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Real Me by CG again
 
Chapter 7
 
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“So, I thought we could start on some of those spells today!” Willow said cheerily, setting her books down on her bed.

“You’re not experimenting on me,” Spike argued from his vantage point on my bed.

I elbowed him. “Room and board, not to mention blood on demand. Wanna give it all up?”

It was Thanksgiving morning, and six days after Spike had first arrived at our dorm. He hadn’t had much luck with finding Dru, and had taken to haunting our dorm during the daylight hours. Aside from one very awkward conversation with Riley, when he had come to pick me up for a date and wondered why I had a paper bag filled with butcher’s blood on my desk, things were going pretty smoothly. Spike and I had settled into a routine that mostly consisted of constant jibing, but occasionally led to serious conversation. Willow found the whole thing kind of bemusing for reasons she wouldn’t disclose, and now, she had apparently conquered enough of her wariness around the vampire to try to force him into one of her experiments.

“So I thought that we could see just how susceptible you are to magic!” Willow continued brightly. “Would a levitation spell work, or the artificial sunshine-“

“You can’t dust him,” I objected. “He’s been doing all my modern history homework for me, and Professor Ritelli said that I have potential! I need my potential alive!”

Spike stretched out languorously. “See? I’m essential.” He rolled his eyes. “A month ago, I'd have been eating girls like you. Now I’m stuck doing your homework,” he muttered.

I patted him on the head. “There, there, Spikey. You’re a good boy now.”

“That’s what worries me,” he retorted.

There was a knock at the door, and Willow perked up. “Right on time! That’s Tara.”

“Who’s Tara?” Spike asked me. I shrugged.

“She’s the other witch I told you about, remember? I really wanted you to meet her, Buffy.” Willow opened the door and let the shy-looking blonde girl in, eagerly chattering about some spell or another.

“Hi,” I said, smiling at her.

Tara smiled back tentatively. “H-hi. You must be B-Buffy.”

“Yup!” Willow stopped babbling to grin at both of us. “Buffy, Spike, meet Tara! Spike’s the vampire I was telling you about. He’s totally harmless, though,” she said in a stage whisper as Spike scowled. “I met Tara at the Wiccan club. She was the only other one there who wasn’t more interested in the bake sale than the magic.” She shook her head. “Really!”

“So you’re also into the magics?” Spike asked curiously.

Tara nodded jerkily, taking a step back. Probably Willow’s warning wasn’t enough to make her feel totally safe around Spike. “Willow’s r-really strong.”

“That’s reassuring,” Spike drawled.

Willow smiled at Tara again, and gave Spike a mock-warning look. “You’d better behave, Mister. Buffy’s going home today, so you won’t have her there to defend you from us.”

“Buffy’s usually the one to do the attacking,” Spike pointed out, grinning at me fondly.

“That’s just cause I love you so much,” I smirked, getting up and grabbing my bag. “Be good for the sitter, Spikey.” I turned to Willow and Tara. “He needs a bath at seven and I want him tucked in no later than nine. If he gives you any trouble, tell him he won’t get a prize tomorrow.”

Spike threw a pillow at me and let out a little cry of pain. I left the room as he called after me, “What kind of prize are we talking about?”

I could imagine his tongue curling as he spoke.

--

“So, what’s the dorm scene like?” Mom asked.

I shrugged. “It’s okay. Lots of parties-“

“-At which Buffy does not drink liquor,” Dawn piped up.

I shot her a look.

“What? I’m helping!” Dawn protested.

Mom sighed. “Dawnie, your sister knows better than to drink at these events.” She shot me a look. “Isn’t that right?”

I gave her my most innocent look. “I no more drink beer than Dawn dates the undead.”

Dawn glared at me, horrified.

Mom smiled, looking a little perplexed. “I’m sure I’ll pick up that teenage lingo eventually, if you girls don’t keep changing it on me.” She held out a platter. “Muffin?”

I took one, smirking. This was fun. Wonder how long I can keep this up without Mom getting it. Probably forever… “So, Dawn, how’ve you been? I feel like we never see each other anymore. How’s your night job going?”

“Night job?” Mom frowned. “Buffy, what are you talking about?”

“Homework!” Dawn burst out. “Oh, Buffy, you’re so crazy. She calls homework my night job,” she explained hastily to a bemused Mom.

“Yup. You keep slaying that math,” I offered.

Dawn’s eyes narrowed. “Buffy has a boyfriend!” she informed Mom. She shot me a smug look. “Didn’t think I knew about that, huh? Willow told me when I called on Tuesday.”

When I was at the movies with Riley. Great. Note to self- tell Willow to let the machine pick up when the family calls.

Mom’s face lit up. “Really! Well, when are you going to bring him over?”

Bad move, Dawn. I sent her a triumphant look as I responded, “Not yet, Mom. Riley and I aren’t really serious yet. Not like Dawn and Angel.”

Mom’s jaw tightened. Really, my family was so predictable. “Dawn and who?”

--

“That was all your fault!” Dawn said furiously as we walked down Revello Drive together. It was later in the night and we had finally escaped Mom’s inquisition. “Now she’s going to get all freaked out by-“

“-The fact that your honey’s an undead pedophile?” I suggested, grinning.

“And what was up with the dropping hints about the Slayer thing?” Dawn demanded. “I knew I couldn’t trust you with my secret.”

I rolled my eyes. “Relax, Mom doesn’t suspect a thing. Except maybe that you’re a late-night stripper, but I’m sure I didn’t actually say that. People in this town are totally oblivious. I could have told her that you spend every night slaying vampires in the cemetery, and she would’ve assumed that I was speaking figuratively.”

“Probably,” Dawn admitted grudgingly. “Wanna go kill things?”

I grinned. “I thought you’d never ask.”

“Remember,” Dawn cautioned. “Go for the fledglings. Make sure I’m around in case things get screwed up. Don’t attack demons.”

“Stop patronizing me.” I gritted my teeth. It was time to show Dawn what I could do.

Except it really wasn’t, I soon discovered. There were lots of vampires out that night, and none of them were as disoriented (and friendly) as my only staked vampire. And I spent a lot of time being thrown into tombstones and drooled over by ugly vampires. If not for Dawn, I probably would have been bitten ten times over. And Dawn…

Dawn was incredible. I watched her swing an axe at a vampire, beheading it into dust in seconds, and began to understand just what a Slayer was. Dawn was poetry in motion, leaping and ducking at just the right times, throwing vampires forward with easy strength and skill, and staking them when they couldn’t fight anymore. It hit me suddenly. She was made for this. My attempts at staking would never be at good as Dawn’s. Maybe I was the older sister, but this was something that was way beyond me. This was Dawnie’s, and Dawnie’s alone.

“Buffy?” Dawn approached, wiping dust off her pants. “What’s up? You’re giving me a funny look.”

I smiled at her. “You were incredible.”

She looked surprised at that, and a little gratified. “Thanks.”

We headed to the last cemetery before going home. Someone was already there, beating up a large, tentacled demon. Someone big, hulking, and…

“Oh, goody. Angel,” I muttered. Something about him just rubbed me the wrong way.

“Angel!” Dawn grinned, and threw herself into the fight. The very slimy, gooey fight.

“That’s gross,” I commented, eyeing Dawn’s newly filthy shirt. “I’m beginning to see the perks of just watching- What are you doing?” I demanded. Angel was circling me, his eyes dark. “Dawn! Call off your boyfriend!”

“Where were you before coming out here?” Angel demanded.

“Home? My dorm?” I tried. “And why is any of that your business?”

“Angel, what’s going on?” Dawn asked curiously.

“You smell-“ He stopped abruptly.

“Oh, great.” I backed away. “Look, I’ve been running away from vampires all night. Of course I’m going to be a little ripe. Nothing a shower can’t fix.”

“She makes great bait,” Dawn added, grinning.

“Isn’t that against some rule or another?” I wondered, ignoring Angel, who was following me as I wandered out of the cemetery. “Using innocents?”

“Involving civilians is a strict no-no in the Slayer handbook,” Dawn admitted.

“There’s a Slayer handbook?” I laughed. “Well, now I know I could never be a Slayer. Imagine me-“

“Reading a book?” Dawn supplied. “That’s just nuts!”

“Following a set of rules,” I corrected, shooting her a mock glare. “I’ve read books!”

“Berenstein Bears when you were seven don’t count,” Dawn retorted.

“I made it to college without getting ever kicked out of school. Beat that,” I countered. I shot a glance behind me. Angel was still dogging my every footstep, an expression of befuddlement on his face. I was pretty sure that that was as expressive as he got. “Can you call your pet vampire off?”

Dawn glanced at him. “Angel, what are you doing?”

Angel gave her a significant look. A “we’ll Talk later” kind of look.

I scowled. “I can see your face, too, you know.”

--

By the time I returned to my dorm, I was worn out and pissed off. “I really don’t like Angel,” I announced, tossing my coat down onto my bed.

Spike grinned. “That’s my girl,” he drawled.

I came to sit next to him on my bed. “He stalked me all night. And he said that I smell!”

Spike raised an eyebrow. “Well, now that you mention it…”

“Stop that!” I said, batting at his chest. He dodged me, and I spotted a book behind him. He had probably shoved it under him when he heard me coming. “What’s this?” I picked it up. “Pride and Prejudice??”

“It’s the only book Red’s girl could find for me,” Spike grumbled. “If I’m going to have to read a girly book, I’m going to read a classic.”

I smirked. “Omigod, like, don’t you totally think that Mr. Darcy is, like, the hottest guy ever?”

Spike gave me a disbelieving stare. “Don’t tell me you’ve read it.”

“Sure I have!” I argued hotly. “I can tell you that I definitely…saw the movie?” I finished meekly.

Spike grinned, giving me a fond look. “You’re lucky you’re beautiful, pet. No one’s looking for brains in there.”

“Hey!” I pouted, glowing just a bit at being called beautiful. “I’m smart! Just not book smart! And…and…why aren’t you out looking for Dru, anyway?” Stupid, stupid Buffy! Don’t remind your favorite talking buddy that his girlfriend’s still missing!

Spike’s face fell, all the humor gone from it in a moment. “Willy’s going to call me if he hears anything. Beyond that, there’s nowhere else to search. I am going to go out tonight,” he said hastily. “Just…not yet. Wanted to say hello to you first and all.”

I rested my head against his shoulder. “You’ll find her,” I said reassuringly.

He ran his fingers through my hair. “More than a hundred years, we’ve spent together. And now, not to know where she is…if those soldiers got her…” He spat out the word soldiers as if it were the vilest curse.

As much as I didn’t like the idea of Spike running off with Dru and killing people again, I hated seeing him so depressed even more. I curled up next to him, murmuring reassuringly to him. Spike pulled me closer.

And that was the cozy scene Dawn saw when she burst into the room, stake in hand.
 
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