Chappie one

The room was bright. Too bright. The kind of brightness that made your eyes ache and your skin feel tight and dry. There were voices, mostly men's, talking in a low murmur around him. He couldn't move, there were restraints holding his arms, legs and head down. He tried to move, but it was impossible. Hell, he couldn't even move his head. His eyes were open, but his vision was restricted just as much as his movement. He could make out the busy atmosphere; people in white buzzing around making noise. He tried to speak, but couldn't seem to be able to; as if he'd forgotten how to form words. Just then, a bright light was shone into his face and he caught a glimpse of someone standing over him. He had enough time to realise they had some very sharp objects before it all went black in a world of pain.

Spike awoke panting. He jolted upright in bed, to find himself in his crypt. He sighed and placed a hand to his head, feeling confused. His head was throbbing, and everything seemed blurred. Spike mumbled to himself, and slowly got out of bed. The cool concrete on his bare feet felt good. Spike threw his head back and sighed, before padding slowly towards the chair and his clothes. He pulled his jeans on over his bare ass and shrugged on a black t-shirt. He felt tired. He'd just got up, how could he feel this exhausted?

Spike groaned, lifting an empty bottle and tossing it at the wall. It smashed with a satisfyingly loud noise, leaving glass all over the floor. Spike smirked, feeling better. Destruction helps. Sadly, he still didn't have any shoes on, so he cut his foot open on the glass.

"Bugger." Spike complained, lifting his leg to inspect it. The cut was small, but deep, and there was blood all over the floor. Spike prodded the cut and more blood flowed out. He sighed again, and lost his balance. He landed with a thump on the ground. What the hell was wrong with him?

He found it very difficult to get back on his feet, but when he finally got there, he made it slowly to the refridgerator.

The blood was cold. He kept it in jars in the fridge. Spike had always meant to get a microwave, but had never got around to it. He unscrewed the jar and and lifted it to his lips. Just the smell of the fresh-ish blood brought up the blood lust. He felt his face morph into vampire visage. The blood felt great on his lips, but then it stopped feeling so great. The chip went off the moment his lips parted. The pain was fast and blinding. He dropped the jar and stumbled backwards into the comfy-chair. He put his throbbing head into his hands and made an aggravated yell. They'd gotten him again. Somehow the Initiative had caught up with him. It had to have been them. Life was just not any good right now, even for a dead man.

Seen as it was night time, Spike walked, or rather stumbled, out through the graveyard. His migraine had disappeared, but he felt absolutely exhausted. Every couple of steps he'd have to stop and lean against something. It took him a good while to get into the town. He was closest to the Watcher's house, so he headed there. Giles' house was one of those back to front houses, where you have to enter through a courtyard at the back. Spike dragged himself up the staircase, like a drunkard and battered the door with his fists. No one answered. Every light was out. Here he was in need of help on the doorstep, and the old git was in his bed catching 'Zs'.

Spike thudded on the door again. He began to slowly slide to the flagstoned ground, dragging his nails down the door in a vain attempt to hold himself up. A light came on in the livingroom and the door slowly opened. And there stood Willow.

"Spike?" the redhead asked, staring down at the fallen vampire. Spike looked up slowly, from where he lay on the ground.

"Seem to be in a bit of a situation,...again." Spike said, he pushed himself up slowly, "Can I come in?"

Willow nodded and stepped back, and let him crawl inside. She bent to help him to his feet, grabbing his arm. The minute her hand touched him, Spike reeled in agony, screaming. Willow abruptly let go of him.

"What's wrong?" she asked, wide-eyed. Spike shook his head, panting and holding his hands to his temples. Willow made to help him again, but Spike jumped back like she'd bitten him.

"Don't touch." he said, "You'll set it off again."

"So, what? He's here because...?" Xander asked, locking the cuffs on the vampire's wrists. It had taken them a good fifteen minutes to get the cuffs on without actually touching him. Every time any of them touched his skin, the vampire would yell out and struggle in pain.

"Something's happened to him," Willow said, "Something..else."

"So, you can't touch anything?" Xander asked, lifting the chains to put on Spike's ankles.

"I don't know, you git." Spike said, "Not exactly been trying it out, have I?" he hissed a little as Xander began to wrap the chains around his legs and accidentally touched him.

"Are the chains really necessary?" Spike asked, "I mean, it's not as if this is the first time anything like this has happened, and I can't exactly hurt any of you." he added the last part bitterly.

"It's just a precaution." Willow said, giving the vampire a weak smile.

Spike grumbled, but stopped arguing.

Time passed, and the sun eventually came up. They couldn't open the curtains, so Giles' livingroom remained dull. Xander was watching TV and Willow had given up trying to make polite conversation with Spike, who was anything but polite in return, and had started reading a book.

"I feel like hell." Spike complained, staring at his own knees like they were the neck of a young virgin.

"What will it take to get you to shut up?" Xander asked, looking up from the boob tube.

"Oh, I don't know," Spike said sarcastically, "it's not as if I'm sick here or anything."

"You can't be sick." Xander said, "You're a vampire, last time I checked, vamps don't get sick."

Spike scoffed and gave the boy a hard glare, "Next time you can't eat, give me a call and tell me you don't feel sick."

"Spike, just be quiet, okay?"

Spike scowled and began staring at his knees again.

"Did you see that, Will, Spike did what I asked!" Xander said in triumph.

Willow shook her head, "Xander, leave him alone." she said.

"Are you even going to do anything?" Spike asked Willow.

"What can I do?" she asked, "We couldn't do anything about the first implant, and we don't even know what this is."

"Well where's the Slayer or Giles? This is his house." Spike said, his voice sounding hoarse.

"Buffy's coming around with donuts later, we have classes at 12, and Giles was away for the night, that's why we were house sitting."

Spike sighed and closed his eyes.

"We should give him a drink." Willow said. Xander gave her a wide-eyed look and covered his throat.

"I meant a drink of water, Xander." Willow said darkly.

"Something stronger would be nice." Spike said hopefully. But Willow disappeared past him.

The water was cool, and it didn't hurt to drink it. But he couldn't exactly live on water, so that wasn't much of a blessing.

"Thanks, Luv." he said, as she took the glass away.

The door opened just as Willow disappeared, once again, into the kitchen. Spike was bathed in sunlight for only a few seconds, but enough to hurt. He yelled out as smoke began to appear from his own flesh. Buffy entered with a box of donuts.

"Donuts!" Xander yelled, jumping up like an overgrown kid. He took the box off of his friend and snatched two cream filled donuts from the box.

"What is he doing here?" Buffy said, catching sight of Spike.

"The Initiative got him." Willow said, handing Buffy a mug of coffee.

Buffy took a sip of the sugary goodness, "I thought you were off their radar." she said.

Spike looked up at her, dark shadows under his eyes and in the hollows of his cheeks. "Apparently not."

"So you're looking for help?"

Spike nodded.

"Nope." Buffy said, smiling sweetly.

"Buffy." Willow said, "We can't leave him this way." she looked at Spike .

Buffy walked over towards the bound vampire, and laid a hand on his shoulder. Spike screamed and flinched away from her. Buffy paused,

"I never hurt you." she said.

Spike shook his head, coughing.

"It seems that The Initiative have improved the Chip." Willow said... "It's more... restrainy."

"That's..." Buffy shrugged, "Quite restrainy." She lifted a donut and took a bite, "So, what does it do, exactly?"

"He can't touch anyone, or drink blood."

"What's changed? He couldn't drink from anyone anyway."

Willow shook her head, "No, I mean any kind of blood."

Buffy shrugged, "So, he can't eat?"

Willow shook her head again, "Not much of an existence."

Xander stood up and and put his jacket on. "I'm going to get Anya," he said, snatching the last donut before heading out of the door. He made extra sure to hold the door open long enough to get a yell from Spike before leaving.

"Git!" Spike hollered at the now closed door.

Buffy frowned and grabbed another donut, "Why do you have to swear all the time?"

"Give me a bloody donut."

"No."

"Why not?"he asked, giving her a pathetic look.

"Because you're creepy and I hate you."

"Yeah, well, you're not such an angelic figure either, luv."

"Stop arguing!" Willow said, "Just sssh!" she closed the box of donuts and laid them on the table. Spike eyed the box with a starved look on his face.

"You're a vampire." Buffy said, "Vampires eat blood, not donuts."

"Wow, you're bountiful knowledge of my species knows no bounds." Spike said, glaring at the Slayer, "Anyway, we do eat donuts. We eat whatever the bloody hell we want."

"Except you." Buffy grinned.

Spike scowled and turned to Willow, "Just one donut?"

Willow lowered her eyes from the man chained to a chair; who couldn't eat because of something that was in his brain; who was looking rather sickly and malnourished; who had nowhere to turn to, except his enemies... and she caved and held the open box out to him.

Spike gave her a smile and nodded to the jam one in the corner of the big pink box.

"I can't believe you're letting him have a donut." Buffy said, "I paid for them!"

"But Buffy, it's only a donut." Willow said.

Buffy sighed and lifted the Jam donut, she held it out to the vampire, "Yeah, well he owes me for it."

Giles returned from his trip expecting to find several college students in his house. He did not, however, expect to return home to find several college students in his house with one vampire chained to a chair. With, might I add, Giles' chains. What, exactly, Giles had such heavy duty chains for, one has to wonder, but still said chains were now restraining Spike.

Unsurprisingly Giles wasn't best pleased to come home to find this, but he managed to walk right past it all in silence into his kitchen, put the bag of shopping he'd picked up away, make a cup of tea and return to the scene before he said anything.

"What is going on?" he asked, looking from one face to another. Finally his gaze rested on Buffy, who shrugged,

"Hey, I walked in and he was here already!"

"But why is he here?"

"Something's happened to him," Willow said, "The chip's changed."

"In what way?" Giles said, losing his anger to intrigue.

"He can't touch anything living or drink blood from packets or mugs... They've added to what sets it off."

Giles nodded and glanced at Spike, "My dear boy, you look like death." he said, he paused, then added, "And you have jam on you face."

The girls giggled and Spike just sighed and closed his eyes.

"Yeah, well it's hard to eat donuts when you can't use your hands." he growled, twisting his hands in the cuffs.

"Why were you eating donuts? Vampires drink blood." Giles said, taking a sip of tea.

"My,my, we're all at it today." Spike said darkly, "Now are you going to help me, or not?"