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YES! He finally did it! He finally completed the
next chapter in "Bitter Business"!
I want to thank BladeofSouls for helping me jumpstart this
stalled fic. He gave me ideas for future stories that got me so excited
that I had to go back and finish this one. Trust me, pals and gals, once I
wrap up Bitter Business and get on with the next story arc in "Defenders of the
Night", I'll be throwing new ideas at you fast and furious! EAT THAT,
JOSS!
<<Ahem>> Moving right along...
You can catch parts 1 and 2 over at www.ikoly.com
Disclaimers; Joss made Buffy and crew, UPN broadcasts them and
Rating; PG-13. But
Spike's involved, and he's spoiling for some action, so it's kinda on the hard
side of PG-13.
Feedback; Oh
you know I want it! JIMMEANS@xxxxxxxxxxxx Author's Note; This is the Fifth story in my Defenders of the Night
story arc. You may want to check
out the previous chapters; 'A Prelude in Five Parts', 'Along Came a Spider',
'Her Little Secret' and 'Encounter'.
Summary; Buffy wants to help Defenders
of the Night Bitter
Business By
Kirayoshi "Tis now the very witching time of
night, When churchyards yawn and Hell breaths
out Contagion to this world. Now could I drink hot
blood And do such bitter business as the
day Would quake to look on." "Hamlet"
Chapter Three Come With Me Hear my cries
--Puff Daddy
"Come With
Me" "Hey, Dawnie?" "Hey back," Dawn answered as she sat at her desk,
struggling to balance the handset of her phone between her shoulder and her
cheek while doing her homework. "Almost finished with my math for tomorrow. So, when are you heading back
home?" "In
an hour or so," "Gotcha," Dawn nodded. "Uh, is Buffy with
you?" "Patrol," "Not yet," Dawn answered, nervously twirling a lock of
her hair with her fingers. "She
usually checks in with me every half-hour or so." "Ah," "Yeah, I figure that myself," Dawn agreed. "I'll see ya later
tonight." "See ya then," "Love ya," Dawn grinned just before the connection
severed. She returned to her
homework and began plowing through her final problems, her mind only half
concentrating on the assignment before her. She
hated her sister's patrols. She
never told Buffy this fact because she didn't want her sister worrying about
her, but she hated sitting alone in the house while Buffy was out fighting
God-knows-what. It wasn't that she
was afraid for Buffy; she knew from personal experience that Buffy was capable
of holding her own against most anything the Hellmouth had to throw at
her. She
also knew from personal experience that Buffy was capable of doing anything to
safeguard her friends and family.
Up to and including sacrificing her own life. If it weren't for a crazy confluence of
events, between the former members of the Initiative reviving the Adam project
with Buffy as their guinea pig and the fragmentation of Buffy's own soul, Dawn
would still be alone.
She
remembered how alone she had felt during that time. Her father only wanted to loot her trust
fund.
Dawn hated her sister's nightly patrols, but not because
she was afraid of what was out there.
She
was afraid of losing her sister to what was out there. She
shook the darkness from her thoughts and concentrated on the last of her story
problems. She knew that she wasn't
going to lose her sister any time soon.
This Demona person, she wasn't in Glory's league. She wasn't a goddess, she was just a
demonic being with a hard-on for senseless violence. Buffy could take her. She had to; it was her job,
right? Just as she finished double-checking her final problem,
a sharp rap at the front door grabbed her attention. She sprinted down the stairs to the door
and peered through the scope.
"Spike!" she gasped aloud, "What are you doing
here?" "Open the door, Niblet," the dour vampire answered. "Your sister sent
me!" "That's a lie," Dawn answered. "Right now, she'd just as soon stake
your butt as look at you!" Spike nodded reluctantly. "I know that, Dawn. But right now she's got bigger fish to
fry. She and the Scoobs are going
up against Demona, and she's worried that the garg-bitch's gonna go after you to get to her. So I volunteered to watch out for
you." "And she bought it?" Dawn asked
skeptically. "Hey, she knows how much I care about you, Li'l
Bit. We're on a temporary truce for
now." Dawn leaned against the door for a second. "I dunno. Spike snarled quietly at himself. Figures she'd think of that, he
thought angrily. "Tell ya what,
Bit," Spike offered with saccharine sweetness. "Why don't you join me? We can go somewhere public, get lost in
the crowd." "You sure about that?" Dawn asked. "What's to stop Demona from attacking us
out in the open?" The
lies flowed from Spike's mouth like syrup on pancakes. "From what Buffy told me
Demona's been keeping a low profile.
She wouldn't dare attack you in the open, not without any advance
preparations. Please, Bit, trust
me." Long moments passed as Spike stood outside the
door. Then the door slowly swung
open, and Dawn emerged, wearing her denim jacket over her shirt. "Okay, Spike. I trust you," she announced. "That's my girl," Spike smiled toothily as he peeked
through the doorway. "Don't worry,
I?WHAT THE HELL IS SHE?" "Oh, hello Spike," the chirpy voice of Buffy Summers
greeted the hapless vampire, causing him to jump a foot off of the porch. Spike gawked at the figure sitting
calmly on the sofa as she stared blankly at the
television. "Oh, that," Dawn doubled back as Spike glared hard at
the unexpected guest.
" "Oh
bugger me for a Guinness, why?" Spike groaned under his unused breath. As Dawn opened her mouth, he stopped her
with a curt wave of his hand.
"Rhetorical question, Niblet.
I guess Red's gotta have a hobby.
Well, let's go, shall we?" "You sure this is okay?" Dawn asked as she locked the
front door behind her and joined the blond vampire in the
yard. "I
give you my word," Spike answered solemnly, "that Demona won't come within a
mile of you." As
Dawn strolled happily by Spike's side, the vampire smirked to himself. No, li'l Bit, I won't let Demona
touch you. After all, you're
mine! <<>> "...And we're walking, and we're walking..." the
cheery tour guide shepherded the group around the museum foyer. "And here, we have our newest exhibition
of paintings, the Prophecy series by the famed master of fantasy
painting--" "Ooh," Buffy turned her eyes toward her best friend, surprised
to see Buffy gathered her wits
quickly and began thinking; The first thing I remember, I was getting my
butt kicked by Spike, now I'm in the middle of a museum. Ah, I get it, dream. Probably a Slayer dream. She gave a resigned sigh at the
thought. Okay, B, you know the
drill; start watching for prophetic visions. "And here," her mother's clone announced, referring to
the first painting, "we have 'Return to Avalon'. The figure on the left is believed to be
Arthur Pendragon, legendary king of all
"Over here in the next exhibit," Joyce chimed happily as
she led the group to another large painting, "we have an abstract painting,
entitled 'Dark and Light'." The
painting was a gray-tone watercolor, a portrait of a young woman with a diagonal
check pattern superimposed over her.
Her face seemed to shift between the black and white squares, between the
light and the dark, from an angelic glow to a devillish cast. Her _expression_ was confused, conflicted,
half smiling, half scowling, as though at war with herself. Buffy glanced at
"And we're walking," the tour guide continued,
leading the group to the next portrait.
"This final picture is called 'Gift of the Kindly Ones', and is clearly
meant to be a portrait, although there is some debate as to the original
subject's identity." Buffy stared
hard at the painting, shocked to see a portrait of herself. The image in the painting sat upright,
her arms resting at her sides, her stance alert and ready. A pair of leathern wings draped behind
her like a cloak, and two small horns sprouted from her forehead, making her
look more like a Gargoyle. These
additions seemed to be a natural part of her body, something with which she was
familiar with, even comfortable.
Almost like a view of her true nature. "She's so beautiful," Buffy only now noticed that the crowd around her and
Buffy could have become lost in her beloved's eyes,
their deep forest green revealing their depths to Buffy as she moved closer to
<<>> "Buffy!
Buffy!" An urgent voice
called out her name, as an acrid stink assailed her nostrils, shattering her
dream-state. As her vision focused,
she began to recognize the strong purple hand under her nose, and noticed the
small glass ampoule he was carrying as containing smelling salts. She shook off the remaining dizziness
and the effects of her dream, fighting off a slight vertigo as she raised her
head. "Goliath?" she mumbled, slurring her words slightly as
the vestiges of a concussion scrambled her vision. The gargoyle gently placed a
hand on her shoulder, saying, "You must rest for a moment, Buffy. You still have several livid bruises
from whomever or whatever attacked you.
Fortunately they appear to be fading with a remarkable
speed." "The plus side of being a Slayer," Buffy groaned as she
stretched her protesting arms over her head. "I'm a fast healer. But what's happening? W-where's..." A sudden flash of memory claimed her,
shaking off the last of her disorientation. "SPIKE!" "Buffy," Goliath tried to restrain the Slayer, but Buffy
broke free of the gargoyle's gentle but strong hands. "You need your rest. You need time to heal." "I
don't have the time!" Buffy insisted loudly. "Spike's after my
sister!" Goliath's eyes narrowed to grim yellow slits, as a growl
threatened to erupt from his throat.
"Spike," he intoned darkly.
"Was he a thin lanky vampire with slicked-back blond
hair?" "I
take it you two met before," Buffy said hastily. "I
warned him to leave Sunnydale," Goliath whispered through clenched teeth, "or I
would kill him myself." "I
said the same thing," Buffy snarled, "but obviously he didn't listen. He's got a hate on for me, and now he's
come back for revenge. And he's
gonna use my sister Dawn to get it!" "Not if I have any say in the matter," Goliath's voice
reminded Buffy of thunder in the distance, and his eyes flashed an angry fire as
he spoke. "Quickly," he added,
spreading his wings wide to catch the prevailing winds and scooping Buffy up
into his muscular arms, "I can get you to your home faster by
air." "Thanks, Goliath," Buffy answered as she wrapped her
strong slender arms around his neck.
As Goliath charged forward, his body slowly gaining lift and altitude
from the wind against his wings, Buffy's thoughts turned to the monster who had
threatened her sister. "You're going down, Spike," she whispered against
Goliath's chest. "You're going down
tonight!" Goliath, hearing Buffy's
vow, nodded in silent accord. <<>> "Let's see," Anya announced gleefully as her nimble
fingers flew across her calculator's keys, "with the sales on natural beeswax
candles and ceremonial robes for the next equinox observances, plus the ouija
board for the cheerleader's Halloween party, that gives us a net profit this
week of?YES! Hey, hey, hey, HEY!"
She raised her hands over her head and started to clap her hands and shuffle her
feet across the floor.
"Uh," Anya smiled happily as she turned to
"I
was right," Anya continued her joyous dancing, until her left foot
snagged against an electrical wire.
Her arms started flailing as she began to lose her balance. "As
long as you're both okay," The
sudden ringing of her cellular phone interrupted her thoughts. She fished out the phone and glanced at
the call-waiting window. "Hey,
Buffy," she chirped as she flipped the phone open. "What's the up?" "I
need help, stat!" Buffy shouted worriedly.
"I'm here at home, and Dawn's not here!" "You don't understand," Buffy shouted. "Spike's back in town, and he's lost his
chip! He beat me up tonight, and
told me he was going to turn Dawn!" "Oh
my Goddess," "Thanks, Willow," Buffy answered. "I'm with Goliath right now. We'll go scout out Spike's
crypt." "Xander and I'll check out some of the other
cemeteries. Take care,
Buffy." "You watch your back, "So
am I, Buffy," "Okay," Anya announced brightly as she and
"No, you're going back home,"
Anya grumbled briefly, but then nodded. "Okay,
Anya said nothing more as
As
Anya pulled her car out of the driveway and sped toward the house she shared
with Xander, red glowing eyes peered from the shadows. Demona emerged slowly from the cover of
a nearby back alley, her eyes staring covetously at the shop windows of the
Magic Box. With a stealthy tread
that belied her size and strength, she crept to the front door and grasped the
doorknob. A
surge of arcane energy shook her frame, knocking her back from the
entrance. She grimaced in pain as
she regarded the magic shields that protected the shop. Biting back a growl, she retrieved her
cellular phone from a leather pouch she wore at her hip. "Sorcerer," she barked into the transceiver, "tell Wolf
I have need of him." <<>> He
was enjoying the fight.
He
could smell the sweat from Dawn's brow as he faced her, the anxiety and fear as
he landed his first powerful blows.
No subtle feint and counter-feint here, he was going for the throat with
her. He smiled as he saw her
weaken, her lips still turned in a defiant sneer even though her defeat was
imminent. "Any last words, Dawn?" Spike snarled as he pummeled his
victim. "I'm not dead yet, you fashion-impaired corpse," Dawn
chuckled throatily as she landed a gut-crunching kick to her opponent's
midsection. Recognizing that she
now had the advantage, she pressed it without mercy. Gaining her second wind, Dawn unleashed
a flurry of rapid kicks and punches, quickly overpowering the hapless
vampire. "Finish him!" an unearthly voice chimed, and Dawn smiled
at her fallen foe. With one last
uppercut, Dawn ended the fight in a decisive victory, plunging a foot-long blade
in her opponent's gut.
"Chun Li wins!" the video-game announced. "Fatality!" "Oh
yeah!" Dawn whooped in victory, letting go of her joystick and lifting her hands
over her head in a raise-the-roof gesture. "Who's house? My house! Who's house? My house!" "Yeah, yeah, yeah," Spike fumed mockingly as he lifted
his hands from the video game console.
"Good on you, Chun Li, you are the strongest girl in the world, yadda
yadda yadda. I'm telling you,
though, if they had a Killer Instinct in this pizza joint instead of Mortal
Kombat III, I'd own your butt!" "What," Dawn quizzed Spike coquettishly, "Fulgore's
moves don't work on Sub-Zero?" "Fulgore would wipe the bloody floor with Sub-Zero,
Bit!" Spike answered defensively. "Yeah, right," Dawn smirked. "Then Chun Li would take down the
winner! Now me, I always took you
as being more like Seifer from Final Fantasy VIII." "Oh
please," Spike rolled his eyes, "I'm Sephiroth from FF VII and don't you forget
it!" Dawn chuckled at the hapless
Brit as he strode toward the cash register. "Okay, what's the
damage?" "Let's see," the cashier smiled sweetly as she totaled
the price of Dawn's pizza, "one small pepperoni pizza and medium root beer,
that's $8.43 after tax." "Here," Spike tossed the cashier a ten dollar bill at
the cashier, "Take your tip out of the change." As
they left the pizzeria, Dawn asked Spike, "Look, I know you're on a liquid diet
and all, but would it have hurt for you to try a piece of
pizza?" "As
a matter of fact, Niblet," Spike stated matter-of-factly, "yes it would. In fact, no offense but would you mind breathing upwind of me? That ol' saw about vampires and garlic,
alas, is all too true." "Oh, sorry," Dawn shrugged her shoulders. "Forgot, vampire. Hey, I've gotten to know you so well
over the last year or so, it's easy to forget that you're not
human." Oh don't worry,
Bit, Spike thought to himself, I'll remind you of that fact soon
enough. He glanced around as
he and Dawn strolled aimlessly toward Spike's DeSoto. Yeah, that's right, Bit,
Spike's mind goaded him. Stay
close to your ol' buddy Spike. He
wouldn't hurt you, right? He can't;
after all, he still has that chip. Oh wait, that's right, he doesn't
anymore. Spike regarded Dawn almost clinically, observing her
young lithe form. She might have
been an inch or so taller than Buffy, but Spike could still see some of the
Slayer in her, in the almost unconscious grace of her steps, in the strong
upright set of her shoulders. Spike
could see clearly that she took after her sister. Yeah, this young girl was definitely
Slayer stock, even if she would never actually be called. And an even better
Childe. So what's taking you so long, William? Take her! Spike steeled himself as he stared hard at Buffy's
sister. He furrowed his brow,
anticipating that familiar ache as the ridges would form, hooding his eyes, and
his fangs would extend, preparing for the bite. This was the moment he lived for, the
thrill of the hunt, the glory of the kill, the adrenaline rush of tasting his
victim's fear.
But
that moment wasn't happening. Spike
willed the demon to overtake him, sought that familiar, almost sensual thrill as
the demon strained against him, against his veneer of civility and show his true
form. Carpe noctem. Seize the night. But his demon didn't stir. The monster that was the true Spike, the
divine anger, the terrible grace, the very heart of his vampiric existence, the
beast still slumbered. It had to be sleeping,
Spike assured himself.
Hey, it's been a few years, but y'know what they say, killing's like
riding a bicycle, right? It's still
asleep, that's it. It has to
be. Or else? no. No, by all that's unholy,
no? A
faint sound, a scrape of metal against metal, pricked Spike's ears. A switchblade. Spike stopped and glanced around. Three young men emerged from the nearby
alley in what Spike identified as regulation gang-banger uniforms; torn
t-shirts, bomber jackets, chains and huge rings. Their eyes smoldered in the dim
streetlights and their posture spoke of arrogance. They clearly believed that they owned
this street and anyone who dared to pass this street at night had to deal with
them. "Get behind me, Dawn," Spike
whispered urgently, and for once the younger woman didn't
argue. "Yo
yo yo, wha'sup?" the lead gangster hooted, as the two others fell into lockstep
formation behind him. The three
thugs approached Spike and Dawn slowly, their boots thudding dully on the
concrete sidewalk. "You showin'
your bird a good time?" He stopped
just two feet away from Spike, and craned his head to the side to address Dawn.
"How about it, chickie, he showin' you a good time? We can show you a better time, eh
guys?" The other two punks started
chuckling and leering suggestively, causing Dawn's stomach to
lurch. "The 'bird', as you gentlemen put it," Spike spoke
darkly, his lips downturned into a challenging sneer, "is with me. And I doubt you're her type anyway. Wrong species for a
start." The
lead punk clenched his teeth in quietly boiling rage. "You insulting me? Are you?" He pushed Spike with both
hands, but the blond Brit stood his ground. "INSULTING ME?" Spike dusted off his jacket where the punk had touched
it. "Uh, yes. Yes I was insulting you. How astute of you to notice
it." "That's it, pretty-boy!" the leader shouted, whipping
out his blade and waving it less than an inch from Spike's face. "Who you think you are anyway?" The punk
blinked as his hand was suddenly empty. Spike smiled blandly as he held up his right hand,
holding the punk's blade. "Your
worst nightmare," he intoned levelly.
He allowed his face to contort to its vampiric nature, and chuckled as
the punk's posture sagged, his courage deserting him. His two lieutenants backed away in sheer
shock, turning around and running down the alley as though demons were nipping
their heels. The lead punk stared
into the vampire's eyes, seeking some vestige of humanity in their yellow
depths. Spike, for his part, found
himself fighting a gag reflex at the sickly sharp smell that suddenly hit his
nostrils; apparently the punk's sudden loss of courage had reached his
bladder. The
punk backed away rapidly for a few steps, then twisted around and followed his
deserting compatriots. Spike held
the stolen knife by the tip of its blade between his thumb and forefinger, then
launched it at the fleeing thug.
The blade impacted with the thug's shin, inserting neatly into the flesh
of his leg. The thug fell to the
ground, cradling his injured leg in his hands, and howling in
agony. Spike grinned mirthlessly as he strolled toward the
bleeding punk. "Do you know what I
am now, you little shit? Do you
understand what I am?" He yanked
the punk's head up by his hair and pulled him up to face him, sending fresh
waves of pain through his shin.
"You think you're scary. You
think you know how to instill fear.
Mister, you're just a rank amateur." He sniffed again at the punk, smelling
the sweet aroma of his fear.
"SPIKE!" Dawn yelped behind him, "What are you
doing? You're killing him?" Dawn's
voice trailed off into silence as the full weight of her words hit her. He was hurting another human being. A thug who meant to bring harm to her,
yes, but still a human. Not a
demon, not a vampire, but a living, flesh and blood human
being. And
Spike was hurting him. And
Spike felt no pain. Spike paused for a second as he heard Dawn's plea
without listening to it. He then
placed his hands on either side of the punk's head, and twisted it around. Dawn heard the sickening snap of the
thug's neck and watched as Spike dropped the lifeless body to the ground like a
sack of rocks. Spike turned toward
a terror-stricken Dawn, gazing at her through eyes that, for the first time in
his vampiric existence, were truly dead. "Sub Zero wins, Niblet," he whispered hoarsely, lifelessly. "Fatality."
TBC... Willow: "It's a good fight, Buffy, and I want in." Buffy: "I kinda love you." --'Choices' Community email addresses: Post message: buffywantswillow@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Subscribe: buffywantswillow-subscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Unsubscribe: buffywantswillow-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx List owner: buffywantswillow-owner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Shortcut URL to this page: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/buffywantswillow Official archive for the list: http://www.ikoly.com/fanfic Other links to Buffy/Willow fics: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/buffywantswillow/links Yahoo! Groups Links
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