Chapter 10
Information
Lying flat on his back, still dressed in the previous night's attire, Spike concentrated on slowly opening his eyes. His head was pounding and the taste in his mouth reeked of cigarettes and booze. Putting his hands to his temples, he instinctively began rubbing, trying to ease the self- induced pain caused by entirely too much alcohol. He stiffened when he felt another presence watching him from the other side of the room. Relaxing when he recognized the figure staring from the steps, he pushed himself up on his elbows and looked curiously in her direction.
"What is it, red?" he asked, the sound of his own voice echoing loudly in his head. He groaned at his stupidity of finishing not just the first bottle, but also the second he'd snuck upstairs to steal after everyone else was asleep.
She stared for a moment. "Do you know you look dead when you're asleep?"
He tilted his head and gave a look that said 'duh.'
"Oh, right. Never mind," she said, shaking it off. "Anyway, Buffy wanted me to check to see if you were awake. Said you needed to talk to Giles?"
"Right. Be there in a minute," he answered, smoothing out his rumpled hair with his fingers. "Need to freshen up a bit first."
"Good luck. Six people in this house, one bathroom. You might need to show some fang to get your turn," she joked, standing up to head back upstairs.
"Hey, red! Wait a minute," he called, before she got too far.
She stopped and faced him again.
"I heard about Tara. Just wanted to say sorry."
"How'd you hear?" she asked, a hint of sadness in her voice.
"Demons talk. Filled me in on what went down last year. Heard you made quite the scare. You okay?" The sincerity in his voice showed his genuine concern for the girl standing in front of him.
"Yeah. Getting there anyway. Thanks."
He nodded his response. "And the other bird? Dark haired girl upstairs?" he asked, with a suggestive raise of his brow.
"That's Kennedy," she answered with a smile. "She's a potential future slayer." She looked down as the smile left her. "Actually, she's the only one left. There were more, but none of them made it. They weren't ready. Kennedy is the only one who had any kind of formal training. Buffy blames herself for not being able to protect them. That's the reason she finally called Angel. She knew she couldn't do this by herself."
He felt the ache in his heart for what his slayer must be going through, the guilt she must be feeling, but then shrugged it off. He reminded himself that he was still angry with her for feeling like she had dismissed him for Angel.
"Tell the watcher I'll be right there."
She nodded and went back upstairs.
His mind and heart were wagering a war inside of him. His heart was telling him to go to Buffy and let her know he still loved her and wanted her as much as he ever did. His mind was yelling to let go, get as far away from her as he could before she had the chance to hurt him again. She'd been so willing for his touch last night. It had taken all his strength not to give in, knowing they'd hate each other for it afterward. But what did she really want from him? Was it really about him like she had claimed? Or was he right to feel jealous of Angel? All he wanted was what the other vampire had already experienced. Buffy had loved him openly with all her heart and soul. He stood and sighed deeply knowing he was about to face them both.
Rather than fight for the bathroom, he changed quickly into another pair of jeans, and pulled a clean tee shirt on as he headed up the stairs. Shutting the basement door behind him, he stepped into the kitchen.
Pulling a bag of blood from the refrigerator, he poured it into a cup and threw it into the microwave. Watching the mug spinning around, without turning, he slowly spoke. "Come to finish it then?"
"I want you to stay away from Buffy."
He took the heated mug and downed it quickly, placing the empty cup in the sink. He then turned to Angel. "I don't recall asking for your permission."
"You don't deserve her, and you know it. I know you, Spike. She doesn't."
Spike approached him, stopping just inches from his face. "Piss off!" he demanded.
He ignored the low growl that emanated from the other vampire and pushed his way around him. He was through letting Angel think he had all the control. He moved down the hall into the living room where he found the others already seated, waiting. He purposely avoided Buffy's gaze and took a seat in a chair across the room from her.
He made eye contact with Giles and could almost see the wheels spinning in the watcher's head. "Rupert." He nodded a greeting.
"Yes...um, Buffy tells us you might have information?"
"I do. Ran into a bloke last night, right ugly bugger. Struck up a conversation. You know this Big Bad you're dealing with has the whole demon community in an uproar? They're all scared as hell."
He tried to ignore Angel as he entered the room and stood, leaning against the wall.
"What are they afraid of?" Buffy asked, catching his eye for a moment.
"Don't know really. Wouldn't say. But he did mention this oracle of some kind. Claims he can see things. Prophecies and such about The First. Seems some demons have started looking for a way to stop this thing too." He pulled out a much needed cigarette and lit it, not caring about the 'no smoking' rule in the house.
"So about this oracle. Where can we find it?" Giles asked, removing his eyeglasses to wipe them.
"Don't know that either. Got his name. That's about all I can tell you," he answered, standing up to hand a piece of paper to the other man. "I'd suggest you use some of your books to see what you can suss out."
"I'll do that." He turned toward Angel, still a little intimidated by the scene they'd witnessed the night before. "Maybe you could call Wesley and see what he might know."
"Good idea. I need to let them know what's going on anyway."
"Angel? If I might ask, we really need to know what happened last night. I assume you had a visit from The First?"
He glanced Buffy's way and spoke. "Yes. Only I thought it was Buffy." He looked back at Giles. "I thought it could only take the form of someone who's dead."
"Yes, well technically, Buffy did die. I guess different rules apply to her," he answered, with a shrug of his shoulders.
"Yey me," she said, sarcastically. "Never normal Buffy." Her eyes gave Angel a knowing look.
Giles continued. "So what happened?"
"I thought it was real. I had no idea. I think its main agenda was to try to bring Angelus back."
Willow sat with a look of confusion on her face. "But how would it be able to..." She saw the pained look in Angel's eyes and stopped. "Oh."
"I figured it out in time, but it almost had me. It's very convincing."
"We've all seen it. In one form or another," Buffy replied, her eyes darting from Angel to Spike.
"Well we've gotta stop it. Let's see if we can find this oracle. Sounds like a good lead," Giles spoke, glancing appreciatively toward Spike.
"Looks like another research night," Buffy answered. "I'll get the coffee." She eased herself up from her chair and disappeared into the kitchen.
"I'll get the books," Willow added, standing to grab a few volumes off the shelf behind her. She began passing them out to Giles and Kennedy.
Angel started up the stairs, much to Spike's relief. "I'll call Wesley. See what he knows."
Within minutes, everyone was occupied with his or her allotted responsibilities. Spike figured now would be a good time to make his way upstairs to the shower. Carefully, making sure to avoid Angel, he quietly moved to the bathroom. Stopping in front of the door, he willed himself to enter.
"Just a room," he told himself. He grasped the knob and turned, stepping inside. He glanced around. The entire bathroom had been redecorated, changing the whole setting of how he remembered it. He silently thanked whoever was responsible, even though he knew it had been Buffy's doing. He wondered if it was her way of trying to rid herself of the memories. Maybe she had been able to move passed it. Maybe it was time for him to finally do the same.
After a quick shower, he rummaged through the drawers until he found the other necessities he needed. Finding a little hair gel and a lot of Listerine, he was ready to face the challenge at hand. Research with the scoobies.
He opened the door and jumped back when he saw Buffy standing in front of him. "Bloody hell! Can't give someone a little warning, slayer?"
"Sorry. I was just coming to... I was looking for you."
"Well you could have whistled....or hummed... something."
"Spike, we need to talk."
"That hasn't really been working out to well for us, slayer. Maybe we shouldn't," he said, trying to move passed her.
She grabbed his arm and pulled him to face her. "Would you just stop it with the cold and heartless act for a minute!?"
"It's what I am, right? Cold and heartless?" he answered with glaring eyes. "As a matter of fact, this is right fitting since we're here at the scene of the crime."
"Let it go, Spike!" she yelled, showing her frustration. "I have and it's over! It was over a long time ago. Forgotten."
"Maybe for you," he replied, a little more softly.
"I forgave you. That's all that should matter. Why isn't that enough for you?"
"Because I don't deserve your forgiveness. I don't deserve anyone's forgiveness." He pulled his arm away when he realized she still had a hold on him.
"You're so wrong, Spike. It's time you start realizing that. Now do you think we can have a civilized conversation and forgo the usual accusations and name-calling?"
"Depends on what you wanna talk about," he answered with a sigh.
She smiled. "Thank you."
"So talk."
"Not here. Let's go somewhere else."
He raised an eyebrow in question. "Umm... it's daytime, pet. Not in a bursting into flames kinda mood right now."
"Never stopped you before. C'mon, we can use the tunnels."
"Sure that's wise considering the Big Bad lurking around?"
"You'll be fine. I'll protect you," she answered.
He rolled his eyes and shook his head while giving her his trademark smirk. She walked down the hall to the linen closet and pulled out a blanket.
"Here, take this. I'm gonna go make up an excuse to get us out of here. Wasn't to excited about the whole research scenario anyway."
He nodded, taking the blanket she was offering.
"Meet me out front," she called, almost from the bottom of the stairs already.
Forgetting his earlier anger, he smiled. Maybe they could get this whole mess cleared up, if that was even possible. He headed down after her and went outside to wait.
TBC
Information
Lying flat on his back, still dressed in the previous night's attire, Spike concentrated on slowly opening his eyes. His head was pounding and the taste in his mouth reeked of cigarettes and booze. Putting his hands to his temples, he instinctively began rubbing, trying to ease the self- induced pain caused by entirely too much alcohol. He stiffened when he felt another presence watching him from the other side of the room. Relaxing when he recognized the figure staring from the steps, he pushed himself up on his elbows and looked curiously in her direction.
"What is it, red?" he asked, the sound of his own voice echoing loudly in his head. He groaned at his stupidity of finishing not just the first bottle, but also the second he'd snuck upstairs to steal after everyone else was asleep.
She stared for a moment. "Do you know you look dead when you're asleep?"
He tilted his head and gave a look that said 'duh.'
"Oh, right. Never mind," she said, shaking it off. "Anyway, Buffy wanted me to check to see if you were awake. Said you needed to talk to Giles?"
"Right. Be there in a minute," he answered, smoothing out his rumpled hair with his fingers. "Need to freshen up a bit first."
"Good luck. Six people in this house, one bathroom. You might need to show some fang to get your turn," she joked, standing up to head back upstairs.
"Hey, red! Wait a minute," he called, before she got too far.
She stopped and faced him again.
"I heard about Tara. Just wanted to say sorry."
"How'd you hear?" she asked, a hint of sadness in her voice.
"Demons talk. Filled me in on what went down last year. Heard you made quite the scare. You okay?" The sincerity in his voice showed his genuine concern for the girl standing in front of him.
"Yeah. Getting there anyway. Thanks."
He nodded his response. "And the other bird? Dark haired girl upstairs?" he asked, with a suggestive raise of his brow.
"That's Kennedy," she answered with a smile. "She's a potential future slayer." She looked down as the smile left her. "Actually, she's the only one left. There were more, but none of them made it. They weren't ready. Kennedy is the only one who had any kind of formal training. Buffy blames herself for not being able to protect them. That's the reason she finally called Angel. She knew she couldn't do this by herself."
He felt the ache in his heart for what his slayer must be going through, the guilt she must be feeling, but then shrugged it off. He reminded himself that he was still angry with her for feeling like she had dismissed him for Angel.
"Tell the watcher I'll be right there."
She nodded and went back upstairs.
His mind and heart were wagering a war inside of him. His heart was telling him to go to Buffy and let her know he still loved her and wanted her as much as he ever did. His mind was yelling to let go, get as far away from her as he could before she had the chance to hurt him again. She'd been so willing for his touch last night. It had taken all his strength not to give in, knowing they'd hate each other for it afterward. But what did she really want from him? Was it really about him like she had claimed? Or was he right to feel jealous of Angel? All he wanted was what the other vampire had already experienced. Buffy had loved him openly with all her heart and soul. He stood and sighed deeply knowing he was about to face them both.
Rather than fight for the bathroom, he changed quickly into another pair of jeans, and pulled a clean tee shirt on as he headed up the stairs. Shutting the basement door behind him, he stepped into the kitchen.
Pulling a bag of blood from the refrigerator, he poured it into a cup and threw it into the microwave. Watching the mug spinning around, without turning, he slowly spoke. "Come to finish it then?"
"I want you to stay away from Buffy."
He took the heated mug and downed it quickly, placing the empty cup in the sink. He then turned to Angel. "I don't recall asking for your permission."
"You don't deserve her, and you know it. I know you, Spike. She doesn't."
Spike approached him, stopping just inches from his face. "Piss off!" he demanded.
He ignored the low growl that emanated from the other vampire and pushed his way around him. He was through letting Angel think he had all the control. He moved down the hall into the living room where he found the others already seated, waiting. He purposely avoided Buffy's gaze and took a seat in a chair across the room from her.
He made eye contact with Giles and could almost see the wheels spinning in the watcher's head. "Rupert." He nodded a greeting.
"Yes...um, Buffy tells us you might have information?"
"I do. Ran into a bloke last night, right ugly bugger. Struck up a conversation. You know this Big Bad you're dealing with has the whole demon community in an uproar? They're all scared as hell."
He tried to ignore Angel as he entered the room and stood, leaning against the wall.
"What are they afraid of?" Buffy asked, catching his eye for a moment.
"Don't know really. Wouldn't say. But he did mention this oracle of some kind. Claims he can see things. Prophecies and such about The First. Seems some demons have started looking for a way to stop this thing too." He pulled out a much needed cigarette and lit it, not caring about the 'no smoking' rule in the house.
"So about this oracle. Where can we find it?" Giles asked, removing his eyeglasses to wipe them.
"Don't know that either. Got his name. That's about all I can tell you," he answered, standing up to hand a piece of paper to the other man. "I'd suggest you use some of your books to see what you can suss out."
"I'll do that." He turned toward Angel, still a little intimidated by the scene they'd witnessed the night before. "Maybe you could call Wesley and see what he might know."
"Good idea. I need to let them know what's going on anyway."
"Angel? If I might ask, we really need to know what happened last night. I assume you had a visit from The First?"
He glanced Buffy's way and spoke. "Yes. Only I thought it was Buffy." He looked back at Giles. "I thought it could only take the form of someone who's dead."
"Yes, well technically, Buffy did die. I guess different rules apply to her," he answered, with a shrug of his shoulders.
"Yey me," she said, sarcastically. "Never normal Buffy." Her eyes gave Angel a knowing look.
Giles continued. "So what happened?"
"I thought it was real. I had no idea. I think its main agenda was to try to bring Angelus back."
Willow sat with a look of confusion on her face. "But how would it be able to..." She saw the pained look in Angel's eyes and stopped. "Oh."
"I figured it out in time, but it almost had me. It's very convincing."
"We've all seen it. In one form or another," Buffy replied, her eyes darting from Angel to Spike.
"Well we've gotta stop it. Let's see if we can find this oracle. Sounds like a good lead," Giles spoke, glancing appreciatively toward Spike.
"Looks like another research night," Buffy answered. "I'll get the coffee." She eased herself up from her chair and disappeared into the kitchen.
"I'll get the books," Willow added, standing to grab a few volumes off the shelf behind her. She began passing them out to Giles and Kennedy.
Angel started up the stairs, much to Spike's relief. "I'll call Wesley. See what he knows."
Within minutes, everyone was occupied with his or her allotted responsibilities. Spike figured now would be a good time to make his way upstairs to the shower. Carefully, making sure to avoid Angel, he quietly moved to the bathroom. Stopping in front of the door, he willed himself to enter.
"Just a room," he told himself. He grasped the knob and turned, stepping inside. He glanced around. The entire bathroom had been redecorated, changing the whole setting of how he remembered it. He silently thanked whoever was responsible, even though he knew it had been Buffy's doing. He wondered if it was her way of trying to rid herself of the memories. Maybe she had been able to move passed it. Maybe it was time for him to finally do the same.
After a quick shower, he rummaged through the drawers until he found the other necessities he needed. Finding a little hair gel and a lot of Listerine, he was ready to face the challenge at hand. Research with the scoobies.
He opened the door and jumped back when he saw Buffy standing in front of him. "Bloody hell! Can't give someone a little warning, slayer?"
"Sorry. I was just coming to... I was looking for you."
"Well you could have whistled....or hummed... something."
"Spike, we need to talk."
"That hasn't really been working out to well for us, slayer. Maybe we shouldn't," he said, trying to move passed her.
She grabbed his arm and pulled him to face her. "Would you just stop it with the cold and heartless act for a minute!?"
"It's what I am, right? Cold and heartless?" he answered with glaring eyes. "As a matter of fact, this is right fitting since we're here at the scene of the crime."
"Let it go, Spike!" she yelled, showing her frustration. "I have and it's over! It was over a long time ago. Forgotten."
"Maybe for you," he replied, a little more softly.
"I forgave you. That's all that should matter. Why isn't that enough for you?"
"Because I don't deserve your forgiveness. I don't deserve anyone's forgiveness." He pulled his arm away when he realized she still had a hold on him.
"You're so wrong, Spike. It's time you start realizing that. Now do you think we can have a civilized conversation and forgo the usual accusations and name-calling?"
"Depends on what you wanna talk about," he answered with a sigh.
She smiled. "Thank you."
"So talk."
"Not here. Let's go somewhere else."
He raised an eyebrow in question. "Umm... it's daytime, pet. Not in a bursting into flames kinda mood right now."
"Never stopped you before. C'mon, we can use the tunnels."
"Sure that's wise considering the Big Bad lurking around?"
"You'll be fine. I'll protect you," she answered.
He rolled his eyes and shook his head while giving her his trademark smirk. She walked down the hall to the linen closet and pulled out a blanket.
"Here, take this. I'm gonna go make up an excuse to get us out of here. Wasn't to excited about the whole research scenario anyway."
He nodded, taking the blanket she was offering.
"Meet me out front," she called, almost from the bottom of the stairs already.
Forgetting his earlier anger, he smiled. Maybe they could get this whole mess cleared up, if that was even possible. He headed down after her and went outside to wait.
TBC