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Author's Chapter Notes:
With Spike still held captive in the bath tub, Buffy has an audience who can’t walk away!
Never Ever Tell by Lilachigh

Meeting 19 One Burden too Many


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Buffy stared down at the vampire she hated most in all the world who was entertaining himself by lying in Giles’ bath tub, eyes shut, tapping his dusty black boots together and humming along to a tune only he could hear inside his head. She hated men who hummed!

‘What do you mean about Willow wanting to be different?’ she asked him .

One bright blue eye opened and gazed at her. “Oh, you’re back, Slayer. Didn’t get very far then? Can you turn on the telly for me?”

Buffy bent down and pulled the plug out of its socket with one swift movement. Ignoring Spike’s roars of anger, she sat on the edge of the bath and waved the plug in front of his face.

“Tell me, bleach boy,” she said, “or the TV dies for good!”

Spike growled under his breath, rattled the chains that held him, then relaxed back, a little smile curving his mouth. She found herself gazing down at that full lower lip, wondering.... “So, talk!” she snapped, forcing herself to concentrate on what was important.

Spike sighed. Sometimes he forget just how young and inexperienced the Slayer was as a person. Great Slayer, good killer and all that, but as a human being, a mere child.

“When something huge and bad happens in your life, it isn’t enough just to carry on as you were before. You feel compelled to change everything - your friends, your job, your way of life, even yourself.”

“I didn’t feel like that when Angel left.”

Spike raised his scarred eyebrow. “I said huge and bad, Slayer, not petty and good!”

Buffy felt herself going red. Ignoring his words - which she would remember over and over again in the depths of the night - she asked, “And is that what happened to you?”

Spike’s sarcastic expression vanished for a second and Buffy blinked as she thought she saw a glimpse of someone - well, it was a ridiculous word to use where Spike was concerned - but someone vulnerable.

“Exactly, sweetheart. Well, to be fair, my life was changed for me by my dark princess, but once that had happened, after I died, I wanted to be different, live in a different world with new people.”

“Spike, you went to live with vampires!” Buffy broke in. “Anyway, being turned doesn’t count. We were talking about Willow.”

“Oz has left her. Her first boyfriend. The only guy who’s ever seen her as anything but a pal, a friend, if I’m not wrong. I take it her unrequited love for the whelp was never returned?’

“What? Who? What? Oh, Xander, no. They’ve known each other since they were children.”

Spike shrugged and wriggled deeper into the bath. “So, here was wolf boy, making Red believe that although Xander didn’t think so, she was, in fact, a normal attractive female. And now he’s gone and shattered all that belief into tiny little pieces.”

“But she’ll get over him.” Buffy hugged herself. “We all get over people.”

Spike gazed up at her. Did she really believe that? Then she’d never truly been in love. One day, he realised, she would fall for someone so hard that she wouldn’t even believe it herself. And he wondered why that annoyed him so much.

“She’ll get over it by deciding to be a different Willow,” he said gently. “And she’ll use everything in her power to make that happen.”

Buffy felt a surge of despair. She had so much to contend with in her life at the moment. Willow’s problems just seemed like one burden too many.

She hadn’t changed when she lost Angel, or when she died. OK, she’d run off to L.A. after the Master, but she’d come back and was still herself. If she could die and not alter, then why was Willow such a mess?

She jumped up off the bath. She was going to be late for the Bronze. Goodness knows why she was sitting here having a discussion with Mr Evil Dead himself.
“I think you‘re making it all up to distract me,” she said. “If you want to talk about something interesting, get remembering all you can about the Initiative.”

Spike smiled lazily. “I’m too stressed to remember anything,” he purred. “I need my neck rubbed. Any offers?”

Buffy flounced to the door.

“Oi, what about the TV plug?” Spike shouted angrily.

“You shove it in!” Buffy snapped and went red to the tips of her ears which rang with Spike’s laughing words, ‘Promises! Promises!” following her all the way down the street!

another meeting follows soon





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