Oh God, Buffy thought as Spike's lips trailed down her throat. For some reason, she had a niggling feeling in the back of her mind that she shouldn't be letting this happen, that she shouldn't be enjoying the feeling of Spike's body on hers. That's ridiculous, she told herself. You're about to marry him. That more than entitles you to a little action.
The fact that they'd just gotten engaged didn't seem to bother Spike, and she wouldn't let it bother her, either. Even in her watcher and friends kept giving them glares and incredulous stares.
When Giles fell backwards in his chair and inadvertently stole Xander and Anya's attentions, Spike had taken her hand and roughly pulled her back to Giles' bedroom. This was where they were at now, her pushed up against the wall as he roamed her body with his hands and mouth.
"Oh, Slayer," Spike moaned quietly, tugging at her earlobe with his teeth. Her answering moan spurred him to lift her up, guide her to wrap her legs around him, and carry her to the bed. As soon as he had her on her back, he kissed her again, the war with their tongues driving them both crazy.
A voice in the back of his head was telling him how wrong this all was, how vampires weren't supposed to bed a slayer. He ignored the voice and tugged Buffy's shirt over her head. She grinned up at him and pulled his off as well. Their minds were too hazed to realize that they were about to have sex in her watcher's unmade double bed.
"Please, Spike." The tiniest of whispers, but Spike heard her. His pupils dilated as she begged him again. "God, I need you."
Without another thought, the rest of their clothes were shed. They moved to lie vertically so that Spike could fit in the be. When her head came to rest on a pillow, Spike moved over her, laying his brow against hers.
"Gonna do this right, pet," he promised, kissing her softly. "We're gonna do this right."
She nodded, not understanding him completely. They were already together, so what could be wrong with it? When he looked into her eyes again, she felt a spark run through her. And when he lowered himself to her and their bodies joined, electricity lit up her veins.
Spike kept the pace slow, wanting to show the woman he'd pledged to marry how much he loved her. She kept her hazel eyes focused on his blue ones, telling him without words how much she loved him. In the moment when she reached up to touch his cheek softly, he knew what he wanted to do.
Just when Buffy was about to hit her climax, he leaned down slowly. She didn't stop him as his incisors grew and his game face slipped on. He trailed his sharpened teeth down the throbbing vein of her neck, waiting for the right moment. When she moaned, he sunk his fangs into her neck. She screamed.
"Mine," he growled, holding her as she shook with pleasure. "You're all mine."
She nodded, agreeing breathlessly. "All yours."
Spike smiled, still thrusting in a lazy rhythm. She seemed to be on the edge again, but he was unprepared when she leaned up to rest on her elbows. He raised an eyebrow, but she only smiled.
Buffy reached up and pulled Spike's face closer to her. He leaned in for a kiss, but Buffy pulled away and went to his throat. She kissed and sucked lovingly, before finding the junction between his neck and his shoulder. She laved that area with attention, causing Spike to moan and whisper words of encouragement. When he was writhing with pleasure, she bit him. Hard.
He roared as her teeth broke his porcelain skin. His hips thrust forward roughly, his climax sneaking up on him. She was still at the spot on his neck, licking the tiny holes her incisors had left. When he looked down at her in amazement, she blushed, suddenly shy.
"I wanted you to be mine, too," she admitted quietly. "You are mine, right Spike?"
Spike's eyes widened in surprise. "I'll always be yours, baby. I'm yours, Buffy," he assured her, leaning down to kiss her again.
Suddenly, the world spun back into focus. The reasons that had been nagging them earlier returned in full force, and they jumped back as if burned by their contact. Spike jumped up from the bed, oblivious to his nudity.
"Bloody hell!" he roared. He looked up at the ceiling and pointed accusingly. "You lot think this is funny, don't you? Chip me up, then shove me at the Slayer while I'm brainwashed?"
Buffy meanwhile, was staring wide-eyed at the room in front of her. It was like her mind was in a comatose state, unable to process what had just happened. She could feel Spike's rage inside of her, as if it were her own. However, she couldn't find the need to express it.
Spike finally stopped ranting long enough to grab his pants, hurriedly stepping into them. As soon as he was zipped, he started to scream at the ceiling again. As if his yelling pulled her out of her trance, she stood and started dressing as well. When they were both fully dressed, they stared at each other.
"They're gonna know," he stated simply. She looked at him in confusion. "Rupes walks in here, he's gonna smell us. And as soon as we walk out there, it's gonna be pretty obvious."
Buffy nodded, her mind unable to focus on Spike's words. She could feel his confusion, but she knew it was coming from him. She knew he was wondering what was wrong with her, so she walked out of the room slowly.
When she stepped out of the bedroom and walked back into the living room, it was to see four pairs of eyes trained carefully on her. She didn't say a word, just say down on the arm of the couch. Spike walked in after her and caught their stares as well. He didn't handle it quite as well as Buffy.
"What?" he asked acerbically. "You got something to say?"
Giles sputtered incoherently, while Xander automatically started yelling about getting a stake. Anya looked the two that had just emerged from the bedroom interestedly, while Willow hung her in shame. When the noise got to be too much, Buffy cleared her throat.
"There will be no staking, Xander," she said firmly. Her tone of voice brooked no argument, and Xander's words died on his lips. She looked to her watcher. "What happened?"
Giles didn't answer her; instead Willow spoke up.
"Um," Willow started uncertainly. "It was me. I did a spell to have my will be done, and it kind of caused some problems. I'm so sorry, Buffy."
Buffy nodded calmly, leaning back into the couch again. Giles rose an eyebrow at her silence, figuring that she would explode about being engaged to Spike. However, with recent… activities… behind them, she may have been too incensed to speak.
Spike watched the Slayer also, but for different reasons. He knew what he'd done before the spell had been reversed, and they really needed to talk. However, he was going to try her watcher first to see if there was any way to take it back.
"Rupes, a word?" he asked cautiously. When Giles nodded his head, Spike jerked his head back towards the kitchen. "Not in here. This is private."
Giles looked surprised, but didn't argue. He got up and walked into the kitchen, Spike following silently behind him. When Spike entered, he gestured for Giles to sit down. Giles raised an eyebrow sarcastically, and Spike scoffed.
"Only because you're gonna need a chair when I tell you what happened," Spike explained, sitting himself. His nervous hands reached out to toy with the salt shaker.
"I believe we all deduced what has happened," Giles said tiredly. He ran a hand over his face, sighing. He didn't want to hear the vampire actually admit to what he'd done with the Slayer. "I don't need a play-by-play."
Spike shook his head. "No," he argued, "you don't know what happened. I claimed your Slayer." Giles' eyes widened comically. "I claimed her, and she claimed me back. After all, we were gonna get married."
Giles started stuttering again. Spike got up and found a large bottle of Scotch and poured two decanters full. Slamming his back in one swallow, he handed the other to Giles. Giles took a sip and looked to Spike with confusion in his eyes.
"You two have mated?" Giles asked in disbelief. "Spike, are you aware of exactly what this situation entails? This isn't a temporary action."
Spike ran a hand through his hair. "I know. But I didn't know what I was doing, and Buffy definitely didn't know what she was agreeing to. I don't think she knows even now, watcher." He looked at Giles significantly. "Which means someone's gonna have to explain it to her."
Giles sighed, then nodded again. He threw back the rest of his scotch, then stood. After he put his glass back on the table, he followed Spike back into the living room. Better now than make her wait, Giles thought.
But when they went back to the living room, Buffy was no longer there. Willow explained that the Slayer had needed some fresh air, and had stepped out on the balcony for a few minutes. When Giles started after her, Spike's hand on his chest held him back. Giles nodded his acquiescence, and Spike opened to door and disappeared onto the balcony.
*****
"Hey," Spike said quietly, softly closing the door behind him. He went to stand next to Buffy, who was staring out into the night sky. "What are you lookin' at?"
Buffy didn't turn to look at him as she answered. "Nothing. Everything."
Spike nodded his understanding, his eyes turning to the full moon. "We need to talk, Buffy." He felt her calm agreement from beside him, but she didn't answer. "We have to talk about what happened in there."
Buffy turned her glittering eyes on him. "What did happen in there? It was more than just sex, Spike."
A sigh rumbled off of Spike's shoulders and he turned to face her as well. When he saw the quiet determination in her eyes, he decided he had to tell her.
"Yeah, it was," he agreed. "When I bit you, and when you bit me, well that was a claim, pet. We claimed each other."
"What does that mean?" Buffy asked. "I don't know what that is."
Spike shook his head, turning his back to her. This was going to be far harder than he thought. He was sure she'd have read something on claims when she'd been dating the poofter, that she'd already know what had happened, if not all the consequences. Frustrated, he whipped back around.
"Claim's like a marriage, pet. Only it's far more permanent." Other than Buffy's eyes widening marginally, she showed no reaction. "If one of us wouldn't have done it, it would've faded into nothing. But since we both affirmed it, it can't be reversed."
Buffy didn't say anything for a few minutes. Instead, she looked thoughtfully toward the stars. When she finally did speak, there was no disdain in her voice, only quiet resignation.
"So how does this work? Is that why I can feel what you're feeling?" Her voice sounded dead, not the slightest bit curious.
"Yeah."
"You compared it to marriage. How so?"
Spike sighed again. He leaned against the porch rails tensely. "In the way that we're bound together. The demons and vampires will sense that we've been bonded. If my reputation as the Big Bad wasn't already demolished, this would thoroughly ruin it."
Buffy cracked a small smile.
"If we go a while without seeing each other, it'll cause us physical pain. Not sure myself how bad, but I've heard it compared to getting kicked by a strong bugger a few times."
Buffy's smile disappeared. "Is this what you told Giles?"
Spike nodded. "Yeah, your watcher knows all about claims. When I told him, he had to toss back some liquor to steady himself."
"Oh," Buffy said quietly. "Well, I guess we make the best of this then. You can keep staying with Giles, and I'll see you when I come by. I'm here almost every day anyway."
"Right," Spike drawled, anger slipping in. "So I'm just supposed to stay on a leash, while you're out all day doing God knows what? Yeah, right," he scoffed. "I'm moving out."
"Where are you going to go?" Buffy asked, venom seeping into her tone at his response. "Back to the factory? Hate to break it to you, Bleach Boy, your home is long gone."
Spike glared at her, fury burning in his eyes. "Not to burst your bubble, Slayer, but I've got plenty of dosh. Only stayed at the factory to keep a low profile. I could buy my own flat if I wanted. That's what a over a century's worth of knowledge and some stock tips can do for you."
Buffy rolled her eyes. "Whatever. If you want to move, fine. I'm going back inside."
She marched to the door and yanked it open. Those assembled stared at her in shock, but she ignored them. Without a word, she walked out of the room and left the house. Another second and Spike had entered the living room. The stares now fixated on him, he shrugged.
"I'm moving out," he announced in an icy tone. "I'll be getting my stuff, and I'll be leaving tonight." When the watcher's mouth opened to argue, Spike cut him off. "Slayer agreed, watcher. I'll be leaving tonight."
With that, he yanked the door behind him shut and went into another room.
"What the hell just happened?" Xander asked confusedly.
The others didn't answer, just stared at the door Spike had just slammed.
*****
Stupid freaking vampire, Buffy complained to herself as she walked back to her dorm. It seemed that she had kicked every stray object that found its way in front of her, from rocks to soda cans. In her anger it seemed perfectly reasonable. Had to go and screw everything up, and now we're married.
"Shit," she said aloud. Married. She had told Riley that she was going to get married to Spike. A perfectly nice, normal guy who liked her, and she'd told him that she was going to marry Spike. And now she couldn't even wave it off as a joke, because she really was kind of married to the vampire. Ugh.
When she reached her dorm, she turned the handle just as someone called out her name. She turned to see who it was, and with her luck, of course it was Riley. She turned to face him as he jogged towards her.
"Buffy!" he said loudly as he reached her. "Look, I just wanted to apologize about earlier. I just didn't know that you were getting married. I thought that maybe, well that you might've like me." His eyes searched hers carefully. "So it threw me for a second that you were engaged. But I'd still like us to be friends."
When he said 'friends', he grasped her hand. She yelped as it felt like her hand was on fire. She jerked her hand back in surprise, rubbing it to ease the pain. Somewhere in her head, she could feel Spike's glee that she'd been burned. Riley looked hurt.
"Sorry," she apologized quickly. "I hurt my hand earlier, and it just surprised me." His answering smile was skeptical, but she accepted it. "I'd really like to be friends, Riley. I'm glad you offered."
Riley smiled in earnest and turned to leave.
"You're a nice guy, Riley. You're going to make some girl really happy one day," she muttered as she entered her dorm. "Just not me."
She figured this was appropriate, though. After all, how much of her life had been normal so far. Now, she just had another vampire boyfriend. Another vampire with a leash, although this one was far more sarcastic and unrepentant than the last one.
She sighed to herself and threw herself on the bed. Rolling over, Buffy picked up the phone out of its holder and started to dial Giles' number. Just as she pushed the on button, though, she heard someone on the other line.
"Hello?" she answered curiously. The only people that would call her were the people she had just left, or her mother. As she didn't feel like talking about the claim right now, she hoped for the latter. She was sorely disappointed when a British cadence rumbled over the line.
"Slayer," Spike returned cockily. "Waiting by the phone? Didn't even ring on my end. You could've called me if you were that anxious, love."
Buffy rolled her eyes to stare at her peeling ceiling. "Not hardly, Spike. I just got in. What do you need?"
Spike chuckled brightly. "Just calling to congratulate you on finding out something about the claim on your own." He could almost hear her scowl over the phone. "No other men can touch you, and vice versa. Like the nice little shocker you got there?"
Buffy narrowed her eyes at her wall, before something made her smile. "Don't forget, Spike, that the claim goes both ways. Meaning, you won't be able to touch another female either."
Spike cursed as if he'd forgot that part. A few seconds later and she heard shuffling.
"What are you doing?" she asked curiously. "Are you still at Giles'?"
"Yeah," Spike returned as he grabbed a small bag containing his belongings. "Be leaving in just a few minutes, though. Got a sweet little set up on the east side. Down by Restfield."
"Oh," Buffy said, genuinely surprised. When he'd said he was moving, she didn't expect him to do it so quickly. "You're staying in a flat?"
Spike walked to the door, knowing there was nothing holding him at the watcher's house but this phone conversation. "Nah, pet. Got a house. Don't exactly fancy being surrounded on all sides. Made a quick call to a friend who owed me a favor and got it set up in minutes."
"Oh, okay." The thought of Spike living in a house was just too weird. "Well, I guess I'll let you move then. Have fun."
"Yeah," Spike chuckled. "Loads."
Buffy smiled on her end of the phone before realizing what she was doing. When she did, she got flustered and started stammering. "O-well, okay. I- I'm just gonna let you go, then. Bye, Spike."
Spike almost let her hang up before he decided to tell her something else. "Pet?" When Buffy affirmed that she was still there, he sighed and continued. "If you wanted to stop by, the address is 462 Whittaker Lane. On the other side of the cemetery."
"Thanks," Buffy responded after a minute. He'd shocked her with the invite.
"G'night, pet."
She heard him hang up the phone, but she kept cradling it in her hand. When the automated message started speaking, it broke her trance.
"Goodnight, Spike."
