Title: Jumping Through Hoops
Spoilers: Season 5, after Checkpoint and The Body
Disclaimers: Nothing is mine, all is Joss' and ME. I only wish I was half
as talented.
Feedback: Please oh please. I love it, and it helps to encourage me
Notes: Getting close to the end now! Many thanks to Marsterslady, my co-
conspirator.
Rating: PG this part
Chapter 4
Anya left the Magic Box and immediately caught a cab to the address she had been given by Giles. He hadn't said anything unnerving, but she could tell from his voice that there was trouble. And she had been told to come alone. That would never happen ordinarily, so she knew something was up. She thought about calling Xander, but decided not to go against her boss' orders. She told the cabbie the directions and they sped off. When she entered the warehouse, she never noticed the blonde vampire hiding in the shadows.
Spike had at first followed Buffy's wishes. He had went to Willow and Tara's, and informed them of the situation. They had all decided that Dawn was safe there with the witches, and Spike had left to see how he could help. He went to Giles' apartment and saw the destruction there. The Watcher's house was a shambles, worse than ever before. Spike felt kind of bad about that. After all, he'd had to camp out there for a bit after the chip. Granted, part of the time was spent tied up in the bathtub, but eventually Giles had relaxed enough to share his sofa and they had watched Passions together. And Buffy would be very upset if something happened to her watcher. Spike could be the hero in this, he thought. He smiled to himself as he visualized his reward after saving the day, with Buffy jumping into his open arms.
So far Spike done little but observe. He was pretty sure that Buffy was already in the warehouse when he arrived, and he was just debating whether to go in or not when the cab had come dispensing Anya. That was very curious. Why would she be here? Spike didn't want to enter into a trap, so he thought he'd wait it out a bit more and see what developed.
When Anya entered the basement of the warehouse, she was very startled indeed. Not horrified, for in her reign she had caused much worse harm. But it was definitely unsettling to see the Slayer all tied up and immobile. Anya did suck in her breath abruptly when she saw the state that Giles was in. His face was swollen and bloody, and he just laid there on the concrete floor in a heap. She started to advance towards him when Ethan appeared from behind her, grabbing her arms and throwing a rope over her, tying her up like a Christmas turkey.
"You!" She screeched, and then she turned her eyes onto Giles. "I told you then you should tell Buffy. I knew this would happen, but no, you wouldn't listen. Now look at us." Giles didn't even look up. Buffy was a bit appeased to know that Anya had been a bit on her side however. Not that it mattered much now.
"So, you are an ex-demon? I find that hard to believe." Ethan smirked at her as he threw her down on his cot.
"I was ruthless in my time, I'll have you know." Her eyes burned at him. He couldn't keep the smile off his face.
"I had my amulet, and it got destroyed, so in punishment I was turned human. But I love Xander now, so it's okay. In my time though I could have turned you inside out, or into a giant hot dog."
At the mention of a hot dog, Ethan paled considerably. "Er..well then, let's get on with this, shall we? Where is the bloody earring, and don't waste my time, or your boss dies."
Anya just rolled her eyes at him. "Yea, sure, whatever. Boss dies, yada, yada..like you could."
"Anya, please.." Giles moaned. "Just tell him."
"Are you sure?"
Giles smiled tightly at her. "Yes, I believe I am."
Anya glanced at Buffy. "Nice to see how helpful you were."
"Hey, if I would have known what the heck was going on, but noooo, someone chose to keep me out of the big dark secret. Again. Slayer, always the last to know." She said it all jokingly in a way, but it was obvious to all in the room how hurt she was.
"Ok, but Giles, you told me never to tell anyone ever."
"Indeed. But circumstances have presented themselves.Just bloody tell him!"
Anya looked at Ethan. "It's in the stuffed pig."
All looked confused. "The what?" asked Ethan.
"A stuffed pig?" asked Giles.
Only Buffy seemed enlightened, and truly angry. "In Mr. Gordo!? You put something into Mr. Gordo?" She was enraged, and again began to kick at her bonds, but they again began to tighten until she couldn't breathe anymore. Her face turned red, and then blue. Anya looked alarmed. "I thought it would be safe there, and it was there, and I was there, and..it seemed safe!" Giles began to get alarmed. "Ethan, do something. You're killing her. Buffy, please, relax." But Buffy was beyond the point where her relaxing could do anything.
Ethan was confused by this entire stuffed pig thing, but he didn't want the Slayer dead. At least not yet. So he clapped his hands and whispered a word under his breath, and the ropes holding the Slayer loosened just enough for her to breathe again.
"Now then, Anya, what and where is this, er, pig, and how do we get it. I need that earring."
Anya looked at Buffy and then at Giles. Giles nodded at her to continue.
"Oh, alright then. I was at the register when Giles came in and told me of his dream. He gave me the earring and told me to hide it somewhere where it couldn't be found, and to not tell him where. He said it was for everyone's protection, including Xander's. See, if it was just Buffy I wouldn't care, but Xander was in trouble too."
Giles and Buffy both simultaneously rolled their eyes at the ceiling.
Ethan could tell this was always the way Anya was, and being impatient would get him no where. He nodded at her. "Please, go on." He said politely.
Anya smiled at him and continued. "Well, I put it in my pocket and called Xander to take me to lunch. A paid lunch, I made sure, since I was doing work for my boss as well as eating. Anyway, Xander picked me up but said he had to stop at Buffy's on the way. Something about dropping off some research book that he had. While he and Buffy were talking in the kitchen I ran upstairs to the restroom, and Buffy's bedroom door was opened. I saw the pig sitting there on the dresser, and I figured no one would ever find the earring there. So I took out my little pocket knife and made a slit under the patch on it's belly. That stuffed pig has seen some times, let me tell you. It was dirty and scuffed and tore up."
"Don't speak of Mr. Gordo like that Anya!" Buffy yelled. Could this get any worse? She couldn't believe Mr. Gordo had been defiled!
"Well, he is! He needs a good bath or something! Anyway, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, I put the earring under the patch, and pushed it up into the pig's belly. Then I pressed the pink patch back on. It stuck real well, so I thought my job was done. Now here I am in the middle again. Thanks a lot Giles!"
The three Scoobies all glared at each other, while Ethan slowly paced the floor. "So this pig is at Buffy's house then?"
All three nodded in agreement. Now Ethan had to figure out how to get the pig. He didn't trust any of them, but he did know one thing. There was a strong bond between Watcher and Slayer. If one was in trouble, the other would do whatever was necessary to help the other. That knowledge planted a seed to the next step in his plan.
He grabbed Anya and proceeded to tie her ropes to the cot so that she couldn't move. When she began to loudly protest he grabbed one of his shirts from under the cot and shoved it in her mouth silencing her.
Ethan then moved in front of Buffy. "I'm going to take off most of your ropes, but I'm leaving the ones around your arms tightly fastened. Before I do this I'm placing a spell on Rupert. If you hurt me, he'll feel everything that you do to me. Kick me in the face, his face gets it. Punch me in the ribs, his ribs crack too. Kill me, he dies. Do you understand what I'm telling you?"
Buffy looked at Giles, and then back up at Ethan. She nodded "yes."
Ethan closed his eyes and said the spell. Nothing seemed to change, but Ethan looked more confident when he opened his eyes to address the Slayer again. "You and I are going to your house to get this pig. Then when I have the earring, you may return here and rescue your precious Watcher."
Anya screeched in indignation between the shirt in her mouth.
Ethan smiled. "And Anya too." He chuckled.
Buffy wondered if there would be anyone or anything left to rescue once Ethan got his other earring. If Ethan's will would be done, anything could happen, and she very much doubted she would be in the picture to help Giles. But she didn't know what else she could do at this juncture. She had to at least pretend to go along until another plan presented itself to her.
Ethan clapped his hands and the ropes dissipated except for the one's at Buffy's wrist. With one last look at Giles, Ethan lead her out of the room.
Spike watched the two exit the warehouse. He could see that Buffy's arms were tied, but he couldn't understand why she didn't fight him. Ethan was hardly a match for the Slayer! He wondered if he should intervene, but then he remembered that Anya had entered the warehouse, and was not leaving now. And where was Giles? He hesitated only for a moment, and then swooped into the warehouse, following his nose down to the basement.
He laughed out loud when he entered the room and saw Anya trussed to the cot. She just glared at him and made incoherent sounds around the shirt. He wasn't so sure he wanted that shirt to come out of her mouth either. He decided to untie Giles first.
"What a bloody sight the two of you make, mate. What's happened? Here now, move slowly." Giles was a bit wobbly on his feet after Spike snapped his chains.
"Thank you Spike."
"Yes, well, you'll owe me a bundle of cash when were through today, eh? Now, what's happened. I saw the slayer being bundled off, and she wasn't even resisting!"
Giles explained the spell Ethan had performed, and how Buffy was being led to her house to retrieve Mr. Gordo and the earring.
Spike said nothing but just listened intently. Anya began to wiggle on the cot, obviously infuriated that she had been left as she was, until Giles made his way to her and began to free her. He shushed her ranting, and continued to tell Spike the powers of the earrings.
"We must stop him, but I don't know how at this point. I'm sure they are already at the house. He might already have the earring in his possession."
Spike grimaced. "No, I'm sure he doesn't. Anya, Giles looks a mess. Take him to the hospital."
Giles began to protest but the vampire stopped him. "If you do permanent damage to yourself Buffy will never forgive us, and you can't be of much help in that state anyway. Leave it to me. I'll get the earring, and we'll stop this Ethan. I'll get him to remove that spell too."
Giles tried to protest more, but Anya agreed with Spike, and promised to escort him to the hospital. All the way she cursed and nagged him for not telling Buffy in the beginning, until Giles screamed at her to "Bloody Shut up!" They rode in the cab in silence the rest of the way to the hospital.
Chapter 4
Anya left the Magic Box and immediately caught a cab to the address she had been given by Giles. He hadn't said anything unnerving, but she could tell from his voice that there was trouble. And she had been told to come alone. That would never happen ordinarily, so she knew something was up. She thought about calling Xander, but decided not to go against her boss' orders. She told the cabbie the directions and they sped off. When she entered the warehouse, she never noticed the blonde vampire hiding in the shadows.
Spike had at first followed Buffy's wishes. He had went to Willow and Tara's, and informed them of the situation. They had all decided that Dawn was safe there with the witches, and Spike had left to see how he could help. He went to Giles' apartment and saw the destruction there. The Watcher's house was a shambles, worse than ever before. Spike felt kind of bad about that. After all, he'd had to camp out there for a bit after the chip. Granted, part of the time was spent tied up in the bathtub, but eventually Giles had relaxed enough to share his sofa and they had watched Passions together. And Buffy would be very upset if something happened to her watcher. Spike could be the hero in this, he thought. He smiled to himself as he visualized his reward after saving the day, with Buffy jumping into his open arms.
So far Spike done little but observe. He was pretty sure that Buffy was already in the warehouse when he arrived, and he was just debating whether to go in or not when the cab had come dispensing Anya. That was very curious. Why would she be here? Spike didn't want to enter into a trap, so he thought he'd wait it out a bit more and see what developed.
When Anya entered the basement of the warehouse, she was very startled indeed. Not horrified, for in her reign she had caused much worse harm. But it was definitely unsettling to see the Slayer all tied up and immobile. Anya did suck in her breath abruptly when she saw the state that Giles was in. His face was swollen and bloody, and he just laid there on the concrete floor in a heap. She started to advance towards him when Ethan appeared from behind her, grabbing her arms and throwing a rope over her, tying her up like a Christmas turkey.
"You!" She screeched, and then she turned her eyes onto Giles. "I told you then you should tell Buffy. I knew this would happen, but no, you wouldn't listen. Now look at us." Giles didn't even look up. Buffy was a bit appeased to know that Anya had been a bit on her side however. Not that it mattered much now.
"So, you are an ex-demon? I find that hard to believe." Ethan smirked at her as he threw her down on his cot.
"I was ruthless in my time, I'll have you know." Her eyes burned at him. He couldn't keep the smile off his face.
"I had my amulet, and it got destroyed, so in punishment I was turned human. But I love Xander now, so it's okay. In my time though I could have turned you inside out, or into a giant hot dog."
At the mention of a hot dog, Ethan paled considerably. "Er..well then, let's get on with this, shall we? Where is the bloody earring, and don't waste my time, or your boss dies."
Anya just rolled her eyes at him. "Yea, sure, whatever. Boss dies, yada, yada..like you could."
"Anya, please.." Giles moaned. "Just tell him."
"Are you sure?"
Giles smiled tightly at her. "Yes, I believe I am."
Anya glanced at Buffy. "Nice to see how helpful you were."
"Hey, if I would have known what the heck was going on, but noooo, someone chose to keep me out of the big dark secret. Again. Slayer, always the last to know." She said it all jokingly in a way, but it was obvious to all in the room how hurt she was.
"Ok, but Giles, you told me never to tell anyone ever."
"Indeed. But circumstances have presented themselves.Just bloody tell him!"
Anya looked at Ethan. "It's in the stuffed pig."
All looked confused. "The what?" asked Ethan.
"A stuffed pig?" asked Giles.
Only Buffy seemed enlightened, and truly angry. "In Mr. Gordo!? You put something into Mr. Gordo?" She was enraged, and again began to kick at her bonds, but they again began to tighten until she couldn't breathe anymore. Her face turned red, and then blue. Anya looked alarmed. "I thought it would be safe there, and it was there, and I was there, and..it seemed safe!" Giles began to get alarmed. "Ethan, do something. You're killing her. Buffy, please, relax." But Buffy was beyond the point where her relaxing could do anything.
Ethan was confused by this entire stuffed pig thing, but he didn't want the Slayer dead. At least not yet. So he clapped his hands and whispered a word under his breath, and the ropes holding the Slayer loosened just enough for her to breathe again.
"Now then, Anya, what and where is this, er, pig, and how do we get it. I need that earring."
Anya looked at Buffy and then at Giles. Giles nodded at her to continue.
"Oh, alright then. I was at the register when Giles came in and told me of his dream. He gave me the earring and told me to hide it somewhere where it couldn't be found, and to not tell him where. He said it was for everyone's protection, including Xander's. See, if it was just Buffy I wouldn't care, but Xander was in trouble too."
Giles and Buffy both simultaneously rolled their eyes at the ceiling.
Ethan could tell this was always the way Anya was, and being impatient would get him no where. He nodded at her. "Please, go on." He said politely.
Anya smiled at him and continued. "Well, I put it in my pocket and called Xander to take me to lunch. A paid lunch, I made sure, since I was doing work for my boss as well as eating. Anyway, Xander picked me up but said he had to stop at Buffy's on the way. Something about dropping off some research book that he had. While he and Buffy were talking in the kitchen I ran upstairs to the restroom, and Buffy's bedroom door was opened. I saw the pig sitting there on the dresser, and I figured no one would ever find the earring there. So I took out my little pocket knife and made a slit under the patch on it's belly. That stuffed pig has seen some times, let me tell you. It was dirty and scuffed and tore up."
"Don't speak of Mr. Gordo like that Anya!" Buffy yelled. Could this get any worse? She couldn't believe Mr. Gordo had been defiled!
"Well, he is! He needs a good bath or something! Anyway, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, I put the earring under the patch, and pushed it up into the pig's belly. Then I pressed the pink patch back on. It stuck real well, so I thought my job was done. Now here I am in the middle again. Thanks a lot Giles!"
The three Scoobies all glared at each other, while Ethan slowly paced the floor. "So this pig is at Buffy's house then?"
All three nodded in agreement. Now Ethan had to figure out how to get the pig. He didn't trust any of them, but he did know one thing. There was a strong bond between Watcher and Slayer. If one was in trouble, the other would do whatever was necessary to help the other. That knowledge planted a seed to the next step in his plan.
He grabbed Anya and proceeded to tie her ropes to the cot so that she couldn't move. When she began to loudly protest he grabbed one of his shirts from under the cot and shoved it in her mouth silencing her.
Ethan then moved in front of Buffy. "I'm going to take off most of your ropes, but I'm leaving the ones around your arms tightly fastened. Before I do this I'm placing a spell on Rupert. If you hurt me, he'll feel everything that you do to me. Kick me in the face, his face gets it. Punch me in the ribs, his ribs crack too. Kill me, he dies. Do you understand what I'm telling you?"
Buffy looked at Giles, and then back up at Ethan. She nodded "yes."
Ethan closed his eyes and said the spell. Nothing seemed to change, but Ethan looked more confident when he opened his eyes to address the Slayer again. "You and I are going to your house to get this pig. Then when I have the earring, you may return here and rescue your precious Watcher."
Anya screeched in indignation between the shirt in her mouth.
Ethan smiled. "And Anya too." He chuckled.
Buffy wondered if there would be anyone or anything left to rescue once Ethan got his other earring. If Ethan's will would be done, anything could happen, and she very much doubted she would be in the picture to help Giles. But she didn't know what else she could do at this juncture. She had to at least pretend to go along until another plan presented itself to her.
Ethan clapped his hands and the ropes dissipated except for the one's at Buffy's wrist. With one last look at Giles, Ethan lead her out of the room.
Spike watched the two exit the warehouse. He could see that Buffy's arms were tied, but he couldn't understand why she didn't fight him. Ethan was hardly a match for the Slayer! He wondered if he should intervene, but then he remembered that Anya had entered the warehouse, and was not leaving now. And where was Giles? He hesitated only for a moment, and then swooped into the warehouse, following his nose down to the basement.
He laughed out loud when he entered the room and saw Anya trussed to the cot. She just glared at him and made incoherent sounds around the shirt. He wasn't so sure he wanted that shirt to come out of her mouth either. He decided to untie Giles first.
"What a bloody sight the two of you make, mate. What's happened? Here now, move slowly." Giles was a bit wobbly on his feet after Spike snapped his chains.
"Thank you Spike."
"Yes, well, you'll owe me a bundle of cash when were through today, eh? Now, what's happened. I saw the slayer being bundled off, and she wasn't even resisting!"
Giles explained the spell Ethan had performed, and how Buffy was being led to her house to retrieve Mr. Gordo and the earring.
Spike said nothing but just listened intently. Anya began to wiggle on the cot, obviously infuriated that she had been left as she was, until Giles made his way to her and began to free her. He shushed her ranting, and continued to tell Spike the powers of the earrings.
"We must stop him, but I don't know how at this point. I'm sure they are already at the house. He might already have the earring in his possession."
Spike grimaced. "No, I'm sure he doesn't. Anya, Giles looks a mess. Take him to the hospital."
Giles began to protest but the vampire stopped him. "If you do permanent damage to yourself Buffy will never forgive us, and you can't be of much help in that state anyway. Leave it to me. I'll get the earring, and we'll stop this Ethan. I'll get him to remove that spell too."
Giles tried to protest more, but Anya agreed with Spike, and promised to escort him to the hospital. All the way she cursed and nagged him for not telling Buffy in the beginning, until Giles screamed at her to "Bloody Shut up!" They rode in the cab in silence the rest of the way to the hospital.
