Linked

by
Wildepet

Part Seven

"Do you really think vampires are capable of love?" the older man asked once Spike had been removed from the room by two soldiers.

The woman shrugged. "I don't know, George. I don't think so. This one certainly cares about the human. But he thinks of him rather in terms of property, as far as I can tell."

"Do you understand what it could mean for our studies if demons actually were capable of feeling love?" the younger man said.

"Let's go and talk to the boy," the woman said.

Xander woke up shivering and shaking. He hadn't been able to get much sleep. An hour at most. Absentmindedly he touched his abdomen where the soldier had hit him first. The bruise still hurt but he noticed that it had already gone from black and blue to light brown and yellow. He grabbed the shirt he had used as a pillow and put it on. With difficulty he got up. His body ached from lying on the cold, hard floor. He stretched his numb limbs to encourage circulation.

"Bloody fucking hell," he cursed.

A small smile flickered across his face, when he realized how much he sounded like Spike. It was replaced almost instantly with a worried frown. He wondered whether the bond worked both ways. He wished they'd had more time to talk. He really needed to know how the bond worked. If it worked.

Xander sighed and closed his eyes. He tried to concentrate on Spike. He inhaled deeply, some faint traces of leather and smoke and cum were still swirling in the air.

"Come on, Spike!" he whispered.

Nothing. Maybe it just didn't work that way. Or maybe...No, he pushed that thought aside. Spike had told him the truth. He wouldn't use him like that. Would he? He was an evil vampire, after all. He felt a wave of desperation washing over him and tried to focus on tracing Spike again.

"Come on, Spike, I need you. Where are you?" he muttered. He repeated these words over and over again, like a mantra.

***


"Come on, Spike, I need you. Where are you?"

Spike slowly regained consciousness. He opened his eyes and found himself back in the alley. Confused he scanned the darkness.

"Xan?" he said hesitatingly.

He could have sworn he'd heard the boy's voice.

"Xander?"

Reluctantly Xander opened his eyes again. He had just begun to feel something, feel Spike's presence, when the woman's voice had interrupted him.

"What?" he snarled.

She backed up a few steps and stared at him questioningly. She didn't know how but she was sure the vampire's claim had changed something in the boy. "I am cold, hungry and tired and unless you're planning to do something about that you can just as well fuck off again," Xander said.

"Why were you standing in the middle of the room with your eyes shut?" she asked.

"Yeah," Xander replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "silly me, why didn't I just sit on the cold floor and freeze to death?"

The woman motioned over the two soldier waiting by the entrance. "Take him to the interrogation room and get him his own clothes," she said. "And you might want to use handcuffs. We don't know how the vampire's bite has affected him, so be careful."

"Yes, Professor Walsh," one of the soldiers said.

Surprised Xander turned his head to look at him. Riley avoided his gaze and grabbed his arm.

"I don't think this is necessary," Xander protested when Riley fastened the cuffs around his wrists. Riley ignored him and pushed him towards the exit. Xander's brain was racing. What the hell was Riley doing here?

Spike got to his feet and groaned. He hadn't fed in two days except for the blood he had taken from Xander. And that had not nearly been enough. He really needed to feed before he could do anything else. He was pretty sure that he still had some packages in the little fridge in Xander's basement. Bloody pigs blood. The mere thought of it almost made him sick. Now that he'd tasted Xander...He spun around and slid into gameface when he heard a noise behind him. An old man, probably a beggar, staggered towards him. An easy kill without the chip. The alcohol level in the man's blood was probably higher than the number of his remaining brain cells, judging by the smell that hit Spike. Still better than pigs blood. But with the chip...Ha bloody ha. The Slayer or the boy. Now, wasn't that ironic?

Anyway, he had no intention of setting the chip off, so he slid past the drunken man and headed in the direction of Xander's basement apartment.

Buffy and Willow had spent most of their afternoon looking for Xander and Spike. Buffy had even dislocated Willie's shoulder to convince him to talk. But all he had heard was that the Initiative had been monitoring Spike for the last few weeks.

"It's almost seven," Willow said, finally. "Let's go and meet the others at Giles'. We'll find him, won't we?" She was genuinely worried about her friend. "What if Spike has...killed him? Or turned him? Did you notice the way he looked at Xander when he thought no one was watching?"

Buffy stopped short and stared at Willow. Willow blushed nervously.

"What are you talking about?" Buffy asked.

She hadn't really paid much attention to the annoying vampire since he had moved in with Xander. She had just been glad that she no longer ran into him every time she went to see Giles. And of course she had been busy with Riley. "Are you trying to tell me that Spike has a crush on Xander?"

"Well, that's what Tara thinks but I don't know. I mean, she has some kind of sixth sense when it comes to other people's feelings. But Spike...Well, he's not even human. And I don't know. He loved Dru, but she was completely nuts. Nuts and evil. And Xander is with Anya...was. I still can't believe they split up. And neither of them ever really talked about it. I wonder..." She paused. "Do you think they split over Spike? This story about the soothsayer is more than weird, don't you think?" she said hesitatingly. "I mean, Xander has been spending a lot of time with Spike recently."

"Has he?" Buffy asked, surprised.

"Well, you know, we've both been busy with Tara and Riley and college and everything and maybe he was feeling lonely..." Willow muttered, looking guilty.

"And you didn't say anything before because?"

"I..."

"Anyway, forget it, we're there." Buffy raised her hand to knock on Giles'door. The two girls jumped when the door was jerked open. "Giles!" Buffy exclaimed.

"Buffy, Willow, did you find him? Er...I guess not. Come in. Tara has already arrived."

Buffy brushed past him. "Riley's not here yet?" she asked, disappointed.

"No, he...he hasn't turned up yet, I'm afraid."

Tara was sitting on the sofa, smiling shyly. "Hi," she said softly.

Willow went over to her girlfriend and sat down next to her.

"You okay?" Tara asked, looking genuinely worried.

Willow nodded half-heartedly. "I just wish we would find him," she whispered.

Xander was standing in a dimly lit room, facing the wall and waiting, as he had been told. He was wearing his own clothes again, bright orange shirt and his favorite jeans, both liberally covered with dried mud.

Riley had stood guard while he changed his clothes and he had not said a single word. Xander had decided that it was probably wiser not to address him if Riley didn't choose to speak first. He wasn't entirely sure on whose side he was. What if he had only used Buffy to spy on the Scoobies? What if Riley was the reason why they had been captured?

Behind him a door was opened and somebody entered the room. He smelled food.

"Come over here and sit down," the woman's voice ordered.

Xander turned around slowly. The woman Riley had addressed as Professor Walsh was standing behind the table, holding a brown paper bag in her hand.

"I guess being a teenager you like fast food," she said, smiling almost amiably.

She gestured for him to sit down. He obeyed hesitatingly, unable to suppress a low moan when he realized how sore his ass still was. "What do you want from me?" he asked, trying to hide his discomfort.

She sat down opposite him and began to unpack the paper bag, spreading its contents on the table in front of her. "I want to talk to you," she said. "And maybe, if you decide to cooperate..." She trailed of, picking up some fries. "Maybe I'll consider sharing my dinner with you."

Xander growled in frustration. "What do you want?" he repeated.

"I'd like you to answer some questions first of all."

Xander nodded slowly. "Okay," he replied. "Go on."

She took a cheeseburger and handed it to him. He frowned at his newly chained hands. "I'd rather not remove the handcuffs just yet," she stated with a smile.

Xander sighed and awkwardly removed the wrapping from the cheeseburger. He took a large bite. Professor Walsh watched him in silence for a couple of minutes. The information she had about the boy was scarce at best. They hadn't really paid much attention to him so far. Six weeks of observation, summarized on two pages. All the tests had been negative so far. As he had said, he was the donut boy. Nothing remarkable. Except for the vampire's obsession with him. But this turn of events had been totally unexpected.

"Well, Xander," Professor Walsh began. "As you can imagine we are very interested in your relationship with the vampire."

"Um, so, what do you wanna know?" Xander mumbled.

"What makes you so special to him?"

Xander choked on the last bite of his cheeseburger and coughed. "I...I don't know," he finally said.

"Do you think he will kill you now that he can?"

Xander gulped uneasily but considered this possibility for a couple of minutes. He thought back to the incident that had changed their relationship.

*** flashback ***


Xander was walking home alone from a Scoobie meeting. They had done a lot of research that night and he was tired. He had convinced Buffy that he was a big boy and could take care of himself. He was totally unprepared when the two massive demons charged at him out of nowhere. He yelped and jumped back, reaching for his stake.

"Shit," he cursed when the first demon wrapped one of its tentacles around his arm and he actually heard his bones snap. The last thing he saw before he passed out from the pain was a shock of platinum blond hair.

When he woke up again, he was sitting in the waiting room of the hospital. "There you are again, pet," a familiar British voice said.

He turned around and saw Spike standing next to him. "I have to go, before the Watcher finds out I'm missing," Spike continued. "I told those guys I didn't know you, so they haven't called anyone yet. I'm off."

Without another word he turned around and was gone before Xander could even say thank you.

******

"Xander! What happened?"

Giles stormed into the waiting room, followed by Willow, Buffy and Anya.

"Two demons attacked me, they broke my wrist, and my ankle is kinda twisted as well," Xander explained. "Can you take me home, I'm tired."

"Can you tell us what kind of demons they were?" Giles asked.

"I don't know and frankly I don't really care at the moment...They were kinda large and very, very ugly..."

"Oh, of course, I'm sorry Xander..."

Xander looked around. "Where's Spike?" he asked.

The others looked at him like he had lost his mind. "Spike?" Buffy repeated incredulously.

"Why, he's at home, in the bathroom," Giles replied.

"Did you check on him before you left?" Xander asked.

"Yes, of course."

"Xander, what's wrong? Did they hit you on the head or something?" Buffy asked.

"I...I was unconscious."

Willow stepped forward and put an arm around his shoulders. "I think you should get some rest. You seem to be confused." She smiled. "More than usual, that is..."

Xander smiled back gratefully. "Thanks, Wills."

"Hey, what about me?" Anya interrupted. "I am your girlfriend, I should get to hug you first."

Willow blushed and let go of Xander immediately. Xander kissed Anya gently.

"This doesn't mean that I can't have any more orgasms with you, does it?" she asked, knocking on the cast.

Now it was Xander's turn to blush. "Ahn, I really don't think..." he began.

Giles coughed. "Erm, well, I think I should drive you home now."

"Yes, that would be of the good," Xander said, relieved.

******

"Giles?"


"Xander, why are you calling? It's kind of late. Is everything all right?"

"Um, I'm sorry, G-man..."

"Would you not call me that?"

"Um, yeah, sure...I...Well, Anya got bored with me and my cast and she left me all alone, so um, well, I wondered if maybe, um, you could bring Spike over..."

"You...you want to borrow Spike?" Giles asked incredulously.

"Well, yeah, I mean, I can't really move around a lot with my ankle and I'd really like some company."

"Why don't you just ask Willow or..."

"No, Giles, I don't want to bother Willow or Buffy. . They're both busy with their own lives."

"If you're sure...you know that Spike can be a real pain...He may not be able to hurt you physically, but..."

"Yeah, I know, but, well, maybe Spike can make himself useful for once."

"I am not sure he'll like that idea," Giles said with a smile. "We'll be there in 30 minutes."

"Admit it, you can't wait to be rid of him again."

Giles laughed. "Well, I can't say I'm likely to miss him. Just be careful."

"Yeah, right, thanks Giles."

******

Spike had moved in with Xander and stayed, even after Xander had lost the cast. Xander had finally managed to convince Giles that Spike was harmless and that their living arrangement in the basement was preferable to Spike spending the rest of his unlife chained up in Giles'tub. Xander had even bought a spare mattress for the vampire so that he didn't have to sleep in the chair again. They had never talked about the incident with the two demons. Or how Spike had managed to escape from the bathroom unnoticed. Or why he had saved Xander's life instead of watching him become demon dinner.

*** end flashback ***

"Spike is a friend", Xander finally said. "I trust him with my life and he has proven worthy of this trust."

"So he has saved your life?" Professor Walsh asked. "Do you love him?"

Xander looked at her in surprise at the sudden change of subject. "That's none of your business," he replied.

"Or is it just the fascination with evil? The feasting with panthers? What do you see in him?"

"I know he's evil," Xander replied indignantly. "But that's not all he is."

"So you think he loves you?"

Xander shifted uneasily on the chair and winced slightly at the dull ache.

"It hurts, doesn't it?" she asked, with an unpleasant smile. "I actually wondered how you'd be able to sit after that. He wasn't exactly gentle."

Xander blushed when he realized the implications of what she had just said. "You...you watched?" he stammered finally.

"Actually we took the liberty to film you," she explained.

"You what?" he exclaimed. "But...but...um, you can't film vampires, can you?" His face turned an even deeper shade of crimson.

"Actually you can," she replied. "At least if you use a digital camera. I don't know about conventional cameras."

"You can?" he asked, relieved and intrigued at the same time.

He'd never really thought about that before. He had just assumed that because vampires didn't have a reflection they couldn't be filmed either.

"Well, I`ve got some more questions concerning the vampire's so-called claiming of yourself," the professor continued.

"Are you gonna drink that coke yourself?" Xander asked. "Cause I think I might be having some kind of dehydration problem here. And dehydration guy certainly isn't in the mood for talking."

"So, I wonder, do you feel different?" she asked, ignoring him.

Xander hummed a little tune and smiled cheerfully. She sighed and passed him the coke. "Not quite the first class treatment I was promised in the brochure," he said, greedily swallowing the luke-warm liquid. It tasted weird. "That was drugged, wasn't it?" he asked.

Part Eight

Riley was on his way to Giles'flat. He was late for the meeting and Buffy would be furious. She was cute, but she could be a real bitch.

When Professor Walsh had asked him to spy on the Slayer and her friends he had agreed without hesitation. It was his job after all. He'd been surprised but pleased to find out that the petite blonde he'd met at college actually was the much feared demon huntress.

She'd been careful not to reveal her secret identity to him, but he had arranged a little fight with a couple of underfed vamps that had forced her to rescue him. Ever since then he had been a more or less regular participant of the gang's meetings and patrols.

When Hostile 17 had managed to escape and turned up at the Watcher's, Riley had immediately informed Professor Walsh. Fortunately the vampire had never actually seen him at the base, so his turning to the Slayer for
help had not endangered their operation.

Why Buffy hadn't simply staked the vampire was a mystery to him. He was obnoxious, loud, annoying, obscene and above all, an evil vampire, whose inability to kill had not really made him harmless, no matter what the idiot boy and the Watcher said.

Riley hadn't seen much of him in all those weeks. Buffy had made sure of that for some reason, but that much he could tell.

Professor Walsh had been pleased and excited at this new development and had given him orders not to interfere, even when the hostile had moved in with the boy. She had arranged a permanent supervision for Hostile 17 then.

She'd had plans for the vampire, plans that somehow included the boy who for some reason was important to him, important enough to endanger his own life or unlife or whatever. Riley hadn't learned that her plans also included the death of the Slayer until today.

The Initiative wanted Buffy dead. He shuddered at the thought. He liked the girl. Maybe he even loved her. But he would not question his orders.

About the boy, he couldn't care less. The way he had been caught with the hostile and the subsequent 'claiming' at the base had made Riley lose what little respect he'd held for him. Xander now knew who he was, but he most likely wouldn't live to tell his secret. And if he did there were ways to make sure he wouldn't remember.

A cold hand grabbed his throat out of nowhere and he was pushed hard against a wall. "What the...?"

He stopped when he recognized Hostile 17. "Care to tell me why you've got my Xanpet's smell all over you?"

Spike was feeling better now. He had found two bags of blood in the fridge and drained them cold. The taste was disgusting but still it was better than nothing. What now? He needed to talk to Angel first. Bloody hell. He picked up Xander's phone but put it down again. Maybe it was bugged. He cursed under his breath. Why the bleedin'hell hadn't he noticed that they'd been watched? For weeks! He left the basement apartment and headed for a nearby phone box. He inserted some coins and dialed Angel's number from memory.

"Angel Investigations, we..." Angel's voice greeted him.

"Sire, I need your help," Spike spluttered out.

"Spike?"

"Sire."

"Will? Is that you? Where are you?"

"Sunnyhell."

"Why do you need my help?"

"Are you gonna help me, you soddin'poof or are you just gonna play twenty questions with me?" Patience really wasn't Spike's strong point.

"I'm coming," Angel replied with a sigh and hung up.

"Now that went well," Spike said cheerily. "He's not gonna stake me on sight."

He noticed a movement on the other side of the road. Now if that wasn't the bleedin'beggar that had almost staggered into him back in the alley. Following him around now, was he? He crossed the road and had almost reached the man when a familiar scent washed over him.

"Xan!" he muttered and spun around only to see the Slayer's goddamn boy-toy turning around the corner. He was on him in a matter of seconds.

"You...you're Hostile 17," Riley stammered, caught off guard.

Spike smiled menacingly. "My friends call me Spike," he said, tightening his grip on Riley. "And you don't want to find out why."

"You can't hurt me," Riley pointed out.

Spike let go of him and stared. "The chip," he muttered. "It didn't go off."

The look of panic on Riley's face was priceless. It was almost funny. With an evil grin, he slid into his demon visage and pinned the man to the wall. "Answer my question, loverboy."

"I...I don't know what you're talking about."

He heard whispered commands at a distance and hurried footsteps approaching. Cursing he dropped Riley to the ground.

"I'll be back," he said and disappeared.

***


Spike headed straight to the Watcher's. He had no idea what to tell the Scoobies. He'd talk to Giles alone first. Bloody hell, the Slayer's boytoy was one of Them! He'd only actually met him once or twice, because the Slayer apparently hadn't been too keen on explaining why she was socializing with a vampire. Riley knew that Buffy was the Slayer, he'd even helped them out a couple of times. Or possibly just spied on them.


"Congrats, Slayer," he muttered. "Seem to be acquiring a history of sleeping with the enemy."

He sighed. This wouldn't make things easier.

"I wonder where Riley is," Buffy said for the umpteenth time. "Do you think he's vanished as well? If he doesn't show up in 10 minutes, I'm back on patrol. Maybe there's something out there, taking us out one by one. I've gotta stop it!"

"Yes, Buffy, you're quite right," Giles replied.

"So, do you think it's Spike?"

Willow shook her head thoughtfully. "Not really. I think Spike would go straight after you, wouldn't he? Remember, last time he only got kinda stuck with me because you weren't home. But I think if he ever got the chip out, you'd be d...um...I mean, he'd try to kill you at once. And if Tara is right..."

They all jumped when somebody banged on the door.

"Open the bloody door, Watcher."

"Spike!" Buffy exclaimed, jumping to her feet.

She was at the door before anybody else had even thought about reacting.

Spike wasn't really surprised when he found himself pinned to the ground with a stake over his heart. "Bloody hell, Slayer, get off of me," he cursed, pushing her hard. She flew across the room, crashing into one of the bookshelves. Spike smiled, satisfied. "Right," he said. "Not quite the warm welcome I was hoping for, but..."

He flinched and backed away from the cross Giles was holding up. "Put the bloody cross down, Watcher. I need to talk to you, alone. I'm not going to harm anyone."

Buffy was back on her feet. "What have you done to Riley?" she asked.

"And Xander?" Willow added.

Buffy blushed.

"Yeah, what have you done to Xander?"

"I need to talk to the Watcher," Spike said, ignoring the girls. "Now."

"Yes, well, maybe we could..."

"Giles, the chip doesn't work anymore. He's going to kill you!"

"Can't you just shut the hell up?" Spike shouted. He grabbed Giles'arm and let go again immediately when the chip went off warningly. "What the...?" he said, clutching his head.

"What's wrong with your chip?" Giles asked.

"I don't bloody know, okay? And I don't have time for this shit, so could we please go upstairs and talk in private?"

Giles frowned. "Did you just say please?" he asked.

Spike groaned.

"Oh, all right, let's go", Giles said. "Don't worry, Buffy, I don't think I am in immediate danger."

Spike ushered Giles upstairs. On the top of the stairs, the vampire turned around and leered at Buffy. "Angel's coming to town," he said. "You might wanna wear something less slutty when he arrives."

He vanished with vampiric speed before the stake bored itself into the wall right where his heart had been only seconds before.

Xander was standing in the corner of the room, panting heavily. "What have you done?" He was feeling dizzy, he was losing control. Images rushed through his head at increasing speed.

"Stop it!" he cried.

Suddenly everything stopped and his whole being was focused on one particular image.

"Spike," he said with a smile.

He collapsed to the floor. Professor Walsh stared at Xander's apparently unconscious form. She had no idea what had just happened. The soft-drink had been drugged, but the drug she had used didn't usually have such an effect. It had been meant to make the boy more cooperative, not to take him out. She sighed and motioned a soldier over.

"Watch him and call me when he regains consciousness," she ordered. "Or if anything unusual happens."

"You WHAT?" Giles yelled at the top of his voice.

"'s not like I had a choice," Spike murmured, hoping the little anti-eavesdropping spell he'd made Giles cast before telling him anything worked. "'sides I really like the whelp."

"Spike, I am not sure that you realize the full implications of what you've done by claiming Xander as your mate. Your demon will never...Oh my god, Spike, please tell me you didn't!" Giles exclaimed when realization dawned on him.

"I did what I had to do and I enjoyed it," Spike said. "And I'm pretty sure Xander enjoyed it, too. I wanted to talk to you alone because I don't think Xander would want the girls to know what happened between us. Yet."

Spike watched with amusement as Giles tried to regain his composure.

"You...you actually had...er...sex with Xander," he finally managed.

"Yes," Spike said. "Get over it. We've got more important things to talk about." He paused and searched his coat pockets for his cigarettes. Like the previous ten times, he didn't find any. "Bloody fucking hell," he cursed.

Giles watched him, worried. "So, do you think you can find him?" he asked.

Spike nodded. "Pretty sure I can. Bond's stronger than I thought."

"What do you mean? Stronger than you thought?"

Spike looked uncomfortable. "I...I think something, well..."

"Spike, are you panting?"

The sudden look of panic on Spike's face did nothing to reassure Giles. When he slipped into his demon visage, Giles automatically reached for the cross on the night-stand. But Spike didn't attack. He clutched his head and dropped to the floor, back in his human guise.

Xander moaned. His head was spinning. Something was wrong. Very wrong.

"What's wrong with you?" a familiar voice asked.

He wanted to open his eyes but didn't dare. Something was wrong. And he wasn't sure if he wanted to know what it was. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Something-wrong-was -wrong- missing -wrong.

"Spike?" the voice said.

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. No heartbeat. His eyes flew open. Giles stood over him, brandishing a cross and looking scared.

"Giles?" he said.

Wrong. Wrong voice. Everything's wrong.

"Giles?" he repeated.
"What happened? Was it the chip?" Giles asked.

"Chip? Where's Spike? Why am I here? And why am I dead?" Xander stared into the mirror on the opposite wall, seeing only Giles'reflection. "I'm a vampire," he whispered.

"Spike, what is wrong with you? Have you lost your mind? Of course you are a vampire."

"Spike?" Xander said, confused. He looked down on his body. "Shit," he gasped when he realized whose body it was he was seeing. Time to panic for real. "G-man, I think, we have a problem," he said, facing Giles. "It's me, Xander."

Spike awoke to the sound of retreating footsteps. Confused he looked around. He was in a small white room. It almost looked like he was back at the Initiative base. He was alone but he swore he could hear a heartbeat. It was close. Very close. Too close. Suddenly he realized.

"Bloody hell," he muttered. "This can't be."

The door was opened and the woman entered.

"So you're awake again," she said. "I'm sorry, you weren't supposed to pass out. We'd like to carry out some experiments with you to figure out why you reacted like that to a relatively harmless drug."

"What the hell are you talking about, woman?" he asked.

"You cannot remember what happened before you lost consciousness?" she asked.


He jumped to his feet, in blind rage. "What have you done to him?" he questioned. "I warned you not to hurt him."

Giles stared at Spike-Xander, lost for words.

"Dammit, Giles, we have to figure out how to get me back at once. If he's there, in my body, he'll have us both killed in no time."

"Xander? Is that really you?" Giles asked.

"Giles, please! How do I get back?"

"Spike, if this is a game, I assure you it's not funny."

"Giles, it's me! How can I convince you? Right, wait...There must be something...Oh, yes, I know! Donuts, jelly for you."

Giles looked almost amused. "That was such a pathetic attempt that I am actually inclined to believe you."


"Wha...Did you just say I'm pathetic?"

Giles nervously took off his glasses and polished them with the sleeve of his sweater. "Spike...I mean, Xander..."

"Giles, you have to help me. I need to go back. Now."

"Back where?" Giles asked, confused.

"To...to...the base, my own body," Xander stammered.

"Well, how did you, er, get here in the first place?"

"I don't know," Xander admitted. "They drugged me...I don't remember."

"Xander, Spike, he didn't force you...?" Giles trailed off.

"No, Giles, don't worry. Please, you have to trust him! He's trying to help. Um, he hasn't killed Buffy, has he?"

"No, he hasn't...But you have no idea what it means to be a demon's mate," Giles interjected.

Xander sighed. "And if we don't get me back, I might never find out. Please Giles."

"Right," Giles muttered. "Sorry. Spike said the bond between the two of you was extraordinarily strong. So, if you called him on the bond..."

"Um, Spike kind of forgot to give me the number," Xander said. "I don't know how to do it, really..."

"Just try to concentrate on Spike. You have to banish any other thought."

Xander closed his eyes. Focus on Spike. He inhaled the familiar scent of Spike. Leather, smoke, peroxide, Spike.

"Come on, Spike, where are you?" he muttered.

Giles watched stunned as Spike-Xander worked himself into some kind of trance. He desperately wanted to talk to Xander to make sure the boy was all right but he knew that Xander had a point. A chipless Spike in Xander's body was a danger that must not be underestimated.

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