He heard her loud and clear.

Spike looked down at Dawn, his brows knit together in confusion. Dawn saw anger in his eyes too, and it frightened her. "Oh, . . . 'right then." He said shortly as he got off of her and walked across the crypt. He seemed determined not to react to her announcement until she elaborated a little bit. But if she really felt that way, he thought, it might be a little easier for both of them if he wasn't sitting on top of her.

He strode across the room and faced the wall, bracing himself against the cold stone with his arms. His head bent, he took in an unneeded breath. Why wasn't she saying anything? He clenched his jaw muscles tightly and waited as an awkward silence stretched out between vampire and girl.

"No. . . Spike, I just, I didn't. . . " Spike didn't miss the pleading in Dawn's voice and turned around, softening his gaze. He had really gone soft and lost it, he thought. When a fifteen-year-old girl didn't trust him it shattered his poor little bloody feelings. Since when did he have feelings anyway? He sighed, and unclenched his jaw. He had the urge to walk over to her and take her hands but he fought it. Instead he slid down the wall and rested his head against it. Rifling through his leather duster, he pulled out a pack of cigarettes and lit one up.

"Spike I didn't mean I don't trust you. I would trust you with the world if some greater power decided I was worthy of it's future. . . err. . . again." Spike couldn't help a little inwardly smile as she stumbled over her words, honesty showing through every one. "Ya' know what? It would probably be a lot easier if you made a bit of sense, Love." Spike said, looking her in the face.

Dawn scowled at him, breaking her pleading gaze. "Ya' know what? You can really be an asshole when you stop pretending to care." Once again, getting his attention.

"Cor, what the bloody hell are you on about?!" He asked, outraged, smoke pouring out of his mouth and nose. "I care about you more than anything, and you just tell me that you don't trust me for shit!" He looked away from her, hearing himself say the words engraved them even deeper.

"I DID NOT FUCKING SAY THAT! Snaps for drama though Spike, honestly!" Dawn snapped her fingers in the air drammatically. Spike, who had obviously never seen Legally Blonde, just gave her a blank look. Dawn was a very bubbly and happy-go-lucky child, always laughing and sweet. She didn't have outbursts like this one; it was his job in the relationship. He just sat there for a moment with his mouth hanging open, and then tightened his jaw muscles again.

"Look . . . I don't want today to go like this. I wanted to spend today with you, in your arms laughing and talking and tickling and. . . " Spike cut her off with a mumbled, "Tickling?" but she ignored it and continued. ". . Catching up on the part of each others' lives that we missed out on." Spike looked at her, and couldn't help but admire how incredibly honest she was. Honest in everything. If there was something she felt or thought it came spilling out of her mouth straight from her heart. Or at least that's the way that it used to be. Back when Dawn was still a child, and he was still something new, forbidden, cool and amazing. But now things were different, he thought. She couldn't tell him everything that she felt.

Dawn saw him working things over in his mind, and got up off of the couch. She tread barefoot across the stone floor to where Spike sat. She had never really noticed how freezing the crypt was before. She honestly hadn't noticed much in the past year except how much she missed the man sitting in front of where she stood, and she didn't want to lose him now. Dawn sat down across from him, Indian style. "Spike?" She said, as she reached out a tentative finger to touch his face.

"Why don't you trust me Dawn?" The question was so straightforward that it caught her off guard. She looked at him silently, thinking. He watched her suck in her bottom lip, and continued on. "You used to tell me everything. Made me feel bloody special it did. What we had was special. Why can't you tell me how you feel?" He was looking at her full on now, gazing at her intently.

"Spike. . . things just aren't the same as they once were. We will always be special, but I'm just not a child anymore. Well . . . okay, I kind of am still a child anymore, I mean still. But I'm not . . . I don't know. This is really hard to explain, especially with you looking at me all evil-like. I hate you being mad at me, please don't be mad at me!" Unshed tears built up around her eyes as she pleaded with him. He didn't say anything, but scooted closer to her on the floor until their knees touched. He took her hands and looked back into her eyes, expectantly. When she still looked at him uncertainly, he said, "Nibblet, I'm not mad, just confused. Make it better."

Dawn gave him a small smile and took in a large breath of air, as if preparing some long story. "See. . . things were easier to tell you then, when I didn't know anything about anything, not that I know anything about anything right now except, well, death." It was quite true, Spike thought to himself. On more than one occasion Buffy had burst into his crypt and demanded where her little sister had learned certain words and terminologies. "But anyways, I really like how I am going absolutely nowhere with this, it's so amazing, isn't it?" She smiled at him, and he smiled at her. "I do trust you Spike. I just . . . feel things that I've never felt before, and I'm not used to it. And I want to blurt it out and tell you but I'm afraid to. . . that's all. I didn't mean I don't trust you." She said all this looking down at his hands, while he watched her. "Forgive me?" She said, looking up at him with a nervous grin.

"Cor' Love, of course I forgive you. I'm sorry I went off the bloody wall. I should have heard you through." He gave a short smile, but it disappeared as soon as it came. "But Dawn, what are you feeling that you can't tell me?"

"That would be telling, wouldn't it?" She said, trying to dissuade him from the question.

"Dawn, I mean it. I don't like you keeping things from me." When she looked at his hard gaze, she sighed and looked down again. Suddenly, playing with his callused hands was very, very interesting. "Dawn?"

"Just . . . I'm used to the fluttery . . . I mean, I've always gotten the butterflies in my stomach when I am with you . . .when you would say certain things, but now it's different. It's so different, Spike."

"How?" Spike asked, still holding her hands.

Dawn looked back up at him and sighed. "How can such a simple question be so complicated and hard to answer?"

She didn't really expect an answer, and was relieved when he didn't offer one. She continued, "When you say certain things, or you touch me a certain way. . . my stomach flip-flops and I say the stupidest things. I'm sure you noticed it, what was it that you called it?"

Spike inwardly slapped himself for what he was about to say. "Hot and bothered?" "Yeah, that's it. Really charming, I might add.

Spike smiled at her warmly, his blue eyes twinkling with mischief. "Tell me more about how you feel, 'Bit."

"Why, so you can lust over yourself some more? C'mon Spike, I've told you enough. Now please excuse me while I go take pills until I slowly die."

Spike's booming laughter echoed throughout the crypt and it startled her. He grabbed her hand as she made to get up, her cheeks burning with embarrassment.

"Have I ever mentioned that I love your bloody honesty?" He asked her, still laughing. She smiled shyly at him. It was good to hear him say that he loved her for anything after that Oprah-worthy confession.

"So. . . how come you aren't hating me right now?" Spike looked at her, shock showing on his face for a second, and then being replaced by sympathy. "Oh, Dawn. It's not bleedin' likely that I'd ever hate you for anything. 'Sides, I already knew and all."

"You what? Why the hell did you make me go through all that then?!" She asked, horror struck.

"Soulless bastard, remember?" Spike pretended to be very interested in his fingernails.

Dawn got up walked back to the couch where she curled up under her thin blanket. "Goodnight, Spike." She said coldly.

Spike lit up another cigarette, thinking furiously. He really wasn't good with the whole comforting thing. Why'd things have to get complicated? He'd only been back in Sunnydale less than 24 hours and it was like he plunged back into the soap opera.

"Nibblet." She didn't respond. He listened to her breathing to see if she was asleep. She wasn't, her breathing was staggered instead of fluid.

"Dawn." He tried again.

"WHAT!?" She yelled, a little louder and angrier than she had intended. "Just. . . just leave me alone Spike. Play with me later." She rolled over, turning her back to him. "Wha'? Dawn, what are you on about? What's this rubbish, play with you?" "Just shut up."

"I bloody won't shut up until you talk to me!" He said, walking over to her. He sat on the edge of the couch by her knees. "Since you already know what I'm going to say and all. Why should I?" He couldn't see her, but he was sure that she was scowling.

"I didn't have you say it for my own amusement!" He said. "Then why did you make me say it? It obviously meant something to me, but you couldn't see that. Instead, you thought it would be a really amazing idea to mock me." Dawn turned and sat up, her knees folded into her chest.

"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry." Spike said, pushing some of her hair behind her ear. "I just want you to trust me, that's all." At this point, Dawn didn't care about lingering anger and resentment. All she cared about was that he cared. Spike leaned in to hug her, and she rested her face against his neck. Dawn breathed in his heavy scent of cigarettes and peppermint and smiled against his skin. He felt her lips curl, and he smiled himself. She snuggled closer to him, the familiar comfort drawing her in. He wrapped his leather duster around her thin frame and lay them down on the couch. They lay like that for a long time, just being content with being in each other's presence. No matter what outside emotions there were, there would always be the core that was Spike and Dawn. The strength and love that they had for each other would always be alive no matter what, and that was a comforting thing to know when there is so much confusion. When Spike heard Dawn's breathing smooth to a steady rhythm, he kissed the top of her head, letting his lips rest there. With that done, he fell asleep with his Nibblet cradled in his arms.

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Ya'll asked for a longer chapter! Okay, don't worry. I know this is going a bit slow but it's going to pick up a lot in the coming chapter. I know it's just been dialogue but be patient! Think of it as one looooong prologue =0) Thanks! Review review!!! Feed the author! The more you review the more I want to write. 3333 Bri

P.S. I am trying to develop Dawn and Spike's individual characters a little better. I don't like fics where Spike is a sappy run-o-the-mill romantic and all that. I'm trying to develop the sardonic side of Spike as well as the sarcastic, randomly spastic side of Dawn. Let me know if I'm doing a good job! Advice, welcome.

And P.S. My reviewers are AMAZING and I love you so much! And I love Justin! Thanks for "beta-ing" lol cut this little children! Haha

And Enn-Enn, I love how you always take out your favorite chunks of my chapters and out them in your reviews it seriously does help me a lot, and it would be really cool if other loyal noters did that! Wink wink wink wink wink. lol okay, good bye!