Title: Secrets Don't Make Friends (Pt 17-No Sharing the Slayer)
Author: DivaDelilah (divadelilah@aol.com)
Description: Set in late Season 4, after Faith has body switched and is in prison.
Adam isn't in play, Spike is working with the Scoobies reluctantly.
Disclaimer: They're not mine, but at least I treat 'em right. Joss, Mutant Enemy,
and Fox own all…I'm just daydreaming.
Distribution: Fanfiction.net, assorted lists, and anything I okay.
Feedback: Every Diva need her praise. So Praise me!
***********************************************************************
Angel opened the door slowly, hoping to avoid any more embarrassing situations
by warning them the gang was on their way in. The door swung all the way open,
and the group filed in one at a time.
Xander groped his way in, his hand firmly covering his eyes. "We're coming
in now. No naked Buffy or Spikes here, right? Everyone completely covered?"
he asked loudly. "I'm already scarred for life, as it is."
Willow smacked his arm lightly, walking ahead of the group until she ran flat into Angel's back. When the stars dissipated, she poked Angel on the shoulder indignantly.
"Hey. What's with the traffic jam here? You coulda at least gave some
warn- awww," she finished, noting why he'd stopped dead. "They look
so cute!"
Everyone else gathered around, and gazed at the slumbering pair. Spike was
curled up in the armchair, wearing only pants that were obviously Angel's, with
Buffy curled up on his lap. Buffy, in turn was wearing Spike's torn clothes,
and had her head resting in the crook of his neck, just under his chin. As deadly
as they were when they were awake, they looked as innocent as children asleep
and cuddling, purring up a storm. Even Cordelia's face softened a bit.
"Doesn't it just make you want to cuddle up with your very own demon?"
Xander asked sarcastically.
Giles looked at Xander askance. "You cuddle up with a demon every night.
Even if she is an ex-demon, I hardly see the difference." He knew that
his Slayer was obviously very happy with Spike, and whether approved of all
this or not, he'd be damned if he'd let Xander ruin it for her.
Cordy wrapped her arms around Angel's waist and hugged him. "You think
we should wake them up? I mean, I may be bitchy, but I know a Hallmark moment
when I see one."
Anya peeked her out of the crowd. "Do vampires show up on film? I have
a camera in my purse if they do. We could draw funny mustaches on them and take
a picture. I hear that's very funny."
Cordelia snickered and looked at Xander sympathetically. "And you thought
dating me was torture."
Suddenly Spike opened one eye and glared at them. "Can't a bloke get some
bloody sleep around here? You're squawking more than bleeding hens. And demon
girl? If you ever do that to me while I'm sleeping, I'll pop your head like
a zit, got it?"
Buffy stirred and rubbed her eyes, stretching a bit. "Spiiiiiike. I'm
tired. Can't the Big Bad thing wait until morning?" she whined sleepily,
burying her head into his chest.
If he could have, Spike might have actually blushed. Instead, he reached down
and shook her shoulder, trying to wake her up completely. "Wake up, luv,
before you say something we'll both regret," he whispered into her ear.
Her head shot up and she stared at the crowd incredulously. "Um, did I
say- I mean what I meant was can't this talk wait until morning? I'm very tired,
and Spike's been up all night… I mean, Spike, and I, have been working
all night… Oh, Hell, I'm just gonna shut up now," she said lamely,
seeing the way they were looking at her.
'Very eloquent, pet. Do you think you made it clear enough that we shagged
our brains out all night or are you going to try to explain again?' Spike
thought, chuckling internally. She shot him a murderous look and he stuck his
tongue out at her and waggled it. Her eyes glazed over and he smirked again,
smelling her arousal flaring up again. 'You really are insatiable. How on
Earth did you expect a human boy to keep up with you? No wonder you had to wank
off in the shower…'
A faint odor caught Angel's nose and he looked around then back down at his
Childe and Buffy. He gave them an incredulous look, but kept silent. My God,
again? That's just insane! he thought. This way definitely not the Buffy he
had known. I guess it's the Slayer in her that makes her so…resilient.
He suddenly remembered Buffy's link to him, and looked her. She was smirking
Spike's trademark smirk at him and he felt stupid. I should know better,
he thought before closing his mind off to her.
"Excuse me? What the hell is it with you people and mind reading? It is
so not polite to leave the rest of us out of the conversation," Cordelia
fumed, stomping her foot. She grabbed Angel's hand and hauled him over to the
couch and pulled him down next to her. She turned and looked at the rest of
the group, waiting for them to follow suit.
Spike simply stared at Angel while everyone settled in, trying hard to contain
the laughter that was almost breaking free. He looked at Buffy and thought,
'Can you project thoughts to Peaches, too?'
'I don't know. Want me to try?' she replied.
'Oh please do. Tell him I said "Two hours and she's already dragging
you around by your Johnson. You are the most whipped vampire in history, you
poof." Get that?' he asked snickering.
She giggled. 'You are so evil, baby. Give me a second to try.' Buffy
reached out with her mind, calling Angel's name in her head. When he looked
up at her in surprise, she grinned. Score one for the Buffster.
'Angel, Spike said "Two hours and she's already dragging you around
by your Johnson. You are the most whipped vampire in history." Does that
mean anything to you?' Buffy looked at him innocently, fighting back a giggle.
Spike gave her a thumbs up as Angel began to sputter.
"H-how? Buffy did you just-? Fuck," Angel said, putting his head
in his hands and running his hand through his hair. He glared at Spike and flipped
him off, which only made Spike laugh harder.
Xander looked at them then at Cordelia. "Is this creeping you guys out
as much as it is me? I wasn't real fond of Buffy communing with Deadboy, Jr.
over there, but now she's mind reading the original Deadboy too? What's next?
Chatting with the looney tune?"
"If I may interrupt, aren't we getting off the topic yet again?"
Wesley interjected. "We came here to talk to Buffy and Spike about the
claim and its effects. And I suppose, the reason it came to be."
Spike glared at the ex-Watcher. "I thought I already bloody told you gits
that I lo-"
Buffy put a finger on his lips. "Let me tell them, baby." When he
nodded sulkily, she kissed his lips lightly and turned back to the group. "About
six months ago, Spike and I started…dating in secret. I'm not going into
detail about it, but we've been close ever since. When Willow moved in with
Tara, he basically moved into my dorm with me. He never attempted to hurt or
kill me, though if he wanted to, I'm sure he could have tried. I kept it a secret
because of exactly what happened tonight. I didn't want everyone I know invading
my private life and casting their judgement on us. I guess we weren't very sneaky
lately, and you guys caught us. I certainly hadn't planned to be claimed, nor
do I think Spike had planned to claim me. It just happened. And I love it, and
I love Spike. He makes me happy, and it's been a long time since I've felt that."
"But what about Riley?" Willow asked quietly. "You were dating
him fairly…intensely, Buffy. How do you explain that?"
She looked at her hands. "I can't really. I- Well, Spike and I weren't
supposed to be serious at first. It was supposed to be a fling. Just something
to amuse us. I never thought that we would- The fight we were having earlier
this evening after the first patrol was about Riley. Spike was demanding I get
rid of one or the other. I realized then that I didn't want to be with Riley;
I wanted Spike. But when he said he didn't want to tell you guys that we were
together, I got hurt and ran straight here. He followed and we…made up.
That's when you guys walked in. The End," she finished.
"Cor, Slayer," Spike broke in. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings.
I just figured your mates would overreact and we'd have a bloody huge mess on
our hands. Which, by the way, is exactly what we have," he said smugly.
"So you have been lying to us for six months, Buffy? To your best
friends, and to me, your Watcher? How could you possibly think lying to us would
make us any happier with you? Did you ever intend to tell us?" Giles snapped.
"Giles, I never intended for it to go this far. If you hadn't found us
here tonight, we would have had to tell you. It's not like it isn't obvious
that something is different," she replied flippantly.
"Yeah, like the fact that you've become a chew toy," Xander muttered,
glancing at the bite marks peppering her expose neck and shoulders.
Buffy glared at him. "Xander, your girlfriend could ask for her powers
back any day and turn us all into slugs. Do I say nasty things about her all
the time?"
"Buffy, he's just being overprotective because he used to have a thing
for you. I am not threatened, though I'm glad you don't hate me. For the record,
on most days you're the last person I'd turn into a slug when I get my powers
back," Anya said brightly.
Cordelia looked around the room in disbelief. "Okay, can I just throw
in some logic? You people are nuts. Xander, get over Buffy and let her be happy.
The Powers would not have sent me the vision saying she was safe if she wasn't.
Anya, no offense, but you are strange. Giles, calm down. Her last vampire killed
a member of the gang that you, particularly, loved; can you blame her for the
cloak and dagger bit? Willow, I had no idea you were…so interesting lately.
And Buffy?"
Buffy looked at the girl who had been so shallow and bitchy in high school
in amazement. "Yeah?"
"We are so going to dish when this is over. As you can see, we
might want to trade secrets every so often," she grinned, patting Angel's
knee lightly.
A low chuckle started from behind Buffy, and it slowly built into an outright
guffaw. Spike's was laughing so hard blood tears streaked down his face, and
as soon as she read what he was thinking, Buffy joined in. They roared with
laughter at Angel's expense as the dark haired vampire excused himself to stalk
into the kitchen.
When they finally calmed down, Wesley cleared his throat again and looked at
the Slayer. "Buffy, we don't know much about the claiming process or what
it does. As we've witnessed several times, you can read each other's minds with
ease. What other shared traits are manifesting?"
Buffy grew reticent, not wanting to freak Giles out. She sighed and rolled
her eyes when Spike ordered her to tell them in her head. "Okay, so I have
extra speed. I can draw on Spike's strength as part of mine, like double the
Slayer double the fun? I'm, um, purring when content…" She flushed
and Wes' look encouraged her to continue. "I can smell things no one should
be able to smell." She looked pointedly at Xander, who turned bright red,
and Anya, who just beamed. "That's it really."
Spike growled at her in warning, and she acquiesced. "I can growl and
talk vampire or whatever that is. There? You happy?" she pouted at Spike.
"You bloody well know I'm not," he growled. "She has boundless,
and let me tell you I mean boundless, endurance and energy. She's about
ready to run me ragged. And," he paused, smirking, "She had great
yellow streaks in her eyes when she attacked Angel. They reminded me of eyes
like this." He vamped out quickly, his yellow eyes flashing until Buffy
reached up and ran her fingers over his forehead gently.
"Good Lord," was all Giles could muster before he started cleaning
his glasses.
"And no, she is not turning into a vampire. My poofy Sire doesn't
know his arse from his elbow sometimes. Try handing her a cross; if she sizzles,
well, there's your answer, mate."
Angel walked into the room, and handed Buffy something. She looked at the object
for a second then blushed furiously. "This is not a cross, Angel."
She dangled the handcuffs from her finger pointedly, then remembered where they
had come from, and the blush crept down her neck.
Everyone stared at Buffy and Spike, who shrugged. "Found 'em in Peaches'
underwear drawer anyways. Who's he to cast stones? I seem to remember plenty
of times when he used bondage gear on m-"
Angel's hand covered Spike's mouth quickly, and he smiled weakly. Giving Spike
a stern look, he walked toward the couch and sat down next to Cordy, who in
turn, glared at him. Anya just stared at him in fascination.
"Like I was saying on me n Druuu-oooooooow!" Spike yelped as Buffy
dug her elbow into his ribs.
"I do not want a blow by blow of your and Angel's past relationship right
now, Fang Breath," she muttered, then flushed again as she realized what
she had said.
Both Spike and Angel laughed, then whipped their heads around to look at each
other. A look of camaraderie passed between the two that was so intense, Angel
felt like he was back in the old days. He hadn't felt this close to his boy
since before getting his soul. Spike's eyes flickered yellow as his demon recognized
Angel's and to their surprise, Buffy turned to gaze at them with yellowish tints.
The three just looked at each other in amazement. Her little nose wiggled for
a minute and she gasped, her eyes widened, and she buried her face in Spike's
neck.
'Oh my God, you guys are thinking… Shame! Shame on you! No wicked thoughts
about sharing Buffy!' she thought to them both. 'Although…'
Buffy got a naughty grin on her face as she considered the two men in bed with
her and what they could do.
"Buffy!" Angel cried out in shock at what she was projecting to his
mind. He felt the curious gazes burning into the side of his face and Cordelia's
nails digging into his thighs. He couldn't help but gape at his innocent Slayer
who'd apparently been corrupted beyond repair by his Childe. He looked at Spike
who was grinning madly, one eyebrow quirked up as if he were daring Angel to
consider it.
Tara pulled on Willow's sleeve, whispering something in her ear. Willow nodded
in agreement. She chanted a few words under her breath and an invisible barrier
came up between Buffy and Angel. She only hoped it would block Buffy from the
ensouled vampire's mind before he became too tempted to give that soul up. Or
before Cordelia stakes him, she thought, glancing at the fuming ex-cheerleader.
Angel shook his head as if to clear his thoughts and threw a grateful smile
at Willow. Getting back to business he spoke to where he thought Buffy was located,
"Buffy, one of my worries is that your smell has changed. I know that sounds
weird, but Spike's has too, in a different way. Spike's scent is a mixture of
his and yours, which I would expect. But yours is… muskier? I don't know
to me it just smells off. Does anyone else notice it?"
Spike sniffed his mate for a second, catching traces of him and her, and something
faint, unidentifiable. He sniffed again, his brow cocked in confusion. "Yeah,
mate. She smells of something.. I just can't grasp what it is. You think it's
claim related or what?"
"You guys! Maybe of the dusty vamps just had BO. However, it is really
nice for you to sit and here discuss how I smell bad," she pouted.
Anya raised her head and sniffed. "I'm not a vampire, but it smells like
she needs a bath big time. But not like sweaty smell, because I don't smell
it unless I concentrate on it. It does make me nauseous to smell it, though.
Wonder what that is?"
Spike kept his mouth shut. It just couldn't be. There's no way it could
be true, especially not as a coincidence. And I don't want to get her hopes
up. Or mine, he thought ruefully, careful to block his mind as he continued
thinking about what a whipped lapdog he was becoming. He shrugged to the crowd.
"Maybe that's just how vampires smell on humans when we… Bloody hell,
Slayer!" he growled, vamping out when she elbowed his sore ribs again.
"See! See! I knew he'd hurt her!" Xander shouted, jumping up and
pointing at them.
Buffy let out a warning growl, her eyes flashing yellow, and stared him down.
He growled in return, and she leaned in and kissed him, cutting her lip on his
fang. The blood flowing into his mouth soothed him, and the ridges faded as
he kissed her back. Her eyes returned to normal and she smiled, softly stroking
his cheek, the last drops of blood dribbling onto her chin. Turning back to
face Xander, she laughed at his horrified face. "Nothing is wrong, Xand.
It was a little spat, hardly anything worse than you and Anya have when you
work late. Ours are just…different.'
"Buff, you have blood all over your mouth. How is that a little spat?"
"I do?" she asked, looking at Spike sternly. He grinned and licked
off gleefully, and she rolled her eyes. "He did that on purpose. He could've
made it close up all nice and neat. He was provoking you."
"Is anyone else here disturbed by this? Cuz I'm not real fond of watching
Bleach Boy turn Buffy into an after dinner mint. I wanna leave before I have
nightmares for the rest of my natural life," he complained.
"Xander, is, erm, right. We should go. Buffy, we'll expect you and Spike at the shop tomorrow at noon. I know there's tunnel access here somewhere, so be prompt.
While Angel and his crew are here, we need to study the changes in you both,
and perhaps even get ahold of those Asian demons. Good night, and do get some
rest," Giles said tiredly.
He motioned for the rest of them to head out to the car, watching as Willow
flicked her wrist and the air between Buffy and Angel shimmered for a second.
She grinned impishly at Angel, and grabbed Tara's hand, leading her out. Xander
and Anya walked out next with Xander muttering under his breath. Wes brought
up the rear with Cordelia, who looked like she was about to rip someone's head
off. I would not want to be Angel tonight, Giles thought. He turned to
see Angel deep in conversation with Buffy and Spike. Angel finally got up and
hugged both Buffy and Spike, then walked towards the door with slumped shoulders.
"Thanks Rupert," he said, shutting the door behind them. He walked towards the car slowly, knowing that the unspoken offer from Buffy and Spike could never be accepted. Not just because of his soul, but because he really did care about Cordelia, whom he was sure he'd royally pissed off tonight. No rest for the wicked, he thought, getting into the passenger seat next to his new girl.
***********************************************