The dead silence that followed Spike’s statement was shattered by Giles shouting, “The pillock did WHAT?” If Riley had still been there, all the frustration the ex-Watcher still felt towards the Initiative would have found its outlet on the ex-soldier’s body.
“What do you know, Spike? And I suggest you tell me everything or else you’ll find yourself drifting in the morning breeze.” The Slayer’s demeanor scared Joyce. Up until that moment she had never actually seen her daughter go full-Slayer and the experience was nerve wracking. If this was what her daughter had to go through every night, extra attention would have to be taken to prevent her from becoming a cold hearted killer. If only her health were a bit better, Joyce would have done everything she could to bring back at least a part of the girl Buffy had once been – carefree, happy, and young – as opposed to what she now seemed to be – worn out with worries, angry or cold, old despite her years.
“Oi, just call them as I smell them, Slayer. There have been at least three undead birds stickin’ their chompers in Captain America there just in the last week. Haven’t gotten close enough to smell them before tonight, what with your threats to steer clear and his wanker ideas of trying to stake me on sight. If you want, I could scrounge up some info on the local floozies and get back to you.”
“Do that!” she spat.
“Actually that won’t be entirely necessary.” At Zamolxis’ statement the full force of the Slayer Look of Death was directed his way, complete with hands on hips and pursed lips – he was not impressed. “As I have before stated, we are aware of events that were supposed to occur in the next few years. One of these events would be Riley’s addiction to getting sucked on by vampires. The results tend to vary throughout the dimensions, from being turned, to becoming a ghoul, to being found by you and Spike and rejoining the Army.”
“So what happens to him now?” Buffy was so shocked she couldn’t even stop and be hurt by his actions. She let her shoulders sag a notch, but no other outward sign of the turmoil she was feeling was visible. Even her teary eyes from earlier were now calculating and cold.
“I really don’t know how things will turn out. If you want, I could give you the address for the whorehouse and you can see for yourself.” He wasn’t stupid enough to admit to being one of the voices whispering in the boy’s ear and tempting him into his life of depravity. He may be a God and therefore impervious to her attacks if he wished it, but her trust was much more hardly won. And if some omissions were needed in order to secure said trust, so be it. “There were many more things to be discussed; we haven’t even covered the back story yet, let alone the need for Joyce and Dawn’s participation in this little chat, but we can always reconvene tomorrow evening, say around seven?” He scribbled down the address of the decrepit building housing Riley’s addiction in a flowing yet formal writing that practically begged for flourishes and engravings on the side – no time for that though.
“Yes, quite, that would seem best. Buffy, may I accompany you on your search? There are a few things I wish clarified before, well, just before.” Giles was cleaning his glasses again in a familiar way, but his eyes had a steely glint to them.
“If you want, I could hex his parts,” Willow felt she needed to add as the best friend with magic powers, gaining winces from the male contingent and a pat on the back from her girlfriend.
“I’m coming with. Nobody makes a fool of the Buffster or the Scoobs and gets away with it!” Xander was eager to show his former friend exactly what he now thought of him.
“Thanks, guys, but this is the plan: Giles, you take Mom and Dawn home – it’s way past her bedtime anyway. Xander, you and Anya head to your apartment and get some sleep - ‘cause I think we all need it. On the way, drop Willow and Tara off at the dorms. Zamolxis and Bendis, you go wherever you go and we’ll meet up here tomorrow as you said. Spike and I are hitting this place and getting some answers.” General Buffy issued orders to her troops and didn’t even wait for the oks to end before heading for the door – she had a mission to perform.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Less than twenty minutes later she stood in front of what looked like an uninhabited building with boarded-up windows and shabby appearance. ‘So this is where stupid people come to get bit. Didn’t they hear? I have a habit of burning things down!’ Even the voice inside her head sounded deadly, the girl mourning the loss of another relationship would have to come out later, while in her own bed, curled around Mr. Gordo – only the Slayer had business here.
“Right, so what’s the plan then? Storming the battlements while shouting ‘Victory is life’?” So, it was a geeky thing to say, but the battle shout sounded damn good right about now and his Big Bad image wouldn’t take a beating for it.
“Just shut up and follow me!” she said, somewhat relieved that he was there with her. ‘When did relief come into play? I’m happy Spike is here while I enter the place Riley has been cheating on me in? This is way wiggy, but time for that later.’
They went in as if they owned the place and took in the scene before them. Spread out on sofas and on the floor a number of human males and even a few women who were being slowly drained by some very trashy looking vampires while wearing blissful masks of surrender. She’d never actually felt any pleasure from vampire bites: the Master was short and brutal, Angel was desperate and almost feral and Dracula had her in thrall – not really happy inducing conditions there. But these people were obviously thrilled to have killers devour them bit by bit. She was becoming sick, she was outraged and even if a tiny bit of her was intrigued, the filth and rotten smells in the air nearly made her retch. Steadying herself, she motioned for Spike to lead the way to wherever Riley might have decided to hole up.
Not wasting a second more than was necessary to filter out the hated smell of Cornbread’s cologne, Spike took long strides towards some stairs in the back. When a disgruntled fledgling tried to stall them, the Slayer’s stake found its first victim for the night – or day, considering it was just after midnight.
Taking the stairs two at the time they came to a corridor with peeling wallpaper that was probably not originally colored in “grime and mold” and a floor covered in all sorts of discarded wrappers and cardboard boxes turned into soggy masses of fiber. Without speaking a word and completely focused on their target, they moved down the hall to a battered door propped against the wall and replaced by cellophane nailed to the frame. Ripping through the crackling barrier they both came face to face with the extent of a “normal” guy’s depravity in the face of the darkness.
Riley was sprawled in the arms of two scantily clad and dirtied female vamps that had embedded their fangs in each of his arms and were happily sucking away at his blood. Riley, however, didn’t have the same look of bliss as the other patrons. Instead his face seemed contorted in rage and the frown marring his features gave him a ghastly appearance. Despite the shocking sight before her, Buffy’s first thought was ‘Do they even wash themselves, as in ever?’ After the Valley girl estimate about the girls’ lack of appeal she focused her sights on her ex-boyfriend and her anger bubbled up to the surface.
Two stakes found their marks with extreme precision and turned the methods for Riley’s current betrayal into so much dust in the wind. He dazedly opened his eyes and was surprised to see the main reasons for all his troubles wearing almost twin looks of disgust, their heads cocked to one side as if they had rehearsed it for just this occasion – the Vampire Layer and her pet, Hostile 17. An ugly sneer made its way to his lips and he staggered to a standing position off the floor.
“Shoo, zhe whore fin-filn-finalinly shooze hersh chrue colorsh.” The slurring could have been considered the result of blood-loss, if not for the fumes of alcohol replacing any other foul odor in the rank room. Spike briefly wondered when White Bread had had the time to get plastered. “’Dja cooommm ta join the fuuunn?” He stumbled closer to the duo with rivulets of blood still trickling down his arms from the open fang marks. The sight of him in this state almost made her cry out in anguish and want to heave, but she just filed that away for when Buffy-the-girl returned.
“Well, lover, looks like you didn’t waste any time in getting your strikes.” She started ticking off her fingers, “Drunk, cheating and with vamps. I may be blonde, but I think that makes three, don’t you think? If you can still count that high.” Buffy would be in denial for a week if she noticed that the smirk she wore was mirrored exactly by the vampire standing less than a foot away from her.
“I remember telling you to stay away from my monsters. These vamps are in my town, so that makes them my monsters. I’m only going to say this once, Riley: LEAVE. Get away from here, go back to your precious Army and. Don’t. Come. Back!” She was trembling with fury and exertion from keeping her fists and emotions in check. She felt like beating him to a pulp, like crying her eyes out, like kicking him bodily out of her town, like a lost little girl that saw her chances at a normal life shattered by the man in front of her – no, not man, thing! But she did nothing but tell him to leave, leave before she could finally break down.
Spike said nothing, knowing this was something she had 1to take care of herself. How he longed to be able to rip the git’s head from his shoulders for harming his girl. She might not have been his to anyone but him, but that didn’t matter. ‘Never hurt the girl!’ was the chant in his mind. His arms ached for the want to cradle her to his chest and shield her from the pain inside herself, but he couldn’t. ‘Not your place, mate. Not yet.’
With that she grabbed her former lover by the scruff of his neck and dragged him like a rag doll down the stairs and across the main room. She threw him in the street for the second time that night and then turned back in to finish the job she had started by dusting the remaining three vamps.
“I jush might joo zhat,” Riley mumbled dejectedly at her from the hole in the pavement she had thrown him in. Even in his muddled state of mind he knew that the only two reasons for staying he had – Buffy and… what was her name? Lucy, Linda, Liz? And her fangs – were gone from his life. He didn’t even register the few humans staggering away from the condemned house, nor the two deadly shadows moving away as he was lost in his own world of spiraling despair. Just when the first beams started crumbling in the burning pyre the house had been transformed into did he notice his haven of bliss disappearing forever.
“Gooodd riddanshe,” he said, and started crawling his way back to his flat and the phone that now held the only hope he had left.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
This chapter has, as always, benefitted from Kristi (Tanit) looking over it with a fine tooth comb (three times - she's a saint I tell you).
Thanks for all their help to Carrie (Darkrivertempest) and Sotia (ssddgr). Their input and help was highly appreciated.
Thanks for all their help to Carrie (Darkrivertempest) and Sotia (ssddgr). Their input and help was highly appreciated.
Chapter End Notes:
So, what do you think? And also.. if anyone is interested in making a banner for this fic, I am in no way against it! I just thought I should clear that up :D