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snoggedGiven the twitchiness of LJ today, I realize posting this might be risky, but I can't help myself. I'm excited, darn it.
Title: Self-Destruct Button (9/?)
Author: snogged
Disclaimer: Joss Whedon and many other corporations own the characters of Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel the Series. I don’t.
Pairing: Willow/Spike
Word Count: 1578
Overall Rating/Warnings: FRAO/NC-17 (eventually)
Setting: Buffy – Post “Chosen”/Angel – set shortly after “Damage.”
Summary: Willow gets a party invitation from a certain warlock in Los Angeles.
Beta(s):![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
angelskuuipo and purplefeen. All other mistakes are mine.
A/N: Written forrua1412 who inspired me with her gorgeous artwork.
Banner byrua1412
“Could’ve killed ‘em all,” Spike scoffed, readjusting himself post-transportation spell. Didn’t take much to do that though as Willow had made sure they both landed on their feet this time.
“Bettin’ your boys know the meaning of a party better than you do, mate.” He flashed a glance at Willow before returning his gaze to the red-skinned sorcerer.
Taking Spike’s direction, Willow tilted her head in order to see past the line of nude men into the empty, cavernous room behind them.
Sure as shooting, Spike was right. There was no demon band playing haunting melodies on broken cellos, no witches spinning and cackling with laughter on the dance floor, no minions serving crab cakes and champagne flutes on silver platters.
And yet, the necklace pressed against her cleavage wasn’t glowing or humming or spitting or shrieking. It was lying perfectly still, completely unaware of the trap they had just magicked themselves into.
So what did that mean?
Did it mean that Fred had missed something during the testing phase and because of that, she and Spike were going to die a brutal death? Or was there seriously no trouble a brewing?
Willow knew better than to think that the latter was at all likely and she found herself steeling her nerves when Cyvus balled his left hand into a fist. Instead of striking Spike, however, the wizard brought his hand up to his lips. The gesture did nothing to cover the hacking, wheezing cough that followed.
One of the minions immediately jumped to his feet, inadvertently loosening the linen cloth protecting his masculinity and revealing the crack between his ass cheeks as he reached for one of the knobs that adjusted the flow of fluid from the IV drip.
Willow didn’t even realize she was staring at the nude man’s exposed rump until Spike nudged her shoulder gently, a knowing smirk crinkling the corners of his lips.
“Mine’s better,” Spike mouthed; a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.
Willow’s cheeks burned red with embarrassment and she hated herself a little bit for being so transparent. Why did her first male crush since Oz have to be Spike? As a vampire, his five senses were all preternaturally strong so he probably even knew what she smelled like when she was aroused.
Oh goddess….
She so did not need to be going to that thought right now.
Cyvus cleared his throat and Willow exhaled sharply.
“I have no interest in killing you or your insipid cur of a vampire,” Cyvus said, his voice thick with mucous and bile. “I merely want to understand what you’re capable of.”
Willow parted her lips slightly, ready to argue that Spike wasn’t hers, but she swallowed the words instead and attempted to focus on what Cyvus was implying.
“She’s not a bloody lab rat,” Spike hissed, not at all phased by Cyvus’s earlier insult.
“She’s not. But you still are,” Cyvus replied, smiling thinly. “The circuitry in that brain of yours is still firing on all cylinders. I’m quite certain a demonstration of that would liven up this private engagement.”
Cyvus raised his hand slightly and several sparks danced across his fingertips. Willow imperceptibly flinched and she saw the muscles in Spike’s cheek twitch. The agonizing screams never came, though.
“But that would break the promise I made to you, wouldn’t it?” Cyvus wheezed again and the same minion from before jumped up to adjust the IV drip again and help the sorcerer lean back against his chair.
It was enough to make Willow think that Giles clearly hadn’t read enough manuscripts if he thought that Cyvus was the scariest wizard in the world. In fact, Willow would go so far as to say he was the most pitiful. Weak as they were, even Jonathan and Andrew looked better by comparison.
With a breath, she drew herself up to full height and flashed Cyvus what she hoped was her most intimidating look. Unfortunately, her outfit didn’t exactly lend itself to threatening. It lent itself far more to the damsel-in-distress look and seeing as the pendant wasn’t working, expecting the cavalry was a not exactly an option.
“You’d better not break your promise,” Willow threatened, her hands gesticulating wildly as if she was preparing to cast a spell on him. “Or I’ll….”
Cyvus cocked an eyebrow and chuckled softly, interrupting her: “The Circle and I are quite aware of your ability to boil a man inside of his own skin. That’s what alerted us to you in the first place. We’re more interested in the more recent havoc you’ve wreaked.”
“Havoc?” Willow asked, waves of confusion washing over her. Sure, she’d altered the world a bit when she made every potential in the world a Slayer, but no one had ever outwardly considered that a bad thing. “I wouldn’t exactly call adding a bunch of heroes to the world wreaking havoc.”
“You played with the balance, girl. Shifted things far beyond your control. Far beyond the Circle’s control,” Cyvus hissed.
“So now you’re bloody pissed that we outnumber you two to one?” Spike smirked, crossing his arms over his chest. “Bloody hell, mate. Suck it up.”
Cyvus tensed, wheezing slightly as he curled his hands into fists and let them settle into his lap.
“Are you telling me that I got all dressed up, that I let a vampire put my hair in curlers, that Angel’s car got wrecked…all because you wanted some excuse to give me a stern talking to?” Willow asked, anger rising in her voice as she pointed her index finger at Cyvus’s chest.
“On the contrary, young lady, I’d like to offer you a place in the Circle,” Cyvus rasped.
“You know, you keep using that word like I’m supposed to impressed,” Willow retorted.
“You should be. The Circle of the Black Thorn is an earthly force. We are the bringers of the apocalypse. We keep the wheel of man’s inhumanity to man perpetually spinning,” Cyvus intoned.
“Your bloody club needs a better fucking motto,” Spike countered, cocking his hip sideways. “Short and concise usually does the trick. I wager you’d be better off with Stupidest Bad Guys Ever. Could write that up for you if you want. I’ll even make it pretty. Use glitter and all that rot. No extra cost.”
Willow giggled, appreciating Spike’s attempt to make a mockery out of this guy. Vail, however, was less than pleased.
In fact, he looked positively murderous. Maybe Giles was right about him after all....
Willow glanced down at her necklace again, willing the object to start doing its thing, but it was just as still as before. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to know that this was a bad thing. Something hadn’t been found during Fred’s tests and so the simple solution was that she was going to kill Eve once they got out of here.
Provided they could get out of here.
“I’m not really the type of girl who handles spinning wheels so good. I mean, every summer I go to the Fair with Xander and every time we go on the Ferris Wheel, I…well, let’s just say it’s not so pretty. I don’t really want to be the one that spoils the fun for everybody, you know?”
“You would do well to change your mind,” Cyvus replied, gritting his teeth. He closed his eyes for one brief second and when he opened them, the space behind his chair was suddenly filled with Kith’hern demons.
They looked very angry and there were definitely enough to seriously out-number her and Spike.
“You promised no one would get hurt,” Willow said, grabbing Spike by the hand and taking three steps backward. She knew that Spike would be off in a red-hot second if she gave him the chance. Spike wasn’t the type to believe in running away from a fight. He was far more likely to run into the fray and hope he took enough of them down to make it worth the trouble. But because her fingers were interlocked with his, Spike stayed put.
“There is no reason to keep my promises now. You have rejected the Circle’s offer and therefore are no longer under our protection.”
Willow gulped, squeezing Spike’s hand tighter. He didn’t return the favor. Instead, he released her hand, knocked her off balance, and dove in front of the bolt of white-hot electricity that had sprung from Cyvus Vail’s fingers.
The force of the magical strike hit Spike square in the chest and he couldn’t even open his mouth to scream before he fell to the cement, completely limp.
Willow inhaled sharply, his name leaving her lips in a loud cry: “Spike!”
Although Willow recognized the attack, seeing as it was the same one she had once used on Xander, she knew that she’d never placed that much power behind it. Xander had…Xander had been okay enough to hug her, okay enough to forgive her for the burns that decorated his stomach, chest, and arms.
But Spike….
Goddess, Spike was a vampire and right now, he was:
Unconscious.
The Kith’hern demons growled and Willow could see them surging forward. On instinct, she threw her body on top of his and closed her eyes. As the first demon reached them, extending a nasty looking claw to grab her stomach, the air around them cracked like a whip. In a flash, they disappeared from the room just in time to witness a bright orange sun rise above the horizon.
Chapter 10
Title: Self-Destruct Button (9/?)
Author: snogged
Disclaimer: Joss Whedon and many other corporations own the characters of Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel the Series. I don’t.
Pairing: Willow/Spike
Word Count: 1578
Overall Rating/Warnings: FRAO/NC-17 (eventually)
Setting: Buffy – Post “Chosen”/Angel – set shortly after “Damage.”
Summary: Willow gets a party invitation from a certain warlock in Los Angeles.
Beta(s):
angelskuuipo and purplefeen. All other mistakes are mine.A/N: Written for
rua1412 who inspired me with her gorgeous artwork.Banner by
rua1412“Could’ve killed ‘em all,” Spike scoffed, readjusting himself post-transportation spell. Didn’t take much to do that though as Willow had made sure they both landed on their feet this time.
“Bettin’ your boys know the meaning of a party better than you do, mate.” He flashed a glance at Willow before returning his gaze to the red-skinned sorcerer.
Taking Spike’s direction, Willow tilted her head in order to see past the line of nude men into the empty, cavernous room behind them.
Sure as shooting, Spike was right. There was no demon band playing haunting melodies on broken cellos, no witches spinning and cackling with laughter on the dance floor, no minions serving crab cakes and champagne flutes on silver platters.
And yet, the necklace pressed against her cleavage wasn’t glowing or humming or spitting or shrieking. It was lying perfectly still, completely unaware of the trap they had just magicked themselves into.
So what did that mean?
Did it mean that Fred had missed something during the testing phase and because of that, she and Spike were going to die a brutal death? Or was there seriously no trouble a brewing?
Willow knew better than to think that the latter was at all likely and she found herself steeling her nerves when Cyvus balled his left hand into a fist. Instead of striking Spike, however, the wizard brought his hand up to his lips. The gesture did nothing to cover the hacking, wheezing cough that followed.
One of the minions immediately jumped to his feet, inadvertently loosening the linen cloth protecting his masculinity and revealing the crack between his ass cheeks as he reached for one of the knobs that adjusted the flow of fluid from the IV drip.
Willow didn’t even realize she was staring at the nude man’s exposed rump until Spike nudged her shoulder gently, a knowing smirk crinkling the corners of his lips.
“Mine’s better,” Spike mouthed; a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.
Willow’s cheeks burned red with embarrassment and she hated herself a little bit for being so transparent. Why did her first male crush since Oz have to be Spike? As a vampire, his five senses were all preternaturally strong so he probably even knew what she smelled like when she was aroused.
Oh goddess….
She so did not need to be going to that thought right now.
Cyvus cleared his throat and Willow exhaled sharply.
“I have no interest in killing you or your insipid cur of a vampire,” Cyvus said, his voice thick with mucous and bile. “I merely want to understand what you’re capable of.”
Willow parted her lips slightly, ready to argue that Spike wasn’t hers, but she swallowed the words instead and attempted to focus on what Cyvus was implying.
“She’s not a bloody lab rat,” Spike hissed, not at all phased by Cyvus’s earlier insult.
“She’s not. But you still are,” Cyvus replied, smiling thinly. “The circuitry in that brain of yours is still firing on all cylinders. I’m quite certain a demonstration of that would liven up this private engagement.”
Cyvus raised his hand slightly and several sparks danced across his fingertips. Willow imperceptibly flinched and she saw the muscles in Spike’s cheek twitch. The agonizing screams never came, though.
“But that would break the promise I made to you, wouldn’t it?” Cyvus wheezed again and the same minion from before jumped up to adjust the IV drip again and help the sorcerer lean back against his chair.
It was enough to make Willow think that Giles clearly hadn’t read enough manuscripts if he thought that Cyvus was the scariest wizard in the world. In fact, Willow would go so far as to say he was the most pitiful. Weak as they were, even Jonathan and Andrew looked better by comparison.
With a breath, she drew herself up to full height and flashed Cyvus what she hoped was her most intimidating look. Unfortunately, her outfit didn’t exactly lend itself to threatening. It lent itself far more to the damsel-in-distress look and seeing as the pendant wasn’t working, expecting the cavalry was a not exactly an option.
“You’d better not break your promise,” Willow threatened, her hands gesticulating wildly as if she was preparing to cast a spell on him. “Or I’ll….”
Cyvus cocked an eyebrow and chuckled softly, interrupting her: “The Circle and I are quite aware of your ability to boil a man inside of his own skin. That’s what alerted us to you in the first place. We’re more interested in the more recent havoc you’ve wreaked.”
“Havoc?” Willow asked, waves of confusion washing over her. Sure, she’d altered the world a bit when she made every potential in the world a Slayer, but no one had ever outwardly considered that a bad thing. “I wouldn’t exactly call adding a bunch of heroes to the world wreaking havoc.”
“You played with the balance, girl. Shifted things far beyond your control. Far beyond the Circle’s control,” Cyvus hissed.
“So now you’re bloody pissed that we outnumber you two to one?” Spike smirked, crossing his arms over his chest. “Bloody hell, mate. Suck it up.”
Cyvus tensed, wheezing slightly as he curled his hands into fists and let them settle into his lap.
“Are you telling me that I got all dressed up, that I let a vampire put my hair in curlers, that Angel’s car got wrecked…all because you wanted some excuse to give me a stern talking to?” Willow asked, anger rising in her voice as she pointed her index finger at Cyvus’s chest.
“On the contrary, young lady, I’d like to offer you a place in the Circle,” Cyvus rasped.
“You know, you keep using that word like I’m supposed to impressed,” Willow retorted.
“You should be. The Circle of the Black Thorn is an earthly force. We are the bringers of the apocalypse. We keep the wheel of man’s inhumanity to man perpetually spinning,” Cyvus intoned.
“Your bloody club needs a better fucking motto,” Spike countered, cocking his hip sideways. “Short and concise usually does the trick. I wager you’d be better off with Stupidest Bad Guys Ever. Could write that up for you if you want. I’ll even make it pretty. Use glitter and all that rot. No extra cost.”
Willow giggled, appreciating Spike’s attempt to make a mockery out of this guy. Vail, however, was less than pleased.
In fact, he looked positively murderous. Maybe Giles was right about him after all....
Willow glanced down at her necklace again, willing the object to start doing its thing, but it was just as still as before. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to know that this was a bad thing. Something hadn’t been found during Fred’s tests and so the simple solution was that she was going to kill Eve once they got out of here.
Provided they could get out of here.
“I’m not really the type of girl who handles spinning wheels so good. I mean, every summer I go to the Fair with Xander and every time we go on the Ferris Wheel, I…well, let’s just say it’s not so pretty. I don’t really want to be the one that spoils the fun for everybody, you know?”
“You would do well to change your mind,” Cyvus replied, gritting his teeth. He closed his eyes for one brief second and when he opened them, the space behind his chair was suddenly filled with Kith’hern demons.
They looked very angry and there were definitely enough to seriously out-number her and Spike.
“You promised no one would get hurt,” Willow said, grabbing Spike by the hand and taking three steps backward. She knew that Spike would be off in a red-hot second if she gave him the chance. Spike wasn’t the type to believe in running away from a fight. He was far more likely to run into the fray and hope he took enough of them down to make it worth the trouble. But because her fingers were interlocked with his, Spike stayed put.
“There is no reason to keep my promises now. You have rejected the Circle’s offer and therefore are no longer under our protection.”
Willow gulped, squeezing Spike’s hand tighter. He didn’t return the favor. Instead, he released her hand, knocked her off balance, and dove in front of the bolt of white-hot electricity that had sprung from Cyvus Vail’s fingers.
The force of the magical strike hit Spike square in the chest and he couldn’t even open his mouth to scream before he fell to the cement, completely limp.
Willow inhaled sharply, his name leaving her lips in a loud cry: “Spike!”
Although Willow recognized the attack, seeing as it was the same one she had once used on Xander, she knew that she’d never placed that much power behind it. Xander had…Xander had been okay enough to hug her, okay enough to forgive her for the burns that decorated his stomach, chest, and arms.
But Spike….
Goddess, Spike was a vampire and right now, he was:
Unconscious.
The Kith’hern demons growled and Willow could see them surging forward. On instinct, she threw her body on top of his and closed her eyes. As the first demon reached them, extending a nasty looking claw to grab her stomach, the air around them cracked like a whip. In a flash, they disappeared from the room just in time to witness a bright orange sun rise above the horizon.
Chapter 10
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
on 2011-04-04 08:45 pm (UTC)I had a hunch that necklace was worthless. I am terrified for Willow and Spike right now!
Gabrielle
no subject
on 2011-04-04 10:04 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2011-04-04 09:48 pm (UTC)I want to know what it's going to happen... now! LOL
Loved it!
Brava!
PS it's Willow's month at nekid_spike, are you going to post this there too? Pretty please?
no subject
on 2011-04-04 10:03 pm (UTC)I'm glad you enjoyed it, hun.
And yes! I did post it there, though I've been cross-posting this story there since I started it.
no subject
on 2011-04-04 10:07 pm (UTC)PS did you heard from Vamp for your layout? I'm still sorry I couldn't help you :(
no subject
on 2011-04-04 10:08 pm (UTC)If you're willing to make it a tad smaller, I'll put it on my profile page. That way I can still feature your amazing art!
no subject
on 2011-04-04 10:09 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2011-04-04 10:10 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2011-04-05 01:18 am (UTC)no subject
on 2011-04-05 02:02 am (UTC)no subject
on 2011-04-05 02:09 am (UTC)Can't wait to see what happens next!
no subject
on 2011-04-05 04:54 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2011-04-05 02:54 am (UTC)no subject
on 2011-04-05 04:54 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2011-04-05 08:30 am (UTC)I now want Fan art of Spike making that motto in glitter. :-D
And yay for Circle of the black thorn references!
no subject
on 2011-04-05 04:54 pm (UTC)Hee! I'd love to see that fan art.
I thought it would be good to include the Circle somehow.
no subject
on 2011-04-06 05:01 pm (UTC)*smooches* xxx
no subject
on 2011-04-06 10:50 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2011-04-10 12:41 am (UTC)no subject
on 2011-04-10 12:51 am (UTC)I post a new chapter every Monday. :)
no subject
on 2011-05-07 07:38 pm (UTC)no subject
on 2011-05-07 07:41 pm (UTC)Absolutely amazing. I love it. Sorry for the flood of comments, but it was so good! :D Looking forward to the rest of it :)
no subject
on 2011-05-07 10:33 pm (UTC)I just haven't gotten around to adding those chapters in as hyperlinks.
If you click on the tag for self-destruct button though, you'll find Ch. 10 and Ch. 11.