"We really should get up," she commented, not moving her head off his chest.
"Mmmn."
Giving his forehead an affectionate kiss, Elizabeth rose, and began gathering up clothes.
"Oi! Come back here, luv," he purred. "'S all nice and comfortable."
"You're on a stone floor."
"Yeah," he frowned. "But twas comfortable while you were down here with me."
He wiggled enticingly but she only smiled, and tossed him his own clothes.
"We need to concentrate."
'Oh I can concentrate real-'
"Spike!"
"Didn't do nothing," he insisted, stretching out his muscles, catlike, before moving to get dressed.
A body like that shouldn't be allowed, Elizabeth decided, then blushed. Seemed like whoever said being vamped removed one's inhibitions completely was wrong. Very wrong. And if he kept on looking at her like that, she'd – concentrate. They had to concentrate.
"Don't worry luv," he purred. "When I take you – 'an I will take you, and soon – it'll be on a nice soft bed with silk sheets 'n the like. I promise. Gonna make it good for you."
"It will be beautiful," she agreed. "No matter where it happens."
His eyes softened, and he smiled.
"Bloody right."
Once both were satisfied the crypt showed no traces of their stay, the door was shut behind them, and they were greeted by the cool night air.
"You'll need more food soon," he commented, and started walking.
"You know –"
"Yeah pet, I know. No killing. We'll hafta work around that."
Satisfied, she hurried to catch up with him. He reached out his hand and she took it, smiling.
The night was loud, she noticed. Before she had always thought of it as silent and cool, when the rest of the world shut their eyes. But now she was aware of another world, so different from her old one, but just as inexplicitly there. And it was alive with motion.
He wasn't going to mention Angelus, she realized. In a way she was glad. He was giving her the opportunity to forget, to live in the moment without worrying. But the feeling of him humiliating her – hurting Spike and her family – was nagging in her gut.
"Do you think it's time yet?" she asked, keeping her voice deliberately casual.
"Time for what, baby?"
"Time to, you know. To go after Angelus."
"Soon," was all he would say.
She opened her mouth to demand an explanation, then closed it again when she realized where they were standing.
"We can't go into the village."
He stopped, looking amused.
"Oh? Why not then?"
"B-because people probably think I'm dead! Whatever the Listeners or whatever they were called said, it would have been hard for my parents to expla—Oh god. My parents. Dawn. Spike, I forgot about Dawn!"
She looked ready to collapse, and he steadied her by putting his hands on her shoulders.
"Relax, Buffy. Listen. It's normal to sorta…loose connection for awhile. And you didn't forget. Muttered your sisters name while you were sleeping, over 'n over again."
"So they're okay?"
"Fresh as bloody daisies. Been visiting you while you were…dead there, for a bit. Drove me out of my bloody mind."
"Yes, they do that," she said affectionately, before remembering the earlier topic. "So what are we doing here?"
The grin he gave her was sly and full of promise.
"We're gonna play a 'lil game."
"A game? Spike, we need to find Angelus, and I'm hungry, and –"
"Just bear 'wit me a bit, ey? Answer a few questions an' tha's it."
He smiled when she nodded consent.
"Question number one. Who was that nancy-boy git trailing you all over town?
"Nanc- oh, you mean Riley. He's my – uh-"
"Do tell, pet. 'm dying to know."
"He's sort of my fiancé."
He didn't vamp or shout, but his knuckles looked as white as his hair when he clenched them. She winced, then cried out in shock as she was abruptly heaven against his chest, and his mouth came crashing down on hers.
"Mine," he growled, leaving her mouth to trail his lips across his mark.
"Yours," she agreed. "Always yours, Spike. Love you and no one else."
"Not gonna share you," he warned. "'M not like that."
"You better not be!"
He released her with a last kiss, then leaned against a tree, grinning as she panted for breath she didn't need.
"So, on with our game then. If – in scenario only, of course – we were to give Mr. Riley a little scare…would that go against the Slayer moral code?"
"What, you mean like making noises so he thinks he's being followed by a pack of wild dogs?"
He laughed outright at that, giving her an impulsive hug and deciding she was just too far away as it was.
"You are the wild animal, darlin'. Don't need to pretend anymore. 'An that git needs to pay. 'Sides, you're hungry."
The pieces clicked together.
"You want me to…bite Riley?"
"Not that I wan' you too, of course. Purely for your own benefit."
As her eyes yellowed and mouth firmed, he shifted. Maybe this was against the slayer moral code.
"You know that would be wrong, right?" She asked sweetly.
"Evil wicked bad," he affirmed.
She laughed, morphing completely.
"And the great thing is that I can't bring myself to care. It's like, I know it should be wrong. Cause biting people, yuck, right? Except it's Riley Finn, and I hate that stupid…git. All I can think of is that it'll be so good."
Relieved, he squeezed he squeezed her hand.
"Tha's what being a vampire's about, love. Or partly. Doesn't make you evil. Doesn't even make you bad. Just takes away some 'f those nasy repercussions."
"I think I'm gonna like it then."
"Oh baby. We're gonna have a bloody good time."
Gallantly, he offered her his arm.
"Shall we?"
Giggling, she took it and tucked hers under, as they made their way into her home village. Walking hand in hand, like she'd seen so many couples do. With a chaperone a few steps behind, of course.
But they didn't have to walk slow, or follow the rules. Laughing, she tugged his arm, and with a yell they started running, trousers flapping around their legs as the night smiled around them.
