35 Back Again
Buffy clutched the stake in her hand as she walked through the cemetery. She glanced over to Spike stepping toward her from around a headstone through the damp grass. Her gut had been clenching and unclenching uncomfortably during the past two hours of patrol. They hadn't had any luck at the first cemetery, and only came across two vampires on campus, neither of which had given them much of a fight. It was sad how quickly they had been dusted really.
Unfortunately, the quiet night hadn't done anything to ease Buffy's overactive mind.
It was her first official night on Slayer duty after having the twins and she was more than ready to get back to slaying. In theory at least, but once she had started patrol, her new found mommy-anxiety had made an appearance in a big way and she was having some serious doubts about leaving the babies alone with her sister, even though the twins had been changed, well fed, and fast asleep before she and Spike left for a routine patrol.
Spike took a drag of his cigarette, a plume of smoke trailing behind him. He glanced over to Buffy who was still fidgeting with her stake. "You're awfully tense," he noted, falling in step with her. "you holding up alright over there, Luv?"
Buffy exhaled sharply, flipping her stake in her hand. "Just thinking about the girls. Maybe we should have asked Will and Tara to come over. Or maybe I should be doing a solo; or maybe—"
"It's been slow, you wanna call it an early night? Go put your mind at ease?"
She shook her head in defeat. "No… yes… but no. I need to get back out. After what Les said about business picking up and that vamp at work—" She gave a little shudder. "—no thanks. I'm kinda afraid there might be a baddie out there putting together a crew of minions or something."
Spike took a final hit of his cigarette, flicking it to the ground. "Suppose it's possible, but I've been making regular rounds with the bot and haven't come across any big bads… or even little bads. Mostly just fledglings, annoying little sods like those pissants we got earlier."
"Yeah but it's not like you go out with her every night, and let's be real here, how much of your time is spent patrolling and how much of it is just babysitting 'Tina'?"
He shrugged. "She doesn't need much sitting, but then she doesn't exactly have your investigative skills either. Course Red's also got her programmed with the sodding boomerang effect. Thing completes a patrol and zap, Tina's off to see the little witch."
"Kinda my point," she grumbled as another little pang of guilt from being away from her daughters shot through her. "I know I'm doing the right thing, but at the same time the girls are just so tiny," Buffy replied.
"Dawn's got the monitor and she knows what she's doing. Think she can handle two sleeping babies while we have a bit of a night out," Spike soothed, taking her stake-free hand in his.
Buffy snorted. "I'm not sure if I'd call this a night out but yeah, you're probably right. I just—" she stopped talking abruptly when a vampire wearing jeans and a denim jacket came out from the trees edging the cemetery. Buffy narrowed her eyes as she dropped Spike's hand and adjusted her hold on her stake. "Duty calls."
"That's my girl," Spike grinned as he took a seat on one of the headstones, settling in to watch Buffy work.
The vamp advanced, all snarling teeth and yellow eyes. "You must be the Slayer. I've heard of you. You don't look so tough," he sneered. "Oh, I'm gonna enjoy ripping your throat out."
Buffy rolled her eyes. "Ah huh, okay, let's see what you got. Bonus points if you can get me to break a sweat."
"Oh I'll do more than that," the vampire growled.
Spike laughed out loud.
The denim-clad vamp squared his shoulders. "What's your problem anyway?" he spat in Spike's direction.
"Just waiting for the show to start, big man, lady's been itching for a good tussle," Spike goaded.
Buffy shot Spike a mildly annoyed glare
but didn't wait for the vamp to respond before she stepped forward with a left hook and an uppercut to his jaw.
The vamp stumbled back, correcting quickly and using the momentum to jump up onto a squared headstone. Buffy spun around with a kick in an attempt to knock the vamp's legs out from under him but he dodged her leg.
She followed with a second kick hitting him in the knee. The impact toppled him from his perch and sent him crashing into another headstone. He bounced off the stone, rolling once before landing on his back. Using a kip-up the vamp regained his footing, moving toward her with fists, feet, and fangs.
Buffy caught his shin in the stomach and stumbled back a few paces as the vampire continued to advance, throwing punches that, for a moment, managed to inch her up against an obelisk. The vamp pinned her shoulders to the stone, fangs bared as he strained against her forearm braced against his chest.
"Alright there, pet?" Spike called, tapping out a cigarette casually.
"Never better, hun," she grunted, quickly kneeing him in the stomach before bringing her opposite leg up, planting the sole of her boot on the vamp's chest propelling him back.
The vamp flew several feet back, this time toppling over a low stone bench. He stumbled to his feet growling, blind with anger and bloodlust.
Buffy grinned. "Was this part of the plan? Getting your ass kicked?" she taunted.
"I'll show you, you little—" he snarled, jumping onto the same headstone she had knocked him off of earlier. There was a slight sense of Deja vu that dissolved completely when the vamp flung himself toward Buffy like a wrestler.
Stake in hand, Buffy spun, bringing her arms up as the vampire hurtled through the air and caught him squarely in the heart ending the fight.
Buffy turned back toward Spike with a satisfied smile on her face as the dust settled to the ground around her. "That felt good."
"Not to mention hot as hell," Spike commented, pushing off the gravestone, curling his tongue against his teeth suggestively.
Buffy raised an eyebrow at him, trying to suppress a grin. "Why are you looking at me like I just did a striptease?"
"Might've well have. Always love watchin' you in action, and it's been far too long, gorgeous," he purred, closing the distance between them and working his fingers into her hair. "Few more minutes of that and I might've blown my top."
Buffy let him pull her close, his obvious erection pressing into her. "We still have another cemetery to hit."
"True," he murmured in her ear. "Could be untold baddies hanging about just waiting for your perky little self to knock 'em down, might need to blow off steam in more ways than one before the night's over. Could even call it a proper date if we do it right."
She huffed a laugh. "You have problems."
Spike's grin widened. "Right, and you've got the cure for what ales me, darlin'. A little romantic interlude might be just what you need to unwind on a nice warm night like this."
Buffy giggled, slapping him on the arm. "Oh my God, you're such a weirdo."
"And yet you've agreed to marry me so what's that say 'bout you," he smirked.
"That I have questionable tastes in men."
Spike chuckled, releasing his hold on her as they continued to walk. "Maybe so, but you're stuck with me now, Luv."
"We're not married yet, I still have time to back out," Buffy retorted, biting her cheek to keep from laughing.
"Oh, is that right?" he growled playfully, scooping her up in his arms. "Not if I've anything to say about it."
Buffy yelped, kicking her feet in protest and giggling as he walked her back behind a small family mausoleum. He deposited her feet onto the damp grass, pressing her between himself and the wall, leaning in for a kiss.
"Bet I can get you to work up a sweat," he teased, moving his hands to her hips and letting his thumbs graze the thin strip of exposed skin between the hem of her top and the waistband of her jeans. The sensation sent a shiver of pleasure rocketing down her spine straight to her core.
It had been far too long.
Buffy reached up, digging her fingers into his hair, gripping hard enough to jerk his head back. Spike's eyes flashed lustfully, pupils blown wide with desire. The look sent a thrill of molten heat cascading through her belly and she pulled him down, her mouth seeking his, their tongues dancing, slipping against one another deliciously.
She pulled away to catch her breath. "Spike—" she gasped.
He growled, undoing the clasp on her jeans and pushing them down her thighs along with her panties. With the toe of his boot, he nudged them down around her ankles, all the while lavishing kisses along her throat.
"What are— Ahh— oh God…" Buffy groaned as he slid his hand down over her mound, slipping a finger over her clit.
"Been havin' this recurring fantasy rollin' round in my head for a couple of weeks. Thought I'd share it with you when you were ready for me. You are, aren't you?" he breathed, nudging her nose with his own and skimming his lips across hers teasingly.
Buffy whimpered her agreement as his fingers worked her further. "What kind of fantasy?"
Spike grinned. "Spread your legs for me a bit, Luv," he requested.
Buffy did so, as best she could with her ankles trapped as they were. Spike stepped into the rough circle created by her legs bound by her clothing around her ankles and with his hands on her thighs, he pulled her up to hug her legs around his waist pressing her against the wall as he used one hand to release himself from his jeans.
Buffy shivered, a combination of anticipation and the feeling of the smooth granite wall behind her. She gripped his shoulders, clawing into the leather.
Spike pulled his mouth away from her neck to look her in the eyes. "Alright there, kitten?" He grinned.
She hardened her gaze, squeezing her legs around his hips. "As long as you don't try calling this a date, I think I'll be good," she countered.
"Wouldn't dare," he growled into a kiss as he adjusted his grip on her to help her lower herself onto him very slowly. The warm night air caught in her lungs as his tip began to press into her and she had rarely ever been so thankful for Slayer healing as she was at that moment.
"Is that good for you, Luv? Not going too fast for you, am I?" he asked.
"I'm alright, just go slow."
He nodded, placing a tender kiss on her lips as he eased into her. She could feel her walls adjusting around his shaft as he stretched her slowly.
She had been a little afraid that giving birth might've ruined sex for them somehow. Spike pulled her onto him as he pushed into her fully with a deep groan that resonated through his chest.
He paused for a moment checking her face for signs of discomfort and kissed her. "Still doing alright?"
Buffy nodded once, rolling her hips, stretching around him with a moan.
"God, I missed feeling you 'round me, " he whispered into her ear, the sound of his voice crumbling any fears she had been harboring to dust as he teased her ear lobe with his tongue. She whimpered when he caught one of her earrings in his teeth, tugging gently while he began to thrust his hips.
She tilted her hips against the wall, as his pace increased. The change of the angle instantly sent a shock wave through her system and she stifled a scream by biting his leather-clad shoulder.
Spike dug the fingertips of one hand into the soft flesh of her thigh, reaching his other hand to Buffy's wrist. It wasn't until he had pinned her hand to the wall above her head that she realized she had been pulling his hair, yanking his head back roughly at an angle.
Her hand firmly clasped in his, he bent his head to plant his lips over her collarbone. Sucking the skin into his mouth and biting with blunt teeth until she was panting. Their mutual release building with every thrust. Buffy's bound legs began to shake and she arched her back against the wall.
Spike ran his tongue up a tendon in her neck, the pressure within her core ramped up into a soaring crescendo, sending her convulsing around him. Spike followed her over the edge with a low grunt as his release came, hips jerking as he swelled, stretching her just a little further. He pressed a biting kiss to her lips, sending her over an edge she hadn't even realized she was near.
He held her there, kissing along her jaw as they both began to come down from their high.
Spike began chucking.
Buffy pulled her head up from his shoulder. "What's so funny?"
He licked a patch of skin below her ear, with a hum. "Knew I'd get you to break a sweat, beautiful."
(*)
The remainder of their patrol went quickly and smoothly after their "break". Buffy found herself much more relaxed and dispatched the next three vampires with ease.
The house was dark when they returned home. Spike hung up his duster while Buffy put away the weapons in the chest in the living room.
He leaned against the newel post, watching as she made her way back toward him.
"What's that look for?" Buffy asked, closing the distance between them.
"Just thinking 'bout how everything has changed for us in the past year."
Buffy sighed, nodding in agreement. "Pretty crazy, huh?"
"Nah, not crazy," he smirked, leaning in to kiss her. "It's brilliant."
"Ah huh—" Buffy said thickly, stifling a yawn.
"Let's get you to bed, lamb," he replied, rubbing his hands over her shoulders.
She let him guide her up the stairs where Dawn's door stood open wide. Buffy poked her head in, Spike right behind her. Buffy smiled softly when she saw Dawn. She had fallen asleep on top of her covers, clutching the baby monitor to her chest.
Buffy extracted the monitor from her hand and pulled the extra blanket from the bottom of the bed to cover her sister before closing her door and checking on the girls. She sighed happily watching their tiny chests rising and falling with each steady breath. Her shoulders eased at the sight.
Spike leaned over Buffy's shoulder, kissing her temple. "Come on, Luv, let the wee ones sleep. You know they'll be up soon enough looking for Mama."
She nodded, slipping her hand into his, and let Spike lead her to their bedroom.
(*)
Within a few weeks, they had managed to get into something resembling a steady routine. One that would've been impossible if not for the help she received from those closest to her.
Buffy was already dressed for patrol as she held her daughters in her arms, nuzzling their tawny curls and planting a kiss on each of their foreheads before settling them into their cribs for the night. She couldn't believe how much they had grown so much in the few short weeks since she had been back to work, in both senses of the word, slaying and her job at the funeral home.
She watched a moment longer as they drifted off to sleep, before easing out of the room and turning to her sister standing in the hallway. "God, I seriously wonder if leaving them is ever going to get any easier," Buffy said.
"Remember when I turned twelve?" Dawn grinned.
Buffy's eyes widened. "And now I'm picturing twin yous going through puberty… Oh, God— Yup, it's official, I'm sending them to boarding school."
"No, you won't," Dawn giggled as they started down the stairs. "Besides, tomorrow is one of your work-from-home days so you can get your baby snuggles in then," she added knowingly.
Buffy sighed. "Yeah alright. I'm still sort of getting used to this new schedule Ruth came up with. I mean it's great being home two days a week getting all the baby love I can, but it's kind of weird too, right?"
"I think your weird-o-meter is busted."
"Probably…"
Buffy really did have to admit that the new arrangement definitely helped her achieve some kind of balance. For the most part, Ruth had avoided asking her much about Slaying, beyond a few clarifying questions. Buffy had answered her questions honestly, if not completely, and Ruth was smart enough not to dig further than necessary. Ruth seemed most interested (and outraged) by the fact that Buffy didn't get any kind of compensation for what she began calling Buffy's "night job".
"Alright, Aunt Dawn, they're down for the count, you're in charge," Buffy said as they reached the bottom landing where Spike was waiting by the door.
"For the millionth time, Buffy, the girls and I will be fine," Dawn insisted.
"Oi, super-sitter, don't forget you got those translations and whatnot for the Watcher," Spike reminded.
Dawn glared at him. "They're not translations, he's just having me go through some of the old Watcher Diaries."
Spike suppressed a wince. "Yeah, well don't believe everything you read in those things. Lot of fiction folded between those facts."
"Yeah, yeah. I know, beware hyperbole and conjecture," she huffed.
"Well now, look who's been listening," Spike retorted.
Buffy rolled her eyes as she retrieved a couple of stakes, handing one over to Spike before addressing her sister again. "Did I tell you Tara might be stopping by tonight to return the camping stuff?"
"Only three times. Giles had me help with some of the research stuff for their LA adjacent trip. Now will you go so you can get back and get your mama sleep? I think my nieces are officially frying your brain."
Buffy began a retort when Spike stopped her. "Let's get a move on, we got our pointy sticks and sensible shoes, let's kill some bad guys," he said, opening the front door with a smirk.
Dawn giggled at the murderous look her sister shot him as they exited the door. She ran quietly up the stairs, checked on the babies, grabbed two of the journals Giles had loaned her, and took them downstairs. She laid the books on the coffee table, sighed, and adjusted the baby monitor clipped to her hip before she made her way into the kitchen to get herself a glass of iced tea. She took her drink into the living room to settle in on the couch to read.
She was nearly finished with the one she had been reading when one of the babies started to fuss over the monitor. Dawn flicked the book shut, running upstairs. Lillian was crying in full force but by some miracle hadn't yet awoken her sister, much to Dawn's relief.
She scooped up the crying baby, grabbed a few potential necessities, and whisked her back downstairs as quickly and quietly as possible. Dawn cradled her niece against her shoulder, swaying with her a moment until she felt the telltale rumble of a diaper being filled. Dawn held Lily out to eye her. "Ohh, kiddo, no wonder you're fussy. You stink!"
Lily's cry's ratcheted up at the displeasure of being in said stinky diaper and Dawn laid her down on the sofa cushion. "Aww, Auntie Dawnnie's here, I'll get you cleaned up; but I think mommy and daddy are going to owe me for this one," she soothed teasingly as she got the baby cleaned up. She was just fastening the diaper and getting the baby's legs back into her sleeper when there was a loud knock on the door.
The strangeness of Tara knocking hadn't even entered her mind when she called out over her shoulder, "It's open! Come on in!" The door clicked shut behind her. "Sorry, Tara, I was just changing a dia—" Dawn cut off abruptly as she stood, turning toward her guest with little Lily secured against her chest.
"You know, you'd totally think the sister of the Slayer would know better than to just yell out an invite," the unexpected visitor said, flipping her blonde hair over her shoulders in the perfect embodiment of a valley girl trying desperately to look dark and mysterious.
Dawn gulped, clutching her niece a little tighter. "What do you want, Harmony?"
Harmony shrugged, taking a few steps into the living room. "I got bored, so I thought I'd come back and visit the Slayer. See, I came up with a new plan—" Dawn scoffed, backing up toward the weapon chest while Harmony kept babbling on. "— I'm serious, this one really is a good plan, a new and better plan, and this time I don't have any backstabbing minions to get in my way!"
Dawn eyed her sternly. "Kidnapping isn't a new plan, you ditzy bimbo. So unless you want to find yourself filling up an ashtray, I—"
"Why do you have a baby?" Harmony asked, tilting her head with curiosity.
"I'm babysitting, duh," Dawn snapped.
Harmony tilted her head the other way. "But who's baby is it?"
Dawn grit her teeth, unsure of what she was going to do. "Buffy will be home soon and when she sees you she's going to kill you so much that—"
The lights surged on the baby monitor as Grace's wails began flowing from the device.
Dawn's eyes flickered up the stairs, bulging in panic as Harmony scrambled to run upstairs. Dawn threw open the weapon chest, grabbed the smallest crossbow she could find, and ran upstairs, still clutching Lily to her chest.
A high-pitched noise emitted from the room.
"Don't you dare hurt her!" Dawn screamed as she propelled herself toward the babies' room.
The sight in front of her made her stop dead in her tracks.
Harmony had seized not her crying niece but rather the massive unicorn tucked in the girl's little reading corner.
"Ohh my freaking goodness!!!"
The high-pitched sound repeated and this time Dawn's brain registered it as a delighted squeal. Dawn blinked at her dumbly.
"This is seriously the most adorable room ever! Oh and look at you!" Harmony exclaimed, peering over the unicorn's fuzzy mane to examine little Grace who had stopped crying and was eyeing her with wary eyes. "Hi, cutie… wow you look—"
"Get away from her!" Dawn bellowed as pushed into the room, clutching the crossbow trained on Harmony in one hand and the baby in the other. "If you even touch either of my nieces, you'll be dust lady," she seethed, wanting to lay Lily down safely next to her sister in the crib but not daring to turn her back on Harmony. Mentally deficient or not, she was still a vampire.
"Your nieces— well duh… her house, and all," Harmony turned on the spot examining the unicorn decor, she reached out to run her fingers over the lamp on the small table between the rocking chair and the reading corner. "So the Slayer is a mommy," she said finally, placing one hand on her hip. The effect was sorely diminished by the fact she was snuggling a plush unicorn nearly as tall as her.
Dawn blinked. "Ah, yeah…" she hedged, unsure about what direction this situation was going. The fact that she hadn't vamped, tried to attack, or had even shown more than a cursory interest in the babies was more than a little confusing.
And then the weirdest thing happened.
Harmony sat.
Not in the chair Buffy used, but in the middle of the floor on the pastel rainbow rug suddenly looking like a sad little girl.
Dawn kept the crossbow trained on her but took a second to lay Lily in the crib so that both babies were behind her. Adjusting her grip on her weapon, Dawn eyed Harmony, ready for an attack that didn't seem to be coming.
"Alright, as fun as this is, you're really freaking me out. What are you doing?"
"That's sweet," Harmony sighed heavily. "You know, that's a really good question. I've been asking myself the same thing lately. I've been reading a lot of those self-help books, you know?" Harmony looked up at her sadly.
"Ah, huh…" Dawn nodded, still trying to figure out what kind of mental breakdown Harmony might be having.
Harmony adjusted the unicorn in her lap and began stroking its mane. "One of the books said I should go look up an old friend— so I did— and it didn't help at all. I mean sure it was great to catch up and stuff but Cordy's all happy and successful in LA with her perfect smile and her sort of perfect life— if you don't count the gross hard work and stuff— and she has the cutest little boy too— so that trip was sort of a bust. So I started reading more. Finding my independence and that kind of stuff, and I thought, 'Hey, maybe I should just give Sunnydale another try. Show everyone I'm my own beautiful, strong, intelligent woman!" She paused her rant when Dawn let out an involuntary laugh that she tried to pass off as a cough.
"Go- go on, I'm listening," Dawn choked.
"Well anyway, I thought, what better way to get some real recognition than to come back and face my mortal enemy once and for all? And she's not even here! I get the little sister-babysitter and two little babies! I mean what am I supposed to do with babies?" she huffed petulantly.
If she didn't have any ideas, Dawn sure as hell wasn't going to volunteer any. An idea struck her and she almost grinned. Harmony was clearly struggling with the whole concept of being evil, and if Spike had been able to make changes on his own then maybe it could be possible that a vampire like Harmony might be able to as well— Worth a shot.
"Can I ask you something?"
Harmony tilted her head. "Well duh, you just did."
"Have you ever considered talking to a therapist?" Dawn smiled sweetly.