Title: That's What Friends Are For
By: Chen
Rating: G
Disclaimer: All things Buffy belong to Joss Whedon and ME (Grr! Argh!) and, alas, not to me.
Spoilers: All the way to GONE.
Author's note: I fell in love with Charlie. So bear with me.
*
"Charlie? It's me, Spike."
"Hello there hon, how are you?"
"I couldn't be better Charlie – she said she wants to try and have a honest relationship. An honest shot. Of course, she also said no more shagging – I have to date. Can you believe this?" He tried to sound annoyed, but his voice betrayed his happiness
"I am so happy for you baby! If that girl doesn't treat you right you just tell me, I can always write the Slayer a threatening letter. Anonymously of course."
Spike couldn't help but chuckle. "I hope it's okay with you – I know I said I would come by tonight, but .."
"Say no more. And don't worry about ditching me at the last minute." Charlie gave him one of her best dramatic sighs. "Just joking! Frances called and she is coming home tonight from LA, so I guess this works out nicely for all of us. We both get to see our girls tonight."
"You are the best Charlie! One more thing luv, make sure to be careful. I heard there is a new baddie in town and I don't want anything to happen to you. That's our first real date by the way: dinner followed by patrolling." He made it sound like nothing in the world could be more proper for a first date.
"You kids are so romantic. Nothing like a little vamp dust after a candlelit dinner." Charlie loved to tease Spike and she wasn't going to stop now. "Don't worry hon, I remember the lesson: a vampire can't come in…"
"Unless you invite him first. That's my girl. I will come by tomorrow night and I will tell you all the details. Bye now."
"Bye hon."
Charlie hung up the phone, shaking her head. That boy was something else… he sounded like a little boy who had gotten both the pony and the bicycle for Christmas. She went back to the kitchen to check on the pasta. Everything seemed fine there and she placed the pasta in the oven to keep it warm. Frances should be home soon and that gave her enough time to take a quick shower.
Hours latter Charlie woke up on the couch with a major feeling that something was not right. She glanced at the VCR clock and it informed her it was past 2 am. Frances hadn't come home yet. Charlie tried the journalist's cell phone only to be greeted by an impersonal message.
"It's me, please call me to let me know how you are. I am a little worried."
Truth was she was more than a little worried. The drive from LA wasn't a specially long one, but still… roads were never safe and Frances had a bad track record when it came to letting her know she was going to be running late. Charlie decided to go to bed and remembering Spike's warning made sure all doors were locked. Better not tempt fate.
*
Charlie sat at her computer trying to come up with something. It was difficult for every time a car passed by she glanced into the night expecting it to be Frances. She had called the magazine only to be told they had no idea where she was – but that perhaps she had decided to get some background for her next assignment. Charlie decided she needed to have a serious talk with her girl. It was really not cool of her not to call to let her now she was going to be delayed. Mercifully Spike was due any minute and the promise of all the juicy details of her friend's new found bliss shooed away some of her fears.
The doorbell rang and Charlie got up.
"Coming Spike."
Charlie opened the door and there on the doorsill stood Frances.
"Baby, I was so worried. Why didn't you call?"
"Sorry Charlie, somebody stole the damn cell phone. I got held up at a meeting and then everything got crazy. But I am here now." She still didn't came in.
Charlie motioned to the girl to come in. "What? Are you going to stand there all night? Come in. But make no mistake, I *will* get furious with you latter." Taking in France's pale face, she softned. "Are you hungry?"
Frances came in with a smile playing on her lips. "I was waiting to get home to eat, baby."
*
Spike walked down the street with a new lightness in his step. He had to admit he was happy. So tonight wasn't the romantic night he had expected. Plus there definitely had been no shagging. But… they had held hands for a while during patrol and dinner had been an interesting affair. Buffy had dressed up for the occasion and it made him feel good to know she had gotten all spruced up for him. She had looked so lovely… absolutely gorgeous. He couldn't wait to tell Charlie… He made his way up to the door and rang the doorbell… just to see that the door was not closed completely. He cursed Charlie in his head. He had warned her – she should be more careful!
"Charlie, I told you to lock all doors, pet! We still haven't found the…"
"Hello there, Spike."
It was Frances. Holding in her arms Charlie. A very scared, but mercifully alive Charlie.
"So Frances… What happened?"
"I came back home. Thought I would grab a bite you know?" Her smile was Frances's smile, but she had a new unpleasant glint in her eyes.
Spike heard Charlie cry. It must be hell for her seeing the one she loved like this. He only hoped she understood that the vampire was no longer Frances, but a demon. An evil thing. Spike concentrated on the newcomer to his race.
"C'mon ducks, you don't want to eat Charlie here. She lives on frozen pizza and coffee. The blood is hardly worth it." His tone went from cajoling to steel. "Besides, you would have to dust me first. Trust me, you wouldn't want to do that."
The new vampire went into game face and exposed its fangs with a primitive threatening growl. Charlie winced as she felt the iron grip tighten even more. With one hand Frances swept Charlie's long, black hair away from her lover's neck and started lowering her fangs to the exposed vein.
G'd , Charlie thought, not like this.
Spike was waiting for an opening and the overly cocky new vamp was too lost in the bloodlust to notice the more experienced vampire moving. Spike quickly crossed the space separating them and with one hard blow he separated the girls.
"Get out! Run Charlie!"
The girl may have been newly made, but her blows were swift and fighting for her unlife seemed to add strength to the punches and kicks. Spike focused on getting the girl out of the house – he would do his best to avoid dusting Frances in front of Charlie. Unfortunately Frances was not willing to comply and quickly the small living room was trashed. Trying to keep an eye on the vampire and making sure that Charlie was okay was becoming increasingly difficult. He reached out for the stake he had tucked in his duster's inside pocket and tried to plunge it, only to loose it when Frances managed to land a kick on his chest.
When Charlie saw Spike being thrown across the room she picked a lamp and tried to crash it on France's head. For her efforts she received a hard punch in the gut that landed her against the wall. With her mind still whirling with pain and confusion Charlie felt the shards of glass of the mirror she had landed on, digging into her back. She removed the largest piece out of her shoulder with a loud cry and the smell of blood filled the air. Hearing Charlie's cry, Spike instinctively turned towards it and that was all the advantage Frances needed. With a well placed punch she had him down on the floor and straddled. She looked down at Spike with her fangs barred in an ugly smile and held the his own stake to his heart.
"So, it seems bleach boy is going bye bye now. Nice knowing y…"
Spike saw the vampire explode into a million dust particles and standing over him was a disheveled Charlie.
"I killed Frances."
"No, pet. You killed a demon." Spike got up and tried to check Charlie for wounds.
"I killed Frances", Charlie repeated in that empty voice that was unrecognizable to Spike. He saw the girl crumble to the floor and reached out to hug her. It registered in his mind that it had been Charlie who had taught him how to give a proper hug. He just never thought that he would be hugging Charlie to comfort her for something like this.
Charlie rocked back and forth whispering to herself over and over… "I killed Frances. I killed Frances…"
Spike was getting scared now. How could he make her understand? How?
"Listen to me Charlie. You didn't kill a human. The demon killed her. You killed a thing. An evil thing. A vampire. Like me. Frances is dead, but her death didn't take place here tonight. Get it? She was dead already! That thing was NOT FRANCES." He was yelling and shaking his friend now. The frustration, the fear and the shame consuming him. He was a vampire. Just an evil thing that because of some government wankers, was prevented from hunting. It was something like him that had caused this much pain to one of the few people he loved in this world. He never had been so grateful for that bloody chip in his head as now.
"Charlie, please forgive me. Please, stay with me. Don't loose it, please. It wasn't your fault, luv. It wasn't your fault."
Charlie finally looked at him, understanding slowly dawning in her eyes. "A thing. I killed a thing. Frances is… dead. The demon killed her." She repeated the words as a child would repeat a specially difficult lesson. Then the tears came and they wouldn't stop. Spike held her close to his body as if by doing that he could shield her from the pain that was ripping her apart. He remembered how it had been when he had lost Buffy not so long ago. He knew the searing pain that came with such loss. It wasn't much different for Charlie. Her lover was dead. Her love was dead and nothing would be quite the same. She had dusted the vampire, but that vampire had Frances's face, had her voice…
"Oh, Charlie, I wish I could take the pain away."
He carried the girl into the bedroom and laid her down on the bed very carefully. All the while a crying Charlie held on to the lapels of his duster as if it was the only thing preventing her from drowning. Spike let her hide her face in his chest and made comforting sounds. He knew from experience it would be better to let her cry it out.
A couple of hours latter an exhausted Charlie's breathing became regular. Spike took the strands of hair from her face and looked at his friend. Even in her sleep she couldn't really rest… Spike tenderly smoothed the lines on her troubled face.
He closed his eyes and in his mind heard her absurdly scandalous laughter. Heads always turned when she laughed and she just didn't care. His Charlie was an original. Spike hoped that she had the strength inside her to make it through the pain.
"If you don't, it doesn't matter, pet. I do and what I have I will give to you."
When Spike was sure Charlie was in deep sleep, he got up and went to the living room to take inventory of the mess there. Better try to clean up some. He straightened the couch and tried to give the room some semblance of order. Who was he kidding? He sat down heavily and looked around. No matter how clean the room seemed when Charlie woke up… Things that really were important, wouldn't be the same. His friend was on that bed and would be awake soon with some serious things to deal with.
This was so complicated and the truth was he also wondered about what was the best procedure to deal with the fact that there was no more Frances. Not when it came to Charlie – he would do everything in his power to see her through this. But he had a nagging feeling there was also the legal side to deal with here. Someone didn't just disappear. Well, maybe in Sunnydale they did.
"Bugger! What am I going to do?" Spike asked the wall. Digging through the mess he found the telephone.
"Buffy?"
"Spike what in the hell are you doing calling me in the middle of the night?!" She was one really sleepy and cranky slayer.
"Buffy, please listen, luv. I came over to Charlie's and… Buffy there was a vampire in the house."
"Is she okay?" Suddenly she was completely awake now.
"Yes and no luv. The vampire… the vampire was her girlfriend. She dusted her." Spike was choking on his own words now. "Charlie saved my life, Buffy."
Buffy made a gagging noise on the other side. Killing someone you love. Loved one turning out to want you dead. Spike had almost died. Too close to home for her, Spike thought. "Buffy I wouldn't call you for anybody else… But this is Charlie." Buffy could hear a heavy sigh. "I put her in bed and she fell asleep, but I have a feeling she will be awake soon and… I need help."
"I will be right over."
"Thanks, luv."
Buffy must have run all the way because it was only a few minutes latter that Spike heard a soft knock on the door.
"Come in, luv. Let me just check on Charlie."
Spike went to the bedroom to make sure Charlie was still asleep and came into the living room to find Buffy picking up the stake from the floor. The room was still in an upheaval and the telltale vampire dust marked the spot.
"Okay. What has to be done is report Frances missing with the police. That way there won't be any weird questions as to how come her roommate didn't find it strange when she failed to show up home." She looked at the bedroom where Charlie slept. "What about her? Do you think she will be okay?"
"Okay? I don't know luv, but I am here for her as long as she needs me. That's what friends are for."
Buffy looked at Spike with tears in her eyes. She had registered the pain in his voice and the concern for the girl. Was this the same person she had met four years ago? No… He had changed. A lot. She reached out to his face and caressed it. "I will help in any way I can. Now go stay with her, I will finish cleaning up and will be back in the morning." She glanced at her watch. "Which will be in a few hours."
Spike nodded and went back into the bedroom drawing the heavy curtains. Charlie was whimpering in her sleep. Shedding his duster he laid down on the bed and drew the girl towards him. He kissed her forehead and smoothed her dark hair with his hands. "Shhh, luv. I am here. Everything will be all right."
The End
By: Chen
Rating: G
Disclaimer: All things Buffy belong to Joss Whedon and ME (Grr! Argh!) and, alas, not to me.
Spoilers: All the way to GONE.
Author's note: I fell in love with Charlie. So bear with me.
*
"Charlie? It's me, Spike."
"Hello there hon, how are you?"
"I couldn't be better Charlie – she said she wants to try and have a honest relationship. An honest shot. Of course, she also said no more shagging – I have to date. Can you believe this?" He tried to sound annoyed, but his voice betrayed his happiness
"I am so happy for you baby! If that girl doesn't treat you right you just tell me, I can always write the Slayer a threatening letter. Anonymously of course."
Spike couldn't help but chuckle. "I hope it's okay with you – I know I said I would come by tonight, but .."
"Say no more. And don't worry about ditching me at the last minute." Charlie gave him one of her best dramatic sighs. "Just joking! Frances called and she is coming home tonight from LA, so I guess this works out nicely for all of us. We both get to see our girls tonight."
"You are the best Charlie! One more thing luv, make sure to be careful. I heard there is a new baddie in town and I don't want anything to happen to you. That's our first real date by the way: dinner followed by patrolling." He made it sound like nothing in the world could be more proper for a first date.
"You kids are so romantic. Nothing like a little vamp dust after a candlelit dinner." Charlie loved to tease Spike and she wasn't going to stop now. "Don't worry hon, I remember the lesson: a vampire can't come in…"
"Unless you invite him first. That's my girl. I will come by tomorrow night and I will tell you all the details. Bye now."
"Bye hon."
Charlie hung up the phone, shaking her head. That boy was something else… he sounded like a little boy who had gotten both the pony and the bicycle for Christmas. She went back to the kitchen to check on the pasta. Everything seemed fine there and she placed the pasta in the oven to keep it warm. Frances should be home soon and that gave her enough time to take a quick shower.
Hours latter Charlie woke up on the couch with a major feeling that something was not right. She glanced at the VCR clock and it informed her it was past 2 am. Frances hadn't come home yet. Charlie tried the journalist's cell phone only to be greeted by an impersonal message.
"It's me, please call me to let me know how you are. I am a little worried."
Truth was she was more than a little worried. The drive from LA wasn't a specially long one, but still… roads were never safe and Frances had a bad track record when it came to letting her know she was going to be running late. Charlie decided to go to bed and remembering Spike's warning made sure all doors were locked. Better not tempt fate.
*
Charlie sat at her computer trying to come up with something. It was difficult for every time a car passed by she glanced into the night expecting it to be Frances. She had called the magazine only to be told they had no idea where she was – but that perhaps she had decided to get some background for her next assignment. Charlie decided she needed to have a serious talk with her girl. It was really not cool of her not to call to let her now she was going to be delayed. Mercifully Spike was due any minute and the promise of all the juicy details of her friend's new found bliss shooed away some of her fears.
The doorbell rang and Charlie got up.
"Coming Spike."
Charlie opened the door and there on the doorsill stood Frances.
"Baby, I was so worried. Why didn't you call?"
"Sorry Charlie, somebody stole the damn cell phone. I got held up at a meeting and then everything got crazy. But I am here now." She still didn't came in.
Charlie motioned to the girl to come in. "What? Are you going to stand there all night? Come in. But make no mistake, I *will* get furious with you latter." Taking in France's pale face, she softned. "Are you hungry?"
Frances came in with a smile playing on her lips. "I was waiting to get home to eat, baby."
*
Spike walked down the street with a new lightness in his step. He had to admit he was happy. So tonight wasn't the romantic night he had expected. Plus there definitely had been no shagging. But… they had held hands for a while during patrol and dinner had been an interesting affair. Buffy had dressed up for the occasion and it made him feel good to know she had gotten all spruced up for him. She had looked so lovely… absolutely gorgeous. He couldn't wait to tell Charlie… He made his way up to the door and rang the doorbell… just to see that the door was not closed completely. He cursed Charlie in his head. He had warned her – she should be more careful!
"Charlie, I told you to lock all doors, pet! We still haven't found the…"
"Hello there, Spike."
It was Frances. Holding in her arms Charlie. A very scared, but mercifully alive Charlie.
"So Frances… What happened?"
"I came back home. Thought I would grab a bite you know?" Her smile was Frances's smile, but she had a new unpleasant glint in her eyes.
Spike heard Charlie cry. It must be hell for her seeing the one she loved like this. He only hoped she understood that the vampire was no longer Frances, but a demon. An evil thing. Spike concentrated on the newcomer to his race.
"C'mon ducks, you don't want to eat Charlie here. She lives on frozen pizza and coffee. The blood is hardly worth it." His tone went from cajoling to steel. "Besides, you would have to dust me first. Trust me, you wouldn't want to do that."
The new vampire went into game face and exposed its fangs with a primitive threatening growl. Charlie winced as she felt the iron grip tighten even more. With one hand Frances swept Charlie's long, black hair away from her lover's neck and started lowering her fangs to the exposed vein.
G'd , Charlie thought, not like this.
Spike was waiting for an opening and the overly cocky new vamp was too lost in the bloodlust to notice the more experienced vampire moving. Spike quickly crossed the space separating them and with one hard blow he separated the girls.
"Get out! Run Charlie!"
The girl may have been newly made, but her blows were swift and fighting for her unlife seemed to add strength to the punches and kicks. Spike focused on getting the girl out of the house – he would do his best to avoid dusting Frances in front of Charlie. Unfortunately Frances was not willing to comply and quickly the small living room was trashed. Trying to keep an eye on the vampire and making sure that Charlie was okay was becoming increasingly difficult. He reached out for the stake he had tucked in his duster's inside pocket and tried to plunge it, only to loose it when Frances managed to land a kick on his chest.
When Charlie saw Spike being thrown across the room she picked a lamp and tried to crash it on France's head. For her efforts she received a hard punch in the gut that landed her against the wall. With her mind still whirling with pain and confusion Charlie felt the shards of glass of the mirror she had landed on, digging into her back. She removed the largest piece out of her shoulder with a loud cry and the smell of blood filled the air. Hearing Charlie's cry, Spike instinctively turned towards it and that was all the advantage Frances needed. With a well placed punch she had him down on the floor and straddled. She looked down at Spike with her fangs barred in an ugly smile and held the his own stake to his heart.
"So, it seems bleach boy is going bye bye now. Nice knowing y…"
Spike saw the vampire explode into a million dust particles and standing over him was a disheveled Charlie.
"I killed Frances."
"No, pet. You killed a demon." Spike got up and tried to check Charlie for wounds.
"I killed Frances", Charlie repeated in that empty voice that was unrecognizable to Spike. He saw the girl crumble to the floor and reached out to hug her. It registered in his mind that it had been Charlie who had taught him how to give a proper hug. He just never thought that he would be hugging Charlie to comfort her for something like this.
Charlie rocked back and forth whispering to herself over and over… "I killed Frances. I killed Frances…"
Spike was getting scared now. How could he make her understand? How?
"Listen to me Charlie. You didn't kill a human. The demon killed her. You killed a thing. An evil thing. A vampire. Like me. Frances is dead, but her death didn't take place here tonight. Get it? She was dead already! That thing was NOT FRANCES." He was yelling and shaking his friend now. The frustration, the fear and the shame consuming him. He was a vampire. Just an evil thing that because of some government wankers, was prevented from hunting. It was something like him that had caused this much pain to one of the few people he loved in this world. He never had been so grateful for that bloody chip in his head as now.
"Charlie, please forgive me. Please, stay with me. Don't loose it, please. It wasn't your fault, luv. It wasn't your fault."
Charlie finally looked at him, understanding slowly dawning in her eyes. "A thing. I killed a thing. Frances is… dead. The demon killed her." She repeated the words as a child would repeat a specially difficult lesson. Then the tears came and they wouldn't stop. Spike held her close to his body as if by doing that he could shield her from the pain that was ripping her apart. He remembered how it had been when he had lost Buffy not so long ago. He knew the searing pain that came with such loss. It wasn't much different for Charlie. Her lover was dead. Her love was dead and nothing would be quite the same. She had dusted the vampire, but that vampire had Frances's face, had her voice…
"Oh, Charlie, I wish I could take the pain away."
He carried the girl into the bedroom and laid her down on the bed very carefully. All the while a crying Charlie held on to the lapels of his duster as if it was the only thing preventing her from drowning. Spike let her hide her face in his chest and made comforting sounds. He knew from experience it would be better to let her cry it out.
A couple of hours latter an exhausted Charlie's breathing became regular. Spike took the strands of hair from her face and looked at his friend. Even in her sleep she couldn't really rest… Spike tenderly smoothed the lines on her troubled face.
He closed his eyes and in his mind heard her absurdly scandalous laughter. Heads always turned when she laughed and she just didn't care. His Charlie was an original. Spike hoped that she had the strength inside her to make it through the pain.
"If you don't, it doesn't matter, pet. I do and what I have I will give to you."
When Spike was sure Charlie was in deep sleep, he got up and went to the living room to take inventory of the mess there. Better try to clean up some. He straightened the couch and tried to give the room some semblance of order. Who was he kidding? He sat down heavily and looked around. No matter how clean the room seemed when Charlie woke up… Things that really were important, wouldn't be the same. His friend was on that bed and would be awake soon with some serious things to deal with.
This was so complicated and the truth was he also wondered about what was the best procedure to deal with the fact that there was no more Frances. Not when it came to Charlie – he would do everything in his power to see her through this. But he had a nagging feeling there was also the legal side to deal with here. Someone didn't just disappear. Well, maybe in Sunnydale they did.
"Bugger! What am I going to do?" Spike asked the wall. Digging through the mess he found the telephone.
"Buffy?"
"Spike what in the hell are you doing calling me in the middle of the night?!" She was one really sleepy and cranky slayer.
"Buffy, please listen, luv. I came over to Charlie's and… Buffy there was a vampire in the house."
"Is she okay?" Suddenly she was completely awake now.
"Yes and no luv. The vampire… the vampire was her girlfriend. She dusted her." Spike was choking on his own words now. "Charlie saved my life, Buffy."
Buffy made a gagging noise on the other side. Killing someone you love. Loved one turning out to want you dead. Spike had almost died. Too close to home for her, Spike thought. "Buffy I wouldn't call you for anybody else… But this is Charlie." Buffy could hear a heavy sigh. "I put her in bed and she fell asleep, but I have a feeling she will be awake soon and… I need help."
"I will be right over."
"Thanks, luv."
Buffy must have run all the way because it was only a few minutes latter that Spike heard a soft knock on the door.
"Come in, luv. Let me just check on Charlie."
Spike went to the bedroom to make sure Charlie was still asleep and came into the living room to find Buffy picking up the stake from the floor. The room was still in an upheaval and the telltale vampire dust marked the spot.
"Okay. What has to be done is report Frances missing with the police. That way there won't be any weird questions as to how come her roommate didn't find it strange when she failed to show up home." She looked at the bedroom where Charlie slept. "What about her? Do you think she will be okay?"
"Okay? I don't know luv, but I am here for her as long as she needs me. That's what friends are for."
Buffy looked at Spike with tears in her eyes. She had registered the pain in his voice and the concern for the girl. Was this the same person she had met four years ago? No… He had changed. A lot. She reached out to his face and caressed it. "I will help in any way I can. Now go stay with her, I will finish cleaning up and will be back in the morning." She glanced at her watch. "Which will be in a few hours."
Spike nodded and went back into the bedroom drawing the heavy curtains. Charlie was whimpering in her sleep. Shedding his duster he laid down on the bed and drew the girl towards him. He kissed her forehead and smoothed her dark hair with his hands. "Shhh, luv. I am here. Everything will be all right."
The End