Disclaimer: I own NOTHING except for the plot.
The muffled sound of someone rolling out of bed and a stream of obscenities was the first thing that greeted Alexander Harris as he slowly woke up. The tall, slightly muscular brunette shuffled into the next room clad only in a pair of Snoopy boxer shorts. He didn't say a word; he only glared at the blond who had found a way to tangle himself in his bed sheets and proceeded into the kitchen to make coffee.
Alexander, or Xander as he was known to most, scanned the messy lounge and kitchen. Beer cans and bottles were scattered about every surface that wasn't covered by popcorn or pizza boxes. He grimaced remembering the night before. He and his unwanted roommate had put aside their differences to have a 'guy's night.' All this meant was that the two sat around watching action movies and binging on beer and junk food. He spotted the nearly empty bottle of vodka on the dining table and picked it up, eyeballing the half-inch of clear liquid left in the bottle. He was definitely paying for last night this morning. His head felt as if the entire Riverdance dance company was dancing in his head and his mouth felt as if he had eaten cotton. It hurt to open his eyes any further than the tiny slit they were open. He pulled open the top drawer of one of the counters and pulled out a bottle of Advil. Popping two geltabs in his mouth, he swallowed them down with a handful of water from the faucet and shuffled to his couch.
Spike cracked an eye open as he slowly stood up, his blankets still wrapped around his mostly naked form. Padding out of his room, the platinum blond vampire moved slowly into the kitchen and popped two geltabs before settling in the recliner with the remainder of the vodka.
"I thought you undead types didn't get hungover." Xander mumbled curling tighter into himself.
"Yeah well when you drink enough anything's possible." He drawled, finishing the bottle and tossing it aside.
Xander peered over the armrest of the leather couched at the head of mussed up blond hair and grinned inwardly. He would never admit it but the vampire was quite attractive even though he could barely stand to be in the room with the so called 'Big Bad' for more than ten minutes at a time. Last night he had given the blond a chance to prove that he could be a decent man and the two had got along quite amiably; trading horror stories about girlfriends and whatnot. A wave of sickness over came Xander and he jumped up and ran to the sink just barely missing vomiting on the floor. He rinsed the sink and waved at the vampire before retreating to his room and shutting the door most of the way.
That night, neither man was feeling all that much better when they reported to the Magic Box. Not paying all too much attention, Xander and Spike nodded and left to patrol their designated area.
"I'm never drinking with you again." Xander announced to his companion. His stomach was still churning forcing them to rest every so often so he wouldn't retch all over the place.
Spike snorted and lit a cigarette as they continued to patrol the area around the cemetery. A shrill scream filled the night air and the two took off running in the direction of the sound.
A Volvo station wagon was ablaze, the scream coming from the back of the car where two figures were struggling to escape the flames. A group of five fledges surrounded the blaze, watching in amusement as the car burned. Two adults, obviously the childrens' parents lay in a crumpled heap near the burning car. They had been drained completely; not a drop of blood remaining in their bodies.
Instinctively, Xander ran to the car and motioned for the children to shield themselves. Using the butt of the axe in his hand, Xander smashed the rear window and lifted the two children out of the car. He watched as Spike took on most of the fledges before turning to see a vamp coming his way. The children were pushed behind him as he briefly fought the vamp before staking it and lifting the smaller of the two children in his arms and running down the street where as soon as he stopped and placed the child on the ground, he vomited in the street.
The three sat quietly, waiting for the black clad blond. The smaller of the two children, a toddler no older than three, had cried himself to sleep while the older, a girl who was probably five, sat pushed against the fender of an old Buick. Every time Xander tried to touch the girl, she shied away, sobbing softly. "I won't hurt you. I'm here to help." He whispered, trying to coax her closer to him.
Heavy footsteps were heard approaching their hiding place some minutes later. "They alright, Harris?" asked Spike, Xander's axe in his hand. Xander nodded and motioned to the sleeping boy in his lap.
"What do we do with them?" Xander said calmly.
Spike's preternatural hearing caught the wail of sirens in the distance. "We need to get out of here." Xander nodded and held the young boy close as they quickly headed towards Xander's flat.
Before Xander could even close the door to his flat, the night's events were finally catching up to the little girl as she began to sob uncontrollably. Spike gently lifted her and brought her over to the couch, placing her in his lap. "W-where's mommy?" She sobbed as Spike began to gently rock her. Spike thought twice about answering her question.
"Why don't we get you cleaned up and talk about this tomorrow, 'kay, luv?" Spike gently removed the jacket from her and carried her into the loo. She sat sniffing as tears continued to roll down her cheeks as she sat on the countertop. Every now and then she would wipe her little button nose with the sleeve of her light blue shirt. "Don't wipe your nose on your shirt." His voice was softer than usual, even when speaking to Dawn.
Picking up a striped washcloth from the rack on the wall and rinsed it with cold water. She calmed somewhat as Spike gently wiped her face and neck with the washcloth. "Do you have a name, Niblet?" He asked.
She sniffed loudly and nodded her head. "Ariel." She sniffed followed by a tiny yawn. Spike nodded in acknowledgement and carried her into his room.
"W-where's Nicholas?" She yawned as the blond placed her in the bed and removed her shoes.
"That your brother?" He asked. She nodded and pulled the covers to her chin. The exhausted child quickly fell asleep and the vampire went in search of Xander.
Xander was seated on his bed with the toddler in his arms gazing at the small form. He knew he shouldn't be getting too attached to the children but he couldn't help it. He turned his eyes up to see the slim form of his roommate leaning against the door frame. "I put the Bit down in my bed." Spike stated. Xander stood and pushed passed the other man to place the toddler in the other room.
A can of beer rested on his knee as he stared blankly at the television. He knew he couldn't keep the children but god he wanted to. He sighed deeply and glanced at the vampire who sat at the kitchen counter nursing a glass of scotch.
"Can't keep them, ya know." Xander turned to look at the vampire. The brunette's eyes pleaded with the blond.
"I know. I know." Xander sighed dramatically and slouched down against the armrest. "I'm goin' to bed." Xander chucked his beer can in the recycling bag and shut himself in his room leaving Spike to stare at his closed door.
Ever since he had moved into Xander's spare bedroom after Anya and Xander split, Spike had begun keeping regular sleeping hours. That was also about the same time that Spike realised his growing attraction for the boy. At first, this change in his feelings for the other male had come as a shock but as days went by the shock started to fade. It felt almost natural for him to feel something for Xander.
Some time, in the early morning hours, Spike found himself unable to sleep on the couch and stood before Xander's closed door. His hand found the doorknob and cautiously, the vampire made his way over to the spacious bed and crawled under the covers.
A/N: This fic has been brought to you by Luci. So what do you think? Should I continue it?