Buffy was really hoping they would find something like she had found in L.A. while Spike was being pickier. He wanted something nicer for his Buffy. That other place was a dump and he figured if he was going to be staying with her, they should at least have something to call home.
He stopped by a demon bar and told her to wait outside but she shook her head. He sighed, gesturing towards the now opened door, “Come in but please don’t slay people. I’m aiming to find us a place to live not to make a scene.”
Buffy frowned but nodded in agreement as she followed him into the bar. She tried to look uninterested and slightly amused so she wouldn’t send off any Slayer vibes but no such luck. The bartender looked straight at Spike and stated louder than Spike would have liked, “We don’t serve her kind in here. She needs to wait outside.”
Buffy spoke up, “What kind is that mister?”
He glared at her, “Human Slayers. We aren’t looking for trouble. This is a peaceful bar.”
Spike spoke up, “I’m not really looking for a place to drink and play pool. I’m looking for a place to call home for me and my slayer. Not permanently but for a while.”
A strange looking demon called to the vampire and decided to offer him something to get them out of his bar, “Tell you what, you promise to not slay my type and I’ll provide you with a place to live.”
Buffy looked at him skeptically, “Just what is your type?”
The demon shrugged not wanting to volunteer too much information and then decided a tad wouldn’t hurt, “We don’t eat people if that’s what you are worried about. In fact we live off vegetables. There are 25 of us in this town. We all look similar. My name is Ted and my wife here, is Lynn. We have a small house that no one is using at the moment on the outskirts of town. That work for you?”
Spike asked feeling skeptical himself, “What do I owe you for it?”
Ted shrugged gesturing with his hand that he didn’t care as well, “I already told you…protection. There’s a group in town that’s killing us all off. In fact they are killing off everyone. Probably even kill off your misses here if they knew she was a slayer. They don’t like the supernatural. So we have to stay in places, hidden. Now I’m not asking for you to kill or destroy them, just not join them and perhaps save one of our kind if you see them in need.”
Spike looked at Buffy for her approval and she shrugged, “Does it have electricity?”
Ted chuckled and replied even as he let out a sigh in relief that the vampire and the slayer had agreed to his terms, “Of course. Cable, electricity, heat, air conditioning, as well as plumbing are all at the house already. We need those things to live as well. As I said before we live on vegetables so there’s a small garden there too. If you don’t want to care for it, I can send my nephew there twice a week while you are out to care for it. Otherwise, you are welcome to care for it and use it for food.”
Buffy smiled actually liking the sound of the place, “I’m game if you are, Spike.”
Spike said, “Sure am.”
Suddenly a vampire stood up looking at both Buffy and Spike in shock, “You are Spike, William the Bloody, killer of Slayers and you have a pet Slayer?”
The vampire looked really surprised and Spike replied, “What of it mate? Just do me a favor. Don’t spread the word to the demon hunters that she’s here. We don’t want trouble.”
Buffy whispered quietly, “Honestly, I just want to be left alone.”
The vampire nodded and sat down not sure what to make of that but deciding with them both there, it was better not to say anything at all. The demon stood up helping his pregnant wife to stand up as well and walked out the door leaving Buffy and Spike to follow.
Spike looked at the house and thought it was actually great; the best place he had stayed in since he was turned. It was a quaint house with two bedrooms, a bathroom, a small kitchen with all the essentials, a living room with a television and a small dining room with a round table. In the back was a small yard, with a garden as promised. Nothing too big but it had a few plants that Spike might have been able to remember what they were called if he sat down and thought hard enough. There were also beautiful rose bushes growing around a large picket fence. Wasn’t a white picket fence but it was still nice to keep things out of the garden.
He shook Ted’s hand and said that they would take it and watched Buffy’s face to ensure she liked it. She seemed content as she wandered through the house. There weren’t many windows, which fancied Spike just fine. The windows that were there, they could buy something for or toss blankets over them. Spike had black polish in the back of his car, that perhaps he could convince Buffy to use or maybe even something like cellophane. Spike shrugged as Buffy walked out the back door and looked at the garden. She looked at Spike and asked curiously, “Do you recognize these plants?”
He looked at her and replied, “If I thought hard enough I probably could. We had a garden growing up. It was how we got a lot of our food. Mum loved to garden until she got too sick. Then we had to pay someone to do it.”
Buffy looked at the plants for a moment ticking off what she knew, “Tomatoes, lettuce, carrots, potatoes, two bushes that I’m not sure what berries they grow, an apple tree back there it looks like and perhaps some other kind of fruit tree I don’t recognize as well as squash. It’s a nice garden and even room for expanding.”
Spike continued to study her watching the emotions flood over her face and listened as Buffy softly whispered into the night, “I guess we are home.”
As Spike started to walk back into the house, he hit a barrier and roared, “Bloody Hell. Buffy fix this” He motioned towards the door like it was something offending. Buffy smiled and whispered, “Come into our home, Spike.”
Spike smiled at those words but was still a bit annoyed, “Before you go calling a place we are at home, best finish the statement with come in or welcome or something pet. I don’t fancy being locked out of our homes all the time in the future.”
Buffy looked at him and whispered, “You don’t want to stay here for a while?”
Spike stopped and realized what he was saying. He in fact wasn’t even thinking of her going home anymore. He was thinking of a future and he was horrified with himself and responded a little too quickly, “It’s fine” as he stomped into the house and then out of front door and sat on the porch and lit up his last cigarette taking a much needed drag from it as he mumbled to himself, “You ponce. Get control of yourself. She’s the slayer, man. She’s not some mate of yours, or some vampire you can tote around, and you can’t expect her to even give a care about you once you guys leave this place. This is all like a business deal.” With that last thought, he nodded to himself repeating, “A business deal only.” He didn’t notice Buffy standing at the door listening.
Buffy waited until he was quietly puffing on his cigarette to come and sit down next to him. She asked determined not to let him know how much she felt hurt by his self declaration of it being a business deal, “Blood run then store run? Think there’s a mall open this late?” Spike shrugged and Buffy responded eager to get settled in, “Well I’m ready to go if you are.”
Spike took one last drag of his cigarette before dropping it onto the stone steps thinking he’ll need to get something to collect them as he walked towards the car yelling, “Slayer, let’s go.”