Gone For Good

Gone For Good

Buffy was feeling liberated; terrorising the Social Services Woman had been fun! No guilt, completely free from any blame because after all she hadn't really been there. Perhaps this was how it felt to be a vampire; want, take, have, as Faith would say. Vampire! There goes her one-track mind again - but the staking of, she thought, not steamy sex with. Who was she kidding? Steamy, hard, bruising sex with. "Mmmmm" she murmured, her legs moving of their own accord towards Restfield Cemetery. She broke into a loping run and took great delight in scattering a group of teenagers who were sharing a bottle of naughty alcohol. "Beer Bad,” she singsonged as they looked around in confusion. She giggled as she carried on running.

Slowing to a jog, Buffy admitted to herself that she was heading towards a certain peroxide blonde vampire's crypt, but why was she going there? "To tell him I don't want to see him, of course,” she told herself unconvincingly.

She had been doing quite a bit of the unconvincing lately, seeking him out and inventing excuses to get him to come to the house. Dawn was always a good way of getting his attention, although she did feel bad about using her little sister as a front for her deviant sexual appetites. Not that bad though - she felt her panties become wet as she thought about the last time she'd had her hands on his cool body. It had only been a quickie, no more than a fumble really, but she had been shoved up against a tree in the graveyard and despite voicing her objections loudly, she really hadn't put up that much of a fight. The thrill of maybe being caught had made her pulse race and her orgasm slam through her body double quick and double hard - yummy! ‘Ok, I'll 'fess up’ she told herself ‘I'm going to get me an undead nummy treat, but HE doesn't need to know I'm drooling at the mouth every time I think about him!’"

As she neared the crypt she slowed down even further, her heart racing. Finding herself outside the heavy oak door, she glanced down to smooth her clothes forgetting she couldn't see them. Giving herself a smoothing pat anyway she took a step forward and silently pushed the door open.

Spike was standing by the open refrigerator, a jar of blood in his hand, about to take a gulp. Suddenly he looked round - placing the jar down he strode forwards menacingly "I know you're in here" he growled.

‘Rumbled’ she thought and held her breath. But then she remembered he couldn't see her and stayed perfectly still. He could sense her though, and hear her heartbeat - damn vampire senses! She needed to move, distract him. Buffy ran forwards lightly on tiptoes and brushed past him. "Hey” he said, looking around with an adorable expression of perplexity on his chiseled face.

Where had that thought come from - Spike, adorable? Shaking her head in puzzlement she smirked as she considered the possibilities of no-see Buffy; every possibility seemed to end in straddling naked Spike. Now THAT in itself was worth the inconvenience of not being able to see her new haircut! She struggled to stifle a giggle as she wondered whether she could perhaps just vault on top of him and impale herself on his seemingly always present erection, boy would that shock him! ‘Wonder if he would know it was me?’ she pondered which caused her to frown at the thought of him having sex with anyone else. Another strange reaction from 'I don't care Buffy' that she would have to analyse later. But for now - she ran forwards again and slapped him on his gorgeous rump.

"A ghost is it?" Spike muttered. "Go and haunt the living". Spike growled, started to vamp out but stopped before his fangs descended realising he couldn't bite a spook. "Bloody dead undead, fuck off and leave me be" he grumbled. He had a plan for tonight - the telly was good, Passions in an hour, and the sprite had interrupted a not half-bad jar of O-neg he had threatened Willy's new barman to get. He was hoping to see Buffy and get horizontal but she was probably still being all blushin' eyes about the tree incident. No, she wouldn't come by for a couple of days and when she did she would just want to beat him up to show him what she really thought about him. That was his girl's MO. Seemed that to get to the good parts of the Slayer you had to take the hard parts in equal measure; course he wasn't gonna tell her that he considered her customary fist in the face as the opening number on their dance card. He knew when to keep his mouth shut. Usually.

Buffy circled him warily and his head was beginning to follow her every move. She knew that it wouldn't be long before he became attuned to her and realised that the ghost was in fact a well-known Slayer. She rushed at him shoving him up against the crypt wall, pinning his arms out from his sides level with his shoulders. With slayer speed she ripped open his shirt, gazing with lustful eyes at his well-defined chest and rock hard abdomen. Spike stood stock still, wondering what had hit him. Dropping to her knees Buffy unzipped his black jeans and grabbed his manhood roughly. Licking up and down his growing length she inhaled his scent; all clean, decidedly masculine and uniquely Spike. The tortured vampire was panting at this point, taking in gulps of unnecessary air, and she glanced up to see a look of absolute ecstasy on his face. ‘Whoa there boy, don't think you're getting away with this so soon,’ she thought, and nipped him at the base of his shaft.

Then he looked directly down at her and queried "Buffy?"

"Stop trying to see me," she said with a laugh in her voice and dragged him bodily towards her, throwing him down on the crypt floor.

The coffee table rescued from the town dump was the first casualty, good for nothing but stakeage now. She was glorious in her hunger for him, licking, nibbling and biting hard at his exposed flesh, becoming more aroused each second by having him in her power. He was bucking beneath her, desperately clawing at her clothes and making guttural sounds in his throat. His shirt was shredded and hanging from his shoulders and she moved down his body to work his jeans off his legs, languorously licking him on the way down.

"Buffy!" he growled, "I don't know what the fuck is happenin' but you'd better be following through after this foreplay".

"Don't worry - I have no intention of leaving you hanging, nor me either. Now shut up and lose the boots."

Spike hurried to comply, sitting up and throwing her backwards in his haste. She hit a pile of books at the side of the easy chair, scattering them beneath her to outline her unseen body and she found herself pinned down with Spike's muscular arms either side of her own. He still had the jeans around his ankles and she giggled, a low throaty sound, which seemed to reverberate deep down in her groin. "Fuck! Buffy - have a heart!" he spat out, exasperated. "You come in here all invisible-girl and start throwin' me around without so much as a hello, then you laugh at me when I'm tryin' to be all macho with you!"

"Sorry, Spike" she murmured, sending a jolt to his undead heart. He loved the way she said his name, all breathless and soft. "I'm just having fun!"

Spike then found himself on his back as Buffy pushed him against the easy chair, sending it spinning into the television, which toppled with a crash. "Bugger!" Spike exclaimed. "Passions is on later".

"Forget Passions, Spike. I'll make you forget everything but me. The only thing you'll be watching will be the insides of your eyelids when I make you come so hard your eyes spin like you’ve hit the jackpot."

God - he didn't know what had happened to Buffy, but so far he liked it. She occasionally talked dirty to him, but only little things like harder or faster. This new improved horny Slayer was connecting right with his balls! Finally kicking off the jeans, he lay sprawled underneath Buffy's writhing body as she rubbed her still fully clothed crotch against his hardness. Spike ran his hands along her sides and untucked her shirt, the feel of her smooth warm skin underneath zinging electrical impulses through his dead body.

"Mmmm - I love your cold hands on me. Touch my breasts, Spike, hard and rough. Make me feel."

Needing no further encouragement, Spike ripped open the shirt and hitched up her bra kneading the sensitive flesh with his cool fingers. Finding her nipples he tweaked them causing Buffy to moan out loud and his cock to twitch beneath her. "I wish I could see your face, love,” he whispered to her.

"Just imagine me with my eyes closed and licking my lips in readiness for you" she breathed at him. "I want to savour you, Spike, feel your hardness pumping into my hot mouth, suck you dry and swallow......"

"Aaargh, Buffy - STOP!" he yelled, sitting up and grabbing her arms. "I'm about ready to pop, love, and you've still got most of your clothes on. Or so my hands tell me - what say we go down to the comfy bed and you strip off all those restricting garments right quick? We can play hide and seek - you lie on the bed and I'll try to find you with only my tongue. You know you wanna dance....." Spike grinned at her, the said tongue curled behind his teeth, an evil glint in his steely blue eyes and his head tilted to one side.

He was surprised to suddenly feel Buffy's warm arms wrapped around his neck and her soft lips trailing kisses all over his face, his eyelids and down to his neck. She shifted against him and whispered in his ear "Chase me!” The lack of heat against him when she sprang away made him gasp; he felt the air move as she sprinted from him, knocking over a lamp and a crate on which it was balanced in her haste.

Spike sat on the floor stunned for a few seconds contemplating what the hell had gotten into his Slayer - this was a side of Buffy he didn't know existed, playful, fun almost.... loving? He jumped up with a wide grin splitting his face, and yelling "Coming ready or not" he chased after her, not bothering to take the ladders down to the lower crypt but just leaping through the hole in the floor to land crouched at the bottom.

No candles were lit as he hadn't been expecting her, so the seduction stage hadn't been set. He stood up slowly, his naked form ivory white in the dark shadows, just visible in the glow from above. "Buffy" he whispered.

She giggled and shifted on the bed causing a squeak from the well-used springs.

"I hear you" he breathed into the darkness "and I can smell you - all lovely and wet, waitin' for the Big Bad. Gonna get you" he sang out as he prowled towards the bed.

With vampire speed he leapt onto the mattress, only to find it empty. "Damnit Buffy - give a bloke a sportin' chance!" he cried out. Then he was pressed flat against the covers, his head held down by a small yet firm hand.

The air moved behind him and he felt the weight of the Slayer's lithe body against his back, her nipples pressing against him as she whispered in his ear "Now I've got you". He shivered as she moved back and licked all the way down his spine from his neck to the cleft in his buttocks. Then she was gone - again!

Spike turned over and sat up, trying to sense her. He closed his eyes so that he could concentrate and saw a flare of light through his lids. He looked towards the source and was amused to see a candle seemingly floating in mid-air. "Just because you can't see me, doesn't mean I have to suffer" Buffy's voice said as the candle was put down on the table besides the bed. "I want to see the glory of your hard, tight, cold body as I make it squirm."

Spike exhaled - Buffy always made him gasp for unnecessary breath - and then grinned as other candles floated around the room. As the last one was put down he tried to follow her path, but she still surprised him when she jumped on the bed causing him to whip his head round towards her. "Hello lover" she breathed.

Spike opened his arms and found them filled with warm Slayer flesh, his favourite! He breathed in her scent; "Buffy, I would know you in a room full of girls, even if they were all invisible" he whispered against her neck as he ran his hands down her back and wrapped chunks of her hair in his fists.

Buffy sighed happily as he drew her to him and started kissing her. Oh, the vampire knew how to kiss! Soft, hard, sweet, and all things in between. He was touching her back and her hair as his lips and tongue duelled with hers, the coldness of him sending delicious tingles through her as his tongue slid its way deeper inside her mouth. Finally, Buffy had to push him away so that she could breathe, her lungs drawing in ragged gulps of air.

"Wow" she said, gasping, "I love how you take my breath away."

There it was again - the "l" word. She'd called him "lover" and now she was saying she "loved" things he did to her. Dare he believe she was finally going to admit this thing between them was more than just a quick lay? Spike was thoroughly confused; but then he felt Buffy start kissing her way down his chest and lower so he stopped thinking and gave in to sensation.

Pushing him onto his back she was nipping at his skin and licking him as she moved down past his six-pack and down his right thigh; her left hand was lingering on his chest playing with his nipples, tweaking and pinching, hurting him in a good way. Spike groaned and thrust his hips upwards wanting her to get to the good stuff. "Buffy" he growled, "want you".

Buffy responded by grabbing his balls and squeezing them with one hand, her other hand wrapped around his shaft. She began moving her hand up and down his length slowly and was gratified by the look on his face, his lower lip caught between his teeth as he began to moan her name softly. Finally, she had to have a taste of him and ducked her head down to take him in her mouth. Spike twitched and threw his head back and then leaned up on his elbows to watch. It was beyond strange to see his cock bouncing about and to feel Buffy's tongue and mouth around him but not to see her. He always loved the sight of his manhood going in and out of Buffy's mouth, and erotic as this new experience was he preferred it when all his senses could drink her in.

He reached down his body to where he thought Buffy's arms would be and tried to grab her up towards him. She stopped licking him and then her weight was gone again. Spike heard the sound of a zipper and then clothes being dropped on the floor and she was back on top of him. He wanted her underneath so he flipped her onto her back and started biting and nuzzling her neck. Buffy let herself be mastered by him, his knowing touch sending shivers down her spine. He ran his hands down her body, the left hand following the curve of her breast and his right hand moving down over her hip and thigh to rest in her curls. Buffy opened her legs, inviting him in. Still kissing and biting her neck, Spike brushed one finger over her clit causing her to moan out loud - she was so ready for this! He continued rubbing backwards and forwards slowly and moved his mouth across to kiss her lips again, forcing her mouth open as he filled it with his cool tongue. She wrapped her own tongue around his, the delicious difference in temperature heightening the feeling.

Spike left her lips then with a soft kiss and moved down to take her right nipple in his mouth, suckling and nibbling at her tender flesh as he continued to stroke her clit with cold fingertips. Buffy gasped when she felt him press two fingers inside her, his thumb now rubbing her clit and causing her to see stars before her eyes. "Spike" she begged as he increased the speed of his hand "I want you to fuck me. Please, I need you inside me, now."

The use of the f-word sent Spike into a frenzy; Buffy had never used bad language before, at least not in front of him, and it was just so hot! "Oh, Goldilocks" he whispered as he withdrew his hand and replaced it with his straining cock. He closed his eyes, not wanting to see an empty mattress below him and just went with his instincts. He knew the Slayer's body intimately, didn't need to see her to know exactly where she was. As he started to thrust into her he felt the weight of her legs as they wrapped around his waist; he continued moving his hips faster and faster, Buffy bucking back at him to match his forward momentum. Her hands raced up and down his back, feverishly grasping his buttocks as she tried to drag him further in, sinking her nails into the flesh.

"Buffy… love!" Spike gasped "gotta come now - nails good -"

"Do it, Spike. I'm coming with you, baby!"

The "baby" sent him over the edge; he felt his balls tighten and then grunting he emptied into Buffy's hot wetness, groaning when her inner Slayer muscles started throbbing around him. Bufffy screamed his name as she arched against his body, wringing every drop of come out of him with her own explosive orgasm. When the last wave of ecstasy left him, he collapsed on top of the invisible Slayer, panting needlessly.

"Buffy" he whispered, his face tangled in her hair "God, I love you." Realising what he had said, he tensed up waiting for Buffy to do the usual and scarper. Instead, she just whispered back sleepily "I know; go to sleep Spike".

He closed his eyes and slept.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter 2

Xander and Anya gaped at the door of the Magic Box as it closed behind the invisible Slayer. They turned to look at each other's puzzled faces, silent for a moment until Xander said "Well, just another day on the Hellmouth and I am so weirded out by no-see Buffy." He shuddered as he braced his arms on the counter.

"Well, at least I won't have to pay out for a bridesmaid's dress," Anya gleefully told him, a beaming smile on her face. "That'll save a pretty penny, let me tell you. The price of blood lava and burlap these days, demons have no sense of honour."

Xander tuned out as Anya continued babbling about the wedding. As long as he nodded and smiled every now and then, she really didn't need anything more from him. She'd be set now for at least an hour probably.

He considered Buffy's predicament again. (What was that about? Buffy hadn’t freaked at all, in fact he couldn’t remember when she’d last been so perky… except maybe when she’d been Joan) Maybe it wasn't so bad after all, he thought as he was directed to the seating plan for the twentieth time that day. Wonder if invisibility is catching? Fixing a smile on his face, he nodded at Anya’s commentary as she rearranged the little stickers around the tables on the plan.

Who knew that an ex-vengeance demon would be so pro-wedding? Xander had envisioned a small gathering of true friends; the two of them with Willow, Buffy and Dawn and hopefully Tara if Willow okayed it, Giles too, if he could make the trip. Instead, all of a sudden he was taking the Lead Male role in a movie of his life that bore no real resemblance to his actual existence. And he hadn't even auditioned for the part! The small gathering had now swollen to include even the most distant of his family; people Xander never knew existed but who Anya assured him were genetically linked to him. Apparently, Anya's "special day" needed to have as many witnesses as possible. He couldn't even stand being in the same room as his mom and dad, and was now counting down the days to the nuptials with a growing sense of impending doom at the thought of the entire Harris clan getting cosy with Anya’s “relatives”.

As Xander realised there was silence, he sensed a response was needed to Anya's last comment but should he nod or smile? Or was he supposed to object so that she could smugly tell him it was her day and if she wanted it she was having it? Oh god, he'd lost the thread. Panicked, he just grabbed her in his arms and kissed her until she squealed.

"Xander! Is this an invitation to inappropriate sex in a public place, because the door is unlocked and the blinds don't completely obscure the windows. .Or are you looking to add exhibitionism to our sexual joinings? I've read that the thrill of being caught often heightens the experience, although I do have to consider that customers might not like to see sweaty coupling if they are only coming in to buy candles and I have profit margins to consider you..."

Xander silenced her with another kiss; her frank words had got him thinking naughty thoughts. What the heck - he was a guy not a saint! Grinning broadly he pulled her down behind the counter.

*********************************

Dawn was bored - no, not bored, more like absolutely, completely and utterly pissed off! She had actually studied for her chem. test but still only gotten a D. What did that say about her? And she just knew that when Buffy got her report card she would freak, as usual. What was the point of even going to school? Surely the monks who made her didn't want her to spend her summer cooped up with a load of geeks and misfits? So wouldn't they, you know, alter reality to let her pass with the grades she needed?

She kicked at an empty can on the ground, scowled (copyright Dawn Summers) and headed to the Magic Box, where the Scoobies would no doubt be gathered to deal with some extracurricular badness. It was, after all, Tuesday.

As she entered the shop, the bell on the door tinkled. Dawn walked into the familiar space, her eyes adjusting to the dimmer light. Nobody about. Anya must be in the back. She strolled over to the table, which was still strewn with the research books from last night, and sat herself down. Looking at the first book opened in front of her, she shuddered as she recognised the illustration as the one that had taught her a demon’s privates weren’t always situated in the trouser department!

Shutting the book, Dawn hefted her schoolbag onto the table and took out her algebra homework. Might as well get the bad stuff over first - although, if the world ended tonight she'd have done the work for nothing. This caused a grin at the thought of the note to her teacher, but Dawn took out her books and started to work.

Engrossed in her homework, it took a while before Dawn became aware of the panting and shushing sounds around her. Looking up from her books she angled her head around to pinpoint the origin of the noise. Eventually, she realised it was from behind the counter. As silently she could she put down her pencil, grabbed a heavy tome and crept towards the scary demons.

*********************************

"Oh, my god. Oh, my god,” Dawn repeated the mantra to herself as she backed off from the sight of Xander's lily-white ass pumping up and down rhythmically in-between Anya's legs. She hoped it was Anya anyway; she didn't stay to check.

Scarred for life! Dawn had taken Sex Ed of course, but seeing it so graphically demonstrated - ew! She thought she would pass, thank you. So what to do now? Back out of the shop and seek out some sort of memory altering spell, 'cause hey that worked so well a couple of weeks ago, or make a point of sitting quiet until she was noticed?

The choice was taken from her when she heard Xander say "Ahn, shhh - did you hear something?"

"So this is the part where we coyly stop copulating and pretend we were looking for something on the floor?"

"No - this is the part where you answer my question - did you hear something?"

"No - did you want me to give you a blow..."

Dawn couldn't take any more and dashed a large book onto the floor with a crash.

Silence.

"What was that?" Xander whispered, sort of.

"Well, hey you're the man - go look!" Anya replied.

Panicked, Dawn dropped to the floor and crawled towards the front of the shop. If she could make like she'd just come in, perhaps she could avoid the meltdown.

As she reached the door, Dawn stood up and opened it to make the bell chime, cursing it for not being loud enough earlier.

"Hello" she cried out "youngest Summers reporting for duty".

She strolled towards the table, her eyes widening as she realised her school bag had very obviously arrived there before she had. Speeding up she placed her hand on the strap and jumped a mile when Xander appeared from behind the counter.

"Hey, Dawnie - whatya doin'?"

"Oh, the usual - triangles, pyramids; all things which bear no resemblance to real life, you know? Course, if they taught you how to identify a witch or kill an M'Fashnik demon - I'd be top of the class!"

Xander relaxed some; at least he'd managed to zip up his flies before Dawnie came in. She seemed a little spooked though.

"Everything alright?" he asked her.

"What!" Dawn froze. "Me? I'm fine and dandy. Just come in, that's the truth. Why would I be anything but alright?"

Xander had a strange feeling that Dawn was hiding something but was happy to go with Sunnydale selective memory.

"Hey, have you seen Buffy?" he asked her.

"No, Xander, I've been at school. Have you seen her?"

"Well, that's the thing. Nobody has - she's invisible girl"

"WHAT!" Dawn sat down, hard, on the bench seat. "Invisible! How, why, when..."

"Calm down, Dawnie. She's fine - in fact, I think she kinda likes it."

*********************************

Buffy stirred in her sleep and turned over onto her right side. She fluttered her eyelids open and caught sight of Spike's sculpted face, relaxed in sleep his dark eyelashes brushing his cheeks.

He was beautiful. Describing a male as beautiful might seem effeminate, but no - Spike WAS beautiful. His hair had been wildly mussed up by her fingers and the pillow; his eyes were shut but every now and the lids flickered to reveal an azure blue glimpse of heaven. The scar on his left eyebrow made his features more perfect, highlighting the symmetry of his brow save for that small imperfection. Buffy gazed at him as she rested on the pillow of her arm. He wasn't breathing, no need, but her own breath was speeding up as she drank his features in. His nearness affected her in ways she didn't want to think about. He was a vampire - he must sense how her heartbeat quickened, her lungs expanded and exhaled more rapidly when he was near. Yes - well that was normal, he was a vampire, and humans were his natural prey so adrenaline would kick in. That’s what it is.

Nice attempt at casual Buffy, go tell it to the mountain.

No, it sounded lame to her too. She was the Slayer - one vampire shouldn't make her react like that.

Spike twitched in his sleep, a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth and he stretched out like a big cat. Buffy's eyes were drawn to his chest and lower, and she found herself reacting to him with more than an adrenaline rush.

He was a creature of mayhem and murder; yet lying like this, so vulnerable, so open - her heart yearned for him.

Her heart! What did her heart have to do with Spike? Thinking back on what had happened earlier that day she looked down at herself and seeing nothing, she remembered that absolutely nobody could find her here. She wasn't here - not really; who could prove she was? So she could be and do whatever she wanted without sanction. And she would have exactly what she wanted...

"Spi-ike" she trilled. "Oh, Spi-ike."

He moved his shoulders around so that he was laying flat. He had been awake for about five minutes waiting for her to call the shots, but he didn't want to move in case it spooked her and sent her off into the daylight virtue aflutter.

Experimentally he opened his eyes slightly. Of course, he couldn't see her but he could sense her next to him. Damn! He needed to see her expression to work out what she was thinking.

"I'm thinking that I want to kiss you,” she said softly causing him to jerk upright. Was she reading his mind?

"I have no objection to that," he replied quietly.

He opened his arms and Buffy scooted quickly to fill them. He closed his eyes again, relying on his other senses to relay information to his brain. He felt her soft lips press against his own, her hot tongue probing into his mouth. Spike wrapped his own tongue around hers and brought his right hand up to tangle in her hair and pull her closer to him. Buffy's body was pressed against him, he could feel her warm skin and her chest rising and falling as she drew back from the kiss and breathed heavily against his neck.

"Buffy" he sighed into her hair, "stay here with me, forever".

She actually contemplated it. She must be ill.

"I'll stay Spike; for a while. Just hold me."

It would do. He held her.

*********************************

Xander, Anya and Dawn were sat around the table arguing about what to do next. Xander wanted to ring Giles but nobody could remember the time difference with England and nobody really wanted to be the one to tell him about Buffy's disappearing act anyway. Dawn was strangely quiet and skittish. Anya was quite happy to leave things as they were as it meant she saved money on one dress and accessories. Xander was becoming more and more agitated.

"But guys, we can't just leave her like this! What if she lost her memory and then just got lost and how would we ever find her, not being able to see her and all. Think! Dawn - you want to see your sister don't you?

"Well, I can do without that frown thing she does sometimes, you know, when I may have just worn one of her tops which, hello! teenage sister here! So, I guess I'm ok for a while?"

"Anya - is this a vengeance spell do you think?"

"Maybe, but I don't see what benefit it would be to anybody wanting Buffy invisible. In fact, an invisible Slayer could cause way more damage than a visible one, so if it is a vengeance spell they'll be wanting a refund.” She shuddered at the concept.

"Well, I for one want to see Buffy back to living colour." Xander stated.

A few seconds later he exclaimed, "Willow! Who has the power to vanish a person and who has the reputation of messing up her spells big time? Our redheaded recovering Wicca. Oh god, she's off the wagon big time."

Xander stood up and grabbed his coat. "You two go on with the research; I'm going to see if Willow can shed any light on the problem." He almost ran out of the shop, slamming the door behind him.

Anya and Dawn sat silently for a moment, Dawn still feeling uncomfortable as she recalled the chilling sight that had greeted her earlier. She shivered involuntarily causing Anya to ask if she was cold.

"I'm fine, just a little shaky, you know?"

"Don't worry, Dawn, I'm sure Willow will be able to undo her little spell and then I'll just have to pay out for another bridesmaid's dress. Honestly, I was telling Xander earlier about the price of burlap..."

Dawn zoned out letting Anya prattle on about the wedding. It gave her time to think. Why wasn't she more unsettled by her sister's invisibility? It certainly wasn't natural and this was the Hellmouth so it wouldn't lead to any good. But it sounded like so much fun, to lose yourself for a while away from all responsibility, chem. tests and nagging sisters included; Dawn wondered if it was catching? And Buffy was always on duty, always fighting evil without a break; this seemed exactly what she would wish for if she had the chance.

"ANYA!" Dawn yelled, "I think it's a vengeance wish but not by anybody else. I think Buffy wished it for herself!"

"For herself? But why would she ...oh, I see. If she can't be seen she can't be made to Slay! Hmm, it's possible. I suppose. Although vengeance spells can't usually be made for oneself. Maybe another type of demon, or a Fairy Godmother? Well only one way to find out, I'll have to summon D'Hoffryn".

"D'Hoffryn? The huge horned ugly one? Summon him? Are you insane?" Dawn squealed. "Why would you do that, and more to the point how would you do that?"

"Relax Dawn, I'm not summoning him in person. I'm just.... think of it as making a telephone call, but with smoke and flashing lights. Oh, and really nifty sound effects."

Dawn was not happy about the thought of any contact with D'Hoffryn. She'd never seen him but Willow had received a job offer from him some time ago and he sounded the exact definition of something to avoid. She didn't want to be anywhere near here if there was a possibility of an appearance. Gathering her books and placing them in her bag, she turned to tell Anya she was going home to see if Buffy had come back. Her words didn't make it past her lips.

Anya was already seated on the floor of the shop, a circle of sand drawn roughly about her, chanting in some language Dawn didn't know. Smoke was starting to rise from the inside of the circle and there was a sort of wobbly effect to the air inside it. Anya's eyes were closed, her hands resting on her knees as she sat cross-legged. Sweat was beginning to run down her face as she continued to chant then suddenly there was a clap of thunder followed by a blinding flash of light.

Dawn jumped backwards falling over the leg of the bench and landed in a heap on the floor. As a shape began to materialize inside the sand circle her eyes widened in fear.

**********************************

Buffy was nuzzled up to Spike and making gorgeous little kitten sounds as he stroked her hair and back. She could get used to this. He bent his head and kissed her hair, murmuring her name as he did so. She started tracing round his pecs with her left hand causing him to draw in a shaky breath as she brushed his nipple. It tightened immediately becoming hard and proud. Ooh, very responsive. She pushed herself back a little out of his embrace so that she could reach across to caress his other nipple. It hardened under her hand and she smiled smugly to herself.

Spike was mesmerised by the feeling of her hands on him without being able to see her touch him. The candles had long since sputtered out but with his vampire sight the darkness wouldn't have been a problem if only she had been there to see. His left hand was still tangled in her hair, her neck lying across his arm but he brought his right hand away from his side to reach out to her. His hand found the curve of her hip just below her waist, a luscious swell that demanded to be stroked. He ran his hand up her side towards her breast, tracing his fingers lightly underneath making her gasp and push her breasts towards him. He continued round to her nipple mirroring her own hands' movement on his chest.

Buffy's breathing was becoming erratic and quicker as Spike continued to tease her nipple, rolling the bud between his fingers and thumb rhythmically. He gently withdrew his left arm from beneath her and pushing her onto her back followed her down with his head to lap between her breasts with his rough tongue. Her skin tasted salty and moist and she purred causing him to growl in response.

"Oh Buffy! You taste so ripe, so alive. Would you like me to make you feel good?"

"Yes Spike, make me feel. Touch me. I want you".

Her disembodied voice speaking those words reminded him of the dream years ago when he had realised he loved her. He grabbed her fiercely by her hips and pulled her down the bed towards him. Starting at her forehead, he kissed down her face licking her lips but not putting any pressure on them. He continued kissing down the middle of her stomach, tracing the outline of her hip and leg with his right hand moving across to slide one finger along her clit and across the warmth of her pussy. Continuing the stroking he slipped one finger inside her and moved his mouth further down licking through her curls to replace his finger with his tongue. Buffy moaned, and he felt the pressure increase on his face as she arched towards him, her hands grabbing his head so that he couldn't move away. As if he would ever want to move away from the delicious taste of the Slayer as she became more and more aroused, flooding his mouth with her juices. He just drank her down and stuck his tongue further inside her, stabbing it in as deep as he could before pulling out and lapping at her engorged clit.

"Spike, harder, please… I want you to make me come now."

Spike didn't want her to come like that, he wanted her to feel his cock buried deep within her and feel him flood her with his seed. In one quick movement he was on top of her, his hips pressed up against her and his cock poised at the entrance to her sex. Buffy's legs parted further and her hands fluttered down his spine as she tried to drag him inside her.

Spike stopped before thrusting inside her. "Buffy, I love you. Please believe me. I need you to believe me about this."

Buffy looked up at his face, just visible in the gloom of the cavern. In shadow the angles of his cheekbones were starker, more defined and, she admitted to herself, he was drop dead gorgeous. Would it be so wrong to admit that she believed him; it didn't mean she felt anything back.

"I believe you, Spike. I do."

She gasped as he rammed into her, pinning her to the bed with the force of his thrust and sending waves of pleasure shooting through her body. She wrapped her legs around him and matched every thrust with her own, responding with a ferocity that shocked her even as she felt the tightening in her groin that signalled her orgasm. Spike sensed it too so he increased the pace and changed the angle of their joining ensuring that his shaft rubbed her sensitised clit to increase her pleasure.

Buffy's moans and the desperate way she was grabbing at him caused Spike to grit his teeth. Hell, he was like a bloody virgin with her - she only needed to touch him and he almost lost it. Her declaration that she believed he loved her sent him spiralling out of control and it was all he could do not to cover her in cum where she lay. As it was he was trying to think of anything to delay his ejaculation.

Then she cried out his name as her orgasm ripped through her and he gave up any pretense at control, biting down on her neck and pumping her full of his semen.

**********************************

Xander arrived at Revello Drive all psyched up for the confrontation with Willow. Powerful witch - puny mortal; he didn't really fancy his chances. The fact that it was Willow was the only thing giving him the courage to walk through the door to the house.

Willow was at the dining room table surrounded by books and her laptop. As she noticed Xander she jumped guiltily. Just before he had entered the room she had unconsciously tried to levitate a book - she had stopped herself but the temptation was so strong. The no magic rule sucked!

"Hey Willow. Whatya doin'?"

"Research, just research. You know - Buffy's mysterious demon guy/guys, whatever."

"Talking about Buffy, have you seen her recently?"

"Not since this morning. Isn't she at work? Or the Magic Box?"

"Well thing is, she came by the Magic Box earlier but I didn't see her. Nobody did"

Xander was watching Willow's reaction closely. Hell, if she knew anything about Buffy's invisibility she sure was hiding it well - give the girl an Oscar. She was just looking at him with a perplexed expression, questions behind her eyes.

"Xander, what do you mean; I don't understand..."

"Well, Buffy's kind of - it rhymes with 'blinvisible', so I didn't see her at all."

"Have you been at the sugar again? Are you saying Buffy's invisible?"

"All no-see but hear and acting all whacked out and crazy. Willow, do you know what's going on? It doesn't matter if you...you know.... had a relapse because we're your friends and we..."

Willow cut him off angrily. "You think I DID this? Oh yeah, it must be Willow, bad, bad girl. Why does everyone assume it's me? I told you I wouldn't do magic and I haven't."

With the last words Willow rose from the table and stalked towards the door.

"Willow" Xander said as he stretched out his hand to stop her "please, don't go. I'm sorry, it's just Buffy really freaked me out and we don't know where she is, how she got like that. We just know it must be magic, so..."

"So, if it's magical it must be me. This is Sunnydale, Xander. Ok, I admit I'm a witch but that doesn't mean I'm responsible for all the magic on the Hellmouth. And I HAVEN'T USED MAGIC SINCE I PROMISED I WOULDN'T".

She yelled the last bit and stormed out of the house. Xander sat back down, a hurt look on his face; he always hated falling out with Willow, had done since he had known her but she had never spoken to him with such ice in her voice. He had to fix this, find Buffy and make things right with Willow.

He was at a standstill now; where could he start to look for the Slayer? He needed a bloodhound to follow her scent - BLOODHOUND! That was it! Much as he loathed the idea, maybe it was his only chance. Resigned to the sarcastic comments he would have to endure and the smug smile he would see, he headed for Spike's crypt.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter 3

Dawn looked on in horror as a seven-foot high demon with blue-grey skin, horns, and a tufted beard materialised in the circle in front of Anya's seated form. She backed further away on her rump as the monster turned to look in her direction. Her heart was beating so hard it was making her feel sick and she desperately wished she could be any place but here. She flinched as a booming voice reverberated round the Magic Box, accompanied by flashes of light and rolls of thunder.

"Cower in fear puny mortal. Who dares to summon D’Hoffryn, Lord of Hiroshmaha, to stand before you? Abandon all hope and relinquish your hold on this… Anyanka?"

The voice lowered to conversational level, the thunder stopping as he recognised his former vengeance demon.

"Hi" Anya waved bouncily, "how've you been?"

Dawn's eyes were closed tight, her hands over her ears as she crouched behind the research table. At the sound of Anya's perky voice, she opened one eye and then the other. She noticed that the form of the beast wasn't solid and was floating about six inches above the floor. "Telephone call," she thought, "not really here."

A sigh of relief left Dawn's lips and she unfolded her body to stand up. Anya and her former boss seemed to be chatting about matters various in a friendly way and there didn't seem to be any immediate threat.

"Really invisible? Completely?" D’Hoffryn was shaking his head. "No, nothing in the vengeance realm, I would know it. An invisible Slayer - hmm, interesting. A marvellously effective tool for vengeance I would think. Do you think she'd be open to a job offer?"

Anya looked to be considering this so Dawn thought she should bring it to an end. "Anya - missing the point much?"

Anya turned to look at Dawn, the calculating look she was wearing turning to resignation. "Oh, very well. D’Hoffryn, we have to find the Slayer. Dawn needs her sister and we need to know what happened to make her invisible. Although after the wedding will be fine, no rush."

"Anya!" Dawn squealed.

"Oh, fine! We need to find her now, D’Hoffryn, and reverse whatever caused her to vanish. You must help us."

The room seemed to chill then. The spectre of the beast grew larger and more solid, the voice causing hackles to rise on Dawn's neck.

"I MUST? And what gives you the right to demand my help, Anyanka? I could erase you from existence with a twitch of my finger, or send you to boil in a hell of unimaginable terror for all eternity. I am nobody's slave to be sent on errands!"

Dawn had retreated behind the bookshelf and was peeping out nervously.

Anya seemed calm and unworried. "Well... I could move you up to the top table?"

"Oh, very well. I'll see what I can do."

D’Hoffryn seemed to implode and disappeared in a puff of smoke and a blinding flash of pure white light. A blast of air blew through the Magic Box scattering Anya’s sand circle and fluttering the pages of the books on the table.

Dawn exhaled in relief. Anya seemed completely unfazed by the conversation and calmly gathered up the candles she had used in the incantation, softly humming the wedding march to herself.

"Anya!" Dawn exclaimed. "What the hell is going on?"

"No need for that language, missy. D’Hoffryn will help us and then we'll get Buffy back. Everything is fine."

"You've sent an underworld demon lord to find my sister, he wants to recruit her as a vengeance demon and you think things are fine! Pardon me for not being on board. Do you trust him?"

"D’Hoffryn? Well, no - not really but what else could we do? And he does love a good wedding!"

Dawn just stared at her, speechless.

*******************************

Willow was fuming. Xander's accusations had really angered her but more than that, really hurt her. She had been trying so hard to not use magics and it was like learning how to breathe without oxygen. Nobody understood how painful it was to give up. Slowly magic had become part of her everyday life; if she needed something from a top shelf she would levitate it down. Out of soda? No problem, just conjure up a six-pack. She couldn't remember the last time she'd done any laundry or bothered to dry her hair without a spell.

And it was a buzz! The thrill of getting away with it, knowing how it would be frowned on by her friends made it even more enticing. For years she had been "just Willow", the nerd whose mother dressed her and who would slink away to avoid any notice being taken of her. Xander was always the strong one who took care of her, poor weak little Willow.

‘But I’m not weak, I’m strong now,’ she thought. If she wanted to, she could lay Xander flat with a flick of her wrist. She wasn't a nerd, she was a witch; a powerful, don't-mess-with-me wicca. With a muttered word, she could eviscerate anyone who crossed her; but of course she didn't want to. The darkness had shown her the universe and then consumed her; she had nearly killed Dawnie and almost lost Buffy as her friend. That scare had really hit home.

And Tara. She couldn't think about Tara without wanting to curl up into a ball. The pain she had caused the woman she loved scorched her inside and made her catch her breath. Tara, who loved her with unflinching devotion and made her see the beauty inside herself. She’d been devastated when Willow had messed with her memories. Oh god, it was like rape! Sweet, devoted Tara, having endured the mind-suck by Glory had then had her head invaded again by the one person in the entire world who she should have been able to trust.

Willow shivered as she walked and wiped a tear away from her eye. So yeah, it was hard and she was really, really trying. She felt sick at the thought that she almost slipped up earlier, even though it was only a small levitation spell. Guilt churned inside her.

She didn't really know where she was going; she just needed to get away from Xander. Even that was new – if upset, she usually ran to him. When did that change? Maybe when she changed. Xander was still the same old Xander - reliable, witty, boyish and stuck in his ways. He was like Peter Pan - he would never grow up and face life's responsibilities, and that was part of his attraction. But lately, she felt as though she had left him behind, that he was somehow - smaller than he had been, weaker. She no longer needed to lean on him for support. She was all she needed.

It would be nice to have the warmth between them back again, the easy camaraderie of the early days when Buffy had just come to Sunnydale and the demons they fought were all of the external variety. Could they ever get that back? All of them?

Willow sighed and shook her head. Stop this with the Jekyll and Hyde! Right - think straight; help find out what had happened to Buffy. Introspection and self-recrimination could wait until the Slayer was home and seeable. She would work out what had happened the hard way, fix it, and then go tickle Xander until everything was normal again.

******************************

Buffy's eyes shot open when she felt Spike bite her. Her heart leapt. Oh, God – No, no -- vampire, biting, bad!

Wait not bad, she realised. Not bad at all – not savage feeding. Not the gloat of the Master. Not the pain of Angel’s delirium. And definitely not the Transylvanian chewer. This was so very, very good! This was Spike. The sharp pain faded as a new sweetness began to drift through her body. Every swallow he took tugged right down deep in her womb making her dizzy with pleasure.

Spike suckled at her neck, slowly lapping her trickling blood with his rough tongue. He’d acted instinctively; he needed to mark her as his and had vamped out when he came hard inside her. No thoughts of consequences or what Buffy would do to him. He went with his demon. She was his and all vampires would know that they were mated.

What he didn't expect was Buffy’s reaction – how she was moaning beneath him, gasping his name, begging him to bite harder! God - Slayer blood rocketing round his veins charged him with life. As she wriggled and pressed against his pelvis, the borrowed blood headed straight for his dick, immediately hard, throbbing and still buried inside her wet pussy. He bit down harder, relishing the sounds that Buffy was making and the fact that she was clawing at his back, desperate to merge with his body.

"Oh, God Spike! Take it, drink me; feels so good...."

He gave a final lap at the bite mark and withdrew his fangs, mouthing around the mark with a lingering lick. His rough tongue made Buffy tremble and she threw her legs around his hips to draw him deeper inside her. Panting with need, she looked up at his face as his demon receded leaving dark blue eyes boring into hers.

"Did anyone ever tell you, pet, that the blood of a Slayer is a powerful aphrodisiac?"

His voice was like melted chocolate, rich and sinful and definitely bad for her. His words should have disgusted her; instead they made her insides quiver and a warm trickle run down her thighs.

"Show me."

Spike pulled her roughly to him, grabbing her head in both hands and leaning his forehead against her invisible one. "You're mine" he growled and kissed her, bruising her lips with the intensity and pressing her down onto the bed, making the springs groan in protest.

He took hold of her left hand in his right and pulled it up beside her head, keeping it there as he left her lips and kissed down her neck. Lingering on his mark he whispered her name against it and repeated in a guttural tone "MINE".

A shiver of delight ran through Buffy's entire body and she gave up all semblance of thought, lost in the sensations that rippled through her. She moved hungrily against his hardness, desperate for some friction on her clit. Spike thrust his groin forwards as she rose up to meet him and he rotated his hips to move his cock inside her. A strangled moan left Buffy's mouth, and he grinned.

"You like that pet? Do you want some more?"

"Mmmm. More. Harder."

Never one to disappoint, Spike braced his feet against the footboard and started pounding her viciously. He would have damaged a normal girl, but the Slayer just gave back as good as she got, bucking beneath him and meeting his thrusts with her own.

"Buffy" he panted as he upped the speed, his head thrown back, "You're mine. Say it."

Buffy was lost in the moment; no thought other than what was here, what was now. And right now...

"I am Spike; I am yours."

He screamed her name as his orgasm hit and dipped his head to swallow her own cry of ecstasy.

*****************************

Xander was on his way to the crypt when he spied Willow wandering aimlessly along the main street. He speeded up to join her.

"Willow! Wait!"

"Not now Xander; I need to be alone."

"But Willow, please; I didn't mean to doubt you. I just didn't know what else to do, and Giles isn't here, Buffy is off invisibling somewhere and there's only you and me. I'm sorry, don't walk away."

Willow stopped walking and turned to look at him. He was all dejected and kicked puppy-dog, a pathetic figure. Her heart gave a lurch, "You hurt me, Xander. You jumped to conclusions and those conclusions were me. I'm trying so hard; you just don't understand how tough it is."

Xander looked at Willow's bowed head, her restlessly moving hands and her slumped shoulders. Gathering her in his arms, he kissed the top of her head.

"Will, I'm sorry. I'll try to help you, you know I will. I'm just a klutz, remember. Big old Xander with huge clown feet stomping in as usual."

His earnest face and the thought of Xander with clown feet made her smile.

"You hate clowns! No, you fear them. You would never have clown feet, Xander."

"Made you smile though! Now let's get to it. You head to the Magic Box, see what Dawn and Anya have come up with and I'll head to dead boy's crypt. He can make himself useful for once. He always seems to be able to find Buffy, now we'll take advantage of his obsession."

******************************

Willow opened the door to the Magic Box and then stopped dead. The traces of a summoning spell almost knocked her off her feet and made her mouth go dry.

"Willow - is she found?" Dawn asked, anxiously.

"Sorry, Dawn. Not yet. Xander's going to get Spike to see if he can track her, you know like a bloodhound. He said you were researching?"

Looking at the scattered sand on the floor and the half-burnt ceremonial candles she asked, "What happened here?"

"Oh Anya had another of her amazingly brilliant brainwaves and decided it would be a really good idea to invite her ex-boss to join the party" Dawn smirked.

"D’Hoffryn! He's here?"

Dawn looked at Willow in amazement; she hadn't seen her so freaked out before.

"He wasn't really here" Anya explained "just his facsimile. Kinda like a web-cam."

"Oh. Right. Web-cam."

Calming down, she walked forwards and sat by the table.

"So, whatya got?"

"Nothing. Zilch. Nada." Dawn replied "but Anya's sent D’Hoffryn off to make enquiries in the demon world. Oh, and he wants Buffy to be a vengeance demon."

"What! Is he having trouble recruiting these days; first me, now Buffy? He should run an ad."

"We think that Buffy might have wished herself invisible" Anya piped up. "So she could just go and have fun and not have to slay. You know how she's been kinda distracted lately? Well if we can't find her, she can just do what she wants. Freedom from the daily grind, you know? So - do you know any spells?"

"ANYA!" Dawn interjected, nodding in Willow's direction with an eye gesture.

"It's alright, Dawn. No big. Just being in here is making my hair stand on end but I'm fine if I'm with you. I can deal; you can say 'magic', I won't explode. I swear I won't ever hurt you again."

Dawn was still a little mad at Willow, having been nearly crushed in a car and all, but seeing Willow's brimming eyes and her soft voice making that promise melted all her remaining anger. She smiled and threw her arms around the Wicca, hugging her tight.

"I know you won't. I'm fine, honestly. Now, what do you suggest we do first?"

Suddenly, the lights went dim and the smell of scorched earth filled the shop. Lightning sparked along the counter and shelves making Anya scream and dash to the register to check the money. There was a pop as if the air had been sucked out and then forced back in and a portal opened in front of the horrified trio.

"Anyanka, Miss Summers and why, Miss Rosenberg! How lovely to see you again. My offer still stands you know, quite creative with the vengeance, my dear."

Willow stood and looked at the demon lord with horror.

********************************

Tangled in Buffy's invisible limbs, Spike thought back to minutes before. Had he really heard her say she was his, or was it his mind playing tricks? The hours he had lain here on this bed, stroking himself into oblivion and practising dialogue with an imaginary Slayer all jumbled up with the real interaction he’d had with her. Chances were he had dreamed the entire thing.

Buffy's breathing was returning to normal, her heart rate slowing down. Spike kissed her face gently, making his way by touch along her brow and her cheeks, blowing softly on her eyelids.

"Hey," she said,” Stop that or I'll stake you."

"Would you?" Spike whispered as he continued down, nipping her right earlobe as he carried on to her neck. He licked her throat, pausing at the hollow below her chin and swirling his tongue around.

"Would you stake me Buffy?"

His voice was hypnotising her; deep, mellow, sexy as hell. He moved above her to rest on his elbows, looking down to where he knew her eyes would be.

"Could you do that, pet, be rid of me?"

He dipped down to suck on his mark, making her squirm beneath him again. God, his touch electrified her, made her nerves zing. His skin was cool but where he touched her, she burned. In her new persona as Can't-Be-Seen Buffy, she admitted to herself that she'd never felt this way with anyone else.

Angel was just the one night and she had nothing to compare it to; it had been... nice. Parker - admittedly he was a skilled lover but again, just the one time and no emotional connection. All technique and no oomph. Riley; well Riley was different. She had thought she loved him at the time, and there had been that memorable night when they were taken over by sexually repressed ghosts and went at it like rabbits for hours. But honestly - even that..........it all paled into insignificance when Spike laid his hands on her.

She ran her hands up his arms to link behind his neck, pulling him down towards her mouth to kiss him deeply, slowly. She teased him with her tongue, darting in and out nibbling on his full bottom lip before sucking it in. He parted his own lips more and increased the pressure, tangling his cooler tongue with her hot one and making her moan.

She pushed him slightly away from her, focusing on his eyes and willing him to know she was looking right at him. Taking a deep breath she murmured "No Spike; I couldn't stake you."

"And why's that, kitten?"

She scanned his features; her demon lover with the face of an Adonis. His eyes were burning her with their intensity, focused on her even though he couldn't see her. She gasped at the feelings he was awakening, feelings she thought she'd never have. She couldn't stop the tidal wave of emotions threatening to swamp her and she didn't want to. Buffy took a deep breath.

"Because I'm yours."

Spike looked down at the empty mattress in shock. He hadn't expected her to say it, thought he must have been hallucinating before; his emotions played across his face. Shock, joy, wonder, awe. And love, always the love.

"My girl, my Buffy!" he breathed.

She smiled, and raised her hand to caress his cheek. He was a beautiful creature who wore his heart on his sleeve, a heart she had crushed beneath her stylish yet affordable boots so many times; and yet, he always came back, was always there for her. And she couldn't deny that when they were apart, she thought about him constantly.

He had gotten to her. Was it love? She didn't know; but she no longer wanted to keep him at arm's length, a convenient tumble when she had an itch to scratch. She cared for him, she could admit it. And her friends and family - she would have to think about them another time because that sensuous mouth that made her quiver was descending to hers again.

"I want you, Spike. Make me yours."

Spike wanted to devour her! He kissed her feverishly, touching as much of her skin as he could get a hold of. He wanted to see her so badly, look into her eyes and see her smile. His cock was rock-hard and he was desperate to be inside her. Nudging her legs open further he positioned himself to push into her. She was so wet and hot, all tight inside fitting him so well. She wrapped her legs around him and dragged him in with her thigh muscles.

Roaring his pleasure he started pounding her into the mattress. The bed was creaking under the onslaught, both of them making gasps and moans of pleasure as they explored this new facet to their relationship. Neither of them heard the sound of the door opening upstairs.............

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter 4

Xander looked around Spike's crypt with amusement. Man, there must have been one heavy fight in here. Maybe Spike was injured - oh please, that'd be so great!

He picked his way through the remains of the coffee table and righted the chair from on top of the smashed TV set. Oh that would hurt - Spike would have to miss Passions.

This was all good. Xander knew it was childish but he loved to see the vampire in pain. His yen for the Slayer was just a sick twisted dream but it made Xander pissed. Spike was delusional if he actually thought he could get Buffy. As if! Buffy was special. Okay, so Xander knew he had no chance with her either, but he'd be damned if he'd let an unclean demon get anywhere near her. Unless it was to be staked. Gingerly, he made his way through yet more destruction including what looked like the remains of a shirt and Spike's boots. Better and better.

Remembering why he was there, he reined in his enthusiasm for seeing Spike's battered body and hoped instead that he’d at least be fit enough to walk. Oh god, what if he wasn't there? What if he was dust? Xander felt guilty then, Spike may be their only chance to find and save Buffy. But it still galled him.

Looking round the upper level quickly, scanning for a walking corpse, he realised Spike wasn't there. So - down to the lower crypt. He'd never been there but knew it existed from Buffy's description. And again with the longing to hurt Spike - Buffy had been chained up down there and Dru had almost killed her. He gritted his teeth and headed to the ladder, grabbing a flaming torch from the wall to light his way.

Dropping down the last rung, Xander wandered further into the darkness. There were Turkish rugs on the floor! He was amazed. Actual home comforts; strange demon. Following the rugs he rounded a corner and saw a four-poster bed sumptuously decked out in heavy throws. Spike was there, face down, his back to Xander and he appeared to be ... what WAS he doing? Some weird kinda push-ups? The bed was bouncing up and down as Spike seemed to be pounding the mattress as if.................

"Spike! What are you doing?"

Spike froze as he heard the voice behind him, effectively pinning Buffy to the bed. She moaned as he stopped the rhythm, she was so close to the edge.

His head whipped round, stunned horror written across his face as he saw Xander standing with a quizzical expression playing his features.

"What am I... What does it look like I'm doin'? I'm exercisin'."

With that he renewed his thrusts up and down, making Buffy squeal and the bedsprings squeak. He willed her to be quiet so that Xander would just leave and not have a huge set-to with him. The last thing he needed was Scooby company right when Buffy had finally admitted there was something between them.

Xander wasn't leaving. Snarling, Spike shushed Buffy quietly and withdrew his aching cock from her warmth. She tried to grab at him to keep him inside her but he smoothly turned to sit with the sheet draping across his lap to hide his erection. Time for Captain Cool.

"What do you want?"

"Spike - I'm looking for Buffy, have you....."

"Haven't seen her,” he airily interrupted Xander. At the same time he was horrified to feel the bed shift behind him and Buffy’s warm breasts pressing against his back. He sat up straighter, trying to look nonchalant. When Buffy started to nibble his earlobe, making yummy sounds, it was all he could do to stop himself from throwing her on the floor and mounting her good and proper. As it was, he squirmed and tried to discreetly swat her away while paying rapt attention to Xander, desperately hoping he could rely on the whelp’s being a bit slow on the uptake.

"Well, as a matter of fact you wouldn't. She's come down with a slight case of invisibility."

"Invisible, eh? Well, if I see her I'll clue her in that you’re lookin' for her."

Xander sneered. "After your ... exercising?"
"Yeah, right," Spike smirked. The smirk was replaced by a look of pain as he tried to ignore the sensation of Buffy licking up his side and round to his abdomen, her hot little hands petting and clawing at him. Immediately the sheet tautened across his legs when his erection returned with a vengeance. Captain Cool was weakening under the onslaught of rampant Buffy. Had she ever touched him like this before? What was she playing at, right in front of Xander too.

Xander just shook his head and turned away. Walking a few steps, he stopped and turned to face Spike again. The vampire was slapping at the empty air and growling.

"All joking aside, Spike, you really should get a girlfriend."

Spike stopped dead, and let his hands drop to his side. Turning to look over his shoulder, he saw Xander shrug and walk towards the ladder.

******************************

An uneasy silence hung over the Magic Box. Anya and Dawn were flicking their eyes between Willow and D’Hoffryn, noting the body language of the wicca which clearly said 'run'.

"So, Miss Rosenberg, I hear you now eschew the wiccan way of life and choose to tether yourself to an existence of mediocrity. Are you sure that's what you really want?"

Willow swallowed nervously, her eyes looking down at the floor. Could D’Hoffryn read her mind? Was he able to glean her innermost thoughts? Glancing up, she saw how Dawn and Anya were staring at her expectantly. Damn, she'd let the silence go on too long.

"Yes I'm sure - I mean not about the being mediocre 'cause hey - not mediocre, very above mediocre woman - but yes I'm sure, no more magic. I don't need it."

Her pulse was racing; she knew D’Hoffryn sensed it and she knew that he was aware she was lying. Yes, she was prepared to give up the magic, had promised to...... but she didn't want to. *and why should you give up that power – you’re strong* the selfish little voice of her id whispered in her ear.

D’Hoffryn smiled. He had the witch. The conflicting waves of unease emanating from her stiff frame were like nectar to him. A little push, a little shove and she would yield to the inevitability of her fate. She would let the darkness in and he would claim her for his own.

The tableau of tortured stillness was finally dispersed by the sound of the bell above the door. The humans in the room all jumped, the demon just smoothed down his robe. Xander bowled in like an unrestrained puppy and ran smack into the demon lord towering above him. He gulped. Starting at the feet his gaze swept upwards slowly taking in the robe trimmed with fur, the clasped claw-like hands, the broad shoulders, and finally coming to rest about a foot above him on the horrific horned head of his fiancée’s former boss. Said claw-like hands were reaching out to grab him.

"Mr Harris! Permit me to shake you by the hand. Heartiest felicitations on your forthcoming nuptials! And how can I thank you for your gracious invitation to join you and your charming bride on the top table. She is truly a pearl of beauty and wisdom."

At the touch of the leathery fingers, Xander's head shot round toward Anya who was conveniently looking the other way. Turning back to D’Hoffryn, his mouth flapped open and shut like a landed fish. D’Hoffryn snorted in amusement. Even little acts of vengeance were within his purview and Anya had, after all, wronged him and abandoned her duty.

Dawn broke the uncomfortable silence. "Xander? Any news?"

"Sorry, Dawnie; Spike doesn't know a thing and he was acting all zonko boy and kinda icky." Xander shuddered at the scene in his head; he didn't really know what Spike had been up to but it just gave off major twisted vibes. "I told him about the disappearing act so I bet he'll head out and try to find her - when he's done... exercising." He shook his head to clear the disturbing image.

"At least, I think he will... he was really distracted. Guess I thought he'd care more that Buffy was in trouble. Perhaps he's over his doomed obsession at last. Man, he makes me angry, sniffing after her like a mangy stray mongrel."

Dawn doubted Spike didn’t care. He’d been standing under the tree by Buffy's window again last night. She had spotted the glow of his cigarette when she came down to the kitchen for a drink. She found it kind of comforting to know he was watching the house. Not that she'd ever tell him of course - he'd be snarky with her thinking the Big Bad would ever do anything like that, watch over them voluntarily.

She'd go see Spike. He'd do anything for her if she just worked the Dawnie magic, much batting of the eyelashes and looking helpless. When everybody was otherwise occupied she'd just scarper off to his crypt and work him over. Maybe hit him for an icecream into the bargain.

Anya pulled them all from their introspection by asking D’Hoffryn why he'd gone to the trouble of actually materialising rather than using the helephone.

"I just thought I'd pay you a visit, you and your friends, check your gift list and do a little shopping. You know, a demon has to look his best for the big day. You never know what single and available depraved being you might come across at such a social gathering and proper grooming shows one’s breeding."

Anya was carrying on a perfectly polite and innocuous conversation with the Lord of Hiroshmaha who seemed genuinely interested in all the details of the wedding, even down to the table flowers. If this was on TV, nobody would believe it.

"Oh, and I believe I know what has affected the slayer's opacity."

"Her what now!" Xander screamed out, alarmed.

"Her see throughness, Xander." Willow supplied.

"Oh, well why didn't he say that." Willow rolled her eyes.

"Well what is it? Will it hurt her? Can we fix it?" Dawn had advanced on the demon and Willow blinked in surprise as he obviously took a step back away from the animated teen storming towards him.

"Miss Summers, I understand you are anxious." D’Hoffryn occupied himself with smoothing his robe and regaining his composure, "but I really don't have all the answers yet. I merely know where to start. To continue my endeavours I need the assistance of a witch."

Suddenly, with a loud boom and flash of light the demon was gone................................and so was Willow.

******************************

Spike turned back towards Buffy, his head bowed down.

"That was bloody stupid." he drawled.

"Oh Spike! Don't freak, Xander didn't know I was here." Buffy reached to pull him down on top of her, but he shimmied out of her grasp.

He scrambled off the bed, letting the sheet drop behind him. Sauntering over to an old stone ledge, he uncapped the bottle of scotch which was there and poured a good measure into a glass, swigging out of the bottle before he put it down.

Buffy could tell by the set of his shoulders that he was angry. She couldn't work out why. Hadn’t they just had hours of the hottest, most stupendous sex? And she'd finally admitted she didn't just think of him as an easy way to scratch her itch and she was waiting for more of the same. He had to have felt the connection too.

"Spike? What's wrong?"

"This invisibility, it's right liberating for you aint it? Go where you want, do what you want. I've just got it, what's different. The only reason you're here is because nobody knows it." He downed the whisky in the glass in one gulp and threw the glass at the wall, shattering it.

Buffy sat upright. His words hit home. That was why she was here; because nobody knew she was.

"Spike...."

"You know what, Slayer. Just go, find your clothes if you can, get dressed and go. 'Cause if I can't have all of you..."

"Spike..."

"You know Xander would have staked me if he’d caught on. Do you honestly think he’d believe you wanted to be in my bed? No, Buffy. I've had enough being your bloody whipping boy! I've been a master fucking vampire for over a hundred years. I could snap your neck with one hand and I'm not your soddin' lapdog. What you said earlier, 'bout being mine. That's what I want from you, not just a quick shag when you need to get your rocks off. And I knew you could be a bitch, but I never took you for cruel. Saying that, and not meaning it.................you might as well fucking stake me 'cause you've already killed me. "

His eyes were blazing, tense with emotion his entire stance said dangerous predator. Buffy had never been so aroused. Her heart was pounding, her mouth was dry and her aching pussy was just dripping. She needed him.

"Spike...."

"Look - just fuck off will you. You’re not jerking me around any more. I'm not gonna be a convenient dirty little secret that means nothing to you. I said I’ve had enough."

Buffy considered what he was saying. He meant it, she could tell. Surely he could smell her arousal, sense her quickening heartbeat and still he wasn't moving towards her. He always wanted her, even after she'd beaten him up. It didn't matter what had gone on before, when she was hot for him he always came through with the goods. He couldn't stay away. But not this time. He stood clasping and unclasping his hands by his side, his chest rising and falling, panting useless breaths. She felt her insides knot up with tension. Was she angry? Was she just pissed off at him for curtailing the game or scared that the game had already changed forever? What was she feeling?

Looking at him, his beautiful ivory form just visible in the light of the torch that Xander had left behind, his deep blue eyes clouded with pain, Buffy gasped. It was as if the scales had fallen from her eyes and she was seeing him afresh. She knew what she was feeling; she was falling in love with him.

She drew in a deep ragged breath. Softly pulling back the sheet which had fallen over her invisible body she padded lightly to his side. His head was down, and the muscles in his neck stood out with tension. He was gritting his teeth, the sheer perfection of his cheekbones as they worked with his gnashing jaw mesmerising her. Slowly, she reached up and cupped his left cheek in her right hand. He jumped away from her, startled by her touch.

Buffy advanced again towards him. "Spike....please. Let me speak."

Her voice was soft and tremulous, on the verge of tears. Despite his words, he was still and always would be love's bitch where Buffy was concerned. And when she was hurting, he was hurting. God he was a useless excuse for a sodding demon!

He tilted his head down towards her. "Go on then, Slayer. Say your piece." He snarled the words at her; he could still be the Big Bad.

She pulled him with her to the bed and sat facing him, holding both of his hands in her tiny ones. Breathing deeply, she began.

"Spike, I admit that I came here at first because I was thinking of fun and no c