Disclaimer: See chapter 1 or 6.
PART 7
Willow dropped down on her bed, the book falling unnoticed beside her. That can't be right. The book is wrong, that's all there is to it. No way was she stuck with Spike for the rest of her-- their lives. Long lives. Immortal lives. Oh, boy. She'd read it wrong, that's all. So the bond they had sounded like a Proximity Bond, didn't mean it was... just that it was similar. Very similar.
Gotta call Giles. He'll know. He knows about that stuff. All the bonds mentioned had a lot of things in common... things she could deal with. It was that last big doozy of a one that Willow didn't like.
Phone. Where's the phone? On her desk where it always was. Duh. And Giles' phone number? Speed dial. Okay, we're rockin' now. She picked up the phone and took it to her bed, sitting cross-legged in the middle of it.
Giles answered on the first ring, sounding annoyed. "Hello?"
"Is this a bad time?" she asked. "I could call back."
"Oh, Willow, uh, no. Is something wrong?" She heard him cover the mouthpiece and say something to someone. A customer, she assumed. He came back on a second later. "Willow?"
"Um, I think I found out what kind of bond it is." She restlessly traced a finger along the binding of the book. "But, you have customers, I'll come down there."
"No, that was just Xander. He and Buffy are leaving for patrol. Hang on, please." She heard him once again cover the mouthpiece. Muffled voices came through the phone, and Willow was sure she heard Xander say he was coming over.
"Giles... Giles! Tell Xander no. Giles!" He couldn't hear her, she knew, which only frustrated her even more.
Finally, he came back on the line. "Willow, um, I just talked Xander and Buffy out of stopping by," he said in a low voice, obviously not wanting to be overheard. "I told them you weren't feeling well. But they may decide to go anyway."
"Thanks, Giles. I don't think I could face them right now. Not with what I just found out."
"And what's that, love?" Spike asked from the doorway. He was sober, shirtless, and smoking in her hallway.
"Giles, I have to go, but check out the Compendium of Magicks by Rafael." She hung up the phone and glared at Spike. He waited for an answer, which she wasn't ready to give him. He wasn't going to be happy. At all.
So, she grabbed his cigarette instead, and went outside. "I told you not to smoke in here. It stinks."
Spike took his cigarette back and blew smoke into her face. "Do you really expect me to obey non smoking rules, pet?" He leaned against the wall, watching her. "So what's the news?"
Willow felt trapped. She didn't want to tell him, but he was sure to spot a lie. And could she lie to him? He deserved the truth. He deserved... not to be tied to a no longer completely mortal girl he couldn't stand for the rest of their lives. Not to have to protect her to ensure his continued existence. "Wanna hear something funny?" she asked with a weak smile.
"No, I don't really like funny all that much... unless I'm the one doing the funning. How about you just say it?"
Willow nodded. "Right. Okay. So, hey, ever wanted your own personal witch?"
Spike stared at her through narrowed eyes. His cigarette, dangling from his fingers, sent wisps of smoke swirling between them. She had to squint through it to see him, and wished she hadn't.
She knew he was a vampire, was reminded of it almost daily, usually by him, and had healing bite marks on her neck from said vampire. But, she'd almost forgotten. When the smoke was blown aside by a stray breeze, Willow was forcefully reminded. Forcefully, because he'd vamped out, and she was now pinned against the brick wall of her house. Pain showed up in two places at once, her throat, which was being held by Spike's hand, and her head, which was receiving pain from his chip.
Sick and tired of being hurt and manhandled by him, just in the three days that the bond had been in place, Willow braced herself, drew her foot back and kicked him. Unfortunately, she didn't have any shoes on, so the effort was more pathetic than painful. She didn't even feel a twinge of his pain. But it did succeed in getting his attention.
His face morphed back into human, and his hand loosened. "How long?" was all he said.
Trying to pry his fingers from her throat, Willow answered him absently. "Until I die." Realizing what she'd said, and worried that he might take the opportunity to try rid himself of her, she hastened to add, "But... you don't want to kill me. 'Cause--"
He smiled humorlessly, pulling her closer with his hand, which was still attached to her throat. "Kill you? I don't want to kill you." His face was inches away from hers, his lips hovering just above her own. "Shag you? Maybe. Feed off of you? Definitely. Kill you? Now why would I do that, when you're my best chance at having a normal, somewhat chipless life again?"
Willow's breath caught in her throat when his lips pressed lightly to hers, once, twice. Her eyes slid shut in anticipation of the next touch, but it never came. She tried to get her emotions under control, but it was difficult when every inch of him was pressed against every inch of her. When his hands--when did his other hand get up there?--were holding her face so softly, caressing tiny circles with his thumbs. And, oh, his leg was between hers now. His lips were on her neck, sucking and nipping at the skin.
Sure, she could get her emotions under control... anytime now. In an alternate universe maybe. And if that sexy voice, owned by the gorgeous vampire seducing her, wasn't whispering in her ear. Whispering sweet-- Buffy?
"What?" Her eyes flew open and she was faced with a smirking Spike. His eyes were darkened with desire, but other than that, he was in complete control. Unlike her. She was breathing so hard she felt like she'd run a mile... an extremely pleasant mile. Focus, girl. "What?"
He chuckled deeply and disappeared into the shadows. "Buffy and the moron are here," she heard him say, then nothing.
Willow groaned. Buffy and Xander had the worst timing... Buffy and Xander? Oh, boy. What were they doing here? Giles told them not to come, so, of course, they came anyway. Rude friends. Sweet friends. The best.
Straightening her clothes, she went into her room, and ran downstairs. On her way through the foyer, she spotted the extremely noticeable bigger-than-it-was-before hickey on her neck and slapped her hand over it. Damn. Make-up? Too late. High collared shirt? Upstairs. Hair? Check!
Deep breath, open the door, and smile. "Hi, guys. What's up?"
Buffy hug. Oops, keep the hair on your neck. Xander hug. Xander inspection. Uh-oh, he's seen the hickey. Bad, really bad. He's searching the living room, must distract him.
"Hey, let's go into the kitchen. Want a soda? Some water?"
"Sure. Water's always good," Buffy said, then frowned. "Xander? Hey, nosey."
"Huh?" Xander replied, preoccupied with his not so surreptitious search. "Soda. Sure. Thanks." He finished his immediate search and was headed for the stairs, when Buffy grabbed his arm, halting him.
"Xander, what is the matter with you?" she asked in irritation. "You've been weird all day. You and Anya fighting or something?" She sat at the kitchen table, while Willow got out a bottle of water and a can of soda from the fridge. "Thanks, Will."
"Yeah, thanks, Will," Xander added. "Oh, hey. Got anything else in there? I just remembered, I'm all soda-d out." He watched her shrewdly, gauging her reaction. "I think I'm more in the mood for something... red. You know, that thing that most people find disgusting? You got any of that?"
Buffy was looking from one of them to the other, frowning in confusion. "Red stuff?"
Willow shook her head. "Oh, that stuff. Um, no. We don't have any left... of the disgusting red stuff. Sorry."
Xander shrugged, opening his soda. "Oh, well. Coke it is then."
"Red stuff?" Buffy repeated. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you guys were talking about blood. Or V8." She laughed lightly, then stopped when the other two didn't join in. "Okay. So, Giles said you were feeling blah, though he used more words, and not the actual, 'blah' word. How you doing?"
Willow smiled. "Good. I'm good. Just had a headache, is all. Not a big deal." She nodded in affirmation of her words, but Buffy and Xander were still watching her. Feeling like she had to offer more, she decided to tell them about Tara. Just not the particulars. "Um... Tara and I-- well, Tara-- we broke up." Gosh, what's that tickling her eyes? Couldn't be more tears, could it? Nah. Couldn't be that. She sniffled, and bit her lip.
"Oh, Will," Buffy said softly, "I'm so sorry." She got up to hug the other girl. "Are you all right? I mean, of course you're not all right, but... are you?" She smiled sadly, and shrugged. "Sorry. I'm bad at this kind of stuff. I'm more the action type. I could go beat her up if you want."
Willow chuckled through her tears. "No, that's okay. Thanks anyway."
Xander hugged her too, and whispered, "I'll kill him."
Willow held him still, not letting him go. "Hurt him, and you hurt me," she whispered back.
He nodded, and sat down, looking very helpless. She smiled, and ruffled his hair lightly.
"I'm better now, you guys should probably get back to your patrol... or would that be, *start* patrol?" she teased. They both looked a bit chagrined, and she laughed. "Go on. I'll be fine. I have Ben, Jerry and a few others to keep me company."
"We don't have to. Giles isn't the boss of us," Buffy said impudently.
Xander laughed at her and pointed. "Is too. Ha ha."
Buffy rolled her eyes and pouted. "Shut up." They all stood up, and headed to the front door. "Yay, patrol," she deadpanned. "I love my job." At the front door, she turned a stubborn look Willow's way. "I'll be back over afterwards though, okay?"
Willow's eyes widened in panic for a moment, before she realized she'd just have to make sure Spike wasn't around when Buffy showed up. "Um, okay," she agreed, "but no chick-flicks."
Buffy grinned. "Got ya."
Xander, once again looking around them in a very suspicious manner, turned to them with a shudder. "Me too," he told them. "I'm coming too."
Now Willow did panic. If Spike knew they were coming over, especially Xander, he'd probably stay here just to taunt him. And there was no way she could keep anything secret if Xander stuck another stake in Spike. "Um--" she bit her lip, not wanting to lie anymore than she already had, but, she couldn't take the chance of a confrontation turning deadly. She'd like to keep her life thank you very much. "You know," she said with a yawn, "I'm actually really tired tonight. Why don't-- um, we can do this tomorrow." Seeing Xander's suspicious look and Buffy's stubborn look coming back, she sighed. "Actually, I'd just sort of like some alone time tonight."
Buffy backed off with a sympathetic smile. "Okay. But tomorrow, there'll be bonding. I mean it."
Willow had to fight a giggle. "Definitely some bonding going on," she agreed.
They hugged and said their goodbyes and did the general friend banter until Xander and Buffy finally left. Willow shut the door behind them, and slumped against it, closing her eyes with a sigh.
Her eyes flew open again when an arm encircled her waist and a hand brushed her hair off of her cheek. Amusement flickered in Spike's eyes. "Miss me, pet?"
Willow shook her head mutely, determined not to let him see how he affected her.
The hand on her cheek slid down to her chest, resting just above her heart. "Liar." He grinned wickedly and kissed her with such intensity that she was left gasping for breath.
She pulled her mouth from his, and pushed against his chest. "Spike?" Instead of answering, he seemed content to lightly kiss her jaw and neck. What was it with vampires and necks? Well, duh. Still, he's constantly attached to mine, like a leech. Ew, nasty thought. And he's staring at me now. "Hi."
His mouth quirked in amusement. "Am I boring you?"
Her snort let him know just how bored she hadn't been. "No. But we need to talk about the bond, 'cause otherwise I'm gonna chicken out and not tell you, and then you'll just be angrier, and angry vampires are not the best house guests."
He pushed away from her with an impatient shrug, a hint of annoyance lighting his eyes. "Right. Well, let's hear it. How much more screwed up is my life going to get?"
She swept past him, into the living room. Dropping on the couch, she turned to face him, her jaw set in irritation. "Your life? How about mine? I'm the human here. So far, I've got the raw deal. I get the joy of all your pain. The implant's probably going to give me brain damage. And on top of that, I get the added responsibility of causing people's deaths."
He dropped into the chair across from her, a humongous sigh leaving his lips. "I don't plan on killing anyone. On purpose. It'd kill you, and most likely me right along with you. But I do intend to feed. Unless..." His gaze swept slowly over her. "Care to donate a couple times a week?"
"Most definitely not."
His shoulders lifted in an unconcerned shrug. "Then I'll just have to snack on the local population."
She glared at him, her temper rising. "Stop trying to manipulate me, you jerk."
His eyes widened in mock innocence. "Manipulate you, Willow? Certainly not. I wouldn't think of doing such a thing." A crooked smile split his face. "Okay, I am. But, it's fun."
Looking forward to taking him down a peg or two, she grinned. "Ever heard of a Proximity Bond?"
He shook his head, bored eyes lighting on his black-coated fingernails. He chipped at the polish there, flaking it off.
"Well, that's what I think we've got. It means we have to stay within five miles of each other at all times, and some kind of physical contact is needed once a week, sort of like recharging a battery or something. Gosh, poor you."
He looked up expectantly, waiting for the rest. "And?"
She frowned, disappointment lacing her words. "Not poor you? I mean, I'm not exactly mortal anymore, which means you're going to be stuck with me for what could be a really long time. Maybe even a couple of centuries. If I die, you die, and vice versa. That's not..." she fluttered her hands in front of her, "you're not mad?" She could feel a pout coming on, but she covered it with a frown. "Why aren't you mad?"
His laughter took her by surprise. She'd expected anger, fury and rage. Not laughter and amusement. "How is this a bad thing? Just... be prepared to leave town when I want, and give me a little touchy feely once a week, what's not to like?"
She jumped to her feet, anger replacing her confusion. "Oh, I think not. Little Willow gets to follow the big bad vampire around for the rest of her life?" She crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at him. "Not gonna happen. In fact... you can follow me."
"Not bloody likely," Spike shot back, his eyes pinning her in place. "And, I think I'd like to request a weekly shagging." He sniffed importantly and stood up, pacing. "Yeah. Also, I want some of your blood, at least once a week... though, I guess that could go with the shagging."
Anger didn't even begin to describe what she was feeling now. She was so far beyond anger, she was... PO'd. "That is so not gonna happen."
His smirk knew absolutely no bounds, it soared across his face like a bird. "I think it will. Way I see it, you either do what I say, or feel the pain from the implant while I snack on the local population. I might not kill anyone, but I'll make sure they hurt. A lot."
She was shaking her head almost before he started speaking. "Sorry, Spike, but I don't think so. See, I have this friend, who happens to be a Slayer, and she kills vampires like you nightly. And since she really doesn't like you all that much, despite the fact that you're in love with her, she'll kill you."
Spike rolled his eyes at her empty threat. "Kill me, kill you," he reminded her.
She crossed her arms over her chest, looking him right in the eye. "Then I die."
"You wouldn't," he taunted, narrowing his eyes at her.
"I would," she confirmed. "I'm human, I have a conscience, I'm one of the good guys. I so would."
"Fine," he sighed. "What does it matter anyway? I have no intention of leaving yet. We'll figure something out when and if one of us decides to leave. Deal?"
Willow considered it for a minute, purposely angering him with her slow agreement, before finally nodding. "Deal."
A slow smile spread across his face. "So, want to pick up where we left off?" He added a lascivious wink for good measure.
Willow scowled. Not at him unfortunately, but at her body's reaction to him. "No," she lied, "I don't."
He shrugged and went past her. "Think I'll stop by the shop for a bit. Been a while since I saw the gang. You know," he said thoughtfully, "I never did thank Xander for staking me." He tilted his head to the side. "No time like the present, right love?"
Willow shook her head and sighed, following him into the hall. He was trying to get a rise out of her. Again. What was with him? Why was he constantly trying to taunt her? Especially after his big 'don't use Buffy to taunt me' speech that first night. "I wouldn't suggest it," she told him wisely, crossing her arms over her chest.
He paused at the front door, and turned back to her. "And, uh, why not?" he questioned. He tightened his jaw in annoyance.
Willow almost smiled. He looked damn sexy, but also kinda... pouty. She kept her smile to herself and leaned against the wall. "You think Giles and Xander will greet you with open arms? You'll be lucky if they don't stake you on sight."
Spike conceded the point with a nod. "Then take a walk with me, Witch."
She found herself agreeing and out the door before she realized what she was doing. Going out into the dark night with Spike was probably not a good idea. Oh, lighten up, she told herself, he can't hurt you. A spring in her step, she strode beside the tall, blonde vampire, not looking into why she felt sort of happy. And why she was getting such a workout trying to keep up with him.
She grabbed his arm, intending to tell him to slow down, but tripped on something in the middle of the street instead. She went flying forward, landing on her hands and knees, and sliding a bit before coming to rest by the curb. Pain lanced through her palms, and knee caps, followed quickly by a burning sensation. She sat down on the curb, stretching her legs out, trying to ease the discomfort.
Spike stood in front of her, then knelt down, grabbing her hands. "Nice job," he approved. "What was that?"
She glared at him, wincing when he brushed the dirt and pebbles from her palms. "I tripped." She looked over his shoulder at the object that caused her to fall. "Oh, no," she whispered, trying to stand up.
Spike pushed her back down with a hand on her shoulder.
"But--" she pointed behind him.
"Sit. If you fall on your face, I'm not picking you up." He stood up and walked over to the object she'd tripped on. "Bugger," he muttered, bending down to look at the severed head. The body was nowhere in sight, but they didn't need it to know who--or what--it had been. "The Litchock."
Willow dropped her head into her hands, moaning not in pain, but in despair. "There goes my last hope of having the bond reversed."
"Was there actually a chance?" He reached out to pick up the head, but thought better of it, settling for kicking it gently out of the street. "Pretty eager to get rid of me, aren't you, love?"
She absently watched the head roll under a car, and sighed, lifting her eyes to his. "Yeah. I mean... aren't you? Eager to be rid of me? You can't like this."
Spike sat down next to her and lit a cigarette. Leaving it dangling from his lips, he took her hand, resuming his earlier ministrations. "Doesn't bother me that much." He sighed, looking off into the distance. "Besides, Giles will probably find a way to fix it. Doesn't he always?"
"Yeah," she agreed, brightening considerably. "He does. We all do. You're right, we'll figure it out, and things will go back to normal, and we'll be free of each other."
"Right." He tossed a look over his shoulder at the Litchock head. "Guess you'll be wanting to tell Giles about that."
Willow nodded. "I should. Tomorrow." There was no hurry. The thing was dead, it wasn't going anywhere. She frowned at herself. How callous was that? Very. "Or I can call him."
Spike rolled his eyes and stood up. "If you're not going on account of me... don't. I'm a big boy, I can occupy myself for a few hours." He leaned against the car, watching a bird fly overhead.
Willow stood up as well, and took a few tentative steps. Her knees didn't hurt too bad, and she didn't fall on her face like he'd expected her to do. Yay for her. "That's what I'm afraid of." Ever since their argument earlier, she'd been thinking about this a lot. With no pain, he was bound to feed whether it hurt her or not. So, what if she did donate a bit each night? Would that make her like Riley? Would it... make her a blood ho?
He shrugged, grinning at her. "Told you, pet, you could make donations, that way you wouldn't have to worry about it."
"Okay," she agreed quickly, before she lost her nerve.
He started coughing, and yanked his cigarette out of his mouth. "What? I didn't-- what?"
"If you're going to go out and feed off of people, hurting me through the chip, then I may as well be the one you feed off of." She bit her lip nervously. "Right?"
"Wrong," he disagreed, starting towards the magic shop. "I'm not feeding off of you." His voice was strong, determined... and he was so obviously trying to convince himself.
She sighed, sagging in relief. "Oh, thank God. I really don't think I could do that." But she didn't want to live with the pain of his chip every night either. Maybe even a few times a night... how often did a vampire feed a night? "Um, I don't suppose you'll go back to bagged blood?" she asked hopefully, leading the way down one of the dark, empty streets. He looked at her sideways, raising a scornful eyebrow. "What do you think?"
She nodded, chuckling just a little. "I didn't think so. Guess I'll have to find a spell to block the pain then."
"You think there is one?" he asked curiously, grabbing her elbow to steer her around a broken bottle.
"I don't know," she said absently. "What was that?" Pointing behind them to the pieces of brown glass in the street, she turned her astonished gaze to his.
He tossed a confused glance behind them, shrugging. "Beer bottle?" He sucked in a breath, rubbing his stomach lightly when she nudged his side.
"Oh, sorry," she winced, mirroring his movements. Her abdomen didn't hurt so much as his hurt and was causing her pain. It was also still extremely bruised and icky looking. It'd be nice if she'd gotten his faster healing. It wasn't fair. And yes, she was in the running for Whiner of the Year. "Um, anyway, I meant--" letting out her breath in a rush, she shrugged. "Nothing." If he wanted to be a gentleman, who was she to comment on it? Maybe this was his part of the bond... her courteousness? Right, she scoffed silently.
Spike watched her oddly, probably wondering what the heck she was on. "Uh-huh." Gesturing around them, he finished his cigarette and dropped it, stepping on the butt. "You do realize we're not on our way to Giles', right?"
"Darn. You noticed," she said flatly. "Of course I realize that. I just needed to-- well, I figured while I was out anyway, I should... um, I have to--" she stopped, wondering why she was embarrassed about having to go to the store. Big deal, so what? It was just that... Spike and shopping weren't words that went together. Hell, he didn't even shop for clothes apparently. Either that, or they'd had a real big sale on black jeans, and black t-shirts. Probably the five-fingered discount. "Um, I just have to--"
"Pause me to death?" he laughed. "You know, I think the blonde witch has been a bad influence on you. Made you fall back on old habits or something." Now it was his turn to nudge her.
She hardly noticed the physical pain, she was too wrapped up in the mental and psychological. Tara. She was gone. Out of Willow's life forever. "Don't have to worry about that anymore," she said softly. "I told her about the bond last night. She knew. She knew I'd cheated on her." Willow frowned, feeling the familiar guilt tear through her. "Knew that it was permanent now."
He stopped her with a hand on her shoulder, turning her to face him. "I'm sorry." He seemed as confused and stunned as she was to hear the sincerity in his voice. "I didn't set out for any of this to happen."
"I know," she assured him. "And, mostly, I don't blame you." She smiled crookedly, feeling it slip away almost before it appeared. "Tara thinks that-- well, basically she thinks I'll never be able to have a normal relationship ever again. Because of the bond."
He snorted in disbelief. "Why?" In that one scornful word, he'd managed to pack in a whole lot of distaste, catching Willow off guard. She stared up at him, a little confused. Since when did Spike hate Tara? Seeing an equally confused expression on his face, she decided not to ask him about it. Looked like he wasn't so sure himself.
"I don't know. She said something about vampires being possessive, but I don't know what she meant." I was a bit busy having my heart ripped out, she thought. Again. Now, not only was she whiny, but she was being overly dramatic as well.
Seeing the distaste once again on his face, she wondered if this wasn't what Tara had meant. Vampires were possessive, and with a bond keeping him and Willow together, he'd be even more so. But would that really bleed over into active dislike of her ex? It was worth some thought.
He didn't say anything, didn't even seem to be paying much attention to her anymore. His eyes were skyward again, on that same bird from before.
"We're bound for life. That's gotta be daunting for her, knowing I'll always be around, but she won't be." He sighed heavily. "She also knows that we--"
"You what?" a whiny, yet angry voice inquired.
Willow shared a look and an eye roll with Spike as they both turned to face the newcomer. She stood there, all long blonde hair and snotty glares. Her arms were crossed over her chest, and her foot was tapping. She looked more comical than threatening.
"Harmony," Willow greeted, not one iota of warmth in her voice.
"Willow," she greeted right back. "Spike."
Spike rolled his eyes. "Now that we all know who were are, what do you want?"
Harmony pouted, stepping closer to Spike, trying to look innocent and sweet. She failed miserably. "When I saw you with *her*," Harmony griped, "I thought you were finally getting around to killing her. I mean, I did ask you to do it two years ago, and maybe you were a little slow in doing it, or not even doing it for me, but I figured it'd be fun to watch. So I followed you, but, you're not killing her. You're just being her Xander."
"My Xander?" Willow inquired, but they both ignored her.
"Harm," Spike said angrily, "you know damn well I can't kill her."
She shrugged expansively, raising her arms out. "How was I supposed to know it was still there? Besides, I thought maybe you'd grown a backbone and overcome the pain or something. I met this guy in L.A. who said that--" Spike's hand around her throat cut her off.
"Shove off, Harm, or I'm going to kill you for good. Got it?" His face vamped out, his eyes boring into the other vampire's.
She nodded frantically, and he let her go. She gasped a few times out of habit, and backed away. "God. You're both dysfunctional, you know that? And I--"
Spike growled impatiently. "*Now*, Harm, not an hour and a half of bitching from now, you stupid bint. Get the hell away from me. And stay away."
Harmony sneered at him, her upper lip curling back like an angry dog's. "Make me."
Willow rolled her eyes again, tempted to leave the two alone to... whatever it is they were doing. Or wanted to do. Mad, passionate sex maybe? That wasn't a pleasant thought. Not so much the visuals, though that was disturbing too, what bothered her was the twinge of jealousy that jumped up and screamed, 'no!' in a tiny voice. Afraid of what that twinge meant, she turned away and continued on her journey to the store. They could duke it out alone.
Three blocks later, she heard footsteps behind her and felt a hand on her arm, halting her. Expecting Spike's impatient face, and irritated voice, she was already in an eye roll when she turned around. But, it wasn't Spike. Wasn't Harmony either.
"Tara," she whispered, stunned to see her. It was too soon. She needed more time to get over her before she faced her... in the middle of a darkened street in the middle of town. Preferably, they'd see each other in the daylight, inside, away from demons and Spikes. "What--"
"Shh," Tara said softly, raising her finger to Willow's lips. Her eyes were gentle, her smile tender as she cradled Willow's confused face in her hands.
What was going on here? She stepped back, putting some distance between them. "We broke up. You can't just come around and... do whatever it is you're doing." Her eyes filled with tears as she fought the impulse to take Tara into her arms and hold her. Kiss her.
Tara must have read her mind, because she suddenly grabbed both of Willow's wrists, pulled her closer and kissed her. Desperately. "I love you," she whispered before disappearing.
No, not disappearing, turning into a six foot tall man. And a vampire at that. He was looking a little confused... no more so than she felt at the moment. "Lady, you always kiss strange vampires?"
"Kiss?" she said incredulously, her eyes widening. "I didn't kiss-- you kissed... what the hell is going on here?" she asked no one in particular. "And where'd you come from? My girlfriend..." realizing she was talking to a completely strange... vampire, she pulled out her stake and dove at him.
He easily caught her hand, halting the stake as it pierced the flesh of his chest. They both stared at the small drops of blood appearing on his stark white shirt. His golden eyes turned to dark green, his ridged face to smooth skin. A nice handsome face stared back at her, brow furrowed in confusion again.
"Maria?" he queried. A grin split his mouth just before he grabbed her in a bear hug. "I thought you were dead, baby. God, I'm glad to see you. Immortality is boring without you."
Willow, aside from being confused and stunned, was having a little trouble breathing with his arms holding her so tightly. She mumbled her protest, squirmed a bit, and tried to get her stake out to dust him with. It was stuck firmly between them in her hand, but, he finally let her go, dropping her to her feet before pulling her along by her hand.
"Hey, hey, guy. Whatever your name is, I'm not this Maria chick, I'm Willow, and why am I telling you this?" She swung the stake around again, and once again, it was stopped by him. He looked all hurt and stuff.
"Baby, tell Jack what's wrong. You still mad that I left you behind to face the Slayer alone?" Contrition covered his face, and his eyes softened, while his voice turned cajoling. "I had to leave, sweetie. She was wicked deadly that night. And--"
"And," Willow finished for him, "tonight, I'm deadly. Buh-bye." She yanked her stake out of his chest, and stuck it back in her jeans pocket, dusting her hands off. "Ugh, vampire dust is disgusting."
"Good," Spike said, crossing the street toward her. "Then maybe you'll refrain from turning me into it any time soon."
Willow shrugged lightly, in a much better mood than before. "Maybe. Maybe not." She looked behind him, making sure there were no more vampires hanging around. Like Harmony. "Where's your bimbo babe?"
Spike glared at her as he fell into step beside her, but she could hear him laughing. "Running home to her new boyfriend 'Jack', I guess. She just spent the last two minutes extolling his virtues. And comparing me to him." He shook his head in disgust. "Needless to say, I came out lacking."
Willow burst out laughing, looking back at the pile of dust that Jack used to be. "I think he's a bit lacking now as well." She pointed to what was left of Harmony's boyfriend. "Jack's a little under the weather right now... and forever. It's probably for the best anyway. He was in love with someone else." She started off to the store again, leaving Spike to follow.
"You found out all this in the short time you were alone with him? Must've been a chatty bloke," he mused, getting in front of her and turning around to walk backwards.
"Well," she said, contemplatively, "not really. More like, um, I kissed him, apparently--"
Spike's eyes shot to hers, disbelief written all over his face. "What? You kissed him?" They were directly in front of the store now, but he stopped walking, forcing her to stop as well, or run into him. "If you're that hard up, babe, I'd be glad to--"
"The way it happened from my POV," she said loudly, talking over him, "was she kissed me. And then she was suddenly a he. I tried to stake him, but he stopped me, and then he thought I was his girlfriend Maria." Finished with her explanation, she moved around him and headed into the store.
"Wait, wait, wait." Spike ran after her, grabbing her arm as she headed into the cookie aisle. "So, what are we thinking? A spell?"
She shrugged, taking a package off the shelf and continuing down the aisle. "I don't know. You tell me. This is as new to me as it is to you." Another package of cookies and she was on her way to the beverage aisle. She handed Spike the cookies and took a couple of six packs off the shelf.
He was hardly paying attention to what she was doing or what he was carrying. His mind was on the problem of her seeing Tara in a vampire. "Has to be a spell. Or maybe some kind of reality distortion." He frowned, accepting the chips and popcorn she set on top of the cookies. "Where'd that idea come from? I don't even know what a reality distortion is. Sounds like something Dru would say," he chuckled, following her to the check out lane. This late at night, the store was mostly empty, so they were the only ones in line.
The clerk was reading a magazine and snacking on grapes. Willow set all her items on the conveyor belt and pulled Spike along with her. It was like he was in a trance, paying only minimal attention to the world around him. It was kind of annoying, actually. "Spike, hello?"
The clerk looked up briefly as she scanned the items, giving Willow a small smile in greeting. Her eyes settled on Spike and pretty much stayed there, her whole face looking years younger than her over forty or so.
Willow sighed in annoyance, wondering why everyone seemed to be taking such an interest in Spike lately... including her. But then she realized that Spike was looking back just as intently. She frowned, wondering if there was a story there that she seriously didn't want to know about, and groaned aloud when he clenched his jaw in anger.
"Dru," he bit out, circling the counter to the checker who was now more frightened than attracted. "What the hell are you doing back here? I told you I didn't--"
Willow grabbed his arm, keeping him from advancing anymore on the poor woman. "Spike, whoa, stop," she ordered, fighting to hold him there. Aside from her fine holding back qualities, he didn't even notice she was there. "Spike."
"Lady, what's his problem?" the clerk asked, backing even further away. She was practically climbing on top of the conveyor belt in her haste to get out of his reach. "Time for his medication?"
Spike snarled at her, thankfully not in his game face, and spun away. Willow quickly grabbed her groceries, tossed the money on the counter and ran after the delusional vampire. "Spike, wait... please," she panted, already winded by the time she hit the parking lot.
Spike was standing on the sidewalk, looking around in confusion, an altogether too frequent occurrence in the last half hour. "What just happened?" he asked when he saw her.
"If you're that desperate," she mocked, striding past him. "Welcome to the club of strange and unusual, hope you enjoyed your stay."
He caught up to her, another all too frequent occurrence tonight, and took one of the bags from her. "Oh. Well, wasn't that fun? Let's go drop these things off and look it up. Something's going on, and it's probably not a good thing. Never is in this town."
Willow agreed whole-heartedly. Whatever it was that was happening, seemed intent on making people think they were seeing a loved one. But, was that all, or was it a loved one they were separated from? "Spike?"
"Hmm?" He was busy digging a cigarette out of his pocket and trying to light it while holding the bag of groceries. Not an easy feat for a human, but a piece of cake for a vampire. "Yeah?"
"Do you still love her?" He looked over at her, taking a drag off his cigarette. She hefted the weight of her bag around, and switched hands. "Dru I mean, not Buffy... I know you still love Buffy. But, well, I saw Tara, and that vampire saw his girlfriend Maria, you saw Dru... so I figured we were seeing the people we loved." Her nervous tirade trailed off into silence.
His eyes shot to hers, looking a little surprised about something, but he didn't say what. "She's my sire, and the woman I spent more than a century with, of course I love her. But I'm not in love with her anymore."
That wasn't happiness shooting through her. Fighting a sudden smile, she nodded. "Okay, so maybe it's just people who are on our minds. I was thinking about Tara a few minutes before I saw her in Jack. You were thinking about Dru. Hey," she said, allowing the smile to surface, "problem solved... well, partially. Now all we have to do is figure out why we're hallucinating. And we can do that at my house, rather than paying the angry Watcher and male best friend a visit." Giving him a haughty look, she pointed down the street with her free hand. "Home, James."
"Cute. You're a funny witch."
PART 7
Willow dropped down on her bed, the book falling unnoticed beside her. That can't be right. The book is wrong, that's all there is to it. No way was she stuck with Spike for the rest of her-- their lives. Long lives. Immortal lives. Oh, boy. She'd read it wrong, that's all. So the bond they had sounded like a Proximity Bond, didn't mean it was... just that it was similar. Very similar.
Gotta call Giles. He'll know. He knows about that stuff. All the bonds mentioned had a lot of things in common... things she could deal with. It was that last big doozy of a one that Willow didn't like.
Phone. Where's the phone? On her desk where it always was. Duh. And Giles' phone number? Speed dial. Okay, we're rockin' now. She picked up the phone and took it to her bed, sitting cross-legged in the middle of it.
Giles answered on the first ring, sounding annoyed. "Hello?"
"Is this a bad time?" she asked. "I could call back."
"Oh, Willow, uh, no. Is something wrong?" She heard him cover the mouthpiece and say something to someone. A customer, she assumed. He came back on a second later. "Willow?"
"Um, I think I found out what kind of bond it is." She restlessly traced a finger along the binding of the book. "But, you have customers, I'll come down there."
"No, that was just Xander. He and Buffy are leaving for patrol. Hang on, please." She heard him once again cover the mouthpiece. Muffled voices came through the phone, and Willow was sure she heard Xander say he was coming over.
"Giles... Giles! Tell Xander no. Giles!" He couldn't hear her, she knew, which only frustrated her even more.
Finally, he came back on the line. "Willow, um, I just talked Xander and Buffy out of stopping by," he said in a low voice, obviously not wanting to be overheard. "I told them you weren't feeling well. But they may decide to go anyway."
"Thanks, Giles. I don't think I could face them right now. Not with what I just found out."
"And what's that, love?" Spike asked from the doorway. He was sober, shirtless, and smoking in her hallway.
"Giles, I have to go, but check out the Compendium of Magicks by Rafael." She hung up the phone and glared at Spike. He waited for an answer, which she wasn't ready to give him. He wasn't going to be happy. At all.
So, she grabbed his cigarette instead, and went outside. "I told you not to smoke in here. It stinks."
Spike took his cigarette back and blew smoke into her face. "Do you really expect me to obey non smoking rules, pet?" He leaned against the wall, watching her. "So what's the news?"
Willow felt trapped. She didn't want to tell him, but he was sure to spot a lie. And could she lie to him? He deserved the truth. He deserved... not to be tied to a no longer completely mortal girl he couldn't stand for the rest of their lives. Not to have to protect her to ensure his continued existence. "Wanna hear something funny?" she asked with a weak smile.
"No, I don't really like funny all that much... unless I'm the one doing the funning. How about you just say it?"
Willow nodded. "Right. Okay. So, hey, ever wanted your own personal witch?"
Spike stared at her through narrowed eyes. His cigarette, dangling from his fingers, sent wisps of smoke swirling between them. She had to squint through it to see him, and wished she hadn't.
She knew he was a vampire, was reminded of it almost daily, usually by him, and had healing bite marks on her neck from said vampire. But, she'd almost forgotten. When the smoke was blown aside by a stray breeze, Willow was forcefully reminded. Forcefully, because he'd vamped out, and she was now pinned against the brick wall of her house. Pain showed up in two places at once, her throat, which was being held by Spike's hand, and her head, which was receiving pain from his chip.
Sick and tired of being hurt and manhandled by him, just in the three days that the bond had been in place, Willow braced herself, drew her foot back and kicked him. Unfortunately, she didn't have any shoes on, so the effort was more pathetic than painful. She didn't even feel a twinge of his pain. But it did succeed in getting his attention.
His face morphed back into human, and his hand loosened. "How long?" was all he said.
Trying to pry his fingers from her throat, Willow answered him absently. "Until I die." Realizing what she'd said, and worried that he might take the opportunity to try rid himself of her, she hastened to add, "But... you don't want to kill me. 'Cause--"
He smiled humorlessly, pulling her closer with his hand, which was still attached to her throat. "Kill you? I don't want to kill you." His face was inches away from hers, his lips hovering just above her own. "Shag you? Maybe. Feed off of you? Definitely. Kill you? Now why would I do that, when you're my best chance at having a normal, somewhat chipless life again?"
Willow's breath caught in her throat when his lips pressed lightly to hers, once, twice. Her eyes slid shut in anticipation of the next touch, but it never came. She tried to get her emotions under control, but it was difficult when every inch of him was pressed against every inch of her. When his hands--when did his other hand get up there?--were holding her face so softly, caressing tiny circles with his thumbs. And, oh, his leg was between hers now. His lips were on her neck, sucking and nipping at the skin.
Sure, she could get her emotions under control... anytime now. In an alternate universe maybe. And if that sexy voice, owned by the gorgeous vampire seducing her, wasn't whispering in her ear. Whispering sweet-- Buffy?
"What?" Her eyes flew open and she was faced with a smirking Spike. His eyes were darkened with desire, but other than that, he was in complete control. Unlike her. She was breathing so hard she felt like she'd run a mile... an extremely pleasant mile. Focus, girl. "What?"
He chuckled deeply and disappeared into the shadows. "Buffy and the moron are here," she heard him say, then nothing.
Willow groaned. Buffy and Xander had the worst timing... Buffy and Xander? Oh, boy. What were they doing here? Giles told them not to come, so, of course, they came anyway. Rude friends. Sweet friends. The best.
Straightening her clothes, she went into her room, and ran downstairs. On her way through the foyer, she spotted the extremely noticeable bigger-than-it-was-before hickey on her neck and slapped her hand over it. Damn. Make-up? Too late. High collared shirt? Upstairs. Hair? Check!
Deep breath, open the door, and smile. "Hi, guys. What's up?"
Buffy hug. Oops, keep the hair on your neck. Xander hug. Xander inspection. Uh-oh, he's seen the hickey. Bad, really bad. He's searching the living room, must distract him.
"Hey, let's go into the kitchen. Want a soda? Some water?"
"Sure. Water's always good," Buffy said, then frowned. "Xander? Hey, nosey."
"Huh?" Xander replied, preoccupied with his not so surreptitious search. "Soda. Sure. Thanks." He finished his immediate search and was headed for the stairs, when Buffy grabbed his arm, halting him.
"Xander, what is the matter with you?" she asked in irritation. "You've been weird all day. You and Anya fighting or something?" She sat at the kitchen table, while Willow got out a bottle of water and a can of soda from the fridge. "Thanks, Will."
"Yeah, thanks, Will," Xander added. "Oh, hey. Got anything else in there? I just remembered, I'm all soda-d out." He watched her shrewdly, gauging her reaction. "I think I'm more in the mood for something... red. You know, that thing that most people find disgusting? You got any of that?"
Buffy was looking from one of them to the other, frowning in confusion. "Red stuff?"
Willow shook her head. "Oh, that stuff. Um, no. We don't have any left... of the disgusting red stuff. Sorry."
Xander shrugged, opening his soda. "Oh, well. Coke it is then."
"Red stuff?" Buffy repeated. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you guys were talking about blood. Or V8." She laughed lightly, then stopped when the other two didn't join in. "Okay. So, Giles said you were feeling blah, though he used more words, and not the actual, 'blah' word. How you doing?"
Willow smiled. "Good. I'm good. Just had a headache, is all. Not a big deal." She nodded in affirmation of her words, but Buffy and Xander were still watching her. Feeling like she had to offer more, she decided to tell them about Tara. Just not the particulars. "Um... Tara and I-- well, Tara-- we broke up." Gosh, what's that tickling her eyes? Couldn't be more tears, could it? Nah. Couldn't be that. She sniffled, and bit her lip.
"Oh, Will," Buffy said softly, "I'm so sorry." She got up to hug the other girl. "Are you all right? I mean, of course you're not all right, but... are you?" She smiled sadly, and shrugged. "Sorry. I'm bad at this kind of stuff. I'm more the action type. I could go beat her up if you want."
Willow chuckled through her tears. "No, that's okay. Thanks anyway."
Xander hugged her too, and whispered, "I'll kill him."
Willow held him still, not letting him go. "Hurt him, and you hurt me," she whispered back.
He nodded, and sat down, looking very helpless. She smiled, and ruffled his hair lightly.
"I'm better now, you guys should probably get back to your patrol... or would that be, *start* patrol?" she teased. They both looked a bit chagrined, and she laughed. "Go on. I'll be fine. I have Ben, Jerry and a few others to keep me company."
"We don't have to. Giles isn't the boss of us," Buffy said impudently.
Xander laughed at her and pointed. "Is too. Ha ha."
Buffy rolled her eyes and pouted. "Shut up." They all stood up, and headed to the front door. "Yay, patrol," she deadpanned. "I love my job." At the front door, she turned a stubborn look Willow's way. "I'll be back over afterwards though, okay?"
Willow's eyes widened in panic for a moment, before she realized she'd just have to make sure Spike wasn't around when Buffy showed up. "Um, okay," she agreed, "but no chick-flicks."
Buffy grinned. "Got ya."
Xander, once again looking around them in a very suspicious manner, turned to them with a shudder. "Me too," he told them. "I'm coming too."
Now Willow did panic. If Spike knew they were coming over, especially Xander, he'd probably stay here just to taunt him. And there was no way she could keep anything secret if Xander stuck another stake in Spike. "Um--" she bit her lip, not wanting to lie anymore than she already had, but, she couldn't take the chance of a confrontation turning deadly. She'd like to keep her life thank you very much. "You know," she said with a yawn, "I'm actually really tired tonight. Why don't-- um, we can do this tomorrow." Seeing Xander's suspicious look and Buffy's stubborn look coming back, she sighed. "Actually, I'd just sort of like some alone time tonight."
Buffy backed off with a sympathetic smile. "Okay. But tomorrow, there'll be bonding. I mean it."
Willow had to fight a giggle. "Definitely some bonding going on," she agreed.
They hugged and said their goodbyes and did the general friend banter until Xander and Buffy finally left. Willow shut the door behind them, and slumped against it, closing her eyes with a sigh.
Her eyes flew open again when an arm encircled her waist and a hand brushed her hair off of her cheek. Amusement flickered in Spike's eyes. "Miss me, pet?"
Willow shook her head mutely, determined not to let him see how he affected her.
The hand on her cheek slid down to her chest, resting just above her heart. "Liar." He grinned wickedly and kissed her with such intensity that she was left gasping for breath.
She pulled her mouth from his, and pushed against his chest. "Spike?" Instead of answering, he seemed content to lightly kiss her jaw and neck. What was it with vampires and necks? Well, duh. Still, he's constantly attached to mine, like a leech. Ew, nasty thought. And he's staring at me now. "Hi."
His mouth quirked in amusement. "Am I boring you?"
Her snort let him know just how bored she hadn't been. "No. But we need to talk about the bond, 'cause otherwise I'm gonna chicken out and not tell you, and then you'll just be angrier, and angry vampires are not the best house guests."
He pushed away from her with an impatient shrug, a hint of annoyance lighting his eyes. "Right. Well, let's hear it. How much more screwed up is my life going to get?"
She swept past him, into the living room. Dropping on the couch, she turned to face him, her jaw set in irritation. "Your life? How about mine? I'm the human here. So far, I've got the raw deal. I get the joy of all your pain. The implant's probably going to give me brain damage. And on top of that, I get the added responsibility of causing people's deaths."
He dropped into the chair across from her, a humongous sigh leaving his lips. "I don't plan on killing anyone. On purpose. It'd kill you, and most likely me right along with you. But I do intend to feed. Unless..." His gaze swept slowly over her. "Care to donate a couple times a week?"
"Most definitely not."
His shoulders lifted in an unconcerned shrug. "Then I'll just have to snack on the local population."
She glared at him, her temper rising. "Stop trying to manipulate me, you jerk."
His eyes widened in mock innocence. "Manipulate you, Willow? Certainly not. I wouldn't think of doing such a thing." A crooked smile split his face. "Okay, I am. But, it's fun."
Looking forward to taking him down a peg or two, she grinned. "Ever heard of a Proximity Bond?"
He shook his head, bored eyes lighting on his black-coated fingernails. He chipped at the polish there, flaking it off.
"Well, that's what I think we've got. It means we have to stay within five miles of each other at all times, and some kind of physical contact is needed once a week, sort of like recharging a battery or something. Gosh, poor you."
He looked up expectantly, waiting for the rest. "And?"
She frowned, disappointment lacing her words. "Not poor you? I mean, I'm not exactly mortal anymore, which means you're going to be stuck with me for what could be a really long time. Maybe even a couple of centuries. If I die, you die, and vice versa. That's not..." she fluttered her hands in front of her, "you're not mad?" She could feel a pout coming on, but she covered it with a frown. "Why aren't you mad?"
His laughter took her by surprise. She'd expected anger, fury and rage. Not laughter and amusement. "How is this a bad thing? Just... be prepared to leave town when I want, and give me a little touchy feely once a week, what's not to like?"
She jumped to her feet, anger replacing her confusion. "Oh, I think not. Little Willow gets to follow the big bad vampire around for the rest of her life?" She crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at him. "Not gonna happen. In fact... you can follow me."
"Not bloody likely," Spike shot back, his eyes pinning her in place. "And, I think I'd like to request a weekly shagging." He sniffed importantly and stood up, pacing. "Yeah. Also, I want some of your blood, at least once a week... though, I guess that could go with the shagging."
Anger didn't even begin to describe what she was feeling now. She was so far beyond anger, she was... PO'd. "That is so not gonna happen."
His smirk knew absolutely no bounds, it soared across his face like a bird. "I think it will. Way I see it, you either do what I say, or feel the pain from the implant while I snack on the local population. I might not kill anyone, but I'll make sure they hurt. A lot."
She was shaking her head almost before he started speaking. "Sorry, Spike, but I don't think so. See, I have this friend, who happens to be a Slayer, and she kills vampires like you nightly. And since she really doesn't like you all that much, despite the fact that you're in love with her, she'll kill you."
Spike rolled his eyes at her empty threat. "Kill me, kill you," he reminded her.
She crossed her arms over her chest, looking him right in the eye. "Then I die."
"You wouldn't," he taunted, narrowing his eyes at her.
"I would," she confirmed. "I'm human, I have a conscience, I'm one of the good guys. I so would."
"Fine," he sighed. "What does it matter anyway? I have no intention of leaving yet. We'll figure something out when and if one of us decides to leave. Deal?"
Willow considered it for a minute, purposely angering him with her slow agreement, before finally nodding. "Deal."
A slow smile spread across his face. "So, want to pick up where we left off?" He added a lascivious wink for good measure.
Willow scowled. Not at him unfortunately, but at her body's reaction to him. "No," she lied, "I don't."
He shrugged and went past her. "Think I'll stop by the shop for a bit. Been a while since I saw the gang. You know," he said thoughtfully, "I never did thank Xander for staking me." He tilted his head to the side. "No time like the present, right love?"
Willow shook her head and sighed, following him into the hall. He was trying to get a rise out of her. Again. What was with him? Why was he constantly trying to taunt her? Especially after his big 'don't use Buffy to taunt me' speech that first night. "I wouldn't suggest it," she told him wisely, crossing her arms over her chest.
He paused at the front door, and turned back to her. "And, uh, why not?" he questioned. He tightened his jaw in annoyance.
Willow almost smiled. He looked damn sexy, but also kinda... pouty. She kept her smile to herself and leaned against the wall. "You think Giles and Xander will greet you with open arms? You'll be lucky if they don't stake you on sight."
Spike conceded the point with a nod. "Then take a walk with me, Witch."
She found herself agreeing and out the door before she realized what she was doing. Going out into the dark night with Spike was probably not a good idea. Oh, lighten up, she told herself, he can't hurt you. A spring in her step, she strode beside the tall, blonde vampire, not looking into why she felt sort of happy. And why she was getting such a workout trying to keep up with him.
She grabbed his arm, intending to tell him to slow down, but tripped on something in the middle of the street instead. She went flying forward, landing on her hands and knees, and sliding a bit before coming to rest by the curb. Pain lanced through her palms, and knee caps, followed quickly by a burning sensation. She sat down on the curb, stretching her legs out, trying to ease the discomfort.
Spike stood in front of her, then knelt down, grabbing her hands. "Nice job," he approved. "What was that?"
She glared at him, wincing when he brushed the dirt and pebbles from her palms. "I tripped." She looked over his shoulder at the object that caused her to fall. "Oh, no," she whispered, trying to stand up.
Spike pushed her back down with a hand on her shoulder.
"But--" she pointed behind him.
"Sit. If you fall on your face, I'm not picking you up." He stood up and walked over to the object she'd tripped on. "Bugger," he muttered, bending down to look at the severed head. The body was nowhere in sight, but they didn't need it to know who--or what--it had been. "The Litchock."
Willow dropped her head into her hands, moaning not in pain, but in despair. "There goes my last hope of having the bond reversed."
"Was there actually a chance?" He reached out to pick up the head, but thought better of it, settling for kicking it gently out of the street. "Pretty eager to get rid of me, aren't you, love?"
She absently watched the head roll under a car, and sighed, lifting her eyes to his. "Yeah. I mean... aren't you? Eager to be rid of me? You can't like this."
Spike sat down next to her and lit a cigarette. Leaving it dangling from his lips, he took her hand, resuming his earlier ministrations. "Doesn't bother me that much." He sighed, looking off into the distance. "Besides, Giles will probably find a way to fix it. Doesn't he always?"
"Yeah," she agreed, brightening considerably. "He does. We all do. You're right, we'll figure it out, and things will go back to normal, and we'll be free of each other."
"Right." He tossed a look over his shoulder at the Litchock head. "Guess you'll be wanting to tell Giles about that."
Willow nodded. "I should. Tomorrow." There was no hurry. The thing was dead, it wasn't going anywhere. She frowned at herself. How callous was that? Very. "Or I can call him."
Spike rolled his eyes and stood up. "If you're not going on account of me... don't. I'm a big boy, I can occupy myself for a few hours." He leaned against the car, watching a bird fly overhead.
Willow stood up as well, and took a few tentative steps. Her knees didn't hurt too bad, and she didn't fall on her face like he'd expected her to do. Yay for her. "That's what I'm afraid of." Ever since their argument earlier, she'd been thinking about this a lot. With no pain, he was bound to feed whether it hurt her or not. So, what if she did donate a bit each night? Would that make her like Riley? Would it... make her a blood ho?
He shrugged, grinning at her. "Told you, pet, you could make donations, that way you wouldn't have to worry about it."
"Okay," she agreed quickly, before she lost her nerve.
He started coughing, and yanked his cigarette out of his mouth. "What? I didn't-- what?"
"If you're going to go out and feed off of people, hurting me through the chip, then I may as well be the one you feed off of." She bit her lip nervously. "Right?"
"Wrong," he disagreed, starting towards the magic shop. "I'm not feeding off of you." His voice was strong, determined... and he was so obviously trying to convince himself.
She sighed, sagging in relief. "Oh, thank God. I really don't think I could do that." But she didn't want to live with the pain of his chip every night either. Maybe even a few times a night... how often did a vampire feed a night? "Um, I don't suppose you'll go back to bagged blood?" she asked hopefully, leading the way down one of the dark, empty streets. He looked at her sideways, raising a scornful eyebrow. "What do you think?"
She nodded, chuckling just a little. "I didn't think so. Guess I'll have to find a spell to block the pain then."
"You think there is one?" he asked curiously, grabbing her elbow to steer her around a broken bottle.
"I don't know," she said absently. "What was that?" Pointing behind them to the pieces of brown glass in the street, she turned her astonished gaze to his.
He tossed a confused glance behind them, shrugging. "Beer bottle?" He sucked in a breath, rubbing his stomach lightly when she nudged his side.
"Oh, sorry," she winced, mirroring his movements. Her abdomen didn't hurt so much as his hurt and was causing her pain. It was also still extremely bruised and icky looking. It'd be nice if she'd gotten his faster healing. It wasn't fair. And yes, she was in the running for Whiner of the Year. "Um, anyway, I meant--" letting out her breath in a rush, she shrugged. "Nothing." If he wanted to be a gentleman, who was she to comment on it? Maybe this was his part of the bond... her courteousness? Right, she scoffed silently.
Spike watched her oddly, probably wondering what the heck she was on. "Uh-huh." Gesturing around them, he finished his cigarette and dropped it, stepping on the butt. "You do realize we're not on our way to Giles', right?"
"Darn. You noticed," she said flatly. "Of course I realize that. I just needed to-- well, I figured while I was out anyway, I should... um, I have to--" she stopped, wondering why she was embarrassed about having to go to the store. Big deal, so what? It was just that... Spike and shopping weren't words that went together. Hell, he didn't even shop for clothes apparently. Either that, or they'd had a real big sale on black jeans, and black t-shirts. Probably the five-fingered discount. "Um, I just have to--"
"Pause me to death?" he laughed. "You know, I think the blonde witch has been a bad influence on you. Made you fall back on old habits or something." Now it was his turn to nudge her.
She hardly noticed the physical pain, she was too wrapped up in the mental and psychological. Tara. She was gone. Out of Willow's life forever. "Don't have to worry about that anymore," she said softly. "I told her about the bond last night. She knew. She knew I'd cheated on her." Willow frowned, feeling the familiar guilt tear through her. "Knew that it was permanent now."
He stopped her with a hand on her shoulder, turning her to face him. "I'm sorry." He seemed as confused and stunned as she was to hear the sincerity in his voice. "I didn't set out for any of this to happen."
"I know," she assured him. "And, mostly, I don't blame you." She smiled crookedly, feeling it slip away almost before it appeared. "Tara thinks that-- well, basically she thinks I'll never be able to have a normal relationship ever again. Because of the bond."
He snorted in disbelief. "Why?" In that one scornful word, he'd managed to pack in a whole lot of distaste, catching Willow off guard. She stared up at him, a little confused. Since when did Spike hate Tara? Seeing an equally confused expression on his face, she decided not to ask him about it. Looked like he wasn't so sure himself.
"I don't know. She said something about vampires being possessive, but I don't know what she meant." I was a bit busy having my heart ripped out, she thought. Again. Now, not only was she whiny, but she was being overly dramatic as well.
Seeing the distaste once again on his face, she wondered if this wasn't what Tara had meant. Vampires were possessive, and with a bond keeping him and Willow together, he'd be even more so. But would that really bleed over into active dislike of her ex? It was worth some thought.
He didn't say anything, didn't even seem to be paying much attention to her anymore. His eyes were skyward again, on that same bird from before.
"We're bound for life. That's gotta be daunting for her, knowing I'll always be around, but she won't be." He sighed heavily. "She also knows that we--"
"You what?" a whiny, yet angry voice inquired.
Willow shared a look and an eye roll with Spike as they both turned to face the newcomer. She stood there, all long blonde hair and snotty glares. Her arms were crossed over her chest, and her foot was tapping. She looked more comical than threatening.
"Harmony," Willow greeted, not one iota of warmth in her voice.
"Willow," she greeted right back. "Spike."
Spike rolled his eyes. "Now that we all know who were are, what do you want?"
Harmony pouted, stepping closer to Spike, trying to look innocent and sweet. She failed miserably. "When I saw you with *her*," Harmony griped, "I thought you were finally getting around to killing her. I mean, I did ask you to do it two years ago, and maybe you were a little slow in doing it, or not even doing it for me, but I figured it'd be fun to watch. So I followed you, but, you're not killing her. You're just being her Xander."
"My Xander?" Willow inquired, but they both ignored her.
"Harm," Spike said angrily, "you know damn well I can't kill her."
She shrugged expansively, raising her arms out. "How was I supposed to know it was still there? Besides, I thought maybe you'd grown a backbone and overcome the pain or something. I met this guy in L.A. who said that--" Spike's hand around her throat cut her off.
"Shove off, Harm, or I'm going to kill you for good. Got it?" His face vamped out, his eyes boring into the other vampire's.
She nodded frantically, and he let her go. She gasped a few times out of habit, and backed away. "God. You're both dysfunctional, you know that? And I--"
Spike growled impatiently. "*Now*, Harm, not an hour and a half of bitching from now, you stupid bint. Get the hell away from me. And stay away."
Harmony sneered at him, her upper lip curling back like an angry dog's. "Make me."
Willow rolled her eyes again, tempted to leave the two alone to... whatever it is they were doing. Or wanted to do. Mad, passionate sex maybe? That wasn't a pleasant thought. Not so much the visuals, though that was disturbing too, what bothered her was the twinge of jealousy that jumped up and screamed, 'no!' in a tiny voice. Afraid of what that twinge meant, she turned away and continued on her journey to the store. They could duke it out alone.
Three blocks later, she heard footsteps behind her and felt a hand on her arm, halting her. Expecting Spike's impatient face, and irritated voice, she was already in an eye roll when she turned around. But, it wasn't Spike. Wasn't Harmony either.
"Tara," she whispered, stunned to see her. It was too soon. She needed more time to get over her before she faced her... in the middle of a darkened street in the middle of town. Preferably, they'd see each other in the daylight, inside, away from demons and Spikes. "What--"
"Shh," Tara said softly, raising her finger to Willow's lips. Her eyes were gentle, her smile tender as she cradled Willow's confused face in her hands.
What was going on here? She stepped back, putting some distance between them. "We broke up. You can't just come around and... do whatever it is you're doing." Her eyes filled with tears as she fought the impulse to take Tara into her arms and hold her. Kiss her.
Tara must have read her mind, because she suddenly grabbed both of Willow's wrists, pulled her closer and kissed her. Desperately. "I love you," she whispered before disappearing.
No, not disappearing, turning into a six foot tall man. And a vampire at that. He was looking a little confused... no more so than she felt at the moment. "Lady, you always kiss strange vampires?"
"Kiss?" she said incredulously, her eyes widening. "I didn't kiss-- you kissed... what the hell is going on here?" she asked no one in particular. "And where'd you come from? My girlfriend..." realizing she was talking to a completely strange... vampire, she pulled out her stake and dove at him.
He easily caught her hand, halting the stake as it pierced the flesh of his chest. They both stared at the small drops of blood appearing on his stark white shirt. His golden eyes turned to dark green, his ridged face to smooth skin. A nice handsome face stared back at her, brow furrowed in confusion again.
"Maria?" he queried. A grin split his mouth just before he grabbed her in a bear hug. "I thought you were dead, baby. God, I'm glad to see you. Immortality is boring without you."
Willow, aside from being confused and stunned, was having a little trouble breathing with his arms holding her so tightly. She mumbled her protest, squirmed a bit, and tried to get her stake out to dust him with. It was stuck firmly between them in her hand, but, he finally let her go, dropping her to her feet before pulling her along by her hand.
"Hey, hey, guy. Whatever your name is, I'm not this Maria chick, I'm Willow, and why am I telling you this?" She swung the stake around again, and once again, it was stopped by him. He looked all hurt and stuff.
"Baby, tell Jack what's wrong. You still mad that I left you behind to face the Slayer alone?" Contrition covered his face, and his eyes softened, while his voice turned cajoling. "I had to leave, sweetie. She was wicked deadly that night. And--"
"And," Willow finished for him, "tonight, I'm deadly. Buh-bye." She yanked her stake out of his chest, and stuck it back in her jeans pocket, dusting her hands off. "Ugh, vampire dust is disgusting."
"Good," Spike said, crossing the street toward her. "Then maybe you'll refrain from turning me into it any time soon."
Willow shrugged lightly, in a much better mood than before. "Maybe. Maybe not." She looked behind him, making sure there were no more vampires hanging around. Like Harmony. "Where's your bimbo babe?"
Spike glared at her as he fell into step beside her, but she could hear him laughing. "Running home to her new boyfriend 'Jack', I guess. She just spent the last two minutes extolling his virtues. And comparing me to him." He shook his head in disgust. "Needless to say, I came out lacking."
Willow burst out laughing, looking back at the pile of dust that Jack used to be. "I think he's a bit lacking now as well." She pointed to what was left of Harmony's boyfriend. "Jack's a little under the weather right now... and forever. It's probably for the best anyway. He was in love with someone else." She started off to the store again, leaving Spike to follow.
"You found out all this in the short time you were alone with him? Must've been a chatty bloke," he mused, getting in front of her and turning around to walk backwards.
"Well," she said, contemplatively, "not really. More like, um, I kissed him, apparently--"
Spike's eyes shot to hers, disbelief written all over his face. "What? You kissed him?" They were directly in front of the store now, but he stopped walking, forcing her to stop as well, or run into him. "If you're that hard up, babe, I'd be glad to--"
"The way it happened from my POV," she said loudly, talking over him, "was she kissed me. And then she was suddenly a he. I tried to stake him, but he stopped me, and then he thought I was his girlfriend Maria." Finished with her explanation, she moved around him and headed into the store.
"Wait, wait, wait." Spike ran after her, grabbing her arm as she headed into the cookie aisle. "So, what are we thinking? A spell?"
She shrugged, taking a package off the shelf and continuing down the aisle. "I don't know. You tell me. This is as new to me as it is to you." Another package of cookies and she was on her way to the beverage aisle. She handed Spike the cookies and took a couple of six packs off the shelf.
He was hardly paying attention to what she was doing or what he was carrying. His mind was on the problem of her seeing Tara in a vampire. "Has to be a spell. Or maybe some kind of reality distortion." He frowned, accepting the chips and popcorn she set on top of the cookies. "Where'd that idea come from? I don't even know what a reality distortion is. Sounds like something Dru would say," he chuckled, following her to the check out lane. This late at night, the store was mostly empty, so they were the only ones in line.
The clerk was reading a magazine and snacking on grapes. Willow set all her items on the conveyor belt and pulled Spike along with her. It was like he was in a trance, paying only minimal attention to the world around him. It was kind of annoying, actually. "Spike, hello?"
The clerk looked up briefly as she scanned the items, giving Willow a small smile in greeting. Her eyes settled on Spike and pretty much stayed there, her whole face looking years younger than her over forty or so.
Willow sighed in annoyance, wondering why everyone seemed to be taking such an interest in Spike lately... including her. But then she realized that Spike was looking back just as intently. She frowned, wondering if there was a story there that she seriously didn't want to know about, and groaned aloud when he clenched his jaw in anger.
"Dru," he bit out, circling the counter to the checker who was now more frightened than attracted. "What the hell are you doing back here? I told you I didn't--"
Willow grabbed his arm, keeping him from advancing anymore on the poor woman. "Spike, whoa, stop," she ordered, fighting to hold him there. Aside from her fine holding back qualities, he didn't even notice she was there. "Spike."
"Lady, what's his problem?" the clerk asked, backing even further away. She was practically climbing on top of the conveyor belt in her haste to get out of his reach. "Time for his medication?"
Spike snarled at her, thankfully not in his game face, and spun away. Willow quickly grabbed her groceries, tossed the money on the counter and ran after the delusional vampire. "Spike, wait... please," she panted, already winded by the time she hit the parking lot.
Spike was standing on the sidewalk, looking around in confusion, an altogether too frequent occurrence in the last half hour. "What just happened?" he asked when he saw her.
"If you're that desperate," she mocked, striding past him. "Welcome to the club of strange and unusual, hope you enjoyed your stay."
He caught up to her, another all too frequent occurrence tonight, and took one of the bags from her. "Oh. Well, wasn't that fun? Let's go drop these things off and look it up. Something's going on, and it's probably not a good thing. Never is in this town."
Willow agreed whole-heartedly. Whatever it was that was happening, seemed intent on making people think they were seeing a loved one. But, was that all, or was it a loved one they were separated from? "Spike?"
"Hmm?" He was busy digging a cigarette out of his pocket and trying to light it while holding the bag of groceries. Not an easy feat for a human, but a piece of cake for a vampire. "Yeah?"
"Do you still love her?" He looked over at her, taking a drag off his cigarette. She hefted the weight of her bag around, and switched hands. "Dru I mean, not Buffy... I know you still love Buffy. But, well, I saw Tara, and that vampire saw his girlfriend Maria, you saw Dru... so I figured we were seeing the people we loved." Her nervous tirade trailed off into silence.
His eyes shot to hers, looking a little surprised about something, but he didn't say what. "She's my sire, and the woman I spent more than a century with, of course I love her. But I'm not in love with her anymore."
That wasn't happiness shooting through her. Fighting a sudden smile, she nodded. "Okay, so maybe it's just people who are on our minds. I was thinking about Tara a few minutes before I saw her in Jack. You were thinking about Dru. Hey," she said, allowing the smile to surface, "problem solved... well, partially. Now all we have to do is figure out why we're hallucinating. And we can do that at my house, rather than paying the angry Watcher and male best friend a visit." Giving him a haughty look, she pointed down the street with her free hand. "Home, James."
"Cute. You're a funny witch."