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tamingthemuseBut this particular plot bunny that's been running rampant did!
Title: Miss Perfect
Rating: PG-13
Fandom: Buffy (Spike/Buffy with Spike & Scooby friendship, which means NO BLOODY BASHING)
Spoilers: S6, goes AU happily from that last moment in OMWF
Prompt: #37 - Devotee
Warnings: Um, none. A good deal of "hee" moments, probably. I don't think you're going to need to watch for a spit-take, though.
Disclaimer: I own nothing but my thoughts. Joss claims all.
Word Count: 2417
Summary: Spike's tired of Buffy arguing with him on everything and says he'd be happier if she was his idea of "Miss Perfect". Buffy decides to give him what he asked for.
“What the hell is the matter with you?”
“Piss off, Slayer.”
“Yeah, right. When's the last time you called me Slayer?”
“I said piss off.”
“Spike, honestly, just...”
Spike whirled around, eyes blazing with anger Buffy hadn't seen in years. “It's you, all right?” he snarled. “You're the matter with me.”
Buffy stopped in her tracks, something she didn't really like doing in a cemetery. Who knew what could creep up on you? This time, however, she was a little too stunned to do anything but stop and stare. “What do you mean?” she asked, completely bewildered.
Up until this point, she and Spike had been on better than okay terms. They talked a lot in the cemetery when there was nothing to slay, and they'd learned quite a bit about the other blonde in the process. They were most definitely friends, heading into the more than friends category. They'd had the kiss outside the Bronze, and a few more after that.
Best yet, the Scoobies were okay with it. After her sing and tell with Sweet, they'd been utterly horrified at what they'd done. Willow had revoked magics completely, and Tara was helping her cope with going cold turkey. The others hadn't really known what they could do for her, until they found her outside kissing Spike. Instead of the anger and accusations they'd expected, the blonde duo had been pleasantly shocked when the others had agreed their coupling was a good thing. Even Xander had been supportive, and hadn't that been a nice change from the norm.
So what was Spike's deal?
“I'm tired of it,” he continued, and Buffy's heart stopped beating. He couldn't mean... “Tired of you arguin' and fightin' me.”
That hadn't been what she'd been expecting, and her heart resumed beating. “When do we argue and fight?” she asked, frowning.
Spike threw his hands up. “All the bloody time! Yeah, okay, the kissin's great, don't get me wrong, and so are the good moments, but then I say somethin' and you get all indignant and then we're fighting the rest of the night. I just want the good stuff, not the arguing!”
Buffy rolled her eyes. “That's what this is about? Spike, we argue about things because that's what we've done for years. I'd be personally afraid if we didn't argue. The fighting doesn't mean anything; it's not over if you like me or I like you. It's about stupid little stuff, like how to fight the demon, what Dawn should be dressed like on a date, and how we act. It's little crap, and we just get angry for a little bit. We're good again the next night, so it's not anything to take seriously.”
“Yeah, well I do,” he said, folding his arms across his chest. “I don't like fightin' with you. I'd rather be kissing you within an inch of your life, but then you start talkin' and the moment's gone.”
Buffy pursed her lips. “I start talking?” she said, beginning to get angry now. “YOU usually wind up talking, and when you do, it's always something crude.”
“It's not crude,” Spike insisted furiously. “And I didn't want to fight with you tonight, which is why I told you to piss off, and now we're fightin' anyways.”
“You didn't think telling me to 'piss off' would make me upset?”
“You should know that I need my own time and space sometimes! I just need to be angry on my own, but you keep naggin' at me, picking and poking and...”
“I'm nagging now? Because I care if you're upset about something? How am I supposed to act, then?”
“Normal!”
Buffy blinked, then narrowed her gaze, a growl starting from her chest. “Normal? You're one to talk about normal, Spike, William the Bloody, master vampire. What's normal to you?”
Spike threw his hands in the air. “Someone who doesn't object to every little thing I do. Someone who doesn't argue with me, but just accepts that for once, maybe I'm right. Someone who doesn't fight me on every little detail. Someone who doesn't glare at me, but smiles instead. My own Miss Perfect would be normal, Buffy. Even one of those things would make me ecstatic!” He turned and stalked off then, leaving Buffy bristling and ready for a brawl.
She clenched her fists, watching him go. He was just like any other guy; he wasn't happy with something, even if it was something he'd wanted for ages: always had to be the way they wanted it, to cater to their every whim. He used to love their arguing and fighting; he'd said it got his blood boiling, and it had led to some of their hottest encounters on patrol. Now, though, he was watching too many shows from the 50's where the women did as the men wanted.
As she watched him go, she made a sudden decision. “You want your own little devotee, your own Miss Perfect?” she asked softly, beginning to smile. “Then you'll get her.”
The next day at the Magic Box, the gang gathered for questions about an ice demon that was apparently stealing diamonds. Spike stormed in about twenty minutes into the research, glared at Buffy, then took his usual seat at the table. “What's the problem now?” he growled.
Xander and Willow blinked at his behavior, but Buffy just gave him a bright smile. “We're searching for an ice demon, sweetie,” she cooed, and everyone's head whipped around to view her in bewilderment. “I know you could really be some great help in the research.”
Spike stared at her as if she were an alien. Xander and Willow were inching back their chairs, and Giles was rubbing his glasses. “Right,” Spike finally drawled, still eyeing her suspiciously. “Let's have a look at the books, shall we?”
Still smiling, Buffy handed him the book she'd been looking at. “I think the demon's one of those who eats ice crystals,” she said, pointing to the bottom of the page. It was the only example of an ice demon they'd found so far, and Buffy thought her proposal held some merit. “The diamond that was stolen was crystal clear, and it's been talked about in tons of papers. Maybe it thought it was an ice crystal.” Xander and Willow nodded, and Giles gave a faint sound of agreement as he replaced his glasses.
Spike snorted and shook his head. “Sorry pet, but you've got it all wrong,” he said, closing the book and putting in on a stack. He turned and looked at her, raising his eyebrows at her, giving her his patented smirk. “An ice demon in California? They wouldn't be that stupid. And supposing that one of them was here for some reason, there'd be a cooler temperature; they've got a lot of influence over the landscape, more than most people think. That's why it's not written about in the books. Nobody believes one being could control the surrounding area's weather.”
The temperature outside was hotter than ever, and Buffy's inner temperature was starting to boil, too. Don't give him the satisfaction, she told herself. Keep up the Miss Perfect routine. If he wanted his own personal devotee, then she was going to continue to give him one.
“You're right,” she said, forcing her smile to get even wider. Xander and Willow's heads whipped back around to her, and Spike's smirk dropped into an open mouth of shock. “It certainly hasn't gotten any cooler here, so we'll have to think of some different options.”
She glanced at her watch, then rose quickly. “Dawn should be out of school around now,” she said. “I'll grab her and bring her back, and see if she doesn't have any ideas.” She moved around the table to press a kiss to Spike's cheek, then headed for the door. As she glanced back upon closing the door behind her, Spike was still staring after her, stunned.
She held her grin of satisfaction in until she'd made the turn to the school a few blocks from the shop.
The next few days were spent in much the same way. Spike was pampered, given smiles at every turn, had everything he said immediately agreed upon, and was basically given his Miss Perfect that he'd requested.
By the second day, he was beginning to look a little frustrated, and would begin to agree with what she said, if just to change what she usually did, which was agree with him. She knew that he was aware of what she was doing, but so far, he wasn't calling her on it. Her cheeks started to hurt from all the smiling around noon on the third day, but she kept it up, refusing to give in.
She discovered something else besides sore cheeks, though: Spike did have some good ideas and input. She still disagreed with some of the things he said, but with her pretending to agree, she found herself truly not as adverse to some of his thoughts as she used to be. Because of his help, they wound up discovering that the 'ice demon' was really Warren and his two goofy friends. Buffy gave the three a stern talking to, and as punishment for their misdeeds, told them to help Anya in the shop over the upcoming Christmas holiday. Buffy honestly couldn't think of anything more evil to do to them, and it also got her out of the job.
By the fourth day, though, she noticed something: Spike was deliberately trying to bait her into losing her temper.
“It looks like something that came out of the garbage. Give me a break, Buffy; you'd wear somethin' like that?”
She simply smiled. “You know, you're right, and I'll go change now; thanks Spike!”
“Oh, give me a break. You women don't know how to use the mace right. It doesn't look good with a girl; I'll take it.”
She simply smiled. “You're right. You'd do it much better, Spike.”
“Your hair. I just...uh...it just looks stupid. You should get it cut. And dye it. Bright red.”
She simply smiled. “You know, I was thinking about a change; I'm glad you said something, Spike.”
By now everyone knew what she was doing, including the Geek Trio. They did the first wise thing in months and stayed away from the blonde duo and their silent battle. When the pizza was delivered that evening, they with Dawn and Xander quickly ducked into the kitchen and stayed there. Spike grabbed his slice and headed for the living room. A few moments later, while Buffy was getting her own slice, she heard him call, “Would you bring me a beer, pet?”
She bit her tongue on the usual retort she would've sent flying his way, then smiled and made sure he could hear it in her tone as she replied, “Sure thing sweetie.” She grabbed a bottle from the fridge and headed into the living room.
He was slouched on the sofa, pizza looking dangerously close to dripping grease all over the cushions, and his feet were on the coffee table. She paused for half a second as she took in this monstrosity of a deed, then turned to him, where he sat grinning. “Hope you don't mind; felt like puttin' my feet up,” he said cheerfully. He knew he had her, and she could feel her empty hand beginning to curl into a well practiced fist.
Then she let the fist go, gave him a bright smile, and handed him his beer. “Not at all,” she said. “I'll be in the kitchen if you need me.”
She turned and walked back into the kitchen, then gasped as Spike's hand grabbed her arm, dragging her out the back door onto the porch. “What's going on?” she asked, honestly confused. He turned away, and she could see the cords in his neck tighten. “Spike, what's the matter?”
“You're the bloody matter,” he said, whirling around, and Buffy let the forced smile disappear into pursed lips. Not this again.
“What's the matter, Spike? Really? I gave you exactly what you wanted. You wanted a Miss Perfect who would be your number one personal fan, and I was,” she hissed. “Has there been a fight for the past few days? No. Has there been any arguing? No.”
“And there hasn't been any good moments, either!” he exploded. “I haven't kissed you once in the past four days!”
“There's a price to pay for everything.”
He shook his head and let out a harsh sigh. “I don't want this. I don't want a Miss Perfect. I've had her for four bloody days, and already I'm sick of her.”
“Then what do you want?” she asked, and her heart was going to stop beating again. “I can't be anything else for you, Spike. So it's not really a Miss Perfect you don't want, it's me you don't want. Just admit it: I wasn't the dream you were chasing after. I wasn't the girl you really wanted! You might have thought you wanted me, but in the end, you decided I wasn't...”
His lips were on hers, silencing her babble. When she opened her eyes, the anger in his was gone, and in his eyes instead she saw remorse. “I realized a few things over the past few days, all right? I don't like bein' right all the time. I'm not used to bein' the one in charge of the troops. I don't have the full battle plan ideas.”
“You do have good ideas,” she offered, and he smiled.
“I know, but they're sidekick ideas. You're the one with the ideas that'll lead us start to finish. I don't think I could do an idea like that. And I miss you doin' that.
“And you know what else I miss?” he asked. Buffy shook her head.
Spike's smile broadened. “The fights. The arguments. I miss the girl who's not afraid to stand up for what she believes in. I miss the girl who's got a backbone that rivals mine. I miss the girl who's made of spitfire and passion and inner beauty that's all her own.”
He leaned his forehead against hers, and she began to smile. “You missed me?” she asked.
“Yeah,” he said. “I missed you.”
“Good,” she said. “I missed me too. And Spike?”
“Yeah?”
“Don't ever put your feet on the coffee table again, or so help me, I will kick your ass.”
“Right.”
~Nebula
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Date: 2007-04-07 09:21 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-07 09:58 pm (UTC)~Nebula
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Date: 2007-04-08 12:34 am (UTC)Great fic.
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Date: 2007-04-08 11:35 pm (UTC)~Nebula
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Date: 2007-04-08 01:02 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-08 11:35 pm (UTC)~Nebula
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Date: 2007-04-08 01:24 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-08 11:37 pm (UTC)~Nebula
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Date: 2007-04-08 05:31 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-08 11:37 pm (UTC)~Nebula
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Date: 2007-04-09 05:09 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-08 11:41 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-08 11:38 pm (UTC)~Nebula
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Date: 2007-04-08 05:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-08 11:38 pm (UTC)~Nebula
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Date: 2007-04-08 11:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-08 11:39 pm (UTC)~Nebula
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Date: 2007-04-16 04:07 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-09 06:03 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-04-09 06:07 pm (UTC)Enjoyed muchly.
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Date: 2007-04-12 01:48 am (UTC)That's all.
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Date: 2007-04-18 12:18 pm (UTC)