Down With the Sickness
Chapter 1: Shells
By: Rogue-Slayer13
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters of Btvs or Ats, they belong to their respective creators.
Summary: Illyria infects Spike instead of Fred. I know it's been done before, but I thought I'd give it a try.
Note: Whole sentences in italics are thoughts, and single words are emphasis.
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Fred, who was working late in the lab, was bent over a microscope examining some goo that Angel had brought in from his latest mission when she thought she heard a noise.
"Hello?" Fred called as she looked up from her microscope to find the lab completely deserted.
Fred was about to go back to her work when she thought she heard another noise coming from the store room behind her. Quickly glancing up at the reflection in her office window she saw that no one was there, but decided to check it out anyway. Fred grabbed a nearby scalpel and turned around only to find someone standing behind her. Fred let out a scream that could wake the dead.
"Easy there, Luv," Spike said as he held his hands up in front of him. "You'll take someone's eye out with that." Spike gestured to the scalpel which Fred still held as if she were about to stab him.
"Oh, sorry!" Fred set the scalpel down. "What are you doing sneaking around here anyway? You scared me half to death!"
"I was on my way out and saw the light on, so I figured I'd pop in and see if you needed some company," Spike explained.
"That's very sweet," Fred said as she turned back to her microscope. "Pull up a chair."
Spike did as he was instructed and sat down next to Fred. "So, what are ya working on, Pet?"
"I'm trying to analyze some demon goo that Angel brought in."
"Fascinating."
"You're lying, aren't you?" Fred asked as she looked up from her microscope.
"Yeah, I am," Spike replied with a grin.
Fred smiled and went back to her microscope. The two sat there in a comfortable silence, but a depressed mood seemed to settle over them, as if each were trying to sort out their own problems without bothering the other. Finally Spike let out a sigh, but didn't look up from where he was toying with the sleeve of his duster.
"What's wrong?" Fred asked.
"It's nothing," Spike replied casually. "Just lady troubles is all."
"Anything I can help with?"
Spike thought about it for a moment and then nodded. "You know what, I think you can help me out," Spike said. "You see, there's this girl that I've been after for a while now, and she just doesn't seem to notice that I fancy her. What would you suggest?"
"Well, I know I don't always see what's right in front of me, so maybe she doesn't either," Fred stated. "Maybe you should do something really bold and romantic to get her attention?"
"I can do that," Spike said as he leaned forward and pressed his lips against Fred's in a passionate kiss. "Was that bold enough for you?" Spike grinned.
Fred sat with an amazed look on her face for a second before she grinned back. "Not even close." Fred wrapped her arms around Spike and pulled him into another fiery kiss.
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"Have you heard the news?" Wesley asked as he walked into Gunn's office followed by Lorne.
"About Spike and Fred?" Gunn replied casually.
"How'd you know?" Wesley gave Gunn and Lorne a curious glance.
"It's on every Blackberry in the building," Lorne replied. "No secrets in the House of Pain."
"You two seem okay with it."
"I guess I am," Gunn said. "I mean, Fred's happy and I already gave Spike the appropriate you-hurt-her-and-you-die speech. So yeah, I'm okay with it."
"I think they look cute together," Lorne added. "He's got the whole rebel without a cause thing going on and she's the girl next door. I could sell this to any number of directors."
"I suppose if you're okay with it, then I should be okay with it also," Wesley said.
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"What the bloody 'ell is that thing?" Spike asked as he walked into the science lab to find a large sarcophagus in the middle of it.
"Other then that it's really old, I have no idea," Fred replied as she walked around the sarcophagus, jotting notes down on a clipboard.
"How'd it wind up in your neck of the woods?"
"Knox said some delivery guy brought it up last night and that it was addressed to me," Fred said as she set down her clipboard.
Fred reached out and barely touched the sarcophagus, only to have Spike knock her out of the way just as it opened up and a rush of air and dust came flying out of it. The sarcophagus closed back up and Spike let out a small cough as he waved his hand through the air trying to clear away the dust.
"Are you okay?" Fred asked as the dust began to clear.
"I'm fine, Pet," Spike replied as the dust cleared. "What about you?"
"I'm okay," Fred said. "I just wished you'd give me a warning before you gallantly knock me out of the way."
"Sorry. You see something start to open up and you knock the girl out of the way," Spike explained casually. "It's in the good guys' manual."
"It's all right," Fred said as she looked at the now closed sarcophagus. "I just wish I knew what triggered that."
"I'm sure you'll figure it out," Spike said reassuringly. "That's why you're the Science Queen."
Fred smiled. "You always know how to cheer me up."
"That's what I'm here for, Luv," Spike replied with a shrug.
"Speaking of that, did you need something when you came in today?"
"Oh, I was just gonna see what you were doing for lunch later."
"Do you want to go somewhere?"
"Only if you want to, Pet," Spike said. "I'm sure you're gonna have your hands full with that all day."
"It's okay," Fred said. "I'd like to get out of here for a little while. Why don't you come back by around noon and we'll go somewhere?"
"See you then." Spike gave Fred a kiss on the cheek and headed out of the lab.
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"Just the man I was looking for," Fred greeted with a smile as she walked over to where Spike was standing on the balcony that overlooked the area outside Angel's office.
"I was just about to go get you for lunch," Spike answered as he pulled Fred into a hug.
"I just couldn't wait to see you, so I took off a few minutes early."
"Get a balcony you two," Lorne commented playfully as he walked past Fred and Spike.
"Are you still coming to Angel's for Chinese food tonight?" Fred asked as she turned to talk to Lorne.
"You know how I love my lo mein," Lorne replied with a smile as he headed down the stairs.
"Are you coming too?" Fred asked with a smile as she turned back around to Spike.
Spike was about to reply, but instead he coughed up blood and collapsed onto the floor. Fred fell to her knees and pulled Spike's head into her lap as he began to convulse. Lorne rushed back up the stairs and kneeled next to the couple.
"Somebody call medical!" Fred yelled as she frantically looked around the lobby.
"You heard her!" Lorne shouted his voice full of an unnatural anger. "Get medical over here now!"
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Spike opened his eyes to find himself lying in a hospital bed at Wolfram & Hart for the second time in only a few months. He looked sat up slightly and saw that the whole team was gathered inside the small room.
"What the bloody 'ell happened?" Spike asked his voice slightly hoarse.
"You gave us quite a scare," Lorne replied.
"The lab's doing some blood work," Angel explained. "But you should be out of here in no time."
Spike gave Angel a suspicious look and raised one eyebrow. "What's really going on?"
"You almost pulled an Exorcist on us, but you're gonna be fine," Gunn said. "Knox and the lab are checking out that sarcophagus as we speak."
"We'll have this figured out in no time," Fred added reassuringly. "So don't worry."
"Let's get to work," Angel said as he and the others walked out of the room, leaving Fred alone with Spike.
"If you need anything, just push that button and I'll be here," Fred said.
"I'll be fine, Luv," Spike said as Fred leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. "Now go ahead and be the Science Queen."
"Spike and Fred?" asked Angel from where he waited outside the room with Gunn.
"You didn't know?" Gunn glanced over at his boss.
"I didn't know," Angel replied quietly.
"What are we dealing with here?" Angel asked as he and the others talked with the doctor outside of Spike's room.
"We're not positive, but we believe it's a parasite of some sort," explained the doctor. "It's boiling his organs, within a day they'll be liquefied."
The doctor hung Spike's chart outside his room and left the group standing in the hallway in silence, a look of horror on all of their faces.
"Wes, I want you and your department to dig up whatever you can on this sarcophagus," Angel said, snapping into action. "Gunn, I want you to hit the white room, see if you can find out anything from the conduit. Fred, try to see what you can get out of the blood work. We're working against the clock here, so you've gotta be fast." Angel as he began to pace. "Find whatever you can, however you can. This was planned."
"Do you think Lindsey might be in on this?" Gunn asked.
"I don't think it's his style," Angel replied with a shake of his head. "But I'm going to hit the streets just in case."
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"Did you have any luck?" asked Lorne as he and the others met Angel in his office a few hours later.
"I went to Lindsey's apartment and found Eve, but she doesn't know anything," Angel replied as he sighed and sat down in his chair. "What about you guys?"
"The conduit wasn't much help either," Gunn said. "Just went on about how it isn't our flunky."
"I couldn't get anything out of the blood work either," Fred added, her voice full of frustration. "No matter what I tried the damn thing just keeps working away at the blood samples." Tears were beginning to form in Fred's eyes and she wiped them away with the back of her hand.
"Don't beat yourself up about this," Lorne said quietly as he put a comforting hand on Fred's shoulder. "We'll figure it out. Why don't you go and see how Spike's doing?"
Fred nodded and was half way toward the door when it suddenly opened and Wesley came striding in with a large book in his hands.
"It's called Illyria," Wesley informed as came to stand next to Angel's desk. "It was a great monarch and warrior of the demon age, but it was killed and left in the Deeper Well."
"What the hell is it and where can we find it?" Gunn asked.
"It's a burial ground for the Old Ones," Wesley informed as he sat his book down on the desk. "And it's in England. I can give you the exact location if you want."
"Harmony, prep the jet," Angel ordered as he pressed the button down on his phone.
"All righty, boss," came Harmony's reply.
"It will mostly like have a guardian if not several," Wesley stated.
"Do we even know if this will work?" Angel asked.
"The Deeper Well is like a prison," Wesley said as he looked at the group in the office. "Supposedly, if something gets out, it can get sent back."
"Let's hope that's true," Angel said as he got to his feet.
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Fred walked into Spike's room to find the vampire sitting on the side of his bed, fully dressed and trying to get his boots on.
"Spike! What are you doing?" Fred exclaimed as she rushed over to the bed. "You should be resting."
"I feel fine, pet," Spike said. "Besides, this is the last place I bloody want to spend my last moments on Earth."
"These aren't going to be your last moments, Spike." Fred's voice cracked slightly. "Angel and Gunn are on their way to England to find a cure for this. You're gonna be fine."
"Well, now that I know Peaches and Charlie Boy are working on it, I feel a thousand times better," Spike replied sarcastically as he got to his feet.
"Will you just stay until Angel comes back?" Fred asked, her voice slightly pleading. "I promise you can leave after he gets back, but please just stay for now?"
Spike looked at Fred and sighed. "Fine, but only because you asked me to."
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"You made the right decision," Gunn said as he came over to where Angel was looking over the side of the bridge into the Deeper Well. "I know it doesn't seem like it now, but believe me, you did the right thing."
"Then you can explain it to Spike when we get back," Angel said curtly as he turned and headed out of the Deeper Well.
"Explain what?" Gunn asked as he followed Angel out of the Deeper Well.
"Explain to him how we had a chance to save him and we chose not to!" Angel shouted angrily. "Explain to him how I let him down." Angel said the last part quietly and more to himself then anyone else.
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"Fred, what are you doing here?" asked a surprised Knox as Fred came into the lab. "I thought you were checking on Spike."
"I did already," Fred replied as she walked over to the lab table where Spike's blood samples were. "I'm more use to him in the lab then crying by his bedside."
Fred began to look at the various blood samples under the microscope, trying to find some clue to help cure Spike.
"We've run every test we can think of," Knox said.
"Have you tried freezing it?" Fred asked, not taking her eyes off of the microscope.
"Yeah," Knox replied. "The blood cells froze, but the parasite just kept going. It's like the Energizer bunny."
"What do we have?" Fred asked.
"God, I can't even think I'm so nervous," Knox said as he took off his gloves.
Fred raised an eyebrow at this statement, but didn't look at Knox. "Why are you nervous?" Fred asked suspiciously.
"Spike's important to you guys," Knox said, his back turned toward Fred. "It wasn't supposed to happen this way. Of all the people it had to choose from, it chose him. He isn't at all who I had picked out." Knox turned around in time for Fred to hit him in the head with a fire extinguisher.
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"Are you gonna torture him?" Harmony asked eagerly as she watched Fred tie an unconscious Knox to a chair.
"Thinking about it," Fred replied as she finished tying Knox up.
"Can I help? I'm pretty good at this."
"It's kinda personal," Fred said as she got to her feet.
"Hello? Why do you think I want to help?" Harmony commented. "I know you and Spike have a thing and the two of us are so over, but a part of me's always gonna love him, ya know? And that's why I want to help with the torturing."
"All right," Fred said after a moment. "You can help out."
"Why's Knoxy boy tied to a chair?" asked Lorne as he and Wesley came into the office.
"He knows something," Fred answered. "When we were in the lab earlier he started ranting about how this isn't what he had planned."
"Did he say anything else?" Wesley asked.
"No, but we're gonna torture him till he does," Harmony answered eagerly.
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To Be Continued . . .
Yeah, so this is another Btvs/Ats idea I had. I'm just going to see where it goes.
Love it? Hate it? Tell me what you think!