Chapter Three – London Town
Buffy woke again, it was dark outside.
“Where are we?”
“Greenwich.”
He shook his head as she tried to skim through what she knew of England to try and figure out if she actually recognized that name.
“Aren’t we the charmer in the morning, slayer?”
Buffy murmured something unintelligible.
“Shouldn’t we be in London by now?” She asked stretching in her seat.
“Had to take a roundabout way of it, went passed Dover, bought tickets on a ferry. Switched out the car.” he said. “Got to keep them guessing.”
Buffy mulled this over and then marveled at the sudden intelligence that was Spike. She had always discounted his intellect as his impatience tended to cancel it out, but now that she thought about it Spike had always managed to find a way to survive. He had had to learn a thing or to along the way.
“And how are you just paying for everything?”
Spike stopped at a red light and looked at her.
“Did you hear what I said about the trust, thing slayer?” he asked irritably. “What with the bloody fifth degree all of a sudden?”
Buffy narrowed her eyes. She was groggy she really didn’t feel like dealing with hard questions right now. Things like those were saved for after she had some food and some coffee.
“Just wanted to know where we suddenly have all this money.”
Spike hit the gas as the light changed and took a breath before pressing on.
“After those bloody commandoes did their thing on my noggin, I realized got to keep myself ready for things like this.” He said. He gestured to the back where his precious black leather coat was sprawled on the back seat. “S’long as I have my duster, I’m golden. Got some very important things tucked into some very safe pockets.”
Buffy frowned, realized that this was part of that olive branch they were supposed to have exchanged. Time to be the bigger person. Reminding herself that Spike was the only person she had, she swallowed her misgiving and looked at Spike.
“Do I want to know?” she asked finally.
Evidently, she had said the right thing because Spike’s face softened.
“Wouldn’t matter if you did.” Spike said. "S'mostly just poker winnings."
Buffy shook her head.
“You know that just sounds weirder and weirder.” She said. “It’s like I’m talking to Spike but hearing Giles. Except with a little more evil.”
Spike chuckled.
“Not really trying, For some reason its sticking.” He said. “All the better. We need to disappear for a while, Slayer, whoever’s after us, they probably aren’t going to give up.”
“Me slayer, you vampire?” Buffy made a raspberry noise. “We’re not running for long. This is the kind of thing where we be chased until we find out who’s playing fox and hound and then kick their asses.”
Her grim tone made Spike pause for a couple of seconds. She was a tough one this slayer. His brain was in flee response overload. He had no idea how she could just shift to slayer-mode. Despite himself he was proud of her. He really couldn’t have phrased it better himself.
“Least I don’t need to tell you how important this is.”
They rode in a silence for a few moments. It was Spike who spoke first. He gestured to the sign that signaled their entrance to London. The moments had slipped by faster than either of them had realized.
Buffy watched the houses whizz past. They were smaller than she was used to in California, but similar somehow. And it seemed like months since she had seen other people. It was strangely reassuring. As if there were so many people in the world surely who ever had them didn’t have the resources to find them in a place as crowded as this.
Spike navigated the car around the city. Buffy tried to follow where they were going for a while but quickly got disoriented. Somewhere near the docks, he parked the car and got out. Completely turned around and unsure why they were stopping,Buffy got out of the car.
“Spike?” She asked as she surveyed their surroundings. “Why are we stopping?”
Spike lit a cigarette and instantly looked a lot more like the vampire she remembered. “because, luv, I don’t want them tracking this car. We’re taking public transportation until we can get some new identities and get off this dinky little island. ‘Ve got a place in the south part of the city. Its not great, mind, but it will keep us safe while I make arrangements.”
Despite herself Buffy grinned.
“I thought you were going to make me stow away on a plane or something.” She said when he questioned her. “I’m not sure why but figured that would be pretty untraceable.”
Spike shook his head. “Seems like a good idea but they’ll be lookin’ for that. They’ll check the flights to California first. They could already be there waiting. But we lay low for a couple of days maybe a week and they’ll get sloppy. ‘Sides, Something tells me both of us need to recup, yeah?”
California. It hadn’t even occurred to Buffy for a second that she may be able to head back to Sunnydale. Her brain had been on flee mode for days She was only just beginning to come down from the adrenaline high. Even sitting in the car she had been watching every car behind her. Making sure nothing was following them. Concentrating on the slayer tingles but the only thing they seemed to want to warn her about was Spike. Spike. Spike who knew exactly what he was doing, Spike who didn’t bat an eye lash about helping her. She knew she shouldn’t push him, but the words were out before she could stop them.
“Why are you helping me?”
Spike sighed and finished off his cigarette.
“Well, slayer there’s a good amount of reasoning behind that one.” He said sounding a lot more like his normal self. “Was thinkin’ about it myself on the way over. First thought we’d be a good Idea to split up, but that’d be just what those tossers’d expect. They would be looking for you to be makin’ your way to California. They may give up on me, but I’ve made a few enemies in m’time an’ I don’t wanna risk them puttin’ a bounty on my head in the demon circles. An’ also those men who ran the place—humans every one.” He tossed the butt on the ground and ground it under the heel of his boot. “thought the chip was goin’ to kill me when I managed to overpower one. Anyway, selfish as that is, I know how to go about getting away and regroupin’ done it in Prague among other places—don’t think you’d be much good at that, slayer.”
Buffy nodded. The first thing she would have done was call Giles. But Spike was making sense, whoever had had them must be keeping an eye on Sunnydale. They caught her on patrol. One moment she was dodging demon slime the next she’s in a nightmare. Loathe as she was to admit to needing someone’s help. This was so not her line of business.
“So when it gets down to it, I’m offerin’ a truce.” He said. “’m not sure what they wanted with you,”
Buffy locked eyes with him, her gaze was steely and then flinty. The things they did to her were unspeakable.
Spike continued. “But the things they put me through—”
He didn’t finish the sentence, but Buffy had known Spike for years. And he was an expressive guy, she had thought she’d seen him hate before, when Xander would torment him or shrink his laundry on purpose or when she would call him impotent. But she had never ever, not even when she threatened Drusilla, seen Spike like this.
“Truce.” She agreed.
Spike nodded and then jerked his chin toward the London underground.
“So let’s get started, yeah?.”
*****
Home, it seemed was a little apartment in the sketchier part of London. It had become full dark while they were in the “tube.” Buffy initially thought that being underground would bring back terrible memories, but any people helped with the anxiety. Even late night party go-ers were strangely comforting She and Spike were just an anonymous couple moving with the crowd. It was a short walk to the apartment building and the place was multileveled but cramped. And clearly had not been lived in for a while. Spike puttered around the place. He walked up the flight of stairs to the bedroom and came back down with a passport and a wad of cash.
“Right,” he said. “First order’ve business is getting’ one o’ these for you so we put this island in the rearview.”
Buffy reached for the British passport. “You don’t think they’ll have an order out for someone named Buffy or--Spike Williams?”
She glanced at the booklet and arched an eyebrow.
“James Jones?”
Spike smirked.
“You don’t think I would put m’own name on the thing did you?” He said. “Point of those, slayer, is they’re there for when need to get somewhere and you’re not on the up and up.” He took it back from her. “We’ll give you something common and no one would be the wiser—will have to make you an American though I don’t want to hear you fake an accent.”
Buffy snorted. She was looking thought the cabinets it had been a while since those sandwiches and she was hungry.
“Yeah British Buffy is so not of the good.” All the cabinets were empty except for dusty beautiful and expensive looking china. “British Buffy is also hungry Buffy. Got anything to eat here, Spike?”
Spike shrugged.
“Nope, but we can go down stairs and have ourselves a party.” He said. “Last time I was here there was a shish kebab place around the corner that was pretty tasty, but even if not should find something you’re keen on.”
Buffy looked dubious. “Shish Kebab is some sort of double innuendo?”
That made him chuckle a little. Butchered English meant the slayer was feeling better. “Well, not now.”
Too hungry to be angry Buffy just grabbed some cash he was holding out to her and bounded down stairs.
It was freezing outside.
Buffy realized it was November when she had been taken from Sunnydale, It must be dead winter around now. She quickly spun around and crashed right into Spike who was holding out his black duster. Small flurries were falling around her—it hit her than that she had no idea what date it was.
“Looked at a newspaper this morning.” He said as if reading her mind. “It’s just past Christmas apparently.”
Buffy looked wounded for a second but brushed it off. Christmas. Much as she wanted to dwell she knew she would be opening a door that would be hard to close and much as she would love to wallow she needed to eat something. For now, coping could wait.
“Food.” She said. “Now.”
The Kebab place was long gone but there was a late night Chinese place open, small and dingy but bustling as it looked like the cold weather was not going to hamper the socializing of young Londoners. Buffy and Spike ended up grabbing takeout and heading back to the apartment. As soon as they were back inside, Spike turned on the heating and went about finding sheets and pillows. The place was well stocked if a little musty.
“How do you have this place, Spike?” Buffy asked in between bites of shrimp fried rice and some kind of spicy pork dish.
“S’usually rented out to a demon buddy of mine, but he took off for Doha last year.” He said. “Haven’t really found a new tenant so, I knew this was empty.”
“Could they find us here?”
Spike shrugged.
“They might, but it would take them a while. Humans like that wouldn’t be able to permeate decent demon society. Kevin and I weren’t really friends so I doubt they’d track him down. Should be alright for a few days.”
Buffy snorted.
“Kevin.” She said.
Spike arched an eyebrow and tossed a questioning look over his shoulder.
“I guess the people I’ve come up against have always been sort of fancy names like Lothos and William the bloody and The Master. Lazarus or the Anointed One and then you get names like” she gestured with her chopsticks. “Kevin.”
Spike shrugged.
“Dunno what to tell you, slayer.” He said. “Can’t imagine the Wankers council would be to happy with their slayer humanizing demons."
Buffy peered at him for a second but said nothing, choosing instead to focus on the food she was eating. They didn’t say much after that.
Buffy felt herself relax for the first time in days. And while her fatigued muscles thanked her for resting, her brain finally had time to catch up with the rest of her body. They had traveled 200 or so miles away from that place but it wasn’t enough. Every fiber of her wanted to be further away from them as her brain reminded her of what she just went through. She ate the rest of the food on autopilot. Lost in the images of what she wanted to do to the nameless faceless men whose blue gloves did such terrible things. Spike’s hand on her arm snapped her out of her reverie.
“Slayer,” he said. “You go on upstairs and get some kip. I’ll be right down here.”
Buffy froze. She hadn’t really thought of sleeping arrangements. She was going to be upstairs alone. She realized this was Spike trying to be kind, not taking the bed from her and letting her get what he thought was her way without arguing with her, but the thought of being alone just brought her back to her cell. It made her feel vulnerable and unwatched and therefore unprotected. Even as she felt her stomach sink to right about around where her feet were, her inner slayer was raging at the people who had reduced her to this.
She was not going to let Spike see her that way. Instead of giving in and asking him to come up with her, she squared her shoulders and went upstairs on her own. The linens smelled a little musty from being kept in closets for too long, but every bone in her body cried out for rest. She thought she would manage to shake the feeling suspicious and outright panic but try as she might she couldn’t turn her senses off. Every noise from the road alerted her. Every creak in the floor made her want to jump out of her skin. Sleep wasn’t even in the question. After what seemed like an eternity she padded down the stairs to see if Spike had managed to ‘get some kip’ or whatever he called. Since she reached the main floor, however, she heard the television. It was set low, and Spike was staring at it absently, eating leftover spring rolls.
“Spike?”
He glanced her and smiled wanly. “I know. I couldn’t get to sleep either.”
“Come upstairs, Spike.” Was all she said.
Usually he would have made a lewd comment but the dream he had had of the slayer that had him hard and wanting months ago was the furthest thing from his mind and after what he suspected they put her through at the place he figured it would be a long time before the slayer recovered.
Nevertheless it was hard not to react physically to her presence. She, thankfully, didn’t notice.
The company helped Buffy and once her head hit the pillow she was out.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Hello all! Happy Christmas! I've finally finished the next few chapters, but I'll try and upload them more quickly. Thankfully the holidays make give me a lot of good free time to work on this!
Chapter End Notes:
All I want for Christmas is some feedback!