~~~~~*~*~~~~~
It was Halloween, nearing on midnight. Spike knew from years of not only seeing it, but doing it himself that demons were resting in their lairs, not to make more than a whisper until the holiday was over. But to them, it wasn’t a holiday. It was much more than that. It was a sign of respect, something demons didn’t show much of to anyone.
Spike had made sure he had stocked up on everything he was going to want or need for the night, fearing if he showed his face while Buffy and her little gang were trick and treating he would get his sorry arse staked. He flicked on the TV and flicked though the channels, finally settling on some show called Torchwood. Spike soon found himself quite taken by a man called Captain Jack. The man had total spunk. Just as it was getting interesting however, Spike heard the door swing open. It could only be one person at this late hour.
“Hello?” her voice was soft and tinged with fright. Spike felt confused. It sounded and smelled like Buffy but different somehow. Spike couldn’t put his finger on it, but he knew something was up. A spell gone wrong perhaps.
As she stepped into the dim light of the candle he had burning, Spike felt his undead breath catch in his throat. She was simply stunning. Beautiful. Her hair was down, pulled back by a small white bonnet. Her dull black dress clung to her body, the plain white apron she wore shaping around her hips, showing off her woman curves. The rustle of a petticoat moved against the starch white socks and plain black shoes she wore on her dainty feet. Her green eyes were wide with fright, not quite knowing where she was. Spike cleared his throat.
“Can I help you luv?”
“Oh yes. I was looking for William, have you seen him by any chance?” Hope flicked within her eyes as a slight British accent mixed with Buffy’s California one. Surely this had to be a trick of some kind. Spike tried to stay calm.
“Why are you looking for William pet?”
“I need to talk to him, but I couldn’t find him after he ran out of the party. It’s most important.” What the hell was she playing at? Surely this wasn’t Buffy. It was starting to look more like possession than a spell. No one had spoken of the moments before he was made into a vampire. He didn’t even speak of it. Spike stood, cocking a suspicious eyebrow at the woman before him.
“Do you remember what he was wearing when he left the party?” Without hesitation the woman he knew as Buffy looked at him, smiled sweetly.
“Oh of course. He looked delightfully handsome in his brown suit and tie,” she gushed. Her eyes then hardened and her voice filled with bitterness. “Well that was until that witch Cecily made him cry and embarrassed him in front of everyone,” she clutched her hands to her chest and Spike noticed she held a white handkerchief in her hand. This woman knew her stuff, so Spike decided to push further. Surely he would know her once she said her name.
“What is your name luv?”
“Elizabeth. Now,” she looked past him hopefully, her eyes scanning behind him. “Do you know where I could find William?”
“I...err...I...” Spike was lost for words, which didn’t happen too often these days. His mind was racing, trying to remember who Elizabeth was.
“Please kind sir, I need to talk to him.”
“Why do you need to talk to him?” A dreamy look came over Buffy, or Elizabeth as she now claimed to be.
“I need to tell William that I love him and I want to be with him,” she clutched the handkerchief tighter, wringing it in her hands. “I know I would never be worthy to be with such a wonderful man but it breaks my heart to see him so sad.”
She walked closer to Spike, clasping her hand in his. “It was awful how everyone laughed at him when his poem was read out. The things people said was beyond rude. I thought it was simply dreamy. The heart, the passion he put behind those words was breath taking. I was serving drinks at the time. And then,” Her voice dropped and she spoke almost in a whisper. “When she told him that she would never love him, that he was beneath her, I saw William’s heart break. I tried to stop him from running out, to tell him that he didn’t need her. But he didn’t stop, he just pushed right past me and out into the night. Never to be seen again.”
In one blinding moment, Spike remembered exactly who this woman was. She had been one of the serving girls at that particular party and she had been standing, peering around the doorway in the room Cecily and he had occupied, trying not to be seen. Once Cecily had crushed him with the words that shattered his heart, he had stayed seated on the curved lounge trying to try and digest everything. He was then overcome with such anger that he had jumped up from his seat and made with haste to the door, tears stinging his eyes. He had refused to cry in front of all of them, refused to show all the heartless people in that room that he was affected by those words. The servant girl had tried to stop him by calling out his name but he didn’t want to hear it. He had stormed out onto the street, ripping the paper he still held in his hands until he could no more, tears now rolling down his cheeks.
“You’re her.” Spike whispered, looking into her eyes. In turn her own eyes opened wide as she looked into his pooly depths.
“William? Oh William is that you?” Her eyes shined with tears and she wrapped him in a hug. “Oh William, thank goodness your ok. I was so scared.” She pulled back suddenly.
“Please forgive me William, I didn’t mean to be so forward. It fills me with much joy that you are well. I thought...well it doesn’t matter now your here.”
The more Spike looked at Buffy, the more he could see Elizabeth, the servant girl that never really caught his eye. For back then, he only had eyes for one woman, a woman who had broken his heart. He had forgotten her, like everyone else in his past, it mostly too painful to remember. But how he could have forgotten her he didn’t know. He certainly remembered her now. It was like he was looking in a mirror. She would have been almost identical to Buffy, although she had child bearing hips, her face always seemed to be stained with soot. Her hair was shorter, not as clean as Buffy’s and it always hung limp under her bonnet. She was a servant for one of the other rich households and often did parties for the extra pay to support her sick mother.
He had spoken to her a few times when she had come to deliver goods to the house but never really paid too much attention to her. How was it that he was so blind to her affection towards him? Spike’s eyes softened, realizing what happened. The “costume” Buffy wore must have been Elizabeth’s clothes she had worn that night. Her spirit must have become trapped in it somehow. There was no way he was going to let her be trapped anymore. She deserved to be free. He cupped the woman’s face before him.
“Hush now luv. You have not been forward with me. In fact I will it.” She leaned into his touch, sighing softly.
“Oh William,” she whimpered softly. Spike lent down and let his lips brush on hers before kissing her softly. She responded instantly, her body leaning into his, her mouth opening for him to explore.
Spike closed his eyes, a single tear escaping and falling down his cheek. This is what he could of had he realized. He could have had a woman who loved him, cared for him. Instead he was given an undead life, dependent on blood and would never again be able to step into the light of day without bursting into flames. He would forever be trapped within the darkness. Spike pulled her into him, his arms caressing her back mindlessly as he still kissed her with all the passion he could pour into her.
He then felt two hands on his chest, pushing him back forcefully.
“Spike! What the hell are you doing?” Elizabeth was gone, but his beloved Buffy was back. Her eyes were hard with a hint of uncertainly as she took two steps backwards.
“Never mind. You wouldn’t understand,” he muttered, looking down at the floor. He could feel the hatred building in himself once again at the first woman who broke his heart. He then ripped his head back up, his own eyes hardened.
“Shouldn’t you be getting back to your friends? They are surely missing you.”
“Um, yeah,” she turned on her heels and walked out the door.
“Goodbye Elizabeth.” Spike whispered as the door slammed. The clock above the TV read 12:01. Halloween was over for the year. He slumped back down into the chair he was sitting on, the episode of Torchwood still playing. But he couldn’t focus on that now. He closed his eyes as another wave of memories engulfed him.
He was alone for the night wishing to roam the streets, Drusilla and the rest of them were at the local Tavern, drinking themselves sober. It was Halloween. But Spike didn’t feel like sitting and drinking. He still seeked vengeance from all that had laughed at him. One of the homes loomed ahead and seemed like a fantastic target even though he knew he was suppose to be on his best behavior tonight. He didn’t want to though.
He was preparing to break in and obtain himself an easy meal or two. That and he wanted to go in and rip their hearts out and paint the walls in their blood. Both were satisfying options to him. But when he heard the sound of two women gossiping as they passed by and he couldn’t help but ears drop on the conversation.
“They found her hanging in the old abandoned Pratt house, in William’s bedroom you know. The note on the bed stand said that she could no longer live without him. It’s quite sad. As if it isn’t enough that people all over town are disappearing and the servant girl goes and pulls that. Imagine how her mother feels...” Their words drifted away and for a moment William stopped to wonder who they were talking about. It was his house they were talking about. But then he heard his dark princess call out to him, pulling him out of his thoughts.
“William.” He turned and smiled at her, his previous thoughts forgotten. “Be a good boy now and come with me. No naughties are allowed tonight, they will get most cross with you.” Spike walked up to her and they linked their arms together, kissing passionately before walking towards the Tavern.
“SPIKE!” Annoyed, Spike opened his eyes, Buffy staring down at him.
“What?”
“I want to know why you kissed me,” she stood up straight and Spike noticed with a smile that she had changed out of her previous outfit. It was simple enough, a white tank top and blue jeans, her favorite black boots peeking out underneath. Her hair was now up in a ponytail and her eyes glared at him challengingly.
“I wasn’t kissing you.”
“Yes you were, your lips were on mine, mine on yours. I want to know why.”
“Buffy, go home,” he stood and moved himself away from her. He didn’t want to do this now.
“No,” she moved in front of him, her eyes challenging. Spike sighed, defeated.
“You were possessed okay. I was kissing the woman you were possessed by. You happy now?” Buffy looked up at him, her green eyes wide, wanting to know more.
“Who was she?”
“Someone from the past, someone I had forgotten.” Spike hung his head, thoughts of the woman who had possessed Buffy still fresh in his mind. Buffy’s next words however made his head snap back up, making him realize that if he had just stopped when Elizabeth had called out, he could of had what he still yearned for.
“Did you love her?”
“I might have,” he whispered, his eyes shining with tears. Buffy’s eyes softened and she leaned upwards, kissing him lightly on his lips.
“One day I might too.,” she left Spike standing there, his mouth hanging open at her admission as Buffy walked back out his crypt door for the second time that night, without a so much as a second glance back.
What Spike didn’t know was that Buffy had in fact remembered everything that had happened while she was possessed by Elizabeth. She had felt the woman’s pain and grief of the thought of losing William and then her joy of finding him again. She didn’t know that he was a monster, or a bad poet, she loved him for him. Buffy just wished she could find that herself one day.
THE END.
Author's Chapter Notes:
I swore to myself that I wasn’t going to write anything else until my unfinished work was done. Then, sitting down at the computer I opened up a new word document and started this. I wrote it in about 2 hours, there was no plan, no real direction until I got to the end. So it practically wrote itself. So I hope you enjoy it, it felt nice to sit down and let the words just flow out through my fingers. Inspired by the nekid_spike prompt, Midnight and there is mention of Octobers Nekid Guest Captain Jack. This is unbeta-ed like most of my work so all mistakes are my own.
I have gone though this again and fixed up a few mistakes that were brought to my attention. I do apologize if I didn't make things clear, I hope I have rectified this problem.
I have gone though this again and fixed up a few mistakes that were brought to my attention. I do apologize if I didn't make things clear, I hope I have rectified this problem.
Chapter End Notes:
I hope you enjoyed it. *bats eyelashes* Please feed my desperate muse and review!