Skin and bones
By Alleycat
Disclaimer: nothing is owned by me, all the characters belong to Joss Whedon
Spoilers: Season Six- post Gift-Buffy's alive and well. WARNING: based on spoilers for season six.
Special thanks to my betas, Raven and Heidi for their willingness to help
Chapter 1
"
"Kinda creepy, too." Willow added.
"Huh? I guess I was too busy being shoved aside to pick up on any creepiness vibes…besides them being extremely impolite, and that's not so much strange as it is annoying."
Willow shook her head, "No…it was more than that. I just got this icky feeling in my gut when I saw the woman. Then she looked at me, and, and my skin did that crawling thing like when you watch a really scary movie. Definitely not warm fuzzy types."
"Oh, not good! Just once I'd like to do something without Hell opening its wacky mouth and puking up some nasty chunk of demon slime for me to clean up! It's Christmas time for Pete's sake! I've got presents to buy, merry to make!" Buffy threw up her arms and then put her hand on Willow's shoulder, "Come on," she groaned. "We better follow them. I think they went that way," she pointed towards the mall's food court.
As if on cue, a scream pierced through the din of dazed holiday shoppers. Willow and Buffy's eyes widened and they took off running towards the sound. A crowd of people had gathered around the indoor children's playground. Several people stood in stunned silence, while others cried out in horror; some took one look and promptly lost their lunches.
Buffy gripped her hand around Willow's wrist and they made their way through to the front of the crowd.
"Oh my…"
"GOD!" Willow finished for her friend as she took in the scene before her.
Lying in front of them were two corpses; two very bloody and deflated corpses. A few feet away, a woman sat wailing as she hovered over two motionless children. Two men were attending to the children, checking for pulses, examining their eyes.
"They're alive!" exclaimed one of the men, "they should be fine."
An audible sigh of relief swept through the crowd, including Buffy and Willow. One of the children began to stir.
"Mommy?"
"Jacob!" she cried as she gathered the boy into her arms. "Thank God! Jacob," she sobbed into his hair. The other child sat up groggily and was quickly taken into her mother's embrace.
"Karen!" the woman was laughing now in hysterical rounds of sobs and snorts.
Mall security had begun to clear away the crowd to allow the police and paramedics to do their jobs. Buffy and Willow moved to the side, far enough to be out of the way, but close enough to see what was going on.
Soon, the police had taped off the area, while the paramedics tended to the children and their now smiling mother. More police officers arrived to survey the scene, take photographs of the grotesque bodies, question the victims…the usual. They had also made a point of clearing the remaining crowd, including a somber Slayer and a slightly green witch.
"I think I've had enough holiday shopping fun for one evening," said Willow dryly.
"I know, Will, but I need to know what happened here. Somebody must have seen something…" Buffy replied distractedly, glancing up at the second floor balcony that overlooked the playground. "Spike."
"Huh?" Willow questioned, following Buffy's line of vision. "Oh. Spike."
Spike gave them a slight nod, and gestured with his hand for them to join him. The girls both sighed heavily before they made their way to the escalator.
"'Bout bloody time!" Spike grumbled as they stepped off the escalator.
"Sorry, traffic was a real bear," Buffy deadpanned. "I take it you saw something, right? 'Cause I don't have time for…"
"I saw something alright, not sure what." Spike cut her off before she could insult him.
Willow and Buffy mirrored each other with folded arms, giving Spike the hurry-up-and-get-on-the-story look.
"Right… So I was standing over there," he pointed toward the railing and started to walk towards it, Buffy and Willow flanking either side. "Just stopped for a smoke, right? Then I see these two people, what looked like people, running to into kiddie land down there. Thought they had nicked something, and were bein' chased. Anyway, real sudden they grab two little ones and there's this lightening like flash. Next thing all four of 'em were on the ground… Well, you saw." Spike finished with a nod to the scene below.
The three looked over the balcony and watched as the paramedics tried unsuccessfully to gather up the bodies. With each attempt to grab hold of an arm or leg, the flesh would simply slide out of their grasps. Finally, they resorted to merely shoving the remains onto a gurney, scooping up whatever got left behind in the process with flat thin pieces of wood.
"Okay, I've definitely seen enough of the gross gooey bodies." Willow stated firmly, turning around to face an onslaught of flashing lights and grotesquely ornate fake pine trees. "Suddenly the magic of Christmas has sorta escaped me," she added.
"Right there with ya, Will." Buffy agreed after turning her back to the railing.
"Where are the soddin' bones?!" Spike said, still looking over the scene below in fascination, oblivious to the reactions of his companions.
Buffy rolled her eyes,
vampires, yeesh! "Spike!""What?!" he turned to answer, annoyed at her tone.
"We're leaving now, as in 'seen enough, time to go'. Are you coming or not?" she snapped impatiently.
"Oh, keep your knickers on, woman!" he sneered, leaning inches from her face before brushing past her towards the escalator.
"Hey! Leave my knickers out of it, mister." Buffy warned as she stormed after him, leaving Willow behind.
"Oh, brother" the redhead muttered to herself as she followed. She had grown weary of being essentially ignored whenever the cocky vampire was present. The ongoing saga of 'will they or won't they?' had so many twists and turns, Willow could barely keep up.
What phase are we in now? Is it still the 'just good friends' stage or has it moved to the 'I really want to jump your bones Spike, but I'll never do anything about it except drive my friends insane with my need to prove that I don't really want to jump your bones' stage? Oh, goddess! What if they're already together and all the banter is just to throw us off? She wouldn't keep something like that from me, would she? She has to know I love her no matter what, though I can't say I like the idea of the two of them. Getting ahead of yourself, Willow. Just talk to Buffy, find out what's going on and then worry. I wish Tara were here."Red? You in there? Scene back there too much for you?" Spike asked her with a touch of genuine concern.
They had made it to the parking garage without Willow even noticing.
"Huh?" Willow said coming back to the present, "Oh, no. I-I mean yes, but no. I was just, uh, lost in thought."
"Well then, now you've been found…I was telling the Slayer that I'd meet you girls back at the shop after I do some checking 'round. Thought you two could do the research end of it, gather up the gang and all."
"But I think I'd be more useful with Spike. What do you think, Will?" Buffy asked.
"I guess…" Willow replied lamely.
"I can handle this alone, Buffy."
"Are you forgetting who's the Slayer around here? I'm coming with you." Buffy challenged.
"No you are NOT! I've got a reputation to uphold."
"Uh, guys…"
"Oh, please! What reputation? You're going into protective mode again, Spike. I can handle myself just fine!"
"Am not!"
"Yes you are!"
"Guys," Willow spoke again a little louder.
"I'm not, I swear it. This job has my name on it, is all."
"Then why were you even at the mall tonight, Spike? You were following me again, weren't you?"
"What? No! I was shopping!"
"Hey!" Willow shot out. The two blondes stopped their dialogue briefly to look at the redhead, then continued their verbal sparring.
"Shopping, huh? I'll bet. More like shoplifting, I'm sure."
"I did not steal a bloody thing tonight! Spent my own hard earned cash." Spike retorted indignantly, shoving his hands in his pocket and clutching the dainty box he had hidden there.
"Right. So where's the packages? How 'bout a receipt? What did you buy, anyway? Cigarettes and bleach?"
"They're in my pocket and…none of your fuckin' business!"
"Don't swear at me!"
"What? Hurt your sweet little non-virgin ears, did I? La, la, fuck, fuck, fuck, mother-fucking…"
"ENOUGH!" Willow shouted cutting off Spike's charming little song. "What the hell is the matter with you two? Hello? Dead bodies, little kids…remember? And you guys are standing here arguing about NOTHING!"
Spike lowered his head guiltily and Buffy pouted, "Sorry, Will, my bad. "
"Like she said, just don't, you know, zap us or anything," Spike added hastily remembering exactly who they were dealing with.
Willow smiled to herself at the thought of having the power to scare a vampire as formidable as Spike. "Tell you what, I won't go all zappy on ya if you two can manage to stay focused on the matter at hand, 'kay?" Buffy and Spike both nodded solemnly. "Good. Spike, you go and see if you can find anything out. Buffy, you come with me." Willow commanded.
"But…" Buffy began to whine.
"NOW!" bossed the witch, grabbing her friend by the arm.
Spike smirked at Buffy for having gotten his way. Buffy did her best brat impression and stuck out her tongue at him while Willow dragged her off. Seeing the Slayer's tongue aimed in his direction prompted him to lick his lower lip and raise his brow suggestively. Thrown and unable to think of a gesture that wouldn't be misconstrued, she narrowed her eyes and glared at him before being pulled around the corner out of sight. Spike frowned as he watched her disappear, hopped on his bike and rode off into the night.
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End chapter 1
Chapter 2- The Voice of Reason
The two girls walked in silence to where Willow parked her mother's car and got in. Finally, Willow spoke before starting the engine.
"Are you going to tell me what that was all about back there?" she questioned seriously.
"It was nothing, really. Hey, it's Spike, he's a pain," Buffy tried to dismiss it lightly.
"Uh-huh. He is, but one you can't seem to get enough of," Willow replied as she turned the key in the ignition.
"What's that's suppose to mean?" Buffy demanded, sounding insulted.
"That's what I'd like to know, missy, " answered Willow, as she backed out and drove off.
Buffy turned her face to the window, refusing to answer. Frustrated, Willow continued.
"Look, I'm not accusing you of anything. It's just, well…you guys are driving every one nuts! The constant bickering, the, a-hem, ignoring of others present…it's out of hand."
Buffy looked at her friend,
my best friend. I can't tell her, she'll be disappointed. "I know, you're right. I'll be good from now on, I promise. Spike will no longer make Buffy act like a four year old," she declared."Buffy! Changing your behavior might make all of us happy, but it won't solve the real problem. Do you get that I love you and all I want is to help you deal? You were doing so well for a while, what happened?"
"You're not gonna let me off the hook here, are you?"
"Nope," Willow smiled.
Buffy let out a heavy sigh, "Nothing happened…that's the problem."
"Oh…that clears up everything. Yep! Crystal clear."
Buffy rolled her eyes at the sarcasm, "I'm getting there. This is hard for me! It's all so…so stupid and I think I should know better by now."
"It's okay, Buffy. Here to help, remember? Let me make it easier for you. How can I put this, um, nicely? Er…are you and Spike having sex?" Willow blurted out the last part as fast as she could.
"No! Well…almost. We almost did, but I stopped it," she finally admitted.
"So that's a good thing, right?"
"I guess. I don't know. Spike's not too pleased about it," Buffy frowned.
"Obviously…and apparently, neither are you. You're not in love with him, are you?" Willow asked doubtfully.
"See? That's just it!" Buffy started agitated, "Everyone hates him, except Dawn.
What you guys think matters to me, so I can't even let myself consider the thought!"
"I don't hate him, and I don't think anyone else does either. It's just that the two of you, together…well, I worry! Spike is so, so Spikey. What happens if the chip goes 'kablooey'? There are too many big old hairy question marks around him. I don't want you to get hurt, Buffy."
"Not wanting that either, trust me. I could probably do better than a soulless vampire who used to get off on killing slayers. There's so much wrong with him, Will. I know this, but…" she trailed off.
"But what?" Willow coaxed.
"But he'd be a great boyfriend! He's so good to me and he can be incredibly sweet. It's like he knows my every thought and emotion. And he's fun; he makes me laugh. He makes me feel good about myself," Buffy pouted at the thought. She didn't feel too good about herself at the moment.
"Uh-huh," Willow nodded.
"And that's not the half of it. He's so loyal! The guy just won't go away. And Dawn…she adores him. Plus, he knows stuff, stuff you wouldn't think he'd know. He's perceptive, and he understands me, almost too well…I think he knows me better than anyone…even you, even Angel."
Not to mention that he kisses better than anybody, ever…and those amazing, talented hands."Is that it?" Willow interrupted her silent reverie.
"No…he writes me beautiful poems…and okay, he's sexy and easy on the eyes. That's it, I think…I could probably come up with more, but you get the picture."
"I do, and it's a nice picture, only you left out the 'I was a violent psycho' part."
"Kinda convenient how I did that, huh? See? I told you it was stupid."
"It's not stupid…I mean I understand the attraction, I really do. It's just that as wonderful as Spike may be, at his core he's still a demon."
"That's why I shut him down! I did what I was s'pose to, and now I'm miserable. Willow! How can someone supposedly evil be so good? Isn't it possible the fact that he loves me has changed him into something other than evil?"
"Maybe…it's also possible that love only made him behave himself so he could become someone you'd want."
"But that doesn't explain why he would stick around here for five months after I died helping you guys and protecting Dawn." Buffy countered.
They had arrived at the Magic Box and Willow parked the car out front. The store looked busy, full of holiday shoppers looking for the perfect esoteric gift. She decided research could wait a few more minutes.
"That was on the noble side, wasn't it? Okay, so he's ambiguous."
"That's better than evil."
"That's full of doubts and questions."
"Arrghh! You're not helping!"
"Yes I am! I'm just not saying what you want to hear…I'm trying to be the voice of reason here, 'cause yours went on a little trip somewhere."
"I'm reasonable!"
"You're in love with Spike!"
"I never said that!"
"You don't have to say it, Buffy! You're pretty transparent, ya know? And in spite of what you think, I do know you! You want me to give you my blessing but I'm not ready to give it and I don't know if I ever will be," Willow's voice cracked and tears started welling up. She hadn't meant for things to get so emotional, now Buffy was teary-eyed, too. The two young women sat in silence for a time, letting the tears quietly flow as they weighed the impact of their conversation.
"I can't lose you, Will," Buffy whispered.
"You haven't lost me…I'll always be here," she said trying to reassure them both.
"But-but this thing with Spike isn't…"
"Isn't kosher?" Willow interjected. "You know what? I am not one to judge this. I haven't exactly walked the straight and narrow path myself. He may be the perfect guy for you, I don't know. Have I mentioned how much I stink at playing the devil's advocate? We got all weepy."
Buffy mocked a big pout, reached for some tissues on the dash and offered one to Willow.
"Think I'll stick with being Supportive-Gal to your Hero-Gal," decided Willow as she daubed her eyes.
She couldn't help but laugh, "Uh, Wills, I'm pretty sure that hero-gal went on that trip with the voice of reason. Besides, heroes don't…"
"Fall for obnoxious blond vampires?" the Wiccan completed for Buffy.
"Exactly."
Willow grew serious. "You have to follow your heart, Buffy. One thing I know about you that hasn't changed is your amazing heart, and I believe in that."
"Thank you, Willow," Buffy stated as she reached over to embrace her best bud. "That means a lot. Now, if I could just get my head and heart on the same page, I'd be a happy camper!"
Willow gave her a quirky half-smile as they released each other, "I think hero-gal may be still lurking about in there."
"Ugh! Can we drop the hero analogy? Its too much pressure!"
Willow opened her arms wide like she was carrying a sack of potatoes then pretended to let them fall, "Officially dropped," she said rubbing her hands together for a job well done.
"Research time?" Buffy asked.
"Definitely.
End chapter 2
Chapter 3-The Scoop
Spike knew the demon haunts would probably turn up nothing, but he checked them anyway just to be thorough. Humans. The two at the mall passed for humans, so he'd pass for one, too. He hadn't lied when he told Buffy he had a reputation to uphold.
A reputation with the ladies she needn't know about, and I know just the little bird that'd love a visit from ol' Spike.Mary Young enjoyed her job. It felt important, even if it was on the gruesome side at times, and it was never boring. Tonight had been exceptionally interesting, and when the black clad man with platinum hair came in the door, she was ecstatic.
"Hullo, love," he said in a low seductive voice.
"Hello yourself! Where have you been hiding? I've missed you,"
"Well, darlin'," he began, leaning over the counter and gazing into her dark brown eyes, "that rag of a newspaper I work for keeps me moving. Missed me, did you?"
Her face flushed, "Always, doll. They have a newspaper in Sunnydale, you know? They'd be lucky to snag a guy like you. London is too far away."
He smiled at her and then took her hand in both of his, "Maybe I'll look into that, pet. Might be nice to see more of you," he said as he gently kissed her hand.
She knew he wasn't serious, she knew he only wanted information; she didn't care. Mary could play with this one all night, if only he'd let her. The kiss on the hand was a nice touch, though. He didn't need to flirt with her to get his story; it was actually part of her job to talk to the press as an administrative official of the city morgue. He didn't seem to know this fact, and she wasn't about to tell him. Maybe in London they did things different. Lucky for her, the usual reporters had already come and gone, so she could keep him blissfully in the dark. Besides, his extra attention always gave her cause to reveal things about a case she'd never reveal otherwise.
Mary sighed wistfully as she withdrew her hand from his, "So, Mr. William Spike Esquire the Third, I suppose you heard about the mall incident."
Spike groaned inwardly at the ridiculous alias that he'd given her. There was a rash of mysterious deaths over the summer, and none of his demon sources knew anything. He went to the morgue to sneak a peak at the bodies, but Mary intercepted him. Thinking fast, he invented the foreign correspondent story, introducing himself clumsily as 'Mr. William, er, Spike' and just threw in the 'Esquire' part for good measure. Then he turned on the vampire charm, and Mary easily provided him with what turned out to be very helpful knowledge. She always gave him whatever he asked for without question, so the silly moniker had been worth it.
"Just Spike will do, princess," he said with a wink. "Yeah, I heard about it, saw it for myself. I was hoping to get an ID on the bodies."
"Anything for you, honey." Mary reached for a folder and handed him a sheet of paper
she had prepared for the press. Spike gratefully took the paper from her and began to read over it.
"They were only college kids," Mary shook her head sadly. "A freak accident…it's such a tragedy! It gets worse, though."
"Worse?" Spike raised his scarred brow.
"Don't quote me on this, sweetie, 'cause it's not in the report, but…" she leaned over and whispered into his ear, "three days ago, the deceased girl prematurely gave birth to twins."
Spike stood up straight and widened his eyes, "Really? I'll have my readers weepin' at that bit of news."
Mary smiled at him brightly, "I'm glad I could help. Send me a copy of the story, I'd like to read it."
He leaned over the counter again and kissed her forehead, "Will do…Mary, you're an angel!" he exclaimed before heading for the door.
She shook her head and smiled, "Don't be a stranger!"
He turned back and gave her one last mischievous, sexy grin and closed the door behind him.
I really do love this job!
Mary thought as she pulled a mirror out of her handbag. She looked at her reflection and straightened the short gray and black locks of hair that had fallen out of place from Spike's kiss. She wondered for a minute if the handsome young Brit liked older women. He made her feel like a schoolgirl, a fifty-nine year old school girl, she reminded herself with a chuckle. Mary put her mirror away and turned her attention to the stack of paperwork waiting for her. He called me princess! She thought as she happily returned to work.End Chapter 3
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Chapter 4-Double Trouble
It was near 11:30pm by the time Spike made it back to the Magic Box. He let himself in through the back and sauntered in casually. The whole gang was in full research mode, buried in heavy tomes while Willow searched on the computer.
"Evenin' all," Spike said announcing his presence.
Everyone looked up in acknowledgement.
"Hi, Spike!" Dawn greeted him cheerfully. Everyone else turned back to their tasks.
"Hey, sweet bit," he said strolling towards a spot in the room where he'd have the best view of Buffy. "Turn up anything educational yet?" he directed to no one in particular.
Willow glanced up from the screen, "Not really? You?"
"Might say that. Try looking under 'twins'," he suggested nonchalantly.
"Twins?" questioned Xander and Tara in unison. All eyes were upon the vampire, now.
Spike smirked, relishing the attention, "Yeah, twins," he confirmed. He reached in his pocket for the paper Mary had given him. "It's all in there," he continued as he handed the sheet to Buffy.
Buffy unfolded the paper and looked over it, and Willow and Dawn quickly got up to go read over her shoulder. When they finished, Buffy handed the sheet over for Xander, Anya and Tara to see.
"Where'd you get this?" demanded Xander when he saw the official letterhead for the Sunnydale Medical Examiner.
"Doesn't matter. Point is, it's real."
Xander glanced over the report and the light bulb went on, "Hmmm. So the gelatinous bodies were twins, and so were the two little kids they grabbed!"
"Well done Watson, you ass!" Spike sneered.
"Bite me, Spike. Oh, sorry! I forgot, you can't!" Xander shot back.
"Shut up, both of you!" Willow ordered. "I think I've got something here." She had gone back to her computer as soon as she finished reading and searched under 'twins' in the demon database.
"What is it, Will?" Buffy asked as she joined her at the laptop. Everyone else gathered there, jockeying for a position so they could see, too.
"Geminus Demons. See?" she pulled up a scanned etching of two skeleton-like creatures on the screen. "We've been looking under 'bones', 'blood' and 'human', all night. The twin angle really cinched it, uh, thanks to Spike."
Spike nodded and glanced at Buffy, who kept her eyes on the screen.
Is she ignoring me? He began to wonder.Willow read from the text on the screen, " 'Geminus demons are parasitic in nature, live undetected in their human hosts, gradually assimilating the entire skeletal system and subsisting on marrow and other nutrients from the host's blood. Um, the Geminus generally bond with fraternal twins at an early age, thus prolonging habitation for as long as the bones continue to grow, varying between 17-19 years'…"
"Oh! Those poor little kids at the mall!" Tara gasped.
Willow swallowed hard and continued, " 'Before the host has reached maturity, it is likely that the Geminus will attempt to procreate. Procreation is achieved by the demons temporarily possessing the minds of their twin hosts in order for them to have sexual intercourse!' Jeez Louise! Incest much?"
"Bloody hell!" Spike spoke out, "those bastards made more of 'emselves! The dead chit gave birth to twins just three days ago!"
"Wait a minute, fang-boy! First of all, how do you know that? And second, why didn't you bring it up in the first place?!" interrogated Xander .
"Sod off you little wanker! I heard about it when I was out there getting some actual useful information! And I just did bring it up!" he answered defensively.
"Boys! Can you ease up on the testosterone for a minute and let Willow finish?" Anya chimed in, moving closer to Xander's side and taking his hand in hers.
"Sorry…go on, Will," apologized the Anya-whipped young man.
"Thank you! Okay, where was I? Here it is. 'Once the hosts reach bone maturation, the demons must transfer bodies within 24 hours', blah, blah, blah. I'm gonna paraphrase this 'cause this is getting too technical for even me! Uh, okay, basically it says they prefer young fraternal twins but if they can't find them they will enter any human pair. Not so good for an adult host because they use 'em up in two weeks. Um, they transfer into the new host by physical contact and are absorbed into the new body instantly, leaving the gooey shell…ooh! This might help! They are vulnerable if out of the body, since they need a host to survive…and after they switch bodies they're also weak between 24 and 72 hours …depending on the age of the host, the older the host the faster the demon takes over." Willow finished reading and looked up woefully.
"Great! So how do I kill them? No way am I killing any babies or kids!!" Buffy stated emphatically.
"We have to get them out of those kids while there's still time!" Anya lamented; she was truly bothered by the fact that children were involved.
"Can't you and Tara just go 'poof' or something?" Dawn suggested to Willow.
"Maybe. I'd have to do some more research," Willow answered uncertainly.
"No!" protested Buffy and Spike as one.
Spike looked hopefully at Buffy, who failed to acknowledge their solidarity, but she remained focused on Willow.
"No magic!" Buffy reiterated to her friend, "I'm not willing to risk whatever consequences might arise for those kids…and we all know there could be consequences."
Willow winced at the painful reminder of how much Buffy and others had suffered as a result of her magical resurrection. Still, the spell had worked out eventually.
It wasn't my fault that things got a bit wacky. If the spell hadn't been interrupted by the 'bot, things would have been fine! Willow reasoned."Well, we have to do something. Anya's right, time is a factor here. Does anybody else have a suggestion?" Willow requested, still clinging to the magical solution.
The gang fell quiet. No one had a clue, though Tara had gotten busy searching through some books.
"Buffy, I really think that magic is the lesser of two evils in this case," asserted Willow in her best tactful tone.
"Hold on!" Tara broke in excitedly, waving a leather-bound book, "I-I think I have an idea!"
Everyone turned to look at her, and Tara blushed a little at the sudden attention before regaining her confidence. She walked over to Willow and handed her the volume she was carrying.
"I found an account about the Geminus in there. It-it talks about a case where the mother went insane and tried to kill her two-year old twins right after the demons entered them."
"Sounds like one of Dru's bedtime stories," remarked Spike, hoping to get a rise out of Buffy. Buffy merely glanced at him briefly and turned her attention back to Tara.
Tara continued a bit flustered, "Um, anyway, she, uh, cut both their wrists, and the little girl and the demon inside her died. B-but the wound to the boy wasn't fatal, he just lost some blood and the Geminus exited his body…and the boy lived. Unfortunately, it went right into the mother, who died two weeks later."
After a moment, Anya cried, "That's a horrible story!"
"Tara?" Willow asked confused, "not sure where you're going with this."
"Don't you guys get it? The boy survived! He-he lost blood and it forced the demon out," Tara said with frustration.
"I see, Tara." Buffy said catching on, "Cut off its food supply while its still weak, but how? Am I supposed to go and cut some newborns and little kids now? Not liking the sound of that."
"No, no! We have a vampire right here. Spike can do it!" Tara explained.
"Like bloody hell he can!" Spike objected loudly.
Xander started to giggle maniacally, "Oh man! That is too perfect, Tara! Thank you!"
"Well laugh all you want, Harris. I'm not goin' to do it! What kind of monster do you think I am?"
"A vampire with an automatic shut-off device. Hey, works for me," replied Xander gleefully.
"Xander's right, Spike. The chip will keep you from hurting them once the demon comes out," Anya said more diplomatically.
"Right! A-And then you'd finish off the Geminus," Tara added hoping to appeal to his killer nature.
"Come on, Spike! All that yummy blood and killing, it's right up your alley!" Xander jeered.
"You people are unbelievable! You're asking a vampire," Spike pointed to himself, "to eat little children and premature babies! Oh, I get it! I'm not good enough for you, being a blood-sucking demon an' all…not 'til it suits you, that is. 'Looky here! We have a vampire handy!' Suddenly I'm the bleedin' guest of honor. Well, sorry kiddies. My generosity has its limits."
"Yeah, he shouldn't have to do this if he doesn't want. Spike's a person, too!" Dawn spoke up in his defense. Spike gave Dawn an appreciative nod, then quickly resumed his defiant stance.
"So magic it is, then. Right, Buffy?" Willow concluded.
Buffy had watched the proceedings closely, praying that it wouldn't fall on her to decide.
She sighed heavily. "I guess so. If Spike has a problem with Tara's plan, we can't force him." Buffy turned and for the first time since he'd arrived, addressed him directly, "I do think it's a better idea than magic, though," she added pointedly.
Spike's eyes softened, and his body relaxed slightly as he spoke to her, "Even if I agreed to do it, and I'm not sayin' I will, but how do you expect me to go about it? Just walk in to the hospital and take a bite? What about the other ones? Think mother hen would invite me in for an evenin' snack?"
"Details, we can handle. This is your decision, Spike. Will you do this?" Buffy asked calmly.
She was unreadable to him at the moment; Spike's own emotions too overwhelming to get any sense of her at all. It didn't help that she was all business, either. He was shifting from worry to anger to fear, and now he had a choice to make. It all came back to her, though. He wouldn't--couldn't--deny her anything.
At least she asked me, that's somethin'."Okay. I'll do it," he acquiesced, "but I'm not lookin' forward to it."
"Neither am I," Buffy admitted.
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End chapter 4
Chapter 5
Bed. Sweet, wonderful bed. Fluffy pillows gently beckoned her to the embrace of warm cozy blankets and cool cotton sheets. Sleep would not elude her tonight, though she drowsily played out the events of the evening as she drifted off. They had figured out a plan for the babies, and were meeting in the morning to discuss phase two--saving the kids from the mall. Buffy let the sleepiness overtake her thoughts, feeling only the soft comfort of her bed.
"RRRRRRRRIINNNNNGGG!" the phone by her bed offensively shrilled, jarring her awake again.
She reached for the annoying device, tempted to throw it across the room but thought better before she answered evenly, "Spike. I was asleep."
"Sorry, love," came the low, accented voice on the other end.
Buffy waited a moment for him to offer an explanation but he remained silent. She moaned as she sat up, "What is it? You haven't changed your mind about helping have you?"
"Said I'd do it, didn't I? I'm at the hospital right now, gettin' the lay of the land."
"Spike, it's nearly…" she glanced at the glowing red numbers on her clock, "2:00 in the morning. I'm exhausted. What. Do. You. Want?"
Spike gave a heavy sigh. He felt very foolish but his need to talk to her drove him to continue, "I know what time it is. I just…it's just that…Oh, bugger it all! Are you mad at me?" he finally blurted out the burning question in an unsteady, high-pitched tone.
"I am now!"
"Well, you hardly said a word to me all night, strictly business. Not even a deadly glare, or an insult my way, when I deserved it. What was I s'posed to think?" he complained.
Buffy threw her head back onto the pillow and laughed, "Okay! You are a moron! Feel better? Can I go back to sleep, now?"
"You weren't mad at me then?" he ventured with a sigh of relief.
"No, Spike. I wasn't mad. Willow and I had a talk earlier, and I promised her I'd stop acting like an idiot in your presence," she explained as she closed her eyes.
"You talked to Willow about me? What did you tell her?"
Buffy opened her eyes again.
No way am I telling you that! "Good night, Spike.""You're not going to tell me?"
"Nope."
"Why not? You told her everything, didn't you?!" he angrily accused.
"No! Not everything," she insisted. "Can we go back to the part before when I said I wasn't mad at you? And then you say, 'good night, Buffy'. And I say, 'good night, Spike'. Then I go back to sleep and everything is fine?"
"Everything is not fine, Pollyanna!" Spike growled.
"Spike! I don't want to fight with you!"
"Well, what do you want, Buffy? 'Cause here I sit at your bidding, waiting for your friends to show up so I can take a bite out of two infants! Doin' the very thing that keeps us apart--keeps you from bein' next to me right now, nestled in my arms while you sleep,"he bit off the sentence unable to continue.
"You could have refused," she said softly.
"No, I couldn't. You know that," he replied simply.
It was right there on the tip of her tongue, everything he wanted to hear. She could say it so easily; she certainly felt it. But once the words came out there could be no taking them back, and she was still trying to sort out the big file of questions under the heading of 'Spike'.
Not yet."You're pretty wonderful, sometimes, ya know?" she offered instead.
'Wonderful'. She'd never said that about him before. Wonderful was good, he decided. Wonderful was a step up, several steps up from a 'monster' or a 'pig' or any of the host of other words she'd used to describe him. Wonderful was…wonderful!
"I reckon that 'wonderful' is a spot better than 'moron' is," he mused aloud.
"No, you're still a moron," the tired girl yawned, "a wonderful moron."
Spike chuckled, "Right you are, love. Right you are. Guess I'll say 'night then."
"Good night, Spike."
"G'Night, Buffy. Everything'll be fine,"
Buffy replaced the phone on its cradle, lay back in her bed and closed her eyes. She opened them again, fluffed her pillow and turned on her side. Next, she turned over and kicked off the top blanket, then turned again to her side. The warm and inviting bed she entered a short time ago felt cold and empty now.
"Shit!" Buffy muttered out loud as she tossed and turned some more.
Stupid vampire! Why'd he have to put that image in my head? 'Nestled in his arms'.
Buffy sat up, grabbed a pillow and held it close. Spike was invading her thoughts now--like he had invaded her life--and he was impossible to ignore. For almost two months she had been struggling with her feelings for the pesky vampire. She wavered between an undeniable attraction and a total fear of letting herself fall hopelessly in love with Mr. Wrong, again. It was a precarious position to be in; stuck on the ledge of a steep and rocky cliff. She could jump into the abyss and risk it all, or stay trapped on the relative safety of the familiar ground she clung to. But safe was lonely. Safe was boring. Safe sucked, denying her the best of what Spike had to offer. Taking the lover's leap for a sexy but questionable creature of the night, on the other hand, was just plain ol' scary. I should never have gone along with the smooching! I should've bolted before it happened. Who am I kidding? I wanted it to happen; pretty much admitted it to him myself! ARGGH!
Buffy could recall the night in question in intricate detail, since she had replayed the entire event in her mind over and over for the past two months. It was the evening of that wacky musical spell everyone had fallen prey to. It was like the Jim Carrey movie 'Liar, Liar', where no one could lie, and they were forced to reveal some ugly truths--only in song and dance. Although things had improved, the repercussions of the spell were still being felt. Willow and Tara broke up for a while after it came out in their duet that Willow had used magic to manipulate Tara. Giles' solo let everyone know the little resentments he had kept neatly hidden under that tweed jacket of his. Anya and Xander's song was an argument that ended up typically with make-up sex. Then Buffy wound up upsetting Dawn with a little ditty about how she didn't want to be Dawn's parent. Next, Dawn locked herself in her room, and Buffy did what she'd unwittingly been doing ever since her return from the dead; she went to tell Spike her troubles.
She arrived at his crypt, and found Spike sitting in his chair amidst the candle-lit chamber, waiting for her. He belted out a hard rock tune about how much his un-life had changed, 'but he didn't regret it, 'cause it meant being closer to you' and ended with ' I need to know honey, what I mean to you. Tell me, darlin' how do you feel?'
Buffy sweetly sang her reply; not quite certain what words the melody would bring. It started out easy enough, ' you're the one I can talk to when no one else would understand, the one I can turn to when I need a helping hand'. Nothing too dangerous about that part, then the tempo changed to a grinding rhythm. To her horror, phrases rolled off her lips like, 'I can't look away from the fire in your eyes, it's like I'm hypnotized' and 'there's something between us, I can't deny it. Don't know what it is, but I so wanna try it'.
The spell ended abruptly, right before last note, so the final word of her song, 'you', was spoken in her normal voice. Realizing what she had just confessed, Buffy quickly changed the subject to Dawn and began to ramble on.
Sitting on the edge of her bed, clutching a downy soft pillow her arms, Buffy remembered what happened next in vivid Technicolor.
Spike was watching her intently, staring at her mouth as she spoke, making her more self-conscious than usual. He was standing just a foot or so in front of her, shifting his weight now and then. She tried not to notice how he was looking at her, tried to avert his gaze. She had been rambling for a few minutes, and was running out of things to say. She cast her eyes to the ground, still trying to speak, and watched as one black boot crossed in front of the other, bringing him mere inches away. She didn't look up, she didn't speak; she just froze. Spike remained still, his body rigid, eyes fixed, waiting. She was expecting him to grab her and kiss her passionately, but he didn't. It was her move.
Slowly she raised her eyes to meet his, taking a deep breath as she did. His eyes were warm, greeting hers happily and his mouth turned to a subtle smile. She returned a timid grin, and noticed him inhaling shallow bits of air and exhaling them unevenly. Spike closed his eyes, brought down his forehead to hers, and let out a contented sigh. He was nervous, his emotions held in check throughout his tense body. A slightly trembling hand brushed her cheek like a feather, tracing her jaw line and the base of her earlobe before resting gently on the nape of her neck. At the same time his other hand grasped one of her own. Both took another deep calming breath and smiled at the irony. With a few jerky head movements, Spike finally sought her lips with tender but brief kisses. It was as if with each kiss he allowed a tiny bit of the tension to release. It was driving her a little insane, because she was ready for a full on assault. This was the last thing she thought he'd do, given all the bravado and innuendo. Frustrated, she brought the hand she held to the small of her back and planted it there firmly. He quickly caught on and drew her into a tight embrace.
Buffy rolled onto her back, still holding the pillow in her arms. She could still feel the sensations that had flooded her that night as she relived it in her mind. His initial hesitation was more compelling now that she thought about it. She replayed the scene in her head again trying to recall other details, like how he smelled, how fast her heart was pounding, or how terrified and excited she felt. Buffy let forth a groan and allowed the scene to continue to play out.
He was kissing her now with mounting intensity, and she was reveling in it. Her arms wrapped around his neck, she felt him shudder and relax and then let go of the torrent of emotions he had been withholding. Joy. Pure joy came flooding through her, followed by absolute wonder. It was overwhelming; her head was swimming. She was experiencing his emotions, as if some invisible cord had connected them. It was magical. He broke the kisses and held her head against his chest, nuzzling her hair with his face. Gratefulness swept through her body from his, and she heard Spike softly whisper her name. They remained in the embrace, as he regained his composure and her mind cleared. She felt his hands moving, exploring her curves expertly, his mouth trailing kisses along her neck and shoulders. All the while he moved her backwards towards the wall. Again, Spike was staring intensely into her eyes, with a knowing look that made her feel exposed. A wicked grin played across his lips,
his fingers toyed with her hair. Blood came rushing hotly to her face as if the heat of his gaze had burned her. There was no mistaking that his feelings had traveled south. Seeing her discomfort gave him pause, the fiery glow from his eyes turned tender, even the sharp lines of his cheekbones seemed to soften. Just seeing him shift from lusty vampire to gentle man amazed her, and gave way to a wicked smile of her own. Spike took her cue and the predator was back. He let out a low growl that resonated from his chest, as he pressed his body flush against hers and gave her the kiss she'd been waiting for. The kind of kiss that would send electricity through her body, curl her toes and make her knees give out. 'WOW!' was her singular thought. She ran her fingers through silken platinum hair, evoking another low rumble from him as he pressed his thigh firmly between her legs. There was the wall and Spike, 'a rock and a hard place' came the thought, then the giggle."Does it tickle, pet?" he whispered coarsely in her ear as he rubbed himself against her.
She didn't answer him; too lost in the fire he'd ignited to do anything but gasp. It suddenly became imperative for her to get that damn black T-shirt off of him and she began to tug it from his jeans. Spike deftly removed it himself, his breathing labored and his ravenous blue eyes locked on hers.
"What's this then?" he slyly remarked as he reached for the base of her scoop-neck sweater. "Gettin' a bit hot in here to be wearin' this," he said as he yanked it swiftly up and off of her.
Cool air hit her exposed skin shocking her into keen awareness. He may as well have poured ice water on her head. She was in a crypt, with Spike, about to get naked and…'OH GOD! NO!' her brain screamed.
"Okay, enough of the Buffy R-rated home movies," she chastened herself aloud. Recalling the scene where she wigged and bolted, leaving a bewildered blond vampire in her wake, wasn't something she wanted to relive again. She could still see the look on his face, how confusion had shifted to forlorn puppy-dog pleading.
At the time she felt certain that she had done the right thing. Being 'just' friends seemed simpler. Spike was not amenable to the idea, though. Livid was more like it. They had argued in circles about it the night after she ran out on him. Her position of 'I only want to be friends' and his 'I want more than that' resulted in neither of them getting what they wanted.
So, after nearly two months of unbearable tension between the vampire and the slayer, she felt her resolve weakening. She missed him. If it weren't for the paralyzing fear that gripped her heart, she would indeed be wrapped in his arms.
Buffy closed her eyes and finally felt exhaustion set in once again. Troublesome thoughts dissipated to leave her with one final question before she fell asleep:
What the hell is it going to take to get me to jump off this stupid cliff?
End Chapter 5
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