Fic update: Pillow Talk, Chapter 7
The first new chapter in ages, I know. Now my crazy summer is over, I'm hoping to get back to posting something once a week, with an emphasis on getting Bug on the Cosmic Windscreen completed and making progress on Pillow Talk.
Pillow Talk is set in an AU Season 6. A slight change in circumstances, a different decision or two, and you wind up with very different results. Spike/Buffy, NC-17 overall. Thanks to revdorothyl and keswindhover for the beta.
Part I and the earlier chapters of Part II are here and on my site.
When we last left our heroes, they were attending a rave at Clem's, and had very sensibly retreated to the back yard for some smoochies.
Buffy and Spike stepped back into Clem's living room, holding hands out of romantic feeling -- and to support each other emotionally as they braved the blare of "Mamma Mia."
The Hill of Bean's barista had been watching the dwindling crowd, and when Buffy and Spike came into view, George smiled first at their expressions and then at their clasped hands. "If you two would rather be someplace else, I can keep an eye on Dawn for you."
Spike snorted and waved at Clem, who was gyrating to the music as he conducted a shouted conversation with the small demons Buffy had encountered earlier in the kitchen. Nearby, two scaly beings waggled their antennae and complained about their boring telemarketing jobs. The younger humans and demons present were standing around looking awkward. "Even the Little Bit couldn't find trouble at this bash."
"No, but I could walk her home. You live on Revello, right?" There was a pause, and the next words sounded almost too casual. "Was that your housemate who stopped by the café today?"
It took Buffy a moment to figure out whom George meant. The afternoon seemed very far in the past. "No, at least, not any more. Tara broke up with her girlfriend--that's my friend Willow--and moved out a few days ago."
"Oh." There was a pause.
Buffy looked up and noticed Spike was smirking.
What am I missing? "Thanks, but we'd better take her home ourselves." George looked disappointed. Ouch! That sounded like an insult. Buffy rushed to add, "She was, I mean, before we came here, just when Clem called--"
Spike interrupted her. "She was having a hissy fit. The Slayer is afraid her sister will go spare on you, and she's trying to protect you from the horror show."
"Appreciated. Well, another time, maybe." George grinned and went into the kitchen.
Buffy frowned. "Why would George want to take Dawn home another time?"
"Masochism?" Spike was smirking again. "Speaking of which, Slayer, will you punch me if I tell you you're adorable when you're dense?"
"Probably. So why don't you just tell me--" Before Buffy could demand an explanation, she was interrupted by a piercing squeal and two hands clasping her arm.
"Can we go home now?" Dawn sounded desperate.
"What's wrong?" Buffy looked around for an attacking demon.
"That guy over there." Dawn gestured. At least, she shrugged her shoulder in the direction of a skinny, emo-looking boy with long dark hair who was examining one of the Plagues of Egypt snow globes with suspiciously intense interest. It was "Darkness" so there really couldn't be much to see. Besides, he was just as obviously not staring at Dawn as she was not pointing at him.
Spike's eyes narrowed. "He was bugging you?"
"No! Spike, don't you dare! Jeez, Buffy, don't look at him!"
It hadn't been all that long since Buffy had been a teenager. She exchanged a meaningful glance with Spike and let herself be led to the door.
Once outside, Buffy wished she'd remembered to bring something warmer than the long-sleeved blouse she'd put on to go to the party. Then she wished that she'd thought more about what to say to Dawn.
Fortunately, Dawn didn't seem to want to say anything. She stalked ahead, several feet before Buffy and Spike, obviously upset about something. But what? If I bring up the not-human business, it will turn out she's thinking about boys. If I ask about the boy, she'll accuse me of not caring about the really important stuff.
Not for the first time, Buffy felt a twinge of guilt for what she'd put her mom through. Mom might not have known what to say either, but she'd probably have figured it out sooner than Buffy would.
Buffy reached out and took Spike's hand. At least she wasn't alone with her inhuman sister. She had her demon lover's support. Right?
She was smiling reluctantly at this thought when they reached one of Sunnydale's many cemeteries and turned in the gate. They were just taking a shortcut home, but of course she had to scan the gravestones for any signs of freshly-turned earth while keeping one eye on the Benson mausoleum, a fave vampire lurking spot. The job that never ends.
"No new burials." Spike spoke for the first time since leaving Clem's. "No demons either. But--"
He was interrupted by a flash of light.
***
"And if he thinks he can call me after not calling me and -- " Buffy stopped and rubbed her eyes. Who turned off the lights? She was standing in a park or something, only it was filled with weird shapes that were scattered over the grass. There were trees and stuff, but she could barely see. Why is it so dark? She looked up and saw stars and a nearly full moon.
Because just a second ago I was sneaking out of school with Heather. We were skipping Algebra to go to the mall. We were outside, and it was really bright and hot, not middle-of-the-night and freezing cold. She rubbed her bare arms. She was too cold to be dreaming.
Thoughts swirled in her brain. How did I get here? Mom is going to be sooo pissed that I'm out alone after dark. Maybe I tripped in my new shoes and hit my head, like Dad said I would? And where's Heather? Anyway, It's got to be way past my curfew, and whatever this building behind me is, I'm pretty sure it's not on the list of houses Buffy is allowed to visit because Mom has the other Moms' phone numbers posted on the fridge.
Something stirred nearby.
I'm not alone. There are guys here. Guys I don't know.
She was starting to see a little better now. There were three boys standing in front of her.
They were all old, like college age, and really badly dressed, like the guys in computer lab. One of them held something kind of like the lightsabers little kids played with, only it was bigger and made mostly of metal instead of plastic. Something very white and bright was glowing just above the handle instead of at the shooting end, but it was very science-fictiony.
They're just a bunch of Star Trek freaks. Just some dorks. That thought made her a little less frightened, so she kept thinking it.
She realized that there was someone else standing to her right, even closer to her than the three dorks. And he's a dork of a different color. He was wearing a suit out of the kind of movie that she refused to go see unless Colin Firth was in it. His collar stuck up, his hair was kind of long, light brown and curly, and he was wearing funny, old-fashioned glasses that looked really old instead of just retro. He stared back at her, his mouth open. His gaze reached her legs and he looked away, blushing, only to sneak a look back again a moment later. Then he pulled himself together and looked around in a way that seemed more about not staring at her legs than anything else.
Buffy looked down too, wondering how she could commit a fashion crime awful enough to bother the guy who owned that suit. But she still had on the dress she'd gotten last week, and it looked even better than it had when she'd talked Dad into buying it for her. She admitted that she hadn't been so sure about the shoes, but they weren't that bad.
She pulled herself together, remembering she was in an unknown location with a bunch of guys she'd never seen before. This was not the time for a chic-ness check. Running away might be good. But the first dork took a couple of steps closer, and she found herself backing up against a wall made out of very chilly stone. She made a noise that sounded like "Meep!" to her own ears and moved a few inches away from the cold clamminess.
"Wow, even their clothes changed." One of the guys gave a silly laugh as he clutched the lightsaber thing. "I think it worked. I really think it worked!"
"You did it! This is so cool!" said the guy in the middle. His voice squeaked with excitement.
"Yeah, but where did Buffy's sister go?" That was the guy on the end, who suffered from a case of extreme shortness. "And what's that?" He didn't sound happy-excited, like the other two. He sounded scared.
I don't have a sister. Buffy's gaze followed Short Guy's pointing finger and she blinked at what looked like a big swirly ball of green light. She took a step back, and this time she didn't flinch away from the cold stone behind her. That light must have been faked somehow, maybe with a projector or something, but it did look an awful lot like a great, big blob of green pulsating stuff was hovering in the air a few feet to her left.
The geek in the middle was still staring at the guy in the suit. "And Spike's gone all Masterpiece Theater!" There was even more squeakage in his voice this time.
Buffy's eyes got a little more used to the dark, and she started to realize what all those weird bumpy shapes were. Tombstones and statues.
I'm in a graveyard! Oh, no, this is getting way too much like a scary movie. Now would be a very good time to find out this is some kind of joke. But no one was laughing except for the nasty snickers from Lightsaber Guy, so she started inching her way along the stone wall, hoping she could creep past the nerdy guys and run. Yeah, because running through a graveyard will be so not of the horror genre. I wonder how long it will take before I trip over a gravestone and twist my ankle?
"She's trying to get away!" Lightsaber Guy tossed his weapon to Squeaky Boy, who missed the catch and let it fall to the ground. Saber Guy lunged at Buffy just as she was about to start running.
He's grabbing me! Nothing like this had ever happened to Buffy before, and her first reaction was panic. Lightsaber Guy was holding her against his chest, and he was laughing again in that creepy way. Creepy and annoying. She started to get mad. This is so not going to happen to me.
She yelled as loud as she could and tried to pull away, but he just tightened his grip. Her stomach twisted sickeningly as she realized how much stronger than her he was. Then she bit the closest piece of bare skin she could find, which happened to be on his neck. She bit hard.
He screamed, and she broke away for a second, only to find herself wrestling with Squeaky Boy. He wasn't as strong as the other guy, but he managed to get his arms around her and squeeze her in a bear hug, yipping like an annoying puppy, "I got her! I really got the Slayer! Me!"
"Heel, boy!" Buffy stomped down hard, feeling something squish underfoot, and Squeaky Boy screamed and let her go. She smiled. I don't care what Dad said; now I'm glad I got the really clunky shoes.
But then Lightsaber Guy grabbed her from behind and yanked her arms back so hard she stopped yelling and started screaming. She tried to pull away, whirling them both around, and found herself staring into the eyes of Suit Boy, whose mouth was still open. For a second she wanted to hit him for being so useless. But then he firmed his jaw and started looking as mad as she felt, and she realized he could have been kind of hot if he wasn't wearing that suit. Which led to a surprisingly detailed mental flash of him naked-- Oh, damn, Mom's right. If I can imagine that right now, I am boy crazy.
"Unhand that young lady!" Suit Boy jumped into the fight, or at least he threw a kind of wimpy punch at Lightsaber Guy's face. Lightsaber Guy yelled, "Shit!" but didn't let Buffy go. Suit Boy punched again, harder this time. Then again. He seemed to be learning as he went. Not a good sign.
Lightsaber Guy shoved Buffy to the ground and swung a punch back at Suit Boy, who managed to duck. But Saber Guy's next punch caught him on the shoulder, and he staggered back, yelling, "Ow! Ow!"
Great. Now I guess I have to rescue him. The thought felt oddly familiar. And, somehow, leaving him behind was out of the question.
Before she could dive back into the fight, Buffy was distracted by more screaming. And it's not coming from me. She looked over her shoulder and saw Short Guy and Squeaky Boy backing away from the green swirly thing. Uh, oh. She was pretty sure it was bigger than it had been before. It was certainly a lot closer.
It's also probably not a good sign when the people who are attacking you are scared of the thing attacking you and them. She got to her feet and grabbed Suit Boy -- who was grappling in a very girl-fighty way with Lightsaber Guy -- by the arm. "Let's go! That green thing's coming at us!"
But when she tugged harder, he just fell over, knocking her to the ground again. Lightsaber Guy moved toward her, reaching down to grab her arm. She realized her hand was lying on something, so she picked it up and bopped Saber Guy over the head with his own gun thing. There was a cracking sound, and the Jedi weapon or whatever it was split into pieces. Too bad, I was hoping that would happen to his head.
Suit Boy jumped on Lightsaber Guy and started hitting him. He seemed to be a quick learner when it came to fighting, at least if his opponent had been smashed over the head with something first, because this time he was getting in some good punches.
"No!" Buffy screamed at him. "We have to get away-"
Too late. She looked up just in time to see the green blob of light pulse, then swell again and envelop all three of them.
Pillow Talk is set in an AU Season 6. A slight change in circumstances, a different decision or two, and you wind up with very different results. Spike/Buffy, NC-17 overall. Thanks to revdorothyl and keswindhover for the beta.
Part I and the earlier chapters of Part II are here and on my site.
When we last left our heroes, they were attending a rave at Clem's, and had very sensibly retreated to the back yard for some smoochies.
Buffy and Spike stepped back into Clem's living room, holding hands out of romantic feeling -- and to support each other emotionally as they braved the blare of "Mamma Mia."
The Hill of Bean's barista had been watching the dwindling crowd, and when Buffy and Spike came into view, George smiled first at their expressions and then at their clasped hands. "If you two would rather be someplace else, I can keep an eye on Dawn for you."
Spike snorted and waved at Clem, who was gyrating to the music as he conducted a shouted conversation with the small demons Buffy had encountered earlier in the kitchen. Nearby, two scaly beings waggled their antennae and complained about their boring telemarketing jobs. The younger humans and demons present were standing around looking awkward. "Even the Little Bit couldn't find trouble at this bash."
"No, but I could walk her home. You live on Revello, right?" There was a pause, and the next words sounded almost too casual. "Was that your housemate who stopped by the café today?"
It took Buffy a moment to figure out whom George meant. The afternoon seemed very far in the past. "No, at least, not any more. Tara broke up with her girlfriend--that's my friend Willow--and moved out a few days ago."
"Oh." There was a pause.
Buffy looked up and noticed Spike was smirking.
What am I missing? "Thanks, but we'd better take her home ourselves." George looked disappointed. Ouch! That sounded like an insult. Buffy rushed to add, "She was, I mean, before we came here, just when Clem called--"
Spike interrupted her. "She was having a hissy fit. The Slayer is afraid her sister will go spare on you, and she's trying to protect you from the horror show."
"Appreciated. Well, another time, maybe." George grinned and went into the kitchen.
Buffy frowned. "Why would George want to take Dawn home another time?"
"Masochism?" Spike was smirking again. "Speaking of which, Slayer, will you punch me if I tell you you're adorable when you're dense?"
"Probably. So why don't you just tell me--" Before Buffy could demand an explanation, she was interrupted by a piercing squeal and two hands clasping her arm.
"Can we go home now?" Dawn sounded desperate.
"What's wrong?" Buffy looked around for an attacking demon.
"That guy over there." Dawn gestured. At least, she shrugged her shoulder in the direction of a skinny, emo-looking boy with long dark hair who was examining one of the Plagues of Egypt snow globes with suspiciously intense interest. It was "Darkness" so there really couldn't be much to see. Besides, he was just as obviously not staring at Dawn as she was not pointing at him.
Spike's eyes narrowed. "He was bugging you?"
"No! Spike, don't you dare! Jeez, Buffy, don't look at him!"
It hadn't been all that long since Buffy had been a teenager. She exchanged a meaningful glance with Spike and let herself be led to the door.
Once outside, Buffy wished she'd remembered to bring something warmer than the long-sleeved blouse she'd put on to go to the party. Then she wished that she'd thought more about what to say to Dawn.
Fortunately, Dawn didn't seem to want to say anything. She stalked ahead, several feet before Buffy and Spike, obviously upset about something. But what? If I bring up the not-human business, it will turn out she's thinking about boys. If I ask about the boy, she'll accuse me of not caring about the really important stuff.
Not for the first time, Buffy felt a twinge of guilt for what she'd put her mom through. Mom might not have known what to say either, but she'd probably have figured it out sooner than Buffy would.
Buffy reached out and took Spike's hand. At least she wasn't alone with her inhuman sister. She had her demon lover's support. Right?
She was smiling reluctantly at this thought when they reached one of Sunnydale's many cemeteries and turned in the gate. They were just taking a shortcut home, but of course she had to scan the gravestones for any signs of freshly-turned earth while keeping one eye on the Benson mausoleum, a fave vampire lurking spot. The job that never ends.
"No new burials." Spike spoke for the first time since leaving Clem's. "No demons either. But--"
He was interrupted by a flash of light.
***
"And if he thinks he can call me after not calling me and -- " Buffy stopped and rubbed her eyes. Who turned off the lights? She was standing in a park or something, only it was filled with weird shapes that were scattered over the grass. There were trees and stuff, but she could barely see. Why is it so dark? She looked up and saw stars and a nearly full moon.
Because just a second ago I was sneaking out of school with Heather. We were skipping Algebra to go to the mall. We were outside, and it was really bright and hot, not middle-of-the-night and freezing cold. She rubbed her bare arms. She was too cold to be dreaming.
Thoughts swirled in her brain. How did I get here? Mom is going to be sooo pissed that I'm out alone after dark. Maybe I tripped in my new shoes and hit my head, like Dad said I would? And where's Heather? Anyway, It's got to be way past my curfew, and whatever this building behind me is, I'm pretty sure it's not on the list of houses Buffy is allowed to visit because Mom has the other Moms' phone numbers posted on the fridge.
Something stirred nearby.
I'm not alone. There are guys here. Guys I don't know.
She was starting to see a little better now. There were three boys standing in front of her.
They were all old, like college age, and really badly dressed, like the guys in computer lab. One of them held something kind of like the lightsabers little kids played with, only it was bigger and made mostly of metal instead of plastic. Something very white and bright was glowing just above the handle instead of at the shooting end, but it was very science-fictiony.
They're just a bunch of Star Trek freaks. Just some dorks. That thought made her a little less frightened, so she kept thinking it.
She realized that there was someone else standing to her right, even closer to her than the three dorks. And he's a dork of a different color. He was wearing a suit out of the kind of movie that she refused to go see unless Colin Firth was in it. His collar stuck up, his hair was kind of long, light brown and curly, and he was wearing funny, old-fashioned glasses that looked really old instead of just retro. He stared back at her, his mouth open. His gaze reached her legs and he looked away, blushing, only to sneak a look back again a moment later. Then he pulled himself together and looked around in a way that seemed more about not staring at her legs than anything else.
Buffy looked down too, wondering how she could commit a fashion crime awful enough to bother the guy who owned that suit. But she still had on the dress she'd gotten last week, and it looked even better than it had when she'd talked Dad into buying it for her. She admitted that she hadn't been so sure about the shoes, but they weren't that bad.
She pulled herself together, remembering she was in an unknown location with a bunch of guys she'd never seen before. This was not the time for a chic-ness check. Running away might be good. But the first dork took a couple of steps closer, and she found herself backing up against a wall made out of very chilly stone. She made a noise that sounded like "Meep!" to her own ears and moved a few inches away from the cold clamminess.
"Wow, even their clothes changed." One of the guys gave a silly laugh as he clutched the lightsaber thing. "I think it worked. I really think it worked!"
"You did it! This is so cool!" said the guy in the middle. His voice squeaked with excitement.
"Yeah, but where did Buffy's sister go?" That was the guy on the end, who suffered from a case of extreme shortness. "And what's that?" He didn't sound happy-excited, like the other two. He sounded scared.
I don't have a sister. Buffy's gaze followed Short Guy's pointing finger and she blinked at what looked like a big swirly ball of green light. She took a step back, and this time she didn't flinch away from the cold stone behind her. That light must have been faked somehow, maybe with a projector or something, but it did look an awful lot like a great, big blob of green pulsating stuff was hovering in the air a few feet to her left.
The geek in the middle was still staring at the guy in the suit. "And Spike's gone all Masterpiece Theater!" There was even more squeakage in his voice this time.
Buffy's eyes got a little more used to the dark, and she started to realize what all those weird bumpy shapes were. Tombstones and statues.
I'm in a graveyard! Oh, no, this is getting way too much like a scary movie. Now would be a very good time to find out this is some kind of joke. But no one was laughing except for the nasty snickers from Lightsaber Guy, so she started inching her way along the stone wall, hoping she could creep past the nerdy guys and run. Yeah, because running through a graveyard will be so not of the horror genre. I wonder how long it will take before I trip over a gravestone and twist my ankle?
"She's trying to get away!" Lightsaber Guy tossed his weapon to Squeaky Boy, who missed the catch and let it fall to the ground. Saber Guy lunged at Buffy just as she was about to start running.
He's grabbing me! Nothing like this had ever happened to Buffy before, and her first reaction was panic. Lightsaber Guy was holding her against his chest, and he was laughing again in that creepy way. Creepy and annoying. She started to get mad. This is so not going to happen to me.
She yelled as loud as she could and tried to pull away, but he just tightened his grip. Her stomach twisted sickeningly as she realized how much stronger than her he was. Then she bit the closest piece of bare skin she could find, which happened to be on his neck. She bit hard.
He screamed, and she broke away for a second, only to find herself wrestling with Squeaky Boy. He wasn't as strong as the other guy, but he managed to get his arms around her and squeeze her in a bear hug, yipping like an annoying puppy, "I got her! I really got the Slayer! Me!"
"Heel, boy!" Buffy stomped down hard, feeling something squish underfoot, and Squeaky Boy screamed and let her go. She smiled. I don't care what Dad said; now I'm glad I got the really clunky shoes.
But then Lightsaber Guy grabbed her from behind and yanked her arms back so hard she stopped yelling and started screaming. She tried to pull away, whirling them both around, and found herself staring into the eyes of Suit Boy, whose mouth was still open. For a second she wanted to hit him for being so useless. But then he firmed his jaw and started looking as mad as she felt, and she realized he could have been kind of hot if he wasn't wearing that suit. Which led to a surprisingly detailed mental flash of him naked-- Oh, damn, Mom's right. If I can imagine that right now, I am boy crazy.
"Unhand that young lady!" Suit Boy jumped into the fight, or at least he threw a kind of wimpy punch at Lightsaber Guy's face. Lightsaber Guy yelled, "Shit!" but didn't let Buffy go. Suit Boy punched again, harder this time. Then again. He seemed to be learning as he went. Not a good sign.
Lightsaber Guy shoved Buffy to the ground and swung a punch back at Suit Boy, who managed to duck. But Saber Guy's next punch caught him on the shoulder, and he staggered back, yelling, "Ow! Ow!"
Great. Now I guess I have to rescue him. The thought felt oddly familiar. And, somehow, leaving him behind was out of the question.
Before she could dive back into the fight, Buffy was distracted by more screaming. And it's not coming from me. She looked over her shoulder and saw Short Guy and Squeaky Boy backing away from the green swirly thing. Uh, oh. She was pretty sure it was bigger than it had been before. It was certainly a lot closer.
It's also probably not a good sign when the people who are attacking you are scared of the thing attacking you and them. She got to her feet and grabbed Suit Boy -- who was grappling in a very girl-fighty way with Lightsaber Guy -- by the arm. "Let's go! That green thing's coming at us!"
But when she tugged harder, he just fell over, knocking her to the ground again. Lightsaber Guy moved toward her, reaching down to grab her arm. She realized her hand was lying on something, so she picked it up and bopped Saber Guy over the head with his own gun thing. There was a cracking sound, and the Jedi weapon or whatever it was split into pieces. Too bad, I was hoping that would happen to his head.
Suit Boy jumped on Lightsaber Guy and started hitting him. He seemed to be a quick learner when it came to fighting, at least if his opponent had been smashed over the head with something first, because this time he was getting in some good punches.
"No!" Buffy screamed at him. "We have to get away-"
Too late. She looked up just in time to see the green blob of light pulse, then swell again and envelop all three of them.