Summary: Sequel to Hoping's Very Fears. Spike and Buffy are trying to decide what their relationship is going to look like. Buffy and Dawn are missing Joyce terribly. And the warlock comes back to town, looking for another pound of flesh.
Author's Notes: This story is the sequel to "Hoping's Very Fears." If you haven't read that one, I'd strongly recommend you do so. Otherwise, it probably won't make any sense. Set in the summer right after BtVS S5. (My Season 5 that is.)
Rating: PG-13
"Keep your left up, Bit," Spike instructed patiently. "And you'll want to watch the shoulders and the eyes. A good fighter will keep his eyes focused so his opponent doesn't know what's coming. But the shoulders will usually give it away."
Dawn nodded determinedly. "Got it."
"Okay," Spike said. "We're going to start slow, and then we'll speed it up."
Dawn had reminded him of his promise to show her a few moves, and Spike had been willing to comply. For the past few nights, he'd spent more time at the Summers' home than his own place. Now that the chip wasn't working, Spike wasn't having any problems sparring with Dawn or Buffy, and he found training with both enjoyable, for completely different reasons.
He ran her through the basic defenses he'd taught her, Dawn blocking every move at half speed. "Good," Spike complimented. "Very good, Bit. Now, we go full speed. You up for it?"
"Absolutely," she replied, setting her jaw determinedly.
Although Spike went slower than his top speed, Dawn managed to block most of his punches. Any movements that got through, Spike managed to stop just short of contact. "You'll want to watch that," he warned her. "'s one thing to let me get a hit through, but a vampire will be a different story. You run into a vamp, your first job is to get away. Goal isn't to keep him busy. You need to hurt him an' run. Or stake him as quickly as possible, right through the heart."
He stopped and pulled away, reaching in his pocket for a stake. "Here."
Dawn stared at him. "Spike—I don't want to stake you."
"Don't particularly want you to stake me," he replied, amused. "If you even could. 's rubber, so it'll be okay, luv."
The girl lunged suddenly, and the rubber stake hit him right over his heart. "Point taken." Spike reached out and stroked the side of her face. "Good to know you can hit the heart, Bit, just in case you ever have to."
"I couldn't, though, Spike," Dawn replied. "I couldn't kill you."
Spike wanted to tell her that that kind of thinking could get her killed, that it would leave her open in the future. That, of course, if the worst happened, she would have to be ready to protect herself, even against him. But he didn't. Even if the worst were to happen, and he were to come over all evil one morning, he didn't think he could hurt Dawn. Not his Bit.
"'s alright, luv," Spike said, reassuring her. "You won't have to. Promise you that. Now—" He put up his hands again, signalling the beginning of the next session of sparring. "Let's try that again, this time with you havin' the stake in your hand. Remember, quicker is better, Niblet."
~~~~~
"So how did she do?" Buffy asked. She and Spike were supposed to be patrolling, but in reality it was more like going for a stroll. Of course, she knew about her boyfriend's training sessions with Dawn. Spike had informed her that he was going to be doing some sparring with her sister, but Buffy had pretended to be oblivious. She knew it gave Dawn a kick to think she was pulling one over on her, and Buffy didn't mind. Just as long as she knew what was really going on.
"Good," Spike replied. Buffy might be strolling, but he was keeping one ear cocked for any surprise attacks. Things had been pretty quiet the last few days, which told the vampire that the warlock was biding his time. He wanted to be ready. "She's a natural, really. Takes after her sister."
Buffy smiled. "Well, the monks did make her out of me, so that's not too surprising. I'm glad you're training her, Spike."
He cocked his head, looking over at her. "Really? Gotta say, luv, I was a bit surprised when you told me to go ahead."
"If Dawn had known how to protect herself a few months ago when the scabby hobbits came to grab her, she would have been better off. And you know I can't be with her all the time." Buffy sighed. "In fact, she was asking me if she could go to the Bronze with some of her friends the other day—without me anywhere nearby."
"She's growin' up," Spike agreed. "Won't be long before it's a boy she's wantin' to go with." They exchanged a knowing look.
"As long as he has a heartbeat," Buffy replied. "And if you have 'the talk' with him, I think we'll be okay. Dating a vampire is all well and good if he's you, but I've already staked my claim."
He cast her a look that was half-amused, half-worried. "'Staked?' You sure you want to use that particular word, luv?"
Buffy laughed. "Bad word," she agreed. Sighing, she looked around the cemetery. "This is ridiculous. It's way too quiet tonight."
"Makes me nervous," Spike murmured. "From what the witches said, that spell might have hurt him pretty bad. He'll want revenge for that."
"If it didn't kill him," Buffy said hopefully. She made a face, "Not that my luck is ever really that good." She sighed. "I suppose I should head home."
Spike nodded. "Yeah, it's getting a bit late. I'll see you there."
"Maybe we could run by your house first?" Buffy asked suggestively.
Spike looked surprised, and then he realized what she was talking about. "Tired of bein' quiet already, luv?"
"Well, it does add a little challenge, but I'm thinking I'd like to try something new," the Slayer said, her eyes sparkling. "Even if you do spend most of your time at my place, I think we should make sure to keep your house available."
"Our own secret hideaway?" Spike asked with a smirk. "Sounds like a brilliant plan, pet."
~~~~~
Tara and Willow were enjoying their walk in the moonlight. There was something to be said for being two of the most powerful witches in Sunnydale. That kind of power made it a lot easier to be out after dark safely, without having to rely on the Slayer as backup.
"You know," Willow said thoughtfully as they walked. "It might be kind of nice to spend some time with the L.A. crew. Wesley's really changed, and I'll bet he knows a lot about the occult."
Tara nodded. "I liked him. He was—nice."
"He was," Willow agreed. "You should have seen him when he first came to Sunnydale." She giggled. "He screamed like a girl."
Tara echoed her giggle. "Angel was interesting, too. I wasn't sure what to expect, but he's a lot different than Spike, isn't he?"
"I don't think he could be more different if he tried," Willow said, laughing.
Tara's head suddenly shot up in alarm. "Willow? Do you—?"
Willow felt it at the same moment. There was a ripple, and she could sense the brewing of dark magicks. Grabbing her girlfriend's hand, both witches braced themselves for what was coming, throwing up a mental shield. But it wasn't a magical attack.
The five demons came out of nowhere, looking like something out of a nightmare, and that was saying something on the Hellmouth. Perfectly in tune with her girlfriend, Willow drew strength from Tara and threw out a fireball—to no effect. With a sinking feeling, both girls realized that the dark magic they had sensed was protecting the demons from their own attacks.
"I think it might be time to run," Willow said, watching as the demons came to surround them.
"I think I like that plan," Tara agreed.
It was easier said than done.
~~~~~
Buffy lay curled up next to her vampire. His bedroom window was open, and she could feel a light breeze coming through, cooling down the room slightly. It was hot, even for southern California in the summertime, and he didn't have air conditioning, which was definitely a downer.
On the other hand, his skin was cool. Definitely a plus to dating a vampire in the summer.
Speaking of cool—Spike's fingers were gently tracing patterns on the skin of her stomach, and Buffy rolled over to face him. "Mmm. That feels good."
"I aim to please, luv," he replied softly, moving his hand from her side to her face. "Like a dream, you bein' here. Never thought this would happen."
"It's right up there on my 'never in a million years' list too," she admitted. "This is definitely nice, though." She sighed. "Unfortunately, I should really get home. I may have the day off tomorrow, but I need to run some errands and clean." Buffy made a face. "Being a grown up sucks sometimes."
"That it does," he agreed. "You want some help?"
She raised an eyebrow. "Are you serious? You do household chores now?"
"'d do anythin' for you, Buffy," Spike replied softly. "'sides, have a house of my own, don't I?"
"And it's not a bad little house, either," Buffy agreed, briefly snuggling back down into the crisp sheets on Spike's bed. "Thanks for the offer, but I think I'll be okay. I'll put Dawn to work, and we'll get it done in no time. If you want to come over in the evening though, that would be nice. I told Dawn we'd rent some movies and have 'sister' time."
Spike looked skeptical. "If it's bondin' time, doesn't that mean I'm not there, pet?"
"Dawn wanted you to be there," Buffy replied. She gave him a quick kiss, and then climbed out of bed, pulling on her scattered clothing. "She's gotten pretty attached to you, though I have no clue why."
He gave her a mock-glare. "Isn't it obvious? I've got looks, charm, and an athletic build."
Buffy laughed. "That you do. In spades, no less." She leaned over to give him a good-bye kiss, which was rapidly getting heated. She might have been persuaded to stay just a little longer, but there was a banging on the door. "What—"
Spike scrambled out of bed, pulling a pair of jeans on quickly, and grabbing a t-shirt to throw on as he hurried down the stairs. "Dawn an' the witches are the only ones who know where I am," he told Buffy, a note of alarm in his voice.
The Slayer was right behind him when he opened to door to reveal a frantic Dawn and a worried looking Xander. For once, the young man was too anxious to make any snide remarks about Buffy's location or their obvious extra-curricular activities. "Xander? Dawn? What's going on?"
Xander shook his head. "It's—it's bad, Buffy. I called your house, but when Dawn said you hadn't come home yet, we thought we'd check for you here."
"What happened?" the Slayer demanded, not really noticing when Spike left her side to pull on his boots and find a jacket.
He seemed to be having trouble putting it into words. "Willow—they were attacked earlier tonight."
"Willow?" Buffy asked. "Is she okay? Xander, what happened? Is she hurt?"
Xander shook his head. "Willow's okay, I think. She said she got banged up a little. But Tara was with her. She's at the hospital."
"Is she going to be okay?" Buffy asked.
Xander shook his head in reply, looking hesitant. "The doctors aren't sure. She—she lost a lot of blood. They—they don't know if she's going to wake up."
Spike joined them in the doorway. "Let's go," he said quietly.
~~~~~
The four of them walked through the emergency room doors at a half-run. Giles, Anya, and Willow were already in the waiting room. "Willow," Buffy said, coming over to give her friend a hug. The Slayer pulled back to assess her injuries. "Are you okay?"
Willow managed a shaky smile. "I think so. I've got some scratches and bruises, but Tara—Tara got the worst of it." Her large hazel eyes filled. "Oh, Buffy, there was so much blood, and I couldn't stop it."
Buffy pulled the other girl back into a hug, glancing over at Spike, who was having a whispered conversation with Xander and Giles. "What are the doctors saying?"
Willow sniffed, wiping her tears away with the back of her hand. "They think she's going to be okay. There was a lot of blood loss, but they didn't think there was any internal damage, and they think they got to her soon enough. It was too close, though."
"I know," Buffy replied softly. "Can you tell me what happened?"
Willow hesitated, looking over at Spike. At the expression on her face, Buffy's own gaze hardened. "Let me guess. It was the warlock."
"I think so," Willow admitted. "We could feel the dark magicks being used, but it wasn't a magical attack. There were these demons, five of them, with big claws. I don't—I can't even tell you what they looked like. I just—I don't know. The magic—the magic was protecting them from us doing any spells on them. We couldn't stop them."
"How did you manage to get away?"
Willow shook her head. "We broke the shield around them. Between the two of us, we managed to kill three of them, but then one got through and injured Tara. I killed the other two then. I don't even know how I did it—I was just so angry."
"Well, let's be glad you got good and mad then," Buffy said, striving for levity. "So what do we do now?"
"Now, we wait," Giles said softly, coming over and giving Willow a hug. "I'm afraid that there really isn't anything else we can do."
Buffy nodded, hugging Dawn. She looked over at Spike, who was standing slightly apart from the group. She could read the guilt in his eyes; they were dark and bruised with it. "Spike—"
"'m goin' to have a smoke," he said, not meeting her eyes. Buffy watched him go helplessly, knowing there wasn't anything she could say to make it better, or to make him believe that it wasn't his fault.
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