Finding Home Part 3

Title: Finding Home Part 3

Author: Velvet Crypt

Disclaimer: Joss is God. I own nothing.

Spoilers: Season 4.

Summary: A bit of a breakfast chat.

Jessica lost herself in the routine that was morning. She pulled out bacon and eggs and began grating potatoes for hash browns. As she did, her thoughts drifted back downstairs. Why didn’t she let Alexander help her? Because she was the mom, dammit. She was supposed to protect her little boy. Not hide behind his coattails. She failed everything else in this life, but she wasn’t about to fail her son when he was so close to getting away from this nightmare.

So lost in her thoughts, she didn’t notice the potato being slowly grated away until she had grated her nail and part of her finger. “Dammit!” she hissed, sticking the offended digit in her mouth. She sighed and had started picking out the pieces of bloody potato shreds when the bowl was taken from under her nose.

She looked up in astonishment to see the blonde vampire pluck the grater from the counter and commence shredding. “Xanpet, get your mum a Band-Aid.” He smiled at her and nodded his head towards the table. “Sit down, luv. The boy and I can get brekkie ready.” She knew she looked like a total idiot, standing in the middle of her kitchen, hair uncombed, clothes rumpled, and her finger sticking out of her mouth, but the English lilt in his voice seemed to mesmerize her. She sat obediently.

Xander tugged her finger from her lips with a soft plop and stuck it in the peroxide bottle. He tilted it and Jessica felt the fizz start on her wound. He then set the bottle down and began drying off the unbroken skin. He gave her a look that brooked no argument and unwrapped a Band-Aid. With gentle care, he placed it over the injury and gave it a kiss before releasing her hand.

After putting the first aid supplies back, he trotted back into the kitchen and began frying the bacon. Jessica just stared, stunned, as the vampire and her son began bantering back and forth. If she didn’t know for a fact that he had no pulse, she would have sworn he was just another of her son’s friends, getting something to eat after having spent the night.

But, that really never happened around here, she thought wryly. Alexander had never had anyone stay overnight. He had his friend Jesse, but he always slept over there. A fact that sent Tony into a drunken fury whenever Jessica told him where his son was. But she never told her son that. Nor did she let him see the bruises that marred her flesh for letting him go. But she hadn’t seen Jesse in years. Alexander just stopped talking about him. Maybe they had a fight, she thought.

Whatever happened, the boy began spending time with female friends; Willow and Buffy, and even a girlfriend for a while. That had made his father oh-so-happy. It also provided her with a few less bruises each week. She gazed at her son. A small smile came to her lips. He was so handsome. He’d filled out this last year. His shoulders were broader, his chest firmer. He trimmed his hair from the mop he’d sported nearly his entire life. And he was smiling. Like he was comfortable with it.

That was the most beautiful thing about him. That ‘he’ hadn’t broken his son. That Alexander could still find reason to smile, to laugh…to take in a dying man, undead or not, and nurse him to health…that he could still love his mother enough, after the horrible life she’d let him lead, to give her a boo-boo-better kiss.

“Mom?” she came back to herself with a start, realizing Alexander had been calling her for some time now.

“Yes? Sorry, I was dazing a bit there.” She smiled. He nodded happily.

“How do you want your eggs?”

“Umm…scrambled is fine, sweetie.”

The vampire…Spike, she reminded herself…grinned, quirking an eyebrow. “Hey, sweetie, why don’t you grate some cheese into the eggs while you’re at it?” Xander glared mock ferociously at Spike.

“How bout I grate some vampire into it?”

“Well, luv,” the blonde grinned cheekily, “if you want to get a taste of me, you just have to ask, no need to grind off the good bits.” Xander blushed furiously and Jessica giggled. Xander looked kind of startled, but then smiled dopily at the sight his mother made…laughing…in this house.

______________________________________________________

“So, Spike is it?” Jessica asked between bites of breakfast. He nodded. “Xander said you got your name in an interesting way?” The vampire and Xander looked at each other, forks held motionless partway to their mouths. Jessica looked between the two of them. “And I’m guessing that I won’t like it?” She added.

Spike carefully placed his fork on his plate and wiped his mouth with the napkin in his lap. He smiled tightly at Jessica and pushed his chair back. “Thank you for breakfast, Mrs. Harris. It was nice to be…to feel…” He shrugged slightly. “It was nice.” He stood up, placing the napkin on his plate. Xander stared in astonishment at the stranger inhabiting the vampire’s body. Was he actually going to leave? Hurt and in pain? Because he didn’t want to offend Xander’s mother?

Jessica pinned Spike to the spot with her gaze. “Sit.” Spike opened his mouth to argue and Jessica stared him into his chair. If Xander were astonished by the vampire’s decency, he was astounded by his subservience to the diminutive human female that was Jessica Harris. “Thank you.” She lay her fork down as well.

“You are a vampire, correct?”

Nod.

“Though you have a military chip in your head, you have killed in the past, correct?”

Head droop. Nod.

“Do you still kill?”

Shake.

“Are you going to kill me or my son?”

Vigorous head shake.

“Do you think I’m stupid?”

Even more vigorous head shake.

“Do you think I haven’t figured out that vampire’s kill humans, and probably messily?”

Shake.

“Are you going to tell me how you got your name?”

Pause.

Slow nod.

“Good.” She picked up her fork and began eating again. She glanced at the two males, one sitting with his mouth open and staring at the other as though he’d never seen him before; the other staring at his hands in his lap, a look of reticence on his face. “Well? Have at it.”

The vampire took a deep breath and closed his eyes. “I tortured humans with railroad spikes.” He nearly whispered.

Jessica raised her eyebrows. “Really. So who were you before you decided to change your name?”

“William,” he replied softly. Jessica thought about probing for a last name, but decided against it.

“So, what was William like? And eat your breakfast. Both of you.” She turned ‘the look’ on Xander who quickly picked up his fork and began shoveling food in his mouth. Spike was a bit slower, but he too resumed eating.

“William was a nobody.” Spike stated bluntly.

“You are William.” Jessica reminded him.

His head shot up. “No. I. Am. Not.” Jessica’s eyebrows went back up.

“Really. And why is that?”

Spike looked frustrated and kept shooting glances at Xander, who was trying to look as inconspicuous as possible. He sighed. “William was a bloody ponce. Everyone took advantage of him, walked all over him. No one liked him. He was ostracized from his class of people and practically forced into the arms of yet another group of people who only wanted to use him.”

“Kind of like now?” Xander interrupted quietly. Spike shot him a look that was partially hatred, partially resignation, and all pain…and nodded. Jessica went back to silently eating her eggs. “Spike, I don’t know why you insist on always being the Big Bad.” Xander sighed. “You do realize that you’re pushing away anyone who might have a chance of liking you?”

Spike snorted. “Who the bloody hell would like me, mate? I’m an impotent undead asshole.” Xander grinned.

“Well, you are undead, and you are an asshole…but I think Harmony might have something to say about that impotent part.” Spike winced, but smirked. “Not everyone hates you, Spike.” Xander continued. “If everyone did, you would still be laying out on my doorstep.”

Spike sighed. “So you don’t hate me. But you don’t like me either.” Xander frowned. “No, I don’t really like you. But I want to. And you want me to. So quit being a jackass and let me goddamn well try to like you already!” Spike tried to hide the chuckle. But it escaped him anyway. Jessica followed soon after. And Xander gave up and leaned back in his chair joining in the laughter.

Finally, Jessica wiped her eyes with her own napkin and gasped for breath. “Okay, Spike. Tell us about William.”

With an insincere sigh and a twitch of his lips, Spike did just that.