A/N: Well, finally I decided to type up chapter four! Please forgive any infrequency in updates- I'm usually really busy during the week, so weekends are the time when I have to catch up on fanfiction.
Disclaimer: The psychiatrist says I should learn to deal with my denial issues, so here it is...**deep breath** I don't own Buffy! **Sobs** There, I said it, you happy now?!
Dedication: FanFreak, the only person who reviewed the last chapter! By the way, loved your spoof fic- lol! Are there gonna be any more chapters? There usually are in these terrible kind of stories...y'know, the whole 'Buffy mourns for Spike' etc. thingy. BTW, all you other people: go read FanFreak's 'Luv in a Alley' to understand what I'm on about. It rocks!
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The Bronze.
It was the same as almost every time Gracia came in: the play of light and shadow across the wall, the chatter and looks under the throb of the music, the crush of too many people on the dance floor.
She glanced around as she slipped in the door, scanning for her friends. She eventually located Luke near the stage where the band were performing, apparently annoying the hell out of Bridget Hadley, the resident airhead leader. Keisha wasn't anywhere to be seen.
Choosing to leave Luke to his fun, she decided to go up onto the balcony-type structure to try to find Keisha. Humming along to the loud song that was being played at the moment, she slowly made her way up the stairs and onto the balcony, leaning against the railing and hugging her elbows as she looked around.
She hadn't been up there even a minute before she heard a familiar voice.
"Slayer."
Gracia smiled and glanced over her shoulder. "Hey Spike. What's up?"
The bleached vampire moved next to her, lighting up a cigarette and taking a drag. "Where's your support group then?"
She laughed slightly and gestured to the lower level. "Down there somewhere. Still looking." She shot him a sideways look. "Haven't seen you in a while. How're you doing?"
He snorted, stubbing out the cigarette on the metal of the railing and flicking the end over it. "Better than you will be, love."
She turned and looked at him properly then, one hand still rested upon the barrier. "What's that supposed to mean?"
He laughed again and stepped past her, leaning down to whisper in her ear, "I guess you'll just have to wait to find out then, pet." Then he straightened with a cocky grin and moved away.
Gracia whipped around as soon as he wasn't so close that it made her head spin. "Spike, just-"
Too late. He wasn't there. Anywhere.
Gracia swore under her breath, wondering how the hell he managed that. Just like Angel does, her mind mused, somewhat irritably. Damn it, damn it, damn it...
"Hey, Gracia!"
She turned abruptly again, eyes darting around until they fell on Luke, standing halfway up the staircase with a huge grin on his face. His good mood was contagious, and she found her frustration at Spike clearing up immediately as she returned the expression and headed down towards him.
"Hi Luke!" They were conversing louder than she had been with Spike, but then Luke didn't have vampiric hearing.
"How long have you been here?" He took her arm by the elbow, gently steering her down the stairs and through some of the clusters of teenagers towards an empty table near the wall. "I didn't see you come in."
"Ah, too busy with Bridget Hadley." she jokingly reprimanded. "Now, what have we-"
"Aw, c'mon Gracia! Like I'm supposed to NOT react when she's on tenterhooks about something! It's like a sin or something."
"And you always were the saintly one, huh?" She giggled as he made a mock-saintly face, hands pressed together as though in prayer. "Hey, where's Keisha anyways?"
"Oh, around." He shrugged nonchalantly. "We came here, I headed to chat with Bridget, Keisha..."
"What about me?"
Luke jumped and spun around, causing Gracia to suppress another giggle at the pretend-shock on his face (which was probably half-real). "Man, Keish, don't do that! You trying to give me a heart attack or somethin'?"
"Well," she said, attempting to look deep in thought. "It might get rid of one problem in my life, so maybe it's not such a bad idea..." She cracked a grin and sat down beside Gracia.
Conversation flowed easily, and Gracia was glad to have the chance to relax. She hadn't seen any odd behaviour that might have hinted at vampiric activity and, even though she'd head off for a patrol later, she didn't expect to see anything. Things had been quiet for so long.
Absorbed in the talk, she didn't notice the man standing next to her until Keisha looked away towards him, then at the table, cheeks starting to redden slightly.
Gracia glanced up quickly, the instinct tension fading instantly as she saw who it was. "Hi Angel."
"Hey Gracey." He called her by her nickname again, as always: the nickname she'd had before- right before. He then looked at the twins and nodded. "Luke, Keisha."
Luke nodded back. Keisha kept her gaze firmly adverted, finding her voice enough for a shy "Hey."
Gracia gestured to one of the empt seats by the table. "Sit down. What's up?"
Angel accepted the offer before saying, "I could ask you the same question."
Gracia blinked. "What do you mean?"
She could see worry lurking in his eyes. "I've seen Spike."
"Oh?" she replied politely, then blinked as realisation hit her. "Oh..."
"He mentioned that he'd spoken to you about something." Angel's tone was questioning. "That was all I really got from him before he took off. I was wondering if he threatened you or something." The last sentence held a tone of the protectiveness which glinted briefly in his eyes, and Keisha glanced up at him for a moment before looking back down.
Gracia shook her head. "No. He wouldn't." Ignoring the slightly disbeliving expression on her brother's face, she continued, "All he said was something about leaving me to find out about something."
"What?" Angel was deadly serious. "He knows something might be after you?"
The Slayer shrugged. "He was probably drunk. That's not unusual."
"Gracey, this could be serious..."
"And it could not be." Gracia bit her tongue as soon as she said it. She hadn't meant to sound so snappish. She took a deep breath at his slightly hurt look. "Sorry. I didn't mean it like that. I'm just saying that...well, if something bad was going to happen, we'd get a sign, right? There'd be more than just Spike saying that."
"Gracia's got a point there." Luke added in, causing everyone to look at him. He shrugged. "I mean that Spike probably isn't the most reliable of sources."
Angel didn't look all that convinced, but knew he'd have to drop it. "Well, be careful. I'll patrol with you tonight."
She nodded- it was better to have someone, anyone, with you. It sure got boring out there sometimes when you were alone with only the newly risen to talk to, and they weren't the best of conversationalists. "Thanks."
The band struck up a new song at that point, one that Gracia had heard a few times before and quite liked. She rose. "I'm gonna go dance. Be back in a minute."
She departed pretty quickly. Luke looked between the silent pair he was sharing the table with: Angel, lost in thought, and Keisha, still extremely interested in the table. A sudden thought struck him and he grinned to himself, before getting up without a word and heading the way Gracia had.
The noise of him doing this caused both the teenager and the vampire to glance up quickly, but he had already gone. They looked at each other uncertainly. Keisha could feel the colour rising in her cheeks and she mentally cursed herself.
Dammit! Why can't I say anything interesting or clever or funny to him...heck, why can't I ever even talk to him?
He gave her his gorgeous half-smile, and Keisha felt her gaze drop again.
Gracia, meanwhile, was lost in the crowds of people on the dance floor, and thoroughly enjoying herself. It was then that she noticed a guy standing near the bar, whose wandering gaze met hers. He smiled and tipped his head as though gesturing for her to come over. She returned the smile and the gesture. With what looked like a laugh and a small shake of his head, hecame over to meet her halfway.
"I was wondering if I'd ever seen you here before." He spoke close to her ear so she could hear him. His voice had a strange quality to it, almost as though his accent didn't quite fit. Not that she, who still had a strong Irish accent, was really one to talk about the subject.
"Maybe." She shrugged, studying him closely. "Depends on how often you come here."
He wasn't that much older than her, nineteen perhaps, with black hair and eyes which she thought were dark blue, although, in the moving shadows of the lighting, it was hard to tell.
"You certainly are noticeable. With a face that pretty, it'd be hard not to be." His voice had a different tone in it now, one she wasn't sure she liked, and it was that which made her step back with a laugh.
"This is some lame come-on, right?" She raised an eyebrow. "You need some more decent lines." Turning to go, she didn't expect him to lay a hand on her arm.
"No, don't go, please." Gracia glanced over her shoulder to see the guy rubbing the back of his neck with one hand. "I...I'm sorry. I didn't mean it to come out like that." His eyes showed a sincerity which made her feel a bit sorry for him, although not enough to fully believe him.
"Whatever." Her voice wasn't unkind. "Just don't try it again." She pulled her arm from his grasp and moved back over the dance floor, even though she heard his last words.
"I hope I'll see you again."
Gracia rolled her eyes at this and carried on, totally missing his wicked grin as he whispered to himself, "I really hope so, Slayer..."
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Guess who? Heheheheh...time to leave you! Leave your reviews by clicking on the button below- let's try to get more than Second Chance did! C'mon, target here! ;-D
Disclaimer: The psychiatrist says I should learn to deal with my denial issues, so here it is...**deep breath** I don't own Buffy! **Sobs** There, I said it, you happy now?!
Dedication: FanFreak, the only person who reviewed the last chapter! By the way, loved your spoof fic- lol! Are there gonna be any more chapters? There usually are in these terrible kind of stories...y'know, the whole 'Buffy mourns for Spike' etc. thingy. BTW, all you other people: go read FanFreak's 'Luv in a Alley' to understand what I'm on about. It rocks!
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The Bronze.
It was the same as almost every time Gracia came in: the play of light and shadow across the wall, the chatter and looks under the throb of the music, the crush of too many people on the dance floor.
She glanced around as she slipped in the door, scanning for her friends. She eventually located Luke near the stage where the band were performing, apparently annoying the hell out of Bridget Hadley, the resident airhead leader. Keisha wasn't anywhere to be seen.
Choosing to leave Luke to his fun, she decided to go up onto the balcony-type structure to try to find Keisha. Humming along to the loud song that was being played at the moment, she slowly made her way up the stairs and onto the balcony, leaning against the railing and hugging her elbows as she looked around.
She hadn't been up there even a minute before she heard a familiar voice.
"Slayer."
Gracia smiled and glanced over her shoulder. "Hey Spike. What's up?"
The bleached vampire moved next to her, lighting up a cigarette and taking a drag. "Where's your support group then?"
She laughed slightly and gestured to the lower level. "Down there somewhere. Still looking." She shot him a sideways look. "Haven't seen you in a while. How're you doing?"
He snorted, stubbing out the cigarette on the metal of the railing and flicking the end over it. "Better than you will be, love."
She turned and looked at him properly then, one hand still rested upon the barrier. "What's that supposed to mean?"
He laughed again and stepped past her, leaning down to whisper in her ear, "I guess you'll just have to wait to find out then, pet." Then he straightened with a cocky grin and moved away.
Gracia whipped around as soon as he wasn't so close that it made her head spin. "Spike, just-"
Too late. He wasn't there. Anywhere.
Gracia swore under her breath, wondering how the hell he managed that. Just like Angel does, her mind mused, somewhat irritably. Damn it, damn it, damn it...
"Hey, Gracia!"
She turned abruptly again, eyes darting around until they fell on Luke, standing halfway up the staircase with a huge grin on his face. His good mood was contagious, and she found her frustration at Spike clearing up immediately as she returned the expression and headed down towards him.
"Hi Luke!" They were conversing louder than she had been with Spike, but then Luke didn't have vampiric hearing.
"How long have you been here?" He took her arm by the elbow, gently steering her down the stairs and through some of the clusters of teenagers towards an empty table near the wall. "I didn't see you come in."
"Ah, too busy with Bridget Hadley." she jokingly reprimanded. "Now, what have we-"
"Aw, c'mon Gracia! Like I'm supposed to NOT react when she's on tenterhooks about something! It's like a sin or something."
"And you always were the saintly one, huh?" She giggled as he made a mock-saintly face, hands pressed together as though in prayer. "Hey, where's Keisha anyways?"
"Oh, around." He shrugged nonchalantly. "We came here, I headed to chat with Bridget, Keisha..."
"What about me?"
Luke jumped and spun around, causing Gracia to suppress another giggle at the pretend-shock on his face (which was probably half-real). "Man, Keish, don't do that! You trying to give me a heart attack or somethin'?"
"Well," she said, attempting to look deep in thought. "It might get rid of one problem in my life, so maybe it's not such a bad idea..." She cracked a grin and sat down beside Gracia.
Conversation flowed easily, and Gracia was glad to have the chance to relax. She hadn't seen any odd behaviour that might have hinted at vampiric activity and, even though she'd head off for a patrol later, she didn't expect to see anything. Things had been quiet for so long.
Absorbed in the talk, she didn't notice the man standing next to her until Keisha looked away towards him, then at the table, cheeks starting to redden slightly.
Gracia glanced up quickly, the instinct tension fading instantly as she saw who it was. "Hi Angel."
"Hey Gracey." He called her by her nickname again, as always: the nickname she'd had before- right before. He then looked at the twins and nodded. "Luke, Keisha."
Luke nodded back. Keisha kept her gaze firmly adverted, finding her voice enough for a shy "Hey."
Gracia gestured to one of the empt seats by the table. "Sit down. What's up?"
Angel accepted the offer before saying, "I could ask you the same question."
Gracia blinked. "What do you mean?"
She could see worry lurking in his eyes. "I've seen Spike."
"Oh?" she replied politely, then blinked as realisation hit her. "Oh..."
"He mentioned that he'd spoken to you about something." Angel's tone was questioning. "That was all I really got from him before he took off. I was wondering if he threatened you or something." The last sentence held a tone of the protectiveness which glinted briefly in his eyes, and Keisha glanced up at him for a moment before looking back down.
Gracia shook her head. "No. He wouldn't." Ignoring the slightly disbeliving expression on her brother's face, she continued, "All he said was something about leaving me to find out about something."
"What?" Angel was deadly serious. "He knows something might be after you?"
The Slayer shrugged. "He was probably drunk. That's not unusual."
"Gracey, this could be serious..."
"And it could not be." Gracia bit her tongue as soon as she said it. She hadn't meant to sound so snappish. She took a deep breath at his slightly hurt look. "Sorry. I didn't mean it like that. I'm just saying that...well, if something bad was going to happen, we'd get a sign, right? There'd be more than just Spike saying that."
"Gracia's got a point there." Luke added in, causing everyone to look at him. He shrugged. "I mean that Spike probably isn't the most reliable of sources."
Angel didn't look all that convinced, but knew he'd have to drop it. "Well, be careful. I'll patrol with you tonight."
She nodded- it was better to have someone, anyone, with you. It sure got boring out there sometimes when you were alone with only the newly risen to talk to, and they weren't the best of conversationalists. "Thanks."
The band struck up a new song at that point, one that Gracia had heard a few times before and quite liked. She rose. "I'm gonna go dance. Be back in a minute."
She departed pretty quickly. Luke looked between the silent pair he was sharing the table with: Angel, lost in thought, and Keisha, still extremely interested in the table. A sudden thought struck him and he grinned to himself, before getting up without a word and heading the way Gracia had.
The noise of him doing this caused both the teenager and the vampire to glance up quickly, but he had already gone. They looked at each other uncertainly. Keisha could feel the colour rising in her cheeks and she mentally cursed herself.
Dammit! Why can't I say anything interesting or clever or funny to him...heck, why can't I ever even talk to him?
He gave her his gorgeous half-smile, and Keisha felt her gaze drop again.
Gracia, meanwhile, was lost in the crowds of people on the dance floor, and thoroughly enjoying herself. It was then that she noticed a guy standing near the bar, whose wandering gaze met hers. He smiled and tipped his head as though gesturing for her to come over. She returned the smile and the gesture. With what looked like a laugh and a small shake of his head, hecame over to meet her halfway.
"I was wondering if I'd ever seen you here before." He spoke close to her ear so she could hear him. His voice had a strange quality to it, almost as though his accent didn't quite fit. Not that she, who still had a strong Irish accent, was really one to talk about the subject.
"Maybe." She shrugged, studying him closely. "Depends on how often you come here."
He wasn't that much older than her, nineteen perhaps, with black hair and eyes which she thought were dark blue, although, in the moving shadows of the lighting, it was hard to tell.
"You certainly are noticeable. With a face that pretty, it'd be hard not to be." His voice had a different tone in it now, one she wasn't sure she liked, and it was that which made her step back with a laugh.
"This is some lame come-on, right?" She raised an eyebrow. "You need some more decent lines." Turning to go, she didn't expect him to lay a hand on her arm.
"No, don't go, please." Gracia glanced over her shoulder to see the guy rubbing the back of his neck with one hand. "I...I'm sorry. I didn't mean it to come out like that." His eyes showed a sincerity which made her feel a bit sorry for him, although not enough to fully believe him.
"Whatever." Her voice wasn't unkind. "Just don't try it again." She pulled her arm from his grasp and moved back over the dance floor, even though she heard his last words.
"I hope I'll see you again."
Gracia rolled her eyes at this and carried on, totally missing his wicked grin as he whispered to himself, "I really hope so, Slayer..."
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Guess who? Heheheheh...time to leave you! Leave your reviews by clicking on the button below- let's try to get more than Second Chance did! C'mon, target here! ;-D