Spike backed further away, shaking his head.
“No. No. No.”
He glanced to the corner but before he could dart into it – his body slammed against the bars hard enough to make him grunt. Tendrils of metal coiled themselves around his limbs and neck, pinning him firmly in place.
“Please don’t do this.”
“Can you control the demon?” asked Willow.
The eyes that met Willow’s were wide with fear, but reluctantly he shook his head.
She almost faltered then. The vampire looked terrified.
“You can’t stay in this cage, Spike. This will help you. You’ll be back in control.”
Still Spike shook his head, but the demon took advantage of his fear and regained the upper hand. His features morphed as he snarled ferociously.
The proof that Spike wasn’t in control restored Willow’s resolve to go ahead with the ritual. A few minutes later Spike roared loud enough to make Willow wince and cover her ears, as the soul seared its way back into the body it had been ripped from almost a hundred and fifty years ago. Spike thrashed and jerked in his restraints and for a horrible moment, Willow feared he’d surely dust, but then with his cries fading to a sigh, he went limp.
A wave of a hand had the restraints disappear, and Spike collapsed bonelessly to the concrete floor. Willow smiled when she saw his face was human again.
“That will make it so much easier for you, Spike. The demon won’t be so strong now.”
With a self-satisfied nod, at a job well done, Willow bent and picked up the glass jar before walking back upstairs.
*~*~*~*
Four-twenty-seven gave the signal that he had found the trail and grinned as Finn gave him permission to follow it. The scent was faint but he knew he could track it; the extra tang of the Slayer meant he could almost taste it. If unauthorised speech was allowed he would have whooped with joy as he jogged along.
Riley panted harshly as he struggled through the undergrowth that the vampire seemed to pass easily through. With relief, he noticed the tracker had slowed down and looking up, he could see the rooftop of a house. Ten minutes later and they were there, staring at the back door. The tracker leaned against the wall of a wooden shed, his head throbbing with the after effects of the shock he’d just been given. He’d ignored a command when he’d picked up the almost imperceptible scent of Seventeen, such was his eagerness to find his torturer.
The house was obviously empty, and so they waited for the backup team to arrive by road before the door was broken down, Finn invited the tracker in, and they entered. Four-twenty-seven raced from room to room and was rewarded with another brief shock when he worried at a boot the Slayer had evidently left behind.
The second drawer of an antique writing desk, that Riley broke open revealed documents giving the names of the house’s residents. Maurice and Dora Carmichael. There were documents for the couple’s cars, and Riley smirked as he called the licence plates in to HQ. With that information they should be able to find them and from there be led to the escapees.
When Four-twenty-seven was in place in the transporter, Riley allowed him a reward and grimaced as the vampire arched his back and let his head loll as the sensation ran through his penis.
“You did well.”
“Thank you, sir,” the tracker murmured, still lost to the pleasures of his flesh.
*~*~*~*
Willow paused when she got to the kitchen door. Cameron was grey faced and sweating, gripping his mother’s hand so tightly Willow swore she heard the bones creak.
“Just ride it out, honey. You’ll be okay.” Buffy wiped her fingers over Cam’s brow.
“It hurts, Mom.” Cam squeezed his eyes shut and groaned, his whole body rigid. “Oh, God, it really hurts.”
Craig stood to one side, a half-full mug of steaming blood-laced soup in his hands. “Aunt Willow!” he said when he spotted her. “Help him – please!”
Joining Buffy at Cam’s side, Willow shook her head. “I can’t use magics to dull the pain – the chances are they would affect whatever it is in the vampire blood that is allowing the healing.”
Buffy flinched as Cam let out another agonised groan. “Make it stop,” he said as a tear escaped his eye. “I don’t care if I can’t walk – I can’t take it.”
“Don’t say that!” Buffy shook her son gently until he opened his eyes. “You can do this – you’re strong enough. I know you are.”
Another spasm racked his body as the healing powers of the blood forced their way along the paralysed nerves, bringing movement along with the pain. Cameron was too distressed to notice it but his legs began to quiver with each moan.
After the longest ten minutes of all their lives, Cam finally relaxed and slumped in his wheelchair breathing heavily. He saw Craig still holding the mug he’d taken from him when the pain had hit.
“You can throw that away. I’m not taking any more.” His voice rasped as he spoke.
“But your legs were moving,” Craig said. “It’s working.”
Holding onto the arms of the chair, Cameron pulled himself forwards until he could peer down at his feet. “I don’t care. I can’t face it again.”
Buffy ran the nail of her thumb beneath Cam’s barefoot and he jerked the limb away without even realising he had.
“Oh, God… I can…”
“You can, baby. You can!” Buffy hugged her son to her chest.
When she let him go, he stared at his legs and slowly took first his right foot and then his left from the rests and placed them on the floor.
“They won’t hold me.” He shook his head. “They’re too weak still.”
“Give it time, Cam,” said Willow smiling down at him. “Be patient.”
“Screw that!” Cam reached up and grabbed the mug from a startled Craig and gulped it down.
“I’m going to be able to walk again!” Cam grinned at them, and then his face paled. “Oh shit.”
He closed his eyes as waved after wave of pain coursed through him. This time his groans escalated into screams. Unable to watch his brother in such pain, Craig stalked from the room and walked down the steps into the basement intending to ask Spike what Willow had said.
Expecting the feral version of Spike that he’d seen earlier, he was astonished to see the vampire huddled in a corner behind the overturned cot. He was muttering continuously and rocking backwards and forwards, his curled fingers tapping at his head.
“Spike?” His voice drew no response at all. “Spike!” Craig ran to the bars and banged his hands against them.
The noise made Spike shrink into an even smaller form; he shook his head rapidly from side to side and began to claw at his chest.
“Need to get it out. Will you get it out?” He glanced up at Craig, their eyes meeting for a second before he looked down. “No…No. Stupid. Why would he help?” Spike’s rocking increased in velocity, as his fingers scored his flesh.
“Spike! Stop it!” Craig banged on the bars. “Why are you doing that?”
“Witch did it,” muttered Spike as he crawled round until his back was facing Craig. “Witch gave me the spark. Didn’t want it – don’t want it.”
“Willow did this?”
Spike didn’t react, so Craig tore up the stairs to find his aunt.
*~*~*~*
Riley took a deep breath and dialled the professor’s number on his cell phone. She really wasn’t going to like this.
“It’s a dead end. The car has been found in the parking lot of a railroad station. There’s no way we can find out where they went from here.”
He winced and held the handset away from his ear as Maggie’s displeasure let itself be known. Even so, he could clearly hear his boss’s strident tones. Having told her that he’d try to trace them through hotels, he managed to hang up with a sigh of relief. A shudder ran through him when he thought of the fate of Mark down in the cells with the experiments. How long would it be before Maggie let Lilah get her wish and be put in with him? He’d seen Maggie’s creation in action a couple of times and it hadn’t been pretty. Whatever happened, Riley had no intention of ending up like that.
*~*~*~*
“Aunt Willow!” Craig crashed into the kitchen startling his mum and aunt – Cam was too busy gritting his teeth against the pain to even notice Craig had arrived.
“What is it?” She turned to face him.
“It’s Spike! What have you done to him?” Craig put his hands on the table and stared at her, his chest heaving.
Buffy glanced up from where she knelt beside Cameron. “Spike?” She transferred her gaze to Willow. “What have you done?”
“I helped him,” said Willow firmly.
“Well, it sure don’t look like it helped him much,” said Craig, eyes narrowed.
Standing up, but keeping a hand on Cam’s shoulder, Buffy said, “I say again, Willow. What have you done?”
“Why are you both looking at me like I’ve done something evil?” Willow folded her arms. “The demon was winning. Spike was ready to give up.”
“Will…?” Buffy glared at Willow.
“I gave him his soul back, okay? It will suppress his demon – let the real Spike come to the fore.”
“The real Spike is currently scratching the skin off his chest and whimpering in a corner,” said Craig.
Leaving Cameron’s side, Buffy got in Willow’s face. “Oh my God! Do you know what this could do to him? It took Angel years to get over having his soul back!”
“But that was because it was a curse.” The tone of Willow’s voice didn’t match the conviction of her words.
“No,” said Buffy, clenching her fists, “it was because every single person that he’d killed as Angelus haunted him – all the guilt that a vampire can’t feel came crashing into his mind!”
Willow paled and staggered backwards. “Oh.”
“Yes, oh!” Buffy turned to Craig. “Look after your brother.” Giving Cam’s shoulder a squeeze as she passed, Buffy left the room and jogged down to the basement.
When she saw Spike, her first thought was that he was having a seizure. The vampire was on his back, legs kicking as his fingers tore at his chest. Blood was already sluggishly dripping to sit on the dusty concrete floor. Without giving a thought to any possible danger to herself, Buffy grabbed the key from the shelf, unlocked the cage and folded to her knees beside him.
“Stop. You’re hurting yourself,” she said as she gripped his wrists and pulled his hands away.
Spike resisted but she was stronger and all of a sudden he gave up and allowed his arms to fall limp in her grasp. Breathing heavily, he opened his eyes and the fact that his eyes weren’t real didn’t detract from the pain Buffy could perceive in his expression.
“Buffy.” The word was a whisper of a whisper.
“It’s alright. I’m here.”
“They’re all here. Make them go away. Can you help me?”
“You’re going to be okay, I promise.” Tears ran down her cheeks and dropped onto Spike’s face, mingling with his own.
Realising that she’d let go of him, Spike scuttled backwards, shaking his head. “Won’t be okay – not while they’re here.” He rubbed the heels of his hands against his temples. “All talking at once.” He drew his knees up to his chest. “All saying the same thing.” He rested his chin on his knees. “Spike’s a bad man. So much pain.” His eyes met Buffy’s briefly. “I caused so much pain and now the spark is hurting me.” Wrapping his arms around his head, he added, “’S only right.”
Buffy shifted over to be near him again, and bit back a sob when he shrank away and began to rock back and forth, a thin moan escaping his drawn back lips.
“Oh, Spike.”
She was at a loss at what to do. Mostly, she just wanted to run back upstairs and slap Willow stupid. But a part of her couldn’t help being thrilled at the prospect of sharing her life with an ensouled Spike. Although she loved the vampire dearly, there had always been that niggle about his soul – that something was missing from their relationship. Maybe now, when things settled down, Spike would finally feel worthy of her love?
Spike raised his head and stared straight forwards, his lips moving slightly as they mouthed inaudible words. When Buffy spoke to him, he didn’t react. Not even when she waved a hand in front of his eyes. Not even when she gave him a gentle punch on the arm. It was when he didn’t react to her kiss, that Buffy got to her feet and walked out of the cage. She clanged the door as loud as she could but still Spike simply sat there, huddled on his haunches, staring at nothing.
After she’s turned the key, Buffy’s knees gave way and she sank to the floor, sobbing uncontrollably. Spike had been through so much in the past couple of decades. Had the return of his soul been the final straw for his mind? Would he ever truly come back to her?
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Banner and beta by dawnofme.
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