(no subject)

[gottaknockhard.livejournal.com]

Who: Spike Spiegel (gottaknockhard) and Kate Kane (soldarius)
What: Meeting up at the right time always.
When: Pre-Paris
Where: The City
Rating: PG-13

There were a lot of reasons to hate the holidays. Before it was more the annoying music and crowds that made it preferable to spend them in a spaceship with four or less people -- now he was coming up with an entirely new set of grievances. Thanksgiving had played a big part in Spike's growing inability to tolerate magic dictating his life, so by the time the Christmas kissing magic started, he was done pretending to be alright with it.

The original plan to spend a month hidden with Julia in a freezing cabin backfired spectacularly after the first few days. If anything, it made his uneasy relationship with her that much more uncertain; which was frustrating on enough levels that he preferred to spend his time wandering the snowy streets just to keep his sanity in check. (It had nothing to do with the bar he'd been patronizing sending him packing after his welcome wore out, as it tended to do when he didn't offer to pay his tab. Everyone is so generous this time of year.)

Eventually, Spike would have to think about finding a place to stay before he broke down and went to the castle. It was one of those problems that he felt he could put off until an opportunity presented itself. As much as he cared about it, there was nothing that aimless wandering couldn't solve.

Comments

[gevurah]

Dead silence.

Whether or not this was Gotham, it didn't matter. It never mattered if crime was active, or she had enemies -- none of that mattered when it came to protecting her identity. All it takes is one slip-up before everyone around you is compromised. (Despite breaking off her alliance with Damian and Stephanie, she had to protect them as well.) A grave mistake she could not afford anywhere.

But Spike was unreadable -- unpredictable at best. Whatever his intentions were, it was not knowing that was maddening. Suddenly, she was flooded with old feelings and fears the night Alice kidnapped her father. It was the nauseating rush and then the gaps between her memory that put her on edge before Spike.

Once again not instinct but trained reactions kicked in and she turned on her heel to snatch back up her mask, cape billowing out behind her. She scooped it into her arm and with the other, her grappling hook shot out onto a rooftop, launching herself upward. It too only seconds before the trail of red and black vanished into the cover of the shadows.

[gottaknockhard.livejournal.com]

That was the kind of reaction he should have seen coming. It was one of the few possibilities anyway, and might have been the best option. After all, if she'd tried to kill him, he wouldn't have entirely liked crossing that line. (Sure that would have been a little over the top on her part, but you never can tell what someone will do when their cover is blown.)

Spike hung around for some time after she left. One more thing to weigh on his mind, or at least a welcome distraction from the usual. Unfortunately, like all things, it doesn't last long enough and soon his other issues start dragging down his thoughts.

Vicious cycle.

He didn't think she'd be back, so after another cigarette or two, he moved away from the light and headed towards the castle. No real chance of finding an inn still open out there that late. Any luck, and all the residents would be asleep and he could avoid any more of those encounters. At least he knew what to look out for.