Not Beneath Me - (13) Family Ties
Chapter Summary: Unknown to everyone but Riley and Xander, Spike's chip has been deactivated. Buffy had a Slayer nightmare, and Spike made love to Buffy when she woke up. Spike was able to bite Buffy during their coupling, but neither of them know why yet. Buffy wasn't freaked out by it. Spike felt Dru at the end of the last chapter, and he's wondering what she's doing in Sunnydale. Now Spike and Buffy have to figure out how he could bite her, Spike needs to contact Giles about Dru, and Spike would like to put at least a familial claim on Buffy to protect her especially now that he thinks Dru is in town.
***Warning: This chapter does include blood play in the form of a familial vampiric claiming. It also includes more sexual situations. I rate this chapter NC-17 for sexual situations.***
Disclaimer and Distribution notes are listed on the Index page of this story.
'Single' quote marks surround thoughts in this story. "Regular" quotes are around spoken words.
Buffy was the first to wake up the next morning. Spike, being a creature of the night, was deeply asleep come mid-morning. Thankfully no more nightmares haunted her once she went back to sleep after making love with Spike. She turned in his arms. It was her turn to gaze at her lover while he rested.
'He looks so peaceful and content.' Buffy traced his cheekbones with her fingertips. None of the attitude was apparent, and Spike's face seemed almost vulnerable in this state. She pondered how someone so strong could look so weak while they slept.
Buffy's protective instincts kicked in. At that moment she realized just how much Spike must be risking to be with her. She'd been so focused on the problems that she would face loving Spike that she forgot just what others of his kind would think of it. Of course he'd been fighting with the "white hats" for a while, but that was still a far cry from being in love with the Slayer.
Buffy thought back to the multiple times she woke up the night before only to be seduced back into Spike's warm embrace and passionate lovemaking. They'd made love off and on all night long in-between little naps and respites.
Spike took little bits of her blood several times during their continued couplings. They tested out different places and different amounts to see if it had any effect on his chip. The best they could tell was that since Spike wasn't intending to hurt Buffy, the chip wasn't firing. It seemed the most logical solution to the two of them.
Buffy decided it was time for "little" Spike to wake up and play. She couldn't seem to get enough of him. Her body craved him as much as her heart did. His nearness gave her a sense of security, love and warmth. His body gave her a sense of passion, love and completion. She was pretty sure that Spike didn't have a soul, but she'd swear that he was her soul mate. She needed to talk to Giles about that later. Maybe if he researched further, they could find out more about vampires than just what the Council told them.
Buffy snuck down Spike's body. She trailed her lips along his alabaster skin. He was so pale that even with only tiny filters of light in the room his skin seemed to glow. Each muscle rippled when she passed over it with her fingernails scratching down his body after her lips.
Spike squirmed in his sleep. His body tingled, and his senses were becoming more aware of the little spitfire that was teasing him to wakefulness. He groaned when soft lips pressed against the head of his cock. His groan turned into a low growl when Buffy's mouth opened and engulfed the head of his cock into her mouth.
Buffy grinned around his cock. She loved teasing him. Spike was such a responsive lover. He was so sensitive and tender in certain areas. She never realized that a vampire, who essentially had a "dead" body, could have so many nerve endings. She brought one hand down to stroke the exposed part of his shaft in time with her mouth moving up and down the first half of his cock. Her other hand cupped his ball sack, rolling the large globes in the palm of her hand.
Spike hissed and opened his eyes. The pleasure was exquisite, almost like a torture. The handling of his jewels was the last friction that his body could handle while being asleep. He leaned up and looked down his body to see Buffy between his legs. He moaned. "Cor, Buffy." He slapped his head back on the pillow and closed his eyes. "That is the most beautiful sight I've ever woke up to." He grunted out in between growls.
"Glad you approve." Buffy's voice was partially muffled because she didn't let go of her suckling when she answered him.
Spike gripped the sheets tightly. He wanted to flip them over and completely ravish Buffy. It took a considerable amount of willpower to keep those desires at bay. Every touch of her mouth was driving him to the point of crazed ecstasy. "Yes, luv, those teeth. Harder please." He begged with a whimper.
Buffy was amazed at the power she had over such a strong man. He was putty in her hands with the mere touch of her mouth. She rolled her tongue over the head before she half bit down to rake her teeth down his shaft and then back up.
"Buffy ... stop ..." Spike called out in warning. He was too close to orgasm. If she didn't stop now, she was going to get a mouthful.
Buffy shook her head back and forth. She wasn't stopping for anything right now. She wanted to show Spike just how much she enjoyed his pleasuring of her by returning the favor. Instead of slowing down, she increased her ministrations. She tightened her lips around his shaft and lengthened her strokes.
Spike growled deep. He shook while fighting off his urge to cum. He twisted both of his hands into Buffy's long tresses. He bucked up into her mouth with a fury.
Buffy buried her face down deep into the nest of curls at the base of Spike's cock. She gulped and swallowed against her gag reflex to milk him into her throat. She felt, even before she heard, his orgasm take over him. His cock pulsed and coated her throat with ample amounts of his cold cream. 'How in the world he still has that much left after all the times he came last night is amazing.'
Spike pushed the back of Buffy's head to hold her on his cock while he erupted in her mouth. He wasn't forcing her to stay there, but he was making sure she knew just where he wanted her to be. He screamed out her name when he fell over the edge. His body thrummed in pleasure with each burst from his balls to her throat.
When he was fully spent, Buffy licked up Spike's cock to make sure it was clean. She crawled up his body to curl in his arms. Buffy's breasts rubbed up Spike's chest. It made his content cock twitch in delight. She looked down at the twitching member. "You have got to be kidding me?" She chuckled.
"No joke here, baby. Vampire stamina you know." Spike snarled, flipped them over and buried his cock against the outer lips of her sex. "You make me want you more than anyone ever has." He playfully nipped at her collarbone. "And I'm just man enough to show you just how excited you make me." With that he plunged, balls deep into her pussy in one swift stroke.
Buffy's back arched into the thrust. Her fingernails left tiny trails of blood up and down Spike's back. "Yes, Spike. YES!" She quickly rose to the height of pleasure at the repeated full length poundings back against her and plunged over the edge into the abyss.
Spike's body was attuned to Buffy's in ways that no one ever could come close to knowing. They bucked and grappled at each other in the heat of the moment. Spike shifted into game face. He bent over and attacked her neck with his vampiric love bite.
Buffy fell over into another orgasm with the first pull of her blood into Spike's mouth. She shivered at the intensity. She swore that she would never grow tired of that feeling when he bit her. She craved it. Spike buried himself into Buffy in another hard stroke, cumming again within her canal this time.
Happily twittering, Spike turned to the side, curling Buffy into his arms. He soothed his words of love into her ear while he lapped at the wounds on her neck to seal them.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Buffy lay wrapped in Spike's arms still a couple hours later. She gazed lovingly into his blue eyes. Her fingers trailed over the scars on Spike's neck. She didn't even realize she was growling until Spike raised his brow at her. "You all right, luv?"
"I don't like this reminder that you were with Drusilla all that time." Buffy frowned. She knew she was being unreasonable. If it wasn't for Drusilla turning William, she never would have met him. Rationalization wasn't always apparent in matters of love though.
"There are ways to remove them, but I don't think we are quite ready for that yet." Spike answered.
Buffy raised a curious brow this time. "What do you mean?"
Spike edged the three sets of scars on Buffy's neck. One set belonged to the Master, another to Dracula, and the last to his brooding Sire. He had every reason, even without his love for her, to want to remove all traces of those who bit Buffy before. He was not about to rush it though. Mating was for eternity, and that was a little bit longer for vampires than humans. "Have you heard of vampire claiming?"
"Yes. That is where a vampire picks his eternal mate, right?" Buffy rested her head on Spike's shoulder.
"That is one form of claiming yes." Spike nodded. "It is the most serious form, and it would erase all previous vampiric bites from the mates except ones that belong to each other." He tried to explain.
"There are other kinds of bites?" Buffy questioned.
"Did your Watcher teach you anything true about vampires, luv?" Spike's exasperated sigh was noticeable.
Buffy quickly defended Giles. "It isn't like I was supposed to know about the benefits of being bit by vampires, Spike."
"Sorry." Spike sighed. "I find it frustrating how the Council claims to be the epitome of knowledge on vampires, but they have most of their facts half-assed backwards."
Buffy calmed somewhat. "With all of the years they've been around you would expect them to know what they are talking about."
"Sorry to burst your bubble, Slayer, but they don't know jack about vampires." Spike retorted. "They only tell you what they want you to know so you will kill us."
Buffy couldn't refute that point. She had reason to distrust the Council over the years. Whenever she needed them they deserted her. The Council swore that vampires could not feel or love. Looking at Spike, she knew that wasn't true. There was no way she could mistake his love for anything else. She waited for Spike to continue.
"There are two kinds of bites which are the most common. One of which I'd like to see if you will let me do right away, Buffy." Spike used her real name to impart on her just how serious he was about this.
Buffy nodded for Spike to continue. Over the years she read many of Giles' books and old Watcher diaries. She was neither stupid nor uneducated. She just didn't happen to enjoy researching in general. Now when the topic caught her interest that was different. She was interested in this topic, especially now.
"The first is a mating claim, which as you stated is, where a vampire chooses the person they wish to be bound to for eternity. It is stronger than any human marriage ceremony ever could be." Spike waited to see that Buffy was paying attention. "The second is a familial bonding."
"Familiar bonding?" Buffy asked.
"Familial bonding." Spike corrected. "This kind of bite requires a specific ritual and bloodletting and sharing between the two vampires to bring one into the other's family." He ran his fingers through Buffy's hair. "It is said that the ritual chants create a type of protection spell around the one being bitten to protect that person from the other's family hurting the new member. It also encourages other family members to protect the new member."
Buffy thought about what he was saying. "So that would mean that if Angelus or Drusilla tried to hurt me, they couldn't?" She doubted that Angel would ever physically hurt her, but it was possible for Angelus to make a reappearance. She wanted to be sure she had all her facts straight.
"Yes." Spike growled at the mention of his Sire and his ex-lover. "That is one reason why I want to do this type of claim."
Buffy gazed at Spike in confusion. "Angelus isn't back, is he?" She shivered at the thought.
"No, the poofter is still ... poofy." Spike snarled. "But last night I felt Dru near. I think she is creating a new family as well."
It was Buffy's turn to shiver. "That is not of the good."
"No, it isn't." Spike agreed. "I don't know why she would be here unless she felt or heard about my feelings for you." He had no idea what had been happening in Los Angeles or about Darla's return to the "living".
Buffy buried her face in Spike's chest. "So, you want to do this claiming to protect me from her?"
Spike nodded. He kissed the top of Buffy's head. "I know you can take care of yourself, luv, but I want to do what I can to add to your safety. I love you too much to lose you."
"That is so sweet." Buffy cooed softly.
"I am not sweet, Slayer!" Spike bit Buffy's ear with his human teeth.
Buffy giggled. "Okay, romantic then." She teased. "But you are sweet too."
Spike rolled his eyes. "Don't make me prove to you just how much of a Big Bad I still am."
Buffy wrapped her hand around his cock and squeezed. "Oh, I know just how big and bad you are, Spike."
Spike closed his eyes and groaned. "You don't fight fair, pet." He buried his face in her hair. "As much as I would love to go another round with you, this is something we should do soon."
Buffy pulled back to gaze into Spike's worried eyes. "You are very concerned about this, aren't you?"
"Yes." Spike sighed resignedly. "If Dru is back, it can't be good. You don't need problems from her on top of everything with Glory."
"I'll agree with you there." Buffy frowned. 'Why did she have to come back now? Was my dream a Slayer dream?' She shivered at the thought of losing Spike now. "What do we have to do?"
"First I think we need to call the Watcher over here, Nibblet too. They need to know what we want to do."
"Giles is never going to go for this." Buffy was afraid of what Giles would say. He seemed to be tolerant enough of Spike so far, but what would he do with the knowledge that Spike wanted to bite her.
"Watcher is a reasonable man most of the time, luv." Spike reasoned. "If this will help you, he will go along with it."
Buffy sighed. She wished she had Spike's confidence on the matter. Dawn loved Spike. She wasn't a concern. A protective Watcher was a definite kink in the chain link fence.
"Why don't you go call him, pet?" Spike kissed Buffy softly and reassuringly. "I'll go make us some breakfast. Then I can explain to you what we need to do."
"Okay." Buffy nodded. She had an uneasy feeling about how this day was going to turn out. She trusted Spike implicitly, but images from her dream kept haunting her. What parts of it were prophetic, and which parts were merely her own fears?
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The knock at the front door caused Buffy to jump off the living room couch. She felt more nervous than a child who was in trouble for stealing candy from the candy jar. "I'll get it Spike." She stood up to answer the door. "Hello, Giles." When they ate breakfast, Spike explained everything about the ceremony. She was as ready as she ever would be to try and explain things to Giles.
"Hello, Buffy." Giles appeared nervous as well. He faced up to the fact that his charge was in love with another vampire. He couldn't fathom what they wanted to talk to him about though. His mental checklist of topics included quite a few that he didn't even want to consider yet. He had been quite surprised to receive Buffy's call a couple hours ago.
Dawn practically bounced into the house before Giles even moved from the porch. She hoped they were being asked over to hear good news about Spike and Buffy getting married or something. Nothing registered in her mind that it might be too soon for such a declaration. She only knew that Spike and Buffy asked Giles and her to come over before the hospital to discuss something important.
"Please come into the living room. Spike will be right in." Buffy held the door open for Giles. When everyone was inside she closed it. The living room was dark, except for a lit lamp. The window had a heavy blanket over it to protect Spike from the sun's harmful rays.
Spike finished the pot of tea he was working on in the kitchen. He replaced the lid on the teapot before he added it to the tray he made up. This was going to be quite a conversation with the Watcher. He picked out two mugs instead of Joyce's finer teacups. 'No sense in taking any chances with Joyce's better dishes if the Watcher gets upset at my proposition.' He placed a little jar of creamer and a sugar container onto the tray. He then walked towards the living room.
"Tea, Rupert?" Spike set the tray down on the coffee table. 'It was funny how they call it a coffee table and not a tea table. How strange these Americans are.' William noted.
"Yes, thank you." Giles watched Spike pour a cup of tea for him. Both of them were British by birth, but Spike always seemed to carry a ruffian or low district air about him. Even his accent seemed to come from the seedier side of town. It intrigued him in moment's like these to see a more proper Englishman style emerge. It often made him wonder if the information the Council had on William the Bloody was accurate. He was too upper crust to be who they thought he was.
Spike poured a cup of tea for himself as well. He knew that Buffy was too nervous to drink anything. She still had some Diet Coke left in a can that he gave her earlier while they waited too. He set a glass of milk and a couple chocolate chip cookies in front of Dawn. He knew just what his girls liked.
Spike offered the cup of tea to Giles and moved the tray of accoutrements (cream and sugar) forward as well. "Help yourself."
Dawn nibbled on one of the cookies. She was saddened when she thought about when these cookies were made. She and her mother made this batch of cookies right before her mom went into the hospital. She sighed softly, but she hid her pain fairly well. Only Spike noticed the look on her face, and she half smiled to tell him that she was okay.
"Spike and I are contemplating something that we'd like your thoughts on." Buffy nervously twisted her hands in her lap. "I know you are probably going to freak out, but I hope that you will hear us through."
Giles always worried when Buffy appeared this nervous or upset. Not much put a sense of fear or concern in her. He knew he was not going to be happy about whatever it was. "I promise to be as open minded as possible. I can't promise I'll agree to whatever it is you want to do though."
"That's all we can ask for, Watcher." Spike hoped that Giles didn't fuss too much over it all. Humans couldn't fathom that vampires were anything but heartless killers. He had to explain things in a way that Giles would accept them.
Buffy nibbled on her lower lip. "I wouldn't ask you to accept this if I hadn't thought about it very hard."
Giles nodded in understanding. 'At least she isn't going off half-cocked on some idea.' He loved Buffy, but she did have a tendency to act first and think later. Her asking to talk to him was a big show of her continually growing maturity. He added a bit of cream and sugar to his tea. He motioned for them to begin while he stirred his tea before sipping it.
Spike repeated all of what he told Buffy earlier in the morning. He told Giles about his feelings for Buffy, the nearness he felt of Drusilla, and how he knew that Dru made at least one Childe if not more since she returned to Sunnydale. He explained the difference between certain types of vampire bites, and he outlined what he wanted to do with Buffy. "I know Buffy can take care of herself, but this would give her an extra line of defense especially against those from my own clan." He also told Giles how it seemed he was able to bite Buffy so long as he wasn't intending to hurt her.
Buffy took Spike's hand in hers in a show of support. "I agree with Spike on this, Giles." She squeezed Spike's hand in assurance. "We have given thought to an actual mating later when things are a bit calmer. We don't want to rush this, but if Dru is back she is bound to know that Spike and I are together."
Spike nodded his agreement. "Dru always seemed to have a sixth sense about things. She was a bit looney, but you'd be amazed at how accurate her visions were."
"Let me get this straight." Giles, long having removed his glasses, continued to clean the lenses to pristine condition. "You wish to place a vampire bite on Buffy in such a way that other family members would not be able to harm her but be forced to protect her."
"Any of our family could try to fight the urge to protect her, but they would find it very hard to hurt her. It is more than just a bite. The words chanted with it are like a spell of protection over the one bitten." Spike placed his teacup back on the tray. "It is the only way that I know of to completely protect Buffy from Dru." He sighed. "Dru may not want me over the poofter, but she is pretty possessive. You can be sure she would try to kill Buffy to keep me from Buffy. She always was a selfish bint."
Dawn, who sat back for the most part to take in the conversation, finally spoke up. "If it will help Buffy out, then I am all for it." She moved over to hug Spike first and then Buffy. "Spike loves her, and I don't think he'd do anything that would hurt my sister. I trust him."
"Thanks, Nibblet." Spike hugged Dawn tightly. It meant a lot to him to have her trust. "It matters that you trust me."
Buffy looked at Giles. "Will you trust us, Giles? Please?" She was tense with worry and concern over his disappointment. She knew things would run much more smoothly if he would accept this part of Spike.
"I don't agree with taking a chance on your life, Buffy." Giles held up his hand to stop either of them from voicing their objections to his statement yet. "But I can not deny that Spike has indeed been trying to fight on our side for quite a while now."
Spike exhaled the unnecessary air he held in his lungs. There was no way he was going to lose Buffy now that they realized their love for each other. He might as well walk into the sunrise if he let her die, or didn't stop her from dying.
Buffy rested her head against Spike's shoulder while Giles continued. "I would like to request that I be present, if that is agreeable with both of you."
Spike looked down at Buffy. He nodded his head that he was all right with it. "The familial bite doesn't require the intimacy that a claiming bite does. I don't have any objections."
Buffy nodded her agreement as well. "You are definitely not going to be there for the claiming though Giles. So don't even think about it."
Giles was flustered. "Why I ... never Buffy ..." He blushed further.
Inwardly Spike grinned. 'Hear that Nancy Boy. Our lady talked about the claiming as if it is happening. She didn't say maybe or if.' He loved to tease William.
William held himself back from literally making Spike jump for joy. 'Yes, I noticed that too you beast. Stop calling me a Nancy Boy or it's going to get real ugly in here the stronger I get. I'll push you so far back into the recesses of his mind that you won't be able to find your way out.' The more both sides reconciled themselves to each other, the more equal they became in all ways.
Spike mentally gave his counterpart a playful punch. 'You know just as much as I do that we both need each other. We aren't complete without the other.'
'Doesn't mean I won't try to thwap you if you get out of hand.' William felt invigorated from all of the love he felt from their beloved Buffy. The rejection that he kept expecting wasn't happening. Dawn and Buffy both accepted him how he was, and he knew that Joyce gave her approval. He still needed to more formally ask for Joyce's permission to court, but that could wait until she was out of the hospital.
'Yeah, yeah. So you say.' Spike playfully nipped William. 'Everything is going too well. I'm waiting for the other shoe to fall.'
'I know what you mean. That dreadful Drusilla woman is going to muck things up somehow. Remember Miss Buffy's dream.' William reminded.
'She may have been the love of my unlife for the last 100 years, but she isn't anymore.' Spike retorted. 'If she comes near Buffy to harm her, I will kill her. Nothing will keep the stake from reaching her heart from my hand.' His thoughts were echoed out loud at a similar question from Giles.
"What will you do if you do encounter Drusilla? I know that she was like a Sire to you." Giles questioned. "She did actually drain you and choose you."
Buffy straightened next to Spike. She hadn't given any thought to what Spike would do with Drusilla if they met her. Her training engrained that she was supposed to kill vampires that tried to kill her, but Drusilla was with Spike for a long time. Would he be able to do it?
"I loved her for near to 100 years, Watcher." Spike began, "We went through a lot of things together, but if she comes near Buffy to harm her in any way I will kill her. That isn't even a question in my mind." He stood firm in his resolve. No one would stand in their way. Buffy was willing to stand up for him to the Scoobies and her family; he must be willing to do the same.
Giles put his glasses back on. "Then it would seem everything is settled." He sat back on the couch. "If Drusilla is back, then I am assuming you wish to do this as soon as possible?"
"Yes." Buffy quickly put in. "We were thinking about doing it before we went to the hospital tonight.
"That would be wise." Giles agreed. "Do you need any time to prepare?" He directed the question to Spike.
Spike shook his head back and forth. "Not really, but I would like to talk to Buffy again before we go through with this." He pulled Buffy towards the stairs. "We'll be in her room. I'll call down in a couple minutes."
Giles and Dawn stared blankly at the now empty stairs. Both Buffy and Spike practically ran up them so fast that they surely couldn't have stepped on each stair. Dawn shrugged. "Guess they were in a hurry." She chuckled. Giles tried to hide his mirth by taking another drink from his cup.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Are you sure about this, luv?" Spike sat down on the side of Buffy's bed. He held both of her hands in his. "I don't want you to do this just because you are worried about Dru."
"I'm sure." Buffy cupped Spike's cheek. She rubbed her thumb over Spike's lips. "I don't see it as a protection or a have to do thing. You are giving me a special gift from you, Spike." She leaned in to press a soft kiss to his lips. "It is a gift I am happy to accept."
Spike beamed. He pulled Buffy up against his body and kissed her. The kiss started off slow and consoling, but it ended up deep and passionate. He needed to feel her close to him. He needed the reassurance that she was his. He longed for the day when he could claim her as his mate. For now this would have to do. "Let's get the Watcher up here then."
Buffy nodded. She stood up, opened the door, and called down for Giles to come up. Dawn was right behind him. At Spike's raised eyebrow Dawn snarked, "What you didn't honestly think I wasn't going to watch, did you?"
Spike laughed. "I should have figured you wouldn't want to miss the fun." He teased. He drew Buffy back down onto the bed. He pulled a stake from Buffy's nightstand.
Buffy raised a brow in curiosity as to how he knew she kept one there. She watched as Spike handed the stake to Giles. She looked back at Spike fearful.
Spike ran his fingers through Buffy's hair. "Just in case we're wrong about why I can bite you."
"You didn't lose control last night or this morning when you bit me." Buffy tried to counter Spike's concerns.
Spike caressed his other hand along Buffy's jaw. "I don't want to take any chances. You mean too much to me." He trailed his fingertips along her jugular. "This requires a slightly deeper bite. The blood will flow heavier this time."
Giles watched the exchange between the couple. He was reminded again of just how much Spike dedicated himself to those he cared about. The Council's claims that a soul was necessary for any being to feel emotions was being unproven yet again before his very eyes. Good or bad, this vampire felt with all of his being.
Buffy pulled her long blonde hair away from her neck. She exposed the golden skin to him. Her heart raced in anticipation of the bite from her lover. Her eyes focused on his, and she never let her gaze falter.
Spike leaned in closer to Buffy. He lowered his face to her neck. A soft human tongue licked and curled up the line of her jugular. He nibbled, suckled and nipped at the skin to encourage more blood flow. He wanted this to be as painless as possible for Buffy.
"Do it, Spike." Buffy inhaled sharply. Her eyes closed and a soft moan slipped past her lips. "I trust you." She wrapped her fingers in the bleached curls at the back of Spike's neck to hold his face tight against her neck.
Spike shifted into his game face. A now roughened tongue scratched against Buffy's skin. His canines elongated, he kissed her neck, opened his mouth, and allowed his fangs to pierce her skin. He tightened his jaw on her neck to bite down more deeply than he had when they made love.
"Oh God." Buffy whimpered out. The bite stung a lot at first, but it gave way to the same pleasures that she'd felt when they made love.
Giles started to step forward to Buffy. He clutched the stake in his hand, but he really didn't want to use it. He wanted this to work out for Buffy and Spike. Dawn stiffened beside Giles, but she stood firm in her place. Giles relaxed when he saw the pleasured look take over in Buffy's features.
Buffy splayed the fingers of one hand on Spike's back. Her fingernails dug into his shirt, surely drawing blood beneath the cloth. Her face turned from a mask of pain to one of delight as Spike pulled more of her blood into his mouth.
Spike pulled his fangs from Buffy's neck. He allowed the blood to flow and chanted. "Blood is the flow of life. It is offered freely and in reverence for protection and joining of families." He took a hold of Buffy's wrist and slit his fangs along first her wrist and then his. He placed both cuts together to allow their blood to mingle.
Buffy reached for a nearby scarf on her nightstand. With a nod from Spike she tied the scarf around their wrist like a handfasting cord. The warmth of her blood slipped down her neck to dip in the hollow along her collarbone.
Spike licked the trail of blood back up to the source. Before he bit down again he chanted again. "My blood exchanged with yours to bring you into my family. Sworn by our bond to defend until dust. Let no harm come to this one through my blood or the blood of others in my lineage." He buried his fangs into Buffy's neck again in the same spot. He gulped down two more mouthfuls.
Buffy felt her arousal increase. If Giles and Dawn weren't standing right near the bed she would have impaled herself on Spike's cock in a heartbeat. As it was she squirmed around so much on the bed that Spike growled to warn her to remain still.
Spike's demon receded once he licked the twin puncture wounds clean to seal them. The demon fought against William for a few moments before going away, wanting to complete a true mating claim. Finally satiated and soothed for now, his demon returned to the back and Spike's human face came to the fore. "May the family tie be complete." He pulled back to look into Buffy's face. He nodded for her to say what he told her to say earlier.
"Your family is mine. By your will protection divine." A flash of light surrounded Spike and Buffy for a brief moment. It wasn't bright enough to be blinding, but those who witnessed it saw a twinkling light pulse down from Buffy's head to her toes.
"Intriguing." Giles spoke when the ritual was complete. He set the stake on Buffy's dresser. He pulled on Dawn's arm. Even though he knew Spike wasn't claiming Buffy as a mate yet, he knew what the looks in their eyes meant. "We'll just meet you at the hospital."
"Wait I ..." Dawn protested until Giles pointed to Buffy and Spike who were locked in a passionate embrace and heated kiss now. "Um yeah. I'll be at the hospital with Mom and Giles."
Giles and Dawn walked downstairs and out the door. They left the two lovers to complete each other and assure each other of their love.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Dru danced around the warehouse that she found near the docks of Sunnydale. She caressed the back of her hand down the pale cheek on the table. "You will rise soon, my darling tin soldier." She giggled with glee. "And then you will bring my Spike back to me after you kill the nasty Slayer."
Dru screamed and hit the ground. "No! NO!" She pulled at her hair. "He couldn't do that to me!" She squealed at the tightening in her throat. Her mind whirled at the sensations she was picking up from their familial bond. She looked up, full vampiric demon to the fore. "He will pay for this abomination. No Slayer will ever be a part of our family!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Xander wrung his hands together. 'How did I let myself get talked into this?' He paced back and forth in the hospital parking garage. He visited with Joyce for a while to find out when Buffy and Spike where supposed to come by. When he found out that they wouldn't be there until evening, he headed back downstairs to get his car.
"Riley better be right about that chip, or I am going to look like a real idiot." A part of him laughed at the irony of that statement. A part of him knew that he was being stupid and prejudiced, but the other stronger side of him wouldn't listen. As he got into his car he started repeating to himself, "I'm doing the right thing. I'm doing the right thing," the whole way to Revello Drive.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Not Beneath Me - (14) Hitting The Proverbial Fan
Chapter Summary: Giles and Dawn are back at the hospital with Joyce. After a little comfort sex after the familial claiming, Spike and Buffy are now trying to get ready to head to the hospital themselves. Xander, in his usual blind hatred for Spike, is at the Summers' house ready to prove that Spike's chip doesn't work. It is his hopes that Buffy will dust Spike immediately. Is he right or does Buffy love Spike enough to trust him? Dru felt the familial bond engage due to her being in Sunnydale. How will this affect her plans to get Spike back into the fold?
***Warning: If you love Xander and/or can't see how his prejudice affected things on the show then don't read this chapter. You won't like it. I do like Xander on his own, but his hypocrisy over the years was just too much for me, and it comes out in this story. Maybe he will redeem himself some way before the end of the story. I don't know.***
Disclaimer and Distribution notes are listed on the Index page of this story.
'Single' quote marks surround thoughts in this story. "Regular" quotes are around spoken words.
Xander parked alongside Joyce's SUV in the Summers' driveway. He stared at the house for at least another 10 minutes before he gathered enough courage to get out of the car. He patted his jacket to be sure he still had his stake with him. Buffy usually had her own everywhere she went, but he was happy to supply the stake for Spike's dusting if she didn't have one available.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Inside the Summers' household Buffy was adding the finishing touch to her make up. She didn't bother with a scarf or make-up to cover the bite marks on her neck. The wounds were already mostly healed, but the red dots were still noticeable enough. Giles and Dawn already knew about the marks. She was pretty sure one of them would spill the beans to her mom before she could get to the hospital too. Giles would want to offer some explanation as to why he was there with Dawn while Buffy and Spike were not.
Buffy decided to wear her hair down. The casual observer wouldn't understand the wounds on her neck. Her hair would sufficiently cover them unless she turned her head quickly enough to brush the hair from her shoulders. Besides, Spike preferred her hair down over her shoulders. Of course he loved her hair up if he could nibble on her neck, but she decided not to be too much of a tease today. They were going to be at the hospital spending the evening with her mom. It wasn't exactly the most romantic of places. She needed her focus to be in the right place.
Buffy turned her head from one side to another, examining her profile. She pulled her blonde tresses aside to admire the marks Spike left. She found herself in awe at the precision of his bite. He bit her several times during the night and morning. He bit her more deeply for the ritual. Then he bit her again when they made love after the ritual. Yet she only had one set of twin puncture wounds on her neck. No one would be able to figure out how many times she'd been bitten. "Amazing." She muttered.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Spike hummed a merry tune from his childhood in the shower. He was so happy that it scared him. Whenever life started getting good, someone was bound to throw a monkey wrench in things. He refused to let dark concerns overtake his current state of contentment.
Spike grinned in amazement at the feelings he was sensing from Buffy. The familial protection bond brought them closer together. The repeated times he consumed her blood over the last 24 hours further deepened and enhanced any bonding effects.
Spike felt how Buffy was preening over his marks. It made him proud and chuckle at her curiosity. Her acceptance of his bite hit him a little closer to home. Each time she allowed him to bite her, he felt the barriers and insecurities between demon and man evaporate further. He longed for the day when he could claim her as his mate. It seemed to be more a matter of when than if she would be his mate. He no longer doubted that fact within himself.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
So much had changed in her life in such a short time. Just last week Buffy's mom was working on the plans for her next buying trip. Now Joyce was not only in the hospital, but she just survived a grueling brain surgery involving a tumor. Last week she was frustrated about Riley pressuring her and smothering her. This week her boyfriend, Spike, fit in her life, heart and body like Riley never could.
Even with Glory still on the loose, her mom recovering in the hospital, and worrying about how upset her friends would be over her boyfriend, she couldn't help feeling that her life was starting to feel good. She had a better chance against Glory with Spike helping her protect Dawn. Even Giles was being amazingly understanding about everything. She held out hope that the two Brits would continue to grow closer.
Buffy knocked twice on the bathroom door before she opened it. "Spike?"
Spike poked his head around one side of the shower curtain. "Yes, luv?"
Buffy patted the neatly folded black t-shirt and black jeans she placed on the counter. "Mom had these washed from one of our messier patrols. Remember that Calgon demon a couple weeks back?"
"You mean the Culgana demon, pet?" Spike hid his amused grin behind a sassy smirk. It was adorable how Buffy mixed up the names of demons. Half the time he wondered if she did it on purpose to frustrate her Watcher. Buffy wasn't stupid.
"Yeah, that one." Buffy made an "ick" face. "That thing sure was slimy, and did it have to spit that yellow goo at us?"
"He was a nasty bugger, wasn't he?" Spike agreed. "There's no way Mum was able to get the stains out of your light pink baby tee, was she?"
"No, she wasn't. That one headed for the trash as soon as she saw it." Buffy tipped her head slightly sideways. "You remembered what I was wearing?"
"Um ... Well ... You see ..." Spike stuttered to come up with an explanation that didn't sound too obsessive. "I told you that I've loved you for a while. I notice and remember a lot of things about you." He cringed at how pathetic he sounded.
"Oh really?" Buffy responded with an amused expression. "Should I be worried about a stalker?"
"Not anymore, luv." Spike teased. "I get to live here now, remember?"
Buffy beamed. "Seems I do remember an invitation of that sort being given."
"You bet you do. Not going to let you change your mind now." Spike made a shooshing motion with his hand. "Now let me finish my shower before the water gets cold."
"I thought temperatures didn't matter to vampires?"
"Just because the cold doesn't affect me like it does you, doesn't mean I don't prefer a hot shower over a cold one." Spike stated very matter-of-factly.
"Fine then. I know when I'm not wanted." Buffy teased Spike. She heard a wet cloth hit the door behind her. "I'll go make us some lunch." She called through the door. After she heard a muffled, "No cooking," she headed downstairs. "No one ever trusts me to cook."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The door refused to budge when Xander turned the knob. 'That's odd.' He thought. 'The door is usually unlocked during the day.' He located the right flowerpot, dug into the soil, and pulled out a house key. 'I hope they haven't left already.' He wiped the dirt from his fingers onto his jeans. He slipped the key into the lock, turned it and opened the front door. His entry seemed to be missed by the other two people in the house.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Spike's hearing wasn't as acute with the shower running. Everything he felt from Buffy was positive. Plus he wasn't concerned about any Childer Dru would have created because it was the middle of the day. Besides the tune coming from downstairs was all he needed to hear to determine Buffy's sense of safety and joy.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Alternately Buffy sang one of her favorite sappy love songs while working on lunch in the kitchen. “Did you ever know that you’re my hero? You’re everything I wish I could be. I could fly higher than an eagle. Cause you are the wind beneath my wings.”
Buffy belted out each note with the confidence of a natural vocalist singing her favorite song. The fact that Wind Beneath My Wings by Bette Midler was the song Buffy told Spike she wanted played at their wedding while under Willow’s spell wasn’t a coincidence. It was one of her favorite songs, and the words seemed appropriate now more than ever. She continued to chop up some vegetables for her salad as she started in on the second verse.
Xander turned towards the kitchen. He clearly heard Buffy singing. It furthered his resolve to hear that song. He’d heard enough teasing from Spike towards Buffy about that song. He thought he knew what it meant. From the doorway to the kitchen Xander yelled. “Ah HA! I was right! It is a spell!”
Buffy let loose a shrieking scream. Nothing and no one snuck up on her successfully anymore. How had she missed the door being opened or Xander coming to the kitchen? He wasn’t exactly known for his stealth. She had to be careful. He could have been Glory.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Spike practically fell back into the tub when Buffy screamed. He’d almost finished drying off when he felt her panic and heard her shriek. He was out of the bathroom in a heartbeat and down the stairs. He grabbed Xander by the neck from the back and flipped him at the dining room wall without a thought.
Buffy stared at Spike bug-eyed. His whole naked body was taunt and his demon was in control. His golden eyes were focused on Xander as the enemy almost as if he didn’t recognize who he threw.
Xander groaned from his place on the ground. He hit the wall so hard that one of Joyce’s lithographs fell down next to him. He pressed one hand to the back of his head. A lump was already forming there, and he felt the warmth of his own blood. He would be lucky if he didn’t have a concussion. He tried to pull himself up, and he groaned harder at his protesting muscles. He tried to take a step closer to Buffy, but Spike stood in his way.
Spike growled more loudly the second time Xander tried to sidestep him to reach Buffy. The scent of Xander’s blood filled him, but he didn’t attack him to drain him. His only concern was to protect his lover. His hand shot out, wrapped around Xander’s throat, and he pushed him back against the wall.
Buffy rested her hand on Spike’s arm. She tugged on it gently. She needed to get his attention before he squeezed the life out of Xander. ‘Wait a minute!’ Her brain kicked into overdrive. ‘He threw Xander into the wall, and he is choking him.’ She looked over Spike closely. He looked totally ticked, but she saw no trace of pain in his face from the chip firing. “Spike.” She shook his arm more forcefully. “SPIKE!” She yelled when he didn’t respond.
Spike heard Buffy calling his name through a haze of red anger and protectiveness. Whether the bonding was only on a familial level or not, his demon saw Buffy as its mate. She was his to protect and care for. The sound of her fearful scream drove William’s more passive tendencies to the background. All that existed in those first few minutes were the same thoughts repeated over and over in his mind. Buffy. Protect. Stop. Kill. Enemy.
Xander gaped in fear. Spike’s hand tightened around his throat harder every time he tried to move free. He started to panic. Buffy appeared dazed, and she wasn’t working all that hard to stop Spike. ‘This was definitely a bad idea.’ He gulped hard. ‘She has to realize by now about the chip no working.’
Buffy grabbed Spike’s chin to force him to face her. She looked up at his face with pain in her own. She had no idea what was going on, but something wasn’t right here. Spike shouldn’t be able to hurt Xander. She reached up with her fingertips to caress them over his ridged forehead. “It’s okay, baby.” She tried to comfort him. “I’m safe. He didn’t mean to scare me.”
Spike looked between Buffy and Xander. He snarled a warning to Xander and let go. He turned back to Buffy with a softer smile on his demonic face. Even William didn’t like Xander. William was more than happy to let Spike kick Xander’s arse, but Buffy asked him to stop. So they would stop. His face shifted back to his human mask. He pulled Buffy tight to him, wrapped his arms around her protectively, and walked back into the kitchen with her.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Xander gasped and choked on the floor of the dining room. ‘This is too surreal. She should be staking his ass right now.’ He rested on his hands and knees trying to regain some form of composure.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Spike and Buffy completely ignored Xander when they stepped back into the kitchen. Buffy sat Spike down on a stool near the kitchen’s island. She sat down in one next to him. “Spike,” She began softly. “The chip, Spike. It didn’t go off, did it?”
Spike looked up at Buffy confused. He hadn’t even thought about it. He quirked his head to the side in contemplation. He pressed two fingertips to his temples on either side and pressed in a bit. He gazed up at Buffy again. “Come to think of it, I didn’t feel a thing.”
Buffy sat back thoughtfully. She should be running away from Spike scared at whatever deception he had going on. She refused to believe that Spike concocted some sort of elaborate scheme to kill her. If he wanted her dead, he could have done it several times over already. She looked directly into his eyes. She could see the confusion there and the sense of fear he had. Why would he be afraid if his chip wasn’t working? He would be fully capable of doing whatever he wanted to again. Why would that worry him?
Spike stood up from his stool. He saw Buffy’s calculating gaze measuring him up. ‘Oh no! She thinks I knew about this.’ He hung his head sadly. ‘I knew it. I knew that our happiness couldn’t last.’ He turned away from her to face the refrigerator
Buffy followed Spike over to the fridge. She saw the fear in his eyes before he turned away from her. ‘Does he actually think I’ll stake him?’ She sighed. ‘Why not? I ran a sword through Angel. Why wouldn’t I do that to Spike too?’ Her mind argued back with her.
Spike nearly jumped when Buffy’s hand hit his shoulder so softly that he barely would have felt it if he wasn’t so wound up. “Please, Buffy.” His voice held a note of begging to it. “Just make it quick.” His shoulders slumped forward. “I won’t fight back.”
“Spike.” Buffy used her hand to start turning Spike around. “Look at me, Spike.” She put her other hand on his other shoulder to finish moving him to face her.
Spike’s watery gaze met Buffy’s loving one. “I swear I didn’t know, luv.” He pleaded with her to believe him. “I wouldn’t do that to you.”
Buffy cupped Spike’s face with one hand. “I know, Spike.” Although she hadn’t taken any of Spike’s blood yet, she felt attuned to his emotions on a lower level. Even if her heart hadn’t already made her believe in his innocence, the look he was giving her was honest and pure. “Something must have malfunctioned, and I know you were just trying to protect me.”
Spike nodded. “As much as I hate to say it maybe we can have the wiccas take a look at it with their magic?” He cringed. He hated magic, but he wanted to know what was going on. He wanted to be able to reassure Buffy in any way possible that he didn’t have anything to do with the malfunction. ‘Why did this have to happen now?’
Buffy semi-playfully poked Spike in the chest. “Though why you thought you needed to protect me from Xander is silly.” She half laughed. “He couldn’t hurt me, even if he wanted to.”
Spike smiled. What a girl Buffy was. She was trying to lighten the moment at Xander’s expense to comfort him. “All I heard was your scream, and I felt your fear.” He cupped the side of her face. “I didn’t think to see who it was that scared you. I just knew that I had to get to you.”
Xander stared at the couple in disdain and disgust. “This is ridiculous.” Not only had Buffy insulted his fighting skills, but also the two of them were acting as if nothing was out of the ordinary. “Are you crazy, Buffy?”
Buffy faced Xander, blocking his path from Spike. “No, Xander. I’m not crazy.” She smiled. “I trust, Spike. You did scare me.”
Xander rubbed the stake in his pocket. “But he … Buffy this is insane. If he can hurt me, he can hurt you too. Shouldn’t we be staking him?” This was his worst nightmare.
Spike stepped alongside Buffy. He entwined their fingers together to hold hands. “I would never hurt her. I love her.”
“That’s rich, Spike.” Xander laughed. “An evil soulless demon in love. Tell me another lie.”
Spike snarled. He made a move to step forward, but Buffy held onto his hand tighter.
“How many times do I have to tell you to let it go, Xander? I’m beginning to think my record is broke.” Buffy spoke directly to Xander. “I trust that Spike loves me, and he won’t give me a reason to have to stake him.”
“I heard you singing that song, Buffy. This has to be a spell.” Xander inched closer to the pair. “I won’t let him destroy us all by playing with you.”
“You don’t have a choice, Xander.” Buffy was getting peeved off. “Who is to say that because I love Spike it has to be a spell? Your in love with a 1000 year old vengeance demon.”
“Ex-demon, Buffy. Big difference!” Xander retorted.
“And did you make nice with Angelus and Buffy when he became all soul boy again, Whelp?” Spike snorted.
“Of course not. He’s the evil dead.” There was only one person that Xander hated more than Spike. That was Angel. Although right now Spike was vying for top place on Xander’s hate list.
“Then why is it all right for you to be with the demon bird scott free who’s killed more people than the Scourge of Europe combined?” It always angered Spike that people seemed to overlook that vengeance demons killed people as well. Many of them enjoyed their work as much, if not more, than a vampire on the hunt. “She’s far from innocent as a lamb.”
“You leave Anya out of this. She gave up her past. She’s human now.” Xander defended his girlfriend. He refused to see any point to Spike’s tirade.
“Human doesn’t mean not evil you pillock. Look at all the humans who murder and rape. They have souls, and they are just as evil as I used to be.” Spike’s nerves were fayed. His body vibrated in anger. He was ready to snap.
“Still are, Bleach Boy.” Xander sneered. “You’ll always be evil.”
Buffy had enough of the arguing. “That’s enough! Both of you!” She turned to face Spike. “It doesn’t matter what Xander thinks this time, Spike. I believe you.”
Spike smirked in delight. ‘Take that, whelp and chew on it.’
“And you,” Buffy whipped around to face Xander again. “I’ve had it with your two sets of ideals: one for you and one for every other demon you don’t want to date.” She poked an accusing finger in the air at Xander. “I will not stake, Spike unless he gives me reason to, and I have no reason to right now.”
“You may not, but I sure as hell do.” Xander was already in motion before Spike could turn his contented gaze from the woman he loved. “He’s not getting away with it this time.” Xander finished in a hateful gleam.
Fortunately and unfortunately Buffy noticed the gleam in Xander’s eye. When he was almost at Spike and bringing down a stake that she hadn’t noticed before, she stepped in front of Spike to take the blow. “NO!!!”
Xander’s arm twisted and forced the stake down hard at Spike’s chest. When Buffy’s face appeared fully in front of him, he had no time to stop the follow through. The stake ripped through Buffy’s shirt and chest, embedding itself deeply in her left upper lung.
Buffy’s slight height difference from Spike saved her from being pierced through the heart, but the stake pushed its way into the upper area of her left lung. She fell to the floor gasping and screaming in pain.
“Oh God! Buffy!” Xander cried out. He didn’t even have time to see Spike’s fist come across and send him back into the dining room again with the full force of his vampiric strength. He felt the searing pain of bones breaking just before he hit the floor and lost consciousness.
Spike growled. “Buffy!” He picked up his would be mate as carefully as possible and ran her into the living room. He kicked Xander in the side for good measure on his way through the dining room. “Oh my love.” He looked down at her staked chest in grief. That stake was meant for him. He should have been the one to take it.
Buffy flickered in and out of consciousness. He tried to keep her awake, but the pain was too great at the moment. He grabbed the cordless phone and dialed 911. Slayer healing was good, but he didn’t want her to bleed to death because he took the stake out. She hated hospitals, but this time she needed to go to one.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
“She surprised an intruder. I don’t know why he used a piece of wood to hurt her. Maybe it was all he could find.” A now fully dressed Spike tried to explain the injury to the police officer while the paramedics “She was making lunch in the kitchen when it happened.”
The police officer took notes as Spike talked. “And the boy?” He pointed to the unconscious form of Xander who was now sprawled out in the armchair.
“He …“ Spike contemplated telling the officer that this was all Xander’s fault. It would serve him right to pay for what he did to Buffy. He knew that Buffy wouldn’t’ want him to do that though. With a growl he answered, “He’s a friend of the family. He was running to the kitchen when I came down the stairs. The intruder knocked him into the dining room wall when he tried to help Buffy.
“And the intruder?” The officer jotted down a few more notes.
“He escaped out the back door when I made it to the kitchen. I didn’t follow because I saw my girlfriend lying on the floor in her own blood.” Spike shivered. There was more than one reason for it. He’d treasured the samples of Buffy’s blood from the last 24 hours, but the smell of it right now sickened him because she was bleeding from a wound that could have killed her. He hoped that her Slayer healing kicked in and quickly.
“Spike?” Buffy croaked weakly from her place on the paramedic’s stretcher.
“I’m here, luv.” Spike hurried away from the officer to stand at her side. He picked up her hand in his, caressing his thumb on the back of her hand.
“Mom … We have to tell her.” Buffy whimpered. The stake was still buried in her chest. Every breath stung and hurt her to take in or let out. Tears pooled in her eyes and down her cheeks.
No one wanted to remove the stake before they had her at the hospital to make it easier to repair any damage removing it made. The paramedics feared that her lung was punctured. Removing the stake now would do more damage that it would help.
“I’m coming with you.” Spike brushed the back of his hand down Buffy’s wet cheeks. “We’re going to Sunnydale General.” He nodded to the paramedics, and he walked alongside the stretcher onto the porch. “Once you’re stable, I’ll go to her.”
The officer handed Spike a slip of paper with a number on it. “If you have any more you can tell us, give me a call.” He pointed to Xander in the chair. “Another ambulance is on its way to get him. I assume you will be going to the hospital with the lady?”
Spike nodded. He looked up at the sky and thanked the heavens that it was cloudy. It looked like one heck of a storm was building. If it wasn’t, he would be a crispy critter right now. “Thank you. Yes, I am going with her.” He hopped up into the back of the ambulance.
The paramedics continued to work on Buffy even after the doors of the ambulance closed. Spike tried to stay out of their way as best he could. He rested his face next to Buffy’s ear. “It will be all right, luv. Slayer healing and all that.” He whispered. “We just have to get you patched up.”
Buffy nodded. She forced herself not to move since any movement hurt even more.
“I’m sorry that I didn’t move faster, luv.” Spike croaked. She shouldn’t have had to defend him. Better that Xander stake him than to see Buffy hurt.
“It’s okay. Couldn’t …” Buffy took as deep a breath as she could and continued to whisper to Spike. “Couldn’t let him dust you. Can’t live without you.”
Spike ran his fingers through her hair. He buried his face in his hair and began to cry. “I love you, Buffy.” His shoulders shook with the force of his tears. “I’d rather dust than lose you.”
“Shhh … no dust today.” Buffy turned her head to kiss the side of Spike’s face.
Spike nodded. He pressed a kiss to her temple while inside his emotions were a tumultuous mixture of love, anger, pain, sorrow, and revenge. ‘Let the whelp heal up for now. He is going to pay for this.’ He clenched his jaw. ‘He seemed like he knew. He won’t get by on a feeble excuse this time.’ Half of his mind kept focused on Buffy for the rest of the trip, and the other half plotted out ways to make Xander pay for hurting Buffy.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Tara and Willow walked up the path to Sunnydale General’s main entrance. Willow was feeling better, and she wanted to see Mrs. Summers to see how she was doing. An ambulance passed them for two doors down to the emergency entrance. Their attention was focused on the rush of paramedics pulling a stretcher out of the vehicle.
Willow gasped and Tara clutched her girlfriend’s arm tighter when the shock of platinum blonde hair emerged after the stretcher. “Oh goddess, Spike?” They both said in unison. They rushed towards the emergency entrance to find out why he was here and who he was with.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Not Beneath Me - (15) Repercussions
Chapter Summary: Xander made it to Buffy's house just in time to screw everything up in true Xander prejudiced style. He scared Buffy, who screamed, which sent Spike careening down the stairs to throw Xander against a wall. Once Xander proved the chip wasn't working, and Buffy didn't stake Spike, he took it upon himself to handle the deed. Instead of Spike turning to dust though, Buffy stepped in the way, taking the stake to the chest. It didn't hit the heart, but it was bad enough that Spike called an ambulance to get Buffy to the hospital. Spike covered up the injury with an intruder story without implicating Xander's involvement in the deed. As the ambulance arrived at the hospital, so did Willow and Tara who were there to see Joyce. How is everyone going to find out about what happened? Whose side will each Scoobie and/or family member take? What is going to happen to Xander and Buffy?
***Warning: Redemption for Xander seems to be the least thing on most people's minds from the reviews I've received. So Xander on the bad guy list will continue. To what extent, not sure ... but if you really think Xander hangs the moon, don't read on. Cause you won't like it.
Disclaimer and Distribution notes are listed on the Index page of this story.
'Single' quote marks surround thoughts in this story. "Regular" quotes are around spoken words.
Spike followed the paramedics all the way to the operating room doors. A nurse held him back at the OR entrance. "You can't go back there, Sir."
Spike pushed lightly against the nurse. He wasn't trying to hurt her. He only wanted to get past the lady to reach Buffy. "I can't lose her now. I need to keep her safe." It angered him that he'd found a way to protect Buffy from Drusilla, but he couldn't protect her from her own friends. How could Xander do this to her? Sure he didn't intend to stake her, but only an idiot wouldn't realize that Buffy would try to protect Spike after her comments to Xander.
"We'll keep her as safe as possible ..." The stoutly nurse raised a brown in question to get his name.
Spike spoke without thought to the answer. "William Jamison, Ma'am, but most people call me Spike nowadays." He knew he was more fearful for Buffy than he'd like to admit because he just gave the nurse his real name. Even the poofter didn't call him that unless he was seriously trying to tick him off.
"All right, Spike. Let's head back to the waiting room." The nurse extended her arm back down the hall. "If I know where you are at, I can find you more easily once they're done."
"I should probably head to Joyce's room." Spike turned to the nurse. "Buffy's mother, Joyce Summers, is in a room on the neurological floor. I'll be with her. I have to tell her what's going on."
"It sounds like this is quite a stressful time for the family." The nurse said in shock. The professional side of her mind wanted to keep the young man from telling the mother. Being a mother herself, she knew she'd want to know if something was wrong with a family member no matter what though.
"You have no idea." Spike mentally checked off a whole list of concerns for the Summers' women right now. He mentally added Xander to the list, moving him up there with Glory problems and Dru. The Whelp was becoming more of a liability to Buffy than a help. "Please let me know the minute you hear anything or if I can see her." His eyes pleaded with the nurse to understand. "I'm sure her sister and mother will want to see her too. That is if they will let Joyce come down."
"I will come up myself or have the nurse's station up there paged with any news." The nurse, experienced in dealing with the families of emergency patients attempted to convey her sincerity to the man before her. He exuded a sense of power that both frightened and assured her of his concern.
"Thank you, Nurse ..." Spike glanced down at the nametag she wore. "Jacobs. I'm sure her mother will appreciate your help as much as I do. Buffy is my girlfriend."
"We have some very good doctors here." Nurse Jacobs assured Spike. "They've dealt with some pretty severe injuries."
"I'm sure they have." Spike smirked. He wondered if Ms. Jacobs realized even half of the truth behind many of Sunnydale's injured. "This town does seem a bit ... rowdy."
Nurse Jacobs and Spike stood side by side waiting for the elevator. "If anyone can patch her up right, these doctors can. We'll have your girlfriend back at home in no time at all."
Spike stepped into the elevator. "I hope so. She really hates hospitals."
Nurse Jacobs waved to Spike then sighed when the elevator doors closed. "Oh boy. Better warn the doctors." She turned back to the emergency OR ward. She walked right past two stunned looking women: one a redhead and the other a blonde.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Rupert, I'm starting to get worried." Joyce Summers looked up at the man standing next to her bed.
Giles stopped pacing and turned to Joyce. "Something tells me that we have a reason to worry." He removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I can't see what they could have run into on the way to the hospital that they couldn't handle."
Dawn bit the inside of her cheek. "I so can't see Glory using the sewers to get around. They shouldn't have run into her." She too was starting to get worried. Buffy and Spike said they were getting ready to come up to the hospital almost 3 hours ago.
"Quite right. Buffy did explain her to look like a bit of a prissy girl." Giles reached for Joyce's hand. "I'm sure that nothing demony would get in their way right now, and Drusilla can't."
Joyce rested her head against her pillows. She closed her eyes. Her motherly instincts were on fire. She ignored them for a long time before she knew that Buffy was the Slayer. Now that she knew, she tried to listen to the inner voice and feelings that she received. Something wasn't right. She just knew it.
Giles watched the play of emotions cross Joyce's face. He and Dawn explained the ritual Spike performed before they arrived and the reasoning behind it. Surprisingly to Giles, she hadn't flown off the handle at the thought of Spike biting her daughter. He knew Joyce always hated Angel, but apparently the hatred didn't go for the whole family line or even all vampires. He could plainly see that Joyce had a soft spot in her heart for the bleached one.
Joyce squeezed Giles' hand. She needed the extra comfort. The doctor's told her that she was healing remarkably well. They were surprised at her recovery time, but it meant nothing to her if her babies weren't safe. "Will you call them please? See if they've left?"
Giles nodded. After dialing the phone and waiting at least 10 rings without a response, he hung up. "No one seems to be answering. I'll call Xander, and see if he's seen them." He pressed a few more buttons into the hospital phone. Again he received no answer. "Odd, he always keeps his cell phone on him in case Anya wants to talk to him."
"You don't think something went wrong after the ritual do you?" Dawn was starting to get scared. What if something happened to Buffy and Spike after they left? What if they were passed out at the house bleeding to death? "What if we left too soon, Giles?"
"There is nothing that could have harmed them from the ritual after we left." Giles reassured Dawn. "Spike was clear that the blood taken was minimal, and I could see the wounds already healing when we left." When he thought about everything later it occurred to him that he never even considered that Spike could have harmed Buffy after they left. His mind registered the look of love in both of their eyes, and it wasn't even a chance in his mind right then to consider it.
"Rupert, you have to find them. I must know if my baby is all right." Joyce drew Dawn up alongside her on the bed. She held Dawn tightly.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Spike rode the elevator in silence. Several passengers joined him on different levels, but he refused to be drawn into any conversation with them. His mind reeled on what he was going to do next. 'How can I tell Mum about this?' He sighed, rocking back on the heel of his boots then rocking back all the way to his toes. 'She doesn't need this right now, and how can I tell her that I Buffy took that stake for me?" He growled.
Two passengers in the elevator turned around hastily to face the growling man. They edged closer to the front of the elevator. They pushed for the next floor. Something told them they really didn't want to be around this man right now.
Spike beat his head against the back of the elevator wall. 'Bloody, pillock.' He snarled after the elevator was empty again. 'I wish I could twist his head right off his neck.' He kicked the back wall. 'Wait a minute. I can. No chip!' His demon perked up until that little voice of William reason kicked in.
'Remember what we've told her. Chip or no chip, it didn't matter.' William chided. 'We love her, and we can't do anything that might make her have to stake us. Remember Angelus?'
Spike growled, exiting the elevator on the needed floor. 'You of all people know better than to mention that wanker's name.'
'I'm just making a point. Calm down Mr. Beastie.' William sighed. 'She will do what she has to do. She protects those she loves, but her duty to save others will always come first. If we cross that line, we'll lose her.'
Spike scuffed the toe of his boot on the carpeted floor in a little lounge area. 'Yeah, yeah. I know. Doesn't mean I still wouldn't like to do it though. Tis what he deserves. Self-righteous prick.'
'That he is, but we need to have faith in Buffy.' William reassured the demon as best he could. 'She took a stake in our place because she didn't want to lose us. Have faith that she will do what's right by us.'
Spike nodded. He exited the lounge and walked down the hall towards Joyce's room. 'I have faith in her. It's the rest of em that I'm worried about.'
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Willow stared at the closed elevator doors in shock. "Buf ... Buffy?" She turned to Tara. "Buffy was in that ambulance? How? What?"
Tara covered Willow's arm with her hands. "Some ... th ... thing must have happened. At least Sp ... Spike was there to get her here."
"But didn't you hear what he said?" Willow pointed an accusatory finger at the closed doors. "He called himself Buffy's boyfriend. I'm her best friend. I should have known about that. And may I say huh?"
"Sh ... she's had a lot going on Willow." Tara did her best to reassure her upset girlfriend. "We haven't been in touch except brief updates on her Mom for the last few days."
"2 days! It was only two days, Tara." Willow started to walk back to the emergency room in the same direction that the nurse took a few minutes before. "That much couldn't have happened, could it?"
Tara nodded. She wasn't sure what to say. Her and Willow had been dating for over a year already. During that time she'd seen many different interactions between each of the Scoobies, Spike included. Their auras always reacted to each other in ways that she doubted they knew about. "Willow, surely you haven't been blind to the chemistry between those two?"
"They fight all the time." Willow blinked. Did Tara see something that she missed, and how could she have missed something that big? "The only time they really even liked it each other was during that spell gone wrong of mine." She slapped her hand to her mouth. "You don't think he has her under some spell?"
"Spike doesn't like magic, remember?" Tara shook her head. "He may be many things, but he's always wanted things with Buffy to be on the up and up. Even everything you've told me about him from the past says that he wouldn't want Buffy to be anything other than herself."
"I suppose you're right." Willow sighed. "He could have killed her a couple times on her off days, but he said it just wouldn't be right if she wasn't in top form. Very strange vampire." She shook her head back and forth.
"See, he wanted to kill her fair and square." Tara piped in. She knew how ridiculous that sounded, but it was past her lips before she could reel it back in.
Willow chuckled, despite the circumstance. "That sounds really funny when you put it that way."
"You know what I mean." Tara bashfully ducked her head and play punched Willow's upper arm. "As Buffy would say 'Spike and magic, not so mixey'." She smiled warmly at Willow. "Maybe they finally realized just how equally matched they are. Have you seen those two patrol lately? Pretty amazing to watch."
"It's almost like a dance with those two. They fight like each move was choreographed ahead of time, anticipating the other's move." Willow nodded. "I wasn't even really needed the last time we went out to take out a nest. It was weird."
"See, this can be a good thing." Tara smiled. "We just have to figure out what happened and if Buffy is going to be all right. I get worried when Spike looks scared."
"He was so tense." Willow frowned. "He did seem pretty worried. None of his usual snappy comments."
The couple reached the emergency information desk just as the emergency doors opened up again with another stretcher being brought in. The two turned to see what the commotion was about and Willow choked.
"Goddess, it's Xander." Willow rushed over to Xander's side. His face was bruised yet it seemed so pale underneath. Blood was stained on various places of the sheets. She clutched his hand in horror. "Xander?!?"
Xander opened his eyes briefly. Everything hurt. The lights of the emergency room gave him a headache as soon as his lid uncovered his eye. It hurt to breathe, and his head was throbbing. "Will ..." His voice trailed off, sounding like a croaking frog.
"Xander, speak to me." Willow's eyes started to fill with tears. "What happened?"
Tara stood back at the desk watching everything. Xander's stretcher was almost to her when she heard him speak again.
"Spike ... Chip ..." Xander gasped for breath and exhaled raggedly. "Bad ... Buffy ... Sorry …"
The paramedics pushed Willow out of the way. "I'm sorry, but we have to get him in. Leave your name at the desk." His curt voice offered no choice but to obey his instructions.
Tara pulled Willow back to her at the desk. "I think Xander knows what happened with Spike and Buffy."
'I'll bet he went ballistic if he found out the two of them were a couple.' Willow thought to herself. "I almost hope not. He's always had a chip on his shoulder when it came to Spike." Her brain tried to process the tidbits of information Xander got out before being taken away. "Chip. That's it!"
Tara gazed at Willow with curiosity. "What do you mean?"
"Xander said Spike, chip, bad and Buffy." Willow's eyes widened. She quickly pulled Tara along with her back to the elevator doors. "Don't you see?"
"See what?"
"The chip. Spike's chip. It must have failed!" Willow pushed the buttons several times. "Come on. Come on!"
"You don't think that Spike had anything to do with Buffy's injuries?" Tara frowned. "I don't think he could hurt her like that. Willow, I've seen his aura when he's around her. It's full of love."
"I don't know what to think, but I'll bet he had something to do with Xander's. That means Spike can hurt people, and he's headed right now to Mrs. Summers' room." Willow jumped into the elevator before the doors could fully open. "We have to get there and warn them. Who knows what he'll do to everyone else."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Spike pushed open the door to Joyce's room. "There's no need to come looking for us, Mum." He heard Joyce's concerned voice when he reached the door. He wasn't ready to face an angry mother, but he couldn't delay any longer either. They all needed to know.
Dawn bounced off the bed and ran to Spike. She hugged him tightly. "We were so worried." She looked around Spike to find Buffy. She looked back up at Spike in confusion. "Where's Buffy?"
Giles knew something was wrong as soon as Spike walked in. His body language was tense with a hint of defeat in the carry of his shoulders. He was familiar with the way he was holding himself. He saw it a lot right after Spike was chipped. "Where is Buffy, Spike?" He asked calmly.
Spike looked down at Dawn and then over to Joyce and Giles. "She …" He shoved his hands into his duster pockets.
'Uh oh.' Giles thought. 'If Spike is that scared of something, it can't be good.'
"What happened to my baby?" Joyce was frantic. She sat up fully in bed. "Where is she?"
Spike hung his head. "She was injured trying to protect me." What else could he say? Would they even believe him that Xander was the one to send the stake into Buffy's chest? It was still his fault anyways. Xander wouldn't have staked Buffy if he hadn't been trying to kill Spike. The guilt carried over into his facial features.
"What?!?" Dawn shrieked. "It wasn't Glory, was it?"
Spike shook his head. He tried to speak but Giles' voice interrupted first. "Drusilla wasn't able to get to you at the house during the day, was she?"
Joyce rubbed her temples. "My baby. My poor baby." She started to weep. Normally it would take more to get her this distraught, but her emotions were on a roller coast all week long.
Spike was at Joyce's side in an instant. "It's okay, Mum. Well it's not okay, but she'll be fine in a while." He sat down on the edge of the bedside.
Joyce turned to face Spike with tears in her eyes. "What happened to her, Spike? Why did she have to defend you?"
Spike hung his head for a few moments. He twisted around to face Giles first. He didn't want to tell him, but he needed Giles to know that he would be upfront with him. "Watcher, I think you should know that the chip doesn't work anymore. Also, it would seem that some people knew it wasn't working before I did." He closed his eyes and waited for the onslaught to begin. He half expected a stake to come flying his way.
Dawn instinctively stepped back. She wasn't afraid of Spike, chipped or unchipped, but she'd always been warned about vampires without souls or chips. She found herself glad that Spike's eyes were closed. She felt ashamed that she even had a split second of worry.
Giles stood rooted to the spot. All of his Watcher training told him that there was a dangerous creature in the room who could kill them all in an instant. "How do you know that?" He tried to force down his first instincts so he could get the full story. Hadn't Spike said that Buffy was injured defending him? So, it wasn't that Buffy was trying to stake him. He felt he should listen to Spike's story before making a judgment.
Joyce actually hugged Spike in comfort when he mentioned that the chip wasn't working. She'd been around Buffy's friends and Watcher long enough to know what some of them might try to do to Spike. She knew how much Spike loved Buffy, and in her heart she was sure that Spike didn't intentionally get Buffy hurt.
"Xander." Spike summed up all the emotional baggage he was carrying in that one word. His voice was filled with disgust and undisguised loathing. "He surprised Buffy downstairs while I was taking a shower."
Spike continued to recount the whole sordid story to Dawn, Giles and Joyce. Giles removed his glasses from the get go. He even snapped one arm of his glasses off completely when Spike told him about Buffy warning Xander and Xander's subsequent actions that ended in the staking of Buffy.
Joyce pulled Spike tighter to her as she wept. Her baby was downstairs in the emergency room, and she couldn't even get to her right now. She constantly worried about all the demons and creatures that her daughter had to fight. How ironic that the thing to give her one of the worst injuries she ever had was a human in the form of one of her best friends.
"They don't know the extent of the damage yet, but I'd place my bets on a punctured lung." Spike rubbed Joyce's back. He rested his head on Joyce's shoulder that was away from the door. He buried his face next to her neck and ear. His chest vibrated as he spoke, sending cooing vibrations to try and help calm Joyce.
"Please no." Joyce cried harder. He shoulders shook. "Oh god, Spike. No."
At that moment two out of breath Wiccas burst into the room. Willow panicked at the sight of Spike at Joyce's neck. She heard what sounded like Joyce's pleas to Spike not to bite her, and she reacted without thought. "Separate!" She screamed out and waved at Spike.
Spike flew back into the opposite hospital wall. He crashed to the ground with a thud, tipping the chair over too. "Bloody Hell!" He jumped off the floor in a rage. He advanced on the two women. "What the hell is your problem?"
"Willow!" Giles yelled. He rushed to Joyce to make sure she was all right. "What are you thinking? It is dangerous to use magic so frivolously."
Willow ripped the cross off the hospital wall. She held it out in front of her, counter advancing Spike's movements. "I did what I had to do. He was hurting Mrs. Summers."
Tara clung to head of Joyce's bed. If Willow was right then Spike could really hurt them now. She could see just how ticked off he was. His aura radiated brightly from the anger and pain he was feeling. "Willow, maybe we should …" She was cut off by Dawn.
Dawn wasn't in as much shock as she was mad. First she hears about Xander trying to kill Spike, and now Willow was coming around throwing her magic around at Spike to hurt him. She walked over to Willow, slapped the cross out of her hand and punched her in the shoulder. "Leave him alone!"
Spike snarled as the cross flew by him across the room. He stomped to the foot of the bed. "What is it with you people? Do you even think?" He usually liked the redheaded woman. She stood up for the Whelp too much, but usually she wasn't too bad to deal with. The blond Wicca, Glinda, was one of Spike's favorites though. Aside from the demon bird, Anya, she'd never judged Spike on the basis that the rest of the Scoobies did.
"Dawn, he doesn't have his chip! He's dangerous!" Willow wanted to convey her reason for panicking. "Your mother was begging him not to bite her."
Joyce fumed. "I was doing no such thing. He was consoling me."
"How did you know the chip wasn't working?" Giles asked tersely. Spike said how it seemed that Xander knew ahead of time that the chip wasn't working. He seemed prepared to kill Spike all along. The only way that he could know the chip wasn't working was if he had some part in it being disabled. "Did you help Xander with this treachery?"
Spike's eyes widened in realization. "No one should know about the chip except Buffy, the Whelp, myself and anyone else that was involved in whatever happened to it." His demon raged in a fury. He strode over to Willow with a predatory glare in his eyes. "If you had anything to do with this, you will live only long enough to regret it."
Despite his own innate desire to seek vengeance on anyone that had a part in hurting Buffy, Giles knew he had to be the voice of reason right now. Tara seemed shocked into silence. Joyce and Dawn were ready to break down at any minute. Spike looked like he was going to rip Willow's head off. He hastily stepped between Spike and Willow.
Spike gazed into the Watcher's eyes. He saw the determination there, but he also saw the pain. Giles wasn't stopping him because he felt he didn't have a right to be angry. His eyes reflected his need for answers. William noted the kinship that seemed to echo in Giles' eyes, and he helped to calm Spike down along with Giles' next words.
"We need to get to the bottom of this, Spike." Giles voice was tight but even. "Buffy wouldn't want either of us to go off half arsed or hurt anyone … yet." His controlled tone emphasized the yet at the end of his sentence.
Spike nodded. He stepped to the side of Giles, but he moved no further forward. They presented a united front to Willow who was now backed up against the wall.
Giles turned to face Willow when Spike stepped alongside him. "I suggest that you explain how you knew about Spike's chip as quickly and completely as possible." He spoke through clenched teeth.
Willow's eyes were red, and she was crying. "I wasn't completely sure." She sniffled. "But Xander said …" She shrieked at the sight of a vamped out and snarling Spike.
Tara stepped forward to help out her girlfriend. Things were deteriorating rapidly, and none of this was going to help Xander or Buffy. Her and Willow had no idea yet what had even happened with any of them. "Xander was brought into the emergency room when we were down there."
"Pillock!" Spike spat out. "They should have left him at the house to rot. Justice would be served."
Joyce chastised Spike in a stern motherly fasion. "William, none of that. He is still Buffy's … well he was Buffy's friend. I don't know what he is now, but your duty is to help people, no matter who they are." She waggled a finger at Spike warning him that she was serious. He may play the "Big Bad", but she knew that had a good unbeating heart.
Spike's shoulders slumped. His head lowered some and nodded to Joyce. "Sorry, Mum." He sighed. "I've always hated him, and he's given me even more reason to now."
"Hate begets hate, William." Joyce reached out a hand to clasp it around Spike's. "Buffy needs your love, not the anger inside you." She rarely called Spike by his original human name. It felt appropriate to get through to the vampire at this time.
The other occupants of the room stared in wonder at the transformation. How could a mortal woman stuck in her hospital bed subdue such a powerful and "evil" creature?
Tara was the first to speak again. "We saw Spike come out of the ambulance when we arrived at the hospital. So, we followed him." She continued her story. "He was talking to a nurse, and when he was done we saw Xander brought in. He said something about bad chip, Buffy and Spike. They took him away before we could get more out of him."
"So naturally you assumed that I was on my way up here to eat Mum, Nibblet and the Watcher?" Spike growled. "I've done nothing but hang my little white hat on the same hall tree as the rest of you bleeding Scoobies for months. What does it take?"
Dawn wrapped her arm around Spike's waist. She snuggled into his side. "You have done a lot of things to them before though Spike, and there was that thing with Adam." She wanted to encourage him, but surely he could see why some of them would doubt him.
"After Red's spell I was trying to prove to myself that I wasn't a toy for the lot of them. I tried to get back at them anyway I could." Spike slapped his hand to his forehead. "I was going crazy with this chip in my head, and Adam offered to remove it."
Giles nodded. He always wondered what Spike was offered in exchange for his help. He assumed it had something to do with the chip, and it would seem that it did. "You have tried to kill us on more than one occasion."
"It's been a long time though, Watcher." Spike reasoned. He looked over at Willow. "Your spell has haunted me ever since, Red. It showed me things about myself that took a long time to admit. Plus Buffy seemed so disgusted with the feelings that I then knew I felt for her."
Willow listened along with everyone else to what Spike had to say. "I never thought about what effect the spell had on you, Spike."
"Yeah, I never even got a bloody cookie for my trouble." Spike half teased. The tensions in the room started to abate, but many explanations were still in order.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Downstairs a little blond woman was gasping for breath on the operating table. Her Slayer endurance made it harder for her to be drugged or killed with poisons. Therefore it was hard to determine the right amount of sedative to give Buffy to knock her out.
"Bump up the anesthetics." The doctor bellowed. "We can't get this thing out unless she stops moving."
The anesthesiologist picked up the IV line into Buffy's arm. "Doctor, I've already given her double the dosage for someone her size. If I give her anymore, it could kill her."
"She must have an immunity. She is definitely not asleep, Nurse." The doctor added another set of straps to crisscross over Buffy's abdomen. He tightened the straps just as Buffy slumped to the bed.
The anesthesiologist breathed a sigh of relief. He checked her vital signs and nodded to the doctor. "She's resting now. Heartbeat is strong and steady. Breathing is labored, but I'm sure that has something to do with the piece of wood in her chest, and that is not something I can do anything about."
The doctor laughed sarcastically. "No, that is my job. Now, let's get on with it."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"So all of this happened in the last 2 days?" Willow and Tara were now sharing one of the chairs in Joyce's room. They'd both listened to Joyce, Giles, Spike and Dawn explain all that happened in the last 48-72 hours.
The four even told them about Dawn being the key that Glory was seeking. Dawn shifted nervously during that part while Tara and Willow were in shock. It took a few minutes of gasps and confused expressions before anyone was able to continue with the story.
"Yep, that's it in a nutshell." Dawn nodded eagerly. "Buffy and Spike are together. I think I'll be seeing Giles at the house more often." She giggled at that part and both her mother and Giles blushed. "Glory wants to shove me in some lock. Spike's chip is not working, though we doubt it is gone, and it seems that Xander not only knew about it but ended up staking Buffy while trying to kill Spike."
"This is just … It's so much to take in." Willow looked over at Dawn. "I remember everything about you since you guys came to Sunnydale."
Giles, without his glasses since he'd broken them earlier, pinched the bridge of his nose in concern. "I think the less said about that right now the better. We took enough risk even speaking about it here."
Tara understood Giles' concern. "We don't know where Glory is or who might be helping her. That makes sense."
Willow nodded. "I knew Xander didn't like Spike, but why would he push it this far?"
"Maybe because he is a self-righteous, judgmental, arrogant, prick who thinks that he alone knows what is best for Buffy, and I don't get his stamp of approval." Spike piped in. Other than interjecting his thoughts of events that he was first witness to, he remained quiet during the storytelling. He didn't trust himself not to blow up over certain events.
'Spike has some issues to work out about Xander.' Willow thought. She looked at her girlfriend. She was torn between her loyalties to the man who'd been her friend almost all of her life and her loyalties towards what seemed to be the right thing to do.
Tara offered a supportive glance towards Willow. She imagined that Willow was going through a lot of turmoil right now.
Willow's insides burned at the mere thought that Xander would have anything to do with harming Buffy like this though. The magic within her crackled with its energies begging to be set free. If Xander did plot this out with someone, there would be hell to pay. He needed to be taught a lesson; one that he would not forget so easily.
"The only one I can think of who could have done this with Xander would be Riley." Dawn reasoned. "We know Spike wasn't kidnapped for any surgeries. Maybe the Initiative had some sort of back up plan to control those they chipped?"
Giles pondered that thought. "Many electronic devices can be activated or deactivated by remotes." He looked over at Spike. "Wouldn't the Initiative have wanted a means to set their little monsters loose during enemy situations if they could control them?"
"Makes sense, Watcher." Spike nodded in contemplation. "They were always talking about the perfect soldier and finding a way to make us useful weapons." He sat up straighter. "If that's the case then we need to find a way to get this bloody thing out of my head before they activate it again."
Giles noted Spike's agitation. "We don't know how they did this, Spike. Let's not jump to any conclusions."
"You wouldn't be so complacent if the bloody thing was in your head." Spike countered. "Not like I'm going out feeding or hurting people, well except in defense. I won't even be able to do that if they activate it again."
"I didn't say we couldn't try to get it out, Spike. We need to figure out our options first." Giles pulled a notebook out of his jacket pocket and jotted a few things down. He looked up at the smirking faces around him. "You never know when you'll need to write something down."
Dawn giggled. "Sure, Giles. Whatever you say."
The tension that threatened to rise was swiftly broken with the bit of merriment about Giles' research habits.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Buffy tossed and turned on the bed. Several straps remained in place until she was fully awake to keep her from hurting herself. She was in the recovery room with several nurses huddling about her. She was vaguely aware of the voices around her.
"You should have seen him, Delores." One nurse squeaked in glee. "I saw him talking to Jacobs, and man was he hot."
Another nurse, Delores, sighed. "Did you hear that voice, Nancy? That accent was to die for."
Nancy, the first nurse, looked down at Buffy. "She's one lucky girl." She checked Buffy's vitals again.
Buffy opened her eyes. Her face lit up in a smile. She realized they were talking about Spike. "Definitely lucky." She croaked out.
"Welcome back, Miss Summers." Nancy wiped the sweat off Buffy's face. "You gave us all quite a scare."
"Spike." Buffy licked her lips trying to moisten them. She felt like someone left a bag full of cotton balls in her mouth.
"We'll get him down here shortly." Delores worked on the other side of Buffy. She removed the remaining straps. "You need to lie still. Your wounds were pretty serious."
Buffy barely heard their words. She wanted to hear only one thing, Spike's voice telling her it was all right. "Spike. I want him now." She practically begged. She tried to get off the bed, but she was stopped with a sharp pain near her shoulder.
Delores and Nancy both pushed Buffy back down as carefully as possible. "We have to get you to a room. I'm sure he'll be there right after we get you there."
Buffy shook her head back and forth. "Hurry, now. Need Spike."
Nancy motioned her head in the direction of the nurse's surgical station. Nurse Jacobs informed them right away whom they were supposed to notify once Buffy was awake. Delores punched in the code for the neurological section. She relayed the message on Buffy's condition and requested that they get him down there soon. Lastly, Delores gave the nurse station Buffy's new room number before hanging up.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The nurse's station on Joyce's floor hung up the phone. "Finally some good news." The head nurse sighed in relief. She stood up. "I've been afraid that they were going to bring the walls down."
Several other nurses nodded in agreement. Nurse Jacobs called their station before Spike made it to the floor. It was the only reason that everyone ignored the loud yelling and smashing coming from Joyce Summers' room. They all figured that the family was dealing with their grief in a physical way.
Everyone was eager to bring good news to the family, but none were eager to walk into a war zone. After drawing straws, short one being the loser, it was decided that Becca would deliver the message.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Everyone was exhausted in the Summers' room, both physically and emotionally. Each sat silently in their private thoughts trying to decide what should be done next.
There was a light tapping on the door, and a delicate redhead peeked her head around the edge of it. "Mr. Jamison?" She meekly questioned. Her keen eye noticed the haggard looks on the occupants faces, but thankfully the room still looked in order.
"Yes?" Spike automatically responded. He cleared his throat and threw Giles a "Don't ask." look before standing up to head to the door.
"Miss Summers is awake and calling for you downstairs." Becca further relayed the message. "They were able to repair the damage to her lung. It would seem that she was healing quite rapidly even as they operated. She'll still need to stay for observation, but she is free to have some visitors."
Everyone in the room let out an audible breath. Joyce looked at Becca. "Do you think Dr. Kriegel will let me go down there?" She asked hopeful. Even though she knew Spike would take care of her daughter, she wanted to see for herself that Buffy was okay.
"We'll page him Joyce. It shouldn't be a problem. So long as you don't get dizzy." Becca answered.
Spike wrapped his arm around Dawn. "I'll take the Nibblet with me, if that's all right with everyone."
Giles and Joyce nodded. Dawn clung to Spike. "Thank you, Spike." She buried her face into his duster, taking a calming breath.
"I'll be back up as soon as possible to let you all know how she is." Spike calmly opened the door to leave the room. "I'll let her know that you all want to see her." He closed the door behind him, heading for the elevator with Dawn in tow.
Becca breathed a sigh of relief when the elevator doors closed on the blonde man. 'Whew, that went well.' She slumped into her chair at the nurse's station.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Back in Joyce's room the four remaining occupants continued their discussion. "Someone should check on Xander." Tara inputted.
"We should call Anya." Willow added.
"Quite right. I'll have her close the shop and get here." Giles picked up the phone.
"I know how close he is to all of you, but he can't just get away with this." Joyce's voice trembled. "Spike is a caring being, even if he is undead. Xander can't be allowed to continue trying to harm Spike." She looked over at Willow and Tara. "Buffy will keep defending him, or Spike might lose control one time in self-defense and Xander will be killed."
The other three nodded their agreement. "I don't know what we can do about it though. Spike's already covered for Xander with the authorities." Giles intoned. "I doubt we could have him arrested now."
Joyce spoke with conviction. "As far as I'm concerned he is no longer allowed near my house or my family until his attitude changes." Joyce was a very easy going woman, but she was definitely a "mother bear" you didn't want to mess with. "If he hurts Buffy or Spike again, I will be the one to call the police to get him."
No one argued back. A part of Willow wanted to scream out in Xander's defense, but she just couldn't. Xander had a right to his opinions, but this demon hating had gone too far now. He didn't have to approve of Buffy and Spike being together, but he had to accept it as fact or he was going to get pushed out of their lives completely.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Dawn and Spike were directed to a small room in the 24 hour holding area on the first floor. Spike rapped his knuckles on the door frame as they entered. Dawn ran to Buffy, wrapped her arms around her, and buried her face in her neck. "Oh Buffy. I was so scared."
Spike stood at the other side of Buffy's bed. He picked up her hand, cradling it in his own. He lifted it to his lips and kissed it lovingly. "Hey there, luv."
Buffy stroked her free hand through Dawn's hair. "It's okay, Dawn. Slayer healing will make me all better soon." She looked up at Spike with love in her eyes. She spoke only three words, but they were the best words he would ever here. It was all the reassurance he needed to know that she didn't blame him. "I love you."
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