The
Card
*****
For Shame the Devil Spike:
why did he first started signing the cards home
*****
The first time, he hesitated with the pen poised over the card. It
was the perfect card, really. It was Dawn's birthday, and Spike had
found a card with a photo of a small white kitten done up in punk
gear on the front. It was precisely the kind of thing she'd adore,
and then swear it was much too childish for a young woman of sixteen.
She'd shut up when she opened the diamond earrings that accompanied
it.
He'd already written his own signature, a bold slash of red that
formed the letter S. He and Xander had been in LA for six months,
sharing a sprawling two-bedroom flat in a crappy part of town. Safety
wasn't a huge concern when you had a vampire roommate, and that
afforded them a wider choice of dwellings. The boy never had
explained what had run him out of Sunnydale, and Spike had yet to
have the occasion to talk to Buffy about it. He had to soon, though -
he wanted to talk to her about Dawn's education and offer to help.
Sighing resolutely, he brought the pen down and drew an ampersand.
He doubted that Dawn even knew what one was, but he drew it anyway.
Beneath it, he slashed the letter X. He sealed the card and dropped
it and the small jewelry box into the padded overnight envelope. Oh
well, if they asked he could always say Xander picked out the card. *****
S&X?