Chapter 16
Buffy stood shaking in the library. Angel was beside her, supporting her while the others nailed crucifixes to the outside of the library doors and poured Holy Water beneath them. His gaze was fixated on the nearly complete potion on the study table in front of his girl.
Willow straightened and walked over. She felt she had to warn her friend about the side effects the potion could have on her, both short and long term.
* * * * * *
"There's something. different about you, Crystal. Dru here thinks you're hiding something," Spike said carefully, feigning a caring attitude. "You wouldn't hide anything from us, would you?"
"Of - of course not. You summoned me. Why would I lie to you?"
"To protect someone. To keep us here. There are a thousand reasons why you might lie."
"But I'm not! I'm telling you everything, I swear!"
"See, that's where I disagree. I think we should go see the Slayer's Watcher. Bash 'im up a bit, find out what's goin' on. Come on, Dru, pet. We're out to kill, an' we're out to kill the Slayer."
* * * * * *
"It'll increase the pain terribly, but it should fade after a few seconds. It looks like we're about ready. You okay to start?"
Buffy took a deep breath.
"As I'll ever be."
* * * * * *
Spike headed toward Sunnydale high, Drusilla following close behind. As he strode cockily onto school grounds towards the school building and the library, his rage built. He wanted answers - and he wanted them now.
* * * * * *
Willow stopped chanting and handed the now complete potion to Angel, before murmuring a protection spell for Buffy.
Angel, still supporting Buffy, who was already in slightly more pain than before, watched silently as Willow scattered rose petals on the floor around him and Buffy. At Willow's nod, he brought the potion up to Buffy's lips and helped her to take some into her mouth. Then he pressed his lips to hers and kissed her passionately, massaging her throat to help her swallow.
Buffy had been returning the kiss, but a mere two seconds after swallowing she pulled away, gasping. Her face was pallid and twisted into a contorted mask of agony.
"Bloody 'ell!" Spike crashed into the library, and decided to press the advantage of having an unconscious Slayer on the floor in front of him. He bared his fangs.
* * * * * *
Crystal grabbed Kevin and fled the vampires' cave. Running, she told Kevin to go home and say he'd been at a friend's house, he'd thought his parents knew. He mustn't tell anyone what had actually occurred.
Then, paying no attention to whether or not the boy was doing what she had told him to do, she sped off in the direction if the highschool.
* * * * * * Spike was on top of Buffy before anyone had even realised that he'd moved.
Angel was the first to react. Moving at the speed of light, the vampire pulled Spike from Buffy, but the younger vampire's fangs had already pierced her neck. Spike held on vigorously, forcing Angel to let go; if he pulled, the cuts would become longer and have a greater potential for fatality. So Angel let Spike feed.
* * * * * *
Crystal bounded into the library and slipped on the wet floor. The sound of her body crashing to the floor raised everybody's heads - including Spike's.
"Accio!" yelled the young witch. Spike flew away from Buffy and landed in the Holy Water that already soaked Crystal.
"Shit! D'you 'ave to do that, yer bitch?! Me an' 'oly fuckin' Wa'er, we don' mix!"
Angel, who was at Crystal's side by now despite the Holy Water, shoved Spike facedown in the blessed water. Then he staked the vampire who'd gone after his mate.
Glad of the thickness of his boots, Angel left the water unburned and returned to kneel at Buffy's side and cradle her head tenderly in his strong hands.
The Slayer groaned, stirring. She looked around and struggled to get up, but Angel gently pushed her down.
"Anyone got a cloth or a bandage or something?" he enquired.
"What?" Buffy demanded, sitting up and realising she could feel blood trickling down her neck.
"Shh. Lie down. It'll be okay," Angel reassured her. He took the clean handkerchief Giles offered and pressed it to his beloved's neck.
The blood saturated the thin material instantly, but Oz emerged from Giles' office with the news that an ambulance was on its way.
Holding a second slip of fabric to Buffy's torn neck, Angel stroked her hair and murmured words of comfort to her in Gaelic; words that seemed to comfort her even though Angel doubted she could possibly know their meaning. The ambulance would arrive soon, and the counter spell seemed to have worked. At least, his girlfriend was no longer noticeably in pain. It would be alright. It had to be.
* * * * * * Buffy was hooked up to a packet of cold blood not unlike those Angel fed from, except that it contained human blood. She slept peacefully, but Angel barely noticed.
His eyes honed in on the gauze wadding protecting the twin puncture marks on her neck from the air. He'd allowed Spike to do that to her, and, granted, he'd made Spike pay, but that didn't change what he'd allowed to happen. She could have died because he, her Guardian Angel, had failed to protect her. That was not something he even had the right to ask her forgiveness for, but he knew he would anyway. He never could keep something like that from her.
Buffy's eyes flickered open and she smiled up at him.
"I'm okay," she whispered, seeing the concern in his eyes.
"I'm so sorry, Buffy. I let you down so badly. I should've reacted faster, or been more forceful when I did react, or. I should've done something."
"Don't blame yourself, Angel. Way Giles tells it, I'd be dead by now if you hadn't been there. It wasn't your fault."
"I should've done more. You shouldn't be here now!"
"You did your best, Angel, and I'm still alive because of it. Because of you. Angel, nothing means more to me than you, nothing, and you've saved my life more times than I can count. Now you've saved it again - twice. You really are an Angel, so stop doubting yourself and kiss me!"
Angel grinned, bending over and touching his lips lightly to hers. Now that logic he could agree with.
The End - what did you think? Awful? Okay? Let me know.
Please go on to Soul Searching, the second part in the Shattered Souls
Trilogy.
Buffy stood shaking in the library. Angel was beside her, supporting her while the others nailed crucifixes to the outside of the library doors and poured Holy Water beneath them. His gaze was fixated on the nearly complete potion on the study table in front of his girl.
Willow straightened and walked over. She felt she had to warn her friend about the side effects the potion could have on her, both short and long term.
* * * * * *
"There's something. different about you, Crystal. Dru here thinks you're hiding something," Spike said carefully, feigning a caring attitude. "You wouldn't hide anything from us, would you?"
"Of - of course not. You summoned me. Why would I lie to you?"
"To protect someone. To keep us here. There are a thousand reasons why you might lie."
"But I'm not! I'm telling you everything, I swear!"
"See, that's where I disagree. I think we should go see the Slayer's Watcher. Bash 'im up a bit, find out what's goin' on. Come on, Dru, pet. We're out to kill, an' we're out to kill the Slayer."
* * * * * *
"It'll increase the pain terribly, but it should fade after a few seconds. It looks like we're about ready. You okay to start?"
Buffy took a deep breath.
"As I'll ever be."
* * * * * *
Spike headed toward Sunnydale high, Drusilla following close behind. As he strode cockily onto school grounds towards the school building and the library, his rage built. He wanted answers - and he wanted them now.
* * * * * *
Willow stopped chanting and handed the now complete potion to Angel, before murmuring a protection spell for Buffy.
Angel, still supporting Buffy, who was already in slightly more pain than before, watched silently as Willow scattered rose petals on the floor around him and Buffy. At Willow's nod, he brought the potion up to Buffy's lips and helped her to take some into her mouth. Then he pressed his lips to hers and kissed her passionately, massaging her throat to help her swallow.
Buffy had been returning the kiss, but a mere two seconds after swallowing she pulled away, gasping. Her face was pallid and twisted into a contorted mask of agony.
"Bloody 'ell!" Spike crashed into the library, and decided to press the advantage of having an unconscious Slayer on the floor in front of him. He bared his fangs.
* * * * * *
Crystal grabbed Kevin and fled the vampires' cave. Running, she told Kevin to go home and say he'd been at a friend's house, he'd thought his parents knew. He mustn't tell anyone what had actually occurred.
Then, paying no attention to whether or not the boy was doing what she had told him to do, she sped off in the direction if the highschool.
* * * * * * Spike was on top of Buffy before anyone had even realised that he'd moved.
Angel was the first to react. Moving at the speed of light, the vampire pulled Spike from Buffy, but the younger vampire's fangs had already pierced her neck. Spike held on vigorously, forcing Angel to let go; if he pulled, the cuts would become longer and have a greater potential for fatality. So Angel let Spike feed.
* * * * * *
Crystal bounded into the library and slipped on the wet floor. The sound of her body crashing to the floor raised everybody's heads - including Spike's.
"Accio!" yelled the young witch. Spike flew away from Buffy and landed in the Holy Water that already soaked Crystal.
"Shit! D'you 'ave to do that, yer bitch?! Me an' 'oly fuckin' Wa'er, we don' mix!"
Angel, who was at Crystal's side by now despite the Holy Water, shoved Spike facedown in the blessed water. Then he staked the vampire who'd gone after his mate.
Glad of the thickness of his boots, Angel left the water unburned and returned to kneel at Buffy's side and cradle her head tenderly in his strong hands.
The Slayer groaned, stirring. She looked around and struggled to get up, but Angel gently pushed her down.
"Anyone got a cloth or a bandage or something?" he enquired.
"What?" Buffy demanded, sitting up and realising she could feel blood trickling down her neck.
"Shh. Lie down. It'll be okay," Angel reassured her. He took the clean handkerchief Giles offered and pressed it to his beloved's neck.
The blood saturated the thin material instantly, but Oz emerged from Giles' office with the news that an ambulance was on its way.
Holding a second slip of fabric to Buffy's torn neck, Angel stroked her hair and murmured words of comfort to her in Gaelic; words that seemed to comfort her even though Angel doubted she could possibly know their meaning. The ambulance would arrive soon, and the counter spell seemed to have worked. At least, his girlfriend was no longer noticeably in pain. It would be alright. It had to be.
* * * * * * Buffy was hooked up to a packet of cold blood not unlike those Angel fed from, except that it contained human blood. She slept peacefully, but Angel barely noticed.
His eyes honed in on the gauze wadding protecting the twin puncture marks on her neck from the air. He'd allowed Spike to do that to her, and, granted, he'd made Spike pay, but that didn't change what he'd allowed to happen. She could have died because he, her Guardian Angel, had failed to protect her. That was not something he even had the right to ask her forgiveness for, but he knew he would anyway. He never could keep something like that from her.
Buffy's eyes flickered open and she smiled up at him.
"I'm okay," she whispered, seeing the concern in his eyes.
"I'm so sorry, Buffy. I let you down so badly. I should've reacted faster, or been more forceful when I did react, or. I should've done something."
"Don't blame yourself, Angel. Way Giles tells it, I'd be dead by now if you hadn't been there. It wasn't your fault."
"I should've done more. You shouldn't be here now!"
"You did your best, Angel, and I'm still alive because of it. Because of you. Angel, nothing means more to me than you, nothing, and you've saved my life more times than I can count. Now you've saved it again - twice. You really are an Angel, so stop doubting yourself and kiss me!"
Angel grinned, bending over and touching his lips lightly to hers. Now that logic he could agree with.
The End - what did you think? Awful? Okay? Let me know.
Please go on to Soul Searching, the second part in the Shattered Souls
Trilogy.