Aftermath

AU-ish ficlet. A conversation Spike and Buffy might have had, if Faith-in-Buffy had slept with Spike. Of course, we don't know at this point any of what happens in season 6... if you get my drift ;). If not, read on, hopefully it'll become clear.

"What's that?" asked Buffy, squinting at the fading marks on Spike's arms.

He scowled. "Oh, we suddenly care now, do we?"

Hands on hips, she tossed her hair back. "What do you mean by that?"

"You bloody well put them there," he yelled, finally losing his cool. "You should bloody well know what they are! Or have you conveniently forgotten the beating up you gave me when we slept together?"

"Slept together? Huh, in your dreams, Spike," she shrugged. "What really happened?"

He frowned, insulted. "You really don't remember? Sleeping with me? When you said it wasn't bad, but not as good as Angel or Riley?"

The truth began to dawn very horribly. "When... when did this happen?"

"Couple of weeks ago."

She sank onto a seat, head in hands. "Not me. Faith, in my body. God, what else did she do?"

It was Spike's turn to look shocked. "F-faith? The, the evil twin, right? In your... how?"

Buffy looked up drearily. "The mayor gave her some kind of switching spell. She - she was using my body."

"Not just yours," he said dryly, indicating the bruise marks.

Buffy winced. "What, uh, what happened?"

"Beat me around a bit. Shagged me. Insulted me. Left," he said succinctly. "Did she really... with, um..."

"She slept with Riley," she said baldly. "Not with Angel. She said that just to hurt you."

"Bint knew damn well how to do it," he said. "Specially as I thought... you were above that kind of thing. Didn't think you were like that, Slayer or not."

"I'm not," she said quickly. "I'm not like that."

He nodded. He felt, of all things, sorry for her. "So, Riley," he ventured.

She shrugged. "Like I said, she slept with him." She sighed. "He told me - her - that he loved me. Apparently." She kicked against the table leg moodily. "Shame I wasn't there to hear it."

"But things are okay now, yeah?"

She gave him the ghost of a smile. "Hardly wonderful. Things are - well, they're pretty strained. Anyway, why should you care?"

He turned the glass round in his hands. "Dunno. Well, she hurt us both. And she made me think it was you, doing the hurting, so I'd hate you more, maybe... maybe I'm just being perverse. And all the time she was hurting you, when she's meant to be on your side. I s'pose I'm just pissed off with her for that and annoyed cos I didn't realise it wasn't you."

"And you? Still with Harmony?"

"She's buggered off somewhere. After Faith, when I was with Harmony... I called her by your name. During sex."

"Oops?"

"Well, yeah. Thing is, for me it was great, with - well, I thought it was you. Then she turned nasty. But the actual sex..."

"Not sure I really want to know, Spike."

"Your body."

"Quit reminding me!" she snapped.

"Would it - would it be so very bad?" he asked. "Is it that repulsive an idea? I mean... it's not as if you've never slept with a vampire before..."

She frowned. "It's not that. It's just that... I had no choice, y'see? She used my body to get her kicks, no thoughts of the consequences. It's like... dunno, like losing consciousness. I have no recollection of what my body was doing while Faith was inside, and suddenly it turns out that she slept, not just with my boyfriend, but with you as well, and that - it makes me feel - as if..."

"As if you've been raped," he said with sudden insight.

She looked at him, astounded. "Well - yeah. Not what I was going to say, I was going to say used. But, yeah. It does feel like that."

He looked down at the beer mat. "Slayer, I know I'm violent, or was when I could be. I know I've tried to kill you and some of your friends, but... well, that's not my style. If I'd realised, I wouldn't... I just thought, after the spell... I dunno, I just... okay, I'm a vampire and a killer, but I'm not a rapist. I wouldn't have done that to you. Killed you, yes, a thousand times yes. But - not that. Not knowingly," he said with distaste.

She quickly swallowed the lump in her throat. She felt strangely touched by his assurance that he didn't know it wasn't her. She reached out and brushed his hand with her fingertips. "Thanks."

"'S okay. Well, obviously not okay, cos we're both still upset..."

"Did - did you want it to be me?" she asked hesitantly.

He smiled candidly. "'Course I did. Hot little kitten, you. Obviously, when you seemed to be making a play for me... 'course I was interested. Be a fool not to, really."

She started to smile, then laughed. "Good answer. One I really can't take offence at."

He grinned. "That was the idea. S'pose you don't want to find out whether she was right?"

" Who?"

"Faith. About Angel and Riley."

"Hello, still with Riley here," she reminded him.

He gave a mock sigh. "Just a game of pool, then," he surmised, handing her a cue.