Summary: Buffy and Dawn Summers have just moved into a new house and Buffy's already made enemies with their next door neighbor, Spike. He's kind of a jerk, she's kind of a bitch, and they hate each other on sight. But can the teenage Dawn's unlikely friendship with Spike soothe the tension between the two feuding adults...and possibly turn it into something (much) more pleasant?









Nominated at SunnyD Awards for Best New Author, Best Characterization (Spike), Best Drama, Best Plot, Best Romance, and Best Pairing (conventional). Thanks so much!






Rated: NC-17
Categories: General Fics Characters: None
Genres: Romance
Warnings: None
Challenges:
Series: None
Chapters: 16 Completed: No
Word count: 70310 Read: 23479
Published: 07/04/2010 Updated: 04/18/2013

1. Chapter 1 by Science [Reviews - 11] (2559 words)
10/19/10: Chapter One has been edited and updated. I owe a huge debt of thanks to KnifeEdge for the beta-read.

Banner courtesy of KnifeEdge.

2. Chapter 2 by Science [Reviews - 5] (1951 words)
10/19/10: Updated Chapter Two.

Thanks to KnifeEdge for the beta-read.

Banner by KnifeEdge

3. Chapter 3 by Science [Reviews - 5] (1901 words)
10/19/10: Updated this chapter. Tons of thanks to KnifeEdge for the beta-read.

Banner by KnifeEdge

4. Chapter 4 by Science [Reviews - 9] (2533 words)
Thanks for the great reviews! I really appreciate them, even when I don't respond to them (which, I apologize, is most of the time...)
11/4/10: chapter updated. Thanks to KnifeEdge for the beta-read.

5. Chapter 5 by Science [Reviews - 9] (3626 words)
I owe a huge debt of thanks to KnifeEdge for her assistance with this chapter.

Sorry for the huge delay between chapters. I'm honestly trying to keep to weekly updates. I know where this story is going, it's mostly just a matter of finding the time to write. RL has been a little crazy.

Thanks again to all who reviewed. Comments are always appreciated!

6. Chapter 6 by Science [Reviews - 6] (4819 words)
Oh, hi! Remember me (and this story)? Yeah, we're still around. I've been sitting on a couple chapters for the past, oh, year or so, so there will actually be a few updates coming. I'm really trying to kick-start my motivation for this story, because contrary to all available evidence, I know where it's going, what needs to happen, how it's going to end... I just need to sit down and write it.

Thank you to my lovely betas, KnifeEdge and Ryn.

And if you'd like to know who to thank for this totally unplanned update, that would be Puddinhead. She convinced me I was doing humanity a disservice by not at least sharing this particular chapter. Keep in mind that she's kind of a perv, and you'll probably figure out what led her to that conclusion.

Banner by KnifeEdge

7. Chapter 7 by Science [Reviews - 6] (5889 words)
Thanks again to my betas KnifeEdge and Ryn. Huge thanks also to Puddinhead for all the encouragement recently. I've written more in the past two weeks than pretty much the whole past year. I still have two (and a half, as of now) chapters up my sleeve, so updates will continue.

Thanks to everyone for the great reviews! I'm so glad people are still interested in this story.

Banner by KnifeEdge

8. Chapter 8 by Science [Reviews - 2] (5389 words)
Beta'd by KnifeEdge and Ryn. Special thanks to Puddinhead for her continued encouragement and feedback.

9. Chapter 9 by Science [Reviews - 5] (5432 words)
Beta'd by KnifeEdge, Puddinehead, and Ryn.
Huge thanks for all the help and encouragement!

I have been working on this story for well over a year now. It hasn't been an incredibly active year (took me most of that time to get two chapters written), but one thing that's been constant throughout is that music strikes me as being perfect for this story. Or: I hear a song and something in it speaks to me, points me in a direction I want to go. Music is definitely an important part of this story, and so I want to share my Welcome to the Neighborhood playlist.
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8A118ADBBC54E2BA
(You'll probably figure out that I love the Talking Heads and the Violent Femmes; what surprised me was how much I've grown to love punk rock in the past couple years. I blame Spike.)

10. Chapter 10 by Science [Reviews - 9] (5607 words)
So this is where I run out of chapters. Life and work and holidays have been a little crazy the past couple weeks, and chapter eleven is mostly a figment of my imagination at this point. On the bright side, I feel more and more like I'm hitting my stride with this story, and I've been able to take my time to work out the kinks my crazy plot kitties insist on throwing at me.
As always, reviews feed the muse. Posting what I had and getting feedback really helped kick-start my writing, so please, keep it up!

Tons of thanks to Puddinhead and Ryn for beta duties.

Banner by KnifeEdge

11. Chapter 11 by Science [Reviews - 4] (4689 words)
I've been aiming for updates every two weeks or so; it is entirely due to my awesome betas that I came very close to actually getting this done in two weeks. Huge kudos to Puddinhead, Ryn, and Tennyoelf for encouragement and suggestions and generally being wonderful.

Thanks so much, also, for all the awesome comments. Feedback really does make me want to write more. I promise.

Banner by KnifeEdge

12. Chapter 12 by Science [Reviews - 7] (5686 words)
Hello, dear readers. I know it's been way too long between updates, and I sincerely apologize. This chapter was ... well, sort of like pulling teeth, only with the added bonus of copious amounts of bourbon and beers.

I have to give a GIGANTIC thank you to both Puddinhead and Minx DeLovely. Seriously, if it weren't for those two, you would not be reading this right now. Or possibly ever. So if you appreciate their enthusiasm and encouragement as much as I do, go check out their stories (and make sure you leave a review!)

That being said, I do hope you enjoy this update. This chapter includes a scene I'd been planning since the start of the story, though the characters still managed to throw a surprise or two in there for me.

Some dialogue lifted from "Tough Love."

Banner by KnifeEdge

13. Chapter 13 by Science [Reviews - 10] (5032 words)
As always, massive amounts of credit to my awesome betas: Minx DeLovely, Puddinhead, and Tennyoelf for encouragement, constructive criticism, and generally being great people.

Thanks also to everyone who is reading and reviewing. I love to hear what you think of this story, and the feedback definitely helps feed the muse. Keep it up!

Some dialogue lifted from "Tough Love"

Banner by KnifeEdge

14. Chapter 14 by Science [Reviews - 6] (6030 words)
First things first: HUGE thanks to my betas Minx DeLovely, Puddinhead, and Tennyoelf for their assistance, patience, and general hand-holding over the past couple weeks. I always feel like it's got to be frustrating to be my beta because I'm A) a consummate procrastinator, B) incredibly needy, and C) very slow at this writing thing (see A). But here we are with a new chapter, which I promise wouldn't be here without those lovely ladies.

Thanks to everyone who's been reading and reviewing; the feedback is fantastic and always, always welcome (see B above).

Not to be spoiler-y or anything, but there is some, uh, stuff going to happen that requires me to change my rating. After I post the next chapter, this story will be rated NC-17.

Banner by KnifeEdge

15. Chapter 15 by Science [Reviews - 7] (4428 words)
Um, hi. I feel like I keep disappearing for a year at a time. I am so sorry for that. What I should have said in the previous chapter's notes was that I started a new job last spring. I went from working a couple nights a week to EVERY DAY! UGH! and during the day, too. (Science doesn't do mornings.) Anyway, you know that RL thing? How it's always there and often needs lots and lots of attention? That's most of what's been going on, interspersed with a healthy heaping dose of procrastination/writer's block/general laziness. Anyway, I've been dragging my heels one way or another, but I just need to start doing this and finish this story I've been living with for going on four years. (really. it's always there. just quieter sometimes than others).

Thanks so much to people for reading and reviewing. It's really validating to get feedback -- and incredibly helpful.

Huge thanks to Puddinhead and Tennyoelf for the beta and support!

16. Chapter 16 by Science [Reviews - 7] (4739 words)
Thank you as always to Puddinhead for awesome beta-ing duties and generally being a great friend. Thanks also to Tennyoelf for her beta reads and support, and all the nights spent watching Buffy together. This chapter absolutely would not have gotten written without tremendous help from Minx DeLovely who managed to get me over my fear of sex scenes (oops, spoilers) by having me use "smurf" instead of any naughty words. It only took about 500 words for me to get over it and begin to use ALL the naughty words on my own.

And thanks to all of you who are still reading and reviewing. I know updates are infrequent, but know that I'm still working on this. I really appreciate the feedback I've been getting; it just means a lot to know that other people are enjoying what I'm doing.