+~+~+~+~+
My lady belongs here, and so do I.
We know what the truth is and when to lie.
Oh, how I love her.
Familiar.
+~+~+~+~+
“I’ve got an idea.” Andrew sing-songed as he bounced up and down with a cheeriness Jonathan found both intriguing and profoundly disturbing.
Jonathon raised an eyebrow. “No way.”
“Come on,” Andrew whined. “This’ll be really totally cool. I promise.”
“The last time you said that, we watched a bootleg copy of The Star Wars Holiday Special.” Jonathon’s skin curled in a long, slow shudder at the memory. “Sorry, but I’ll pass.”
“I refuse to be held accountable for that,” Andrew stated. “It had Harrison Ford,” he added weakly.
“Yes,” Jonathon said as he turned from alphabetizing the movie collection in front of him. “For the last twenty seconds, it had Harrison Ford. For the three preceding hours, it was the most boring imaginative rendering of a Wookie Christmas ever committed to film. No thanks.”
“You’re exaggerating. I still think it was highly under-ra…”
“The grandpa Wookie watched virtual, alien, Christmas porn!” Jonathon threw his copy of Tomb Raider to the floor in outraged disdain and walked to the other side of the small lair, desperately searching for something to do. Preferably something more interesting than whatever Andrew was cooking up.
“Whatever,” Andrew said. “Look, this is a way better idea anyway.”
Jonathon began digging listlessly through a pile of records.
“It’s eee-vil…” Andrew wheedled.
“Not interested,” Jonathon muttered.
“Oh,” Andrew said sagely. “That’s right.”
“What’s right?” Jonathon looked up.
“Nothing.” Andrew turned on his heel and began picking at his shirt sleeve. “It just seems maybe a certain someone hasn’t been pulling his share of the weight in the battle of eternal darkness lately.”
“What?” Jonathon followed Andrew across the room. “Did Warren say that? Is this about… Katrina?” The last word fell on a whisper.
“Nevermind,” Andrew answered dismissively. “I’m sure it’s nothing. And he’s definitely not thinking of throwing you out of the gang.”
“He would do that?” Jonathon tried to force the insecurity from his voice.
“Of course not,” Andrew answered. “He’ll understand if you don’t want to be a part of my evil plan. I mean, it’s probably too hard for you anyway. It’s dealing with some prêt-ty heavy dark mojo, man. It might even cost me my life.”
“You’re bluffing.”
“Am I?” Andrew drew himself up to his full height and settled his gaze on Jonathon’s face. A long pause found the taller boy staring the brunette down.
“Fine,” Jonathon answered, sighing in defeat. “No more melodrama. Ok? Just tell me what I need to do.”
+++
A bottle of jack and a bag of O positive later, Spike felt less hungry and more drunk. But the booze and blood had done little to sate his internal conflict. He glanced around the soggy, dim demeanor of Willie’s bar. Least the poncey demon set had stopped throwing him out of the bloody place. Probably had something to do with all the poker playing. And the fact that he’d long made a habit of losing the right amount to the right people. Neat trick, that. Demons had their price. Even if said price came with button noses and cuddly fur.
A pair of Glarbacks entered noisily, purple pustules dripping little green glops onto the grimy floor. Spike was sliding surreptitiously to his right to avoid the little buggers when he heard something that ran a tight chill across the back of his neck.
“…on the Hellmouth. They’re raising something.” The larger Glarback heaved itself up to look over the bar.
“Warlocks?” the other grumbled through long white tusks.
“Don’t know. But there’s power there.”
The smaller Glarback squinted. “We wait. If it’s big, we join. If it’s small, we eat.” Satisfied with their plan of action, the two turned to order their drinks. Spike sighed at the not-so-surprising demonic response. So. Trouble in Sunnyhell. What else is new? Not like he was supposed to do anything about it. Evil here, yeah? Not his job to go prancing about, balls cut, following every little scent the devils threw down just to save the sodding slayer some extra wor…oh, who was he kidding? Spike left cash for the tab on the bar and set out for the tunnels to what once was Sunnydale High.
A twenty minute trudge through the sewers found Spike at what he recognized as the former high school library. Huh. Rupert’d have a right sore time fishing through those card catalogs now. Then again, suppose none of that mattered much to old Rupes now. Left the children to play in traffic all by themselves while he skipped back to Merry Olde. Stupid git.
Spike shook off the thought and pressed along the side of the tunnel leading toward the Hellmouth. The debris had shifted from the last time he’d been there. Spike vaguely remembered that little trip. What was it they were stopping? Three demons bent on destroying the world, best he could tell. Guess that meant he’d stopped an Apocalypse. Two, then, if you counted helping put Angelus out of commission. Three, if one set his pathetic attempt against Glory into the mix. At this rate, he’d never get his reputation back.
A burnished orange glow from the center of the wreckage drew his eyes and Spike stilled, willing himself to fade into the shadows of the rock. The golden light formed a sphere. Spike tried to hone in on the wisps of ethereal chanting he caught resounding through the cavern to no avail. With so many echoes in the place, whoever was putting on the Disney trick light show could be anywhere. When the golden ball reached a six foot height, it suddenly flashed a deep blue and collapsed in on itself with a large thwack.
Spike watched warily as two forms rose out of the dust where the illumination had been. Demons, both. He could smell it. And if the Glarback’s interpretation of the magic was right, they’d just been brought back from the dead. Well, then. Question answered. Just the two, so it was nothing the Slayer couldn’t handle. Time to give her a heads up and call it a day.
“I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.”
The anguish in the words drew his attention back to the figures. Male and female. The girl was crying, great heaving sobs racking her chest as she clutched fiercely at the boy’s shirt.
“Shut up so I can think,” he screamed. The girl flinched and bit back further sobs, but she didn’t let go. The boy scanned the darkness around him, eyes glowing green in the shadows of the dead room. Spike silently tread further from view as he heard the boy’s hoarse whisper.
“What happened to us?” The boy stared down at the golden-haired girl kneeling before him with wary suspicion. The chanting came to a standstill and Spike heard light feet skittering off into the distance.
“I don’t know. I swear.” The girl’s strangled weeping cut into a place Spike preferred not to acknowledge.
“You always swear, don’t you, you little slut? But you never follow through.” The red-shirted boy punctuated the words with a hard slap to the girl’s face, knocking her head back and bringing the tears back full force. Spike took a small step forward before catching himself. Not his business. Just a couple of demons. It’s the Slayer’s turf anyway, innit? Still, he couldn’t help but follow as the boy drug the girl to a standing position and began pulling her through the tunnels. Spike told himself it was just so he could give the Slayer a better bead on their plans. He didn’t care. He didn’t. Wisps of conversation drifted back to the vampire as he stalked his way through fallen wood and stone.
“… were dead. Someone must have…”
“…didn’t know!”
“…follow their power.”
“…I think I see…”
“…if you’re lying to me…”
Spike recoiled sharply when a turn in the tunnels led him through an unexpected sliver of daylight. Damn. Forgot about the little afternoon sunshine problem. He peered through the opening the couple had just passed through, out into an alley near one of Sunnydale’s shops. Cautiously, Spike picked a shadowed path into the clearing behind them. Closer now, he could make out all their words.
“Did you have anything to do with this? Answer me. Did you?”
“No, no. I told you. There were two boys. Didn’t you see them? They ran this way.”
“It’s always boys with you, isn’t it?”
“Wait. It’s not like that. Besides, we’re together like this. Now we can be together forever. Don’t you see?”
The brown-haired boy’s laugh was cutting in the thin alley air. “Tell me why I’d want you this way.”
“What?” Solemn feminine eyes looked up in sad confusion. “But you said you wanted…”
“Well, you weren’t a demon then, were you?”
Spike’s throat constricted and his jaw clenched.
“But I want you. I love you. I’ll do anything you say.”
“Are you so stupid that you don’t get it? You’re not even human.” The teen grabbed the blonde and shoved her roughly against the wall, dragging her hair down to tilt her face upward to his. “It was bad enough before.” His punch landed across her jaw with a hard snap. “Watching you whoring, sneaking, selling me out.” He hit her again and again, blackening an already blued face. “But now? Look at you.” A stronger punch sent her reeling to the ground as he stood above her disdainfully. “You’re dead inside. You’re not even real.” The boy drew back a leg for a forceful kick.
“That’s just about enough.” Spike struck a hard blow at the standing demon, forcing a stagger. Spike dodged a fist and kicked the boy in the solar-plexus, knocking him back into the opposite alley wall. The boy slid against the coarse bricks and Spike drew his hand back for a punishing strike when strong hands grabbed his shoulders and threw him out into the mouth of the alley.
He looked up in shock at the blonde girl hovering over him, her eyes glowing green in haunted rage. “You can’t hurt him. He’s mine.”
Spike tried to pull himself up, but a heavy kick caught him in the side of the neck and dropped him back to the stone street, closer to the sunlight than before. “You stupid bitch,” he shouted. “I was trying to hel…” His words were cut short when another heavy kick caught him in the side, rolling him ever closer to the light.
Spike forced his eyes open in time to see the male demon coming to stand beside her. Right then. Two against one. And he was already down. And an inch away from Mr. Sunbeam. It wasn’t retreating. Not really. Re-grouping, more like. He needed the Slayer. Spike jumped to his feet, made a deft feint, and slipped past the couple. Just before he ducked out of the small alley, he heard them.
“You saw me, didn’t you? You saw what I did to him. Did I do good, baby?”
“Yeah, Debbie. You did real good.”
[Reviews - 52]
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Chapter or Story |
Chapter or Story | 
Chapter or Story
Has been viewed 2155 times
- Text Size +
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Chapter or Story |
Chapter or Story | Chapter or Story - Text Size +
Author's Chapter Notes:
Never seen “Star Wars Holiday Special?” Be thankful. And don’t try. Just trust me on this one. Whatever you’re imagining… it’s worse. I’m not creative enough to make stuff like that up.