Basement in the Summers home
"Faith still has my room…" Buffy stated hesitantly
"Well, you’re not staying here! You can’t buy me off with shiny beads and sweet talk. You’ve got Angel-breath. I’m not going to just let you whack me back and forth like a rubber ball. I got my pride, you know," the blonde vampire told her petulantly.
"I understand," she replied quietly and turned to go, but Spike ran around in front of her, blocking her way
"Clearly you don’t, ’cause the whole 'having my pride' thing was just a smokescreen," he rushed to explain, not wanting her to leave just yet.
"Oh, thank god," Buffy chuckled, relieved.
"Yeah, I don’t know what I would have done if you’d gone up those stairs, pet," he admitted somewhat sheepishly.
Buffy smiled warmly at him and softly caressed his cheek with her hand. But then she turned serious, withdrew her hand, and looked to the ground.
Spike was surprised by her sudden change in demeanour and looked at her quizzically "Buffy? What's wrong, luv?"
The blonde Slayer still didn't look at him as she ever so quietly explained “I didn't... I never apologized to you."
He stared at her, trying to come up with something she could want to apologize for. "Wot are you goin' on about? 'f this is still about the Poof, I wasn't really that mad, He was a big part of your life, once upon a time. I mean, it still hurt seein' you jump in his arms the first chance you got..."
"No, this isn’t about Angel," she said, still in that low, almost timid voice that cut off his babbling. "Well, maybe it is about Angel, in a way!"
The blonde vampire tilted his head to the side and regarded her with a thoughtful look, saying nothing as he waited for her to continue.
"I... I never apologized for last year and how badly I treated you," she told him, her eyes downcast. "I mean, all those things you did for me and Dawnie, and all I did was throw it back into your face, saying all those horrible things to you. I always hurt you so bad, not just physically."
"Pet, it's in the past, yeah? Let's not focus on that, now. After all, I hurt you, too" he said softly, trying to calm her down and simultaneously reigning in the guilt that once again welled up in him in remembrance of that night.
She blinked up at him disbelievingly, her luminous hazel eyes wet with unshed tears. She shook her head and gave a little laugh. "That wasn't even really your fault. We both know it was just a matter of time till the special, cold-hearted-bitch!Buffy treatment made you snap . And what did you do? You sought out some demon legend to get your soul back to be a better man...for me."
The tears she had tried so hard to hold back were making their tracks down her cheeks now. "And yet, after all of that, you're still the only one who loves me unconditionally, the only one who stands by my side no matter what, who always has my back…who never leaves me." The last part was uttered so quietly he wouldn’t have caught it if it wasn't for his keen vampire hearing.
"I don't leave the people I love, kitten, least of all you. You should know that by now," he told her with a small smile, gently lifting his hand to her face to brush away her tears. "Tried bloody well hard enough, you did. I would never willingly leave you, Buffy. I'd rather dust." His thumb was still brushing over her cheeks and his heart swelled when she leaned in to his touch as he had done earlier.
"What brought all this on, luv?"
She hesitated and first he thought she wasn't going to answer him, but then she took a shuddering breath and lifted her eyes. Stormy hazel met twin pools of concerned sapphire. Her voice was barely above a whisper when she finally replied. "It's just that I realized that tomorrow one of us might die. I needed you to know how really sorry I am for my behaviour during our 'relationship', and how grateful I am for your unwavering support and belief in me no matter what, and that I..." she trailed off, her eyes once again moist and her voice thick with emotion.
Spike couldn't let himself dare to hope, but before he could voice the request for her to continue, she proceeded to finish her declaration, her voice suddenly firm.
"And I need you to know that I...that I love you, too."
Spike just stood there staring at her, his eyes almost owlishly wide as he tried to form a coherent thought. Surely she couldn't have said what he thought he heard her say? He eventually blinked and seemed to come out of his stupor. "Huh?" was all the normally verbose vampire got out.
Buffy smiled shyly as she stepped closer to him, taking his face in her hands. "I love you, Spike." An expression of awed joy settled on his features, lighting up his entire face right before she captured his lips in a sweet kiss.
The flabbergasted vampire finally processed that she had indeed said she loved him and that she was kissing him right now. He had longed for the feel of her succulent lips caressing his own again - not that they had ever shared such a tender kiss before - and he returned the kiss with fevered abandon and long repressed passion.
He brought one of his hands to the back of her head to deepen the kiss and traced his tongue lightly over her bottom lip, silently begging for entrance, which she happily granted. His other hand snaked around her waist to hold her close to him, pressing the rock hard evidence of his arousal into her soft lower belly with a light grinding motion. He groaned as he delved into the sweet cavern of her mouth. After being denied for what seemed an eternity, he revelled in her mewls of pleasure as his tongue tangled with hers, massaging it with leisurely strokes.
He could have gone on forever, but he sensed her need for oxygen and broke away with a last nibble of her lips. Spike rested his forehead on hers and gazed lovingly into sparkling green depths that were filled with affection and desire while they both panted heavily, taking in large gulps of air, their chests heaving.
Buffy pressed her body even closer to his, her hands travelling down to pull his black t-shirt out of his jeans. She slipped her hands underneath to trace the outlines of his abdomen, her need to feel his bare skin against hers once again almost overwhelming in its intensity. "Spike, I need you," she breathed as she kissed the side of his mouth and trailed her lips along his jaw line. Her exploring hands and open mouthed kisses scorched him and Spike could only moan and give in to her ministrations, stunned that she would let him this close again.
"God...Buffy, I love you. The things you do to me, drive me absolutely crazy, pet." His hands were now on a quest of their own, travelling up from her waist to the swell of her breasts. He was delighted to discover that she had forgone wearing a bra and he brushed his thumbs lightly over her nipples, causing them to harden instantly. Ever so responsive, his Slayer. She arched into his touch and let out a little moan, her body remembering the effect he had on her. A new surge of moisture pooled between her thighs as tiny shivers raced up and down her spine.
Spike dropped his head onto her shoulder as he continued to fondle her breasts. His chest rumbled with appreciative little growls as she peppered his throat with tiny bites, and his nostrils flared as the heady scent of her arousal perfumed the air, leaving him feeling light headed and dizzy.
Buffy shoved his shirt over his head and proceeded to lick a trail over his collarbone and down his chest, teasing his sensitive nipples in passing with gentle nips and flicks of her tongue over the hardened little nubs as she reacquainted herself with his body. He couldn't suppress the little whimper of anticipation that escaped him when he felt her hands moving down to his belt buckle. Undoing it, she popped open the top button and ever so slowly eased down the zipper of his tight black jeans.
He started to remove her tank top and peeled it slowly away from her breasts, worshipping each and every newly exposed inch of her tanned skin with passionate reverence. "Christ, love...you're so beautiful, bloody perfection," he murmured as he silently thanked whatever deity deemed him worthy of his golden goddess.
All ability for coherent thought, let alone speech, left him when she enclosed his throbbing shaft in her hot little hands and gave him an affectionate squeeze. He let go of the nipple he was currently suckling to give a throaty moan. "Urgh...Buffy...kitten, ya just like that...do it again...squeeze a little harder," he babbled on encouragingly.
Spike crushed his mouth over hers and all but ripped the buttons of her pants open, slowly steering them towards the tiny cot. Buffy broke free of their kiss to draw in some much needed air when her legs hit the edge of the cot. Spike’s hands had finally wormed their way into her pants and where now busy kneading her buttocks. He pressed his raging hard-on into the smooth plane of her stomach with a light rocking motion before he proceeded to remove her pants.
Their lips and tongues seemed to devour each other as they locked in a fevered embrace while they slowly sank down. Spike started to reacquaint himself with every inch of her body, nipping, licking, and kissing until Buffy couldn't take it anymore. She gripped his hair and yanked his head up from where he was currently laving and tickling her bellybutton.
He looked at her in confusion. Had he done something wrong, gone too far too soon? His fears were alleviated when he took in the normally Forrest green pools that had darkened to almost black with desire. He couldn't be further from the truth.
"Spike," she breathed out in a husky whisper, her voice rough with lust. "Please, I can't wait any longer. It's been so long...too long. I need you in me...now...please!" she pleaded with him.
He was almost on the brink of bursting with his need to be inside her as well. He figured there would be plenty of time later tonight to worship her body properly and commit every nuance of her taste to his memory anew.
He was still gazing into her eyes, overwhelmed with the love he saw shining back at him, and it took his very last bit of restraint to not just plunge into her sopping pussy and pound her into oblivion. He set to reclaim every inch of her slick channel with an almost agonizing slow thrust of his hips until his length was fully sheathed inside her.
Their mutual gasps of rapture broke through the silence of the basement, both savouring the feeling of being connected that close again, as if a missing piece had been returned. Spike stilled for a moment as he tried to gain some sort of control. The thought of being with his beloved Buffy again, let alone like this, was threatening to have him come within seconds. ‘God this is what heaven must be like’ .
He bent his head and captured her lips in another tender kiss and then started to move slowly within her, her contracting muscles making her even tighter around him.
Spike continued to drive into her with deep, leisurely strokes, adding a little twist to each downward move to reach that special bundle of nerves that would serve to build up a climax of an unsurpassed intensity. When he noticed her need for air, he reluctantly released her lips and moved on to nibble his way down the delicate skin of her throat to the juncture of her shoulders with his blunt human teeth. His efforts elicited another rush of her delectable juices and throaty moans in addition to the kittenish mewls his attentions had caused.
"Christ, pet.... your’re so hot, scorching me like the sunshine... burning me so good!" he rumbled against her shoulder. He pressed his face into her hair, inhaling her unique scent and struggling for some measure of control as he sped up. As his thrusts pistoned into her heated core, he knew he wouldn't last nearly as long as he wanted to.
"Guh, Spike...so close...please, I need...ahh..." Buffy managed to get out between gasps and moans of delight as she tried to convey her need for release. His steady stimulation of her g-spot and the attention he lavished to her erogenous zones had brought her almost to the verge of tears with pleasure. She pushed her hips up to meet his thrusts with equal passion.
"I know what you need, kitten. Your Spike's got you," he murmured into her ear. He snaked one of his hands down to their joined bodies and in between her slippery folds. He applied an increasing pressure to the rock hard little nubbin he encountered and interspersed it with little flicks and twists of his fingers.
When he sensed that she was near her release he lifted his head to watch her face as he brought her over the edge. He loved to watch her when she climaxed. It was one of the few times when she let her guard down, when he got his crumb, and knew that despite all her declarations he wasn't just a convenience. That she cared for him as well, even if it was just a flicker of affection in her eyes that barely lasted longer than a few seconds. It was then, when all her worries and grief and responsibilities and high expectations of her friends were forgotten, and they were just Buffy and Spike, a woman and a man delving into the blissfulness of making love.
He quickened his thrusts once again and gave her clit another sharp twist before he felt her walls flutter around him and swept down to her lips to muffle her scream of ecstasy as she came hard around him.
He broke away from her scrumptious lips and looked into her eyes. Buffy stared back at him lovingly, her jade depths moist with unshed tears of joy. She looked absolutely ravished, her golden tresses fanned out on his pillow, her lips swollen from their kisses, her chest heaving as she panted trying to catch her breath. Her body was still trembling with the aftershocks of her orgasm. It took every last bit of his restraint not to come as well, because he wanted to prolong and savour this moment as much as possible.
When her ‘I love you’, a combination of a whisper and a breathy moan reached his ears he gritted his teeth and buried his face once again in the side of her neck. He resumed plunging into her slick pussy with almost bruising force, knowing he would fall apart and join her in rapturous oblivion any moment now.
Buffy nipped his earlobe and then whispered the words she knew would change things between them forever. "I want to be the one, Spike. Make me yours." She pressed his face into her neck, turning her head to give him better access.
He faltered for a moment. "Buffy... luv, are you sure? Something like that is for all eternity." he forced out between grunts and growls of pleasure.
"Eternity won't be enough," was her only answer as she wound her fingers tenderly through the soft curls on the nape of his neck
Spike changed into his demonic features He lifted his head a bit to lick the soft column of her neck sensuously, searching for the perfect spot. His climax finally overpowered him and with a shout of her name, he came, coating her walls with his chilled seed as sank his fangs into the tender flesh of her throat. He took three small pulls of her charged blood before he retracted them and licked his marks closed.
"Mine."
Another climax ripped through her tiny frame as she felt him pull her blood and she instinctively knew what she had to do. She responded with a contented, "yours,” before her eyes zeroed in on his siring marks and with a possessive little growl of her own she struck with enough force to break the skin. She sank her teeth into the side of his neckand shook her head a little to obliterate Drusilla’s marks completely. After she swallowed a mouthful of his blood, she staked her claim as well.
"Mine.”
Spike was overcome with emotion and tears started to gather in his eyes. His voice trembled as he responded to her demand. "Yours. Only yours, forever ."
He couldn't believe that this tiny woman in his arms, which he loved with everything he was, had not only accepted his claim but also claimed him in return. Never had he belonged to anyone. He had spent a century with Dru and never had she declared she loved him in such a manner as Buffy had done. Not without him saying it first and thus coercing her to tell him as well, let alone allowing him to bind her to him for all eternity.
He rolled them onto their sides so as not to crush his mate and brought her face up to his. He laved up the remains of his blood from her stained mouth and swept down for another passionate kiss.
The exhaustion of the previous days finally caught up with them and together they nuzzled their marks and succumbed to sleep, still intimately joined. The silence in the basement was only broken by the soft purring the vampire started to emanate once they were sound asleep.
Buffy was the first to wake up in the morning. She twisted a bit in Spikes embrace to watch him sleeping. That was something they had never done before, waking up together. She had never allowed that much intimacy between them, afraid she would get too attached and only end up hurt if she let him into her heart.
Now she was grateful to be here, held in his arms, getting the chance to study her vampire, while he slept. He was hers and would be forever. Someone who'd never leave her, who put her above all else. More importantly, Spike was someone who wouldn't try to change her or make her decisions for her but loved her the way she was, flaws and all.
He looked adorable in his sleep. All the lines of worry and the false bravado were gone, leaving behind peaceful, almost boyish features. A little smile still splayed on his lips and his cute little curls were all ruffled from sleep and their lovemaking. What entranced her the most was the low rumbling from his chest as he continued to purr even in sleep. She was overjoyed that she was able to give him this feeling of contentment, to be responsible for his happiness for once instead of anguish.
She tried to suppress the urge, but gave up after a while and threaded her fingers through his soft, silken curls. She kept scratching his scalp lightly and her smile widened in delight when he sighed happily and leaned unconsciously into her touch as his purring got louder.
She knew they had to get up soon and she wanted them to spend the remaining time together, preferably making love to her mate. She brought her hand from his hair to his face and started to caress his chiselled features and brush over his lush bottom lip with her thumb. Her other hand found its way under the covers where she stroked down his chest and over his abdomen. When he still showed no signs of waking up, she decided it was time for some more drastic means to rouse her vampire. Her hand trailed down further and latched on to his semi-erect cock, bringing him to full hardness in a matter of seconds.
His purrs had changed into sensual little growls that sent shivers of desire down her spine, but he still seemed to be asleep, so she gave his engorged member an affectionate little squeeze. She was promptly met with a pair of sleepy crystal blue orbs that were rapidly darkening with lust.
"Morning, love," he greeted her with a sleep-roughened voice and a loving smile as he gently brushed a strand of her hair from her face.
"Good morning," she replied softly, smiling shyly at him. "I know it's still some time before we have to be up, so I thought maybe we could spent some quality time together," she continued while she fidgeted nervously with the sheet that covered them. Her eyes seemed to be glued to his chest.
She didn't really know what to expect, her experience with morning afters wasn't all that stellar, to say the least. The ones with Angelus and Parker, she didn't even want to think about, and Riley was always all businesslike, jumping up and doing his exercises. They had rarely just lain together and cuddled. She knew Spike would be different, but she'd always left way before morning, so she didn't know if he still wanted all those things or if she had hurt him too much.
Spike, as always preceptive to her moods, sensed her uncertainty about what to do next. He was overwhelmed by the waves of affection she was unconsciously pouring through the claim. He pulled her close to him and answered her suggestion with an affectionate kiss
"I'd love that, sweetheart," the amorous vampire whispered against her skin as he proceeded to nuzzle his marks on her neck. He grinned proudly when he felt her blush at his endearment, vowing to try everything to keep her cheeks tinted with that absolutely adorable shade of pink.
Buffy relaxed when she felt him pull her closer and snuggled into his embrace with a contented sigh. After an hour of tender lovemaking, he gave her a final kiss and slipped from the cot.
"Why don't you grab a quick shower, cutie, while I hunt down some breakfast for my lovely wife."
They both grinned at each other, liking the sound of that immensely, before Spike made his way up the stairs to the thankfully still empty kitchen to secure some food for his mate. Although he felt still pretty sated from just the few mouthfuls of potent Slayer blood he had taken the previous night he also grabbed some blood for himself.
Buffy walked over to the impromptu shower Xander had fixed in a secluded corner of the basement. She had never felt happier in her entire life or more complete and at ease with herself. Through the newly established link between them, she could tell Spike felt the same.
Even the appearance of the First during the night hadn't been able to spoil her mood. Quite the contrary in fact, because now she knew they actually had a chance to win this fight.
Cave beneath the school basement
Buffy wielded the scythe in a deadly arc, dusting approaching Turok-han all around her. She shifted her focus to check on Spike. Although she could sense that he was doing fine through the claim, she had to see for herself that he was okay. She found him successfully fighting off a group of four Uber-vamps.
Their eyes met briefly and they shared a quick smile before she turned back to the battle in front of her, but in her moment of inattentiveness she had not noticed the Uber-vamp that had snuck upbehind her. She was just about to jump to a new Slayers help when she felt a sharp pain, first in her lower back then in her abdomen. She looked down on herself just in time to get a glimpse of the blade before it was yanked back roughly.
She summoned the last of her strength to dust her attacker and toss the scythe to a stunned Faith before her legs gave out and she slumped to the ground. She had caught her mate’s horrified expression when he saw her fall and sent a silent apology through their link. ‘I'm so sorry. Love you .’
Spike had felt her gaze on him as he fought his opponents. He finished them off and looked up to see her looking right back at him. Their eyes locked and he gave her a reassuring little smile. He did a quick scan for new attackers and when he found none, he turned back to his mate in time to watch her being stabbed in the back and then sinking to the ground lifelessly. It took several moments for him to process what he had just seen before he let out an anguished cry.
He screamed her name as he tried to make his way through the fray to where she was lying on the ground, his thoughts a tumbled mess that conveyed the same almost crippling fear that encased his heart in an icy chokehold. 'God, no. Please, not this again. She can't be gone.'
His shouts were muted by the noise of the battle going on around them, and his progress towards her was abruptly halted as the amulet he wore suddenly started to emit a bright light that broke through the cieling. He was pinned in place by a beam of sunlight.
Buffy lay there on the cave floor, mourning all the lost chances with Spike when her own voice drifted through the haze of her mind. She looked up to see the First, wearing her face and taunting her.
She glared back at it with pure, undisguised hatred and that's when she noticed that the wound didn't hurt as bad as it should and she felt her strength return to her. The blonde Slayer jumped up and reclaimed her weapon, dusting the majority of another wave of enemies in the process.
Buffy looked around for Spike, only to find him bathed in a patch of sunlight. She let out a shriek of fright and started to rush to his side when she noticed that he wasn't burning up, but seemed to absorb the lethal rays to focus them through the amulet.
The usually deadly rays seemed to have no effect on Spike whatsoever but they were amplified by the talisman and dusted each and every Turok-han.
She discovered that Faith was instructing the others to leave the cave because it was threatening to collapse at any moment and soon it was just the three of them. She ignored Faith’s demands to leave with her and stared into her mates stormy blue eyes.
Buffy could see the confusion in his eyes and knew he had seen her go down. It was clear that he believed her to be the First trying to stop him. She lifted her left hand to his outstretched right one and interlaced their fingers to show him she was real.
She smiled up at him with pride. "We won, Spike. We won because of you. Now, let's get out of here before the whole school comes crashing down on us."
"Buffy?" he asked, still somewhat sceptical. "You’re...okay, kitten?" She just smiled at him and nodded.
When Faith yelled frantically down at them to hurry, she looked expectantly at him and frowned when he showed no sign of leaving anytime soon. "Spike?"
"I can feel it, Buffy. My soul. It’s really there. It kind of stings," the blonde vampire told her in awe. "I have to finish this, sweetness, make sure it's closed forever. But you have to leave; it's too dangerous!" he said to her while the sunlight still surged through his body and soul, diminishing the power of the Hellmouth.
Behind them a vast section of the cavern ceiling collapsed inward, millions of tons of rock crashing into the abyss.
"NO!" she responded vehemently.
"But you have to. Please, luv. You'll finally get the chance to have the life you deserve," he pleaded with her. Both ignored the small flame that had ignited where their hands were entwined, staring into each others eyes intently.
"You said you would never leave me. Well, neither will I. It wouldn't be living if I'd be without you. I love you, Spike. It's either being with you or not at all!” she stated passionately. While tears were flowing down her cheeks in rivulets by now, he knew by the tone of her voice and the determination in her eyes that she couldn't be swayed on this.
"Oh, Buffy, I love you, too. Always have and always will," he croaked out, his voice thick with emotion, his tears falling unchecked now as well.
Buffy stepped even closer to him, ignoring the now painfully burning light and their lips met in a final kiss. Both were pouring all the love and devotion they felt for each other into it before the painful white hot luminosity turned into a searing brightness that started to burn their skin. They turned slowly to dust, their combined ashes buried beneath several layers of debris as the entire town of Sunnydale, California collapsed onto the now sealed Hellmouth.
Thirteen days later
After the surviving Scoobies and newly called Slayers had mourned their losses, they had gone to Los Angeles to inform Angel and to regroup. They decided to build up a new Watchers Council in England and guard the new Hellmouth in Cleveland. So they weren't aware of the things going on in the ruins of Sunnydale.
It had taken a few days until the state department had declared the area of the Sunnydale crater stable and safe enough to search for anybody who might have survived and to salvage and bury the bodies of those who weren't so fortunate.
In the outskirts that hadn't suffered as much as the rest of the town they occasionally came across someone to rescue, but as they moved further in the direction of the center, it became quite clear that it was hardly likely that someone else might have survived. The bodies were far and few between and those they encountered were extremely mutilated and unrecognizable.
There was suddenly a buzz of activity when one of the teams discovered a couple beneath the remains of what must have been the local high school at the very heart of the destruction.
The hands of the blonde couple were still joined and they were covered with severe injuries, but they were alive. Just barely, but alive no less. Even unconscious, they would not let go of each other.
The only memory they seemed to recall besides the fact that they were recently married were their names, and for weeks the newspapers would tell of the 'Miracle of Randy and Joan'.