Rating: NC-17 (overall)

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Joss owns all. I’m teaching him to share!

Feedback: If you would be so kind I’d love to know I’m doing something right.

And let’s not forget: Loads of thanks, hugs and naked Spike cookies to Elizabuffy and Shighola, for the beta-ing.

People Change

by
Nash

Part One

Xander stood outside the door, trying to decide how to play this.

Funny but throughout the long flight and the drive here, this was the only thing he could think about and yet he still had no idea what to do.

“I can hear you thinking, pet. You might as well come in and do it in here.”

Well, that solved part of the problem didn’t it? Xander opened the door and stepped inside. He wasn’t sure what he had expected but this Spartan environment was definitely not it. Spike had always brought his personality with him everywhere he lived. Even the basement had ended up reflecting Spike as much as it did Xander.

“Hey, Spike.” He said, fidgeting a little, still not sure of how to say what he’d come to say.

“Hey yourself. So, wanna tell me what the hell you’re doing here?” Spike asked, raising an eyebrow and looking challengingly at Xander.

Cut right to the chase why don’t you. “I could ask you the same thing, Fangl- Fang.”

Spike smirked at Xander’s correction. “Yeah but you’re in my town, and in my flat, so tell.” He drawled.

Xander sighed. Wish I’d planned this better, he thought.

“Well, obviously Andrew blabbed. That kid couldn’t keep his mouth shut if his life depended on it,” he explained. “I was on my way back from Africa and I was voted ‘most convenient for a stop-over’ so here I am.”

The brunet paused, trying to gather his thoughts and figure out a way to proceed.

“Here you are. To do what exactly?” “To ask you to come back to England with me.” Oh look, blurting it out wasn’t that tough.

“No.”

Now to see what it will take to convince the stubborn bastard.

Spike couldn’t believe Xander bloody Harris had been sent here to ask him to go to them. Well, he wasn’t going. There was no way he was returning to the Scooby fold, only to be treated like shit and used for their convenience. Things were different now...Except they weren’t, were they? That Doyle bloke had been a fraud and Angel treated him worse than the Scoobies ever did. And here was Harris, eyes all earnest, asking him to go back. Wait a minute… eyes?

“Harris, you got two eyes.” Spike stated incredulously and moved closer to check out Xander’s face.

“Yeah, well. One of the new slayers was the daughter of a shaman and he waved his magic stick around and oogled-boogled it back,” Xander said uncomfortably. He still wasn’t sure what the shaman had done. He’d gone straight to Willow and Giles and they had checked it out. It seemed legit, but he didn’t like to think about it too much. He put up with Spike staring at him for a minute before returning to the business at hand and jumping headfirst into babble mode.

“Spike, you have to come back. Buffy had to actually restrain Dawn to stop her jumping on the first plane here, Willow’s all bubbly with excitement at seeing you again and so are the ex -potentials that survived the battle. They’re planning a welcome home party! Even Giles got that pleased little smile he gets when good things happen. His eyes sparkled and everything.”

“Nice to see some things don’t change. You can still talk without breathing.” Spike couldn’t help smiling at the young man. He had missed the lot of them, even if he’d refused to admit it to himself. But there were a couple of things he needed to know before he made a decision. “Didn’t hear you mention yourself or Buffy in that lovely scene though, did I?” he asked casually.

“Well, I’m here, so obviously I want you back. I won’t lie to you Spike, you know you weren’t one of my favourite people. But things change. And so do people. We…we were okay towards the end weren’t we? We might even become friends, you never know, right?”

Xander looked at him worriedly and Spike nodded to show his acceptance of the tentative offer of friendship. There was still something bothering him though. “And what about Buffy?” he asked.

If anything Xander looked more worried. “She’s…erm…she does want you to come back.” The boy said nervously.

“But?”

“She’skindadtingthtImmrtalgu”

“She’s what?!” Spike exclaimed.

“I said-”

“I heard what you said! I can’t believe she’s dating that bloody bastard. Couldn’t she have picked anyone else? Even the Poof is better than that git. Stupid wanker with his stupid hair and his stupid charm. I just can’t believe she’s going out with that arsehole!” Spike snarled and started pacing around the small apartment.

Xander stared at Spike for a minute. He ran through the blond’s rant in his head and came to a conclusion.

“So you’re not upset she’s dating. You’re upset she’s dating this particular guy?” he ventured.

“I’m over her, boy. Well, nearly. And I want her to be happy. That was the whole point of saving the world! But did she have to get involved with that git?!” Spike sat down on the couch and lit a cigarette, smoking thoughtfully for a few minutes.

Xander watched the vampire smoke until he couldn’t bear the silence anymore.

“So… you coming with?” he asked tentatively.

Spike gave a defeated sigh.

“Might as well. Can’t do anything useful here that’s for sure.”

------------------

A couple of days later they were both back to dreary old England. Xander had managed to find a flight landing at Heathrow around midnight, which gave them just enough time to get to Coventry before daylight. Giles had chosen to set the new slayers up in a huge house just outside the city. With two universities in the area, the girls wouldn’t draw much notice and they were near enough London for the new Council to be able to keep an eye on them.

Xander had used the insurance money from the ‘freak earthquake’ that leveled Sunnydale to buy a semi-detached house on the outskirts of the city. The house was a fifteen or twenty minute drive from the Slayer Academy, and Xander claimed that it was the only thing that kept him from going insane working in a school full of girls.

They made it there with only minutes to spare before sunrise. Xander gave Spike the tour, showing him the kitchen and living room before taking him upstairs.

“It’s technically a three-bedroom house, though one of them is more like a small closet than a proper room. You can have the one facing west if you want. I asked Giles to put up some heavy duty curtains before we got here so it would be relatively safe.”

“You want me to move in with you Harris?” Spike asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Well you could live at the school, but do you really want to stay somewhere with a hundred or so slayers?” Xander smiled at the blond. “I could do with the company Spike. Being the only guy in a group of girls gets kind of tiring after a while. You could move in here properly and pay rent or whatever, or you could stay here as a guest until you find your own place. I’m good with both options. And hey, if you stay I get to play with the PlayStation2 which is a bonus!”

Spike laughed at the young man’s reasoning. “I’ll think about it then. Might as well stay here for now. See how it goes.”

Xander nodded and left Spike alone to unpack. He wandered downstairs and fixed himself a snack, before he carefully closed the living room curtains and settled himself on the sofa for some mindless early morning entertainment. Spike soon joined him, bringing his PlayStation. They decided to postpone hooking it up in favour of watching Americans make idiots of themselves on Jerry Springer.

Things were just getting heated on the television when the doorbell rang. Xander went to the door, still half-watching the show. He opened the door and was immediately smothered by the Summers women, both of whom seemed eager to break a couple of ribs and stop him from breathing. He escaped their clutches only because Spike caught their eye and the vice-like hugs were transferred to the vampire.

Spike hadn’t realized how worried he was about his reception by Buffy and Dawn until he found himself in their arms.

“Missed you so much.” Dawn mumbled against his neck.

“Missed you too, nibblet.” He said and hugged her tightly.

Buffy remained silent, just holding him close, as if assuring herself that he really was there and alive. She finally pulled back and looked at him, eyes shining with suppressed emotion.

“Welcome home Spike.” She said, smiling shakily.

“Good to see you too Buffy.”

Xander cleared his throat. “Dawnie? Wanna walk over to Tesco’s and get us some celebratory ice cream?”

Dawn seemed about to protest but then she looked at Buffy and Spike and changed her mind.

“You think they’ll get back together?” she asked as soon as they were out the door.

“I don’t know Dawn. They both moved on I think. And Buffy’s dating that Immortal guy.” Xander said thoughtfully.

Dawn grimaced at the mention of the Immortal. “Caaarlos” she said, adopting a truly terrible Italian accent. “That guy gets on my last nerve. You’d think after we left Italy she’d dump the bastard. He keeps treating me like a kid. Bloody idiot thinks he can charm the knickers off anyone.” She grumbled.

Xander grinned. “Don’t look now Dawn, but you’re beginning to sound like the Brits.”

The teenager smiled at him. “Been practicing.” She boasted.

--------------

“So…” Spike said hesitantly.

“So…” Buffy repeated.

“Hear you been dating another old bloke,” he said quietly.

“Yeah… Spike I-”

“It’s okay, luv. I understand.” Spike smiled gently at her.

“I do love you Spike just… not that way.” She said sadly.

Spike could see that this was hard for Buffy. Oddly enough, it wasn’t all that hard for him. He’d already accepted the fact that nothing would happen between them, so hearing that she’d moved on wasn’t surprising or even unwelcome. But did she have to move on with that utter git?!

“Buffy, it’s okay. I do understand. And hard as it is to believe I’m not heart-broken.” Spike paused. “Maybe a little bit heart-broken.” He smiled at her.

Buffy smiled back, relieved that she hadn’t lost her friend and pulled Spike into a hug.

“Look, Dawnie, no bloodshed.” Xander’s amused voice broke the two apart.

Dawn rolled her eyes and moved to the kitchen to serve the ice cream.

“We got Lemon Passion Pie and Cookies & Cream.” She yelled from the other room.

“I better go help her before she eats all the ice cream.” Buffy said and went into the kitchen.

Xander looked at Spike expectantly.

“What?!” The blond exclaimed.

“Nothing.” Xander said and paused a little before continuing. “So you were hugging.”

“Just a friendly hug, Harris, don’t read anything into it.” Spike growled out warningly. “The Slayer and I are friends.”

“There’s a sentence I never expected to hear from William the Bloody.”

Spike smiled wryly. “Things change.”

“They sure do. I never expected I’d willingly move in with William the Bloody either.” Xander laughed and Spike couldn’t help but warm to the boy.

Part Two

“Hey Harris, you remember what’s on the telly tonight?” Spike yelled as he walked through the front door.

“Football!” Xander grinned widely and ran down the stairs. “Got the beer?” The living arrangement had become permanent, and after living with Spike for a few months, Xander had discovered a newfound appreciation for football. Having finally come back home, Spike refused to watch any and all American sports and had educated Xander on English football and rugby. When Beckham missed the penalty and got England booted off Euro2004 both men were inconsolable.

“’Course I did, pet. Can’t watch football without beer. It’s the final tonight. Greece v. Portugal. Still can’t believe those two managed to go through while Spain and Italy got kicked off. Bloody Greeks, never do what you expect them to!” Spike grumbled.

“And what, pray tell, do you know about the Greeks?” Xander asked, rolling his eyes. Spike claimed to have met everyone and anyone during his years as a vampire and Xander took it all with a grain of salt. They settled down on the sofa and stared expectantly at the television. The match was just starting when there was a forceful knock on their door.

“Better go get that, pet.” Spike said distractedly.

“Hell no, you go get it.” Xander protested.

They glared at each other for a moment before doing what they always did in this kind of situation.

“Rock, paper, scissors?” Xander asked.

Spike nodded. Then he went to get the door, grumbling about stupid games and idiot mortals. He returned with Buffy in tow.

“Hey Buff, what’s up?”

“I need you guys to patrol with me tonight.” Buffy said worriedly.

“Aw come on Buffy, it’s the final! Greece v Portugal! We need to watch this!” Xander protested.

“Why not take a couple of the new slayers, luv?” Spike asked, attention already switched to the game.

“Cause it has to be a guy. There’s a demon roaming Leamington Spa and Giles said it can only be killed by a human male. The only guy we have is Xander and I need you as back up, Spike, so both of you move it now.”

Buffy was all business and neither Xander nor Spike could refuse the Slayer. Staring longingly at the television, they put their coats on and followed Buffy into the night.

------------------

The demon was fairly easy to kill. Buffy and Spike drew its attention while Xander thrust a sword through the shiny gray scale at its back. What they weren’t expecting were the couple dozen vamps coming out of a warehouse in the area.

“What is it with you lot and abandoned warehouses?” Xander exclaimed before he was swamped with vampires.

The sheer number of the attackers kept Buffy and Spike busy. By the time they had dusted the last one and looked around for Xander it was too late. The young man was lying on the ground bleeding from two tiny wounds at his neck.

“Fuck no.” Spike yelled and kneeled next to Xander. “He’s still alive, Buffy, but only just.” He said sadly looking down at his friend.

“Turn him.” Buffy said calmly.

“What? Are you insane? He’ll lose his soul, slayer, he’ll be a monster like the ones we just killed. You want that for him?” He demanded angrily.

“No. Willow, Xander and I have an agreement. After the First…” Buffy took a fortifying breath and hurried on. “After we defeated the First, Willow and Giles did a spell. If any of the new slayers were turned they would keep their souls. With so many of them it was too much of a risk otherwise. I asked for Xander and Willow to be added to the spell and we made a pact. If one of us had to choose between vamping and death, we’d choose vamping, so turn him already before we lose him for good.” Despite her bossy tone tears were freely falling down the Slayer’s face. “Please, Spike. We can’t lose him. Please.”

Putting aside his own reservations, Spike finished draining Xander and, cutting his wrist, offered the boy his blood. To his surprise Xander didn’t hesitate at all but greedily sucked as much as he could.

--------------------

Xander could practically feel himself waking up. His senses were becoming sharper and he could hear the sound of four heartbeats somewhere in the vicinity. He kept his eyes closed and tried to figure out where he was. Xander could feel someone close, someone important? Sire? His sire was near.

“Sire?” Xander whispered, feeling a strong connection he’d never felt before. He concentrated and could feel his sire worrying about him. “Don’t be upset Sire, I’m okay.” Xander assured him and opened his eyes. When he saw Spike standing at the door his soul rejoiced. Spike was his sire, he thought and smiled up at the blond happily.

Spike made no move to come near Xander and the demon was beginning to worry. It needed its sire’s acceptance and perceived Spike’s reluctance to approach as a rejection.

“Sire?” Xander asked again, but this time his voice was tinged with desperation.

At Spike’s continued inactivity the demon accepted the fact that his sire did not want him. When your sire rejects you, and you’re the only one accepting your demon, your first drink is not from your sire but from your own wrist, the demon thought. Xander took the pocketknife he kept in his bedside drawer and slashed his wrist bringing it to his lips. Before he had a chance to drink and cut off all ties with his sire, his wrist was wrenched away and another was brusquely pushed on his mouth. Rejoicing at his acceptance Xander drank thirstily, blissfully unaware of the heartbroken look on Spike’s face.

Spike had regretted turning Xander the minute the act was done. He had refused to allow any of the Scoobies to wait in Xander’s bedroom, speaking of possible disorientation and confusion of the young vampire. Seeing Xander wake up had only increased Spike’s distress, and when the brunet called him sire and asked him not to worry, Spike could only stand frozen to the spot. He’d only been able to react when he saw his childe slash his own wrist. The demon’s instinct to accept and help his Childe had overtaken him and he’d fed the boy his own blood.

----------------------

Angel felt a tingle go through him. Frowning he searched for a reason behind this reaction, casting his memory back to the last time he’d felt it. Suddenly he stiffened in disbelief.

“Oh no, he fucking didn’t!” He mumbled and called for the firm’s private plane to be ready as soon as possible. Angel was flying to England.

-----------------

As soon as Xander had enough blood to signify acceptance by his sire, Spike pulled his wrist away.

“Thank you Sire.”

“Don’t call me that.” Spike snapped. The blond took a deep breath to calm himself down. “I’m sorry Xan, I didn’t mean to snap at you.”

Xander nodded even though he could sense the anger and worry permeating his sire. The brunet could feel himself drowning in emotions. The demon was roaring in hunger and craving reassurance from his sire. The soul was upset both at Spike’s pain and his rejection of Xander as a childe.

“Si…Spike? I’m hungry.” He finally ventured hesitantly.

A grimace of disgust passed through Spike’s face before he politely directed Xander to the icebox next to the bed. “You can have some of that for now. Your friends are waiting for you downstairs, don’t be long.” He said calmly as Xander morphed to bite through the plastic bags containing the blood.

By the time Xander had finished the bag Spike had left the room. Xander masked his pain at what seemed to be yet another rejection by biting through a second bag. He tried to calm himself down before going to see his friends. No point in making them feel even more bad for him than they did right now.

Xander climbed down the stairs and hesitated a minute before entering the living room, smiling as brightly as he could manage.

“Vat are you doing in my home, mortals?” He asked putting on a truly horrible Transylvanian accent, causing the girls to erupt into giggles and Giles to smile fondly at him.

Willow was the first to hug him, holding him as close to her as possible, followed closely by a weeping Dawn. After a strong hug the teen smacked him on the shoulder and ordered him never to be that stupid again.

When Buffy stepped up to hug him Xander couldn’t help but take a couple of steps back. Seeing his friend’s hurt expression at his retreat, the brunet hastened to explain. “I don’t know why I did that Buff, I just got a tingle down my spine and I kinda freaked.” He apologized and reached forward to pull Buffy into his arms, ignoring the intensification of the tingle.

“That would be a warning sign that there’s a slayer nearby.” Giles explained coming forward to hug him briefly before retreating again with an embarrassed smile. “How are you feeling? Do you have the demon under control?”

“I think so. I mean, nothing happened to make it hard for me to deal, so I don’t know but I’m definitely not looking longingly at your necks.” Xander grinned at the realization that he still viewed his friends as family, not as happy meals on legs as was his worry.

“Where’s Spike?” Dawn asked, looking around as if Spike was there but hiding behind the curtains or something.

Xander noted Giles’ puzzled and worried look at the blond’s absence, before making up some excuse about Spike wanting to give them time to get used to his new-found vampire-ness. He let his friends pet and fuss over him for an hour or so before saying he was tired from the waking-up-dead thing and don’t vampires sleep during the day anyway? Having ushered everyone out the door he went upstairs. He hesitated outside Spike’s door, needing to be with his sire until he heard the older vampire tell him to go to his own room and sleep. Sighing softly he lay in his bed and tried to sleep.

-------------

Spike lay in his bed, thinking about what he’d done to Xander. He couldn’t help but feel that he’d lost Xander forever. He was the boy’s sire now and he didn’t care what everyone else had said about it all being the same but different, he knew that Xander would never look at him in quite the same way again. He would want his sire, not Spike and the blond wasn’t sure he could handle that. Xander was his first real friend and to lose him like that was near unbearable.

Spike was trying to figure out a way to change the sire/childe relationship to make him and Xander more like they used to be when he felt Angel close by.

“Oh great, just fucking great.” He muttered as he made his way down the stairs.

The moment the door was open Angel rushed in and slammed Spike against the wall.

“Who was it, Spike.”

The blond rolled his eyes at Angel’s overblown reaction. Only Angel would travel halfway round the world to add a little menace to his childer’s unlife.

“Will you piss off if I tell you?” Spike asked forcefully. He’d had enough of Angel’s highhandedness and didn’t want Xander to have to deal with the family just yet. First Spike had to find a way to be less of a sire and more of a friend to him.

Angel nodded reluctantly and released the blond.

“Just sit down and let me explain then.” Spike said calmly and proceeded to tell Angel the whole story.

-------------

Xander had finally managed to go to sleep when he was woken by raised voices coming from downstairs.

“What the hell were you thinking, Spike? You turned Xander fucking Harris!”

That would be Deadboy. His…grandsire? Who obviously didn’t approve of the new offspring in the line of Aurelius. Xander frowned and tried to fight down both the demon and soul’s anguish. He did not care what Angel thought of him! He only cared what his friends thought and Spike may have been a little weird last night but Xander was sure his sire did not regret making him.

“Didn’t you hear me you ponce! Buffy begged me. She begged! I wish I hadn’t done it but that doesn’t change the way things are now, does it? I’ll just have to find a way not to be Xander’s sire.”

Spike’s determination was obvious even from a distance. Xander tried to make sense of what he heard. Spike hadn’t wanted to turn him. He’d only done so because Buffy begged him to. He didn’t want to be Xander’s sire.

The demon howled inside him and the soul wept. His family didn’t want him. It was happening all over again except this time he not only loved his maker, he respected him as well. Spike had meant a lot to him before he had been turned and now the blond was his family. He’d thought the feelings were mutual. Tears running down his face, Xander scribbled a note and opening his bedroom window, jumped soundlessly to the ground and run off into the night.

To my favourite girls, and Giles
I’m sorry to do it like this. I always thought I’d die with you around me, even if you were fighting demons at the time. There were a lot of things we didn’t take into account when we made that pact. Demons need their family it seems, and so do I. Guess I don’t make a good vampire hey? Not good enough for the Aurelius line anyway. Willow you know what it was like before with my parents. I can’t go through it again, not now. So I think I’ll do the poetic thing and watch the sunrise. Didn’t have time to miss it and all but I can make a grand gesture if I want. Please tell Spike that I’m sorry. It’s not his fault I’m a bad vampire. Tell Deadboy to fuck off one last time for me.
Love you all.
Xander

Part Three

Buffy was doing a random sweep of the woods behind Warwick University. Much as she loved not being the only slayer in the world, she still needed to patrol alone sometimes. To keep her edge, she said but what she really missed was the solitude. Having other slayers around was all well and good but living in a house full of teenagers was getting very tiresome.

She was walking next to the lake when she sensed a vampire nearby. Looking carefully around she spotted someone lying on the grass a few feet away. She was straddling the creature’s chest and bringing the stake down when she realized that the vampire was Xander. Buffy managed to stop herself before the stake reached her friend’s chest. She was about to start berating him for being careless in a town full of slayers who didn’t know he was a vampire yet when she noticed tear tracks down his cheeks.

“Xander? Sweetie what’s wrong?”

To her great worry and dismay Xander didn’t react at all. She shook him a little and repeated her question.

“Xander, come on, the sun’s about to come up, you need to get inside.”

Buffy was getting increasingly frantic, as her friend didn’t so much as blink at her. She finally lifted him up and ran to the car, thanking every deity in the world that she’d been too lazy to walk today and drove full speed towards the Academy. She was carrying Xander to one of the bedrooms when he turned and nuzzled into her neck, whispering something. The slayer froze for a minute, worried, but all Xander did was smell her neck before turning away, going back to his near catatonic state.

Buffy called Giles and Willow to take care of Xander before running back to the car and making her way to Xander’s house. Anyone seeing her would have had no doubt at all that this was one very pissed off slayer.

---------------------

Spike was still trying to get Angel to fuck off when a horrible realization came to him.

“I can’t sense him.”

“What?” Angel snapped annoyed at being interrupted in his latest attempt to convince Spike that he couldn’t just turn the boy and not be his sire.

“Xander. I can’t sense him anymore.” Spike said urgently and ran up the stairs.

He ran back down with equal speed.

“He’s not there, he left a note. We have to find him.” He yelled and run for the door.

Angel grabbed his arm before Spike could reach the doorway and pulled him back.

“Where the hell do you think you’re going, it’s day, you’ll turn into dust.”

“Let me go, I have to find him.” The blond said despairingly and struggled to get away.

“Spike if you can’t sense him then he’s gone.” Angel said and kept holding on to the blond. “He’s gone Spike.”

“No.” Spike protested and kept struggling. “We just have to find him is all.”

Just as Spike broke free the door was slammed open and an enraged slayer was pushing them both back to the living room.

“What did you do to him.” She yelled and slammed Spike against a wall. “Speak now Spike or I’m staking your undead ass all the way to hell. What did you do to Xander.”

“Buffy…”

“Shut up Angel, this has nothing to do with you.” The slayer said calmly, still staring at Spike. “Tell me why Xander is catatonic in my bedroom, Spike. Then explain to me why the only time he woke up was when he thought I was his sire. Explain it to me Spike.” Buffy banged an unresisting Spike against the wall with each sentence. The blond simply stared miserably at her, her words causing more pain than her actions ever did.

“He heard us.” Angel realized. “The demon thinks he’s been rejected by the line. He’s killing himself.”

At Angel’s words Buffy whirled around to face him. “You both did this to him?” She asked angrily. “Well, you both better fix it. We’re going to the Academy now.”

The short ride to the Slayer Academy was spent in tense silence. The vampires were both lying at the back covered with black tarp. Angel had tried to talk to Spike but the blond closed his eyes and turned his head away, effectively dismissing him.

Buffy parked the car in the underground parking lot and Spike was off like a shot before either she or Angel had a chance to say anything. Glaring at Angel, Buffy stomped after him, the brunet following right behind her.

By the time they reached Buffy’s room, Spike had climbed on the bed and was hugging Xander close to him, whispering in his ear and pushing his wrist against the brunet’s unresponsive mouth. Willow and Giles were standing next to the bed, looking worried and concerned. Whenever any of them tried to come close to the pair on the bed, Spike would growl and snap at them until they retreated.

“Come back to me Xander. Please come back. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean any of it. Just drink a little, the blood will tell you. Please childe, please come back to me.” Spike kept begging and pleading with Xander, pushing his wrist more firmly into his boy’s lips.

After a few tense moments Spike felt pressure against his wrist. He kept encouraging Xander to drink until he felt fangs pierce his skin and his childe started drawing blood. Tears of relief run down the blond’s face and he snarled at everyone to leave the room.

The humans hesitated, but at Angel’s whispered urging, finally left Sire and Childe alone. Angel firmly closed the door behind him and turned to find three humans looking at him with varying degrees of confusion and animosity.

“We all want an explanation.” Buffy demanded.

Angel sighed. “I think Xander overheard Spike and I talking. Spike doesn’t want to be Xander’s sire. He’s afraid it will change their friendship for the worse.”

“The demon thought he was rejected by the line.” Giles murmured.

Angel nodded. “When a childe is rejected by its line it slowly dies. I think its soul just made things worse. The soul must be feeling it too.”

With a flurry of movement Angel was pushed against the wall and kicked viciously until he folded. To his great surprise it wasn’t Buffy that had instigated the violence but Willow. The redhead was standing over him, green eyes sparkling with fury.

“Xander is a person and our friend. You do not talk about him like that ever again. He is not ‘it’ and he’s not ‘the soul’. And if you so much as make him think his family or order or whatever will ever reject him again, I will personally make sure that you suffer. Do you understand me?” She demanded.

Angel simply nodded.

-----------------

Xander opened his eyes to see Spike’s face hovering over his.

“Si..Spike?” he asked hesitantly.

“Hey, pet. You okay?”

Xander nodded slowly, head feeling a little fragile. “Yeah, fine.”

“Good.” Spike said softly before yelling angrily. “’Cause I am going to kill you”

Xander shifted back, eyes wide and shocked as Spike stood up and started pacing in the little room.

“You bloody bastard you scared the hell out of me! I'm your Sire, boy, and you do not kill yourself before asking me first. For that matter you don’t do anything without asking me first. Do I make myself clear?” Spike paused in his tirade and glared at Xander until the brunet nodded dazedly. “You overhear one stupid conversation and decide to kill yourself? Fucking hell, Xan, have you any idea what it’s like to lose a childe? No you fucking don’t. So don’t go assuming things without knowing first. I have half a mind to whip your flabby ass for scaring me like that.”

Spike turned again to yell at Xander’s face to see the brunet looking at him with wonder and awe.

“You know… when your sire threatens to whip you, you’re supposed to be terrified, not look at him like that.” Spike said wryly.

“Sire?” Xander said hesitantly, a wealth of questions in his eyes.

“Yeah, pet. Sire.” Spike sighed sadly. “I know I've been a shit sire so far but you have to understand Xan, I never wanted to be your sire.”

Xander nodded dejectedly. He’d already known that.

“No you stupid git. Before the soul I was actually thinking about it. But after… I couldn’t turn you into a monster, pet. You know how hard it is to be a vampire with a soul? We’re an aberration, luv. Angel and me and now you…we’re not normal. And even if you could adjust to that, which I’m sure you can, I liked being your friend Xan. Being your sire... it’s different. I never wanted things to be like this. I care for you too much to just be your sire.”

Spike lay down beside Xander and pulled him into his arms, wrapping his arms around his childe. Xander snuggled closer and laid his head on the blond’s shoulder, content for the first time since he’d been turned.

-----------------

The next couple of weeks passed quickly for Xander. Angel had left Coventry soon after Xander’s ‘episode’, saying they needed him back in LA and looking warily at Willow. Before he’d left Angel had welcomed Xander to the family, officially accepting him as part of the Aurelius order.

Xander still worked at the Academy, helping with the training of the new slayers and fixing whatever needed to be fixed. The first time he’d entered the grounds after his recovery he’d had a panic attack. Tingles had shot straight through his spine into his head and he’d folded into the ground whimpering and desperately trying to breathe. Spike had been there for him, gathering the younger vampire into his arms and calming him down, teaching him how to deal with being around so many slayers at once, laughingly reminding him that vampires didn’t need to breathe.

The slayers had accepted Xander’s turning with relative ease, having already become accustomed to having one souled vampire around the place and most of them having known Xander for a long time. Buffy, Willow and Dawn seemed to adapt to their friend being a vampire fairly quickly. They accepted that even though he still had a soul Xander was a little different now.

Spike was helping Xander deal with and control his demon, but the younger vampire wasn’t always successful in keeping the demon in check. The scariest example of his difficulty in doing so was when one of the slayers hit his sire with too much zeal and enjoyment. Xander had vamped out and attacked the girl, snarling and growling at her. If Buffy and Spike hadn’t been there to hold him back, the slayer would have had serious injuries. Feeling very shaken after that interlude, Xander had redoubled his efforts to control both his temper and the demon’s propensity for violence. Frequent patrols and training with the slayers seemed to help him satisfy the demon’s more violent tendencies and let him get some of his rage out.

In all Xander was relatively happy with his new life. The only cloud in his horizon was his sire holding him at arms’ length. Despite the closeness Xander had felt to Spike while he was recovering in Buffy’s room, his sire had distanced himself soon after.

He would train with Xander and help him deal with his new status as a not-so-evil undead but emotionally, Spike was more distant than ever. The blond avoided spending any time alone with his childe, only talking to Xander to help him with something vampire-related. Xander had been reading up on Sire/Childe relationships, including the physical aspects, and couldn’t understand why Spike was pushing him away.

The brunet stood naked in front of the mirror in his room looking at his non-existent reflection and trying to figure out why Spike didn’t want him. Since his turning Xander had trained even harder than usual and his body was muscled and strong. Did Spike not find him desirable? Okay, he was no Brad Pitt but Xander was pretty sure he was attractive. Look at all the slayers drooling after him. Even Willow had commented that he looked all sexy-like.

Xander had never been attracted to men while he was alive but apparently death made you bisexual ‘cause it wasn’t just Spike that had caught his eye. He hadn’t done anything about his newfound attraction to men, waiting for Spike to make the first move but enough was enough. His sire didn’t seem to be interested in his body so Xander decided to find someone who would and check out if what the watchers wrote about vampire stamina was true.

With that thought in mind Xander dressed up in leather and silk and stormed out of the house heading for a local club the university students favoured. Someone was bound to want to test his sexuality tonight and Xander was all set to take advantage of that fact.

-------------------

Spike had been going through hell since Xander had been turned. The blond had barely managed to deal with his apprehension at turning his friend, when the demon started asking for what was due to him as a sire. The demon desperately wanted to physically claim Xander and it was all Spike could do to hold himself back. He refused to have the same relationship with Xander, that he’d had with his own sire and Angelus. Xander would neither be besotted with him nor would he be forced to accept him. He’d just have to wait until Xander didn’t see him as a sire anymore and then they could go back to being friends.

The incident with the slayer had shaken the older vampire. Spike had held Xander, whispering in his ear and calming him until the brunet was back in control. The feel of his boy’s body in his arms and the fierceness with which Xander fought the perceived threat to his sire, nearly pushed him over the edge but he’d managed to salvage some control and step back. Ever since that day he’d put even more of a distance between himself and his childe, waiting until it was practically day before he went back to their house and straight into his room to fall into an exhausted sleep.

He was loitering around the gymnasium, trying to find an excuse to stick around for a little while longer when a very determined Dawn marched up to him.

“If you keep going like this you’re going to lose him.” She said the minute she was within hearing range.

“I dunno what you’re on about, pet.” Spike said, sidestepping the teenager and trying to stalk off.

“Don’t play dumb with me Spike, I’ve known you too long.” Dawn snapped and grabbed his duster, holding on for dear life. “I read all about Sire/Childe relationships, this is not how things happen! Sires don’t hide out until their childer are asleep before going home and they sure as hell don’t avoid touching them!” She ranted.

Spike sighed resignedly. Apparently Dawn was determined that they would have this conversation. Best way out of it was to bluff.

“Where did you read that shit, Nibblet?” He sneered.

Dawn just doubled her glare. “I talked to Angel, Spike. There’s bonding and drinking of blood and some kind of physical bond.” She said waving her arms around for emphasis. “There sure as hell is a whole lot of sex, which I know for sure you’re not giving Xander!” Seeing the horror in Spike’s eyes, she relented and smiled softly at him. “I’m not going to pretend to know what’s happening between you and Xander. But I’ve known Xan all my life and had a crush on him for most of it. I’ve been watching his every move since I was ten so believe me when I say, you’re going to lose him. He needs to know he’s loved or at least cared for and with the way you’re acting, he’s going to think you’re like his father.”

“I am nothing like his father! Why would he think that?” Spike protested indignantly.

“His father always saw Xander as a burden and a responsibility. And you’re acting like that’s all he is to you.” Willow replied quietly. The redhead had walked in the room without being noticed and was standing near the door. “Xander loves you. He doesn’t realize it yet but he does. And don’t start spouting off about sires and childer. This is nothing like Druscilla or Angelus. The demon may want his sire but Xander loves you. He cared for you before he was turned and he physically wants you now. He’s about one kind word away from falling for you. Dawn’s right, unless you do something to fix this, you’re gonna lose him. And unless you want to watch while someone else gets to have him, you’re going to have to change the way you act.” She concluded, looking at him sternly.

Spike stared at Willow for a minute. He thought about someone else touching Xander and growled at the mere thought of someone taking his boy away from him. He’d been a bloody idiot, trying to stay away from Xander. What the hell had he been thinking? Nodding curtly at the girls he stalked out of the gymnasium and in search of his childe. Xander was his and it was time they both realized that.

The minute the vampire was out of the room Dawn turned to Willow. “Okay, give it up. What’s with the McGonnagal act.”

Willow grinned at her and bounced happily. “I got him to go after Xander didn’t I? I love doing the teacher thing on people. All stern and collected. I can even do it while saying utter nonsense. Check it out.” Willow looked austere again. “Now if you’ll excuse me I must go and sacrifice a rubber chicken to the cartoon gods and drown Kennedy in body paint.” She said and bounced out of the room, humming happily to herself and leaving a very perplexed Dawn behind her.

Part Four

Xander danced, letting the music wash over him, and swaying gracefully to the beat. He hadn’t realized how much of his bad dancing was due to sheer embarrassment until he was turned. The soul may still be there but the demon demanded its due, and he knew he looked damn hot dancing like this.

Xander moved closer to his dancing partner, pushing his ass into the young man’s crotch. The brunet hadn’t bothered to learn the kid’s name. There was no reason to. All that mattered was that he was wanted for once.

And if the guy who wanted him had platinum blond hair and pretty blue eyes then that was pure coincidence.

With that thought firmly in his mind, Xander whispered into his partner’s ear, suggesting they go somewhere quieter. The minute they were out of the club, Xander kissed the blond passionately and bundled both of them into a waiting taxi. By the time they reached Xander’s house they were both panting and hard. Xander fumbled with his keys, moaning softly at the warm hands exploring his body.

The minute they walked in the hallway Xander turned and pulled the blond in his arms. Before he had a chance to do anything, the human was wrenched away from him and pushed out the door. Xander opened his eyes to find a furious sire glaring at his would-be lover.

“The boy's mine. You don't touch what’s mine” Spike growled at the human before slamming the door in his face and whirling around to face his childe. It had taken all his self-control not to rip the intruder’s head off his shoulders and now he had a childe to discipline.

His childe however had other ideas and Spike found himself sprawled on the living room floor, with a growing bruise on his face.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing? I wanted that guy! I was going to fuck that guy!” Xander growled.

Spike got up and grabbed Xander by the throat pushing him high against the wall.

“You do not fuck anyone. You are mine and I don’t share, boy.” He snarled, punching his childe in the face.

Enraged by his sire’s words, the brunet kicked him in the stomach and pushed him hard enough to slam him into the opposite wall.

“Yours? That’s a fucking joke. You barely acknowledge my existence you asshole. You don’t want me but you don’t want anyone else to have me? Well fuck you. I’m going out.” He screamed and turned to leave the room.

Enraged, Spike pulled Xander’s shirt, tearing it away from his body. Before his childe had time to recover from the shock, Spike had pushed him on his back on the floor and covered his body with his own.

“No comeback, boy? Where’s your sharp tongue now?” The blond mocked, pushing Xander’s head to one side and lowering his fangs to his childe’s neck.

Xander brought his head back in a strong headbutt breaking Spike’s nose and disrupting his hold on the younger vampire long enough for him to get away. Unfortunately for the brunet, his sire was only down for a moment. Jumping back up to his feet Spike grabbed Xander’s shoulder and span him around, right into his fist.

“You can’t win, childe. You’re mine.” Spike growled and kicked him back into the wall.

“Not yours.” Xander vowed before landing a spin kick on Spike and knocking him down. “Never yours.” He added and once more turned to leave.

At this blatant disregard of the sire/childe bond Spike’s demon broke free and before Xander had a chance to turn he’d grabbed the brunet around the waist, clamping down his arms, and used his free hand to turn his childe’s head to the side, sinking his fangs deep into his neck.

Xander’s demon rejoiced at his sire’s actions, finally getting proof that he was wanted. But he still needed his sire to assert his dominance so he struggled weakly to throw Spike off, expecting the blond to overpower him easily. To his great horror, his sire instead of holding him even tighter, stepped away from him with a horrified cry.

Spike couldn’t believe what he’d almost done. He’d gone from wanting to spare Xander the relationship he’d had with his own sire to nearly forcing his childe to accept him. He’d wanted to claim Xander, to bind them forever. Spike was surprised by how much appeal the thought of truly claiming Xander held, to have the boy as his very own was so tempting… but he couldn’t do that to Xander.

“Does tasting me disgust you so much?”

Xander’s pained words brought the blond back to the present. His childe was crying silently, looking at Spike with such anguish in his eyes.

“Xander, no-”

“What then. First you can’t bear to touch me for more than five minutes, then you get mad that I touched someone else and now you look like you’d rather drink holy water than me. Just… make up your mind Spike ‘cause I don’t think I can deal with this anymore.” Xander said, weariness and resignation evident in his voice.

The young vampire was trying hard to stop the tears but he couldn’t control them. He’d wanted Spike to care for him for so long, to touch him in some way other than to train him. For a second there he’d thought his sire was about to make his wants come true and Spike’s retreat had been too much for Xander to bear. The brunet finally managed to stumble out of the room, sure that his sire wanted nothing more to do with him.

Spike watched Xander leave the room, frozen by the abject misery in his childe’s face. Dawn and Willow’s words came rushing back to him. If he didn’t do something he was going to lose Xander and the thought filled him with terror. He ran up the stairs and found the brunet putting on a fresh shirt. He seemed to have pulled himself together.

“Where are you going?”

“Out.” Xander said curtly.

“No.”

“What, you changed your mind again?” the brunet sneered and made to push past Spike.

“No…I mean yes…I mean…look I don’t know what the sodding hell I mean! Could you please sit down a minute, we need to talk.” Spike managed to stammer out, knowing that postponing this conversation was one surefire way of losing Xander forever.

Xander stared at him a moment before taking a fortifying breath. “Is this where you tell me that I’m not worth the hassle and you’re leaving?” He asked sadly, still looking steadfastly at his sire.

“What? No! Fucking hell, pet, we’ve been living together for a year and you still think I don’t care?” Spike ran a hand through his hair and pushed Xander into a chair. At the brunet’s sign of protest, Spike growled softly in warning. He crouched in front of the chair, looked up at his childe and tried to explain himself.

“Xander if I didn’t care this woulda been a walk in the park. You read the Watcher’s books, you know about the sire/childe bond. You only feel what you feel because of the bond. I’m doing my best not to act like a sire because I can’t stand the thought that you’d only be with me because of that. I do care for you, luv. Hell, I want you so much I want to claim you proper.”

Xander looked at him gravely. “So let me get this straight. You’ve been putting me through hell because you think I only want you ‘cause you’re my sire.” He said quietly.

Spike nodded miserably, willing Xander to believe him.

“And you not only care for me but you want to claim me. Like in Giles’ books.” The brunet continued in the same tone.

Another tiny nod.

“Huh.” Xander said thoughtfully. “You really are an idiot.”

Spike nodded before he realized what his childe had said.

“Hey! I’m not an idiot!” He protested glaring up at Xander.

“Yeah you are.” The brunet replied. “For one thing, I’ve loved you since you moved in here. Granted, it was more in a friend-like way but still… love. For another you’re one hot-looking vampire and only blind and very, very straight men wouldn’t want you. I’m not blind and, apparently, no longer straight. The demon wants you ‘cause you’re its sire, the rest of me just wants you. And if you’d opened your big mouth and said something I wouldn’t have been celibate and horny for the past few weeks! What, you came over all shy all of a sudden?” Xander concluded incredulously.

“Well, what did you expect me to say?” Spike said petulantly.

“What you just said, but four weeks before you finally said it!” Xander paused a moment. “Hey, does this mean we can have sex now?”

Spike’s eyes opened wide. “Is sex all you think about?” he asked in amazement.

“Four weeks Spike. I’m a new vamp, my libido is through the roof and I haven’t had sex in over four weeks.” Xander patiently explained before exploding “Yes, sex is all I think about! Now come up here and kiss me you nimrod!”

Deciding that he’d have the respect-your-sire conversation later, Spike straddled Xander’s lap and kissed his boy senseless. He pushed his tongue inside Xander’s mouth, determined to feel and taste every part of him.

Xander was just getting into the kiss when Spike pulled back from him. He opened his mouth to protest but before he had time to speak he was picked up and thrown on the bed. Spike paused a moment to undress himself, giving Xander the chance to hastily take off his own clothes.

The brunet watched wide-eyed as his sire prowled towards him. Spike smirked at him a split second before he pounced, capturing Xander’s lips and plastering his body to his childe’s. Xander gasped as Spike ground his pelvis down, pressing his cock against him. After four weeks of waiting and fantasizing this was too much for him and Xander moaned as he came, just from his sire’s lips and body pressing against him.

He opened his eyes to find Spike looking at him with amusement.

“Shut up.” Xander grumbled. “I assume full responsibility for my actions, except the ones that are someone else's fault.” He said, glaring at his sire and pointing at his own spent cock. “And this, is your fault!” he concluded triumphantly.

Spike raised his eyebrow. “How is that my fault?” he asked, still fairly amused.

“If you acted like a proper sire and fucked my ass five seconds after turning me, I wouldn’t have gone without for weeks and weeks and I would have been able to last longer than five seconds. Starved for physical contact here! I’d probably have come if you just poked me or something! And I tell you-” Xander stopped talking for the very simple reason that his mouth was busy being thoroughly kissed.

By the time Spike was satisfied that Xander wouldn’t start babbling again, his childe was dazed and hard all over again.

“Fuck, Sire.” Xander whispered when the kiss was over, hand unconsciously tracing his ravaged lips.

“You will be, pet.” Spike drawled, trailing kisses down Xander’s neck. “You’re gonna be fucked so well, you’ll be feeling it for days.”

Spike kissed, sucked and nibbled on every centimetre of his childe’s body. His hands seemed to be everywhere at once, playing Xander like a well used violin. The few times the brunet tried to take control Spike pushed him back until, frustrated with his Xander’s repeated attempts to take charge, the blond grabbed his hands and pushed them over his head.

“These are going to stay here. You are going to sit and just take everything I throw at you, Childe. You may speak and you may squirm but you may not move your hands and you may not try to force things. I am your sire and I will be obeyed, do you understand me?” Spike growled, his voice imbued with authority.

Xander’s eyes widened and he nodded fearfully.

Spike resumed playing with his childe’s body, learning how to make him moan and writhe with need and all Xander could do was gasp, moan and beg for more. The brunet couldn’t believe how his inability to do anything but accept what was happening to him heightened his arousal. He couldn’t take his eyes off the single-mindedness evident in Spike’s face. It looked like his sire was determined to make this as pleasurable as possible for him.

When Xander felt Spike lift one of his legs up and felt a slick finger breach his hole, he couldn’t help but push down to force it in further. Spike immediately stopped all movement and glared at his childe.

“I’m sorry Sire, please, it felt so good. I won’t do it again, I promise, please don’t stop.” Xander babbled, trying hard to stay still.

“We’ll see about your punishment later, Childe.” Spike growled and thrust two fingers in Xander’s hole. “Now lift your legs up.” He ordered.

The brunet grunted at the sudden increase and lifted both legs as close to his chest as he could manage.

By the time his childe was ready for his cock, Spike was game-faced and growling. He kept telling himself that, vampire or not, Xander wouldn’t be able to enjoy this if Spike just slammed into him. Taking a few calming breaths the blond pushed his cock against Xander’s hole as slowly as he could manage. When the crown was finally past the tight ring of muscle Spike stopped moving and waited for Xander to get used to him.

Xander gasped and closed his eyes, concentrating on the feel of Spike’s cock barely inside him. It burned a little but it felt wonderful. He’d known that he’d enjoy this but he’d never expected it to burn so good. His first instinct was to push down and take more of his sire’s cock inside him but he remembered Spike’s orders and stayed still.

“Please sire, God please, move. Spike please.”

The blond smiled softly at Xander’s pleading. Who’d have thought that the boy would be so responsive, he thought and slowly eased his cock inside Xander, only stopping when he was fully encased. He could hear his childe moaning in pleasure but he stilled again, wanting to make sure that Xander was ready for more.

If the disappointed gasp wasn’t enough to tell him that, the writhing and begging for more definitely was. Spike angled his thrusts to hit Xander’s prostate as often as possible and begun to fuck his boy in earnest.

Xander quickly found himself on the brink of orgasm, he was about to let go and allow himself to come when he felt a hand clamp down on the base of his cock. No amount of begging could remove the hand and Xander was taken to the edge over and over again, never allowed to find release.

“Sire, oh God Sire, please let me come, I can’t take it anymore, please I have to come.” The brunet pleaded, a hint of desperation in his voice.

“Yes you can. For me you can.” Spike growled and speeded up his thrusts, feeling himself near the edge. “Bare your neck for me, Childe.” He ordered. “You can cum after I bite you.”

Xander hastened to obey and moaned at the burning pleasure of his sire’s fangs. After that neither could last long. Xander screamed out his orgasm and Spike followed right after, growling against his childe’s neck.

The blond collapsed next to his lover, a satisfied little smile gracing his face. He gathered Xander into his arms and kissed his temple before closing his eyes to rest. Xander snuggled against his sire, needing to relieve the little bit of uncertainty left.

“Yours now?” He asked, a little worry seeping into his voice.

“Mine now.” Spike replied sleepily and planted another kiss on his boy’s temple.

Epilogue

Xander stood in the middle of the Academy’s conference room, nervously looking around at all the decorations. Willow had promised to turn the usually business-like room into a beautiful oasis, and she had kept her promise. The ceiling was magicked to show the night sky, ‘Wonder where she got that idea from’ Xander smirked. The walls were full of garlands made from night-blooming flowers and every available space was littered with candles. Xander had expressed his concerns on the presence of so many naked flames and his own self in the same room but Willow had assured him that she’d made sure that the candles wouldn’t set him, or anyone else, on fire.

Speak of the devil, Willow walked into the room just as Xander was contemplating the candle situation. His friend smiled happily at him and reached up to kiss his cheek.

“Good thing I’m gay now or your sire would have some serious competition!” she exclaimed cheerfully, looking over Xander’s dark trousers and silk blue shirt. “Did I ever tell you how hot you look undead?”

“You think?” Xander asked nervously. He’d been doing his best to stay calm all day but so far he was failing miserably.

“I know.” Willow countered. “You look good sweetie and I’m sure Spike will think so as well. Now calm down, why are you so nervous?”

“What if he changes his mind? I mean, it took him ages to even admit he was my sire, what if he decides I’m not worth the hassle?” The brunet asked, looking pleadingly at his best friend.

“Xander, Spike loves you, soul and demon. You guys have been together for nearly a year why would he change his mind now?” Willow consoled and hugged Xander close.

“Hugging better be all you guys are doing. Remember, I know your history with formalwear.” Buffy joked as she came in the room, Dawn coming in right behind her.

“Xander’s worried Spike’ll change his mind.”

“God no! Xander don’t think that!” Dawn protested, gesturing wildly. “You should see the state of him right now. He’s been practicing the bloody ritual over and over again. He’s driving everyone bonkers.”

Buffy stared at her sister. “Does it wig anyone else out that she can sound so British?”

Xander had never been so happy with his choice to have the claiming ritual done before his friends as he was right now, watching his girls banter. Nervousness and general worrying aside, he wanted them to see him choose Spike and he wanted them to see Spike choose him. It’d taken ages for him to convince his sire that his soul wanted to be joined to the blond as much as his demon did, but he’d finally done it.

When he’d told Spike that he wanted the claiming ritual to take place in front of their friends, his sire had flat out refused. Xander had had to resort to bribery, and when that didn’t work, he’d used the Dreaded Puppy Eyes of Doom®. After Xander spent the better part of a week moping around their house Spike had finally given in, muttering about how his childe had him wrapped around his little finger and even William the Bloody hadn’t given Angelus that much trouble.

And now the big moment had arrived. He was going to claim Spike and be claimed by him.

“Aw, look, he’s thinking about claiming Spike.” Dawn snickered bringing Xander back to the present.

“Oh yeah, got the goofy grin all over his face and everything.” Buffy joined in, grinning at her friend. It was nice to finally see him happy after all the problems he and Spike had at the beginning.

Spike chose that moment to make his entrance and Xander was prevented from answering the girls by his tongue hanging out of his mouth. Spike looked absolutely amazing. Decked out in tight leather and soft white silk, his sire looked like a wet dream come true.

Spike stalked in the conference room anxious to get the whole thing over with. He wanted to claim Xander, he really did, but he got nervous speaking in front of a crowd. Even if the crowd was only four of their friends. He looked up to find the girls and Xander looking at him strangely.

“What?” He growled.

Xander took a step forwards and then Spike found himself slammed against the wall and being kissed within an inch of his unlife. Xander’s hand slipped under his sire’s shirt and was working over his nipple when an earsplitting whistle filled the air. Spike and Xander jumped apart and turned to glare at the person who’d made that god-awful noise.

“Good. Now that we have your attention, are you ready to start the ritual?” Giles asked politely.

Spike tidied up his clothing and took his place at one side of the circle drawn on the floor and looked longingly at Xander standing on the opposite side. He reached out his hand and they entered the circle at the same time.

“I, William the Bloody, childe of the Aurelius line, hereby claim you Alexander Harris, as my own. I bind myself to you in blood, both demon and soul, for eternity.” Spike said solemnly. He tilted his head and drew Xander close to him. The brunet picked a spot at the base of Spike’s neck and sank his fangs in, taking a mouthful before licking them closed and stepping back.

Xander stared at his lover for a moment, lost in the feeling of even a drop of sire’s blood running through his system. A soft cough reached his ears and he startled. “Oh, right.” Xander took a deep breath and commenced his vow. “I, Alexander Harris, childe of the Aurelius line, hereby claim you, William the Bloody, as my own. I bind myself to you in blood, both demon and soul, for eternity.”

Xander tilted his head and drew Spike close. When he felt his sire’s fangs pierce his flesh a tingle danced down his spine, quite unlike the usual horny/happy feeling he usually got when Spike bit him. Spike stepped back and Xander looked at him, wide-eyed and amazed.

“Did you feel that?” He whispered.

Spike smiled and nodded. He took Xander’s hand and they stepped out of the circle. The blond looked around to find all three girls wiping their eyes and the Watcher looking fondly at the newly claimed pair.

“Oh soddin’ hell. Stop crying! Xander tell them to stop crying.” Spike protested and turned to his claimed, who was still looking amazed and had a suspicious sheen in his eyes. “Fuck. Not you too, luv.”

Spike suddenly smirked. He had a way to get out of this mess. Still smiling he leaned over and whispered in Xander’s ear. The brunet gasped and squirmed excitedly. He looked at his friends, then at Spike. Finally he grabbed Spike’s hand, muttered something about chocolate body paints and evil sires and dragged his lover out of the room.

The End

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