The late afternoon sun poured through the windows of the Summers house, warming the living room in that golden, lazy way that only happened when the day was starting to slip toward evening. Dust floated lazily in the beams of light, the quiet broken only by the faint turning of pages upstairs.

You sat cross-legged on your bed, an old spellbook resting in your lap. Its pages were yellowed with age, the ink slightly faded, but the words still carried power. You’d been practicing small spells for weeks now—nothing huge, mostly protection charms and simple energy work. But this one…

This one made your heart race.

Your finger traced the line of text again.

A daylight spell.

A charm crafted with lapis lazuli, enchanted under the sun, capable of allowing a vampire to walk in daylight unharmed.

Your eyes flicked toward the window, sunlight pouring in like liquid gold. Spike had joked about it before—about how nice it would be to stroll outside at noon instead of skulking around after dark. He always brushed it off with sarcasm, but you could tell. The idea meant something to him.

If this worked…

You closed the book carefully, determination settling in your chest.

Spike was downstairs.

Of course he was.

You could hear the faint murmur of the television and the occasional impatient sigh. Knowing him, he was probably flipping through channels while waiting for nightfall.

The wooden stairs creaked softly beneath your feet as you made your way down. When you stepped into the living room, there he was—boots propped up on the coffee table, leather coat draped over the couch arm, platinum hair catching the dim indoor light.

Spike glanced over the back of the couch when he heard you.

“Look who’s finally emerged,” he drawled, smirking. “Was starting to think the spell books swallowed you whole, pet.”

You leaned against the doorway, folding your arms.

“I need a favor.”

His eyebrow lifted immediately.

“Oh, that’s never ominous.”

You walked further into the room, trying to look casual even though your heart was thumping.

“Do you have any jewelry with lapis lazuli in it?”

Spike blinked at you.

“Blue stone?” he asked slowly.

You nodded.

His eyes narrowed slightly in curiosity, head tilting as he studied you.

“And what exactly do you want that for?”

You hesitated, then shrugged lightly.

“A spell I’m working on.”

Spike leaned back into the couch, arms spreading along the backrest as he eyed you skeptically.

“Bit vague, that.”

“I know,” you said quickly, giving him a small smile. “But I don’t want to explain yet. If it works, I want it to be a surprise.”

That caught his attention.

His smirk softened into something more curious—almost intrigued.

After a moment, he pushed himself off the couch with a quiet grunt and reached into the pocket of his coat. His fingers rummaged around for a second before pulling out a silver ring.

A deep blue stone glinted in the center.

Lapis lazuli.

He twirled it once between his fingers before holding it out to you.

“Had this thing for ages,” he said casually. “Nicked it off some bloke in Prague, if memory serves.”

You stepped forward and took it carefully.

The stone felt cool against your palm.

Spike watched you closely.

“Just promise me one thing,” he added.

You looked up.

“What?”

He gave a crooked grin.

“If this spell of yours turns me into a frog or something, I’m haunting you for the rest of eternity.”

You laughed softly.

“Deal.”

Later that afternoon, you stepped outside into the bright sunlight, the ring resting in the center of a small chalk circle you’d drawn on the back patio. The spellbook lay open beside you, the words practically humming with energy.

You held your hands over the stone as the sun poured down onto it.

Your voice was steady as you began the incantation.

“Phasmatos tribum…”

The air stirred faintly.

“Valls partum…”

The lapis lazuli shimmered softly under the sunlight.

“Circulum.”

For a moment, everything went completely still.

And inside the house, Spike suddenly felt something shift in the air.