A Spandery Fairy Tale (part 1 of 6)(*Complete*)

(A/N: co-written with Nash)

He'd flown for days without stopping to eat or drink, crossed no man's land and into the land of the Fey. By the time he landed where the fairy children where housed, his wings felt battered and damaged, his shoulders ached, and he was as weak as a babe. And yet, parched throat and all, he managed to ask for help... to tell them he needed it now, that Boy was in danger.

One thing that was the same in Man lands and in Fey lands... no one listened to the children.

*

Escape was impossible for him. Fairy children were born in beautiful blossoms growing in Man lands. When the time came, the elder fairies came out to gather the children. Spike had been a bad bad fairy, he'd hidden when others were collected. And then he'd found Boy.

He didn't have a heart... but it still ached when he thought about him. Every day he thought about him, remembering his face, his voice, his gentle hands... the way they played and argued, his scent. Afraid to forget, he fought the loss of memory this way.

Seeing his classmates buzz off, he flew after them, until he hit an invisible wall and fell down to the ground. "Darn it" He kicked at the wall and hurt his good.

"Stop pouting. You can't go out there, not until you're fully socialized, like the rest. Why is it the vampire babes give me trouble..." The elder fairy shook her head and swung her long thick braid behind her shoulder. "If you'd listened to your internal instincts, you would have returned to the fold and been able to travel back and forth."

He had felt the call of the land of the Fey. But Boy's call had thundered louder in his ears. And those peanut butter sandwiches...

"And stop dreaming. You have a lot to accomplish here."

"Not dreaming. It happened, all of it. I found a friend... I don't have any here..."

"If you tried, you would. All you do is talk about the outside world."

"I only want to go for a minute, can't I? I want to tell him..."

The elder started to sparkle with angry red showers of light. "You know the rule. It is ingrained in you, and I don't have to repeat it. Do I?"

Spike's defiant look only lasted a minute. He knew, of course he did. He's always known. Tell a human anything about the land of the Fey, the affairs of the Fey, and his life was forfeit. Warrior fairies could be sent to take care of the one with knowledge. He'd been good. He hadn't told Boy anything, other than the obvious, that he was a fairy. "I just want to tell him that I'll be back, when I'm big and strong. When I can really help him," he whispered.

"By then, he will have forgotten you. They all do," she said more gently, patting his silky blond locks. "It is our deliverance and our curse."

"He will remember me," Spike stamped a small foot. "He will!"

How long until he was soc... socialized? How long before he'd be free to grow to man-size in return for... for whatever they wanted. He'd put his inked wing mark on the paper... they said he was going to be larger than Big One. Only how soon?

*

He had no idea how much time had passed. But he was done! Done with school. Done with learning how to survive in both worlds.

And he'd grown. Looking into the stream at himself, he saw strong lean muscles. Now when the trolls used their own brand of magic to make him large... then he'd show Big One... Xander's father. Imagining himself pulling the man away from Xander and pushing him down on the ground, a smile played around his mouth.

He heard his name called. This was it! This was it!

One by one, each fairy was given directions to their new cottage and words of advice, except for those who wanted more out of life than to live in the land of the Fey or travel to and from the land of Man.

"Alright, those of you going to Troll territory, follow M'larion," an elder pointed to the guide. "Take your contracts with you."

Spike stepped forward. "I've got something to do. I mean before going to... to Troll territory."

The elder waved the contract in front of Spike. "Here, take it. And do note that your servitude starts immediately upon graduation. You signed it... you can't break it..."

"Servitude?" Spike blinked and read the words. Now that he understood them, he wished he'd listened to the elders who'd tried to dissuade him from signing it... who'd told him to wait till he was older. "Doesn't say for how long... just how much treasure loads I retrieve."

The look on the elder's face made his stomach sink. "I'll be back, I have to go... tell someone, and I'll be back for..." He took off, and damned if he didn't still smack into the invisible wall. Wings beating hard, he tried... again...and again.... and again, until he'd rammed himself into oblivion, and darkness took him.

* * *

Pushing the heavy cart through the mine tunnels, Spike lost his footing. The cart slid back, ramming into him. "Fu..."

Kurn flew over to Spike, wings fluttering fast and hard. He hadn't liked the look of this one since the first moment he'd come to the mines, he was too soft, too vocal. He'd come into the mine kicking and screaming, yelling about some human boy he had to warn. What kind of fairy cared about some human?

"Had another accident, Spike?" he asked, landing in front of the cart. "Better be careful, you don't want to be punished again do you?" Kurn growled, flashing into game face. He'd had a taste of that blood the last time Spike had been punished and he couldn't wait to have another. He was sure he would, the boy couldn't help but get in trouble. "Two more punishments and the third, well, you don't want to spend more time here Spike, what will happen to your precious Boy if you do?" Kurn laughed and flew away, ignoring the angry growl behind him.

Spike bunched his hands at his sides. Wait till his servitude was over. That overlord fairy would get his. The ovelord fairies were sell outs. Turned against their own, made 'em work harder, and got extra luxuries. He swore some of them let it get to their heads. Like Kurn. The guy had it in for him.

Straightening, Spike put his arms out and started to push the cart again. His muscles bulged and strained, screamed with pain. But it was nothing close to what could happen if Kurn got on his case again. It made his gut crawl to think of the last time. They'd tied him to a wheel, turned it upside down, then Kurn had used the whip on him. Spike had refused to beg for him to stop, so it went on and on. But that wasn't the worst of it.

Afterwards. When all the others were gone... he'd felt Kurn press up against him. If the overlord thought he'd been out cold, he was wrong. He'd felt the bastard's furtive movements against him, as he licked away the blood. It had taken all the control he had left to stop himself from screaming at him. From using every troll curse he'd ever learned.

*

Kurn stomped into the bar, feeling angrier than usual. Spike's time was nearly up and Kurn had yet to have another taste of that sweet hot blood. Spike had been very careful lately, he didn't want to waste more time before he got back to his precious boy. Kurn snarled at the mere thought of a human having that much power over a fairy, and a vampire fairy at that! He smiled as his snarl made the fairy next to him scramble away. He eyed the clientele of the bar, looking for someone to assuage his thirst. Spike would be leaving the next day and Kurn wanted to avoid thinking about it. He hated being so helpless.

Spike leaned into the magical fairy. He was sweet, and all smiles, even in a place like this. But his eyes spoke of the horrors of their existence. And they both knew how the night would end. They'd find a nice lily to tumble into, get naked, and sink their sorrows into each other. Find a little peace, a little numbness.

He hadn't got the guy's name yet, but when the guy wistfully asked what he would do once his servitude was over, Spike gave his one sure answer. "Go to the land of man. Find the boy... Xander. He was my friend. I'll free him from servitude to his father, and take him somewhere safe, and give him ice cream and peanut butter, and let him play all the games he wants." This time, he'd be the bigger one, and young Xander would be small. He'd make a much much better father for him than Big One, that was for sure. "What about you... When your time is done?"

The familiar voice, saying the very words Kurn didn't want to hear brought his pissy mood right back. He glared at the direction of the voice, spotting Spike dancing with a little brunet. Always boys for Spike and always dark-haired with those fucking huge brown eyes. Kurn narrowed his own green eyes and stalked over, relaxing his body as he walked until his stride was loose and rhythmical. He could play charming when he wanted, and he wanted to take what Spike wanted, even if Spike only wanted it for one night.

He pressed his body on the fairy's back, wrapping his arms around him and looking at Spike as he whispered. "Don't waste time on this guy, he only has eyes for his little human." He nipped at the fairy's neck and licked the small drop of blood that appeared, reveling in Spike's angry look. He was going to have what Spike wanted.

Besides, the little fairy would scream so prettily for him.

Spike saw fear and pain spasm across the fairy's face. You didn't take blood without preparing your partner, licking, making sure the skin grew less sensitive. The scent of terror surrounded him suddenly, and he couldn't do it... he couldn't leave the fairy to fend for himself. Even if his servitude was over. Even if this could....

Gritting his teeth, he gripped the fairy by the and tugged him close. Never mind that Kurn was still plastered to him. "Fuck off... find your own partner," he pushed his hands between the vampire fairy and the magical fairy, shoving Kurn roughly. "He's not yours, yeah?"

The minute he managed to separate them, he told the brunet to leave quickly. He'd find him later. Famous last words .

Instead of getting mad, Kurn smiled nastily. He hadn't planned it this way but it didn't matter, this was better than what he'd had in mind.

"I guess you couldn't stand to leave without one last time on the wheel, Spike, because this is what your little attitude is going to cost you."

*

Xander was woken up by an almighty crash. Even after years living away from his parents, he snapped awake immediately eyes darting around the room to spot the cause of the noise. It took him a few minutes before he realized that the sound had come from across his bedroom.

"No, please, no!"

The voice sounded familiar, though he'd never heard it take on that tone before. Xander sat up, throwing the lights on when he spotted the thrashing fairy. Spike was full-sized and screaming on his floor, obviously asleep and in the middle of a huge nightmare. More worried than he cared to admit, Xander knelt next to Spike and reached out to touch him.

"Spike? Wake up."

Spike reacted violently and Xander was slammed against the wall, knocking his head and back on it.

"Ouch. Right, no touching the sleeping fairy then," he murmured, reaching back to touch his head.

Xander crawled closer to Spike, making sure not to touch him.

"What the hell am I supposed to do now?" he wondered, watching as scarlet tears filled Spike's eyes, running down his cheeks and staining the carpet. "Spike, you have to wake up. I don't know what to do and you're the only one who can tell me. Come on, Spike wake up now." No reaction and Xander was getting more and more worried. "I promise I won't tell you to fuck off again, I'll...I'll make you one of those sandwiches you used to love, remember? You thought mom cooked the peanut butter and you were so damn proud of her for getting it right. A-and I have cola in the fridge, the bubbles make you sneeze. Come on Spike, wake up. Please," Xander reached out again, lightly touching Spike's hair. The fairy had frozen in place, eyes squeezed shut and panting heavily. "I don't think I can deal if you don't wake up, Spike..."

"Can't do this... can't hold me. I have to go... Boy is waiting... he's waiting." Hand now thrown over his face, Spike cried out against the threats to add time to his servitude. Then a word cut through it all. His name. Eyes opening suddenly, he jack knifed to a sitting position, instinctively reaching for Xander, holding him tight against his chest. Chase away my nightmares.

"Hey, hey it's okay, don't shake, it's okay." Xander automatically started soothing Spike, the same way he'd wanted to be soothed when he was a boy. The same way Spike had done it then. His arms went around Spike, rubbing circles on his back, trying to calm him down. He petted and talked until the shaking subsided and he could feel Spike calm a bit.

"So...who was holding you? You said Boy was waiting and they wouldn't let you go." Xander leaned back to look at Spike, hoping for an answer that would allow the little spark of hope he'd felt at Spike's words to grow. Maybe he hadn't left him after all, maybe he'd been taken. Why else would he have nightmares about someone not letting him come back?

Warmth. Protection. Calmness. The nightmare receded, until the question came. Tensing, Spike swallowed under the intensity of Xander's gaze. "I can't..." his voice was anguished. "I wish I could tell. But dangerous, not allowed." Please understand.

"You can't." Xander frowned, trying to decide whether to believe Spike or not. Despite the self-assured image he tried to convey, Xander never trusted his judgement. Especially on people. "Why not?"

"Don't believe all your fairy stories. When it comes to Fairy affairs, rules are strict. Don't ask. Plea..." Afraid his plea would be thrown back at his teeth, he ran a hand through his hair. "I can't tell, but you can. Tell me what happened. After that night. After..." he touched Xander's thigh, unable to say the words.

Xander just sat there staring at Spike. Rules are strict. That was it, that was Spike's reason for not telling him. Rules are strict. "I don't want to talk about it. We should get you in the bed. You're still shaking a little." He got up and turned the covers back, reaching back to help Spike up and into the bed.

He meant in his bed? Spike dumbly allowed himself to be lead, hesitated, then sat down, watching in disbelieve as Xander pulled the covers over him.

Without saying another word, Xander walked around to the other side of the bed and climbed in next to Spike. He lay down with his back to the blond and tried to relax enough to sleep.

"What do you mean 'strict', what kind of strict? What do the rest of the fairies have to do with anything anyway?" Xander was as surprised by his own words as Spike must be. He'd been truly planning to sleep but the words had burst out of his mouth before he could stop them.

Spike rolled over onto his side. “I can’t tell... I really can’t, or I would,” he put his hand on Xander’s cheek, willing him to believe. It was the plight of fairies... to have to hope for human’s to believe in things that didn’t fit with their world or things that could not be explained. “Just know... I would never leave you. Never. Not unless you made me.”

Xander looked into Spike's eyes for a moment, he leaned into the hand, felt the spark of electricity pass through him...maybe he should stop thinking for a little while. His eyes fluttered closed and he leaned forward to place his lips on Spike's, moaning softly in remembered pleasure.

Biting his lip, Spike raises himself up and looked down into Xander’s face. He was beautiful, and ordinarily Spike would be compelled to kiss him. But it bothered him that Xander was already in a different place... that he was seeing him as one of his fucking stress relief brigade. “Xander... tell me about your life after. Please. I want to know.”

"No," the word was not as harsh as Xander would like, he was already leaning in again, wanting that kiss. It doesn't matter, none of it mattered so long as he could get a kiss.

When Xander’s lips grazed his, Spike was lost. How could he resist when his body was already tightening, when they fit together so perfectly? Unable to resist the invitation, he kissed Xander long and hard, delving his tongue inside the guy’s mouth, exploring every corner, stroking, tangling their tongues together in a heated dance. Fuck... this boy made him go insane like no other.

Confident of his victory, Xander pushed Spike back and pressed his body against his. He moved his lips sideways, licking and nibbling along Spike's jaw and down to his neck.

Instinctively, Spike raised his hips, clenching his teeth as he gained the pressure he needed, rubbing up against Xander. “Good... feels good,” he muttered, putting his hands around Xander, and sliding them down over rippling muscles, to his hips. It was different this time. But was it different enough?

A part of Spike didn’t care. The part that needed this... wanted it. The part that wanted to hear Xander panting his name, that wanted Xander’s eyes to go dark and fuzzy. But another part of him wanted it to be real. “Are you going to kick me out in the morning?” The question hung between them.

"Keep doing what you're doing and you can stick around." The words were muttered against Spike's neck as Xander thrust harder against Spike. He was confused about a lot of things, wasn't sure if this thing between them was just physical anymore but he needed this release, needed it more than he'd thought when he first kissed the blond

With Xander surround him, all over him, Spike could hardly think. How was he to fight the waves of desire that washed over him, the heat that inched through his veins? The urge to feel skin against skin, meet thrust for thrust? And yet... he could stay if he kept doing what he was doing...

He’d kick himself for this later.....

With a frustrated groan, he started to roll them over, and then wished himself to fairy form. Six inches of mass... and all of it totally worthless to a big man like Xander, he circled him, breath labored, and his body visibly still in an urgent state of arousal. “I’m no two-bit whore paying for my bed that way, yeah? When you see me... really see me... ask me back to your bed.”

Xander grinned as Spike finally took the initiative and pushed them around, his smile turning into a frown when the warm pressure of Spike's body suddenly disappeared.

"What? What are you talking about?" he demanded, angry that Spike had drawn back, leaving him hot and hard like that.

“You heard me.” Damn... he was hard, Xander was hard... pheremones where filling his head with images that threatened to make him drop this... this stand he was taking. But no, he couldn’t.

Wings fluttering, he flew backwards... away from temptation. “I want to go out... to eat dinner... to talk. I want a ... a date... not just to fall in bed, and then pretend it never happened the next day. I want more.”

Xander immediately shut down. "More. Of course." Xander didn't do 'more'. He didn't go out, he didn't talk and he sure as hell didn't go out on dates. But Spike wanted all that, all those things that Xander couldn't do. He looked at the small creature flying in front of him. He wasn't of this world. How long before he left again anyway? "You can sleep anywhere you want tonight. Hell you can even stick around tomorrow if you want. Your choice. Goodnight Spike."

So saying he turned his back on Spike and firmly told himself that he didn't care if Spike wanted him or not. He was doing the right thing. He was!

“I love you Xander. Like before, but different. I’ll be here in the morning.” It was a promise nothing on earth would make him break. Ducking his head down, he flew out of the bedroom. Not that stupid. He wasn’t going to be tortured by the pheremones all night long.

*

Xander woke up, feeling happy and content. It took him a moment to realize that the happiness stemmed from the dreams. He'd spent the night living through scene after scene of dating and playing and laughing, all with Spike.

Great, just great, show me exactly what I want why don't you," he grumbled, stumbling out of the bedroom.

He found Spike sitting at the sofa, looking miserable and dejected.

"Oh don't look like that, I'm not kicking you out. Come on, I'll make you breakfast." He walked past the sofa without looking at Spike and started getting out the ingredients for a peanut butter sandwich.

Well... he was in a better mood than yesterday, or so Spike thought as he followed Xander to the kitchen. Having prevented Xander’s stress release plans last night, he’d expected worse. Much worse than....He started to smell a familiar aroma.

“Is that what I think it is?” His mouth watered as he was struck by memories of the good old days, sharing Mom’s cooking. A sandwich. That’s what Xander was making for breakfast!

It felt right, sitting at the breakfast table while Xander cooked. If felt right. If only Xander would feel it too.


(A/N: I adore comments. I'm new to AFF and haven't received even a single one on the stories i've uploaded. Am I supposed to specifically request feedbacks or unlike other places [like lj], is it uncommon to get feedback?)