Title: Shine
Part: #4
Disclaimer: The characters from the series Buffy the Vampire Slayer are not mine, they are the creation of Joss Whedon's genius and Mutant Enemy.If you plan on posting this on your web site please include my name and the disclaimer, and notify me.
Rating: PG
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“Over identify much” Angel stated.
“That’s called post traumatic loser syndrome Angel, don’t worry being my daughter, you immune” Cordelia said as Giles finished his mouthful of tea and resumed his story.
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Spike pushed the small slayer away, embarrassed to be seen in the state he was in at the time.
“Christ, Spike what hell happened?” Faith spat, as Spike stood shakily and pushed passed her.
“None of you god damn business, I just had a little run in with someone, is all” Spike replied.
“Would this someone happen to be a mac truck?”
“No… and sod off, I am letting you stay at MY place”
“And in appreciation I am going to help you!”
“YOU WILL N-O-T!” Spike said, just after he did so Faith decked him and knocked him cleanly out.
“Um sorry what was that, you’d like me to help! Good I thought that’s what you said” Faith mumbled as she lifted Spike’s heavy and unconscious body up on to his bed. She looked at his bloody face and body and she was reminded of what her mother used to look like after her father had come home drunk and a little hostile. She had cleaned many wounds and dried many tears, the whole situation was just like a page from her past and the memories that she dredged up through this little exercise, they hurt. Just before she finished she noticed that said memories were making her cry. Faith, the vampire slayer was crying.
The soft sobs and warm salty tears brought Spike back to consciousness, she buried her head in her palms to hide her ‘little episode’. Spike noticed all of his wounds and gouges were clean and the deep ones bound. He saw the tiny slayer crying, he had seen Buffy crying before, in fact all she ever seemed to do was cry. But this girl, she didn’t suit tears and they looked unnatural rolling down her face and arms. Spike was a vampire, he wasn’t cut out for these human things, but he moved one of his hands and moved Faith’s hands from her face. She looked down at his attractive, serious yet gentle face and she lost it. She threw herself on to him and sobbed uncontrollably letting the evens of the past bubble to the surface. Spike was a little shocked, he put his arms around her and slowly rubbed her back and lulled the distressed girl to sleep. He liked the feeling of her on top of him, the feeling of her heart beating, the feeling of her chest going in and out. It had been such a long time since he had felt someone asleep next to him, even if she was a slayer.
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“Xander this is Willow”
“Hi Will”
“Look you have to listen to me very carefully, is Buffy there?” Willow said cutting Xander off.
“No, no she’s not”
“Good, she coming, when she gets there do not let her in, don’t invite her alright”
“What, Will we have talked about drinking too much coffee”
“Xander this is not time to be an arse, Buffy’s been turned and she’s headed your way”
“What?”
“You heard me, in the morning come to Giles’s and I’ll explain the whole thing”
“Is this some kind of a joke?”
“Do I sound like I am having a good time? Look I have to go, remember what I said and DO NOT let buffy in do you understand?”
“Yeah, yeah I got it”
“Good, I’ll see you tomorrow”
“Yeah see ya”
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Morning came as the Scooby’s cowered in their homes waiting for the door to knock and find a present from Buffy or Angelus on the other side. Meanwhile Faith still slept in Spike’s arms, Spike had also fallen asleep, lulled by the rhythmical beating of the slayers heart. Faith stirred first, she opened her eyes and was confronted with the sleeping vampire, at first she was startled but then the events of the night before began to flow back.
“Oh my God, what a huge moron I must have looked like” she said quietly to herself.
“No you looked like a normal sized moron, well a normal sized moron with more drool,” Spike said with his eyes still tightly closed. Faith turned and looked at him, he had a huge smirk on his face but that’s not the only thing that attracted her attention more was how horrifically pale he was, more pale that normal, even for a vampire.
“Spike, y-you look” Faith stuttered.
“Sexy, attractive, beautiful, majestic”
“I was going to go with pale, but I really can’t disagree with any of those adjectives”. Spike opened one of his eyes and looked at her surprised.
“Really what do you like best about me”
“Did you even hear me, I said your pale!”
“Ya-ha, um luv, did you pick up on the fact that I am a vampire and vampires, being dead and all, have a tendance to be pale”
“No I mean way pale, paler than normal, do you need to feed”
“Come to think of it I am a little peckish”
“Since I have nothing better to do, I’ll go and get you something to eat, and since I need something as well”.
“There is some cash spare in my jacket, take what’s left” Spike said as Faith got up.
“Money?”
“Um yeah, you exchange it for good and services”
“Oh I just usually knock out the store keeper and take what I want, I find it more economical” Faith said digging around in the pockets of Spike’s jacket.
“It might be economical luv, but the authorities tend to frown on that kind of behaviour and it does tend to draw a little attention” Spike replied.
“I guess, be back soon, and ahhh try not to move too much, who or what ever beat you to something that resembles pulp did an awful good job”
“Yeah the throbbing of my whole bloody body kind of tipped me off”
“Yeah I noticed some of that throbbing myself” Faith said turning toward the door. Spike may have been pale before, but after that comment he turned the brightest shade of red you had ever seen. He said nothing as she gracefully walked out being careful not to let too much sunlight in. But she was right; his ‘contentness’ with her body pressing against his was fairly obvious.
Faith continued in to the harsh light of day thinking of what had just gone on. She had felt safer in a vampires arms than she had for as long as she can remember. And even stranger, he is the first no to try to take advantage of her. She didn’t know if that was a good thing or not, she didn’t know if it would have been so bad to be taken advantage of by him. Faith was so deep in thought and was wading in just a little lust she didn’t see Willow, but Willow saw her.
“Faith” Willow exclaimed.
“Oh god no” Faith said as she slowly turned to see the short red head witch standing, open mouthed. “Um Willow… how’s everything good? Good! Good. I really have to be going to ummmm… to a place that’s away now so I’ll be going” Faith didn’t have time to turn. Willow quickly wrapped her arms around her. “Ok I might not be familiar with the latest forms of torture, but I am fairly certain that hugging to death is not quite up there”.
“Thank God! Now at least we have a chance”.
“What, what are you talking about?”
“Buffy!”
“She doesn’t have to know I’m here, look I’m here to cause trouble… I just wanna—“
“No. Against Buffy. She’s a vampire. And she has some issues and a psychotic lover come sire who is doing his best to encourage her unsavoury behaviour”
“What?”
“Faith, we need you, if we are going to get through this alive we need you!” Willow said.
“No, I can’t” Faith said as she pulled away from Willow, leaving her standing in the middle of the footpath, alone. Watching the Scooby’s last hope hurry down the sidewalk. Faith tried to ignore what she had just heard, it wasn’t her problem. But she knew she was kidding herself, it was her problem and she was the only girl in all the world that could solve it.