Modes of Silence
Sep. 18th, 2007 10:23 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sevendeadlyfunPairing: Spike/Xander
Rating: NC-17 overall
A/N: Incorporates![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
tamingthemuse prompt #61: arctophile. Yeah. Kinda like that...
Summary: Buffy's dead. Spike, Xander and Dawn try to move on.
Xander stood, eyes fixed on Giles. He thought he saw the older man flinch under the weight of their combined gazes. But Spike's question had been a fair one. Why should they risk their lives if Giles wasn't willing to do the same?
“ 'S what I thought,” Spike sneered, upper lip curling. “You thought you'd come in here and drop this problem in our lap, eh? Foist it on us and then you can scarper back to your cozy flat and your collection of priceless Steiffs. Well Watcher, not bloody likely. Got no interest in another Slayer, 'cept maybe as a notch on my belt.”
“Spike,” Xander snapped coldly.
Spike turned towards him, face set. “Not going to hide what I am, Xander. You might've forgot, but chipped doesn't mean housebroken. Just 'cause I can't hurt a Slayer doesn't mean I don't want to.”
Xander stepped back a bit, shoulders hunched as if bracing for a blow. He had forgotten. Spike might cook their dinner and keep the demons at bay, but that didn't make him a good guy.
“Spike,” Giles, “my purported arctophilia aside, Miss Hagan already has a Watcher. I highly doubt the Council would appreciate my input on this matter.”
“Girl’s already done a runner,” Spike pointed out coolly. “And obviously the Council can’t find’er. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have sent you here, hat in hand. You want me to track the chit down? Then you’ll have to get your hands dirty, mate.”
“Yes, well,” Giles equivocated. “The Council doesn’t actually know. That is to say, they didn’t send me here officially. I, er, took it upon myself to enlist your aid.”
Xander turned to Giles and asked, “The Council doesn’t know you’re here and not off in some musty library?”
“No,” Giles confirmed. “Nor, I suspect, would they pleased. They have always believed that you and Willow were a burden to Bu…the Slayer. The very idea of me asking a vampire to track down a Slayer would likely drive them into an apoplectic fit.”
“Yeah,” Xander chortled. “It really really would. So, we ready to track down a missing Slayer?”
He grinned widely at the disbelief on the other men’s faces. It was nice to be the unpredictable one. It definitely livened up a dull Wednesday.
“What?” Xander struggled to keep an innocent expression on his face. “Giles can say naughty words, but I can’t be willing to help?”
“I don’t believe I said anything…naughty,” Giles stammered, removing his glasses for a quick polishing.
“Acrophiliac or whatever,” Xander said dismissively. “Like I wanted to know about your deviant sexual practices.”
The room fell silent for a full minute. Spike’s body began to shake and Xander rushed towards him. Spike’s chip hadn’t malfunctioned before, but technology wasn’t exactly reliable. It wasn’t until he was standing in front of Spike that Xander realized the blonde was shaking in laughter and not pain.
“What? What’s so funny?”
“Y-you,” Spike wheezed. “Callin’ the Watcher a d-deviant!”
“I assure you,” Giles frowned, “I am not an acrophiliac. Nor am I an arctophile, despite Spike’s aspersions to the contrary.”
“What the hell are you two talking about,” Xander demanded.
“The Watcher’s teddy bear collection,” Spike replied, still chuckling. “He’s a got a full cabinet of little fluffy cuddlers. Saw’em when I snooped around his flat one day.”
“Those are antique bears,” Giles explained stiffly. “They are gifts from my mother.”
“O-kay,” Xander said slowly. “Giles likes teddy bears. Antique bears. So why’s that so funny? I mean, apart from the grown man with a teddy bear collection which isn’t funny at all,” he finished hastily.
“You called him an acrophiliac,” Spike answered, another wave of laughter bursting from the vampire. “Means he gets off on heights. The W-watcher and his M-mile High Club membership…”
Spike trailed off, waving his hand to ward off Xander’s concern. The image of Giles, red-faced and grunting in an airplane bathroom, was too bloody funny for words. Apparently Xander had pictured the same thing because he too was starting to giggle.
“If we’re through with the jokes at my expense,” Giles sighed, lips twitching. “Might I point out we still have a lost Slayer?”
“Right,” Xander said, stifling his laughter. “So when do we leave?”
Spike shot up at those words, face hardening. “Who said I was helping?”
“It’ll piss off the Council,” Xander said simply, shrugging his shoulders.
Spike paused, and then strode out of the room. He snatched the duster from it’s perch on the banister and opened the front door. Bellowing for Dawn to get her arse downstairs, he called to the other two.
“What are you waiting for? It’s only going to be dark for another eight hours.”
Xander and Giles exchanged rueful glances. That was just Spike. Xander sometimes wondered if he was born contrary or if it was part of the demon package.
Dawn thundered down the stairs, stony-faced and glaring at them. She crossed her arms, assuming the traditional put-upon teenager stance. Giles moved, as if to go to her, but Xander laid a restraining hand on his arm. No need to set off the Dawn-bomb just yet.
“Get your coat, Niblet,” Spike said gently. “We’ve got some work to do.”
“So,” she sniped. “What’s that got to do with me?”
“Dawnie,” Xander began gently, “I know you’re upset but…”
“ Didn’t say it had anything to do with you,” Spike cut him off. “Said to get your coat.”
Dawn stomped back upstairs and returned wearing the letterman’s jacket. She stared defiantly at Spike, as if daring him to say something. He just shrugged, reached out and snapped the coat up to her chin.
“Thanks, Mom,” Dawn grumbled.
“Anytime,” Spike shot back, smiling at her. “Now let’s go.”
Rating: NC-17 overall
A/N: Incorporates
tamingthemuse prompt #61: arctophile. Yeah. Kinda like that... Summary: Buffy's dead. Spike, Xander and Dawn try to move on.
Xander stood, eyes fixed on Giles. He thought he saw the older man flinch under the weight of their combined gazes. But Spike's question had been a fair one. Why should they risk their lives if Giles wasn't willing to do the same?
“ 'S what I thought,” Spike sneered, upper lip curling. “You thought you'd come in here and drop this problem in our lap, eh? Foist it on us and then you can scarper back to your cozy flat and your collection of priceless Steiffs. Well Watcher, not bloody likely. Got no interest in another Slayer, 'cept maybe as a notch on my belt.”
“Spike,” Xander snapped coldly.
Spike turned towards him, face set. “Not going to hide what I am, Xander. You might've forgot, but chipped doesn't mean housebroken. Just 'cause I can't hurt a Slayer doesn't mean I don't want to.”
Xander stepped back a bit, shoulders hunched as if bracing for a blow. He had forgotten. Spike might cook their dinner and keep the demons at bay, but that didn't make him a good guy.
“Spike,” Giles, “my purported arctophilia aside, Miss Hagan already has a Watcher. I highly doubt the Council would appreciate my input on this matter.”
“Girl’s already done a runner,” Spike pointed out coolly. “And obviously the Council can’t find’er. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have sent you here, hat in hand. You want me to track the chit down? Then you’ll have to get your hands dirty, mate.”
“Yes, well,” Giles equivocated. “The Council doesn’t actually know. That is to say, they didn’t send me here officially. I, er, took it upon myself to enlist your aid.”
Xander turned to Giles and asked, “The Council doesn’t know you’re here and not off in some musty library?”
“No,” Giles confirmed. “Nor, I suspect, would they pleased. They have always believed that you and Willow were a burden to Bu…the Slayer. The very idea of me asking a vampire to track down a Slayer would likely drive them into an apoplectic fit.”
“Yeah,” Xander chortled. “It really really would. So, we ready to track down a missing Slayer?”
He grinned widely at the disbelief on the other men’s faces. It was nice to be the unpredictable one. It definitely livened up a dull Wednesday.
“What?” Xander struggled to keep an innocent expression on his face. “Giles can say naughty words, but I can’t be willing to help?”
“I don’t believe I said anything…naughty,” Giles stammered, removing his glasses for a quick polishing.
“Acrophiliac or whatever,” Xander said dismissively. “Like I wanted to know about your deviant sexual practices.”
The room fell silent for a full minute. Spike’s body began to shake and Xander rushed towards him. Spike’s chip hadn’t malfunctioned before, but technology wasn’t exactly reliable. It wasn’t until he was standing in front of Spike that Xander realized the blonde was shaking in laughter and not pain.
“What? What’s so funny?”
“Y-you,” Spike wheezed. “Callin’ the Watcher a d-deviant!”
“I assure you,” Giles frowned, “I am not an acrophiliac. Nor am I an arctophile, despite Spike’s aspersions to the contrary.”
“What the hell are you two talking about,” Xander demanded.
“The Watcher’s teddy bear collection,” Spike replied, still chuckling. “He’s a got a full cabinet of little fluffy cuddlers. Saw’em when I snooped around his flat one day.”
“Those are antique bears,” Giles explained stiffly. “They are gifts from my mother.”
“O-kay,” Xander said slowly. “Giles likes teddy bears. Antique bears. So why’s that so funny? I mean, apart from the grown man with a teddy bear collection which isn’t funny at all,” he finished hastily.
“You called him an acrophiliac,” Spike answered, another wave of laughter bursting from the vampire. “Means he gets off on heights. The W-watcher and his M-mile High Club membership…”
Spike trailed off, waving his hand to ward off Xander’s concern. The image of Giles, red-faced and grunting in an airplane bathroom, was too bloody funny for words. Apparently Xander had pictured the same thing because he too was starting to giggle.
“If we’re through with the jokes at my expense,” Giles sighed, lips twitching. “Might I point out we still have a lost Slayer?”
“Right,” Xander said, stifling his laughter. “So when do we leave?”
Spike shot up at those words, face hardening. “Who said I was helping?”
“It’ll piss off the Council,” Xander said simply, shrugging his shoulders.
Spike paused, and then strode out of the room. He snatched the duster from it’s perch on the banister and opened the front door. Bellowing for Dawn to get her arse downstairs, he called to the other two.
“What are you waiting for? It’s only going to be dark for another eight hours.”
Xander and Giles exchanged rueful glances. That was just Spike. Xander sometimes wondered if he was born contrary or if it was part of the demon package.
Dawn thundered down the stairs, stony-faced and glaring at them. She crossed her arms, assuming the traditional put-upon teenager stance. Giles moved, as if to go to her, but Xander laid a restraining hand on his arm. No need to set off the Dawn-bomb just yet.
“Get your coat, Niblet,” Spike said gently. “We’ve got some work to do.”
“So,” she sniped. “What’s that got to do with me?”
“Dawnie,” Xander began gently, “I know you’re upset but…”
“ Didn’t say it had anything to do with you,” Spike cut him off. “Said to get your coat.”
Dawn stomped back upstairs and returned wearing the letterman’s jacket. She stared defiantly at Spike, as if daring him to say something. He just shrugged, reached out and snapped the coat up to her chin.
“Thanks, Mom,” Dawn grumbled.
“Anytime,” Spike shot back, smiling at her. “Now let’s go.”
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
on 2007-09-19 04:02 pm (UTC)Oh, definitely built-in. At least if William had ever relaxed a little. *g*
no subject
on 2007-09-20 01:13 am (UTC)no subject
on 2007-09-19 09:35 pm (UTC)*Mwah*
no subject
on 2007-09-20 01:14 am (UTC)no subject
on 2007-09-20 12:40 am (UTC)no subject
on 2007-09-20 01:14 am (UTC)no subject
on 2007-09-23 03:26 pm (UTC)after reading a whole lot of spander angstHope you'll continue with longer chapters.
:)
no subject
on 2007-09-23 10:14 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2007-09-27 04:22 am (UTC)“Anytime,” Spike shot back, smiling at her. “Now let’s go.”>
Makes my heart gush!! Nice job!! Looking forward to your next update~Bee
no subject
on 2007-09-28 08:10 am (UTC)no subject
on 2007-11-05 05:49 pm (UTC)