Woo hoo! Seasonal Spuffy. Today’s personal theme for me is Robert Burns “O would some power the giftie gie us to see ourselves as others see us.”
This is set in the comic book universe, post season eight. There’s a spoiler for the new Angel series that I made up – until it showed up on Jo Chen’s cover for the new season. So go me?
What’s a Sister For?
He came from his big spaceship flying balloon whatever and when he looked at her she didn’t seem to care. He looked like she’d punched him in the belly.
What he didn’t know was, Andrew had lasted two whole days when he got back from LA.
“Spike’s alive! He’s working with Angel.”
Belly busting works both ways. She went pale and sort of muttered “And he didn’t come to find me?” before she got mad.
So when Spike and Angel went to the apartment in Rome where Andrew was staying with the other Slayer slash fake Buffy, he went along with the official story and didn’t tell either of them where Buffy really was or what she really knew. He told them, he said, to get on with their lives. Because that’s what Buffy wanted. Because he’s afraid of Buffy.
Of course, Angel’s way of moving on was to go all Twilight and not in the sparkly way, and get a lot of people killed. And do stuff with Buffy in front of everyone (above everyone?) that’s left me scarred for life. And then he killed Giles. I hate Angel.
Spike’s way was to hook up with some giant cockroaches. He told me there was some stuff in between about going to hell with the whole city and maybe that had something to do with what happened to Angel. Not planning on being understanding about him any time soon.
I don’t think Buffy is either. She spent a lot of time avoiding looking at him. Faith bundled him off and took him to Giles’ place, which is now her place, in London. Good riddance.
Buffy is staying with us. That may seem kind of strange, since I could think that since I’m Buffy’s younger sister and Xander had a crush on her like forever, he’s with me because he can’t have her and now she’s right here and available and broken and such. I have been told by Willow that I could think that. I could think that even though she’s been ‘gay now’ for years that she still resents Xander having a crush on Buffy all that time and ignoring her feelings. Actually, I do think that. Xander loves me, full stop.
So, anyway, Buffy is staying with us until she figures out what she wants to do about everything. I tease her about leaving, but really I know some day soon she will, and that breaks my heart a little. She’s working in a coffee shop slash book store and she says it’s a nice place and she likes it. She’s even paying Xander rent even though he said that wasn’t necessary. But I know she won’t stay there forever. Or stay with me.
Because she lives here, I know that she’s hanging around with Spike. She talks to him through her window and they hang out on the fire escape. I overheard her tell him that he can’t come in because it’s not her house, though I think the rent thing means it kind of is. I’m not sure about the protocol. I’m also not sure if it’s because she really thinks Xander wouldn’t want him, though that’s not true anymore, or if she’s not ready to let him in. I’m kind of thinking the latter. Her heart’s pretty much hamburger right now.
Would she want to let him into her heart? I remember that the day of the big goodbye to Sunnydale, when the shock wore off that we were homeless and on a bus and she said that Spike had saved us, she was really quiet. I asked her that night what had really happened to him. “He burned up.” That’s all she would say.
I told him once after what he did to Buffy that I would set fire to him in his sleep if he ever hurt her again. So yeah, that was disturbing. I can’t imagine how much pain he was in, or what it was like for her to see it.
She told me later after she’d had a little too much wine that she’d told him she loved him and he didn’t believe her. Ouch. And then he was gone. I think maybe she’s also mad at him because not only did he not come back when he, well, came back, but that he didn’t because she couldn’t convince him how she felt. She does that projecting thing pretty well.
He’s back now.
So now instead of letting him into her life, she lets him hang around the edges. Too much guilt about Angel, about him. Too much anger at herself.
I think it’s time to take things into my own hands. Meddling. What’s a sister for?
“Hey, Xander. Baby. Let’s have Spike over for supper.”
“Why is the table set? And why are there four settings?”
“Um…” She gets so confrontational.
“And why aren’t you looking me in the eye?”
Her eyes are scary. Just then my beloved dropped in his two cents worth. “She invited Spike for supper.”
“She invited who for what? And why? When?”
“Just add a how and you can apply for journalism school.” Xander went to answer a knock at the door. I caught Buffy smoothing down her hair in her reflection in the toaster. “It’s the blooming onion!” He came back into the room with a white take-out bag in his hand. “I never could understand how he could eat these things. Garlic and not noticeably bloody.”
“The garlic thing is a myth.” Buffy glared at me. “What’s going on?”
I took the bag from Xander’s hand and unpacked the onion. “Hope this doesn’t get cold. Oh, good. They put in the dip.”
“Why did you invite Spike for supper?” If her voice were any colder I could use it to chill the beer. Which reminded me.
“Did you put the beer in the fridge, hon?”
“I did indeed. For I am beer man. Do you remember the time I was bartending, and the beer made Buffy go all caveperson? Good times.”
“What is going…”
The door knocked again. “I’ll get it,” I said. This time it wasn’t an onion. “Hi Spike. How are you? Thank you for not bringing any giant cockroaches.”
Spike stood in the doorway. Xander bowed and did this Vanna White thing with his hands. “I invite you into our home.”
“Yeah, you kinda did that when you asked me over. So, what’s the occasion?”
“We wanted to thank you,” I said. “For saving the world. I’m sorry you died.”
“Think nothing of it. Only took standing there in excruciating pain while I watched my body go up in flames. Not a big deal, really. Why, only last year….”
“Hi Spike.”
He got very quiet, very quick. “Hello, Buffy.” He looked at me. “You didn’t say your sister would be joining us.”
“I live here.”
“Right.”
Awkward pause. “So, dinner’s ready. Everyone come in and sit.”
Four of us around a table, the men at both ends. I made spaghetti, for that’s what I do. Xander poured the beer into our glasses. “Beer, Buffy?”
“God, no.” She went to the fridge and took out a bottle of diet Coke. “I like my head clear.”
“She doesn’t drink beer,” Xander said. “Caveman thing.”
“It is not! I just don’t like it.”
“Here’s an interesting quandry. If a caveman and an astronaut got into a fight…”
“Who would win.” Buffy finished. “I don’t care.”
“Uh huh.” Spike finished his glass. “Might I have another beer?”
This was going so well, not. Well, what did I expect? Xander warned me that this wouldn’t work. That Buffy didn’t like being confronted with her feelings until she was ready, which was usually never. Spike had eaten most of the blooming onion, Buffy hadn’t touched her spaghetti and Xander was giving me ‘that look.’
“Honey,” I said, “Could you help me with that thing in the bedroom?”
“Thing?” Xander asked. “What…Ouch.” Yes, I’d kicked him under the table. “That thing. Right.”
We left them in the dining room not talking to each other. This was better than them throwing the plates at each other, I guess.
“What should I do?” I asked him. “They’re acting like strangers. This isn’t what I wanted.”
“I know, baby. But you have to let things happen in their own time, if it’s going to happen. They’ll probably only ever be friends now at the most, and that’s probably for the best. And you can’t force it.”
“Yeah,” I sighed. “You’re right. I just want my sister to be happy,”
“Of course you do.” He put his arms around me. “And I love you for it.”
We startedto head back to the kitchen. “Wait. I think they’re talking.”
I could hear snatches of a conversation. “Thought you were dead.” “Didn’t think you’d care.” Voice being raised. “I loved you!” “Screwed Angel!” “Not my fault!”
The sound of a plate breaking. “Crap.” I ran in.
The plate had fallen on the floor when they shoved it aside, because they were in a clinch on the edge of the table. And not in a killing each other way. Big time smootchies.
And I realized. This was them. They weren’t mooshy romance and happily ever afters. They were passion and anger and lust. That was how they loved. They were the big bad vampire and the Slayer. Larger than life.
“Buffy,” I said. “Go to your room.”
They broke apart. She looked embarrassed. He smirked.
“I mean it. Go to your room, because what you’re about to do on our dining room table can’t possibly be sanitary.”
“I don’t have a room. I sleep on the couch, remember?” But she was sort of blushing. “I could go to your room.”
She smiled at him. He smiled at her. Our bedroom door slammed behind them.
My sister is happy. I’m happy.
Xander, not so happy with the moaning. We’re going to a movie. I promised him we can make out in the back row.
We’ll figure out the rest when we get home. I think my sister might be moving out.
Originally posted at http://seasonal-spuffy.livejournal.com/444416.html
