AUTHOR: Supergirl, with help from DearOne
TITLE: Dance With the Devil, Chaper IV: The Familiar Stranger
RATING: R, for sexual situations
DISCLAIMER: What?! No, I'm not Joss Whedon. Seriously, I'm not! No, I will NOT sign an autograph, I'm not him! Get away from me, you insane psycho!!
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Once againg, this is written by me, but entierly based on a roleplay with DearOne. She gets credit for half the plot and most of Willow's dialogue.
SPECIAL THANKS: To my betas. You guys are the best for all your help. And of course to everyone who reviewed.
FEEDBACK: Do I want feedback? Is Spike the hottest man (not)alive? Duh.
APOLOGIES: I made you guys wait a really long time for this, and I'm sorry. It's because my computer was broken for a while. Hopefully it won't happen again.
RECAP: Buffy confessed. Willow freaked. She thought Buffy had slept with Xander. When she found out it was really Spike she freaked more. Spike, still at the frat house, pocketed Buffy's underwear. Now Spike has a plan. What is it? Read and see...
Spike stood in an alleyway near the front entrance of the Bronze, smoking, watching people going in and out. The smirk around his cigarette was a little more smug than usual. He'd been in a particularly good mood all day.
Shagging the Slayer. Buffy Summers, the sodden Vampire Slayer herself. He still couldn't quite believe it. Of course later she'd left without saying goodbye, not to mention the part of him that wondered why she hadn't just staked him in his sleep... but none of that really mattered. He chose not to question his luck.
And he was lucky alright, to get a taste of a thing like her. Bloody amazing, she'd been. To his surprise, he found making the chit scream in pleasure gave him even more satisfaction than he might have gotten from making her scream in pain.
And bedding her was almost as much a triumph for the vampire as killing her would be. In ways more so, even. All because she had surrendered to him willingly (or almost willingly – with a little persuasion), because she had given him control over her... Well, alright, that wasn't entirely true. The truth was, in bed she'd been the same as in battle – their never-ending struggle for dominance had continued throughout, with teeth and nails and savage kisses, threatening to tear the other apart. But just the fact that she had done it all willingly, let him have her with barely any protest...
Of course in the morning, he was sure, she'd felt nothing but ashamed and sickened with herself... but her shame was the best part. He had something on her now. The Slayer could no longer act as high and mighty as before, now that she'd lowered herself to his level. She who had once looked down on him, fancied herself above the likes of him and his demon kind, a bloody saint. Oh yeah, he really had something on her now. One smirk, one suggestive quirk of the brow, one word to remind her of what had happened between them, and he could knock that bitch off her pedestal and bring her to her knees.
A nasty grin spread on the vampire's lips. Just the thought of the Slayer's humiliation was enough to make him giddy. That was precisely why he was here tonight, at her club, waiting for her. He knew she would still be vulnerable after less than twenty-four hours had passed, so this was the opportune time to try out his little theory.
She'd show up here sooner or later, either alone or with one of her little Scooby friends. Either way could be fun.
****
Spike wasn't wrong. At that very moment, in fact, Buffy was getting ready for the Bronze, trying to talk Willow into coming with her.
"Come on, Wills, it'll be fun. Just come with me. We both need this."
"You're right about that," the other girl finally agreed, setting down her thick calculus book. "I don't think I could handle sitting here pretending to study, but really trying not to think about... well, you know."
Yeah, Buffy knew, alright. It was the one thing that had been on both girls' minds all day, but neither dared to mention. The name that must not be spoken. The dreaded S-word – Spike. This morning's conversation and Buffy's terrible confession hung over both their heads, and as much as the witch tried to hide it, Buffy could tell she was disgusted and horrified with her. If she thought sleeping with Parker had been humiliating...
"Tell me about it," the Slayer sighed, then quickly attempted to change the subject: "Hey, maybe Riley will be there. Just the distraction I need."
"Yes, Riley!" Willow was beyond happy to get off the Spike topic herself. "See, now there's the guy for you. Clean-cut, honest, down-to-earth – all good qualities."
"Yes, perfect," Buffy agreed with a grin.
Done dressing, she walked over to the mirror to fix her hair. Bet Riley wouldn't be able to make her scream like Spike could... 'No, bad thoughts! Stop it!' But she couldn't help herself, couldn't help replaying what had happened every time she closed her eyes, every time she took a moment to breathe. Her skin was still tingling from the night before, all the places he'd touched, all the places he'd kissed, licked, nipped, sucked on, bit... It felt like every inch of her body was covered in him. Worst of all, the lingering sensations seemed to have set up camp in her system and weren't going anywhere for quite a while. Dimly, she recalled something Giles had said to her once during their training: 'You have to be careful to always maintain a safe distance, Buffy. Remember, a close physical encounter with a demon may leave harmful effects that last for days.' That phrase took on a whole new meaning now.
Buffy looked up from her thoughts to find her best friend staring at her, her face arranged in a slight frown.
"I completely forgot," Willow began, "with all the Sp– ...with... uh... did you see Riley at the party?"
"Huh, what? Oh, right. Riley." Buffy made a face as she recalled. "I saw him. For like a minute. Then I had to run after…" no, not that awful S-word again, "um... Maybe we shouldn't talk about this."
Willow gave Buffy a sympathetic look as she went to change her shirt to something more party appropriate.
"So, you coming?" the blonde asked once done with her hair.
"Yeah, I'm ready. Let's go."
****
"Too bad Xander couldn't come, huh?" Buffy mused on the way to the Bronze, "We could've made it a night." She tried to force a smile, but failed miserably. "I just need to be around as many people as possible to help me forget about..." she cringed, still not wanting to actually say it.
"Um... yeah, forgetting is good," Willow agreed. "Hey, maybe I could find a forgetting spell for you!"
"Really?" Buffy's eyes lit up.
"Oh, sure! But wait... then I'd have to do it on him too, otherwise he would know what happened and you wouldn't, and he could use that to take advantage of you."
"Crap," Buffy muttered, making a face. "Guess that won't work then. But what am I supposed to do? I can't live with the memory of... of... that! Uhg!! I can't believe I... how could I even...? I mean, it's so disgusting. It's Spike! What was wrong with me?!"
"I don't know what to tell you, Buffy. Maybe... did he do something to you, like spell? Or slip something in your drink?"
"I didn't have a drink. But maybe... a spell?" Her expression lightened, relieved at that thought of an excuse. "Yeah, it could be a spell. Yes, that was probably it!" She desperately needed any reason not have to admit that she gave herself over to Spike willingly.
"I wonder why he did it, though? Why didn't he kill you? Just to humiliate you?"
"Well, if that's what he was trying to do, he certainly did a great job! To say that I'm humiliated would be an understatement. It's more like mortified beyond belief... and then some."
The doors of the club came into view as she continued. "And what if he tells someone?" she asked, suddenly looking panicked, "Oh no, Willow, he wouldn't, would he?"
Willow frowned as she watched her friend fidget uncomfortably and try to fix her skirt, pulling it down, as if she thought Spike was out there watching her.
Little did she know just how right she was, that in fact the very same bleach-blond vampire they were discussing was lurking in the shadows right near the entrance of the club, waiting for her.
On his third cigarette, Spike glanced over and noticed some nice legs coming his way. He leered appreciatively at the sight, before following them up... to see they belonged to the Slayer. His leer turned into a delighted evil grin. 'And she's brought the witch, too. How bloody lovely.' He waited until they went in, then headed for the entrance himself.
"I'm sure he wouldn't tell anyone, Buffy, he's not stupid," Willow continued as the girls walked into the club. She was trying to be reassuring, but it kind of showed that she didn't really believe her own words. "I mean, it's not like he enjoys bragging to his demon buddies..." she went on, "or, oh, what if he tells Angel? Or Giles? That could be bad. And this really isn't helping, is it?"
She was right about that. Buffy's eyes were wide and she was almost trembling. "Oh God... He's going to blackmail me! That's his plan, I just know it! To, to blackmail me, and force me to... uh... I don't know, do something evil. And there's nothing I can do about it!"
Willow frowned further, concerned. "Buffy, I know you're upset about what he did to you, but you always manage to beat Spike in the end. It's a little more personal this time, sure, but we'll come up with some way out of it. You can do this."
"You're right, Will, you're right." She tried to steady her breathing and calm herself. "We'll figure this out. I'll beat him. I just need to not think about this right now. And maybe take a couple dozen more showers, as soon as we get home." She turned and headed for the bar. "Drinking will help, right?"
"It's less painful than a lobotomy. So what are we drinking? I'm thinking something stronger than usual is called for."
Buffy nodded in extreme agreement. "Hear, hear." She ordered a beer... but on second thought changed that to a Sea Breeze. After the cave-Slayer incident, maybe beer wasn't the best idea.
Spike stood across the room and watched the Slayer and her friend as they ordered their drinks. Noticing the look of distress on Buffy's face, he chuckled silently. This was only too sweet.
Willow ordered the same as Buffy, then turned to scan the crowd. "Do you see Riley anywhere?"
"Not really..."
As the Slayer looked around, her eyes ran past a figure in the corner, all in black with contrastingly bright bleached hair. No, it couldn't be. 'Please tell me it isn't...' She shook the feeling off as she turned back to Willow, muttering under her breath, "Probably just imagining things."
Spike smirked as he watched Buffy ignore him. Fine, he could play that game. He walked over and sat down at a nearby table with two girls at it, smiling charmingly at them, and began to make idle chatter. Meanwhile he continued to watch the Slayer out of the corner of his eye.
"What was that Buffy?" Willow asked, not quite catching what her friend had said, "Oh, I'm sure he'll show. I just wish Oz wasn't out of town..."
"You, you think he'll be here? Tonight?" Buffy asked, getting panicky again, thinking she meant Spike, "But... he can't. I'm not ready to face him this soon, right after we just..."
"Huh?" the redhead looked confused, "Buffy, I thought you were hoping to see him here."
"Are you insane? If I never see him again, it'll be too soon!"
"But... we agreed he was the perfect guy for you..." Willow frowned. "Did something else happen with Riley that you forgot to mention?"
"Oh... Oh, Riley." Buffy sighed in relief. "Yup, good old Riley. Perfect for me? Sure is! I just thought you meant... you know..." Not wanting to return to that topic she quickly changed the subject, "So, Oz is out of town, huh? No wonder he had to leave in such a hurry yesterday. Probably packing, right?"
Meanwhile Spike had asked one of the girls to dance, and was leading her out to the floor. He picked a spot in plain view of the bar and began to sway with the music as he wrapped his arms around his partner, mostly keeping his back to the slayer and the witch.
Buffy still choose to ignore the all too familiar black leather duster she saw amidst the crowd, not too far away, dancing with some girl. It probably wasn't Spike anyway, she continued to tell herself. Just her mind playing tricks.
"Yeah, the Dingoes had a gig in LA," Willow was saying, in reply to her question, "Devon wanted to go a night early and get in some beach time. It's really good for the band, but I miss Oz."
"Aww, poor Wills. I say this calls for Haagen Daz as soon as we get home."
By now Spike was getting bored with his dance partner. He turned to face Buffy as he continued to dance, and began studying her features: the curve of her cheeks, her sweet lips, her amazing eyes... Getting completely caught up, he soon forgot all about the girl in his arms. She was nothing but a distraction, while the Slayer, now there was a creature of true beauty that deserved his attention. He continued to study her, mesmerized by the way her golden hair fell softly onto her bare shoulders, and the way her long, dark lashes swept over her cheeks, so perfect...
Buffy looked up to see the guy in the leather duster had turned around, and as his face came into view her heart nearly stopped. Ok, that definitely was Spike. Complete with sharp cut cheekbones, devious looking smirk, and penetrating blue eyes which weren't looking at the girl he was dancing with, but instead were fixed directly on... 'Oh, crap, he sees me.'
Willow was in the middle of saying "I won't argue with Haagen Daz, bu--" but she cut off when she was interrupted by Buffy standing up from her seat.
"Bathroom. I need. To, um, go to it." She pulled her skirt down again reflexively, then rushed off towards the restrooms.
"Ok, that was strange," thought the redhead aloud, staring after her best friend while she sipped her drink.
TBC.........................................................................................
I know, I know, it's really evil of me to leave off like this. But not to worry – I promise chapter 5 will be up in 2 weeks or less.
Meanwhile, please check out and review my other fics. It would be greatly appreciated!
TITLE: Dance With the Devil, Chaper IV: The Familiar Stranger
RATING: R, for sexual situations
DISCLAIMER: What?! No, I'm not Joss Whedon. Seriously, I'm not! No, I will NOT sign an autograph, I'm not him! Get away from me, you insane psycho!!
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Once againg, this is written by me, but entierly based on a roleplay with DearOne. She gets credit for half the plot and most of Willow's dialogue.
SPECIAL THANKS: To my betas. You guys are the best for all your help. And of course to everyone who reviewed.
FEEDBACK: Do I want feedback? Is Spike the hottest man (not)alive? Duh.
APOLOGIES: I made you guys wait a really long time for this, and I'm sorry. It's because my computer was broken for a while. Hopefully it won't happen again.
RECAP: Buffy confessed. Willow freaked. She thought Buffy had slept with Xander. When she found out it was really Spike she freaked more. Spike, still at the frat house, pocketed Buffy's underwear. Now Spike has a plan. What is it? Read and see...
Spike stood in an alleyway near the front entrance of the Bronze, smoking, watching people going in and out. The smirk around his cigarette was a little more smug than usual. He'd been in a particularly good mood all day.
Shagging the Slayer. Buffy Summers, the sodden Vampire Slayer herself. He still couldn't quite believe it. Of course later she'd left without saying goodbye, not to mention the part of him that wondered why she hadn't just staked him in his sleep... but none of that really mattered. He chose not to question his luck.
And he was lucky alright, to get a taste of a thing like her. Bloody amazing, she'd been. To his surprise, he found making the chit scream in pleasure gave him even more satisfaction than he might have gotten from making her scream in pain.
And bedding her was almost as much a triumph for the vampire as killing her would be. In ways more so, even. All because she had surrendered to him willingly (or almost willingly – with a little persuasion), because she had given him control over her... Well, alright, that wasn't entirely true. The truth was, in bed she'd been the same as in battle – their never-ending struggle for dominance had continued throughout, with teeth and nails and savage kisses, threatening to tear the other apart. But just the fact that she had done it all willingly, let him have her with barely any protest...
Of course in the morning, he was sure, she'd felt nothing but ashamed and sickened with herself... but her shame was the best part. He had something on her now. The Slayer could no longer act as high and mighty as before, now that she'd lowered herself to his level. She who had once looked down on him, fancied herself above the likes of him and his demon kind, a bloody saint. Oh yeah, he really had something on her now. One smirk, one suggestive quirk of the brow, one word to remind her of what had happened between them, and he could knock that bitch off her pedestal and bring her to her knees.
A nasty grin spread on the vampire's lips. Just the thought of the Slayer's humiliation was enough to make him giddy. That was precisely why he was here tonight, at her club, waiting for her. He knew she would still be vulnerable after less than twenty-four hours had passed, so this was the opportune time to try out his little theory.
She'd show up here sooner or later, either alone or with one of her little Scooby friends. Either way could be fun.
Spike wasn't wrong. At that very moment, in fact, Buffy was getting ready for the Bronze, trying to talk Willow into coming with her.
"Come on, Wills, it'll be fun. Just come with me. We both need this."
"You're right about that," the other girl finally agreed, setting down her thick calculus book. "I don't think I could handle sitting here pretending to study, but really trying not to think about... well, you know."
Yeah, Buffy knew, alright. It was the one thing that had been on both girls' minds all day, but neither dared to mention. The name that must not be spoken. The dreaded S-word – Spike. This morning's conversation and Buffy's terrible confession hung over both their heads, and as much as the witch tried to hide it, Buffy could tell she was disgusted and horrified with her. If she thought sleeping with Parker had been humiliating...
"Tell me about it," the Slayer sighed, then quickly attempted to change the subject: "Hey, maybe Riley will be there. Just the distraction I need."
"Yes, Riley!" Willow was beyond happy to get off the Spike topic herself. "See, now there's the guy for you. Clean-cut, honest, down-to-earth – all good qualities."
"Yes, perfect," Buffy agreed with a grin.
Done dressing, she walked over to the mirror to fix her hair. Bet Riley wouldn't be able to make her scream like Spike could... 'No, bad thoughts! Stop it!' But she couldn't help herself, couldn't help replaying what had happened every time she closed her eyes, every time she took a moment to breathe. Her skin was still tingling from the night before, all the places he'd touched, all the places he'd kissed, licked, nipped, sucked on, bit... It felt like every inch of her body was covered in him. Worst of all, the lingering sensations seemed to have set up camp in her system and weren't going anywhere for quite a while. Dimly, she recalled something Giles had said to her once during their training: 'You have to be careful to always maintain a safe distance, Buffy. Remember, a close physical encounter with a demon may leave harmful effects that last for days.' That phrase took on a whole new meaning now.
Buffy looked up from her thoughts to find her best friend staring at her, her face arranged in a slight frown.
"I completely forgot," Willow began, "with all the Sp– ...with... uh... did you see Riley at the party?"
"Huh, what? Oh, right. Riley." Buffy made a face as she recalled. "I saw him. For like a minute. Then I had to run after…" no, not that awful S-word again, "um... Maybe we shouldn't talk about this."
Willow gave Buffy a sympathetic look as she went to change her shirt to something more party appropriate.
"So, you coming?" the blonde asked once done with her hair.
"Yeah, I'm ready. Let's go."
"Too bad Xander couldn't come, huh?" Buffy mused on the way to the Bronze, "We could've made it a night." She tried to force a smile, but failed miserably. "I just need to be around as many people as possible to help me forget about..." she cringed, still not wanting to actually say it.
"Um... yeah, forgetting is good," Willow agreed. "Hey, maybe I could find a forgetting spell for you!"
"Really?" Buffy's eyes lit up.
"Oh, sure! But wait... then I'd have to do it on him too, otherwise he would know what happened and you wouldn't, and he could use that to take advantage of you."
"Crap," Buffy muttered, making a face. "Guess that won't work then. But what am I supposed to do? I can't live with the memory of... of... that! Uhg!! I can't believe I... how could I even...? I mean, it's so disgusting. It's Spike! What was wrong with me?!"
"I don't know what to tell you, Buffy. Maybe... did he do something to you, like spell? Or slip something in your drink?"
"I didn't have a drink. But maybe... a spell?" Her expression lightened, relieved at that thought of an excuse. "Yeah, it could be a spell. Yes, that was probably it!" She desperately needed any reason not have to admit that she gave herself over to Spike willingly.
"I wonder why he did it, though? Why didn't he kill you? Just to humiliate you?"
"Well, if that's what he was trying to do, he certainly did a great job! To say that I'm humiliated would be an understatement. It's more like mortified beyond belief... and then some."
The doors of the club came into view as she continued. "And what if he tells someone?" she asked, suddenly looking panicked, "Oh no, Willow, he wouldn't, would he?"
Willow frowned as she watched her friend fidget uncomfortably and try to fix her skirt, pulling it down, as if she thought Spike was out there watching her.
Little did she know just how right she was, that in fact the very same bleach-blond vampire they were discussing was lurking in the shadows right near the entrance of the club, waiting for her.
On his third cigarette, Spike glanced over and noticed some nice legs coming his way. He leered appreciatively at the sight, before following them up... to see they belonged to the Slayer. His leer turned into a delighted evil grin. 'And she's brought the witch, too. How bloody lovely.' He waited until they went in, then headed for the entrance himself.
"I'm sure he wouldn't tell anyone, Buffy, he's not stupid," Willow continued as the girls walked into the club. She was trying to be reassuring, but it kind of showed that she didn't really believe her own words. "I mean, it's not like he enjoys bragging to his demon buddies..." she went on, "or, oh, what if he tells Angel? Or Giles? That could be bad. And this really isn't helping, is it?"
She was right about that. Buffy's eyes were wide and she was almost trembling. "Oh God... He's going to blackmail me! That's his plan, I just know it! To, to blackmail me, and force me to... uh... I don't know, do something evil. And there's nothing I can do about it!"
Willow frowned further, concerned. "Buffy, I know you're upset about what he did to you, but you always manage to beat Spike in the end. It's a little more personal this time, sure, but we'll come up with some way out of it. You can do this."
"You're right, Will, you're right." She tried to steady her breathing and calm herself. "We'll figure this out. I'll beat him. I just need to not think about this right now. And maybe take a couple dozen more showers, as soon as we get home." She turned and headed for the bar. "Drinking will help, right?"
"It's less painful than a lobotomy. So what are we drinking? I'm thinking something stronger than usual is called for."
Buffy nodded in extreme agreement. "Hear, hear." She ordered a beer... but on second thought changed that to a Sea Breeze. After the cave-Slayer incident, maybe beer wasn't the best idea.
Spike stood across the room and watched the Slayer and her friend as they ordered their drinks. Noticing the look of distress on Buffy's face, he chuckled silently. This was only too sweet.
Willow ordered the same as Buffy, then turned to scan the crowd. "Do you see Riley anywhere?"
"Not really..."
As the Slayer looked around, her eyes ran past a figure in the corner, all in black with contrastingly bright bleached hair. No, it couldn't be. 'Please tell me it isn't...' She shook the feeling off as she turned back to Willow, muttering under her breath, "Probably just imagining things."
Spike smirked as he watched Buffy ignore him. Fine, he could play that game. He walked over and sat down at a nearby table with two girls at it, smiling charmingly at them, and began to make idle chatter. Meanwhile he continued to watch the Slayer out of the corner of his eye.
"What was that Buffy?" Willow asked, not quite catching what her friend had said, "Oh, I'm sure he'll show. I just wish Oz wasn't out of town..."
"You, you think he'll be here? Tonight?" Buffy asked, getting panicky again, thinking she meant Spike, "But... he can't. I'm not ready to face him this soon, right after we just..."
"Huh?" the redhead looked confused, "Buffy, I thought you were hoping to see him here."
"Are you insane? If I never see him again, it'll be too soon!"
"But... we agreed he was the perfect guy for you..." Willow frowned. "Did something else happen with Riley that you forgot to mention?"
"Oh... Oh, Riley." Buffy sighed in relief. "Yup, good old Riley. Perfect for me? Sure is! I just thought you meant... you know..." Not wanting to return to that topic she quickly changed the subject, "So, Oz is out of town, huh? No wonder he had to leave in such a hurry yesterday. Probably packing, right?"
Meanwhile Spike had asked one of the girls to dance, and was leading her out to the floor. He picked a spot in plain view of the bar and began to sway with the music as he wrapped his arms around his partner, mostly keeping his back to the slayer and the witch.
Buffy still choose to ignore the all too familiar black leather duster she saw amidst the crowd, not too far away, dancing with some girl. It probably wasn't Spike anyway, she continued to tell herself. Just her mind playing tricks.
"Yeah, the Dingoes had a gig in LA," Willow was saying, in reply to her question, "Devon wanted to go a night early and get in some beach time. It's really good for the band, but I miss Oz."
"Aww, poor Wills. I say this calls for Haagen Daz as soon as we get home."
By now Spike was getting bored with his dance partner. He turned to face Buffy as he continued to dance, and began studying her features: the curve of her cheeks, her sweet lips, her amazing eyes... Getting completely caught up, he soon forgot all about the girl in his arms. She was nothing but a distraction, while the Slayer, now there was a creature of true beauty that deserved his attention. He continued to study her, mesmerized by the way her golden hair fell softly onto her bare shoulders, and the way her long, dark lashes swept over her cheeks, so perfect...
Buffy looked up to see the guy in the leather duster had turned around, and as his face came into view her heart nearly stopped. Ok, that definitely was Spike. Complete with sharp cut cheekbones, devious looking smirk, and penetrating blue eyes which weren't looking at the girl he was dancing with, but instead were fixed directly on... 'Oh, crap, he sees me.'
Willow was in the middle of saying "I won't argue with Haagen Daz, bu--" but she cut off when she was interrupted by Buffy standing up from her seat.
"Bathroom. I need. To, um, go to it." She pulled her skirt down again reflexively, then rushed off towards the restrooms.
"Ok, that was strange," thought the redhead aloud, staring after her best friend while she sipped her drink.
TBC.........................................................................................
I know, I know, it's really evil of me to leave off like this. But not to worry – I promise chapter 5 will be up in 2 weeks or less.
Meanwhile, please check out and review my other fics. It would be greatly appreciated!