Email: Inell@aol.com
Disclaimer: Joss owns them all
Distribution: My site, Kiss or Kill, http://members.fortunecity.com/kissorkill Anyone that has permission, take. Otherwise, just ask.
Rating: R
Pairing: Willow/Spike
Notes: My own Season 6 verse. Some vague spoilers. Buffy/Spike never happened.
Feedback=Gooooood! Hit reply and let me know that I'm not in this alone.
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~Part: 1~
"Yesss!"
Willow jumped when she heard the loud scream, her foot kicking her glass and spilling some of her soda onto the table. She looked up, her eyes wide as she watched Buffy doing a very strange dance of happiness. She exchanged a confused look with Dawn who was also watching the blonde dancing around.
"Yes! Yes! Yes!" Buffy said again, holding the phone to her ear as she wiggled her butt and jumped around.
"Okay...Now she's starting to scare me," Dawn whispered as she watched her sister's strange contortions while trying not to drop the phone.
"Isn't she talking to your Dad?" Willow asked, wondering what Mr. Summers could have possibly said to have created such a reaction in his eldest daughter.
"Definitely not a cause for celebration usually," Dawn said, shaking her head. "Maybe the slaying has finally gotten to her, made her crazy."
"You guys do realize that I can hear everything you're saying?" Buffy asked, pausing in her gleeful dance to glare at them.
"Uh oh, it's the 'glare'," Dawn said, the last word taking on an ominous tone as she winked at Willow.
"We're dead now," Willow said with a snort.
"Dad, I've got to go. I need to kill my kid sister and best friend right now. Thanks so much. I'll call you later to work out the details," Buffy said, hanging up and continuing to glare at them. She put her hands on her hips for added effect but only succeeded in making the girls laugh.
"Sorry Buff, but you look funny when you're trying for threatening," Willow said.
"Oh really? Why, then, do demons run and hide when they see me coming?" Buffy shot back, amusement flashing in her eyes as she saw Willow roll her eyes.
"Hello! Slayer!" Willow said, laughing. "I don't think they really look at you, or else they'd end up with a giggling fit. Oh, but hey, you could stake them easier!"
"Why do I put up with you?" Buffy asked, looking at the ceiling as she shook her head.
"Because, I put up with you so you owe me," Willow suggested.
"Oh, yeah, that's it," Buffy said, looking at her friend and sharing a smile.
"Hey, what made you do the dance of weirdness?" Dawn asked, remembering what had originally caused their laughter in the first place.
"I'm not gonna tell you now," Buffy said, smiling as she sat down.
"We won't beg," Willow said, studying her friend for any clues to what had caused Buffy's excitement.
"Speak for yourself," Dawn said, laughing. "I want to know what was so good that it caused my sister to dance around like an idiot."
"I did not dance like an idiot," Buffy defended, "I just did my own version of a happy dance."
"Why was that again?" Willow asked.
"Ha! Thought you'd get me to talk, didn't you?" Buffy said, smirking. "I'm not saying a word."
"Well, that's a first," an amused voice said from the doorway. "Can we have that in writing?"
"Spike, go away," Buffy said, shooting him a frown before looking back at her best friend and sister and resuming her smirking pose.
"Damn, I knew it couldn't last," Spike said with a depressed sigh, winking at a giggling Dawn as he sauntered into the room. "So, what are we not talking about?"
~Part: 2~
"We don't know," Willow said, glancing at him before looking at Buffy. "She won't talk."
He arched a brow as he said, "We have ways of making her talk."
Willow looked back at him, a slow smile crossing her lips as she nodded, agreeing, "Yeah, we do, don't we?"
Dawn laughed softly, knowing exactly what was being planned. Buffy should have known better than to go against the three of them. She always ended up losing. Dawn winked at Willow, letting her know that she was in support of their planned action.
"Fat chance," Buffy said, eyes narrowing as she watched Spike and Willow exchange a glance before looking at Dawn. She watched as Willow and Dawn got to their feet, realizing what they had planned by the evil little smiles on their faces. She got up and tried to get away, but didn't make it to the door before Spike's arms enclosed around her. Dawn and Willow grabbed her and began to tickle her, causing tears of laughter as she tried to break out of Spike's grasp. "Okay...okay. I give up. I'll talk!"
"That was too easy," Spike muttered, shaking his head as he loosened his grip and let her go. He caught Willow's eyes and smiled slightly, "If only the nasties knew that it just took a good tickle to get the Slayer to surrender......"
"I hate you!" Buffy said, glaring at them all before sitting back down. Remembering her conversation with her father, she smiled, "But I'll forgive you since I'm in such a good mood."
"What did Pops say to cause such elation?" Dawn asked, moving to sit on the sofa beside Willow. She noticed Spike sitting on the arm of the sofa, trying to act as if he couldn't care less what was being discussed. It amused her, his big bad act. After Buffy had died, it had just been her and Willow. Tara had gone back home after the funeral, and the others were dealing with Buffy's death in their own way. From the beginning, Spike would end up at their house, watching over them, sitting with them, just being there. They'd welcomed Spike, making him part of their family. They'd all become friends over those few months. After Buffy's return, Dawn had been worried that things would change. She knew that he had loved her sister. Luckily, in her opinion, the love he had felt seemed to have slid into a comfortable friendly type of emotion instead of the passionate feeling he had once had. Buffy had been relieved, and they'd all moved on with life. Spike still ended up at their house most nights, patrolling with Buffy and Willow, helping her with her homework, and pretty much just hanging out. He'd deny it, but she knew that he liked them, enjoyed being with them. But, she let him think that they all believed that he would rather be anywhere else.
Buffy smiled, "We, dear sister, are getting an early Christmas present."
"It's June. That's way early," Dawn said, leaning forward. "But, present! Hey! What is it?"
"A week in New Orleans, courtesy of the old man," Buffy said, laughing. "Can you believe it? An entire week! Willow, you're coming! Dad said I could bring a friend, and you're it!"
"I am?" Willow said with a smile. "Okay, no argument from me. I've never been to New Orleans."
"Me either. It's going to be so much fun! We can tour and eat and meet weird people!" Dawn said with a large smile.
"I'm going to call Giles and make sure he and the others can handle things for a week and then I'm supposed to call Dad back so he can make the arrangements," Buffy said.
"Wow, I can't believe this. You're Dad is so cool," Willow said, understanding why Buffy had been dancing. This was great news.
"He's a bloody idiot is what he is," Spike growled, glaring at them. "Forget it. You're not going."
~Part: 3~
Six eyes turned to glare at him, making him shift uncomfortably until he finally got to his feet, starting to pace as they continued to stare at him.
"Excuse me?" Buffy finally said.
"You're not going," Spike said, wishing they'd let him smoke in the house. He definitely needed nicotine.
"Says who?" Willow asked, watching his hands search his pockets. With a slight smile, she reminded, "You can't smoke in here, Spike."
"I know," he snarled at her, letting his hands drop.
"Why can't we go?" Dawn asked, giving Buffy a look to keep her sister quiet.
"Because, Niblet, New Orleans is a very dangerous place," he said slowly, giving her a look that suggested she was dumb for not knowing the answer. "There is no way I'm letting my birds prance around that city alone for a week."
"Your birds?" Buffy repeated, making a face but smiling slightly as she watched him. If you had told her a year before that she would count Spike among her closest friends, she'd have had a laughing fit. But, it was true. Since she had returned from the grave, and his little obsessive crush was over, they'd been able to just talk and had become unlikely friends. Now, his possessiveness amused her more than it infuriated her.
"Spike, we live on a Hellmouth. I sincerely doubt that New Orleans is more dangerous than Sunnydale," Willow pointed out.
"It's a different dangerous, pet," Spike said. "There are more vampires and beasties than here. True, they're more into enjoying life than destroying the world, but they're everywhere."
"Hey, enjoying life compared to world domination is good," Buffy said, seeing that he was worried about them. "I think we'd be okay for a week, Spike, but it's sweet that you're worried."
"Sweet?" he repeated. He ran a hand through his hair as he snarled, "I am *not* sweet!"
"Wait, I've got it!" Dawn suddenly said, giving them all a smile.
"What do you got?" Willow asked, reluctantly moving her eyes off of Spike's handsome face to look at her friend.
"Spike doesn't want us to go to New Orleans alone, which is understandable," Dawn said.
"You think we shouldn't go?" Buffy asked, staring at her sister as if she were from outer space.
"No, I want to go," Dawn said, smiling. "Spike can just go with us."
~Part: 4~
"What?" Spike's shout was heard over the others.
Dawn caught his eyes, "It's perfect. You can go with us, be our chaperone, of sorts. You can go out with us after dark, when it's probably the most dangerous anyway."
"No," Spike said, shaking his head. "There is no way I'm going off with you three."
"Why not?" Willow asked, smiling as she looked at him. "As Dawn said, it's the perfect solution."
"Ahem," Buffy cleared her throat, speaking up, "Are we really sure about this?"
"If Dad is letting you bring a friend, then I get to bring a friend," Dawn said, "and I choose to bring Spike. I know I'd feel safer wandering around at night with Spike looking out for us."
"Niblet, I appreciate the offer, but I'm not going on your little trip," Spike said, making a face. "I can think of few things that would be as miserable, in fact."
"Well, if you don't want to go, fine," Dawn said, frowning as she realized that it hurt that he didn't want to go with them. She sighed, "But, you can stop whining about us going, then."
"You should go," Willow said softly, catching his eyes and giving him a slight smile, "It won't be nearly as much fun without you, Spike."
"Yeah, well," he glanced from Dawn back to Willow, frowning as he saw the disappointment in the younger girl's eyes. Looking into Willow's eyes, he felt himself relaxing. With a shrug, he said, "Fine, I'll go. Can't very well let you girls go alone, can I?"
"Really?" Dawn beamed. She looked at Buffy who was smiling though she looked less than thrilled. "Chin up, big Sis. We're going to New Orleans for an entire week! Call Giles so we can call Dad back. We don't want to wait too long or he might change his mind."
Spike listened to their chattering and shook his head, asking, "What have I gotten myself into?"
~Part: 5~
"With Spike?"
Willow kept the smile from her face as she nodded, repeating for the fourth time, "Yes, with Spike."
"Our Spike?" Xander said, his expression one of disbelief and surprise.
"Our Spike," Willow said patiently.
"Are you serious?" Xander asked, looking at Willow as if she had suggested flying to the moon for lunch.
"Would you quit asking that?" Willow asked, laughing as Xander shook his head.
"No," he said before reluctantly giving in and joining her in laughter. "Sorry, it's just rather surprising."
"Dawn wanted him to go with us," Willow smiled as she took a sip of her soda.
"I always knew there was something wrong with that girl," Xander said with a laugh as he dodged a pillow she tossed at him.
"When are you all leaving?" Anya asked as she placed the box of pizza on the table. She'd had to pay the delivery driver and was afraid she might have missed something.
"In a couple of weeks," Willow said, watching with amusement as Xander opened the pizza box and grabbed two slices, devouring half a slice in one gulp. "Giles okayed it so Buffy's father is making the arrangements."
"So, an entire week in New Orleans all expenses paid?" Anya whistled. "That's gonna cost him a pretty penny."
"Isn't it?" Willow whispered, wide eyed. "He must be spending thousands! He's even giving Buffy and Dawn a thousand dollars each for spending money."
"All I can say is you are lucky," Xander said, giving her a mock glare. "Running off to have fun and leaving us here in Sunnyhell. Some friend!"
"Oh, and who will be leaving us here for TWO weeks next month?" Willow asked sweetly, reminding him of the cruise that he and Anya had planned for July.
"Yeah, well, that's next month," he said before stuffing more pizza into his mouth.
"Don't listen to him," Anya said, "I, for one, think you all deserve a vacation from this place. And, furthermore, I'm relieved that Spike will be there to keep an eye on you."
"Yeah, but who will keep an eye on him?" Xander asked between mouthfuls of food. "That's what worries me."
"You don't have to worry," Willow said with a smile after she finished chewing her bite of pizza. "Spike might be whining about going, but I think he's nearly as excited as the rest of us."
"Besides that," Anya said with a smile, "as much as he'd deny it, he cares about them. He'll make sure they have fun without getting into trouble."
"Yeah, you're right," Xander said, not able to argue that the blond vampire had become a friend to all of them over the last couple of years. With a smile, he grabbed two more slices of pizza before leaning back and saying, "You do know that many, many souvenirs are in order, don't you?"
Willow just laughed as she continued eating her pizza, listening as Anya began to talk about her long day at the store and the many stupid people she had dealt with before closing.
~Part: 6~
Buffy laid on the bed, her chin on her hands as she watched Willow typing on her computer. "Have you found anything good?"
"I've found a couple of possibilities," Willow said, smiling at her friend. "Nothing has jumped out at me yet, though."
"I'm so glad that Dad is letting us make the arrangements," Buffy said as she turned to lay on her back, looking at the ceiling. "Have I mentioned today how thrilled I am that his therapist made him feel guilty for not being in our lives the last few years, thus leading him to buy his way out?"
"Not today," Willow laughed, having heard that same statement from the blonde every day since Buffy had learned why her Dad had suddenly become so generous. It seemed that Hank Summers had begun therapy and decided that he hadn't paid enough attention to his daughters. Instead of coming to Sunnydale to spend time with them or having them come visit him, he'd given Buffy enough money for the trip to New Orleans. Buffy was very happy with his choice of repayment.
"Sorry, I'm just so glad to be getting away from here for a few days," Buffy smiled, "we're going to have so much fun! I'm so glad Dad is letting you go with us. It's New Orleans, Willow!"
"I know, Buffy," Willow said with a laugh as she continued to click on various links. "I've been researching hotel sites for hours, after all."
"You can show me some enthusiasm, girl," Buffy said, turning back onto her stomach. "An entire week in a fun place with me and Dawn."
"Don't forget Spike," Willow said with a smile, knowing her best friend was doing her best to indeed forget the blond vampire.
"As if I could," Buffy frowned. "I could kill Dawn for inviting the bleached blunder with us."
"Don't kill Dawn. Your Dad might renege on the trip offer," Willow said with a smile, her interest caught by the site she had found.
"You know what I meant," Buffy groaned, sticking her tongue out at Willow's back.
"One day your face is going to freeze that way," Willow warned.
"I hate when you do that," Buffy rolled her eyes. "Fine, I won't kill Dawn. And I will not let Spike's going with us ruin the trip."
"That's very mature of you," Willow said, rereading the description of the hotel.
"I try," Buffy said sweetly, watching as Willow turned her chair to face her. "What is it?"
"I've found it!" Willow said with a large smile. She gestured at the computer, "It's perfect, *and* they have a vacancy for the week we'll be there. I checked that first, of course."
~Part: 7~
"You've found one?" Buffy sat up quickly, moving the empty chair beside Willow's. "Let me see!"
"Look at this," Willow went back to the front page, showing Buffy the view of the hotel.
"The Hotel Saint Martine," Buffy read, glancing at Willow. "It's gorgeous."
"Isn't it?" Willow clicked on a link. "It's on Dumaine, near Royal. It shows on this map that it's a little over a block from Bourbon Street, so it's close to the action but not so close it's noisy. The room I was looking at was this one."
"Wow," Buffy said, eyes widening as she looked at the room. "That's gorgeous."
"It's a suite," Willow pointed out. "Two bedrooms, one with two queen size beds and another with a king size. There's a living room and a balcony overlooking the courtyard. From the layout shown, the king size room is interior, which means no windows."
"Which means Spike gets the king size," Buffy said with a smile. "You thought of everything, Will. It looks great. Now for the bad part. How much does it cost?"
"Actually, that's a good part," Willow said. "Since we're going in June, and it's going to be horrible weather, the price is rather low. Also, since we're staying an entire week, we can get a special discount. It will be about $850 with the tax added. No more than nine hundred, for the entire week."
"That's it? Dad estimated twelve hundred. That means more money for us to spend on other things," Buffy said excitedly. "We might actually be able to cover most of your costs, too."
"Buffy, you're already taking care of the hotel and air fare," Willow said with a smile as she clicked on the reservation button. "Do you want to confirm?"
"Hell yeah," Buffy said, watching as Willow typed in her father's credit card number. Their plane tickets had already been ordered a few hours before, leaving Sunnydale with enough time to arrive in New Orleans several hours before dusk. With Spike as a traveling partner, they'd had to be cautious concerning flight times. Luckily, Willow was great with the computer and had everything arranged easily.
"All right. We're confirmed," Willow said with a smile. "Can you believe it? In less than two weeks, we're going to be in New Orleans!"
"No, I still can't believe it," Buffy said. "We need to figure out what we're going to do. A week is a long time."
"It will go fast," Willow said knowingly. "Dawn wants to go on some tours, but I don't really have anything specific that I must do."
"Me either," Buffy said. "Tours sound cool. And some shopping. Definitely shopping."
"We *will* be flying, Buffy. That's going to limit some of the buying," Willow reminded.
"No, it isn't," Buffy beamed. "I've already thought of that. I'm just going to ship everything here before we go. I'll be able to buy whatever I want."
"That actually sounds like a good idea," Willow said.
"Don't sound so amazed," Buffy said with a laugh.
"What's amazing?" Dawn asked as she entered Willow's room, flopping on the bed that Buffy had previously vacated.
"Your sister had a good idea," Willow said, laughing as Buffy hit her arm.
"That is remarkable," Dawn said, asking, "So, did you find our room?"
"Yes, we did," Willow smiled, clicking on the site again. "Come see."
"Oh, how neat," Dawn smiled at them both, "I can't wait until we leave!"
~Part: 8~
Willow looked out the window of the plane, still finding it difficult to believe that she was on her way to New Orleans. Not only was she flying, something she had only done once when she was a child, but she was taking her first vacation in more years than she cared to count. The days had passed quickly since hearing from Mr. Summers and the actual departure of their flight. She was thankful that they hadn't had very long to wait. With only a few weeks, her patience had not been tested. She settled back in her seat, wishing for a moment that the sky outside was not dark so that she could see the land below. It was a thought that she didn't entertain long, knowing that daylight would have prevented Spike from accompanying them. That, in itself, would have made the trip not quite so entertaining for her. She knew that Buffy wasn't very happy that the vampire was acting as their overprotective chaperone, while Dawn was thrilled to share the experience with him. She glanced sideways, studying the profile of the object of her thoughts. His eyes were closed, but she knew that he wasn't asleep. She didn't know how she knew, his chest not moving either way, but she knew he was pretending. She even had a very good idea why. She was his seat mate. He didn't want to talk to her, so he was faking.
She still wasn't sure how she had ended up sitting beside the blond. It had been arranged, so she had thought, for Buffy to sit with her and for Dawn to sit with Spike. But, as they were boarding the plane, Dawn had insisted on sitting with her big sister, giving Willow puppy dog eyes and begging, claiming that she wanted to spend time with the slayer before landing in New Orleans. Willow hadn't been able to argue or protest, knowing that she would eventually cave anyway. Also, she hadn't wanted to raise any questions as to why she would object to sitting beside Spike. So, she had ended up beside the silent vampire who seemed to rather put on an act than speak to her. The trip, so far, hadn't started off very well.
She sighed as she looked back out the window, wishing she had someone to talk to. She wasn't usually a very chatty person, but she was so excited about the trip that she wanted someone to share in her enthusiasm. She could see Buffy and Dawn sitting two rows up and over, their heads bent towards each other as they talked quietly. What was terrible was that they had only been in the air for half an hour. There were still a few more hours left before they would arrive. She sighed again, wondering if she should try to take a short nap. They'd be arriving in New Orleans in the early morning hours, having enough time to reach their hotel before dawn, even with flight delays. She'd taken problems into consideration with the arrival time needing to be way before the sun rose. She had a book that she could be reading, but didn't find that idea very pleasing, so it remained in her purse unopened. She picked up the magazine that Dawn had given her to read, flicking through the pages with a look of boredom on her pretty face. She glanced up and caught Buffy looking at her. Her friend smiled and waved then made a funny face that caused Willow to smile before turning back to talk to Dawn. The smile faded as she sighed again.
"Would you stop that?"
Willow glanced at Spike, watching as he slowly opened one blue eye, giving her an annoyed look. She flushed, having suspected his ruse, but finding it rather irritating that she had been right. She gave him what she hoped was a glare and asked, "Stop what?"
"All the sighing and moving and fidgeting," he said with a look of impatience as both eyes opened to look at her.
"Why don't you go back to *sleep* and you won't have to listen," she said sweetly, though her eyes were narrowed.
He stared at her for a minute, realizing first that she was aware that he had not been sleeping and second that she was annoyed that he had been ignoring her. He frowned as he looked away from her, wishing that he had been seated by anyone other than the redhead. He'd have taken crying babies, sweaty men, gabby old women...anyone would have been better than Willow. It wasn't that he disliked the redhead. On the contrary, he liked her. Liked her? He snorted in disgust, knowing that those words did nothing to describe the plethora of emotions that overtook him when he thought of Willow. Wanted, needed, craved....those were more accurate descriptions if he were completely honest. He had thought himself in love with Buffy for a time, the emotions he felt then paling in comparison to the feelings the redhead had caused in him. With Buffy, it had been lust and admiration. Willow, though, gave him trust, friendship, intelligent conversation, curiosity, honesty, respect, and so many other things he didn't deserve. And the lust was there. Boy was it there. Even now, the sweet scent of her shampoo and lotion mixed with the unique scent of her was surrounding him, arousing him, enticing him, taunting him. He had done something terribly stupid. He'd gotten over Buffy only to fall in love with someone even more unattainable, someone that he knew without a doubt was too good for him, someone that considered him a good friend. Someone that was now looking at him with fire in her eyes, daring him to admit that he hadn't been asleep. He was going to kill Dawn, he decided. She was supposed to be sitting next to him. He'd discussed the seating arrangements before they had even received the tickets. He'd known how difficult it would be to sit beside Willow and sitting beside Buffy had never been an option, so Dawn had been the logical choice. Then, when they were getting on the damn plane, the silly little brat had announced that she was sitting with Buffy, having the gall to give him a smile when she announced his impending torture.
"Spike?" Willow's anger faded as she watched the scowl on his face deepen, knowing from hours of studying him covertly that he was lost in thought.
He glanced at her, giving her a slight smile as he said, "Sorry, pet. Wandered a bit. What did you say?"
"Nothing important," she said quietly, moving to look back out the window, allowing him the chance to fake sleep again.
He knew he should leave it alone, knew that he should have closed his eyes and gone back to his fantasies, using every slight motion of the plane as an excuse to bump her leg or arm. He looked to where Dawn was sitting, knowing that he couldn't even be very mad at the teen. She had no idea that he hadn't wanted to sit with Willow, and she definitely had no idea why he would have been against the seating arrangement. And, in a way, he had been given a chance to be his redhead for a few hours without interruptions from the slaying brood. Here he was wasting such an opportunity, pretending to be asleep instead of enjoying listening to her soft voice and seeing her special smiles. He'd been a bloody idiot. He looked back at Willow, asking, "What do you see down there, Red?"
Willow looked at him in surprise, a smile crossing her face as she realized that he was seriously asking, not just making conversation. She began to talk, answering his questions and laughing at his responses, leaning back in the seat as a small smile remained on her face, her eyes softening as she looked at him. You see, somewhere over the past few weeks, months, years, she'd had to admit something to herself. She'd finally accepted the fact that she was in love with Spike.
~Part: 9~
"What's happening now?"
"I'm trying to see," Buffy said, pausing to glare at Dawn before looking back at the mirror in her compact.
"I'm not waiting," Dawn decided, moving to stretch over Buffy's lap and glance back. With a smile of triumph, she sat back, "They're talking!"
"Really?" Buffy finally closed the mirror, taking a second to look back. She looked at Dawn, "She's laughing."
"See?" Dawn gloated, waiting for the inevitable.
"It doesn't mean anything," Buffy said, rolling her eyes. "Willow laughs a lot. She's a happy girl."
"Just admit that I'm right, Buffy," Dawn said, taking special glee in knowing her sister would admit defeat soon.
"I still think you're crazy," Buffy said somewhat more weakly than previously. She was still reeling from the conversation that she and her sister had been having, wondering if somehow Dawn had seen something that she hadn't. When they had first boarded the plane, and Dawn had insisted on sitting beside her, Buffy had been surprised. She'd assumed that she and Willow would sit together, having planned on passing the time of the flight talking to her best friend. Needless to say, sitting next to her sister hadn't sounded nearly as fun. Then, shortly after take off, Dawn had looked at her and announced in a very confident tone that Willow and Spike were in love, and that it was their responsibility as their best friends to make sure they got together. Buffy had been floored at Dawn's words, unable to even fathom the idea of Willow and Spike in love much less together in a relationship. She'd looked back at her friend, seeing that Spike was sleeping and her friend was reading a magazine. She'd given Dawn a look and said that the teen must be wrong. It had been then that Dawn had presented her a case, a very thorough case, complete with examples. It seemed that Dawn had begun to suspect Spike of having a crush on Willow a few weeks before, had decided to watch him and see if she was right. What she had learned was that Spike did have feelings for the redhead and that the feelings were returned. Buffy still believed that the idea was the working of a teenager's romantic beliefs in love, and not based on any concrete facts.
She just couldn't believe that she wouldn't have figured out that Willow was in love. She was the redhead's best friend, after all. It was annoying to think that her kid sister would have seen something that she herself hadn't. She'd been fair, listening to Dawn's belief with a somewhat open mind. Admittedly, she had seen some of the things that Dawn had seen, but she'd never have thought they meant anything other than the fact that Willow considered Spike a good friend. As she had been listening, she'd taken another glance at her friend, noticing that Spike was awake and the two were talking. It was then, watching her best friend's face, seeing the smile and look in her eyes, evident even from the distance of two rows away, that Buffy had seen the truth. Willow was in love with Spike. Or at least, in deep, deep like. Not that she had admitted that knowledge to Dawn, not wanting to give her sister the satisfaction of being right.
"No, you don't," Dawn said patiently. "You just don't want to admit you're wrong. Willow's happy with him, Buffy. I've seen it for months, in both of them. True, it took me a while to realize what it meant, but you can't deny it. Just admit it so we can move on to the next stage."
"Next stage?" Buffy looked at Dawn pointedly. "What next stage?"
"Well, see, after Dad called and set up this trip, I did some thinking," Dawn said.
"Uh oh," Buffy said, closing her eyes briefly as she shook her head. "Why does that idea give me the wiggins?"
"Shut up," Dawn said before continuing, "for some reason, neither one of them wants to admit what they feel. I mean, Spike's a vampire so that might explain him, and I guess Willow's been hurt in the past and is scared of taking the chance, but they belong together. They're my two best friends, and they should be happy. I can so see them being happy together. And, well, I decided that this trip is the perfect way for them to become closer and maybe actually be honest about what they're feeling."
"That's it. No more afternoon talk shows for you, little girl," Buffy decided, looking at her sister with a slight smile. Not only had Dawn seen something she had been completely oblivious to, but her sister had been proactive, trying to figure out a way to help their friends. She really hated having to respect Dawn. And she really hated what she was about to do, but she knew she had to, for Willow's sake. "Fine, you're right. Willow may actually, for some ungodly reason that only she would understand, have feelings for Spike. What's your plan?"
"I don't think we should really interfere too much, just try to make sure that they had time together whenever possible. You know, like having them sit together on the plane and things like that," Dawn said excitedly. Since she had decided to play matchmaker and enlist her sister's help, the trip had become even more anticipated than before. "And you will notice that I haven't once said, told you so, told you so!"
"Dawn," Buffy warned.
"Okay, sorry. Couldn't resist," Dawn smiled. "Anyway, we can't let them know that we know until they tell us because they might get weird and completely mess it all up. It's better if we just sort of stay quiet and help them whenever we see the opportunity."
"Like you did tonight?" Buffy said, nodding. "I'm still trying to figure out how I feel about my best friend falling in love with a vampire that doesn't have a soul, has tried to kill us repeatedly in the past, and is still on my list of the not so sure I trust him."
"You're feelings don't matter, Miss. Center of the Universe, or so you think," Dawn said as she rolled her eyes, rubbing her arm when Buffy hit her. She smiled, saying seriously, "Buffy, this is about Willow. If she loves him, there must be something good there. Besides, he's become a friend over the last year. Even you can admit that."
"Yeah, whatever," Buffy said, having done enough admitting over the last few minutes to last all night. "Okay, I'll help."
Dawn smiled as she settled back in her chair, deciding, "This is going to be the best trip ever."
~Part: 10~
Willow looked around the New Orleans Airport, her green eyes taking in every detail. It wasn't very crowded, the early morning, predawn hour assuring the silence. In fact, there plane seemed to have been the only one to land in the last half hour. She glanced at Buffy, smiling as she saw her best friend struggling with her suitcase. She, herself, had packed light, fitting her belongings into a normal suitcase as well as a carry on. Buffy, on the other hand, seemed to have brought along her entire closet. A large suitcase, nearly as big as the petite slayer, along with a small suitcase plus her carry on. Willow hated to think what the blonde would take for a long trip, visualizing stack upon stack of suitcases.
"What's so funny, pet?" Spike asked as he caught sight of his redhead smiling. Wait. His? Since when did she become his? He frowned as he wondered when she *hadn't* been his. After he had stopped ignoring her, they had spent the remainder of the flight talking. She'd made him laugh, her soft voice calming him and his demon as they'd flown across the country. Now, she was watching the slayer with amusement, and he found himself wanting to know what she was thinking. Her mind, her intelligence, it was one of the many reasons he was attracted to her. He'd have never expected such wit and sarcasm from her, but she seemed to delight in surprising him.
"Buffy," Willow smiled at him, pointing out the slayer.
"Yeah, she is rather funny," he said with an easy smile and snicker that caused her to smack his chest. "Ow, what's that for luv? I was just agreeing with ya."
"You were making fun of my best friend, Spike," she pointed out sweetly, knowing full well he had been priming for a joke at Buffy's expense. "I was merely smiling because of the amount of luggage she brought."
"Looks like she's going on a year long trek across the world," he muttered, his hand rubbing his chest where she had hit him. It hadn't hurt, merely surprised him. He liked the idea that she was comfortable enough around him to play, that she treated him like she treated her good friends. That was always the first step, he guessed. Become her friend before he became her lover. He shook his head, not needing those particular thoughts in his head at the moment. Not when she was standing there with that cute little smile and those pretty green eyes shining with excitement and amusement and her face flush from the heat of the supposedly air conditioned airport, and....he abruptly moved past her, giving a surprised slayer a glare as he took the heavy bag from her struggling hands. "I'll get it," he said gruffly, turning before she could protest.
"All righty then," Buffy said with a surprised look at Willow. The redhead just shrugged before reaching for her own bag.
"I guess he's in a hurry to get to the hotel," Willow suggested, wondering what had changed Spike in those few minutes. Deciding that she was probably better off not trying to understand the blond vampire, she looked at Dawn, "Do you need any help, sweetie?"
"Unlike my sister, I didn't empty out my entire bedroom closet," Dawn said sweetly, laughing as Buffy glared at her. Her eyes moved to find Spike standing near the entrance of the airport, his unreadable blue eyes flickering from Willow to the floor and back again. A thoughtful expression crossed her youthful face as she began to smile. It looked like things were already starting to get interesting.
"Whatever," Buffy rolled her eyes as she smiled, "I left a couple of things at home. I did not take the *entire* closet, so there."
"Spike, how can you have fit all of your stuff into that small bag?" Dawn asked as they approached the handsome vampire.
"He's a guy," Buffy said, "guys always pack light. It's like some rule or something."
Spike arched a brow at the slayer's words, deciding that he wasn't about to admit that he only owned a few changes of clothes so it hadn't been difficult to pack for the trip, instead letting her explanation answer for him. "Yeah, niblet. We men don't need all those fancy paints you chits use, or all that junk for your faces and such. Give us a change of clothes and we're set for days."
"So that's why you smell," Willow said with an innocent smile though her eyes were flashing with amusement as he turned to look at her.
His eyes narrowed at her statement, a growl escaping his lips as he huskily demanded, "Take it back, Red. I do *not* smell. Chubs, maybe. Smells like chocolate all the time."
"You've been smelling Xander?" Buffy said, laughing, "Dare I ask why, Spikey?"
"Shut up, you silly cow," Spike glared as the slayer ruined the moment he was having with Willow. Her smile had faded when he'd growled at her and he could have sworn he'd smelled the soft scent of arousal. Trust the big mouth slayer to fuck it up. He looked out the glass doors, wondering how he was going to make it through this little trip with his sanity intact. He finally said, "We'd better get going. I've only got a couple hours before sunrise."
"Yeah, Buffy. Mooooove," Dawn said with a giggle as her sister stuck her tongue out at her.
"Right now, Spike, the idea of you seeing the sunrise doesn't sound half bad," Buffy pointed as her sister continued to moo at her.
"Love you too, slayer," he said with a smirk as Dawn made animal sounds. His eyes caught on Willow before he looked away, "Let's go, girls."
Willow licked her lips as she ran a hand through her hair, watching as her friends left the airport to go in search of a cab. She followed behind them, wondering if Spike had felt what she had felt. And, if so, she wondered how she was going to make it through this vacation without attacking him. Give me strength, she muttered as she rejoined her friends at the taxi.