That's Gotta Hurt
"This is so of the bad. Hold on Willow, I'll be right back." Rising, Xander walked out the now splintered doorframe and looked over the railing into the open foyer one floor below. Well, not exactly over the railing. Spike had slammed Angelus right through it; now it was just a bunch of wood splinters.
Below the house was erupting in chaos. Vampires, mages, servants and even humans were pouring out of doorways and through hallways towards the sound of breaking vases and the inhuman growl of vampire demons.
Looking down, Xander watched as Spike grabbed Angelus by the collar and swung him into a priceless piece of artwork, ripping the picture and destroying the gold frame. He shook his head, hopping that Spike had money to pay for everything he was breaking.
From the corner of his eye he saw Darres and the mages exit a room across the hall. Darres looked neither thrilled nor upset about the goings on downstairs, so Xander had to figure this sort of thing happened a lot here.
Glancing over his shoulder he looked at his best friend, now sleeping peacefully in the large bed. The color was returning to her cheeks, and even from a distance Xander could tell she was feeling better. It wasn't lost on him that it was Angelus's blood that had helped her. He wasn't quite sure what the big deal was, but he was sure that if it had something to do with Spike and Angelus's relationship, Spike would make much too much of a deal out of it.
Sighing, he turned to look back down at the fight below. Maybe it was his military training, or maybe he was just watching the fight closer than most, but he could easily tell that Angelus wasn't putting much effort into this fight.
Every time Spike struck, Angelus blocked, and whenever an opening revealed itself in Spike's defense, the Irishman refused to deliver the punch. They were dancing a dance of death, only Spike was too blinded by rage to see that he was the only one really fighting anyone; Angelus was only defending himself.
Even the masks they wore belied the truth. Spike was in full game face, fangs bared, hands like claws; ripping and tearing. But Angel's face was still human, his face a mixture of concentration and internal suffering.
Shaking his head, Xander turned to take the staircase down into the arena. Angel was throwing the fight because he didn't want to anger Spike, and Spike wasn't throwing a single bunch because he was too blinded by rage to realize he was fighting his GrandSire. Oh, this was such a royal mess; just one big, huge, misunderstanding. Willow was so going to get a kick out of this when she woke up.
A firm hand fell onto his shoulder, preventing him from moving forward another step, while a soft female voice whispered into his ear. "Perhaps the balcony seats are safer for you for the time being my Little Seer. We wouldn't want anything to happen to you."
Smiling, Xander nodded his head. "Good point, for the first time, my clothes actually look like something out of J. Crew instead of Kmart. On the other hand, they're wrecking your house which I'm pretty sure isn't a good thing."
Elizabeth smiled at him, and circled his shoulders as the staircase shook under the impact of Angelus into the support beam. "Don't trouble yourself about my home, I've been meaning to redecorate anyway. It's not often that we get to witness a fight quite like this. I'm curious as to who's actually going to win." As they approached the railing, she leaned against it, releasing him. "If I were a betting woman, I'd put my purse on Angelus, however, he doesn't seem to be fighting with as much…conviction as I've seen him do so in the past." She turned to look him over. "I wonder how much of that has to do with you, Seer?"
Taking the last step, Xander too leaned against the railing, watching as Spike pulled back and punched Angelus in the face, spraying blood across the white Oriental rug. "If it were up to me, Angelus would have put Spike into a vacuum cleaner a long time ago, but it wasn't meant to be. Now Willow's in love with him, and he's off the Dirtdevil's most wanted. On the other hand, I wouldn't mind knocking some sense into him." Shrugging his shoulders, he turned his back to the railing and rested his elbows against it, turning to smile at the White Queen.
With a little chuckle, Elizabeth turned, leaning her hip against the banister and gifting him with her undivided attention. "This child, Willow, tell me about her."
Nodding, he ran a hand through his hair, tousling it further as another vase broke below them. "She's amazing. She's light where everything else is dark; she's calm when everything around her is chaos. Willow's saved me more times than I ever really noticed until she wasn't there to save me anymore."
"How?" Elizabeth interrupted. "How could that waif of a girl cause so much trouble? To shun a Slayer, to get a Master to fall in love with her, to have another Master chasing her around the world, and somehow wind up a Queen of all things?"
He smiled, let the situation reveal itself in his smile. "Willow's amazing. She's been ignored for so long, now that people are looking at her, she glows." He glanced over his shoulder at the fight. "Look down there," he said, indicating the now tiring fighters. "They fight because one of them loves her, and because the other one needs her. They fight because of Willow, but they'll stop fighting for the same reason." He shrugged when he saw Elizabeth hanging on his words. "It's not really something I can explain. Spend ten minutes with Willow. Ten minutes with her and you'll know you're in the presence of someone unlike anyone else in the world."
Over the sound of breaking glass, Elizabeth stated the obvious. "You're in love with her."
He glanced at her, and then looked down at his bare feet, before looking at the empty wall before him and nodding. "Spend ten minutes with her and you will be to; she has that effect on people." He turned towards her then, realizing suddenly that she was a very small woman--she barely came up to his shoulder. "The important thing is, I know my place with Willow. I'm the best friend, and a few months ago, I let her down. That won't happen again." He smiled, "We all have our part to play in this, I know my part, do you know yours?"
She smiled then, blood red lips parting to reveal snow-white teeth. "But of course, Seer, I'd be a fool if I didn't, and I am anything but a fool." With a nod she turned and ascended the stairs until she was standing before the destroyed banister. With an adorable smile she sat down on the landing and threw her legs over the side, watching the fight wind down below.
Shaking his head, Xander leaned over the banister and yelled into the crowd. "Hey Spike, seen any good movies lately?"
The move worked. Unbalanced by the interruption, the blond fumbled and swung hard but too high. The force spun him, and Angelus quickly locked both of his arms behind his back.
Enraged, Spike thrashed, doing his best to upend Angelus and drive his elbow into his Sire's gut. But the battle was over, both participants were exhausted, and despite Spike's best efforts, he couldn't break free from Angel's hold.
That's when the clapping started.
All eyes lifted to the second story as Elizabeth--her dress flittering on the wind from the shattered windows, sat clapping, a large smile on her face. "That was brilliant, both of you. I do hope you're feeling ever so much better, I know I am. Male aggression is such a joy to watch when you're bored, don't you agree?" Her smile continued but as Xander watched, Spike's demeanor grew darker by the second, and Angelus didn't seem much happier.
Pushing away from the banister, Xander covered the remaining steps to the landing and waited, catching Angel's eye before looking up at the now rising Queen. He could hear Spike growling low in his throat as Elizabeth rose and turned, going to Willow's open door before graspping the door handle. She threw a wicked smile over her shoulder before silently pulling the door closed; and with the attention of the entire room, she walked purposefully down the stairs before crossing the entranceway to stand before the still restrained Spike.
Her smile disappeared when she fixed her gaze on Angelus. "Let him go."
For one long moment, Angel hesitated. Xander understood, if he let Spike go, odds were the younger vampire would rush the Queen, and since he'd traveled a long way to reunite with Spike, watching his Childe dusted probably wasn't very high on his "Things to See in Rome" list. But when Elizabeth's cool eyes fell again on his, Angelus had no choice but to release Spike's arms.
To the surprise of everyone in the room, Spike fell to one knee before the Queen, his human mask slipping back into place. When he spoke, his voice was soft and filled with respect. "I beg your forgiveness Elizabeth, White Queen of Rome, for not announcing my visit earlier. Circumstances beyond my control prevented me from coming to pay my respects."
Xander was in total shock. Where was the growling, fighting, yelling Spike of just a moment ago? Behind the prostrating blond, Angelus was still a multitude of cuts and bruises, but Spike was calm and collected, waiting patiently for the word to rise.
Something was up.
Taking the Queen's continued silence as a cue, Xander made his way over to stand beside Angelus. His partner touched his lower back briefly, rubbing his thumb along the muscles a few times before pulling away to stand ready.
As he looked, Elizabeth cocked her head. "Well now, I was prepared to thoroughly punish you, William, but it seems you've found a way to weasel out of that--don't you always though? Oh well, another time then, for now I believe we have a little matter to discuss over a bottle of Blood Wine." She looked up at Angelus. "You'll join us of course, and your companion too; I have a feeling there is much we all have to discuss." She indicated Spike should rise, before walking to stand before her dark haired chief of security. "Darres, show William to the second floor so that he can check on his mate, then direct him to the library. I want you to stand guard over the girl, and at the first sign of distress you're to send word. Under no circumstance are you to leave her unguarded, do you understand?"
Darres nodded as Spike walked to the bottom of the staircase, eager to reunite with Willow. "It will be done, my Queen."
"Thank you, Darres." She looked over her shoulder. "Angelus, Xander, this way please, we'll await William in the library." And with that, she walked away.
Sighing, Xander watched Darres and Spike ascend the staircase before he turned to offer Angel a watery smile. "That went well, I think."