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 15: New days
Faith shot forward, raising her hand to hit Drusilla. Before she could get there Drusilla's head snapped up, and the insane vampire let out a howl of pain.
Spike lifted his head off Drusilla's shoulder, glancing back at Faith. "What, you thought I'd just walk into the arms of an insane vampire who still had fangs?" He lifted his right hand, cradling Drusilla's head. "It'll wear off in just a second, luv," he murmured.
"You…you had them stick a chip in her head?" asked Faith, astounded.
"It was the only way this was going to work," replied Spike. "She put the guards in thrall at least once a day, and if she'd been able to hurt them, we'd have had a body count higher than I can count." He smiled, stroking Drusilla's cheek. "My dark princess can't be kept in a cage for very long, can she?" he asked.
Faith snorted, moving to the wall and leaning against it. "And they still chain her up and drug her?"
"Just the chip alone wouldn't do it," replied Spike. "She's got such strength in her that she could have escaped, or killed them, even with a chip." He grinned at the dark-haired vampire, who smiled back at him, her features morphing back into human form.
"I don't want the dubious gifts you offer," sighed Drusilla. "You subvert the stars, and force blood to run uphill. I don't want it."
Spike wrapped his arms tightly around the vampire. "If you don't you'll be trapped here, in this half-life!" he whispered. "Destroyed by your own power. I don't want to leave you here, like this!"
Faith shook her head. "You're a hoot," she said dryly.
"What do you want?" asked Spike coldly.
"I couldn't find Angel," said Faith. "I know you guys are planning on leaving soon, and I want to go with you."
"Abandon your other slayers?" asked Spike, surprised.
Drusilla pulled lightly against the chains binding her, causing them to clank. "Silly girl is burned by her heart," she said, giggling.
"Hey, a little less advice from the crazy vamp," grumbled Faith. She carefully brushed some of her hair out of her eyes, watching the vampire and ex-vampire closely. "Well? You guys gonna try to stop me from going with you?"
Spike sighed deeply, letting go of Drusilla and standing up. "I don't think you really understand what comes next," he complained.
"What? You go fight more demons? Maybe another army of demons?" asked the dark-haired Slayer. "I want in on that."
Spike turned away angrily. "You have no idea!" he snarled. He took a deep breath, trying to calm down. "Can't blame you for wanting to ditch Harris," he noted.
Faith took a pack of cigarettes out of her pocket. She tapped it against her palm, freeing one, and brought it to her lips. As she replaced the pack in her pocket Spike grudgingly offered her his lighter, flicking it on in front of her face.
She leaned forward, dangling the tip of the cigarette in the flame and inhaling sharply. "Take it easy, you act this nice all the time and I might think you cared," she grumbled, stung by his words about Xander and about ready to hit him for them.
Spike shrugged, pushing the lighter into his jeans pocket. "There's a bunch of higher powers and demons out there looking to finish the job they already started on us," he noted. "But that's just icing on the cake for you, inn't it?"
She managed a half-hearted grin.
Spike shook his head. "I'm gonna hate myself for this in the morning," he groaned, shaking his head. He took a deep breath, savoring the smell of cigarette smoke.
"What?" asked Faith tightly.
Spike folded his arms over his chest. "Look, Harris is an annoying git, and I don't like him, okay?" he asked. Faith's eyes narrowed. "You want to make the moves on him, right?"
Faith glared at him, not speaking. Spike waited for a beat, then continued. "First thing, just tell him how you feel. I bet he has no idea you've been letting this eat you up. Clear the air."
She glared at him. "And you're an expert on clearing the air, suddenly. You've barely even spoken to Buffy, and you tried to rape her!"
Spike grabbed the cigarette out of her mouth with a sudden snakelike flick of his wrist, stuck it in his own mouth and took a greedy drag. "I thought you quit," sneered Faith.
"For this conversation, I'm unquitting," said Spike harshly.
"My dark knight's afraid," murmured Drusilla. "Scared out of his wits by flowers."
"She's right," said Spike, laughing. "I'm too much a coward to take my own advice."
Faith glowered at Spike, grabbing the cigarette away from him with a quick movement, stuffing it back between her lips angrily. "And now you want me to be brave, do what you can't?" she asked, mocking him.
"Where am I?" asked Spike. Faith gave him odd look, and he gave an aggrieved sigh. "In relationship to Buffy, I mean. Right now. I'm outside, aren't I? Not inside. Not near her. If you're a coward like me, that's where you'll be to Xander. Outside. Away. Maybe even running away."
Faith glowered at him. Drusilla stood up, turning around and twisting. "Nasty Slayer doesn't want to hear," she said, her voice traveling up a scale melodically. "Nasty Slayer just wants to run some more."
Faith glared at the vampire, still angry at Spike. She glanced back at him, meeting his blue eyes with her angry gaze. "You lied to me before," she spat.
"I never lied," he said. "I just… prodded." He shifted uncomfortable, aware that he'd hurt her before, when he'd deceived her. "I needed to get it done. It got done," he said, all too aware that he was only digging himself a deeper grave.
Drusilla giggled. "Now our Willie's done it, hasn't he?" she asked.
Faith sighed, folding her arms together over her chest. "Do we have to have this conversation in front of Hannibal Lectra here?" she asked irritably.
Spike shrugged. "We can go outside," he suggested, referring to Dawn's earlier command to go outside and hit each other.
Faith scowled at him. She was trying awfully hard to stay mad at him, but when he wasn't trying to be irritating he could be easier to get along with than anybody else she knew.
Or maybe that was just because he was a lot like her, ruled by his impulses and a little darker than the Scoobies. It certainly didn't hurt.
Spike spoke again, his low drawl making the words a seductive growl. "Or we could go back to my room," he suggested, raising an eyebrow.
"Ugh," said Faith.
"Ugh?" said Spike, an eyebrow shooting up. "Not the usual reaction, love, I can assure you."
"That's why Xander was mad. He thought I was sleeping with you," said Faith.
Spike laughed, throwing his head back. Faith scowled. "I don't see the humor," she said frostily.
"Bit sensitive to these things, our Xander is," said Spike, his head coming back forward. "Since I slept with Buffy, but more since I slept with Anya."
"You slept with the scary demon girl?" asked Faith, a smile twitching at her mouth.
"And you slept with Xander, and Buffy's boy toy," said Spike, ticking them off on his fingers. "That silly bint was right. Xander and I are the only ones that haven't slept together yet."
Faith laughed then, despite her earlier promise to herself that she would remain in a sour mood no matter what he said. "There's one I'd pay to see," she said.
Spike grimaced, glancing to Drusilla, who simply raised an eyebrow. "Much fun as it was calling him a nummy treat, I doubt that's going to happen," Spike assured her.
"My Spoike is all noble now," said Drusilla. "Doesn't have time for the baser pleasures of life."
"I have plenty of time!" protested Spike. "Really!"
"What's this?" asked Faith, even more amused. Her earlier bad mood was all but forgotten now. "Didn't you tell Buffy you'd moved on?"
"How'd you know that?" asked Spike.
Faith shrugged. "Maybe B has a big mouth?" she offered meekly.
"And maybe you were listening in?" asked Spike, grinning.
Faith shook her head. "Nah, I just heard B and Dawn talking about it earlier. They were in some heated discussion, apparently spurred because both you and Angel told her you'd moved on."
Spike scowled. "The poofter told her that? The idiot! Doesn't he see this is his big chance? I tried to tell him that last night…" His face fell with the sudden realization. "And he tried to tell me the same thing," he finished lamely, making the mental connections that had been shorted out before.
"But you haven't slept with anyone since B?" asked Faith, refusing to be sidetracked.
"There was Harmony!" protested Spike.
"And you slept with her?" asked Faith.
Spike scuffed his toe against the metal floor. "Well, we didn't get that far," he hedged. "But I would have."
"And…?" prompted Faith, the smile around her mouth flickering.
"I had to seduce Dru to capture her!" shot Spike quickly.
"But all you did was kiss me, and you didn't even mean it," purred Drusilla, enjoying his discomfort as much as Faith was.
"So you've been living celibate in memory of Buffy, huh?" asked Faith.
"No!" Growled Spike angrily. "No!" He thought about it for a second, glaring angrily at Faith. "I've been going through a dry spell," he said shortly. "That's all. I'll meet a girl I want to do some time, and then…" Spike's voice trailed off slowly as he realized his error.
"You haven't wanted any girls since Buffy?" asked Faith, savoring the moment as Spike's angry face slowly melted away to be replaced by an utterly miserable face.
"More or less, yeah," he admitted. Faith felt a slight twinge of remorse, but ignored it. She felt she'd earned this one after the callous way he'd manipulated her in hell.
"Well, maybe someone should tell her that," said Faith speculatively, striking a pose and touching one finger to the side of her mouth.
"Don't be daft," growled Spike. "Then somebody's be bound to tell Xander how you feel."
Faith snorted. "You wouldn't," she said confidently.
Spike raised one eyebrow.
"How evil," sighed Drusilla, sinking back to the floor and wrapping her arms around her knees.
--
Xander and Giles entered Riley's office silently, slipping in the open door and closing it behind them. Riley, engrossed with the paperwork on his desk, didn't hear them come in.
Xander smiled mischievously, moving closer before clearing his throat. Riley started, looking up in surprise. "Xander," he said, letting out a sigh of relief. "Giles. Is something wrong?"
"We're getting ready to move our Slayers back to their respective postings now that the crisis has ended," said Giles. "We were hoping that you could help us with transportation."
Riley frowned, leaning back in his seat. "Well, of course," he said, smiling at them.
"And we'd like custody of Drusilla," added Giles.
Riley frowned. "Well, well, well," he murmured. He turned away from them, making a show of stroking his chin.
He'd been prepared to offer them custody of Drusilla, but he wasn't sure why they'd asked for custody. Earlier Giles had said that the vampire's visions gave them an edge, and he supposed that was at least a part of it.
"I guess there's no problem with that," he said, turning back. "You certainly have the firepower to hold her. Is there anything else?"
"Angel will be coming with us," said Giles.
Xander cleared his throat. "As a 'guest,'" he said, making quote marks with his fingers. "Until we're entirely sure we can trust him again."
"I see," said Riley, surprised.
Xander nodded seriously, glancing to Giles. Giles frowned slightly, but nodded his agreement. "Do you know where Spike and Connor will be going?" asked Giles.
"I don't think they're leaving together," said Riley carefully.
Actually, he did know. He knew that Connor was already gone, and he was pretty sure he knew what Spike was going to do next. But he kept his face impassive.
He hadn't told Angel, and he wasn't going to tell them. It was none of their business.
--
Sam was writing up her reports on the sensor bundles that Connor had been carrying into hell when Spike snuck up behind her and tapped her on the shoulder. She let out a yelp, nearly dropping the pad in her hands.
Spike grinned as the tall brunette turned to face him. She mock-scowled. "Do that too many times, and my husband will forget he promised not to stake you," she said sternly.
"Well, he can try," said Spike, still grinning. "You've met Faith?"
The dark Slayer was standing in the doorway, frowning. "No, I haven't," said Sam. "I have heard the field reports on you, though." She extended her hand. "And I heard quite an earful from Riley."
"You're Riley's wife?" asked Faith, suddenly suspicious of the other woman.
Sam laughed. "I've got to tell you, I've worked most of my jealousy issues out. Years ago."
"With a little help from Buffy," added Spike. "Listen, I need your help."
"You want to find your vampire friend?" asked Sam.
"She does," said Spike.
"We've got him in room 288," said Sam. "He's sleeping now."
"I'll wake him," said Faith, turning to leave now that she knew what she'd come for.
"He's going with the Slayers when they leave tomorrow," said Sam.
Faith stopped dead, spinning around. "He's what?" she demanded, glaring at Spike.
Spike sighed. "Sam, love, I really wish you'd left that out."
"You knew!" snapped Faith. "When did you plan to tell me?" If Angel wasn't leaving, then her idea of leaving with Angel and Spike was shot to pieces, and that he hadn't told her before now worried her.
"Angel was going to tell you," said Spike.
"Why didn't you?" asked Faith, her eyes narrowing. He had to have known that she wouldn't just leave Angel behind with the other Slayers, who'd probably all stake him if she wasn't there to protect him, so she knew he hadn't really meant to take her with him.
"I thought it'd be best if you two talked!" insisted Spike.
Faith thought about it. "You're about to do something Angel doesn't know about, and you want me to keep him busy," she said flatly.
Spike shrugged. "Maybe," he said.
Sam, listening to this, frowned. "Spike, we talked about this. I told you I wasn't going to approve her release. Besides, I thought the Slayers were taking her!"
Spike turned to Sam. "They think they are, but they don't know her," he pleaded. "They couldn't possibly know what she needs! Besides, I can save her."
"I don't think you can," said Sam gently. "She's crazy, Spike."
"She's not that crazy," replied Spike.
"You're breaking Drusilla out!" realized Faith suddenly.
"Of course I am!" snapped Spike. "You think anyone here was going to help her get a soul? Certainly not Riley, or Angel, or Connor! They wouldn't even give her the old gypsy curse!"
Faith shook her head. "And Angel's staying here…what about Connor?"
"Already left," said Sam helpfully.
"I'm going with you and Dru!" said Faith suddenly.
Spike rolled his eyes. "Bloody hell…" he groaned.
--
Riley waited until after Xander and Giles had gone to assemble their Slayers to pick up the phone. He dialed the number slowly, and waited for the response. Finally Connor picked up. "Hello?" said the teen.
"They asked for Drusilla," said Riley.
"Oh, good," said Connor. "Did you tell them Spike's going to try to save her?"
"No, I didn't. And I think he knows."
Connor was silent for a moment. "You're giving him a chance to break her out?" he asked, his voice tinged with disbelief.
"We know from Spike that the chip works better than we thought," said Riley. "It lasted three or four years before malfunctioning. I trust Spike, crazy as that sounds."
Connor groaned. "Why didn't you tell me this before?" he asked.
"Because before you would have stayed and thrown away your education," said Riley. "Do I have to offer to tutor you in psychology to make you stay in Boston? Trust me, that would not be of the good. My experience with psychology…well, my professor was psycho. And a mother figure."
"I know all about psychology," grumbled Connor. "Just ask me about oedipal complexes…mine are REALLY complex."
"Anyway, Spike will probably contact you. Try to be surprised when he does, advise him to turn himself in, and just mention that Harmony has set up shop in Chicago with a gang of vampires. Okay?"
Connor chuckled. "Right. And my dad?"
"I think I'll just let him continue to be a prisoner of the Slayers," said Riley. "He's safer that way."
"You mean, where he can't hurt anybody?"
"I mean, where Wolfram and Hart can't hurt him," replied Riley.
"I think we did a pretty good job of this," said Connor.
"Definitely," replied Riley. "We'll have to do this again some time."
--
A/N: what, you thought maybe Spike was the one with the big plans? Please. Everyone knows his plans never turn out well. This isn't the end; not by a long shot. But it is the hiatus point. Coming up next; Spike does, in fact, try to break Drusilla out of a government compound. Faith is on the horns of a dilemma; stop him? Tell Angel? And Angel is in custody of the Slayers…and they give him a very nice cell. And a very nice cellmate. Trust me, it's worth reading!
