Chapter 17

            The next night, the group gathered together in the main room, after first locking the doors to bar possible intrusions.

            Xander and Giles had gone to get enough food and refreshments, earlier, and now Willow and Tara had cooked a meal, while dawn had set everything up.

            Angel had, reluctantly, shared his supply of pig's blood with Spike and they had sat down with the rest of the group. 

            Spike, who could have made an issue out of it, for once held his tongue.  He would have dearly loved to rub his sire's nose in it, for he was spoiling for a good fight, a decent spot of violence, and he clearly wanted to pound on Angel, for many reasons as well as just for the hell of it, but the look Buffy would give him made him decide against it. 

            That and the fact that she had earlier promised him that she would give Dawn free reign to tickle him WHENEVER & WHEREVER she pleased if he tried to provoke or torture Angel.

            The thought of being caught shrieking like a great poofing nancy boy, or a girl, was enough to make him shiver.

            He turned his attention back to the going ons, afraid that his thoughts would somehow transfer themselves to Dawn and she would give him that I'm-so-gonna-get-you-good look.

            Angel was sitting in his leather chair on the far left hand corner of the room.  He sat, mostly just listening to the idle chatter going on around him, as his ...what where they now...old friends, fellow champions...defenders of the universe?  He chuckled a little at that one, and then promptly felt a little guilty.  So he covered it up by brooding more on the evil ways he used to be.  Eventually turning his thoughts away from himself, he narrowed his eyes and watched his childe suspiciously, while he sipped his blood.  He didn't trust that boy.  He wanted to know what he was doing here, he realized that he was telling the truth about the chip, but something was off about him.  He was different from how he used to be.  Angel could smell the change on him...oh, he was still a vampire, but there was now a subtle difference in his body chemistry.  He wondered briefly if the prolonged exposure of that government chip was having some sort of odd effect on his childe.  Contrary to his own wishes, he still sometimes cared for his childe.  Spike mostly annoyed him, because he wasn't afraid to piss him off, and sometimes he got off on it, Angel was sure, but ...then other times.  Spike was just different.  He had always been.  And...what the hell was he doing, now?
            As Angel looked on...his face changed to one of first shock...and then disgust.

            Angel's expression was mirrored by all the rest of the guests, minus Tara, the new girl in Angel's crew and Spike.

            Spike wasn't really aware of any of their reactions.  He had been sipping his pig's blood, when he wanted to add some texture to it.  Looking at the table, he had spotted some crackers...and he had leaned forward and grabbed a few.

            Dawn, who had realized what was coming, had promptly turned her back to him, before she had gotten grossed out.  Giles, who really should have remembered, had forgotten Spike's habit of adding things to improve the texture of his blood.  His face blanched at the sight of Spike dipping the crackers into the blood and taking a nice healthy bite.  Willow let out a low, " ewwww," while Cordelia let out a louder one.  Gunn said out loud," Well now, I think I've seen just about everything."  Wesley turned a little pale, shivered, and tried not to look directly at him so he could finish his food, but the damage was done, so he just pushed it out of the way.  Xander, although obviously grossed out, from the way he pushed his food away, was also fascinated.  He just kept staring at Spike as he continued to dip the crackers into the blood.

            Tara wasn't disgusted, though.  She had seen him do it before, sometimes when she had been first visiting Mr. Giles, when Spike had lived with him, as well as sometimes at the Magic Shoppe, Spike would also do it, if he happened by and the ingredients were handy.  She just smiled, and continued eating.  She knew Willow was giving her small this-should-freak-you-out looks, but she'd talk to her later.  Now however, she gave her love, a small smile, then ate up.

            The new girl had spent years on another planet, in another dimension and had seen way more horrible and stomach turning things then a vampire who liked to dip food into his blood.  She wondered if he'd ever tried tacos...and if he'd dip them too, but she kept silent for now.   She'd ask him later.

            Spike was not even aware of anything going on around him.  He was so busy thinking about everything that had happened in the last couple of days, that he was eating/ feeding automatically. 

            Xander couldn't take much more of it.

            "Hey...Fang Boy Junior."

            Spike snapped out of his reverie.

            "What do you want now, Monkey Boy?"
            "I'd like to be able to finish my food, but now that's going to be no way possible."

            Spike shrugged.  He didn't know what Xander was rambling on about, and he didn't really care.

            "Spike, could you try not to do that....much more often?" Willow asked, haltingly.

            "What are you talking about Red?"

            Tara and Dawn giggled.

            Angel realized that Spike had no clue what was going on, nor what everyone had thought about his eating habits.  The thought was so amusing to him that he burst into his first real laughing phase in days.

            Everyone looked at him strangely.

            Xander just couldn't take it quietly.

            "Great...first Bleached Boy and his disgusting eating habits, so I'll never be able to eat again...and now Dead Boy Senior goes all hysterical."

            Spike ignored Xander's comments and addressed Angel.

            "What the hell is wrong with you, Peaches?"

            "You!"

            Spike growled at him.

            Angel laughed even harder.

            "Right...that does it. "

            Spike jumped up and stepped towards Angel, malice and ill intent written all over his features...but he stopped immediately...and sat down, muttering about evil ghostly slayers and the way they had him wrapped around their fingers so that he did their every bidding.

            Buffy laughed silently next to him and leaned down and caressed his face before moving away.

            As he noticed that everyone seemed done eating, he said,

            "If the Great Poof is done laughing at my expense and if you Wankers and Witches and Glowy Keys are done being fascinated by my eating habits, and being wusses who can't take a little something different, can we get back to the part where we find a way to restore Buffy?"
            All nodded, holding their smiles in check, because it wouldn't do to further anger Spike.

             They put away all the foodstuffs and then sat back down to discuss their topic at length.

TBC…