Chapter Sixteen

Talking About Draco

Buffy was waiting in their room when Spike returned from his talk with Draco. From her body language and the feigned innocent look on her face he knew that he would have some explaining to do about Cecily. He could have sworn she had known, but as he thought about it, she would have said something about it earlier.

"How's Draco?"

"Fine. The kid's been given a lot to think about. Not to mention, Whistler talked to him."

"Whistler, huh?" She asked distractedly.

Spike sighed, he knew this conversation was only prolonging the argument that was to come. "Yeah. Told the kid he could be someone to be counted."
"Is that so?"

The blond vampire quirked an eyebrow up. "Out with it, luv."

"Out with what?"

He pinched his nose in an odd Giles-like manner, then inwardly berated himself for allowing the watcher to rub off on him. "Whatever it is that's got your knickers in a twist."
"My knickers huh?"

"Luv, you mind not repeating what I say and ask me about what you want to know?"

"When did you find out that Halfrek was Cecily?"

"After the wedding fiasco."

"That long ago and you never told me?!"

"Well, if you remember, we weren't exactly talking at that time!"

Buffy's demeanor suddenly shifted and she dropped her gaze to the floor and she softly asked, "Did you two...I mean did you ever..."

"Sleep with her?"

She silently nodded.

Spike suddenly understood. He took her into his arms and kissed the top of her head. "Nothing happened, luv. We talked one night that's all. I'm a different person than William and I don't see her like that anymore. I love you, why would I ever want her?"

"Because she's a demon and she could be by your side forever," came Buffy's muffled reply.

He pulled away from Buffy and lifted her chin so he could look directly into her tear filled hazel eyes. Pouring all the emotion he felt for her into his blue eyes and voice, he said, "I love you, Buffy, not her. I would not have gone through the claiming process if I didn't love you. You are the only one I want to be with."

"Really?" Buffy asked tearfully.

"Really really." Spike said with a smile. He leaned down and kissed her gently. "Why don't we get some sleep? It's been a long day."

Buffy looked up at him with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Why don't you show me how much you love me instead?"

"With pleasure," Spike said with a smile. "With pleasure."

******

Down the hall, Willow and Tara were having their own conversation about the information unveiled that evening.

"Wow. Imagine, Spike a Malfoy," Tara said with some surprise. "No wonder he knew so much about their family history."

"Yeah. To think he was a poet too," Willow said with a giggle.

"I knew he was artistic by his aura. It always shimmered faintly on the edges."

"Really? Why didn't you ever say anything?"

"Wasn't my place," Tara said with a shrug. "For all I knew it was something that he wanted to keep just for himself and those he held close."

"I could see why if it's true that he was terrible at it."

"So do you really think Draco is trying to change?"

"I don't know," Willow answered, chewing on her lower lip in thought. "He seemed genuinely upset that Spike didn't tell him that they were related and wasn't helping him."

"You would think that Spike would have been more sympathetic to him cause he had gone though the same thing."
"I know, but he tends to be overprotective of Buffy and Dawn. He probably only saw Draco as a possible threat to their safety."

"True. But Dawn trusts him and she's usually a pretty good judge of character."

"Except that one Halloween when she went out with that vampire," Willow pointed out.

Tara laughed. "I can't believe she didn't know he was one after spending so much time with Spike."

"I know. You would have thought the low body temperature would have been a dead giveaway. Pun definitely intended." Willow said, joining in with her lover's laughter.

After their laughter died down, Tara turned serious again. "I hope it wasn't a mistake telling Draco about the key."

"Me too."

********

Anya, Xander, and Giles stayed in the scoobies common room after everyone else had gone to bed, talking quietly. After Spike had returned and gone up to the room he shared with Buffy, Xander stood and began pacing.

"I don't like this G-man."

"Xander, I have repeatedly asked you not to call me that."

Not hearing a word Giles said, Xander continued. "I don't trust this kid, he's up to something."

"What makes you say that?" Giles asked.

"Cause he's a Malfoy! Buffy told me the kid admitted to her that his father is a death eater. He's spying on us for his dark lord."

"Oh Xander, shut up."

"Ahn!"

"Can't you ever believe someone when they say they want to change?"

"My distrust of strangers has kept me alive for the past twenty-two years."

"It's also what kept me an arms length from you!"

"This isn't about me, it's about Draco!"

"Oh yeah, always turning the conversation from yourself. Xander when are you ever going to grow up?"

"What do you mean, grow up?"

"I know it's hard for you to think about truly letting someone join your little clique, let alone actually let them in."

"Every time we let someone in, something happens! Angel turned into Angelus, Oz left Willow devastated, Tara nearly died causing Willow to go evil, Dawn brought Glory and Buffy's death, Faith betrayed us, and all the girls have broken my heart!"

Rage burned in Anya's eyes and she unconsciously morphed into her demon form. "Correction Harris. It was you who left me at the altar. It was you who broke my heart. It was you who caused me so much pain that D'Hoffryn offered me my old job back. That is what I meant when I told you to grow up. Accept the responsibilities of your actions." With that, she spun on her heel and stomped off to her room.

Xander turned to Giles with confusion in his eyes. "What the hell was that?"

Giles simply said, "She's right." Then he, too, left the room. Leaving Xander standing there wondering how he ended up with all the blame.

********

In the Gryffindor Tower, Dawn lay in her bed staring out her window. She absently petted Latyar, her sugar glider, who lay on her chest. So many things had happened in the past week that she was feeling slightly overwhelmed.

First that weird incident in the forest followed by that strange dream about Doyle. Then the magic of the key was manifesting in more ways than with just her wand. And to top it off, one of her best friends hadn't told her all about his past.

She sighed. Life just couldn't be easy could it? Then to make matters worse, there were these weird butterflies in her stomach whenever she thought of or saw Draco. Damn, there they are again. What's up with that?

True, the boy was gorgeous and had a body to die for. The accent was especially yummy, although everyone here had one except for the scoobies. Then there were those gray eyes that she could just drown in.

Stupid girl! Remember you like Harry! That sweet boy who didn't change his attitude towards her when she told him she wasn't always human. Although Draco hadn't changed his behavior either. Just kept his gaze firmly fixed on her whenever she was in the same room. Didn't matter if it was during training sessions or meals in the Great Hall.

Harry! Remember Harry! Dawn closed her eyes and tried to visualize Harry. But instead of messy black hair and an easy smile, she saw slicked back pale blond hair and strong chiseled features. Her eyes flew open.

"Grrr. Why do my thoughts always drift to him?" She asked Latyar quietly. The sugar glider just looked at her with wide, trusting eyes. "You're no help."

What Dawn really needed was a girl friend to be able to talk to about this. She instantly dismissed the scoobies cause it would just feel weird talking to them about it, kind of like talking to a parent. She then thought about Hermione and Ginny. She had grown pretty close to both girls over the past month and a half, but were they close enough to be able to talk about a major guy problem like this? Not to mention that one of their best friends was one of her problem, and the other their enemy.

Dawn sighed again. Ginny wasn't as close to Harry as Hermione was so it would probably be the easiest to talk to her. Oh, crap! Ginny has that crush on Harry. At least she used to, Dawn hadn't seen any signs of it all year. Maybe she was over him which would make it ok to talk to her. Dawn decided to ask her tomorrow on the way to quidditch practice.

*****

Dawn caught up with Ginny just as she was exiting Gryffindor Tower.

"Hey Gin!" Can I talk to you about something?"

Ginny stopped and let Dawn catch up. "Sure, what's wrong?" She asked as they started walking together.

Suddenly, Dawn hesitated. How was she going to be able to talk about this without really saying any names? Deciding on a tactic she said, "I have this friend..."

"Uh huh," Ginny said knowingly. She knew that was the universal statement for this is about me, but I don't really want to embarrass myself by saying so.

Dawn inwardly groaned, she knew that plan wasn't going to work so she tried again. "Alright, I have this little problem."

Ginny smiled brightly, "See, that wasn't so bad. Now, what's wrong?"

"I like this guy who is one of the nicest, sweetest, cutest guys I've ever met."

The smile vanished from Ginny's face. She knew that Dawn was talking about Harry, that description fit him to a tee. But she thought that Dawn knew about her crush on the boy that lived. Maybe this was Dawn's way of making sure it was okay with her that she pursued Harry.

Ginny was so lost in her thoughts that she almost missed Dawn saying, "but now I think I like someone else. He's all I ever think about. I even see him in my dreams."

A new guy? Hmm, maybe I have more of a chance with Harry than I thought. "So, what's the problem?"

"Let's just say this other guy isn't exactly 'take home' material."

"Take home material?" Ginny asked with a look of utter confusion.

"He's a bad boy. One that your parents would forbid you to go out with once they've met him."

"Oh," Ginny said in sudden understanding. "Who is it?"

"I really don't want to say."

"Oh come on, you can tell me."

"Promise you won't tell anyone else?"

Ginny nodded and said, "Promise."

Dawn took a deep breath then said, "Draco."

The redhead stopped dead in her tracks and dropped her broom. "Draco Malfoy?!"

"Shh!" Dawn said as she looked around to see if anyone heard. "Yes, Draco Malfoy. How many other Draco's do you know?"

"But why?"

"I don't know. You know, people don't really have a say in who they're attracted to." They started walking again after Ginny picked up her broom.

"Draco Malfoy," Ginny said again, this time with slight wonderment. "He is kind of hot, now that I think about it. He's got a good build, and a rather sexy smirk."

Dawn felt a surge of jealousy. "Been eyeing my man huh?"

Ginny looked at Dawn then suddenly laughed. "Oh yeah. You've got it bad."

"I know, sorry about that."

"It's okay." She paused before saying, "So Draco huh?"

"Yeah. I think there is more to him than what other people see 'cause they never take the time to try. There is so much behind his Malfoy defenses."

"So, what are you going to do about it?"

"About what?"

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Your crush on Draco."

"It's not a crush!" Dawn said hotly, then calmed down. "I've had those before. I think this is something deeper, I just don't know what it is."

"I ask again, what are you going to do about it?"

"For now, nothing. I don't want to scare him, and he needs time to adjust to everything he's learned about himself. I really don't want to add to the chaos in his life."

"I understand," Ginny said as they reached the field. "But don't wait too long."
"Don't wait too long for what?" Harry asked as he approached them.

"Nothing," Dawn said as she got on her broom and took off.

"What was that about?" He asked Ginny.

She simply replied, "Girl stuff," and took off.

**********

That evening during dinner, Draco sat at the end of the Slytherin table by himself. For the past two months he had been slowly distancing himself from his so-called friends. By now they were used to him eating by himself and disappearing for several eyes every night.

He knew that it wouldn't be long before his father received word about the change of guardianship. Once that happened he knew he would have to watch his step around his housemates. He doubted that anyone would directly attack him since it would be highly suspicious, but he wouldn't put it past them to try something devious.