Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.
Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.
Rating: PG-13
Chapter 11: To hell and back
Faith glared at Spike. "You told me he'd been destroyed!"
"He was destroyed," replied Spike distractedly, finishing up the pentagram and flipping a book open. "His soul was burned clean out of his body and sent to hell while the demon was left on earth to roam free. If that's not destroyed, I don't know what is." Spike began chanting, and Faith turned back to Angel, who lay on the chair staring at them.
"He's just a soul?" she asked. "He looks...he felt more solid than just a soul."
"The chair..." groaned Angel. Faith's eyes swept over his body, naked except for a torn pair of jeans. His skin was pale as ever, but pocked and torn. His face was black and blue from blows sustained, and his eyes spoke of unimaginable pain.
She moved closer, touching his face in the only place that didn't have bruises. "It'll be okay," she promised softly. She glanced back at Spike. "Why didn't you tell Buffy?" she asked.
"I didn't know!" snapped Spike. "I'd just been dead when I went to her, all right? It wasn't till after, when Connor and I found Angelus and tried to resoul him, that we found out something was off. Anyway, she wouldn't even believe me that what we were doing in LA, Angel and I, was good."
"Was it good?" asked Faith sharply.
Spike shrugged. "Look what they've done to him for doing it!" he snapped. "All right, Angel, time to go."
"The chair..." rasped Angel. "I'll die without it."
Spike reached into a pocket, bringing out a transparent orb. "I'm really thinking not, you know," he said casually. Then he began chanting again.
Even as a red portal erupted open behind him, Angel exploded in front of him, shimmering into a thousand small points of light that rushed into the orb.
Faith stared. "Whoa," she said, her voice reverent.
"Through the portal, Slayer!" snapped Spike.
Faith dove through, with Spike hot behind her.
--
Sarah finished tying the IV above Angelus, while Connor finished chaining him down. "That ought to hold," said Connor dubiously.
Buffy watched, grimacing at the reminder of the times she'd chained Spike up. Unpleasant memories swirled thickly through the air, and she wondered if when she saw Spike again he'd start dredging it up.
She'd seen him for far too brief a time to even begin to think about the deep issues they had lying between them, and now she was staring at the other vampire who had caused her so much pain in her life.
At times like these, she wondered if maybe Faith's way wasn't smarter. Bang em, and get away from them before they can hurt you. The one time Faith had tried to deviate from the pattern, with Robin Wood, she'd ended up getting hurt.
That didn't surprise Buffy at all.
Buffy's stayed with the Immortal because he was a light fling, somebody who didn't take it seriously. A Parker, a Faith, someone who wasn't looking for eternity.
Buffy wasn't sure she believed in eternity any more. Not after all the crap she'd been through.
Connor stepped back. "When he wakes up, stay upstairs," he told both girls.
"What?" said Buffy.
"Hey!" yelled Sarah.
"He's dangerous, Sar," said Connor. "Very dangerous. Last time this happened, he escaped. And he killed. I don't want to see anything happening to you."
"I've faced Angelus before!" said Buffy angrily.
"Yeah, me too," said Connor. "This time, only Spike will deal with him. Not you, not me, and definitely not Sar."
"Oh, yeah, because Angel and Spike get on just fine!" snorted Buffy.
Connor made a face. "Things change," he advised.
"Not some things," objected Buffy. "Not Spike and Angel things."
Connor shrugged. "I'll take your word for it, I guess. I've never really actually seen the two of them together, except when we fought Angelus together—and that was weird."
"Weird?"
"Yeah, weird," said Connor. "I mean, Angelus was just dying to fight him, but Spike didn't really want to fight...and Spike always wants to fight."
"Tell me about it," muttered Buffy. "So, any chance I could call my friends, tell them about this?"
Connor glanced at her, surprised. "Not for another eight hours," he said, glancing at his watch. "It'll be over by then."
"What will?" demanded Buffy.
Lorne appeared at the top of the stairs before Connor could reply. "I have a bogey," he reported happily. "It looks like blondie bear is reentering orbit!"
"Blondie bear?" asked Buffy, confused.
"Spike," said Connor, hurrying up the stairs, Sarah right behind him. "Get the rest of the equipment ready, we've got to do this fast, before any more operatives can find us."
Lorne grinned. "All spell equipment is ready to roll, and then you guys can finally get off my doorstep. Hey, is that leather pants he's wearing?"
Connor brushed by him, followed by Sarah and Buffy. "Spike's back?" asked Buffy.
"He'll come out right where we did," said Connor shortly. "It should take a few minutes for him to show up."
"Is Faith with him?" asked Buffy.
"No way of knowing," apologized the green-skinned demon beside her. "But the spell we got ready to bring him home was used."
Then the door leading outside was slammed open, and Spike ran through, Faith on his heels. "Got it!" he yelled.
Buffy jumped, staring at them both. "Faith!" she said, surprised.
Faith glowered at Spike, huffing and panting as if they'd run all the way from the portal. "Idiot," she gasped, leaning over and putting her hands on her knees.
Buffy crossed to Faith's side, putting a hand on her back. "You okay?" she asked quietly.
"That vampire of yours, he's a great psychiatrist," cracked Faith. "Terrific, really."
Connor took a glowing orb from Spike. "Great!" he said, his face lighting up. "How'd it go?"
Spike shrugged. "They were weaker than I'd thought," he said darkly.
"Crap!" said Connor, his face darkening.
"Crap? Why crap?" asked Buffy. "Weak is good, isn't it?"
"That means most of their army is still here on earth, looking for us," said Connor. "With two interdimensional rifts in a row, in the same place, they're going to be all over us very soon." He glanced to Spike, who took a deep breath.
"You got him?" he asked.
"Downstairs," replied Connor. "Drugged to the gills. Lorne and I will get right on top of the magic. You ready to do your thing?"
Spike took a deep breath, taking his duster off and tossing it on top of a chair. "You gotta keep the Slayers up here. They're not going to like this part," he said roughly, turning and heading for the stairs.
Buffy moved fast, cutting him off. "Whoa!" she said, her face twitching as she came face to face with him. "What are we not going to like?"
Faith was upright too, following Buffy. "Yeah," she said simply, her voice hoarse.
Connor moved closer. "Look, it's got to be done, and we're going to do it. You can fight us if you want to, but you can't win, not against both of us."
"I beg to differ," said Buffy sharply. She glared at Connor. "You're strong, and you're fast, but I beat Angelus, back in the day, and I can take you, too."
Connor stared at her, thinking about it. "Okay, maybe," he allowed. "Lorne?"
Lorne sighed, moving forward with a fake smile on his face. "All right, girls, why don't we all go downstairs and say hi to our guest? And then Spike will start the show, and I'll explain the difficult bits, and maybe we can get this all done before the army of demons arrives, and I can get out of here before we all die."
Buffy glared at him. "But we aren't going to like it?" she asked.
"I can explain," said Lorne smoothly. "It's a lengthy explanation, one that...well, you'll have to see it first."
Spike took a deep breath, stepping around Buffy. "Not like it's my idea, not this time!" he growled, stumbling down the steps. At the bottom he leaned over, snagging a knife out of a cardboard box, along with a book.
Buffy stared at Angelus as she followed Spike, Faith close behind her. "Spike, what are you—?" Her question was cut off when he slashed the knife across Angelus' chest, waking the older vampire up.
Angelus gave a roar of anger, pulling against his chains.
"Hello, gramps," said Spike with satisfaction. "Time to play."
Buffy started forward, her hands forming into fists. Lorne darted in front of her, and for a moment his horns and green skin almost got him Slayed.
"Now, this part is absolutely necessary for the spell!" said Lorne nervously and loudly, stepping back, clearly getting some of those Slayer vibes. "The spell won't work without the pattern of cuts on his chest!"
"What spell?!" growled Faith angrily, staring at the demon.
Spike glanced back at her. "Duh," he said angrily. "You just saw me collect his soul."
"Angel's soul? Connor said it was destroyed?" said Buffy, confused.
"Burned out and sent to hell," said Spike shortly, slashing another precise line across Angelus' chest.
"Willie, don't do this!" begged Angelus. "Please, just stake me! Not this, not again!"
"Yes, again!" snarled Spike angrily. He glanced back at Faith and Buffy. "Either of you think you can do a better job, you're welcome to it!" he snarled. Then he made another cut.
"You're trying to resoul Angel," said Faith, her voice suddenly very soft. Buffy stared down at Spike, remembering how he'd drawn the picture of Angel to tape over the punching bag to hit.
"Imagine that," chuckled Spike.
Connor came down the stairs, carrying a box. "The candles are burning, but I think we're running out of time!" he said urgently.
"Where's Sarah?" asked Spike.
"I sent her back home," said Connor shortly. "She's gone. Spike, finish it up!"
Spike began methodically carving into the older vampire, and Buffy felt Faith go rigid beside her. Connor continued, emptying his box and beginning to put together spell ingredients.
"Lorne, I'm lost," said the teenager. "You still have those witches on speed dial?"
"I got it," said Lorne uneasily.
Angelus howled, pulling against his chains. "You can't do this!" he screamed.
Spike gagged him with a rag. "I've got it done," he said shortly, finishing the design with a series of short strokes. "Do we have any good news yet?"
Lorne began chanting, a melodic chant. Connor looked up at the Slayers, both of whom were staring at Angelus tensely.
Spike turned around, facing the Slayers, and threw the knife to the ground. "Phone," he said shortly. Connor tossed him a cell phone, which he opened quickly, dialing. "Soldier-boy? Yeah, Spike. Oh, they said that? I have Buffy and Faith here, and an army of demons on the way. You traced the call yet? Good, get your army butts down here. And you can kill me yourself if you think I deserve it."
He glanced to Buffy and Faith, dropping the phone without bothering to turn it off. "Happy now?" he asked sarcastically.
"A long way from it," said Faith shortly.
"But getting there," said Buffy quietly. "How long has this been going on? Why didn't you tell me about this, Spike?"
Spike set his jaw. "Because you wouldn't help before!" he snapped.
"You wouldn't even tell me what you'd been doing in LA, or how long you'd been there!" yelled Buffy. "You lied to me at least once!"
"He lied?" asked Faith.
"He said he didn't know I was in Italy, or how to get in touch with me, and that's why he hadn't called. But Andrew told me...you knew where I was, you even came to my house once!" Buffy spat.
Spike reeled backwards, as he'd been hit. "You...you knew? Andrew told you?" he asked, his voice pathetic.
"Of course Andrew told me!" Buffy seethed. "You lied to me when you claimed to be coming to me for help, and you want me to just trust you about your association with an evil company of lawyers?"
"I never said just trust..." said Spike softly.
"But you never told me anything about it!" snarled Buffy. "Not one word, Spike! I asked, and I asked, and I asked! I was ready to trust you, Spike! I was ready to help you! But you wouldn't talk about it!"
"It was hell!" yelled Spike.
Connor moved in front of Spike. "Stop it. Now," he ordered, turning his back on the ex-vampire to face the two Slayers. "Both of you, knock it off. There'll be time to argue and fight later. There's an army of demons out there hunting for Spike, and now they're after dad too. They'll find us, sooner than later, and I want to be finished this before they're back."
Lorne finished chanting, and Angelus began to glow. He screamed, rocking back and forth against the chains holding, the cuts across his chest glowing with a red light, the blood dripping down his chest sizzling against him.
"What are you doing to him?!" demanded Faith, stepping forward.
"Something permanent," snarled Spike.
Lorne got up. "Well, the rest doesn't need a lot of supervision," he said nervously. "Ciao." He practically ran up the stairs, and a moment later the door slammed as he made his retreat.
Connor sighed, turning back to Angelus. "How're you doing?" he asked.
"It hurts!" snapped Angelus. "How does it look like I'm doing? I'm on fire, and you're—oh, God!"
His head snapped back, and he began gasping for air.
"Unchain im," said Spike.
"What?" said Connor.
"It's nearly over," said Spike. "I know this bit."
Angelus' head snapped forward, and his face transformed into his demonic visage. "Spike..." he groaned.
"And, that's mister grumpy," grumbled Spike. "All souled up. Come on, unchain him."
Connor hesitated. "Are you sure?" he asked.
Angel slowly transformed back into human face, gazing up at Connor and Spike with a bittersweet glare. "You got me back," he whispered.
"Yeah, how about that?" asked Spike. "You can thank us later. Unchain him! They're coming!"
Then Buffy heard a noise at the top of the stairs and turned, looking up. A demon stood there, all red skin, scales, horns and claws. "They're down here!" he bellowed.
Connor grabbed Angel's chains, searching for the lock. "Who's got the key?" he asked.
"I don't have it," grumbled Spike, staring at the demon at the top of the stairs. "All right, Slayers. I hope you came armed."
The demon launched itself down the stairs, but Faith was ready and kicked it back, staggering back from the impact, while Buffy launched herself at its head, swinging at it with a well-aimed kick that sent the huge demon staggering back.
Connor shook his head, pulling at the chains and kicking the IV away from Angel. "And we've drugged him!" he complained.
Spike advanced to the foot of the stairs, where more demons were coming down, greeting them with a frenetic attack, arms and legs swirling in violent motions.
Buffy and Faith continued to tag team the first demon, Buffy finally getting it in a headlock and snapping its neck before turning and running at the demons swarming down the stairs.
Connor managed to break a link in the chains, pulling Angel free and leaping up, over Spike and Buffy's head, landing among the other demons and spinning into action.
Faith moved to Angel's side. "Hey, big guy," she said as he struggled to his feet.
"I don't feel so good," he admitted, still a bit dizzy.
She turned and smashed a fist into the face of a demon that had been approaching them. "Yeah, you look even worse," she said. "So, I heard you'd gone all evil and stuff. What's up with that?"
Angel managed a glare, leaning back against the wall. "Did...not."
"I thought he'd gone," snarled Spike, dodging back out of the fray. "Taking up with the lawyers, taking up with the bloody Circle of the Black Thorn. Turns out he was good the whole time, and put an end to the biggest circle of baddies ever! Of course, I finished the Senior Partners."
"You what?" asked Angel.
"Burned their dimension to ashes!" hissed Spike. "Tell me that's not fun, eh?"
"Fun?" demanded Angel, irked by this.
Buffy glanced back, not surprised to see them arguing.
"Oh, come on, old man!" said Spike. "I did what you wanted, didn't I?"
Angel sighed, nodding. "Thanks, Spike," he said finally. "Although I really could have done without the drugs."
Spike snorted, shaking his head. "Yeah, but Angelus is a right prick, and I didn't want to deal with it," he replied. He moved forward, grabbing Angel by the shoulder. "Hey, time to get out here."
He moved towards the stairs, helping Angel stand. Buffy glanced back, and froze at the sight of Spike moving forward, Angel's arm over his shoulder. It was one of the most unexpected and unnatural things she'd ever seen.
"Clear the stairs!" yelled Spike, and Faith charged forward, past Buffy, and began kicking the demons off the stairs.
Spike snagged his duster on the way to the stairs, while Connor and the Slayers pushed the fight back up the stairs and into the rest of the house.
That's when the sound of automatic weapon fire filled the small house. "Soldiers are here!" reported Connor, falling back. "Yo, Slayers! Try to make sure they don't shoot us, huh? That's just unpleasant."
Angel groaned as Riley Finn appeared at the head of the stairs. "Of all the people to rescue me, it had to be Riley and Spike," he groaned. "This feels a lot more like hell than hell did."
Spike snorted at the confused look on Riley's face. "I told you I was gonna rock the place," he said.
Riley shook his head. "I found them!" he yelled. "In the basement!"
Xander moved up behind Riley, holding a rifle. "Spike? Angelus?" he said. "Buffy! Faith! That's Angelus, not Angel! And we couldn't put his soul back in!" He leveled the rifle at Angel, whose eyes widened.
"Calm down!" said Faith, moving in front of Angel. "It's okay, Xander. Spike got his soul back."
Xander shook his head. "What?" he asked, confused.
Buffy hurled another demon to the ground, glowering at everybody there. "Are there more demons outside?" she asked.
"We have Slayers and soldiers dealing with it," replied Xander, slowly lowering his rifle. "He's...I can't deal with this. Can anybody else deal with this?" Nobody answered him. "Fine. Great. Riley, can we get out of here now? I'd like to debrief my Slayer."
"Your Slayer?" asked Angel weakly. "What?"
"He's my Watcher," said Faith. Angel turned his head, staring at her.
"He's your...Watcher?" he repeated, baffled. "I guess...things have really changed, huh?"
Xander shrugged. "Can we go?"
Connor shook his head, moving to the top of the stairs. "Let's just get one thing straight. We're not prisoners, we're not bad guys, and we're not going to be pushed around. Spike and I have worked with you, and if you want to just drag us away..." He glared around the room. "Well, between the three of us, we can take you all."
Angel lifted his eyebrows. "Uh, I'm convinced," he said weakly.
Xander scowled at him. "You know what? Screw you. You can stay here for all I care." He glanced to Buffy, a bit uncertainly.
Buffy sighed, glancing to Faith. "Is the demon army gone?" she asked Riley, turning.
"Um, yes," he replied.
"Can we have a minute?" she asked, pleading with him with her eyes, trying to will him to walk away.
Riley frowned. "This is...okay. Yeah, sure."
Xander frowned, handing his rifle to Riley. "I want to be here for this," he said shortly.
"Xander..." Buffy started, but Faith put a hand on her arm.
"Okay," said Faith.
Riley moved back. "I'll just...tell the others," he said lamely, moving away.
Xander shifted nervously. Faith turned back to him. "Why are you here?" she asked.
"When Riley said what he'd heard...I thought you might be here. Might be back," said Xander quickly. "And, you know..."
"I know," said Faith, turning back to Spike and Angel. "And I'm also really ready for an explanation."
Spike scowled back at her, tightening his grip around Angel's waist.
