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theluckywizard · 1 year ago

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Lucky's Writing Masterpost

Hi I'm Lucky! I'm a writer and an artist, 42 years old, living in New England. I started writing Dragon Age fan fic in January 2023 after decades of original fiction hell where I never finished a damn thing. My main OCs are Rose Trevelyan and Garrett Hawke and I love them very much and ship them very much. In my real life I'm a science teacher and a soft pastelist and a mom of a pair of young turkeys. Like my writing? I take prompts anytime! Let me know what ship or character and you can send quotes/pics/songs/anything from my prompt lists.

The Long Fic

In the Shattering of Things,

Lady Rose Trevelyan's idle, aristocratic life blinks out in a haze of irrelevance when the breach destroys the Conclave. She may be soft and coddled when she joins the Inquisition, but there's a fierceness inside her she's yet to fully recognize. Armed with only a few relevant skills and the mark that makes her a legend, she is thrust onto a path delivering hope where it’s long been scorched away and finds comfort in the grumpy, handsome stick in the mud charged with her protection and training. As she stumbles her way across southern Thedas, she begins to realize she's tangled at the center of machinations she barely understands, and she's not alone in that. Enter Hawke.

The Other Longish Fic

Kiss Me Moonstruck

Smashed together in a matchmaking scheme cooked up by their enterprising mothers, Garrett Hawke and Rose Trevelyan are forced to endure one another for a whole week over Satinalia at the Hawke Estate. Rose hears he’s a swashbuckling treasure hunter, as wild as he is handsome and as ill-bred as he is rich. Garrett suspects she’s a brat of an ingenue by the string of rejected marriage proposals behind her. Determined to prove to the other that they could not be less compatible, they quickly find their mothers’ plot might be working better than they thought. (Rose & Hawke POV)

Many more below the cut:

In the Shattering of Things related One Shots

The Protestations of the Commander's Bed, Mature, WC 1348, Fluff

With her hands on her hips, Rose stares at Cullen's bed, his cursed bloody bed. “We meet again,” she says softly, snorting to herself. Rose and Cullen attempt to enjoy some personal time. His bed has other ideas. (Rose POV)

Good Old Garbolg, Mature, WC 1462, Fluff

Hawke's heard about all these weird bottles of booze the Inquisitor's been picking up in her travels. He particularly wants to try Garbolg's Backwater Reserve because... well, why wouldn't he? He's Hawke. Besides, any excuse to sneak off to a dark and cramped corner with the flame-haired imp he's hopelessly in love with is a good thing. (Rose POV)

Fractures, Explicit, WC 3660, Smut/Whump/Pain

Cullen has been recovering from severe injuries after a catastrophic encounter with Samson in Emprise du Lion in Inquisitor Rose Treveyan's quarters. Rose has been nursing her anger and anguish for weeks. Amid the necessary care and closeness of his convalescence, it all comes spilling out at last. (Rose POV)

Pull Me From the Dark, Mature, WC 2107, Flangst

The Inquisitor arrives in the Western Approach and Hawke's been waiting three infernal weeks to see her again. There are a couple emotions Hawke hasn't felt in a long time and he's about to experience both of them. (Hawke POV)

Contact, Gen, WC 427, Flangst

Bethany Hawke has lovely dreams of her childhood home where she often looks inside Father's little chest for the curiosities that lie within, memories of the entire family she's lost- Malcolm, Leandra, Carver and Garrett. The Fade is nothing if not surprising. But today she gets a little more of a surprise than she bargains for. (Bethany POV)

Some Kind of Witchcraft, Explicit, WC 2213, Fluff Smut

Inquisitor Rose Trevelyan is away clearing rifts along Sulcher's pass but she leaves plenty of reminders behind for Cullen to find while she's gone... and after she returns! (Cullen POV)

Together Alone, Teen, WC 2608, Angst

A traumatized newly-promoted Knight Captain who only wants to keep the world safe from the terrors of the Fade. A soft-hearted, sharp-minded mage who spent years evading the law. Maybe they don’t share the same fears. But at least they're not alone in being afraid. Or how two people form an unlikely friendship in the worst possible place and change each other forever. (Cullen & Bethany POVs)

Proper Provocation, Explicit, WC 2250, Fluff Smut

Rose and Cullen renew a war room debate that quickly devolves into a spirited attempt to spank each other which quickly devolves into smut. (Cullen POV)

Unrelated One Shots

The Boy Who Talked too Much, Explicit, WC 2373, Fluff Smut

Elissa has been coming to Alistair's tent for a week now for cuddles before anyone else is up. But they'd never kissed. Today is different. Alistair is a nervous nelly and can't seem to stop talking (or thinking for that matter!) (Alistair POV)

Unvarnished, Explicit, WC 3636, SMUT

Clinging undergarments and more proximity than they've ever had sparks an unexpected blaze between Rose Trevelyan and Blackwall and unleashes parts of the impostor Warden he thought he'd long buried... (Blackwall POV)

The Firmness of his Resolve, Explicit, WC 2166, Fluff Smut

In which Cullen just wants to finish some vital work and Inquisitor Theresa Trevelyan has other ideas. How an under the desk act turns into a (very) friendly competition. (Cullen POV)

Love at First Fight, Teen, WC 5,962, Fluff & Action

Years before he became the Hero of Ferelden, Aedan Cousland competes in the Tantervale Grand Tourney melee final against a surprising opponent: fierce, sharp-witted, and unmistakably talented Marie Trevelyan of Ostwick. And he can’t help but feel a little bit smitten when she clobbers him. Lucky for him, there's a banquet afterward.

Long Fic Excerpts and Companion Pieces (spoilers!)

An Inexplicable Pull, Gen, WC 1504

It's only been a week since Rose Trevelyan stumbled out of a rift in the temple ruins above Haven. She may come from a privileged, sheltered background but she's applying herself to her training admirably. There's something willful and impish hiding under that polite veneer. And something else. He can't stop looking her way, trying to puzzle it out. Perhaps he should try talking to her. (Cullen POV)

Into her Hands, Teen, WC 1334, Fluff

Watching the Inquisitor read the book he'd picked for her across the mess tent in camp in Crestwood, Hawke decides to grab the book she'd picked for him and join her. Sitting beside her on the damp ground he feels an awakened sense of possibility. (Hawke POV)

The Commander, the Tevinter and a Bottle of Lightning, Teen, WC 3,325, Fluff

It starts as a professional favor to Inquisitor Rose Trevelyan, taking the Stick in the Mud out, drawing him away from the work he clings to so desperately. But what she doesn't know is that Dorian has positioned himself to be double wingman extraordinaire and Cullen is about to be utterly boiled in the bag. (Cullen POV)

The Gift, Teen, WC 1,249, Angst & Fluff

Waiting to receive word from the Inquisitor from Crestwood, Cullen's feelings wrestle out of his grasp. And Maker why are there so many entrances to his office? Rylen arrives just in time to help his friend sort his thoughts out. (Cullen POV)

Point, Teen, WC 1,224, Action and Angst

Hawke takes on the bandit leader's second in command at Caer Bronach, a shockingly large bruiser before discovering that Inquisitor Rose Trevelyan isn't anywhere in sight. (Hawke POV)

The Coldest and Warmest Dawn, Teen, WC 3419, WIP, Angsty

The attempt on the Breach approaches with agonizing speed. The amplified magic of three hundred odd mages will channel through Rose Trevelyan and her marked hand. And in all likelihood, it will claim her life. Cullen finds this unacceptable. He recruits a crack team of Dorian, Vivienne and the dangerous Tevinter prisoner in the Chantry's cells to find a way to save her. (Cullen POV)

Bumbling Hearts, Gen, WC 2372, Fluff

Inquisitor Rose Trevelyan is just learning to control the dangerous new feature of the Anchor- discharging accumulating power by opening a rift in Veil- the mark of the rift. She enlists Cullen as back up and as is tradition, much awkwardness ensues. (Rose POV)

Dead Draw, Gen, WC 1574, Angst and Whump

After the catastrophe between him and the Inquisitor earlier in the morning, Cullen expected Dorian's confrontation. He just didn't expect it to arrive so soon. (Cullen POV)

The Map, Teen, WC 1089, Angst and Whump

Rose Trevelyan awakens standing over her desk, quill in hand, a kind of wildly drawn map beneath her. She doesn't know what's happening and she wakes Cullen to help her sort it out. But he doesn't react the way she needs. (Rose POV)

Rumors, Teen, WC 2189, Angst

Returned to Skyhold from Crestwood, Hawke's been dogged the whole way back by rumors about the nature of his relationship with Inquisitor Rose Trevelyan. His old friend Leliana wants to know what his game is. (Hawke POV)

A Sense of Duty, Teen, WC 2220, Angst

As commander of the Inquisition forces, Cullen needs to have a chat about tactics and protocol with his old acquaintance, famed warrior Garrett Hawke after spurious reports come in from Crestwood. The mountain of history between them and the salacious rumors about Hawke and Inquisitor Rose Trevelyan make this conversation more intense than he expected. (Cullen POV)

Thirst, Mature, WC 6450, Angst and Whump

Commander Cullen Rutherford has had a shit few weeks. Headaches, tremors and memories dog him. His romantic hopes have crumbled. His blood feels empty and thin. With so many cares weighing upon him he's been wondering if he's still fit to serve, if he ever was. He should resign, shouldn't he? But perhaps it's not that complicated. Perhaps he's just one bottle of blue away from feeling right after all. (Cullen POV)

In Search of a Wayward Bronto, Teen, WC 6,648, Fluff and Angst

Desperate to find his brother, Garrett Hawke heads to a blight-ruined stretch of Orlais to search for the Wardens with Varric and Alistair. Amid their misadventures and unending banter, Garrett grapples with past failures and the growing love he feels for Inquisitor Rose Trevelyan. (Hawke POV)

Something Wicked This Way Comes, Mature, WC 7,380, Angst & Action

Inquisitor Rose Trevelyan has disappeared in the midst of the ball at the Winter Palace. As her friends and companions search for her, they start to realize that something far worse than they expected is brewing. (Hawke, Cullen, Vivienne, Josephine, Fidencio POVs)

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spnae · 2 years ago

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Chapter 32 Coming Clean?

When Buffy and Willow returned to the castle they promptly deposited their shopping bags upstairs. Then they made their way back down to the living room to check on Ruby. Spike, per usual, was lounging on the couch watching TV.

“Hey, there’s my favorite dead guy,” Buffy, went over to him. Spike sat up a little to make room for her and she snuggled in next to him.

Spike looked up at her, “Hey you, how was your day?” he asked.

Buffy huffed, “Oh you know. Probably said way too much to Callum‘s mom.” Spike raised an eyebrow at her, urging Buffy to continue, “Yeah I kind of told her that I was a Slayer too—“

“And now you’re regretting it?”

Buffy shrugged.

“Not like you told her anything about the school or the girls right?”

“Nah, I just gave her some quip about the life saving properties of CPR.”

“Right. Still think Angel was a bloody git. Xander told me about that whole thing. He had to do CPR on you because Angel has ‘no breath’? Oh yeah and those squeezy breathing bag things EMTs carry around don’t work either. Right. I bet the idiot just doesn’t know CPR. Git.”

Buffy looked at him blinking, “What?”

“Don’t NEED to breathe, Pet, doesn’t mean we can’t inflate our lungs. Cigarettes wouldn’t have much of an appeal if that were the case.”

“Huhh. I— huh. Ok, sure, so do you know CPR?”

“Course I do. Dawn had to learn it in Health class while you were a less-solid heavenly-body and after that gem of a story I had Xander and Dawn teach me.” He shrugged. “Anya suggested using me as a practice dummy but that was a hard pass for me.”

“Good to know. So how’s it been here?”

Spike sat up a little straighter, turning to see Willow a little better, “Yeah, could’ve used you, Red, a little bit ago. She had another one of those blasted panic attacks. She seems a bit calmer when you’re around. I finally got her calmed down but that took some doing. She keeps going on about ‘Lauren’, but won’t say anything else.”

Willow sat down in a chair looking troubled, “Yeah she brought her up a couple of times already. I’m really wondering if we should be looking for a body.”

Spike rubbed the back of his neck, “Probably a good bet. What do you birds have going tonight?”

Willow perked up, “I was going to ask Buffy if she would help me collect the stones I need for the protection spell around the property while it’s still light out and then I thought we could get Xan to help us engrave them with runes tomorrow night. Maybe we could watch a movie!”

“I’m a fan of this idea. Big old fashioned Scooby-gang fun. Stones instead of stakes.”

“That’s what I thought! I have two dremel tools for you guys to use. I figure I’ll draw out the runes, you two carve them and then pass them back to me to charm them.”

“Bloody hell, don’t hold back on the excitement,” Spike groused. “That covers tomorrow, what about tonight?”

“Girls are on patrol, I’m taking a night off with my favorite people.”

“Sounds exciting.”

“Oh and you have big plans?”

“I’m still one of your favorite people aint I? I got some plans for tomorrow after we get Rubes settled in at the house and figured I’d go run some errands and get the bike after. Reckon it’s been sitting at Steve’s since we came back from Edinburgh, ‘bout time I got it back.”

“Oh yeah like that’s super exciting.”

“Smart ass,” he pulled her closer as he tickled her mercilessly, “Bit more adventurous than carving rocks!” He growled out playfully. Buffy laughed and squirmed as he continued to tickle her. He didn’t stop until she was laying on top of him panting for breath. He gazed into her sparkling eyes and dug one hand into her hair. He swallowed her final laugh when he cut her off with a long lingering kiss.

Willow cleared her throat, “You two do have a room last I checked.”

Spike hummed in mild protest as Buffy broke the kiss, then sighed, “Red’s right, Pet. I’d originally thought about going on patrol or playing cards or something tonight but I could do with a night in. Especially if you lot are doing the arts and crafts part of witchcraft tomorrow.”

“I have all four Level 4 girls out on patrol tonight, it would be a serious waste of your time.”

“Home it is then,” he grinned up at her wickedly, “might not be such a dull night after all.”

“You’re bad,” Buffy giggled.

“Don’t you forget it, Love.” He pulled her in for another kiss.

“Seriously, you guys literally have a room here. Upstairs, in fact.”

“That we do, you don’t have to collect your rocks right this minute do you?” He asked as he trailed a finger from behind Buffy’s ear and down to her cleavage letting his searing blue gaze linger.

Buffy stood up pulling Spike with her, “Humm, Willow—“

“I’ll keep tabs on Ruby. Just don’t be too long, I really do need to get those stones gathered, the carving might take a while.”

“You heard the little witch, time is of the essence,” Spike backed away out of the room grinning at Buffy as he did.

Buffy couldn’t help the smile on her face, “He’s— eh— I’m just going to—“

“Go on, get out of here.”

Spike was waiting for her by the elevator when she caught up to him. He gave her a hard, dangerous look and grabbed her roughly by the shoulders to kiss her. Buffy’s mind snapped to attention and she shoved him into the elevator, pinning him against the wall. Spike let out a low growl at the impact and moved a splayed hand across the small of her back, holding her to him.

“You gonna give it to me rough then?” He grinned, “Might not get you back to your mates in a timely manner if we take that route.”

“We can do quick and rough.”

“Deal,” he murmured as he nipped hard at her neck with blunt teeth and shoved her against the wall of the elevator fumbling for the controls.

Spike managed to get the elevator moving and a moment later they had reached their floor. They paused long enough to exit the small space and then they were once again locked together kissing, groping, and shoving each other roughly against the walls in the hallway like a sexually fuelled pinball game.

Buffy pinned Spike against their bedroom door until she found the doorknob. The door gave way suddenly and the two of them fell to the floor in a tangle of limbs. They rolled together and Buffy positioned herself to shut the door with a kick. Spike gripped her skirt while Buffy yanked at his belt buckle.

“Oh God Buffy, I love you,” Spike groaned into the junction of her neck.

“You’re mine, all mine,” Buffy murmured possessively in his ear. Spike was usually the one to play that card. For some reason, she suddenly felt the need to say it. To claim him roughly. “Mine,” she bit his neck with her blunt teeth, eliciting a gasp from him.

“Always,” he growled, pulling her into a rough kiss. Her words and the bite had kindled a fire in him; he ran a hand roughly up her skirt. Buffy fumbled with his pants a little before she was able to release his smooth hard length from them. She stroked him from base to tip running her thumb over the tip feeling the delicious moisture there.

He moaned into her mouth as she stroked him greedily, “Slow down, Pet. Said quick, not instant. Want to get to the main event.” He twitched his fingers gripping her inner thigh. He pulled at the little panties, ripping them off of her and rubbed a thumb over her wet heat. Buffy gasped as he stroked her.

She was already wet and she let out a little growl of her own at the unnecessary foreplay, “Now. I want you now.” She repositioned herself forcefully, gliding down over him. She clamped around him as he rolled his hips driving himself into her. She gasped again as he pushed in fully and she met his thrusts with equally rough enthusiasm. Spike gasped.

Buffy grinned, gripping her fingers into his now semi-freed curls and pulled roughly. She brought him to her for a deep bruising kiss. Tongues pushing for dominance. Spike bit her lip making her shudder and she yanked his head back forcefully.

Spike grinned at the pain, “Getting close are you?”

Buffy increased her pace and he pushed into her harder with a grunt. Her inner walls crushed against him as the pressure built up. With the hand still tangled in his hair she cradled him to her shoulder, “Bite me,” she gasped. The fingers of her other hand reached under his shirt clawing at his back leaving deep scratches in his pale flesh.

Spike didn’t hesitate. Pulling at her shirt roughly, he bit with blunt teeth into the space between her shoulder and neck.

“Spike! Harder!’

He vamped, sinking his fangs in slightly. He wasn't feeding and it wasn’t a deep bite. Buffy gasped and felt herself nearing release. She wrapped her leg around him pulling him into her with almost bone crushing force. He increased the pressure of the bite very slightly and retracted his fangs. Then ran his tongue along the bite shuddering pleasurably at the taste of her. The effect of her blood was instant. He felt his body respond as he continued drilling into her hard, making her scream, “Gahhh! William!”

Buffy’s head swam as she lost herself in the myriad of sensations coursing through her.

He pushed into her pounding hard and fast, the pressure building. He held on until he felt her start to quiver. She gave his hair a yank as they came together hard in a quivering mass of tangled limbs. Pleasure and pain. Fast and rough and worth every second. Buffy kissed him as she continued to grind her hips against him.

After a moment, Spike placed a firm hand on her lower back holding her in place against him, as she caught her breath.

“Think we made good time?”, he teased.

Buffy laughed into the crook of his neck, “No idea. It was definitely fun though.”

“Been a little while since we got a bit rough.”

“Still fun.”

“Girl’s got a vamp kink.”

“Matches your Slayer kink.”

“Bloody well right, could go for a bit more of that if you’re willing,” he said, pulling her into another hard kiss.

“Not now. You’re being punished.”

“What for? Not the bite, surely. I barely had a taste and you literally asked for it.”

“Did you really have to rip my undies? I liked those ones.”

Spike rolled his eyes and flopped over onto his back, “Bloody hell, I’ll get you a sodding new pair, Slayer.”

Buffy grinned widely, she really loved to mess with him.

***********

By the time Buffy and Spike went back downstairs, Willow had already found a couple of buckets they could use to carry stones in. She held them up to her gleefully as Buffy and Spike came back into the living room “Ready? I found one for each of us, we can pretend it’s an Easter Egg Hunt!”

Buffy couldn’t help but laugh, “Oh Will, I missed you. Yes, rock my world with your witchy egg hunt.”

Spike turned to her quizzically, “Buffy, sweetheart, I think your pun mixer is broken.”

“Nah, that was solid.”

“You’re better than this.”

“Oh, don’t worry, I’m sure I can dig up some rockin' puns before we finish this project.”

“Oh god, here we go.”

“You love my puns.”

“Just so long as you're not putting marzipan in my pie plate we’re good.”

“To that I say a big ‘Huhh?’”

Willow rolled her eyes, “Don’t worry about it, Buff, it was a Buffy-Bot thing that you totally missed with the whole being dead.”

“Oh come on, the rock thing wasn’t bad, in fact, I think I rock the rock puns.”

“I’ll let you rock me with any rock pun you want to throw at me.”

“Didn’t we just do that, my hot lava?”

Spike grinned, “Oh yeah, got our rocks off, real good.”

“You know I’m going to win a pun-off right?”

He chuckled, “We keep it up and we’re going to end up back upstairs.”

Buffy placed her hands on his hips, pulling him closer, “Are you still taking requests?”

“I’ll be your short-order cook, hot and ready or cool and slow, whatever tickles your fancy, Pet.”

Buffy felt herself melting into him for a kiss before she could stop herself.

“Okay! As fun as this is, I think maybe Buffy and I should get a move on. These stones won’t collect themselves.” Willow said as she wiggled the buckets at them.

Spike rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah right, I’m gonna yeah— check in on Ruby. She’s still in rough shape. Sort of glad they don’t have things ready for her over there, kinda want to keep an eye on her.”

“That won’t take long though, what are you going to do until tonight?”

“Might poke around the library a bit.”

“I’m surprised you haven't read every poetry book in there yet.”

“Yeah well, it’s been nice having a proper in-house library. I never realized how much I missed it until we got here.”

“You know, you can start collecting books and build your own library in our new place. The attic already has a ton of shelves, it’s probably what they used it for anyway or maybe you could have it in your Spike-space.”

“Could work, we’ll talk later. Mustn't dottle, Pet,” he kissed her once more before heading towards the utility room.

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

The two friends had been collecting smaller stones from along the border of the property and the low stone wall surrounding it for over thirty minutes. They had been chatting idoly when Willow suddenly cleared her throat uncomfortably.

“Buffy I have a confession to make.”

Buffy felt the hairs on the back of her neck prickle, she had expected something was still off between them. She turned towards her friend, “I’m listening.”

Willow straightened up after picking up another stone, “I’ve been going through those files Wes sent.”

“Yeah the stuff on Angel right?”

“Well, yeah. There’s a bunch of that but that’s not what I’ve been working on.”

“It’s not?”

“Wes also sent me what looks like pretty much everything W&H had on Slayers… there’s a lot and it’s not all translated so it’s been really slow. I’ve had Andrew and Dawn working on pieces but neither of them have a full picture of any of it.”

“Does Giles know?”

“He knows Wes sent some stuff but I didn’t tell him exactly how much. A lot of it is stuff Giles already has, but there’s some new stuff too. I found a couple things that are a little— disturbing,” Willow said as she picked up a few more stones along the way.

“Disturbing? Like how disturbing? What do you know, Will?”

“Well that is sort of the problem. I haven’t been able to get through all of it and then Xander just brought back a bunch of books and scrolls and a stone tablet he found in Africa so now there’s that much more to go through. He was supposed to be showing those to Giles today. A few of them are referenced in the files from W&H. It might still take a while to figure out. I’m hoping I can start playing connect the dots soon.”

“Okay— I’m hearing a lot of words but I’m not hearing why all the squirrely. What dots are you connecting?”

“Remember a while back when we were talking about the fact that there hasn’t been a record of any Slayer making it past the age of 25; like there’s some crazy expiration date?”

Yeah, Niki Wood is the oldest I ever heard about and she didn’t reach her 26th birthday.”

“Yeah well I started translating some of the new stuff, I brought it with me to have Giles take a look at it too— If I found what I think I found— This one part I was reading has been seriously bugging me. It mentions the Slayer receiving her gift by the end of her 25th year. I took another look at it after talking to Spike and it looks like another part translates to ‘Death Wish’.”

“You told Spike?”

“Oh goddess no! It was just something he said; it sparked an idea in my head and I went to check on it this morning. That's when I put together the Death-wish thing.”

“Death is my gift right? But I already sort of returned that gift… or well—“

“I returned it for you— yeah…” Willow sighed and leaned against the stone wall. “That’s the thing I’m so worried about... I haven’t finished the translation but, I think I might have accidentally— made you sort of immortal—ish— maybe.”

“Huhh?”

“The stone tablet Xan brought back, it’s one that W&H didn’t have, anyway it seems to contain part of the original working from creating the first slayer. It’s written more like a story so it’s difficult to figure out but... I don’t know. I don’t have anything solid on it yet but I just— I had to come clean and let you know. I don’t know if what I did made things better or worse for you and I won’t know until I finish going through all this stuff. It’s been kind of an obsession.”

“Is this why things are strained between you and Kennedy?”

“The obsession part maybe. I haven’t told her any of the rest of it. I’ve been too afraid too say anything, and… we really haven’t been talking much for a while now. It’s part of the reason why I’m hoping Kennedy is gone before I get back.” Willow hesitated and Buffy was sure there was something else she wasn’t saying.

“I just need to be able to focus on this because this could really be big and I just I can’t right now, Buffy! I can’t deal with Kennedy. I can’t deal with thinking about you dying again or maybe not being able to die at all because I brought you back from the dead and maybe that whole thing doesn’t apply to you anymore and maybe it doesn’t apply to any Slayer anymore because I used you as the basis of the sharing spell instead of Faith. I have no idea, I just don’t know—“ she sniffed.

Buffy’s mind was reeling. She blinked several times as she stared at her, anger suddenly flared, “Willow! I just sent a girl home to her mother in a box! She definitely wasn’t immortal!”

“She was also 15, not 25, or more specifically 26. I have to do more research and make sure the math is right but I’m pretty sure that if you make it to 26 you probably aren’t going to age anymore— maybe none of you will IF they can stay alive that long. You might still be able to die but it would have to be something seriously extreme.”

“Like a beheading? So what, I’m like the freaking Highlander now? Buffy McLeod?”

“Probably, or something similar, I think— I don’t know yet I really have to do more research.”

Buffy looked at her friend aghast, blinking several times, “Why are you telling me now, if you’re not sure?”

“Because it’s ripping me up inside. The not telling. I feel like I’m lying to my best friend about something I did. A big something that could affect your entire- possibly very, very long life,” she was almost in tears. Willow took a deep breath.

“But we don’t know for sure,” Buffy paused for a moment, “and I can think of one plus.”

Willow looked at her knowingly, “Yeah I guess it would be sort of perfect for you and Spike.”

It was a lot to take in, “But why 25?”

“As far as I can tell, I think it has something to do with ‘the end of maidenhood’,” Willow scoffed as she rolled her eyes dramatically.

“Sick bastards. Like it’s not enough to take a girl and turn her into the Slayer but then they have to shorten her already short life with a death wish AND an expiration date?”

“I’m not really sure yet but that’s exactly what it looks like. It seems like it was worked right into the original spell. Probably for that reason.”

Buffy nodded, “Sure, young and pretty girls are better bait for the trap,” she snorted derisively, “Well, we still have some time before I get there and if you’re right I could still die before that. Yay me!”

“That’s just it— the other girls can, that's for sure— but I think you might be different.”

“Because you brought me back.”

She nodded, “That wound you got in the Hellmouth should have been fatal, but you got back up and not only continued to fight, but you also made a pretty daring escape, Buff.”

“But recently I had some broken ribs and I swear it took a couple of days longer to heal than usual.”

Willow chewed on her lip, “I’ve suspected since the Hellmouth that your pain tolerance has also elevated. It was always pretty high but now— I don’t know if you are really feeling the extent of your injuries. You might have had more damage than you thought, maybe even a punctured lung and you might not have noticed. Without X-rays I doubt we’ll ever know to be sure.”

Buffy thought about that as they kept walking along. It made a kind of sense really. “You know, I kinda think Spike probably would have been able to tell me if my lung was punctured… he’s no doctor but he knows anatomy pretty well and he has pretty good hearing. Might have just been broken worse than we thought. The bruising was pretty ugly, I don’t normally bruise like that. That vamp pretty much crushed my rib cage on one side.” She paused thinking about the head injury she got at the hospital and suddenly wondered just how hard she had hit her head.

“Good point.”

They had nearly finished their circuit around the property before Willow spoke up again, “So when were you going to tell me about you and Spike’s new place and when are you guys planning on moving?”

“I, oh yeah— it won’t be for a while, it needs some work and we wanted to talk to Dawn about it first. I can show you after we’re done here, it’s on the other side of the castle where we’re going to be keeping Ruby.”

“Yeah, we’re almost done here anyway. If you’re going to bring it up to Dawn, you should probably do it now. I don’t know if she’s gonna be able to transfer to Edinburgh for the fall semester.”

“Oh it’s not going to be ready that fast. Maybe by the spring semester if we’re lucky but that sort of brings me to my next point. I hoped you might want to take the other half of the duplex.”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah. This was all stuff that I wanted to talk to you guys in person about…”

“I— yeah that’s sort of why I put off telling you about this stuff too.”

“Seems like we’re both guilty of that then.”

“Ehh yeah, seems like. Are you going to tell Spike about this?”

Buffy had to think about that, “Of course. Eventually. I don’t want to get his hopes up too much… Just in case.”

Willow chewed on her lip, “I’ll keep at the books and go over the spells, do some calculations and see what I turn up.”

“Thanks Wil.”

“What’s your personal Witch on retainer for anyway?”

***********

The next night after the sun had gone down Willow helped Buffy and Spike gather up the blankets and pillows Ruby had been using and helped them get Ruby settled into the basement of the duplex. Buffy was a little surprised by how different the basement room looked now. She had just expected Xander and Callum to set up a cot and a mini fridge in a corner and call it done.

The guys, and Buffy suspected Faith too, had gone above and beyond. In addition to the cot and a mini fridge, they had also found some secondhand furniture for the space. A little bedside table, two comfortable but shabby reclining chairs and a small dresser, as well as a couple of mismatched end tables, an old television set and a couple of mismatched lamps. On the nightstand was a hot pink lava lamp and a large stack of old magazines. A small crate of dog eared paperbacks sat next to the bed. The overall effect was one of dank comfort.

“Not bad,” Spike smiled, “nice homey spot down here.”

“I sort of asked Xan to make it as cozy as possible but I didn’t think they would do all this.”

Willow deposited Ruby onto the cot. Ruby looked around the space with wide eyes. Then watched as Willow went over to the little bathroom, “Looks like someone cleaned this up too. There’s even a few towels and shampoo and stuff in here. A nice shower might be a good idea. Maybe you’ll feel a little better.”

Ruby scoffed, “Right, because a shower is going to wash away my sins. Soapy bubbles gonna clean up what I did?”

“Ain’t nothing going to do that. You can apologize to your family, there might still be hope there. Donning a white hat can soften the edges a bit but you’re gonna carry that weight a long time, Rubes. In the meantime, some scrubbing bubbles’ll do you wonders. Looks like you even got laundry capabilities set up.”

Willow quietly moved over to the washer and dryer in the laundry room to investigate the set-up.

“But you’re not alone, you have us now,” Buffy interjected as she wrapped an arm around Spike, “and you have a place to stay. You can fix it up however you want.” She left Spike’s side and opened the dresser drawers, there was a couple of old t-shirts and a few pairs of sleep pants but that was it. She pulled out a set, they were clean and would be comfortable to sleep in but not much else. “You’ll need some clothes—“

Willow stuck her head out of the laundry room, “Looks like the handy-guys were busy in here too. The washer has an out of order sign taped to it but there’s a sink and some laundry soap in here. There is a note on the dryer, looks like it’s from Xander— use at your own risk— Humm ok, so at least there’s a sink and some laundry detergent,” she crumpled up the note from Xander.

“We can always go over to your dorm or your parents house and get some stuff for you or I can go,” Buffy added.

Ruby swallowed and nodded once, “What would you tell them?”

“What do you want me to tell them? I can tell them anything you want as long as it’s at least close to the truth but I really think they would rather see you.”

“You do?”

Spike narrowed his eyes at Ruby, “Course they would. Although I don’t recommend going here right off, it might do you some good to see them. We will go with you, explain the soul thing and all,” Spike added.

“We don’t have to do it tonight do we?”

Willow spoke up, “Not tonight. We’ll call your parents first. You have time, we’ll do it when you’re ready.”

“How are they?”

Buffy answered, “They’ve been better. They have one daughter in a coma because their other, undead-daughter put her there, so yeah, they’ve been better,” Buffy watched her. To the best of her knowledge, this was the first time Ruby had asked about her parents at all since she had been with them. “We can even go see Sheena if you want.”

She nodded, “I think I’d like that.”

“Maybe tomorrow night then. I’ll see what I can do about clothes. You get settled in.”

“Ta,” she cleared her throat, “Ahh, thanks for everything. I think a shower sounds pretty amazing right now.”

“There should be blood in the fridge there,” Spike went over to double check, opening the little fridge door and glancing up at Ruby, “Looks like they got you a nice little variety and a little microwave. That’s right nice of them. Looks like you’ve got just about everything you need here.”

Buffy nodded in agreement, “Why don’t you do your thing, take a shower put on some comfy clothes, settle in with some reading material or watch some TV or something just try to wrap your head around stuff.”

Ruby nodded again, still looking a bit blank but maybe a little bit more hopeful then she had a few minutes ago, “No you’re right, moping isn’t really doing me much good now is it?”

“We’ll check in on you later.”

And with that the three of them went back upstairs into the kitchen. “I’m feeling oddly good about this,” Buffy smiled.

“She’s not out of the woods yet but it’s a start,” Spike said a little distractedly as he watched Willow. She was wandering around the kitchen checking the cabinets and the countertops. “Alright there, Red?”

“I was just thinking about how I want to refinish the kitchen. I have a decent amount saved up, I was thinking about getting a house eventually, but I think this would be even better.”

Buffy squealed and pulled Willow into a hug, “Do you really mean it? You said you’d think about it but—“

“Rome is nice but I really like the idea of living close to the action. I sort of already have a job here. I won’t have to do the long distance teaching thing anymore and I’ll also be closer to the Devon Coven which is definitely a plus.”

“Yay-ness!”

Willow grinned, “Xander needs a place too, I bet he’d take the second room.”

“We’ll ask him tonight,” Buffy smiled brightly. For over a year the Scoobies had been spread across multiple countries and now it seemed like things were finally starting to come together. A little hole in Buffy’s chest that she hadn’t really noticed before suddenly closed up a little.

Her smile lit up the room. Spike couldn’t help but smile back. He loved seeing her smile. He cleared his throat, rubbing the back of his neck and fiddling with his overgrown hair, “Good to know your neighbors I guess. Anyway, I’d better be off, Pet.”

“Us too.”

They made their way out into the entryway, Spike gave Buffy a chased kiss, opened the door to the other side of the duplex and stopped. “Humm, Buffy? Sweetheart?”

She turned back to him, “Yeah?”

He pressed his hand against the invisible barrier now blocking him, “Looks like our little experiment finally paid off. Think I’m going to need an invite into our place, Pet.”

Buffy bound over to the door going inside, “Welcome home! Come on in!” She grinned.

Spike hesitated, “You know what this means right? You’re ready for this?”

“Get your ass in here, William!”

He crossed into the threshold and let Buffy pull him into a long kiss, “Hoped you’d say that,” he grinned.

#fanfic #buffy the vampire slayer #buffy fanfic #buffy x spike #spuffy #bound #spike x buffy

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