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Author's Chapter Notes:
Thank you for reading this story. Spuffy is on the way now.
Chapter 15: ‘A Clean, Comfy Loft’


Summary: Buffy and the gang finally reach the Arizona Territory in this chapter. The Spuffy relationship is about to take a big, big turn (for the better!). Two more beloved characters from BTVS/ATS are going to make an appearance in this chapter. I have taken some liberties with last names of characters.

A/N: Thank you for reading this fiction.


Chapter 15:


It had been nearly a week since Buffy’s near death from fever. A day or two after Riley had saved her life; Buffy insisted that she was well enough to ride on. Spike was still concerned and balked at the idea, but Buffy was stubborn. One of the many tough traits that Spike loved about his golden goddess.

Since the day Riley used his tribe’s medicine to cure Buffy, both she and Spike had thanked the man a thousand times. Riley would usually just nod a silent ‘you’re welcome’ and go about his normal business. Once in a great while, Spike noticed, the big man would favor Buffy with a rare grin or soft smile.

Of course Buffy just thought that Riley was near Godlike, especially after William had explained everything to her. However, her gratitude to Riley Finn was just that, gratitude, and she made sure that Will would not confuse it as anything else.

Buffy was constantly by William’s side now, careful to stay close to him, as he wanted her to. She didn’t mind, of course, and she knew that Will realized she had spoken the truth to him. When she had come out of her fever induced delusions that is.

William was the man for Buffy, she could now freely admit it, in fact, and she had. Once the fever had broken and Buffy woke up to find her Will, holding her, staring fearfully into her eyes, she had not only recognized his love for her; she repeated his sincere, heart-felt admissions back to him.

Spike rode along side Buffy, glancing at her from time-to-time, lovingly. She was his, he knew that now, his completely. Oh, they hadn’t made love together, that was true, but they were one, still. They were now bonded in love and spirit together, now and forever more.

The blond outlaw had watched, mesmerized, just a few days before as his Buffy stood at the rim of the Grand Canyon. Buffy had just stood there with tear filled eyes as she gazed out at one of nature’s most beautiful creations. Her green eyes were wide with awe at the sight before her, oblivious to how she was affecting Spike.

While he watched Buffy’s childlike wonder at the beauty of the huge canyon, Spike fell in love even more with her. He had almost lost her; his salvation that was Buffy, he’d almost lost her.

When Buffy had turned to him, her green eyes filled with happy tears of wonder, Spike was reminded that his love had never even seen an ocean. An odd thought, really, considering everything the couple had been through in the last couple of weeks. However, Buffy had never felt the cold, salty goodness of an ocean’s waves against her body. She had never experienced the uniqueness of a sea’s smell or seen the grandness of its size and strength.

The Grand Canyon of the Arizona Territory was amazing, this was the truth. But it paled in comparison, Spike knew, to the magnificence of and ocean’s force or the pull of its incredible, almost brutal power.

For the thousandth time, Spike thanked God that He had spared Buffy’s life back in Utah. Buffy was his, Spike’s, forever and always and he intended on always being with her. To give her his love and show her the wonder of the world they lived in.

They were close to Flagstaff in the rough and tumble Arizona Territory, now. The Crawford Gang, and Buffy Summers were getting close to the nearest thing to a real town in the rough wilds of Arizona.

This was the Arizona that still somewhat belonged to Cochise and his legendary family of Apaches. Even if the white man had seemingly run the Indians up into the mountains? Cochise and his tribe still truly controlled the raw Arizona frontier. Especially in the southern area of the Territory, near the Mexico border.

“We’re near Uncle Doyle and Aunt Cordelia’s ranch,” Buffy heard Angel crow gleefully as he spurred his huge horse foreword.

“Another uncle and aunt?” Buffy halted Buttermilk and looked at William, who smiled in response.

“My mum’s little half-sister,” Spike chuckled good-naturedly. “I don’t really know her well, as we’ve only met once or twice. She scandalized my grandfather, me mum's dad. Aunt Cordelia, that is. When she ran off with a daring young Irishman by the name of Doyle Quinn. My grandfather was horrified when Auntie Cordelia took off with the upstart Quinn and headed out here to Arizona. If Cordelia hadn’t of already been showin’ with a babe, three or four months when her and Doyle took off from…”

“Nevermind!” Buffy mumbled with a bright, hot blush. “I’ll let your aunt tell me the rest,” she trailed off with a virtuous sigh.

They rode on, over the rough, dry terrain of the Arizona desert that seemed to stretch on forever. It was truly a harsh, unforgiving place and Buffy cringed at the thought of a young woman such as Cordelia Quinn, living out here in this vast wasteland.

‘Could I do it?’ Buffy asked herself as she gingerly surveyed the surrounding arid land, enclosed by some oddly out of place green mountains. ‘Could I live here, like this? Living this hard life? So far away from family and friends in a rugged, unholy place that seemed like hell on earth?’

The troupe had finally reached the foothills of some out of place huge bluffs that Buffy was shocked to recognize as actual mountains. When she squinted against the early morning sun, she saw the tell tale barbed wire fence that stretched for miles, or so it seemed. Off in the distance, Buffy spied a huge ranch house and a barn close to it in size.

“That’s Uncle Doyle’s place,” Angel yelped in the voice of an excited school boy. “We’re here!” He cried with joy as he spurred his horse on even faster.

Buffy noticed that Rupert Giles actually smiled for the first time in three days. For some reason, this gave her a renewed sense of hope and she grinned at William, who smiled back at her, adoringly.

“It’ll be fine,” Spike murmured to Buffy as he grabbed her horse’s reins and pulled her along into the huge gateway of the ranch. He knew of his wild, free-spirited aunt, but he couldn’t quite remember her. The last time he had seen his Aunt Cordelia, Spike had been about ten or so. Now, this all seemed oddly like a dream to him. Every adult in the Giles/Calendar family had coughed, delicately behind their well-groomed hands at the mention of Cordelia Calendar-Quinn, the wild child of the family line.

When the young woman and group of rough men reached the front of ranch house, they were met by a dark, good looking man. However, it was the dark haired woman by the man’s side that caught Buffy’s eye.

“That’s somebody’s aunt!” She gasped in shock at William. Cordelia Quinn, even from where Buffy sat, was the epitome of a true Southern lady. Buffy could tell that the woman was quite lovely, about thirty-something and probably as tough as hard tack nails. She would have to be, Buffy determined quickly. There were three boys and an even younger girl, Cordelia and Doyle’s children, obviously, standing next to the couple on the porch.

When Angel slipped off his horse, Cordelia broke from the porch and threw herself into her huge nephew’s arms. “My dear, dear, naughty wicked boys!” Cordelia squealed, gleefully, reaching out to take Rupert Giles in her embrace. “Where’s your brat, Rupert,” Cordy grinned and stared up at Spike who still sat on his horse, next to Buffy’s.

“Come down here, William Giles,” Cordelia ordered her nephew. “Let me take a look at you and your pretty little ‘guest’ you seem to have dragged along with you.”

For some reason, Buffy immediately relaxed when Mrs. Quinn acknowledged both her and Will. The young blond woman knew, by instinct, that she was going to just adore this formidable Western woman. That’s why, once William had dismounted and reached up for Buffy, she eagerly slid into his strong arms and hurried over to ‘meet’ Aunt Cordelia Calendar-Quinn.

Later, after the group had gotten settled in various rooms of the ranch house, Buffy joined Cordelia for a sit out on the front porch. Buffy was not the least bit surprised when the lady lit up a cigarette and took a deep satisfying drag from it.

‘She even makes smoking look classy,’ Buffy giggled to herself. ‘I bet I could learn a lot from Cordelia…’

“So, you and my nephew, huh?” Cordy asked with a kind smile in her melodic southern drawl.

“Well, yeah,” Buffy stammered, taken a bit by surprise this time at Aunt Cordy’s bluntness.

“He told me you had to be a ‘little’ persuaded,” Cordelia chuckled roughly. She took another drag from her smoke and winked at Buffy affectionately.

“Uh, huh,” Buffy mumbled with a bright, hot blush that slowly crept up her neck to her cheeks. There was the most unusual looking spider crawling along the porch edge and suddenly, Buffy’s interest and sight were focused on it.

“Are you a virgin?” Cordelia asked abruptly, watching Buffy for her reaction.

“What!” Buffy squealed like a stunned little piglet. Now her cheeks felt violently hot and flushed as she gaped at the older woman in shock.

“You are,” Cordy chuckled, answering her own question. “But you won’t be for long, not if my nephew has any say in it. And,” she continued, before Buffy could retort, “don’t worry, he’ll make an honest woman of you when he does. He’s a gentleman, just like his daddy and…”

“Cordelia,” Buffy began, trying to get her emotions and voice in calm control. “I don’t think this is something you and I should be talking about. Do you really?”

“Actually, probably we should,” Cordelia laughed heartily. “I think maybe I can give you a little insight into what makes your William tick. I’m sure he’s told you ‘something’ about my sister and niece,” Cordy’s face grew dark and her smiled faded quickly.

“He has and I understand why William and his father do the things they do. I even know Angel and Connor’s story, and something about the rest of the men, but…”

“So, what’s holding you back?” Cordy grinned wickedly at Buffy and stubbed out her cigarette on the porch.

“I, I’m, well I am a virgin,” Buffy muttered, ashamed that she sounded almost embarrassed by her admission. “I do care for William and he cares for me, but…”

“Cares for you would be an understatement,” the aunt laughed again. “He loves you crazy, that’s obvious to everyone. Even you, I’ll wager,” she added with a grin at Buffy.

“I can tell you’re crazy about him too, so? What’s the hold up and why don’t you two just do the deed and relax together?” Cordelia finished with a shrug.

“It’s, uhm, been kind of hectic, lately?” Buffy offered weakly staring at that darn spider again. “And there is the dozen outlaws hanging around that kind of puts a damper on things, you know?” The little blond woman replied in a soft, almost wistful tone.

“I can see how that might be a problem,” Cordy scrunched up her face in thought. “Since you’re going to sleep in my only daughter’s room, with her, while you’re here? The problem remains unresolved, eh?”

“Uhm, yeah,” Buffy whispered, wiggling around in discomfort on the porch chair she sat in. Finally, she met Cordelia’s warm brown eyes, only to find pure compassion there.

“Buffy,” Cordelia sighed, “I’m thinking that you may need to seize the day, so to speak. Now, I know for a fact that William is in the barn, seeing to some horses and he is the ‘only’ one in the barn. There just so happens to be a very nice, clean and comfy loft in the barn. So, I’m thinking that if you were to go to the barn, right now, have a little talk with your man? Let him know that you both need to get to know each other better; relax together? I’m thinking that you’d have all the privacy in the world in that loft.”

Buffy sat frozen in the chair and watched as Cordelia stood up and smoothed down her skirt. “I have to get back inside,” she sighed deeply. “If I know my husband? He’s got the best whisky out for Rupert and the others. They’re going to play cards and get drunker then skunks half the night. That’s okay though,” she laughed and patted Buffy’s shoulder, “it means definite privacy in the barn.”

“Okay,” Buffy mumbled, unable to look at Aunt Cordelia. “Uhm, thank you?” She called as the brunette slipped back into her house.

‘Hmmm,’ Buffy murmured silently, gazing at the barn just a hundred yards or so away.


Spike was feeding his horse when he heard the barn door open, slightly, and someone slip inside. He didn’t look up at ‘the person’ because he didn’t need to. He sensed right off that it was his Buffy.

“Come to help feed these beasts, Princess?” He asked her jovially, but smiled to himself, pleased she’d joined him.

“No,” Buffy replied in a gentle, soft voice that alerted Spike that something was different, suddenly. Something had happened, or changed with Buffy and he turned to seek out her gaze. The truth was, he had begun to be able to read her like a book and Spike realized that something in their relationship was about to take a turn for the better.

When Buffy closed the barn door quietly, then locked it behind her, Spike ‘knew’ something was about to change for the better.

“You okay, luv?” Spike asked her, somewhat confused by now. Not that he was unhappy. How could he be when she was coming towards him like a sleek cat? Her whole demeanor was soft and purely feminine in the way Buffy was walking to him. The look in her beautiful green eyes spoke volumes.

“We need to talk,” Buffy whispered as she closed the gap between them. Their gazes never broke from each other.

“Okay,” Spike replied tenderly, even as he licked his suddenly dry lips. “What do you want to talk…”

Before he could finish, Buffy reached him and wrapped her slim arms about his shoulders. She could feel his trembling body, even though her own was shaking like a leaf.

“Not talk, really,” she sighed dreamily, gently removing his work gloves from his hands and placing them on her hips. “Less talk, more this,” she purred, standing on her tip toes and placing a sweet, yet heated kiss on his lovely mouth.

Spike, throwing caution to the wind, deepened the kiss immediately. He didn’t know where this was coming from, and really didn’t give a fuck. Buffy was coming around, finally, and he had every intention of helping her come full circle.

When she broke the kiss, rather quickly, Spike felt, he tried not to seem too disappointed. After all, Buffy was a young, innocent girl, really, even if he loved her to no end and…..

“Come on,” Buffy whispered slyly, her arms fell from his shoulders. Instead, she took his left hand in her right one and began to walk him towards the ladder to the loft.

If Spike had been confused before? He sure as hell wasn’t now and he followed her like a smitten puppy. Spike placed his right hand on Buffy’s lush little bottom, to help her up the ladder to the loft. His heart sung with joy as he followed his angel up to paradise.



A/N: Well, I know it’s not a ‘real’ bed, but there’s a lot to be said for ‘carpe diem’ right! The next chapter will probably be entitled ‘Paradise’ or at least I think it will.

Thanks for reading and please review, spufette.





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