Summary – Spike regains some of his Big Bad attitude.

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Masking the Pain

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He was awake. He was terrified. He was calling for his Sire.

Closing the book he'd been trying to read for the past few hours, Angel made his way swiftly back to his bedroom taking an unneeded breath as he saw Spike curled up at the top of the bed and cocooned in the covers. "Spike? Spike what's wrong?"

"C-clothes, no clothes. Need clothes." Looking at the older vampire pleadingly as if he should be moving to meet his request already, Spike's shaking had begun again.

Frowning and moving to the bed, Angel eased his boy back down to lye against the soft pillows. "No Spike, you're not leaving like this. Now just lay back down and try and relax. As for your clothes they're perfectly fine. Lord knows you'd never shut up if I let anything happen to that stupid coat and your fifty year old pair of jeans and t-shirt. You know it wouldn't kill you to wear something else besides that one outfit every few decades."

Realizing Angel had misunderstood, Spike tried again. "No, please just…clothes. I just want m-my clothes."

Frowning all the more, Angel didn't know what scared him more, the fact his exhibitionist of a childe seemed frightened at being left undressed, or that he'd actually said 'please'. "How about I give you something more comfortable to sleep in." Not waiting for an answer Angel moved to the dresser, digging out a pair of black pants and one of the few red shirts he had. Recalling that Spike always did favor red.

Looking at the clothes presented to him Spike's nervous gaze traveled back to his still present host. "Don't look." Meaning for it to come out as a snarky order, Spike mentally kicked himself as it definitely sounded much more like a plea. Clearing his throat and determined to not lose all face in one single evening he made a second stab. "Lord knows I'm one sexy beast and all, but I don't need you drooling over me ya stupid poof."

Cocking an eyebrow and deciding not to question the half hearted attempt at an insult, for now at least, Angel graciously gave the younger vampire a way out. "Fine, I'll go heat up some blood for you. You look like you haven't eaten in a week."

"Two weeks."

Stopping mid-step at this, Angel prayed he'd misunderstood. "What?"

"Two weeks." Looking at the clothes on his lap unhappily, Spike took a heavy breath. "Last time I fed was before they caught me. Then after I got free I couldn't…I can't feed. I try, but I c-can't. It hurts to even try. In my head." Stabbing at a specific spot on his left temple, Spike frowned unhappily. "S'like holy water on the brain."

"Spike you're not making sense. What hurts? Who caught you? Buffy?" At a loss for what his childe was rambling about, Angel tried to focus, but found it hard as one single thought ran through his mind. 'Two weeks, he hasn't fed for two weeks.'

"No, not the Slayer! Forget the stupid Slayer this isn't about her, if you can possibly believe that something in the bloody world isn't about her for five seconds! Army people, scientists, sadist, whatever you wanna call them they do nasty things to demons. Cut um up on the slab, drugs, remove organs, all that. They caught me when I was following your stupid Slayer and locked me up. Did their little tests on me before I escaped. They thought they could hold me well I showed um." Looking back down at the last part of his rant, Spike rung his hands in the covers. "Showed um, till I got out and went to find a nice tasty bit to eat, s'when I realized they'd already fucked me over."

Sitting down on the end of the bed, Angel tried to catch up, but between Spike's ranting and this new bit of information about the military he found it difficult to say the least. "Okay, okay slow down. Now let me get this straight. You're saying that the government is now funding experimentation on demons. That you got caught and placed into this program and they've done something to you to prevent you from being able to feed. Right so far?"

Looking the definition of miserable, Spike gave a nod. "Yeah."

"Okay assuming I believe this insanity that you claim is true, how are they preventing you from feeding? And if you say they gave you a soul I will have had enough of this and stake you."

Growling and shifting unconsciously into his vampire features it was clear Angel wasn't the only one losing patience with this conversation. "I don't have a bleeden soul, I have a thing in my head. And unless your soul tries to fry your brain when you feed then I don't think it's a soul." Taking a breath and trying to calm down, Spike counted to ten before giving what little more information he could. "One of the other vamps there said it was a chip. Like some little electronic thing they stick in you to try and control you. Don't see how it controls anything other then making you starve to death. Though considering the source was some loser who'd probably been turned two nights before being caught who knows how accurate that information is."

"Let me see your head." Moving to check for a possible wound he'd missed, Angel sighed as Spike pulled back and let out a low growl. "Spike you want help, than let me see your damn head so I can make sure you haven't lost your mind."

Grumbling but nevertheless sitting still, Spike crossed his arms looking for all the world like a sullen child as Angel began to part his hair. "It's not there, it's on the left side, that's where the pain always starts and is the worst."

Moving sides and surprised to in fact find a small incision Angel ran a finger over the spot, not feeling anything under the mark though. "I see a cut but that's it."

"Well duh, you wouldn't be able to feel it if it's under the bone and in my brain now would you." Yanking his head away from the probing fingers, Spike felt a prick of satisfaction as he saw Angel realize he had a point. "Besides if it was just under the skin I would have yanked the damn thing out long before now."

"I see. So can you just not feed from living things or can you not drink blood at all?" Already knowing if it was the second he'd have to remove the stupid thing soon or else watch his boy starve into a permanent state of unconsciousness, Angel shook his head. Buffy would love to hear that explained.

"I don't know what else would I feed from if not hu-oh no, no, no, no. You keep that cold pigs blood crap to yourself. S'disgusting." Snarling as his stomach let out an argumentative growl, Spike was having none of it. "Besides it's a waste, you know there's no nutrients in that garbage, none of these injuries'll heal for weeks with just that."

"Spike that's all I've got and you have to eat something or you'll die, for good this time, so I don't want to hear it right now. You'll eat what I give you, assuming you can eat it, if not we'll have to think of something else." Not about to inform the youngster of his decision to remove the problem if he was unable to feed out of a cup, Angel knew it would just be a request for trouble and Spike to find someway to not eat what he was offering.

"Wanker."

"Brat." Moving to the kitchen and grabbing the freshest container he had, Angel stuck it unhappily into the microwave as he thought over the rather bizarre story. Military experiments on demons? Brain surgery on vampires? What was the point of it? Surely the government had better things to do. Still though he couldn't argue with the fact Spike was in his bed and suffering greatly despite his once again snippy and angry demeanor, which was halfhearted at best.

Grumbling as he could practically hear his Sire musing on the matter in the other room, Spike slowly pulled on the too large for him clothes and settle back into the covers, feeling more than a little cold due to lack of weight and sleep. Stealing himself as soon as he heard the microwave chime signaling his dinner was done being heated up, the blonde cringed at the thought of drinking such garbage. "He could at least go to freaking hospital or blood bank once in a while."

"People need that blood. Besides you're making a huge fuss out of something you haven't even tasted before. It tastes nearly the same as human so stop complaining and drink it." Handing the glass to him, Angel stayed close incase this failed and he had to catch both the glass and his childe in a moment.

Looking wearily at the liquid, Spike sent up a silent prayer that this would be okay. Animal or human he was beyond caring at this point so long as it stayed down and kept him among the unloving long enough for him to get the stupid chip out. Lifting the glass and closing his eyes in anticipation of the pain, it wasn't until he had taken a mouthful of the coppery fluid that he realized nothing had happened.

"So it is just humans. Well at least you won't starve. Drink the rest of it and I'll make you another cup." Unsure if he was thankful or not for that, Angel didn't miss the relieved look in the boy's eyes as he 'unhappily' finished the glass off in less then a minutes' time.

Handing the cup back wordlessly, Spike sank back down into the covers feeling a little calmer now. At least he knew he wouldn't starve, that was a plus. "You know pigs have the same level of intelligence as five year olds."

Heating up another cup of blood, Angel was certain he'd misheard. "What?"

Moving slowly into the kitchen and leaning heavily on the doorframe, Spike cleared his throat. "Five year olds, lil' scraggly human kids, they're as intelligent as those pigs being slaughtered. So if you don't have a problem drinking their blood why can't we get some lil-"

"Just stop." Holding up his free hand and handing the now warm cup over to Spike with the other, Angel shook his head. "You know it amazes me how you can be so smart and yet so stupid all at the same time."

Growling as Angel brushed past him, Spike took a gulp of his meal before shooting back a reply. "Hey I'm not the one who destroyed a magical ring that would make me invincible and let me see the light of day again. Maybe you should think about that before deciding which of us has a few screws loose in the intelligence department."

To be continued………..