Ch4
The next evening, everyone assembled outside the door to the pit to make sure Fleur would be alright. "I'll be fine," she assured the gang, laughing lightly. "Oz will be with me until I change, and William will be here after the sun goes down, which is right about when I'll start to change." The gang looked at her for a second, trying to process it all, but something kept hindering some of them.
"By William," Xander asked, sidling over to her, "you mean Spike, don't you?" She nodded, and a look that was a mix of relief and worry crossed his face. "He won't hurt you, will he? I mean, it's not like he will let you out, right? He'll keep you locked up?" Fleur looked at Xander oddly.
"No, he won't let me out. I nearly tore him to pieces the first time, and that was when I was still weak…my second night of being a vampire was the night before the full moon. If he had let me, neither he, Drusilla, Darla or Angelus would be alive right now. He's not about to let that happen again." They all nodded quietly, seemingly satisfied.
"Well, just in case, I'm just over at the cemetery back there, and Oz has my cell number, along with everyone else's. If something goes wrong…" Buffy shrugged and smiled brightly. "Maybe I'll see Dru so I can stake her. That would be fun." Fleur agreed, and gave Buffy a hug before she left. Willow and Tara left next, assuring Fleur that their dorm was only a few minutes away, and telling them that they would be sure to have a protection spell put up over the pit, just in case something went wrong. Xander, Anya, Dawn, and Giles went a bit after, leaving Oz with the keys to the many locks.
"So, now you get to lock me up." Oz nodded. "Fun. Anyway, did you bring you guitar? I want to hear some of these songs." He shrugged, but seemed pleased.
"Everything is inside the pit already. The songs are mostly just my part, which is backup, but I wrote a few of them, so I know the lead part pretty well." Fleur smiled, and followed him inside quickly, making sure to shut the door so nobody wandered in while she was full demon. She sat down inside the cage and watched as Oz silently shut, bolted, chained and locked her in before grabbing his guitar and playing a couple of songs.
"That last one was nice," she told him honestly. "Did you write it?" He nodded sheepishly, his face a bit red. "I like it," she stated. "But at that part where you have the key change in there, instead of speeding it up, you might try slowing it some. The meaning will get across better, and so will the feeling behind it." He nodded and tried it as she had suggested, liking it straight away.
"I wouldn't figure you knew about music, guitar or otherwise," he told her. She shrugged and leaned back against the wall, her eyes closed.
"After I was turned, we stayed in France for awhile, then went to Russia, and a couple of other places. I was in a band in New York that played at a night club…it was fun. I mostly just hung around the theatres and clubs, listening to the music. A couple guys would ask me out, and I'd say yes, and we'd go to a Broadway show, which was really neat." She sighed happily. "But, I had to come here, to find Spike and warn him about a few things, not to mention hook him up with Buffy." Neither of them said anything for awhile, and they just sat there in comfortable silence until Oz started to strum his guitar, picking out little chords and tunes for the heck of it. Fleur soon grew restless, and began to pace around her enclosure, her long, filmy black dress swishing around her ankles.
"Yeesh, I forgot how long it gets, just waiting for the change. And then I'm a girl trapped in a demon's body, stuck like that until sunrise. Speaking of which," she turned to her friend, who was currently picking out a soft lullaby, trying to calm her nerves. "Tell Wil—Spike that about an hour before sunrise, he needs to take one of the smaller tranquilizers and knock me out. Then, throw a sheet over me. It gets drafty when I come back." He nodded slowly, surprised at how frank she was being with him. "Penny for your thoughts?" He smiled softly at her slight humor.
"Nothing much. Just wondering why you keep saying things like that, as if I'm not going to stay with you the whole time." She frowned, and looked at him oddly.
"Oz, I don't expect you to. You don't need to stay here with me, honest." He shook his head adamantly.
"Nope, I'm staying here. You need a friend, Fleur, and Spike doesn't count. He's more your father that anything. I'll be here the whole time, and I'll knock you out an hour before dawn, if you're sure." She nodded slowly.
"The tranquilizer will only last about an hour, and by then, the sun will be up. I'm fine once it rises, but just in case, I had them make it last an hour and a half. I'll be out for the whole time, and the sun will be up more." Her face contorted in a spasm of pain as she gripped the bars of her prison tightly. "Man, I hate this part." Oz stood there quietly, knowing what she was going through. He watched as her face paled visibly, going from a beige-type gold to chalk white, her eyes turning blood red as her hair grew even longer and became slightly matted. He back and legs lengthened considerably, making her tall and towering, while small horns grew form her forehead and cheeks, and she raked her arms with her long talon-like nails, screeching in fury.
"This is going to be a long night," Oz muttered, sitting down on an upturned bucket and grabbing his guitar. Spike showed up a few minutes later, panting a little.
"Bugger, I'm late. Got held up back at the crypt. Couple of pals o' mine heard the flower was in town and got all excited. Forgot that Spikey here has a chip in his head that won't let him be bad. They won't be bothering no one." Oz nodded absentmindedly as he watched the Fleur-demon pace around her cell, occasionally screeching and pounding at the bars. "Sorry, pet, but you are not leaving until you are back to you normal you. So just sit there and listen to Wolf-boy here." Oz gave him a look as the demonized form of his friend howled and reached her arms through a gap between the bars, clawing and hissing viciously at the blonde vampire.
"I don't think she likes you much, Spike." The vampire just shrugged and pulled out a smoke, looking around the small space appreciatively. "Not if my life depended on it Spike," Oz told him, not even looking up from the strings of his guitar. "You are not moving in here so you can be closer to Buffy. We use this place for my transformations, and now Fleur's." Spike groaned.
"Who said I wanted to move here? I admit, it would be pretty nice, lock the food up in the cage…but to be closer to the Slayer? Got rocks in your head, mate? Why would I want to be close to her?"
"Because," a voice hissed from the dark corner where demon Fleur had retreated, "You like her. We can tell." Spike looked at her, shuddering at her glowing red eyes. "Don't deny it," the coarse voice said, darkly. "Even the boy knows. The girl shrieks inside to be let out, but I won't let her. She knows it. Her mind has fascinating stories, little drabbles from her dreams that even she doesn't remember. But I do. Nixi remembers everything. Nixi knows how much you wanted the girl to be bad, to be your new goddess, but the soul didn't fly away, not like yours did. That's why the Slayer won't like you. You don't have a soul, no smelly conscience in you, William the Bloody. But, there is something in you." She snaked out a pale arm, snatching at the air. "Little chip, in your head, Nixi sees it. Won't let the boy out to play. Has to go hit the other demons instead of the pretty little Slayer. Drove his old goddess away, too, yes he did." Spike groaned and rolled his eyes.
"Bird gave itself a name. 'Nixi,' means night or something. I never noticed how much like Dru it sounded 'til now." Oz grinned.
"Sounds a bit like Gollum from Lord of the Rings to me. Is Fleur…I mean, Nixi, always like this?" Spike shrugged.
"Don't know. I haven't seen her since she left 'bout eighty years ago. I'd heard she was in New York for a bit, then down in Texas… She always liked to travel. After she left, I hated myself…well, as much as I could, anyway. We kept moving around, Dru and I did, and I'd always find myself buying her some little trinket. I wouldn't steal it, but I'd go out at night and buy it, then put it in a box with the rest, all wrapped up for her. Still have 'em, you know. They're down in the crypt. I figured she'd come back sometime, and I'd give 'em to her. Hoped it'd make things a bit easier 'tween the two of us, you know?" Oz nodded.
"She said something like that last night. She was talking about what would happen, and I said that you must feel sort of bad, forcing her to go through with it. She laughed and said it was impossible for you to care that much. Told me stuff about how the most you would care was after you or Angel had hurt her, and you'd go out and get stuff for her, actually buy it because she refused to keep it if you stole it." Spike looked at the floor in shame.
"Yeah, I did do that. I cared about the bird, but not nearly enough. I let that poofter have his way with her when he was out of sorts, hit her around my self when he was around. But she always forgave me. And on the nights when Angel had Dru, she'd talk to me, and we'd laugh, and have a grand old time. After Angel got all souled up, I really started to miss her, because it was just the two of us. Dru would complain about how her granddaughter, her little flower, didn't like her and ran away. Kept begging me to bring her back." He blew out some smoke, then ground out the cigarette under his boot. "I never did, but I always bought her something when we moved to a new place. Got her a jewelry box in Rome, some earrings in Bath…when we came here, I got her this pretty little dress like one of the ones she would always look at in the shops. I still have it all." Neither guy said anything for awhile, each thinking through what had been said until Nixi grew restless.
"The flower likes what Nixi tells her, she does," the demon murmured. "Thinks her daddy is sorry. Nixi tells her he's just drunk, but the flower doesn't believe. Nixi needs to hurt the flower." She began to scratch at herself, leaving long gashes on her arms and face. Spike just looked at her, eyebrows raised. Suddenly, she froze, her face turned to the door. "Nixi can sense him, she can. So can the flower. Screaming little flower, yelling the words, calling granddad so many names." Oz looked confused.
"Granddad? But…" Spike shushed him.
"She means Angel, don't you Nixi? You and Fleur can sense him. He's near by." Nixi nodded and shuddered, dragging her nails down her already cut arms.
"Can Nixi kill him, please? Granddad was very naughty to Nixi, leaving her alone with the flower, not hurting them anymore." Spike just glared at her as he strode to the door and shoved it open to reveal Angel, his face set in a grim line.
"I was wondering why I sensed kin in here. Must have just been you. Where's Buffy?" Spike just rolled his eyes and pulled Angel in roughly, shutting the door behind him.
"The reason you felt like your kin were here, Peaches, was because not only am I here, but so is she." Spike pointed to the cage, where Nixi stood by the bars, her head cocked to the side, a wide smile on her face.
"Nixi knew it. Granddad came back, came back to his Nixi. Makes the little flower crazy, he does. Says he needs to die, be a big pile of dust. But Nixi says no, shuts the flower up. Nixi likes Granddad for hurting the flower. But then he left." Nixi hissed, her white fangs gleaming. "Left his Nixi all alone with no one to hurt the flower, made Nixi very sad, very lonely." Angel just stood there, his face showing his shock.
"Fleur," he whispered. Nixi shook her head.
"Fleur's not here, leave a message. Poor Granddad, got himself a dirty little soul, he did. No wonder he left when we were visiting him. Nixi can help, make the soul go away." She grinned. "Let Nixi help." Angel turned to Oz and Spike.
"She's insane." Spike nodded.
"From how she's going on, she lived to have you hurt Fleur, and when you left and it stopped, she was stuck inside, and Fleur wouldn't let her out except for the nights around the new moon. So, she went insane. Lot like Dru. They'd get along great." Angel nodded.
"Fleur still hates me apparently, at least, if Nixi can be trusted." They all looked at the deranged demon, who was currently in a corner talking to herself, running her hands up and down her cut arms.
"Thinks Nixi lies, he does, but Nixi doesn't lie to Granddad. Nixi would lie to Daddy, and the boy wolf, but not to Granddad." She shook her head and began to bang it against a wall. "Shush, little flower! Nixi's turn to talk now!" Soon, blood began to run down her face from a cut on her head that was steadily growing. Oz, grabbed the tranquilizer gun and shot the demon, hitting her in the back of the neck. She hissed and faced him, her eyes glowing in anger.
"Nixi doesn't like the little wolf-boy, wants him for dinner." She stumbled as the tranquilizer started to take affect. "Eat the wolf-boy she will." She slowed and slumped to the floor, muttering quietly before passing out. Oz looked at his watch and sighed. And hour 'til dawn. Perfect. He turned to the two vamps who had been watching and sighed.
"We're good. I was supposed to put her under now anyway, Fleur asked me to. Spike, get to your crypt, the sun will be up soon. If you see Buffy, tell her that I'll bring Fleur over to her house as soon as I can. Angel, I suggest you get out, now. Nixi may have liked seeing you, but I know Fleur will not be thrilled. She nearly tore Spike's head off for just mentioning you." They nodded and left quickly, leaving Oz alone with the unconscious vampire-demon-thing that was also his friend…deep down inside.
"Just an hour and a half more," he sighed as he carefully put a sheet over her from behind the bars. Then, he walked over the opposite wall and fell asleep.