Chapter 3: Strolling
Buffy's pale face glanced around the kitchen, feeling hung-over of sorts. The concerned face of her friend just stared blankly at her as the others that were in the house moved into view quickly, having heard the scream.
The scared voices of the potentials filled the room:
"What happened?"
"Is she okay?"
"Are we gonna die?" Vi's quivering voice asked, her eyes round with fear.
Willow shook her Head, "No, Vi, no one is going to die," glancing worriedly over at her friend, her voice shaken, "are we Buffy?"
Buffy just glanced around the room, noticing Dawn standing silent and frightened by the door, she just shook her head, regaining some composure. "No." Looking first from Willow, then to Dawn, and over the group of potentials, "at least I don't think so." Some color was coming back into her face. "It was just a dream." She lifted an eyebrow at the SIT's, letting them know she wanted no more questions. "It was just a dream, that's all."
"Now please, go back down to the basement and continue training, I'll be down soon. Okay?" The slayer's voice was firm, and the girls moved back downstairs. Only Willow and Dawn remained behind. It was Willow that broke the silence.
"Buffy, are you sure it was just a dream? I mean you know. You. Dreams. Prophecies. All that fluffy stuff? You sure it didn't mean anything?"
Buffy shook her head, crossing her arms in front of her chest, looking at the two of them. "No, I'm not sure, but. . ." Her voice trailed off. "It didn't make any sense, not really. I need to get some air, clear my head." She didn't wait for a response, in two steps she was out the back door.
As soon as she was out of their sights, her whole body shivered. Her nerves were all shot, the memory of the dream was fading quickly, but the feeling it had placed in her remained, and she couldn't shake it. She wasn't sure why, but she just didn't want to talk about it with them, not yet at least. Not until she knew if it meant anything.
She had gotten so lost in her thoughts as she walked through the back door and to the gate that she hadn't felt the familiar presence of the vampire as he approached. So lost, in fact, that she visibly jumped when he spoke, causing her to shiver once more, but not causing her to break her stride.
"Slayer, you okay?" His voice was laced with concern as he began to move in time with her, "It's not healthy to walk in your sleep you know pet, all kinds of nasties just waiting to sink their teeth in you, you know." He would have smirked if she had given any inclination that she had heard a word he said, but the only acknowledgement she gave was a slight, hmm.
Her grabbed her shoulder and turned her to face him, looking right into her, "Bloody hell, Slayer! Snap out of it. What's going through your bleedin' skull?" He held her gaze for a moment as she seemed to finally realize he was even there.
"Spike?" *Yeah Spike, of course Spike, always Spike.* She thought, slowly her mind drifting back down to her body. "Sorry, I was just," She shrugged.
He lifted a scarred eyebrow at her, "Out for a stroll?" The old smirk playing on his lips again as he realized she would be fine.
A slight chuckle in her throat *Why could he make her feel better?* "Something like that." She smiled lightly, realizing that he was right; walking around like that she could get herself killed, or worse.
They walked a few more paces in silence, before she stopped at a bench, leaning against it. "I had a dream, a strange one. It just had me a little out of sorts."
He sat himself down on the backrest of the bench, feet planted on the bench itself, absentmindedly twining and untwining the fingers of his hands. "That bad, eh?" He titled his head towards her, thinking she even looked beautiful under the dankness of the streetlight. "I've had a few of those myself lately. Bad dreams. Always come when you least expect them and when you least need them it seems."
She glanced over at him, gauging him momentarily, his features appeared softer then they use to, the subtle look of longing in his eyes. She turned her head away from those eyes, glancing up towards the sky. "Tell me about it." She breathed out, agreeing with him, and then for no reason she could really see, she began telling him what she remembered of the dream, separating herself from it as she spoke, making the memory less personal somehow, and more like a rerun of some bad TV show.
He just listened intently, watching her, breathing her in as she spoke, having missed her talking to him like this. *Like a friend.* Like someone she trusted. *God, could she trust me like that again* He hadn't thought it would be possible. Helping her out with the little birds was one thing. He served a purpose then, a bright shining example of the Big Bad. Silently he chided himself; no she wouldn't trust him like that for a long while, if ever. But times like this at least gave him hope. Inwardly he smiled.
When she was finished her tale, he asked the question she least thought he would. "So tell me pet, any particular reason you were sleeping on the kitchen counter in the first place?""
"Oh, well, I had a headache, so I took some aspirin." Backtracking a minute, "well first I had to find the stuff, seems Andrew had pilfered it for his own. . ."
It dawned on her, "Andrew." The word came out like a cursed whisper. "If he did anything to those pills," anger filling up her voice, but the things she would do to him if he had tried anything were to numerous to name, she stormed back towards the house.
Spike could practically see the steam billowing off of her. *Oh, this will be fun, * Spike chuckled to himself and headed off at a trot after her.
Buffy's pale face glanced around the kitchen, feeling hung-over of sorts. The concerned face of her friend just stared blankly at her as the others that were in the house moved into view quickly, having heard the scream.
The scared voices of the potentials filled the room:
"What happened?"
"Is she okay?"
"Are we gonna die?" Vi's quivering voice asked, her eyes round with fear.
Willow shook her Head, "No, Vi, no one is going to die," glancing worriedly over at her friend, her voice shaken, "are we Buffy?"
Buffy just glanced around the room, noticing Dawn standing silent and frightened by the door, she just shook her head, regaining some composure. "No." Looking first from Willow, then to Dawn, and over the group of potentials, "at least I don't think so." Some color was coming back into her face. "It was just a dream." She lifted an eyebrow at the SIT's, letting them know she wanted no more questions. "It was just a dream, that's all."
"Now please, go back down to the basement and continue training, I'll be down soon. Okay?" The slayer's voice was firm, and the girls moved back downstairs. Only Willow and Dawn remained behind. It was Willow that broke the silence.
"Buffy, are you sure it was just a dream? I mean you know. You. Dreams. Prophecies. All that fluffy stuff? You sure it didn't mean anything?"
Buffy shook her head, crossing her arms in front of her chest, looking at the two of them. "No, I'm not sure, but. . ." Her voice trailed off. "It didn't make any sense, not really. I need to get some air, clear my head." She didn't wait for a response, in two steps she was out the back door.
As soon as she was out of their sights, her whole body shivered. Her nerves were all shot, the memory of the dream was fading quickly, but the feeling it had placed in her remained, and she couldn't shake it. She wasn't sure why, but she just didn't want to talk about it with them, not yet at least. Not until she knew if it meant anything.
She had gotten so lost in her thoughts as she walked through the back door and to the gate that she hadn't felt the familiar presence of the vampire as he approached. So lost, in fact, that she visibly jumped when he spoke, causing her to shiver once more, but not causing her to break her stride.
"Slayer, you okay?" His voice was laced with concern as he began to move in time with her, "It's not healthy to walk in your sleep you know pet, all kinds of nasties just waiting to sink their teeth in you, you know." He would have smirked if she had given any inclination that she had heard a word he said, but the only acknowledgement she gave was a slight, hmm.
Her grabbed her shoulder and turned her to face him, looking right into her, "Bloody hell, Slayer! Snap out of it. What's going through your bleedin' skull?" He held her gaze for a moment as she seemed to finally realize he was even there.
"Spike?" *Yeah Spike, of course Spike, always Spike.* She thought, slowly her mind drifting back down to her body. "Sorry, I was just," She shrugged.
He lifted a scarred eyebrow at her, "Out for a stroll?" The old smirk playing on his lips again as he realized she would be fine.
A slight chuckle in her throat *Why could he make her feel better?* "Something like that." She smiled lightly, realizing that he was right; walking around like that she could get herself killed, or worse.
They walked a few more paces in silence, before she stopped at a bench, leaning against it. "I had a dream, a strange one. It just had me a little out of sorts."
He sat himself down on the backrest of the bench, feet planted on the bench itself, absentmindedly twining and untwining the fingers of his hands. "That bad, eh?" He titled his head towards her, thinking she even looked beautiful under the dankness of the streetlight. "I've had a few of those myself lately. Bad dreams. Always come when you least expect them and when you least need them it seems."
She glanced over at him, gauging him momentarily, his features appeared softer then they use to, the subtle look of longing in his eyes. She turned her head away from those eyes, glancing up towards the sky. "Tell me about it." She breathed out, agreeing with him, and then for no reason she could really see, she began telling him what she remembered of the dream, separating herself from it as she spoke, making the memory less personal somehow, and more like a rerun of some bad TV show.
He just listened intently, watching her, breathing her in as she spoke, having missed her talking to him like this. *Like a friend.* Like someone she trusted. *God, could she trust me like that again* He hadn't thought it would be possible. Helping her out with the little birds was one thing. He served a purpose then, a bright shining example of the Big Bad. Silently he chided himself; no she wouldn't trust him like that for a long while, if ever. But times like this at least gave him hope. Inwardly he smiled.
When she was finished her tale, he asked the question she least thought he would. "So tell me pet, any particular reason you were sleeping on the kitchen counter in the first place?""
"Oh, well, I had a headache, so I took some aspirin." Backtracking a minute, "well first I had to find the stuff, seems Andrew had pilfered it for his own. . ."
It dawned on her, "Andrew." The word came out like a cursed whisper. "If he did anything to those pills," anger filling up her voice, but the things she would do to him if he had tried anything were to numerous to name, she stormed back towards the house.
Spike could practically see the steam billowing off of her. *Oh, this will be fun, * Spike chuckled to himself and headed off at a trot after her.