37/46
AUTHOR: BmblBee
RATING: Adult entertainment due to m/m sexual activity
and language.
PARING: S/X
DISCLAIMER: This story is fiction. Conceived in the warped
hive of the BmblBee. She owns none of the
characters or products named and makes no money
from their use.
WARNINGS: Character death. Boys playing with boys.
Vampire/ human contact.
SUMMARY: Xander Harris is dead. Drained by a vampire in
the Longview Cemetery. When his body is discovered
his friends realize that no one has seen or heard from him
in the last five days. Willow comes up with a spell to send
someone back in time to find out how he ended up there
and possibly save his life. Spike is reluctantly recruited.
Thanks to Purpledodah for the wonderful banner.
2:00 pm Friday afternoon
Xander Harris has 9 hours left to live.
If Xander had been physically able to purr, he would have been doing
so now. The heavenly domestic bliss felt like something straight out of
an episode of Leave It To Beaver.
Although he wasn't specific on who was Ward and who was June,
he was more than happy to be the beaver.
Spike had cooked up one of his huge scrambly breakfasts and then
plopped down on the sofa while Xander ate and cleaned up after.
He stood by the small kitchen sink and laughed as his attention deficit
vampire flipped rapidly through the seemingly endless channels of the
stolen satellite hook up.
Surprisingly intelligent, he knew the answers to all the questions on the
various game shows, wiggled his butt, dancing to the videos on MTV
and cursed the fact that they had cancelled Passions.
Breezing up through the movie channels, he had the infuriating habit of
watching just enough of a movie that Xander started getting into the plot
when he would suddenly snatch up the remote and punch the button.
If Xander complained, the answer was always the same.
"Boring. Sides, I already saw it."
When the plates and cups were washed and back on their shelf, Xander
hurried over to where his Master lounged. He shoved his feet over and
before Spike could protest, he grabbed up the channel changer, sticking
it down the front of his pants.
Spike just rolled his eyes.
"Come now, Pet. If you were trying to keep it away from me that is
probably the last place you should have tucked it."
Realizing his mistake, Xander immediately reached down to retrieve it
but was not fast enough. In a flash, quicker than the human eye could see,
the vampire, in full game face had leaped across the couch and pounced.
Looming darkly over his pet, Spike snarled, snapped and groped
for the instrument. Neither man cared or mentioned the fact that the
vampire's hands were every where except the spot where he would have
easily found it.
Xander laid back and gasp as Spike's claws slipped up under the his
shirt, scratching lightly over the chest that was rapidly rising and falling
with the air that rushed in and out.
Staring down into the deep, brown eyes, Spike had expected to see
humor. A challenge maybe, or just plain lust, but what he saw was
something else. Something that threw him off guard. Something he had
no previous experience with in this life or the last.
It was devotion, trust, acceptance. It was love.
Xander reached both hands up and gently cupped the distorted face of
the yellow eyed demon. His eyes travelled over the protruding veins
and ridges and seemed fascinated with the razor sharp fangs that loomed
just inches from his lips.
"Beautiful"
His voice was quiet and awestruck. It was as if he had just walked through
a hurricane to see the most magnificent rainbow God had ever painted in
the sky.
His thumbs brushed across Spike's cheeks and he marveled at the feel
of the change in his skin. It was firmer, tougher, more smooth, with no
hint of stubble. Apparently demons lounging about in the pits of hell didn't
have to shave.
Of course Xander had seen Spike's game face. It had popped out at the
strangest times. Fighting for Buffy, of course. Fighting WITH Buffy,
naturally.
If Xander had had a game face he would have shown it to Buffy a time
or two.
He had see him intimidate with it and he had seen it when Spike fed, usually
at the Watcher's from a Red Cross reject bag, but of all the times he had
seen it he had never really looked.
"Amazing. Wonderful."
Xander ran his fingertips over the hard, bony ridges of his forehead
down to feel the shape of the perfect nose.
Spike was stunned. He closed his eyes and felt the pure emotion flow
through the blood bond as the warm gentle fingers caressed him with
such care and affection.
Suddenly overwhelmed by the unfairness of it, Spike face slid away.
His sweet, boyish human one replaced it and he roughly scooped
Xander up in his arms rocking and crying.
Now Spike knew his punishment for making a wish on the hellmouth.
It was this. It was to give him true happiness, love and companionship,
then slap a time stamp on it. Force him to sit here and watch the clock
on the wall tick away the minutes till it all came to a crushing end.
It was unfair! All the thousands of worthless humans he had slaughtered
over the years were not enough to warrant this. This was too much.
This punishment was too severe.
At first Xander thought Spike was laughing. Holding him tightly and
giggling with joy at Xander's silly demon worship but very quickly the
bond told him something else.
"Spike? Spike! What is it? What's wrong? Did I say something wrong?
Please, talk to me."
Xander squirmed, trying to shove back the vampire that held him in the
iron grip and sobbed silently on his shoulder. The overwhelming sorrow
that seeped through, infused Xander's mind and body as though it were his
own, which now it was.
The sense of resignation and depression fell over him like a blanket and
Xander stopped pushing. Now he clutched. He held tightly to the man
lying on top of him and he cried with him.
When Spike realized what was happening, he did his best to pull himself
together. He wiped his nose and eyes on the upper arm of Xander's tee
and he tried to clear his brain. He didn't think the bond was strong
enough for Xander to pick up specifics, but he couldn't risk it.
"Sorry. Sorry, Pet. Just never felt like this before. I think maybe, what
with the bond and all, I'm being swamped with human emotions I haven't
felt for over a hundred years. S'all just a bit overwhelming, it is."
Xander brushed his tears away with his hand and smiled. Yea, that
sounded right. Something about it felt off, but a little voice told him
not to look to closely and he had found, in the past, that that little
voice had a hell of a sense of survival.
Chuckling lightly, Xander ran a thumb over Spike's lips. He could feel
the closeness, he could feel the connection of the bond. Xander thought
maybe now, while Spike was at his most vulnerable, it was the best time.
The time to bring up a subject that had been on his mind all morning.
He had thought about it, weighed it and considered it.
He was surprised Spike hadn't noticed that it had taken Xander nearly
40 minutes to wash one cup, one plate and a skillet.
It was time well spent.
His brain had made a check list of pros and cons and given each one the
thorough examination it deserved.
He thought about his past, his present and his future.
He considered his friends and his family.
Finally, as one last comparable, he put everything he could think of on
one side of the list and on the other he wrote just one name. Spike.
When he looked at the situation form that angle, it was a no brainer.
Even for an IQ borderliner like Xander Harris.
"Spike. you said you would do anything for me that I ask. Was that
the truth or were you just bullshitting?"
Spike frowned, slightly offended that he would even be questioned.
Of course he meant it. He would do anything for his boy, his pet, his love.
"Course I did. I'll have you know I'm a very trustworthy demon. If I
say I'm going to do something, I do it."
Relieved for the break in the tension, Spike smiled, relaxed and snuggled
down on top of the larger, warmer body of his human.
"So what is it, Love? You want to go dancin' again? Gotta tell you I'm
not to keen on returning to the evil, demonic, Bunnyland Golf Course.
Hey, you hungry? Want me to call for a pizza? What is it. Pet.
You name it, it's yours."
Xander wrapped his arms around the cool, muscular man and held him
close. Partly out of loving devotion and partly to prevent his escape.
Xander was not as IQ challenged as most thought.
"I want you to turn me."