Buffy had been hiding from Charlie ever since. She just couldn't take the fact that this girl had been so intuitive and blunt to the facts. When she herself couldn't even will her mind to think about them.
Charlie had almost expected Spike to ask her to apologize to Buffy for what was spoken. But he never did, Charlie understood that she had helped, in a weird tough love kind of way but still helped. Besides even if he had asked she would not have apologized for the truth of opinion. Although Buffy had been keeping her distance, Charlie got the distinct impression her actions were thanked.
"You don't want to come?"
"Ice cream's not really my type of comfort food." Charlie answered the questioning Willow. The redhead and the construction worker had gathered everyone in to an expensive trip to get ice cream cones, with the exception of Spike (who doesn't eat, "Why waste good money?"), Buffy ("It will go straight to my thighs"), and Charlie ("It will go straight to Buffy's thighs.").
"Alright, well if you're sure..." Willow trailed as Kennedy walked up. Discreetly taking Willows hand,
"We best get going if we want to be back before 8." With that the crew of at least 20 all huddled out. Charlie enjoyed the silence as much as the next person did but it really wasn't her style. She felt like singing and Dawn had a killer music system in her room...
"Ah silence." Buffy murmured as she lay down lopsidedly on the couch. Spike had practically barricaded the basement door with boxes. He insisted on cleaning whilst no one was around to bother him.
"You don't have to do this." Buffy insisted.
"Yea, I realize that, Slayer. But if I am going to be spending my days down here I can at least appreciate a little order." With that Buffy sighed,
"Well less work for me." And walked away, Spike smiled at her retreating form. He really had not cared at all what a mess the basement was in now a days. But Buffy deserved a little quiet time, away from all those pesky potentials and even peskier friends.
About five minutes into her silent reverie Buffy hears the sound of creaking floorboards from the kitchen. She paid no attention, thinking it must just be Spike lurking like he was known to do. But then someone dashed up the stairs with only a slight tap, padding rustle of something touching the wooden steps. Without slayer hearing, Buffy would have been oblivious to this, the fast motion had not stirred the air.
There is someone in the house. Buffy though her mind ripped from relaxation to hyper slayer mode. Not knowing what could have produced such a stealthy retreat up the stairs she crept softy to the basement.
"Spike." She whispered as she opened the door. She found him sitting on the floor amidst a pile of cardboard boxes. He stared at a handful of something fluffy and light pink. A box labeled 'baby toys' between his legs. At any other time this would have made her smile.
"Really Slayer do you throw anything out?" He responded not picking up on her quietness.
"SHHH!" She quieted him loudly. "There is something in the house other than you and me." Spike's brow furrowed, soon he was on his feet, ready for some action if the situation called for it.
"Where did it go?" He whispered back, Buffy was amazed at how seductive his voice was in a whisper before a delayed answer of,
"Up stairs." Softy they took each step as if it was there last. Spike stood in the lead, doing the manly 'stay behind me' routine. Standing on the landing, each bedroom door staring them in the face. Not a sound, not a clue to which room it could be in. And then, a click, some whirring as if something was spinning, and a weird rhythmic beat emanated from a door.
"Dawn's room." Buffy stated. She stepped to the side of Spike. Each stands on either side of the white door. A nod shared between them as the sound got louder. They burst open the door in fighting stance. Keeping their positions, they eyeballed the room. The weird rhythm was coming from Dawn's cd player. Buffy walked up to it.
"A demon that wanted to listen to music?" Then a voice was heard in the speakers. Definitely not an English song but catchy.
"Russian." Spike pointed out. And then a soft mimicking singing voice was heard down the hall. Charlie walked into the room filing her nails and singing in Russian. She looked up and lifted her eyebrows.
"Charlie? You didn't go to get ice cream?" Buffy asked.
"Never mind that, there is something in the house." Spike said urgently.
"Uh, no I didn't go. And no there isn't. I've been searching this house for a nail file for the past 10 minutes. Until a second ago I bet I could find a demon in here faster than one of these." She held up the nail file. Spike smiled, Buffy had just been paranoid.
"But you, you couldn't have gotten up the steps so silently." Buffy defended. Charlie looked guilty for a second as she looked down at the ground avoiding eye contact. And then looking up.
"I just didn't want to disturb you, I mean you've been training all the damn time. Really I think your over working yourself." Charlie answered.
//It was true// She thought, //but that could have been bad. Got to be more careful since I just can't tell them. No I just don't want them to know. No one would trust me if I did.//
"Eh. Ok." Buffy was a little skeptical but Charlie was Charlie. "Well, I'm beat, think I will go take a nap. Night." And she walked out.
Charlie let out a sigh of relief a new song had come on, one more upbeat. She sat down on the floor, leaning against the footer of Dawn's twin bed. Spike stood looking down at her, she seemed sort of troubled for a second there.
"So what's this then?"
"Hmm? Oh. I felt like singing." Charlie answered being pulled away from filing her nails and some intense (and very vague) thinking.
"Do you speak Russian, pet?" As he listened to the foreign language.
"Yea, I was born somewhere in Pennsylvania, but then we set sail. Landed in Aleksandrov-Gaj, Russia."
"You've been to so many places I take it." Spike replied interested.
"Well there were circumstances." Spike didn't want to indulge into those circumstances. He had met a few gypsies in his days they were committed to each other, most known for their skills as thieves...
