Cassie walked into the Magic Box the next day, her hair still a little damp despite having been in the sun for an hour. Anya's head shot up from the till at the ringing of the bell. "Oh, hello," she greeted, slightly disappointed that it wasn't a money-bearing customer.
Cassie smiled at this strange girl whom Xander seemed to adore, and the feeling mutual. "Hi, Anya. I thought I'd look around a bit, see if there's anything I like I can afford. You mind?"
The blonde grinned, beaming, her speech suddenly bouncy. "No, not at all. If there's something I help you with, let me know."
Cassie nodded. "I will, thanks."
"Anya," a British accent called from the back, "have you seen the powdered toadstool?"
"It's right behind the wolfsbane," Anya called back.
An exclamation of triumph later, the owner of the accent came out with several dozen small boxes of said powdered toadstool. "Please, Anya."
The retail queen nodded and moved to shelve the boxes. Cassie looked to the Englishman who had walked in. His brown hair was swept to one side, and his hazel eyes clear behind a pair of wire-rim glasses. In a strange fashion choice, he'd decided to wear a pair of jeans with an oxford shirt and a tweed suit-jacket.
He then turned to see her eyes on him. "Ah, hello. May I help you?"
Cassie felt herself blush at the fact he'd caught her looking. "Not really. I didn't know what else to do until Marco gets out of classes, so I walked here."
He took a closer, longer look at her and smiled. "You're his sister, aren't you?"
She grinned. "Ah, the Cattalano looks strike again. Yes, he's been mistaken for everything from my twin brother to my older brother." She put out her hand. "And my name's Cassandra. My friends call me Cassie."
He took the hand. "Rupert Giles. Pleasure to meet you."
"Mutual."
His nose wrinkled, as if he had caught wind of something. "That's an interesting scent," he commented. "What do you call it?"
Cassie felt herself blush again. "Eau de motel pool," she replied, almost apologetic. "I got in a swim before I walked here. This is actually a nice town when the nasties are in for the day."
"Indeed. Well, feel free to look, if you wish."
"Thank you."
Cassie continued to watch Giles and Anya for a few hours. Finally, she came over to Giles during a break in commerce. "Mr. Giles, is there anything I can do to help out here? As much I enjoy watching the two of you work, I'm starting to feel a little useless." She raised her eyebrows. "Please? Just until Marco comes by?"
Giles and Anya exchanged a look. She did seem genuinely interested in helping, where her brother could care less. "Well, what can you do, exactly?"
"I'm fairly Web and 'Net literate, I can do a bit of research for you in terms of getting supplies, and I learn fast." She smiled slightly. "I worked briefly in retail, and I'm taking a break from being a Jackie-of-all-trades at a free clinic back home."
Another exchanged look later, Giles put her to work reorganizing the books for sale on the shelves. She asked intelligent questions about the store and some of the items on sale, noting which books and items were too dangerous to sell alone or in combination. When she asked about Spike, she'd listened to quite a few stories.
"Cassie," Giles began, "do you have any interest in magic at all?"
She smiled. "I know a little about magic, thanks to a friend of mine. But practicing it? No, not really. I think I'd be a little too dependent on something that could make my life easier." She shook her head. "Not a good thing for me."
"How do you mean?" he asked, genuinely curious.
"Well, if I know magic, I'd be tempted to use it for the more mundane things, like zapping away a few extra pounds or trying to glean knowledge without actually working for it." She shrugged again. "I have a tendency to be lazy if I don't kick my own motivation in the butt."
A set of arms wrapped around her from behind and lifted her into the air. "Pop quiz, how do you fight back against this?"
"I slam my heel back into your knee and cripple you."
Marco dropped her on her feet. "Not quite, but good enough." He patted her on the shoulder. "Buffy wanted to make the rest of my body turn black and blue for a little while. If you want, after you're done playing with these two, I'd be happy to do the same for you."
The two of them walked into the back room and Giles looked behind them. "Charming fellow, isn't he? Surprised he wasn't strangled at birth."
"He probably would have set too many booby traps," Cassie replied.
Giles looked at her. "Really?"
"I remember he had so many toys spread around the room it was a death trap. I used to think it was just a mess, but now I'm not so sure." She smiled.
Marco slipped his t-shirt over his head and slipped into a combat stance. With his bare chest, he almost started to remind Buffy of Riley Finn… less shoulder width, perhaps, but the same type of muscle build, and an almost professional fighting stance. Add the military uniform…
Marco observed Buffy looking at him, and returned the favor, concentrating on her relaxed, noncombative stance: one leg straight, the forward leg bent at the knee as though she were leaning against the wall, and her arms fully relaxed.
"Ready?" he asked.
She snapped into a stance to mirror his own. "Yeah."
"Go…Don't feel you should hold anything back—"
Within mid-blink, Buffy's right cross snapped into the air, but Marco had leaned back a split-second before the blow was launched. He grabbed the wrist, her belt, and threw her across the mat. She landed and rolled to her feet.
"Judo," she said.
He nodded.
"I can deal."
She charged and went at him with a flying kick. He had his arm out, waiting for her foot as it left the ground. She kicked right into it and he latched onto her ankle, spun, and tossed her to the floor, immediately stepping back. She was on her hands and knees, and glared at him, anger sparking in her eyes.
Marco smiled. We have signs of emotion, captain.
Buffy went from her knees to a burst of speed. Marco dropped and tumbled. She leapt over him before he cut her legs out from under her. They rolled to their feet at the same time, Marco next to the punching bag and Buffy on the other side of the room. She smiled and ran at him again, this time using a reverse back kick on the punching bag. Marco's smile had turned to a grin as he dropped to the ground as the kick was launched and let the bag fly over him, then swept Buffy's leg. She dropped to the floor and he pounced upon her, grabbing her wrists and pinning her legs with his.
"Gotcha!" he cried.
With that, Buffy flipped him over and landed on him, pinning him to the ground. "Try again?"
Marco frowned a moment, then licked her face.
"Ewww!" she said as she reached up to wipe her cheek.
Marco used that free moment to deck Buffy across the face, grab her shirt, then toss her over his head with his legs.
Buffy looked up at the ceiling, and Marco's face, above her again, pinning her. One knee rested gently on her stomach, and he held both her wrists to the mat. His other leg was across one of hers, keeping it to the floor.
"Give up?"
"How did you do that?"
"I fence. It's combative chess. Like when I sparred with you the first time, I predicted your next move, and struck accordingly. With your opening move the other day, I dodged the opening punch, then numbed the muscle so I could avoid a backhand, then step back to avoid a kick—your only move left. Just logically guess where your opponent will move next."
Cassie had discreetly watched them spar, stifling a giggle as she saw Buffy's reaction to Marco licking her. It was almost beautiful, almost choreographed. She hadn't seen her brother fight since the night of the attack by the vampire nest the year before. Now while Buffy moved like a cat, all reflexes and grace, Marco carefully moved with precision, like a prowling lion.
"Hey, Buffy, I thought you were going to turn him black and blue, not the other way around."
The Slayer looked up to see Cassie in the door, smiling. "Hold on." She quickly planted her knees in Marco's stomach and flipped him away, sending him rolling to the other side of the room. She got to her feet and whirled on Cassie with her own smile. "Your turn."
Cassie spotted and went for the quarterstaffs in their corner of the room. Taking two, she tossed one to Buffy, who caught it easily. Buffy almost immediately attacked with a flurry of strikes, most of which Cassie barely managed to parry, wincing slightly when a few tapped her lightly in the ribs.
Marco, from his seat on the floor, watched them, concentrating mostly on his sister's moves. Her defense was good, but her attacks lacked finesse.
Cassie jumped away before Buffy's staff could connect with her ribs again. Okay, time to take a little back. She channeled some of her memories, remembering when it had been her, Marco, Doyle, and her neighborhood's two local gangs against an entire vampire nest. With a sudden howl, she lashed out, catching Buffy in her ribs and on her hip. The opponents parried and blocked so fast, the moves seemed to blur as Marco watched.
Cassie leapt over Buffy's sweep strike only to find the tip of the staff resting lightly on her heart. The woman from New York just whistled in appreciation. "You're good."
Buffy smiled. "Comes as part of the Slayer package." She turned to Marco. "Bronze tonight?"
Marco shrugged. "Sure."
Cassie glanced at them, briefly wondering what new language her brother had learned.
Cassie had to admit, while the music at the Bronze that night was a bit loud for her, she was enjoying watching people dance and joking with her brother and their new friends.
Then, for some inexplicable reason, Cassie looked toward a corner at the other end of the club to see a white-blond head of hair slumped all by its lonesome. She pointed him out to Willow, who had the seat next to her, and asked, "Why's Spike sitting all the way over there? I thought he was a Scooby, too."
"He is," Willow replied. "But I think he's still a little freaked that Buffy's back." She shrugged. "I don't know who was more mad, him, Giles, or Marco."
Cassie nodded. "Marco has a tendency to feel pretty strongly about something that doesn't seem right, even bringing someone back from the dead. Save my seat." She got up and walked until she was standing over him. "Hey, there."
Spike looked up from his contemplation of the beer bottle on the table. He smiled slightly at seeing Marco's big sister standing over him. "Hey, yourself. What's up?"
Cassie took the overstuffed chair beside him. "Well, I was wondering why you were sitting here all alone." She pushed away the sudden feeling of shyness and kept going. "And I was wondering if you'd like to dance with me."
He blinked at the request. He still ached whenever he saw Buffy, resurrected, alive. She treated him like a man, even after all this time, and it still hurt that she'd never love him, a monster. But now this woman, the sister of the upstart, was asking him to dance. He was at a loss for words for once in his long unlife.
"Well, nice of y' t' ask, pet," he said at last, "but thanks, no. It's nothin' t' do with you—"
"But it does have to do with Buffy."
He blinked at her again, this time in amazement. How did she—?
Cassie laughed as his jaw hung open. "I only seem like I'm oblivious," she reminded him. "That doesn't mean that I actually am. It's in your body language, the way you look at her when you think no one's looking." She smiled softly. "The undiluted joy in your eyes, seeing her again…you get the idea."
Spike swallowed. He'd tried so hard to give Buffy space, room to readjust to being alive, and it was killing him not to be near her.
Cassie held out her hand. "Come on; one dance, no strings. You can even keep hating Marco."
He grinned. "Yeah, well, he is annoyin', but y' get used t' him."
"Now you know how I've felt most of my life." She closed her fingers around his and led him to the dance floor, just as a salsa rhythm started up. Spike hated Ricky Martin with a passion, but the man knew a real dance beat.
The Scoobies and Marco watched as Spike and Cassie danced. He twirled her around and drew her back repeatedly. She grinned and he looked like he was enjoying himself for the first time in a long while. When it looked as though she were walking away, he caught her by the waist and swung her around, his leather coat flaring around them both like a cape. They finished up the dance with her in a deep dip in his arms, their faces close enough for them to kiss. Marco tensed a moment before the vampire pulled his sister up on her feet again.
Cassie made her way back to the table, a mile-wide grin on her flushed face. "You looked like you had fun," Xander remarked, managing to keep a straight face.
She brushed a lock of hair from her eyes and readjusted her slightly askew glasses. "Yup." She flopped into her chair again. She glanced at Marco and pointed at him. "The first dirty thought out of your mind will be your last."
He blinked like a dazed soul. "Me? Think? When would I ever do a thing like that? Besides, my mind's too numb to think." He raised his glass. "In fact, I think I'll go back for more anesthetic."
Cassie blinked, too, as she watched her brother wander back to the bar. She glanced at the others. "What did I do?"
Tara smiled. "I think you dancing with Spike knocked him off balance."
"He's always off." Cassie sighed. "I know he loves me, and I love him, but there are times when I think he's being way too protective. Like he's the older sibling and not me."
Marco, meanwhile, met Spike at the bar as they bought refills. "You know, if you hurt her," he said casually, "I'll have to kill you."
Spike nodded. "Yeah, kinda got that impression. But why would I wanna do somethin' like that, eh?"
Marco shot a glare at him. "Do I have to say it? In fact, does she even know you're a vampire yet?"
Spike returned the glare, not bothering to say, "Yes, she does". "Look, Cassie's a nice girl. You worry about her, fine, that's your problem. But don't take it out on me just 'cause you think I might hurt her."
"Nah. I wouldn't take it out on you until such time as when you might hurt her. Then I bury you alive and keep you there for eternity." Marco smiled and raised his glass. "Cheers, bloodsucker."
He raised the glass to his lips and peered over the brim to see Buffy stand and wander toward the exit. He stopped, and put the glass down. He didn't look at Spike when he said, "Watch my drink. If it's been spiked while I'm gone, I'll rip out your spine. Thanks."
Spike watched him walk away. "Don't bloody mention it," he muttered.
Buffy stood outside in the dark, rubbing her arms, staring into the shadows. A coat draped itself gently around her.
"You shouldn't be out here," Marco said from behind her, holding her gently by the shoulders.
"I know. It's just so loud in there. The noise…" She hugged the coat tighter around herself and breathed deeply. Marco's scent again; so familiar.
"Did we meet before last night?"
He furrowed his brow. "I'm almost certain we didn't. Unless you count the night you came back, but you obviously don't remember that. I helped Dawn get you home, and left you with her."
"Why?" she asked without turning around.
He shrugged, though she couldn't see it. "I didn't think you should wake up and see a stranger in the morning. You had to be brought around by your friends first, adapted into this world again before you met new people."
"Suppose so." She turned to him, peering into his face. He didn't move his hands from their post on her shoulders, and made no move toward her. "Your scent."
"What?"
"You smelled familiar. That's how I knew you. You were there from the beginning."
"Not exactly. I didn't resurrect you. I only found you a short time after Dawn."
"You were there…"
Her thoughts visibly drifted. There was something wrong—more than the usual post-resurrection depression.
Is she going to attack me?
Marco's thoughts paused as he wondered what definition of the verb "attack" he meant. Once he clarified it, he still didn't find it pleasant, even though Buffy slid into his arms and held him close. His ribs slowly bent against her grip.
"Just hold on," he whispered gently. "Don't worry, I won't break," he lied, calculating the pressure it actually took to snap the human bone.
They stayed that way until Buffy's eyes snapped open. "Down!"
They threw themselves to the ground as a light metal spear sped through the air where they had stood. It impacted against a dumpster and went through, knocking it over.
Buffy and Marco rolled apart, the Slayer taking a stake from Marco's jacket, the premed student slipping two from his sleeves. They came to their feet facing the same direction, feet apart, left arm outstretched as a shield, stakes ready to kill. Marco held his with the stakes toward the thumbs, and Buffy held hers upside down in her hand like a commando.
The next missile came right at Buffy through the shadows. She grabbed it, spun, and used its momentum to toss it back at the thrower.
A shape darted out from the opposite side of the spear, leaping out at Buffy. A mop of long red hair framed the face of the most hideous vampire she'd seen since the Master, and the two viper's eyes glowed green. The creature was at least at tall as Marco, and mean. Its first move was a swipe at Buffy's hand. The strike made the arm go numb and the stake fly into the wall, where it shattered on impact. Buffy ducked in time for the backhand to soar over her head and punched for its stomach, and into the vampire's waiting hand.
Vampires don't move that fast.
The vampire threw Buffy against the far wall of the alley. She turned ready to pursue. Marco casually took aim and threw his blade, dropping into a roll following it. With a blur, the vampire caught the knife and hurled it back at him with deadly accuracy, without looking. Marco would have been dead had he not anticipated it and rolled under it (he found "Be prepared" the only good thing to come out of the Boy Scouts). The splinters embedded themselves into the wall.
Marco jammed both stakes into her flesh, one in her thigh and one in her side. He had two impact-firecrackers tapped to the sides, and they went off when they pressed against her flesh. They ignited the stakes and set her aflame by the time Marco had already bounced away and ran toward Buffy, forgetting the vampire for dead, even as she rolled to put the fire out.
He dashed for Buffy and slid to his knees, stopping at her side. He grabbed her shoulders and shook her firmly. "Come on, tell me you've a pulse."
Her eyes snapped open, and she leapt, grabbed him, rolled over him and threw one of his stakes into the (not flaming) vampire's back. The redheaded vampire stopped moving and dropped to the staked knee. Both of her hands went for the stake protruding from her chest. She slowly drew it out of her heart and dropped to her hands and knees, as though gasping for air.
Marco and Buffy looked at each other.
"That doesn't happen, does it?"
"No," she answered.
"This is bad, then, right?"
"You betcha."
The vampire turned, ripping both stakes from her lower body. Marco dropped, dragging Buffy with him as the stakes flew overhead, shattering brick and mortar. He reached for the small of his back and drew out a water pistol. With Buffy wrapped in his left arm, he fired with his right hand, blasting the redhead's eyes. She hissed and continued coming for them through the continuous stream of water.
The Slayer ripped two more stakes from the inside of Marco's jacket and threw one straight for the assassin. The vampire knocked one aside, shattering it. The two women were only yards apart when Marco put himself between the two, rosary wrapped around one hand, and cross in the other.
The vampire smiled and stopped two feet away, leveling her glowing green eyes on Marco. "You think just holding those will hurt me?" she hissed in a brogue.
"No." Marco slammed the fist with the rosary wrapped around it into her nose, a hiss accompanying it, then slapping her with the flat side of the crucifix. "I expect that to hurt."
The vampire staggered a little, shaken. Holy relics hurt her more than anything else. "I'll be seeing you," she snapped before she ran so fast, she might as well have evaporated.
Marco ran back into the Bronze to Cassie and the others. "Everyone up! We're going!"
His sister looked at him strangely. "What's wrong?"
"We were just attacked outside by a vampire who doesn't want to die. Since this is a public place, she can walk in. I don't want to get eaten. Anyone who agrees with me will leave now."
"Let's go!" Xander said, grabbing his coat and his fiancée.
Cassie trailed behind the group, seeing Spike still sitting at the bar, staring at his drink. She tugged his sleeve until he looked at her. "There's some kind of trouble. I think we'll need help."
Spike looked blankly at her and nodded. "Yeah, but Marco—"
"—wants you to come and play," Marco interrupted, coming at them at a bisecting angle. He grabbed Spike by the shoulder and dragged him out of earshot. "I think you're a soulless monster who I wouldn't hesitate to put through unimaginable torment if you hurt anyone I loved. Aside from that, you're a good guy. So come along and play nice. Besides, I'd hate for you to miss a chance to kill something."
Marco whirled and marched away, keeping the parade in order.
Cassie caught up to him, and saw the look on his face. "You okay? What did he say?""Just basically reiterating that he doesn't like me and he'll do me some serious bodily harm if you get hurt while I'm around." He looked at her standing beside him, smiling slightly. "Not that you would."
She blushed slightly at the statement. Cool it, she thought. Remember, he's got it bad for Buffy. Don't act around him the way you acted around Doyle at first.
Marco stood next to Buffy in the cool night air. "They're coming."
Buffy showed no response as she stood with her eyes closed, as though listening for someone.
"Buffy?"
"Yeah?"
"We're ready to go."
"Yeah."
"Hello?"
She blinked and stared at him. "I heard you."
Voice flat, plus dead, plus distant, equals, not good."How about I walk you to your safe, vampire-proof private home, and then we can meet in the morning over at the Magic Box. Okay?"
"Sure, why not?"
The constant numbness finally started to worry him. He put an arm around her shoulders and walked next to her down the alley.
Spike came out just ahead of Cassie and glared at the two of them. He wanted to eat him…maybe just the simple thrill of tearing his throat out would be good enough. It wasn't like anyone would actually miss him. He had generally ignored Willow since she'd brought Buffy back, and, overall, no one liked him. Unfortunately, that almost exactly described Spike's own position within the "band of buggers." That was possibly why Spike hated Marco so much.
They were so damn alike.
"Jealous?" Cassie asked.
The vampire turned, suddenly aware of the time he'd spent thinking. "Of what, him? Please. What sort of a vampire do you think I am? He has as much chance as I do of making it with the Slayer."
"Sure you're not jealous of his slight advantage?"
Spike's brows elevated. "Like what?"
"A pulse. A soul, perhaps?" Body temp? Unfortunately, that thought provoked a mental image she really didn't want.
Spike cringed. "Let's get you outta here."
Marco walked his "living corpse" into her home and sat her on the couch. Willow and Tara soon followed with Dawn right behind. Tara looked in on them, and Marco nodded, a general signal telling her he'd handle it. He glanced at Willow's similar look, and gave her a heartbroken gaze. She could see he still blamed her for Buffy's state. But she'd show him. Soon enough, he'll believe. She knew he would.
Marco only looked at her with sadness in his eyes. He cared for Willow. Loved her, even. But she had played God, and no one should try to take that role. Historically, those who tried had all ended badly. The shame of it was he saw no way of pulling her out of it. Tara had even acknowledged that resurrection violated natural law. If the distinction between Wicca and Pythinessa, the "good" and "bad" witches, was based on the fact that Wicca "worshiped" nature, then even Tara saw Willow had crossed a line. But no one seemed to have cared.
So Marco turned away from Willow, sparing her the pain in his eyes. He crouched down in front of Buffy and took her hands between his, rubbing them together.
"I can't get warm," she whispered softly.
He nodded, then glanced toward the stairs, making sure everyone had gone up. "Psychological effects. Your body's registering the deficiency as a coldness."
"Huh?" she responded blankly.
"Your mind, or what I call a soul—the Greek nouns are interchangeable—feels the deficiency after being ripped out of Heaven. Your body is registering this lack as a cold sensation."
"So I can't make it stop?"
He shrugged. "I'm neither a theologian, nor a psychologist; I'm just a premed student with a minor in philosophy. I do know we should get some sleep for tomorrow."
Marco slid his hands up her arms, then fluidly slipped one under her legs and scooped her up in both arms, and slowly carried her up the stairs.
"Thanks again for walking me, Spike." Cassie unlocked the door to her motel room and went inside. She went to her case to withdraw her nightshirt and was about to change when she noticed that he'd followed her into the room. "Um, Spike? What are you still doing here?""Your brother's pretty much threatened to kill me if you get hurt. And since I like my skin, I'm playin' bodyguard tonight." He glanced around the room, under the bed, in the bathroom.
"Spike, this is a vampire we're dealing with," she reminded him. "She can't come in unless she's invited."
Coming from the bathroom, he shook his head. "The need for invitation only works on real residences, pet, people's homes." He gestured around the room. "You don't live here, this's rented space."
Cassie swallowed quietly, feeling panic beginning to creep into her, remembering that Spike himself had walked in with no invitation. "So, this vampire that attacked Marco and Buffy can just come in here and I wouldn't be able to do anything." She dropped to the bed and put her head in her hands. She wanted to cry, scream, break something, do anything to keep from feeling so helpless.
She felt his cool hand on her shoulder and looked up into his deep blue eyes. "Hey, like I said, nothing bad'll happen 's long as I'm around," he reassured her.
She felt a smile flicker inside her, on her face. "Thanks, Spike." Her smile turned into a grin. "I hope you can put up with a vampire attack and me talking in my sleep."
After taking directions from Buffy, Marco arrived at her room and gently deposited her in the bed. He slipped his jacket off of her, draped it over the nearest chair, and then slipped her shoes off. He swept her body with his eyes, checking for stakes, and once he was sure she wouldn't roll over onto one of them in the middle of the night, he pulled the covers over her, and tucked her in as though she were a child. He kissed her gently on the forehead, and started walking slowly out of the room.
"Where are you going?" she asked.
He turned to face her. "Back to my dorm."
Buffy rolled her eyes. "A vampire just tried to kill the both of us, if you haven't noticed. She could've followed us here, and I don't want anyone going anywhere alone."
He nodded. "Okay, I'll sleep on the couch."
"Giles is sleeping there, remember?"
Marco thought a moment. The Watcher did say he'd be in late that night. "Fine." He grabbed the chair and dragged it toward himself.
Buffy sighed, reached into her nightstand, and withdrew a nightshirt. She slid the covers to her neck and changed beneath the sheets, with Marco's head facing her, but his eyes on the other side of the room.
"Don't be ridiculous," she said as she changed. Once finished, she swept the corner of the covers over and said, "Get in."
Marco tweaked an eyebrow. "This is with the full understanding that if I touch any section of your person you'll break my hands, right?"
"I'll start there."
He smiled and nodded. "Good, glad to know where I stand." He slid his shoes off and slid into bed.
Spike sat in the only chair at the only table in the room, listening to his charge changing in the bathroom and performing her toilette. Cassie stepped out of the bathroom, her hot-pink nightshirt falling to her knees.
She blushed as a thought belatedly occurred to her. "Um, Spike, where are you going to sleep? There's only one bed, and I'm not sure about sharing."
He smiled at her. "Relax, luv. Bodyguard duty pretty much means I'm awake for the majority. I'll be in this chair here."
"Oh," she said, trying to keep the relief from her voice. "Okay." She slipped under the covers, stretching out before turning off the lamp. Spike attuned his senses to any threats from outside.
"Spike?"
He saw Cassie had turned her head toward him. "Yeah?"
"Look, no matter what you think of my brother, just know that he's one of the few real gentlemen to come out of NYU in a long time. There's no way he'd take advantage of her."
Spike felt himself smile at her confident reassurance. "Right, okay. It's not like he's sleepin' with her or anything."
Marco was flat on his back, arms crossed over his chest like a mummy, as he felt Buffy restlessly tossing next to him. After ten minutes, he rolled onto his side and put a hand on her shoulder, turning her to face him.
"Mind if I try something that might help you sleep better?" he asked.
"'Kay."
"All right, now this is going to seem awkward, but trust me, I really do respect those who can kill me."
Marco carefully slid his arms around Buffy, one hand to her neck and the other to the base of her spine. He moved his fingertips over her skin at those spots with a fine caress. She moaned a little as he felt the small spasms along her spine as she relaxed. He continued to stroke these nerve centers. She wrapped her arms around him out of habit, and fell asleep in his arms.
Once Buffy finally stopped moving, Marco smiled.
Then he tried to extricate himself from her grasp, only to find he'd been turned into a living teddy bear.
This is what I get for being nice. From now on, only annoying for me.
