Chapter 5: Plans
Spike carefully carried Buffy back to the house. Opening the front door, he surveyed the living room. Willow and Tara were milling around picking up the remains of the spell and cleaning up the remains of the demon attack. Neither was talking or looking at the other; Spike knew they would have a lot to work through.
As they heard the door open they looked over in Spike’s direction at the slayer tucked in his arms. Without a word he carried her up stairs and gently placed her down on the bed.
Slipping her boots of her feet, he placed the covers over her body. Tears were still running down her cheeks, silently she turned her back to Spike and turned to face the window; looking away from everyone.
With one last look, Spike turned and left the room, making sure to shut the door behind him. Willow stood out in the hallway and looked at him imploringly.
With a hushed voice she spoke to Spike. “Spike, what happened?”
Spike looked at the closed door as though he could see the slayer through it. Turing back to Willow he looked her squarely in the eye, “She gave up the fight.”
Turning away from the shocked girl he walked down the stairs and straight out the door he had left open when he had carried Buffy in. Without looking back at the house he walked straight to his crypt.
***
Buffy stayed exactly as Spike had left her for the next four days, she didn’t get out of bed, and she hardly ate and wouldn’t speak to anyone.
Dawn sat by her bed everyday, she didn’t understand what had happened that night, but she knew it must have been bad. Her sister had always been so strong, now she looked weak and venerable.
Ever since that night she hadn’t seen Spike round and there was a tense atmosphere in the house. Willow and Tara were barely speaking. She knew something terrible had definitely happened, she just wished someone would tell her what.
“Buffy, can I get you anything?” her sister made no attempts to show she had even heard anything, Dawn wasn’t entirely sure she was hearing her anymore.
As the tears started to slip down Buffy’s check again, Dawn decided enough was enough; she had to do something to help.
“I’ll be back, I promise”. Placing a kiss on her sister’s forehead, she picked up her coat and left the house.
***
Spike stared at the television in his crypt; however he wasn’t really watching it. He hadn’t heard anything from Buffy or any of the scoobies since the night they had fought off the demons. He wasn’t really expecting to be kept in the loop. It would have been too much to hope for that their brief time in the hospital together had meant something to her as well as him.
Walking over to the fridge he removed his jar of pig’s blood and sat back down. As he did the door of his crypt opened.
Without turning round he called out to the person behind him. “Well don’t just stand there; if you are coming in come in, you are letting all the bloody sun in just stood there.”
As he heard the door close he closed his eyes. “So Niblet, what brings you to my crypt?”
Dawn sat down opposite him, she was slightly shocked at how beat up he looked, what had happened that night? “It’s Buffy.”
Spikes eyes lids snapped open, and he stared at Dawn. He knew leaving Buffy that night maybe hadn’t been the best thing, he just hoped she hadn’t done anything stupid, like trying to top herself.
“Spike, you know what happened that night. I don’t expect you to tell me. No one else does, but Buffy needs help. Someone has to get through to her. Spike, I know you love her, prove it will you?”
Standing up she walked back over to the door and opened it letting sunlight flood into this crypt narrowly missing his chair. “Buffy’s waiting, Spike.”
With that she left him.
Spike sat for a seconds just thinking about what Dawn had said. Picking up the blanket from next to him, he draped it over his head and followed Dawn.
***
Seeing Spike following her, Dawn ran ahead and closed all the curtains in the house; leaving the front door open, she allowed him to just run right in. Dropping the smouldering blanket on the floor, he stamped on it. Dawn pinched her noise as the smell started to fill the room.
Picking it up once it had stopped smoking she carried it into the kitchen. “Thank you for coming Spike. She’s in her room.”
Nodding, Spike turned away from Dawn and walked upstairs. Opening the door to her room, he saw Buffy curled up into a little ball on the bed. She was wearing the same clothes as the night he had brought her back here. Her hair was a mess and mascara ran down her cheeks, it was clear she had made no attempt to leave the bed.
Taking his duster off he laid it over her chair before going to sit on the bed next to her. She didn’t move or do anything to show she knew he was there.
“Buffy? It’s Spike. I’m here now. I am not going to leave you, love. I’ll stay by your side until the very end.” Seeing more tears fall down her cheeks he leaned over and cupped her hand.
Twisting round she turned and laid her head on his chest. “Thank you” her voice was barely a whisper, but Spike heard it.
Falling back into sleep, she laid there peacefully. As he listened to her breathing he felt his own eyes start to get heavy. Closing them, he joined her in sleep.
***
Slowly opening his eyes, he glanced across at the clock he saw that it was 6.02 PM. He had slept most of the day.
“Buffy? Are you ok, pet?” Opening his eyes fully he glanced across at the side of the bed to see that Buffy wasn’t there. Panic over took him. Sitting up fully he tried sensing her.
Hearing the shower running in the room next door, he felt himself calm down.
Standing up he stretched like a big cat. Looking round the room, he realised this was the first time he had been in her room and hadn’t been kicked out. She had let him sleep in her room, she hadn’t even woken him when she went for her shower, if that wasn’t an invitation of friendship, Spike didn’t know what was.
As he was looking at her dressing table, the girl in question came back into the room. She was showered and her hair was washed and in a tight ponytail. She was wearing a clean white shirt, and her face was scrubbed clean of the make-up that had marred it. Overall you couldn’t tell this girl had spent the last four days in bed.
“Hey, you’re up. I didn’t want to wake you; you looked so peaceful.” Walking over to the dressing table next to him, she picked up a cross necklace, looking at Spike she realised what she had done, quickly putting it down she picked up a simple purple one instead. “Thank you for everything, Spike. You’re helping. But I have decided I am not going to hide away from the world while this thing eats away at me.”
Spike saw the resolve in the face of the girl that had collapse on him a few days before. “You’re welcome. Pet.”
“I am going to go and talk to Dawn while the house is quiet, she deserves to know what is going on, I don’t think anyone told her anything while I was, well catatonic really. You can stay here, its fine.”
Nodding he watched as Buffy left the room in search of her little sister.
Deciding to be nosy, Spike started snooping round Buffy’s room. As he turned around he knocked something off her dressing table. Leaning down he picked up the book that had fallen. It appeared to be some form of diary. Reading the date he realised that she had written it a few years ago. When she had first been called as the slayer.
Although his instincts told him to pry and read it, he knew if Buffy caught him she would never forgive him. As he closed the book, a piece of paper sticking out of it caught his eye. The paper was bright pink and smelled of Buffy. On it was her girly teenage writing, placing the book down, he read the piece of paper.
Things I want to do before I die by Buffy Summers
(I don’t plan on dying until I am very old, I am going to be the best slayer in history and everyone will know me, but it is good to plan these things :) )
1. Visit Disney Land,
2. Go and see the ice capades,
3. skate in New York’s central park in winter,
4. buy everything I’ve ever wanted
5. travel
6. be normal
7. fall in love with a perfect man who cares for me
8. make love
Spike laughed at the little sentence she had put under the title, the young Buffy was so full of dreams and ambitions she had had no clue what the real world would turn out to be like.
At the very bottom of the page there was a recent addition, it was in black pen. Spike could tell from the change in writing that this one had only been written a few weeks ago.
9. Go back to heaven.
Hearing the two Summers sisters crying down stairs he knew she had told Dawn everything. Picking up the phone from Buffy’s dressing table, he dialled in a familiar number.
“Hey mate, its Spike… Remember you owe me a favour, well I think I am about to collect on a debt… yeah… gonna need you to keep the place open for me… tonight yeah… I’ll call you when we are close… speak to you soon.” He hung up the phone.
Stuffing the piece of paper into his back pocket he picked up his duster and left the room.
Coming down the stairs, he saw Dawn and Buffy sat on the settee together, hugging each other for dear life.
“Right, come on you two, grab your coats.”
Dawn looked up at spike as though he had gone crazy “Huh?”
“Grab, your, coats.” Spike slowly said the last bit again. “I am taking you two out.”
Bemused as to where they could be going, both girls got their coats without asking any more question.
Holding the door open he allowed Buffy and Dawn to walk past him. “I have to stop at my crypt first, get my car keys.”
Together the three of them walked across town towards the cemetery.
***
Half an hour later and they were all in Spikes car and driving down the freeway. Dawn was stretched out in the back, while Buffy and Spike sat in the front. Dawn was slowly starting to drift off, So Buffy kept her voice down when she spoke.
“Spike? Where are we going?”
Spike looked at Buffy with a smug look on his face. “Can’t tell you that, pet. It would spoil the whole point of a surprise.”
With a huff she sat back in her seat, staring out the window as the view sped past the window.
***
Pulling into a service station, Buffy turned to look at him with a confused look on her face.
“Ok, so your magical trip was to a truck stop?” Eyebrow raised she looked at him.
Spike laughed at the cute expression she was wearing. “No, love, it’s a pee stop. Do you want anything to eat while I am inside?”
Buffy smiled when she realised, “Oh, any chance of some chips.” Buffy looked down sheepishly “I haven’t eaten much in days.”
Spike chose not to comment on the fact that he had noticed. “Ok. Pet, one bag of chips coming up, will Niblet want anything?”
Buffy looked at the sleeping girl on the seat behind her, “Just get her a coke.” As Spike started to get out of the car she stopped him. Turning back Spike looked at Buffy. “Thank you for this Spike.”
Spike smiled, before disappearing into the little store.
Buffy looked round the car. It was dark and very Spike-like. The floor seemed to be covered with Jack Daniel’s bottles. He probably hadn’t cleared it out since that night a few years back when he had come back to Sunnydale and kidnapped Willow and Xander.
As she looked round the car, her mobile phone started to ring. Jumping out the car before the ringing would wake Dawn, Buffy answered the phone. A desperate Willow was on the other end
“Oh god Buffy, are you ok? I came home and there was no one here. I got really worried. Tell me you are ok, you are ok aren’t you? I don’t know where Dawn is, I have been getting really worried.”
“Dawn is with me Will.” Buffy looked in the car at her sister who seemed to be sleeping as though without a care in the world.
“Oh that’s good, where are you anyway?”
“I don’t know.” Buffy couldn’t help smiling at how obscure she must sound.
“What do you mean you don’t know? Buffy are you ok? You sound different.”
“Yeah Will I am fine. I am feeling a lot better. Spike is taking Dawn and me somewhere; it’s a surprise.” Buffy heard the phone switch hands to Xander; she could hear Willow in the background telling him everything that had just been said.
“Hey Buff it’s Xander.”
“Hey.”
“You are with Spike? As in chipped vampire Spike, Buffy why are you trusting him? Why are you trusting him with Dawn?” Buffy could hear his voice rising slightly.
“I have no reason not to trust him Xander.”
“No reason? Buffy he’s tried to kill you more than enough times in the past. Not to mention all of us.”
“He is helping me more than any of you are.” See Spike coming out of the shop she knew she had to end the conversation soon “Look Xander he is coming back now so I am going to have to go. Bye.” She hung up before he could say anything. Turning her phone off so that it wouldn’t disturb her again she tucked it into her jeans pocket.
“Chips for my lady.” As Spike handed her the bag, Buffy couldn’t help smile. “Who was on the phone?”
“No one.”
“Ok then, we should be off.” Climbing back into the car they carried on their journey, Buffy feeling quite happy as she ate her chips.
***
As the journey carried on, soon Buffy too was fast asleep. Spike didn’t take his eyes off the road for fear of hurting his precious cargo.
As they started to get closer to their destination, Spike pulled over at a pay phone. Making sure the two girls where still fast asleep he went and made the call.
As he climbed back into the car Buffy was starting to stir. Her voice was slightly groggy from sleep.
“Why’d we stop?”
“I had to make a call.” Starting the engine they set off “We are nearly there, pet. You might want to wake Niblet up.”
“Ok.” Leaning over the back of the chair she gently shook her sister, “Dawnie, its time to wake up sweetie. Spike says we are nearly there.”
Dawn slowly started to come round “Huh?”
“We are nearly there.” Buffy said again.
Sitting up Dawn looked out the window. “Where are we?”
It was Spike who spoke up “You’ll see in a sec, pigeon.”
Pulling up in a giant car-park Spike killed the engine. Getting himself out the car he then helped out Buffy and Dawn.
Outside the car both girls stretched before looking up at the grand entrance that could be seen: Disney Land.
It was Dawn who was first to speak. “Oh my god! We are going to Disney Land!” She made a loud happy noise before dancing around where she stood. Buffy and Spike both just smiled at her crazy antics.
Buffy then turned and looked at Spike with a puzzled look on her face. “Spike what are we doing at Disney? Its night time, the park is closed; we can’t go in.”
“I have a friend who owed me a favour. Relax, pet, tonight the place is solely ours. So have fun.”
“You really did this for me?” Buffy could barely contain her glee over this special gift.
“Yeah, love, it’s all yours.”
“Spike! This is wonderful. I have wanted to come to Disney Land since I was little but my parents would never take me. Now you have brought me. Thank you so much. How did you know?”
Spike suppressed a smile “Let’s just say a little bird told me.”
Deciding not to question him, Buffy instead turned and looked towards the entrance.
“Well then you two, we should set off instead of just looking at the sodding entrance.”
Smiling the two girls set off towards the entrance. Spike liked how happy Buffy looked and decided he wanted to make her this happy everyday. Placing his hand into his pocket he checked that he still hand her list, before following after the two girls. This evening was certainly going to chance a lot, for both himself and Buffy.
TBC…
*A/N: My beta wasn't sure what 'top herself' meant. So in case anyone else doesn't know it means commiting sucide. I guess people only say it that way round her. hope it didn't confuse anyone!
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Thank you sooo much to my beta Cile. I appologise this story is taking ages to get out there. Being angsty I have to be in the right frame of mind to write it, which takes some doing!