Right now, it's just a pink, hairless, plot bunny.As one of your audience, I vote for smut, but nobody can do that all the time. Except Spike in the badfic.

Reading the good fic. The very good fic. The TBQ Angelus/Wesley fic, in fact, that has been siting in my inbox for a week and a half; and not that I want to spoil anyone for the stories, but this line

but Wes also had what those in LA called issues so Angelus was figuring this was a moment for Wes to get in touch with his inner slasher.

made me giggle.

Oh, the latest Cat and Mouse? (Should scurry off to read it. Hrrm.)

So, it's 12:30 in the morning, so cold in my computer room that I'm warming my fingers over the candles. But all is well, 'cause I've got the rest of that scene between chipped Spike and Xander for you all...

Xander moved out into the open, moving away as Spike walked closer. "So, how long have we been among the fanged set again?" he asked.

Spike shrugged. "A few days now."

"I'm hurt. You said I was high up on your list of people against the wall come the revolution. And here you are eating somebody you just met. You're fickle, Spike."

"Well, it's not something you want to hurry over. We've been so close, you and I. You deserve my best effort."

Spike gave no appearance of hurrying, strolling along with his hands in his pockets. Xander kept moving, trying not to have any trees or mausoleums behind him. The plan had been to meet up with Buffy and Willow half an hour after entering Riverview. The girls should be looking for him by now. Then Xander could step back and watch Ultimate Slayer SmackDown and he could take home a little box of Spike ashes, just so he'd know for sure that, ding dong, the Big Bad Vamp was dead.

"You're going to wear yourself out, pet," Spike observed. "I thought you said you weren't going to run."

"I'm not running, I'm maneuvering."

Spike stopped and just looked at him. The fangs and ridges disappeared. "This isn't any fun."

"Well, gosh, Spike, I'm just so sorry that I'm not making killing me more of a blast for you."

"Kill you? What makes you think I'm going to kill you?"

"Hm, let me think. 'When I get this chip out, I'm going to suck your eyeballs out with a straw, whelp.' Or, everyone's favorite, 'When I get this chip out, I'm going to kill you all.' It's kind of been a trend in our relationship, the death threats and all."

"Oh, but if I kill you, then it's all over."

"Yeah, death is kind of like that."

Spike smiled again. "Not always."

A whole new horrible realm of possibilities opened up to Xander. Before he could say anything, he heard voices in the distance. Buffy and Willow.

He took a breath to yell, then a cold hand was over his mouth and a hard arm held him tight.

"We're not done with our chat yet, pet," Spike purred into his ear.

Xander tried to dig in his feet, but Spike had little trouble dragging him into a convenient mausoleum. The little nattering voice in the back of his head wondered why these places were always nearby and always unlocked. Maybe it was one of those super secret vamp-powers, find and unlock mausoleums.

Spike pushed Xander up against the wall, hand still across his mouth. Xander glared and debated biting that hand. Smirking, Spike leaned against him, resting his chin on the hand over Xander's mouth.

"My, what big brown eyes you have, grandma," he said softly. He felt the lips under his palm try to twitch into a sneer. "All the better to hate me with."

Voices came from outside, the Slayer and the witch. The two men went still, listening.

"I don't know, Buffy," Willow said pensively. "What if we mess it up?"

"Oh, come on, Wills. I think you'd look cute as a blonde. We could try a strawberry blonde first, just to see."

Xander closed his eyes in dismay as Spike shook his head. "The fabled Slayer," he said softly, "on the hunt for evil and the right color rinse. The night trembles in fear."

Xander snorted in amusement, though he tried to look disapproving right afterwards. The girls moved off, still discussing the various shades of life.

Spike removed his hand, but kept his weight on his arms resting on Xander's chest. "I don't fancy Red as a blonde. Too bland. What do you think?"

"She'd be too pale--and I'm not discussing Willow's hair color with you."

They stared at each other, Xander trying to lean as far away as he could, even with the stone wall behind him. Spike smiled genially. He leaned completely against Xander, resting his body against the other man.

"You're warm," he observed. "Comfier than that easy chair you tied me into, too."

"Get off me, Spike."

"I think someone isn't quite understanding the power dynamics here." He snuggled in closer.

Xander tried his damnedest not to twitch. There was not enough cloth between his skin and Spike's. He felt the cold of Spike's body leaching the heat out of his. Then there was the whole casual way the bleached wonder had turned him into his own personal lounge chair. Spike must have been on tiptoe, because their bodies matched all the way from shoulder to thigh. And the blue eyes watched him with lazy hunger, like he was the last doughnut in the box and Spike was deciding if eating him was just being greedy or not.

"Make up your mind already, blondie. I had plans tonight."

Spike grinned. "You're going to mouth off to Saint Peter at the Pearly Gates, aren't you, boy."

"Depends on how soon I get there." He flinched, though, as Spike leaned in towards his neck.

"White knight's not as calm as he wants to think," Spike whispered. He ran the tip of his tongue slowly along Xander's jugular, chuckling at the shiver. "You're afraid of me again. It tastes wonderful." He pulled back to study Xander's face, but he looked less pleased. "Damned hellbitch."

"Huh?"

"If I have fun with you, Slayer comes gunning for me, Glory has an open field on grabbing Dawn and strolling home. Tisn't fair."

"Poor baby. So does this mean you're not going to kill me?"

"Sorry, I know it's a disappointment."

"So I'm just supposed to forget you shoving me around and threatening me and--and licking me."

Spike grinned. "I won't be hurt if you don't want to forget."

"You do know I'm just going to go out there and tell everybody that the chip is gone, don't you?" Xander knew there was some plot going on, but be damned if he could see it.

Spike sighed. "True. Which means it'll be open season on Spike after all." He leaned closer, till his nose almost touched Xander's. "Guess I've got no reason not to play with you after all," he purred.

Xander couldn't help swallowing hard. Especially when Spike ran a lazy finger down his throat to his collarbone. The cold touch burned. "Let me go, Spike."

"Why?"

And nothing came to mind. No reason whatsoever why the unchipped vampire with nearly two years of grudges should let him live. Xander laughed briefly. "I've got nothing. Damn," he sighed. "I would have liked to say good-bye to Anya."

Spike stared at him. "That's it? That's all the fight I'm going to get out of you? You may be a pathetic loser, but I thought there was more spunk in you than that." He threw his hands up and stepped away. "I don't think I want you any more."

Xander didn't think for a moment that Spike meant it. He wasn't about to ignore the opening, though. "Then I guess I'll go home."

He actually got to the door before a leather-clad arm reached over his shoulder to hold the mausoleum doors closed. "I don't remember saying you could leave," said the soft voice in his ear.

Xander turned, and this time he didn't care that he was nose to nose with a smiling vampire who liked to play with his victims. "You're either going to let me go or you're going to kill me. I can't beat you, not in a serious fight, and me trying just gives you a happy. So let's just cut to the chase here, Spike. Make up your mind and stop fucking with me."

The smile was lewd. "I have not yet begun to fuck with you, Xander. Though I'd like to."

"No. Way. Kill me or walk away. Decide, right now."

Spike ran a connoisseur's eye along Xander's neck, then shrugged and took a step back. "Killing you fast would just be no fun. So I guess you win."

Xander didn't believe a word of it, but his escape route was clear. Spike held his hands up and took another step away. Xander put a hand on the latch of the door.

"I always did like the way Red screams."

Xander went still.

"The way she struggled and squirmed when I found her in the dorm that night . . ." Spike chuckled. "Her girlfriend's rather nibblesome, too. Be easy to lure Red in if the lovely Tara was help--"

Xander grabbed the lapels of Spike's duster and slammed the vampire against the wall. "You take one step towards Willow, and I'll--"

Spike grinned at him. "You'll what?" He took hold of Xander's wrist and began to squeeze. Xander tried to pull away, and Spike easily pulled him in close. "There's what I like to see. Thinking of me and Red, that gets your blood going, gets that fire burning in your eyes. I don't want you all accepting of your fate, I want you snarling at me."

"You have no idea," Xander growled, staring him in the eyes. "No more shit, Spike. What's going to happen here?"

Spike relaxed and eased his grip on Xander's wrist. Xander tried to yank free, but Spike didn't let him get away. "I'm not going to kill you, Xander, but it's got nothing to do with being worried about the Slayer. It's got everything to do with not causing any distractions while the hellbitch is out there."

"So if Glory weren't around ..."

The fangs appeared in a gnarled grin. Cat-yellow eyes gleamed in anticipation. "If Glory weren't around, Demon Girl would be calling around in the morning to find out why you didn't come home."

If anything, Xander felt calmer having it stated flat out. "And when we finish Glory?"

Spike ran his tongue along his fangs. "Watch your back."

Xander nodded. "I'm not surprised. But what's stopping you, really? If I hadn't seen you tonight, I'd have no idea you'd gotten the chip out--and how did you do that, anyway?"

"Oh, please, as if I'd tell you. I told you the truth. Glory comes first. We finish her first. And you can't tell the Slayer about the chip."

"Why the hell not? I'm not going to let you wander around everyone with no leash on." He saw Spike's grin. "That night at the shop. Were you ..."

"Amusing myself with picturing the looks on everybody's faces if I grabbed someone for a late night snack? Yep."

"My god, you and--and Giles together could ..."

"Call him Ripper, it's easier on the psyche." His expression became serious. "But we didn't try anything, did we? I've got Ripper convinced--for now anyway--to work with your bunch to settle this. But if you go tell the Slayer about the chip, she's going to get distracted at the wrong time. You're going to need me helping keep an eye on Joyce and the Niblet. You think that's going to happen if Slayer knows I'm back in the game?"

"Not in the slightest." Xander looked at the hand wrapped around his wrist. The long fingers didn't go completely around, but Spike wasn't even trying hard to hold on. "Let me go."

Spike thought a moment, then let go. Xander took a step back and rubbed his wrist, trying to erase the sensory memory of those cold, strong fingers. "So what we're looking at here is a deal. I don't tell anybody about the chip and you don't kill me--right now. Until we get Glory settled."

"That about sums it up. And I keep an eye on Joyce and Dawn while making sure Ripper doesn't get creative again."

"Deals with the devil."

"Better the devil you know than the devil who wants to rip the world a new one."

Xander thought for several moments, weighing honor and practicality. "Co

Xander thought for several moments, weighing honor and practicality. "Could Giles really have done it? Given Dawn to some creature in another dimension?"

"Yes. He hasn't told you the half of what he can do. He's not learning new things, he's just getting back into practice. Him and that chaos mate of his must have gotten up to a lot of mischief together."

"I'm not used to being nervous about Giles."

"Don't you worry about him, I've got him under my eye. I don't work the mojo, but I know what I'm seeing."

"So you watch Joyce and Dawn and Giles, and I don't sic Buffy on you."

"That's it. You watch everybody else. We get Glory tidied out of the way, then we can pick up where we left off."

Xander didn't flinch from Spike's leer. "Right, we pick up at the point that says there are no good vampires, and the Slayer's job is to kill them."

"Just like the good old days. You try to kill me, and I don't have to pretend to be part of your little gang."

Xander smiled. "Try to kill each other whenever we see each other, just like God intended. That'll be nice."

Suddenly Spike was behind him again, arm around his shoulders holding him tight against the chilly body. "And you'll have time to work on those reflexes," he whispered in Xander's ear. "You don't want to make it easy for me." A fang nicked his ear and cold lips nibbled on the wound. "You do taste good, Xander Harris. You'll give me a good run when it's time."

Then Xander was alone, with the bronze doors of the mausoleum clicking closed. Shaking, Xander reached up to his ear, then looked at the blood on his fingers. He sat down on the sarcophagus near the wall, apologizing absently to the occupant. He was going to need a few minutes before he could risk seeing anyone.

"Xander Harris, idiot or brave man?" he muttered. "Find out on the next episode of All My Vampires."

The latest chapter plus To Every Maze A Map are posted on my website [link]

t feedback whore babble, ignore at leisure 2250 hits on the fic page, Steam's got over 500 hits, the new chapters already have over 20 hits. You like me, you really like me. t we now return you to your regularly scheduled fic

Connie, I love it! And that's excellent news about the hits things. I'm glowy for you, okay?

Someone emailed me asking if I'd considered setting up a mailing list for updates. Aside from the sheer mind-bogglingness of prople asking me to tell them when there's something new (and the cognitive dissonance of announcing and expecting people to come running vs. sneaking it out into view and hoping people don't turn up their noses), how does one set up such a thing? Would I just ask for email addresses and set up a group?

Use YahooGroups. It's all free, and stuff.