Summary: what if Buffy becomes a vampire for a week? Of course, Spike has something to do with it. ;-)


Disclaimer: all credits belong to WB and Joss Whedon
Timeline: 4th season, some weeks after Something Blue.
Spoilers: Something Blue, The Initiative.
A/N: in this fic Riley and Buffy had only a short-term affair, as Buffy had to realize that Riley stood on the bad side, and only used her just as Parker had done some time before. So she broke up with him even before this story takes place.

***

Opening up the dorm’s door, Spike entered the room of Willow, not even bothering to ask for permission.

Scared, Willow jumped up from her bed, dropping the book she was just reading. “Spike?!?”

“Nice to see you again too, Witch,” he grinned, shutting the door behind himself.

“Don’t you know the word “knocking”?” she sent him a reproachful, annoyed look.

“Oh, you’ve been doing something naughty?” Spike smirked, seemingly amused at the girl’s irritation

Willow’s eyes widened in shock, “What...? No...no... I just hate being disturbed while reading...”

“Oh...” Spike’s smirk faded in disappointment. “That’s lame.”

“Some cultural experience wouldn’t do you any harm either,” she remarked. “One can learn a lot from books...”

Spike snorted, “Been there, done that. I bloody don’t want to do that again,” he frowned dryly.

“Oh, I...I’m sorry... I...” Willow squirmed uncomfortably.

Spike shrugged.

“Let’s rather talk about why I’m here. I need your help.”

“Again??” alarm lit up in her eyes. “I’m not a guinea pig of yours, Spike…”

Spike gave her a slight, encouraging smile, “I don’t want to bite you…”

She studied him, still doubting, “No?”

“No,” he shook his head. “Yet at least. I need your skills.”

Willow raised an eyebrow in confusion, “My skills?? What do you mean?”

“Don’t be scared, luv,” Spike chuckled while approaching her. “I don’t want you to sleep with me if that’s what you’re afraid of…”

“Oh…” her relieved sigh echoed in the room. “No, I…I wasn’t afraid…” she stammered a bit uneasy, ”… of that…I…”

Spike grinned, checking her out, “However you’re pretty… “

Willow gulped nervously.

Pitying her, Spike laughed, “I need your magical skills. I want you to make a little spell for me…”

“Again? It hadn’t worked last time either… “ she rolled her eyes. “You should get Drusilla back in another way…”

Spike’s loud laugh filled the room, “Drusilla??” raising an eyebrow, he grimaced in disgust. “She already belongs to past.” His not much good promising smirk appeared on his face, “I want you to cast a spell on the Slayer.”

“On Buffy??” Willow’s eyes widened in shock and disbelief. She wondered if she was only hallucinating. “You want me to cast a love spell on Buffy for you?? Last time was a coincidence… “ she explained, nervously wringing her hands. “I didn’t mean to cast a marriage spell on you two… that wasn’t intended… only a little accident… Not as if you two hadn’t been cute together,” she smiled in embarrassment, “you were... and Xander would kill me if hearing me now...” she suppressed a little chuckle, “but...”

“A love spell?? Are you nuts?” Spike grimaced in disgust. “Bloody hell, no…All I want is to teach a little lesson for the Slayer…” Looking away, he noted, “That bitch thinks she can torture me to death...”

“You’re already dead...” Willow remarked cautiously.

Meeting Spike’s pissed off look, she sent him an apologizing, ashamed smile. “Sorry…”

Without a reply, his voice cold and determined, Spike claimed, “I want the Slayer to experience what is it like to live like this… Waiting for the dark to move outside, fighting for the daily meal, being isolated…”

“You want me to turn Buffy a vampire??“ the shock registered on the witch’s face.

“Bingo!” Spike grinned.

“Oh my God… “ she gasped. “No, forget it!! I won’t do that. “

“You have to,” he grabbed her hand to force her to look into his eyes, but the sharp pain flashing through his head signaled that he crossed the line of violence again. He cried out in agony and released the girl.

“You’re crazy… “ she snapped, and rubbed her wrists. “I won’t make a vampire out of my best friend… No!”

Halfway to regain his control, Spike massaged his temple, behind which his chipped brain was uttering several curse, if not all of the British slang-dictionary. Inhaling deeply, trying to relax, Spike sank onto the bed beside the witch. Staring at the carpet, his gaze almost burnt a hole into the dark material.

“Bloody hell!!! Why does this happen to me??? Why me?? This bloody chip ruins my whole unlife! I’m not a real vampire anymore… not able to bite… the other vamps just laugh at me, ignore me…What is the purpose of my life now? I don’t belong to the vampires’ society anymore, neither to humans’… I’m out of everything… There’s no place for me… “ he sobbed in misery, anger and helplessness.

Feeling suddenly sorry towards the blond vampire, sympathy mirroring in her dark eyes, Willow empathically replied, “I’m sorry… I know the feeling.“

Disbelieving, Spike turned his head toward her.

“Not the biting part though, but there used to be a time when everyone ignored me in school...” she stared at the floor, recalling her memories. “I was a nerd, and no one wanted to hang around with such a bookworm like me...”

“Bloody stupid wankers, they didn’t know what they missed,” he noted, wiping the escaping tear of desperation from the corner of his eyes.

Willow sent him a thankful smile, blushing a little.

“Anyway, I’m okay now,” she stated, “I have great friends who like me with my nerdiness,” she smiled happily.

“You deserve to be happy," he stated quietly,"You're the only one from the Slayer’s gang I appreciate. I had had some company during the decades, but...I’ve no one now. Drusilla also left me... that bloody bitch! Though I loved her more than anything... Would have done anything for her...” his tears welled up in his eyes again. “But that wasn’t enough for her. I wasn’t enough for her.”

Willow could feel his pain, and could hardly resist to consolingly touch his arm.

“Maybe you should give a chance to the right side…” she suggested with a bit of hesitation.

“The Big Bad on the right side??” Spike managed an ironical, bitter laugh. “You’re kidding…”

“Why? You’re still able to fight, aren’t you?”

“I’m not even sure about that…” he said, thinking about her words.

“Buffy would help you to figure it out…” she remarked innocently, in a cheery, encouraging manner.

“The Slayer??? “ Spike burst into laugh. “I bet she would gladly kill me…”

“That’s why you want to take revenge on her by turning her a vamp… “

“No,” his firm reply came quickly. “I play fair play. Fight is fight. This is something else… Only a lesson… so that she could experience what it is like... being treated the way she does…what a vamp like me has to deal with each day… and that might help to change her point of view…”

“I see… “ she sighed. “You want her to face the mistakes she had done and learn from them for the future…”

“Yeah, that’s the point.”

“Wouldn’t be enough if you talked to her about it?” Willow asked tentatively. “Explaining what’s bothering you…”

“Dammit, you think she’d care at all???? Bloody hell, no!!!! “ he yelled desperately.

She didn’t say a word, only rolled her eyes, thinking.

“She must see what I see, feel what I feel, live like I live…” his voice was filled with determination, anger and thirst for revenge. “There’s no other way… “

“Maybe you’re right… “ Willow gave up with a sigh. “She has been too harsh to you… But even then... I don’t know…”

“Please…” his ice-blue eyes pleadingly looked into hers. His hurt affected her. “I don’t want to live like this…”

Willow sighed again; but this one was deeper. There was too much to risk. Yet, her concience didn’t let her decide elsehow.“But you won’t hurt her?” her unsure question was rather an order than inquiry.

“Told you, I play by rules of fair play… I’m an Englishman after all,” his mouth curved into a proud smile.

Still pondering, Willow bit her lip, “And what if anything happens to her? if she…”

Spike cut her off; his honest, serious look meeting her scared one, “I’ll care about her.”

Knowing that this decision was something serious and could lead to some consequences, she sighed, then nodded, “Right. But only for a week.”

“That’s more than enough,” Spike agreed with barely noticable smile.

“Meet us in the cemetery at 11 tonight,” Willow said without looking at him.

“I’ll be there,” Spike rose.

“But if you trick me and she gets hurt, I’ll kill you by myself.” She warned the vampire in a menacing tone, and a magical spark flashed through her eyes.

“Deal,” Spike grinned and left.