Title: Written In The Stars, Part 3 – I Hate Hospitals

Author: Xanfan

Rating: R/NC-17 for future chapters

Pairing?

Summary: Response to challenge from Sparky. Xander and Spike become friends after Spike gets the chip, they are both hurt and Dru rescues them and brings them to Angel to heal.

Spoilers: BtVS up through season 4 and Ats 1st season. I may however take some liberties with the exact timeline, so, any season from either show is fair game.

Warnings:

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

Original Challenge: Spike has been chipped and taken in by the Scoobies. Just as he and
Xander are beginning to become friends something their both hurt and it's up
to Angel to save and care for them. The twist is its Dru that saves them
and brings them to Daddy.

A/N: I may make take some liberties with timelines from both shows. And Anya was just a onetime thing.

Words in Italics indicate thoughts.

Time froze for Angel, as he waited for Xander's heart to start beating again.

He knew that he would outlive the humans he surrounded himself with, and he had already lost Doyle, but this….Xander had survived so much, faced so much. The thought that he might not survive this time, was inconceivable.

It seemed like an eternity before he heard a weak thump, indicating that last shock had been successful.

The medical personnel hurried to get Xander ready to transport to the O.R. and soon he was whisked away, so they could try and stop the bleeding.

There was nothing to do now, but wait.

They had discovered a note in Xander's wallet with a list of people who were authorized to make medical decisions for him. In addition to Giles, Joyce, Willow and Buffy, the list also had Cordy's name on it. Hell, even Spike and Angel's names were on the list. No one ever said the boy didn't plan ahead.

When the doctor came out of the O.R. hours later, he told them that they had managed to find and stop the internal bleeding in time. His liver and a kidney had both been bleeding. They were also concerned about his other injuries. He had obviously been beaten severely. They had sutured all his various cuts, and set his dislocated shoulder. They were going to order a CAT scan to see if there was any damage from the blows he had taken to the head.

Basically, time would tell if he was going to be all right and they weren't promising anything.

After the doctor left, Cordy turned to Angel, for once, speechless. He didn't know what else to do, so he just gathered her in his arms. She went into his arms willingly and began to sob on his shoulder. Wesley awkwardly patted her shoulder, in a comforting gesture.

The three of them were silent, except for Cordelia's sobs, all lost in their own thoughts.

Wesley was lost. He had not seen Xander in months, since the ascension. In Sunnydale, while Xander had given him a hard time verbally, Wesley knew that he was just reacting to a perceived threat against his father figure, Giles. Wesley had learned to respect the boy's loyalty and recognized the seemingly ill timed humor he so often displayed, was his attempt at moral boosting. Wesley had regretted not making more of an effort to get to know the boy. Now, he might not have the chance.

Cordy was lost. Xander was always supposed to be around. He had survived nineteen years on a Hellmouth, he could survive anything. He had to. While they were no longer involved romantically, they were still friends and had been in communication with phone and emails since shortly after she had left for L.A., even while Xander had been on his "road trip" he had called her at least weekly, and sometimes more often, if he thought she needed him.

Xander was the one who had encouraged her to work for Angel, saying that the vampire would watch out for her and be there for her when she needed help. When Cordy had argued that she didn't need to be watched out for and she didn't need help, Xander had laughed, then said seriously, "We all need someone to watch our backs and we all need help sometimes. And, when he's not all soulless, Angel can be counted on to do both." Cordy had taken his words to heart, insinuating herself in Angel's investigation business, so she didn't have to ask for or admit to needing help. Now, Angel was her closest friend, besides Xander himself, and she had her ex-boyfriend to thank for that.

She couldn't let herself believe that he would do anything but live through this. She wasn't sure what she would do if he didn't.

Angel was lost. He had never been good with crying women, and now he had one in his arms. He could do nothing but hold onto her, because, he too, was reeling from the news the doctor had imparted. He had never really admitted it to anyone, but, he had admired the boy. Xander was loyal and brave and he never let his fears, or trivial things, like thousands of years old prophecy, stop him when it came to helping or protecting his friends. And Angel had secretly wanted Xander to be that kind of friend to him.

Truth be told, Angel had always been attracted to Xander. In fact, had Xander not acted so hostile to him when they had first met or shown the least inclination that he would be interested, Angel might have pursued the boy, instead of Buffy.

Now he just wanted the boy to live. He would even be happy to hear Xander call him "Deadboy" if it meant he would be okay.

Angel's mind went back to the earlier events of the evening. Who had hurt Spike and Xander? Why had Dru found them and brought them to him? Or, more specifically, why had the stars "told" her to find them and bring them to him? Why had they been together in the first place? Had they been together when they were taken? If so, why?

Angel knew a little of what had been going on in Sunnydale; Spike getting his chip and relying on the scoobies for help, but he hadn't thought that they hung out together on a regular basis. He knew Spike appreciated a sarcastic sense of humor and so did Xander, maybe they had developed a sort of witty banter acquaintanceship. He would have to ask Spike.

Oh, Hell. I left Spike alone at my apartment!

Admittedly, Spike probably wouldn't wake for a few more hours, he had a lot of healing to do, but, it was just never a good idea to leave Spike to his own devices, surrounded by your worldly possessions, which you might not want to lose. Okay, so it probably wasn't a good idea to leave Spike to his own devices, period.

Angel leaned back from Cordelia, after she had quieted a bit, "Why don't you and Wesley stay here and wait for the results of Xander's tests and I'll go back and check on Spike?"

"Oh no, Spike. He'll probably be really worried about Xander!" Cordy exclaimed.

"What? Why?" Angel was surprised.

"Angel, Spike and Xander are roommates and actually pretty good friends. Wouldn't you be worried if your friend, probably your only friend, were hurt?"

Angel had briefly entertained the idea that Spike and Xander hung out together, it hadn't really occurred to him that they might like each other and have an actual friendship. That was just weird. I thought Xander hated vampires on principle alone? Now he is friends with SPIKE? What if he is more than just friends with Spike? What if he's not? Maybe he'd want to be more than friends with me? Whoa! Wait a minute, back it up Angel. Where did THAT come from? Must not think about it, set squishy feelings thought aside, in fact, pretend you never thought it, and concentrate on the matter at hand. Spike and Xander are friends!

"Okay, Xander and Spike are friends. Got it. I'll just go check on Spike and fill him in on Xander's condition." Angel said numbly.

'Good idea. I'll see you in a few hours? "

"Yeah"

"Angel, if Spike is up to it, you might want to ask him if he knows what exactly is going on." Wesley suggested.

"Believe me, I will." Angel promised.

Go pick up more blood, go back to the apartment and see if Spike is awake. Feed Spike blood. Ask Spike if he knows how they got here and why. Fill in Spike on Xander's condition.

Oh. Crap. How was he going to tell Spike that Xander might not live?