Chapter 21
One of the first things Angel did to begin working on the case was to go back to the mansion with Connor and search for any clues. Notes, books…anything that would help. He found a note on the bedside table in the master bedroom that had gone unnoticed by Spike and Buffy.
A parting gift.
Nicholae Dragomir
Well, at least they had a name. The search turned up nothing more than a few choice antiques and a journal among the vampire’s personal belongings, and a couple weapons Angel chose to appropriate for his collection. Records showed that the house had merely been rented out month by month.
Thank the Powers for small favors that Wes hadn’t left his book collection at Wolfram and Hart. Angel had been pouring over pages of text for hours, though he felt out of his depths in choosing the right volume. The hotel never felt so empty as when he was holed up in his office trying to find an answer in a book. Was it really almost six months ago that they were all last together?
“Heavy thoughts?” Nina asked quietly.
“Hey…how was class?”
“I’ll be glad when I finish my degree. You okay?”
Angel welcomed her onto his lap. “Just remembering…I’m not getting anywhere in these texts, and I wish…”
“Wesley was here,” she finished for him. “Buffy was going to call her friend. Have you talked to her?”
He shook his head. “I haven’t seen her since the hospital. Buffy doesn’t research. If she has Willow on the problem, then she’ll call when she finds something. You know, no matter how much I try to make things right, make up for all I did…the past won’t stay dead.”
“Angel, you’re only responsible for your own actions. You can’t take the blame for someone you never even knew,” she argued.
“My actions have consequences, and I should feel at fault when those consequences hurt people I know or love! If I hadn’t taken on Wolfram and Hart, then the building next door wouldn’t have been demolished, Spike wouldn’t have met Charlotte, and she wouldn’t have been pulled into Dragomir’s vendetta. Every choice ripples through the world. I had to learn that the hard way, but I’m not the one paying for it now.” He stood and grabbed his coat. “I need to go talk up a source.”
“Angel,” Nina protested, but he was already gone.
~+~
Tuesday night…
“I’m letting you go home, Miss Taylor, on the conditions that you rest the remainder of the week, and have someone stay with you tonight,” the doctor stated. “Sign here.”
Charlotte signed the form and handed the clipboard back to the doctor. “So, I can leave now?”
He nodded. “Fill these prescriptions at the pharmacy downstairs, and go home straight to bed. If you feel the slightest bit ill, call an ambulance.”
“Yes, sir,” she quipped.
The doctor rolled his eyes and left. They weren’t allowed to keep her there if she insisted on being discharged. An orderly came in with a wheelchair while she gathered her things.
“Aw, do I have to?”
“Hospital policy, ma’am. You have to be in the wheelchair until you’re outside.”
“Just think of it as luxury service, pet. You get chauffeured right to the car,” Spike teased. He was glad to be leaving, too. Charlotte finally had her color back, and the doctor had been satisfied with her blood tests. She sat in the wheelchair and placed her bag on her lap, pouting. “Ready to go home?”
“God, yes!”
Charlotte felt she could relax once she was seated in Spike’s car. The familiar was comforting. She needed it, after feeling so…unsettled. Her body was already adapting to her ‘guest’, her senses more acute. Bright light stung her eyes, so she was grateful to be leaving at night. How else would her life be changing?
Spike glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. She seemed contemplative, watching the scenery go by. Was there something he should be saying? They had no answers, yet. No solutions. She’d been relieved when he agreed to stay with her. Charlotte was more afraid than she let on, and he understood what that was like. How it was to worry that you might hurt the people you care about, that you weren’t strong enough to prevent it and the blood would be on your hands. It’d been his greatest fear most of that last year in Sunnydale.
He finally decided to break the silence. “You hungry, pet? We can make a stop on the way to your place.”
She looked at him as if suddenly remembering where she was. “Um…Chinese?”
He grinned. “Anything you like.”
Charlotte lapsed into silence again as Spike took the turn to swing by their usual Chinese restaurant. It was a cool night for California, so he left the heater running for the five minutes it took him to get their order dished out and pay. She already felt bundled like an Eskimo, what with the thick sweater and winter coat he’d brought her to wear home. Who knew a vampire could be a Mother Hen?
“There you go, kitten,” Spike said as he handed her the bag. “All your favorites.”
“Geeze, Spike, this feels like ten pounds of food!”
“Oh, that’s an exaggeration! I’m just making sure you have a full tummy before going to bed, and leftovers for tomorrow. You’re going to plop your butt down in front of the telly and rest.”
“My cupboards aren’t exactly bare, you know, but…thank you. I’m sure you’d rather be with Buffy than babysitting me,” Charlotte retorted.
“We’re not together, if that’s what you’re thinkin’. And I’m not ‘babysitting’ you. I’m taking care of a friend.”
“Oh. I just thought you two would have been all over each other by now, recapturing lost love…We haven’t talked much in a while.”
Spike turned onto the main street leading toward her apartment complex. He shrugged. “Slayer and I have been spending time together, yeah, but it’s just as friends.”
“Friends leading to something more, or just friends?”
“Since when did you get so nosy?” he replied, avoiding the question. “Bad as Dawn.”
“Sorry…I feel like I haven’t talked to you in, like, a month, and I want to catch up on all the good gossip,” she teased.
He glanced at her. “It’s good to see you smile.”
Charlotte frowned, puzzled. “I smile all the time.”
Spike shook his head. “Not as much for a while…not while under his influence. I kept wondering what had you so distracted.”
“The attack at the hotel, the dreams I had…all part of the game. Thing is, when we were just talking? He seemed like a good man. I guess all that anger corrupted his intentions over the years. Stuck in a state of grief. He originally had plans just for Angel, you know…Told me I look just like his sister, so using me was too good to pass up, I guess. No such thing as coincidence, eh?” she mused.
“Maybe. My poncy-er self believed in destiny. I like to make my own fate, but there’s no denying that the PTBs like to interfere. Home sweet home, pet.”
Charlotte looked out the window and noticed they were in the parking lot. “That was quick. Do you ever go the speed limit?” He stopped her from opening her door. “Hey.”
“I’ll come around. Be patient, missy.”
She rolled her eyes, but waited in her seat. Spike opened the passenger door, slung her overnight bag over his shoulder, and picked Charlotte up. She clutched the bag of Chinese food.
“I can walk inside!” she complained.
“The doc said you weren’t to walk around much tonight, so you’re not gonna.” Spike fished her keys out of his pocket and unlocked the door.
“Those are my keys.”
“Angel found your purse when he went back to the mansion to look for anything useful. It’s in your bag.” He plopped her on the couch and placed her bag on the bed. “What would you like to watch while we eat?” Spike asked while placing containers on the coffee table. He handed her a plastic fork and chose the chopsticks for himself.
“I don’t know, something funny?” The food smelled so good. She found herself hungry for the first time since she’d first woken up.
Spike put a Cary Grant comedy in the DVD player and was pleased when he turned around to see Charlotte stuffing her face with Moo Goo Gai Pan. He kept encouraging her to eat, until her belly was pushing against the waistband of her sweatpants.
“Ugh, I am so full…” she moaned. Charlotte shifted to lie against the arm of the sofa, snuggling a throw pillow. It was good to be home.
Spike didn’t expect her to last the whole movie, and smiled when he noticed she was asleep half an hour before the end. He paused the DVD and gently picked her up to put her to bed. Shoes and sweater got tossed towards the closet, then he tucked her in. Satisfied, he straightened to leave, then bent on a whim to place a kiss on her brow.
“Sweet dreams, luv,” Spike whispered. He left the bedroom door partially ajar and sat down to watch the rest of the movie with the volume turned down.
Taking off his boots, the vampire stretched out on the sofa and finished the Kung Pao Chicken.
~+~
The young demon awoke, pale green eyes glittering in the darkness. Her host was asleep, so she could finally explore. This world held so many confusing and new sights and smells. She inhaled deeply and learned that this must be her host’s lair.
And he was here! The one that felt most like family, now that her sire was gone.
Demon crawled off the bed on all fours, senses extended. The door out swung open when she pawed at it, leading her into a bigger room with more new smells. And him. The pale-haired male was asleep on a raised pallet.
She crawled slowly and stealthily closer, not wanting to disturb her elder. Reaching his feet, she sniffed along the length of his side until she was level with his face. His scent was comforting, an unconscious purr emanating from her as a result. She lightly rubbed her face against his shoulder, still careful not to wake him, then nuzzled into his neck. Demon pulled back suddenly and waited, when his head turned away from her, but when he didn’t stir again, she brushed against his exposed neck and flicked her tongue under his chin. He tasted nice, too! She nipped the skin, purring louder.
Spike turned towards her, suddenly awake. “Hello, there,” he said softly, surprised.
She tilted her head in question, not understanding the sounds he was making. He moved to sit up, and she dropped her eyes, bowing her head to her elder. She felt sure he would punish her now for her boldness. She offered her wrist in supplication. He surprised her by gently pressing her arm down and tilting her chin up with his fingers.
“You’re just a child, aren’t you?” Spike murmured, more to himself.
Her head tilted again in confusion. She gazed at him with curiosity, waiting. He pet her by running his fingers through her hair. Her eyes closed as she purred in pleasure, leaning into his hand. He couldn’t help but chuckle. Demon opened her eyes and pouted, thinking she was being mocked.
“I’m not laughing at you, pet. Let’s try something, eh?” Spike picked up her hand that she had dropped to the sofa and used her fingers to tap on his chest. “I’m Spike.” He pointed at her. “Who are you?”
Her brow furrowed in confusion, then she mimicked what he’d done.
“Right…you have no idea what I’m sayin’,” he mumbled. Can’t call her ‘you’ all the time… What did you name a young vampire demon? A word from old studies came to mind. “Talitha – you,” Spike said, pointing at her. He used her hand to tap on her own chest. “Talitha?”
“Tal…” she uttered, trying to mimic the foreign sound.
“Tal-i-tha. It means ‘little girl’. You try…”
Her face scrunched up as she tried out the word. “Talllll-ee-faaaa…”
Spike smiled. “Close enough.”
She sensed that she was being praised and nuzzled his hand where it rest on his knee. Spike supposed he shouldn’t be encouraging her in being in charge of Charlotte’s body, but there was something about the little demon’s manner that was just so…cute. Innocent. Like a kitten. Kittens had claws, but they didn’t intentionally strike unless they felt threatened. The demon had been unable to access Charlotte’s mind when it entered her body, so it was forced to be a fledgling in the truest sense of the word. A child who only knew primitive culture.
Talitha yawned, exposing her sharp incisors. Aww…baby fangs, Spike thought. He was sleepy, also, since it was close to dawn. How to get her to go back to bed…
“Alright, luv, time for all good demons to go to sleep. Go back to bed, now,” he stated, pointing at the bedroom. She looked in the direction of his finger, then back to him. Spike rolled his eyes, then stood, slowly, and took her hand. “I’ll show you…”
She plodded after him, curious as ever. Spike patted the bed and mimicked sleeping on a pillow with his hands. “Sleep,” he stated.
Talitha crawled on the bed, discovering its springiness. She bounced on her knees and grinned, tugging on Spike’s hand to get her to join in playing. He pulled away.
“No, luv. Time to sleep. ‘S almost sunrise, see?” He pulled the curtain back on the small window above the bed, displaying the lightening sky. “Daylight’s not the time for demons.”
She stood on the bed to peer out the window, eyes wide with wonder. Spike sighed. This might be harder than he thought. Well, children needed ground rules to follow. He firmly pushed her down to sit on the bed, then turned to leave.
Talitha whimpered and darted after him, wrapping around his legs in the doorway. Spike gently pulled her hands off of him.
“You sleep in here,” he said firmly. He tried to close the door, so she stuck her hand in the way and got it squished. She cried out in pain and ran to hide behind the bed.
The vampire rolled his eyes to the heavens. He could close the door and trust that Charlotte would take over once it was daylight, or go comfort the little demon so she wouldn’t think he was mad at her. The sniffling noises in the bedroom made up his mind. He could never stand seeing a woman cry.
“Pet…I’m sorry you got hurt. It was an accident. I’m not mad, alright?” he said softly.
Spike found her curled in a ball, nursing her fingers in her mouth. Tear tracks stained both cheeks.
“Now, now, sweets…no reason to cry. Can I see your hand?”
She seemed to catch on to his meaning and slowly extended her hand, palm down. He touched it as lightly as possible, brushing his fingers over the digits, then turning her hand over. There was no real damage done, though it seemed to calm her that he took the interest in looking. Spike guided her back in bed and pulled the covers up.
“There, isn’t that nice? Goodnight, pet.”
She grabbed his wrist as he started to leave. Sighing, he decided to just stretch out on the floor. He was too tired to keep doing this dance of getting her back in bed to sleep. Slept in much worse places, after all. He grabbed the other pillow, lay down on his back, and closed his eyes. Talitha seemed to approve, since her purrs soon faded to little snores.
What a story this would make tomorrow.
~+~
Charlotte woke up mid-afternoon to find Spike sleeping on the floor next to the bed. She almost stepped on him, since she was about to swing her feet out of bed like normal. Had he heard her having a nightmare and stayed in here to be supportive? Or, was there too much light in the living room? She nudged him with her foot, just to see if he’d awaken easily.
Spike mumbled unintelligibly and rolled onto his side. She liked how he looked in sleep, with his hair ruffled and face peaceful. A pang of guilt hit that she was keeping him from his own bed, and life. What if she could never get enough grip on the demon to be in the same room with Buffy without trying to attack her? Spike would have to divide his time so they never ran into each other, and that wasn’t fair. And Dawn would have it even worse, since Charlotte couldn’t very well ask the girl to forsake her sister. What a mess…
At least the demon was quiet today. Maybe it slept, she didn’t know. Could you get tired just from being a passenger?
She thought about breakfast, but since it was already past 2:00, Charlotte decided to skip ahead to lunch and warm up Chinese food. The sent of food woke her friend. He stumbled to the fridge for his blood and leaned against the counter while it heated.
“Didn’t sleep well?” she wondered. He grunted in reply. She should know by now that Spike wasn’t much of a ‘morning’ person.
He looked better once the first mug full was in his stomach.
“Stayed up later than usual. Your demon wanted to pay me a visit.”
“It…huh?” Gulp.
Spike sat down to sip his second mug. “Once you were deeply asleep, the demon came forth and had control.”
“Sorry. What the hell did it do?”
His mouth twitched into a smile. “Wasn’t a big deal. She’s really rather childlike, curious…she just wanted my company.”
“Wow, um…I don’t know what to say…I was expecting an angry evil.”
Spike nodded in agreement. “Normally, that would be true, but I don’t think she has the knowledge to be evil, yet. If you were a vampire, then the demon would have full access to your mind without a conscience, but she’s just sharing some space with you.”
“You keep calling it a ‘she’…” Charlotte noticed.
He nodded. “Definitely female. Do you really think a male demon would like me, luv?”
“Well, you can be a dick,” she teased.
“Watch it,” he warned, smiling.
Charlotte sobered. “So…do you think I’ll be able to control her reaction around Buffy? Cuz it’s going to be a pain in the ass real quick if I have to keep ducking out every time she walks in the door.”
“We’ll just have to see, pet. This is new territory for all of us. She’ll respond to an elder rebuke, though. She was immediately submissive after waking me up this morning.”
“Well, you don’t have to stay another night. I’m feeling okay today after some food and sleep,” she stated.
“Trying to get rid of me already?”
Charlotte rolled her eyes. “You know I like your company. I just don’t want you to feel obligated to play nursemaid, cuz I’m fine. You have work, and ‘friends’.”
“And you’re family,” Spike replied.
She didn’t know what to say to that, so Charlotte stood and threw the empty food containers in the trash and rinsed the dishes. Spike shook his head, and turned on the television.
~+~
Wednesday…
Buffy said goodbye to her last class of the day and sighed. “Alone again, Slayer.”
She locked the studio door and went up to her apartment to shower, then check e-mail. If Willow had found anything, she might have sent a message. Logging in, Buffy found the usual spam and advertisements, a report from Andrew about the Slayers in Rome, status reports from Giles for the girls at the school, and another ‘checking in’ note from Dawn. She replied to Dawn’s first, saying that Charlotte had been hurt over the weekend, but was going to be fine, and there might be a delay in communication with her, but not to worry. So, she was shielding her sister, but so what? Dawn would be home in two weeks, and she could catch up on all the facts then. No reason to put a downer on the end of her trip, right?
Willow’s screen name popped up on IM.
WiccaGeek: How was class?
Shoeluvver81: Fine. Did you find anything, yet?
WiccaGeek: Not much. No mention, yet, of anyone else with the same condition. I’m going through a vampire lore book written by demons, now.
Shoeluvver81: Joy! So glad I don’t have to do research anymore!
WiccaGeek: Yeah, yeah…so what’s the latest news? Is Charlotte still in the hospital? Have you talked to Spike, yet?”
Shoeluvver81: I don’t know, and, um, no…? He’s so engrossed in fixing this, I don’t know what to say.
WiccaGeek: Buffy…I’m sure he’d appreciate the support…
Shoeluvver81: I know…I feel stupid for being jealous, and more stupid for thinking I can’t control myself around a demon…I mean, he doesn’t just have to be my friend, though we’ve been hanging out a lot, and it’s been fun and nice, and…I’m bored all by myself, which really says that I need more friends here when I’m looking forward to being pestered by my little sister again…Sorry. Babbling.
WiccaGeek: I miss you, too. The Slayerettes make me feel old, and Giles is, well, you know. J Well, it’s late here, so I should try to get a few hours sleep, LOL. Go talk to your vampire!
Shoeluvver81: Hush! I could tell you to find a new girlfriend, so there! Sweet dreams, Will.
WiccaGeek: You, too, Buffy. ((hugs))
Willow signed off for the night. Buffy didn’t feel like reading reports, so she thought about dropping by the hotel, instead. She hadn’t talked to Angel since Monday, either. Yep – good ol’ Buffy the Loner.
~+~
Charlotte shooed Spike out once it was dark. Frankly, she wanted time alone to process what had happened, and she needed to talk to the sub and see where her students were in the lesson plan. She also needed to empty the overnight bag and put things away. Spike had dumped a whole bunch of junk inside, not knowing how long they would make her stay. She pulled out a plastic bag from the hospital and found everything she’d been wearing that night. The little cap sleeves were torn from their haste to disrobe her in the ER, but the dress was intact. Charlotte would never wear it again, but she could have it repaired and sell it. Same with the shoes.
She shuddered at the thought of being naked in front of strangers, and not even conscious. She hoped a female nurse had put her in the hospital gown later. And then, there was the catheter they’d inserted. Sure, everything done had been in the name of medical care, but that didn’t make you feel any less…violated, when you hadn’t elected to be there.
The sapphire necklace was at the bottom. Had Nicholae told her the truth about borrowing it? It wasn’t like there was a tag on the piece to say whom it belonged to. She could turn it in to the police, let them sort out the proper owner. Charlotte stopped turning it over in her hands and put it on. She hadn’t seen how it looked on. Hadn’t looked in a mirror since…
Walking into the bathroom with her eyes closed, she turned to the mirror and released a calming breath. Why was she so nervous? You’re afraid of what you’ll see, now, that’s why, her internal voice replied. Charlotte opened her eyes. The antique pendant looked a bit silly against her t-shirt, but Nicholae had been right – it did bring out her eyes. Until gold bled into blue to turn them bright green.
She jumped back in shock and her reflection smirked around a set of fangs. Charlotte smashed the mirror with the trash can.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Thanks for the continued support.