AN: Hey guys, this is the longest chapter yet! I really hope you enjoy it and its all running along smoothly. Would love to hear your feedback. Enjoy!
The Key
By Secret Slayer
Edie isn't Edie
Edie sat bolt upright, clinging the thin silk sheet to her chest. For a moment she has no idea where she is, the dark and cold interior seeming foreign. A cold breeze sneaks in from somewhere behind her, caressing the bare skin on her back and making her shiver. She wraps the sheet a little tighter around herself, frowning at a heavy weight preventing her from pulling it closer. Her eyes slowly look to her left and she blinks, letting her eyes adjust and sighs with relief, remembering exactly where she is.
And why she is there.
A wave of dreamy content rolls over her and the chill in the air melts away as she stares at the sleeping vampire. The sheet is covering him from the waist down, leaving his chest deliciously exposed. A surviving candle flickers from the opposite end of the crypt, casting a shimmering amber glow over his pale skin. It gives a false impression of warmth that makes him look utterly human. Alive.
It's deathly silent in the crypt. Spike's chest rises and falls with breathless breathing and he moves only slightly when Edie leans over the edge of the sarcophagus to grab an item of clothing. She grabs the first thing her fingers touch and is happy to find it's her blouse and skirt. Carefully, she peels the sheet away and shifts off the edge of the stone surface, which at some point had been made more comfortable with another sheet and some cushions. She winces when her bare feet meet the cold concrete floor, but quickly puts her clothes on and finds her boots.
The harsh glow of morning light breaks through the cracks in the decrepit crypt door. She curses when she looks at her watch, which has got slightly tangled with the butterfly bracelet Spike had bought her.
"Spike," she calls softly.
He stirs a little, but then falls still again.
"Spike!" she says more loudly.
Still there's nothing. Edie rolls her eyes and grabs a fallen candle, launching it at the vampire. It hits him hard in the chest and Spike bolts upright, almost toppling off the edge of the sarcophagus. Edie giggles and he scowls at her. Realisation slowly appears on Spike's face as he remembers the night before and he assesses the situation, a smirk twitching at the corners of his lips.
"God, do you sleep through anything? I was like yelling, and nothing."
"I'm a bit knackered. Had a long night," he leers.
Edie glares at him, but there's no real malice behind her eyes. She continues to straighten out her outfit, before looking at him sadly.
"I need to go Spike," she says softly.
"What's the hurry luv?" Spike asks as she pulls her jacket on.
"The hurry is, I didn't go home last night," her face pales with panic, "Buffy's gonna freak out. She has enough to worry about with Joyce. I'm in for such a world of pain when I get back."
"Oh she'll get over it," Spike scoffs, waving his hand dismissively, then he looks at her suggestively. "Thought we could-"
He waggles his eyebrows at her and her cheeks burn. She ducks her head and averts her eyes to the pretty bracelet loosely hanging on her wrist. She smiles at it.
"As tempting as that is," she admits, looking back at him. His smirk extends to a genuine smile. "I need to go home. Maybe Buffy will still be asleep and I can sneak in."
Spike shrugs, "Don't see why you're so scared around that cousin of yours. You could probably turn her into a toad or something with those powers you've got."
Edie laughs and sits on the edge of the sarcophagus, playfully swatting Spike on the shoulder. He grabs her hand and pulls her onto his chest. He kisses her neck and she almost gets lost in the sensation.
"I'm not turning Buffy into a toad," she frowns at him and pulls away slightly. He pouts at her and she resists the urge to kiss his lips, "And I'm not scared. It's just..." She pauses, pursing her own lips with thought. He watches her patiently as she gathers her thoughts. "This is a pretty big thing. Me and you," she clarifies at his confused look, "Not a single member of the gang is gonna understand this. Except Dawn - she loves you."
A strange look crosses his face that she hasn't seen before. He gently pushes her shoulders back so that he can look her clearly in the eyes. His cold hands are holding her by the tops of her arms and she's sure if he was to let go, she'd fall on top of him like water being tipped out of a bucket.
"And you?" he asks softly.
Edie looks bemused. "Of course she loves me, I'm family."
Spike rolls his eyes. "Nooooo," he says slowly as though she is stupid, "Do you love me?"
Edie freezes. Does she love him? Most probably, but it had an unnatural feeling, like loving a crocodile like you love a puppy. It's an unusual love, but love all the same... still felt strange though.
"I..."
The words are ready to leave her mouth when the crypt door flies off its hinges and a naked Spike leaps off the sarcophagus and out of the deadly beams of sunlight.
"Spi-" Buffy cuts herself off, startled to see Edie instead. "Edie?"
Buffy stands at the opening to Spike's crypt; her arms folded across her chest, her eyebrows rose expectantly waiting for an explanation. Edie nervously glances at the sarcophagus. Spike is laying flat on his back, his arms crossed behind his head in a nonchalant manner, smirking smugly as though enjoying the building tension in his home. Buffy clearly has no idea he's there and Edie throws him a subtle warning glare. He winks at her and remains perfectly still and silent.
"Hi Buff," she replies innocently.
"I've been worried sick," the slayer sighs.
"I'm sorry Buffy," Edie says genuinely, "I just freaked out last night. I came here to ermmm..." Edie looks down to Spike nervously and he's watching her carefully, frowning at her. She swallows hard, "I came here to tell Spike I just wanted to be friends. That last night was just a ... thing."
Spike is clearly annoyed, but loyally keeps his silence and remains hidden from the slayer, hoping that Edie has a comforting explanation. His burning glare does not go unnoticed though.
Buffy looks surprised. She nods understandingly.
"Right. Good idea."
Edie feels sick. She hates lying, but she's panicking.
"Where is he?" Buffy finally asks after an uncomfortable silence.
Edie fidgets awkwardly, "He's not come back yet. I'm gonna wait here, so I can tell him before things escalate."
"OK," Buffy says and then smiles, "I was so worried you might actually have feelings for him. Totally spent the whole night wigging. I'll see you at the Magic Box?"
Edie forces a friendly smile, "Sure Buff. I'll see you soon."
Buffy nods again, pauses as if considering saying something else, but leaves instead, disappearing into the morning glow. Edie is confident that last night's incident will remain unmentioned to the others.
As soon as Spike hears the slayer's footsteps fade, he jumps to his feet. Edie's eyes widen with shock at his sudden brash movement.
"A thing?!" he growls angrily. "Bloody charming."
"Spike," Edie says softly, but he's pacing.
She doesn't hesitate to fill the space between them, quickly running to him and standing in front of him before he can finish one of his frustrated paces. He stops short, but refuses to look at her, his jaw clenched.
"Spike," she says again, but sighs when she still can't make eye contact with him.
She loses her temper and Spike feels a powerful energy start to radiate from her. She sharply turns her back on him, flinging her arms in the air with exasperation, the door flying back on its hinges at the same time. Unlike her last demonstration, it doesn't softly sit back into place, but crashes back into position, almost shattering from the impact. Spike flinches at the noise, staring at Edie apprehensively.
"You're the dumbest bloody person I know," she continues.
The fallen candles from the previous night seem to vibrate on the floor as though there was some kind of underground tremor. Like a gust of wind, they fly back onto the window ledges, being silently guided by the angry woman.
"What's with the Mary Poppins act?" he asks.
She swirls around and glares at him, her eyes a turbulent shade of green. She clenches her own jaw and Spike feels more attracted to her than ever before. She might be potentially dangerous, but she's wonderfully confident in this moment – a goddess.
"I'm stopping myself from dusting you," she says through gritted teeth.
She takes a deep breath to calm herself, pinches the bridge of her nose in a Watcher like fashion.
"I love you Spike," she admits.
He looks at her wide eyed.
"But I'm not ready for the world to know that yet," she adds softly. "OK?"
Spike says nothing and sweeps her off her feet and kisses her passionately.
"OK luv. You're the boss."
"Damn right."
"I have a little Scooby-centric deal to deal with first."
Buffy reaches into her bag and removes the glowing yellow globe. In the back of her mind she wonders where her cousin is, hoping Spike hasn't freaked out and somehow done something terrible. Maybe I should have stayed. Protected her. She swallows her worries and looks at the gang.
"I put this before the group. What the hell is it?"
"It appears to be paranormal in origin," Giles says.
"How can you tell?" Willow asks, impressed at the quickness of Giles' evaluation.
"Well, it's so shiny."
Willow smiles fondly at the Watcher.
"Found it on patrol," Buffy informs as she hands the object to Giles.
"May be more where that came from. I say we go back out again tonight," Riley says enthusiastically.
Buffy shifts uncomfortably, "Um... sure."
Dawn leans over to Riley, as though about to share a secret, but fails to keep her voice down.
"You can't patrol. Buffy said."
"No, I didn't!" Buffy exclaims.
"Yeah, remember? You said it'd be easier if you didn't have to look out for anybody."
Buffy looks nervously at everyone, "Well, I wasn't talking about Riley."
Riley deflates like a kicked puppy, "Don't worry about it."
Dawn continues, oblivious to the tension. "Oh, she just said you look even cuter when you're all weak and kitten-y and she'd better go solo or you'd get hurt. So welcome to the club. She'll never let me go either."
Buffy is mortified and furious. Giles, Willow and Riley look away, uncomfortable. Dawn finally registers the awkward silence.
"What? What?"
"Giles, you got that danger room set up out back? I'm feeling the need for a little physical rehab about now," Riley says, trying to force a brave smile.
Giles hands the globe to Willow and then looks at the ex-commando sympathetically.
"Of course, yes."
Riley disappears out the back just as cheery ding above the shop door announces Edie's arrival.
"Hello all," she greets.
"Oh hey Edie," Willow waves friendlily.
"Did you get everything sorted out?" Buffy asks vaguely, giving Edie a purposeful look.
"Yeah," she replies simply.
"Good."
Edie's attention is quickly grabbed by the glowing sphere that Willow is investigating. It draws her closer, like a magnetic force and she feels her veins thrum with power.
"What the bloody hell is that?"
"That's what I asked," Buffy says, "Only less British."
"Buffy there's something wrong with that thing, it's making me feel weird."
Willow frowns at looks at the British woman with concern. "That's strange, nobody else feels weird."
"You haven't told the guys yet, I'm guessing?" Edie asks the slayer.
Willow and Giles both look to Buffy expectantly, small signs of hurt tinting their features that they have been kept out of the loop.
"Buffy that thing has something to do with me, I can feel it!"
As Edie approaches Willow, the orb levitates out of the witch's hand. It hovers indecisively for a moment, before floating towards Edie. Edie's eyes turn an unusual shade of green that doesn't resemble her own and her eyes are fixated on the orb. Willow watches in wonder and Giles cleans his glasses. Buffy frowns with worry, races forward and grabs the sphere, breaking its hold on her cousin.
The slayer looks guiltily at her watcher and friend.
"Guys I should have told you something."
"I'm kinda not human anymore," Edie casually says.
Giles drops his glasses on the floor.
"So they're all researching on a magical cure, I suppose."
Spike leans back in the car seat, flicking his cigarette butt out of the open window. His usually pristine bleached hair isn't slicked back tonight, but unruly and curly. He looks different, Edie notes – more human. He looks happy.
"Yeah, well Buffy's gone back to the factory to see if there are any more clues," she pulls down the sleeves of her pink turtle neck to guard her arms from the chilly night coming in from Spike's window.
"You cold luv?" he asks instantly.
"Just a little," she admits.
He reaches back for his duster and drapes it over her like a blanket and then rolls up his window. He puts the keys in the ignition and the DeSoto purrs to life. They head into the night, the radio playing quietly.
"So what did Buffy say about us then?" he asks after a while.
"She didn't say anything," Edie answers. "Our secret's safe. Well super safe actually, because Buffy still thinks I dumped you."
"Yeah I remember that part," Spike mumbles with a touch of bitterness.
"Hey! Don't be like that, I'll tell the gang about us... You know, just after Joyce gets better and we find out I'm not some vessel of evil or whatever. I don't want our relationship to be a bad thing."
Spike smiles and bobs his head along to the music. "Alright, luv. I'll behave."
Edie smirks, "You don't have to behave that much."
"Oh is that right?" he asks, leaning in to kiss her.
The car swerves and someone honks their horn.
"Spike, eyes on the road!"
He laughs and focuses ahead and a comfortable silence falls over them both again.
"Where are you taking me anyway?" Edie finally asks.
Spike shrugs, "I dunno. Just wanted you to myself is all. Bloody hard doing that in SunnyHell with Buffy's beady eyes constantly watching."
"So we're driving into the night with no destination? This should end well."
Buffy leaps out of the collapsing factory, clinging to the monk. A cloud of dust roils out of the shattered window above as Buffy helps the critically injured monk across the lot.
"Stop. Please." He begs.
"No. We have to keep going."
They stumble across the lot to the chain-link fence surrounding the property. The monk collapses against it, gasping.
"My journey's done, I think."
"Don't get metaphory on me. We're going."
She tries to lift him again but he stops her. His breathing is ragged and his skin is covered in a sheen of sweat.
"You have to... the Key. You must protect the Key."
"Fine. We can protect the Key together, okay, just far, far from here."
She goes to stand again, but he puts a trembling arm out to stop her.
"Many more die if you don't keep it safe."
Buffy pauses her escape planning and looks at the monk, her face puzzled.
"How? What is it?"
"The Key is energy. It's a portal. It opens the door..."
"The Dagon Sphere?"
"No. For centuries it had no form at all. My brethren, its only keepers. Then the abomination found us. We had to hide the Key, gave it form, moulded it flesh... made it human and sent it to you."
Buffy stares at him in shock as the realization sinks in.
"Edie..."
"She's the Key."
Buffy feels an overwhelming bubble of anger build in her chest.
"You put that in my house?"
"We knew the Slayer would protect."
"My memories... my mom's? My sister's?"
"We built them."
"Then un-build them! This is my life you're-"
The monk starts coughing heavily. His life is slipping away and his eyes begin to cloud over.
"You cannot abandon."
"I didn't ask for this! I don't even know... what is she?"
"Human... now mostly human. And helpless. Please... she's an innocent in this. She needs you. She doesn't understand her power."
"She's not my cousin?" Buffy's voice is small, tears welling in her eyes.
"She doesn't know that."
The monk exhales one last time and dies, going limp in Buffy's hold. Buffy stares at the dead monk, her whole life turning upside down before her.
TBC...