Title:Who Wants to be a Millionaire?
Author: Joyce
Rating: Pg-Pg13ish (Whole Series)
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Angel the Series characters. They belong to 20th Century Fox, and Joss Whedon. Also I am making no profit off this story. Please don’t sue, I’m just a poor college student.
Summary: First of all this is Buffy/Spike!!! Buffy and Riley break up, Spike grows closer to the whole gang, and the fire demon begins targeting Buffy's friends.
Spoilers: Anything up to the Season 4 finals of both Buffy and Angel is fair game.

"I'm sorry, but that was not the correct answer." Regis Philbin informed the unfortunate player.

"Stupid woman! Duh! You don't guess on the million dollar question! " Xander was yelling and throwing things at the TV. He and Anya were seated on his couch watching the popular game show.

Anya sighed, "Is this gonna be over soon? I want an orgasm." she complained, grabbing the remote and clicking the TV off.

Xander swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat as he turned to kiss his girlfriend. It amazed him that no matter how blunt she was, she never failed to turn him on.

"Oh, baby your on fire." he murmured against her lips.

"No, Xander. The house is on fire."

"What?!" Xander jumped up from the couch, ran to his closet, and started pulling out his horrible looking shirts and pants.

"Does this mean we can't have sex tonight?" Anya asked as he ran passed her and out the back door.

After placing his precious wardrobe a safe distance away from the burning house, he ran back inside. Nervously, he glanced back and forth between Anya and the TV set. Reluctantly making up his mind, he tossed Anya over his shoulder and ran back outside. Smoke filled the sky, and the flames climbed higher and higher as Xander headed next door to call the fire department.

"My TV!" Xander moaned in despair. He and Anya were now seated on Giles' couch.

An emergency Scooby Gang meeting had been called. It seemed the fire demon had struck again. Two weeks had passed since Buffy and Riley had saved the family from the fire. And after nights and nights of patrols, Buffy and Spike had come up empty handed.

Spike laid a hand on Xander's shoulder. "I feel your pain, mate."

Xander briefly nodded before dropping his head in is hands.

Buffy was amazed at how easily Spike had been accepted into the group, once he started trying. He had long conversations about history with Giles, listened as Willow babbled on and on about everything, talked violence and vengeance with Anya, and had even helped Tara to open up, by making her dance with him at the Bronze every time they went. They all quickly befriended the blond vampire, making his job, and Buffy's, much easier. Xander, however, was another story.

He started fussing the moment Giles introduced Spike as Buffy's new partner. He brought up every bad thing that had happened with Angel, especially Miss Calendar. The pain of her death had dulled a lot in Giles' heart, so he was able to keep from smacking the boy.

But that didn't stop Willow or Buffy, who let him have it every chance they got. .

Xander had stubbornly refused to accept Spike. Until one night, when he was almost made into a happy meal by a clan of about eight vampires. Spike had several broken ribs, and lost lots of blood before he came out of that fight. The blond vampire had saved Xander's life that night, and ever since he and the mortal boy got along just fine.

That was the funny thing about Xander. He would fight tooth and nail to keep you out, but once you got in he was as loyal as can be. Now Spike and Xander were not best friends, by any means! But Spike couldn't help the anger that boiled in his undead stomach as he heard about Xander and Anya's close call.

How dare a demon mess with his .. What? If not friends, what were they? Oh well, it didn't matter. They were HIS and that's what mattered. No one gets away with messing around with something of his.

"Does this mean we get to move out of the basement?" Anya asked excitedly. "We don't have to live with your parents anymore!"

"Oh no! My parents!" Xander moaned again.

"Were they in the house?" Buffy asked.

"No, they're out of town, but they'll kill me when they get back!"

"Well, maybe they'll just be glad that no one was hurt." Willow tried to console her best friend.

Xander looked up at Giles with big puppy dog eyes.

"Oh, alright. I guess you two can stay here tonight. But starting tomorrow your looking for a new place." The ex-watcher told them.

"Spike and I should go patrol, and see if we can find anything." Buffy suggested.

"Yes, well, b-be careful." Giles said as the two made their way out the door.

"It's really quiet tonight, kitten, I don't think we'll find anything." Spike commented as they made their third round of the cemeteries that night.

"Ugh!! This is so frustrating!" Buffy yelled toward the sky.

"Oh yeah. That'll help." The blond vampire said as he rolled his eyes at her.

"What else am I supposed to do? I've got all this pent up anger and no demon I can let it all out on!" she pouted.

Spike's gaze was focused on her lip. ‘Pouty lip', he had once told her.

He raised his gaze and their eyes met. The world seemed to fade away until it was just the two of them. Slowly they began to move toward each other. Then, ....

"HELP!" a cry came from the street in front of the cemetery.

They bolted as one toward the sound, ready to pulverize whatever had interrupted them.

Once they passed the gate, they saw an older man in a suit trying unsuccessfully to fight off three vampires intent on making him their next meal. Between the angry Slayer and Master vampire, the three fledglings were dust in a matter of seconds.

"Oh thank you! Thank you!" The man started saying over and over again.

"You’re welcome." Buffy told him.

"I owe you my life!" the guy was practically kissing Buffy's feet.

"It was nothing. Just stay off the streets at night, okay?" The Slayer was ready to get away from the guy.

"Wait a minute! Where do you live? I'd like to send you something." he begged.

Spike quickly gave him Buffy's address, ready to get away from the strange man as well.

After the man was gone, Buffy turned to Spike and smacked him upside the head.

"Why did you give that creepy guy my address?!" she demanded.

"Sorry! I just wanted him to leave." he glared at her while rubbing his sore head.

"Well, you should have..."

"Wait a minute! Do you smell that?" he interrupted her.

"Smoke!" she cried.

They looked up and saw a big cloud of smoke coming from nearby neighborhood.

A knot formed in Buffy's stomach as she realized whose neighborhood it was. Tara's!

Two days later, Buffy was sitting on the roof outside her window watching the sunset. Tara's place had been destroyed. Luckily, the witch had not been home at the time. Now, Buffy had three homeless friends.

The fire demon had been targeting her friends since she had first seen it. First Xander and Anya, then Tara. Just when Buffy was ready to start screaming at the sky again, she'd received a phone call from Angel.

Cordelia had had a vision of Giles' place burning down. Apparently Cordelia had visions on a regular basis. Angel had wisely decided to phone, instead of just coming to Sunnydale. After what had happened last time, Buffy didn't blame him.

Angel had told her that he didn't like Riley. She should have realized then that Riley wasn't the one for her.

Yesterday Riley had come over and said goodbye. With the Initiative gone, and Buffy not speaking to him, he had decided that there was nothing to keep him in Sunnydale. He was going back to Indiana, or Iowa, wherever it was that he was from. Buffy had cried. She suspected it had more to do with the fact that another man that she had given herself to was leaving, than with her actually being in love with him. Now, Riley was just another closed chapter in her life.

"Your not still moping over fishboy, are you?" Spike poked his head out her window after the sun had set.

"Fishboy?" Buffy asked, as usual she wasn't sure what he was talking about.

"Yeah, you know? Riley Finn? FINN?" he stressed the last name.

"Oh." she was quiet a moment, then the giggles started.

"What's so funny?" he asked, grinning himself.

"I was just thinking.... Can you imagine? Buffy Finn?" she was all out laughing now.

She was so beautiful. It had been days since Spike had last seen her smile.

"You're almost pretty when you smile, Slayer." Spike told her.

"Almost?" she asked, then sobered.

"What are we going to do about this fire demon? And where are Xander, Anya, and Tara supposed to live?"

"We'll catch it soon. According to soul-boy, Giles' place will be next. We are all ready for him."

Spike was right. Giles had moved everything he deemed important to an undisclosed location. It must have been a pretty big location, to hold all of his books. He wasn't going to move anything, but when Xander had started talking about how quickly his precious tomes would burn, he had immediately decided to move them. Besides that, the whole gang had helped fire-proof his house.

How do you kill a fire demon? They had decided to try the obvious first. A water hose. They also had several fire extinguishers on hand, just in case. Spike knew that tonight would be the night, and told her so.

"How do you know?" she asked him.

"I don't know, I just do!" he replied, as if that was all she needed to hear.

He glanced at her, and saw that the frown, that had been permanently etched on her face the past two days, had returned. He wanted to see her smile again. Then he remembered why he had come to find her in the first place.

"Your mum sent me up to tell you that you got a package in the mail. I think it's from that weird guy we saved the other night." he told her.

Her face lit up at the prospect of getting a present. "Well, let's go see what it is." she said, and climbed back inside.

Spike and Joyce watched, amused, as Buffy tore into the package like a little kid opening a birthday present.

When Buffy finally had the package open, she went still, her jaw dropping in shock.

"What is it?" her mom asked, a little worried at the look on her daughter's face.

"Money." Buffy answered her.

"A whole lot of money!" Spike exclaimed, and began pulling wads of cash out of the box.

"Here's a note!" Buffy pulled out a piece of blue paper.

She read it out loud,

"To my heroes,
Please accept this money as a thank you
for saving my life. It really meant a lot to me,
and this is the only way I know to express
my gratitude.
Thanks again!"

"It's not signed?" Joyce asked.

Buffy shook her head, in shock.

"Four million dollars!" Spike suddenly exclaimed.

"We're rich!" Buffy broke out of her stupor and began dancing around the kitchen.

"We're millionaires!" Spike said, and began dancing with her.

Joyce grinned from ear to ear watching the two of them stumble around the small space.

"Well, I'd say the first thing you two need is dancing lessons!"

End Part 3