Deadboy and Zeppo, Part 3
Rated TEEN
Angel heard the men debating who was going to get him, and he stood up from the toilet seat and stretched. What was past was past, but he needed to try and get himself and Xander out of their current mess before he had more deaths on his hands. Step one in taking power was to act like you already had the power.
Throwing the door open, Angel strode into the room and went straight to the window where he pushed the curtain back.
"Sun's low enough. We need to get a good look at mansion security, so I'm going to recon the house itself. You," Angel pointed at one of the stunned guards. "Lose the combat boots and watch the front entrance. I want to know the guards' movement. Do they stay inside, do rounds, play cards? And time them. I want to know how long it takes them to take a coffee break or pee or walk a round."
The man opened his mouth as if to protest, and Angel kept right on talking. They had all been in the same room when a voice had assigned the team as "back up," so Angel knew the chain of command was fuzzy at best.
"You and you," Angel pointed out two others. You're going to take up position on the roof of the museum on one side and the light tower on the other. Watch side entrances, record any security light, monitor for electrical surges, keep an eye out for any possible movement at the back or side entrances."
"You," Angel pointed at the fourth. "You're the electronics expert."
"Yes, sir." The blond man shot a confused look over to another man, but when the squad's commander failed to contradict Angel's plan, the blond looked back to Angel and nodded more confidently. "Security systems, phone systems, computer systems. If it uses electricity, I can figure it out, sir."
"Good, you're with me. We're going to figure out how tight security really is."
"I thought you were going to kill Mugabe," the squad's leader injected, and Angel looked over at the man with grey just starting to pepper his temples and a receding hairline.
"Do you go in without intelligence or a plan for escaping after an assassination?" Angel asked, and the man, who equaled Angel in size if not strength, relented.
"No. I don't send my men in without backup, either." At this, the leader nodded toward the blond.
"He's the safest one because I'm his back up. The rest of you are on your own to avoid getting spotted by mansions security. I assume they have a policy of not shooting observers, but you never know."
"My men can take care of themselves."
"I hope so because the kid's the only one I'm looking after," Angel shot back before heading for the door. "I want to get this done and over early enough to compare notes before you head for your bunks, so let's get moving."
Angel walked out the door and watched the traffic pass on by the hotel. They were only a ten minute drive from the upscale neighborhood where Mugabe was saying while in L.A. Angel had already seen the plans for the impressive four story building as well as the surrounding area. Two sides were equally impressive mansions, behind the mansion was the museum where either Frick or Frack would set up watch. The tower where the other one would wait was a half block away, and the third would have to find some sort of cover on the street to watch the front. Angel got into the backseat of the Hummer without making any further comments, forcing the four member "back up" team to follow.
When the leader parked the car, the men fell into place quickly, gathering equipment and heading for their assigned posts. When the others left, the blond stood with two laptops and a bag nervously shifting from one foot to the other.
"Here," Angel held out a hand.
"I have it, sir."
"And I'm a lot stronger. Save your strength for when you need it," Angel insisted as he took the two laptops by their straps and pulled them off the man's shoulder.
"What's your name?" Angel finally asked. If the guy had the guts to follow him and, more importantly, look him in the eye, Angel figured he could at least know the man's name.
"Clark, sir. Tom Clark, lieutenant."
"Nice to meet you," Angel offered before turning and started a fast trot to a wooded area between the museum and the back of the mansion's property. Dropping into a crouch beside the fence, he felt Clark bump him.
"Sir?" the man whispered softly.
"Yes?" Angel asked as he considered his options. The whine of electricity told him the fence had alarms.
"Are you." The voice stopped nervously. "Can I trust you to back me up?" Angel turned and considered the kid who had the nerve to ask that knowing it was too late for him if Angel planned on betraying them.
"You'll be fine," Angel promised. "Can these things take a fall?" he asked patting the computer cases. The kid nodded, and Angel leapt straight up into a tree. Below he heard a gasp. He quickly tossed his two computers clear of the fence.
"Bag," he called and Clark tossed up the bag for Angel.
"You." Angel held his hand down, and after a brief hesitation Clark jumped for it, and Angel pulled him up to the branch which creaked ominously but held. "I need to get you over that fence," Angel said. All you have to do is fall without breaking your ankle. Can you do that?" Angel could hear the heart beat faster.
"Yes, sir. I had paratrooper training."
"Same thing," Angel said as he grabbed the man around the waist and physically tossed him over the fence. The man rolled and got to his feet before Angel even hit the ground. "Mansion's that way," Angel said as he picked up the two lap tops and started running.
Angel's first order of business was to get Clark set up in the basement utility room with the security panel. For a man with as many enemies as Mugabe, it was exceptionally simple. Promising to come back immediately if anyone came downstairs, Angel made his way to the main rooms. This place had entirely too many people, but he was searching for one thing. Angel smiled as he heard the whine of multiple monitors in one room. He'd seen the cameras easily enough and avoided them with little effort, but now he needed to make an impression.
Angel slid from one room to another as he closed in on the security station ready to change the deal. Now he just needed to find someone in power to negotiate
~ ~ ~ ~
"Two days," Angel said firmly.
"And will this ensure the President's safety?" the large guard asked in an African accent. He'd given up on the gun after Angel had shown his game face, but his hand was still wrapped tightly around the back of a wooden chair, no doubt ready to break it and use it as a weapon.
"If I can work this right, they'll be afraid to try anything else," Angel said smugly. "But you hurt these guys and the deal's off. I'll hunt you and your entire family down."
"And I should trust an obayifo, a vampire?"
"I'm the one offering to surrender. I'm the one who has to show trust here, but I also know that if this doesn't work, they're going to send someone or something else in here." The large man studied Angel's face for several minutes before answering.
"Deal." The man held out his hand. "I am Tatenda."
"Angel." He shook the man's hand briefly. When a soldier came in carrying a rope, Angel didn't comment as his hands were tied tightly behind his back and a guard led him to another room. A second guard came in through another door holding a crude stake, obviously just recently made. Knowing that he had no choice but to follow through with the insane plan, Angel let the first guard push him down to his knees. When the second guard walked behind him and pressed the tip of the stake to Angel's back, he took a deep breath and prayed that the plan didn't end with four bodies plus a pile of dust.
Angel was still kneeling on the floor when Clark came in under guard.
"Sir?" Clark asked, and Angel flinched at the man trusting him even now, but this was part of the plan.
"They spotted your buddy in the tower, had everyone ready. They took me out as I came in through the kitchens," Angel lied, putting the blame on the unit's leader rather than the young men he commanded. It was a small concession to his guilt, but at least it was something. "You okay?" he asked as a soldier tied the kid's hands behind his back and pushed him to his knees.
"Yes, sir," he said stoically with a steady voice despite the racing heart that Angel could hear. That was an end to the conversation until more guards appeared with the last three members of the team. Each had his gear stripped and his hands tied behind his back.
"What the fuck?" the leader of the team demanded when he spotted Angel kneeling on the floor with Clark. The guards forced the remaining three members to their knees.
"Told you to not get seen," Angel snapped back as he allowed the yellow to bleed into his eyes. The man's gaze went from Clark to Angel to the guard holding a stake at Angel's back.
"We weren't spotted, you tripped an alarm," the man hissed. At that point Tatenda made his appearance. Dressed in his formal uniform with a baton in his hand, he caught the attention of everyone in the room.
"I beg to differ. Surely you don't think we would not notice armed soldiers running across our land? Did you think you would not be seen climbing into a position from which you could shoot at our beloved President?" Tatenda waited but no one was offering any answers.
"Names." Tatenda demanded, and everyone remained silent. "Very well, but you will not be released until your government accounts for your actions," Tatenda said quietly. Take the humans to the basement cells. We will find some place more secure for the obayifo."
Clark looked over in near panic, and Angel felt guilt rip through him. The kid was going to have a terrifying and helpless two days, and Angel couldn’t blame Angelus for that. He was doing the damage to this wide-eyed kid who probably grew up in some Midwest state with a lot of corn. But Angel couldn't come up with a plan that had less evil and guilt, and so this it.
At a signal, the guards pulled the other four men out of the room. Angel waited until the sounds of the prisoners had faded from even his hearing.
"So, this is where I find out if you're good for your word," Angel said, not even trying to stand up. Tatenda walked over and let the baton rest on Angel's shoulder.
"You would stop your own government."
"Yes."
"For what reason?"
"Because it suits my purposes," Angel answered honestly, and again the man simply stared until Angel wondered if he didn't have some mystical power of his own.
"A fair answer," Tatenda walked away with a wave of his hand, and Angel felt a pull at his arm that helped him up. A knife sliced through the ropes, and Angel nodded to the guards as he headed out to finish his plan.
The evening of day one had Angel waiting outside the concrete and steel building where the government still held Xander. If Tatenda was holding to the plan, the President's staff would have lodged a complaint with the police about five mysterious trespassers, just enough to get the government's attention. Hopefully enough to keep the man with the voice from torturing Xander.
Studying the faces of each person coming and going, Angel finally spotted the man who had hidden behind one-way mirrors convinced that he had fooled his demon prisoners. Angel put his stolen car into gear and slid into traffic behind the brown sedan determined to find where his enemy lived. Attacking inside another's territory where they believed themselves safe always made the prey more vulnerable.
Angel maneuvered the car carefully through traffic, keeping back far enough to avoid suspicion as the man headed for an upscale suburban area. The streets narrowed and traffic thinned as Angel followed the car into a new subdivision with large white houses and manicured lawns. Some homes were wood and some stone, but they all had the same windows, the same red tile roofs, the same trimmed lawn. When the prey pulled into a garage, Angel scanned the area noticing a small bike leaning against the bushes and the upstairs window with the football curtains. Angel sat and watched as the garage door slid down. He knew where and he knew how much this man had to lose. Now he just had to find a way of saving Xander without losing himself.
The evening of day two found Angel parked in another stolen car outside the man's house before sunset had fully fallen. Taking a note from his hyperactive childe, he'd painted the windows black and set off in the light of day with a red Frisbee in the seat next to his.
Now he watched as the sunlight turned a pale red right before fading to dusk. If he did this too late, the family would certainly be suspicious. Children didn't play Frisbee at night.
Angel scanned the houses for watchers before leaping to the top of the brick wall separating the houses. Taking aim, he let the red disk fly toward the officer's house. As Angel had intended, the toy caught on the striped fabric stretched over the windows to provide shade on the west side. Smiling triumphantly, Angel jumped down and headed for their front door.
Angel rang the doorbell. A boy of ten or twelve with freckles and a striped shirt opened the door while still yelling over his shoulder. "Mom said it's my turn."
"Is your mom home?" Angel asked in a tone that he hoped came across as borderline bored and annoyed. His acting skills didn't impress the boy who walked away with the door hanging open.
"Maaa-uuum. It's for you!" Angel nearly growled at the sight of the open, unguarded door, but there wasn't much else he could do without an invitation.
"Can I help you?" an older woman with thick legs and hair hanging out of a sloppy pony tail asked as she walked down the stairs. Story time. Angel just hoped these people were as anti-social as most humans these days.
"I'm baby-sitting for my nephews in the house behind here," Angel waved vaguely in the direction of the three properties behind this house, "and a gust of wind put my nephew's Frisbee onto one of your window shades.
"Oh," the woman looked faintly distracted, and Angel thought he had failed until he noticed she had her head tilted toward the other room. "Jess, you let your brother play or I will make you sorry!" she suddenly yelled loud enough to make Angel jump. "Sorry, you know kids," the woman offered, and Angel nodded sagely despite the fact that he hadn't been around a child since… he wasn't even going to think about that right now.
"If you don't mind me crawling onto a window sill, I'll just grab the Frisbee and get out of your way," Angel suggested.
"Oh, of course, come in. Do you know which window?"
Angel crossed the threshold with a smile. "The second floor on the north end." He followed the woman up the stairs to rescue the Frisbee he'd thrown.
That night, Angel used the rough edges of the brick façade to climb to the roof. Crouching in the moonlight, he listened to the faint crackling of electrical wires that ran along the eves. As he walked toward the center of the roof over the round clay tiles, the sounds faded, and Angel smiled. Humans tended to prepare for human intruders.
One by one, Angel ripped the red clay tiles from the roof, setting them to one side. The weatherproofing fabric ripped away cleanly leaving just plain boards between him and his ultimate goal. Angel listened to the sounds of passing traffic on the highway and waited patiently. Soon enough a truck came rumbling by, and Angel drove his fist down through the boards cleanly. The sound boomed in his ears, but hopefully the homeowners would either sleep through the sound or blame it on the passing truck.
Carefully pulling at the edge of each board, Angel created a fairly large hole in the roof before using his demon vision to search the darkness below. The attic wasn't a usable space with only four or five feet between the roof and the floor at the highest point. Aiming for one of the large beams that ran the length of the house, Angel dropped into the dusty, dark space soundlessly.
From here, he could track the heartbeats below him. Three hearts beat softly at one end of the house: children. He focused on the two stronger heartbeats, moving through the attic until he was above them. Since he didn't want to come crashing down, he backtracked some distance and then tore through the ceiling as if it were tissue paper. Bathroom. Angel looked at the palatial room with the sunken tub and glass enclosed shower and large terra cotta tile and rolled his eyes. Some humans were obsessive about their bodies. The hole, luckily, was close enough to the vanity to use it as a ladder, and for that Angel was grateful.
He dropped down and now and carefully eased the bathroom door open. He could see his interrogator's face, slack with sleep as the man lay in bed. On the far side, Angel could smell a woman even if he couldn't see her. He could knock her out, but the man would probably feel a need to get revenge for any actual violence, and Angel didn't want to start a feud. The trick was to make the man submit without taking away so much of the man's dignity that he felt the need to strike back. His plan finalized, Angel slid into the room and knelt by the bed.
Keeping his touches light, he untangled the sheet so that the man lay exposed in his underwear. Angel rumbled a low soothing purr as he worked one hand under the man's knees and the second under his shoulders. Just when he thought he'd never get that second hand under officer's upper body, the man mumbled and rolled right into Angel, and Angel sent a quick prayer up to whomever might be listening. Lifting carefully, Angel carried the man to the bathroom and settled him down in the huge tub.
Almost immediately the officer started turning restlessly, and when Angel pressed a hand over the man's mouth, the body jerked violently into awareness. Angel smiled down with his game face, his free hand making a "shh" gesture against his lips. When the man's eyes darted frantically toward the bedroom, Angel shook his head before whispering.
"I didn't touch her or anyone else, but you and I need to speak." Angel waited until the man nodded and then removed his hand.
"How did you…" the man's question ended when he saw the hole in the bathroom ceiling.
"Man-made structures generally don't keep demons out very effectively," Angel shrugged. "Sorry about the ceiling, charge the military for the repair. And you might want to call someone for the roof before you get rain," Angel added, and he could almost feel the confusion and panic building in his captive. Where this man had immediately told Angel why he'd been kidnapped and what he was expected to do, Angel was content to sit on the edge of the bathtub and let the man's imagination go to work. It took several minutes for the man to finally give in and ask the obvious question.
"You, the team, you were captured,"
"Thanks to your incompetent staff, yes. However, man-made structures don't keep demons in any more than they work to keep them out." Angel nodded at the ceiling again. "Of course, this posed a problem since I didn't think you'd just ignore the failed assassination and the missing team. I did consider killing as many of you as I could find and changing identities." Angel let silence descend again; it was the best friend of any interrogator or torturer.
"You don't… the research shows that you don't kill."
"I do kill, I just don't randomly attack humans for no reason," Angel corrected him. "After all, I arranged for a rather bloody reception at Wolfram and Hart." Angel returned to silence as the man's heart rate accelerated to dangerous speeds.
"My wife and kids have nothing to do with this," the man pleaded.
"Funny, my humans and family don't either," Angel pointed out, and the threat obviously reached home because the heart sped up even more until a heart attack was a very real possibility.
"You have no idea what it means to threaten a demon," Angel remarked as though commenting on the weather.
"I was ordered to bring you in. The briefing in the file said that you helped before. The plan went without a hitch."
"Last time, on the sub, William the Bloody came to help. I turned your man Lawson," Angel corrected him mildly.
"That isn't in the file. You aren't even connected with any other va…." Angel held up a hand to stop the man mid-word. It was time to blend a few lies in with his truth.
"This time Dru and Darla both offered to eat your eyes. William is a little put out with me since I didn't help with his chip problem, but he would come if I called for him. The Hellmouth is ruled by Aurelius, and thousands of minions in this state call me the Master of the Line." Stopping to let that information sink in, Angel allowed his human face to return as he leaned back against the cool tiles. Just when the man started breathing a little easier, Angel dropped his next verbal bomb.
"I could have called all of them to my side, even from inside your prison. And if I die, my childer will come to find out why." Now Angel was lying outright, but with the lies and truth woven together, this guy was never going to be able to untangle the two. "You are trying to judge me by human standards, but I'm not human," Angel pointed out as he leaned down into the officer's clammy, pale face. When he was in inch from the other man, Angel shifted his features and smiled to show his teeth. "I know your scent, my clan knows your scent, and don't forget that."
"I can't just…" the man's eyes darted to the bedroom again, and Angel sat up slowly as he let the vampire features fade away. The man was almost ready for the deal. Angel repositioned himself with one leg inside the bathtub pressing against the man's thigh in a seemingly harmless touch. It would have been harmless except that the man couldn't really move away, and Angel knew that simple touch reminded him of just how helpless he was. Now the tortures were all in the man's head where he had no defenses.
"Look, I can't tell my superiors that I decided to just back out. I argued for bringing you in." Angel narrowed his eyes at that confession, and the man swallowed nervously.
"You're going to tell them that Mugabe has vampire guards, at least one. One of the officers is some sort of demon or a seer. I can't take him out. Then you're going to tell them that you have a better deal," Angel stopped again. He needed to make the man desperate for any lifeline out of this disaster. It took less time than he expected.
"Well, what is it?" The man pushed himself up a bit in the tub, unconsciously mirroring the rising hope in his soul.
"I'll do independent contract work for you the same as I would do for any other client. So, if you have a rescue mission, you come to my hotel and offer to pay for my services. As a gesture of good faith, I'll get your team out of the mansion for free, I owe Clark that." Angel stopped there. He needed for this officer to see the value of it, and he knew if he tried arguing in favor of the solution, the other man would find a dozen holes in the offer. However, any lifeline looked good when trapped in the bathroom by a vicious monster. Angel needed to remind him of that. "Otherwise, I'll have to make other plans," he growled.
"I might…" the man swallowed, "be able to get them to go for that deal." He looked straight at Angel. "Is the deal legit?"
"I work for a living. I take the clients that come to my door," Angel pointed out. He wanted to ask about Xander, but he didn't dare until the deal was done. He couldn’t let these people see Xander as a valuable pawn or neither of them would be safe again.
"Rescue work only?" the man asked in a more challenging voice, and Angel knew he had the fish on the line.
"Rescue work only," he answered flatly. Angel knew this type. Given a day or two, this guy was going to start thinking the deal had been his idea. Part of Angel rankled at having to put up with such an officious ass, but hopefully some flunky would be sent with any job requests, leaving Angel free to hate the man from a safe distance.
"Deal." The man pushed himself up so he sat on the edge of the tub even with Angel.
"Nice doing business," Angel answered as he stood to take one last look down at the officer. "Is Xander still alive?"
"Yeah, he's back at base. Do we need to go get him to make this happen?" Angel could see the gears practically turning in the man's head.
"No, I'll stop by after sunset in the next day or two, and I expect to find him undamaged." Angel watched as the man deflated, the last possible bit of leverage yanked out from under him. Angel gave a small nod and then showed off by jumping from the floor straight through the hole and to the rafters above with only a small thud. Racing through the attic, Angel went up through the roof and out into the night.
"It looks like we're not going to get to torture you after all. Your sire showed up last night," the voice announced from the ceiling, and Xander kept his face toward the wall as he tried to recapture his dream. Willow had been sitting on the floor with her legs draped over his while Buffy tried to steal the popcorn bowl Xander was valiantly defending. It had been a good moment until the voice had interrupted.
Part of Xander was relieved to hear that Angel was alive and well, and part really resented losing a moment of peace just to face the same white-brick wall. The door opened, and Xander ignored it. The first day they had tried ordering him to the back of the room, but Xander just lay on the bunk until they just tazered him into oblivion. Now they didn't bother with the orders or tazers, and he didn't bother getting up. He could smell the blood, but he also didn't bother turning around to get it. It seemed pointless to feed when he was just going to end up dust. Hell, he didn't want to feed and that really was proof that he was as much a failure in the vampire department as he had been in the vampire hunter department.
"He'll be doing some work for us," the voice continued when Xander remained motionless and silent. The person who brought the blood retreated leaving the scent which both tempted and nauseated Xander. He ignored it.
"I do hope we can work together." Xander resisted an urge to laugh at that. His two futures consisted of getting staked by his sire or having to walk into the sun on his own, and pathetically enough, he didn't know whether Angel liked him well enough to do the staking.
Xander shifted his arm so that he could use it as a pillow. When he'd laughed at Angel, he'd seen his own death approaching. He really thought Angel would end it right there, but Xander understood. He might not be good with the making of the plans, but he understood that these people wouldn't let Angel out of the building without thinking they had leverage. Angel let them believe they had it.
Every hour since Angel had walked out the door Xander had waited for them to tell him that Angel had broken the deal and that Xander would pay the price. Hell, Xander was prepared to pay the price since it bought his sire's freedom and now Buffy or Willow wouldn't have to stake him. He just wished he could pay it and get it over with. But if Angel was back, maybe he'd just get a quick staking.
The voice didn't say any more, and Xander let himself drift back to sleep. It was getting easier to just sleep all day, to slide into his dreams, this time chasing a running gang member through dirty back alleys that managed not to stink. The man was huge and kept throwing empty garbage cans in his way so that Xander had to go bounding over them, feeling his demonic strength gather under him as he leapt into the air in pursuit.
Xander could tell the blood was gone the moment he woke up again. "Time for you to go, Mr. Harris," the voice from the ceiling said, and Xander realized that the pop from the intercom switching on had woken him. He sat up this time and stretched his muscles before studying his hands. The knuckles were white and the skin was a little wrinkled like he had been soaking in water. He needed blood.
"I must say you have been a most cooperative guest and rather low maintenance." The voice sounded self-satisfied, smug, downright happy. Xander let his fangs drop as he imagined the joy of breaking the man's neck. "If you would follow the guards' instructions, we will get you back to your sire very shortly."
The door opened and two guards appeared with tazers, an officer following behind. "Walk to the back of the room and face the mirror," the officer ordered, and Xander considered his options. He could be taken to Angel in chains or unconscious.
Alive and conscious, he would have to see his sire's eyes. He had fucked up and put Angel in a situation where Angel had to kill for him, and while Xander didn't give a rat's ass about some random human, he knew that Angel would suffer for that death. He didn't understand why Angel had killed instead of just taking off, but he didn't understand a lot of things: nuclear energy, alternate dimensions, Abba. But no matter how hard he tried to avoid it, he did understand one thing. He had hurt his sire. He actually wished Angel had just broken the deal because Xander would rather face torture than look at Angel now.
Unconscious he wouldn't have to see Angel's pain. Besides, if Angel got to stake him while he was up and talking and sounding like Xander Harris who had sent him to hell, Angel might actually have that moment of perfect happiness. For Cordy and Willow and Buffy, maybe it'd be safer to avoid letting Angel have that much joy. The broody one would get enough happiness out of staking Xander's unconscious form, so maybe that would balance out the extra guilt.
Xander didn't move.
"You will follow orders or I will order the guards to tazer you," the officer snapped.
"So tazer me. Afraid they can't hit at this range?" Xander replied. He'd gone through life poking at bullies, so he might as well go out the same.
"This is your last warning."
"You guys are slow on the uptake, anyone ever tell you that? I'm not moving." Xander closed his eyes. When the waves of pain hit him, he allowed them to push him into a nothingness that would hopefully last forever. The other option was hell, and Xander really didn't want to go there if he had any choice in the matter.
"Go gcreime an diabhal do chroí," hissed a voice from the other end of a long tunnel.
"He refused to follow simple directions; my men had no choice," a second familiar voice answered in a tone that fell somewhere between soothing and aggravated.
"And what about feeding him? Didn't you have a choice in that? I asked for him back unmarked, and you hand over a fledge that clearly hasn't fed, is unconscious, and is still in the same blood-stained jeans he had on five days ago."
Xander listened to Angel's voice as he tried to sort out whether he was awake or dreaming. Angel sounding almost concerned and his own unmoving body suggested dream, but the hard tiles under his cheek suggested real.
"Since you plan on giving him a quick death, his physical state wouldn't seem to be an issue," the second person answered, and now Xander recognized the voice from the ceiling, only it sounded like that voice was coming from a person instead of the ceiling this time. Struggling to regain control, Xander started bending his fingers.
"You made promises, and my main concern is that you don't seem to hold your end of the bargain up very well. When we make a deal, I expect to you follow through. If you ever fail this badly again, I will reconsider the terms of our agreement." Angel's strong hands closed over his arms and pulled him up and then Xander found himself draped over Angel's shoulder like some damsel in distress.
Since Xander couldn't get control of his body, he could only dangle helplessly with his hands swaying near the back of Angel's legs as he made silent complaints about Angel damaging his male ego with the whole girlish approach to rescue… not that Angel was being girlish, but Xander was sort of girlishly thrown over Angel's shoulder. Xander twitched his fingers again and tried to grab hold of something for support as Angel turned so fast that Xander had an image of himself flying off in the opposite direction. However Angel's arm wrapped tightly around his upper legs held him in place.
By the time Xander got his eyes open and his hands making meaningful movement, Angel was dropping him into the passenger side of the convertible. He considered calling for his sire, but he didn't think he really had a right to call Angel that anymore.
"Deadboy?" Xander called.
"Don't call me that," Angel ordered tightly as he pulled the seatbelt around Xander and clicked it in. Xander felt a bubble of hysteria rise. Nice, the vamp who was about to kill him didn't want him to get an owie if there was an accident. Xander turned his head to look away as Angel slid into the driver's seat, and he could see several men standing on the inside of a glass wall. One was the officer who ordered the guards to tazer him. One of the others must be the voice from the ceiling. Xander concentrated and went into game face just as Angel pulled the car away from the curb. He barely had time to see two of the men step back startled, and that felt at least a little good.
Xander allowed his human face to surface again. It was just easier for him. Watching the traffic flow by, Xander tried to ignore the silent condemnation from within the car. The tingling effects of the electricity lingered far longer this time than last, and Xander slowly worked each limb as he tried to regain enough control that Angel would let him walk once the car stopped. At least, Xander assumed he would get out of the car since he didn't think Angel wanted a dusty mess inside the car.
They passed a park with a large stand of trees, and Xander found himself wishing Angel would stop there. Jesse had drifted to the ground in the middle of a crowd at the Bronze, and Xander had seen his best friend's ashes stomped underfoot like common dirt. He would have liked his ashes to have ended up somewhere a little better.
Even though Xander was trying to figure out where they were going, he didn't actually make the connection until he saw the old building around the corner. The hotel. Xander closed his eyes and just hoped Cordy was gone because she couldn’t save him this time. He had proved that he was an idiot when it came to plans although technically Angel should have already known that. He had cost Angel some of those redemption points the broody one kept trying to save up, and even worse, he had accused Angel of lying about the whole demon-soul thing. Xander realized now that he had just made assumptions without talking to Angel, which really, not surprising. Angel wasn't one for the talking. And then there was the whole thing where the guy in the lobby said that Angel's goal had been to give him a quick death. Really, it was about the most Xander could expect at this point.
Angel pulled the car to the curb, and Xander reached down and unbuckled the seatbelt before getting out. He stood next to the car, waiting for some sort of orders, but Angel had reached a new level of brood. Xander ducked his head as Angel came around to stand next to him. The vampire opened his mouth only to shut it again, and then a look of loss came over the face that Xander had always accused of being incapable of actually expressing emotion. Xander bit his tongue to avoid nervously blurting some comment about Angel's face splitting.
"Come on then," Angel finally said as he headed into the hotel, and Xander followed. The sire scent in the lobby made Xander cringe. This was Angel's home, his territory. Part of Xander's demon uncurled and practically purred at being inside sire's territory, but for the most part, it just hurt. One more place he didn't really fit. He should be used to it by now. Xander wondered whether he'd fit in hell, but he somehow doubted it.
"Xander!" Cordelia practically shrieked as she threw herself into his arms. Xander looked at the curve of the neck pressed into his face as she allowed her own head to rest on his shoulder. For a second, it smelled like food, like chocolate and steak and Twinkies all rolled up in one. He blinked, and she was Cordelia again. Cordelia who could eviscerate a man with her words and leave him feeling guilty that she got her hands dirty doing it.
"I need to get some blood," Angel said as he disappeared into the back, and Xander knew he needed to say goodbye.
"Cordy," he said softly, trying not to hear her heart pounding as it moved her blood around her delicious body.
"Xander, you look horrible, and I swear, if Angel didn't tell those guys off, you just let me know. I will march down there and tell them exactly what I think about them pulling all this cloak and dagger shit in my town. If they think Angel is scary, they should meet the woman who scares him into handing over his wallet." Cordy's words made Xander smile, and suddenly he didn't even have to ignore her heartbeat because he knew he'd starve himself to dust before eating her.
"Cordy, I’m fine. Doing okay except for the obvious dead issue."
"Mister, if you disappear on us like that again, the dead issue will be the least of your worries." She stepped back and hit him for good measure.
"Cordy," Xander tried again.
"Because you do not know how pissed I was when Wesley came back and said you had decided to aimlessly wander the streets."
"Cordy…"
"I mean, I know you have a reputation for doing the dumbest thing possible while you were in Sunnydale, but this is a new town, and you need to make changes in your image. Consider this a second chance at developing some long missing cool."
"Could I get a word in?" Xander finally raised his voice in frustration.
"No. You have that tone that tells me you're going to say something I don't like, so I'm ignoring you."
"Cordy," Xander started again as he pulled her to the round couch and sat down. She sat down close enough that their legs were pressed up against each other, and Xander blinked rapidly. "I can't stay here," he started slowly.
"Angel is a brooding bastard at times, but he's been better lately and he needs us around to kick his ass when he does the whole brood fest."
"I'll leave the Angel ass kicking to you," Xander smiled. "Not a better girl in the world for it." He was rewarded with one of Cordelia's best smiles. "But he can't have me around. It's…"
"He won't hold Sunnydale against you," she said quietly.
"I know. It's just that…" Xander had never felt so helpless with words. He could usually find lots of words to come out his mouth, they were never the right ones, but they were words. Now he couldn't seem to get his thoughts together enough to even babble. "He's my sire, and I don't want to hurt him, but being here hurts him. I can't do it to him."
"Oh Xander. It's a vampire thing. Maybe we could get Wesley to fix it and then you can go back to annoying him cheerfully."
"I don't want it fixed," Xander admitted. "He's all I have left."
"You have me," Cordelia said quietly, and Xander nearly kicked himself as he watched the tears gather in her eyes. Great plan, Zeppo.
"It's not the same as before. Hell, before wasn't 'before' after the whole Willow thing, and that made more sense in my head before I actually said it."
"I know what you mean," Cordy promised as she turned away and gave the corner of her eye a quick swipe with the back of her hand. "I'm not enough for you any more."
"I'm a vampire. Vamps have other vampires. Well, except Angel, and he needs to live alone because he can't be a vamp, and when I’m around… it's not good for him."
"He's been better since you came. He was really going off the deep end for a while, and I thought I was going to have to beat him senseless with my handbag."
"Wouldn't have worked, his hair gel is thick enough to deflect your biggest Prada." Xander teased back without really any energy.
"You really won't stay?"
"No."
"So, where are you going?" Xander closed his eyes as he tried to come up with a lie fast enough, and he'd had a lie all prepared so why couldn't he remember it now?
"Xander?!" Cordelia's voice was sharp now.
"I can't do the whole vampire gang, Cordy. I really don't want to have you stake me for eating some tourist. And the clan… let's just say the Aurelius clan has issues. Worse than the Harris clan, and I've had enough of dysfunctional families."
"But, you can't mean..."
"Cordy, I don't want to be alone. I can't do it. Please, understand. I don't fit in. If Angel won't…" Xander's voice broke as he tried to say the word. "If he won't, I'll just have to walk in the sun, and you know how I was after the whole immolation o'gram. So, just don't get mad at him because it's what I want." Xander had expected screaming, hitting, some threatening. Instead Cordelia started crying silently. Her body jerked with the sobs and then Xander found her pressed to his chest, hot tears falling on his neck.
"Cordy? Xander?" Angel came out with his skin flushed pink from feeding. Xander gently pushed Cordelia away as he stood. He thought as a vampire he'd be fearless, and in that alley he'd felt pretty damn fearless, but now fear tightened around his chest until he physically ached.
"Can we go upstairs?" Xander asked quietly.
"Yeah. We need to talk," Angel answered, and Xander bit his lip to keep silent as he waited for Angel to start up the stairs. As he started to follow, a warm hand grabbed his for a moment before Cordelia got up and fled out the front doors of the hotel.
"Just do it and get it over with, Deadboy," Xander announced when Angel stopped at the top of the stairs. And for the second time that night, Angel actually registered an emotion, this time surprise.
"Are you talking about my indecision about which of our rooms to use or something else?" The voice was almost Angelus-like in its humor, and Xander suppressed a shiver. Reminding himself that there were worse things than death, he ducked his head submissively and waited in silence.
"I'll assume you meant the rooms then," Angel said as he headed off toward his own room. Xander followed.
"Get out of those jeans," Angel ordered as he went into his bedroom and then opened the bathroom door in a clear invitation. Xander didn't comment since he really didn't want a return of the whole rib-breakage mood. In reality, he was glad to get out of the jeans which had stiffened with dried blood and smelled of rot. His knee hadn't been broken, but it had sure bled like hell.
Xander had to peel the fabric away from his lower leg as he toed off the borrowed boots. That left him a problem with the borrowed socks, and Xander sat on the toilet to basically pry them off his feet. When he finished, he sat on the toilet naked and waiting and really hoping that the unexpected return of Angel's humor wasn't some really, really bad omen.
"The next step would be the shower," Angel said from the doorway, and Xander looked up to see Angel standing there naked. He remembered his panic that first night when he thought Angel was going to rape him, but now Xander just hoped this wasn't some sort of tease. When he looked at Angel's soft cock and heavy, low balls, he wanted to touch and explore and wow a cock really did look different with the foreskin still on it, he realized. Angel continued to stand there, and Xander become conscious of the fact that Angel had ordered him into the shower and instead he was sitting on a toilet staring at Angel.
Xander scrambled to get into shower, nearly burning himself as he turned the knob too quickly.
"Slow down, it's okay, Xander." Angel said softly, a faint Irish accent shading each sound. Pieces clicked together in Xander's head.
"Right, so you laughing plus you with the Riverdance voice equals you soulless. Is that why you were okay with the whole killing plan?" Xander watched as Angel froze still one step outside the shower. The water ran down his body and warmed him even though the thought of being trapped with Angelus left him shivering. Funny enough, he still felt the desire to touch even though he suspected that touching now just might include that chainsaw.
"You think I don't have a soul now?"
"Not that it matters. I figure Angelus hates me about as much as Angel, so how's this going to play out because if I get a vote I'm going with a 'no' on the chainsaw." Xander wrapped his arms around his stomach and waited. Not really much else he could do now, but he did wish he'd noticed in time to warn Cordelia.
"Xander, I still have my soul," Angel stepped forward, and Xander just waited. He didn't have an answer for such an obvious lie, so he just kept quiet. It was a skill he was finally starting to learn although a little late to do much good.
"Xander, look at me," Angel's voice commanded, and Xander found himself looking despite himself.
"I still have my soul. My soul has just learned a little about being human." Xander wasn't aware of breathing until he suddenly stopped doing it. Okay, the clickage in his head just might have been completely and utterly wrong because that was not an Angelus face. Of course, that looked mildly lusty, which technically wasn't an Angel face either. Angel reached over and wrapped a hand around Xander's wrist, pulling Xander's arm free so that Angel's second hand reached in and touched Xander's stomach. Xander trembled.
"Someone put me in the position of having to make a bad choice and a worse choice, and I found out that the world didn't end if I wasn't perfect." Xander started breathing again, panting in fact, as Angel's fingers splayed out over his chest. Bringing his own hand up, Xander's fingers hovered mere centimeters away from Angel's arm. Angel chuckled.
"Looking for permission?" Angel asked.
"Sire." Xander whispered the word softly and uncertainly.
"Go on then, boy." Angel's words freed his hand, and Xander allowed his fingers to slide up the curve of Angel's arm. Angel moved forward so that he stood under the spray, their bodies pressed together, and Xander's hand explored the strong shoulder and wide back. His other wrist was still held within Angel's grip, so Xander's explorations were limited. With his free hand, he moved down over the curve of Angel's back and the swell of his ass. If he only had one night left on earth, this is how he wanted to spend it.
"Xander, I don't know how much humanity and how much vampire you have. What do you want?" Xander ducked his head. He was afraid to say anything that might ruin this perfect mood.
"Childe," Angel growled in frustration, and Xander trembled in anticipation, his demonic face rippling to the front.
"Whatever you want, sire," Xander offered, his cock throbbing with need. Angel's hand slid up his back, leaving a trail of shivering flesh before fingers tangled with his hair and pulled his forehead to Angel's shoulder.
"You're sure about that, Xander? Just because I have a soul doesn't mean I don't feel the needs, the urges. Are you sure you want to give me that kind of permission?" Angel chuckled lowly as he whispered in Xander's ear. Xander spread his legs a little and pressed his cock into Angel's hip in invitation. As Angel shifted, Xander could feel his sire's hard cock pressing into his flesh, and he could feel dull teeth now teasing the skin of his neck and shoulder.
"I need you," Xander admitted. Dru had never held him, never wanted him or smelled of heavy lust around him. Dru never asked his opinion or his permission for anything. For this moment of knowing that Angel wanted him, Xander would sacrifice anything.
Angel's hands grabbed his upper arms and slammed him back into the cold tile. Despite gasping in shock, Xander wrapped a leg around Angel's knees and just pulled his sire closer. "Is this what you want, Xander? I won't hurt you. I carry around too much guilt for my childer now. You have to tell me what you want, Xander."
"I want you," Xander said. "I want to know I make you happy, but not too happy because you and happiness is not of the good," Xander suddenly corrected himself. He didn't want to be caught between his sire and the humans Xander still cared for if Angelus came out to play.
"I'm not going to lose my soul," Angel said far more confidently than Xander expected. Then again, how could he give Angel perfect happiness?
"Um, not trying to ruin the mood here, but..."
"I've given up on perfect happiness. It's a myth. The only way for me to feel perfect happiness is if I lie to myself about who I am and what I want, and I think I've done enough of that already. This isn't perfect, but that doesn't mean it can't be good," Angel pointed out before lowering his head to Xander's neck, and now sharp vampire teeth nipped the flesh.
Xander grabbed at Angel's shoulders and hissed in desire as he could feel Angel pulling his blood from him until only Angel's hands around his waist held him upright. When Angel pulled back, his mouth red with Xander's blood and his face flushed with feeding and the heat of the shower, Xander didn't even care if Angel staked him because it would be worth it. Angel lifted him and carrying him to the bed, dropping him onto the mattress where the water dripping from his chilled body created an instant wet spot.
"Sire." Xander offered a word of worship as he tried to hold on to Angel's arm as the older vampire stood up.
"Hush, Childe," Angel said as he stepped away. Xander watched as Angel pulled something from a bedside drawer before lying down next to Xander. Everywhere that flesh met flesh, Xander felt his body tingle with a desire so strong that it made him twitch with need.
"Deadboy, if you don't do something." Xander froze when Angel growled a warning. Of course the large hand that now traveled slow arcs from his shoulder over his chest down his hip and leg also distracted him. On the next pass, Xander tried to roll into the touch, but Angel just raised his hand so that Xander lost that delicious touch. Xander had never felt such intense need and weakness all at once. He didn't even have enough blood for an erection, but he felt an almost overwhelming need to come even without one.
"Vampires are about submission and dominance. I thought with Buffy I could ignore those needs, and for one moment I did, but even if Angelus hadn't returned, I would have felt this need. But I won't hurt you Xander. I want this. I can feel you tremble with need. Even before you yielded to me as your sire, I wanted this, but I won't hurt you."
Xander pushed himself up on one elbow, his muscles trembling with bloodloss and lust as he stopped Angel's words with a stolen kiss. He might have initiated it, but Angel soon took control, and Xander groaned helplessly as Angel's heavy frame pinned him to the damp mattress.
"Drink," Angel ordered right before he drove his teeth into Xander's neck for the second time. Xander shivered as he brought his own teeth to Angel's neck and bit down. The sire's blood made his cock fill, and Angel reached between their bodies to grab both their cocks together as Xander clawed at his sire's back.
Xander lay diagonally across the bed on his stomach, and Angel traced a finger up the back of his childe's thigh where a series of bites decorated the flesh. The ghastly white of starvation had been replaced with the more normal tones of a fledge, and the bites from the previous night had already faded to faint bruises despite the fact that Angel had allowed his teeth to tear the flesh. Angel used his demon vision to examine the fading marks and trace the veins traveling under the surface of the skin.
Xander moaned without regaining consciousness, and Angel smiled. While he had whipped Dru into unconsciousness many times, driving Xander into oblivion through multiple orgasms had been a special treat. The boy had reacted to every touch and bite with appreciative moans and cries and when Angel had finally allowed the boy some initiative, he had been floored with Xander's enthusiastic explorations. Not even Dru had made him feel so satisfied.
Xander threw out an arm and stirred restlessly as Angel continued to explore his childe's body with a single finger.
Five days. For five days he had not walked the balance beam in his mind, and he still couldn't figure out how Xander's words had managed to cut through to him. He had loved Doyle as a brother, but when Doyle had told him basically the same thing, Angel had ignored the man. He had talked to people more and let them physically close to him, but he had kept that emotional distance. He had still tried to be perfect. How funny that Xander Harris' words had reached him where Doyle's had not.
He knew full well that things were not going to be perfect. Despite the fact that he had promised himself to give up the guilt, he did feel guilty that he was benefiting from Xander's death because he had respected the annoying human. He worried about hurting Buffy. She wouldn't understand why he could start rebuilding a life with Cordelia and Wesley and Xander when he couldn't build one with her. But no matter how much he loved her, and he always would, he couldn't live with someone who saw him as the dark savior of her fantasies. It was just a little too easy to lie to himself when he was with her.
And then there were the inevitable problems when Buffy and Willow found out Xander had come to L.A. Angel knew how much the two girls had loved Xander, and knowing that Xander's demon was in Angel's bed might create more problems than the Demon Initiative had. Oh, it was hard to have a perfect moment with the clouds of guilt and fear circling, but Angel let himself have at least a good moment as Xander's fingers curled around his arm.
"Sire," Xander whispered, and no matter how many times the boy said that word, Angel still felt the pull. Xander looked to him for protection and life, and Angel could admit now that the need to dominate Xander came from both a demonic sense of clan and power as well as his own past. He remembered the joy of holding down a bar maid as she wiggled in mock protest. He'd loved those games because his lack of control in his father's house had left him seeking power elsewhere.
"Here, boy," Angel whispered, and the hand on his arm tightened as Xander opened large brown eyes. Angel's own body was draped over Xander's back, and Angel made no move to get up.
"Thank you." Xander whispered reverently, and Angel frowned at the tone.
"I enjoyed it too," Angel pointed out as he tried to decipher the look on Xander's face. The adoration and lust and need from the previous night had been erased from Xander's face, and Angel found himself resenting the sad, closed expression that had taken their place.
"Angel?" Xander asked in a small voice.
"Xander?" Angel returned in the same tone, unable to understand the sudden change after last night, but certainly not pleased.
"Do you..." the boy's voice stuttered, "will you just finish it before I say something really stupid that ruins this whole not hating each other moment?" Xander's words tumbled out, making Angel roll to one side and half sit up. The fledge pulled back the hand that had reached out to his sire even in sleep, and Angel could feel his anger gnaw at the edges of his control.
"Finish... Xander, do you really think I'd stake you?" Angel demanded angrily. Xander hunched his shoulders unhappily.
"Kinda hoping because I still have the whole fear of fire thing going, so walking in the sun is not high on my list of wanna-do's," Xander said to the pillow.
Angel growled and rolled Xander over so that he was lying face up on the bed still pinned beneath Angel. As he looked down at Xander's hunched form, he realized that Xander did in fact expect to die. Then again, after the stories Xander had told of his parents, Xander had always been hurt by the people he loved. Even the Scoobies who had loved him unconditionally had unintentionally hurt him in ways that had surprised Angel. So of course the demon would expect the same.
"You will not walk in the sun," Angel ordered in his strongest sire voice.
"Look Deadboy, we both know this thing is a really, really bad idea what with me not having a soul and all, and even Cordy understands that it's just better to have a quick end."
"Mother of God. Please tell me you did not tell Cordy I was going to stake you," Angel begged. He didn't have the energy to deal with Cordelia and there would come a time when the woman had enough clothes that throwing a credit card at her would no longer work as a form of self-defense.
"Um, I didn't tell Cordy you were going to stake me," Xander said in a tone of voice that made it perfectly clear that he had told her exactly that.
"Wonderful," Angel complained in a sarcastic tone that made Xander flinch. "That's going to be a fun conversation." Oh yeah, the idea of a perfect moment was sliding farther away by the second. "Xander, get this through your head: I am not going to *ever *stake you."
"But..."
"One more word, and you're going to find out how I taught William to be more careful with the horses," Angel threatened, and Xander stopped talking immediately. However, the eyes still had the guarded sadness that made Angel wonder how much of this pain Xander had carried in life. He took a breath as he realized that he had to either convince Xander that he was needed or risk the idiot running into the sun in some misguided attempt to do what he thought his sire wanted.
"I have spent the last century trying to deny myself every pleasure, and maybe I've decided to change my policy. I want family. I want childer, and Dru and Spike just don't fit into my life now. You are the only family I have or want, and if you destroy yourself, I will follow you to Hell and made you sorry you ever rose from your grave," Angel growled menacingly. Xander looked up and a crooked smile slowly appeared.
"You want me to stay?"
"I think I just said that," Angel pointed out.
"Yeah, I thought so, but sometimes I'm not quick-to-catch-on guy. Just thought I'd check." Angel looked down in confusion as Xander's eyes darted off to the side. Suddenly Angel realized why Xander had asked.
"Xander, if you need to hear me say it, you just need to ask," Angel offered. Xander was giving Angel the power and control he had always longed for in a relationship; the least Angel could do was offer Xander something in return.
"I need to hear you say it," Xander admitted with an indifferent shrug. Angel reached out and cupped Xander's face as he forced his childe's head up so that he could look Xander in the eye.
"You're mine, Xander, and I will never let you go. You won't ever leave me or kill yourself because you belong to me." Angel could feel the tremors go through the body beneath him, and yellow bled into the dark brown eyes watching him. For not the first time Angel considered that demons would be better off possessing creatures with fewer hang-ups than humans.
"Even when I have one of those days when my powers of annoyance are, you know, really annoying?" Xander asked, but now his expression held a wonder that reminded Angel of young William.
"I didn't say I wouldn't beat you senseless," Angel shot back, but he lightened his words with a smile.
"That'd take about two hits," Xander returned quickly as Angel got up off the bed and started searching for clothing.
"Yeah, well you never did have the sense god gave a goose."
"Hey, I've met a few geese at the school zoo field trip, and they do pretty well for themselves. I mean, have you ever tried to pull a goose's tail?"
Angel stopped in the middle of pulling up his pants and looked over at his childe. "No, Xander, I don't think I ever have." He threw a pair of black pants at Xander who put them on.
"Don't try. They've got a nasty bite, and the embarrassing pictures people will get of you running away from a bird? So not worth it."
"I'll keep that in mind," Angel said as he fought the urge to laugh. Dru had truly created the most human vampire Angel had ever met.
"You know, I really thought I was coming here to die. I'm kinda glad I'm not all dusty since you turned out to be less of a pain in the ass than I expected, Deadboy," Xander offered as he caught a shirt Angel threw his way.
"I have to admit that I'm glad you came to LA. I'm still a little confused about why Dru turned you only to leave you, but that's Dru." Angel shrugged at the insanity of his strangest creation. He thought that he could totally own her by driving her mad, but in some ways Dru had never been his because of her insanity.
"Tell me about it. She babbled about people in the stars the whole time that minion of hers was holding me down. Stars, blah, blah, blah…. Brother with the kiss, blah, blah, blah…. Green eyes, blah, blah, blah." Xander's words made Angel freeze mid-step as he walked toward the door. He slowly turned as the words triggered a memory.
"Xander, tell me everything she said."
Now Xander stopped walking and cocked his head slightly in confusion. "She said so much, the talkage and the pettage and the near heart-attack level fear went on for a while before she actually got around to biting me."
"Tell me as many phrases as you can remember." Angel watched as Xander's confusion grew even greater before he closed his eyes in concentration as he attempted to obey.
"She said Buffy had been bad and had stolen Spike's eyes. She said she wanted to steal Spike's eyes back. She talked about her brother in the sky who listened to the stars with her. She muttered on about him dancing in the stars after the world went dark. She absolutely ranted about naughty dolls who didn't like their dresses." Xander paused and wrinkles appeared in his forehead. "She talked about a lost kitten and green eyes and a fire that was burning a mountain." Xander now opened his eyes, but Angel could tell that the fledge was seeing Drusilla's face in his memory.
"She said that her brother with green eyes was calling." Xander laughed a little. "I told her I could get her a good package on a cell phone so she could call back because I was working at this place that sold these really cheap…." Xander glanced over and then laughed a little nervously, "And that's totally off topic. Okay, Drusilla. She said kittens could see in the dark and her brother told her to make the kitten new and sunshine made her skin giggle and puppies sometimes peed on the floor and that I was a bad little boy. I'm sorry, that's really all I remember since I was focusing more on the panicking than the listening."
"Jesus, Mary, and Joseph and all the saints in heaven," Angel whispered softly, the words coming easily to his lips even though he hadn't used that phrase in quite a few decades.
"Did any of that made sense to you? 'Cause I have to say I think she's battier than a fruit loop." Xander looked at him curiously, and Angel struggled with how much to explain. Should his redemption come at the cost of another life? Could it?
"Dru had a vision."
"Yeah, she gets those a lot. They have medicine for that now."
"She has real visions, just like Cordy, just like Doyle used to."
"Doyle?"
"He…" Angel stopped. "He's the one who convinced me I couldn't keep trying to live separate from humans. He's dead."
"Okay, and this is me being even more confused," Xander admitted.
"Dru is a seer and so was Doyle, so he's a brother of sorts to her. Doyle also has green eyes and since he died saving others, I imagine he is dancing in the stars after his world went dark. I definitely know he listened to the stars since that's Dru's description of a vision."
"This is starting to sound like that poetry class in school that I always hated because I couldn't get the right answers out of the poem. So tell me, where do bad dolls that hate their dresses come into this?"
"I have no idea," Angel admitted. "But I think Doyle asked Dru to turn you."
"Whoa, you mean the Powers That Be stuck their fingers in my life? I'm not liking that idea. Demon here, don't really want the powers of light interested in me."
"But you aren't completely a demon. Dru left you your humanity, and no offense Xander, but you're still pretty much you, including the fact that you only care about the people who you consider friends. You had a..." Angel struggled to explain what he had seen in the human Xander, "a coldness towards other people."
"Okay, that's kinda true. I had a mean streak that Willow always used to ignore. But I'm still not getting why one of your dead friends would send crazy girl after me." Angel glanced at Xander sharply, surprised to see the fledge had given up Dru as a sire so completely.
"Simple, kittens can see in the dark." Angel offered with a shrug of his own as he opened his bedroom door. He could hear Cordelia slamming things around the office, a sure sign she was either hurting or homicidally angry.
"Either that's not simple or I'm not that bright." Xander gave a small laugh. "Maybe both."
"Maybe I just need to listen to my childe a little more often," Angel translated as he threw his arm around Xander's shoulders and started walking again.
"I don't know if I can handle being listened to. I've spent 19 years getting ignored, Deadboy."
"If you don't stop calling me Deadboy, I'm going to let Gunn call you Zeppo for the next decade or so," Angel threatened.
"That's okay," Xander answered amicably. "Gunn calls me names for the same reason I called you Deadboy back in Sunnydale."
"To annoy the unlife out of me?"
"Um, yeah. Well, that and to try and make you seem smaller so that I didn't feel like pissing my pants every time you snuck up behind me with your whole dead creepage thing."
"I don't sneak *or* creep," Angel said. Xander looked over and Angel tried to suppress his smile. "I just lurk really quietly."
"Okay, if that's your attempt at humor, you're pathetic."
"I'm two hundred years out of practice," Angel pointed out with a shrug.
"Okay, maybe I'll cut you some slack for that, Deadboy."
"Watch it, Zeppo. Have some respect for your sire."
Xander smiled as Angel let go of his shoulders long enough to cuff him upside the head gently.
"Whatever," he answered.
"God, you've been hanging out with Gunn too much," Angel complained, and Xander gave a little laugh. "We've got cases waiting, so it's time to get back to work, Kitten."
"Okay, I officially hate that nickname more than Zeppo." Xander put an elbow in Angel's stomach just hard enough to register his annoyance.
"Whatever," Angel answered right back as he steered his childe toward the stairs. It was time to start a new life. Angel sent up a quick prayer that Xander's soul had found peace and a quick thanks to Doyle for helping him see the true path to redemption.
Okay, I'm done with these characters, so I have a couple of challenges out there for Xangel writers (or people who I might tempt into the slashy goodness of Xangel.)
1. Scoobies. Willow calls Angel Inc to ask for help in the latest hellmouthy goodness, and who should answer the phone but Xander. When Angel has to go back to Sunnydale, how do the Scoobies and Spike handle Xander's new place in Angel's life?
Click Here to read Tenth Muse's response to this challenge:
Anatomy of a Song
2. Lawson. The fledge Angel turned on that submarine in "Why We Fight" comes back for revenge early. The difference now is that Angel realizes that HE made one of those strange human vampires. This time, Angel can't help his childe commit suicide so he decides to give Lawson a mission worth living for.