Willow knocked on Buffy’s bedroom door, which was closed. "Who is it?" came the muffled reply, accompanied by the sound of dresser drawers being slammed shut and clothes hitting the floor.

"Me!"

"Oh. C’mon in, me!"

The witch pushed the door open and surveyed the scene before her; clothes strewn about the room, makeup cluttering nearly every flat surface, and a

bag of weapons lying open by the window. Yup, Willow mused, this is the

Slayer’s bedroom alright.

"Hey, Wills. Sorry I’m not ready yet." Buffy didn’t even offer an explanation, and her friend didn’t expect one. By the looks of it, Buffy had tried on every outfit she owned--twice. She stood in the middle of the room in a bathrobe, frowning at the mess.

"S’okay. You like my costume?" Willow whirled around, showing off her gauzy black witch’s costume, which was completed by the pointy black hat covering her brilliant red hair.

Buffy smirked. "Stereotype, much? At least you don’t have any warts!"

Willow shrugged. "Tara is wearing the same in green. She’s downstairs with

Anya and Xander. You really don’t want to know what they are dressed as."

Buffy was preoccupied, and didn’t bother to ask. She had remembered something that would work for the look she was going for...it must be in the closet still.

"So, Buffy. Did Spike agree to meet us there?"

"Yeah. I saw him last night on patrol and offered him the money to meet me there. Kinda made me feel like I was hiring a gigolo, actually." She paused, let the image of Spike as a male escort sink in, then shook her head as if to clear it away. "Since Riley never called to let me know when he was coming back from Iowa, I want someone to watch my back in case things get hairy."

Buffy retied the belt on her robe distractedly, hoping Willow wouldn’t press the issue. She couldn’t explain why she had asked the blonde vampire for help, again. She seemed to be doing that a lot lately. At least this time, Giles had agreed that the annoying vampire had proven to be helpful of late and that Buffy could use the back up.

Willow watched as confusion played over her friends’ face, and chose not to comment. Instead, she sat down on the edge of Buffy’s bed and looked up at her with a smile.

"Wait, do you think that Spike is actually gonna dress up? Like in a costume?" She tried picturing Spike in Anya’s bunny costume from the year before and burst into a fit of giggles. Buffy looked at her strangely, but shook her head.

"Not exactly. I just told him we were going to stop another demon raising, and it was taking place at a campus Halloween party. I suggested he come as he is, since he’s so freakish looking anyway." She frowned; he had actually seemed offended by that comment, although he hadn’t replied with one of his usual snarky comebacks.

"What about you?" Willow asked offhandedly, noting Buffy’s thoughtful expression.

"What about me?"

"What are you going as?" She surveyed the piles of discarded clothes, wondering what could possibly be left to choose from. "Part of the plan is to remain inconspicuous so that we can counteract the spell before anyone notices us, and ‘Slayer’ isn’t really a recognizable costume."

"Well, I figured I’d just be Nancy to his Sid." She began rifling through her closet with renewed determination, then turned back with a slight frown. "Well, except for the whole being a couple thing, and well, you know, the whole maybe he stabbed her with a big knife thing."

Willow nodded in agreement, then raised her eyebrows in surprise at the flimsy piece of leather Buffy had retrieved from the back of her closet, which was now being waved in the air triumphantly.

"I knew Faith left some of her ‘skanky ho’ clothes here!" She threw the black leather scrap onto the bed and continued her search, eventually pulling out her favorite pair of dark red low-rise leather pants, a silver chain belt, and her black leather boots with the chunky three-inch heels. Going back to her dresser, she pulled out a black studded neck collar from the recesses of her sock drawer. Willow’s eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets when Buffy pulled that out; Buffy just shook her head and muttered, "don’t ask", not meeting the witch’s questioning gaze. Gathering up her ‘costume’, she left the room, calling back over her shoulder "Stay there, so you can tell me what you think."

When Buffy emerged from the bathroom twenty minutes later, Willow gasped.

Her blonde, sunshiney friend had transformed herself into a punkish glam queen. Buffy’s hair was streaked with blue and red, and it was teased and ratted so that it was a mane of texture and color. Her eyes were ringed with dark eyeliner, lashes coated thickly with black mascara, and smoky gray eyeshadow colored her eyelids. She had even applied that deep blood red lipstick that Faith had used while she was here, and any bare skin was lightly dusted with body glitter. Her red leather pants rode low on her hips, accentuated by the silver chain running through the belt loops. Willow was surprised to note that Buffy had a navel piercing. The top was basically a leather brassiere, molding itself to her breasts and leaving little to the imagination. The collar around her neck completed the look, along with silver hoop earrings, rings on almost every finger, and masses of black and silver bangle bracelets adorning her small wrists. Her black leather boots added about three or four inches to her height, and overall, she looked quite domineering. Buffy carried off the punk look very well.

Willow whistled appreciatively. "Wow, Buff, that is quite a look. I almost don’t think Spike is even punk enough for you, now."

Buffy grinned. "Well, the plan was to go dressed as couples, right? That’s what the party flyer said, ‘couple’s costume party’. If Spike can look like this every day of his unlife, I can manage one night."

Willow grabbed her arm, eager to see the reactions of those waiting downstairs.

At the landing, Buffy stopped and surveyed the living room. Joyce and Dawn were sitting on the couch, not in costume since they weren’t going. Giles stood by the door, wearing a tuxedo complete with tails, a black cape, and a white mask that covered half his face; he must be the Phanton of the Opera, Buffy surmised. But her jaw dropped when she saw Anya and Xander. Her lip quirking in the faintest of smiles, she deadpanned,

"Look. It’s Raggedy An and Xandy."

Dawn dissolved into a helpless fit of laughter, and Joyce looked as if she might do the same. Tara had a soft smile on her face, and Giles was doing his best to hide behind only half a mask. Willow snorted, and Anya looked quite pleased. But Xander looked as if he wished the Hellmouth would open underneath him and swallow him whole. Buffy thought he was blushing, but she couldn’t tell because of his painted cheeks. Both Anya and Xander were wearing red yarn mop-like wigs, although Anya’s was a little longer. Both had red triangles painted on their noses along with the red circles on their cheeks. Anya was wearing a blue gingham dress with a white ruffled apron over it, while Xander had on a red checked shirt and dark blue trousers.

Xander finally broke out of his misery long enough to notice Buffy.

"Whoa, Buffster. Lookin’ all S&M there." He turned angrily to Anya. "Explain to me again why we couldn’t go as Neo and Trinity? I never get to wear the leather!"

Anya frowned. "I think we look very cute, Xander. Remember what I promised, if you wore this? That should make you happy." Xander managed to look a little less miserable. Buffy and Willow exchanged glances, rolled their eyes in unison, and led the way out the door. Joyce called out her usual motherly admonishments and Dawn just yelled, "have fun!"

Giles caught up with Buffy as she paced quickly down the street, trying not to notice how she was wearing even less than usual. The girl really was going to give him a heart attack one of these days, he mused in his typically paternal fashion. When he reached the Slayer’s side, he threw his cape back over one shoulder with a bit of a flourish and asked quietly,

"So Spike will meet us at the party, then?" He tried to keep the disapproval out of his tone, although he was not sure whether he succeeded by the brief look Buffy flashed at him. He had to admit, albeit grudgingly, that Spike had been helping them quite a bit lately. As Xander, Anya, Tara and Willow caught up with them, Buffy asked,

"So what’s the plan again?"

They had reached the street where the Frat house was located and could already hear loud music and the steady buzz of a large crowd. Giles cleared his throat and adjusted his mask, which made Buffy wonder if he was wearing contacts.

"Well, by the time we get to the party, the Brotherhood of Shamosh may have already begun the spell. They chose that location because the Fraternity house which is having the costume party is already on sacred ground, and has a certain amount of mystical energy. Shamosh’s followers will cast a circle near the party, and try to subtly entrance the partygoers and feed off their focused energies, which would make the demon even more powerful as it enters this dimension. Tara, Willow and myself will begin the counterspell close by while Anya and Xander distract the party guests from the circle. The brothers themselves are not violent, but the Shamosh demon is, and that is why Buffy could use Spike’s help, should the demon enter our dimension."

Xander choked; this was the first he'd heard of Spike's involvement, and he knew that there was no way in hell he was ever going to live down Raggedy Xandy if Spike saw him.

"Buffy, why do we need Spike? I mean, the counterspell will probably work, and this ‘Smush’ demon probably won’t even show, so-" he clapped his jaw shut as he saw a familiar leather-clad figure emerge from the shadows to approach them.

Spike was dressed in his usual black jeans, black t-shirt, black duster, black boots. Buffy noted absently that he was wearing a fresh coat of black nail polish, but he didn’t even spare her a glance as he stalked his way over to the Raggedy duo.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here? Who are these darlings?" He tugged at Xander’s red mop of yarn hair, and Xander pulled away angrily, smacking away the blonde vampire’s hand. Anya explained brightly, "we’re Raggedy Ann and Andy, only Buffy said we were Raggedy An and Xandy, and I think that is even better." She smiled, obviously proud of her costume idea. Xander nearly growled, and Spike’s smirk grew even bigger.

"You do realize I’ll never let you live this down, whelp, don’t you?" Spike asked almost conversationally as he plucked at Xander’s shirt, then patted his shoulder. Xander scowled, and muttered "then let’s hope that Buffy stakes you soon".

At the mention of Buffy, Spike turned to appraise the Slayer’s ‘costume’. What he saw took his breath away, although he didn’t actually have any to lose. He drank in her appearance greedily, eyes roaming from the mussed, multi-colored hair to the dark makeup, the studded collar (which made him almost choke at it’s implication), leather brassiere, low-cut, tightly fitting red leather pants and shit kicker boots. He inhaled unnecessarily and looked her over again more closely; her body was coated with some kind of glitter. Buffy squirmed uncomfortably under his intense gaze, and she couldn’t fathom the fire she saw smoldering in his icy blue eyes.

She cleared her throat and gestured at his hands.

"I see you went all out with your costume."

He blinked, trying to focus his concentration on what the Slayer was saying instead of what she was wearing; it didn’t work. Did she know that red and black were his favorite colors? What had she just said about his costume?

"What?" he asked thickly, noting that her belly button was pierced.

Buffy grabbed one of his hands and held up to his face. "The nail polish, a fresh coat is your...." They both stared at their clasped hands as a jolt of electricity seemed to pass up their arms and into their bodies. Buffy dropped his hand like it was on fire, and Spike rubbed his arm as if it still tingled. Giles cleared his throat, not liking whatever it was that was going on with his Slayer and the obnoxious vampire.

"Yes, well, let’s get inside, shall we?" He herded Tara and Willow over to the front door of the Fraternity house, Anya and Xander followed hand in hand, and Buffy and Spike brought up the rear. Spike gestured for Buffy to precede him, and allowed himself to stare appreciatively at her leather-clad posterior. As they paused at the door, Spike leaned over to murmur into Buffy’s ear.

"You do know what that collar’s for, don’t you, pet?"

Buffy turned and looked up at him, smiling sweetly. "Not at first, I didn’t.

But Riley showed me." With a flip of her tousled hair and a triumphant smirk, she left him standing there in stunned silence. He quickly composed himself and followed her into the foyer of the house, trying to shake disturbing images of Buffy and Riley in the same room with a submissive’s dog collar.

Although there were several people milling around in the house, the actual party was out back. The tennis courts had been cleared and were impromptu dance floors for the evening. One end of the largest court was taken up by a stage and large speakers; apparently, the house had hired a professional dj and karaoke equipment. A pair of drunken sorority sisters were warbling their way through ‘Wild Thing’, gyrating as best they could to the music without losing their equilibrium or spilling their drinks.

Giles surveyed the crowd, trying to ascertain where the five Brothers would have drawn their circle in preparation for the raising. Willow nudged the Watcher and nodded towards a dark corner behind the courts. They could just make out several robed figures shuffling about, arms moving in ways that suggested ritual purification rites. Spike stepped up between Willow and Buffy and murmured, "They’ve already started the spell, pets. I can smell whatever stinky herbs they’re burning."

Willow nodded; the hair on her arms was standing on end simply because of the energy the spell had already managed to attract.

Giles turned to the group, who huddled around him like a football scrimmage waiting for the next play.

"Tara, Willow, you come with me over behind the stage. The noise from the music should mask our own chanting, and keep us out of sight. Anya, Xander, find a way to distract people from paying too much attention to the Brothers over there. The more attention they give, the more they unwittingly focus their energy into the spell. Since it’s a costume party, people may think it’s just part of the festivities."

Buffy glanced at Spike, then Giles. "So Spike and I just wait around in case their spell works and yours doesn’t?"

"Well, when you put it that way..." Giles adjusted his mask, and Buffy was starting to wonder if he was feeling the urge to clean his glasses. "Yes."

Willow began pulling out candles from the bag she’d brought with her, and Tara and Giles produced herbs and a spell book. Anya fidgeted nervously, and Xander snaked his arm around her waist to comfort her. "Don’t worry An, if anybody can attract people’s attention away from something they want to see, it’s us." Xander paused. "Hey...I think I just insulted us."

Spike smirked. "Saved me the trouble, Xandy."

****************

After Willow, Tara and Giles had retreated behind the stage to begin the counter spell, Anya and Xander moved over to ‘discreetly’ put themselves between the crowd and the Brothers, confident that the Brothers were not much of a threat without their giant demon backing them.

However, the chanting soon increased and the energy that had been present when they arrived tripled in force, and Buffy glanced around nervously. Some of the party goers had started to wander over and were gawking at the Brothers, who were still chanting as they moved widdershins around their circle. Buffy could dimly hear the chants of Giles and the two witches over the hum of the crowd, as there was no music playing now. As more people started to crowd around them, Buffy grabbed Spike’s arm and tugged.

"We need a bigger distraction!"

Spike nodded; he could feel the spell beginning to pull in enough energy to start the manifestation. He looked around wildly, then spotted the unattended karaoke setup across the court. He ran over and scanned the playlist. A wide grin split his face as he found what he was looking for, and he punched in some numbers. Buffy came up behind him and he spun around to meet her questioning look with a confident smile.

"We need to focus their attention away from the spell, or we’ll be fighting a large, mightily pissed demon in about two minutes. What better to attract attention than a free show?"

He heard her muttering something about ‘fulfilling exhibitionist tendencies’ as he reached over and pushed play on the console, and the first notes of the song he’d chosen filtered through the large speakers on either side of the stage. He expertly adjusted the volume, balancing out the treble and the bass.

Buffy recognized the song just as he was about to jump up on stage, and on impulse she grabbed his arm, whipping him around. His eyebrows shot up as she wrenched the leather duster off his shoulders and flung it on a nearby chair.

"You’re gonna do the Billy Idol thing. You might as well go all out."

She reached up and ripped off each t-shirt sleeve at the seam with a grin. After his initial reaction of shock, Spike curled his lip in a perfect imitation of Billy Idol and turned again to approach the stage. Buffy stopped him one more time, and when he turned around she gestured for him to lean down. He complied, and she raked her fingers from the back of his crown to the front, pulling his surprisingly soft blonde locks out of the harshly slicked back ‘do. She finished spiking it straight up, then leaned back to examine her handiwork. "Billy Idol, eat your heart out," she murmured appreciatively, then realized that she’d said the words out loud. At the cocky grin on his face, she knew he’d heard her, and as her face colored she propelled him towards the stage.

"Hurry up or you’ll miss your cue, Blondie!"

Standing directly in front of the stage, he used his vampiric strength and agility to propel himself straight up and onto the platform, immediately drawing the curious attention of most of the revelers.

Back still to the crowd, he shot one arm out to grab the mike stand and kept time to the beat with his foot. Without turning around he pulled the mike free from the stand and began to croon in a low, sexy growl,

"Last night a little dancer came dancin' to my door"

He spun around to face the audience and it was as if he were channeling Billy himself.

"Last night a little angel Came pumpin cross my floor

She said "Come on baby I got a licence for love"

And if it expires" – here Spike threw his arms skyward as if in supposition—

"pray help from above!"

Pumping a fist in the air, he howled and let loose

"In the midnight hour she cried- "more, more, more!"

Looking directly at Buffy, he smiled lewdly and leaned in her direction.

"With a rebel yell she cried- "more, more, more"

In the midnight hour babe- "more, more, more"

With a rebel yell- "more, more, more"

More, more, more!"

He strutted around to the music, and Buffy was entranced, as was the rest of the audience. He was so charismatic up there, she almost forgot who and what he was, almost forgot why they were even there.

Spike began to play up to the audience, causing the girls who had enthusiastically pushed their way to the front to swoon. But with the next words, he returned to the end Buffy was near and sang directly to her,

"She don't like slavery, she won't sit and beg

But when I'm tired and lonely she sees me to bed"

Smoothly, he sank to his knees at the edge of the stage and held his arm out

to Buffy as if he could reach her,

"What set you free and brought you to be me babe

What set you free I need you here by me!

Because-"

Still on his knees he threw his shoulders back, gripping the mike in both fists and belting out, eyes closed as if savoring the thought,

"In the midnight hour she cried- "more, more, more"

With a rebel yell she cried- "more, more, more"

In the midnight hour babe- "more, more, more"

With a rebel yell- "more, more, more"

He jumped up to his feet and began to rouse the crowd, leaning down and pumping his fist to the music,

"He lives in his own heaven

Collects it to go from the seven eleven

Well he's out all night to collect a fare

Just so long, just so long it don't mess up his hair."

Here, Spike ran one hand through his Buffy-mussed hair and grinned at her, then gyrated through the guitar solo. Swaggering back to pose in front of her again he then became still, meeting her eyes and holding them in an intently fixed look. His deep, throaty accent punctuated the almost-spoken words,

"I walked the ward with you, babe

A thousand miles with you

I dried your tears of pain, babe

A million times for you"

Buffy was completely lost in the performance, and stared back at him unblinkingly. He beat his fist against his heart and then pointed to her and intoned,

"I'd sell my soul for you babe

For money to burn with you

I'd give you all, and have none, babe

Just, just, justa, justa to have you here by me"

Breaking their gaze, he cried to the heavens

"Because

In the midnight hour she cried- "more, more, more"

With a rebel yell she cried- "more, more, more"

In the midnight hour babe- "more, more, more"

With a rebel yell she cried "more, more, more"

More, more, more.

Oh yeah little baby

she want more

More, more, more, more, more.

Oh yeah little baby

she want more

More, more, more, more."

He finished the song with a flourish and to wild applause. Although he didn’t need to breathe, he inhaled deeply, as if he could take in the energy of his own performance and the crowd’s response. With a start, he realized that it was the same high he’d once gotten from killing, but with other people enjoying the act as well. He turned to find Buffy in the crowd and met her eyes. She almost looked disbelieving, then shook her head as if clearing it. She broke eye contact and started searching the crowd for Giles and the others, remembering why they’d come to the party in the first place.

Spike tossed the mike to the floor of the stage and jumped down, feeling slightly deflated at her seemingly casual dismissal. Joining Buffy, he spotted the Raggedy twins positioned between the crowd and the five Brothers, who were not even trying to break away. Giles, Willow and Tara joined them, looking pleased and slightly surprised.

Spike snorted. "Looks like they didn’t actually expect to be successful".

Buffy elbowed him and began to walk away, then turned back to him so quickly that he crashed into her. Taking her elbows to steady her, he grinned down at her and was about to throw out some snarky comment, when they locked gazes. Suddenly, it was as if the crowd around them didn’t exist. The energy that had passed through them earlier was now tenfold, paralyzing them. Although later Buffy would convince herself it was only a side effect from the spell, in the moment she couldn’t tear herself out of Spike’s firm embrace. His hands moved of their own volition, travelling lightly from her elbows up the backs of her arms, one finger pausing to trace the edge of the collar she wore before he plunged both hands into her wildly colored mane of hair. Threading his fingers into the unruly mass, he pulled her head towards him, closing the slight gap between their bodies. Although her hands were resting against his chest, she made no move to push him away. As his head descended downwards, she unconsciously licked her lips, eyes darting nervously to the crowd around them before coming back to focus on Spike’s face. Spike groaned when he saw the tip of her tongue flick out against the deep red of her painted lips and pulled her in for a hotly passionate kiss. At first demanding and fierce, the kiss gradually became softer and more exploratory. His shock that she was not only allowing him to kiss her but kissing him back was only pushed aside by his intense desire. Buffy’s surprise that his fangs never emerged was only dimly acknowledged before she let herself be caught up by the flood of passion that threatened to consume them both.

After an endless moment, Buffy shook herself out of the steamy haze of lust that had gripped her and pushed weakly against his solid chest. Breaking contact, they both pulled away and stared at each other in confusion and not a little bit of wonder.

Trying to calm the frantic pace of her heart and regain some semblance of control, she drew in a deep, shuddering breath and stepped back completely out of his embrace. Spike regarded her with an unreadable expression for a few seconds before allowing his trademark smirk to surface. Not wanting her to ruin the moment with threats of violence towards his person if he ever touched her again, he shakily offered, "Luv, maybe I’d better sing for you more often."

She bit back an instinctive retort and instead regarded him with a teasing smile, replying, "only if you keep your hair like that."

Reigning in the impulse to throw herself at him and crush her lips against his own, she instead went over and retrieved his discarded duster. Handing it to him without further comment, Buffy started towards the Scoobies again as he slipped into the coat. Spike followed her closely, and right before they reached Anya and Xander she said quietly--without facing him but knowing he could hear--"Thanks for the distraction, the singing. You probably kept their energy completely focused away from the bros over there."

Spike shook his head in amazement. A passionate kiss and a ‘thanks’ all in one night was simply too much for him to absorb at the moment.

Giles cleared his throat, blinking owlishly. The others turned around and saw Vampire and Slayer together, both very punked out, both looking a bit distracted. Buffy was flushed, and Spike seemed to be controlling his every move tightly, carefully. Tara and Willow exchanged glances but said nothing. Anya stared at Spike for a moment and turned to Xander.

"Next year, can you dye your hair blonde and do--" she gestured back at

Spike, "that?"

Xander started to make an acerbic comment, then noticed Spike’s wide grin and arched eyebrow. Swallowing his sarcasm, he turned to Anya he replied weakly, "Only if Buffy lends you that collar".

Willow regarded Spike with interest. "That was a great performance by the way. You really do Billy Idol well."

Spike snorted. "You mean Billy Idol does me well. Where do you think he got his whole act?"

All the scoobies regarded him skeptically until Buffy noticed the Brothers shifting uncomfortably behind them and sighed.

"Ok, we stopped the spell, which is why we came tonight. Let’s round up the brothers Grim over there and get going."

Giles nodded behind his half mask, and the group moved forward to shepherd the robed figures through the back of the yard. When they’d dispersed with a stern admonishment from Buffy to not "be raising any more giant icky demons" the gang looked around at each other in bemusement. Two Raggedies, two punks, two witches and a Phantom regarded each other nervously, until Willow began giggling. Tara soon joined her, and Anya offered a confused smile. Giles cracked a sheepish, lopsided grin, and Buffy soon began laughing herself. Running a hand through his tousled hair, Spike regarded them as if they were all insane, shook his head and turned to leave. He’d had enough excitement for one night.

Between giggles, Buffy shouted to his retreating form, "What about your payment?"

Spike replied, "next time", without turning around. He managed to make it back to his crypt before sinking to the ground, shaking from silent mirth as red tears of hysterical laughter ran down his face.

"Bloody marvelous. Raggedy Xandy."

FIN