Chapter 18

Spike squinted at Clem’s note and checked the address again. The saggy skinned demon’s writing looked like a spider had been dosed with LSD, then tossed into a pot of ink before being let loose on a piece of paper.

Buffy was curled up in the front seat of the Desoto and snoring softly.

Both of them were exhausted by the night’s events. After confronting Riley in the cemetery and discovering that Spike’s chip was inactive, they had chased him into the alleys of Sunnydale only to lose him. When they had tripped over a dozing tramp, and once they had managed to regain their footing, Riley was long gone.

Trudging tiredly back to the car, Spike had tested his lack of chippage, by deliberately walking into a group of teens and bumping them. To his delight the chip didn’t fire once. They figured it was a side effect of whatever Kendra and Whistler had done to them; Buffy promised herself next time one of them appeared she’d ask them.

Buffy had been pleased for Spike, glad that he would be able to defend himself from all attackers. Not once did it occur to her that he would go back to the killing fields; she trusted him. She tried to smile but failed- concern for Riley filled her, as well as disgust over his weirdness. They had headed over to the Magic Box to collect the car and leave a note for Giles and the others.

Buffy had fallen asleep the instant they had sat in the Desoto. Spike checked the address and drove two hundred yards down the street and parked up in front of a boarded up shop. He stepped out of the car and then leant against it.

“Clem, I’m gonna kill you!” Spike muttered under his breath as he checked the address again and confirmed he was in the right place. His azure eyes scanned the boarded up front, “is that his idea of necro-tempered glass?” Spike looked up at the sign, which proudly claimed to all who bothered to read it ‘Sal’s Gym’. “Bet it stinks of sweaty jockstraps as well…” Spike muttered.

He turned and checked on his sleeping Childe- she looked stunning, all soft and sleepy. He had been amazed that she hadn’t staked him immediately on discovering he was freed from the chip. Instead she had smiled and given him a gentle kiss.

His Childe - the Slayer. The way she had taken over his heart and mind in such a few days, constantly stunned Spike. He had never in his wildest dreams- and he’d had some doozys recently- expected this. And now Spike knew he would destroy anyone and anything that would attempt to take her from him. His eyes glinted gold and Spike’s fangs dropped at the thought of the fight he would put up for her.

But for now he was gonna pull Clem’s skin tight for pawning this dump off on him!

“Psst, Spike, over here!”

Spike’s head whipped up and he spotted Clem hidden in the doorway of the Gym. He had a Fedora pulled over his ears and was waving enthusiastically at the vampire.

“Clem,” he growled and stalked over to the demon.

“Spike, hey there! What do you think?” Clem handed over the keys and gestured for the vampire to open the door.

Spike snorted and stared at the keys in his hand; from the key chain swung a small Karbear. Unable to stop himself he smiled at the incongruous stuffed toy. It was typical of Clem.

“Spike?” Buffy peered sleepily out of the Desoto; her eyes widened at the wrinkly sight of Clem and she slid out of the car. “Um, hi, friend of Spike?” she said cautiously.

“Howdy.” Clem waved at Buffy; his eyes lit up, with surprise and pleasure. “Wow. Spike, she’s kinda cute for someone with tight skin!”

“Clem,” Spike growled warningly.

“So, are you Buffy? Spike’s mentioned you a few times, but when he gets drunk you’re all he talks about.” Clem continued nattering blithely, unaware of the now embarrassed Spike standing next to him. He was just delighted to see that his friend had got the girl.

“Shut up,” Spike hissed as Buffy giggled at Clem.

She liked this sweet demon and especially more so cos he had managed to get Spike all cute and fuzzy with shyness over his announcement. “Yeah, I’m Buffy, and I guess you’re Clem?” She stuck out her hand and it was enveloped in Clem’s massive mitt and was shaken vigorously.

“Yup, that’s me! So whaddyah think of your new digs?” Clem jerked a thumb over his shoulder.

Buffy’s tired eyes lit up with excitement, “Wow! It’s a gym, cool!” She bounced up to Spike and snatched the keys out of his outstretched palm and fumbled with the lock.

“Buffy…luv, I don’t think this is the place for you…” Spike whispered. “It’s not really the posh digs I had in mind.”

Buffy ignored him and pushed open the door.

“I’m gonna kill you Clem!” Spike growled and chased after his girl and then slammed into her back.

“Wow!” Buffy squealed and wrapped her arms around Spike’s neck.

“Did I do okay? I figured you guys’d want someplace to workout…the windows are on special order, they weren’t standard size so I had to put up the boards for now…” Clem babbled excitedly. “They’re going to be here tomorrow!”

Spike wrapped his arms around Buffy and then turned them both to face the demon.

“Mate, m’sorry, thought you’d pulled a fast one on us!”

Clem shook his head, “Spike, never! I owe you big and not just for the kittens!”

“This is all for us?” Buffy scanned the well-equipped gym and all the weapons lining the walls, her eyes glittering with excitement.

“Yup! And I fixed up the loft for you guys too, come on!” Clem headed to the doorway on the left of the gym and pushed it open. “After you guys! Spike, maybe you should follow the human ritual of carrying her over the threshold?”

Spike curled his tongue against the back of his teeth and smiled. He swept Buffy off her feet and tossed her over his shoulder.

“Spike!” she giggled. Unable to resist she grabbed hold of his perky ass and gave it a good squeeze.

“Wot! It’s tradition!” Spike took the steps two at a time. He groaned as she squeezed his arse again and he hardened against his zipper. He gave her backside a firm slap in retaliation.

Clem followed behind them, laughing at the crazy couple. It filled his heart with joy to see the normally angry vampire happy at last. Harmony had been totally wrong for his friend; Clem wondered what had happened to the vapid vampiress. He’d been to the Crypt to collect Spike’s gear and she had been nowhere in sight…only a lot of dust. Clem’s eyes widened at the realisation that dawned on him. He wondered if it had been either of the blonds who had dusted her, or someone else. He decided to wait to talk to Spike about his erstwhile girl’s fate – he didn’t want to spoil the moment…

The heavy metal security door at the top of the stairs was kicked open and Spike stepped through. He swung Buffy to her feet and they stood looking around at the massive loft that Clem had given them.

The floors were the original pine, stripped back and polished to their former glory. The walls had been painted a deep umber colour, which gave the high ceilinged room a warmth and cheery brightness. Along the front wall were floor to ceiling windows, covered with wispy thin terracotta silks. There were shelves down one wall and a long oak table next to them. Arranged clumsily in a tall glass vase were some pink roses.

A large sofa and two big armchairs sat in front of an entertainment centre. Clem had known Spike would want a TV and had gone all out for his friend.

There was kitchen to their right, and next to it was a tall double door.

“Clem, this is beautiful!” Buffy turned and impulsively hugged him. She rolled her eyes at Spike’s rumble of warning.

“It’s the best I could do on such short notice. The windows up here are vamp safe so you can leave the curtains open! Umm, I stocked the fridge with blood and food, didn’t know who else was gonna be here.” Clem patted Buffy on the back as she squeezed him again.

“Also, Spike, I picked up your stuff from the Crypt, it’s all in the bedroom over there.” Clem hesitated. “Um, you’re friend wasn’t there though, so I took everything.”

“Friend?” Spike frowned. “Oh, you mean Harm…wonder where she buggered off to?” He peeked at Buffy wondering if she would freak out at the mention of Harmony’s name.

“Yeah Blondie Bear, wonder where she is!” Buffy sashayed past Spike and began to investigate the loft. She knew Harmony was a non-issue, but couldn’t help teasing her Sire about her. ‘Man his taste sucked until we got together!’ Buffy peeked into the bedroom and her eyes widened at the sight of the enormous wrought Iron bed. ‘Wow! Loads of room to play in!’ Clem rose even further in her estimation. She shut the door and sauntered over to the sofa and flopped down on it.

“Buffy, luv. Clem n’ I are gonna get your stuff from the car.”

“Kay, I’ll stay here and bond with the place.” Buffy ran her hands over the kilm covered sofa and hummed appreciatively at the texture and rich colours.

It took Clem and Spike several journeys to empty the Desoto of all of Buffy’s possessions. The two vampires had packed a lot the previous night after dinner in preparation for the move. By the time they had finished, Buffy had fallen asleep again.

Spike saw Clem out and locked up the front door for the night. His friend had done him proud.

***********

He realised that Buffy would enjoy this even more as she was still used to being able to walk around in the sunlight. Now she could in their home, he pondered asking Giles and Joyce if they would be open to installing the same treated glass in the shop and their homes. It would make life a lot easier for his Childe if she were able to move around in daylight. Which reminded him he needed to check sewer access here and make sure that any Tom, Dick or Harry couldn’t get in. ‘Wonder if Tara could set up some sort of barrier for them? He knew that, being vamps, their home was open to all other vampires and that made him uneasy.

Unable to resist it, he tickled the end of Buffy’s nose. He wanted her awake and enjoying the warmth of the sunlight with him.

Buffy batted at her nose and woke with a sleepy yawn. “Mmmm…afternoon,” she sighed and then turned over onto her side and snuggled back into Spike’s body. He waited for her to notice and counted backwards 3…2…1…

“Spike!” Buffy sat up with a yelp.

“Yeah, luv?”

“The sun!”

“Right pretty, ain’t it?”

“But we’re not on fire!” Buffy gasped.

“I know, remember Clem put in the special glass for us?”

“Oh…wow…you look even hotter in sunlight…and can I sound any lamer?” Buffy flopped back on the crisp linen sheets and reached over and traced her index finger down his nose. “You’re eyes are all pretty in the light!”

“M’not pretty! I’m handsome!” Spike pouted down at Buffy and then leant forward for a kiss.

“Hmmm, nice! Coffee?” Buffy murmured against his lips.

“Demanding hussy, aren’t you?” Spike teased as he slid out of the bed and padded naked to the doors. Pushing them open he stepped into the sunlit main room, he paused and stretched before heading into the kitchen.

“So, Riley was stalking you guys? That’s creepy!” Dawn shuddered.

Buffy had stopped breathing earlier, remembering Anya’s advice from the night before- there were too many heartbeats around her. She was still trying to adjust to being around humans and their blood pumping around their bodies was calling to her demon. Her soul and her conscience were suppressing the urges – but it was difficult. She looked over at Spike who was handing out cups of coffee and wondered how long it had taken him to adjust after he had been turned. She made a mental note to talk to him when they had a few moments to themselves.

“Yeah, but we were more worried about the massive amount of bites we scented on him. Kinda lost track of him when he ran off…” Buffy trailed off as she remembered the look of lust on Riley’s face when he realised she was a vampire, and failed to suppress a shudder. She was still filled with guilt that she hadn’t managed to have the ‘talk’ with Riley.

But there had been no time, what with the fight between Spike and Riley, the discovery the chip wasn’t working and then the dry humping. Which was still grossing her out, all the time they had dated Riley had never been so overtly sexual towards her – but what filled her with horror was Riley had been like that because she was lacking a pulse and had fangs!

It wasn’t anything else, not relief that she was back. Only the sheer excitement that he had thought she was now equipped too enhance his sexual games and help with his not so sexy biting fetish. Buffy failed to suppress her shudder, her only relief was that Spike was secure enough in their relationship not to be worried or threatened by her soon to be ex. She was frustrated that she hadn’t been able to explain to Riley that it was over and now she had no idea when she would get the chance.

“This is developing into a real problem. He is dicing with death here and endangering us all.” Giles looked longingly at the well stocked bar. Spike stood and poured him a scotch and handed it to Giles with a brief nod. Giles sipped the amber drink gratefully. No one commented that it was too early in the day for liquid courage, it was a tense time and everyone recognised this, letting Giles’s need for a drink slip.

“We need to be very careful. Dawn, if Riley ever turns up and asks for an invite what do you do?” Buffy asked.

“Slam the door in his face and call you guys,” Dawn recited with a bored expression on her face.

“That’s right, Nib.” Spike slid down behind Buffy and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her back against his chest, his legs on either side of hers. Dawn glared at Buffy as jealousy consumed her.

“So we’ve tried to locate Dracula through magics, but he’s well cloaked,” Tara diverted the attention away from Dawn, before a teen tantrum could erupt.

“Crap! The dead body…” Buffy slapped her hand to her forehead.

“S’okay, luv. Called Rupes last night when Clem and I were unloading the Desoto.” Spike interjected.

“Thanks…”

“So we’re essentially in the dark about Dracula’s location. I’m afraid it’s going to be legwork that finds his hideout. Buffy…Spike, can you search him out on patrol?” Giles asked hesitantly.

The two blonds nodded.

*********

Buffy and Spike walked quietly down the street, abandoned factories on either side of them. They had patrolled the cemeteries and were now searching for either Dracula or Riley. So far it had been a bust.

They had discussed Dawn in muted whispers, neither or them could fathom why she had been sent to Sunnydale for safety. Which in itself was ironic seeing that it was an active Hellmouth. Only that she was there for Buffy to protect and, as an extension of that, for Spike to as well.

“We’re gonna have to bring the Watcher in on this, pet. He’s the one with the books and whatnot, he might be able to work out what Dawn is and why she’s here.” Spike lit a cigarette and puffed on it thoughtfully.

“I know, but it’s kinda gonna be tricky getting him to believe that Dawn hasn’t always been here…” Buffy kicked at a can and watched it skitter down the sidewalk.

“I know, but we’ve not really got a clue and from what Short and Smelly said, neither do them upstairs…” Spike jerked his thumb up at the sky.

Buffy opened her mouth to reply but was interrupted by the can that she had kicked come sailing back at her.

“I always wanted to kill the Slayer,” a voice boomed out of the darkness.

The can struck Buffy in the shin and landed with a clatter.

Before either Buffy or Spike could respond, an overweight vampire punched Buffy in stomach.

“Oi!” Spike pulled the tall, heavyset vampire off his girl and span him away from her. He ground his cigarette out on the attacker’s face with an angry snarl.

Buffy grunted and tugged her faux fur jacket straight before kicking her attacker in the balls.

Spike winced in sympathy for a second before he thumped the doubled over vamp in the temple.

“Got loads of unexpressed rage, haven’t you, mate?” Spike watched as Buffy beat the stuffing out of the biker vamp. He eyed the naff t-shirt the attacker was wearing, and smirked. “Into Russian Roulette, are yah? Well, guess what, she’s loaded!”

Buffy rolled her eyes at her lame Sire and pulled out a stake. “Ever thought of anger management classes?” She quipped before slamming the vampire against a chain fence and efficiently staked him. She dusted her hands and turned to Spike, who was watching her with a mixture of pride and lust in his pale blue eyes.

“Hey! Miss, if you’re looking for one of those rave parties I think you might be late. Chased a bunch a kids outta here last night…”

Buffy and Spike squinted as a flashlight shone at them and a security guard appeared.

“Oh, right. Yeah… darn. My fellow ravers will be so disappointed. It was my turn to bring the Bundt cake.” Buffy quipped. She and Spike stood watching the man warily, they weren’t sure that he had witnessed the dusting.

“You know, if it was my call, I'd let you do whatever you want. It's not like anybody's using this place or nothin'. But they just don't pay me enough to argue with the boss, so...” The security guard shrugged.

“Oh, we’re gone, sorry…” Buffy tugged on Spike’s sleeve and gave the Watchman a big smile.

“Oh, hey! Hold it miss. Take your... whatever this is with you. He bent over and picked up a glowing yellow orb and handed it to Buffy; both vampires looked at the sphere quizzically.

“Glow balls, huh …I swear, I don't get your generation. What is that thing?” he asked curiously.

“We'll let you know as soon as we find out,” Spike muttered. Nodding his thanks to the man, the bleached blond vampire pulled his puzzled Childe away and they disappeared into the darkness.