The light drizzle that sprinkled over Edinburgh didn't deter any of the
tourists, but it did somehow manage to heighten the ancient nostalgic
feeling. The rain brought out a damp, earthen musk from the cobblestone
walls and the clouds were lower than usual, lacing through the old castle
like a bride's veil.
Spike had taken precautions, dressing himself from head to tow in his usual black He wore black gloves to cover his exposed hands he and brought along an sun/rain umbrella. Thankfully it was drizzling ever so often, or else he would have seemed strange to be walking around with a black umbrella.
The cobblestones around the castle were a bit slippery due to age and mold growing on the ground, they tread slowly and took their time looking at the statues around the castle and walked through the rooms quietly.
The weather seemed to have quieted their urge to run and scream about like children through the castle grounds. But then even the children were quiet as they stuck close to their mother, eyeing the crumbling statues warily.
They left the castle around noon, looked at the large pointy black monument near the castle and had lunch inside an old looking café. The walls were a bit stained from a previously un-repaired hole in the roof, the table cloths were warm grey blue and the china had old orange and red flower prints. Spike looked quite a bit out of place amongst the frilly looking lace windows, dainty cups and tiny tables. It made Buffy mentally giggle as he squirmed in his seat, and glanced at the window to make sure no one was staring at him. Spike could be such a baby at times.
The food was good though, the deli sandwiches with hot coffee settled in the bottom of their stomachs, making them lazily stroll around the shops before heading to the gardens.
The garden looked vibrant in the rain, although there was no sun; the blossoms glowed from the cleansing water and stood out brightly against the grey skies.
While they wandered around the garden, Spike glanced around suspiciously and while Buffy wasn't looking he produced a cream yellow looking flower with orangish stains coming from the bottom of the petals. Buffy grinned at him with a mixed look of chastisement and fondness. But she still took the flower and held it close to her as they continued through the garden.
After the gardens, they decided to just wander around the town instead of going only to tourist locations. The city had maintained most of its older structures and paths and it was almost like walking through a fairytale as they wandered under old stone arches and houses that were bunched closely together, creating almost mystical alleys that ended in the most surprising places.
Spike was more than delighted as he ran around and popped his head into random alleys, and tried to get themselves as lost as possible.
As Spike took another random turn, he finally noted, "It's like the old days, before I got turned, before I became a bumbling fool, my cousins and I used to have ideal games of hide and seek in alleys like this. In America there's too much open space, not enough hiding spots, but here, here you can just disappeared into thin air. And I mean look at it, it practically gushes with intrigue! I bloody miss being a kid..."
Buffy grinned at Spike's comment. It was nice to know that Spike could still be nostalgic even after living a hundred years.
They stopped their maze game before the sky became dark and then had dinner at a warm looking bistro.
They were exhausted when they got home and Buffy had fallen asleep in the passenger's seat. Spike gently picked her up and took her upstairs, cradling her gently in his arms.
For a moment, Buffy woke for a minute second and grinned at him blearily as he helped her take off her shoes and wrapped her safely in the comforter. And although later he had gone downstairs to sleep on the couch that night, he felt better than ever and fell asleep as soon as his head touched the feather pillow.
~~~
On March fifth, the two of them found themselves at the Louvre, both a bit of a backache from the long bus ride from Edinburgh to London and then the underground train ride from London to France. Unfortunately, it seemed quite sunny in France and Spike gave in and decided to look a bit odd with his black gloves and black umbrella. This time he was wearing another suit, it was light grey with a cobalt blue shirt, Buffy had told him earlier that they were going to a museum, not a rock concert and after arguing for about an hour, he finally gave in and pulled out the outfit. But in the end he made sure to 'forget' the tie. As they quickly tried to get into the Louvre, Buffy hurriedly murmured something about 'skin condition' to the ticket seller. Thankfully the lady was understanding and handed Buffy the tickets as quickly as she could.
So now, the two of them were ascending the stairs to the Nike, looking this way and that for any sort of hint.
Spike looked a bit disgruntled as he muttered something about giving them an exact time time. He looked around expecting a contact or something or perhaps a piece of paper...A part of him gnawed with worry, what if they missed the contact because they hadn't come soon enough, or they missed a part of the clue telling them when to come? Or what if some moronic tourist had kicked the sheet of paper away?
Spike started to walk down the stairs to see if he could find a folded up piece of paper when Buffy called out to him, "I think I may have found something."
Spike looked up, "What?"
Buffy had her hand curled around an object. And as she opened her palm, a necklace with a round shaped pendant unraveled and dangled under her hand.
"Are you sure you found that on the fifth step?"
"Yeah, it was tied between the pillars on the hand-railing."
Spike walked up the stairs to Buffy and inched his face close to the pendant, "It's a family crest."
His eyes narrowed as he put his hand under the pendant and studied it, "I guess it's a clue."
"I think that's a picture of a cat," he continued.
Buffy held up the necklace, "You're kidding, that's like the vaguest clue I've ever seen."
"You and me both pet. Now why what the hell are they trying to say?"
"I donno, the cat is surrounded by the jewels?"
"It's not really a jewel, a blue gem stone?"
"Blue... sky?" Buffy guessed.
"Water?"
"Umm... birds?"
"Nah, you're reachin' luv."
"But neither makes sense..." Buffy grumbled as she sat down on the stair, "cat in blue sky... cat in blue water."
"Maybe we should get someone to look at the gem." Spike suggested.
"Good idea."
~~~
They found themselves at the gift shop talking to the teenage girl selling jewelry souvenirs."
"Do you know what kind of gem this is?"
The freckly girl with orangish red hair scratched her nose. Spike was a bit tempted to start calling her Weasley.
"Well, it's not crystal... pretty plain looking. I think it's plastic."
Spike shrugged, "Anything else?"
"Uh... Rhinestone design on tin."
"Now we know the guy is cheap," Spike told Buffy sarcastically.
"Rhinestone..." Buffy murmured to herself...then she turned to the lady, "wait, how do you spell Rhinestone?"
The girl took out a piece of paper and wrote it down.
Spike stared for a moment, then borrowed the pen from the salesclerk, and crossed out 'stone'.
"Rhine?" Buffy asked.
"Biggest river in Germany." Spike murmured to himself. Then he looked up at the salesclerk and glanced over at the computer next to the cash register. "Is that hooked up the internet?"
"Yeah..." The girl said timidly.
"cross search Rhine river and cat."
The girl did so and quickly brought up the results, "uh... castle Rhine cruise... ancient town cat and mouse..."
"Click on that."
The girl searched for the word cat and went down the page, "St. Goarshausen -- This ancient town is known for its cat and mouse castles. The Burg Katz (Castle Kat) was built in 1372 by aristocrats who gave the neighboring Durenberg Castle the name Burg Maus (Castle Mouse)."
Spike looked at Buffy with a grin, "Looks like we know where to go next."
Spike had taken precautions, dressing himself from head to tow in his usual black He wore black gloves to cover his exposed hands he and brought along an sun/rain umbrella. Thankfully it was drizzling ever so often, or else he would have seemed strange to be walking around with a black umbrella.
The cobblestones around the castle were a bit slippery due to age and mold growing on the ground, they tread slowly and took their time looking at the statues around the castle and walked through the rooms quietly.
The weather seemed to have quieted their urge to run and scream about like children through the castle grounds. But then even the children were quiet as they stuck close to their mother, eyeing the crumbling statues warily.
They left the castle around noon, looked at the large pointy black monument near the castle and had lunch inside an old looking café. The walls were a bit stained from a previously un-repaired hole in the roof, the table cloths were warm grey blue and the china had old orange and red flower prints. Spike looked quite a bit out of place amongst the frilly looking lace windows, dainty cups and tiny tables. It made Buffy mentally giggle as he squirmed in his seat, and glanced at the window to make sure no one was staring at him. Spike could be such a baby at times.
The food was good though, the deli sandwiches with hot coffee settled in the bottom of their stomachs, making them lazily stroll around the shops before heading to the gardens.
The garden looked vibrant in the rain, although there was no sun; the blossoms glowed from the cleansing water and stood out brightly against the grey skies.
While they wandered around the garden, Spike glanced around suspiciously and while Buffy wasn't looking he produced a cream yellow looking flower with orangish stains coming from the bottom of the petals. Buffy grinned at him with a mixed look of chastisement and fondness. But she still took the flower and held it close to her as they continued through the garden.
After the gardens, they decided to just wander around the town instead of going only to tourist locations. The city had maintained most of its older structures and paths and it was almost like walking through a fairytale as they wandered under old stone arches and houses that were bunched closely together, creating almost mystical alleys that ended in the most surprising places.
Spike was more than delighted as he ran around and popped his head into random alleys, and tried to get themselves as lost as possible.
As Spike took another random turn, he finally noted, "It's like the old days, before I got turned, before I became a bumbling fool, my cousins and I used to have ideal games of hide and seek in alleys like this. In America there's too much open space, not enough hiding spots, but here, here you can just disappeared into thin air. And I mean look at it, it practically gushes with intrigue! I bloody miss being a kid..."
Buffy grinned at Spike's comment. It was nice to know that Spike could still be nostalgic even after living a hundred years.
They stopped their maze game before the sky became dark and then had dinner at a warm looking bistro.
They were exhausted when they got home and Buffy had fallen asleep in the passenger's seat. Spike gently picked her up and took her upstairs, cradling her gently in his arms.
For a moment, Buffy woke for a minute second and grinned at him blearily as he helped her take off her shoes and wrapped her safely in the comforter. And although later he had gone downstairs to sleep on the couch that night, he felt better than ever and fell asleep as soon as his head touched the feather pillow.
~~~
On March fifth, the two of them found themselves at the Louvre, both a bit of a backache from the long bus ride from Edinburgh to London and then the underground train ride from London to France. Unfortunately, it seemed quite sunny in France and Spike gave in and decided to look a bit odd with his black gloves and black umbrella. This time he was wearing another suit, it was light grey with a cobalt blue shirt, Buffy had told him earlier that they were going to a museum, not a rock concert and after arguing for about an hour, he finally gave in and pulled out the outfit. But in the end he made sure to 'forget' the tie. As they quickly tried to get into the Louvre, Buffy hurriedly murmured something about 'skin condition' to the ticket seller. Thankfully the lady was understanding and handed Buffy the tickets as quickly as she could.
So now, the two of them were ascending the stairs to the Nike, looking this way and that for any sort of hint.
Spike looked a bit disgruntled as he muttered something about giving them an exact time time. He looked around expecting a contact or something or perhaps a piece of paper...A part of him gnawed with worry, what if they missed the contact because they hadn't come soon enough, or they missed a part of the clue telling them when to come? Or what if some moronic tourist had kicked the sheet of paper away?
Spike started to walk down the stairs to see if he could find a folded up piece of paper when Buffy called out to him, "I think I may have found something."
Spike looked up, "What?"
Buffy had her hand curled around an object. And as she opened her palm, a necklace with a round shaped pendant unraveled and dangled under her hand.
"Are you sure you found that on the fifth step?"
"Yeah, it was tied between the pillars on the hand-railing."
Spike walked up the stairs to Buffy and inched his face close to the pendant, "It's a family crest."
His eyes narrowed as he put his hand under the pendant and studied it, "I guess it's a clue."
"I think that's a picture of a cat," he continued.
Buffy held up the necklace, "You're kidding, that's like the vaguest clue I've ever seen."
"You and me both pet. Now why what the hell are they trying to say?"
"I donno, the cat is surrounded by the jewels?"
"It's not really a jewel, a blue gem stone?"
"Blue... sky?" Buffy guessed.
"Water?"
"Umm... birds?"
"Nah, you're reachin' luv."
"But neither makes sense..." Buffy grumbled as she sat down on the stair, "cat in blue sky... cat in blue water."
"Maybe we should get someone to look at the gem." Spike suggested.
"Good idea."
~~~
They found themselves at the gift shop talking to the teenage girl selling jewelry souvenirs."
"Do you know what kind of gem this is?"
The freckly girl with orangish red hair scratched her nose. Spike was a bit tempted to start calling her Weasley.
"Well, it's not crystal... pretty plain looking. I think it's plastic."
Spike shrugged, "Anything else?"
"Uh... Rhinestone design on tin."
"Now we know the guy is cheap," Spike told Buffy sarcastically.
"Rhinestone..." Buffy murmured to herself...then she turned to the lady, "wait, how do you spell Rhinestone?"
The girl took out a piece of paper and wrote it down.
Spike stared for a moment, then borrowed the pen from the salesclerk, and crossed out 'stone'.
"Rhine?" Buffy asked.
"Biggest river in Germany." Spike murmured to himself. Then he looked up at the salesclerk and glanced over at the computer next to the cash register. "Is that hooked up the internet?"
"Yeah..." The girl said timidly.
"cross search Rhine river and cat."
The girl did so and quickly brought up the results, "uh... castle Rhine cruise... ancient town cat and mouse..."
"Click on that."
The girl searched for the word cat and went down the page, "St. Goarshausen -- This ancient town is known for its cat and mouse castles. The Burg Katz (Castle Kat) was built in 1372 by aristocrats who gave the neighboring Durenberg Castle the name Burg Maus (Castle Mouse)."
Spike looked at Buffy with a grin, "Looks like we know where to go next."