Author's note: Written for the Back To High School Ficathon.BTVS season two.
Disclaimer: Not mine. So don't sue.
Enjoy!
"Garlic don't work, boys!"
"How about Holy Water, death breath!"
"You missed, suckah."
"Only once, pal."
"So. Now you know what you are, and now you know what we are. You'll never grow old, Michael. And you'll never die. But you must feed."
Man. Someone actually wrote this pap. And I can't believe I've never seen it. I also can't believe I let Buffy talk me into a midnight movie at the Sun. Oh, it's not the movie that I mind, really, it's the presence of Xander, and how everytime one of the vampires bit it, he leaned over Willow and poked my arm.
At least until I smacked him in the back of the neck, hard enough to make my hand sting.
"Ow!" Xander had yelped, looking over at me in surprise.
"Sorry," I had whispered sheepishly. "Mosquito."
Willow had looked at first Xander, then me. I shrugged. "You know that West Nile thing is going around. Dangerous."
She had cocked her eyebrow, then transferred her attention back to the screen.
242 years old. The former Scourge of Europe. And I'm taking ribbing from a teenage boy that's younger than most of my clothing.
I shift my gaze to my girlfriend, and am a little shocked to see her mouthing some of the words along with the actors. She squeals with the rest of the audience when the grandpa drives through the house, and destroys the master vampire.
"This is what we do to unwind?" I mutter to myself. I hadn't been sure what Buffy had meant when she suggested some group activity to unwind after the events of Halloween, and Ethan Rayne's chaotic spell.
Seeing a horror flick, not really my first choice. But my lady desires, and I follow.
We follow the hoardes of people out into Main street. Xander and Willow are bopping around us, no doubt influenced by the huge amount of caffeine and sugar they have imbibed.
They also keep saying things like, "oh, remember the part where…" and then break into paroxysms of laughter.
Xander also yells something about, "not enough chick vampire movies, like what about Vampirella?" but I choose to ignore him.
Buffy joins in some of the chatter, but falls into step with me when she notices my lack of participation.
Taking my hand, she swings our joined fingers back and forth, twirling some hair around her pinky.
"Did you like it?" she asks innocently.
I give her the glower that, in days past, would have made any young thing's knees tremble with fright, and partly desire. She just looks at me, hazel eyes on mine, tickling my palm with her thumb.
I sigh. What else can Ido?
"I'm not going to dignify that with an answer, Buffy," I huff, and she tries really hard not to smirk, but I see it before she covers it with a cough.
"Xand! Will! We're going through Weatherly Park on the way home! See you guys tomorrow- but not too early- Giles can just deal, there's no school, and I'm not getting up just to have crack of dawn free doughnuts," Buffy calls to her friends, who are now running around in circles, trying to trip one another.
How did I get so lucky?
"Okay, Buffmeister," Xander says, wrestling Willow's arm behind her back. The redhead yelps, and swats the boy in the arm. I grin inwardly at that.
"No problem, Buffy- ow! Xander, get off! See you later- ow! Bye, Angel," she calls at our retreating backs. I wave a hand at her, and shoot a look at the boy. He has the indecency to stick his tongue out at me.
Unbelievable. No. more. Caffeine.
Buffy and I walk along in silence, the only sounds being the crickets and the few night birds up and around.
And the usual host of demons and vampires, of course.
We're going to let them have the night off. Which is bad thinking, I know, but can't Buffy get a break every once in a while?
I'm not going to tell her I can hear a few vamps talking as we pass Restfield; I'll go back later and take care of them. They're young. And stupid. Shouldn't be a problem.
"Angel?" she asks suddenly, breaking the stillness.
"Buffy," I answer.
"Are you okay? You're not mad, are you?" she says in a sheepish little voice, stopping as we enter Weatherly park. I roll to a stop as well, and face her.
"Do you really think I'd be mad at you? About what?" I answer, mystified.
"Oh, Xander's behavior, the stupid movie…I don't know, take your pick," she says, toying with her hands, and scuffing the ground with her foot.
I pick up one of her hands, and kiss the palm of it.
"I'm not mad, Buffy. Trust me, it takes more than a dumb movie and juvenille behavior to get me going." I hesitate, and frown a little. There is something…"There is one thing, though," I say, and move a little away from her.
"Do you think that vampires are like that? Just dumb, mindless animals, easy to put down, stupid teenagers, eager to put on a face?"
She follows me, shaking her head. "No. No way. I know how tricky they can be. But I'm the Slayer. I haven't had too many problems…not if you don't count the burning down my school gym or the whole getting killed by the Master thing," she jokes, then sobers at the dour expression on my face.
"Buffy, in all seriousness, you're not Wonder Woman. You can be hurt. Any one of us can take you down if you drop your guard even for a minute!" Worry and doubt roll through my stomach like too much ale, and I take the two steps that separate us, grabbing her by the shoulders.
"You have to promise me, promise, that you will be careful. Never take anything for granted. Never. Trust me, I know what the demon wants, especially what it wants from a Slayer. Remember Spike? Remember how much he liked toying with you? The older a vampire gets, the more creative he gets. I could tell you some things that would make your hair turn white. Things that I did, Buffy. If any one of them gets a lucky hand on you…" I shudder uncontrollably, memories of her death at the Master's hands invading my brain, pushing logic and reason out.
"Okay, Giles," she says, her eyebrows drawing together. She lifts her arms and twists away from me.
She sounds like a lost thing when the words come out of her mouth.
"I know, okay Angel, I know you're a vampire. I know we're different. I know you're supposedly my mortal enemy. But you know what? I could care less. All I know is, I can't do this life without you in it. I can't. I know what goes bump in the night now, and yeah, I could get taken down in a heartbeat. 'One falls, the next is chosen.' I get it. I know that when I was called, some other girl had just died. You think it's easy? You think I like this life? You think I'm some simpering silly schoolgirl, going to movies and ignoring my responsibility? Wake up, Angel. I see it all too well. I guess it's too much to ask that I have one night with my friends and my boyfriend. I'm the Slayer- I don't get a normal life.."
She's trembling and on the verge of crying, and I hate myself.
"Why?" she says miserably. "Why do you have to do this? Why do you have to remind me of what I can't have, everytime I want it the most?" She turns, and puts her back to me. The smell of moisture and salt makes my nose tingle.
I groan softly, and approach her slowly, letting my body touch hers just slightly. She doesn't move away, and I risk opening my mouth again.
"Love, I'm sorry. I just…I just want you to understand something. I want you to understand that I can't do this life without you either. Do you think I would ever want something to happen to you? Do you think I could stand it?"
She laughs a bit, and it hurts my heart.
"You've said that once before."
"I meant it. I mean it now. I want you to get how important you are to me," I murmur in her ear, and measuredly put my arms around her waist. She resists me for a minute, and finally relaxes back into my embrace.
Thank god.
When will I learn how to talk to her? When will I stop sounding like a scolding parent or an overeager doomsayer?
"Please, for the love of god, watch yourself," I whisper, deciding that's all I can say for now.
And hope that she'll hear me, eventually.
She nods once.
Then makes a turn in my arms, winding hers around my neck.
"Kiss me,"she asks suddenly, her voice deep and throaty, her eyes half lidded. I'm happy to oblige, but confused by the rapid change of mood.
"Buffy, wha-" I start, but am silenced by her lips on mine.
She has to tiptoe to reach me, and her breasts graze my chest, and I moan into her mouth, pulling her closer.
She slithers closer, and nibbles at my lips, dotting little kisses along them.
I run a hand through her hair, and grasp her at the nape of her neck, almost like lifting a small animal.
She wraps her legs around my waist, and I carry her to the nearest wall, bracing her up against it.
I drop my head to her neck, and lave my tongue against it, making little goose bumps break out on her skin. I smile against her throat, male pride making it's presence known.
She moves her hands to my back, dragging them up and down slowly, circling the muscles there, and finally slips one underneath my shirt. I jump a little at her hot touch on my cool flesh, and it's her turn to smile.
I kiss her again, my head swimming and involuntary breath making my chest heave.
She plays with the skin above my belt buckle, her nails lightly scratching me. A growl escapes my throat, and I push up against her, hard. I wrench her head to the side, planting hot, wet, sucking kisses up and down her face and neck. She pulls away, eyes dazed, her lips swollen and pink.
"I need you," she gasps, and I drop my hand to her ass, cupping it. Don't know how that happened, it was just suddenly what I wanted to do.
She nips at my throat, and I bare it for her, moving my head out of her way.
Her warm, sweet breath hits my skin, and I shiver, while she places her own kisses on my neck.
The demon wakes when she bites down softly over my jugular.
My face shifts, and I suckle on the column of her throat, my fangs scraping her skin, my control barely caged now.
Apruptly she pushes me back, and slides down my body. My senses whirl, full of her.
Her body is a blur of motion, snap kicking me to the ground. She crouches over me, a stake poised over my heart in half a second.
"Think I can handle myself around vampires," she says, and in the next second, the view above me is empty, and she's gone.
The nest of young demons we had passed earlier are piles of dust now. I straighten, shaking out my long coat, and march through the cemetary, dirt and vampire dust flying off me as I walk.
Remorse and a slight twinge of anger fill me up. I was hungry, but can't bring myself to make the trip to the butcher that supplies me.
She tricked me. And I deserved it.
I know what kind of life she leads. And that she deserves a minute to live like a normal girl.
But I really don't know what I would do if something happened to her. The minute Whistler showed her to me, I became something…other than what I was. I had a reason to exist. A reason to leave the alleys and rats behind. And if that reason was taken away, especially due to some stupid accident…
I punch a nearby tree, and wince slightly when the large branch cracks off and falls to the ground.
I sigh, and increase my speed. I should apologize.
When I reach her house, the lights are all off, and I can faintly hear Buffy and her mother's measured breathing.
I'm not waking her, that's for sure.
So I scale the tree outside her window, and watch her, feeling slightly voyeristic, but not uncomfortable enough to leave.
She turns a lot in her sleep. Her hair tangles on the pillows, and the sheets twist around her lean legs. She murmurs something that I can't catch.
About thirty minutes later, she turns toward the window, restlessly, and the cross that I had given her winks in the moonlight, nestled between her breasts, a little sparkle adding to her golden glow. I smile inwardly, and hope that some of her anger has faded.
When I can feel the dawn coming, I leap to the ground, silent on booted feet, and retreat to my home, shutting the door as the sun's rays burst over the horizon.
The knocking sound is persistant, and I squeeze my eyelids together, pulling the covers over my head.
"Just a little longer," I mumble, then bolt upwards, jarred awake by the feeling not unlike ghostly fingers trailing up my spine.
"Hold on," I yell, and pull on sweat pants hastily. Scrubbing a hand over my face, I jog to the door, and open it.
"Hey," she says, expression innocent. She's got on a tiny (!) black skirt and a red top, my cross dangling in the same place it was last night.
"Hey," I answer. "Come in."
She does, and I plop into one of the overstuffed leather chairs, a small yawn escaping me. I never was good at waking up.
"I am disturbing you?" she asks, quirking an eyebrow up, looking at my attire. I lean over and toss a white shirt over my head, suddenly feeling slightly embarrassed. Her cheeks are pink when I look back at her. Mine would be as well if I could still blush.
"Buffy, I-"
"Angel, I-"
We both stop, and she smiles at me, dropping her purse on the ground, and seats herself on my lap in the chair.
She nuzzles into my neck, and I let a whoosh of air out, relaxing my muscles.
"I'm sorry. What I did to you, last night, it was wrong. I was just, so, well," she sputters a little. "Boy, nobody can get me as pissed off as you can."
I chuckle, and her head moves on my chest.
"I'm sorry? Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" I ask, gently.
"Wasn't sure at first. But the more I think about it, the more I realize it is a good thing that I have you around to remind me of certain things. I'm kind of, well if you haven't noticed this yet, a little…what's that word that Willow used…oh yeah! Blasé about some things. And not that I'm stupid. Far from it. Sometimes though, Angel, I try so hard to forget about the Slayer stuff, that I do forget it. And having you around to remind me- it's okay."
She sits up and faces me.
The expression on her face is one I've never seen before. It's the look of a woman who knows what she wants, and that she can have it anytime. And that she's aware of the power she possesses.
It's impressive, scary, and sexy all at once.
"But never doubt me. Never doubt that I can hold my own. But also realize that just 'cause the lore says 'one girl in all the world' doesn't mean that the current Slayer doesn't like having a few friends around."
I touch her cheek lightly, and she turns her face into my palm.
"I promise."
"Good," she sighs, and leans back into me. I wrap my arms around her, and close my eyes, thinking again of what could have been, had I not had the fortune to be bowled over by this tiny powerhouse of a girl.
"I like seeing you like this," she whispers, and I crack one eye, meeting her hazel gaze.
"Like what?"
"At home, all rumpley," she says, giggling.
I squeeze her, and she laughs more. "If you had warned me, I could have gotten dressed."
"You look fine," she answers, and winds her arms around my neck.
"Now, can we rewind last night a little? Minus the ass kickage?"
One corner of my mouth slips upward, and our foreheads meet. "Was it something like this?" I say, and brush my lips lightly to hers.
"Mmmmm, maybe more like this," she murmurs against my mouth, and presses harder.
Oh, yeah. Like that.
I'll do anything, go anywhere, be anyone, for this girl.
No more midnight movies, however.
Fin.
