*****

*ten years ago*

2:45am
Flamingo Boulevard, Las Vegas (by the I-15 overpass)

Spike looked around at the bright neon lights blinking and glittering all along Las Vegas Boulevard with a smirk on his handsome face. Acrid smoke from his cigarette swirled around his head as he turned to look down into the deep dark brown eyes of the small child clinging to his hand. Such beautiful big eyes under a dark shock of unruly curls peering up at him with an odd mixture of fear and hope.

Alexander.

The dirty drunken human had called the child Alexander. And the child had called the man Daddy. Well, it seems that Daddy had taken the family on a vacation to Sin City and then made a huge mistake. He had gotten into a high stakes poker game in the back room of a demon bar...and lost. To Spike.

When the human realized that he couldn't cover his bets he had offered up his only child as payment. With a shrug and a grin, Spike had graciously accepted the boy as compensation of the human's debt to him.

Then, just to test the mettle of the brat, he had vamped out and killed the boy's father in front of him. The boy hadn't even flinched. The child, *maybe* six years of age, was no stranger to violence. While that would make raising the whelp easier for him, a tiny part of him felt a twinge of pity for the boy.

The child was quiet, he didn't question or try to get away from Spike as he led Alexander [him] past the blinking lights and painted whores towards the deep shadows of an ill lit parking garage. Together they walked side by side until Spike got bored with slowing his pace to match the child's tiny stride and he leaned down, reaching for him with both hands. Alexander, still calm and silent, merely reached up to him with both arms raised and allowed himself to be picked up and carried. By the time Spike had made it to the far corner of the lot where his beloved DeSoto was parked, the whelp had his head pillowed against Spike's leather duster covered shoulder.

"Come on Pet. Climb on into the car for Spike, now."

************************

*slayer's junior year at sunnydale high*

1:15pm
Library, Sunnydale High School

Buffy sat at the research table in the library flipping through a book on various martial arts techniques. She looked up when the doors swung open. Bouncing with her usual over abundance of energy, the only person besides her Watcher to share her secret came in with a huge grin on her gentle features. Willow's deep auburn hair shone in the light and her green eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Willow! What's got you in such a perky type mood?"

The red haired girl bounced up on her toes and took a deep breath in order to begin her tale. The blonde Slayer grinned.

"Oh! I just got back from talking to Oz and he told me that his band, the Dingoes, is playing at the Bronze tonight. I was thinking that since vampy activity has been sort of slow lately that you might want to go with me after patrol. We could be all supportive of Oz and the guys and, you know, just have a bit of fun."

Buffy couldn't help but feel a bit of Willow's enthusiasm rub off on her. Plus it would give her an excuse to spend time around Angel that was not of the do-or-die variety. The guy was tall, dark and handsome, that was true, but he *really* needed to relax and enjoy himself more often. The Slayer gave an internal grimace. Actually, it wouldn't hurt if *she* did a little socializing either.

"Okay Willow. Sounds great. Tonight after patrol, we'll Bronze it."

*

9:30pm
City Limits, Sunnydale CA

Belching oily smoke from it's tailpipes and kicking up stones and pebbles from beneath it's tires, a big black DeSoto with hand-painted flames down it's sides and blacked out windows came barreling over the curb and headed directly for the city limits sign.

Welcome to Sunnydale

*slam-crunch*

"Woohoo! Did you *see* that Pet? Lovely spot of mischief that was, eh?"

The bleached blonde demon turned his head to look over at the dark haired teen with the unruly dark curls and the chocolate drop eyes. The boy's face was stretched into a wide smile and his laughter blended in with the thrash metal rock blasting out of the speakers.

"The Hellmouth isn't gonna know what hit 'em."

Spike smirked at his boy and tossed a cigarette into his mouth. A quick flip-twist of his wrist had his zippo lighter out and lit. In mere seconds acrid blue-gray smoke curled up around his head.

"No Pet, we're gonna knock 'em all on their lovely fat arses, we will."

*

10:30pm
The Bronze, Sunnydale CA

Angel looked around at the ever shifting crowds of young people, desperately trying to figure out what it was that was setting Angelus to rattling inside his mental cage. Loud music pounded through the sound system with a pulsing grinding back beat, the air was drenched with the mouth watering scents of hot rushing adrenaline filled blood, clean sweat and pheromones. The younger high school aged teens were slowly thinning out of the crowd only to be replaced by the older college aged ones. Dim lights flashed and the press of humans swayed to a rhythm of lust and innocence.

Nothing seemed out of place. Nothing called out to his eyes or his ears. Nothing pulled in the attention of his devious and sharp mind as being *wrong*, and yet... *some* thing had changed.

Something called to him, cried out to him. There was a dark foreboding in everything he saw, in everything he touched. He had to work extra hard to repress Angelus behind his human soul. To push away the dark urge to hunt and hurt and kill. Closing his eyes to shut out the sight of the bewitchingly tempting live humans writhing to the music on the dancefloor didn't help. It only provided him with a black backdrop for his mind to paint lush images of pain filled dying humans, writhing in a growing pool of their own blood.

Something was subconsciously influencing him...calling to him. Something dark and evil and oh so beguiling. Angelus knew what this thing was. Angelus could feel it, even trapped within the cage Angel had built to contain him. He knew that he only had to immerse himself in Angelus' mind to discover where these...primal urges were originating. But he was afraid...afraid he might not be strong enough to push the demon back down if he allowed him even that much freedom. And so he brooded and worried and wondered.

************************

*the next day*

2:30pm
Abandoned Factory, Sunnydale CA

Xan stretched his arms over his head and his long legs out the end of the ratty blanket as a huge jaw-cracking yawn erupted from his mouth. Feeling sleep peel back away from his still fuzzy thoughts, he blinked a bit to bring his surroundings into focus.

The room was dark and dank, mildew and rust the predominant scents. The soft sounds of rats scurrying around in the darkness melded eerily with the faint sound of a light breeze whistling through the crack in a window somewhere high up. He was laying on his stomach on their air-mattress and Spike's cold hard body was pressed tightly against him. The vampire's inhumanly strong arms were wrapped tightly around his waist and chest, pulling him in tight.

The whole setup was familiar in that it was like every other abandoned building he and his "foster father" had ever stayed in and yet it was as an unknown to him. The details were not yet etched into his mind and for a brief moment he wondered where they were. Then it came to him. Sunnydale. The Hellmouth.

It was at that point that he woke up the rest of the way. Excitement and curiosity swirled together in his brain and he had the urge to prowl around the town, learning the lay of the land, seeking out the people and the demons. Separating the predators from the prey in his mind. But before any of that, he needed to empty his bladder, get dressed and hunt up some food. Pizza sounded good.

Grinning in anticipation, Xan began to try and wiggle out of Spike's grasp, hoping to loosen the demon's hold on him enough that he could slip free. All his squirming accomplished was Spike pulling him in tighter and wrapping one lean cool muscular leg around both of his and a hissed "mine" tickling the back of his neck. His grin grew wider.

"Come on Spike, let me out of bed."

"No"

Spike nuzzled his face deeper into Xan's soft dark curls briefly and then he fell still and silent once again. As much as Xan enjoyed Spike's possessiveness and his unconscious need for cuddles, his bladder was beginning to get angry with him.

"Let me *up* dammit!"

Spike ignored him.

"*Please* Daddy? I hav'ta go pee."

This whispered plea spoken in a slightly whiny little-boy voice never failed him before and it worked this time as well. With a mumbled grumpy noise of complaint, Spike let go and rolled over completely, turning his back to Xan. Xan's smile grew wide and he had to bite back a chuckle.

Instead, he leaned over and pressed a quick kiss to Spike's pale shoulder and then climbed out of bed. He adjusted the blankets so that the warm spot that he was leaving behind would be wrapped around the bleached blonde vampire. Standing up, he quickly located his clothes which consisted of a pair of black jeans, a faded concert t-shirt and his Doc Martin boots. Grabbing his sunglasses to finish the look, he pilfered his foster father's wallet for cash and pried open the metal door that blocked the way from the small room they had been holed up in.

Slowly making his way down the dark industrial corridor, he had to pick his way among a nest of sleeping fledglings that had sought out shelter from the sun inside the huge factory. It never even occurred to him that he might have been in danger. Instead of trembling in fear because he was the only living human among a building full of undead vampires, he concentrated on finding the way outside so that he could have an afternoon of fun and adventure.

After all, William the Bloody's son hadn't been raised to be a good boy.

*

3:45pm
Sunnydale Mall, Sunnydale CA

Cordelia was barely paying attention to Harmony as she babbled on and on about the fashion faux pas that had been the highlight of her English class earlier that day. Granted, Cordelia had *seen* the outfit that Melissa Penderson had been wearing and it *deserved* every comment that Harmony had made, however, she was focused on something *much* more interesting.

Across the way, a boy she had never seen before was lounging indolently at one of the tables in the food court, a paper plate littered with two pizza crust's pushed over to one side. Everything about him screamed "dark" and "dangerous", from his dark colored clothing to his dark hair and eyes.

Beyond that, it was the expression on his face that sent a thrill down her spine when she looked at him. His handsome features were twisted into an amused sneer of arrogance and minor contempt. Even though his body was still and calm, his eyes roamed over the open airiness of the food court, studying and watching. Cordelia had a sudden mental image of the boy as a large black cat, crouched down in long grass as it stalked it's unassuming prey. She shivered.

Then those dark eyes swung around and locked with hers. Cordelia felt as if she were falling into twin pits of darkness and heat and she was drowning in sensations that she had never felt before. She felt her cheeks heat up in a blush and she suddenly felt shy for the first time in her life. The boy's smirk grew even wider as he stared at her with his piercing stare and a burst of wetness blossomed between her legs. She blushed harder.

Then her attention was violently torn from the boy as her purse was yanked *hard* from her shoulder. She stumbled and almost fell, Harmony's hands grabbing her arm the only thing keeping her on her feet.

Cordelia looked up to see the red haired purse-snatcher running away and she dragged in a deep breath in order to *scream* her outrage when a blur of darkness rushed past her. The boy from the food court. A hard cry of shock and pain rent the air and both boys tumbled to the ground in a tangle of limbs. Someone muttered "ohmigod" and then Harmony was dragging her closer.

A crowd was trying to gather, but Harmony shoved her way through with Cordelia right behind her. They saw the dark boy standing, one booted foot braced against the red haired boy's back, right between his shoulder blades. He had the thief's left arm twisted behind him and pulled up at a painful angle by his two handed strangle hold on the redhead's wrist. The thief was whimpering and moaning.

Scurrying forward, Cordelia scooped up her purse, pulling the dark boy's attention to her. He grinned his dark grin at her, a cruel glint in his amused eyes.

"Well lovely, shall I break his arm for you?"

"What?"

Cordelia was stunned by the offer. The thief, however, was livid.

"No way man. Don't you dare."

The dark boy yanked on his arm viscously and the thief cried out in pain. The boy just chuckled at the reaction.

"I don't think you are in *any* position to make demands of me, child. It's up to the lady, she's the one you insulted by stealing her purse. And to be honest, you deserve any punishment she can think up, for sloppiness if nothing more."

"You're crazy man. Sloppiness?"

The dark boy shrugged his shoulders at the thief's confusion.

"Yeah. Sloppy. You got *caught*. That's a no-no, man. Time to pay the price."

The dark boy turned his head and grinned a chillingly charming grin at Cordelia.

"Well lovely? Shall I break his fingers for you? His arm?... His neck?"

There was a hint of challenge in the boy's eyes, daring her to choose one of his choices and *not* just simply let the thief go free and unpunished. Which was what she *was* going to do...until she remembered the sensation of falling into his eyes from across the food court and blushing like a nerdy little wall flower. No way was she going to let anyone show her up. Not in private, and *certainly* not in public. She was going to call his bluff.

She arched one of her perfectly shaped eyebrows at him and offered up one of her own smirks. Trying to sound indifferent, she couldn't help the hint of challenge that echoed in her own voice.

"His fingers. Break them."

The boy's smile widened then, into a *real* smile. Suddenly, Cordelia knew that this boy *liked* these kind of games. She felt that secret thrill of danger return.

"As the lady wishes."

*snap* *crrrrr-ack*

"Aaaaaaahhhhh!"

Without blinking, the dark haired boy broke all of the fingers on the thief's trapped arm with one swift twist of his wrists. He never blinked. He never flinched. He never broke eye contact with a quickly paling Cordelia. The rest of the crowd, however, gasped in shock.

Then, tipping an imaginary hat to Cordelia, he turned and disappeared into the crowd.

*

6:30pm
Library, Sunnydale High School

"Willow? What are you doing here? I thought you had a study date with Oz?"

The red haired girl gave a sad muted shrug as she walked over to the large research table and gracelessly flopped down into a chair. Her large bag of school books thumbed onto the floor beside her.

"I did. I got to his house and his mom told me he was at his Aunt's place. Baby-sitting. Apparently his cousin got hurt in a fight this afternoon and his Aunt had to take him to the hospital. There was no one to watch the baby, so she called her sister. Uh...that's Oz's mom. Anyway, *he* was the one elected to watch the little one, so..."

Willow trailed off and sighed. Buffy flashed her a sympathetic look.

"So, no study date. Got'cha."

Willow nodded her head dejectedly.

"Yeah."

Buffy felt bad for her friend. Willow really liked Oz and Oz liked her too. They made a really cute couple and he made Willow happy. Unfortunately, they both seemed to suffer from this horrible bad luck whenever they tried to get together. Buffy didn't think it was very fair. They had enough crappy things happen to them as it was, they didn't need this kind of extra stress on top of it. She just wanted them all to be happy.

"Look. I know I'm not Oz, but...why don't you come with me to the Bronze for a bit. I'm supposed to meet Angel there before patrol and I'm hoping that he'll be a little less...tense tonight. I mean, last night he was...on edge...or something. Giles doesn't really have anything for us here because he's waiting on a fax or something from England and until we get it, well... Anyway, we'll listen to a few songs, drink a soda or two and then when Angel gets there we'll walk you home. Sound good?"

Willow looked up at her friend and smiled. It wasn't what she had planned, but it was good. And she really appreciated Buffy trying to cheer her up.

"Okay. I'll Bronze with you. Thanks."

Buffy smiled at her, relaxing a bit now that Willow was smiling as well.

"No problem. What are friends for?"

*

7:45pm
The Bronze, Sunnydale CA

The hunger was rising up inside of him like a red tide under a full moon. The pounding thumping echoes of living heartbeats thundered in his ears and his mouth watered from the thick scent of human blood that permeated the very air. He was *so* close to falling off the edge of a dark and dangerous cliff. Falling straight into damnation. Directly into the insanity which was Angelus.

His control was slipping and his demon beat upon the bars of it's cage, howling for release. Screaming for that which it had been denied so very long. Rage and fear swept over him in alternating waves and he didn't know how to fight anymore. He wanted to run far away so that he could hide from the pain. But the pain was inside of his own mind and one can never run away from one's own self.

So he was trapped. Captured inside a prison of his own making. Angelus was the warden and any wrong move, just one false step and the killing would begin again.

It was his blood. His blood sang to him from his own veins, seeking and searching for...something. Something elusive. Something forbidden. Something...close.

Then he saw her, mere seconds after she had spotted him. Graceful and deadly, she cut through the crowd of humans like a hot knife through warm butter only to glide right up next to him. Her hair shone like new spun gold and her smile whispered of sunshine and new spring flowers and he felt old and dead and rotten to his core. Unworthy of her...hungry for her.

"Hey, Angel. I was hoping that we could..."

He cut her off. He needed to get away. His control was dissolving. He wasn't safe. *She* wasn't safe. Not near him.

"I have to go. I have to...to leave. He's coming. Oh God...he's so close now."

Her soft lips pulled into a slight frown.

"Who's coming? Angel...who are you talking about?"

He couldn't answer her. He didn't really know. Thoughts and images, feelings and desires all swirled through him and around him and he needed to leave. Now. Without another word, he melted into the crowd. Away from her. From *him*. He dashed out into the night, wishing with all his might that he could get away from himself.

*

8:00pm
The Bronze Parking Lot, Sunnydale CA

They were coming around the corner out of the back alley, his beautiful pet babbling on excitedly about some hot bint and some idiot purse snatcher when he felt it. It was like a hum that started at the base of his skull and worked it's way throughout his entire body. Jerking to a complete halt, he put out one arm to stop his pet from walking on. The boy was well trained and stopped his chattering as well.

In the sudden silence, Spike was able to concentrate and focus on that feeling. Turning on his heel, he looked around...and saw two young girls dash off in the opposite direction. A blonde and a red head.

"There! Pet, look over there at those two chits. One of them is the Slayer!"

The boy turned and looked in the direction he was pointing.

"Hmmmm, nice. Very pretty. So...which one is she?"

Spike concentrated a little harder, holding himself very very still. Then, with a sigh he shook his head.

"I'm not sure. They're too close together and too far away for me to tell. It's definitely one of them...I'm just not sure which."

He looked around to see his pet frowning in thought.

"Spike? I thought you said you'd be able to tell?"

The blonde vampire rolled his eyes and shrugged.

"S'not *my* fault the bloody chit has a friend. Most Slayer's *don't* have any. The Watchers don't like 'em to have any chums. Besides, I keep getting this echo from being so close to me Sire. He's here. Somewhere close. We're almost at the end of our hunt, pet."

His pet grinned at that. It was a dark and evil grin, one that did a father's unbeating heart proud.

"So...Gramps is around here somewhere? Cool."

Then the boy paused and frowned again.

"Do you think it'll work? Will it cure him?"

Spike scowled. He didn't like the idea that all his hard work wouldn't break the curse. After all, the wizard had *promised* that his talisman would do the trick. And since Spike had already killed him, he couldn't very well go off and punish him if it failed.

"Of course it'll bloody work. I'll get my Sire back, I'll have *you*, my pet. My family will be...all together."

The boy just smiled. It was a shark's smile, all teeth and no morals behind it.

"Wel, let's go inside the club. I wanna see if that babe from earlier is here and I'm sure we can scout out a lovely bit of all right for you."

Spike laughed and nodded.

"Sure pet. Let's go find us a couple of chits."

*****
Part 2:

8:30pm
Trisha Well's Home, Sunnydale CA

Oz grabbed hold of the naked toddler as he tried to dash around the older boy's legs towards the hallway and freedom.

"Hey naked-boy! None of that. It's time for pajamas."

The small boy looked up at his cousin, his big green eyes wide and innocent.

"Noooooo! No wan' p'jammies."

The toddler stuck his bottom lip out in a pout, his eyes going even wider. Oz bit back his own grin at the innate cuteness and fought the urge to give in. He wondered briefly if they offered immunization shots to ward off such weakness in the face of kittens, puppies and small children. Whoever invented one would certainly make a fortune.

"Yep. Pajamas."

Carrying the now wiggling bundle of quickly squirming boy-child over to the chest of drawers, Oz reached for the blue pair of footed Winnie the Pooh pajamas. And got bit. Hard. On the fleshy part of his thumb.

"Ow! Uncool, Ricky. Very uncool."

Shifting his burden slightly so that he could see his hurting thumb, Oz noticed that it was bleeding. Instantly, he turned his head to look at his youngest cousin's face and saw several drops of blood on the boy's lips. Ignoring his throbbing thumb in favor of the toddler, Oz rushed into the bathroom and began to try and clean his blood out of the child's mouth.

"Oh man. Aunt Trisha is gonna flip."

Little Ricky just giggled and enjoyed the fact that he was still naked.

*

9:30pm
The Bronze, Sunnydale CA

Harmony followed Cordelia into the dimly lit main room of The Bronze and quickly scanned the crowd as they made their way directly to 'their' table. She didn't see the rest of the Cordettes, so it was possible that they hadn't arrived yet or were in the ladies room. More importantly than that, she didn't see Trevor Hamilton here and *that* was just *way* too much. He *promised* that he would be here tonight and she was in no mood to be stood up.

The DJ was playing a dance song with a fast beat and the crowd was jumping. Sparkling blinking lights shimmered around the room and everyone either smiled widely at her in the hopes that she would notice them or they cringed back in the hopes that she wouldn't. She was a princess and a Cordette. She *refused* to let that idiot Trevor totally bum out her night.

Dropping her purse onto the table, she made a move to sit down next to Cordelia when something caught her eye from across the room. Pausing a moment to squint and shift slightly to see around the fat cow in the painfully ugly dress, Harmony almost squealed in excitement. She caught herself just in time.

"Cordelia! Look over there. Hurry!"

"What? Where?"

Cordelia looked up from searching around inside her purse and gazed out at the crowd. Harmony leaned down over her shoulder and whispered in her ear as she pointed.

"Over there. By the bar. It's that guy from the mall."

Harmony sensed, more than felt, Cordelia stiffen up beside her. Then the brunette was shifting in her chair slightly to get a better look. A soft gasp tickled her ear and then Cordelia turned to face her with a huge smile on her face and excitement in her eyes. Bells went off in Harmony's head.

"Oh my God. You *like* him. He's...he's...he's a *psycho* 'Delia. I'm talking big time mental-case. I mean, you *saw* what he did to that slease-ball thief."

Harmony frowned slightly in thought.

"Okay. The sleave-ball *did* deserve it, but still...eww! That guys just *broke* his hand without flinching. He's...I don't know...*dangerous*."

Cordelia's grin slid into a smirk.

"Yeah, he is, isn't he?"

They shared a naughty giggle and then turned their heads as one to look over towards the bar. The dark haired teen from the mall looked exactly the same, tight black jeans and a faded concert t-shirt. His black plastic sunglasses were pushed up on his head to hold his unruly curls out of his dark eyes. His handsome face was drawn up in a smile of cruel arrogance and he seemed to attract as many people as he repelled. Most likely, they were afraid of him.

The only person he really seemed to be honestly friendly with was another stranger that was sitting at the bar next to him drinking a beer. The other man was wearing a long black leather coat and he had cheekbones that Harmony would willingly kill for. And that hair...

"Oh. My. God. Double process much?"

"What? Who?"

Harmony pointed at the two guys.

"The blonde next to your hero. Looks like he dunked his head into a vat of Clorox. But *damn*, did you see his *cheekbones*?"

Cordelia gave vent to an amused snort and glanced over at Harmony, her eyes sparkling with a predatory gaze.

"Shall we go over there and order a soda? Bump into them all accidentally?"

Harmony's answer was a smirk. Moving as one, the two girls grabbed their purses and walked over towards the bar. Without even glancing at either guy, they 'innocently' stepped between them and waved for the bartender to bring them both a drink.

She could hear Cordelia strike up a conversation with the boy from the mall next to her and she knew her part to play in this. She was the distraction for the guy's blonde haired friend. That way, he wouldn't butt in at the wrong time and ruin things for Cordelia. Pasting her best smile on her face, Harmony turned around to look at him...and fell into the bluest eyes she had ever seen.

Those eyes were almost hypnotic. They seemed so old, wise, as if they had been witness to far to much, and yet they sparkled with some inner glow as if they hungered to see more. Much more. Those eyes seemed to see right through her, down deep inside to where she hid all of her nasty little secrets and fears. Those eyes wanted to devour her, swallow her whole.

"...so blue..."

Her voice was a husky whisper, but his was rich. Full of mirth and danger and darkness, gilded by a smoky accent that scent shivers along her skin.

"What was that, luv?"

Blushing, she cleared her throat and spoke louder.

"Your eyes. They're such an incredible shade of blue. Like the morning sky."

A slightly haunted look flickered across his face too fast for Harmony to be certain that it was even there at all.

"I don't do mornings, luv. I wouldn't know. More a night owl, me."

She shivered slightly as his voice rolled over her and she had the irrational urge to ask them to turn off the music so that she could hear him better. All she knew was that she *had* to keep him talking to her...and *only* her. Widening her smile, she stuck out her hand.

"Oh. I'm Harmony."

His grin slid into an expression that screamed 'danger' to her, but she wasn't sure why. Then he reached out with his own hand. For a moment, she was sure that he was going to shake, but then he grabbed her hand in his and brought it up to his face. Instead of kissing the back of her hand, which was her next guess, he shocked her by turning her hand palm up. Then he sniffed lightly at her wrist for a brief second before placing an indecent kiss on her suddenly oversensitive palm.

"They call me Spike, don't they?"

Harmony was suddenly hot and horny for him and she could feel a burst of wetness between her thighs. She had wondered what it would feel like to have sex many times but this was the first time that she wondered if she would have the desire to say no.

Then the crowd shifted sharply and the blonde guy was jostled from behind. The beer in his hand sloshed out of the top of his glass and splashed onto her green silk blouse. Indignant anger rising up to crush any other thoughts in her head, she let out a shriek.

"Hey! My shirt!"

Rage flashed across Spike's face and a thrill of fear swept over Harmony and for the first time in her life she felt a flash of panic. But then Cordelia was there, demanding to the bartender that he bring over club soda and a clean cloth and Spike was holding the idiot who'd bumped into him by the teen's shirt balled up in one of his fists. He turned and faced the dark haired boy that Cordelia had been flirting with and practically snarled.

"Come on, pet. This boy needs to be taught a few lessons about proper manners."

The dark haired boy laughed at that and it was a sound filled with darkness and cruelty.

"Can I watch?"

Spike smirked.

"Bloody Hell, pet. You can help."

Cordelia's crush smirked back at his friend. Then he turned and tipped an imaginary hat at them just as he had done at the mall.

"Ladies..."

And with that, the two guys dragged the struggling teen who had made Spike spill his beer all over Harmony out the back door.

*

9:40pm
Alley Behind The Bronze, Sunnydale CA

Blood.

Rich, thick hot blood splashed against his tongue, coating his throat. Liquid sunshine, burning him from the inside out, filling him with energy and power and life.

Warmth.

He could *feel* the slowing beat of the dying boy's heart against his lips and his tongue and his fingers. He could smell the boy's fear and taste his pain as pure bright white pleasure swirled through him. Making him hard. Making him want.

The boy's heart beat slower and slower as the blood stopped spurting. And Spike had to *draw* it out of the body, draining it from the veins until there was no more. Just an empty shell, a quickly cooling corpse. Casually, he broke it's neck. He didn't want to chance having a mindless remnant rise from the remains of his dinner.

Hunger sated, he was still left painfully hard. Grinning, he dropped the corpse to the ground only to see his boy, his pet, the one he would eventually turn to become his only childe. Xan.

The dark haired teen was staring at him with a hunger of his own, one big callused hand rubbing at his own hardened cock through the black denim jeans.

"So beautiful when you kill. I could watch that forever."

Spike smirked.

"You will, pet. You will..."

This was an old conversation and Xan knew it by heart and was able to echo Spike's next words even as they were spoken.

"...but not until you are twenty-one years old."

Xan smirked up at him, his dark eyes flashing in amusement and Spike's control reached it's limits. He was hard, horny and his pet was hungry for him. Stepping over the corpse, Spike reached out and ran his thumb over his pet's full bottom lip. Lightly, his hand trailed down the strong neck and without question, Xan tilted his head to the side, offering up his own blood. Spike shook his head no and trailed his hand down to Xan's shoulder. Just the tiniest amount of pressure and Xan dropped immediately to his knees before the blonde vampire.

Long thick fingers reached out and unzipped Spike's jeans. Warm hands gently pulled his cock out and the vampire shivered from the well known and always welcomed heat. Then he gasped in unneeded air and a burning hot wet mouth closed around him and he heard his pet unzip his own jeans and reach for his own cock with his hands.

Moaning deep in his throat, Spike began to pump into his boy's mouth. Xan knew what he liked and he knew how much Xan could take. They had *lots* of practice and it didn't take longer than a double heartbeat to set up a quick rhythm of sucking and thrusting.

Pleasure swirled at the base of Spike's spine and traveled up and down his nervous system like flickers of electricity. The warmth of the blood he had just drank combined with the warmth of his pet made him feel almost alive again. Heady on power and pleasure, it didn't take Spike long before he was coming in violent spurts into Xan's talented mouth.

And at the first taste of his seed, his pet came himself. All over the ground.

Panting for breath he didn't need, Spike pulled his spent cock passed his pet's lips and tucked himself back in his jeans. Turning, he bent down and picked up the corpse and slung it up over one shoulder. Listening to his boy straighten his own clothing out, Spike strode over to the dumpster and dropped the body inside it.

An amused smirk on his face, Spike headed back over to Xan. They were just turning to leave and go out looking for some other place to visit when the two bints from the bar stepped out the back door. Harmony and the brunette bird that his pet had been chatting up.

"Ladies?"

The two bints turned to look over at his pet. The brunette that had been hanging on his pet smiled up at the boy.

"Since you two are still here, we were wondering if you wouldn't mind walking us home? There's some bad elements here in Sunnydale and it isn't safe at night."

Spike and Xan shared an ironic smile, barely repressing the urge to laugh out loud. Then Spike turned on the charm and offered his arm to Harmony.

"Certainly luv. Wouldn't do to let two beauties like you get hurt, now would it?"

*****