Rating- PG
Pairing- W/S, S/X, S/B (friendships.)
Summary and reasoning- because I’m fed up of Spike always being left out.
Feedback- yup. Any flames shall be giving to my pet Giraffe.
Disclaimer- Joss owns them. As does the GRR ARRGH guy.
Notes- This is a one off piece because I was feeling sorry for Spike. I’m a softy- when it comes to Spike anyway.
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“Are we all okay?” Buffy’s shrill voice echoed in the quiet cemetery.
“I’m of the good.” Xander held up a hand
“As if we care.” Spike rolled his eyes
The demon’s had been big and hairy and hard to fight but with the combined efforts of the team they were finally destroyed. Spike surveyed the damage done to the Scooby’s. Willow had a nasty gash on her forehead and a bruised jaw from where the demon had back handed her into a crypt, which had set Spike’s blood boiling and had decided the demon’s fate, no one messed with the witch when he was around. Buffy’s new top was torn, a fact which had incited her to greater destruction and she had a few scratches, most would be gone by morning. Giles was wavering, having been knocked unconscious, again, and Xander had moved pretty sharpish so he was the least injured. Spike put down his weapon.
“You okay Red?” he asked quietly as he saw her limping. She gave him a big smile which gave him a funny warm feeling in his stomach.
“Yeah.” She put her head on the side considering “Actually I’m starving.”
“Ooh food run.” Xander practically salivated
“It’s funny how slaying makes you hungry.” Buffy said with a smile
“And horny.” Willow added and then blushed as everyone looked at her.
“That’s what Faith said!”
Spike raised an eyebrow at her and she looked away embarrassed. “Well she did.” She muttered
“So we go for fast food?” Xander said with a bounce
“Giles, are you in for a little Scooby snack time?”
“No thank you I’m going to go home and ice every part of my body.” He hobbled off into the night
“Maybe we should buy Giles a crash helmet?” Willow said thoughtfully staring after him.
Buffy giggled and tucked her arm in Willow’s “A pink one?”
“With little cupids all over it.” Willow snickered
“Hey can we focus on the food?” Xander said offended “Pizza?” he held his arm out for Buffy to link her elbow through.
“No.” Willow wrinkled her nose “We did Pizza last night.”
“Italian?”
Willow and Buffy rolled their eyes “That’s just Pizza with pasta.” Buffy snorted
“Chinese? Thai? Indian? Mexican?”
“How about Burgers?” Willow said with a grin and Buffy smiled
“Yup good old fashioned American Burgers.”
Spike stood there and watched them walk away. It stung. They were so together, the damn Scooby’s all friendly and they had that inner light which proclaimed them as having a secret that the rest of the world couldn’t possibly understand. They were all warm and he was left out in the cold again. He was going to go back to his cold crypt and watch the T.V and drink his cold blood, and dream about being with the witch and maybe one day being part of the gang. Because no matter how he ridiculed those in it, he still wanted in.
It took him a moment before he realised that someone was calling his name
“Spike, earth to planet Spike?”
“What?” he almost jumped at Willow’s words, they had stopped, all linking arms like something out of the Wizard of Oz. Yeah Willow was Dorothy, Buffy was the Scarecrow- the one with no brain. That made chubs either the cowardly lion…or Toto.
“You coming?” she held out her arm and he stared at in shock
“What?” he said again
“We’re going to get food and made fun of Xander, you want to come with us?”
She was actually offering for him to come along with them? His heart leaped, did she mean it?
He looked at Buffy’s face which held a trace of amusement and Xander which just looked hungry.
“Come on Blondie, I’m a growing boy and need my food now.” Xander urged
He almost smiled but realised he had a bad boy image to protect
“Got nothing better to do.” He sauntered over putting his hand on Willow’s waist. He couldn’t take the pro-offered arm without looking like… well the Tin man probably. But he wouldn’t pass up the opportunity to touch Willow.
“Great, so now all three of you get to make fun of the Xan man?” Xander complained
“Xan man? You gave yourself that name?” Spike said incredulous
“Oh yeah, because “the big bad” is so much better.” Xander rolled his eyes “Please!”
“I like it.” Willow defended “It makes things much more identifiable.”
Spike smirked “Yeah Red likes it.” He fought the urge to poke his tongue out at Xander.
“So Xan man, the Big bad, what about me and Wills?” Buffy said rolling her eyes at Willow.
“Well I always thought Slut-” Spike began but Willow elbowed him in the ribs
“Be nice.” She hissed
“Slayer.” He amended after his respect for Willow’s aim grew.
“Xan man, Slayer and the Big bad?” Buffy pursed her lips
“Just as long as I’m not Old reliable.” Willow did a fair approximation of a growl.
“No.”
“Heck no.” Buffy and Xander said in unison with a shudder “Not Old reliable, never, no way.”
Spike raised an eyebrow; there was obviously a story there.
“Actually I like Red.” She said with a sheepish grin.
“Xan man, Slayer, Red and the Big bad?” Spike liked it, it had panache.
“And Giles can be the crash man.” Buffy giggled
“Blackout boy?” Spike joined in
“Coma guy.” Xander added
“Tweedy!” Willow said in peals of laughter.
They arrived at the Burger place.
“Umm, I’ll have a double cheeseburger with extra pickles and large fries.” Willow said quickly
“Same here.” Xander said “With two chocolate donuts and an extra large milkshake.”
Buffy shook her head “I’ll have a full hamburger with salad on the side, no pickles. No onions and extra ketchup.”
“Spike?” Willow looked at him and he felt like fool
“Uh I don’t have much cash-” he began almost embarrassed, he never had any money. He had to steal off Giles for Blood and smokes and he usually intimidated people into giving him stuff for free. He did have some currency tied up somewhere but not where it was readily accessible. He never thought about going places where he had to pay for stuff, he didn’t get invited out much…if ever and now he looked like a cheap ponce.
“Oh I’m buying.” Willow said hurriedly to alleviate his nerves. “My parents gave me a check instead of a birthday present last week.”
“I didn’t know it was your birthday last week.” Spike nearly kicked himself; he could have gotten her a present, or at least made her give him a birthday kiss.
“It wasn’t.” Willow gave him an odd look. “My birthday is not until May, but my parents never remember that. Ergo more money, so what do you want?”
*You* he almost said “Fries and a shake, thanks.”
“Make that two shakes, vanilla.” Willow said with a grin at the lady bored behind the counter.
“I’ll bring them over.” She said and walked away to get their order.
The four of them went and sat in a booth.
“So what was the deal with that Old reliable comment?” Spike wanted to know
Willow blushed heavily and buried her head in her hands while Buffy and Xander flinched.
“Well me and Xander called Willow Old Reliable.” Buffy began “And from there badness grew.” Xander nodded sagely
“Anya asked me to help her do a spell to get back her necklace from where she’d lost it.” Willow said looking up “I didn’t know that she’d lost it in an alternative dimension, which appeared when Cordelia wished that Buffy had never come to Sunnydale.”
“But Anya fluffed it up and instead of the ring appearing…” Buffy trailed off.
“Evil Vampire Willow did.” Xander finished
“You, a vampire?” Spike said with a raised eyebrow
Willow nodded embarrassed
“What, she was all bite the kittens?” Spike grinned, sweet Willow as a Vampire.
“No.” Willow said annoyed at his dismissive attitude “She was the Master’s favourite Childe.” Spike’s jaw dropped “A vicious, manipulative, skanky, leather wearing dominatrix who had Angel as her Puppy, chained up in a cage where she tortured him…i-i-in a naughty way.” her courage almost failed her until she recalled the mocking look on his face “She had the Bronze under her control in a few hours and had established herself as Master before we even knew she was here.”
Spike’s eyes were so wide she thought they were going to pop out.
“Plus the naughty touching and licking.” Xander added with a shudder
“Oh yeah, that was disturbing.” Buffy agreed
“Are you serious?” Spike said still shocked, thinking of sweet Red as a dominatrix. It definitely had possibilities. And it was making him all hot thinking about it.
“Yeah, Angel said she scared the crap out of him.” Buffy revealed
“I did?” Willow grinned
“I wish I had turned you.” Spike said without thinking
“Hey, no work talk while we eat!” Buffy pouted and then did a double take “And no turning my best friend!” she smacked Spike upside the head.
Spike almost grinned; the Slayer was treating him like a friend.
Just then the waitress came over with their food.
“Here ya go.” She put the stuff down on the table.
Xander divided the food up and then unwrapped his. Spike went to pick up some fries but Buffy put her hand on his arm to stop him.
Spike looked up into her mischievous eyes. “Watch.” She mouthed and indicated to Xander and Willow.
Spike turned to watch the two of them like Buffy was doing.
Willow picked up a long French fry and opening her burger scraped the cheese off the meat patty. She did the same with the other patty and then heaped the scraped off cheese onto one of the buns. She then put French fries on top of that and then added the pickles and salad. Xander opened his cheese burger and pulled out the pickles and salad and piled them on one of the bun slices. He then passed Willow the bun slices and Willow passed him the meat. Xander then had four pieces of meat and he put them inside his two remaining buns and took a huge bite.
“Mmm.” He grinned around his meat burger.
Willow used the bits that Xander had given her to make another French fry and salad burger and happily started eating that. They both looked up to find Buffy and Spike staring at them in amusement.
“What?” Xander asked
“What was that?” Spike pointed to the new improved Burgers
“Well, I don’t like the meat here and…and Xander doesn’t like the salad, and we’ve always done it.” Willow said with a blush at Spike’s intense gaze.
“It’s just…weird.” And must be comforting, to find someone who automatically knew what you were ordering and why, they were so familiar that they didn’t even to suggest swapping, they just did it.
Buffy began to laugh “I know, the first time they did it I couldn’t help laughing. It’s like a dance, dance of the burgers.”
Willow giggled and Xander joined in, soon they were all laughing.
That’s when it struck Spike; this is what made them such a fierce fighting team, not Slayer strength or research skills. But because they were unequivocally a team, from work through play they were together. They knew each other inside out, stories, secrets, history, flaws and all.
They had shared stories and knew how each other felt about them; they had dissected their lives together and knew every detail. Just as they were individuals, they were one.
And they were inviting him to be one of the gang. This is what he’d wanted all along. He could finally be one of them, he could finally belong. All he had to do was accept.
He smiled at Willow who eyed him knowing full well what he had just realised. “So what colour do you think Rupert’s crash helmet should be?”
The End