Who’s that Lady – part 3 of the Magic Man series (parts 1 & 2 are now posted on AO3)

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“Hey, Buffy.”

“Hey, yourself, Willow. Thanks for coming. We’ve had a development, and we were hoping you could help.”

She led her friend into the front parlor, who took a seat on the couch. Crossing over to the stairs, she leaned against the railing and, directing her voice upwards, called out, “Honey, Willow’s here.”

“Down in a mo’.”

Willow wondered about the nature of this development. Everything seemed normal enough so far.

“Buffy, what is it?”

“You’ll see.”

After a time, bare feet appeared on the stairs. Feet that seemed kinda small, even for Spike. Said feet were followed into view by well-turned ankles and shapely calves under a plaid flannel robe. Huh?

A hand appeared on the rail. It seemed kinda small too. A few more steps, and the why, if not the how, became clear. It seemed Spike wasn’t exactly himself at the moment. Down at parlor level, she went to stand next to Buffy, allowing Willow to get a good long look. Even a big ol’ lez like her could appreciate the hotness that was Spike, but now…. Yowza!

“So is this, like… a random thing?”

Without so much as a shimmer, Spike was back in default mode. He tugged at his robe to straighten it.

“Nah. Now’s like flippin’ a bloody switch.”

“Now, but not before?”

“Woke up to it, the first time. A week an’ a half ago that was. Took a couple tries, but it hasn’t happened outta my control since then.”

“So you don’t suspect an outside influence?”

“Seems unlikely. Aside from the initial upset, I’ve had no ill effects. Still, couldn’t hurt to get confirmation. That’s where you come in.”

“By giving you a once over with my Second Sight?”

He laughed.

“Somethin’ like that, yeah.”

“Ok. If you’ll step away from each other, I just need a moment to get ready.”

Closing her eyes, she ran through a short series of breathing exercises designed to calm and focus the mind. When she was ready, she stood, then opened her eyes. His aura was bright and expansive, just as it should be. No problems there. Then she looked deeper.

“Um… I’ve never actually seen you like this before, but I’m guessing the sparkles are new.”

“Sparkles? Like that bleedin’ ponce Cullen? Hell, ‘m not even a vamp any more.”

“His sparkles were all on the outside. These are running along your meridians. Buffy, be my control?”

“Sure.”

She stepped into view.

“Oh, I… um, you’re kinda sparkly too. Not like our friend Mr. Mirror Ball here-”

“Oi!”

“-but I’m definitely seeing flashes.”

“Meaning?”

“One sec.”

Willow briefly closed her eyes again to release the Sight. It was just too distracting.

“It looks to me like the raw magic Spike was exposed to really got into his system. It’s part of him now. What’s more, he seems to be passing it onto you.”

The twosome exchanged a quick glance.

“So we’ve been swappin’ more’n just spit?”

“Yeah.”

“Bloody Hell. Got what I wanted from it. Didn’t give it another thought. Sodding magic. I’m gonna go back upstairs to shower and get dressed. Cheers.”

He kissed Buffy’s cheek, then left.

“Buffy?”

“Spike was pretty upset that morning, but that’s mostly because I hadn’t told him about Satsu. We’ve worked too hard to get where we are, only to give up now. Besides, I get all of that considerable skill and experience in a nifty new package.”

“You’re not gonna go all Anya on me, are you?”

“No.”

They shared a  moment of silence. Neither of them had been especially fond of Anya, but she had given her life for the cause.

“You need to think of yourself.”

“I am, believe me. I’m happier now than I’ve been in a long time, and Spike’s part of that.”

“If the magic builds up in your system–”

“Then I’ll have the perfect excuse to go shopping. Maybe we could find a way to slow it down, or drain it off, or something. Look, you don’t see any badness to it, right? No other reason to worry?”

“Well…no.”

“So there you are.”

“Am I the only one else who knows?”

“If this isn’t due to an outsider, then yes, and we’d like to keep it that way for now.”

“You got it. Mum’s the word.”

They walked over to the door together.

“Thanks again, Wil.”

“Hey, what are magically inclined friends for?”

“Just remember, the friendship came first.”

“I know.”

They shared a quick hug before Willow went on her way.

 

Originally posted at http://seasonal-spuffy.livejournal.com/509266.html

dianthus42

dianthus42