A/N: I forced another one out. I knew what I wanted to say, but I was never in the right mood to say it the way I wanted. On top of that, I've had a hectic schedule, another - longer - blackout and another two or three plot bunnies assaulting me mercilessly. All in all, I think I did well to be done, even if it has been very late.

Disclaimer: I sorta tried something vaguely different with this chapter. I was undecided about whose perspective to play the major scenes of this chapter from, and so I opted to alternate. This does result in very jumpy chapters though, and I will signify jumps in perspective but not much in time with a single X rather than the regular XXX.

XXXXX

Blind Date

"No bloody way in hell, Bit," Spike said brusquely, grabbing a box of cereal off the shelf.

Dawn sighed. "Come on, Spike," she begged.

"I said no," Spike said, pushing the trolley forward.

"But it's been forever since you went on a date," Dawn argued. "And this girl really wants to go out with you."

Spike grunted. "Blind date's not my scene, pet."

"Daddy!" Katie's voice echoed down the aisle. "Can I have Coco Pops?"

"I already got them, love," Spike called back.

The little girl beamed and skipped up to the trolley and patted his hand. "Good daddy."

"C'mon, Spike," Dawn pleaded. "If you don't go out with her she'll drive me crazy with asking."

Katie's eyes narrowed. "Daddy, are you getting me a new mommy yet?" she asked threateningly.

Spike breathed out in exasperation. "Fine, fine. I'll go on the bloody date. What's her name?"

Dawn hesitated. "I think she'd rather surprise you there."

XXX

"He said he'd do it," Dawn informed Buffy, smiling happily at the ecstatic expression on her sister's face.

"This is great!" Buffy enthused. "When is the date? Where is it? How much time do I have? Does he know it's with me? Oh God! What's he going to think when he finds out it's me? What if he's disappointed? He might be disappointed!"

"Buffy, calm down," Dawn laughed. "I don't think I've ever seen you this nervous before."

"It's just, this is great!" Buffy squealed, bouncing in excitement.

"What's great?" Spike's silken tones asked from the doorway.

Buffy froze, not brave enough to look.

"Buffy has a date," Dawn said, throwing Buffy a sly look. "This weekend."

"Good for you, Slayer," Spike said cheerily.

"Yeah," Dawn agreed innocently. "I set her up on a blind date, too."

"Spike doesn't need to hear about this, Dawn," Buffy said in forced sweetness, her teeth bared in a way that could possibly be confused for a grin.

"Just keeping him informed, sister dear," Dawn sing-songed.

XXX

Buffy looked at herself in the mirror. She looked nice. Grunting in frustration she peeled the green dress off and hurried back to her wardrobe. This was hell! No doubt about it, it was some subtle torture invented to punish her. She didn't know what she'd done but this was just horrible.

She only had three hours before her date with Spike and she still didn't know what to wear! That was hardly enough time to do her hair and make-up and shower and pick her shoes and her jewellery and she didn't even have her outfit!

Taking a deep, calming breath, Buffy tried to think rationally. Okay. They were going to a nice place that had opened fairly recently in the heart of town, so it had to be a little classy. The place had dancing, so she needed something good for dancing. They might get attacked by some nasties - always a possibility in Sunnydale - so she needed something that she could fight in and still look good in. She also needed something that would be easy to take off… just in case.

With determination she pulled out an orange dress - and wasn't she glad that Dawn hadn't thrown any of her old clothes away? - and held it up to her body in front of the mirror. Squashing the sense of unease, she carefully lay the dress down on the edge of her bed and strolled into the bathroom.

It was exactly seventeen seconds before she hurtled back into her room to change the dress again.

XXX

Caitlin Roselyn Barclay wasn't sure if she was pleased. On one hand, she had been abandoned by her Daddy. On the other hand, she had been dropped off with Auntie Fayt. On the foot, Daddy was doing what she wanted him to do even if she didn't get to interview the lady in question. When she had discussed it with Seth, they had decided that the interview was a crucial part of getting a new mommy.

"Hey, kiddo," Auntie Fayt murmured. "Watcha thinking about?"

"Stuff," Katie replied solemnly.

"You thought about what you're gonna get your Daddy for his birthday?"

Katie nodded brightly. "I'm gonna get him a frog."

Auntie Fayt's lips twitched. "A frog, you say?"

"Yep. A big, green frog. As big as my head."

"Why are you getting him a frog?"

Katie looked at Auntie Fayt as though she was silly. "Because he wants one, duh!"

XXX

Buffy ducked under the vampire's lunge and spun about, her crimson dress swirling. The beast snarled and made a grab for her throat, and she swayed back out of reach and her foot snapped out, crushing the kneecap.

It roared savagely and clawed at her face. He fell well short, but managed to hook one of Buffy's shoulder straps, tearing it from the dress. The vampire stared at her half-exposed bosom until she hammered the stake home, turning it into dust.

Gripping the torn fabric she decided it was too damaged to hide and started to jog home. Luckily she hadn't gotten too far and she'd just be a little bit late.

X

Spike briskly walked into the restaurant. He nodded to the maitre d'. "Reservation for Barclay."

"Of course, sir," the maitre d' said pleasantly, leading him to a seat in the back of the place.

The seat had a commanding view of the room and dance floor, and romantic lighting. Spike suspected Dawn's hand in this, too. She'd been playing matchmaker with everyone, apparently, and he could just imagine her at her house right now, laughing maniacally at the power she'd garnered.

"Would sir like anything to drink?" the maitre d' asked.

"Just water, thanks, mate," Spike responded, settling into the wooden chair easily.

X

This had to be the worst luck ever!

The demon took another swing at her, his meaty paw crumbling the corner of the building. Buffy darted in before it could draw it's powerful arm back and drove the stake into its barrel chest only to get hurled onto a pair of trashcans for her efforts.

Buffy leapt to her feet, dodging its horned head deftly, and danced away from it. She hated it, absolutely hated it, when their hearts weren't in their chests.

Rolling a roundhouse kick to the demon's bull-like head and dropping into a sweeping kick at its ankles, Buffy stood over it and slammed her high heel into its eye. She breathed out in relief when it twitched and stopped moving.

She wanted to cry when her heel snapped off inside its head.

X

Spike sipped his water listlessly. He wondered how Katie was doing at Faith's. She was always a handful and Faith wasn't really used to having her at night. Spike just hoped that Katie didn't decide that the Summers home looked like the one from Home Alone. He'd had enough trouble trying to get her to not booby trap their home let alone stop her doing it altogether.

X

Faith looked at the stairs in dismay. "Katie," she bellowed, not expecting an answer nor getting one.

She trudged up the sticky stairway wincing at the thought of cleaning the honey before a heavy thud caught her attention. Her eyes opened wide as the now-empty weapons chest hurtled down the stairs and into her knees, carrying her to the bottom of the steps.

Faith dusted herself off in exasperation before she jogged up the steps and, following the honey footprints, into her room.

"Argh!" Katie screamed, swinging with all her might.

Faith casually plucked the tiny axe from the girl's fingers. "Do you want to explain yourself?"

Katie looked up, all wide-eyed innocence. "I hadta stop the robbers, Auntie Fayt. I hadta."

X

Spike sighed and pulled the collar of his dress shirt away from his neck. Restricted breathing was never a problem for him, but it brought back unpleasant memories to have that chafing pressure there again. He'd worn a suit for this bloody date, and a damned nice one too. And he was being stood up.

He slouched a little more in his chair. Talk about a blow to his ego. Some bint pesters Dawn to ask him out for her then she stands him up. At first he'd thought maybe it was traffic - although he couldn't see how in the town the size of Sunnydale - and then he'd thought maybe it was being fashionably late. Now, he'd never really dated as a human, or at all, but he was reasonably sure that fashionably late was ten or fifteen minutes, not an hour and a half.

Taking off his tie and cramming it into a pocket, the vampire undid the top few buttons of his shirt. That was something of a relief. He made a decision that he'd wait for another five minutes then he'd just leave.

X

Buffy sprinted as fast as she could. She'd had to change her shoes, which meant she'd had to change her outfit again. Now she was really, really late and he probably wasn't even there anymore but she couldn't just not go. Tucking her head down Buffy tried to run faster, cursing her heels the whole time.

She was breathless by the time she arrived at the restaurant and she took a deep calming breath or two then walked inside. She spotted Spike right away, sitting at a table towards the back of the restaurant. His peroxide blond head shone in the dim light, and it looked like he was wearing a suit.

Taking a deep breath, Buffy began to cross the romantically lit room, he stood up in irritation. Buffy opened her mouth to apologise for being so late when he turned around. He was in a suit, and he looked damned good. The dark blue materiel hung on him like it was supposed to, and she could see his pale collarbone through the open collar of his crisp white shirt.

Buffy closed her mouth to keep from drooling.

X

Spike looked at Buffy in surprise. He hadn't expected to bump into her here. She was wearing a green dress, and her cheeks were red. She looked just as shocked at seeing him as he was seeing her.

"Don't worry, Slayer," he assured her, looking around surreptitiously for her date. "I'll be out of your hair shortly. Seems I was stood up."

The Slayer blinked and opened her mouth. Spike waited patiently. "Me too," she finally blurted.

Spike raised a sardonic eyebrow. "Didn't you just get here?"

"I should have been here ages ago," Buffy explained uneasily.

Spike shrugged elegantly. "I think I'm just going to patrol for a bit then go home."

"I'll come with you!" Buffy said hurriedly.

"In that?" he asked, looking pointedly at her billowy dress.

The Slayer gave a plastic laugh and shook her head. "No, of course not. I've got to go get changed, first."

"Restfield, half hour?"

X

Stupid, stupid, stupid! Why couldn't she just say 'Spike, I'm your date and I'm sorry I'm so late'? It even rhymed!

She pulled the white tank top over her head then hurried to touch up her lipstick. Grabbing the pack of cigarettes and the six-pack - both generously supplied by Faith - and began her walk to Restfield Cemetery.

Spike was having a smoke by the gates, wrapped once more in his familiar duster. She presented him the gifts brightly.

"Maybe these will make up for you being stood up," she tried gamely.

He looked at the beer in disbelief. "Somebody let you buy beer?"

"Uh, no," Buffy said, a little embarrassed. "Faith bought it."

An odd expression stole its way across the vampire's face. "Oh."

"What 'oh'?" Buffy asked.

"Nothing," he replied hurriedly.

"'Oh' isn't nothing," Buffy countered. "'Oh' is something."

"It's just, something that Isabelle said," Spike explained. Buffy's face turned blank. "She said that either you or Faith were, y'know, interested in me," he continued, his raised eyebrow making it abundantly clear exactly how interested.

Buffy's mouth opened and closed like a fish.

"Oh, don't worry Slayer," Spike chuckled merrily. "I know it wouldn't be you. It's just been a bit… odd, knowing Faith is interested is all."

X

Buffy felt like someone had hollowed out her chest. Spike thought it was laughable that she might like him?

"Spike, I," Buffy began, then stopped. Why couldn't she just say it? 'Spike, I like you'. The words were easy. She wanted to say them. She opened her mouth to say them. The words refused to come out.

"It's okay, Slayer," Spike said softly. "I know."

Buffy blinked. She didn't know if she was elated or crushed. Maybe, she decided, she should wait to see his reaction first.

"Isabelle figured it out," he said, throwing her into a deeper confusion. "How long have you known you're gay?"

"Huh?" Buffy asked, puzzled.

"Isabelle said you were either a horrible liar, or a lesbian," Spike explained. "I know you don't like me."

"Can I borrow your coat?" Buffy asked faintly. "I'm feeling really cold all of a sudden."

Spike nodded and slipped the duster off. Buffy wrapped herself in the comforting scent and texture of the worn leather - blood and alcohol and cigarette smoke and Spike - and took a deep breath or three.

"Spike, I…"

XXXXX

A/N: Evil cliffhanger! This chapter originally held the next confrontation but it didn't work out. I'm tired, this chapter was hard to write. I've been pretty depressed lately, just life getting me down, so it's been harder than usual to write a light-hearted fic. I think I managed this chapter pretty well, all considered. Most likely won't be a chapter next week (seeing as I have trial exams) but it should, hopefully, be back on schedule the week after. Of course, some nice REVIEWS might sway my mind. I'm just fickle that way.