Disclaimer: There is no profit made from this story... I understand I own
none of these characters... blah, blah, blah... With that said... On with the
show!
Part 5
While driving to the Rosenberg residence, Giles wondered what was going on... Willow had sounded very strange these few days... Hoping that he was just imagining things, he turned on the radio to take his mind off things. As he pulled into the driveway, he realized that it was near midnight and if Willow really were just sick, then knocking on her door for a visit wouldn't be the best of plans. Shaking his head, he pulled back out and drove home. [I'll just check in with her tomorrow.]
**********
The next morning, Willow woke up and noticed vaguely that she was still in the guest room and she was still in Spike's body. What really grabbed her attention was the growl coming from her stomach. Determined to avoid drinking blood, she walked into the kitchen searching for something to appease her hunger.
"Nice to see you're finally up." Her voice came, which caused Willow to squeal and jump into the air.
"Spike!" she screamed at her body, which was currently staring at her with look of dismay. "Are you trying to scare me to death?!" she continued indignantly.
"First of all, you're currently occupying a body that's been dead for the better part of two hundred years. Second, I should get to be the angry one because vampires do not squeal like little girls." He stated as he crossed his arms with a pointed glare as if to intimidate her. Had he been in his own body, it may have been a formidable appearance. However, seeing that it came from a slight little girl, he merely looked like a petulant child.
"I don't get why you're so obsessed with your masculinity... You can't even bite people..." Willow retorted.
"Yeah, but I can still scare 'em shitless..." He said, more to himself than to Willow as he recalled Daniel's frantically retreating figure.
"Is that so?" She said with an air of haughtiness.
[This vampire hearing thing rocks!] She thought as she smirked at him.
[Bleeding hell, I never knew vampire hearing would make her so damned aggravating. Damn chit... cute, but aggravating...] Spike's thoughts were interrupted when he heard a distinct growl come from his body.
"Hungry are you?" he asked with a self-satisfied smirk of his own.
"Yesss..." She hissed before she could even stop herself. "Don't you just wish you could take this slender neck?" Spike whispered as he trailed a finger down Willow's throat, thoroughly enjoying the looks of desire, hunger, and guilt pass over her eyes.
"Wouldn't you just love to take one gulp? Wouldn't you just..." Spike's voice faded away as Willow focused solely on her throat.
As if in a trance, Willow nodded her head, never taking her eyes off the warm body in front of her. It didn't matter that it was her own body that she was staring at as if it was the first meal she'd seen in years, all that mattered was the blood coursing through its veins.
"...but you can't. Ta." Spike quickly said, leaving Willow drooling in the kitchen.
When Willow finally turned around in a vain attempt at a comeback but before that, she saw his hand on the bathroom door.
"And where the hell do you think you're going?" She asked as she ran up the stairs.
"Well, if you haven't figured it out, I'm going to the loo... then, next on my schedule it says to take a shower. I may not have a vampire's sense of smell any more but it's been two days since you've even had a change of clothes and you're starting to smell a little ripe. Would that be acceptable to Madame?" He asked with an innocent look but with a caustic tone.
"But-but-but..." Willow sputtered, "Y-y-you can't!" she finally got out.
"And here we once more..." He sighed. "You have to realize I'm a big boy, albeit in a woman's body, but nevertheless. You haven't got anything I've never seen before, so bugger off!" [And if I choose to treat myself to a show, what are you going to do?] Having said his bit, he closed the bathroom door on Willow's face.
**********
Chuckling to himself, Spike made sure to lock the door in case Willow decided to take her vampire strength into consideration and run through the door.
[It's a miracle she's managed to stay alive this long...] he thought as he shook his head and began to remove his clothing...
As he stepped into the shower, the plethora of bottles amazed him. He picked the bottle up one by one and wondered why anyone would need so many products to take a shower...
[So we've got Herbal Essences shampoo, isn't that the stuff chits get off on? Like, REALLY get off on? Moving on we've got Herbal Essences conditioner, Neutrogena Body Clear Body Scrub, Neutrogena Deep Clean Cream Cleanser. Since when does anyone need these many bottles to take a shower?] He wondered as he picked up the next bottle in the line up. [We've got Skintimate Moisturizing Shave Gel, and in Raspberry Rain no less... Why does Red need to shave? Maybe she does have something to hide... And more from the Skintimate company, Moisturizing Shave Gel for Bikini and Underarms... I'm not EVEN going to bother... And Skintimate Moisturizing After- Shave Gel, and in Raspberry Rain yet again, because God forbid we mix scents... That's seven bottles... and saying these are a fucking mouthful...] He concluded as he turned on the water.
"Bloody hell that's cold!" he shrieked as the cold water hit him. Whilst fumbling to turn the faucet a litany of swears came from Willow's delicate mouth.
When Spike found a comfortable temperature for the water, he squirted a dollop of the Herbal Essences shampoo and began to lather it into Willow's hair.
[I'm not feelin' any different here... Hmph, false advertisement...] He thought ruefully and continued scrubbing away.
[And now, for the conditioner... Ech... It feels greasy...] He thought disdainfully.
What exactly are these hair products supposed to do exactly?] He wondered and continued rinsing out his hair.
[And for the part we've all been waiting for! Washing the body...] he grinned as he began to scrub Willow's body.
[This feels really good...] He thought happily, and he began to hum a little song. As he resumed scrubbing lower and lower, he began to feel better and better.
**********
While Willow was plotting her revenge against Spike, she heard a low but definite moan come from her bathroom.
[Oh my god... I SO did not need to hear that... Ever...] she thought and flipped on the television and turned up the volume.
As she realized just how hungry she was when she saw how appetizing a piece of raw steak looked on the food network. Just then, the phone rang. Or, at least the phone in her kitchen rang and the phone in her room gave off weak warbling noises.
As Willow moved to answer the phone, she realized if anyone she knew heard her current voice; it would be an awkward situation to say the least. After a while, the answering machine in her kitchen picked up.
"Hi! You've reached the Rosenberg residence. We're not here right now so leave your name and number at the beep!"
"Hello, Willow," came Giles's voice on the phone. "I'm sorry if Buffy's call last night bothered you and I was just calling to check up. I do hope you're feeling better and I look forward to seeing you soon!"
Seeing as how it wasn't anything dire, Willow continued to watch the television and hoped the sun would set faster. She'd given up on her deprivation of blood plan when she found herself pacing in front of her bathroom door. As soon as it was dark enough, she'd run to Willie's and buy a packet or five of blood from how hungry she felt.
**********
That night at the Bronze, the rest of the Scoobies were discussing their theories on what was really going on with Willow over a few drinks. Their discussions weren't going as well as they could have been since all four were preoccupied with their significant other.
"You know, maybe Willow's just lonely..." Buffy said as she sipped her drink and nudged Riley in order to get his yes vote.
"I think so too." Riley agreed.
"Aw, what a good little soldier, doing exactly what his commander tells him to do..." Xander teased as he made a whipping motion. Just then, Anya pinched his thigh and he quickly apologized. Before Riley could make any comment, Xander got up and asked if anyone wanted another drink but he rushed over to the bar before anyone could get a word out. Once Xander came back with a rocks glass in hand, the previous conversation continued.
"Like I was saying, Willow needs a boyfriend." Buffy stated as if Willow's state being single was one of the single greatest tragedies she had ever had to deal with.
[I think Willow and Spike would make a cute couple, if only Spike didn't happen to be a vampire...] She thought to herself. She remembered how concerned the vampire looked when he thought that the little witch was turned. [That was so sweet...] She thought as a smile crept across her face.
"I think so too, she'd probably pull less of her crazy spells." Anya replied as she recalled the incident where Xander and she were mobbed by demons.
By then, Xander and Riley were both very interested in their drinks and would have stayed that way, had neither of the girls poked or prodded them into nonchalant agreements on their part.
"What do you think Riley?" Buffy asked simultaneously as Anya.
"Yeah, Xander, should we fix up Willow?"
Both of the guys did not want to tangle themselves into a world that they firmly believed was "girl's" territory and thus terrifying. After making wild gestures and lame excuses claiming how inept they were, they were excused to the bar with the wave of a hand.
"Why did you start smiling after you said Willow needed a boyfriend?" Anya asked.
"It was nothing." Buffy said and dismissed the topic quickly. It wouldn't do if the Slayer thought it'd be a good idea to hook up her best friend with her arch foe.
"The last time Willow was talking about crushed I remember she was talking about a guy named Daniel..." Buffy said as she swirled her drink with a straw.
"Oh!" Anya gasped as she clapped her hands in amusement. She didn't really mind if Willow were single or not, but this "matchmaking" business which Xander had regarded with much chagrin was quite entertaining.
"At least I think his name's Daniel..." Buffy continued. "I think I saw him in Psych once when she pointed him out..." She trailed off as her eyes wandered onto the dance floor where Riley and Xander were currently dancing rather awkwardly.
"Oh my goodness... Is that good dancing? That can't be good dancing..." Anya said as she saw Xander's oh so smooth moves.
"Hey look! That's him! That's Daniel!" Buffy cried when she saw the brown haired boy quietly sitting at the bar watching the spectacle that otherwise answered the names Xander and Riley.
"He's cute." Anya decided, once Buffy successfully pointed him out to Anya.
"We should set up a date for our absent friend." Buffy stated as she got up from the table and dragged Anya along with her.
**********
Willow cautiously entered Willy's bar to buy a few packets of blood when a vampire came up from behind and smacked her on the back.
"Spike! I haven't seen you in a few days, I figured you'd been staked by that Slayer." The unknown vampire said in a patronizing way that made her inner demon livid and Willow had to concentrate in order to keep walking towards Willy.
"Aw, c'mon. We all know you're completely neutered, don't give me that 'I'm still a fucking badass' crap Spike—" was all the vampire got out before Willow found out that Spike kept a stake in his pocket next to his flask and staked him.
"Hey, hey hey! Spike! How many times do I have to tell you not to stake any of my customers Spike?!" Willy cried indignantly.
"Holy shi—I'm so sorry Willy!" Willow said once she realized what she had just done.
"And since when do you apologize? Are you drunk already?" Willy asked.
"N-n-no..." Willow said, becoming unsure of her choice in coming to the bar. Also she just realized for the first time that everyone's eyes were on her, and that made her extremely uncomfortable.
"And what happened to your accent?" Willy continued with his volley of questions.
"For the love of Christ!" Willow cried, trying to sound as much like Spike as possible. "I came in here for a bloody packet of blood and if a decent spot of violence came along, it's not my fault!" And for emphasis she threw an empty shot glass on the ground.
"Ok, fine. You're just ruining business, that's all. You can't come in and kill every demon that pisses you off when they say you're neutered." He said as he rummaged through the tiny refrigerator where he stored Spike's blood and tossed it across the bar.
"Thanks Willy. How much do I owe you?" Willow asked.
"The same price it always is Spike." Willy answered.
Unsure of what to do Willow replied, "Uh... Put it on my tab."
"One day, you're going to have to pay your tab, then I'll be able to retire." Willy said in resignation.
As Willow left the bar, the first thing that crossed her mind was just how much torment Spike went through for being chipped.
[Being a vampire sucks...] She thought before she amended her thought. [Being Spike sucks...]
**********
"Hey Daniel!" She said to the guy as if they were the closest of friends rather than classmates.
"Um... Buffy right?" He said, more as a question than a statement. "You're Willow's friend." He said as he connected the image of the blonde with the cute redhead and a smile appeared on his face.
A twinge of jealousy came over Buffy when he recalled her as "Willow's friend" rather than her own person, but she quelled that thought quickly. There was important business to be done and it didn't give her time to pout over lost days of glory and popularity.
"So you do know our Willow." Buffy said as she put her plan into action. But before she could subtly mention a date for the two, Anya became uninterested by the conversation and interrupted Buffy's shining moment of sneakiness.
"Ok, so you like Willow, she probably likes you... Why don't you two go on a date next weekend?" She asked unabashedly.
"Anya!" Buffy cried as she smacked her arm for her candor.
"Do I know you?" Daniel asked to the woman he'd never seen before. "Not unless you've ever broken the heart of a poor girl and she called upon me to seek revenge." She said as she crossed her arms with a pointed glare.
"Not that I'm aware of..." he said.
"Please excuse my friend..." Buffy said, scrambling for an excuse. "She's... Canadian..." she finished lamely.
"Right..." Daniel replied as he finished his drink and started to get up. "If you must know, as much as I'd love to go out with Willow, I can't." he said over his shoulder.
"And why is that?" Buffy asked, her previous gentleness gone in an instant replaced with a dangerous look in her eye.
"Fuck, I'm just damned if I do, damned if I don't..." he muttered as he saw how angry Buffy was.
"Explain yourself." Buffy said as she forced Daniel into the nearest barstool. Surprised by the amount of strength the petite blonde had, he made no qualms of telling her what happened.
"Fine, remember that night Willow had that whole leather outfit on?" He asked.
"Yeah..." Buffy acknowledged with a giggle as Anya looked displeased when she remembered how cuddly Willow and Xander had gotten.
"So, she was all by herself and I asked her to dance with me—" he started when Anya interrupted him.
"So it was a pity thing?" She demanded coldly. [Just like the good old days... Good times, good times...]
"You people... You need to learn to wait." He said angrily. "Every time I saw her, she'd be surrounded by you guys, and I didn't want to put her on the spot so I figured I'd ask her to dance when she was alone." He finished.
"Oh." Anya said, trying not to sound too heartless but failing miserably.
"So obviously you like her, then why won't you go out with her?" Buffy interrogated him further.
"I bet some guy really hurt you once." Daniel pointed out. "You're too ready to jump over the smallest thing." Buffy's hostility then immediately changed to a state of confusion.
"Anyway," he continued, "I walked Willow back to her dorm—" When again he was interrupted.
"That's SO cute!" Buffy squealed.
"Hey, do you want to know why I can't go out with Willow or do you just want to play running commentator on my life?" He inquired before he ordered another drink from the bartender who had been listening intently.
"So, yeah... Willow went inside and I was on my way out when some guy came up behind me and he told me to stay the hell away from Willow. Does she have an ex who's not willing to let her go?" He asked, starting to worry more for Willow than for himself.
"Her last boyfriend cheated on her and ran off. We've yet to hear from him. However, we have been on the receiving end of Willow's... How do I put it... oh I don't know—" Anya said.
"Anya!" Buffy screeched.
"What?! I'm just telling him what happened..." Anya said as she shrugged. Deciding this would go nowhere; she went off to find Xander for some quality smoochie time.
"Anyway... What did this guy call himself?" Buffy asked, intrigued by who would be so possessive of Willow.
"He called himself William, but I don't think that was his really name." The brunette stated as he recalled the frightening night. "He started to say some other name but then he stopped and said William."
[Who do I know who's name is William?] Buffy pondered while Daniel sniggered at the amusing faces she made while she ran through images of people in her head. [Oh my god... Spike's real name is William! It can't be... Spike?! Oh I knew he had a crush on Willow!] Buffy thought.
"This guy, was he about this tall?" As Buffy made motions to describe him as being a head taller than her. "Did he have a British accent? Look more like Billy Idol than anyone should?"
"Yeah, yeah and yeah." Daniel answered. "Do you know him?"
"Uh... Yeah... I gotta go. It was nice talking to you Daniel!" But before Buffy rushed off to tell Riley she needed to get some chicken soup she ran back to ask Daniel a quick question.
"Hey, um, if I promised you'd be ok with dating Willow, would you say yes?" Buffy asked excitedly. "Sure..." As soon as he answered, Buffy rushed towards Riley who was currently taking five over at a nearby table.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~ TBC ~*~*~*~*~*~*~
finally finished and posted this... I meant to post sooner but I got piled with work... but I did it! Anywho, may the karmic cycle be very nice to those that have reviewed and thanks so much!
Part 5
While driving to the Rosenberg residence, Giles wondered what was going on... Willow had sounded very strange these few days... Hoping that he was just imagining things, he turned on the radio to take his mind off things. As he pulled into the driveway, he realized that it was near midnight and if Willow really were just sick, then knocking on her door for a visit wouldn't be the best of plans. Shaking his head, he pulled back out and drove home. [I'll just check in with her tomorrow.]
**********
The next morning, Willow woke up and noticed vaguely that she was still in the guest room and she was still in Spike's body. What really grabbed her attention was the growl coming from her stomach. Determined to avoid drinking blood, she walked into the kitchen searching for something to appease her hunger.
"Nice to see you're finally up." Her voice came, which caused Willow to squeal and jump into the air.
"Spike!" she screamed at her body, which was currently staring at her with look of dismay. "Are you trying to scare me to death?!" she continued indignantly.
"First of all, you're currently occupying a body that's been dead for the better part of two hundred years. Second, I should get to be the angry one because vampires do not squeal like little girls." He stated as he crossed his arms with a pointed glare as if to intimidate her. Had he been in his own body, it may have been a formidable appearance. However, seeing that it came from a slight little girl, he merely looked like a petulant child.
"I don't get why you're so obsessed with your masculinity... You can't even bite people..." Willow retorted.
"Yeah, but I can still scare 'em shitless..." He said, more to himself than to Willow as he recalled Daniel's frantically retreating figure.
"Is that so?" She said with an air of haughtiness.
[This vampire hearing thing rocks!] She thought as she smirked at him.
[Bleeding hell, I never knew vampire hearing would make her so damned aggravating. Damn chit... cute, but aggravating...] Spike's thoughts were interrupted when he heard a distinct growl come from his body.
"Hungry are you?" he asked with a self-satisfied smirk of his own.
"Yesss..." She hissed before she could even stop herself. "Don't you just wish you could take this slender neck?" Spike whispered as he trailed a finger down Willow's throat, thoroughly enjoying the looks of desire, hunger, and guilt pass over her eyes.
"Wouldn't you just love to take one gulp? Wouldn't you just..." Spike's voice faded away as Willow focused solely on her throat.
As if in a trance, Willow nodded her head, never taking her eyes off the warm body in front of her. It didn't matter that it was her own body that she was staring at as if it was the first meal she'd seen in years, all that mattered was the blood coursing through its veins.
"...but you can't. Ta." Spike quickly said, leaving Willow drooling in the kitchen.
When Willow finally turned around in a vain attempt at a comeback but before that, she saw his hand on the bathroom door.
"And where the hell do you think you're going?" She asked as she ran up the stairs.
"Well, if you haven't figured it out, I'm going to the loo... then, next on my schedule it says to take a shower. I may not have a vampire's sense of smell any more but it's been two days since you've even had a change of clothes and you're starting to smell a little ripe. Would that be acceptable to Madame?" He asked with an innocent look but with a caustic tone.
"But-but-but..." Willow sputtered, "Y-y-you can't!" she finally got out.
"And here we once more..." He sighed. "You have to realize I'm a big boy, albeit in a woman's body, but nevertheless. You haven't got anything I've never seen before, so bugger off!" [And if I choose to treat myself to a show, what are you going to do?] Having said his bit, he closed the bathroom door on Willow's face.
**********
Chuckling to himself, Spike made sure to lock the door in case Willow decided to take her vampire strength into consideration and run through the door.
[It's a miracle she's managed to stay alive this long...] he thought as he shook his head and began to remove his clothing...
As he stepped into the shower, the plethora of bottles amazed him. He picked the bottle up one by one and wondered why anyone would need so many products to take a shower...
[So we've got Herbal Essences shampoo, isn't that the stuff chits get off on? Like, REALLY get off on? Moving on we've got Herbal Essences conditioner, Neutrogena Body Clear Body Scrub, Neutrogena Deep Clean Cream Cleanser. Since when does anyone need these many bottles to take a shower?] He wondered as he picked up the next bottle in the line up. [We've got Skintimate Moisturizing Shave Gel, and in Raspberry Rain no less... Why does Red need to shave? Maybe she does have something to hide... And more from the Skintimate company, Moisturizing Shave Gel for Bikini and Underarms... I'm not EVEN going to bother... And Skintimate Moisturizing After- Shave Gel, and in Raspberry Rain yet again, because God forbid we mix scents... That's seven bottles... and saying these are a fucking mouthful...] He concluded as he turned on the water.
"Bloody hell that's cold!" he shrieked as the cold water hit him. Whilst fumbling to turn the faucet a litany of swears came from Willow's delicate mouth.
When Spike found a comfortable temperature for the water, he squirted a dollop of the Herbal Essences shampoo and began to lather it into Willow's hair.
[I'm not feelin' any different here... Hmph, false advertisement...] He thought ruefully and continued scrubbing away.
[And now, for the conditioner... Ech... It feels greasy...] He thought disdainfully.
What exactly are these hair products supposed to do exactly?] He wondered and continued rinsing out his hair.
[And for the part we've all been waiting for! Washing the body...] he grinned as he began to scrub Willow's body.
[This feels really good...] He thought happily, and he began to hum a little song. As he resumed scrubbing lower and lower, he began to feel better and better.
**********
While Willow was plotting her revenge against Spike, she heard a low but definite moan come from her bathroom.
[Oh my god... I SO did not need to hear that... Ever...] she thought and flipped on the television and turned up the volume.
As she realized just how hungry she was when she saw how appetizing a piece of raw steak looked on the food network. Just then, the phone rang. Or, at least the phone in her kitchen rang and the phone in her room gave off weak warbling noises.
As Willow moved to answer the phone, she realized if anyone she knew heard her current voice; it would be an awkward situation to say the least. After a while, the answering machine in her kitchen picked up.
"Hi! You've reached the Rosenberg residence. We're not here right now so leave your name and number at the beep!"
"Hello, Willow," came Giles's voice on the phone. "I'm sorry if Buffy's call last night bothered you and I was just calling to check up. I do hope you're feeling better and I look forward to seeing you soon!"
Seeing as how it wasn't anything dire, Willow continued to watch the television and hoped the sun would set faster. She'd given up on her deprivation of blood plan when she found herself pacing in front of her bathroom door. As soon as it was dark enough, she'd run to Willie's and buy a packet or five of blood from how hungry she felt.
**********
That night at the Bronze, the rest of the Scoobies were discussing their theories on what was really going on with Willow over a few drinks. Their discussions weren't going as well as they could have been since all four were preoccupied with their significant other.
"You know, maybe Willow's just lonely..." Buffy said as she sipped her drink and nudged Riley in order to get his yes vote.
"I think so too." Riley agreed.
"Aw, what a good little soldier, doing exactly what his commander tells him to do..." Xander teased as he made a whipping motion. Just then, Anya pinched his thigh and he quickly apologized. Before Riley could make any comment, Xander got up and asked if anyone wanted another drink but he rushed over to the bar before anyone could get a word out. Once Xander came back with a rocks glass in hand, the previous conversation continued.
"Like I was saying, Willow needs a boyfriend." Buffy stated as if Willow's state being single was one of the single greatest tragedies she had ever had to deal with.
[I think Willow and Spike would make a cute couple, if only Spike didn't happen to be a vampire...] She thought to herself. She remembered how concerned the vampire looked when he thought that the little witch was turned. [That was so sweet...] She thought as a smile crept across her face.
"I think so too, she'd probably pull less of her crazy spells." Anya replied as she recalled the incident where Xander and she were mobbed by demons.
By then, Xander and Riley were both very interested in their drinks and would have stayed that way, had neither of the girls poked or prodded them into nonchalant agreements on their part.
"What do you think Riley?" Buffy asked simultaneously as Anya.
"Yeah, Xander, should we fix up Willow?"
Both of the guys did not want to tangle themselves into a world that they firmly believed was "girl's" territory and thus terrifying. After making wild gestures and lame excuses claiming how inept they were, they were excused to the bar with the wave of a hand.
"Why did you start smiling after you said Willow needed a boyfriend?" Anya asked.
"It was nothing." Buffy said and dismissed the topic quickly. It wouldn't do if the Slayer thought it'd be a good idea to hook up her best friend with her arch foe.
"The last time Willow was talking about crushed I remember she was talking about a guy named Daniel..." Buffy said as she swirled her drink with a straw.
"Oh!" Anya gasped as she clapped her hands in amusement. She didn't really mind if Willow were single or not, but this "matchmaking" business which Xander had regarded with much chagrin was quite entertaining.
"At least I think his name's Daniel..." Buffy continued. "I think I saw him in Psych once when she pointed him out..." She trailed off as her eyes wandered onto the dance floor where Riley and Xander were currently dancing rather awkwardly.
"Oh my goodness... Is that good dancing? That can't be good dancing..." Anya said as she saw Xander's oh so smooth moves.
"Hey look! That's him! That's Daniel!" Buffy cried when she saw the brown haired boy quietly sitting at the bar watching the spectacle that otherwise answered the names Xander and Riley.
"He's cute." Anya decided, once Buffy successfully pointed him out to Anya.
"We should set up a date for our absent friend." Buffy stated as she got up from the table and dragged Anya along with her.
**********
Willow cautiously entered Willy's bar to buy a few packets of blood when a vampire came up from behind and smacked her on the back.
"Spike! I haven't seen you in a few days, I figured you'd been staked by that Slayer." The unknown vampire said in a patronizing way that made her inner demon livid and Willow had to concentrate in order to keep walking towards Willy.
"Aw, c'mon. We all know you're completely neutered, don't give me that 'I'm still a fucking badass' crap Spike—" was all the vampire got out before Willow found out that Spike kept a stake in his pocket next to his flask and staked him.
"Hey, hey hey! Spike! How many times do I have to tell you not to stake any of my customers Spike?!" Willy cried indignantly.
"Holy shi—I'm so sorry Willy!" Willow said once she realized what she had just done.
"And since when do you apologize? Are you drunk already?" Willy asked.
"N-n-no..." Willow said, becoming unsure of her choice in coming to the bar. Also she just realized for the first time that everyone's eyes were on her, and that made her extremely uncomfortable.
"And what happened to your accent?" Willy continued with his volley of questions.
"For the love of Christ!" Willow cried, trying to sound as much like Spike as possible. "I came in here for a bloody packet of blood and if a decent spot of violence came along, it's not my fault!" And for emphasis she threw an empty shot glass on the ground.
"Ok, fine. You're just ruining business, that's all. You can't come in and kill every demon that pisses you off when they say you're neutered." He said as he rummaged through the tiny refrigerator where he stored Spike's blood and tossed it across the bar.
"Thanks Willy. How much do I owe you?" Willow asked.
"The same price it always is Spike." Willy answered.
Unsure of what to do Willow replied, "Uh... Put it on my tab."
"One day, you're going to have to pay your tab, then I'll be able to retire." Willy said in resignation.
As Willow left the bar, the first thing that crossed her mind was just how much torment Spike went through for being chipped.
[Being a vampire sucks...] She thought before she amended her thought. [Being Spike sucks...]
**********
"Hey Daniel!" She said to the guy as if they were the closest of friends rather than classmates.
"Um... Buffy right?" He said, more as a question than a statement. "You're Willow's friend." He said as he connected the image of the blonde with the cute redhead and a smile appeared on his face.
A twinge of jealousy came over Buffy when he recalled her as "Willow's friend" rather than her own person, but she quelled that thought quickly. There was important business to be done and it didn't give her time to pout over lost days of glory and popularity.
"So you do know our Willow." Buffy said as she put her plan into action. But before she could subtly mention a date for the two, Anya became uninterested by the conversation and interrupted Buffy's shining moment of sneakiness.
"Ok, so you like Willow, she probably likes you... Why don't you two go on a date next weekend?" She asked unabashedly.
"Anya!" Buffy cried as she smacked her arm for her candor.
"Do I know you?" Daniel asked to the woman he'd never seen before. "Not unless you've ever broken the heart of a poor girl and she called upon me to seek revenge." She said as she crossed her arms with a pointed glare.
"Not that I'm aware of..." he said.
"Please excuse my friend..." Buffy said, scrambling for an excuse. "She's... Canadian..." she finished lamely.
"Right..." Daniel replied as he finished his drink and started to get up. "If you must know, as much as I'd love to go out with Willow, I can't." he said over his shoulder.
"And why is that?" Buffy asked, her previous gentleness gone in an instant replaced with a dangerous look in her eye.
"Fuck, I'm just damned if I do, damned if I don't..." he muttered as he saw how angry Buffy was.
"Explain yourself." Buffy said as she forced Daniel into the nearest barstool. Surprised by the amount of strength the petite blonde had, he made no qualms of telling her what happened.
"Fine, remember that night Willow had that whole leather outfit on?" He asked.
"Yeah..." Buffy acknowledged with a giggle as Anya looked displeased when she remembered how cuddly Willow and Xander had gotten.
"So, she was all by herself and I asked her to dance with me—" he started when Anya interrupted him.
"So it was a pity thing?" She demanded coldly. [Just like the good old days... Good times, good times...]
"You people... You need to learn to wait." He said angrily. "Every time I saw her, she'd be surrounded by you guys, and I didn't want to put her on the spot so I figured I'd ask her to dance when she was alone." He finished.
"Oh." Anya said, trying not to sound too heartless but failing miserably.
"So obviously you like her, then why won't you go out with her?" Buffy interrogated him further.
"I bet some guy really hurt you once." Daniel pointed out. "You're too ready to jump over the smallest thing." Buffy's hostility then immediately changed to a state of confusion.
"Anyway," he continued, "I walked Willow back to her dorm—" When again he was interrupted.
"That's SO cute!" Buffy squealed.
"Hey, do you want to know why I can't go out with Willow or do you just want to play running commentator on my life?" He inquired before he ordered another drink from the bartender who had been listening intently.
"So, yeah... Willow went inside and I was on my way out when some guy came up behind me and he told me to stay the hell away from Willow. Does she have an ex who's not willing to let her go?" He asked, starting to worry more for Willow than for himself.
"Her last boyfriend cheated on her and ran off. We've yet to hear from him. However, we have been on the receiving end of Willow's... How do I put it... oh I don't know—" Anya said.
"Anya!" Buffy screeched.
"What?! I'm just telling him what happened..." Anya said as she shrugged. Deciding this would go nowhere; she went off to find Xander for some quality smoochie time.
"Anyway... What did this guy call himself?" Buffy asked, intrigued by who would be so possessive of Willow.
"He called himself William, but I don't think that was his really name." The brunette stated as he recalled the frightening night. "He started to say some other name but then he stopped and said William."
[Who do I know who's name is William?] Buffy pondered while Daniel sniggered at the amusing faces she made while she ran through images of people in her head. [Oh my god... Spike's real name is William! It can't be... Spike?! Oh I knew he had a crush on Willow!] Buffy thought.
"This guy, was he about this tall?" As Buffy made motions to describe him as being a head taller than her. "Did he have a British accent? Look more like Billy Idol than anyone should?"
"Yeah, yeah and yeah." Daniel answered. "Do you know him?"
"Uh... Yeah... I gotta go. It was nice talking to you Daniel!" But before Buffy rushed off to tell Riley she needed to get some chicken soup she ran back to ask Daniel a quick question.
"Hey, um, if I promised you'd be ok with dating Willow, would you say yes?" Buffy asked excitedly. "Sure..." As soon as he answered, Buffy rushed towards Riley who was currently taking five over at a nearby table.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~ TBC ~*~*~*~*~*~*~
finally finished and posted this... I meant to post sooner but I got piled with work... but I did it! Anywho, may the karmic cycle be very nice to those that have reviewed and thanks so much!