A cold rain fell on the paved street while a solitary figure strode down a dirty alley. His cold eyes were gleaming with evil intent.
"Thanks Mr. Murdock. My children will love these books." A woman around the age of twenty-six was backing out of a door labeled 'Murdock�s Books'. In her arms, she clutched a few tiny books as though they were gold. Inside the door Mr. Murdock, himself nodded to the tiny woman. "Think nothing of it Angie. Just teach those little ones of yours the gift of reading." She graciously smiled as he shut the door. The figure in the shadows waited for her to become about twenty or so paces in front of him. However, with his long legs it would not take long to reach her.
As she walked a chill ran up her spine, she quickened her pace. "I've got to get home to my children." She thought. A lazy grin surfaced on the man's cold face as he spoke in a whisper to himself. "I love it when they get all excited. Makes the blood spicy and warm." He fell into step with Angie. He noticed how her dark brown hair clung to her sweated forehead. He reveled seeing the fear lit up in her eyes. "Hello cutie. You look lonely. Fancy me to escort you home luv?"
"No---no thank you sir. I can manage." She bent her head and walked a bit faster. His duster flapped in his wake. The yellow in his eyes seemed to pierce the inky blackness of the alleyway. Angie coughed. "Are you certain?" He probed. "I mean it's not safe to walk the streets of Sunnydale alone, at night. There are all kinds of nasties that go bump in the night." She dropped a book and bent hastily to grab it. "I can manage. Now please leave me alone." Swiftly he reached down and grabbed her by the arm. The children's books fell recklessly to the ground, landing in a puddle of water. A firm cold hand silenced her scream.
He whispered fiercely into her ear. "I've not eaten for days pet. Now you have a choice. This can be messy or this can be clean. It's your choice. Either way, you're never going to see those precious kiddies of yours again."
She whimpered and shook with fear. "So this is it. This is how I'm going to die. All those things they said about Sunnydale were true after all. Who is going to take care of Mattie and Johnny? Who is going to tell my husband I'm dead? Why did I take that second job? Did we really need the money?" Her thoughts raced in her mind. Angie tried to talk through his hand. "Please, I have children."
Laughter erupted from the vampire like a volcano. Yet still, he held a tight grip on the woman's arm. "Don't make me laugh woman. You are off your bird if you think I care about your bleeding children." He paused to stare intimidation into her eyes. "So what, you thought about your pathetic life for all of what? Thirty seconds and that's the best you can do? I've got children? Please, I have heard better whining from my sire, and he's the poof of the millennium. Nope sorry luv, guess you get eaten the messy way." He leaned into her ear, brushing it softly. The contact made her jump. "And it's going to hurt a lot."
Angie�s horrified screams vibrated throughout the alleyway as he tore into her neck with razor sharp fangs. Drinking deeply of her blood revived him, made him feel alive. At this moment, he never understood how he let some tiny government chip lie to him. Feeding on the mortals was his livelihood. It was who he was. It is who he should have been all this time. "To hell with humanity, who needs it?" He contemplated as the blood poured into his mouth, down his throat, into his veins. Hot and spicy just like he thought it would be. Finally, sated Spike dropped the woman with no regard, into the same puddle as the children's books. He stared over her empty body with satisfaction then looked to the skies. "You sods want to take everything away from me that matters eh. By God, I will take everything from you that you hold dear. I wonder about this woman, was she at peace with her God before I drained her dry? Or did I just send her straight to hell?"
High above the scene the female power turned to the male. "This was certainly not part of the plan." She frowned. "He was not supposed to revert to his former ways."
"This is indeed a problem. We will need to speak to the High Council. Perhaps they will be able to advise us." With that, the two of them disappeared in a puff of smoke.
Spike stared down at the body at his feet, and a smile came over his face. Maybe he would give that bitch a little parting gift.
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Buffy stepped out of her house into the cool night air. She was going to catch dinner with Riley before going out on patrol. He had convinced her to go to a nice French place with him. There was a twinge of guilt in the back of her mind. Buffy knew that she should be trying to find Spike. Trying to explain to him how she felt and what was going on. Nevertheless, she just could not face him right now. She had promised herself that she would talk to him soon. She strode forward, and her toe bumped something soft. She looked down and felt nauseous. A woman's body lay lifeless at her feet. The next thing she noticed sent a chill down her spine. Driven into the woman's chest was a metal railroad spike. Buffy�s hand flew to her mouth in shock. Suddenly her stomach felt queasy. The Slayer found herself suddenly loosing the contents of her stomach behind the bush on the lawn.
Off in the distance he watched her with a satisfied grin. �Can�t ever say I didn�t get you anything nice luv, just sorry it�s not your birthday.� Heavy boots beat the pavement towards town. There was still more work to be done. More �gifts� for the Slayer to find.