"Buffy! Stay down!"

Not a problem, Spike thought. And who the fuck was that, anyway?

He looked up. Willow. And the entire goodie good entourage.

Some part of him knew this couldn't look good to them. "She's out cold," Spike explained.

"Get her into the water!" Giles said. "They won't follow you there!"

That would work... if only he could move. His head was starting to spin.

Suddenly, a hand appeared before him. He noticed too late that the owner of the hand was Riley.

But something told Spike the boy wasn't there to fight -- that there were more important matters to attend to. Riley wordlessly helped him up, and they each took an arm of Buffy's and walked her into the surf.

Spike took a quick look back at the action. Willow and Tara had joined hands and were shooting some kind of electrical force out of their fingertips. Giles was chanting from a book. Xander and Anya waited with axes. The demons were panicking and squawking as they appeared to be magically enclosed in some huge invisible container.

Buffy fell into the shallow water, dragging Spike down with her.

"If you can get her to that boat over there," Riley pointed out toward the ocean, "that might be your safest bet."

Spike looked. It wasn't far. As long as he could stay alert enough, he could do it. He kicked himself for having that first bottle of JD that always gave way to several more. "Right. Will do."

Riley ran back towards the group.

"Alright ducks, we're goin' for a swim."

Spike wrapped an arm around her and sidestroked it to the empty schooner, focused only on keeping her head above water.

Reaching the deck, he climbed its ladder and pulled her unconscious body out of the water.

"That's a good duckie," he said, then flung her over his shoulder to get her below.

There was a tiny room in there, with a cushioned seat big enough to lie on. He unclasped her wet dress, unhooked her bra, and lay her down. He liked to save the removal of the panties for the heat of the moment.

As he pulled off his own clothes, he gazed adoringly at his Buffy, nude in repose. If I combusted in the sun, he realized, I wouldn't have had the chance to gaze upon this beautiful sight ever again.

He stumbled over to her, cursing the fact that he'd let himself get this drunk.

"Buffy," he said.

Nothing.

"Buffy."

Nothing.

He had to wake her up. It was no fun when she was unconscious.

He slapped her. Again. Again. "Buffy! Rise and shine!"

He punched her. She stirred. "There you are."

Her eyes fluttered open. "Ow."

"Sorry, love."

"Where are we?"

"Boat. Demon army's on the beach."

"Quick," she urged.

"I can do quick," he said, a finger in the air. "Suspecially in this state."

He grabbed her ankles and hooked them up over his shoulders, then tore off her panties with a satisfying rip.

As he pressed the tip of his cock against her opening, Spike marveled at how wet she was. Encountering no resistance, he slid in easily, then pulled out to re-enter.

This time, it was so tight only his head made it in. Buffy gasped, wide-eyed.

He looked down. Oh, fuck. Wrong hole. He looked into her eyes apologetically. He'd been saving that particular place for a special occasion -- the day she'd actually let him.

But Buffy wasn't angry. Instead, she wrapped her hands around his ass and slowly drew him in.

All the way in.

Spike's eyes teared. Bloody inferno.

They began to move. Buffy's pain was replaced by intense pleasure.

Eyes glazed under heavy lids, she smiled at her lover. She moaned and purred as she directed his movements with her hands.

Their pace steadily increased.

Spike gazed at her neck. There was only one thing that would make this exquisite feeling complete. "Buffy," he said with uneven breath.

"Do it," she said.

He descended, and bit into her jugular, drinking deep.

As one, they came furiously, wave after wave threatening to drown them both.

* * *

"What do you mean they're all out there?" Buffy was peering out of a porthole while tying the ripped chiffon hem of her dress around her neck. "And you brought me here?"

"Love, you were bloody incapacitated," Spike explained, almost fully sober from the potent slayer lifeforce infusion. "Little help it would do to keep you there. 'Sides, it wasn't my idea. Soldier's orders."

"Riley's out there? Why?"

"How the bloody hell should I know?" he said, propping himself up on his elbows as he yanked his jeans up.

"Well, we have to get back."

Though he would have preferred to sleep for a hundred years, Spike followed her out of the cabin.

* * *

"Buffy! Spike! Don't move!" Xander called.

Buffy and Spike shared a look. They were knee-deep in ocean, minnows zipping past their feet.

The rest of the gang were now just watching as Willow held the entire Zuxugna population of Sunnydale in thrall.

She punctuated her chant with the word "RETURN". There was a wrinkle in the stars, and a hole opened up in the world.

Every last Zuxugna demon was sucked into it.

"CLOSE," Willow commanded.

The hole zippered up into a point of light and disappeared.

Save for the pounding of the surf, the beach was quiet again. Buffy and Spike trudged up to their friends.

"Now if we could just do that with the rest of 'em," Xander said.

Anya groused, "Hey!"

"The bad ones. Just the bad, current demons," Xander corrected.

"Hey guys," Willow waved at Buffy and Spike.

"Good show, Red," Spike said.

"You were so commandy," said Buffy.

"They can terrorize their own women now," Willow said proudly.

"Lucky ladies," Buffy said. "Well, I'm sorry we missed most of it."

"Oh, please--" Willow noticed Buffy looking behind her. Riley was hanging back by the parking lot. "Yeah. Riley. I hope you don't mind. He ran into us on the way and really wanted to help."

Buffy turned to Spike.

"Go on," he said, looking down at the sand he was kicking. "I'll wait here."

She smiled, and jogged over to Riley.

"I'm not trying to get in your way," Riley said. "I was just here to lend a hand--"

"I know. It's okay. And appreciated."

He smiled. "Well. It's been -- strange."

Buffy nodded. "To say the least."

"Buffy," he said, a little choked up. "I wish you all the luck in the world."

"You too, Riley." She hugged him, and noticed how much her feelings for him had changed. "Good luck in Iowa. Take care of yourself."

"I always do," he said, letting go.

She watched her ex-boyfriend get into a car and drive away. Then she walked back to the group, where her new love stood.

"Who's got a car?" she asked, interrupting Spike and Xander's rivalrous wordplay.

"Mine's here," Giles said. "Xander's as well."

"We've gotta get Spike home. The sun's rising soon."

"Right then. To the graveyard we go."

"I meant home as in my home," Buffy said, and took her boyfriend's hand.

The gang fell silent. Even the surf seemed to pause.

Spike smiled proudly.

"W-well, yes. Right," Giles said. "Of course."

* * *

"Giles. I know what you're thinking."

The slayer and her watcher stood outside her front door as the sun peeked over the horizon.

"I'm not sure you do."

"You're thinking, 'Good lord, she's gotten herself involved with another vampire and this time he hasn't even got a soul.'"

"Perhaps not quite with that accent, but... well, of course that's one of my concerns."

Buffy took a deep breath. She wasn't sure she was ready for this lecture.

"But when it comes to matters of the heart," Giles continued, "I trust you implicitly."

"You do?"

He smiled. "If you've discovered that he's worthy of your love, then he must be."

A tear sprang to her eye as she searched his earnest face. "Thank you," she whispered.

He gave her shoulder a paternal squeeze. "Now, I expect you to get some rest. That is until I ring you with news of the next impending apocalypse."

"I'll be waiting nowhere near the phone," Buffy said with a smirk.