Old Enemies... (S/X)
folder
-Buffy the Vampire Slayer › Slash - Male/Male › Spike(William)/Xander
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
47
Views:
12,780
Reviews:
75
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Category:
-Buffy the Vampire Slayer › Slash - Male/Male › Spike(William)/Xander
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
47
Views:
12,780
Reviews:
75
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own Buffy the Vampire Slayer (BtVS), nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
Old Enemies Part 46
* * * * * * * * *
Part 46
“I really don’t want to do this, babe,” Harris said seriously as they waited for the door to be opened. “Can’t we just… tell them we need some time or something?” His knees were almost knocking, he was so nervous. In all the years he’d known his girls, he’d never taken them to task for anything. Not even once.
And yet… another part of him was demanding that he and his vampire leave… let the girls come to THEM with apologies and whatever justifications they had.
Spike smiled slightly, his arms wrapping around his beloved. “We can tell them that too, Xan… but you have a right ta say your piece, and… think you’ll feel better for doin’ it.” His mouth found the perfect scar he’d given his claimed and soft, cool lips traced it delicately as the door opened. “Might even Mate ta you soon, luv… best if your friends know it ahead, yah? Goin’ ta be enough of a shock knowin’ we’ve claimed an’ all…”
Harris shivered, responding to the lips on his skin. “Gods… Spike… are you sure we can’t…” He was interrupted by the deliberately intrusive sound of a throat being cleared and pulled himself away from his love. “Um. Collins.” Harris smiled shakily. “Hi.”
Collins arched a brow, then smiled as much as he usually did when confronted by someone he respected.
“Mr. Alexander,” he acknowledged, “I believe the Ladies await you in Mr. Giles’s library. I will be happy to escort you and your…” His eyes quickly roamed over the blond’s shape. “Your… companion… to them now.”
Harris smiled, pulling away from Spike’s lips slowly. He almost stepped inside, but the squeeze to his hand stopped him. “So… we’re invited in, Collins?” he asked, that squeeze alerting him to his vampire’s need of welcome.
Collins nodded slowly and sadly, well aware of the blond’s restrictions. “Yes. I invite you and your… friend... to enter, Mr. Alexander.”
* * * * *
The room was strangely silent, considering the amount of tension in the air. Then again, Spike figured maybe that tension was exactly why no one was talking. Probably afraid of what they might say if they opened their gobs… especially after the fairly lurid threats he’d made to the Slayer over the phone earlier, but there was no need for his beloved to know about that.
His eyes rolled and he arched a brow at Elliot and Trevor. There was tension there, too, but he didn’t really care. Liked the blokes, but they were far from his main priority. Besides, they were grown humans. They could handle their own dramas, he bloody well hoped. His Xan had enough to deal with right then without having to worry over his friend and the dark haired bloke he’d taken up with.
Finally the silence was too much for the often hyperactive vampire and he growled. “Bloody hell! You’re all more than six years old, people. Say what you’re goin’ ta say an’ get it over with! Got a honeymoon trip ta get on with my claimed, don’t I?”
Harris groaned. “Well that was ONE way of telling them, babe. Not the way I wanted to do it, though.”
Spike snorted. “Would have still been here this time tomorrow if I waited for you ta open your mouth, luv.”
He sighed softly and leaned back against Spike for a moment. “Fine. Let’s get this done.”
Harris straightened up and looked at the redhead and the blonde across the room. “I was gonna ask you why. That was the plan,” he said seriously and sternly, his arms crossing over his chest in anger. “But now that I’m here, I… you know, I really don’t care why. What you did…”
“Was wrong,” Willow agreed, hoping Xander would forgive them if he knew they were sorry. “We never should…”
“Hey. I’M talking here,” Harris shouted, glaring at her. “And if you had ANY respect for me, you’d let me finish!”
He nodded sharply when the girl ‘eeep’ed. “I don’t know where you two get off! YOU think I’d be better off if I didn’t remember Spike so you just… make me forget? What about what I wanted? What about the fact that I’m almost thirty years old and have been making my own decisions since I was, oh, twelve? When did I ask YOU to jump in and screw with my life? With my MIND?”
His eye shifted to Buffy and he frowned even deeper. “And you. I get that your life didn’t turn out the way you wanted it to. I do. You miss being out there doing what the potentials do. That does NOT mean you have the right to change MY life into what you think it should be! You didn’t want me to be with Spike? So what! Not your choice, not your decision, Buffy! MY life. MY choice. MINE!”
“I love you guys. Don’t get me wrong, I really do. But I’m not some weak, pathetic guy who needs to be taken care of! And maybe you never saw that. Maybe you never knew. But it’s true.” Harris nodded again at the surprise on his friends’ faces. “I’ve made a whole LIFE for myself since we left Sunnydale. It may not be the life you WANT me to have, but it’s the life I want. ME. And since it IS my life, you need to BACK. THE. FUCK. OFF! Yes, I’m with Spike. Yes, I love him! We’re Claimed and I don’t CARE how wrong you think that is! It’s none of your business! And even if it was, do you have ANY IDEA of how VIOLATED I feel that you took my memories of him? You guys just… SUCK!”
Spike watched his beloved with arched brows. Even knowing how angry Xander was, he hadn’t really expected the bloke to let the girls have it. His love was usually less confrontational. Still, he found himself nodding. This had obviously been building for more time than he’d thought. That didn’t mean he was going to let the man burn all his bridges, though, much as he’d like to. His Xan would miss his friends soon enough if he completely alienated them.
“Luv,” he murmured, stepping closer and placing his hands lightly on the tops of the brunette’s shoulders, “Might want ta take a breath, yeah? Not that you don’t look a treat in blue, but it’s not th’ healthiest color for skin of th’ human variety. Gorblath, sure. Human? Not so much.”
Willow was crying. Silently, to be sure, but she was crying none the less. So, she saw, was Buffy. They’d done what had seemed right to them in the moment, but they’d been wrong, and while the witch had already known that, she hadn’t truly realized just how… disrespectful it had been for them to do what they’d done. In fact, she had to admit to herself that it basically made it very clear that neither she nor Buffy had had any faith in their friend’s intellect.
“God… Xander, I’m sorry!” Buffy cried, throwing herself across the six or so feet to wrap her arms around his torso. “I… we shouldn’t have… and you’re right, we… it IS your… and we were just so… and WORRIED! But we… no, shouldn’t have… and I don’t know why it seemed so… but it was so wrong, and you’re not weak! Not pa-pathetic! No, not at all, we just…”
He found himself patting her back while she continued her broken, disjointed words in a somewhat un-Buffy like way. His eye was wide as he looked at Willow, practically begging for help.
The redhead flew across the room, adding her own clench to Buffy’s. “She’s right, Xan. YOU’RE right. Even though we thought it was a demon… some other demon… we shouldn’t have… and it’s fine that you love Spike. Really, it is! We just… we didn’t know you were gay and then Buffy reminded me about that time you wanted me to gay you up and I thought maybe I did by accident, and then Robert, and you didn’t remember so we figured you were always gay and then with the crystal and Andrew told us Spike was alive, and Trevor and the prophecy poem thingy and…”
“Bloody hell, luv,” Spike chuckled ruefully, “You’re a bleedin’ amateur in th’ babble department, ‘ey?”
“Never finished my training,” Harris answered softly. “Classes were interrupted on account of the great big smoking hole in the ground.” He tried to shrug but his arms were too full of apologizing girls.
Elliot watched all of it with curious and confused eyes. He leaned closer against Trevor’s side and shook his head. “Okay… and this is just weird, Trev. He was yelling at them like a minute ago and now they’re hugging. I don’t get it.”
Trevor chuckled, his hand stroking up and down Elliot’s arm slowly. “Harris said it himself, baby. He loves them. I’m sure he’s still pissed off, but… I guess he’s decided to forgive them. Eventually.”
The blond nodded slowly, his confusion clearing up a bit. “I almost feel sorry for them. I know how… creative Harris can get when someone’s trying to work their way back into his good graces.” He smiled, a small laugh coming from his lips. “So if the fireworks are over for now, how about we go to that pub again? I could use a drink somewhere that’s not… here.”
And that was a damned good idea, Trevor decided. He didn’t really want to be there when the Maiden-Crone and the Slayer calmed down enough to remember what Harris had said about being Claimed. He had a feeling things might get ugly. Or not. It depended on how sincere the girls really were about letting Harris make his own decisions.
Not that their feelings would or could change anything. Claimed was Claimed and that was that.
* * * * *
(A/N: Thanks to TheShadowCat, E and ladyicondraco for the reviews... glad you like. And yes, you did read that right, E. There will be at least 2 more stories in this particular Tis-verse, although the next one is likely to be somewhat angsty... you'll see. *snerk* *hugs for all*)
Part 46
“I really don’t want to do this, babe,” Harris said seriously as they waited for the door to be opened. “Can’t we just… tell them we need some time or something?” His knees were almost knocking, he was so nervous. In all the years he’d known his girls, he’d never taken them to task for anything. Not even once.
And yet… another part of him was demanding that he and his vampire leave… let the girls come to THEM with apologies and whatever justifications they had.
Spike smiled slightly, his arms wrapping around his beloved. “We can tell them that too, Xan… but you have a right ta say your piece, and… think you’ll feel better for doin’ it.” His mouth found the perfect scar he’d given his claimed and soft, cool lips traced it delicately as the door opened. “Might even Mate ta you soon, luv… best if your friends know it ahead, yah? Goin’ ta be enough of a shock knowin’ we’ve claimed an’ all…”
Harris shivered, responding to the lips on his skin. “Gods… Spike… are you sure we can’t…” He was interrupted by the deliberately intrusive sound of a throat being cleared and pulled himself away from his love. “Um. Collins.” Harris smiled shakily. “Hi.”
Collins arched a brow, then smiled as much as he usually did when confronted by someone he respected.
“Mr. Alexander,” he acknowledged, “I believe the Ladies await you in Mr. Giles’s library. I will be happy to escort you and your…” His eyes quickly roamed over the blond’s shape. “Your… companion… to them now.”
Harris smiled, pulling away from Spike’s lips slowly. He almost stepped inside, but the squeeze to his hand stopped him. “So… we’re invited in, Collins?” he asked, that squeeze alerting him to his vampire’s need of welcome.
Collins nodded slowly and sadly, well aware of the blond’s restrictions. “Yes. I invite you and your… friend... to enter, Mr. Alexander.”
* * * * *
The room was strangely silent, considering the amount of tension in the air. Then again, Spike figured maybe that tension was exactly why no one was talking. Probably afraid of what they might say if they opened their gobs… especially after the fairly lurid threats he’d made to the Slayer over the phone earlier, but there was no need for his beloved to know about that.
His eyes rolled and he arched a brow at Elliot and Trevor. There was tension there, too, but he didn’t really care. Liked the blokes, but they were far from his main priority. Besides, they were grown humans. They could handle their own dramas, he bloody well hoped. His Xan had enough to deal with right then without having to worry over his friend and the dark haired bloke he’d taken up with.
Finally the silence was too much for the often hyperactive vampire and he growled. “Bloody hell! You’re all more than six years old, people. Say what you’re goin’ ta say an’ get it over with! Got a honeymoon trip ta get on with my claimed, don’t I?”
Harris groaned. “Well that was ONE way of telling them, babe. Not the way I wanted to do it, though.”
Spike snorted. “Would have still been here this time tomorrow if I waited for you ta open your mouth, luv.”
He sighed softly and leaned back against Spike for a moment. “Fine. Let’s get this done.”
Harris straightened up and looked at the redhead and the blonde across the room. “I was gonna ask you why. That was the plan,” he said seriously and sternly, his arms crossing over his chest in anger. “But now that I’m here, I… you know, I really don’t care why. What you did…”
“Was wrong,” Willow agreed, hoping Xander would forgive them if he knew they were sorry. “We never should…”
“Hey. I’M talking here,” Harris shouted, glaring at her. “And if you had ANY respect for me, you’d let me finish!”
He nodded sharply when the girl ‘eeep’ed. “I don’t know where you two get off! YOU think I’d be better off if I didn’t remember Spike so you just… make me forget? What about what I wanted? What about the fact that I’m almost thirty years old and have been making my own decisions since I was, oh, twelve? When did I ask YOU to jump in and screw with my life? With my MIND?”
His eye shifted to Buffy and he frowned even deeper. “And you. I get that your life didn’t turn out the way you wanted it to. I do. You miss being out there doing what the potentials do. That does NOT mean you have the right to change MY life into what you think it should be! You didn’t want me to be with Spike? So what! Not your choice, not your decision, Buffy! MY life. MY choice. MINE!”
“I love you guys. Don’t get me wrong, I really do. But I’m not some weak, pathetic guy who needs to be taken care of! And maybe you never saw that. Maybe you never knew. But it’s true.” Harris nodded again at the surprise on his friends’ faces. “I’ve made a whole LIFE for myself since we left Sunnydale. It may not be the life you WANT me to have, but it’s the life I want. ME. And since it IS my life, you need to BACK. THE. FUCK. OFF! Yes, I’m with Spike. Yes, I love him! We’re Claimed and I don’t CARE how wrong you think that is! It’s none of your business! And even if it was, do you have ANY IDEA of how VIOLATED I feel that you took my memories of him? You guys just… SUCK!”
Spike watched his beloved with arched brows. Even knowing how angry Xander was, he hadn’t really expected the bloke to let the girls have it. His love was usually less confrontational. Still, he found himself nodding. This had obviously been building for more time than he’d thought. That didn’t mean he was going to let the man burn all his bridges, though, much as he’d like to. His Xan would miss his friends soon enough if he completely alienated them.
“Luv,” he murmured, stepping closer and placing his hands lightly on the tops of the brunette’s shoulders, “Might want ta take a breath, yeah? Not that you don’t look a treat in blue, but it’s not th’ healthiest color for skin of th’ human variety. Gorblath, sure. Human? Not so much.”
Willow was crying. Silently, to be sure, but she was crying none the less. So, she saw, was Buffy. They’d done what had seemed right to them in the moment, but they’d been wrong, and while the witch had already known that, she hadn’t truly realized just how… disrespectful it had been for them to do what they’d done. In fact, she had to admit to herself that it basically made it very clear that neither she nor Buffy had had any faith in their friend’s intellect.
“God… Xander, I’m sorry!” Buffy cried, throwing herself across the six or so feet to wrap her arms around his torso. “I… we shouldn’t have… and you’re right, we… it IS your… and we were just so… and WORRIED! But we… no, shouldn’t have… and I don’t know why it seemed so… but it was so wrong, and you’re not weak! Not pa-pathetic! No, not at all, we just…”
He found himself patting her back while she continued her broken, disjointed words in a somewhat un-Buffy like way. His eye was wide as he looked at Willow, practically begging for help.
The redhead flew across the room, adding her own clench to Buffy’s. “She’s right, Xan. YOU’RE right. Even though we thought it was a demon… some other demon… we shouldn’t have… and it’s fine that you love Spike. Really, it is! We just… we didn’t know you were gay and then Buffy reminded me about that time you wanted me to gay you up and I thought maybe I did by accident, and then Robert, and you didn’t remember so we figured you were always gay and then with the crystal and Andrew told us Spike was alive, and Trevor and the prophecy poem thingy and…”
“Bloody hell, luv,” Spike chuckled ruefully, “You’re a bleedin’ amateur in th’ babble department, ‘ey?”
“Never finished my training,” Harris answered softly. “Classes were interrupted on account of the great big smoking hole in the ground.” He tried to shrug but his arms were too full of apologizing girls.
Elliot watched all of it with curious and confused eyes. He leaned closer against Trevor’s side and shook his head. “Okay… and this is just weird, Trev. He was yelling at them like a minute ago and now they’re hugging. I don’t get it.”
Trevor chuckled, his hand stroking up and down Elliot’s arm slowly. “Harris said it himself, baby. He loves them. I’m sure he’s still pissed off, but… I guess he’s decided to forgive them. Eventually.”
The blond nodded slowly, his confusion clearing up a bit. “I almost feel sorry for them. I know how… creative Harris can get when someone’s trying to work their way back into his good graces.” He smiled, a small laugh coming from his lips. “So if the fireworks are over for now, how about we go to that pub again? I could use a drink somewhere that’s not… here.”
And that was a damned good idea, Trevor decided. He didn’t really want to be there when the Maiden-Crone and the Slayer calmed down enough to remember what Harris had said about being Claimed. He had a feeling things might get ugly. Or not. It depended on how sincere the girls really were about letting Harris make his own decisions.
Not that their feelings would or could change anything. Claimed was Claimed and that was that.
* * * * *
(A/N: Thanks to TheShadowCat, E and ladyicondraco for the reviews... glad you like. And yes, you did read that right, E. There will be at least 2 more stories in this particular Tis-verse, although the next one is likely to be somewhat angsty... you'll see. *snerk* *hugs for all*)