Day 9
Buffy awoke slowly, inhaling deeply. Her eyes popped open when she didn't smell the expected eau de bus terminal. Looking wildly around her, she found herself lying on a soft bed with Spike's face just a few inches away from hers. She couldn't believe how sweet and innocent the evil vampire looked when he was sleeping. Buffy felt safe in his arms, and that surprised her. Very gently, she shook the vampire's shoulder.
"Wha?" Spike sat up suddenly. He clutched the sheet to his naked body and turned to stare at the giggling Slayer lying beside him in his bed.
"Something's changed, Spike," Buffy announced gleefully. "I woke up here instead of the bus station. And look..." She pointed at the bedside table. "The mug I bought you yesterday is here, too, and... oh!" Her voice rose to a strained squeak. "Are you naked under there?"
~~~~~~~~
Several drastically important facts hit Spike simultaneously. His slayer was in his bed and he was naked. His clothes were not in close proximity and he was still naked. Certain parts of his body were traitorously bobbing about for attention, leaving him clutching the sheet to his chin like a frightened Victorian maiden on her wedding night. He was naked with no chance of reaching his clothes, no chance of having a relieving morning wank, and no idea how to get himself out of a highly embarrassing situation. Then it came to him; the perfect solution to his dilemma.
“That a question you ask Harris often, pet?” he asked with a smirk.
Spike waited for the reaction he knew was coming. He watched in amusement as Buffy screwed her face up in disgust and shuddered delicately.
“Ewwww! Grossing Buffy out before coffee is a stakable offence, mister,” she chided, leaping from the bed.
Grabbing at the sheet she almost took with her, Spike chuckled at her antics. “Why don’t you head over to the Watcher’s, pet? I’ll get dressed and go through the tunnels. We need to leave before puzzle man arrives.”
Spike felt an unexpected surge of happiness as he looked at the tiny blond who moved so easily to follow his suggestions. He realized that he loved being her friend. Fierce but pleasant tingles from the bite mark forced him to raise a hand up to touch it.
Buffy turned back to him from the ladder leading to the upper level of his crypt and raised an eyebrow in inquiry, her own hand lifting to rub at the scars that had started to throb pleasurably.
“Was just thinking that I like being your friend, luv,” Spike quietly answered her unvoiced question.
She smiled gently in response. “I like being your friend too, Spike.” With a little wave of farewell, she scooted up the ladder.
When he was sure that she was gone, Spike threw off his sheet and gave his throbbing member a fierce scowl. “I refuse to bollocks up this friendship with Buffy just because you can’t control yourself,” he reprimanded his erection.
The single eye seemed to stare back at him, bobbing mockingly.
“Bloody hell,” Spike snarled as he took himself in hand in an attempt to relieve his tension. He forced himself to mentally repeat the word friend over and over, but in spite of his determined efforts, an image of sparkling green eyes flashed through his mind as he shot his load. Spike tried desperately to convince himself that it didn’t mean what he thought it meant. They were friends. Nothing more.
A quick shower and a change of clothes later, Spike felt secure in his knowledge that he and the Slayer were just friends. Snagging up the precious gift from her, he placed the cup in his duster pocket, grabbed his trusty blanket, and headed through the tunnels to Giles’.
~~~~~~~~
“Hurry up, blood breath, I need coffee,” Buffy’s teasing voice urged the vampire from above as he prepared to make the dash from the sewer to the watcher’s courtyard.
Spike was moved that she had opted to wait for him outside rather than inside the apartment. “Bloody hell, woman, quit nagging or I’ll rethink the whole engagement.”
“You can’t,” she smiled at him smugly as she joined him in his speedy trip through the courtyard. “You promised you’d never hurt me.”
Spike rolled his eyes and chuckled as he knocked on the Watcher’s door.
Giles opened the door and stared at the two blonds.
“Giles. Sunlight. Issue,” Buffy shorthanded her request for an invite.
“Of course. Please come in, Buffy. Spike,” the flustered Englishman said.
Buffy and Spike entered, looking at the watcher hopefully. Both had very different reasons for wanting the man to remember the looping day.
“Please forgive me. I’ve had a rather strange morning. I seem to be plagued by the feeling that my every experience today is a repeat of previous actions.” Giles shook his head in confusion.
“Do you remember us telling you that we’ve been living through the loopy day from hell?” Buffy held her breath while she waited for an answer.
Giles shook his head in frustration. He felt a tickling at the back of his mind, some minute but extremely important detail he was failing to grasp. He wasn’t at all surprised at his slayer’s revelation, but felt sure that he should remember. He was at a loss to explain what he was experiencing.
“What if he does the spell again?” Spike suggested.
Buffy and Spike’s eyes met in excitement as their marks began to tingle pleasantly. Nodding in agreement, Spike headed over to the bookcase to retrieve the spell book that Giles had used the night before. Flicking through it to find the right spell, he then handed the book to the bemused watcher.
“Just do the spell, Giles. Then we’ll be able to work out what you need a refresher in.” Buffy urged. She so didn’t want to go through the explanations again.
Buffy and Spike sat quietly at the dinner table, neither wanting to disturb the watcher’s spell. As Giles uttered the last word of the spell and blew out the candle, he was momentarily overwhelmed with a storm of memories. He took a few minutes to sort through them.
“So, are you all up with the memories?” Buffy cheerfully asked her watcher.
“I remember, for want of a better word - yesterday.” He smiled in satisfaction at the memory of dusting Angel. Turning to the blonde vampire, he grinned as he continued, “I plan on holding you to that drink and planning session, Spike.”
Spike shared a conspiratorial grin with the other Brit. He was chuffed that they now had the watcher on their side, but he was disappointed that Giles did not remember their day.
“Is something wrong Spike?” Giles asked, curious about the vampire’s suddenly melancholy expression.
“’S nuthin’,” Spike mumbled self-consciously. He felt somewhat insecure about sharing too much of himself with a watcher he hadn’t bonded with.
Buffy felt his insecurity through their link and reached over to grab his hand. “You and Spike came to an understanding, Giles,” Buffy softly informed the curious watcher.
Removing his glasses while he gathered his thoughts, Giles paused before commenting. “Then it is more than likely that we will do so again.” With a wicked twinkle in his eye, Ripper continued. “Perhaps even during our planning session.”
Spike smiled shyly at the watcher. “You were gonna help me change my nature. Become a white hat,” he stated quietly.
Giles smiled in delight, “I would love to help you, Spike.” There was something about the idea of helping this vampire that excited the watcher.
Buffy smiled happily. While she didn’t really want Giles remembering that she’d called him a drunk, she didn’t want Spike to lose the tentative bond he had forged with him either. This new connection seemed to benefit all of them.
Both blondes simultaneously lifted their hands to their bite marks. Pleasant tingles reverberated strongly.
“I guess that means we have achieved maximum fixage,” Buffy grinned. This was starting to get really cool. She was so glad that she had someone to share it with.
The ringing of the telephone grabbed their attention. Spike marched over to answer it, he could only think of one individual that would have the ability to change things other than the three of them.
“Oh my William, how bright you burn, the sun envies you your light,” Dru chirped happily after Spike picked up and barked a terse, ‘hello?”
The vampire sighed with forced patience. “Dru, we’re on the phone. You can’t actually see me.”
“Ah, but the minds eye is the greatest visionary of all.”
Spike rolled his eyes and moved to allow the watcher to put the call on speaker phone. “So, what do we owe this unexpected pleasure, pet? Got more hoops for us to jump through?”
Dru giggled. “No, my dearest. You and your little starshine set your own obstacles, your own trials. You pick the things that matter to you most- friendship, love, and protecting those that you care about. That’s how the trials are chosen.”
“Right, so the things we have to fix are the things that we would want to fix if we knew about them?”
They could hear Dru clapping her hands excitedly. “Always such a bright boy, my Spike. Always so clever, but not so clever that you don’t give in and stop resisting that which already exists. Like two children running to the ocean, only to run away again when they get their feet wet. Let yourself be carried away, my pet. Let the tide wash away your fears and enjoy the rush of the waters.”
“When fools jump in the ocean and don’t take care, they drown, luv.”
“Silly, Spike. You’re a vampire, you can’t drown,” she giggled.
Buffy spoke up before Dru could take off on another of her twisted tangents. “Excuse me, Drusilla. May I ask a question?” She kept her voice soft and unthreatening, knowing she had to be careful how she addressed the volatile vampiress.
“Ooooh, Sunshine wishes to speak to Princess? Ask your question, dearie.”
“Why are some things not being reset?” Buffy wondered.
“You get treats, little one. Every time you follow your heart, Miss Edith sends you a gift. Good little girls and boys deserve rewards, bad children get punished. You’ll learn, Sunshine. Don’t deny your heart.”
And with that last cryptic message, Drusilla had Herbie hang up the phone.
Buffy cast Spike a surreptitious glance. “Did that make any sense to you?”
“Clear as mud, luv,” he snorted. He started to say more but was interrupted by a huge yawn. These daytime romps were playing hell with his internal vampire clock.
The slayer couldn’t help but giggle at his glazed eyes and drowsy expression.
“Why don’t you try and catch a nap, Spike?” she urged. “I have to call Willow anyway. We can discuss Dru’s cryptic calls later.”
Spike flung himself down on the couch with another yawn. He couldn’t remember ever feeling quite this sleepy. “Don’t mind if I do, Slayer.”
He was snoring softly before Buffy had even dialed Willow’s number.
~~~~~~~
Spike knew he had been captured for the Slayer. She had been tracking him for days now, stalking him through the darkness like the prey that he was. He’d put up a hell of a fight, of course, but her army of Amazonian mercenaries had overpowered his own cadre of vampires with frightening precision. They had singled him out and then quickly and efficiently dealt with his minions, treading carelessly through piles of their dust to subdue him.
Trussed up like a turkey, he’d been transported along the mountain paths to the Slayer’s stronghold. Most of the undignified trip had been spent puzzling over why he hadn’t been dusted outright. It wasn’t like he hadn’t caused her any number of problems over the past few years. She was there. He could feel her signature racing up and down his spine, but for some reason she didn’t seem too eager to show herself or release him from his immortal coil.
Once back at the Slayer’s remote castle, he’d been stripped and bathed by the muscular female warriors. Stoically ignoring his throaty growls and snapping teeth, they had fitted him with a cock ring and blindfolded him before he was led to a different chamber.
Now he was spread out like a pale starfish, his arms and legs fastened with magically enhanced manacles. They had refused to answer any of his demands and ignored the colorful insults he’d hurled at them. Once they were certain he was securely chained, they had left him alone.
Spike was enraged at his treatment thus far, even though there wasn’t so much as a scratch to mar the perfection of his ivory hide. This type of behavior towards a Master vampire such as himself was downright humiliating, even for a creature as sexually uninhibited as he was. His reason for being here were now as obvious as they were unbelievable, and the knowledge only served to make him more indignant. Fucking Slayer! She would pay for this in blood.
And speaking of the Chosen One…
Her scent preceded her, the strong whiff of Slayer musk causing his mouth to water and his fangs to drop down in anticipation. Angered by what he saw as his demons betrayal, he lunged against his restraints. He could feel her approach and thrashed about, desperate to free himself so that he could face her one on one rather than hogtied to her bed. Insufferable bitch! His snarls drowned out the creak of the hinges, but the click of her heels on the stone floors rang out in the tomblike room.
"Who's this sleeping in my bed?" a woman's voice sang softly. “Why, I do believe it’s William the Bloody. However did he get here?” Her melodious laugh only served to whip him into a frenzy of rage. “Oh! That’s right. I caught you, didn’t I? That means you belong to me, doesn’t it?”
"Let me go, you self-righteous bint," Spike snarled. He glared in the direction of her voice and pulled against the chains hard enough to cause his wrists to bleed.
"Now why would I do that when I have you right where I want you?" she purred.
He felt the bed dip slightly under her weight and shivered in spite of himself when he felt a hot hand ghost up his leg. It lingered near his groin, then cheekily bypassed his cock to brush over the ridges of his abdomen. His stomach muscles retracted from her delicate touch as though it burned. His cock, bound as it was by the tight ring, bobbed about seeking relief from its torment.
"I'm a master vampire, you bitch, not some soddin' sex slave," Spike growled. He tried to pull away from her scalding fingers, hissing when she captured his balls with one hand and gave a firm little squeeze that implied that further attempts to free himself might become very painful for him.
"I know you're a Master. And not just any Master, but an Aurelius. Do you honestly think I would settle for anything less?" A harsh, strangled noise broke from him as he felt the flutter of what was obviously her tongue against his bleeding wrist. "Mmm, you taste utterly delicious. I knew you would the first moment I saw you," the woman growled softly.
Spike felt his cock harden even further when she lingered at his wrist, dragging her tongue through the blood that gathered there before closing her succulent mouth around the wound and sucking voraciously.
God, the heat coming off of her in humid waves was going to burn him alive. She leaned over him as she suckled at his injury and the diamond-hard point of an excited nipple as it brushed over his mouth. He fought to ignore the sudden urge to capture it between his lips and give it the seeing to she was yearning for.
"Slayer," he snapped ferociously, desperate to distract her. "Why don't you go play these games with someone more your style? Like, say, a human boy?" Spike bit back a moan when she suddenly straddled his hips and ground her swollen labia against him, sweeping up and down his painfully throbbing length. His nostrils flared as the slick moisture of her arousal seeped down his shaft to coat his balls.
"Human’s break too easily," the slayer complained breathlessly. “This is what I need.”
Spike threw his head back, gritting his teeth when she swiftly rose up and sank down to fill herself with him. The feel of her hot, tight quim around his cock was like nothing he had ever felt before. The sweet cream of her arousal allowed for an easy glide into her soft depths, and his traitorous body responded eagerly to the tight clench of famed Slayer muscles around his turgid cock.
"There's just something about a Master’s cock that no human toy can compete with." The Slayer puffed, her muscles straining with the effort to take all of him inside her. "Too bad I can't let you go and get the whole vamp package going."
“Let me go and I’ll give you the entire ‘vamp package’,” he snarled.
Her soft huff of mirth wafted over his needlessly panting mouth. “As tempting as that sounds, vampire, I think I’ll wait ‘til I’ve tamed you just a little bit more.”
“You’ll never tame me, you bit—” His defiance was cut off by an endless, strangled moan as she began the steady rise and fall of her hips. His mind cast about for something- anything- that would disguise the affect she had on him. His faltering attempts at indifference lasted until the Slayer's first, cock-wrenching orgasm. She slammed herself down with a howl, her pelvis grinding into his so hard that he could feel her round, pert ass cheeks press against his balls.
Time lost all meaning for the vampire as he lay beneath the Slayer. She had come so many times on his abused cock that he could feel her juices soaking the sheet beneath him. When she needed a break from fucking him cross-eyed, she amused herself with kissing and licking his quivering body and sucking lustfully on his angry red cock. He was littered with bruises and covered with love bites. His chest burned where her fingernails had dug into his skin.
Spike had given up all thought of escaping from this woman. She did things with her wicked mouth and that amazingly tight pussy that boggled even his jaded mind and left him willing to stay chained to her bed forever while she rode him until he dusted.
He shuddered when the Slayer leaned down over him and gripped his hair in her fist. Jerking his head back, she whispered hotly in his ear, "do you want to come, vampire?"
Unable to speak, Spike could only nod his head mutely. He felt the slayer reach down behind her to loosen the ring around his cock before she rose above him to slam down herself down on his shaft one last time.
He grunted ferally, wrenching his hips up to meet every downward stroke of hers. The immense relief of his unbound cock, coupled with the harsh, gasping moans that his punishing thrusts forced from her, was simply too much for the insanely aroused vampire. Giving a ferocious howl that rivaled her scream of release, Spike erupted inside the slayer's hot quim. His eyes rolled back in his head and his entire body quaked as he continued to shoot his cool semen into her willing body.
Spike blinked when the blindfold was suddenly ripped off his eyes and he found himself lost in the hazel eyes of the slayer. He realized her fist was still in his hair when his head was yanked to the side, baring his throat to her. He roared out his second climax as she struck like a small viper and sank her blunt teeth into his neck.
"Slayer," Spike screamed. “Buffy!”
"Mine," Buffy growled against his neck. "My Spike. My vampire."
"Yours," Spike moaned softly. "Only yours, Slayer."
~~~~~~~~~~
Spike shot up from the couch, his wide eyed stare of confusion taking in the shocked looks on the faces of the Slayer and Watcher. His mind was reeling. Where the bloody hell had that come from?
“Something you want to share, Spikey?” Buffy smirked, eyeing the new bite marks on his neck and offering a tissue for the blood that dripped from them.
“Huh?” Spike widened his eyes further as he wondered frantically how much he had given away. He certainly didn’t want to do anything that would jeopardize the tentative friendships he was forming with both members of his unexpected audience.
“The yelling of my name, the telling me you’re mine, or the new bite marks you’re wearing like a fashion accessory.” Buffy grinned at the stupefied vampire.
Spike dropped his head in his hands and muttered dejectedly, “I guess saying I was yellin’ fluffy instead of Buffy and dreaming about kittens is no longer a bloody option?”
“Really not,” Buffy assured him with mock sympathy.
“I’m not doin’ it deliberately, slayer,” the morose vampire whined as he looked up at the girl and pouted.
Giles moved closer to the vampire, lifting his hand to examine the bite.
Buffy growled.
Giles quickly pulled his hand back. He was not surprised at his slayer’s reaction. “Yes, well, it appears that you do belong to the slayer, Spike,” he lightly informed them both.
At the pleasant tinglies that came from both sets of marks, both blonds stood and looked at the watcher in shock.
“What do you mean he belongs to me?” Buffy squeaked out.
An image of Spike’s naked torso flashed before her eyes. She surreptitiously checked her mouth to make sure she wasn’t drooling. Bad Buffy.
“How is that possible, Rupert?” Spike asked as he silently cursed Drusilla and her interfering ways. He fought to suppress the memory of the way Buffy had made him feel in his dream. They were just friends.
“I would imagine it’s all linked to the spell. From what Drusilla said earlier, it appears that whatever it is may be built around the necessity of the two of you developing a relationship.”
“We have a relationship…we’re friends,” Spike announced, steadfastly sticking to his swim in the river in Egypt.
“But the two of you are displaying all the signs of a mating claim. Given the manifestation of the bites, I am unsure as to whether the claim will continue when the spell is broken,” Giles explained, feeling slightly apologetic that he was unable to give them more information. This was something they definitely needed to do more research on. The watcher was a little surprised that he wasn’t more upset that his slayer was, for all intents and purposes, mated to a master vampire.
“Mated? Is that like a vampire marriage?” Buffy asked curiously.
“More like marriage without the possibility of divorce,” Spike drawled smugly. “You’re a married woman, slayer. It’s time to give the gigantic Boy Scout the heave ho.”
“Why am I not more wigged about this?” Buffy mused curiously. “Oh, and you are so going to be the one to tell mom. A word of advice though, you better come up with a legal way to get me a better ring to show her first.” Buffy giggled at the pole axed expression on the vampires face.
Mentally putting the subject of claims and could be marriages to de-fanged master vampires turned friends onto a back burner, Buffy changed the subject.
“I called Willow,” Buffy announced. “She and Tara should be here soon.” Focusing her attention on her vampire, she asked the question that was haunting her. “How do I fix that, Spike?” she whispered tearfully.
Spike took her gently by the shoulders and looked deeply into her eyes with a reassuring smile. “That’s the easiest thing to fix, pet. All you have to do is accept the white Wicca. We just need to do the opposite of what I first did. Giles was feeling a bit unneeded, now he knows that not only do we need him to be with us on this, but he also has a project in me that should keep him out of trouble,” he said as he threw a cheeky grin to the watcher.
“Red thought you didn’t accept her lifestyle choices and probably felt a little like your friendship was drifting apart, what with all the changes in your lives with college and what all. All you need to do is talk to her, stop her worrying.” His quiet assurances were like a balm to her troubled mind.
“And Xander?” she asked tremulously.
“The main problem there is that the whelp is convinced that you lot think he’s useless. Personal feeling’s aside, you just need to make sure he knows the truth. Unless of course, you really do think he’s useless?” Spiked joked, effectively lightening Buffy’s overwhelming concerns.
Their smiles widened as their marks tingled in agreement.
Giles was distracted from his ponderings over the insightfulness of the vampire when Buffy said his name.
“Giles.” She was curious about what had happened earlier. “You did the spell yesterday. Why did you have to do it again, and will you need to do it again tomorrow?”
“Ah.” Giles flushed with embarrassment. “It appears I was remiss in reading the…er…fine print.”
At the arched eyebrows of both blondes, the mortified man was forced to elaborate. “I failed to augment the first spell. I needed to do that in order to ensure that I could retain the memories from ‘yesterday’. There will be no need to repeat the spell tomorrow. I have corrected the problem.”
“Ah…before the witches get here can I make a suggestion?” Spike hated bringing up this particular subject. He knew Buffy wouldn’t be happy about it, but he was fairly certain the watcher would be on side.
“I’m not gonna like it, am I?” Buffy responded with sardonic amusement.
Spike gave her an apologetic grin. “I don’t think we should be tellin’ Red about the spell Rupert did. I think it would just open the door for another complication,” he rushed out his words and then held his unneeded breath in anticipation.
“I would have to agree. Willow uses magic far too liberally. She has no concerns for the consequences of her actions. I think it would be prudent to arrange for a mentor as soon as this matter is cleared up. Willow needs to learn the basic fundamentals of magic before she causes any more damage.” Giles supported the vampire’s opinion unreservedly. He had long thought the young redhead required guidance, but he had been unsure as to whether it was his place to say anything until now.
“Fine. No telling Willow about the spell,” Buffy grumbled her agreement. When her mark started to tingle pleasantly, she rolled her eyes. Apparently Dru thought Willow’s need to learn control was all part of fixing the factors.
~~~~~~~
When Willow and Tara arrived they were given a swift run though of the basic facts.
Both Buffy and Spike had felt a tingling reaction to the presence of the dishwater blonde witch. After sharing a look to confirm that the other had also been alerted, the super-beings came to the silent agreement that they would discuss the matter at a later time.
Buffy, Spike, and Giles all made sure to welcome Tara wholeheartedly.
Willow’s computer search for Warren took only a few moments.
“Hey! I think I found him. A Warren Mears. He went to Sunnydale High with us for a semester, and then he went to the tech college over in Dutton. I've got a local address where his folks still live,” Willow told them, her eyes only leaving the screen to write down his address.
After handing the address absentmindedly to Buffy, Willow continued to scan the computer for further information. “Wow! He’s got some pretty impressive credits. Big into robotics. Oh! And um…he’s a dungeon master for Dungeons and Dragons.” Willow grinned at Buffy conspiratorially. “Xander would probably know him then.”
Tara watched the two girls laughing and wondered why Willow seemed so afraid that she was losing her friend. There didn’t seem to be anything wrong with the relationship from what she could see. Taking a closer look at the area between Buffy and the blond vampire, the white witch noticed a monumental change in the two auras. There was definitely something more going on than she and Willow had been told, and she wondered what it was.
“What is it, Tara?” Giles gently asked. He had been watching the group and had seen her preoccupation with the two blondes.
Tara ducked her head self-consciously. She had yet to learn how to be comfortable being the focus of so many people. “T-their auras have c-changed,” she stammered shyly.
“How, sweetie?” Willow asked, confused.
“They’re c-c-connected now,” she tried to explain. “Their auras are s-starting to blend. If I didn’t k-know he was a vampire, I’d say he was g-growing a s-soul.”
“That can’t be good,” Willow said, her eyes widening in trepidation. She was sure that Buff was going to wig, big time.
“Actually, Willow, it has been quite beneficial.” Giles busied himself with buffing the lenses of his glasses. “However, I will still need to research it. I believe this situation has something to do with the spell you were planning to do, as it was your spell that caused Drusilla to cast hers. From what we’ve learned; it was not her spell that was responsible for this connection, reason suggests it must be yours. I will need to see the spell you have been researching to confirm my hypothesis and discover what our options are.”
“Whatever,” Buffy shrugged indifferently. She was so not interested in worrying about something they couldn’t change yet. “I have to go save a stubborn idiot.” Turning to Spike, she gave him a grin as she headed for the door and some Forrest savage. “You get a soul and I am so not putting up with a brood-a-thon.”
“We have to go, too. We have classes this afternoon,” Willow apologised. “We’ll come back later,” she promised as she and Tara followed Buffy out the door.
With the girls gone, the vampire and the watcher took the opportunity to discuss one of the other things that they needed to fix.
“Have you had any thoughts regarding the logistics of getting the disc’s from Adam?” Giles asked as he followed the blonde into the kitchen.
“I came up with an idea, but I wanted to run it past you and Buffy first,” he said as he removed his cup from his duster pocket. Picking up a bag of blood, Spike busied himself with the microwave before continuing.
“I can make the meeting with him and talk him into giving me the discs then and there,” the vampire explained as he heated his blood. “That’ll give Red more time to work on them.”
After preparing his meal, Spike followed Giles back to the living room.
“Will it still be safe for you?” Giles asked, concerned.
“It will be if we can make sure the Slayer stays here,” Spike responded with little optimism.
“Spike,” Giles said, his demeanour serious. “There seems to be two very important points that you are missing. I would prefer that neither of you be injured and I am positive that Buffy will never allow you to face Adam alone. She is quite protective with her friends.”
Spike responded with equal seriousness. “The disc’s are what’s important, Rupes. We have to get them decrypted. If I get caught, I’ll just wake up back in my bed in the morning. I can handle one day, but you have to help me convince Buffy.”
“I think I’d prefer to be tortured by Angelus,” the watcher half joked.
~~~~~~~
As Buffy entered Giles’ courtyard after saving Forrest, she faltered slightly at the sight before her. Riley stood at the door to her watcher’s apartment and appeared to be arguing with Giles.
“How do you know that Angel hasn’t lost his soul? Maybe he has and he’s holding her prisoner somewhere.”
“She was fine when she left here a little over an hour ago,” Giles replied mildly.
“I don’t believe you. There is no way. She would have come to see me,” Riley snorted dismissively. “I wonder what she’ll say when she finds out you’re spending time with a soulless demon,” he commented snidely.
“Why would I want to talk to someone who basically thinks I’m a big ho and that my father figure is a liar?” Buffy snapped as she stepped forward, shocking Riley with her sudden appearance.
Trying to ignore what she had just said, Riley stepped forward as if to wrap his arms around her. “Oh, Buffy, I was so worried.”
Stepping around him towards the apartment door, Buffy retorted coldly, “and why would you be worried, Riley?”
“Well, I didn’t hear from you, so I thought maybe Angel might have lost his soul again,” he explained, his expression a picture of innocence. He knew damn well that she hadn’t spoken to Xander yet, so there was no way that she could know that he was aware of exactly how Angel’s soul curse could be broken.
Buffy wondered briefly what she’d ever seen in the loser. “So, you do think I’m a ho-bag?” Buffy asked pleasantly.
“What? No! Why would you say that?” his nervousness made his guilt obvious.
“Since you think that Angel lost his soul and that would only happen if I’d had sex with him,” Buffy stated with uncharacteristic bluntness.
“You never told me that!” he accused. This was going downhill, fast. If he could just get her to feel guilty, it would all be okay.
“No, but Xander did,” she said harshly. After spending so much of her time recently with the easy-going vampire, she had little patience for testosterone fuelled jealousy, especially when she hadn’t done anything to warrant it. “It’s time for you to go, Riley. We’ve got work to do.”
Nudging past him dismissively, Buffy entered the watcher’s apartment and closed the door.
Ignoring what had just happened with Riley, much the same as many people manage to ignore the elephant in the room, Buffy soon had them making plans for the different things they had to fix. The three worked well together and ideas abounded.
A couple of hours later, as Buffy got off the phone from ordering pizzas, Spike felt the familiar warning of family.
“So…is it my turn to dust him?” Spike asked, informing them in his own way of their approaching visitor.
“Giles did a disinvite, Spike. None of us need to stake him,” she told him in an amused voice. His pout was so sweet.
The watcher chuckled at the disappointed vampire. He understood exactly what the blonde was feeling, but he didn’t feel up to explaining the difference between need and want to his slayer.
The loud pounding at his front door caused him to grin in anticipation. He might not be able to stake the bugger, but that didn’t close off all his avenues of retribution. It had been said that payback was a bitch, but that was only by those that hadn’t met Ripper.
Throwing the door open wide, Giles made sure he stayed out of the way. “Yes, right, you’re looking for Buffy. You’ve come to apologize for your treatment of her in Los Angeles, but not for stalking her, paying Willie to spy on her for you, or getting into a physical altercation with the man you thought was her boyfriend. Correct?” he inquired pleasantly. Spike’s soft snickers indicated that at least one person understood his humor.
Giles almost joined Spike in his mirth when he saw the gobsmacked expression on face of the brunette vampire.
Buffy moved to join the watcher, but before she could say a word, Angel’s expression changed to a snarl. “You let Spike claim you? Are you insane?”
“It’s alright, Angel, they were engaged first,” Giles assured the angry vampire, inwardly chuckling with glee. “I was thrilled when Buffy asked me to give her away.”
At this point Willow and Tara entered the courtyard. Angel whirled to face the two witches, game-face to the fore. Putting two and two together, not knowing about any other factors, the vampire came up with four and blamed the redheaded witch, snarling her name as he moved to confront her.
Seeing only an enraged vampire apparently threatening her love, Tara reacted instinctively. Pointing a finger at the vampire, she shouted her request to the goddess, “Pulvis!”
Latin for dust.
“So, Red’s the only one of us lot that hasn’t dusted the poof yet, right?”
~~~~~~~
Buffy snuggled deeper into the firm embrace that made her feel safe and secure. She would never have dreamed that she would feel this way in the arms of Spike. Oh, but maybe dream isn’t the right word, because apparently she’d do a lot more than that in her dreams.
Opening her eyes, she took the opportunity to study the slumbering vampire. What was it about him that made him so different from others of his species? He had been caring and gentle and supportive. He’d asked for nothing in return. He was just happy to have her friendship. She was stunned that a vampire seemed to have a better grasp on friendship that her human friends.
She smiled as Spike opened sleepy eyes to gaze at her through lowered lashes. “So, what’s the plan today, naked boy?”
Spike’s eyes widened comically. Pulling the sheet up to his chin, he snarked, “It’s alright, luv. It’s not your fault the groom’s prettier than the bride.”
“See, it’s these sorts of delusions that prove you have no reflection,” she lobbed back without missing a beat.
Chuckling in appreciation of her quick wit, Spike chose to give his suggestion to her original question. “Investigating the nerd after we check in with Rupert?”
“Sounds like a plan.”
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