Bewitched, Chapter 34/37
Mar. 6th, 2010 02:46 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
thismazTitle: Bewitched, Chapter 34/37
Pairing: S/X
Rating: Overall NC-17
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: 4,855
Betaed by![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
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.
The prologue is 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.
If you were reading this story before it went on hiatus, after chapter 27, there is a recap post here with a link to chapter 28 and all chapters following.
Many thanks tokatekat1010 for allowing me to use her original manip which you can find here.
Chapter 34
Looking back, it was almost unbelievable to Xander that he had actually drooled over Jonathan's swimwear calendar. Spike said that he'd decided he wasn't going to believe it, because the memory was too painful. Not that he'd been any better - he'd suggested they kidnap Jonathan.
But at the time, it was real. Proof, once again, that spells did the wackiest things to your head. At the time, Jonathan really was a superhero and the Scoobies really did run to him for help and advice with everything from their love lives, to the monster that was menacing the town. A week later, Buffy was still seesawing between rueful amusement and total mortification over her sidekick role in Jonathan's perfect world.
Of everyone, it was Tara and Willow who got off most lightly, although Tara blushed adorably when Spike made a remark about Jonathan, in passing. The remark was aimed at Xander, but he was way beyond blushing by that point.
Most of the town went straight into denial as soon as the spell was broken and Xander wished that he had that refuge, but some good had also come out of the incident.
One good thing was that the general re-set of reality that was the essence of the spell, included the return of his friends to their own homes and dorm rooms. Xander's apartment was bigger and far less fraught when Buffy, Willow and Giles were not sharing the space with Spike.
Another good thing was the information Jonathan had provided, after he was invited to consult for the Initiative. When he called a meeting at Giles' apartment, he brought blueprints.
Spreading the plans out on the cleared desk, he leafed through them until he found one that looked a bit like the anatomical drawings Xander remembered from Biology class at school. "I present, Adam," he announced. "I pulled some of Professor Walsh's original design schematics."
Adam's skeletal structure was labelled with terms such as 'Peripheral Nervous Electropath', 'GTZ Capacitor' and 'DXR Chip'. "His power source is not biological at all," Jonathan explained, pointing at a spot in the centre of Adam's chest. "There's a power pack here."
Leaning forward to see over Jonathan's shoulder, Xander wasn't trying to cop a feel, really. He looked at the complex of bones, muscles, wires and black-box units in the drawing and a thousand Sci Fi references jostled for position on his tongue. He managed to bite them back. "That does not sound good," he observed, adding, after Spike slipped an arm around his waist and hauled him away, "How long will it last? I mean, does he need to find an electrical outlet to get a recharge every night? If we staged a city-wide power outage, would that help?"
Shaking his head, Jonathan placed both hands on the table and bent forward to study the plans. "No," he said. "The design attempts to hide it, but I believe that inside the power pack is a small reservoir of Uranium 235." He straightened and looked around the room, catching their eyes, one at a time. "That means that his 'charge' will essentially last forever. In addition, his higher nervous system appears to extend into this area," he said, pointing to another part of Adam's chest, "which also means that cutting off his head is useless. To kill Adam we will have to annihilate him completely."
Buffy looked suitably sombre. "First we have to find him," she said.
With his arms around Xander's waist, Spike rested his cheek against Xander's shoulder. "He's in a cave, up above Elm Street," he said.
"How do you know that?" Buffy demanded, turning on him in an accusatory swirl of frowns and flying hair.
Spike remained supremely relaxed. "Went and made a deal with him, didn't I?"
Buffy actually growled and took a step towards them, but halted when Jonathan laid a restraining hand on her arm. "But not to betray us," he said with amazing certainty considering Spike's history.
Xander could feel the power of Spike's smirk, even if he couldn't see it. He shrugged himself free of Spike's hold and turned to face him.
Spike's eyes settled on his face. "No, pet," he said. "I wouldn't do that. I marched in and demanded he took the chip out." He grimaced. "Fat lot of good that did, but he knew about me being here. Said I was mooching off you."
"You are," Xander agreed with a grin.
"Am not. Earned my keep tonight, with this." If it was possible to swagger without moving, Spike did it. "He's cold and clever," he said, "but he doesn't understand vampires. Knows all the facts, but doesn't understand a thing."
Jonathan smiled. "Thank you, Spike. Having a contact Adam trusts could be very useful."
"Not sure trust's the right word," Spike objected.
"Maybe not, but I hope you will be able to gather some useful intel." Turning to look at the rest of the Scoobies, he said, "This could make the difference between success and failure."
"Did you actually find out anything useful on this excursion?" Giles asked. He looked, Xander thought, as if he was trying not to be impressed by Jonathan's obvious approval, but couldn't help being influenced. Although, Xander also admitted to himself, he could be adding wishful thinking into his reading of Giles' expression.
Spike shook his head. "Nah, he's being cagey. Did say he'd be needing heavy casualties on both sides, though. And he wants you in the thick of it," he added, nodding at Buffy.
"Both sides of what?" Xander asked.
"The war," Spike said.
*****
The way Jonathan made Xander feel good about himself was real too. And the way he made Xander feel about Spike. It wasn't anything Jonathan said to Xander that really made the difference; it was something he overheard Jonathan say to Spike.
They were in the Bronze and Xander had gone to the bar. The club was crowded, because of a rumour that Jonathan might do a spot, so he had to wait before he got served. As he wound his way back to the table he saw Jonathan, resplendent in a white tux and black tie, standing next to Spike's barstool, leaning with his elbow casually up on the table top.
They were deep in conversation and Xander was within three feet of them before he heard what they were saying. He was so close he could smell the cologne Jonathan wore, wafted to him on the air-conditioned breeze. "I don't know," Spike said. "He doesn't seem serious. He's cocky and confident and that's not the Xander I remember."
Xander stopped walking and listened.
"He's grown up," Jonathan replied. "He came out of the closet in high school, remember; that's never easy. If it wasn't for Larry, he might not have made it. You should be grateful to Larry, instead of resenting a dead guy."
Xander could imagine the expression on Spike's face because Jonathan took a half step back and held up his hands in mock surrender (because Jonathan would never surrender for real). His eyes flicked up and caught Xander's and he gave a tiny nod of acknowledgement.
Spike moved, as if he was about to turn around and Jonathan looked back up at him. "Puns aside," Jonathan said, recapturing Spike's attention. "Why does that even matter to you?"
"I'm a demon. Demons don't share and demons don't change," Spike growled.
Jonathan laughed in that way that only later Xander would recognise as being irritating. "The only reason you don't change is because you're so flexible, you don't need to. Vampires are unique like that."
He paused thoughtfully, as if he was weighing up what he wanted to say next. "You have to remember that you were both under a spell before," he said, eventually. There was something in his voice that Xander couldn't identify, something wistful. "It wasn't really real, for either of you." Placing a calming hand on Spike's arm, when he jerked as if he was about to stand up, Jonathan shook his head. Spike subsided back onto his stool. "But he's with you now," he said. "And that means something. Something very real. You should relax and accept it for what it is." He paused again, turned to pick up a champagne flute from the table and took a sip. Spike sat still, waiting for what he would say next.
"If he's behaving, sometimes, as if he's taking you for granted," Jonathan asked, "have you considered the possibility that he finds it just as difficult to believe that you care about him?" Again, Spike's head jerked, in an abrupt negative, but Jonathan's free hand was back on his arm so he didn't move. "You're a vampire," Jonathan explained, "and all he knows about vampires is what he's read. He's being very brave, being with you in front of all his friends. Braver than Willow is, bringing Tara into the group." Spike gave a snort, but Jonathan ignored it. "He's acting on trust that you are what he believes you to be," Jonathan said. "If he has to test that occasionally, you of all people, should understand his need."
Spike gave a small nod and Jonathan put his glass down and leaned against the table, looking calm and relaxed. He turned his head slightly and caught Xander's eye past Spike's shoulder. "What do you feel for Xander?" he asked, looking back at Spike.
There was a pause, but Jonathan just waited, his eyes fixed on Spike's face. Eventually Spike replied, "As soon as Dru returned my memories, I came straight back here. I had to find him. I'd do anything for him. Anything he asked."
Jonathan caught Xander's eye again and smiled. Xander shut his mouth, which he suddenly realised was hanging open. Looking back at Spike, his head cocked to one side, Jonathan asked, "Do you love him?"
Spike sat back on his stool. "I never said that," he protested. "I never used the L word."
"I'll take that as a 'yes' then," Jonathan agreed with a chuckle. "Have you let him know that?"
Gathering his coat tightly around himself, Spike nodded. Xander had to strain to hear him when he muttered, "I told him I could be what he wanted."
Jonathan regarded him with a slight frown, his body language broadcasting how seriously he was taking his role of relationship counsellor. "You told him you could be what he wanted," he said and Xander knew he was repeating Spike's words for his benefit. "And did he understand what you meant?" he asked.
There was more than a hint of indignation in Spike's reply. "He had to. I told him straight out."
Pushing his glass out of the way, Jonathan turned slightly and put his elbow up on the table top. Xander felt a momentary pang of envy for his cool. "People can't always see what's right in front of them," Jonathan said. "And they don't always understand what they hear." He gave another soft chuckle. "Or, to be more precise, they don't always hear what people say." Pausing, as if he was allowing Spike time to absorb that pronouncement, he glanced around the club at the crowds who were studiously giving him space to have his conversation with the weird punk guy. He turned back to Spike again. "There's a filter in the human mind that interprets what we hear and that filter is shaped by all the other things we've ever been told," he explained. "Xander wants to believe in you, but he doesn't understand that, although you don't care about abstracts, you can still choose. He thinks that being evil is a permanent state of being, hard wired into you, and that only the chip is holding you in check."
Spike sighed. "So how do I convince him?" he asked, his voice dull and flat.
"I think you already have," Jonathan replied giving Spike's arm a last pat before, leaving his half drunk glass of champagne, he walked past him, towards Xander.
Spike twisted on his stool to watch him go and saw Xander standing two feet behind him. If vampires could blush, Xander thought, he probably would have.
Taking pity on him, Xander nodded to Jonathan and went over to the table. Putting his soda and Spike's beer down, he placed his hands on either side of Spike's face, cupping his cheeks. "I get it," he said. "I do. I didn't, but I do now." Leaning forward, he dropped a kiss on Spike's lips. Spike's hands came up to hold Xander's head and he pulled Xander into a deeper kiss. It was perfect. The fact that his friends only reluctantly accepted Spike, for his sake, the fact that they thought he was totally crazy, didn't matter. Spike was Spike and Spike would do anything for him. Spike loved him and that was amazing; so wonderful that he knew he'd make them accept him. He slipped his hands around Spike's neck and stepped forward between Spike's knees. Spike's hands slipped down his back to his waist and pulled him closer and his legs snaked around Xander's thighs, his heels locking around the backs of Xander's knees to hold him there. Behind them there was a muted, slightly raucous cheer, but they ignored it, lost in the kiss.
Another cheer, more excited, followed by a first, haunting bar of music caused Xander to pull away and look up. Jonathan was on the stage and had taken the mike from the lead singer. Within moments, the crowd had surged forward and Spike and Xander were left alone together at their table.
As Jonathan launched into the first line of Serenade in Blue, Xander looked back at Spike. "The girls are going to be so pissed they missed this," he said with a grin.
Spike smirked back at him and allowed Xander to turn around between his legs. Xander leaned back against Spike's chest. With Spike's arms wrapped around his waist and Spike's chin resting on his shoulder, he relaxed and enjoyed the music.
Buffy, Willow and Tara arrived just as the last notes were fading and Buffy pouted for their poor timing. Xander offered to get them a drink as a consolation prize and, with the bar area empty, he got served almost immediately.
It was while he was walking back, carefully carrying three drinks and attempting not to spill them too seriously, that somebody screamed. Crowds near the door began to shift and a moment later there was a mass scramble as teenagers and adults alike rushed to clear the way for something behind them.
The creature that burst into the room was ugly. Many demons were ugly, but this one really was as ugly as sin. It had dark pinkish skin that hung loosely on its powerful frame, a bald head, long matted hair around its face and its mouth was deformed by fangs that jutted past its lips. Its club-like arms ended in huge hands that were balled into fists and it was swinging them right and left, sending people flying. In spite of its awkward appearance, it bounced and danced with surprising lightness and it was fast. All around, people screamed and scattered or were knocked to the ground.
Xander glanced up at the stage, expecting Jonathan to jump down and defeat it, but he wasn't there. "I'm going backstage, to find Jonathan," he shouted. Putting the drinks down on their table he set off at a run.
He searched the dressing rooms, but they were empty. One of the band was coming out of the mens' room and confirmed that Jonathan wasn't there either. "Don't go back in the club," Xander instructed. "There's something in there. Get out the back way and if you see Jonathan, tell him we need him!"
He spent a few more minutes, fruitlessly opening doors and peering into rooms, from the manager's office to the janitor's closet, although what Jonathan would be doing in there, he didn't want to think. Eventually, worried about the others, he gave up and crept back into the main part of the club.
The creature was working its way across to the bar area and people were still scrambling to get out of its way. Those who weren't fast enough were knocked down by its hammer-like hands. Occasionally it would pause and bend over a victim. Xander feared it might take a bite, but it was either not hungry or not partial to homo nightclubicus, because each time it moved on, after a sniff or two.
When it reached the bar, the press of people who had taken refuge at that end of the room had difficulty getting out of its way and the sound of breaking glass was punctuated by more screams.
"Where's Jonathan?" Xander muttered.
Buffy was still standing by their table, scanning the room, probably also hoping for rescue. Spike was sipping his beer and watching the chaos. Xander caught his eye and he lifted his glass in a toast.
Many of the customers seemed to have got out, but there were still a number up on the balcony, either because they had been there to watch Jonathan sing, or because that was where they had taken refuge. The monster didn't seem concerned about them.
Apparently satisfied that whatever it was searching for, because the rampage was looking less random by the minute, was not near the bar, it changed direction and started moving towards the stage on Xander's side of the room.
Spike was on his feet at once. "Come on, Slayer," he yelled, "Wonder Boy's not here. It's you and me," and rushed across the dance floor to collide with the creature. It staggered under the impact and Spike danced back.
He had its attention. It tried to close, but he kept dodging away, towards the door out into the alley, away from Xander. People scattered from his path.
Buffy pushed her way through the crowd and hesitated on the edge of the clear space that was being created by the game of cat and mouse. She bounced on the balls of her feet and seemed to be reciting some kind of mantra, then she ran forward. She landed a punch to the creature's head that sent its spinning away, towards Spike, who was obviously not expecting such a move. He was too close and the creature swung its right arm, caught him in the gut, swept him up and sent him flying across the room to smash into one of the pillars holding up the balcony. The balcony shifted under the impact and the people hiding up there screamed and grabbed hold of each other and of the railings.
Spike slid to the ground, got his feet under him, yelled, "Thanks a lot, Slayer. Nice one," and dived back into the fray.
He ducked under another sweeping blow and landed a punch with all his momentum behind it, squarely into the creature's midriff. The creature doubled up like a ribbon and Spike's arm seemed to disappear inside it. He pulled back sharply with an expression of disgust. In the meantime Buffy had grabbed a drinks tray and she brought it down on the creature's head.
It turned and lunged towards Buffy. She kicked it in the chest driving it back towards the bar. A follow up kick and a punch to its head sent it reeling.
"Yee ha!" Spike yelled, bouncing up and down on the spot.
The creature paused as if reconsidering its tactics. It was standing under the upper level and lifted its face. It looked like it was sniffing the air. Spike and Buffy paused too, waiting for it to make its next move. As it swung its arms back and forth in front of its body, it scanned the room.
Spike and Buffy were between it and the exit and they began to move slowly apart, clearing a route for it to the door and the alley beyond. Xander looked behind them and saw a few people creeping back inside, wanting to watch, now that the crashing and banging had ceased. He edged along the wall towards the door, intent on persuading them to clear the way or get back outside.
With an abruptness that took Xander completely by surprise, the creature burst into action. It swung its right arm backwards into a pillar, smashing it. As people under the balcony screamed and cowered against the wall, it sprinted between Spike and Buffy towards the door. Buffy spun to follow its movements. "Get out of the way!" she shouted at the small knot of people there. She was too late, or they were too slow. The creature clubbed them clear of its path as it fled.
Behind Buffy the entire upper level of the Bronze teetered and began to tip in towards the dance floor. "Buffy!" Xander yelled.
A whole section of the balcony structure slowly fell inwards, bringing chairs, tables and people with it. Buffy tried to shield her head from the falling debris with her hands. A few people manage to cling to the remaining sections, dangling in the air, but soon they too fell to the floor below.
When the dust began to clear, Xander saw Buffy, pinned under a large beam. She was struggling to lift it and he ran over to help. Spike arrived a moment later and held it out of the way so she could get up.
As soon as she was on her feet, she looked around, searching them all out and sighing with relief when she spotted Willow and Tara making their way over. "Where is it?" she asked.
Willow shook her head. "Gone."
Spike came over to Xander's side. "You okay?" he asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Wow, Buffy! I've never seen you fight like that before."
Pausing in her attempts to get dust out of her hair, Buffy looked up at him. "I, I guess I just didn't have time to think," she said, her voice full of wonder. "I just did it."
"You were brilliant," Xander said. "It was like, like watching Jonathan." Spike made a snorting noise and Xander turned to him, reaching out to stroke his shoulder and adding, in the voice people reserved for praising puppies and babies, "And you were brilliant too."
Batting his hand away, Spike growled, "Bugger off," but Xander could see that he was trying not to grin.
"Er, guys," Willow called.
Xander looked around and saw her and Tara trying to move debris off a couple of injured people. They went to help.
The next half hour was spent clearing fallen timber and broken furniture away from people who had been buried, but eventually the ambulances arrived and began to move the injured out. Looking around, Xander spotted Spike crouching next to a woman. She had blood on her face, and he was telling her not to move. As Xander and Buffy walked towards him, Spike gently lifted her head and slipped a seat cushion under it
"What are you doing?" Buffy demanded.
Spike shrugged. "Making this woman more comfortable, what's it look like?" He stared up at her and seemed to read something from her expression. "I'm not sampling," he growled. He glanced at Xander. "Just look at all these lovely blood-covered people. I could, but not a taste for Spike, not a lick. Know you wouldn't like it."
Buffy gazed at him in amazement. "You want credit for not feeding on bleeding disaster victims?"
Sparing her an impatient glance, Spike shook his head. "Well, yeah," he said.
Xander smiled and bent down, cupping Spike's face and kissing him, just as he had earlier. "My hero," he breathed.
Spike grinned back while Buffy looked from one to the other with an expression of disbelief, tinged with a shade of disgust, before stalking away.
The monster was long gone and they didn't see it again that night, although they patrolled the whole town. Jonathan wasn't answering his phone.
When they got home Xander changed into sweats and a t-shirt, and made himself some supper while Spike ran himself a bath and had a long soak.
Leaving his dishes in the sink, Xander heated a mug of blood and took it in to Spike, who smiled. "Thanks, love," he said.
Sitting on the closed lid of the toilet, Xander watched him drink. "I'm sorry it's only pig," he said. "Is there any other sort that tastes better?"
Spike reached down and put the empty mug on the floor. "The tiger wasn't bad," he said. "Not as good as human, of course, but not bad. I reckon anything at the top of its food chain has more quality."
He leaned his head against the rim of the bath and stared at the ceiling. "Nothing's as good as human," he observed.
Frowning thoughtfully, Xander said, "Maybe we can do something about that?"
Spike tilted his head around and stared at him. "You'd help me get the chip out?" he asked.
"Um... Well, I hadn't actually thought of that. I was thinking more like burglary at the Blood Bank."
"Ah! Yeah, might work."
Xander shuffled around on his seat so that he was directly facing Spike. "But, purely hypothetically," he said, "what would you do if you did get it out?"
Spike's face was blank. "Would you try to leave me?" he asked.
Xander considered all the shades of meaning behind that simple sounding question. "I don't know," he admitted. "This. Us. It's all kinda sudden."
Spike made a sound halfway between a grunt, a sigh and a strangled laugh. "Sudden?" he asked. "It's been years, love."
That was true too and Xander smiled back at him. "Yeah, I guess... But it's still sudden. I didn't know, you see? That at the hotel... how you were... that it wasn't the spell."
Cocking an eyebrow, Spike smiled, a mere twist of one side of his mouth. "You didn't change," he said.
"No. But..." Hesitating, Xander tried to find the words to explain. "You're a vampire. I didn't know. So... I guess it would depend, what you decided to do."
Spike's slight smile became a sneer. "I'm a vampire, right? What d'you think I'd do?"
Shrugging helplessly, Xander admitted, "I don't know. You'll have to tell me."
Spike went back to staring at the ceiling. "I don't know, either. Thought I did. Thought it would be easy. But..." He trailed off.
Silence reigned until Xander gathered himself to say, "What you did tonight. Well, what you didn't do. That was pretty amazing."
"Told you: knew you wouldn't like it."
"Yeah."
They lapsed back into their own thoughts.
After a while, long enough for Spike to have felt the need to add more hot water to his tub, Xander stirred. "I do trust you, Spike," he said. "But if you ever did get it out, we'd probably have to keep it a secret." Spike turned his head and stared at Xander. He looked gobsmacked, to use a Spike word that Xander decided he loved because it was so perfect for the moment. "But in the meantime," he suggested. "I reckon the Blood Bank might be worth targeting."
Spike grinned and stood up, stepped out of the tub and walked over to Xander. He took Xander's hands and pulled him to his feet, crowding close and pressing against him. "You are quite beautiful, pet, you know that? I can stay off human for that."
Xander laughed, embarrassed, and Spike took a step back. "And now you're all wet," he said with a smirk. "Best get those clothes off, or you'll catch a chill."
Xander laughed again, more easily, and began to strip.
*****
In the end it was Spike who discovered where the creature was hiding out. His contacts with the sleazier and more murderous elements in Sunnydale standing him in good stead when he heard of a gang of vampires being kicked out of their den in a cave in the hills.
So Buffy and Jonathan went to face the monster and after they'd left Willow discovered what it was. They all (except for Spike) spent a nerve wracking hour worrying about whether Buffy could succeed, if Jonathan turned out not to be the hero they still believed him to be. When the wave of the breaking spell went through them, it was a moment of disorientation like Xander had never felt before.
Soon after, Buffy phoned to say she was safe and they all went their separate ways. It was as if they couldn't get away from each other fast enough. Xander and Spike went home and with Spike's help, Xander got gloriously drunk and in the early hours of the morning they made love with a passion and desperation that went some way towards exorcising the bad taste that hero worshiping Jonathan Levinson had left in both their mouths.
In the aftermath, Xander managed to marshal his few remaining brain cells to extract a promise from Spike that he wouldn't go after revenge. Spike opened one eye and peered at him thoughtfully. "Nah, okay," he said "'Sides, seems like he did us a favour. Just don't expect me to thank him."
Some bits of dialogue borrowed and adapted from episodes 4.17, Superstar and 5.11, Triangle
Chapter 35
Pairing: S/X
Rating: Overall NC-17
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: 4,855
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.
The prologue is 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.
If you were reading this story before it went on hiatus, after chapter 27, there is a recap post here with a link to chapter 28 and all chapters following.
Many thanks to
katekat1010 for allowing me to use her original manip which you can find here.Chapter 34
Looking back, it was almost unbelievable to Xander that he had actually drooled over Jonathan's swimwear calendar. Spike said that he'd decided he wasn't going to believe it, because the memory was too painful. Not that he'd been any better - he'd suggested they kidnap Jonathan.
But at the time, it was real. Proof, once again, that spells did the wackiest things to your head. At the time, Jonathan really was a superhero and the Scoobies really did run to him for help and advice with everything from their love lives, to the monster that was menacing the town. A week later, Buffy was still seesawing between rueful amusement and total mortification over her sidekick role in Jonathan's perfect world.
Of everyone, it was Tara and Willow who got off most lightly, although Tara blushed adorably when Spike made a remark about Jonathan, in passing. The remark was aimed at Xander, but he was way beyond blushing by that point.
Most of the town went straight into denial as soon as the spell was broken and Xander wished that he had that refuge, but some good had also come out of the incident.
One good thing was that the general re-set of reality that was the essence of the spell, included the return of his friends to their own homes and dorm rooms. Xander's apartment was bigger and far less fraught when Buffy, Willow and Giles were not sharing the space with Spike.
Another good thing was the information Jonathan had provided, after he was invited to consult for the Initiative. When he called a meeting at Giles' apartment, he brought blueprints.
Spreading the plans out on the cleared desk, he leafed through them until he found one that looked a bit like the anatomical drawings Xander remembered from Biology class at school. "I present, Adam," he announced. "I pulled some of Professor Walsh's original design schematics."
Adam's skeletal structure was labelled with terms such as 'Peripheral Nervous Electropath', 'GTZ Capacitor' and 'DXR Chip'. "His power source is not biological at all," Jonathan explained, pointing at a spot in the centre of Adam's chest. "There's a power pack here."
Leaning forward to see over Jonathan's shoulder, Xander wasn't trying to cop a feel, really. He looked at the complex of bones, muscles, wires and black-box units in the drawing and a thousand Sci Fi references jostled for position on his tongue. He managed to bite them back. "That does not sound good," he observed, adding, after Spike slipped an arm around his waist and hauled him away, "How long will it last? I mean, does he need to find an electrical outlet to get a recharge every night? If we staged a city-wide power outage, would that help?"
Shaking his head, Jonathan placed both hands on the table and bent forward to study the plans. "No," he said. "The design attempts to hide it, but I believe that inside the power pack is a small reservoir of Uranium 235." He straightened and looked around the room, catching their eyes, one at a time. "That means that his 'charge' will essentially last forever. In addition, his higher nervous system appears to extend into this area," he said, pointing to another part of Adam's chest, "which also means that cutting off his head is useless. To kill Adam we will have to annihilate him completely."
Buffy looked suitably sombre. "First we have to find him," she said.
With his arms around Xander's waist, Spike rested his cheek against Xander's shoulder. "He's in a cave, up above Elm Street," he said.
"How do you know that?" Buffy demanded, turning on him in an accusatory swirl of frowns and flying hair.
Spike remained supremely relaxed. "Went and made a deal with him, didn't I?"
Buffy actually growled and took a step towards them, but halted when Jonathan laid a restraining hand on her arm. "But not to betray us," he said with amazing certainty considering Spike's history.
Xander could feel the power of Spike's smirk, even if he couldn't see it. He shrugged himself free of Spike's hold and turned to face him.
Spike's eyes settled on his face. "No, pet," he said. "I wouldn't do that. I marched in and demanded he took the chip out." He grimaced. "Fat lot of good that did, but he knew about me being here. Said I was mooching off you."
"You are," Xander agreed with a grin.
"Am not. Earned my keep tonight, with this." If it was possible to swagger without moving, Spike did it. "He's cold and clever," he said, "but he doesn't understand vampires. Knows all the facts, but doesn't understand a thing."
Jonathan smiled. "Thank you, Spike. Having a contact Adam trusts could be very useful."
"Not sure trust's the right word," Spike objected.
"Maybe not, but I hope you will be able to gather some useful intel." Turning to look at the rest of the Scoobies, he said, "This could make the difference between success and failure."
"Did you actually find out anything useful on this excursion?" Giles asked. He looked, Xander thought, as if he was trying not to be impressed by Jonathan's obvious approval, but couldn't help being influenced. Although, Xander also admitted to himself, he could be adding wishful thinking into his reading of Giles' expression.
Spike shook his head. "Nah, he's being cagey. Did say he'd be needing heavy casualties on both sides, though. And he wants you in the thick of it," he added, nodding at Buffy.
"Both sides of what?" Xander asked.
"The war," Spike said.
*****
The way Jonathan made Xander feel good about himself was real too. And the way he made Xander feel about Spike. It wasn't anything Jonathan said to Xander that really made the difference; it was something he overheard Jonathan say to Spike.
They were in the Bronze and Xander had gone to the bar. The club was crowded, because of a rumour that Jonathan might do a spot, so he had to wait before he got served. As he wound his way back to the table he saw Jonathan, resplendent in a white tux and black tie, standing next to Spike's barstool, leaning with his elbow casually up on the table top.
They were deep in conversation and Xander was within three feet of them before he heard what they were saying. He was so close he could smell the cologne Jonathan wore, wafted to him on the air-conditioned breeze. "I don't know," Spike said. "He doesn't seem serious. He's cocky and confident and that's not the Xander I remember."
Xander stopped walking and listened.
"He's grown up," Jonathan replied. "He came out of the closet in high school, remember; that's never easy. If it wasn't for Larry, he might not have made it. You should be grateful to Larry, instead of resenting a dead guy."
Xander could imagine the expression on Spike's face because Jonathan took a half step back and held up his hands in mock surrender (because Jonathan would never surrender for real). His eyes flicked up and caught Xander's and he gave a tiny nod of acknowledgement.
Spike moved, as if he was about to turn around and Jonathan looked back up at him. "Puns aside," Jonathan said, recapturing Spike's attention. "Why does that even matter to you?"
"I'm a demon. Demons don't share and demons don't change," Spike growled.
Jonathan laughed in that way that only later Xander would recognise as being irritating. "The only reason you don't change is because you're so flexible, you don't need to. Vampires are unique like that."
He paused thoughtfully, as if he was weighing up what he wanted to say next. "You have to remember that you were both under a spell before," he said, eventually. There was something in his voice that Xander couldn't identify, something wistful. "It wasn't really real, for either of you." Placing a calming hand on Spike's arm, when he jerked as if he was about to stand up, Jonathan shook his head. Spike subsided back onto his stool. "But he's with you now," he said. "And that means something. Something very real. You should relax and accept it for what it is." He paused again, turned to pick up a champagne flute from the table and took a sip. Spike sat still, waiting for what he would say next.
"If he's behaving, sometimes, as if he's taking you for granted," Jonathan asked, "have you considered the possibility that he finds it just as difficult to believe that you care about him?" Again, Spike's head jerked, in an abrupt negative, but Jonathan's free hand was back on his arm so he didn't move. "You're a vampire," Jonathan explained, "and all he knows about vampires is what he's read. He's being very brave, being with you in front of all his friends. Braver than Willow is, bringing Tara into the group." Spike gave a snort, but Jonathan ignored it. "He's acting on trust that you are what he believes you to be," Jonathan said. "If he has to test that occasionally, you of all people, should understand his need."
Spike gave a small nod and Jonathan put his glass down and leaned against the table, looking calm and relaxed. He turned his head slightly and caught Xander's eye past Spike's shoulder. "What do you feel for Xander?" he asked, looking back at Spike.
There was a pause, but Jonathan just waited, his eyes fixed on Spike's face. Eventually Spike replied, "As soon as Dru returned my memories, I came straight back here. I had to find him. I'd do anything for him. Anything he asked."
Jonathan caught Xander's eye again and smiled. Xander shut his mouth, which he suddenly realised was hanging open. Looking back at Spike, his head cocked to one side, Jonathan asked, "Do you love him?"
Spike sat back on his stool. "I never said that," he protested. "I never used the L word."
"I'll take that as a 'yes' then," Jonathan agreed with a chuckle. "Have you let him know that?"
Gathering his coat tightly around himself, Spike nodded. Xander had to strain to hear him when he muttered, "I told him I could be what he wanted."
Jonathan regarded him with a slight frown, his body language broadcasting how seriously he was taking his role of relationship counsellor. "You told him you could be what he wanted," he said and Xander knew he was repeating Spike's words for his benefit. "And did he understand what you meant?" he asked.
There was more than a hint of indignation in Spike's reply. "He had to. I told him straight out."
Pushing his glass out of the way, Jonathan turned slightly and put his elbow up on the table top. Xander felt a momentary pang of envy for his cool. "People can't always see what's right in front of them," Jonathan said. "And they don't always understand what they hear." He gave another soft chuckle. "Or, to be more precise, they don't always hear what people say." Pausing, as if he was allowing Spike time to absorb that pronouncement, he glanced around the club at the crowds who were studiously giving him space to have his conversation with the weird punk guy. He turned back to Spike again. "There's a filter in the human mind that interprets what we hear and that filter is shaped by all the other things we've ever been told," he explained. "Xander wants to believe in you, but he doesn't understand that, although you don't care about abstracts, you can still choose. He thinks that being evil is a permanent state of being, hard wired into you, and that only the chip is holding you in check."
Spike sighed. "So how do I convince him?" he asked, his voice dull and flat.
"I think you already have," Jonathan replied giving Spike's arm a last pat before, leaving his half drunk glass of champagne, he walked past him, towards Xander.
Spike twisted on his stool to watch him go and saw Xander standing two feet behind him. If vampires could blush, Xander thought, he probably would have.
Taking pity on him, Xander nodded to Jonathan and went over to the table. Putting his soda and Spike's beer down, he placed his hands on either side of Spike's face, cupping his cheeks. "I get it," he said. "I do. I didn't, but I do now." Leaning forward, he dropped a kiss on Spike's lips. Spike's hands came up to hold Xander's head and he pulled Xander into a deeper kiss. It was perfect. The fact that his friends only reluctantly accepted Spike, for his sake, the fact that they thought he was totally crazy, didn't matter. Spike was Spike and Spike would do anything for him. Spike loved him and that was amazing; so wonderful that he knew he'd make them accept him. He slipped his hands around Spike's neck and stepped forward between Spike's knees. Spike's hands slipped down his back to his waist and pulled him closer and his legs snaked around Xander's thighs, his heels locking around the backs of Xander's knees to hold him there. Behind them there was a muted, slightly raucous cheer, but they ignored it, lost in the kiss.
Another cheer, more excited, followed by a first, haunting bar of music caused Xander to pull away and look up. Jonathan was on the stage and had taken the mike from the lead singer. Within moments, the crowd had surged forward and Spike and Xander were left alone together at their table.
As Jonathan launched into the first line of Serenade in Blue, Xander looked back at Spike. "The girls are going to be so pissed they missed this," he said with a grin.
Spike smirked back at him and allowed Xander to turn around between his legs. Xander leaned back against Spike's chest. With Spike's arms wrapped around his waist and Spike's chin resting on his shoulder, he relaxed and enjoyed the music.
Buffy, Willow and Tara arrived just as the last notes were fading and Buffy pouted for their poor timing. Xander offered to get them a drink as a consolation prize and, with the bar area empty, he got served almost immediately.
It was while he was walking back, carefully carrying three drinks and attempting not to spill them too seriously, that somebody screamed. Crowds near the door began to shift and a moment later there was a mass scramble as teenagers and adults alike rushed to clear the way for something behind them.
The creature that burst into the room was ugly. Many demons were ugly, but this one really was as ugly as sin. It had dark pinkish skin that hung loosely on its powerful frame, a bald head, long matted hair around its face and its mouth was deformed by fangs that jutted past its lips. Its club-like arms ended in huge hands that were balled into fists and it was swinging them right and left, sending people flying. In spite of its awkward appearance, it bounced and danced with surprising lightness and it was fast. All around, people screamed and scattered or were knocked to the ground.
Xander glanced up at the stage, expecting Jonathan to jump down and defeat it, but he wasn't there. "I'm going backstage, to find Jonathan," he shouted. Putting the drinks down on their table he set off at a run.
He searched the dressing rooms, but they were empty. One of the band was coming out of the mens' room and confirmed that Jonathan wasn't there either. "Don't go back in the club," Xander instructed. "There's something in there. Get out the back way and if you see Jonathan, tell him we need him!"
He spent a few more minutes, fruitlessly opening doors and peering into rooms, from the manager's office to the janitor's closet, although what Jonathan would be doing in there, he didn't want to think. Eventually, worried about the others, he gave up and crept back into the main part of the club.
The creature was working its way across to the bar area and people were still scrambling to get out of its way. Those who weren't fast enough were knocked down by its hammer-like hands. Occasionally it would pause and bend over a victim. Xander feared it might take a bite, but it was either not hungry or not partial to homo nightclubicus, because each time it moved on, after a sniff or two.
When it reached the bar, the press of people who had taken refuge at that end of the room had difficulty getting out of its way and the sound of breaking glass was punctuated by more screams.
"Where's Jonathan?" Xander muttered.
Buffy was still standing by their table, scanning the room, probably also hoping for rescue. Spike was sipping his beer and watching the chaos. Xander caught his eye and he lifted his glass in a toast.
Many of the customers seemed to have got out, but there were still a number up on the balcony, either because they had been there to watch Jonathan sing, or because that was where they had taken refuge. The monster didn't seem concerned about them.
Apparently satisfied that whatever it was searching for, because the rampage was looking less random by the minute, was not near the bar, it changed direction and started moving towards the stage on Xander's side of the room.
Spike was on his feet at once. "Come on, Slayer," he yelled, "Wonder Boy's not here. It's you and me," and rushed across the dance floor to collide with the creature. It staggered under the impact and Spike danced back.
He had its attention. It tried to close, but he kept dodging away, towards the door out into the alley, away from Xander. People scattered from his path.
Buffy pushed her way through the crowd and hesitated on the edge of the clear space that was being created by the game of cat and mouse. She bounced on the balls of her feet and seemed to be reciting some kind of mantra, then she ran forward. She landed a punch to the creature's head that sent its spinning away, towards Spike, who was obviously not expecting such a move. He was too close and the creature swung its right arm, caught him in the gut, swept him up and sent him flying across the room to smash into one of the pillars holding up the balcony. The balcony shifted under the impact and the people hiding up there screamed and grabbed hold of each other and of the railings.
Spike slid to the ground, got his feet under him, yelled, "Thanks a lot, Slayer. Nice one," and dived back into the fray.
He ducked under another sweeping blow and landed a punch with all his momentum behind it, squarely into the creature's midriff. The creature doubled up like a ribbon and Spike's arm seemed to disappear inside it. He pulled back sharply with an expression of disgust. In the meantime Buffy had grabbed a drinks tray and she brought it down on the creature's head.
It turned and lunged towards Buffy. She kicked it in the chest driving it back towards the bar. A follow up kick and a punch to its head sent it reeling.
"Yee ha!" Spike yelled, bouncing up and down on the spot.
The creature paused as if reconsidering its tactics. It was standing under the upper level and lifted its face. It looked like it was sniffing the air. Spike and Buffy paused too, waiting for it to make its next move. As it swung its arms back and forth in front of its body, it scanned the room.
Spike and Buffy were between it and the exit and they began to move slowly apart, clearing a route for it to the door and the alley beyond. Xander looked behind them and saw a few people creeping back inside, wanting to watch, now that the crashing and banging had ceased. He edged along the wall towards the door, intent on persuading them to clear the way or get back outside.
With an abruptness that took Xander completely by surprise, the creature burst into action. It swung its right arm backwards into a pillar, smashing it. As people under the balcony screamed and cowered against the wall, it sprinted between Spike and Buffy towards the door. Buffy spun to follow its movements. "Get out of the way!" she shouted at the small knot of people there. She was too late, or they were too slow. The creature clubbed them clear of its path as it fled.
Behind Buffy the entire upper level of the Bronze teetered and began to tip in towards the dance floor. "Buffy!" Xander yelled.
A whole section of the balcony structure slowly fell inwards, bringing chairs, tables and people with it. Buffy tried to shield her head from the falling debris with her hands. A few people manage to cling to the remaining sections, dangling in the air, but soon they too fell to the floor below.
When the dust began to clear, Xander saw Buffy, pinned under a large beam. She was struggling to lift it and he ran over to help. Spike arrived a moment later and held it out of the way so she could get up.
As soon as she was on her feet, she looked around, searching them all out and sighing with relief when she spotted Willow and Tara making their way over. "Where is it?" she asked.
Willow shook her head. "Gone."
Spike came over to Xander's side. "You okay?" he asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Wow, Buffy! I've never seen you fight like that before."
Pausing in her attempts to get dust out of her hair, Buffy looked up at him. "I, I guess I just didn't have time to think," she said, her voice full of wonder. "I just did it."
"You were brilliant," Xander said. "It was like, like watching Jonathan." Spike made a snorting noise and Xander turned to him, reaching out to stroke his shoulder and adding, in the voice people reserved for praising puppies and babies, "And you were brilliant too."
Batting his hand away, Spike growled, "Bugger off," but Xander could see that he was trying not to grin.
"Er, guys," Willow called.
Xander looked around and saw her and Tara trying to move debris off a couple of injured people. They went to help.
The next half hour was spent clearing fallen timber and broken furniture away from people who had been buried, but eventually the ambulances arrived and began to move the injured out. Looking around, Xander spotted Spike crouching next to a woman. She had blood on her face, and he was telling her not to move. As Xander and Buffy walked towards him, Spike gently lifted her head and slipped a seat cushion under it
"What are you doing?" Buffy demanded.
Spike shrugged. "Making this woman more comfortable, what's it look like?" He stared up at her and seemed to read something from her expression. "I'm not sampling," he growled. He glanced at Xander. "Just look at all these lovely blood-covered people. I could, but not a taste for Spike, not a lick. Know you wouldn't like it."
Buffy gazed at him in amazement. "You want credit for not feeding on bleeding disaster victims?"
Sparing her an impatient glance, Spike shook his head. "Well, yeah," he said.
Xander smiled and bent down, cupping Spike's face and kissing him, just as he had earlier. "My hero," he breathed.
Spike grinned back while Buffy looked from one to the other with an expression of disbelief, tinged with a shade of disgust, before stalking away.
The monster was long gone and they didn't see it again that night, although they patrolled the whole town. Jonathan wasn't answering his phone.
When they got home Xander changed into sweats and a t-shirt, and made himself some supper while Spike ran himself a bath and had a long soak.
Leaving his dishes in the sink, Xander heated a mug of blood and took it in to Spike, who smiled. "Thanks, love," he said.
Sitting on the closed lid of the toilet, Xander watched him drink. "I'm sorry it's only pig," he said. "Is there any other sort that tastes better?"
Spike reached down and put the empty mug on the floor. "The tiger wasn't bad," he said. "Not as good as human, of course, but not bad. I reckon anything at the top of its food chain has more quality."
He leaned his head against the rim of the bath and stared at the ceiling. "Nothing's as good as human," he observed.
Frowning thoughtfully, Xander said, "Maybe we can do something about that?"
Spike tilted his head around and stared at him. "You'd help me get the chip out?" he asked.
"Um... Well, I hadn't actually thought of that. I was thinking more like burglary at the Blood Bank."
"Ah! Yeah, might work."
Xander shuffled around on his seat so that he was directly facing Spike. "But, purely hypothetically," he said, "what would you do if you did get it out?"
Spike's face was blank. "Would you try to leave me?" he asked.
Xander considered all the shades of meaning behind that simple sounding question. "I don't know," he admitted. "This. Us. It's all kinda sudden."
Spike made a sound halfway between a grunt, a sigh and a strangled laugh. "Sudden?" he asked. "It's been years, love."
That was true too and Xander smiled back at him. "Yeah, I guess... But it's still sudden. I didn't know, you see? That at the hotel... how you were... that it wasn't the spell."
Cocking an eyebrow, Spike smiled, a mere twist of one side of his mouth. "You didn't change," he said.
"No. But..." Hesitating, Xander tried to find the words to explain. "You're a vampire. I didn't know. So... I guess it would depend, what you decided to do."
Spike's slight smile became a sneer. "I'm a vampire, right? What d'you think I'd do?"
Shrugging helplessly, Xander admitted, "I don't know. You'll have to tell me."
Spike went back to staring at the ceiling. "I don't know, either. Thought I did. Thought it would be easy. But..." He trailed off.
Silence reigned until Xander gathered himself to say, "What you did tonight. Well, what you didn't do. That was pretty amazing."
"Told you: knew you wouldn't like it."
"Yeah."
They lapsed back into their own thoughts.
After a while, long enough for Spike to have felt the need to add more hot water to his tub, Xander stirred. "I do trust you, Spike," he said. "But if you ever did get it out, we'd probably have to keep it a secret." Spike turned his head and stared at Xander. He looked gobsmacked, to use a Spike word that Xander decided he loved because it was so perfect for the moment. "But in the meantime," he suggested. "I reckon the Blood Bank might be worth targeting."
Spike grinned and stood up, stepped out of the tub and walked over to Xander. He took Xander's hands and pulled him to his feet, crowding close and pressing against him. "You are quite beautiful, pet, you know that? I can stay off human for that."
Xander laughed, embarrassed, and Spike took a step back. "And now you're all wet," he said with a smirk. "Best get those clothes off, or you'll catch a chill."
Xander laughed again, more easily, and began to strip.
*****
In the end it was Spike who discovered where the creature was hiding out. His contacts with the sleazier and more murderous elements in Sunnydale standing him in good stead when he heard of a gang of vampires being kicked out of their den in a cave in the hills.
So Buffy and Jonathan went to face the monster and after they'd left Willow discovered what it was. They all (except for Spike) spent a nerve wracking hour worrying about whether Buffy could succeed, if Jonathan turned out not to be the hero they still believed him to be. When the wave of the breaking spell went through them, it was a moment of disorientation like Xander had never felt before.
Soon after, Buffy phoned to say she was safe and they all went their separate ways. It was as if they couldn't get away from each other fast enough. Xander and Spike went home and with Spike's help, Xander got gloriously drunk and in the early hours of the morning they made love with a passion and desperation that went some way towards exorcising the bad taste that hero worshiping Jonathan Levinson had left in both their mouths.
In the aftermath, Xander managed to marshal his few remaining brain cells to extract a promise from Spike that he wouldn't go after revenge. Spike opened one eye and peered at him thoughtfully. "Nah, okay," he said "'Sides, seems like he did us a favour. Just don't expect me to thank him."
Some bits of dialogue borrowed and adapted from episodes 4.17, Superstar and 5.11, Triangle
Chapter 35
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Date: 2010-03-07 06:31 am (UTC)