Staring at the stars

Buffy looked up at the stars from where she lay on the grass. It was a blissful autumn night there wasn't a cloud to be seen.

"It's so pretty." She signed letting her head flop to the side to look at her companion. She smiled at his boyish expression. He always looked just like a kid when he wasn't being evil. Sometimes he even looked like a kid when he was.

"Yeah." He sighed back "I may be old an all Luv but there's still something amazing about just lying back and looking at the stars." Buffy giggled.

"William I do believe your just an old romantic!" Buffy said imitating an upper crust English accent.

"Lady Slayer, why do you flatter me so?" He returned in a perfect Aristocratic tone easily overlaying his normally crass London breeding. Buffy looked over at him with quiet astonishment. Spike smiled. "When one has an eternity to waste my dear, one soon becomes bored and must turn to more sophisticated modes of entertainment....Plus toff's taste better, its the more hygienic upbringing."

"Shame that dress sense isn't carried in blood, You would look sexy in a tux....Did I just say that last bit out loud?"

"You mean you don't find me sexy the rest of the time?" He grinned.

"Yeah, if you find Billy Idol a big turn on."

"One day Slayer I promise I'll fulfill your fantasies of me in a tux. Take you out to some high class party."

"What makes you think I'd go with *you*?" She asked. Spike rolled over onto his side and looked at her.

"Just a hunch pet." He said grinning.

"you know this time last year I'd have had myself shot for letting my guard down around you like this and now I'm practically about to go on a date with you." She frowned "It probably has something to do with the fact that I know your darkest secret."

*Not quite, thankfully* Spike thought to himself. Although the Slayer knew his spider secret she still had no idea as to why it was possible, that was the real secret.

"What is it with you and spiders anyway?" She asked. "you could go see a therapist about it. Forget that your a vampire for a moment."

"I've tried a shrink." Spike admitted "Gave him a referral of my own, sent him to an undertaker." She rolled her eyes at him "And Froid was obsessed that it had something or other to do with my mother. I hit him for that one."

"*You* hit Froid?" She asked incredulously.

"Knocked him out cold. Would have drained 'im then and there if his damn secretary hadn't come in and started screaming for me to get out before she called the police. I may be a vampire but I still have morals, especially when it comes to my mother." He frowned rolling back on his back and muttering. "Sick bastard."

"I could go with you hold your hand." She grinned.

"Bloody hell Slayer is there any time when your not thinking about getting bodily contact with me?" Buffy hit him. "See there you go again."

"Spike!" Buffy signed. "have you always hated spiders?" she asked.

"Yep, I'm nothing but a big scared demon." He shrugged. "So if I'm wearing the tux, what are you wearing?" Spike changed the subject.

"I don't know." Buffy frowned "You can't expect a girl to pick out a dress for some big party on the spur of the moment."

"That's the reason guys invented the Tux. We don't like spending ages over what we're going to wear so some absolute genius comes up with the tux and that way we don't have to decide we just all wear the same thing. Its like a ballroom uniform."

"Well I could never do that do you know how embarrassing it is to get to a party and see someone else wearing the same outfit?"

"Not a clue Luv."

"Oh yeah that's right, not many people would *want* to dress like you." Buffy threw

"Slayer!" Spike growled a little warning. "Pissing me off is never a good idea you know."

"You'll get over it."

"Well at least I can say I'm unique"

"Thank god." Spike hit her. Buffy sat up about to hit him back when she stopped and a slow smile spread over her face.

"What?" Spike asked hesitantly at her evil grin. "What is it?" Buffy jumped up onto her feet and walked over to the mausoleum not far away. Spike sat up on his elbows and watched her retreating back for a second as she disappeared round the corner. He was curious as the where this was headed.

"Slayer?" he called "Slayer what are you up to? Pet?" he watched as she reappeared round the corner and walked seductively up to him. His eyes widened as she straddled his stomach and kissed him.

"Spike?" She whispered pulling away from the kiss.

"Yes?"

"Close your eyes." He looked hesitantly at her for a second then lay back and closed them.

He felt her hands go under his shirt and lightly brush over his chest so that he could hardly feel it.

"Open your eyes," she instructed. He did as she said and noticed her hands crossed purposefully across her chest. Both of them. While he was still feeling her other 'hand' roaming over his cold skin.

"Err, Luv?"

"Yes?"

"What have you done?"

"Therapy." She smiled cryptically.

"Therapy?"

"Nothing bad has happened yet right?" she asked.

"Apart from me getting very worried, no."

"Which means there's nothing to worry about." She smiled "Spiders aren't that bad are they now?" Spike paled, more.

"Spiders?" His eyes grew wide as he looked down at his chest and the small object making a little tent under his shirt. Buffy felt his body grow tense. "Please Buffy don't tell me that this is a...." He looked up at her pleadingly

"Spider." She supplied

"Slayer get this off of me right now!!" His voice turned into a shrill whisper.

"Why? its not doing you any harm. Its not like it could kill you, your dead already."

"Its got eight legs. Its got eight eyes. Its got fangs and venom. Fuck if it would kill me or not I just don't want it any where near me now get rid of the bloody vile thing!"

"No not until you tell me why you hate them so much. Your a demon your not supposed to be afraid of little things like spiders."

"Mad irrational fear, nothing else. Now get rid of it please!" He was becoming more afraid now. Not so much of the spider that scared him shitless but he was more scared of Buffy right now and her chosen line of inquiry.

Buffy nudged the spider just a little and Spike let out a little squeak that threatened to have her in stitches as it began to walk up his body.

"I don't know, I don't know! I just hate them."

"For someone who hates Spiders so much you know quite a bit about them."

"Did no one ever tell you to know your enemy?" Spike whispered as his eyes followed the spider that was slowly moving up towards his neck. If he could have moved he'd have thrown the spider half way round the world and then run in the opposite direction but fear was paralyzing him. He also had the slayer sitting on him which made running and throwing all the more difficult.

"Slayer you are just cruel!"

"Look who's talking mister killed-2-slayers-and-every-other-living-human-he's-ever-met."

"Didn't kill you did I?"

"Wonder why." Buffy said as she leaned down and kissed him.

*I could be enjoying this much more if she'd just get rid of that thing and stop asking difficult questions* he thought to himself.

Spike felt the spider pause on this throat then pick the worst of two options. Instead of crawling down his shoulder and away onto the grass it decided to step up onto Spikes chin and begin a path across his face. Buffy sat back up when she felt a slight tickling under her chin she almost cracked up when she saw Spikes petrified eyes crossed and looking down at the spider that was about to crawl across his mouth.

She decided finally that he'd suffered enough. She was obviously not going to get the truth like that and it was cruel really to leave the poor thing so close to that animal. The spider must have been terrified!

Spike breathed a sigh of relief as Buffy scooped the Spider up off of his face and got up carrying it away back to where she had found it. Spike quickly got up arranging his duster on his shoulders when she got back.

"Can we go now Luv?" He asked pleadingly the thought that there could be more of those around scared him shitless.

"'K, we can go." She smiled innocently "So when we going to this party?"

"Never. Not after that stunt you just pulled pet."

"Aww, was little spikey sacred?"

"Bite me!"

"Drop dead."

"Too late."

*End*