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Juliatheyounger
Disclaimer: Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy et al own these characters
Summary: Sequel to Hot Chocolate…Marshmallows (of course). Not only is Buffy going out with Spike but now she's got Armageddon to deal with as well.
Rating: R (I expect)
Spoilers: Season 5
Feedback: Yes please (with sugar on top?)
Distribution: If anyone wants it then, yes, please! But let me know so I can feel all flattered.
Author's note: Yup I've done it, started the Hot Chocolate sequel (yeah as if I could leave it there, we haven't even dealt with the chip or Angel yet!) mwhahahahaha… Let more pointless crap ensue!
For those who came in late and can't be bothered to read Hot Chocolate…
Buffy has finally admitted to Spike that she loves him after quite a bit of sex and a fight or two. Buffy has told the Scooby Gang she is seeing the blonde undead one. Xander has accidentally walked in on Buffy and Spike during a rather inopportune moment and Willow and Tara, not knowing Spike and Buffy were sort of seeing each other, asked him to be the…er…three in a threesome. Giles thinks they are just going on a date.
Oh yeah and there was stuff about demons and crap.
******************************************
Jack O'Higgins the manager of The Divine Comedy collared Frank Assisi as he walked off the stage to thunderous applause.
"Great set Frank," O'Higgins said shaking the saint’s hand. "Put you down for 10 minutes next Friday?" The manager slapped the comedian on the back before heading off to talk to some of the other up and comings at the club.
The Divine Comedy was a stand up club in one of the less reputable parts of L.A. O'Higgins ran it with an iron fist. Pissing off O'Higgins equaled no comedy career, at least in L.A.'s non-human community. O'Higgins was human but most of his comics weren’t. And they weren’t all demons either. Some of the wittier of Heaven’s Host graced the club with their presence at least a couple of times a week. Comedy was peculiarly the one thing that both sides saw the merits of. True, the demons were edgier in their humour, but comics like Marty Luther could get a sharp edge with their political stuff. The audience was, for the most part, human. Most of the comedians at the Divine Comedy passed for human, so unless they knew any different, the audience was none the wiser.
On stage the MC, Baal, hottest demon comic in L.A. was introducing the next act, Joanie. The petite little Joanie got up on stage and launched into her man-hating bitch feminist routine. Up the back, where the comedians stood, drinking, rehearsing, talking and occasionally watching an act, O'Higgins was talking to Paul.
"I’m not saying lose that stuff, just tone the anti-gay and women-bashing stuff down a bit." A big man walked past. "Legion- like that split personality bit."
Charles Wesley was up next with some of his poetry. The timid looking man paced the floor looking at his palm card intently as he practiced his act.
Suddenly there were assorted beeps and buzzing noises. As one, demon and saint alike stopped. There was some scrabbling in pockets, then they were all looking at various models of pager.
"Well lads," said the Brit, Tom Moore, support act for the night and famous for his incisive social commentary. "Looks like we’ve got Armageddon."
***************
Buffy shifted in her bed and felt Spike stir beside her. He wrapped his arm tightly around her and kept on sleeping. Suddenly Buffy realised that the noise she'd been trying unsuccessfully to ignore was the sound of someone knocking on the door. Disengaging Spike's arm, she climbed out of bed, fished around and found her panties. She pulled them on and threw on her dressing gown. Spike rolled over.
"What is it?" he mumbled, still asleep.
"Someone's at the door."
'"Mmmph."
Buffy hurried downstairs and pulled open the front door. Buffy stood there for a whole minute, completely lost for words.
"Angel?"
***********
Upstairs, the realisation that Buffy wasn't in bed anymore finally dawned on Spike. Rubbing his eyes he got up and pulled on his trousers before heading down to find his Slayer.
Angel and Cordelia stood at the door.
"Cordelia had a vision-" Angel looked up and saw a very familiar blonde vampire walking down the stairs. He quickly pulled Cordy behind him.
"Buffy! It's Spike!"
Then it occurred to him that Spike was not actually wearing a shirt. Then it occurred to him that he could smell something that was distinctly sex-like. Angel gaped at Buffy. He then turned his gaze back up to the blonde vampire. And gaped some more.
"Quick Buffy, shouldn't you be doing the staking thing or something?" Cordy demanded, not noticing the consternation on either Buffy or Angel's faces.
Spike stopped midway down the stairs as he saw his grandsire.
"Now Angel?" he demanded incredulously. "What is this, the visitation of all your ex-boyfriends love? Who's next, that little prat you had the one night stand with?"
Buffy looked from Angel to Spike. Oh this was very not of the good.
Cordelia's eyes suddenly widened as she realised what was going on.
"OH! OH! You and -" Cordy looked from Angel, to Buffy, to Spike. Then she smirked. "What is it with you and vampires Buffy?"
Buffy swallowed. Angel was looking at her with a mixture of stunned indignation and kicked puppy dog. She glanced up at Spike and winced when he saw the look of belligerent possessiveness on his face. This was so going to be awkward. Spike finished walking down the stairs and slipped his arms around Buffy's waist, resting his chin on her shoulder, well and truly staking his claim.
Angel still gaped.
"Spike? Buffy?" Obviously he was having trouble wrapping his mind around this, Buffy thought.
"Hullo peaches," Spike smirked, leveling a look of challenge at the older vampire. The room's testosterone levels soared through the roof.
Angel drew himself up, regaining some of his senses. He glared at his grandchilde. Spike smirked back smugly, but Buffy could feel his body tense against her. The air crackled with hostility. Buffy suddenly realised she was the only thing between two increasingly pissed off vampires.
"Uh, as much as I'd love to see you two tear each other's throats out over Buffy, I, uh, don't," said Cordy, a touch waspishly. "Come get me when you're finished with the macho posturing." She turned and walked out the door.
Buffy was inclined to agree with Cordelia somewhat. She took a deep breath.
"Angel, before we deal with this vision, I think we need to talk. Alone."
Spike sighed and let go of Buffy. Time for him to do the disappearing act again.
"I'll be outside," he muttered, glaring at Angel as he brushed past him out the door as well. Bloody hell, this Understanding Boyfriend business was getting a right pain in the arse.
*************
Spike went out the back and sat down on the porch next to Cordelia. They both sat there in silence.
Bloody poof thought Spike. Waltzing in and acting all bloody high and mighty. Bloody arrogant, nancy boy haired, bloody great poofter. He thought about the look on Buffy's face. The one that tied his stomach in knots. Fuck.
Spike sighed deeply. He really wanted to go in there and set Angel on his ear, tell him a few home truths. But he couldn't 'cause Buffy'd get upset and he knew she'd want to handle this and sooth Peaches' touchy bloody feelings. Fuck.
He sat on the steps ruminating about the problem and wishing horrible death to his grandsire.
**************
Buffy and Angel went into the lounge room and sat down. Déjà vu, thought Buffy. What, was she going to have explain Spike to everyone tonight?
Angel looked like he was going to launch into a concerned-about-your-safety lecture. Buffy looked at him firmly. "Before you start, let's get a few things straight. One, Spike can't hurt anyone. He has a government chip in his brain that prevents him from hurting humans. And two, he's changed. A lot."
"A chip?"
Buffy sighed and started to explain the whole Initiative/chip-imbeding in Spike's head thing.
*************
"Oh! You're not going to, like, kill me or anything will you?" Cordelia asked suddenly.
Spike looked up slightly startled. He'd completely forgotten she was there. He cocked his head and smirked. "Nice to see someone still appreciates me," he grinned, a touch of bitterness from his Buffy/Angel considerations still in his voice.
"Whatever, just don't go all fangy. I carry a stake now you know."
"What under that little thing?" he asked, indicating her dress. Spike may have had a sore heart and be worried, but he still noticed short little slips of dresses.
"Hello, handbag?" she said lifting her purse up in demonstration.
Spike grinned. After a moment he sighed. He glanced over at Cordelia, the brunette was also looking a bit dejected, and not a little pissed off. He cocked his head to the side and looked at her.
"So you and Angel…"
"What?! No! Well I mean…yes, obviously not as much as you and Buffy…" Cordelia sighed. "Tonight was supposed to be our first date."
Spike chuckled. "Talk about bloody coincidences. Tonight was our first date too. Nearly bloody wasn't." He patted his pockets, wishing he'd gotten dressed a bit more, then he'd have his cigarettes. "Buffy's bleeding soldier ex-boyfriend shows up out of the blue. Now the great Poof's here too. Feel like I'm running a gauntlet or something." He leaned back. "Any minute I expect something else to pop up and this time Buffy'll go, actually no, don't think I want to go out with Spike after all."
"You too huh? It took us years to even get this far. All we were going to do was have dinner together. Just pretend for one night that we were a couple. Believe me, I definitely wasn't going to risk any happy time with Angel."
"Still got that little curse of his has he?"
Cordelia rolled her eyes. "Tell me about it. It can't be good, being that celibate. Not that I can talk, every guy I've even been interested in lately turns out to be a demon who wants to impregnate me with its spawn or live in another dimension."
"Must put a bit of a crimp on your love life then."
"I'm starting to think I ought to just date Dennis?"
"Dennis?"
"My ghost. At least he's always there."
Spike chuckled. "Might be interesting. Like the invisible man." He sat back and leaned against the rail. "So what's happened, how come you two aren't having your dinner as planned?"
Cordelia let out an annoyed sigh. "Vision girl here got another, er, vision. One involving Sunnydale. So instead of eating at a restaurant it took me weeks to get reservations at, we went for a little road trip."
"Not good, these visions of yours I take it."
"You could say that yeah." Cordelia ran her hands through her hair and almost growled. "Ugh! Like I know Buffy and Angel have history but like it's been over for ages."
Spike looked away. He was actually more worried than he'd admit, even to himself. He loved Buffy and knew she loved him, but the whole Buffy/Angel thing…he wasn't sure Buffy was over his grandsire yet. It was worse than Riley. Part of Spike knew he'd be safe standing by and letting Buffy give Riley another go 'cause he knew he really had nothing to worry about from Soldier Boy. But Peaches…he was Buffy's first love. Another vampire. Her first. Couldn't compete with that. Fuck. No Spike was not going to make any noble gestures when it came to his bleeding grandsire. This was it, letting Buffy do her talking thing, this was the extent of Spike's concessions to Angel.
Spike really wanted to go back inside.
**************
"Buffy…this chip…he's still…it's only preventing him from doing evil." Angel felt hurt, and a little bit angry. It was Spike, his Buffy was with Spike. Spike who'd tried to kill both of them. Spike. His childe, well, grandchilde. His grandchilde was trying to take Buffy. Angel tried to be reasonable. It was hard. The last time he'd seen Spike had involved a lot of sharp pointy things. Suddenly Spike was good? And Buffy wasn't staking him? In fact Buffy was…Angel couldn't even think it.
"Angel, he loves me. He won't hurt me. And he's helped me so much. Me and my family. Yeah I know the chip is just holding him back, but it doesn't change how he feels about me. It's taken a while, he's had to prove himself, but I trust him. Even without the chip, I think he would still love me. He just can't do things I'll have to stake him for."
"Buffy…when, when I left, it was so you could have a normal life - have a normal boyfriend…"
"The normal boyfriend decided Buffy didn't love him the right way. And Spike…it just happened. You don't need to tell me about why it isn't a good idea." Buffy sighed. "Its funny, but I'm happy with him, Angel. Can't I have that? I'm never going to have a normal life. It's not like we're getting married, we're just together, seeing how this goes. Trust me, I'm not expecting anything long term here."
Angel was quiet.
"Buffy," he said suddenly, intensely. "Its just…if you're going to be with a vampire…you might as well be with…"
Buffy looked up and the expression on his face made terrible strange familiar feelings form inside her.
"Angel, don't say that," she said. "Don't say that unless you mean it." Buffy looked away. After a moment she said. "And besides, you didn't want me when you were all vampire-vampire instead of soul vamp."
"I did want you…just…not in a nice way. And Buffy, that' s why you have to be careful with Spike." Angel sighed. "I know I don't have any right to tell you what to do…but Buffy, please be careful. I've known Spike for a long time. And if he doesn't have a soul…"
"Angel, I know its weird. At first I thought it was just another way to get at me. Some trick. But he really loves me. He could hurt me so easily now, emotionally, but he doesn't. He loves me. Even without a soul."
Angel looked away. He really loved her. Had really loved her. But not without a soul…at least, not that he'd been able to admit. But then Spike had always been…able to love. Willing to love. His devotion to Dru had proved that time and again. But Dru had been Spike's sire. Unconsciously his eyes drifted up to Buffy's neck. Bile rose in his throat at the thought of Spike drinking from…
She saw his gaze.
"He hasn't," she said, answering his unasked question. Spike had not even asked about it. Buffy could sense sometimes, when their passion got too intense, when he vamped out mid-sex, that he wanted to. But he'd never even tried. It might have had something to do with the chip, but Buffy got the feeling that if she'd wanted it…if she'd wanted him to do it to her…Sometimes, when she was just on the edge of a very intense orgasm, just about to fall, she almost told him to. Buffy shook herself, best not to go there. She hid, even from herself, the intense feelings she'd experienced the three times vampires had drunk from her: the Master, Angel, and Dracula.
"All right, enough with the chitchat, don't we have a world to save or something?" Spike asked too cheerily as he walked into the room. He deliberately sat next to Buffy. Angel looked hurt. Spike's expression was slightly odd, but Buffy was too irritated all of a sudden to notice.
"I'll go get Cordy," said Angel stiffly. Buffy winced. She hated the thought of him being upset with her. Things weren't good between them yet, over this. She knew Angel felt betrayed.
"Have a nice little talk Slayer?" Spike asked, his uncertainty making him sound snide.
Buffy glared at him. "Spike! Why'd you have to barge in like that!" Buffy looked away. She didn't know what she felt. And then Angel dumps the "why don't you date me then" thing on her. Damn Angel. Buffy suddenly felt irritation towards that vampire too. He was like a selfish child, he only wanted her because Spike did. It wasn't a pissing contest for crying out loud. Buffy felt Spike watching her and she looked up. It was then that she saw Spike's expression. The questioning, uncertain, almost fearful look. An intense feeling of love for this annoying, frustrating, sensitive and loving man flared up inside her. Buffy was overcome by emotion. Tears pricked at her eyes. She didn't quite know what to say so she punched him in the arm.
"Ow, what was that for?" Spike complained rubbing his arm, suddenly grinning because the tension between him and Buffy had dissolved.
"For coming down here with no shirt and acting like a big jealous macho ape." Buffy said, trying to still be irritated but losing the battle as the suspicion and fear in Spike's expression disappeared a little.
"Jealous? Why would I be jealous?" Spike grumbled. "Just because the love of your life shows up at the door, stupid hair sticking up, like the magnificent poof he is and tells you he'd do anything, have you back as long a you're not with me." He hadn't meant to say that last bit but the diatribe about Angel's hair had gotten him worked up and it had slipped out.
Buffy just looked at Spike and decided not to take him to task for eavesdropping.
"Who was I just in bed with?"
A smile began to slide across Spike's face.
"Me," he said.
"Exactly. So shut up and be good. Angel is my friend. You were cool about the Scoobies' reaction to us, so be cool about him too." Spike bent his head in a brief old-fashioned gesture of acquiescence.
"And for the record," Buffy continued. "If that's the only reason Angel has for wanting to get back with me, then I'm sorry, but I'm not that desperate." She looked at Spike archly. "He'll also have to do something about anchoring that soul of his too. I'm getting used to having nasty vamp sex fun."
Spike grinned. He bent forward and kissed Buffy a little too warmly on the mouth. "Keep saying things like that Slayer and you'll be too busy to hear about Cheerleader girl's vision."
Buffy smiled. "Well then I'll just have to say things like that later."
"I bloody hope so," said Spike. "Like it when you talk dirty." He smiled at Buffy, and wriggled his eyebrow playfully, glad that things were ok.
"Might just go put some more clothes on," he said as a peace offering. "Getting a bit cold sitting around here half-naked."
Buffy knew Spike putting clothes on was supposed to be a good thing, but all of a sudden she couldn't remember why.
**************
Cordy stood as Angel walked outside.
"So, what's the verdict, not going to rip off Spike's extremities tonight?"
Angel gave Cordelia a rueful smile. "Not tonight. Buffy wouldn't let me give her the be careful speech, but I'm sure as hell giving him the hurt-her-and-I'll-rip-your-entrails-out talk."
"Charming," said Cordy, a little icily.
"So…" said Angel, sensing Cordelia's obvious irritation towards him. It didn't take vampire senses to pick up on that particular mood. "Did you…and…Spike have a…nice…" he couldn't believe he was going to say this. "Chat?"
"Lovely. We talked about you and Buffy," Cordelia swept past him. "So are we going to tell Buffy about this vision or not. I've got an audition tomorrow and I'd like to get at least some sleep tonight."
Damn, the audition. And he'd dragged her here to Sunnydale when she should have been…getting to bed early or something.
***************
Dawn stuck her head out her door as Spike walked past it back downstairs, this time fully dressed.
"Who's here?" she asked sleepily.
"Bloody peaches," grunted Spike. "Go back to sleep Bit."
"'k," she paused, remembering something. "What happened with Riley."
"Big Sis told 'im where to go."
"Mmm good," and Dawn shut the door. She opened it again. "Hey Spike?"
"Yeah, Nibblet?"
"Like the clothes."
***************
"Giles?" The voice at the other end of the phone said.
"Yes Buffy?" Giles looked at his bed-side clock. 3 am. He immediately sat up. "What's wrong?"
"Angel's here, Cordelia's had a vision. I think you should come over."
***************
Giles, Buffy, Angel, Cordelia and Spike sat in Buffy's living room.
Cordelia had repeated her vision to them, complete with hellfire and brimstone.
"Revelations," said Giles. "It sounds exactly like the book of Revelations."
"Bloody hell," murmured Spike.
"Yes quite," said Giles. He was pretending not to think about why Spike would be at Buffy's home at this hour of the night and why she would be only wearing a dressing gown.
"I know," said Angel. "Wesley's poring over all the books he can get his hands on in L.A."
"Book of Revelations? Sounded like Book of Not Making Much Sense." Buffy frowned.
"Revelations, last bit in the bible. Scared the socks off me in Sunday School," said Spike.
"You went to Sunday School?" asked Buffy. She could just picture Spike being an evil little blonde angel. Then she remembered the geek-boy Spike had described his former self as and that the blonde was probably brown. Sometimes she forgot that things were different when Spike was human.
"Yeah 'course, didn't you?"
"Nope not of the religious upbringing me." She looked at Spike. "And yet, you're the one who ended up the vampire. And to think they want religious instruction in schools."
Giles cleaned his glasses, ignoring this comment and deciding that Buffy obviously needed a definition of the term Revelations, Book of. "Basically, the book describes the end of the world, Armageddon, it was written in a prophetic tone - some scholars think to obscure the meaning from the authorities and that it described the Roman Empire and Emperor. Others believe the events described are literal or that it predicts a future apocalypse."
"Well I wasn't exactly picking up on any analogy vibes," said Cordelia.
"Hmmm," said Giles. "And it was definitely Sunnydale you saw."
"Oh yeah, can't forget a hellmouth."
Giles pinched the bridge of his nose. "Armageddon is actually a place, a town in the Middle East, the Hebrew word for Meggido, it was the scene of wars and battles since ancient times. But apparently, it seems that when they said Armageddon in revelations, they actually meant Sunnydale."
"Arsunnydale?" asked Buffy. "Great, well, what's going to cause this apocalypse and how can we stop it."
"I don't know," said Giles. "I got the impression that this particular apocalypse was meant to happen if and when the Powers that Be chose. Trumpets sounding etc."
"But if the Powers want it to happen why bother warning Cordy with the headache?"
"Good point."
"Unless," said Spike. "They want you to be on the side of good. Spose'd to be a battle of sorts isn't there."
"The beast," said Cordelia.
"Nuh-uh, been there, done that, bought the amusing t-shirt. Glory is now a convenient vacuum-packed size, courtesy of her own black-hole."
"Maybe its not meant to happen yet," said Angel.
"Possibly," said Giles. "Maybe something's going to happen to precipitate it - something we're supposed to stop."
"The thing was - Cordy's vision focused on this woman, the woman clothed with the sun, who was being chased by a demon. Usually that means we've got to save her."
"Except she got away," said Cordy. "And then the demon was in Sunnydale and all sorts of badness was happening."
"Buffy?"
Buffy looked around.
"Go back to bed Dawn."
"What's happening? Is the world going to end again?"
Cordelia's eyes widened as she saw the brown-haired girl at the top of the stairs.
"Her!" Cordelia exclaimed.
"What?"
"It was her!"
Buffy, Spike, Giles and Angel looked from Cordy to Dawn and back again.
"Ooh that was weird," said Cordelia. She looked at Dawn, a different kind of recognition in her eyes now. "I don't know why I didn't recognize her before. Your sister was the woman in my vision."
Giles did some more frowning. "Of course! Cordelia has never met Dawn - the monks spell obviously only took effect now - that's why she didn't recognise Dawn as the woman in the vision."
"What do you mean," said Cordelia, now fully convinced she'd always known the key. "Of course I've met Dawn. Hello, so many annoying Scooby meetings?"
Giles turned to Buffy but she was already gone, running upstairs after Dawn.
*****************
"Why did she have a vision about me?"
"I'm not sure," said Buffy, stroking her sisters hair. "But nothing bad happened, in the end…" an idea was forming. An idea of what the vision may have meant. "The woman got away."
"I'm…why would she call me a woman, why not a girl, that's all I am, I'm just a girl."
"I don't know," said Buffy. "But don't worry about it, Giles will look it up in a book or something, then we'll kill what we have to kill and you won't flunk the math test you have tomorrow."
"Ms Reicher is such a bitch giving us a math test the day after the swim team homecoming dance."
"How was it?" Buffy asked, in sister gossipy mode. She was still amazed that Sunnydale high now had a swim team sans weird fish creatures worthy of a homecoming dance.
"Good, no it sucked. Melinda asked Kevin to dance twice, I mean he was with me, skanky ho."
"Did you bitch slap her?"
"Gees Buffy, no." Dawn rolled her eyes. Then giggled. "But I did tell Kevin's friend Joey about how Melinda wet her pants in fifth grade."
Buffy laughed. "For an innocent you sure can be evil."
There was a hesitant tap on the door and Spike poked his head around.
"Learnt it from the master," smirked Dawn.
"You pair all right up here?" Spike asked.
"We're fine, tell everyone I'll be down in a minute."
Spike nodded. "Night 'Bit, how'd the dance go?"
"That lopsided arsed ho Melinda Green asked Kevin to dance."
"Twice," added Buffy exchanging amused looks with Spike.
"Did you kick said arse?" asked Spike.
"No! Gees, Spike you're worse than Buffy."
"Yeah, coulda told you that." And the blonde head disappeared again.
"Better get back down there before both Giles and Angel kill Spike," said Buffy.
"Ok," said Dawn, sleepily. "Just, this time, if it’s a Glory situation again, can we please just leave town?"
"It's a deal."
"Buffy?"
Buffy paused at the door. "Yeah?"
"I'm not stupid you know. I know you just asked about the dance to distract me."
"I know. But I still wanted to know what it was like."
"Whatever."