Author's Note: Song lyrics are "Reason" by Double Drive, another amazing FL band I have the pleasure of knowing. Sorry about the shorty. I promise, more to come soon!

Buffy sat nervously at the edge of the stage, microphone in hand. She had sung in high school chorus dozens of time. She had been cast as the lead in musicals since she was a freshman. She had even done a solo when it came time for solo and ensemble. This wasn't like any of those things. This scared her to death.

Sure, singing 'Look to the Rainbow' at the community center's performance of "Finnegan's Rainbow" had been scary at the age of 12. But she had Tucker Wells on stage to sing with her. Now, even with Spike right behind her, she was scared to death. And he wanted her to sing one of Red Rain's original songs.

Spike came to sit beside her, resting his guitar against the stage at his side. She looked like she was going to start hyperventilating any second.

"Kitten?"

She looked down at the microphone in her hands. He reached over and tilted her chin toward him, willing her to meet his eyes.

"It's just a song. Just like you did in the car yesterday on the way to the beach," he assured her. "Think about yesterday. Or pretend you're flitting around singing 'I Guess I'll Miss the Man' or some other showtune," he grinned referring toher role in Pippin.

She smiled and nodded. She was being ridiculous. She knew that.

"You guys ready?" Xander called from behind his kit.

"You ready, Kitten?" Spike asked her.

She nodded and he gave her a quick kiss on the lips before grabbing his guitar and finding his place on the stage.

"She's ready," he informed his mates.

She heard the click of Xander's Vic Firths as he counted off the song. The low thud of Oz's bass and the crunch of Spike's guitar fell in effortlessly. Buffy's heart raced as she counted the measures to her post. One more, deep breath, eyes closed... and she was in Spike's DeSoto with her hair blowing in the breeze and the radio screaming in the background.

What are you taking

Misleading again

And that face that you're making

You better clean it when you can...

Spike had given her a copy of Red Rain's demo as soon as he had gotten the box back from the little studio on the East side of Sunnydale. It had cost him about four weekends worth of gig money, but he had been so proud as he held the cassette out to her. A grand total of eight songs were on it and she loved every one of them.

We're gonna suffer

Inquisition from the pharisees

I know you didn't mean to move by

And leave me to take the blame

Let them right what was left of me...

She felt the music thrumming in her blood and in her bones. The words tumbled from her lips of their own accord. That's how it always was with Buffy and music. It infiltrated her and used her as a vessel. The writer's emotions became her own. If the words were laced with anger, they became her fury. If they were laced with love, they became her joy.

And the reason I get this

The reason I get this way

I don't know, I don't know...

She was angry. And her voice was edged with desperation. She knew exactly what this song was about. She had felt every emotion at one time or another in her own life. She had stood by and been passed over again and again. And she had felt the anger roll off of her in waves in response to the stimuli. This was a giant 'fuck you' to everyone who had used her, to everyone who thought that they could embed themselves in her life and under her skin and then walk away without ever looking back.

Come in, relax and have a seat

You look sort of nervous and ashamed

I know you've never seen the fall guy

Take a dive and wear the scar

But trophy the pain...

Fuck you, Daddy! Fuck you, Cordy! Fuck you, Mrs. Calendar! Fuck you, Mommy! Buffy felt the bitter bile rising in her throat and completely lost herself as she gripped the microphone and belted out her pain.

You better believe I'll watch you suffer

And the reason I get this...

The reason I get this...

The reason I get this way

But is it worth the pain?

Spike felt the smile spread across his face as he ripped into the guitar solo with more gusto than he ever had in his life. She was bloody amazing. It was as if she was the only person in the room. He knew "Reason" was the perfect audition song for her. He knew she'd be bloody brilliant.

He shot a glance over at Oz. The bass player was moving his body like a cobra in time to the music. His eyes were closed as he plucked the strings on his bass, his fingers dancing up the neck expertly. Spike grinned even more when he saw the corners of the usually stoic man's mouth twitch up into a slight smile.

I know the reason I get this

The reason I get this

The reason I get this way

Everyday

The reason I get this way

And the reason I get this way

I don't know, I don't know

The reason I get this way...

She set the microphone back in its stand as she heard Xander's last fill signaling the end of the song. Shit, she was crying. Buffy opened her eyes as the music ended and snapped back to the reality around her. Tara and Willow were jumping up and down whistling and clapping. She felt a little shaky, but totally relieved. It felt good to sing. And it felt even better to sing something that Spike had written knowing that they shared that same dark place it had come from.

"Fucking amazing," Oz whispered.

"Holy shit, Spike! You didn't tell us she was that good!" Xander echoed the bass player's sentiment with a little more elaboration. "That was unreal! She's, like, a thousand times better than Dru! Can we keep her?"

Buffy felt the smile forming on her lips and brushed away the tears with the back of her hand. Spike's arms wrapped around her from behind and he kissed her neck possessively.

"What do you say, Love?" he whispered. "Want to be a kept woman?"