be working before he even got as far as sitting up. "How's life treating Queen C these days?"

"Pretty good. Let's see, since I saw you last, I've travelled to another dimension, which is where we met Fred. They made me a princess. I fell in love with a Champion. We freed all the slaves and beat the evil priests. I came back here and left him to rule. The visions almost killed me, long story, short version the Powers made me part demon so I'd be strong enough to keep them. The people in Pylea decided they wanted a democracy so Groo left then to it and came here to find me and hopefully we're somewhere in the living happily ever after stage.

Where is Groo?"

"He went for a walk, cup cake," Lorne supplied. "Around ten this morning."

Spike's eyes flew to meet those of the green demon, as did Buffy's. Lorne's eyes flicked briefly in the direction of the office and Spike noticed the youth for the first time, he also recognised the almost familiar scent that was present now but hadn't been before he was knocked unconscious.

"I'm guessing by the eau de Darla permeating the atmosphere, that the kid in the office is that family business you were talking about on the phone. Looks like Angel's finally got himself a little brother, and I thought he'd put the wicked witch off for life. Bit young. He's never gonna be able to stay in one place longer than a year or two or it's gonna be too damn obvious when he doesn't age."

"Oh, he ages. He ages like you would not believe." Spike raised an eyebrow in Gunn's direction.

"Ah think that's our cue to go try this thing outside. Check the perimeter. You guys have fun catching up." Gunn took Fred's hand and they both left the hotel.

"So," asked Lorne, "How do you know Darla?"

"Depends how you look at it. She's either me sister or me great-grandma."

"ANGEL. BUFFY." Cordy shouted. "It's a bar! Vampires. A gang of them!" Cordy cupped her hand behind her ear. "Buffy, can you hear me?" Angel emerged from the office rushing to the seer. "I can see her. A woman. Angel! She's all alone. She doesn't see them. Buffy, you have to hurry!"

Angel moved to stand directly in front of the seer and gripped her upper arms. "Slow down."

Spike snorted. "Two hundred and change and he can't tell the difference between loud and fast."

He picked up the bag of weapons from the floor. "I'll go start the car, slayer. You come on out when you've got an address."

"Will." Buffy threw him the stake she had removed from his sleeve before. He caught it without altering his stride and had it back in place before he got as far as the door.

Cordy looked about her as if the vision had cleared and she had just returned to the hotel. "There is a woman at a bar. There is a gang of vampires that are after her. You have to help her."

Angel looked over to where Stephen had emerged from the office. "Listen, uhm, -I -I, ah, have to go out for a while."

"It's okay." Stephen circled round toward the door the entire time he and his father were talking, every word, every pause brought him closer to the doors.

"It's kinda my job." Angel sounded apologetic.

"Yeah. Whatever."

"It could be kinda dangerous. There's a lot of killing and violence. You wanna come?" Stephen was now nearer the door than his father. He stopped and looked back at the vampire.

"Great," said Buffy. "You got an address for this big family outing?"

 
 
Chapter #13 - Chapter 2:05
 






SECTION 2 - ANGEL CITY

I got a buncha boys
We make a lot of noise
Little bit crazy
Playing with chemical toys
We're such bad ass dudes
I almost can't stand it myself
I wanna get the c**bs
In my elegant rags
Make my mom and daddy uptight
I wanna be an intellectual
Heterosexual, Angel City tonight.

(Motorhead, Album 1916)



Chapter 2.05
Tuesday, May 7th, 2002

"Okay, Peaches, are you goin' to tell me and the missus just what is goin' on round here?"

Angel hesitated before answering. "Cordy gets visions from the Powers That Be. She got a vision of a woman in a bar being attacked by-"

The car pulled up at a red light. "That isn't what I mean, Poofter, and you know it. Now are you going to tell me why junior here smells every bit as much like you as he does Darla? And more to the point, how come he's got a heartbeat?"

"Spike, this isn't the time." Angel spoke tersely hoping his tone would deter his grandchilde from further questions, instead as Spike returned his attention to navigating the LA streets Buffy took up his line of questioning.

"No, I think now is the perfect time, Angel. We've got a few minutes before we're going to get to that bar, even the way Will drives. So why don't you tell us? And while you're doing it why don't you tell us what you did with your tame watcher? Cordy seemed to think telling me what happened to him was your job too."

"Alright. Stephen is my son, mine and Darla's, not our childe, our son.-"

"And when we were going out you neglected to mention you had a son the same age as my sister because, say, you really didn't want to worry me with little details like birth control."

"Because he wasn't born till a couple of months ago. It's this whole prophecy thing." Buffy turned in her seat, eyebrow raised in a manner that reminded him far too much of his grandchilde.

"He was born a couple of months ago, and then he was kidnapped and taken to a hell dimension. Wesley was instrumental in the kidnapping, that is why he's no longer welcome at the hotel. As I'm sure you remember from your visit to one, time flows slightly differently in these places. To us he was kidnapped last week, to him it's been considerably longer."

"So that makes it less than a year since you and Darla. Did you go evil again and not tell us?" Buffy pressed him.

"No, that is I went through a bit of a rough patch, but I didn't lose my soul."

"This would be round the time you locked Dru and Darla in a cellar with a bunch of lawyers, and then felt so guilty about it afterwards that you set them on fire. Did you wait till her burns had healed before you slept with her?" Buffy wasn't about to let up.

"Yes, her burns had healed. Look this isn't something I want to explain in front of my son. I'm not proud of what happened. All that he needs to know is that in the end Darla loved him enough that she died so that he could be born."

Spike snorted.

"I know what you think but when she was pregnant it was like she had a soul, because Stephen was inside her, she could love, she loved him. He couldn't be born naturally so she dusted herself so that he could live."

"We're there, kiddies." Spike stepped on the brakes. "Story time's over, for now."

 




 

Lilah and Wesley stood on the balcony looking down at the bar off to the side of the crowded dance-floor. Lilah spoke condescendingly to the former watcher. ".I just needed to know whether or not I was wasting my time. And to prove we're still friends. I'll have her pulled out of there before anything really lethal happens. That way you don't have to torture yourself as to whether or not you did the right thing."

Wes saw movement on the floor below, a block of people in black leather moved as one through the dancers on the floor, accompanied by a youth Wes hasn't seen before. He took a step closer to the railing and watched the scene unfold. "I don't think that will be necessary."

Lilah stepped up next to him and looked down to see Angel along with a shorter man, a youth and a young woman, none of whom she recognised.

 

Angel turned to his son as they walked through the crowd followed by the two blondes. "Well, you wanted to kill a vampire. This might be your chance." He passed him a stake, keeping the movement as unobtrusive as possible. "Here, take this. It's a bit easier than trying to behead someone with a six-inch blade. Just make sure when you use that thing that you go straight for-"

"The heart. I know. My father taught me," Stephen interrupted.

"Yeah," answered his biological father. "I'm sure he did. Look, there are a lot of innocent people in here. Just don't go nailing anybody until they show their game face, okay?"

"Will it look like yours and his did?"

"Yeah." Angel looked across to the bar and recognised Justine.

"So why do you do it?" Stephen's nod included not only his father but Spike.

"Do what?" asked the brunette.

"Why kill them if they're like you?"

"They're not like me, Connor. That's a question for him." Angel tilted his head back over toward Spike.

"I'm not Connor."

Buffy's "spider-sense" was tingling. She counted three including the bartender around the woman that Angel seemed to have noticed at the bar and more interspersed throughout the crowd. With the slightest tilt of her head she and Spike split off toward the bar.

 

"Ready for another?" the bartender asked the redhead. She was half off her barstool, looking past Buffy and Spike as they approached, so Buffy's guess was that somehow she had picked up on Angel.

She turned back slightly to answer the question. "No, I'm done."

The bartender and the two men who had been sitting on either side of her vamped out, the barman grabbing her the arm. "You're not wrong," he said.

"She thinks she's a slayer," one of the vamps beside her remarked. There was a tap on his shoulder.

"Actually, that would be me." Buffy smiled brightly as she staked the gawking vamp. Spike meanwhile vaulted the bar just as the bartender pulled Justine up onto the counter. A stake appeared from out of Spike's sleeve.

"Too bad you're not going to be around long enough to get her autograph," Spike quipped before he drove a stake through his back and into his heart. Justine's struggles managed to knock the third vamp back toward the centre of the dance-floor and Angel deftly spun him round and impaled him on his stake. Stephen watched as he turned to dust.

Buffy pulled Justine down off the counter and pushed her in the direction of the exit. "Go, get your ass out of here, and in future leave the job to the professionals."

Spike picked up a bottle of bourbon and placed it on the countertop in case he had a chance to retrieve it later, before vaulting back onto his original side of the bar again. He and Buffy fell into a perfectly synchronised run back toward the centre of the room. Three vamps moved to close in on Angel who now stood in the middle of a clear space on the dance-floor. Before they could reach him Stephen ran toward him and with an impressive jump landed next to him, taking up a position at his back. Spike and Buffy fell in behind them so that the four made up the sides of a square.

Two went for Angel, one choosing Stephen as the easy option, or so he thought.

"We got any more incomin' or is this it, slayer?"

"There are a couple of shy ones." One of the two on Angel, heard the word slayer and decided to make a bolt for the door. Spike noted that Buffy was using the rather non-aerodynamic Mr Pointy and tossed her one of his stakes.

Seeing two coming in toward the slayer from the opposite side he took a diving roll under her line of sight to come to his feet right in front of the surprised pair. "My guess, you two would be the ones with confidence issues." Spike caught one with a left-handed jab to the nose, which he followed with a roundhouse kick to the temple before grabbing the vamp by the collar and throwing him toward Buffy.

Buffy flipped her new stake in her hand and launched it with an expert aim catching the retreating vampire, square through the heart. The stake fell to the ground and was scooped up by someone at the edge of the crowd. Buffy snapped out a forward kick to land on the jaw of the unfortunate that Spike sent her way, straightening him up long enough for her to drive Mr Pointy through his ribcage and into his heart.

"So did you want this one, pet, or should I just play with him for a bit?" Spike asked as he caught the remaining vamp behind the knee with a low roundhouse kick knocking him off balance.

Buffy noticed the teenager despatch his opponent with apparent ease. "I think maybe you should give him to Stephen. Looks like we missed a few birthdays. Time we made up for it."

"As you wish, pet. Kid! Wanna play?" As he spoke Spike continued to deliver blows that were enough to disorientate his opponent and prevent him mounting an attack of his own. Once he was sure Stephen was aware of the incoming threat, Spike sent the vamp sprawling in his direction.

He turned to watch Stephen in his fight, moving to a position where he could easily intervene if it looked like the boy might be injured, but not about to interfere unless the boy looked like he needed or wanted help. Buffy moved to stand next to him, resting a hand on his shoulder as she also looked on.

"A little help here, guys?" Angel asked. Buffy shrugged and stepped up behind Angel's admittedly skilful opponent, staking him whilst her ex had him distracted. Angel was just about to move to help his son when Stephen swept his opponent to the floor and staked him by himself.

"Were you actually thinking of helping there or were you just going to let my son get hurt?" Angel glowered at the white-blond vamp.

Spike snorted. "Your son was in no danger of getting hurt. As soon as we were down to less than one each he started playing with 'im. He could have dusted 'im five minutes back if he'd wanted to. Kid's damn good."

 

Up on the balcony, Lilah watched the blondes at the bar.

"Angel been recruiting lately?"

"Hardly. I thought your firm would have done enough research on Angel's background for you to recognise that pair. I don't see why I should give you any hints." Wes looked on captivated by how the pair moved together as if one knew what the other were thinking. With any luck Lilah would have her people looking for a pair of fighters who Angel had known in the past, rather than two separate fighters who had become a pair.

The focus of the fight shifted to the centre of the room and Stephen's fighting skills became apparent.

Lilah couldn't help asking, "who's the Boy Wonder? He moves just like-"

"His father," Wes finished for her, the similarity obvious as the two stood side by side.

As the fight drew to a close, Lilah looked up from the dance-floor. "Now tell me your not interested," she said, before she realised she was talking to the air.

 

Buffy slid her arms around Spike's waist, lulling him into a false sense of security. "Did I see you setting up a bottle of bourbon on the bar so you could steal it when the fight was over?"

"Yeah, Ah did." Spike smiled brightly and tried to move toward the bar to retrieve said item before anyone else did, only to find himself working against the power of slayer strength. Realisation suddenly dawned. "Ahh, Sorry, pet. I forgot. Force of habit. You can punish me later in private, so I don't forget again."

"Hmmph, that might make sense if I could think of something that would punish you without punishing me at the same time. Unless I stop you from watching England's World Cup matches," Buffy threatened.

"Would hardly warrant that even if I took the bloody bourbon, slayer. For any decent Englishman that would constitute cruel and unusual punishment. It's in the Geneva Convention. Not allowed."

"Since when have you been a prisoner of war."

"And what else do you call it, love? Haven't been my own man in years." Spike's words were low and laced with honey.

The couple made their way to the back door of the club, pausing in the doorway to watch Angel and Stephen mock sparring in the back alley.

"So you think the kid's good?" Buffy cast an appraising eye over the pair.

"Reckon he's got a damn sight more natural talent than his father. Whoever taught him's not bad, but they were no Giles. A few pointers off Cro Magnon there and he'll be even better."

"Praise indeed. If I didn't know better I'd say you liked him."

"Well, can't say as I've heard him open his mouth yet, but it's not like the kid can help who his parents are. As somebody who lived through twenty years in that household, I kinda feel sorry for the poor bugger," Spike responded. "If it was still Angelus that was around and not the Poof, I'd say whoever kidnapped him did him a favour."

"I wouldn't let him hear you say that," Buffy cautioned.

"Before Robin, there, interfered I think I pretty much earned the right to say what the hell I want, at least I assume it was the kid that knocked me out."

"It was the kid, and I want to know what that bit about vampire etiquette that I'm not supposed to know is."

"Bloody slayer hearing. I think you'll find that neither me nor the Poof are prepared to tell you."

"We'll see. Let's head back. I want to talk to Cordelia some more before I leave."

"I doubt she'll be able to tell you either."

"Not about that, maybe."

The couple took a wide berth round the father and son, not noticing the old man watching from a fire escape up above the alley. When the kid ran past them Spike just thought he was in a hurry to get to the car, or, God forbid, the Brood Monster had lightened up enough to give him a race. When he ran past the car and disappeared into the distance Spike looked back to see what his grandsire's reaction would be. Spike vowed to have some champagne sent to the hotel as soon as he could. The dour old git was actually smiling, a proper decent smile, not one of those half smiles he used to manage once in a blue moon.

"Slayer wants to talk to Vision Girl some more. Think she'll still be around when we drop you back at the hotel?" Spike asked.

"Probably, she likes to hang around until she knows how these things work out. Besides, I think it's time you and I had a nice private chat," the older vampire replied.

Spike turned to Buffy. "Slayer, tell him which order the teeth marks and the engagement ring came in."

"Engagement ring first, teeth marks a few hours later."

"Now tell him why there isn't a matching set on my neck."

"We're waiting on Giles doing some research to make sure the bond won't leave me needing SPF 3000, or allergic to holy water or anything like that," Buffy replied. "Otherwise, you bet I'd get my own back."

"Last time you were enthralled by a vampire, did you know what was going on."

"Well, I didn't know what it was at first, but yeah, I knew it was something and then I found out it was thrall." Buffy wondered how many more of these questions Spike was going to ask.

"How long did it last?"

"Until I tasted his blood."

"Have I ever tried to use a thrall or anything similar on you?" Spike probed.

"No. You'd class that as cheating."

"You don't think that maybe I'm so good at it you don't know what's happening?"

"Yeah, like you'd be better at it than Dracula, besides I bit you hard enough to draw blood on Sunday night. I'd have noticed it being weakened if nothing else," Buffy derided the very premise on which the question was based.

"The defence rests." Spike turned from Buffy to Angel. "Still want that private talk or have we covered everything except the empty threat?"

"It wouldn't be an empty threat."

"Yeah, right. Red or the watcher would do me months before you even knew what was happening. And I wouldn't be able to fight back against either of them. Chip doesn't stop me kicking your ass."

"How did you manage to claim Buffy if that chip's still working?" Angel looked for the hole in Spike's arguments that he knew must exist somewhere.

"It would appear that since she was resurrected Buffy's a bit more special than your average human." Spike's explanation was rather more diplomatic than the one he had given Buffy.

"So you can hurt her?" the older vamp questioned the pair.

"Wouldn't be much good as her sparring partner otherwise," Spike responded, his smirk hinting at more layers of meaning than the obvious. "We done yet?"

"Yeah, for now." The older vamp gave his grudging agreement.

"Good." Spike started the car and headed toward the hotel.

 
 
Chapter #14 - Chapter 2:06
 






SECTION 2 - ANGEL CITY

I got a buncha boys
We make a lot of noise
Little bit crazy
Playing with chemical toys
We're such bad ass dudes
I almost can't stand it myself
I wanna get the c**bs
In my elegant rags
Make my mom and daddy uptight
I wanna be an intellectual
Heterosexual, Angel City tonight.

(Motorhead, Album 1916)



Chapter 2.06
Tuesday, May 7th, 2002

When they got back to the hotel Buffy cornered Cordelia in the office, while Spike was left to be entertained by Lorne, which was fine by him because Lorne knew his way round the hotel's liquor supply. Angel headed straight for his room.

"Look, Cordelia, Angel gave me the Cliff Notes version of what was going on. What I want to know is, what's the deal with Wes? Angel wasn't real forthcoming and I've got too used to dealing with Spike where he comes on out and says what's on his mind. I don't have time or patience to try to wheedle what I want to know out of Angel, so spill."

"Wes found a prophesy that said Angel was going to kill Connor. Wolfram & Hart got to Angel's blood supply and dosed it with Conn-"

"Who is Connor?"

"Those must have been really short Cliff Notes. Connor is Angel's son. Stephen is the name Holtz gave him," Cordy explained

"Holtz being the guy who kidnapped him, right?"

"Anyway, so the lawyers tampered with Angel's blood and mixed in some of Connor's blood that they must have stolen from the hospital."

"The point of that being." Buffy wondered what this had to do with Wes.

"To make Connor smell like food to Angel. By the time we realised what the problem was Angel had to keep his distance a bit from the kid, which if you saw him the rest of the time you would know was nearly impossible for him.

Wes translated this ancient prophesy that said Angel would kill his son, but instead of telling anyone he just offered to look after the kid overnight. It was only because Lorne picked up on his singing when he was trying to keep the baby quiet as he packed up that we found out what he was going to do, but that was only after we found Lorne knocked unconscious when we got back from somewhere else.

By the time we went after him, Wes was already lying on the grass outside his apartment block with his throat slit from ear to ear and Holtz had the baby. Angel caught up with Holtz about the same time the Wolfram & Hart's combat squad hit the scene. Holtz's demon friend created a rip in the fabric of the universe and Holtz went through it to Quor-toth while Angel was busy dealing with Lilah and her guys.

Fred and Gunn found Wes' notes and realised why he'd done what he did, but it took them till the next morning to find Wes himself. Somebody had gone through his pockets and then moved him where he was less likely to be noticed. They had him taken to hospital and they explained to Angel about the prophecy, which we later found out was false and planted by the same time travelling non-corporeal demon that was helping Holtz. Angel went to see Wes in the hospital. They had to pull him off him. He tried to smother him while he was still flat on his back."

"So the guy made a judgement call and got it wrong, and now he's supposed to walk away from everyone he knows. From everything he's helped build up over the last two and a half years? Have any of you been to see him? Do you even know if he's out of hospital?"

"Fred took some of his things that he'd left in the office over to his apartment and told him not to come back. Gunn went to him behind Angel's back for help when Fred's life was in danger and he made it clear that he would only help that one time, he wasn't going to be there for us again."

"So it's like a divorce case, only Angel gets all the friends and his job and Wes is left with no income and no-one to care whether he lives or dies."

"He hurt Angel. And he helped those people deprive him of his son's childhood." Cordelia's voice hardened.

"He did what he thought he had to, to protect the kid. He was wrong. Don't you think having his throat slit and having someone try to smother him might be punishment enough? Don't you people understand there's two sides to an argument? I can see that expecting Angel to come round might be a bit much to ask, but how could the rest of you all just fall into line as if none of you have ever made a mistake in your lives.

I tried to kill Xander and Willow and my kid sister and they all forgave me. The guy just did the best he could with the information he had. Get me his address."

Cordy flicked the Rolodex on the desk and then pulled out a card from it and held it out toward Buffy.

"What're you going to do?" she asked keeping hold of her side of the card until Buffy answered.

"See if I can get him a second chance."

Buffy strode out of the office, coat and hair flowing behind her, a picture of righteous indignation.

Spike knocked back the rest of his drink and tossed the empty glass to Lorne. "Looks like we're on the move." He fell in next to his beloved without even bothering to ask where they were going.

 




 

Spike manoeuvred the car easily through the traffic. The directions on the card were plain and concise and he had no trouble following them. Buffy meanwhile was attempting to use up Spike's mobile phone credit at the fastest possible rate.

"Buffy, it's half five in the morning there. Rupert is not going to be best chuffed if you ring him now."

"I'm not going to go to Wes and tell him maybe I can get him a shit job and he might be able to whatever. If the best I can do is get him a job in the magic shop then I at least want to be able to tell him outright now. The guy made a mistake, now there's not one of them stayed in touch, just go looking for him when they needed him, and he's lost his job. One mistake and they've taken away his whole life."

"Getting a bit excited about the whole thing aren't you, love?"

"It just pisses me off. It's like that crowd Cordy used to run with in high school. All hanging on her every word. Whatever she thought, they thought. Only now it's what Angel thinks. Angel doesn't like Wes so Wes all but gets run out of town. Angel tried to kill him, tried to smother him in his hospital bed, but that was Angel and he'd just lost his child so that was fine by everybody."

"Take a deep breath and count to ten, then speak to Rupert."

Buffy took his advice. The phone rang for a considerable length of time before it was answered.

"Buffy, do you know what time it is over here? I'm not here solely to resolve your romantic problems." Giles' voice took on that tone he used when he was irritated but trying patiently to explain something to someone of lower intellectual capacity.

"How did you know it was me? And half past five in the morning?"

"Precisely. I sincerely hope you're not about to tell me you just discovered that you're having a reaction to holy water, although I trust it is something along those lines of magnitude for you to be calling me at this hour."

"How do I put this? You know these annoying phone calls you get at half five in the morning? If we had someone in Sunnydale with say. watcher type experience, then we might not have to make so many of them."

"Yes, I'm sure. Your point being?"

"Angel and Wesley have had a bit of a falling out. The long and short is that no-one is talking to Wes and he hasn't got a job any more. I thought that maybe we could pinch him, if say there was a job waiting for him in Sunnydale. I mean Will- Spike can cope with Latin but Wes is going to know loads of languages and stuff we don't. He could really speed up our research times and save us having to pester you, but it doesn't seem fair asking him to move without at least a job offer."

"You want me to offer Wesley Wyndam-Pryce a job at The Magic Box?"

"Well, duh."

"And that's why you rang me at five thirty in the morning?"

"I kinda wanted to go see him straight away. In fact, we're pulling up outside his flat now, and I don't know how long we'll be in LA and if I left it till it was an okay time to ring you it would be too late to visit him tonight."

"Yes, Buffy."

"Is that yes he can have a job?" Buffy almost bounced in her seat.

"Yes, give him my number and get him to ring at a civilised hour if he's interested and we'll sort out the details and I'll contact Anya."

"Thank you, Giles. Have I told you lately what a nice person you are and how much I love you?"

"Not for some time." Buffy could hear the smile in his voice.

"Hey, I've been practising. Will doesn't have to be the only one to reap the benefit. We'll ring you at a civilised hour when we're back in Sunnydale. Love you. Bye."

"Love you too, Buffy."

 




 

The two blondes stood outside the apartment door. Buffy's fiery mood having got the pair of them so far, seemed to have failed her.

"Am I doing the right thing?" Buffy asked, suddenly nervous about taking such a pushy role in the life of someone who had been, theoretically at least, an authority figure. She held Spike's right hand in her left and her thumb traced backwards and forwards over his palm not as a caress but as a sign of her nervousness.

"Don't know, love. Never met the bloke. Can't say how he'll take it and I can't say how he'll get on with everyone. I can say we could use someone with a bit more of that sort of background and I'll be pleased if the watcher stops lookin' to me to be the adult in charge of the kindergarten. I'm fed up of getting' the blame for not stoppin' that lot when they do somethin' stupid, as if they'd listen to me in the first place.

There's only one way to find out, pet." Buffy gave his hand a quick squeeze drawing comfort just from his presence and knocked on the door.

They waited for some time, but there was no response.

"Bugger this for a game of soldiers." Spike used his fist to bray repeatedly on the door, the noise soon followed by some high volume questioning.

"What the bloody hell have English manners come to when a supposed gentleman leaves a lady stood outside his door while he sits inside munchin' on." Spike sniffed. ". pizza flavour soddin' Dori-" The door to the flat opened to reveal a rather dishevelled Wes still wearing the same clothes he had on in the club except for the jacket. ".Tos?" Spike concluded at a normal conversational level, his free hand running swiftly through his blond locks.

"Buffy and if I'm not mistaken Spike. This is a surprise." Wes's tone was cool and he made no move to invite either of them in.

Buffy shrugged. "We were in town. Thought I'd renew old acquaintances."

Spike could almost see the former watcher trying to come to a decision. "Maybe this isn't the place, pet? Could be Wes here knows a decent pub nearby?" he suggested, giving the watcher an easy way out.

"You're right. I do. Perhaps we should adjourn. I'll just fetch my jacket," Wes replied. He disappeared out of sight behind the door, only to return a few minutes later wearing a heavy black wool casual jacket.

The three walked out of the apartment block in silence before Spike broke the embarrassed silence. "Heard the Poof and you weren't on best of terms."

"If you mean Angel, then I believe that would be a euphemistic turn of phrase," was Wes's dry response.

"Poof. yeah, there's plenty worse things I could and have called him in my time, but not in front of a lady."

The two men eyed each other up and down. Spike had been led to expect Giles jnr. with a better suit, but without the Ripper element. Instead he was pretty sure the man in front of him could handle himself. He had no false airs, although from his upper class accent, he obviously came from a privileged background. He could appreciate his dry wit. Spike was definitely warming to the idea of having the other Englishman around. Now if they had the same idea as to what constituted a decent pub, they were definitely in business.

"Buffy," Wes prompted gently. "I must say that I'm surprised given the nature of our previous relationship that you would get in touch."

"I never had a problem with you personally, just the Council indoctrination and the prig-like tendencies that go with. Seems to me Quentin wouldn't approve of you now," Buffy argued.

Spike snorted. "She means that as a compliment. Coming from her they're few and far between so make the most of it, mate."

"I meant that he seems to have changed but that the changes all seem to be for the good. And who says I'm mean with the compliments. It's just you don't do much to deserve any," Buffy countered though her tone was far from serious.

Spike raised that scarred eyebrow, and when Buffy glanced over in his direction he ran the tip of his tongue over his gleaming white upper teeth. Just the gesture was enough to set off a tingle low in her stomach and she flushed scarlet as she remembered the effusive encouragement that seemed to flow from her in torrents when his head lay between her legs. Having achieved his goal Spike pulled his cigarette pack from his pocket and flicking the top open he ducked his head to the packet to draw one out between his lips rather than release Buffy's hand. He reached across Buffy and held the pack out in Wes's direction before returning the pack to his pocket and pulling out his lighter.

Wes looked over at the couple. From what he'd seen so far, it seemed certain that the two shared a very intimate relationship, especially if the marks on the slayer's neck weren't the result of a recent skirmish gone awry, and having viewed their performance in the club that was doubtful.

"You'll pardon me if I say that you both seem far closer than I would expect Rupert to be pleased about," Wes commented.

"Can't imagine that I'd be his first choice," Spike admitted, "but he can't be too brassed off considerin' he's agreed to give away the bride."

"You're engaged?" Wes was unable to hide his surprise.

The couple raised their joined hands and tilted them till Wes could see the ring. "S'why we're in this neck of the woods to begin with. Reckoned it was better to head off the Avenging Angel before he heard some fifth-hand tale and came swoopin' into Sunnydale."

"And did the plan work?"

"Let's say Angel's sporting a mark not dissimilar to the slayer's, but I've got a nice lump on the top of me 'ead where 'is kid knocked me out, so we both get to claim we didn't lose. He's keepin' 'is trap shut for now so I suppose it's as much as we dare hope for." As he spoke the last few words the group moved through the doors into a smoky dimly lit bar. Spike grinned as they moved deeper into the bar.

"What's got you so happy?" Buffy asked.

"Music. Any pub that has that mad pissed bugger on the juke box can't be all bad." Buffy didn't recognise the song at all. It sounded almost like folk music, but then she would have been about six when the album came out and the language wasn't anything you'd play in front of a kid. That particular group had bypassed her generation except for "Fairytale of New York" making itself known round Christmas time and the track from the old Murphy's ads, not that she knew who had done that.

Spike sighed when he saw her blank look. "Shane MacGowan, lead singer with the Pogues and writer of most of their original material. Total pisshead and was even when we used to go to all the same gigs and pubs a quarter of a century ago."

"You knew him?"

"Not to talk to, just one of those faces you used to see everywhere you went, a sort of nodding acquaintance. You couldn't miss him like, he used to have this suit jacket he wore everywhere like a great big union jack front and back and he was never exactly shy and retiring." Spike's voice was almost wistful as he thought back to London in punk's heyday. For about three years he and Dru had shuttled back and forth between London and New York as the whim took them.

"What's your pleasure?" Breaking away from his reverie, Spike looked from Wes to Buffy.

"I'll have a pint of the guest ale," Wes answered.

"Something fruity?" suggested the slayer. Spike rolled his eyes but headed for the bar anyway.

The slayer and former watcher chose a table and settled in on opposite sides while they waited on the vampire's return.

"So what is this really about, Buffy?" Wes asked when they were alone.

"We heard what happened between you and Angel. I don't know if you know that Giles moved back to the Mother Country, but we've been sorta research-challenged. It really would be better if we had someone with your sort of expertise on site." Buffy looked at the table and raced through the rest of her spiel before she could back out.

"We don't charge for all the demon hunting and stuff so we can't pay you, at least not for that, but Giles says that if you want a job at the magic shop it's yours. You just need to ring him at a civilised hour and you can sort out the details between you. I don't know how the wages would compare or anything. And if something else came up that suited you better it's not like you'd be obligated, or if this lot came to their senses. or maybe you own your apartment or something and can't move, whatever. But we could use your help. assuming you haven't ended up too addicted to Passions to think about going back to work."

"A week isn't long enough for me to start watching daytime soaps, let alone become an addict. As to the rest of it I would have to discuss the whole situation with Giles before I could make a decision, though I must say it leaves certain other offers standing." Wes managed a half smile. "At least yours didn't come with a reminder that I'm doomed to the ninth circle of hell."

"You are?" Spike asked as he deposited two identical pints on the table before pulling a bottle of Bacardi Breezer from his jeans front pocket. "I would say that I'd see you there, least that's what most demons seem to think or they would if the knew their Dante, but a certain someone made me promise I'd do my best to achieve the impossible." Spike slid into a chair on the slayer's left claiming her hand again.

"You have other plans, I take it?" Wes queried.

"Buffy, here, seems to think I have the potential to be the first evil soulless thing to make it to heaven. Says she'll take it personal if I don't. So if I'm supposed to avoid damnation, I don't see why you shouldn't, being all soul-havin' an' all." Spike made it sound as if he was suggesting a walk in the park. "'Sides, you didn't betray him, you just tried to protect his kid for him. If all the information you had said he was the threat, don't see that what you did was wrong, and it took guts not to bring in any of the rest of them, to take all the responsibility. Just a pity they're all too blinkered to see it.

Cheers, mate." Spike raised a glass to the bemused ex-watcher.

 
 
Chapter #15 - Chapter 2:07
 






SECTION 2 - ANGEL CITY

I got a buncha boys
We make a lot of noise
Little bit crazy
Playing with chemical toys
We're such bad ass dudes
I almost can't stand it myself
I wanna get the c**bs
In my elegant rags
Make my mom and daddy uptight
I wanna be an intellectual
Heterosexual, Angel City tonight.

(Motorhead, Album 1916)



Chapter 2.07
Tuesday, May 7th, 2002

"You sure?" Spike asked.

"Yeah. The point of this trip is that things end up settled between us all. Your little Q & A session might have him on hold for a bit, but I think I should talk to him one on one before we leave. If I can make him understand how we feel, he might be able to accept it."

"Back to the hotel it is then. No swimming for Spike, yet."

Wes's flat wasn't far from the hotel and Buffy could see it in the distance when Spike hung a sudden right down an alley and then another at the other end taking them back the way they had come. A few blocks further up he took another right and pulled to a stop near where the alley came out onto the larger road.

"Detour?" asked Buffy.

"Nope, Poof passed us back there. He's nearby somewhere. Guess the Princess had another vision."

Spike popped the trunk and pulled an axe and a crossbow from the bag. Throwing the crossbow to Buffy, who by this time had joined him he headed for the corner of the block at a jog. On the opposite side of a junction he saw Angel head for one of the rooms on the upper level of a two-storey motel. Dodging the traffic, the pair saw him enter one of the rooms and close the door. As they neared the motel Spike slowed and moved stealthily up the stairs.

"Pet, this isn't a vision thing. This is personal. This is the guy that took the kid."

"So what do we do?"

"We make sure we're somewhere he won't see us if he comes out, hope he's too distracted to sense us and hang around until we're sure he's not going to do anything stupid like kill the guy the kid calls Dad."

Spike made sure they were a couple of rooms along from the room Angel had gone into and then gave Buffy a boost so that she could climb onto the flat roof before climbing up himself. The two cautiously moved along the roof until they were above the correct room.

Almost as soon as they were in position the room door opened and Angel paused in the doorway. At first Spike thought his grandsire had sensed them but when the old man finished speaking the vampire left. They waited until they saw him get in his car and drive off toward the coast.

"Let's go," Buffy prompted.

"No rush, pet. Peaches hasn't gone back to the hotel. Everybody that doesn't live there has probably done a bunk for the night and if they're not vampires chances are they've turned in. We could go back to the motel."

"And that would end with me speaking to Angel when?"

Spike gave her a sultry smile. "Later? .Tomorrow? .Sometime? .Maybe Never?" He stepped in and stroked her cheek with his thumb, before he lowered his lips to meet hers. Their touch was gentle, brushing lightly against hers and making her lips tingle. When she didn't resist he increased the pressure on her lips, their mouths opening simultaneously as if at some subconscious signal. Their weapons slid unnoticed from their hands to lie at their feet and Buffy's arms looped around his neck. Spike's hand cupped the side of her face, his fingers tangled in her hair. His other hand slid under her coat and pressed on the small of her back to draw her toward him.

Buffy moaned into his mouth, the muffled sound spurring the vampire's ardour further. His tongue extended into her mouth slowly exploring and tasting her, memorising every sensation. Reluctantly he pulled back to let her breathe. He looked down into her hazel eyes, her pupils wide with desire.

"I love you, Buffy Summers and I want you, I'll always want you, even if I get to be with you for seventy years and your hair turns white and your face is lined and maybe things get to be not quite so firm. All I'll need to do is look into your eyes and you'll still be beautiful to me. Everything I fell in love with is there in your eyes, your strength, your love, your compassion. You're laughing at me."

"Sorry!" Buffy covered her mouth to stifle her giggles. "It's really sweet. it's just I've got this picture of this little white-haired lady, lying in a bed in an old folks home with an oxygen mask and your perfect white butt bobbing up and down."

The romantic mood was totally lost. "Hah! See that's where you've got it totally wrong, see 'cause by the time you're that old, pet, you're going to have to go on top. Otherwise I might just end up pounding those brittle bones of yours into powder. And as if I'd let anyone else take care of you. Old folks home indeed. Only way I'd be screwin' you in an old folks home was if I was tryin to upset Harris doin' it in his bed, providin' he hadn't pissed in it first."

Buffy slapped his arm, now finding it even harder to control her laughter. Spike pulled a cigarette from his pack but paused just before he lit it, raising a finger to his lips. Footsteps clattered up the metal stairway to the upper floor and the couple recognised the woman they had rescued earlier in the bar though now she wore a biker's jacket on top of the light coloured top she'd worn earlier. She moved straight to the door directly below them and before she could knock the door opened. The old man took one last look around the room and then followed the woman down the steps and around the corner toward the alley, coughing and wheezing as if merely catching his breath was a hardship.

As soon as they rounded the corner, Spike lit his neglected cigarette. "Now, see, if a woman like that can be with a bloke like him, who says I can't be with you when you're old and wrinkly?" Spike lodged his cigarette between his lips and used both his hands to tickle her sides. In retaliation Buffy pulled the cigarette from his lips holding it away behind her back, which aside from keeping it out of his reach meant that his chest rubbed against her taut breasts as he tried to get it back.

It was Buffy who heard the footsteps this time. Looking down she saw Angel's son running toward them at superhuman speed, down the middle of the busy road.

"Two minutes too late," she said, her voice filled with sorrow at his loss.

Stephen came running up the stairs, and less than a second later they heard the room door slam open and the boy's anguished cries, before he started back down the stairs again.

Suddenly Spike swore and snatched the axe from where it lay on the roof before dropping off the edge. He shouted one word as she heard his boots thump a rapid tattoo to the far end of the walkway.

"Blood!" Buffy grabbed the crossbow and made for the stairs. She reached the edge of the roof just in time to see Spike leap onto and off of the railing at the end of the balcony nearest the alley in one motion. For a second she was transfixed by the grace with which he moved, before she sped to catch him up.

Spike was too late. The boy was there first, already helping the woman to hold the old man. He strained to hear a third heartbeat from the group but there was only the boy's and the woman's.

Spike pulled a fresh cigarette from his pack and readied the lighter as he listened to the woman's words, forced out between her sobs.

"This didn't have to happen. Your father was gonna leave. He just wanted to talk to Angelus."

Spike flicked open the lighter with a loud click, letting the flame illuminate the planes of his face for a second before he walked out of the shadows. He gave a slow hand-clap the scene reminiscent of the first night he saw Buffy.

"They should put you up for an Oscar, pet. The grief's very convincing considerin' you're probably the bitch that killed him." Spike swaggered closer all the time. He was close enough to see the wounds on the old man's neck as Buffy came barrelling round the corner, stalling as she took in the scene before her.

"Shut up, demon. Your kind has no right to even speak about my father."

Spike continued, as if Stephen hadn't opened his mouth. "Sloppy job on killin' him though. You were really countin' on the kid never havin' seen a vampire bite before. A killing wound would almost never just be two holes, a killing wound would look a lot more like what I did to Angel tonight. The one on Buffy's neck is just a love-bite but you can still see the imprint of all my teeth."

He watched the kid's eyes travel from the bite on Buffy's neck, to the puncture marks on the old man's body. Buffy moved closer angling her neck so the mark was plain to see.

"I got a little bit carried away, but it's still a lot less messy than you would get from a bite made during an attack because she wasn't struggling. The only time you'll see a two-hole bite is when a vamp is co-operating with someone who wants an unobtrusive wound. Like the whores who'll bite people who get off on it for money and are prepared to make the feeding last a long time. Even then you wouldn't see what you've got there. The holes should be perpendicular to his collar not parallel to it. See where the fang marks are on Buffy's neck and how they relate to how a vamp would tilt his head to bite."

By now Buffy was almost level with the group and Spike walked round behind her and leant over her shoulder, mouth wide, to cover the scars as a demonstration.

"It's physiologically impossible to bite at an angle that would give you marks like those. And they're too far apart and too small a diameter."

Spike moved round to Buffy's side again and drew deeply on his cigarette.

"Now I reckon, since the kid's biological parents were both fairly bright even if his mother did have one of the most irritating voices on the planet, that the kid has been following my argument. Besides Angel was in his car and gone a good five minutes before you showed your face and walked down here with the old man. I thought you were some old girlfriend come back to look after him. Maybe you were. See I think, maybe, this wasn't so much murder as euthanasia. I think the time he spent in that place ruined his health so badly that the old guy was strugglin' for every last breath he took. And if that's the story then maybe killing him was the kindest thing you could do, if he'd already seen a doctor and there was no way it could be treated.

What I don't get is how you can take two of the people who saved your life earlier tonight and try to screw up both their lives. That's a pretty fucked-up way of showin' gratitude. You're one screwed up bitch. I suggest you find yourself a good shrink. Angelus hasn't existed for a hundred years, give or take one brief reappearance, and we know you weren't around then. Angel, the vampire with a soul, may look similar if you take off the leather pants and add a vest, but he's not. He has a conscience and he generally follows it. He doesn't feed from humans and he loves the kid, just the same as if he were a human father. Maybe more because he never thought he could have one.

You keep saying Angelus did it, so whatever grudge you've been harbouring must be a damn sight older than you, and you don't look Romany to me so I doubt it's been passed down from generation to generation. Believe me Angel's paid twice over for all the things he did, first when he got the soul, and then when he went to hell for half a millennia. If the Powers That Be thought he's been punished enough, and sent him back to atone by working for them, I think it's a bit arrogant for you to try to make things work out different."

Spike threw his cigarette butt to the ground and stepped on it twisting his foot to put it out. He turned his gaze to the youth.

"Kid, in a way, Angelus was a second father to me, and I hated the bastard with a fiery passion. Angel isn't the same person and he loves you. Give him a chance. If you still end up hating him after a couple of years, then leave and do your own thing, but get to know him first, not the stories you've been told about what he was like two hundred years ago.

We're goin' back to the Hyperion once we've had a cup of coffee. If you want a lift or you want a hand with your dad's body we'll be back in ten minutes once you've had a chance to think things through."

Spike paused long enough to drop off their weapons in the trunk of the nearby DeSoto before leading Buffy off down the street in the direction of a nearby coffee-shop. Spike stayed silent until he was sure he was well beyond normal hearing range for a vamp.

"Was he listening, do you think? Or does he still think it was him?"

"I think he listened, Quincy. He's probably come to the conclusion that we stabbed him with a screwdriver rather than getting the right culprit, but I think you convinced him it wasn't Angel."

"Yeah, well, not a word about this to the Poof. Right? Unless you want to tell him that I told the kid I hated him."

"I won't say anything unless he specifically asks, but I think unless Stephen's struck dumb chances are he will."

The pair managed to catch the coffee-shop just before it closed and dallied on the way back to give the teenager ample time to consider their offer.

 





Wednesday, May 8th, 2002

Wednesday Early hours of the morning

"Gimme a bell when you want pickin' up, if it's before sun-up. If not get yourself a taxi." Spike shoved some notes into her hand. "There should be enough there, an' assumin' you want to go shoppin' tomorrow you'd best book us another day at the motel."

"You're not coming in?"

"No point. Get yourself in there and do whatever it is you think you have to and I'll be waitin' when you're done. Me an' him said everythin' we've got to say to each other years ago." She knew that he hated this. That however much had happened between them, part of him still expected her to turn to Angel.

"Not even a message."

"Nah, Wait, yeah. Tell 'im I said that he can't expect the kid to kill people for their clothes. He's goin' to have to put his hand in his pocket for once and give the cheerleader some dosh to take him shoppin'."

"Is that a subtle dig?"

"Is it? Dunno, pet. I wasn't tryin' for subtle."

"An', pet. Don't let him make you feel guilty about him not havin' anyone. The cheerleader's goin' to work out why it took her so long to notice her Prince Charmin' was missin' before too long."

"You what? Angel and Cordelia?" Buffy snorted. "Yeah, that's gonna happen."

"Already has, pet, just the beauty queen can't see it yet."

"You're serious. I mean, I can see Cordelia falling for Angel, but please. "

"Ooh, is that wounded pride I sense. He was supposed to content himself with your memory for the rest of his life. Couldn't you sense it? Bint's grown up, found her place, her calling. She might need to sue her hairdresser but she's turned into a hell of a woman. According to our green friend, grand-papa has it bad as she has. Now go or it'll be sunrise before you get in there."

Buffy stuck her tongue out at him. Neither of them wore a watch but Buffy doubted despite the events of the night if it was much past midnight. She brought a hand up to his face, her fingers following that scarred eyebrow and leant across to give him a long tender kiss.

"Don't go too far. I might want to leave in a hurry." Her hand trailed down his face, over his shoulder, down over his arm until finally their fingertips locked together briefly before she got out of the car.

 
 
Chapter #16 - Chapter 2:08
 



SECTION 2 - ANGEL CITY

I got a buncha boys
We make a lot of noise
Little bit crazy
Playing with chemical toys
We're such bad ass dudes
I almost can't stand it myself
I wanna get the c**bs
In my elegant rags
Make my mom and daddy uptight
I wanna be an intellectual
Heterosexual, Angel City tonight.

(Motorhead, Album 1916)



Chapter 2.08
Wednesday, May 8th, 2002

Buffy squared her shoulders and walked into the hotel for the third time that night. The foyer was still lit, the outer door still open, but there was no-one in sight.

"Hello-o. Anybody home? Angel?"

"I am here." A large well-muscled male figure straightened up from the far side of the circular sofa and gave Buffy an ingenuous smile. "Perhaps I may be of some assistance. Do you require the services of an investigator?"

"No. You must be Cordelia's .friend? I'm Buffy. I'm an old friend of Angel's. I'd like to speak to him."

"Angel and Cordelia are upstairs trying out bedrooms .for Connor, I mean. Would you like me to fetch him?" the man offered.

"Yeah, that'd be good."

Buffy turned and jumped up to sit on the former reception desk swinging her legs while she waited. She watched the large, rather formal stranger retreat up the stairs. She wondered why she was here? What was it she wanted to say? They had both moved on. Why did she feel like she needed his approval? What the.? Did she even just think that? If that was what this was about then maybe she should just go.

"Buffy." Angel came down the final flight of stairs.

"Angel. Hi! .again," Buffy was suddenly awkward.

"I thought you'd gone for the night?" his voice was neither welcoming, nor cool, more cautious.

"Had some catching up to do with people of the human variety, figured you would still be up and about when I'd finished."

"Where's Spike?"

Buffy shrugged. "He took the car, said to give him a ring when I need picking up. I think he decided we were more likely to get to the talking stage if he wasn't around."

"I guess so. Since we seem to actually be talking this time. Do you want a drink? Tea, coffee?"

"We just had one. Thanks. Don't let me stop you if you want one. Or blood or anything." Then she remembered that Angel didn't like to feed in front of her. She'd got so used to Spike and his "I drink blood. Deal with it." attitude that she'd forgotten how repressed Angel had been. She looked across at Angel wondering why she just didn't feel anything much except disappointment. They had had something that she had thought was special, but it turned out to be nothing more than a wrong turning. So much of her energy had gone into it, and so many of her hang-ups were because of it and at the end of the day it just didn't mean that much.

"I wouldn't mind. Fancy moving through to the kitchen?"

"Sure. Wherever." Buffy followed him through and grabbed a seat on one of the worktops while he prepped some blood.

"Where are we going with this, Buffy?" Angel asked. "Are you here to talk about you and Spike or to ask me about Connor?"

"Mostly me and Spike, mildly curious about Connor but I reckon it could keep until you know better yourself what the situation is with him, more curious about you and Cordelia."

"Wha-? How did you know? .There's nothing to tell."

"How do you think I know? Who can walk in a room and read everyone in it? Not to mention working out where to go for more information. According to Love's Bitch you two are a done deal even if she hasn't worked it out yet."

"He's got it wrong. We're close. She's my best friend but she's with someone else."

"Someone who went out this morning and she didn't even realise he'd gone until she wanted to introduce him to us when we arrived. He's not going to be around for the long haul, however much he might want to be."

"Yeah? Well I suppose time will tell." Angel seemed to draw some comfort from her words but then he sighed. "I suppose that just leaves you and Spike. as topics for conversation that is."

"Guess so... You know he's changed. I think when he stopped hunting, he became a lot more like the man he used to be." Buffy tried to make a start on what she wanted to say.

"This from the one who told me demons don't change?"

"Just because he's my Mr Right doesn't mean his first name is Always," said Buffy.

"Buffy, just because he has a chip that prevents him from harming humans doesn't mean he's good. He still has a demon inside him. He's still inherently evil."

"I don't believe that. Your guy that was here earlier with the green skin, does he have a soul? Is he evil? Spike's inherently violent, confident to the point of arrogance as far a certain things go. He's possessive, fiercely protective and out and out predatory. He gets all that from his demon side, but none of what I've just described makes him evil. It might make him act like a bit of an asshole now and again but that's about it.

His violent side is channelled into helping me patrol and to be honest I think he prefers the odds on the white hat side of the fence. He'd rather be fighting something twice his size or outnumbered five to one or helping take on a god."

"Buffy, without a soul, he has nothing to guide him, to tell him right from wrong."

"Bullshit! He knows right from wrong. He was taught it as a child and he's intelligent enough with the passage of time to work out how much of what he learned was due to the foibles of the age and what was truly wrong. Or to apply the rule about if it harms no other. Right and wrong are primarily intellectual. Children have to be taught to share, not to just take everything they want. They have a soul, but it doesn't mean they know right from wrong until someone teaches them. Will may not be wracked with guilt if he does something wrong, but most of the time he still knows it's wrong.

Without your soul, you became evil, but to give you the benefit of the doubt it may be that your individual demon is particularly malevolent or it may just be that you're far more weak-willed than Spike. Having a soul didn't stop you stealing from your father to fund your drinking and your womanising when you were human. You used women with never a thought as to whether they'd end up pregnant, disgraced or diseased, never mind thinking of their feelings. You only cared that you had your fun. In fact, I'm fairly positive the soul you were cursed with probably isn't the one you originally had otherwise chances are, even with it, you would still act like Liam.

All your soul does is provide a negative incentive against what you've been educated to believe is wrong. Will has a positive incentive to do what's right, the people he loves. He wants our approval, our acceptance, our love. He doesn't need a guilt complex, he just wants to make us happy, doesn't want to disappoint us and for him it's enough.

So which is better, acting out of love or acting on the fear of feeling bad afterwards?" Buffy challenged the Souled One.

"Hey, back off a bit. I just want to make sure you know what you're up against here. You honestly believe that if the chip stopped working tomorrow he wouldn't go back to feeding from humans?"

"Do you honestly think I'd be engaged to him if I didn't?" Again, Buffy looked at him with a raised eyebrow and he couldn't get over the way her and Spike seemed to have grown together. "Let's cut all the crap here. You find out I'm getting married, which one would be worse, marrying Will or marrying Riley."

"Marrying Riley!" Angel didn't hesitate even for a fraction of a second.

"So all the soulless chipped vampire stuff doesn't really bother you that much at all, does it?" Buffy asked.

"I guess not."

"So how about you stop pretending it does, and we try to all be friends, assuming you can avoid attacking Will the next time you see him."

"Didn't Spike say we'd never be friends."

"Never is a long time, feelings change. Our lives have gone in different directions."

"Hey, well, if you can get married to a guy that called you "Slutty the Vampire Slayer", then anything is possible.

"He what? He is so dead. well, he is dead, but he'll be deader."

Angel let out a low chuckle at her blustering, and Buffy quietened.

"Angel, there's something I have to tell you. I didn't say anything before because I knew we wouldn't have the conversation we just did if I had. Did that make sense?"

"Just about. So what is this news?"

"When you went out before, Spike and me sort of followed you." Buffy proceeded to describe what had happened at Holtz's motel after Angel had left. ".Stephen got there just before we did. Whoever killed him must have stabbed him with a screwdriver or something. They left two puncture wounds in his neck. The woman, she was acting as if she'd seen you do it-"

"And you wait till now to tell me this?" Angel punched the countertop making a dent in the stainless steel finish and then began to pace to and fro.

"What were you planning on doing, huh? She's human. The person she killed doesn't officially exist. He's a non-person. It's even possible he inflicted the wounds himself. Dru isn't conveniently hanging around for you to lock them up together. And if she was meant to die wouldn't it have just been simpler for the Powers to let her die in the bar? You've got to remember we only see our part of the picture. Hear me out."

"We gave a few forensic-type arguments as to why we didn't believe her and let the kid make up his own mind. We offered him a lift back here, but he said he wanted some time alone, so once we helped him carry the body back up to his room and Will made sure the room was paid for through tomorrow, we left him be. He's not exactly big on demons and what with you and Will being in the middle of a fight the first time we saw him, we probably weren't the best people to be there.

With a bit of luck he'll show up here of his own accord tomorrow, but I don't think you're in a position to push. He might accept you didn't kill his dad, but he feels like you deceived him and stopped him being there to prevent it, so you're partly to blame.

You're going to have to be careful not to crowd him."

"Gunn and Fred were supposed to be looking after him." Angel wavered between concern that the couple hadn't come back and anger that they'd failed in their duty.

"Yeah, but if that kid decides to run off I defy anyone to catch him and to paraphrase a friend. He's a sixteen-year-old boy and even if everything was normal he'd still be a hormone bomb just waiting to go off. Chances are he'd run away anyway. We know he's somewhere safe even if he is alone in a room with a dead body. Gunn and Fred are probably driving round looking for him. Maybe you should ring and let them know he's okay, sort of."

"Gunn and Fred were the ones who found out he was staying at the motel. They would probably try there first."

"In which case they might be with him now, and if you rang them they might be able to give you an update.

Look, there's nothing more I can tell you. We'll be in touch. I'll just ring Will and then I'll wait out front." Buffy gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze as she passed through on her way to the foyer.

"Hey!" Cordy's voice greeted her as she moved back into the room. "Whatcha do with the big guy?"

"Left him in the kitchen moping into his mug of blood. Isn't that always the way it goes when we meet up. Except it isn't always a kitchen, and he never used to drink blood in front of people... And for once I'm just a messenger and not the cause of the moping." Buffy wandered over to the office where Cordy and her apparent ex-to-be were sitting, the man massaging her neck.

Cordy gave her a slightly guilty look. "So how did things go with Wes? I mean whatever impression you may have got before, I do still care about him, it's just that right now Angel is my priority and I can't be there for both of them."

"Yeah, well I guess Bitchy Buffy made a bit of an appearance as well. As to how things went." Buffy shrugged. "Don't think I know him well enough to tell. Will and him seemed to hit it off. They went all English and started talking about some Owen guy and some Semen guy but apparently it's spelled different. I got kinda lost off.

Look, I need to ring Spike to get him to come pick me up. Do you have a phone I can borrow?"

"You mean it's not your peroxide blond chain smoker that's been pacing up and down in front of the doors for the last five minutes?"

Buffy looked out into the darkness beyond the glass doors able to make out almost nothing of the night beyond the reflected hotel interior, nothing that is except for a halo of white-blond hair and the orange glow of a lit cigarette. "Yeah," she said softly a smile coming unbidden to her lips. Her next words firmer, "yeah, that one's mine." To Cordy's amazement she took off across the foyer at a run and pushed through the revolving door as fast as the hydraulic mechanism and her slayer strength would allow. She threw herself into the arms of the waiting vampire, who grabbed her and spun her round till she was breathless, their coats fanning out behind them like costumes in a bizarre fetish ballet, before letting her feet return to the ground and kissing her soundly.

 
 
Chapter #17 - Chapter 3:01
 






SECTION 3 - DANCING IN THE MOONLIGHT

When I passed you in the doorway
You took me with a glance
I should have taken the last bus home
But I asked you for a dance.

.But I'm dancing in the moonlight
It's caught me in its spotlight
It's alright, alright
Dancing in the moonlight
On the long hot summer night

(Thin Lizzy [written by Phil Lynott], Album Bad Reputation)



Chapter 3.01
Wednesday, May 8th, 2002

It took Buffy a few minutes to realise that they weren't headed in the direction of the motel, but she decided to stay quiet and see where he took her. She scooted along the seat towards him and rested her head on his shoulder, her knees bent and her feet came to rest against the door. Soon she felt as if his shoulder bone was stabbing her in the ear. God but the guy was skinny, strike that, he was lean, lean and muscled and how she wanted to get to the body hidden under that coat, but she was so going to make him beg.

In the meantime she pulled his arm up and slid under it, twisting her body a quarter turn so that she leant back against his side letting his arm drop over her shoulder and lie on top of her front. Her head dropped back against his chest and she watched him as he drove. His arm bent so that it held her to him, firm as an iron bar just below her breasts.

"It really gets to you, that I used to be with Angel, doesn't it?"

"Bit," he admitted, his jaw clenching into knots.

"Why?"

"What sort of question's that. Why d'you bloody think, you stupid bint?"

"If I thought I knew I wouldn't be asking, would I, you.. you moronic . excuse for an undead fiend?"

"I'm supposed to be singing and dancing about the whole thing, do you a Dick van Dyck number from Mary soddin' Poppins, shall I?"

Suddenly Buffy was sitting back up in her seat. She had her back to the door as far away from him as possible. "No. I just want to know what aspect of the situation it is that bothers you. Is it because you're not the only guy I've been with or is it because it's Angel and you think I'm going to do a Dru and change my mind and go running back to him or is it something else entirely?"

"I don't know. You're a twenty-one-year-old woman and this is the twenty-first century. If you were a virgin you'd either be a bloody nun or pig ugly. If you were either of them, I don't think we'd be where we are now. Doesn't mean there isn't part of me that wishes things were different, but no, that's not really what bothers me.

What gets to me is that when you went in there alone, I was scared to death that the only reason you'd come out was to tell me its over. And yeah, that's partly 'cause of him and me and Dru 'n' him 'n' you. But it's because of what happened when Soldier Boy turned up as well and it's because part of me knows you're too bloody good for me.

Happy now?"

"Not yet, no. No, I'm not. I don't even know where to start with you." Buffy looked over at him and for a second she contemplated taking one of his cigarettes, seeing if it would steady her as they seemed to steady him on occasion. She'd thought that maybe they could have a rational discussion about this. Clear the air and end up in a better place, instead they'd gone from joyous reunion to screaming match in less than ten minutes.

Instead of going for the cigarette she poked him in the hip with the heel of her boot, hard enough to hurt if not to mark. He glanced away from the road long enough to snarl at her.

"You aren't the one who gets to judge whether you're good enough for me. I am. And if you've got some stupid notion that I'm up there on some pedestal that you can't touch you can forget it right now. We work together because even though we're so much the same, we're opposites in a lot of ways too. We balance each other. You feel like you're part man, part demon. I'm part woman, part slayer. We both have dark and light within us. It doesn't matter who's got more of each, together everything falls into place. Are you listening to me? Do you get that?"

The car swerved to the right as Spike pulled off the freeway.

"Are you going to answer me, or am I talking to myself here?" Buffy demanded.

"I heard you." Spike spat out his reply.

"Right, well, keep listening. I'm not Dru. I am not your damn precious Dark Princess. I'm my mother's daughter and I've got too much pride to let some guy walk out on me and then take him back. That's for starters.

And you are not an Angel substitute. You are not someone I'm making do with until he decides he wants me back. You couldn't be more different if you tried. D'you know why I was talking to Cordelia tonight about Wes instead of asking Angel. Because I don't have the patience to deal with Mr Mysterious any more. I'm too used to you and your big mouth telling me what's going on and making me face up to the truth to be bothered trying to wheedle what I want out of him.

Do you know what I realised tonight. If anyone was a substitute, it was him. Angel was the first guy I went out with after we moved to Sunnydale, after we moved away from the city my dad lived in. That's why he got to call all the shots. That's why I let this older, "wiser" guy give me advice and protect me. I wasn't looking for an equal to share my life with. I was looking for a father figure. Whatever spark there used to be between us, it's gone, on my side anyway. I didn't even realise it, but I went in there tonight looking for his approval."

The ground on either side of the road they were on levelled out and Spike pulled off the road and braked sharply making Buffy brace her arm against the dashboard to prevent her falling off the seat.

"I suspect you were disappointed then, love." Spike's voice still held a hint of anger, but it was obvious he was calmer than he had been.

"You might be surprised. He had plenty of objections, but when I asked him straight out if he'd rather I was marrying you or Riley he didn't even hesitate. So I guess things aren't as bad between you as you think they are."

Her voice began to lose its angry edge. "You still listening?"

"You have my full attention, pet." Spike's voice was almost back to normal.

"What happened with Riley coming back isn't going to happen again. I was still. dissociated. Still blocking out everything but being with you and even when I was with you I wouldn't admit even to myself what my feelings were. As a person I was in a bad place and as a couple we were in a bad place. We're past that and we're stronger now, don't you think?"

Spike raised his arm towards her, his fingers beckoning her over to him. "I don't think, I know."

Buffy slid back into her previous position under his arm. "So next time I have to go see Angel or Riley turns up, you're not going to get yourself in such a state, are you?" She looked up at him.

Spike's clear blue eyes looked back at her. "I think you could probably downgrade the situation from terrified to vaguely worried." A rueful smile tugged at the corner of his lips.

"And you're sure, the other thing doesn't bother you?" Buffy asked. Spike tried to work out why she suddenly looked so vulnerable.

"What other. no, Buffy, no. We have something special. I know I'm not your first, but that doesn't matter if I can be your best and maybe your last."

"I think it's safe to say that you would be a tough act to follow, and that as long as you're around I won't be having any auditions," Buffy reassured him, but her eyes still hadn't lost that look that said she was just waiting for him to hurt her.

"Something else is bothering you, pet. Tell me what it is." Spike coaxed the words from her, as his fingertips tried to smooth away the worry lines from her forehead.

"Do you think I'm a slut?" she asked in a trembling voice, tears gathering in the outer corners of her eyes.

"No! God no! What the hell's brought this on, pet? I've never thought that. If anything I've been more sure of it than you have. That's why I couldn't believe what happened the morning after in the house. Whatever you might have said I knew it wasn't in your nature to go in for meaningless sex. No matter what you said, I knew you wouldn't give yourself to someone you didn't have some feelings for. Why would you think I could think that?" The arm wrapped around her body held her even more tightly and his left hand stroked her hair trying to bolster his words of reassurance with actions. He would have kissed her but he was worried that would be counter-productive.

"A-Angel said you called me Slutty the Vampire Slayer, and some of the things we've done you wouldn't ask a "nice" girl to do them, or most of the places."

"Christ, pet. Do you know how long ago it was that I last spoke to the Poof before today? Back before I even got the chip, right after that bastard Parker. I doubt you'd even met Cardboard and I knew fine well that you'd been had by a first rate con artist and that it only worked because you were so damn innocent. I just wanted to get some of my own back on Peaches. It was just a lousy cheap shot. It wasn't even aimed at you. It was meant to hurt him.

And as far as what a nice girl will or won't do. I'll never think you're anything but a nice girl. What goes on between two consenting adults has nothing to do with whether she's a nice girl or not, just what happens to press their buttons, pet. No-one would ever say your mate Glinda's anything but good, but her and Red don't exactly have a conventional thing goin' on. You get my drift?"

"So you're not with the thinking I'm a great big ho?" Buffy gave him a weak half-smile.

"Never have, my love." He craned his neck to kiss her on the forehead. "Never will."

After a minute or two Spike put the car back into gear and pulled out onto the road. Buffy stayed in her position tucked in against him so she couldn't see where they were going very well, but she soon caught a salty tang in the air. A quarter of an hour later Spike pulled over and stopped the car.

"We're here, pet." Spike stroked her hair and when she still didn't move he brushed the back of one finger over her cheek.

"Comfy," mumbled the slayer.

"Plenty of time for comfy later, love." He turned on the radio and started flicking through the different stations, the old fashioned knobs making heavy clunking noises as he worked his way through them until the fifth or sixth attempt produced the distinctive voice of Louis Armstrong singing "What a Wonderful World". He turned up the volume. "Come dance with me, pet?"

Buffy struggled to sit up and take in her surroundings. By the time she'd worked out that they were in a parking lot at the coast about ten or fifteen miles from LA itself the passenger door was opened from the outside and Spike stood with his hand extended toward her. Even from the parking lot the view of the moonlit ocean, empty of any boats or people was beautiful.

She let herself melt into his arms and surrendered to the gravelly seduction of a long gone voice singing of sights, most of which her partner had only had one brief chance to glimpse in over a century. The song finished and segued into a slow instrumental she recognised as Glen Miller. He pulled back far enough as the song changed to make eye contact and lift that eyebrow, but when she buried her face back into his shoulder he swiftly relaxed and shuffled his feet in time to the music again. Uncaring of the occasional vehicles that passed on the road the pair danced in the pool of light cast by the DeSoto's interior light.

When the next song started, he kissed her on the top of her head and pulled away. "Not about to be seen in public dancin' to country and western, pet, even if it is Patsy Cline."

"And I thought this would be your theme tune," Buffy mocked.

"Har, bloody har. Not that "crazy"." His voice softened to the soft deep tone that gave her butterflies. "You're here with me." He reached into the backseat of the car, taking a spare packet of cigarettes from an open carton, then dropped the lock on the passenger door and slammed it shut. Walking round to the trunk, he opened it, pulling out a travel rug and the cooler that she was sure they had left in their motel room.

"I didn't think I spent that long talking to He Who Shall Not Be Named, but it was obviously long enough for you to plot some mischief." Buffy gave him a smile that was almost a grin.

"Just a quick drive back to the motel, a brief phone call and then a visit to an all-night convenience store. Still too busy at the motel for skinny-dipping, so I thought I'd bring you somewhere more private.

Fancy a moonlight stroll? Once we make it round the headland there, there's a nice secluded bay where you can't be seen from the road." He slung the blanket over his shoulder, picked up the cooler in his left hand and offered her his right.

"I take it you've been here before?" she asked as they made their way through the grassy dunes to the beach below.

Spike shrugged. "I don't get pissed every time we have a bust-up. Sometimes I take the bike out. Normally by the time I get this far I'm beginning to calm down a bit. That and the thought of getting any closer to Peaches normally makes me feel like heavin'." The last bit was added with a typical Spike smirk.

Buffy opened her mouth to ask something and then closed it again leaving the question unasked, not wanting to provoke a further outburst of temper from the volatile vampire. Spike, however, was too conscious of her every move to let the gesture pass unnoticed.

"Wha's up, pet?" he asked.

She squeezed his hand in response. "Nothing worth spoiling the mood, just. it'll wait."

"And if I promise I won't get upset?." He put down the cooler, dropping the blanket on top of it. Taking her into his arms he looked down into her dark eyes. "I know I've got a hell of a temper on me, but I don't want you to ever be scared to talk to me about anythin'."

Buffy sighed. "If I don't tell you now you're going to get upset, aren't you?"

Spike's words were gently teasing but underneath there was that layer of hurt caused by her past denials. "If I didn't know better I might think you thought I had real feelings."

Buffy picked up the travel rug, taking his hand again. "Okay, but we walk and talk and if you're uncomfortable about it you don't have to answer." She judged he'd rather at least part of her attention were distracted by trying to find her way, rather than focused on his every gesture.

Spike quickly lit another cigarette one-handed and slid the cooler's handle up his arm to his elbow before indicating he was ready to proceed. "Spit it out then, love. What's got you burnin' up with curiosity?"

Buffy bit her lip briefly before she said in a voice barely above a whisper. "Were you and Angel ever lovers?"

Spike took a deep draw on his cigarette and then exhaled impossibly slowly. "There isn't a simple yes or no answer to that one." His gaze flicked over her face, noting her eyes held curiosity but nothing more. He knew if he wanted, he could say nothing further on the matter and she wouldn't ask again, but he would have set up a barrier between them. A limit to how well he would let her know him, so he continued.

"Right, first off, if you're asking specifically about Angel as opposed to Angelus, then in every sense of the word the answer would be no. To answer the rest of it you need to understand a bit about what happens when vampires are made." He drew again from his cigarette, his eye seemingly focused on some distant spot as he worked out how to explain, what she needed to know. His accent automatically slipped to sound far more like Giles' as he delivered an explanation.

"Okay, ninety-nine percent of the time when a vampire makes a childe, an emotional bond is formed, but it's a one-way bond. It's intended to make the childe loyal to and dependent on their sire. If you have a group like the Scourge where several generations live together, then that bond will apply all the way back to the progenitor, though it will always be strongest between the childe and his sire." His gaze moved across her face briefly, ensuring that she wasn't either totally bored or lost.

"It's like a need to belong. You've lost your place in the world you used to live in and you need reassurance about where you belong in this new one. It is literally like being a child again. You have to learn how to function in a new body, a new society and if a childe's sire dies, or abandons them too early in the process they will almost certainly die."

`"So Angel needed Darla, Dru needed Angel and Darla and you needed all three?" Buffy asked.

"Got it in one, cutie." Spike smiled. "Now part of it is things like learning to hunt and stuff, which in my case ended up being almost entirely left to Angelus, with Dru being like she was. If I really had been Angelus' childe I doubt I'd have lasted more than a week, but that was where I was lucky. I was part of the one percent. Whether Dru just didn't know any better or whether she chose to do it that way, the bond in our case went both ways. So, if Angelus killed me, not only would he lose the body that was looking after Dru, but also Dru would most likely become less stable. She was only valuable to him because of the visions and if she was less lucid he won't be able to understand her. But I'm getting ahead of myself a bit."

"Anyway, as a new fledgling I had a need, and I mean need, not desire for all three. And that has to do with just being around them but mostly it's about approval and acceptance and one of the main ways that it's communicated is touch, closeness. You crave their touch, their attention even in any form they'll give it, including sex. And maybe in some twisted way you could say that need is a form of love."

Spike took a last pull on his cigarette before he sent it arcing across the sand.

"The thing is, from Angelus' point of view there is no bond between us, just an upstart fledgling who needs to learn who's boss." Spike swallowed before he continued. "Angelus likes to be surrounded by beautiful people, but what he likes more is to torture them and break them. He's a sadist and I don't mean a bite here and there, I mean enough pain to ensure even a vampire's going to have trouble healing. Since he's limited with Darla by what she wants, he compensates when he's with me and Dru." Buffy noticed that he'd slipped into the present tense, as if he were reliving those early days.

"Over time the need fades a bit, and you gain more self-control so that you don't have to give in to it. It won't stop an older male using rape as a means to demonstrate his dominance if he thinks you're challenging him, or as a punishment for whatever crime he decides that you've committed." He wanted to know just what Buffy was thinking, but he was too ashamed to even look, so he stared at his feet as he walked.

"Anyway by the time the pull of the bond started to wane in my case I loved Dru and even if it never overcame the Daddy thing, she loved me. So, when he notices that I stopped seeking him out he basically hurts Dru until I beg him to use me instead. He could make either of us do anything he wanted. You couldn't say it was rape, but it wasn't exactly consensual either.

So, yes we were physically intimate, but it wasn't a reciprocal arrangement. Were we ever lovers? No, I don't think so, I mean I felt something for him and underneath all the layers of bad feeling I guess I always will, but he never felt anything for me or anyone else. The judge said there was no humanity, no human feelings in Angelus. I was just a toy, a whore, a means to blackmail Dru."

"She still wouldn't leave him?" Buffy asked gently.

"She couldn't. Didn't have what it took to fight the bond. Didn't remember from one minute to the next why she should want to." Spike's voice was filled with resignation.

"Tonight, you and Angel, if Stephen hadn't interrupted.and he wouldn't cry uncle." Buffy left the question hanging.

"He would have. Given the choice of admitting you're beat or taking it up the arse in front of everyone you know. He was just stalling, playing chicken."

"Theoretically though, you could've got engaged to me one day and screwed my ex in front of me the next?"

"It was one of the possibilities." Spike conceded, looking far less sorry for himself at the reminder of his victory earlier in the evening.

"I don't suppose I'd be the first to tell you that the vampire social system is screwed up."

"Actually, you might be, but then not that many non-vamps know that much about it, and most of them wouldn't be discussing the subject with a vampire."

"Still not the best way to prove you intend to be faithful." Buffy teased.

"And if he thought that was how you would see it that would give him one reason to let me. But you understand that it wouldn't be about sex as such, don't you?"

"I know, I got the message," she admitted. "It's a power thing. Doesn't mean that I'm not pleased Stephen turned up when he did. Not that I wanted you to get knocked unconscious, but."

"But you've already laid your claim to the contents of my jeans?" Spike smirked.

"Pig.but, yeah. And don't you forget it." Buffy stole a glance at the object of her affection. "You know, I can't even begin to imagine what you've been through, but even a fraction. I'm not saying this very well. what you told Stephen about Angel. that he should go to him. It's a huge deal that you would do that after what Angelus did to you."

"Couldn't do anything else, pet. Kept wonderin' what woulda happened to Bit, if she'd just all of a sudden found herself in Sunnydale instead of havin' you and Joyce and all those fake memories. What the Poof wanted didn't come into it," he said shame-faced. "Was only thinkin' 'bout what was best for the boy. Kid's family after all.

Which reminds me. If he comes to the wedding make sure Peaches knows to keep him away from the Niblet. Don't want to have to kill the boy."

"You don't think they'd make a cute couple?" Buffy asked.

"I don't think I like the idea of the Niblet coming up to LA to visit him 'n' stayin' with Peaches in a hotel with god only knows how many empty rooms. An' the fact that the kid obviously gets his looks from his mother and has the whole supernatural abilities package. Think how much trouble Bit gets into in Sunnydale. Add him to the package and let them loose in LA, God knows what would happen."

"Relax, you're acting like it's a foregone conclusion, that if they meet that's it."

"Hmph. Think back a few years, pet. Imagine the kid in one of them stupid jackets they give to all the football team, like the one Bit's had hidden at the back of her closet since Halloween. Imagine the cheerleader got him some decent clothes and." Spike raised an eyebrow. "An' you show me a kid that age that doesn't think my Bit is gorgeous an' I'll show you a kid that's either bent or needs glasses. And she'd do it just to drive me round the bend and get even with you. It'd be, "you've got no room to talk you dated his dad and you're engaged to his nephew. At least Stephen's my age and he's not a vampire." Spike imitated the pouting tones of his favourite teenager. "And, don't forget all the prophecy child crap she'd be getting into. 'M not havin' it."

Buffy couldn't help the giggles that overcame her. "You are such a doof."

Spike smirked. "Don't care. Made you laugh. But she's still not going out with him. Those Aurelius men are nothing but trouble."

"All too aware of that little fact."

"Glad we're agreed then. While we're on, why don't we just settle it now that she can't date, full stop, till she's at least twenty-one." Spike was clearly no longer being entirely serious, but she pitied any boy who called at the house for Dawn, in future.

"You know, when she decides to start dating there's going to be nothing either of us can do to stop her because she'll just sneak out if we try. At least if we go along with it we might get to meet them."

Spike growled, but gave up. "Still don't have to like it," he muttered. He stopped walking and put down the cooler. Taking the blanket from Buffy he shifted the cooler to weigh down one end and then shrugged off his leather laying it so its weight held down one side. His boots came off next and he somehow managed to get his socks off at the same time so that he didn't get sand on them.

"Is this some vampire tradition for nude picnics I've not heard of before?" teased Buffy, still fully dressed.

"We could start one if you want, but I seem to recall something about you human types having to wait till after you swim to eat." By now the vampire's T-shirt also lay on top of the blanket and he was in the process of getting his jeans off over his feet.

Buffy's face reddened as she slid her coat from her shoulders, casting surreptitious glances at the vampire she was with. She wondered if his lack of concern about his nudity was in any way related to his lack of reflection, or if it was because he knew just how damn perfect he was. He bent over to pull something from his coat pocket and she recognised the scraps of material that made up her bikini. "Just in case you're feeling shy, pet."

"It's got a better chance of staying intact if I just skip it, I suspect."

"Probably." He gave her a grin and moved over to help her fumbling hands untie the knot in the front of her blouse. She could feel the wetness spread between her thighs just being this close, but then, Spike had been semi-erect by the time he got his jeans off. It was just the way they were together. In fact, she wasn't sure if she'd ever seen him entirely flaccid.

As if of their own volition, her hands started to move toward his dick, wanting to bring him to full arousal. Before they could get there he had undone the knot and was pushing the sheer fabric of her blouse down her arms, the cool touch of his fingertips sending shivers down her spine. Her breathing was already ragged and she wished she'd started throwing her clothes off when he did, so that she'd be spared this torture.

He knelt at her feet, letting her balance her weight on his shoulders as he removed her boots and socks. His hands slid around her to undo the zip at the back of her leather pants bringing his face flush with her stomach and he kissed her through the layer of leather before he slid both the pants and her briefs down in one motion. He threw the tangle of leather and lace to land in the middle of the blanket and as he rose to a standing position he trailed one hand along her inner thigh, letting his fingers stroke her wet folds without parting them. Even so, she was unable to help the hitch in her breath, and she could only watch as he lifted each damp finger individually to his lips and sucked them clean.

He caught the lower edges of her camisole and she lifted her arms as he raised them to allow the removal of this last barrier. She twined her arms around his neck, drawing his face down to hers in a desperate kiss. His hands slid down her back and first held each of the smooth lush cheeks of her ass and then glided to her inner thighs lifting her against him and parting her till she wrapped her legs around his hips and raised herself up to slide him into her. Without raising his lips from hers, he moaned from deep in his throat at the sensation of being engulfed in her wet fire.

Deciding swimming could wait, he let them fall over onto the blanket, catching himself on his elbows to avoid crushing her, but letting the impact drive him deeper into her. Buffy drew her mouth back from his gasping for air. He slowly bucked his hips, making the smallest possible movements within her. One hand reached down to spread her lips so that the grinding motion he introduced at the end of each stroke crushed her clit between their pelvic bones. Buffy could feel the tension in her stomach muscles building impossibly slowly, gentle tingling sensations spiralling out from her centre. His hands teased her breasts, stroking softly against their undersides. Fingertips traced patterns on her creamy mounds, untouched by the California sun, avoiding her nipples wanting to bring her to the edge as slowly as possible. Still, he couldn't resist the pull of his marks on her neck and he nuzzled against them, causing her to clench her inner muscles around him before she started to thrust her hips in time to his.

His hands left a trail of tiny hairs standing upright as they moved down to still her hips. "Shhh, pet. Relax. Just let it happen." His mouth moved away from the healing scars and he nibbled at her collarbone instead with blunt teeth, following up with languid open-mouthed kisses. His hands ran down the length of her arms until they found hers and wound their fingers together, the feel of the ring on her left hand filling his heart with pride and love. He looked down into her hazel eyes, seeing them reflect back the same feelings of love that showed in his. He couldn't look away, and their world narrowed to the look in the others eyes, the feel of fingers locked together and the sensations building where they moved against each other.

Spike's movements increased gradually in pace and fervour, but his eyes never left Buffy's, their love-making an act of worship on his part. This time, when her hips began to move beneath him he did nothing to stop her. It could have been seconds, minutes or hours later that Buffy felt herself begin to fall away. She felt herself break into a million pieces and watched them float off in slow motion. Spike let himself go as he felt her muscles trembling around him, exploding inside her as she finally closed her eyes and moaned her pet form of his given name. Just as she thought she was entering the period of post-coital calm, his mouth dropped to the claim mark and the pressure of his blunt teeth on the wounds brought on another round of quaking helplessness.

Still sheathed inside her, he slid his hands from hers and wrapping his arms around her, rolled them both over so that she lay on top of him, pulling his coat over them to keep the wind from chilling her fevered body. She tucked her head under his chin, resting against his shoulder and tired from a day of hectic activity they both dozed off lulled by the rhythmic sound of the ocean waves.

 
 
Chapter #18 - Chapter 3:02
 







SECTION 3 - DANCING IN THE MOONLIGHT

When I passed you in the doorway
You took me with a glance
I should have taken the last bus home
But I asked you for a dance.

.But I'm dancing in the moonlight
It's caught me in its spotlight
It's alright, alright
Dancing in the moonlight
On the long hot summer night

(Thin Lizzy [written by Phil Lynott], Album Bad Reputation)



Chapter 3.02
Wednesday, May 8th, 2002

Buffy woke a couple of hours later, thankful that the sky was still dark overhead and unaware how much of the night still remained. She shifted slightly and was rewarded by a twitch of Spike's rapidly swelling cock inside her. She knew he was still asleep though. Although he didn't need to, as soon as he was awake he began breathing whether by instinct or a trick he had picked up over the years to make his vampiric nature that little bit harder to spot. Either way, it was now so much second nature that if his chest wasn't moving he was asleep.

She was torn between awakening him gently, possibly initiating another bout of lovemaking and yelling his head off for falling asleep in the open like that. In the end, she couldn't resist the urge to start moving up and down over him. Her hands and mouth explored the muscles in his chest, arms and abdomen, tracing their sharply defined lines. Gentle caresses and movement failed to wake him though he moaned in his sleep. She bit down on his left nipple and was rewarded by that hitch of his chest as he pulled in his first breath of the day.

"Bloody hell, woman." Spike's eyes flashed open and he met her gaze as she pulled on his nipple with her teeth, her hips still moving in a steady rhythm. "I hope you plan to wake me up like this every morning."

"That depends on whether you manage to get yourself cremated, falling asleep in the open. It'd be hard to do this." Reaching behind her she took his scrotum into her hand, cupping his balls and then squeezing them till he gasped. ".to a big pile of dust."

"Do I get the impression you're a bit annoyed with me, my little dove?"

"Whatever gave you that idea?"

"It's okay, love. We've only been asleep for an hour or two. There's at least another couple of hours before dawn."

"At least I won't need to stop what I'm doing in the middle and rush you back to the car, then." Buffy used her slayer strength to squeeze him tight inside her. "But I might stop anyway just to teach you a lesson for scaring me." She froze in place, only to find herself rolled onto her back with her lover leaning over her.

"But do you want to miss out on this?" He nibbled on her earlobe. "Or this?" His fingers teased her nipples, flicking them and rolling them. "Or this?" He slid a hand down her body, coming to rest at the juncture of her thighs and rubbing her clit and then squeezing it hard.

Buffy gasped at the last, but was undeterred. They did missionary last time, no way they were getting that predictable this soon. "Not convinced," she answered and immediately regretted it as he pulled back out withdrawing completely.

He worked his way down her body, pausing to nibble at his mark before taking a winding path all around her right nipple, despite her attempts to shift so that he would take it into his mouth. Then over to her left, this time moving immediately to the sensitive flesh suckling and teasing the bullet hard tip with his teeth before trailing kisses down the side of her ribs. His tongue left a narrow diagonal trail from the bottom of her ribs on one side to her hipbone on the other pausing to circle her navel. He sucked on her hipbone hard enough to leave a hickey before his tongue traced the salty crease between her leg and her stomach.

Buffy sighed in anticipation and her legs spread wide as she felt his tongue probe her lips spreading them open, working from her sopping opening up to the sensitive bundle of nerves. He used a variety of techniques returning often to those that made his woman moan or thrash underneath him or pull at his hair to bring him closer. He swiftly pulled the rings from his left hand and slid first two then three fingers inside her curving them slightly as he drove them in and out so that they rubbed against that sweet spot inside. He waited until she was on the verge of climax and then stilled all his motion.

"Convinced yet?"

"Convinced. Ple-ease, Spike." The slayer's reply was little more than a moan, but it was enough. Spike resumed his ministrations, his eyes intent on her face as he brought her again to the point of orgasm, this time biting down on her clit to finally push her over. As the last flutterings were dying away, he pulled himself back up her body and thrust inside her, Before he could get a rhythm going he was rolled over once more onto his back, finding himself back in a similar position to when he woke up.

"My turn to drive," Buffy insisted. Her legs were still shaking, but not so much that she couldn't manage this. She started with a slow rhythm, raising and lowering herself with an obvious effort on trembling legs, but as the last tremors died away she decided on another plan. She lowered herself hard and fast one last time, grinding against him till she felt his curls against her lips, till every possible millimetre was inside her. She concentrated on the muscles that surrounded him, imagining first that the muscles nearest the base of his dick were clamping around him like a ring, then she visualised the effect rippling upwards through her inner muscles until she held him tight all over. She held herself like that for a fraction of a second and then relaxed.

Opening eyes she hadn't realised that she'd closed, she looked down onto her lover's face. "Spike, could you feel that?" she asked shyly.

The normally verbose vampire merely nodded his assent.

"Good?" she asked.

Another nod.

"Better than.?" She raised herself once more until only his tip remained inside her and again lowered herself hard onto him, taking in every last bit of him.

Spike gasped for breath for a second before he replied. "Different."

"Okay, I'm going to practice for a bit. If you want me to try it faster or slower, tell me."

"C'm'ere first, pet," he said, his voice thick and low.

She obliged him, leaning forward into his embrace. His mouth claimed hers in a sensual kiss and his arms held her to him. She felt as if she were wrapped in a cocoon of love; his arms were a safe haven she never wanted to leave. So she didn't. She eventually pulled away from his kiss letting her cheek rest against his. She knew she couldn't retain the required level of concentration whilst he was kissing her.

Spike let himself relax completely, for once not trying to hold off his own completion knowing that that alone was Buffy's aim. She was making it all about him, and somehow he loved her just that little bit more because of it.

She began again, repeating her previous actions again and again, envisaging her muscles milking his smooth firm cock. Gradually she became more sure of what she was doing and was able to go slightly faster. All the time Spike provided whispers of encouragement, letting her know the effect she was having on him. Spike didn't hold back his demon when it tried to emerge instead he just nuzzled against Buffy's neck, finding the spot where his mark was and biting down on it so softly even his sharp demon teeth failed to break the skin. He ensured his teeth were aligned with the previous marks.

As his semen spilled deep inside her he pushed down hard enough for just his fangs to pierce the healing scar tissue. He sucked at the fresh wounds until he felt her come, her muscles fluttering around him as she fastened her teeth on his neck and bit down not quite hard enough to break the skin. As she stilled he licked her wound clean and reaffirmed his claim.

"Mine," he growled, his face still in demon form.

"Yours," she confirmed. "Forever."

As he changed back to human form, he pulled her even tighter against him, so that she wouldn't see the glitter in his eyes that betrayed his disappointment. He could tell that she had wanted to make her own claim, and though he knew she had made the right choice in waiting a large part of him was grieved by the delay. He didn't see that same look of disappointment on her own face.

After they had lain together for several minutes Buffy moved against him kissing the spot where she had bitten him earlier. "Still time for that swim?" she asked.

"Sure, love, provided we don't get distracted again," he relaxed his hold allowing her to sit up and climb off him.

Glancing down as she reached her feet, she couldn't help but smirk. Spike wasn't slow to pick up on the look and man enough to be paranoid about the direction she'd been looking in. "What's so funny, pet?"

"You. Do you ever keep your mind off sex long enough for that thing to go down completely? I thought men were supposed to have some sort of recovery time."

"'S not like my blood supply's got anywhere else to go, and yeah, there are occasions when you're not around or we're both fully clothed when it behaves. Are you complainin'?"

"No, just amazed .and flattered." She took his hand and led him down to the water.

She soon discovered that his movement was as graceful in the water as out of it. Powerful muscles pulled his svelte frame through the waves with ease and efficiency. For a while they raced each other, just floating next to each other while she regained her breath afterwards. They fooled around splashing each other and playing tag, but after a while he was still raring to go while she felt more like floating and vegging out. She smirked to herself as she remembered that there had briefly been some spin-off series to Baywatch called Baywatch Nights. If they'd used footage like what she was watching now, then the female viewers would have been enough to stop it getting cancelled.

Suddenly with a flash of his milk-white rear he jack-knifed under the waves. Buffy stopped swimming, regaining her footing on the sand and scanned the water around her. That part of her vampire radar attuned specifically to him told her he was coming closer all the time. She knew he wouldn't approach from the direction she'd last seen him but didn't know which way he would choose. It was dark enough that she still failed to pin down the direction he approached from, but when his arms wrapped round her and held her tight rather than ducking her beneath the waves she didn't care. She just relaxed and luxuriated in the feel of his wet body against hers as the waves crashed against them.

She felt like she'd been an idiot refusing to go out with Spike for so long, but then she'd thought his idea of a date would be taking her with him when he went to play poker, or letting her watch while he played pool at the Bronze. She hadn't thought he would take her swimming or dance with her or anything she would enjoy.

"Spike, do you know how to skate?"

"Yeah, not that I've done it in. quite a while. Could be a bit rusty. Why do you ask?"

"'Cause you owe me an ice-skating date." She said it as if it were an obvious fact of life.

"Huh? You've lost me on that one, love."

"He Who Shall Not etc. was supposed to go ice-skating with me, only the guy from the Order of Taraka showed up about the same time he did. Killed guy. Found ring. Date wigged out. No rain check. You owe me a date."

"Guess I do, then. I'll see what I can arrange when we get back home. Any other important events I've caused you to miss over the years?" he asked. Even with her back to him she could tell he was smiling.

"I'm sure I'll think of some. That's the only one with him. Apart from the Bronze and one trip to the cinema, that was the only time we went anywhere."

Spike snorted. "And I bet he met you inside when you went to the Bronze."

"Well, yeah, but."

She could tell he was shaking his head slightly even though she couldn't see it, so she turned in his arms to face him.

"What?" she asked impatiently.

"This guy was your big first love?

Sounds to me like you were alone at the ice rink, if that's where you took out Cyclops. Guess you broke in? He lets you pay your own cover charge for the club and if he paid for your cinema ticket I bet it was some arty farty foreign film you wouldn't have chosen to go and see in a month of Sundays. Even with a soul he'll still pinch every penny till it squeaks. Did he ever pay for you both to go out and do something you wanted to do? Take you for a meal? Anything?"

"No, guess not," she replied, wondering who she was more annoyed at; Spike for pointing it out and being chauvinist enough to assume the man should pay, Angel for never taking her anywhere or herself for never noticing.

"All water under the bridge now anyway, love. If you want to have time to eat and not have to rush back to the car after, we'd best go in now."

"Okay. Let's go see what your idea of a picnic is."

By the time they walked back to where they had left their clothes Buffy was shivering. Despite her protests about leaving salt marks where her hair was dripping he wrapped her damp form in his duster. He somehow managed to get his jeans on despite being damp. She helped as he unpacked the cooler. For someone who didn't have to eat he seemed to know more about picnics than Riley.

There were two tubs, obviously from some sort of salad bar, one with fruit salad, the other a pasta salad. As well as a couple of cans of diet soda there were two half-size bottles of wine, one white, one red. He'd picked up four pre-packed sandwiches in a variety of fillings, two in crusty white rolls and two made with granary bread. There was a packet of tortilla chips and a small tub of salsa. The finishing touch was the two fresh cream chocolate eclairs. He'd even packed paper plates and plastic tumblers and cutlery, even serviettes.

"I didn't think I was hungry until I saw this lot," Buffy commented.

"You should be. The only thing you've eaten since whatever you had for breakfast yesterday was half a pizza and that was nearly ten hours ago," Spike retorted.

"I guess when you put it like that."

Between the two of them they managed to go through about three-quarters of the contents of the cooler before they gave up. This was despite Spike's refusal to touch anything healthy and Buffy making Spike look the other way before she would eat her chocolate éclair, insisting that they didn't have time for him to start getting ideas. "As if," he said, "wearing nothing but my coat wasn't giving me ideas already."

Spike threw the leftovers back into the cooler and grabbed his T-shirt, quickly pulling it over his head. Ten minutes and two menthol cigarettes later the couple were winding their way back to the car.

"So what have you got planned now?" Buffy looked over at platinum blond. "Any more unexpected detours?"

"Nope. Just motel, shower, crash." As she more than half expected a wicked grin was flashed in her direction when he mentioned showering.

"So where does the phone call come in, that you mentioned earlier?"

"That would be on your to-do list for tomorrow," the vampire replied.

"And what exactly is on my to-do list for tomorrow?"

"Ring Bit before she goes to school. Have fun. Pick up some money for me. Put some of it in that account you have for the wedding. Give some to the cheerleader to get some stuff for the kid. Dump enough into your current account to make sure you're solvent and up to date on your bills for at least the next month and bring the rest back for me. Be back early enough that we get home to eat with Bit tomorrow night, barring emergencies."

"And what's on your to-do list for tomorrow?" Buffy asked, somewhat perturbed by the apparent length of hers.

"Speak to Bit. Hide from the sun. Drive milady home when she's ready."

"Sounds like you've got the easier deal," she accused.

"True, but easier isn't always better," agreed her fiancé.

"Do I get the car?" Buffy asked.

The muscles in Spike's jaw clenched up at the thought of Buffy driving his baby again, but he was brave. LA just wasn't a city where you could get around without a car. "Sure, love, long as you make sure you both come back in one piece. I'd say see if the Princess wanted to go with you and get her to drive, but I suspect she'll be glued to Peaches till the prodigal comes home. And I don't care if you do find a flaky patch on the windshield, don't pick at it. It isn't nail polish."

"Anything else or do I have to sign some contract in my own blood first? I hate to think what you'd be like about a new car. I bet you don't even own that thing anyway."

"Do you? And if I'd stolen it, why wouldn't I have just stolen another newer one whenever I felt like it?"

"You mean you actually bought that. it's a bit old." In deference to Spike's feelings she shied away from the word, "wreck".

"Didn't say I bought it. Won it brand new in a poker game from a guy who owned a dealership. And it may be old but it's probably been in storage for more than half its life, so be nice." Spike defended the vintage vehicle.

"Yeah, but you hardly qualify in the "one careful owner" category."

"Just so long as you're careful. I might be upset if something happened to the car. It'd break me if something happened to you. And you wouldn't want me to be forced to ask Harris to come to our rescue."

 
 
Chapter #19 - Chapter 3:03
 






SECTION 3 - DANCING IN THE MOONLIGHT

When I passed you in the doorway
You took me with a glance
I should have taken the last bus home
But I asked you for a dance.

.But I'm dancing in the moonlight
It's caught me in its spotlight
It's alright, alright
Dancing in the moonlight
On the long hot summer night

(Thin Lizzy [written by Phil Lynott], Album Bad Reputation)



Chapter 3.03
Wednesday, May 8th, 2002

Buffy pressed her cheek against the cool tile, letting the wall support her as Spike pushed his knee between her thighs from behind. Warm water flowed over both their bodies, lending his an unaccustomed warmth. Remnants of shampoo and shower gel made their union almost frictionless as he slid long sensitive fingers inside her moving to the tempo of the ringing in her head. The electronic ringing that was getting louder. The ringing that should go away.

Buffy forced her eyes open and felt in the general direction of the sound until she came across Spike's mobile on top of the bedside cabinet. She didn't know how to switch off the alarm but decided pressing the biggest button was probably the best option. It sort of worked. The noise stopped and the writing on the centre of the display now said "Snooze". She pulled the phone close to her face and tried to make the numbers in the bottom left corner of the screen come into focus. 07:32. Joy.

She looked over at the inert form sharing her bed. The cool hard surface she had been pressing her cheek into was actually Spike's chest. Her leg was still draped over his, his arm cradling her back. She raised herself up slightly on her elbow, smoothing wayward curls back from his forehead. She loved the feel of those soft white curls, but could easily understand why he insisted on gelling them into submission. She traced the lines of his face working her way down, until she ran her fingers again and again over those lips.

When she felt him move beneath her fingers she couldn't wait any longer and she brushed her lips against his as softly as she could. The feather-light touch set off electric tingles in her own lips and apparently did the same for a certain person of the undead persuasion. As she pulled back, heavy-lashed lids slid slowly open revealing ultramarine depths.

"Morning, love." His voice was a sleepy purr.

She dipped her head to tease his lips once more before she replied. "Morning. Time to ring the other woman."

"Can think of things I'd rather be doin'." His gaze travelled over those parts of her body not hidden by the bed clothes. ".but they'll wait."

That earned him a poke in the stomach. "Taking me for granted already, are we?"

He smirked despite himself. "Well, pet, if you can't wait I better see if I can find the hands-free kit again."

"Pig."

"An' don't you-" Whatever Spike intended as his reply it was cut short by the insistent beeping noise of the phone again. Both of them fumbled amongst the rumpled bedding where Buffy had dropped it earlier. Spike found it first and soon managed to disable the snooze function. He held down the right key until the speed-dial kicked in and then passed the phone to Buffy.

"Best speak to Niblet before she thinks we've forgotten her."

Buffy took the phone, explaining to her sister that they had had a busier night than anticipated and hadn't been able to get home that morning as planned, but that they would make it home some time that evening if there were no further emergencies. Wisely she refused to go into detail about the previous night's happenings until they got back. She then passed the phone to Spike.

Spike made sure everything was okay in Sunnydale, gave Dawn the number of the motel and their room number in case she needed to get in touch for any reason and asked what sort of take-out she wanted for dinner when they got back. By the time the two hung up, Buffy was curled up asleep with her head on his chest once more. Spike stretched to put the phone back on the bedside table without waking her and closed his own eyes, listening to the sound of her breathing, till he too fell asleep.

 

Wednesday Late morning

It was after eleven before Buffy woke again. Spike still slept peacefully and she decided not to wake him until it was absolutely necessary. She tip-toed around as she got dressed, finally scribbling a note to say that she'd taken his phone and the room keys and she'd gone to the diner across the road for brunch. She would be back in about half an hour or so. She left the note on her pillow where he couldn't miss it if he happened to wake up.

Once she was safely settled in the booth, coffee in front of her and her order taken she pulled the phone out of her pocket. She searched the memory for the number and dialled.

"Angel In-" Cordy's voice answered after two rings.

"Cordelia? It's Buffy, you don't need the spiel."

"Hi, Buffy. That was quite the little show last night. Guess you're finally over Angel."

"Yeah, and it only took three years. I was just ringing to see if there was any progress on the Stephen front." Buffy changed the subject.

"Hey, yeah. You could have warned me about the little bombshell you dropped on Angel before you left."

"I kinda did. I told you he was all broody. Besides, I got distracted. You should know the feeling with that man of yours hanging round." Buffy wasn't averse to dropping hints that might make the former Scooby think through what she was feeling.

"Yeah, well, ya coulda stuck around to help with the mess you left instead of high-tailing it back to your motel."

"We could've stayed, but we couldn't have helped. You're the one Angel talks to now when he needs someone. Stephen won't trust Spike because he's a vampire and having seen the two of us together, the claim mark and me fighting I'm not entirely sure he believes I'm human either. It didn't really seem the time for the "In every generation" speech, so we left him to think about things. And Angel's lucky that Spike chose to get involved or he'd probably have never seen the kid again. And if you tell him that I'll get lynched .so anyway what's happening?"

"Well, Fred and Gunn found him at the motel, probably not long after you two left. He wouldn't tell them what had happened, but eventually he decided he wanted to bury him. So they took him out into the country in Gunn's truck, but he wouldn't let them get Angel to help. He said it wouldn't be fitting if the demon who killed Holtz' family had any part in his burial."

"Whoa, back up, what do you mean Angel killed his family?"

"Holtz was like the real-life van Helsing of the 1700's. This irritated our guy Angelus a bit so he and Darla lured Holtz away and killed his wife and baby and turned his daughter, so that Holtz probably had to stake her or whatever himself. From what we can gather Holtz then makes some sort of deal with some time-travelling demon and ends up in the twenty-first century just in time for Connor's birth."

"Mmm, guess the kid had a valid point then," Buffy added.

"Anyway he showed up about an hour ago here and Angel gave him some letter the old guy gave him last night, saying he thought it was better for Stephen to be with his father, Angel I mean. He said he was going to leave, I guess he meant something a bit more permanent than anyone thought."

"So Stephen's still there?"

"Yeah, he's home now. The reception area looks more like a playground, with him and Angel and Fred and Gunn playing stake the vampire."

"So are you left manning the store?"

"Sort of."

"Well, look the thing is this. I've got to go to the bank and pick up some money for Spike, but after that I've got nothing to do but shop. sort of wedding type shop. I mean Dawn would kill me if I picked the dresses without her, and it's not like we were ever really shopping buddies before, but I thought I might start narrowing down the options a bit and I need a second opinion. And Spike wanted to give you some money to get some clothes for Stephen as well, sort of however many years of birthday presents. assuming Angel won't mind."

"Tough luck if he does. Connor needs more clothes and I don't think Angel's got a clue how much it's going to cost to get him a whole wardrobe. All birthday presents gratefully accepted by me if not them." Cordy displayed a typical practicality.

"Is it okay if I get Spike to drop me off at the hotel and we take your car, if you have one? I can feel the worry flowing out of Spike when I even suggest driving his, of course the fact you can't see out through the windshield and I haven't passed my test yet might be factors."

"I'll get the keys for the mid-life crisis mobile. It's got more trunk space. There's parking round the back in the shade."

"Okay. I'll give you a ring when I get through at the bank and let you know we're on our way."

 




 

Buffy opened their room door as quietly as she could and then berated herself for sneaking around when she was just going to get him up anyway. She decided the view was worth it. Spike had obviously woken up and read the note and then fallen asleep again. He lay face down across the middle of the mattress, his cheek resting on his right forearm. His left hand held her note as if it were something precious he wouldn't let go of even in sleep. His curls were rumpled and he'd kicked the sheet down so far that half his perfectly rounded ass was showing. She couldn't resist. Placing the cup and paper bag she was carrying on the bedside table she crawled onto the bed and sank her teeth into the nearest smooth white globe.

"Ow, ya-" His cry of surprise and pain was rapidly replaced by a rumbling growl of satisfaction. She loosened her grip and moved up the bed leaning over him to kiss the hollow below his chiselled cheekbone.

"Morning, sleepyhead," she almost whispered in his ear.

He rolled over onto his back, his arms reaching up to pull her down on top of him. "Morning, woman mine." He held her in a loose grip and she could easily have pulled away. Instead she melted against him.

"I brought you some human type breakfast, to go with what's in the fridge. Thought I'd indulge your cannibalistic tendencies."

"Very funny, pet. It doesn't take a vampire's sense of smell to work out whatever's in that bag involves some sort of bacon product."

"Mn-hn, bacon sandwich, extra crispy with optional sachet of tomato ketchup and a large coffee, but you have to get up. And before you say it I can tell certain parts of you already are, but I need you to drive me wherever I need to go for this money and then to my bank and then drop me off at the hotel so I can go shopping with Cordelia."

"But it would be such a waste having the room all to ourselves if we didn't make full use of it." Spike waggled his eyebrow at her.

"Here's the deal then. If you're ready to go in fifteen minutes, I'll make sure the trip includes some lingerie shopping and at least one set won't be for the trousseau, it'll be for this afternoon before we go home."

"Still leaves time for a quickie, love. I can always stick breakfast in the microwave when I get back."

"You're incorrigible,"

"I'll take that as a yes, shall I?" It was only then as he looked down to see what trousers she was wearing that he noticed she wasn't wearing trousers at all. She was wearing a skirt and not just any skirt but a long black leather wraparound that he was more than familiar with. He felt himself hardening even further, so much so that the sensation became painful.

"God, pet. You didn't think you could wear that skirt and get out without getting molested, did you?"

He sat up and pulled her so that she sat sideways between his knees, her legs over his left, his right arm supporting her back. "Let's see if we can do this right this time, love." His hand slid up under her skirt, pulling open the snaps on the teddy she wore and teasing apart her damp folds. "I think your cue is "Stop,"." Buffy was still wet and her muscles relaxed from their activities the previous night and her dream this morning and he easily slid two fingers inside her, gently preparing her.

He slipped a third finger inside and Buffy gasped leaning back more against his other arm.

"Don't stop," she cried breathlessly.

"You couldn't make me." He replied. She twisted her upper body, her arms encircling his neck they attacked each other's mouths in a frenzy. Drowning in his kisses, his hand still moving inside her, Buffy wasn't sure if she was playing the scenario or trying to resurrect the last vestiges of coherent thought. She pulled back away from him.

"I have to go, Cor-"

"Stay. I'm stuck here. Sun's up." Spike replayed his part perfectly.

Once more Buffy's arms fastened around his neck, and their lips met with a fierce passion. Underneath her skirt he pulled his fingers from her hot wet core for long enough to lift her over his right leg and lay her on her back beside him on the bed. They never broke the kiss as he positioned her and twisted to lie above her in one fluid move.

Finally, he eased back to let her get some air. Letting all his emotion show in his eyes he looked down at her as he spoke.

"I knew the only thing better than being with you like this would be hearing you say you love me."

"I love you," she replied as she stared straight back into his neon blue eyes. She lifted her head to whisper in his ear "and if you fuck me right now I'll tell you over and over till I can't speak any more." She brought her knees up and outward, letting her skirt drape into folds around her waist.

"Oh, God, I love you so much." Spike replied before he drove into her so hard she gave a small grunt as the air was forced from her lungs. As soon as she drew a fresh breath she made eye contact and told him the words he wanted to hear. "I love you.. I love you.. I love you... I love you... I love you.. I love you.. I love you. I love you. I love you.. I love you.. I love you. I love you." She chanted the words in time to their movements, her hips rising clear of the mattress to meet his, each repetition increasingly breathless.

There was nothing else in the world except the man looking down into her eyes with such open adoration and the feel of his body around and inside hers. She had never felt so desirable as she did when he looked at her. Sooner than she would ever have thought possible she felt the first tremors of her oncoming climax.

"Will." she gasped out.

"I know, baby, I can feel it."

He changed the angle of his hips slightly so that he ground more firmly against her at the end of every stroke. Three more thrusts and she felt that sudden release she'd been waiting for.

"Oh God, I love you!" she screamed loud enough for the people three rooms up on either side to hear.

Her cry as much as the feel of her muscles involuntary movements around him brought Spike crashing after.

He held her close as he rolled them over onto their sides. "How long have we got left out of that fifteen minutes?" he asked.

"Who cares? Just hold me," she answered, wriggling in his arms to get as close as possible to him. She could feel that he was still hard inside her and she knew if they didn't have places to be they would have spent the whole afternoon and probably longer, in bed, on the floor, up against the walls, in the shower and probably every other vertical or horizontal surface in the room.

Buffy smiled against his neck. He stroked her hair until she looked up and then raised his eyebrow.

"Just thinking. If I'd done something like that with Riley, I'd probably have spent most of the time getting myself off to get ready and the rest just waiting for him to finish.

With you, sex is like chocolate. It doesn't matter when I last had some or how much I had, I always want more."

"Does that mean you're making time for another round?"

"No, 'cause even if I did I'd still want thirds and fourths and fifths." She lay there with him for another couple of minutes before she forced herself to pull away. Picking up a pair of his jeans from the case she threw them at him. "You've got five minutes."

He pulled on his clothes and lit a cigarette in less than three. "You got a pen and some paper, love?" Buffy pulled out the notebook she had brought with her from her purse, passing it to him. She remembered the note she left him that morning, rescuing it from the bed. She was about to crumple it up and throw it in the bin when he moved at speed to pull it from her hand, thrusting it into his coat pocket. She was going to ask why he wanted to keep such a pointless note but then she remembered how she'd finished it, and started it: "Dearest Will, .I love you. B. x"

Spike went on with his own note making, writing down the details of the wire transfer which he'd arranged to be sent to a branch of her bank this time. On a second sheet he wrote "Password: DIANTHUS BARBATUS". Then an allocation of how to split the money.

"Cordy - say $1,000 tell her to buy herself something for her trouble from that.

- Must buy decent pair of boots e.g.DM's, Para Boots, New Rocks.

Me - $5,000 to cover PC as well as general expenses and stuff for flat.

Buffy Current - Enough for at least one month comfortable living expenses. (At least 2x DMP)

- Bring all bills up to date.

Buffy Wedding - Remainder."

"What's with the Diana Barbie Latin thing?" Buffy asked.

"You need a password to pick up the money. That would be it."

"You expect me to remember that?"

"To be honest, I expected you to pass over the bit of paper with it written on," Spike tilted his head and raised an eyebrow. He handed Buffy both sheets of paper and held the room door open for her.

"But what does it mean?" Buffy walked out to the car.

"You're back-to-college girl. Look it up." Spike slid into the driver's seat and reached across to unlock the passenger door.

 




 

Buffy had considered holding Spike's money ransom until he told her what he made her say to the bank teller. Since she actually transferred a total of twenty-nine thousand to her two accounts she thought that might be just a little petty. Why wouldn't he tell her anyway? Maybe she just offered the teller anal sex for all she knew. That would be so Spike. Instead she just went back to the car and passed him the larger of the two envelopes the nice people at the bank had been kind enough to provide.

"Still not going to tell me whether I should be made to wash my mouth out with soap and water?" she asked him.

"No. I could suggest some different mouthwash though." Spike leered.

"Pig. You are so-o. I mean, one-track mind or what? I bet it is something rude."

Spike just smirked.

"I could ring Wesley. He would know." Buffy pouted.

"Yeah," Spike conceded, smirk still in place. "He might be into that sort of thing, but do you really want to ask him?"

"You are Evil."

"I'm your Big Bad, cutie," he confirmed.

"I'm going to find out what it is," she insisted. "And did you just say you were my Big Bad Cutie?"

"I know and no-o, I didn't. I called you cutie."

"I prefer my version. But you're going to make me suffer?"

Spike gave up and just shrugged his shoulders. "Weren't you supposed to ring and warn the cheerleader you were coming?"

"Yeah, but this so isn't over." Buffy again took possession of Spike's cell-phone and rang to let Cordelia know that they were on their way.

"She says to go round the back of the hotel. She'll be waiting and it's shady."

"If it means seeing the princess for five minutes without having to see the Great Poof's ugly mug, then it suits me," answered Spike.

"You like Cordelia?" Buffy asked.

"Well, yeah. I mean, we've barely met, but she's straight. Says what she thinks, bit like demon-girl, and until she did whatever she's done to her hair, kinda easy on the eyes too. What's not to like?"

"The extreme bitchiness, even if she wasn't as bad once she started dating Xander."

"Don't think what she thinks is any worse than what most everybody else does, she just doesn't bother hiding it s'all. At least you know where you stand," Spike argued. "I mean, take Red. I know when Harris starts a round of kick the Spike, she won't do anything to stop him. Whether it's because she agrees with him and is just letting him do the dirty work or whether she doesn't agree but isn't prepared to go against her buddy, I don't know. Five minutes alone with the Princess and I'll know exactly where I stand."

"That all made a strange kind of sense, I think," Buffy conceded.

"No need to sound so surprised, love." Spike smirked as he slid her a sideways glance through his thick eyelashes. "'Sides, heard she dumped Harris."

"And all is revealed."

 
 
Chapter #20 - Chapter 3:04
 







SECTION 3 - DANCING IN THE MOONLIGHT

When I passed you in the doorway
You took me with a glance
I should have taken the last bus home
But I asked you for a dance.

.But I'm dancing in the moonlight
It's caught me in its spotlight
It's alright, alright
Dancing in the moonlight
On the long hot summer night

(Thin Lizzy [written by Phil Lynott], Album Bad Reputation)



Chapter 3.04
Wednesday, May 8th, 2002

"Hey, guys," Cordy greeted the pair as they got out of the car, or in Spike's case mostly got out. He stood with one forearm resting on the roof of the car and the other resting along the top of the driver's door, his right foot on the bottom of the doorframe.

"Back at you, princess," Spike replied. "So the kid found his own way home?"

"Yeah, getting' in the quality time with his dad as we speak," Cordy replied.

"Hey," Buffy added as she walked around the front of the car to say her goodbyes to Spike.

"Hope it works out for him," the vampire added.

"Yeah, and why would that be?" the seer asked.

Spike shrugged. "He's family."

"Angel's family but that didn't stop you torturing him last time you were in town." Cordy answered. Buffy slid her arms around Spike's waist from behind, his own hands dropping to cover them.

"Yeah, honey, and if I'd kept it up for a few more years then we might be running somewhere near even. That wasn't about us anyway. It was all about the ring."

"So you're not harbouring any grudges against Angel?" Cordy checked.

Spike gave Cordy a quizzical look. "I'm harbouring a whole fleet of grudges. Not plannin' on actin' on any of them though, unless he tries to get between me and Buffy."

"Close enough. So you plan on playing Uncle Spike?"

"Since you're playin' mommy, why don't you tell me whether I'll get the chance."

"I've got no objection. Not sure I can say the same about Angel," Cordy admitted.

Spike smirked. "I think where the kid's concerned he'll realise, sooner or later, it's best to go along with what you think. We'll give Junior a chance to settle in though before I stick my oar in any more."

"Are you two done now?" Buffy interrupted the others.

"Just about," Spike answered. "Tell Uncle Stephen I said 'Hi' when you see him, princess." Spike turned his back to where Cordy sat waiting in Angel's convertible, to take Buffy in his arms for a steamy kiss.

"Hey," Buffy hissed, when they finally parted. "Some consideration for the audience."

"All she could see was the back of my head. Now, go, spend, enjoy yourself. And if any of the bridal places have catalogues with the menswear in bring a copy back."

"You mean you're not planning to get married in your jeans and duster?" Buffy retorted.

"Haven't come to a final decision yet." He drew her into another kiss, lightly brushing the unmarked side of her neck with the back of his index finger as he did so. The touch caused her flesh to tingle, but more importantly was a reminder of what he could do by touching the other side of her neck. "Later, love," his farewell words were a seductive promise.

"Later," she confirmed, as she backed reluctantly away from him.

 

 

"So tell me, how on the hellmouth did you end up engaged to Spike of all people?" Cordy asked the slayer as they drove away from the Hyperion.

"This time or the time before?" said Buffy with a smirk.

 




 

Spike headed back to the motel to be met as soon as he got out of the car by an irate manager, who had come in search of the pair when they failed to check out that morning. It said a lot about Spike's mood that he managed to make an apology instead of vamping out at the man. That and the fact he could see himself having to bring both Summers girls up to LA for weekend shopping at least a couple of times between now and the wedding. It would be useful if they weren't barred from the place.

"Sorry, mate, we didn't get in till really late last night so we decided to stay until this evening. I thought the girlfriend would've taken care of it when she went to the diner for breakfast. Get yourself a drink for your trouble." Spike gave the man an extra ten bucks over the cost of the room.

He tipped the coffee down the drain, knowing even if he reheated it in the microwave it would have a bitter taste. Instead, he put the bacon sandwich and a packet of blood from the fridge in together and rinsed out the coffee cup to hold his alternative beverage when it was ready.

As he munched into his sandwich and washed it down with some O+ he debated what he should do with the remainder of the day. If he hadn't given his phone to Buffy he might have tried ringing Giles to see if he had made any progress on his research. He could ring the other watcher, maybe go for a drink, but in an unfamiliar city the effort he'd expend trying to avoid sunlight would probably be more than it was worth. If the slayer came back early, though he suspected the prospects of that were doubtful, he intended to be here to take advantage of the fact. Thanks to Buffy's efforts to pack for him he didn't even have a book to read. He dropped the coffee cup and the bag the sandwich came in into the bin and flopped onto the bed, picking up the TV remote.

He could feel himself dropping off before he even got as far as finding a program he wanted to watch. 'Maybe just as well,' he thought as he hugged Buffy's pillow to his chest. 'Been burnin' the candle at both ends. Chances are you won't be able to sleep without her tonight either. At least this bed smells of her.' Five minutes later he was sound asleep.

Wednesday Late afternoon

Buffy came back with a handful of carrier bags one of which held a selection of boxes, which in turn held silk and satin undergarments wrapped in layers of tissue paper. Buffy couldn't remember when she had last been able to splash out on clothes shopping without worrying about how much she was spending, but she knew it was probably before her parents' divorce.

She hadn't actually bought anything for the wedding as such, although one carrier bag was entirely filled with magazines with the words "Bride" or "Wedding" in their titles. Most of the other bags she'd brought were full of clothes for Dawn. Lately, Buffy had felt guilty about her inability to cover non-essentials like clothing. She knew when she'd been Dawn's age she'd had a new outfit at least every couple of weeks whereas Dawn got to wear the same stuff over and over.

She fumbled with the door handle, hoping the room wasn't locked, because if the vampire was asleep in there with their only room key she didn't think she had much chance of waking him. Fortunately, he'd left the door open. Even more fortunately, he wasn't asleep. Instead the sound of running water could be heard coming from the direction of the shower along with the sound of singing. ".Call her up on the telephone, Invite her over 'cause I'm all alone."

'Okay, model lingerie or join naked, soapy Spike in the shower? Duh!' thought Buffy, stripping as quickly as possible and hoping he wouldn't be finished before she got there. Her clothes formed a trail from the room door through to the shower cubicle. She slid the door to one side, stepping in behind the suddenly silent vamp. "Ramones?" she asked taking the soapy puff from his hands.

"Undertones, got the last four letters right, love. It's a start."

She moved the puff over his back and bottom before reaching round him to lather his chest and stomach. Her breasts were pressed flat against his back, sliding against him as she washed his muscles in ever descending circles. Before she reached her ultimate objective he turned in her arms, passing her the bottle of citrus shower gel. She squirted some more on the puff which had been rinsed as she was washing his stomach, working it into a lather before she passed the bottle back to him. She wanted to kneel at his feet to wash his legs, planning to leave his dick till last, and it seemed like he could read her mind as she looked down.

"There's not enough space. Just do as far down as you can reach standing up, pet." She followed his advice washing his hips and thighs. She squeezed as much lather as she could from the puff onto her hands using them to stroke slowly up and down his thick, long, slippery shaft. His skin there was always amazingly smooth and soft and the slickness of the lather merely emphasised the effect.

"I dreamt about being in here with you," she admitted.

"Was it a good dream?" he queried.

"Until the alarm went off."

Spike smiled remembering that the first thing he'd noticed on awakening that morning was the scent of her arousal. "Were you dreaming about last night or were we trying something different?"

"We didn't get very far, but I got the impression .we were going to .do the thing I've only done with you. I was standing on the rim above the shower tray facing the wall. You used your knee to get me to spread my legs and you were just using your fingers to make me all soapy, ready for you."

Spike was surprised. It had taken a great deal of persuasion that first night they spent together before Buffy had allowed him to take her second virginity. After a slow gentle introduction her response had been enthusiastic, but though they had tried it several times since, it had always been at his instigation. He was quite convinced that when she had called that night the most perverse and degrading night of her life that those images had been foremost in her mind. Now she was all but asking for it outright.

"Is that what you want? You want me to make your dream come true, love?" Spike asked in a husky whisper, giving her the opportunity to back out. She didn't speak; instead she gave the barest of nods and kissed him tenderly before she moved to stand facing the wall as she had in her dream. Spike leant against her back pressing her between his body and the cool white tiles, helping her keep her balance on the narrow ledge she was standing on. He poured shower gel into the palm of his hand working it into a lather over as much of her flesh as he could reach. As he moved against her she could feel his erection rubbing against the cleft of her ass. Almost involuntarily, she rocked her hips back against him until the pair were moving against each other in a primal rhythm. Spike slid his knee between her thighs so that as she moved she ground against him.

Buffy moaned as she pressed hard against his firm leg muscles, tensing momentarily when she felt a slender soapy finger push inside her. Spike slid his finger back and forth in time with her movements, making circling motions at the same time to ease her open. After a minute or so he inserted a second finger and finally a third. Several thrusts later he spread the fingers inside her as wide as he could, filling the space between them with gel. Buffy gasped as the cool fluid touched her inner walls.

"Please, Will." At her prompting, he pulled out his fingers and making sure his dick was still well lathered he pushed home a fraction of an inch at a time, pausing frequently to let her muscles adjust to his girth. Gradually he built up from small rocking motions until he was pounding into her, pinning her against the cool tile at the end of every thrust. The gel was soon warmed by their friction and Spike felt like he was drowning in her heat.

His hands glided round to her front, the thumb of his left hand made lazy circles around her clit, his right hand holding each breast in turn, teasing her nipples till she moaned. Her knees failed to support her and she stayed upright only because she was trapped between Spike and the wall. He nibbled at her shoulders with blunt teeth, blowing on the damp skin at her neck. When his breath touched her claim marks her orgasm hit her like a tidal wave. Her back arched convulsively and she screamed his name. A few seconds later Spike shuddered to his climax, bracing his arms against the side walls of the cubicle so that they didn't collapse in an undignified heap.

It was several minutes later before the couple managed to disentangle their limbs and regain upright positions.

"You okay, love?" Spike asked as he helped her to her feet.

"More than okay." She wrapped her arms around his waist resting her cheek against his shoulder. He placed a kiss on top of her head.

"Want me to wash your hair while you're here or should I just leave and give you some space?" the vampire asked.

"You lured me in here with your naked soapy body. It's only fair if you stay." Buffy responded.

"Didn't realise I was that much of an attraction."

"Ha! Less fishing for compliments. More scalp massage, Vamp Boy."

"As you wish, princess," Spike replied. "As you wish."

 
 
Chapter #21 - Chapter 3:05
 






SECTION 3 - DANCING IN THE MOONLIGHT

When I passed you in the doorway
You took me with a glance
I should have taken the last bus home
But I asked you for a dance.

.But I'm dancing in the moonlight
It's caught me in its spotlight
It's alright, alright
Dancing in the moonlight
On the long hot summer night

(Thin Lizzy [written by Phil Lynott], Album Bad Reputation)



Chapter 3.05
Wednesday, May 8th, 2002

Spike took some of her shampoo and massaged it into her hair. When he had finished he spun them round so that instead of hitting his back the water from the shower was hitting hers instead. She took a step backward, still holding him round the waist and let the water rinse the suds from her hair, his fingers working through the strands directing the water flow until the last of the lather was rinsed away. He found himself in the perfect position to claim a kiss. Buffy's head was tilted back and her eyes closed and one of his hands was wrapped in her hair while her arms still circled his waist. His lips moved on hers with a light touch, nibbling at her lower lip to prevent the pout he expected, when she realised he had finished doing her hair.

Pulling back, he turned off the water. "I guess it's time we went back to pretending that we're responsible adults and head back to Sunnyhell. See Bit. Do some sort of patrol." Spike sounded as if he wished they had other plans.

"I thought we had a date with some silky underwear," Buffy suggested.

"Much as the idea appeals, and believe me it does;" He treated her to a trademark leer to prove his point. "I think a rain check's prob'ly in order. Don't want the Niblet thinking that we're too interested in screwin' each other's brains out to spend time with her, or attend to your slayer duties. She seems happy we're together. Don't want her to change her mind," the platinum blond responded.

"You know, if you had to choose, life and death, between me and her I sometimes wonder which one you'd choose," teased the slayer as she led him back into the main room.

The couple started, albeit reluctantly, to get dressed as the vampire responded with a rueful smirk. "Already answered that question, pet, long time ago. Right before our first proper kiss. Well, first one that wasn't 'cause of a spell, that is."

Buffy cast her mind back, trying to think what he could mean, then she remembered his words. ".the other, not so pleasant Buffy .anything happened to Dawn, it'd destroy her. I couldn't live her bein' in that much pain." Yeah, he'd made it plain where he stood. He would die to protect them, but implicit in his words was his acknowledgement of Buffy's willingness to die to save her sister. She had her answer, not necessarily the one she would have expected but then when had her vampire ever been predictable. Her vampire? Her vampire.

"I guess you did," she replied softly as she moved behind him, passing her arms around his waist once more, pressing into his T-shirt clad back so he wouldn't see her face. "There's no limit to what you would do for me, is there?"

"I thought that was obvious by what I agreed to, to get you to marry me." Spike adopted a teasing tone, trying to lighten the serious mood.

"No, that showed me what you were prepared to do to be with me. Knowing that you would let me go because it's what I'd want that means even more."

Spike shrugged. "Not really. No point keepin' you here for you to end up hating me and yourself for lettin' Niblet get hurt. Still just the same old selfish Spike. Couldn't go back to havin' you hate me not after this."

"Oh well. If you put it like that, then." her teasing tone came back, as did Spike's.

"Couldn't have you thinkin' I was all noble and self-sacrificin', could I?"

"That'd never do. Can't forget you're the Big Bad. Cutie." Her last word prompted the vamp to twist in her arms and sweep her feet from under her, pinning her to the tile floor.

"What did I say to you about the "C" word?" Spike proceeded to tickle her mercilessly. "Who's the only cutie in this room? .Tell me, love."

Buffy gasped for air and squirmed beneath him. "You .are."

The tickling onslaught stopped and Buffy realised that Spike's lips were only a fraction of an inch away from her own. "Wrong answer, slayer." He stood up and turning away he finished getting dressed.

Buffy continued to pant on the floor for another minute or two. "That's it. You're just going to give up?" she managed after some time.

"Hell no, just waiting till I can consult with an expert tactician as to my best form of attack, and then I'll mount an offensive in my own time. For just now, it's time to go home." He reached down, offering a hand to help her up and was relieved when she took it.

"Translation?" Buffy gave him a sceptical look.

"I'm going to find out from your little sister how best to make you suffer, since tickling doesn't appear to do it. I'm sure she'll think of something," Spike smirked and gave her a slap on her behind. "Now, put some clothes on, woman, before all my good intentions go to waste."

The slayer jumped, startled by the blow rather than hurt. Her eyes narrowed as she watched the vampire sit down on the bed to put on his socks and boots.

"Spike, you're a pig," she responded as much out of habit as out of conviction.

 

 

Spike was quiet on the drive back. Couldn't the bloody woman just give way on anything? Was it her aim in life to strip him of every last vestige of pride that he possessed? Hell, yeah, he was love's bitch again. Always had been, probably always would be. Still, "cutie", that's a girl's nickname and damned if anyone had ever seen him in a skirt, even if Dru had been quite intrigued by the idea in the eighties. And okay, he was making it into a bigger deal than it deserved to be, but it was the final soddin' straw. Damned if he'd got his own way in anything since the pair of them had got engaged and look at the concessions he'd had to make to get her to agree to that.

Okay, she hadn't gone back to that dump she'd worked in, but that was because she'd totally ignored what he said about wanting to stay in control until the Watcher could tell them whether it was safe to claim each other. She hadn't liked the idea that he could rein himself in when they were together. It hurt her pride. So she deliberately set out to make him lose control. Even when he'd already told her the reason he was holding off. Stubborn bitch.

And when she did find out what that password meant he probably wasn't going to hear the end of that either. Further embarrassment to come at the slayer's hands. They'd been using that same bloody password for decades. He'd always thought it was a nice ironic touch. Back in the day anyone who found out would most likely have been creeped out by it. They certainly wouldn't have found it amusing like the slayer would. That was why he'd refused to tell her. He wasn't good at being laughed at. He'd had a lifetime of it before Dru saved him. After that he'd sworn he would never put up with it again, and he hadn't, not till that soddin' wheelchair that she put him in. If she insisted on finding out at least he didn't have to be in the vicinity at the time.

God, why couldn't he, just for once, fall for someone who would give him a bit of slack? Someone who would treat him with some respect.

Buffy stole sideways glances at the man behind the wheel of the car. If he wasn't smoking, his jaw had that tick that said he was barely in control. She wished she could tell what he was thinking right now. Whatever it was, it wasn't of the good. He'd been fine in the motel, well maybe a little off, the last five minutes, but definitely more than welcoming up until then and he'd seemed okay when they left the room. Then when she'd come back to the car after checking out he'd gone into silent mode. And kept it up for half an hour so far, which had to be a Spike record. Guess Angel wasn't the only one she was going to have to prise information out of.

"Okay, what's the what?" she threw in as an opening gambit.

"Who says there's a what?"

"I do. If you were human you would have ground your teeth to talcum by now. What gives?"

"Not you, that's for sure." The Brit flicked a cold glance over her before returning his attention to the tiny bare patch on the windscreen.

"What? What are you talking about?" Buffy's temper immediately rose to take on his.

"You. I had this stupid idea that if you loved someone, then what they wanted was supposed to count for something."

"Okay, I'm sure that makes some sort of sense to you but I don't have a clue what you're talking about."

"Name me one disagreement or argument or fight that we've had where you've actually backed down and let me have my way. You do realise that when people talk about give and take in a relationship it's not meant to be all give on one side and all take on the other."

"I didn't go back to DMP. You didn't want me to and I didn't go back."

"There's a good example. You didn't go back because I bit you so you couldn't go back that night and by the next day you were enjoying playing hookey too much to want to go back. It had nothing to do with what I wanted. And to go back to me biting you, I bloody told you I wanted to keep things as they were until Rupert finished his research. That I had to stay in control until we knew it was okay, so you decided it was a challenge. You just had to push to see if you could get me to lose control and look where that's got us."

"Yeah, well, I don't see a problem with where that got us," Buffy responded.

"So you don't think you're eventually going to come to resent the control it gives me."

"No more than I resented the fact you weren't being completely open."

"My point exactly, slayer. It doesn't matter what we're talking about or what any reasoning behind it is, as soon as you don't agree you just do whatever it takes to get your own way. Compromise just isn't in your vocabulary. Well maybe you should think about what you might lose in the long run if you win every argument," the vampire ground out, his eyes never leaving the road.

"Are you threatening to leave me? Didn't take you long to threaten to go back on all your big promises, did it?"

"For goodness sake, how many times do I have to tell you that I'm here to stay? What I'm saying is if you can't get over always having to win you'll destroy the last few scraps of pride this buggerin' chip lets me keep. I told you once I was a willing slave. I can't deny you anything and if you keep going, that's what you'll have a slave, not a husband."

Buffy was stunned into silence. He was right. She knew he wouldn't leave. She knew that he would do anything to make her happy and if she didn't curb her slayer instincts she would walk all over him for it. He could read her so easily. He knew when he should back off. She didn't, not yet. She still didn't even know what she'd done to bring all this up.

When she finally found words to speak all the anger was gone from her voice. "You're right, as you almost always are. I just don't know what I'm supposed to have done. I mean you were right I did set out to make you lose control, but I don't think that's it. I don't . What did I do?"

"I might be into pain, but emasculation, verbal or otherwise isn't my scene. Not that I do great on ridicule of any sort, in fact." came the vampire's cool reply.

Buffy mentally made her way through the last five minutes in the motel room. "You're in a foul mood because I called you Cutie? That's what's got you so bent out of shape? In case you hadn't noticed it's supposed to be a term of endearment. It doesn't bother you when you use it on me. In fact it was you using it that started it. Turn about's fair play."

The vampire sorted in disgust. "Not when you're throwin' around words like that. Cute, I'll just about put up with since with your age group it sort of means sexy, but I still don't like it. Cutie though. To me a cutie is a little big-eyed bint, which to me seems appropriate for you, but it's hardly going to make me feel all manly, is it? And I'm not this pissed off because you called me cutie, I'm this pissed because even when I gave you the chance to take it back you were too bloody pig-headed to do it. A stupid little thing not worth fighting over but you still had to win. That's what pisses me off."

"Well, that's not what I mean by it .or Will, I mean Willow. We both talk about guys being cuties, or we used to, but I'm sorry that I upset you. I'll try to avoid calling you anything girly in future. And I'll try not to push everything to the limit."

"Yeah, just remember you said that when you get round to doing your research."

"If you stop the car I'll find you a nice big weapon from the trunk. Something very butch," Buffy offered.

"What?"

"Well, you did tell me once that weapons made you feel 'all manly'. I thought it might help repair all the psychological damage I've done."

"I can think of other ways. And that was four and half years ago. You telling me you've memorised every word I've ever said to you."

"Actually, what I remember more were the .actions that went with it." Her cheeks flushed with colour as she spoke and her eyes burned bright.

"Are you saying you had the hots for the Big Bad way back then, pet?"

"Let's think, I was more than interested first time I saw you, right up to the point where you said you were going to kill me. That sort of put a damper on things. And when we were fighting in the school I was a bit busy being scared and generally trying to stay alive. The whole machismo thing came across as skanky rather than anything else. That doesn't mean to say that after our first engagement, it didn't feature in an occasional late night fantasy."

"Now, see, that's making me feel more manly already. So you dreamt about me even when you were seeing the hall monitor."

"Will, I thought about you while I was screwing the hall monitor, okay?" Buffy blushed even redder. "I dreamt about you and I got myself off thinking about you."

"Buffy, you naughty girl. What exactly was it that made you want to imagine you were with someone who'd never done more than kiss you? I don't even think you'd seen me with my shirt off."

"I'd felt you though. In the crypt, just before Willow reversed the spell, I could feel everything. I knew you .measured up."

"And soldier boy didn't?"

"Let's say, maybe he was about the same height as Angel but he wasn't as big, and you know how you compare with Angel. I mean he was probably average size for his height, he wasn't tiny or anything. He just wasn't .you. And then there's the whole bad boy thing." Buffy's tone shifted from shyly disconcerted to mildly sarcastic as she continued. "Now have I embarrassed myself and restored your ego enough or do you need me to suck you off now?"

Spike laughed. "I think that can wait till we're stationary, love. Maybe after patrol we can take the bike over to the flat and christen the new sheets. If they smell of you I might be able to sleep."

Buffy leant over and kissed his cheek. "I've never known anyone who could be so sweet and so crass all in the same mouthful. God knows why I love you, Will, but I do."

"And I love you too, pet."

Buffy scooched over as far in his direction as she could, trying to find a comfortable position to snuggle up to him while he was driving, eventually squirming back into the same position she'd been in the night before. He wasn't talking any more but that was okay. The tension was gone from his jaw and the hand she wasn't holding was drumming on the steering wheel to some song in his head. She'd probably find out what it was when he got round to singing along under his breath. All was well with the world again .for now.

 

 

"Buffy?"

The woman in question opened her eyes looking up at the face of the man she was propped against. By her reckoning they probably had another half-hour's drive before they reached Sunnydale. "Mm-hmm?"

"D'you think Platelet would mind if I didn't come in when I drop you off?"

"She'd be disappointed." Buffy gave him a questioning look. "Why do you ask?"

"I was thinking if I got the bed made and the curtains put up I could go back to the flat tonight instead of staying at the crypt."

"You could stay at ours again?"

"It's only the third night since I spent the night at your place and you had good reason to limit it to two nights a week. Can't tell who might be watchin'. They probably wouldn't be as bad now we're engaged but there's no point takin' unnecessary chances. 'Sides we probably wouldn't be too popular if we kept the rest of the house up on a week night."

"Well, come in, have dinner with us and then the three of us can go over there together after and sort it out. It's easier doing double beds with two people anyway, and Dawn'll want to see your new place. You can drop her off at home before we patrol.

And as to keeping everybody else awake, I've been thinking maybe soundproofing the basement and putting in another bathroom might be the best option whether the other Will stays or not .if we can definitely afford it?"

"We can afford it. And I can't imagine Bit being upset if she ended up with the big room if the witches didn't stay. Do you want to ask your mate or just pick someone from the Yellow Pages? I'm not sure how well he'd take bein' asked to build us a bedroom," Spike pointed out.

"I'll see what the other Will thinks," Buffy mused. "If we don't ask him he might get offended, but then like you say. You never know if the pair of you worked on it together you might even end up tolerating one another."

"Or stranglin' each other, one of the two. Specially since I've never used a saw in my life but that still doesn't make me any keener on following instructions from Harris."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Men."

"And now for something completely different." Spike pulled out his phone and passed it to Buffy. "Better ring the Wiccans and see if they want anything from the Chinese. Then if you ring the take away place it should be ready to pick up when we get back to town. Bit wanted lemon chicken, fried rice and banana fritters. I'll have the chilli beef."

"No rice?"

"No point, can't taste it."

Buffy picked up the phone and made arrangements for dinner, deciding it wasn't worth explaining to the vamp that nobody could really taste rice.

 
 
Chapter #22 - Chapter 4:01
 






SECTION 4 - HOME SWEET HOME

Take me to your heart
Feel me in your bones
Just one more night
And I'm comin' off this long and winding road.

.My heart's like an open book
For the whole world to read
Sometimes nothing - keeps me together
At the seams

I'm on my way
Well, I'm on my way
Home sweet home
Tonight tonight
I'm on my way
Just set me free
Home sweet home

(Motley Crue, Album Decade of Decadence)




Chapter 4.01
Wednesday, May 8th, 2002

Wednesday Evening

"Lucky it wasn't a girl or he'd probably have ended up playing stalker before he worked out who she was."

"Dawn!" Buffy's shocked exclamation coincided with Spike's snicker of amusement, which was only curtailed when Buffy redirected her glare. Spike didn't really care. Nothing was going to spoil his good mood. He was sandwiched between his two favourite women. The kitchen-island was strewn with Chinese food cartons. On the other side of said island, Tara and Willow were obviously still on their reconciliation high.

"What? It's not like she's wrong. You know the Poofter was followin' you around lurkin' in bushes even before you moved to Sunnyhell. Told me 'n' Dru all about it," Spike replied smugly.

"I give in. You two yuk it up while you can." Buffy turned her attention to her food knowing that when the blond one and her sister discussed Angel she wasn't going to be able to curtail the sarcasm however hard she tried.

"So," Dawn took this as dispensation to cross-examine Spike, "Does The Next Gen look like someone glued a cliff formation to his forehead as well, 'cause, like, he's never going to manage the broody glower without the overhang?"

Spike snorted before he replied, "nah, pet. This one at least looks human. Apart from hair colour he seems to take after 'is mum, fer looks anyway. God help us all if he's got her temperament."

"What I don't believe is none of them even picked up a phone when he was born." Willow added her opinion. "I mean we've let them know all the really big stuff. I even took the bus to tell him in person when Buffy. left. You two went to tell him in person about .you two. Xander wrote to Cordelia to say he was getting married. I rang them to say he didn't and all the time, BABY, hello!"

"You haven't heard the best bit yet, Red"

"What?"

"Cheerleader."

"You're telling me, there's more? Other than her being part demon and being in love with Angel but too busy getting off with some other guy, not of this earth, to realise?"

"Yep." Spike raised his hand holding his fingers roughly level with his jaw. "Hair lopped off to here and damn near as blonde as mine, except for the bits they left brown. Does not suit her complexion. And it's all sort of flat, makes her face look rounder or she's put on weight. Not sure which. Helluva waste."

"No!" Dawn was shocked, while Willow merely turned to Buffy for confirmation. The slayer looked up from successfully transporting two grains of rice from her carton to her mouth using chopsticks to notice her best friend's attention concentrated on her. "What?"

"Is it true?"

"What, Cordelia's hair? Yeah, all true though I'm not sure that the overall effect is as bad as he's making out. Doesn't seem to bother Angel, but then maybe I'm not in a position to judge 'cause I ," her eyes slid to Spike with a meaningful glance, "wasn't attracted to her when she was a brunette either ."

Willow wrinkled her nose and looked at Spike. "Really? Cordelia? Ew, for two guys that argue all the time you and Xander seem to have the same taste in women."

"Yeah, well, hello. Why did you think we don't get on?" Spike replied. "And anyway, next time Wolf Boy's in town, he can back me up. She did look pretty damn good last time I was down there. Whether she's his type or not I don't think he would argue." Spike looked around the table at the four women.

Tara gave him an amused smile. "Quit while you're ahead, Spike."

"Anyway, Will, I think you're being unfair. Even Xander's never sunk low enough to "date" Harmony," Buffy grinned mischievously, her words somewhat mitigated by the fact her foot was currently rubbing up and down against the inside of Spike's shin.

"Well you know what you said about that?"

Buffy looked over at Willow. "You better refresh my memory."

"'Guy, dating Harmony, dead. Must be the most tolerant guy in the world.' So is he?"

Spike gave Buffy his full attention, scarred eyebrow raised skyward. "Pretty much." She gave him a soft smile. "He puts up with me."

"Yeah, well, that just proves it," Dawn interjected with typical little sibling glee. "I mean look how long your first roommate lasted, less than a week wasn't it."

"That's so not fair. Like it was my fault they made me roomies with a demon that tried to steal my soul and played Cher non-stop."

Spike smirked. "You make it sound like the Cher was the worst bit."

"You try listening to "I believe" for two hours in a row and see how you like it."

"No thanks, pet."

"So anyway what other news have you brought back from LA?" Tara asked.

"Well, Wesley might come back to Sunnydale. Giles has offered him a job at the Magic Box." Buffy offered, "but then you've never met Wesley either, so yet again you're going to have no clue what we're talking about. You must be bored silly."

"Wes the Wonder Wuss?" was Dawn's comment. "Not sure she wants to. The only one who liked him last time round was Cordelia and even she went off him after he kissed her."

"Seemed alright to me, Bit," answered Spike.

"Wesley and Spike bonded," Buffy said. "They talked about beer and motorbikes and hell and soccer and killing demons, which was about the only bit I understood. He doesn't really seem all that wussy at all any more actually. I think if he does come back you'll all get a surprise.

Other than that, I can't think of anything else."

"I think that pretty much covers it, pet. I think the whole kidnapped prophecy baby saga was probably the highlight," Spike confirmed.

"Well, I vote for you taking a chunk out of the King of Pain, actually," Dawn gave Spike a beaming smile. "That's my personal favourite anyway."

"What is it with you and Angel?" her sister asked.

"The guy was a creep, Buffy. Skanking round after jailbait schoolgirls. He never spoke unless he wanted me to go fetch you and then he'd patronise me like I was three or something instead of ten. The only time he spoke to mom was to tell her you'd done the down and dirty. If he was really in love with you, don't you think he'd make more of an effort to get on with your family? He was a loser. You just couldn't see past the soulful eyes. Jeez, if that's what you wanted, you could have talked mom into letting us have that St Bernard. Do you want me to start on the "evil" version now?"

"Maybe you'd better not. I think I get the picture."

"Yeah, we all got them, remember, creepy charcoal sketches of us all sleeping. Except Giles. Jenny wasn't sleeping in his picture. She was dead. He killed her, set up Giles apartment like a seduction scene, arranged her body and then sat there and drew her. Giles has never seemed as happy since, as he was with Jenny."

"He's got Olivia now," Willow offered as a token defence.

"Yeah, yeah and he likes her but he doesn't go all glowy when someone mentions her name like he used to with Jenny. He had the real thing. Now, he's settling. And to even have that, he's had to leave all of us."

"Boy, all those times you got told to sit quiet in the corner and do your homework, you didn't get much homework done, did you?" Buffy asked.

"Blame the monks, and I still did more than any of you, except Willow, and if she was sleeping more than three hours a night, I don't know how," replied the one-time key.

"Hey, I used to manage a good five hours most nights, I'll have you know," the redhead responded, "and it was partly effective time management and partly the fact that my parents never actually expected me to spend any time with them."

"Maybe we shouldn't invite the Poofter to the wedding, pet. Unless you want him there." Spike suggested in a soft voice.

"But he's the only family you've got that you can invite. Well, him and Stephen. And I sort of already said he'd be getting an invitation," Buffy admitted.

"What's the bigger issue here, pet, not inviting your ex who didn't even bother to tell you he was a father or spoilin' a special day for the guy who's been your father for the last six years?"

"You liked Stephen though, and you can't ask him without asking his dad?"

"The kid's only two hours up the road. There'll be plenty of time to play happy families after we're married, if he ever gets over his xenophobia. And if the junior watcher does shift back here I'd rather have him around than the Great Poof, but it's your choice and you don't have to decide yet."

"I'll think about it. Like you say, there's plenty to do before I have to make up my mind."

For some time after that the room was silent except for the sound of eating, before Buffy decided it was time to clear the air on another subject. "Em, Will," she nodded her head in Spike's direction for clarification, "and I were discussing what we were going to do about living arrangements after the wedding."

"Oh. oh!" Willow's eyes went large and round.

"No, Will, wait a minute. We're not asking anyone to leave, not unless they want to, and if our plans work out there should be room for Tara too. If you two decide to .you know, move back in together officially.

What we were wanting to do, is use my room for a box room, and do a conversion on the basement, section it off so you have a separate laundry area where you go in and convert the rest into a second big bedroom and another bathroom. We thought we wouldn't disturb everybody else as much that way .coming back from patrol in the middle of the night and stuff." Buffy blushed profusely.

"Sounds good to me. I don't want to be scarred for life listening to you two, or say, tripping over all your clothes when I go to brush my teeth in the morning," Dawn answered brightly as Buffy turned a shade redder.

"Bit," Spike decided it was time to rescue Buffy. "For one thing, you're exaggerating. It wasn't all our clothes, and for another if you want to be treated like an adult, you're going to have to tone down the bratty kid sister act. Hopefully, by the time we get married, things will be arranged so we've all got a bit more privacy. In the mean time, the occasional nights that I do stay here, we're not going to patronise you by pretending there's nothing going on. It's a perfectly natural situation between two adults who care deeply about each other. If you're as grown up as you like to think you are then you'll just accept it as such."

"Okay," Dawn drew out the word until it was almost a sigh, but made no move to protest the ruling. Buffy found herself looking back and forward between the two, wondering how he managed to avoid all the back talk she got whenever she tried to get her sister to do anything.

She shook her head, turning her attention instead to the two Wiccans. "Well, anyway, how does that sound to you two? It'll mean getting builders in for a while, and I don't know how long it'll take, but most of the disruption should be when you're at college .or school."

"It all sounds fine, Buffy, but it's an awful lot of trouble and expense. I mean if we weren't here, you and Spike would probably just move into your mom's old room." Tara offered.

"Even if we knew, now, that you girls were going to get your own place we'd still go ahead with getting' the basement done," Spike gave by way of a rebuttal. "It gives us more privacy, potentially more space. Sunlight's less of an issue." He shrugged and looked at Willow. "Red?"

"Sure. It sounds okay to me. Just I hadn't thought about what we'd do. I mean I know you said that you weren't asking us to leave, but do you really want two extra people around when. well, newlyweds."

Spike looked over at Buffy as if to say 'Your turn'. "You know how I feel, pet."

"Okay, if you guys move out, then Dawn's going to be left alone every night when we patrol. Either that, or we have to take it in turns to go out alone. We're not all that keen on either of those options. If Willow stays and maybe you move back in at some stage, then Dawn has people around when we're not here, at least often enough that the bad guys can't rely on her being alone. We're not saying we would expect you to be here for her every night. With an extra bathroom we'll probably be less in each other's ways than we are now.

We don't want you to feel you have to stay. You didn't sign on to live with Spike. And you could probably get somewhere closer to campus and maybe you two want some privacy.

What I mean is, there are all sorts of reasons why you might decide that you would rather move out, and if that's what you want then that's fine, but we'd be happy if you stayed. And we know .or at least as far as we know, you two are still working things out, and it's not like we want you to make any decisions before you're ready.

Just make up your own minds, in your own time."

"In other words, sort it out between the two of you. We're okay with whatever you decide to do.

Thing is, I think the slayer actually brought this up for a different reason. She doesn't know whether she should ask Harris if he wants the job or not," Spike put in.

"Ask Xander to build you a cosy little love nest?" Tara asked in a quietly sceptical fashion.

"Well," said Buffy, "that's one way of looking at it and the other way is, what's he going to think if we hire somebody else without asking him? D'you think you could maybe feel him out, Will?"

"Gee. And once I've done that can I gargle with crushed glass?" the redhead sing-songed. "Sure, Buff. I'll see what I can do."

"Thanks. Dawn, did you get your homework done?"

"All the stuff for tomorrow, yeah, but I could do with some pointers on my English for Friday." The teenager looked across at Spike.

"What is it?"

"Three page essay on "The Scottish Play". I've done the outline. I just want to make sure I'm on the right track before I start to pad it out."

"D'you need me to look at it tonight, or if I'm here straight after school tomorrow will that do?"

"If you look at it tonight I can work on it in study hall tomorrow."

"Okay. I'll have a look at what you've got tonight. If something's wrong I should be able to spot it, but I could do with re-reading the play before I can say whether there's anything you should add .if you've got a spare copy anywhere in the house."

"Mom had one of those "Complete Works" things. It's probably on the bookcase in the dining room. I'll get it." Dawn dashed off to the far room.

"You're going to read a whole play for tomorrow, just to help her with her homework?"

"S'not like I'm going to find something better to read."

"You could find something less prejudiced against witches, though," Willow replied. "That play alone."

"Shh, baby. No point getting all upset about something that was written centuries ago," Tara tried to calm the redhead.

"And it's been giving people the wrong impression about witches ever since."

"A valid point, but not one Bit's English teacher would probably class as one of the main points of the story." Spike stood up, placed a quick kiss on top of Buffy's head and made his way out of the combat zone with a few whispered words. "I'll just go catch up with Dawn, have a look at this outline that she's got done. If I'm longer than quarter of an hour, send a search party."

Meanwhile Willow's anti-Shakespearean tirade continued. "And all the three's. Like it isn't perfectly acceptable to do magic alone, or in pairs .or eight's. And why would they be meeting in the middle of a moor? And who's meant to have carried the cauldron out into the middle of nowhere?"

Buffy decided if she and Tara were going to have to listen, they deserved some creamy cold goodness in compensation. She slid off her stool and ransacked the nearby freezer for several minutes before her search attracted Tara's attention.

"What are you looking for, Buffy?"

"You guys can't have eaten all the leftover ice-cream from Monday night?"

Tara nodded, looking slightly guilty and Buffy realised that Willow's monologue had faded to a whisper and then stopped. She straightened up until she could see an equally guilty expression on Willow's face.

"Spike bought three quarts. Different flavours. The expensive stuff."

"Dawnie was kinda missing you guys, so we had sundaes and shakes," Tara explained.

Buffy sighed and climbed back on her stool. "You do realise it was a con. She never used to see Spike anyway and I burnt breakfast for her before she went off to school in the morning, which is more than I would have managed if I had late shifts at DMP. She was just working the sympathy angle so you'd let her get her teenage mits on my cookie dough ice-cream."

"Sweetie, she used to miss you when you worked late shifts, as well. And she's been missing Spike since you ran him off to make sure her and Will didn't notice the thing between the pair of you. Sunday night and Monday just reminded her why she missed him and how much. Only difference is that this time we had some ice-cream in the freezer."

".And Tara was here to get her to say what was wrong .cause she's still not really talking like that to me after the car thing," Willow added.

"I'm a bad mother. Spike's a better mother than me. Why doesn't she want me to help with her homework? Why didn't she tell me she missed Spike? Why didn't she say she missed me?"

"'Cause you weirded out on her whenever she brought Spike up? She knew that you had to work, and she knew your options were limited with all the slayer-related absences and stuff. And like she said, we all spent more time researching demons than doing assignments and she knows it. You were doing the best you could and she didn't want to make things worse for you than they already were," Willow replied.

"Look at it this way, cutie. You've got a fresh new start. You can't change the past, but it's up to you what happens now." Tara gave her some practical advice.

"I guess I could take up the clothes I bought for her, once I give her hell for not leaving any ice-cream."

Buffy picked up her shopping which had been dumped in the corner of the kitchen when they brought in the food. She slung the bag of magazines onto the coffee table in the living room and took the rest of the stuff up to her room. She paused to find a particular lingerie set amongst the many she had bought, putting it on the bed and laying to one side the things she'd bought for Dawn she put the rest of the bags away in the bottom of her closet. She pulled a gym bag from a closet and filled it with a selection of other clothes, a spare pair of boots and a few bits and pieces from the bathroom, lastly placing the new lingerie on the top, before closing it up and putting it in the hall.

Then she picked up the carrier bags with Dawn's things and knocked on the door of her room, waiting for her sister to answer before she opened the door. "How's the homework going?" she asked the pair who were both lounging across Dawn's bed with her English file spread out between them.

"Sorted," replied the vamp flipping the file shut and picking up a large thick paperback.

"Have we got time for Dawn to try on some clothes, before we go?" Buffy asked the other blond.

He gave a theatrical sigh. "Sure, if we leave patrol till after she goes to bed for the night. I suppose this means I have to leave the room."

"I got a few things for you up in LA. We can exchange any that don't suit. I think we're going to be visiting LA a few times between now and the wedding." This prompted another sigh from Spike. Buffy held out a hand to him, pulling him up off the bed. "We'll wait in my room while you change, but I don't think Spike needs to see you model the underwear. Quicker you're done, quicker you get to nose round Spike's apartment."

Buffy passed her the bags, which had been hidden out of Dawn's line of sight behind the door.

Dawn's eyes widened as she looked in the first two. "Buffy, you must have spent a fortune."

"Thank Spike, if we were talking DMP wages you'd probably be trying to make do with some of my old stuff. I guess it's a token effort to make it up a bit for all the stuff that I had at your age that I haven't been able to buy you the last year or so .but if you keep pigging all the ice-cream you'll have too many zits to go out anywhere and none of it's going to fit anyway." The last bit was thrown in as she pulled the door shut and Dawn started to strip.

The first couple of outfits were quickly checked for size, approved by Buffy and Spike and discarded. The third, a lavender mini-dress and knee-high boots had Spike obviously wanting to make an objection. "I suppose it's okay as long as you're going out where there's someone to keep an eye on you," was the best he could finally manage. The two women in the room looked at him as if he were an idiot.

"I wore dresses at least as short when I was her age," Buffy answered indignantly.

"Yeah, and that's why you had the Poof followin' you round, but you could fend off the pimple squad and the vamps. Bit doesn't have super-strength, so she should be a bit more careful."

"So train me some more," Dawn looked at the vamp.

Spike smiled. "If your sister doesn't mind, once I move in, I probably will. Just remember that fighting's your last option."

"I know, I know. Shout for help if you or Buffy or any of the witches are nearby and run. Only fight as a last resort because things or people can be tougher than they look." Dawn recited the rules imposed by her one-time trainer and then headed for her room.

"When were you training my sister?" the slayer asked.

"The last couple of weeks before Willow and that brought you back. Didn't get very far." Spike shrugged.

"Why?"

"'Cause it was more fun than trying to work out what was going on in those Bollywood movies, even if I can speak a teeny bit of Hindi? Why d'you think?"

"You know she's going to want to patrol." Spike was surprised that her tone came out even rather than angry.

"I know. I'd still rather she had more options than screamin' and dyin' if she gets herself cornered. And she knows she'd have to be damn good before I'd even think of takin' her, which gives her an incentive to improve."

"If she got to where she was half-way decent, she'd probably be safer with us than in the house on her own," Buffy admitted.

"I know. We'll worry about that when she is half-decent."

"I don't think I ever thanked you for looking after her while I was gone."

"There's no need for thanks. Lookin' after the people I care about, it's just what I do." The vampire looked at his nails as if embarrassed by her attempt at graciousness.

Buffy leant over towards him, her words barely a whisper against his cheek. "Thank you for being you, then." Her lips pressed against his pale flesh, and they both knew she wasn't just talking about him looking after her sister.

As the blondes waited for Dawn to model the fourth outfit, Spike started to fidget.

"Read your book. I'll go give her a hand," Buffy told him before heading for her sister's room.

It was still a further five minutes before Buffy knocked and held the room door open to herald her sister's entry. The gown wasn't dissimilar in style to the one Buffy had worn to her senior prom though the bodice was cut square across the front, showing the smallest hint of cleavage. The fabric shimmered between a pale greenish-turquoise and sky blue and it made Dawn's eyes seem even bluer, and she wore sandals with narrow straps in the two shades, obviously from the same range. The outfit was finished off by a wrap in the sky blue hue.

Spike's jaw dropped when he saw his Niblet looking so grown up. No make-up, no hose and no special hairstyle or jewellery, but she still looked gorgeous to him.

"Junior prom?" he asked, gaining brownie points from his fiancée for being aware of the upcoming events in her sister's life.

Dawn nodded.

"You'll be the belle of the ball, pet."

"Thanks to you two." She hugged and kissed both of them, before she stood in front of Buffy's dresser for one more look.

By the time Dawn was back in normal clothes another half an hour had gone by. Willow and Tara had been summoned upstairs to see the transformation. Everything had been neatly hung up or packed away and Dawn had escaped the boned ivory basque her sister had bought for her to wear under the dress.

"You guys are so cool. Of course, I don't have a date, but that dress is so great. Stacey'll go green when she sees it."

"Just remind me to tell you about my junior prom night and what mom told me."

"Are we going to get moving at some point or are you pair goin' to blub on each other for the rest of the night?" Spike asked his tone totally belying the harshness of his words.

"Ooh, who's getting all sarky, then?" Buffy responded, but she also started heading for the door, picking up her gym bag and coat on the way. "Best grab whatever you need, Dawn. If we don't hurry he might resort to biting wit?"

"No, save us," giggled Dawn as she ran down the stairs, headed for the car.

"Women." The vamp took Buffy's hand as they walked downstairs together.

 
 
Chapter #23 - Chapter 4:02
 







SECTION 4 - HOME SWEET HOME

Take me to your heart
Feel me in your bones
Just one more night
And I'm comin' off this long and winding road.

.My heart's like an open book
For the whole world to read
Sometimes nothing - keeps me together
At the seams

I'm on my way
Well, I'm on my way
Home sweet home
Tonight tonight
I'm on my way
Just set me free
Home sweet home

(Motley Crue, Album Decade of Decadence)




Chapter 4.02
Wednesday, May 8th, 2002

Spike wasn't entirely sure about the division of labour when it came to getting the flat ready. For the most part Dawn's role seemed to consist solely of unpacking the things they'd bought and going "Oooh" or "Ew" depending whether she approved or not and leaving Spike and Buffy to deal with the piles of debris she filled the living room with.

"Can I have these curtains when you move into the basement?" asked the teenager as she pulled the dark violet drapes from their packaging.

"Maybe, if you stop making it sound like I'm going to be living under Harris's drunken parents again." Spike called through from where he and Buffy were in the process of making up the bed. A task which was made more complicated by the fact that Spike's brain was far more occupied with what he and Buffy could do to mess it up, and how she would look naked between the layers of silk.

"It's okay, our basement's a lot bigger, and less dank and no-one's going to tie you up."

Spike shot a questioning glance to Buffy across the bed and she flushed bright red. "Maybe," she whispered, "if the soundproofing works and the doors are locked. Now behave."

"Where's this lamp for?" Dawn stood in the doorway between the two rooms and held up a banker's lamp.

"It's to go on the desk that we haven't built yet and won't be building tonight. Why don't you find the mugs and the kettle or the coffeemaker and see if you can make something to drink?" said Spike as he threw the last pillow into place on the bed.

"Okay. Are you going to have a sofa and a TV and a fridge and microwave and everything in your room when it's finished?" the teenager asked.

"We won't really know till all the building work's done whether there'll be space for a sofa, but I'll pretty much need the rest of the stuff unless the rest of you are going to leave the kitchen curtains shut all day, pet."

"D'you think if you do have space you'll use the one that's in the living room now?"

Spike looked over in Buffy's direction as she froze on the spot with the armful of curtains she had been bringing back to the bedroom. "Dawn, when you opened up all the curtains what did you do with the packets of hooks that were in the bag with them?" she asked.

"I didn't see them. I've been using the carrier as a bin bag. I'll find them. It's all just cellophane and cardboard."

Dawn headed back into the main room as Buffy came in dropping the curtains on the bed and pushing the door shut behind her. Spike quickly took her in his arms, his eyes searching her face.

"Okay, what's up? You know I took the packets out the bag before." He nodded in the direction of the bedside table, whispering so that Dawn wouldn't hear what was said.

"I can't sleep in the same room as that sofa," Buffy answered.

"I've seen you fall asleep on that sofa, pet."

"No. You don't get it. That's where I found mom. It's where she died. I can't have it in our bedroom." Tears welled up in her eyes and she hid her face in Spike's shoulder.

Spike's grip tightened, drawing her as close as possible. "It's okay. You don't have to. Love, if it makes you happier, get yourself out tomorrow and buy a new one, a new suite, have them take the old one to the dump, whatever you want. You can redecorate the whole house, top to bottom, inside and out, for all I care as long as it doesn't get in the way of you going back to college and sorting out the wedding."

Spike heard Dawn moving in the main room and called through the door, "Bit, we've found the hooks they're in here. We'll be out in a few minutes if you stick the kettle on."

He brought a finger up under Buffy's chin, tilting her head so they could see each other's eyes. "Pet, I don't know if I'm going to be putting my foot in it here, and if I do, don't stake me. I know there are going to be things of your mum's that you're always going to want to keep, and that's fine. More than fine. I was fond of your mum and I know you're always going to want to have reminders of her around you, but you and Dawn need to make the house your own. It's been over a year. It's time to move on."

"And you. It's your home too, or it will be," Buffy added softly.

"I'll help, but it's got to be between you and Dawn to work out what furniture and stuff has sentimental value. You'll know what you want to use, whether there's any you want to put in storage for when you're older and what you want to get rid of." He pulled an only slightly creased cloth handkerchief from his jeans pocket and dabbed at her eyes, before he pulled her close once more.

Minutes passed unnoticed before he spoke again. "You ready to face your little sister before she comes to the conclusion we're trying out the bed?" Buffy nodded and he took her hand, leading her through to the kitchen where Dawn was finishing making instant hot chocolate for three.

"Just in time, but then you could probably hear the click when the kettle switched itself off." She picked up two, passing one to Buffy before they returned to the main room.

"Maybe," answered Spike. He went to the brown paper sack that was sitting on the kitchen bench and emptied it putting teabags, instant coffee and instant hot chocolate in a cupboard above the kettle. Ground coffee and sodas went in the fridge and picking up his mug on the way, he took the double-chocolate chip cookies through to the living room area and gave them to Buffy.

She opened them and took one before passing them to her sister. Spike sat on the arm of the slayer's chair, his hand automatically dropping to rub Buffy's back. She took a couple of bites from the super-size cookie, washing them down with even more comforting chocolate goodness before she broached the subject her sister had brought up.

"Why were you asking about the sofa before?"

"What? Mm-m." The teenager paused to swallow the chocolate flavour chunk that was making it so difficult to talk. "I was kinda hoping we might get a new one. Something less .brown."

"So you wouldn't mind if we got rid of it?"

"Heck no."

"How do you feel about redecorating in general? I mean we'll keep some of mom's stuff, but just the bits we want and we can sort of make it a fresh start. Treat it as if we'd just moved in, change the bits that aren't us." Buffy was tentative, not wanting to let Dawn think the decision had already been made.

When her sister had finished, Dawn sat quietly nibbling on her cookie for some time before she replied. "It seems sort of wrong in a way, as if it's disrespectful or something .but I think it's time. If we don't it's never going to be ours. And there's a lot that mom didn't even redecorate when we moved in."

Buffy nodded. "Okay, so it's probably best to wait till after the wedding's over and the basement's sorted out, but after that we'll see what we can get done before I go back to college and you go back to school, starting with the front room. Deal?"

"Deal."

Spike looked at the clock on the wall. "I think when you finish your drink, I better take you home, pet. Me 'n' your sister'll finish up here and then do a quick patrol."

"But I can come over and see it when it's done?"

"You know you're welcome any time as long as it doesn't involve you walkin' around on your own after dark." He turned his attention to the slayer. "Do you want to go home to change or anything?"

"No, if you take Dawn home, I'll see what I can get done here." Buffy drained her cup and gave Dawn a goodbye hug before heading off to do battle with the heap of curtains.

Vampire and key made a brief appearance to say they were leaving. Spike's goodbye kiss in front of his future sister-in-law being far more restrained than when he kissed Buffy goodbye in front of Cordy.

As soon as the pair left, Buffy grabbed her gym bag and headed for the bathroom, which had no windows due to the way the building had been split into flats. An extractor fan whirred into action as soon as she put on the light, startling her slightly. She changed as quickly as she could, made a couple of minor touch-ups on her make-up and was soon sitting cross-legged on the bed once more while she fitted the hooks onto the curtains and adjusted the header tapes. When all the curtains were ready to hang, she was expecting Spike back any minute.

She might have tried to find something to stand on to put them up, but she was worried about flashing anyone who might happen to look up. Instead, she took the curtains laying each set on the floor next to the windows they were intended for and climbed in between the silken silver grey sheets, rolling around like a cat begging for attention. She nuzzled into the pillows till they smelled of her shampoo and rubbed the smooth material of his sheets between her thighs, imagining its cool touch was that of her lover's hand.

"Havin' fun, pet?" Spike leant against the doorjamb his left leg crossed over the right just below the knee, the thumb of his left hand hooked through the belt loop at his hip and his right arm raised so that it rested against the frame from wrist to elbow. His body was a series of sensuous lines.

She was totally hidden under the bedclothes except for her head, and decided that perhaps this might be for the best, for the moment.

"Not as much as we can have once you put the curtains up. You were the one who said you wouldn't sleep unless the bed smelled like me. And I still owed you lingerie, but you don't get to see until you get those curtains up."

"Not even a peep?" Spike already had two hands and one knee on the bed.

"Back. If you stand by the door, I might give you a preview," she conceded, "but after that you have to put up all the curtains so I know you won't get dusty in the morning. No touching until all the rooms are done." Her smile told him it would be worth his while and he reversed his movements until he leant against the doorframe again. "At least you don't get to touch. I might let you watch."

Buffy slowly folded back the duvet, down as far as her waist, letting him see the plum coloured satin robe she wore. As she rose to her knees he could see the robe ended an inch or two above mid-thigh. She turned to give him a three quarter back view, her head turned so that she could watch him over her shoulder, her eyes never leaving his face. Her hand pulled the sash loose and she let the material fall into its natural line before she raised her hands to inch it from her shoulders. At first all he could see as the robe descended were two ribbon-thin deep purple straps traversing her tanned shoulders. Her arm hid the side of the slip from view and as the robe drifted slowly lower those straps seemed to continue impossibly far. Finally, just a few inches above the small of her back they crossed each other.

As she dropped her arms to the side and slightly back to let the robe fall away altogether he could see the side of her breast and a glimpse of the shadow underneath. The slip only just covered her buttocks, the back scooped out as low as possible without showing cleavage. The material then flared out slightly so that it fell in soft ripples over her curves, the hem barely skimming the tops of her thighs. She turned her body to face him again. From the front the garment appeared fairly demure except for its skimpy length, but what he could see was no longer as relevant as what he knew.

The pressure in Spike's jeans shifted from uncomfortable to painful. Still, she watched his face, enjoying the evidence of his struggle as he debated whether to play her game, or dive on top of her immediately.

"Make your mind up, Will. Play nice, and we can christen every room in the flat tonight." That did it. Buffy had never seen Spike use his vampiric speed to do housework, but then apart from making the bed earlier, she'd never seen him do any housework, even though his crypt was normally tidy and clean. Maybe that was because he did use his speed to do the housework. She padded towards the kitchen area where she could hear him working. She wiggled her way onto a seat on the counter, which separated the kitchen from the living room area.

He knew without turning round exactly where she was. "Did anybody ever tell you that you're a vicious tease, pet?"

"Not in so many words, but I do remember something about revving motors and marinade and an ice queen .or was it princess?" she answered as she swung her legs up onto the counter. She lay back. If he was going to call her a tease she might as well live up to the name. "All I did was kiss him." She sucked on her index finger, pulling it from her mouth with an audible pop, even if you didn't have vampire hearing.

"I think that was my complaint at the time .Actually, no, it was that you wouldn't even kiss me." She slid her hand in the side of the slip, using her damp finger to graze circles around her nipple until it began to come erect.

"Xander didn't call me a tease." She switched to squeezing softly on her nipple as he finished hanging the first pair of curtains. "Not even when I came onto him wearing nothing but a little short mac and a pair of stilettos." Spike snarled and leapt from the stool he'd been using to gain the extra reach necessary to hang the drapes. He landed on the floor by her head, bending over her so that their faces were inches apart.

"Tell me that git never laid a hand on you!" his eyes blazed with hurt and anger, gold flecks swirling in the blue.

Her unoccupied hand automatically came up to cup his face as she spoke soft words to him. "No, baby, you know about everybody. No surprises. It was just a spell and Xander didn't take advantage of it. We didn't even kiss. I forgot you didn't know the story." She raised her head to brush soft lips across his. "Now, do I go back to teasing you mercilessly or do we go straight to the make-up sex?"

"If I go for the make-up sex do we still christen all the rooms?"

"I guess we could see how persuasive you were on a room by room basis."

"So we're going from a yes to a maybe?" Spike posed the question.

"With your silver tongue I'd say it's a probably, unless we end up taking too long on some of the individual rooms. but that wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing, would it?" She gave him a half-smile.

"I can think of worse," he agreed. This time he brought his lips down to hers for a kiss that started just as gently as the one she had recently bestowed on him. Soon, however, their mouths moved together in a frantic dance. Somehow Spike found himself lying on top of Buffy. He slipped the straps of her gown down off her shoulders baring her upper body, ready for his touch. Strong fingers cupped her breasts and his thumbs brushed over her nipples sending tingles of electricity down to her core.

Buffy's hands pulled impatiently at his shirt until it was freed from his jeans. She ripped the front of the shirt open, neither of them caring whether the buttons came undone or were torn off so long as her hands could move against his flesh. When the shirt parted only for her to be obstructed by another layer of fabric, she ripped the black T-shirt from neckline to hemline in one move.

"Jeans. Now." Buffy gasped as she pulled back to draw breath. Spike shifted back to kneel between Buffy's legs long enough to unfasten his belt and pop the buttons on his fly before pushing the denim down round his knees. As he moved back over her again she reached down stroking his newly freed erection. His whole body trembled at her touch and he moaned her name. She gripped him with her fingers, using her thumb to spread his pre-cum over the head. His mouth claimed her nipples taking turns left and right as he drew her closer to her peak, his lips holding each bud in place while his hard tongue flicked back and forth across it. She arched her body up off the counter in response and guided Spike's dick to it's hot, wet home within her.

He shifted his hips to glide slowly in to his hilt. As always they fitted together perfectly, their bodies seemingly designed for the other's pleasure. Buffy sighed as she felt her muscles stretch around him. He used his hands to give extra support to her raised buttocks as he moved slowly in and out of her heat. Their eyes locked for an eternity as their bodies danced to a languid rhythm. He felt his balls tightening and lifted her hips further. His mouth covered the scars on her neck, and the pair finally lost eye contact. He stiffened his tongue using the tip to probe the marks caused by his demon teeth. The sensation sent electric tingles all through her body and caused her to tremble all over, only his hands holding her up as her inner muscles convulsed around him. He pushed in as deep as he could go one last time and let her involuntary spasms milk him dry before he lowered her to the counter.

He propped himself up on an elbow, switching to stroking her neck over the claim marks with his other hand, drawing out the tremors throughout her body albeit at a less intense level.

"I love you so much, pet," he said his voice hoarse with emotion.

"Mmmmm-mmm," was the best Buffy could manage in reply until Spike turned his attention from her neck to brushing away stray hairs from her sweat-soaked face. As she regained some control of her body once more, she pushed against his chest. "I love you too, but right now, kinda squished."

"Oh .right. Sorry, pet," Spike withdrew from her warmth and after contemplating the lack of space either side of her moved to dismount from the counter only to fall to the floor in a tangle of limbs.

"Bloody buggerin' bollocks!"

"Spike?" Buffy's head appeared over the edge of the counter. "Are you okay?"

"Course I am. I was practising my alliteration 'cause I was bored." He sighed. "I'm fine, pet. Just forgot my jeans were down round my knees."

"Good. 'Cause I don't think my legs would work yet for me to come help you."

He looked up from his reclining position on the living room floor, his deep blue eyes glittering up at her filled with amusement. "Guess that means at least I did something right."

Some minutes later Spike considered the uncovered windows in the main room and decided it was probably best to pull his jeans back on rather than take them off. Task accomplished, he discovered Buffy, still lying on the counter where he left her.

"Maybe I should be askin' if you're okay, luv?"

"Mmm-hmm," her response sounded to him like warm summer nights or a cosy library with an open fire. "Still floaty."

"O-kay, pet. Think you'll be comfier bein' floaty in bed." He scooped her up in his arms and carried her through to the bedroom, sliding her legs under the covers and lowering her gently to the mattress. He pulled up the bedding and made sure it fitted snugly around her so that she would be free of draughts.

"Buff?" He waited till she looked up at him before continuing. "I'm just goin' to put up the rest of the curtains, so we don't have to worry about scarin' the neighbours. You just rest but if you want me, you just have to say and I'll be here. 'Kay, pet?"

"'Kay. Hurry back?"

Her request prompted him to bend over her again, brushing his lips against her cheek and running a finger over her neck. "Course, love."

Less than five minutes later she opened a sleepy eye to see him carrying the stool from the kitchen into the bedroom. He picked up the curtains from the floor draping them over an arm before he leapt onto the stool and started hanging them. It would have been too high for most humans to jump onto, or if they managed the height they would have tipped the stool over with their momentum, but even in heavy boots Spike was as graceful as a very refined cat. Buffy watched him from under drooping eyelids. 'Pretty vampire. MY pretty vampire. Or he will be once Giles finishes his research. Then I can make HIS legs all wobbly and he can be all sleepy.'

He swiftly finished what he was doing and crawled onto the bed. His fingers gently stroked the planes of her face, his touch enough to gain her attention but not enough to pull her from her post-orgasmic haze. "Pet, if you're up to it, you said you'd ring the watcher when we got back home."

"Later. Ring later. Come bed, now. Just for little."

Spike shucked off his boots and socks and put out the light before crawling in next to her. As soon as he was in, she rolled over and shuffled backwards till she was spooned against him. "Night, love," he whispered in her ear, his arm around her waist drawing her even closer. Minutes later both were asleep.

 
 
Chapter #24 - Chapter 4:03
 






SECTION 4 - HOME SWEET HOME

Take me to your heart
Feel me in your bones
Just one more night
And I'm comin' off this long and winding road.

.My heart's like an open book
For the whole world to read
Sometimes nothing - keeps me together
At the seams

I'm on my way
Well, I'm on my way
Home sweet home
Tonight tonight
I'm on my way
Just set me free
Home sweet home

(Motley Crue, Album Decade of Decadence)




Chapter 4.03
Thursday, May 9th, 2002

Thursday Early hours of the morning

Spike wasn't sure what woke him at first, and then Buffy struggled in his arms. Raising himself up, he saw the tell-tale darting movements of her eyeballs behind closed lids. Bending his neck her whispered near her ear. "Shh, pet. 'S not real. You're safe. Everything's okay." Her struggles stilled and he placed gentle kisses against her shoulder. His hand rubbed softly up and down her side in a movement designed to be soothing.

Her eyes flicked open and she pulled his arm tight round her waist again, her left hand on top of his she intertwined their fingers.

"Bad dream, love?"

She nodded.

"Wanna talk about it?"

"S'okay. Just the usual,"

Spike hugged her even tighter to him briefly as he placed a kiss on the top of her head. Inwardly, he cursed the Scoobies again for the lack of foresight on their part that had made them bring her back to life without disinterring her first. "They'll get better with time."

She managed a watery smile. "They are better, with you here. First time in three nights I've been with you that it's happened."

"Could be because you didn't exactly get much sleep the other two," he answered wryly.

"Or it could be because I feel safe with you."

"And when we're not together, how often."

She paused before she answered. "At least once."

"Every night?" His voice was full of concern.

She nodded again.

He felt helpless, knowing there was nothing he could do to help other than just be there for her. It was the same way that her scent in the air and her presence in his arms stilled his own subconscious, letting him forget his failure on the tower.

She shook her head as if to clear it and rolled over in his arms. Her eyes flicked to his face. "How d'you fancy a spot of violence?"

"As you wish, princess." He kissed her on the forehead and loosened his grip on her waist. She scrambled out of bed, hastily righting the straps on the short gown. Spike watched her until she left the room and then quickly put his socks and boots back on and followed after. Reaching the main room he realised that the only shirt he had was the one Buffy had ripped off him earlier. The spare clothes from their stay in LA were in Buffy's case, now at Revello Drive. Everything else was still at the crypt.

Buffy emerged from the bathroom dressed for battle only to give a small laugh at the incongruous sight of Spike with his duster on but his shirt still unbuttoned.

"Oops?" she offered almost by way of apology. "Didn't realise it was the only shirt you had here."

"Was worth it, pet. Don't worry. We can swing past the crypt while we're out and I'll clear out the fridge and get the rest of my clothes. Pick up the bike as well, so I can drop you off at home or bring you back, whatever you want."

"I should probably go home, so I'm there to get Dawn off to school." Her voice held more than a hint of reluctance.

"I know, love. We'll all be together soon enough. One big family."

"Speaking of family. May as well ring Giles now, before we go out," Buffy gave a weak half smile.

Spike dropped into a half reclining position on the sofa and reaching over the chair arm he picked up a cordless phone from its stand on an end table. He held it out in her direction, but when she made a move to take it from him, he pulled her down into his lap. She tensed for a second but then relaxed against him resting her head on his shoulder. As soon as she did, he handed her the phone.

 

"So, you don't know ."

"Buffy, it's not the sort of decision one jumps into overnight." Giles sounded exasperated as only the slayer could make him. "I think it would be unreasonable to expect anyone to make a decision of this sort so quickly."

"But he sounded interested?"

Buffy heard the watcher sigh, and could imagine him polishing his glasses as he spoke. "There is nothing more to be done. Whether he decides to move back to Sunnydale or not is to some extent irrelevant. What is more important is that he knows there is a place where he will be welcome if he so chooses. Though I would be most grateful if he were able to provide you with help on a day to day basis."

"So you're saying that the fact he knows he can come here is more important than whether or not he comes?" Buffy tried to make sure she had understood her former mentor correctly.

"Precisely. Now as to other matters, the orbs of Nezzla Khan have been hidden away for so long that nothing I was able to find is based on first hand knowledge. Everything seems to have its basis in ancient oral tradition. From what I can gather this is the first time the orbs have fallen into human hands. As such, there are no records as to what any long-term effects might be. I would recommend that Xander uses them with caution, and that Anya watches him very carefully for any signs of change following or during their use. He certainly shouldn't be carrying them constantly until we are very sure that it is only the strength and invulnerability of the demon prince that is passed on."

"So, taking them to work so that he doesn't strain anything with all the heavy lifting would be a no-no then?"

"Please tell me that even Xander wouldn't be quite so frivolous with an item of such obvious power," the Englishman pleaded.

"Even Xander wouldn't be that frivly with such a powerful thingy.?" Buffy responded with no conviction at all.

"Oh dear lord. Just tell him I said not to carry them unless he's expecting trouble or helping out on patrol."

"Giles, in case you missed that part of the conversation the other day, Xander got married to Anya on Saturday. The only time he's offered to patrol with me in the last year was when he came back to town after he ran away from the wedding. Now he's back with his honey-bun I don't think touring the graveyards will feature in his itinerary."

Giles cleared his throat. "I also think you should perhaps try to talk Xander into letting Spike hit him while he's carrying the orbs, to see if he does still register as human."

"That'll make his day." Buffy was amazed to see the blond vamp shaking his head. "It won't make his day? Hang on, Giles." Buffy lowered the phone and turned her attention to the vamp whose lap she was currently occupying. "What's up?"

"Won't work, pet. Whether he's a human or a demon, Rupert just said those things give him invulnerability. If I can't hurt him the chip won't go off .unless you want me to try a rocket launcher?" he suggested with a wicked grin.

"I think that would be taking curiosity a shade too far?" she tried to sound disapproving, but she knew for Anya's sake if nothing else he wouldn't follow through.

"Giles? Did you catch that? Spike says the chip wouldn't go off even if it picked Xander up as a human because he knows he couldn't hurt him. Ooh wait, I've an idea. Blind taste test. If Spike were to hit Xander without actually knowing if he had the orbs, then it would work, wouldn't it?" Spike nodded his agreement.

"Quite. Well I shall leave you to sort out the details, shall I?"

"What about the other thing then?" Buffy asked.

"So far, I've only come across records of two humans being claimed, neither seemed to suffer any adverse effects and both seemed to age slower than might be expected. One lived with his mate for eighty years whilst he appeared to age only ten or fifteen years over this time. However, when his mate died his years seemed to catch up with him over a relatively short period of time. When he died four years later he judged that he appeared to be about eighty-five.

The girl in the second case died with her lover when the house they were resting in was burned to the ground. They had been together for twenty years and she showed little if any sign of ageing over that period, but she was definitely still human as she was often seen out and about in daytime.

As yet, I haven't come across any information about any slayers being claimed.

So, all in all, things look quite promising, if you're sure you want to go ahead, but there's a lot more research still to do. I don't think two cases is sufficient basis to say you would be in the clear and neither of them were slayers."

"So basically you're still looking for a reason to say no, but you haven't found it yet," the slayer reasoned.

"You could put it like that, though if we could prove it were safe, a mutual claim would be more appropriate than a continuation of the situation as it stands."

"Okay, give our love to Olivia and call me when you find anything new, otherwise I'll be in touch when we manage to book a church."

"Goodbye, Buffy."

"Bye, Giles."

Buffy turned to her companion. "Time to boogie, Blood Breath." She kissed the end of his nose and then levered herself out of his lap, staying close enough that he had to brush against her to stand up. He pushed himself out of the chair and put his hands on her hips, resting his forehead against hers.

"All staked up?"

Quicker than the eye could see Buffy had a stake in her hand. Spike had no more idea where she hid them now they were dating than he had had when they used to fight for real. "You?"

Spike flexed his arms and he had a stake in each hand. He gave them a gun-slinger type twirl before they disappeared into his sleeves again.

"Okay then, let's go kick some demon butt." Buffy took his hand and drew him toward the door.

 




 

Thursday Early morning

Spike dialled Giles home phone number. He paced the living room as he waited to be connected, wondering if this was a good idea. He tried to convince himself that he would be losing nothing by asking, and that he didn't care if the answer was no. Somehow it didn't seem to work.

After two rings he heard an automated message, but that had been what he wanted. He knew Giles should be at work.

"Watcher. It's Spike. I've got kind of a big favour to ask you. I haven't said anything to Buffy about it, 'cause if she knew and then you said no she might be disappointed, which is the reverse of what I'm hoping for. I didn't want to embarrass you into saying yes either, so if you don't bring it up I'll never mention this message again. Now, I'm asking for her, not for me, except once we're married it's sort of a package deal so I could understand you saying no but what I want is this."

By the time he finished rambling nervously he had to redial the number and leave a second message to make his request as he had been cut off. After that he just had to wait to see if Giles rang back when he got home. He sat himself on one of the stools that tucked under the breakfast bar and turned his attention to the book he'd brought from Buffy's the previous night while he waited. There were still boxes and bags from his and Buffy's shopping trip in a pile in the corner, but keeping his promise to Dawn took precedence.

 

Buffy yawned as she watched Tara flip pancakes for breakfast. She had been going to make breakfast for at least her and Dawn this morning, but Tara had beaten her to it. Buffy was sure there should be a law against anyone who was that much of a morning person. Maybe she could go back to bed once the others left, or go visit Spike and both go back to bed together.

"She's gone, again." It had only taken one brief glance at her sister's dreamy smile for Dawn to work out where her head was at this morning.

"What? No I'm not. Right here ready to eat yummy pancakes with my sister before she goes to school."

Tara flipped the first few onto her plate and started on the next batch, smiling at Dawn and Willow as they came in the room together. "Morning, sweeties."

"Hey, Will." Buffy passed her plate over to Dawn. "Here, you take these, I'll get some once all the people who have to leave early have been fed."

Willow gave Tara a hug before she grabbed a stool and took a seat at the island. "Hey, Buff, you owe me big time. Xander says if you want he'll come back after he drops Dawn off at school, have a look at the basement and you can discuss what you want."

"So he's going to do it?" 'Damn, so much for sleepy Spike and silk sheets. '

"He said he'd probably have to get a couple of the other guys to help out, like Tito for the plumbing, and some other guy for the electricky stuff but he'd be able to do most of it."

"Youch. I remember Tito's prices. Well, there shouldn't be too much for him to do, I hope, and Spike said we could afford it."

"Dawn says his new place is pretty cool," Tara said.

"Yeah, it's not bad. A bit out of the way. Did you know there are five cemeteries on an almost direct route between there and here?"

"Does that mean you actually patrolled last night?" Dawn asked between mouthfuls of pancakes. "I thought that was just an excuse to get rid of me so that you guys could have loud obnoxious sex."

"Dawn. Yes, we .patrolled. We got a whole bunch a vamps and a hairy demon. It looked kinda cute at first, like an overgrown Old English sheepdog with curly horns that had learned to walk on its hind legs but then, well you know how some dogs will attach themselves to your leg, imagine one that's seven foot three. And we weren't loud and obnoxious it's just a very small flat."

"I can't imagine Spike being keen on some demon trying to move in on his territory." Tara commented, as she served up a plate of pancakes for Willow.

"Hey, I could get offended at being called territory, if it wasn't for the fact it was a female demon. So, yeah, you could definitely say he wasn't keen on having his 'territory' invaded." Buffy snickered as she remembered Spike's attempts to fend off the behemoth.

"Ew. Mental scarring in process." Dawn shovelled the last of her pancakes into her mouth, chugged her orange juice and dashed upstairs to sort out her books for school.

"Will, is your computer all linked up to the Internet at the moment?" Buffy asked the redhead in an apparently random change of subject.

"Mmmh. In the dining room."

"So I just switch it on, click on the web browser, then Google in the favourites bit and type in what I want to do the search on. Right?"

"Sure. I've got a spare few minutes. I can give you a hand if you want once we finish breakfast."

"No. It's good. It's time I started to sort out some of the basic stuff for myself," Buffy hastily replied, blushing profusely.

"I guess, since Spike's getting that new computer for you and Dawn. Oh, you can tell him I've ordered all the bits now. When it all arrives I'll put it together over here and install all the software and stuff before we shift it to his place. He can settle up any time between now and when I pay my visa bill."

Buffy's pancakes arrived and she smothered them with syrup before she tucked in. Willow meanwhile finished hers and headed off to get ready for lectures. A car horn sounded outside and Dawn rushed downstairs and out the door with a quick, "Bye."

Buffy was still drinking her coffee when Tara finally got to sit down and eat her own breakfast. "So you're coping okay with the whole out of the closet deal then?" she asked as she used her fork to break up the pancakes into bite-sized pieces.

Buffy glanced up at her. "Ask me about that after I've explained to Xander that we want the basement soundproofed. Were you around when Will spoke to him last night?"

Tara shook her head. "Took refuge in the bath while she phoned."

"Okay, I'll just have to play it by ear. He can't hate him that much. Can he?"

Tara shrugged. "Xander? I think it might take a trained psychologist a decade or two to work out the inconsistencies in his brain. Spike and Anya's situations are more or less parallel in lots of ways, but he marries one and wants to stake the other. 'Course Anya's having sex with him, and Spike's violating his best friend. I mean I love him, but I'll never understand him."

"Oh well. I think I'll go check out that stuff on Will's computer before he gets here. Does it make me a bad person if part of me is wishing he'd refused? If he can't." Buffy sighed and levered herself off her stool. She refilled her coffee cup and headed toward the dining room, not waiting to see if Tara would answer her question.

Time to find out what that password really meant. She put the phrase into the search engine and clicked on the first site on the list. A seed catalogue. 'Dianthus Barbatus - a perennial wild flower from the carnation family, commonly known as Sweet William.' Sweet William. Cute. and nothing to do with anal sex. She closed down the program and switched off the computer. When Xander arrived she was busy looking through the magazines she'd brought back from LA.

 
 
Chapter #25 - Chapter 4:04
 






SECTION 4 - HOME SWEET HOME

Take me to your heart
Feel me in your bones
Just one more night
And I'm comin' off this long and winding road.

.My heart's like an open book
For the whole world to read
Sometimes nothing - keeps me together
At the seams

I'm on my way
Well, I'm on my way
Home sweet home
Tonight tonight
I'm on my way
Just set me free
Home sweet home

(Motley Crue, Album Decade of Decadence)




Chapter 4.04
Thursday, May 9th, 2002

As usual Xander let himself in, calling out as he came.

"In here," Buffy shouted from the main room.

Xander's gaze flashed across the title of the magazine she threw onto the coffee table with the others. His voice was warmer than she would have expected as he teased her, "I guess Monday lunchtime wasn't just some nightmare from my sleep-deprived brain, then?"

"Nope." She held up her left hand and wiggled her ring finger at him in confirmation. "All real. D'you want a coffee? There should be some in the pot if you do."

"Some caffeine would be good. Then we can discuss exactly what it is that you and Deadboy jnr. have in mind for the basement. Once I get a handle on what you want, then I can measure up, and maybe draw up some plans."

"Xander, are you okay about doing this?"

"Yes and no. I can't say I'm happy the two of you are together and when things all go to hell I'll be the first one to say I told you so. He doesn't deserve you, and I don't like the guy, but I'm not about to lose my best friend just because she's got crappy taste in men. But, then I liked Riley and it looks like that was a big mistake, so maybe if you two are still going strong a decade or so from now I might reconsider. In the meantime I can't see me and Bleachboy watching football together on Sunday afternoons, but I'll at least try to keep my mouth shut when I can't think of anything nice to say." He took the coffee she poured for him and pulled out a notepad and pen from his jacket pocket.

"So, basement?" he queried.

Buffy went through what she and Spike had discussed with one minor difference. Xander raised his eyebrows when she mentioned soundproofing, but he conceded the point when she asked how he would feel if Anya and he had to share a house with a fifteen-year-old sister.

"I see what you mean, Buff, but if no-one upstairs can hear you, then you can't hear them either. So, when the next bad guy breaks in the front door and attacks Dawnster how're you going to know. You're going to need to either forget the soundproofing or install panic buttons.

You'll probably want to replace the staircase with something more substantial or at least get all the rails finished off and stuff. Rough wood's okay for what you're using it for now, but if you're going to be trooping up to the kitchen in your jammies and bare feet.

You'll need to put in a door leading outside for a fire exit, but it'll make it easier for slipping in after patrol without disturbing anyone. It's probably easiest done at the back, that way you're not digging under the porch.

If you pick out a bathroom suite before we finalise the plans, then we can work round that for the dimensions. I can take you round a couple of the trade places for a look, but once we know what you want, we best sort out planning permission before you buy anything.

That said, I can't see any reason for it to be refused and I know a guy at town hall we deal with who might be able to speed up the application."

Buffy managed not to have her mouth hang open. "I guess I see now why you got that promotion. You've really got a handle on all this construction stuff."

"It's my kind of problem solving. All practical, no complicated math and no-one's feelings get hurt if you make a mistake. Let's go take a look at what we've got to work with."

"You got any idea how much this is going to run to?" Buffy asked as they headed downstairs.

"Can't say for sure. There's too many variables at the minute. I'll cost out a few different options and get back to you. It's not going to be cheap, Buff. It might cost more than it adds to the value of the house, but hopefully not."

"Not much to be done about Sunnydale property prices. It's not like I've got the option to move. Or Spike any more, either, not now. We'll worry about buying Dawn out when she wants to get her own place, wherever that ends up being."

"I would ask how Dawn felt about this whole thing but I think I got her answer at the Bronze."

"Yeah, I think she can cope with the novelty of not having to live off Double Meat Burgers and having Spike at her beck and call. He's totally whipped, but she loves him back, though I don't think she'll be saying the words any time soon. And she knows if anything happens to me, that he'll be there for her."

"I guess." Xander made short work of measuring up. "Right, I think I've got everything I need for just now. I'll be heading back to the Magic Box, so if you want a lift into town speak now or forever. you know."

"Yeah, why not? I was going to start by phoning round some places, but I may as well see Anya then go along in person. How long do you think this'll take? The basement I mean. We kinda want it ready before the wedding."

"Buffy, if I have to come over every night after work for a month to get it finished in time, I will, but as long as the planning permission isn't held up, we should get it done just working on weekends." He gave her a goofy grin. "Chill. This is my field of expertise. You will have a subterranean studio apartment to share with your honey by the time you're legal. Scout's honour .as long as you don't organise the wedding for some time in the next month."

"I don't think even I'm that crazy, though I don't think Spike would complain. Back in a minute." Buffy ran upstairs and grabbed her DMP uniform pushing it into a convenient backpack.

"You do realise that if I'm over here and the Magic Box is closed Anya will probably come with me and I expect you all to keep your platinum baby out of my hair while I'm working."

"Eww. Less with the Harmony speak." Buffy grabbed her coat from the stand by the front door, which she pulled wide for Xander to go through. "After you."

"So anyway, hear tell you've been in LA the last couple of days. Wanna make with the news? Willow said it would be worth waiting to hear it from the horses mouth."

"I think I'll wait till we get to the Magic Box. That way I only have to go through it once. Think you can go past DMP so I can hand this in?"

"Sure. How come you're not working this week anyway?"

Buffy blushed. "Long story. One I don't intend to tell."

 

Once again Buffy relayed her tale of recent events in LA. After she had answered all the questions the Harrises had, she and Anya moved onto other topics. Anya gave Buffy her key for the flat.

"Spike said you should have that once I finished moving my things out."

"Wait a minute," Xander interrupted. "What's Spike got to do with this?"

"Honestly, Xander, who did you think would be moving in at such short notice? How did you think I managed to have someone to sub-let to by Monday morning when we only got back from Vegas on Sunday?"

"Spike? In a proper flat?"

Buffy sighed. "As soon as we officially started dating he wanted to have somewhere Social Services could check out if they started asking questions."

"Guess he isn't as much of a waste of space as I thought," Xander commented.

"If that surprises you, then you don't know half as much about him as you think you do," Buffy answered.

"Okay. Truce. Spike's a sweetie-pie and butter wouldn't melt in his mouth. Even if he didn't have his electronic leash he would never even hit a human much less suck their life-blood from their helpless body." All but Xander's request for a truce came out heavily tinged with irony.

"Yeah, very funny, but you have just reminded me that Giles wants him to hit you. But we've got to work it out. Ooh, and Giles says not to use the orbs unless you're expecting trouble or helping patrol, because they've never been used by a human before and we don't know what side-effects there might be."

Xander and his wife both responded simultaneously, Anya proving the more persistent of the two.

"Rewind to the bit about-"

"Wait, are you saying we're not allowed to use them when we're having sex. I mean they make things a bit uncomfortable but Xander could never do the cascade thing before."

"Anya, I'm just repeating what Giles told me, maybe Xander should speak to him directly if he wants advice on his sex life. I didn't mean that the way it sounds, not that I'm saying Giles would be without valuable experience to impart. okay, shutting up now," Buffy babbled.

"What were you saying about Giles wanting Spike to hit me?" Xander asked.

"Giles wants to see if Spike's chip still detects you as human when you're using the orbs, but he can't know you're using them when he hits you or it won't work because if he knows he can't hurt you the chip won't fire. So we have to do it sort of like a taste-test thingy."

"Great. I should have known that a present from Spike would have strings attached," Xander sighed.

"Look, all I know is Giles said don't use them unless it's important and watch for any odd behaviour either when you're using them or after.

I've got some stuff to do round town. I'll catch up with you guys later. Maybe we could have a video night tonight or something, if Dawn finishes her homework early enough. I'll call you." Buffy walked backwards toward the door as she spoke, casting only occasional glances over her shoulder. She ducked through the door with a feeling of relief. She should have time to make it to the college and speak to someone before lunch if she didn't take too long getting there.

 




 

Thursday Mid-afternoon

"Whatcha doin'?" Buffy asked.

"Well, I was putting together furniture, but now I'm too busy chattin' up some bird on the phone to bother with that," Spike replied.

"D'you think you could have your place fit for polite company by tomorrow afternoon?" Buffy asked cautiously.

"Probably. How polite are we talking?"

"Em. well. tea with the minister."

"Bloody hell! You're not asking much, are you? And will you be joining us for this little soirée?" Spike's tone was sarcastic but good-humoured.

"I'll be there. Look, normally we'd have to go to a load of services. He just wants to meet you before he'll make a decision on whether he'll perform the ceremony."

"If he's trying to work out whether I'm a fine upstanding Christian he's going to have problems, pet."

Buffy sighed. "I don't know what exactly it is that he wants, but he's at least prepared to consider doing it. You can't blame him for wanting to meet you. Even in Sunnydale it can't be every day someone tells him they want to marry a demon."

"It's okay, love. I'll be on my best behaviour, provided he doesn't pull a stake on me."

"Need a hand with that furniture?" Buffy asked.

"M' all but done, pet. Put together one of the bookcases and the normal desk and I'm just finishing off the computer desk. Really just the swivel chairs to do. All the rest can go in the cloakroom for now and wait till the basement's done. But, if you wanted to come over I'm sure we could find some other things to fit together, though I should be leaving for your place in about an hour to be there for Bit getting home."

"How about you leave now, pick me up outside Starbucks and we get an hour together before Dawn's due home?"

"What about the witches?"

"I don't think they'd be interested in joining us."

"Far be it from me to waste time arguin' then, pet." Buffy snorted at the other end of the line. "I'll pick you up in five or ten minutes. Don't fancy pickin' up a large espresso while you're waiting, love?"

"Sure. See you soon."

 

 

The DeSoto cut through the afternoon traffic like a shark moving through a shoals of unwary fish. When it pulled over, Buffy opened the door the narrowest possible amount and squeezed through, a coffee cup balanced in either hand. She had to suppress a smile when she looked over in Spike's direction.

"Yeah, I know it lacks a certain sartorial elegance, but it makes the neighbours less suspicious than wandering around with a blanket."

The 'it' in question was a super-thick black hooded sweatshirt, several sizes too large for him so that he had to push back the sleeves to free his hands for driving. She suspected with the hood up he would merely need to look downwards for his face and neck to be hidden in shadow.

"Not really you , but like you say it beats the blanket." She sat the coffees on the floor and leant toward him, her hands framing his face, for a kiss, which he was quick to return. The tender touch of his soft lips against hers sent flares of heat along her nerve endings. Their hands roved all over the other's bodies in search of bare flesh, but Buffy was recalled to her senses when she felt a cool hand on her inner thigh and moving slowly upward.

"Not in the middle of Main Street. Home. Now. Fast," she said as she pulled away from his questing hands, picking up the coffees once more. For a second, Spike looked as if he might protest, but then he just seemed to cast a glance through the minute cracks in the paint at a mirror she hadn't been able to use without rolling down the window and pulled out into the traffic.

Five minutes later they pulled up in the shade next to the house. Spike was out the car and across the bonnet so quickly that he had her door open before she could put down one of the coffees to work the handle. He took one of the cups from her and grasped her newly freed hand pulling her toward the house. She strained against his grip long enough to push the car door shut with her foot before following him.

The front door opened at his touch and as he pulled her in he asked, "what is it with you lot and the watcher? Nobody ever teach you to lock your doors?" She pushed the door shut with her foot only to find herself sandwiched between it and an extremely hard male body. His lips pressed against hers with sufficient pressure that she had to open her mouth to prevent her teeth cutting into the inside of her mouth. Her hands, one still holding the coffee snaked around his neck and she lifted one leg her knee hooking over his hip as if it were possible to pull him even closer.

"Hey, Buffy .Spike."

Willow stopped dead for a second after she came out of the dining room to greet her friend before deciding it was best to pretend she'd been on her way to the kitchen. The pair pulled their lips apart for long enough to manage a "Red," and a "Hey, Will," in return.

Spike took a half step back and slipping one arm behind Buffy's knees and the other around her back somehow managed to pick Buffy up without breaking off the kiss again.

As he carried her to her room Buffy managed to call out, "we'll be back down before Dawn's due in from school!"

Willow had to smile at the comment. Buffy had looked more than a little embarrassed at Willow's appearance. On the other hand, Spike just didn't give a damn for propriety and yet a fifteen-year-old had him so twisted round her little finger that in three quarters of an hour he'd be back downstairs, properly dressed and playing the English tutor. He was whipped.

For an instant she almost felt sorry for them. It was like they. well, they did have the kid before they got the honeymoon. Then when she thought about how they both felt about Dawn she realised neither one would want things any different.

 
 
Chapter #26 - Chapter 4:05
 






SECTION 4 - HOME SWEET HOME

Take me to your heart
Feel me in your bones
Just one more night
And I'm comin' off this long and winding road.

.My heart's like an open book
For the whole world to read
Sometimes nothing - keeps me together
At the seams

I'm on my way
Well, I'm on my way
Home sweet home
Tonight tonight
I'm on my way
Just set me free
Home sweet home

(Motley Crue, Album Decade of Decadence)




Chapter 4.05
Thursday, May 9th, 2002

Spike leant against the door to push it closed. He lowered Buffy's feet to the ground and started to shrug out of his clothes as fast as he could. Buffy followed his lead. All the while their lips only parted for seconds at a time when forced to by necessity.

It took each of them less then a minute to strip. It was fortunate that Buffy hadn't gotten around to removing the blankets she had put over the windows when he had last stayed the night because sunlight was the last thing on either of their minds.

Buffy was ready marginally before Spike and she took advantage of the fact pushing him back against the door as he threw his jeans across the room. Pulling her mouth away from his and dropping to her knees she licked her way sloppily up his erection before she took him into her mouth.

She used one hand to grip the now wet base of his dick pumping slowly up and down swallowing in rhythm with each downward hand motion taking him just a fraction deeper into her throat each time. Spike's hands curled into fists at his side because he wanted to twine them into her hair and force her to take him even deeper. He moaned deep in his throat, unable to withstand her ministrations for more than a minute or two in silence.

"Buffy, I can't take much more of this," he gasped. "If you don't stop soon I'm gonna come."

In response she met his eyes and kept right on with what she was doing. Spreading her knees wide she slid her other hand between her thighs. Opening her nether lips she rubbed her index finger up and down until it was coated in the juices which spilled freely from her core. His eyes widened slightly as he watched her and he struggled even harder not to spill into her throat, so much so that his palms were pierced by his talons and his facial features morphed from human to demon.

"Buffy," he half-growled with an edge of warning in his voice. Her eyes glinted mischievously and she reached behind him sliding her lubricated finger into his ass. She paused for a couple of seconds and then matched thrusts with her other motions pressing each time against the sensitive spot within.

"Bu-ffy!" He came with a scream that was almost a roar spilling his seed in one long gush into the back of her throat.

When she released him from intimate contact he fell to his knees and clasped her tightly against him as his features changed back to his normal human form.

"Jesus, Buffy, I swear if I wasn't dead already you'd have given me a heart attack."

"If you weren't dead already you'd be due for one, seeing as you're getting on for a hundred and fifty, Old Man," Buffy retorted.

"Not so old I can't get my own back, wench," Spike said by way of a rejoinder.

Buffy lifted an eyebrow and gave a passable imitation of a Spike smirk. "Prove it."

Spike rapidly tipped them both over to one side and then rolled them until he straddled her hips. Lifting her arms over her head he held them in place at the wrist using one hand. If she put some effort into escaping his grasp then there was no question that she could. However, the grip would be more than enough to quell the involuntary movements he expected.

His lips moved first to her mouth using teasing gentle touches on the area that he had earlier claimed so forcefully. The sensitised flesh tingled as he barely brushed it with his lips or when he blew softly on them. It seemed as if there was a direct connection between her mouth and her core as the tingling was accompanied by a tightening of the muscles in her lower body. Spike scored his first small victory as a low moan escaped her.

His mouth moved lower and he nibbled a trail along her jaw line and down the unmarked side of her neck finally moving along the line of her collarbone. He used the tip of his tongue to trace the route in reverse and then gently blew on her damp skin until the moisture dissipated. She shivered beneath him tremors flowing through her whole body and she knew that whatever sensation she experienced would be enhanced at least tenfold when he repeated it on the side where she bore his marks.

As she had anticipated he repeated the same pattern on the marked side of her neck. It turned out that she had underestimated the power of his claim. She had been right that first time he had shown her what they could do. Without any deliberate contact anywhere else, though her hardened nipples grazed against his chest, she found herself screaming his name as she bucked beneath him.

Even as the last quivers of her muscles died away within her, he moved lower on her body. He rained kisses on the firm curves of her upper breasts. His free hand teased her, his fingertips tracing the lines where her breasts met her ribcage. She arched her body towards him and he acquiesced, taking one taut nipple into his mouth and rolling the other between thumb and forefinger. His tongue traced circles around the swollen bud and she couldn't help but moan again as the nerve endings relayed their message of exquisite torture to the pit of her stomach. She could feel his member, hard and ready, the tip brushing against her lower lips and she moved beneath him trying to push against him to force him to enter her body, but Spike had other plans.

He sucked as hard as he could on her captive nipple, delighting in the fact that this only caused her struggles and moans to increase. He switched, to hold her wrists with his other hand and gave her a playful nip before he kissed his way over to her other side. She expected his free hand to move to her recently relinquished breast. Instead his nails grazed feather-light caresses up and down her outer thigh before shifting underneath her as she pushed her hips upward. He stroked and massaged her bottom as his lips, tongue and teeth on her breast brought her close to a frenzy.

His eyes moved to her face as he released her wrists, and her freedom prompted her to open her eyes and look into his pools of midnight blue desire. She watched as he shifted lower still, his tongue leaving a thin trail of moisture down the centre of her body. Lower and lower he moved until his tongue swirled around her navel. As he shifted backward his hands trailed under her thighs, tickling gently the sensitive skin behind her knees before he lifted her legs and pushed them forward bringing her hips up off the floor. He parted her knees and dipped his head between her thighs.

His tongue traced a delicate circle around her dripping entrance and her muscles responded by opening to welcome his anticipated invasion. He made one deeper more forceful swirl barely entering inside her but then in one slow sure lick he laid open her outer lips. Moving back to entrance he worked his way forward again this time with cat-like rasps against her sensitive flesh and when he reached her inner lips he parted them, seeking out her swollen bundle of nerve endings. She flinched as his tongue circled it and when he latched onto it sucking on it as he had sucked on her nipples earlier, she once more gasped her way to a breathless climax, feeling strangely light-headed as her partially inverted position caused her blood to go to her head.

Even as the waves of pleasure pulsed through her he pushed his tongue inside her, probing hard as her muscles drew him in, savouring her salty taste.

He followed her upper wall until he found her G spot and then he flicked his tongue rapidly back and forth over it until she gasped and shuddered unable to control her body. He kept it up for minutes that seemed like hours or seconds before he lowered her to the floor once more, her body limp and boneless.

He crawled along the floor until he could lie next to her, his front against her side. Propping himself on one elbow he reached to smooth her hair from her sweat-drenched face.

"Proof enough, pet?" he asked in a husky whisper. She nodded her head unable to find her voice. His free hand wandered up and down her body, cool against her heated flesh.

Without moving her head her gaze sought out her alarm clock. "Dawn's nearly due back. We'd better get dressed and cleaned up. We'll finish this tonight?" Her tone turned the statement into a question and Spike nodded his assent.

She started to run a hand through her hair, stopping when it came away wet. "I need a shower." She kissed him lightly on the lips before getting up on wobbly legs and grabbing her robe. "Once you're dressed why don't you grab your coffee and come keep me company till Dawn gets back?"

She slipped out the door leaving him to search for his scattered clothing.

After a brief detour to the bottom of the stairs where he had left his now lukewarm coffee he made his way to the bathroom, dressed but still barefoot. Lowering the cover over the toilet he took a seat to watch while Buffy rinsed lather from her body before washing her hair.

"So, love, what time tomorrow is our visitor coming over?"

"Half past two. I'll come over for about two. That way I can help with any last minute tidying up."

"Sure you don't want to make it earlier?"

"I would, but I don't want the flat to be in the same state your crypt was that time Xander came looking for me. This way we've got time to tidy, but not enough time to mess it up. much.

"Anya gave me a key to your place. I didn't know whether I was meant to give it to you or keep it."

"'S yours, pet." He gave her a remarkably innocent looking half-smile.

"Makes me think it's time you had a key for here. Not that the door's often locked, as you so rightly pointed out."

"Got one. Had to have it for the times the witches had to work late at college and I had Dawn duty."

"Oh. Xander's going to do the basement, with some help, as long as we entertain Anya and keep you away from him."

Spike smirked. "I know you think I'm insatiable, but that's all for you. I'm not sure I could entertain Anya as well. It takes a lot out of a guy keepin' up with you. but, if you insist." He dodged the sponge that flew across the room, picking it up off the floor and tossing it back underhand.

"Behave. You know I didn't mean like that, pig!"

She tipped her head back to rinse the shampoo from her hair before she continued.

"I said if Dawn finished her homework early enough, which she should do if she does it when she gets in, that they could come over tonight and watch a couple of vids." She reached over and grabbed a towel to wrap around her hair before donning her robe.

"I can live with that I suppose if I get to sit with my two favourite women on either side of me."

"Given the lack of seating I might be sitting in your lap." She took his hand leading him back to the bedroom. They were half way down the hall when the front door slammed open. Spike moved to the top of the stairs to call down, knowing Dawn's first stop would normally be the refrigerator, at least it always had been in the past when it had had food in it. "Hey, Bit. I'll be in Buffy's room, so knock when you're ready for me to have a look at your homework."  

He was surprised to see another figure behind her in the hall.

"Hey, Spike. Janice just stopped by so she could see the dress you guys got me for prom."

"Yeah, well, don't take too long getting round to doing your essay. Your sister's asked Anya and her lesser half over for a video night later."

"Does that mean if we do our homework Janice could stay too? .If her mom's okay with it?"

Spike raised his eyes heavenward and shrugged. "I'll send your sis through to discuss it when you're finished raiding the fridge." He padded back to Buffy's room, informing her of the good news. "Bit's brought Janice home with her. Wants to know if she can stay for the films. I told her you would let her know once they're finished stripping the kitchen of all the junk food."

Buffy paused in the middle of pulling on a clean pair of jeans. "She would have to stay for dinner as well and I don't know what we're having."

"That would depend on what's left from Monday's shopping and who's cooking, 'cause it won't be me or she's going to start putting two and two together. Alone with my girlfriend in her bedroom there's an obvious explanation as to why the curtains are drawn, shutting all the kitchen curtains. not so easy to explain. Or we order pizza, which might not be the way to impress her mom with our healthy lifestyle."

By now Buffy had squeezed into the jeans and thrown on a T-shirt. "I'll go see what plans Will had and we can go from there." She scraped her hair back into a ponytail and headed off downstairs.

"Hey, Will." She darted glances in the direction of the kitchen, hoping Willow would take the hint. "Spike says he's too tired to cook tonight. He's going to have to lie down upstairs for a couple of hours." 'Till sunset. ' "Is there anything healthy in the house we can throw together that'll feed everyone if Janice stays for dinner or would we need to order pizza?"

"More Tara's department than mine. I'd go with the pizza," the redhead replied.

"Pooh." Buffy sighed. "I need to learn to cook. It's embarrassing that even Spike can cook and I can't. I guess it's going to have to be pizza then." She raised her voice hopefully as she continued, "unless Dawn and Janice fancy cooking, that is?"

"Hey, conscientious students stocking up on brain food, not child labour for evil older sisters. We're going to be far too busy working on our essays," Dawn argued, following up with a very fake sigh. "Looks like it's pizza again."

"And, Janice can stay provided her mom says it's okay and she's either picked up, or dropped off at her door or walked home and I want to speak to her mom when she rings her so there's no confusion."

"Jeez, one time we're not where you thought we were and you're never going to let us live it down," Dawn grouched. "Like you were always at Willow's when you were my age."

Buffy decided to ignore the jibe. It wasn't like she could deny it or use the slayer excuse when Janice was around. Didn't mean she had to tone down the big sister act. "And do the homework thing before you start with the dress .and wash your hands before you touch anything, no way am I trying to exchange anything that gets peanut butter on it."

"Ye-e-es, Buffy," the teenager sighed out the words as she headed upstairs, accompanied by her friend, peanut butter and chocolate spread sandwiches, a packet of cookies and ironically enough a couple of diet sodas.

"Thanks for the food, Ms. Summers. And for letting me stay over. I'll ring mom when we've finished our snacks."

Words could not describe how unbearably ancient Buffy suddenly felt. Ms. Summers was what stuffy old people like Schneider called her in a sarcastic tone of voice when they were trying to make her feel insignificant, not what teenagers called her. And how much older was she going to feel when it was Mrs .Something?

Less than a minute passed before Dawn came rushing back downstairs. "Willow," she half whispered, "is it okay if we use your room to get Spike to help with our homework, 'cause it doesn't get the sun like the rooms at the front?"

"Sure, I'm busy on the computer down here anyway."

Buffy rolled her eyes at the redhead, as her sister bounded back up the stairs. "Does Janice call you Ms. Rosenberg or is it just me that gets the mom treatment?"

"Honestly, it's the first time I can remember Dawn bringing anyone home," Willow replied.

"Will, if things had turned out different do you think you and Oz would be thinking about getting married by now?"

"Getting the jitters already?"

"Just wondering if I'm ready to be that grown up," Buffy admitted.

"And if you weren't getting married to the Hellmouth's answer to Peter Pan or if you were planning on having 2.5 kids, I could see the problem, but I suspect in your case getting married and settling down are going to be two totally separate things."

"We still have to do the PTA type stuff and not like he did it five years ago either."

"And if you weren't getting married you would just have to do it on your own. So maybe, it's about letting him have responsibility for some of the grown up stuff instead of having to go it alone? So it could be you're worrying about the wrong thing.

Are you in love with him?"

"I didn't want to be."

"But you are?" Willow looked into her friend's eyes as she rephrased the sixty-four million dollar question.

Buffy blushed as she nodded.

"Does he make you happy?"

"When he doesn't make me want to kill him," Buffy softened her answer with a rueful smile.

"If he wasn't here would you miss him?"

"How not here?"

"Doesn't matter. Fled the country? Dust? Never to return. Whatever."

"I'd miss him. I think I'm only just beginning to see where he fits in, or how he can fit in. If something happened now, I'd miss him but it wouldn't break me. The more I let him in, the more he becomes part of everything, the worse it could be. But, I don't think he would ever leave me. He's the one. The only one I can't scare away. The only one that wants girly Buffy and Slayer Buffy and depressed Buffy and Dawn's Buffy and kinky Buffy and bitchy Buffy and all the other Buffys."

"And still part of you is scared at the idea of letting him in far enough that it would break you if you lost him?"

This seemed to stall the slayer in her tracks. "Yeah .I guess."

"Do you think Giles ever wishes that he never met Jenny?"

"I don't know. Probably, now, I don't think he'd change things. Maybe at the time he'd have said something different."

"See, that's the deal, Buffy. Sometimes life lets you find someone special and you can choose to dive on in or you can paddle about in the shallows or run for the shore, but the only real freedom is when you trust the water to support you, that's when you can really start having fun. Sometimes you might get out of your depth and you might think you're going to drown, but chances are you'll flounder for a bit and then get things back under control.

No-one can guarantee that everything's going to have a happy ending. Even vampires die, though you have to admit a hundred and twenty," Willow paused as she worked out how long it had been since he tried to eat her. ".eight is a pretty convincing track record. Frankly speaking I think he's the one that should be worrying. Thing is, if you know in your heart that he'll never voluntarily leave you then he's already one up on every other guy in your life except possibly Xander. .And, correct me if I'm wrong, but spells aside, I can't recall you ever getting as excited about Xander as you looked to be .I mean there's obviously some major chemistry between you and Spike .and I'm bibbling and there's way more to it than just sex.

Look, whatever Xander said to you that made you chase a helicopter, just substitute Spike wherever you originally had sneaky rat bastard farm-boy."

"Willow! Mee-ow!" Buffy interrupted, shocked at her friend's description of Riley.

"I just don't like it when me and my friends are manipulated. How long do that pair have to stand in front of the mirror every day to practice 'wholesome'. Euch." Willow screwed up her face sticking her tongue out slightly before continuing.

"So, how did I do? You going to run like a big scaredy Xander or stick around for the whole show?" she asked the blonde.

"I doubt I could run fast enough or far enough to get away from this one. You were right first time. It's just jitters, but thanks for helping me bounce things around in my head."

"No problem, best to do all the worrying now rather than panic on the day."

"I miss mom." Buffy looked down at her hands, picking imaginary dirt from behind her nails. "I never thought I'd be doing this without her."

"We're all here to help - not in a magic way - but anything else."

"Thanks, Will, but there's a load of stuff I have to work out before I could even ask anyone else to help. I don't even know how many bridesmaids I should have. I was just going to ask all of you until Spike pointed out there would be more people in the wedding party than in the congregation. We're kind of sad. Nearly no-one to invite.

I mean I've got my dad, an aunt and a couple of cousins. He's got Angel and he doesn't want to ask him because it could upset Giles. Then there's the Scoobies and Clem, and that's it.

And what are my family going to make of Clem? But he's got more right to come than dad has. He's been around more in the last few months for me than dad has in the last six years, let alone being there for Spike, so maybe I should just forget the family invitations?"

Willow shrugged. "I say let them take their chances. Your dad still hasn't been in touch since your mom died. In fact, the only way we know he knows is that he stopped the maintenance payments. Chances are he won't show, but you'd feel guilty if you didn't invite him. And if he does come and he won't buy the skin condition line what do you think he's going to say? 'Excuse me, honey, but is this demon a gatecrasher?' Phht.

And your aunt. She's the one your mom went to see way out east that Thanksgiving. If she's prepared to make the trip, I don't think Clem will faze her. Remember, people like to live in denial. I don't think you'll have a repeat of the Buffalo Lodge fiasco."

"Is that the official title now? The BLF?" Buffy asked with a half stifled laugh.

"Sounds good, don't you think? So who are you going to invite?"

"Well, there's dad and his shorthand trollop, Aunt Arlene and my cousins, Dawn, you, Tara, Xander, Anya, Clem, Giles and Olivia. Then there's the big question mark over Angel and Cordelia and Stephen, maybe the other three he works with. Kinda sparse, especially on Spike's side, and it doesn't help that his best friend is my chief bridesmaid, possibly my only bridesmaid."

"Have you ever thought about asking Giles whether he minds Angel being there?" Willow asked.

"Wouldn't that remind him about all the stuff we didn't want to remind him about?" Buffy countered, her brow creasing in frustration, before she remembered another potential guest. "Ooh, Wesley, nearly forgot Wesley, but Angel and him are all not talking as well."

"I say ask them all and let them fight it out in the parking lot at the reception. Cheaper than hiring a band."

"Ooh, bands. Dingoes are still doing gigs, aren't they? And maybe they would know how to get in touch with Oz. He might come, you think? Maybe? I mean, you would be okay with that, if he could come, wouldn't you?"

"I think it's more whether his wolf's okay with me," the redhead answered.

"When did life get this complicated?"

"When you moved to Sunnydale. At least you don't have any alcoholics or active vengeance demons to worry about."

"That depends whether the groom behaves himself and if Halfrek stays the hell away from him."

"Mmh, yeah, what is the deal with those two?" Willow asked.

"If I can judge by his dreams, he had a crush on her when he was human. When he got up the nerve to tell her and she shot him down like a total bitch. Not unlike someone else you're acquainted with."

"But you changed your mind .after a couple of years."

Buffy smiled. "Well, the way she was playing with her hair at my party, she might have changed hers as well."

"Doesn't make any difference," the Wiccan said, treating Buffy to her resolve face. "Spike isn't going to be changing his allegiance any time soon. And he's not a happy drunk. He only drinks lots when he's miserable. He drank less than anybody else on Sunday."

"Will, do you actually like Spike?" Buffy asked.

"Sometimes, when I forget about the bottle in the face, and the wanting to kill me. When you see him with Dawn, when he was the one cheering people up last summer keeping everyone going, when Tara was really shy still and he would smile at her when he thought no-one was looking, when he makes my best friend happy, then I like him. Lately, that's more often than not."

The pair fell into silence. There was nothing really to be added.

Finally, Buffy rose from her seat. "I'd best ring Janice's mom before she starts to wonder where she is. Is Tara coming over tonight? It's been .since Sunday .since we were all together. I suppose it's not that long really, just a busy week. Anyway, if you're up for it, Scooby video night."

"That might depend on who's picking the videos," Willow answered.

"Well, how about we leave Spike in charge of the kids and head for Blockbuster once I speak to Janice's mom and Xander."

"That could be a plan."

 
 
Chapter #27 - Chapter 4:06
 






SECTION 4 - HOME SWEET HOME

Take me to your heart
Feel me in your bones
Just one more night
And I'm comin' off this long and winding road.

.My heart's like an open book
For the whole world to read
Sometimes nothing - keeps me together
At the seams

I'm on my way
Well, I'm on my way
Home sweet home
Tonight tonight
I'm on my way
Just set me free
Home sweet home

(Motley Crue, Album Decade of Decadence)




Chapter 4.06
Thursday, May 9th, 2002

"Everything you've got is fine. Add in the bit we were talking about at the top of the second page and you've got it sussed." Spike somehow managed to combine pride and exasperation in the same tone of voice.

"But it's all hand-written. Can't I just tack it on the end? If I put it where you said I'll have to rewrite two full pages."

"You don't follow a logical progression in your argument if you just bung it in at the end. You'll probably still get marks for mentioning it, but the style's bloody awful and if it was me markin' it I'd mark you down for that. And if the bit about it being hand-written is meant to make a computer appear out of nowhere for you then, tough. And if it was typed you'd have to write a damn-sight more to fill three pages. The quicker you do it, the more chance you'll get to go along when your sister picks the films for tonight, so just get on with it.

And, Bit?"

"What?" Dawn's tone was sulky.

"You did good, love."

"Well, duh. Let's hope Miss Forman agrees with you." All traces of petulance were gone, just Dawn teasing Spike, business as usual.

Buffy stood just outside the room door for a few seconds, listening to the pair interact and wondering how he knew when to stop pushing and offer encouragement with her sister, when he always seemed to head straight in for the high speed train wreck when they disagreed.

"Can you check over mine now, Spike?" Not Mr. Whatever. No. He got to sound young and as cool as a stupid nickname like that could sound, but she was Ms. Summers. Of course, Janice had no idea what his surname was, but that wasn't the point. Buffy could almost hear Janice's eyelashes batting. Perhaps it was time for her to interrupt.

She strolled into the room, cordless phone still in her hand. "Your mom wants you back home by half past ten, so Spike and I will probably walk you back. The others will be here in an hour, so that's how long you have to finish up, if you want to see all of the films. Otherwise, you get to stay up here till he says you're finished." Buffy nodded at Spike.

"But Janice hasn't even seen my dress yet."

"So, it can't take you more than fifteen minutes to rewrite two pages. It won't take that long to show her the dress. Will and I are going to the store now. Is there anything you guys want?"

Spike pushed himself to his feet, "just a goodbye kiss, assuming that's allowed." He strolled past Buffy out onto the landing, ducking round the side of the door out of the girls' line of sight. His hand trailed along her inner arm as he passed, the feel of his fingertips against her palm causing her to start slightly.

Dawn had a few suggestions. "Some popcorn, and you could take Spike's phone. That way you could ring to check that we haven't seen the films you pick at Janice's already."

"Or not. If Xander and Anya have to take their chances so do you."

"But you always get to pick."

"That's because I'm old enough to be a member and you're not. Deal." Buffy made a point of pulling the room door shut as she left. Strong arms captured her waist and pulled her to him. She arched her back and tilted her head around and back allowing him access to her parted lips. One of her hands reached behind her, pressing on his ass until his pelvic bones ground into her, the fingers of her other hand reached up to stroke the back of his neck, absently teasing the soft curls there. What had started as a chaste playful hug became an inferno of passion as he plundered her mouth with an intensity matched by her own.

A seemingly loud click brought her close enough to her senses to realise that somehow he had guided them into the bathroom and bolted the door between them and the hall. Her eyes widened, but she didn't resist as he shuffled them towards the connecting door to Willow's bedroom. As soon as the second bolt slid into place, his hands were on the move. One slipped up her top to cup her breast, the other rapidly undoing the fastenings on her jeans pushing impatiently at the stiff fabric until it cleared her knees. Her own hand slipped around his hip to cup his throbbing erection through his jeans before she started work on freeing him.

She struggled to turn in his arms, forcing him to move his arms out of her way before she grasped his shoulders and let herself collapse backward onto the cool tile floor, pulling him over on top of her. As soon as he felt her pull them off balance he wrapped his arms around her so that his forearms protected her neck and head from impacting on the hard floor. By the time he was sure she hadn't been hurt, her hands were already pushing his jeans out of the way, her hips pushing up against him.

She would have rolled him over and taken the dominant position but the tangle of material around her legs prevented her from straddling him. Instead she dropped her knees to either side drawing up her feet until she was exposed beneath him. She tilted her head to whisper in his ear.

"Will, remember on Sunday when I bit you. I want to do it for real."

"Not like this, love. Not with your sister and her mate listening through the door," he answered, his voice as muted as her own. He slid into her far more slowly than he had intended, not wanting to make her feel he was forcing his will on her. "Later, love, tonight at my place, in private." He could sense an impending storm and her movement beneath him had stilled. "Please, love." He waited until her mouth latched onto his, her hips shifting forcefully under him before he resumed a fierce thrusting rhythm. He didn't try to hold back his own release and his expert fingers moved between their bodies to bring her over the edge almost simultaneously, her cries muffled by his kiss.

He rolled off of her, but his eyes continued to hold hers as he mouthed the words "I love you."

Buffy eased up onto her elbows and leaned toward him, tilting her head forward so that she looked at him through the shelter of her lashes. "Me too," she whispered, her eyes dropping in instant confusion.

She started to adjust her clothing and Spike pulled his jeans back up enough to allow him to walk easily across the room, not bothering to fasten them. He pulled off a long strand of tissue, folding it into a neat wad as he returned to Buffy.

He wordlessly passed it to her and she positioned it between her legs where it would absorb the fluids that would drain from her when she stood up. He helped as much as he could with her clothing, making sure she was properly dressed before he finished adjusting his own attire. He wondered if her lack of underwear was due to her rush to get ready earlier, because of the cut of the jeans or whether it was for his benefit.

As he fastened his belt-buckle she stood on tiptoe to give him a quick peck on the cheek.

"I've really got to go. Will's waiting. The longer I stay the worse it looks."

He reached up placing his hand on the side of her face and running his thumb along her cheekbone. "I know, pet."

There was an awkwardness between them, like two strangers who've woken up in the same bed, who are trying to convince themselves and each other that it wasn't just a one-night stand. That their promises to call will be kept.

He stood behind her as she unbolted the door into the hall, peeking out before she left the security of the room. "I'll be waiting when you get back," he reassured her. She didn't turn but he heard her quiet response as she headed downstairs, "I know."

Somehow Spike was left with the feeling that yet again he'd done something wrong. Only this time he wasn't even sure she knew what it was.

He pulled himself together enough to quietly fill a tumbler of water, pour it from a great height into the toilet and flush before he went back into the room with the teenagers. Okay, so Bit would know it was a total farce, but her mate might think he was at least making a token effort to cover up what they were really doing. For Buffy's sake he'd pretend to pretend.

"Let's see this masterpiece of yours then, jail-bait," Spike asked as he braved the room with the teenagers.

"Catch then, Methuselah." Janice tossed the pad she'd been working from in his direction.

 The first time Dawn had introduced her friend to a seriously sorrow drowning Spike at the crowded Bronze, Janice had promptly announced that there was one guy she would break her "no dates more than two years older" rule for. And every other rule in the book. Any book.

Dawn hadn't so much lied outright to her to scare her off as taken a pinch of Dru and Spike's more exotic travels, added a major helping of typical Spike "every fibre of his being" love and finally added the heroine's tragic self-sacrificing death. Hence, broken hearted stud moping into his beer. Since Janice had never found out about the Buffy/'Bot switch that had been as close to the truth as Dawn had dared get.

Of course the tale merely turned Spike into an even more convincing romantic lead. Janice had spent the night asking him about his travels in Europe, Asia and South America, whilst turning on her adolescent feminine charms.

Spike managed to resist the urge to tell the pushy little bint to bugger off and instead commented that he was afraid that his loss left him inconsolable. However, if by some chance she could buy her own beer by the time he was once more ready to consider some form of emotional entanglement, it would be his delight to look her up. And that was where the age-ist nicknames had come in.

Of course Buffy's return from the dead had somewhat shortened his period of mourning, but that didn't stop Janice flirting with him even though it was patently pointless.

Spike read through the essay. He was always slightly disconcerted when her schoolwork showed signs of intelligence that indicated, if she tried, she could easily be following her sister to law school. How could she be so bloody bright and still go running round Sunnyhell after dark with kids she barely knew and nowhere to stay the night? Not to mention trying to chat up someone who looked ten years older than her? Guess brains and common sense still didn't necessarily come in the same packages, any more than they had when his mother had said the same about him.

"Looks fine to me."

 "No pearls of wisdom to add from your wealth of worldly experience?"

"Nothing that wouldn't sound offensive and far too cynical coming from a schoolgirl," he admitted.

 "Don't you know, these days schoolgirls are cynical."

"Yeah, right, and that's why you thought you were safe in the middle of nowhere with two older guys you'd barely met, and never seen in daylight when no-one had any idea where you were."

"Why do you keep bringing that up? It was months ago."

"'Cause I don't see you often enough to find out what the latest irresponsible stunt was so I have to work with what I've got."

"That was it. There have been no more irresponsible stunts, no drugs, no smoking, no more cute guys who're only interested in my young nubile body."

"Good, and next time you think about making a date with any teenage boy, who all fall into that category for at least eighty percent of the time, think about lunch .in a nice public restaurant."

"So you're saying teenage boys are just interested in getting some, but older men are bothered about more than just sex." The look she gave Spike might even have made him blush if it had been possible.

"I'm saying in general, older men have their hormones under slightly better control and pay a bit more attention to who they're shaggin' rather than just makin' sure they're not sittin' in alone on a Friday night with their hand for company.

But where you've got an older guy who's after girls your age, it's normally because he's some sort of social inadequate and the girls his age have learnt to avoid him or some sort of sicko that likes the idea of being there first, who'll say or do whatever he has to to get in your knickers and then up and move on once he thinks you're not a challenge any more.

Just remember anything or anyone that seems too good to be true probably is.

Here endeth the lesson. Now, since Bit looks like she's finished you can bugger off and go 'ooh' at her posh frock." Spike threw the pad back to her.

"And on the off-chance you might need me for anything I'll be back in Buffy's room tryin' to get some kip."

In fact, Spike stayed in Buffy's room only long enough to get the sweatshirt so that he could make the dash to the car. He pulled his duster from the back seat where he'd left it when he and Buffy had made their initial dash for the house and checked that his phone was still in the coat pocket and charged. Then he ransacked the glove compartment until he found his money hidden at the back. Stuffing the wad in his jeans pocket, he smoked a cigarette and made a phone call from the relative privacy of the car before going back in the house. Now all he could do was wait and hope.

 

 Half an hour later Spike was pacing the front hall when his attention was caught by the metallic scrape of the knob turning, followed by a meaty thump as flesh met the unyielding door. Apparently, Buffy had taken to heart his comments about locking up. He glanced toward the door and was amused to see Xander's distorted and flustered face through the thick glass panes.

Serves the git right for assuming he can just walk in whenever he pleases Spike thought as he moved to open the door. As soon as it was open, pandemonium broke out. Anya was trying to push Xander's bulky frame through the doorway, or maybe she was trying to get past him. Xander stalled mid-greeting when he realised he didn't recognise the deeply cowled person in front of him, dropping the A3 sketch pad he'd been carrying and taking a blocking position in the doorway whilst trying to push Anya safely behind his back.

"Let us in. There's somebody following us," Anya's voice was high pitched with fear.

"Hey. Back. You are in so much trouble you do not realise,"

The carpenter scrabbled in his coat pocket.

"Xander. Move. It's turning into the drive."

 "What the bloody hell am I meant to have done now?

Xander's hands did something behind his back, and Spike saw a bright glow flash across his eyes.

'Shit, He's really goin' to kill me this time and buggered if I know why. ' The vampire fell into an automatic fighting stance.

"Ahn, stay back- Spike?"

"Who were you expecting, Santa bloomin' Claus?"

At this point Anya seemed to decide the best way through the doorway was between her husband's legs.

A heavy booted tread became audible from behind her as she scrambled through on hands and knees, crawling over the pages that had come loose from Xander's pad. Her husband meanwhile tried to step back to allow her to stand up and craned his neck to see the large figure coming up behind him since he was unable to actually turn around.

Spike didn't so much see the man who came up behind Xander as become aware of how much sunlight he was blocking out.

"Don't let him in. He followed us from Main Street, turn for turn." Anya's outburst coincided with the first words from the stranger.

"Katharine's florist shop. C.O.D. delivery for Buffy Summers?"

"Yeah, m'ere, mate. Pass the bill and I'll sort out your money if you start bringin' the stuff in," Spike replied.

Doing his best to ignore Xander and Anya and the crushed papers on the floor the delivery driver passed a clipboard through a gap at the side of the doorframe to Spike. As he walked back to open up the side door of the large van now blocking Spike's car into the driveway, Xander visibly sagged against the doorframe and Anya got to her feet dusting off her skirt.

"Hi, Spike," she gasped breathlessly.

"Hi, kitten. Why don't you go grab a seat in the living room while I sort this out? There's beer in the fridge if you feel the need for a pick-me-up after your little surprise, assumin' Bit and the witches didn't drink it all while we were in LA."

Spike surreptitiously took a few bills from the envelope in his back pocket and added them to some from his duster, clipping them into the clipboard and closing it. It took the driver four trips to bring in the various baskets, planters and vases that were dropped off in the hall along with an enormous box of continental chocolates and a bottle of champagne.

Xander managed to spin out picking up his pad and straightening up the loose sheets long enough to still be in the hall when the driver was ready to leave. The deliveryman seemed to do a mental tally, tying in the items on the floor to those on the bill.

"Right, that seems to be everything, and even if it wasn't the van's empty. We've billed you up front like you said for the next couple of months on your regular delivery, so you won't have to come in for a while, but Katie says to stick your head in if you're passing anyway. Said she might even rustle up some cocoa if you're lucky."

"I'll see what I can do, but things might be a bit hectic. Tell the missus thanks for puttin' everythin' together at short notice like she has. She's a life-saver. Sorry if it kept you from getting' home."

The driver just gave him a nod and raised the clipboard in a wave as he left. Spike closed the door after him, making sure it was locked again before he threw back the hood on his sweatshirt. All the while he waited for Xander to make some sort of smart-ass comment. He wasn't disappointed.

"So, I'm guessing the new-look didn't exactly meet with Buffy's approval. Must be a pretty big argument to need that much patching up. Or maybe she found out about whatever skeazy coffin-bait is getting your "regular order"?"

Anger flared red-hot in Spike's eyes and he almost swung a punch at his adversary before he remembered he was using the orbs. No point bruising his knuckles on the git. "Care to put your foot in it a bit more before your thimble sized brain remembers that Bit's mate's upstairs with her." It was only in the most distant reaches of his subconscious that Spike was aware of the sounds of the front door opening. "You don't know me. You probably never will. Don't presume to judge the motivation behind anything I do, because all you're ever going to do is keep showing over and over how small-minded you really are." Spike stormed upstairs grabbing his duster as he went.

"Thanks for setting him off, Xander. Now I get to sleep in a room that smells of cigarettes." Buffy started to follow Spike upstairs, but Xander grabbed her arm and she found herself unable to get away.

"Buff, he's cheating on you. The guy has a regular order set up with the florists and I'm betting you're not the girl on the receiving end."

Buffy stopped struggling. Her arm was going to bruise and she wasn't going to get free, but that didn't mean she was beat. She didn't rant like Spike, in fact her voice if anything was quieter than normal, but there was a cold harshness to it that Xander had never been on the receiving end of. "Tell me something that's news, and try getting your mind out of the gutter." She gave her arm a sharp jerk pulling free at last due to Xander's surprise and followed Spike upstairs. Xander looked across at Willow as she pushed the front door shut with her butt. His eyes clearly saying, "what am I meant to have done now?"

 
 
Chapter #28 - Chapter 4:07
 






SECTION 4 - HOME SWEET HOME

Take me to your heart
Feel me in your bones
Just one more night
And I'm comin' off this long and winding road.

.My heart's like an open book
For the whole world to read
Sometimes nothing - keeps me together
At the seams

I'm on my way
Well, I'm on my way
Home sweet home
Tonight tonight
I'm on my way
Just set me free
Home sweet home

(Motley Crue, Album Decade of Decadence)




PREVIOUSLY: Spike had this feeling that he'd done something that upset Buffy, so he ordered lots of flowers. Xander and Anya arrived at the same time as the delivery driver. Buffy and Willow had locked the front door when they went to the video store. Xander didn't recognise the cowled figure that opened the door and thought Spike was an intruder so he activated the Orbs of Nezzla Khan which he had been carrying on him, but had originally kept separated. The situation seemed to be diffused until Xander heard the florist mention charging Spike for his regular order, and accused Spike of cheating on Buffy. Knowing Xander was invulnerable, Spike lashed out verbally and stomped off to Buffy's room. Buffy and Willow arrived back just in time to catch the end of Spike's tirade. She went to go after him, but Xander grabbed her arm trying to explain Spike's duplicity. Buffy told Xander to get his mind out of the gutter and pulled free going after Spike.

Chapter 4.07
Thursday, May 9th, 2002

Buffy knocked on her own room door, before she pushed it slowly open. As she'd expected, she was greeted by a waft of cigarette smoke. Spike was prowling round the room like a caged tiger on speed.

"Hey," she said in a soft voice. He turned to face her, his eyes automatically softening, but she could see he was still fighting the rage within him. She walked over to her dresser and pulled open one of the drawers to take out a ceramic ornament. "Catch," she said as she tossed it in his direction. "In case you feel the need to smash something."

He hefted the statuette in his hand checking its weight and balance before he actually looked at it and saw what she didn't like about it. A big strong Fred was carrying a seemingly grateful Daphne to safety in the best Scooby Doo tradition. Anger faded into amusement and his eyebrow rose a fraction of an inch. "Present from soldier boy?"

"You guessed it." She swayed over to him.

"Not in the mood for smashing stuff now, but if you want I could do it as a public service."

"We can save it .for the next time Xander acts like a total ass." She took the offending article from him and sat it on the dresser. Then she took the half-smoked cigarette from his hand and dropped it into the remains of her mocha from earlier.

"So, other than implying that my mom was some two-bit ho that you were sneaking around with behind my back, what else did he say to get you that worked up?" Buffy asked.

"Wha'? How?"

"Just because you don't leave a card doesn't mean I haven't got a brain. I know Dawn doesn't get enough allowance to pay for fresh flowers every week. I knew it wasn't me and if Dad had been that thoughtful they wouldn't have been divorced in the first place.

I had my suspicions for a while, but after Saturday I was sure. I've been in your head, remember."

"S'pose, and yeah, that was pretty much it," Spike conceded.

"Why didn't you ever leave a card?"

"'Cause if I did Harris would probably have staked me. Him and Red all but physically chucked me off the property when I tried to leave flowers outside the house after. Said Joyce meant nothing to me and the only reason I bothered was to try to get in your knickers. As long as I didn't put my name on the card, it'd never occur to him that it might be me. Not the sort of thing an evil soulless git would do, not in his book, anyway."

"God, Spike, I'm sorry. I didn't know," Buffy apologised. "If I'd known. I mean, back then, I didn't get the thing between you and mom. But I got that there was a thing that I didn't get."

"Ancient history, pet. Don't worry 'bout it." His hands came up to cradle her neck, thumbs brushing her jaw-line as he tilted his head to come in for a kiss. Her hands fisted in the front of his sweatshirt as she pulled him toward her. He tasted of smoke and mints and she lost herself in him until he pulled her tight against him.

"Ah. Ow." She pushed away from him to get a look at her forearm, which had been crushed between them. His gaze followed her own to where a large handprint showed a livid darkening purple just above her wrist.

"Spike, no. Don't," but it was too late, Spike was already out the door and running down the stairs, leaving Buffy to trail behind.

"Harris, you bastard."

"Will, don't. It was an accident."

"Bollocks, accident. You don't get bruises like that accidentally."

Spike hauled a stunned looking Xander up off the couch by his shirt front, before sending him back into it with a nose-breaking punch, which in turn caused the headache that brought the vampire to his knees in a screaming heap. 

Xander rose to his feet again, wiping away a stream of blood from his nose but Buffy managed to get between the two before Xander could make a move on the vampire. Willow meanwhile rushed to shut the curtains in the room to prevent the now smouldering member of the undead community from bursting into flames, a situation he seemed to be only just becoming aware of. He pulled up the hood on the sweatshirt and let the material fall over his hands, but still he struggled to rise to his feet, his eyes a swirl of midnight blue and golden fire.

"Xander, just tell him it was an accident. You forgot you had the orbs, right?"

For a second, Xander stood there bemused by what was going on, but then Buffy's words penetrated his brain and his gaze moved from her face to the arm she held extended to keep him back from the vampire.

All of a sudden Xander fled for the front door of the house, yanking it open and falling to his knees on the front porch as his lunch and a packet of Cheetos made a reappearance.

"I know Giles wanted you to hit Xander, Spike, but I think making his nose bleed and making him throw up his lunch is a bit much," Anya surveyed the scene as she returned from the kitchen with a beer in either hand.

Spike merely pulled himself to his feet and took one of the open beers from her hand. "Ta, pet. I don't think your other half is going to be wanting one just yet."

"Spike! "

"What?" The vampire turned to look at the former ex-vengeance demon.

"They were both for me," she said, looking distinctly put out by the fact that Spike had now drunk at least half of the bottle in one pouring motion.

It was only Spike's vampiric hearing that let him catch Janice's comment from the top of the stairs.

"I don't know why you come to mine to watch Jerry Springer when your house is like this."

Buffy looked at the chaos surrounding her. "Will, Anya, you two want to check on Xander? I'm going to take Blondie here upstairs and try to find some migraine tablets. Dawn, you and Janice, back in your room or you can clean up the porch."

 "That's so not fair. Xander made the mess," pouted Dawn, but went back to her room regardless.

 

 

"Tablets'll wear off too quick for it to be worth takin' them, pet." Spike sat on the edge of the bath while Buffy ransacked the bathroom cupboard for headache pills.

"What makes you think they're for you? Maybe it's the thought of you and Xander in the same house that's giving me a headache," Buffy teased.

"Sorry if I upset you, love."

"But not the least bit sorry for hitting Xander, I suspect."

Spike gave a small chuckle before replying, "no, can't say as I am. Even if it wasn't deliberate, he's still got to be responsible for how he uses those things."

"Well, I think he realises his mistake now, so leave it alone, okay?"

"'Kay. Are you okay? Your arm I mean. It is just a bruise?"

"I'll be fine. Nothing that won't sort itself out in a day or two. So, are you going to tell me why there's half a florists shop downstairs," Buffy prodded.

"'Cause I told her not to bother with the stuff you would need to find a vase for?"

"Funny. Spill."

"You seemed sort of .edgy, before, and I didn't know if it was something I'd done, or maybe didn't do, or whether you were working up to telling me something or what, but I figured a pleasant surprise wouldn't do any harm, whatever. Enter Harris and the whole thing goes to hell."

"If you did something wrong, then we both did." She closed the bathroom cabinet and took a seat next to Spike, her attention apparently focussed on her most recent footwear acquisition. "I can't say I felt entirely comfortable with the idea we can't keep our hands off each other, even when Dawn's two feet away."

"You're uncomfortable." Spike snorted, not noticing Buffy's answering glare. "Scares me shitless .but it's a good scared.

It's part of how we're right together." He reached over and took her unresisting hand in his. "I don't ever want to look at you across a room and not want you.

But, I don't want you wandering around all day guilt-ridden 'cause we had a quickie with the Niblet next door either, so if we find ourselves in a similar situation I'll try to have a bit more self-control .not that I'm makin' any guarantees, 'cause you know you're irresistible, right?"

"Hmpf, tell that to your predecessors. And who are you to talk, Mr Sexy-Swagger Eyes-to-Die-For Energiser-Bunny Vampire? But we try , next time rather than just give in."

Before she could work out quite how he did it, he'd scooped her up into his lap and put a chaste kiss on her lips. "So is that it? Or did I piss you off when I asked you to wait to claim me, as well?"

"Not piss-off, not exactly." Buffy kept her eyes focussed on the dip at the base of his throat.

He kept his voice soft, trying to coax her out. "Then what exactly?"

"I. the way you want it. I can't do it." She flicked a glance over his face trying to gauge his response, only to find his expression so deliberately neutral that she knew he was masking his feelings. "I mean, I want to do it. It's just all the blood stuff, not a turn on. I want to have the bond, but the idea of biting you and drinking your blood, and is it even your blood, or is it just the pig blood that you had for dinner?"

He smiled softly. "It's my blood. Otherwise you would have people turning themselves by slaughtering innocent pigs. So what do you want to do?"

"I think I want to do it, but it can't be all moonlight and roses and soft seduction. It's not a sensual thing for me. It's got to be all endorphins and adrenaline."

"You're saying if I want you to claim me, it'll have to be during a good hard shag?"

She nodded her head against his chest.

"Pet, that's okay. Like you say, maybe not exactly what I had in mind, but it's not like we can't have the gentler stuff after, is it?"

She didn't answer him in so many words, but her hands wrapped themselves around his neck and she shifted against him till there was no gap between their bodies, letting her cheek rest against his shoulder. And they stayed like that until they heard Tara at the front door.

 

 "Glinda."

"Hey, guys."

"Hey, Tara."

The blonde pair strolled downstairs hand in hand as Tara was pushing the door closed.

"Is that stuff on the porch some sort of demon goo or is it just what it looks like?"

"Harris goo."

"I guess that means they decided to leave the mess for me to clean up," Buffy sighed.

"Harris made the bloody mess. Let him clear it up."

The two women exchanged glances and then looked at Spike as if he'd lost his mind.

"What? .Why're you two lookin' at me like I'm some sorta moron?"

Buffy tilted her head as she watched him. "For one thing, there's no polite way to ask him to do it. For another, if he tried it might end up making him ill again and for a third, there's a chance they're still trying to set his nose and stop it bleeding. Whatever, he'll be doing the guy thing and playing up for sympathy."

"Yeah, well, as I recall your standard bedside manner consists of the phrase 'You'll live'. An' if you're worried about being rude then I'll bloody tell him to do it. Nobody expects me to be polite."

"No you won't!" Buffy hissed loudly at him. "You will not embarrass me in front of my friends. Look, just ring up... Actually maybe we'll wait till later to get the pizzas. Just take Tara through, get her a beer if she wants one.

I'd rather do it myself, anyway, than have Xander do a half-ass job and have to try to get rid of it when it's dried on."

Buffy ducked out the front door and started to make her way round to the back of the house to get the hose. Spike told himself that he should do as she said. No way was he cleaning up the Whelp's bloody puke. But no way was he letting her lift that hose reel and run round after that git when her arm was in that state. His gaze darted back and forward between the door and Tara for a few seconds before he made up his mind.

"Pixie, you know where the fridge is. Help yourself." Adjusting the sweatshirt so it would protect him from the rays of the setting sun he dashed after his girl.

Buffy looked up as he came round the corner, not fooled by his sudden change to walking pace. "What now?" she asked irritably as she struggled to find a way to pick up the heavy reel so that it wasn't resting against her bruised arm.

"Thought maybe I could help."

"But why?"

Spike shrugged. "'Cause you're hurt and I'm not. 'Cause I don't think it's right you havin' to do it. 'Cause you're better than that."

"How about 'cause the sun hasn't set yet and you could catch fire. I appreciate the thought but I don't think you should be taking chances with Mr Sunlight."

"Then leave it and I'll get it later. Sun'll be down in an hour or so."

Buffy sighed. "Compromise. You carry that round to the front of the house and then get your melanin-deprived ass back inside, and I'll hose it off. It can't be any worse than cleaning the gents after a weekend late shift at DMP."

Spike picked up the heavy reel without comment carrying it round to the tap at the front of the house and hooking it up. Buffy grabbed the other end of the hose before Spike could. She'd noticed his lack of agreement re the division of labour. The porch was soon damp, but free of debris. Spike hung back by the door.

"I woulda got it for you, pet," he said.

"I know .but maybe I think you're better than that," she told him.

For once, the vampire was stunned into silence.

 

To say things were tense when the blonde duo walked into the front room would be like saying Pavarotti could sing a bit. Spike was staring daggers at Xander. Xander couldn't work out whether to retaliate or look sheepish for Buffy's benefit. Buffy was trying to keep an eye on the room's testosterone quotient. Dawn and Janice were quietly treating the whole thing like a tennis match. Tara had found the wine that was left over from Spike and Buffy's picnic and was looking far more civilised than the beer-swilling adults as she and Willow snuggled up on the sofa. Anya had got over her earlier fright and was now busy making a fuss over Xander and his busted and puffy nose.

"Spike. You broke Xander's nose. Now he may never recover his classic profile," Anya whined.

"You're telling me he's been round Buffy for six years and it's the first time he's had his nose bust. One of us must've been getting special treatment," Spike snarked.

"Spike," said Buffy in a soft voice, a plea to the vampire and she was surprised that he immediately dropped back and stood back leaning against the wall, pulling out his cigarettes and a lighter. "How's your nose, Xander?"

"It'll be fine. It'd take more than the blond bimbo to do any permanent damage," Xander answered in a subdued tone. "What about your arm?"

"Just bruised. A few days and it'll heal right up. Don't sweat it."

"Look, Buffy, I'm really sorry. I didn't realise how tight I was holding you. I know it's no excuse, but you have to know that I would never deliberately hurt you."

"If you really meant that, you wouldn't be trying to cause trouble between me and Spike and I wouldn't have this bruise. He's right. You don't know him. Either get to know him or just stay away from him, but don't .just jump to all the worst conclusions then start throwing accusations about. I'm sick of it."

Buffy moved over into Spike's waiting arms, looking up to give him a smile of thanks for staying quiet. Spike returned the smile and asked, "Anybody need another drink?"

"It's okay, Spike, I'll get them. Beer right?" Tara offered, scanning round the room for any other takers.

"Yeah, pet. Thanks." Spike treated her to a glowing smile as his arms settled more firmly around Buffy, only moving to take a draw from his cigarette or to flick ash into the fireplace.

"Well, how about we skip to the filmed drama rather than the real stuff?" suggested Willow as she picked up the first of the tapes and slotted it into the machine.

A few minutes later the trailers finished and a disgruntled English voice asked, "Alright, which one of you two is the evil bint responsible for this?" The opening titles of Coyote Ugly moved across the screen.

 

 

The rest of the evening passed without further incident. The men in the group were slightly mollified by the Jet Li film that followed the blatant chick flick. Xander even played nice and said he'd leave his plans and sketches for the basement so that Buffy and Spike could look through them together and discuss the various alternatives. Of course, he still didn't actually speak to Spike, but then no-one expected miracles.

Everything more or less broke up when Buffy and Spike walked Janice home. It seemed to instigate a general parting of the ways. The pair had planned on doing a patrol after they finished escort duty, with a stop at Spike's flat at some point in the night. Things turned out slightly differently.

"Spike, I kinda wanna just go home now. curl up in bed. get some sleep. This whole thing with Xander. and patrolling injured. not a great plan."

"Oh. right then. I'll see you home and do a quick sweep before I head for my place."

Buffy sighed. "I was hoping you would come with. Keep the bad dreams away? .if you think you could just sleep."

"Maybe," Spike answered, his head tilted forward and a mischievous grin matching the sparkle in his eyes. ".if I get a cup of cocoa first."

"With little marshmallows," Buffy agreed. "We could have a look through Xander's plans. See if there's something we like. then we've got the morning to ourselves. well, together anyway. I don't know who else will be around."

"Slayer, shhh. You had me as soon as you asked. And I was going to ask to be excused from the sexcapades tonight anyway. I've got a stinkin' headache." He squeezed the hand he was holding and then released it in favour of slipping his arm around Buffy's shoulders.

 
 
Chapter #29 - Chapter 5:01
 






SECTION 5 - THE THINGS WE DO FOR LOVE

A compromise would surely help the situation
Agree to disagree, but disagree to part
Well after all it's just a compromise
For the things we do for love

(10CC, Album Deceptive Blends)




Chapter 5.01
Friday, May 10th, 2002

Each time Spike woke up with Buffy in his arms it made it harder for him to go back to sleeping alone. This time, at least, it looked like her alarm was going to go off before she got to the "interesting" dreams. Okay. Who was he kidding? There weren't words to describe how it made him feel to hear the woman he loved moan his name in her sleep with the scent of her arousal in the air. Well, there were, but they were words like effulgent, and so best avoided.

Spike reckoned he had ten minutes to wake Buffy gently before her alarm went off. He pulled her closer with the arm that circled her waist and brushed open-mouthed kisses against her satin covered shoulder, taking care not to dampen the fabric. He moved ever closer to her neck and she began to stir, until shifting her injured arm she came abruptly awake. When she stretched she brushed against him in a hundred delicious ways, satin against skin and he gave a contented moan that came awfully close to being a purr.

"Morning, baby. How's the arm, pet?"

Buffy rolled over in his arms to give him a kiss before replying, "better than it was. Morning, Dead Boy. What time is it?"

"About five minutes before your alarm's going to go off. I was just going to go brush my teeth and see to breakfast. Anything special you fancy, bearing in mind we decided I'm not on the menu until after 'Bit's off to school?"

"In that case, I'll make do with a crispy bacon sandwich and some nice fresh coffee."

"Want me to bring that up, or do you want to eat downstairs."

Buffy seemed to consider for a couple of seconds. "Down, like watching you cook."

Spike, smiled even brighter at her answer and kissed her on the forehead. "I love you, Miss Summers."

"You're not so bad yourself, Mr the Bloody? Say, what is my married name going to be?"

Spike shrugged as he made his way around the bed. "I was thinking maybe Duffy. What d'you think?" He ducked through the door just before the pillow hit it.

Buffy scrambled out of bed and set off in pursuit. "I am not going to spend my life as Buffy Duffy just to satisfy your warped sense of humour."

Spike drooled toothpaste foam into the sink as he tried to brush and keep from laughing at her indignance.

"This is not funny. What was your real name?"

Spike spat and rinsed, suddenly serious. "What happened to the Romeo and Juliet quotes, pet? I swore when I was turned that my misdeeds would never bring the family name into disrepute. I've kept to that for more than a century. If you want to know the name, I'll tell you, but it won't be the name I'll be married under." His eyes glowed golden and his demon ridges came to the fore.

Buffy wondered if she'd overstepped the mark until she noticed he had been busy putting more toothpaste on his brush as he spoke. "Okay, fine. I can wait till you want to tell me then, but what about the name you are going to use. You're going to have to get some ID sorted out so we can get the licence and everything."

"I spoke to someone yesterday about getting some made. I should get everything back within a couple of weeks." Spike got to work on cleaning up his fangs, or at least getting them as clean as they'd come.

"So you must know what name you're going to use."

"Mommov." Buffy just crossed her arms, rolled her eyes and tapped her tiny bare foot, which brought Spike's attention entirely to her slender golden legs sticking out from under the black satin pyjama top.

Spike again got to the rinse and spit stage and turned his attention back to the argument in hand. "Look, pet. How about we discuss this after breakfast. Nothing's settled yet. He won't be starting work before Monday, and I'd rather not be distracted while I'm shaving."

Buffy gave a snort before she grabbed her own toothbrush, toothpaste and tumbler, taking them over to the bath. She couldn't resist watching him as he shaved. For some reason she'd expected him to use the old-fashioned soap that came in stick form and was applied with a brush, not an aerosol can. A disposable razor seemed even more out of place. She'd imagined an open razor and a big leather strap.

"This is the first time I've seen you shave."

Spike shrugged before continuing his ritual. "Only bother every other day or so. You haven't necessarily been around." It didn't take him long to finish off and he made sure to leave the sink sparkling clean. An understated splash of that spicy cologne that smelled so good on him and by the time Buffy had brushed her teeth and washed her face, he was ready to go. "Why don't you check that your sister's up and take her order and I'll go and get the coffee started?" Spike suggested.

Buffy was in two minds as to whether she should get dressed before she went downstairs or not. In one sense it was pointless because once she and Spike got the name thing sorted out they weren't going anywhere other than the privacy of her bedroom.

On the other, the blond butt-pain could just have told her what she wanted to know without the whole Mr Mysterious act and as for that Buffy Duffy crap .so not funny.

There was also the fact that, okay, the top covered more than any swimsuit and most of her skirts in high school come to that and she had bought several pairs of matching french knickers during her LA trip. It wasn't as if she was going to flash the room if she bent over. Something still made her feel slightly uncomfortable though. Was it all too .intimate? Especially with Spike downstairs in the matching bottoms looking like he'd walked straight off the set of some martial arts movie.or a porn film. Not that she'd seen any real porn films but she could imagine.

Okay, Spike was downstairs looking like a wet dream and she was up here? Who cares what Xander thinks when he shows up? Willow and Tara would deal. Dawn had seen it all before. Well, not semi-naked Spike, but her. Semi-naked Spike she'd just have to learn to live with.

Buffy wandered downstairs to find coffee already brewing and the smell of cooking bacon coming off the frying pan.

"Dawn says since it's you cooking she'll have French toast. When she thought it was me she was going to have cereal. How's that for making you feel appreciated."

Good for me, I'd say. Not so good for you. Any other signs of life or is it just the three of us?" Spike asked as he set about preparing Dawn's breakfast

"So far. Give it another five minutes before you write them off though."

"D'you want juice or are you sticking with the coffee?"

"I could have some juice while I'm waiting for the coffee." Buffy decided

A couple of minutes later Buffy was munching on her sandwich when Tara came downstairs, fully clothed. "Hey, you two. You beat me to the cooking."

"Yeah, we've had bacon going in one pan and french toast in the other. What d'you fancy?"

"I'll go with the french toast and I think it's safe to say Willow will too, if that's okay?" Tara answered.

"Easy." Spike added some more eggs to the bowl he was whisking before cutting the crusts off of about half a loaf of bread.

Buffy's cheeks brightened and she piped up. "Speaking of Willow, I was supposed to give you a message yesterday. She said she'd ordered all the bits for your PC. She's going to build it here, get everything working and then move it to your place. She says you can pay her any time between now and when she has to pay her credit card bill."

"Money's upstairs, pet. Just need to know how much she needs." Spike looked over at Tara. "Are you or Red going to be about when the Niblet gets out of school today. Buffy 'n' me have got an appointment and I don't know how long it'll take."

Buffy interrupted before Tara could reply. "I think it might be good if she came to your place, actually. That way .your guest could meet us as a family. Gives you an extra person to speak up for you."

"Okay. Fancy going out somewhere for dinner afterwards?"

"If you're sure. You don't have to. You've already spent a fortune this week."

"I'm sure," Spike replied. "It means I've got something to bribe the Bit with if she thinks about saying who we're seeing."

Dawn breezed into the room at this point and Spike served up the first of the french toast, dumping it on a central plate and letting the girls fight it out.

"Hey, Spike," Dawn teased. "Can I have Janice sleepover one night when you're staying. She'd probably faint clean away if she saw what you've been hiding under that duster."

"Very funny, Bit. An' if it wasn't just 'family' that's around I'd be getting dressed before I came downstairs. Now eat."

Buffy and her sister sorted out the details for after school and Dawn managed to talk them round into agreeing to a Bronze trip after the restaurant.

"If Janice's mom let her meet up with us, I could stay at hers tonight and then the two of you could stay at Spike's instead of having to be here for me," Dawn suggested slyly.

"We'll see," said Buffy. "Pack an overnight bag and I'll take it over to Spike's for you. We can leave it in the car once you've changed, but that doesn't mean it's definite."

Dawn grinned as she bounded up the stairs. She knew that Buffy might as well have said yes. It was so cool.

By the time Xander showed up, to pick up Dawn, everybody except Willow had finished eating breakfast and Buffy had even put on a load of laundry and washed up as much as she could. Willow also had a bundle of sequentially numbered hundred dollar bills at her elbow. Buffy had tried to bring up the subject of surnames again but Spike had insisted it would keep until Xander had been and gone. Instead the women were back to looking through bridal magazines.

"I take it you have a favourite amongst Sunnydale's florists?" Buffy said to the blond one.

"You could say that. Once we've got a date I'll introduce you to Kate. She'll be able to cope with anything you want. Have you sorted out how many bridesmaids you want yet?"

"I don't know. It's like I have to have Dawn. She's a definite, but I want Willow too. And if I have Willow I should ask Tara. And then if I do that that means the only female Scooby I haven't asked is Anya. So, I have to ask her cause otherwise it looks like I don't like her but that might only leave Olivia and my female relatives in the congregation if we can't ask the LA bunch. And we don't have to but normally there'd be an equal number of guys and so far you've come up with Clem, who I haven't even seen since we started going out. I don't even know if he knows we're engaged."

"He knows. I've spoken to him on the phone, but it's probably not a bad idea if we swing past his place sometime soon when we patrol," Spike responded.

"Buffy, it's okay you know, if you wanted to just have Dawn and Willow. I mean you've known Willow way longer than either me or Anya," Tara intervened.

"Yeah, but if Willow's a bridesmaid and your not, you'd be on different tables," Buffy said.

"Sod that, pet. Just make the thing informal. Let everybody sit where they please. I mean how many people are we talking about when all's said and done. Twenty? Thirty? We'll only be getting a little place. Stick a podium in one corner for the speeches so everyone can see and let them go where they want."

"Why didn't I think of that? That's right we had to try to keep my parents away from the bar and prevent bloodshed," Xander answered obviously catching Spike's point of view as he came in through the back door this time. "Eloping is much easier."

"Yeah, but you're going to have to go through it all again for that blessing Anya wants."

"True, but that is sometime hopefully far into the future, so far she might forget about it. Besides she cut the guest list down to more or less the occupants of this room after the last disaster."

"You mean the Buffalo Lodge Fiasco or BLF as it is now officially called," Willow offered.

"Great. You've got an anacronym for the worst day of my life?" Xander asked. "Hey, pretty pieces of paper." Xander's hand moved toward the pile of notes only to be rapped with Willow's fork and find himself on the receiving end of her resolve stare.

"No, they've got an acronym for the worst day of Anya's life," was Spike's response.

"Whatever." Buffy interceded, giving Spike an unfriendly glare before returning her attention to Xander. "We had a look at your sketches last night. We liked the one where the stair end is mostly laundry stroke training area with the bathroom taking up a strip in the back corner and the studio area's rectangular, rather than the ones where you end up with an L-shape room. Do you think you could do the drawings we need for planning permission based on that layout?"

"For you , Buffy, no problem. Now where's little sis. Time for the school going."

"I'm right behind you, Xander. Where I've been for the last five minutes. I've left that bag next to the front door, Buffy."

"Okay, see you after school," called her sister as Xander and Dawn headed out the front door.

One of Spike's smirks landed on his face. "I've got the solution to evening up the ushers and the bridesmaids. I'll take Clem, Glinda and Demon Girl. You can have Bit, Red and Harris."

"Very funny, Spike."

"What? Reckon Pixie here and Anya could look pretty cute in a sort of Edwardian school-marm way with the waistcoats and cravats and the high collars and button-holes?" He flashed Tara a grin. "What d'ya think, pet?"

"And Xander?" Buffy asked irritably before Tara could respond.

"Put him in a pink lounge suit for all I care, as long as he doesn't look like I asked him to be an usher and he gets to carry his bouquet."

"Spike!"

"You know the more I think about it the more I like it. I get three of my favourite people. You get your sister and your two best friends and everybody pairs off .as much as they ever would anyway. Dawn's always going to be stuck with Clem but at least they're friends."

"Spike, forget it. Besides you and I have another matter to settle now Xander's gone."

"Yeah, right. Excuse us ladies and I apologise in advance if the slayer entices me to use some loud and manly cuss words. After you, pet." Spike waited for the slayer to precede him into the dining room.

"Okay .you. Quit with the mysterious and tell me now. Name."

"Right then, reckoned I'd keep my original middle name. It's a bit out of date now, but it was me dad's name so I'm keepin' it, so if you find Arthur offensive, tough."

The slayer gave him an impatient look but decided that interrupting his narrative flow would be counterproductive.

"Surname took a bit more thinking about. There were some that I thought of, but then when I checked what they meant I wasn't keen. Anyway, the one I was planning to go with is apparently the patron saint of beggars and cripples, so what with the chip it seemed fairly apropos."

"Spike, stop going all Giles on me and just tell me what the damn name is!" Buffy blustered, her fist itching to connect with his nose.

"Well, actually those two requests happen to be contradictory. I thought, short of staying a Summers, that that might be the name you would pick given a choice." Spike saw Buffy trying to work up to saying something and quickly rushed ahead. "I asked the watcher. I didn't just assume it would be okay. I think he was pleased really. He's sort of stuck with me, but in a weird way it makes you and him officially family."

"Buffy Anne Giles. Buffy Giles. BAG? My initials are going to be BAG!"

"Mine aren't exactly a vast improvement, pet. Thought it would make you happy, but like I said I can change it as long as I let him know before Monday. And you could always keep Summers as a middle name. Make it B A S G."

"Too much of a mouthful. I think if I have to initial anything I'll just leave out the A."

"So it's settled then."

"Yeah. I approve .on one condition."

"Wha's that?"

"It is going to be Mrs William Giles not Mrs Randy?"

Spike gave a snort of laughter. "Should bloody hope so, pet."

"Spike?" Buffy looked over at him, her eyes warm and her cheeks lightly flushed.

Spike closed the gap between them his hands coming to rest lightly on her hips. "Uh-huh?"

"Thank you. It must have been hard to ask."

"We-ell. Not as hard as certain other things could be in the near future." His body pressed against hers, leaving no doubt about his meaning as their lips met in a soft slow caress.

After a couple of minutes she finally drew back from his oral ministrations to respond to his comment, the insult coming out as a breathy sigh. "Pig."

"Yep. Me and Mr Gordo. Your two pigs."

"I've got to go tell Tara and Will."

"That I'm a pig. I think they already know, pet."

"No-o." She slapped him lightly on the arm before taking his hand and dragging him back in the direction of the kitchen.

 
 
Chapter #30 - Chapter 5:02
 






SECTION 5 - THE THINGS WE DO FOR LOVE

A compromise would surely help the situation
Agree to disagree, but disagree to part
Well after all it's just a compromise
For the things we do for love

(10CC, Album Deceptive Blends)




Chapter 5.02
Friday, May 10th, 2002

"I still like the idea." Spike tossed a sponge cake and several packets of cookies into the shopping cart as he argued.

"And I still say, it's all right for you, but what am I meant to do with Xander. You have him and I'll have Anya." Buffy countered.

Spike shook his head. "Na-huh-hah. No way. I said two years ago he was off the usher list and he's staying off it."

"I thought you wanted me to have my perfect day." Buffy's bottom lip came out in a pout and Spike determinedly forced his attention to scanning the rows of shelves for a teapot, sugar bowl and milk jug.

"I did assume your perfect day would involve a happy smiling groom, which I won't be if Harris comes anywhere near me." Spike leant back pulling on the cart handle to bring it to a stop next to a very limited selection of crockery. 'Great, someone up there's laughing at me. I've got the choice of bright yellow or one with kittens on. Sod it, wouldn't look good if I got the gurglies. ' He picked up the yellow one.

He looked over and happened to catch a glimpse of her half-angry, half-sad face and gave a sigh. "You could make him ring-bearer or something. I know it's normally a kid if you have one, but it's better than giving him a bouquet 'n' I suppose he can wear a suit s'long as it's not the same as mine and Clem and Rupe's. Okay?"

"Okay. I suppose."

Spike smirked wondering if Buffy knew how much like her sister she sounded.

"We can have proper three piece suits like the English gentlemen and demons we are and Harris can have a dickie-bow and an elasticated cummerbund to match the bridesmaid's dresses."

Buffy scowled at him. "You got what you wanted. Don't push your luck."

"I thought you liked it when I pushed my luck."

"That's a different type of luck and you pushed it plenty this morning. Now behave. We've only got an hour and a half before the vicar's due. You need some milk." She pulled the front of the cart off to the right. Spike managed to toss in some cold meat, some cheese and some butter before she pulled him past. Finally the pair had everything Spike deemed necessary for afternoon tea. It looked excessive to Buffy, but then she'd have given their visitor a mug of coffee and maybe a cookie or two and expected him to be thankful.

They got back to the flat with seventy-five minutes to go. The first ten evaporated while Spike finished constructing the computer desk and moved it into position at the side of the room. The still-boxed swivel chairs for the two desks were banished to the cloakroom until after the clergy had been and gone. Then Spike started on his kitchen frenzy.

She suspected his mother would have been proud. The Spike she knew would never have fussed the propriety of anything. I mean this is the same guy who took her from behind in the middle of a crowded night-club that catered largely to teens. Now he was cutting the crusts off of his cucumber sandwiches before he halved them into little triangles. He kept glowering at her as he worked, warning her of the dire consequences were she to indulge the hysterics she could feel bubbling up within her.

It was funny how the flat was starting to look like it was Spike's. The walls were still palest cream, the woodwork and kitchen units brilliant white and the carpets grey, but all round in all the rooms there were bits that were Spike.

He'd bought a bunch of A1 clip-frames and some posters to go in them. He'd said they could pick new posters together when he moved in, something a bit more contemporary, but for now they all had a theme. All the posters were monochrome head-shots of famous film stars. In the bedroom it was Bogart and Bacall, in the living room the eclectic mix of James Dean, Audrey Hepburn, Jimmy Stewart and Katherine Hepburn. Marilyn Monroe was in the hall with Alec Guinness. Buffy wasn't sure she wanted to replace them. In a weird way they reminded her of her mom and the old films they would sometimes watch together.

A few small lamps and a host of candles were scattered all round the flat. They had brought some of the flowers over from Buffy's house, the ones that would tone in with his colour scheme that was. The beech and aluminium finish on the desks and bookcase managed to seem light, modern and natural all at the same time. The first few books adorned the bookcase, her mom's old complete Shakespeare, the poetry book he'd been reading that night and a few novels but he'd filled the bulk of it up with framed photos. Mostly her and Dawn and a few of their mother but there were a couple of him and Dawn together, one of him with Tara and a couple of Dawn with the two witches. None of the photos were from his old shrine. She suspected Dawn had given him some from her own personal photo album or had had copies made for him. At a guess all his photos had been downstairs. She wondered if she had destroyed all his pictures of Dru, Angelus and Darla, but couldn't bring herself to ask. Even worse, what if he'd had pictures of his human family?

There were ashtrays on every flat surface other than the floor that happened to be within arms reach of any type of seating. Now that he had wall to wall carpeting as opposed to dirt floors he couldn't just flick ash anywhere. A specially purchased wooden trunk sat behind the sofa filled with weapons, taking the place of the coffin he'd used in his crypt. His stack of Passions tapes sat by the TV. Cushions were scattered over the black leather suite and the bed in colours from deepest violet to lavender and silver grey to charcoal. It was all him, yet somehow the over all effect conveyed the home of a quieter more introspective man than she had ever taken Spike to be.

It wasn't like he'd had Sex Pistols posters all over the walls of the crypt, just the fact that it was a crypt. The scavenged furnishings had always been more about what he'd been able to find than what he would have chosen. It had only really been the rugs, the four-poster, his books and his music that had been his. She knew he'd always been particular about his personal hygiene and the crypt hadn't even had a water supply. He lived.okay, scratch that. It had been his abode for years. For a hole in the ground it had been pretty impressive. Yet it never seemed like a home or maybe it was just that it could never have been her home. Her refuge? Yes. Her home? Never.

This place, if they were in some alternate universe where say, Dawn was headed off to college instead of looking forward to her first year of Hellmouth High, she wouldn't have freaked if they had ended up staying here and selling her mom's place.

"You do realise you're nesting don't you?" she asked him as he carried through plate after plate of sandwiches, cakes, muffins, tea-breads and cookies lying them out on the coffee-table along with cutlery, side plates with serviettes, sugar and milk.

"Your point?" he asked.

"Well, you're all domestic. All homemaking and Martha Stewart."

"You mean the flat or tea with the vicar?" he asked. "'Cause it's not like he'd get this response if he wasn't the one who can say yes or no to what you want. You want a church wedding. If this guy says no, you don't get the church you want. I can't scare him into doing it any more. So we have to play nice."

"And the flat?"

"In case you hadn't noticed, we picked almost all of this stuff together, so maybe you should be saying we're nesting, and isn't that what you would expect from two people who are about to get married."

"Can't say I noticed it with Anya and Xander, and Will and Tara's stuff just seemed to merge. You buy. okay, we buy nice stuff. You come in here now, and you think, "this looks nice". You could have bought some cheap melamine stuff that would have done the same job, without being anything special, but this stuff. When I imagine our room and what they'll look like. we're painting the walls lavender. I know it's going to feel special, and it's like I must be special too if I get to live there."

"Good. That's how you should feel. You deserve to have the best of everything. And you're not just special, you're precious." He came up to her, resting his hands on her shoulders. As if by some unseen signal they both tilted their heads forward until their foreheads rested against each other.

"You're biased," Buffy reminded him.

"Yeah, true. I'm a demon, predisposed to hate and despise you and to regard you as no more than my rightful prey. And here you are, my beginning and my end." Words failed him, so he just let all his feelings for her show in his eyes.

Buffy realised that the pain in her chest was due to the fact she had forgotten to breathe for a couple of minutes. "If you looked at Dru like that I don't know how she ever left you."

"She knew that you'd found your way into my heart before I did. She knew she'd lost me before I knew I wanted to go."

"You still love her." Buffy made it a statement of fact not a question.

Spike shrugged. "Reckon I always will, but I'm not in love with her, any more than you're in love with the Poof."

"You still think we shouldn't have him at the wedding?" Buffy asked.

"You tell me. Was the Niblet right when she said the watcher was in love with his gypsy girl?"

"Yeah, and okay, I doubt he ever told her she had stupid hair," she flashed a half smile, her eyes twinkling with amusement, "but she did use to get him all flustered. It was sweet."

"Hey. It's not fair taking the piss out of a guy that'd only just realised he was in love with you. Took me a while to come around. Besides at least when I said it was stupid you didn't cut it all off," Spike argued, displaying obviously feigned irritation.

"Just surprised I never realised at the time. You did everything but punch me on the arm and run off. How is it that it took my baby sister one evening to work it out but I never saw it at all till she told me. Did you look at me like that back then? 'Cause I don't see how I could have missed it."

"Yeah, well, chip, couldn't punch you and I never said I fell in love with you 'cause you were the brains of the family." Before she could protest Spike covered her lips with his own, effectively ending their bickering.

Thirty minutes to go and Buffy was opening every window except those in the main living room area, trying to clear the smell of smoke while Spike was nervously making more smoke to be cleared.

"Spike, it's going to be okay," she tried to reassure him. "If he was going to say no, he would have said it back at the church. Once he meets you he'll understand."

"Never said I didn't think it would be okay, pet. But don't think because he wears a dog-collar he's automatically being straight with you. This is the guy from the church Adam had those vamps attack. Even though the guy wasn't there at the time, he could still have heard enough to give him a permanent grudge against my kind and that's ignoring the fact his Bible tells him to hate us. It's possible he's only coming to do what you can't .or won't," he amended on seeing the look on her face.

"You're serious."

"Yeah, I didn't get to be as old as I am by assuming everybody always has the best intentions."

"Do you think I'd let him lay one finger on you?"

"Way to make me feel real manly, slayer," Spike groused.

"Oops. Guess I kind of forgot you were unconscious the last time you were using my body as a shield."

"What are you talking about, you awkward bint. You know I'd never use your body as a shield."

"No, but I would. Angel's son would have finished things off while you were unconscious if I hadn't convinced him you weren't trying to kill his father."

"Great. Say, next time you're out, buy me some nappies. That way you can make me look even more pathetic."

Buffy took a deep breath and counted to ten. "Just because you're nervous doesn't mean I'm going to let you pick a fight. If he does decide to kill a demon for Jesus, then you and I both know you can't defend yourself. And it doesn't make me think you're any less a man to let me help you, but it does when you pout about it like a big .cry baby."

His eyes glittered with anger and his bottom lip came out in a pout, which made it look even fuller and more luscious than usual. "I can defend perfectly well, thank you. I just can't hit him back."

"You, like it or not, are going to be part of the Summers family and we take it personal whenever anyone tries to hurt one of ours. So count yourself lucky we didn't get to this stage sooner, or you would have had mom defending you as well as me and Dawn.

His look told her he was disgusted at the situation but her words had hit a chord. "That's one humiliation I'd have been proud to live with, love."

"Yeah. She'd have been proud of you, too. I'm not the only one who would be grateful for everything you've done for Dawn." Buffy came to sit next to him on the sofa, nudging him along so she could sit on his left instead of his right to avoid her bruised arm getting trapped between them. She tucked her feet up under her and looped her arm through his before letting her head rest on his shoulder. "You know, even if he's exactly what he seemed, we're going to get through this together. And if he does try to kill you, then we can start looking into the Vegas option. I hear evening services are the norm over there."

Spike turned to place a kiss on the top of her head. They were still cuddled up together when the doorbell rang to announce the arrival of their guest. Buffy began to rise at the sound but Spike waved her back down.

"You might have your own key, pet, but, technically you're still a guest. Park your arse." He rose and moved to answer the summons. When the door opened he was confronted by a man a few inches taller than him in his late twenties. He wore a black casual winter jacket that all but hid the dog-collar. Spike held out his hand. "You must be the vicar. We've been expecting you."

The clergyman took the proffered hand shaking it firmly but not aggressively. "Ian Hamilton. And you must be William."

"Most people call me Spike, but I still answer to William on occasion. Come in. Buffy's waiting in the living room." The vampire led the way down the narrow hallway feeling like he had a target painted on his back the entire time. When they reached the living room Spike took his guest's jacket and offered him a seat. Buffy volunteered to make the tea and coffee saying it would give the two men a chance to talk. Spike doubted that using slayer hearing in the open-plan room there would be much that she would miss.

"Okay, reverend-" Spike began.

"Ian, just Ian's fine."

Spike's smile warmed up slightly. "Okay, Ian. What do you want to know? Buffy's sister will be turning up here some time in the not too distant future when she gets out of school, so I suggest we get straight down to some plain talking and settle matters before she gets here."

"That's fine with me. I guess the first thing would be to confirm what Buffy's told me about your nature."

Spike let his face morph into demon form. The clergyman started slightly, but didn't move back. "And all the other things we hear about vampires?"

Spike chose to revert to human form before he continued the conversation. "Yeah, direct sunlight burns and prolonged exposure can kill. Holy water burns, but short of forcing someone to drink it I've never known it to kill. Crosses burn undead flesh on contact and can be used to ward off weaker vampires and a wooden stake through the heart is fatal except with the oldest and an odd one with showy gypsy magic."

"And the blood."

"Yeah. Vampires need to drink blood to survive. For the past two years I've been buying mine from the butcher's."

"And before that?"

"Before that I killed humans just like every other vampire I've ever known. Buffy is fond of reminding me that I once said that people were like Happy Meals on legs."

"Why the change?"

"I was captured by some secret government branch and used as a lab rat. When I escaped I was in no fit state to hunt and I ended up having to go to my one-time enemy for help. We made a deal. I'd tell them about the soldier boys and Buffy and her mates put me up and kept me in blood. Once I started getting stronger I was able to help out with the physical stuff and occasionally with information. At first I did it for money.

Thing is once you start living with the cattle, you stop wanting to eat steak. I've been in love with Buffy for a long time, but I'd like to think her mother and her sister were my friends before that." Spike shrugged.

"It's been a process. You can't look back and say this is the point where I changed. I should probably say it still is a process. I don't think she's ready yet to give up smoothing off the rough edges.

What it comes down to is that I love that woman over there and I love her sister and I care about her friends and I won't do anything that would hurt any of them, other than maybe punch Harris when he really pushes his luck.

Aside from that, I've made certain promises to her and I'll do anything in my power to avoid breaking them. I've failed her before but I've never quit and I won't, no matter what happens to her."

"Why do you want to get married?" the minister asked.

"I love her and I want to make her happy for however long we might have together. I want her to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I will always be there for her, that I will never walk out of her life.

There will be people who know the truth of what I am, who will look down on her if she marries me. There are an awful lot more, who would look down on her if we lived together. Some of those people could take her sister away from her. I can't let that happen to either of them."

"So why not a civil ceremony?"

"One, Buffy wants a church wedding. She wants to be married in your church. Two, I believe in God, it's hard not to when crosses and holy water have a detrimental effect to your epidermis. I may be damned but I'm not taking her down with me. First Corinthians, chapter seven, verse nine, ".let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burn." Whoever it is that decides on who goes where, he might accept a civil ceremony. He might not. Why would I want to take an unnecessary risk with her soul? However long we may have together the afterlife will be longer."

"You read the bible?" the clergyman seemed startled.

"Not recently, but I was well-schooled in my youth," Spike replied.

There was a pause in the conversation as if the minister could think of no further questions, and Buffy rapped her knuckles on the kitchen worktop. "Can I come back in, yet?" she asked, teapot in hand.

Spike glanced over at the clergyman who gave the smallest of nods. "It's safe, pet. Either that, or he's reached that stage of the interrogation where he wants your input." Spike's half-smile was encouraging, sort of a "not out of the woods yet, but we might be getting there." His eyes, though made her insides melt, from the wealth of affection and support he let show there. She just hoped that her answering look conveyed at least a fraction of what she saw in their irresistible sapphire depths.

Clearing his throat to gain their attention the clergyman looked back and forwards between the pair. "Have you both been christened?"

Spike was the first to answer. "William was, if that counts. Christened and confirmed. C of E."

"What of what?" Buffy asked.

"Church of England, love."

The minister looked over to Buffy. "What about you, Miss Summers? Have you been christened?"

"Em, Buffy's fine. It's not like you're ancient or anything. I think so. There were some photos of me in the long white dress thingy. I assume it was a christening. And I think maybe I remember Dawn's so if they got her done, they would have done me, right?"

"I think we'll take that as a yes. I assume you've never been confirmed."

"As far as I'm aware I didn't even have a provisional booking," Buffy shrugged and raised her eyebrows as if begging someone to laugh.

A loud shrill ring shattered the awkward silence, only to stop and then start again immediately. Spike rose from his chair and headed toward the door. "Better go let in your sister before she gets impatient," he said in a sarcastic tone, as the teen momentarily rested her finger before pressing her full weight on the buzzer once more.

The minister turned to Buffy and asked in a soft voice, "Buffy. Do you know what confirmation is? In the religious sense?"

"Ehm, no, not really," Buffy admitted. "Mom and dad were never really big on organised religion."

Dawn came in the room dropping her back pack.

"Ian Hamilton. Dawn Summers. Buffy's younger sister and ward. Ian is the vicar at the church where they had that problem with vampires that time," Spike introduced them.

"The one with the big long porch thing out front? Cool. Is that where you two are getting married?"

"That would be up to the nice man, sweetie," Spike managed in only a slightly sarcastic tone of voice.

"Is it okay if I have some of this food. I'm starving and you don't look like you've touched anything." Dawn's stomach rumbled as if to prove the point.

"Help yourself, Niblet. You'll get a soda or some milk in the fridge."

The minister cleared his throat once more. "The way I see things at the moment, there's one thing that would prevent me from being able to perform your wedding ceremony."

"And that would be?" Spike asked.

"Buffy would have to be confirmed." The minister turned to face the slayer. "It's quite simple really. When you were christened your parents and godparents made promises on your behalf to ensure that you were brought up according to God's teachings. On reaching maturity, or in some cases on finding Christianity, it's normal to confirm your own commitment to this way of life. Normally, I run study groups once or twice a year and we'd do this over three to four months with a group of anywhere between six and ten people in the group. Since you were wanting to get married in the next two or three months I could arrange special tuition. I dare say, in a smaller group, we may be able to move through the material faster.

Perhaps your sister could join you. I tend to hold the group studies at the manse and since I live alone, I think propriety would be better served if it wasn't a one-on-one situation."

Spike bit his lip to prevent the snicker from leaving his mouth. Buffy's face was priceless, but the spray of sandwich crumbs from Dawn's mouth when she found herself roped in, was even better.

"Vuffy?" Dawn asked, her eyes round and her mouth still half-full.

"Dawn. I think at the end of the day it has to be your choice whether you become a member of the church or not, right? I mean, that's the point, isn't it, that we learn enough to make up our own minds .right?" The minister nodded and Buffy continued. "But I think you should go to the classes with me."

Dawn looked backwards and forwards between the blonde pair but she could tell from their expressions that arguing wasn't going to get her anywhere.

"In that case, if you two ladies can set aside two hours a week, I think we can look at wedding dates any time beyond the next couple of months," the minister said. "I think it's safe to say that you won't clash with any other bookings since you'll need an evening service."

"So, pet, did you want to be a July bride?" Spike asked.

Buffy pulled out a diary from her purse and checked the dates. "How about the twentieth?"

The minister and Spike both nodded. "Eight thirty?" suggested the clergyman.

Again Spike shrugged. That close to the middle of summer it would be light well into the evening, but eight-thirty was probably as late as they could let things go and still finish in time to have a reception.

"Okay, July the twentieth, eight thirty p.m." Buffy marked it in her diary.

The minister spoke up again. "I will need to speak to you both before the wedding to make sure you understand the commitment that you are going to be making, but that can wait till after Buffy's confirmation. One hurdle at a time. At the minute I have Mondays and Thursdays free. We can either do one two-hour session every week or two one-hour sessions. Which would you ladies prefer?"

"One two-hour session," the girls chorused. "D'you think we can do it early so it doesn't interfere with patrol?" Buffy added.

In the end it was agreed that Buffy would meet Dawn straight from school every Monday and they would go together to the minister's house, and he left without having either a drink or anything to eat. As soon as he was gone Buffy could be heard ranting and bemoaning her fate.

"And what do you think's so funny?" Buffy looked daggers at the smirking vampire.

"You. You wanted the church wedding. You thought you could just say, "hey, you've got a pretty building." And the vicar would say "hey, since you think so, I'm not bothered that you've only been inside a church twice in the last six years or that you know nothing about the faith you want to be married in. Just so long as you look pretty in your dress, I'll marry you any time you want."

"Well, yeah. I kinda thought rescuing his parishioners from a gang of vampires might cut me some slack. Isn't getting married meant to be good? If I'da known there was going to be study, you might have been on your own, blondie. I got into heaven without having to be married or having to know any bible stuff."

"Last time, you died saving the world, making the ultimate sacrifice. What if next time you die it's 'cause you stepped off the kerb in front of a drunk driver? Doesn't exactly buy you the same leeway."

"Whatever," Buffy grumped.

Dawn decided this was the point to make her irritation known. "Hey, I don't know what you're complaining about. I get all the bible study and I don't get to marry the totally besotted, drop-dead gorgeous guy at the end of it, either. Just because you didn't want to go alone. But I have got a drop-dead gorgeous date for the prom."

 
 
Chapter #31 - Chapter 5:03
 






SECTION 5 - THE THINGS WE DO FOR LOVE

A compromise would surely help the situation
Agree to disagree, but disagree to part
Well after all it's just a compromise
For the things we do for love

(10CC, Album Deceptive Blends)




Chapter 5.03
Friday, May 10th, 2002

Her sister and her future brother-in-law's heads spun in her direction. Spike started repeating a little mantra inside his head, 'Not her father. No right to interfere. Not her father. No right to interfere. Not her father. '

Buffy began the interrogation. "Not yet, you haven't. If you want this guy to take you to the prom then we have to meet him first, and I don't mean for five minutes before he drives you away in his car on the night.

What's his name? How old is he? And how do you know him?"

"His name is Brandon Michaels. His dad's the new English teacher and he just transferred from San Diego. He's in my year and he sat next to me in Art. And he's a hottie. And he gave me a ride over here tonight," Dawn supplied.

"Okay. You can ask him over for dinner, Tuesday night. If he's human and he's not an asshole you can go with him," Buffy conceded.

"Well, he might be at the Bronze tonight."

"In that case you'll be able to introduce us. After which you can sit with him. You can dance with him. At the end of the night if you haven't blown it, you can kiss him goodnight, but we will be seeing you and Janice safely back to her mother's. You will at no point leave the building and we'll be keeping an eye on you and if you do anything that isn't appropriate for a first date you will be home so fast you won't believe it.

Now go through to the bedroom and get changed. I brought some sweats and stuff for you. We're going to make a start on that training you were wanting."

"Really?" Dawn squeaked.

"Really. We're going over to the Magic Box. We've got a good few hours before our dinner reservation."

Fifteen minutes later, the threesome headed out, taking the old DeSoto to the Magic Box. Spike was once again enveloped in the oversized sweatshirt and this time he simply parked the car at the front door, the three of them, walking in as a group. Spike checked round the room for customers, but found the place empty.

"Hey, kitten, got any spells we can use to keep a teenage boy from thinking about sex?" Though Spike was speaking to Anya, his intent was more to tease Dawn.

"If we had, don't you think we'd have used it on you." Xander offered, still making the most of his last day off work.

"Very witty. Anya, pet, come show me how these thingies over in the corner work." The vampire took the former vengeance demon by the elbow and escorted her over to the far corner of the shop.

"So what did you really want to not talk about in front of Xander? Because I think it would take a lot more than a fertility symbol or two for you to get Buffy pregnant, and from what I've heard Buffy has no complaints about your performance as regards any other aspect."

"What're you doing July twentieth, pet?"

"As far as I know we don't have any plans."

"I was wondering, pet. Would you be an usher at our wedding?"

"But isn't that normally a man?"

"Yeah, well I happen to like you and Glinda better than any men I-"

The rest of what Spike had to say was lost below Xander's exclamation, which caused the two former black-hats to look over at the counter, where Buffy was trying to calm him down slightly.

"Ringbearer! Do I look like a hobbit or something?"

The ex-evil duo looked at Anya's husband protesting. "Buff tried to get me to ask him, but I told her if she was getting Dawn I wanted both my other favourite Scoobies."

"Well, in that case, how can I refuse."

Spike picked her up by the waist and twirled her round, taking care to ensure no merchandise was broken. "Thanks, pet," he said gently before putting her down on her feet again. "Why don't you give us a couple of those symbols anyway. It's not like they can do any harm, is it?"

Anya picked up a couple of the small ornaments from the shelf and the two made their way back to the counter, where Anya discreetly wrapped up the overly endowed and very erect male figure and the heavily pregnant female figure before Dawn could look at them too closely.

As they were crossing the room, Buffy called across, "I take it from the twirly thing that you got a yes."

Spike nodded. "Take it your best friend isn't so keen to share your special day with you?"

Buffy turned her pouty lip on Xander. "You would think I asked him to wear a dress or carry a bouquet or something, instead of wearing a tux and carrying a cushion."

"Couldn't I give you away or something in-"

"Giles," chorused Dawn, Buffy and Spike altogether.

Spike dropped a couple of bills on the counter, before pulling Dawn away toward the training room "Platelet, why don't you go warm up. Kitten, I don't suppose somewhere in that filofax of wedding stuff you had, you've got your measurements handy. I thought I might go and see old Mordecai, get him to work on the suits."

Anya's eyes widened. "Ooh. Very classy. It's in the office. Come on through. I hope he's not too heavily booked up."

"Never is the prices he charges. And he'll like as not make sure he can do them rather than miss out on the money for making all five. 'Sides I used to put a lot of business his way when I was still with Dru. She always had to have her pretty dresses and corsets and everything.

"Which five?" Anya asked.

"Well, there's you and Tinkerbell are the ushers. Rupes is givin' Buffy away and then there's me and Clem's best man."

"So you're not getting Xander's there?"

"No he's Buffy's worry and I don't think he'd take it too well anyway. Mordecai may be the best tailor in Sunnydale, or California for that matter, but, no offence to you, all your husband would see was a dwarf, and you know how temperamental the short one can be. One Snowhite joke and we'd all be going to the church nude. No thank you."

"It's not like you can take Clem into Brooks Brothers," Anya agreed. She rifled through stacks of books and paperwork on the office shelves before pulling out the organiser she had used for the wedding, flicking through until she found the page with all her measurements on and pulling it out. "I should have Tara's here as well." She flipped over a couple of pages before pulling out a second page. "There you go."

"Thanks, pet. I'm glad I got you." He popped a kiss on her cheek and almost bounced out of the door and into the training room.

Buffy was teaching Dawn some defensive moves, while she played the role of attacker. Spike secured the sheets of paper into a zip pocket in the sweatshirt before taking off both it and the T-shirt underneath. He kicked off his boots and socks and lit up a cigarette while he was waiting for a break in the session between the two women. They were still busy with moves and countermoves when he finished, so he pulled out his phone.

He hit speed dial and waited. Soon the phone was picked up, the muted sound of a child's cries audible in the background.

"Hello. Who's there?" came a woman's voice.

"Lily? It's William."

"William, where you been? 'S been three weeks now since you been here? Rosa, she no know you no more when you come back."

Spike held the phone away from his ear a little and rolled his eyes. "I've been busy. Haven't you heard the news?"

"I hear." Spike winced when he heard the spitting sound that followed. "I hear, but not from you. You too scared to ring Lily, tell her that you let this girl break your heart all over again. Lily tells you that this girl she no good for you. That she no treat you like a man. You her dog. You worse than dog. People they go to jail if they treat dog like she treat you."

"Lily."

"No, she say heel, William, he say 'woof'. When you last play poker?"

"Ehm, la-"

"I bet you no even can tell me 'bout latest big scandal in Harmony?" Lily asked about events in Passions.

"Been tap-"

"See. You no live own life no more. You run round after human girl. You 'shamed to be seen with decent demons like us."

"Lil-"

"Or maybe you think your girlfriend, she try slay us. Maybe you think nasty little girl, she break Lily, like she break William."

Spike began to back out the training room door. "Lily!" Behind the counter, Anya's eyes widened in alarm.

"What? You want to speak now. No just go 'woof'."

"Lily, I'll be over for dinner and I'll be bringing two guests, okay, love. Now, why don't you congratulate Anyanka on her wedding?"

"Anyanka, she get married? I thought the monkey boy, he run away?"

"Anyanka get married last Saturday. Here she is." Anya backed away as Spike approached with the phone, but finally when she was cornered snatched it, sticking her tongue out at him as she took it.

"Lily, how lovely to speak to you."

Spike sidled back through the training room door just in time to hear Anya feigning problems.

"What?! What was that?! I think Spike's battery must need charging."

 

"What was that all about?" two pairs of eyes looked at him coldly as he turned into the room.

"Em, we might have to leave here a bit earlier than I thought," Spike answered.

"Why?" Buffy asked.

"We're going for dinner at a friend's house before we go to the restaurant."

"Shouldn't that be instead of going to the restaurant," Dawn asked.

"You haven't tasted her cooking yet," said Spike.

At this Anya walked in the training room and slapped Spike on the back of the head, before handing him his phone, in two pieces.

"Your battery is broken. I suggest it stays that way at least until morning .and Xander says you should keep your semi-naked undead body in the training room where customers can't see it, though I must admit I think it could potentially attract customers rather than discourage them, so ignore what Xander says." She turned and walked back out into the main shop.

"Buffy, why don't I take over with Bit for a while and you can pop out and get a good bottle of wine and some nice chocolates. We can go see my favourite florist on the way, so that'll be okay." Spike suggested.

"Eh, we're with the gift-getting, now?" Buffy asked.

"It's traditional .and I think Anya may just have put her in a bad mood. And you really don't want to go there without a gift." Spike sounded suspiciously nervous.

"What do you mean? The way you said you there you made it sound weird. What's going on?" Dawn asked, picking up on the anxious vibe the vampire was giving off.

"Don't worry, Niblet. You, she loves, or she will. She's never heard anything but good about you, pet."

"And me? What have you told her about me?" Buffy countered.

"Haven't actually told her anything, not since you came back. Not since there was anything to tell." Spike shuffled his feet and looked embarrassed. "See, heard isn't technically the correct phrase when you're talkin' about Lily. She's an empath, a very talented empath, one I've been around at some of the worst points over the last year.

Clem got just enough to make him a good listener, maybe give him a bit of an edge at poker. His mum she's got it in spades."

"Oh .o-o-oh!" Buffy panicked as she realised the implications behind Spike's words.

"We're going to have dinner with Clem's mom. Cool." Dawn bounced on her toes.  

"But, you're happy now. She's going to know that you're happy now. Right?" Buffy asked hopefully.

"It would be nice to think so, but I suspect nervous is going to be a bit higher up there."

"Does she really hate me?" the slayer asked.

"When I got hurt, just before your birthday, Clem took me back there. She looked after me for a week, until I was back on my feet again. She'll be okay once she works out you love me and that you were hurting nearly as much as you hurt me. It'll be fine in the end, but I still recommend taking her a nice big bouquet, so scoot, while I attack your big sister."

"Hey, not my big sister," Buffy quibbled.

Spike just raised an eyebrow, "younger maybe, little." he shook his head.

Buffy's mouth set in a line as she grabbed her purse and stomped out of the training room throwing dirty looks at her fiancé.

Dawn flinched visibly. "That'll probably keep her mad all the way to the liquor store and back," she observed.

"Then she won't have time to worry about meeting Lily, will she?" Spike said with a smirk.

 
 
Chapter #32 - Chapter 5:04
 






SECTION 5 - THE THINGS WE DO FOR LOVE

A compromise would surely help the situation
Agree to disagree, but disagree to part
Well after all it's just a compromise
For the things we do for love

(10CC, Album Deceptive Blends)




Chapter 5.04
Friday, May 10th, 2002

Spike decided that it was probably diplomatic to leave the bulk of the hands-on training to Buffy or at the very least to make sure she was around when he was doing it. Also, there was the distinct possibility that even a feigned attack could leave him with a headache. With this in mind he decided to walk Dawn through a simple kata or two. He went through the moves alongside her several times before standing back to comment and gently correct her stance and execution.

"I don't get this," Dawn commented as she practised.

"Don't get what, love."

"This. This stuff you're teaching me. This is all structured and stuff, but it's not how you fight and it's not how Buffy fights either."

"No, it's not how I generally fight. Most of the time I get away with working on instinct and a lot of what I do comes from fightin' in the gutters on a Saturday night, but it's never a waste to learn proper techniques. If you practice enough even in the middle of an adrenaline rush, you'll still punch so that you don't sprain your wrist, or maintain your balance without thinking about it. You'll eventually learn to adapt bits of everything so that you have your own style that you're comfortable with, but first you have to practice till the moves come naturally."

By the time Buffy came back to the shop, Spike had given Dawn a break on the katas and had her practising kicks on the punch-bag instead, which was probably as much a reflection on his attention span as anything else. The elder Summers still looked decidedly unhappy as she dropped her shopping bags on the floor, so Spike just dropped back deeper into the room until he stood on the training mats near the room's centre. He raised his hands, palms toward him and flexed his fingers a couple of times in an invitation that probably predated the spoken word.

Buffy for her part stretched her neck, tilting her head to either side until bones popped into place with a cracking noise, and followed him onto the mats. Dawn worked her way around the punch-bag until she had a view of the sparring area, keeping the rhythm of her kicks going the whole time so as not to alert either of the participants to her interest.

The couple circled around each other looking for an opening to attack. Yet, each knew the other so well, feints were ignored and attacks were blocked. That is, until Spike set up a series of kicks, punches and counter-kicks so fast that Buffy seemed to have a problem meeting them. The moves culminated with a roundhouse kick to the side and back of her head, which she failed to block. It was only when the kick struck with less than the anticipated force that Buffy realised her problem and adjusted for it.

This was the first time she had officially sparred with the vampire. Indoors, sacrificing the protection and additional force to his kicks, he had removed the heavy boots he customarily wore. Probably, he had taken them off so that if he did land a solid kick there was less chance of doing any damage, but in doing so he had upped the pace of his attack beyond his normal and taken her by surprise. It wouldn't happen twice.

The fight ebbed and flowed, with first one attacking then the other. Often the pair seemed like mirror reflections of each other, with no discernible delay between the movements of the arm that attacked and the one moved to stop it hitting. At other times, the duo moved like the gear wheels in a machine, one leaping upward at the exact instant that the other's leg swept through the air where they had once been or bodies bending aside just long enough and far enough to evade attack. Occasionally, one would manage to take the other to the ground, but unless they were pinned, recovery was almost instantaneous, with the downed party either rolling or flipping to their feet. Even when one did appear to pin the other to the ground positions would be reversed so rapidly Dawn found it difficult to keep track.

The first sign that Dawn noticed was how the pair were panting, gasping for breath almost in synch, not so out of place for Buffy, even if she had fought far longer fights without obvious ill-effect, but from Spike who didn't need to breathe? Then, she became aware of the heated glances passing back and forth, her sister's eyes reduced to emerald rings around obsidian pools, Spike's eyes so dark she couldn't even tell any longer that they were blue. The tip of the vampire's tongue gliding over his upper teeth in a predatory and obscene way, led her to check down below the waist for the final all too obvious sign that at least one half of the pair was enjoying their encounter on more than one level.

'TMI ,' thought Dawn as she backed out of the room. 'Altogether TMI. But then when you saw them move together, to begin with, you thought it was beautiful. They were beautiful. So can you blame them if he thinks. and she thinks. and their bodies. react. Yeuch! So not going there understandable or not .'

"So, Xander, are you secure enough in your masculinity to join me as one of Buffy's attendants or are you going to let her down?" Dawn decided she couldn't resist some Xander baiting.

"I'm still mulling it over. And what's with you and your undead hero laying on the guilt trips?" the male Scooby responded.

"We're just trying to get you to say yes, so Buffy can be all happy and excited. I don't know what you're stalling for unless you're aiming to make her beg, and if that's what you want. some best friend."

"But Dawn, it's not exactly a manly job, is it? Why couldn't Anya have been a bridesmaid and then I could be an usher."

"No, sweetie," Anya interrupted. "The ushers thing works because Tara and I are both doing it. It wouldn't be the same effect with one man and one woman."

Dawn looked Xander straight in the eye and gave it her best shot. "Xander Harris, if you think about this from anyone else's view-point but your own for five minutes you will see that this is the only way. Buffy wants you in the wedding party. All the other Scoobies will be. If you don't do it you'll be the only one in the congregation.

If you were asked to be one of the ushers, that would mean that you and Spike would be together for hours, possibly alone. You would be in a foul mood. Spike would be even worse. If one of you didn't end up with a black eye or something it would be a miracle. Do you want to ruin Buffy's perfect day?"

"Of course not."

"Then tell her you'll do it, already."

Xander gave an exaggerated sigh and pushed himself up off his stool behind the counter, heading toward the training room.

Dawn's voice squeaked she panicked so much. "Just not right this minute. When they're finished. I mean when they come out. No need to interrupt."

"No need to interrupt what exactly?" Xander asked his tone indicating a mixture of suspicion and disgust.

"Sparring. Ehm. they. were.. sparring, when I left them."

"What's your problem, Xander?" Anya asked in a voice he recognised as being far too reasonable.

"Buffy and Spike, in the training room."

"Yes, Xander. They're in the training room. Not in the shop where the customers are and don't tell me it's because the training room's a public place or because we're out here. You talked me into doing it in the basement with that bunny doll and all the Scoobies sitting around upstairs, except Dawn that is, because she was busy being held hostage."

"But it's Spi-i-ike and Bu-uffeee," he whined.

"Just get over it, Xander. Buffy isn't the sweet sixteen you had a crush on any more. She's a supernaturally enhanced woman in her prime with desires that will only ever truly be satisfied by an equally supernaturally enhanced man. She has chosen Spike as her life-partner. You, I thought, chose me to be yours. That means you don't get a say in what the two of them do. Buffy doesn't get a say in what we do.

They don't appreciate your unhealthy fascination in their affairs and quite frankly I'm more than a little sick of it myself. Even if Spike and I had never existed, even if she was attracted to you, you and she could never have what they have.

You don't even want her. You never really wanted her. You only ever wanted your idealised image of her and when she let you down by not being that person you passed judgement on her.

You lied to her about Angel. You gave her a hard time about wanting to be with him, even when they were just friends. She told everyone she was in trouble when Giles said he was leaving. You didn't know how to help so you ignored it and hoped she'd just miraculously get better on her own. You told yourself she was fine and left her to deal with slaying and debts and looking after Dawn and you expected her to be able to help Willow through losing Tara and the magic thing when she wasn't even keeping her own head above water. And when someone does try to help her you give both of them a hard time. If you had really been her friend she would have been able to tell you about her and Spike. If you are her friend you'll let her find whatever happiness she can, however she wants to.

And if you meant those vows you said a week ago then it's about time you made me feel like I'm the most important woman in your life, not her and not Willow."

"Ahn, honey. It is you that I love. It's just I can't help thinking my best friend is about to make a huge mistake."

Anya's expression hardened. "A huge mistake like marrying a demon, you mean?"

"Yeah- No. It's Spike. Spike who's kidnapped us and tried to kill us and sold us out to Adam. You know I love you. I don't hate Spike because he's a demon. I hate Spike because of who he is."

"Xander. You say you hate Spike because he tried to kill you. Big deal. He tried. I did it. My vengeance spell saw you and Willow vamped and dusted, Buffy dead, Oz, Cordelia pretty much everyone you know except Giles, all dead. Sunnydale was a ghost town. The master was in charge of everything, and I did it. The only difference is that Giles reversed time when he smashed the pendant, so if you hate Spike for what he's done years ago then don't try telling me you love me because you're lying to yourself about one or the other."

"Ahn, it's different."

"How's it different? Different because I give you orgasms and Spike doesn't? You can make an exception, but Buffy isn't allowed. Spike may have the attitude, but I have him beat ten times over when it comes to evil-doing. In fact, I'm sure he said he 'didn't much care for the pre-show' so chances are, even the people he killed had it far easier than mine.

It's like when Buffy found Warren's bot everybody sort of felt sorry for him. He didn't think anyone could really love him so he made himself someone who did. And you all said how sad it must be to be this guy with no hope of being loved.

But did Spike get any sympathy when he thought Buffy would never love him? What he did was exactly the same as what Warren did. No one gave him any sympathy. No one said gee, imagine feeling so much for someone and knowing they'll never love you back. No, it was just Spike's a pervert. He's sick. He's disgusting.

And the only difference is Warren's human and Spike's not. Same way as you ignore all the good stuff he's done, and you didn't ask him to help with the resurrection. You knew Buffy's death tore him up more than anyone except maybe Dawn. You knew he helped Dawn with the spell to bring back Joyce but you didn't include him and you didn't even see fit to tell him, all because his heart doesn't happen to beat.

I saw what you were like vamped. You don't hate Spike because of anything he's done. You're jealous that you can't be him."

There wasn't much Xander could say to that. Lately it just seemed like everyone was throwing emotional bricks his way, and he got hit in the head every time.

Dawn decided to pass on some advice. "Xander, when I found out I was the key, the only person who helped me make any sense out of it was Spike. He told me that where you start out in life isn't important. All that matters is where you end up. I started out as the key but it doesn't matter because I ended up human. He started out human and ended up a vampire. It's who we are at the end that counts.

And the Spike we first met was different from the Spike who got up out of that wheelchair after however many months. He was different again when Drusilla left him. He was different after he got the chip and again after he realised he was in love with Buffy. And then there was the whole big change where he had to adjust because he hadn't dealt socially with humans for over a century and the only romantic experience he had was his time with Drusilla. It doesn't mean his feelings were less real, just that he made some terrible mistakes trying to express them.

Now, he's the guy my sister loves. He's my friend, almost brother. He's Anya's friend.

He's brave. He's intelligent. He's witty. He's fun to be around. He makes me feel safe and wanted and loved. He's a butt-hole too sometimes, but he's our butt-hole.

And that's all that matters. Not how he started out, not all the changes that helped him get to where he is, but who he is now. You just have to let yourself see that and stop letting all your old grudges prevent you from seeing what's right in front of your nose."

"You really love him, don't you?" Xander's voice conveyed a world of amazement.

"Well, duh. Just for example, the guy let that bitch cut him up and use him for a punch-bag and still wouldn't tell her who I was. How could I not?" Dawn asked. "Of course, if you tell him I said that, I'll deny it.

But Xander, I'm not just talking about Spike. People are a bit like plants. They have to grow or they die. You've been putting way too much energy into staying in one place. If you keep holding on to the past. If you keep bottling up intolerance and resentment and hatred. eventually it'll overshadow everything else that you are... And you'll lose the people you love." The teenager looked over at Anya and then briefly at the training room door.

 

 

"Pet, I don't think your little sister trusts our self-control."

"What?" Buffy looked around for her sister, leaving herself apparently wide open to attack.

Spike passed up the opportunity, choosing instead to slide his arms around her waist from behind and rest his cheek against her hair. "She just beat a retreat into the main shop."

"You think she thinks.?" the slayer asked.

"I think she thinks exactly what would have already been happening by now if she weren't here is about to happen."

"And she just .left."

"Mm-hm, no "Ew", no "Euch", no "Gross", just a quiet retreat. Did I ever tell you how much I love your sister?" Spike's voice wasn't teasing or playful, just full of warmth.

Buffy tipped her head back against Spike's shoulder and looked up into his eyes as she answered equally seriously. "I think you always just showed me."

She reached up a hand to cup his cheek, her other coming to rest over where his were clasped.

Spike tried to steer the topic away from raging hormones. "How'd your wrist hold up?"

"Fine. I taped it while you were talking to Anya."

Spike gently drew her hand away from his face and pushed back the sleeve of her top, so that he could remove the tape and unwind the bandage supporting her wrist. He took his time and when the last of the material was removed he brought her wrist to his mouth, brushing his lips over the already yellow-green bruise at her pulse-point.

"D'you feel up to patrol tonight, or should I do the rounds on my own?" he asked.

"It's good. I won't even notice it if I tape it up again and take a couple of aspirin."

"You feeling a bit less stressed out than when we started?"

"Less stressed, but every bit as tense .for all the best reasons," Buffy admitted.

"That , I might be able to help you with."

Buffy turned to face him, pressing her fingers against his brow. "Are you okay? Mmh, slightly over room temperature, I'm sure. Does that mean you've got a fever? Never heard you express any doubts about your prowess before. You must be ill."

"The only fever in my blood is you, Summers, you and you alone. As to my sexual prowess I think it's only fair to let you be the judge. In this instance though, with Li'l' Bit just the other side of the door, I thought we'd ruled out sex. as such."

"So where exactly was your deviant, little mind headed?"

"Just a bit of harmless necking, pet, maybe a bit of smutty talk, a bit of friction." The vampire pushed his thigh between hers and gripped her ass pulling her tight against his pelvic bone as he answered before letting her slip back down till her feet rested flat on the ground again.

Her breath caught in her throat at the sensation between her thighs and when she looked up at him, her eyes were bottomless black pools of desire. "Harmless meaning blood-free, hence the 'might'. 'cause we both know."

".that if I bleed you, I can make you come. That's right. But if I did, we wouldn't be leaving this room any time tonight and I wouldn't give a damn who was outside the door."

"But what do you get out of it, Will? Seems like all you get is more frustration." Her tongue flicked across her upper lip. "It wouldn't be fair."

"Since when has fair had anything to do with our sex-life, pet?"

"Since our sex-life became part of our relationship. So, if you're going to have to wait, then so am I. Now, let's get out of here before I jump your bones."

"I think you've got a bit to learn about offering incentives, love. And you don't want to go out there just yet. Harrises are in middle of another row."

"What's the what this time?" Buffy asked, watching the muscles of Spike's stomach ripple as he stretched his arms over his head to put on his T-shirt.

"Us, or to be more precise the fact that Harris is more interested in trying to prove you're making a huge mistake than in paying attention to his bride."

Buffy rushed to the door pressing her ear against the wood, glancing over at Spike's expression of consternation when Anya said she had him beat ten times over on the evil front.

The bit about the 'bot went down even better. "Valid point, pet, but could you make me out to be any more of a useless wanker?" he muttered under his breath as he lit another cigarette, breathing in deeply before exhaling in a long steady plume. His face fell into his habitual smirk when Anya told her husband he was jealous and Buffy who was watching his reactions almost as much as she was listening to the argument, just rolled her eyes as his trademark expression fell into place.

"Y'know, slayer, it's not polite to eavesdrop on private conversations."

"Phft. I'm just saving Dawn from having to relay the details, and you're listening."

"I just happen to have particularly acute hearing. I can't help it. You're the one with her ear to the door."

"Shh. I want to hear what Dawn's saying," Buffy tried to quiet the vamp.

Spike turned away under the pretence of putting on his sweatshirt, zipping it up enough at the bottom to be sure it hid the bulge in the front of his jeans. He kept his back turned to Buffy as he fumbled with his socks and boots, not wanting her to see the effect of Dawn's words. He blinked frantically, trying to stop the tears from falling. His hands fumbled with laces he could barely even see until small hands brushed his aside and hazel eyes looked up from where she knelt at his feet.

"Don't worry," she said softly as she swiftly tightened and knotted the laces on his boots. "She kinda catches us all like that at times, even the Big Bad .or do you have to give that title over to Anya now?"

Spike grinned and, of course, two tears finally took their chance and slid down the planes of his face. He opened his arms and she stood up again so he could hold her. "Dunno, love. Reckon we could arm-wrestle for it?"

His lips brushed against her hair. "You are both so beautiful, y' know. Like Joyce. You see the good in people, even people like me. I don't deserve either of you."

"Sure you do. Just wait till you have a week where both of us have PMS."

"Well, can't say it applies to the Li'l' Bit but I seem to recall certain advantages to being around you at that time of the month." He gave her a knowing leer and she tried hard not to laugh.

"Spike, you are so gross. You do realise most men are just freaked by that."

"Vampire, so sue me. I love how you taste three hundred and sixty five days a year and I don't recall you having any complaints."

"Yeah but now you've got a proper place, we've got to worry about getting stains on .I would say the sheets but in our case it's probably more appropriate to say the carpets."

"In that case, I'll just have to ravish you in the kitchen and the bathroom where there are all those nice wipe-clean surfaces."

Buffy didn't know whether she should laugh or cry. "You are incorrigible, and as long as you don't make those sort of comments in public, I have to admit I like it. Now, get out of here before you end up 'even more desperate for a shag' Giles. Which reminds me, none of them in there know about your new name, yet."

Spike picked up the carrier bags Buffy had brought in earlier and opened the training room door, stepping back to let her precede him through.

"Hey Xander. You know you asked the other day about what my married name was going to be. Were you really interested or just trying to stir things up?" Buffy quipped by way of introducing her topic of choice.

"Both," admitted the construction worker with a disarming grin.

"So if I told you Spike's ID is all getting sorted out and we know the name would you still be interested?"

"Doesn't matter if he is or not, your sister wants to know, and I think since I have to go to bible study I have a right to know first," Dawn demanded.

"How about third?" Buffy asked.

Spike cleared his throat. "Em, Ripper," he reminded Buffy.

"How about fourth?" she amended. "Willow and Tara were home when I found out and Spike had already discussed it with Giles."

"You are so going to pay, but I guess I'll have to make do," conceded the teenager.

Buffy moved over and whispered in her sister's ear, just so that she could say she heard before Xander and Anya.

The youngster let out a high-pitched shriek of excitement, attracting the attention of all canines within a three-mile radius. She looked up at Spike. "Really?" she asked, and when the vampire nodded, she burbled on excitedly. "That is so cool. You are so sweet to think of something like that." She flung her arms round her sister and then dashed round the table to throw her arms around Spike's waist.

"Not sweet, pet. M'Bad," argued Spike, only to be met with the patented Summers eye roll.

Xander's patience couldn't hold out any longer. "So give, Buffy. What's got Summers Jnr. all excited?"

Anya rolled her eyes in the background, having obviously guessed, maybe Bit had been giving her lessons while she worked off her sticky finger debt.

"You are looking at the future Mrs William A. Giles."

"Oh my God," said Xander. "Giles wasn't training him to be a watcher. He's going to be Giles Jnr." Xander began to laugh, and then giggle uncontrollably.

"Does anybody with two brain cells to collide together know what Bibble-Boy is talking about or should we ring for the nice men in their white coats now?" asked Spike.

"I think so," said Buffy.

Spike pulled out his cell phone. "I suppose it would only be 911 if he were a danger to himself or others."

His fiancée slapped him on the arm. "No, I think I know what he's talking about. After we did the spell to invoke the essence of the first slayer, to defeat Adam." She threw a sideways look at Spike. ".everybody that was part of the spell had all these weird dreams. I think Xander said in his you were all dressed in tweed and playing on a swing set with Giles and you said that Giles was going to train you to be a watcher.

But then in Giles' dream you were hiring yourself out as a tourist attraction, so I don't think it's anything other than a coincidence."

"Look, pet, amusing as it is to watch Harris go through his nervous breakdown, we're going to have to go now if we want to catch the florist's before they shut."

"Don't forget your purchases. Your change is in the bag," Anya called out, causing Spike to swerve toward the counter and pick up his Magic Box carrier bag.

"Bye, kitten. I'd check the refunds policy on that marriage license. See if it's not too late to take him back and get one that isn't broken." This earned him another slap on the arm, but since it came with a Buffy smile, he didn't care a bit.

The group had just left when Xander stopped giggling. "Hey, how come Dead Boy Jnr. gets to be Giles Jnr.? I wanted Giles to be my dad."

 
 
Chapter #33 - Chapter 6:01
 






SECTION 6 - BAD MOON RISING

Hope you got your things together
Hope you are quite prepared to die
Looks like we're in for nasty weather
One eye is taken for an eye.

Don't go around tonight
Well, it's bound to take your life
There's a bad moon on the rise

(Credence Clearwater Revival [written by John Fogerty], 1969)




Chapter 6.01
Friday, May 10th, 2002

"Hey, we're right by the gallery."

Spike pulled the car to a halt in front of a florist's shop less than fifty yards from where Buffy's mother had worked.

"Come on, you two, there's someone I want you to meet." Parked as he was, on the shady side of the street, Spike shucked off the sweatshirt and pulled his duster from the back seat of the car, putting it on as he walked over to the entrance. Pulling the door open, he hustled the two girls in, following behind them.

 

 

"You didn't tell me she knew mom," Buffy said, her tone slightly sad.

"Sort of expected you to work that out seein' as how the shop was so close to the gallery and your mom gave a bouquet or something to every artist they had an exhibition for. Sorry, pet. I should have warned you. What about you, Bit? You were pretty quiet back there."

"I'm good, just so long as I get first dibs on the shower and Buffy helps me with my make-up." Dawn replied.

"Helps you with your make-up, or helps you with her make-up?" asked the blonde in a sceptical tone of voice.

"Hey, I didn't know when I packed that I'd be sorta seeing someone tonight. Pleease. And my hair. It'll buy you one week of bible study."

"Okay. Okay. When you put it like that, I guess I'm cornered. But if I've got this right then Spike owes us both."

"I don't owe you anything for no bible study, not when you're the one who wanted the church do. You owe me for tea with the vicar and forthcoming chats about the sanctity of marriage. I thought you realised I was a bottle blond."

"Hey," Buffy protested on behalf of natural blondes everywhere.

"Yeah, right, love. Like your hair just naturally changed from the colour it was when we first got engaged to the colour it is now. And you've been leaving it long enough between treatments lately for the roots to show now and again. Not to mention the fact I can smell the peroxide on you for about half a week after you get it done, even over the smell of mine."

"Busted," came the voice from the back seat of the car.

Buffy shrugged. "Riley believed it was natural."

'Well,' thought Spike, 'the only certainty there, is that one of the two of them's deluded.'

"Can't we just agree not to mention your ex until he's back in town and we can do something about him?" he asked.

"Whatya goin' to do with Riley? I thought he was okay now, right?" Dawn asked.

"Probably not." Buffy sighed. "We think his story might have been a cover so that him and Sam could get the eggs."

"But Spike had the eggs, didn't you?" Dawn sounded confused.

"Long story. Buffy can fill you in while she does your hair," Spike answered. "Boils down to Captain America's an arse-hole." 

The car pulled up at the front of Spike's building again and Spike suggested that Buffy give her keys to Dawn so that she could get a head start on her shower, while the couple took their time.

"Pet, it occurs to me that if Dawn didn't know about Cardboard, then I doubt we told the watcher either." Spike shrugged his way out of the duster, donning the sweatshirt for his walk into the building. "Thing is, all we have is conjecture, basically, but if we're right, Giles should know. The problem with that is, if we're right, depending whether he's acting independently or for the government, there's a fair to middling chance they could be keeping tabs on all of us somehow. 'Course I should have thought of it before, but, hey, if Warren and his dwarves could manage it. how much easier would it be for Golden Boy? And Giles' phone. I mean, anything big, you tell Giles, right?

But then there's also the possibility we're way off base, and the whole thing is a pile of bollocks, which, would, of course, make me a paranoid old git," Spike admitted ruefully.

"Only, when we're talking about whatever quasi-Initiative group that Riley's with, can we afford not to be?"

"Love, would you say lover boy was surprised when he found you in my crypt?" The vampire sounded contemplative.

Buffy cast her mind back. "No, I don't think he was. I don't think he was at all. And he knew I was at DMP. How'd he know I was working there? And my hair, he said he loved my hair, but I could have had it cut like that for more than a year for all he should have known, and it was in a ponytail. I mean how much can you tell about someone's hair when it's in a ponytail. I wouldn't say I liked someone's haircut without seeing it loose, never mind say I luvved it." Buffy twisted up her mouth as she said the last two words, the expression very reminiscent of her liquor face, only, this time Spike didn't find it cute that something left a bad taste in her mouth. "It's almost like he knew why I cut it. Like he was working on scoring points with me against you. Spike, I think you can officially colour me freaked."

"Don't blame you, pet. Not feelin' right peaceful at the minute, m'self. Best go catch up with little sis, and for now, I think we've got to think very carefully about what we say and where we say it. I'm kinda wonderin' how far vengeance demons can teleport and whether Anya could do it." Spike opened his door and Buffy took this as her cue to get out too, waiting while the vampire locked up before walking into the building arm in arm.

Buffy quickly came to a decision. "I think we need to get everybody together some place they just can't have staked out. We need to discuss this."

"I'll see if the restaurant can change the booking to a table for seven. You ring the others say it's so you can sort out getting dresses and stuff and it's a thank you, but don't say where we're going just say I'll pick up the witches and Harris can follow in their car. That way they should all get a nice surprise." The pair had just got to the top of the first flight of stairs when Spike stopped dead. "Buffy, I've just remembered I've got a problem with the battery on my phone. I better go find a call box. Don't do anything till I get back." He pushed his duster and keys into her hands and headed back out.

More than half convinced he was being paranoid, Spike phoned up an entirely different restaurant, and booked a table for eight. He let the booking at the more popular restaurant he'd made under the name Summers stand. The new booking was made under the name of Alex Ferguson, but then he was fairly certain in Giles' absence no one on this side of the Atlantic was going to recognise it as the name of Manchester United's manager. Not in time to do anything about it, anyway. Then, just to confuse matters he made a few more phone calls, one to an import/export firm down by the docks, another five to different restaurants around the town, making reservations for parties of anywhere between six and ten people, and six to eateries that were already fully booked.

He followed this up with a call to the LA field office of the FBI, requesting to be transferred to an agent mentioned in some recent press coverage who, as it turned out, was very polite to the student who wanted to include her case as part of his thesis. She did point out that information in the case was still restricted so she couldn't help. Spike didn't care about anything except the fact the call was long enough to worry Finn if he ever found out. Then, putting as much change in as he could he dialled a gay chat-line and left the receiver off the hook as he walked away. Let the bastards trace the calls from that phone box now, for all the good it would do them.

 

By the time Spike made it back to the flat, both the girls had finished in the shower and dried their hair. Buffy had thought to bring a robe, the ivory satin making her tan look darker than it normally did. Dawn was still swathed in one of his white bath sheets. The first stage of the makeover was obviously completed because her hair billowed around her head in gentle waves instead of its normal straight lines. Buffy was evidently in the process of sorting through her make-up bag to see which of her cosmetics would best suit Dawn's paler colouring, judging by the array that was spread around her on the bed.

Spike actually looked weary when he made his way through to where the women were and Buffy rose to meet him just inside the doorway, her hands resting against his chest as she stood on tiptoe for a kiss. When she dropped back onto the flat of her feet, he smiled down but for once it didn't seem to reach his eyes.

He pushed a hand through his still partially gelled hair before he spoke. "Just going to get my turn in the shower, pet. Everything's sorted, if you want to ring your mates. If you tell them we'll meet up quarter to eight, eight o'clock-ish, we hopefully won't be running out on Lily as soon as we get there, but we'll have to get a move on." He brushed his lips against Buffy's cheek and gave Dawn a smile that was a poor imitation of the norm and turned toward the bathroom. Buffy hesitated as to whether she should follow him and regretted it when she heard the bolt snap into place, a first as far as she was aware. She waited until she heard the sound of the water running and the subtle change that indicated he had stepped under it, before she returned to choosing make-up for her sister.

Spike stood under the stream of water, oblivious to the pink tinge his skin was taking on. His arms were braced against the wall, holding him upright as slow tears fell from his eyes indiscernible from the steaming spray. Helplessness, frustration and loss warred within him as he faced the enormity of where his thoughts had led him.

If the government had been observing the Scoobies for any length of time, it was only realistic to assume they knew Dawn was the Key. As such, she was a potential threat, one they had to either control or eliminate. Either way there was a very good chance he was going to lose both the women he loved, and as long as he had the chip he was worthless in this fight.

Falling in love with the slayer had always been like living on borrowed time. He knew, in his bones, that sooner rather than later, he would see her returned to her grave. He had thought when that day came, Dawn and he would stand side by side in their grief. Now, it seemed far more likely that he would mourn both of them together. He couldn't protect them and condemned by his word to Buffy, he couldn't even end his existence.

They might make their move tonight or they might just watch and wait for years. If they realised the Scoobies knew they were being watched, that could even be the trigger that would cause them to act.

Buffy might come to this conclusion herself in time, but there was no way he was going to do anything to bring it to her attention. If he did, then the fear would just eat away at her insides while she waited and waited, just like it was doing to him.

He was going to fail them, again.

 

 

It didn't take Buffy long to do Dawn's make up. Her skin was flawless and using a base would only dull its healthy glow. All that was really needed was a light dusting of eyeshadow and some pale lip-gloss. Dawn had insisted on waiting for Spike to come out the shower to do her mascara after she accused Buffy of trying to poke her eye out.

This left the older girl free to do her own five-minute make-up job and get dressed. As a concession to the fact she couldn't get too dressed up, she was once again wearing Spike's favourite skirt. Her white strappy top had concealed under-wiring, so she didn't need a bra and she had decided, in the interest of preserving the underwear that remained to her, that she would forego panties tonight. Based on Spike's reaction the last time she wore that skirt, she anticipated some fairly urgent action tonight, probably the first time they were alone for five minutes out of range of teenage ears and eyes.

She still had phone calls to make, but she'd hoped that Spike would have made it out of the shower by now. After his subdued entrance and the way he shut her out of the bathroom for the first time, she hadn't really expected it, but she had hoped. She paused to listen to the unvarying susurration of the falling water before knocking gently on the door.

"Spike," she fumbled searching her mind for some endearment that wouldn't sound false, something she'd maybe called him at least once. She failed. She'd never once called him love, or honey, or darling. It was like some part of her refused to be that open in her affections, even now, when she knew he needed it, and then it clicked. "Will, are you okay in there? Can I come in?"

Suddenly the sound of the running water changed. He was moving again under the stream.

"Just a second, I'll get the door." Spike automatically swiped at his cheeks as if to wipe away the tears, before he reached over, to undo the bolt. "It's open."

Buffy didn't know any other way to do this so she used the sledgehammer method. "What's up? You weren't happy when you left, but even I can tell you were less happy when you got back."

He couldn't lie to her. It never worked. Maybe with enough time to think it through, he could figure a way to let her know part of it, without bringing up the question of the Key. "It's complicated, pet, and we haven't got time, right now, to start going into detail." As he spoke he went through the motions of shampooing his hair.

"Okay, you're off the hook, but only till everyone goes their separate ways tonight.

I've still got to ring everybody and Dawn wants you to do her mascara, but other than that we're ready to go. She says, at least you won't try to poke her eye out. Another of your hidden talents?"

Spike shrugged, slathering a large blob of conditioner over his otherwise badly treated hair, leaving it on while he quickly soaped the rest of his body. "You learn a lot when you spend a century lookin' after a woman who can't look after herself.

Look, I guess I kinda spaced out for a bit. If you fetch me a clean shirt, some jeans, some socks 'n' me good boots I should be done by the time you look them out. Only thing is, you might have a problem finding a shirt that still has all its buttons."

Normally, watching him do anything shirtless, let alone naked had her yearning to jump his bones. She was just realising that, even more than the perfect body, what really pressed her buttons was the attitude. He was irresistible, because he believed he was and especially because he made her feel like she was too.

He knew that, unlike ninety nine percent of the population, he looked better naked than clothed and he flaunted it, for those he wanted that type of attention from. For now the attitude seemed to have taken a vacation. In fact, at last, Buffy could honestly say she knew what Spike's penis looked like when it was totally flaccid.

She didn't even think he'd noticed the skirt. It sounded really selfish, but the fact that something had knocked him so far off kilter that she was no longer foremost in his thoughts, made her more than a little worried. It also made her realise how much she took his feelings for granted. So she simply told him, "sure," and resolved that whatever it was, they would find time to talk it through before the night was over.

She went through to the bedroom quickly finding the items of clothing he'd requested, although as he'd warned when she looked through the shirts hanging up in the wardrobe, all her favourite ones were missing several buttons. He had none in either blue or black left, or at least not there and clean. She made do with one of his red ones, realising she couldn't remember him wearing any of them since that day he'd sung for her. Changing her mind about letting him tell her in his own time she delegated the job of phoning the Scoobies to Dawn, also telling her if she was a long time with Spike to find Spike's cell-phone and ring this Lily person to apologise for being late. She headed back to the bathroom with her booty piled in her arms.

Her teeth made indents in her lower lip as she slipped through the bathroom door to find him waiting for her. His hair was still damp, but had obviously been gelled and combed back, his torso and legs were still dotted with beads of moisture and a towel hung round his waist. He was giving his teeth another quick brush as part of his pre-going out routine. Even so, he managed to say something that approximated to, "thanks, pet," despite a mouthful of toothbrush and foam. She sat down with her back to the door and her feet braced against the side of the tub, watching as he finished up and rinsed, not bothering with his demon fangs this time.

"Will, I do sort of want to let you tell me what's bothering you in your own time. Only, part of me thinks that wouldn't be the best idea in the world, because this is the closest I've ever seen you to brooding like the Poof, as you would say," she started tremulously, even her attempt at goading him into a response uttered with anything but confidence.

"Thanks, pet." He gave her a sad half-smile. "I didn't realise that there was a way I could feel worse about things without someone dyin'."

"Now there's no way you get out of this bathroom without telling me what's got feeling you like that."

"'S nothing, slayer. Just me feelin' like a wanker 'cause when the shit hits the fan there'll be bugger all that I can do to help. Worse than nothin. I'll be a bloody liability, not even able to look after m'self."

She patted the floor next to her, waiting for him to take a seat before she rebutted his argument. "Spike, I don't think you're a liability." She shifted so they sat hip to hip, intertwining the finger of her hand with his. "You've helped out before when we've had to deal with humans. If it wasn't for you I would have got a sword through my skull when we had those knights after us. You got the orbs off Warren. Without you, we'd have walked in there blind and got our butts kicked."

"Pet, you know that if I hadn't been around to translate that passage, Red would've bunged it through some translation software. And any one of the others could've done what I did in the fight. And the reason I wasn't a liability when you took on the knights that go "ni" was because back then you didn't give a toss whether I lived or died.

You said yourself this morning, that you and Dawn would both try to protect me. 'N' yeah, if we're talkin' about you takin' on half a dozen unarmed guys, I won't like it, but I'll deal. When we're talkin' about situations where there's a chance of you or Bit getting' hurt, I want you to promise me you'll let me take my own chances."

"Spike, it won't come to that. If they let us just get on with things after the whole Adam mess, they're not going to come after us now. It's not like we're a threat to National Security or any-" Buffy stopped mid-word when she noticed the way his jaw muscles were suddenly twitching. "Spike, wha- Dawn, you think they know Dawn's the Key."

Spike bowed his head, his gaze focussed on his upraised knees, his words spoken in a hushed and deathly serious tone. "I think if they knew about us when the Scoobies didn't, there's not much hope they haven't heard somebody say something about the Bit .and I think the second she ever seems to be anything more than a normal teenager they'll want to either control her or kill her. And I think you would let them kill you first."

Buffy used her free hand to grasp the vampire's chin, forcing his head round until they locked eyes. "And I know if that was what it took, that a certain pig-headed master vampire would be standing right next to me, at the very least blocking their way to her. And more than likely beating them through the pain. If we go down, we'll go down together.

And as far as we can tell it's a moot point anyway, because Dawn is a perfectly normal teenager."

"That's what we're goin' to have to hope, pet, but in Sunnyhell, what turns out how you want it to?"

"We did," answered Buffy before she pressed her lips to his, her hand moving from his chin to cup his cheek. "All we can do now is bring everyone up to speed and then wait and see. There's no point worrying over 'could happen's and 'might be's or we'll smother her." She shifted so that they rested forehead to forehead, looking straight into each other's eyes. "Capisce?"

"Capisce, love" he responded with an amused smile, before he mounted a counter attack on her mouth, that ended some minutes later with them horizontal on the bathroom floor and Spike's towel having been dislodged early in the proceedings.

"Now I know you're feeling better," teased Buffy as her eyes travelled the length of his body. "But we've got places to be and people to .meet."

"Shit. Lily." Spike made a grab for the pile of clean clothes, pulling on garments with no apparent logic other than the order that they came to hand, first a sock, then his shirt, then his jeans and finally the other sock. He pulled his belt from the loops of his discarded jeans and transferred over some odds and ends to the pockets of the clean pair, then exited the bathroom even as he fixed his belt into position. Two steps later, he went back for his boots.

 
 
Chapter #34 - Chapter 6:02
 







SECTION 6 - BAD MOON RISING

Hope you got your things together
Hope you are quite prepared to die
Looks like we're in for nasty weather
One eye is taken for an eye.

Don't go around tonight
Well, it's bound to take your life
There's a bad moon on the rise

(Credence Clearwater Revival [written by John Fogerty], 1969)




Chapter 6.02
Friday, May 10th, 2002

It was a very nervous slayer who waited at the apartment door along with her sister and her fiancé. The sight of Clem's friendly face did a lot to restore her, before she realised, it might not necessarily be Clem at all. It could be a relative of some sort. It would be kinda embarrassing if she was wrong, but she didn't know how you could tell whatever type of demon Clem was apart from others of the same type. Oops, Giles would not be proud of her research skills. She'd never even asked Spike what breed of demon he was.

Spike led the way into the apartment chatting to the demon who held the door open as he moved down the hall, at least until he was distracted. "Hey, mate. D'yer mum get the message we were running a bit late?"

"Yeah, s'okay, Marie's working late anyway so we're still waiting..." The demon paused to watch as a small pink and black missile impacted with Spike's legs. ".For her," he finished off, as Spike swung the missile up into his arms.

"Unker Will. Gramma says I forgotted you, but I didn't."

"I knew you wouldn't, pixie." Spike brushed away stray strands of jet-black hair from the little girl's face and gave her a quick peck on the end of her nose. The girl settled comfortably with a leg either side of Spike's hip and her arms round his neck, while Spike supported her with an arm under her bottom.

Spike turned around facing back toward the front door. "Rosa, I want you to meet some very special people. The lady with the flowers is Buffy. Buffy and I are going to be getting married soon, and the other lady with her is her sister Dawn. And your Uncle Will likes them both very much."

At first all the girls could see was a curtain of glossy black hair tied with a pink bow, but when the girl raised her head from where it was buried in Spike's neck they found themselves looking into the sweetest, pair of chocolate brown eyes they could imagine. Everything about the little girl, from her Barbie pink jeans and T-shirt to her white high-tops, looked hundred percent cute-as-could-be human, except for her ears, which flopped forward just like Clem's. If Xander could have seen her he might have been putting two and two together about the father of Anya's daughter in his visions.

Dawn waved at the little girl. "Hi, Rosa."

Buffy, meanwhile looked across from the child to the demon she was now fairly certain was Clem, a decision mostly based on the clothes he was wearing, her eyebrow raised. Clem, or his look-alike just shook his head, crossing and uncrossing his hands to indicate his lack of paternity.

"Hello," answered the girl before burying her face once more against Spike's neck. "They're pretty," she whispered into his ear.

"Yes, pet. All Uncle Will's girls are pretty. Let's go take them to meet your gran." Still carrying the girl on his hip he made for the main room of the apartment and once there, pushed aside an ajar door to enter the kitchen. Clem and the girls stayed back in the living room not wanting to crowd the chef.

"I hear congratulations are in order," Clem said to Buffy, preventing her from listening to the hushed conversation in the kitchen.

"Yeah, it looks that way."

Clem looked at Buffy just a little awkwardly. "Do we hug? .I mean, is this a hug type situation?"

"Yes, Clem. We hug." Passing her bouquet to Dawn temporarily, she moved forward to hold Clem around the waist as best she could with her small arms.

"So who's the little cutie in pink?" Dawn asked as Buffy extricated herself from Clem's arms.

"Rosa? She's my niece."

"I never heard you mention any brothers or sisters," responded the younger Summer's.

"Yeah, well, Rosa's dad passed away nearly two years ago now." Clem shuffled and looked uncomfortably around the room, looking at everything except Buffy. "But she's got her mom and me and her grandma to look after her. She misses him sometimes, but she's fine."

Buffy found herself trying to do a mental review of all her patrols around that time. The thing is, patrolling generally consisted of killing demons who attacked her, or who she caught attacking someone else. She thought it was unlikely that any brother of Clem's would fall into that category. What was she doing two years ago? Mom was still alive. She was in college, living in a dorm, dating Riley. The Initiative. She just knew that this little girl's father had been killed in one of Maggie Walsh's science experiments, or maybe in that final battle, trying to escape, to get back to his family. Suddenly the fact that she had ever had anything to do with the Initiative made her feel like Mengele's accomplice.

"She seems to like Spike, anyway," Dawn tactfully steered the conversation away from the sensitive subject, knowing what a touchy topic loss could be.

Clem smiled his agreement. "Sure. She loves the accent. And he always reads to her. You should hear him do Billy Goats Gruff, 'course we had to tell her that trolls don't really live under bridges, or at least not all the time, but it's worth it when Spike does all the voices. Quite the Hans Christian Anderson, he is."

"Hey, Clem. How 'm I ever goin' to convince 'Bit's new boyfriend that I'm the Big Bad, if you keep tellin' her things like that she can pass on. She'll make him think I'm a right poofter." Spike was coming back out of the kitchen, still carrying his young admirer and being followed by a petite female horned demon who didn't look too much older than her son.

Dawn made a motion as if to zip her lips closed. "Your secret's safe with me. At least until I have a Bite Size or two of my own that need read to. Then we'll send for you."

Buffy couldn't place it at first, but eventually she realised who Clem's mom reminded her of. She was smaller of course, and apparently younger and of course female and her eyes were more like Clem's, but his mother reminded her of the demon who had tried to sell the books of ascension to her and Faith. The demon Faith killed, as Buffy had later realised when she found out Faith had been working with the black-hats.

Buffy had another bad feeling his apartment had been near the bus station, just as they were near the bus station, now. She found herself hoping he wasn't another of Clem's relations. No wonder Clem acted nervous around her.

Spike noted Buffy's discomfort, and slipped his free arm around her shoulders pulling her to his side. The gesture felt better than Buffy would ever have imagined. It announced to all the people in the room that she was his. His to love, his to support, his to hold and his to protect even from well-meaning friends who had every reason to hate her. Suddenly feeling more comfortable, Buffy transferred the flowers to one hand so she could slide the other under his duster and into the far back pocket of his jeans. She smiled as their eyes met, knowing he'd be able to read her gratitude and love in her expression as plain as if she'd said the words out loud.

"So William," said the diminutive demon, "you going to introduce us, or you going to forget you gentleman and stare all night like puppy dog?"

"I can't do both?" Spike turned to the older demon, head tilted and eyebrow raised, eliciting a small giggle from the child in his arms. "Lily, this is my fiancée, Buffy."

Buffy temporarily withdrew her hand from under Spike's coat holding it out towards her hostess. "It's very nice to meet you."

Clem's mom made a small grunting noise as if she knew that it was anything but nice for Buffy to meet her, but then took the proffered hand shaking it firmly. "Seems like you wise-up. You make him happy, that good. You treat him like dog, you make him no happy, you no more welcome here. Understand?"

Buffy gulped and nodded. "I understand. These are for you." Buffy held out the bouquet to her hostess, her nerves returning despite Spike's reassuring arm around her. Slaying demons, she could do. Interacting with demons who could read her emotions, not so good.

"Thank you." replied the woman before turning to give them to her son, requesting that he put them in a bucket with some water until she had time to find a vase.

"These are for you, too." Dawn handed over the box of chocolates she had been carrying. The demoness's face softened visibly as she turned to the younger Summers.

Spike obliged with the formal introductions. "This is Dawn, Buffy's sister. Dawn, Lily."

Dawn was surprised to find herself enveloped in a hug. "Those who are true friends to our true friends are always welcome in this house. You good for William. He go poof if you no here last year."

"Hey, less with the poof comments. I know your English is good enough to know better," Spike protested.

"Thank you. It's nice to meet you, too. You're very kind to have us all," Dawn responded.

"Sit. Sit." Lily pointed toward the three-piece suite occupying one end of the spacious living room. "I go watch food. Fix flowers. Clem, he stay." With that she bustled off in the direction of the kitchen again, depositing the chocolates on a side table as she left. "Marie, she Rosa's momma, be home soon. Then we eat."

Spike put his charge down on the floor when he reached the sofa, but once he had taken a seat she immediately climbed into his lap. He turned to Clem. "So, mate, did Buffy tell you why I was actually trying to ring you in the first place, or are you still in the dark."

Clem shrugged and looked at Buffy and then back to Spike. "So, what's the news?"

They were still discussing things to do with the wedding, suits and fittings when they heard a key in the front door. Rosa scrambled off Spike's knee in a mad rush for the door.

"Momma, momma. Unker Will's here with some pretty ladies."

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" came the wry reply from the as yet unseen woman in the hall.

"Are you casting aspersions on my character, amiga?" Spike responded, turning in his seat to see the woman who entered the room.

"Wouldn't you have to find some first, amigo?" the woman teased. She leant over the arm of the sofa and kissed Spike on the cheek, and Dawn and Buffy caught their first glimpse of the tiny, beautiful Hispanic woman. Buffy felt distinctly underdressed in comparison to the impeccably made-up woman in her navy business suit. "I'm just going to say hi to Lily and go get changed. You can do the introductions when I get back, though I think I can guess." She blew a kiss to Clem as she turned to leave, chatting to the excited Rosa about her day with her grandma as she went.

"Your brother doesn't seem to have shared your objection to tight-skinned women, then, Clem?" Buffy asked.

"Oh, he did. It's just when you meet someone like her, looks don't matter. You can't have everything," the wrinkly demon replied, and Buffy didn't have a clue whether he was being serious or having a joke at her expense. She also wondered if he was nursing a bit of a crush on the woman himself.

"Yeah, when you meet the right one you just have to grin and bear it if she looks like Salma Hayek," Dawn made use of her best sarcastic voice.

"Hey, Bit, can the sarcasm till you get to know the lady. Then, you can be sarcastic to her face. Till then, behave." Spike interceded on the absent woman's behalf.

Buffy began to think if Spike called Marie 'a lady' and objected to Dawn's comment, then probably Clem's remark had been no more than the truth. In which case, she really didn't feel comfortable having Lily able to compare the two of them. She wasn't even sure she liked Spike comparing the two of them.

"All the cutlery and stuff in the same place?" Spike asked rising from his chair and taking off his duster, slinging it over the back of the sofa where he'd been sitting.

"Sure," answered Clem. "I'll get the table-cloth."

Buffy and Dawn watched as without any prompting, the two men cleared away Rosa's crayons and colouring-in books and set the table ready for dinner, working around each other as if they'd done it many times before. In fact when Buffy offered to help they just waved her away saying they had things under control.

Before they had finished Marie came back into the room, carrying Rosa piggy back. This time she wore a pair of faded blue jeans, trainers and a Miami Hurricanes football top, and her once elegant coiffure was scooped up into a sloppy ponytail. Now that Buffy could see her closer up, she realised that she was probably only a year or two this side of thirty, a good seven or eight years older than the slayer.

"Hey, Spike. Ready to do the honours or should we just introduce ourselves?" Marie called over.

The vampire gave a snort. "Like I'm going to leave you lot unattended to swap secrets. 'Bout as much chance of that as there is of Clem here winning the Miss Sunnydale pageant."

Spike bustled round, rapidly finishing his share of the chore before he came back to the end of the room where the women congregated.

"Marie, Buffy, Dawn. Happy now?" he asked, looking at Marie.

"Not yet," answered the brunette. "Say, Buffy, what would you say is the most embarrassing thing you've seen Spike do?"

Spike rolled his eyes and headed for the kitchen.

"Guess it must be time for Clem to dust off his swimsuit," Buffy commented dryly. "And I think I'd have to go with dating Harmony. Or getting thrown through a window for propositioning a robot. You?"

"I quite liked it that Thanksgiving when he was bouncing round tied to a chair going, 'You made a bear. You made a bear. Undo it. Undo it,'" Dawn responded, imitating the blond vamp.

"Knowing Spike, I'm not going to ask why he was tied to a chair to begin with. It would probably be unsuitable for small ears," Marie remarked.

"You think that was bad. I spent the rest of that week chained up in the watcher's bath tub with Missy feeding me through a straw," Spike complained as he brought through a casserole dish and put it on the table. Lily followed behind him carrying dishes filled with potatoes and vegetables.

"Only because Buffy wouldn't do it," retorted Dawn. "She said he kept trying to look down her top."

"Yeah .so. I was chipped, not neutered, pet," the vampire acknowledged, going through to the kitchen. This time when he returned he was carrying a mug of steaming sanguine goodness.

"Sit, everybody. Food is ready." The family matriarch took her seat at one end of the table. As the man of the house Clem sat opposite her. Spike sat down next to a bare place setting, drawing Buffy into the seat next to him, leaving Dawn, Rosa and Marie to sit at the other side of the table. Knowing they still had to eat wherever they were going and observing that Spike wasn't eating at all, Dawn and Buffy took only sparing portions of the tuna casserole and overcooked vegetables. Buffy realised the same could be said of Clem. Was this the explanation for all the junk food he ate? Could his mother's cooking be that bad? After one mouthful she knew. It was.

Somehow Buffy made it through the meal. With everyone eating except Spike there wasn't much in the way of chatter. Buffy was glad. She felt decidedly uncomfortable whenever she was in the same room as Clem's mom. It was the same sort of uneasiness you get when confronted with a policeman. Even if you're totally innocent you feel guilty. In Buffy's case it was worse because she, Lily and Clem knew she was guilty. They had seen Spike's broken body and mutilated face. They knew that she was the monster, not Spike.

Spike forgave her before she'd even left. It was as if he felt he deserved no better. Those of her friends that she'd told forgave her because she was Buffy, they were her friends and that's what friends did. If some of them thought Spike didn't matter because he was evil and soulless then that just made it easier for them. Now for the first time she had to face up to what she'd done through the eyes of people who cared about Spike and knew he deserved better. They weren't predisposed to forgive her. To them she was Spike's abusive partner. Buffy looked into the mirror of other people's opinion and realised that if she had to put a name to the girl she saw reflected back, it wouldn't be Buffy. It would be the slayer, or maybe even Faith.

Maybe she had stared too long into the abyss, and that was who she was now. Or maybe, just maybe she could change again for the better this time. Her spirit guide had said that she was full of love, that she would only lose it if she refused it. If she let him, Spike would teach her to give her love freely. In her mind, that was the bravest thing Spike did. However often, and however much he was hurt, Spike never hid behind emotional walls and barricades. He gave of himself freely and without reserve. After Angel hurt her, she had never opened herself to that intensity of feeling again for fear it would lead once more to that same pain.

'Crummy time for an epiphany ', she thought, as she struggled her way through lumpy custard and super-sour rhubarb crumble. When they were sneaking around, they never seemed to have a problem finding time to be alone. Now, it seemed that there were always others around, that there were always things to be done, places to be. At the end of the night, though, he was hers and hers alone. Tonight, after they saw the others, after the Bronze, after patrol she would tell him. For now, she made do with letting her hand rest on his thigh. Cool fingers covered her own and her eyes flicked to his face, only to be trapped yet again by the love in those irresistible cobalt depths.

Buffy still didn't know how she came to find herself in love with the blond vampire. Maybe she'd already been in love with him before he cast the spell to have his will done. Maybe she fell in love with the side of him she saw under the spell. Or maybe it just fell into place as soon as she stopped guarding her feelings against him, but she did know that the look in those eyes was at least part of the reason why she fell.

 
 
Chapter #35 - Chapter 7:01
 







SECTION 7 - I SECOND THAT EMOTION

Maybe you think that love would tie you down
You ain't got the time to hang around
Maybe you think that love was made for fools
So it makes you wise to break the rules

Oh little girl, in that case I don't want no part
That would only break my heart
Oh, but if you feel like loving me
If you got the notion
I second that emotion
Said, if you feel like giving me
A lifetime of devotion
I second that emotion

(Japan [written by Smokey Robinson and Arthur Cleveland])




Chapter 7.01
Friday, May 10th, 2002

The rest of the night was just so many hours to go through until they could be alone. In the end Spike disregarded all the bookings he'd made and drove them to an out of the way roadhouse that did bar meals and was mostly patronised by bikers. And if Xander felt out of place, then it was a good bet none of Riley's cohorts could walk in unnoticed either. The food was good and for those who partook the beer was better.

The gang took it much as expected when they found out that they could be under surveillance. Willow and Tara volunteered to research all means magical and electronic to find any listening devices or cameras that might be hidden too subtly for the human or vampire eye. Xander floundered in denial and Anya said that if she found they were selling any tapes she wanted royalties. Dawn was distressed but stoically brave when she found out the government could be aware of her secret identity. She promised that if anything key-related occurred Buffy and Spike would be first to know, away from the house and any potential listening devices. Just in case, the group agreed, no more Key comments, monk comments or anything that could lead them to investigate Dawn's background, if somehow they didn't already know.

Spike got volunteered to drive Buffy, Dawn and the witches to LA the following morning, so that they could choose the bridesmaid's dresses, and he booked rooms for them all at the same motel again, so they could leave it till Sunday night to drive back. Xander announced that he'd finished the plans for the basement and submitted them to city hall for planning permission. Willow said Spike's computer was up and running and just needed to be moved to the flat.

Funnily enough, once they found out about Dawn's date, the rest of the gang also decided to swing by the Bronze, just for a drink or two. This, reasoned Buffy, meant she and Spike could swing a quick patrol while Dawn was under the watchful gaze of the other adults, giving Dawn the illusion of more privacy and her and Spike more time alone later. Even more surprisingly, Spike agreed without protest, though he insisted if they weren't back by the time the others left Dawn and Janice had to leave with them.

It was latish by the time they arrived at the Bronze. From her black looks, so like her sister's, Spike judged that the guy in the corner talking to the two girls, was the gentleman Dawn had been hoping to see. Spike eavesdropped on enough of the conversation to be able to tell it was the girls who were on the hunt, not the guy and he decided to let her know before she caused a scene.

"Better go rescue him, Bit, before he has to resort to harsh language. Those two don't seem to take the hint. We'll be up on the balcony when you're ready to do the introductions. Don't make us wait too long."

So, while the others headed for the bar and Dawn went to get her man, Buffy found herself back on that familiar balcony.

Buffy wasn't angry at him per se, but she was ready to be if he didn't have a good reason for bringing her here. "Why here? We're not."

"No, pet, we're not. I'm just hoping we're going to be in and out too quick for it to be worth getting a drink. We're too late to get a table without threatening someone. I didn't want to say we'd be on the dance-floor, 'cause then we'd be stuck there whatever crap they play. And from up here we can play spot the vamp, and keep an unobtrusive eye on Bit till we leave. And maybe I can get you to tell me what was causing all the frown lines back at Lily's."

"Am I that easy to read?" Buffy asked.

"Only to me," answered her peroxided paramour, as he drew her into his arms for a gentle kiss, deliberately keeping both hands on her back above the waist in case teenaged eyes were watching.

"Tonight, back at your place, we'll open that bottle of champagne and I'll tell all," Buffy promised. "Of course it could just be indigestion, which I notice you managed to completely avoid."

"Not my fault if everybody knows vampires don't eat." Spike's eyes narrowed as he looked at something over Buffy's shoulder.

"What's with the look. We got business?" Buffy asked.

"No, just that Bit's bloke moves like he knows how to fight, and until I know he's going to be using that to look after her, I'm not sure I like it. I'd rather be sure if it came to a fight she'd win."

"I'll buy her some pepper spray or mace, whatever. She can look after herself better than most kids her age anyway. She'll be fine. Just try to be nice." Taking Spike's arm she turned him to face the stairs as her sister's head came into view.

Dawn chatted as she came upstairs, hand in hand with the new man in her life. "Spike's cool, most of the time, but he can be a bit over-protective. He'll probably act like a jackass until he trusts you, but as long as you aren't looking to use me and then dump me, you should live." That should do it, Dawn thought, knowing her ploy could work one of two ways. Either Spike would go into total asshole mode, in which case Brandon had been warned, or he'd do the opposite and try to prove her wrong, which would suit her just fine. Judging by the smirk on his face it was going to be the former.

Maybe Buffy spotted the warning signs because she stepped in front of the vamp ensuring she would be first to greet the newcomer. "Hi. I'm Dawn's sister, Buffy, and this is my fiancé, Spike. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Mentally, Buffy was berating herself for Spike's influence on her sister. The look was more Goth than Billy Idol, and the black T-shirt had a design printed on in white, a cartoon of a goth looking girl in a vest wearing an ankh against a checkerboard background. However, the tight black jeans, the boots (in this case New Rocks) and the black nail polish were pure Spike, even if he only had a biker's leather jacket, currently carried not worn, rather than a full length duster. His hair was short and she thought it was naturally dark, but spiked with coloured gel that made it reflect ultramarine when the light caught it. The difference in their respective heel sizes made him look only an inch or so taller than Dawn, but they were probably both still growing. He wasn't broad or imposing like some football players Buffy remembered from high school, but from what she could see of his arms Buffy would bet Spike was right. He was muscled like a dancer or a martial artist and she didn't know many fifteen-year-old boys (wait, he drove, must be sixteen) that keen on dancing. He certainly didn't look like he'd be auditioning for any boy bands soon. Though, Dawn was right. The guy was definitely a cutie, green eyes and a sweet smile.

"Hi, it's nice to meet you, too." He held his hand out toward Buffy and after shaking hands with her to Spike. To Dawn's surprise Spike didn't make a point of crushing his hand. He didn't make any obnoxious comments or anything, just said, "pleasure," and then lit up one of his illegal cigarettes.

"Did Dawn mention we'd like you to come over for dinner on Tuesday?" Buffy asked.

"Give me a chance. We only got here five minutes ago," Dawn protested.

"Don't worry, mate. 'S just Buffy's responsible for Dawn, so we like to know the people she hangs around with. That's all. We're not going to tie you to a chair and force you to eat Buffy's cooking." Spike dodged the half-hearted slap that accompanied Buffy's, "hey."

"And these are meant to be my role-models," said Dawn. "Can we go now?"

"Where's Janice? I thought she was joining you this evening," Spike queried.

"Her mom's dropping her off at half past. She didn't want to get here early and have to hang round on her own. Now can we go?"

"Yeah. Don't do anything you've been told not to do. If you need anything before we get back, see one of the guys or ring Spike's mobile, and we'll see you nearer curfew," Buffy replied following the pair downstairs, with Spike on her heels. They had a quick word with the others before they left and then headed for the cemeteries.

Buffy was the first to break the silence as they walked. "You were remarkably civil, there."

"And what?" Spike pouted. "You thought I was going to threaten to kill him if he hurt her or something. Contrary to popular belief those words do not come out of everyone's mouth any time a Summers starts dating someone. 'S not like I could lay a finger on him anyway. You would be the one beatin' him up, pet. Or not, since you didn't even give that Parker git the hidin' he deserved."

"Just thought you might have felt compelled to say something as the man of the house," Buffy retorted.

"You made it perfectly clear that I shouldn't overstep the big-brother mark. Besides, you think I'm stupid enough to do the warning in front of Bit. He'll get it at least twice tonight off Harris and Red anyway. I thought since she won't actually be leaving with him tonight I'd cut him some slack." Spike smirked. "At least until Tuesday."

"So, you're all chummy and I get to look like the evil one. Gee thanks, Spikey."

"You said to try to be nice. I was nice."

"My point exactly, since when do you do what I ask you to do."

Spike's gaze turned into a leer, and he practically purred his response. "I can think of quite a few times in the not too dim and distant, sweetness."

"Pig," retorted the slayer as her cheeks flushed bright red despite the rush of blood to other areas, lengthening her stride to leave Spike behind.

Spike just grinned and appreciated the view she presented to him, adjusting his own pace to stay a few yards behind her. At this speed they would do the rounds and be back at the Bronze in less than an hour, which suited him just fine.

Without the three stooges sticking their oar in, or summoning up weird and unusual demons for them to play with patrol was actually verging on boring. As far as the demon population went it was only the freshly risen and terminally stupid who didn't know better than to cross paths with the two blondes these days. Spike's guess was that it would stay that way until some out of towner showed up and tried to crown himself the new Big Bad. Somehow, that always seemed to be about autumn. No one seemed to want to move to Sunnydale in the summer, not that he could blame them. If it wasn't for the whole lack of circulation thing Spike knew he'd find it too damn hot. So maybe they would get a couple of months peace and quiet to get Bit half-way trained up before the next crisis hit, if they were lucky, assuming the tin soldier stayed away.

At the Bronze, they seemed to have made progress over the last week. Xander didn't let his mouth hang open when they snogged or danced any more, and they went the whole night without anyone having to jump down his throat and tell him to get over himself. Bit and her beau behaved themselves in a nervously cute, teenage kind of way, though Spike suddenly found himself almost rooting for Angel's son. At least he was one hundred percent certain that he didn't have any connection with the Initiative. Hard as it was though, he'd give the boy a chance but if Niblet shed a single unhappy tear over him, somehow the boy would be history.

Finally, it was time for them to go, and their elders watched with varying degrees of approval as the kid tentatively kissed Dawn on the cheek, only to have her plant an open-mouthed smacker on his lips, that had Spike all but growling. He scowled his disapproval all the way to Janice's house, warning Dawn to be ready early for the trip to LA.

And then they were on their own, just Spike and Buffy.

 
 
Chapter #36 - Chapter 7:02
 




SECTION 7 - I SECOND THAT EMOTION

Maybe you think that love would tie you down
You ain't got the time to hang around
Maybe you think that love was made for fools
So it makes you wise to break the rules

Oh little girl, in that case I don't want no part
That would only break my heart
Oh, but if you feel like loving me
If you got the notion
I second that emotion
Said, if you feel like giving me
A lifetime of devotion
I second that emotion

(Japan [written by Smokey Robinson and Arthur Cleveland])




Chapter 7.02
Friday, May 10th, 2002

They were both silent in the car, but not an awkward silence, just an agreement between them that whatever needed to be said could wait. The vertical portion of the walk from Spike's car to the flat was only accomplished after many pauses, which went some way toward making Spike feel like a hypocrite and finally entailed him picking Buffy up and carrying her up the final flight and a half. Otherwise, he claimed he would have had to take her there on the stairs and damn the neighbours.

Buffy knew that by the time they reached the flat he would be impatient. She had planned it that way. She was counting on it in fact. Even as he set her on her feet and closed the front door, they continued to savour the taste of each other's mouths. Her hand moved to the front of his jeans, cupping and stroking the swelling there until she was sure he was ready for her.

Trailing kisses along his jaw-line she finally nipped and nibbled at his ear as her hands loosened his belt buckle. Spike backed her against the wall, one hand slipping between the layers of leather to tease the coarse curls at the juncture of her thighs, the other sliding under her top to cup her breast, his thumb teasing back and forward over her already erect nipple.

"Spike?" her voice came soft and throaty at his ear.

"What, love?"

"I want. I think it's time. The claim, don't want to wait," she whispered.

He drew his head back, pinning her with his tender gaze, even as the hand beneath her skirt parted her warm wet folds. "You're totally sure?"

The slightest flicker of doubt crossed her face. "Ninety five percent sure," she answered.

"That's pretty certain," Spike conceded, his fingers gently stroking back and forward on her sensitive flesh. Without breaking eye contact, he lowered his head to suck on her free nipple through the fabric of her top.

"Ah .as sure .ahhh .as I'm .oh, oh .going to get," Buffy struggled to make her reply as he eased a finger into her, while his thumb teased at the bundle of nerves within her hot moist lips. He set a steady rhythm with his thrusts and she ground against his hand urging him to move faster and harder, her hands ripping at his flies until he moved his hips out of reach. His hands and mouth caused waves of sensation to build within her, urging her toward a crescendo he wouldn't let her reach.

Buffy moaned her discontent as he stilled his movements, lifting his head and withdrawing his hand from between her legs to lick it clean.

"Please, Spike, please."

"Soon, baby. Going to feel good real soon." He nudged aside the straps on her top as far as he could with her coat still in place, pushing the material down to bare her breasts. Buffy grasped the lapels of his coat, roughly pulling him toward her.

"Not soon, now, Spike, now." She smashed her mouth against his and this time when she popped the flies on his jeans button by button he let her. Her legs wrapped around his waist and he sank to his knees before laying her gently down on her back. His hand moved between her legs once more as his tongue explored her mouth. This time he plunged two fingers inside her, working them swiftly in and out. She bucked her hips beneath him, her hands reaching for his velvet smooth cock. Swifter than her lust-blurred senses could detect, with no perceptible break in rhythm Spike slammed home with his dick instead of his fingers.

Buffy screamed her pleasure mingled with a hint of pain at the suddenness of the invasion. Her inner muscles stretched to their maximum capacity with little preparation.

"That what you wanted, love?" Spike asked, his lips against her neck as he moved down to cover his mark with his lips.

"Yes .oh God, yes," Buffy panted as his tongue probed the almost healed scars on her neck, electrical charges arcing through her body.

"Feels good, doesn't it? Fills your tight little pussy just right?" he murmured against her neck.

"Yes, Spike .oh God .harder."

Spike obliged, sliding a hand beneath her hips to change the angle and slamming hard against her clit with his pelvis with each thrust. "Feels so good, and it's all for you, Buffy. Only ever for you from now on."

"Mine," she answered. "Only mine."

As she spoke the words Spike brought forth his demonic visage and then kissed her as they both neared their peak. Buffy probed deep into his mouth with her tongue and then pulled it back into her mouth, using his fang to rip a tear in its upper surface as she did so.

The ragged stinging line of pain pushed her over the edge as the surge of her blood in his mouth brought him crashing with her.

Instinct took Spike over. "Mine!" he cried, before his fangs found their exact mark on her neck. Buffy made her own claim a fraction of a second later, forcing herself to bite down as hard as she could at the join of his neck and shoulder.

Spike raised his head, opening a cut on his tongue even as he changed back into human form. "Yours, forever, Buffy," he confirmed in a soft voice.

"And I'm yours, Will, until the end of the world." He licked gently at the puncture wounds in her neck until her blood stopped flowing, and she followed suit. The taste of their mingled blood filled their mouths.

At first Buffy put the light-headed feeling down to post-coital euphoria, but then she felt the familiar pounding through her veins. She was aware of her blood pumping through every vessel in her body, could almost see the individual cells. She felt a sense of foreboding, waiting for the slayer flashes to start, as they had when she tasted Dracula's blood. Instead, the visions when they came were anything but depressing.

@ --`--,--`--,----

"Just say yes and make me the happiest man on earth."

"Oh, Spike! Of course it's yes."

@ --`--,--`--,----

"What's wrong?"

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Is there something I can do?"

@ --`--,--`--,----

"Spike, I need an answer. Now. In or out? You're the only one strong enough to protect them."

"All right then. Ladies, come on in. "

@ --`--,--`--,----

"You'll find her, just in the nick of time, that's what you hero types do."

@ --`--,--`--,----

"Something's happening to me. I can't stop thinking about you."

"Uhh."

"And if that means turning my back on the whole evil thing-."

.. "This is real. I love-."

@ --`--,--`--,----

"No!" (Cough) "You can't ever. Glory never finds out."

"Why?"

"'Cause Buffy .the other, not so pleasant Buffy .anything happened to Dawn, it'd destroy her. I couldn't live, her bein' in that much pain. Let Glory kill me first. Nearly bloody did."

A kiss.

.. "What you did, for me, and Dawn. That was real. I won't forget it.

@ --`--,--`--,----

".it would be like suicide."

"I'd do it .Right person. Person I loved .I'd do it.

@ --`--,--`--,----

"We're not all gonna make it. You know that."

"Yeah. Hey. Always knew I'd go down fightin'."

"I'm counting on you. to protect her."

"Till the end of the world. Even if that happens to be tonight."

"I'll be a minute."

"Yeah. I know you'll never love me. I know I'm a monster. But you treat me like a man. And that's."

@ --`--,--`--,----

"How long was I gone?"

"Hundred forty-seven days yesterday. Uh. hundred forty-eight today.'Cept today doesn't count, does it?"

@ --`--,--`--,----

"I think I was in heaven."

@ --`--,--`--,----

"Why are you always around when I'm miserable?"

@ --`--,--`--,----

"And the only person I can stand to be around is a .neutered vampire who cheats at kitten poker."

@ --`--,--`--,----

"Good fight."

@ --`--,--`--,----






"I touch the fire and it freezes me


 




I look into it and it's black.



"I died so many years ago




This isn't real but I just wanna feel."



You can make me feel."

A kiss.

@ --`--,--`--,----

"Good bye to you

Goodbye to everything I knew

You were the one I loved. "

@ --`--,--`--,----

"Afraid I'm gonna-."

They kiss. Walls crack and plaster falls as they move against them, her legs wrapped around his body, and when they fall over backwards they go through the floor, but neither notices because their eyes are locked on each other, even as their bodies move to an ancient rhythm.

@ --`--,--`--,----

"Get dressed if you can find your clothes, and push off. 'Cause if I can't have all of you I'd rather-."

@ --`--,--`--,----

"You don't belong here. You're something .You're better than this."

"I need the money."

"I can get money .Walk with me now, come on."

@ --`--,--`--,----

Either side of the door to Spike's crypt they stand, their poses mirroring each other.

@ --`--,--`--,----

"Tell me you love me."

"I love you. You know I do."

"Tell me you want me."

"I always want you. In point of fact-."

"Shut up."

@ --`--,--`--,----

"I do want you. Being with you .makes things simpler. For a little while."

@ --`--,--`--,----

"You meet my friend?"

"No, not yet. But she seems like a very nice attempt at making me jealous."

"Is it working?"

"A little. It doesn't change anything .but if you're wildly curious, yeah, it hurts."

"I'm sorry."

@ --`--,--`--,----

"I don't hurt you."

"I know."

@ --`--,--`--,----

"You know what my answer's going to be."

"I could make an informed guess."

"So is it okay to kiss you yet?"

@ --`--,--`--,----

"You know I'm counting on you to be the long-haul guy, don't you?"

@ --`--,--`--,----

"Will, I .I'm not in love with you .but I do love you."

@ --`--,--`--,----

In the bathroom, wearing the clothes they wore on their first date. He undresses and bathes her.

@ --`--,--`--,----

"I love you. I'm not in this to take what I want and leave you hanging. I want to make you happy."

@ --`--,--`--,----

"Door's still open, pet. Bite down."

@ --`--,--`--,----

"No sister-flower would be forgiven

If it disdain'd its brother

And the sunlight clasps the earth

And the moonbeams kiss the sea

What are all these kissings worth

If thou kiss not me?"

@ --`--,--`--,----

"Say it, slayer."

"I said I'm in love with you. I'm in love with Spike. I, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, am in love with, William the Bloody, master vampire and Slayer of Slayers."

@ --`--,--`--,----

"In that case, Buffy, my love, would you please do me the honour of consenting to be my wife?

"I will."

@ --`--,--`--,----

Backseat of the DeSoto. (SILENT "I. Love. You. I. Want. You. Forever.")

.. "I want you. I love you. Forever."

"Mine!"

"Yours. Forever."

@ --`--,--`--,----

Her in his arms, leaning against the tree by her mother's grave.

@ --`--,--`--,----

Her shielding him with her body as Stephen attacked.

@ --`--,--`--,----

Him swinging her in his arms, black leather coats swirling as they look into each other's eyes.

@ --`--,--`--,----

Dancing in a moonlit parking lot to the car radio. Walking together on the beach. Her standing in his arms as the waves crashed around them.

@ --`--,--`--,----

Both of them watching Dawn try on her dress for the prom.

@ --`--,--`--,----

"You're not just special, you're precious."

His hands on her shoulders, their heads tilting forward to rest forehead to forehead, gazes interlocked.

.. "And here you are, my beginning and my end."

@ --`--,--`--,----

Sparring at the Magic Box. Him coming up behind her and holding her in his arms .Her tying his bootlaces.

@ --`--,--`--,----

The two of them sitting side by side on the floor of the flat's bathroom, talking.

@ --`--,--`--,----

Him laying her gently on the hall carpet, only minutes ago.

@ --`--,--`--,----

A small reception room. "True colors" playing as they move in time, oblivious to everything but the joy and the love apparent on the other's face.

@ --`--,--`--,----

Images passed through her mind, flashing through and gone almost before she recognised them, like the books of "moving" pictures you would riffle through as a child. One constant in almost all the images, the look of love in his eyes and in the later ones, the same look in hers.

Slowly, she became aware of a gentle hand stroking her face. Her eyelids fluttered open and he was there above her, that same look in his eyes again.

"I guess you changed your mind about 'Wind Beneath My Wings' then, pet."

@ --`--,--`--,----

I see your true colours shining through
True colours and that's why I love you
So don't be afraid, to let them show
Your true colours (true colours) are beautiful, like a rainbow.

@ --`--,--`--,----

The End

The story continues in Ring of Fire