Summary: A time-travel fic (briefly) in which Buffy meets a much younger William who remembers her fondly when he comes to Sunnydale as a 124-year-old vampire. Award winner. Character death warning.
Rating: NC-17
She felt his cock jump inside her as he spoke, and she giggled in spite of herself. Shaking off the sadness she felt at knowing he would be gone soon, she squeezed him with her internal muscles and murmured, “How would we do that?”
Spike concentrated hard and without moving his hips, began to move his cock so that it bumped against her womb, providing just enough stimulation to make her gasp and whimper. In retaliation, she began rhythmic contractions of her muscles; contractions that soon had low, rumbling growls coming from his chest. The growls vibrated throughout Buffy’s body, adding to the sensations already being created by his still active cock and bringing accompanying hums from her own throat.
For long, ecstatic minutes, they stubbornly kept up the unspoken contest to see who would move first. The Slayer was gritting her teeth, refusing to give in to the urge to begin rubbing her pelvis against him, while the vampire fought down his demon and its demands that he pound her into the mattress. Without either of them realizing what was happening, they gradually began moving together. Slowly at first, small, barely perceptible motions that gradually developed into harder and harder thrusts until Buffy was clinging to the headboard with both hands while Spike pushed against her with his full vampiric strength.
Buffy’s head was thrown back as she felt another earthshaking orgasm building and Spike’s eyes were drawn to her throat and the pulse pounding there in rhythm with the motion of his hips. She opened her eyes to see, not the soft blue eyes she was expecting but the amber lust-filled gaze of the demon she’d first met at Back to School Night.
With a growl of her own, she pulled his face down to her neck, gasping, “Do it.”
There was no pause as his fangs elongated and slipped through the soft skin on her neck. As soon as she felt the first long pull on her blood, Buffy began to tremble. With a muffled shriek, she fell into a pattern of orgasm after orgasm with every deep pull on her throat. Her slayer senses, which should have been telling her to fight the demon, instead were reveling in the sense of complete surrender to the vampire drinking her life’s blood.
With the first draught, Spike’s demon began screaming for him to drain this woman beneath him. As each swallow of powerful Slayer blood reached his body, he grew stronger – the last of his wounds closing and his muscles bursting with new strength. When he felt her begin to spasm around him, he let go, pouring that strength back into her as he pumped his lifeless sperm into the waiting womb and fighting to suppress the claiming words that trembled in his throat.
When he felt her heart slowing down, Spike snapped out of the lust-induced fog and immediately withdrew his fangs from her neck, licking the wounds closed and nuzzling her anxiously.
“Slayer? Buffy? I’m so sorry. Talk to me, love.”
“Wow?” she offered weakly. “What the hell was that?”
“That was me being a selfish wanker and taking advantage of the situation,” he responded, relaxing now that he knew she was all right and rolling off to the side. “I am so sorry, love. You have no idea how that--”
“Okay, I’m thinking I kinda have an idea. Feeling a little woozy here. But, come on, Spike. I asked you to do it – and, all things considered? Not dead and definitely feeling the happy factor. I’m surprised I didn’t lose MY soul after that little performance.”
He laughed ruefully and agreed. “Got to admit, pet, if I live to be a thousand, I don’t expect to ever feel like this again. That was bloody…If I try to put it into words that poncy William is going to come out spouting poetry. You are absolutely amazing.”
“Not so bad yourself there, Vampire.” She smiled at him, her eyes sleepy.
She curled into his side, sighing comfortably when he pulled the covers up over them and put his arms around her.
“I’m just going to take a little nap now - and then we’ll go kick soulless vampire butt…”
“You’re not kicking anything tonight, pet. Not until I know you’re back to full strength.”
He dropped a kiss on her forehead and began to ease out of the bed.
“Where’re you going?” she whined without opening her eyes.
“Going to find you something to drink. I’m too full of Slayer blood to sleep right now. You rest and I’ll be back before you know it.”
There was no answer as Buffy fell into a restorative sleep, her Slayer healing working hard to replace the blood she’d lost. While Spike pulled on his jeans and walked downstairs, she snoozed peacefully feeling completely sated and relaxed.
Spike let her sleep for several hours before dropping his jeans on the floor and trying to wake her with another kiss as he slipped back into the bed. When she didn’t respond immediately, he began whispering in her ear. His murmured endearments flowed into her still sleep-logged brain, the words not really registering as much as the warmth and caring in his rugged baritone. Eventually she responded, turning over to blink into his worried eyes and smile reassuringly.
“Ah, there you are. Was beginning to worry a bit, pet. Been here for quite a while trying to get you to wake up.”
“I heard you,” she yawned, “I just didn’t feel like waking up. It was nice. Hearing you tell me….” She opened her eyes wide, suddenly remembering some of the things he’d been murmuring into her ear and staring into his embarrassed face.
“Yeah, well, had to say something, didn’t I? I mean there you were, dead to the world with a vampire leaning over you…”
His voice trailed off as she reached a hand up to stroke his cheek, almost as if she was trying memorize the shape of his face. He studied her, anxiously trying to decipher the look she was giving him.
“Yeah,” she agreed finally, “I guess you had to say something.” She sat up, stretching her arms over her head and blushing at the admiring look he was giving her now-exposed upper body.
He grinned lasciviously and licked his lips before reluctantly turning away to reach for the large glass of orange juice he’d brought up with him. “Here, love. Stop tempting me with those perfect little bosoms and drink up. Need to replace your fluids, Slayer healing or no.”
They leaned back against the headboard in companionable silence while Buffy obediently drained the whole glass of juice. When it was empty, she held it out to him with a questioning look and he immediately grabbed it and stood up to go get more. A barely perceptible sound outside the window brought his head around and Buffy was surprised to see him go immediately into game face, snarling viciously.
Her head snapped around, her mouth forming an “o” when she saw a furious Angelus snarling back at Spike from just outside the window. They remained in a frozen tableau for long, tense seconds, the soulless vampire on the roof glaring at his naked former girlfriend and his equally naked grandchilde.
Buffy grabbed the sheet, automatically pulling it up to cover the breasts Angel had never seen before, while Spike stood up, completely comfortable with his nudity as he walked over and yanked the drapes closed.
*****************************
Furious over what he’d just seen, as well as his inability to get into the house and do anything about it, the older vampire raged through Sunnydale, grabbing anyone and anything that did not appear strong enough to fight back and ripping out their throats with no regard for whether he actually needed the blood or not. So great was his rage that he was unable to take his usual cruel enjoyment in killing his victims slowly. He ripped and tore until he’d worn himself out leaving Sunnydale awash in the blood of those unfortunate enough to have crossed his path.
He returned to the warehouse to find Drusilla sitting patiently beside a pale, drained Xander, waiting for her newest toy to wake up. It was obvious from the marks on his body that she had amused herself for quite a while before finally draining and turning the boy. Even though Angelus had planned to kill the first one of Buffy’s friends he could get his hands on, and even though he had sent Drusilla to look for one of them while he checked on the Slayer, his disgust at seeing which one she’d come back with was palpable.
Angelus grabbed her roughly, yanking her dress over her head and lifting her onto his hard cock. Even as she growled and screamed in delight, she was watching him shrewdly and reading his mood. With a vicious swipe of her claws, she left four bleeding slashes across his face as she hissed, “You are wishing I was her. That dirty little slayer that has taken my William. You have seen them!”
Her sire ignored her except to backhand her for scratching him, dropping to the floor and pounding into her until he was done. Then he rolled off and pointed at Xander’s still immobile body.
“I don’t know what possessed you to turn that worthless piece of shit, but since you have, I know what his first meal will be. I’ll show her what it means to defy Angelus. And I’ll make that childe of yours pay too. No one takes what’s mine and lives to brag about it.”
When Drusilla refused to listen to his insistence that Xander would not be waking up until the following evening, he left her in disgust and went into the makeshift bedroom to sleep until all the blood he’d taken had worked to bring him back to full strength.
Drusilla waited quietly beside Xander’s body, talking occasionally to one of her dolls and watching carefully for any signs of consciousness.
Chapter 17
Spike spent the day in Buffy’s bed; reluctantly kissing her good-bye when she insisted that she had to go to school, if for no other reason than to see Giles and Ms Calendar and find out how the re-ensouling spell was coming. After a shower that took much longer than expected, due to Spike’s joining her in the bathtub, she finally was able to dress and leave. In spite of his insistence that he was too pumped on Slayer blood to sleep, she could see the advancing daylight causing his eyelids to droop, leaving her no doubt that he would be sound asleep a few minutes after she left.
He gave a grumbled assent to her instructions not to answer the phone, lest it be her mother calling from San Francisco, and forced her to promise she would eat a hearty breakfast and drink a lot of water all day. With one last, lingering kiss, she let herself out the door and hastened to Sunnydale High School to do her best imitation of a perfectly normal seventeen-year-old virgin.
In the library, Giles and Jenny continued to work on the spell needed to reinstall Angelus’ soul. Fortunately, it was a slow day for the computer teacher and with few classes, she was able to concentrate on her work. With Willow’s record as an “A” student, she had no trouble getting the novice witch released from class to “help” her in the library.
She felt sure that she would have the curse spell figured out and ready to go within a day or two and she praised Willow’s enthusiasm and research abilities, as well as commenting on the magical potential she could feel in the excited redhead.
“Buffy! “ Willow greeted Buffy’s arrival at lunch time with an excited squeal. “Miss Calendar says she can feel all kinds of magic in me. She thinks I’m going to be a very powerful witch. Isn’t that awesome? Think of the ways I’ll be able to help you then!”
Buffy smiled indulgently, happy that her friend had found some confidence even as she found herself wishing they were alone so that she could share her own exciting news about the loss of her virginity. Somehow she was sure that information was not anything her Watcher either needed or would want to know, particularly considering that the man in question was not one of her schoolmates but a 124-year-old master vampire.
“That’s great, Will. We’re going to be unstoppable. Like the three musketeers – or maybe the two musketeers? Have you heard from Xander? He wasn’t in class.”
“No. I haven’t seen him either. I guess he’s still mad at us.” Willow’s excitement over her newfound skills was tempered somewhat as she remembered how angry her oldest childhood friend had been when he slammed his way out of Giles’ apartment. “Maybe he stayed home today so he wouldn’t have to see us.”
“Sure, that’s probably it….” Buffy’s voice held just the slightest tinge of fear. She’d never known Xander to stay angry for more than a couple of hours and she hoped that their friendship wasn’t going to be ruined over her decision to restore Angel’s soul rather than dust him. “You don’t think he would have gone out…No, that’s ridiculous. Xander is too smart to go out after dark – especially with Angelus and Dru out there somewhere.”
Giles raised his eyebrows at her insistence that Xander was “too smart” for anything, but kept his own counsel about the young man. Knowing how much the two girls cared about the boy, he sincerely hoped that they were right and that Xander was just staying home to nurse his anger.
Packing their books, computers and supplies up for the trip back to the watcher’s apartment, the adults offered to drive Willow and Buffy home. Buffy blushed slightly as she said she had to go back to her house to get Spike. Her watcher’s jaw tightened as it became clear that the vampire was sleeping at the Summers home, but he held his tongue, just asking mildly, “And what is the plan for this evening?”
Blushing again, Buffy stammered that Spike was completely recovered and that they intended to confront Angleus and Drusilla as soon as the sun went down, catching them in the warehouse before they had time to begin the evening’s hunt. There was no argument from anyone about the necessity of ending their brief reign of terror as soon as possible. The news had been full of stories about the many citizens who had met a bloody and untimely end the night before, and no one doubted who was responsible.
Speaking up timidly, Willow ventured that maybe they should move the spell casting to Buffy’s house. With her mother out of town for the rest of the week, and the basement a perfect place to chain up a vampire, it seemed to make more sense than the Watcher’s small apartment.
When Buffy agreed, they all decided to meet her back at Revello Drive when they had picked up what they needed for the night. Willow went with Giles and Jenny so that she could pick up some clothes before going to Buffy’s for the night, and the Slayer told them she was going out to pick up Spike and go after Angelus and Drusilla. She promised to leave the door unlocked if they were gone before everyone got there.
After assuring her watcher that she would be bringing either Angelus or his dust with her when she got back, she waved cheerfully as she set off for home. Excitement and anticipation fed her energy and she made the walk to Revello Drive in record time.
Letting herself into the house quietly, she cast a look over her shoulder to see that the sun was still a good twenty-five minutes from being down far enough to make it safe for vampires to be out and about. She tried to smother the thoughts of what they could do with that twenty-five minutes, but lost the battle the minute she closed the door and a partially naked vampire pinned her to it, crushing her lips ravenously as he complained about being without her all day.
Buffy giggled at his growling description of what her blood had done to his body and how he’d spent the entire day with an aching hard-on, waiting for her to come home.
“All day?” she asked archly, rubbing her hand along the bulge pressing into her. “And you couldn’t think of anything to do about it?”
“Well, I might have had a good wank or two,” he admitted sheepishly, “but it wasn’t even close to having the real thing around me. My poor, cold hand is a poor substitute for your warm little---“ He slid his hand under her skirt and cupped her already dampening sex.
“Gah!” His move had caught Buffy by surprise and she felt her knees give way as he worked his fingers past the elastic on her underwear. With his free hand, he quickly unzipped and he was soon pressing his hard cock against her entrance.
“Want you so bad, love. Let me in now, Slayer. Let me feel you…”
As he spoke, she was reaching one leg up to hook around his waist, resting her full weight on one arm as he poised her over his cock. When she just nodded dumbly rather than answering him, he plunged home, pinning her back to the door and sighing with relief.
“You feel so good, pet. Missed you all day. Wanted you so bad…need you…”
He began moving, pushing her into the door with each thrust and forcing small grunts from her as he did so. He was just about to ask if he was hurting her when she wrapped the other leg around his waist and began to raise and lower herself on him, spinning them around so as to be riding him against the much-abused door.
When it became clear they weren’t getting the kind of friction desired, Spike turned away from the door and allowed himself to fall backwards, landing on the hall carpet with the Slayer on top of him. She put her hands on his chest, making it clear she was taking charge of their activities and he grinned as he relaxed and let her play.
She slid her hands up his bare chest, pausing to pinch his nipples before leaning down to lick them. His strangled “Buffy” told her she was having the desired effect and she took one in her blunt teeth, biting it until his growls turned to snarls. Sitting back up, she smiled innocently down at him and began to bounce up and down on her knees, slamming down into his hips harder each time. With a wicked grin, he grabbed her hips and began rising to meet her, using his hands to help him hit the spot for which he was aiming.
Her head thrown back and her long hair hanging down behind her, she looked like a fantasy come true; she was beautiful even as her face scrunched up in concentration as she lost herself in his expert movements. When he could contain himself no longer, he reached between them and took her clit between his fingers, twisting and rubbing until he felt her begin to shudder around him. He held her tightly in place as he spent himself inside her, not releasing her to collapse on his chest until he felt the last fluttering of her walls.
They rested together quietly for a moment, both suddenly aware that they had probably just made love for the last time. His arms tightened around her as he whispered in her ear, “Bloody hell, pet. I didn’t mean for our last time together to be like that. Wanted to—“
“You didn’t do that, I did,” Buffy replied, her voice muffled by his shoulder where she had buried her head. “I don’t know what I was thinking…I just needed you in me and I wanted to…”
“You wanted to be runnin’ the show?” he smirked, tilting her head up until he could see her blushing face.
“Is that terrible?” she asked tremulously. “Does that make me some kind of ho-bag slayer? That I would attack you like that?”
“No, sweetheart. It just means you are a warm, passionate woman. I s’pect the Slayer in you is more than willing to be in charge, and not shy about it either. I just wish we had some time to explore that side of your…”
“We don’t, though, do we?” she whispered, dropping her head again so that he couldn’t see her eyes. “This is it. You’re going to leave with Drusilla and I’m going to put Angel’s soul back—“
She was interrupted by another snarl.
“You are NOT going to go back to seeing that bloody pillock, are you? Bloody hell, pet, if Dru could make him that happy, just thinking about getting into your knickers is like to be enough to send the soul packing again! And if that happens while you’re…vulnerable…”
His face was flashing in and out of his vamp features as he wavered between fear for her safety and anger at the thought of Angel’s touching her. She stared at him in astonishment, happiness at the obvious jealousy she saw on his face warring with her growing anger that he would think he could tell her who to see when he was gone.
“Are you or are you not planning to take your precious Drusilla and leave here forever?” she asked through clenched teeth.
He sighed. “Yes, pet,” he answered quietly. “I am. And I know I’m a bloody hypocrite for trying to tell you what you can do after I leave, but ….” He sighed again. “Buffy, love, if I think there’s any chance you’re going to trust that sadistic wanker after this, I won’t be able to—“
Keeping her face buried where he couldn’t see it flaming, she muttered, “I don’t think you need to worry a whole lot about me seeing anybody else after this.”
He chuckled briefly, the vibration sending pleasant tingling through her body. “As chuffed as I am to hear that, pet, it’s going to happen. You know it and I know it. Might not be the great poof -- and I hope it isn’t, for your sake. But it’s going to be somebody.
“A warm, passionate girl like you isn’t going to want to be alone, not now that you’ve had a taste of… I just hope whoever you find is close to being worthy of the wonderful gift he’ll be getting.”
They rested together quietly for several minutes, neither one willing to be the first to pull out of their intimate connection. As Spike realized that remaining where he was, buried inside the warm walls that felt so comfortable and at the same time so exciting, was going to lead him to initiate another round, he groaned and reluctantly rolled her off onto the floor.
Buffy gave a little whimper as he slipped out of her, feeling the moisture sliding down her leg onto the rug. Making a little face, she sat up and straightened her clothing, sighing as she saw the wet spot on the carpet. “It’s a good thing this rug was already dirty,” she groused, rubbing vainly at the spot.
He laughed, saying, “It’ll be dry by the time your mum gets home. She’ll never notice, pet. Now, those sheets on your bed…”
“Oh my God! I never thought about the sheets!”
She leaped up and made to go up the stairs, stopping when he grabbed her ankle.
“Relax, Slayer. Just so long as you get them washed before your mum gets home, you’ll be fine.”
Twitching away from him, she said, “I need to go up there anyway, to change into something I can fight in.”
“ Alright, love,” he agreed, sitting up and zipping his pants. “You go change into poof-catching clothes and I’ll go fix you something for dinner, yeah? Jus’ bring my duster and boots down with you if you will, pet.”
“You aren’t coming upstairs with me?” she asked in a very small voice.
Before she could blink he was holding her tightly, face buried in her hair as he growled, “If I go up there again, love, I’m never going to be able to make myself leave. And I doubt your mum would fancy coming home to find a vampire living in your bedroom…” He tried to finish with some humor, but the way he was clutching her to his chest told her all she needed to know.
With shaking shoulders, she began to cry softly, holding on to him as if to a lifeline in a storm. Kisses and murmured endearments and comforting words did nothing but make the upcoming parting loom even more painfully, and for a brief flash the vampire seriously considered allowing her to dust his unfaithful lover so that he would not have to leave Sunnydale or the girl he had found that he was just as enamored of as when he’d been a young boy.
With suspicious moisture in his own eyes, he held her while she cried quietly until the sobs had trailed off to hiccups and she stirred, pushing herself away from him slowly.
“I’m sorry,” she sniffled. “I didn’t mean to be a big baby about this. Some warrior I am, huh?”
“Even warrior elf queens are allowed to cry sometimes, love,” he whispered huskily. “If the reason is good enough.”
“Okay,” she said briskly, giving herself a mental shake. “We have vampire butt to kick and I’m wasting time crying when I should just be glad for –“
She didn’t finish, just pushed him toward the kitchen and started up the stairs once again. She got as far as the landing when there was a light knock on the door and she returned to answer it. Expecting Giles and the two spell casters, she was surprised to find a slightly disheveled Xander looking at her apologetically.
“Xander! Are you all right? We were worried about you when you didn’t come to school...”
“I’m fine, Buffy. I just needed to do some thinking and I think I’ve got my head on straight now.” He looked at her appealingly, his warm brown eyes pleading silently. “Can I do my groveling inside?”
“Of course you can. Please, Xander. Come in.”
As she spoke, Spike was listening from the kitchen, growling softly when he realized who she was talking to but opting to stay out of the way if the boy wanted to apologize. It was several precious seconds before he realized that, while he could hear the conversation easily, he was only picking up one heartbeat. He sprinted for the hallway, calling Buffy’s name as he moved with vampire swiftness.
He was afraid for a second that he’d been too late, as he found Buffy back down on the same rug upon which they’d just made love, a vampire at her throat. A vamped-out Xander was on top of her, his mouth uncomfortably close to the Slayer’s neck, but Spike could smell no blood and sighed in relief even as he moved toward them. The newly-risen vamp had made a fatal mistake, stopping to rip at Buffy’s clothes and rant about the smell of sex and the way she reeked of Spike, rather than biting her immediately while he had surprise on his side.
Buffy was holding him off with one hand, the other scrabbling frantically for something wooden when suddenly he was gone – yanked off her body and thrown through the front door by a fully vamped-out Spike. The new fledgling was no match for a furious master vampire full of Slayer’s blood, and it was only a few seconds before he was lying semi-conscious on the ground, Spike sitting on him and holding out his hand for a stake.
“Slayer, now!” he ordered. When nothing happened, he looked up to see her staring at her old friend with tears pouring down her face. The stake she’d picked up held loosely in one hand, the other over her mouth to smother her sobs. He began to curse fluently, knowing that Angelus had set the scene so as to weaken the Slayer with grief before attacking her.
Suddenly her eyes grew big and she screamed, “Spike!” as she burst through the door and into the yard, too late to prevent Angelus’ attack from carrying him off Drusilla’s new toy and into a nearby tree. While the two vampires ripped and tore at each other, Xander staggered to his feet and stumbled toward Buffy, still more intent on ripping off her already torn skirt than killing her. She raised her stake shakily, keeping one eye on Spike and Angelus and one on the advancing fledgling vampire wearing the face of her only male friend.
When Drusilla glided out of the shadows, moving with slow grace toward the Slayer and her fledgling, Buffy felt the first tremors of fear. To her surprise, the vampire stopped Xander in mid-attack, ordering him with an angry hiss to “wait his turn” as she advanced on the waiting slayer. Making sure to avoid the old vampire’s eyes, Buffy went into a fighting crouch, her stake held tightly, ready for any opening.
Drusill, however, continued to move around the slayer rather than attacking, swaying and crooning words all the more frightening for being uttered in such a soothing voice.
“Naughty Slayer, to give to my Sweet William before Daddy got his taste. Slayer must be punished and William must be punished. Daddy wants to punish the Slayer. She is his to play with. William was a naughty boy to think he could –“ She caught sight of Buffy’s neck and the two rapidly healing marks there, and her entire demeanor changed as she hissed and slashed at Buffy’s face. “He marked you. My William marked you. Slayer blood and he didn’t have to kill you for it.
“Be in me,” she commanded so forcefully that Buffy was meeting her eyes before her common sense could kick in. She felt herself begin to sway with the insane vampire and called out quickly, “Spike!”
“He won’t help you, little girl,” Drusilla hissed. “He is—“ She was interrupted as Spike lunged for her, pulling her to the ground and away from Buffy.
“Time to switch, Slayer,” he growled, trying to hold the screaming, spitting, snarling vampire down.
Without answering, Buffy leapt toward the advancing Angelus, hitting him in the chest with both feet and watching with satisfaction as he staggered backwards, surprise evident on his face. Without waiting for a quip, she followed up with a flurry of punches, keeping the stake in her hand but not holding it out as a weapon.
Her fury over the death of her friend, anger at Xander for allowing himself to be caught and turned, rage that once again Drusilla had almost had her in thrall and her unhappiness at Spike’s impending departure fueled her kicks and punches. Slowly, inexorably, she beat him back, allowing not so much as a punch to penetrate her defense as she systematically reduced her former boyfriend to an unconscious heap on her front lawn.
Just as she was turning to see if Spike needed help subduing Drusilla, Giles’ little car sped into the driveway and the watcher jumped out, Willow and Jenny right behind him. He was holding a set of chains, which he quickly used to restrain Angelus’ arms and legs and to chain him to the tree under which Buffy had left him.
Willow’s face was a study in fear and anguish as Xander turned toward her and she saw the demon wearing the face of the boy who’d been her first and only close friend since kindergarten. Jenny grabbed for her arm as the crying girl reached toward the boy she still thought of as her best friend, pulling Willow back just before the vampire’s gnashing teeth could take off her hand.
Buffy placed herself between Xander and the other humans, holding her stake and saying firmly, “Back off Xander. I’m not going to let you hurt them.”
“What’s the matter, Buffy?” he snarled. “Are you jealous? Don’t worry, there’s more than enough of me for both of you. I’m what you want now, right? If you let me have a taste of what I want, maybe I won’t kill anybody. If you’re any good, maybe I’ll even let you live.”
He paused to think, then sneered, “Oh, who am I kidding? I’m a monster just like them. And you and Willow are about to become my first meal.”
The Slayer shook her head sadly, shifting the stake and beginning to cry as she readied for his attack. She knew there was no way a newly-vamped Xander would have a chance against her and she steeled herself to dust the demon wearing his face.
Willow’s anguished, “Buffy!” stopped her planned staking and she flipped Xander over her head to give her time to see what Willow wanted. With sobs tearing from her throat, the novice witch tried to speak quickly enough to
get Buffy’s attention before the vampire staggered back to his feet and attacked again.
“Don’t dust him! Please. It’s Xander! You can’t kill him. We can restore his soul when we do Angel’s!”
Buffy shot a quick look at Jenny Calendar, who shrugged and nodded, before meeting Xander’s charge with a hard right to his jaw. She took his now-unconscious body and dragged it over to the tree where Angelus was just beginning to recover from his beating. With a long-suffering sigh, her Watcher took another set of chains out of his car and quickly secured Xander to the same tree as his grandsire.
All eyes turned back to Spike who was still wrestling with a snarling, screaming Drusilla. The infusion of Slayer blood from the previous evening had made him more than capable of restraining his sire, but nothing he did or said would calm her down or make her stop fighting to get to Angelus. With a final sign and a soft, “Sorry, pet” he brought his fist up into her chin and sighed with relief when she collapsed at his feet.
Once he was sure she was going to remain unconscious for a while, he turned his attention back to the small group of humans watching him. When his gaze shifted to the tree and the two groaning vampires chained to it, his face darkened and he whirled on Buffy.
“What the bloody hell are you doing?”
‘We…we’re going to put their souls back,” she said defiantly. “If Angel can have a soul, there’s no reason Xander can’t.”
“Why would you want to?” He glared at her in bewilderment. “Buffy, he tried to rape you! And he was going to rip your throat out.”
“That was the demon,” she insisted. “Xander is my friend. He…he loves me and so does Angel. I can’t kill them –not if we can put their souls back.”
He stared at her, disbelief and anger clearly visible.
“He did just what I said he would – came after one of your friends and sent him to kill you. How can you even think about not dusting him? And your ‘friend’ there,” he sneered at the still unconscious Xander, “You think those thoughts just appeared like magic when he got turned? Losing his soul just took away the tight rein he was keepin’ on those feelings. You put it back, you’re just letting him hide them again. Doesn’t mean he won’t still be thinking….”
Spike’s face was flashing back and forth between demon and human as he fought the rage that the idea of leaving her with both Angel and Xander still alive evoked.
“This is my decision, Spike. Not yours. I don’t kill the people I care about if I don’t have to. And if Willow and Miss Calendar can put their souls back, I don’t have to. They won’t be soulless vampires any more. They can be my friends again.”
Spike’s human countenance was firmly in place as he looked at her sadly. With no thought to the other people looking on, they stepped closer together until they were only inches apart but not touching.
“So only vampires with souls are welcome in Sunnydale. Is that the way it is, Slayer?”
Buffy swallowed hard, fighting the urge to touch him one last time.
“That’s the way it has to be, Spike. I can’t believe I’m letting you take HER away.” She gestured at the still unconscious Drusilla. “I should stake her right now.”
“Why don’t you then?” he said coldly, moving slightly to put himself between Drusilla and the Slayer.
“Because you love her, and I wouldn’t do that to you unless I had no choice,” she whispered, dropping her head and then lifting it again to look at him with firmness. “It’s up to you to keep her so far away that I never have to choose.”
He nodded tightly. “Alright, then. I’ll just grab my stuff from inside the house and we’ll be out of your hair.”
Without another word, he strode into the house and up the stairs. He was back within a few minutes, boots and duster on. He tossed the tee shirt he’d worn earlier to the watcher with a “Thanks, mate,” as he walked over and picked Drusilla up. He put her over his shoulder, walking to the tree where Angelus snarled ineffectually and strained against the chains holding him down.
“I hope you enjoy that soul they’re gonna put back in your useless body as much as you did the first time round,” he said calmly as his grandsire’s demon visage glared at him. Spike leaned in closer and spoke in a voice only the other vampires could hear, “If either one of you makes any attempt to touch or hurt her, I’ll make you suffer in ways that even you, Angelus, couldn’t imagine.”
Straightening up, he looked around at the small group of humans one last time. He exchanged nods with the watcher and a flat, hostile stare with the gypsy who was going to make it possible for Angel and Xander to remain in Sunnydale with Buffy. He winked at Willow, who gave him a tentative wave and then he focused on the Slayer.
Buffy was holding herself upright by sheer force of will as their eyes met for the last time. Her nostrils flared as she fought the tears threatening to fall, but pride kept them in check and she lifted her chin to stare at him defiantly. For the first time since she’d been called, she felt the full weight of what it meant to be THE Slayer and she caught a glimpse of how unlikely it was that she would ever be able to have a normal relationship; one that wasn’t affected by her calling. She had a brief moment of regret that she hadn’t staked the insane vampire that first night while Spike was unconscious, wondering if he would have been willing to give up his life of evil had he not had his insane sire to care for.
Spike stared at the tiny girl who had not once, but twice in his lifetime, stolen his heart within a period of days, and wondered if things would be different without the presence of his sire. Her goodness and innocence radiated from her – affected not at all by the passionate lovemaking they’d shared. It was a purity that transcended bodily needs and he saw no place in her life for a soulless vampire; even one who loved her as much as he was coming to realize he did.
The air was fairly vibrating with tension as the two blond super beings tried to say the things that needed saying using only their eyes. Common sense told them both that to move closer or touch was to invite disaster. There would be no good-bye hugs for them. No last, lingering kisses to tempt fate; instead they were left with an exchange of anguished looks that lasted until the watcher cleared his throat and made to usher Jenny and Willow into the house.
The stir snapped them out of their mutual wordless sorrow and with a final sigh the vampire turned away.
“Take care of yourself, love,” he said clearly as he headed for the old warehouse and his car.
“Good-bye, William,” Buffy’s whisper barely carried to the humans, but the vampire’s ears had no trouble picking it up. “I’ll miss you.”
There was no response as the black shape with the while bundle on its shoulder vanished into the night.
Chapter 18
Buffy fought with every fiber of her being to control the urge to run to her room and fall face down on her bed sobbing her heartbreak into the sheets that still smelled of tobacco and sex. With a supreme effort of will, she kept her face immobile as she walked over to look at the two vampires who were not leaving her.
“Buffy?” Giles’ quiet voice broke her concentration on the two snarling, snapping vamps, and she raised her eyes to his in question.
“Now that they are awake, how do you propose we get these two creatures to your basement?”
“Yes, Buff,” Angelus’ oily voice joined the conversation. “How do you expect to get me into your house? Last time I checked, when you were busy fucking my grandchilde, it seemed like my invitation had been revoked.”
Buffy’s face flamed as she heard Giles gasp behind her and she gave the smirking vampire a look that cut him off in mid-jibe. There was no question that he was, at that moment, only seconds from achieving the dusty ending that Spike had so passionately wished for him and Angelus wisely shut his mouth; although he couldn’t control the self-satisfied leer on his face. Buffy’s hand went to the stake in her waistband, clutching it so hard her fingers left dents in the hard wood.
She couldn’t look at her watcher, but she knew he was cleaning his glasses vigorously as he tried to pretend that he’d never heard what the vampire had said. When he had gained control of his voice, he asked again, “What is your plan? Now that they are conscious, no one will be able to get close to them without risking serious injury.”
“Not a problem.”
Without changing her expression or giving any warning, Buffy shot her foot out, connecting with Angelus’ jaw, effectively both shutting him up and knocking him out. She backhanded a retreating Xander into unconsciousness before hitting Angelus on the head with her stake to reinforce his immobility.
While the two creatures were unconscious, Slayer and Watcher quickly unchained them from the tree and began to drag them towards the house. Buffy smothered the thought of how much easier the task would be if Spike had been there to help her, and did her best to take most of the weight upon herself as they hauled the inert bodies up the steps and through the door.
Her growled, “Come in” when their forward progress was halted at the front door bore nothing hospitable in its tone as she once more invited Angel back into her home. They pulled the two vamps to the top of the basement stairs where Buffy used her feet to kick and shove them far enough to allow gravity to take over. She took her time following their bouncing bodies down the stairs, waiting for the Watcher and Jenny and Willow before helping Giles fasten the chains to iron rings in the cement floor.
At her Watcher’s questioning look, she shrugged and said dismissively, “They were here when we moved in. My mother thinks they anchored gymnastic equipment.”
When the vampires were securely fastened to the floor, Buffy looked at the gypsy and asked anxiously, “When do you think you’ll have it?”
“Before dawn, I hope,” she replied quietly. “We’ll go work on it now,” she added, gesturing for Willow to accompany her.
The novice witch gave one last sad glance toward her good friend’s battered and unconscious body before following her teacher up the stairs to work on re-installing his soul. Giles and Buffy stood in silence for several minutes before she began, “Giles – what Angel said…”
He held up a hand to forestall her confession.
“Buffy, I really – and I CANNOT emphasize this enough – really do not care to know. I am not blind and it is perfectly clear that you and Spi-William have feelings for each other. I cannot say that I approve of those feelings, any more than I approved of your dating Angel, but you are entitled to have them and if you choose to act upon them…well, let’s just say that it is not going into my Watcher’s Diary and therefore I have no need to hear it discussed.”
The watcher’s face was flaming and Buffy couldn’t suppress a small smile as she answered, “Ok, Giles. Don’t ask, don’t tell. I got it.”
With a last look at the still-unconscious vampires, she followed her embarrassed Watcher up the stairs and out of the basement.
After watching Willow and Jenny discussing various wordings to use and possible ways to eliminate the happiness clause, Buffy grew bored and wandered around the lower level of the house. She eventually found herself back in the kitchen and saw the pans that Spike had put out, reminders that he’d been planning to make her dinner before the other vampires showed up. She sadly put the pans away and fixed herself a sandwich.
She could almost hear his voice scolding her, “That’s not a decent meal, Slayer. You’ve got to keep your strength up – you never know what you might need it for…” and she could see the rakishly raised eyebrow that would have accompanied the innuendo in the last remark. She smiled softly until she remembered that she would never hear that smirking voice again. The resulting loss of appetite had her leaving the half-eaten sandwich on the counter and resuming her restless pacing around the house.
As she knew she would, she soon ran out of places to explore on the first floor, and reluctantly went upstairs to her room. She stared at the rumpled bed for what seemed like hours, knowing she had to wash the stained sheets before her mother got home but not wanting to give up that last trace of William’s presence in her room. She finally compromised by leaving the pillows alone, but stripping the sheets to take to the washer.
She carried them down the stairs, through the kitchen and into the basement, sparing only a fleeting glance for the two vampires that were chained to the floor. Both vamps sat up snarling when they caught the scent wafting off the sheets that Buffy had clutched to her chest. Ignoring their growls, she kept her face buried in the linens until she reached the washer, where she had no choice but to let go and drop them in the tub. She was adding soap when Angelus spoke up.
“Getting rid of the evidence before your mother gets home, lover?” His voice destroyed the mellow mood inspired by the Spike and Buffy scent on the sheets and she almost snarled herself as she turned to meet his leering face.
“If you want to live to regret that recovered soul, you’ll shut up now,” she said with a growl that would have done credit to a vampire.
“Well, if you’re so set on putting my soul back, does that mean we can take up where we left off? I’m not used to taking Spike’s leavings; usually I let him have mine…eventually, but I’m willing to make an exception in your case. What do you say, Buff? You and me?”
He made an obscene gesture with which she was unfamiliar, but there was no mistaking its meaning and she made no attempt to hide the disgust on her face. Beside him, the newly-made vampire was openly ogling his former friend, leering at her as he added his own proposition.
“Or, how about me? Huh, Buff? Won’t I be right up your alley now? All that vampire power and a soul besides – what more could a vampire layer –oops! Slayer --want?”
“How about a vampire who doesn’t need an artificially restored soul to behave like a gentleman? How about a vampire who is capable of self-control around humans? How about one who can still love even though he’s a demon?”
Buffy glared at the two grinning vamps, almost angrier at herself for letting them get to her than she was at them. She knew Angelus was just trying to rattle her and she’d fallen right into his trap. Furious with herself, and sure that if she remained in the basement any longer she would stake one or both of them, she slammed the lid down on the washer and pushed random buttons until it started going. Without another look at or word to the taunting demons, she walked back upstairs as calmly as she could while ignoring them completely.
She stomped into the dining room, telling Jenny, “You’d better get that spell pretty soon or there isn’t going to anybody left to use it on.”
She ignored the questioning glances from Giles and Willow, throwing herself into a chair and resting her elbows on the table. After several minutes, she looked at her watcher and said abruptly, “Giles, I’ve decided to tell my mom about…everything. She needs to know about vampires and demons and she’ll need to know about Xander. She’s probably going to think I’m crazy at first, so I might have to call on you for backup.”
He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Very well, Buffy. I suppose this is not something that you will be able to hide from her forever and she will certainly be safer knowing what is and is not safe to do at night.”
A muffled squeal from Willow brought their attention back to the two women working on the re-ensouling spell and Slayer and Watcher whirled to look at them hopefully. At a nod from Jenny, Willow blurted, “We’ve got it! And we think we can make the souls permanent. No ‘hello happy, bye-bye soul’!”
“Let’s do it,” Buffy said, standing up quickly. “I want them out of my house.”
“But, Buffy.” Willow’s voice was puzzled and her forehead wrinkled with concern. “Once they have their souls back, they’ll be Angel and Xander again. Our…friends. Angel can be your—“
One look at Buffy’s face and she decided not to finish that particular line of thought.
“Well, anyway, it’ll be okay for them to be in your house, won’t it?”
“I don’t want either one them to have access to my house,” Buffy said firmly. “As soon as we get them out of here, I want you to do a disinvite – for both of them.”
“Shall we include William the Bloody in that?” Giles asked mildly. His expression belied the calm tone of his voice.
Buffy looked from her watcher to the two expectant faces of the witches and narrowed her eyes.
“That won’t be necessary. He isn’t coming back.”
“But if he should…Your mother--”
“My mother would be more than safe around Spike,” Buffy said through gritted teeth. “And so would all of you. I don’t want to hear about it again.”
She left the room with finality, calling over her shoulder, “Let’s get this spell over with. I still need to patrol tonight.”
When the demons in the basement saw the determined-looking gypsy and eager novice witch coming down the stairs with their hands full of spell ingredients, they reacted in very different ways. Xander, the newly-raised vamp who had not yet hunted or even fed except for a drunk Angelus had thrust at him on the way to Buffy’s, retreated behind his grandsire in fear. In addition to the demon’s abhorrence of having a soul, was Xander’s fear that he would turn back into the useless sidekick he’d been before Drusilla had turned him into something powerful. He was somehow unable to recall that his newfound power had been less than useful against either Spike or Buffy.
Angelus, remembering how it felt to be cursed with a soul while still remaining a demon at heart, pulled on the chains with all the strength of a master vampire, trying to get to the gypsy before she could send him back into his perpetually melancholy persona. Buffy stepped quickly between the angry demon and her friends, her stake out and ready should the chains break before the spell was cast. She closed her ears to the taunts and threats coming from the vampire with whom she had once thought she was falling in love with, although the gasp from Willow told her that the others were listening to the invective coming from his mouth.
She knew that he was just trying to distract her with his vivid descriptions of what he’d seen her doing with Spike; hoping she would be so upset that he could catch her off guard if and when he broke the chains. Although she knew that the filth coming from his mouth bore no resemblance to anything she and Spike had actually done, and that he had seen nothing except their nakedness in her bed, she cringed at what her friends were hearing. She almost hoped that the chains would break, giving her a good excuse to drive the stake she was clutching so tightly through his heart, shutting his mouth permanently.
When she heard Willow and Jenny begin chanting behind her and smelled the burning herbs she breathed a sigh of relief, then laughed at the panicked look on the vampire’s face as he felt the spell developing. It was easy to see the moment when the souls were forced back into the two vamps. Xander screamed, clutching his chest and screwing up his face in terror.
Angelus snarled, seeming as though he was trying to bite the offending bit of light before it could worm its way into his body. His protesting and snarling was to no avail as he soon gave his own guttural scream and fell over onto the floor.
There was a heavy silence as the screams faded and the humans waited to see if the spell had worked. Buffy remained on guard, her stake ready while they waited for Angel and Xander to open their eyes.
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