| Mazzy & Prebuffy present |
| ********Mazzy********** Angel dragged the ragged looking souled-vampire across the threshold of the perennially vacant hotel. Spike�s feet pulled in trails of dirt and mud from outside and he remained clutched in Angel�s unrelenting grasp. Wesley trailed behind, a little worse for wear, but still standing. He had some deep cuts and bruises on his arms where the mother demon had slashed him with a sharp tentacle. The moment they entered, Fred was immediately up, her face in alarm at the site before her eyes. �What happened? What happened??� She moved to the counter in search of the first aid kit. Lorne nearly spilled his appletini on himself when the commotion landed in the main lobby. He knew he shouldn�t be surprised. He had forseen things going wrong, but he didn�t expect Mr. Beautiful and Bleached to be deep in his vampy ways so soon. This wasn�t quite how he�d seen it. He moved forward, keeping his mouth closed and then quickly clamping it shut with his hand, though his long manicured fingers were also doing the job of holding his prominent nose closed. He mumbled through his own self-induced gagging �What is that foul stench?� Angel remained cool throughout the drama. He released his grip on Spike then moved a now-stumbling Wesley over to the nearby lounge couch and dropped him down gracefully. He grabbed a white rag that Fred had produced, immediately applying pressure to Wesley�s cuts. Pure red blood soaked through the thin cotton cloth, penetrating Angel�s cold skin. He forced himself to concentrate on the task at hand--saving his friend-- and ignoring the craving that was building inside of him at the sight of the intoxicating fluid. Via his peripheral vision, he spied Spike lick his lips at the sight, yet remained away from the scene, in silent exile. Fred hovered nearby, worry and concern lingered on her face. �Where�s Gunn?� Angel attended to the injured. Fred answered meekly. �He went to go check out another lead, in case we were wrong about the Ingelwood location.� �We were.� �But you found them,� Lorne interjected, �so I smell.� Wesley moaned a bit, feeling the sting of his wounds. They were different than ordinary wounds. He hadn�t realized they would be so painful. He felt a bit dizzy and slightly dazed. Fred kneeled before him and grasped his hand, noticing for the first time that he was covered in a familiar orange noxious substance. She looked around and noticed they all were, but none was more drenched in fluid then Spike. He looked like he had bathed in the juice. �It�s from the Swagger demon.� She explained, �When they�re being attacked, they secrete a poisonous substance to protect their eggs and fight their enemies.� �Poison?� Wesley spoke, startled at this new knowledge. A bit of delirium had settled over him, but now he was beginning to come back to his senses. Apparently he hadn�t had too much blood loss. �Have I been�?� �I don�t think so,� Angel said calmly. �Angel, I don�t understand?� She looked at him and regarded Spike�s quietude. �What happened?� It was apparent to Angel that Lorne already knew the answer; he responded low to Fred, �He lost control. He attacked.� Wesley spoke not a word, but looked meaningfully into Fred�s eyes. In turn, her eyes gazed upon Angel who simply lowered his head in deference. Eyes of the innocent immediately cast themselves upon Spike. Spike could not look her in the eye. He had given her his word that nothing bad would happen while he was there. She trusted him in that moment. He felt so ashamed, so out of control. If he couldn�t keep a promise to this girl, how would he ever keep a promise to Buffy? He had failed. �But, I??� Fred had no words. Spike was the one she believed would cause them no harm. How could it be? Spike knew that he was allowing himself to be a prisoner of Angel�s will, to pay for this indiscretion. He did not know what had come over him nor what Angel might do to him. It was enough that he just let him be. He deserved to be caged and beaten, not to be standing freely among them. It was a punishment worse than being chained. �So, poison, Fred?� Lorne tried to direct the conversation into more neutral territory. �How harmful we talking here?� Fred looked up at him and displayed her studious guise, spilling forward newly acquired information she had read in the Book of Rodin while the demon hunt was on. �Small amounts, really, I would have to test it to be sure. Humans�and vampires,� she added, �are not the natural enemy of the Swagger Demon. Usually Vracken Cods take their eggs to feed upon. The poison is secreted to neutralize the Cods and then the Mother Swagger eats its legs to immobilize it, meanwhile covering the entire body in its salvia for later digestion to nurture her babies�� �And that �BAM� of saliva really kicks it up a notch, doesn�t it?� Lorne returned to his drink. Angel attended to a recovering Wesley, both listening carefully to the new information. �I don�t understand, we feel fine, don�t we?� The rogue hunter looked toward Angel and began to get up. �Wesley, you really should lie down.� �I�m fine!� The ex-watcher spoke stubbornly, almost bitter at the attention he was receiving. �It�s not as bad as having your throat slit straight across, and clearly I survived that and the harrowing hospital stay thereafter.� The dig was not lost on any of those present. Angel lowered his head in shame. Would Wesley ever forgive his own attack on him? He directed his attention at Spike. �We should take him out of here. He needs blood. Let�s bring him in the office or something. � Spike broke his code of silence. �Are their weapons in there? Rope?� �Why?� Angel was slightly taken aback by the sudden sound of his voice. �Isn�t it pretty obvious why I wouldn�t want to be near any weapons?� Spike declared. �Well I think it�s pretty clear that you don�t need any weapons.� Angel regretted his condescension, but he had to make the point. �Now you can see why I asked for rope.� �I�m not tying you up, no matter how much you beg,� Angel barked. �But that doesn�t make any sense,� Fred broke in. �Leave it.� Angel spoke with utmost authority. �He won�t try anything. Let him cool down while we try to figure this out.� *~*~*~*~* The spell was over. The eyes of the six snapped open, and they looked around at one another, as if checking to see if they were still all in one piece. �I feel drained.� Dawn confessed, raising a hand to her forehead in emphasis. �Me too,� Cordelia jumped on the victims-r-us bandwagon. �Is that normal? Cause this was kinda my first spell, well that I remember anyway.� Buffy grew worried at Dawn�s complaint, but Willow reassured her with an informed look and careful words. �It makes sense that Dawn and Cordelia would feel that way. I used a bit of both their energies to craft the spell.� �Well, I feel fine.� Anya, got up, wiping dust bunnies (she hated that expression) off of her sleek black pants. �Is it cause I�m more powerful?� �Actually,� Willow informed them, �you didn�t have to do as much work.� �Excuse me?� the vengeance demon admonished, placing defiant hands on her hips. �You wouldn�t have been able to do that spell without me!� �Ahn, we�re getting off topic,� Xander extinguished literal and metaphorical flames simultaneously. �The real important bit we need to know is whether or not the dang thing worked.� He blew out the final candle. �It did.� Willow spoke proudly then cowered under the glare of five expectant faces. They awaited pertinent information. She knew she needed to tell them what Floaty-Cordy had said, but she just wasn�t sure how she was going to tell them, especially Buffy. She wasn�t ready; she needed some time to figure it out. �But, like Dawn and Cordelia, I�m also weary from everything. Whew! It was quite taxing on me, um, even if I don�t exactly look like I�m tapped, I am actually, quite a bit, so what if we just kinda, you know, had a little rest, actually go to bed and then make a battle plan when we wake up?� Just when Buffy was about to protest this idea, she heard a crash of a table falling and snapped her head in time to see a the accompanying body landing on the floor with a thud; Dawn had unexpectedly collapsed. Soon Buffy was at her side. �Dawn, Oh my God! Dawn, are you okay? Someone get smelling salts or something!� Xander turned to Cordelia to make sure that she would not suffer the same fate. �Here,� he grasped her arm, �Why don�t you just sit down for a minute. Anya, wanna give me a hand?� Willow dashed to the kitchen for provisions, while a reluctant Anya helped the memory loss victim. Xander knelt by Buffy�s side in an attempt to revive her sister. �Dawn, DAWN!� She slapped her lightly on the face, but Buffy�s Slayer strength was more like a crack across the young girl�s face. Despite the accidental pain, it served its purpose. Dawn murmured, �Africa�shamans�� �Dawn!� Xander grabbed her carefully behind her head and back, lifting her up to a sitting position. Willow returned to the room with a pitcher of water and some glasses. �Will this do?� She asked meekly. Buffy glared at her. It was all just too much to deal with, and she didn�t want to have yet another fight about the repercussions of witchcraft--another casualty of the war that they constantly fought on the Hellmouth. She was less than thrilled that her sister had been used this way and had suffered the consequences, but she knew there was a price to pay for messing with the powers that be. She knew it all too well, and she knew it was time she start dealing with it. She grabbed a glass that Willow offered and gave it to her sister. She resigned herself to throwing Willow a bone. �Perhaps you�re right, and this is all too much right now.� She looked at Cordelia, who leaned back into the couch, head resting on her hands. For someone who had awoken so startled and with no intention of returning to sleep, she suddenly looked like she would pull a Rumplestilskin. �I�m going to take Dawn to bed and try to get some winks myself.� With Xander�s assistance, Buffy helped her sister to her weary feet. She looked upon all of them. �I think it would be a good idea if we all tried that. There�s nothing we can do �til morning anyway.� Buffy and Dawn began to climb the stairs to the bedroom and Xander followed behind. After two steps, he paused and turned back to face his oldest friend. �Just one thing Willow.� �What�s that?� She looked down into a newly filled water glass, gazing into its clear nothingness and feeling almost as empty as the glass looked. �We did the right thing? Right? We have our answers?� �Yeah,� Willow assured him. �I know what we have to do.� Cordelia was out like a light. Anya stood up from the arm of the sofa and threw her hands in the air. �Well if she�s gonna sack out on the sofa, I call dibs on her bed.� Willow stood in the center of the spell�s star. Except for the sleeping form of a non-Floaty Cordelia, she was left virtually alone in the room. The extinguished candles left a trail of hazy black smoke that hung in the dry air around her. Despite the fallout of the evening, she knew she had to formulate a plan of action. *~*~*~*~*~* Fred was wary of the situation, but Angel seemed so sure about it. He locked the door to the office and turned to face the remnants of his A-team. �Well, he�s fed. You�ll be safe out here.� He regarded them and looked back to the office door. �We all will be.� �I know,� A nearly stabilized Wesley said confidently. �What he did, it wasn�t normal. It wasn�t him.� Lorne had insight into the situation based on his reading of the soul-singing vamp. �You�re right. When he was crooning, it wasn�t just about all the she-demons going crazy. There was something in him. I saw his ability to attack; I saw how flimsy that soul�s tether is.� �Is it really that faulty?� Fred asked worried. �It could be strengthened,� Angel offered. �Mine was�through time.� �You mean you did things like that?� Fred was surprised, �When you first became souled?� Angel just nodded, working up the courage to tell of his wrongdoings. Wesley saved him the burden by offering an explanation. �It�s not just about a soul. Every human, good or bad, has a soul. Everyone or thing that has a soul has the capability to be good or bad.� His watcher colors were on display now. �The soul helps define a person�s basic morals, but it doesn�t guarantee absolute compliance.� He began pacing much like a professor lecturing a class. Lorne�s mind drifted for a second, filled with the notion of designing a special high end, art-deco exposition room for moments like these. �You see,� Wesley continued, �Angel knows this because while he is still basically a good person, he can be capable of questionable deeds.� Lorne and Fred looked between the two uneasy allies. Wesley ignored the exchange. �We all can,� he added, implicating himself. �We all have done or will do things we�re not especially proud of, things we either thought were right at the time or knew weren�t right but couldn�t fight the urge to do anyway. And it�s because we�re all weak at times. We all have the ability to act impulsively as a reaction to unexpected stimuli�the care and feeding of our Id, to put it in Freudian terms.� �So what�s the answer then? Isn�t there a chip factor? How can we be sure Spike won�t attack again?� Fred looked at him searchingly. �We can�t,� Angel chimed in. �And his chip isn�t functional, so we can�t be sure. Just like you can�t ever be sure that I wouldn�t ever attack you. It�s happened. One time I had a little bit of extra happy juice and Wesley got to meet the real Angelus.� �Ah, yes, I remember,� Wesley actually smiled at the memory from the agency�s earlier and somewhat simpler times. �When my soul was returned, I struggled for what seemed like eternity to figure things out, but don�t you see? That�s the whole reason why Spike�s here in the first place. I�m the only one who knows what it�s like. The first time I almost didn�t survive. And when it was returned the second time, I was weak and almost lost control like he did. The only thing that kept me from going over the precipice was Buffy.� �I gotta hand it to that girl, first she takes you on, and now this one!� Lorne gestured to the office door with his thumb sticking out. �They should give that girl a parade.� Angel, Wesley and Fred looked at him dumfounded, but he didn�t cease, �Or at very least a diamond tiara!� Their mouths dropped slightly. �I�m just saying�� Lorne threw up his hands in defeat and moved to refresh his drink. �Angel, do you really think the soul could be strengthened?� Fred looked up with wide, eager eyes. �Are you going to help him?� �We�re gonna help each other,� Angel corrected her. The front door to the hotel slammed open and Gunn grinned broadly, holding a dead Swagger hatchling in his hand. �Just looky, looky what I found!� He showed them all his goods. �So what�s been happening here? Y�all look like ya lost your favorite puppy.� Angel, Wesley and Fred turned away from him. Lorne gulped down a swallow of a new drink. Gunn held out the swagger demon triumphantly, �I�m just saying�� *~*~*~*~*~* Buffy lay in bed next to her sister, arm around her shoulders, nurturing her. The events of this crazy day had been so exhausting, and yet there she lay, eyes wide open. She wanted to rest, but her mind was a scramble. She worried about her general vamp duties. She had skipped out on patrolling tonight, justifying that the carnage in the Bronze was enough of a dent in the stoppings of evil, but she knew there was more. There was always more. And she had bailed on the Cordelia helping, leaving things up to Xander and Willow, imagining it would have been an easier sitch to deal with then it actually was. She was scared for her sister, who she still wanted to believe was but only flesh and blood. Her usefulness in a spell like the one they�d just performed was a reminder that her sister would always be anything but merely human. She had no idea what this meant for her future, and it troubled her. The undercurrent of it all was her concern over whether she had made the right decision. Back when she had telephoned Angel, her biggest fear would be explaining to him why Spike needed his help and hoping that Angel would agree to take him on. Now, she knew it was so much deeper than that. There was no way Spike would be able to keep his love for her a secret. She wasn�t sure how Angel would handle that. She imagined the two of them in a bloody, pulpy fight, accomplishing nothing but fits of rage that would do neither of them any good in already volatile circumstances. She knew she shouldn�t, but she couldn�t help but wonder who would win if it ever came to that. And who would she save if she had to make a choice? Next to her, Dawn murmured again. �Portal to the soul�� Buffy looked down at her, eyebrows raised in bewilderment. Dawn had been doing this all night, sleeping soundly, and then talking in her sleep. She had to be dreaming some crazy dreams after the evening�s experiences. Her sister�s fitfulness, accompanied by an acute sense of something�s-gone-wrongness kept her restless. Her only comfort was in what the next day would bring. She had decided she would call Angel and get Spike�s status. She had to know if something, anything, had made a difference. And Cordelia? Tomorrow they would find out what Willow discovered and they would make things right. Once Buffy committed herself to this plan, she felt her eyelids growing heavy. *~*~*~*~*~* The door to the office opened and Spike didn�t bother to look up. He hadn�t moved since Angel had left him in there. He had barely been able to bring himself to drink the much-needed blood that Angel had provided for him earlier. But hunger had eventually overtaken him, and he drank greedily. Afterward he resisted the urge to throw the mug across the room in frustration. Instead, he had let it roll from his fingertips and drop lazily to the ground, where it had smashed in several large pieces. Now he stood in the center of the room, feet slightly apart, arms and head hanging downward, eyes lowered. He didn�t flinch as Angel approached him. He didn�t flinch when Angel clapped his hands together loudly in front of his face. �Spike? Why did you get so sullen on me?� �I�m thinking,� he mumbled like a little kid who didn�t want to answer the principal that had caught him vandalizing school property. �Don�t think. It will only make it worse.� Spike lifted his head up, steeling his cool, blue eyes upon Angel�s. �Come on Spike, you�re a creature of instinct.� �Yeah, I�m a creature all right. I live and die by the killer in me.� �You didn�t kill anyone. You had a weak moment.� �I don�t get you.� Spike finally moved from his stance, beginning an angry pace on the wooden floor, crumbling the broken mug beneath his muddied boots. �Wasn�t it you who told me I had to feed? Wasn�t it you who brought me into that fight in the first place?� �Why shouldn�t I? Are you gonna fight yourself? Are you gonna fight the urges that I know are welling up inside you�to fight, to survive?� Angel�s eyes were on fire with argument; he rubbed his hands together in a speck of glee, then leaned back on his cluttered desk. �Wasn�t it you who told me just earlier that I was cut off? That you were gonna bring the fight out in me? So why are you squashing your own instincts?� �Cause my instincts �cause people a lot of pain. I follow my heart now,� he punctuated his declaration with a hand-thump to his chest, �not my bloodlust.� �Are they really that different?� Spike finally resigned himself to sit in the chair. He was growing weary of Angel�s mind games, and he didn�t feel like his actions could be justified. �What�s your point mate?� �Sometimes, you gotta go through the pain to get to the peace. You gotta know how far you�re gonna go.� Angel moved to the other side of the desk. �So, you�re saying you set me up? You set me up for a fall? Get Spike all full of the passion for killing? Tell him he�s gotta feed and then let him loose on a demon and in plain sight of a bloody bleeding victim?� �No, I didn�t really plan that. Wesley was in the wrong place at the wrong time.� Angel sounded truthful. �I didn�t know that was going to happen exactly, and I admit I was a bit worried there for a second, �cause I remember what the old Spike is like. I know your appetite.� Spike rolled his eyes at the comment, reluctant to hear more. Angel moved his hand thoughtfully to his temple as he leaned back at his desk chair. �At the same time, I don�t want to cage you. You don�t need any coddling. It seems you�ve been doing that enough to your own self.� �OK Dr. Phil, again I ask, �What�s the point?�� �You gotta know your limit and how bad it makes you feel to be at that edge, so you can be damn sure you�ll never allow yourself to go to that place again.� �So you gave me a test and I failed,� Spike drawled out lifelessly. �No, you didn�t.� Angel stood up. �Don�t you get it? There�s never gonna be a right or wrong, a black or white, anymore. When we were our pure, evil selves, it was easier because there were no rules and all was black as night.� Angel moved back around the desk, gesturing emphatically with his hands. �Now, it�s all�� he searched for the right word, �different.� He almost seemed beaten. �You mean complicated?� Spike filled in. �Yeah, but in so many ways, more fulfilling.� �I get that. You know, it�s not my first day with the new toy.� Angel looked at Spike pointedly. �So why do you let yourself be a victim to it?� *~*~*~*~* Fred carefully lifted up a vial of the dead Swagger demon�s fluid. She crinkled her nose in disgust as the smell of the foul creature hung in the air. Gunn, with an assist from a healing Wesley, returned from the back of the hotel, a revolting task now completed. �Well, that�s disposed of, now what? We just sit and wait for the dead boys to finish playing dueling fangs?� �Now, I need to put this under the microscope and calculate the levels of toxins. It�s possible that it got into Wesley�s system through the cuts in his arms, and we really should make sure it�s not harmful.� Fred stopped and assessed her friends� attire, nose crinkling even more. �And I�m thinking, it would also be good if you guys both took a shower.� Wesley and Gunn looked at each other, eyebrows raised in a slight moment of terror. �After you man,� Gunn slapped his accomplice on his uninjured arm. �Just don�t use up all the hot water,� Wesley began to walk toward the steps, Gunn called after him. �Oh yeah, and don�t leave any orange goo in the drain.� Wesley smirked and walked on. �I hate having to clean out that thing.� Fred yawned and shook her head. Gunn leaned forward to meet her gaze. �Babe, it�s late, do you have to do this now? You should go to sleep.� He grabbed her hands lovingly. Fred shook her head in protest and slipped away to continue working. �I really should, just in case he was infected. He doesn�t look it now, but he really was hurt.� �And you really were worried.� *~*~*~*~ Everyone was pretty much dozed off when Willow snuck into the kitchen, but just in case, she chanted a whisper charm over the archway, so as not to have her mission overheard by prying ears. Carefully she picked up the phone�s receiver and pressed the auto dial number she had used so frequently. She so hoped she would get an answer. Finally she heard the phone pick up; a groggy voice on the other side of the line greeted her, �Hello?� �Giles it�s me. I need your help.� |
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| Part XII coming soon! |
| Note: The following story takes place prior to Buffy season 7 "Selfless" and prior to Angel season 4 "Spin the Bottle". This commences an AU B7/A4 |
| PART XI |
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| SWITCHED ON |