Banner by lmbossy
Banner by lmbossy
Many thanks to Megan/Peta and Lmbossy for all their
betaing and endless patience.
Chapter 4
“You tell her.”
“No, you tell her.”
“I think Giles should tell her we lost her sister. He is her watcher, after all.” Anya interrupted the pushing fight going on between Willow and Xander. She pressed the two of them apart and held them at bay with a steadfast hand on their shoulders. “She is less likely to kill him when she comes back. Slayers are notoriously touchy and quick to fly off the handle,” she added, nodding sagely as if imparting the wisdom of the ages.
Giles turned to face Xander with a disappointed expression on his worried face.
“I know, I know. My fault I fell asleep.” Xander held his hands up and flushed guiltily. “I’ll tell her.” He walked away from the couch and bent over the chalice.
“No one is telling Buffy anything. We are going to start searching for Dawn. If we fail then we will all tell her.” Giles sighed. His exasperation was hitting an all time high with the entire situation. Not only did they have an evil Fairy enchanting the teens on the Hellmouth, they now had lost Dawn. Neither of which he was prepared for. He was exhausted, worried and unable to find a solution. The harried man also suspected that sending Spike with Buffy into Dawn’s dreams was not the brightest of ideas he’d had.
“And head for the hills,” Anya muttered under her breath to Willow and Xander.
~~~~~~~~
“Where did he go?” Buffy rolled onto her back and stretched as she squinted blearily around the log cabin searching for their host.
She snuggled back into the silky soft furs that were piled over her and rolled onto her side to stare over at Spike. He was crouched in front of the fire, carefully banking it his face cast into shadows as he briefly glanced over at the sleep-flushed slayer. She was as pretty as a picture, even when she was yawning and making odd squeaking noises as she stretched.
She’d ended up curled in a pile of furs in front of the fire, keeping warm overnight while Spike had slept on the bench by the door. Neither had managed to stay awake longer than a few minutes after the hearty meal the Huntsman had served them. Now it was morning and they were alone.
“He headed out to check his traps—left some porridge for you.” Spike pointed to a covered bowl and then straightened and moved to stare out of the frost covered window. The expression on his face was inscrutable as he gazed out over the much altered landscape. He was filled with questions not only about the place they’d landed in, but also about his burgeoning feelings for the petite blonde who was wriggling out from under the furs. He’d taken on a whopping great wolf and saved her from it. He hadn’t wanted to examine it too closely at the time, but deep down Spike accepted it was the right thing to do—they were partners here. And that’s what partners did, watch each other’s back. Neither of them had said much about it, except for the slayer thanking him and then gazing at him with sphinx-like fathomless eyes as they walked to the Huntsman’s cabin.
Spike glanced over at the yawning girl, his lips quirked at the sight of her patting down her bed head and muttering under her breath about missing indoor plumbing.
“Is it me or is it like really icy in here?” Buffy wrapped her arms around her waist and tried to suppress a shiver.
“Not you…take a gander.” Spike jerked his head at the window he’d been staring out of and then rubbed his forehead tiredly. The deeper cuts and bruises had healed from the fresh blood he’d taken from the wolf, but his bones still ached from the fight. The night’s rest had done some good but waking to the winter wonderland outside and the surprising revelation that he was sun proof here had knocked him for six. Add to that the feelings that were pressing on his undead heart and it all lead to a very confused vampire.
Buffy stood on her tip toes and stared out at the snow laden forest, her hazel eyes widening in surprise. “Whoa, what the hell happened? Everything got frosty, awesome!” She looked over at Spike with a feeling of shyness. They still hadn’t spoken about his rescue and she had no idea how to broach the subject. Instead, she contented herself with looking at him in the daylight; to her surprise he didn’t look pasty and dead. He was cute and his piercing blue eyes were mesmerising in the bright reflected light, even with the teeny laugh lines that bracketed them. ‘Wonder if vamps get game face wrinkles.’
Spike pushed away from the window with a sigh. He held his hand out and let the daylight play over his skin. A rueful smile curled at his lips, as he stared as his pale skin shone with a light that it had not seen since the day he died. Every thing was different here, so very different and yet despite the dangers ahead and Dawn stuck in her dreams, he was content. Spike frowned; it was a sensation that had eluded him since Prague.
Buffy looked up in time to catch his frown, “what’s with the frown? Woulda thought with the lack of burning in daylight you’d be chipper and up!” She had been staring at the icicles that were hanging over the window, but Spike’s movements had torn her attention away from them.
“Nuhing, kinda neat the whole not catching on fire though,” he yawned and then tucked his hands into the back pockets of his jeans and looked down at his boots. “You better eat ‘fore it gets cold.”
Buffy wrinkled her nose and sat down and began to spoon up the creamy porridge. Her face brightening at the taste of honey mixed in. She began to spoon it quickly and with her free hand reached for the mug of tea that Spike placed next to her. He cupped his in his hands and sank down on the furs she’d crawled out of. Spike took a deep breath and savoured the sleepy slayer scents.
“Once we’ve eaten, do you think we should head on, seeing that you’re all sun proofed?” Buffy mumbled around a mouthful. Part of her was excited about the snow. The last time she’d seen any had been…she shivered and focused on the vampire in front of her and not the one in her past. The saner part was wondering how the hell the snow had appeared so fast and also if her boots would stand up to the task of wading through it.
“You noticed that.” Spike took another drink of the tea and waited for the blush to dissipate on the Slayer’s pretty features.
“Yeah, wonder if you’ll freckle?” she added with a teasing glint.
“Funny, slayer.” Spike shook his head and then tipped the mug and drained it. “If we’re to get to the Platelet, I think we keep going no matter what.” Buffy nodded in agreement and scraped the bowl with her spoon.
“The old man left some kit for us to use, right nice of him.” Spike pointed to the bundles by the door and the two heavy fur coats hanging from the coat stand.
“Keep going no matter what, I like that,” Buffy nodded and stood.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Giles turned the wheel onto Revello Drive and headed towards his charges’ home. He needed to check for messages from Joyce and also see if there were any clues as to where Dawn may have been taken. He was hoping that with a scrying spell, using something personal of the young girl’s, he might be able to locate Dawn. He had sent Xander off to search nearby neighbourhoods; Anya had surprisingly elected to remain at the shop and stocktake for him, whilst Willow researched.
Letting himself in, he noticed that the post had been left in the mailbox; he took it in with him. “No need to add burglars into the mix as well as child abduction, spells and evil fairies. The Sunnydale police wouldn’t know their arses from their elbows if they had to actually investigate a real crime.”
Quickly moving through the house, he checked the voicemail and then headed upstairs to find something of Dawn’s to use. He paused at her bed and stared down at the fine red dust that was staining her pillow. Unconsciously his fingers reached for the power and then stopped as reason kicked him firmly in the backside.
“Good lord, I really am getting old.”
~~~~~~~~
“Oi, grow up, Slayer.” Spike wiped off the back of his head and growled at the fur clad sprite who was giggling and ducking behind a tree. Buffy snickered and bent down, rapidly beginning to fashion another snowball. Spike tried to suppress a laugh and failed as he spotted her grinning face peeking out from behind the tree, her hazel eyes filled with glee as she weighed her snowball in her hand.
“Gotcha,” she squealed as she turned to run down the path they had been following for most of the morning. The snow had so far not been much of a deterrent—mystical or otherwise. The slayer was looking particularly fetching bundled up in a fur coat, her face peeking out from under a hat, cheeks pinked with cold and excitement. He’d endured the first hour of hideous girly squeaks of joy over the snow with resignation but gradually her excitement had infected him. And now the two of them were ambushing each other with snowballs whenever they could. The cold and softly falling white flakes were unnoticed as they sprinted and feinted, their mock battles helping the onerous journey to pass swiftly.
Spike darted after the giggling slayer, laughing his head off as he ducked down and grabbed a handful of snow and threw it at her back. For the first time in over a century, he felt like a child again – he liked it. The two of them ran and played through the forest, their raised voices the only ones to be heard for miles.
Buffy ran faster, trying to wriggle the snow out from under her shirt, “I can’t believe you did that you…you…err, vampire,” she added lamely.
“So much for the witty quippy repartee you’re known for, you…you…err, slayer.” Spike bounced from foot to foot as he teased her, his tongue curled against the back of his teeth as he raised his arm and then received a face full of snow. He stopped in his tracks and reached up with his free hand to clear the melting snow from his face. “Oh that is it, you’re going to get it now. You better run, little girl.”
Buffy shrieked as she turned and ran. She knew that they were on a mission to save Dawn, but what difference did it make if they played as they headed to the castle? Made the journey easier and she for one was starting to really like hanging out with Spike. The Big Bad image seemed to have disappeared as soon as they had hit this weird ass place. In its place was someone who had bandaged her wounds, fought to save her life and then the next day made sure she ate breakfast. She wrinkled her nose as she ran; he was growing on her in a big way.
Spike laughed at her antics and then started to chase after her. He could see their destination in the distance, foreboding and demanding a more solemn attitude, but her playfulness was infectious. Also the face full of snow demanded revenge; he eyed a nice big snow drift to the left and changed his angle of attack. “Garrrr!” He launched himself at the slayer’s small form and the two of them went down in a tangle of fur, arms and flailing legs.
They finally rolled to a halt in a field that had been shielded by the trees running along the track they had been following. But what really stopped the two blondes in their tracks were the two large polar bears staring down at them and licking their chops.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“About time. Her snow was entertaining them, not destroying them.” Maleficent waved her hand over the orb she had been peering into; with the pass of her elegant pale fingers, it clouded over. She turned and stalked over to the cage where Ole was huddled against the back wall, as far away from her malevolence as he could be. His eyes were half closed; he was filled with pain from her tortures and exhausted with guilt and worry. All his remaining attention was focused on the sleeping teenager, the focus of all his captor’s power and strength, the same power that was sustaining her.
“Oh little man, I think you may want to see this.” She pulled out her wand and with a flick of her wrist, opened the cage door and levitated the shabby form of the fallen Sandman. “Come look, watch as they die slowly and painfully.” She forced his body to hover over the crystal ball and with a muttered command, the mists cleared to reveal Buffy and Spike lying at the feet of the two polar bears. “Watch them suffer and die because of your intervention.”
She left him mid air, hanging like a marionette with its strings cut and unable to tear his eyes away from the scene in the clear crystal ball.
“Enjoy their pain. I’m going to have a look around my new town.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Do you have any idea how much I hate bears?” Spike rolled away from the two white bears taking Buffy with him.
“Yeah, I remember, you were all with the ‘Ohhhh, you made a bear’ and hopping around on your chair like an insane bleached grasshopper,” Buffy whispered out of the side of her mouth. “Was kinda funny at the time,” she added quietly under her breath.
Both of them froze at the sound of chains jangling. In unison their eyes followed the harnesses attached to the stationary bears to a chariot, where a pair of strong hands held the reins. Following the white fur clad arms with their eyes, Buffy and Spike slowly stood to get a proper look at the pale skinned Amazonian woman who was staring back at them, her black eyes impassive and assessing.
“You trespass,” she stated calmly and raised a wand.
“Whoa!” Buffy pushed Spike aside as a bolt of lightning fired at them. “Wait, we only wanted to go to—ack!” she shrieked as another bolt singed her sleeve and the crisp cold air filled with the scent of burnt fur. “Eww, gross.” She patted the damp smouldering mess and then caught Spike’s eyes. He nodded slightly and then shifted his focus to the snarling white bears. His confidence wavered for a moment but then he reached into his backpack and pulled out two short knives. Shaking the scabbards off, he braced himself to attack. Buffy reached under her coat and pulled out the small axe the Huntsman had left for her and tested its weight.
“You take the bears, I’ll go for the white-faced bint with the wand.” Spike shifted his weight to the balls of his feet, ready to leap into battle.
Before either of them could move, they were picked up by an invisible hand and thrown over the chariot and into the snow behind. The Snow Queen stepped lightly down onto the snow and turned to face the two blonds she had thrown with her magicks. She was ready to fulfil her promise to Maleficent. To kill these two interlopers and in return be given more power from her grateful benefactress—it was simple.
“Ouch, and rude much?” Buffy leapt to her feet and glared at her imposing attacker. The tall woman stared impassively at the small blonde. Dismissing her as any sort of danger, she turned to focus on Spike—the more obvious threat in her opinion. The witch began to fire bolt after bolt at Spike, maliciously laughing as he ducked and dove out of their path.
“Hey, over here, Witchy woman,” Buffy yelled, hoping to give Spike a moment to regroup. She jumped up and down waving her arms, cursing a blue streak.
“Insignificant child.” The Snow Queen flicked her wand at Buffy. Her pale features relaxed as she watched the blonde girl fly backwards and disappear into a snow drift. She turned her head and laughed at the huddled gasping form of the vampire. Her long fair tresses swung around her shoulders as she examined her foe with a calm demeanour, unaware of the spitfire who was revving up to pounce from behind.
“Ohhhh, big mistake long tall Sally,” Buffy hissed as she patted out the smouldering burning fur on her shoulder. “And sooo not onboard with the setting fire to me. Soggy smouldering fur is sooo not the perfume I need right now.” She lifted her arm and deftly threw the axe. “Oh and FYI, leave my vampire alone,” roared Buffy was unaware of the possessive words that fired from her lips as she ran towards the witch, but Spike heard them. His eyes filled with a surprised glee and then widened in alarm as Buffy’s axe whirled unerringly towards its intended target.
As the axe made contact with the Snow Queen’s wand, it shattered with a flash of bright light and the field filled with an explosive sound and a scream of anger. The witch shook her incinerated hand and stared down in shock at the damage done to her fingers.
“My wand, what did you do to my wand? You evil child!” she exclaimed with a shriek of anger and pain. Her attention diverted from Spike, she spun to face Buffy with an eerie howl of fury. She had underestimated her enemies, but not again. She sent a mental command to her followers and then reached behind her shoulders to draw her swords.
Spike lurched to his feet to go to the Slayer’s side and came face to face with the Polar bears. He blinked, certain that one of them smiled at him and licked its lips. He growled defensively and fell, then scuttled backwards trying to evade the snapping jaws of one of the beasts. His attention focused on the white furballs with gnashers the length of his forearm, he missed Buffy’s first belter of a punch, her small fist unerringly headed right for the statuesque witch’s patrician nose.
Spike stopped breathing as the warm fetid breath of the white beasties wafted over him. Instead, with a surprising calm, he stabbed upwards and nailed one of the bears through the chin. The blade sliced through the soft tissue and embedded into the roof of the bear’s mouth; with a wrenching twist, Spike used the knife as a handle and snapped the beast’s neck. Red blood fountained out over the snow, staining it pink as the mighty beast dropped like a stone. The dead weight of his brethren dragged the other Polar bear down; the harness that joined them twisted and held him immobile. He couldn’t back away as the chariot was blocking his way. It was over, but the polar bear didn’t know that. Spike’s fangs descended as the bones in his face shifted and changed into his demonic countenance.
“Gotcha, you furry bastard,” Spike roared and then lunged.
Buffy ducked and turned away from the swinging swipe of the two swords. She took a deep breath and moved backwards out of their reach, her eyes focused on her attacker’s face and torso, watching and waiting to anticipate her next move. At least she’d managed to get rid of the lightning bolts and the wand, forcing the supernatural being into fighting on a level playing ground. “Teach you for ignoring me,” she panted as she dipped under the flashing blades. She hooked her axe on the hilt of one and with a downwards wrench, she broke the blade off. “One down,” Buffy taunted with a laugh.
The Snow Queen howled and threw away the useless sword. “How dare you strike at me!”
“Hey, you’re the one who came after us, with the magic and the flaming bolts of lightning. We were just…umm…” She trailed off, embarrassed about admitting to being caught unawares.
“Playing,” Spike interrupted as he rose and licked his lips clean of the polar bear blood. The drained beast jerked futilely at his feet momentarily and then died. Spike sauntered over to Buffy’s side, his amber eyes flashing a challenge at the stunned Witch.
“You killed my babies,” she screamed and reached into her coat and withdrew another wand.
“God, not another one,” Buffy muttered as she sighed wearily and braced herself for the first attack.
~~~~~~~~~~
As they ducked and dived away from the bolts of lightning, the two blondes heard a weird buzzing noise. It was faint at first, but slowly getting louder and louder. Sweat was pouring down Buffy’s flushed face as she threw herself face down into the snow to avoid another bolt of magic. Spike’s body crashed down on top of hers as he tried to protect her. He swore angrily and shrugged off his now smouldering fur coat. Both of them leapt to their feet, fists balled and ready to defend themselves when they heard the humming noise.
“God, what the hell is that?” Buffy yelled over the constant noise.
“No bloody idea,” Spike called back as he twisted and jumped out of the way of another bolt of lightning. “This is getting boring. Hows about we finish the bint off…bloody hell, duck and cover your face.”
Buffy looked up at the sky in the direction of his gaze and blanched; it was filled with a dark ominous mass that was rapidly approaching them. “Oh my god.” She threw her hood over her head and barrelled towards the enigmatic woman who was not content with battering them with her magic had summoned a swarm of white bees.
The Snow Queen folded her arms and laughed as her bees began to attack. She knew that their stings were icy cold and if enough of them managed to get to her enemies’ exposed skin, then the combined venom would stop the human’s hearts.
“Ow, ow.” Buffy slapped at her face as the buzzing menaces began to sting her cheeks. She screamed and choked as several bees managed to work their way into her open mouth. “Yuck,” she spat them out and turned to check on Spike. The vampire was in pretty much the same condition as her, his face and hands covered in icy blue welts as he ran alongside her, intent on getting to the laughing woman. Both blondes waded through their tiny enemies arms, waving as they moved.
With a nod Buffy moved forward as Spike rounded off to the left and circled around.
“Lights out, bitch,” he growled threateningly as Buffy feinted forward to distract the Snow Queen. He reached up and with a deft twist, snapped her lily white neck. The Snow Queen’s eyes widened, the black depth filled with shock and then filmed over with a white milky colour as she dropped backwards. Spike dodged out of her way to stand next to Buffy. Shoulder to shoulder the two of them stood and watched as the tall witch fell backwards onto the dead bodies of her polar bears.
The Snow Queen’s long body lay draped over the blood-soaked bear, her hands falling laxly, her wand slipping forgotten into the melting snow.
As she drew her last breath, the bees vanished.
“Come on, let’s get going.” Spike draped an arm over Buffy’s shoulder and they limped off, leaving the bloody tableau behind them without a second glance.
“I think someone is trying to stop us getting to the castle and to Dawn,” Buffy muttered as she scratched at one of the blue welts on the back of her hand.
“Stop scratching, it’ll make them worse,” Spike chided her gently as he retrieved their packs and weapons.
“But it feels weird, a cold burning sensation and it itches,” Buffy complained as she helped Spike on with his backpack and shouldered her own.
“Yeah, but don’t pick at them. Your Slayer healing will kick in and your skin will be all pink and pretty soon enough.”
Buffy flushed slightly at the casual compliment and ducked her head. “Thanks, Spike.”
“You’re welcome, but if you really want to thank me, keep mum about me chomping on the bear. The whelp’d have a field day with that one.”
~~~~~~~~~~
There was a puff of pale green smoke followed by a loud popping noise. Giles, Anya and Willow all jumped backwards, waving their arms and coughing.
“Well that was a bust, the map hasn’t shown us diddly,” Anya complained as her sharp eyes scanned the map of Sunnydale quickly, trying to see if the incantation had revealed Dawn’s location.
Giles’s jaw dropped. “I don’t understand. The spell should have worked.”
Willow nodded in agreement. “It really should have worked; it doesn’t make sense.” She sighed, wishing Tara was there. Maybe if she had been, then the spell casting would’ve worked.
“It’s almost as if something was blocking the casting. Did you see how the little spark of light was repelled from the map?” Anya glanced over at Giles and Willow to see them nodding in agreement.
“It would appear that this Maleficent character has been one step ahead of us.”Giles sank down next to the research table and sighed heavily. “We’re going to have to contact Buffy, aren’t we?”
“Let’s wait until Xander gets back from driving around. He said he would take a swing through town after work, he might find something?” Willow asked hopefully. She still didn’t want to be the one to tell Buffy that Dawnie was missing.
As the three of them talked, none of them noticed the beautiful-faced woman with a cruel smile and dead eyes, dressed in black silk robes staring in through the window, observing their every move.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Seriously, Slayer, all kidding aside, are you starting to sense a theme here?” Spike poked his head into the cave he had spotted and checked it for bears. He’d had a belly full of those today.
“What, the whole fairytales trying to either eat us or kill us? Yeah, kinda noticed that one.” She peeked over his shoulder. “Is it clear? Can we stay here tonight?” The small blonde yawned tiredly. All the crisp fresh air and fighting had worn her out; she was practically dead on her feet.
“Looks like.” Spike dumped the bundle of firewood he had been collecting as they walked and hoped it was dry enough to catch. Both of them were frozen to the bone, even though the snow had thawed once they had vanquished the Snow Queen. He quickly built a fire and used his Zippo to light it. The wood spat and hissed as it caught light and then a golden glow filled the small cave with light, giving it a cosy feel. He watched the Slayer shake out their now redundant fur coats and lay them out on the ground, her slim hands smoothing them flat. Quickly she unrolled their sleeping bags and laid them over the soft fur, efficiently creating two beds for them. She sank back on her heels and pulled over her backpack, absently tucking a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. Her actions revealed the welts left from the Ice Queen’s bees.
“Have you got the food?” She poked through her backpack, searching for the packets of dried food Anya had packed for her. “Are you sure the Polar bear blood was enough? Cos there is some blood in the Thermos if you need it,” she added.
“Yeah, tasted a bit like salmon, but I’m good. Best save the Thermos in case we don’t get attacked by another beastie.” Spike quickly created a tripod for the kettle to hang over the fire. Minutes passed in silence as the two of them waited for the water to boil.
“Not as good as the porridge, right?” Spike asked as Buffy grimaced and drank down the noodle soup quickly.
“Nope, kinda gross, this stuff. But hey, beggars can’t be choosers.” She shrugged and padded out into the forest to the stream they’d spotted earlier to clean up her bowl and have a quick wash.
The vision of sensual relaxation that greeted her eyes when she re-entered the cave made her want to turn and run for a breathless moment, but sense prevailed and she had a good drool instead. Spike was stretched out with his arms tucked under his head, a strip of pale belly flesh peeking out from between his waistband and t-shirt making her mouth water. ‘Guh, he has muscles everywhere.’ A soft snore interrupted her ogling and Buffy realised he was fast asleep.
Fast asleep across both their beds.
Being the practical girl she was, Buffy kicked off her boots and lay down next to Spike. She flopped onto her side and stared at his profile, her fingers itching to trace the fire limned lines of his face. His face was relaxed and boyish in his sleep. Her hand hovered briefly over his face, and then she pulled it away. With a sigh she lay her head down and closed her eyes.
Spike’s eyes flickered open and he risked a quick peek. He’d been half asleep when her footsteps had woken him; instead of moving over he had feigned sleep to see what she would do. And the Slayer had surprised him. Instead of booting him in the ribs, she’d flopped down next to him. It was the heat from her hand as it ghosted over his face that had snagged his attention. He had been aching for her touch, but had lain still instead, holding his metaphorical breath and waiting to see what she did next.
Before he could turn to face her and demand an explanation, the slayer shocked him out of his Docs.
She turned and snuggled up against him with a happy sigh.
And he liked it…it was the best sensation of his unlife.
~~~~~~~~~
Ole hung silently over the orb, his tattered robes swaying under his feet; he had born silent witness to Buffy and Spike’s victory. All through the fight he had cheered them on, praying to the deities that the two warriors would survive.
And they had.
A small smile settled on his chapped lips as he watched the Slayer and her vampire curled around each other fast asleep. Deep down he had been worried that the Snow Queen would kill them, especially when she called on her followers to attack en-mass, but the two blondes had been triumphant. Despite his joy and hope for success and freedom, he was also worried about what the evil fairy would do to him when she returned and witnessed the demise of the Witch.
He shivered and looked over at Dawn’s slumbering face.
“Have faith, my dear, your sister and the vampire will save us all.”
A/N Splainy bit for using this incarnation of the Snow Queen - I discovered that C.S.Lewis had based his Snow Queen on the fairytale and ta da this chapter was fizzing around my head. With a few nods to the recent film of course...