a/n many thanks to Spikeskat for the great beta job she did on this chapter, she REALLY helped me out! Thank you to Chicklet for the beta'ing on the revised version!
chapter 5
Life, surprisingly, did not change much for Spike and Buffy once their secrets had been revealed. Spike came to appreciate not having to hide from mirrors anymore and having to explain his sunlight intolerance away. He no longer had to be nagged by Buffy to remember to dress according to the weather, another thing that suited him just fine. He would think nothing of walking out in the middle of a snowstorm wearing nothing but jeans and a t-shirt, only to be ordered back inside to put a jacket on.
And his duster wasn't good enough either, usually being forced into wearing a multi-colored North Face parka more appropriate for the cold weather, that had cost a bloody fortune.
But now? Things were all nice and tidy, just the way he liked them.
There was also little need to check their superhuman strength, which became beyond the liberating. The town actually took advantage of it, often asking for their assistance when mere mortal strength wasn't quite enough.
Animal blood was much easier to obtain, now that the local butcher kept it in stock especially for Spike. All in all, the town was very accommodating for their two supernatural heroes, not wanting to give them any reason to move on. Several parents of young children voiced concerns but were easily won over.
It was more than Spike or Buffy ever expected.
They still bowled every Thursday night, and their savage competitiveness was better explained now. As a result, the bowling alley suffered an even greater number of equipment fatalities. But everyone still agreed, the two were incredible to watch.
The first Thursday after the bar incident, bowling night started off slightly awkward for the blonde duo. As they entered the bowling alley that night, a larger crowd than normal was present. Neither paid much attention to the people loitering around the bar or standing against the wall, talking in small clusters. They quickly made their way to Elaine and Rick, who were waving them over from their regular lane.
Buffy gave Elaine a quick hug while Spike shook Rick’s hand, their usual smirks firmly in place. Buffy glanced back nervously at the crowd of people congregating near the bar.
“What’s with all the people? Is there like a party or something?” Buffy asked.
“Yeah, and you're the guest of honor, sweets," Elaine commented wryly.
"Huh?"
"Oh, don’t pay them any mind. They’re just here to gawk at our town’s new superheroes,” Elaine said with a wink. She glanced over at Spike slyly, letting her eyes roam appreciatively over the fine specimen that was his body as he stood talking with her husband. "Well, there may be more than gawking from some of us," she added teasingly.
Buffy’s jaw dropped in astonishment. “You’re kidding, right?”
“Nope. I mean, really. Can you blame us? Just look at him." Elaine sighed dramatically to emphasize her point, still staring.
Buffy rolled her eyes derisively, well acquainted with Elaine's quite verbal appreciation of her husband's physical attributes. Of course, her eyes had to follow Elaine's and she got caught up in her own world of drool. Dammit, Elaine always did that to her. If she didn't know that Elaine and Rick were completely nuts about each other, she might have some major issues with Elaine's continuous lustful comments about her guy. But, for the most part, she just found it amusing and it was always a challenge to keep her mind out of the gutter when she was around her friend. Valiantly pushing thoughts away of Spike and sex, Buffy focused. "No, the people, Elaine. I'm talking about the people."
Elaine giggled. "I always get you. You're so easy, you know that?" She ignored the dirty look Buffy threw her way, waving her hand dramatically. "They’re hanging out so they can thank you both, silly.”
“Thank us?” Buffy turned to Spike, confused. “They want to thank us,” she mouthed, pointing at the people.
Spike just shrugged his shoulders as if to say, “Got me, pet.”
“Come on, Buffy. Let’s go say hello to your adoring public. Now, don't forget to smile, and tell everyone I'm your BEST friend, got it?” Elaine instructed, looping an arm through hers and dragging her away from the guys.
Vaguely, Buffy heard Spike say that he and Rick were going to get some beer. She just nodded as she was lead away by her friend.
Buffy found her new celebrity status slightly uncomfortable, but she soon realized that this was what had been missing from her time as the Slayer.
Appreciation.
The town had gathered merely to show their gratitude, and Buffy just wasn't used it. Still, it was... nice. Spike didn't seem to have a problem with it, Buffy realized as she glanced over to where he was standing by the bar with Rick, accepting the gratitude of the people around him. If he seemed embarrassed by the easy acceptance of the townspeople, he never let on, taking their thanks in stride as if it were no big deal. Buffy realized that it was probably the first time his demon had been fully accepted.
For a man who was already well-liked by the townsfolk, this new, dangerous, supernatural edge just added to Spike's appeal. Especially by the romantics in the bunch. And the women like Elaine.
The non-bowling crowd only remained for little over an hour, just long enough to express their support for the vampire and slayer in their midst. Buffy felt like she was getting to know practically everyone in town, having spoken with people tonight that she had only seen from afar.
It was kinda... neat.
Soon, it was just their regular tight knit group, and things were well on their way to being another entertaining league night.
Spike and Rick had returned from their second bar run of the evening, setting the pitchers down on the table. Buffy and Elaine looked up as they approached, and Elaine allowed the conversation to trail off since she had been pumping Buffy for juicy gossip about her sex life. Sex with a vampire... it was like something out of a torrid romance or something. And Elaine intended on finding out about every little detail.
Spike handed Buffy her requisite diet coke, and she smiled her thanks as he settled next to her. Elaine kept a direct stare pinned on Spike, watching him tip his beer back and drain the mug. She found herself watching Spike a lot these days, finding his vampire status intriguing
"Rickie Boy, could ya tell your wife to lay off the bloody eyeballing," Spike announced, refilling his beer.
Rick looked over and saw his wife staring unabashedly in Spike's direction. "Elaine... " Rick said in a pained voice. Buffy had to hide the grin that had erupted on her face, especially when her friend completely ignored her husband and got to the heart of the matter.
"So," Elaine stated finally. "You're like... dead."
"Undead," Spike corrected.
"What?" Elaine asked perplexed, her eyebrows making a valiant effort to furrow, but were restrained by the Botox injections she routinely received from the plastic surgeon in the next town.
"He said he's undead, Elaine," Rick repeated patronizingly.
Elaine gave a quick shake of the head. "That just makes no sense."
"What are you going on about?" Spike asked.
"I know! It totally doesn't!" Buffy injected, wholeheartedly agreeing with her friend.
"What are you bints blathering about?"
"You being undead. It makes no sense. It would be like being "un" pregnant. Either you are, or you aren't. And if you're not dead, you're alive," Elaine explained.
"See... I know! That's what I've always thought! Doesn't anyone own a dictionary or anything?" Buffy commented dryly.
"I don't know. It should be more 'half dead.' Or 'sorta dead.'"
"Yeah! Or... 'semi dead'. Or... partially dead!'"
"You two are off your nut," Spike informed them disgustedly, not wanting to admit they had a point. He and Rick exchanged glances, both rolling their eyes when their wives got up and went to the snack bar, still fully engrossed in discussing the virtues of proper labeling.
"Hey, are you guys really married?" Rick suddenly asked.
Spike was silent for just a moment before answering. "We have the rings on our fingers. We have the paperwork saying we are legally wed, but have we actually gone through a ceremony and exchanged vows? No."
"Lucky bastard," Rick muttered.
Spike let out a short bark of laughter at Rick's lighthearted comment. "Yeah, well, don't really need a ceremony. Buffy belongs to me."
Rick looked impressed. "Wow, she really lets you get away with saying that?"
"Hell yeah, she does."
"Elaine would kick my ass if I said she belonged to me," Rick replied dryly.
Spike threw a smirk his way. "Things would be a little different if you were a vampire, Rickie, my boy."
Understanding dawned on Rick's face. "Ah, I get it. Pretty cool."
"Yep."
+++++++++++++++
The next few weeks passed by quickly. Things had settled down for both Spike and Buffy, which came as a relief. It still made Buffy slightly uncomfortable being stopped and given heartfelt thanks for doing what she had been chosen to do, but she found she enjoyed getting to know people better. As a result, she felt like her roots were now further imbedded in this town, spreading and growing stronger with each person met.
Buffy's job at the ER hadn't suffered from the town's newfound revelations. It was business as usual; except now Buffy was occasionally called when extra security was needed. The town itself didn't generate a large need, but sometimes they would get patients from neighboring communities that didn't have the small town mentality and things would get out of hand.
Three weeks after the bar incident, Buffy came to work on a dark, dreary afternoon to the sound of ambulance sirens and utter chaos. A multiple vehicle accident on the highway just outside town was responsible and since they were the nearest receiving facility, several critical patients were brought in at once.
Being a hospital in a small town, trauma wasn't something that was seen on a daily basis and especially, not all at the same time. Buffy knew that there were two ambulances that were always on duty, and who typically had more than enough free time to kill during their long 24 hours shifts. But today, both units had been dispatched along with two units responding from the nearest town.
From the moment she walked in, Buffy immediately went to work trying to call the appropriate doctors while multi-tasking at the same time. The ward clerk who usually took care of ordering tests and making phone calls had called in sick, shoving the emergency department into further pandemonium.
One of the nurses stuck her head out of the trauma room and yelled for her to call a 'code blue', and Buffy immediately called the hospital operator, even though she knew all the available hospital personnel were already helping and not many more people would be showing up to assist the CPR.
Working quickly, she stamped up the appropriate labwork, adding a blood alcohol level since she had already been informed that the person who was crashing had been the responsible party for the motor vehicle accident. Buffy had smelled the alcohol when she had passed by the room.
She had just hung up with the surgeon on-call when she realized something was setting off her vamp radar.
So not what she needed, Buffy thought as she ignored the incoming phone calls.
Those who were in the immediate vicinity watched as she went from competent-but frazzled-ER tech to something they couldn't quite describe in the blink of an eye, as she blatantly began disregarding their verbal orders and began looking around with a cold, calculating look.
Buffy allowed her senses to try to pinpoint where the vampire was, but with the amount of people scurrying about, she was unable to pick it up. Reaching down to lift up one cuff of her scrub pants, Buffy plucked the stake out of the spot where she usually hid it.
"What is it?" Jen, the nursing supervisor, asked worriedly after trying to get Buffy's attention and then seeing the look of cold predatory determination on her face.
"There's a vampire in here," she stated simply, walking out from behind the desk and turning around in a slow circle, her eyes searching for the one who didn't belong.
"Oh my god! What should we do?" Jen asked fearfully.
"Nothing," Buffy answered distractedly.
She felt it then, that familiar pull from the vicinity of the trauma room.
Breaking into a run, she sprinted in that direction, whipping back the curtains, stake in a raised and ready position. Her eyes found the heart monitor, noting a semblance of a rhythm before inspecting the man, lying bloody and still, on the gurney. The smell of second-hand alcohol was thick and heavy from the well-dressed, twenty-something patient.
"Stop CPR," Buffy ordered.
The doctor, who was covering Windmont's ER from another city and already infuriated by actually having to work on what was supposed to be an easy shift, was poised at the patient's head in preparation for intubation. He did not take kindly to a lowly hospital employee telling him to wait on the breathing tube. "Excuse me, I don't know who the hell you think you are, but I'm the doctor here," he stated coldly.
Buffy ignored him. "Stop doing compressions and back away," she told the respiratory therapist, who did not hesitate to comply. Judy, the RN who had already tried multiple times to start an IV, also complied without question once she saw the presence of the stake in Buffy's hands. They knew who Buffy was and weren't about to question her, especially once they saw the look on her face.
The doctor's face mottled red with rage. "Oh, get the hell out of here! I'm the doctor, which means I run the code, got it? Respiratory, get back in there and start those compressions back up. And for Christ sake, keep bagging him. What the hell is the matter with you people?"
Buffy crossed her arms over her chest, irritated by the high-handed attitude. "Nothing is wrong with them. Check your patient out. He's all twitchy guy." She gestured to the jerking limbs of the man lying on the gurney.
The doctor looked down at the man, then at the monitor, which showed a serious lack of activity. "Oh, for God sakes, why did I agree to work in this Podunk town. I must have been insane," he muttered angrily, walking around to check the leads that went to the cardiac monitor on the crash cart, not trusting any of the staff to do it correctly. They were all obviously incompetent.
"I totally wouldn't do that if were you," Buffy warned.
Just as Buffy was about to get further backlash from the irate ER doctor, the eyes of his patient suddenly sprang open, quickly shifting to amber with teeth that sharpened to a fine point.
Now conscious, drunk, and thoroughly evil, the vampire reached up and grabbed the stethoscope looped around the physician's neck and attempted to pull him down to meet his waiting fangs.
Buffy exchanged looks with Judy and the rest of the staff that were watching from beyond the glass doors, barely suppressing the urge to roll her eyes at the shocked look on the doctor's face, who had not won many popularity points even before this mass-casualty incident. Stepping forward, Buffy clamped her hand around the vampire's wrist, breaking his tenuous hold on the stethoscope.
Now freed, the ER doctor scurried away, knocking over several IV poles in the process, which clattered noisily to the ground.
Enraged that his easy meal had been disrupted, the vampire threw himself off the gurney, looking macabre and evil with the caliber of injuries sustained in the car crash, in addition to his natural demon countenance. "Well, lookee here. A real do-gooder."
"Boy, did you ever pick the wrong town to crash in," Buffy informed him, tense and prepared for an assault. The wait was not long, a sloppy attack due to the continued inebriated state of the vampire. Buffy sent him flying over the gurney, where he crashed into the wall with heavy force.
"Who are you?" the vampire growled, attempting to regain his footing.
"Sorry, where are my manners. Buffy, vampire Slayer. And you're... dust." It gave her a great feeling of satisfaction to hurl her stake across the room and through the chest that had been so carefully worked over to bring this shell of a man back to the life that had already been taken some time ago. Buffy watched impassively as the vampire crumbled into dust before looking at the crowd that had gathered in the hallway outside the trauma room doors.
"Ok, mental note. From now on, make sure CPR's actually need to be resuscitated," Buffy announced before turning her attention to the Emergency Department manager. "I'm thinking mirrors on the crash carts might not be such a bad idea."
Her suggestion was given serious consideration, the entire ER shaken up at what could have just occurred if Buffy hadn't been on duty. Looking around, she saw the ER doc still huddled on the floor, looking completely shell-shocked. She walked over to him and helped him to his feet.
"What was that?" he asked shakily, trying to come up with a scientific explanation for what he had just witnessed.
Buffy rolled her eyes, and walked away. "Long story." she called over her shoulder to the bewildered man. "And I'm terribly busy."
++++++++++
Buffy had been concerned that the presence of another vampire in their town was a sign of things to come, but it seemed to be an isolated incident. Another uneventful two weeks passed by. In Sunnydale, that would have been an ominous sign. One that would have had the Scoobies scurrying to their research books to try to get ahead of whatever apocalypse or big evil was sure to follow.
But here in Windmont, peace and quiet was just par for the course. Spring was being anxiously awaited, the cold and snow becoming old and tiresome.
It was another cold, bitter day that found Buffy baking cookies in her kitchen. Before Windmont, any attempts of the culinary persuasion always turned into disasters. But with perseverance-and a lot of time to kill-Buffy had managed to nail baking down. Chocolate chip cookies were her specialty, and Spike ate them by the dozens.
She had just pulled a pan out of the oven and put it on top of the cooling rack, sticking another pan in the oven, when the doorbell rang. Yanking off her oven mitts, she hurried to the front door to open it before the bell was rung again. Spike was still sleeping, and she had come to learn that a sleepy Spike was a grumpy Spike.
Not bothering to check to see who was at the other side of the door, Buffy threw it open, and found her face frozen in shock.
Her mother and Giles were standing on her freshly shoveled porch.
"Buffy! Oh my god, it's really you," her mother cried, throwing her arms around Buffy and clutching her tightly. "My baby!"
The dazed look did not leave her face and Buffy stood stiffly in the embrace of her mother. Joyce didn't seem to notice as she pulled back, tears streaming down decidedly aged features.
"Buffy," her watcher uttered quietly, his eyes glued on her. The relief was easily read on the Englishman's face, as he took in every detail of his missing slayer. She had been gone for almost a year, and they had exhausted many resources in an attempt to locate her.
"Come in," Buffy finally said, stepping to the side of the threshold so they could enter her home.
Her sanctuary.
"Is this your house?" her mom asked, trying to contain her tears and overloaded emotions. She looked around the small foyer, taking note of the cheery warmth, with just a slight amount of added clutter. It was so unlike the daughter she knew, it was startling.
Buffy nodded curtly. "Yes, it is. But I'm assuming you already knew that, since you rang my doorbell." The hostility was just barely veiled.
"Yes, well, I'm afraid that is all we had," Giles explained, as Buffy led them into the kitchen where she'd left her cookies. Giles watched as Buffy efficiently transferred them from the cookie sheet to the cooling rack, before taking the cookie sheet over to the sink and running water over it.
Buffy's lips were tightly compressed as she worked to rein in her screaming emotions. 'NO!' she wanted to scream. 'Not here, not now! Go away!!' "What are you doing here?" she couldn't help the icy edge to her voice when she voiced her question.
Her mother looked agonized, a new crop of tears flowing down her cheeks. "Oh, Buffy, I am so sorry. So sorry for whatever I did to make you think you had to leave like you did."
Buffy just nodded; accepting her mother's words, but unable to give her the forgiveness she was looking for.
Giles sighed heavily, his haggard face falling even more. "Buffy, I realize something occurred that must have upset you tremendously, but I do not believe you know the lengths we have gone through to pinpoint your whereabouts. Our locator spells remained inconclusive, and it was just this most recent one that gave us a location. You have been missed, Buffy. Terribly."
"You mean the Hellmouth has missed me."
"Good lord, Buffy. You are more than just my Slayer..." Giles allowed the words to drop off, but Buffy couldn't deny the acute pain she witnessed in his eyes.
"When I think of how difficult things must have been for you, how scared you probably were. Traveling alone... You have no idea how many nights it's kept me up," Joyce revealed, pain coming off of her in waves.
Buffy sighed, wanting to keep up the indifference, but finding herself not up to the task. She had to swallow the lump that was forming in her throat. "I... wasn't alone."
Joyce exchanged looks with Giles, then pasted on a bright smile. "Oh, well, that is wonderful. You met someone." Buffy's mother looked around, and finally noticed the hints of a masculine influence; the cigarettes on the counter, the ashtray, empty bottles of beer in the recycling bin, a pair of black boots haphazardly shoved under one of the kitchen chairs, obviously too big for Buffy. The signs were there. Buffy was not alone.
Unexpectedly, a voice drawled, "Well now, didn't know we were expectin' company."
Giles spun around in his seat, his brain rapidly attempting to come to terms with just who was leaning so casually against the door jam that led into Buffy's kitchen. Although he'd never seen the bleached blonde hair in such curly disarray, nor had he ever seen him without the black leather duster he wore like a death shroud, yet there was no denying just who this was. Clad only in a pair of jeans, the skin that was on display was too pale, too marble-esque to be human.
"Spike," Giles ground out, easing out of his chair to put himself between the vampire and Joyce.
"Watcher," Spike replied, his lips curled up in a smirk. "Joyce," he added, tipping his head in her direction.
Buffy's mother looked with startled confusion at the bare-chested man in her daughter's kitchen, recognition dawning slowly. Yes, she knew him. This was a vampire. The vampire from her living room that fateful last night that she had seen her daughter. Joyce looked over at Buffy and found her only child smiling fondly in the demon's direction.
The tension in the room was thick, almost pulsing with life. Spike could easily have killed to protect his newfound happiness with Buffy, yet knew that wasn't possible. With practiced nonchalance, he sauntered over to snatch a cookie off the cooling rack, studiously ignoring the unwanted presence of Buffy's watcher and her mum.
"Hey!" Buffy yelled, overreacting by slapping at the thieving hand with the plastic spatula she grabbed off the counter. "Back off! Those are for tonight."
Spike jerked his hand back, nursing it against his chest before taking a bite of the cookie he had pilfered. "Bloody hell, watch the violence."
She arched an eyebrow at his outlandish statement, than gave him a soft smile. Now that he was there at her side, she could feel her tension fleeing. She could so do this. They could do this. Buffy leaned into Spike's side, taking comfort in his close proximity.
Giles ripped his glasses off in a fit of agitation. He exchanged glances with Joyce, whose look of uncertainty rivaled his own. The urge to lash out at his young charge was overwhelming for her flagrant lack of common sense, but Giles knew he had to tread lightly here.
"So... Buffy," Giles began, placing his glasses back on his face. "You're here with... Spike?"
Giles saw Buffy's chin come up, her face tightening with resolve, while she exchanged looks with the vampire.
"Yes, Giles. I am here with Spike."
Giles watched as Spike's lip curled contemptuously, and once again wished he'd had the foresight to bring a stake. "Yes, well..."
"Why did you come?" Buffy asked her Watcher, interrupting the forthcoming tirade.
Surprise snuck up on the older man's face. "Why, to bring you home, of course."
Spike and Buffy exchanged amused looks. "Giles, I am home." Buffy sent her mom an apologetic look when hurt settled on her face.
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