Title: Spike on stage
Author: Joy
Email: HREF="mailto:SleepingBeauty2@ziplip.com"SleepingBeauty2@ziplip.com
As Wolf went in for a kiss, Lorn's voice came booming through the PA system, turning Dawn's attention to the stage. "Hello, Hello, Hello… I'm so glad to have ya'll with us to celebrate the return of this fine establishment… Our first performer tonight is an old friend of mine… You're, what, 130?"
"128, mate," Spike called back.
"To some of you that's ancient and other's he's a baby… It's been close onto three years since he last graced our stage… So without further ado, William the Bloody… Come on up Spike," Lorn yelled.
Spike took center stage with his guitar and a stool. All the Scoobies cheered including Dawn with a big smile. Wolf took the opportunity to scoot right next to Dawn and lean on bar counter, with the pretense that he could still talk or whisper to her while people were playing. "Kind of like a dad to ya, huh?" Wolf whispered.
Dawn became flushed at his nearness to her. "More big brother then father…" she whispered. "Highly protective… He might go all 'grrr' on you after the show for being this close… I mean, talking to me for this long."
"He can't… Not in here at least," he leaned close to her ear to whisper. He saw the shiver that ran down her back at his breath hit her face. "Plus vamps in here aren't as scary … they're normally more human then vamp… I think if you saw me in an alley at night or him, you might be more afraid of me."
"Why?" Dawn asked with wide eyes.
Wolf bit his lip thinking he shouldn't have said anything. A quick reality check, which was if she couldn't deal, the Powers wouldn't have brought them together. "My glowing violet eyes and I apparently move like an animal. That and the fact when I'm in danger, I naturally transform into a wolf," he said matter-of-factly.
"Are you part demon?" Dawn whispered back.
"I'm not sure what I am. My parents haven't been exactly forth coming with the whole issue. They don't like to discuss it. Has caused serious conflict in my family."
Dawn laughed a bit, "Tell me about it."
Giving him confidence, Wolf went on. "I assume my dad must be something weird because we have the same eyes… I met Lorn looking for some sort of direction on what I was and where to go with it," he said quietly. "The only thing Lorn really told me with absolute authority was my soul was incomplete."
Dawn smiled, "Me too."
Wolf smirked back at her. He bit his lip again, looking down before gazing back at her. "The only other direction Lorn gave me with complete confidence was to meet you."
Wolf was leaning heavily on his arm on the counter and Dawn was staring down at him. "Me too," she whispered before initiating a very gentle kiss.
The whole world was gone except for the voice of Spike in the background singing some song she didn't know. The whole thing was perfect. Dawn felt like she was drowning from the moment their lips met and continued to nibble at each other's lips. They were the only two people at the bar as far as she could tell, until that is, Willow nudged her back. "Sorry," Willow said quietly. Wolf looked confusedly at the redhead who saw the color of his eyes and freaked for a second. "Agh… I suggest you bring the nice boy with the violet eyes," Willow emphasized to Dawn, "over to meet your sister, the Slayer. She has a tendency toward violence when you aren't under her watchful eye." The last part was entirely for Wolf's benefit. Willow picked up her drink and went back to the table.
Wolf laughed at the situation and soon Dawn joined in. "Spike's not the only one very protective of you I see," he commented.
"Yeah well… Big hell god needed me to open some portal, which of course would destroy the world… Everyone who comes to Sunnydale for evil purposes wants to destroy the world by one manner or another… Anyway, everyone had a vested interest in me not getting cut up," Dawn said over her shoulder as they started toward the table.
"You'll have to tell me about that later," Wolf said quickly to her as they arrived in front of a large group of people that casually acknowledged his presence. A few could have shoot daggers at him with their eyes. Several of them he vaguely recognized from one of his dreams in particular, the awesome dream where he and Dawn were dancing in that Bronze place. "Might want to introduce me, before one of them tries to stake me," he whispered into Dawn's ear from behind.
Dawn turned into him and smiled, "Can't in here…remember?" Her smile made his knees knock and his mouth hang open slightly. All he could think was how much he wanted to wrap his arms around her and always keep her safe.
"Hey Dawnie, who's your friend?" Willow initiated, wanting to know whom this teenage hormone was.
Dawn decided to address Buffy. "Sis, this is Wolf. You remember him, right?"
Buffy looked at the kid more closely and laughed. "Man, I didn't think I would see you this soon… I guess hoping it would be a few years away was too much to ask, huh?" Buffy stood and actually hugged him. "Better introduce him to Angel later… I have a feeling you're going to be spending more time here then I'd like," she said with a sigh.
Spike finished his first song and looked over at the table. Lorn had warned him backstage that the boy Dawn was meant to be with was there. When he saw the teenage boy next to Dawn holding her hand loosely, he sighed as Buffy had. It was way sooner then he had hoped… Maybe when she was thirty… He bit the inside of his mouth to bring him back to reality.
"Uh, folks," Spike said from stage. "I'm going to sing something very sappy for my favorite teenager, so just bare with me… Dawn this is for you."
"I know you
I walked with you once
upon a dream.
I know you
The gleam in your eyes is
so familiar a gleam
Yes, I know it's true
that visions are seldom
all they seem
But if I know you, I know
what you'll do
You'll love me at once
the way you did once upon
a dream"
"I think he's giving his approval," Dawn whispered to Wolf.
"I can always hope," he whispered back.
"Hey," Buffy snipped. "Spike is singing to you." Dawn smiled and looked back at Spike on stage.
Tentatively Wolf's arms came around her waist. Dawn leaned back in Wolf's arms, while he propped his head on her shoulder. Wolf started to sing whisper soft in Dawn's ear along with Spike. Dawn began to get chills from his lips lightly brushing the back of her ear. Wolf got to the line 'you love me at once, the way you did once upon a dream' he tightened his grip around her waist and rubbed his face right against her neck.
Dawn sucked breath in quickly, getting both Wolf's and Buffy's attention. "Sorry," he whispered. "Part of the whole wolf thing is the desire to nuzzle," he said slightly ashamed.
"We're going to need to talk about several things before this night is over," Dawn informed him as he saw Buffy looking up at him nodding.
"No problem," he said as he closed his eyes, settling in to the comfortable feeling of Dawn in his arms.
"Alright, now that the sap is over, lets get down to business," Spike stated, standing away from the stool he had been sitting on. He decided looking into the audience was a bad idea at that point.
"Come as you are, as you were,
As I want you to be
As a friend, as a friend, as an old enemy
Take your time, hurry up
The choice is your, don't be late
Take a rest as a friend as an old memoria
Come dowsed in mud, soaked in bleach
As I want you to be
As a trend, as a friend, as an old memoria
And I swear that I don't have a gun
No I don't have a gun"
The crowd seemed to enjoy his rendition of the Nirvana song, so he went ahead and sang other loud songs from Pink Floyd and the Sex Pistols. Spike decided to change gears again and sing a song Dawn had played for him. There was something very vampiric about the song or maybe it was he just identified with it so much.
"And I'd give up forever to
touch you
Cause I know that you feel me somehow
You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be
And I don't want to go home right now
And all I can taste is this moment
And all I can breathe is your life
Cause sooner or later it's over
I just don't want to miss you tonight
And I don't want the world to see me
Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am
And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming
Or the moment of truth in your lies
When everything feels like the movies
Yeah you bleed just to know you're alive
And I don't want the world to see me
Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am
I don't want the world to see me
Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am
I just want you to know who I am
I just want you to know who I am
I just want you to know who I am
I just want you to know who I am"
Spike ventured a glance at his love beaming in her seat with pride for him. His usual smirk crept across his face. "These last two songs are for my lovely lady. I know she will understand the meaning of both, even if the rest of you don't," Spike said smoothly. He launched in to song knowingly the first would embarrass Buffy for their rather lust filled begins but the second would touch her.
"Take me now, baby, here as I am
Hold me close, try and understand
Desire is hunger is the fire I breathe
Love is a banquet on which we feed
Come on now, try and understand
The way I feel under your command
Take my hand, come under cover
They can't hurt you now
Because the night belongs to lovers
Because the night belongs to lust
Because the night belongs to lovers
Because the night belongs to us
Have I doubt, baby, when I'm
alone
Love is a ring on the telephone
Love is an angel, disguised as lust
Here in our bed 'til the morning comes
Come on now, try and understand
The way I feel under your
command
Take my hand, come under cover
They can't hurt you now
Because the night belongs to lovers
Because the night belongs to lust
Because the night belongs to lovers
Because the night belongs to us
With love we sleep, with
doubt the vicious circle turns, and burns
Without you, I cannot live, forgive the yearning burning
I believe in love too real to feel, take me now, take me now, take me now
Because the night belongs to lovers
Because the night belongs to lust
Because the night belongs to lovers
Because the night belongs to us"
Looking at Buffy as she laughed at the beginning 'Because the night' gave him the courage to continue. Spike was never one to back out of a debt but it helped that Buffy was enjoying his performance. Much better response then the last few times he had sung to her.
Spike took a deep breath that he didn't need at the beginning of his final song, because it looked weird if your singer doesn't breath if you're in the audience. He knew Buffy and he didn't really talk about what is was like for him while she was 'gone' over the summer, but he felt that this U2 song summed it up pretty well. Spike sat back down on the stool as he concentrated on singing full of love and meaning.
"All
my life, I worshiped her
Her golden voice, her beauty's beat
How she made us feel, how she made me real
And the ground beneath her feet
And the ground beneath her feet
And now I can't be sure of anything
Black is white, and cold is heat
For what I worshiped, stole my love away
It was the ground beneath her feet
It was the ground beneath her feet
Go lightly down your darkened way
Go lightly underground
I'll be down there in another day
I won't rest until you're found
Let me love you,
let me rescue you,
Let me bring you where two roads meet
Oh come back above, where there is only love
Only love
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
Let me love you true, let me rescue you,
Let me bring you to where two roads meet
Let me love you true, let me rescue you,
Let me bring you to where two roads meet
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my
My oh my, my oh my"
Buffy was crying and clapping at the same time as Spike took a short bow and nod. Lorn arrived on stage to give him a grateful escape while introducing the next singer. "Thank you, William… I hope you'll be back more often."
Spike growled, "Unlikely," softly.
"Our next performer…" Lorn continued as Spike departed from the stage and grabbed himself a drink before returning to the White Hat table. He decided to drink all of one Jack Daniels before he grabbed another to help with the impending reality of…the boy.
TBC…