15

15

Flashes of light exploded intermittently behind Spike's eyelids. He heard moaning, and realised it was coming from him. A cool cloth dabbed carefully at his aching face, making him wince. He could hear voices, but they seemed garbled, very far away. He couldn't make out what was being said or who was saying it. He concentrated. The light hitting his eyes made him squint. He tried again. The world seemed to be made up of reddish blurs. He blinked, concentrated. The world swam into reddish focus.

"He's coming around."

"Be careful. You're hurting him. It's a good thing he's immortal. Any human would never have survived this."

"Spike? William? Can you hear me? Open your eyes, Will."

'William?', Spike wondered. 'No-one's called him that since…'

His eyes grew, terrorized. His breathing quickened. The face of his "teacher" came into focus before his swollen eyes. 'No,' he mouthed, but it came out sounding like a moan.

"Ssshhh… It's okay. I won't hurt you. See? Cordelia and Wesley are here too. I'm not him."

Angel hated seeing so much fear in the blonde vampire's bloodshot eyes. He hated the memories it awakened of when he did these things to his Childe. Tears collected in the dark lashes surrounding Angel's soulful eyes. He cried silently, soothing the broken creature lying helpless in his arms and wiped away the blood staining Spike's skin with the tears that flowed for him.

*********************

"What the hell did you think you were doing?" Buffy asked angrily. The group was gathered in Xander's apartment, which was the only place among them that their returned enemy didn't have complete access to. She hissed when Giles dosed the wound at her throat with disinfectant.

Xander glared at the Slayer. "Saving your ass is coming to mind," he shouted, clamping down on a scream when Willow set his broken arm. "Oh, and Will? Good job on that protection spell. That really paid off."

"Hey!" Willow cried, hurt and angry. "You're alive, aren't you? I'd say it was a roaring success, seeing as how you went out looking to get killed!"

"Buffy?" Giles ignored the bickering young people and focussed on his charge. "Are you alright? This must have been really hard on you, seeing him like that again."

Buffy held back the tears that threatened at the edges of her heart. She nodded. "I'm fine. I just have to keep reminding me that that isn't Angel."

Giles nodded too, encouraged at the young woman's willingness to accept. "Yes, Angel is dead. You have to remember that if you are to battle Angelus."

A frown creased the Slayer's forehead. She shook her head and said, "No, Angel isn't dead. I kept getting the feeling that my Angel is still alive."

"Oh God!" Xander cried, exasperated. "Haven't we done this once before? Wake up, Buffy! Your boyfriend is dead and gone! If you can't get that through your Angel-obsessed head, we are all going to die."

Fury flashed in Buffy's hazel eyes. "Don't start with me, Xander! I have enough to worry about without you lecturing me!"

"Well, somebody's got to…"

"I can handle this!" Buffy stated, annoyed. She got up and started gathering her things.

Willow caught her eye. "Buffy?" she asked nervously.

"The sun's almost up. He'll be looking for a place to crash. But Spike's still hurt. I have to go check on him," Buffy explained.

"Be careful," Willow ordered, hugging her friend tightly. The witch had a bad feeling she wasn't going to see her friend again.

*********************

"Angel, maybe we should move him."

Angel rose from the bed where they'd put their patient. Wesley was right. This was Angelus' first stop for a reason. The mansion was his home, his lair. And he would return to it when the sun rose. That means he would be back soon.

"You and Cordelia have to take him to Giles'. Before the sun rises. Angelus will be back soon."

"Of course," Cordelia agreed. She entered the bedroom with fresh supplies of bandages, water and blood.

The vampire in the bed sat up quickly to protest, grunting when his body got its protest in first. "Oi! I'm not going anywhere. I have a thing or two to say to Psycho Angel, and unless you've got a damned good reason for me not to say them, I'm not moving an inch," Spike said adamantly.

Angel tossed a roll of bandages at Spike, who caught it easily, but not before letting loose a bellow when his not quite healed ribs stabbed him in his side.

"Okay, point taken. Now shut up about it and help me get dressed." Spike glared good-naturedly at Angel, who hadn't said a word. "Smug asshole."

Angel's straight face broke into a happy grin at his Childe's grumblings. The two vampires shared a glance, the memory of the past few hours passing between them.

*********************

"Master? I don't understand," Spike had asked the crying vampire. His voice was weak, his cheeks sunken from the massive blood loss he'd suffered.

Hearing the title on the bloodied vampire's lips made Angel cry harder. "Don't call me that," he'd begged, regret heavy in his deep voice. "I'm not your Master, and I am so sorry for everything I did to you when I was."

"Spike, this is Angel. The Angel with a soul," Cordelia tried to explain. "The Angel that did this to you isn't Angel. He's Angelus."

"I know the bloody difference between the two, you twit!" Spike growled, anger making his voice strong. "But their both still the same guy! Him!" He tried to jerk his thumb at the dark-haired vampire holding him, but had to settle for pointing with a shaky finger.

Wesley chimed in with further facts to the bizarre story, "Not anymore, no. A spell split Angel and Angelus into two physical beings. There's two of them now."

Spike searched the pained visage of the other vampire, looking for confirmation that what the humans were saying was indeed true. Angel nodded, 'Yes, it's true.'

"Bloody hell," Spike swore. The world started spinning again. His eyes rolled back in his head as the darkness claimed him once more.

"What do we do?" Cordelia asked frantically. "He's lost so much blood." The Seer couldn't help but take in the room around them, the blood splattered as high as the ceiling, pools of the red liquid glistening in the firelight. "Oh God, I think I'm going to be sick."

Wesley thumped the cooler down next to Angel. "There's another 5 pints left in there. That should help him."

Angel shook his head. "Save them. I know what he needs now."

Wesley and Cordelia gasped as Angel slashed open the vein in his throat with his dagger and brought the ailing vampire to meet the flowing crimson blood.

Spike's nose flared at the scent of familial blood and vamped out, sealing himself to the gushing fount with his fangs and gulping down the rejuvenating fluid. Angel closed his arms around the vampire attached to him in a crushing hug, reveling in the pain and thrill of feeling the blood being drained from him.

A wave of dizziness passed over him, but Angel shook it off. His Childe needed more, and he would give it. Spike grabbed onto his Sire's body, tangling his fingers into Angel's dark hair. He pulled the dark head back and bit in deeper into the willing throat of his Master.

Wesley's cries, Cordelia's shouts slowly found their way past the rushing thunder in Angel's ears.

"Enough," he said, trying to dislodge the feeding vampire. Spike wouldn't relinquish his hold on the wonderful feast burning its way over his tongue. "Enough!" Angel growled, closing a fist into the blonde vampire's hair and yanking him free.

It has been a lifetime since the elder vampire had fed his Childe like this. Angel watched as Spike ran his tongue over his bottom lip, catching the last of his Sire's blood still clinging there. Black eyes met golden, turned cerulean. In the glance that passed between the two immortals a new bond was formed. The chipped vampire and his soul-having Sire was family once more.

Now it was perhaps half an hour before the sun would rise over the horizon, effectively trapping the vampires inside the mansion, and for the unlife of him Angel didn't want to be separated from his family, human or otherwise. But it was necessary.

"Okay, Blondie, up you get," Cordelia grunted, slinging Spike's unbandaged arm over her shoulder.

Spike yowled at the rough juggling he was being subjected to. "Hold up, lady! Jeez, you're killing me here!"

"You're already dead so stop your whining," Cordelia countered.

"Angel? Aren't you going to do something? Stop her! She's hurting me." Spike threw his Sire an adorable droopy dog look.

Angel couldn't help but smile. "Cordelia strongly believes in tough love," Angel answered, but gently stepped in between the dark-haired woman and the whining blonde. Spike let Angel help him to his feet, pulling on the coat held for him, without any further protest.

"There's no answer at Giles' apartment," Wesley spoke up from the door. He'd been trying to get the other ex-Watcher on the phone for the past 10 minutes.

Cordelia frowned worriedly. "You don't think…"

"No, love," Spike soothed the woman propping him up. "Xander would have warned them."

"Call Xander," Spike and Angel said in unison, the idea hitting them simultaneously.

Wesley cocked his head questioningly. Why would he call Xander of all people?

"Xander's is the only place Angel… or Angelus hasn't been invited into. Unless there's something you neglected to tell me?" Spike said.

Angel nodded his agreement. "Spike's right. I've been to everybody's homes, except Xander. Who knew his fervent dislike for me would actually turn out to be a good thing?"

Wesley dialed the number Spike recited while Angel and Cordelia helped him out to the rental.

"They're all there. But Buffy's on her way here. Apparently, Angelus attacked her last night," Wesley reported, shutting the cellphone and delivering it back into his pocket. "She's fine. Xander intervened," the ex-Watcher answered the twin questioning stares from the vampires, watching with interest and amusement as twin sighs of relief escaped their mouths.

"Thank you, Wesley," Angel said, offering his hand to his colleague and friend. "You've been a friend to me when I didn't deserve it. I will always be grateful for that."

Wesley suddenly had to struggle to utter the words trapped behind the lump in his throat. His friend was saying good-bye. He took Angel's offered hand and pulled the vampire in for a very un-British-like hug. "You are a great man, Angel. I have learned a great many things about bravery and sacrifice from you." He turned his face away, not wanting his friend to see the tears spilling over his cheeks, but Angel saw. And wanted to weep.

"What's this? You're saying good-bye like you're not going to see us again," Cordelia commented when Angel wrapped his powerful arms around her, hugging her gently. "But you're not, are you?" The Seer saw what it meant for Angel to stay behind at the mansion to face Angelus. Either Angel defeats his demon and dies, or Angel's demon defeats him and he dies. Cordelia choked back a sob. "Angel," was all she could get out, closing her arms around his neck and holding on with all her strength.

"I love you," Angel whispered to the girl who'd become a woman, his link to the Powers and, most importantly, his family. He untied himself from her arms and said, tears streaking down his own cheeks, "Take care of Gunn. Make sure the kid doesn't get himself killed. And Lindsey. Tell him I forgive him."

Cordelia nodded, crying. She pulled Angel down and kissed him, their tears mingling.

Spike stood leaning against the car, watching the ritual final good-byes of people never seeing each other again. He couldn't understand why. Did they think he couldn't beat Angelus in a fight? He scoffed at the ridiculous idea. Soulboy's averted the bloody Apocalypse more than once, and they think he can't handle one vampire?

Understanding dawned on him. But this wasn't just another vampire. This was the very vampire that resided inside Angel. If that demon dies… Spike understood – and wished to all the gods he didn't.

"Spike." Angel reached out his hand to his Childe, but Spike ducked it.

"You're leaving me?" he asked, hurt. "I finally get my family back after all these decades - family that will accept me. And you're leaving me?"

Angel fought down Spike's resisting arms, holding him. "William, I'm sorry," he wept. "I have to…"

"Yes, I know," Spike yielded. "You have to do this. But I don't have to like it, you wanker." He returned Angel's hug, taking comfort in the strength of his Sire's arms. "I wonder if she knows just how much you're giving up for her," Spike murmured into Angel's chest, noticing the wetness his own tears had made.

Angel pulled away from the younger vampire, looking him square in the eye. "Will, you have to promise me, if I don't succeed…" Angel swallowed and hardened his grip on Spike's upper arms. "If he kills me, you have to promise me you will kill Angelus. Protect Buffy. Promise me."

Spike looked at the man holding him and felt his heart breaking. Angel was entrusting the one thing he held dearest to him, dearer even than his own soul, to him, Spike, a vampire that has hated him for a century and has loved him for an eternity. "I promise," Spike answered, and knew it to be true. He would give his own life to keep the Slayer safe, because it was Angel's final wish.

Angel looked past the blonde vampire at the horizon. "The sun's almost up. It's time."

"Angel, I'm sorry. For all the things I did, all the times I tortured you, tried to kill you. For hating you," Spike said, desperately gripping the elder vampire by his arms. "Can you forgive ever me? Please, Master, I need to know."

Angel pulled his Childe close to his massive chest, holding him close to his silent heart. "I forgive you, William. I love you."

He deposited a crying Spike into a crying Cordelia's arms and escaped back into the mansion, his vision doubling behind unshed tears. He didn't want to die, Angel's soul was screaming. Not when he had so much to live for.

"Where's Spike, you bastard?"

The voice cut through Angel like a knife. He turned to face the Slayer. "Buffy," he breathed.