Chapter 20 – Free Falling
November 21, 2007 5:15 AM
Spike was falling through space. His hands flailed about trying to find an anchor…
when he felt hands on his waist. Buffy’s hands, soft and strong and he
knew he was safe. Relaxing in the knowledge that all was right with his world,
he allowed himself to slowly come awake as Buffy stroked his flesh. His hand
tangled in her hair as she rained kisses across his abdomen before raising her
head and his free hand was taken by hers. It was nothing but a small tensing
through his body as she nibbled on the puncture wounds.
“Do you want me to open them for you?” Spike asked as he ran the silky strands of her hair through his fingers. Each day since the first night of her feeding she had desired less blood until yesterday when she hadn’t drunk at all. The decision taken out of his hands on how to handle her if she needed constant nourishment. He had chosen not to let anyone know what had happened. She was feeling like a freak enough without putting her on display even more. If she had reached the point of not needing more then it was mute.
“No, I am just drawn to them.”
Like a Childe drawn to her Sire’s blood and he couldn’t suppress the shudder that went through him. Each day was a new change, a subtle difference from the woman she used to be. The cruel displays of emotion, the forgetfulness, loss of time and now added in the last week, the feeding and nightly wanderings. In the last few days she had taken to only sleeping in short naps and she would wander through the house in the middle of the night and he would find her downstairs playing video games or watching television or sometimes just sitting on the couch. Compliant like a child she would follow him back up the stairs and curl into his side until the next time she woke. And he was afraid that she would slip into one of her moments and leave again.
Buffy had returned to raining kisses down his body while her hands stroked the way. His mind was too filled with other things to lose himself in her seduction and finally she realized that even though his body had responded, he was somewhere else. She gave up and came to lie by his side.
“Talk to me.”
Spike turned to look at her with a smile that wasn’t really filled with gladness. It was an attempt to give her reassurance that he was still there and would always be there. But she knew in that way she did and unhurriedly her fingers traced the planes of his face.
“There is nothing to say because there isn’t anything wrong.”
“Other than your wife is going insane.” She quipped as she tickled his side, causing him to jump and chuckle. His smile faded and then an intense sadness flooded his features. “It’s all right to joke about it, Baby, and its okay to tell me if it’s too much for you.”
“It’s the family thing tomorrow, probably. Still not used to these big events with all the human desire for eating turkey and stuff.”
“Not you’re holiday, I know but it will be fine.” She grinned mischievously. “Maybe we could get a bear to make it more festive for you.”
He swatted her bottom. “Funny, very funny.”
“But you were so cute screaming, ‘undo it, undo it’.”
“Yeah, and that’s the day I found out you had a thing for bondage, tying me in that chair.”
She giggled and crawled on top of him, as his hands ran along her thighs and over her bottom. For a moment they just smiled and gazed at each other before he rolled them over. The sheet tangled around her legs as she wrapped them around his waist and pulled him down to kiss her. As his tongue eased into her mouth he entered her slowly and she curled up to receive him. For a long while he stayed motionless while buried inside of her, enjoying the intimacy of being joined and they kissed repeatedly, allowing the new day to bring a reminder of the connection between them. Finally Spike started to rock slowly, giving the stimulation they needed to complete the act and she cried out in his ear as he opened the bite on her neck and drank from her bringing them both the fulfillment they needed.
They stayed entwined enjoying the peaceful post-coital awe they still felt after making love and allowed them selves to be drawn back to sleep, content to be held in each other’s arms.
November 21, 2007 10:18 AM
Buffy wouldn’t leave. They had been standing in the front hallway since
Dawn had arrived to pick her up which had been almost ten minutes ago. Spike
finally put his hands on her shoulders and turned her toward the door but she
slipped out of his hands.
“Are you sure you’re going to be all right?”
“I’m fine, Buffy, go shop, have lunch, discuss baby stuff, buy baby stuff. Just go.”
Dawn giggled at his side and without thinking he looped his arm around her shoulders. They both froze for a second but the sight of Buffy chewing her lower lip and looking for another excuse not to leave him home alone made them relax.
“Okay, fine, but call me if you need me.”
“Of course, I will, Pet.”
Buffy gave Spike a quick kiss before walking out the door and Dawn moved to follow her but Spike turned her toward him and hugged her tight. It felt almost natural to be affectionate toward her again. Like the wounds had been completely cleaned of any festering poison the night Buffy ripped the scab away. There was nothing left to hide or secrets to keep and Dawn had returned to being his Niblet again.
“Call me at any sign of trouble,” he whispered in her ear and then kissed her temple before releasing her. She smiled at him before nodding and following her sister out. “Have a good time and I’ll see you two later.”
He waited until the two women were in the car and pulling out of the driveway before he dropped the curtain. Whistling he made his way toward the kitchen and within fifteen minutes had the stereo blasting at a level he would have punished the kids for, a plate of snacks by his side, Candy curled in his lap and his hands on the controller playing his favorite game. For the first time in a long time he was alone in the house. The tension drained away as he felt no pressure to be alert to anyone else at the moment. For the next four or so hours he could do anything that he wanted to do and he was determined to enjoy it.
Almost two hours later when the doorbell rang, he muttered an expletive and paused his game, picked the dog up and headed for the front door, promising death to anyone that was ignorant enough to interrupt his day with anything trivial. Spike yanked the door to find Max on the doorstep. His face must have shown his irritation because Max took a step back.
“You want me to leave?” He asked and then looked down at the animal cradled in Spike’s arm and smiled. “So, is this Candy Corn, the new sensation of the adult film world?”
“Yep, this is the little bitch, here take her,” Spike dead panned as he handed his pet over. He smiled as Candy made another conquest as she wiggled and licked his friend’s face. Max began to make cooing noises and speaking baby talk to her. “You want to watch it there, mate, she does belong to me.”
“You already have a woman. I don’t.”
Two pairs of blue eyes met and Spike knew why Max had shown up a day early. Something had happened to the burgeoning relationship between Max and Fred. Doing the only thing he could, he gave up the rest of his morning of alone time and stepped back so the other man could enter. It didn’t take them long to decide to head to Willy’s for lunch and some male bonding. They settled into a booth and ordered a couple of beers and hamburgers. Until now they had only made small talk, both waiting for this time of no interruptions before beginning the heavier catching up.
“What brings you to Sunnydale a day early?”
After taking a long drink of his beer, Max sighed.
“Fred is in love with Wesley. So, I left to give them time to adjust to her sudden enlightenment and subsequent outburst about said revelation.”
“Uh oh, and what brought on this almost biblical change of heart.”
“Him catching us making out in Angel’s office,” Max supplied as he began to peel the label from the bottle. “She got all flustered and out it popped. And I’m alone again naturally.”
“Tough break.”
“It’s okay. Wasn’t in love with her yet and she deserves to be with someone who can give her everything. I can’t. And I know that. So, this holiday weekend, may I beg to be the weird uncle who sleeps on the couch?”
Spike laughed, “You’re always the weird uncle and the couch missed you. Are they still coming tomorrow?”
“Nah, decided to be alone. The only ones coming from LA is Angel and Cordelia. And did you know he’s a little touchy about people being on his desk? Or is just me?”
The picture of Max and Fred on Angel’s desk and his Sire’s reaction to the whole scenario made Spike laugh even harder. The poof was probably acting all self righteous about it when he had probably used it a few times himself.
“It’s Angel, believe me.”
The waitress brought their sandwiches and conversation halted for a moment while they started eating and then Max looked back up as he waved a french fry around.
“I heard that Dawn and Josh broke up?”
“Well, temporarily. They have decided to date awhile.” He smiled while Max rolled his eyes. “Yeah, that’s what we thought too but when you think about it. It’s not really ridiculous. They were living together at sixteen and haven’t been separated since. Maybe a little time apart and a little effort to see each other might just make them see what they are missing.”
“True. And how is Buffy doing?”
“Good days, bad days and days when you don’t know from one minute to the next but she’s remaining optimistic which all her doctors say is the best thing for her. Right now she and Dawn are out shopping for maternity clothes. She’s got this little pooch thing going on that’s really adorable.”
A grin lit up his face as he talked about her and it reminded him that not everything was centered on her ‘illness’. And he made a decision that he was going to enjoy as much as he could and try to lose the stress. It was beginning to depress him and he knew the others were feeling it too.
“I’m glad for you, Spike, I really am. Things are going to work out.” After he took another bite of his burger and gotten it chewed and swallowed, he looked over at Spike again. “I went to go check out the puppy breeder.”
“And?”
“Nothing, well a little but not enough. Woman showed up, blonde, driving non-descript car with Georgia tags, night time, said she needed a puppy. Described what she wanted and had cash on her. The guy gave her the dog and took the money. Didn’t even bother to get a name or address. Jerk.”
“Another dead end in the SB mystery.”
“SB?”
“Yeah, Buffy nicknamed her.”
Max shook his head at this friend. “That’s not good. Nicknames lead to a comfortableness that can lead to sympathy which leads to not taking things seriously enough…”
“Max, SB stands for slut bitch. Don’t think it’s going to endear her to anyone.”
Eyes dancing, Max smiled. “Buffy is getting a cruel streak to her. Not sure if I admire it or want to mind my p’s and q’s around her.”
“I know the feeling,” Spike agreed. “Should probably do both just to stay on the safe side.”
Both men laughed and turned the conversation to more banal matters as they finished their lunch. Spike was relieved to have someone a little more objective around as they talked. Maybe they would get through this holiday unscathed.
November 21, 2007 8:52 PM
Even the loudest volume on the remote couldn’t drown out the screaming coming from Dad’s study and Raven kept trying to make it go higher. She was huddled into Max’s side and Sean into hers as they tried to ride out the storm. She kept praying that Elijah would continue to sleep through the fight but if they kept this up, pretty soon things would start breaking.
“I’m sorry,” Max said. “I just didn’t think of talking to Spike first.”
“Not your fault,” Raven answered as finally something crashed and broke.
It was such a simple suggestion and it shouldn’t have come to this. But her overwrought parents had finally reached their limits. All Max had said was, “Let’s go play some pool.” Mum had taken to it like a starving woman since she had pretty much spent the last month cooped up in the house. Dad didn’t want her out in public in case she slipped into one of her episodes and Mum had accused him of being embarrassed to be seen with her. And it had escalated into a major fight from there. There were screams about Drusilla, and doing too much, and cooperation until finally the study door banged open and the three on the couch jumped in unison.
“Come back here, Buffy.”
But Mum was on a run toward the front door, turning slightly so she could watch, she saw Buffy pick up her purse and rummage through it. Raven winced because she knew what was coming next.
“Where are my car keys?” Buffy asked and then turned to rummage in the basket for Spike’s keys and they weren’t there either. “Where the fuck are the keys to the cars? Even the spares are gone.”
They were hidden in a place that only Spike and Raven knew. And she hated having the burden of that and what she knew was the next thing that would enrage her mother. Buffy started to punch the code in to turn the alarm off and when it beeped the message that the code was no longer valid, Raven gave up watching and hid her face against Max. Let him be the look out.
“Buffy,”
“Quit calling me Buffy, damn it. You only call me that to be condescending. Message gotten, I’m an incompetent woman that you have to take care of. Well, quit trying to be my warden and my keeper and my nurse. I don’t need it. I don’t want it.”
“I only changed the bleedin’ code so that if you wander off in the middle of the night, I would know it.”
“Screw you,” she screamed as she pulled the door open and ran out.
The alarm started to beep its warning and she heard Spike punching the codes in.
“Stay by the phone in case I need you,” Dad called out and she told him she would as he followed his wife.
“Great fucking holiday,” Raven muttered before she burst into tears and hated herself for being selfish.
November 21, 2007 9:05 PM
Spike followed Buffy down the street, not really trying to catch her, just watching as she moved at an almost run and when she hesitated at the corner, he ran to catch up.
“Buffy, please, stop.”
“Why should I?”
They faced off and he gave up and told the truth.
“Because I’m too knackered to chase you all over town and tomorrow’s Thanksgiving and the kids shouldn’t have to deal with us fighting.”
Then she was in his arms and both of them were too weary and heart sick to even cry as they huddled together.
“I’m just trying to keep you safe,” he whispered as he nuzzled her hair.
“I know,” Buffy answered. She hated that he had to watch her and she knew it was going to get worse; soon she would become nothing but a burden to everyone around her and that thought terrified her to no end. “Let’s go home and try to have some fun with the kids.”
And neither completed the sentence. Leaving off the ‘before it’s too late’.
TBC
