Slaindeer Games

by Larilyn

Rating- NC-17 baby

Summary- The morning after Life Serial…the geeks aren’t finished playing their reindeer games. Much Spuffiness ensues.

Notes- Thanks to my Splendiforous beta Alana who is…well…splendiforous. The first chapter is inspired in large part by In Heat by Nautibitz who deserves kisses and lots of love(She likes me, she really likes me)for reading this and being kind enough to point out what I had ripped off, so I could change it and not rip her off. Her suggestions were gold. If you haven't read In Heat, go to my recs page and read it now!

Disclaimer- Joss owns everything and everyone. I own some dryer lint.

Chapter One -Hair of the Dog

"Slayer." That voice. That damned sexy voice. Buffy snuggled deeper into her pillow, trying to block out the sound of his smooth, silky…

"Oi, Slayer!"

Buffy hissed, "Don’t yell…you…big poop." She sat up and glared at the vampire. The sudden movement caused her head to throb. Hangover. Big Ow.

"Big poop? That the best you can come up with? Should I be insulted or worried?"

"Every syllable out of your mouth puts you at serious risk of being dusted. You know that? Why are you here?"

He slithered over to her bedside and sat on the edge of the bed.

The movement caused Buffy’s stomach to flip flop. Don’t…puke. Puking bad.

"Just checking on you luv. Didn’t look so good last night."

"And who’s fault would that be?" she hissed at the still smirking vampire.

"Now, now Slayer, I only fed you the first drink, the rest you can blame on your pretty little self."

"That’s not what I remember."

"What do you remember?"

"Whiskey….demons…kittens…more demons….and more whiskey ‘cept in reverse."

"That about sums it up. You look like hell, pet. Lucky for you, I have just the cure." Spike pulled out a silver flask from the pocket of his black leather duster. "Hair of the dog that bit you in the ass."

Buffy narrowed her eyes and glared at him. "I’m so not drinking that."

Spike unscrewed the cap and held it under her nose. "You sure, luv?"

She pushed it away and a little splashed out of the top. The droplets landed on her collarbone and started to trickle down into her nightshirt.

"Hey now. No reason to waste good liquor." Spike eyed her with a predatory grin before he leaned in toward her. He gave a quick glance up, to make sure she wasn’t going to stop him and then he licked the whiskey off of her skin in a slow, languorous movement.

"Sssspike," Buffy protested with a hiss. What the hell am I doing? I’m letting him lick me?

He drew back and regarded her thoughtfully. He dangled the flask in front of her. With a breathless nod, Buffy tilted her head to the side and brushed her hair off of her neck. Spike dribbled some more whiskey just under her ear and followed it with his tongue. Buffy felt his hands reach for the hem of her nightshirt.

Good God have I completely lost my mind? Its Spike! And licking and ohhhh! He drew her earlobe in his mouth and sucked on it while he drew the nightshirt up, revealing the soft expanse of her belly. His lips drifted away from her ear and down to her belly button. Buffy reclined in the bed, letting Spike minister to her.

Spike sat up for a brief moment and smiled at her. No stopping! Stopping bad! Before Buffy could protest, he took the flask and poured a bit more on her. Oh goodie! More licking.

After he lapped up his aperitif, he tugged Buffy’s nightshirt off, leaving her in nothing but her white cotton panties. A stream of whiskey flowed from the flask to the crevice between her breasts. Spike’s tongue met the current at the bottom and licked his way up. Then he migrated to her right nipple. His lips clamped down and began suckling.Licking good. Sucking better.

His left hand kneaded her other breast while Buffy’s feet scissored in pleasure. Her breath was coming in short little bursts. Throbbing. Down there. Down Spike, down.

As if he could read her mind, Spike’s deft fingers found the waistband of her panties and pulled them off, sliding his palms against the tanned flesh of her legs the whole way down.

He kept her foot captive and again grabbed his flask. The Devil’s elixir dripped down her toes. Spike took her big toe in her mouth and sucked. Then he licked the liquor from her instep. Too far down. Up, Spike! Up!

His palms parted her thighs. Yay! Deeply inhaling, he murmured, "Now that’s the stuff, luv."

His devilish tongue darted out to taste her. If his intention was to tease, Buffy wanted none of it. She wrapped her strong thighs around his neck, effectively holding him captive.

Spike chuckled in amusement. "Something you want, luv?"

From her opening up to her belly button, he licked one long line. Loooove that! He dipped his tongue into her naval.

"Unh!" Buffy protested, and pushed his bleached head back down where it belonged, eliciting another chortle from her lover.

He gently suckled on her pleasure center, sending Buffy into a writhing jumble of desire. "Don’t…stop!" she demanded. Suddenly, his human teeth found her swollen nub and clamped down on it. Buffy spasmed in violent release.

While she trembled from her brutal orgasm, Spike shed himself of his clothes. He crawled up her body until they were face to face.

Spike brushed a sweat soaked tendril of hair from her face. "Buffy, tell me you want me."

Her hand found his pulsing shaft and drew it toward her opening. She eased the tip in and admitted, "I want you."

With a possessive growl, Spike pushed himself the rest of the way in her hot, wet, channel.

"God, Buffy!"

Another voice crept into her consciousness, "Buffy?"

"Buffy?" Go away Willow!

"Buffy are you okay?"

The Slayer’s eyes shot open, and looked around her Spike-less room. Willow stood in her doorway, a look of concern on her face. "You were moaning. Were you having a nightmare?"

"Cantaloupe guts." Huh?

"Huh?"

Buffy tried to speak again. "Paisley French duck." Panicked, she begged her friend, "Palm tree?"

"Oh God. I’ll get Giles. Buffy don’t panic. I’ll get Giles." Willow darted down the hallway.

Buffy collapsed into her pillow and drew her blanket up over her head.

Chapter 2 - Gurgle Fetish

Spike burst into the Summers’ kitchen, smoking under his blanket. He unceremoniously dumped it on the floor and nodded a quick hello to Giles & Willow who stood there staring at him.

Buffy sat at the breakfast bar, nursing a cup of coffee. Damn, should’ve cut off the whiskey. Girl looks like death. And not in a good way.

"Hello, he of much whiskey," she acerbically commented.

"Morning luv. How’s the head?"

"Spike?" Giles stammered. "Can you understand her?"

Spike regarded the Watcher with confusion. Trick question? "Uh…yeah. Can’t you?"

"No." Willow babbled, "Everything she says is all nonsense-y.

Buffy grabbed Spike’s arm, "You can understand me? How is that possible? I can’t even understand me." Her eyes were wide with excitement.

"All right, either the lot of you have gone completely mad…or my hangover’s worse than I thought."

"We’re serious, Spike," Willow asserted. "We can’t understand a word. Say something Buffy."

The Slayer rolled her eyes. "What the hell do you want me to say?"

"What did she say?" Willow demanded, practically bouncing on her toes.

"What did you hear?"

Giles admitted, "Chicken soup gurgle fetish."

Willow and Buffy both cast their eyes downward at Giles’s translation. Bloody hell! They’re serious about this. "Time loops? Nonsense talk? What the hell is causing this?"

"More importantly," Buffy sighed, "How do we fix it? Cause, I gotta say, not enjoying this."

Spike shrugged. Giles and Willow eyed him expectantly. Oh this is bloody lovely. Now I have to translate for the Scoobies. It was so much easier when I was supposed to kill the lot of them.

"Well?" Willow demanded, "What did she say? Cause I know she didn’t mean for us to watch out for the running kettle corn."

"Slayer’s more concerned with how to fix this. She’ll kick the ass of whoever’s involved once she can quip properly. Right luv?" Buffy nodded in assent.

"Well, it would seem that the two go hand in hand. This demon you saw last night? Could you describe it?"

Buffy opened her mouth to answer Giles, then realizing that it was a waste of time, she gestured to Spike.

"Right. Big bloke. Red. Horns. Garden variety demon."

"Tell him about the van!" Buffy urged.

"There was a van. Black. We saw it last night."

"Yes," Giles changed gears, "about last night…"

Great. I come over here to check on the bird and I’m gonna get scolded by the Watcher. Lovely way to spend a day. "Right…gotta go…evil to do."

But it was Buffy that stopped him, not Giles. She caught his sleeve and looked up at him, pleading with her eyes. "Spike…I can’t…"

"All right, luv."

***

"Its working!" Warren said proudly as the trio watched the monitor.

"Its funny," admitted Jonathan, "But is the Slayer sufficiently freaked?"

They watched Buffy grab Spike’s sleeve and beg him to stay.

"Oh, I think she’s pretty freaked," bragged Warren.

Andrew spoke with a hint of awe, "You were in the Slayer’s bedroom. The inner sanctum."

"The inner sanctum of kicking your ass if she had woke up."

"An earthquake couldn’t have woke her up, Mini Me," Warren told Jonathan, "Man oh man was she having one hell of a dream."

Jonathan grumbled, "I just hope you hid this device better than the last one."

"Don’t worry, its well hid. Its somewhere where she would never look."

Jonathan accused, "Its not somewhere dirty, is it?"

"Naw, its behind her right ear. Although, with the way she was spreading her legs last night, I could’ve put it there."

Andrew asked innocently, "Put it where?"

****

"So…" Spike glanced around the Summers’ living room awkwardly. Dawn & Willow had both gone off to school, and Giles had gone into the Magic Box to research Buffy’s condition. "Wanna watch the telly?"

Buffy shrugged and flopped onto the couch, "Sure, why not?"

The sat there companionably for several hours, watching soap operas and daytime talk shows. Spike supplied a running commentary on the stupidity of humans during the Jerry Springer show.

"Luv?" His deep drawl pulled her from her reverie. She quickly wiped the advancing tears from her eyes.

"Sad show," she insisted.

"Jeopardy?" He smiled at her lie. "Yeah, blooming tragic."

Spike reached up and took a tendril of her golden hair in his fingers. He assured her gently, "You’re gonna be fine." Then he smirked in that way of his, "Would I lie?"

"Let me see… yes?"

He afforded her a small smile but kept his reassuring tone, "S’gonna be all right, Slayer. You have my word."

She teased him without a single bit of malice, "The word of an evil guy? Not so encouraging."

A full blown smile erupted on his face. Nice. He should smile more often. Its very…bad! Bad Buffy! Spike is not appropriate boyfriend material. He’s evil. And dead. And holy God so very very sexy.

She dropped her eyes.

Spike took her chin and forced her eyes to meet his. Oh shit…this is bad. Those lips are just inches away. If I leaned in just a bit, we could be kissing. And then maybe we could finish my dream.

Buffy shot up out of her seat and paced the room, ranting, "Oh this sucks! My friends don’t understand me, I don’t understand me. Who understands me? Evil dead. No offense."

"None taken." He just sat there, smirking at her.

Hands on her hips, Buffy demanded, "What?"

Spike stood and sauntered over to her, "S’just, they don’t really understand you anyway."

"Are we having the creature of the night discussion again? Cuz I’m so not. I’m a daylight girl." She crossed her arms over her chest.

"Really? Then why aren’t you out in it?"

"Well…it would be rude…to leave you here…alone…in my house."

"Afraid I’ll nick something, luv?"

"Yeah. Baby pictures, underwear."

Spike chuckled.

"You don’t even feel the littlest bit guilty do you?"

"Hardly ever," he replied, but he was distracted. What the hell is that? Spike was intent on studying her neck and even pushed her hair out of the way as he leaned closer.

She felt his fingers brush against her skin and settle in that sensitive spot behind her ear.

"What are you doing?" Buffy breathed. Ohgodohgodohgod. I’m feeling bad Buffy feelings. Having a very bad Buffy reaction.

Spike’s eyes widened noticeably. Do I smell what I think I smell? Startled by her physical reaction to his proximity, Spike shot back, "What are you doing?

"Nothing!" she protested, flushed with both arousal and embarrassment.

"You were gonna let me bite you!" he accused with a sort of glee.

"I was not!"

"You were. You were leaning." His voice changed a bit. With his naughty voice he asked, "You want me to bite you Slayer?"

Yes! "No! Ew."

"Not ew, luv. Erotic. Intimate."

"Hot. Wet. Throbbing…"

Willow burst in the door in her usual sunshine and kittens way, "Hey guys whatcha doing?"

"Nothing!" stammered Buffy, "Just you know… bills! Spike was giving me some financial advice."

"Buffy you can talk!" Willow exclaimed.

"I can? I can!"

"Found this on her." Spike held up a small device of some sort. So that’s what he was doing with my neck. And now…really embarrassed. And kind of wet…for Spike…

"Wow. I’ll start analyzing it. Must have a microprocessor in it cuz its teeny…." Willow wandered off.

Spike looked Buffy up and down and then told her, "I’ll pick you up at sunset luv."

"I’m not going anywhere with you." A beat passed and then, "Where are we going?"

"To fix your life."

She mumbled, "I’m sure you’re not that good."

"Not what I was talking about luv, but if you insist…"

Damned vampire hearing. And my mind, still way in the gutter. "What are you planning? Something evil?"

"Not evil…just a little bad. You game?"

***

"Okay score me," Warren instructed his fellow villains in training.

"Well," Jonathan mused, "For sheer comic value, I’d have to give you a four."

"A four? That’s ridiculous!"

Jonathan sat back and crossed his arms over his chest. "It wasn’t as good as my time loop."

Andrew added enthusiastically, "It wasn’t even as funny as the episode of Voyager where the EMH meets the EMH2 and they have to save the prototype ship from the Romulans."

"We are not scoring on comedy!" Warren reminded them. "We are scoring on the ability to test the Slayer, make her think, make her work."

Jonathan snorted, "Well she didn’t have to work very hard since Spike could understand every word."

Andrew mused aloud, "Spike’s hot." Two heads swung and looked at him, mouths agape. He covered with, "I mean he’s like a total chick magnet."

Warren chose to ignore Andrew. "Okay, I forgot about the Spike factor when I designed the device. Can you do better?"

"Damn right," Jonathan asserted. "The Slayer won’t know what hit her."

Chapter 3 - Love in an Elevator

"Breaking and entering? Not the midnight adventure that I had in mind." Buffy protested, "We can’t do this!"

Spike jiggled the lock pick. "So stop me."

Buffy just whimpered in response.

Spike flung the door of the Magic Box open with a flourish, a smug look of pride on his face.

"After you luv." He gestured gallantly.

"We can’t do this," she repeated anxiously as she entered the darkened store.

Spike went straight to the cash register and pried it open. Taking a hand full of bills, he promised, "I’ll put it back."

"And if you lose?"

He assured her, "I won’t."

"And you know this because…?"

Simply, he told her, "I cheat."

Buffy scoffed, "You’re beyond sucky at it."

Stung, "I beg your pardon?"

Buffy explained to Spike like a schoolteacher, "I caught you cheating and I was way drunk."

Spike chuckled at the memory, "I remember. Still, you’re the Slayer with all the super slayer senses. These blokes are human."

"So are they like high rollers from the land of Wayne Newton?" she asked.

"Mobsters." Spike stuffed a wad of cash into his pocket and shut the cash register.

"Sunnydale has mobsters? Seriously?" Then with mild concern, she added, "They don’t whack people do they?"

"Almost never."

"So very reassuring."

***

The poker game, Buffy decided, was even more boring without the whiskey, and not nearly as cute, without the kittens. The location was a bonus, though. A penthouse suite definitely beat the back room of a demon bar. Plus, Spike’s ability to cheat without getting caught was impressive.

"Straight flush gentlemen," he announced as he laid out his cards. As he reached for the pile of chips and cash on the table, one of the mobsters, Buffy thought he said his name was Irving, said, "That’s quite a run of luck you’ve had Mr. Spike."

Spike tossed a smile at Buffy. "Well, if you don’t mind, my good luck charm and I will be taking off now."

Irving, the intrepid mobster, had other ideas. "With all our cash? I don’t think so. Leave your winnings." The four other mobsters pulled guns out of their jacket pockets.

Buffy acidly told the vampire, "You introduce me to the nicest people, Spike."

Irving pulled out a Beretta and held it level with Spike’s head. He repeated, "Leave your winnings on the table."

"A gun?" Spike scoffed, knowing it wouldn’t kill him. Buffy harshly cleared her throat. But it will kill her. "Oh…yeah…sorry luv."

In a blur Spike disarmed Irving and all of his poker-playing cronies. He crumpled the weapons in his hand, or bent the barrels sharply.

Then he stood back and smirked, admiring his handiwork.

In response, the mobsters pulled brass knuckles and other assorted weaponry from their suit pockets.

"Looks like we’re gonna have to fight our way out of this, luv."

"Remind me later to kill you."

The Slayer and the vampire were more than a match for the humans, even armed ones. In minutes, the mobsters that weren’t knocked unconscious were lying moaning on the floor

"Lets just get out of here," Buffy begged. She and Spike turned to leave, sans their winnings when the elevator announced its arrival with a ding. A man stepped off and strode purposefully toward Buffy. Now this guy looks like a mobster. Big, burly, & really, really scary, Buffy thought. To Spike she shot, "You are so gonna get staked."

"Tell me something I haven’t heard before, pet."

"Buffy Summers?" The heavy set, Tony Soprano type asked in a deep, intimidating, voice.

"Yuh huh," she replied timidly.

He smiled at her in the nicest way. "Its an honor miss."

Dumbfounded, "Huh?"

"Boss?" Irving asked, shaking off the fogginess of his Slayer-induced pummeling. "I was just…uh…taking care of the problem. See, Mr. Spike, he…"

"I don’t care what Mr. Spike did. Give the lady her money."

It was Irving’s turn to, "Huh?"

"You know the things that go bump in the night, hiding in the shadows? The things even my people won’t talk about?" he asked his underling.

"They’re…her?"

"No you moron, she’s the one keeping them from eating you." He turned to Buffy with a smile and waited for Irving to hand her the sack of cash. "Enjoy your winnings miss. You have our thanks."

"Thanks…" she stammered, "I mean you’re welcome."

Buffy held the bag of cash as if it was going to fly away, a dizzy smile plastered on her face, as they rode the elevator down from the penthouse.

Spike silently beamed with pride. Nothing in the world like making the girl smile.

Suddenly, Buffy squealed, "I’m rich!"

To his shock, the Slayer threw herself into Spike’s arms, winding her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist attaching herself to him like a limpet.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" she giggled. With her cheek pressed against his, he could feel her smile and the tears of joy that slid down her cheeks. "That was so much fun! And amazing! And other good things!"

"Your welcome, luv," he murmured.

She leaned back a little so she could smile at him. Slowly, the smile faded from her face, replaced by something else. Okay compromising position much? Just lower your legs to the floor, Buffy. And…don’t…kiss…him.

Her face blurred away as she leaned in closer to him. Spike could feel her hot breath on his lips. And then, her lips grazed his. Just a feathery touch. And that was not going to be enough for Spike. So he tightened his grip on her and sought her mouth again.

She tasted like cinnamon. And her heat…God!

Buffy moaned as she opened her mouth, inviting in his probing tongue. She lost herself in the way this felt, a blaze of passion that she had never experienced before.

His already secure embrace tightened when Buffy started to undulate her hips against his. The seam of her jeans was rubbing her in just the right spot. She felt the heat building inside her…building…building … and…

Buffy’s eyes snapped open and she quickly removed herself from Spike’s grip. "Bloody hell." He whispered.

The Slayer darted out the elevator as if the hounds of hell were after her.

***

Buffy dumped the contents of the bag on the coffee table.

"Holy mucho deneiros Batman!" Xander whooped as he picked up a bundle of the cash and stroked it.

"We’re rich!" exclaimed Dawn.

Buffy nodded, "Filthy & stinkin." To the assembled Scoobies, she admitted, "You know, I wasn’t sure about having the mob here in Sunnydale, but he was nice."

Anya nodded in agreement, "He is."

Buffy asked the ex-demon, "How do you know him?"

"Oh I’ve had many business dealings with Jimmy the Mole…. He buys catnip from the Magic Box…. for his cat…he stuffs it in old socks and ties off the top…and the cat plays with it for hours and hours, becoming intoxicated from the catnip, I’m told its very amusing."

Giles spoiled the party. "Buffy, we were very concerned. For all we knew you had been killed on patrol. Or...or…"

"Done something illegal?" Willow finished with an accusatory tone.

Buffy insisted, "We didn’t do anything illegal." Spike cleared his throat. "What was illegal?"

"Gambling luv. Not exactly kosher. We’re not in Vegas."

"You really won all this?" Anya asked. With approval, she noted, "Very impressive."

"Thanks… but no… I didn’t win it… exactly. I mean we did… but mostly… Jimmy the Mole gave it to me. For protecting him." Buffy stammered.

Giles was appalled, "This is protection money?"

"No!" She whimpered at Spike, "Help."

He explained, "Consider it a bonus for past service."

Giles was clearly past annoyed and was rounding the corner towards livid, "Spike I could just…"

Buffy protested, "Wait a minute. Spike did a good here. I can pay bills now, and I don’t have to take from my friends."

To Xander, Anya asked, "Were we supposed to give her money? Cuz it’s my money, I earned it."

Anya was promptly shushed by her boyfriend.

Willow told her friend, "You know Buffy, I could probably whip up some cash with magic, or…" Both Tara and Giles looked at Willow with disgust. "What?"

Giles mumbled, "I need a drink." And left the room.

***

From his favorite hiding place in the back yard, Spike watched as Buffy emerged from the back door. Her good mood had been irrevocably ruined. Ought to drain the Watcher and the Witch dry. He stepped out from the shadows and asked, "How mad at me are they?"

She shrugged, "They’ll get over it."

Spike listened as the battle between Giles and Willow raged once again in the kitchen. "You’d think they’d at least keep it down," he mused. "Delicate ears and all."

"At least they’re not mentioning the whole bringing me back from the dead extravaganza. And for that I say thank God for eensy beensy favors."

"Still early. Wanna patrol?"

"Why not?"

As they walked from the backyard toward the front, Spike ventured, "So…I guess I shouldn’t bring up the kissing."

"Probably shouldn’t."

"So the groping would definitely be off limits then?"

"Spike…" she began to scold. On the front porch, the two forlorn figures of Tara & Dawn sat. "They drove you guys out too, huh?"

Tara nodded weakly.

Dawn, trying to be chipper asked, "Patrolling?"

"Better than listening to Giles & Willow argue about magic…again."

They were distracted by the sound of an approaching vehicle. It sounded an awful lot like…

"Hey isn’t that the van from the other night?" The Slayer asked Spike.

"Yeah. And that’s the demon from the other night too."

Sure enough, the red demon toddled up the sidewalk. He stood before them, placed his hands on his hips and declared, "Slayer, so we meet again."

Buffy and Spike took their battle stances. Tara shoved Dawn behind her in a protective gesture. But the demon didn’t strike at them. He just threw some sparkly dust on Buffy and resumed his hands on hips super-power-demon pose and then he threw something down causing a small explosion and a smoke cloud. Without the fog of alcohol, Buffy could see that he hadn’t disappeared, but had simply ran away, toward the van parked down the street.

Buffy hiccuped, "Hunh. That was…?"

"Are you all right, luv?"

"Uh huh. And look!" She admired the dust on her arms, "Glittery."

Tara told her, "I think it was magic. Or something."

Dawnie offered, "I’ll get Willow."

"No," Tara said abruptly. "I’ll look into it. Buffy? Coming?"

"Guess I’m patrolling alone, then?" Spike asked the Slayer.

"I could go," Dawn piped up.

A simultaneous, "No!" burst forth from Tara and Buffy.

Spike placed his hand on the girl’s shoulder and looked at her with the utmost seriousness. "Nibblet. I need you to take care of your sis for me? Can you do that?"

"Please. I’m not five. Don’t treat me like it." The youngest Summers woman and Tara headed into the house.

The vampire turned and walked down the sidewalk. Buffy’s voice stopped him. "Spike?"

He turned back to her. "Yeah, luv?"

She smiled at him. "Good night."

***

"Well?" Warren asked impatiently.

Jonathan sat huddled, naked and wrapped in a blanket in the back of the van as Andrew drove away from Revello Drive. "It’ll kick in in about twelve hours."

"But what did you do to her?"

"I made her allergic to people."

"You gave her hay fever?" Warren asked disappointed.

"No," Jonathan declared proudly, "I made her kinda itchy!"

Chapter Four: Kinda Itchy

At the morning Scooby meeting, the gang listened to Buffy describe the demon and the van. Then Willow began her debriefing on the device that made Buffy’s ability to speak go awry.

Buffy furtively tried to scratch a spot in the middle of her back. She leaned over and whispered to Spike, who was sitting next to her on the countertop, "Spike? Could you?" She indicated the itchy spot.

The vampire obliged, scratching his fingertips up and down her back, rubbing the fabric of her shirt against her skin. "Lower." When he reached the right place, she whispered a moan. "Oh….that’s the spot."

Willow told the Scoobies, "I think I reconstructed the device. It seems very advanced."

"How did it work?" Giles asked.

"Mmm." Buffy moaned and leaned back into Spike’s scratching. "That’s nice."

Willow ignored her and asked the Watcher, "Did you watch Star Trek?"

"I cannot say that I did."

"Well, they had this device. It takes a foreign language and makes you hear your language."

Xander chimed in, "The Universal Translator."

"Exactly!"

Giles rebuffed the witch, "Willow, you’re talking about science fiction. The technology to create something that advanced…"

"Mmmm Yessss!" Buffy hissed. Her back was arched and she writhed under Spike’s fingers.

"Would you two cut it out?" A very embarrassed and exasperated Giles asked.

Both Buffy and Spike stopped instantly. "Sorry…." Buffy said sheepishly, "I’m kinda itchy."

"Why didn’t it work on me?" Spike asked.

‘He was listening?’ Buffy thought. ‘I wasn’t listening. What are they talking about?’ Buffy glanced at the table and saw the device from the other day sitting in the middle of it. Oh…

Anya offered up a simple explanation, "Maybe vampire’s brains are different."

Willow stood up to leave. "I’m going to check the DMV and see what I can find out about the black van."

Spike hopped off the counter. "I’ll check the demon underground…poke around."

"Play poker," Buffy accused.

"Whatever it takes luv." And with a sly smile, he was gone.

Damn cemetery mosquitoes. Buffy thought as she scratched the back of her neck. Little bloodsuckers. Big bloodsuckers. What did I do to deserve this?

A soft voice asked, "Are you okay Buffy?"

"Yeah." The itch on her back roared back. "Tara could you?"

As soon as Buffy turned her back, Tara gasped. She lifted Buffy’s hair off her neck. "Buffy! My God!"

"What? What my God?"

"Um, Mr. Giles? Could you look at this?" Tara called across the room.

"Look at what? What’s going on?" Buffy’s voice raised with panic.

"Good lord," muttered Giles behind her back.

"Okay, I am freaking out here! So someone tell me what’s…"

Tara gently interrupted, "You have a rash…"

Buffy spun around and looked into the two concerned faces. She glanced at her arms and then lifted her shirt a bit to look at her tummy. Purple welts were everywhere. "Oh my God! Its all over me!"

***

Tara suggested a relaxing hot bath. Usually a scalding hot shower was more Buffy’s style. The water would beat down upon her, relaxing her sore muscles. But the fact was, her massaging shower head would probably provide more pain to her welts than comfort.

So a hot bath it was. No bubbles, no essential oils, no sexy naked vampire to share it with.

And my mind always turns to Spike.

Spike.

Buffy took the body puff and squeezed it over her knee. She closed her eyes and pretended it was Spike’s fingers that were cascading down her leg instead of the soapy water.

His voice was in her head. His lips rustled against her neck, and she leaned back and met the hard planes of his chest with her back instead of the cold porcelain.

His hands came up and kneaded her breasts. Buffy whimpered.

Then his fingers tickled down her belly and nestled between her curls. His ring finger teased its way between her nether lips and began a gentle figure eight, brushing her clit every time the circuits met.

"Mmmmm." Buffy’s moan escaped her lips. She closed her eyes tighter and concentrated on the sensation.

She felt the exquisite heat mounting inside her. The muscles of her thighs began to twitch. She raised her hips and then slammed them down, sending water splashing over the rim of the tub as she came.

"Buffy?"

The Slayer pulled her hand out from between her legs as if it were on fire.

"Yeah Will?"

From the other side of the bathroom door, her friend told her, "I’m home. Giles wanted me to take a look at your…whatever it is."

"I’ll be down in a sec."

Buffy’s voice echoed through the empty bathroom.

***

Buffy descended the stairs, fresh from her bath and feeling much better. Thank you incredibly vivid, yet slutty, imagination.

Giles and Willow popped their heads into the foyer, meeting Buffy at the bottom of the stairs. "How are you feeling?" Giles asked.

"Better."

"Tara said you had a rash."

Buffy pushed up the sleeve of her robe to show her best friend. "Yeah its…" Her tanned skin was blemish free. "Gone. I was gonna say icky."

Suddenly, a weal popped up.

"And now its back."

"Look at that!" Willow said with awe as purple welts emerged all over Buffy’s skin.

"Lets…lets step out of the room." Giles took Willow’s arm and pulled her away from the Slayer.

"Is it gone?" Giles called from the living room.

"No. But its not getting any worse either."

Giles and Willow came back to the staircase and more welts appeared. Buffy whimpered in helplessness. "What in the name of ewwwww is going on?"

"I may be jumping to conclusions here; but…I think you may be a…allergic to us."

Willow shot a don’t-scare-her look at Giles. "Lets not jump to conclusions. Jumping’s bad."

As more spots popped up, Buffy wailed, "I’m jumping here!"

The red head ventured, "Maybe its a spell…or…"

Giles calmly rationalized, "I think, for a while at least, you should avoid human contact."

"How the hell am I supposed to stay away from people? I live with people!"

***

Buffy slammed shut the door of the crypt behind her. She dropped two small suitcases on the floor on each side of her. "Slayer? What the hell?"

"I have the pox."

Spike eyed her closely. Sure enough, a rash of some kind covered her from head to toe. "Small or chicken?"

"People. I have the purple people pox."

"And you’re here because I’m not a person?"

"No," Buffy’s voice was small. "I’m here cuz you don’t have any mirrors."

He soothed the forlorn Slayer with, "Its not so bad luv."

"Sure. But you’d think I’d look good if I was painted fuschia and covered with garbage." She strode over to the chair that Spike had positioned in front of the TV and slumped down in it. "Whatcha watchin?"

"Passions."

Buffy got up and switched the channels. She settled on Oprah.

"Hey!" Spike protested.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I’m a guest. We watch what I want. And you really should think about getting this place wired for cable." She glanced down at her arm. The rash was already starting to fade away. "Cuz I’m probably gonna be staying awhile."

Chapter Five: Give My Regards to Bald Cat

Sitting on Spike’s bed was a strange looking creature. Its wide green eyes blinked at Buffy. It stretched its lithe hairless body and approached her.

"What the hell is that?" she asked.

"Its a cat." Spike dropped Buffy’s suitcases on the floor and elaborated, "Well…a kitten."

"An alien cat?"

"No." Mildly annoyed with her, he plucked the kitten off the bed and rubbed its hairless ears. "Its a purebred Sphinx cat. Highly prized. Worth 20 tabbies. They’re great. You don’t get a mouthful of hair."

"You’re gonna eat it?" she asked with undisguised disgust.

"Of course I’m gonna eat it…I’m evil." He plopped the kitten back down onto the bed. It stared up at him lovingly with wide eyes. He obliged it with a pat on the head. "Not gonna eat her right now."

"Awwww, poor little…." Buffy searched her mind for the right descriptor of the creature she had picked up and cradled in her arms. "…thing. Are you sure its a cat?" Spike indulged her with a small grin. Buffy looked around the lower level of his crypt. In plain view she saw a litter box, a bag of cat food and about two dozen toys. Sure he’s gonna eat it. Riiiight. Buffy snuggled the kitten tighter against her and the little animal started to purr contentedly. She leaned back against the pillows of Spike’s bed and asked innocently, "So, where are you gonna sleep?"

He smiled slyly at her. Little tease. He picked up a cat toy. And dangled the fuzzy toy mouse in front of the kitten. She leapt from Buffy’s arms and tore around the crypt. Batting and chasing it frantically.

Nonchalantly he asked the vixen in his bed, "Giles still torqued about our adventures in gambling?"

"Yeah. But you know what? I don’t care. Nope. It felt good to pay off my bills. And I’ve decided that I’m all about feeling good. I’m Pleasure Principle Buffy now." She stretched in a manner similar to the kitten.

"Yeah?" he asked, sensually cocking his eyebrow.

"Yunh huh." Soooo much easier when we were mortal enemies. Quick Buffy, change the subject. "Aren’t you gonna ask how much money there was?" She answered herself. "Over one hundred grand."

He looked like he’d been punched. "Pull the other one."

"Huh?"

"Are you shitting me, Slayer?"

"Nope, Anya counted it. Twice. I think she wanted to roll in it, but thankfully she restrained herself."

"What are you gonna do about the Watcher?" he asked. "Don’t want to disappoint."

"I told you. I don’t care. Giles can just…"

"Bite you?" He said it in his sexy voice. Stalking toward the bed, he lowered his timbre a bit. "Or is that my job?"

Spike crawled onto the bed and climbed up Buffy’s body. "What are you doing?" she breathed.

"Fixing your life," he growled.

Buffy didn’t respond exactly the way Spike had hoped.

She snorted. And then laughed. Loudly.

"Oh shut up Slayer!" he yelled as he jumped off of the bed and stalked toward the ladder that led toward the upper level of the crypt.

Buffy grabbed his arm to stop him and pulled him back. Between giggles she apologized, "I’m sorry. Its just that was so… and you were all…" Peals of laughter echoed throughout the room.

Spike growled and pinned her to the bed. Her eyes widened with a touch of fear and a lot of arousal. "Keep laughing," he rumbled, "I dare you."

Buffy’s arms were pinned above her head and her body was held by his weight.

She wanted to grab his head and pull him down to her mouth, but she was held a willing prisoner of the vampire.

Spike felt Buffy’s hips buck underneath him and smelled the unmistakable scent of her arousal.

He captured her mouth in a demanding kiss, plundering her tongue with his own. He eased downward and sucked and nibbled on her neck.

Touch him… Have to…Buffy gasped, "Let go."

She felt his response more than heard it, "No."

"Please…I want to…."

"To what?"

"To touch you," she begged, "Please."

With a roguish glint in his eyes he asked, "Please what?"

"Ugh!" Buffy broke free of him and pushed him off of her. Spike rolled onto the floor. In an instant Buffy was at the ladder, ranting. "You…suck…you’re mean and rude and not nearly as sexy as you think you are. And irresistible?" Spike grabbed her from behind and spun her in his arms. Facing him, she sounded completely unconvinced, "Not so much."

Spike removed one of his hands from her upper arms and touched her forehead just at the hairline. In one smooth caress, he kissed his fingers down her face and neck.

Buffy’s breath hitched in her throat. Oh…soft touches.

The vampire leaned in as if for a kiss, but instead he teased her with almost touches, kisses that never connected. Little puffs of air against her lips. And then, finally he took her bottom lip between his and tugged gently on it.

"You taste like sunshine," he rasped. "And cinnamon."

"I had oatmeal for breakfast." She looked horrified immediately at the very unsexy comment that escaped her mouth. And then, to Spike’s dismay, the giggles caught her again.

She laughed with such passion. With total abandon. A smile replaced Spike’s expression of annoyance. Then he chuckled. And then he too was captured by laughter.

They laughed for a good ten minutes, until their sides ached and rivulets of tears trickled down Buffy’s reddened cheeks.

Spike touched his lips to her forehead as another chuckle escaped him. Buffy looked up into his eyes. There was something there that he had never seen before. And then she was gone. Her hands that were braced against him left his chest and she was walking away…toward his bed.

Buffy turned back to Spike when she was halfway there. Her arm extended out. Her tiny hand asked for his.

A flood of emotions buried Spike. He took her hand and let her lead him to his bed.

He stopped her just as the front of her thighs touched the frame. Spike snaked one arm around her waist, cupping the soft swell of her belly in his hand. The other hand rested firmly on her hip.

The Slayer leaned back against him while he kissed her earlobe, her collarbone, the gentle curve of her neck. She felt his fingers tug at the hem of her shirt. Buffy raised her hands up over her head so he could lift it up and off.

His presence was missed for the split second that he removed his own tee, but then he was back, holding her again, running the palms of his hands up and down her bare arms. Buffy murmured something that sounded like his name.

He reached around her and undid the front clasp of her bra. It fell between them to the floor. He cupped her breasts in his hands, weighing them.

The she murmured again. This time he knew it was his name.

"On the bed, luv," he commanded.

She crawled up onto the mattress, the old springs creaking slightly under her weight.

"Not too far," he instructed, grabbing her ankle.

Buffy turned and sat down on the bed, her legs dangling over the edge. She grabbed the belt loops on Spike’s black jeans and hauled him closer, between her knees.

"Here good?" she asked breathlessly.

"Yeah…." Spike’s tongue darted out and wetted his bottom lip. Deliberately teasing her, he touched his fingertips to her lips instead of his mouth.

Buffy closed her eyes and sighed as he traced the line of her mouth.

"Kiss me," she begged.

So he grazed his lips over hers. Before Buffy could deepen the kiss, he pulled away.

A whimper escaped her. He was fluttering kisses up and down her torso, across her breasts, into her belly button.

His hand ran up from her naval and between her breasts. Gently, he pushed her down to the mattress. Deft fingers worked the fly of her jeans. And soon they were off, her legs blissfully bare.

Kneeling between her legs, he hooked his fingers into the waist of her panties and slid them down. He tucked them in the back pocket of his jeans.

Buffy moaned and writhed on the bed as the vampire licked the inside of one of her legs from the knee all the way up her thigh in one leisurely motion.

"Sssssspike," she hissed.

"Something you want, luv?"

"Touch me!"

Spike smiled evilly and took her foot in his hand. Caressing the instep with his thumb, he planted a chaste kiss on the top of her foot.

"Not there!"

Buffy grabbed his head with both of her hands and repositioned it between her legs. She hooked her knees around his neck, holding him captive. "There!"

"As you wish my love."

She laid herself back down and let her legs relax a bit, her knees bent over his shoulders. Spike licked her pussy from bottom to top and back down again. His tongue dove into her chamber, darting in and out.

Buffy’s heels pushed into Spike’s back, drawing him closer. "Spike, I need…."

"I know what you need, luv," he whispered into her sex. He flicked the tip of his tongue against her clit.

Buffy’s head swung from side to side, flipping her golden tresses against the mattress as his airy touches became deep, demanding ones. Powerful licks turned into a vigorous sucking on her swollen nub. Her hands dove into his hair, pushing him closer, harder, until she came in a dizzying burst of heat.

"That what you needed, pet?" he rasped.

Buffy incoherently whimpered.

"Good." He stood and repositioned himself in his jeans, his erection pressing painfully against the unyielding fabric. "My turn."

She watched him shed his boots. Somehow, the sight of him kicking his combat boots across the room struck Buffy as funny.

A smile spread across her face.

Spike pointed a finger at her and demanded, "Don’t you dare!"

"I won’t laugh. I swear." Crossing her heart, her fingers slid across her breast, eliciting a growl from Spike.

He removed his jeans while watching her suspiciously. She was gonna burst into laughter at any moment. He could tell by the way her lips pursed together and her eyes danced. When he freed himself, Buffy eyed his impressive length and then commented, teasingly, "You know, I don’t think that’s gonna fit, so I’ll just…" She tried to crawl away, but he caught her and tossed her back down. She bounced on the mattress and lost all control. Giggles turned into an out and out cackle. Buffy laughed with absolute freedom while Spike leaned over her. It was the most erotic thing he’d ever seen, but he feigned annoyance. "Are you quite finished?"

She tried to answer, but all that came out was, "Bffffft!"

"Dammit Slayer!" He tried to scold, but there was something about her laughter, it was inescapably contagious. There was no hiding the amusement in his eyes.

"Oooh, scary vampire!" she giggled.

"Cor, you are insane. You know that?" He tried to hide the smile that lightened his face, but it was impossible.

He wasn't mad at her. Quite the opposite. She was a vision. It had been so long since he'd seen her smile, and never once had it been directed at him.

There was no doubt now in Buffy's mind. He didn't just want her, he needed her. He loved her. "I must be," she admitted, caressing his face.

Spike turned his head and pressed his lips into her palm, closing his eyes.

With her other hand, she wrapped her fingers around his cock and guided it inside her.

His eyes shot open and he hissed into her hand. "God....Slay..."

"Don’t call me that. Say my name," she begged.

He looked deep into her emerald eyes and said in a way that sounded like a prayer. "Buffy."

His hips rocked forward, deepening their connection. Buffy's eyelids fluttered closed.

"No," he instructed her, "keep em open. Look at me."

So she watched him, keeping her eyes on his. She watched as his eyes turned from sky blue to a deep sapphire. Once they even blazed amber. She watched as he struggled to hold back so it all could last a little longer, she watched until the delicious friction was too much to bear and he came, pumping his seed into her.

"Buffy," he gasped.

The Slayer held the vampire close as the spasms that rocked them both subsided.

***

"So I'm egging him on right? And your mum...all big and brash says, 'You get out of here you evil nasty git or I'll rip your bloody head off myself'."

Buffy giggled into Spike's bare chest at his enthusiastic narrative. "She really liked you."

He played with her hair, twirling it in his fingers. "Well your mum had good taste."

After sex, Spike was unlike any man Buffy had ever been with or heard about. He wanted to cuddle...and talk. Complaining? Not I. "You certainly keep everyone on their toes. Today? It wasn't how I thought it would be."

"You been fantasizing about me?" he asked with a cocky raise of his eyebrow.

She gave him a little push with her hand. "You are such a pain in the ass."

Spike grabbed her hand and drew it to his mouth, sucking on her index finger. She rewarded him with a whimper. Against her fingertip, he whispered. "How'd you picture it, luv?"

"I don't know...all slam me up against a wall..."

"I could do that," he volunteered.

"Maybe later." Buffy yawned.

Spike pulled her tighter into his embrace. His Slayer was getting sleepy. "You surprised the hell out of me too," he admitted.

"How?" she asked, her voice small with exhaustion.

"By not taking off."

"Not gonna," she promised. "I like it here. Its...comfy."

That was the last thing out of her mouth before she drifted off to sleep, listening to the kitten on her pillow and the vampire in her arms purr contentedly.

Chapter six - Die A Little Another Day

Spike hummed to himself as he walked down the sewer leading back to his crypt. He swung a bag of croissants, Buffy’s breakfast, beside him as he broke into the chorus, " And I believe in miracles And I believe in a better world, for me and you oooh, and I believe in miracles And I believe in a better world for me and you."

A blood-curdling scream from the direction of his crypt caused him to stop in his tracks, and then hightail it towards, "Buffy!"

"Buffy, luv? Are you all…right?" She stood on top of his bed, naked, except for a pillow clutched to her breast. She was stomping her feet, and pointing to the ladder, and shrieking like a ninny.

Over in the corner, Spike saw his kitten wrestling with the remains of what appeared to be, "A sewer rat?" He picked it up and shook the corpse of the dead rat. "You fight demons and vamps every day and you nearly gave me a heart attack over a little sewer rat?"

"Get rid of it!" Buffy screamed.

"Its dead Slayer! See?" Spike couldn’t resist dangling it in her face.

She screamed again, and smacked him with the pillow.

Spike tossed the rat deep into the sewer tunnel. "All gone now. Are you all right, baby?"

Buffy opened her mouth to answer, until Spike passed her by completely and scooped up the kitten in his arms. "You killed that nasty thing, dinnit ya? My brave little Pitty-pat."

"Pitty-pat?" Buffy repeated with amusement.

With a scowl, he asked, "What would you like me to call her?" Then with a leer, he offered, "Pussy?"

Buffy scowled back and crawled down off the bed. "Pitty pat is fine. C’mere sweetie." She snatched the kitten out of Spike’s arms. "Poor precious baby."

"Baby? Pffft." Spike grabbed Pitty-Pat back from the Slayer and rubbed the purring bundle’s ears, "My ferocious girl. Aren’t you, my little hell cat?"

Spike noticed Buffy regarding him thoughtfully, "What?"

"Nothing." She glanced at the bag he had dropped on the bed. "That my breakfast?"

"Yeah."

Buffy wrapped her arms around Spike’s neck. "Can it wait?" She purred in a perfect imitation of the feline that was now pressed between them.

"Slayer? Are you trying to take advantage of me?"

Indicating the kitten with a glance, Buffy asked, "You’re not really gonna eat her, are you?"

Spike deposited Pitty -pat onto the bed with one arm, keeping the other wrapped around Buffy’s bare waist. "I’ve got a taste for something else."

"And what would that be?" Buffy felt a tickle in her stomach. I can’t believe this man…I’ve never been so turned on in my life…except the time when we were beating the hell out of each other at the school…or the time…focus Buffy…sexy man…saying something…

"…then we ought to do that slam you up against the wall thing that you’ve been itching to try."

Buffy chuckled, "You had me up until the itching part." She kissed him deeply, darting her tongue into his mouth.

"Buffy? Spike?" Willow’s voice echoed in the emptiness of the upper level of the crypt.

"I am really starting to hate her," Buffy mumbled.

"You better get dressed," Spike instructed, making his way up the ladder.

"Tell her I’m asleep." Buffy grabbed the bag of croissants, crawled under the covers, and proceeded to feed little bits of the bread to the kitten.

***

Out in the van, a war was raging.

"The conspiracy episodes were the backbone of the show! There would be no X-files without the conspiracy!"

Warren stared back at Jonathan, his gaze hard, his opinion unwavering, "The conspiracy was crap. Toward the end, even Chris Carter couldn’t keep track of what was going on. The stand alone episodes were what made the show great. Can you say, ‘Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose’?"

Jonathan crossed his arms, "Can you say ‘The Field Where I Died’?"

Warren scoffed, "An anomaly."

"It was the single worst episode in the history of the show!"

Andrew joined the conversation with, "I liked Millennium. It was a good show."

Warren ignored him completely, and ranted, "And the religious symbolism? What a load of crap! Mulder trussed up like Jesus? And the Lone Gunmen as the three wise men? That was just the last straw."

Andrew interrupted again, "Isn’t that Willow?"

The trio turned their attention to the monitor. Sure enough, standing alone in Spike’s crypt was the Slayer’s best friend.

"Finally some action."

Andrew complained to the group’s apparent leader, "Well, if you had put a camera on the lower level…"

"I didn’t know there was another level, nitwit."

Jonathan shushed them both, "Would you shut up? I’m trying to hear."

***

The redhead glanced nervously around Spike’s crypt as he emerged from the ladder. "Hey pet."

Willow spun and looked at him, her eyes wide. "Where’s Buffy?"

"Sleeping," Spike lied. He watched the witch’s face fall a bit. Damn but I do have a soft spot for the little wicca. Hate lying to her.

"Oh…"

"Something I can do? Nasties that need to be taught a lesson?"

"No. Just thought…Could you tell her I stopped by? You know to check on her itchies?"

"All cleared up," Spike told her.

"Good. Well, I guess I should….don’t want to cause a recurrence." Willow slunk out of the crypt, looking a bit dejected but otherwise no worse for the wear. Spike suppressed a growl of frustration.

***

"Is she gone?" Buffy asked.

She was making the bed, and much to Spike’s annoyance, she was fully dressed. Still irked about the way Buffy had avoided Willow, he prodded, "So…how long are you gonna keep punishing her?"

"I’m not punishing anyone," she asserted, fluffing the pillow a little to vigorously.

"Could’ve fooled me. Not that I’m complaining, seeing as how you’re here with me and not with them." He flopped down on the newly made bed and stretched. He hooked his hands behind his head and looked into her irritated face. "Bloody brilliant if you ask me. Torturing the Scoobies the way you are."

"I’m not…" She steeled herself and pronounced, "There’s no torturing."

"Luv, I know a little something about torture…" He was getting to her, he could see the guilt rising inside her. "Distancing yourself….making them worry…"

She reached for an excuse, "The pox! I can’t be with them because of the pox."

"Bollocks. The pox is an excuse. A good one, granted, but still a big, fat, pimply excuse."

"You know what?" Buffy declared, dropping the pillow she had been fluffing onto Spike’s head. Now I can’t see your cocky, oh so sure of yourself, stupid ass face. "I don’t need this!"

Snatching the pillow off, he tried to stop her with, "Luv…"

"No! I’m gonna go." To illustrate this point, she picked up her suitcases, and the clothes that were strewn about the crypt. "Who cares if the whole itchy scratchy extravaganza comes gushing back? As long as the oh so morally superior vampire isn't disappointed with my behavior… I’m just a bad bad seed."

She stormed away. The kitten followed her exit with wide, worried eyes. She glanced up at the vampire and let out a pitiful meow. Spike picked up the hairless creature and soothed, "Don’t worry Pitty. Mama will be back. She’ll be back."

***

Buffy stormed through the cemetery, ranting, "I’m Spike. I think I’m so smart cuz I ate a couple of psychiatrists once." In an imitation, "Buffy, you have issues. I think that what you need is to hurt your bloody friends and have lots and lots of bloody sex with me, you bloody bint."

"Buffy?"

The Slayer had stormed right by Willow, not even noticing her. Did she just hear…? Okay be all nonchalance-y. "Hey Will."

"How are you feeling? Still all pox-y? Spike says it cleared up."

"Yeah." Buffy studied her arms. The girls watched for a few minutes, checking for any sign of recurrence. "Doesn’t seem to be coming back." Buffy said, with just a little relief in her voice.

"Now you can come home! Right?"

"Yeah," Buffy faked enthusiasm and failed miserable. "No more crypt living for Buffy."

"Was it really awful?" Will asked. "Staying with Spike?"

Well, lets see. I had six, count ‘em six orgasms. And vampire stamina? Holy moley. Do they ever have stamina. "Not so much, I guess. Just…" And does he ever know how to get into my head and twist my brain into itty bitty knots. "…he thinks he knows everything. And, and, he’s like, ‘Oh Buffy, you’re a creature of the night’ and ‘Oh Buffy I know something about torture’ and ‘Oh Buffy Oprah’s a stupid bint, I wanna watch Passions’."

Willow stopped her friend’s rant with, "Buffy? I don’t know what you’re talking about."

For a moment, Buffy had forgotten Willow was there. "Oh. Its nothing. Lets just find Giles, figure out why I’m not itchy anymore."

***

"That’s right boys," Jonathan bragged, "Twenty-two hours. Beat that."

"Wait a minute," Warren protested, "You don’t know that was in fact twenty-two hours. When did your little allergy spell end? What, did it just wear off? Or did the Slayer figure it out?"

"Or did the conditions have to be just so… ? Like in that movie where Dennis Quaid plays the dad and he can talk to his son in the future but only while the Aurora Borealis is in the sky. But they change the past, so the kid’s mom dies so they have to fix it and hunt down her killer before he kills her…" Andrew blushed when he saw the two sets of eyes fixed on him, flashing in annoyance, "Was it like that?"

"The spell was supposed to last until her death. But since that was against the ground rules, I modified it."

Warren asked Jonathan, "Modified it how?"

"So she only had to die a little."

"Die a little?" Warren asked incredulously, "A little death? You idiot! She had an orgasm! That’s what broke your spell!"

"Wowwww," Andrew gasped.

Jonathan turned and faced the monitors that covered one side of the van. "He asserted, "We have to get a camera down there!"

Chapter Seven- Power Play

"Red?" Spike asked, his flask dangling from his fingers. "What brings you here?"

He sat on the cold stone of his sarcophagus and watched as Willow approached him. She hopped up next to him and sat cross-legged on the slab. "Buffy here?"

Truthfully, he answered, "Haven’t seen her." Haven’t seen her since we shagged like bunnies and then got in a fight over you, Wicca.

"Oh… she split after the Scooby meeting. Haven’t seen her all day. Guess she’s patrolling, now, huh?"

Spike took the girl in, "Want a drink, ducks?"

Willow sighed and smiled, "Yes. Very much yes."

Spike was about to retrieve a shot glass, but she grabbed the flask from his hand and took a deep swig. He watched in amusement as her eyes widened a bit and a shudder went through her body. She took another drink and then passed it back to Spike.

Before he took another sip he observed, "You look like a girl with a lot on her mind." He took a drink and then offered, "Another?"

"Don’t mind if I do." Again, she reacted to the drink with a silent shudder. "Good stuff."

Spike smiled at her, "Girl appreciates the finer things."

They sat in companionable silence for a few minutes. Once or twice, Willow tossed her rich red hair over her shoulder. Damn chip. If I had a dime for every time I’ve thought of biting her…should’ve that night I kidnapped her and the whelp. Cor, what a pair we’d have made…but no…had to fall in love with the Slayer.

"I miss her," Willow said softly.

Wha? Oh Buffy. "Well what with the dead and the crazy talk and the pox…"

"No," Willow asserted. "It’s been for a while. Since she came back. She’s just not…"

Willow noticed that the vampire’s eyes were cast toward the floor. "Spike? Do you know something that you aren’t telling me?" He took in her face, concern written there so obvious that any idiot could see it. "I know she’s having some trouble. Dealing. But if I’m gonna help her…"

Little flashes of anger sparked in Spike’s otherwise cool blue eyes. You’ve done quite enough, Red. "Give her time. She’ll be back to the old self-righteous, holier-than-thou, pain in the ass Buffy that we love in no time."

"I guess so." She stood to leave. "I should go."

"Hey Sweet Bit?" he asked before she made it out of the crypt. "Can I have my flask back?"

***

Buffy felt him before she heard him. That little twinge in her brain that screamed vampire, and then another, less subtle twinge between her legs…that vampire.

His voice rumbled in the darkness of the empty cemetery, "Hello luv."

She didn’t turn; she just kept walking, fully aware that he was following her. Without a glance back, she acknowledged, "Spike."

"Still mad at me then?"

"Yes." She took a few more steps. Buffy turned around. Her features fell. "No. As much as I hate to admit it, and believe me I hate to admit it, you were right. I have been distancing myself from them."

Her vampire lover ambled over to her side, taking her hand in his. They walked side by side. Buffy continued, "The pox is gone. Willow and the others are trying to figure out who’s messing with me. Everyone’s trying to fix my life."

"Doesn’t look too bad from here. Your life, I mean."

"Sure, I resent my friends for pulling me out of Heaven, I can barely talk to them, I can barely stand to be with them, and I’m sleeping with…"

"…A neutered vampire who cheats at kitten poker?" he finished with a grin.

"I was gonna say my ex-arch enemy, but yeah." Buffy turned to face him. She pointed to his duster pocket. "You got any whiskey in there?"

"Getting tanked isn’t gonna solve your problems, bit."

"I know but…fun!" Over her shoulder, Spike saw a demon approaching.

"How ‘bout a different kind of fun, Slayer?"

Buffy turned around. The demon was slithering toward her. She used her helpless girly girl voice. "Hello big scary monster guy. Please don’t eat me and my boyfriend." She looked at the demon more closely. "Oops, no mouth. My bad. Hope you don’t have a complex about that."

She kicked the monster in the gut. It doubled over. Spike cracked it over the head. Angered, it turned to attack Spike, swinging its knife at the vampire, nearly slicing him several times. Buffy took the opportunity to leap onto the demon’s back. While it struggled with its wiggling cargo, Spike wrestled the demon’s knife from its gray, scaly hand. With a thunderous crack, Spike’s other hand connected with the demon’s jaw, it staggered, falling onto Buffy. Spike plunged the knife into its gut.

"Dead now?" she asked.

Spike nodded and kicked the body off of her. He extended his hand and helped her up from the ground.

"You know, I think I’ve killed one of those before."

Spike shrugged, "Seen one demon, you’ve seen ‘em all."

"Especially those nasty vampires," Buffy teased. "All bumpy and growly and scary."

Nothing like a fight to turn the girl on. God I can smell her. "They’re a menace," he growled. "So tell me Slayer, what would you do with one if you caught one?"

"Maybe…let him take me to his crypt. Let him have his way with me."

"Now is this any vampire, or one in particular?"

***

They fell onto the bed in frenzy, shedding clothes as they kissed and grabbed and teased each other.

Spike was completely naked when Buffy pushed him down onto the mattress. He had removed her boots, skirt and panties, but her top was still covering her upper body.

She crawled on top of him, straddling him with her knees on each side of his hips and his cock pressed against the outer lips of her pussy. "Like the view, Spike?"

He nodded breathlessly and gasped, "Your top. Take it off."

"No," she said. "I’ve got some ground rules, vampire."

He grinned slightly as his lover took control.

"No touching unless I tell you to. No talking unless I ask you a question. Got that vampire?"

"Yes."

"Yes, Slayer," she instructed, bucking her hips forward to tease his swollen sex.

"Yes Slayer."

"Good boy." Spike watched in rapture as Buffy slid her hand down between her legs and began working her already swollen bud. "You like to watch, vampire?"

"Yes, Slayer."

Her fingers spiraled around her clit. Buffy’s breath started to come in little gasps. Her hips rocked against her hand.

Spike watched as she gave up teasing herself with her fingers and used the movement of her hips to push herself against her hand. She cried out and pitched backward, giving Spike a fantastic view of her spasming pussy.

"God Slayer," he gasped, his own erection so hard it was beginning to cause him pain.

"I said," she hissed, her body still convulsing in orgasm. "No talking."

She rose back up and ran her hands up his chest. They stopped at his throat. She exerted no pressure, but Spike still felt as if he was choking.

"Now you don’t get to watch." Buffy repositioned herself so she was straddling him backwards. He could only see the back of her head, her covered back and her perfect little ass. She eased her clenching cunt down onto his cock.

Buffy squeezed her knees into the mattress, lifting herself a few inches off of him and then relaxed, her weight slamming back down onto him. She repeated this motion endlessly. Until Spike broke control of his demon.

He roared and grabbed her waist, pitching her forward onto her hands and knees. Spike let his demon take over. He slammed into her. His balls slapped against her ass in a frenzied rhythm.

"Sssspike," she cried out. "Bite me."

"No," he growled. His game face was out in full force and he was short on restraint.

"Bite me!" she demanded.

Again, he screamed, "No!" and came in a violent rush.

**

Spike was facing away from her. Buffy traced her fingers along the muscles of his bare back down to the sheet the covered his lower half. He hadn’t spoken to her…not a word.

"Spike?" she asked quietly.

He grunted a response. Oh yeah, he’s pissed at me. And do I care? No I don’t. Nope. Not caring Buffy. Also known as kidding herself Buffy. "I’m sorry… that I asked you to bite me."

His voice was strained with anger, and he didn’t move when he responded acidly, "You didn’t ask. You demanded."

"Baby…" Buffy placed a butterfly kiss on his shoulder.

"I get enough from your Scoobies about me hurting you. I’m not about to go and prove it."

She whispered into his flesh, "I’m sorry."

"I know you don’t love me," he told her in a pitiful tone.

"I think…" she started. Hopefully, Spike turned over, holding her in his ice blue gaze. "…I can. Give me time, ok? I’ll figure it all out." She grazed his face with her fingertips, tracing his sculpted cheekbones lovingly. "Do I have to figure it out alone?"

As his lips descended to meet hers, he promised, "You’ll never be alone."

***

"That’s it?" Warren demanded. "That was your big demon encounter?"

Jonathan agreed, "Took all of five seconds for Spike to kill it."

"Oh just you wait…" Andrew smugly replied. "She got its blood on her."

Warren waited for the punch line, when it didn’t come, he flung out his arms and yelled, "So?"

"So… the Slayer will be given an aspect of the demon."

Jonathan asked, "What, like a tail?"

Chapter Eight- Deja Vu is French, Right?

Buffy awoke knowing a few things, one; she wasn’t in her own bed, two; she wasn’t alone and three; "Mmmm. Spike."

He was kissing her forehead, waking her gently. Spike’s kitten had other ideas. Buffy moved her foot under the sheets and Pitty-pat pounced, digging its claws and teeth into her flesh. "Yeow!"

"Pitty!" Spike scolded, scooping up the rambunctious feline and depositing her on the floor. "Hurt the girl again and I will eat you!" Spike hovered over his lover, "Morning pet. Sleep well?"

"Morning?" Buffy bolted upright. "I left Dawn all night!"

"Relax love," he said, easing her back down into the soft pillow. "Sister witches are with her. She’s fine. Little Spike, on the other hand, needs some tending to."

Buffy felt Spike’s erection poking her thigh. "How can you possibly…? After last night?" After their fight Buffy and Spike made love more times than Buffy could count, her sore muscles attested to the fact.

"Vampire stamina, love. Ain’t it grand?"

Buffy smiled and absently scratched her tummy. Itchy.

"What makes you think I can keep up?" she asked, looking up into his smug yet sexy face.

"I’m sure you can handle it."

"Handle what?" She grabbed his cock with her hand and stroked the tip with her thumb. "This?"

"Yeah…" he hissed, "That."

Buffy giggled and dived under the covers. Spike gasped when she took him into her hot little mouth and began sucking. She drew him in to the back of his throat and then let him slide almost out, keeping the head in her mouth, than she drew him in again. Under the sheet, he could see her head moving in his crotch. "Buffy," he gasped. She let him slide all the way out and then peeked out from under the covers, a wide grin on her face.

"Can I have a ride, Spikey?" she asked, scratching her belly again.

"Hell yes!" he growled, grabbing her and positioning her above his throbbing hard on. She guided him in with her hot little hand, clenching his cock with the walls of her pussy.

Looking up at her, he noticed that her stomach was pink with irritation. "Slayer? You ok?"

Buffy, lost in the sensation of Spike’s manhood deep inside her, absently replied, "Good."

He closed his eyes for a moment, blocking out his concern and concentrating on his arousal. When he opened them again, Buffy was climaxing, and desperately scratching her torso.

"Love?" he asked as she came back down. "You sure you’re ok? You sure the pox isn’t coming back?"

Now she noticed the redness herself. "No, that’s just where the demon blood…got on …Giles!"

"Uh Buffy, yelling out your Watcher’s name while I’m rock hard inside of you…"

"I have to talk to him. Get dressed." Buffy dismounted and Spike’s erection slid out of her.

"But…"

"Spike, this is serious. Get dressed." She was following her own orders. She had her panties on and was fastening the clasp on her bra.

"But…I haveta…Little Spike." With both hands, he pointed to his very erect cock.

"Oh for crying out loud." Buffy drew her shirt over her head. "R2 your own D2."

"Bugger it all, the magic is gone."

***

Buffy heard the gang’s thoughts before she and Spike had even entered the Magic Box through the sewers. As soon as they stepped into the store, she was bombarded. Anya’s voice was at the forefront. Her quick look at Spike was innocent but she thought, "Hot damn, looky who’s here. Bite me baby. Grrr. Ruff."

"Anya!"

"What?" The truly dumbfounded ex-demon asked, "I didn’t say anything!"

Willow, "Buffy looks upset. What’s wrong with Buffy?"

Xander, "Who ate the last jelly donut? Damn it, that donut was mine!"

Always intuitive, Giles asked, "Buffy is there something…?"

"Yes," she finished, "something is the matter!"

"This demon I fought last night…"

Dawn, "Buffy didn’t come home last night. I bet she and Spike are doing it."

Buffy tried not to react to her sister’s thought. She tried to finish, "I’ve fought it before. And…"

Buffy lashed out, "Xander would you shut up about the damned donut? Giles ate it ok?"

"Wha…?" Xander stammered, "How did you…?"

Giles knew, "This demon that you fought before…?"

"Aspect of the demon," Buffy said. "Big yay."

"And you let it get blood on you?"

"I forgot."

"How could she possibly forget such a thing?" Aloud, "How could…?"

"Seven years worth of demons, Giles. After a while they all start to run together."

Tara meekly asked from her place at Willow’s side. "I’m lost. What’s going on?"

Realizing it herself, Willow answered, "Buffy can read our minds."

Simultaneously, Tara and Spike fired, "What?"

"Yours," Buffy pointed to Tara and then to Spike, "but not yours."

Spike shook his head but agreed with Buffy, "Telepaths can’t read vampires. Dunno why."

Buffy explained, "Its like the mirror. The thoughts are there but they create no reflection in me."

Spike scoffed, "Sounds like something Peaches would say." Buffy’s eyes drifted to the floor, confirming his belief, "Should’ve known. You should take the stuff he told you with a grain of salt love, cuz some of its just crap."

Xander’s thoughts sang out, "Spike is wise, all hail Spike."

Buffy pointed her finger at her friend and shot, "I am never letting you forget that you thought that."

Tara, "I have nothing to worry about. I have no secrets. I am good and kind and having a wet fantasy about Willow right…"

"Stop!" Buffy yelled at Tara.

"Sorry! I can’t help…has this happened before?"

Willow told her, "In high school. It was bad. But…but….its gonna be okay!"

"So says your mouth, Will," Buffy said. "Your thoughts are singing the, ‘They’re coming to take her away to the funny farm’ song."

Giles interjected, "We do have some advantage. We know what to do and not to do this time. Spike take Buffy to your crypt. Your presence is the only one that will not harm her. Stay there until we locate the demon that we need. When we find it, we’ll send for you. You can remove its heart and we’ll have our cure."

"Right. Crypt’s becoming a regular Holiday Inn." Spike took Buffy by the elbow and led her out, "C’mon, love."

As they were leaving Buffy heard Anya think, "If I were going to Spike’s crypt, I’d rip his sexy black T-shirt right off his hard body and ride him like a…"

Tara asked, when Buffy and Spike were out of sight. "Is Buffy really going to go crazy?"

"Eventually," Giles said as he cleaned his glasses, "She will be unable to filter out everyone’s thoughts and…she will go mad."

***

Jonathan listened to the dialogue in the Magic Box in disbelief. "She’s gonna go crazy?" He turned to his compatriots, "We have to help her."

Warren stood and bellowed, "What are you, nuts? This is our chance to get rid of the Slayer once and for all! To really rule this town."

Jonathan asserted, "Buffy’s a good person, she doesn’t deserve…"

Warren interrupted, "We’re the bad guys remember? We’re supposed to destroy her."

"Incapacitating the Slayer could have dire unforeseen consequences," Andrew told them. "It could upset the balance of power in the universe. Plus, its really mean. I’m with Jonathan."

Andrew grabbed his summoning stick, "I’ll summon another demon for Spike to kill."

Warren grabbed Andrew’s stick and broke it over his knee.

"Hey!" Andrew protested.

"Summon him now," Warren taunted. "The Slayer is going down."

Nine - Abandon

Buffy picked up Spike’s hairless kitten and massaged her ear. The little feline’s purr echoed through the crypt. Spike heard Buffy’s voice hitch as she cooed, "Good kitty."

Then, Spike’s Slayer started to cry. Her breath came in little gasps as she held back her oncoming tears. The vampire took the kitten from her arms and replaced it with his own body.

"God," Buffy choked, pressing her cheek into the soft, worn, cotton of Spike’s T-shirt. "Is this some kind of cosmic joke? I get ripped out of Heaven so I can experience hell on earth?"

Spike murmured into her hair, "Scoobies are resourceful. We’ll be all right, Buffy."

"Spike…" Buffy looked up into his eyes, "I…I’m going to be lost…soon. Before that happens, would you…?"

Buffy stepped back and worked the buttons of her blouse. It slid to the floor, followed by the rest of her clothes. She stood naked in front of her lover and demanded, "Make love to me Spike."

He reached for her and together they stripped Spike of his clothing. He picked her up in his arms and carried her to the bed. Spike cradled her in his lap. One arm supported her back and the other slid between her creamy thighs to taste her syrupy juices. Buffy’s breath came in humid pants against his neck.

He massaged her sex and watched her come to life under his touch. While he stroked her he murmured a running monologue.

"I love you, Buffy. I love the way you feel, the way you breathe, the way you laugh and smile. I love the way you fight, the way you move, the way you come." Buffy whimpered against his collarbone. "Come for me, pet. Come for me, my sweet Slayer." Buffy’s hips were rising to meet his touch. "Come for me, Buffy. That’s it love. Let it have you."

Under his fingers he felt the river of succulence come pouring out of her sweet pussy. He felt the tremors that she gave in to with abandon.

"That’s my good girl."

After the waves had stopped rushing over her, Buffy did a quarter turn in Spike’s arms. She looked him deep in the eyes as she let his cock penetrate her. With a moan of pleasure, she took him completely.

"You are a goddess, pet."

They made love face to face. They dived into the depths of each other’s eyes, until the torment made Buffy’s flutter shut. She rested her forehead against his. Buffy’s breath filled Spike’s lungs.

Together they rocked in a slow, primal rhythm.

She arched her back, offering her breasts, which her lover readily suckled. Buffy whispered in aching need, "Spike, its not enough…please…please."

Spike’s face changed into his demon visage. He bit into the yielding flesh with a roar.

Buffy came with a frenzied cry. Tears poured down her flushed cheeks.

Her spasming walls strangled Spike’s cock, propelling his seed deep into her.

Spike came crashing down to earth. "Buffy? Are you all right, love?"

A trickle of blood ran down Buffy’s breast from each of the punctures inflicted by Spike’s fangs.

In his eyes, she saw concern mixed with an undercurrent of shame. She grinned shyly at her lover and took his troubled face in her hands. Gently, she guided his lips back to the crimson liquid.

As he licked the wounds closed, Buffy said, "When you bit me, they all went away, all the voices in my head. You were the only one there."

Looking back up at her, "Don’t think biting you’d be a practical cure."

Buffy stretched and smiled, "But what a way to go."

Spike stretched out next to her.

She curled up against him, wincing a bit as she moved.

"Buffy?" The dash of worry softened his voice.

"I’m okay," she promised. "Be worse if I were somewhere else, with someone else." She snuggled tighter against him. "The caretaker of the cemetery was overcharged at the grocery store," she mumbled before she drifted off to sleep.

***

"Buffy?" Dawn’s voice rang out against the concrete walls of Spike’s crypt.

"Nibblet," Spike acknowledged as he ascended the ladder.

"I heard that," Buffy warned as she too climbed up the ladder. "He’s too old for you."

"And he’s not too old for you?"

"Hey!" Spike protested, "He’s right here, and feeling a bit like a piece of meat." Spike smiled widely, "Go on. Continue. Not every bloke gets the two most beautiful women in the world to fight over him. I like it."

Buffy tossed Spike an exasperated glance, but Dawn smiled widely. "You think I’m beautiful?" I bet he’s amazing in…

"Dawnie!" Buffy yelled. "I can’t believe you thought that!"

"What? I’m sixteen; I’m supposed to think about sex all the time. You are…having sex…aren’t you?"

Buffy rubbed her eyes, trying to block out the mental image of her little sister having sex thoughts, but they were right there in her brain. "I miss the good old days when we used to discuss My Little Ponies and the Muppet Show."

"Its cool," the brunette promised, "I’m totally okay with it." Not fair, I liked him first.

Buffy glanced up at her baby sister knowingly.

"Okay, so I might be a little jealous. But I won’t tell. Not unless you want me to."

"Thanks Dawn."

Dawn handed her sister a duffel bag. "I guess you won’t be needing your pj’s, but they’re in there and so is…well everything. Anything a girl might need for a slumber party with her vampire lover."

"Dawn that is soo…"

"Yer welcome," Dawn smiled.

"I was gonna say disturbing."

To Spike, Dawn asked, "How is she doing?"

"Starting to get bad, I think," he admitted. "She’s tough though."

"Yeah, I feel real tough."

Dawn grabbed her sister in a bear hug. In her ear she whispered, "Its gonna be okay Buffy. It has to. Because losing you again? That would be bad."

Buffy felt cold when her sister released her from her warm grip. She rubbed her arms, to restore the warmth.

Before she walked out the door Dawn commanded Spike, "Take good care of her."

"I will Nibblet."

"Dawn?" Buffy’s sister turned, her hand was still on the door. "I love you. You know…just in case I move into a padded cell instead of back into my room."

"I love you too, Buffy."

Then she was gone. Buffy’s face fell. Next time I see her I won’t even know her.

Spike moved in to take her in his arms. He murmured into her hair, "I love you too, Buffy."

"I know."

With a sigh, he released her and took her hand. With the other, he grabbed her duffel. He led her to the ladder. "Lets get your jammies on, love, and put you to bed." He grinned at her. "Do they have footies?"

***

"Xander would you please sit down!" Giles took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. "Pacing isn’t going to make the sun set any faster and you’re giving me a headache."

"I can’t stand just sitting around here!" Three sets of female eyes looked at him sympathetically. Anya, Willow and Tara were pretending to research. Two musty books lay open in front of the witches. Anya was perusing the Internet.

Xander grabbed an ax from behind the counter of the magic shop. "I don’t care if they are nocturnal, I’m going to go look for that other demon."

While Xander spoke, the bell in the doorway rang out. A small voice announced, "There is no other demon. "We only summoned one."

Xander turned and pointed an accusatory finger. "You?" he asked incredulously. "You’re the one messing with Buffy?"

"Us," Jonathan admitted, "and one other guy."

Andrew piped up, "But I swear, we never meant to hurt her."

Willow studied Andrew. "Who are you?"

"Andrew." Recognition failed to register on the Scooby gang’s faces. "I summoned the flying monkeys that attacked during the school play." Still, no response. "Tucker’s brother?"

"Oh! I remember Tucker!" Willow exclaimed. "Prom guy."

Giles asked the boys, "Can you summon another demon? We need its heart."

Andrew shook his head, "Warren broke my summoning stick."

"Warren?" Xander asked, "Buffy bot guy?"

Anya’s cry of victory interrupted the inquisition of the geeks. "Found it!"

Everyone turned to look at her. She pointed to the computer monitor. "On Ebay. There’s even a buy it now option. It’s listed by Queen C at the Hyperion Hotel in Los Angeles."

"Cordelia!" Willow declared with joy.

"That’s great," Anya agreed. "Do you think she’d give it to us for free?

Chapter Ten- Interventions Suck and Other Observations

As soon as Xander began his decent, he could hear the strange noise coming from the lower level of Spike’s crypt. It was a low, rumbling sound.

Buffy was wrapped up tight in Spike’s arms. She was unconscious and clearly suffering from the effects of the forced telepathy.

The strange sound seemed to be coming from Spike.

"Is that…? Are you purring?"

Spike shrugged at Xander and acknowledged, "Seems to calm her."

Xander turned his attention to the unblinking creature that was curled up on Buffy’s stomach. Its purr echoed Spike’s. "Is that an alien?"

"It’s a cat," Spike sighed, "What are you doing here?"

"Just came to let you know; Angel’s on his way with the cure."

Spike gave no visible reaction to the news. He concentrated on smoothing Buffy’s hair.

Xander pressed, "Angel? The guy you hate with an undying passion? Aren’t you gonna have a cowlet?

"Not if he can help her."

Xander took in Spike’s tone and his obvious concern for the unconscious Slayer. "You really love her."

Spike looked Buffy’s friend straight in the eye, "I really do. As soon as the cure gets here…"

"I’ll let you know." Xander turned to leave but felt compelled to add, "She’ll be ok, buddy." He paused for a moment and asked, "Did I just call you buddy?"

"I’ll forget it happened."

"Thank you ever so much."

***

"How’s Buffy?" Willow asked before the door to the Magic Box had closed behind Xander. "Is Spike behaving himself?"

"Yeah. He’s taking good care of her." Xander paused and said to Willow, "Except, he was doing something creepy."

"Creepy how? Kinky creepy?" Anya asked.

"No nothing like…" Xander shared the secret with Willow although in the quiet of the Magic Box, all of the gang could hear, "He was purring."

"Purring? Like a kitty? How cute!" Willow exclaimed.

The bell on the door rang out and a familiar voice asked, "Who was purring?"

"Cordy!" Willow gave her former nemesis a bear hug. Dawn also grabbed Cordy and hugged her tight.

Giles approached his former student and told her, "Cordelia, you look lovely."

"Well duh."

A tap on Xander's shoulder sent him spinning around. Standing there with a grin on his face was Angel. "Geez! We even have a bell and still you scare the hell out of me!"

Angel chose to ignore Xander’s rant, "Did you say something about purring?"

"Spike was doing it," Willow explained.

"That’s something vampires only do with their…oh."

"Oh what?" Tara asked.

Reluctantly, Angel explained, "Their mates."

Xander stammered, "Their huh?"

Loudly, Anya repeated, "Their mates!"

"Buffy and Spike and mates?" Tara spluttered.

Anya theorized, "Well that makes sense. I mean Spike is very attractive and Buffy clearly has a thing for the undead. Like a fetish!"

Xander and Giles stood there, shell-shocked, "Giles? Xander?" Willow waved her hand in front of Xander’s face.

"Selective deafness, Will. I heard none of that."

Giles muttered, "I should try it."

"You should."

"Wow," Cordy said. "Buffy and Spike bumping uglies. Who knew?"

Although Cordelia meant the question rhetorically, Giles turned his attention to the youngest person present, "Dawn? You’ve been awfully quiet. Did you…"

"I knew. But I’m totally happy about it. I mean Buffy loves him…well, she’s not sure she loves him…but I’m sure she loves him. So I say, if Buffy wants to be with Spike, that’s her pergative."

Giles corrected, "Prerogative."

"Whatever."

Xander exclaimed, "That’s it. I’m washing my hands of that girl. If she wants to get freaky with the undead, that’s her own business."

"Maybe I could do a spell! A de-lusting!" Willow volunteered. Tara’s face fell and she drifted away from Willow’s side. "Its unhealthy, this thing with Spike… and…"

Xander interrupted, "Willow, no magic. I mean, I don’t exactly approve of Buffy dating yet another bloodsucker, but I think we should let her make her own decisions. Even if they are insane, incredibly stupid decisions."

"But…"

"No magic. Okay?"

***

Spike looked up when Angel came in the crypt through the sewer, followed by Cordelia. Relief washed over him. "You got the cure?"

Angel nodded. Any animosity the elder vampire might have felt toward Spike was swept away by Spike’s obvious distress at Buffy’s condition. Angel instructed, "Hold her tight. She’s gonna fight this."

While Spike held Buffy, Angel coaxed the liquid down her throat.

***

Buffy listened intently for the voices in her head. They were gone. "Mmm, thank God," she muttered. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked up into the face of a very concerned blue-eyed vampire. She smiled widely, "Hello lover."

"Ahem."

Buffy heard the familiar voice and her eyes widened in horror. Still cradled in Spike’s arms, she looked behind her to see Angel with a not quite happy smile on his face.

Buffy began to sputter an explanation, but Cordelia interrupted, "Please. Cat. Bag. Way out."

Cordy held Pitty in her arms and was rubbing its head. The cat was closing its eyes contentedly as little wrinkles appeared and smoothed out with the movement of Cordelia’s hand.

"Speaking of…" Buffy sat up and stretched her arms out toward the kitten. "Gimme my kitty!"

Cordy looked confused and then realized, "Oh. Its a cat!" She studied the kitten as she explained, "I thought it was a demon. But, you know, little and cute."

"How are you feeling, love?" Spike asked.

Buffy bristled at the use of the endearment in front of Angel but she assured, "I’m right as rain. Whatever the hell that means."

"Good," Angel was very business-like as he informed Buffy, "Cordy is going to walk you back to the Magic Box. Spike? A word?"

Buffy panicked. "Wait! No…no pummeling or beating up or…or measuring penises or whatever. Angel, Spike and I…"

"Buffy," Angel interrupted, "Its okay. Spike and I are going to go take care of the bad guys now." With a grin, he added, "You need to relax. Its not like I’m evil."

"Oh. Okay. Be nice."

***

Spike had to rush to keep up with his sire.

Angel stalked down the sewer’s, his coat swung behind him like a super hero’s cape.

Under his breath, Spike couldn’t help but mutter, "Ponce."

"You know, Spike. There’s one thing I regret," Angel said without turning to face him.

"Yeah? Whassat?"

"Promising Buffy that I wouldn’t beat the crap out of you."

"I love her."

This made Angel turn around.

"I do. I love her. And you know I’m capable of it."

"I do," Angel admitted grudgingly, "Which is why your present shape doesn’t resemble anything remotely shaped like a dustbuster. But if you hurt her, I’ll…"

"Stake me seven ways till Sunday. Got it."

Abruptly, Angel changed the content of their conversation. "Xander says you know the guy who’s been messing with Buffy. Some techno geek named Warren."

"Son of a…" Spike hissed. He shook his head in disbelief.

Angel suggested, "Shall we have a word with him?"

***

"You feeling okay?" Cordy asked Buffy as they strolled through the cemetery.

Buffy grunted in response.

"I’ll take that as, ‘No Cordelia. I’m in a pissy-ass mood.’ That about right?"

"Big talk at the Magic Box," Buffy mumbled. "Like I don’t know what that’s about. Stinking intervention." She kicked a dirt clod and felt a strange pleasure at watching it crumble under her blow. "I hate interventions."

Cordy shrugged. "Giles thinks its necessary. Mostly because of the whole dead thing."

"Really?" Buffy questioned. "I thought the whole ‘no soul thing’ would be the big."

Cordelia stopped walking. "As usual, I have no idea what you are talking about."

"Spike…being dead."

"Willow…bringing you back from the dead."

"Ohhhh." Buffy exhaled in recognition. "Intervention is for Willow. Too much magic. Bad Willow. Cool for Buffy."

Cordy shook her head and proceeded toward the Magic Box. "You just keep getting odder and odder. You know that?"

***

Angel burst into the room in full game face. He raced around the room and snarled like a rabid dog.

Calmly, Spike sauntered in, just in time to see Warren scramble on top of a filing cabinet. With a broom, the wanna-be super villain attempted to keep Angel at arms length. He whimpered to Spike, "What the hell…?"

With practiced nonchalance, Spike lit a cigarette. As he exhaled, he explained, "One of my minions. He’s a bit crazy."

With this, Angel roared like a jungle cat.

"We have a problem," Spike told the boy. "Seems you’ve been playing with my favorite toy. Don’t appreciate it."

"The… the Slayer? I’m not…"

Angel snapped the broom in half with his teeth and shook the pieces in his mouth. Then he lunged at Warren.

Spike took Angel by the collar of his coat. "Bad kitty. Down." Angel backed off, but continued to snarl at his prey.

Spike warned, "Stay away from the Slayer or…"

Warren finished, "You’ll let him eat me?"

"I’ll let him disembowel you and feed your insides to a Carakas demon while we parade your head all through town." Spike let his warning sink in for a minute and then added, "You can run away now."

Warren didn’t need to be told twice.

Angel shifted out of his game face and watched the super geek run away. With a wide smile he told Spike, "That was fun."

"Yup."

"Did you have to make me your minion?"

"Yup."

***

Willow took the lead with the intervention as soon as Buffy and Cordelia sat down. "Buffy, we called you here today because we’re concerned…"

Xander interrupted, "Actually…" He looked to Tara for permission to continue. When she nodded her consent, Xander told Willow, "We’re here for you."

Anya piped up, "We think you’ve gone wacky with the magic. We want you to cool it before you do something really crazy. Like bring mullets back."

Xander ignored his fiancee’s outburst. "Willow, I’ve know you all my life. I remember once, in kindergarten, you broke the yellow crayon and you cried and cried because…"

"I don’t remember that," Willow disagreed.

"I do!" Cordelia said with enthusiasm. "You broke the yellow crayon, and I told you that you should sue the school for providing faulty equipment." Cordy took in Giles’s bemused expression and admitted, "I know. Not the point."

"What Xander is trying to say, however ineffectually, is that you need to exercise more control…"

Willow interrupted the Watcher, "I’m in control!"

"N..no, you’re not," Tara said quietly. "That’s why we’re going away."

"Away?"

Cordy told the witch, "You’re coming to LA with Angel and me. You’re going to work with Lorne." She paused before she admitted, "You’ll have to sing."

The prospect frightened Willow more than a dozen vampires. "Sing?"

"Just don’t let Angel coach you and you’ll be fine. And don’t you dare sing The Greatest Love Of All or we will have a smackdown. That is my signature tune. In fact, Whitney is strictly off limits. And Manilow. Just because."

Spike and Angel chose this moment to come traipsing into the Magic Box. Everyone stared at the two vampires in shock. They were…

"Laughing?" Buffy asked Cordelia with an incredulous grin. "Are they laughing?"

"Looks like it." After a beat she added, "Kinda creepy."

"Uh huh." Buffy agreed.

Spike turned to the Slayer and greeted her, "Oh hey love, we were just talking about this time in Nice…"

"The French kill me." Angel smiled widely. "Hey, did I hear someone mention Barry Manilow?"

A little too quickly, Cordelia declared, "Nope. Not us."

"Because, you know, I could teach Willow some great tunes to sing to Lorne."

"Um…" Cordy took Angel’s arm and guided him toward the door. "You know, Willow’s taste might not be so…sophisticated. We should probably let her choice her own music." Over her shoulder, she bid farewell, "We’re heading back now. Its been fun. Willow, Tara, we’ll see you soon, ok?"

And then they were gone. Silence enveloped the Magic Box.

Xander, as usual, broke the silence, "You have to admire the way she handles him."

"She’d be a very good dominatrix."

The whole group shuddered and groaned at Anya’s comment.

"What? She would. Xander loves it when I’m submissive."

Willow croaked, "Suddenly, Buffy & Spike? Not so disturbing."

"Do you guys mean that?" All eyes were on her as Buffy sidled over to Spike’s side. "I want you to be okay with this."

Giles responded, "And if we’re not?"

"If you’re not, then we have a problem, because I’m in love with Spike."

"You are?" The vampire beamed down at her.

"I are."

"I are too!" Dawn declared. "Not in love with Spike, but okay with Buffy being in love with Spike. That’s what we’re discussing, right?"

"Right." Buffy nodded.

"I are too." Anya said with enthusiasm.

Tara nodded her assent.

"I refuse to use the grammatical travesty that the three of you employed, but I suppose I can bow to Buffy’s insight in these matters so… I am okay with this, provisionally."

"Xander? Willow?" Buffy asked the Scoobies.

"Okay," Willow agreed. But to Spike she threatened, "But if you hurt her, I’ll turn you into a toad."

"See Red, that would be a misuse of magic."

"No it wouldn’t," Xander muttered.

Buffy pleaded with her pouting friend. "Xander? Please? I’d like your blessing."

"You won’t get it." As Buffy’s face fell, Xander added, "But you will have my support, because I love you and I want you to be happy."

"Good. I’m very much in favor of Buffy happiness," The Slayer smiled at her friends and then up at Spike. She placed a gentle kiss on his lips.

"We could hold off on the PDA’s though, for the sake of Xander happiness."

Dawn elbowed Xander in the ribs, "Shut up Xander. We know more about your sex life than we ever would want to. You can deal with some smoochies."

"You are really stoked about this, aren’t you?" he asked.

"Of course I am." Dawn admitted giddily. "Everyone loves a happy ending!"

Epilogue - A Better Bathroom Scene

"Buffy?" Dawn asked as her sister came through the door.

"Who else would it be?" Buffy flopped down on the couch beside her baby sister. "Please tell me you aren’t watching ‘The Craft’ again."
 

"Watching ‘the Craft’ again." Dawn admitted. "Just trying to understand the whole magic addiction scenario. It still makes no sense."

"To me either," Buffy closed her eyes and leaned back into the soft couch cushions.

"Did Willow get a nice send off?"

"Mmm Hmm," Buffy muttered without opening her eyes. "Big long talk all night at the Magic Box. We laughed, we cried, it was all very Dawson’s Creek."

"Glad I came home when I did."

Buffy smiled. "We were glad too. You were snoring. It really ruined the poignancy of the moment."

"You know… Spike walked me home."

Buffy peeked over at her sister, barely opening her tired eyes. "I know. I made him walk you home."

"Yeah. He kept calling himself the Big Bad. It was super annoying."

"So why’d you bring it up?" Buffy asked.

"Cuz he’s upstairs in your room."

Buffy shot up off the couch and darted up the stairs. She barely heard Dawn call out, "I’ll be at Janice’s"

***

Buffy entered her room and her senses were assaulted by the most unlikely things. The smell of rose petals that were scattered over her bed, the sight of flickering candles all over her room and the sound of soft jazz reverberating from her radio.

"Spike?" she asked quietly. She knew he was here. She could sense him.

From behind she was hit. A human growl resonated in her ears. Strong arms encircled her waist and tossed her onto the bed.

Spike looked down at her with a self-satisfied grin.

"I have always wanted to do that."

Buffy smacked his chest and pushed against him. "You shit! That wasn’t funny."

He scoffed, "Oh come on, its not like I scared you, Slayer. I know that you knew I was here."

"How do you know that I knew you were here? I might not have known you were here. You might have given me a heart attack…or…or I might have thought you were an evil nasty vampire and staked you, you ever think about that?"

"You knew it was me. I’m the only vampire in Sunny hell with an invite."

"Yow!" Buffy screeched as two sets of claws and a set of teeth skewered her ankle.

"Pitty!" Spike hauled the kitten out from under the bed and scolded her.

"You sure about being the only vampire in this room?" Buffy asked.

Spike looked up at her through remorseful blue eyes. "Sorry about that, love. She’s been spending too much time with her daddy." The hairless kitten purred with utmost pleasure while Spike cooed at her, "Didja catch your Mommy too, Pitty Pat? We both caught your Mommy, didn’t we? Yes we did."

"So, Casanova, what’s with the rose petals and the sexy music?"

"What?" Spike smiled impishly, "Can’t a man pamper his woman without facing the Inquisition?"

"A normal man, yes. You, no."

Spike shrugged and deposited the kitten back on the floor to chase a stray rose petal, "Its just that you’ve had a lousy week, love. Thought I’d lift your spirits a bit." Spike nibbled on her ear and murmured into it, "Any objections?"

I’m sure I have some…but right now thinking is not a do-able thing.

Spike’s hands roamed her body and Buffy moaned, "Mmm Spike."

"Ooh say that again," he begged.

"Mmm…YOW! Ow, ow, ow!"

"PITTY!!" Spike disengaged his kitten’s claws from Buffy’s calf.

"Didn’t you bring her any toys? Other than my flesh, I mean?"

"Forgot ‘em. But I remembered her litter box and food."

"And why does she need those if she’s only staying for a few hours?"

"Well…" Spike looked incredibly guilty.

"Oh, I get it. You didn’t want to make me feel better about my week of hell. You just wanted to shmooz me into taking in Bloodsucker Junior." Buffy crossed her arms over her chest and waited for him to try to deny it.

"Its not safe for her in my crypt. Some nasty might come along and try and make a snack out of her. Please, love? I’ll do anything."

"Anything?" Buffy asked with interest.

"Anything you want, love." Spike raised his eyebrows and licked his lips hungrily. "Anything at all."

Buffy kicked her shoes off. "Why don’t you put the little hellion somewhere out of biting range? I’m about to expose some very tender flesh."

Spike’s eyes widened at the implications. He dropped the little bundle of no fur into the hallway and demanded, "Go play."

When he turned back to Buffy she was stripping off her socks. She crooked a finger at Spike and beckoned him to her. "What I want…" she purred, taking fistfuls of his shirt and pulling herself up for a kiss, "is a nice…slow…foot rub."

She let go of him and fell back onto the bed. Buffy kicked out a foot and Spike caught it in his hands.

"Rubby, rubby," she instructed, wiggling her toes.

Spike chuckled and knelt before her.

"Ooooh, you’re good at this," Buffy noted as Spike eased all the soreness and tension out of her by rubbing circles in the arch of her foot Spike started using his lips against her ankle, blowing fairy kisses and making her shiver. Buffy moaned, "So so so good."

Spike slid her big toe into his mouth and sucked on it. With this, Buffy burst into a giggle fit.

"And she’s laughing again," Spike unceremoniously dropped her foot and instructed, "Right then. Foot rub’s over."

"But…"

"Have a surprise for you love. Clothes off. Be right back."

"But what about my other foot?"

*****

Buffy lay sprawled on the bed like an Egyptian goddess. Spike stopped for a moment at the door to her bedroom and took in the sight.

"Hello lover," she drawled.

" ‘Lo there."

"C’mere."

Spike shook his head. "Surprise first." He scooped her up in his arms and carried her across the hallway to the bathroom.

Buffy gasped at the state of the room. Candles were lit everywhere and the tub was filled to the brim with fragrant bubbles. "Oh, you do want to pamper me."

He gently deposited her in on her feet and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Does Buffy like?"

"Buffy likes very much."

He took her hand and helped her climb into the silky water.

"Aren’t you coming in with me?"

"Nope." Spike kneeled next to the tub and traced his finger down Buffy’s face. "Bath is for you to relax, baby."

"This isn’t some subtle hint about the way I smell is it?"

"You smell heavenly pet. Just trying to spoil me girl is all."

Buffy settled in to the warm water and closed her eyes. "I should have given you a happy a long time ago."

"Wasn’t from a lack of trying on my part, love."

"Oh sure, creepy stalker guy…attractive."

Under his breath he mumbled, "Not a stalker."

"You tied me up," she reminded him.

An evil smile emerged, "I remember."

"This is better."

"Yeah, well, maybe we’ll play with chains later." With this, Spike ran his hand from Buffy’s knee down below the bubbles. "Right now, I want to make you feel good."

"Good is good." Buffy sighed with pleasure. "I had a fantasy about this once."

"Yeah? What was I doing in this fantasy?"

Spike’s fingers pressed her clit like a button. Pushing and releasing over and over.

"Kind of what you’re doing now." Buffy brought her hands up to her breast to mimic Spike’s movements on her erect nipples.

"And did you come, love?"

"Unh huh."

"And will you come for me?" He captured her tender nub between his thumb and forefinger and rolled it back and forth.

Buffy felt her whole body start to burn, "I’m gonna. I’m…mmm."

Gentle waves flowed over Buffy both inside and out. Her ragged breathing filled the steamy room. Spike watched Buffy’s aftershocks, enjoying the fruits of his labor.

Her eyes were still closed when she mumbled, "Getting pruney."

Spike dipped his hand in the water between two mounds of rapidly disappearing bubbles. "Water’s cooling off. Hard to believe with you in there heating it up."

Taking her hand, he escorted her out of the lukewarm bath. He wrapped a fuzzy towel around her shoulders and then took another one and dried off every inch of her. When he rubbed the plush cloth against her sensitive sex, Buffy complained, "You’re a tease."

"I told you, tonight was about making you feel good."

"You know what would make me feel good?" She asked, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Hot vampire lovin’. So get to it."

Spike chuckled and hoisted her up so that she could wrap her legs around his torso. He carried her to the bedroom. "Hot vampire loving coming right up."

Rubbing against his erection, Buffy groaned, "Uck, bad pun."

******

Buffy nuzzled her cheek into Spike’s chest. He was teetering on the edge of sleep. A low purr rumbled forth from deep within him. A higher pitched purr emanated from the kitten on her pillow.

"I’ve come to a decision," Buffy said sleepily.

Spike’s purr was interrupted, "Whassat love?"

"If Pitty Pat wants to move in, her Daddy has to move in too."

"Are you sure? The Scoobies…"

"Pfft…Xander’s dating an ex-demon that was sent to curse him and Willow is shacking up, in my house, with her witch slash lesbian lover. People who live in glass houses should judge not lest ye…" she frowned at the mixed metaphor, "I’m too sleepy to talk."

"Then sleep, love. I’ll be here in the morning."

Buffy smiled as she drifted off to Never Never Land.

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