Title: Not A Dream?
Author: Tellie (Slayer Spike)
Email: slayer_spike@softhome.net
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Rating: PG-15
Summary: The next day at Willow's house. Some interesting things happen.
*Nominee for BBF fic awards!*
Series: For What It's Worth... I Love You (Fic 5/?)
Sequel to: Class Is In Session
Prequel to: I Have Secrets
Season: 4. Oz still left but Spike never got the chip. Tara & Willow aren't an item- since Oz only just left. Riley and Buffy are together. They all know he's a commando.
Pairing: Willow/Spike
Disclaimer: I own nada! Zippo! Bubkus! Nothing! Joss is the great ruler or all these wonderful things.
Archive: Ask me.
Dedication: Mina, Susanne and Vampie. My inspirers. Omega h for being a really great friend. Congrats!!! You know what I mean.
Notes: < > = Thoughts. * * = Emphasis.


"Okay, here it is. House. My house. Er, my house that you live in. Or unlive anyway." Willow said nervously, stepping inside the door as Spike walked up behind her. She pushed a lock of hair behind her ear. "Well, uh, that was fun. Yeah. Lots of fun. No! Fun with you is bad! Bad fun. No, not fun! Not fun at all."

Spike grinned at her. "Pet, you're babbling."

"Oh, sorry." She apologised in a small voice. "I do that a lot. Babble I mean. Mostly when I'm nervous or-or scared or something and it's a really bad habit that I should break but I can't break it unless people stop me before I babble and no one does that so I guess I... I'm babbling again, aren't I?" The vampire nodded. "Oh." She moved over towards the couch and sat down.

"Breathe, Pet. Deep breaths." He sat down on the other end, watching as she started breathing in a few deep breaths until she finally calmed down. "Do I really intimidate you that much just by bein' here?"

"Well... yeah." She replied, giving him a shy/scared look.

Spike smiled widely. "Good. That means I 'aven't lost my touch." He straightened up a bit. "And to do that to one of the slayer's pals is extra."

"Really? We give extra points? Just because of Buffy?"

"Yeah. You hang around danger every day. Just because I'm near you, you get scared. Don't you think that'd do something for my ego? I haven't even touched you and you're intimidated."

Willow thought for a moment. "Well, I'm not scared now!" She said, straightening a bit, looking a little confident.

Spike vamped out, grinning evilly. "Good."

The red head screamed, running upstairs. The vampire chuckled, lighting up a cigarette and looking at his watch. An hour and a half, as well as 5 of Spike's cigarettes, later, Willow came walking down the stairs. "You... haven't moved. Have you?" She asked unsurely as she came down the rest of the stairs and stood at her end of the couch.

"Nope." He replied, flicking the tv off. He looked up at her with a smile. "You know how much *that* did to my ego, Luv? Helluva lot."

The witch played with her hands. "Are you going to do it again?"

"Maybe later." He replied.

The girl sat down on the edge of the sofa, her hands still fiddling with one another. "I really don't like you." She grumbled.

He gave her a cocky smile, looking at his watch. "Isn't it time for all good little girls to go to bed?"

"Who says I'm a good little girl?" She asked, narrowing her eyes at him.

"There's that fire again, Luv. You better watch out, I might mistake you for a vampire."

Willow rolled her eyes, snorting. "Get a life."

"I don't think so. Didn't keep my last one too well."

"Then get a brain."

"I have one. It's just on a break right now."

"Get a heartbeat."

Spike didn't reply. "I have to have a heartbeat to tease you?"

"Yes." She hissed, pouting at the blank screen of the tv.

He sighed. "It's a defensive thing. Sometimes for fun, you know, for a laugh. Sometimes, like when I'm fighting, it's to get people off guard." He started slowly.

"What are you talking about?" She asked, turning to look at him.

"Before, when you picked me as a subject. Well, I'm tellin' you a few things." The red head sat up a little, eager to learn. "Don't expect much." He said, putting his feet up on the coffee table.

"Oh, I won't." She replied. "Just... whatever you want to tell me. You know, why you hate Angelus and what made you and Dru were such a perfect couple... your childhood maybe."

The blond rolled his eyes. "I'll answer those some other time." Willow yawned, leaning her head against the back of the couch as she watched him expectantly. "Want a bed-time story?" He asked with a smirk.

She pressed her lips together tightly. "Only kids have bedtime stories." She paused. "Know something good? Without blood and gore?"

Spike sighed. "Once upon a time... there was... a, uh, princess. Yeah, this princess was wanted all over the country. No, not for murder. Just because she was hot."

"Spike!" Willow said with a smile.

He chuckled. "Okay, okay. Once upon a time there was a princess in a castle. Every man in the country wanted her for her beauty. One night when she was standing on her balcony looking up at the stars. A man on a white horse watched her from below but rode away at the first hint that she would look down and see him. After many nights like these he changed his mind and hid in the shadows, waiting for a chance to finally make his presence known only to never see her on the balcony again. He returned every night for months until he found out that she had been taken away from the palace. When he found where she was he trekked over the countryside to find her. When he did at last he found her on the side of a dirt road after having run away, weeping because she had been betrayed. When he confronted the princess she wanted him to end her pain but deep down he knew that she was scared. He did everything he could to assure her that he wouldn't harm her, and even stopped killing... er, dragons. You know, like a good knight does. Anyway, this knight continued to see her every night for as long as he could, teaching her things that he'd learnt over the years, just so she would trust him. One night, the knight stayed with her at her home..." He looked over when he'd heard her heartbeat slow to signal her sleep. "And told her a fairy story until she had fallen asleep. Leaving the knight to carry her up to her bedroom." He added, picking the tiny girl up and carrying her upstairs. "And tuck her into bed." He pushed a few strands away from her face as he laid her down in her bed and pulled the sheets up to her chin. "And then the Knight went back to his own room so he could give himself a tongue lashing over how much of a bloody ponce he is!" He growled to himself as he walked out of her room, closing the door behind him.


Willow awoke the next morning to find herself in her bed. Sitting up and looking around her mouth dropped. "Either I'm a very accurate sleep walker or I dreamt all that. Spike *wouldn't* carry me. He wouldn't touch me unless he wanted to kill me!" She got out of bed and started walking past the closed door of her parent's room. She contemplated walking inside but brushed it off. She walked a few more feet to the top of the stairs and paused, looking back at the closed door. She looked back at the stairs but finally settled on turning around and standing outside the door. She started biting her fingernails nervously before she gently pressed her ear to the door. A few seconds later it opened and she almost fell through. "Uhhhhhh... hi! What are you doing up?" She asked, moving backwards.

He looked her up and down then tilted his head to one side. "You were listening against the door?" He asked with a smirk as he walked towards her, a towel hanging over his shoulder.

She sputtered a few times to which he chuckled at her, moving her gently to the side as he stepped into the bathroom. "Go have breakfast, Luv." He said when she turned to look curiously at him. When the bathroom door closed and the sounds of the shower came through the door Willow snapped out of her daze, only to go into another one. <He's naked in there.> She thought, blushing instantly as she quickly ran downstairs, turning on the taps in the kitchen sink and splashing her face. Half an hour later when she'd finished her breakfast and reading the paper she walked back upstairs and towards her room. The bathroom door opened and she turned, turning back towards her door again straight away. "Not a dream." She mumbled as she walked into her room and closed the door. Spike looked questioningly at the closed door as the towel-clad vampire made his way into her parent's room, looking for his clothes.