[Reviews - 71]
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Microsoft Word Chapter or Story | ePub eBook Chapter or Story | Printer Chapter or Story

Has been viewed 2906 times

- Text Size +




Chapter 19

"Hellhounds!" Cassie grumbled. "Why does it have to be friggin' Hellhounds?" She kicked a stone.

"We're on the Hellmouth, Slayer." Spike stepped out of the shadows with the Specter. "Hellhounds sound about right."

"Do they make good pets?" the Specter asked with a chuckle.

"Not really, luv. They require fresh brains to eat." Spike shrugged his shoulders. "I guess us vamps could keep a few, but most of the time our attention spans are pretty soddin' short."

"Fresh brains?" Cassie stared at the vampire. "I need to go to the butcher's." She hurried off towards the center of town.

"Guess Rupes figured out what was happenin' at the school social." Spike watched Cassie hurry away.

"Cassie seemed a bit distracted," the Specter said slowly.

"I heard from Harris that the poofter's leavin' to go get his soul anchored." Spike shrugged. "The Mayor's plannin' something big for graduation too. I'm gonna ask Beth to join Dalton for a few days to be on the safe side. Maybe we'll take a little holiday away from good old Sunnyhell."

"She is a vamp, you know." Sometimes Beth really hated the double life she had to lead.

"Yeah, but Beth's never seen battle. I can't believe she's Luke's childe. I wonder why he picked her." Spike sighed quietly. "I'm just glad Angelus didn't know about her. God only knows what he would have done to her."

"She's stronger than you think," the Specter assured the vampire.

Spike made a non-committal sound in his chest.

"She is. Wait and see." The Specter glanced up at the stars. "I need to get home."

"Where is home?" Spike asked curiously. He had wondered about that a few times.

"A girl's gotta have a few secrets," the Specter chuckled. Her eyes twinkled behind the slits of her mask.

"You're one massive secret, pet," Spike grumbled. "When am I going to see your lovely face?"

"How do you know my face is lovely?" The Specter stepped closer to Spike. "I could be hideous."

"I seriously doubt that, sweetness. Even if you are, I won't care." Spike changed into game face. "We can be hideous together."

"You're not hideous." The Specter giggled. "You're the prettiest vampy I know." She danced away laughing as she set off towards home and becoming Beth again.

"I'm sexy, not pretty, you bint." Spike called out cheerfully at the retreating black clad girl.

Spike set off towards the warehouse apartment he shared with Beth. He had gone a few blocks when he heard a chirping, cooing sound from the alley behind the jewelry store. Spike sniffed the air, but he didn't recognize any of the scents.

The vampire was about to step into the alley when a cat sized ball of fur launched itself at him. It cowered against his leg.

"Come here, furball," Spike said. He picked up the little demon, and he petted it. It started the chirping coo sound again.

"That's not a cat." Clem stepped out of the alley. "That's an Elb'irt demon. I didn't think they existed in this dimension."

"Seems peaceful enough," Spike replied.

"Oh they are, mostly. I bet Beth would like it." Clem grinned a pointy toothed grin. "Better than any cat or dog. They're very loyal pets. I thought it was a cat at first."

"You lose at poker again?" Spike asked. "You know alley cats don't taste the same as prime grade Siamese." He and Clem started down the street.

"I was thinking about breeding cats." Clem nodded. His folds flapped in his enthusiasm. "It was Jack's idea actually. She noticed a need here in Sunnydale for kittens. She's smart that way you know."

"Sounds like a good business." Spike tucked the furry demon under his arm. "Count me in!"

"We will. Bye, Spike." Clem gave a wave as he turned towards the Bronze where he was meeting Jack.

Within a few minutes, Spike slipped inside Beth's apartment. He realized she was in the shower.

"That girl sure showers a lot," Spike grumbled to the Elb'irt demon. "She was taking one when I left too. What can she be doing that requires that many showers?"

The water turned off. "Is that you, Spike?" Beth called out.

"No, it's the Big Bad Boogeyman here to make sure pretty little vamp girls have washed behind their ears," Spike called in return.

"Better get in here and check then, Boogeyman."

"You stay put," Spike told the new pet. He hurried towards the bathroom discarding his clothing as he went. After he shagged his girl good and proper, he would approach her about leaving town until after graduation.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day, Beth made a show of reluctantly leaving town. Halfway to Los Angeles, she doubled back to make her appearance as the Specter at the graduation ceremony. She longed to tell Spike exactly who she was. It would be a lot easier than sneaking around as the Specter and then back as Beth.

The Specter stood above the school courtyard where she watched the proceedings with interest. She studied the students as they filed in and took their seats. She realized with a start that these were students, that if she hadn't been turned, she would be graduating with. Principal Palmetto introduced the Mayor. The man made his speech. Near the end the sky darkened, and the Mayor started to have 'growing pains'.

In front of the students, and their parents, Wilkins changed into a huge snake-like creature. The students acted stunned, but with one word from Cassie, their robes came off. Each was equipped with some kind of weapon. Together, they attacked the Mayor.

The Specter looked at the vamps that flanked the parents, and she wondered how many of them she could take out. She concentrated all of her Slayer powers. With one word she dusted half of the creatures. The Specter grinned behind her mask.

Faith led the football players, all equipped with flame throwers, towards the remaining vampires while Cassie taunted the Mayor into charging her. The other Scoobies and Principal Palmetto worked on crowd control.

Spike came to stand next to the Specter. Since it had been broad daylight up till a few moments before, he had to stay inside. He had no idea what the Scoobies had planned since he had been busy with Beth the day before, but he had to admit the chaos was a thrill.

Wesley appeared from inside the school. "The two of you should move away from the building," he said. "The plan is to trap the Mayor inside and then blow the joint.

"You been watchin' gangster movies, Head Boy?" Spike teased the Watcher.

"American television leaves much to be desired," Wesley defended himself while they took themselves to safety. "However, I've been persuaded to extend my stay in Sunnydale as Faith's Watcher. I guess I'll just have to endure."

"The girl needs someone reliable in her life," Spike noted. "Slayers can walk a fine line, and the fall to darkness can be a long journey back for them."

"Kinda like Angel?" Wesley asked. The young Watcher found the two vampires fascinating from an educational standpoint. Spike was straight forward and unsubtle. A person never had to guess at the meaning of his words nor did he hide who he liked or disliked. While Angel tended to be very closed mouthed except when it came to Cassie.

"Exactly like Angel." Spike nodded. "He's gone. Off to find himself."

Wesley made a non-committal sound. "So, it would seem but only at Cassie's insistence."

"Good. It's the least that the Slayer deserves."

A deafening kaboom echoed through the dim twilight. Giles and Cassie's plan to blow up the Mayor worked like a charm. Too bad the high school would never be the same. There was actually very little loss of life that day. There could have been a lot more. The one student casualty was Harmony Kendall who had been carried off by the one surviving vampires.

Spike was secretly thrilled to hear that Wesley was staying on as Faith's Watcher. He needed another Brit to hang with.

Beth was able to make her escape from town while Clem distracted Spike with the kitten breeding venture again. She met up with Dalton, who refused to question why she was two days late. He figured it was none of his business, and he was loyal to both Spike and Beth.

Three days later, Spike showed up at Beth and Dalton's location. The vampires enjoyed a small vacation away from the Hellmouth.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The summer passed quietly for the most part. All of the Scoobies, except Xander, registered for college. Xander found a summer job in a local construction company and decided that he really enjoyed the work.

Riley and Faith's relationship continued to grow. It hit a bit of a snags though. First, Faith refused to meet Maggie Walsh. She didn't like what she'd heard about the woman. Second, she refused to stake Dalton when she and Riley ran across the vampire during patrol. It took some fast talking, and a few threats by the Slayer, for the commando to keep quiet about the vampire. Faith didn't mention Spike or his status as a Scooby. The gang made sure that when Riley met with the group that Spike was absent.

Spike found the Gem of Amara which he presented to Beth. To the Specter, the vampire gave a cache of weapons from the treasure. Spike was quite pleased when both of his girls thanked him with hugs and kisses. He noticed that they both had similar body types, but the fact that the Specter appeared alive while Beth was undead allowed Drusilla's powder to work its magic to hide the fact that they were both the same person.

Beth pretended to purchase the house presented to her months before by RoseSeri Hassib. Then, she let Spike and Clem use the warehouse for the kitten breeding business.

Halfway through the summer a half Brachen demon named Doyle arrived in Sunnydale. He was looking for Angel who he said was supposed to show up in Los Angeles. When Doyle mentioned the need to slay a vampire talent agent that used its status to lure young women in as dinner, he, Xander, Cordelia, and Cassie went to Los Angeles to eliminate the threat.

Giles joined Anya at the Magic Shop since his last job literally blew up in his face. Literally. He was quite surprised at how successful Anya had made the magic supply shop. She had even added an online site. That was something he would have never thought of doing had it been his business.

Deputy Mayor Finch was now the mayor with the mysterious disappearance of Wilkins. The didn't have any worries about the Mayor's office until the next election. The best thing he did for the Slayers and their friends was to give them special immunity if they happened to be at a crime scene. Although by the end of the summer, the chief of police and his detectives discovered that the Scoobies were the most reliable witnesses at said crime scenes.

Soon, it was time for school to start. Beth was able to take a few daytime classes thanks to the Gem. Cassie moved into the college dorms as did Willow and Oz. Cordelia's father was broke now because of tax fraud. She convinced Xander that his parent's basement sucked and they got an apartment together. While she wasn't living in the style she was accustomed to, it wasn't too hard on the young woman. As a whole, the Scoobies had enough business ventures in the works to live comfortably.

Beth and Doyle set him up in the Hyperion Hotel in Los Angeles. While he waited for Angel's return, the half-demon hired several lackeys and made contacts to start the business of helping the hopeless. Of course that was after they did an exorcism of the hotel's previous occupants.





You must login (register) to review.