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English
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Peja's Wonderful World of Makebelieve Import
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Published:
2020-11-04
Completed:
2006-04-03
Words:
5,799
Chapters:
4/4
Kudos:
18
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2,769

Chained to You

Summary:

Pairing: S/X
Rating: PGish for now
Archive: The list archives, otherwise ask and you shall receive.
Spoilers: Season 4 of Buffy, nothing too significant
Disclaimer: What? You were under the impression I was Joss? Nope sorry!
Notes: The title is stolen from a Savage Garden song, it'll make more sense in later parts.
Submitted through the SpikeSlash mailing list.

Notes:

(See the end of the work for notes.)

Chapter 1: Page 1

Chapter Text

Chained to You
by Acid Raine

Part 1

 

"Stupid boss, stupid job, stupid friends..." Xander realized that the fact he was reduced to muttering to himself probably wasn't a good sign but it was all he could do as he stormed down the stairs to his basement. "Stupid worthless paycheck, stupid- GWAH!!!"

The vampire sleeping on his bed awoke with a start, "Bloody Hell mate! Can't you knock?"

"Knock? This is *my* room! What are you doing napping on my bed?!!"

"What?" Spike said, feinting innocence, "can't a guy drop in on an old friend?"

"We're hardly friends. You've tried to kill me remember? What are you doing here?"

"Nothing," Spike said, picking up a magazine and browsing through it.

"You have a perfectly good crypt to infest Spike." The vampire didn't look up. "What's wrong with your crypt Spi-"

"Nothing!" Spike snapped, his eyes narrowing.

Xander sighed. He shifted his weight uncomfortably from foot to foot. He stood there in awkward silence for a few minutes waiting for the oblivious vampire to offer some sort of explanation. Finally his impatience got the better of him. "Oh *Bloody Hell* Spike!" Xander exploded, doing his best to imitate the vampire's accent. "Just tell me what you're doing here, or I'll drag you back to that crypt and chain you there! There's not much you can do to stop me!"

Spike glared at him. He buried his face in his magazine and muttered something.

"What?!"

When he got no reply, Xander started advancing on the other man, trying his best to look menacing.

Spike looked up and sighed. "Oh alright you sodding git! The soldier-boys, they found my place, ransacked. They broke m' telly too, all the while muttering upsetting stake-the-hostile stuff. Don't quite fancy ending up a pile of dust myself, so if y' don't mind, I'll be rooming with you a while."

Spike immediately went back to intently studying his magazine, but Xander hadn't missed Spike's tremor of fear when he spoke of the initiative, nor did Spike miss the look of pity that crossed the boy's face.

Finally Spike looked up and met Xander's gaze.

"Oh don't give me that!" he growled. "I need your bed, not your pity."

"Can't have one without the other," Xander said. Spike snorted and went back to his magazine. Xander was quickly getting irritated by the vampire's easy escape, so he purposefully strode to the bed and snatched the offending item out of Spike's hands. He met the vampire's glare head-on.

"Why should I help you anyway Spike? Last time I saw you you were making moves on my girlfriend."

Spike snorted, an amused look crossing his face. "Don't worry pet, she's not really my type."

"Oh, I forgot," Xander said, rolling his eyes. "You usually go for insane right?"

Spike's eyes flashed but he didn't miss a beat. "No," he said, stretching luxuriously. "I usually go for brunettes."

Xander chuckled. "Well feast your eyes on these luscious locks," he said, running his hands through his hair, not sure exactly what had possessed him to say *that*.

"I am," Spike replied, almost leering at him.

Xander chuckled again, awww Spike was flirting with him. Then he sighed.

"Alright Spike," he said, "you can stay, but you are *so* sleeping on the chair!"

"What? No sodding way!" Spike pretended to be shocked but there was laughter in his voice. "I bloody *hate* that thing! There are springs poking through in all sorts of inconvenient places!" he gave Xander a half-smile. "Sorry mate, but the chair's all yours."

"Okay *mate*. There is no *way* I'm sleeping in that chair. This is *my* house you're staying at, you follow *my* rules and I'm sleeping in *my* bed!"

"Temper temper! Very possessive aren't we?" Spike exclaimed pulling away from his angry glare in mock-fright. Then his expression changed and he shifted to the left slightly, seductively rubbing the sheet to his right. "There's plenty of room for two. That is, if you don't mind cuddling with the *evil undead*." Spike raised his eyebrows and ran his tongue over his teeth.

Xander first blushed and then burst out laughing. "Alright deadboy, have it your way," he said, flopping down beside Spike. He sighed and relaxed, the coolness of the vampire's arm against his was actually soothing on the hot night. Unconsciously, he began to lean into the touch. Xander looked over at Spike and saw that his eyes were closed and his head was resting against the headboard. His face was the absolute picture of calm. Xander couldn't help wondering if the heat from his body was as welcome to the vampire as his cool skin was to Xander.

"Mate," Spike muttered amicably, the expression on his face unchanged, "my sodding arm's falling asleep."

Oops, maybe not. Xander laughed and leaned harder against Spike.

"But it's *hot*," he said in his whiniest voice, earning a chuckle from the vampire. "Besides, how can your arm fall asleep? Your blood doesn't circulate!"

"Details, details," Spike said, opening his eyes and giving Xander an irritated look. "You're heavy for a whelp, you know that?"

"Fine!" Xander sighed, reluctantly removing his arm from the vampire's. "Do you ever get cold?" he asked as an afterthought. "Like because you have no body heat?"

"What? In Sunnyhell? Not bloody likely! Alaska maybe. Here's the perfect climate for a vampire."

"Yeah? Well I really wish I had my own vampire skin blanket, cause I'm *hot*!" Xander really wished he'd perfected his whiney voice back in the plead-ice-cream-off-irritable-vendor days, but at least he'd gotten it down for Spike.

"Oh bloody Hell!" Spike exclaimed, and he threw his arm around the boy's shoulders, pulling him close. "That better pet? Will you shut-up now?"

Xander let out his best girlish giggle. Spike walked his fingers down Xander's arm seductively and then quickly snatched back his stolen magazine from the surprised boy's hands. Xander pretended to sniffle.

"And here I thought you wanted to cuddle," he complained. The vampire laughed and pulled Xander close again. "Alright Nancyboy, now you just snuggle in here, go to sleep and let Spike finish his magazine."

"A'right mate! I was 'opin' for a good ol' fashioned shag though."

Spike snorted. "Keep working on it pet. I think that was almost Irish."

Xander laughed. "Stick around a while. I'll perfect it one of these days."

Spike looked at him with a sneer on his face. "I guess it's a *little* better here than it would be having needles stuck in m' head." Despite the words Spike's eyes betrayed the gratitude he felt at Xander's disguised offer.

"Hey," the boy said softly, his eyes half-closing, "watch it. I'll send you over there with the needle-boys if you tell Anya about this."

Spike shook his head and looked at the boy with something close to affection.

"Really, go to sleep pet, you look half dead."

"Yeah? Well you're all dead," Xander said.

"You've had a long day pet and you need sleep, besides, I want to finish this magazine and I can't do that until you shut the Hell up!"

"Nice to know you care," Xander murmured already drifting off. He let his head sink down onto Spike's shoulder. "Why do I have the feeling I'm gonna wake up on the floor?"

Spike snickered. "You'll wake up in my arms pet. Though you might not be wearing quite so much clothing."

Xander laughed weakly.

"Now *sleep*," Spike ordered, starting to gently run his fingers through the boy's hair. Xander was only too happy to comply to the request. He drifted off to the sound of Spike flipping the pages of his magazine.

As soon as the boy's breathing became regular, Spike turned to look at Xander's face. He was quite beautiful really. Though he needed a haircut and perhaps an entirely new wardrobe, the boy had a certain innocent and sad quality about him that Spike found more than alluring. Xander looked so peaceful when he slept. His eyes were closed so you couldn't gaze into the brown pools and see into the soul of the child who had been neglected, abused and ignored for almost his entire life. Spike wished he could sooth every ache the boy had ever felt.

He looked away, disgusted.

'Stop being such a bleeding sap,' he chided himself. Still, he couldn't seem to stop his fingers from stroking Xander's hair. Finally he sighed, leaned over and placed the gentlest of all kisses on the sleeping boy's lips. Xander murmured something in his sleep which Spike thought sounded very much like his name.

The vampire shook his head and went back to his magazine, still growling at himself for being such a sap. He had a feeling he'd be sticking around a lot longer than it took for Xander to learn his accent.

End of part 1
TBC