A/N: I'm at work and I'm a little pissy 'cause I just
spent the last several hours trying (and hopefully succeeding) to
delete a virus/trojan from my comp, and I feel the urge to fic to
relieve stress. Thus, you get more obsesso!verse. Unbetaed, so point
out mistakes and I'll fix them.
WARNING: Character death inside. It's inevitable. I tried to fight it but someone has to die. Plus I'm pissy right now so I wanna kill someone off.
Willow whirled around to face him. Xander stood in the doorway of the bedroom, leaning against the frame. To an outside observer, he appeared relaxed and confident. To Willow, he looked like a complete stranger.
"I'm taking Spike with me." Willow said firmly, "You can't keep him here like this. It's wrong."
Xander smiled and shook his head. "I knew you wouldn't understand. You think I'm sick, that I'm obsessed. But you're wrong." He pushed away from the door frame and stepped toward her. She hastily took a step back. "I love Spike and he loves me. I'm gonna take care of him."
She waved her hand at the bed. "This is love to you?" She demanded, her voice rising with anger. "This isn't love, Xander. This is force! You can't force someone to stay with you!"
"I can." Xander replied calmly, "And I will if I have to."
Tears were brimming in her eyes as she looked at the monster her friend has become. "Why are you doing this, Xan?"
Xander stopped, and Willow watched as pain swept over his face. "I can't lose him." Xander admitted, voice quieter and hurting. "When I saw him try to kill himself, I knew that I would die without him." Dark brown eyes met hers, vulnerable and as close to tears as her own. "I can't lose him, Wills."
Willow's heart went out to him, but she kept her guard up. "I know. But you can't keep him chained up. It's not right."
Xander's eyes turned cold. "And it's right to let him die?" he said gravely. She opened her mouth to object, but he cut her off. "No. I won't let him die, not if I can help it. Not if I can help him."
"You aren't helping him." Willow said sadly. "You're just killing him in a different way."
"No!" Xander shouted angrily, and Willow cringed. "You're lying! I am helping him!"
"Xander..." Willow said, stepping forward and extending a hand to placate him.
"SHUT UP!" Xander screamed, his hand a blur as he slapped her. Willow fell to the floor, one of her hands coming up to cradle her stinging cheek as tears streamed down her face. Mentally, she began chanting a spell. "You don't know anything! I love Spike and I know what's best for him!"
His anger evaporated when he realized that he'd actually struck Willow. "Oh my god." he sobbed, falling to his knees beside her. "God, I'm so sorry Wills." She allowed him to pull her into his arms, and for a moment they clung together and cried. "I never wanted to hurt you." he whispered into her hair, "But I can't let you take him away from me."
"I know." Willow murmured. "I'm sorry too." She touched the back of his neck with her fingertips, and said the last word of her spell. "Sleep." Xander's body slumped in her arms, and she carefully laid him on the floor, misery wracking her body. She kissed his cheek and hugged him one last time. "I pray that you forgive me some day."
Closing his nose with one hand, she covered his mouth with the other. The sleep spell kept him from fighting back, and after a few feeble jerks Xander's body stilled again. Slowly Willow removed her hands.
Spike whimpered on the bed, and Willow left Xander's side to administer to the vampire. "Spike?" she called again, "Can you hear me?"
Spike's eyes had gained some lucidity, and he was able to focus on her. "Red?" he moaned, voice harsh and ragged.
"Yes, it's me." She looked around, spotting the silver key on the floor where she'd dropped it. "Don't worry. I'll have you out of those chains in a jiffy."
"No, Red. Please..." Spike coughed, and Willow touched his shoulder, not sure how to offer him comfort. "Please stake me." he finally managed to say, eyes pleading with her.
"Are you sure that's what you want?" The nod was small but it was unmistakable. "Okay, Spike. I will." She retrieved a stake from her purse, and positioned it over Spike's heart. "Goodbye, Spike." she said, tears beginning to fall again.
"Thank you." Spike breathed as he dissolved into dust.
Sniffling, Willow wiped her face on her sleeve and began to pack her things. Slinging Xander's arm over her shoulder, she managed to half carry, half-drag him to her car. She drove him to Wethersfield Park, where there was a pack of Ocalo demons hiding out in a cave that Buffy had on her list to go after tonight. She laid Xander's body at the mouth of the cave and then retreated to a safe distance. When the first claw ripped into what used to be her best friend, she turned and walked away.
The next day when Buffy told her that Xander had been captured and killed by a pack of demons, she didn't have to fake her grief.
Before what was left of the Scooby Gang was scheduled to clean out Xander's apartment, Willow did a quick sweep just to make sure there was no other evidence of un-Xandery behavior hidden around. The Spike-box she took with her, and burned the contents. She took the shoe-box of soda can tabs with her as well, and hid it in her own closet.
There were some things that it was better that Buffy, Giles, and Tara didn't know. Let them remember Xander as the great and funny guy that Willow used to know, the way he deserved to be remembered. Willow would keep the memory of the man-turned-monster and the monster-turned-man to herself, and in the process shelter her friends from the burden to the truth.
After all, she was Xander's best friend.
The End.
A/N: Okay, now I'm less pissy and more depressed. Feel free to flame me for the horrid ending, 'cause I'll still get a happy that you took the time to read it and write me a nasty comment.