Buffy was awakened by the grating sound of the room’s alarm clock. Ugh--damn things are just as aggravating overseas... She smacked the top of her night table a few times before realizing that the clock was on the other side of the bed. Half awake, grumpy and irritated as hell, she climbed over the still-sleeping vampire to shut the annoying thing off.

She looked down at Spike and wondered at how weird it was to watch him sleep. Hair tousled and lips slightly separated, he looked like any other sleeping man; however, no breath passed his lips and his chest was perfectly still. She sat back and stared at him, wondering how something that was so peaceful in rest be so damned annoying awake. Not knowing why she was doing it, but giving into the feeling anyway, she leaned over and whispered into his ear. “William, time to wake up.”

When the vampire didn’t move, she tried again. “Come on, William--time to join the waking world...”

He smacked his lips and muttered “Just a few more minutes, mum...” before turning around away from her.

Buffy sat back. This was definitely not what she had expected. Trying to push away any maternal feelings, Why the hell does he have to be so adorable sometimes?, she gave him a good shove and watched him disappear over the edge of the bed. There. That’s better.

Game face on, the vampire jumped up and looked around. When he saw the young woman on the bed, laughing like a madwoman, he narrowed his eyes. “Oh really fucking funny, Slayer. ‘S that how you’re going to wake me up every time, by shoving me off the bed?”

Gasping during laughing fits, the young blonde managed to respond. “If it’s this funny every time, yeah, I’d say I just might.” She managed to slow down to a few giggles. “Seriously, though, Spike--I tried to wake you before, and you weren’t moving so I had to resort to serious measures.”

He frowned. “Were you whispering in my ear? Is that why I started to dream of my mum? ”

“Whispering? Me? I don’t know what you’re... Mom! Oh my God, I forgot to call Mom--she’ll be freaking out! She’ll think I was kidnapped or something--she’s probably called Giles by now. I am in so much trouble.” She whined and dropped her legs over the edge of the bed.

“Look, why don’t you just calm down and call her--I’m sure she’ll understand that you were tired and took a nap. Jet lag’s a bitch, even for us vampires.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right.” Buffy picked up the phone and dialled. After a few seconds, she hung back up and stared at the phone. “That’s weird. I dialled the number and some voice told me it was an invalid number. Do you think Mom changed our phone number since I left?”

“Yes--it was her secret desire to get you out of the country and move where you couldn’t find her. She told me as much last time I stopped by for a cuppa.” At the heartbroken look Buffy gave him, he rolled his eyes. “No, she didn’t change the bloody number! We’re overseas--you have to dial an extra code or something.”

“Well, Mr. Smartyfang, do you know what that code is, or are you just going to sit there and be useless?”

“Useless?! I’m the one who told you about the stupid code in the first place. And no, I don’t know what it is. ‘S’not like I was calling America last time I lived here.”

Buffy huffed and picked up the receiver. “Geez, you don’t have to bite my head off. If you don’t know it, just say so. I’ll call the operator--I’m sure she’ll be nice enough to tell me.”

With the help of a very friendly operator, Buffy was finally put through to her home phone and spoke to a worried Joyce.

“Hi Mom... yes, everything’s alright. No, we got here a few hours ago, but we were tired so we took a nap. What time is it? It’s just after 10. Yeah, 10 PM. Yeah, he’s ok. No, he didn’t get charred or anything--he’s managed to avoid that pesky sunlight.” Buffy looked towards Spike, who was doing his best to pretend not to be listening. “No, we haven’t had time to do any sightseeing; we just went to Council headquarters-- ugh, you don’t even want to know. That Travers is such a... well, you know what he‘s like. Then we came to our hotel, which, by the way, is not a five-star deal. Actually, it’s really embarrassing--they’ve got us set up as honeymooners. No, it is *not* cute--it’s gross! At least the bed’s huge, so....“ Her eyes grew as she realized what she’d just said. “No! He’s sleeping on the couch. No sleeping with Spike!“ She got up and walked to the window, parting the blind. “Look Mom, I’ve got to get going. This call’s probably costing a fortune and the Council isn’t exactly paying us a mint while we’re here. No, I don’t need you to call them for me--we’ll do fine with what we have. Say hi to everyone for me. Uh huh, I have to call him too. I know, Mom--I’ll be careful. I love you too. Uh huh. Yup. Ok then, I’ll talk to you soon. Bye.” She hung up the phone and groaned.

Spike looked up from the television. “You know, pet, mothers are like that ‘cause they care so much. Joyce is just worried, ‘s all.”

Buffy came over to the couch, and sat beside the blonde vamp. “Was your mom like that?”

Throwing an arm over his face in a dramatic gesture, Spike laughed. “Was she ever--couldn’t leave the house without tellin’ her where I was going, when I was comin’ back. She was the quintessential mother hen. I was twenty-five and she still insisted on making sure I was wore a scarf when I went out.”

That made Buffy laugh. “Wow--there’s a mental image: Spike wearing a scarf.”

The vampire became serious. “No, pet. William wore the scarf. Not Spike.”

Buffy bit her lip, pondering a question. What the heck--worst thing he can do is laugh at me. “Is it that you don’t feel the cold, or does it just not bother you?”

Spike raised an eyebrow. “Well, yeah, I can feel it; it’s just that it doesn’t bother me so much--not like it would for you. If I have a choice, though, I prefer warmth. Didn’t your Watcher cover any of this?”

“Well, no--not exactly. We got to ‘vampires bad--kill vampires’ and that was about it. It’s not like I’m gonna ask a vamp if he’s cozy before I stake him.”

Standing up, Spike stretched. “Pfft. Figures. Why don’t you call Rupes and get that out of the way so we can head out? I don’t plan on having to carry a snoozing Slayer back here.”

Buffy did just that, and proceeded to recount all that had happened at Council headquarters.

The vampire made his way to the bedroom to get dressed. As he walked by his flatmate’s open suitcase, a sudden urge hit him. Listening carefully, he heard that she was still on the phone. Typical woman--she’ll be on that thing forever. Peering into the bag, he saw that it contained the Slayer’s underclothes.

Holding up a pair of red silk panties, he nearly hit the floor. They had lace at the waist, and a small lace heart on one of the sides. He put those to the side and pulled out a satin thong that had ’I Chase Boys’ printed on the front--he let out an unnecessary breath. “Christ...”

“Spike! What are you... Argh! Is that my underwear? What the hell are you doing in my underwear?”

Although lying had never been his forte, Spike, for once in his unlife, came up with a quick valid excuse. “Hmph! Get off your high horse, Slayer. I was just tossing your bag off the bed when the bloody thing opened up on me. Figured you wouldn’t be too keen on having your knickers lying all around the bedroom.” He stuffed the two pairs back into the suitcase and shoved it towards their owner, who eyed him suspiciously but didn’t say a word.

Leering, he cocked an eyebrow at her. “Not my fault you packed a suitcase of naughty knickers--don’t know what you were plannin’ on doing here, but maybe you could...”

He didn’t have time to finish his sentence before a hairbrush was thrown at him rather harshly. Grabbing whatever clothing was close at hand, he ran out of the room, secretly high-fiving himself for the first believable save of his unlife, doubled with a well-placed taunt.

***

“So, what’s the plan for tonight?” Buffy sat on one of the kitchen chairs, tying up the laces on her sneakers.

Throwing on his duster, Spike wished for the first time in a long, long time that he had a reflection. The Council video camera had reminded him of just how damn good he looked in that coat.

“Figured we’d head over to the Calico. It’s pretty tame for a demon joint, so it’s a good place to start. We can probably get the lowdown on these Pelorak and what they’re up to.” He looked at the Slayer up and down, and frowned.

“And then we’ll go get you some decent clothes. The Calico’s about the only place you’ll get in dressed like that.”

Buffy looked in the mirror. She was wearing a pink knit top and light blue flares. “What’s wrong with this? At least I’m not dressed like the Grim Reaper.”

“Think of where we’re going, pet. I’ll blend in, but you’re just screaming ‘Hello, human! Please kill me now!’ You look like an Old Navy ad.”

She didn’t know why his words were bothering her. It’s not like it was a personal attack, and it was certainly not like he’d never insulted her before. “And what’s wrong with what I look like? You’ve never had a problem with how I’ve dressed before!” What does it matter what he thinks? Stupid vampire--it’s not like I wore this for *him*...

Fuck... Don’t cry, whatever you do... Spike had no idea why he felt bad. Insulting the Slayer was on his daily top 10 things to do, but her reaction this time got to him. Bloody sentimental poof... “Look, there’s nothing wrong with what you’re wearing *if you’re in Sunnydale*. If you’re trying to get into some of the seediest demon bars in London, pink won’t cut it.”

Buffy began to feel a little less self-conscious. “Well, it’s not like we can go shopping tonight--it’s after 11pm. I doubt even the Goth stores are still open.”

“You just don’t know where to shop, pet. Look, why don’t we just head out and we’ll talk about clothing later.” He got up and headed for the door.

Buffy looked at him for a moment and not for the first time took note of the blonde vamp’s clothing. Watching his muscles move, even from under his duster, she thought to herself: Yeah, the Big Bad look definitely works for him. She creased her brow. Where’d that come from? Ugh, God help me; he insults me and all I can do is check him out...

***

On the way to the Calico, Buffy made a point to stop at a bank machine. Taking out £50, she bemoaned the fact that that sum was exactly one tenth of their total spending money for this mission.

As they passed a street vendor, the young woman realized just how hungry she was. When was the last time she’d eaten properly? “Did you want to grab something to eat? I’m starving.”

“Sure--we can share; you can have a hot dog and” he waggled his eyebrows “I’ll have the vendor. Sound fair to you?”

The Slayer stopped dead in her tracks and faced the blonde vampire. Dragging him into an alley, she pointed a finger in his face. She spoke slowly and menacingly. “Spike--we’ll get this straight right now. You will not, under any circumstance, feed off humans while we’re on this mission. I don’t care if you have to brown bag it like Angel--find a way around it.” She backed up a step and crossed her arms.

The vampire sneered. “’S a bit late for that, Slayer. Had a bite to eat at the airport.”

Buffy narrowed her eyes. “You’re lying--you were with me the whole time. You didn’t leave my side except to go...” her face paled “...to go have a smoke. Oh, tell me you didn’t...”

Smug, Spike straightened his stance and reclaimed some of his ‘Big Bad’. “’Fraid so, luv. Had myself a bit of a snack in the bathroom. Some pudgy middle-aged bloke...”

The stake was pressed against his heart before he knew it.

“Anything you want to say before you leave this world, Spike?”

In the four years he and the Slayer had fought, Spike had never let her get the upper hand quite to this extent. Sure, she’d won a few rounds and so had he, but never, ever, had any of their fights ended with his unlife so seriously on the line.

“Yeah. I didn’t kill him.”

“Huh?” Buffy had expected him to fight back, or to goad her into going through with it, but his quiet confession took her by surprise. “Did you say you didn’t kill him?”

“Yes.”

His eyes met hers in an unwavering gaze and she knew he was telling her the truth.

“Why not?” Her question was just a whisper.

His eyes left hers and darted around. It was obvious that not only was he trying to decide whether or not to tell her, but he was also searching for the answer.

“I don’t know why. He was pleading for his life--they all do that, you know, if they’re conscious--anyway, prattled on about a wife and girls that he hadn’t seen in weeks. He kept crying the whole time. Bloody wanker, I am. Look, if you’re going to kill me, just do it--don’t stand there with that thing poking into my chest.”

Buffy looked into his clear blue eyes and, pulling the stake away from him, lightly pressed her lips to his. “Thank you.” She turned away and walked back to the sidewalk.

The Slayer part of her was going ballistic. What in the world was that?! Slayers do *not* kiss the undead! You thanked him for not killing someone--great incentive there, Buffy. Maybe he’ll be expecting kisses for all the people he won’ t kill from here on in. Another thought came to mind, however. Or did you thank him for not having to kill him? She didn’t know why she’d kissed him, and at that moment she honestly didn’t want to know why.

Spike remained with his back glued to the wall, eyes round like saucers. Buffy Summers, *The* Slayer of vampires, had kissed him. Maybe he had been staked after all and this was some weird afterlife. He brought his left hand up to his right forearm and pinched himself hard. “Shit!” Ok, so he wasn’t dead... again. He pulled away from the wall and filed this incident under ‘things to revisit later’.

He caught up to the Slayer and fell in step with her as she made her way down the sidewalk.

Author's Note: Wow. I can't believe we're onto chapter 14 already! I hope you guys are enjoying the banter between Spike and Buffy--that's so much fun to write :) As usual, thanks to all those who left reviews. It warms the cockles of my heart, it does.
Please keep 'em coming.