Part 15
They made a few more stops: Lowe's; Wal-Mart; Radio Shack; and an Army Navy
Surplus store. At each they went to the back and were met by a member of the
last class to graduate from the old high school. Gunn and Xander were then
assisted in loading merchandise, for which they had never paid, into the
U-Haul truck.
When they arrived back at the shop, they parked in the alley behind it. The
same alley Angel and Spike had had their throw down in the night before.
‘Was that only last night?’ Xander backed the truck as close to the door of
the training room as possible. He thought it should be easy to tie a tarp
between the roof of the building and the top of the truck to fashion a
makeshift awning.
In the training room Angel and Spike were assembling a temporary table out
of two carpenter’s horses and an old door. Xander walked up quietly behind
Spike just as they were finishing and slipped his arms around the blonde’s
waist. Hugging him tightly, Xander rested his head on Spike’s shoulder and
turning until his lips were almost touching Spike’s ear. He whispered. “If I
bat my eyelashes and string up a tarp, you think I could get some big strong
vampire to carry in the groceries?”
“Try it. Maybe Peaches will volunteer.” Spike rumbled back in an as equally
quiet purr. Then he seemed to think about what Xander had said and replied
louder. “Groceries?”
“Well,” Xander smirked and nipped at the still temptingly positioned ear.
“Most of what we got are the ingredients to bake a cake, zombie style, along
with a few party favors.”
Spike turned slowly toward the sharp teeth worrying his earlobe. He wore a
look that made Xander sure his next words were going to be either, ‘shag
now’, or ‘pet what is going on in that screwy little mind of your’; but they
were neither since Angel interrupted. “Xander I think you may want to talk
to Cordelia.”
“What? She doesn’t like being worshipped by the masses?” He asked.
Xander reluctantly let go of his lover. At that moment he wanted nothing
more than to take Spike and go home. He had a clear picture in his mind of
Spike, fresh from the shower wearing only an oversized pair of Xander’s old
sweat pants. Xander had spent most of last Saturday watching the blonde
amble around barefoot with his hair drying in soft wisps before it was
gelled, and absentmindedly performing routine chores while never taking his
nose out of some old book he had been reading. Last week the sheer
domesticity of the scene had been laughable, this week it seemed like a
glimpse of heaven.
“What’s this for?” Xander rapped soundly on the ‘table.’
“That crazy redheaded bint said something about there not being enough
ventilation in the kitchen and needing more space for the hotplates.”
“That crazy bint is your blood connection.” Xander replied, more for the
sheer pleasure of arguing with him than because he felt that Laura might
care what she was called by Spike.
“Xander!” Cordelia stood in the doorway to the front of the store, one
perfectly manicured hand on her hip. “Practically everyone in town has
stopped by here. I need help.”
“Fine. Tap the next two people to show up and make them your assistances.”
He spoke without thinking and then softened his voice and added, “I’m
counting on you C.”
“I’m on it.” She sighed and rolled her eyes, but added a smile before
heading back to the front of the shop.
Jonathan poked his head into the back and said, “I, um, we’ve pretty much
stopped doing business for the day I...”
“Great. Can you help Gunn string up a tarp out back? I need everything from
the door to the back of the truck shaded.” Gunn didn’t look happy but he
went with Jonathan to get the material out of storage.
“You alright pet?” Spike asked, reversing their positions from before he
folded his arms around Xander and gave a brief squeeze. Spike’s naked
concern chipped away at the walls, which Xander had been desperately
reinforcing all day.
“I don’t... I... Spike.” Xander pulled Spike’s arms even tighter and leaned
his head back rubbing his cheek against Spike’s. Unconcerned by Angel’s
presence Xander needed this, needed Spike. “I don’t know if I can do this
again. If... I... It’s so different from putting myself in danger, that...
well that sucks too... but that I can do, have done...this... I’m asking
them to risk their lives. Again.” He took a deep breath, Xander knew if he
let the tears start they wouldn’t stop. As much as he wanted to wrap himself
around Spike and hid from the whole Hellmouthy world he knew he couldn’t.
“Larry had a full scholarship, top ten school, four more years and his life
would have been set. He could have got out, gone far away, done anything.
I... I..” Xander’s voice broke and he swallowed hard forcing the lump back
down. When he continued his voice was hard and cold. “I put him there. Right
in the front line. It was a stall, so we could get the mayor into position.
He didn’t have a chance. His life bought time; he died because I needed
time. God Spike he didn’t have a chance in hell, and I put him there.”
He might have gone on, to the point where he would have broken, dropped into
a sobbing mass at his lover’s feet. Spike voice was unusually firm, and
lacked he everyday accent, when he interrupted. “No one has a chance in
Hell, love. Trust a demon’s word on that, or if you don’t ask Peaches.
That’s why you fight, to prevent Hell from being here, to keep this place a
little better than Hell. It must be working; otherwise all the Hellspawn
wouldn’t be trying to crash your party.”
Xander smiled and straightened and again disengaged himself from his lover’s
arms. “You’re right. We can do this.” He turned and softly kissed Spike,
lingering only a moment over his bottom lip. “Thank you.” Xander whispered.
Laura came into the room carrying one too many hotplates. Just as one
slipped, Angel rushed forward in a blur and caught it. Laura jumped back,
wide eyes never leaving the predator in front of her. Xander could almost
see the wheels turning as she contemplated how effective it would be to
bludgeon a vampire with a hotplate. Angel froze, and since he didn’t seem to
be attacking Laura backed up until she hit the wall. Giving Angel a wide
berth she circled to the table and started setting up the hotplate, seeming
unconcern by Spike’s close proximity.
Seeing Angel’s look of confusion and annoyance, Xander tried to play
diplomat. “Laura, you remember Angel, he was at graduation.”
“Lots of dead people were at graduation; more after than before.” She bit
her lip and shot Xander an
I-am-so-not-shaking-his-hand-even-if-he-is-your-friend look.
“You don’t seem to be disturbed by William the Bloody.” Angel said with just
a trace of the Angelus smirk.
“Spike? The dragonslayer? No I’m just glad he’s on our side.” She left,
again circling widely around Angel.
“Dragonslayer?” Angel looked from Xander to Spike and back again.
“Angel let it go. Spike will tell you she’s insane. But hey, it works for
us, so it’s of the good.” Since Angel didn’t look any less confused, Xander
continued. “Is Will, here?”
“She went to check on the nibblet.” Spike said. “What are you planning pet?”
Xander wasn’t sure the shop was secure, it was a great meeting place because
it was well known. That fact also made him uncomfortable with an open
discussion, fortunately he had considered this. Previous overtly paranoid
contingency plans were now simply resources for survival. He hoped that
Willow had also acted on the few wild speculations they had made into worse
case scenarios.
“Angel as soon as Willow gets here, round up Giles, Wesley and Tara. See if
Willow can do a cone of silence on Giles’ office.” Xander checked his watch.
“Tell her I need this now, but I’ll settle for having it in fifteen
minuets.”
Part 16
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