Bewitched, Chapter 26

[thismaz]

Title: Bewitched, Chapter 26
Pairing: S/X. I promise it will get back there... eventually.
Rating: This chapter PG-13
Summary: Valentine's Day arrived and Dru dipped her finger in the brew, giving it a stir. That was two years ago and the fall-out is still falling.
Word Count: 3,500
Betaed by sparrow2000 and DJ, for which, many thanks. Thanks also to Sparrow for conflabbing on plot twists and forms.
Comments: Are greatly appreciated, loved and cherished.
Disclaimer: here.
Prologue here, with a link to the other chapters, or you can find the whole thing, in reverse order, in tags, or in the correct order, in memories. There's a menu of links on the right hand side of my main journal page.


Many thanks to mwrgana for the beautiful banner.



Chapter 26

He'd been running for more than two miles before Spike found himself in familiar surroundings, all the time avoiding the sun and dodging the soldiers who pursued him. It was not until he almost stumbled down a bank and out onto Crawford Street itself, that he realised where he was. From there, it was a simple task to make for the nearest cave entrance and lose the soldiers in the labyrinthine tunnels that wove their way beneath the town.

The manhole cover behind Willy's bar was the Sunnydale equivalent of Grand Central Station, the amount of traffic it got, and Willy was, as usual, happy to stand Spike a pint or two. So, he caught his metaphorical breath and waited for sunset before leaving to find a proper meal.

An old man healed the last of his wounds and after dumping the body into the storm drain, where the local weeviler pack would probably find it, he bounced on the spot to test his flexibility and set off for the campus and its accommodation office. The Red Witch would tell him where Xander lived. She'd have to.

Breaking into the office was easy. Working out how to make the computer tell him what he wanted to know, was a little more difficult, but not beyond the powers of a vampire who had always kept up with the latest technological developments. Getting into the dorm was easy too. Students were always so bloody careless and trusting. Throw them a smile and a casual, "How y’doin’, mate," and they never questioned your right to tailgate them in through the door.

It appeared that the Slayer and the Red Witch shared a room, so he approached with caution. The Slayer should be out patrolling, but there was never any banking on routine with this one, as he'd found out to his cost too often. There were students everywhere, milling around, chatting in groups, getting ready for a night out with their mates, or slinking into their rooms with piles of books if they weren't that lucky, or that popular. Thankfully, the Slayer was not among them and the Red Witch made his task doubly easy by wandering out of the bathroom, into the hallway, almost in front of him. Apart from the fact that he was revolted by the ridiculous pyjamas she was wearing, covered in grotesque, multi-coloured ponies, he was ready to believe that luck was still running his way.

She turned towards him as he stepped into her personal space. "Spike!" she yelped. She tried to dodge around him, but he blocked her easily. "What, what do you want?" she asked, eyes as big as saucers and attempting to back away, but hitting the wall instead. When escape failed she paused, took a deep breath and gathered her wits. "Do you want a spell?" she asked. "Because I can do that. I mean, if you, if you want?"

In spite of her terror, her coolness as she attempted to bargain, reminded him why he'd always liked this one of the Slayer's friends. "No, I don't want a spell," he replied. "I want information." He took hold of her upper arm, to keep her in place. "Invite me into your room and I'll give you a choice," he offered. "I'm gonna kill you. No choice in that. But if you tell me what I want to know, I’ll make sure you don’t stay dead."

She looked up at him with an almost comical expression of horror on her face. "That’s not really an incentive," she objected. "Dead is still dead and turned is still dead."

For a moment, Spike was so surprised that he was distracted from his primary objective. "Who told you that?" he asked.

"Um, er, Giles?"

Watcher lessons, Spike thought, so full of assumptions. Rather like the military in that respect. Smiling, he decided to spare a moment to educate her. This was a place of learning. Anyway, it was insulting, having people wandering around in such ignorance. "He fed you a line, pet. Vampires aren't some sort of cheap possession or any form of animated dead. Have you seen a zombie? Ugh! All string puppet moves and bits falling off." Her eyes were getting even bigger as she listened to him. "No," he explained. "Vampires are demons. We just happen to have been born human."

She looked around the hallway and he saw her note the quality of any assistance she could possibly call upon and he saw her discard the idea. Looking back up at him she began to argue. "That’s, that's very interesting," she said. "But the texts are pretty clear. The human dies and the demon takes possession of the dead body."

"I don’t care what the bloody Watchers’ texts say. I’m telling you – " He cut himself off mid flow as light dawned. He could almost sense the light bulb above his head "Now, now, none of that," he said. "You’re playing for time, aren't you? Is the Slayer due back soon?"

"Um, well, I... No! I mean, yes! Very soon! Maybe right now, in fact," she replied, craning her neck to see past him. She relaxed rather abruptly. "Or, or maybe these commandoes might get you first."

"What?" Spike spun around and sure enough a knot of men in khaki were entering the hallway from the stairs. "Bugger!"

Without any warning the lights went out. Even the emergency lights failed to come on and with only a couple of skylights, as far as the human's were concerned, the corridor was cast into pitch darkness. Immediately there were cries of alarm from the students who started fumbling around, trying to find their way out.

The potential for mass confusion and injury among the legitimate residents didn’t feel like a move the Slayer would make – give her her due, she always preferred to fight her opponents, face-to-face and one-to-one, at close quarters. Maybe he'd been wrong in his initial assumption that they were all working together.

Students were stumbling around, trying to find their rooms, but there was no panic yet. That could easily change though and when Spike saw that the soldiers were moving towards him, he decided that it would soon do so, especially if given a little help. He shouted, "Shit! It’s a fire!"

Immediately the fumbling figures stopped fumbling and started running. And crashing. The more cool headed found a wall and began working their way along to the exit doors at each end of the hall. The more panicked, or just plain stupid, were barging around, catching hold of anyone they bumped into.

The soldiers moved with a sureness of foot that suggested night-vision goggles, which put them on an even par with Spike and all of them emperors in the kingdom of the blind.

Behind the two gun-wielding grunts Spike spotted a taller man who had taken up position against the wall. He had the air of an officer and he was staring down at something he held in both hands. "Activation," he announced and Spike wasn’t sure if it was a command or an observation, but in case it was a command, he let go of the Red Witch, ducked and rolled across the floor.

The soldiers continued to advance with their rifles raised and held at eye level. As he came up onto his feet again, on the opposite side of the hallway, Spike noticed that one of them kept his gun trained on the Red Witch. The other was tracking Spike's movements.

They were obviously homing in on him, so he grabbed a passing student and got behind her, hoping to mask his lack of heat signature with her body. Meanwhile the initial chaos was turning into a full-blown panic with students stumbling and grabbing at each other. It would only take one of them to fall, trip a few more and the potential for serious injury increased dramatically. Spike reached out a foot and caught at a passing student's ankle. Sure enough, he went down with a yelp.

The soldier stepped around the fallen student, still making a beeline for Spike. Spike tossed the girl at him and ducked behind someone else. Gripping his new cover by his shoulders, he whispered, "Wait until it calms down a bit. Then we’ll head for the door."

The boy wouldn't be able to see anything of Spike, but he nodded obediently, obviously reassured by anyone who sounded calm. "O-okay," he agreed.

"Secure the corridor," the officer commanded. "No one gets out."

If Spike has wanted to create a faster mass exodus, he couldn’t have done a better job.

The soldier had set the girl on her feet and moved her aside. He'd also slung his rifle over his shoulder and drawn a hand gun. He began to close on Spike.

Spike positioned his shield against the wall. "Stay there," he instructed and turned to throw a punch at the soldier.

The pain was agonising, sending him staggering almost to his knees.

"It’s here," the soldier shouted and through the lancing fire in his head Spike felt a hand grabbing at him.

"Bag it and tag it," the commander ordered. "We’re out of here."

Another voice called out, "Sir, the civilian? Could have been turned."

"Bring her too."

Every time Spike tried to push the man off, or punch him, the pain in his head paralysed him with its intensity. There was a high pitched scream that Spike recognised as the Red Witch and the soldier who had hold of him was distracted for an instant. Spike wrenched himself free and staggered over to the wall, his shoulder hitting a fire extinguisher.

The boy, otherwise known as 'the heat shield', turned towards him. "Is that you?" he asked. "Are you alright? Is it safe to move?"

"Bit busy here, mate." He gave the boy a shove towards the soldier. "But head that way and you'll be fine."

The soldier gave a shout of alarm when the boy collided with him and raised his hand gun. Spike grabbed the extinguisher, to throw, but only had time to hold it up in front of his face before the shot was fired. That the soldier would shoot in such a confined space, with so many civilians around, was a surprise. That the bullet missed the boy was probably a result of good training. That it punctured the fire extinguisher, immediately releasing clouds of ice-cold vapour, was sheer bloody luck. Taking advantage of the inadvertent camouflage, Spike raced to the stairwell. Behind him he heard the Slayer's voice raised in furious protest, but he didn't stay for the show. He was out through the doors at the end of the corridor and away.

The last thing he heard was the officer's almost desperate cry of, "Abort!"

*********

Xander stood with Buffy and Willow, watching as some high-up guy from the university made a speech. He had an appointment with the site foreman for a job, but now couldn’t get past the official tape to where the construction workers were all standing. If he’d arrived half an hour earlier, he’d have been over there and had the whole of the ceremony to sell himself and his skills (admittedly not many more than a willingness to do almost anything, with enthusiasm) and himself to Joe Wheeler. With that thought came the rueful acknowledgement that it was possibly just as well he was stuck on the spectators’ side of the tape. He’d have less time to ruin his chances if the interview was more rushed. Hopefully, the letter of recommendation from Steve, the foreman at his last site, would be enough for Joe Wheeler to give him a chance. He no longer had the urgency of needing a new job, because Mr Donato had reopened Dino's and Xander was working regularly again, but the break had proved to him that there were other things he could do and he'd enjoyed his two days of casual labour on a construction site.

He watched the ceremony and got ready to intercept Joe Wheeler as soon as the speeches were over. Or maybe he should wait until Joe had everybody sorted out and working. Yes, that would be better. It wouldn’t be good if Joe’s first impression of Xander was of someone who got in the way.

Finally the Dean stood back and, as the small crowd applauded, Xander took hold of the tape so he could duck under it, but the pause was only to allow a professor to come forward, in turn, to make her own speech. Xander relaxed again.

The professor started off by talking about the old cultural centre but Xander stopped listening when she compared it to a child growing up and moving on. A guy in an orange t-shirt at the front of the group of construction crew caught his eye and he spent a pleasant few minutes considering the beauty of the male form instead. Beside him Willow snorted. "What a load of horse hooey," she said. Xander turned to look and was immediately began to calculate his chances of a clean get away if he ran; he recognised the glint in her eyes.

Buffy didn't seem to do so. "We have a counterpoint?" she asked.

It was all the invitation Willow needed to launch into her argument.

From Buffy's slightly stunned expression, Xander guessed that it was the first time she'd been exposed to the Rosenberg Thanksgiving Rant. At least she seemed to recognise it for what it was. "Okay," she said when Willow finally wound down. "So, for some of that you were channelling your mother, weren't you?"

Ducking her head Willow admitted, "Well, yeah, sort of. That's why she doesn't celebrate Thanksgiving or Columbus Day. I know it sounds a little overwrought," Over her head, Xander caught Buffy's eye and they shared a grin. "but really, she's...She's right.

Giving her a one-armed hug of solidarity, Buffy made what peace she could. "Yeah. I guess I never really thought about it that way." She sighed. "Anyway, with Mom at Aunt Darlene's, I'm not getting a Thanksgiving this year. I don't even get to do the traditional 'take the last six week's worth of dirty laundry home', thing."

Smiling slightly, Willow shook her head sympathetically. "It's a not fair world, alright."

An idea apparently struck her a passing blow, because Buffy brightened and exclaimed, "You know what? I should have my own thanksgiving. I can cook the meal, just like my mom does, have all you guys over. It'll be great!"

"But, but, Buffy," Willow objected. "Weren't you listening? Thanksgiving's a sham. It's all about death."

Her protest made not a dint in Buffy's cheerfulness. "I know. Yes, it is a sham, but that doesn't mean it can't be a sham with yam.

"Oh no, you're not gonna jokey-rhyme your way out of this one. You agreed with me."

"No I didn't. I sympathised. And..." Buffy's voice turned whiny and pleading. "I want it. Isn't it like what Professor Walsh said about sense memory? I smell a roasting turkey and I'm eight years old. I liked having that to look forward to and everything's so different now."

Watching Willow's face, Xander saw the moment that Buffy's plea got through. "Well," she replied, reluctantly, "I suppose there could be slight yams."

A delighted grin spread across Buffy's face, but she was smart enough to know that she still needed to enthuse Willow. "We could definitely use a little comfort food," she wheedled. "I bet Giles doesn't have any plans. And Xander," she added, turning to him, "you always avoid your family gatherings, don't you?" Thankfully, she didn't wait for a reply, because although Willow might not be objecting at that moment, he suspected that any enthusiasm from him would set her off again. He gave a vague wave that they could interpret as they wished and turned back to watch orange t-shirt guy, while the professor concluded her speech. Buffy would probably win the argument; Willow had never been very good at standing up against other peoples' wants and her objections to Thanksgiving had always had an element of justifying the inevitable about them.

Meanwhile, the Professor was about to finish. "And thus, a symbolic beginning," she announced, picking up a shovel and stepping down from the stage to shift a small heap of earth from one spot to another.

After that the professors and the other dignitaries withdrew and the workers moved onto the site. A group of men dismantled the stage and carried it away. A backhoe loader trundled forward and a couple of men with traditional shovels started digging where the stage had stood. Xander kept his eyes on Joe Wheeler, watching him direct his men to their tasks, and on orange t-shirt guy.

Behind him, Buffy and Willow were still talking and it seemed to Xander's inattentive ear that Buffy was also concluding her pitch. "We can have our own, chosen-family feast, because really, pilgrims aside, isn't that the whole point of Thanksgiving?" She gave Xander a nudge. "What do you think?" she asked.

"Hmm? Yeah, sure," he replied, admiring the way orange t-shirt guy's arm muscles bulged as he forced the blade of his shovel into the ground and levered the earth free.

"Thanksgiving dinner at your place, then," Buffy announced. "Pie, roast beast. That's very kind of you."

"What?" Xander asked, spinning around. "But, you said... No! I, I... I don't have any stuff to cook with. New place. Un-stocked kitchen. Un-stocked with any of the cooking utensils required for cooking large beasts."

Willow patted his arm, a pitying expression on her face. "It's okay, Xander, we'll help. All you'll have to do is clean up after."

"What? No! Umm... Giles!" he exclaimed. "He's been living in that apartment for years. He must have a fully stocked kitchen. We should go to Giles'."

Buffy looked at Willow. Willow looked at Buffy. They nodded in unison. "That's actually not a bad idea," Buffy agreed. Xander slumped with relief. She punched his shoulder lightly and he mock staggered. "I'll go and give him the good news, after class," she said. "Speaking of which..."

Looking at her watch, Willow frowned. "Yeah, I've gotta run if I want a front seat for 'Social Dynamics and the Dominant Paradigm'," she said. They turned away, leaving Xander to thank goodness for his own quick thinking and to return to admiring the view, until Joe Wheeler was free. The last thing he heard as they walked away was Buffy's laugh when she quizzed Willow on the idea that her class would really be so full that even the front row seats would be taken. It was good to see that Willow was finally recovering from Oz's desertion.

If Xander hadn’t been watching, he’d never have noticed what happened next. The guy in the orange t-shirt was standing on his shovel, forcing the tip into the ground. Xander turned away to check on Joe Wheeler again and in the moment that it took to do that, orange t-shirt guy was gone.

Xander sprinted over to the hole that had appeared in the empty stretch of the site where orange t-shirt guy had been, waving his arm to attract the attention of any of the other workers. By the time he reached the lip, a few other men had joined him in raising the alarm and were running towards him, but they were still a distance away. Xander lay down and stuck his head over the edge of the hole. The only light was from behind him, so he couldn’t see much, but he thought he made out a patch of orange on the floor of the hole.

"Are you okay?" he yelled.

There was no response. Xander looked around. The only way down appeared to be to jump. It didn’t look too difficult though, so he shimmied around and crawled backwards over the edge.

Landing in a crouch on the surprisingly flat floor, Xander took a moment to let his eyes adjust to the gloom before he looked around and saw the guy lying on his side, his arms splayed and one leg bent in an unnatural way. He crawled over to him and checked that there was nothing blocking his nose and mouth, and that he was breathing. He wasn’t going to attempt to move him.

Looking up he saw a couple of heads silhouetted against the sky. "Call 911," he shouted and can you send me down a flashlight? He’s broken his leg, but he’s breathing okay."

It took twenty minutes for the paramedics to arrive with a stretcher and another half hour for them to get the guy out. Long before that he regained consciousness and Xander did his best to keep him calm, in spite of the pain he was in.

When Xander finally got out of the hole, Joe Wheeler was busy shutting down the site and talking to the police, so Xander didn’t have a chance of speaking to him. He went home to wash and change before starting his pizza delivery shift, instead.


Note: Some dialogue borrowed from episode 4.08, Pangs.

Chapter 27

Comments

[melanie2525.livejournal.com]

That was a great action scene and dang it Spike has his chip again. I hated that chip. Great chapter and looking forward to more.

[thismaz.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much. And yes, I'm afraid he has. I'm glad you enjoyed it though, even with the chip.

[texanfan.livejournal.com]

Hm. My s4 discs are currently loaned out so I can't check. I can't remember if Xander actually touched something that let loose the vengeful spirit or if falling down the hole was enough. I guess we shall see. It might be better to ask for a job after he's over mystical syphilis. :)

It's always a source of great interest to me how we all have our own takes on the Jossverse vampires. the material is so rich and it has inspired such thought provoking interpretations. Very clever call on willow's part, using intellectual curiosity to stall.

You're doing an amazing job of showcasing the recklessness and and all around bad guy status of the Initiative. Unconcerned with collateral damage they planned to take out their objective in true jack boot fashion. Good thing Spike got enough blood before he got activated.

Another wonderful chapter.

[thismaz.livejournal.com]

No, he didn't touch anything, at least not on screen, but he was the first person down there.

This take on what vampires are is not my usual one. I am ignoring certain canon comments and extrapolating others to come up with this variation, but I like experimenting. *g* As for Willow, she did remain remarkably calm in that encounter, as I remember. *thinks* Although most of what we see is after the event. *g*

Thank you. I was often amazed by the recklessness of the Initiative, but the way they didn't seem to consider collateral damage in that episode, seemed particularly off to me (although Buffy fired a flare gun inside, so she wasn't any better. I just ignored that *snigger* The joys of fan fic - picking and choosing which bits to use.)

I am so glad you enjoyed it.

[mulder200.livejournal.com]

where the local weeviler pack would probably find it,

For some reason, this is giving me Torchwood flashbacks.

And I see you did give Spike the chip after all. I look forward to your take on it here. I also like Spike's intro. on vampires. Are they really demons or daemons? I mean Illryia did refer to them as half-breeds.

And will Xander get magical syphilis? I really hope not.

[thismaz.livejournal.com]

For some reason, this is giving me Torchwood flashbacks.
*laughs* I can understand that. I actually invented weevilers in my story Blood on a Sundial, back in 2007, and I've used them since - they are such a tidy way to get rid of dead bodies *g* Whether I was influenced by Towrchwood when I named them, I really can't say.

Are they really demons or daemons?
Is there a difference? I had always considered deamons to simply be an outmoded spelling of demons. The only time I've come across them as something specific was in Philip Pullman's books. And I just tried googling and even wikipedia didn't help. Would you mind explaining, because I really am am curious?

I had to give him the chip, really. Thank you for reading and leaving a comment. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

[mulder200.livejournal.com]

Is there a difference? I had always considered deamons to simply be an outmoded spelling of demons. The only time I've come across them as something specific was in Philip Pullman's books. And I just tried googling and even wikipedia didn't help. Would you mind explaining, because I really am am curious?

The words daemon, dæmon, are Latinized spellings of the Greek δαίμων (daimôn),[1] used purposely today to distinguish the daemons of Ancient Greek religion, good or malevolent "supernatural beings between mortals and gods, such as inferior divinities and ghosts of dead heroes" (see Plato's Symposium), from the Judeo-Christian usage demon, a malignant spirit that can seduce, afflict, or possess humans.

In religion, folklore, and mythology a demon (or daemon,[1] daimon from Greek: δαίμων daimōn) is a supernatural being that is generally described as a malevolent spirit.


http://www.fanfiction.net/s/1888892/7/Lessons_in_Witchcraft
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daemon_%28mythology%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demon

[thismaz.livejournal.com]

Thanks, yes, I got that from wikipedia too, so I was wondering whether you were asking if I thought the Joss'verse vampires were supernatural beings, between mortals and gods?
I think the idea I am playing with here is that they are a demonisation of the human, rather than a demon taking possession of the human body after the human's essence has departed. Does that make sense?

edited to make it slightly more coherent. Sorry for the spam

[mulder200.livejournal.com]

There's nothing wrong with a little intellectual spam.

Thanks, yes, I got that from wikipedia too, so I was wondering whether you were asking if I thought the Joss'verse vampires were supernatural beings, between mortals and gods?

Yes, that's what I was wondering.

I think the idea I am playing with here is that they are a demonisation of the human, rather than a demon taking possession of the human body after the human's essence has departed. Does that make sense?

Ah! Okay.

[thismaz.livejournal.com]

Yes, that's what I was wondering.
Ah, right. Thanks. No. They are absolutely still demons. I am stretching the accepted canon on Joss'verse vampires (and adding in a variation on the canon of what happened to Cordelia) but I don't think I am breaking the Joss'verse rules.

[sparrow2000.livejournal.com]

As ever, a great action sequence, with Spike using every opportunity to his advantage even with the chip.

Multi-coloured ponies on her PJ's - even my imagination wasn't that lurid!

Very nice use of the canon scene in Pangs, and I loved Xander diverting attention away from his own new apartment towards Giles. He's too house-proud at the moment to let Buffy anywhere near his kitchen - sensible boy *g*

You know, the emergency services in Sunnydale really are blind, anywhere else they'd be wondering why Xander happened to phone in a 911, two weeks in a row...:) One of these days, Xander is going to meet Joe Wheeler - unless something else gets in the way *g*

[thismaz.livejournal.com]

Thanks, hon.
Your imagination might not be that lurid, but I am still firmly blaming you for them *g*
The emergency services in Sunnydale are well known for their blindness, but I never thought about that manifestation. *g* You are so right.

[laazikaat.livejournal.com]

Poor Xander misses out again. It was a sad note that he had to go off to deliver pizzas after that bit of heroism.

You had me worried that Spike was going to be caught again, glad he got away, but damnit, he's chipped. :(

[thismaz.livejournal.com]

Yes, he missed out, but I don't think he is too worried. He's made his decision to find a new job and that was the difficult thing. I don't think he's stressing too much about actually doing it. *g*
Spike had to be chipped, I'm afraid. I am playing so close to canon (until I veer off entirely) that it had to be. Sorry, hon.

[laazikaat.livejournal.com]

I still love you anyway, even if you are cruel to my poor Spike.

[thismaz.livejournal.com]

*hugs you*

[missus-grace.livejournal.com]

Ah, bummer. I was hoping Spike hadn't gotten chipped.

[thismaz.livejournal.com]

*sheepish grin* Sorry.

[brunettepet.livejournal.com]

That hallway scene was vividly drawn, and I'm with Spike in being surprised that The Initiative would shoot in a hall filled with students. They have little concern for the people they're supposed to be protecting.

Xander's antsiness about getting to the site manager was entertaining, as was his Anyaesque ogling of the orange t-shirt guy. I loved him taking charge and leaping into that hole after the man fell, too. Does this mean he won't be the one to contract magical syphilis?

This was a wonderful sentence: The soldiers moved with a sureness of foot that suggested night-vision goggles, which put them on an even par with Spike and all of them emperors in the kingdom of the blind. The sure footed amidst the panicked students painted a vivid picture.

[thismaz.livejournal.com]

All the Buffy 'verse good guys behave with amazing recklessness for bystanders' safety, on occasion, but when the people doing so are a government agency (sworn to protect the populace and all that) it is unforgivable (as well as being a sign of really poor organisation *g*) That scene always bugged me. I needed to let Spike voice my frustration with it.

I'm glad you enjoyed Xander. I really enjoyed writing him in this chapter. You know the answer to your question, by now.

And thank you for pointing out that line. I was pleased with it too.