Chapter Thirty-Seven
Solutions
Rich sat next to Tara at the kitchen table as she read all of the e-mails that she had gotten from the coven. She’d queried a few things and thankfully, the witches in England had replied immediately despite the time difference. He could hear Angel quietly talking to Buffy. He’d popped his head round the door a while ago, but left when he saw that Spike was fast asleep on the couch and the other two were sitting in chairs talking. Buffy had her feet curled up beside her as she listened to Angel. Rich had stared at the vampire for a moment. It must be hard for him to be so near to someone who looked exactly like his lover. Rich shook his head.
“If I wrote this in a book, no one would believe a word of it.”
Tara had been frantically scribbling notes as she read and finally put her pen down and leaned back in the chair, stretching her aching shoulders. She glanced at Rich.
“Well?” he asked.
She smiled at him. “Well, I’ve got it. I’ve got the details of the ritual that has to be done.”
“Oh, thank God!” Rich leapt from his chair and hugged her tightly, showering her with kisses.
“Hey, don’t get too carried away. Let’s save our celebrations until it’s complete and everything is back to normal.”
Rich held her at arm’s length and looked her in the eye. “What’s wrong? You sound troubled? Don’t you think that it will work?”
“Oh, I don’t know, Rich. It’s not like it’s something that I’ve ever done before.” She ran a hand wearily through her hair. “The timing is crucial. If one little thing goes wrong…” She stared at Rich anxiously.
“Hush, Tee. You’ll do it just fine. Everything will be okay. I’ve got faith in you. You’re amazing.”
Tara allowed herself to bask in the love flowing from Rich for a moment before she smiled and said, “You’re only saying that so I don’t turn you into a frog.”
Rich chuckled. “Damn, you’ve got me sussed out right and proper!” He paused before adding, “Are you ready to go and tell the others?”
Tara took a deep shuddering breath and nodded. “As ready as I’ll ever be, I guess.”
Rich held out his hand. She took it and together they walked out of the kitchen, along the hallway and into the lounge room.
Buffy and Angel both looked up expectantly. Once again, Tara felt the weight of responsibility on her shoulders. The fate of all of the people in this room depended on her.
“I’ve got all the details,” said Tara quietly.
“That’s great,” said Buffy. “So what do we have to do?” She shifted on the chair until her feet were resting on the floor.
“We need to wake up Spike. He needs to hear this too,” said Tara.
Buffy got up and went to the couch. She had to shake Spike several times before he opened an eye.
“Wh...?” he mumbled.
“Spike, come on, wake up. Tara is going to tell us what to we have to do,” said Buffy, shaking him again.
“Okay, okay,” Spike said as he began to sit up. “No need to bleeding nag.”
“Hey! I’m not nagging!” Buffy complained as she sat on the couch next to him.
Spike smiled at her as he organised his wits. He’d had some really vivid dreams and hoped that the fact that his jeans were uncomfortably tight in the groin area would go unnoticed. A quick glance at Angel told him that the vampire knew that he was aroused. He glared at him, fervently hoping that Angel would say nothing. The dreams had been of drinking blood, of ripping throats and revelling in the warm blood pouring over his chin as he drank deeply. He looked down at his hands after he found himself looking at Buffy’s neck and licking his lips.
“Oh, wow,” he said. “Look.”
He held his hands up and, although they still looked blistered and sore, they were no where near as bad as they had been. He opened and closed his fists with relative ease. They all were heartened by it until Angel spoke.
“Vampire healing. If I’d suffered burns like that without bursting into flames, I would have healed them in no time.”
That sobered them. Spike was another step nearer to total vampirism. Tara sat on the chair vacated by Buffy and Rich perched on its arm, still keeping tight hold of her hand.
“Oh,” said Buffy weakly in response to Angel’s statement.
Spike wasn’t surprised. Given the dreams that he’d had, he knew that things were still progressing. The strange thing was that he was starting to feel excited by the fact and not terrified of it. The power that he’d felt in his dreams had been intoxicating.
“Um…so what’s the plan then, Tee?” asked Spike. “May as well sound willing.”
Tara could see how tense everyone was, staring at her, waiting to hear her news. They all needed to try to stay as calm as possible. If they were too on edge about the ritual – things could go wrong. She hadn’t missed the look Spike had shot at Angel, then she had an idea…
“As you knew from before, you have to drink Angel’s blood. The thing is that you both have to be naked and coated in a specially blended oil –”
“What?” howled Angel and Spike in unison.
Tara surprised them by bursting out laughing. “Sorry, I couldn’t resist it. I’m joking about the oily naked part.”
Her remark had the desired effect of lessening the charged atmosphere that was being generated in the room.
Rich cuffed Tara’s arm gently. “What are you like? Had me worried about all the danglies on show.”
Spike grinned. “That’s only ‘cause mine’ll put yours to shame. Poor Tara won’t be so happy in the bedroom after that.”
Rich picked up a cushion from the chair and threw it at Spike, who laughed and caught it easily.
“That’s a shame – I was quite looking forward to seeing them all oily,” said Buffy, leering suggestively at Spike.
“Okay, I’m not joking now,” said Tara seriously. Time to get to the business in hand.
The others all gave her their undivided attention.
“The actual ritual is simple enough. I have all the ingredients for the spell in my store cupboard. But it’s the timing that is going to be the hardest to achieve. If it’s not done at exactly the right moment, it won’t work at all. Spike will turn completely into a vampire – losing his soul and existing only on his bloodlust. Angel will be trapped here forever.”
Angel leaned forward in his seat. “What is so crucial about the timing? Can’t we just, like, set an alarm clock or something?”
Tara shook her head. “I wish it were so simple.” She looked at Spike. “What are your thoughts on this, Spike?”
“What? Me?” Spike wouldn’t meet her eye.
“Yes,” said Tara. “You’re the one who has most to lose.” She glanced back at Angel. “Sorry, Angel. But you’ll still be you if things don’t work out. Spike won’t be.” She faced Spike again. “So?”
“Um…well…I say we better get this right then, eh?” Spike gave a small smirk. “Good answer, Spike. Well done. Better make sure it doesn’t go to time though, eh?”
“That’s what I thought,” said Tara. “Buffy, can you stay here with Spike? Angel, Rich, come with me, please. I need you to carry something up from the basement.”
A chorus of sures met her request and she quickly led the men from the room. Spike watched her leave and then slumped back in his seat, resting his head on the back of the couch. He closed his eyes. He was just so damn tired. Plus he might have some more of those lovely dreams. He felt Buffy’s hand squeeze his and he opened an eye to see her watching him with concern.
“Are you okay, Spike?” she asked.
“Yeah, pet. Just tired is all.” He let his eye fall shut again.
Buffy stared at him. Something seemed a little off about him, but she had no idea what. She shrugged. She must be getting spooked now that the time for the ritual was close. She looked at the door and wondered what Tara needed the guys to help her with.
Tara led Angel and Rich down some creaky wooden stairs into a dusty, damp and dimly lit basement. She had told Angel to close the door behind him as they had entered. She turned to face them when they were all down the steps.
“So what is it that you need us to carry, Tee?” asked Rich, glancing around the almost completely empty room.
“There’s nothing. I just needed to talk to you out of Spike’s earshot after what he said,” replied Tara.
“What do you mean?” said Angel with a frown. “He said that he wanted to get it right. What’s wrong with that?”
“It’s because he doesn’t mean it. We’re going to have to do this ritual without relying on Spike to help it to go smoothly,” said Tara.
Rich took Tara’s hand in his. “How can you say that? Of course he wants to do it properly.”
Tara shook her head. “The demon inside him is growing stronger all the time. It’s not going to want to be denied. If we’d spoken of the ritual yesterday he’d’ve been much more positive than just saying ‘um…better get it right’.”
Rich stared at her. “He did seem pretty laid back about it.”
“So what do we do?” asked Angel.
Tara fixed Angel with an intense gaze. “It’s all going to ultimately be down to you. I can do the ritual, but you have to put yourself in the position so that Spike will bite you.”
“What?” gasped Angel. “I thought that he just had to drink my blood, not actually bite me!”
“But when he bit Buffy, he didn’t even break the skin,” said Rich, looking first at Tara and then Angel. “So why do you think that he’ll be able to do it to Angel.”
Tara hesitated; she wasn’t looking forward to telling them the next part. Rich took her hand and tugged it.
“Tee, what is it? You’re scaring me.”
“This is where the timing part comes in. The last changes that Spike has to go through are the development of his fangs swiftly followed by the loss of his soul and heartbeat.”
“Are you certain of the order of them?” asked Angel. He ran a hand through his hair. He didn’t like the sound of this very much. It all sounded a bit vague.
“We’re as sure as we can be,” said Tara. “Spike has to drink your blood direct from your neck as soon as his fangs descend.”
“Okay,” said Angel slowly. “Then, what, I just push him off when he has his fill? He is a bit stronger than normal now, you know.”
“Yeah, but you’re stronger, right?” said Rich.
“I am, but if he takes enough blood I’ll end up as weak as a kitten. I have to say that I’m not that taken with this plan,” said Angel dryly.
“If he drinks before the final changes take place, then you have nothing to worry about,” assured Tara. “When he has taken the same amount of blood from you that Drusilla took from him, the magics will come into force, you’ll be sent back to your dimension and Spike will lose the fledgling demon within.”
“What do we do if the timing is out?” asked Rich nervously.
Angel looked at him sharply. “I stake him.”
Rich stepped towards Angel, angrily pointing a finger. “You will not fucking kill my friend!”
“Rich, calm down,” said Tara, putting a restraining hand on his arm.
Angel took a pace backwards to try to defuse the situation. “Rich, the thing is – if the change goes through completely it won’t be your friend anymore. Without a soul, he’ll just be a predator. He’ll kill you all and will enjoy doing it.”
“But, you’re not like that,” protested Rich.
“Believe me, Rich. I was. I couldn’t wait to get home and murder each and every member of my family. We can’t let him get loose if he is truly a vampire. This world shouldn’t have them and you’d soon be over-run as he would want to sire companions,” Angel stated baldly.
Rich’s eyes filled with tears and he swallowed hard. “Shite.”
“So we make sure that we get it right,” said Tara firmly.
Rich took a deep breath. “So what do we need to do? If he’s not going to want to go along with it – how can we make sure that he does?”
Angel glanced at Tara. “We chain him down here, right?”
Tara nodded. “Can you see to fixing the chains somewhere that will hold him?”
“Yes, I will,” replied Angel. “I’ll go and get them.”
He turned around and disappeared up the steps. Tara put her hands on Rich’s shoulders and kissed him soundly before looking deep into his eyes.
“I really need you to be strong, Rich. Until we get Spike secured down here, you have to act normal. If he suspects anything he may try to run.”
Rich put his arms around Tara and drew her to his chest. He buried his face in her neck, savouring the scent of her hair.
“I’ll try, Tee.”
They parted as Angel returned with his holdall.
“We’ll go up. We’ll bring him down here when you’re ready,” said Tara. “Come on, Rich, it’ll soon be over.”
Rich wasn’t sure that he could pull off acting normal, but followed Tara upstairs.
Alone in the basement, Angel looked around to find somewhere to attach the chains. Finally, he settled on wrapping them behind a pillar that supported the floor above.
Spike was still sleeping when Rich and Tara walked into the lounge. Buffy was sitting with his head in her lap, stroking his hair.
“Is everything okay?” she asked.
“Yes,” replied Tara, as Rich stood dumbly staring at Spike. “Just putting together the things that we need. How has Spike been?”
“He has never stirred at all. He must be exhausted to sleep as soundly as this.”
“Or quietly turning into a demon…” thought Rich.
Rich jumped as Angel walked up behind him.
“Ready,” said Angel.
“What’s ready?” asked Buffy, unnerved by the way the three of them were staring at Spike.
“It’s time for the ritual to begin,” said Tara. “We’d better wake up Spike.”
“No need,” said Angel striding to the couch and scooping Spike into his arms.
“Oh!” said Buffy as Angel walked away with him.
Tara followed closely behind Angel and Buffy got off the couch and hurried to catch up. Rich stepped in her path.
“I’m not sure that you should be down there, Buffy,” he said.
“Rich, get out of the way. I’m going with Spike.”
Rich put a hand on her arm. “Buffy, from what Tee has told me – it’s not going to be pleasant. Are you sure that you want to see him when he…when he ends up looking like a vampire?”
“I don’t care! I’m not letting him go through this without me,” said Buffy, angrily shrugging off his hand.
She tried to go by him but Rich got hold of her again. “What about Spike, Buffy? Would he want you to see it?”
“Rich,” said Buffy, with tears beginning to fall, “I’ve got to be there – I can’t just wait up here. Please don’t try to stop me from being with him.”
“Oh, Buffy,” said Rich, wrapping his arms around her. “I’m sorry, don’t cry. I’m just afraid of what’s going to happen.”
Buffy hugged him tightly. “We’ll get through it.” She sniffed and as he let her go she took his hand. “Shall we go?”
Rich nodded and, heart in his mouth, he walked down into the dingy basement with Buffy. By the time that they got to the foot of the steps, Angel had secured Spike to the pillar. Spike amazingly seemed to still be asleep. The burns on his face and hands looked to have improved in the short time that he’d been down there. Buffy dropped Rich’s hand and ran towards Spike, only to find Angel in her way.
“God! I’ve just had this with Rich upstairs. Get out of my way. I’m going to him.”
Angel shook his head. “It’s not safe. Be near him but not within the range of those chains.” He glanced at Tara. “I think you’d better warn her about what’s going to happen when sleeping beauty over there wakes up.”
“Buffy, come and sit here with me,” said Tara, patting the wooden box that she was perched on.
Tara had just finished telling Buffy the details of the ritual, when Spike began to stir.
“Okay, I’ve got to do the spell part of this,” said Tara, her voice wavering a little with nerves.
She went to the little container full of the ingredients that she’d already prepared. She held her left hand over it and chanted quietly. She faltered a couple of times until she got full control of her focus, then the words suddenly came easily and the volume of her voice increased.
Buffy and Rich watched in amazement as the powder in the bowl began to give off a radiant pale yellow light. Angel had crouched near to Spike when Tara began the spell, and he kept glancing nervously at him.
Spike’s eyes opened and he stared at Tara and her bowl full of sparkling light.
“What are you doing?” he asked. He got to his feet and scowled at his forward movement was halted by the chains on his ankles and right wrist. “What’s going on?” Spike spotted Buffy sitting in the corner. “Buffy, pet, what’s going on? Last I knew I was having a kip on the couch.”
“Oh, Spike,” sobbed Buffy. She went to stand but Rich’s hand stopped her.
“Wait,” he whispered.
Without missing a beat when Spike spoke, Tara completed the spell and threw a handful of the glowing powder over first Spike and then Angel. She stepped back sharply and held her breath. Was the timing right?”
Spike cried out as the powder hit him, it seared where it touched him. He stared at Buffy. “Buffy, why are you doing this?” His eyes were tortured and pleading.
“It’s to put things, right,” said Buffy, openly weeping, hating to see her lover in pain. “Tara, it’s hurting him.”
Quick as a flash Buffy leapt up, dodged past Rich and ran to Spike. Spike straightened up and smirked.
“Knew that look would get to you.”
He licked his lips and reached out to grab her, momentarily startled as his face shifted and shiny, lethally sharp fangs dropped from his gums. His finger tips brushed her arm. Buffy screamed and tried to backtrack when she saw his demon face. The lumpy brow and nose, those hideous amber eyes and the teeth… Just as Spike leant forward to clutch her, there was an inhuman roar to his right and Angel pushed Buffy out of reach.
Spike growled, baring his teeth. He furiously tugged at his shackled wrist and to everyone’s horror the chain holding him snapped. He grabbed Angel by the throat. Spike tilted his head on one side and smiled.
“I reckon I can have you for starters.”
All Angel’s instincts were screaming at him to pull away, to use the stake that he had in his pocket, to fight back, but he forced himself not to resist.
In a swift movement Spike pulled Angel nearer, pushing his head to one side as he sank his fangs unerringly into Angel’s jugular vein. He was surprised that the blood didn’t rush into his mouth like it had in his dreams and it was cold, but he sucked hungrily.
Rich had run to help Buffy to her feet and now stood staring in shock at the beast that had been his best friend. The slurps and snarls that accompanied Spike’s actions, turned his stomach. He doubled over and threw up. Buffy was clinging to Tara, crying hysterically. Tara allowed herself to think that things had gone well. Thank Goddess that Spike hadn’t got hold of Buffy.
Angel moaned in pain as Spike ruthlessly tore at his throat. He began to feel light-headed and reached his hand into his pocket to get the stake. It had obviously gone completely wrong. He felt a pang in his un-beating heart at the knowledge that he would never see his Buffy again.
As his fingers touched the stake there was a loud bang, a flash of brilliant light, and a sensation of falling before everything went dark.
Buffy, Rich and Tara were blown off their feet by the blast and they landed in a heap, arms and legs entwined, coughing with the dust that was filling the air.
Rich managed to disentangle himself and rested on hands and knees trying to get his breath. He glanced at the girls and could see that they were more or less okay.
“Spike,” he said, gasping for air.
He crawled over to where Spike had been tied. The blast had thrown Spike backwards as far as the chains on his ankles would allow. He was flat on his back, his eyes closed. Blood was coating his chin and Rich’s stomach protested as he realised just whose blood it was. Rich put a hand on Spike’s leg and shook his as hard as he could.
“Spike! Are you okay?”
“Rich, be careful,” called Tara.
Rich looked back over his shoulder and smiled in what he hoped was a reassuring manner. He nearly jumped out of his skin when he turned back to find himself face to face with Spike. To his shame he let out a bit of a girly squeal as the unpleasant image of Spike savaging Angel’s neck flashed in his mind.
Spike grinned at him. “God, you sound like a right poof.”
“What?”
“What’s got your knickers in such a twist to make you squeak like that?” Spike looked around the dusty basement. “Hang on? Wasn’t I just on the couch?” He looked up. “Did the floor cave in or something?”
“Oh, mate,” Rich managed to mutter. He fell on his friend like a drowning man might grab driftwood. “You’re okay. You’re okay.”
Before Spike could reply, he was hit by two more bodies as Buffy and Tara threw their arms around him. Confused, he thought he’d better just copy what they were doing and hugged them back. He tried to kiss Buffy and was hurt when she pulled away. She accurately read his expression and took out some tissues from her pocket to wipe his mouth and chin.
“You’re covered in blood,” she explained.
“I am? But I don’t hurt.”
“It wasn’t yours.”
The penny dropped. “The ritual? You’ve done the ritual and I’m…I’m still me? Still alive?” He put two fingers onto the pulse point in his neck. He sighed with relief that he could feel it beating – a little rapidly maybe – but beating.
He grabbed Buffy and kissed her. “God, it worked. I’m really okay.”
They were disturbed by a loud groaning noise from the opposite corner of the basement. They all looked at each other.
“Angel?” said Spike. “Oh, no! He’s trapped here!”
Tara was distraught. “He can’t be. If it worked for you – he had to be thrown back to his own dimension.”
“It definitely worked, I can feel Spike’s heart beating,” said Buffy, clinging to him.
“If that’s the case, then what the hell is in that corner?” said Rich. “’Cause I want it on record that I’m totally bleeding sick of this parallel lives crap!”
Spike, Buffy, Rich and Tara struggled to their feet and all peered through the dust as a figure rose up from the floor. It coughed. They looked at each other – it sounded human but was it going to be another vampire?
It took a couple of wobbly steps towards them.
Rich’s legs gave way as he saw the features of the figure. “Oh, Christ,” he whispered as he fell to his knees.
Tara knelt beside Rich, supporting him as he trembled uncontrollably. She looked at the figure and wondered why Rich had reacted as badly as he had. It was a man, about the same age as they were, slim, with sandy brown hair. It was too dark to see the colour of his eyes but his cheekbones were prominent. She glanced at Spike to see him staring open mouthed at the man.
“Gosh, he looks like Spike,” thought Tara.
Rich finally managed to get enough air in his lungs to speak. “J – James?”
The man tensed and stared at Rich. “Yeah. Who the fuck are you?”
Tbc
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