Title: The Spike Experience
Author: Blue Zen
Email: i.love.spike@bloodyhell.co.uk
Distribution: Any archives that want it, take it! I’d love an e-mail with your site address though…
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Willow casts a spell, Spike has to suffer
Notes: Thanks to everyone who’s responded to this fic. Like every fanfic writer, I live off feedback so drop me a line.
Four
Willow looked around the room, disappointment washing over her. It hadn’t worked - she felt like plain old Willow, except with a dull throbbing in her head. There was no memories of being a vampire, no bloodlust, nothing.
She sighed and closed the spell book. “Oh, well, maybe it takes a while to kick in,” she muttered to the empty room. Willow uncrossed her legs and started gathering up the remnants of candles when a sudden nausea hit her. She swayed a little then staggered over to the bed, collapsing on its edge.
A whirl of images fluttered across her mind’s eye while every other sense was assaulted by memories of smells, tastes and textures. She heard voices, thousands of them laughing, crying and shouting, none distinguishable in the ruckus, each one vying for her attention. A cry escaped her lips as she pulled her comforter around her head, hoping to mute the voices in the soft material.
Spike was slowly coming round, although he was having difficulty focusing on reality. His mind was being inundated with images and sounds he didn’t recognise, each one a complete picture for all his senses. He felt queasy and frightened and confused and… with every emotion he added to the list, the influx of images seemed to slow until they became coherent.
Without opening his eyes, he could see a room. It was Spartan yet decorated with feminine twists, pink bedspreads and frilly curtains. A room he recognised.
“No,” he murmured. “I must be dreaming.”
Buffy looked down at him from the kitchen stool where she was quietly sipping orange squash. “You’re not dreaming.” She looked around, making sure Giles wasn’t looking before pouring some of her juice onto Spike’s face, “So get up already.”
He opened his eyes with a start. “I… I need to get out of here,” he said, trying to stand up.
Buffy watched with amusement as Spike made his way shakily to the front door. “Boy, you must have said something pretty bad for Giles to sock you like that. You can’t even walk straight.”
Spike ignored her, concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other. It was hard for him to think - there was two separate rooms before him, one moving - the one he supposed he was in - and, superimposed onto that one, a second, stationary room, the one with the girly décor.
After a few moments, he was at the door and just about to open it when he caught a glimpse of his reflection. His eyes widened as he saw himself for the first time in a hundred years. He opened his mouth to scream but no sound came out.
Willow was trying to cope with the whole seeing double phenomena when she was gripped by a terrible panic. It rushed through her blood like an icy river. She could feel her heartbeat quicken as she tried desperately to understand what was happening to her.
By the time he felt his pulse racing, Spike was beyond reason. Buffy and Giles had dragged the vampire over to one of the dining room chairs and were tying his hands when he started babbling about a heartbeat. The slayer and watcher exchanged glances.
“We should keep him here until he’s calmed down,” Giles reasoned, watching as Spike’s pale visage turned blue with shock. “And we should find him some blood before he passes out.”
Buffy looked up from the ropes she was knotting, “Can I ask a silly question? Why do we care?”
“Because…” Giles was at a loss. “He’s… he’s useful to have around?”
“Well, I think he’s gone mad and that we should stake him now.” She backed away from the bound vampire, “He’s babbling about having a pulse and seeing two rooms instead of one. I say that he’s finally ready to make the leap from dead to very dead. I’d be putting him out of his misery.”
“Two rooms?” Giles frowned, bending down until he was eye-level with Spike. “You can see two rooms? Do you recognise them?”
Spike closed his eyes, “Well of course I bloody well recognise them - this room here and your bloody college room.” He took a deep breath, “If this is a trick, I’ll…I’ll kill you all.”
“Big words,” Buffy murmured, reaching into her bag for a stake. Giles shook his head, pulling the purse away from the slayer.
“I think I know what’s wrong and, believe me, it’s not his fault.” He looked down at the struggling vampire, “In fact, I would go as far as saying that it was mine.”
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