Title: Merry Christmas, Buffy Summers (Part 7:4 of the 'Coming Home' Series)
Author: DivaDelilah (divadelilah@aol.com)
Description: Short fic, set after Buffy's return, now a series. Spoilers Season
6.
Also, an answer to Licious' challenge (see first part for details.)
Disclaimer: In short, not mine. Joss/Fox/SandDollar/Mutant Enemy/UPN own all.
Distribution: Fanfiction.net, Death Marked Love (http://www.angelfire.com/tv2/spikefic/coming.html
), Willow's Ripper, http://www.angelfire.com/super/btvs13/spike_buffy.html,
anything else I okay, including award sites and various lists. Hell, just tell
me where it's going.
Feedback: Mmmmmmmm…feedback. @dr00l@
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Buffy woke up several hours later, the world spinning about in front of her
eyes. As her vision adjusted in the dark, she noted Spike curled around her,
his head between her breasts, and his legs twined around hers. Next she realized
they were fully clothed, well mostly, and not in her bedroom. Her eyes skittered
around the room, and found they were in the living room, not too far from the
tree and… what was that? Liquor bottles…no wonder if I feel like
I stuffed my throat with cotton. And no wonder we're on the floor.
She squinted around the room, finding Willow and Tara under a blanket on the
couch.
One couple, check. Then she found Xander and Anya were missing, presumably
because they'd gone to have sex somewhere. She groaned inwardly. Spike will
be complaining about smelling that for weeks. Wonder where they went? Pleeeeeease
don't let it by my room, she thought. On the other end of the couch, to
her surprise, Wesley and the new girl Fred were snuggled up. Hmm interesting.
Guess that's two. She frowned when she figured out she was not only missing
Xander and Anya, but the rest of the LA crew. That Gunn guy and… Oh,
god, she thought, drawing in a sharp breath. Angel and Cordy. Her
heart stopped as she tried to decide through her drunken haze what to do.
Spike stirred above her and she froze in panic. She knew Spike would stake
Angel if he had to, and the thought made her heart ache for his son. When he
lifted his eyes to her, she almost cried. Whispering so only his ears could
catch it, she said, "Spike, I'm worried. We all got drunk, passed out,
and… some of us are missing."
His eyes closed when he realized who she meant, and he swallowed. "Bloody
friggin prick. I told him not to…," he ground out.
Buffy nodded slightly. "Let's get up, assuming I can, and hunt around.
Xander and Anya are missing as usual. That Gunn guy is gone. And of course…"
Spike pried himself off her warm, soft body, rolling up to his knees like a
jungle cat. He'd taken off his shirt before they'd passed, and was left in just
his black pants and bare feet. His hair was mussed and curly, and his eyes intense.
Buffy's mouth began to water. She loved when he looked like this; it made her
want to melt in a puddle of desire. But now was certainly not the time for booze
induced horniness. Safety first, wild monkey sex later, she chided herself.
Spike looked over at her, noting her gaping mouth and hearing her heart race.
"Naughty Slayer. It'll hafta wait until we find the Poof, unfortunately.
Then I can ravage you until you can't walk." With a feline grin, he hauled
her to her feet and kissed her lips roughly then let go. "Come on, time
to hunt."
Slightly dazed and more than slightly drunk, Buffy followed with an ingrained
alacrity that only a Slayer could possess while intoxicated. She managed to
avoid knocking things over as she navigated the kitchen. She kicked Spike in
the shin, and he yelped. Glaring, she pointed at Xander and Anya on through
the doorway, collapsed on the dining room table.
Spike made face of complete disgust, and clamped his hand over his own mouth
before he could make a sound. Calming down, he whispered, "Bloody goddamn…
of all the… how the sodding hell are we supposed to eat on that tomorrow
when we know… For Christ's bloody sake, Slayer!"
Buffy stepped on his foot, trying to quiet him. "Shh," she replied.
"Now for the LA people." Her Slayer sense sparked, and she quirked
her head to the side, trying to reach out through her drunkenness to find what
was tweaking the hairs on the back of her neck. "Do you feel that, Spike?"
He nodded silently, also trying to figure out what he felt. His eyes popped
open. "It's Dawn. I can smell her now that I think about it."
Buffy's eyes widened in worry, and she followed Spike as she sniffed out her
sister's scent. And then they found them. Buffy didn't know whether to be relieved
or completely pissed off. Her sister was sitting on the porch swing, fast asleep
on a pillow in Gunn's lap. Gunn, too, was asleep. What in the hell is she
doing out here and what the hell is he thinking? She was in bed! Spike tucked
her devious little butt in!
A low growl pricked her ears and she turned, putting her hands on Spike's arms.
"Tomorrow. We'll deal tomorrow. We need to find… so I can go to sleep.
I have hours worth of cooking and stuff to do in the morning, and now I'll have
a hangover to boot, no thanks to you."
He glared at the swing one more time before allowing her to lead him inside.
"Glad to know I twisted your arm, Slayer," he replied wryly.
She rolled her eyes, motioned to the stairs with her head. He nodded, and they
crept up to the guest room. Buffy sighed a breath of relief when she opened
the door.Angel was laying on the bed, his shirt and shoes off, sprawled out
and snoring. Cordy was in her pajamas curled up on her side, her head in the
crook of his arm. It was obvious nothing had happened, and the fact that Cordy
had an empty baby bottle lying next to her punctuated it. She'd been helping
with Connor and they'd passed out. Buffy dimly recalled doing tequila shots
with Willow and the former May queen. Ugh that'll catch up with me, she
thought fleetingly.
Spike pressed his body against hers. "Well, since you won't let me beat
the tar out of the boy with my Bit, then I suggest you head for that bed, and
if you're naked by the time I get there, it'll be a very merry Christmas in
the Summers household." To punctuate his declaration, he ran the tip of
his tongue up the rim of her ear, and pinched her butt.
Her eyes twinkled, and she took off for her room. Spike grinned, watching her
sprint away. I might just be the luckiest bloke on this whole bleeding planet,
he thought. He glanced at the scene in Angel's room, and grinned. At least
from a man's perspective, he amended, creeping down the hall quickly. "Now
to unwrap my prezzie," he said softly, shutting the door to Buffy's room
with a click.
*******************************************************************
The occupants of the Summers household woke up slowly, clearing the cobwebs
from their brains and in some cases, the drool crust from their faces. Xander
and Anya sat up on the table, red faced and glancing around to see if anyone
noticed their unfortunate choice for a bed. Willow and Tara smiled at each,
smoothing each others' mussed bed hair down and stretching their legs. Fred
lifted her head from Wesley's shoulder, even shier than normal, when her eyes
met his. Dawn wiped the drool off her face, moving her cramped body slightly
and widening her eyes at whose lap she was sleeping on. Angel rolled over, his
eyes flying open when he felt a warm body next to his.
A chorus of low groans echoed through the house and Buffy giggled into Spike's
shoulder. "Do you think we should tell them what we saw?"
He smiled. "Let's just open presents and you can do your kitchen thing.
We'll save the taunting for after dinner, luv," he replied seriously. "Not
withstanding I have a conversation with the Nibblet the moment I see her."
"Yeah, looks like you let her paint your nails sparkly green for nothing,"
Buffy teased, looking at his fingers in amusement.
"Don't make me come over there Slayer. Everyone's awake this time,"
Spike said, sticking his tongue out her playfully.
"Alright. Let's get up and see if we can snag the shower first. I feel
like I'm covered in grime and booze stench."
"Don't forget the sex smell."
"How could I? You never let me. It's like you're pissing on your territory,"
she shot back.
He threw the covers off and raced for the shower. "Don't forget; it's
soundproof in there!"
Buffy scrambled to grab her robe and throw it on. "And again, how could
I?"
************************************************************
An hour later, Buffy emerged from the bathroom wearing one towel on her head
and the other wrapped around her body, whistling 'Let's Get It On'. Dawn
stood outside the door, tapping her foot impatiently, but Buffy barely registered
her presence through her haze of happiness.
"What the-" Dawn asked incredulously. When Spike emerged from the
steamy room, she knew what had been going on. And as much as she wanted to be
grossed out, there was Spike, in a towel, towel drying his hair, water dripping
off his chest. Suddenly, there were no words. He might be like my brother
but I'm not blind!, she thought. My sister is one lucky girl, that's
for sure.
Spike caught her gaze and frowned. "What? I got soap in my ear or something?"
When she shook her head, his brow furrowed. "By the way, you an me, we
got a conversation to have about last night." Dawn's eyes got huge and
he grinned.
"What-how-I….."
"Spike never misses anything. Remember that Bit. Now put your tongue back
in your mouth and take your shower," he said chuckling as he walked into
Buffy's room and shut the door.
Dawn ran into the bathroom, her face flaming, and threw her clothes on the
sink. When she got over being embarrassed, she considered her outfit. Would
Gunn think I look hot in this? Will Spike let me wear it? she asked herself
ruefully. Shrugging, she turned the shower on and left her musings until later.
**********************************************************************
Once everyone was showered and sufficiently supplied with the coffee that Giles
had made, Buffy settled in front of the tree with Spike, having designated them
present distributors. Looking around the room, she noted people having quiet
discussions amongst themselves in pairs. Clearing her throat, she called, "Hey!
Hey! If you wanna make with the presents, listen up!"
Angel smirked in Spike's direction, noting his attire. "Nice turtleneck,
Spike. It goes great with your…hehe…chinos."
Spike flipped him off surreptitiously, and Buffy smacked his leg. "It's
Christmas; be nice! Okay, Spike and I will pick up the gifts and call out the
name, come and you come and claim them. Everyone can start opening as soon as
all the gifts are out. Got it?"
A chorus of affirmatives filled the room and the blondes reached under the
tree, handing out gifts as rapidly as possible. When they were done, Buffy picked
on with her name on it, and yelled, "One…two…three! GO!"
The room filled with oohs and aahs, the sound of ripping paper, and excited
squeals. Cordy helped Angel open all Connor's gifts first, giving Buffy a huge
smile when she saw the Gap box. Willow and Tara giggled at the things they'd
been bought, and Dawn was 'Oh my God'-ing at regular intervals.
Anya reached over and picked up a small, oddly wrapped package. Xander caught
his breath as she opened it, and her gasp tore through the room. "Oh, Xander,
I… this is…I love you so much!" The box fell off her lap, spilling
an ancient looking amulet that resembled the one she'd worn when Cordelia first
met her.
Xander smiled, and ran his fingers through her hair. "I wanted you to
know that not only do I love you, but I trust you with my life. I also wanted
to make sure you knew you had choice; stay here or…well you get the picture."
Buffy listened inconspicuously from her spot on the floor, then smiled at Spike
through misty eyes. "That was a nice thing you did for him," she whispered.
"No nicer than what you did for the cheerleader," he countered.
As if on cue, Cordelia's excited squeal tore through the air. "Buffy!
Oh my God! Where did you….. I saw the cuffs at first and thought…
oh no tacky gag gift… but this is… I don't know how to thank you!"
The brunette was uncharacteristically emotional, tears pouring down her face
as she hugged the Slayer. When she finally let go, she looked at Spike shrewdly.
"And I know you were a part of this, Billy. I just might forgive you for
ruining my life so long ago, since I know Buffy couldn't've found this without
you."
Buffy and Spike smiled at each other, watching Cordy show Angel her gift. He
had been scowling at the huge vat of hair gel Buffy's gotten him, and when he
read the paper, his eyes found Buffy's immediately.
He rushed through the mess, hugging Buffy and Spike at the same time. "You
don't know what this means to me. Both of you-"
Buffy grinned, looking at Spike out of the corner of her eye. "Yes, I
do. It means having the freedom to start a new life, Angel. Something I've definitely
found out about recently. Ask Willow and Tara… I'm sure with Giles and
Wesley's help, they could do this later today while dinner's cooking. It's just
a simple removal spell…the man at Saleem's promised Spike, on threat of
death, that it would work. For sure and for good. Be happy; I am," she
finished, pulling Spike to her and squeezing him for emphasis.
Angel turned to go talk to the witches when Spike's voice stopped him. "Oh,
mate? Think you can keep your staff away from the Bit for me?"
Angel laughed heartily. "Well, I'll certainly try, but I offer no guarantees."
Buffy watched the people in the room hugging and crying and showing each other
their gifts excitedly. Her heart swelled as she realized what she could have
missed if Willow hadn't brought her back, and she finally found the ability
to forgive her friend. Misguided as she had been, Buffy was glad Willow had
done it in the end.
Spike scooted up behind her and wrapped himself around her, and she snuggled
back. Grinning slightly, she whispered, "God bless us, everyone."
Spike rolled his eyes. "Oh, luv, that was bad." At her nod, he grinned.
"But not nearly as bad as I was last night," he growled.
Buffy closed her eyes, and tried the memorize the scene before her. Hopefully, her mother really was watching them and could see how happy her daughters were. It made Buffy warm inside just thinking about it.