Chapter 42- Spoils of War
-Angel-
I see her fall. I can't get to her in time. She hits the concrete floor. I see her head bounce. I cut through, literally, four demons before I manage to get to her side. I stand guard over her, killing everything that comes near her. I don't know how much longer I'll be standing though. I can't see much out of my left eye as a result of a flail smashing me in the left temple. The entire left side of my face is crusted with blood. It's possible I've got a concussion from the same blow. There's a gash that goes all the way to the bone on the right side of my collarbone. If the demon that gave that to me had been more accurate he would have cut off my head. There's a stake imbedded just to the left of my heart. There's a long slash from a sword to my thigh. The entire back of my shirt is gone and the skin underneath is a mass of claw marks.
I look over to Gunn. He looks to be in as bad a shape as I am. The fact that he's a human and still standing despite his wounds is a testament to his spirit and his courage. I am proud to be in battle with him. Giles and Wes stand back to back across the warehouse, swords in hand. They are covered in blood. I'm fairly certain they are standing back to back to hold each other up.
"Angel!" Willow's voice sounds from above. I look up. Willow and Tara are still on the catwalk. I don't see Fred. "Get Buffy and get out of here. Tara and I have enough in us for one more spell that should take care of what's left here."
I nod. I lean over and vertigo sets in. I struggle against passing out and scoop Buffy up in my arms. I make sure Wes, Giles and Gunn are all heading toward the entrance. They try to clear the way for me. A Sloth demon gets in front of me. He lunges for me. I head butt him and see stars. Blackness threatens to pour over me and I know I can't pass out. I can't drop Buffy. I stumble and someone is beside me, holding me up.
"Give her to me." I recognize Giles' voice, even though everything is to dark to see. I feel him lift Buffy's slight weight from my arms. I stumble outside the warehouse. Giles and Buffy are right behind me. I can smell them, even if I can't actually see them. The cool night air helps the blackness recede.
There is a screech of tires. Fred pulls up in my Plymouth. I wasn't even aware Fred could drive, but at the moment she's the only one not likely to pass out from loss of blood. I climb in the car. Giles hands me Buffy. I cradle her to my chest and bury my face in her hair, which is matted with blood, some of it hers and some of it demon. Giles climbs in the backseat. Wes takes the front seat.
My last conscious thought is the huge explosion as the car speeds away.
*
I catch a whiff of rubbing alcohol but it's faint. I unconsciously take a deep breath and open my eyes. Only the right one responds. The left eye is swollen shut. My vision seems blurry. There's a soft blip of surrounding machines. There's an IV in my hand. I turn my head, trying to take in as much as I can with my limited vision; the room begins spinning, definitely a concussion. I'm fairly certain I'm in a hospital. It's got to be the demon one, because I'm not in a freezer in the morgue. God, everything hurts. I think the last time I hurt this much I was being tortured, slowly.
"How are you feeling, Honey?" A nurse asks as she walks into my field of vision.
"Crap." I manage to spit out. My mouth feels like it's been jammed with a dirty sock.
The nurse chuckles, "I imagine you would. I'm going to give you some pain medicine, but I'm afraid I can't give you much."
"Buffy, blond girl, came in with." I ask in very stilted words.
"The vampire?" The nurse asks.
I nod and the room rewards me by tilting. I put my hand to my head. It feels hot. One of the demons must have had a poisoned blade or something that gave me a fever.
"She's going to be fine. She's still unconscious but the doctor got her patched up. She's lucky she's a vampire, not many things human or demon could live through the injuries she had." The nurse says.
"Thank you," I whisper before slipping back into unconsciousness.
*
I don't know how long I'm unconscious. I keep fading in and out. I'm not sure if it's the pain killers they keep giving me or not. I try to tell them to give me blood. If I can drink down a couple of glasses, I'll start healing. I can't wake up enough to tell them though. It doesn't matter. I'll sleep just a little while longer. Eventually I'll wake up, I'll tell them then, it's not like I could actually die from my injuries, no matter how grave they are.
*
I open my eyes. The left one seems to open a small slit at least. That's good. I'm healing a little bit. My mind is still muzzy with drugs and who knows what else. I turn my head to the right. The room doesn't spin or tilt. I'm not threatened with blackness or a sense of vertigo. Buffy is sitting in a chair next to my bed. She can't be. She was hurt worse then I was. She should still be in bed. I start to speak, to tell her this and I notice she's been crying. I feel a sickness overwhelm me. Someone must have died. Giles maybe, or Willow or Tara. I squeeze her hand. She looks up at me with liquid gray eyes. She smiles very slightly and leans forward to kiss me on the forehead.
"Morning, Sleepyhead." She whispers.
I take a deep breath. I can't smell her. The alcohol and the pain killers must be messing with my sense of smell. "Who died?" Subtle I know. I'm still not really feeling up to subtle.
She takes a deep hitching breath. "I knew there was a strong possibility. We'd talked about it the night before the battle. She was supposed to do it only if there was no hope of us winning though."
I look at her puzzled. I don't have a clue what she's talking about. Remember, the mind is still muzzy.
"Willow and Tara blew up the warehouse. They saved-everyone. They weren't supposed to though, only if we couldn't win. We were though- winning. I think. I can't remember. I remember falling and I couldn't get up. I tried, I just couldn't." her voice sounds lost. My heart breaks for her. Willow was her best friend, the person she could always count on to be on her side, the person she cried to when I left her.
I pull her fingers to my lips and kiss them. I wince at the pain it causes. She smiles weakly at me, tears glisten in her eyes. "Sorry." I say.
She shakes her head. "It-it was a good way to go. I mean world save- age, that's hero status, you know." She bites her bottom lip and swallows hard. "That's enough of that. We've got things to celebrate you know. How do you feel?"
"Everything hurts and not healing so fast." I croak.
Buffy strokes the hair at my temple and places a light kiss there. "Being human will do that to you."
-Angel-
I see her fall. I can't get to her in time. She hits the concrete floor. I see her head bounce. I cut through, literally, four demons before I manage to get to her side. I stand guard over her, killing everything that comes near her. I don't know how much longer I'll be standing though. I can't see much out of my left eye as a result of a flail smashing me in the left temple. The entire left side of my face is crusted with blood. It's possible I've got a concussion from the same blow. There's a gash that goes all the way to the bone on the right side of my collarbone. If the demon that gave that to me had been more accurate he would have cut off my head. There's a stake imbedded just to the left of my heart. There's a long slash from a sword to my thigh. The entire back of my shirt is gone and the skin underneath is a mass of claw marks.
I look over to Gunn. He looks to be in as bad a shape as I am. The fact that he's a human and still standing despite his wounds is a testament to his spirit and his courage. I am proud to be in battle with him. Giles and Wes stand back to back across the warehouse, swords in hand. They are covered in blood. I'm fairly certain they are standing back to back to hold each other up.
"Angel!" Willow's voice sounds from above. I look up. Willow and Tara are still on the catwalk. I don't see Fred. "Get Buffy and get out of here. Tara and I have enough in us for one more spell that should take care of what's left here."
I nod. I lean over and vertigo sets in. I struggle against passing out and scoop Buffy up in my arms. I make sure Wes, Giles and Gunn are all heading toward the entrance. They try to clear the way for me. A Sloth demon gets in front of me. He lunges for me. I head butt him and see stars. Blackness threatens to pour over me and I know I can't pass out. I can't drop Buffy. I stumble and someone is beside me, holding me up.
"Give her to me." I recognize Giles' voice, even though everything is to dark to see. I feel him lift Buffy's slight weight from my arms. I stumble outside the warehouse. Giles and Buffy are right behind me. I can smell them, even if I can't actually see them. The cool night air helps the blackness recede.
There is a screech of tires. Fred pulls up in my Plymouth. I wasn't even aware Fred could drive, but at the moment she's the only one not likely to pass out from loss of blood. I climb in the car. Giles hands me Buffy. I cradle her to my chest and bury my face in her hair, which is matted with blood, some of it hers and some of it demon. Giles climbs in the backseat. Wes takes the front seat.
My last conscious thought is the huge explosion as the car speeds away.
*
I catch a whiff of rubbing alcohol but it's faint. I unconsciously take a deep breath and open my eyes. Only the right one responds. The left eye is swollen shut. My vision seems blurry. There's a soft blip of surrounding machines. There's an IV in my hand. I turn my head, trying to take in as much as I can with my limited vision; the room begins spinning, definitely a concussion. I'm fairly certain I'm in a hospital. It's got to be the demon one, because I'm not in a freezer in the morgue. God, everything hurts. I think the last time I hurt this much I was being tortured, slowly.
"How are you feeling, Honey?" A nurse asks as she walks into my field of vision.
"Crap." I manage to spit out. My mouth feels like it's been jammed with a dirty sock.
The nurse chuckles, "I imagine you would. I'm going to give you some pain medicine, but I'm afraid I can't give you much."
"Buffy, blond girl, came in with." I ask in very stilted words.
"The vampire?" The nurse asks.
I nod and the room rewards me by tilting. I put my hand to my head. It feels hot. One of the demons must have had a poisoned blade or something that gave me a fever.
"She's going to be fine. She's still unconscious but the doctor got her patched up. She's lucky she's a vampire, not many things human or demon could live through the injuries she had." The nurse says.
"Thank you," I whisper before slipping back into unconsciousness.
*
I don't know how long I'm unconscious. I keep fading in and out. I'm not sure if it's the pain killers they keep giving me or not. I try to tell them to give me blood. If I can drink down a couple of glasses, I'll start healing. I can't wake up enough to tell them though. It doesn't matter. I'll sleep just a little while longer. Eventually I'll wake up, I'll tell them then, it's not like I could actually die from my injuries, no matter how grave they are.
*
I open my eyes. The left one seems to open a small slit at least. That's good. I'm healing a little bit. My mind is still muzzy with drugs and who knows what else. I turn my head to the right. The room doesn't spin or tilt. I'm not threatened with blackness or a sense of vertigo. Buffy is sitting in a chair next to my bed. She can't be. She was hurt worse then I was. She should still be in bed. I start to speak, to tell her this and I notice she's been crying. I feel a sickness overwhelm me. Someone must have died. Giles maybe, or Willow or Tara. I squeeze her hand. She looks up at me with liquid gray eyes. She smiles very slightly and leans forward to kiss me on the forehead.
"Morning, Sleepyhead." She whispers.
I take a deep breath. I can't smell her. The alcohol and the pain killers must be messing with my sense of smell. "Who died?" Subtle I know. I'm still not really feeling up to subtle.
She takes a deep hitching breath. "I knew there was a strong possibility. We'd talked about it the night before the battle. She was supposed to do it only if there was no hope of us winning though."
I look at her puzzled. I don't have a clue what she's talking about. Remember, the mind is still muzzy.
"Willow and Tara blew up the warehouse. They saved-everyone. They weren't supposed to though, only if we couldn't win. We were though- winning. I think. I can't remember. I remember falling and I couldn't get up. I tried, I just couldn't." her voice sounds lost. My heart breaks for her. Willow was her best friend, the person she could always count on to be on her side, the person she cried to when I left her.
I pull her fingers to my lips and kiss them. I wince at the pain it causes. She smiles weakly at me, tears glisten in her eyes. "Sorry." I say.
She shakes her head. "It-it was a good way to go. I mean world save- age, that's hero status, you know." She bites her bottom lip and swallows hard. "That's enough of that. We've got things to celebrate you know. How do you feel?"
"Everything hurts and not healing so fast." I croak.
Buffy strokes the hair at my temple and places a light kiss there. "Being human will do that to you."
