Title: Unexpected
Author: Hils
Email: ImmortalBeloved2000@yahoo.co.uk
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: B/S, a bit of B/R
Spoilers: General season 5
SUMMARY- Set some time after Fool For Love. Buffy finds help in a suprising place.
Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to any of these characters. It all belongs to Joss and co.
Feedback: My first ever fic so YES PLEASE!!!!

Night. Things were unusally quiet in Sunndale. What was normally a thriving colony of vampric and demonic activity lay still, as if a blanket of silence had swept over the whole town.

Nevertheless, Buffy conducted her nightly patrol of the cemetary. Although experience had taught her that when things were quiet, something was brewing, she had decided to take Riley with her. Normally she preferred to hunt alone but the past few nights had been so non eventful that she figured she could use a little company. Besides, Riley could take care of himself if something came up.

This was their third sweep of the area and so far she had only encountered one vampire. Having dispatched him quickly, it had been the only excitement of the evening.

"Do you want to do one last round?" asked Riley who enjoyed being alone with Buffy, even if it was in a cemetary which was usually populated by the undead. He was just thankful that there wasn't some apocalyptic disaster to avert.

Buffy sighed. "No, we may as well head back." As much as she didn't want to admit it, she hated it when things were quiet like this. She almost wished that there was some apocalyptic disaster to avert.

As they were leaving Buffy suddenly sensed a vampire behind her. She whipped out a stake and swung round ready to attack.

"Watch where you're pointing that thing will you."

Buffy sighed and lowered her stance. Spike. She glared at him.

"Spike, hasn't anyone ever told you that sneaking up behind the Slayer can be hazardous to your health?"

Spike glared back and then grinned at her.

"I wasn't sneakig up on anyone! You need to relax and stop being so bloody jumpy all the time"

Buffy felt her anger rising and it was all she could do to refrain herself from staking him right there and then. Spike had to be the most annoying person she had ever met. Seeing her angry just amused Spike even more. She always rose to his bait.

"And what exactly are you doing following us?" she asked, her voice full of suspicion. Spike was always up to something and more often than not it was no good.

"Just out for a walk, last time I checked it was a free country."

"Fine" snorted Buffy "Just stay out of my way. I wouldn't want to accidentally stake you"

Putting on her sweetest and most sarcastic smile she took Riley's arm and practically dragged him out of the cemetary. Spike watched them leave, shrugged, and walked off in the opposite direction.

Buffy stormed towards her house and was walking so fast that Riley was having problems keeping up with her. Eventually he caught hold of her arm and stopped her.

"Buffy, what's wrong?"

She turned to look at him. His eyes were full of confusion and concern. Trying to swallow her anger she gave him a small smile

"I don't know, just Spike stuff. He gets me so wound up!"

Riley pulled her into his arms and kissed her.

"You shouldn't let him get to you. He only does it because he knows you always rise to it."

Buffy pulled back and shrugged. He was probably right. Riley gave her a sly smile.

"You know, I know a great way of relieving tension."

Buffy smiled back. "Really? What's that?" She asked, feigning innocence.

Riley pulled her back into his arms and kissed her deeply and passionatley, wrapping his arms firmly around her. Buffy kissed him back, all her anger vanishing as she embraced him. After a few minutes they parted.

"Better?"

Buffy nodded and Riley smiled at her. She looked so beautiful standing in the moonlight.

"Buffy, I love you" he whispered.

The smile fell from her face. She cared deeply about Riley, but lately it had felt as though there was something missing from their relationship. She knew that he loved her but somehow in her own heart there wasn't that same feeling. She felt bad about this. Riley was so sweet and kind, but it seemed that that's where the problem lay. He was a little too nice. When they had first started going out she had been determined that her relationship with Angel wasn't going to interfere with Riley. At first it had been great, they had done all the normal things that a normal couple would do. They went out during the day and just spent time with each other. It had been a bit of a shock when she'd found out about him being in the Initiative, but in the end it had actually strengthened their relationship. As time went on though she found herself longing for something else. There was no excitment in their relationship, no danger.

"Riley, I..."

Her sentence was cut short as she felt something being clamped over her face. It was a cloth soacked in some foul smelling liquid. Buffy struggled to free herself but her limbs weren't responding. Her struggles grew weaker and her vision began to blur, then everything went black.

Spike had been walking around the area for about half an hour when he decided to walk towards Buffy's house. It had bcome part of his nightly routine recently, always hoping to catch one last glimpse of the Slayer before he went to bed. He knew that she would probably be there with her boytoy but he didn't care. He just wanted to see her. He was nearing her house when he spied a figure lying on the ground. He walked a little closer and saw that it was Buffy.

His initial thought was the she was dead, bested at last by some unknown foe. Fear pierced his heart and he ran over and knelt beside her. He could almost feel the tears welling up in his eyes. He looked over her prone form and saw that she was breathing, he sighed with relief and began to search for any injuries. When he found none he looked puzzled, then the smell hit him.

Chloroform. Someone or something had knocked her out and left her there. Well, it wouldn't do to leave her here. He carefully lifted her up and carried her home.

As Spike arrived at Buffy's house he saw that it was in darkness. This was good, it meant no one was home which in turn meant no awkward questions. He opened the door and stepped inside, thankful that he'd been invited. He switched on of the lights, lay Buffy down on the couch and knelt down beside her. She looked so peaceful sleeping, so beautiful. Spike had imagined this a hundered times in his head but the way she looked now was better than anything he could ever have pictured. He reached out to brush her hair out of her eyes but was almost afraid to touch her in case he woke up from a dream. His hand lightly brushed her skin which made his whole body tingle, then, without thinking, he leant down and kissed her softly on the lips.

Almost as soon as he'd done so Buffy began to stir. Spike jumped back as if he'd been burned. He climbed to his feet and sat on a nearby chair to wait for her to wake up.

Buffy opened her eyes and looked groggily around. She was at home, but couldn't remember how she had got there. As her eyes focused she saw Spike sat across from her. She sat up quickly and her eyes grew cold.

"Spike, what the hell are you doing in my house?"

"Oh, well, that's gratitude for you." Grumbled Spike, trying not to betray the disappointment he felt because she wasn't even a little pleased to see him. "I should have left you where I found you"

The glare left Buffy's eyes and she now looked puzzled. Everything was fuzzy, the last thing she remembered clearly was kissing Riley. She looked around the room.

"Where's Riley?" she asked.

Spike shrugged.

Her head clear now Buffy stood up, she needed to find him and make sure he was alright. Then it occured to her she didn't know where to look, she sat back down again.

"Alright Spike, I need some answers. Tell me exactly what happened."

Spike told her what had happened, missing out the minor detail of him kissing her.

Buffy stood up again.

"I'm going to go and have a little chat with our friend Willy. Whoever did this had the perfect chance to finish me off but didn't. I need to know why."

Buffy walked over to the door, put her hand on the knob and turned back.

"And Spike...be gone when I get back"

Without waiting for a response she left. Spike sat numbly on the chair for a minute, she hadn't even thanked him. He wanted desperatley to be angry at her, to hate her like he would have done in the days when he was the Big Bad. Instead he just felt hurt. I'm turning bloody soft! Thrusting his hands into his pockets he stormed out of Buffy's house, slamming the door behind him.

Willy quivered when he saw Buffy enter the bar. Things always got violent when she showed up.

"H-hey Buffy, how's things?"

Buffy jumped up onto one of the bar stools.

"I'll cut to the chase Willy. My boyfriend went missing tonight and I know you always know what's going on.Who's new in town?"

Willy trembled slightly but had suffered too many bloody noses at Buffy's hands to risk lying to her again.

"Well, I heard there's a new vamp in town. A guy called Leon. A lot of my regulars have been freaking out big style. Apparently he's quite a big shot."

"Where can I find him?"

"I don't know and that's the honest truth!"

Buffy raised a fist.

"I swear on my mother's grave, I don't know!"

Buffy lowered her arm again. Willy wasn't stupid enough to risk lying to her. If he didn't know, there was only one other person she could ask.

Riley slowly came back to consciousness and opened his eyes to find himself in total darkness. He could feel his arms were in heavy chains which he could tell were not going to come loose easily. His eyes began to adjust themselves to the dark but he still had no idea where he was.

"Buffy?" he whispered.

"She's not here" came the deep voice of a male. Riley looked around but could see no one.

"Who are you?"

"You'll find out soon enough."

Buffy marched into Spike's crypt but saw no sign of the vampire. This was great. When she told him to get gone she hadn't expected it to be so hard to find him again. This was so typical, he was always around when she didn't want him and now on the one occasion where she needed his help he was nowhere to be found. She turned and made her way to leave.

"Looking for me?" called Spike as he stepped from the shadows. Buffy turned back to face him.

"What did Willy have to say for himself?" asked Spike, still a little hurt at the way she'd treated him earlier.

"There's a vampire called Leon in town who's freaking out the locals. I figured that since you're so in with the vamps that you'd know something about this guy...Spike?"

Buffy suddenly saw something in Spike's eyes that she'd never seen before, fear.

"If Leon's got your boy, you'd better hope he's dead by now." Said Spike quietly.

This was beginning to scare her a little. She'd never seen Spike like this before and she'd certainly never seen him afraid of another vampire. She'd come here prepared to beat the information out of him if she needed to but it seemed like it wasn't going to be necessary.

"Tell me" she coaxed gently

Spike looked into her eyes. She'd never used a tone like that with him before. It made him feel a little more at ease.

"Leon was sired by the Master at about the same time as Darla. They were in inseparable team and he was deeply in love with her. Things were great with them until Darla sired Angel. She began to spend more and more time with her childe and less with him. In the end the Master forced Darla to choose between him and Angel. Leon was with the Master all the way and he tried his hardest to convince Darla to stay with him. She didn't. After that Leon was gutted, he went crazy and made the things that me, Dru and Angel did seem like kids games. He's had the hurt and betrayal eating at him for 200 years. There's nothing left but pure hatred now. If he's got Riley then he's as good as dead. No one's ever fought him and won."

Buffy wasn't fazed by this. She'd faced supposedly unstoppable vampires and she'd always come out on top. After all, she'd killed the master so what could be worse than that.

"Where's he likely to be hiding?"

Spike stared at her in disbelief.

"Weren't you listening to me Slayer? He'll kill you in a heartbeat."

All Buffy's reservations about using violence vanished. She grabbed Spike by the throat and smashed him against the wall of the crypt, pinning him there.

"Listen Spike. I'm not about to let Riley die. Tell me where to find him or do I have to beat it out of you. Don't think I won't just because you can't fight back."

Spike knew she would.

"The....mansion."

Buffy dropped him and he remained on the floor rubbing his neck.

"He likes solitude, so he's probably at the mansion."

Leaving him where she'd dropped him Buffy left.

As she left the cemetery Buffy passed a call box and decided to phone Giles. It didn't take her long to fill him in on the details.

"I've heard of this Leon...Just a minute." Buffy heard him rustling through his books.

"Here we are, Leon. Got his from the ancient word for Lion. Apparently the way he used to tear his victims throats made it look like the result of a wild beast."

Buffy shuddered and tried not to think of Riley being with him. She just prayed she wouldn't be too late to save him.

"So, its a standard stake through the heart job." She tried to sound calm although she was beginning to feel less so.

Giles sensed the panic in her voice. This was a formidable foe for her to face alone and was going to be more dangerous now that Riley was involved.

"Yes, but Buffy be careful. Leon has fought a number of Slayers in the past and the ones he didn't kill he left incapacitated."

"I'll be careful."

Buffy hung up the phone and continued to make her way towards the mansion. As she walked to began to psyche herself up for what she knew was going to be one of the toughest battles she'd had yet. She didn't care what the outcome of the fight was, all that mattered was saving Riley. Although she knew she didn't love him she couldn't bear the thought of him being in danger. It took her about ten minutes to reach the mansion and as she approached ti door she prayed that Spike's information had been correct

Riley's eyes had now fully adjusted to the darkness of the room and he saw that it was a vampire who was holding him prisoner. He was taller and broader than any vampire he'd seen before. His long , black hair was tied loosely in an unkempt pony tail and Riley could see his piercing green eyes shining in the moonlight. He struggled to pull his chains loose but to no avail.

"What do you want with me?" He spat, still pulling at his chains.

"You? What makes you think it's you I want?"

Riley heard a soft, low chuckle and he realised with horror that he was merely bait in all this.

"You see," continued Leon who was now stood in front of his prisoner " I've learnt that when fighting a Slayer it must be on your terms and not hers. She's bound to come here to save you so I know the battle will be on my ground."

"You're forgetting one thing." Called Buffy who was now standing in the doorway of the mansion. "I've been here plenty of times before. A friend of mine used to live here. I think you know him actually, his name's Angel."

Leon laughed, which hadn't really been the reaction Buffy had been expecting.

"Ah yes, Angel. He's the real reason I'm here actually. You see my dear, as much as I enjoy killing Slayer's, I've been particularly keen to fight you. I want to see the look on Angel's face when he finds out I've killed his one true love, I want him to suffer as much as I have."

Leon put the keys to Riley's chains on the table behind him.

"If you can get past me Slayer then your new man can go free."

Buffy put her hands on her hips.

"So, are we going to fight our are we just going to talk about it?"

Incensed with rage Leon lunged at Buffy who easily blocked his punch. The fight was on! For the first few minutes the pair were evenly matched, each blocking whatever the other threw. However as time went on Leon began to gain the upper hand. His anger and hatred were fuelling his strength and he was anticipating all Buffy's moves and throwing in some extra punches as well.

"You can't win Slayer" He cried as he backhanded her across the room so that she smashed into the wall where Riley was chained.

"Buffy!" Cried Riley, still pulling at his chains and feeling completely helpless.

Buffy climbed groggily to her feet, seeing stars in front of her eyes. As her head cleared she began to doubt whether she would be able to beat this guy. He was stronger than most of the vampires that she'd fought.

"Buffy, get out of here." Said Riley. "Don't worry about me."

"I won't leave you!" Buffy raised her fists and prepared to resume the fight when she suddenly became aware that someone else was fighting Leon. Her eyes went wide with surprise when she realised who it was. Spike. Leon seemed equally surprised although his fighting didn't stop for a moment. If anything he seemed quite amused by the way events were turning.

"Well, well, well Spike" he sneered. "I'd heard you'd gone soft and teamed up with the Slayer but I never would have believed it. I'm going to enjoy killing you. You're shaming vampires all over the world. You haven't even got the excuse of a soul that Angel had."

Ignoring Leon's taunts Spike shouted to Buffy. "Take the keys and get out."

Buffy hesitated for a second, not sure what to make of what was going on. Then she grabbed the keys and ran back over to Riley. Leon was too busy fending off Spike to stop her. She unlocked his chains and pulled him to his feet. Without pausing for a moment Riley grabbed Buffy by the arm and pulled her outside. Not letting go he began to walk back towards town. After a moment Buffy pulled away from him and turned back to face the mansion. He stopped and walked back to her.

"Come on Buffy." He urged. "Let's get out of here."

"Riley, I can't leave him."

He looked stunned and then almost a little angry.

"Spike? Are you crazy? If you go back in there he'll kill you both. It's you he wants anyway."

He took her arm again and this time she pulled away a little more forcefully.

"Listen! I don't know why but Spike risked his life to get us out of there, I can't just leave him to die."

Riley sighed. He had a good idea why Spike wanted to save Buffy but he would never admit it to himself or to her.

"Fine, I'll go with you."

"No!" She protested. "I need you to go and see Giles. Angel has a history with this guy and I need someone to call him and find out what his weaknesses are. I'm just going to get Spike out of there and make a break for it."

Seeing that there was no use arguing Riley pulled Buffy into his arms and kissed her.

"Be careful. I'll meet you back at Giles' later."

Buffy nodded and then ran back into the mansion. Riley ran back into town, still not happy with the fact that Buffy was risking her life to save a vampire. If he hadn't known how stubborn she was he would have done more to convince her not to be stupid. He was just glad he could rely on her to be careful.

Back in the mansion the fight was still going strong between Spike and Leon. As had happened with Buffy Leon seemed to have gained the upper hand. Spike was bleeding from several deep gashes on his face and his attacks were much slower and more slow and sluggish than when they'd first started. Buffy watched them for a moment, looking desperately for a way to get him out of there. She could tell be looking at him that he wasn't going to last much longer. Leon knocked him to the ground and dealt him several powerful kicks to the ribs. Spike climbed slowly to his feet only to be knocked down again. Leon leered down at him as Spike pulled himself to his knees.

"Why did you come here Spike? Was it to save your little Slayer friend? You're pitiful. Do you really think she would ever love you. You're nothing. You know what, I think it would be better to let you live. Being around her everyday and knowing she doesn't think twice about you is better than any torture I could ever inflict."

Almost as if he'd been thinking aloud Leon dealt Spike one final kick before running out of the back door. As soon as he'd gone Buffy ran over to Spike who had managed to drag himself to his feet. His eyes focused on her and it was all he could do manage a weak smile. She actually looked concerned for him.

"Spike..." She began but was cut short as he collapsed, unconscious into her arms

Quickly Buffy dragged Spike's limp body through to the bedroom and lay him down on the bed, trying to arrange his limbs so that he was as comfortable as possible before going back out into the main room. Angel had always kept a stash of medical supplies and Buffy prayed that there was still some stuff here. Sure enough there was a small first aid kit in one of the cupboards.

She picked it up and went back into where Spike was lying in the same position that she'd left him in. Sitting beside him she realised that he probably wasn't going to wake up any time soon so she set about cleaning the cuts on his face. As she worked she looked at his face and it struck her that she'd never really looked closely at him before. He was actually quite handsome, in a weird kind of way. He didn't have the conventional good looks of Riley or Angel but there was definitely something attractive about him. What are you thinking! Buffy shook her head as if that action would banish the thoughts she was having. She quickly finished cleaning Spike, then went back into the main hall and flopped down on the couch. So much had happened tonight. Leon was tough, a lot more than she'd expected, and her arrogance had nearly gotten her killed. Not only her but Riley and Spike too.

In fact if Spike hadn't turned up...she shuddered to think of what might have happened. Buffy never thought she would find herself being glad that Spike had been around, he was normally so infuriating. She got up and walked back into the bedroom to see if there was any change in his condition. He was still unconscious. Buffy pulled a chair over to the bed and sat down. It was still dark and there was a slim chance that Leon might come back. She couldn't leave Spike defenceless like this. Curling up in the chair Buffy closed her eyes, she was a light sleeper and would wake up if there was any sort of intrusion. Exhausted from the fight she was asleep in no time.

Buffy awoke to the sound of a soft moan coming from the bed. Her eyes snapped open and fell on Spike. He appeared to be waking up. His eyes fluttered open and focused on Buffy. Where the bloody hell am I? And what's she doing here?

"Hey." She said softly.

His mind began to clear as he recalled the events of the night before. The fight...and Buffy. He remembered the concern in her eyes, a look that was there again now. He was also aware of a dull ache running through his whole body. He would heal quickly, but until then he was going to hurt a lot.

"Hi. Thought you'd be gone by now." A hint of sadness in his voice.

"I wasn't about to leave you to get killed, not after....Spike, why did you come after me?" She couldn't let her intrigue rest any longer. It had been bugging her all night. Spike didn't strike her as being the 'throw yourself to the wolves' type. In fact he always looked out for himself, helping others if and when it suited him.

"I couldn't stay at home and let you have all the fun" he chuckled. He laugh quickly turned into a wince and he pressed his hand against his side. The pain had turned from dull to intense and he guessed that a few of his ribs were cracked if not broken.

Buffy had been about to ask him how he was feeling but the look of pain on his face answered her question. She stood up and looked at her watch, it was well into the morning now.

"Spike, try and get some rest, you'll be safe here while it's daylight. I have to go and check in with Giles but I'll bring you some blood later on."

Spike nodded, already looking as if he was about to fall asleep again. He closed his eyes and when Buffy was sure that he was sleeping she left.




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