It was good that he was the one taking charge here. The role gave him a chance to concentrate on something other then the rampant emotions that were threatening to break out. His demon was just itching to emerge and protect the girl it believed to be its own; it was taking nearly all his concentration to just keep it restrained. Waiting for a moment, he allowed everyone to go achieve the tasks he had set upon them before he called over his shoulder to the girls that were retrieving the first aid kit.
“I am taking her upstairs.”
With that, Spike disappeared into the back room to gather the still sleeping slayer into his arms once again. His eyes slid shut as she cuddled to his chest; he hadn’t thought that he would ever have the sensation of her warm body against his again. It had haunted his dreams since the day she had died. Somewhere, some god had to be smiling at him though he didn’t know what the hell he had done to deserve this blessing. Focusing on the task at hand wasn’t easy but he managed to get Buffy upstairs to the apartment that Giles had previously occupied before the watcher had fled to England with his tail between his legs.
Thankfully, his invite was still good even though no one lived there or maybe that was the reason the invite was still good since the place was vacant. Either way, it gave him the opportunity to make use of the facilities and do what he needed to patch up his slayer before Niblet saw her like this. Buffy was deposited oh so gently on the bed, soft promises that he would be back murmured before Spike headed into the bathroom to run a warm bath. He could only hope that the temperature would suit her and maybe even draw her back into awareness of her surroundings.
When he went back into the hall to see if he could rummage up a towel or robe or something he noticed the first aid kit sitting on the couch. Apparently, the witch wasn’t ready to face the one that she had brought back to life. Once again he was caught up in fighting the demon, as much as he would like to let it out to teach Red a thing or two about messing with magic, he didn’t want to frighten Buffy when she woke up. With the demon properly leashed he continued on.
Grabbing the kit, he dropped it in the bathroom before he went back to the bedroom, pausing for a second just to drink in the sight of her. The only chance you had with me was when I was unconscious The words she had spat at him came into his memory at the worst of times but it was slightly ironic. Now that she barely seemed to know who anyone was, now he got to take care of her, now he got to touch her and hold her. It was anyone’s guess what would happen when she gained full awareness once again. Maybe she would accept him and his help but the greater chance was that he would just be pushed into the background yet again.
Almost reverently, the vampire took a few steps forward to kneel on the side of the bed. Pale blue eyes caressed the girl in front of him - the girl he had obsessed over, lusted about and grieved for - carefully, he eased her shoes off her feet and then gently ran his fingers along the hem of her skirt. After only a seconds hesitation he tugged it off, along with her stockings, tossing them aside. Her top came next and before long he was carrying her bare form into the bathroom, placing her into the tub of warm water. .
“Come on now love, don’t you want to enjoy the bath?”
His voice was almost pleading, gentle still but pressing just a touch. He needed her to wake, needed to know she was ok. Buffy remained silent and apparently unconscious though so he went about washing her quietly. He’d leave her hair for later, no use in shocking the girl by dumping water over her head. Once he was satisfied all the dirt had been removed he reached for the first aid kit, taking out the peroxide so he could bathe her wounds in it – had to get all those germs out. Spike did everything without thinking about it, even diluted the peroxide a touch so that it wouldn’t sting too much, like he just instinctively knew how to care for her.
His hands gently caressed her fingers, taking particular care to treat the wounds that had been caused by her digging from her coffin. A soft sigh escaped his sculpted lips as he raised her fingers to his mouth, brushing a tender kiss against the tips.
“Wake up for me love, come back to me…”
Spike’s eyes were closed as he muttered the words, so caught up in his grief that he didn’t even sense when she opened her eyes to focus on him. Her voice was what dragged him out of his thoughts causing his own eyes to fly open.
“Spike?” Buffy murmured softly, her brow furrowed in confusion as she tried to remember what happened. Suddenly, she was aware of her nakedness and she sank farther down into the tub, trying to regain some sense of dignity and modesty.
Spike felt as though his dead heart was about to burst to life as he heard his name fall from her lips. “Yeah, pet, it’s me…” He forced out, his voice husky and thick with emotions. At least she recognized him… that had to be a good sign, right?
“What…what’s happened?” Buffy questioned, her voice confused and a little bit of worry crossing her features.
Alright, she wasn’t screaming and she wasn’t throwing him out, so far so good. Though, she just had to hit right away with the tough questions, huh? His brow furrowed a touch and his head tipped in the way that was familiar to the blonde in the tub. That little cock of his head that meant he was thinking of something or trying to form the words that he was searching for.
“What do you remember?” He questioned, that would be easier to handle then trying to explain everything himself.
“Um…” She hesitated a moment, raising one soapy hand to brush back her hair, making a face at the grossness of her locks before she continued. “…I remember…Glory…and the tower…and…oh god, Dawn, is she alright?”
“Niblet is fine, pet, she’s been goin’ to school and everything, made sure of that, I did.” The constant reminder to Dawn that Buffy would have wanted her going to school and doing things right from her hero Spike had been enough to get the girl going in the mornings. “What else do you remember?”
“I…I jumped and then the next thing I remember is…” Buffy cut herself off abruptly, her brow furrowed as the memories of heaven started pouring back into her recollection. She wasn’t ready to share that yet, especially not with Spike.
Spike. Spike was sitting in the bathroom while she was naked and in the tub. What the hell was going on? This had to be some sort of alternate dimension. If it weren’t, the Spike she knew would definitely be making some snarky comment or lewd gesture or something! Her nerves were suddenly on edge, her fingers clenching on the side of the tub. “I need to see Dawn.” Her voice was firm, demanding almost. “Now.”
Spike could sense it as soon as the nerves started hitting her, the moment she became uneasy with him seared into his being with a pain that had to match hell’s flames. His golden goddess was back from the dead and still she was untrusting of him. The claim gave way to her confusion, letting him in on her feelings and emotions and it tore him apart inside to know that she was hurting. Her words, well more so her tone was so reminiscent of the past that he had to physically stop himself from flinching. Instead, he just ducked his head and nodded, slowly standing. “Right. I’ll just go get her then.”
Setting his jaw, the muscle there twitching to give away his barely held in frustration, he made his way out of the bathroom and closed the door firmly behind him. A low growl escaped his lips as his human mask fell away to let the demon out. “Bloody hell!” He growled harshly. “What does it bleeding take?!”
With that out, he let exhaled a low breath. He definitely needed a spot of violence or something. With the slayer all fresh back from the grave, he wasn’t about to let out his anger on her. He hadn’t even given her any attitude or salty comments when she had tensed up on him after he had tended to her. She was just brought back to life from the dead for fucks sake, had to dig out of her own bleedin’ coffin. Even he wasn’t monster enough to lie into her after having a day like that.
Raking his hands through his hair – hair that had worked its way out of its gelled shape into unruly curls – he took a few moments to collect himself before he headed back downstairs to the magic shop. He had to collect Dawn and get her up to Buffy, definitely needed to call the watcher, he would want to know about all this and somewhere in there he had the feeling he needed to get some kind of nourishment for himself before he snapped and drained someone, preferably the whelp, sod the chip. This kind of stress could cause even one of those monks who’d made Dawn to curse, he was sure of it.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Thank you guys so much for the reviews! It really encourages me to keep writing. Sorry this one took a bit to get up, updates should be more regular soon! Thanks for your patience and please review if you are still intrested in this story! Oh, this chapter is unbeta'd as of yet, so sorry if its a little rough!