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Author's Chapter Notes:
Thank you all for the great reviews. Here is the next chappie please let me know what you think as always and thanks for continuing to read.
Two days since she had been down with tears on her face. Two days since he'd seen her.

For two days the thermos would show up while he was sleeping. He would wake up and voila it was there.

But he hadn't seen her.

He'd heard her moving around the house of course and at one point her little friends had stayed for awhile and chatted the Slayer up. He'd listened intently trying to figure out what was going on with the little do-gooders. Looking for possible weaknesses.

He was still evil after all.

He'd heard all about the teacher's death and her discovery by the Watcher.

Angelus at his finest again.

But while the other two were vocal and supportive the Slayer was strangely silent. He felt there was something more to that.

It wasn't that he felt any sympathy or empathy for whatever they may be feeling.

He was just put out that she hadn't come down and talked to him.

Vampire's were not solitary creatures by nature preferring to surround themselves with family they could stand and Spike was no exception.

He was getting damned tired of talking to himself.

But even with the lack of social interaction he was still in a good mood.

Yesterday a tingling started in his legs.

The feeling was coming back in the lower half of his body and if the Slayer kept feeding him as she had been he would be up and walking soon. The thought brought a smile to his lips.

Yep the Big Bad was finally on his way back.

He was still kind of pissed that she was avoiding him though.

The sound of the front door drew his attention and he listened intently to the sound of her heartbeat. Her footsteps padded softly above his head moving from the front of the house to the back. He could hear her open the fridge and the sound of a jar hitting the counter. After a few seconds her footsteps resumed this time heading for the door which led down to his little hide away.

So today she was going to grace him with her presence.

Well fuck that.

He wasn't some charity case. There was a limit to the damage that could be done to his wounded ego and he had passed that mark about a month back. She could just sod off.

Not like he really wanted to talk to her anyway. He was just tired of being alone. The fact that she was the only person who was going to be seeing him was just an unfortunate set of circumstances.

As her feet plodded their way down the stairs he decided that maybe he didn't need company after all. He'd just gotten his toe to twitch.

He fought back the smirk he wanted to let out.

No reason to let her know what was going on.

He finally looked up at her and noted the somber look on her face and the more conservative cut of her clothes. In her hand she held his thermos.

"So to what do I owe the honor of your presence?" Now he let the smirk come his comment the best way to hide its true meaning.

The look on her face never wavered. It was calm and strangely peaceful while her eyes were hard as flint. For some reason he found it uncomfortable.

She walked forward and placed the blood on the tray without pause. He felt those hard green eyes focus on him and for some reason had to fight the urge to squirm under her gaze. Instead he just raised an eyebrow in question in her direction.

Taking a seat on the chair she seemed to tilt her head and study him with curiosity.

And while the hard look never left her eyes he could see the dawning of some kind of revelation. She leaned forward placing her elbows on her knees and resting her chin on her palms.

"Can I ask you something?" The quiet question held a note in it he thought might have a deeper meaning. What that meaning was he was unsure.

"I suppose." His tone was guarded.

"Do you still love her?"

He cocked his head at her. That had to be the most stupid question he had ever heard in his unlife. How could he not love his dark princess? She was his salvation his purpose and reason for being. Daft bint.

She appeared to search his eyes and find something in them that answered her question without words.

"Of course you do." She let out a deep sigh. "Even with everything that's happened you still love her just as much." She began to leave but paused at the bottom of the stairs.

"You know that Angelus has to die. But as long as she doesn't come after me or my family I won't stake her." She took a step to begin climbing the stairs before stopping again and shaking her head. "I don't expect you to understand but I wouldn't even want my enemy to go through something like this. It isn't right."

************

She felt the tightness return to her chest with her words. Would she be able to finally put all this behind her? Would Angelus' death finally give her a release from this perpetual torment of her own guilt and grief? Somehow she doubted it. Why she cared what Spike thought was beyond her and she had to wonder one more time if she had finally been pushed over that line between sanity and crazy. Because nothing she had done in the last few months seemed to be making much sense.

Making her way back up the stairs she resisted the urge to turn and look at the vampire.

For some reason she had the sinking suspicion that she was betraying her calling. How many Slayers would willingly save a vampire not once but twice and then not kill their girlfriend just because they wanted to spare their feelings? Another probable first for her.

But she knew it was exactly what she had told him. No one no matter what their past was should be going through what she had to endure with loving Angel. And if she could spare him that pain she would.

It wasn't that she liked him and hey she was pretty far from that she just felt that it wasn't in her to do that to some one else. Blood sucker or not.

"Wait."

His quiet word stopped her on the third step. Slowly she turned and looked back at him raising her own eyebrow in question. He avoided her eyes and she wished that he wouldn't. It was so much easier to read him with his eyes.

"Thank you." She barely heard the words and almost missed them. The only way she was positive that he had whispered them was the moving of his lips.

She didn't acknowledge the words certain that he was embarrassed that they were uttered in the first place.

"I'm sorry I haven't taken more time to come down here. I was mostly dealing with Giles. Guess I kind of suck at the Florence Nightingale thing. Do you need anything?"

He didn't answer for a moment and she wondered what he was thinking about.

"I could probably use a bath."

They were the last words she had expected to hear but she felt like kicking herself for their obviousness.

"Shit. I do suck. Let me set up some stuff and I'll be right back."

Climbing the stairs as fast as possible she rushed up to the second floor and began to pull out a pair of old sweats and a large t-shirt out of her dresser. Next she went to the linen closet and pulled out a couple of towels. Rushing into the bathroom she reached under the sink and pulled out some plain shampoo and soap.

For some reason she didn't think Spike would appreciate smelling of vanilla and jasmine.

Satisfied she walked back into the basement.

*********

He hadn't anticipated her answer. Of course he hadn't anticipated telling her that he had wanted the bath. It had just slipped out when he was trying to regain his composure over her confusing yet sincere words.

It was way beyond weird that she was apologizing for the way she had avoided him and for the fact that she didn't believe she was providing enough care for him. He had been afraid for a moment that she would make some snide comment about his whispered words but she hadn't. It was possible she hadn't even heard it but the look on her face as she stared at him told him other wise.

And the speed she had taken off to presumably prepare a bath for him left him little doubt of the sincerity of her intentions.

For the umpteenth time she had surprised him again.

All thoughts of coolly dismissing her had fled as soon as she had mentioned sparing Dru's life because he still loved her.

For over a century he had taken the time to learn how to read people not only by their actions or words but by the look in their eyes and their body language. Everything that he was told him that she had finally made peace with Angelus' upcoming death at her own hands. And it was killing her. So much so that she was willing to spare him the pain of losing his own love.

How unselfish could someone be?

While he waited he drained his thermos and thought about how much his opinion of this young woman had changed.

Sure when he first saw her he had seen that she was a young beautiful girl. Hard to miss something so blatantly obvious. As time passed he thought she was a whining little brat and more often then not a snarky bitch put on this earth just to make his unlife hell. For months he had done nothing but imagine her painful but well deserved death at his own hands or fangs.

Now there was something about her that was deeper a quality she kept hidden that was surfacing as he spent more time in her presence. He had seen her strength physically before been on the business end of it more times then he could count but he had seriously underestimated her inner strength. Her devotion to those she was closest to and her compassion for strangers were unparallel to any he had ever seen.

It was more than her duty or her calling. It was innately her.

But he still wanted to make her dead. Why the idea was still so tempting he had no idea. Maybe just a gut reaction to her being the Slayer. And it wouldn't be a hardship to imagine the feel of his fangs in her tender neck as he drank of her powerful blood.

He just didn't really hate her anymore.

Right now he could if he so choose admit that she was almost likeable. Almost.

He watched as she made it down to the bottom of the stairs her bottom lip caught in her teeth. She was anxious about something of that much he was sure but what that was he still didn't know. Until he looked up at the door to the kitchen.

Fuck he had forgotten that he was going to have to be carried to get up the steps.

This time he wasn't going to prolong the moment for either one of them because it was just too damn uncomfortable.

He waited for her to cross the floor to him and didn't say a word as she positioned him in her arms to go up the stairs. She took the steps slowly but surely and he had to admit it was a good thing that the person who was taking care of him had that bit of super strength. Of course maybe if he wasn't so sunlight challenged he wouldn't be stuck in a basement.

They made the entire trip in silence neither willing to bring their predicament to attention. Buffy elbowed the door to the bathroom open before sitting him on the bottom of the dry tub.

She straightened up and cleared her throat. Turning quickly she spread a towel on the floor just outside of the tub.

"You'll be alright by yourself right?" Her words were quiet as she focused on the task of spreading out the towel anything to keep from looking at him.

Spike took a second to take stock of himself sitting in an empty tub with the Slayer fussing around him. Seemed a little to weird even for him.

"Yeah." Was all he answered. Hell he was able to get himself undressed if that was what the chit was worried about. He looked at the girl whose back was still facing him. Yeah he would rather do this himself any way.

Finally turning she rested a second towel next to the tub.

"I figure you can give me a yell when you're ready to get out and I'll um place you here." She gestured to the towel at her feet. "Just use the other one to um well you know right?" She closed her eyes tightly for a moment knowing that she was blushing but unable to help her response. She was about to leave a naked man in her tub and then come back in and move him while said man was still without clothes. Vampire or not she was still embarrased at the prospect of a man's anatomy being around her in any way.

Spike couldn't help the pang of hunger as he watched the color rise in her cheeks. He could practically feel the blood rushing under the surface of her skin.

"Right." He answered tightly fighting the urge to take a deep breath.

She turned quickly and fled the room. If circumstances had been different he would have taken great pleasure in tormenting her about her response. Unfortunately for him they weren't.

As soon as the door clicked shut he began tugging off his jeans and took off his shirt. Bending forward he reached the stopper on the tub and secured it. Turning on the water he pulled the setting to as hot as it would go.





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