Lost in the Smoke

Chapter 12

(Disclaimer in part one)

            When Buffy was stuck in place by the site in her living room, the Slayer in her took over and she vaulted toward the two scuffling vampires. She quickly propelled Angel off of Spike and unceremoniously pinned him to the ground. He was thrashing about beneath her, trying to regain his footing and resume the offensive.

"Let me up Buffy. I have to kill him," Angel screamed in his rage-induced fervor.

"You don't have to do anything of the sort," she retorted, slapping him across the face a couple times to attempt to knock some sense into him or at least to subdue him. She pushed all her weight on him while she turned her attention to Spike, who was a tad worse for the wear from the fight. "Spike, you okay? What the hell happened?"

"I'm alright; nothing that won't heal in day. I was asleep on the couch waiting for you to come home and the next thing I know the bloody poof here is picking me put up in the air. Didn't even hear him come in," Spike answered, motioning toward his writhing grandsire.

"He's ruining everything. I have to kill him. Don't you get it? He's ruining everything?" Angel yelled, trying to convince Buffy of whatever his twisted point was.

"I don't care what you think you have to do. I am not going to let you kill him. And just what is it that he's ruining?" the Slayer demanded. His refusal t answered greatly annoyed her, so she gave him one good hit on the side of his head, rendering him unconscious. Not really distressing about whether it would hurt him any or not, Buffy dragged him down the stairs to the basement and chained him to the wall. She revealed in the sound his still body made hitting each step in turn on the decent.

She returned to the main floor and found Spike in the kitchen holding a towel to one of the cuts on his face. Standing behind him, she wrapped her arms around him and laid her cheek on his back. "You sure you're okay?"

"Yeah. You know it takes more than a wanker like him to take me down for very long, pet."

"Just long enough for him to almost stake you. If I hadn't come home then…" her voice trailed off and he could detect the uncertainty and fear in her tone. He turned around in her embrace and engulfed her in his own.

"But you did, so what ifs and could ofs don't matter. I'm okay and the magnificent poof down there can't bother you until you decide to go downstairs."

"What do you think is wrong with him? You don't think he lost his soul do you?"

"I don't know pet. It's possible, but this really doesn't seem Angelus' style. He was always more into the torture then just killing a bloke. It always had to be an art with that one."

"I'm gonna go call Willow and Tara and have them come over here to do a spell on Angel. Hopefully they can tell us if he still has his soul or not. I should probably let the rest of the gang know what happened too," Buffy said, leaving his side to go use the phone.

*******

In the span of thirty minutes, all of the Scooby gang was assembled in the Summers' basement. Buffy had been forced to knock Angel out again when he was about regain consciousness inhibiting Willow's spell. It was concluded that the vampire did still retain his soul. The group decided to go back to the living room and leave the Slayer with her captive, figuring that he would reveal more without an audience.

Buffy sat in silence waiting for him to wake up, thinking, considering possible solutions to the questions she had begun asking herself. A sound originating form the opposite side of the room alerted her to the fact that Angel was waking and she rose to stand in front of him.

"Alright Angel. I hate to have you all chained up like this, but at the moment I don't trust you in the same building with Spike." She ignored the flash of vehemence that went through his gaze and continued. "I want straight answers and I want them now. Why did you try to kill him, twice?"

"I had to. He was ruining it; he was ruining everything. I don't know how, but he's brainwashed you, all of you into accepting him. He's evil. You deserve someone normal. I left so you could have a normal life, and he's ruining it."

"Oh I see. You're mad because Spike is messing up the way you think the world should be, including my life; ruining all the plans you made for me. But, that's not really the reason, is it? That's just what you've convinced yourself of. You're really upset because he loves me and has something that you can't have."

"He can't love you. He's incapable of it. You have to have a soul to feel love."

"That's where you're wrong you poof, as my other half commonly refers to you. He does love me and has for a long time. Having a soul doesn't matter when it comes to loving; it all depends on the person behind it. Spike may be insecure at times when it comes to you, but I know that he definitely is the better man, because you are the one not strong enough to be yourself when your lacking your soul. He loves me regardless of whatever else happens, and I love him just as much. So you stay there, although I don't really see how you're going to leave, and think about all that."

Buffy turned her back on the brunette vampire who had been stunned to silence. She casually sauntered over to the steps and began to ascend them. Mid way up the stairs, she paused, looked back at him with an evil grin on her face and said, "And to just torment you a little bit more, you're not so special anymore. Spike has a soul now too."

*******

None of the others had heard, but Spike's vampiric senses let him in on the conversation going on beneath the floor. A smile graced his face when he heard the Slayer defend him repeatedly and call him her other half.

"I guess the poof was just being an irate, sodding wanker about everything. Bet the cheerleader finally left him," he chuckled before heading to meet Buffy at the top of the stairs.

**********

Okay everybody, I am so sorry about not updating sooner. I had planned to just leave that cliffhanger for a couple days and then I had to write a few papers for school and I just didn't get it done until now. If want to complain in your reviews about the wait, it's fine; I kind of expected it. Well, what did you guys think of this part? I just wanted to make Angel into the mean crapper I know he can be. He was so much more interesting evil. Oh, and to answer to the review that commented on the timeline with the whole boat thing. That was just an error on my part. I had thought to drag that part of the story out, but then it went faster than I anticipated. Let's just chalk it up to this being my first Buffy fic and not having a beta. So thanks everybody for reading; I'm almost done.