Chapter 1:

Xander groaned softly as consciousness slowly returned to him. No more alcohol, he thought grimly, trying to ignore the incessant pounding in his head. He slowly sat up, attempting to rub his aching head, only to discover heavy manacles and chains around his wrists and ankles. If this is some kinky game of Will's, I'm gonna skin him alive, the young man thought.

"Anglicus somno excitare." Xander looked up sharply, not understanding the words, but wondering who had spoken.

"Hello? Is anybody there?" he called, then coughed violently. His throat was raw and he couldn't remember the last time he had something to drink.

A tall, clean-shaven man turned at the sound of Xander's coughing and barked an order at someone. A shorter man ran forward with a bowl and handed it to the taller one.

He's a guard, Xander thought, noticing the short sword at his side and the elaborate tunic he wore.

The guard walked slowly toward Xander and knelt beside him, handing the Californian the bowl. "Mihi nomen est Decens," the man said, apparently not realizing Xander didn't understand him. "Quis est tu?"

Xander drank the water in the bowl greedily; his throat feeling a little better afterward. He looked up at the guard, who was still looking at him and waiting for an answer. The dark-haired man thought back to his high school Latin classes, trying desperately to remember something - anything- from them. "Nomen, nomen. Dammit, what is it!" Suddenly, he grinned triumphantly. "Name! That's what he wants." He looked at Decens, still grinning. "I'm Xander."

"Xander," Decens repeated slowly. "Alexander?"

"Uh, sure," Xander said with a slight nod. Decens smiled, obviously satisfied with his answer.

A loud angry roar cut through the air, startling both Xander and Decens. The younger man cursed himself for being so jumpy, especially since he recognized the roar.

~*~*~*~

Spike awoke to find chains around his ankles and wrists and a strange, yet familiar pounding in his ears. He looked around, taking stock of the situation, memorizing all possible exits. Voices from all around told the Brit that there were far more people in this place than he had originally thought. There was only one problem: he couldn't see Xander anywhere; couldn't even pick out his scent.

The blonde knew at once that Willow's spell had worked. Only instead of the demons being sent back, Spike realized that he and his mate had been sent instead. Now they were being held captive by Roman soldiers.

With a howl of rage, Spike pulled and thrashed against the chains, bringing his demon to the fore in an attempt to scare the guards into setting him free.

Except, Spike realized, there was no demon.

The Englishman sat down hard, numb with shock. At once, everything fell into place. Why he couldn't break the chains. Why he couldn't go into gameface. The strange pounding in his ears and his less-than-perfect senses.

Spike was human again.

tbc...

A/N: Sorry about how short this chapter is. My muse was giving me a hard time. ::kicks Lanz:: He just wanted me to get moving on one of my other fics. Visit my site if you want to read them: