Chapter Fifteen


Two weeks to the day later, Spike and Buffy walked into the Council complex hand in hand.  The difference in Spike was amazing.  Students and staff stared at the man walking beside Buffy – his head covered in short brown hair, his face strikingly handsome, even with the few scars still remaining. Visible once again were sharp cheekbones and full lips. His blue eyes were shadowed by long thick lashes and his eyebrows were almost completely grown in, the scar from a Slayer’s sword now clearly visible.

Although he walked without a trace of a limp, Spike still carried the cane, twirling it occasionally and pointing it at the few girls he recognized.  He had no difficulty keeping up with Buffy as she showed him around the large complex, set in a former school campus now owned by the Council.  When they’d finished the tour, pausing to visit with Willow and to tell Dawn they’d meet her for lunch, they ended up back in front of Giles’s office.

They studied the closed door, but before they could knock, it opened and Giles came out to greet them.

“Two weeks, exactly. Very punctual,” he said, smiling at Buffy. He moved his gaze to Spike. “You look remarkably recovered,” he said stiffly. “From what I’ve heard from Dawn and Willow, you were completely unrecognizable when Buffy found you.”

“I think he found me,” Buffy said.  “Or we found each other.”

“Yes. Well, however it happened, I suppose we can all be grateful….” His voice trailed off when Spike raised a skeptical eyebrow, and he sighed deeply before backing up and gesturing them into his office.  He waited until they were sitting down together on a couch while he sat in a nearby chair.

“I understand that I may have some fence-mending to do, Spike. As far as my collaboration with Robin Wood was concerned… I have no excuse other than I thought you were a distraction and a danger to my slayer.  That I turned out to be wrong does nothing to change the situation as I perceived it at the time. However, I obviously owe you an apology, which I humbly offer now. I was wrong, and Buffy was right about your value to her.”

He paused, but Spike just stared at him. Only when Buffy poked him did he nod. “Apology accepted, Watcher. Never faulted you for trying to protect her.”

“As far as the events immediately preceding your unfortunate capture and subsequent imprisonment….”

Spike held up his hand.  “Don’t twist yourself into a pretzel trying to make that right.  I know you didn’t know I was there, and that’s my fault. And I know that no one trusted Angel – didn’t trust him much myself for a while there – but I also suspect that you wouldn’t have trusted me even if you had known.” He paused and frowned. “That’s all assuming that Andrew didn’t tell you that he saw me when he picked up the slayer that cut my hands off….”

Buffy gave a sharp inhalation. It had never occurred to her that while Andrew may have kept his promise to Spike not to tell her of his return, he could well have shared that information with Giles. Her eyes flew to his, waiting for him to respond, to tell her he would never have kept that information from her.

There was a tense silence, during which Buffy’s eyes filled, and Spike nodded, his face hard and cold. “So he did then, and you still didn’t trust me enough.  Some things never change…” He stood up. “Thing was… you didn’t trust Buffy or Willow either. They had a right to make their own decisions. I took that away from Buffy by not letting her know I was alive. I have to live with that.  But you… She’s earned that from you – many times over.  That’s what I’ll never forgive you for.”

Spike held out his hand to Buffy, who was also on her feet by then, her face a mixture of anger and sadness.

“Wait, please.”  Giles took off his glasses and set them down. It was a sign of how distressed he was that he didn’t waste time polishing them. He gave a deep sigh and nodded.  “You are quite right. I have no excuses that would matter to anyone but myself. And I would certainly understand if our relations remained strained.  However, please believe” – he turned his pleading eyes to Buffy – “that nothing I did, no decisions I made were for any reason but to spare you more grief. In hindsight, they were not good decisions, and perhaps did not allow for your growth as a woman and as a slayer.  But they were made with… with love and concern for your wellbeing. I would never make a similar decision now.” 

“I think you’re going to have to prove that,” Buffy said softly, blinking back tears. “I love you, Giles, but I don’t think I like you very much right now.”  She walked toward the door. “Come on Spike, let’s get to work.”


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was half a year and several mini-apocalypses later before the tense relations between the Head of the Watchers Council and the Head Slayer and her constant companion began to ease back into something resembling normal. Six months after they walked out of Giles’s office, Xander – now a steady presence in their lives as he and Dawn admitted to having developed a relationship that had them wanting to spend more time living in the same city – finally sat Buffy down and talked to her.

“Trust me, Buffster, I understand why you’re mad at the G-man. But I’ve got to tell you, I think he’s been punished enough.  Have you looked at him lately?”

Buffy shook her head no, although her mind went immediately to how aged Giles had seemed at the last general meeting.  “He looks old,” she finally admitted.

“He looks like somebody who gets drunk every night,” Xander contradicted. “You may not remember it, but I was there after you… died.  He looked like this for the first two months or more.  Him and Spike both, actually.  Between the two of them, I’m pretty sure Sunnydale’s supply of hard liquor had a hard time keeping up with demand for a while. Except this time, he hasn’t slowed down or stopped.” Xander shook his head.  “He’s drinking himself into an early grave… and it’s because he thinks you hate him.”

“She doesn’t hate him.” Spike’s voice preceded him into the room.  “She told him that straight away. Told him she loved him, she just didn’t like him very much.”

Xander glanced up at the vampire as he walked in on their conversation. Spike was almost completely back to normal, the only difference being the lack of bleaching of his hair and the smaller amount of gel used to hold it in place. Buffy had admitted that she loved his curls, and the dark roots he’d had when he first came back with the soul, so Spike had never gone back to the blond helmet he’d worn for much of his time in Sunnydale. 

“Well, she’s cut him out of her life so much that he thinks she hates him. And he thinks you’re responsible for it.”

“Gonna send somebody to stake me then, is he?  Again?”

“No! Don’t be stupid.  He’d never do that to Buffy.  But I wouldn’t expect tears if something happened to you during the next apocalypse.”

“Wouldn’t expect them anyway,” Spike muttered before sitting down beside Buffy.  “Harris is right, though, love.  Haven’t seen the Watcher look this destroyed since....”

Buffy looked at Spike. “I didn’t mean to shut him out completely. I was just so mad… and then we got busy with the slayers and that whole vampire castle thing in Scotland…” She sighed. “So, how do we—I fix this?”

“You could start by inviting him to the engagement party you’re throwing for Dawn and me.”

“I thought we were keeping that small? Just close friends and fami— Oh.”

“Yeah. Oh.” Xander stood up and stretched.  “Just think about it, Buffy. That’s all I’m saying.”


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Buffy’s timid attempt to include Giles in the small gathering planned for the following weekend didn’t go well at first.  She tried for breezy, “Hey, Giles, don’t forget to mark your calendar for next Saturday,” but when he just stared at her through eyes that were focused, if bloodshot, she faltered. “I mean… if you don’t already have plans… or something.”

“Well…” He paused and gathered himself. “As it happens I—”

Spike leaned over his shoulder and growled, “Don’t be a bloody git. Girl’s offering an olive branch – grab it. We both know you don’t have anything more important than a date with a bottle.”

“I don’t need advice from—”

Spike had already moved away, back to Buffy’s side.  “Besides,” he said with a grin. “If you don’t come to this engagement party, you won’t be invited to ours.”

Spike carefully avoided looking at Buffy’s astonished face as he threw out that casual piece of information. His grin never wavered, but his eyes told Giles that passing up this chance to let Buffy back into his life would earn him Spike’s undying animosity.  Giles nodded slowly and glanced at his desk calendar.

“I should be delighted,” he said. “What time do you want me there, and may I bring something?”

“Just your cheery self,” Spike responded for Buffy who was still trying to decipher what he’d meant by “ours”.  She followed him from the office, sputtering “Our… what?”

Spike stopped when they were standing alone on a balcony overlooking the dining hall.  He took both her hands and said, “Really had planned something a lot more romantic and less public for this, but…” He led her to a bench against the wall, and continuing to hold her hands in one of his, reached into his pocket to bring out a faded velvet-covered box.  “Found this upstairs in my mum’s stuff. I guess the hordes of country cousins overlooked it.”  He held it out and waited for Buffy to pull her hands away and take it. She looked up at him with eyes that never wavered as she opened the box and exposed the delicate ring lying within.

“Are you asking me to marry you?”

“I’m asking you to take this ring. It’s my pledge that I will love you and cherish you forever — or, considering our line of work, till death do us part. You can take it and hide it in a drawer; you can take it, and a decent amount of time after the Bit’s wedding, start wearing it; you can take it and just keep it as a trinket to wear when you feel like dressing up…” He dropped onto one knee in a scene eerily reminiscent of one they’d played out many years ago. “Or, you could say ‘yes’ you’ll marry me someday, and make me the happiest man in the world. No pressure,” he added when she continued to look back and forth from the ring to his face.

“No pressure,” she echoed. “You’re giving me your mother’s ring and you’re saying there’s ‘no pressure’.”

“I’m giving you the ring because I want you to have it. The marrying me part didn’t occur to me until just a few minutes ago, to tell you the truth.  The words just kind of fell out of my mouth before I could stop ‘em.”

“So, you just happened to have the ring in your pocket when you threatened Giles with not being invited to our… engagement party?”

He shrugged. “Stupid git was about to blow it. I had to say something. The ring’s been at a jeweler, being cleaned. I just picked it up last night and it was still in my pocket.”

“This is not the most romantic wedding proposal I’ve ever had,” she said, pressing her lips together primly.

“How many of the bloody things have you had?”

“Well… just one other, but—”

“Who was it?” he snarled. 

“You. You idiot!” She studied the ring. “The ring’s a lot prettier this time, though.”

He got off the floor and sat beside her.  “I can try it again later,” he offered. “Bring home some wine, light some candles….”

Buffy shrugged. “I think we have a group of girls to take out for a graduation patrol tonight.”   She slid her eyes to the side and looked at him through her lashes.  “If this is as good as it’s going to get, I guess I better say ‘yes’ now.”

His face lit up in the delighted smile she was sure no one but her ever got to see.  “Do you mean that?”

“Of course I mean it. I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t mean it!”

He leapt to his feet, picked her up and swung her around, his head thrown back and rich laughter ringing out.  Only when he realized that everyone in the dining hall was staring up at them, did he stop laughing and twirling her around.  He set her down, gave a wave to the girls staring up at them, and pulled her away down the hall to the elevator.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


How much Giles had missed of Buffy’s life became more and more obvious as the engagement party went on.  Spike and Xander bantered and snarked at each other with a level of comfort that was more reminiscent of brothers than former enemies.  How much of that was due to Dawn’s unique relationship with the souled vampire was anyone’s guess, but the end result was clearly the establishment of a small family.

Willow and Katrina, some of Dawn’s fellow Watchers-in-Training, a few of the older slayers, and the random boyfriends accompanying them were all the outsiders present at the small celebration.  At Dawn’s request, there were no formal speeches, just a general happy atmosphere as wedding plans and dates were discussed and ideas shared.  The cutting of a cake Buffy had purchased broke the party up into smaller groups as everyone searched for a place to sit and eat.

Giles was just getting to his feet when Buffy appeared at his side, holding out a plate with a generous slice of cake.

“Sugary goodness?” she asked, her nervousness apparent in her posture and voice.

“Yes, thank you. I…  it looks quite delicious.”

“Well, since neither Dawn or I had anything to do with making it, I’m kinda hoping that’s gonna be the case.”  She smiled, relaxing a little when it seemed he was as nervous as she was. 

“So,” she continued, sitting down next to him and digging into her own large piece of cake.  “Dawn and Xander. Who’d a thunk it, huh?”

Giles smiled briefly then nodded. “Actually, when one considers the rather unusual upbringing Dawn has had and the rather unique circumstances of her –  for want of a better word – arrival in this world, one can easily see why she would be drawn to someone as immersed in that world as she.  My own personal dating experiences many years ago, have led me to believe that relationships between people in our… situation… and outsiders rarely go well.”

“Good point.  I know my attempts to date ‘normal’ guys usually ended in having to save them from some monster… or standing them up so often they just gave up on me.  I mean, how do you explain that you weren’t home because you were busy fighting off a bunch of rejects from a Monty Python movie? Or that your last boyfriend isn’t around because you stabbed him and sent him to Hell?  That’s a real conversation stopper, let me tell you.”

Giles gave a weak smile. “Yes, I quite imagine it would be.” He didn’t bother to mention that most slayers didn’t live long enough for potential spinsterhood to become an issue.  “I used to think that all the interbreeding among watcher families was an attempt to keep the ranks closed, but now that I’m older, I understand that it was more likely just a need to cling to those who are like you and who know what you know. Not a deliberate choice at all.”

Buffy nodded.  “Kinda like, if you’re super-strong, and kill things for a living, you might be the most comfortable with somebody else who’s super-strong and likes to kill things?”  She spoke casually, but she was watching Giles from the corner of her eyes.  She saw him squeeze his eyes shut, then sigh.

“Yes. Like that, I would imagine.”  He paused, then continued, “Buffy, I… I don’t know how to apologize for keeping the knowledge of Spike’s return from you. I presume I just thought the… relationship… you’d had with Spike had run its course and that there was no reason to reopen old wounds. I had no right to keep that from you. It should have been your choice what to do about it – not mine.”

“Yeah,” she said softly. “It should have.”  She patted him on the hand. “But you know, I might not have done the right thing about it anyway. Who knows? Maybe it was best this way.”

“I doubt very seriously if Spike would agree with you – not after the horrific years he spent suffering for Angel’s challenge to the Senior Partners.”

Buffy sighed and shook her head.  “No. I would never have wished that on him… or on anybody. But it happened. He survived and he’s home again now.”

“Home.”  Giles looked around the house Buffy had transformed from a decrepit relic of another time into a warm, light-filled home.

“I don’t mean the house, Giles. I mean with me. Spike belongs with me.”

In spite of not having spent much time in their company, Giles had been well aware of the way Buffy and Spike had been refining the slayer training, and of the way they led by example when situations occurred that required the presence of experienced slayers.  While Buffy continued to be the best solitary fighter among the slayers, and Spike had shown clearly that he was a formidable opponent for any one of them – including Buffy – together they formed an almost unstoppable team. A force so powerful, working in such complete accord, that Giles was fairly sure their very presence at an evil event was enough to sway the entire battle before they ever joined it.

“I believe that to be quite true, Buffy,” he said, smiling when her eyes widened in shock. “It has taken me many years to see it… years in which I was apparently avoiding seeing what was in front of my face… but I must agree. Whatever force it is that has kept you both alive all these years and brought you back together, I must bow before its wisdom.”

“Huh.” Buffy seemed lost for words, but was rescued by Spike’s arrival. He rested a hand on her shoulder and said, “A word, love?”

Smiling her apology at Giles, Buffy followed Spike into the kitchen where he spun her around and kissed her thoroughly.  She leaned back in his arms and smiled up at him.

“That’s your word?”

“Could be. Did you like it?”

“Let me see….” She went up on her toes and kissed him back, smiling when biting his lip brought a happy growl from him.  “Yep,” she said, letting go. “I think I like it.  Good word.”

“So, how did your conversation go?” He released her and began putting used cake plates in the sink. 

“Do you seriously think I don’t know you could probably hear every word?” She put her hands on her hips and glared at him, laughing when he tried to look innocent.

“Just wanted to hear you say it again,” he mumbled, eyes on the floor. “You know, the part about how I belong with you.”

She shook her head. “I don’t know how one vampire can go from wildly egotistical to wildly insecure so fast.” She bumped him away from the sink with her hip, saying, “Go on back in there and make your own peace. Or go annoy Xander or something. I’ll put this stuff in the dishwasher.”

“Let it be duly noted that I was willing to stay here and help,” he said, leaning down to kiss her on the neck.

“Duly noted.  Go. Act like a host or something.”

Spike strolled through the other rooms, picking up discarded cake plates and glasses as he found them, working his way, in between trips to the kitchen, back to where Giles was sitting and speaking with Dawn. The old watcher’s face was animated and cheerful for the first time in months, and Xander came up beside Spike to watch. 

“Looks like fences are mended, huh?” he said, indicating Giles with his head.

“Think so. Here,” he handed his latest collection of dishes to Xander. “Make yourself useful.”

“Hey! Just because you’re all whipped and domesticated—”

“Finish that sentence, and I’ll feed you your liver.  And then I’ll tell Dawn what you said.”

Xander shuddered. “Dirty pool, deadman.”

“All’s fair,” Spike said smugly.

As Dawn got up to follow Xander into the kitchen, Spike walked over to where Giles was standing, seeming confused about whether he should be leaving, as others were beginning to, or whether he should go into the kitchen.  When Buffy came out and began to see her other guests out the front door, he moved in that direction. Only to be stopped by Spike’s hand on his arm.

“Heard what you said. ‘Bout the Slayer and me belonging together. I’m glad you told her. Should put her mind at ease a bit more.”

“I meant it, Spike,” Giles said. “When I look back, there was always something there. The two of you fought well together even when you didn’t think you were on the same side. There has to be a reason why neither of you could or would kill the other. And why you always came back to Sunnydale and Buffy. I just didn’t see it until recently. You do belong together.” He took a deep breath. “I’m very glad she has you in her life, sharing her home.”

Spike cocked his head and studied Giles’s face for a few seconds, then smiled and put out his hand. “Thank you for that, Rupert. I appreciate it.”


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Buffy and Spike stood in the doorway, waving good-bye to the last guests and leaning against each other.  When the door was shut, and the lights had been turned off, they wandered back to the kitchen and stared at the remaining pile of glasses and dishes.

“I don’t know about you, but I feel like killing something.”

“Right there with you, pet. My fangs are itchy.”

“Just hold that thought,” Buffy said as she ran up the nearest stairs to change.

At Spike’s urging, they had moved into the much larger master bedroom across the hall from the room Buffy had been using. She now had the use of a couple of armoires and a built-in closet, making finding things much easier. In no time, she was changed into her patrolling clothes and boots, clattering down the stairs to join her partner.

“All ready!” she said, taking the stakes he’d already set out for her and putting them in the pocket of her hoody.

In spite of the unused stakes Buffy’d brought with her, and Spike’s need to bite something, neither of them were surprised that the night ended uneventfully. Locating Slayer Central in a suburb of London had gone a long way to whittle down the vampires and occasional demons that tried to live in and around the old city.  It was rare for a patrol to turn up more than the occasional bewildered fledgling trying to make its way back to familiar territory.

“Rats!” Buffy muttered.  “It’s dead out here tonight… and not in a fun way.”

Spike laughed. “Gonna have to find another way to wear off that energy, Slayer.”

“Well, it sure as hell isn’t going to be doing dishes.”

He put his arms around her, pulling her into his open coat and pressing against her back while his hands slid under her sweatshirt.  One hand toyed with the waistband on her jeans while the other wandered up to cup one breast and roll the nipple back and forth between its fingers. 

“There’s always that,” she gasped, glancing around to see if there was anyone watching and pulling his long coat closed around them.

“No one near, love. I checked first,” he whispered in her ear, tickling it with his tongue. “Can’t hear any heartbeats but yours.”

His nimble fingers had quickly unfastened her jeans, allowing his hand to slide down into the moisture already dampening in her underwear.  While one hand worked as much of both breasts as he could reach, the other began playing with her clit, flicking it back and forth and bringing muffled cries from Buffy.  Using one hand to hold the coat closed, just in case, she put the other one behind her back and found his cock, squeezing it though his jeans. 

A happy moan told her how much he appreciated it, and he rewarded her by sucking on her neck while he rubbed her clit until she shuddered against him.  He continued his assault on the skin of her throat until her breathing had gone back to normal. As soon as it had, Buffy turned around to face him, instructing, “Hold the coat closed.”

Doing as he was told with one hand, he moaned again when she quickly unzipped him and dropped to her knees, taking him in her mouth.

“Oh, Buffy, love, you know I… but I don’t have anything to lean on and I might….”

Ignoring his plea to let him find something to hold himself upright, she used everything he’d ever taught her to bring him to a panting, growling release that she swallowed until there was nothing left but one little drop, which she licked off the tip of his cock before kissing it and tucking it away.

He dropped to his knees, joining her on the ground and pressing their foreheads together. “I love you so bloody much I don’t think I can stand it.”

“Right back at you,” she whispered.  They remained kneeling together for several minutes until Spike’s ears heard footsteps approaching.  With a sigh, he stood up, holding out his hand and pulling her to her feet.

“Time to go, love.”

“I’ll race you home,” she said, suiting actions to words and sprinting away, leaving him staring after her and smiling.

“Home,” he repeated as he took off at top vampire speed. “We’re racing home.”

The End