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Author's Chapter Notes:
yep, a real update and this quickly....i have had some time off and NO KIDS!!!!
Spike could see Joyce moving around the kitchen as they approached the house. The woman seemed relaxed and happy, and his heart felt a little, well, something, that he was about to destroy her peace. Buffy walked quietly by his side: she looked like a small child wrapped up in his leather duster. It had been cold and after the emotional storm she'd been through she'd been shivering in the night air. Giving her his coat had seemed the least he could do.

Approaching the front door Buffy's pace started to slow. She really didn't want to face her Mom, not tonight. Not about the things that go bump in the night at least. Spike had to almost drag her the last few paces up the steps of the porch. Her reluctance was beginning to annoy him.

'Look pet, if she freaks I'll bite her, OK? Then she'll have to believe me,' he told the reluctant teen before knocking on the door of the house.

'Not helping, Spike,' Buffy told him with a half grin. 'No eating my mom,' she added sternly.

'Very well then, Miss,' he answered in a clear, upper class voice. 'I promise not to eat your mother: now get your ass in there and... ' he didn't manage to finish the sentence, the door opened in front of him and Joyce was standing there, looking at him in horror. He expected something, but not the look of dread on her face. He had to feel a little sorry for the woman, he supposed: it couldn't be easy opening the door to find your sixteen-year-old daughter standing there with a punk, literally wrapped in his leather duster. Spike did not look like the kind you brought home to mother in any century.

'Mom this is Spike, William, he's...'

'Good evening Mrs Summers, how do you do? I'm William Pratt.' Buffy didn't recognise the rich tones or accent coming out of Spike's mouth. When did he learn to speak so well? 'I've been assigned as Miss Summers' tutor and thought that it was best if I came and introduced myself,' the blond vampire continued to talk as Joyce tried to catch her breath. Eventually she remembered her manners and Joyce stood aside, still shocked at the juxtaposition between he way the man spoke and the way he looked.

'Please come in,' she said as she mentally chastised herself for judging a book by its cover. Even if this was a leather-bound, bleached-haired, nail-varnish-wearing book. She had assumed the worst of both him and her daughter.

Buffy led the way into the living room, her steps small and hesitant. Tonight would be huge. Spike slipped his duster off her shoulders before she crossed the doorway and hung it on the newel-post at the bottom of the stairs. What surprised Buffy was how right it looked there, as if it had always been. After fetching coffees for them all Joyce sat herself down, ready to listen to the rather handsome young man in front of her.

'I didn't know the school employed tutors and I can hardly see them spending that sort of money on Buffy, no disrespect, dear.' She tried not to make disparaging remarks about her daughter, but sometimes it was hard.

'The School board don't: I'm paid by a private investor who has taken an interest in Buffy's future, Mrs Summers. I understand that there was some trouble last year at Buffy's old school?' He managed to make the statement seem more like a question.

'Well, yes, and Buffy has learned her lesson and knows that she mustn't do anything like that again.' Joyce didn't want to bring up all that nastiness. It had been a hard time for them all. She had almost snapped her answer out.

'Anything like what, Mrs Summers?' Spike asked with a silkiness to his voice that made Buffy's skin crawl. Her slayer instinct warned her that a Master Vampire was in the room - and hunting.

'She burnt down the gym and then had nightmares about some fantasy she had,' Joyce said flatly, wishing she'd put a bit of gin or whiskey in her coffee. This conversation wasn't going the way she wanted it to, and how could this punk get her to tell him things she never normally voiced?

'Are you sure it was Buffy that started the fire? After all there were others there,' the silkiness of the man's voice continued.

'Of course I am, that's what everyone told me.' Joyce snapped. She was beginning to feel very uncomfortable and starting to wish she had never invited the man into her house.

'And what did Buffy say?' Spike asked quietly. Buffy noticed he hadn't once raised his voice, despite how he yelled at her normally.

'Some nonsense about vampires setting candles around the place. A man was killed in that fire and my daughter was responsible for his death!' Joyce's temper had finally snapped. She really needed a drink now.

Buffy's heart broke at her mother's words.

'I wasn't, I didn't hurt Merrick. He...' the tears started to fall, and the sobs wracked her small frame.

'What makes you think Buffy hurt him? Is your daughter normally a liar?' Spike's voice sounded distant, echoey.

'Well no, but the story was just so fantastical it couldn't be true.' Joyce wanted to sound a lot more sure than she actually did. In fact she sounded uncertain and afraid.

'Why couldn't it? Did Buffy normally lie to you?' Spike's voice sounded so reasonable as he asked the question again.

'She said they were demons, claimed that they started the fire, and then there were all the fights. Her father and I agreed we needed to get her some help.'

Buffy looked uncomfortable, she wasn't happy with where the conversation was going at all. 'Mom,' she started to say, but Spike help up his hand to stop her.

'Let her talk, pet, she needs to get this off of her chest.' He grinned at the slayer, and suddenly Buffy had a very bad feeling that her mother was digging her own grave. Buffy hoped that it was just figuratively.

'So you got her the help?' he asked sweetly.

'Well yes, of course: then we moved here. Hank couldn't stand the idea of Buffy needing help, and he left.' Joyce sounded as broken as Buffy had earlier.

'With his secretary?' Spike prompted.

'How did you know that?' Joyce was astounded.

'I have a lot of information about Buffy. Do you still blame Buffy for Hank's betrayal? Surely you knew about the affairs long before Buffy started getting into trouble? It would seem to me to be more likely that it was Hank's behaviour you were really cross with, and as you couldn't take it out on him, Buffy made a good target.'

Joyce wanted to deny it, but she couldn't. She knew she had blamed Buffy for the break up of her marriage to Hank, but in reality it had been the other way round. Hank's affairs and behaviour had been what sparked Buffy's rebellion.

Joyce started crying, and Buffy got up and sat on the arm of her chair, wrapping her arms around her mother. Spike sat back and watched quietly, observing every gesture the two women made. He'd managed to clear the air a little, though he supposed that using thrall was cheating a little.

The storm of emotion calmed after a few minutes and Joyce looked up at the young man in front of her.

'I'm sorry, whatever must you think of me?'

'I think you are a lady who has been through a very tough time: but now it's over and you have your daughter and the future to think about.'

'You are very wise for your age,' Joyce managed to smile at him.

'I'm older than I look, Mrs Summers,' Spike said.

'Ain't that the truth,' Buffy muttered under her breath.

'Did you say something, pumpkin?' Joyce asked.

'No, Mom,' Buffy tried to look innocent. It was a good job Joyce's attention was taken back to Spike.

'Mrs Summers...'

'Please call me Joyce.'

'Joyce, what I'm about to tell you will seem a little fantastical, but every word I speak is the truth.'

'R-i-g-h-t,' Joyce said slowly, turning to watch her daughter for a couple of seconds. She turned back when William started talking again.

'Vampires are real: so are demons. Buffy is the Chosen One, sent to protect earth from the spawn of hell.'

Joyce turned to look at Buffy, who seemed very quiet. From the look on her daughter's face this was no joke. Buffy looked as though her world was about to collapse.

'I'm sorry Mr Pratt, but I think Buffy has been spinning her tales to you as well. I wish you wouldn't indulge her, and if you continue to do so I will have to ban....aaahhhh!'
Joyce screamed as she turned round and her visitor looked completely different. Instead of the handsome young man she'd let into the house, something from her nightmares sat in her living room, golden eyes shimmering in the light, his face distorted and disfigured by outgrowths of bone that looked like some sort of alien make-up, and his mouth crammed full of fangs.

'I know Vampires are real,' he lisped, 'you see, I am one.' Spike kept his preternatural eyes fixed on the woman sitting opposite. Ensuring that she was really concentrating on him, he let his game-face dissolve and returned to his human disguise.

Joyce looked as though she was having trouble breathing.

'Buff,y find your mum's stash of whiskey and pour her one will you, she doesn't sound too good here.'

Buffy nodded and headed for the sideboard where her mom had a bottle of JD hidden. She was pouring the amber liquid into the glass when it occurred to her that Spike had known about the whiskey. How had he known? She'd have to ask him later.

'Joyce: drink up, pet.' Spike didn't think that giving his charge's mother a heart attack was a good way of keeping Olivia happy. And a happy sire meant a happy vampire or at least an undusty vampire; besides, he was having fun.

Joyce managed to sip at the liquid and coughed as it burnt its way down her throat.

'Better?' Spike asked solicitously and smiled when Joyce nodded.

'It's all real?' she asked.

'Yes, ma'am.'

'And Buffy really is different?'

'Yes, ma'am.'

'And she didn't need to go to that awful place...'

'No, ma'am.'

'Oh God, I'm so sorry baby. I'm just so sorry.'

Buffy wrapped her arms back around her mom and smiled her thanks at Spike as he let himself out of the house and off into the night. Maybe there was something that needed beating up, then he'd collect his blood from the hospital's disposal site and call it a night. His bed at the mansion was calling his name and dawn would be here before he knew it.


Chapter End Notes:
worth me taking holiday? let me know.....I'm a review whore



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