Spike the. . . Cuddly???

When the scoobies arrived at Xander's amartment, they found Spike perched on the arm of the couch, a pile of smoked cigarettes at his feet. Buffy gave him an odd look but pushed passed, accompanied by Willow, toward Xander's room with Tara following them, more nervous about just barging into someone's space. Spike could hear them talking to him as he finished shaving and brushing his teeth. All those annoying little human sounds that he shouldn't find endearing at all. Giles sat on a nearby armchair and watched his fellow Englishman closely.

Finally the vampire snarrled and snubbed out the last cigarette out of the third pack he's opened. It was the last one in his pockets, but he searched anyway and swore when he found no more.

"Should I get the dust bin?"

Spike looked up sharply, thinking he was being thretened by the watcher, before he noticed the mess his smoking had made. "Odd ta be cold again s'all." He mumbled.

Giles nodded and cleaned the butts up without another word.

"Boy's really upset."

The watcher smiled saddly, "Xander loved his kitten, he hasn't realized yet that you're still here." He was going to say more but at that moment Xander and the girls emerged from the bedroom.

"So, how do we do this?" Xander rubbed his hands together and tried very hard to look normal and okay while avoiding looking at Spike completely.

Giles gave a thoughtful glance to each of them then took off his glasses to rub the bridge of his nose. "We need to wait until dark and then go hunting. Most likely it will be in a heavily wooden area with no iron for at least a one mile radius. Willow and Tara did some research and came up with two ly loy locations. One is near the ocean about a five minuet drive from the public beach, the other is in the park."

Xander smiled, "Go girls!"

"We will have to split into teams. Xander, you and Spike will take the park and Buffy and I will take the beach. Willow and Tara, I will need you to stay here and keep the spell going to make us immune to the demon's magic, and to cast a curative spell if our sheild fails and one of us is transformed."

Xander blushed but nodded and Spike stared at him, daring him to look up and meet his gaze.

"I seam to have forgotten the iron rail spike and one of my iron axes, Xander, could you drive the girls to the shop to get them? Willow and Tara uld uld like you to gather some healing herbs and spell compnents just in case we need them after the battle."

"No problem G-man!" The boy almost ran out the door.

Spike waited until the door was closed and then slumped down onto the couch. "Subtlety thy name is Rupert. So wha'd ya want to get me alone fer?"

The watcher sniffed at Spike's half arsed insult but then shrugged and met the blond vampire's eyes seriously, "Spike, Xander had a kitten before you, it. . ."

"Got offed by a mutt, heard ya all talking 'bout it."

"So then you know that he has just come close to reliving a very traumatic experience. Then, right after he thought it would all be right again, he found out that he'd been sharing his heart felt secrets with the object of his secret affections. Even for a vampire that must seam traumatic, correct?"

"Yeah."

"Now pu it into human terms." Giles waited for Spike to take that in before continuing, "Spike, Xander is a very strong person, but even the strongest of us have our weak times. Don't give up on his for his. You need to. . ."

"You really want yer serogate son with William the Bloody, watcher?" Spike interrupted the waves of fatherly advice, "You really want Spike, the sce ofe of Europe, as a son in law?"

The watcher thought a moment and then gave a wry smile, "As much as it pains me to say this, I think I couldworsworst than having you in the family." He placed a solid hand on Spike's shoulder, "And so could Xander."

"Isn' it all to sudden? Don' ya think I'm usin' the boy?" Spike searched the older looking face suspiciously.

"No." He almost laughed at the vampire's suspiscions.

"Why do you trust me?"

"Because I have watched Xander grow into a fine young man who is deathly afraid of being himself. I dare say that if I were younger, and not his father figure, I would want him for myself. However I have also seen the way he looks at you. Until this happened, you weren't in a possition to see him without his guard up. Then you did see and I am fully aware of the wonderful person you found beneith our 'zeppo'. You are a vampire and a murderer and a violent bastard. . ."

"Didn't know you cared."

"But you are also a loving mate. You are a natural care giver to those you love. I trust you because I know just how lovable our Xander is. You would never hurt him. He needs that assurance."

Spike closed his eyes solomnly then smiled, "Yer a bit o' alright Rupes, ya know that?"

"I've suspected it." He smiled back and stood, "Now we should most likely order pizza. When the children get back I dare say they will want food."

"Yeah, humans 're funny that way." Spike stood and got the phone.

_________________________


"Xander? You okay?" Willow asked her freind softly.

"Been better, been worst."

"So that's a no."

He looked down at his feet and hefted the weapons sack onto his shoulder, "Come on, I bet Giles ordered pizza."

\. . . . ."

"I'm okay Wills just. . . just a little wigged is all."

Buffy took the heavy bag from his and put it in the trunk, "About Spike?"

He avoided looking at them by digging through the bag and grabing the first iron spike he found, slipping it into his waist band as if he had been seriously looking for it. "You're all taking this well."

The slayer smiled and shrugged, "Hey, he's loves bitch and he's in love with you. What more could you want?"

"Whoa! Hold up! In love with me?! What part of unrequietted don't you get?"

"X. . . xander?" Tara asked softly.

"Huh?"

"A. . . are you B. . . blind?"

"Nah I don't jack o. . . shutting up now."

Buffy grinned and the witches blushed but smiled, "Xander! You were going to say something dirty weren't you?!"

He cocked his head to the side a little, "Sometimes I just forget you're girls." Then he ran. Fast. and was chased by Buffy and Willow like he was back in kindergarden and afraid to get cooties. A purse smacking him in the back of the head remedied that image though. Cooties never left bruises! "Ouch! Slayer strength! Watch it!"

"Willow threw it you big baby."

Xander walked back and climbed into the car surrounded by giggles at his expense. //At least they forgot about. . .//

"Spike smoked three packs of cigarettes today."

//Shit.//

"They were all over the place."

"Spike always smokes."

"X-Xander, why c-c-can't you acc-c-cept th-that he l-likes you?"

"Because he' sgoing to leave." He started the car and headed back toward his apartment. "He's Spike again. And Spike doesn't need me."

"He was always Spike."

"You know what I mean."

Buffy was about to respond when something ran into the road. "Xander!! watch. . . !"

It slammed into the car and rolled over the hood to smash head first through the windsheild. Xander swore when he saw it and snatched the iron spike head pocketed earlier, ramming it into the things head. It disintigrated.

Xander looked at the girls, the girls looked at Xander. Finally Buffy broke teh silence, "That was kind of anti-climatic."

Xander blinked, nodded, and passed out, a stream of blood slipping over his forehead.

"Xander!"