Ch5
Fleur woke up sometime later, and stirred restlessly under the sheet. She knew the sun had barely gotten up, but the floor wasn't very comfy and she found it impossible to sleep. She sat up carefully and winced when she felt the scrapes along her arms and face, not to mention the gash along her forehead. Willow came down a bit later, carefully balancing some coffee cups and a bag filled with a thick red liquid I none hand, and carrying a small bag in the other.
"Hey," she whispered, noticing Oz's sleeping form. "Spike came by and said you'd be up soon, so I came to help Oz. I brought you some blood," she said, passing the red bag through. "It's pig, I hope that's okay." Fleur nodded, vamped out, and began to drink, relishing in the liquid. "I also brought you both some coffee to last you until we get back to Buffy's." She remembering the bag and smiled. "And some clothes. We figured you wouldn't want to stay in those. Buffy told me to apologize, but she went through your suitcase that you brought over yesterday to pick out some stuff." Fleur smiled as she folded up the empty blood bag and set it aside, then gratefully took the bag of clothes from her. Willow turned around and busied herself about putting the coffee down and checking on Oz. Hey, she might be gay, but that doesn't mean she was rude.
"Okay, Will, you can look now." Willow turned around and smiled. Fleur looked a lot better in the small pink sundress Buffy had picked out than in the black one she had worn the night before. "Oz put the keys over there, in the far corner, so Nixi couldn't get them." Willow frowned at the name. "Nixi is the demon side of me. She gave it to herself. That's why I wear the black dress. She's very old fashioned and likes dark colors. She hates pink, and drove herself insane after I left Spike and Drusilla." Willow nodded in understanding as she unlocked the cage and let Fleur out.
"I'm going to go out and call Buffy and the others, tell them you're okay. Spike said you were, but he told us what happened and I had to make sure." Fleur frowned at the reference to the unexpected arrival of Angel, but didn't comment. Once Willow was gone, she turned to Oz and found him still asleep, his head leaning against the wall. She sighed.
"Well, here goes nothing." She slowly walked over and kneeled down next to him, then gently shook him awake. "Oz? Oz, wake up. The sun's up, and I would think that you would agree with me that this floor is not very comfy." Oz shook his head slightly, then smiled when he saw who it was that had woken him.
"Hey, you okay? Nixi took it out on you pretty hard didn't she?" he asked, touching one of her cuts. She shrugged.
"She's done worse. Tomorrow she'll be more coherent, and it will be a nightmare. I suggest ear plugs." They laughed and she helped him up, grabbed their coffees, and went out the door. Willow had just finished her phone call and smiled at them.
"Buffy said to tell you both hi. She has your room ready, Fleur, and Oz can have Joyce's bed if he wants." He shook his head.
"The couch is fine," he said, drinking his coffee as he checked the clasps on his guitar case. "Let's go. I'm about ready to fall asleep here." Fleur nodded, and they hurried off.
When they got to the house a few minutes later, they were surprised to find all of the drapes closed, and the curtains pulled tight in the living room. "I forgot! Spike got in a bit of a fight last night on the way back. Buffy turned the living room into a hospital of sorts," Willow explained.
"Why couldn't she use the basement?" Oz asked. Willow bit her lip and cast a worried glance at Fleur. The other girl frowned and her fists clenched at her sides.
"Angel's here," she muttered, her face stony. Oz nodded, and watched as Willow hurried in ahead of them.
"Hey, you won't see him. At least, not likely. And I'll be with you the whole time, okay?" She nodded hesitantly, looking him in the eyes. "I promise, I won't let him hurt you." She smiled, and he grabbed her hand, wrapping his around it comfortingly. "Ready?"
"Yeah," she whispered. "Just get me upstairs please." He nodded, and ushered her into the stairs, barely stopping to talk to Buffy or the others, letting Willow explain. He got her to "her" room and sat her on the bed, then turned to leave.
"Um, Oz?" He turned around.
"Yeah?" She bit her lip.
"Since Will—Spike is on the couch, where are you going to be?" He shrugged.
"I was actually going to go steal a few pillows and a blanket from Buffy's mom's room and take over the window seat," he told her. He walked back to her and grabbed her hands in his. "I don't break my promises. I'll be right back. I'll get those, then take the first aid kit from the bathroom and we'll get you patched up, okay?" She nodded and relaxed. He smiled and left, trying to be quick so he could get back to the girl that had so quickly become his main priority. It only took a little while, and then he was back.
"Here we go," he said, sitting down next to her with the first aid kit. He bandaged up the worst of the cuts on her arms first, then moved on to her forehead. "Hold still, this might sting," he muttered as he carefully cleaned the gash on her forehead. He then put some ointment on it and wrapped it up. So what if she healed fast. Didn't mean it couldn't get infected. "Just let me get these last few," he said as he began to clean the ones on her cheeks. When he had gotten to the last one, he whistled softly.
"You have a splinter in there somehow, and it needs to come out." She frowned and bit her lip, but nodded for him to continue. "I'll be gentle," he said as he carefully took out the large splinter. "There." She raised her hand to her cheek and gently touched it, wincing at the jolt of pain from even the lightest touch. Oz noticed the wince and covered her hand in his, squeezing gently as he pulled her hand away from the wound. He quickly but gently put a clean band aid on it, never letting go of her hand while he did so.
"There, finished." He smiled, looking her over. "Not too bad, if I do say so myself. You should be as good as new in a few days, maybe less with your advanced healing." Fleur nodded and laid down slowly, smiling when her head reached the soft pillows. She sighed in ecstasy and looked at Oz imploringly.
"Stay with me?" she asked softly, looking into his eyes.
"Always," he whispered as he slowly leaned down and their lips met in a soft yet passionate kiss. When they finally pulled apart, they smiled at each other, and Oz laid down next to her, letting her snuggle into his body and draping one arm over her waist as they fell asleep together, safe and content.