Nudging the door open with the toe of his heavy boot, Spike carried her inside and ignored the voice in his head that said she would kill him when she realised he'd taken her to his own bedroom. But it was the safest place he knew, no minions would dare enter it.

He placed her down gently on the bed and watched as her eyes moved around the room, taking in her new surroundings. Picking a thick blanket up from the pile on top of the chest of drawers, Spike put it down on the bed beside her and let his eyes fall to rest on her legs again-there were small trickles of blood seeping from the wounds where he'd disturbed them while drying her.

"I'll let you get some rest." Spike stood and went to move away from the bed but found her hand grasping his firmly as she let out a quiet, almost desperate whimper.

Turning his head around to look down at her, he found her gazing up at him with a face full of fear and as she moved her eyes to rest on the door he knew what she was saying-she didn't want to be left alone, she was scared they'd come back and get her.

Conflict reigned inside him as he watched her gradually release his arm. He had already allowed his emotions to have too much control over his actions tonight and now she was asking him to stay with her.

To protect her.

What was worse was that he wanted to.

God did he want to.

He wanted to wrap her up in his arms and never let her go, wanted to whisper sweet words of comfort to her as he held her tightly to him and cradled her. Wanted to smooth down her wet hair and touch her cheek as he thought about how she was more beautiful than anything he'd seen in his long existence.

Spike swallowed noisily as he tried to push the ever poetic William back into his cage so he wouldn't fill his head with such thoughts.

Glancing over at the door, it seemed like his last chance for freedom.

He was teetering on the edge now, treading along the thin and treacherous line that separated the demon from William, the enemy from the lover, the man who wanted to kill the Slayer from the man who wanted to love and protect her.

He moved his eyes from the door to the space on the bed by her feet and back to the door again.

He could do it.

Could just walk out that door and lock it, sit outside it if that was the furthest distance his feelings would allow him to put between him and the Slayer.

But he couldn't stay here.

Couldn't offer her the protection she wanted.

Needed.

Was pleading for.

Because if he did that then he would have to admit that she wasn't the only one that fell the night he'd rescued her and chained her up. He'd have to admit that the reason he'd kept her alive and healed her wounds wasn't because he wanted to have her healthy again so he could kill her himself.

He would have to admit there were deeper feelings at work and that William was right.

She was an angel.

She was beautiful.

Clenching fists and his jaw up tightly he took a step towards the door, inhaling sharply as he went to move away from her.

He frowned and closed his eyes as he felt somewhere in his chest region tug him back towards her.

It was hopeless.

Stepping backwards, Spike sat down on the edge of the bed and sighed.

He was done for now.

Buffy blinked at him, her knees bought up to her chest and her hands wrapped around them as she watched him. It felt as if she was watching him from a distance, like she was far away from the real world, shut safely away from harm, locked in a place where they couldn't touch her. His decision to stay with her made her stomach feel warm, her body relax slightly and she felt almost ready to take another tiny step towards reality and away from the comforting shell she'd been hiding in.

"I'll stay…if it makes you feel safer knowing I'm nearby…I'll stay and you can get some kip. Won't let them come and get you." Spike sighed again and looked into her eyes, she still looked so withdrawn but there was something in there this time, a tiny spark of life.

Moving his eyes down her body, he noted how she was curled up in a protective manner, sitting in a way that made her as small as possible. It only added to the feeling he had inside, the need to protect her when she looked so weak, so human.

Lowering his eyes still he let them come to rest on her legs, the small rivulets of blood were gradually making their way down her pale skin. Locking his eyes on one of her wounds, he felt like it was calling to him, his hunger for blood mixing in with his desire to heal her wounds as he stared at the small thin red line glistening in the low light.

His eyes unfocused as he tentatively reached his hand out, his head emptying of thought as he licked his lips and became so absorbed in the sight and smell of her blood that he forgot how much he could be scaring her by attempting to touch her where her attackers had.

But he was mesmerised.

Enthralled.

He heard her breathe in sharply as his finger caught the droplet of red that had begun to run down the side of her right calf.

Bringing his finger away from her he kept his eyes fixed on the tantalising smear of red on his fingertip and avoided her gaze. He feared the worst as he struggled with his demon, trying to hold it at bay as he told himself he'd scared her enough by stealing this tiny amount of blood from her without turning vampire on her.

He breathed heavily as he bought the drop of crimson to his lips, the sweet scent of her blood pervading his senses until it took all he had to refrain from slipping into game face. He knew what he was doing was dangerous, could make her slip further away from him but he couldn't stop himself-it called to him, begged him to taste it, to swallow it down and delight in the heavenly feeling it evoked.

Slipping his finger into his mouth, he closed his eyes as the blood touched his tongue and exhaled his pleasure sharply through his nose. The delicious taste he'd had of her when he'd first bought her down to his lair had set in motion a vicious cycle within him. He'd crave the sweetness of her blood and the warmth of her, and then he'd hate her for what she was doing to him before reverting back to needing her again.

Addiction.

She was his drug.

As she shifted her feet so they were stretched out flat along the bed, Spike came out of his reverie and ran his eyes up her legs to her face.

She was watching him.

Green eyes boring into his as his finger remained in his mouth.

Her eyes moved to rest on her legs and then flitted back to him.

Spike swallowed hard, unsure of what she was trying to say as she looked into his eyes. He wished she'd find her voice again, her being quiet for so long was starting to play on his nerves, he was so used to her being verbose-witty quips and pointed comebacks that always stirred a fire within him.

Now there was nothing.

Silence reigned even as her eyes were gradually sparking back into life.

"Buffy…love. I don't know what you're trying to tell me, pet. Show me." He cocked his head to one side and narrowed his eyes on hers as she blinked at him.

Buffy raised her finger to her lips, licked it and then reached down and wiped the trail of blood from one of the cuts on her thighs. She looked back into Spike's eyes as he frowned curiously at her. She repeated the process.

Spike watched her lick her finger again and wipe more blood off her leg. It was clear she wasn't commenting on his earlier action because she was doing the reverse to what he'd done, where he had licked his finger after wiping her blood up she was licking her finger before.

His eyes widened as it dawned on him.

He swore if his heart could still beat it would've stopped in that moment.

"You want me to…to…" Spike's eyes moved from hers to her legs and he licked his lips again, the small streaks of blood calling to his blood, enticing him. "…Clean them?"

A slight movement of her head.

He took it as a yes.

"How…I mean…don't want to scare you, love. Don't think you'd appreciate me going all wrinklies on you."

Buffy closed her eyes.

"Oh…thought of everything then…"

Looking at her face he narrowed his eyes, she looked so serene, like a marble statue of some beauty-of Venus herself.

He cleared his throat and grounded himself with the thought that underneath her cool exterior her emotions were more than likely twisting and turning upon themselves, fighting against each other as she struggled to maintain a calm façade. The quicker he got this over with the quicker she'd be on her way to recovery and the less he'd scare her.

Inhaling deeply to steady himself he gave one last look at her face to make sure her eyes really were closed and then slid into vampire guise, his teeth elongating as his demon came forth.

He moved to kneel on the bed and he couldn't miss how it seemed he was worshipping her, kneeling reverently by her feet in the hopes of receiving a taste of her.

Spike closed his eyes as he dipped his head, his fingers digging into the bedspread as he tentatively reached out towards her leg with the tip of his tongue.

The first tang of metallic rang through his body like electricity, coursing along his every nerve until he was poised on the edge, his body tensed and ready for the next dose of her blood. Moving his lips closer to her leg, he flattened his tongue as he repeatedly licked the first wound by her ankle. He rolled his eyes as his body hummed with delight at the way she tasted, the sweetness feeding the addiction to her that he already felt.

Moving his way up her left leg, he cleaned one wound after another until he reached her knee. He stared at it and tensed his jaw. It seemed like a line, a point of no return that he had to summon up the courage to cross. On the other side of it lay her thigh, he moved his eyes to rest there, the soft bronzed skin of it marred with long gashes of red but it was still a temptation beyond anything he'd felt with her. Shifting on the bed, he moved into a more comfortable position and tried to fight the desire to press a kiss to the patch of untouched skin on her thigh just in front of his eyes.

He swallowed hard, the feeling of a trace amount of her blood in his veins making his whole body buzz. Courage seemed a long way off but the preternatural high from her blood was enough to drive him on.

Lowering his lips he paused when they were just above her thigh, he glanced out the corner of his eye at her and was satisfied when she still had her eyes closed. Bringing his eyes back to rest on her thigh he zeroed them in on the clear patch of skin in front of him, smooth and temptingly warm as he hovered just mere centimetres above it. Closing his eyes, he dipped his head and pressed a wet kiss to it, inhaling deeply through his nose as he savoured the delicious combination of the scent of her skin and the taste of it.

Buffy felt her heart echo a little faster in her ears, the dull sound of it becoming clearer and clearer as she found herself opening her eyes a fraction to see what was happening, a sudden desire to see him overtaking her.

She let her lips part slightly as she watched him pressing a long kiss to her thigh, his eyes closed and brows knit in seeming reverence of her. Her stomach squirmed, the feelings inside her swirling and conflicting with each other as her Slayer side fought for dominance over her emotions. She squashed it down as she watched him, his face in demonic guise but his actions undeniably tender, and she knew it wasn't all about her blood this time. This time it was just about her. During her withdrawn daze, she'd seen the edge of affection in his eyes when it had slipped free of its restraints and broken to the surface. She could see that same affection written in the lines of his face as he moved slow kisses along her thigh.

Over the cuts on her legs.

She stared at them.

Thin, painful lines of red drawn into her flesh.

She frowned.

Her eyes filled with tears as the images of her attackers came flooding back.

Closing her eyes, she felt herself slipping away again, withdrawing from the real world and hiding away in the safe place she'd made.

Spike looked up and frowned as he listened to her heartbeat, for a moment he could have sworn that it had sped up but it was beating steadily at the same rate it had been for the past few hours. Seeing her looking the same as she had before he'd started cleaning her wounds, he dipped his head and started licking the cuts again.

As he ingested more and more of her blood he felt himself grow ever increasingly overcome, the rich powerful taste of it making his body feel lax and unresponsive as he continued to heal the cuts that littered her legs.

He took his time as he cleaned and healed the last of her wounds on her right thigh, savouring every drop of her blood as though it was his last and he'd never taste anything as divine as this again. He smiled dazedly as he closed his eyes and lay back on the bed with his head level with her stomach, allowing himself a few moments to enjoy the feeling of her inside him, awakening his feelings and connecting him to her.

Buffy opened her eyes and looked down at him where he lay, his face slipping out of vampire guise and a contented smile playing on his lips. She blinked down at him and let herself come out of hiding as she realised that she felt strangely safe with him. Even her Slayer side felt safe. She'd felt him clean thirty-seven wounds on her legs and kissed her skin more than once. Her heart thudded hard against her chest at that thought. He'd kissed her. Tenderly. Almost reverently. Deep down inside it had touched her to see so strong a beast, so proud a man humbling himself, risking everything so he could kiss her. She wondered what he'd look like if she let him kiss her properly.

Looking down at her legs she frowned, the wounds seemed so small now but they still felt like gaping holes in her soul, ones that wouldn't heal by his vampire abilities. Ones that would only heal with time.

She moved her eyes back to rest on him as he sighed, his eyes closed and his body relaxed as he smacked his lips together quietly, sleepily.

Buffy watched her hand as it reached out towards him, her eyes locked on the tiny stain of crimson on his lower lip. Running her finger shakily over it, she let the corners of her lips twitch into a smile as she continued to stare blankly at his face.

"Mine." She mumbled as she looked at the blood on his lips and now on her finger.

"Yeah…" Spike replied lazily as he fluttered his eyes open and saw her finger near his mouth, a smear of red staining it.

Craning his neck so he was looking up at her, he smiled as he found her looking back at him with eyes that almost spoke words straight into his head and he found William waiting to decipher them.

He pushed him back down inside and forced the sleep out of his body as he sat up.

She looked tired. Her skin was still paler than it used to be and her face still solemn when he compared it to how she usually looked around him.

"Get some kip, I'll stay awake." He watched her eyes widen as he got off the bed and walked around it towards the door. "No fretting. Just got to lock the door. Make sure we're both safe."

When he turned around from locking the door he found Buffy had moved across to the right side of the bed and was watching him. He had to admit it was nice seeing her a little more alert but he knew that at any moment she could slip away again, draw herself back inside and put the barriers back up around herself.

Sitting down next to her, he grabbed hold of the blanket he'd placed on the bed earlier and unfolded it, placing it gently over the length of her body and watching her curl up underneath it.

He sighed as he let his back rest against the headboard. He could feel the sun outside, the daylight hours lulling him into sleep but he gradually pushed the tiredness out of his body. It wasn't hard to do when he looked down at the girl who had curled up near him, her head resting close to his arm. He gently moved it, letting his elbow rest just above her head and his hand play against her back where the blanket covered her shoulders.

He'd protect her.

With his life if he had to.

Spike unlocked the cage door and let William out.

She was an angel.

Precious.

Beautiful.

Angel.