All right, after a week of job hunting and wretched writer's block, I've finally gotten some more done on this. *sigh* You know, this really wasn't intended to be so plotty, but what can I do? It's taken a life of its own. As always, thanks for all the feedback, you guys are wonderful. And thanks for reading.
"I've started seeing someone." Buffy stated. She and Spike stood alone in the dining room, and there was a lot of space between the two.
Spike blinked a couple of times before responding, "Is it that Principal fellow?"
Buffy looked confused for a moment until realization hit. Her eyes widened and she half smiled. "Um, no. I don't mean seeing someone like that. I mean that I'm seeing a therapist."
"Oh" Spike said. He didn't have much that he could think to say.
"I'd thought about it before, but I never thought I'd have anything that I'd be able to say, you know," Buffy said, and looked very small at that moment. "But, as it turns out," she kind of laughs, "I have plenty to tell her without even getting near the whole evil demons and monsters and impending apocalypses." She took a deep breath and met his eyes.
"I finally get to just talk about my mother's death, and raising Dawn, and being overwhelmed by my responsibilities, though I obviously can't go into depth on what exactly those are, but at least I can get some of it off my chest." She clenched her jaw slightly, "And I told her about the attempted rape."
Every cell in Spike's body stopped functioning for a moment. They had been tip toeing around the subject since he had returned with his soul.
Buffy saw his discomfort, but continued, "I think I'm finally getting things together. I think I'm allowing myself the opportunity to not be the strong one all the time. And I think it's helping." She took a deep breath and continued, "And I think what I need most right now is to not have you around."
Spike visibly crumbled in on himself. This was something he'd been waiting for, holding the breath he didn't use in anticipation every day he'd been back.
"I see." He said, quietly.
"I just have to remember who I am. I've been so wrapped up in being the slayer, that I haven't spent a whole lot of time being myself. And around you, I tend to forget everything else in my life and that it is just as important. More important a lot of the time."
Spike nodded. He loved her. But watching her fade away into a soulless soldier was painful. Possibly more painful than living without her. He'd soon find out.
"What did you tell your therapist about your rapist?" he asked, just as he walked out the door.
Buffy smiled slightly, "I said that he died."
Spike left through the back door, locking it behind him with an eye roll, and headed straight for Willy's. He couldn't have cared less about meeting Dracula. He cared more of the prospect of meeting up with Johnnie Walker.
An hour later, he was watching the pool game and cursing Willy for watering down the drinks. He was way too lucid for his liking when Dracula swept in. The brownies to one look at the prince of darkness and disappeared in to puffs of smoke leaving Willy complaining about their unpaid bar tab.
"Rough night?" Dracula asked as he made a small show of counting the shot glasses stacked on the table.
Spike rolled his eyes, "No it's been just bloody peachy." He sat up a bit straighter in his chair and stared forlornly at the empty bottle he was holding. "How was the father son chat?" he asked, offhandedly as he shook the empty bottle a couple of times to be absolutely sure there was no more.
Dracula didn't answer. Instead, he got up and went to the bar. He hopped lithely over the counter and grabbed a couple of bottles off the shelf and a glass from the counter. He just smirked at Willy, who stared at him with wide eyes, which glazed over as the bartender slumped to the floor.
He sat back down at the table, poured himself a drink and tossed it back without a word.
"I take it that the two of you didn't have a Brady moment." Spike sneered and grabbed a bottle.
"I don't know what ever possessed me to have a kid." Dracula moaned, "Minions are so much better. Have a quick meal, and let them spend a couple of days in a grave, and there you go. Instant children. They're eager to please, mostly obedient and housebroken."
"So why did you?" Spike asked idly. About an hour ago, he actually cared. As it was, he would do well to remember he even asked.
"I don't really know." Dracula answered. "Seemed like a good idea at the time." He scowled, "Of course that was before Jessica decided she didn't care to be the bride of Dracula and got married to a bum." He sighed. "Things just got complicated after that."
"Jessica?" Spike looked surprised, "Jessica Harris?"
Dracula got a sad smile, "Trust me, back then it was Jessica Burton." He sighed and continued making his way through the bottle of boosted booze.
"Jessica Burton." Spike mused, "Why does that name sound familiar?"
"Oh, I'm sure you've heard of her," Vlad said, "Especially hanging around here." He gestured around at the bar. "She was quite a heartbreaker among the demon crowd. The human crowd, too as it turned out. No one was quite sure just what it was about her, but something in her just...called."
Spike stared incredulously at the vacant smile on his companion's face. He couldn't put together in his head the shrill voice that came from above Xander's basement and the mysterious woman who somehow entranced the great bloody hypnotist, himself.
"And she passed you up for Anthony Harris?" Spike asked, skeptically.
The vacant smile disappeared and Vlad groaned as his head hit the table with a thump.
"I'll never understand women." The famous vampire sighed.
Xander entered the Summer's residence with quite a bit of trepidation. He was sure Spike hadn't told anyone about him. The look Spike gave him before taking off seemed genuine. Then again, with Spike it was always hard to tell when he was being sincere. One minute he's a swell comrade in the fight against evil and the next he's screwing Anya on camera.
Only Giles and Anya were around when he arrived. Anya immediately found something important to do in another room, with only the most disinterested glances towards her ex-fiance.
Giles, however, acknowledged his existence. "I'm glad you were able to make it. I hate to pull you away from your obligations, but this is very important, I'm afraid."
"Yeah well, how often does an evil bloodsucking foe return for revenge?" Xander snarked good humouredly, "Oh, yeah, know I remember. All the time."
As usual, Giles paid no notice of Xander's attempt at levity. He handed the young man a book and returned to his own tome.
Xander looked down at his book in confusion. "Um, why am I researching hydras? I know I'm not Mr. Knowledge guy, but I'm pretty sure that Dracula is not a hydra."
There was a brief flash of guilt on the ex-watcher's face. That was enough for Xander.
"Oh I see." Xander spit out, "Keep me occupied with phony work so I don't betray everyone to Dracula, again." He closed the book and pushed it to the side. "You know, it just might be possible that I could have matured some since he was last here."
Xander's uncharacteristically terse tone immediately gained Giles's full attention.
"Xander, while I believe that you have grown up quite a bit, Dracula is simply far too dangerous of an adversary to risk any possible leakage of information. I know all too well how compelling he can be, and while it may give you a bout of hurt feelings, it's much better to remain cautious and spare the possible pain and death if you were to be taken in again."
"Which is why Anya did her disappearing act as soon as I showed up." Xander said, dully. "You both know something important that I shouldn't have access to, and while Anya may be able to remove all the vital organs from a man in alphabetical order, she can't keep a secret if her life depended on it." He chuckled grimly. "At least this time it wasn't something I did."
"Xander..." Giles started.
Xander cut the older man off, "It's okay, G-man," he said, the old Xander good humor coming back into his expression, "I may not like it, but I don't want to do anything that could lead to someone getting dead." He smiled crookedly, "Besides, I'm not eager to end up munching on bugs again. I had to use a lot of toothpaste after that experience. Not as much as after I broke up with Cordelia, but more than the time that I ate a pig, anyway."
The lame attempt at a joke convinced Giles that the young man wasn't taking his exclusion too hard, at least he hoped. However, that wouldn't stop him from keeping a sharp eye on Xander. He wouldn't let him be taken in by Dracula again, and he only hoped that he got Xander here in time.
He wasn't completely at ease about that considering the young man showed up in a turtle neck shirt, which to his recollection, Xander had never worn before.
Note: Okay, I promise Xander will be sold next chapter. Really! And I won't take a week to get it done, either.
